1328. Et de la Jéhovah les dispersa sur les faces de toute la terre, signifie que le culte interne devint nul : c'est ce qu'on peut voir en ce que être dispersé signifie être dissipé. Dans le sens le plus près, être dispersée sur les faces de toute la terre, signifie ceux qui voulaient bâtir la ville de Babel ; mais comme ce sont eux qui privent les autres de toute connaissance du vrai, ainsi que je l'ai dit, ces mêmes expressions signifient en même temps la privation du culte interne : en effet, l'un est la conséquence de l'autre ; ici c'est la conséquence, parce que ces expressions sont répétées pour la troisième fois. La preuve que la Première Eglise Ancienne a été privée des connaissances du vrai et du bien, c'est que les nations qui constituèrent cette Eglise Ancienne devinrent pour la plupart idolâtres et eurent cependant un certain culte externe. Ceux qui sont idolâtres hors de l'Eglise ont un sort bien préférable au sort de ceux qui sont idolâtres dans l'Eglise ; ceux-là sont des idolâtres externes, mais ceux-ci sont des idolâtres internes ; que le sort des premiers soit préférable, c'est ce qui est évident par les paroles que le Seigneur dit dans Luc 13:23, 28-29, 30 ; et dans , , . On voit maintenant pourquoi l'état de cette Eglise Ancienne fut changé.

10438. 'For evil He led them out, to kill them in the mountains' means that those with whom good exists will be destroyed. This is clear from the meaning of 'leading out to kill' as destroying, though when such words are used in reference to Jehovah, who never destroys anyone, being destroyed by their own evil is meant; and from the meaning of 'the mountains' as heaven, consequently the good of love. The origin of the meaning of 'the mountains' as heaven lies in representatives in the next life. Mountains, hills, rocks, valleys, and many more objects appear there, as on earth; and on the mountains there are those who abide in celestial love, on the hills those who abide in spiritual love, on the rocks those who abide in faith, and in the valleys those who have not as yet been raised up to the good of love and faith.

[2] Consequently by 'mountains' those in whom the good of celestial love exists, and so who inhabit the inmost heaven, are meant, and in the abstract sense forms of the good of celestial love, and so the heaven which abides in that love; by 'hills' those in whom the good of spiritual love exists, and so who inhabit the middle heaven, are meant, and in the abstract sense the good of that love and the heaven which abides in it; by 'rocks' those in whom the good of faith exists, and who consequently inhabit the lowest heaven, are meant, and in the abstract sense that good and that heaven; and by 'valleys' those who have not as yet been raised up to those kinds of good and so to heaven are meant. Because such objects appear in the next life and such realities are consequently meant by them, those objects have a like meaning in the Word, as do the mountains, hills, rocks, and valleys in the land of Canaan, by which heaven in its entirety was therefore represented.

[3] The fact that the heaven where the good of celestial love exists is meant by 'mountains' is evident from a large number of places in the Word, such as the following: In Isaiah,

In the latter days it will be, that the mountain of Jehovah will be on the top of the mountains, and raised above the hills. Isaiah 2:2; Micah 4:1.

In David,

The mountains will bring peace, and the hills, in righteousness. Psalms 72:3.

In the same author,

Praise Jehovah, mountains and all hills. Psalms 148:7, 9.

In the same author,

A mountain of God is the mountain of Bashan; a mountain of hills is the mountain of Bashan. Why do you leap up, O mountains, hills of mountains? God desires to inhabit it; yes, Jehovah will inhabit it perpetually. Psalms 68:15-16.

In Moses,

... in regard to the firstfruits of the mountains of the east, and to the precious things of the everlasting hills ¹ ... Let them come upon the head of Joseph. Deuteronomy 33:15-16.

Other places besides these contain the same meaning, see 795, 6435, 8327, 8658, 8758, 9422, 9434. All this explains why the Lord came down onto Mount Sinai; why the city of David was built on a mountain, and that mountain, which was called Mount Zion, means the inmost heaven; and also why the ancients performed holy acts of worship on mountains and hills, 2722.

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