491. Having a golden censer, signifies the conjunction of celestial good with spiritual good, and thus the conjunction of the higher heavens. This is evident from the signification of a "censer," as being worship from spiritual good, for such worship was represented by incense from the censers (See above, n. 324). "Having a golden censer" signifies the conjunction of celestial good with spiritual good, because the angel standing at the altar had a censer, and the "altar" signifies worship from celestial good, and "a golden censer" spiritual good from celestial good, "gold" signifying celestial good. The censers that were in use with the Jewish and Israelitish nation were of brass; and the offerings of incense from those censers represented worship from spiritual good, and conjunction at the same time with natural good, for "brass" signifies natural good; so here "a golden censer" signifies the conjunction of celestial good with spiritual good. It also signifies the conjunction of the two higher heavens, because the good of the inmost heaven is celestial good, and the good of the middle heaven is spiritual good; when therefore the conjunction of these goods is mentioned, the conjunction of the heavens is also meant, because the good is what constitutes the heaven. Celestial good is the good of love to the Lord, and it constitutes the highest or inmost heaven; and spiritual good is the good of love towards the neighbor, and it constitutes the heaven next below, which is called the second or middle heaven.

[2] "Frankincense" in the Word signifies spiritual good, the same as the censer that contained it (where the containant is taken for the content), as can be seen in the following passages. In Isaiah:

I have not made thee to serve by a meal-offering, nor wearied thee by frankincense (Isaiah 43:23).

"A meal-offering and frankincense" are mentioned, because the "meal-offering," which was made of fine flour and was therefore bread, signifies celestial good, consequently "frankincense" signifies spiritual good. Both are mentioned because in every part of the Word there is a marriage of good and truth, that is, where it treats of good it also treats of truth, and spiritual good in its essence is truth; this shows that "frankincense" means spiritual good, or the truth of celestial good. This can be seen further from other passages in which "meal-offering" and "frankincense" are mentioned together. Thus in Isaiah:

Causing the meal-offering to ascend, offering frankincense (6 Isaiah 66:3).

[3] In Jeremiah:

They shall offer the whole burnt-offering and the sacrifice, the meal-offering and frankincense (Jeremiah 17:26).

"Burnt-offering" also signifies worship from the good of celestial love, and "sacrifice" worship from the good of spiritual love; these two goods are signified also by "meal-offering and frankincense." The like is true of "meal-offering and incense-offering," for the incense-offering was chiefly of frankincense. In Malachi:

In every place incense is offered to My name, and a clean meal-offering (Malachi 1:11).

In David:

My prayers are accepted as incense before Thee; and the lifting up of my hands as the evening meal-offering (Psalms 141:2).

Therefore:

Oil was poured upon the meal-offering, and frankincense put on it (Leviticus 2:1, 2, 15).

This was done that the meal-offering might represent the conjunction of celestial good and spiritual good, for "oil" signified celestial good, and "frankincense" spiritual good.

[4] So again:

Frankincense was put upon the bread of faces in the tabernacle (Leviticus 24:7);

and this was done on account of the conjunction of the two kinds of good, for the "bread" signified celestial good, and "frankincense" spiritual good; so when the frankincense was put upon the bread the conjunction of the two goods was represented. For the sake of representing the conjunction of celestial good and spiritual good, a table for the bread was placed in the tabernacle, and on the other side an altar for incense offerings was placed.

[5] Where "meal-offering and frankincense" are not mentioned, "oil and frankincense" are mentioned, and "gold and frankincense," since "oil" and "gold," in like manner as "meal-offering," signify celestial good. "Oil and incense" are mentioned in Ezekiel:

Thou hast taken my oil and my incense and hast set them before them (Ezekiel 16:18).

"Gold and frankincense" are mentioned in Isaiah:

All they from Sheba shall come; they shall bring gold and frankincense, and they shall proclaim the praises of Jehovah (Isaiah 60:6).

And in Matthew:

The wise men from the east who came to the newborn Christ opened their treasures, and offered unto Him gifts, gold, frankincense, and myrrh (Matthew 2:11);

"gold" signifying celestial good, "frankincense" spiritual good, and "myrrh" natural good therefrom, thus the three goods of the three heavens. This makes evident the signification of the angel that was seen at the altar having a golden censer, for the "altar" was representative of celestial good, and the censer was representative of spiritual good, and the two together were representative of the conjunction of celestial good with spiritual good, or what is the same, of the conjunction of the higher heavens, or of the heaven where celestial angels are with the heaven where the spiritual angels are.

10289. Verses 34-38 And Jehovah said to Moses, Take for yourself sweet spices, stacte and onycha and galbanum - [these] sweet ones, and pure frankincense; amount for amount there shall be ¹ . And you shall make this an incense, an ointment, the work of an ointment-maker - salted, pure, holy. And you shall beat some of it very fine, and put some of it before the Testimony in the tent of meeting, where I will meet with you. The holy of holies ² it shall be to you. And the incense which you make, according to its composition ³ , you shall not make for yourselves; it shall be to you holy for Jehovah. The man who makes any like it, to make an odour with it, will be cut off from his people.

'And Jehovah said to Moses' means enlightenment and perception once again from the Lord through the Word. 'Take for yourself sweet spices' means the affections for truth springing from good which must be present in the worship of God. 'Stacte' means an affection for truth on the level of the senses. 'And onycha' means an affection for truth on the more internal natural level. 'And galbanum' means an affection for truth on a still more internal level. '[These] sweet ones' means affections springing from spiritual good. 'And pure frankincense' means truth on the inmost level, which is spiritual good. 'Amount for amount there shall be' means total agreement. 'And you shall make this an incense' means worship consisting of them. 'An ointment, the work of an ointment-maker' means as a result of the influx and operation of what is Divine and the Lord's within every single part. 'Salted' means the desire which truth has for good. 'Pure' means devoid of evil. 'Holy' means devoid of the falsity of evil. 'And you shall beat some of it very fine' means the arrangement of truths into their own series. 'And put some of it before the Testimony in the tent of meeting' means worship of the Lord in heaven and in the Church. 'Where I will meet with you' means as a result of the influx of the Lord. 'The holy of holies it shall be to you' means since it emanates from the Lord. 'And the incense which you make, according to its composition, you shall not make for yourselves' means that worship consisting of the Church's holy truths must not be attached to the loves that are a person's own. 'It shall be holy to you for Jehovah' means that it must be attached to love that is Divine. 'The man who makes any like it, to make an odour with it' means an imitation - springing from self - of the worship of God expressed through affections for truth and good. 'Will be cut off from his people' means separation from heaven and the Church, and spiritual death.

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