476. And have made their robes white in the blood of the Lamb, signifies the implantation of Divine truth from the Lord. This is evident from the signification of "making robes white," as meaning to put off falsities and to put on truths, for "white" and "to be made white," are predicated of truths, and these are signified by "robes." (That "white" and "to be made white," are predicated of truths, see above, n. 196; and that "robes" signify truths in general see above, n. 395.) It is said "made their robes white," because the garments of those who are in falsities appear in the spiritual world dusky and also spotted, and the garments of those who are in temptations appear filthy; but as soon as they emerge from temptations, as they have then been imbued with Divine truths, white and shining garments without spots appear upon them, as was mentioned just above. This is why "they have made their robes white" signifies that they have put off falsities and put on truths. The above is evident also from the signification of "the blood of the Lamb" as being Divine truth proceeding from the Lord (of which above, n. 329 e New Jerusalem 293, 294, and in the extracts there from the Arcana Coelestia.) This can be seen from this also, that the garments of angels appear glistening from what is white and bright, not from faith in and thought about the blood of the Lord on the cross, but from Divine truth with them from the Lord; for, as was said above, their garments are all in accord with the truths with them; nor is any angel permitted to think of the Lord's passion, but only of His glorification, and of the reception by Him of the Divine.); and because in temptations falsities are shaken off, and truths are implanted, so in general, "they have made their robes white in the blood of the Lamb" signifies the implantation of Divine truth from the Lord. In the sense of the letter of the Word, "the blood of the Lamb" means the passion of the cross, but in the internal or spiritual sense it means Divine truth proceeding from the Lord; for it is by this that man is purified from falsities and evils, that is, his garments are made white. The passion of the cross was the Lord's last temptation, by which He fully subjugated the hells, and glorified His Human; and when this was accomplished and completed, the Lord sent the Comforter, the Spirit of Truth, by which is meant Divine truth proceeding from His glorified Human, as the Lord teaches in John (John 7:39) and elsewhere. It is by means of Divine truth, when it is received, that man is reformed and regenerated by the Lord and saved, and not by the shedding of blood on the cross. (On this more may be seen in The Doctrine of the New Jerusalem 293-294.)

6378. 'And his garment in the blood of grapes' means that His Intellect consists in Divine Good from His Divine Love. This is clear from the meaning of 'the blood of grapes' as the good of love, and in the highest sense the Lord's Divine Good flowing from His Divine Love, dealt with below; and from the meaning of 'garment' as the intellect, for the intellect is a receiver, and what is a receiver, being a container, is like a garment. The reason why 'garment' means the intellect and why 'clothing', dealt with immediately above in 6377, means the natural is that the external was the subject there, whereas the internal is the subject here. For owing to the heavenly marriage in the Word, when the external is referred to, so also is the internal; and when truth is referred to, so also is good, see 6343. This sometimes seems to outward appearance to amount to a repetition of the same thing, as for example here where it says 'He washes his clothing in wine, and his garment in the blood of grapes .'Wine' and 'the blood of grapes' seem to describe the same thing, and so do 'clothing' and 'garment'; but they do not because what is external and what is internal are expressed in that way.

[2] The fact that 'the blood of grapes' is Divine Good from the Lord's Divine Love is evident from the meaning of 'blood' as Divine Truth proceeding from the Lord's Divine Good, referred to in 4735; and by 'grapes' in the highest sense is meant the Lord's Divine Good present with those in His spiritual kingdom, and consequently in the relative sense the good of charity, 5117. 'The blood of the grape' also has a similar meaning in the Song of Moses,

Butter from the cattle, and milk from the flock, with the fat of lambs and rams, the breed ¹ of Bashan, and of goats, with the kidney-fat of wheat, and of the blood of the grape you drink unmixed, wine. Deuteronomy 31:14.

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