1036. Verses 3-5. And he carried me away in the spirit into a wilderness, and I saw a woman sitting upon a scarlet beast, full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns. And the woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet, and inwrought with gold, precious stone and pearls, having in her hand a golden cup full of abominations and the uncleanness of her whoredom. And upon her forehead a name written, Mystery, Babylon the great, the mother of the whoredoms and of the abominations of the earth.

3. "And he carried me away in the spirit into a wilderness," signifies into a place appearing in vision that corresponded to the state of that religious persuasion (n. 1037); "and I saw a woman sitting upon a scarlet beast," signifies the dominion of that religious persuasion over the holy things of the Word (n. 1038); "full of names of blasphemy," signifies which are adulterated and falsified (n. 1039); "having seven heads," signifies and profaned (n. 1040); "and ten horns" signifies the power of the Word from truths (n. 1041).

4. "And the woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet," signifies the appearance of that religious persuasion in externals as if it were from celestial good and truth, and yet in internals it is from devilish evil and falsity (n. 1042); "and inwrought with gold and precious stone," signifies the appearance of that religion in externals, as if it were from spiritual good and truth, and yet in internals it is from infernal evil and falsity (n. 1043); "and pearls," signifies its appearing in externals to be in the knowledges of good and truth (n. 1044); "having in her hand a golden cup full of abominations and the uncleanness of her whoredom," signifies having doctrine from profaned goods and truths (n. 1045).

5. "And upon her forehead a name written, Mystery, Babylon the great," signifies having in heart the love of dominion over the world and heaven, which the holy things of the Word, of the church, and of worship, are made to serve as means (n. 1046); "the mother of the whoredoms and of the abominations of the earth" signifies a religious persuasion which is the source of adulterations of good and truth, and profanations of the holy things of the church (n. 1047).

1040. Having seven heads, signifies and profaned. This is evident from the signification of the "head," as being intelligence and wisdom; and in the contrary sense, insanity and folly and also cunning (See n. 553, 715). And as these heads were the heads of the scarlet beast, which signifies the Word as to its holy things (See above, n. 1038), and seven of them were seen, so "the seven heads" signify the holy things of the Word profaned, for the number "seven" signifies what is holy, and in the contrary sense what is profane. In the sense nearest to the letter "the head" of this beast signifies the Word as to the understanding of it, and thus as to the intelligence and wisdom in it and from it. But when its truths and goods, from which intelligence and wisdom come, have been falsified and adulterated, its "heads," when seven were seen, signify the holy things of the Word profaned. That this is the signification of "the seven heads" is evident also from the ninth and tenth verses of this chapter, where it is said, "The seven heads are seven mountains, where the woman sitteth upon them, and they are seven kings," which signifies profanation of the good of love and of the truth of faith.