3. Which God gave Him to show His servants. This symbolically means, for people who have faith arising from charity, or truths of wisdom arising from the goodness of love.

To show means, symbolically, to make evident, and servants here symbolize people who have faith arising from charity. The following things are made evident to them because they understand and accept.

Servants mean, in the spiritual sense, people who are governed by truths; and because truths spring from goodness, servants mean people who are governed by truths arising from goodness, thus also people governed by wisdom arising from love, because wisdom has to do with truth, and love with goodness. They also are people who have faith arising from charity, because faith, too, has to do with truth, and charity with goodness. And because the spiritual sense in reality is abstracted from person, therefore servants in that sense symbolize truths.

Now because truths, by teaching goodness, serve it, therefore in general, and properly speaking, by a servant in the Word is meant something serving, or someone or something that serves. In this sense not only were prophets called servants of God, but so, too, was the Lord in respect to His humanity.

That prophets were called servants of God is evident from the following passages:

Jehovah has sent to you all His servants the prophets... (Jeremiah 25:4)

...He has revealed His secret to His servants the prophets. (Amos 3:7)

...He has set before us by the hand of His servants the prophets. (Daniel 9:10)

Moses, too, is called a servant of Jehovah (Malachi 4:4). That is because a prophet, in the spiritual sense, means doctrinal truth, as discussed below.

[2] Moreover, because the Lord was the very embodiment of Divine truth, which also is the Word, and for that reason was called the prophet, and because He served in the world and serves all people to eternity by teaching, therefore He, too, is here and there called the servant of Jehovah, as in the following passages:

Of the labor of His soul He shall see; He shall be satisfied. By His knowledge My righteous Servant shall justify many... (Isaiah 53:11)

Behold, My Servant shall deal prudently; He shall be exalted and extolled and be very high. (Isaiah 52:13)

Behold! My Servant on whom I rest, My Elect. My soul has good pleasure! I have put My Spirit upon Him... (Isaiah 42:1, 19)

These things are said of the Lord. David is spoken of similarly, where by him is meant the Lord, as in the following:

I, Jehovah, will be their God, and My servant David a prince among them... (Ezekiel 34:24)

David My servant shall be king over them, so that they all have one shepherd... (Ezekiel 37:24)

I will protect this city to save it, for My sake and for My servant David's sake. (Isaiah 37:35)

So, too, Psalms 78:70-72; 89:3-4, 20. (That by David in these places is meant the Lord, may be seen in The Doctrine of the New Jerusalem Regarding the Lord, nos. 43, 44.)

The Lord Himself speaks similarly of Himself:

...whoever desires to become great among you must be your attendant, and whoever desires to be first among you must be your servant, even as the Son of Man did not come to be ministered to, but to minister... (Matthew 20:25-28. Cf. Mark 10:42-45, Luke 22:27. So, too, Luke 12:37)

The Lord says this, because by a servant and attendant are meant one who serves and ministers by teaching, and abstractly from person, Divine truth, which He embodied.

[3] Since a servant therefore means someone who teaches Divine truth, it is apparent that servants in this place in the book of Revelation mean people who possess truths arising from goodness, or faith arising from charity, because they are able to teach from the Lord, that is to say, because the Lord is able to teach and minister through them.

It is in this sense that they are called servants in Matthew:

(At the end of the age,) who... is the faithful and prudent servant, whom his lord set over his household, to give them food in due season? Blessed is that servant whom his lord, when he comes, will find so doing. (Matthew 24:45-46)

And in Luke:

Blessed are those servants whom the lord, when he comes, will find watching. Truly I say to you that he will gird himself and have them sit down to eat, and will (himself) come and attend to them. (Luke 12:37)

In heaven, all people in the Lord's spiritual kingdom are called His servants, while those in His celestial kingdom are called His ministers. That is because people in His spiritual kingdom are governed by wisdom derived from Divine truth, and those in the celestial kingdom by love derived from Divine good. And good ministers, while truth serves.

In an opposite sense, however, by servants are meant people who serve the devil. These are in a real state of servitude, whereas people who serve the Lord are in a state of freedom - as the Lord also teaches in John 8:31-36. ¹

Poznámky pod čarou:

809. 19:5 Then a voice came from the throne, saying, "Praise our God, all you His servants and those who fear Him." This symbolizes an influx from the Lord into heaven and a consequent accord on the part of angels that all those prompted by truths of faith and goods of love worship the Lord as the only God of heaven.

The voice that came from the throne symbolizes an influx from the Lord into heaven. It was from the Lord because He who sat on the throne was the Lord, as shown just above in no. 808. Therefore an influx is meant by the voice that came from it; for the Lord, being above the heavens and appearing to the angels as a sun, does not speak to angels from there, but flows in, and whatever flows in is received in heaven and given voice. Consequently even though the voice here came from the throne, still John heard it from heaven, thus from angels there, and whatever angels say from heaven is from the Lord.

"Praise our God" symbolizes an injunction to worship the Lord as the only God of heaven. That to praise God is to worship Him will be seen below. All His servants symbolize all people who are governed by truths of faith (nos. 3, 380). All who fear Him symbolize people who are prompted by goods of love (nos. 527, 628).

[2] That to praise God means, symbolically, to worship Him, and therefore that praise of Him is worship of Him, is clear from many passages in the Word, of which we will cite just a few:

Suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of (them) praising God... (Luke 2:13, cf. 2:20)

...the whole multitude of the disciples began to... praise God with a loud voice... (Luke 19:37)

...they were... in the temple praising and blessing God. (Luke 24:53)

Proclaim, give praise, and say, "O Jehovah, save Your people...." (Jeremiah 31:7)

Praise Jehovah in the heavens; praise Him in the heights! Praise Him... His angels; Praise Him... His hosts! Praise Him, sun and moon; praise Him, all you stars of light! Praise Him, you heavens of heavens... Let them praise the name of Jehovah... Praise Jehovah from the earth... He has exalted... the praise... of all His (people).... (Psalms 148:1-5, 7, 13-14)

Out of the mouth of babes and nursing infants You have perfected praise. (Matthew 21:16)

All the people... gave praise to God. (Luke 18:43)

And so on elsewhere, as in Isaiah 42:8; 60:18; Joel 2:26; Psalms 113:1, 3; 117:1.

What is said in the present verse does not relate to what was said before regarding the Roman Catholic religion, but to what is said hereafter regarding the New Church to be established by the Lord, which is the subject now in the following verses.