1144. And of silk and of scarlet, signifies truths and goods from a spiritual origin that have been profaned. This is evident from the signification of "silk," as being truth from a spiritual origin (of which presently); also from the signification of "scarlet," as being good from a spiritual origin (See above, n.1142). This good coincides with truth from a celestial origin, and therefore that, too, is signified by "scarlet" in the Word. But "silk and scarlet" here signify such truths and goods profaned by Babylon, which are profaned when spiritual love, which is love towards the neighbor, has been perverted; for those who are in such love of self as the Babylonians are in, can have no love to the neighbor; if they love others it is for the sake of self, so that the end is the man himself and love to the neighbor the means, and the end loves the means so far as the means are serviceable to it; and casts them away when they cease to serve it. This can be seen in all the particulars of their works. Love towards the neighbor in the spiritual sense is the love of uses; and when uses are for the sake of self, it is not a love of uses but a love of self. That "silk" signifies truth from a spiritual origin, can be seen from the passage in Ezekiel (Ezekiel 16:10, 13) which has been explained just above (n. 1143). "Silk" signifies truth from a spiritual origin because of its gloss, for silk is glossy from light, and "light" signifies the Divine truth, which is also called the spiritual Divine.

(Continuation respecting the Athanasian Faith)

[2] It has been said that the love of self and the love of the world are hell, but the source of those loves shall now be explained. Man was created to love self and the world, to love the neighbor and heaven, and to love the Lord. For this reason when a man is born he first loves himself and the world, and afterwards, so far as he becomes wise, he loves the neighbor and heaven, and as he becomes still wiser he loves the Lord. Such a man is in the Divine order, and is actually led by the Lord, although apparently by himself. But so far as he is not wise he stops in the first degree, which is to love himself and the world; and if he loves the neighbor, heaven, and the Lord, it is for the sake of self before the world. But if he is wholly unwise he loves himself alone, and the world and also the neighbor for the sake of self; while heaven and the Lord he either despises or denies or hates in heart, if not in words. These are the origins of the love of self and of the love of the world, and as these loves are hell, it is evident whence hell is.

[3] When a man has become a hell, he is like a tree cut off or like a tree whose fruits are malignant; or he is like sandy soil in which no seed will take root, or like soil, out of which springs nothing but the thorn that pricks or the nettle that stings. When a man becomes a hell the inner or higher parts of his mind are closed up and the outer and lower are opened. And as the love of self determines all things of the thought and will to itself and immerses them in the body, it inverts and twists back the outer parts of the mind, which, as has been said, are open, and as a consequence these incline and bend and are borne downwards, that is, towards hell.

[4] But since man has still an ability to think, to will, to speak and to do, and this ability is in no case taken away from him, because he was born a man, so having become inverted and no longer receiving any good or any truth from heaven, but only evil and falsity from hell, he acquires a kind of light by confirmations of evil from falsity, and of falsity from evil in order that he may be eminent above others. This he believes to be a rational light, when yet it is an infernal light, and in itself fatuous, producing vision like that of a dream in the night, or a delirious fantasy, by reason of which things that are appear as if they were not, and things that are not appear as if they were. But this will be seen more clearly from a comparison between an angel-man and a devil-man.

1165. Verse 16. And saying, Woe, woe, that great city, signifies lamentation over their doctrine and religious persuasion, as is evident from the explanation of like words above (n. 1134). "Woe, woe," signifies lamentation when it is said, "Woe that city," but it signifies cursing when it is said, "Woe to that city."

(Continuation)

Let experience testify further on this subject. The quality of all who come from the earth into the spiritual world is known from their ability or inability to resist evils as if from themselves. Those who are able to do this are saved, while those who are not able are not saved. The reason is that man is not able to resist evils from himself, but only from the Lord; for it is the Lord who resists evils in man and gives man to feel and perceive as if he does it from himself. Therefore those in the world who have acknowledged the Lord, and have acknowledged that all good and truth are from Him, and that nothing is from man, and thus that power over evils is from the Lord, and not from themselves, such resist evils as if from themselves. But those who have not acknowledged this in the world are unable to resist evils as if from themselves, for such are in evils and in the delight of evils from love; and to resist the delight of love is the same as resisting themselves, their own nature, and their own life. An experiment was made whether such were able to resist evils when the punishments of hell were described to them, and even when those punishments were seen and were felt; but it was in vain; for they hardened their minds, saying, Let this be so, and let it come, but so long as I am here let me be in the pleasures and joys of my heart. The present I know; what is to come I give no thought to; no more evil will come to me than to very many others. Such when their time is fulfilled are cast into hell; and there they are compelled by punishments to refrain from doing evil; but punishments do not take away the will, intention, and consequent thought of evil; they merely take away the acts. All this makes clear that the power to resist evils is not from man, but is from the Lord with those who acknowledge Him, and that the Lord causes it to appear as if done by man.