274. And there were seven lamps of fire burning before the throne, which are the seven spirits of God, signifies Divine truth itself united to Divine good, proceeding from the Lord's Divine love. This is evident from the signification of "seven" as being all things in the complex; also from the signification of "lamps burning with fire before the throne," as being Divine truth united to Divine good proceeding from the Lord's Divine love; for "lamps" signify truths; therefore "seven lamps" signify all truth in the complex, which is the Divine truth; and "fire" signifies the good of love; and since the lamps were seen "burning before the throne" upon which the Lord was, it is signified that truth is from the Lord. As "the seven spirits of God" signify all truths of heaven and the church from the Lord (See Apocalypse Explained above, n. 183, therefore it is said, "which are the seven spirits of God."

(That "seven" signifies all, see above, n. 256 that "fire" signifies the good of love, see Arcana Coelestia 934, 4906, 5215, 6314, 6832, 10055)

[2] That "lamps" signify truths, which are called the truths of faith, can be seen from the following passages in the Word.

In David:

Thy Word is a lamp to my feet, and a light to my path (Psalms 119:105).

The Word is called a "lamp" because it is Divine truth. In the same:

Thou makest my lamp to shine; Jehovah God maketh bright my darkness (Psalms 18:28).

"To make a lamp to shine" signifies to enlighten the understanding by Divine truth; and "to make bright the darkness" signifies to disperse the falsities of ignorance by the light of truth.

In Luke:

Let your loins be girded about, and your lamps shining (Luke 12:35).

The "loins" to be girded signify the good of love (See Arcana Coelestia 3021[1-8], 4280, 4462, 5050-5052, 9961); and "lamps shining" signify the truths of faith from the good of love.

[3] In Matthew:

The lamp of the body is the eye; if the eye be good the whole body is light, if the eye be evil the whole body is darkness. If, therefore, the light be darkness, how great is the darkness (Matthew 6:22-23).

The eye is here called "lucerna," that is, a lighted lamp, because the "eye" signifies the understanding of truth, and therefore the truth of faith; and as the understanding derives its all from the will (for such as the will is, such is the understanding), so the truth of faith derives its all from the good of love; consequently when the understanding of truth is from the good of the will the whole man is spiritual, which is signified by the words, "if the eye be good the whole body is light;" but the contrary is true when the understanding is formed out of the evil of the will; that it is then in mere falsities is signified by the words, "If thine eye be evil the whole body is darkened. If, therefore, the light be darkness, how great is the darkness."

(That "the eye" signifies the understanding, see above, n. 152; and that "darkness" signifies falsities, Arcana Coelestia 1839, 1860, 3340, 4418, 4531, 7688, 7711, 7712.) He who does not know that "eye" signifies the understanding does not apprehend at all the meaning of those words.

[4] In Jeremiah:

I will take away from them the voice of joy and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride, the voice of the millstones and the light of the lamp (Jeremiah 25:10).

"To take away the voice of joy and the voice of gladness" signifies to take away the interior felicity that is from the good of love and the truths of faith; "to take away the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride" signifies to take away all conjunction of good and truth, which makes heaven and the church with man; "to take away the voice of the millstones and the light of the lamp" signifies to take away the doctrine of charity and faith. (What is signified by "millstone" and "grinding," see Arcana Coelestia 4335, 7780, 9995, 10303.)

Likewise in Revelation:

And the light of a lamp shall shine no more in Babylon; and the voice of the bridegroom and of the bride shall be heard no more there (Revelation 18:23).

In Isaiah:

Her ² salvation as a lamp that burneth (Isaiah 62:1); signifying that the truth of faith should be from the good of love.

In Matthew:

The kingdom of heaven is like ten virgins, who took their lamps and went forth to meet the bridegroom. The five foolish took their lamps, but no oil; but the five prudent took oil also. When, therefore, the bridegroom came, the prudent went in to the wedding, but the foolish were not admitted (Matthew 25:1-12).

"Lamps" here signify the truths of faith, and "oil" the good of love. What the rest of this parable signifies may be seen above n. 252, where the particulars are explained.

3340. Existing as the opposite of that light is thick darkness, and as the opposite of that warmth is coldness. Within that thick darkness and that coldness dwell those in hell. Their thick darkness is the product of the falsities in which they are immersed, and their coldness the product of evils. And the further away they are from truths the thicker is their darkness; and the further away they are from good the more intense is their coldness. When one is allowed to see into the hells where such beings exist the very dark mist in which they live is visible. And when there is any exhalation from that mist the insane ideas flowing from falsities, and the forms of hatred from evils, are detected. They are also provided sometimes with a light, but this is the feeble light from an ignis fatuus, which however goes out on them and becomes thick darkness as soon as they look at the light of truth. In addition they are sometimes provided with warmth, but this warmth is like that of a filthy bathhouse, which however turns into coldness with them as soon as they detect any hint of good. A certain spirit was sent into that dark mist which envelops those in hell so that he might discover for himself what it is like with those who are there. But the Lord protected him by means of angels. From there he spoke to me and said that the maniacal rage against what is good and true, and above all against the Lord, was so great that he was astounded that it could ever be withstood. For those in hell were breathing out nothing else but all kinds of hatred, revenge, and murder, and doing so with such vehemence that they wanted to destroy everybody throughout the universe. Consequently if the Lord was not constantly driving back that rage the entire human race would perish.