9311. For in hearing thou shalt hear his voice. That this signifies instruction in the commandments of faith, and reception, is evident from the signification of “hearing,” as being to be instructed and to receive (of which below); and from the signification of “his voice,” as being the commandments of faith (see above, n. 9307). “To hear,” in the Word, signifies not merely to hear in simplicity, but also to receive in the memory and to be instructed, likewise to receive in the understanding and to believe, and also to receive with obedience and to do. That these things are signified by “hearing,” is because the speech which is heard presents itself before the internal sight, or understanding, and is thus inwardly received; and there, according to the cogency of the reasons given, or according to the powers of persuasion from some other source, what is heard is either retained, or believed, or obeyed. From this it is that in the spiritual world there is a correspondence of the ear and of hearing with such things (see n. 4652-4660, 5017, 7216, 8361, 8990).

[2] That “to hear” denotes to receive in the memory and to be instructed, also to receive in the understanding and believe, likewise to receive in obedience and do, is plain also from the following passages.

In Matthew:

I speak in parables; because seeing they see not, and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand; that in them may be fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah, which saith, By hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and shall not perceive; the heart of this people is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest haply they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart. Blessed are your eyes, for they see; and your ears, for they hear. Many prophets and righteous men have desired to see the things which ye see, but have not seen them; and to hear the things which ye hear, but have not heard them (Matthew 13:13-17);

“to hear” is here used in every sense; in that of being instructed; in that of believing; and in that of obeying. “Hearing they hear not” denotes to be taught and yet not to believe; and also to be instructed and not to obey; “to have ears dull of hearing” denotes to refuse instruction, belief, and obedience; “the ears which are blessed because they hear” denote blessedness from the reception of the doctrine of faith concerning the Lord, and through the Word from the Lord.

[3] In John:

He that entereth in by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. The sheep hear his voice. Those who were before Me were thieves and robbers; but the sheep did not hear them. Other sheep I have which are not of this fold; them also I must bring, and they shall hear My voice; and there shall be one flock, and one shepherd. My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me (John 10:2-3, 8, 16, 27);

“to hear the voice” denotes to be instructed in the commandments of faith, and to receive them with faith and obedience. The same is signified by what the Lord so often said:

He that hath an ear to hear, let him hear (Matthew 11:15; 13:9, 43; Mark 4:9, 23; 7:16; Luke 8:8; 14:35).

[4] Similar things are signified also in Matthew:

Behold a voice out of the cloud, saying, This is My beloved Son, hear ye Him (Matthew 17:5).

He that hath the bride is the bridegroom; but the friend of the bridegroom, who standeth and heareth him, rejoiceth with joy because of the bridegroom’s voice (John 3:29).

Verily I say unto you, The hour cometh when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God; and they that hear shall live (John 5:25);

“the dead” denote those who as yet have no spiritual life, by reason of ignorance of the truth of faith; “to hear the voice of the Son of God” denotes to be instructed in the truths of faith, and to obey them; “to live” denotes to be endowed with spiritual life through these truths.

[5] Again:

He that is of God heareth the words of God: for this cause ye hear not, because ye are not of God (John 8:47).

Jesus said, Everyone that is of the truth heareth My voice (John 18:37).

Abraham said to the rich man, They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them (Luke 16:29).

They said of Jesus, He hath done all things well, for He maketh the deaf to hear, and the dumb to speak (Mark 7:37);

“the deaf” denote those who do not know the truths of faith, and therefore cannot live according to them (n. 6989); “to hear” denotes to be instructed, to receive, and to obey.

In John:

When the Holy Spirit is come, He shall lead you into all truth. He shall not speak from Himself; but what things soever He shall hear, these shall He speak. He shall take of Mine (John 16:13-14);

“what things soever he shall hear” denotes whatsoever he shall receive from the Lord. In Matthew:

Everyone who heareth My words, and doeth them, I will liken him to a prudent man; but everyone that heareth these words of Mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened to a foolish man (Matthew 7:24, 26).

Everyone that cometh unto Me, and heareth My sayings, and doeth them, I will show you to whom he is like (Luke 6:47).

“To hear His words,” or “sayings,” denotes to learn and know the commandments of faith which are from the Lord; “to do them” denotes to live according to them.

4652. CONTINUATION CONCERNING CORRESPONDENCE WITH THE GRAND OR WITH HEAVEN, HERE CONCERNING THE CORRESPONDENCE OF THE HEARING AND OF THE EARS WITH THAT MAN.

What is the nature of the correspondence between the soul and the body, or between the things of the spirit which is within man and those of his body which are without him, may be plainly seen from the correspondence, influx, and communication of the thought and perception, which are of the spirit, with the speech and hearing, which are of the body. The thought of a man who is speaking is nothing but the speech of his spirit, and the perception of the speech is nothing but the hearing of his spirit. When man is speaking, his thought does not indeed appear to him as speech, because it conjoins itself with the speech of his body, and is in it; and when man hears, his perception appears merely like hearing in the ear. This is the reason why most persons who have not reflected know no otherwise than that all sense is in the organs of the body, and consequently that when these organs fall to decay by death, nothing of sense survives, whereas the man (that is, his spirit) then comes into his veriest life of sensation.

[2] That it is the spirit which speaks and hears has been made very manifest to me from conversations with spirits. Their speech communicated to my spirit fell into my interior speech, and thence into the corresponding organs, and there terminated in an endeavor which I have sometimes plainly perceived. Hence their speech was heard by me as sonorously as the speech of a man. Sometimes when spirits spoke with me in the midst of a company of men, some of the spirits supposed that as their speech was heard so sonorously, they would be heard by the other people who were there present; but they were informed that such was not the case, because their speech flowed into my ear by an internal way, and human speech flows in by an external way. This shows how the spirit spoke with the prophets-not as a man with a man, but as a spirit with a man, that is, in him (see Zech. 1:9, 13; 2:2, 7; (Zechariah 2:7) 4:1, 4-5; 5:10; 6:4 places). But I know that these things cannot be comprehended by those who do not believe that man is a spirit, and that the body merely serves this spirit for uses in this world. Those who have confirmed themselves in this unbelief are unwilling even to hear about any correspondence, and being in denial, if they do hear of it they reject it, and are rather made sad that anything should be taken away from the body.