376. It has thus far been shown that "oil" signifies celestial good, which is the good of love to the Lord; it shall now be shown that "wine" signifies spiritual good, which is the good of charity towards the neighbor and the good of faith; and as this good in its essence is truth, it is said in the general explanation that "the oil and the wine hurt not," which signifies that there must no harm be done to the internal or spiritual sense of the Word in respect either to good or to truth, or what is the same, that there must no harm be done to the goods and truths which are in the internal or spiritual sense of the Word. The good of charity and the good of faith in their essence are truth, because that good is implanted by the Lord in man's intellectual part by means of the truths that are called the truths of faith, and when man lives according to these truths they become goods; for by means of truths a new will is formed in that part, and whatever proceeds from the will is called good. This will, moreover, is the same as conscience, and conscience is a conscience of truth, for it is formed by truths of every kind from the doctrine of the church, and from the sense of the letter of the Word (but on this subject see further in The Doctrine of the New Jerusalem 130-138; and the extracts from the Arcana Coelestia 139-141). From this now it is that "wine" signifies truth.

[2] Furthermore, there are goods and truths internal and external; internal goods and truths are signified by "the oil and the wine" that must not be hurt; but external goods and truths are signified by "wheat and barley." External goods and truths are those that are in the sense of the letter of the Word, while internal goods and truths are those that are in the internal or spiritual sense of the Word; or external goods and truths are such as are in the lower heavens with the angels there, that is, in the ultimates of heaven, while internal goods and truths are such as are in the higher heavens with the angels there, that is, in the third and second heavens. These goods and truths are genuine goods and truths themselves, but the former are truths and goods because they correspond, thus are correspondences; internal goods and truths have immediate communication with the angels of heaven, while external goods and truths have not an immediate but a mediate communication through correspondences. This is why the Jews, because they were only in the sense of the letter and had no knowledge of the signification of things in the spiritual sense, were unable to do harm to the spiritual sense in respect either to good or to truth, and consequently were unable to do harm to genuine goods and truths. So the Christian Church at this day is unable to do harm to the genuine goods and truths which are in the spiritual sense of the Word, for it has been ignorant of that sense, and at the same time ignorant of genuine goods and truths.

[3] The spiritual sense of the Word was not disclosed to Christians, because genuine goods and truths, such as are in the higher heavens, lie concealed in the spiritual sense of the Word; and so long as these goods and truths were unperceived and unknown that sense could not be opened, since these goods and truths could not be seen. In the Christian churches genuine goods and truths have not been perceived and known for the reason that those churches have been divided, in general, into the Papal and the Evangelical; and those in the Papal Church are utterly ignorant of truths, because they do not depend upon the Word, thus upon the Lord who is the Word, that is, Divine truth, but upon the pope, from whose mouth scarcely anything proceeds except what is from the love of ruling, and that love is from hell; therefore with them scarcely a single truth of the church exists; while in the Evangelical churches faith alone has been assumed as the essential means of salvation, and as a consequence the good of love and charity has been rejected as nonessential, and where good is rejected no truth which is truth in itself can exist, since all truth is from good; for the Lord flows into man's good, and by means of good illustrates him and gives him the light to perceive truths, therefore without that light, which is man's very spiritual life, there is no truth, however much it may sound like truth because it is from the Word; it is truth falsified by the ideas that are held in respect to it; for from faith separate from charity, or from truths without good, no other result can follow. This is why the spiritual sense of the Word could not be disclosed to the Christian churches, for if it had been disclosed, they would have falsified and perverted it by ideas from fallacies, and thus would have profaned it. This also is why no one will ever hereafter be admitted into the spiritual sense of the Word unless he is in genuine truths from good, and no one can be in genuine truths from good unless in heart he acknowledges the Lord alone as the God of heaven and earth, for from Him is every good and thence every truth. The spiritual sense of the Word is at this day opened, and therewith also genuine truths and goods are disclosed, because the Last Judgment has been accomplished by the Lord, and thus all things in the heavens and in the hells have been reduced to order; and for this reason it can be provided by the Lord that no harm can be done to genuine truths and goods, which are in the spiritual sense of the Word, and this could not have been provided before (See in the small work on The Last Judgment 73).

[4] That "wine" signifies spiritual good, or the good of charity and the good of faith, which in its essence is truth, can be seen from the following passages in the Word. In Isaiah:

Ho, everyone that thirsteth, come ye to the waters; and he that hath no silver; come ye, buy and eat; buy wine and milk without silver and without price (Isaiah 55:1).

Anyone can see that this does not mean that wine and milk may be bought without silver, "wine and milk" therefore signify things spiritual, namely, "wine" spiritual good, which in its essence is truth, as was said above, but "milk" the good of that truth. That these are given by the Lord freely to those who are ignorant of truth and good, and yet in a desire for these, is signified by "he that hath no silver, come ye, buy and eat; buy without silver;" "to buy" signifies to acquire for oneself, and "to eat" signifies to make one's own, which is done by application as from oneself. Those who are ignorant of truth and good, and yet are in a desire for them, are evidently meant, for it is said, "Ho, everyone that thirsteth, come ye to the waters," "to thirst" signifying to desire, and "waters" signifying truths, here the Word where truths are.

[5] In Joel:

It shall come to pass in that day, the mountains shall drop down sweet wine, and the hills shall flow with milk; all the water-courses of Judah shall flow with waters (Joel 3:18).

This treats of the Lord's coming, and of the new heaven and the new church from Him. It is well known that the mountains in the land of Canaan, or in Judea, did not then drop down sweet wine, nor the hills flow with milk, nor the water-courses of Judah flow with waters more than before, therefore these words must mean something else than new wine, milk, and waters, or than mountains, hills, and water-courses, namely, "that the mountains shall drop down sweet wine" [mustum] or wine [vinum], means that from the good of love to the Lord there shall be genuine truth; "the hills shall flow with milk" means that from the good of charity towards the neighbor there shall be spiritual life; and "all the water-courses of Judah shall flow with waters" means that from the particulars of the Word there shall be truths. (For "Judah" signifies the Lord's celestial kingdom, and also the Word, see Arcana Coelestia 3881[1-11], 6363; therefore "its water-courses" signify the particulars of the Word; that "mountains" signify the good of love to the Lord, n. Arcana Coelestia 795, 4210, 6435, 8327, 8758, 10438, 10608; and "hills" the good of charity towards the neighbor, n. 6435, 10438; and this because in heaven those who are in the good of love to the Lord dwell upon mountains, and those who are in the good of charity towards the neighbor dwell upon hills, n. Arcana Coelestia 10438, and Heaven and Hell, n. 188.)

[6] In Amos:

Behold the days come, that the ploughman shall overtake the reaper, and the treader of grapes him that draweth forth seed; and the mountains shall drop down sweet wine, and all the hills shall dissolve. I will bring back the captivity of My people Israel, and they shall build the waste cities; and they shall inhabit them, and they shall plant vineyards and drink the wine thereof, and they shall make gardens and eat the fruit of them. Then will I plant them upon their ground (Amos 9:13-15).

This chapter treats first of the vastation of the church, and then of its restoration by the Lord; and "the people Israel" do not mean that people, but those with whom the church was to be established; and "the ploughman shall overtake the reaper, and the treader of grapes him that draweth forth the seed," signifies that he who receives good and truth shall also perform uses, or bear fruit, thus that with the man of the church the two shall be present at the same time; "the mountains shall drop down sweet wine, and all the hills shall dissolve," signifies, as just above, that from the good of love to the Lord and from the good of charity towards the neighbor there shall be truths in abundance, "sweet wine" here, or "wine," meaning truth; that "the captivity of the people Israel shall be brought back" signifies the restoration of the church among the Gentiles, for "captivity" means spiritual captivity, in which those are who are remote from goods and truths, and yet in a desire for them (See Arcana Coelestia 9164). "The waste cities that they shall build" signify the doctrinals of truth and good from the Word, before destroyed and at that time to be restored; "the vineyards which they shall plant," and "the wine of which they shall drink," signify all things of the church from which there is intelligence, "a vineyard" signifies the spiritual church, and therefore "vineyards" signify all things of the church; "wine" signifies the truth of the church in general, and "to drink it" signifies to be instructed and become intelligent, thus intelligence; and "the gardens which they shall make, and the fruit of which they shall eat," signifies wisdom, "gardens" meaning all things of intelligence, and their "fruit" signifying the goods of life, thus "to eat their fruit" signifies the appropriation of good, thus wisdom, for wisdom comes when truths are committed to the life; and because this is what is meant, therefore it is said of Israel, "I will plant them upon their ground."

[7] In Moses:

He bindeth his foal to the vine, the son of his she-ass unto the noble vine; he washeth his vesture in wine, and his covering in the blood of the grapes. His eyes are red with wine, and his teeth white with milk (Genesis 49:1, 12).

This is in the prophecy of Israel the father respecting Judah, by whom here Judah is not meant, but the Lord in relation to the celestial kingdom; and "wine" and the "blood of grapes" mean the Divine truth. (What the rest signifies, and that "wine" signifies Divine truth, because this has reference to the Lord, see Arcana Coelestia 6375-6381.)

[8] In the same:

Jacob brought of his venison to his father Isaac, and he did eat; and he brought him wine, and he drank. And Isaac blessed him, saying, God give thee of the dew of heaven, and of the fatnesses of the earth, and plenty of corn and new wine (Genesis 27:25, 27-28, 37).

Those who do not know that the Word is spiritual in its particulars may suppose that by "Isaac" here is meant Isaac, and by "Jacob" Jacob, and therefore that by "the fatnesses of the earth," and "the corn and new wine," no other and deeper things are meant; but "Isaac" here represents the Lord, and "Jacob" the church; thence the "fatnesses of the earth" mean the celestial things that are of the good of love; and "corn and new wine" every good and truth of the church. (But these words may also be seen explained in Arcana Coelestia n. 3570, 3579, 3580.)

[9] In the same:

If ye shall harken to My commandments, I will give rain to your land in its time, the former rain and the latter rain; and thou shall gather in thy corn, and thy new wine, and thy fresh oil (Deuteronomy 11:13-14).

These blessings of the earth were promised to the sons of Israel if they would hear and do the commandments of Jehovah, and the blessings followed because with them the church was representative, and the things that were said and commanded by Jehovah corresponded to things spiritual, thus these blessings of the earth to the blessings of heaven. The blessings of heaven, to which the blessings of the earth correspond, all have reference to the things that are of the good of love and the truth of faith; these blessings therefore are signified by "the former rain and the latter rain," for "rain" in particular signifies Divine truth flowing in out of heaven, from which all things of the church and heaven with man are born, grow, and are brought forth; therefore "the corn, new wine, and oil, which they should gather in," signify every good and truth of the external and internal man.

[10] In the same:

Thus Israel dwelt securely, alone by the fountain of Jacob, in a land of corn and new wine; yea, his heavens shall drop down dew (Deuteronomy 33:28).

This was the conclusion of the blessings of the sons of Israel by Moses, which were all prophetical, and every son or every tribe of Israel signified something of the church (as in Genesis 49); and here "Israel" signifies the church itself; and "to dwell securely, alone by the fountain of Jacob," signifies to live without infestation from evils and falsities, and to be led by the Lord alone through Divine truth, the "fountain of Jacob" meaning Divine truth and the Word; and "to live in a land of corn and new wine" signifies in every good and truth of the church; and "yea, his heavens shall drop down dew," signifies influx out of heaven.

[11] In the same:

He made him ride upon the high places of the earth, and gave him butter of the herd, and milk of the flock, with the fat of lambs, and of rams, the sons of Bashan, and of he-goats, with the fat of the kidneys of wheat; and thou drinkest the blood of the grape, unmixed wine (Deuteronomy 32:13-14).

These things are said of the Ancient Church, which was the church previous to the Israelitish Church, and was in the good of charity and in truths of faith. The goods of every kind, in which it was, are meant by these things, namely, the "butter of the herd," the "milk of the flock," "the fat of lambs," "the fat of rams," "the fat of goats," "the fat of the kidneys of wheat;" and spiritual truths are meant by "the blood of the grape" and "unmixed wine."

[12] In Jeremiah:

They shall come and sing aloud in the height of Zion, and shall flow together unto the good of Jehovah, to the corn, and to the new wine, and to the fresh oil, and to the sons of the flock and of the herd (Jeremiah 31:12).

"Corn," "new wine," and "fresh oil," signify goods and truth of every kind (what these mean in particular, see above, n. 374). In Isaiah:

Jehovah hath sworn by His right hand, and by the arm of His strength, Surely I will no longer give thy corn to be food for thine enemies, and the sons of the alien shall not drink thy new wine for which thou hast labored; but they that gather it shall eat it and praise Jehovah, and they that bring it together shall drink it in the courts of holiness (Isaiah 62:8-9).

This is said of Jerusalem, which signifies the church in relation to doctrine; therefore "the corn that shall no longer be given as food for the enemies, and the new wine that the sons of the alien shall not drink" signify in general the good and truth of the church, which shall no longer be consumed by evils and falsities; "enemies" here meaning evils, and "the sons of the alien" falsities, and "to eat," or "to have food given them," and "to drink," mean to consume. That goods and truths will remain with those who receive them, and thence make use of them, is signified by "they that gather it shall eat it," and "they that bring it together shall drink it;" worship from these is signified by "praising Jehovah," and "drinking in the courts of holiness."

[13] In the same:

Gladness is taken away, and exultation from Carmel; and in the vineyards there is no singing aloud, no shouting for joy; the treader treadeth not out the wine in the wine-vats; I have made the vintage-shouting to cease (Isaiah 16:10).

This describes the taking away of the heavenly enjoyment that is from good and its truths, because good and truth itself is taken away; the good of the church is meant by "Carmel," and its truths by "vineyards" and by "treading out the wine in the wine-vats;" the enjoyments thereof that are taken away are meant by "gladness," "exultation," "singing aloud," "shouting," and "vintage-shouting," for it was a custom to sing in the vineyards, and in the winepresses when the grape was trodden into wine, that enjoyments from truths, which were signified by "wine," might be represented.

[14] In Jeremiah:

With more than the weeping of Jazer I will weep for thee, O vine of Sibmah; thy shoots are passed over the sea, they reach even to the sea of Jazer; upon thy autumn fruits, and upon thy vintage the devastator is fallen. Whence gladness and exultation is gathered out of Carmel, and out of the land of Moab; and I have caused the wine to cease in the wine-vats; none shall tread with shouting; their shouting shall be no shouting (Jeremiah 48:32-33).

This also treats of the taking away of the heavenly enjoyment that is from the good of love and the truths thence, for all heavenly enjoyment is in these and from these. Lamentation over it is meant by "weeping" [flere fletum]; deprivation of it is meant by "gladness and exultation is gathered out of Carmel," likewise by "the devastator falling upon it," "the wine failing," and "the shouting being no shouting;" the good that was taken away, for which there was lamentation, is meant by "the autumn fruits;" and the truths of good that were taken away are meant by "the vintage," and by "the wine in the wine-vats." That truths were banished, and that they perished through knowledges [scientifica] is meant by "the vine of Sibmah," and by its "shoots that have gone over the sea, even to the sea of Jazer," "sea" signifying the knowing faculty [scientificum].

[15] In Lamentations:

The infant and the suckling faint in the broad places of the city. They say to their mothers, Where is the corn and the wine? when they faint as one pierced in the broad places of the city, when their soul is poured out upon their mother's bosom (Lam. 2:11-12).

These words contain a lamentation over the Jewish Church, that every good and truth thereof has perished; and the lamentation is described by "the infant and the suckling who faint in the broad places of the city, and say to their mothers, Where is the corn and the wine?" The "infant and the suckling" signify those who are in the good of innocence, and in an abstract sense, the good of innocence itself; by this good every good of the church is meant, since it is the essential of all its goods (See in the work on Heaven and Hell, n. 276-283, 285, 288, 341, 382). "The broad places of the city" signify the truths of doctrine; "mothers" all things of the church; "corn and wine" all the good and truth of the church in general. It is said that "they faint as one pierced in the broad places of the city, when their soul is poured out upon their mother's bosom," because "one pierced" signifies those who perish spiritually from the deprivation of truth, and "soul" signifies spiritual life. (That "the broad places of the city, in which they faint," signify the truths of doctrine, see Arcana Coelestia, n. 2336; and that "the mother, into whose bosom the soul is poured out," signifies the church, n. 2691, 2717, 3703, 4257, 5581, 8897)

[16] In Zephaniah:

Their wealth shall be for plunder, and their houses for a waste, that they may build houses but not inhabit them, and plant vineyards but not drink the wine thereof (Zephaniah 1:13).

The "wealth that shall be for plunder" signifies spiritual wealth, which is the knowledges of good and truth; "the houses that shall be for devastation" signify the things of the church in man; that from these when devastated one profits nothing and receives nothing, even though he listens to them, and sees them in the Word, is signified by "building and not inhabiting, and planting vineyards and not drinking the wine thereof," "houses" meaning the goods of the church, and "vineyards" with "wine" its truths.

[17] Like things are meant in Micah:

Thou shalt sow but shalt not reap; thou shalt tread the olive but shalt not anoint thee with oil, and the new wine but shall not drink wine (Micah 6:15).

In Amos:

Vineyards of desire shall ye plant, but ye shall not drink the wine of them (Amos 5:11).

And in Hosea:

The threshing-floor and the wine-vat shall not feed them, and the new wine shall dissemble unto them. They shall not pour forth wine to Jehovah, and these shall not be agreeable unto Him (Hosea 9:2, 4).

The "threshing-floor and the wine-vat" signify the same as "corn and wine," because corn and wine are there collected; that they will not profit by what they hear is signified by "they shall not feed them, and the new wine shall dissemble unto them;" and that thence their worship is not accepted is signified by "they shall not pour forth wine to Jehovah, and these (that is, the offerings) shall not be agreeable unto Him."

[18] In Joel:

Awake, ye drunkards, and weep; and howl, all ye drinkers of wine, because of the sweet wine which is cut off from your mouth. The field is devastated, the ground mourned, for the corn was devastated, the new wine was dried up, the fresh oil languisheth; the husbandmen were ashamed; the vine-dressers howled (Joel 1:5, 10-11).

What these words signify in the spiritual sense, may be seen above n. 374, where they are explained; "wine" and "sweet wine" meaning the truth of the church, and "vine-dressers" those who are in truths and teach them. This treats of a devastated church, in which goods and truths have perished.

[19] In Ezekiel:

Damascus was thy trader in the multitude of thy works, in the multitude of all riches, in the wine of Heshbon ¹ and the wool of Zachar (Ezekiel 27:18).

This is said of Tyre, which signifies the church in relation to the knowledges of good and truth; and "Damascus," which was a city in Syria, signifies the concordant knowing faculty [scientificum]; and the "tradings" referred to in this chapter signify the acquisition and communication and also the use of these. Because "Damascus" signifies the concordant knowing faculty, it is called a "trader in the multitude of all works and riches," "works" by which uses are effected, signifying the knowledges of good, and "riches" the knowledges of truth; and as the knowledges of truth and good are in the natural man, for therein is everything pertaining to cognition and knowing that is perceptible, therefore it is said "in the wine of Heshbon and the wool of Zachar," the "wine of Heshbon" signifying natural truth, and the "wool of Zachar" natural good.

[20] In Isaiah:

A malediction shall devour the earth; the new wine shall mourn, the vine shall languish, all the glad of heart shall sigh. They shall not drink wine with a song; strong drink shall be bitter to them that drink it. The city of voidness shall be broken down; every house shall be shut, that no one come in (Isaiah 24:6-7, 9-10).

These words describe the perversion of the church, which takes place when falsity rules in place of truth, whence there is no longer any good; for man has good by means of truths. "The earth that the malediction will devour" signifies the church, "malediction" meaning its perversion; the "new wine that will mourn," and the "vine that will languish," signify all truth of the church, "to mourn" and "to languish" signifying deprivation of it; that there shall no longer be any heavenly enjoyment and blessedness is signified by "all the glad of heart shall sigh, they shall not drink wine with a song;" that they shall turn away from all things that agree with truths is signified by "strong drink shall be bitter to them that drink it," "strong drink" signifying the things that are from truths and agree with them. But that the doctrine of falsity shall be destroyed is signified by "the city of voidness shall be broken down," "city" meaning doctrine, and "a void" falsity; and that there shall no longer be any good or wisdom with man is signified by "every house shall be shut, that no one come in," which takes place when there is no truth, but only falsity.

[21] In Amos:

Who drink out of bowls of wine, and anoint themselves with the firstfruits of the oils; but they are not grieved for the breach of Joseph (Amos 6:6).

This and what precedes in that chapter describes those who are in external worship without internal, such as the Jews were formerly and still are; the "bowls of wine out of which they drink" are the externals of truth from which is worship; and the "firstfruits of the oils with which they anoint themselves" are the externals of good, from which also is worship; "Joseph" signifies the internal of the church or its spiritual; not being affected because this perishes is signified by "they are not grieved for his breach." (That external worship without internal is no worship, see Arcana Coelestia 1094, 1175, 7724; that the Jews were formerly and still are in external worship without internal, n. 1200, 3147, 3479, 8871; that "Joseph" signifies the spiritual church, thus also the spiritual of the church, n. 3969, 3971, 4669, 6417)

[22] In Zechariah:

I will render the house of Judah mighty and I will save the house of Joseph; on this account they shall be as the mighty Ephraim, and their heart shall be glad as if with wine (Zechariah 10:6-7).

"The house of Judah" signifies the Lord's celestial church, and the "house of Joseph" the Lord's spiritual church; and "to render mighty their houses" signifies to multiply with them truths from good, for all might is of truth from good; therefore it is said, "they shall be as the mighty Ephraim;" "Ephraim" signifying the understanding of truth from good, which is called mighty from its multiplication; heavenly enjoyment therefrom is signified by "their heart shall be glad as if with wine," "wine" meaning truth from good from which that enjoyment comes. (That truths have all power from good, see in the work o n Heaven and Hell 228-233; and also above, n. 209, 333; that "Judah" in the Word signifies the Lord's celestial kingdom, Arcana Coelestia 3881[1-11], 6363; and "Ephraim" the intellectual of the church, n. 3969, 5354, 6222, 6234, 6238, 6267, 6296.)

[23] In Daniel:

Belshazzar king of Babylon, and his magnates, and his wives, and his concubines, drank wine out of vessels of the temple of Jerusalem, and praised the gods of silver, brass, iron, wood, and stone. Therefore there was written on the wall, Numbered, weighed, and divided. And then he [Nebuchadnezzar] was driven out from the sons of man, and his dwelling was with the wild asses (Daniel 5:2-5, 21).

In the internal sense this describes the profanation of good and truth, which also is meant by "Babel" or "Babylon;" for "to drink wine out of the vessels of the temple of Jerusalem" signifies to draw the truths of the church from the Word, "to drink wine" meaning to draw truths, and "the vessels of the temple of Jerusalem" meaning the truths that belong to the doctrine of the church from the Word; and "to praise the gods of gold, silver, brass, iron, wood, and stone" signifies worship from the love of self and the world; for these gods signify idolatrous worship of every kind, and profanation; that it was therefore written on the wall, "numbered, weighed, divided" signifies separation from all things of heaven and the church. That afterwards "the king was driven out from the sons of man, and his dwelling was with the wild asses" signifies separation from all truth, and the allotment of his life with the infernals, "sons of man" meaning the truths of the church, "wild asses" those who are in dire falsities like those in the hells, and "dwelling" meaning the allotment of the life.

[24] In Joel:

They have cast a lot upon My people; for they have given a boy for a harlot, and sold a girl for wine, which they drank (Joel 3:3).

"To cast lots upon the people" signifies to dissipate the truths of the church, "to cast a lot" signifying to dissipate, and "people" signifying the church in relation to truths, thus also the truths of the church; "to give a boy for a harlot" signifies to falsify truth, "boy" meaning the truth of the church, and "harlot" falsity; and "to sell a girl for wine, which they drank" signifies to pervert the good of the church by truth falsified, "girl" meaning the good of the church, and "wine" truth falsified.

[25] Because "wine" signified the truth of the church that is from good, it was commanded that, with the sacrifices upon the altar, a meal-offering and a drink-offering should be offered, and the meal-offering was bread, and the drink-offering wine; these signified worship of the Lord from the good of love, and from the truths therefrom; for all worship is from these. (On the drink-offerings, the portions of wine with them at the different sacrifices, see Exodus 29:40, 41; Leviticus 23:13, 18; Numbers 6:1-4, 15, 17; 15:4-7, 10, 24; 28:7-10, 24, 31; 29:6, 11, 16, 19, 22, 25, 27, 28, 31, 34, 38, 39; and besides Genesis 35:14) This makes clear what is signified in Joel:

The meal-offering and the drink-offering was cut off from the house of Jehovah; the priests, the ministers (of the altar), mourned (Joel 1:9);

namely, that worship from the good of love, and from the truths therefrom, had perished. Who cannot see that the meal-offering and the drink-offering, which were bread and wine, were not pleasing to Jehovah in worship, unless they had signified such things as are of heaven and the church?

[26] From this it can now be seen what the bread and wine in the Holy Supper involve, namely, the bread, the good of love to the Lord from the Lord, and the wine, the good of faith, which in its essence is truth. (But on the Holy Supper and the bread and wine of it, see The Doctrine of the New Jerusalem 210-222.) Because "wine" signifies the good of faith, which in its essence is truth, when the Lord instituted the sacrament of the supper, He said:

I say unto you, I will not drink henceforth of this product of the vine until that day when I will drink it with you new in My Father's kingdom (Matthew 26:29).

I say unto you, I will not drink of the product of the vine until the kingdom of God shall come (Luke 22:18).

"The product of the vine," that is, "wine," which the Lord "would drink with them new in His Father's kingdom," or "when the kingdom of God should come," means that all Divine truth in heaven and the church would then be from His Divine Human; He therefore calls it "new," and also He calls it "the new testament in his blood" (Luke 22:20); for "the Lord's blood" has a like signification as "wine" (See above, n. 30, 328, 329). And as everything Divine, since the Lord has risen, proceeds from Him, He says that He will drink it with them when the kingdom of God shall come, and it came when He reduced all things to order in the heavens and in the hells. That the kingdom of God came at the same time with the Lord and that it is from Him can be seen from Matthew 3:2; 4:8; 10:7; 12:28; 16:28; Mark 1:14, 15; 9:1; Luke 1:32, 33; 9:11, 27, 60; 10:11; 16:16; 17:20, 21; 23:42, 51; John 18:36. Now, because "bread" signifies the good of love, and "wine" the good of faith, which in its essence is the truth from that good, and in the highest sense, "bread" signifies the Lord in respect to Divine good, and "wine" the Lord in respect to Divine truth, and because there is a correspondence between spiritual things and natural, (and such a correspondence that when "bread" and "wine" are in man's thought, the good of love and the good of faith are in the angels' thoughts), and because all things of heaven and the church have reference to the good of love and the good of faith, therefore the Lord instituted the Holy Supper in order that by means of it there might be a conjunction of the angels of heaven with the men of the church.

[27] Because such things are meant by "bread and wine" in heaven, therefore:

Melchizedek, king of Salem, going out to meet Abram, brought out bread and wine; and he was a priest to God Most High. And he blessed Abram (Genesis 14:18-19).

"Melchizedek" here represents the Lord in relation to Divine good and in relation to Divine truth, as priest in relation to Divine good, and as king to Divine truth; therefore he "brought out bread and wine," "bread" signifying Divine good, and "wine" Divine truth; or when applied to man, "bread" signifying the good of love to the Lord, and "wine" the good of faith, which is from the reception of Divine truth.

[28] The "wine" spoken of by the Lord in the following passages has a like signification:

They do not put new wine into old wine-skins, else the skins burst, and the wine is spilled; but they put [new] wine into fresh wine-skins, and both are preserved (Matthew 9:17).

And no man having drunk old wine straightway desireth new; for he saith, The old is more useful (Luke 5:39).

This comparison, like all others in the Word, is from correspondences, "wine" signifying truth, "old wine" the truth of the old or Jewish Church, and "wine-skins" things that contain, "old wine-skins" the statutes and judgments of the Jewish Church, and "fresh wine-skins" the precepts and commandments of the Lord. That the statutes and judgments of the Jewish Church, which related especially to sacrifices and representative worship, are not in agreement with the truths of the Christian Church is meant by "they do not put new wine into old wine-skins, else the wine-skins burst and the wine is spilled; but they put [new] wine into fresh wine-skins, and both are preserved together." That those who have been born and educated in the externals of the Jewish Church cannot be brought immediately into the internals belonging to the Christian Church is signified by "no man having drunk old wine straightway desireth new; for he saith, "The old is more useful."

[29] The same is signified by "the water turned into wine at Cana of Galilee," thus described in John:

At the wedding in Cana of Galilee, when the wine failed, there were six water-pots of stone set there, according to the cleansing of the Jews. Jesus said, Fill the water-pots; and they filled them to the brim. Then he said unto them Draw out now, and bear unto the ruler of the feast; and they bare it. While the ruler of the feast tasted the water that was made wine, he calleth the bridegroom, and saith unto him, Every man setteth on first the good wine; and when they have had enough, the inferior; thou hast kept the good wine until now (John 2:1-10).

It should be known that all the miracles done by the Lord, as well as all the miracles by Him spoken of in the Old Testament, signified, that is, contained within them, such things as belong to heaven and the church, and that thence His miracles were Divine (See Arcana Coelestia 7337, 8364, 9051). So with this miracle; here, as elsewhere in the Word, "a wedding" signifies the church; "in Cana of Galilee" means among the Gentiles; "water" the truth of the external church, such as was the truth of the Jewish Church from the sense of the letter of the Word, and "wine" the truth of the internal church, such as is the truth of the Christian Church; therefore the Lord's "making the water wine" signifies that of the truths of the external church He will make truths of the internal church by opening the internal things that have lain concealed in them. "The six water-pots of stone, set there according to the cleansing of the Jews," signify all these truths in the Word, and thence in the Jewish Church and its worship; these were all representative and significative of things Divine in the Lord and from the Lord, which contained things eternal. For this reason there were "six water-pots of stone, set for the cleansing of the Jews;" the number "six" signifies all, and is predicated of truths; "stone" signifies truth, and "the cleansing of the Jews" purification from sins; thus all things of the Jewish Church are signified, since that church regards purification from sins as its all, for so far as anyone is purified from sins, so far he becomes a church. "The ruler of the feast" means those who are in the knowledges of truth; his saying to the bridegroom, "every man setteth on first the good wine; and when men have had enough, the inferior; thou hast kept the good wine until now," signifies that every church has its beginning in truths from good, but falls away into truths not of good, but that now, at the end of the church, truth from good, or genuine truth, is granted, namely by the Lord.

[30] It is because "wine" signifies the truth of the church, and "oil" the good of the church, that the Lord says, in the parable of the man who was wounded by thieves:

That the Samaritan poured oil and wine into his wounds (Luke 10:33-34);

where "the man wounded by thieves" means those who are infested and have their conscience hurt by evil men, who are "robbers;" and "the Samaritan" means the Gentiles that are in the good of charity; therefore "his pouring into his wounds oil and wine" signifies the spiritual things that heal a man thus injured, "oil" meaning the good of love, and "wine" the good of faith, or truth. What the rest signifies, namely, "that he set him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn, and told them to take care of him," may be seen above (n. 375[8]), where they are explained. That "wine" signifies the truth of the church can be seen not only from the passages cited, but also from others in the Word (as Isaiah 1:21, 22; 25:6; 36:17; Hosea 7:4, 5, 14; 14:5-7; Amos 2:8; Zechariah 9:15, 17; Psalms 104:14-16).

[31] As most things in the Word have also a contrary sense, so, too, has "wine," and in that sense it signifies truth falsified, and also falsity, as in the following passages. In Isaiah:

Woe to the crown of pride, to the drunkards of Ephraim, to the flower of his fading adornment, which is on the head of the valley of the fat ones frenzied with wine; the crown of pride, the drunkards of Ephraim, they shall be trampled under the feet; these go astray through wine, and through strong drink they err; the priest and the prophet go astray through strong drink, they are swallowed up of wine, they err through wine, ² they go astray among the seeing, they waver in judgment (Isaiah 28:1, 3, 7).

This is said of those who are insane in things spiritual because they believe themselves to be intelligent of themselves, and glory in it; the state of such is here described by pure correspondences; those who are insane in things spiritual or in truths are meant by "the drunkards," and those who thence believe themselves intelligent by "Ephraim," and hence glorying in intelligence or learning is meant by the "crown of pride;" for those who are in falsities of doctrine and have confirmed themselves in them, when they are illustrated and see truths, in the other life become like drunkards. The learned who have confirmed themselves in falsities become such, and to confirm oneself in falsities is to confirm from oneself and not from the Lord. This makes clear what is signified by "woe to the crown of pride, to the drunkards of Ephraim;" "the flower of the fading adornment that is on the head of the valley of the fat ones frenzied with wine" signifies the truth of the church destroyed even as it is born by the glorying of the self-intelligence that is of the natural man separated from the spiritual, when falsity is seen instead of truth, "the flower of the adornment" meaning truth as it is born declining or perished; "the head of the valley of the fat ones" means the intelligence of the natural man; "frenzied with wine" means those who see falsity in place of truth; "the crown of pride, the drunkards of Ephraim, they shall be trampled under the feet," signifies that this intelligence shall utterly perish; "these go astray through wine, and through strong drink they err," signifies through falsities and through such things as are from falsities; "the priest and the prophet go astray through strong drink, they are swallowed up of wine, they are gone astray through strong drink," signifies that such are those who ought to be in the doctrine of good and truth, and in a sense abstracted from persons that such is their doctrine itself; "they go astray among the seeing, they waver in judgment," signifies that they do not see the truths of intelligence. That these words have such a signification no one can see except from the spiritual sense; without that it could not be known that "crown" and "head" signify intelligence, that "drunkards" signify those who are insane in things spiritual, that "Ephraim" signifies here man's own understanding, or that which is from himself, that "valley" signifies the lower things of the mind, which are natural and sensual, and that "priest and prophet" signify the doctrine of good and truth.

[32] In the same:

Linger ye, wonder, be astounded, and cry out; they are drunken, but not with wine; they stagger, but not with strong drink; for Jehovah hath poured out upon you the spirit of deep sleep, and hath closed up your eyes; the prophets and your heads, the seers hath He covered (Isaiah 29:9-10).

This is said of those who can see nothing of truth when they hear or read it from the Word; those who are such are called "drunken but not with wine," and "they stagger, but not with strong drink," "wine" signifying in particular the truth of the spiritual and thus of the rational man, and "strong drink" the truth of the natural man therefrom. Because such are meant it is said, "Jehovah hath poured out upon you the spirit of deep sleep, and hath closed up your eyes," "the spirit of deep sleep" meaning no perception, and the "eyes closed up" no understanding. "The prophets and your heads [the seers] hath He covered," signifies those who are in the doctrine of truth and were wise and intelligent thence; "prophets" signify those who are in the doctrine of truth, and in an abstract sense, doctrine itself, "heads" signify the wise, and in an abstract sense, wisdom, and "seers" signify the intelligent, and in an abstract sense, intelligence. Wonder at such gross stupidity is described by "Linger ye, wonder, be astounded," and lamentation over it by "cry out." Such are those who are in a life of evil, and at the same time in the principles of falsity, however learned they are believed to be; for a life of evil shuts out the perception of good by which thought has life and light, and the principles of falsity shut out the understanding of truth, on which account they see from the sensual man only, and not at all from the spiritual.

[33] In the same:

The dogs are strong of soul, they know not satiety; and they are shepherds who know not intelligence. Come, I will take wine and we will be drunk with strong drink (Isaiah 56:11-12).

This is said of those who care for nothing but worldly and earthly things, which close the internal spiritual man. These, from having no perception of good and no understanding of truth, are called "dogs strong of soul, they know not satiety," that is, they are unable to receive good, "to know" here signifies to be able, and "satiety" reception of good, for satiety is predicated of food, by which spiritual nourishment is signified. That they have no understanding of truth is meant by "they are shepherds who know not intelligence;" those are called "shepherds" who believe themselves able to instruct others, for "to feed" means to instruct; and because such persons love falsities and things falsified, it is added, "Come, I will take wine, and we will be drunk with strong drink."

[34] In Jeremiah:

Thus said Jehovah, God of Israel, Every bottle shall be filled with wine. Behold I fill all the inhabitants of this land, and the kings sitting for David upon his throne, and the priests and the prophets, all the inhabitants of Jerusalem with drunkenness (Jeremiah 13:12-13).

Here, too, "wine" signifies falsity, and "every bottle that shall be filled with wine" signifies the mind of man, since the mind is a recipient of truth or of falsity, as a bottle is of wine; "the kings sitting for David upon his throne" signify those who would otherwise be in Divine truths, "priests" those who would be in Divine goods, "prophets," those who would be in doctrine, "the inhabitants of Jerusalem" all who are of the church; and "the drunkenness with which they shall be filled" signifies insanity in spiritual things.

[35] In the same:

I am become like a drunkard, and like a man into whom wine hath passed, because of Jehovah, and because of the words of His Holiness. For the land is full of adulterers (Jeremiah 23:9-10).

This is a lamentation over the adulteration of good and falsification of truth in the church, which is signified by "the land is full of adulterers;" these are meant by "adulteries," and the church by "land." Insanity in spiritual things through reasonings from evils against Divine goods and from falsities against Divine truth is signified by, "I am become like a drunkard, and like a man into whom wine has passed, because of Jehovah, and because of the words of His Holiness;" "to become like a drunkard and like a man into whom wine hath passed" signifies confusion of mind and insanity by reasoning from evils and falsities; "because of Jehovah" signifies because of Divine goods, and "because of the words of his holiness" signifies because of Divine truths.

[36] In Isaiah:

Hear now this, thou afflicted, and drunken but not with wine (Isaiah 51:21).

The "drunken but not with wine," mean here those who are in falsities from ignorance of truth. That:

Noah drank of the wine and was drunken, and therefore lay naked in the midst of his tent (Genesis 9:21);

means in the spiritual sense, something entirely different from the meaning in the letter; likewise:

Lot's being made drunken by his daughters, and their then lying with him (Genesis 19:32-34).

What is meant by the drunkenness of Noah in the spiritual sense may be seen in Arcana Coelestia 1070-1081); and what by the drunkenness of Lot (n. 2465 end). "Drunkenness" also elsewhere in the Word signifies insanity in spiritual things, and lapsing into errors (Isaiah 19:11, 12, 14; Jeremiah 25:27; Joel 1:5-7; Jeremiah 51:7; Leviticus 10:8, 9).

[37] That "wine" in a contrary sense signifies falsity, is also evident from Isaiah:

Woe unto them that rise early in the morning, that follow strong drink; to them that delay until twilight till wine inflames them. But they do not look upon the work of Jehovah, and they see not the working of His hands. Woe to the wise in their own eyes, and the intelligent before their own faces. Woe unto the mighty in drinking wine, and to men of strength to mingle strong drink (Isaiah 5:11-12, 21-22).

This is said of those who frame for themselves doctrinals from self-intelligence not from the Lord, or from Him out of the Word, which consequently are mere falsities. "Woe unto them who rise early in the morning, who follow strong drink, to them who delay until twilight till wine inflame them; but they do not look upon the work of Jehovah, and they see not the working of His hands" signifies therefore the perverted states of those who believe that they are illustrated of themselves, whence they are in falsities of doctrine, and care not for the Word, from which they might know goods and truths of life and of doctrine. "To rise early in the morning," and "to delay until twilight" signifies to be illustrated; and "to follow strong drink," and "to be inflamed with wine" signifies to hatch out doctrinals of themselves; "not to look upon the work of Jehovah," and "not to see the working of His hands" signifies not to care for the Word, or the goods of life and the truths of doctrine there disclosed; "the work of Jehovah" is predicated of the goods of life, and "the working of His hands" of the truths of doctrine, both from the Word; because such persons are meant, therefore it is said, "Woe to the wise in their own eyes, and the intelligent before their own faces;" "the wise in their own eyes" signifying those who are wise from their own intelligence, and "the intelligent before their own faces" signifying those who are intelligent from their own affection, "eyes" signifying the understanding, and "face" affection. And "woe unto the mighty in drinking wine, and to men of strength to mingle strong drink," signifies unto such as aspire after great things, and are ingenious in confirming the falsities that favor the loves of self and their own principles; "the mighty" are those who aspire to great things; "men of strength" those who are ingenious, and seem to themselves to be intelligent; "to drink wine" means to imbibe falsities, and "to mingle strong drink" means to confirm them. Such are all those who are in the love of self, and who seek after the reputation for learning, for such are in what is their own, and cannot be elevated above it; therefore their own thought is in the corporeal sensual, by which no truth is seen, and no spiritual good is perceived. But those who are not in the love of self, and who seek intelligence for the sake of the uses of life, are elevated by the Lord from what is their own into the light of heaven, and though not themselves aware of it, are illustrated.

[38] In Hosea:

Whoredom and new wine have taken up the heart. My people ask the wood, and their rod answereth them; for the spirit of whoredom hath led them astray, and they have committed whoredom under their God. Ephraim is joined to idols; their wine is gone; in whoring they commit whoredom (Hosea 4:11-12, 17-18).

This treats of those who falsify truths; the falsification of truth is signified by "whoredom," and the falsity therefrom by "new wine." This makes clear what is signified by "whoredom and new wine have taken up the heart; the spirit of whoredoms hath seduced them, they have committed whoredom under their God, and the wine hath departed, in whoring they commit whoredom," namely, that such falsify Divine truths, and consequently have no truth at all, "to commit whoredom under their God" signifies to falsify Divine truths, and "the wine hath departed" signifies that consequently they have no truth at all; "Ephraim, who is joined to idols" signifies those who are in self-intelligence, and the "idols to which he is joined" signify the falsities of religion. "My people ask the wood, and their rod answereth them" signifies that they consult their self-love, and favor it from self-intelligence; for "wood" or an idol of wood, which they ask, signifies self-love, and "the rod that answers" signifies power from what is one's own, thus intelligence.

[39] In Revelation:

Babylon is fallen is fallen, the great city, because of the wine of the wrath of her whoredom she hath made all nations to drink. If anyone worshipeth the beast he shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which hath been mingled unmixed in the cup of the anger [of God]; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone (Revelation 14:8-10);

I will show thee the judgment of the great harlot that sitteth upon many waters, with whom the kings of the earth committed whoredom, and they that dwell in the earth were made drunk from the wine of her whoredom (Revelation 17:1-2).

For of the wine of the wrath of her whoredom have all nations drunk, and the kings of the earth have committed whoredom with her (Revelation 18:3).

"The wine of the anger of God" signifies the falsity of evil, and "the wine of whoredom" signifies truth falsified; what the rest means will appear in the explanation of it, likewise what these words mean in Revelation:

Babylon the great was remembered before God, to give unto her the cup of the wine of the wrath of God's anger (Revelation 16:19);

"The wine of God's anger" having the same meaning as "the chalice, or cup, of God's anger."

[40] In Jeremiah:

Babylon hath been a cup of gold in the hand of Jehovah, making the whole earth drunken; the nations have drunk of her wine, therefore the nations are mad (Jeremiah 51:7).

And in David:

There is a cup in the hand of Jehovah, and He hath mingled the wine, hath filled it with mixture, and hath poured out; but the lees of it all the wicked of the earth shall suck out and drink (Psalms 75:8).

As the "meal-offering" and the "drink-offering," which were bread and wine, signify worship from the good of love and the truths of faith, so in a contrary sense, the "meal-offering" and "drink-offering" signify worship from the evils that are of the love of evil, and from the falsities of faith; this was signified by the "meal-offering" and "drink-offering" that were offered to idols and to the gods (Isaiah 57:6; 65:11; Jeremiah 7:18; 44:17-19; Ezekiel 20:28; Deuteronomy 32:38). From the signification of "wine" it can be seen what "vineyard," "vine," its "branches," and "grapes" signify in the Word, namely, that "a vineyard" signifies the spiritual church, that is, the church that is in the truths and goods of doctrine from the Lord, "a vine" the doctrine itself, its "branches" truths from which doctrine is formed, and "the grapes" which are the fruit of vineyards and of vines, the goods of charity and the goods of faith (but of these elsewhere).

Poznámky pod čarou:

403. As a fig tree casteth her unripe figs when shaken by a great wind, signifies which knowledges the natural man has laid waste by its reasonings. This is evident from the signification of "fig-tree," as being the natural man (of which presently); from the signification of "her unripe figs" as being the things that are in the natural man, which especially are the knowledges implanted in the natural man from infancy, and that are not yet mature, having been merely heard and thence accepted; also from the signification of "shaken by a great wind," as being, which the natural man has laid waste by reasonings. "To be shaken by a great wind" here signifies the reasonings from the falsities of evil, for "great" in the Word is predicated of good and of evil, "wind" of truth and of falsity, and "to be shaken thereby," of reasoning therefrom. Such is the signification of these words, although they are used comparatively, because in the Word all comparisons, like the rest, are significative, for they are equally correspondences. With respect to these things, the case is this: every man is born natural from his parents, but becomes spiritual from the Lord, which is called to be born anew or to be regenerated; and because he is born natural, therefore the knowledges that he imbibes from infancy, before he becomes spiritual, are implanted in his natural memory; but as he advances in years and begins to consider rationally the knowledges of good and truth that he has imbibed from the Word or from preaching, if he is then leading an evil life he eagerly adopts and is imbued with the falsities that are opposite and contrary to these knowledges, and then, because he is endowed with ability to reason, he reasons from falsities against the knowledges of his infancy and childhood, in consequence of which these are cast out, and falsities take their place; this, therefore, is what is signified by "the stars shall fall to the earth as a fig-tree casteth her unripe figs when shaken by a great wind."

[2] That "the fig-tree" signifies the natural man is from correspondence; for in heaven gardens and paradises are seen, where there are trees of every kind, and each tree signifies something of the Divine that is communicated to angels by the Lord. In general, "the olive" signifies the celestial, which is of the good of love; "the vine" the spiritual, which is of truth from that good; and "the fig-tree," the natural, which is derived from the spiritual or the celestial. And as these trees have this signification they also signify the angel or man in whom such things exist. But in a general sense they signify a whole society, because every society in the heavens is so formed as to present the image of a single man. In the spiritual sense, however, these trees signify the church, "the olive" the celestial church, "the vine" the spiritual church, and "the fig-tree" the natural church, which is the external church corresponding to the internal. From this it can be seen why "the fig-tree" is said to signify the natural man, that is, the natural with man.

[3] That "the fig tree" signifies this, and, in general, the external church is evident also from other passages in the Word, where it is mentioned, as from the following. In Isaiah:

All the host of the heavens shall waste away, and the heavens shall be rolled up as a book; and all their ¹ host shall fall down as the leaf falleth off from the vine, and as that which falleth from the fig-tree (Isaiah 34:4).

This is said of the day of the Last Judgment, which was to come, and which also did come; for the Last Judgment foretold by the prophets of the Old Testament was accomplished by the Lord when He was in the world; and as the things then done were like those done in the Last Judgment that is foretold in Revelation, and has at this day been accomplished by the Lord, so nearly the same things are said; as in the prophet Isaiah, that "all the host of the heavens shall fall down, as the leaf falleth off from the vine, and as that which falleth from the fig-tree," likewise that "the heavens shall be rolled up as a scroll;" and in Revelation, that "the stars shall fall unto the earth, as a fig-tree casteth her unripe figs," and that "the heaven shall depart as a book rolled up." "All the host of the heavens shall waste away" signifies that all goods and truths that are of love and faith are corrupted, "the host of the heavens" meaning all goods and truths that are of love and faith; for the sun, moon, and stars, by which these are signified, are called "the host of the heavens." "The heavens shall be rolled up as a book" signifies their dispersion; "all the host shall fall down as the leaf from the vine, and as that which falleth from the fig tree" signifies a laying waste from the falsities of evil.

[4] In Jeremiah:

In consuming I will consume them; there shall be no grapes on the vine nor figs on the fig-tree, and the leaf shall wither (Jeremiah 8:13).

"No grapes on the vine" signifies that there is no spiritual good, for "the vine" signifies the spiritual man, and "the grape," as being its fruit, signifies the good of that man, which is called spiritual good; "nor figs on the fig-tree" signifies that there is no natural good, for "the fig-tree" signifies the natural man, and "the fruit of the fig tree" signifies the good of that man which is called natural good. Evidently "the vine" does not mean a vine, nor "the fig-tree" a fig-tree, for it is said, "In consuming I will consume them, there shall be no grapes on the vine nor figs on the fig-tree," for they would not be consumed on that account. Moreover, the vastation of the church is what is treated of, as is clearly evident from what there precedes and follows.

[5] In Hosea:

I will make all her joy to cease, her feast, her new moon, her sabbath. And I will lay waste her vine and her fig-tree, whereof she hath said, These are my meretricious hire; and I will make them a forest, and the wild beast of the field shall eat them (Hosea 2:11-12).

This treats of the churches and of the falsification of truth therein. That the church is treated of is evident from the second verse of this chapter, where it is said, "Plead with your mother; for she is not my wife, and I am not her husband," "mother" and "wife" meaning the church. Moreover, the holy things of the church, from which worship is performed, and the worship itself, are signified by "the feast, the new moon, and the sabbath," which shall cease; therefore "I will lay waste her vine and her fig-tree" signifies that both spiritual good and natural good are to perish. That "they will be made a forest, and the wild beast of the field shall eat them" signifies that both will be merely natural, and that the spiritual will be consumed by falsities and lusts; "forest" signifying the merely natural, and "wild beast of the field" falsities and lusts. And as falsities in the church are especially falsified truths, and these are treated of in this chapter, it is said, "whereof she hath said, These are my meretricious hire," "meretricious hire" signifying falsification.

[6] In Joel:

A nation shall come up upon My land, vigorous and without number; its teeth are the teeth of a lion, and it hath the cheek-teeth of an immense ² lion. It hath made My vine a waste. and My fig-tree foam; [in stripping it hath stripped it, and cast it away;] the branches thereof are made white. The vine is dried up and the fig-tree languisheth; the pomegranate-tree, the palm-tree also, and the apple-tree, all the trees of the field are dried up (Joel 1:6-7, 12).

This whole chapter treats of the devastated church; and "the nation that comes up upon the land, vigorous and without number, having the teeth of a lion, and the cheek-teeth of an immense lion," does not signify any such nation, but direful evil and falsity therefrom; "the land upon which it comes up" signifies the church; "the teeth of a lion" signify the falsities of such evil; and because these destroy all the goods and truths of the church, they are called "the teeth of the lion and the great cheek-teeth of a lion," "lion" signifying [falsity] which destroys. Therefore "it hath made My vine a waste, and My fig-tree foam," signifies that the church internal and external is thereby vastated, "vine" signifying the internal church, and "fig-tree" the external, "foam" signifying where there is inwardly no truth; "in stripping it hath stripped it, and cast it away" signifies that there is no longer any good or truth that is not destroyed, "to strip," that is, of fruits and leaves, means of goods and truths, and "to cast away" means to destroy entirely; "the branches thereof are made white" signifies that there is no longer anything spiritual; "the pomegranate, the palm, and the apple, and all the trees of the field, that are dried up" signify the kinds of goods and truths of the church, and its knowledges, which are consummated by evils and falsities, "the trees of the field" signifying in general the knowledges of good and truth.

[7] In the same:

Fear not, ye beasts of My fields; for the habitations of the wilderness are full of herbs, for the tree beareth her fruit, the fig-tree and the vine shall yield their strength (Joel 2:22).

This treats of the establishment of the church, therefore "the beasts of the field" do not mean beasts of the field, but the affections of good in the natural man, consequently those in whom are such affections. Who does not see that it cannot be beasts to whom it is said, "Fear not, ye beasts of my fields?" "The habitations of the desert are made full of herbs" signifies that with such there will be knowledges of truth where there were none before, "the habitations of the wilderness" meaning the interiors of the mind of those in whom these did not exist before, "full of herbs" signifying the increase and multiplication of these; "for the tree beareth her fruit, the fig tree and the vine shall yield their strength" signifies that they have natural good and spiritual good, "strength" here meaning the production of fruit.

[8] In Amos:

Your many gardens and your vineyards, and your fig-trees and your olive-trees, the palmer-worm hath devoured; yet have ye not returned unto me (Amos 4:9).

"Gardens" signify all things of the church that constitute intelligence and wisdom; "vineyards" spiritual goods and truths; "fig-trees" natural goods and truths; "olive-trees" celestial goods and truths; "the palmer-worm" means the falsity that destroys; "the fig-tree," "the vine," and "the olive" properly signify the church and the man of the church; but as the church is a church and man is a man from goods and truths, so these also are signified by those trees, goods by their fruits, and truths by their branches and leaves.

[9] In Haggai:

Set your heart from this day and onwards. Is not the seed yet in the barn, even to the vine and fig-tree, and the pomegranate and the olive-tree? (Haggai 2:18-19).

These words in the spiritual sense mean that there are goods and truths yet remaining; all goods and truths from first to last are meant by "the vine, the fig-tree, the pomegranate, and the olive-tree," "the vine" meaning spiritual good and truth; "the fig-tree" natural good and truth; "the pomegranate" in general that which belongs to knowing and perceiving, and in particular, the knowledges and perceptions of good and truth; and "the olive-tree" the perception of celestial good and truth; "the barn" signifies where all these are, either the church or the man in whom the church is, or the mind of the man which is the subject.

[10] In Habakkuk:

The fig-tree shall not blossom, neither shall there be produce on the vines; the labor of the olive shall dissemble, and the fields shall yield no food (Habakkuk 3:17).

"The fig-tree shall not blossom" signifies that there shall be no natural good; "neither shall there be produce on the vines" signifies that there shall be no spiritual good; "the labor of the olive shall dissemble" signifies that there shall be no celestial good; "the fields shall yield no food" signifies that there shall be no spiritual nourishment.

[11] In Moses:

Jehovah God bringeth thee to a good land, a land of brooks of water, of fountains and depths going forth in valley and mountain; a land of wheat and barley, and of vine and fig-tree and pomegranate; a land of oil-olive and honey (Deuteronomy 8:7-8).

"The good land" to which they shall be led means the land of Canaan, which signifies the church; here, therefore, "vine," "fig-tree," "pomegranate," and "olive," have a like signification as above. (The remainder may be seen explained before, n. 374)

Because "the land of Canaan" signifies the church, and "the vine," "the fig-tree," and "the pomegranate," signify the internal and external things of the church, so it came to pass that the explorers of that land brought away such things from it, respecting which it is thus written in Moses:

The explorers of the land of Canaan came to the brook Eshcol, and cut down from thence a branch with one cluster of grapes, which they bare upon a pole between two; and also of the pomegranates and of the figs (Numbers 13:23).

[12] Because "the vine" and "the fig-tree" signify such things, it is said in the Word of those who are in the goods and truths of the church, and thus in safety from evils and falsities, that "they shall sit securely under their own vine and under their own fig-tree, and none shall make afraid." Thus in the first book of Kings:

Judah and Israel dwelt in security, every man under his vine and under his fig-tree, from Dan even to Beersheba, all the days of Solomon (1 Kings 4:25).

In Zechariah:

I will remove the iniquity of this land in one day. In that day ye shall cry every man to his companion, to the vine and to the fig-tree (Zechariah 3:9-10).

And in Micah:

In the end of the days it shall be that the mountain of the house of Jehovah shall be established as the head of the mountains; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more; but they shall sit every man under his vine and under his fig-tree; and none shall make afraid (Micah 4:1, 4:3-4).

These things are said respecting the Lord's kingdom, which is with those in the heavens and on the earth who are in love to Him. The Lord's kingdom is signified by "the mountain of Jehovah, which is established as the head of the mountains," for "the mountain of Jehovah" signifies the Lord's kingdom constituted of those who are in love to Him; and as these dwell above the others in the heavens, it is said that this mountain "shall be established as the head of the mountains" (See in the work on Heaven and Hell 188). And as such have truths inscribed on their hearts, and therefore do not dispute about them, it is said that "nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more," which signifies that in that kingdom there shall be no disputation about truths (See in the same work, n 25-26, 270, 271). That through the truths and goods in which they are, they shall be safe from evils and falsities is signified by "they shall sit under their own vine and under their own fig tree, and none shall make afraid."

[13] In Jeremiah:

Lo, I will bring upon you a nation from afar, which shall eat up thy harvest and thy bread; and it shall eat up thy sons and thy daughters; it shall eat up thy flock and thy herd; it shall eat up thy vine and thy fig tree (Jeremiah 5:15, 17).

"A nation from afar" signifies the evil opposed to celestial good, "from afar" signifying apart and remote from, also opposed to, goods and truths; "which shall eat up thy harvest and thy bread" signifies that it will destroy all truths and goods by which there is spiritual nourishment; "which shall eat up thy sons and thy daughters" signifies all the spiritual affections of truth and good; "which shall eat up thy flock and thy herd" signifies truths and goods internal and external; "which shall eat up thy vine and thy fig tree" signifies thus the internal and the external of the church.

[14] In Hosea:

I found ³ Israel like grapes in the wilderness; I saw your fathers as the first-ripe in the fig-tree in its first season (Hosea 9:10).

"Israel" and "the fathers" do not mean here the fathers of the tribes of the sons of Jacob, but those who were of the Ancient Church, because they were in good (See Arcana Coelestia 6050, 6075, 6846, 6876, 6884, 7649, 8055); because these were in good, but at the beginning in ignorance of truth, through which, however, good comes, it is said, "I found Israel like grapes in the wilderness; I saw your fathers as a fig-tree in its first season," "grapes" signifying spiritual good, "wilderness" signifying ignorance of truth, and "the first-ripe in the fig-tree" signifying natural good from spiritual good in infancy.

[15] In Luke:

When these things begin to come to pass, look up, and lift up your heads. And He spoke a parable: Behold the fig-tree and all the trees; when now they shall have shot forth ye see and shall know of your own selves that summer is now near. So ye also, when ye shall see these things coming to pass know that the kingdom of God is nigh (Luke 21:28-31; Matthew 24:32; Mark 13:28-29).

This treats of the consummation of the age, which is the Last Judgment, and the signs which precede are enumerated, which are meant by "when all these things begin to come to pass;" that a new church is then to begin, which in its beginning will be external, is signified by "Behold the fig-tree and all the trees, when they have shot forth." This parable or similitude was related because "the fig-tree" signifies the external church, and "trees" signify the knowledges of truth and good; "the kingdom of God," which then is near, signifies the new church of the Lord; for at the time of the Last Judgment the old church perishes and a new one begins.

[16] In Luke:

Every tree is known by its own fruit; for from thorns men do not gather figs, nor from a bramble bush gather they the grape (Luke 6:44; Matthew 7:16);

as "fruit" signifies the good of life, and the good of life is external good from internal, or natural good from spiritual, and as from this good man is known, so the Lord says, "Every tree is known by its own fruit; from thorns men do not gather figs, nor from a bramble-bush gather they the grape," "fig" here meaning the good of the external or natural man, and "the grape" the good of the internal or spiritual man; "thorns" and "bramble-bush" mean the evils opposed to these goods.

[17] Because the kings of Judah and Israel represented the Lord in relation to Divine truth, and Divine truth with man endures distress and labors as it were, when the life is not according to it and when it is not made the good of life, but when it is made the good of life it lives, so this was signified by the following:

By command of Jehovah they brought to Hezekiah king of Judah, when he was sick, a lump of figs, and placed it as a plaster upon his boil, and so he lived (2 Kings 20:7; Isaiah 38:21).

From this it can be seen that "the fig-tree" in the genuine sense, signifies the natural man in respect to good and truth, the fig itself as a tree the natural man, the fig as a fruit the good of the natural man, and its leaf the truth of that good.

[18] But that "the fig-tree" in the contrary sense signifies the natural man in respect to evil and falsity, the fig as a tree the natural man itself, the figs of it as fruit, the evil of that natural man, and its leaf the falsity of that evil, is evident from the following passages. In Jeremiah:

Jehovah showed me, and behold, two baskets of figs set before the temple of Jehovah, one basket of very good figs, as of fig-trees bearing the firstfruits; and the other basket of very bad figs, that could not be eaten for badness. Jehovah said, As the good figs, so will I recognize those carried away of Judah into the land of the Chaldeans for good; and I will set Mine eyes upon them for good, and I will bring them back upon this land; and I will build them, and I will plant them. And as the bad figs, so will I give them that are left in this land to commotion, and to evil to all nations; and I will send among them the sword, the famine, and the pestilence, that they may be consumed (Jeremiah 24:1-10);

"the captivity of the Jews in the land of the Chaldeans" means the like as the spiritual captivity or removal of the good from the evil in the spiritual world, according to what has been said above (n. 391, 392, 394, 397), namely that those who were inwardly evil, and yet were able to maintain a moral life externally like a spiritual life, remained upon the earth in the spiritual world, and made habitations for themselves there upon the higher places; while those who were inwardly good were removed from them, and concealed by the Lord in the lower earth; this was what was represented by the carrying away of the Jews into the land of the Chaldeans, and by the continuance of the rest of them in the land; therefore it is said concerning those who suffered themselves to be carried away into the land of the Chaldeans, "I recognize those carried away of Judah into the land of the Chaldeans for good; and I will set Mine eyes upon them for good, and I will bring them back upon this land; and I will build them, and I will plant them;" while of those that remained it is said "I will give them that are left in this land to commotion, and to evil to all nations; and I will send among them the sword, the famine, and the pestilence, that they may be consumed." That this is what was represented is evident also from this, that the temple of Solomon was destroyed before they were carried away, and a new one was built when they returned; "temple" signifying Divine worship, and "a new temple" worship restored.

[19] From this it can be seen what is signified by "the two baskets of figs set before the temple of Jehovah, in one of which were very good figs, as of fig-trees bearing the firstfruits, and in the other very bad figs, that could not be eaten for badness," namely, that those who are inwardly good, of whom a new heaven is to be formed, are meant by "the basket of good figs;" and those who are inwardly evil, who are to be cast down into hell, are meant by "the basket of bad figs;" wherefore it is said of the latter that "they could not be eaten for badness," signifying that such are inwardly evil, while of the former it is said that they were "as fig-trees bearing the firstfruits," signifying that such are inwardly good, so that a new heaven may be formed out of them; for "the fig," as a fruit, signifies the good of life both in its internal and its external form, and in the contrary sense it signifies the good of life merely in its external form, which is the evil of life, because inwardly it is evil, every external deriving all its quality from its internal, as it is an effect of it. With such, evil appears in externals as good, because they feign good for the sake of the evil that is within, in order to obtain some end, to which the seeming good serves as a means. The like is said of those who remained in the land of Canaan elsewhere in the same prophet:

Thus said Jehovah concerning the king, and all the people that dwell in this city that are not gone forth with you into captivity: Behold, I will send against them the sword, the famine, and the pestilence, and I will make them like vile figs, that cannot be eaten for badness (Jeremiah 29:16-17).

[20] That "the fig," as a tree, in the contrary sense signifies a merely natural man, and a church constituted of such, or those with whom there is no natural good because there is no good within is evident in Luke:

Jesus spoke this parable: A certain man had a fig-tree planted in his vineyard; he therefore came seeking fruit thereon, but found none. He said unto the vine dresser, Behold, three years I come seeking fruit on this fig-tree, but find none; cut it down, why also doth it make the land unfruitful? But he answering said, Lord, let it alone this year also, till I shall dig about it and dung it, if indeed it will bear fruit; but if not, after that thou shalt cut it down (Luke 13:6-9).

"The vineyard in which was the fig-tree" signifies the church, which contains also such as are in externals; for in the Lord's church there is both an internal and an external; the internal of the church is charity and the faith therefrom, while the external of the church is the good of life. The works of charity and faith, which are the good of life, belong to the natural man, while charity itself and faith therefrom belong to the spiritual man, therefore "a vineyard" signifies the internal of the church, and "a fig-tree" its external. With the Jewish nation there was only the external of the church, since it was in external representative worship; therefore "a fig tree" means the church with that nation; but because they were in external worship and in no internal, being inwardly evil, and external worship without internal is no worship, and with the evil is evil worship, therefore with them there was nothing of natural good. It is therefore said that "for three years he found no fruit on the fig-tree, and that he told the vine dresser to cut it down," which signifies that from beginning to end there was no natural good with that nation, "three years" signifying a whole period, or the time from beginning to end, and "the fruit of the fig tree" signifying natural good; by natural good is meant spiritual-natural good, or good in the natural from the spiritual. And because a church composed of such as are not in natural good, as was the Jewish nation, is not a church, it is also said "why also doth it make the land unfruitful?" "land" meaning the church; "the vine dresser saying that it should still be left, and he would dig about it" signifies that they would remain, and that they would hereafter be instructed by the Christians, in the midst of whom they would be; but no answer being made to this means that the fig tree would still produce no fruit, that is, that no good proceeding from anything spiritual would be done by the Jewish nation.

[21] This is the signification of "the fig-tree that withered away" when the Lord found no fruit on it, in Matthew:

In the morning Jesus returning into the city, hungered. And seeing a fig-tree by the way, He came to it, but found nothing thereon but leaves, therefore He said unto it, Let nothing grow on thee henceforward forever; therefore from that time the fig-tree withered away (Matthew 21:18, 19; Mark 11:12-14).

Here, too, "the fig-tree" means the church with the Jewish nation. That with that nation there was no natural good, but only truth falsified, which in itself is falsity, is signified by "the Lord came to the fig-tree, but found nothing thereon but leaves," "the fruit" which He did not find signifying natural good such as was described above, and "the leaf" signifying truth falsified, which in itself is falsity, for in the Word "leaf" signifies truth, but the leaf of a tree that is without fruit signifies falsity, and with that nation truth falsified, because they had the Word in which truths are, but which they falsified by application to themselves, which was the source of their traditions. That no natural good from a spiritual origin, which is called spiritual-natural good, would be done by that nation is signified by the words that the Lord spoke respecting it, "Let nothing grow on thee henceforward forever; therefore from that time it withered away;" "to wither away" signifying that there was no longer any good or any truth. The Lord saw the fig-tree and said this when He was returning into the city, and hungered, because "the city of Jerusalem" signifies the church, and "hungering," in reference to the Lord, signifies to desire good in the church (as may be seen above, n. 386. One who does not know the signification of "fig-tree," and that this fig-tree meant the church with that nation, thinks no otherwise than the Lord did this from indignation because He was hungry; but it was not done for that reason, but that it might be signified that such was the quality of the Jewish nation; for all the Lord's miracles involve and signify such things as belong to heaven and the church, whence those miracles were Divine (See Arcana Coelestia 7337, 8364, 9051 at the end).

[22] A perverted church, or the man of the church perverted in respect to his natural or external man is also signified by the fig-tree in David:

He gave them hail for their rain, a fire of flames in their land; and He smote their vine and their fig-tree; He brake the tree of their border (Psalms 105:32-33).

This was said of Egypt, which signifies the natural man that is in falsities and evils; and "vine," "fig tree," and "the tree of the border" signify all things of the church, "vine" the internal or spiritual things thereof, "fig-tree" the external or natural things thereof, and "the tree of the border" everything pertaining to knowing and perceiving, "the border" signifying the ultimate in which the interior things close, and in which they are together, and "trees" signifying knowledges and perceptions. Because all these things were perverted and therefore damned, it is said that they were "smitten and broken," which signifies destruction and damnation; that this was done by the falsities of evil which are from the love of the world is signified by "hail for their rain, a fire of flames in their land," "rain as hail" signifying the falsities of evil, and "the fire of flames" the love of the world.

[23] In Nahum:

All thy fortresses shall be like fig-trees with the first-ripe figs, if they be shaken they fall upon the mouth of the eater (Nahum 3:12).

This is said of "the city of bloods," which signifies doctrine in which truths are falsified and goods adulterated. This is compared to "fig-trees with the first-ripe figs, if they be shaken they fall upon the mouth of the eater," and this signifies that the goods therein are not goods, however much they may appear to be goods; and that such are not received, or if received are received only in the memory and not in the heart. That "if they be shaken they fall" signifies that they are not goods although they appear to be goods, because they are "the first-ripe figs;" and their falling "upon the mouth of the eater" signifies that they are not received even in the memory. That "the mouth of the eater" signifies non-reception is evident from appearances in the spiritual world; for those who commit anything to memory appear to receive it with the mouth; so "to fall upon the mouth" signifies not to receive even in the memory but only to hear, and also if they do receive, that it is only in the memory and not in the heart. "Fig-trees with their first-ripe figs" may also mean genuine goods, of which the like is true as of those who are in the falsities of evil.

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