9680. 'And let the veil be for you a divider between the holy place and the holy of holies' means between spiritual good - which is the good of charity towards the neighbour and the good of faith in the Lord - and celestial good, which is the good of love to the Lord and the good of mutual love. This is clear from the meaning of 'the holy place' as the good reigning in the middle heaven; and from the meaning of 'the holy of holies' as the good reigning in the inmost heaven. The fact that the latter good is the good of love to the Lord and the good of mutual love, and that the former good - the good reigning in the middle heaven - is the good of charity towards the neighbour and the good of faith in the Lord, is evident from all that has been shown in the places referred to in 9670 regarding both kinds of good, celestial and spiritual. The good of love to the Lord in the inmost heaven is the internal good there, while the good of mutual love is the external good there; but the good of charity towards the neighbour is the internal good in the middle heaven, and the good of faith in the Lord is the external good there. In both heavens there is an internal and an external, as there is in the Church. Regarding the Church, that this is internal and external, see 409, 1083, 1098, 1238, 1242, 4899, 6380, 6587, 7840, 8762, 9375.

[2] All good is holy, and so is all truth to the extent that it has good within it. Good is said to be holy and from the Lord because the Lord alone is holy and He it is from whom all good and all truth come, 9229, 9479. From this it is evident why the dwelling-place is called the holy place and the ark containing the Testimony is called the holy of holies. For the Testimony is the Lord Himself in respect of Divine Truth, 9503, and the ark is the inmost heaven where the Lord is, 9485. The Lord is indeed present in the middle heaven, but more immediately so in the inmost heaven. For those who have been joined to the Lord through the good of love are with Him, whereas those who have been joined to the Lord through the truth of faith are indeed with Him, but more remotely. In the middle heaven they are joined to the Lord through faith implanted in the good of charity towards the neighbour. From all this it evident why the dwelling-place outside the veil is called the holy place and the dwelling-place inside the veil is called the holy of holies.

[3] The fact that the Lord is the Source of everything holy and that He is the real 'Holy of Holies' is clear in Daniel,

Seventy weeks have been decreed concerning your ¹ people, to anoint the Holy of Holies. ² Daniel 9:24.

And in the Book of Revelation,

Who is not going to fear You, O Lord, and glorify Your name? For You alone are holy. Revelation 15:4.

Therefore also the Lord is called the Holy One of Israel in Isaiah 1:4; 5:19, 24; 10:20; 12:6; 17:7; 29:19; 30:11-12, 15; 31:1; 37:23; 41:14, 16, 20; 43:3, 14; 45:11; 60:9, 14; Jeremiah 50:29; 51:5; Ezekiel 39:7; Psalms 71:22; 78:41; 89:18; 2 Kings 19:22; and elsewhere. Anything whatever therefore among the children of Israel which represented the Lord, or the goodness and truth that emanate from Him, was called holy once it had been dedicated, because the Lord alone is holy. The Holy Spirit in the Word is also that which is holy, emanating from the Lord.

Poznámky pod čarou:

3720. 'This is nothing other than the house of God' means the Lord's kingdom as it exists in the ultimate degree of order. This is clear from the meaning of 'the house of God'. In the Word 'the house of God' is referred to in many places, and in the external sense, that is, literally, it means a building where holy worship takes place. But in the internal sense it means the Church, in the more universal sense it means heaven, and in the most universal the Lord's kingdom. In the highest sense however it means the Lord Himself as regards the Divine Human. But in the Word sometimes the expression 'House of God' is used and sometimes 'Temple'. The two are similar in meaning, the difference being that the expression 'House of God' is used when the subject is good but 'temple' when the subject is truth. From this it is evident that 'the House of God' means the Lord's celestial Church, and in the more universal sense the heaven of celestial angels, in the most universal the Lord's celestial kingdom, and in the highest sense the Lord as regards Divine Good; whereas 'the Temple' means the Lord's spiritual Church, and in the more universal sense the heaven of spiritual angels, in the most universal the Lord's spiritual kingdom, and in the highest the Lord as regards Divine Truth, see 2048. The reason why 'the House of God' means that which is celestial and the dwelling-place of good, while 'the Temple' means that which is spiritual and the dwelling-place of truth, is that 'a house' in the Word means good, see 710, 2233, 2559, 3128, 3652, and among the most ancient people used to be built of pieces of wood for the reason that 'wood' meant good, 643, 1110, 2784, 2812, whereas 'the Temple' means truth because it was built of stones - 'stones' meaning truths, see 643, 1296, 1298.

[2] These meanings that 'pieces of wood' and 'stones' possess are clear not only from the Word where they are mentioned but also from representatives in the next life. For people who assume that merit lies in good works seem to themselves to be cutting wood, and those who assume that it lies in truths, that is to say, people who have believed that they knew more truths than anybody else and yet have lived wickedly, seem to themselves to be breaking up stones. I have often seen such people wood-cutting or stone-breaking, from which the meaning of 'wood' and of 'stone' was made clear to me - that good is meant by 'wood' and truth by 'stone'. It has in like manner been made clear to me from the fact that when I have seen a wooden house the concept of good has instantly presented itself, and when I have seen a stone house the concept of truth has done so. And I have also learned from angels about this matter. This is why, when in the Word 'the House of God' is mentioned, the concept of good presents itself to angels, the kind of good depending on the nature of the subject that is being dealt with. And when 'the Temple' is mentioned, the concept of truth presents itself, the kind of truth depending on the subject that is being dealt with. From this one may also deduce how deeply and inwardly concealed the heavenly arcana lie in the Word.

[3] The reason 'the House of God' here means the Lord's kingdom as it exists in the ultimate degree of order is that the subject is Jacob who, as often shown already, represents the Lord's Divine Natural. The natural exists in the ultimate degree of order, for the natural encompasses all interior degrees and includes them all together within itself. And since they are included all together within the natural, and so countless things are beheld as a single whole, obscurity exists there compared with other degrees. This obscurity too has been dealt with frequently.