1037. Verse 3. And he carried me away in the spirit into a wilderness, signifies into a place appearing in vision that corresponded to the state of that religious persuasion. This is evident from the signification of "wilderness," as being a state of the church in which there is no longer any good or truth (See n. 730). But as a church in which there is no longer any good or truth is not a church, it is called a religious persuasion. Also from the signification of "in the spirit," as being in vision, for what John saw in the spirit he saw in vision. To see in vision is to see such things as exist with angels in heaven, which are representative and thus significative of things spiritual. When these appear to man they do not appear before the sight of his body, but before the sight of his spirit. For the spirit of man has eyes as well as his body; but the eyes of his spirit see the things that are in the spiritual world, because all things that appear there are from a spiritual origin, and the spiritual man sees spiritual things with the understanding, and with the eyes he sees the same in a form like the natural. But the eyes of the body see the things that are in the material world, because all things that appear there are from a natural origin; and with his understanding the material man sees natural things, while with his eyes he sees the same in a material form. So when the eyes of the spirit were opened with the prophets they saw such things as represented and thus signified the celestial Divine and spiritual Divine things of the church, and sometimes such things as represented and thus signified things that were to come to pass in the churches in the future; and such were the things that John saw. He now saw a wilderness, because a "wilderness" signifies a state of the church devastated of all good and truth; and this state corresponds to the church that had become Babylon. This is why Babylon is described in many passages of the Word as a wilderness, as in the following:

Art thou he that hath made the world a wilderness, and destroyed the cities thereof? (Isaiah 14:17).

Babylon shall be as God's overthrowing Sodom and Gomorrah; it shall not be inhabited forever; it shall not be dwelt in even from generation to generation; that the Arabian may not abide there. The daughters of the owl shall dwell there, and the satyrs shall dance there (Isaiah 13:19-22; also Jeremiah 50:37-40; 51:2, 25-26, 37, 41-43).

1055. And is about to come up out of the abyss, and go into perdition, signifies that it is acknowledged as Divine for form's sake, and yet is rejected. This is evident from the signification of "coming up out of the abyss," as being, in reference to the Word with those who are of Babylon, to be accepted and acknowledged as Divine for form's sake (of which presently); also from the signification of "going into perdition," as being not to be acknowledged but to be rejected. That the Word has been thus treated by those who are of Babylon is known. For the Word is acknowledged as Divine on account of the Lord's words to Peter respecting the keys, on account of the stories of the passion, of Mary, and of the apostles, and some passages which they can pervert to favor their dominion. Since all these are from the Word, and upon these their religion is founded, so if the Word were not acknowledged as Divine the religion itself would fall, and they could no longer rule over holy things, nor even be called Christians. But that the Word, nevertheless, is rejected by them is also known, for it is not read by the common people, and but little by the monks who teach; and many invalidate its holiness, as is evident from their writings and sayings, for the reason that it contains things that are not in accord with the decrees and bulls of the Pope, also because Babylon is there described to the life and condemned to hell. These are the causes of its rejection. All this makes clear that the Word is acknowledged as Divine only for form's sake. And that this is what these words signify can be clearly seen when it is seen that "the scarlet beast" means the Word, and the "harlot or the woman that sitteth upon it" means the religious persuasion that regards dominion as its end, and the holy things of the Word, of the church, and of worship as the means.

(Continuation respecting the Second Kind of Profanation)

[2] Those who are in the love of self, and from that in the love of having dominion, and who covet, acquire, and afterwards exercise domination by means of the holy things of the Word, of the church, and of worship, are those who profane. For the delight of the love of having dominion for self's sake, that is, for the sake of eminence, and consequent homage, and a kind of adoration of self, is an infernal delight. Moreover, this reigns in hell, for in hell everyone wills to be the greatest, while in heaven everyone wills to be the least; and to have dominion over holy things from an infernal delight is to profane them.

[3] But this second kind of profanation of the holy things of the church is not like the former kind of the profanation of them. Those fall into the former kind in whom a communication with heaven has been effected by the opening of their spiritual mind; while this second kind of profanation those have with whom the spiritual mind has not been opened, or communication with heaven effected through it. For so long as the delight of the love of having dominion resides in man, that mind cannot be opened, and communication with heaven is not possible to him.

[4] Moreover, the lot of these profaners after death differs from the lot of the former. The former, as has been said, are in an unceasing delirium of fantasy; but these hate the Lord, hate heaven, hate the Word, hate the church, and hate all its holy things; and they come into such hatred because their dominion is taken away from them, and thus their state is changed into its opposite. They appear like something fiery, and their hell appears like a conflagration; for infernal fire is nothing else than the lust of having dominion from the love of self. These are among the worst, and are called devils; while the others are called satans.