163. Verse 22. Behold, I cast her into a bed, signifies that they are left to their natural man, and to the doctrine of falsities therein. This is evident from the signification of a "bed," as being the natural man, also the doctrine of falsities (of which presently). What now follows treats of those who suffer themselves to be seduced by those who are in the doctrine of falsities from the delight of the love of self and the world, who are meant by "Jezebel" (as was said above). Those who suffer themselves to be seduced are not like those who have falsified truths and adulterated goods from the delight of those loves; for such have seen truths and have applied them to favor their delights, and have thus perverted them, and afterwards these are unable to turn themselves to truths and acknowledge them. These are treated of in the preceding article n. 162. But those who have not done this, but have suffered themselves to be led away by those who have, have not so closed the internal or spiritual man with themselves; for they have not themselves falsified truths, but have put faith in those who have, because these falsities sound like truths. For these think no more deeply than that their leaders must be believed because they are intelligent and wise; thus they hang upon the lips of a master. There are many such at this day in Christendom, especially among those born in countries where the papal religion prevails. These are meant by those that commit adultery with Jezebel in a bed.

[2] "Bed" signifies the doctrine of falsities, and at the same time the natural man, because the doctrine of falsities has no other source than the natural man separated from the spiritual; and the natural man separated from the spiritual sees worldly things in light, but heavenly things in thick darkness; it sees falsity, therefore, in the place of truth, and evil in the place of good; moreover, if it sees truth it falsifies it, and if it sees good it adulterates it; for heaven flows into the natural or external man through the spiritual or internal man, and not immediately into the natural or external; into it the world flows immediately. And when the natural world with man is not governed by the spiritual world, the bond with heaven is broken; and when this is broken man makes the world his all, and heaven of little or no account; so also self as all, and God of little or no account. When the external or natural man is in such a state it is in falsities from the evils that spring forth out of the love of self and the world. As "bed," therefore, signifies the natural man, it also signifies the doctrine of falsities.

[3] "Bed" signifies the natural man, because the natural man underlies the spiritual, thus the spiritual lies on it and on the things that are in it as on its own bed. That "bed" signifies the natural man, also the doctrinals that are in it, can be seen from the passages in the word where "bed" is mentioned, as in the following. In Amos:

As the shepherd hath rescued out of the mouth of the lion two legs and a bit of an ear, so shall the sons of Israel be rescued that dwell in Samaria on the corner of a bed, and on the end of a couch (Amos 3:12).

"Lion" signifies the church, here those therein that destroy goods and truths; "legs and a bit of an ear" are the goods that are in the natural man, and something of perception of truth therefrom; "the sons of Israel that dwell in Samaria" are those of the church; "on the corner of the bed, and on the end of a couch," are those in a little natural light from the spiritual, and in some truths therefrom.

[4] In the same:

Woe to them that are at ease in Zion, and trust in the mountains of Samaria; to them that lie upon the beds of ivory, and stretch themselves upon their couches, and eat the lambs out of the flock, and the calves out of the midst of the stall; that devise for themselves instruments of song; that drink out of bowls of wine, and anoint themselves with the firstlings of the oils: but they are not grieved over the breach of Joseph (Amos 6:1, 4-6).

Those that the "trust in the mountains of Samaria" are those that trust in themselves, and from self-intelligence hatch out doctrines. "Samaria" is the perverted spiritual church; "beds of ivory" are fallacies of the senses on which doctrine is founded; "to stretch themselves upon couches" is to confirm and multiply the falsities therefrom; "to eat the lambs out of the flock, and the calves out of the midst of the stall, to drink out of bowls of wine and to anoint themselves with the firstlings of the oils," is to draw the truths and goods of the Word out of the sense of its letter and to apply and falsify them. "Not to be grieved over the breach of Joseph" is not to care that the spiritual church is perishing, and that its truths are being infringed upon. (That "Joseph" in the highest sense signifies the Lord in respect to the Divine spiritual; in the internal sense the Lord's spiritual kingdom, thus also the spiritual church; and in the external sense the fructification of good and multiplication of truth, see Arcana Coelestia 3969, 3971, 4669, 6417, 6526)

[5] In Moses:

May the blessings of thy father prevail above the blessings of my parents, may they be on the head of Joseph, and on the head of the bed ¹ of his brethren (Genesis 49:26).

"Joseph," as was said, is the Lord's spiritual church; "the head of the bed of his brethren" is the spiritual that flows into all the truths and goods of that church (for the twelve sons or tribes of Israel signify all the truths and goods of the church in the complex, see Arcana Coelestia 3858, 3926, 4060, 6335).

[6] In Luke:

I say unto you, In that night there shall be two [men] in one bed; one shall be taken, the other shall be left. There shall be two [women] grinding together; one shall be taken, the other shall be left. There shall be two [men] in the field; one shall be taken, the other shall be left (Luke 17:34-36).

This treats of the consummation of the age, which is the last time of the church when judgment takes place. To be "in one bed" is to be in the same doctrine of the church; "two [women] grinding" are those that collect and learn such things as are serviceable to faith; "two [men] in the field" are those in the church that apply goods and truths to themselves. (That "those who grind" are those who collect and learn such things as are serviceable to faith, see Arcana Coelestia 4335, 7780, 9995; that "field" means reception of truth and good, see n. 368, 3310, 9141, 9295)

[7] In John:

Jesus said to the sick man at the pool of Bethsaida, ² Arise, take up thy bed, and walk. And straightway the man was made whole, and took up his bed, and walked. Afterward Jesus findeth him, and said unto him, Behold, thou art made whole; sin no more, lest a worse thing befall thee (John 5:8-12, 14).

And in Mark:

They uncovered the roof where Jesus was, and they let down ³ the bed whereon the sick of the palsy lay. Jesus said, Whether is easier to say, Thy sins are forgiven thee, or to say, Arise, and take up thy bed and walk? Then he said, Arise, take up thy bed, and walk and go unto thine house. And immediately he arose, took up the bed, and went forth before them all (Mark 2:4, 9, 11-12).

The Lord saying to these sick, "Arise, take up thy bed, and walk," signifies doctrine, and a life according thereto; "bed" signifies doctrine, and "to walk" life (that " walking" is living, see above, n.97[1-2]). "The sick man" signifies those that have transgressed and sinned; consequently the Lord said to the sick man at the pool of Bethsaida, "Behold, thou art made whole; sin no more, lest a worse thing befall thee;" and to the paralytic let down on a bed through the roof, "Whether it is easier to say, Thy sins are forgiven thee, or to say, Arise, take up thy bed, and walk?" Those who know nothing of the internal sense of the Word may believe that the words that the Lord spoke involve nothing more than what is obvious in the sense of the letter, when yet every particular of what the Lord spoke has a spiritual meaning, for He spoke from the Divine, and thus in the presence both of heaven and of the world (See Arcana Coelestia 2533, 4637, 4807, 9048, 9063, 9086, 10126, 10276).

[8] The bed of Og, the king of Bashan, is thus described in Moses:

Og, king of Bashan, remained of the remnants of the Rephaim; behold, his bed was a bed of iron; is it not in Rabbah of the sons of Ammon? Nine cubits was the length thereof, and four cubits the breadth of it, after the cubit of a man (Deuteronomy 3:11).

The bed of Og is here described, because he was of the remnants of the Rephaim, and because he was king of Bashan; for by the "Rephaim," those were signified who were in the love of self above others, and therefore natural above all others, and from a persuasion of their eminence over others were in falsities of every kind (See Arcana Coelestia 581, 1268, 1270, 1271, 1673, 7686). And by "Bashan" the external of the church, thus the natural, was signified, for Bashan was outside the land of Canaan where the church was.

On this account the bed of Og is described, which would not have been described unless such things had been signified by "Og;" for whatsoever is mentioned in the Word, even in the historical Word, is significative as to every expression. From this it is that the Word is spiritual in each and every particular, and therefore Divine from inmosts to ultimates. On this account, also, it is said that the bed was "of iron," that it was "in Rabbah of the sons of Ammon," and that "nine cubits was the length thereof, and four cubits the breadth of it, after the cubit of a man." For "iron" signifies what is natural (See below, n. 176; "Rabbah of Ammon" signifies the falsifications of truth (See Arcana Coelestia 2468); and "nine cubits the length thereof, and four cubits the breadth of it," signifies the conjunction of evil and falsity.

[9] From this it can be seen what the Word is in its bosom. Because "bed" signifies doctrine, it was among the statutes in the church with the sons of Israel:

That every bed whereon he that hath the issue lieth should be unclean; and that the man who touched his bed should wash his clothes, and bathe himself in waters (Leviticus 15:4-5).

"Having the issue" signifies those who are in natural love, separate from spiritual love; "washing the clothes, and bathing himself in waters," signifies purification by the truths of faith (See The Doctrine of the New Jerusalem 202-209). Because "Jacob" in the Word signifies the external church, which is with those who are in natural light, and who live a moral life from the obedience of faith, though not from internal affection, when "Jacob" is spoken of there is in the spiritual world above on the right side, the appearance of a man lying in a bed; therefore in the Word it is said of him when he was dying:

When Jacob had made an end of charging his sons, he gathered up his feet upon his bed and expired (Genesis 49:33).

It is said "he gathered up his feet upon the bed," because "feet" also signify the natural (See Arcana Coelestia 2162, 3147, 3761, 3986, 4280, 4938-4952).

Poznámky pod čarou:

176. Verse 27.And He shall rule them with an iron rod, signifies that He is about to chastise evils by means of truths that are in the natural man. This is evident from the signification of "ruling," as being to chastise, for it is added that "He would shiver them as pottery vessels," and the evils which are signified are chastised by means of truths. It is evident also from the signification of "an iron rod," as being truths that are in the natural man; a "rod" or "staff" signifies the power by which chastisement is effected; and "iron" truths in the natural man which chastise. (That a "rod" or "staff" is power, see Arcana Coelestia, n. 4013, 4015, 4876, 4936, 6947, 7011, 7026, 7568, 7572; that it is for this reason that kings have a scepter, which is a short staff, n. 4581, 4876.)

"Iron" signifies truths in the natural man, because metals, as well as the other things of the earth, by correspondence signify things spiritual and celestial, all of which have reference to truths and goods. "Gold" signifies the good of the internal man; "silver" its truth; "copper" or "brass" the good of the external or natural man; "iron" its truth. For this reason the ages were called by the ancients after the names of the metals, namely, Golden, Silver, Copper, and Iron; the Golden Age from the most ancient men, who lived in the good of love; the Silver Age from the ancients after them who lived in truths from that good; the Copper Age from their posterity who were in external or natural good; the Iron Age from the posterity of these who were in natural truth alone without good. Natural truth is truth in the memory, not in the life; truth of life is good. (But more about this correspondence in the work on Heaven and Hell, n. 104, 115.)

[2] The successive states of the church, even until the coming of the Lord, are meant by the "gold," the "silver," the "brass," and the "iron," of which the statue seen by Nebuchadnezzar in a dream was composed, which is thus described in Daniel:

His head was good gold, his breast and his arms silver, his belly and his thighs brass, his legs iron, his feet part iron and part clay. A stone was cut out of the rock, and it smote the image upon his feet that were iron and clay, and brake them to pieces. Whereas thou sawest the feet partly of potter's clay and partly of iron, it signifies that the kingdom shall be divided; the kingdom shall be partly strong, and partly broken. Whereas thou sawest the iron mixed with miry clay, they shall mingle themselves by the seed of man; but they shall not cleave one to another, even as iron doth not mingle with clay (Daniel 2:32-34, 41-43).

By "the head which was good gold," the first state of the church is meant, when men were in the good of love to the Lord; by "the breast and arms which were silver," the second state of the church is meant, when they were in truths from that good; by "the belly and thighs which were of brass," the following third state of the church, when they were no longer in spiritual good but in natural good, for "brass" signifies natural good; by "the legs which were of iron," the fourth state of the church is meant, when natural good was no more, but truth only; but by "the feet which were of iron and clay," the last state of the church is meant when there are both truth and falsity, truth in the Word and falsity in doctrine; when the truths of the Word are falsified, and doctrine is drawn from truths falsified, the state of the church is "partly iron and partly clay," thus the kingdom is "partly strong and partly broken." "The kingdom" here is the church; it is therefore called also "the kingdom of God." That truths are thus mixed with falsities, but still they do not cohere, is meant by these words, "Whereas thou sawest the iron mixed with miry clay, they shall mingle themselves by the seed of man; but they shall not cleave one to another, even as iron doth not mingle with clay." "The seed of man" is Divine truth, which is in the Word. (That this is signified by "seed," see Arcana Coelestia 3038, 3373, 10248, 10249; that "man" signifies the Lord, from whom is the Word, and also signifies the church, see n. 768, 4287, 7424, 7523, 8547, 9276.) That "potter's clay" signifies the falsities that are in the natural man, will be seen in the following article n. 177. By "the stone cut of the rock," which "smote the image upon his feet," the Lord by means of Divine truth is meant, and the destruction of falsities not cohering with truths from the Word. (That a "stone" is truth, and that "the stone of Israel" is the Lord in respect to Divine truth, see Arcana Coelestia 643[1-4], 1298, 3720, 6426, 8609, 10376; that "rock" likewise signifies the Lord, 8581, 10580, and in the small work on The Last Judgement, n. 57.) Because "iron" signifies truths in the natural man, "the feet of the statue" were seen to be "of iron," for "feet" signify the natural (See Arcana Coelestia 2162, 3147, 3761, 3986, 4280, 4938-4952).

[3] Like things are signified by "gold," "silver," "brass," and "iron," in these words in Isaiah:

For brass I will bring gold, for iron I will bring silver, for woods brass, and for stones iron (Isaiah 60:17).

"To bring gold for brass" means celestial good for natural good; "silver for iron" means celestial truth for natural truth; "brass for woods, and iron for stones," means natural good and truth in great abundance like that of woods and stones. Here the state of the celestial church is treated of. (That "iron" signifies truth in the natural man, see Arcana Coelestia 425, 426.)

[4] These passages are cited that it may be known what is meant by the "iron rod," namely, the power whereby the Lord chastises the evils and disperses the falsities that are in the natural man; for a "rod" or "staff" signifies power (as was said above), and "iron" signifies truths in the natural man. The Lord chastises evils and disperses falsities by means of truths in the natural man, because all evils and the falsities therefrom have their seat in the natural man, and none in the spiritual or internal man. The internal man does not receive evils and falsities, but is closed against them. And as all evils and falsities have their seat in the natural man, they must needs be chastised and dispersed by means of such things as are there, which are truths in the natural man. Truths in the natural man are knowledges and cognitions, from which man can think, reason, and conclude naturally respecting the truths and goods of the church, and the falsities and evils which are opposed to these, and can consequently be in some natural illustration when he reads the Word. For the Word in the letter is not understood without illustration; and illustration is either spiritual or natural. Spiritual illustration is only with those who are spiritual; and the spiritual are those that are of the good of love and charity and in truths therefrom; while mere natural illustration is with those who are natural (See in the work on Heaven and Hell 153, 425, 455; and above, n. 140. Moreover, those who are spiritual have, whilst they live in the world, illustration in the natural; but this springs from illustration in the spiritual; for with them the Lord flows in through the spiritual or internal man into the natural or external, and thus illustrates it, from which enlightenment man can see what is true and good, and what is false and evil, and when he sees that, the Lord scatters the evils and the falsities that are in the natural man, by means of the truths and goods that are also there and that make one with the goods and truths in the spiritual or internal man (See in The Doctrine of the New Jerusalem, on sciences and knowledges, what they effect, n. 51, and on Influx, n. 277, 278).

[5] From this it can now be seen what is signified by "the iron rod," with which the Lord is to rule the nations, that is, chastise the evils that are in the natural man. These things are said to the angel of this church, because in what is written to this angel the internal and external man and their conjunction are treated of; for when the internal and the external or the spiritual and the natural are conjoined, the Lord chastises the evils and falsities that are in the natural man, and this by means of the knowledges of truth and good. But with those with whom the internal and external man are not conjoined, evils and falsities cannot be chastised and scattered, since they receive nothing from heaven through the spiritual man, but all things they receive are from the world; and these their rational favors, and supplies confirmations. Things similar to those here signified by "the iron rod" are also signified in the following passages.

In David:

Thou shalt bruise [the nations] with an iron scepter; as a potter's vessel Thou shalt dash them in pieces (Ps. 2:9).

In Isaiah:

He shall smite the land with the rod of His mouth, and with the breath of His lips shall He slay the wicked (Isa. 11:4).

In Revelation:

The woman brought forth a male, a son, who is to rule all nations with an iron rod (Rev. 12:5).

Out of the mouth of the One sitting on the white horse went forth a sharp sword, that with it He should smite the nations; for He shall rule them with an iron rod (Rev. 19:15).

In Micah:

Arise, O daughter of Zion; for I will make thine horn iron, and I will make thy hoofs brass, that thou mayest beat in pieces many peoples (Micah 4:13).

The "daughter of Zion" is the celestial church; "horn" is power in the natural man; "hoofs" are the ultimates there, called sensual scientifics; hence it is evident what is signified by "making the horn iron, and the hoofs brass." (That the "daughter of Zion" is the celestial church, see Arcana Coelestia, n. 2362, 9055; that "horn" is the power of truth from good in the natural man, n. 2832[1-15], 9081, 9719, 9720, 9721, 10182, 10186; and that "hoofs" are the knowledges of the sensual man, which are truths in the ultimate of order, n. 7729.)