Apocalypse Explained # 205
205. He that hath the key of David, signifies who has power by means of Divine truth. This is evident from the signification of "key," as being the power of opening and shutting, here heaven and hell, for it follows, "He that openeth and no one shutteth, and shutteth and no one openeth;" therefore "key" means here the power of saving (as above, n. 86), since to open heaven and to shut hell is to save. It is evident also from the representation of "David," as being the Lord in respect to Divine truth. By "David" in the Word the Lord is meant, because by "kings" in the Word the Lord in respect to Divine truth is represented, and by "priests" there the Lord in respect to Divine good. The Lord is represented especially by king David, because David had much care of the matters of the church, and also wrote the Psalms. (That "kings" in the Word signify Divine truth, and "priests" Divine good, see above, n. 31; moreover, that all names of persons and places in the Word signify spiritual things, which are the things pertaining to the church and to heaven, see above, n. 19, 50, 102.)
It is said, "He that hath the key of David," because David (as was just said) represented the Lord in respect to Divine truth, and the Lord has all power in the heavens and on earth from Divine good through Divine truth; for in general good without truth has no power, neither has truth without good any power, for good acts through truth. From this it is that Divine good and Divine truth proceed united from the Lord, and so far as they are conjointly received by the angels, so far the angels are powers. This then, is why it is said "the key of David." (That all power is in truths from good, see in the work on Heaven and Hell 228-233, where the Power of the Angels of Heaven is treated of; also n. 539.)
[2] That by "David" in the Word the Lord is meant is clearly evident from certain passages where he is mentioned in the prophets. As in Ezekiel:
They shall be to Me for a people, and I will be to them for a God, and My servant David king over them, that they may all have one shepherd. They shall dwell upon the land, they and their sons and their son's sons even to eternity; and David My servant shall be prince to them to eternity (Ezekiel 37:23-25).
In Hosea:
The sons of Israel shall return, and shall seek Jehovah their God, and David their king; and with fear shall they come to Jehovah and to His goodness in the extremity of days (Hosea 3:5).
It is said "They shall seek Jehovah their God, and David their king," because "Jehovah" in the Word means the Lord in respect to Divine good, which is the Divine Esse, and "David a king" means the Lord in respect to Divine truth, which is the Divine Existere. (That "Jehovah" in the Word means the Lord in respect to Divine good, see Arcana Coelestia 732, 2586, 2807, 2822, 3921, 4253, 4402, 7010, 9167, 9315)
[3] In Zechariah:
Jehovah shall save the tents of Judah first, that the glory of the house of David, and the glory of the inhabitant of Jerusalem, may not exalt itself above Judah. In that day shall Jehovah defend the inhabitant of Jerusalem, and the house of David shall be as God, and as the angel of Jehovah before them. And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitant of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace. In that day there shall be a fountain open to the house of David, and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem (Zechariah 12:7-8, 10; 13:1).
Here the Lord's coming is treated of, and the salvation at that time of those who are of His spiritual kingdom. "Tents of Judah" mean the celestial kingdom; and the "house of David and the inhabitant of Jerusalem," the spiritual kingdom. The spiritual kingdom is constituted of those in heaven and on earth who are in Divine truth, and the celestial kingdom of those who are in Divine good (See just above, n. 204. From this it can be seen what these words mean, namely, that these two kingdoms shall act as one, and that one shall not exalt itself above the other. (Of these two kingdoms, see in the work on Heaven and Hell 20-28). That "Judah" signifies the Lord in respect to celestial love and the Lord's celestial kingdom may be seen above (n. 119). And that "Jerusalem" signifies the Lord's spiritual kingdom, see in the Arcana Coelestia 402, 3654, 9166. The same is therefore signified by "the house of David;" consequently it is here said, "the house of David shall be as God, and as the angel of Jehovah;" "God" also means the Lord in respect to Divine truth (See Arcana Coelestia 2586, 2769, 2807, 2822, 3921, 4287, 4402, 7010, 9167); and the like is meant by the "angel of Jehovah" (See above, n. 130, 200).
[4] "David" and his "house" have a like signification also in the following passages. In Isaiah:
Incline your ear, and come unto Me; hear, and your soul shall live; and I will make an everlasting covenant with you, even the sure mercies of David. Behold I have given Him as a witness to the peoples, a prince and a lawgiver to the nations 1 (Isaiah 55:3-4).
These things are said of the Lord, who is here "David." In David:
In the heavens Thou shalt establish Thy truth; I have made a covenant with My chosen; I have sworn to David My servant, even to eternity will I establish thy seed, and will build up thy throne to generation and generation; and the heavens shall confess Thy wonder, O Jehovah; Thy truth also in the congregation of the saints (Psalms 89:2-5).
These things also were said of the Lord, and not of David; for it is said, "I have sworn to David My servant, even to eternity will I establish thy seed, and will build up thy throne to generation and generation;" this is not applicable to David, whose seed and throne were not established to eternity, and yet Jehovah swore, and an oath from Jehovah is irrevocable confirmation from the Divine (See Arcana Coelestia 2842[1-10]). The "seed of David" in the spiritual sense, means those who are in the truths from good from the Lord, and in an abstract sense, truths themselves that are from good (See Arcana Coelestia, n (Arcana Coelestia 3373, 3380, 10249, 10445); and "throne" means the Lord's spiritual kingdom (See Arcana Coelestia 5313, 5922, 6397, 8625). David is called "My servant" (as also above in Ezekiel 37:23-25), because "servant" in the Word is used of every person and every thing that serves and ministers (See Arcana Coelestia 3441, 7143, 8241), and Divine truth proceeding serves and ministers to Divine good from which it proceeds. That it is the Lord in respect to Divine truth, or Divine truth proceeding from the Lord that is meant by "David," is evident, for it is said, "In the heavens Thou shalt establish Thy truth, and the heavens shall confess Thy truth in the congregation of the saints." That those also are called "saints" who are in Divine truths, see just above n. 204.
[5] In the same:
I will not profane My covenant, and what is pronounced by My lips will I not change. Once have I sworn by My holiness; I will not lie unto David. His seed shall be to eternity, and his throne as the sun before Me. It shall be established as the moon to eternity, a faithful witness in the clouds (Psalms 89:34-37).
That these things are said of the Lord is evident in the whole Psalm, for it treats of His coming, and afterwards of the repudiation of Him by the Jewish nation. That the Lord is here treated of, and that He is here meant by "David" is plain from these words in the same Psalm:
I have found David, My servant; with the oil of My holiness have I anointed him. I will set his hand also in the sea, and his right hand in the rivers. He shall call Me, Thou art my Father, my God, and the rock of my salvation. I also will make him the firstborn, high above the kings of the earth. I will set his throne as the days of the heavens (Psalms 89:20, 25-27, 29).
The Lord is meant also by "David," by "the anointed," and by "king," in other passages in the Psalms, as can be clearly seen by those who understand the Word spiritually, but obscurely by those who understand it only naturally. As in these words in David:
Thy priests shall be clothed with righteousness, and Thy saints shall shout for joy for Thy servant David's sake turn not away the face of Thine anointed. There will I make the horn of David to bud: I will set in order a lamp for Mine anointed; upon himself shall his crown flourish (Psalms 132:9-10, 17-18);
here also the Lord is meant by "David" and by "the anointed;" for the Lord is treated of in this Psalm, as is clear from what goes before, where it is said:
He swore unto Jehovah, I will not give sleep to mine eyes until I find out a place for Jehovah, habitations for the mighty One of Jacob. Lo, we have heard of it at Ephrathah [Bethlehem]. We will come into His habitations, we will worship at His footstool (Psalms 132:2, 4-7).
[6] That David might represent the Lord in respect to Divine truth, the Lord was willing to be born of the house of David, and also to be called "the Son of David," "his Root and Offspring," also "the Root of Jesse." But when the Lord put off the human from the mother, and put on the Human from the Father, which is the Divine Human, He was no longer David's son. This is meant by the Lord's words to the Pharisees:
Jesus said to the Pharisees, How does it seem to you respecting Christ? whose Son is He? They said unto Him, David's. He said unto them, How then doth David in spirit call Him Lord, saying, The Lord said unto my Lord, Sit thou at My right hand, until I place thine enemies as a stool of thy feet? If David then calleth Him Lord, how is He his Son (Matthew 22:42-45; Luke 20:41-44).
That the Lord glorified His Human, that is, put off the human from the mother, and put on a Human from the Father, which is the Divine Human, see in The Doctrine of the New Jerusalem 293-295, 298-310. For this reason He was not David's son, as He was not the son of Mary, whom therefore He did not call His mother, but "woman" (Matthew 12:46-49; Mark 3:31 to the end; Luke 8:19-21; John 2:4; 19:25, 26). The like is meant by "the key of Peter," as by "the key of David," namely, that the Lord has all power, and that He has this power through His Divine truth, as will be seen in the article that now follows.
Poznámky pod čarou:
1. The Latin has "nations," the Hebrew "peoples," as found also in Arcana Coelestia 1259, 4197.
Exodus 29:1-36
1
"This is the thing that you shall do to them to make them holy, to minister to me in the priest's office: take one young bull and two rams without blemish,
2
unleavened bread, unleavened cakes mixed with oil, and unleavened wafers anointed with oil: you shall make them of fine wheat flour.
3
You shall put them into one basket, and bring them in the basket, with the bull and the two rams.
4
You shall bring Aaron and his sons to the door of the Tent of Meeting, and shall wash them with water.
5
You shall take the garments, and put on Aaron the coat, the robe of the ephod, the ephod, and the breastplate, and clothe him with the skillfully woven band of the ephod;
6
and you shall set the turban on his head, and put the holy crown on the turban.
7
Then you shall take the anointing oil, and pour it on his head, and anoint him.
8
You shall bring his sons, and put coats on them.
9
You shall clothe them with belts, Aaron and his sons, and bind headbands on them: and they shall have the priesthood by a perpetual statute: and you shall consecrate Aaron and his sons.
10
"You shall bring the bull before the Tent of Meeting: and Aaron and his sons shall lay their hands on the head of the bull.
11
You shall kill the bull before Yahweh, at the door of the Tent of Meeting.
12
You shall take of the blood of the bull, and put it on the horns of the altar with your finger; and you shall pour out all the blood at the base of the altar.
13
You shall take all the fat that covers the innards, the cover of the liver, the two kidneys, and the fat that is on them, and burn them on the altar.
14
But the flesh of the bull, and its skin, and its dung, you shall burn with fire outside of the camp: it is a sin offering.
15
"You shall also take the one ram; and Aaron and his sons shall lay their hands on the head of the ram.
16
You shall kill the ram, and you shall take its blood, and sprinkle it around on the altar.
17
You shall cut the ram into its pieces, and wash its innards, and its legs, and put them with its pieces, and with its head.
18
You shall burn the whole ram on the altar: it is a burnt offering to Yahweh; it is a pleasant aroma, an offering made by fire to Yahweh.
19
"You shall take the other ram; and Aaron and his sons shall lay their hands on the head of the ram.
20
Then you shall kill the ram, and take some of its blood, and put it on the tip of the right ear of Aaron, and on the tip of the right ear of his sons, and on the thumb of their right hand, and on the big toe of their right foot, and sprinkle the blood around on the altar.
21
You shall take of the blood that is on the altar, and of the anointing oil, and sprinkle it on Aaron, and on his garments, and on his sons, and on the garments of his sons with him: and he shall be made holy, and his garments, and his sons, and his sons' garments with him.
22
Also you shall take some of the ram's fat, the fat tail, the fat that covers the innards, the cover of the liver, the two kidneys, the fat that is on them, and the right thigh (for it is a ram of consecration),
23
and one loaf of bread, one cake of oiled bread, and one wafer out of the basket of unleavened bread that is before Yahweh.
24
You shall put all of this in Aaron's hands, and in his sons' hands, and shall wave them for a wave offering before Yahweh.
25
You shall take them from their hands, and burn them on the altar on the burnt offering, for a pleasant aroma before Yahweh: it is an offering made by fire to Yahweh.
26
"You shall take the breast of Aaron's ram of consecration, and wave it for a wave offering before Yahweh: and it shall be your portion.
27
You shall sanctify the breast of the wave offering, and the thigh of the wave offering, which is waved, and which is heaved up, of the ram of consecration, even of that which is for Aaron, and of that which is for his sons:
28
and it shall be for Aaron and his sons as their portion forever from the children of Israel; for it is a wave offering: and it shall be a wave offering from the children of Israel of the sacrifices of their peace offerings, even their wave offering to Yahweh.
29
"The holy garments of Aaron shall be for his sons after him, to be anointed in them, and to be consecrated in them.
30
Seven days shall the son who is priest in his place put them on, when he comes into the Tent of Meeting to minister in the holy place.
31
"You shall take the ram of consecration, and boil its flesh in a holy place.
32
Aaron and his sons shall eat the flesh of the ram, and the bread that is in the basket, at the door of the Tent of Meeting.
33
They shall eat those things with which atonement was made, to consecrate and sanctify them: but a stranger shall not eat of it, because they are holy.
34
If anything of the flesh of the consecration, or of the bread, remains to the morning, then you shall burn the remainder with fire: it shall not be eaten, because it is holy.
35
"You shall do so to Aaron, and to his sons, according to all that I have commanded you. You shall consecrate them seven days.
36
Every day you shall offer the bull of sin offering for atonement: and you shall cleanse the altar, when you make atonement for it; and you shall anoint it, to sanctify it.
