448. Of the tribe of Joseph twelve thousand sealed, signifies the conjunction with the Lord of those who are in the second heaven. This is evident from the representation and consequent signification of "Joseph" and his tribe, as being the spiritual of the Lord's kingdom and church; here "Joseph" signifies the conjunction with the Lord of those who are in the second heaven, because "Joseph" signifies the spiritual kingdom of the Lord, and this kingdom constitutes the second heaven. For there are two kingdoms of which heaven consists, the celestial kingdom and the spiritual kingdom; the celestial kingdom consisting of those who are in the third or inmost heaven, and the spiritual kingdom of those who are in the second or middle heaven. The conjunction with the Lord of those who are in this heaven is signified by "Joseph," because "Joseph" signifies this heaven and because this fourth class of the tribes treats of the conjunction with the Lord of all who are in the heavens and who come into the heavens, and this conjunction is signified by "the tribe of Zebulun," the first tribe of this class; for the first tribe of each class and series indicates the subject treated of in what follows, and the tribes that follow continue the same subject in general; here, therefore, conjunction. This is why "the tribe of Zebulun" signifies the conjunction with the Lord of those who are in the third heaven, "the tribe of Joseph" the conjunction with the Lord of those who are in the second heaven, and "the tribe of Benjamin" the conjunction with the Lord of those who are in the first heaven.

[2] That "Joseph" in the Word represented and thence signifies the Lord in relation to the Divine spiritual, and in a relative sense the spiritual kingdom, can be seen from all that is related and told of him in the Word, both in the histories and prophecies. In the historical Word it is said of Joseph:

That he dreamed a dream that eleven sheaves came round about his sheaf, and bowed themselves down to it; also that the sun and the moon and eleven stars bowed themselves down to him (Genesis 37:4-11).

This means in the nearest sense that his brethren and parents were to come into Egypt and there do homage to him as the lord of the land; but in the spiritual sense it signifies that the church which was represented by Jacob and his sons would submit itself to the Lord; for "Joseph," as was said, represents the Lord in relation to the Divine spiritual, and in a relative sense the Lord's spiritual kingdom in heaven and on earth. The Lord's spiritual kingdom on earth is the spiritual church; this church is what is meant in the internal sense by Jacob and his sons when they were in Egypt.

[3] Afterwards by "Joseph" the establishment of a church that was to be represented by the sons of Israel is described; and this also is why Joseph was carried down into Egypt, and obtained dominion over the whole land, and invited thither his father and brethren, and supported them; and so long as he was lord of the land, the land of Egypt represented the spiritual church in the natural, and Jacob and his sons the spiritual church; but the representation of the spiritual church in the natural by Egypt was ended when Moses was born and he began to lead the Israelites out of Egypt. (These things, as they are many and various, are explained in the Arcana Coelestia.)

[4] The representation of the Lord in relation to the Divine spiritual, and thence the representation of the Lord's spiritual kingdom, is contained in these words in Moses (which may be seen explained in Arcana Coelestia, n. 5306-5329):

And Pharaoh said unto his servants, Shall we find one like this man, in whom the spirit of God is? And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, Forasmuch as, God hath made thee to know all this, there is no one so intelligent and wise as thou; thou shalt be over my house, and upon thy mouth shall all my people kiss; only in the throne will I be greater than thou. And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, See, I have set thee over all the land of Egypt. And Pharaoh took off his ring from upon his hand, and put it upon Joseph's hand, and clothed him in garments of fine linen, and put a necklace of gold upon his neck; and he made him to ride in the second chariot which he had, and they cried out before him, Bow the knee; and he set him over all the land of Egypt. And Pharaoh said unto Joseph, I am Pharaoh, besides thee shall no man lift up his hand or foot in all the land of Egypt (Gen. 41:38-44).

[5] Since it is said that "Joseph" in the highest sense represents the Lord in relation to the Divine spiritual, it shall first be told what is meant by the Lord's Divine spiritual. Heaven is divided into two kingdoms, one of which is called the celestial kingdom, and the other the spiritual kingdom. The Divine Itself proceeding from the Lord makes heaven, and the Divine proceeding from the Lord is Divine good united to Divine truth. All those in heaven who receive more of Divine good than of Divine truth constitute the Lord's celestial kingdom, while all who receive more of Divine truth than of Divine good constitute the Lord's spiritual kingdom; therefore the Divine of the Lord that is received by the angels in the Lord's celestial kingdom is called the Divine celestial, and the Divine of the Lord that is received by the angels in the Lord's spiritual kingdom is called the Divine spiritual. But it is to be known that the Divine proceeding from the Lord is so called from its reception, and that there are not two Divines, a celestial and a spiritual proceeding; for the Divine good, which from reception is called the Divine celestial, and the Divine truth, which from reception is called the Divine spiritual, proceed so united as to be not two but one. (These things may be seen more fully explained in the work on Heaven and Hell 20-28 where The Two Kingdoms into which the Three Heavens are Divided are treated of; also n. 13, 133, 139, which treat of the Divine proceeding, which is the Divine good united to Divine truth, and that they are two only in the recipients.)

[6] That the Lord in relation to the Divine spiritual and thence the spiritual kingdom is signified by "Joseph" can be seen also from the following passages. In the blessing of the sons of Israel by their father:

The son of a fruitful one is Joseph, the son of a fruitful one by a fountain; the daughters (she walketh upon a wall), and they shall embitter him and shall shoot at him, the archers shall hate him; and he shall sit in the strength of his bow, and the arms of his hands shall be strengthened by the hands of the Mighty One of Jacob; thence is he the shepherd, the stone of Israel; from the God of thy father, and He shall help thee; and with Shaddai, and He shall bless thee with blessings of heaven from above, with the blessings of the deep that lieth below, with blessings of the breasts and of the womb. The blessings of thy father shall prevail over the blessings of my progenitors, even to the desire of the hills of an age; they shall be for the head of Joseph, and for the crown of the head of the Nazirite of his brethren (Genesis 49:22-26).

"The son of a fruitful one is Joseph" signifies the Lord's spiritual kingdom and spiritual church, and in the highest sense the Lord in relation to the Divine spiritual; "the son of a fruitful one by a fountain" signifies the fructification by truths from the Word, the "son of a fruitful one" meaning the fructification by truths, and "fountain" the Word; "the daughters (she walketh upon a wall)" signifies to combat by truths that are from good against the falsities that are from evil, a "wall" meaning truth defending; "they shall embitter him" signifies resistance by falsities; "and shall shoot at him" signifies that they will fight from falsities; "and the archers shall hate him" signifies with every hostility from the falsities of doctrine; "darts" and "arrows," and thence "the throwers of darts" and "archers," signifying combat from truths against the falsities of doctrine, but here from the falsities of doctrine against truths; "and he shall sit in the strength of his bow" signifies to be kept safe by the truths of doctrine combating against falsities, "bow" meaning doctrine; "and the arms of his hands shall be strengthened" signifies the potency of the powers of combating; "by the hands of the Mighty One of Jacob" signifies by the omnipotence of the Lord's Divine Human; "thence is he the shepherd, the stone of Israel," signifies that all spiritual good and truth in the kingdom is therefrom; "from the God of thy father" signifies that he was the God of the Ancient Church; "and with Shaddai" signifies the Lord as Benefactor after temptations; "and He shall bless thee with the blessings of heaven from above" signifies with goods and truths from within; "with blessings of the deep that lieth below" signifies with the knowledges of truth and good and with corroborating knowledges [scientifica] from without; "with the blessings of the breasts and of the womb" signifies the spiritual affections of these and conjunction; "the blessings of thy father shall prevail above the blessings of my progenitors" signifies that the church that is signified by "Joseph" is from spiritual truth and good; "even to the desire of the hills of an age" signifies from mutual celestial love; "they shall be for the head of Joseph" signifies these things in respect to interiors; "and for the crown of the head of the Nazirite of his brethren" signifies also in respect to exteriors. (For further explanation of this seeArcana Coelestia 6416-6438.)

[7] In the blessing of the sons of Israel by Moses:

Of Joseph he said, Blessed of Jehovah be his land, for the precious things of heaven, for the dew, and for the deep that lieth beneath, and for the precious things of the increase of the sun, and for the precious things of the produce of the months, and for the firstfruits of the mountains of the east, and for the precious things of the hills of an age, and for the precious things of the earth and of the fullness thereof; and the good pleasure of him that dwelleth in the bush; they shall come to the head of Joseph, and to the crown of the head of the Nazirite of his brethren (Deuteronomy 33:13-16).

This describes the Lord's spiritual church with those who are in the doctrine of truth from the Word, and in a life in accordance with it, "the land of Joseph" signifying that church; "to be blessed for the precious things of heaven, for the dew, and for the deep that lieth beneath," signifies from Divine truths from the Word in the spiritual man, and from the influx of the spiritual man into the natural; "the precious things of heaven" meaning Divine spiritual truths or truths in the spiritual man; "dew" signifying influx therefrom, and "the deep lying beneath" signifying the natural man in which are the knowledges of truth and good for perception, and confirming knowledges [scientifica]; "for the precious things of the increase of the sun, and for the precious things of the produce of the months," signifies from the truths flowing forth from the Lord's celestial kingdom, and from the truths flowing forth from the Lord's spiritual kingdom; "the precious things of the sun" meaning truths from the celestial kingdom; "the precious things of the months" truths from the spiritual kingdom, and "increase" and "produce" the things that flow forth; "for the firstfruits of the mountains of the east and for the precious things of the hills of an age," signifies genuine truths such as were in the Most Ancient Church, and such as were in the Ancient Church, "the mountains of the east" signify the Most Ancient Church which was in love to the Lord; that church is described by "the mountains of the east" because "mountain" signifies love, and the "east" the Lord; "the hills of an age" signify the Ancient Church, which was in charity towards the neighbor; that church is described by "the hills of an age" because "hills" signify charity towards the neighbor. (That such is the signification of "mountains" and "hills," see above, n.405.) "And for the precious things of the earth and of the fullness thereof" signifies the external spiritual church, which is with those who live according to the knowledges of truth and good; the "earth" meaning that church, and "fullness" the knowledges in the external man; "and the good pleasure of him that dwelleth in the bush," signifies the Lord in respect to the Divine spiritual, that all these things are from Him; "they shall come to the head of Joseph, and to the crown of the head of the Nazirite of his brethren" signifies in respect both to interiors and to exteriors (as above).

[8] In Zechariah:

And I will make the house of Judah mighty, and I will save the house of Joseph; and they shall be as the mighty Ephraim, and their heart shall be glad as if with wine (Zechariah 10:6, 7).

"The house of Judah" here means the church that is in love to the Lord, which is called the celestial church; and "Joseph" means the church that is in the good of charity and in the truths of faith, which is called the spiritual church; because the truths of that church have power from good, it is said, "they shall be as the mighty Ephraim," for "Ephraim" signifies truth from good in the natural man, which truth has power; the joy of such from truths is signified by "their heart shall be glad as if with wine," "wine" signifying truth from good.

[9] In Ezekiel:

Jehovah said, Son of man, take thee one stick, and write upon it, For Judah and for the sons of Israel, his companions; then take thee one stick, and write upon it, For Joseph, the stick of Ephraim, and of all the house of Israel; and then join them for thee one to another into one stick, that the two may be one in thy ¹ hand. I will take the stick of Joseph, which is in the hand of Ephraim, and of the tribes of Israel his companions, and I will add them upon the stick of Judah, and will make them into one stick, and they shall be one in My hand. And I will make them into one nation in the land, in the mountains of Israel; and one king shall be for a king to them all; and they shall be no more two nations, neither shall they be divided into two kingdoms anymore at all (Ezekiel 37:16-22).

Here, too, "Judah" signifies the celestial church which is in the good of love, and "Joseph" and "Ephraim" signify the spiritual church which is in the good of charity and in the truths of faith. That these two churches will be one church with the Lord, as good and truth are one, is meant by "I will make them into one stick, and they shall be one in My hand. And I will make them into one nation in the land; and one king shall be for a king to them all; and they shall be no more two nations, neither shall they be divided into two kingdoms anymore." (But this also may be seen explained above, n. 433.)

[10] In David:

O God, Thou hast with Thine arm redeemed Thy people, the sons of Jacob and of Joseph (Psalms 77:15).

"The sons of Jacob and of Joseph" mean those who are in the good of life according to their religious principles; for "Jacob" means in the Word the external church which is with those who are in the good of life; and "Joseph" here means Manasseh and Ephraim, for it is said "Thou hast redeemed the sons of Joseph," by whom those are meant who are in good and truth in respect to the external man, thus in respect to life. (That Manasseh and Ephraim, the "sons of Joseph," have this signification, see above, n. 440.) "To redeem them with His arm," signifies to save them by omnipotence, for those who had been such were saved by the Lord through His coming into the world, and could not have been saved otherwise.

[11] In Obadiah:

In Mount Zion there shall be escape, and there shall be holiness; and the house of Jacob shall be heir to their inheritances; and the house of Jacob shall become a fire and the house of Joseph a flame, and the house of Esau for stubble, that they may kindle them and devour them, that there be no residue of the house of Esau (verses 17, 18).

"Esau and his house" mean those who believe themselves to be intelligent and wise not from the Lord but from self; for in the eighth verse of this chapter it is said "I will destroy the wise out of Edom, and the intelligent out of the mount of Esau," [Obadiah 1:8], meaning those who from the letter of the Word have confirmed themselves in such things as favor their own loves. "The house of Jacob and the house of Joseph" mean such as are in the good of life according to the truths of doctrine, "the house of Jacob" meaning those who are in the good of life, and "the house of Joseph" those who are in the truths of doctrine; "Mount Zion," where there will be escape and holiness, signifies love to the Lord, from whom is salvation and from whom is Divine truth; "the house of Jacob shall be heir to the inheritances of the house and mountain of Esau," and "the house of Jacob shall be to him a fire, and the house of Joseph a flame," signifies that in place of those meant by "Esau" those will succeed who are in the good of life according to the truths of doctrine. In the spiritual world this so occurs, that those who have been in pride from self-intelligence, and have confirmed themselves from the Word in such things as favor the loves of self and the world, occupy certain tracts and mountains, and make for themselves a semblance of heaven, believing that heaven belongs to them more than to others; but when the time has been fulfilled they are cast out of their places, and those succeed them who are in the good of life according to the truths of doctrine from the Lord. (See respecting this in the small work on The Last Judgment.) This makes clear what is signified in the internal sense by "the house of Jacob shall be heir to their inheritances, and shall be a fire, and the house of Joseph a flame, and the house of Esau for stubble."

[12] In Amos:

Who play upon the psaltery, and devise for themselves instruments of music like David; who drink out of bowls of wine, and anoint themselves with the firstfruits of the oils, but are not grieved over the breach of Joseph (Amos 6:5, 6).

This treats of those who counterfeit good affections in externals, and bring together for confirmation many things from the Word, and yet are interiorly evil. To counterfeit good affections in externals is signified by "playing upon the psaltery, devising for themselves instruments of music, and anointing themselves with the firstfruits of the oils;" to bring forth many things from the Word for the sake of appearance is signified by "drinking out of bowls of wine;" that they have no regard for the truths of doctrine of the church, even though the church should perish by falsities, is signified by "they are not grieved over the breach of Joseph," "Joseph" meaning the spiritual church, which is with those who are in the truths of doctrine.

[13] In David:

Give ear, O Shepherd of Israel, Thou that leadest Joseph like a flock; Thou that sittest upon the cherubim, shine forth. Before Ephraim, Benjamin, and Manasseh stir up Thy might, and come for salvation to us (Psalms 80:1, 2).

Here, too, "Joseph" signifies the spiritual church, which is with those who are in truths from good, that is, in the truths of doctrine also as to life. What "Ephraim, Benjamin, and Manasseh," here mean may be seen above n. 440.

[14] In Amos:

Thus said Jehovah unto the house of Israel, Seek ye Me, and ye shall live; lest He fall like fire upon ² the house of Joseph, and He shall devour and there shall be none to quench. Hate evil, and love good, and place judgment in the gate; it may be that Jehovah the God of Hosts will be gracious unto the remnant of Joseph (Amos 5:4, 6, 15).

"The house of Israel" signifies the spiritual church, and "the house of Joseph" that church in respect to the truths of doctrine. That truths of doctrine will perish unless they are in the affection of truth and good and a life according to them, is meant by "lest He fall like fire upon the house of Joseph;" and "Jehovah will be gracious to his remnant" means that He will preserve with them the remaining truths of doctrine, provided they live according to the goods and truths from the Word, which is meant by "hate evil and love good, and place judgment in the gate."

[15] In David:

Lift up a psalm, and strike the timbrel, the pleasant harp with the psaltery. Sound with the trumpet in the new moon, in the fixed time at the day of our feast. For this was a statute of Israel. He appointed a testimony for Joseph, in His going out against the land of Egypt; I heard a lip that I knew not (Psalms 81:2-5).

To "lift up a psalm, to strike the timbrel, the pleasant harp with the psaltery," signifies confession from spiritual and celestial truths and the delights of the affection of truth and good (See above, n. 323, 326); "sound with the trumpet in the new moon, in the fixed time for the day of our feast," signifies worship from the delight of these affections; "for this was a statute for Israel, and He appointed a testimony for Joseph," signifies that these things were for the new church instituted among the sons of Israel which was in the truths of doctrine; "in His going out against the land of Egypt; I heard a lip that I knew not" signifies when the old church was destroyed, which had come to be in falsities of doctrine, "a lip that I knew not" signifying falsities of doctrine; for "Egypt," when Joseph was lord there, represented the church that is in the cognitions of truth and good, and in confirming knowledges (scientiae); but when the sons of Israel began to be hated and ill-treated, "Egypt" represented the church destroyed, in which are mere falsities, for it is said that:

There arose a new king over the Egyptians who knew not Joseph (Exodus 1:8);

and consequently the Egyptians with Pharaoh, who pursued the sons of Israel, were drowned in the Red Sea.

[16] That "Joseph" means in the highest sense the Lord in respect to the Divine spiritual, is evident also in David:

Joseph was sold for a servant; his foot they hurt with a fetter, his soul came into the iron; until the time that his word came, and the saying of Jehovah explored him. Then the king sent and loosed him; the ruler of the nations let him go free. He set him as a lord to his house and ruler over all his possessions, to bind his princes according to his will, and that he might instruct his elders. Then Israel came into Egypt, and Jacob became a sojourner in the land of Ham (Psalms 105:17-23).

How the Lord was received when He came into the world, and how He was tempted and then became Lord of heaven and earth, and subjugated the hells, reduced the heavens to order and established the church is described by the story of Joseph; how He was received and tempted is described by "he was sold for a servant, his foot they hurt with a fetter, and his soul came into iron;" "he was sold for a servant" signifying that the Lord was held in low esteem; "his foot they hurt with a fetter" signifying that He was as it were bound and in prison because there was no longer any natural good; "his soul came into the iron" signifying that it was so because there was no longer any natural truth but only falsity. The Lord's conquering the hells through Divine truth from ³ His Divine is described by "until the time that his word came, and the saying of Jehovah explored him;" "his word" signifying Divine truth, and "the saying of Jehovah" Divine good from which is Divine truth. That the Lord thus acquired power over all things of heaven and earth for His Human from His Divine is described by "the king sent and loosed him, the ruler of the nations let him go free; he set him as a lord to his house, and ruler over all his possession;" the "king who sent," and the "ruler of the nations who let him go free," signifying Divine truth and Divine good which were in Him and from Him, "king" Divine truth, and "ruler" Divine good; for the Lord is called "King" in the Word from Divine truth, and "Lord" and "Ruler" from Divine good.

The "house over which he was set" signifies heaven and the church in respect to good, and "possession" heaven and the church in respect to truth. This has a similar signification as the words of the Lord Himself, that all things of the Father are His and all His are the Father's; and that all power over heaven and earth was given to Him (John 17:10; Matthew 28:18). That the Lord from His Divine withholds the heavens from falsities and keeps them in truths, and thus gives them intelligence and wisdom, is described by "he bound the princes according to his will, and that he might instruct his elders," "princes" signifying those who are in truths, and "elders" those who are in intelligence and wisdom. That the Lord then established the church on the earth is meant by "then Israel came into Egypt;" "Israel" signifying the church, for the establishment of the church by the Lord was represented by the sons of Israel coming into Egypt, as also by the Lord's being carried into Egypt when He was an infant (Matthew 2:14, 15; Hosea 11:1). That all things of the church then perished is meant by "Jacob became a sojourner in the land of Ham;" "Jacob" signifying the church with all who are in the good of life, and "the land of Ham" signifying the church destroyed.

[17] Here and elsewhere in the Word "Israel and Jacob" do not mean the sons of Israel and the posterity of Jacob, but all those with whom is the church, wherever they were and wherever they are; as "Judah" in the Word does not mean the Jewish nation, but the church consisting of such as are in love to the Lord (of which above, n. 433). For with the sons of Israel or the posterity of Jacob there was no church, but the church was merely represented; therefore they signify all who are of the church, and this not only in the prophecies of the Word but also in its histories, as has been shown in what precedes. So, too, "Joseph" and his tribe do not mean Joseph and his tribe, but in the highest sense the Lord in respect to the Divine spiritual, and thence in a relative sense the Lord's spiritual kingdom in the heavens and on the earths, likewise the things that constitute that kingdom, which are the truths of doctrine.

[18] In Ezekiel there is a description of a new spiritual church to be established by the Lord, and this church with its doctrine is meant by "the new city, the new temple, and the new earth," therefore it is said:

This is the border unto which ye shall inherit the land, according to the twelve tribes of Israel, to Joseph cords [portions] (Ezekiel 47:13).

"Joseph" signifies the spiritual church, and "cords" signify conjunction, and preaching from that tribe to the rest, and from the rest to it; and "the twelve tribes of Israel" signify all things of that church.

Poznámky pod čarou:

2588. 'Abraham's wife' means, in order that spiritual truth might be joined to celestial good. This is clear from the representation of 'Sarah when a wife' as spiritual truth joined to celestial good, dealt with in 1468, 1901, 2063, 2065, 2172, 2173, 2198, 2507, and from the representation of 'Abraham' as celestial good joined to spiritual truth, dealt with in 2010, 2172, 2198, 2501. Whether you say spiritual truth and celestial good, or whether you say the Lord, it amounts to the same, for the Lord is truth itself and good itself, and also the marriage itself of truth and good and of good and truth. These matters may indeed be seen from the explanation given, yet as they belong among those things that are obscure at the present day, let them be illustrated so far as possible. The subject here is the doctrine of faith, about which doctrine the Lord thought when He was a boy; that is to say, He gave thought to whether it was permissible to enter into that doctrine by means of rational conceptions and in that way form ideas for Himself regarding it. This way of thinking was a product of His love and concern for the human race, who are such that they do not believe anything which is not grasped in a rational manner by them. But He perceived from the Divine that one ought not to enter into doctrine that way, and therefore He revealed such doctrine to Himself from the Divine and at the same time also all things in the universe that are subordinate to it, that is, all things of a rational kind, and all those of a natural kind.

[2] People's attitudes to matters of doctrine regarding faith have been spoken of above in 2568. There it was stated that there are two basic attitudes of mind from which people think, the negative and the affirmative; also that they think from a negative attitude who believe nothing unless they are convinced by rational considerations and by facts, and indeed by sensory evidence, whereas those people think from an affirmative attitude who believe that things are true because the Lord has said so in the Word and who thus have faith in the Lord. People who adopt the negative attitude towards the truth of anything in the Word say in their hearts that they are willing to believe when persuaded on rational grounds and by facts. But these are such as never believe, not even indeed if they were convinced by means of the evidence of their own physical senses of seeing, hearing, and touch; for they would always be producing new reasonings against such things, and in so doing they would at length completely destroy all faith and at the same time would turn the light of the rational into darkness, because they would turn it into falsities. People however who adopt the affirmative attitude, that is, who believe that things are true because the Lord has said so, are being confirmed all the time by rational considerations and by facts, and even by sensory evidence, and their ideas are being enlightened and are strengthened by these; for light comes to man through no other channel than the rational ideas and the factual knowledge which he possesses. This is so with everyone. With those who have the affirmative attitude of mind doctrine is certainly living, and of them it is said that they are healed and give birth. But with those who have the negative attitude doctrine certainly dies, and of them it is said that the womb is completely closed. All this shows what it is to enter the doctrine of faith by means of rational ideas, and what it is to enter into rational ideas from the doctrine of faith.

[3] Let these differences be illustrated by examples: The Word teaches that the first and foremost matter of doctrine is love to the Lord and charity towards the neighbour. People with the affirmative attitude towards this are able to enter into whatever things of a rational, factual, and indeed sensory kind they please, each according to his ability, knowledge, and experience. Indeed the more they do so the more they are confirmed, for the whole natural order is full of what is confirmatory. But people who deny this first and foremost teaching, and who wish first of all to be convinced by means of factual and rational considerations that a thing is true, never allow themselves to be convinced because they deny in their hearts and are all the time taking their stand on some other basic idea which they believe to be essential. In the end through confirmations of that idea these people so blind themselves that they cannot even know what love to the Lord is and what love towards the neighbour is. And because they confirm themselves in notions contrary to such love they at length also confirm themselves in the idea that no other kind of love can exist that has any delight in it except self-love and love of the world. And this they do to such an extent - if not in doctrine yet in the lives they lead - that they embrace hellish love in place of heavenly love.

[4] But with those who as yet have adopted neither a negative attitude nor an affirmative one but are in a state of doubt that precedes either of these, the position has been stated above in 2568. There it was shown that those who incline towards a life of evil fall into the negative attitude, whereas those who incline towards a life good are brought into the affirmative one. Take a different example: One of the leading ideas of the doctrine of faith is that all good comes from the Lord and all evil from man or self. People with the affirmative attitude that this is so are able to confirm themselves by many rational ideas, and by facts, such as that no good can possibly flow in except from Good itself, that is, from the fountain of good, and so from the Lord, and that good cannot have its first beginnings anywhere else. Such people find these ideas enlightened for them by all things which are truly good within themselves, within others, within society in general, and indeed within the whole of creation. But people with the negative attitude confirm themselves by everything they can possibly think of in ideas to the contrary, so much so that at length they do not know what good is. And disputing among themselves as to what the highest good is, they are profoundly ignorant of the fact that it is by means of celestial and spiritual good from the Lord that every type of good beneath it is made living, and that the delight flowing from it is truly delight. Some also imagine that if good does not come from themselves it cannot possibly come from any other source.

[5] Take another example: Those who are governed by love to the Lord and charity towards the neighbour are able to receive the truths of doctrine and to have faith in the Word, but not so those leading a life of self-love and love of the world. Or what amounts to the same, those governed by good are able to believe but not those governed by evil. People with the affirmative attitude of mind are able to confirm this in countless ways - with rational ideas and factual knowledge. With rational ideas they are able to confirm that truth is compatible with good but not with evil, and that as all falsity resides in evil it is also the product of evil, and that if any people governed by evil nevertheless possess any truth, this is on their lips, not in their heart. And with factual knowledge they are able to confirm from many points of view that truths put evils to flight and that evils detest truths. But people with the negative attitude confirm themselves in the idea that everyone, irrespective of what he is like in character - even if he leads a life for ever hating, taking delight in revenge, and practicing deceit - is able to believe as others are able to do so. Yet while holding to this idea they themselves totally reject goodness of life from doctrine, and having rejected it believe nothing whatever.

[6] To make the matter plainer still, take yet another example: Those who adopt the affirmative attitude that the Word has been written in such a way as to have an internal sense that is not apparent in the letter are also able in many ways to confirm themselves through rational considerations, such as the following,

By means of the Word man has a link with heaven.

Correspondences exist of natural things with spiritual, though the spiritual are not very apparent.

The ideas which belong to interior thought are completely different from the material ideas which fall into the words of spoken language. While man is in the world he is able to be in heaven (for he has been born for life in both places) through the Word which is intended for both places.

With some people a certain Divine light flows into the things of the understanding and into the affections when the Word is being read.

It is necessary that something be written which has come down from heaven and thus that the nature of its existence in its origins cannot be the same as its existence in the letter.

It cannot be holy except from a certain holiness which it has within it.

A person with the affirmative attitude is also able to confirm himself by means of certain facts, such as the following,

In former times people were living in an age of representatives. The writings of the Ancient Church contained such representatives, and those of many authors among the gentiles were composed of them, so that in the Churches that style of writing was regarded as being holy, and among the gentiles as being learned (books by many of those authors could also be mentioned).

But people who adopt the negative attitude, though they do not deny all these considerations and facts, nevertheless do not believe them. They persuade themselves that the Word is such as it exists in the letter, where indeed it presents a worldly appearance, but is nevertheless spiritual. They do not have any interest however in where that spiritual element lies, but for a multitude of reasons still want it. And that of which they are persuaded they are able to confirm in many ways.

[7] To present this matter in a way that can be grasped by ordinary people, let the following known fact serve as an example: Those with the affirmative attitude that sight does not belong to the eye but to the spirit which sees objects in the world by means of the eye as an organ of its own body can find confirmation of this fact in many ways. For instance, those people may find confirmation of it in their hearing of words spoken by another, in that these spoken words ally themselves to a certain interior sight, into which those words are converted - something that could not possibly occur but for the existence of that interior sight. These people may also find confirmation of the same in the consideration that whatever they think about is seen with an interior sight, by some more clearly and by others more obscurely, as well as in the consideration that the things produced by their imagination are not unlike actual objects of sight. They may find a further confirmation in the consideration that unless it were the spirit within the body that saw the things taken in by the eye as the organ of sight, the spirit would be unable to see anything in the next life, when in fact it is destined to behold countless and astonishing sights which the eye of the body cannot possibly see. In addition confirmation may be found by these people by reflecting on how in dreams, especially those of the prophets, many things have likewise been seen, yet not with the eyes. Finally, if trained in philosophy, a person may find confirmation in the consideration that things which are more exterior cannot enter into those that are more interior, just as that which is compound cannot enter into that which is simple, so that things of the body cannot enter into those of the spirit; only the reverse is possible. Besides these many other confirmations might be introduced, till at length a person is persuaded that sight belongs to the spirit, and not to the eye except from the spirit. But people with the negative attitude either speak of everything of this kind as that which is natural and physical, or else they speak of it as that which is imaginary. And when they are told that a spirit possesses and enjoys far more perfect sight than man does in the body, they laugh at the idea and dismiss it as nonsense, for they believe that they will be living in darkness when they are deprived of the sight of the eye. But in fact quite the reverse is the case in that they then dwell in the light.

[8] These examples show what it is to enter into things of a rational and factual nature from truths, and what it is to enter into truths from things of a factual and rational nature. The first method of approach is according to order, but the second is contrary to it; and when a person acts according to order he is enlightened, but when he acts contrary to order he is made blind. This makes plain how important it is for people to know and believe truths, for truths enlighten man, but falsities make him blind. Truths open up to the rational a vast and practically unlimited field, whereas falsities provide scarcely any such opening up at all, though this is not very evident. The reason why angels have so much wisdom is that they are enveloped in truths, truth being the light itself of heaven.

[9] Those who have made themselves blind through refusing to believe anything which they do not perceive with the physical senses, till at length they have no belief at all, were in former times called 'serpents belonging to the tree of knowledge'. For they reasoned much from things as perceived by the senses and from the resulting illusions which man accepts and believes all too easily, and by such reasoning they led very many astray, see 195, 196. In the next life they are easily distinguished from other spirits by the fact that in everything which is a matter of faith they reason whether it is so. And if it is demonstrated to them a thousand times, and then another thousand, that it is so they still advance doubts of a negative kind against every confirmation that is offered, and this they would go on doing for ever. They are so blinded therefore that they are lacking in common sense, that is, they are unable to grasp what good and truth are. Yet every one of them imagines that he is wiser than anyone else in the whole universe, making wisdom consist in being able to dispose of what is Divine and to derive the origin of things from what is natural. Many who have been considered wise men in the world are pre-eminently such as these; for the more anyone with the negative attitude of mind possesses talent and knowledge, the more insane he is, more so than all others. But the more anyone with the affirmative attitude possesses talent and knowledge the wiser he is able to become. One is not by any means forbidden to develop the rational by means of factual knowledge, but one is not allowed to use it to harden oneself against the truths of faith which belong to the Word.

[10] Much concerning these matters occurs in the internal sense of the Word, especially in prophetical sections, where the subject is Asshur and Egypt, for 'Asshur' means reasoning, 119, 1186, and 'Egypt' knowledge, 1164, 1165, 1186, 1462.

People who wish to enter into matters of doctrine regarding faith and into Divine things by means of things of a factual and of a rational nature, and who are consequently of unsound mind, are referred to in Isaiah as follows,

I will confound Egypt within Egypt, and they will fight every one against his brother, and every one against his companion, city against city, and kingdom against kingdom. And the spirit of Egypt will be emptied out in the midst of it, and I will swallow up his plans. The waters from the sea will fail, and the river will be parched and dry; and the streams will depart, and the rivers of Egypt will diminish and become parched. Reed and rush will wither away. Every seed of the river will be dry. Jehovah has mingled in the midst of her a spirit of perversity, and they have made Egypt err in all its work, as a drunken man errs in his vomit. Isaiah 19:2-3, 5-7, 14.

In the same prophet,

Woe to the rebellious children, who depart to go down into Egypt but have not asked at My mouth, to strengthen themselves in the strength of Pharaoh, and to trust in the shadow of Egypt. And the strength of Pharaoh will be shame for you, and trust in the shadow of Egypt ignominy. Isaiah 30:1-3.

In the same prophet,

Woe to those who go down into Egypt for help and rely on horses and trust in chariots because they are many, but do not look to the Holy One of Israel and do not seek Jehovah. And Jehovah will stretch out His hand; he who gives help will stumble, and he who is helped will fall, and they will all be destroyed together. And Asshur will fall by a sword, not of man; and a sword, not of man, will devour him. Isaiah 31:1, 3, 8.

In Jeremiah,

My people have committed two evils; they have forsaken Me, the fountain of living waters, to hollow out pits for themselves, broken pits which do not hold water. Is not Israel a slave? If he is a home-born [servant], why has he become a prey? Are you not bringing this on yourself by forsaking Jehovah your God at a time when He is leading you in the way? And now, what have you to do with the way to Egypt, to drink the waters of Shihor, or what have you to do with the way to Asshur, to drink the waters of the River? O generation, see the Word of Jehovah! Have I been a wilderness for Israel? or a land of darkness? For what reason have My people said, We will be our own masters, we will not come to You any more? Why do you go off so forcefully to change your way? You will also be put to shame by Egypt, as you were put to shame by Asshur. Jeremiah 2:13-14, 17-18, 31, 36.

In the same prophet,

Hear the word of Jehovah, O remnants of Judah, Thus said Jehovah Zebaoth, the God of Israel, If you surely set your faces to come into Egypt, and you enter to sojourn there, then it will be, that the sword of which you are afraid will overtake you there in the land of Egypt, and the famine of which you are terrified will cleave to you there in Egypt, so that you die there. And all the men (vir) who have set their faces to come into Egypt to sojourn there will die by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence, and none of them will survive or escape from before the evil which I am bringing over you. Jeremiah 42:15-17, and following verses.

In Ezekiel,

And let all the inhabitants of Egypt know that I am Jehovah, because they have been a staff of reed to the house of Israel. When they grasp you with the hand, you will be broken, and you will tear for them every shoulder; and when they lean on you you will be broken, and you will make all their loins to be at a stand. Therefore thus said the Lord Jehovih, Behold, I am bringing a sword over you, and I will cause man and beast to be cut off from you; and the land of Egypt will be a desolation and a waste, and they will know that I am Jehovah, for [Egypt] has said, The river is mine, and I made it. Ezekiel 29:6-9, and following verses.

In Hosea,

Ephraim was like a silly dove. They called on Egypt, they went away to Asshur. When they go I will stretch My net over them. Woe to them, for they have strayed away from Me! Hosea 7:11-13.

In the same prophet,

Ephraim feeds the wind, and pursues the east wind. All the day long he multiplies lies and devastation and they make a covenant with Asshur, and oil is carried down into Egypt. Hosea 12:1.

In the same prophet,

Israel has committed whoredom beneath its God. You have taken delight in hiring yourself out on every threshing-floor. Ephraim will return to Egypt, and in Asshur they will eat what is unclean. For behold, they have gone away on account of the devastation, Egypt will gather them, Moph ¹ will bury them; the nettle will possess their precious things of silver, the thorn will be in their tents. Ephraim has been stricken, their root has dried up, they will bear no fruit. Even when they bring forth I will slay the beloved fruits of their womb. My God will cast them away because they have not hearkened to Him, and they will be wanderers among the nations. Hosea 9:1, 3, 6, 16-17.

In Isaiah,

Woe to Asshur, the rod of My anger, and he is the staff, in their hand, of My indignation! He does not think what is right and his heart does not consider what is right, for it is in his heart to destroy, and to cut off nations not a few, for he says, Are not my princes at the same time kings? I will visit upon the fruit of the stout heart of the king of Asshur, for he has said, By the strength of my hand I have done it, and by my wisdom, for I have intelligence, and I will remove the boundaries of peoples and will plunder their treasures, and as a powerful man will cast down the inhabitants. Therefore the Lord, the Lord Zebaoth, will send leanness among his fat ones, and instead of his glory a burning of fire will be kindled. Isaiah 10:5, 7-8, 12-13, 16.

[11] In all these places 'Asshur' means reasoning, as has been shown, 'Egypt' and 'pharaoh' mean knowledge, and 'Ephraim' the understanding part of the mind. These and many other places elsewhere describe what man's rational comes to be like when he reasons about the truths of faith from the negative attitude of mind. Similar teaching is embodied in the incidents recorded in Isaiah 36, 37, when the Rabshakeh was sent from the king of Asshur and spoke out against Jerusalem and king Hezekiah, and the angel of Jehovah at that time struck down in the camp of the king of Asshur one hundred and eighty-five thousands. Those descriptions mean the disarray into which all that constitutes man's rationality is thrown when he reasons against Divine things, however much he may seem to himself at that time to be wise.

[12] Such reasoning is also referred to in various places as 'whoredom committed with the sons of Egypt and with the sons of Asshur', as in Ezekiel,

You committed whoredom with the sons of Egypt, your neighbours, great in flesh, and multiplied your whoredom. And you committed whoredom with the sons of Asshur, and were still not satisfied. Ezekiel 16:26, 28; 23:3, 5-21.

See 2466.

[13] People however who enter into things of a rational and factual kind from the doctrine of faith and by so doing are made wise are referred to in Isaiah as follows,

On that day there will be an altar to Jehovah in the midst of the land of Egypt, and a pillar to Jehovah at its border; and it will be for a sign and a witness to Jehovah Zebaoth in the land of Egypt, for they will cry out to Jehovah because of the oppressors, and He will send a saviour and prince to them, and He will deliver them. And Jehovah will make Himself known to Egypt, and the Egyptians will know Jehovah on that day and will offer sacrifice and minchah, and will make a vow to Jehovah and perform it. Isaiah 19:18-21.

In the same chapter,

On that day there will be a highway from Egypt to Asshur, and Asshur will come into Egypt, and the Egyptians will serve Asshur. ² On that day Israel will be the third with Egypt and Asshur, a blessing in the midst of the earth, whom Jehovah Zebaoth will bless, saying, Blessed be Egypt My people, and Asshur the work of My hands, and Israel My heritage. Isaiah 19:23-25.

This is referring to the spiritual Church, of which Israel is the spiritual element, Asshur the rational, and Egypt the factual. These three constitute all the intellectual powers of that Church, which come in that order one after another. This explains why it is said, 'On that day Israel will be the third with Egypt and Asshur', and 'blessed be Egypt My people, Asshur the work of My hands, and Israel My heritage'.

[14] In the same prophet,

It will be on that day, that a great trumpet will be blown, and they will come - those who are perishing in the land of Asshur, and those who are outcasts in the land of Egypt - and they will bow themselves down to Jehovah on the holy mountain, in Jerusalem. Isaiah 27:13.

In the same prophet,

Thus said Jehovah, The labour of Egypt, and the wares of Cush and of the Sabaeans, men of stature, will come over to you and will be yours. They will follow after you and bow down to you. To you they will make the supplication, God is with you only; and there is no other besides God. Isaiah 45:14.

'Cush and the Sabaeans' are cognitions, 117, 1171. In Zechariah,

Egypt will go up to Jerusalem to worship the King, Jehovah Zebaoth. Zechariah 14:17-18.

In Micah,

As for me, I look to Jehovah, I wait for the God of my salvation; my God will hear me. The day for building your walls, this is the day; and they will come even to you from Asshur and the cities of Egypt even to the River. Micah 7:7, 11-12.

[15] In Ezekiel,

Thus said the Lord Jehovih, At the end of forty years I will gather Egypt from the peoples among whom they were scattered, and I will bring back the captivity of Egypt. Ezekiel 29:13-14.

In the same prophet,

Behold, Asshur was a cedar in Lebanon, beautiful in its branches, and a shady forest, and lofty in height, and its trunk among entangled boughs. The waters caused it to grow, with its streams going around the place of its planting, and he sent out his lines of water to all the trees of the field. Therefore its height was made higher than all the trees of the field, and its branches were multiplied, and its branches were made long by many waters. In its branches all the birds of the air made their nests, and under its branches every wild animal of the field gave birth, and in its shadow dwelt all great nations. And it became beautiful in its greatness, in the length of its branches, for its root was in many waters. The cedars did not hide it in the garden of God, the fir trees were not equal to its branches. No tree in the garden of God was equal to it in its beauty. I made it beautiful in the mass of its branches, and all the trees of Eden which are in the garden of God envied it. Ezekiel 31:3-9.

Here the Most Ancient Church, which was celestial, is described as to the nature of its rational and so of its wisdom and intelligence, for that Church used to look at things below from those which were Divine. Thus it looked at truths from goods themselves, and then from truths at what was subsidiary to these. By 'Asshur' and 'a cedar' are meant the rational, by 'entangled boughs among which were its branches' is meant factual knowledge, by 'streams' and 'waters' are meant spiritual goods, among which was its 'root', by 'the height and the length of the branches' the extent of it, by 'the garden of God' the spiritual Church, and by 'the trees of Eden' perceptions. This and the other places quoted above show what man's rational is like and what his factual knowledge is like when they are subordinate to Divine truths and serve these by confirming them.

[16] The fact that things of a rational and factual kind serve people who have the affirmative attitude of mind as a means for making them wise was represented and meant by the command to the children of Israel to seek from the Egyptians the loan of vessels of gold and vessels of silver, and clothing, Exodus 3:22; 11:2; 12:35-36. Something similar is meant by what is said in various places in the Word about their possessing the goods, houses, vineyards, and olive-groves, and many other things, of the nations, and also by references to the very gold and silver itself seized from the nations becoming holy, as in Isaiah,

Jehovah will visit Tyre, and she will return to hiring herself out as a harlot, and will commit whoredom with all the kingdoms of the earth on the face of the ground. And its merchandise and its harlot's hire will become holy to Jehovah; it will not be stored or hoarded, for its merchandise will be for them that dwell before Jehovah to eat to satisfaction and for ancient clothing. Isaiah 23:17-18.

'The merchandise of Tyre' stands for cognitions, 1201, which to those with the negative attitude of mind are like 'a harlot's hire' but to those with the affirmative attitude are like that which is holy. Something similar is also meant by the Lord's words,

Make friends for yourselves out of the mammon of unrighteousness, so that when you fail they may receive you into eternal habitations. If then you have not appeared faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will entrust to you the true? Luke 16:9, 11.

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