THE EXPLANATION of Isaiah Chapter 35

(Note: Rev. Smithson's translation of the Isaiah text is appended below the explanation)

1. THE wilderness and the parched place shall be glad for them; and the desert shall rejoice, and blossom like the rose:

VERSES 1, 2. The subject here treated of is concerning the illumination of the nations. Their ignorance of Truth and Good is signified by the "wilderness" and the "parched places"; their joy, in consequence of instruction in Truths and of illumination therein, is signified by "being glad, rejoicing, and flourishing"; "the glory of Lebanon which shall be given unto it", signifies divine Truth; and "the honour of Carmel and of Sharon", the divine Good which they receive. Hence it is that it is also said "These shall behold the "glory of Jehovuh, the honour of our God." Apocalypse Explained 288.

2. It shall blossom abundantly, and rejoice even with joy and singing: the glory of Lebanon shall be given unto it, the honour of Carmel and of Sharon: these shall behold the glory of Jehovah, the honour of our God.

Verse 2. The honour of Carmel, etc. - By giving to the Lord "glory and honour", nothing else is signified ill the Word than to acknowledge and confess that all Truth and Good are from Him, thus, that He is the only God; for "glory" is given to Him from divine Truth, and "honour" from divine Good, as might be shown from many passages in the Word. (Isaiah 35:2; Psalm 96:6, 7; 104:1; 111:2, 3) Apocalypse Revealed 249.

As to "Sharon", see Chapter 33:9, the Exposition and note.

3. Strengthen you the feeble hands, and confirm you the tottering knees.

Verses 3, 4. These are words of consolation to those who were in the fear of damnation, for it is intimated that "their hands were feeble", and that "their knees were tottering." (Swedenborg's

Notes on Isaiah, p. 94.) .

4. Say you to the faint- hearted, Be you strong; fear you not: behold, your God will come to vengeance, to the retribution of God: He Himself will come, and will save you.

5. Then shall the eyes of the blind be opened; and the ears of the deaf unstopped.

Verses 4-6. Behold, your God will come to vengeance, etc. - These things are said concerning the advent of the Lord, to teach that at that time they will be saved who believe in Him. That they who are not in the understanding of Truth shall then understand, is signified by "the eyes of the blind shall be opened"; and that they who are not in the perception and will of Good, shall then obey and live in Good, is signified by "the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped." It is therefore said, "In the wilderness shall break forth Waters, and strrains in the desert"; "desert" signifies where there is not Good, because there is not Truth:

"waters" signify truths, and " streams " intelligence derived from truths. Apocalypse Explained 239. See also Arcana Coelestia 2702.

6. Then shall the lame leap like the hart; and the tongue of the dumb shall sing: for in the wilderness shall break forth waters, and streams in the desert:

Verse 6. These things are said concerning the advent of the Lord. By the "lame" are signified those who are in Good, but not genuine, because in ignorance of Truth by which Good has its quality; to "leap like a hart", signifies to have joy from perception of Truth, By the "dumb" are signified those who, on account of their ignorance of Truth, cannot confess the Lord, nor the genuine truths of the church; by their "singing" is denoted joy from the intelligence of Truth. By "waters breaking out in the wilderness", is meant that truths shall be opened where they were not before; and "streams in the desert" signify intelligence there; for "waters" are truths, and "streams" intelligence. From these observations it may appear what is signified, in the. spiritulal sense, by "the deaf man whom the Lord healed, who had an impediment in his speech, concerning which see Mark 7:32-35. Apocalypse Explained 455. See also Arcana Coelestia 8508.

The tongue of the dumb shall sing, etc. - "The tongue of the dumb shall sing", signifies that they shall confess the Lord, and the things which are of faith in Him. "In the wilderness shall break forth waters, and streams in the desert", denotes that they will then have the knowledges of Truth and of Good. the "desert" is a state of no knowledges, from ignorance. By the "dumb" who were healed by the Lord, are also signified the nations who, by His advent into the world, were delivered from falsities and the evils thence derived. Arcana Coelestia 6988.

7. And the parched ground shall become a pool, and the thirsty land springs of water: and in the habitation of dragons , where each lay, [shall be] grass, instead of the reed and the bulrush.

Verse 7. Speaking of the establishment of the church by the Lord. That then they with whom there was not any intelligence before, shall now have intelligence by divine Truth spiritual, is signified by "the parched ground becoming a pool"; and that then there shall be scIence by divine Truth natural for those with whom before there was only sensual truth, is signified by "grass instead of the reed and the bulrush"; "grass" denoting science from a spiritual origin, or by which spiritual Truth is confirmed, and "reed" and "bulrush" science from a sensual origin, or by which the fallacies of the senses are confirmed. This latter science, considered in itself, is only the lowest natural science, properly called material and corporeal, in which there is little or nothing of life. Apocalypse Explained 627.

8. And a highway shall be there, and a way; and it shall be called the Way of Holiness; the unclean shall not pass through it: but it shall be for them; he that walks in the way, and fools shall not err therein.

Verse 8. That "way" denotes Truth, is grounded in appearance in the spiritual world, where also ways and paths, and, in the cities, streets and lanes appear; and spirits go in no other direction than to those with whom they are consociated by love. Hence It IS that the quality of the spirits there, in regard to Truth, is known from the way which they go; for all Truth leads to its Love, inasmuch as that is called Truth which confirms what is loved; hence it is that "way" also, in common discourse, denotes Truth, for the speech of man has derived this, like several other expressions, from the spiritual world. From this ground now it is that, In the Word, by "way", "path", "by-path", "orbit", "street", and "lane", are signified Truths, and, in the opposite sense, falsities, as is evident from the following passages:

"Stand you near the ways, and see; inquire concerning the ways of an age which way is the best." (Jeremiah 6:16)

Again,

"Make good your ways and your works; trust not in yourselves on the words of a lie." (Jeremiah 7:3-5)

Again,

"Learn not the way of the nations." (Jeremiah 10:2)

Again,

"I will give to every one, according to his ways, according to the fruit of his works. (Jeremiah 17:10)

Again,

"They have made them to stumble in their ways, the by-path of an age, that they might go away into paths, a way not paved. (Jeremiah 18:15)

Again,

"I will give them one heart, and one way. (Jeremiah 32:39)

And In David:

"Your ways, O Jehovah, make known to me; Your paths teach me. Lead me in Your Truth", (Psalm 25:4, 5)

In these passages, and in many others, by a "Way" is signified Truth! and, in the opposite sense, the false. Arcana Coelestia 10422.

9. No lion shall be there; nor shall any ravenous beast come up thither: neither shall it be found there; but the redeemed shall walk there.

10. And the ransomed of Jehovah shall return: they shall come to Zion with singing, and with everlasting joy upon their heads: gladness and joy shall they obtain; and sorrow and sighing shall flee away.

Verse 9. Treating of the advent of the Lord, and of the state of those who are in His kingdom. That" no lion shall be there", signifies that there shall be no false principle destroying Truth; and that "no ravenous beast shall come up thither", denotes that there shall be no lust of destroying. Inasmuch as this lust is from hell. It is therefore said, "It shall not come up thither." A. E, 388.

Verses 9, 10. Also treating concerning the advent of the Lord, and concerning the salvation of those who suffer themselves to be regenerated by the Lord. That there shall not be with them the false destroying Truth, nor evil destroying Good is signified by "no lion shall be there; nor shall any ravenous beast come up thither, neither shall it be found there." That they are vindicated from evils and liberated from falsities, is signified by "the redeemed shall walk there", and by "the ransomed of Jehovah shall return." The eternal felicity which they shall have, is signified by "they shall come to Zion with singing, and with everlasting joy upon their heads"; "Zion" denotes the church; what is signified by "singing", see Chapter 12:2, the Exposition. There are two words in the original tongue by which redemption is expressed, one signifies vindication from evils, the other liberation from falsities; and hence it is said "The redeemed shall walk, and the ransomed of Jehovah shall return:" In like manner those two expressions in Hosea 13:14; and in David, Psalm 69:18, 107:6.

That to "redeem" signifies to vindicate from evils and to liberate from falsities, and also to vindicate and liberate from hell is because all the evils and falsities with man rise up from hell; which inasmuch as they are removed by reformation and regeneration from the Lord, therefore reformation and regeneration are also signified by "redeeming" or by "redemption", as in the following passages in David:

"Arise for help unto us, and redeem us for Your mercies' sake" (Psalm 44:26),

where to "redeem" denotes to liberate and reform.

Again,

"God has redeemed my soul out of the hand of hell, and He will accept me." (Psalm 49:15)

To "redeem out of the hand of hell", denotes to liberate; and to "accept me", is to claim and conjoin to Himself, or to cause to be His, as servants sold and redeemed. Apocalypse Explained 328.

And sorrow and sighing shall flee away. - These words involve a total cessation of all temptation. See above, Chapter 25:8, the Exposition.

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Isaiah Chapter 35

1. THE wilderness and the parched place shall be glad for them; and the desert shall rejoice, and blossom like the rose:

2. It shall blossom abundantly, and rejoice even with joy and singing: the glory of Lebanon shall be given unto it, the honour of Carmel and of Sharon: these shall behold the glory of Jehovah, the honour of our God.

3. Strengthen you the feeble hands, and confirm you the tottering knees.

4. Say you to the faint- hearted, Be you strong; fear you not: behold, your God will come to vengeance, to the retribution of God: He Himself will come, and will save you.

5. Then shall the eyes of the blind be opened; and the ears of the deaf unstopped.

6. Then shall the lame leap like the hart; and the tongue of the dumb shall sing: for in the wilderness shall break forth waters, and streams in the desert:

7. And the parched ground shall become a pool, and the thirsty land springs of water: and in the habitation of dragons , where each lay, [shall be] grass, instead of the reed and the bulrush.

8. And a highway shall be there, and a way; and it shall be called the Way of Holiness; the unclean shall not pass through it: but it shall be for them; he that walks in the way, and fools shall not err therein.

9. No lion shall be there; nor shall any ravenous beast come up thither: neither shall it be found there; but the redeemed shall walk there.

10. And the ransomed of Jehovah shall return: they shall come to Zion with singing, and with everlasting joy upon their heads: gladness and joy shall they obtain; and sorrow and sighing shall flee away.

2702. 'And she saw a well of water' means the Lord's Word from which truths are drawn. This is clear from the meaning of 'a well of water' and of 'a spring' as the Word, also as doctrine drawn from the Word, and consequently as truth itself, dealt with in what follows immediately below; and from the meaning of 'water' as truth. That 'a well' which has water in it, and 'a spring', mean the Word of the Lord, also doctrine drawn from the Word, and so consequently truth itself, may become clear from very many places. Here because the subject is the spiritual Church the word 'well' and not spring is used in subsequent verses of this chapter,

Abraham reproached Abimelech on account of the well which Abimelech's servants had seized (verse 25).

Also in Genesis 26,

All the wells which the servants of Isaac's father had dug, in the days of Abraham his father, the Philistines stopped up. And Isaac returned and dug [again] the wells of water which they had dug in the days of Abraham his father, for the Philistines had been stopping them up after Abraham's death. And Isaac's servants dug in the valley and found there a well of living waters. And they dug another well and disputed over that also. And he moved on from there and dug another well, and they did not dispute over that. And it happened on that day, that Isaac's servants came and pointed out to him the reasons for the well which they had dug; and they said to him, We have found waters (verses 15, 18-22, 25, 32).

[2] In these verses nothing else is meant by 'wells' than matters of doctrine - both those about which they disputed, and those about which they did not. Otherwise their digging of wells and their disputing so many times about them would not be important enough to be mentioned in the Divine Word.

'The well' referred to in Moses in a similar way means the Word or doctrine,

They travelled to Beer. This was the well of which Jehovah said to Moses, Gather the people and I will give them water. Then Israel sang this song: Spring up, O well! Answer from it! The well which the princes dug, which the willing ones ¹ of the people dug out, as directed by the law-giver, with their staves. Numbers 21:16-18.

Because 'a well' meant the Word, doctrine drawn from it, and truth itself, this prophetic song therefore existed in Israel - a song in which the doctrine of truth is the inner theme, as is clear from everything contained in the internal sense. From this the name Beer is derived, and the name Beersheba, ² and its meaning in the internal sense as doctrine itself.

[3] Doctrine however that has no truths in it is called 'a pit', or a well with no water in it, as in Jeremiah,

Their illustrious ones sent their lesser ones to the water; they came to the pits; they found no water; they returned with their vessels empty. Jeremiah 14:3.

Here 'waters' stands for truths, 'the pits in which they found no waters' for doctrine that has no truth within it. In the same prophet,

My people have committed two evils; they have forsaken Me, the source of living waters, to hollow out pits for themselves, broken pits, which cannot hold water. Jeremiah 2:13.

Here in a similar way 'pits' stands for doctrines that are not true, 'broken pits' for matters of doctrine that have been ravaged.

[4] As regards 'a spring' meaning the Word, also doctrine, and therefore truth, this is seen in Isaiah,

The afflicted and the needy were seeking water, and there was none; their tongue was parched with thirst. I Jehovah will hearken to them, I the God of Israel will not forsake them. I will open rivers on the sloping heights, and springs in the midst of valleys; I will make the wilderness into a pool of water, and the dry land into streams of water. Isaiah 41:17-18.

In the first place this refers to the desolation of truth, which is meant by the statements that 'the afflicted and needy sought water and there was none', and that 'their tongue was parched with thirst'. Then it refers, as in the present verses in Genesis where Hagar is the subject, to the comfort, renewal, and instruction following desolation, which are meant by the promise that 'Jehovah will open the rivers on the sloping heights, will place springs in the midst of valleys, make the wilderness into a pool of water, and the dry land into streams of water', all of which have to do with the doctrine of truth and the affection acquired from this.

[5] In Moses,

Israel dwelt securely, alone at Jacob's spring, in a land of corn and new wine; even his heavens distil the dew. Deuteronomy 33:28.

'Jacob's spring' stands for the Word and the doctrine of truth drawn from it. It was because Jacob's spring meant the Word, and the doctrine of truth drawn from it, that when the Lord came to Jacob's spring He talked to the woman from Samaria and taught what is meant by the spring and by water. The incident is described in John as follows,

Jesus came to a city of Samaria called Sychar. Jacob's spring was there. Jesus therefore, weary from the journey, sat thus by the spring. A woman from Samaria came to draw water, to whom Jesus said, Give Me a drink. Jesus said, If you knew the gift of God and who it is who is saying to you, Give Me a drink, you would ask of Him to give you living water. Everyone who drinks of this water will thirst again, but he who drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst. But the water that I shall give him will become in him a spring of water welling up into eternal life. John 4:5-7, 10, 13-14.

Because 'Jacob's spring' meant the Word, 'water' truth, and 'Samaria' the spiritual Church, as is the case many times in the Word, therefore the Lord talked to the woman from Samaria and taught that the doctrine of truth is derived from Himself, and that when it is derived from Himself, or what amounts to the same, from His Word, it is 'a spring of water welling up into eternal life'; also that the truth itself is 'living water'.

[6] Similar teaching occurs in the same gospel,

Jesus said, If anyone thirsts let him come to Me and drink. Whoever believes in Me, as the scripture says, Out of his belly will flow rivers of living water. John 7:37-38.

And in the Book of Revelation,

The Lamb who is in the midst of the throne will shepherd them and will guide them to living springs of water; and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes. Revelation 7:17.

In the same book,

To him who thirsts I will give from the spring of living water without price. Revelation 21:6.

'Rivers of living water' and 'living springs of water' stand for truths which are derived from the Lord, that is, from His Word, for the Lord is the Word. The good of love and charity which comes solely from the Lord is the life of truth. The expression 'he who thirsts' is used of one who is stirred by a love and affection for truth; no other can so thirst.

[7] These truths are also called 'the springs of salvation' in Isaiah,

With joy you will draw water from the springs of salvation, and you will say on that day, Confess Jehovah, call on His name. Isaiah 12:3-4.

That 'a spring' means the Word, or doctrine drawn from it, is also evident in Joel,

It will happen on that day, that the mountains will drip new wine, and the hills will run with milk, and all the streams of Judah will run with water, and a spring will come forth from the house of Jehovah and will water the river of Shittim. Joel 3:18.

Here 'water' stands for truths, 'a spring from the house of Jehovah' for the Word of the Lord.

[8] In Jeremiah,

Behold I am bringing them from the north land, and I will gather them from the extremities of the earth, among them the blind one and the lame. With weeping they will come, and with supplications I will bring them to springs of water in a straight path on which they will not stumble. Jeremiah 31:8-9.

'Springs of water in a straight path' plainly stands for matters of doctrine concerning truth. 'The north land' stands for the lack of knowledge or the desolation of truth, 'weeping and supplications' for their state of grief and despair. 'Being brought to springs of water' stands for renewal and instruction in truths, as in this chapter of Genesis where Hagar and her son are the subject.

[9] The same matters are presented in Isaiah as follows,

The wilderness and the dry land will be glad for them; and the lonely place will rejoice and blossom like the rose. It will bud prolifically, and will rejoice also with rejoicing and singing. The glory of Lebanon has been given to it, the majesty of Carmel and Sharon. They will see the glory of Jehovah, the majesty of our God. Strengthen the weak hands and make firm the feeble knees. The eyes of the blind will be opened, and the ears of the deaf unstopped. Waters will break forth in the wilderness, and streams in the lonely place; and the dry place will become a pool and the thirsty ground wellsprings of water. Isaiah 35:1-3, 5-7.

Here 'a wilderness' stands for a desolation of truth. 'Waters', 'streams', 'a pool', 'wellsprings of water' stand for truths which serve to renew and give joy to people who have experienced vastation and whose joys are described in many ways here.

[10] In David,

Jehovah sends forth springs in the valleys; they will go among the mountains.

They will give drink to every wild beast of the fields; the wild asses will quench their thirst. He waters the mountains from His chambers. Psalms 104:10-11, 13.

'Springs' stands for truths, 'mountains' for the love of good and truth, 'giving drink' for giving teaching, 'wild beasts of the fields' for people who live by that teaching, see 774, 841, 908, 'wild asses' for those who have none but rational truth, 1949-1951.

[11] In Moses,

The son of a fruitful one is Joseph, the son of a fruitful one beside a spring. Genesis 49:22.

'A spring' stands for doctrine from the Lord. In the same author,

Jehovah your God will bring you into a good land, a land of rivers, waters, springs, depths gushing out in valleys and mountains. Deuteronomy 8:7.

'A land' stands for the Lord's kingdom and Church, 662, 1066, 1067, 1262, 1413, 2571, which is called 'good' from the good of love and charity. 'Rivers', 'waters', 'springs', and 'depths' stand for the truths derived from that good. In the same author,

The land of Canaan, a land of mountains and valleys, on the arrival of the rain of heaven it drinks water. Deuteronomy 11:11.

[12] That 'waters' means truths, both spiritual and rational, and also factual, is evident from the following places: In Isaiah,

Behold, the Lord Jehovah Zebaoth is taking away from Jerusalem and from Judah the whole staff of bread and the whole staff of water. Isaiah 3:1.

In the same prophet,

To the thirsty bring water; meet with his bread the fugitive. Isaiah 21:14.

In the same prophet,

Blessed are you who sow beside all waters. Isaiah 32:20.

In the same prophet,

He who walks in righteous ways and speaks upright words will dwell on the heights; his bread will be given to him, his water will be sure. Isaiah 33:15-16.

In the same prophet,

At that time they will not thirst; in the wilderness He will lead them; He will make water flow for them from the rock. And He cleaves the rock and the water flows out. Isaiah 48:21; Exodus 17:1-8; Numbers 20:11, 13.

In David,

He split rocks in the wilderness and caused them to drink abundantly like the depths. He brought streams out of the rock and caused waters to descend like a river. Psalms 78:15-16.

Here 'rock' stands for the Lord, 'water, streams, and the depths from it' for truths derived from Him.

[13] In the same author,

Jehovah turns rivers into a wilderness, and streams of waters into a dryness. He turns a wilderness into a pool of water, and parched land into streams of waters. Psalms 107:33, 35.

In the same author,

The voice of Jehovah is upon the waters; Jehovah is upon many waters. Psalms 29:3.

In the same author,

There is a river whose streams will make glad the city of God, the holy place of the dwellings of the Most High. Psalms 46:4.

In the same author,

By the word of Jehovah were the heavens made, and all their host by the spirit of His mouth. He gathered the waters of the sea together as a heap; He placed the depths in storehouses. Psalms 33:6-7.

In the same author,

You visit the earth and delight in it, You enrich it very greatly; the river of God is full of water. Psalms 65:9.

In the same author,

The waters have seen You, O God, the waters have seen You. The depths trembled, the clouds poured out water. Your way was in the sea, and Your path in many waters. Psalms 77:16-17, 19.

It is evident to anyone that 'waters' here do not mean waters, and that 'the depths trembled' and 'Jehovah's way was in the sea and His path in the waters', are not meant literally, but that spiritual waters are meant, that is, things of a spiritual kind, which are matters of truth; otherwise it would all be just a heap of meaningless words. In Isaiah,

Ho, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters, and he who has no money, come, buy! Isaiah 55:1.

In Zechariah,

It will happen on that day, that living waters will flow out of Jerusalem, half of them to the eastern sea and half of them to the western sea. Zechariah 14:8.

[14] Furthermore when the Church which is about to be established or which has been established is the subject in the Word and it is described by a paradise, a garden, a grove, or by trees, it is usual for it to be described also by waters or rivers running through, which mean things of a spiritual, rational, or factual kind, which are matters of truth. Paradise as described in Genesis 2:8-9, for example, is also described by the rivers there, verses 10-14, which mean things that are attributes of wisdom and intelligence, see 107-121. Similar examples occur many times elsewhere in the Word, as in Moses,

Like valleys that are planted, like gardens beside a river, like aloes Jehovah has planted, like cedars beside the waters. Waters will flow from his buckets, and his seed will be in many waters. Numbers 24:6-7.

In Ezekiel,

He took some of the seed of the land and planted it in a seed field; he took it to be beside many waters. It sprouted and became a spreading vine. Ezekiel 17:5-6.

'A vine' and 'a vineyard' mean the spiritual Church, see 1069. In the same prophet,

Your mother was like a vine in your likeness, planted beside the waters; fruitful, and made full of branches by reason of many waters. Ezekiel 19:10.

[15] In the same prophet,

Behold, Asshur [was a cedar] in Lebanon; the waters caused it to grow, the depth made it high, with its rivers going round about the place of its planting; and he sent out his lines of water to all the trees of the field. Ezekiel 31:3-4.

In the same prophet,

Behold, on the bank of the river were very many trees, on this side and on that. He said to me, These waters are going out towards the eastern boundary, and they go down over the plain, and they go towards the sea, having been sent away into the sea; and the waters are fresh. And it will be that every living creature that creeps, in every place which the two rivers come to, will live; and there will be very many fish, for these waters go there, and become fresh, so that everything may live where the river goes. Its swamps and its marshes are not healed; they will be given up to salt. Ezekiel 47:7-9, 11.

This refers to the New Jerusalem or Lord's spiritual kingdom. 'Waters going out towards the eastern boundary' means things that are spiritual flowing from those which are celestial, or truths derived from a celestial source, that is, faith springing from love and charity, 101, 1250. 'Going down into the plain' means matters of doctrine belonging to the rational, 2418, 2450. 'Going towards the sea' means towards factual knowledge, 'the sea' being a gathering together of facts, 28. 'The living creature that creeps' means the delights which go with these, 746, 909, 994, which will receive their life from 'the waters of the river', that is, from spiritual things derived from a celestial source. 'Many fish' stands for an abundance of appropriate facts, 40, 991, while 'swamps and marshes' stands for such as are inappropriate and impure. 'Turning into salt' stands for becoming vastated, 2455. In Jeremiah,

Blessed is the man who trusts in Jehovah. He will be like a tree planted beside the waters, which sends out its roots beside the stream. Jeremiah 17:7-8.

In David,

He will be like a tree planted beside streams of water, which will yield its fruit in its season. Psalms 1:3.

In John,

He showed me a pure river of the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb. In the middle of its street, and of the river, on this side and on that, was the tree of life bearing twelve fruits. Revelation 22:1-2.

[16] Now because 'waters' means truths in the internal sense of the Word it was therefore commanded in the Jewish Church, for the sake of representation before the eyes of the angels who beheld ritual acts in a spiritual way, that the priests and Levites should wash themselves with water when they came to perform their duties, and that they should do so with water from the layer placed between the tent and the altar, and later on with water from the bronze sea and all the other lavers around the temple, which were there in place of a spring. In a similar way for the sake of representation the ritual involving the water of sin or of expiation which was to be sprinkled over the Levites was established, Numbers 8:7, also the ritual involving the water of separation from the ashes of the red cow, Numbers 19:2-19, as well as the requirement that spoils taken from the Midianites were to be cleansed with water, Numbers 31:19-25.

[17] The water provided out of the rock, Exodus 17:1-8; Numbers 20:1-13, represented and meant an abundance of spiritual things, that is, of truths of faith from the Lord. The bitter waters which were made drinkable by means of the wood, Exodus 15:22-25, represented and meant that truths, from being unpleasant, are made acceptable and gratifying by virtue of good, that is, of the affection for it - 'wood' meaning good which constitutes affection or the will, see 643. From these considerations one may now see what 'water' means in the Word, and from this what the water used in baptism means, regarding which the Lord says the following in John,

Unless a person has been born from water and the spirit he cannot enter the kingdom of God. John 3:5.

That is to say, 'water' means the spiritual constituent of faith, and 'the spirit' the celestial constituent of it, so that baptism is the symbol of man's regeneration by the Lord by means of the truths and goods of faith. Not that a person's regeneration is accomplished in baptism, but by the life, the sign of which life is denoted in baptism, and into which life Christians who possess the truths of faith because they have the Word must enter.

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