1093. Having great power.- That this signifies to whom belongs Omnipotence, both in the heavens and on earth, is evident from the signification of great power, when said of the Lord, as denoting Omnipotence. Omnipotence here signifies great power, because the term "great power," but not "Omnipotence," can be applied to an angel, which is according to the idea that man has of angels; but when by an angel is meant the Lord as to His proceeding Divine, then great power means Omnipotence. Omnipotence is also the Lord's because He is the God of heaven and of earth, and both heaven and earth were created by means of the Divine that proceeds from Him as a Sun, and by it also heaven and earth are maintained in existence and subsist. The proceeding Divine is what is called in John, "The Word, which was with God, and which was God," by which all things were made that were made, and by which also the world was made (chap. 1:1, 2, 10). The Omnipotence of the Lord both in the heavens and on earth is meant by the great power of the angel, because it is afterwards said that the earth was lightened with His glory; for when the Last Judgment was accomplished upon those who are meant by the harlot of Babylon, then the darkness was removed which had gathered between heaven and earth. But more will be said upon this subject below.

[2] Continuation concerning the Athanasian Creed.- It is evident from what has been said, that the thoughts of man are extensions into societies either heavenly or infernal, and that unless they were extensions they would have no existence. Man's thought is like the sight of his eyes, and, unless this had extension beyond itself, there would be either no sight, or blindness. But it is man's love that gives his thoughts their determination into societies, good love into heavenly societies, and evil love into infernal societies. For the whole heaven is arranged into societies, according to all the varieties of the affections that belong to love, generally, specifically, and in particular; while hell is arranged into societies according to the lusts (cupiditates) of the love of evil, opposite to the affections of the love of good.

[3] Man's love is comparatively like fire, and his thoughts are like the rays of light from it; if the love is good, then the thoughts, which are like rays, are truths; if the love is evil, the thoughts which go forth like rays are falsities. Thoughts from good love, which are truths, tend towards heaven; but thoughts from evil love which are falsities, tend towards hell, and are so completely conjoined with, and as it were ingrafted upon homogeneous societies, that is, such as are in similar love, that a man becomes entirely one with them.

[4] Man, by means of love to the Lord, is an image of Him. The Lord is Divine Love, and He appears as a Sun before the angels in heaven. Light and heat go forth from that Sun, light being the Divine Truth, and heat the Divine Good; the whole heaven, and all the societies of heaven, are from these. The Lord's love with a man who is an image of him, is as fire from that Sun, from which fire, light and heat similarly go forth; the light is the truth of faith, and the heat is the good of love, each of them being from the Lord, and each implanted in the societies with which such a man's love acts in unison. That man from creation is an image and likeness of God, is evident from Genesis (1:26); and He is an image and likeness of the Lord by means of love, because by means of love man is in the Lord and the Lord in him (John 14:20, 21). In a word, the very least thought that can exist is received in some society, not by the individuals or angels of the society, but by the affection of love from which and in which that society is; for this reason the angels are not conscious of the influx, neither does that influx disturb the society in any way.

[5] From these considerations the truth is evident that man is in conjunction with heaven while he lives in the world, and also in consociation with angels, although both men and angels are ignorant of it. They know nothing of this is because a man's thought is natural, and an angel's thought spiritual, and these make one only by correspondence. Since man by means of the thoughts of his love, is inaugurated into societies either of heaven or hell, therefore, on his entrance into the spiritual world, which takes place immediately after death, his character is known merely from the extension of his thoughts into societies, and in this way every one is explored. Man is also reformed by the admission of his thoughts into the societies of heaven, and he is condemned by the immersion of his thoughts in the societies of hell.

5886. 'Whom you sold into Egypt' means the internal which they had alienated. This is clear from the representation of Joseph, the one whom they had 'sold', as the internal, dealt with in 5805, 5826, 5827; from the meaning of 'selling' as alienating, dealt with in 4752, 4758, while 'Egypt' here means the lowest parts, as it does below in 5889. For placing some subject among the facts one knows without any acknowledgement of it is casting it to the sides, thus to the last or lowest parts of the mind. This is also how it is at the present day with the subject of the internal in the human being. The subject exists, it is true, among known facts because religious teaching provides knowledge of the existence of the internal man. Yet it is cast away to the lowest parts of the mind because there is no acknowledgement of it or belief in its existence, as a result of which it is alienated, not, it is true, from the memory but from faith. In the internal sense 'selling' is alienating matters of faith and charity, consequently the things that make a person a member of the internal Church, as may be recognized from the fact that in the spiritual world no buying or selling like that on earth takes place. Instead there is the making one's own of goodness and truth, meant by 'buying', and the alienation of them, meant by 'selling'. 'Buying' also means a communication of cognitions of goodness and truth, for the reason that 'trade' means the acquisition and communication of such cognitions, 2967, 4453; but in this case selling is said to be done 'not by silver'.

[2] The meaning of 'selling' as alienating is also evident from the following places in the Word: In Isaiah,

Thus said Jehovah, Where is your mother's bill of divorce, whom I have put away? Or who of My usurers is it to whom I have sold you? Behold, because of your sins you have been sold, and because of your transgressions your mother has been put away. Isaiah 50:1.

'Mother' stands for the Church, 'selling' for alienating. In Ezekiel,

The time has come, the day has arrived. Do not let the buyer rejoice, and do not let the seller mourn, because wrath is on the whole multitude of it. For the seller will not return to the thing that has been sold, though his life may still be among the living ones. Ezekiel 7:12-13.

This refers to the land of Israel, which is the spiritual Church. 'The seller stands for one who has alienated truths and subtly introduced falsities.

[3] In Joel,

You have sold the sons of Judah and the sons of Jerusalem to the sons of the Greeks, so that you might remove them far away from their borders. Behold, I will raise them up out of the place to which you have sold them. And I will sell your sons and your daughters into the hands of the sons of Judah, who will sell them to the Sabeans, ¹ a people far off. Joel 3:6-8.

In this reference to Tyre and Sidon 'selling' again stands for alienating. In Moses,

Their rock sold them, and Jehovah shut them up. Deuteronomy 32:30.

'Selling' plainly stands for alienating. In the highest sense 'rock' is the Lord as regards truth, and in the representative sense faith, while 'Jehovah' is the Lord as regards good.

[4] Since 'buying' in the spiritual sense is acquiring to oneself and 'selling' is alienating, the Lord compares the kingdom of heaven to one selling and buying, in Matthew,

The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man (homo) finds and hides, and in his joy he goes and sells whatever he has and buys that field. Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a trader seeking fine pearls, who, when he has found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had and bought it. Matthew 13:44-46.

'The kingdom of heaven' stands for the good and truth present with a person, and so for heaven present with him. 'Field' stands for good and 'pearl' for truth, while 'buying' stands for acquiring these and making them one's own. 'Selling all that one has' stands for alienating that which previously was properly one's own, thus alienating evil desires and false ideas, for these are properly one's own.

[5] In Luke,

Jesus said to the young ruler, You still lack one thing. Sell all that you have and distribute to the poor, then you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me. Luke 18:22.

In the internal sense these words mean that everything completely a person's own, which consists of nothing but evil desires and false ideas, ought to be alienated from him, for such desires and ideas are meant by 'all that he has', and then he will receive from the Lord good desires and true ideas, which are 'treasure in heaven'.

[6] This is similar to what is said elsewhere in the same gospel,

Sell your resources and give alms; make for yourselves money bags that do not grow old, a treasure that does not fail in heaven. Luke 12:33.

Anyone can see that this verse holds a meaning other than the literal one. For at the present day 'selling one's resources' would be making oneself a beggar, and depriving oneself of any further opportunity to exercise charity, quite apart from the fact that one would inevitably regard such a course of action as being meritorious. Also it is an invariable truth that there are rich people in heaven as well as poor ones. The meaning other than the literal one contained in this verse is what was stated just above.

[7] Since 'selling' meant alienating what belonged to the Church the following law was therefore laid down,

If a man was not pleased with a wife he had taken from among women captives, she was to be set apart from him. She should certainly not however be sold for silver; no gain was to be made out of her, because he had caused her distress. Deuteronomy 21:14.

'A wife taken from among women captives' stands for truth that is foreign, not from a genuine stock, yet can be linked in some way to the good of the Church present in a person. If however that truth proves to, be in many respects incompatible it can be separated; but it cannot be alienated since it has been joined in some way to that good. This is the spiritual meaning of that law.

[8] There was also this law,

If there is found a man who has stolen a soul from his brothers, from the children of Israel, and has made profit on him, and has sold him, that thief shall be killed, so that you remove evil from the midst of you. Deuteronomy 24:7.

'Those who steal the children of Israel' stands for those who acquire the truths of the Church, not with the intention of living according to them and thus teaching them from their hearts, but with the intention of using those truths for personal profit. The damnation of such a person is meant by 'he shall be killed'.

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