THE EXPLANATION of Isaiah Chapter 2

(Note: Rev. Smithson's translation of the Isaiah text is appended below the explanation)

The Mountain of the Lord's House

1. THE Word which Isaiah the son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem.

2. It shall come to pass in the last days; the mountain of the house of Jehovah shall be established all the head of the mountains, and it shall be exalted above the hills: and all nations shall flow unto it.

VERSES 1-3. The Word of Jehovah upon Judah and Jerusalem; etc. - These words relate to the New Church to be established by the Lord; by the "mountain of Jehovah" which shall then be established "on the head of the mountains", is understood Zion; and by "Zion" is signified the celestial church, and love to the Lord, which is communicated to those who belong to that church. That this is the primary principle of the church, and that it shall increase and gain strength, is signified by its being "on the head of the mountains, and exalted above the hills." That they who are principled in the good of love shall acknowledge the Lord, and accede to the church, is signified by "all nations shall bow together to that mountain"; "nations" signifying those who are in celestial good, which is the good of love to the Lord; and "peoples", those who are in spiritual good, which is the good of charity towards the neighbour. Concerning these latter it is also said, "Many peoples shall go, and shall say, Come you, and let us go up to the mountain of Jehovah; to the house of the God of Jacob." That "nations" signify those who are in celestial good, and "peoples", those who are in spiritual good, see above, n. 331. Apocalypse Explained 433.

3. And many peoples shall go, and shall say, Come you, and let us go up to the mountain of Jehovah; to the house of the God of Jacob : and He will teach us of His ways; and we will walk in His paths: for from Zion shall go forth the law, and the Word of Jehovah from Jerusalem.

4. And He shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many peoples: and they shall beat their swords into ploughshares, and their spears into pruning-hooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.

5. O house of Jacob, come you, and let us walk in the light of Jehovah!

6. For You have abandoned Your people, the house of Jacob: because they are filled from the East, and are soothsayers like the Philistines; and they abound in the children of strangers.

Verses 3-5. These things are spoken concerning the advent of the Lord, and show that they who will be of His New Church are to be instructed in truths, whereby they will be led to heaven. By the "mountain of Jehovah, and the house of the God of Jacob", is signified the church in which is love to the Lord and worship from that love; convocation to that church, and thereby to the Lord is signified by "many peoples going and saying, Come you, and let us go up to that mountain"; that they will be instructed in truths, by which they will be led, is signified by "He will teach us of His ways, and we will walk in His paths"; "ways" denoting truths, and "paths" the precepts of life. That they will be taught by the doctrine of the good of love, and by the doctrine of truth from that good, which is for the church out of heaven from the Lord, is signified by "out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the Word of Jehovah from Jerusalem"; the "law out of Zion" denoting the doctrine of the good of love, and the "Word from Jerusalem." truth from that good. That then evils of life and falsities of doctrine. shall be dissipated, is signified by "He they shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many peoples"; "nations" denoting those who, are in evils, and' "peoples" those who are in falsities; thus, abstractedly, evils of life and falsities of doctrine; that then, by the consent of all, combats shall cease, is signified by "they shall beat their swords into, ploughshares, and their spears into pruning-hooks"; "swords" and "spears" denoting falsities from evils combating against truths from good, and vice versa; "ploughshares" denote the goods of the church cultivated by truths, for a "field", which is tilled by the plough, denotes the church as to the good of life;"pruning-hooks denote truths of doctrine, by reason that "trees" in gardens signify perceptions and knowledges of truth; similar things are signified by "nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more;"war" signifying combats in every complex. That they shall live a life of wisdom, is signified by "Come you, and let us walk in the light of Jehovah"; the "light of Jehovah" denoting the Divine Truth and to "walk in it", to live according thereto, thus in a life of wisdom. That "war" here signifies spiritual war, which is of falsities against truths and goods, and vice versa, and that "swords" and "spears", which are arms of war, signify such things as are used in spiritual combats, is evident, for the subject treated of is concerning the Lord, and concerning the church to be established by Him, also concerning the doctrine for that church; wherefore it is said - "He shall teach us concerning His ways, and we will walk in His paths"; likewise. - "Come you, and let us 'walk In the light of Jehovah!" Apocalypse Explained 734.

6. For You have abandoned Your people, the house of Jacob: because they are filled from the East, and are soothsayers like the Philistines; and they abound in the children of strangers.

Verse 6. Because they are filled from the East. - That by the "east", or by the "east wind", are signified, in a bad sense, those things which are of lusts and phantasies, is evident from those passages in the Word where the "east" and the "east wind" are mentioned, as in David, "He caused an east wind to blow in the heaven, and by His power He brought in the south wind; He rained flesh also upon them as dust, and fowls of wing like as the sand of the sea." (Psalm 78:26, 27)

That by "flesh", which that wind brought, is signified concupiscences or lusts, and by "fowls of wing" phantasies thence derived, is evident from Moses. (Numbers 11:31-35)

Compare also other passages, as Ezekiel 17:10; 19:12; Hosea 12:1; 13:15; Psalm 48:7; Isaiah 2:6. Arcana Coelestia 5215.

The "sons of strangers" signify those who are out of the church, and do not acknowledge the Lord; also those who are in evils and the falsities of evil, and abstractedly they denote false principles adverse to the truths of the church. Arcana Coelestia 1012, 10287.

7. And his land is filled with silver and gold, and there is no end to his treasures; and his land is filled with horses, and there is no end to his chariots.

8. And his land is filled with idols; they bow themselves down each to the work of his hands, to that which his fingers have made.

8. And his land is filled with idols; they bow themselves down each to the work of his hands, to that which his fingers have made.

Verses 7, 8. His land is filled with silver and gold, horses and chariots, and idols. - [Signifies that in such a corrupt state of the church, and of the human mind, as is here described, there may be abundance of good and truth in appearance, and also of intelligence and of doctrinals, but only in the external man, not in the internal, still less from the Lord.]

Filled with idols, etc. - In the Word we often read of "sculptured and molten images" and "idols." Those who only understand the Word as to the letter, think that only idols are understood thereby. Idols, however; are not understood thereby, but false doctrines, such as are formed by man himself, when led to do so by some selfish or worldly love. The forrnation of these false dogmas, so that they may cohere together, and appear as true, is signified by a "graven image"; and their conjunction and application to the favour of the love or desires of the external man, so that evils may appear as goods, is signified by a "molten image." This will be evident from consulting the following passages: - Isaiah 2:20; 30:22; 40:19, 20; 44:9-14. Arcana Coelestia 10406.

9. Therefore shall the [mean] man be bowed down, and the [mighty] man shall be humbled; and You will not forgive them.

10. Enter into the rock, and hide yourself in the dust, from before the terror of Jehovah, and from the glory of His majesty.

11. The eyes of man's loftiness shall be humbled; the height of men shall bow down; and Jehovah alone shall be exalted in that day.

Verses 10-21. Enter into the rock, and hide yourself in the dust, from before the terror of Jehovah, etc. - What is meant by all these things cannot possibly be understood except from the internal sense, and from a knowledge of the appearance of things in the spiritual world; for without the internal sense, who could know what is signified by "the day of Jehovah being upon the cedars of Lebanon, and the oaks of Bashan, upon the mountains and hills, upon the tower and wall, and upon the ships of Tarshish, and the images of desire"; and what is meant by "[casting the idols of his silver and gold, which each made for himself to worship], to moles and to bats"; and without a knowledge of the appearance of things in the spiritual world, who could know what is meant by "entering into the rock, and hiding themselves in the dust", "entering into the caverns of rocks, and into holes of the dust", likewise" into the caves of the rocks, and the clefts of the craggy rocks"; but, from the internal sense, it is known that by all these things is described the state of those who are in the love of self and of the world, and thence in evils and falsities at the time of the Last Judgment.

It is therefore said that "the day of Jehovah shall be upon every one that is magnificent and lofty, and upon every one that is lifted up and low", [humilem, see note]; the "day of Jehovah" denoting the Last Judgment; "every one magnificent and lofty", those who are in the love of self and the world; and the "lifted up and low", those who are in the love of self-derived intelligence. This is further described by "the day: of Jehovah being upon all cedars high and exalted, and upon all the oaks of Bashan, and upon all lofty mountains and high hills, upon every high tower and fortified wall, and upon all the ships of Tarshish, and images of desire." By the "cedars of Lebanon and the oaks of Bashan" is signified the pride of self-derived intelligence, - interior pride by the "cedars of Lebanon", and exterior pride by the "oaks of Bashan;": by the "mountains and hills" are signified the loves of self and of the world; and the evils and falsities thence derived, as was shown above, n. 405; by the "tower and wall" are signified falsities of doctrine confirmed; by the "ships of Tarshish and images of desire" are signified the knowledges and perceptions of the falsities from evils. Their worship from evils and falsities is signified by "the idols which they made for themselves to bow down to", and by "the moles and the bats"; worship grounded in such things as are from self-derived intelligence is signified by "the idols they made for themselves to bow down to; and the evils and falsities of doctrine in which their worship is grounded, are slgnIfied by "the moles and the bats", because the sight of these animals is in darkness, and they shun the light. Judgment upon them is described by "They shall enter into the caverns of rocks, and into the holes of the dust", likewise "into the caves of the rocks, and into the clefts of the craggy rocks"; and by "entering into the caverns of rocks and holes of the dust", is signified the damnation of those who are in evils and falsities originating in the love of self and of the world, and in the pride of self-derived intelligence, for the hells of such appear as "caverns in rocks", and the entrances to them as the "caves of rocks, and clefts of craggy rocks." "rocks and craggy rocks" [petrae et rupesJ also signify the falsities of faith and of doctrine, and "dust" signifies what is cursed or damned. Apocalypse Explained 410.

12. For the day of Jehovah of Hosts is upon everyone magnificent and lofty, and upon everyone that is exalted; and he shall be humbled ;

13. And upon all the cedars of- Lebanon, the high and the exalted; and upon all the oaks of Bashan ;

14. And upon all the lofty mountains, and upon all the high hills;

Verses 12-17. - By the "day of Jehovah" is understood the advent of the Lord, when the Last Judgment was accomplished by Him; that this was accomplished by the Lord, when He was in the world, may be seen in the work on the Last Judgment 46. In this passage, those within the church upon whom Judgment was executed, are recounted; by the "cedars of Lebanon, high and exalted" are signified those who boast themselves from self-derived intelligence; and by the "oaks of Bashan, "those who boast from science; for "cedars", in the Word, are predicated of the rational man, and "oaks", of the natural man; and intelligence belongs to the rational man, and science to the natural man.

By "the high tower and the fortified wall" are signified confirmed principles of the false, consequently all those who are in them. By the "Ships of Tarshish", and by the "images' of desire, are signified the false doctrinals favouring the delights of earthly loves. The destruction of conceit originating in self-derived intelligence and in scence, is understood by "the loftiness of man [homo] shall bow down, and the height of men [vir] shall be humbled"; that all intelligence and science is from the Lord, is signified by "Jehovah alone shall be exalted in that day." It is supposed that science is from man, but science, so far as it serves for the attainment of intelligence in which is the perception of truth, is from the Lord alone. Apocalypse Explained 514.

It is to be observed that all who are in the love of self, especially who are in the love of ruling, when they come into the spiritual world, are extremely desirous of elevating themselves into high places, this being implanted or inherent in that love; hence also to "be of a high and e!ated mind", and to "aspire after high things", are expressions used in common discourse, The real cause why there is such a desire or lust in the love of ruling is, because they who are principled therein, wish to make themselves gods, and God is in the highest. That "mountains" and "hills" signify those loves and the evils thereof, is evident from its being said that "the day of Jehovah Zebaoth shall be upon every one that is magnificent and lofty, and upon all the lofty mountains, and upon all the high hills:" to what purpose else could it be said that "the day of Jehovah should be upon mountains and hills"? Apocalypse Explained 405.

15. And upon every high tower, and upon every fortified wall;

16. And upon all the ships of Tarshish, and upon all images of desire.

17. And the loftiness of man shall bow down, and the height of men shall be humbled: and Jehovah alone shall be exalted in that day.

18. And the idols shall utterly pass away, [as in smoke].

Verse 15. That a "tower" here also denotes the worship of self, appears from the signification of a tower; the worship of self consisting in a man's exalting himself above others, so as to be worshipped; therefore self-love, which is haughtiness and pride, is called "height", "loftiness", and "exaltation", and is described by all those things which are high, as in Isaiah 2:11-18. The reason why self-love in worship, or the worship of self, is called a "tower", is, because a "city" signifies doctrine, and formerly cities were fortified with towers, in which were guards; towers also were built in the boundaries or confines of a country, wherefore they were called "towers of the guards, or watchmen." Moreover, when the church of the Lord is compared to a "vineyard", the things appertaining to worship and to the preservatIon thereof, are compared to a "wine-press and to a tower [in a good sense] in a vineyard", as appears from Isaiah 5:1, 2; Matthew 21:23; Mark 12:1. Arcana Coelestia 1306.

[As to the further meaning of a "tower", see below, Chapter Isaiah 5:2, the Exposition.]

19. And they shall go into the caverns of rocks, and into holes of the dust, from before the terror of Jehovah, and from the glory? His majesty, when He arises to shake terribly the earth.

Verse 19: The reason why to "hide themselves in the caverns of rocks", etc., signifies to be in evils, and in the faIses of evil, is, because they who in the sight of the world have pretended to be in the good of love, and yet were in evil, after death hide themselves in dens and caverns; and they who have pretended that they were in the truths of faith, and yet were in the falsities of evils, hide themselves in rocks in the mountains.; the entrances appear like holes in the earth, and fissures in mountains, into which they crawl like serpents, and hide themselves there. That such places are inhabited by them, I have frequently seen. Hence it is that by "dens" or "caves", are signified the evils in such, and by "holes and fissures", or "clefts", the falsities of evil. In the .followIng passage:Isaiah 2:19, 21; 7:19; 32:14; Jeremiah 16:16, 17; 49:16. Apocalypse Revealed 338.

20. In that day shall a man cast the idols of his silver, and the idols of his gold, which they have made each for himself to worship, to the moles and to the bats;

21. To go into caves of the rocks, and into clefts of the craggy rocks, from before the terror of Jehovah, and from the glory of His majesty, when He arises to shake terribly the earth.

22. Cease you from man, whose breath is in his nostrils: for of what account is he to be made?

Verse 20. By "idols", in the Word, are signified false [principles] of worship, and therefore to worship idols, signifies worship grounded in falsities; and by "adoring idols of gold, of silver, of brass, of stone, and of wood", is signified worship grounded in falsities of all kinds, and taken collectively, worship grounded in mere falsities; moreover, the materials of which idols were made, their forms, and their garments, among the ancients, represented falsities of religion, in which their worship was grounded. "Idols of gold" signified falsities concerning things divine; "idols of silver", falsities concerning things spiritual; "idols of brass", falsities concerning charity; "idols of stone", falsities concerning faith; and "idols of wood", falsities concerning good works. In all these falsities they are principled who do not do the work of repentance, that is, shun evils as sins against God. "Graven images" and "molten images", which were idols, have this signification, in a spiritual sense, in the following passages:

"Every man is become foolish from science; every founder is made ashamed by the graven image: for his molten image is a lie, neither is there breath in them; they are vanity, the work of errors; in the time of their visitation they shall perish." Jeremiah 10:14, 15; 51:17, 18. (See also Jeremiah 10:3, 4, 5, 8, 9, 10) Apocalypse Revealed 459.

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Isaiah Chapter 2

1. THE Word which Isaiah the son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem.

2. It shall come to pass in the last days; the mountain of the house of Jehovah shall be established all the head of the mountains, and it shall be exalted above the hills: and all nations shall flow unto it.

3. And many peoples shall go, and shall say, Come you, and let us go up to the mountain of Jehovah; to the house of the God of Jacob : and He will teach us of His ways; and we will walk in His paths: for from Zion shall go forth the law, and the Word of Jehovah from Jerusalem.

4. And He shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many peoples: and they shall beat their swords into ploughshares, and their spears into pruning-hooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.

5. O house of Jacob, come you, and let us walk in the light of Jehovah!

6. For You have abandoned Your people, the house of Jacob: because they are filled from the East, and are soothsayers like the Philistines; and they abound in the children of strangers.

7. And his land is filled with silver and gold, and there is no end to his treasures; and his land is filled with horses, and there is no end to his chariots.

8. And his land is filled with idols; they bow themselves down each to the work of his hands, to that which his fingers have made.

8. And his land is filled with idols; they bow themselves down each to the work of his hands, to that which his fingers have made.

9. Therefore shall the [mean] man be bowed down, and the [mighty] man shall be humbled; and You will not forgive them.

10. Enter into the rock, and hide yourself in the dust, from before the terror of Jehovah, and from the glory of His majesty.

11. The eyes of man's loftiness shall be humbled; the height of men shall bow down; and Jehovah alone shall be exalted in that day.

12. For the day of Jehovah of Hosts is upon everyone magnificent and lofty, and upon everyone that is exalted; and he shall be humbled ;

13. And upon all the cedars of- Lebanon, the high and the exalted; and upon all the oaks of Bashan ;

14. And upon all the lofty mountains, and upon all the high hills;

15. And upon every high tower, and upon every fortified wall;

16. And upon all the ships of Tarshish, and upon all images of desire.

17. And the loftiness of man shall bow down, and the height of men shall be humbled: and Jehovah alone shall be exalted in that day.

18. And the idols shall utterly pass away, [as in smoke].

19. And they shall go into the caverns of rocks, and into holes of the dust, from before the terror of Jehovah, and from the glory? His majesty, when He arises to shake terribly the earth.

20. In that day shall a man cast the idols of his silver, and the idols of his gold, which they have made each for himself to worship, to the moles and to the bats;

21. To go into caves of the rocks, and into clefts of the craggy rocks, from before the terror of Jehovah, and from the glory of His majesty, when He arises to shake terribly the earth.

22. Cease you from man, whose breath is in his nostrils: for of what account is he to be made?

7643. 'Behold, I am bringing locusts into your border' means that falsity will take possession of their outermost parts. This is clear from the meaning of 'locusts' as falsity in outermost parts, dealt with below; from the meaning of 'border' as outermost parts; and from the meaning of 'bringing', since it is used in connection with falsity, as taking possession of. It says that Jehovah will bring the locusts, but by this their being brought - brought by evil - is meant. This is similar to the attribution made to Jehovah, that is, to the Lord, where it says that 'He made Pharaoh's heart stubborn'; in actual fact it is made such by man, by the evil within him, see above in 7632. Evil does not originate in the Lord but springs from man because man diverts towards himself the good that flows in from the Lord, and instead of regarding, in every single thing, the Lord and what is the Lord's regards himself. This self-regard gives rise to a craving to have dominion over all people and to possess all that others have; it gives rise to contempt for others, and hateful, vengeful, and cruel behaviour towards those who are not disposed to apply themselves to his interests; and also it gives rise to contempt for all things connected with faith and charity, for when these flow in from the Lord he focuses them onto himself and so away from the Lord.

[2] From all this one may see that man turns into evil the actual good that flows in from the Lord. It also goes to explain why in the next life the evil distance themselves from heaven as far away as they can get; for when heaven draws nearer to them, that is, when the inflow of goodness and truth becomes more forceful, they plunge with greater force into the opposite, that is, into evil and into falsity. Then to the extent that the evil and falsity increase, they drive truth out from themselves and bring about vastation within themselves. And to the same extent they also plunge into the evils brought by punishment; for in the next life evils and punishments are interconnected.

[3] The Lord is continually rearranging the heavens, and constantly adding new inhabitants of heaven whom He provides with dwellings and inheritances. When He does this heaven draws nearer, that is, flows in with greater force, as a consequence of which hellish spirits plunge with greater force into evils and falsities, and into the punishments that go with them; and since they plunge into evils and falsities, they bring about vastation within themselves, as has been stated. This process does not stop until they have brought about complete vastation and cast themselves deeply into the hells. From this it may be recognized that nothing but good emanates from the Lord, and that evil springs from those people themselves who are ruled by evil. From all this one may now see how to understand the statement that Jehovah, that is, the Lord, made Pharaoh's heart stubborn, and the statement here that He will bring locusts, by which falsity arising from evil in outermost parts is meant.

[4] In the Word, in those places in which the laying waste of evils is referred to, the locust and the bruchus ¹ are mentioned several times; and in those places 'locust' is used to mean in the internal sense falsity that lays waste the outermost parts. For as has been shown before, the human natural is interior and exterior. The falsity that is present in the outermost parts of the natural is meant by 'locust', and the evil there by 'bruchus'. Because 'locust' is used to mean falsity present in the outermost parts of the natural it says that the locusts will be brought 'into the border, and they will cover the surface of the land', and later on in verses 14-15.

The locusts came up over the land of Egypt, and rested at all the border of Egypt, and covered the surface of the whole land.

'The border' and 'the surface' mean the outermost and lowest parts, on which the more internal ones rest, that is, by which they are bounded.

[5] These things are what 'the locust' and 'the bruchus' are used to mean in David,

He sent among them swarms [of insects], which devoured them, and frogs which destroyed them; and He gave their crops to the bruchus, and their labour to the locust. Psalms 78:45-46.

And elsewhere,

He spoke so that the locust might come and the bruchus, so that it would be without number. Psalms 105:34.

These verses, which speak about Egypt, refer to 'the bruchus', but no mention is made of it in Moses, only of 'the locust'. The reason why 'the bruchus' also is referred to is that 'the bruchus' means evil and 'the locust' falsity, both of them in the outermost parts of the natural. But when 'the locust' alone is referred to it means both falsity and evil together, for 'the locust' is falsity arising from evil.

[6] In Nahum,

There the fire will devour you, the sword cut you off; it will devour you like the bruchus. Multiply yourself like the bruchus, multiply yourself like the locust; you have multiplied your merchants, more than the stars of the heavens. The bruchus has spread out, and flown away. Your monarchs are like the locust, your emperors like the locust of locusts. Nahum 3:15-17.

This refers to 'the city of blood', which means teachings that uphold falsity. And since falsity and evil are multiplied chiefly in the outermost parts of the natural (because of the presence there of the illusions of the senses arising from worldly and earthly objects, and of the sensory enjoyments resulting from various kinds of appetites), the multiplication of evil and falsity is for that reason described by 'the bruchus and locust', as it also is in Judges 6:5; 7:12; and in Jeremiah 46:23. With regard to the sensory level, which is the last and lowest of the natural, that it is utterly full of illusions and consequently of falsities, see 5084, 5089, 5094, 6310, 6711, 6313, 6318, 6598, 6612, 6614, 6621, 6624.

[7] In Joel,

What the caterpillar (eruca) left the locust has devoured, and what the locust left the beetle (melolontha) has devoured, and what the beetle left the bruchus has devoured. Awake, you drunkards, and weep; and wail, all you drinkers of wine, because of the new wine that has been cut off. For a nation will come up over My land, strong, and without number; and it will turn My vine into a waste, and My fig tree into froth. Joel 1:4-7.

In the same prophet,

The threshing floors are full of clear grain, and the presses overflow with new wine and oil. And I will recompense you for the years that the locust has consumed, the beetle (melolontha), the bruchus, and the caterpillar (eruca). Joel 2:24-25.

Here 'the locust' stands for falsity in the outermost parts which is laying waste truths and forms of good. In Moses,

You will carry much seed out into the field, but you will gather little, because the locust will consume it. You will plant vineyards, but you will not drink wine or gather [anything], for the worm will devour it. Deuteronomy 28:38-39.

Here 'the locust' stands for falsity arising from evil.

[8] In John,

Out of the smoke of the abyss that had been opened came locusts onto the earth, which were given power, as the scorpions of the earth have power. They were told not to harm the grass of the earth, or any tree, but men (homo) only who did not have the seal of God on their foreheads. They were not allowed to kill them, but to torment them for five months. The shapes of the locusts were like horses prepared for war, and on their heads there were so to speak crowns like gold, their faces being like the faces of men (homo). They had hair like women's hair, and their teeth were like lions' teeth. They had breastplates like breastplates of iron, and the sound of their wings was like the sound of chariots with many horses running to war. Finally, they had tails like scorpions, and the stings were in their tails, so that they could do harm to men (homo) for five months. They have a king over them, the angel of the abyss, whose name in Hebrew is Abaddon; but in Greek he has the name Apollyon. Revelation 9:3-11.

No one can see what all these things mean except from the internal sense. From each detail there viewed in accordance with the internal sense it is clear that 'locusts' means reasonings that are based on illusions and consequent falsities, and supported also by philosophical arguments. Thus in addition 'locusts' means the falsities which, being present in the outermost parts of the human mind and having a more earthly and bodily nature than all other falsities, can easily deceive and mislead people. For a person can embrace with ease ideas that agree with the senses, but with difficulty those that contradict them.

[9] To enable people to know that such things are meant by 'locusts', let the details of this passage be explained one by one. 'The abyss' out of which the locusts came is hell. 'The grass of the earth' which they were not to harm is factual knowledge, 'tree' recognition of what is good and true, and 'men' affections for what is good. Their being told to harm only men, not the grass of the earth or any tree, means that truth and good may come to be understood even when there is no living in accordance with them. 'Those who have the seal on their foreheads' are those who have been regenerated. Their being told to torment for five months those who did not have the seal of God on their foreheads means that they were to lay them waste. 'Locusts like horses prepared for war' are reasonings based on falsities that are used to fight against the Church's truths. 'On their heads crowns like gold' and 'faces like those of men' mean that the reasonings have a similar appearance to truth and in origin seem to be good. 'Hair like that of women' and 'teeth like the teeth of lions' are the external things of the natural or the level of the senses, that is, the illusions there which give the appearance of good. 'Breastplates of iron' are external things giving the appearance of truth. 'The sound of wings like that of chariots with many horses running to war' means the falsities of doctrinal teachings which they use to fight with and which they fight for. 'Tails like scorpions' and 'the stings in their tails' are the injuries such things can inflict. 'The king' of the abyss is hellish falsity, 'Abaddon' destruction, 'Apollyon' reasoning based on falsities that seems to be based on truth, especially if those deemed to be wise support those falsities with philosophical arguments completely misapplied; for blind admiration of their wisdom leads people to have faith in them.

[10] In the good sense 'locust' means fundamental and very general truth, and also the pleasure it gives. This was why John had locusts as his food, and wild honey, Matthew 3:4; Mark 1:6. The reason why they were his food was that John represented the Word; and by his food as well as his clothing, which consisted of camel hair together with a skin girdle, he represented the Word in the external sense. For external pleasure is meant by 'locusts and wild honey', 5620, and external truth by a garment made of camel hair and by a skin girdle, 3301. This explains why John is understood to be the Elijah who is going to come and announce the Lord's Coming, 'Elijah' being the Word, see Preface to Chapter 18 of Genesis, and 2762, 5247 (end). And Leviticus 11:22 states that locusts were among the small creatures which people were allowed to eat.

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