9396. And he took the book of the covenant. That this signifies the Word in the letter with which the Word in heaven has been conjoined, is evident from the signification of “the book,” as being the Word in the whole complex (of which in what follows); and from the signification of a “covenant,” as being conjunction (n. 665, 666, 1023, 1038, 1864, 1996, 2003, 2021, 6804, 8767, 8778). By “the book of the covenant” is here meant everything the Lord spoke from Mount Sinai, for it is said just above (verse 4) “and Moses wrote all the words of Jehovah.” Consequently by “the book of the covenant” in a narrow sense is meant the Word revealed to Moses on Mount Sinai, and in a wide sense the Word in the whole complex, because this is the Divine truth revealed by the Lord. And as the Lord thereby conjoins Himself with the man of the church, it is “the book of the covenant,” because “covenant” denotes conjunction.

[2] But at the present day it is not known what is the conjunction of the Lord with the man of the church through the Word, because heaven is now closed. For at the present day scarcely anyone speaks with angels and spirits, and thereby knows how they perceive the Word; when yet this was known to the ancient, and especially to the most ancient people, for it was a common thing with them to speak with spirits and angels. The reason was that in ancient times, and especially in the most ancient times, men were interior men, for they thought in the spirit almost abstractedly from the body; whereas modern men are exterior men, and think in the body almost abstractedly from the spirit. Hence it is that heaven has as it were gone away from man; for the communication of heaven is with the internal man when this can be abstracted from the body, but not with the external man immediately. Consequently the nature of the conjunction of the Lord with man through the Word is not now known.

[3] Those who think from the sensuous of the body, and not from the sensuous of the spirit, must needs conceive that the sense of the Word in heaven is such as it is in the world, that is, such as it is in the letter. If it be said that the sense of the Word in heaven is such as is the thought of the internal man, which is devoid of material ideas, that is, of worldly, bodily, and earthly ideas, this would now be a paradox; and especially if it should be said that the sense of the Word in heaven differs as much from its sense in the world (that is, in the letter), as a heavenly paradise differs from an earthly one, and as heavenly food and drink differ from earthly. How great the difference is, appears from the fact that the heavenly paradise is intelligence and wisdom; that heavenly food is all the good of love and charity; and heavenly drink all the truth of faith from this good. At the present day who would not marvel if he should hear that when mention is made in the Word of a “paradise,” a “garden,” a “vineyard,” in heaven there are perceived no paradise, garden, or vineyard; but instead of these such things as belong to intelligence and wisdom from the Lord; and that when mention is made of meat and drink, such as “bread,” “flesh,” “wine,” “water,” instead of these there are perceived in heaven such things as belong to the good of love and truth of faith from the Lord; and this not by unfoldings nor in a comparative manner, but in actuality from correspondences; because the heavenly things that pertain to wisdom, intelligence, the good of love, and the truth of faith, correspond in actuality to these earthly things. And into this correspondence was the internal man created relatively to the external man; thus heaven which is in the internal man relatively to the world which is in the external man. And such is the case in general. That in heaven the Word is understood and perceived according to correspondences, and that this sense is the internal sense, has been shown throughout in the preceding pages.

[4] He who apprehends what has just been said, can know, and in some measure perceive, that through the Word there is a conjunction of man with heaven, and through heaven with the Lord; and that without the Word there would be no conjunction. (See what has been shown on this subject in n. 2143, 7153, 7381, 8920, 9094, 9212, 9216, 9357, and in many other places.) From this it is now evident why Moses took the book of the covenant and read it before the people; and why he then sprinkled the blood on the people and said, “Behold the blood of the covenant.” This was done for the reason that in heaven the blood of the sacrifice denotes the Divine truth proceeding from the Lord, thus on our earth the Word (n. 9393). As by a “covenant” is signified conjunction, and as conjunction is effected through the Divine truth that proceeds from the Lord, that is, the Word, therefore all things that belong to the Divine truth from the Lord, or to the Word, are called a “covenant,” such as the tables on which the ten commandments were written, and also the judgments, statutes, and all other things contained in the books of Moses, and in general all things contained in the Word of both Old and New Testaments.

[5] That the tables on which the ten commandments were written were called a “covenant,” is evident from Moses:

Jehovah wrote upon the tables the words of the covenant, the ten words (Exodus 34:28).

I went up into the mountain to receive the tables of stone, even the tables of the covenant which Jehovah made with you; Jehovah gave me the two tables of stone, even the tables of the covenant. I came down from the mountain, when the mountain was burning with fire; and the two tables of the covenant were on my two hands (Deuteronomy 9:9, 11, 15).

Jehovah declared unto you His covenant, which He commanded you to do, even the ten words, which He wrote upon the tables of stone. Take heed unto yourselves, lest ye forget the covenant of Jehovah your God, which He made with you (Deuteronomy 4:13, 23).

As the two tables were deposited in the ark, which was in the middle, that is, in the inmost, of the tabernacle, therefore the ark was called “the ark of the covenant” (Numbers 10:33; 14:44; Deuteronomy 10:8; 31:9, 25-26; Josh. 3:3, 6, 8, 11, 14, 17; 4:7, 9, 18; 6:6, 8; 8:33; Judges 20:27; 1 Samuel 4:3-5; 2 Samuel 15:24; 1 Kings 3:15; 6:19; 8:1, 6; Jeremiah 3:16)

[6] That the books of Moses were called “the book of the covenant,” is evident from the finding of them by Hilkiah the priest in the temple, of which we read in the second book of the Kings:

Hilkiah the high priest found the book of the law in the house of Jehovah; and they read in their ears all the words of the book of the covenant found in the house of Jehovah (2 Kings 22:7; 23:2).

[7] That the Word of the Old Testament was called a “covenant,” is evident from Isaiah:

To them that hold fast My covenant will I give in My house, and within My walls, a place and a name better than sons and daughters (Isaiah 56:4-5).

Hear ye the words of this covenant, which I commanded your fathers. Obey My voice, and do them, according to all which I command you (Jeremiah 11:2, 4).

All the ways of Jehovah are mercy and truth unto such as keep His covenant and His testimonies (Psalms 25:10).

The mercy of Jehovah is from eternity to eternity upon them that fear Him, and His righteousness to the sons of sons; to such as keep His covenant, and to those that remember His commandments (Psalms 103:17-18).

They kept not the covenant of God, and refused to walk in His law (Psalms 78:10); where the covenant of God is called “the law” of God. (That by “the law” in a wide sense is meant the whole Word; in a less wide sense the historic Word; in a narrow sense the Word written by Moses; and in the narrowest sense the ten commandments of the Decalogue, see n. 6752)

[8] That the Word of the New Testament also is a “covenant,” is evident in Jeremiah:

Behold the days come that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah. This is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, I will put My law in the midst of them, and I will write it on their heart (Jeremiah 31:31, 33).

“The house of Israel” denotes the spiritual church; and “the house of Judah,” the celestial church. And in David:

I also will make him the firstborn, high among the kings of the earth, and My covenant shall stand fast with him. My covenant will I not make vile, nor change the declaration of My lips (Psalms 89:27-28, 34);

speaking of the Lord; “My covenant shall stand fast with him” denotes the union of the Divine Itself and the Divine Human; thus also the Word, for the Lord as to the Divine Human was the Word that was made flesh, that is, man (John 1:1-3, 14).

[9] That the Divine truth or the Word is a covenant or conjunction, is because it is the Divine from the Lord, thus the Lord Himself. And therefore when the Word is received by man, the Lord Himself is received. From this it is evident that through the Word there is conjunction of the Lord with man; and because there is conjunction of the Lord with man, there is also conjunction of heaven with man, for heaven is called heaven from the Divine truth that proceeds from the Lord, consequently from what is Divine; and therefore those who are in heaven are said to be “in the Lord.” That the Divine conjoins Itself with those who love the Lord, and keep His Word, may be seen in John 14:23.

[10] From all this it can be seen that by “the blood of the covenant” is meant the conjunction of the Lord through heaven with man by means of the Word. Also in Zechariah:

I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim, and the horse from Jerusalem, and the war bow shall be cut off; and He shall speak peace unto the nations; His dominion shall be from sea to sea, and from the river even to the ends of the earth. As for thee also, through the blood of thy covenant, I will send forth thy bound ones out of the pit wherein is no water (Zech. 9:10-11).

[11] He who knows nothing of the internal sense cannot conceive here anything but what is contained in the sense of the letter; namely, that the chariot shall be cut off from Ephraim, the horse from Jerusalem, and the war bow, and finally that by “the blood of the covenant” is meant the blood of the Lord, by which those who are in sins should be set free; explaining in various ways who are meant by “the bound ones in the pit wherein is no water.” But he who is acquainted with the internal sense of the Word conceives that Divine truth is here treated of, and that after this has been laid waste, or vastated, that is, after it is no longer received in faith and heart by man, it will be restored through the truth Divine that proceeds from the Lord’s Divine Human; and thus that those who believe and do it will be conjoined with the Lord Himself. This can be more clearly seen from the internal sense of the several words of the passage; as from the signification of a “chariot” as being the doctrine of the church (n. 2760, 5321, 5945, 8215); of “Ephraim” as being the enlightened understanding of the church (n. 5354, 6222, 6238); from the signification of a “horse” as being the understanding of the Word (n. 2760-2762, 3217, 5321, 6125, 6534, 8029, 8146, 8148); and of “Jerusalem” as being the spiritual church (n. 2117, 3654, 9166); from the signification of a “bow” as being the doctrine of truth (n. 2686, 2709); and of “war” as being a combat about truths (n. 1664, 2686, 8295).

[12] From this it is evident that by “cutting off the chariot from Ephraim, and the horse from Jerusalem, and the war bow,” is signified the vastation of truth Divine in the church in respect to all the understanding of it; and that by “the bound ones in the pit wherein was no water being sent forth through the blood of the covenant,” is signified restoration through the Divine truth that proceeds from the Divine Human of the Lord. (That “blood” denotes Divine truth, and that a “covenant” denotes conjunction, has been shown above; also that “the bound ones in the pit” denote those of the spiritual church who were saved by the Lord’s coming into the world, n. 6854.) It is said “a pit wherein is no water,” because by “water” is signified truth (n. 2702, 3058, 3424, 4976, 5668, 7307, 8137, 8138, 8568, 9323).

6804. And God remembered His covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob. That this signifies by reason of conjunction with the church through the Lord’s Divine Human, is evident from the signification of “covenant,” as being conjunction (of which in what follows); and from the representation of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, with whom a covenant was made, as being the Lord’s Divine Human. (That Abraham represents the Lord as to the Divine Itself, Isaac as to the Divine rational, and Jacob as to the Divine natural, see n. 1893, 2011, 2066, 2072, 2083, 2630, 3194, 3210, 3245, 3251, 3305, 3439, 3576, 3599, 3704, 4180, 4286, 4538, 4570, 4615, 6098, 6185, 6276, 6425.) That where mention is made of “Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob” in the Word, in the spiritual sense these men are not meant, can be seen from the fact that names never penetrate into heaven, but only what is signified by those who are named, thus the things themselves, their quality and their states, which are of the church and of the Lord’s kingdom, and which are of the Lord Himself.

[2] And moreover the angels in heaven never determine their thoughts to the individual persons, for this would be to limit the thoughts, and to withdraw them from the universal perception of the things, from which is angelic speech. Hence what the angels speak in heaven is unutterable to man, and far above his thought, which is not extended to universals, but confined to particulars. When therefore we read this:

Many shall come from the east and the west, and shall recline with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of the heavens (Matthew 8:11).

The angels perceive the Lord’s presence and the appropriation of the truth and good which proceed from His Divine Human. Also when we read that

Lazarus was taken up into Abraham’s bosom (Luke 16:22).

The angels perceive that he was taken up into heaven where the Lord is present. Hence also it can be seen that by the “covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob” in the internal sense is meant conjunction through the Lord’s Divine Human.

[3] That the Divine Human is a “covenant,” that is, conjunction itself, can be seen from many passages in the Word, as in Isaiah:

I will give Thee for a covenant to the people, for a light of the nations (Isaiah 42:6).

I gave Thee for a covenant of the people, to restore the land, to divide the wasted heritages (Isaiah 49:8).

Incline your ear, and come unto Me; hear and your soul shall live; so will I make a covenant of eternity with you, even the sure mercies of David. Behold I have given Him for a witness to the peoples, a prince and a lawgiver to the nations (Isaiah 55:3-4).

The Lord whom ye seek shall suddenly come to His temple; and the Angel of the covenant whom ye desire, behold He cometh (Malachi 3:1).

He hath put for Me a covenant of eternity, to be disposed for all and to be kept (2 Samuel 23:5).

[4] In these passages the Lord is plainly treated of, and the conjunction of the human race with the Divine Itself of the Lord through His Divine Human. It is known in the church that the Lord as to the Divine Human is the Mediator, and that no one can come to the Divine Itself, which is in the Lord and is called the Father, except through the Son, that is, through the Divine Human. Thus the Lord as to the Divine Human is the conjunction. Who can comprehend the Divine Itself by any thought? And if he cannot comprehend it in thought, who can be conjoined with it in love? But everyone can comprehend the Divine Human in thought, and be conjoined with it in love.

[5] That a “covenant” denotes conjunction can be seen from the covenants made between kingdoms, and that by these they are joined together; and that there are stipulations on each side, which are to be kept, in order that the conjunction may be inviolate. These stipulations or compacts are also called a “covenant.” The stipulations or compacts which in the Word are called a “covenant” are on the part of man, in a close sense, the ten commandments, or Decalogue; in a wider sense they are all the statutes, commandments, laws, testimonies, precepts, which the Lord enjoined from Mount Sinai through Moses; and in a sense still more wide they are the books of Moses, the contents of which were to be observed on the part of the sons of Israel. On the part of the Lord the “covenant” is mercy and election.

[6] That the ten commandments or Decalogue are a “covenant” is evident from Moses:

Jehovah hath told you His covenant, which He commanded you to do, the ten words which He wrote on two tables of stone (Deuteronomy 4:13, 23).

And because the two tables of stone, on which the ten commandments were written, were stored up in the ark (Exodus 25:16, 21-22; 31:18; 32:15-16, 19; 40:20), therefore the ark was called the “ark of the covenant” (Deuteronomy 31:9, 24-26; Josh. 3:3, 6, 14; 4:7; Judg. 20:27; 2 Samuel 15:24; 1 Kings 8:21). In the last passage cited, Solomon thus speaks:

There I have set a place for the ark, wherein is the covenant of Jehovah which He made with our fathers (1 Kings 8:21).

And in John:

The temple of God was opened in heaven; and there was seen in His temple the ark of His covenant (Revelation 11:19).

[7] That all the judgments and statutes which the Lord commanded through Moses to the people of Israel, were called the “covenant,” as were also the books of Moses themselves, is evident from Moses:

After the mouth of these words I have made a covenant with you and with Israel (Exodus 34:27).

The things which are here called a “covenant” were the many in regard to sacrifices, feasts, and unleavened bread.

Moses took the book of the covenant, and read in the ears of the people, who said, All that Jehovah hath spoken we will do and hear (Exodus 24:7-8.

Josiah, king of Judah, in the house of Jehovah in the presence of them all read the words of the book of the covenant that was found in the house of Jehovah. And he made a covenant before Jehovah, to establish the words of the covenant written in that book; and all the people stood to the covenant. The king commanded all the people that they should perform the passover to Jehovah God, as it is written in this book of the covenant (2 Kings 23:2-3, 21).

If thy sons will keep My covenant and My testimony that I have taught them, their sons also shall sit on thy throne forevermore (Psalms 132:12).

[8] That a “covenant” denotes conjunction through love and faith is evident from Moses:

Behold the days come, said Jehovah, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah; not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers, because they rendered My covenant vain; but this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days: I will put My law in the midst of them, and I will write it on their heart; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people (Jeremiah 31:31-33);

“to put a law in the midst of them, and to write it on their heart” is to endow with faith and charity; through faith and charity the conjunction is made which is described by the words, “I will be their God, and they shall be My people.”

I will make an everlasting covenant with them, that I will no more turn away from them; and I will do well to them; and I will put My fear in their heart, that they shall not depart from Me (Jeremiah 32:40).

Conjunction through love, which is the “covenant,” is signified by, “I will put My fear in their heart, that they shall not depart from Me.”

[9] In Ezekiel:

I will make a covenant of peace with them, a covenant of eternity it shall be with them; and I will give them, and multiply them, and will set My sanctuary in the midst of them; and My habitation shall be with them, and I will be their God, and they shall be My people (Ezekiel 37:26-27);

here conjunction through love and faith, which are a “covenant,” is described by “a sanctuary in the midst of them,” and by “a habitation with them,” and by the words, “I will be their God, and they shall be My people.”

When I passed by thee, and saw thee, that behold it was thy time, the time of loves, and I entered into a covenant with thee, that thou shouldest be Mine (Ezekiel 16:8);

speaking of Jerusalem, whereby is signified the Ancient Church; that “to enter into a covenant that thou shouldest be Mine” is marriage, or spiritual conjunction, is plain. As a “covenant” signifies conjunction, a wife is also called “a wife of the covenant” (Malachi 2:14); and conjunction among brethren is called “the covenant of brethren” (Amos 1:9).

By “covenant” is also signified conjunction in David:

I have made a covenant with My chosen, I have sworn to David My servant (Psalms 89:3).

[10] That the compact of a covenant on the part of the Lord is mercy and election, is evident in David:

All the ways of Jehovah are mercy and truth to such as keep His covenant and His testimonies (Psalms 25:10).

The mountains shall depart, and the hills be removed; but My mercy shall not depart, and the covenant of My peace shall not be removed, saith thy compassionate One, Jehovah (Isaiah 54:10).

Jehovah thy God, He is God, the faithful God, keeping covenant and mercy with them that love Him, and that keep His commandments, to the thousandth generation (Deuteronomy 7:9, 12).

If ye will keep My covenant, ye shall be unto Me for a peculiar treasure from all peoples (Exodus 19:5),

I will have respect unto you, and make you fruitful, and multiply you, and will establish My covenant with you (Leviticus 26:9);

“to have respect unto them” is of mercy; “to make them fruitful and multiply them” is to endow them with charity and faith; they who are endowed with these gifts are called the “elect;” so that these are words of election; and also the words “they shall be for a peculiar treasure.”

[11] Signs of a covenant existed also in the representative church, and were such as reminded of conjunction. Circumcision was such a sign (Genesis 17:11); for “circumcision” signified purification from filthy loves, on the removal of which, heavenly love is instilled, through which is conjunction. The Sabbath is also called “an eternal covenant” (Exodus 31:16). It is said also that “the show-bread should be to the sons of Israel for an eternal covenant” (Leviticus 24:8) and especially the “blood”, as is evident from Moses:

Moses took the book of the covenant, and read in the ears of the people, who said, All that Jehovah hath spoken we will do and hear; then Moses took the blood of the peace sacrifice, and sprinkled it on the people, and said, Behold the blood of the covenant which Jehovah hath made with you over all these words (Exodus 24:7-8),

By the blood of Thy covenant I will send forth the bound out of the pit wherein is no water (Zech. 9:11

Blood was a covenant, or the token of a covenant, because it signified conjunction through spiritual love, that is, through charity toward the neighbor; therefore when the Lord instituted the Holy Supper, He called His blood the “blood of the new covenant” (Matthew 26:28). From all this it can now be seen what is meant by a “covenant” in the Word in the internal sense.