9938. Which the sons of Israel shall sanctify in respect to all the gifts of their holy things. That this signifies acts of worship representative of removal from sins, is evident from the signification of “gifts” or “offerings,” which among the Israelitish and Jewish nation were chiefly burnt-offerings, sacrifices, and meat-offerings, as being the interior things of worship, for these were what they represented. The interior things of worship are those which are of love and faith, and from this forgivenesses of sins, that is, removals from them, because sins are removed through faith and love from the Lord. For insofar as the good of love and of faith enters, or what is the same thing, so far as heaven enters, so far sins are removed, that is, so far hell is removed, both that which is within man, and that which is without him. From this it is evident what is meant by “the gifts which they sanctified,” that is, offered. The gifts were called “holy,” and presenting or offering them was called “sanctifying” them, because they represented holy things; for they were offered for expiations, thus for removals from sins, which are effected through faith and love to the Lord from the Lord.

[2] They were called “gifts and offerings made to Jehovah,” although Jehovah, that is, the Lord, does not accept any gifts or offerings, but gives to everyone freely. Nevertheless He wills that these things should come from man as from himself, provided he acknowledges that they are not from himself, but from the Lord. For the Lord imparts the affection of doing good from love, and the affection of speaking truth from faith; but the affection itself flows in from the Lord, and it appears as if it were in the man, thus from the man; for whatever a man does from the affection which is of love, he does from his life, because love is the life of everyone. From this it is evident that what are called “gifts and offerings made to the Lord” by man are in their essence gifts and offerings made to man by the Lord; and their being called “gifts and offerings” is from the appearance. All who are wise in heart see this appearance; but not so the simple; and yet the gifts and offerings of the latter are grateful, insofar as they are offered from ignorance in which is innocence. Innocence is the good of love to God, and dwells in ignorance, especially with the wise in heart; for they who are wise in heart know and perceive that there is nothing of wisdom in themselves from themselves; but that everything of wisdom is from the Lord, that is, everything of the good of love, and everything of the truth of faith; thus that even with the wise innocence dwells in ignorance. From this it is evident that the acknowledgment of this fact, and especially the perception of it, is the innocence of wisdom.

[3] The gifts that were offered in the Jewish Church, and which were chiefly burnt-offerings, sacrifices, and meat-offerings, were also called “expiations from sins,” because they were offered for the sake of the forgivenesses of them, that is, removals from them. Those who belonged to that church also believed that their sins were accordingly forgiven; nay, that they were entirely taken away; for it is said that after they had offered these things they would be “forgiven” (see Leviticus 4:26, 31, 35; 5:6, 10, 1 5:13, 16, 18; 9:7, 15, 15:15, 30 (Leviticus 9:18)). But they did not know that these offerings represented interior things, thus such things as are done by man from the love and faith that are from the Lord; and that these are the things which expiate, that is, remove sins, and that after they have been removed they appear as if they were quite removed or taken away, as has been shown above in this and in the preceding articles. For that nation was in representative worship, thus in external worship without internal, by means of which there was at that time a conjunction of heaven with man. (See the places cited in n. 9320, 9380)

9320. For destroying thou shalt destroy them. That this signifies that evils must be wholly removed, is evident from the signification of “destroying,” when said of the evils and falsities which are signified by the nations of the land of Canaan and by their gods, as being to remove. That “to destroy” denotes to remove, is because those who are in good and truth never destroy those who are in evil and falsity, but only remove them; for the reason that they act from good, and not from evil; and good is from the Lord, who never destroys anyone. But those who are in evil and from it in falsity endeavor to destroy, and as far as they are able do destroy, those who are in good, for the reason that they act from evil. But because they then run counter to the good which is from the Lord, thus counter to the Divine, they destroy themselves, that is, they cast themselves headlong into damnation and into hell. Such is the law of order, as may be seen above (n. 4299, 7643, 7679, 7710, 7926, 7989, 8137, 8146, 8265, 8945, 8946).

[2] That the Israelites and the Jews destroyed the nations of the land of Canaan, was because the former represented spiritual and heavenly things, and the nations infernal and diabolical things, which cannot possibly be together; for they are opposites. The reason why the Israelites were permitted to destroy the nations, was that there was no church among the Israelites, but only the representative of a church, and consequently the Lord was not present with them except representatively (n. 4307); for they were in external things without anything internal; that is, they were in a worship representative of good and truth, but not in good and truth. Such people are permitted to destroy, to kill, to exterminate, and to devote to destruction; but this is not permitted to those who are in external things and at the same time in internal things, because these people must act from good, and good is from the Lord.

[3] That the Jews and Israelites were of such a character is openly declared by Moses:

Speak not thou in thine heart, after that Jehovah thy God hath thrust the nations out from before thee, saying, For my righteousness Jehovah hath brought me in to possess this land. Not for thy righteousness, and for the uprightness of thine heart; for thou art a stiffnecked people (Deuteronomy 9:4-6).

They are a nation ruined in counsels, neither is there any understanding in them. Their vine is of the vine of Sodom, and of the fields of Gomorrah; their grapes are grapes of gall; their clusters of bitterness; their wine is the poison of dragons, and the cruel gall of asps. Is not this hidden away with Me, sealed up in My treasuries (Deuteronomy 32:28, 32-34);

in the internal sense “a vine” signifies the church (n. 1069, 5113, 6375, 6376, 9277); “grapes,” and “clusters,” signify the internal and external goods of that church (n. 1071, 5117, 6378); and “wine” signifies the internal truth of that church (n. 1071, 1798, 6377). From this it is plain what is signified by “their vine being of the vine of Sodom and of the fields of Gomorrah,” “their grapes, grapes of gall, and their clusters of bitterness,” and “their wine the poison of dragons and the cruel gall of asps.” That these things are known to Jehovah, that is, to the Lord, is signified by its being “hidden away with Him, and sealed up in His treasuries.”

[4] In John:

Jesus said to the Jews, Ye are of your father the devil, and the desire of your father ye will to do. He was a murderer from the beginning (John 8:44).

Consequently they are called “a depraved and adulterous generation” (Matthew 12:39); and also “an offspring of vipers” (Matthew 3:7; 12:34; 23:33; Luke 3:7). That such was their nature was also described by the Lord in parables (Matthew 21:33-45; Mark 12:1-9; Luke 14:16-24; 20:9-19). (That that nation was the worst of all; that when in worship they were in external things without any internal; that there was no church among them, but only the representative of a church; and that nevertheless they could represent the internal things of the church, see n. 3398, 3479, 3480, 3732, 3881, 4208, 4281, 4288-4290, 4293, 4307, 4314, 4316, 4317, 4429, 4433, 4444, 4500, 4503, 4680, 4815, 4818, 4820, 4825, 4832, 4837, 4844, 4847, 4865, 4868, 4874, 4899, 4903, 4911-4913, 5057, 5998, 6304, 6832, 6877, 7048, 7051, 7248, 7401, 7439, 8301, 8588, 8788, 8806, 8814, 8819, 8871, 8882, 9284)