572. That they should kill the third part of men, signifies of depriving themselves of all understanding of truth, and thus of spiritual life. This is evident from the signification of "to kill," as being to deprive of spiritual life (See above, n. 547); and from the signification of "men," as being the understanding of truth (See also above, n. 546, 547); "the third part," in reference to truths, means all (See above, n. 506); so here "to kill the third part of men" signifies the deprivation of all understanding of truth. It means to deprive themselves, because those who become sensual through evils of life and falsities of doctrine deprive ¹ themselves, by reasonings from fallacies, of the understanding of truth, but not others, except such as are sensual. They thus deprive themselves of spiritual life, because man has spiritual life through his understanding, for he becomes a spiritual man in the measure in which his understanding is opened and permits itself to be enlightened by means of truths. But it is by means of truths from good that the understanding is opened, not by means of truths without good; for man thinks truth so far as he lives in the good of love and charity. Truth indeed is the form of good, and all good with man is of his will, and all truth is of his understanding; therefore the good of the will presents its form in the understanding, and the form itself is thought from the understanding which is from the will.

각주:

Catching" is used in a variety of ways in the Bible, both positive and negative. Thieves get caught; the Egyptians caught up with the Children of Israel at the Red Sea; a ram got caught in a thicket for Abraham to sacrifice instead of sacrificing Isaac.

In a more positive sense, Jesus caught Peter when Peter was walking on water and started to sink, and the baby in Revelation was caught up to heaven before the dragon could eat him.

In all these cases, both positive and negative, being caught represents a communication and even conjunction between spiritual states. Sometimes it means higher states get ensnared in the falsity and evil of lower states; sometimes it means higher states reach out to and elevate lower ones by sharing deeper truths and describing more exquisite desires for good.