Apocalypse Explained # 481
481. Neither shall the sun fall on them, nor any heat, signifies that evil and falsity from lusts shall not come to them. This is evident from the signification of "the sun," as meaning the Lord in relation to Divine love, and with men, spirits, and angels, the good of love to the Lord from the Lord; and as meaning in the contrary sense as here the love of self and evil therefrom out of lusts (of which above, n. 401; and in the work on Heaven and Hell 116-125); also from the signification of "heat," as meaning falsity from that evil, and therefore falsity from lusts; for when man is in heat, that is, when he burns with heat, he craves drink that his heat may be allayed, for he is thirsty; and "to have drink" and "to drink" signifies to imbibe truths, and in the contrary sense, to imbibe falsities, because "water" and "wine," which are for drink, signify truths.
[2] That "heat" signifies falsity from lust or lust for falsity can be seen from the following passages.
In Jeremiah:
Blessed is the man that trusteth in Jehovah; and he shall be like a tree planted by the waters, that sendeth out his roots by the river; he shall not see when heat cometh, but his leaf shall be green; therefore he shall not be careful in the year of drought, neither shall he cease from bearing fruit (Jeremiah 17:7, 8).
A man who suffers himself to be led by the Lord is compared to a tree and its growth and fructification, because a "tree" signifies in the Word the knowledge and perception of truth and good, consequently the man in whom these are; "a tree planted by the waters" means a man with whom there are truths from the Lord, "waters" meaning truths; "that sendeth out his roots by the river" signifies the extension of intelligence from the spiritual man into the natural; this is said because a "river" signifies intelligence, and because "roots" are sent forth from the spiritual man into the natural; "he shall not see when heat cometh" signifies not to be affected by the lust of falsity; "but his leaf shall be green" signifies knowledges [scientifica] made alive by truths; "therefore he shall not be careful in the year of drought, neither shall he cease from bearing fruit" signifies that in a state when there is no truth and no good, there shall be no fear of the loss and deprivation of these, but that even then truths conjoined to good shall be fruitful, "year of drought" signifying a state of loss and deprivation of truth. This is said because with spirits and angels there are alternations of state (respecting which alternations see in the workHeaven and Hell 154-161).
[3] In Isaiah:
For Thou art become a stronghold to the poor, a stronghold to the needy in his distress, a refuge from the inundation, a shadow from the heat; for the blast of the violent ones is as an inundation against a wall, as a drought in a dry place; the tumult of strangers shalt Thou humble, the heat by the shadow of a cloud, the branch of the violent ones shall he repress (Isaiah 25:4, 5).
"The poor and needy" signify those who are in the lack of good from the ignorance of truth, and yet have a desire for these; "inundation" and "heat" have reference to evils and falsities that rise up and flow in from the selfhood [proprium] and also from others who are in evil; "the blast of the violent ones" signifies things contrary to the goods and truths of the church; those are called "violent" who endeavor to destroy goods and truths, and "their blast" signifies eagerness to destroy; "the tumult of strangers shalt thou humble" signifies that the Lord will allay and remove the irruption of falsities from evil, "tumult" signifying irruption, "strangers" the falsities from evil, and "to humble" to allay and remove; "he shall repress the heat by the shadow of a cloud" signifies to defend from the lust of falsity, "heat" meaning the lust of falsity, and "the shadow of a cloud" defense from it, for the shadow of a cloud tempers the heat of the sun, and allays its fervor.
[4] In Jeremiah:
His dead body shall be cast out in the day to the heat, and in the night to the frost (Jeremiah 36:30).
This was said of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, after he had burned the scroll written by Jeremiah, which act signifies that the truths of the church will perish by a lust for falsities and a consequent aversion from truths. The kings of Judah represented and thence signified in the Word truths from good, and this king the truth of the church about to perish; "the scroll that he burned" signifies the Word, which is said to be burned when it is falsified and adulterated, and this is done by the lust of falsity from evil; "the dead body" signifies the man of the church without spiritual life, which is had by means of truths from the Word; when this life is extinct, only falsities are desired and truths are avoided, and in consequence man becomes dead, and in the spiritual sense "a dead body." The lust for falsities is signified by "the heat in the day," and aversion from the truths by "the frost in the night;" for when the light of heaven, which in its essence is Divine truth, flows in, those who are in falsities from evil become cold with an intensity corresponding to the warmth of the falsity from evil.
[5] In the same:
When they are heated I will set their banquets and I will make them drunken, that they may triumph, that they may sleep the sleep of an age and not awake (Jeremiah 51:39).
This is said of Babylon, which signifies the profanation of good and truth. "When they are heated" signifies the warmth and lust of falsifying truths and adulterating goods; "to set their banquets, to make drunken, and to triumph," signifies to be insane from falsifications to the last degree, "their banquets" signifying the adulterations of good and truth, "drunkenness and rejoicing" insanities in the highest or last degree; "to sleep the sleep of an age and not to awake" signifies not to have perception of truths to eternity.
[6] In Hosea:
They are all hot as an oven, and devour their judges; all their kings are fallen; not one among them calleth unto Me (Hosea 7:7).
"To be hot as an oven" signifies their lusting after falsity from the love of it; "they devour judges, and all their kings are fallen" signifies the destruction of all intelligence when the truths that constitute it are lost, "judges" signifying the intelligent, and in an abstract sense the things that belong to intelligence, and "kings" signifying truths; "not one among them calleth unto Me" signifies that no one cares for truths from the Divine.
[7] In Job:
He beholdeth not the way of the vineyards; drought and heat shall seize upon the waters of snow (Job 24:18, 19).
"Not to behold the way of the vineyards" signifies to make the truths of the church of no account; "drought and heat shall seize upon the waters of snow" signifies that the lack of truth, and the consequent lust for falsity will destroy all genuine truths, "the waters of snow" meaning genuine truths.
[8] In Isaiah:
He shall say to the bound, Go forth, to them that are in darkness, Reveal yourselves. They shall feed upon the ways, and in all the bare hills shall be their pasture. They shall not hunger nor thirst neither shall the heat or the sun smite them; for He that hath compassion on them shall guide them, even unto springs of waters shall He lead them (Isaiah 49:9, 10).
What the particulars signify need not be explained, for they are similar to those in Revelation now being explained, where it is said "They shall hunger no more, neither thirst anymore, neither shall the sun fall on them nor any heat smite them; for the Lamb shall feed them and shall guide them unto living fountains of waters." In Revelation, in like manner as in the prophet, these things are said of the Lord; "the bound, to whom He shall say, Go forth, and those who are in darkness, to whom He shall say, Reveal yourselves," signify the nations that had lived in good according to their religion, and yet were in falsities from ignorance; these are called "bound" when in temptations; and "darkness" means falsities from ignorance. "The heat shall not smite them" signifies that falsity from lust shall not affect them.
[9] In Revelation:
The fourth angel poured out his bowl upon the sun; and it was given unto him to scorch men with fire; and men were heated with great heat, and they blasphemed the name of God (Revelation 16:8, 9).
These words will be explained hereafter in their proper place. As "the sun" signifies Divine love, so also "heat" signifies an ardent desire for truth, as in Isaiah 18:4; and Zechariah 8:2, where "heat" is attributed to Jehovah, that is, to the Lord. In many passages "anger" and "wrath" are predicated of God, "anger" signifying zeal for good, and "wrath" zeal for truth; for wrath and heat in the original language come from the same word.
Zechariah 8
1
The word of Yahweh of Armies came to me.
2
Thus says Yahweh of Armies: "I am jealous for Zion with great jealousy, and I am jealous for her with great wrath."
3
Thus says Yahweh: "I have returned to Zion, and will dwell in the midst of Jerusalem. Jerusalem shall be called 'The City of Truth;' and the mountain of Yahweh of Armies, 'The Holy mountain.'"
4
Thus says Yahweh of Armies: "Old men and old women will again dwell in the streets of Jerusalem, every man with his staff in his hand for very age.
5
The streets of the city will be full of boys and girls playing in its streets."
6
Thus says Yahweh of Armies: "If it is marvelous in the eyes of the remnant of this people in those days, should it also be marvelous in my eyes?" says Yahweh of Armies.
7
Thus says Yahweh of Armies: "Behold, I will save my people from the east country, and from the west country;
8
and I will bring them, and they will dwell in the midst of Jerusalem; and they will be my people, and I will be their God, in truth and in righteousness."
9
Thus says Yahweh of Armies: "Let your hands be strong, you who hear in these days these words from the mouth of the prophets who were in the day that the foundation of the house of Yahweh of Armies was laid, even the temple, that it might be built.
10
For before those days there was no wages for man, nor any wages for an animal; neither was there any peace to him who went out or came in, because of the adversary. For I set all men everyone against his neighbor.
11
But now I will not be to the remnant of this people as in the former days," says Yahweh of Armies.
12
"For the seed of peace and the vine will yield its fruit, and the ground will give its increase, and the heavens will give their dew; and I will cause the remnant of this people to inherit all these things.
13
It shall come to pass that, as you were a curse among the nations, house of Judah and house of Israel, so will I save you, and you shall be a blessing. Don't be afraid. Let your hands be strong."
14
For thus says Yahweh of Armies: "As I thought to do evil to you, when your fathers provoked me to wrath," says Yahweh of Armies, "and I didn't repent;
15
so again have I thought in these days to do good to Jerusalem and to the house of Judah. Don't be afraid.
16
These are the things that you shall do: speak every man the truth with his neighbor. Execute the judgment of truth and peace in your gates,
17
and let none of you devise evil in your hearts against his neighbor, and love no false oath: for all these are things that I hate," says Yahweh.
18
The word of Yahweh of Armies came to me.
19
Thus says Yahweh of Armies: "The fasts of the fourth fifth, seventh, and tenth months shall be for the house of Judah joy and gladness, and cheerful feasts. Therefore love truth and peace."
20
Thus says Yahweh of Armies: "Many peoples, and the inhabitants of Many cities will yet come;
21
and the inhabitants of one shall go to another, saying, 'Let us go speedily to entreat the favor of Yahweh, and to seek Yahweh of Armies. I will go also.'
22
Yes, many peoples and strong nations will come to seek Yahweh of Armies in Jerusalem, and to entreat the favor of Yahweh."
23
Thus says Yahweh of Armies: "In those days, ten men will take hold, out of all the languages of the nations, they will take hold of the skirt of him who is a Jew, saying, 'We will go with you, for we have heard that God is with you.'"
