Jerusalem, on Mount Zion, signifies the doctrine of love to the Lord, and how it governs your life. Jerusalem first comes to our attention in 2 Samuel 5, when King David takes the city from the Jebusites and makes it his capital. In the next chapter he brings the Ark of the Covenant there, and later it is where Solomon builds the temple, and his own palace. From then on Jerusalem is the center of worship of the Israelitish church. It is the place where the Lord was presented in the temple as a baby, where He tarried to talk to the priests at age twelve, where He cleansed the temple, had the last supper, was crucified and then rose. It is a central place in both the old and new Testaments. The city was built on Mount Zion, the highest point of the mountains of Judea. A city, in the Word, represents doctrine, the organized knowledge of the truths of the church. Mountains represent love of the Lord and the consequent worship. If you put those things together, Jerusalem on Mount Zion signifies the doctrine of love to the Lord, and how it governs your life. This is why David was led to make Jerusalem the most important city of the land, and why all worship was conducted there. And this is also why Jeroboam was condemned for introducing idol worship in Samaria. In the Book of Revelation, John's vision of the city New Jerusalem descending from God is a prophecy of a new dispensation of doctrine coming from the Lord.

(références: Arcana Coelestia 4539, 8938; The Apocalypse Explained 365 [35-38])

4865. “以为她是妓女” 表它以为它们无非是某种虚假. 这从 “妓女” 的含义清楚可知, “妓女” 是指虚假 (2466, 2729, 3399节); 因此, 它表示这一事实: 犹太民族出于其宗教表象将教会的内在无非视为虚假. “妓女” 之所以表示虚假, 是因为婚姻代表天上的婚姻, 也就是良善与真理的婚姻; 其中丈夫代表良善, 妻子代表真理; 因此, 儿子代表真理, 女儿代表良善; 女婿和儿媳, 公公和婆婆, 以其它许多亲属关系, 照其亲密度而代表那些属于天上婚姻的事物. 奸淫和卖淫因是这些的对立面, 故表示邪恶与虚假; 并且也实实在在是它们的对立面, 因为那些在奸淫和卖淫当中度过一生的人根本不关心良善和真理. 原因在于, 纯正的婚姻之爱是从天上的婚姻, 也就是良善与真理的婚姻那里降下来的; 而奸淫和卖淫则源于邪恶与虚假的苟合, 这种苟合来自地狱 (参看2727-2759节).

无论过去还是如今, 犹太民族都只是将教会的内在事物视为虚假; 这一事实就是犹大以为他的儿媳他玛无非是妓女, 并与她如同与一个妓女那样同寝所表示的. 该民族的这种起源就代表了他们的宗教表象的起源和性质. 显而易见, 这个民族视教会的内在为妓女, 或为虚假. 例如, 若有人告诉他们教会的这一内在真理: 圣言的先知书部分所预言并且他们所等候的弥赛亚就是主, 他们会把它当成虚假而完全加以弃绝. 若有人告诉他们教会的这一内在真理: 弥赛亚的国度不是世俗和短暂的, 而是天上和永恒的, 他们会声称这也是假的. 若有人告诉他们, 他们教会的宗教仪式代表弥赛亚及其天国, 他们就不知道这是什么意思.

若有人告诉他们, 教义的内在既是教义上同时也生活上的仁之良善和信之真理, 他们认为这不过是一个谎言. 其它一切例子也一样. 事实上, 仅仅暗示教会有一个内在, 他们都会愚蠢地加以嘲笑. 原因在于, 他们唯独处于外在, 事实上处于外在的最低层, 也就是对尘世事物的热爱; 困为他们比所有人都要贪婪, 而这完全是世俗的. 这种人绝无可能以任何其它方式看待教会的内在事物, 因为他们距离天堂之光比其他人类更遥远, 因而比其他所有人都更居于漆黑当中