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Genezo 2:14

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14 Kaj la nomo de la tria rivero estas HXidekel; gxi estas tiu, kiu fluas antaux Asirio. Kaj la kvara rivero estas Euxfrato.

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Apocalypse Explained # 650

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650. The beast that cometh up out of the abyss shall make war with them, signifies assault from infernal love. This is evident from the signification of "beast," as being the affection of the natural man in both senses (of which presently; also from the signification of "the abyss," as being hell (of which above, n. 538; also from the signification of "to make war," as being to assault, for by "wars," in the Word, such wars as are in our world are not meant, but such as are in the spiritual world, all of which are combats of falsities from evil against truths from good; that such is the signification of "wars" in the Word will appear in what follows, where wars are again mentioned. From this it can be seen that "the beast that cometh up out of the abyss shall make war with them," that is, the witnesses, signifies that infernal love from the falsities of evil shall assault the truths of good.

[2] It has been shown before that a "beast" signifies a love or affection of the natural man; let something now be said about assault. Infernal love is especially the love of self, for the love of self is the love of what is man's own [proprium], and what is man's own is nothing but evil; consequently so far as a man is in that love he is against the Lord, and thus against the good of love and charity, and against the truth of doctrine and faith, thus against these "two witnesses;" for this reason, the hells where the love of self reigns are more direful and malignant than others, and are directly opposed to the Lord, and thence unceasingly assault the goods of love and faith, because these are from the Lord alone, and are the Lord with man and angel. That these hells are more direful than the others can be seen from this, that they continually breathe forth the destruction of those who confess the Divine of the Lord, therefore of those who are in the good of love and the good of faith in the Lord from the Lord.

[3] These hells are more malignant than the rest because so far as man is in the love of self, and at the same time in the love of self-intelligence, his natural lumen is in a kind of brightness, as it were, for the love of self is like a fire that kindles that lumen; it is from this that men can ingeniously think and reason against the Divine and against all things of heaven and the church. I have sometimes been astonished when I have listened to such, and have thought that they above all others were capable of being led to receive faith, but I perceived that this was impossible, for so far as they were enlightened in corporeal, worldly, and natural things they were in thick darkness in respect to celestial and spiritual things. This thick darkness was seen to be exceedingly dusky, with something fiery intermixed. This I could confirm by much experience, if this were the place for describing experiences. The love of self is what is here meant in particular by "the beast coming up out of the abyss," which made war with the two witnesses and killed them.

[4] That a "beast" signifies the love and affection of the natural man in both senses can be seen from very many passages in the Word; and this has heretofore been unknown, and as it may seem strange that "beasts" should signify the love or affection of the natural man, it is necessary to confirm this from the Word. Natural affections are signified by "beasts" because these affections are altogether similar to the affections of beasts, consequently a man who 1 is not imbued with spiritual affections through the goods and truths of heaven differs little from beasts. For man has above the beasts the superadded faculty to think and thence to will spiritually, which gives him the eminent faculty to see and perceive abstract things; but if this spiritual faculty is not vivified by the knowledges of truth and good, and afterwards by faith and the life of faith, he is no better than the beasts, except merely that by virtue of that higher faculty he is able to think and speak.

[5] Because the affections of the natural man are signified by "beasts," when those affections are presented to be seen in the spiritual world in forms like those animals, they appear altogether as the forms of various beasts; as for instance, lambs, sheep, she-goats, kids, he-goats, young cattle, oxen, cows; also as camels, horses, mules, asses; and also as bears, tigers, leopards, lions; likewise as dogs and serpents of various kinds. But such things are only appearances of the affections that are with spirits; and when these are made apparent it is also known there not only that the appearances are from these affections, but also from whom they are; but as soon as the affections with such cease, these appearances also cease. From this it can also be seen why "beasts" are so often mentioned in the Word.

[6] But let us proceed to the confirmations from the Word. In David:

Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of Thy hands. Thou hast put all things under His feet, the flock and herds, yea, the beasts of the fields, the bird of heaven, and the fishes of the sea (Psalms 8:6-8).

This whole psalm treats of the Lord and His dominion over all things of heaven and the church; the things of heaven and the church are meant here and elsewhere in the Word by "the works of the hands of Jehovah;" and as it is over these things that the Lord has dominion, and as spiritual things in the Word are expressed by natural things, for the Word in its bosom is spiritual, so by "flock," "herds," "the beasts of the field," "the birds of heaven," and "the fishes of the sea," these are not meant, but the spiritual things of heaven and the church. "Flock and herds" signify spiritual things and natural things that are from a spiritual origin, a "flock," that is, lambs, kids, she-goats, sheep, and rams, signifying spiritual things, and "herds," which are bullocks, oxen, cows, and camels, natural things from spiritual things; "beasts of the field" signify the affections of the natural man, "birds of the heavens" thoughts therefrom, and "fishes of the sea," the knowledges [scientifica] of the sensual-natural man. Except for this meaning, why should the Lord's dominion over these be described?

[7] In the same:

O God, Thou makest the rain of good will to drop down; Thou shalt strengthen Thine inheritance when it is weary; Thy wild beast (Thy congregation) shall dwell in it (Psalms 68:9, 10).

Here evidently "wild beast" stands for a people that receives the influx of Divine truth from the Lord, for of God's "inheritance," which signifies the church, it is said, "Thy wild beast (Thy congregation) shall dwell in it;" "the rain of good will" signifies the influx of Divine truth from Divine clemency.

[8] In the same:

Jehovah, who sendeth forth springs into the brooks; they run between the mountains, they give drink to every wild beast; the wild asses quench their thirst, by them the bird of the heavens dwells, from among the boughs they give forth their voice; who causeth the grass to spring forth for the beast, and the herb for the service of man, that he may bring forth bread out of the earth. Thou appointest the darkness that there may be night, in which every wild beast of the forest goeth forth. The sea great and wide in spaces, wherein is the creeping thing without number, the wild beasts, the small with the great (Psalms 104:10-12, 14, 20, 25).

This, too, is said of the Lord, and these words describe the establishment of the church among the nations; therefore "wild beasts," "beasts," and "birds" signify such things as are with the man of the church.

[9] It is to be known that in many passages sometimes it is said "beast," and sometimes "wild beast," also that the term "wild beast" is not to be understood as it is commonly understood, for in the Hebrew "wild beast" [fera] is derived from a word that means life, therefore in some passages "animal" would be a better rendering than "wild beast," as can be seen from this, that the four animals that were seen as cherubim and that signify Divine Providence and protection in Ezekiel (chaps. 1, and 10) are called "animals" [ferae]; likewise the cherubim are meant by "the four animals about the throne" which are described by John in Revelation. Nevertheless, in the Word "beast" and "wild beast" are carefully distinguished, "beasts" signifying the affections of the natural man that belong to man's will, and "wild beasts" the affections of the natural man that belong to man's understanding. As in the Hebrew "wild beast" is derived from a word that means life, Eve the wife of Adam had her name from the same word. This is said that it may be known what "wild beast" and "beast" signify in the proper sense.

[10] What is signified by "Jehovah sendeth forth springs into the brooks, to run between the mountains, and give drink to every wild beast of the fields, the wild asses quench their thirst, and by them the bird of the heavens dwells," has been explained above n. 483. "Jehovah causeth the grass to spring forth for the beast, and the herb for the service of man, that he may bring forth bread out of the earth," signifies the instruction and nourishment of the natural and spiritual man by truths from the Word, that he may have thereby the good of love and charity; "grass" signifies the truth of the natural man, which is true knowledge (See above, n. 507; "beast" signifies affection for it which wishes to be instructed and spiritually nourished; "herb" signifies the truth of the spiritual man; "man" signifies intelligence therefrom and "bread" signifies the good of love and charity, which is nourished by truths. As "darkness" and "night" signify the lumen of the natural man, which compared to the light of the spiritual man is like night, "the wild beast of the forest" signifies the affection of knowledges [scientifica], "the sea great and wide in spaces" the natural itself, "the creeping thing without number" knowledge [scientifica] therein, and "the wild beasts great and small" the various affections, it is evident what is signified by "Thou appointest the darkness that there may be night, in which every wild beast of the forest goeth forth; the sea great and wide in its spaces, wherein is the creeping thing without number, wild beasts the small with the great."

[11] In the same:

They shall sow fields and plant vineyards, and make fruit of increase, and He shall bless them so that they may be multiplied exceedingly; and He shall not diminish their beast; yet are they diminished and bowed down because of the vehemence of wickedness and grief (Psalms 107:37-39).

This entire psalm treats of the Lord's coming and of redemption by Him; that they will then have truths, by which the church will be implanted in them, is signified by "They shall sow fields and plant vineyards;" that in consequence they will have the goods of the church, and thence truths will increase, is signified by "shall make fruit of increase," and by "Jehovah shall bless them so that they shall be multiplied exceedingly;" that then every good affection of the natural man will remain with them is signified by "He shall not diminish their beast;" that otherwise these affections would not be destroyed by evils is signified by "they are diminished and bowed down because of the vehemence of wickedness and grief."

[12] In the same:

Praise Jehovah, ye whales and all deeps, wild beast and every beast, creeping thing and every bird of wing (Psalms 148:7, 10).

In this psalm very many things in the world that have no life, but that shall praise Jehovah, are enumerated, as "fire," "hail," "snow," "vapor," "the wind of tempest," "mountains," "hills," "trees," "fruits," "cedars," as also here, "wild beasts," "beasts," "creeping things," and "birds," which nevertheless cannot praise Jehovah. Who cannot see that the enumeration of such things in the Divine Word would be wholly unmeaning unless they signified something with man that can praise, that is, worship Jehovah? From a knowledge of correspondences it is known that "whales" signify the knowledges of the natural man in general, "deeps" and "seas" the natural itself where the knowledges are, "wild beast" and "beasts," the affections of the natural man as well those which belong to his understanding as those of his will, "the creeping things" the sensual, which is the ultimate of the natural man, and "birds of wing" the thinking faculty therefrom.

[13] In the same:

Jehovah who prepareth rain for the earth, who maketh grass to spring forth upon the mountains, who giveth to the beast his food, to the sons of the raven which call (Psalms 147:8, 9).

These particulars too, signify the spiritual things belonging to heaven and the church. Why else should the Word (which is given solely to teach man the way to heaven, by teaching him the truths of faith and the goods of love), speak of Jehovah as "preparing rain for the earth, making grass to spring forth upon the mountains, giving to the beast his food, and to the sons of the raven which call upon Him?" These things, however, are worthy of the Divine Word, when by "rain" the influx of Divine truth is meant, by "mountains" the good of love, by "making grass to spring forth" the instruction of the natural man by the knowledges from the Word, by "beasts" the affections of the natural man, which desire to be thus nourished. "To give food" signifies nourishment; and since "the sons of the raven" signify natural men who are in an obscure lumen from fallacies respecting Divine truths, as were many of the nations, it is said "He giveth to the sons of the raven which call," for such can call upon Jehovah, but not the sons of a raven.

[14] In the same:

Every wild beast of the forest is Mine, the beasts upon a thousand mountains. I know every bird of the mountains, and the wild beast of My fields is with Me (Psalms 50:10, 11).

This is said of sacrifices, that the Lord does not delight in them, but in the confession of heart and calling upon Him; yet "the wild beast of the forest," "the beasts upon the mountains," and "the bird of the mountains," and "the wild beast of the fields," have a similar signification as above, namely, things pertaining to the man of the church.

[15] In the same:

Thy righteousness is like the mountains of God, Thy judgments are a great deep; O Jehovah, Thou preservest man and beast (Psalms 36:6).

"Man and beast" signify interior affection, which is spiritual, from which is intelligence, and exterior affection, which is natural, from which is knowledge [scientia] corresponding to intelligence.

[16] "Man and beast" have a like signification in the following passages.

In Jeremiah:

The God of Israel said, I have made the earth, the man and the beast that are upon the faces of the earth, by My great power (Jeremiah 27:5; 36:29).

In the same:

Behold the days shall come in which I will sow the house of Judah with the seed of man and with the seed of beast (Jeremiah 31:27).

In the same:

Yet again in this place, concerning which ye say, It is devastated so that there is no man nor beast, and in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem that are devastated, so that there is no man, and no inhabitant, and no beast, there shall be heard the voice of joy and the voice of gladness (Jeremiah 33:10-12).

In the same:

The whole land shall be a desolation, so that there shall not be man or beast (Jeremiah 32:43).

In the same:

I will smite the inhabitants of this city, both man and beast; they shall die of a great pestilence (Jeremiah 21:6).

In the same:

A nation from the north cometh up against Babylon; this shall make her land a desolation, so that none shall dwell therein; from man even to beast they are dispersed, they have gone away (Jeremiah 50:3).

In the same:

My anger and My wrath is poured out upon this place, upon man and upon beast (Jeremiah 7:20).

In Ezekiel:

When the land shall sin against Me, I will break its staff of bread and I will send into it famine, and I will cut off from it man and beast (Ezekiel 14:13, 17, 19).

In the same:

I will stretch out My hand over Edom and will cut off from it man and beast (Ezekiel 25:13).

In the same:

I will destroy every beast of Egypt over many waters, so that the foot of man shall trouble them no more, nor shall the hoof of beast trouble them (Ezekiel 32:13).

In the same:

I will multiply upon you man and beast, that they may increase and be fruitful (Ezekiel 36:11).

In Zephaniah:

In consuming I will consume all things from upon the faces of the land. I will consume man and beast, I will consume the bird of the heavens and the fishes of the sea, and the stumbling-blocks with the wicked, and I will cut off man from the faces of the earth (Zephaniah 1:2, 3).

In Zechariah:

The angel who came to measure Jerusalem said, Run, speak, saying, Jerusalem shall inhabit the suburbs, by reason of the multitude of man and of the beast in the midst of it (Zechariah 2:3, 4).

Let your hands be strong, for the temple shall be built; for before those days there was no price for man nor any price for beast, for to him that went out and to him that came in there was no peace from the enemy (Zechariah 8:9, 10).

[17] In these passages "man and beast" 2 signifies what is interior or spiritual, and "beast" what is exterior or natural; and therefore "man" signifies the spiritual affection of truth, from which is all intelligence, and "beast" the natural affection corresponding to the spiritual. What is exterior or natural is signified by "beast," because man, in respect to his external or natural man is nothing but a beast; for he enjoys like desires and also pleasures, appetites and senses, so that in these respects man is entirely similar to the beast; therefore the natural man may be called the animal man. But what is internal or spiritual is signified by "man," because it is in respect to his internal or spiritual that man is man; this enjoys the affections of good and truth such as are with the angels of heaven, also because by means of this with him man rules his natural or animal man, which is a beast.

[18] Because the spiritual man and the natural man are signified by "man and beast" in the history of creation (Genesis 1), it is related that the beasts and also man were created on the same day, namely, the sixth; and afterwards, that to man was given dominion over the beasts. Of the creation of the beasts and man on the same day, and of man's dominion over the beasts, we thus read in Genesis:

God said, Let the earth bring forth the living soul according to its kind, and what moveth itself, and the wild beast of the earth according to its kind; and it was so. And God made the wild beast of the earth according to its kind, and the beast according to its kind, and everything that creepeth upon the ground according to its kind. And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness; and they shall have dominion over the fishes of the sea, and over the bird of the heavens, and over the beast, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth. And there was evening and there was morning, the third 3 day (Genesis 1:24-31).

In the spiritual sense of this chapter, by "the creation of heaven and earth" the new creation or regeneration of the man of the Most Ancient Church is described; for this reason "beast" here signifies the external or natural man, and "man" the internal spiritual, and "dominion over the beasts" here means the dominion of the spiritual man over the natural.

[19] That it was granted to the man of that church to know all the affections of the natural man, in order that he might have dominion over them, is signified by these words in Genesis:

Out of the ground Jehovah God formed every beast of the field, and every bird of the heavens, and brought unto the man, to see what he would call it; and whatsoever man called it, the living soul, that was its name; and the man called the names to every beast, and to the bird of the heavens, and to every wild beast of the field (Genesis 2:19, 20).

"To call the name" signifies in the spiritual sense to know the quality of a thing, or what it is, so here to know the qualities of all the affections, desires, pleasures, appetites, also the thoughts and inclinations of the natural man, and how they agree and correspond to the affections and perceptions of the spiritual man. For it was granted to the spiritual man from creation to see all things of the natural man, and at the same time to perceive its agreement or disagreement with the spiritual, in order that he might rule the natural and accept such things as agree and reject those that disagree, and thus might become spiritual even as to effects, which are wrought by means of the natural man. (But this may be seen more fully explained in Arcana Coelestia 142-146.)

[20] Because "man" in the Word signifies properly the internal or spiritual man, and "beast" the external or natural man, by command of God all beasts and birds were brought into the ark with Noah; of which it is thus written in Genesis:

Jehovah said to Noah, Of every clean beast thou shalt take to thee seven and seven, male and female; and of the beast that is not clean two, male and female. And he took of the beast that was clean, and of the beast not clean, and of the bird, and of everything that creepeth upon the earth; two and two entered unto Noah into the ark, male and female (Genesis 7:1-9).

"Noah's flood" describes in the spiritual sense the destruction of the Most Ancient Church, and also the Last Judgment upon the men of that church; and by "Noah and his sons" in the same sense, the church that followed is meant and described, which is called the Ancient Church. From this it follows that the "beasts" brought into the ark with Noah mean the affections of the natural man, corresponding to spiritual affection, which the men of that church had (but these things may be seen explained in Arcana Coelestia).

[21] Since "man" signifies the internal spiritual man, and "beast" signifies the external or natural, and "Egypt" signifies the natural man separated from the spiritual, which has altogether perished and is no longer a man but a beast, so where the destruction of Egypt is treated of it is related that:

Jehovah made hail to rain with which fire was mingled, and smote everything that was in the fields, from man even to beast (Exodus 9:22-25).

(See respecting this also in Arcana Coelestia.) For the purpose of representing and thus signifying the same thing it is also written that:

Jehovah smote all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from man even to beast (Exodus 12:12, 29).

But on the other hand, the sons of Israel, by whom the church was represented, were commanded:

To sacrifice to Jehovah all the firstborn of man and of beast (Numbers 18:15).

Because such things were represented and thus signified by "man and beast," from a holy rite received in the Ancient Church:

The king of Nineveh proclaimed a fast, and commanded that neither man nor beast should taste or drink anything, and that man and beast should be covered with sackcloth (Jonah 3:7, 8).

[22] Because "beasts" signify the affections in both senses it was forbidden to make the figure of any beast; of which it is thus written in Moses:

Ye shall not make to you the figure of any beast that is on the earth, the figure of any winged bird that flieth under heaven, the figure of anything that creepeth on the ground, the figure of any fish that is in the waters under the earth (Deuteronomy 4:17, 18).

This was because the posterity of Jacob, who were called, because of the representation of the church with them, "the sons of Israel," were in externals without an internal, that is, were for the most part merely natural; if, therefore, they had made to themselves the figure of any beast or bird, which signified the affections and the like, they would have made idols for themselves, and would have worshiped them. This, too, was why the Egyptians, who had more knowledge of representatives than any other people, made for themselves figures of beasts, as of calves, serpents, and many other kinds; yet at first not with reference to worship, but on account of their signification; but their posterity, who from internal became external, and thus merely natural, did not look upon these as representative and significative, but as holy things of the church, and thus they offered to them idolatrous worship. It was for this reason that the posterity of Jacob, who were altogether external men, and thence in heart idolatrous, were forbidden to make to themselves any figure of these things.

[23] As for example: they worshiped calves in Egypt, and afterwards in the wilderness, because a "calf" signifies the first affections of the natural man, together with its good of innocence. The Gentiles here and there worshiped serpents because a "serpent" signifies the sensual, which is the ultimate of the natural man and its prudence, and so with the rest.

[24] Because "beasts" signified the various things of the natural man it was also sometimes commanded when cities or regions were given to the curse that the beasts also should be slaughtered, for the reason that "the beasts" represented the evil and profane things with the men who were given to the curse. Because all kinds of beasts signify the various things pertaining to the men of the church, laws were enacted respecting beasts, which ones might be eaten and which might not be eaten (Leviticus 11). Those that might be eaten signified goods, and those that might not be eaten signified evils; for the church at that time was a representative church, and therefore every particular prescribed for them was representative and significative, especially the beasts; of this we thus read in Moses:

Ye shall distinguish between the clean beast and the unclean, and between the unclean bird and the clean, that ye may not make your souls abominable by beast or by bird; and ye shall be holy unto Me (Leviticus 20:25, 26).

[25] From this it can now be seen why sacrifices of beasts of various kinds were permitted, as of lambs, sheep, kids, goats, bullocks, oxen, also of pigeons and turtledoves; namely, because they signified things spiritual, and things natural from a spiritual origin; as "lambs" innocence, "sheep" charity, "bullocks and oxen" the affections of the natural man corresponding to the affections of the spiritual man. It was on this account that the beasts for the sacrifices varied according to the reasons for which they were offered; this would not have been unless each particular sacrifice of beasts had signified something belonging to the church.

[26] As the man of the church at the present day can hardly be led to believe that "beasts" and "wild beasts" signify in the Word the affections of good and truth which belong to the man of the church, and this because it seems so strange that anything belonging to beasts should signify anything belonging to man, I will here cite more passages from the Word in the way of confirmation.

In Ezekiel:

Speak unto the king of Egypt and to his multitude, Whom art thou like in thy stature? Behold Asshur, a cedar in Lebanon, beautiful in branch and with shady foliage; his stature was higher than all the trees of the field, and his branches were multiplied because of many waters; in his branches all the birds of the heavens built their nests; and under his branches every wild beast of the field has brought forth, and in his shade have dwelt all great nations; he was beautiful in his greatness. But because thou art lifted up in height he should be cut down; upon his ruin every bird of the heavens shall dwell, and every wild beast of the field shall be upon his branches (Ezekiel 31:2, 3, 5-7, 10, 12, 13).

"The king of Egypt and his multitude" signify the natural man with the knowledges [scientifica] therein; "Asshur, the cedar in Lebanon," signifies the rational which is formed by knowledges [scientifica] on the one part and by the influx of spiritual truth on the other; "beautiful in branch and with shady foliage" signifies intelligence through rational truths by means of knowledges [scientifica].

[27] "His stature was higher than all the trees of the field" signifies elevation even to the interior rational which is from the spiritual; "branches multiplied because of many waters" signify abundance through spiritual truths which are from the cognitions of truth from the Word; "the fowl of the heavens that built their nests in his branches" signify spiritual thoughts in things rational, for the rational is the medium between the internal spiritual man and the external natural; "every wild beast of the field that brought forth under his branches" signifies the affections of knowledges [scientifica] rationally perceived.

[28] "The great nations" that dwelt in his shade signify the goods of the affections in the natural man; "beautiful in greatness" signifies intelligence; while "the bird of the heavens and the wild beast of the field that shall dwell upon his ruin and in his branches" signify the falsities of thoughts, and the evils of desires which one has because he is "lifted up in height," that is, has become proud from the love of self-intelligence. Thoughts of truth and affections for it are signified evidently by "birds of the heavens and the wild beasts of the field," for it is said that "great nations dwelt in his shade."

[29] In Daniel:

Behold a tree in the midst of the earth, and the height thereof was great; it reached even to heaven, and the sight thereof unto the end of the earth; the leaf thereof was fair, and the flower thereof much, and in it was food for all; the beast of the field had shadow under it, and the birds of heaven dwelt in its branches; and all flesh was nourished from it. A watcher and holy one came down from heaven, crying, Hew down the tree and cut off his branches, shake off his leaf, scatter his flower; let the beast flee from under him, and the birds from his branches; but leave the stump of his roots in the earth, even with a band of iron and brass, with the herbage of the field; and let him be wet with the dew of the heavens, and let his portion be with the beast in the grass of the earth; they shall change his heart from man's and the heart of a beast shall be given to him (Daniel 4:10-16).

This was the dream of Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, and it describes the establishment of the celestial church and its increase even to its culmination, and afterwards its overthrow because of its domination even over the holy things of the church, and its claiming to itself a right over heaven.

[30] "The tree in the midst of the earth" signifies that church; its "height" signifies the extension of perception and thus of wisdom; "its sight unto the end of the earth" signifies its extension even to the ultimates of the church; "the leaf thereof was fair, and the flower thereof much," signifies the knowledges and affections of truth and good, and intelligence therefrom; "in it was food for all" signifies heavenly nourishment which is from good and from truths thence; "the beast of the field had shadow under it, and the birds of the heavens dwelt in its branches," signifies the affections of good and the consequent thoughts and perceptions of truth; and as these pertain to spiritual food it is said that "all flesh was nourished from it."

[31] But because of its domination, from the love of self, over the holy things of heaven and the church, which the Babylonians at length claimed control of, a description of its overthrow follows: "A watcher and holy one came down from heaven, crying, Hew down the tree and cut off his branches, shake off the leaf, scatter the flower; let the beast flee from under him and the birds from his branches;" for the love of self and the consequent elation of mind increases with such even to their claiming a right over the holy things of the church, yea, over heaven itself; and when this is done everything of the church perishes, even all perception and the knowledge of good and truth; for the internal of the mind where the spiritual resides is closed up, and the external where the natural resides has dominion, and thus man becomes sensual, until he differs but little from the beasts.

[32] The "stump of the roots which should be left in the earth" signifies the Word, only the letter of which is understood, and which is merely something known, held in the memory and going forth therefrom into speech; "bands of iron and brass" signify the interior truths and goods closed up and held bound in ultimates, "iron" meaning truth in ultimates, and "brass" good in ultimates, and these when separated from the interiors are falsities and evils. And as the man of the church then becomes almost like a beast in respect to the understanding and to the will, since the evils of the affections and the falsities of the thoughts have rule, it is said that "his portion shall be with the beast in the grass of the earth, and his heart shall be changed from man's, and the heart of a beast shall be given him." That this change and inversion took place on account of their claiming the right over the holy things of the church, and at length over heaven, is evident from verses 30-32 of this chapter, where are these words:

The king said, Is not this the great Babylon which I have built for the house of the kingdom by the might of my power and for the glory of mine honor? While the word was in the king's mouth there fell a voice from the heavens, saying, The kingdom shall pass away from thee, and they shall drive thee from man, and thy dwelling shall be with the beast of the field; they shall make thee to eat the herb as oxen, until thou dost know that the Most High ruleth in the kingdom of man, and giveth it to whomsoever He will.

[33] That "Nebuchadnezzar," as king of Babylon, signifies in the beginning a celestial church and its increase even to the pinnacle of wisdom, is evident also from Daniel, where treating of the statue seen by Nebuchadnezzar in a dream it is said:

The God of the heavens hath given into thine hand the sons of man, the beast of the field, and the bird of the heavens, and hath made thee to rule over all; thou art the head of the statue which is of gold (Daniel 2:37, 38).

"The head of the statue, which was of gold," signifies the celestial church, which is the first of all. That church is signified by "the king of Babylon" at first, because the church that finally becomes Babylon or Babylonia begins with the worship of the Lord and from love to Him, and there then prevails with it a zeal for extending and perfecting the church by means of the holy goods and truths of heaven, but this from a motive as yet hidden, namely, a love of exercising dominion, which however breaks forth only by degrees. But more will be said about this when Babylon is treated of.

[34] In Hosea:

In that day will I make a covenant for them with the wild beast of the field and with the bird of the heavens and with the creeping thing of the earth, and I will break the bow and the sword and the war from the earth, and I will make them to lie down securely; and I will betroth thee to Me forever (Hosea 2:18, 19).

This is said of the establishment of a new church by the Lord, which is here treated of. Evidently Jehovah, that is, the Lord, will then make a covenant, not with the wild beast of the field, the bird of the heavens, and the creeping thing of the earth, but with the men in whom the church will be established. These things, therefore, signify such things as are with man, namely, the "wild beast of the field" the affection of the knowledges of truth, the "bird of the heavens" rational thought from what is spiritual, the "creeping thing of the earth" the knowledge [scientificum] of the natural man, in particular sensual knowledge. That He will then "break the bow and the sword from the earth" signifies that He will destroy the falsities that fight against the truths of doctrine; and that there will be no longer any contention between truths and falsities and goods and evils is signified by "I will betroth thee to Me forever."

[35] In Isaiah:

The wild beast of the field shall honor Me, the dragons and the daughters of the owl; because I will give waters in the wilderness and rivers in the desert, to give drink to My people, My chosen (Isaiah 43:20).

Evidently "the wild beast of the field," "the dragons," and "the daughters of the owl," do not mean here a wild beast of the field, dragons and owls, for these cannot honor Jehovah. That the men of the church are meant is clear from what follows, since it is said, "to give drink to My people, My chosen." "The wild beast of the field" signifies therefore the affections of the knowledges of truth, "dragons" natural ideas, and "daughters of the owl" sensual affections; for the sensual is affected by truths and sees them in the darkness as owls see objects at night.

[36] This being the signification, it is evident that the Gentiles with whom a new church was to be established are meant, for before they were reformed these were in such obscure affection and natural thought. "To give waters in the wilderness and rivers in the desert" signifies to imbue with truths and thence with intelligence those who before were in ignorance, "waters" meaning truths, "rivers" intelligence, and "wilderness and desert" ignorance; "to give drink to the people of Jehovah and to His chosen" signifies to instruct those who are in the truths of faith and in the good of charity; those who are in the truths of faith are called "people," and those who are in the good of charity are called "chosen. "

[37] In Joel:

Is not the food cut off before our eyes from the house of our God, gladness and joy? The beast groaneth, the droves of cattle are perplexed, because they have no pasture; also the droves of the flock are made desolate. The beast of the field panteth after thee, because the channels of waters are dried up, and fire hath devoured the habitations of the wilderness (Joel 1:16, 18, 20).

This describes the state of the church when there are no longer in it any truths of doctrine or good of life. "The food cut off from the house of God" signifies spiritual nourishment, which is from truths that are from good, "the house of God" signifying the church; "the beast groaneth, the droves of cattle are perplexed" signifies the lack of the affections of truth and thence of knowledges in the natural man, and grief on that account, "droves of cattle" signifying the things of the natural man in the whole complex.

[38] That there is "no pasture" signifies no instruction; "the droves of the flock are made desolate" signifies the lack of spiritual truth and good which are of faith and charity; "the beast of the field panteth after thee" signifies the grief of those who are in natural affection, and consequently in a longing for the knowledges of truth and good; "the channels of waters are dried up" signifies the truths of doctrine dissipated by natural love; "fire hath devoured the habitations of the wilderness" signifies that love and thence the destruction of the knowledges of truth, "the habitations of the wilderness" meaning the things of the understanding and the will in such a man, which would otherwise receive the truths and goods of the church.

[39] In the same:

Fear, 4 O earth, rejoice and be glad, for Jehovah hath done great things; fear not, ye beasts of My fields, for the habitations of the wilderness are made full of herbs, for the tree shall bear her fruit, the fig tree and the vine shall yield their strength. Sons of Zion, rejoice and be glad in Jehovah (Joel 2:21-23).

This is said of the establishment of the church by the Lord; and the "earth which will fear, but rejoice and be glad" signifies the church and its delight; its establishment by the Lord is signified by "Jehovah hath done great things;" therefore "the beasts of His fields" mean those who are in the affections of good and long for instruction from the Word, "beasts" meaning those who are in the affections of good belonging to the natural man, and "fields" the doctrinals from the Word.

[40] "The habitations of the wilderness are made full of herbs" signifies that there will be the knowledges of truth and good with those with whom there were none before; "the tree shall bear her fruit" signifies the bringing forth of the good of life through these knowledges, for a "tree" signifies the man of the church, and in particular a mind imbued with knowledges, and "fruit" signifies the good of life; "the fig tree and the vine shall yield their strength" signifies the bringing forth of the effect from natural good and spiritual good together. Because "beasts of the fields," "tree," "fig tree," and "vine," signify such things as are with the man of the church it is said, "Sons of Zion, rejoice and be glad in Jehovah," "sons of Zion" meaning those who are of the celestial church, while "to rejoice" is predicated of the delight of good; and "to be glad" of the pleasantness of truth.

[41] In Ezekiel:

In that day Gog shall come upon the land of Israel; and then shall be a great earthquake upon the land of Israel; and the fishes of the sea, and the bird of the heavens, and the wild beast of the field, and every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth, and every man who is upon the faces of the earth, shall tremble before Me (Ezekiel 38:18-20).

"Gog" signifies external holiness without internal holiness, thus those who are in such holiness; an "earthquake" signifies a change of the state of the church; "the fishes of the sea, and the bird of the heavens, the wild beast of the field, the creeping thing of the earth, and every man, shall tremble" signifies that all things of man, in respect to what belongs to the church with him, shall be changed; "the fishes of the sea" meaning the knowledges [scientifica], "the birds of the heavens" thoughts therefrom, "the wild beasts of the field" the affections therefrom, "the creeping thing of the earth" the thoughts and affections in the corporeal-sensual, and "man" all these from first to last. Why otherwise should these be said to tremble before Jehovah?

[42] In Zechariah:

There shall be in that day a great tumult, Judah shall fight against Jerusalem and so shall be the plague of the horse, of the mule, of the camel, and of the ass, and of every beast that shall be in those camps; afterwards everyone remaining shall go up to Jerusalem (Zechariah 14:13-15).

This describes the last state of the old church, and the beginning of the new. The last state of the old church is described by "a great tumult, when Judah shall fight against Jerusalem," which means the change at that time, and the fight of the love of evil against the truths of the doctrine of the church; "the plague of the horse, of the mule, of the camel, of the ass, and of every beast" signify such things as hurt and destroy the church and the spiritual life of the men of the church, "horses, mules, camels, and asses" signifying the things of their understanding and of their will, thus the things of their knowledges and affections. But what is signified in particular by "horse, mule, camel, and ass," has been told elsewhere; here it is stated merely that "beast" signifies the affection of the natural man, and "the plague of beast" the hurting and destroying of that affection.

[43] In Jeremiah:

How long shall the land mourn, and the herb of every field dry up? For the wickedness of them that rule 5 therein the beasts and the bird shall be consumed (Jeremiah 12:4).

The "land" means the church; "the herb of the field" signifies the truth of the church that has sprung up and that is springing up; "to mourn and to dry up" signifies to perish and to be dissipated by lusts; "the beasts and the bird that shall be consumed" signify the affections of good and the thoughts of truth therefrom. The result is that these will perish by reason of the evils in the church; therefore it is said, "for the wickedness of them that dwell in the land."

[44] In Isaiah:

The bird of the mountains and the beast of the earth shall be left together; 6 but the bird shall loathe it, and every beast of the earth shall despise it (Isaiah 18:6).

This is said of "the land shadowed with wings," by which the church is meant which, because of the obscurity it is in, catches at imaginary things for spiritual truths, and thus from ignorance comes into a denial of these truths. "Bird and beast" signify here the thoughts of truth and the affections of good, both rational and natural, which are said "to loathe and despise." Evidently it is not the bird and every beast that will loathe and despise, but the affections of good and the thoughts of truth, that is, those who are in these.

[45] In Hosea:

They commit robbery, bloods touch bloods, and everyone that dwelleth therein shall languish, even to the wild beast of the field and the bird of the heavens, yea, the fishes of the sea shall be gathered up (Hosea 4:2, 3).

Here again "the wild beast of the field," "the bird of the heavens," and "the fishes of the sea," have a similar signification as above.

[46] In Ezekiel:

Thou son of man, say to every bird of every wing, and to every wild beast of the field, Gather yourselves together and come, gather yourselves from every side to My sacrifice that I sacrifice for you, a great sacrifice upon the mountains of Israel, that ye may eat flesh and drink blood; ye shall eat the flesh of the mighty, and drink the blood of the princes of the earth, rams, lambs, and kids, 7 the bullocks, all of them fatlings of Bashan; ye shall eat fat to satiety, and drink blood to drunkenness, of My sacrifice which I sacrifice for you; and ye shall be satiated at My table with horse and chariot, with the mighty, and with every man of war; so will I give My glory among the nations (Ezekiel 39:17-21).

This is said of the calling together of the Gentiles to the church, and the reception by them of the truth of doctrine in the good of love, which is the good of life, and of their consequent intelligence in spiritual things. Therefore "the bird of every wing and every wild beast of the field" which shall be gathered from every side to the great sacrifice upon the mountains of Israel, mean all in whatever state they may be in respect to the perception of truth and the affection of good, "the bird of every wing" meaning all in whatever kind of perception of truth they may be, and "every wild beast of the field" all in whatever kind of affection of good they may be; "to gather together from every side" signifies those outside the church from every quarter.

[47] "The great sacrifice" signifies the worship of the Lord from faith and love, for that is what "sacrifices" in general represented; and "the mountains of Israel" signify the goods of spiritual love. "To eat flesh and drink blood" signifies to appropriate to oneself the good of love and the truth of that good; "to eat the flesh of the mighty and drink the blood of the princes of the earth" signifies such appropriation, "the mighty" (or oxen) signifying the affections of the natural man, and "the princes of the earth" the chief truths of the church; "rams, lambs, kids, 7 bullocks, fatlings of Bashan" signify all things of innocence, love, charity, and good, "the fatlings of Bashan" meaning the goods of the natural man from a spiritual origin.

[48] From this it is clear what is signified by "eating flesh to satiety, and drinking blood to drunkenness," namely, to be filled with every good of love and truth of faith; "to be satiated at the table of the Lord with horse and chariot, with the mighty, and with every man of war" signifies to be fully instructed from the Word, "horse" signifying the understanding of truth, "chariot" the doctrine of truth, "the mighty and the man of war" the truth of good fighting against the falsity of evil, and destroying it. Because this is said of the calling together of the Gentiles to the church of the Lord, it is added, "so will I give my glory among the nations," "glory" signifying the Divine truth in light.

[49] That such is the signification of "bird of every wing and beast of the field" can be seen from passages before explained, also from these words in Isaiah:

The saying of the Lord Jehovih, who gathereth the outcasts of Israel, I will yet gather them to his gathered ones; every wild beast of My fields, come ye to devour, every wild beast in the forest (Isaiah 56:8, 9).

"The outcasts of Israel," whom the Lord will gather, signify all in the church who are in truths from good separated from those therein who are in falsities from evil; these are meant also by "the wild beasts of the fields of the Lord Jehovih," "fields" signifying the church in reference to the implantation of the truth of doctrine; but the Gentiles that are without the church are signified by "the wild beast in the forest," the "forest" signifying the natural and sensual man, and "the wild beast" its knowledge [scientia] and obscure intelligence therefrom. This evidently is the signification of "the wild beast of the field" and "the wild beast in the forest," for it is said, "Come ye to devour, every wild beast of My fields and every wild beast in the forest," "to devour" signifying instruction and appropriation.

[50] As most things in the Word have also a contrary sense, so also have "beast" and "wild beast," in which sense "beasts" signify evil affections, which are the cupidities of adulterating and destroying the goods of the church, and "wild beasts" the cupidities of falsifying and thus destroying the truths of the church.

[51] In this sense "beasts" and "wild beasts" are mentioned in the following passages. In Ezekiel:

I will raise up over them one shepherd, who shall feed them, My servant David; he shall be to them for a shepherd; then I will make with them a covenant of peace, and will cause the evil wild beast to cease out of the land, that they may dwell trustingly in the wilderness and sleep in the forest; they shall be no more a prey to the nations, and the wild beast of the earth shall not devour them, but they shall dwell trustingly, and none shall make afraid (Ezekiel 34:23, 25, 28).

This is said of the Lord's coming and of the blessed state of heaven and of those of the church who will come into the new heaven. "The servant David, the shepherd whom Jehovah will raise up," means the Lord, who is called a "servant" from serving and ministering, that is, performing uses (See above, n. 409; "to make with them a covenant of peace" signifies conjunction with the Lord through the Divine things proceeding from Him, which are the goods of love and the truths of doctrine from the Word, thus through the Word; "to cause the evil wild beast to cease out of the land" signifies that evil cupidities and lusts will no more invade and destroy them.

[52] "To dwell trustingly in the wilderness and to sleep in the forests" signifies that they will be safe from infestation by cupidities and lusts, although they are in them and among them, "wilderness" and "forest" meaning where such things and such persons are (these having a similar meaning as in Isaiah 11:7-9). Because the man of the church is destroyed by the cupidities of evil and falsity it is said "they shall no more be a prey to the nations, and the evil wild beast shall not devour them," "nations" signifying the cupidities of evil, and "wild beasts of the earth" the cupidities of falsity.

[53] In Jeremiah:

Mine heritage is become as a lion in the forest, she hath given forth her voice against Me, therefore I have hated her; the bird Zabuah is Mine heritage, about it is the bird; gather together every wild beast of the field, come ye to devour; many shepherds have destroyed My vineyard (Jeremiah 12:8-10).

This is said of the vastation of the church by the falsities of evil. "Heritage" signifies the church; "the lion out of the forest which hath given forth his voice against God" signifies the falsity of evil in the whole complex; "the bird Zabuah" signifies reasonings from falsities; "the wild beast of the field which shall be gathered to devour" signifies the cupidities of destroying the truths of the church by falsities; and because the church that is so destroyed is meant it is said, "many shepherds have destroyed My vineyard," "vineyard" signifying the spiritual church, or the church in reference to the affection of truth; and as a "vineyard" signifies the church it follows that "a wild beast of the field" signifies the cupidity of falsifying and thus destroying the truths of the church.

[54] In Isaiah:

No lion shall be there, the ravenous of the wild beast shall not go up thereon, it shall not be found there (Isaiah 35:9).

This treats of the Lord's coming and of His kingdom in the heavens and on the earths; and the "lion" and "the ravenous of the wild beasts" have a similar signification as above. It must be clear to everyone that "wild beast" here does not mean a wild beast.

[55] In Hosea:

I will encounter them as a bear that is bereaved, and I will rend the caul of their heart, and I will devour them like a huge lion; the wild beast of the field shall tear them (Hosea 13:8).

Here again, "lion" and "the wild beast of the field" have a similar signification as above.

[56] In Zephaniah:

Jehovah will stretch out His hand over the north and will destroy Assyria, and will make Nineveh a waste, a dry place like the wilderness; and the droves shall lie down in the midst of her, every wild beast of the nation; both the pelican and the bittern shall lodge nightly in her chapiters; a voice shall sing in the window, a drought shall be in the threshold, because the cedar thereof shall be made bare; such is the rejoicing city that dwelleth securely, saying in her heart, I and none other besides me. How is she become a waste, a place for the wild beast to lie down in; everyone that passeth over her hisseth and moveth his hand (Zephaniah 2:13-15).

This describes the vastation of the church by the falsities of doctrine which are from self-intelligence. The "north over which Jehovah will stretch out His hand" signifies the church that is in falsities; "Assyria which Jehovah will destroy" signifies the reasonings from falsities; "Nineveh which He shall make a waste, a dry place like the wilderness" signifies the falsities of doctrine; "droves," "the wild beast of the nation," the "pelican," and the "bittern," signify the affections of falsities, and falsities themselves interior and exterior.

[57] The "chapiters in which these shall rest" signify the knowledges of truth from the Word falsified; "the voice in the window" signifies the proclamation of falsity; "the drought in the threshold" signifies the total desolation of truth; the "cedar which is made bare" signifies the rational destroyed; "the rejoicing city dwelling securely" signifies the doctrine of falsity, with which they are delighted and in which they rest; "saying in her heart, I and none other besides me" signifies the pride of self-intelligence; "the place for the wild beast to lie down in" signifies the state of the church vastated in respect to truths; "everyone that passeth over her hisseth and moveth his hand" signifies contempt for such and rejection of them by those who are in truths and goods of doctrine.

[58] In Moses:

I will give peace in the land, so that ye may lie down securely and none make afraid, and I will cause the evil wild beast to cease out of the land, and the sword shall not pass through your land (Leviticus 26:6).

"Peace in the land, so that they may lie down securely and none make afraid" signifies protection by trust in the Lord from the breaking in of falsity into the church; "to cause the evil wild beast to cease out of the land" signifies freedom from the affection and cupidity of falsity; and "the sword shall not pass through the land" signifies that falsity shall no longer destroy truth.

[59] In the same:

I will send the hornet before thee, and it shall drive out the Hivite, the Canaanite, the Hittite before thee; I will not drive him out from before thee in one year, lest the land be a solitude, and the wild beast of the field be multiplied upon thee; by little and little will I drive him out from before thee, until thou be fruitful and inherit the land (Exodus 23:28-30.)

"I will send the hornet before thee" signifies the dread of those who are in falsities from evil; "and it shall drive out the Hivite, the Canaanite, and the Hittite" signifies the flight of falsities that are from evils; "I will not drive him out from before thee in one year" signifies a hasty flight or removal of these; "lest the land be desolate" signifies lest there be a lack of spiritual life or but little of it; "and the wild beast of the field be multiplied upon thee" signifies a flowing in of falsities from the delights of the love of self and of the world; "by little and little will I drive him out from before thee" signifies removal by degrees according to order; "until thou be fruitful" signifies according to the increase of good; "and inherit the land" signifies when one is in good and is regenerated. (But these things may be seen further explained in Arcana Coelestia 9331-9338.)

[60] There is a like signification in these words in Moses:

Jehovah God will drive out these nations from before thee by little and little; thou canst not destroy them at once, lest the wild beast of the field be multiplied against thee (Deuteronomy 7:22).

The "nations" driven out and to be driven out of the land of Canaan by the sons of Israel signify evils and falsities of every kind, "the land of Canaan" signifying the church, and "the sons of Israel" the men of the church; therefore "the wild beast of the field" which would be multiplied against them signify the cupidities of falsity from evil; for a man who is reformed and regenerated to the extent that the church may be in him is reformed and regenerated by little and little; for he is conceived anew, is born, and is educated, and this is done so far as the evils and their falsities that are in him from birth and hereditarily are removed, which is not effected in a moment, but through a considerable course of life. This makes clear what is signified in the spiritual sense by "the nations shall not be driven out in one year, but by little and little, lest the wild beast of the field be multiplied against thee;" for if evils and the falsities thence were removed all at once man would have scarcely any life, since the life into which he is born is a life of evil and consequent falsity from cupidities, which are removed only so far as goods and truths enter, for by these they are removed.

[61] Because "wild beast" signifies 8 in the spiritual sense the cupidities of falsity from evil, and "birds" signify thoughts and reasonings from them, and because through these the man of the church spiritually perishes, so here and there in the Word, where the vastation of the church is treated of, it is said that "they were given to the wild beasts and the birds to be devoured," as in the following passages. In David:

The boar in the forest treadeth under foot the vine, and the wild beast of the fields doth feed on it (Psalms 80:13).

In Hosea:

I will lay waste her vine and her fig tree, and I will make them a forest, and the wild beast of the field shall devour them (Hosea 2:12).

In Ezekiel:

I will send upon you famine and the evil wild beast, and they shall make thee bereaved (Ezekiel 5:17).

This is said of Jerusalem, by which the church is meant. In the same:

I will give him to the wild beast to be devoured (Ezekiel 33:27).

In the same:

The sheep were scattered, without a shepherd, and were for food for every wild beast of the field (Ezekiel 34:5, 8).

In the same:

I have given thee for food to the wild beast of the land and to the bird of the heavens (Ezekiel 29:5).

In the same:

I will cast thee forth upon the faces of the field, and I will cause every bird of the heavens to dwell upon thee, and with thee I will satisfy the wild beast of all the earth (Ezekiel 32:4).

In Jeremiah:

Their carcass shall be for food to the bird of the heavens and to the beast of the earth (Jeremiah 16:4; 19:7; 34:20).

In Ezekiel:

I have given thee for food to the swift bird of every wing, and to the wild beast of the field (Ezekiel 39:4).

In David:

The dead body of Thy servant have they given to the bird of the heavens, the flesh of Thy saint to the wild beast of the earth (Psalms 79:2).

In Jeremiah:

I will visit upon them with four kinds, with the sword to kill, and with dogs to drag about, and with birds of the heavens and with the beasts of the earth to devour and to destroy (Jeremiah 15:3).

[62] In these passages, "wild beasts and birds" signify falsities from the cupidity of evil and from reasoning. And as the "nations" in the land of Canaan signify the evils and falsities of religion and of worship, the sons of Jacob did not bury the dead bodies of the nations which they slew in war, but left them to be devoured by birds and wild beasts; but this was not by Divine command, but from the inborn cruelty of that people, thus by permission, in order that such things might be represented.

[63] In David:

The enemy hath reproached Jehovah, and a foolish people hath contemned Thy name. Give not the soul of Thy turtledove unto the beast; forget not the life of Thine afflicted ones perpetually (Psalms 74:18, 19).

The "enemy" who reproached Jehovah signifies hell and evil therefrom; the "foolish people" who contemned His name signify the falsities which are opposed to the truths of doctrine; those who are in truths are called a "people," and in the contrary sense those who are in falsities, and these are a "foolish people;" the "name of Jehovah" signifies every truth of doctrine and of the church; "give not the soul of Thy turtledove to the beast" signifies not to give spiritual good to those who are in the cupidities of evil; "the life of Thine afflicted ones" signifies spiritual life oppressed by evils and falsities.

[64] In Habakkuk:

The violence of Lebanon hath covered thee, and the devastation of the beasts shall dismay them, because of the blood of men and the violence of the land, of the city, and of all that dwell therein (Habakkuk 2:17).

The "violence of Lebanon" signifies the violence done to the truths perceived by the rational man from the Word, for "Lebanon" signifies the church in respect to the perception of truth from the rational man; "the devastation of the beasts" which shall dismay them signifies the destruction of truths by the cupidities of evil; "bloods" signify the violence offered to the truths of the Word by evils; and "violence of the land, of the city, and of all that dwell therein" signifies violence done to the truths and goods of the church and to its doctrine from the Word by falsities.

[65] In Moses:

The tooth of beasts I will send upon them, with the poison of the creeping things of the earth (Deuteronomy 32:24).

"The tooth of beasts" signifies the sensual in respect to the cupidities of evil, for "tooth" corresponds to the ultimate of man's life, which is the sensual; "the poison of the creeping things of the earth" signifies the falsities therefrom, which cunningly pervert truths by means of the fallacies of the sensual man.

[66] In Ezekiel:

When I went in and I saw an abomination, and behold every form of creeping thing and of beast, and all the idols of the house of Israel painted upon the wall round about (Ezekiel 8:10).

These and many other things that were shown to the prophet signify the direful cupidities and falsities in which the Israelites were, because they were in externals and not at all in internals; and those who were such turned all representatives into things idolatrous; this was the source of their idolatries and also of the idolatries of many other nations; and then the "beasts and creeping things," images of which they made for themselves because these signified the affections of good and of prudence, became the representatives of the direful cupidities of evil and falsity. This is what takes place when the natural man separated from the spiritual looks upon things holy; this is why these are called the "idols of the house of Israel." "The wall round about" upon which they were seen painted signifies the interiors everywhere in the natural man, for the "roof" signifies the inmost, the "floor" or "pavement" the outmost, the "walls" the interiors, and the "house" the man himself in respect to the things of his mind. The natural man is interior and exterior, and the interior natural is where the filthy things of man reside and these the exterior does not divulge but puts on the semblance of things good, just, and sincere.

[67] As "wild beasts" and "beasts" signify the goods of the understanding and the goods of the will which are of the affections, and as the ancients who knew correspondences made representative and significative figures of these, which at first they did not worship, but their posterity, who from internal became merely external, worshiped them as divine in themselves, so wild beasts and beasts became idols. This is evident in Isaiah:

Bel bowed down, Nebo stooped, their idols are to the wild beast and to the beast (Isaiah 46:1).

In Isaiah there is a prophecy respecting:

The beasts of the south (Isaiah 30:6, et seq.);

which signify the adulterations of good and the falsifications of truth, from which arise evils and falsities of every kind with those of the church who are merely in externals; they are called "the beasts of the south" because they are with those who have the Word, from which they are able to be in the light of truth from the Word, and this is the "south."

[68] In Daniel:

He saw in vision, when it was night, four beasts coming up out of the sea; the first was like a lion but had eagle's wings, the second like a bear, the third like a leopard which had four wings, and the fourth was dreadful and terrible (Daniel 7:2-7).

"The beast out of the sea" here signifies the love of dominion, which the holy things of the Word and the church are made to serve as means; and "the four beasts" signify the gradual increase of the love of dominion, therefore the last beast is called "dreadful and terrible." (But this may be seen explained in part above, n. 316, 556.)

[69] Nearly the like things are signified in Revelation by:

The beast coming up out of the sea (Revelation 13:1-10);

The beast coming up out of the earth (Revelation 13:11-18);

The scarlet beast (Revelation 17:3);

The beast out of the abyss (Revelation 17:8).

(Respecting these beasts more is said in Revelation 19:19, 20, and Revelation 20:10.)

But what cupidities of evil and falsity each beast signifies will be seen below, where these beasts are treated of.

[70] From this it will now appear what is meant by these words in Mark:

The spirit urging Jesus caused Him to go into the wilderness, and He was in the wilderness forty days; and He was with the beasts, and angels ministered unto Him (Mark 1:12, 13).

The Lord's being in the wilderness forty days represented the duration of all those most direful temptations which He, above all others in the whole world, endured and withstood; for "forty days" signify the entire period and duration of temptations, thus not that He was tempted at that time only, but from childhood even to the end of His life in the world; His last temptation was in Gethsemane. For by temptations He subjugated all the hells and also glorified His Human (but respecting the Lord's temptations seeThe Doctrine of the New Jerusalem 302). Because temptations arise through evil spirits and genii who are from hell, thus through the hells, from which evils and falsities and their cupidities and lusts arise, so the "beasts" here, with which the Lord was, do not mean beasts, but the hells and the evils that rise out of them; and the "angels" who ministered unto Him do not mean angels, but Divine truths, through which from His own power He overcame and subjugated the hells. (That "angels" signify in the Word Divine truth, see above, n. 130, 200, 302, 593)

Poznámky pod čarou:

1. The Latin for "who" has "because;" "quia" for "qui."

2. The Latin "et bestiam," "and beast," seems here superfluous.

3. The Hebrew here has "sixth," as found in Arcana Coelestia 60.

4. The Hebrew has "not" which is here omitted.

5. The Hebrew has "dwell" as also in the explanation which follows.

6. the Hebrew has "they shall be left to the bird. . . and to the beast," as found in 1100.

7. The Hebrew has "he-goats," as found in Arcana Coelestia 35-47.

8. The photolithograph has "removes" for signifies.

  
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Thanks to the Swedenborg Foundation for their permission to use this translation.

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Apocalypse Explained # 419

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419. That the wind should not blow, signifies that the good be not injured, and the evil be not cast out before the day. This is evident from the signification of "wind," as meaning the Divine proceeding, which is Divine good united to Divine truth; therefore "that the wind should not blow" signifies that the influx might be moderate and gentle; "the wind not blowing upon the earth" signifies that the good may not be injured, and the evil cast out before the day, because the separations of the good from the evil and the casting out of the evil in the spiritual world are effected by various degrees of moderation and intensity of the Divine proceeding from the Lord as a sun. When this flows in moderately the good are separated from the evil, and when it flows in intensely the evil are cast out; and for the following reasons: when the Divine from the Lord flows in moderately there is everywhere tranquillity and serenity, wherein all appear such as they are in respect to the state of their good, for all then stand forth in light; consequently those who are in good from a spiritual origin are then separated from those who are in good merely from a natural origin; for the Lord looks upon those who are in spiritual good and leads them, and thus separates them. Those who are in good from a spiritual origin are those referred to in what follows where they are said "to be sealed on their foreheads," for they are spiritual, and are angels of heaven; but those who are merely in good from a natural origin are not good because they are not spiritual, for the good appearing with them is evil, because it has regard to self and the world as an end. Such do good in external form with reference to their own glory, honor, and gain, and not with reference to the neighbor's good, consequently they do good only that they may be seen of men. Those who are merely natural are those who are "not sealed," and who are afterwards rejected. But when the Divine from the Lord flows in intensely, the goods with the evils are dispersed, because these goods are in themselves not goods but evils, and evils do not endure the influx of the Divine. This causes the externals in such to be closed up, and when these are closed up the interiors are opened, in which there is nothing except evils and falsities therefrom; and this brings them into pain, anguish, and torment, on account of which they cast themselves down into the hells, where there are evils and falsities like their own.

[2] When the influx of the Divine is intensified, which occurs when the evil are to be cast out, then lower down in the spiritual world a wind springs up that blows strongly like a storm or tempest; this wind is what is called in the Word "the east wind" (of which presently). The casting down of the evil is described also in the Word by violent and impetuous winds, by storms, and by tempests. "The wind of Jehovah" has a similar signification as "the spirit of Jehovah," for the wind of respiration is meant, which is also called spirit (or breath). On this account in the Hebrew and many other languages spirit is expressed by the same word as wind. This is why the greater part of mankind have no other idea of spirit and of spirits than of wind like the wind of respiration; and from this have come the notions in the learned world also that spirits and angels are like wind in which there is merely a vital principle of thought; and this is the reason also that so few of these allow themselves to be persuaded that spirits and angels are men, endowed with body, face, and organs of sensation, like men on the earth. "Wind" and "spirit," in reference to man, signify the life of truth, or a life according to the truths or precepts of the Lord, because respiration, which pertains to the lungs, corresponds to that life, while the heart and its motion corresponds to the life of good. For there are two lives, which should make one in man, the life of truth and the life of good; the life of truth is the life of man's understanding, while the life of good is the life of his will; for truths have their seat in the understanding because these constitute the understanding, while goods have their seat in the will because these constitute the will. "Soul and heart," in the Word, when mentioned together, have a similar significance.

[3] From this it can be seen what is meant by "the wind" and "the spirit of Jehovah," namely, the Divine truth, and by "the four winds," Divine truth united to Divine good. Since wind means the wind or breath of respiration, and it signifies Divine truth and spiritual life with those who receive it, so this wind is called also "the breath of the nostrils of Jehovah," and also "the breath of His mouth," and "breathing;" as can be seen from the following passages.

In Ezekiel:

And I saw, and upon the dry bones, sinews and flesh came up, and skin covered them above, yet there was no breath in them. Then said he unto me, Prophesy about the spirit, prophesy, son of man, and say to the spirit, Thus the Lord Jehovih hath said, Come from the four winds, O spirit, and breathe upon these slain, that they may live (Ezekiel 37:8, 9).

What is here signified by "the dry bones" was told in the preceding article, namely, those who have no spiritual life, or no life through Divine truth. The breathing in of this life by the Lord is signified by "Prophesy about the spirit, and say to the spirit, Come from the four winds, O spirit, and breathe upon these slain, that they may live." Here "spirit" evidently means the breath of respiration, for there were sinews, flesh, and skin, but as yet no breathing; therefore it is said, "Say to the spirit, Breathe upon them." From this it can be seen that this "spirit" or "wind" signifies spiritual life. That common breathing was not meant is evident from its being said that "these dry bones were the house of Israel," meaning that the house of Israel was without spiritual life; and from its being said of them afterwards, "I will put My spirit in you, that ye may live, and I will place you in your own land that ye may live" ( Ezekiel 37:14); which signifies that they are to be regenerated that a church may be made of them. Regeneration is effected by a life according to Divine truth, from which is spiritual life; and "to bring them back to the land" signifies that they may become a church, the land of Canaan signifying the church.

[4] In Moses:

Jehovah God breathed into his nostrils 1 the soul of lives, and man became a living soul (Genesis 2:7).

Here, too, in the sense of the letter, the wind of breathing is meant, as it is said He "breathed into his nostrils;" but spiritual life, which is the life of intelligence and wisdom through Divine truth, is evidently meant, since it is said that He breathed into him "the soul of lives," and that thus man became "a living soul;" "the soul of lives" and "a living soul" meaning spiritual life; for man without that soul is called a dead man, although in respect to the body and the senses he is alive. This, too, makes evident that "soul," "spirit," and "wind" in the Word mean spiritual life.

[5] In John:

Jesus said to the disciples, Peace be unto you; as the Father hath sent Me, even so send I you. And when He had said this He breathed on them, and said unto them, Receive ye the Holy Spirit (John 20:21, 22).

The Lord "breathed on them, and said to them, Receive ye the Holy Spirit," signifies the like, as Jehovah "breathed into Adam's nostrils the soul of lives" namely, spiritual life; for the Holy Spirit signifies Divine truth proceeding from the Lord, from which is spiritual life. That they should teach Divine truth from the Lord is signified by "as the Father hath sent Me, even so send I you;" for the Lord when He was in the world was Divine truth itself, which He taught from His Divine good which was in Him from conception. This Divine is what the Lord here and in other places calls "the Father;" and because when He went out of the world He united Divine truth to Divine good that in Him they might be one, and because thenceforth Divine truth proceeds from Him He said, "as the Father hath sent Me, even so send I you."

That the wind of respiration signifies spiritual life comes from correspondence (See Arcana Coelestia 3883-3896). The quality of all in the spiritual world is known from their respiration merely. Those who are in the life of the respiration of heaven are among the angels; but those who are not in that respiration, if they come into heaven, are unable to breathe there, and are therefore in anguish like that of suffocation (respecting which see also Arcana Coelestia 1119, 3887, 3889, 3892, 3893). From this correspondence the term "inspiration" is derived, and the prophets are called "inspired," and the Word is said to be "Divinely inspired."

[6] From all this it can be seen what is signified by the Lord's words in John:

Except one be born of the water and of the spirit he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. Ye must be born again. The wind bloweth where it willeth, and thou hearest the voice thereof, but knowest not whence it cometh and whither it goeth; so is everyone that is born of the spirit (John 3:5, 7, 8).

"To be born again" means to be regenerated; and as man is regenerated by a life according to Divine truth, and all Divine truth through which man is regenerated proceeds from the Lord, and flows into him he knows not when, so it is said, "The wind bloweth where it willeth, and thou hearest the voice thereof, but knowest not whence it cometh and whither it goeth," thus is described the life of man's spirit, which he has by regeneration, "wind" meaning the Divine truth through which he has that life. So long as he is in the world man is utterly ignorant of how Divine truth flows in from the Lord, for he then thinks from the natural man, and merely perceives a something that flows in from the spiritual man into the natural; this therefore is what is meant by "thou hearest the voice thereof, but knowest not whence it cometh and whither it goeth." The "water" of which man is born signifies truth from the Word, and the "spirit" a life according to it. (That "water" signifies truth, see above, n. 71)

[7] In Lamentations:

The breath [spiritus] of our nostrils, the anointed of Jehovah, was taken in their pits; of whom we had said, Under his shadow we shall live among the nations (Lamentations 4:20).

"The anointed of Jehovah" here means the Lord in respect to Divine truth, for "the anointed of Jehovah" has a similar signification as a king. (That a "king" signifies in the highest sense the Lord in respect to Divine truth, see above, n. 31; and "the anointed of Jehovah" the same, n. 375.) This is why it is said "the breath of our nostrils, of whom we had said, Under his shadow we shall live;" for "the spirit and breath of the nostrils" signifies in the highest sense Divine truth, as has been said above. That Divine truth perished through falsities of evil is signified by "was taken in their pits;" "pits" meaning the falsities of evil.

[8] Again in Lamentations:

Jehovah Thou hast heard my voice; hide not thine ear at my breathing, at my cry (Lamentations 3:56).

"To hide the ear at the breathing and at the cry" signifies at worship, confession, and prayers, which are from truths and from goods; for all worship, confession, and prayer must be from truths and goods; to be heard they must be from both; if they are from truths alone they are not heard, because there is no life in them; the life of truth is from good. "Breathing" is here predicated of truths, and "cry" of goods (that "cry" is predicated of goods will be seen elsewhere).

[9] In Moses:

Everything that had in its nostrils the breath of the spirit of lives, of all that was on the dry land, died (Genesis 7:22).

What these words signify in the sense of the letter everyone can see, namely, that all things upon the earth were destroyed by the flood, thus all men then living, except Noah and his sons; but what these words signify in the spiritual sense may be seen in the Arcana Coelestia 805, 806, where they are explained), namely, that "the breath of the spirit of lives in the nostrils" means spiritual life, which those had who were of the Most Ancient Church; for "the flood" signifies the end of that church and the Last Judgment, which took place when everything of the church was extinct. In David:

They have ears but they hear not; neither is there any breath [ventus] in their mouth (Psalms 135:17);

"no breath in their mouth" signifying that there was no truth in the thought, for "mouth" signifies thought.

[10] In Jeremiah:

The wild asses pant for breath like whales; their eyes were consumed because there was no herb (Jeremiah 14:6).

"To pant for breath like whales" signifies that there is no truth to be imbibed; "because there was no herb" means because there is no truth in the church. As the evil are cast down by a more powerful influx of Divine truth and good proceeding from the Lord as a sun, as has been said above, so the casting down of those who are in the falsities of evil is described also by "the breath of the nostrils of Jehovah." As in Isaiah:

Topheth is prepared of old; the pile thereof is fire and much wood made ready; the breath of Jehovah like a brook of brimstone doth kindle them (Isaiah 30:33).

In David:

The channels of waters appeared, and the foundations of the world were disclosed, at the rebuke of Jehovah, at the blast of the breath of Thy nostrils (Psalms 18:15).

In Moses:

By the breath of Thy nostrils the waters were heaped up; Thou didst blow with Thy wind, the sea covered them (Exodus 15:8, 10).

And in Job:

Plotters of iniquity, by the blast of God they perish, by the breath of His nostrils are they consumed (Acts of the Apostles 4:8, 9).

In all these passages "the blast," "the breath," and "the breathing of the nostrils of Jehovah" means the Divine proceeding, which disperses and casts down the evil when it flows in intensely and strongly; but respecting this influx more will be said in what follows, where "tempests," "storms," and "the east wind" are treated of.

[11] Again, that "the wind of the earth" also signifies the Divine proceeding is also from correspondence with the winds in the spiritual world; for there exist winds in the spiritual world also, and these arise from the determining of Divine influx, and arise in the lower parts of the earth there. In the heavens rarely any other than gentle winds are perceived; but with those who dwell lower down, upon the lands, winds are frequent, for they grow stronger as they descend; their direction is from the quarters into which the Divine inflows, especially from the north. Because the winds there are from a spiritual origin they also signify spiritual things, in general Divine truth, from which they exist. As in David:

Jehovah layeth the beams of His upper chambers in the waters; He maketh the clouds His chariot; He walketh upon the wings of the wind; He maketh His angels winds, His ministers a flaming fire (Psalms 104:3, 4).

"Waters," "clouds," and "wings of the wind," signify Divine truth in ultimates, such as is the truth of the sense of the letter of the Word; because this is in ultimates, it is said "He layeth the beams of His chambers in the waters, He maketh the clouds His chariot, He walketh upon the wings of the wind;" "waters" meaning truths in ultimates, likewise "clouds," and "the wings of the wind" and "chariots" meaning the truth of doctrine; "He maketh His angels winds, and His ministers a flaming fire," signifies that He makes them to be receptions of Divine truth and Divine good; "angels" mean those who are in the Lord's spiritual kingdom, and because such are recipients of Divine truth it is said "He maketh them winds;" while "ministers" mean those who are in the Lord's celestial kingdom, and as these are recipients of the Divine good it is said "He maketh them a flaming fire;" "a flaming fire" signifying the good of love and the truth therefrom. (That those who are in the Lord's spiritual kingdom are recipients of Divine truth, and those who are in the celestial kingdom recipients of Divine good, see in the work on Heaven and Hell 20-28; that angels are called "angels" from reception of Divine truth, see above, n. 130, 412; and that ministers are called "ministers" from the reception of Divine good, see also above, n. 155; and that "fire" signifies the good of love, n. 68)

[12] In the same:

Jehovah bowed the heavens, He came down, and thick darkness was under His feet; and He rode upon a cherub, He did fly, and was borne upon the wings of the wind (Psalms 18:9, 10).

Jehovah "bowed the heavens, He came down," signifies visitation, which precedes the Last Judgment; "thick darkness under His feet" signifies the falsities of evil in lower things; "He rode upon a cherub, He did fly, and was borne upon the wings of the wind," signifies omnipresence with the Divine, "the wings of the wind" meaning Divine truth in ultimates (as above).

[13] In Jeremiah:

The Maker of the earth by His power, He prepareth the world by His wisdom, by His intelligence He stretcheth out the heavens; at the voice that He uttereth there is a multitude of waters in the heavens, and He maketh the vapors to go up from the end of the earth; He maketh lightnings for the rain, and bringeth forth the wind out of His treasuries (10 :12, 13; 51:15, 16).

And in David:

He maketh the vapors to go up from the ends of the earth; He maketh lightnings for the rain; and He bringeth forth the wind out of His treasuries (Psalms 135:7).

This describes in the spiritual sense the reformation of man and the establishment of the church. Because of that reformation and establishment the Lord is called "the Maker of the earth," and elsewhere "the Former" and "Creator;" "earth" meaning the church. The Divine good, by which reformation is effected, is signified by "He prepareth the world by His wisdom;" "world" means the church, and is predicated of good. The Divine truth, which is also a means, is signified by "at the voice that He uttereth there is a multitude of waters in the heavens;" "the voice that He uttereth" signifying the influx of Divine truth, and "the multitude of waters in the heavens" reception; "waters" meaning truths. Ultimate truths, which are the knowledges from the sense of the letter of the Word, are signified by "the vapors from the ends of the earth;" spiritual truths therefrom are signified by "lightnings for the rain," "lightnings" called from the light of heaven, and "rain" from influx; thus reformation through Divine truth from the Lord is signified by "He bringeth forth the wind out of His treasuries." This is the meaning of all these things in the heavens.

[14] In David:

He casteth forth His hail like morsels; who can stand before His cold? He sendeth His word, He melteth them; He maketh His wind to blow, the waters flow. He declareth His word unto Jacob, His statutes and His judgments unto Israel (Psalms 147:17-19).

This, too, is a description of reformation, but in respect to the natural man. Here knowledges and cognitions which are in man before reformation are signified by "hail like morsels; who can stand before His cold?"-for man before reformation is utterly frigid, and that coldness is also plainly felt when the Divine flows in out of heaven; and as such coldnesses are dissipated by the reception of Divine good and Divine truth, thus by reformation, it is said, "He sendeth His word, He melteth them; He maketh His wind to blow, the waters flow;" "word" signifying Divine good united to Divine truth, "wind" Divine truth, and "the waters flow," the reception of truth; and this being the signification of these words it is added, "He declareth His word unto Jacob, His statutes and judgments unto Israel;" "Jacob" and "Israel" signifying the church, "Jacob" the church that is in good, and "Israel" the church that is in truths; "statutes and judgments" mean external and internal truths which are from good.

[15] In the same:

Praise Jehovah, fire and hail, snow and vapor; stormy wind doing His word (Psalms 148:7, 8).

"Fire and hail, snow and vapor, and wind," evidently signify something different from these, for why should it be said of such things in the Divine Word that "they praised Jehovah?" But "fire and hail, and snow and vapors" signify the delights of the loves of the natural man, and its knowledges and cognitions; for these are "fire and hail, and snow and vapor" before man is reformed and made spiritual, the sphere of life of such when it flows out from them, presenting in the spiritual world appearances like these; and the worship of the Lord from these things is signified by their "praising Jehovah," "to praise" meaning to worship; "stormy wind" signifies Divine truth in respect to reception; it is therefore said "stormy wind doing His word;" "doing His word" signifying to receive into life the things of doctrine.

[16] As all things in the Word have also a contrary sense, so has "wind," and in that sense it signifies falsity, as in the following passages. In Isaiah:

Behold they are all iniquity, their works are nothing; their molten images are wind and a void (Isaiah 41:29).

"Wind and a void" mean the falsities of evil and the evils of falsity; "wind" meaning the falsities of evil, and "a void" the evils of falsity; for where there is a void and emptiness, that is, absence of good and truth, there are evil and falsity; "wind" signifies where there are falsities, as is evident from its being said "they are all iniquity, their works are nothing;" also from its being said "their molten images are wind and a void," for "molten images" signify such things as man hatches out of self-intelligence, and these are all falsities and evils. In Jeremiah:

And the prophets shall become wind, and the word is not in them (Jeremiah 5:13).

"Prophets" signify those who teach truths, and in an abstract sense the truths of doctrine, here the falsities of doctrine; falsities are signified by "wind;" therefore it is added, "the word is not in them," "word" signifying Divine truth.

[17] In the same:

I will scatter them as the stubble that passeth away by the wind of the wilderness (Jeremiah 13:24).

"The wind of the wilderness" signifies where there is no truth, and therefore falsity, for "wilderness" in the Word signifies where there is no good because there is no truth. In the same:

The wind shall feed all thy shepherds, and thy lovers shall go into captivity (Jeremiah 22:22).

"Shepherds" in the Word signify those who teach the good of life and lead to it, which is done by means of truths; but here "shepherds" mean those who do not teach the good of life, still less lead to it, because they are in falsities; this is meant by "the wind shall feed all thy shepherds;" "wind" meaning the falsity which they seize upon and love; "the lovers" who shall go into captivity, signify the delights of the loves of self and the world, and thence the delights of the evil; "lovers" meaning such delights, and "captivity" detention in the hells.

[18] In Hosea:

Ephraim feedeth on wind, and pursueth the east wind; every day he multiplieth lying and devastation, and they make a covenant with Assyria, and oil is carried down into Egypt (Hosea 12:1).

"Ephraim" signifies the intellectual of the church; "Assyria" reasoning, and "Egypt" the knowing faculty (scientificum); therefore "Ephraim feedeth on wind, and pursueth the east wind," signifies that the intelligent in the church imbue themselves with falsities which altogether disperse truths; "wind" meaning falsity, and "east wind" falsity drying up and dispersing truths. Because of this signification of "wind" and "east wind" it is added, "every day he multiplieth lying and devastation;" "lying" meaning falsity, and "devastation" the dispersion of truth; "they make a covenant with Assyria, and oil is carried down into Egypt," signifies that by reasonings from knowledges (scientifica) falsely applied they pervert the truths and goods of the church; "to make a covenant with Assyria" signifying to reason from falsities and to destroy truths, and "to carry down oil into Egypt" signifying to destroy the good of the church by knowledges [scientifica]; for he who is in principles of falsity applies to them the knowledges [scientifica] he has imbibed from childhood, since his understanding sees nothing else. For the understanding is formed either of truths or of falsities; if of truths, man sees truths, if of falsities he sees falsities; he sees them in the natural man, in the memory of which knowledges [scientifica] have their seat; and from these he selects such as favor his principles, and those that do not favor them he either perverts or rejects.

[19] In the same:

Ephraim is joined to idols. Their wine is gone; in whoring they have committed whoredom; they are given up to love; her shields give disgrace. The wind hath bound her up in its wings, and they shall be ashamed because of their sacrifices (Hosea 4:17-19).

"Ephraim" signifies the church in respect to the understanding of truth; here that it has no understanding of truth but of falsity; the falsities of the church are signified by "idols;" which makes clear what is signified by "Ephraim is joined to idols;" "the wind in its wings" signifies reasoning from fallacies, from which are falsities. (What the rest signifies see above, n. 283, and 376, where it is explained.)

Wind in the wings (Zechariah 5:9);

has a similar meaning. In Jeremiah:

Their camels shall be for prey, and the multitude of their cattle for a spoil; and I will disperse them to every wind, them that are the cut off of the corner (4 Jeremiah 49:32).

"To disperse them to every wind" signifies into every falsity and evil when truths and goods are destroyed. (The rest may be seen explained above, n. 417)

[20] In Ezekiel:

A third part thou shalt disperse to the wind, and I will draw out a sword after them (Ezekiel 5:2, 12).

This is said of the hairs of the head and of the beard, which the prophet, by command, shaved off with a razor; and those hairs signify the ultimate of truth in the church, for the whole heaven and the whole church are before the Lord as one man; whence all things of heaven and of the church correspond to all things of man, both to those without man and to those within him (on which correspondence, see in the work on Heaven and Hell 87-102); therefore the hairs of the head and of the beard, as they are the ultimate things of man, correspond to the ultimates of truth and good. The ultimates of truth and good are such as are the ultimate truths of the sense of the letter of the Word. That these ultimates were perverted, falsified, and adulterated by the Jews is signified by what is here said of the hairs of the prophet's head and beard. "A third part thereof he should disperse unto every wind" signifies the destruction of all truth; and because when truth is destroyed mere falsities are seized on, it is added, "I will draw out a sword after them;" "sword" signifying the destruction of truth by falsity (See above, n. 131). Unless this signification of "hairs" is known, who could understand what is involved in the command to the prophet that "he should shave off the hairs of his head and of his beard, and a third part he should burn in the midst of the city, a third part he should smite with a sword round about it, and a third part he should disperse unto every wind, and that a sword should be drawn out after them"?

[21] That this signifies the falsification of truth by the Jews is clearly evident from what follows in the same chapter, where among other things it is said:

This is Jerusalem; she hath altered My judgments into wickedness more than the nations, and My statutes more than the lands that are round about her (Ezekiel 5:5, 6).

In the same:

All his bands I will disperse unto every wind; and I will draw out the sword after them (Ezekiel 12:14).

This has a similar signification. In Matthew:

The rain descended and the winds blew and beat upon that house, yet it fell not; for it was founded upon a rock (Matthew 7:24, 25, 27).

"The rain descended and the winds blew" signifies temptations, and consequently falsities rushing in; for spiritual temptations are nothing else than infestations of the mind by falsities and evils, so here, too, "winds" signify falsities. (The rest may be seen explained above, n. 411)

[22] It has been said above, that in the spiritual world, as in the natural world, strong winds and tempests spring up; but the tempests in the spiritual world spring from the influx of the Divine into the parts below, where those are who are in evils and falsities; as that influx descends from the heavens towards the lands that lie below, it becomes more dense and appears like clouds, and with the evil, dense and dark according to the quantity and quality of the evil. These clouds are appearances of falsity from evil, arising from the spheres of their life; for round about every spirit and angel there is a sphere of life. When from the Lord as a sun the Divine is sent forth powerfully and flows into these dense and dark clouds, a tempest arises which is perceived by spirits there in like manner as tempests on the earth are perceived by men. It has at different times been granted me to perceive these tempests and also the east wind by which the evil were dispersed and cast into the hells, when the Last Judgment was in progress. From this it can be seen what "tempests," "storms," and "violent winds" signify in the following passages. In Isaiah:

Thou shalt disperse them, that the wind may carry them away and the tempest scatter them (Isaiah 41:16).

In Jeremiah:

Behold, 2 the tempest of Jehovah has gone forth in wrath, a whirling tempest; it shall hurl itself upon the head of the wicked (Jeremiah 23:19; 30:23).

In David:

I will speed my escape from the rushing wind, from the tempest (Psalms 55:8).

In the same:

O my God, pursue them with Thy tempest, and affright them with Thy storm (Psalms 83:13, 15).

In Ezekiel:

I will make a wind of tempests to break through in My wrath, and in Mine anger there shall be an overflowing rain, for a consummation (Ezekiel 13:13).

In Jeremiah:

Evil shall go forth from nation to nation, and a great tempest shall be stirred up from the sides of the earth (Jeremiah 25:32).

In Isaiah:

Thou shalt be visited of Jehovah of Hosts with tempest, storm and with the flame of a devouring fire (Isaiah 29:6).

In Amos:

I will kindle a fire in the wall of Rabbah, and it shall devour the palaces thereof, with a tempest in the day of storm (Amos 1:14).

In Nahum:

Jehovah hath His way in the storm and in the tempest (Nahum 1:3).

In Zechariah:

The Lord Jehovih shall blow with the trumpet, and shall go with tempests of the south (Zechariah 9:14).

In David:

Upon the wicked a wind of storm, the portion of the cup of the wicked (Psalms 11:6).

In the same:

Our God shall come, and shall not be silent; about Him the tempest shall blow violently (Psalms 50:3).

In Hosea:

They sow the wind, therefore they shall reap the whirlwind (Hosea 8:7).

In these passages "tempest" and "storm" signify the dispersion of falsities and evils, because those who are in the falsities of evil are cast down into hell by a tempestuous wind.

[23] In David:

They that go down to the sea in ships, that do work in many waters. And He spake, and maketh the wind of the tempest to stand, and He raised up its waves on high. He made the tempest to stand still, that their waves might be hushed (Psalms 107:23, 25, 29).

This treats of temptations and of the deliverance from them. "The wind of the tempest," and thus "the waves of the sea lifted up," signify temptations; and as spiritual temptations come through falsities breaking into the thoughts, which is the source of remorse of conscience and grief of mind and spirit, these are signified by "the wind of the tempest stood, and He raised up its waves on high;" deliverance from them is signified by "He made the tempest to stand still, that the waves might be hushed."

[24] The same is signified by these words in Mark:

There arose a great storm of wind, and the waves beat into the boat, so that it was now filling. But Jesus was in the stern, slumbering on a pillow; and they awake Him, and say unto Him, Carest Thou not that we perish? And He awoke, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Be still, be dumb. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm (Mark 4:37-39).

And in Luke:

As they sailed Jesus fell asleep; and there came down a storm of wind on the lake, and they were filling 3 [with water], and were in danger; and coming to Him they awoke Him, saying, Master, Master, we perish. And having awakened, He rebuked the wind and the raging of the sea; and they ceased, and there was a calm (Luke 8:23, 24).

This miracle of the Lord, like all the rest, involves arcana of heaven and interior things of the church. The difference between Divine miracles and those not Divine is that Divine miracles also signify Divine things, because the Divine is in them, while miracles not Divine signify nothing, because there is nothing of the Divine within them; and moreover, in the description of the Divine miracles in the Word, and in every particular thereof, there is a spiritual sense. This miracle involves spiritual temptations; "a great storm of wind, so that the waves beat into the boat, and it was filling," signifies such temptations; and that when they were in extreme fear, "Jesus awoke, and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, Be still, be dumb; and the wind ceased, and there was a great calm," signifies deliverance from temptations. Moreover, every single word here contains a spiritual sense; but this is not the place to unfold it particularly, but only to note that the "storm" and "tempest of wind" signify temptations, for these are irruptions of falsities, or inundations of the mind by falsities. This, too, is plain from the rebuke of the wind and the waves, and from the words of the Lord to the sea, "Be still, be dumb," as if He were speaking to those things or those persons that induce temptations.

[25] Furthermore, the winds that spring up in the spiritual world appear to arise there from different quarters, some from the south, some from the north, and some from the east; those from the south disperse truths with such as are in falsities, and those from the east disperse goods with such as are in evils. The winds disperse these because the winds spring from a powerful and strong influx of the Divine through the heavens into the parts below, and where the influx enters it fills truths and goods, that is, it fills the minds and spirits of those who are in truths and goods with the Divine; therefore those, the interiors of whose mind and spirit consist merely of falsities and evils, while exteriorly truths are mixed with falsities and goods are mixed with evils, cannot endure such influx from the Divine, consequently they withdraw into their falsities and evils which they love, and reject the truths and goods, which they do not love except for the sake of self and appearance.

[26] This makes clear what effect is there produced by the wind coming from the east, which is called "the east wind," namely, that with the evil it disperses all the goods and truths which they presented in external form before the world, and all the truths which they talked about for the sake of appearances. This is why withering and drying up are ascribed to that wind, "withered" signifying where there is no good, and "dried up" where there is no truth, as can be seen from passages in the Word where that wind is mentioned. As in Ezekiel:

Behold the vine planted, when the east wind shall touch it, in drying up shall it not dry up? (Ezekiel 17:10).

In the same:

The vine was plucked up in Mine anger, she was cast down to the earth, and the east wind withered her fruit; and the rods of her strength were broken and withered (Ezekiel 19:12).

In Hosea:

Ephraim, fierce among his brethren; an east wind shall come, the wind of Jehovah coming up from the wilderness, and his spring shall become dry, and his fountain shall be dried up; he shall plunder the treasure of every vessel of desire (Hosea 13:15).

In Jonah:

And it came to pass when the sun arose that God prepared a scorching east wind (Jonah 4:8).

[27] Moreover, the east wind also destroys all things where the evil are, their lands, their habitations, and their treasures (as may be seen in the little work on The Last Judgment 61); it destroys because the lands, habitations, and treasures in the spiritual world are correspondences; therefore when these perish the things that correspond also perish; on this account, when a land in that world on which the evil dwell is destroyed there rises up the aspect of a new land for the good. Because there is such a force in the east wind in the spiritual world, so for the sake of the correspondence:

An east wind was brought by which the waters of the Red Sea were dried up (Exodus 14:21);

And that brought on the locusts (Exodus 10:13);

It is called a hard wind (Isaiah 27:8);

A wind that broke the ships of Tarshish (Psalms 48:7);

A wind that broke Tyre in the heart of the seas (Ezekiel 27:26);

And that scattered enemies (Jeremiah 18:17).

Poznámky pod čarou:

1. The photolithograph has "soul," for "nostrils." Elsewhere Swedenborg has "nostrils," as in AC 94, 3623, 8286, etc.

2. The photolithograph has "out of," Hebrew "behold."

3. The photolithograph has "it was filling."

  
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Thanks to the Swedenborg Foundation for their permission to use this translation.