Arcana Coelestia #1001
1001. 'Blood' means charity, as becomes clear from many considerations, and so means the new will part which a regenerate spiritual person receives from the Lord. This new will part is identical with charity, for it is from charity that the new will takes form. Indeed charity, or love, is the essential element or the life of the will, for nobody can possibly say he wills something unless he takes delight in it or loves it. When people say they have something in mind this does not imply that they will it, unless will is implicit in thought. This new will which is one of charity is 'the blood' here. It is not the person's own but the Lord's residing with him. And because it is the Lord's it must never be mixed together with things that belong to the person's own will which, as stated, is so foul. This was the reason why in the representative Church people were commanded not to eat flesh with its soul, that is, not to eat the blood. That is to say, they were not to mix the one with the other. Because 'blood' meant charity it meant that which was holy, and because 'flesh' meant what belonged to the merely human will, it meant that which was unholy. And because these, being opposites, were quite separate, people were forbidden to eat blood. For in those times 'the eating of flesh together with the blood' was representative in heaven of profanation, or the mixing together of holy and unholy - which representation in heaven could do nothing else than strike the angels with horror. For at that period of time all things that took place among members of the Church were converted among angels - according to the meaning such things had in the internal sense - into corresponding spiritual representations.
[2] Since the nature of everything depends on that of the person to whom it refers, the same holds true with regard to the meaning of blood. When it refers to a regenerate spiritual person 'blood' means charity or love towards the neighbour. When it refers to a regenerate celestial person it means love to the Lord. But when it refers to the Lord it means the whole of His Human Essence, and so Love itself, which is His mercy towards the human race. Consequently since 'blood' in general means love and what belongs to love, it means heavenly things that are the Lord's alone, and so in reference to man it means the heavenly things a person receives from the Lord. The heavenly things that a regenerate spiritual person receives from the Lord are celestial-spiritual. These in the Lord's Divine mercy will be dealt with elsewhere.
[3] That 'blood' means heavenly things, and in the highest sense meant the Lord's Human Essence, and so Love itself, which is His mercy towards the human race, becomes clear from the sacredness that the Jewish representative Church was required to attach to blood. For this reason blood was called 'the blood of the covenant'. It was sprinkled over the people, and also, together with the anointing oil, over Aaron and his sons. And [the blood] of every burnt offering and sacrifice was sprinkled over and around the altar. For these details, see Exodus 12:7, 13, 22-23; 24:6, 8; Leviticus 1:5, 11, 15; 4:6-7, 17-18, 25, 30, 34; 5:9; 16:12-15; 18, 19; Numbers 18:17; Deuteronomy 12:27.
[4] Because blood was held to be so holy, and what belonged to the merely human will was so unholy, they were strictly forbidden to eat blood because this represented the profanation of what is holy, as in Moses,
It shall be a perpetual statute throughout your generations, in all your dwelling-places, that you shall not eat any fat or any blood. Leviticus 3:17.
'Fat' stands for celestial life, and 'blood' in this instance for celestial-spiritual life. The celestial-spiritual is that which is spiritual having a celestial origin, as with the Most Ancient Church. With them love to the Lord was the celestial because this had been implanted in their will, while that which was celestial-spiritual with them was faith flowing from it, dealt with in 30-38, 337, 793, 398. But with a spiritual person the celestial does not exist, only the celestial-spiritual, because charity is implanted in the understanding part of his mind.
In the same author,
As for anyone from the house of Israel or from the sojourner sojourning among them who eats any blood, I will set My face 1 against the soul eating blood and will cut him off from among his people, for the soul of the flesh is in the blood; and I have given it for you upon the altar, to make atonement for your souls, for the blood itself will make atonement by reason of the soul. The soul of all flesh is the blood of it; everyone eating it shall be cut off. Leviticus 17:10-11, 14.
Here it is plainly stated that the soul of the flesh is in the blood and that the soul of [all] flesh is the blood, or that which is celestial, that is, that which is holy and is the Lord's.
[5] In the same author,
Be sure that you do not eat blood, for the blood is the soul and you shall not eat the soul with the flesh. Deuteronomy 12:23-25.
From these words similarly it is clear that the blood is called the soul, that is, celestial life, or that which is celestial, and was represented by the burnt offerings and sacrifices of that Church. In a similar way, it was the requirement not to mingle that which was celestial - the Lord's Proprium, which alone is celestial and holy - with man's proprium, which is unholy, that was represented also by their being forbidden to make a sacrifice of, that is, to offer, the blood of the sacrifice with anything leavened, Exodus 23:18; 34:25. That which was 'leavened' meant that which was corrupt and filthy.
[6] The reason Why 'blood' is called the soul and means the holiness of charity, and why the holiness of love was represented in the Jewish Church by 'blood', is that the life of the body lies in the blood. And because the life of the body lies in the blood it is its ultimate soul, so that the blood therefore may be called the bodily soul, or the place where a person's bodily life resides. And because in representative Churches internal things were represented by external, the soul or celestial life was therefore represented by 'the blood'.
Notes de bas de page:
1. literally, faces
Numbers 26
1
And it came to pass after the plague, that the LORD spake unto Moses and unto Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest, saying,
2
Take the sum of all the congregation of the children of Israel, from twenty years old and upward, throughout their father's house, all that are able to go to war in Israel.
3
And Moses and Eleazar the priest spake with them in the plains of Moab by Jordan near Jericho, saying,
4
Take the sum of the people, from twenty years old and upward; as the LORD commanded Moses and the children of Israel, which went forth out of the land of Egypt.
5
Reuben, the eldest son of Israel: the children of Reuben; Hanoch, of whom cometh the family of the Hanochites: of Pallu, the family of the Palluites:
6
Of Hezron, the family of the Hezronites: of Carmi, the family of the Carmites.
7
These are the families of the Reubenites: and they that were numbered of them were forty and three thousand and seven hundred and thirty.
8
And the sons of Pallu; Eliab.
9
And the sons of Eliab; Nemuel, and Dathan, and Abiram. This is that Dathan and Abiram, which were famous in the congregation, who strove against Moses and against Aaron in the company of Korah, when they strove against the LORD:
10
And the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed them up together with Korah, when that company died, what time the fire devoured two hundred and fifty men: and they became a sign.
11
Notwithstanding the children of Korah died not.
12
The sons of Simeon after their families: of Nemuel, the family of the Nemuelites: of Jamin, the family of the Jaminites: of Jachin, the family of the Jachinites:
13
Of Zerah, the family of the Zarhites: of Shaul, the family of the Shaulites.
14
These are the families of the Simeonites, twenty and two thousand and two hundred.
15
The children of Gad after their families: of Zephon, the family of the Zephonites: of Haggi, the family of the Haggites: of Shuni, the family of the Shunites:
16
Of Ozni, the family of the Oznites: of Eri, the family of the Erites:
17
Of Arod, the family of the Arodites: of Areli, the family of the Arelites.
18
These are the families of the children of Gad according to those that were numbered of them, forty thousand and five hundred.
19
The sons of Judah were Er and Onan: and Er and Onan died in the land of Canaan.
20
And the sons of Judah after their families were; of Shelah, the family of the Shelanites: of Pharez, the family of the Pharzites: of Zerah, the family of the Zarhites.
21
And the sons of Pharez were; of Hezron, the family of the Hezronites: of Hamul, the family of the Hamulites.
22
These are the families of Judah according to those that were numbered of them, threescore and sixteen thousand and five hundred.
23
Of the sons of Issachar after their families: of Tola, the family of the Tolaites: of Pua, the family of the Punites:
24
Of Jashub, the family of the Jashubites: of Shimron, the family of the Shimronites.
25
These are the families of Issachar according to those that were numbered of them, threescore and four thousand and three hundred.
26
Of the sons of Zebulun after their families: of Sered, the family of the Sardites: of Elon, the family of the Elonites: of Jahleel, the family of the Jahleelites.
27
These are the families of the Zebulunites according to those that were numbered of them, threescore thousand and five hundred.
28
The sons of Joseph after their families were Manasseh and Ephraim.
29
Of the sons of Manasseh: of Machir, the family of the Machirites: and Machir begat Gilead: of Gilead come the family of the Gileadites.
30
These are the sons of Gilead: of Jeezer, the family of the Jeezerites: of Helek, the family of the Helekites:
31
And of Asriel, the family of the Asrielites: and of Shechem, the family of the Shechemites:
32
And of Shemida, the family of the Shemidaites: and of Hepher, the family of the Hepherites.
33
And Zelophehad the son of Hepher had no sons, but daughters: and the names of the daughters of Zelophehad were Mahlah, and Noah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Tirzah.
34
These are the families of Manasseh, and those that were numbered of them, fifty and two thousand and seven hundred.
35
These are the sons of Ephraim after their families: of Shuthelah, the family of the Shuthalhites: of Becher, the family of the Bachrites: of Tahan, the family of the Tahanites.
36
And these are the sons of Shuthelah: of Eran, the family of the Eranites.
37
These are the families of the sons of Ephraim according to those that were numbered of them, thirty and two thousand and five hundred. These are the sons of Joseph after their families.
38
The sons of Benjamin after their families: of Bela, the family of the Belaites: of Ashbel, the family of the Ashbelites: of Ahiram, the family of the Ahiramites:
39
Of Shupham, the family of the Shuphamites: of Hupham, the family of the Huphamites.
40
And the sons of Bela were Ard and Naaman: of Ard, the family of the Ardites: and of Naaman, the family of the Naamites.
41
These are the sons of Benjamin after their families: and they that were numbered of them were forty and five thousand and six hundred.
42
These are the sons of Dan after their families: of Shuham, the family of the Shuhamites. These are the families of Dan after their families.
43
All the families of the Shuhamites, according to those that were numbered of them, were threescore and four thousand and four hundred.
44
Of the children of Asher after their families: of Jimna, the family of the Jimnites: of Jesui, the family of the Jesuites: of Beriah, the family of the Beriites.
45
Of the sons of Beriah: of Heber, the family of the Heberites: of Malchiel, the family of the Malchielites.
46
And the name of the daughter of Asher was Sarah.
47
These are the families of the sons of Asher according to those that were numbered of them; who were fifty and three thousand and four hundred.
48
Of the sons of Naphtali after their families: of Jahzeel, the family of the Jahzeelites: of Guni, the family of the Gunites:
49
Of Jezer, the family of the Jezerites: of Shillem, the family of the Shillemites.
50
These are the families of Naphtali according to their families: and they that were numbered of them were forty and five thousand and four hundred.
51
These were the numbered of the children of Israel, six hundred thousand and a thousand seven hundred and thirty.
52
And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,
53
Unto these the land shall be divided for an inheritance according to the number of names.
54
To many thou shalt give the more inheritance, and to few thou shalt give the less inheritance: to every one shall his inheritance be given according to those that were numbered of him.
55
Notwithstanding the land shall be divided by lot: according to the names of the tribes of their fathers they shall inherit.
56
According to the lot shall the possession thereof be divided between many and few.
57
And these are they that were numbered of the Levites after their families: of Gershon, the family of the Gershonites: of Kohath, the family of the Kohathites: of Merari, the family of the Merarites.
58
These are the families of the Levites: the family of the Libnites, the family of the Hebronites, the family of the Mahlites, the family of the Mushites, the family of the Korathites. And Kohath begat Amram.
59
And the name of Amram's wife was Jochebed, the daughter of Levi, whom her mother bare to Levi in Egypt: and she bare unto Amram Aaron and Moses, and Miriam their sister.
60
And unto Aaron was born Nadab, and Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar.
61
And Nadab and Abihu died, when they offered strange fire before the LORD.
62
And those that were numbered of them were twenty and three thousand, all males from a month old and upward: for they were not numbered among the children of Israel, because there was no inheritance given them among the children of Israel.
63
These are they that were numbered by Moses and Eleazar the priest, who numbered the children of Israel in the plains of Moab by Jordan near Jericho.
64
But among these there was not a man of them whom Moses and Aaron the priest numbered, when they numbered the children of Israel in the wilderness of Sinai.
65
For the LORD had said of them, They shall surely die in the wilderness. And there was not left a man of them, save Caleb the son of Jephunneh, and Joshua the son of Nun.
