66. Verse 14. And His head and hairs white, signifies the Divine in firsts and in ultimates. This is evident from the signification of "head," when it refers to the Lord, of whom these things are said, as being the Divine in firsts (of which presently); and from the signification of "hairs," as being the Divine in ultimates (of which also presently); and from the signification of "white," as being what is pure. (That "white" [album] and "bright white" [candidum] mean what is pure, see Arcana Coelestia 3301, 3993, 4007, 5319.) "Head," in reference to the Lord, is the Divine in firsts, because the head is the highest part of man, and in it are his firsts, which are called the beginnings, from which are derived all things that have place in the body; for in the head are the understanding and the will, from which, as from their firsts or beginnings, flow the remaining things that relate to man's outer life, such as speech and all actions. But "hairs," in reference to the Lord, mean the Divine in ultimates, because hairs are ultimate things, for they grow out of the outmost parts of man, and first things terminate in them; when, therefore, "head" and "hairs" are mentioned firsts and ultimates are meant.

[2] Anyone who knows that in spiritual things also "head" signifies first things and "hairs" ultimates, and that first things and ultimates signify all things (as shown in n. 41), can know many arcana of the internal sense where "head" and "hairs" are mentioned; as that:

A Nazarite should not shave the hair of his head, for this, as it is said, was the Nazariteship of God upon his head, and when the days were accomplished, he was to shave it off and consecrate it (Numbers 6:1-21);

also that:

The strength of Samson was in his locks, and when they were shaven off he became weak, and when they grew again he came into his strength (Judges 16:13-31 tothe end);

also that:

Forty-two children were torn in pieces by bears because they mocked Elisha, calling him bald-head (2 Kings 2:23-24);

as also that:

Elijah was clothed with a garment of hair (2 Kings 1:8);

And John the Baptist with camel's hair (Mark 1:6);

furthermore, what "head," "hairs," "beard," and "baldness" signify wherever they are mentioned in the Word.

[3] That a Nazarite should not shave his hair, because this, as is said, was the Nazariteship of God upon his head; and that when the days were accomplished he should shave it off and consecrate it, was for the reason that the Nazarite represented the Lord in firsts and in ultimates, and His Divine in ultimates was His Human, which He made Divine even to the flesh and bones, which are ultimates. That He made it Divine even to the flesh and bones is evident from the fact that He left nothing in the sepulcher, and that:

He said to the disciples that He had flesh and bones, which a spirit hath not (Luke 24:39-40).

And when the Divine Itself is Divine even in ultimates, then it governs all things from firsts by means of ultimates (as can be seen from what was shown above, n. 41; especially from what was cited from the Arcana Coelestia, namely, that interior things flow in successively into exterior things, even into what is extreme or outmost, and there have existence and subsistence, n. 634, 6239, 6465, 9215, 9216; that they not only flow in successively, but also form what is simultaneous in the ultimate, in what order see n. 5897, 6451, 8603, 10099; that therefore all interior things are held together in connection from the first by means of the ultimate, n. 9828, and in the work on Heaven and Hell 297; that from this the ultimate is more holy than the interiors, n. 9824; and therefore in ultimates there is strength and power, n. 9836). These then are the reasons why the Nazariteship was instituted. The Nazarite was finally to consecrate his hair by putting it into the fire of the altar, because it represented the Divine holiness, and the "fire of the altar" signified that holiness (n. 934, 6314, 6832).

[4] From this it can be seen, moreover, why the strength of Samson was in his hair (Judges 16:13-31 to the end), for it is said that:

He was a Nazarite from his mother's womb (Judges 13:7; 16:17).

Moreover, for the same reason:

It was not lawful for the high priest and his sons, nor for the Levites, to shave the head and make themselves bald (Leviticus 10:6; 21:5, 10; Ezekiel 44:20).

Likewise:

With the Israelitish people to cut off the beard (which had a like signification) was disgraceful (2 Samuel 10:4, 5).

The forty-two children were torn in pieces by the bears because they mocked Elisha, calling him bald-head, for the reason that Elijah and Elisha represented the Lord in respect to the Word, which is Divine truth, the sanctity and strength of which are in ultimates from firsts, as was said just above. Because "baldness" thus signified the deprivation of these, this took place. "Bears," moreover, signify truth in ultimates. (That Elijah and Elisha represented the Lord in respect to the Word, see Arcana Coelestia 2762, 5247.) From this it is clear also why Elijah had a hairy garment and John one of camel's hair; for John the Baptist, like Elijah, represented the Lord in respect to the Word; for this reason also he was called Elijah (See Arcana Coelestia 7643, 9372).

[5] When these things are understood, it can be known what is signified in the Word by "head," "hairs," "beard," and "baldness," as in Isaiah:

In that time shall the Lord shave by the king of Assyria, the head, and the hairs of the feet, He shall also consume the beard (Isaiah 7:20).

In the same prophet:

On all heads baldness, every beard cut off (Isaiah 15:2).

In Jeremiah:

Truth is perished, and is cut off from their mouth. Cut off thine hair and cast it away (Jeremiah 7:28-29).

In Ezekiel:

Take a razor and pass it over the head and beard (Ezekiel 5:1).

Shame shall be upon every face, and baldness upon all heads (Ezekiel 7:18).

Every head was made bald (Ezekiel 29:18).

In Amos:

I will bring up baldness upon every head (Amos 8:10).

In David:

God shall bruise the head of His enemies, the hairy scalp of him that goeth on in his guilt (Psalms 68:21).

In these passages and in others, by "cutting off the hair of the head," "shaving the beard," and inducing baldness, is signified to deprive of all truth and good; since he that is deprived of ultimates is also deprived of things prior, for prior things have existence and subsistence in ultimates, as was said above. Moreover, in the world of spirits there are seen some that are bald, and I have been told that they are such as have abused the Word, and have applied the sense of the letter, which is Divine truth in ultimates, to wicked purposes, and therefore have been deprived of all truth. These are most malignant. Many of them are of the Babylonish body. Angels, on the contrary, appear with becoming hair.

5828. 'And I said, He has surely been torn to pieces' means a perception that it was destroyed by evils and falsities. This is clear from the meaning of 'saying' as perception, dealt with often; and from the meaning of 'being torn to pieces as being destroyed by evils and internal good represented by 'Joseph' was destroyed, 5805. 'Being torn to pieces' has this meaning because no other kind of tearing to pieces takes place in the spiritual world than that of good by evils and falsities. It is the same with death and anything having to do with death, by which is meant in the spiritual sense not natural death but spiritual death, which is damnation. No other kind of death occurs in the spiritual world. So too with 'a tearing to pieces'. This does not mean in the spiritual sense the kind of tearing to pieces that wild animals engage in, but the tearing to pieces of good by evils and falsities. Also, in the spiritual sense, 'wild animals that tear to pieces' means evil desires and derivative false ideas; and such ideas are also represented in the next life by wild animals.

[2] The good which constantly comes from the Lord to a person is destroyed by nothing other than evils and derivative falsities, and by falsities and consequent evils. For as soon as that constantly inflowing good, coming by way of the internal man, reaches the external or natural man it encounters evil and falsity, which - acting like wild animals - employ various methods to tear apart and annihilate that good. For that reason the inflow of good by way of the internal man is blocked and halted, and the interior mind through which the inflow comes is consequently closed. Only as much of what is spiritual is allowed through as will enable the natural man to reason and speak, though he does so in terms that are solely earthly, bodily, and worldly, either in opposition to what is good and true, or else in keeping with such but in a false or deceitful way.

[3] It is a universal law that an inflow adjusts itself to the outflow, and if the outflow is blocked, so is the inflow. Through the internal man there is an inflow of good and truth from the Lord, and through the external there should be an outflow, an outflow into life, that is, in the exercise of charity. As long as that outflow is taking place the inflow from heaven, that is, from the Lord by way of heaven, is continuous. If however no outflow takes place but something stands in the way in the external or natural man, namely evil and falsity which tear the inflowing good to pieces and annihilate it, it follows from the universal law mentioned above that the inflow adjusts itself to the outflow. All this being so, the inflow of good holds itself back and accordingly closes the internal through which the inflow comes; and that closing of it leads to stupidity in spiritual matters, which is so great that the person who is like this neither knows nor wishes to know anything at all about eternal life. At length he becomes so senseless that he raises falsity as an obstacle to truth, calling falsities truths and truths falsities, and raises evil as an obstacle to good, regarding evils as forms of good and forms of good as evils. In this way he tears good completely to pieces.

[4] The word 'torn' occurs in various places in the Word, the proper meaning of which is falsities that arise from evils, while that which is destroyed by evils is called 'a carcass'. When however the expression 'torn' is used by itself, both ideas are meant since the one includes the meaning carried by the other. It is different when the one is referred to together with the other, because in that case a distinction is being made. Since what had been torn meant in the spiritual sense what had been destroyed by falsities arising from evils, people were forbidden in the representative Church to eat anything torn. They would never have been forbidden to eat it if that spiritual evil had not been meant in heaven. Apart from this, what evil could have lain in eating flesh torn by a wild animal?

[5] Regarding their not eating anything torn the following is stated in Moses,

The fat of a carcass and the fat of that which has been torn may be put to any use, provided that you do not eat it at all. Leviticus 7:24.

In the same author,

He shall not eat a carcass or that which has been torn, to be defiled by it. I am Jehovah. Leviticus 12:8.

In the same author,

You shall be men who are sanctified to Me; therefore you shall not eat flesh torn in the field, you shall throw it to the dogs. Exodus 21:31.

In Ezekiel,

Ah Lord Jehovih! The prophet says, Behold, my soul has not been polluted, and from my youth even till now I have not eaten any carcass or that which has been torn, so that abominable flesh has not come into my mouth. Ezekiel 4:14.

From these quotations it is evident that it was an abomination to eat what had been torn, not because it had been torn but because a tearing to pieces of good by falsities arising from evils was meant, 'a carcass' on the other hand being the death of good caused by evils.

[6] A tearing to pieces of good by falsities and evils is also meant in the internal sense of the following places in David,

The wicked is like a lion, he desires to tear, and like a young lion who sits in hiding-places. Psalms 17:12.

Elsewhere,

They opened their mouth against me - a lion tearing and roaring. Psalms 22:13.

And in yet another place,

Lest like a lion they seize my soul, tearing it to pieces and there is none to deliver. Psalms 7:1.

'A lion' stands for those who lay waste the Church. Above, where Joseph was the subject - at the point where he was sold by his brothers, and his tunic, which had been dipped in blood, was sent to his father - his father too said at that time,

My son's tunic! An evil wild animal has devoured him; Joseph has been torn to pieces. Genesis 37:33.

'His having been torn to pieces' means being scattered by falsities arising from evils, see 4777.