3708. All thou shalt break forth to the sea, and to the east. That this signifies the infinite extension of good; and that to the north and to the south, signifies the infinite extension of truth, thus all states of good and truth, is evident from the signification of “breaking forth,” as being extension; in the present case infinite extension, because it is predicated of the Lord: from the signification of the “sea,” or “west,” as being good as yet obscure, thus in its commencement; from the signification of the “east,” as being the good which is lucid, and thus perfect; from the signification of the “north,” as being truth as yet in obscurity; and from the signification of the “south,” as being truth in the light.

[2] In many passages in the Word mention is made of the “sea,” or “west,” of the “east,” of the “north,” and of the “south;” but inasmuch as it has not heretofore been known to anyone that these, like all things whatsoever in the Word, have an internal sense, in which sense they do not signify worldly things according to the sense of the letter, but spiritual and celestial things; and in the supreme sense the Divine things of the Lord Himself, therefore man could know no otherwise than that by the “west,” “east,” “north,” and “south,” were meant only the quarters of the world, and that by “breaking forth” to these quarters is meant multiplication. But that by these expressions there are not signified such quarters, nor the multiplication of any people, but states of good and truth, and their extension, may be seen from all the passages in the Word, especially in the Prophets, where they are mentioned; for that which is the west, east, north, and south, is altogether unknown in heaven, inasmuch as the sun there, which is the Lord, is not like the sun of the world, which rises and sets, and by its greatest altitude causes midday, and by its least causes night; but it appears with constancy, yet in accordance with the states of those who receive light from it, for its light has within it wisdom and intelligence (see n. 1619-1632, 2776, 3138, 3167, 3190, 3195, 3222, 3223, 3339, 3341, 3485, 3636, 3643); wherefore it appears in accordance with the state of each person’s wisdom and intelligence. With those who are in good and truth, it appears with heat and light, but celestial and spiritual heat and light, as our sun appears in its rising and at midday; while with those who are not in good and truth, it appears as does our sun when setting, and at night. From this we can see that in the internal sense of the Word by the “east,” “south,” “west,” and “north,” are signified states of good and truth.

[3] Be it known that states of good and truth are described in the Word, not only by the quarters, of which we have been speaking, but also by the times or states of the year-spring, summer, autumn, and winter; and also by the times or states of the day-morning, midday, evening, and night, and this for a similar reason; but when the subject is the extension of good and truth, this is described by the quarters. What is signified by each quarter in particular may be seen from the passages in the Word where they are mentioned. That the “east” signifies the Lord, and the good of love and charity which is from the Lord, was shown above (n. 101, 1250, 3249); and that the “south” signifies truth in light (n. 1458, 3195).

[4] But what is signified in the genuine sense by the “west” and what by the “north;” and what in the opposite sense, may be seen from the following passages.

In Isaiah:

Fear not, for I am with thee; I will bring thy seed from the east, and gather thee from the west; I will say to the north, Give up; and to the south, Keep not back; bring My sons from far, and My daughters from the end of the earth (Isaiah 43:5-6

speaking of a new spiritual church, which is there called “Jacob” and “Israel.” To “bring seed from the east,” and to “gather from the west,” denotes those who are in good; to “say to the north, Give up, and to the south, Keep not back,” denotes those who are in truth.

[5] In David:

The redeemed of Jehovah shall say, whom He hath redeemed from the hand of the enemy, and gathered them out of the lands, from the east and from the west, from the north and from the sea. They wandered in the wilderness in a solitary way; they found no city to dwell in (Psalms 107:2-4); concerning those who are in ignorance of good and truth. “From the east and from the west” denotes those who are in ignorance of good; “from the north and from the sea,” those who are in ignorance of truth; concerning those who are in ignorance of good it is said that they “wandered in the wilderness,” and concerning those who are in ignorance of truth, that they wandered in a “solitary way;” and concerning the ignorance of both good and truth it is said that they “found no city to dwell in.” (That “city” signifies what is doctrinal of truth, may be seen above, n. 402, 2449, 2943, 3216; and that “to dwell” is predicated of good, n. 2268, 2451, 2712.)

[6] In Isaiah:

Behold these shall come from far; and lo, these from the north and from the west; and these from the land of Sinim (Isaiah 49:12); where the “north” denotes those who are in obscurity as to truth; and the “west” those who are in obscurity as to good, who are said to “come from far” because they are remote from the light which is from the Lord.

[7] In Amos:

Behold the days come that I will send a famine in the land; and they shall wander from sea to sea, and from the north even to the east they shall run to and fro to seek the word of Jehovah, and shall not find it (Amos 8:11-12); where “famine” denotes scarcity and failure of knowledges (n. 1460, 3364); “wandering from sea to sea,” denotes to inquire where there are knowledges (that “seas” signify knowledges in general, see above, n. 28, 2850); to “run to and fro from the north even to the east” denotes from those knowledges which are in obscurity to those which are in light. It is evident that knowledges are here meant, for it is said, “to seek the word of Jehovah, and they shall not find it.”

[8] In Jeremiah:

Proclaim these words toward the north, and say, Return, thou backsliding Israel, saith Jehovah; I will not cause My faces to fall upon you; for I am merciful. In those days the house of Judah shall go to the house of Israel, and they shall come together out of the land of the north upon the land that I gave for an inheritance unto your fathers (Jeremiah 3:12, 18);

speaking of the restoration of the church that is from the Gentiles. The “north” denotes those who are in ignorance of truth, and yet are in a life of good. It is evident that in this passage the north is not meant, nor the land of the north; for Israel no longer had any existence. Again:

Jehovah liveth that brought up the sons of Israel from the land of the north (Jeremiah 16:15); where the “north” in like manner denotes ignorance of truth.

[9] Again:

Behold I will bring them from the land of the north, and gather them from the sides of the earth, and among them the blind and the lame (Jeremiah 31:8).

The “land of the north” denotes ignorance of good, because of truth; and because the land of Canaan represented the Lord’s kingdom, and thence also good (n. 3705); and what was in the midst thereof, as Zion and Jerusalem, represented the inmost good with which truth was conjoined, therefore the parts which were distant therefrom represented obscurity as to good and truth; and all that which is in obscurity is called the “land of the north,” and also the “sides of the earth.”

[10] Moreover as all the good which flows in with light from the Lord terminates in what is obscure in man, the “north” is also called an “assembly” or “congregation;” as in Isaiah:

Thou saidst in thine heart, I will ascend into the heavens, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God; and I will sit upon the mount of congregation, in the sides of the north (Isaiah 14:13).

Again:

Howl, O gate; cry, O city; thou art melted away, O Philistia, all of thee; for a smoke cometh out of the north, there is none solitary in the assemblies (Isaiah 14:31).

In David:

Great is Jehovah, and greatly to be praised in the city of our God, in the mountain of His holiness. The joy of the whole earth is Mount Zion, on the sides of the north, the city of the great King (Psalms 48:1-2

Again:

The heavens are Thine, the earth also is Thine; the world and the fullness thereof Thou hast founded them; the north and the right hand Thou hast created them (Psalms 89:11-12); where the “north” denotes those who are more remote from the light of good and truth; and the “right hand,” those who are nearer thereto. (That these are at the Lord’s right hand, see above, n. 1274, 1276)

[11] In Zechariah (who saw four chariots coming out from between two mountains of brass, with red, black, white, and strong grizzled horses, and the angel said):

These are the four winds of the heavens which go forth from standing before the Lord of all the earth. All the black horses go forth into the land of the north; and the white went forth after them; and the grizzled went forth into the land of the south. Then he spake unto me, saying, Behold they that go forth to the land of the north have quieted my spirit in the land of the north (Zech. 6:1-8);

“chariots going forth between two mountains of brass,” denote doctrinal things of good. That “chariots” signify doctrinal things will be made manifest elsewhere; that a “mountain” signifies love, may be seen above (n. 795, 1430, 2722); hence “two mountains” signify two loves-celestial love, which is love to the Lord, and spiritual love, which is love toward the neighbor; that “brass” signifies the good therefrom which is in the natural, see above (n. 425, 1551); that “horses” signify intellectual things, thus the understanding of the doctrinal things of good (see 2760-2762, 3217); the “land of the south” denotes those who are in the knowledges of good and truth (n. 1458, 3195); the “land of the north,” those who are in ignorance of good and truth, but in a life of good, in which are the upright Gentiles, among whom when a new church is being set up, the spirit of God is said to “rest.”

[12] In Jeremiah:

Jehovah, who brought up and who led back the seed of the house of Israel out of the land to the north, and from all the lands whither I had driven them, that they may dwell upon their own land (Jeremiah 23:8); where “out of the land to the north” signifies from the obscurity of ignorance respecting good and truth. Again:

Shall iron be broken, iron from the north, and brass? (Jeremiah 15:12);

“iron” signifies natural truth (n. 425, 426); “brass,” natural good (n. 425, 1551). These are said to be “from the north,” because from the natural, where there is relative obscurity and a termination. That this prophecy does not signify that iron and brass are from the north, is evident without explication; for what could there be of the Divine, or even of coherence with what goes before and what follows after, if the meaning were that iron and brass were therefrom?

[13] In Matthew:

I say unto you that many shall come from the east and from the west, and shall sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (Matthew 8:11Luke 13:29); where “many from the east and the west” denote those who are in the knowledges and the life of good, and those who are in obscurity and ignorance; thus those who are within the church and those who are without it; for that states of good are signified by “east” and “west,” was said above. (That to “sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob,” signifies to be with the Lord, may be seen above, n. 3305) That in like manner those will come from the east and from the west who shall be with the Lord in His kingdom or in His church, is said in the Prophets; as in Isaiah:

I will bring thy seed from the east, and gather thee from the west (Isaiah 43:5).

Again:

They shall fear the name of Jehovah from the west, and His glory from the east (Isaiah 59:19).

Again:

They shall know from the rising of the sun, and from the setting, that there is none besides Me; I am Jehovah, and there is none else (Isaiah 45:6).

Again:

I will stir up one from the north, and he shall come; from the rising of the sun shall he call upon My name (Isaiah 41:25).

[14] Moreover that such is the signification of the “east,” “west,” “south,” and “north,” may be clearly seen from the construction of the tabernacle; from the encamping and journeying of the sons of Israel; from the description of the land of Canaan; also from the description of the new temple, of the new Jerusalem, and of the new earth. From the construction of the tabernacle, in that all things therein were arranged according to the quarters (Exodus 38); as what was to be at the east and west corners, and what at the south and north corners (Exodus 26:18, 20, 22, 27; 27:9, 12, 14); and that the candlestick over against the table was to be on the side of the tabernacle toward the south, but the table on the north side (Exodus 26:35; 40:22).

[15] From the encamping and journeying of the sons of Israel, also according to the quarters, in that they were to encamp around the tent of the congregation with the tribes of Judah, Issachar, and Zebulun toward the east; with the tribes of Reuben, Simeon, and Gad toward the south; with the tribes of Ephraim, Manasseh, and Benjamin toward the west; and with the tribes of Dan, Asher, and Naphtali toward the north (Numbers 2:1 to the end). Also that of the Levites, the Gershonites were to be toward the west, the Kohathites toward the south, the Merarites toward the north; and that Moses, Aaron, and his sons, should be before the tabernacle toward the east (Numbers 3:23-38); whereby there was represented the heavenly order which in the Lord’s kingdom is according to the states of good and truth; and that toward the south they should sound the alarm for their journeys (Numbers 10:6); and that as they encamped, so also they journeyed (Numbers 2:34).

[16] From the description of the land of Canaan, which was first described by Moses in respect to the boundaries round about, and this at the south corner, at the west corner, the north corner, and the east corner (Numbers 34:2-12); and the same afterwards when it was given by lot to the tribes (Josh. 15 to 19); from which and also from the most ancient people who dwelt in the land of Canaan, all the places therein became representative and significative, according to their situation, distance, and boundaries in respect to the quarters (n. 1607, 1866).

[17] From the description of the new temple, of the new Jerusalem, and of the new earth, also according to the quarters in Ezekiel, as that the building of the city was from the south; and that of the gate of the building the faces were toward the east, toward the north, and toward the south (40:2,6, 19, 20-46); concerning the measure of the temple, and its door toward the north, and toward the south (41:11); concerning the court toward the north, the east, the south, and the west (42:1,4, 10, 11, 17-20); and that the glory of Jehovah the God of Israel entered from the way of the east (43:1-2, 4); concerning the gates of the outer court (41:1-2, 4; 44:1 (Ezekiel 44:1), 9-10, 19-20); concerning the boundaries of the holy land (47), toward the north (verses 15-17), toward the east (verse 18), toward the south (verse 19), and toward the west (verse 20); and concerning the inheritances according to the quarters for each tribe (48); and concerning the gates of the holy Jerusalem, on the east, the north, the south, and the west (Revelation 21:13). From all this it is very evident that in the internal sense the four quarters of the world, according to which the above holy things, or representatives of what is holy, were arranged, do not signify those quarters, but states of good and truth in the Lord’s kingdom.

[18] That in the opposite sense the “north,” and the “west,” signify what is false and evil, may be seen from the following passages.

In Jeremiah:

The word of Jehovah came unto me the second time, saying, What seest thou? And I said, I see an open caldron; and the face thereof is toward the north. Then Jehovah said unto me, Out of the north evil shall be opened upon all the inhabitants of the land. For lo I will call all the families of the kingdoms of the north, saith Jehovah; and they shall come (Jeremiah 1:13-15).

Again:

Set up a standard toward Zion, assemble together, stay not; for I will bring evil from the north, and a great shattering (Jeremiah 4:6).

Again:

The voice of a noise, behold it cometh, and a great commotion out of the north country, to make the cities of Judah a waste (Jeremiah 10:22).

Again:

Blow the trumpet in Tekoa, for evil looketh forth from the north, and a great shattering. Behold a people cometh from the land of the north; and a great nation shall be stirred up from the sides of the earth (Jeremiah 6:1, 22).

Again:

Then took I the cup from the hand of Jehovah, and made all the nations to drink; Jerusalem, and the cities of Judah, and the kings thereof, Pharaoh king of Egypt, and all the western throng, all the kings of Arabia, and all the kings of the west, that dwell in the wilderness, and all the kings of the north, far and near (Jeremiah 25:17-20, 24, 26).

[ 19 ] Again:

The swift one shall not flee away, nor the mighty man escape; toward the north, near the shore of the river Euphrates have they stumbled and fallen. Who is this that riseth up like the river? Egypt riseth up like the river, for he saith, I will rise up, I will cover the earth; I will destroy the city and the inhabitants thereof. But this is the day of the Lord Jehovih Zebaoth, a day of vengeance, for the Lord Jehovih hath a sacrifice in the land of the north by the river Euphrates. Egypt is a very fair heifer; destruction cometh from the north. The daughter of Egypt is put to shame; she is delivered into the hand of the people of the north (Jeremiah 46:6-8, 10, 20, 24).

Again:

Thus saith Jehovah, Behold waters rise up out of the north and shall become an overflowing stream, and shall overflow the land and the fullness thereof, the city and them that dwell therein (Jeremiah 47:2).

[20] Again:

The word that Jehovah spake against Babylon. From the north there cometh up a nation against her, which shall make her land a desolation, and none shall dwell therein (Jeremiah 50:3).

Again:

For lo I will stir up and cause to come up against Babylon an assembly of great nations from the land of the north; and they shall set themselves in array against her; from thence she shall be taken. Behold a people cometh from the north, and a great nation, and many kings shall be stirred up from the sides of the earth (Jeremiah 50:9, 41).

Again:

Then the heavens and the earth, and all that is therein, shall sing over Babylon, for the devastators shall come to her from the north (Jeremiah 51:48).

In Ezekiel:

Say unto Gog, Thou shalt come from out of thy place, from the sides of the north, thou and many people with thee; thou shalt come up against My people Israel as a cloud to cover the land (Ezekiel 38:14-16).

Again:

Behold I am against thee, O Gog, the prince; I will cause thee to turn about, and leave but the sixth of thee, and will cause thee to come up ¹ from the sides of the north; and I will bring thee upon the mountains of Israel. Thou shalt fall upon the mountains of Israel; upon the faces of the field thou shalt fall (Ezekiel 39:1-2, 4-5).

In Zechariah:

Alas! Flee from the land of the north, saith Jehovah; for I will spread you abroad as the four winds of the heavens. Alas Zion! Escape, thou that dwellest with the daughter of Babylon (Zech. 2:6-7).

[21] From all these passages it is evident what is signified in the opposite sense by the “north;” namely, the falsity from which is evil, and the falsity which is from evil. As the falsity from which is evil originates in reasoning concerning Divine things and against Divine things from the memory-knowledges that belong to the natural man, it is called “the people of the north out of Egypt” (that “Egypt” signifies such knowledge may be seen above, n. 1164, 1165, 2588). As the falsity which is from evil originates in external worship apparently holy, the interiors of which are profane, it is called “the nation of the north out of Babylon.” (That “Babylon” signifies external worship may be seen above, n. 1182, 1283, 1295, 1304, 1306-1308, 1321, 1322, 1326; that it is Babylon also which causes vastation, n. 1327.) Both the falsity from which is evil, and the falsity which is from evil, are predicated of Gog, for “Gog” signifies worship in externals without an internal, consequently idolatrous worship, such as was that of the Jews at all times. (That “Gog” signifies such worship, see above, n. 1151)

[22] From the obscurity which is of the natural man there arises both what is true and what is false; when man suffers himself to be enlightened by the Word from the Lord, then his obscurity becomes lucid, for there is opened an internal way whereby influx and communication take place through heaven from the Lord; but when he does not suffer himself to be enlightened by the Word from the Lord, but by his own intelligence, then his obscurity becomes dark, and thus false; for the internal way is closed, and no influx and communication take place through heaven from the Lord, except of such a sort as to enable him to appear in the outward form as a man, by thinking and also speaking from what is evil and false. For this reason with the former the “north” signifies what is true, but with the latter what is false; for the former ascend from obscurity, that is, are elevated to the light, whereas the latter descend from obscurity, that is, remove themselves from the light; thus the former are carried to the south, but the latter to the infernal regions.

[23] That the “north” signifies the darkness of falsity, and the “south” the light of truth, is very evident in Daniel, where the ram and the he-goat are described, as also the king of the south and the king of the north. Concerning the ram and the he-goat it is said:

I saw the ram pushing with his horn westward, northward, and southward; so that no beast could stand before him. A he-goat came from the west over all the faces of the earth; and out of one of his horns there came forth a horn, which grew exceedingly toward the south and toward the east, and toward beauty (Daniel 8:4-5, 9).

Concerning the king of the south and the king of the north (the “king of the south” signifying those who are in the knowledges of truth; and the “king of the north,” those who are in falsity) it is thus written:

At the end of years they shall join themselves together; so that the daughter of the king of the south shall come to the king of the north to make equitable terms; but her arm shall not obtain strength. But out of a shoot from her roots shall one stand up that shall enter into the fortress of the king of the north, and shall prevail, and shall carry captive into Egypt. The king of the south shall come into the kingdom, and shall come forth and fight with the king of the north. And the king of the north shall return, and shall set forth a multitude greater than the former. There shall many stand against the king of the south. The king of the north shall come and take the fenced cities, and shall destroy many things. The king of the south shall war in battle with a great army, but shall not stand, for they shall devise devices against him. Afterwards he shall return, but shall not be as in the former time. The people that know their God shall strengthen themselves. And at the time of the end shall the king of the south strive with him therefore; the king of the north shall rush upon him like a whirlwind, with chariot and with horsemen. In the beauteous land many shall fall. But rumors from the east and from the north shall terrify him; and he shall go forth with great anger; he shall come to his end, and none shall help him (Daniel 11:6-45

That the “king of the south” signifies those who are in the light of truth, and the “king of the north” those who are at first in shade, and afterwards are in the darkness of falsity, may be seen from all the particulars; and that thus it is a description of the state of the church, and of the way in which it is successively perverted. They are called “kings of the south and of the north,” because by “kings,” in the internal sense of the Word, are signified truths, and in the opposite sense falsities (n. 1672, 2015, 2069); and by “kingdoms,” the things which are of truth, and in the opposite sense, those which are of falsity (n. 1672, 2547).

Poznámky pod čarou:

1327. There did Jehovah confound the lip of all the earth. That this signifies the state of this Ancient Church, that internal worship began to perish, is evident from its being said, “the lip of all the earth,” and not, as before, at verse 7, “the lip of those who began to build a city and a tower.” By “the face of all the earth,” is signified the state of the church, for “the earth” is the church (as has been shown before, n. 662,1066). As regards the churches after the flood, the case stood thus: there were three of these churches that are specifically mentioned in the Word; namely, the First Ancient Church, which was named from Noah; the Second Ancient Church, named from Eber; and the Third Ancient Church, named from Jacob, and afterwards from Judah and Israel.

[2] As regards the first of these churches, which was named from Noah, that church was as the parent of those which succeeded it; and, as is wont to be the case with churches in their beginnings, it was more unimpaired and guiltless than its successors, as is evident also from the first verse of this chapter, in that it had “one lip,” that is, one doctrine, in consequence of all its members holding charity to be the essential thing. But in process of time, like other churches, this First Ancient Church began to fall, and this chiefly from the fact that many of them began to aspire after the worship of self, so that they might take precedence of others; as is evident from verse 4, for they said, “Let us build us a city and a tower, and its head in heaven; and let us make us a name.” Such men in the church could not but be as a kind of ferment, or as a firebrand causing a conflagration. As the peril of the profanation of what is holy thence impended (see n. 571, 582), of the Lord’s Providence the state of this church was changed, so that its internal worship perished, while its external worship remained, which is here signified by the statement that Jehovah confounded the lip of all the earth. It is also evident from this that such worship as is called “Babel” did not prevail in the First Ancient Church, but in those which followed, when men began to be worshiped as gods, especially after their death, whence arose the many gods of the Gentiles.

[3] The reason why it was permitted that internal worship should perish and external remain, was that what is holy might not be profaned; for the profanation of what is holy is attended with eternal damnation. No one can profane what is holy except one who is in possession of the knowledges of faith. and who acknowledges the truth of them. A person who does not possess them cannot acknowledge, and still less profane them. It is the internal things that can be profaned; for what is holy abides in internal, and not in external, things. The case in this respect is the same as it is with a man who does what is evil, but does not purpose what is evil. To him the evil that he does cannot be imputed, just as it cannot be imputed to one who does not do it of deliberate intention, or to one who is destitute of reason. Thus a man who does not believe that there is a life after death, and yet performs external worship, cannot profane the things that belong to eternal life, because he does not believe that there is any such life; but the case is quite different with those who know and who acknowledge these things.

[4] And this is the reason why it is permitted a man rather to live in pleasures and in cupidities, and by them to remove himself from internal things, than to come into the knowledge and acknowledgment of internal things, and profane them. For this reason the Jews are at this day permitted to immerse themselves in avarice, that in this way they may be further removed from the acknowledgment of internal things; for they are of such a character that if they were to acknowledge them, they could not but profane them. Nothing removes men further from internal things than avarice, because it is the lowest earthly cupidity. And the case is the same with many within the church; and it is the same with the Gentiles outside the church. These latter, to wit, the Gentiles, are least of all capable of profanation. This then is the reason why it is here said that Jehovah confounded the lip of all the earth, and why these words signify that the state of the church was changed, so that its worship became external, and devoid of all internal worship.

[5] The like was represented and signified by the Babylonish captivity into which the Israelites, and afterwards the Jews, were carried away, concerning which it is thus written in Jeremiah:

And it shall come to pass, that the nation and the kingdom which will not serve the king of Babylon, and whoso will not put his neck under the yoke of the king of Babylon, upon that nation will I visit with the sword, with the famine, and with the pestilence, until I have consumed them by his hand (Jeremiah 27:8).

“To serve the king of Babylon and to put the neck under his yoke,” is to be utterly deprived of the knowledge and acknowledgment of the good and of the truth of faith, and thereby of internal worship.

[6] This is still more plainly evident in the same Prophet:

Thus hath said Jehovah to all the people in this city, Your brethren who have not gone forth with you into captivity, thus hath said Jehovah Zebaoth, Behold, I send upon them the sword, the famine, and the pestilence, and I will make them like horrible figs (Jeremiah 29:16-17).

“To abide in the city and not go forth to the king of Babylon,” represented and signified those who were in the knowledges of internal things, or of the truths of faith, and who profaned them, upon whom it is said there would be sent the sword, the famine, and the pestilence, which are the penalties of profanation; and that they should become like horrible figs.

[7] That by “Babel” are signified those who deprive others of all the knowledge and acknowledgment of truth, was also represented and signified by these things in the same Prophet:

I will give all Judah into the hand of the King of Babylon, and he shall carry them into Babylon, and shall smite them with the sword. Moreover I will give all the riches of this city, and all the toil thereof, and all the precious thing thereof, and all the treasures of the kings of Judah, will I give into the hand of their enemies, and they shall spoil them, and take them (Jeremiah 20:4-5).

Here by “all the riches, all the toil, all the precious thing, and all the treasures of the kings of Judah,” are signified the knowledges of faith.

[8] Again:

With the families of the north I will bring up the king of Babylon upon this land, and upon the inhabitants thereof, and upon all these nations round about, and I will give them to the curse, and will make them a desolation, and a hissing, and everlasting wastes; and this whole land shall be a waste (Jeremiah 25:9, 11).

Here the devastation of the interior things of faith, or of internal worship, is described by “Babylon.” For the man who worships self possesses no truth of faith, as has been shown before. Everything that is true he destroys and lays waste, and carries away into captivity. And therefore Babylon is called “a destroying mountain” (Jeremiah 51:25). (See what has been further said concerning Babel above, n. 1182)