9. When one knows that all names in the Word signify things, and that the names of the twelve sons of Jacob, or of the twelve tribes, signify all truths and goods of the church in the complex; and in like manner, the names of the twelve disciples of the Lord; and that "Peter," "James," and "John" signify faith, charity, and the good of charity; he can see many arcana in the Word; as for example, why:

The Lord gave the name Peter to Simon, and to James and John the name Boanerges, which means sons of thunder (Mark 3:16-17).

For "Peter," like petra [rock], signifies the Lord as to truth from good, or faith from charity; and "sons of thunder" signify those who from affection, which is of love, receive the truths of heaven. (That "rock" signifies the Lord in respect to truth from good, or faith from charity, see Arcana Coelestia 8581, 10580; in like manner the "stone of Israel," n. 6426; that "thunders" signify Divine truths from heaven 7573, 8914; and "lightning" the splendors thereof, n. 8813; whence thunders were also called "voices," 7573, 8914)

[2] I will here mention some arcana that may be seen by those who are aware that "Peter" signifies faith, and "John" the good of charity. First, why the Lord said to Peter:

I also say unto thee, Thou art Peter, and upon this rock will I build My church; and I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of the heavens (Matthew 16:18-19).

It appears from the letter, as if that power was given to Peter, when in fact no power was given to Peter; but it was so said to him because "Peter" signified truth from good, which is from the Lord; and truth from good, which is from the Lord, has all power, thus the Lord has all power from good through truth. (That this is so may be seen illustrated in the small work on The Last Judgment 57.) A second arcanum that may be seen, when it is known that "Peter" signifies faith, is, why the Lord said to him, that:

Before the cock crowed, he would deny Him thrice; which also came to pass (Matthew 26:34).

By these words is signified, that in the last time of the church there would be no faith in the Lord, because no charity; for "cock-crowing," as well as "twilight," signifies the last time of the church (n. Arcana Coelestia 10134); and "three" or "thrice," signifies what is complete to the end (n. Arcana Coelestia 2788, 4495, 5159, 9198, 10127. That the end of the church is when there is no faith, because no charity, see in the small work on The Last Judgment 33-39, seq.).

[3] A third arcanum that may be seen is what is signified by the following words concerning Peter and John:

Jesus saith to Peter, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou Me? He saith unto Him, Yea, Lord, thou knowest that I love Thee. He saith unto him, Feed My lambs. He saith to him again a second time, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou Me? He saith unto Him, Yea, Lord, thou knowest that I love Thee. He saith unto him, Tend My sheep. He saith unto him the third time, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou Me? Peter was grieved because He said unto him the third time, Lovest thou Me? And he saith unto Him, Lord, thou knowest all things; thou knowest that I love Thee. Jesus saith unto him, Feed My sheep. Verily, verily, I say unto thee, when thou wast younger, thou girdest thyself, and walkedst whither thou wouldest; but when thou shall be old, thou shalt stretch forth thy hands, and another shall gird thee, and bear thee whither thou wouldest not. And when He had thus spoken, He saith unto him, Follow Me. Peter, turning about, seeth the disciple whom Jesus loved, following, and he saith, Lord, What shall this one [do]? Jesus saith unto him, If I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee? Follow thou Me (John 21:15-22).

What these things signify no one can know unless he knows the internal sense, and knows that "Peter" signifies faith, and "John" the good of charity, thus that "Peter" signifies those in the church who are in faith, and "John" those who are in the good of charity.

That Jesus said to Peter three times, "Lovest thou Me?" and that Peter said three times, "Thou knowest that I love Thee," and that Jesus then said, "Feed My lambs," and "Feed My sheep," signifies that those who are in faith from love, ought to instruct those who are in the good of love to the Lord, and in the good of charity towards the neighbor; for those who are in faith from love are also in truths, and those who from this are in truths, instruct concerning good, and lead to good; for all spiritual good that a man has, is gained and implanted by truths.

(That "lambs" signify those who are in the good of innocence and of love to the Lord, may be seen inArcana Coelestia 3994, 10132; that "sheep" signify those who are in the good of charity towards the neighbor, n. 4169, 4809; and that "to feed" is to instruct, n. 5201, 6078)

[4] Faith, as it was to be in the first period of the church and as it was to be in the last, is then described by the Lord. The first period of the church is meant by "when thou wast younger," and its last by "when thou shalt be old." That when Peter "was younger he girded himself and walked whither he would," signifies that in the first period of the church men would imbibe truths from the good of charity and would act from freedom; for to act from freedom is to act from the affection of truth from good. "When thou shalt be old thou shalt stretch forth thy hands, and another shall gird thee and lead thee whither thou wouldest not," signifies that in the last period of the church they would no longer imbibe truths from the good of charity, thus would not know them in any other way than as declared by another; and thus would be in a servile state; for a servile state ensues when good does not lead. (That "garments" signify truths, see Arcana Coelestia 1073, 2576, 5319, 5954, 9212, 9216, 9952, 10536; and that therefore to "gird oneself" denotes to imbibe and perceive truths, n. 9952. That to "walk" is to act and live; to act from freedom is to act from love or affection, since what a man loves that he does freely, n. 2870, 3158, 8987, 8990, 9585, 9591. That every church begins from charity, but that in process of time it turns aside to faith, and at length to faith alone, n. 1834, 1835, 2231, 4683, 8094.)

[5] Since, in the last period of the church, faith becomes such that it rejects the good of charity, saying that faith alone constitutes the church and is saving, and not the good of life which is charity, Jesus said to Peter, by whom such faith is here meant, "Follow Me; and Peter, turning about, seeth the disciple whom Jesus loved, following; and he saith, Lord, what shall this one [do]?" By this is signified that faith, in the last period of the church, would turn itself away from the Lord; for it is said of Peter, by whom such faith is signified, that "turning about, he saw;" also that he said of the disciple whom Jesus loved, or of John, by whom is signified the good of charity, "what shall this one [do]?" that is, that he is not anything. But Jesus said to him, "If I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee? Follow thou Me." By this is signified that the good of charity will follow the Lord, and will acknowledge Him, even to the last period of the old church, and the first of the new. (That the last period of the old church is called "the consummation of the age," and the beginning of the new church "the coming of the Lord," see Arcana Coelestia 4535, 10622) A fourth arcanum that may be seen is, why the Lord loved John above the rest of the disciples, and consequently why John lay on the breast or in the bosom of the Lord (John 13:23; 21:20); namely, because the good of love was what the Lord saw when He beheld John, who represented and signified that good; since it is that good that constitutes heaven and the church (See the work on Heaven and Hell 13-19). A fifth arcanum is manifest when it is known that John represented the good of love, namely, what is signified by the words of the Lord from the cross to the mother Mary and to John:

When Jesus therefore seeth His mother, and the disciple standing by whom He loved, He saith unto His mother, Woman, behold thy son. Then He saith to the disciple, Behold thy mother. And from that hour the disciple took her unto his own home (John 19:26, 27).

By "mother" and by "woman" is here meant the church, and by "John" the good of charity; and by the things here said, that the church will be where the good of charity is. (That by "woman," in the Word, is meant the church, may be seen in Arcana Coelestia 252-253, 749, 770, 3160, 6014, 7337, 8994; that the like is signified by "mother," n. 289, 2691, 2717, 3703, 4257, 5581, 8897, 10490. That to "take her unto his own home" is that these should dwell together, is evident.)

From this it can now be seen how great arcana lie concealed in the Word, which are laid open to those only who know its internal or spiritual sense. Apart from that sense it cannot be known, moreover, what is signified when it is said:

That the apostles shall sit upon twelve thrones, and shall judge the twelve tribes of Israel (Matthew 19:28; Luke 22:30).

By "apostles" here are meant not apostles, but all truths from good, which are from the Lord; thus by these words is signified that the Lord alone will judge all from truths that are from good, thus that everyone will be judged according to those truths.

10490. 'And kill [every] man his brother, and [every] man his companion, and [every] man his neighbour' means a shutting off to prevent any reception and transmission of inflowing goodness and truth, and of the things touching on them. This is clear from the meaning of 'killing' as taking spiritual life away, thus taking the good of love and the truth of faith away, and therefore at this point as a shutting off to prevent any reception and transmission of them, for when they have been removed, so too has spiritual life been taken away and only natural life remains (for the meaning of 'killing' as taking spiritual life away, see 3387, 3395, 3607, 6767, 7043, 8902); from the meaning of 'brother' as the good of love and charity, dealt with in 3815, 4121, 4191, 5409, 5686, 5692, 6756; from the meaning of 'companion' as the truth of that good; and from the meaning of 'neighbour' as that which is linked to them, dealt with in 5911, 9378, thus that which touches on them. For people whose borders touch are neighbours. From all this it is evident that 'kill [every] man his brother, and [every] man his companion, and [every] man his neighbour' means a shutting off of what is internal with that nation to prevent any reception by them or transmission to them of inflowing goodness, truth, or anything that touches on them.

[2] The implications of all this are that because that nation was idolatrous at heart, ruled completely by the kinds of love in which hell consists, and yet worship representative of heavenly realities was to be established among them, their internals were altogether shut off. They were shut off for two reasons, the first being in order that external things alone with them, devoid of anything internal, might be the means by which the joining to heaven could be effected, and the second in order that the holy things of the Church and of heaven might not be rendered profane. For if that nation had acknowledged the internal things of worship, that is, the holy things of the Church and of heaven which were being represented, they would have defiled them and rendered them profane. This explains why little if any was clearly revealed to that nation about heaven and life after death, and why they were totally ignorant of the truth that the Messiah's kingdom existed in heaven. That nation is still like this at the present day, as is well known.

[3] But see what has been shown regarding that nation in the places referred to above in 10396, for instance the following,

Their whole interest lay in external things and not in anything internal, 4293, 4311, 4459(end), 4834, 4844, 4847, 4865, 4868, 4874, 4903, 4913, 9320, 9373, 9380, 9381.

Consequently their worship was merely external, 3147, 3479, 8871.

Nor did they wish to know about the inner things of worship and of the Word, 3479, 4429, 4433, 4680.

If they had known the holy inner things they would have rendered them profane, 3398, 3489, 4289.

Therefore they were not allowed to know those things, 301, 302, 304, 2520, 3769.

Nevertheless through the outward things of worship among them, which were representative of heavenly realities, there was contact with heaven, 4311, 4444, 6304, 8588, 8788, 8806.

These then are the things that should be understood and are meant by the words commanding them to kill [every] man his brother, [every] man his companion, and [every] man his neighbour.

[4] Anyone who does not know that brothers, companions, neighbours, and further names describing human relationships serve to mean the Church and heaven's forms of good and truths, or their opposites, which are evils and falsities, cannot know what is implied by very many places in the Word where those names occur, such as in the following places: In Matthew,

Do not think that I have come to bring peace on earth; I have not come to bring peace but a sword. For I have come to set a man (homo) against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law; and a man's enemies will be those of his own household. Whoever loves father or mother above Me is not worthy of Me; and whoever loves son or daughter above Me is not worthy of Me. And whoever does not take up his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me. Matthew 10:34-38.

These verses refer to spiritual conflicts, which are the temptations that those who are to be regenerated must undergo. Thus they refer to the strife a person experiences at that time between the evils and falsities which come to him from hell and the forms of good and the truths which come to him from the Lord. Since those conflicts are what is described here the declaration 'whoever does not take up his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me' is made, 'cross' being used to mean a person's state during temptations. Anyone who does not know that these kinds of things are meant by 'man and father', 'daughter and mother', 'daughter-in-law and mother-in-law' will suppose that the Lord came into the world to remove the peace in households and families and to introduce strife, when in fact He came to bring peace and remove strife, as accords with His words in John 14:27, and elsewhere.

[5] The fact that strife between the internal man and the external is described in those verses is clear from the meaning in the internal sense of 'man and father', 'daughter and mother', and 'daughter-in-law and mother-in-law'. In that sense 'man' (homo) means good which comes from the Lord, and 'father' evil which springs from a person's self; 'daughter' means an affection for goodness and truth, and 'mother' an affection for evil and falsity; and 'daughter-in-law' means the Church's truth linked to its good, and 'mother-in-law' falsity linked to its evil. And since the conflict that takes place between the forms of good and the evils residing with a person, and between the falsities and truths, is described in that manner those verses also contain the declaration 'a man's enemies will be those of his own household'. By 'those of his own household' the things that reside with a person are meant, thus those which belong properly to himself, while 'enemies' in the spiritual sense are the evils and falsities that attack forms of good and truths. The fact that such things are meant by 'man', 'father', 'daughter', 'mother', 'daughter-in-law', and 'mother-in-law' has been shown in various places in the explanations.

[6] The like is meant by the following words in Matthew,

Brother will deliver up brother to death, and a father his son; and children will rise up against parents and put them to death. Matthew 10:21.

Also by the following in Luke,

If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brothers, and sisters, and even his own soul, he cannot be My disciple. And whoever does not carry his own cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple. So therefore any of you who does not renounce all his possessions cannot be My disciple. Luke 14:26-27, 33.

Is there anyone who does not see that these words should not be taken literally, at the very least from the fact that they say without any qualification that father, mother, wife, children, brothers, sisters must be hated before anyone can be the Lord's disciple, when yet it is one of the Lord's commands, in Matthew 5:43-44, that no one should be hated, not even an enemy?

[7] It is self-evident that the things which are a person's own, that is, evils and falsities in their own order, should be understood by the names of those family members, since it also says that he must hate his own soul and renounce all his possessions, that is, the things which are properly his. The state of temptation or spiritual conflict is also described here, for it says, 'whoever does not carry his own cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple'. 'Being the Lord's disciple' means being led by Him and not by self, thus by the forms of good and the truths which come from the Lord and not by the evils and falsities which come from the person.

[8] The Word should be understood in a like manner in other places where those names are used, such as in Jeremiah,

They do not pay attention to My words; and My law, they reject it. Therefore thus said Jehovah, Behold, I am laying before this people stumbling-blocks, that fathers and sons together may stumble against them, a neighbour and his companion, and may perish. Jeremiah 6:19, 21.

In the same prophet,

I will scatter them, [every] man with his brother, [and fathers] and sons together. I will not spare, nor forgive, nor pity, that I should not destroy them. Jeremiah 13:14.

In the same prophet,

Jehovah caused many to stumble ¹ ; also [every] man fell upon his companion. Jeremiah 46:16.

And in Isaiah,

I will embroil Egypt with Egypt, in order that a man may fight against his brother, and a man against his companion. Isaiah 19:2.

In these places also the like should be understood by 'fathers', 'sons', 'brothers', and 'companions'.

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