1837. The sun was going down. That this signifies the time and the state before the consummation, is evident from the signification of “the sun.” In the internal sense “the sun” signifies the Lord, and thence it signifies the celestial things which are of love and charity, consequently love itself and charity (spoken of above, n. 30-38, and n. 1053). From this it is evident that the “going down of the sun” denotes the last time of the church, which is called the consummation, when there is no longer any charity. The Lord’s church is also compared to the times of the day; its first period to the rising of the sun, or to the dawn and the morning; its last to the setting of the sun, or to the evening and the shades then prevailing, for the two things are similarly circumstanced. The church is also compared to the times of the year; its first period to the spring, when all things are in bloom; that which is before the last to the autumn, when they begin to become inactive. It is even compared to the metals; its first period is called golden; its last, iron and clay; as in Daniel (2:31-33). From all this it is evident what is signified by “the going down of the sun,” namely, that it signifies the time and the state before the consummation, seeing that the sun had not yet set. In what follows, the state of the church when the sun has set is treated of, in that there was then thick darkness and the smoke of a furnace, and that a torch of fire passed between the pieces.

1053. And the bow shall be in the cloud. That this signifies man’s state, is evident from what has been said and shown above concerning the bow in the cloud, namely, that a man or a soul in the other life is known among angels from his sphere, and that this sphere, whenever it pleases the Lord, is represented by colors, like those of the rainbow, in variety according to the state of each person relatively to faith in the Lord, thus relatively to the goods and truths of faith. In the other life colors are presented to view which from their brightness and resplendence immeasurably surpass the beauty of the colors seen on earth; and each color represents something celestial and spiritual. These colors are from the light of heaven, and from the variegation of spiritual light, as said above. For angels live in light so great that the light of the world is nothing in comparison. The light of heaven in which angels live, in comparison with the light of the world, is as the noonday light of the sun in comparison with candlelight, which is extinguished and becomes a nullity on the rising of the sun. In heaven there are both celestial light and spiritual light. Celestial light—to speak comparatively—is like the light of the sun, and spiritual light is like the light of the moon, but with every difference according to the state of the angel who receives the light. It is the same with the colors, because they are from the light. The Lord Himself is to the heaven of the celestial angels a Sun, and to the heaven of the spiritual angels, a Moon. These things will not be credited by those who have no conception of the life which souls live after death, and yet they are most true.