637. Clothed in sackcloth.- That this signifies in mourning because of the non-reception of Divine Good and Divine Truth, is evident from the signification of being clothed with sackcloth, as denoting mourning because of the vastation and desolation of Divine Good and Divine Truth, in this case, because they are not received. For the witnesses were seen clothed in sackcloth, and by the witnesses are signified the Divine Good, which is the source of all the good of love and of charity, and the Divine Truth, which is the source of all the truth of doctrine and of faith, and these appear in mourning when not received, but in joy when received.

[2] Similar expressions are used concerning the sun and the moon, which also signify the good of love and the truth of faith, as that

"The sun became black as a sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood" (Apoc. 6:12).

By this it is meant that all the good of love was separated, and all the truth of faith falsified, as may be seen above (n. 401). Not that the Sun in the angelic heaven, which is the Lord, ever becomes black, but that it appears to do so to those who do not receive any light from it.

[3] In ancient times, when the externals of the church consisted of pure correspondences, and thence representatives of spiritual things, mourning was represented by various significative actions; as sitting and lying on the ground, rolling themselves in the dust, putting ashes on the head, rending the garments, and putting on sackcloth. Rending the garments and putting on sackcloth signified mourning on account of the desolation of truth and good in the church, and on account of their non-reception. For garments in general signified the truths of the church, as may be seen above (n. 64, 65, 195, 271, 395, 475:1, 476), and therefore the rending of the garments signified grief on account of injury to the truths of the church, and because they were rent asunder, as it were, by falsities. The putting on of sackcloth signified mourning on account of the deprivation of good and truth, and the consequent vastation of the church;

[4] therefore when Hezekiah the king heard the words of Tartan, the captain of the king of Assyria,

"He rent his garments, and covered himself with sackcloth, and came to the house of Jehovah; and he sent Eliakim who was over the house, and Shebna the scribe, and the elders of the priests, covered with sackcloth, to Isaiah" (2 Kings 19:1, 2; Isaiah 37:1, 2).

This was done because the king of Assyria signifies there the perverted Rational, or the Rational which perverts the truths and goods of the church and destroys them by falsities, all the words of Tartan, the captain of the king of Assyria, involving such things. And because the desolation and vastation of the church was seen to be so imminent, therefore, in order to testify mourning and grief on account of it, they rent their garments and covered themselves with sackcloth.

[5] Similarly when Benhadad the king of Assyria besieged Samaria, and there came a great famine, "the king rent his garments, and as he passed by upon the wall, the people saw, that behold sackcloth was upon his flesh within" (2 Kings 6:30). The signification is the same here as above, namely, imminent desolation and devastation of the church, therefore the king rent his garments, and had sackcloth upon his flesh, these being representative signs of mourning and grief.

[6] Mourning, for similar reasons, is also signified by what is written in other places. As for example, Jacob, when he believed that Joseph was torn to pieces, rent his garments, put sackcloth upon his loins, and, mourned over his son many days (Genesis 37:34). Ahab, after he had taken away the vineyard of Naboth, by the advice of Jezebel his wife, and heard the severe words of the prophet concerning that matter, rent his garments, placed sackcloth upon his flesh, and fasted, and lay in sackcloth, and went softly (1 Kings 21:27). Again, the king of Nineveh, after he had heard the words of Jonah, rose up from his throne, laid aside his robe from him, covered himself with sackcloth, sat upon ashes, and proclaimed a fast, and that man and beast should be covered with sackcloth (Jonah 3:5, 6, 8). Also, Daniel set his face to the Lord God, to seek by supplication and prayer, in fasting, in sackcloth and ashes (Dan. 9:3). And after Abner was slain, David said to Joab and to all the people who were with him, that they should rend their garments and cover themselves with sackcloth, and lament before Abner; and David himself walked behind the bier (2 Sam. 3:31). From these passages it is evident that in the Jewish and Israelitish church mourning was represented by the rending of the garments and the putting on of sackcloth; and for the reason that grief of mind and mourning of heart, being interior, were at that time represented by external things, which were significative on account of their correspondence with spiritual things.

[7] That the representation of mourning by sackcloth especially signified mourning on account of the desolation of truth and the vastation of good in the church, and also, in particular, repentance, and then mourning of heart on account of evils, is further evident from the following passages.

In Isaiah:

"The Lord Jehovih Zebaoth shall call in that day to weeping and to wailing and to baldness, and to the putting on of sackcloth" (22:12).

The subject treated of in that chapter is the vastation of the church as to Divine Truth, and mourning on account of it is described by baldness and the putting on of sackcloth.

[8] In Jeremiah:

"The lion is gone up out of the thicket, and the destroyer of the nations is on his way, he hath gone forth out of his place to reduce the land to wasteness; thy cities shall be destroyed, that there shall be no inhabitant, for this gird ye with sackcloth, wail, howl" (4:7, 8).

The lion out of the thicket signifies the falsity of evil destroying the truths of the church, and the destroyer of the nations signifies the evil of falsity destroying the good of the church; the land which they shall reduce to wasteness signifies the church, and by the cities which shall be destroyed are signified the truths of doctrine. By girding with sackcloth is signified mourning on account thereof, and therefore it is also added, wail and howl.

[9] In the same:

"O daughter of my people, gird thee with sackcloth, and roll thee in ashes; make to thee the mourning of an only son, a wailing of bitterness, for the vastator will come suddenly upon us" (6:26).

By the daughter of my people is meant the church; by girding herself with sackcloth and rolling herself in ashes is signified mourning on account of the destruction of the good and truth of the church; the destruction of these, or the vastation of the church, is meant by the vastator coming suddenly. That great mourning and grief on account of the destruction of the good and truth of the church is signified by girding with sackcloth and rolling in ashes, is evident, for it is added, "make to thee the mourning of an only son, a wailing of bitterness."

[10] Again:

"Howl, O Heshbon, because Ai is devastated; cry out, O daughters of Rabbah; gird ye with sackcloth, wail, and wander among the fences; because their king is gone into exile, his priests and princes together" (Jeremiah 49:3).

These things are said concerning the sons of Ammon, who signify those who are in natural good and falsify the truths of the church. Those in the church who are of such a character are described by "the daughters of Rabbah." Gird ye with sackcloth, wail, wander amongst the fences, signifies mourning on account of the destruction of truth by falsifications, fences denoting truths falsified. Because their king is gone into exile, signifies that the truth of the church consequently perished, king denoting the truth of the church, and to go into exile signifying to be destroyed; that also the goods of the church, and thence all truths perished, is signified by the priests and the princes together, priests denoting the goods of the church, and princes truths thence.

[11] In Lamentations:

"They sit upon the earth, the elders of the daughter of Zion keep silence, they have cast up dust upon their head, they have girded themselves with sackcloth; the virgins of Jerusalem have hung down their heads to the earth" (2:10).

To sit upon the earth, to keep silence, to cast up dust upon the head, and to hang down the head to the earth, were all signs representative of mourning and grief on account of the vastation of the church by evils and falsities. The elders of the daughter of Zion signify the wise and intelligent in the church, and, in the abstract, wisdom and intelligence. The daughters of Zion and the virgins of Jerusalem signify those in the church who are in the affection for good and truth, and, in the abstract, those affections themselves.

[12] In Ezekiel:

The shipmasters "shall make themselves bald for thee, and shall gird themselves with sackcloth, and they shall weep over thee with bitterness of soul, with a bitter wailing" (Ezekiel 27:3 1).

These words refer to Tyre, which signifies the church as to the knowledges of truth and good, consequently also the knowledges of truth and good that pertain to the church. Here mourning is described because those knowledges are lost. The shipmasters signify all those who bring and communicate those knowledges. To make bald signifies mourning because every thing pertaining to intelligence is destroyed; to gird with sackcloth signifies mourning because the cognition of truth also is destroyed. Because mourning is that which is described, it is therefore added, "they shall weep over thee with bitterness of soul, with bitter wailing."

[13] In the Evangelists:

Wo to thee, Chorazin, wo to thee, Bethsaida, for if the mighty works had been done in Tyre and Sidon, which have been done in you, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes (Matthew 11:21; Luke 10:13).

To repent in sackcloth and ashes means to grieve and mourn on account of the non-reception of Divine Truth, and on account of the falsities and evils which oppose.

[14] In Joel:

"Howl as a virgin girded with sackcloth over the bridegroom of her youth; gird yourselves about and wail, ye priests, howl ye ministers of the altar; come, pass the night in sackcloth, ye ministers of my God, because the meat-offering and the drink-offering are withholden from the house of your God" (1:8, 13).

Here also to be girded with sackcloth, and to pass the night in sackcloth, signifies mourning because the good and truth of the church are destroyed, for the meat-offering signifies the good of the church, and the drink-offering its truth.

[15] In Amos:

"I will bring up sackcloth upon all loins, and baldness upon every head, and I will make it as the mourning for an only son, and its end as a bitter day" (8:10).

Sackcloth upon the loins signifies mourning because the good of love is destroyed, for this is signified by the loins; and baldness upon the head signifies mourning because the understanding of truth is destroyed.

[16] In Isaiah:

“Upon all the heads" of Moab "baldness, every beard shaven; in the streets thereof they have girded themselves with sackcloth; upon the roofs thereof, and in the streets thereof, he shall howl, going down into weeping" (15:2, 3).

In Jeremiah:

"Every head baldness, and every beard shaven; upon all hands ashes, and upon the loins sackcloth; upon all the roofs of Moab, and in the streets thereof, mourning everywhere" (48:37, 38).

By Moab are signified those who are in natural good and adulterate the goods of the church. That they have no understanding of truth, nor knowledge of truth, is signified by baldness upon all the heads of Moab, and by every beard shaven, also by howling and mourning upon the roofs and in the streets. Ashes upon all hands signify things falsified; mourning on account of this is signified by girding on sackcloth, also by howling and going down into weeping.

[17] In Isaiah:

"It shall come to pass, instead of spices, shall be corruption, and instead of a girdle, a rent, and instead of braided work, baldness, and instead of a robe, a girding of sackcloth, burning instead of beauty; thy men shall fall by the sword, and thy strength in the war" (3:24, 25).

These things are said of the daughters of Zion, who signify the church as to the affections for celestial good, consequently by the daughters of Zion are signified the affections for good pertaining to the celestial church. The loss and dissipation of these through the pride of [man's] own intelligence is there described by the various things with which those daughters adorn themselves. Instead of spices shall be corruption, instead of a girdle, a rent, instead of braided work, baldness, instead of a robe, a girding of sackcloth, and instead of beauty, burning, signifies the changing of their affections into those of a contrary and unbeautiful kind. By corruption is signified the perishing of what is vital. By a rent instead of a girdle is signified the dissipation of the perceptions of truth, instead of the union of them; by baldness instead of braided work is signified foolishness instead of knowledge; by burning instead of beauty is signified folly instead of intelligence, burning denoting the insanity that arises from pride in [one's] own intelligence, which is folly, while beauty denotes intelligence. Thy men shall fall by the sword and thy strength in the war signifies that the truths of the understanding would perish by means of falsities, until there would be no resistance against evils, the sword denoting falsity destroying the truth.

[18] Sackcloth signifies the same in the following passages; as in Ezekiel:

"All hands are let down, all knees go into waters, whence they shall gird themselves with sackcloth, and terror shall cover them, and upon all faces shall be shame, and upon all heads baldness" (7:17, 18).

In David:

"I, when they were sick, made my garment sackcloth, I afflicted my soul with hunger" (Psalm 35:13).

Again:

"When I wept in the fast of my soul, it became to me a reproach; when I made sackcloth my garment, I became a byword to them" (Psalm 69:10, 11).

In Job:

"I sewed sackcloth upon my skin, and put tiny horn in the dust; my face was troubled through weeping" (16:15, 16).

In Isaiah:

"I clothe the heavens with blackness, and I make sackcloth their covering" (50:3).

And in David:

"Thou hast turned for me my mourning into dancing, thou hast opened my sackcloth, and hast girded me with joy" (Psalm 30:11).

In these passages also sackcloth signifies mourning and to gird sackcloth upon the body instead of a garment signifies mourning because the truth of the church is destroyed; and to gird sackcloth upon the loins and upon the flesh signifies mourning because the good of the church is destroyed. For a garment signifies the truth of the church, and the loins and flesh signify the good of the church.

[19] That to gird on sackcloth was merely representative and thence significative of mourning and repentance, but was not itself either mourning or repentance, is evident in Isaiah:

"Is it such a fast as this that I shall choose, a day for a man to afflict his soul, to bow down his head as a rush, and to lie down in sackcloth and ashes; wilt thou call this a fast, and an acceptable day to Jehovah? Is not this the fast that I choose, to loose the bonds of wickedness, to break thy bread to the hungry, and to bring the afflicted exiles to thy house, and when thou seest the naked that thou cover him?" (58:5-7).

In Joel:

"Turn ye unto me with your whole heart, and in fasting, and in weeping, and in wailing; and rend your heart, and not your garments" (2:12, 13).

5922. 'And you must tell my father about all my glory in Egypt' means a communication of the spiritual heaven in the natural with spiritual good. This is clear from the meaning of 'telling' as communicating; from the meaning of 'glory' as the spiritual heaven, dealt with below; from the meaning of 'Egypt' as factual knowledge within the natural, thus the natural itself, as above in 5908; and from the representation of Israel, to whom 'father', the recipient of the communication, refers here, as spiritual good, dealt with above in 5906. From all this it is evident that 'you must tell my father about all my glory in Egypt' means a communication of the spiritual heaven in the natural with spiritual good.

[2] With regard to 'glory' meaning the spiritual heaven, the situation is this: There are two kingdoms that form heaven - the celestial kingdom and the spiritual kingdom. The celestial kingdom is the inmost or third heaven, and the spiritual kingdom is the middle or second heaven. Good as it exists among celestial angels is called celestial good, and good as it exists among spiritual angels is called spiritual good. Celestial good is the good of love to the Lord, while spiritual good is the good of love towards the neighbour. As for what joins the two kingdoms together, the good of charity towards the neighbour does so. For with members of the celestial kingdom love to the Lord is what is internal and charity towards the neighbour what is external; but with members of the spiritual kingdom charity towards the neighbour is what is internal and faith deriving from it what is external. From this one may see that what joins the two kingdoms is charity towards the neighbour; for charity is that in which the celestial kingdom ends and the spiritual kingdom begins. What comes last in the one comes first in the other, and is thus where they receive each other.

[3] Now let what 'glory' is be stated. In the highest sense 'glory' is the Lord in respect to Divine Truth; thus it is Divine Truth that goes forth from the Lord. But in the representative sense 'glory' is the good of love towards the neighbour or charity, which is the external good of the Lord's celestial kingdom and the internal good of His spiritual kingdom; for in the genuine sense this good is Divine Truth in heaven. Now since reference is made at this point in the story to Israel, who is spiritual good or charity which makes the spiritual kingdom in heaven and the spiritual Church on earth, Joseph's 'glory' here which they were to tell Israel about means the spiritual heaven. The spiritual heaven is called 'glory' because things there are seen in light, brilliance, and radiance.

[4] Glory is attributed to Divine Truth that comes forth from the Lord's Divine Human, and it is ascribed to the Lord as King; for in the internal sense kingship means Divine Truth, 1728, 2015, 2069, 3009, 3670, 4581, 4966, 5044, 5068. This is clear in John,

What is more, the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, glory as of the Only Begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth. John 1:14.

'The Word' is Divine Truth. Since it goes forth from the Lord it is the Lord Himself, and for that reason 'glory' is attributed to Divine Truth.

[5] In Luke, when Jesus was transfigured on the mountain,

Behold, two men talked to Him, who were Moses and Elijah, who were seen in glory. Luke 9:30-31.

There the Lord showed Peter, James, and John what His Divine Human was like and what it looked like in Divine light. The form in which they saw Him at that time demonstrated what the Word is like in its internal sense, and so what Divine Truth in heaven is like; for the Word is Divine Truth provided for the Church's use. This also explains why at the same time the scene presented Moses and Elijah talking to Him; for 'Moses' represents the Law, by which one means the books by him together with the historical ones, while 'Elijah' represents the Prophets or prophetical part of the Word. For more about Moses' representation of the Law, see Preface to Genesis 18, and also 4859 (end); and for more about Elijah's representation of the prophetical part of the Word, see the same Preface, and also 2762, 5247 (end).

[6] In Matthew,

They will see the Son of Man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and glory. Matthew 24:30.

The literal sense of the Word is meant by 'the clouds', while the internal sense, consequently Divine Truth as this exists in heaven, is meant by 'glory'; see Preface to Genesis 18. 'Glory' also means the intelligence and wisdom that flow from Divine Truth, 4809. So far as its external sense is concerned the Word exists 'in a cloud', for the reason that people's minds dwell in darkness. Therefore if the Word did not dwell 'in a cloud' scarcely anyone would understand it, and also the sacred contents of the internal sense would be rendered profane by wicked people in the world. This is why the Lord says in Isaiah,

Jehovah will create over every habitation of Mount Zion, and over her assemblies, a cloud by day, and the shining of a flaming fire by night; for over all the glory there will be a covering. And there will be a tabernacle for shade by day. Isaiah 4:5-6.

[7] It was for the same reason that over the tabernacle a cloud was seen by day and a fire by night. The tabernacle represented the Lord's Divine Human, consequently Divine Truth which goes forth from Him, and so the Word, which is Divine Truth for the Church, see 3210, 3439. The same is meant by the following in Moses,

The cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of Jehovah filled the dwelling-place. Exodus 40:34.

In the same author,

The glory of Jehovah appeared in the tent of meeting before all the children of Israel. Numbers 14:10.

And in another place,

The cloud covered the tent, and the glory of Jehovah appeared. Numbers 16:42.

[8] A cloud and glory appeared in a similar way over Mount Sinai, which are spoken of in Moses as follows,

When Moses went up into the mountain the cloud covered the mountain. And the glory of Jehovah dwelt over Mount Sinai and covered it six days. Exodus 24:15-16.

The same representations occurred then because the Law, which is Divine Truth, was delivered from that mountain. The reason why the cloud was seen and the glory of Jehovah when Moses went up into the mountain was that in this he represented the Law, that is, the historical section of the Word. This explains why on several occasions the expression 'Moses and the Prophets' or else 'the Law and the Prophets' is used. 'The Law' is in this case used to mean the books by him together with all the other historical books, but not the Prophets because that part of the Word was represented by Elijah and Elisha. For as is well known, the Word has a historical section and a prophetical part, and therefore when the Word is called 'the Law and the Prophets', 'the Law' is used to mean the historical section and 'the Prophets' the prophetical part.

[9] Divine Truth was also represented by a brightness, like a rainbow in the cloud, that surrounded the cherubs and was up above them - in Ezekiel, where those things are described as follows,

I saw the appearance of fire, like a brightness round about, like the appearance of a rainbow which is in the cloud on a day of rain. This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of Jehovah. Ezekiel 1:26-28.

Divine Truth is also called the glory of Jehovah, and the glory of the God of Israel in Ezekiel 8:4; 10:18-19; 11:21, 23. It is called 'the glory of Jehovah' in reference to the inmost heaven, and 'the glory of the God of Israel' in reference to the middle or spiritual heaven. The reason why in heaven Divine Truth appears in glory is that truth itself in the spiritual heaven appears before one's eyes as a shining cloud, which I too have been allowed to see several times, while the good held within that truth appears there as a fieriness. The cloud which is given diverse colourings by the fire presents amazing sights, which are 'glory' in the external sense. But the glory in the internal sense is intelligence and wisdom, which are also what those sights represent.

[10] The fact that Divine Truth, the source of all wisdom and intelligence, is 'the glory', as is the diversely coloured cloud appearing before one's external sight, is also clear from the following places: In Moses,

Jehovah said, I am the Living One, and the whole earth will be filled with the glory of Jehovah. Numbers 14:21.

This was said by Jehovah when the Israelite people were rejected by Him. He said that only their young children would enter the land of Canaan, at which time the whole earth would be filled with the glory of Jehovah. The meaning of this was that the glory of Jehovah would be present in the representatives of the Church existing among them, and in the Word which referred for the most part to them, and that all heaven and consequently the holy things of the Church would be filled with this glory.

[11] In Isaiah,

The seraphim kept calling out, Holy, holy, holy is Jehovah Zebaoth; the whole earth is full of His glory. Isaiah 6:3.

In the same prophet,

The glory of Jehovah will be revealed, and all flesh will see it together. Isaiah 40:5.

In the same prophet,

Therefore in the Urim give glory to Jehovah, in the isles of the sea to the name of Jehovah, the God of Israel. Isaiah 24:15.

'The Urim' stands for the light that is received from Divine Truth going; forth from the Lord. 'The isles of the sea' stands for those who are further away from the truth, 1158.

[12] In the same prophet,

The glory of Lebanon has been given to it, the majesty of Carmel and Sharon. They will see the glory of Jehovah, the majesty of our God. Isaiah 35:2.

'Lebanon' stands for the spiritual Church, Carmel and Sharon' for the celestial Church. 'The glory of Jehovah' is attributed to the latter when celestial truth, which is charity, is meant, and 'the majesty of the God of Israel' to the former when spiritual good, which also is charity, is meant.

[13] In the same prophet,

Arise, shine, for Your light has come, and the glory of Jehovah has risen upon You. For behold, darkness is covering the earth, and thick darkness the peoples. But Jehovah will arise upon You, and His glory will be seen over You. Isaiah 60:1-2.

This refers to the Lord, who is called the Light, as in John 1:4, 9. It also says that 'the glory of Jehovah will arise upon Him', meaning that Divine Truth belongs to Him. Similarly in the same prophet,

For My own sake, for My own sake, I will do it; for how should it be profaned? My glory I do not give to another. Isaiah 48:11.

This too refers to the Lord, 'glory' in the highest sense standing for the Divine Human, and so also for Divine Truth since this comes forth from it. 'Not giving glory to another' is imparting it solely to the Divine Human, which is one with Himself.

[14] In John,

The holy city Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven, having the glory of God, and its light was like a most precious stone. Revelation 21:10-11.

'The holy city Jerusalem' is the Lord's spiritual kingdom in heaven and His spiritual Church on earth, to both of which glory is attributed. Its light is truth radiating from the Divine.

[15] Since Divine Truth is what kingship in the Word represents - even as the Lord in respect to His Divine Truth was represented by kings, see the places listed just above - glory was therefore ascribed to Him as King, as in David,

Lift up your heads, O gates, and be lifted , O ancient doors, ¹ so that the King of glory may come in. Who is this King of glory? Jehovah strong and mighty, Jehovah mighty in battle. Lift up your heads, O gates, lift up. O ancient doors, ¹ that the King of glory may come in. Who is this King of glory? Jehovah Zebaoth, He is the King of glory. Psalms 24:7-10.

In Isaiah,

Jehovah Zebaoth will reign on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem, and before His elders, glory. Isaiah 24:23.

'Glory' stands for Divine Truth. Jehovah is called 'Jehovah Zebaoth' - that is, Jehovah of Hosts or of Armies - when the subject is Divine truth; for truths are meant by 'armies', 3448.

[16] Also, because Divine Truth was represented by kingship, the throne on which kings sat when they made judgements was called a throne of glory, Isaiah 22:23; Jeremiah 14:21; 17:12.

And in Matthew,

The Son of Man will sit on the throne of His glory. Matthew 19:28.

In the same gospel,

When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory. And the King will say to them . . . Matthew 25:31, 34, 40.

The throne was called 'a throne of glory' for the further reason that truth was the basis on which judgements were made. In the same gospel,

The Son of Man will come in the glory of His Father together with His angels, and at that time He will repay everyone according to his deeds. Matthew 16:27.

[17] From all this one may now see what is meant by 'the glory' in the Lord's Prayer,

Yours is the kingdom, the power, and the glory, for ever. Matthew 6:13.

The Lord's spiritual kingdom in heaven and His spiritual Church on earth is in addition referred to by another word for 'glory' (decus) in Isaiah 60:7; 63:15; 64:11; Daniel 8:9-11; 11:16, 41, 45.

Joseph too therefore speaks of his glory, for Joseph himself in the highest sense represents the Lord's Divine Spiritual or His Divine Truth, and in the internal sense His spiritual kingdom, also the good of faith, see 3969, 4669, 4723, 4727.

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