606. Verse 5. And the angel whom I saw standing upon the sea and upon the earth, signifies the Lord, to whom all things of heaven and the church are subject. This is evident from the signification of "the angel coming down from heaven," as being the Lord (See above, n. 593); and from the signification of "standing upon the sea and upon the earth," as being to whom all things of heaven and the church are subject (See also above, n. 600, since "standing upon them" signifies that they are subject to Him. Thus in David:

Thou madest Him to have dominion over the works ¹ of Thy hands; Thou hast put all things under His feet (Psalms 8:6).

This is said of the Lord; His dominion over all things of heaven and the church is meant by "all things are put under His feet." And in Isaiah:

I will make the place of My feet honorable (Isaiah 60:13).

"The place of the Lord's feet" in a general sense means all things of heaven and the church, since the Lord as a sun is above the heavens; but in a particular sense "the place of His feet" signifies the church, for the Lord's church is with men in the natural world, and the natural is the lowest, into which the Divine closes, and upon which it as it were subsists. This is why the church on the earth is also called "the footstool of the Lord," as in the same:

The earth is My footstool (Isaiah 66:1; Matthew 5:35).

Also in Lamentations:

He hath cast down from the heavens unto the earth the splendor of Israel, and doth not remember His footstool (Lamentations 2:1).

And in David:

We will come into His tabernacles, we will bow down at His footstool (Psalms 132:7).

This is said of the Lord, and "His footstool" signifies the church on the earth.

[2] From this it can be seen that "to stand upon the sea and upon the earth" signifies in reference to the Lord that all things of heaven and the church are subject to Him. But "sea and earth upon which He set His feet," signify in particular the lowest heaven and the church on earth, as has just been said; for the higher parts of the body belonging to an angel signify the higher heavens, because they correspond to them; for the inmost heaven corresponds to the head, and the middle heaven to the breast down to the loins, and the ultimate heaven to the feet, but the church on the earth to the soles of the feet, consequently the church is meant by "His footstool." From this correspondence it can be concluded what the "angel (by whom is meant the Lord) standing upon the sea and upon the earth" represented in general and in particular, namely, that He represented the universal heaven; for the Lord is heaven, and His Divine Human forms heaven to an image of itself. This is why the whole heaven is in the sight of the Lord as one man, and corresponds to all things of man, therefore heaven also is called the Greatest Man. (Respecting this see what is said in the work on Heaven and Hell 59-102.)

Poznámky pod čarou:

343. 'A shepherd of the flock' means someone who practises good flowing from charity. Anyone can know this, for it is a recurrent feature of the Old Testament and of the New. He who leads and teaches is called the Shepherd, those who are led and taught are called the flock. One who does not lead to good flowing from charity, and does not teach that good is not a true shepherd; and one who is not being led to good and learning it is not the flock. Really it is superfluous to confirm from the Word that this is the meaning of the Shepherd and flock; but even so let the following be referred to: In Isaiah,

The Lord will give rain for your seed with which you sow the ground, and bread of the produce of the ground. On that day, He will pasture your cattle in a broad grassland. Isaiah 30:23.

Here 'bread, the produce of the ground' means charity. In the same the prophet, The Lord Jehovih will pasture His flock like a shepherd; He will gather the lambs into His arm, and will carry them in His bosom: He will gently lead those that are with young. ¹ Isaiah 40:11.

In David,

Harken, O Shepherd of Israel, leading Joseph like a flock. You who are seated on the cherubim, shine forth. Psalms 80:1.

In Jeremiah,

I have likened the daughter of Zion to one comely and delicately bred. Shepherds and their flocks will come against her; they will pitch their tents near her round about; they will pasture each in his own space. Jeremiah 6:2-3.

In Ezekiel,

The Lord Jehovah has said, I will multiply them like the flock of mankind, like the flock of holy things, like the flock of Jerusalem, in her appointed seasons. Thus will the deserted cities be filled with the flock of mankind. Ezekiel 36:37-38.

In Isaiah,

The whole flock of Arabia will be gathered to you, the rams of Nebaioth will minister to you. Isaiah 60:7

Those who lead the flock to the good of charity are those who 'gather the flock together', but those who do not lead to such good are those who scatter it, for all bringing together and unity is the product of charity, while all scattering and disunity result from the lack of it.

Poznámky pod čarou: