THE EXPLANATION of Isaiah Chapter 46

(Note: Rev. Smithson's translation of the Isaiah text is appended below the explanation.)

1. HEARKEN unto Me, you that pursue justice, you that seek Jehovah: look unto the rock whence you were hewn, and to the excavation of the pit, whence you were digged.

VERSE 1. By the "rock." is understood the Lord as to Divine Truth; and by the "pit" is here signified the Word, as also in other places. To be "hewn out of the rock, and digged out of the pit", signifies to be regenerated from divine Truths and divine Goods, thus by Truths from Good from the Lord; for "stones" which are cut out of a rock signify Truths from the Lord, and "ground" which is dug out of the pit signifies Good from the Lord, wherefore it is called "the excavation [effossio] out of the pit." Apocalypse Explained 411.

Verses 1-3. Look unto the rock whence you were hewn, and to the excavation of the pit whence you were digged; etc. - These things are said concerning the Lord, and concerning the New Church from Him. The Lord as to Divine Truth, and as to the doctrine of Truth, is understood by "the rock whence you were hewn", and by "the pit whence you were digged", see above, n.411; but the Lord as to the Divine, from which comes reformation, is understood by "Abraham, to whom they should look", and by "Sarah, who bare them;'' for by "Abraham", "Isaac", and "Jacob", in the Word, are not understood those persons, but the Lord as to His Divine Itself, and the Divine Human, as may be seen in the Arcana Coelestia 1893, 2833, 3245. But the heavenly marriage, which is of Divine Good and Divine Truth, from which comes all reformation, and. thence the church, is signified by "Abraham" and, "Sarah, who bare them."

Inasmuch as the Lord is understood by "Abraham", therefore it is said, "I called, him alone [or when he was but one], and, I blessed him, and I multiplied him"; and afterwards that "Jehovah will comfort Zion, and all her waste places"; "Zion" signifying the New Church, "waste places" Truths destroyed, and "comfort" or "consolation" the restoration of the church. That they who will be of that church will acknowledge the Lord, and receive love to Him, and thence wisdom, is signified by "He shall make her wilderness like Eden, and her desert like the garden of Jehovah"; "Eden" denoting love to the Lord, and the "garden of Jehovah" wisdom thence derived. Apocalypse Explained 721.

That the Lord, and the Divine Truth, as well as a true faith, is signified by a "Rock", see Chapter 16:1, : Exposition;

2. Look unto Abraham your father, and unto Sarah who bare you: for I called him alone, and I blessed him, and I multiplied him.

Verse 2. The Lord, as to Divine Truth, is called a "rock" and a "pit", and as to Divine Good, "Abraham the father"; and because the marriage of Goodness and Truth is represented by "Abraham and Sarah", as may be seen Arcana Coelestia 1468, 1901, Abraham is called "father", and of Sarah it is said; "she bare you.'" That "Abraham", as father, signifies the Lord as to Divine Good, may be seen in John 8:38, 39; Matthew 3:9, 10; Luke 16:19-31. Arcana Coelestia 3703 Arcana Coelestia 3703[1-23].

3. For Jehovah will comfort Zion: He will comfort all her waste places; and He will make her wilderness like Eden, and her desert like the garden of Jehovah; joy and gladness shall be found therein, thanksgiving, and the voice of singing.

Verse 3. Speaking of the advent of the Lord, and of the establishment of the church, which at that time was devastated or destroyed. By "Zion" is signified the church where the Lord is to be worshipped; by her "waste places" are signified the defect of Truth and Good from a want of knowledge.

By "making her wilderness like Eden, and her desert like the garden of Jehovah", is signified that they shall have Truth and Good in abundance; "wilderness" is predicated of the want of Good, and "desert" of the want of Truth :

"Eden" signifies Good in abundance, and the "garden of Jehovah" Truth in abundance. Inasmuch as a "song" and "singing" signify thanksgiving [confession] from joy of heart, therefore it is said, "Joy and gladuess shall be found therein, thanksgiving, and the voice of singing"; the "voice of singing"; denoting the same as a "song." Apocalypse Explained 326.

As to "thanksgiving" (or confession), see Chapter 12:1, the Exposition.

He shall make her wilderness like Eden, and her desert like the garden of Jehovah, etc. - The spiritual meaning of a "garden" is grounded in the nature of representations in the spiritual world, in which world gardens and paradises appear where dwell the angels who excel in intelligence and wisdom. The intelligence and wisdom which they receive from the Lord form themselves into such representations around them, and this takes place from correspondence; all things that exist in the spiritual world being correspondences. True Christian Religion 467.

Hence it is that man is so often compared to a "tree", and the church to a "garden", as in Isaiah 51:3; 58:11; Jeremiah 31:12. Coronis 27.

4. Attend unto Me, O My people; and give ear unto Me, O My nation: for the law shall proceed from Me, and My judgment will I cause to break forth for a light to the peoples.

5. My justice is near; My salvation is gone forth; and Mine arms shall judge the peoples: the islands shall hope in Me, and on Mine arm shall they trust.

Verses 4, 5. These things are also said concerning the Lord. "Attend unto Me, O My people, and give ear unto Me, O My nation", signifies all of the church who are in Truths and Goods; "people" those who are In Truths, and "nation" those who are in Goods; it is said "attend you" and "give ear" in the plural number, because all are understood. "The law shall proceed from Me, and My judgment will I cause to break forth for a light to the peoples, "signifies that from Him is Divine Good and Divine Truth, from which is illustration; "law" signifies the Divine Good of the Word, and "judgment" the Divine Truth of the Word; and "for a light to the peoples" denotes illustration. "My justice is near, My salvation is gone forth", signifies judgment, when they are saved who are in the Good of love, and who are in Truths thence derived; "justice" is predicated of the salvation of those who are in Good at the day of judgment, and "salvation" of the salvation of those who are in Truths. "Mine arms shall judge the peoples", signifies judgment upon those of the church who are in falsities; "peoples" here being taken in an opposite sense. "The islands shall hope in Me, and on Mine arm shall they trust" signifies the access of those to the church who are remote from the Truths of the church, and their trust in the Lord; "islands" denoting those who are remote from the Truths of the church, because they are in natural light, and not yet in spiritual light from the Word; and to "trust in His arm" signifying confidence in the Lord, who has all power, - "arm", when predicated of the Lord, denoting Omnipotence. Apocalypse Explained 406. See also Arcana Coelestia 9857.

6. Lift up unto the heavens your eyes, and look unto the earth beneath: for the heavens shall vanish away like smoke; and the earth shall wax old like a garment, and its inhabitants shall die in like manner: but My salvation shall be for ever, and My justice shall not be broken.

Verse 6. The heavens shall vanish away like smoke, etc. - By "the heavens which shall vanish away, and the earth which shall wax old like a garment", is understood the church, which successively falls away, and at length is desolated, but not the visible heaven and the habitable earth; wherefore it is said, "and its inhabitants shall die in like manner", - to "die" signifying spiritually to die. Apocalypse Explained 304.

By "smoke" is signified what is false, by which those in the former heaven would perish; and by "a garment waxing old" is signified Truth destroyed by the falsities of evil. A comparison is made between "smoke vanishing away" and "a garment waxing old", because comparisons in the Word are also correspondences, and equally signify. Apocalypse Explained 539.

7. Hearken unto Me, you that know justice; the people in whose heart is My law: fear you not the reproach of men, neither be you dismayed by their revilings.

8. For the moth shall eat them up like a garment, and the worm shall eat them up like wool: but My justice shall be for ever, and My salvation from generation to generation.

Verses 7, 8. Fear you not the reproach of men, neither be you dismayed by their revilings; for the moth shall eat them up like a garment, and the worm shall eat them up like wool, etc. - The "moth" stands for falsities in the extremes of man, and the "worm" for evils therein; for "a garment which the moth eats" signifies inferior or exterior Truths, which are of the sensual man; (see Arcana Coelestia 2576, 5248) and "the wool which the worm eats" signifies inferior or exterior Goods, which are of the sensual man, as is evident from many passages, and also from the signification of a "sheep", from which wool is derived, and which signifies the Good of charity, n. 4169. Arcana Coelestia 9331.

9. Awake, awake, clothe yourself with strength, O arm of Jehovah! awake, as in the days of antiquity, in the generations of old. Art you not the same that smote Rahab, that wounded the dragon?

Verses 9, 10. The "arm of Jehovah "is the Lord as to the Divine Human. The "days of antiquity" [or of eternity] signify the state of the most ancient church; "eternity" is predicated of that church, because it was in the Good of love to the Lord, of which Good, because immediately from the Lord, "eternity" is predicated; the "generations of old" [or eternities] signify Goods in the ancient church hence derived. "The waters of the great deep and the depths of the sea" is the hell, where those are who are in faith separate from charity, and in a life of evil; "the waters of the sea", under which they are, signify falsities; for falsities, in the other life, appear as dense and dark clouds, and as inundations of waters; "the redeemed, who pass over", are those who are liberated by the Lord. Arcana Coelestia 8099. See also 6239, 9789.

Verse 9. Art you not the same that smote Rahab, etc. - See above, as to "Rahab", Chapter 30:7, note; and as to the "dragon", see Chapter 27:1, the Exposition.

10. Art you not the same that dried up the sea, the waters of the great deep? that made the depths of the sea a path for the redeemed to pass over?

Verses 10, 15. By "the sons of Israel, before whom the Red Sea [Suph] was dried up, so that they passed through safe", are understood all who are in Truths from Good, whom the Lord, defends, lest the falsities of evil which ascend continually from the hells should injure them. This is what is understood by "drying up the sea, the waters of the great deep", and by "making the depths thereof into a path for the redeemed to pass over"; likewise by "leading them through the abysses or depths"; for the falsities exhaled from the hells continually cling to man, consequently the hells; for, whether we speak of falsities from the hells, or of the hells themselves, it is the same thing; but the Lord continually dissipates them with those who are in Truths originating in Good from Himself. This, then, is what is signified by "drying up the sea, and leading them through the abysses." They who are in Truths grounded in Good from the Lord; are understood by the "redeemed." Apocalypse Explained 538.

11. Thus shall the ransomed of Jehovah return, and come to Zion with singing; and everlasting joy shall be upon their heads: joy and gladness shall they obtain, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away.

Verse 11. Joy and gladness shall they obtain, etc. - It is said "joy and gladness" on account of the marriage of what is Good and True; for "joy" is predicated of what is Good, because from love, as it is properly of the heart and of the will; and "gladness" is predicated of Truth, because of the love thereof, for it is properly of the mind [animi] and of its thoughts; wherefore it is said, "joy of heart and gladness of mind." There are everywhere in the Word two expressions, of which one relates to what is Good and the other to what is True and this because the conjunction of what is Good and True makes heaven and the church; hence both heaven and the church are compared to a "marriage", and the Lord is said to be "the Bridegroom and the Husband", and heaven and the church "the bride and wife"; Wherefore every one who is not in that marriage is not an angel of heaven or a man of the church. The reason is, because no Good can be given with anyone except it is formed by Truths, nor can Truth be given with anyone except it live from Good; for all Truth is the form of Good, and all Good is the esse of Truth; and because one cannot be given without the other, it follows that the marriage of what is Good and True must necessarily exist with the man of the church as with an angel of heaven. All intelligence and wisdom come from this marriage, for from it there constantly spring forth Goods and Truths from which the intellect and the will are formed. Apocalypse Explained 660.

12. I, even I, am He that comforts you: who art you, that you should fear man that shall die, and the son of man that shall become as the grass?

Verse 12. By these words is signified that all things are from the Lord, and nothing from self-derived intelligence and wisdom. "Man" signifies man as to wisdom, and the "son of man" the same as to intelligence; that this latter is only science is understood by "becoming as grass." Apocalypse Explained 507.

13. And forgets Jehovah your Maker, who stretched out the heavens, and founded the earth; and fears continually every day because of the fury of the oppressor, as if he were ready to destroy? but where is the fury of the oppressor?

Verse 13. Here by the "heavens" and the "earth" is signified the church as to its internal or spiritual things, and as to its external or natural things; and by "stretching out" and "laying at the foundation thereof", is signified to establish them. Apocalypse Explained 1057.

14. He that leads out shall hasten to open; and [the captive] shall not die in the pit, and his bread shall not fail.

Verse 14. Treating concerning the Lord. His advent is understood by "He that leads out shall hasten." Liberation from the falsities of ignorance is signified by "not dying in the pit"; wherefore the same is here understood by "pit", as by the "'pit" mentioned above, (Chapter 24:22) in which were the bound, Supply of spiritual instruction and nourishment is signified by "his bread not failing"; for by "bread", is understood all spiritual food, and by spiritual "food" is meant instruction in Truths and Goods, whence come intelligence and wisdom. Apocalypse Explained 537.

15. For I am Jehovah your God, who rebukes the sea, when the waves thereof roar: Jehovah of Hosts is His name,

Verse 15. Who rebukes the sea, etc. - To "rebuke the sea" is to dissipate falsities; the "waves roaring" are noisy ratiocinations from falsities against the Truths of the Word. Apocalypse Explained 304.

16. I have put My words in your mouth: and with the shadow of My hand have I covered you: to plant the heavens, and to found the earth; and to say unto Zion, You art My people.

Verses 16, 17. Here by "planting the heavens, and founding the earth", is manifestly meant to establish the church; for this is said unto the prophet" that "the Word should be put into his mouth, and that he should be covered with the shadow of the hand, to plant the heavens, and to found or to lay the foundation of the earth", whereas the foundation of the earth cannot be laid by a prophet, but that of the church may; wherefore also it is added, "to say unto Zion, You art My people"; likewise, "Awake, awake; arise, O Jerusalem" for by "Zion" and by "Jerusalem", in the Word, is understood the church. Apocalypse Explained 1057.

17. Arouse yourself, arouse yourself; arise, O Jerusalem! who have drunk from the hand of Jehovah the cup of His fury: the dregs of the cup of trembling have you drunk, you have sucked them out.

18. There is none to lead her, of all the sons she has brought forth; neither is there any to take her by the hand, of all the sons she has brought up.

Verses 17, 18. The restoration of the church which was fallen into mere falsities of evil, is signified by "Arouse, or stir up yourself; arise, O Jerusalem I who have drunk from the hand of Jehovah the cup of His fury: the dregs of the cup of trembling have you drunk, you have sucked them out." "Jerusalem" denotes the church as to doctrine; to "awake or stir up" and to "arise" denotes the restoration thereof; to "drink the cup of fury" denotes the false, and "the dregs of the cup" mere falsities, from which are evils; and to attract them is signified by "drinking and sucking them out." "There is none to lead her, of all the sons she has brought forth; neither is there any to take her by the hand, of all the sons she has brought up", signifies that no Truths of the Word which she has learned and imbibed withdraw her from falsities; "sons" here denoting Truths. Apocalypse Explained 724.

19. These two things have befallen you; who shall bemoan you? desolation, and destruction; the famine, and the sword: by whom shall I comfort you ?

Verse 19. By "famine" is here understood the deprivation of the knowledges of Good, even until Good is no more; and by the "sword", the deprivation of the knowledges of Truth, until Truth is no more; therefore mention is also made of "devastation" and "breaking up" [confractio], the former having relation to Good being no more, and the latter to Truth being no more. Apocalypse Explained 386. See also A. O. 2799.

20. Your sons have fainted; they lie at the head of all the streets, like a wild bull in a net: they are full of the fury of Jehovah, the rebuke of your God.

Verse 20. Speaking of "Jerusalem", that is, of the church, devastated as to doctrine. By "sons" are meant those who are in Truths of doctrine; to "faint" and to "lie at the head of all the streets", signifies to be deprived of all Truth; the "head" or beginning of the streets denoting the entrance to Truth, consequently. all Truth.Apocalypse Explained 652.

As to "streets", etc., see Chapter 24:10-12; 35:8, the Exposition.

Your sons have fainted, etc. - These words signify that Truths are dissipated by falsities of every kind. Inasmuch as "sons" denote Truths, by "fainting" is signified to be dissipated; and by" lying at the head of all the streets", is signified by falsities of every kind; for the "streets" of a city signify doctrinal Truths, but here doctrinal falsities. Apocalypse Explained 724.

Like a wild bull in a net. - [The antelope or some wild animal is meant, which, being caught in a net, struggles to emancipate itself, but is not able; in like manner Truths in bondage to the natural man struggle, as it were, to come forth and to make him spiritual and free, but, in the perverse state of the church and of the unregenerate mind here depicted, are not able. Swedenborg has quoted the sentence in Apocalypse Explained 652, but has not. explained it.]

21. Wherefore hear now this, O you afflicted, and drunken, but not with wine:

22. Thus says your Lord, Jehovah, and your God, who pleads for His people, Behold, I will take from your hand the cup of trembling, the dregs of the cup of My fury; you shalt drink of it no more:

23. But I will put it into the hand of them that afflicted you; who have said to your soul, Bow down, that we may pass over: and you didst lay down your back, as the ground; and as the street, to them that passed over.

Verse 21. By "the drunken, but not with wine", are here understood those who are in falsities from ignorance of Truth. Apocalypse Explained 376 Apocalypse Explained 376[1-40].

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Isaiah Chapter 51.

1. HEARKEN unto Me, you that pursue justice, you that seek Jehovah: look unto the rock whence you were hewn, and to the excavation of the pit, whence you were digged.

2. Look unto Abraham your father, and unto Sarah who bare you: for I called him alone, and I blessed him, and I multiplied him.

3. For Jehovah will comfort Zion: He will comfort all her waste places; and He will make her wilderness like Eden, and her desert like the garden of Jehovah; joy and gladness shall be found therein, thanksgiving, and the voice of singing.

4. Attend unto Me, O My people; and give ear unto Me, O My nation: for the law shall proceed from Me, and My judgment will I cause to break forth for a light to the peoples.

5. My justice is near; My salvation is gone forth; and Mine arms shall judge the peoples: the islands shall hope in Me, and on Mine arm shall they trust.

6. Lift up unto the heavens your eyes, and look unto the earth beneath: for the heavens shall vanish away like smoke; and the earth shall wax old like a garment, and its inhabitants shall die in like manner: but My salvation shall be for ever, and My justice shall not be broken.

7. Hearken unto Me, you that know justice; the people in whose heart is My law: fear you not the reproach of men, neither be you dismayed by their revilings.

8. For the moth shall eat them up like a garment, and the worm shall eat them up like wool: but My justice shall be for ever, and My salvation from generation to generation.

9. Awake, awake, clothe yourself with strength, O arm of Jehovah! awake, as in the days of antiquity, in the generations of old. Art you not the same that smote Rahab, that wounded the dragon?

10. Art you not the same that dried up the sea, the waters of the great deep? that made the depths of the sea a path for the redeemed to pass over?

11. Thus shall the ransomed of Jehovah return, and come to Zion with singing; and everlasting joy shall be upon their heads: joy and gladness shall they obtain, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away.

12. I, even I, am He that comforts you: who art you, that you should fear man that shall die, and the son of man that shall become as the grass?

13. And forgets Jehovah your Maker, who stretched out the heavens, and founded the earth; and fears continually every day because of the fury of the oppressor, as if he were ready to destroy? but where is the fury of the oppressor?

14. He that leads out shall hasten to open; and [the captive] shall not die in the pit, and his bread shall not fail.

15. For I am Jehovah your God, who rebukes the sea, when the waves thereof roar: Jehovah of Hosts is His name,

16. I have put My words in your mouth: and with the shadow of My hand have I covered you: to plant the heavens, and to found the earth; and to say unto Zion, You art My people.

17. Arouse yourself, arouse yourself; arise, O Jerusalem! who have drunk from the hand of Jehovah the cup of His fury: the dregs of the cup of trembling have you drunk, you have sucked them out.

18. There is none to lead her, of all the sons she has brought forth; neither is there any to take her by the hand, of all the sons she has brought up.

19. These two things have befallen you; who shall bemoan you? desolation, and destruction; the famine, and the sword: by whom shall I comfort you ?

20. Your sons have fainted; they lie at the head of all the streets, like a wild bull in a net: they are full of the fury of Jehovah, the rebuke of your God.

21. Wherefore hear now this, O you afflicted, and drunken, but not with wine:

22. Thus says your Lord, Jehovah, and your God, who pleads for His people, Behold, I will take from your hand the cup of trembling, the dregs of the cup of My fury; you shalt drink of it no more:

23. But I will put it into the hand of them that afflicted you; who have said to your soul, Bow down, that we may pass over: and you didst lay down your back, as the ground; and as the street, to them that passed over.

315. As if slain, signifies as yet acknowledged by few. This is evident from the signification of "slain," as being, in reference to the Lord, that He has not been acknowledged; here that few have acknowledged His Human to be Divine, for it is said "a Lamb standing as if slain," a "lamb" signifying the Lord in respect to the Divine Human (as was shown just above, n. 314. The meaning here is similar to what was said of the Lord (Revelation 1:18), "and I became dead," which signifies that He was rejected (See above, n. 83). In the spiritual or internal sense, "slain" does not mean slain in respect to the body, but in respect to the soul; and man is slain in respect to the soul when he is no longer in any good of faith, for he then has no spiritual life, but death instead, which is called spiritual death. But this is not what the term "slain" signifies when applied to the Lord, since the Lord is life itself, and gives spiritual life to everyone; but it signifies either that He is rejected or that He is not acknowledged; for with those who do not acknowledge, and still more with those who deny, He is as nothing. The Lord Himself, to be sure, and also His Divine, is acknowledged in the church, but in respect to the Human as a mere man and not as God; thus it is that His Divine Human is not acknowledged; this, therefore, is what is meant by "a Lamb standing as if slain." But that the Lord is God also as to the Human, can be seen in The Doctrine of the New Jerusalem 280-310), and will be seen at the end of this work, where it will be plainly shown.

[2] Those who think solely from the sense of the letter of the Word, and not at the same time from the doctrine of genuine truth, know no otherwise than that "slain" in the Word means slain in respect to the body; but that it means slain in respect to the soul will be seen from the passages to be quoted presently. For it is acknowledged that the Word in its inmost is spiritual, although in the sense of the letter it is natural; and to be slain spiritually is to perish in respect to the soul, as is the case with those who do not receive the life of heaven, which is called "life eternal," and also simply "life," and who thus in place of this have death, which is damnation. And because this is acknowledged, it follows that "to be slain" means in the Word to perish by falsities and evils. But spiritually the Lord is said "to be slain" when the truth from Him is denied and the good from Him is rejected; with these the Lord is also not acknowledged, for he who denies and rejects what is from Him, denies and rejects Him also, for the Lord is with man in his truths and goods.

[3] But here His Divine Human is treated of; that this is not acknowledged as yet, is known. I will state the reasons: One is, that the popish body has transferred to its own primate all Divine power that the Lord has, also that in respect to His Human, and are unwilling to hear that it is Divine, since it is from His Human. The other reason is, that those who are not of that body have made faith alone the sole means of salvation, and not the life of charity; and those who do this are unable to perceive the Lord's Human as differing from the human of another man; they therefore abide blindly in the doctrine of the Trinity from the creed of Athanasius, and cannot be illustrated.

[4] That "to be slain" in the Word signifies to be slain spiritually, can be seen from the following passages. In Isaiah:

Thou, like an abominable shoot, the raiment of those that are slain, thrust through with the sword: for thou hast destroyed thy land, thou hast slain thy people. Prepare slaughter for His sons (Isaiah 14:19-21).

This is said of Babylon, which signifies the profanation of good and truth, and the consequent destruction of the church. It is compared to "the raiment of those that are slain, who are thrust through with the sword," because "the raiment of those that are slain" signifies abominable falsity, defiling and destroying the things of the church; they are therefore said "to be thrust through with the sword," because "sword" signifies falsity destroying truth. Therefore it is said, "thou hast destroyed thy land, thou hast slain thy people," "land" means the church, and "people" those therein who are in truths; to "slay" these is to destroy by falsities. "Prepare slaughter for his sons" signifies that their falsities are to be destroyed, "his sons" meaning falsities.

[5] In Jeremiah:

The slain of Jehovah shall be at that day from the end of the earth unto the end of the earth (Jeremiah 25:33).

"The slain of Jehovah from the end of the earth unto the end of the earth" signify those with whom all the truths of the church have been destroyed by falsities; "the slain of Jehovah" signifying those with whom they have been destroyed, and "from the end of the earth unto the end of the earth" signifying all things of the church.

[6] In the same:

Therefore give their sons to the famine, and make them flow down upon the hands of the sword, that men may become rare, ¹ slain with death, their young men smitten with the sword in war (Jeremiah 18:21).

"To give the sons to the famine, and to make them flow down upon the hands of the sword," signifies to extinguish the truths of the church through failure of the knowledges of truth and through falsities, "sons" are truths, "famine" is a failure of knowledges, and "sword" falsity destroying truth; "that men may become rare, slain with death," signifies that there is no affection of truth or wisdom therefrom, "men" signifying the affection of truth and wisdom therefrom (See above, n. 280; "their young men smitten with the sword in war" signifies because truths have been destroyed by the assaults of falsity, "young men" meaning truths, "sword" falsity destroying, and "war" the assault of falsity.

[7] In Ezekiel:

Pass ye through Jerusalem, and smite; neither let your eye spare; slay ye to destruction the old man, the young man, and the virgin, and the infant; but come not near against any man upon whom is the sign (Ezekiel 9:5-6).

This was said by "the man clothed in linen," or by the angel, to other angels, and was heard by the prophet. It does not mean that they should pass through Jerusalem, and should smite and slay to destruction old men, young men, virgins, and infants; but "Jerusalem" means the church in respect to doctrine, and it is meant that the church is altogether vastated in respect to all the goods and truths that constitute it; "old man" means wisdom which is of good; "young man" intelligence which is of truth; "virgin" the affection of these; and "infant" every good and truth in its birth, in a special sense the good of innocence, by which all things of the church with man are begotten; "the man [vir] upon whom was the sign and to whom they should not come near," signifies truth from good.

[8] In the same:

That they may stone them with a stone, may cleave them with swords, may slay their sons and their daughters, and burn up their houses with fire (Ezekiel 23:47).

This was said of Samaria and Jerusalem, which are here called Oholah and Oholibah; by which are signified the two churches, namely, the spiritual and the celestial, here those churches devastated by falsities and evils. "To stone with a stone, and to cleave with swords," signifies the destruction of truth by falsities, for "stoning" signified punishment and death because of violence offered to Divine truth; "cleaving by swords" has a like signification. "To slay sons and daughters" signifies to destroy all truths and goods, "sons" meaning truths and "daughters" goods; and "to burn up the houses with fire" signifies to destroy all things that are of love and charity by the evils of the love of self and the world, "houses" mean man's interiors, thus the things that are of his love, here that these are destroyed; "fire" meaning love in both senses.

[9] In Jeremiah:

They have lain on the earth, lad and old man in the streets; my virgins and my young men have fallen by the sword; Thou hast slain in the day of Thine anger, Thou hast not pitied (Lamentations 2:21).

Here, too, the church devastated is treated of. "To lie on the earth and in the streets" signifies to be destroyed by evils and falsities; "lad and old man, virgins and young men have fallen by the sword," signifies here, as above, all goods and truths with intelligence and wisdom; "thou hast slain in the day of Thine anger, Thou hast not pitied," signifies their extinction, "the day of anger" signifying the last state of the church, when judgment takes place. Slaying, that is, extinguishing these things, is attributed to Jehovah; but it is man himself, the sense of the letter being such as to attribute to Jehovah what belongs to the man himself (See Arcana Coelestia 2447, 5798, 6071, 6991, 6997, 7533, 7632, 7643, 7679, 7710, 7877, 7926, 8227, 8282, 8483, 8632, 9010, 9128, 9306, 10431).

[10] In Amos:

I will cut off the judge out of the midst of Moab, and will slay all the princes thereof with him (Amos. Amos 2:3).

"Moab" in the Word, means those who adulterate the goods of the church; the "judge who will be cut off," and the "princes who will be slain," signify the good which is adulterated, and the truths which are thereby falsified, "judge" meaning good, and "prince" truth.

[11] In Zechariah:

A voice of the howling of the shepherds, that their magnificence is devastated. Thus said Jehovah my God, Feed the sheep of the slaughter, which their possessors slay. I have fed the sheep of the slaughter for your sakes, O miserable of the flock (Zechariah 11:3-5, 7).

"The sheep of the slaughter which their possessors slay," signify those who are in good, and are led astray by the falsities of doctrine; those are called "sheep" who are in the good of charity; "shepherds" are those who teach truths, and by means of these lead to good.

[12] In David:

We are slain every day; we are reckoned as a flock for slaughter. Awake, O Lord, cast us not off always (Psalms 44:22-23).

"We are slain every day" signifies that of ourselves we are constantly falling into falsities, and are being led astray by them, especially in a time when falsities reign; this makes clear what a "flock for slaughter" signifies; that we may be elevated out of falsities by the Lord is signified by "Awake, O Lord, cast us not off always."

[13] In Ezekiel:

They shall draw forth the swords upon the beauty of thy wisdom, and they shall profane thy radiance. They shall bring thee down into the pit, and thou shalt die the death of the slain (Ezekiel 28:7-8).

This is said of the prince of Tyre, by whom is signified the intelligence that is from the knowledges of truth, here that intelligence extinguished by falsities. "To draw forth swords upon the beauty of thy wisdom" signifies its extinction by falsities; "to bring down into the pit" signifies immersion in falsities; and "to die the death of the slain" signifies destruction and damnation, the "slain" signifying those with whom all truth is extinguished (Arcana Coelestia 4503[1-11], 9262), and "death" signifying damnation.

[14] In Isaiah:

Hath he smitten him according to the stroke of him that smiteth him? Hath he been slain according to the slaughter of his slain? (Isaiah 27:7).

This treats of Jacob and Israel, by whom the church is signified, "Jacob" the external church, and "Israel" the internal. The temptations of those who are of the church are thus described, which are signified by "Hath he smitten him according to the stroke of him that smiteth him?" And that they should not succumb in temptations and thus perish is signified by "Is he slain according to the slaughter of the slain?" "the slaughter of the slain" signifying perdition by falsities.

[15] "Slaughter" signifies perdition and damnation in other places in the same prophet:

In the day of the great slaughter the towers shall fall (Isaiah 30:25).

"The day of the great slaughter" signifies the Last Judgment, when the wicked are condemned and perish, "towers" signifying the doctrines of falsity.

[16] In the same:

I will kill thy root with famine, and he shall slay thy remnant (Isaiah 14:30).

This was said respecting Philistia, by which is signified truth without good, or faith without charity. "To kill the root with famine" signifies to perish utterly from having no good, "root" meaning everything from which a thing lives; therefore it is also said, "he shall slay thy remnant," "remnant" signifying all the remains of the church.

[17] In Jeremiah:

I have heard the voice of the daughter of Zion; she sobbeth and spreadeth her hands, for my soul is wearied by the slayers (Jeremiah 4:31).

Thus is described the grief of a church that is falling from truths into falsities. "The daughter of Zion" is the church; "she sobbeth and spreadeth her hands" signifies grief; "for my soul is wearied by the slayers" signifies by falsities that extinguish spiritual life," "slayers" meaning such falsities.

[18] In Isaiah:

Behold, Jehovah going forth out of His place to visit the iniquity of the earth; then shall the earth reveal her bloods, and shall no longer hide her slain (Isaiah 26:21).

This is said of the day of visitation or judgment, when the iniquities of all shall be uncovered, which is meant by "then the earth shall reveal her bloods, and shall no longer hide her slain;" the "earth" signifies the church, here the evil men in the church; "bloods" are the evils that have destroyed the goods of the church; and the "slain" the falsities that have destroyed its truths; whether it be said that the "slain" signify falsities or those who are in falsities, it is the same, for they are in the falsities and the falsities in them, and the falsities in them are what destroy. The like is signified by the "slain" elsewhere in Isaiah:

What will ye do in the day of visitation and of devastation? They shall fall beneath the slain (Isaiah 10:3-4).

Likewise in Revelation:

In Babylon was found the blood of the prophets and of the saints, and of all that have been slain upon the earth (Revelation 18:24).

What is here signified will be seen in what comes after.

[19] In Isaiah:

I will visit evil upon the world. Everyone that is found shall be thrust through; and everyone gathered together shall fall by the sword (Isaiah 13:11, 15).

This also is said of Babylon. That "everyone that is found shall be thrust through" signifies that they shall perish by evil; and that "everyone gathered together shall fall by the sword" signifies that they shall perish by falsity.

[20] In Matthew:

In the end of the age they shall deliver you up unto tribulation and shall slay you (Matthew 24:9).

In John:

They shall put you out of the synagogues; yea, the hour cometh that everyone who killeth you will think that he offereth sacred worship to God (John 16:2).

This was said to the disciples; and by "disciples," in the spiritual representative sense, are meant all truths and goods of the church; whence it is clear what is meant in that sense by "they shall kill them," namely, that the truths and goods of the church shall then be destroyed.

[21] In Mark:

In the consummation of the age, brother shall deliver up brother to death, the father the children; children shall rise up against parents, and shall cause them to be put to death (Mark 13:12).

The consummation of the age is the last time of the church, when falsities shall destroy truths and evils shall destroy goods. "Brother," "father," and "children," do not mean here brother, father, and children, but falsity and truth, and good and evil. "Brother shall deliver up brother to death" signifies that falsity shall destroy good; especially that faith alone shall destroy charity, for faith in the Word is called the brother to charity; "the father shall deliver up the children to death" signifies that the good of the church shall perish by the falsities of evil, "father" meaning the good of the church, and "children" the falsities of evil; "children shall rise up against their parents, and shall cause them to be put to death," signifies that the falsities of evil shall assault the goods and truths of the church and destroy them.

[22] In Luke:

The man who planted a vineyard sent a servant that they should give him of the fruit of the vineyard; but the husbandmen beat him, and sent him away empty. Again he sent another servant; and beating him also, they sent him away empty. Again he sent a third, and wounding him, they cast him out. Then said the lord of the vineyard, What shall I do? I will send my beloved son. But they said, This is the heir; come, let us kill him; and casting him out of the vineyard they killed him (Luke 20:10-16; Mark 12:2-9).

This is said respecting the church instituted among the Jews, and it describes the perversion and falsification by traditions and by applications to self of every truth they had from the Word. All the particulars here contain a spiritual sense; for whatever the Lord spoke, He spoke also spiritually, because from the Divine. The "vineyard which the man planted," signifies the church that is in truths; the "servants whom he sent thrice," mean the Word given them through Moses and the prophets; there is mention of three times, because "three" signifies what is full and complete; "their beating them, wounding them, and sending them away empty out of the vineyard," signifies that they falsified and perverted the truths contained in the Word; "to send away empty out of the vineyard" signifies that they deprived the Word of its goods and truths. "The beloved son" means the Lord in respect to Divine truth, who is therefore called also the Word; "they cast him out of the vineyard and killed him" signifies killing not only the Lord, but also all Divine truth from Him (See also above, n. 83.

[23] In Daniel:

After sixty and two weeks the Messiah shall be cut off, but not for Himself (Daniel 9:26).

"The Messiah" also means the Lord in respect to Divine truth (See Arcana Coelestia 3008, 3009); "He shall be cut off" means not only Himself, but also all Divine truth with that people; "but not for Himself" signifies that with those who are in a new church Divine truth will live again, like as before in the first chapter of Revelation:

I am the Living One, and I became dead; and behold I am alive unto the ages of the ages (Revelation 1:18).

Bilješke: