538. The "abyss" signifies the hells where and from which are falsities, because those hells where the falsities of evil have rule appear like seas, in the depths of which is the infernal crew, which is in the falsities of evil. These hells appear like seas because falsities continually flow out from them, and falsities appear like waters; this is why "waters" in the Word also signify falsities. Moreover, from the waters themselves the quality of the falsity there is known, for falsities are of many kinds, as many as there are evils. Falsities that are from grievous evils appear over those hells like dense and black waters, and falsities from the evil of the love of self like ruddy waters, the density and color making evident the kind of falsity. It must be remembered that in the spiritual world truths also appear like waters, but like limpid and pure waters. This is because there are three degrees of man's life, as there are three heavens. Those in whom the third degree is opened are in an atmosphere pure like ether; those who are in the third or inmost heaven are in such an atmosphere; those in whom only the second degree is opened are in an atmosphere as it were aerial; those who are in the second or middle heaven are in such an atmosphere: but those in whom the first degree only is opened are in a kind of watery, rare, and pure atmosphere; those who are in the first or ultimate heaven are in such an atmosphere. This is because interior perceptions and thoughts, as being more perfect, correspond to a purity of atmosphere like that in which they are, for they pour themselves forth from every angel and still more from every angelic society, and present a corresponding sphere, which sphere is manifested in a purity like that of the perceptions and thoughts of the angels, that is, of their intelligence and wisdom. This sphere appears, as has been said, like an atmosphere, like an ethereal atmosphere in the inmost heaven, like an aerial atmosphere in the middle heaven, and like a rare watery atmosphere in the ultimate heaven. This makes evident that a kind of watery atmosphere corresponds to natural thought and perception, but a rare watery atmosphere corresponds to spiritual-natural thought and perception in which are the angels of the ultimate heaven; but a dense watery atmosphere, approaching either to black or ruddy, corresponds to natural thought in which there is nothing spiritual, and natural thought in which there is nothing spiritual those have who are in the hells where falsities prevail, for all who are there are merely natural and sensual. (That man has three degrees of life, like the three heavens, and that they differ in purity, see in the work on Heaven and Hell 33, 34, 208, 209, 211.) This makes evident why such hells are called in the Word "seas" and "abysses," "seas" because they appear like seas, and "abysses" from their depth.

[2] That "seas," "depths," and "abysses" signify the hells where and from which are the falsities of evil, can be seen in the following passages of the Word. In Moses:

Pharaoh's chariots and his army hath He cast into the sea. The abysses have covered them; they went down into the depths like a stone. From the wind of Thy nostrils the waters were piled up, the floods stood upright as a heap, and the abysses were congealed in the heart of the sea (Exodus 15:4, 5, 8).

This is from the song of Moses respecting Pharaoh and his army after they were drowned in the Sea Suph. "Pharaoh and his army" signifying those who are in falsities from evil, and the "Sea Suph" the hell where those falsities are; from which it is evident that "the abysses covered them" signifies that the hells covered them. (What the rest signifies in the spiritual sense, see Arcana Coelestia 8272-8279, and 8286-8289, where it is explained.)

[3] These things have a like signification in David:

He rebuked the Sea Suph that it might be dried up, and He led them through the abysses as in the wilderness. The waters covered his ¹ adversaries (Psalms 106:9, 11).

In Isaiah:

Art Thou not He who dried up the sea, the waters of the great abyss; who made the depths of the sea for a way that the redeemed might pass over? (Isaiah 51:10, 15).

Who divided the waters before them, who led them through the abysses like a horse in the wilderness; they stumbled not (Isaiah 63:12, 13).

The "sons of Israel" before whom the Sea Suph was dried up, and through which, when dried up, they passed safely, mean all who are in truths from good, whom the Lord protects, lest the falsities of evil that continually rise up from the hells should harm them; this is the meaning of "He dried up the sea, the waters of the great abyss," and of "He made its depths for way that the redeemed might pass over," also of "He led them through the abysses;" for falsities that are exhaled from the hells, consequently the hells, continually surround man (for it is the same whether you say falsities from the hells, or the hells), but the Lord continually disperses them with those who are in truths from good from Him; so this is what is signified by "drying up the sea," and "leading them through the abysses." Those who are in truths from good from the Lord are meant by the "redeemed."

[4] "To dry up the abyss" and "to make dry the rivers" have the same signification in Isaiah:

Jehovah saith to Jerusalem, Thou shalt be inhabited; and to the cities of Judah, Ye shall be built, and I will raise up the waste places thereof; saying to the abyss, Be dry; and I will make dry thy rivers (Isaiah 44:26, 27).

"Jerusalem" signifies the Lord's church, and "the cities of Judah" signify the goods and truths of doctrine; the restoration of the church and of doctrine is signified by "to be inhabited" and "to be built;" the dispersion of evils and falsities that are from the hells and protection from them, are signified by "drying up the abyss and making dry the rivers" (as above).

[5] The same is signified in Zechariah:

Israel shall pass through the sea of distress, and shall smite the waves in the sea, and all the depths of the river shall be dried up; and the pride of Assyria shall be cast down, and the staff of Egypt shall depart (Zechariah 10:11).

That those who are protected by the Lord in truths from good shall live, although falsities from the hells encompass them, is signified by "Israel shall pass through the sea and shall smite the waves in the sea, and all the depths of the river shall be dried up," for "Israel" means those who are in truths from good; the "sea" signifies hell and all falsity therefrom; the "waves of the sea" signify reasonings from falsities against truths; "to dry up all the depths of the river" signifies to disperse all the falsities of evil, even the deeper, the "river Nile" signifying false knowledge [scientificum]; therefore it follows "the pride of Assyria shall be cast down, and the staff of Egypt shall depart," "Assyria" signifying reasoning from falsities against truths, and "Egypt" knowledge [scientificum] applied to confirm falsities; "the pride of Assyria which shall be cast down" signifies self-intelligence from which comes reasoning; and "the staff of Egypt which shall depart" signifies the power that is added to reasoning by knowledges that are applied for confirmation.

[6] In Ezekiel:

In the day when he shall go down into hell, I will cause to mourn, I will cover the abyss over him (Ezekiel 31:15).

This is said of Pharaoh and Assyria; and "Pharaoh" has a similar signification as "Egypt," namely, knowledge destroying the truth of the church by application to falsities, and "Assyria" signifies reasoning from falsities; that those who are such are cast down into hell, where such falsities and reasonings from falsities are, is signified by "he shall go down into hell, and shall be covered with the abyss;" from which it is evident that the "abyss" means the hell where and from which are the falsities of evil.

[7] In Micah:

God will turn back, He will have compassion upon us, He will subdue our iniquities, and He will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea (Micah 7:19).

Because "the depths of the sea," the same as "abysses," mean the hells where and from which are evils and falsities, it is said, "He will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea."

[8] In Ezekiel:

When I shall make thee a desolate city like the cities that are not inhabited; when I shall make the abyss to come up against thee, and many waters shall cover thee; then will I make thee to go down with them that go down into the pit, to the people of an age, and I will make thee to dwell in the land of the lower parts, in the desolations from an age, with them that go down into the pit, that thou have no habitation (Ezekiel 26:19, 20).

This is said of Tyre, which signifies the church in respect to the knowledges of truth and good, or in respect to the truths of the natural man, for the truths of the natural man are the knowledges of truth and good; this treats of the vastation of the church in respect to these; to make Tyre "a desolate city, like the cities that are not inhabited," signifies its doctrine without truths, and like the doctrines that are without good, for the truths of doctrine without good are not truths, since all truths are of good; "to make the abyss to come up against Tyre, that many waters may cover her," signifies immersion in falsities from hell in great abundance, the "abyss" meaning hell, and "many waters" falsities in great abundance; "with them that go down into the pit, to the people of an age," signifies to those in hell who were there from the most ancient church just before the flood; these are called "the people of an age, because they were from ancient time, and were, above others, in direful falsities. This shows what is signified by "making to dwell in the land of the lower parts, in the desolations from an age, with them that go down into the pit, that thou have no habitation," "to have no habitation" signifying here not to be in any truths, because not in good, for such do not dwell in houses but in pits.

[9] Like things are signified in Zechariah:

Behold, Jehovah ² will impoverish Tyre, and smite her wealth in the sea; and she herself shall be devoured by fire (Zechariah 9:4).

"To smite her wealth in the sea" signifies to cast falsities into hell, "the sea" meaning the hell in which are the falsities of evil, and "wealth" meaning the falsities themselves.

[10] In Ezekiel:

Those that despise thee have brought thee into many waters; the east wind hath broken thee in the heart of the seas. Thy riches, thy tradings, thy merchandise, thy mariners, and thy pilots, they that caulked thy chinks, and they who trade thy trading, and all thy men of war that are in thee, and in all thine assembly which is in the midst of thee, shall fall into the heart of the seas in the day of thy fall (Ezekiel 27:26, 27).

This treats of Tyre, and is said of her ships, which signify the knowledges of good and truth, or the truths of the natural man that they acquire and trade in, but here they mean falsities; "the heart of the seas in which the east wind hath broken her, and into which they shall fall in the day of her fall," has a similar signification as the "abyss," namely, the hell from which are the falsities of doctrine; "the east wind" meaning influx out of heaven, and the "day of her fall" the Last Judgment. "Riches" signify falsities; "tradings and merchandise" the acquisition and communication of falsities; "mariners" signify those who minister, and "pilots" the religious leaders who lead and teach; "men of war" those who defend, and "the assembly" false doctrinals.

[11] In Jonah:

Out of the belly of hell have I cried; Thou hast heard my voice. Thou hadst cast me into the depth, even into the heart of the seas; and the river was round about me; all Thy billows and Thy waves passed over me. The waters enclosed me about even to the soul; the abyss encompassed me round about, the sedge was wrapped about my head. I went down to the cuttings off of the mountains; the bars of the earth are upon me forever; yet Thou hast made my life to come up out of the pit (Jonah 2:2, 3, 5, 6).

The Lord teaches in Matthew (Matthew 12:39, 40; 16:4; Luke 11:29, 30), that Jonah's being in the whale three days and three nights represented that the Lord would thus be in the heart of the earth; and these words of Jonah describe the Lord's direful temptations. And because it is by the overflow of evils and falsities that come up out of hell, and as it were overwhelm, that temptations exist, it is said that "out of the belly of hell he cried," and that "he was cast into the depth, even into the heart of the seas," which signifies hell; "the river and the waters that enclosed him," and "the billows and waves that passed over," signify the evils and falsities from hell; "the abyss that encompassed round about," signifies the hells where and from which are the falsities; "the cuttings off of the mountains to which he went down," signify the hells where and from which are evils; that the Lord was as it were bound by these is signified by "the sedge wrapped about the head," and "the bars of the earth that were upon him," "wrapped by sedge" signifying to be bound as it were by falsities, and "the bars of the earth" signifying to be bound as it were by evils; victory over these from His own power is signified by "yet hast Thou made my life to come up out of the pit." It is said, "Thou hast made to come up," but in reference to the Lord this means that He made Himself to come up by His Divine, that is, by His own power.

[12] The following passages in David have a like signification:

Abyss calleth unto abyss at the voice of Thy waterspouts; all Thy breakers and Thy waves have passed over me (Psalms 42:7).

The waters are come even to my soul. I have sunk in mire of depths, there is no standing; I have come into depths of waters, and the billow overwhelms me. Deliver me out of the mire, and let me not sink; let me be delivered from them that hate me, and out of the depths of waters. Let not the flood of waters overwhelm me, and let not the pit shut her mouth upon me (Psalms 69:1, 2, 14, 15).

In the same:

Return, quicken me; return and make me to come up out of the depths of the earth (Psalms 71:20).

In the same:

I have been counted with them that go down into the pit; neglected among the dead, like the slain that lie down in the grave, whom Thou rememberest no more; and from Thy hand they are cut off. Thou hast laid me in the pit of the lower parts, in dark places, in the depths (Psalms 88:4-6).

These passages in David describe the Lord's temptations when He was in the world, by which He subjugated the hells and glorified His Human; "waves" and "billows" signify evils and falsities; and "abysses" and "depths of the sea," likewise "the pit" signify the hells where and from which are evils and falsities; for as was said above, temptations are like immersions in the hells and obsessions by evils and falsities. This is signified by the lamentations in David in many places, and also in the Prophets; for in the spiritual sense of the Word there is much that treats of the Lord's temptations by which He subjugated the hells and arranged all things in order in the heavens and in the hells, and by which He glorified His Human; these things are especially meant in Luke (Luke 24:44) by the things predicted "in the Prophets and in the Psalms of David," respecting the Lord, and fulfilled by Him.

[13] "The abyss" and "the sea" and "its depths" also signify the hells in the following passages. In Jeremiah:

Flee ye, they have turned themselves away, they have cast themselves down into the deep, the inhabitants of Dedan, and of Hazor (Jeremiah 49:8, 30).

In the same:

The sea has come up upon Babylon; she is covered with the multitude of the waves thereof (Jeremiah 51:42).

In Amos:

The Lord Jehovih hath made me to see; and behold, the Lord Jehovih calleth to devour ³ by fire; it hath devoured the great abyss (Amos 7:4).

In David:

The waters saw Thee, O God, the waters saw Thee, they were afraid; the abysses also trembled (Psalms 77:16).

In the same:

We will not fear when the earth shall be changed, and when the mountains shall be moved in the heart of the sea; the waters thereof shall be in tumult, shall be made turbid (Psalms 46:2, 3).

In Moses:

On the same day were all the fountains of the great abyss broken up, and the floodgates of heaven were opened (Genesis 7:11).

And again:

The fountains also of the abyss and the flood gates of heaven were stopped (Genesis 8:2).

In Job:

Where shall wisdom be found? and where is the place of intelligence? Man knoweth not the price thereof. The abyss saith, It is not in me; and the sea saith, It is not with me (Job 28:12-14).

In the same:

Hast thou entered into the weepings of the sea, and hast thou walked in search of the abyss? Have the gates of death been revealed unto thee, and hast thou seen the gates of the shadow of death? (Job 38:16, 17).

In the Gospels:

Whoso shall cause one of these little ones that believe in Me to stumble, it is profitable for him that an ass-millstone be hanged about his neck, and that he be sunk in the depths of the sea (Matthew 18:6; Mark 9:42; Luke 17:2).

The demons that had possession of the man besought Jesus that He would not command them to depart into the abyss, therefore He suffered them to enter into the swine (Luke 8:31, 33; Matthew 8:31, 32).

And in the following passages of Revelation:

The beast that came up out of the abyss and made war (Revelation 11:7).

The beast that thou sawest was and is not, and is about to come up out of the abyss (Revelation 17:8).

I saw an angel coming down out of heaven, having the key of the abyss, and a great chain upon his hand. And he bound the dragon a thousand years, and cast him into the abyss (Revelation 20:1-3).

In these passages, also, "the abyss" and "the depth of the sea" signify the hell where and from which are the falsities of evil; for the reason that the evil spirits who are there, and who while they lived as men in the world were in the falsities of evil, seem to dwell as it were in the bottom of the seas, and this the more deeply according to the grievousness of the evil from which was their falsity.

[14] As "abysses" signify the hells, where and from which are falsities, so "abysses" signify also the ultimates of heaven, where and from which are the knowledges of truth, which are the truths of the natural man. This is because the ultimates of heaven appear to be in waters, but such as are limpid and clear; for, as was said above, the atmosphere of the highest heaven is like an ethereal atmosphere, that of the middle heaven like an aerial atmosphere, and that of the lowest heaven like a watery atmosphere; this is like a watery atmosphere because the truths with those who are in it are truths of the natural man, and the atmosphere of the natural man is as it were watery. This is what gives rise to the appearances of rivers, lakes, and seas, in the spiritual world; consequently "seas" signify also cognitions and knowledges [cognitiones et scientifica] in general, or in the whole complex (See above, n. 275, 342).

[15] "Abysses" also have a like signification in the following passages. In Moses:

Jehovah thy God bringeth thee to a good land, a land of rivers of waters, of fountains and abysses going forth from valley and mountain (Deuteronomy 8:7).

(This may be seen explained above, n. 518.) In the same:

God will bless Joseph with the blessings of heaven from above, with the blessings of the abyss that coucheth below (Genesis 49:25; Deuteronomy 33:13). (This, too, is explained above, n. 448.)

In David:

By the word of Jehovah were the heavens made; and all the hosts ⁴ of them by the breath of His mouth. He gathered the waters of the sea together as a heap; He giveth the abysses in storehouses (Psalms 33:6, 7). (See above, n. 275), where this is explained.)

In the same:

Thou hast covered the earth with the abyss as with a garment (Psalms 104:6). (See above, n. 275.)

In the same:

Praise Jehovah from the earth, ye whales and all abysses (Psalms 148:7).

"Abysses" in these passages signify the ultimates of heaven, in which are spiritual-natural angels.

In Ezekiel:

The waters made thee ⁵ to grow, the abyss made it high (Ezekiel 31:4). (See also above, n. 518.)

[16] Furthermore "abysses" signify Divine truths in abundance and the arcana of Divine wisdom. Thus in David:

He clave the rock in the desert, and made them to drink out of great abysses (Psalms 78:15).

In the same:

Jehovah, Thy righteousness is like a great abyss (Psalms 36:6; also elsewhere).

Poznámky pod čarou:

2588. 'Abraham's wife' means, in order that spiritual truth might be joined to celestial good. This is clear from the representation of 'Sarah when a wife' as spiritual truth joined to celestial good, dealt with in 1468, 1901, 2063, 2065, 2172, 2173, 2198, 2507, and from the representation of 'Abraham' as celestial good joined to spiritual truth, dealt with in 2010, 2172, 2198, 2501. Whether you say spiritual truth and celestial good, or whether you say the Lord, it amounts to the same, for the Lord is truth itself and good itself, and also the marriage itself of truth and good and of good and truth. These matters may indeed be seen from the explanation given, yet as they belong among those things that are obscure at the present day, let them be illustrated so far as possible. The subject here is the doctrine of faith, about which doctrine the Lord thought when He was a boy; that is to say, He gave thought to whether it was permissible to enter into that doctrine by means of rational conceptions and in that way form ideas for Himself regarding it. This way of thinking was a product of His love and concern for the human race, who are such that they do not believe anything which is not grasped in a rational manner by them. But He perceived from the Divine that one ought not to enter into doctrine that way, and therefore He revealed such doctrine to Himself from the Divine and at the same time also all things in the universe that are subordinate to it, that is, all things of a rational kind, and all those of a natural kind.

[2] People's attitudes to matters of doctrine regarding faith have been spoken of above in 2568. There it was stated that there are two basic attitudes of mind from which people think, the negative and the affirmative; also that they think from a negative attitude who believe nothing unless they are convinced by rational considerations and by facts, and indeed by sensory evidence, whereas those people think from an affirmative attitude who believe that things are true because the Lord has said so in the Word and who thus have faith in the Lord. People who adopt the negative attitude towards the truth of anything in the Word say in their hearts that they are willing to believe when persuaded on rational grounds and by facts. But these are such as never believe, not even indeed if they were convinced by means of the evidence of their own physical senses of seeing, hearing, and touch; for they would always be producing new reasonings against such things, and in so doing they would at length completely destroy all faith and at the same time would turn the light of the rational into darkness, because they would turn it into falsities. People however who adopt the affirmative attitude, that is, who believe that things are true because the Lord has said so, are being confirmed all the time by rational considerations and by facts, and even by sensory evidence, and their ideas are being enlightened and are strengthened by these; for light comes to man through no other channel than the rational ideas and the factual knowledge which he possesses. This is so with everyone. With those who have the affirmative attitude of mind doctrine is certainly living, and of them it is said that they are healed and give birth. But with those who have the negative attitude doctrine certainly dies, and of them it is said that the womb is completely closed. All this shows what it is to enter the doctrine of faith by means of rational ideas, and what it is to enter into rational ideas from the doctrine of faith.

[3] Let these differences be illustrated by examples: The Word teaches that the first and foremost matter of doctrine is love to the Lord and charity towards the neighbour. People with the affirmative attitude towards this are able to enter into whatever things of a rational, factual, and indeed sensory kind they please, each according to his ability, knowledge, and experience. Indeed the more they do so the more they are confirmed, for the whole natural order is full of what is confirmatory. But people who deny this first and foremost teaching, and who wish first of all to be convinced by means of factual and rational considerations that a thing is true, never allow themselves to be convinced because they deny in their hearts and are all the time taking their stand on some other basic idea which they believe to be essential. In the end through confirmations of that idea these people so blind themselves that they cannot even know what love to the Lord is and what love towards the neighbour is. And because they confirm themselves in notions contrary to such love they at length also confirm themselves in the idea that no other kind of love can exist that has any delight in it except self-love and love of the world. And this they do to such an extent - if not in doctrine yet in the lives they lead - that they embrace hellish love in place of heavenly love.

[4] But with those who as yet have adopted neither a negative attitude nor an affirmative one but are in a state of doubt that precedes either of these, the position has been stated above in 2568. There it was shown that those who incline towards a life of evil fall into the negative attitude, whereas those who incline towards a life good are brought into the affirmative one. Take a different example: One of the leading ideas of the doctrine of faith is that all good comes from the Lord and all evil from man or self. People with the affirmative attitude that this is so are able to confirm themselves by many rational ideas, and by facts, such as that no good can possibly flow in except from Good itself, that is, from the fountain of good, and so from the Lord, and that good cannot have its first beginnings anywhere else. Such people find these ideas enlightened for them by all things which are truly good within themselves, within others, within society in general, and indeed within the whole of creation. But people with the negative attitude confirm themselves by everything they can possibly think of in ideas to the contrary, so much so that at length they do not know what good is. And disputing among themselves as to what the highest good is, they are profoundly ignorant of the fact that it is by means of celestial and spiritual good from the Lord that every type of good beneath it is made living, and that the delight flowing from it is truly delight. Some also imagine that if good does not come from themselves it cannot possibly come from any other source.

[5] Take another example: Those who are governed by love to the Lord and charity towards the neighbour are able to receive the truths of doctrine and to have faith in the Word, but not so those leading a life of self-love and love of the world. Or what amounts to the same, those governed by good are able to believe but not those governed by evil. People with the affirmative attitude of mind are able to confirm this in countless ways - with rational ideas and factual knowledge. With rational ideas they are able to confirm that truth is compatible with good but not with evil, and that as all falsity resides in evil it is also the product of evil, and that if any people governed by evil nevertheless possess any truth, this is on their lips, not in their heart. And with factual knowledge they are able to confirm from many points of view that truths put evils to flight and that evils detest truths. But people with the negative attitude confirm themselves in the idea that everyone, irrespective of what he is like in character - even if he leads a life for ever hating, taking delight in revenge, and practicing deceit - is able to believe as others are able to do so. Yet while holding to this idea they themselves totally reject goodness of life from doctrine, and having rejected it believe nothing whatever.

[6] To make the matter plainer still, take yet another example: Those who adopt the affirmative attitude that the Word has been written in such a way as to have an internal sense that is not apparent in the letter are also able in many ways to confirm themselves through rational considerations, such as the following,

By means of the Word man has a link with heaven.

Correspondences exist of natural things with spiritual, though the spiritual are not very apparent.

The ideas which belong to interior thought are completely different from the material ideas which fall into the words of spoken language. While man is in the world he is able to be in heaven (for he has been born for life in both places) through the Word which is intended for both places.

With some people a certain Divine light flows into the things of the understanding and into the affections when the Word is being read.

It is necessary that something be written which has come down from heaven and thus that the nature of its existence in its origins cannot be the same as its existence in the letter.

It cannot be holy except from a certain holiness which it has within it.

A person with the affirmative attitude is also able to confirm himself by means of certain facts, such as the following,

In former times people were living in an age of representatives. The writings of the Ancient Church contained such representatives, and those of many authors among the gentiles were composed of them, so that in the Churches that style of writing was regarded as being holy, and among the gentiles as being learned (books by many of those authors could also be mentioned).

But people who adopt the negative attitude, though they do not deny all these considerations and facts, nevertheless do not believe them. They persuade themselves that the Word is such as it exists in the letter, where indeed it presents a worldly appearance, but is nevertheless spiritual. They do not have any interest however in where that spiritual element lies, but for a multitude of reasons still want it. And that of which they are persuaded they are able to confirm in many ways.

[7] To present this matter in a way that can be grasped by ordinary people, let the following known fact serve as an example: Those with the affirmative attitude that sight does not belong to the eye but to the spirit which sees objects in the world by means of the eye as an organ of its own body can find confirmation of this fact in many ways. For instance, those people may find confirmation of it in their hearing of words spoken by another, in that these spoken words ally themselves to a certain interior sight, into which those words are converted - something that could not possibly occur but for the existence of that interior sight. These people may also find confirmation of the same in the consideration that whatever they think about is seen with an interior sight, by some more clearly and by others more obscurely, as well as in the consideration that the things produced by their imagination are not unlike actual objects of sight. They may find a further confirmation in the consideration that unless it were the spirit within the body that saw the things taken in by the eye as the organ of sight, the spirit would be unable to see anything in the next life, when in fact it is destined to behold countless and astonishing sights which the eye of the body cannot possibly see. In addition confirmation may be found by these people by reflecting on how in dreams, especially those of the prophets, many things have likewise been seen, yet not with the eyes. Finally, if trained in philosophy, a person may find confirmation in the consideration that things which are more exterior cannot enter into those that are more interior, just as that which is compound cannot enter into that which is simple, so that things of the body cannot enter into those of the spirit; only the reverse is possible. Besides these many other confirmations might be introduced, till at length a person is persuaded that sight belongs to the spirit, and not to the eye except from the spirit. But people with the negative attitude either speak of everything of this kind as that which is natural and physical, or else they speak of it as that which is imaginary. And when they are told that a spirit possesses and enjoys far more perfect sight than man does in the body, they laugh at the idea and dismiss it as nonsense, for they believe that they will be living in darkness when they are deprived of the sight of the eye. But in fact quite the reverse is the case in that they then dwell in the light.

[8] These examples show what it is to enter into things of a rational and factual nature from truths, and what it is to enter into truths from things of a factual and rational nature. The first method of approach is according to order, but the second is contrary to it; and when a person acts according to order he is enlightened, but when he acts contrary to order he is made blind. This makes plain how important it is for people to know and believe truths, for truths enlighten man, but falsities make him blind. Truths open up to the rational a vast and practically unlimited field, whereas falsities provide scarcely any such opening up at all, though this is not very evident. The reason why angels have so much wisdom is that they are enveloped in truths, truth being the light itself of heaven.

[9] Those who have made themselves blind through refusing to believe anything which they do not perceive with the physical senses, till at length they have no belief at all, were in former times called 'serpents belonging to the tree of knowledge'. For they reasoned much from things as perceived by the senses and from the resulting illusions which man accepts and believes all too easily, and by such reasoning they led very many astray, see 195, 196. In the next life they are easily distinguished from other spirits by the fact that in everything which is a matter of faith they reason whether it is so. And if it is demonstrated to them a thousand times, and then another thousand, that it is so they still advance doubts of a negative kind against every confirmation that is offered, and this they would go on doing for ever. They are so blinded therefore that they are lacking in common sense, that is, they are unable to grasp what good and truth are. Yet every one of them imagines that he is wiser than anyone else in the whole universe, making wisdom consist in being able to dispose of what is Divine and to derive the origin of things from what is natural. Many who have been considered wise men in the world are pre-eminently such as these; for the more anyone with the negative attitude of mind possesses talent and knowledge, the more insane he is, more so than all others. But the more anyone with the affirmative attitude possesses talent and knowledge the wiser he is able to become. One is not by any means forbidden to develop the rational by means of factual knowledge, but one is not allowed to use it to harden oneself against the truths of faith which belong to the Word.

[10] Much concerning these matters occurs in the internal sense of the Word, especially in prophetical sections, where the subject is Asshur and Egypt, for 'Asshur' means reasoning, 119, 1186, and 'Egypt' knowledge, 1164, 1165, 1186, 1462.

People who wish to enter into matters of doctrine regarding faith and into Divine things by means of things of a factual and of a rational nature, and who are consequently of unsound mind, are referred to in Isaiah as follows,

I will confound Egypt within Egypt, and they will fight every one against his brother, and every one against his companion, city against city, and kingdom against kingdom. And the spirit of Egypt will be emptied out in the midst of it, and I will swallow up his plans. The waters from the sea will fail, and the river will be parched and dry; and the streams will depart, and the rivers of Egypt will diminish and become parched. Reed and rush will wither away. Every seed of the river will be dry. Jehovah has mingled in the midst of her a spirit of perversity, and they have made Egypt err in all its work, as a drunken man errs in his vomit. Isaiah 19:2-3, 5-7, 14.

In the same prophet,

Woe to the rebellious children, who depart to go down into Egypt but have not asked at My mouth, to strengthen themselves in the strength of Pharaoh, and to trust in the shadow of Egypt. And the strength of Pharaoh will be shame for you, and trust in the shadow of Egypt ignominy. Isaiah 30:1-3.

In the same prophet,

Woe to those who go down into Egypt for help and rely on horses and trust in chariots because they are many, but do not look to the Holy One of Israel and do not seek Jehovah. And Jehovah will stretch out His hand; he who gives help will stumble, and he who is helped will fall, and they will all be destroyed together. And Asshur will fall by a sword, not of man; and a sword, not of man, will devour him. Isaiah 31:1, 3, 8.

In Jeremiah,

My people have committed two evils; they have forsaken Me, the fountain of living waters, to hollow out pits for themselves, broken pits which do not hold water. Is not Israel a slave? If he is a home-born [servant], why has he become a prey? Are you not bringing this on yourself by forsaking Jehovah your God at a time when He is leading you in the way? And now, what have you to do with the way to Egypt, to drink the waters of Shihor, or what have you to do with the way to Asshur, to drink the waters of the River? O generation, see the Word of Jehovah! Have I been a wilderness for Israel? or a land of darkness? For what reason have My people said, We will be our own masters, we will not come to You any more? Why do you go off so forcefully to change your way? You will also be put to shame by Egypt, as you were put to shame by Asshur. Jeremiah 2:13-14, 17-18, 31, 36.

In the same prophet,

Hear the word of Jehovah, O remnants of Judah, Thus said Jehovah Zebaoth, the God of Israel, If you surely set your faces to come into Egypt, and you enter to sojourn there, then it will be, that the sword of which you are afraid will overtake you there in the land of Egypt, and the famine of which you are terrified will cleave to you there in Egypt, so that you die there. And all the men (vir) who have set their faces to come into Egypt to sojourn there will die by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence, and none of them will survive or escape from before the evil which I am bringing over you. Jeremiah 42:15-17, and following verses.

In Ezekiel,

And let all the inhabitants of Egypt know that I am Jehovah, because they have been a staff of reed to the house of Israel. When they grasp you with the hand, you will be broken, and you will tear for them every shoulder; and when they lean on you you will be broken, and you will make all their loins to be at a stand. Therefore thus said the Lord Jehovih, Behold, I am bringing a sword over you, and I will cause man and beast to be cut off from you; and the land of Egypt will be a desolation and a waste, and they will know that I am Jehovah, for [Egypt] has said, The river is mine, and I made it. Ezekiel 29:6-9, and following verses.

In Hosea,

Ephraim was like a silly dove. They called on Egypt, they went away to Asshur. When they go I will stretch My net over them. Woe to them, for they have strayed away from Me! Hosea 7:11-13.

In the same prophet,

Ephraim feeds the wind, and pursues the east wind. All the day long he multiplies lies and devastation and they make a covenant with Asshur, and oil is carried down into Egypt. Hosea 12:1.

In the same prophet,

Israel has committed whoredom beneath its God. You have taken delight in hiring yourself out on every threshing-floor. Ephraim will return to Egypt, and in Asshur they will eat what is unclean. For behold, they have gone away on account of the devastation, Egypt will gather them, Moph ¹ will bury them; the nettle will possess their precious things of silver, the thorn will be in their tents. Ephraim has been stricken, their root has dried up, they will bear no fruit. Even when they bring forth I will slay the beloved fruits of their womb. My God will cast them away because they have not hearkened to Him, and they will be wanderers among the nations. Hosea 9:1, 3, 6, 16-17.

In Isaiah,

Woe to Asshur, the rod of My anger, and he is the staff, in their hand, of My indignation! He does not think what is right and his heart does not consider what is right, for it is in his heart to destroy, and to cut off nations not a few, for he says, Are not my princes at the same time kings? I will visit upon the fruit of the stout heart of the king of Asshur, for he has said, By the strength of my hand I have done it, and by my wisdom, for I have intelligence, and I will remove the boundaries of peoples and will plunder their treasures, and as a powerful man will cast down the inhabitants. Therefore the Lord, the Lord Zebaoth, will send leanness among his fat ones, and instead of his glory a burning of fire will be kindled. Isaiah 10:5, 7-8, 12-13, 16.

[11] In all these places 'Asshur' means reasoning, as has been shown, 'Egypt' and 'pharaoh' mean knowledge, and 'Ephraim' the understanding part of the mind. These and many other places elsewhere describe what man's rational comes to be like when he reasons about the truths of faith from the negative attitude of mind. Similar teaching is embodied in the incidents recorded in Isaiah 36, 37, when the Rabshakeh was sent from the king of Asshur and spoke out against Jerusalem and king Hezekiah, and the angel of Jehovah at that time struck down in the camp of the king of Asshur one hundred and eighty-five thousands. Those descriptions mean the disarray into which all that constitutes man's rationality is thrown when he reasons against Divine things, however much he may seem to himself at that time to be wise.

[12] Such reasoning is also referred to in various places as 'whoredom committed with the sons of Egypt and with the sons of Asshur', as in Ezekiel,

You committed whoredom with the sons of Egypt, your neighbours, great in flesh, and multiplied your whoredom. And you committed whoredom with the sons of Asshur, and were still not satisfied. Ezekiel 16:26, 28; 23:3, 5-21.

See 2466.

[13] People however who enter into things of a rational and factual kind from the doctrine of faith and by so doing are made wise are referred to in Isaiah as follows,

On that day there will be an altar to Jehovah in the midst of the land of Egypt, and a pillar to Jehovah at its border; and it will be for a sign and a witness to Jehovah Zebaoth in the land of Egypt, for they will cry out to Jehovah because of the oppressors, and He will send a saviour and prince to them, and He will deliver them. And Jehovah will make Himself known to Egypt, and the Egyptians will know Jehovah on that day and will offer sacrifice and minchah, and will make a vow to Jehovah and perform it. Isaiah 19:18-21.

In the same chapter,

On that day there will be a highway from Egypt to Asshur, and Asshur will come into Egypt, and the Egyptians will serve Asshur. ² On that day Israel will be the third with Egypt and Asshur, a blessing in the midst of the earth, whom Jehovah Zebaoth will bless, saying, Blessed be Egypt My people, and Asshur the work of My hands, and Israel My heritage. Isaiah 19:23-25.

This is referring to the spiritual Church, of which Israel is the spiritual element, Asshur the rational, and Egypt the factual. These three constitute all the intellectual powers of that Church, which come in that order one after another. This explains why it is said, 'On that day Israel will be the third with Egypt and Asshur', and 'blessed be Egypt My people, Asshur the work of My hands, and Israel My heritage'.

[14] In the same prophet,

It will be on that day, that a great trumpet will be blown, and they will come - those who are perishing in the land of Asshur, and those who are outcasts in the land of Egypt - and they will bow themselves down to Jehovah on the holy mountain, in Jerusalem. Isaiah 27:13.

In the same prophet,

Thus said Jehovah, The labour of Egypt, and the wares of Cush and of the Sabaeans, men of stature, will come over to you and will be yours. They will follow after you and bow down to you. To you they will make the supplication, God is with you only; and there is no other besides God. Isaiah 45:14.

'Cush and the Sabaeans' are cognitions, 117, 1171. In Zechariah,

Egypt will go up to Jerusalem to worship the King, Jehovah Zebaoth. Zechariah 14:17-18.

In Micah,

As for me, I look to Jehovah, I wait for the God of my salvation; my God will hear me. The day for building your walls, this is the day; and they will come even to you from Asshur and the cities of Egypt even to the River. Micah 7:7, 11-12.

[15] In Ezekiel,

Thus said the Lord Jehovih, At the end of forty years I will gather Egypt from the peoples among whom they were scattered, and I will bring back the captivity of Egypt. Ezekiel 29:13-14.

In the same prophet,

Behold, Asshur was a cedar in Lebanon, beautiful in its branches, and a shady forest, and lofty in height, and its trunk among entangled boughs. The waters caused it to grow, with its streams going around the place of its planting, and he sent out his lines of water to all the trees of the field. Therefore its height was made higher than all the trees of the field, and its branches were multiplied, and its branches were made long by many waters. In its branches all the birds of the air made their nests, and under its branches every wild animal of the field gave birth, and in its shadow dwelt all great nations. And it became beautiful in its greatness, in the length of its branches, for its root was in many waters. The cedars did not hide it in the garden of God, the fir trees were not equal to its branches. No tree in the garden of God was equal to it in its beauty. I made it beautiful in the mass of its branches, and all the trees of Eden which are in the garden of God envied it. Ezekiel 31:3-9.

Here the Most Ancient Church, which was celestial, is described as to the nature of its rational and so of its wisdom and intelligence, for that Church used to look at things below from those which were Divine. Thus it looked at truths from goods themselves, and then from truths at what was subsidiary to these. By 'Asshur' and 'a cedar' are meant the rational, by 'entangled boughs among which were its branches' is meant factual knowledge, by 'streams' and 'waters' are meant spiritual goods, among which was its 'root', by 'the height and the length of the branches' the extent of it, by 'the garden of God' the spiritual Church, and by 'the trees of Eden' perceptions. This and the other places quoted above show what man's rational is like and what his factual knowledge is like when they are subordinate to Divine truths and serve these by confirming them.

[16] The fact that things of a rational and factual kind serve people who have the affirmative attitude of mind as a means for making them wise was represented and meant by the command to the children of Israel to seek from the Egyptians the loan of vessels of gold and vessels of silver, and clothing, Exodus 3:22; 11:2; 12:35-36. Something similar is meant by what is said in various places in the Word about their possessing the goods, houses, vineyards, and olive-groves, and many other things, of the nations, and also by references to the very gold and silver itself seized from the nations becoming holy, as in Isaiah,

Jehovah will visit Tyre, and she will return to hiring herself out as a harlot, and will commit whoredom with all the kingdoms of the earth on the face of the ground. And its merchandise and its harlot's hire will become holy to Jehovah; it will not be stored or hoarded, for its merchandise will be for them that dwell before Jehovah to eat to satisfaction and for ancient clothing. Isaiah 23:17-18.

'The merchandise of Tyre' stands for cognitions, 1201, which to those with the negative attitude of mind are like 'a harlot's hire' but to those with the affirmative attitude are like that which is holy. Something similar is also meant by the Lord's words,

Make friends for yourselves out of the mammon of unrighteousness, so that when you fail they may receive you into eternal habitations. If then you have not appeared faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will entrust to you the true? Luke 16:9, 11.

Poznámky pod čarou: