627. And there was given to me a reed like a staff.- That this signifies the mode of visitation, that is, of exploring the quality of the church as to truth and as to good, is evident from the signification of a reed, which denotes the means by which quality is explored; for by measuring is signified to explore, and by measure, the quality of a thing. The reed, therefore, by means of which the temple and the altar were measured, as now follows, or the measuring reed, signifies the mode of exploring quality. The mode of exploring the quality of the church as to truth and as to good is denoted, because, according to what follows, the temple and the altar were measured and those adoring therein, which signifies the church as to truth and as to good, and therefore as to worship.

[2] The reed also signifies visitation, because visitation is the exploration of the quality of the men of the church, and because visitation precedes a Last Judgment, which is afterwards treated of. The nature of that visitation or exploration is evident from the visitation in Sodom. Angels were first sent there, and by means of them visitation or exploration was made in regard to the quality of their reception, that is, in regard to the quality of the reception of Divine Truth and Divine Good, for those angels represented the Lord as to the proceeding Divine; and after its exploration - because none in Sodom except Lot desired to receive them but wished to do them injury - their destruction came, which means their final judgment.

[3] The reason why the measurement was taken by means of a reed, is, that a reed or cane signifies Divine Truth in the ultimate of order, and a staff, which the reed resembled, signifies power, and by means of truth in the ultimate of order and its power, all visitation or exploration takes place. For all truths even from primaries (primis) are simultaneous, or co-exist in the ultimate; therefore all things effected from the Divine take place from primaries by means of ultimates, in this case visitation or exploration, and this truth is signified by a reed or cane.

[4] Similarly it is said in the Apocalypse that one of the seven angels had a golden reed, with which he measured the city Jerusalem, and the gates thereof, and the wall thereof; and that he measured the city with a reed twelve thousand furlongs (Apoc. 21:15, 16). And in Ezekiel it is said that in the hand of the angel there was a line of flax and a measuring reed; the reed was of six cubits, and with it he measured the length, the breadth, and the height of the building, the gate, the porch, the court, the temple, and many other things (40:3, 5, 6, 8, 11, 13, 17, and following verses; 41:1-5, 13, 14, 22; 42:1 to end). That the measuring reed here also means the mode of exploring the church in regard to truth and good, is evident from this fact, that the angel measured the length, breadth, and height of the temple in detail. And by length is signified good, by breadth, truth, and by height, the degrees of good and truth from highest or inmost to lowest or ultimate things. Concerning this signification of length and breadth, see Heaven and Hell 197). That a reed signifies truth in ultimates, by means of which exploration takes place, is also evident from the fact that there was a line of flax in the hand of the angel, which also signifies truth; similarly from the length of the reed being six cubits, six signifying the same as three, that is, truths in their entire compass, as may be seen above (n. 384, 532). That to measure signifies to explore the quality of a thing, will be seen in the following article.

[5] Ultimate truth, or truth in the ultimate of order, means sensual truth, such as truth is in the sense of the letter of the Word to those who are merely sensual. Divine Truth in its descent proceeds according to degrees, from the highest or inmost to the lowest or ultimate. Divine Truth in the highest degree is such as the Divine is that goes forth immediately from the Lord, thus the Divine Truth above the heavens, and this, being infinite, cannot come to the perception of any angel. But the Divine Truth of the first degree is that which comes to the perception of the angels of the inmost or third heaven, and is called the celestial Divine Truth; from this comes the wisdom of those angels. The Divine Truth of the second degree is that which comes to the perception of the angels of the middle or second heaven, and is the cause of their wisdom and intelligence; it is called spiritual Divine Truth. The Divine Truth of the third degree is that which comes to the perception of the angels of the ultimate or first heaven, and is the source of their intelligence and knowledge (scientia); it is called celestial-natural and spiritual-natural Divine Truth. But the Divine Truth of the fourth degree is that which comes to the perception of the men of the church living in the world; it is the source of their intelligence and knowledge; this is called natural Divine Truth, and the ultimate of this is called sensual Divine Truth.

[6] These Divine truths, according to their degrees in order, are in the Word, and the Divine Truth in the ultimate degree, or in the ultimate of order, is such as the Divine Truth is in the sense of the letter of the Word, which is for children and the very simple, and these are sensual. It is this Divine Truth that is signified by a reed or cane and because explorations with every one take place by means of this ultimate Divine Truth, as stated above, therefore measurements and weights, in the representative churches, were taken by means of reeds or canes, which signify that Divine Truth. That measurements were taken by means of reeds, has been shown just above; that weights were calculated by means of the same, is evident in Isaiah, "They weigh silver with a reed" (46:6).

[7] Since a reed signifies truth in the ultimates, suitable for the simple and children, who are not spiritual but sensual-natural, therefore it is also said in Isaiah,

"A bruised reed will he not break, and smoking flax will he not quench, and he will bring forth truth into judgment" (42:3).

The subject here is the Lord. He will not break the bruised reed signifies that He will not hurt sensual Divine Truth with the simple and children. The smoking flax will he not quench signifies that He will not destroy the Divine Truth which with the simple and children begins to live from a little good of love; for flax denotes truth, and smoking denotes that it lives from some little degree of love. And because both the reed and the flax signify truth, therefore it is also said of the Lord, that He will bring forth truth into judgment, which means, that He will bring forth intelligence in them, judgment denoting intelligence.

[8] A reed also signifies sensual or ultimate truth, such as pertains to natural men, even the evil; as in the same prophet:

"The dry place shall become a pool, and there shall be grass instead of the reed and rush" (35:7).

This is said concerning the establishment of the church by the Lord. That those who before had no intelligence shall then come into the possession of it by means of spiritual Divine Truth, is signified by the dry place shall become a pool. That then there shall be knowledge (scientia) by means of natural Divine Truth for those who previously possessed only sensual truth is signified by grass, instead of the reed and rush, grass denoting knowledge from a spiritual origin, or that by means of which spiritual truth is confirmed, while reed and rush denote knowledge from a sensual origin, or that by means of which the fallacies of the senses are confirmed. This latter knowledge considered in itself is only the lowest natural knowledge (scientia), which must be designated material and corporeal, in which there is little or nothing of life.

[9] Again:

"The streams shall recede, the rivers of Egypt shall be diminished and dried up, the reed and the flag shall wither" (19:6).

These words, in the spiritual sense, mean that all understanding of Divine Truth will perish. The streams shall recede, signifies that everything connected with spiritual intelligence will depart. The rivers of Egypt shall be diminished and dried up, signifies that everything of natural intelligence shall perish. The reed and the flag shall wither, signifies that ultimate truth, called sensual and which is merely scientific, will vanish. Streams and rivers denote those things that pertain to intelligence, Egypt denotes the Natural, reed and flag, denote truth or the sensual-Scientific, and to recede, to be diminished, to be dried up, and to wither, denote to perish and disappear.

[10] Again:

"Thou hast trusted on the staff of this bruised reed, on Egypt, upon which, when a man leaneth, it entereth into his hand, and pierceth it; so is Pharaoh king of Egypt to all that trust on him" (Isaiah 36:6).

Egypt signifies the natural man separated from the spiritual, and the scientific thereof, and the latter, when separated from the intelligence of the spiritual man, becomes foolish, and is used to confirm evils of every kind; it is therefore a false scientific. This then is what is called the staff of a bruised reed; reed, as was said, denoting truth in the ultimate of order, which is sensual-scientific; its being bruised, signifies that it is broken and does not cohere with any interior truth so as to produce consistency; staff denotes the power therefrom of perceiving and reasoning about truths. This then is the meaning of "when a man leaneth upon it, it entereth into his hand, and pierceth it." To lean upon that staff, denotes to trust in one's own power of perceiving truths, and of reasoning about them from the proprium; while to enter into the hand and pierce it, signifies to destroy all intellectual power, and to see and lay hold of mere falsities instead of truths. So is Pharaoh king of Egypt to all that trust on him, signifies that such is the natural man, separated from the spiritual, in regard to its scientifics, intelligence therefrom, and reasoning from that intelligence.

[11] So in Job:

"Let my shoulder blade fall from the shoulder, and mine arm be thence broken by a reed, because the dread of the destruction of God is upon me, and by reason of his majesty I have no power. Have I made gold my hope, and said to pure gold, My confidence?" (31:22-24).

Here also the subject is concerning the confidence of [man's] own intelligence, from which, as declared in these words in their spiritual sense, nothing of truth can be seen, but mere falsity which does not cohere with any truth. Non-coherence is signified by let my shoulder blade fall from the shoulder, and my arm be thence broken by a reed; the shoulder blade, the shoulder, and the arm, signify power, here, the power to understand and perceive truth. To fall from the shoulder, and to be broken by a reed, signifies to be cut off from the spiritual power of perceiving truth, and to be consequently deceived by the sensual-corporeal man, and to perish by means of falsity. Reed denotes truth in the ultimate of order, which is called sensual-scientific, and which becomes mere falsity when it is of the natural man alone separated from the spiritual. The dread of the destruction of God signifies the loss of the understanding of all truth; by reason of his majesty to have no power, signifies that nothing pertaining to the understanding and perception of truth is from man's proprium, but all from God. To make gold a hope, and to say to pure gold, My confidence, signifies that he did not trust in himself, so as to imagine that anything of good was from himself.

[12] In Ezekiel:

"In order that all the inhabitants of Egypt may know that I am Jehovah, because they have been a staff of a reed to the house of Israel; when they took hold of thee by the hand thou didst break, and didst rend through all their shoulder; and when they leaned upon thee, thou brakest, and madest all their loins to be at a stand" (29:6, 7).

Things similar to those above are here said concerning Egypt. Egypt in this place also signifies the natural man separated from the spiritual, and also its knowledge, which, when applied to evils, is mere falsity. These things are said concerning those in the church who trust in their own intelligence. The sons of Israel signify those who are of the church; their confidence is signified by the staff of a reed; that all power to perceive truth consequently perished with them, is signified by the words, when they took hold of thee by the hand, thou didst break and didst rend through all their shoulder, the shoulder denoting the power or faculty of understanding truth; the loss of this is signified by, "when they leaned upon thee, thou brakest." That consequently all the good of love and charity was destroyed and dissipated, is signified by, "thou madest all their loins to be at a stand," loins denoting the marriage of truth and good, in this case that truth was not united to good. Truth united to good makes the good of love and charity, for all the good of love and charity is formed by truths.

[13] So in David:

"Rebuke the wild beast of the reed" or cane, "the congregation of the strong, among the calves of the people; treading upon plates of silver, he hath scattered the peoples, he desireth wars; the fat ones shall come out of Egypt, Ethiopia shall stretch out quickly her hands to God" (Psalm 68:30, 31).

Here the subject is the kingdom of the Lord. To beware of false knowledge (scientificum), or knowledge out of the natural man separated from the spiritual falsely applied, is meant by, rebuke the wild beast of the reed, or cane. Because those knowledges, proceeding as they do from the fallacies of the senses, strongly persuade, they are called the congregation of the strong. The calves of the people denote the goods of the church in the natural man; the plates of silver denote the truths of the church; to tread upon and disperse denotes to destroy and dissipate, and this is done by those who are natural and sensual, and who think naturally and sensually, and not at the same time spiritually, thus who think from the natural and sensual man separated from the spiritual; this man is meant by the wild beast of the reed, or cane. To desire wars, signifies reasonings against truths; fat ones from Egypt and Ethiopia denote those who are in the knowledge (scientia) of spiritual things, and in the cognitions of truth and good, who will draw near to the kingdom of the Lord, because they are in light from the spiritual man.

[14] So in the First Book of Kings:

"Jehovah shall smite Israel as a reed noddeth in the waters, and he shall root up Israel out of this good land" (14:15).

The vastation of the church with the sons of Israel is compared to the nodding of a reed or cane in the waters, because the reed or cane signifies the truth of the sensual man, which is ultimate truth, and when this truth is separated from the light of the spiritual man it is falsity. For the sensual man derives every thing which it possesses from appearances in the world, and therefore reasonings from these concerning spiritual things are pure fallacies and from fallacies come falsities. What the fallacies of the senses are in spiritual things, and that falsities proceed therefrom, may be seen in the Doctrine of the New Jerusalem 53); also in the explanation above (n. 575); and that sensual scientifics are pure fallacies, when the sensual man reasons from them (n. 569, 581); also, what the Sensual is, and the quality of the sensual man, may be seen in the Doctrine of the New Jerusalem 50).

[15] It is said in the Evangelists, that they placed a reed in the right hand of the Lord, and that afterwards they took the reed, and smote Him with it on the head (Matthew 27:29, 30; Mark 15:19); and also, that they put a sponge upon the reed and gave Him vinegar to drink (Matthew 27:48; Mark 15:36).

Those who have no knowledge of the spiritual sense of the Word may suppose that these and many other things related concerning the passion of the Lord, refer merely to common modes of derision; for they placed a crown of thorns upon His head, they parted His garments among them but not the tunic, and bent the knee before Him in mockery; also, as stated here, they placed a reed in His right hand and afterwards smote His head with it; they also filled a sponge with vinegar, or myrrhed wine, and placed it upon a reed, and gave Him to drink.

[16] But it must be understood that every thing related concerning the passion of the Lord, signifies the mockery of Divine Truth, and therefore the falsification and adulteration of the Word, because the Lord, when in the world, was the Divine Truth itself, which is the Word in the church. For this reason He permitted the Jews to treat Him in the same way that they treated Divine Truth, or the Word, by its falsification and adulteration; for they applied every thing in the Word to their own loves, and ridiculed every truth that did not agree with their loves, just as they did the Messiah Himself, because He did not become king over the whole world, and exalt them, according to their interpretation and religion, in glory above all peoples and nations. That every thing related concerning the passion of the Lord signifies such things, may be seen above (n. 64, 83, 195). By their placing a reed in the hand of the Lord and afterwards smiting His head with it, is signified that they falsified the Divine Truth or the Word, and utterly derided Divine wisdom and the understanding of truth. By a reed is signified falsity in extremes, as above, and by smiting the head is signified to reject and deride Divine wisdom and the understanding of truth, for the head of the Lord signifies Divine wisdom; and because they gave the Lord vinegar to drink, which signifies what is falsified, therefore they also filled a sponge with it, and placed it upon a reed, by which is signified falsities in extremes, which is falsity sustaining.

63. (Verse 13) And in the midst of the seven lampstands one like unto the Son of man. That this signifies the Lord, from whom is the all of heaven and of the church, is evident from the signification of "in the midst," as denoting in the inmost (see Arcana Coelestia 1074, 2940, 2973); and, because all things proceed from the inmost as light from the centre into the circumferences, therefore, "in the midst," signifies from whom. This is evident also from the signification of the seven lampstands, as denoting the New Heaven and the New Church (concerning which see above, n. 62); and from the signification of the Son of man, as denoting the Lord as to the Divine Human, and also as to Divine truth, because this proceeds from His Divine Human. From these considerations it is evident that the Lord appeared in the midst of seven lampstands, because from Him proceeds the all of heaven and of the church; for the good of love and the good of faith constitute heaven and the church, and that these are from the Divine is known in the Christian world, and because they are from the Divine, they are from the Lord, because the Lord is the God of heaven, and because the Divine of the Lord makes heaven (see the work, Heaven and Hell 2-6, and n. 7-12; and that this is His Divine Human, n. 78-86).

[2] That by the Son of man is meant the Lord as to the Divine Human, and also as to Divine truth, because Divine truth proceeds from His Divine Human, is evident from those passages in the Word where mention is made of the Son of man. Thus in John:

The multitude said unto Jesus, "How sayest thou that the Son of man must be lifted up? who is this Son of man? Jesus answered them, Yet a little while the light is with you; walk while ye have the light, lest darkness come upon you. While ye have the light believe in the light, that ye may be sons of light" (12:34-36).

From these words it is clear that by the Son of man is signified the same as by light; for when they inquired, "Who is this Son of man?" the Lord answered that He was the light in which they should believe. (That light is the Divine truth proceeding from the Divine Human of the Lord, may be seen in the work, Heaven and Hell 126-140; and in The Doctrine of the New Jerusalem 49; thus also that the Son of man is the Divine truth.) It is said in Luke:

[3] "Blessed are ye when men shall hate you for the Son of man's sake" (6:22).

For the Son of man's sake is for the sake of the Divine truth which proceeds from the Lord. Divine truth is the all of faith and love to the Lord; and because they who are evil deny those things, and they who deny also hate them, and the good acknowledge them, therefore it is said, that these latter are blessed. Again, in the same:

[4] "The days will come, when ye shall desire to see one of the days of the Son of man, but ye shall not see it. Then they shall say to you, Behold here, or behold there; go not away, nor follow them" (17:22, 23).

To desire one of the days of the Son of man, is to desire something of genuine Divine truth. The end of the church is there meant, when there will be no longer any faith, because no charity, at which time all Divine truth will perish; and because Divine truth is signified by the Son of man, therefore it is said, "Then shall they say, Behold here, or behold there; follow them not." And in the same:

[5] "When the Son of man cometh, shall He find faith on the earth?" (18:8);

that is, when Divine truth shall be revealed out of heaven, it will not be believed. The Son of man, in this place also, is the Lord as to Divine truth; the coming of the Lord is the revelation of Divine truth at the end of the church. (See Arcana Coelestia 3900, 4060.)

[6] And in Matthew:

"As the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall the coming of the Son of man be. Then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven; and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven, with power and glory" (24:27, 30).

(That by the coming of the Lord in the clouds of heaven, is there signified the revelation of Divine truth at the end of the church, may be seen above, n. 36.)

[7] And in the same:

"I say unto you, Hereafter ye shall see the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven" (26:64).

And in Luke:

"Hereafter shall the Son of man sit on the right hand of the power of God" (22:69).

The Son of man is the Lord as to the Divine Human, and as to Divine truth proceeding from It; to sit on the right hand of power, means that He has omnipotence; its being said that they should see this now, means, that Divine truth was in its omnipotence when the Lord in the world had conquered the hells, and reduced to order all things there and in the heavens, and that thus those would be saved who should receive Him in faith and love. (See Arcana Coelestia 9715. That to sit on the right hand denotes omnipotence, may be seen Arcana Coelestia 3387, 4592, 4933, 7518, 8281, 9133; that all the power of good is by truth, n. 6344, 6423, 8304, 9327, 9410, 9639, 9643. That Divine power itself is by Divine truth proceeding from the Divine Human of the Lord, see n. 6948; that the clouds in which the Son of man will come are the Word in the letter, which is Divine truth in the ultimate of order, see the preface to the eighteenth chapter of Genesis, Arcana Coelestia 4060, 4391, 5922, 6343, 6752, 8443, 8781; and that glory is the Divine truth itself, such as it is in the internal sense of the Word, see n. 4809, 5922, 8267, 9429.)

[8] From these considerations it is now evident what is signified by these words in the Apocalypse:

"I saw, and behold a white cloud, and upon the cloud one sat like unto the Son of man, having on his head a golden crown" (14:14).

And in Daniel:

"I saw in the visions of the night, and behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of the heavens" (7:13).

Because all judgment is executed from truth, therefore it is said, that it is given to the Lord "to execute judgment, because he is the Son of man" (John 5:27); and that "the Son of man shall render to every one according to his deeds" (Matthew 16:27); and that "when the Son of man shall come, he shall sit upon the throne of his glory, and shall judge" (Matthew 25:31).

[9] And again in Matthew, it is said:

"He who soweth the good seed is the Son of man; the field is the world; the good seed are the sons of the kingdom, but the tares are the sons of the evil" (13:37, 38).

The good seed is Divine truth, therefore it is said that the Son of man soweth it; the sons of the kingdom are Divine truths in heaven and the church; for son denotes truth (see Arcana Coelestia 489, 491, 533, 1147, 2623), and, in an opposite sense, falsity, which also is the son of evil.

[10] In the same:

"The Son of man hath not where to lay his head" (8:20);

by which is signified, that Divine truth had not a place anywhere, or with any man, at that time. Again it is said, that the Son of man would suffer and be put to death (Matthew 17:12, 22; 26:2, 24, 45; Mark 8:31; 9:12, 31); by which is signified, that thus they would treat Divine truth, consequently the Lord, who was Divine truth itself, as He also teaches in Luke:

"The Son of man must first suffer, and be rejected of this generation" (17:25).

[11] In Jeremiah:

"No man [vir] shall dwell there; neither shall a son of man [hominis] abide there" (49:18, 33).

In the same:

In the cities "no man shall dwell, nor shall a son of man pass through them" (51:43).

He who is not acquainted with the spiritual sense of the Word, believes that by cities here are meant cities, and that by man, and by a son of man, are meant a man and a son; also, that the cities were thus to be desolated, so that no one should be in them; but it is the state of the church as to the doctrine of truth which is described by those words; for cities denote the doctrinals of the church (as may be seen, Arcana Coelestia 402, 2449, 3216, 4492, 4493); and man is the essential truth thereof, conjoined with good (see n. 3134, 7716, 9007); thus the Son of man is truth. Because the Son of man signified Divine truth proceeding from the Lord, therefore the prophets also, through whom it was revealed, were called "sons of man," as Daniel (8:17); and Ezekiel (2:1, 3, 6, 8; 3:1, 3, 4, 10, 17, 25; 4:1, 16; 8:5, 6, 8, 12, 15; 12:2, 3, 9, 18, 22, 27). As most things in the Word have also an opposite sense, so also has the signification of a son of man, which in that sense denotes falsity opposed to truth. Thus in Isaiah:

"What art thou, that thou fearest man? he dies; and a son of man? he is as grass" (51:12).

And in David:

"Place not your trust in princes, in a son of man, with whom there is no salvation" (Psalm 146:3).

Princes denote primary truths (see Arcana Coelestia 2089, 5044); thus, in an opposite sense, primary falsities; and son of man denotes falsity itself.