A "house" is essentially a container -- for a person, a family, several families or even a large group with shared interests (think of the term "houses of worship.") In the Bible, a "house" is also a container, but for spiritual things rather than natural things. In various uses a "house" can represent part of the mind, the whole mind, a whole person or even a church. The other nuance to the word "house" is that it is generally used in regards to our affections and desires rather than our thoughts and principles. This makes sense; we tend to engage our thoughts and rationality when we are out in the world doing our work, but when we are inside our houses we are driven most by love for our families and the desire to be good to those we love. So "house" tends to represent the things we want and care about -- which are ultimately the things that define us.

8934. Verses 24-26 An altar of soil ¹ you shall make for Me, and shall sacrifice on it your burnt offerings and your eucharistic offerings, your flocks and your herds; in every place where I shall put the memory of My name I will come to you and bless you. And if you make for Me an altar of stones, you shall not build it with hewn ones; for if you move your chisel over it you will profane it. And you shall not go up to My altar by steps, in order that your nakedness may not be revealed on it.

'An altar of soil you shall make for Me' means something which in a general way represents worship that springs from good. 'And shall sacrifice on it your burnt offerings and your eucharistic offerings' means worship in particular according to each person's state of spiritual life. 'Your flocks and your herds' means forms of good, internal and external. 'In every place where I shall put the memory of My name' means the state of faith in the Lord with each individual person. 'I will come to you and bless you' means God's presence at that time, and influx. 'And if you make for Me an altar of stones' means a representative kind of worship in general that is composed of truths. 'You shall not build it with hewn ones' means that it must not be a product of self-intelligence. 'For if you move your chisel over it' means if a product of the proprium or self. 'You will profane it' means that no worship in that case exists. 'And you shall not go up to My altar by steps' means not raising themselves to more internal levels, that is, celestial ones. 'In order that your nakedness may not be revealed on it' means the mental picture of those things, which in that event is full of falsities, will then be disclosed.

Poznámky pod čarou: