Explanation of Isaiah 10
Da Rev. John H. Smithson
THE EXPLANATION of Isaiah Chapter 10
(Note: Rev. Smithson's translation of the Isaiah text is appended below the explanation)
1. WOE unto them that decree decrees of iniquity; unto the scribes that prescribe oppression:
VERSE 1. That "woe" signifies lamentation over aversion from Goodness and Truth, and consequent damnation, see above, Chapter 1:4, the Exposition.
Decrees of iniquity, etc. - Crimes by injustice are here exposed, for they placed justice in the external observance of the works of the law, omitting at the same time altogether interior justice. But these things are also to be taken in a spiritual or internal sense, which is the genuine sense of the Prophets. These words are against those who in the spiritual sense are iniquitous, and whose laws are called "decrees or statutes of iniquity, which they cherish, and according to which they perpetrate their crimes, (Swedenborg's Notes on Isaiah, p. 22.)
2. To turn aside the poor from judgment: to rob of their right the miserable of My people: that widows may become their prey, and that they may plunder the orphans!
Verse 2. By "the poor, the miserable, the widows, and the orphans", none are signified but they who are spiritually such. For in the Jewish church, as in the ancient, all things were representative, so also was the doing of good to widows, to orphans, to the poor and needy, to sojourners, or strangers, to the lame, blind, sick, etc., for on such occasions was represented in heaven charity towards those who in a spiritual sense were such. That such are meant in a spiritual sense, is evident from the Lord's words "Blessed are the poor in spirit", etc. (Matthew 5:3)
Again,
"I was hungered, and you gave Me to eat; sick, and you visited Me, etc. (Matthew 25:35, 36)
There is frequent mention made of "widows" and of "orphans" in the Word, and he who is not acquainted with the internal sense, cannot believe otherwise than that by a "widow" is signified a widow; but by a "widow", in the internal sense, is signified the truth of the church without good, that is, they who are in truth without good, and yet desire to be in good, consequently who love to be led by good.
"Husband" is the good which should lead; such in the ancient church were understood in the good sense by "widows", whether they were women or men [viri].
For the ancient church distinguished the neighbour, towards whom they were to exercise charity, into several classes; some they called poor, some miserable and afflicted, some bound and in prison, some blind and lame, some sojourners, orphans, and widows, and according to their qualities they dispensed works of charity; their doctrinals instructed them in this respect, being the only doctrinals with which that church was acquainted.
Wherefore they who lived at that time, both taught and wrote according to their doctrinals, consequently when they spake of "widows", they meant no other than such as were in truth without good, and still desired to be led by good. Hence also it is evident that the doctrinals of the ancient church taught those things which related to charity and the neighbour, and their knowledges and scientifics were for the purpose of knowing what external things signified, for the church was representative of things spiritual and celestial; therefore the spiritual and celestial things which were represented and signified, were what they learnt by doctrinals and sciences.
But these doctrinals and these scientifics at this day are altogether obliterated, and indeed to such a degree that it is not known that they ever existed; for in the place thereof succeeded the doctrinals of faith, which, if they be widowed and separated from the doctrinals of charity, teach almost nothing, for the doctrinals of charity teach what Good is, and the doctrinals of faith what Truth is, and to teach Truth without Good is to walk as one who is blind, for Good is what teaches and leads, and Truth is what is taught and led; between those two doctrinals the difference is as great as between light and darkness; unless the darkness be illustrated by light, that is, unless Truth be illustrated by Good, or Faith by Charity, there is nothing else but darkness.
Hence it is, that no one knows from intuition, consequently neither from perception, whether Truth be Truth, but only from doctrine imbibed in childhood and confirmed in adult age; hence also it is that churches so much disagree, and one calls that true which another calls false, and they in no wise accord with each other.
That by "widows", in a good sense, are signified those who are in Truth without Good, but who are still desirous to be led by Good, may appear from the passages in the Word where "widows" are mentioned, as in David-
"Jehovah who does judgment to the oppressed, who giveth bread to the hungry; Jehovah who looseth the bound; Jehovah who opens the blind; Jehovah who raiseth up the bowed down; Jehovah who loves the just; Jehovah who guards the sojourners, supports the orphan and the widow." (Psalm 146:7-9)
The subject here treated of, in the internal sense, is concerning those who are instructed by the Lord in truths and are led to the bowed down; Jehovah who loves the just; Jehovah who guards the sojourners, supports the orphan and the widow." (Psalm 146:7-9)
The subject here treated of, in the internal sense, is concerning those who are instructed by the Lord in truths and are led to good; but some of these are called "oppressed", some " hungry", some "bound", "blind", "bowed down", "sojourners", "orphans", "widows", and this according to their quality; but their quality no one can know but from the internal sense; the doctrines of the ancient church taught that quality.
In this, as in several other passages, "the sojourner, the orphan, and the widow" are named jointly, because by the "sojourner" are signified they who are willing to be instructed in the Truths of faith, Arcana Coelestia 1463, 4444; by the "fatherless or orphan", they who are in Good without Truth, and are desirous by Truth to be led to Good; and by the "widow", they who are in Truth without Good, and are desirous by Good to be led to Truth. Those three are named jointly in this and other passages in the Word, because in the internal sense they constitute one class, for by them together are signified they who are willing to be instructed and to be led to Good and Truth.
Again,
"The Father of the fatherless, and Judge of the widows, God in the habitation of His holiness"; (Psalm 68:5),
where the "fatherless" denote those who as infants are in the good of innocence, but not as yet in truth, whose Father is said to be the Lord, because as a Father He leads them, and this by truth into goods, that is, into the good of life or wisdom.
"Widows" denote those who as adults are in truth but not yet in good, whose Judge is said to be the Lord, because He leads them, and this by good into truth, that is, into the truth of intelligence; for by a "judge" is here signified a leader.
Good without truth, which is the "fatherless", becomes the good of wisdom by the doctrine of Truth; and truth without good, which is the "widow", becomes the truth of intelligence by the life of Good.
So in Isaiah:
"Woe unto them who decree decrees of iniquity, to turn away the poor from judgment", etc. (Isaiah 10:1, 2)
So in Jeremiah,
"Do judgment and justice, and snatch what is spoiled out of the hand of the oppressor; and defraud not the sojourner, the Fatherless, and widow, neither do violence, neither shed you innocent blood"; (Jeremiah 22:3),
where also by "the sojourner, the fatherless, and the widow", are signified they who are spiritually such; for in the spiritual world or heaven it is not known who is a sojourner, who fatherless, and who a widow, for they are not such in that world as had been such in the natural world, therefore when these words are read by man, they are perceived by the angels according to their spiritual or internal sense.
In like manner in Moses, "You shalt not distress the sojourner, nor oppress him: you shalt not afflict any widow, or orphan. If in afflicting you afflictest him, and if in crying he cries to Me, hearing I will hear his cry; and My anger shall be hot, and I will slay you with the sword, that your wives may become widows, and your sons orphans." (Exodus 22:21-24)
This, like all the rest of the precepts, judgments, and statutes in the Jewish church, was representative, and also in that church they were held in externals so to do, and by such things to represent the internal things of charity, although they had nothing of charity, or did them not from internal affection; the internal thing was, from affection to instruct in truths, and lead by truths to good, those who were in ignorance, and by good to truths, those who were in science, whereby they would have done good in the spiritual sense to "the sojourner, the fatherless, and the widow."
Thus still the external might remain for the sake of representation, it was amongst the curses pronounced on Mount Ebal, to "turn aside the judgment of the sojourner, the orphan, and the widow" (Deuteronomy 27:19), to "turn aside their judgment" denotes to do the contrary, that is, by instruction and life to lead to what is false and evil.
Whereas also to deprive others of goods and truths, and to appropriate those things to self for the sake of self-honour and gain, was amongst the curses; therefore the Lord said
"Woe unto you, Scribes and Pharisees, because you devour widows' houses, and this under the pretext of making long prayers: therefore you shall receive greater condemnation" (Matthew 23:14; Luke 20:47),
To "devour widows' houses" denotes to deprive those of truths who desire truths, and to teach falsities. Arcana Coelestia 4844.
3. And what will you do in the day of visitation, and in the devastation which shall come from afar? to whom will you flee for help? and where will you leave your glory?
Verse 3. The last time of the church, prior to its judgment, is called in the Word the "day of visitation." This "visitation" is predicated both of the church in general, when it comes to its end, and of those who are within the church in particular, and of the New Church which is then to arise, and also of the Old Church which then expires; in particular, concerning the man of the church who is saved, and of the man who is condemned, That these things are understood in the Word by "visitation", and by the "day of visitation", is evident from many passages, as in Luke,
"Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, for He has visited and redeemed His people; through the tender mercy of our God, whereby the Day-spring from on high has visited us, to give light to them that sit in darkness and in the shadow of death.'" (Luke 1:68, 78, 79)
This prophecy of Zechariah is concerning the Lord, who was then born. To "visit." here, means to raise up a New Church, and to enlighten those who were in the ignorance of Truth, and of the Good of Truth, and to deliver them from their enemies, or from everything evil and false. Arcana Coelestia 6588.
Natural men explain the "day of visitation" by the "day of captivity and of the desolation of Jerusalem", but that it means the day of the Last Judgment, is not only evident from these words but from many other passages. (Swedenborg's Notes on Isaiah, p. 23)
The last time of the church in general, and of each individual in particular, is in the Word called "visitation", and precedes judgment, and thus visitation is nothing else than an examination as to nature and quality, that is, the nature and quality of the church in general, or of man in particular, which examination is expressed in the sense of the letter by Jehovah "going down and seeing"; (Genesis 18:21) hence it may appear what is the nature of tile sense of the letter, for Jehovah does not go down, inasmuch as "going down" cannot be predicated of the Lord, who is always in the supreme [or highest principles of things].
Nor does Jehovah see whether a thing be so or not, for neither can such "seeing" be predicated of the Lord, inasmuch as He knows all and every thing from eternity; but still it is so expressed in the Word, because with man it appears as if it was so. For man is in inferior [or lower principles], and when anything there exists, he does not consider, nor even know, how the case is with superior [or higher principles].
Consequently how they flow into the inferior, for his thought reaches no further than to those things which are nearest to him, and hence he cannot perceive otherwise than that "going down and seeing", when applied to the Lord, signify somewhat similar to what is implied in the expressions; and he is the more confirmed in this 'way of thinking, when he imagines that no one is acquainted with what he thinks; besides, that he has no other idea of heaven than of a place on high, and of God, than as dwelling in the highest, when yet He is not in the highest, but the inmost, Hence it may appear what is the nature of the letter of the Word, that is, that it is written according to appearances, and that if it was not so written, no one, would understand and acknowledge it, consequently no one would receive it.
But the angels are not thus in appearances as man is, wherefore the Word, whilst as to the letter it is for man, as to the internal sense is for the angels, and also for those men to whom, by the Divine Mercy of the Lord, it is given to be as angels during their life in the world. "Visitation" is spoken of in the Word throughout, and thereby is signified either devastation in reference to the church and to individuals, or deliverance, consequently examination as to nature and quality; it denotes devastation in the following passages:
"What will you do in the day of visitation?", etc. (Isaiah 10:3; 13:10, 11) Arcana Coelestia 2242.
Verses 3, 22, 23. In the devastation, the consummation. and decision. - The "devastation and consummation " of the Israelitish church is described both in the historical and in the prophetical parts of the Word, The passages in which this "devastation" of the church is described are too numerous to be quoted here. In Isaiah 10:3, 22, 23, and in very many other passages throughout the Prophets, we read of these "devastations." But we will here describe the difference between devastation and consummation.
Devastation and consummation differ from each other Just as the shade of evening differs from the thick darkness of night, for devastation is a recession from the church, as consummation is full separation therefrom. Devastation, therefore, is like the case of a person descending from heaven, but not yet arrived at hell, and who tarries in the mid-way, standing sideways between both; but consummation is like the case of the same person, who, after so standing, turns his face and breast to hell, and, his back and hinder part of his head to heaven, in like manner as the dragon and his angels did when they were cast out of heaven; on which subject see Apocalypse 12. While they were fighting with Michael, they were in the mid-way; but when they were overcome, they were in hell.
Devastation takes place while man views the holy things of the church from falsities and falsified truths; but consummation takes place when he lives in evils or in adulterated goods. But that the difference and distinction between a state of devastation and a state of consummation may be still more clearly comprehended, it shall be illustrated by comparisons.
A state of devastation may be compared with a garden or grove surrounding a temple, which garden, by reason of the divine worship performed in the temple, is considered as sanctified, and which contains places for drinking, feasting, dancing, and for the exhibition of plays and buffoonery, with spectators in the courts and windows of the temple; but a state of consummation may be compared to the same garden or grove, in which are satyrs and priapuses, with harlots and witches, who altogether enter the temple dancing, and there celebrating their profane sports, as the Pythons did on the sabbaths.
A state of devastation may also be compared with an hostile army, when it enters the suburbs of a besieged city, and rules therein; but a state of consummation may be compared with the same army, when it demolishes the wall, rushes into the city, and destroys the inhabitants.
A state of devastation may further be compared with a ship upon quicksands, or a sandy bottom, when it is violently shaken, and alternately raised and depressed, so that the master, pilot, and sailors utter cries of lamentation on account of the danger they are in; but a state of consummation may be compared to the same ship, when its keel is fretted away by the gravel beneath, and when the planks, being broken and perforated, the ship sinks, and in consequence thereof the people on board, together with the cargo, are lost.
A state of devastation may be compared with every disease which invades the members, viscera, and organs of the body, by which the patient, being apprehensive of death, consults a physician, takes medicines and all the while keeps his bed in hopes of recovery; but a state of consummation may be compared to the same disease, when it invades the breast, wherein the heart and lungs reside, as in their tabernacle, in which case the disease soon puts an end to the life of the body. Coronis 57.
4. He who will not bow himself down, shall fall under the prisoners, and under the slain. For all this His anger is not turned back, but His hand is stretched, out still.
Verse 4: To "fall under [or below] the prisoners, or the bound", means to fall into hell, which is under the places of vastation [where the prisoners or the bound are]. The "slain" [occisi] are those who by false principles have extinguished in themselves the truths of faith, but in a less degree than those who are signified by the "stabbed, or thrust through", [confossi] as described in Arcana Coelestia 4503. Arcana Coelestia 5037.
As to the meaning of "anger, " when said of Jehovah, see above, Chapter 9:12, 17, 21, the Exposition.
His hand is stretched out still. - In this passage, and frequently above, we read of the Lord's "hand being stretched out." That to "stretch out the hand" signifies the dominion of power, is because the hand or the arm has power when it is stretched out. Wherefore, when it is said of Jehovah that "He stretches out His hand or His arm", is signified His unlimited or infinite power in act. "Hence it was that Jehovah so often said to Moses, when miracles were to be performed, that "he should stretch out his hand or his staff." Arcana Coelestia 7673
5. Woe to the Assyrian, the rod of Mine anger·; he is the staff in whose hand is Mine indignation!
Verses 5, 24, 26. By "Ashur", or the Assyrian, here are signified, as above, (Chapter 8:7) ratiocinations from self-derived intelligence, by which truths are perverted and falsified; the falsities thence derived, and the perversion of truth, are signified by "the rod of Mine anger", and by "the staff of Mine indignation which is in their hand."
That truths shall not be perverted with those of the church who are in celestial love, and in truths thence derived, is signified by "Fear not, O My people, that dwellest in Zion"; that the false urges and excites and attempts to pervert by such things as appertain to the rational man, is signified by "he shall smite you with a rod, and lift up a staff upon you in the way of Egypt"; the "way of Egypt" denoting the scientifics of the natural mall, from which come ratiocinations. Apocalypse Explained 727.
6. Against a hypocritical nation will I send him; and against the people of My wrath will I give him a charge: to take the spoil, and to bear away the prey; and to trample them down like the mire of the streets.
Verse 6. To trample them down like the mire of the streets. - As to the spiritual meaning of "street", and of "the mud, the mire, and the dung of the streets", see above, Chapter 5:25, the Exposition.
7. But he doth not think rightly, and his heart doth not meditate rightly; but to destroy is in his heart, and to cut off nations not a few.
8. For he says, Are not my princes altogether kings?
9. Is not Calno as Carchemish? is not Hamath as Arphad? is not Samaria as Damascus?
Verses 7, 8: He [Ashur] doth not think rightly, etc. - "Ashur" stands for ratiocination concerning divine truths, whence falsities arise, thus he stands for a perverse reason; (see Arcana Coelestia 1186) the truths thence falsified, or false principles themselves, which by reasonings are made to appear as though they were the veriest truths, are signified by his saying "Are not my princes kings?" , That "Ashur" is ratiocination, _and that "his princes who are kings" are the primary false principles which are believed to be the veriest truths, cannot be seen, and hence believed, so long as the mind is kept in the historical sense of the letter, and still less if it is in the negative, or denies that there is anything more holy or universal in the Divine Word than what appears in the letter. Whereas in the internal sense, by "Ashur", nothing else is understood in the Word than reason and ratiocination, and by "kings" truths themselves, and by "princes" primary truths. It is not known in heaven what "Ashur" is, and also the angels reject from themselves the idea of a "king" and a "prince"; and when they perceive that idea with a man, they transfer it to the Lord, and perceive that which proceeds from the Lord, and which is of the Lord in heaven, namely, the Divine Truth from the Divine Good. Arcana Coelestia 5044.
10. As my hand has found the kingdoms of the idols, whose graven images were more than those of Samaria and Jerusalem;
11. As I have done unto Samaria and her idols, shall I not likewise do unto Jerusalem and her images?
12. But it shall be, when the Lord has accomplished His whole work upon Mount Zion and upon Jerusalem, I will punish the fruit of the proud heart of the king of Assyria, and the glory of his lofty eyes.
Verses 10, 11. As my hand has found the kingdoms of the idols, whose graven images, etc. - For the meaning of "idols" and ''"images, '' see Chapter 2:20, the Exposition.
13. For he says, By the strength of my hand have I done it, and by my wisdom; for I am intelligent: I have removed the boundaries of the peoples; and I have plundered their treasures; and I have brought down, like a valiant man, the inhabitants:
14. And my hand has found, as a nest, the riches of the peoples: and as one gathers eggs deserted, so have I gathered all the earth; and there was no one that moved the wing, that opened the mouth, or that chirped.
Verses 13, 14. The Assyrian [or Ashur] has said, By the strength of my hand have I done it; I have removed the boundaries of the people, I have plundered their treasures, etc. - By "Ashur" is signified the rational mind; in this instance denoting that it perverts the goods and truths of the church, which are "the treasures and riches of the people" he would take away. Apocalypse Revealed 200.
In respect to the true process of reasoning concerning spiritual and divine things, as signified by "Ashur" and "Assyria" in a good sense, see below, Chapter 19:23-25, the Exposition:
15. Shall the axe boast itself against him that hews therewith? shall the saw magnify itself against him that moveth it? as if the rod should shake him that lifts it; as if the staff should raise him who is not wood.
16. Wherefore the Lord, the Lord of Hosts, shall send upon his fat ones leanness; and under his glory shall He kindle a burning, like the burning of a fire.
Verse 15. [These words are said respecting "Assyria" and the perverse use of the rational mind, of which it is here a type. Man has a spiritual-rational mind which is from heaven, or from the Lord, by regeneration; (Arcana Coelestia 3030) and he has also a natural-rational from the world. In the former he has "wisdom from above", but in the latter, if he is not regenerated, he is wise only for the world. (See James 3:15-17)
The natural-rational is by creation intended to be the instrument of the spiritual-rational, as "the axe or the saw in the hand of him that should use them"; but if a man does not by regeneration become spiritually rational, or, as the apostle says, "spiritually minded", it is as though these implements "moved and magnified themselves against those who should rightly use them. The perverse and rebellious action of man when he does not become spiritually rational, is thus, we apprehend, depicted in the above words. It does not appear that Swedenborg has quoted this passage.]
17. And the Light of Israel shall be for a fire, and His Holy One for a flame: and He shall burn, and consume his thorn and his brier in one day,
18. And the glory of his forest, and of his Carmel, from the soul to the flesh, shall He consume; and it shall be as when a standard-bearer fainteth,
19. And the remnant of the trees of his forest, shall be few, so that a boy may describe them.
Verses 17, 18. The Light of Israel, etc. - By "the LIght of Israel", and by "His Holy One which shall be for a fire and a flame, is understood the Lord as to the Last Judgment; by the "fire and flame" is signified the destruction of those who are in falsities of evil; by the "glory of the forest, and Carmel [or the fruitful field], which the fire and flame shall devour and consume, is signified the truth and the good of truth appertaining to the church, which, being turned into falsities and evils of the false, will be destroyed; "from the soul even to the flesh", signifies even from the understanding thereof to the will thereof"; the "soul" denoting the understanding of truth, and "flesh" the will of good. Apocalypse Explained 750.
And consume his thorn and his brier in one day. - For the signification of "thorns and briers", see above, Chapter 7:23-25; also Isaiah 5:6, the Exposition.
Verses 17, 18, 19, 34. The Light of Israel shall be for a fire, and He shall burn up the glory of his forest and of his Carmel, etc.The "forest" here stands for the church as to the knowledges of Truth, and "Carmel " [or a fruitful field] for the church as to the knowledges of Good; in like manner "Lebanon and Hermon"; to be "a number that a boy can describe them, means a few; and the "thicket of the forest" signifies scientifics; see Arcana Coelestia 2831. Arcana Coelestia 9011.
20. And it shall come to pass in that day, that the remnant of Israel, and the escaped of the house of Jacob, shall no more lean upon him that smote them; but shall lean upon Jehovah, the Holy One of Israel, in truth.
21. A remnant shall return, a remnant of Jacob, unto the Mighty God.
Verses 20-22. The remnant of Israel, and the escaped of the house of Jacob, etc. - As to "remains", and the "escaped which shall return", see Chapter 1:9; 6:13, the Exposition.
22. For though your people, O Israel, shall be as the sand of the sea, a remnant of them only shall return: the consummation is decreed, overflowing with justice.
23. For a consummation and decision shall the Lord Jehovih of Hosts accomplish in the midst of all the land.
Verses 22, 23. The consummation is decreed, etc. - By "consummation and decision", in this passage, is signified the last state of the church which is when there is no truth remaining, because no good, or when there is no faith, in consequence of there being no charity; and when this is the state of the church, then the Last Judgment takes place. The reason why the Last Judgment then comes or takes place, is also because the human race is the basis or foundation of the angelic heaven, for the conjunction of the angelic heaven with the human race is perpetual, and one subsists by the other; wherefore when the basis does not correspond, the angelic heaven as it were totters, therefore a judgment is then accomplished upon those who are in the spiritual world, that all things, as well in the heavens as in the hells, may be reduced into order. That the human race is the basis and foundation of the angelic heaven, and that there is a perpetual conjunction between them, may be seen in the work concerning Heaven and Hell 291-302.
Hence it may be known that by "consummation" is understood the last state of the church, when there is no faith remaining, in consequence of there being no charity; this state of the church is also called in the Word "vastation and desolation", and by the Lord, "the consummation of the age." (Matthew 13:39, 40, 49; 24:3; 28:20) Apocalypse Explained 397. See verse 3; also Arcana Coelestia 4535.
24. Wherefore thus says the Lord Jehovih of Hosts, Fear not, O My people, that dwellest in Zion, because of the Assyrian: with his staff shall he smite you, and his rod shall he lift up against you, in the way of Egypt.
25. For yet a little time, and Mine indignation shall cease, and Mine anger in their destruction:
26. And Jehovah of Hosts shall raise up against him a scourge, like the stroke upon Midian at the rock of Oreb, and like the rod which He lifted up over the sea; yea, He will lift it up, in the way of Egypt.
27. And it shall be in that day, that his burden shall be removed from off your shoulder, and his yoke from off your neck: and the yoke shall be destroyed because of the anointing.
Verses 24, 26. Thus says the Lord Jehovih of Hosts, Fear not, O My people, that dwellest in Zion, because of the Assyrian: with his staff shall he smite you, and his rod shall he lift up against you, in the way of Egypt, etc. - Where "staff" denotes power derived from reasoning and science, such as is the power of those who reason from scientifics against the truths of faith, and pervert them, or make light of them, - these things are signified by "the staff with which the Assyrian will smite", and by "the rod which he will lift up in the way of Egypt"; that the "Assyrian" denotes reasoning" may be seen in Arcana Coelestia 1186, and that "Egypt" denotes science, Arcana Coelestia 1164, 1165. Arcana Coelestia 4876.
That dwellest in Zion. - See above, Chapter 1:8, the Exposition.
Verses 24-34. Thus says the Lord Jehovih of Hosts, etc. - That the names of kingdoms, of countries, of cities, and of men, signify things, may appear from the above words; for in this passage there is little but mere names, from which there could result no sense or meaning, unless they all signified things; and if the mind should abide in those names, without looking for an internal signification, it could never acknowledge this passage to be the Word of the Lord. But who will believe that all those names, in the internal sense, contain arcana of heaven, and that by them are described the states of those who, by reasonings grounded. in scientifics, endeavour to enter into the mysteries of faith, each name describing some particular of that state, - and that the conclusion is, that those reasonings are overturned and dispersed by the celestial things of love, and the spiritual things of faith, from the Lord? That by "Ashur", or Assyria, is signified reasoning or ratiocination, which is the subject here treated of, may appear plain from what has been shown above concerning "Ashur", Arcana Coelestia 119, 1186; and that by "Egypt" are signified scientifics, may also appear from what has been said above, Arcana Coelestia 1164, 1165, which the reader may consult and examine, and then determine for himself whether it be not so. The case is the same in respect to all other names which occur in the Word; and likewise in respect to every particular expression. Arcana Coelestia 1888.
Lord [Adonai] Jehovih. - See above, as to the specific meaning of "Jehovih", Isaiah chapter 3:15, the Exposition and note.
28. He will come to Aiath; he will pass to Migron; at Michmash he will deposit his arms.
29. They will pass the strait; Geba will be their lodging for the night: Ramah is frightened; Gibeah of Saul flees.
30. Cry aloud with your voice, O daughter of Gallim: hearken, O Laish; O miserable Anathoth!
31. Madmena is gone away; the inhabitants of Gelim do flee.
32. Yet this day shall he abide in Nob: he shall shake his hand against the mountain of the daughter of Zion; against the hill of Jerusalem.
33. Behold, the Lord, Jehovah of Hosts, shall lop off the flourishing branch with a terrible crash; and the high of stature shall be cut down, and the lofty shall be brought low.
Verses 28-34. He will come to Aiath, to Migron, Michmash, Geba, Ramah, etc. - In this passage there occur only mere names from which no meaning can be drawn, except by the help of the spiritual sense; in which sense all names throughout the Word signify things appertaining to heaven and the church. By virtue of this sense is discovered the signification of the contents of the above passage, as denoting that the whole church was brought into devastation by means of scientifics perverting all truth and confirming all falsity. Doctrine of the Sacred Scripture 15.
34. And He shall hew down the thickets of the forest with iron, and by a mighty one shall Lebanon fall.
Verse 34. He shall hew down the thickets of the forest, etc. - The "thickets of the forest" signify scientifics [or the knowledges of the natural mind], and "Lebanon" rational things, [in this case reasonings from mere fallacies and from false doctrines. ] Arcana Coelestia 2831.
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Isaiah Chapter 10
1. WOE unto them that decree decrees of iniquity; unto the scribes that prescribe oppression:
2. To turn aside the poor from judgment: to rob of their right the miserable of My people: that widows may become their prey, and that they may plunder the orphans!
3. And what will you do in the day of visitation, and in the devastation which shall come from afar? to whom will you flee for help? and where will you leave your glory?
4. He who will not bow himself down, shall fall under the prisoners, and under the slain.
For all this His anger is not turned back, but His hand is stretched, out still.
5. Woe to the Assyrian, the rod of Mine anger·; he is the staff in whose hand is Mine indignation!
6. Against a hypocritical nation will I send him; and against the people of My wrath will I give him a charge: to take the spoil, and to bear away the prey; and to trample them down like the mire of the streets.
7. But he doth not think rightly, and his heart doth not meditate rightly; but to destroy is in his heart, and to cut off nations not a few.
8. For he says, Are not my princes altogether kings?
9. Is not Calno as Carchemish? is not Hamath as Arphad? is not Samaria as Damascus?
10. As my hand has found the kingdoms of the idols, whose graven images were more than those of Samaria and Jerusalem;
11. As I have done unto Samaria and her idols, shall I not likewise do unto Jerusalem and her images?
12. But it shall be, when the Lord has accomplished His whole work upon Mount Zion and upon Jerusalem, I will punish the fruit of the proud heart of the king of Assyria, and the glory of his lofty eyes.
13. For he says, By the strength of my hand have I done it, and by my wisdom; for I am intelligent: I have removed the boundaries of the peoples; and I have plundered their treasures; and I have brought down, like a valiant man, the inhabitants:
14. And my hand has found, as a nest, the riches of the peoples: and as one gathers eggs deserted, so have I gathered all the earth; and there was no one that moved the wing, that opened the mouth, or that chirped.
15. Shall the axe boast itself against him that hews therewith? shall the saw magnify itself against him that moveth it? as if the rod should shake him that lifts it; as if the staff should raise him who is not wood.
16. Wherefore the Lord, the Lord of Hosts, shall send upon his fat ones leanness; and under his glory shall He kindle a burning, like the burning of a fire.
17. And the Light of Israel shall be for a fire, and His Holy One for a flame: and He shall burn, and consume his thorn and his brier in one day.,
18. And the glory of his forest, and of his Carmel, from the soul to the flesh, shall He consume; and it shall be as when a standard-bearer fainteth.
19. And the remnant of the trees of his forest, shall be few, so that a boy may describe them.
20. And it shall come to pass in that day, that the remnant of Israel, and the escaped of the house of Jacob, shall no more lean upon him that smote them; but shall lean upon Jehovah, the Holy One of Israel, in truth.
21. A remnant shall return, a remnant of Jacob, unto the Mighty God.
22. For though your people, O Israel, shall be as the sand of the sea, a remnant of them only shall return: the consummation is decreed, overflowing with justice.
23. For a consummation and decision shall the Lord Jehovih of Hosts accomplish in the midst of all the land.
24. Wherefore thus says the Lord Jehovih of Hosts, Fear not, O My people, that dwellest in Zion, because of the Assyrian: with his staff shall he smite you, and his rod shall he lift up against you, in the way of Egypt.
25. For yet a little time, and Mine indignation shall cease, and Mine anger in their destruction:
26. And Jehovah of Hosts shall raise up against him a scourge, like the stroke upon Midian at the rock of Oreb, and like the rod which He lifted up over the sea; yea, He will lift it up, in the way of Egypt.
27. And it shall be in that day, that his burden shall be removed from off your shoulder, and his yoke from off your neck: and the yoke shall be destroyed because of the anointing.
28. He will come to Aiath; he will pass to Migron; at Michmash he will deposit his arms.
29. They will pass the strait; Geba will be their lodging for the night: Ramah is frightened; Gibeah of Saul flees.
30. Cry aloud with your voice, O daughter of Gallim: hearken, O Laish; O miserable Anathoth!
31. Madmena is gone away; the inhabitants of Gelim do flee.
32. Yet this day shall he abide in Nob: he shall shake his hand against the mountain of the daughter of Zion; against the hill of Jerusalem.
33. Behold, the Lord, Jehovah of Hosts, shall lop off the flourishing branch with a terrible crash; and the high of stature shall be cut down, and the lofty shall be brought low.
34. And He shall hew down the thickets of the forest with iron, and by a mighty one shall Lebanon fall.
Arcana Coelestia #4844
4844. 'Remain a widow in your father's house' means the alienation of this Church from the Jewish Church. This becomes clear from the fact that Judah's wish was that by doing this she would go away and not return to him any more. He did, it is true, say that she should remain there until Shelah his son was grown up; nevertheless he had it in mind not to give her to Shelah his son, for he said to himself, 'In case he also dies, like his brothers'. He gave further proof of his intentions by his actions, as is evident from verse 14 - 'Tamar saw that Shelah had grown up, and she had not been given to him as a wife'. From all this it is evident that the words used here mean that he alienated her from himself. That is, the meaning in the internal sense is that he alienated the Church representative of spiritual and celestial things - the Church represented by 'Tamar', 4811, 4831 - from the Jewish Church represented by 'Judah'. The two could not be in agreement with each other because Judaism was not a representative Church, only a representative of the Church, 4307, 4500; for it acknowledged what was external but not that which was internal.
[2] 'A widow' also means the truth of the Church without its good; for in the representative sense 'a wife' means truth and 'a husband' good, 4823, 4843, and therefore 'a wife without a husband' means the truth of the Church without its good. This being so, when it is said in reference to Tamar that she should remain in the house of her father, the meaning is that the truth of the Church would be alienated, and also that it would not find acceptance in his house, even as the Jewish nation could not accept it because not good but evil was present among that nation.
[3] A widow is referred to many times in the Word; but anyone unacquainted with the internal sense inevitably thinks that 'a widow' means a widow. In the internal sense 'a widow' means the truth of the Church without good, that is, people who have truth that is without good but who nevertheless have a desire for good, who consequently love to be led by good; for 'a husband' means good which ought to take the lead. In the Ancient Church people like these were meant in the good sense by 'the widowed', whether they were women or men. For the Ancient Church distinguished the neighbour to whom charity was to be performed into many separate classes. Some were called the poor, some the wretched and afflicted, some the bound and in prison, some the blind and the lame, and others strangers, orphans, and widows. It performed different charitable works, whichever were appropriate to the character each class possessed. The teachings of that Church showed them what those works were, for that Church had no other teachings than these. Therefore whenever those living in those times either taught or wrote, they did so in conformity with these teachings, so that when they spoke of 'widows' they meant none but the kind of persons among whom truth existed without good but who nevertheless had a desire to be led to good.
[4] From this it is also evident that the teachings of the Ancient Church were ones that had to do with charity and the neighbour, and that all its religious knowledge and factual knowledge existed to enable people to know what was meant spiritually by external things. For the Church was representative of spiritual and celestial things, and therefore it was these spiritual and celestial things, represented and meant by that Church, that people came to know about through the Church's teachings and through its factual knowledge. But those teachings and factual knowledge have become at the present day completely wiped out, so completely indeed that there is no knowledge of their having existed. For their place has been taken by teachings to do with faith which, if widowed and separated from those to do with charity, have virtually nothing to teach. For teachings to do with charity show what good is, but those to do with faith show what truth is. Teaching what truth is without what good is amounts to walking like someone blind, it being good that is the teacher and leader, truth the one that is taught and led. Between the two kinds of teaching there is a vast difference, as great as that between light and darkness. If the darkness is not lightened by means of the light, that is, if truth is not lightened by good, or faith by charity, it is nothing but darkness. For this reason no one knows intuitively, nor consequently by perception, whether truth is the truth; he knows it only from what he was taught and what he absorbed in childhood and substantiated in adult years. This also explains why Churches are so much at variance with one another, one giving the name truth to that which another calls falsity, and are never in agreement.
[5] The meaning in the good sense of 'widows' as people who have truth existing without good but who nevertheless have a desire to be led by good may be seen from places in the Word where widows are mentioned, as in David,
Jehovah who executes judgement for the oppressed, who gives bread to the starving, Jehovah who sets the bound free; Jehovah who opens the blind [eyes]; Jehovah who lifts up the bowed down; Jehovah who loves the righteous; Jehovah who guards sojourners, upholds the orphan and the widow. Psalms 146:7-9.
This refers, in the internal sense, to those whom the Lord furnishes with truths and leads to good. But some of them are called the oppressed, some the starving, while others are called the bound, the blind, the bowed down, sojourners, orphans and widows, each name appropriate to the character of the ones to whom it is applied. No one however can know what each particular nature is except from the internal sense; but the teachings of the Ancient Church showed what any particular nature was. Here, as in many other places, sojourner, orphan, and widow are referred to jointly because 'a sojourner' means those who wish to be furnished with the truths of faith, 1463, 4444, 'an orphan' those with whom good exists without truth but who have a desire to be led to good by means of truth, and 'a widow' those with whom truth exists without good and who have a desire to be led to truth by means of good. These three are referred to jointly here and elsewhere in the Word because in the internal sense they form a single group, for all three together mean those who wish to be taught and to be led to good and truth.
[6] In the same author,
A father of the orphans, and a judge of the widows, is God in the habitation of His holiness. Psalms 68:5.
'The orphans' stands for those with whom, like young children, the good that goes with innocence is present but no truth as yet. The Lord is said to be 'a father' of these because He leads them like a father; He leads them by means of truth into good, that is to say, into the good constituting life or wisdom. 'The widows' stands for those who as adults know the truth but are not as yet doing good. The Lord is said to be 'a judge' of these because He leads them; He leads them by means of good into truth, that is to say, into the truth constituting intelligence. For by 'a judge' a leader is meant. Good without truth, meant by 'an orphan', is made into good filled with wisdom by means of teaching about truth; and truth without good, meant by 'a widow', is made into truth filled with intelligence by means of a life of good.
[7] In Isaiah,
Woe to those decreeing decrees of iniquity, to turn aside the poor from judgement and to carry off into judgement the wretched of My people, so that widows may be their spoil and so that they may make orphans their prey. Isaiah 10:1-2.
Here 'the poor', 'the wretched', 'widows', and 'orphans' do not mean those who are literally so but those who are spiritually such. Now because in the Jewish Church, as in the Ancient, everything was representative, so also was doing good to orphans and widows, for doing good to these represented in heaven charity towards those who are orphans and widows in the spiritual sense.
[8] In Jeremiah,
Do judgement and righteousness, and deliver the plundered out of the hand of the oppressor; and do not defraud the sojourner, the orphan, and the widow, and do not use force, and do not shed innocent blood in this place. Jeremiah 22:3.
Here also 'the sojourner, the orphan, and the widow' means those who are spiritually such. In the spiritual world or heaven they do not know who a sojourner, orphan, or widow is, for the condition of such persons there is not the same as what it had been in the world. When therefore these words are read by man, angels perceive the spiritual or internal meaning they possess.
[9] Similarly in Ezekiel,
Behold, the princes of Israel, each according to his power, 1 have in you been intent on shedding blood; in you they have treated father and mother with contempt; in you they have dealt with the sojourner by means of oppression; in you they have defrauded the orphan and the widow. Ezekiel 22:6-7.
Also in Malachi,
I will draw near to you to judgement, and I will be a swift witness against the sorcerers, and against those who swear falsely, and against oppressors of the hireling in his wages, of the widow and the orphan, and [against] those who turn aside the sojourner, and do not fear Me. Malachi 3:5.
Similarly in Moses,
You shall not press down a sojourner or oppress him. You shall not afflict any widow or orphan. If you do indeed afflict him, and if he indeed cries out to Me, I will surely hear his cry, and My anger will burn, and I will kill you with the sword, so that your wives become widows, and your children orphans. Exodus 22:21-24.
[10] This, like every other commandment, judgement, and statute in the Jewish Church, was representative. Also, members of that Church were tied down to things of an external nature so that they would observe that command, and by means of their observance of it they represented the inner spirit of charity, even though they themselves had no charity, that is, they did not act from any inner affection. An inner spirit flowed from an affection to furnish with truths those who were without knowledge, and to lead those people to good by means of truths. If they had done this, members of the Jewish Church would have been doing good, in a spiritual sense, to the sojourner, orphan, and widow. But so that what was external might be kept going for the sake of what it represented, the curses declared on Mount Ebal included 'turning aside the judgement of the sojourner, the orphan, and the widow', Deuteronomy 27:19. 'Turning aside the judgement of these' stands for doing the reverse, that is, leading through teaching and life to falsity and evil. Also, because taking goods and truths away from others, and then making them one's own so as to enhance one's own position and gain, was included among curses, the Lord therefore said,
Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees! for you devour widows' houses, and for a presence you make long prayers; on account of this you will receive greater condemnation. 2 Matthew 23:14; Luke 20:47.
'Devouring widows' houses' stands for taking truths away from those who have a desire for them, and teaching them falsities.
[11] To leave for the sojourner, orphan, and widow that which remained in fields, olivegroves, and vineyards, Deuteronomy 24:19-22, was likewise representative. So too was the command that when they had finished paying the tithes of their produce in the third year, the people should give to the sojourner, orphan, and widow, so that they ate within their gates and were satisfied, Deuteronomy 26:12-13. It being the Lord alone who teaches a person and leads him to good and truth, it is said in Jeremiah,
Leave your orphans, I will keep them alive; and the widows will trust in Me. Jeremiah 49:10-11.
And in Moses,
Jehovah executes judgement for the orphan and the widow, and loves the sojourner, giving him bread and clothing. Deuteronomy 10:18.
'Bread' stands for the good of love, 2165, 2177, 3478, 3735, 3813, 4211, 4217, 4735, and 'clothing' for the truth of faith, 4545, 4763.
[12] It is recorded in 1 Kings 17:1-17 that Elijah was sent, when there was a famine because there was no rain in the land, to a widow in Zarephath. He asked her for a little cake, which she had to make for him first and give it to him; after that she was to make one for herself and her son. When she did so her jar of meal was not used up and her cruse of oil did not run dry. All this was representative, like everything else recorded about Elijah, and in general throughout the Word. 'A famine in the land because there was no rain' represented truth laid waste within the Church, 1460, 3364; 'a widow in Zarephath' those outside the Church who have a desire for truth; 'a cake which she had to make for him first' the good of love to the Lord, 2177, whom, from the very little she had, she was to love above herself and her son. 'The jar of meal' means truth derived from good, 2177, and 'the cruse of oil' charity and love, 886, 3728, 4582. 'Elijah' represents the Word, by means of which such things are effected, 2762.
[13] The same is also meant, in the internal sense, by the Lord's words in Luke,
No prophet is accepted in his own country. In truth, I tell you, there were many widows in Israel in the days of Elijah, when the heaven was shut up three years and six months, while there was a great famine over the whole land; yet Elijah was sent to none of them, except to a woman - a widow - in Zarephath of Sidon. Luke 4:24-26.
That is, he was sent to those outside the Church who had a desire for truth. But 'widows' within the Church that had been laid waste, to whom Elijah was not sent, are those with whom no truth exists because no good does so; for where there is no good neither is there any truth. However much among those people truth seems to outward appearance like truth it is nothing more so to speak than a shell without any nut in it.
[14] Those among whom this kind of truth exists, also those among whom falsity exists, are meant by 'widows' in the contrary sense, as in Isaiah,
Jehovah will cut off from Israel head and tail, the branch and the bulrush in one day. The old and the honourable in face is the head, and the prophet, the teacher of a lie, the tail. Therefore the Lord will not rejoice over its young men, and He will not have compassion on its orphans and its widows. Isaiah 9:14-15, 17.
In Jeremiah,
I will winnow them with a winnowing-fork in the gates of the land; I will bereave, I will destroy My people; they have not turned from their ways. Their widows are increased to Me more than the sand of the seas. I will bring to them, against the mother of the young men, one who lays waste at midday. She who bore seven languishes; she has breathed her last. Her sun is going down while it is still day. Jeremiah 15:7-9.
In the same prophet,
Our inheritance has been turned over to aliens, our houses to foreigners. We have become orphans with no father; our mothers are widows. Lamentations 5:2-3.
[15] Because 'widows' meant those with whom no truth existed because no good did so, it was therefore shameful for Churches to be called widows, even those Churches governed by falsities springing from evil, as in John,
In her heart she said, A queen I sit, and I am no widow, and shall not see mourning. On account of this in one day will her plagues come, death and mourning and famine, and she will be burned with fire. Revelation 18:7-8.
This refers to Babel. A similar reference to Babel occurs in Isaiah,
Hear this, you lover of pleasures, sitting securely, saying in her heart, I am, and there is no one else like me; a widow I shall not sit, nor shall I know loss of children. But these two things will come to you in a moment in one day - loss of children and widowhood. Isaiah 47:8-9.
[16] From these quotations one may now see what is meant by 'a widow' in the internal sense of the Word. One may see that since 'a widow' represented and consequently meant the truth of the Church without its good - for 'a wife' meant truth and 'a husband' good - priests in the Ancient Churches, in which every single thing was representative, were therefore forbidden to marry any widow who was not a priest's widow, as the following in Moses declares,
The high priest shall take a wife in her virginity; a widow or a woman that has been put away or one defiled or a prostitute, these he shall not take, but a virgin of his own people shall he take as his wife. Leviticus 21:13-15.
And in the references to a new temple and a new priesthood in Ezekiel,
Priests the Levites shall not take as wives for themselves a widow or a woman that has been put away, but virgins from the seed of the house of Israel; but a widow who is the widow of a priest may they take. Ezekiel 44:22.
For 'the virgins' whom they were to marry represented and consequently meant the affection for truth, and 'the widow of a priest' the affection for truth from good, since 'a priest' in the representative sense is the good of the Church. For this reason also any widow [who was the daughter] of a priest and who had no children was allowed to eat some of the offerings or holy things, Leviticus 22:12-13.
[17] Those who belonged to the Ancient Church knew this meaning of 'a widow' from the teachings of the Church, for among them these teachings had to do with love and charity, which included countless matters which at the present day have become completely wiped out. From them they knew which particular kind of charitable act they were required to perform - that is, which service they ought to render towards the neighbour - for those who were called 'widows', for those who were called 'orphans', for those who were called 'sojourners', and so on. From their religious knowledge of truth and from factual knowledge they had a discernment and a knowledge of what the ritual observances of their Church represented and meant. The learned among them knew what it was that things on earth and in this world represented, for they recognized that the whole natural creation was a theatre representative of the heavenly kingdom, 2758, 2989, 2999, 3483. Such knowledge raised their minds up to heavenly things, and the teachings of their Church led the way to life. But after the Church turned aside from charity to faith, more so after it separated faith from charity, and made faith without charity and the works of charity the bringer of salvation, their minds could no longer be raised up by means of religious knowledge to heavenly things, nor be led by any means of the teachings of the Church to life. Indeed the decline has been so great that in the end scarcely anyone believes in a life after death, and scarcely anyone knows anything about heaven. Also, there is no belief at all in the existence of a spiritual sense of the Word which is not visible in the letter. In this way people's minds have become closed.
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