Apocalypse Revealed #378
378. "And have washed their robes." This symbolically means, who have cleansed their religious beliefs of the evils accompanying falsity.
Washing in the Word symbolizes a cleansing oneself of evils and falsities, and robes symbolize general truths (no. 328). General truths are concepts of goodness and truth drawn from the literal sense of the Word, in accordance with which these people have lived, so that they are religious beliefs. And because every matter of religion has relation to goodness and truth, therefore robes are mentioned twice - "have washed their robes" and "have made their robes white."
Robes or religious beliefs are cleansed only in the case of people who fight against evils and so reject falsities, who thus undergo temptations or trials, which are symbolically meant by "the great tribulation" (no. 377).
That to be washed means, symbolically, to be cleansed of evils and falsities, and so to be reformed and regenerated, can be seen from the following passages:
When the Lord has washed away the filth of the daughters of Zion, and rinsed away the blood of Jerusalem... by the spirit of judgment and by the spirit of purification... (Isaiah 4:4)
Wash yourselves, make yourselves clean; put away the evil of your doings from My eyes. Cease to do evil... (Isaiah 1:16)
Wash your heart of its wickedness, O Jerusalem, that you may be saved. (Jeremiah 4:14)
Wash me clean of my iniquity..., and I shall be whiter than snow. (Psalms 51:2, 7)
...if you wash yourself with soda, and use much soap, your iniquity will still retain its spots. (Jeremiah 2:22)
If I wash myself with melted snow, and cleanse my hands with soap..., yet... my own clothes will abhor me. (Job 9:30-31)
Who... has washed his clothing in wine, and his vesture in the blood of grapes. (Genesis 49:11)
This is said of the celestial church, from which come people prompted by love toward the Lord, and in the highest sense it is said of the Lord Himself. Wine and the blood of grapes are spiritual and celestial Divine truth.
I washed you with water, and rinsed off your blood from upon you... (Ezekiel 16:9)
This is said of Jerusalem. Water is truth, and blood is an adulteration of truth.
[2] It can be seen from this what washing in the Israelite Church represented and thus symbolized. As, for example, that Aaron was to wash himself before he put on the vestments of his ministry (Leviticus 16:4, 24), and before he approached the altar to minister (Exodus 30:18-21; 40:30-31).
[3] It can be seen from this that among the children of Israel washing represented a spiritual washing, which is a cleansing from evils and falsities, and thus reformation and regeneration.
It is apparent also from the aforesaid what baptism by John in the Jordan symbolized (Matthew 3, Mark 1:4-13), and what the symbolic meaning of the following words by John regarding the Lord is, that He baptized with the Holy Spirit and with fire (Luke 3:16, John 1:33), and regarding himself, that he baptized with water (John 1:26). The meaning is that the Lord washes or purifies a person by Divine truth and Divine goodness, and that John by his baptism represented this. For the Holy Spirit is Divine truth, the fire is Divine goodness, and the water is representative of these. For water symbolizes the truth in the Word, which becomes goodness by one's living in accordance with it (no. 50).
如申命记 22
1
你若看見弟兄的牛或羊失迷了路,不可佯為不見,總要把他牽回來交給你的弟兄。
2
你弟兄若離你遠,或是你不認識他,就要牽到你家去,留在你那裡,等你弟兄來尋找就還給他。
3
你的弟兄無論失落甚麼,或是驢,或是衣服,你若遇見,都要這樣行,不可佯為不見。
4
你若看見弟兄的牛或驢跌倒在路上,不可佯為不見,總要幫助他拉起來。
5
婦女不可穿戴男子所穿戴的,男子也不可穿婦女的衣服,因為這樣行都是耶和華─你神所憎惡的。
6
你若路上遇見鳥窩,或在樹上或在地上,裡頭有雛或有蛋,母鳥伏在雛上或在蛋上,你不可連母帶雛一併取去。
7
總要放母,只可取雛,這樣你就可以享福,日子得以長久。
8
你若建造房屋,要在房上的四圍安欄杆,免得有人從房上掉下來,流血的罪就歸於你家。
9
不可把兩樣種子種在你的葡萄園裡,免得你撒種所結的和葡萄園的果子都要充公。
14
信口說他,將醜名加在他身上,說:我娶了這女子,與他同房,見他沒有貞潔的憑據;
15
女子的父母就要把女子貞潔的憑據拿出來,帶到本城門長老那裡。
16
女子的父親要對長老說:我將我的女兒給這人為妻,他恨惡他,
17
信口說他,說:我見你的女兒沒有貞潔的憑據;其實這就是我女兒貞潔的憑據。父母就把那布鋪在本城的長老面前。
19
並要罰他一百舍客勒銀子,給女子的父親,因為他將醜名加在以色列的一個處女身上。女子仍作他的妻,終身不可休他。
20
但這事若是真的,女子沒有貞潔的憑據,
21
就要將女子帶到他父家的門口,本城的人要用石頭將他打死;因為他在父家行了淫亂,在以色列中做了醜事。這樣,就把那惡從你們中間除掉。
22
若遇見人與有丈夫的婦人行淫,就要將姦夫淫婦一併治死。這樣,就把那惡從以色列中除掉。
24
你們就要把這二人帶到本城門,用石頭打死─女子是因為雖在城裡卻沒有喊叫;男子是因為玷污別人的妻。這樣,就把那惡從你們中間除掉。
25
若有男子在田野遇見已經許配人的女子,強與他行淫,只要將那男子治死。
26
但不可辦女子;他本沒有該死的罪,這事就類乎人起來攻擊鄰舍,將他殺了一樣。
27
因為男子是在田野遇見那已經許配人的女子,女子喊叫,並無人救他。
28
若有男子遇見沒有許配人的處女,抓住他,與他行淫,被人看見,