275. Verse 6. And in sight of the throne a glassy sea like crystal, signifies the appearance of [Divine] truth in ultimates where its generals are, and its pellucidity by virtue of the influx of Divine truth united to Divine good in firsts. This is evident from the signification of "in sight of the throne," as being appearance; also from the signification of "glassy," as being pellucid. It is also said "like crystal," that pellucidity from the influx of Divine truth united to Divine good in firsts may be described; this is signified by "the seven lamps of fire burning before the throne" (as shown just above, n. 274. In this and what precedes, the state of the whole heaven arranged in order for judgment is described, and its ultimate is meant by "the glassy sea like crystal." The truth of the ultimate heaven is signified by "a glassy sea" because "sea" signifies the generals of truth, such truth as exists in the ultimates of heaven, and with man in the natural man, which truth is called knowledge [scientificum]. The "sea" signifies such truths because in the sea is the gathering together of waters, and "waters" signify truths (See above, n. 71).

[2] That this is the signification of "sea" is evident from many passages in the Word, a number of which I will cite here. In Isaiah:

I will shut up the Egyptians into the land of a hard lord; and a fierce king shall rule over them. Then the waters shall fail from the sea, and the river shall dry up and become dry (Isaiah 19:4, 6).

By "the Egyptians" knowledges [scientiae] that are of the natural man are meant; "the hard lord into whose hands they should be shut up" signifies the evil of self-love; "a fierce king" signifies falsity therefrom; "the waters shall fail from the sea" signifies that with all the abundance of knowledges [scientiarum] there still are no truths; and "the river shall dry up and become dry" signifies that there is no doctrine of truth and no intelligence therefrom.

[3] In the same:

Jehovah will visit with His sword, hard, great, and strong, upon leviathan the stretched out serpent, and leviathan the crooked serpent, and will slay the whales that are in the sea (Isaiah 27:1).

This is also said of "Egypt," by which knowledges [scientiae] that are of the natural man are signified; "leviathan the stretched out serpent" signifies those who reject all things which they do not see with the eyes, thus the merely sensual, who are without faith, because they do not comprehend. "Leviathan the crooked serpent" signifies those who, for the same reason, do not believe, and yet say that they believe. "The sword, hard, and great, and strong, with which they shall be visited," signifies the extinction of all truth, for "sword" signifies falsity destroying truth. "The whales in the sea," that shall be slain, signify knowledges [scientifica] in general. (That these are signified by "whales," see Arcana Coelestia 7293.)

[4] In the same:

Let the inhabitants of the isle be still; thou merchant of Zidon passing over the sea, they have filled thee. Blush, O Zidon, for the sea hath said, the stronghold of the sea, saying, I have not travailed, and I have not brought forth, and I have not brought up young men, and have not raised up virgins; when the report comes to Egypt they shall be seized with grief, as by the report respecting Tyre (Isaiah 23:2-5).

"Zidon" and "Tyre" signify the knowledges of good and truth; therefore it is said "the merchant of Zidon passing over the sea," "merchant" meaning one who acquires these knowledges for himself and communicates them. That they acquired for themselves thereby nothing of good and truth is signified by "the sea said, I have not travailed and I have not brought forth, I have not brought up young men, and have not raised up virgins;" "to travail and bring forth" is to produce something from knowledges; "young men" mean truths, and "virgins" goods. That the use of cognitions and knowledges (cognitionum et scientiarum) would therefore perish, is signified by "when the report comes to Egypt they shall be seized with grief, as by the report respecting Tyre."

[5] In Ezekiel:

All the princes of the sea shall come down from their thrones, and cast away their robes, and strip off their broidered garments, they shall be clothed with terrors. They shall take up a lamentation over thee, and shall say, How hast thou perished, thou that dwelt by the seas, the renowned city which was strong in the sea; therefore the islands in the sea shall be dismayed at thy outcome (Ezekiel 26:15-18).

These things are said of "Tyre," which signifies the cognitions of truth, the neglect and loss of which are thus described; the "princes of the sea that shall come down from their thrones" signify primary cognitions; that these together with knowledges [scientificis] shall be abandoned is signified by "they shall cast away their robes, and strip off their broidered garments;" "broidered work," is knowledges [scientificum]; "the city that dwelt by the seas and was strong in the sea" signifies the power of knowing in all abundance ("seas" signify collections); "the islands in the sea" signify nations more remote from truths that long for cognitions, of which it is said "therefore the islands in the sea shall be dismayed at thy outcome."

[6] In Isaiah:

They shall not do evil nor corrupt themselves in all the mountain of My holiness; for the earth shall be full of the knowledge [scientifia] of Jehovah, as the waters cover the sea (Isaiah 11:9).

This treats of a new heaven and a new church, which are meant by "mountain of holiness," in which "they shall not do evil nor corrupt themselves;" their understanding of truth from the Lord is described by "the earth shall be full of the knowledge [scientia] of Jehovah; "and as waters" signify truths, and the "sea" the fullness of them, it is said, "as the waters cover the sea."

[7] In the same:

By My rebuke I dry up the sea, I make the rivers a wilderness; their fish shall become putrid because there is no water, and shall die of thirst (Isaiah 50:2).

"To dry up the sea" signifies an entire lack of the general knowledges of truth; "to make the rivers a wilderness" signifies the deprivation of all truth and of intelligence therefrom; "the fish shall become putrid" signifies that the knowledges [scientifica] pertaining to the natural man shall be without any spiritual life; this takes place when they are applied to confirm falsities in opposition to the truths of the church; "by cause there is no water" signifies because there is no truth; "to die of thirst" signifies the extinction of truth. (That "rivers" signify the things of intelligence, see Arcana Coelestia 108, 2702[1-17], Arcana Coelestia 2702[1-17], 3051; that "wilderness" signifies where there is no good because there is no truth, n. 2708, 4736, 7055; that "fish" signifies the knowledge [scientificum] pertaining to the natural man, n. 40, 991; that "water" signifies truth, n. 2702, 3058, 3424, 5668, 8568; and that "to die of thirst" signifies the absence of spiritual life from lack of truth, n. Arcana Coelestia 8568[1-10].

[8] In David:

O Jehovah, Thou rulest in the uprising of the sea; when it raiseth up its waves (Psalms 89:9).

The "sea" here signifies the natural man, because in the natural man are the generals of truth; "the uprising of the sea" signifies its exalting itself against the Divine, denying the things that are of the church; the "waves" which it raiseth up signify falsities.

[9] In the same:

Jehovah hath founded the world upon the seas, and established it upon the rivers (Psalms 24:2).

The "world" signifies the church; the "seas" knowledges in general which are in the natural man; and "rivers" the truths of faith; upon these two the church has its foundation.

[10] In Amos:

Jehovah, who buildeth His steps in the heavens, and calleth the waters of the sea, and poureth them out upon the faces of the earth (Amos 9:6).

"The steps that Jehovah buildeth in the heavens" signify interior truths which are called spiritual; "the waters of the sea" signify exterior truths, which are natural because they are in the natural man; "to pour them out upon the faces of the earth" signifies upon the men of the church, for the "earth" is the church.

[11] In David:

By the word of Jehovah were the heavens made; and all the hosts of them by the breath of His mouth. He gathereth the waters of the sea together as an heap; He giveth the deeps in treasuries (Psalms 33:6-7).

"The word of Jehovah by which the heavens were made," and "the breath of His mouth by which all the hosts of them were made," signify Divine truth proceeding from the Lord; "the hosts of the heavens" are all things of love and faith; "the waters of the sea that He gathereth together as an heap" signify the knowledges of truth, and truths in general, which are together in the natural man; "the deeps that He gives in treasuries" signify sensual knowledges [scientifica sensualia], which are the most general and ultimate things of the natural man, and in which at the same time are interior or higher truths, therefore they are called "treasures."

[12] In the same:

Jehovah hath founded the earth upon its bases, that it be not removed for ever and ever. Thou hast covered it with the deep as with a vesture (Psalms 104:5-6).

The "earth" signifies the church; "the bases on which Jehovah hath founded it for ever" are the knowledges of truth and good; "the deep with which He hath covered it as with a vesture" signifies sensual knowledge [scientificum sensuale], which is the ultimate of the natural man, and being the ultimate, it is said that "He covered it as with a vesture."

[13] In the same:

Jehovah, Thy way is in the sea, and Thy path in many waters, yet Thy footsteps have not been known (Psalms 77:19).

In Isaiah:

Thus saith Jehovah, I who have given a way in the sea, and a path in the mighty waters (Isaiah 43:16).

That "sea" here does not mean the sea, nor "waters" the waters, is clear, since it is said that therein "are the way and the path of Jehovah;" therefore by "sea" and by "waters" are meant such things as Jehovah or the Lord is in, which are the knowledges of truth in general from the Word, and the truths therein; "the sea" being such knowledges, and "waters" truths. Knowledges and truths differ in this, that knowledges are of the natural man, and truths of the spiritual man.

[14] In Jeremiah:

Behold, I will plead thy cause, and will revenge thy revenging; that I may dry up the sea of Babylon, and make dry her fountain. The sea shall come up upon Babylon, she shall be covered with the multitude of its waves (Jeremiah 51:36, 42).

By "Babylon" those who profane goods are meant; "the sea of Babylon" means their traditions, which are the adulterations of good from the Word; "the waves" are the falsities from these; their destruction at the Last Judgment is hereby described.

[15] In the same:

A people coming from the north, and a great nation and many kings shall be stirred up from the sides of the earth. Their voice maketh a tumult like the sea, and they ride upon horses (Jeremiah 50:41, 42).

"A people coming from the north" are those who are in falsities from evil; "the great nation" means evils; and "many kings" falsities; "the sides of the earth" are the things outside of the church, and those that are not of the church, for the "earth" means the church; "their voice maketh a tumult like the sea" means falsity from the natural man exalting itself against the truth of the church; "the horses upon which they ride" are reasonings from the fallacies of the senses.

[16] In the same:

Jehovah giveth the sun for light by day, the statutes of the moon and stars for light by night, stirring up the sea so that the waves thereof roar (Jeremiah 31:35).

"The sun from which is the light of day" signifies the good of celestial love, from which is the perception of truth; "the statutes of the moon and stars, from which is the light of night," signify truths from spiritual good and from knowledges, by which there is intelligence; "the sea that is stirred up, and the waves that roar," signify the generals of truth in the natural man, and knowledges [scientifica].

[17] In Isaiah:

The wicked are like the troubled sea when it cannot be quiet, but its waters cast up filth and mire (Isaiah 57:20).

"The troubled sea which is like the wicked," signifies reasonings from falsities; "the waters that cast up filth and mire," signify the falsities themselves, from which come evils of life and falsities of doctrine.

[18] In Ezekiel:

I will stretch out Mine hand upon the Philistines, and I will cut off the Cherethites, and destroy the remnant of the sea coast (Ezekiel 25:16).

"The Philistines" signify those who are in the doctrine of faith alone, and "the remnant of the sea coast that shall be destroyed," signifies all things of truth.

[19] In Hosea:

I will not return to destroy Ephraim. They shall go after Jehovah; and the sons from the sea shall draw near with honor, with honor shall they come as a bird out of Egypt, and as a dove out of the land of Assyria (Hosea 11:9-11).

"Ephraim" signifies the church in respect to the understanding of truth; "the sons from the sea, who shall draw near," signify truths from a common fountain, which is the Word; "a bird out of Egypt" signifies knowledge [scientificum] agreeing; and "a dove out of the land of Assyria" signifies the rational.

[20] In Zechariah:

In that day living waters shall go out from Jerusalem; part of them to the eastern sea, and part of them to the hinder sea (Zechariah 14:8).

"Living waters from Jerusalem" signify truths from a spiritual origin in the church, which are the truths that are received by man when he is illustrated by the Lord while he is reading the Word. "Jerusalem" is the church in respect to doctrine, the "sea" signifies the natural man, into which those things that are in the spiritual man descend; the "eastern sea" signifies the natural man in respect to good; and the "hinder sea" the natural man in respect to truth; and as the natural man is in the generals of truth, "sea" also signifies the general of truth.

[21] He who knows nothing about the spiritual man, and the truths and goods that are therein, may suppose that the truths that are in the natural man, and are called cognitions and knowledges [scientifica] are not merely the generals of truth, but are all there is of truth with man. But let him know that the truths in the spiritual man, from which those are that are in the natural, are incomparably more numerous; but these truths in the spiritual man do not come to the perception of the natural man until he enters the spiritual world, which is after death; for then man puts off the natural and puts on the spiritual. That this is so can be seen from this fact alone, that angels are in intelligence and wisdom ineffable as compared with man, and yet they are from the human race. (That angels are from the human race, see in the small work onThe Last Judgment 14-22 and 23-27)

[22] As the "sea" signifies the generals of truth, therefore the great vessel, which was for general washing, was called "the brazen sea" (1 Kings 7:23-26); for the "washings" represented purifications from falsities and evils, and "waters" signify truths, by which purifications are effected; and as all truths are from good, the containing vessel was made of brass, and was therefore called "the barren sea," for brass signifies good. Spiritual purification, which is called purification from falsities and evils, is there fully described by the measurements of that vessel, and by the bases thereof, understood in a spiritual sense. From what has been brought forward it can be seen that "sea" signifies the generals of truth or the knowledges of truth together and collectively. But what further is signified by "sea" will be shown in the explanation of what follows, for "sea" is used in various senses (as in Revelation 5:13; 7:1-3; 8:8, 9; 10:2, 8; 12:12; 13:1; 14:7; 15:2; 16:3; 18:17, 19, 21; 20:13; 21:1).

994. That 'every creeping thing that is living' means all pleasures containing good, which is living, is clear from the meaning of 'creeping thing' dealt with already. The fact that 'creeping thing' here means all clean beasts and birds is clear to everyone, for it is said that they are 'given for food'. In their proper sense 'creeping things' comprise those which were the basest of all, mentioned by name in Leviticus 11:27, 29-30, and were unclean. But in a broad sense, as here, they are the living creatures that have been given for food. They are called 'creeping things' here however because they mean pleasures. In the Word, human affections are meant by 'clean beasts', as has been stated. But because no one perceives those affections except within his pleasures, so much so that he refers to them as pleasures, they are for this reason called 'creeping things' here.

[2] There are two kinds of pleasures - those of the will and those of the understanding. In general there are the pleasures of possessing land and wealth; the pleasures of positions of honour and those of service to the state; the pleasures of conjugial love, and of love of infants and children; the pleasures of friendship and of social intercourse; the pleasures of reading, writing, having knowledge, being wise, and many others. Then there are the pleasures of the senses; such as that of hearing, which in general is the pleasure taken in the sweet sounds of music and song; that of seeing, which in general is the pleasure taken in various things of beauty, which are manifold; that of smell, which is that taken in pleasant odours; that of taste, which is that taken in all the delicious and nourishing qualities of food and drink; and that of touch, which arises from further joyous sensations. Because these different kinds of pleasures are experienced in the body, they are called pleasures of the body. But no pleasure ever arises in the body unless it arises from, and is sustained by, some interior affection. Nor does any interior affection ever do so unless this in turn stems from a still more interior affection in which use and the end in view reside.

[3] These areas of affection, which are interior and properly ordered, starting with the inmost, are not discerned by anyone during his lifetime. The majority scarcely know that they even exist, let alone that they are the source of pleasures. Yet nothing can possibly arise in things that are external except from those that are interior and in order. Pleasures are simply ultimate effects. Interior things are not evident during life in the body except to those who reflect. It is in the next life that they first manifest themselves, and indeed in the order in which the Lord raises them up towards heaven. Interior affections together with their joys manifest themselves in the world of spirits; still more interior ones together with their delights do so in the heaven of angelic spirits; and yet more interior ones together with all their happiness in the heaven of angels. For there are three heavens, one interior to and more perfect and happy than the next, see 459, 684. Such is the order in which these things unfold and enable themselves to be perceived in the next life. But so long as someone is living in the body, because his ideas and thought are constantly of bodily things, those that are interior are so to speak dormant because they are immersed in bodily things. All the same, to anyone who stops to reflect it becomes clear that the nature of all pleasures is such as are the affections ranged in order within them and that those pleasures derive their entire essence and character from those affections.

[4] Since the affections ranged in order within are experienced in outermost things, that is, in the body, as pleasures, they are therefore called 'creeping things'. But these are simply bodily feelings that are the products of things within, as may become clear to anyone merely from sight and its pleasures. If interior sight does not exist, the eye cannot possibly see. The sight of the eye comes from a more interior sight, and therefore also man has the gift of sight just as much after his life in the body as during it; indeed he sees far better than when he lived in the body, though now he does not see worldly and bodily things but things that exist in the next life. People who have been blind during their lifetime have the gift of sight in the next life just as much as those who have been sharp-sighted. This also is why when someone is asleep he sees in his dreams just as clearly as when awake. With my internal sight I have been allowed to see the things that exist in the next life more clearly than I see those which exist in the world. From these considerations it is clear that external sight comes from a more interior sight, which in turn comes from sight still more interior, and so on. The same applies to each one of the other senses and to every kind of pleasure.

[5] In other parts of the Word pleasures are in a similar way called 'creeping things'. In those places too a distinction is made between creeping things that are clean and those that are not, that is, between pleasures whose joys are living or heavenly, and pleasures whose joys are dead or hellish, as in Hosea,

I will make for them a covenant on that day with the wild animals of the field, and with the birds of the air, ¹ and with the creeping things of the ground. Hosea 2:18.

Here 'wild animals of the field, birds of the air, ¹ and creeping things' means the kind of things already mentioned that reside with man. This becomes clear for the reason that a new Church is the subject.

In David,

Let heaven and earth praise Jehovah, the seas and everything creeping in them. Psalms 69:34.

'Seas and creeping things in them' cannot praise Jehovah but the things with man which they mean and which are alive, and so from what is living within them.

In the same author,

Praise Jehovah, wild animal and every beast, creeping thing and winged bird. Psalms 148:10.

Here the meaning is similar. That 'creeping things' is used here to mean nothing other than good affections in which pleasures originate is clear also from the fact that creeping things among them were unclean, as will be evident from the following:

[6] In the same author,

O Jehovah, the earth is full of Your possessions; this sea, great and wide, containing creeping things and innumerable; they all look to You to give them their food in due season. You givest to them - they gather it up; You openest Your hand - they are satisfied with good. Psalms 104:24, 25, 27-28.

Here in the internal sense 'seas' means spiritual things, 'creeping things' all things that live from them. Fruitfulness is described by 'giving them food in due season and being satisfied with good'.

In Ezekiel,

It will be that every living creature ² that creeps, in every place the [two] rivers come to, will live, and there will be very many fish, for these waters go there, and become fresh, and everything will live where the river goes. Ezekiel 47:9.

This refers to the waters flowing out of the New Jerusalem. 'Waters' stands for spiritual things from a celestial origin. 'Living creature that creeps' stands for affections for good and the pleasures deriving from these affections, both those of the body and those of the senses. The fact that the latter get their life from 'the waters' which are spiritual things from a celestial origin is quite clear.

[7] Filthy pleasures as well, which have their origin in the proprium and so in its foul desires, are also called 'creeping things'. This is clear in Ezekiel,

And I went and saw, and behold, every form of creeping thing and of beast, an abomination; and all the idols of the house of Israel, portrayed on the wall round about. Ezekiel 8:10.

Here 'the form of a creeping thing' means filthy pleasures in which evil desires exist interiorly, and hatred, revenge, cruelty, and adultery within these. Such is the nature of 'creeping things', that is, the delights inherent in pleasures which originate in self-love and love of the world, that is, in the proprium. They are people's idols because they consider them delightful, love them, hold them as gods, and in so doing worship them. Because those creeping things meant filthy things such as these, in the representative Church also they were so unclean that no one was even allowed to touch them. And anyone who did merely touch them was rendered unclean, as is clear from Leviticus 5:2; 11:31-33; 22:5-6.

Bilješke: