10276. And thou shalt sanctify them, and they shall be a holy of holies. That this signifies in this way the influx and presence of the Lord in the worship of the representative church, is evident from the signification of “to be sanctified,” as being to represent the Lord as to the Divine Human, and the reception of Divine good and Divine truth from Him; for the Lord alone is holy, and consequently that only is holy which proceeds from Him; from which it is plain that by “being sanctified” is also signified the influx and presence of the Lord in the worship of the representative church. (That “to be sanctified” denotes to represent the Lord as to the Divine Human, see n. 9956, 9988, 10069; and also the reception of Divine good and Divine truth from Him, n. 8806, 9820, 10128; that the Lord alone is holy, and only that is holy which proceeds from Him, n. 9229, 9479, 9680, 9818; thus that the holy things with the Israelitish and Jewish nation were representatively holy, n. 10149.) And from the signification of “a holy of holies,” as being Divine celestial good (n. 10129).

[2] From this it is evident that all those things which were anointed were called “holy of holies” from the influx and presence of the Divine Human of the Lord; and all influx and presence of the Lord takes place immediately, and in the lower heavens also mediately through celestial good, which is the good of the inmost heaven. Therefore insofar as the goods of the lower heavens contain and store up within them celestial good, which is the good of love to the Lord, so far they are goods. From this it is that those things which were anointed were called “holy of holies.” (Concerning the immediate and mediate influx of the Lord, see the places cited in n. 9682, 9683.)

[3] But in order that it may be known how the case herein is, it is necessary to know what representation is, and what a representative church is. What these are has been abundantly shown in the places cited in n. 9229, 9280, 10030; but as at the present day few know what these are, the subject may be somewhat further illustrated. It is the affections of good and truth from the Lord which make the life and happiness of the angels in the inmost heavens. In the ultimate heaven these affections are presented with infinite variety in countless outward forms. Whatever they see there with their eyes is from this source. These are representatives of interior things, which are the affections of good and truth, and are called celestial and spiritual.

[4] The good spirits who as subjects perceive the holy things of heaven in these representatives, are interiorly affected. For example, they see paradises with trees and fruits of countless species, also beds of roses, lawns, fields with things sown in them, houses and palaces, and very many other things, all of which correspond to the affections of good and of truth that are from the Lord in the higher heavens. In these heavens also there are representatives, but such as immeasurably surpass in perfection, delight, and happiness those which are in the ultimate heaven. It is these representatives of which it is said that “no eye hath ever seen” such things; and if anything were told of them it would exceed human belief.

[5] From this it can be seen what representatives are. All the representatives instituted with the Israelitish nation were like those in the ultimate heaven; but were less perfect, because they were in the nature of this world. Such were the Tent with the ark, the table upon which were the breads of faces, the lampstand and its lamps, the altar of incense, the garments of Aaron and his sons, and afterward the temple with the adytum there containing the ark upon which were the propitiatory and the cherubs, also the brazen sea, the lavers, and other similar things. Yet countless more things appear in the ultimate heaven, and in greater excellence and perfection. It was from this heaven that the things to be instituted with the Israelitish nation were shown by the Lord to Moses on Mount Sinai. (See Exodus 25:40; 26:30; 27:8.) But these things were not seen by Moses with the eyes of his body, but with the eyes of his spirit.

[6] The nature of representatives can be seen further from the things seen by the prophets; as by Daniel, by John in Revelation, and by the rest; all of which store up within them Divine spiritual and celestial things that anyone can see are not intelligible without interpretation from the internal sense.

[7] From all this it is now further evident what a representative church is. This church was established in the land of Canaan chiefly for the sake of the Word, in order that this might be written by means of representatives and significatives, thus by means of such things as existed with that nation, in their church, and in their land. For from the most ancient times all the places in the land of Canaan, and all the mountains and rivers there, represented such things as are in the heavens (see n. 3686, 4240, 4447, 4454, 5136, 6516); as did afterward the inheritances, the tribes, and all other things there. Of such things was the literal sense of the Word of the Old Testament, in order that there might be some ultimate in which the interior things might close, and upon which they might stand, like a building on its foundation (see n. 9360, 9824, 10044).

[8] From all this an intelligent person is able to know that the Word is most holy, and that its literal sense is holy from its internal sense, but that apart from this it is not holy. For apart from the internal sense the literal sense is like the external of man separated from his internal, which is a mock appearance devoid of life, and is like the peel of a tree, flower, fruit, or seed, without anything inside; and is also like a foundation without a house. Therefore they who lay stress on the sense of the letter of the Word alone, and neither have, nor procure for themselves from the Word, doctrine that is in agreement with its internal sense, can be drawn into any heresies whatever. It is from this that the Word is called by such the Book of Heresies. The very doctrine from the Word must by all means give light and guidance. This very doctrine is taught by the internal sense, and he who knows this doctrine, has the internal sense of the Word.

[9] As the Jewish nation did not acknowledge anything holy in the Word except in the mere sense of its letter, which they completely separated from the internal sense, they fell into such darkness that they did not recognize the Lord when He came into the world. At the present day that nation is of the same character, and therefore although they live among Christians they nevertheless still do not acknowledge the Lord from the Word. (That from the earliest time that nation was in external things without internal, see what has been shown in the places cited in n. 9320, 9380.) Therefore unless the Lord had come into the world and opened the interior things of the Word, the communication with the heavens by means of the Word would have been broken; and then the human race on this earth would have perished, for man can think no truth and do no good except from heaven, that is, through heaven from the Lord; and the Word is that which opens heaven.

3686. And Esau saw that the daughters of Canaan were evil in the eyes of Isaac his father. That this signifies the Lord’s foresight and providence, that the affections of that truth with which natural good had been heretofore conjoined would not conduce to conjunction, is evident from the signification here of “seeing,” as being foresight and providence (see n. 2837, 2839); and from the representation of Esau, as being the Lord in respect to the Divine good of the natural (concerning which see above); from the signification of the “daughters of Canaan,” here the daughters of Heth, as being the affections of truth from a ground not genuine (n. 3470, 3620-3621, 3622); and from the signification of “being evil in the eyes of Isaac his father,” as being not to conduce to conjunction, namely, through the good of the natural, which is “Esau,” with the good of the rational, which is “Isaac.” From all this it is evident that by these words is signified the Lord’s foresight and providence, that the affections of that truth, because not from a genuine ground, would not conduce to conjunction. How the case herein is, may be seen from the explication at chapter 26, verses 34-35, where the daughters of Heth are treated of whom Esau had taken to himself for women; and at chapter, 27 verse 46, where it is said of Jacob that he should not take to himself a woman of the daughters of Canaan [Heth]. That by the “daughters of Canaan” are here signified the affections of truth from a ground not genuine, and above by the “daughters of Canaan,” the affections of falsity and evil (n. 3662, 3683), is because the Hittites were of the Church of the Gentiles in the land of Canaan, and were not so much in falsity and evil as were the other nations there-the Canaanites, Amorites, and Perizzites. Hence also by the Hittites there was represented the Lord’s spiritual church among the Gentiles (n. 2913, 2986).

[2] That the Most Ancient Church, which was celestial and existed before the flood, was in the land of Canaan, may be seen above (n. 567); and that the Ancient Church, which was after the flood, was also in that land, and moreover in a number of other kingdoms, see above (n. 1238, 2385). From this it came to pass that all the nations in that land, and likewise all the regions and all the rivers thereof, became representative; for the most ancient people, who were celestial men, by means of all the objects which they saw, perceived such things as are of the Lord’s kingdom (n. 920, 1409, 2896, 2897, 2995); thus also by means of the regions and rivers of that land. After their times these representatives remained in the Ancient Church, thus also the representatives of the places in that land. The Word in the Ancient Church (n. 2897-2899), also had thence the names of places representative, as had also the Word after their time which is called “Moses and the Prophets;” and because this was so, Abraham was commanded to go thither, and a promise was made him that his posterity should possess that land; and this not because of their being better than other nations, for they were among the worst of all (n. 1167, 3373), but in order that by them a representative church might be instituted, in which no attention should be paid to person or to place, but to the things that were represented (n. 3670); and that thereby also the names used in the Most Ancient and the Ancient Church might be retained.