9930. And thou shalt make a plate of pure gold. That this signifies enlightenment from the Lord’s Divine good, is evident from the signification of “a plate,” as being enlightenment; and from the signification of “gold,” as being the good of love, here the Lord’s Divine good, because there was inscribed upon it, “Holiness to Jehovah.” (That “gold” denotes the good of love, see n. 113, 1551, 1552, 5658, 6914, 6917, 8932, 9490, 9510, 9874, 9881.) That “the plate” denotes enlightenment, was from its brightness, for it was resplendent from gold upon Aaron’s forehead, and all brightness signifies enlightenment such as is in the heavens from the Lord as the Sun. Enlightenment in the heavens is wisdom and intelligence from the Divine truth proceeding from the Lord from that Sun, for this enlightens their interiors. Their interiors correspond to the understanding with man, which is enlightened by the Lord when the truth and good of the church and heaven are perceived; for the understanding is the recipient subject; because without a subject there is no reception. That this “plate” denotes enlightenment from the Lord’s Divine good, is because upon it was inscribed “Holiness to Jehovah,” and it was placed upon the front of the miter, which was upon Aaron’s head. The “holiness” which is from Jehovah denotes the Divine truth that proceeds from the Lord’s Divine good (n. 6788, 8302, 8330, 9229, 9680, 9820). In order that this plate might represent the shining forth, that is, the enlightenment, from which come wisdom and intelligence, it was bound on the forefront of the miter.

[2] As by “the plate” was signified enlightenment from the Lord’s Divine good, it was also called “the plate of the crown of holiness,” and likewise “the crown of holiness;” for a crown is a representative of Divine good, and “holiness” denotes the Divine truth thence proceeding, as was said above. That it was called “the plate of the crown of holiness,” is plain in what follows in this book of Exodus:

Lastly they made the plate of the crown of holiness of pure gold, and wrote upon it with the writing of the engravings of a signet, Holiness to Jehovah (Exodus 39:30).

That it was also called “the crown of holiness,” is evident from another passage in Exodus:

Thou shalt set the miter upon his head, and put the crown of holiness upon the miter (Exodus 29:6).

He set the miter upon his head; and upon the miter, opposite the faces of it, did he set the plate of gold, the crown of holiness (Leviticus 8:9).

[3] That a crown represented Divine good from which is Divine truth, is evident from the crowns of kings; for kings represented the Lord in respect to Divine truth (see n. 2015, 2069, 3009, 4581, 4966, 5044, 5068, 6148); wherefore they had a crown on the head, and a scepter in the hand; for government from Divine good was represented by a crown, and government from Divine truth by a scepter.

[4] That a “crown” has this signification is evident from the following passages.

In David:

I will make a horn to bud unto David; I will set in order a lamp for Mine anointed. His enemies will I clothe with shame; but upon Himself shall His crown flourish (Psalms 132:17-18);

“David” here denotes the the Lord, (n. 1888, like the “anointed” (n. 3008, 3009); his “horn” denotes power (n. 2832, 9081); “a lamp” denotes the Divine truth from which is intelligence (n. 9548, 9783); the “crown” denotes the Divine good from which is wisdom, and from which is also His government; the crown, which denotes wisdom, is said “to flourish” because in respect to the Human He acquired wisdom in the world by means of combats against and victories over the hells (n. 9548, 9783), which are the “enemies that shall be clothed with shame.”

[5] Again:

Thou art angry with Thine anointed, Thou hast condemned His crown even to the earth (Psalms 89:38-39); where also “the anointed” denotes the Lord; “anger” denotes a state of temptations which existed when He was in combats with the hells; the lamentation at that time is described by “anger” and “condemnation;” as for instance the last lamentations of the Lord on the cross, that He was “forsaken;” for the cross was the last of the temptations, that is, of the combats with the hells; and after this last temptation He put on Divine good, and in this way united His Divine Human to the Divine Itself that was in Him.

[6] In Isaiah:

In that day shall Jehovah Zebaoth be for a crown of adornment, and for a diadem of comeliness, to the remains of His people (Isaiah 28:5); where “a crown of adornment” denotes the wisdom which is of good from the Divine; “a diadem of comeliness,” the intelligence of truth from this good; this is predicated of Divine things with the people; the “people” here denote the church, because it was there.

[7] In the same:

For Zion’s sake I will not be silent, and for Jerusalem’s sake I will not rest, until her righteousness go forth as brightness, and her salvation burn as a lamp; and thou shalt be a crown of comeliness in the hand of Jehovah, and a miter of the kingdom in the hand of thy God (Isaiah 62:1, 3).

By “Zion” and “Jerusalem” is meant the church, by “Zion” the celestial church, and by “Jerusalem” the spiritual church thence derived; “a crown of comeliness” denotes the wisdom which is of good, and “a miter of the kingdom,” the intelligence which is of truth; and as by “a crown” is signified the wisdom which is of good, therefore it is said to be “in the hand of Jehovah;” and as by “a miter” is signified the intelligence which is of truth, therefore it is said to be “in the hand of God;” for where good is treated of, the name “Jehovah” is used, and where truth is treated of, the name “God” (n. 2586, 2769, 6905).

[8] In Jeremiah:

Say thou to the king and to the mistress, Renounce yourselves, sit down; for the adornment of your head is come down, even the crown of your comeliness (Jeremiah 13:18); where “the crown of comeliness” denotes the wisdom which is of good from Divine truth, for “comeliness” denotes the Divine truth of the church (n. 9815). In the same:

The joy of our heart hath ceased; our dance is turned into mourning; the crown of our head is fallen (Lam. 5:15-16).

“The crown of the head” denotes the wisdom which those who are of the church have from Divine truth, by virtue of which they are more excellent than the rest of the peoples, and hence have a kind of government.

[9] In Ezekiel:

He put a jewel upon thy nose, and earrings in thine ears, and a crown of adornment upon thine head (Ezekiel 16:12).

The subject here treated of is the setting up of the church; “a jewel upon the nose” denotes the perception of good; “earrings in the ears” denote the perception of truth, and obedience; “a crown upon the head” denotes the wisdom thence derived.

In Job:

He hath stripped me of my glory, and taken away the crown of my head (Job 19:9); where “glory” denotes the intelligence which is of Divine truth (n. 9429); “the crown of the head” denotes the wisdom thence derived.

[10] In Revelation:

Upon the thrones I saw four and twenty elders, clothed in white garments; who had upon their heads golden crowns. They fell down before Him that was sitting upon the throne, and worshiped Him that liveth forever and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne (Revelation 4:4, 10).

The “four and twenty elders” signify all those who are in good from truths, and in the abstract sense all goods from truths (n. 6524, 9404); the “thrones” denote truths from the Divine (n. 5313, 6397, 8625, 9039); the “golden crowns on their heads” are representatives of wisdom from the Divine, and because this is from the Divine, therefore they cast them before Him that was sitting upon the throne.

[11] As the good of wisdom is acquired by means of temptation combats, which are carried on by means of the truths of faith, therefore crowns were assigned to those who fought against evils and falsities and overcame; and for this reason also the crowns of martyrdom were badges of command from the Lord over evils. That “crowns” denote the rewards of victory over evils, and that for this reason they denote the goods of wisdom, because these are the rewards, is also evident from Revelation:

I saw, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon it had a bow; and there was given unto him a crown; and he went forth conquering, and to conquer (Revelation 6:2).

The “white horse and he that sat upon it” signify the Lord as to the Word (n. 2760-2762); “a bow” denotes the doctrine of truth, by means of which the combat is waged (n. 2686, 2709); from this it is evident that the “crown,” because said of the Lord, denotes the Divine good, which is the reward of victory.

[12] And in another passage:

Afterward I saw, and behold a white cloud; and upon the cloud one sitting like unto the Son of man, having upon his head a golden crown, and in his hand a sharp sickle (Revelation 14:14).

“A white cloud” denotes the literal sense of the Word (n. 4060, 4391, 5922, 6343, 6752, 8781); “the Son of man” denotes the Divine truth which is from the the Lord, (n. 9807); “a golden crown,” the Divine good from which is the Divine truth; “a sharp sickle” denotes the dispersing of evil and falsity. And again:

Be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee the crown of life (Revelation 2:10).

Behold I come quickly; hold fast that which thou hast, that no one take thy crown (Revelation 3:11).

The “crown” denotes good from truths, thus wisdom; for this belongs to the good of love from the truths of faith. From all this it can now be seen what is signified by a “crown,” and what by “the crown of holiness,” which was the plate of gold on which was engraved “Holiness to Jehovah.”

8932. Ye shall not make with Me gods of silver and gods of gold. That this signifies that they should wholly abstain from such things as in the external form appear as true and good, but in the internal form are false and evil, is evident from the signification of “making gods,” as being to worship, for he who makes unto himself gods does it for the sake of worship; from the signification of “silver,” as being truth, consequently in the opposite sense, falsity; and from the signification of “gold,” as being good, and consequently in the opposite sense, evil (see n. 113, 1551, 1552, 2954, 5658, 6914, 6917, 7999). That those things are meant which appear true and good in the external form, but in the internal are false and evil, is because it is said, “Ye shall not make them with Me,” that is, with Jehovah God; for Divine truth itself and Divine good itself are in internals and are likewise in externals; but in externals Divine truth and good are in representative types; for external things in a type have reference to and represent internal things. External things are false and evil whenever, being separate from internal things, they are accounted holy or are worshiped; and yet they still appear as true and good, because they represent what is true and good. These things are signified by “making with Jehovah God gods of silver and gods of gold.”

[2] This commandment follows immediately after the ten commandments, for the reason that the Israelitish and Jewish people was such that it accounted holy, and worshiped altogether as Divine, external things separated from internal (n. 3479, 3769, 4281, 4293, 4307, 4314, 4316, 4433, 4680, 4825, 4832, 4844, 4847, 4865, 4903, 6304, 6832, 8814, 8819). That it may be further known what and of what quality are those things which in the external form appear as true and good, but in the internal are false and evil, let us take as an example all the rites of the Jewish Church; as the sacrifices, incenses, washings, and many others. In the external form these were true and good, not of themselves, but because in a type they had reference to or represented internal truths and goods, which are of love and faith in the Lord. When such things were accounted holy in the external form, and especially when they were worshiped, as by the Jews and Israelites when becoming idolaters they applied them to the worship of strange gods, they then retained nothing of the truths and goods which in a type they had reference to or represented, except the appearance, because in the internal form they were falsities and evils.

[3] The case was similar with all the other things which with that people were types representative of heavenly and Divine things. For as soon as the external things which represented internal things were applied to the worship of other gods, they became idols which they worshiped, or gods of silver and of gold which they made with Jehovah God; for then in external form they appeared as true and good, but in the internal they were false and evil.

[4] In general “gods of silver and of gold” denote all the falsities and derivative evils of worship, which are rendered like truth and good by wrong applications and interpretations of the Word, and at the same time by reasonings from self-intelligence. Such things are signified by “the gods of silver and of gold” in the following passages.

In Isaiah:

In that day a man shall cast forth his idols of silver, and his idols of gold, which they made for themselves to bow down to, to the moles and to the bats; to enter into the clefts of the rocks, and into the clefts of the crags (Isaiah 2:20-21).

“Moles and bats” denote those who are in darkness, that is, in falsities and in the derivative evils.

[5] Again in Isaiah:

In that day they shall cast away every man his idols of silver, and his idols of gold, which your hands have made for you, a sin (Isaiah 31:7).

“Which the hands have made” denotes those things which are from self-intelligence. Again:

The craftsman casteth a graven image, and the caster overlayeth it with gold, and casteth silver chains (Isaiah 40:19).

“Graven images” denote those things which are from one’s own (see n. 8869); “to overlay with gold” denotes to make them appear good in the external form; “casting silver chains,” denotes to make them cohere together as if connected with truths. (That “gold” denotes good, and “silver” truth, may be seen in the passages cited above.)

[6] In like manner in Jeremiah:

The statutes of the nations are vanity: surely he cutteth out wood from the forest, the work of the hands of the workman. He decketh it with gold and with silver; they fasten them with nails and with hammers, that it sway not to and fro (Jeremiah 10:3-4).

In Hosea:

The Ephraimites sin more and more, and make them a molten image of silver, idols in their intelligence, all the work of the craftsmen (Hos. 13:2).

“Ephraim” denotes the intellectual of the church (n. 5354, 6222, 6234, 6238, 6267); “a molten image of silver” denotes falsity appearing as truth, wherefore it is said “in their intelligence”; “all the work of the craftsmen” denotes that all was through reasonings from their own.

[7] In Habakkuk:

Woe unto him that saith to the wood, Awake; to the dumb stone, This shall teach. Behold this is fixed with gold and silver, but there is no breath in the midst of it (Hab. 2:19).

“Wood” denotes evil; “stone” falsity; “fixed with gold and silver” denotes the appearance of good and truth by means of applications.

In Daniel:

Belshazzar said while he well tasted the wine, that they should bring the vessels of gold and of silver which his father Nebuchadnezzar had brought out of the temple that was in Jerusalem; that the king and his great ones, his wives and his concubines, might drink therefrom. And they drank wine, and praised the gods of gold, and of silver, of brass, of iron, of wood, of stone (Daniel 5:2-4, 23).

“The vessels of gold and of silver, which were from the temple of Jerusalem,” represented the goods and truths of the church and kingdom of the Lord; “to drink wine out of them” signified to profane by means of evils and falsities, which are “the gods of gold and of silver.”

[8] In David:

Their idols are silver and gold, the work of a man’s hands. They have a mouth, but they speak not; eyes have they, but they see not (Psalms 115:4-5; 135:15-16).

“The silver and gold which are idols” denote falsities and evils; “the work of a man’s hands” denote that they are from self-intelligence.

In Moses:

The graven images of the gods of the nations shall ye burn with fire; thou shalt not covet the silver and the gold that is on them, to take it unto thee, for that is an abomination to Jehovah thy God; therefore thou shalt not bring an abomination into thy house, that there become what is accursed, like unto it, thou shalt utterly abhor it (Deuteronomy 7:25-26).

“The silver and gold upon graven images” denote the falsities and evils which are worshiped as truths and goods by reason of the appearance that is induced on them.