893. Verse 12. Here is the patience of the saints, signifies the persecutions and temptations of those who are not in that faith, but in charity. This is evident from the signification of "patience," as being temptations (See above, n. 813). That persecutions also are meant will be seen below. Also from the signification of "saints" as being those who are in truths from good (See n. 204, thus who are in charity, for these are in truths from good; they are in faith also; but they know that charity and faith act as one, like good and truth, or like will and understanding, or like affection and thought; and because these act as one, faith with them is charity; for whatever comes into the thought from charity, since it is of charity, is in its essence charity, although as to its existence it is called faith. For nothing can exist in the thought except what is from some affection and thus belongs to affection, for this is like the esse, and thus is the life and soul of thought. It is similar with charity and faith; from which it follows that there can be no faith except from charity, also that the faith is altogether such as the charity is. (But more about this elsewhere.)

[2] The persecutions of those who are in charity by those who are in faith separated from charity are not such at this day as cause them to be banished and cast out from the assemblages of the Christian world, but only to be reviled and condemned by those who are in faith alone. For no one can be banished and cast out in any kingdom who lives well, and who declares that to live well is necessary to salvation, since this is in complete agreement with the Word, and since everyone sees from rational light that he ought to live well; and yet such are condemned by those who are in faith alone as not saved because of merit in good works, and because such works are not good because they are from self, and for other reasons by which they confirm justification and salvation by faith alone. This is more evident with those who belong to the Moravian sect, who above all others are defenders of faith separated, and who condemn those who in their life give thought to doing good from religion as not being alive but utterly dead, and declare that all such are cast out of heaven. Those who do not belong to that sect, but to churches where works are rejected as means of salvation, do not thus blaspheme although they think wrongly about such, especially those who confirm themselves in many ways by writings or by preachings or by reasonings in the doctrine of justification by faith alone. These persecutions are what are here meant by "patience," and also in chapter 12 of Revelation by:

The dragon standing before the woman who was about to bring forth, that when she brought forth he might devour her offspring; and afterwards he persecuted the woman, and cast out after her, out of his mouth, water as a river, that he might cause her to be swallowed up by the river; also the dragon was angry against the woman, and went away to make war with the remnant of her seed who keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ (Revelation 12:4, 15, 17).

Also what is said about the beast (Revelation 13:5-7, 15). That such suffer persecutions on account of their acknowledgment and confession of the Divine Human in the Lord will be seen in what follows.

[3] But in respect to temptations, which are also meant here by "patience," there are spiritual temptations which those undergo who receive genuine charity from the Lord; for such must fight against the evils that are in every man from birth, and some must fight against the falsities that they have imbibed from childhood from masters and preachers respecting faith alone. These falsities and evils are removed by the combats of temptations. This is what is meant by the "cross" in the following passages:

Jesus said, He that doth not take up his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me (Matthew 10:38; Luke 14:27).

Jesus said to His disciples, If anyone will come after Me let him deny himself, take up his cross, and follow Me (Matthew 16:24; Mark 8:34; Luke 9:23).

In these passages the "cross" means temptations, and "to follow the Lord" means to acknowledge His Divine and to do His commandments. That this is the meaning of "following the Lord" may be seen above (n. 864). The "cross" means temptations because the evils and the falsities therefrom that cling to man from his birth infest and thus torment those who are natural when they are becoming spiritual. And as those evils and their falsities that infest and torment can be dispersed only by temptations, temptations are signified by the "cross." Therefore the Lord says, that "they must deny themselves and take up their cross," that is, that they must reject what is their own, "their cross" meaning what is man's own [proprium], against which he must fight.

[4] Again:

Jesus spake to the rich man who asked Him what he should do to inherit eternal life. Jesus said to him, Thou knowest the commandments: Thou shalt not commit adultery; Thou shalt not kill; Thou shalt not steal; Thou shalt not bear false witness; Thou shalt not defraud; Honor thy father and mother. He answered and said unto Him, All these things have I observed from my youth. Jesus looked upon him and loved him; yet He said unto him, One thing thou lackest; go, sell whatsoever thou hast and give to the poor; so shalt thou have treasure in the heavens; and come, follow Me, taking up the cross (Mark 10:17-21).

Here "to follow the Lord and to take up the cross" have the same signification as above, namely, to acknowledge the Lord's Divine, and the Lord as the God of heaven and earth; for without that acknowledgment no one can abstain from evils and do good except from self and as meritorious good, for the good that is good in itself and that is not meritorious good is solely from the Lord; consequently he cannot be saved unless the Lord is acknowledged, and it is acknowledged that all good is from Him. And yet before anyone can act from the Lord he must undergo temptations, for the reason that the internal of man, by which he is conjoined with heaven, is opened by means of temptations. And because no one can do the commandments apart from the Lord, therefore the Lord said, "Yet one thing thou lackest; sell all that thou hast and follow Me, taking up the cross;" that is, the Lord must be acknowledged and temptations must be endured. That "he should sell all that he had and give to the poor" signifies in the spiritual sense that he should alienate and cast away from himself what is his own [proprium], thus it has the same signification as "denying oneself" in the passages quoted above; and "to give to the poor" signifies in the spiritual sense to do the works of charity. The Lord said this to him because he was rich; and "riches" signify in the spiritual sense the knowledges of good and truth, and with this man, who was a Jew, the knowledges of evil and falsity, since they were traditions. From this it can be seen that the Lord, here as elsewhere, spake by correspondences.

[5] Again, temptations are signified by the "cup" of which they were to drink:

Jesus said unto James and John, Ye know not what ye ask. Are ye able to drink the cup that I drink, and to be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with? They said unto Him, We are able. And Jesus said to them, The cup that I drink ye shall indeed drink, and with the baptism that I am baptized with shall ye be baptized; but to sit on My right hand or on My left is not Mine to give, but for whom it hath been prepared (Mark 10:38-40).

"To drink the cup that the Lord drank" has the same signification that the "cross" has above, namely, to undergo temptations; and "the baptism with which the Lord was baptized" signifies to be regenerated by temptations. But between the cup which the Lord drank and the cup which they are to drink there is the same difference as between the temptations of the Lord and the temptations of men. The temptations of the Lord were most grievous, and against all the hells; for the Lord subjugated all the hells by means of the temptations admitted into Himself; but the temptations of men are against evils and falsities that are from the hells with them, and in these the Lord and not man himself fights, except against certain painful feelings. There is a like difference between the baptism with which the Lord was baptized and the baptism with which men are baptized as there is between glorification and regeneration. By means of temptations the Lord glorified His Human by His own power, but men are regenerated, not by their own power but by the Lord; for "baptism" signifies to be regenerated by temptations, but the Lord's baptism signifies the glorification of His Human by temptations. (That "baptism" signifies regeneration and also temptations may be seen in The Doctrine of the New Jerusalem, n.187-193 seq.; and that the Lord glorified His Human and made it Divine, as He regenerates man and makes him spiritual, may be seen in the Arcana Coelestia 1725, 1729, 1733, 3318, 3381, 3382, 4286.)

864. These are they that follow the Lamb whithersoever He goeth, signifies those who have been joined to the Lord by the acknowledgment of His Divine Human, and by a life according to His commandments. This is evident from the signification of "the Lamb," as being the Lord as to the Divine Human (See above, n. 314); also from the signification of "following Him whithersoever He goeth," as being to acknowledge His Divine and to do His commandments. "To follow the Lord" has a similar signification as "to go or to walk after Him." That "to go or walk after the Lord," signifies to acknowledge, to obey, and to act and live from Him and with Him, may be seen above n. 787. This is the signification of "following the Lord," because no one can follow the Lord from self, but only from the Lord Himself. For the Lord draws after Him the man who from freedom wills to follow; but He can draw no one who does not will to follow Him. For the Lord so operates with man that man may follow Him as if of himself; thus does the Lord flow into man's freedom; and this He does for the sake of the reception and implantation of truth and good with man and consequent reformation and regeneration. For unless it appeared to man that he followed the Lord as if of himself, that is, acknowledged His Divine and did His commandments as if of himself, there would be no appropriation and conjunction, and thus no reformation and regeneration. For everything enters into the man and becomes as if it were his own that man receives in freedom, that is, as if of himself, whether it be what he thinks and speaks or what he wills and does as if of himself. And yet man ought to believe, as the matter really is in itself, that he does these things not from himself but from the Lord; and this is why it is said that he must act not of himself but as if of himself. Another reason for this is that man has no perception of the Lord's operation into his will and into his thought therefrom; for man knows nothing about his conjunction with angels; consequently he supposes that whatever he wills and thinks he wills and thinks from himself; therefore he cannot know otherwise than that this is done by himself; and yet all good flows in, that which he thinks, that which he wills, and that which he consequently does. And as he knows this from the doctrine of the church, namely, that all good is from God, he ought to believe that he does not do good of himself, although he does it as if of himself. This is meant by what the Lord taught in Mark:

So is the kingdom of God as if a man should cast seed upon the earth, and should then sleep and rise night and day, and the seed should spring and grow up he knoweth not how (Mark 4:26, 27).

And in John:

A man can receive nothing unless it be given him from heaven (John 3:27).

And in the same:

He that abideth in Me and I in him, the same beareth much fruit; for without Me ye can do nothing (John 15:5).

[2] To acknowledge the Lord's Divine Human and to do His commandments is to follow Him, because only those who do this can be conjoined to the Lord. That everyone is conjoined to the Lord according to the acknowledgment and confession of Him from the heart and according to the life, can be seen from this, that all the angels of heaven acknowledge no other Divine than the Divine of the Lord, and all angels of the heavens live according to the laws of order, which are His commandments, that is, they live in the Divine that proceeds from the Lord, which is called the Divine truth. Because they so live they live in a heavenly aura, or in a heavenly ether, into which none can be admitted except those who are in life from the Lord. If any others were to enter into that ether it would be like letting mice into a pipe out of which the air has been exhausted.

[3] All this makes clear what is signified in the spiritual sense by "following the Lord whithersoever He goeth." "To follow Him" has the same signification in the following passages. As in John:

Jesus said, I am the light of the world; he that followeth Me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life (John 8:12).

"I am the light of the world" signifies that He is the Divine truth itself; "he that followeth Me" signifies he that acknowledges His Divine and does His commandments; "shall not walk in darkness" signifies that he shall not be in falsities; "but shall have the light of life" signifies that he shall be in Divine truths, which teach man eternal life and lead to heaven. Here evidently "to follow the Lord" does not mean to follow Him, but to acknowledge His Divine and obey Him.

[4] In the same:

When the Shepherd of the sheep hath led forth His own sheep He goeth before them and the sheep follow Him, for they know His voice; but a stranger they do not follow, but flee from him, for they know not the voice of strangers. My sheep hear My voice, and I know them and they follow Me (John 10:4, 5, 27).

Here, "to follow the Lord" means to acknowledge His Divine and to obey Him; for it is said, He goeth before His own sheep and the sheep follow Him and know and hear His voice; "to know and hear the Lord's voice" signifies to do His commandments.

[5] In the Gospels:

Whosoever wills to come after Me let him deny himself and follow Me (Matthew 16:24; Mark 8:34; Luke 9:23).

Evidently "to go after the Lord and to follow Him" is to deny self; and to deny self is to be led not by self but by the Lord; and he denies self who shuns and turns away from evils because they are sins; and when man turns away from evils he is led by the Lord; for he does the Lord's commandments, not from self but from the Lord. "To follow the Lord" has the same signification elsewhere (as in Matthew 19:21, 28; Mark 2:14, 15; 3:7, 8; 10:21, 28, 29; Luke 18:22, 28; John 12:26; 13:36, 37; 21:19-22).

[6] All this makes clear that to "follow the Lord" is to be led by Him and not by self; and only those who are not led by self can be led by the Lord; and everyone is led by self who does not shun evils because they are contrary to the Word and thus contrary to God; consequently because they are sins and are from hell. Everyone who does not thus shun and turn away from evils is led by self; and for the reason that the evil that is in man by heredity constitutes his life, because that is his own [proprium]; and until such evils have been removed man does all things from them, thus from self. But it is otherwise when evils have been removed, which is done when he shuns them because they are infernal; then the Lord enters with truths and goods from heaven, and leads him. The chief reason is that every man is his own love; and man, as to his spirit, which lives after death, is nothing else than the affection which is of his love, and all evil is from his love, and thus belongs to his love; from which it follows that a man's love or affection is reformed only by a spiritual shunning of evils and turning away from them, which is shunning them and turning away from them because they are infernal. From all this it can now be seen what it is "to follow the Lord whithersoever He goeth."