8819. 'And Mount Sinai was smoking, the whole of it' means the appearance of celestial good in the greatest obscurity. This is clear from the meaning of 'Mount Sinai' as celestial good, as immediately above in 8818; and from the meaning of 'smoking' as appearance in obscurity. Obscurity is used to mean the obscurity of faith such as those belonging to the spiritual Church possess when compared with those belonging to the celestial Church, 2708 (beginning), 2715, 2718, 2831, 2935, 2937, 3241, 3833, 6289. The greatest obscurity, meant by 'Mount Sinai was smoking, the whole of it' and by the statement just below that 'its smoke went up like the smoke of a furnace', means the obscurity that clouded the understanding of the Israelite nation, before whom the appearance took place. For Jehovah or the Lord appears to everyone according to their true nature, 8788, 8814, so that He appears as love and the light of truth to those governed by good, but as an enemy and avenger to those ruled by evil. His appearance as such to the Israelite people is also clear from other places in Moses,

The appearance of the glory of Jehovah was like a devouring fire on the top of the mountain, before the eyes of the children of Israel. Exodus 24:16-17.

In the same author,

You came near and stood at the foot of ¹ the mountain, and the mountain was burning with fire even to the heart of heaven; there was darkness and cloud and thick darkness. And Jehovah spoke to you out of the midst of the fire. Deuteronomy 4:11-12; 5:22.

And in the same author,

It happened, when you heard the voice out of the midst of the darkness, and the mountain was burning with fire, that you came near to Me and said, Why should we die? For this great fire will devour us; if we hear the voice of Jehovah our God any more we shall die. Deuteronomy 5:23-25.

[2] The reason why this should be so is that no person can help seeing God from such things as are present in himself. The person who is ruled by hatred, for example, sees Him from hatred; and one who is ruled by ruthlessness sees Him in ruthlessness. And on the other hand, the person who is governed by charity and mercy sees Him from these virtues and in them. It is like rays of light, which are converted into hideous colours when they fall on hideous forms, but into beautiful colours when they fall on beautiful forms. The meaning of 'smoke' as the obscurity of truth, and also as the thick darkness belonging to falsity, is clear in Isaiah 9:18-19; 34:9-10; Joel 2:30-31; Hosea 13:1, 3; Revelation 9:17-18; 18:2, 18; 19:3.

Poznámky pod čarou:

3241. 'And the sons of Dedan were Asshurim, and Letushim, and Leummim' means the derivatives from the second division. This becomes clear from the representation of 'Dedan' as those governed by the good of faith, or to be precise, those governed by the truth of faith derived from good, 3240 (end). The fact that they are derivatives from the second division is self-evident. These three sons mean in particular the truths of faith derived from good, though just what each one means can indeed be stated but not confirmed from elsewhere in the Word since they are not mentioned again.

[2] In the Lord's kingdom there are countless variations to goods and truths, yet all those countless variations make up one heaven. Indeed there are so many that one community is in no sense exactly like another, that is, governed by the same good and truth, see 684, 685, 690. One heaven there is made up of many varying parts arranged by the Lord in such a way that they all accord. This accordance or harmony of the many is effected by the Lord through the relationship which each of them has to Him, 551. It is like the organs, members, and viscera of the body. None is exactly like another. Yet although they are all different from one another they nevertheless make one, through the relatedness of them all to one soul, and through this soul to heaven and so to the Lord. For anything that has no connection with the Lord is in reality nothing. From this it may be seen that specific differences in truth and good are countless. But the kinds of these, indeed the most general kinds, which belong to the spiritual Church, are meant by these sons and grandsons of Abraham by Keturah.

[3] Because members of the spiritual Church do not have perception, as those of the celestial Church do, of what good and truth are, but instead acknowledge as truths things which they have had to learn, they are therefore constantly engaged in discussion about them and in reasoning whether they are true. Everybody adheres to the teaching which his own Church upholds and calls it the truth. This is what gives rise to so many differences. Furthermore the majority make their minds up about goods and truths from appearances and illusions - each one in a different way from another. But no one does so from any perception; indeed they do not know what perception is. Since their understanding is so darkened as regards goods and truths of faith, it is no wonder that disagreements exist about the most essential truth of all, that is to say, about the Lord's Divine, His Human, and His Holy proceeding from these. Those who are celestial perceive that these are not three but one, but in the case of those who are spiritual a mental image of three remains, though they are willing to think of them as one. Since therefore disagreements exist regarding this most essential truth, it may be seen that the variations and differences in matters of doctrine are countless. From this one may know the origin of the derivatives meant by the names of those mentioned at this point. But although there are so many variations and differences in matters of doctrine, or so many derivatives, nevertheless they all together form one Church when everyone acknowledges charity to be the essential thing of the Church, or what amounts to the same, when everyone regards life as the end in view of doctrine - that is, when everyone asks, How does a member of the Church live? rather than, What does he think? For in the next life everyone is allotted a place by the Lord that accords with the good constituting his life, not with the truth he knows from doctrine separated from that good.