5702. 'Since that is an abomination to the Egyptians' means that they are in a contrary position. This is clear from the representation of 'the Egyptians' as those with whom order has been inverted, 5700; and from the representation of 'the Hebrews', to eat with whom was an abomination to the Egyptians, as those with whom genuine order exists, 5701. Thus the two are set in contrary positions, and this gives rise to strong dislike and at length to what is an abomination. Regarding this abomination, it should be recognized that people with whom an inverted state of order, that is, evil and consequent falsity, exists, thereby come at length to acquire a strong dislike for the goodness and truth of the Church the moment they hear it referred to. This is even more true when they hear reference made to the interior aspects of that goodness and truth; they find these so abominable that so to speak they feel nauseated and wish to vomit. This is what I have been told and shown to be so when I have wondered why the Christian world does not accept the interior teachings of the Word. Spirits from the Christian world have appeared on the scene and have been compelled to hear about the interior teachings of the Word; they were then so nauseated by these that they said they felt within themselves the great need to vomit. I have also been told that this is what the Christian world is like virtually everywhere at the present day. The reason it is like this is that it has no affection for truth for its own sake, still less any affection for good motivated by good. Anything they think or say that is based on the Word or their religious teachings is due to habit followed since early childhood and to religious custom, and so is something external devoid of anything internal.

[2] The fact that all aspects of the Hebrew Church, the one established at a later time among the descendants of Jacob, were an abomination to the Egyptians is evident not only from their refusal even to eat with them but also from the fact that sacrifices, in which the Hebrew Church made its main worship consist, were an abomination to them, as is evident in Moses,

Pharaoh said, Go away, sacrifice within the land. But Moses said, It is incorrect to do so, for we shall be sacrificing to Jehovah our God what is an abomination to the Egyptians; behold, if we sacrifice what is an abomination to the Egyptians in their eyes, will they not stone us? Exodus 8:25-26.

Also, feeding cattle and being a shepherd was an abomination to them, as is evident again in Moses,

Every shepherd is an abomination to the Egyptians. Genesis 46:34.

Thus every aspect of that Church was an abomination to the Egyptians. The reason was that initially even the Egyptians had been among those who constituted the representative Ancient Church, 1238, 2385. But after that they rejected the God of the Ancient Church, who was Jehovah or the Lord, and served idols, in particular calves. Also the actual representatives and meaningful signs of the celestial and spiritual realities of the Ancient Church, which they came to know while part of that Church, were turned by them into magical practices. This being so, order with them became inverted, as a consequence of which everything constituting the Church was an abomination.

643. As for the meaning itself of these expressions - that 'planks of gopher' means lusts and 'rooms' the two parts of this man - this becomes clear from the Word. Gopher is a wood full of sulphur, as is the fir and others of that group. It is on account of the sulphur in it that it is said to mean lusts, for it catches fire easily. The most ancient people compared and likened those elements that exist with man to gold, silver, bronze, iron, stone, and wood, his inmost celestial to gold, the lower celestial to bronze, and the lowest or bodily descending from this to wood, while the inmost spiritual they compared and likened to silver, the lower spiritual to iron, and the lowest degree of it to stone. When those objects are mentioned in the Word these are the things meant by them in the internal sense, as in Isaiah,

Instead of bronze I will bring gold, and instead of iron I will bring silver, and instead of wood, bronze, and instead of stones, iron. And I will make peace your assessment and righteousness your tax-collectors. Isaiah 60:17.

This refers to the Lord's kingdom in which no such metals exist, but instead celestial and spiritual elements. It is quite clear that the latter are meant because of the reference to peace' and 'righteousness'. Here, gold, bronze, and wood correspond to one another and mean celestial elements or those belonging to the will, as has been stated. Silver, iron, and stone also correspond to one another, and mean spiritual elements or those belonging to the understanding.

[2] In Ezekiel,

They will spoil your riches, they will despoil your merchandise, your stones and your timbers. Ezekiel 26:12.

It is quite clear that 'riches' and 'merchandise' do not mean material riches and merchandise, but celestial and spiritual ones. So also 'stones' and 'timbers' - 'stones' being things of the understanding and 'timbers' those of the will. In Habakkuk,

The stone cries out from the wall, and the beam out of the woodwork answers back. Habakkuk 2:11.

'Stone' stands for the lowest degree of the understanding, and 'wood' for the lowest degree of the will, which answers back when anything is drawn from sensory knowledge. In the same prophet,

Woe to him who says to a piece of wood, Awake! or to a dumb stone, Arise, this will teach! Behold, this is bound in gold and silver, and there is no spirit ¹ at all in the midst of it. But Jehovah is in His holy temple. Habakkuk 2:19-20.

Here also 'wood' stands for evil desire, 'stone' for the lowest degree of the understanding, and therefore 'being dumb' and 'teaching' are used in reference to that stone. 'No spirit in the midst of it' means that it represents nothing celestial or spiritual, like a temple in which there is stone and wood, overlaid with gold and silver, existing with people who give no thought to what those things represent.

[3] In Jeremiah,

Our waters we drink for silver, our timbers come for a price. Lamentations 5:4.

Here 'waters' and 'silver' mean things of the understanding, 'timbers' those of the will. In the same prophet,

Who say to wood, You are my father; and to a stone, You gave birth to us. Jeremiah 2:27.

Here 'wood' stands for desire which belongs to the will, from which there is conception, and 'stone' for sensory knowledge, from which there is birth. All through the Prophets therefore 'serving wood and stone' stands for images carved out of wood or stone, which means that people were slaves to evil desires and to delusions. The Prophets also speak of 'committing adultery with wood and stone', as in Jeremiah 3:9. In Hosea,

The people inquire of their piece of wood, and their staff makes declaration to them, for the spirit of whoredom has led them astray. Hosea 4:12.

This stands for their inquiring of a wooden image, or evil desires. In Isaiah,

The tophet has been prepared since yesterday. Its pyre is fire and much wood; the breath of Jehovah is like a stream of burning brimstone. Isaiah 30:33.

Here 'fire', brimstone', and 'wood' stand for filthy desires.

[4] In general 'wood' means those elements which constitute the lowest parts of the will. Precious kinds of wood, such as cedar and so on, mean elements that are good - for example, the cedar timbers in the Temple, or the cedarwood used in cleansing leprosy, Leviticus 14:4, 6-7, or the wood cast into the bitter waters at Marah, by which the waters were made sweet, Exodus 15:25. These in the Lord's Divine mercy will be dealt with in their proper places. Non-precious kinds of wood however, also those which were made into images, and those that were used for a pyre as well, and the like, mean evil desires, as do planks of gopher here on account of the brimstone or sulphur in them. As in Isaiah,

The day of Jehovah's vengeance - her streams will be turned into pitch, and her dust into brimstone, and her land will become burning pitch. Isaiah 34:8-9.

'Pitch' stands for dreadful delusions, 'brimstone' for filthy desires.

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