A Ransom for Many - What can that mean?

Almost 2000 years ago, Jesus of Nazareth -- Jesus Christ -- was crucified. He died. Painfully. And then, by the second morning after that, He was risen from the dead. His physical body was gone - or, rather, in light of subsequent events, it seems to have been transformed into a spiritual one. (That's an interesting thing to think through, in itself, but it's not the focus of this article.)

Instead, here we want to focus on some of the things that are said in the Bible about why Jesus died. There's an almost-2000-year-old confusion about it. Let's dig into it...

In Mark 10:42-45 (and in Matthew 20:25-28), we find this well-known lesson, which occurs late in Jesus's ministry. James and John - still not really understanding the depth of what was going on, are lobbying Jesus for promises of sitting at His left and right hand when he is "king". The other disciples are displeased, of course. Jesus knows what's going on, so He gathers them all, and tries to explain the real nature of His mission, and what their mission should be, too.

Here's the text:

"But Jesus called them to him, and saith unto them, Ye know that they which are accounted to rule over the Gentiles exercise lordship over them; and their great ones exercise authority upon them. But so shall it not be among you: but whosoever will be great among you, shall be your minister: And whosoever of you will be the chiefest, shall be servant of all. For even the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many."

A ransom. The Greek word used here is λύτρον, or lutron, which means the price for redeeming or ransoming, from λύω, luo, for loosening, untying, or setting free.

Some theologians have taken this text, and combined it with the text from the crucifixion story, when Jesus says three things that show his distress, and his feeling of separation from his Divine essence -- "My God, my God, why hast Thou forsaken me?", and "Nevertheless, not my will, but Thine be done", and "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do."

It can certainly be interpreted as a sort of sacrifice, in which Jesus acts as a sort of scapegoat, substituting his death for the human race that had disappointed His Father. Some theologians have done that. Anselm of Canterbury, in around 1000 AD, was one of the leaders of a faction that made that argument. But we don't think that's the right track; in fact, we think it was a wrong track that's been pretty damaging.

In New Christian theology, it doesn't make sense that God was angry. He's love itself. Is He disappointed when we don't reciprocate His love? Sure. But angry? No. There's certainly the appearance of it, especially in the Old Testament at times, but the core nature of God is love.

What's more, it should be even clearer that the death of Jesus's physical body wouldn't make God the Father feel better. Remember, they are really ONE person, of one mind - not two.

Instead, the whole cycle of God's incarnation, ministry, physical death, and resurrection was undertaken so that new truths could reach humankind.

Here's an interesting passage, from Arcana Coelestia 1419,

"The Lord, being love itself, or the essence and life of the love of all in the heavens, wills to give to the human race all things that are His; which is signified by His saying that the Son of man came to give His life a ransom for many."

Further, in Apocalypse Explained 328:15, we find this explanation:

“The phrase ‘to ransom’ means to free people from falsities and reform them by means of truths. This is signified by the words, ‘Ransom [redeem] me, O Jehovah, God of truth’” (Psalm 31:5)

One reason Jesus died was to overcome the power of hell. Jesus fought against evil spirits throughout His life. The clearest description of this is just after his baptism, when he spends 40 days in the wilderness. His suffering on the cross was the final struggle against evil, and His resurrection was his final victory over it.

For every person, overcoming evil involves temptation or a struggle against evil. As we struggle against evil individually, Christ struggled against evil on a cosmic scale. His death was the conclusion of that struggle, but it wasn't a loss; it was a win. The Bible says that God took on flesh and blood so that

“... through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil.” (Hebrews 2:14,15)

Another reason that Bible gives for Jesus’ death was that He might unite His human nature with His Divine nature, so that He could “make in Himself, of two, one new man,” (Ephesians 2:14-16, cf. John 17:11, 21; 10:30).

There are other reasons mentioned, too:

He could "go to the Father" (John 13:3; 14:2, 28; 16:10).

He could be "glorified" (John 17:1,5) or "enter into His glory" (Luke 24:26).

He could be "perfected" (Luke 13:32), or "sanctified" (John 17:19).

In Swedenborg's True Christianity 86, it says,

"Jehovah God came into the world as divine truth for the purpose of redeeming people. Redemption was a matter of gaining control of the hells, restructuring the heavens, and then establishing a church."

At the crucifixion, the forces of evil thought they had won. The religious and civic powers of the day led the way in condemning him. He was mocked. The crowd turned against him.

The death of Jesus' physical body was a "ransom" in this way: by undergoing that torture and death, He could then show that his spiritual power transcended natural death. He freed us, loosened us, from domination by the hells, and established a new church -- a new way that we can follow.

328. For thou wast slain, and didst redeem us to God in Thy blood, signifies the separation of all from the Divine, and the conjunction with the Divine by the acknowledgment of the Lord, and by the reception of Divine truth from Him. This is evident from the signification of "being slain," as being, in reference to the Lord, the separation of all from the Divine, for "to be slain" signifies in the Word to be spiritually slain, that is, to perish by evils and falsities (See above, n. 315); and because the Lord with such is not, for He is denied, therefore "being slain" signifies, in reference to the Lord, not acknowledged (as above, n. 315 and also denied; and when the Lord is denied He is as it were slain with such as deny, and by the denial they are separated from the Divine; for such as deny the Lord, that is, His Divine, separate themselves altogether from the Divine. For the Lord is the God of the universe, and He is one with the Father, and the Father is in Him and He in the Father, and no one cometh to the Father but by Him, as the Lord Himself teaches; consequently those in the church who do not acknowledge His Divine, and still more those who in heart deny it, are altogether separated from the Divine.

[2] Denying the Divine is here meant by slaying Him with themselves. In the internal sense of the Word the same is meant by "crucifying the Lord" (See above, n. 83, 195); for the Jews, with whom the church then was, denied that he was the Christ, and thereby separated themselves from the Divine and therefore they gave Him up to death, or crucified Him. Moreover, at this day those who deny His Divine do the same; it is therefore frequently said by preachers that those who lead an evil life and blaspheme the Lord crucify Him with themselves. This, therefore, is what is here signified by "Thou wast slain." This is evident also from the signification of "thou didst redeem us to God in Thy blood," as being that He conjoined us to the Divine by the acknowledgment of Him, and by the reception of Divine truth from Him; for "to redeem" signifies to liberate from hell, and thereby to appropriate men to Himself, and thus conjoin them to the Divine, as will be seen from the passages in the Word in which "to redeem" and "redemption" are mentioned, which will be quoted below. The "blood of the Lord" signifies Divine truth proceeding from Him; and because man by the reception of Divine truth from the Lord is liberated from hell and conjoined to Him, therefore "Thou didst redeem us to God in Thy blood" signifies conjunction with the Divine by the reception of the Divine truth from the Lord.

[3] That this sense lies hidden in these words no one can see who abides in the mere sense of the letter, for in that sense nothing else can be seen except that "Thou wast slain" means that He was crucified and "Thou didst redeem us in Thy blood" means that He has reconciled us to His Father by the passion of the cross. Because this meaning is the meaning of the letter, and because it has hitherto been unknown that in the particulars of the Word there is an internal sense which is spiritual, from that sense, namely, the sense of the letter, it has been made a doctrine of the church that the Divine Itself which they call the Father cast away from Him the whole human race, and that the Lord by the passion of the cross made reconciliation, and that thus those for whom He intercedes are saved. Who that has any illumination of understanding cannot see that this doctrinal is contrary to the Divine Itself? For the Divine Itself never casts away any man from Him for He loves all, and therefore desires the salvation of all. It is also contrary to the Divine Itself to be reconciled by the shedding of blood, and to be brought back to mercy by beholding the passion of the cross which His own Son sustained, and from this to have mercy, and not from Himself. Although this doctrine is so contrary to the Divine essence, yet to believe this is called essential faith or justifying faith.

[4] Again, who can think from enlightened reason that the sins of the whole world were transferred to the Lord, and that the sins of anyone who merely has that faith are thereby taken away? But although this is the doctrine of those who never think beyond the sense of the letter, yet the angels who are with men have no perception of these things according to that sense, but according to the spiritual sense, for they are spiritual and therefore think spiritually and not naturally. To angels, "redeeming man in His blood" means liberating man from hell, and thus claiming and conjoining man to Himself by the acknowledgment of Him, and by the reception of Divine truth from Him. Moreover, the church may know that this is so; for it may know that no one is conjoined to the Divine by blood, but by the reception of the Divine truth, and the application of it to the life.

[5] Liberation from hell by the Lord was accomplished by His assuming the Human, and through it subjugating the hells, and reducing to order all things in the heavens, which could have been done in no way except by the Human; for the Divine operates from firsts through ultimates, thus from Himself through the things that are from Himself in ultimates, which are in the Human. This is the operation of Divine power in heaven and in the world. (On this see some things above, n. 41; also in Heaven and Hell 315; and in Arcana Coelestia 5897, 6239, 6451, 6465, 8603, 9215, 9216, 9824, 9828, 9836, 10044, 10099, 10329, 10335, 10548.) Liberation from hell by the Lord was also accomplished by His glorifying His Human, that is, making it Divine; for thus and not otherwise could He hold the hells in subjection forever; and as the subjugation of the hells and the glorification of His Human was accomplished by means of temptations admitted into his Human, His passion of the cross was His last temptation and complete victory. That "He bore the sins of all" signifies that He admitted into Himself all the hells when He was tempted, for from the hells all sins or evils ascend, and enter into man and are in him; therefore the Lord's "bearing sins" signifies that He admitted the hells into Himself when tempted; and His "taking away sins" means that He subjugated the hells, in order that evils may no more rise up from them, with those who acknowledge the Lord and receive Him, that is, who receive in faith and life the Divine truth proceeding from Him, and who are thus conjoined to the Lord.

It was said that "Thou didst redeem us to God in Thy blood" signifies conjunction with the Divine by the acknowledgment of the Lord, and the reception of Divine truth from Him; and as the church is founded on this, I will state briefly how conjunction is thereby effected.

[6] The primary thing is to acknowledge the Lord, to acknowledge His Divine in the Human, and His omnipotence to save the human race; for by that acknowledgment man is conjoined to the Divine, since there is no Divine except in Him; for the Father is there; for the Father is in Him, and He in the Father, as the Lord Himself teaches; consequently they who look to another Divine near Him, or at His side, as those are wont to do who pray to the Father to have mercy for the sake of the Son, turn aside from the way and worship a Divine elsewhere than in Him. Moreover, they then give no thought to the Divine of the Lord, but only to the Human, when yet these cannot be separated; for the Divine and the Human are not two, but a single person, conjoined like soul and body, according to the doctrine received by the churches from the Athanasian Creed. Therefore to acknowledge the Divine in the Lord's Human, or the Divine Human, is the primary thing of the church, by which there is conjunction; and because it is the primary it is also the first thing of the church. It is because this is the first thing of the church, that the Lord, when He was in the world, so often said to those whom He healed, "Believest thou that I can do this?" and when they answered that they believed, He said, "Be it done according to thy faith." This He so often said that they might believe, in the first place, that from His Divine Human He had Divine omnipotence, for without that belief the church could not be begun, and without that belief they could not have been conjoined with the Divine, but must have been separated from it, and thus would not have been able to receive anything good from him.

[7] Afterwards the Lord taught how they were to be saved, namely, by receiving Divine truth from Him; and truth is received when it is applied to the life and implanted in it by doing it; therefore the Lord so often said that they should do His words. From this it can be seen that these two things, namely, believing in the Lord and doing His words, make one, and can by no means be separated; for he who does not do the Lord's words does not believe in Him; so also he who thinks that he believes in Him and does not do His words does not believe in Him, for the Lord is in His words, that is, in His truths, and by them He gives faith to man. From these few things it can be known that conjunction with the Divine is effected through the acknowledgment of the Lord and the reception of Divine truth from Him. This, therefore, is what is signified by "the Lamb redeeming us to God in His blood." That "the Lamb" signifies the Lord in respect to the Divine Human, see above n. 314. (On this more may be seen in The Doctrine of the New Jerusalem 293-297, and in the quotations from Arcana Coelestia, n 300-306, as also at the end of that work, where the Lord is particularly treated of.)

That "blood" signifies the Divine truth proceeding from the Lord, and "salvation by His blood" signifies by the reception of Divine truth from Him, will be explained in the following article.

[8] That "to redeem" signifies to deliver and to make free, and, in reference to the Lord, to deliver and free from hell, and thus to set apart and conjoin to Himself, can be seen from the following passages. In Isaiah:

Who is this that cometh from Edom, walking in the multitude of his power? I that speak in righteousness, great to save. For the day of vengeance is in My heart, and the year of My redeemed hath come. In all their straitness He was in straitness and the angel of His faces saved them; because of His love and His pity He redeemed them; and He took them up and carried them all the days of eternity (Isaiah 63:1, 4, 9).

This treats of the Lord and His temptation-combats, by which He subjugated the hells. "Edom from which He cometh" signifies His Human, so also does "the angel of His faces." His Divine power from which He fought is signified by "walking in the multitude of His power;" the casting down into hell of those who rose up against Him and the elevation of the good into heaven is meant by "righteousness," thus by these words, "I that speak in righteousness, great to save. For the day of vengeance is in my heart, and the year of my redeemed hath come." His Divine love from which He did these things is described by "In all their straitness He was in straitness, and the angel of His faces saved them; because of His love and His pity He redeemed them; and He took them up and carried them all the days of eternity." From this it is clear that "the redeemed" and "those whom He redeemed" signify those whom He rescued from the fury of those who are from hell, and whom he saved.

[9] In the same:

Thus hath said Jehovah thy Creator, O Jacob, and thy Former, O Israel; for I have redeemed thee, I have called thee by thy name; thou art Mine (Isaiah 43:1).

That "to redeem" signifies to free from hell, and to set apart and conjoin to Himself so that they may be His, is clear, for it is said, "I have redeemed thee, I have called thee by thy name; thou art Mine;" because this is effected through reformation and regeneration by the Lord, therefore it is said, "Jehovah thy Creator, O Jacob, and thy Former, O Israel." He is called Creator because "to create" in the Word signifies to regenerate (See above, n. 294). "Jacob" and "Israel" signify those who are of the church, and are in truths from good.

[10] In the same:

Say ye to the daughter of Zion, Behold, thy salvation cometh; behold, His reward is with Him, and the wages of His work are before Him. And they shall call them a people of holiness, the redeemed of Jehovah (Isaiah 62:11-12).

This also treats of the Lord's coming, and the establishment of a church by Him. "Daughter of Zion" signifies the church which is in love to the Lord; His coming is meant by "Behold, thy salvation cometh; behold, His reward is with Him, and the wages of His work are before Him;" those who are reformed and regenerated by Him are meant by "the redeemed of Jehovah."

[11] These are called the "redeemed" because they have been freed from evils by regeneration, and are set apart by the Lord and are conjoined to Him. In the same:

No lion shall be there, and the ravenous of the wild beasts shall not be found therein; but the redeemed shall go; and the ransomed of Jehovah shall return, and come to Zion with singing, and the gladness of eternity shall be upon their head (Isaiah 35:9-10).

This also treats of the Lord's coming, and the salvation of those who suffer themselves to be regenerated by the Lord. That with such there shall not be falsity destroying truth nor evil destroying good, is signified by "No lion shall be there, and the ravenous of the wild beasts shall not be found therein;" that such are delivered from evils and freed from falsities is signified by "the redeemed shall go; so shall the ransomed of Jehovah return;" their eternal happiness is signified by "they shall come to Zion with singing, and the gladness of eternity shall be upon their head," "Zion" meaning the church. What "singing" signifies see just above (n. 326). There are two, words in the original by which "to redeem" is expressed, one signifying deliverance from evils, the other liberation from falsities; these two words are used here; thus it is said, "the redeemed shall go," and "the ransomed of Jehovah shall return." (These two words are also used in Hosea 13:14; and in David, Psalms 69:18; 107:2)

[12] "To redeem" signifies to deliver from evils and to free from falsities, and also to deliver and free from hell, because all evils and falsities with man arise out of hell; and since the Lord removes these by reformation and regeneration, reformation and regeneration also are signified by "to redeem" or "redemption," as in the following passages.

[13] In David:

Rise up as a help to us, and ransom us for Thy mercy's sake (Psalms 44:26);

to "ransom" here meaning to free and to reform. In the same:

God hath ransomed my soul from the hand of hell; and He will accept me (Psalms 49:15).

"To ransom from the hand of hell" means to free; "to accept me" means to set apart and to conjoin to Himself, or to make His own, as servants sold and redeemed. In Hosea:

Out of the hand of hell will I ransom them; I will redeem them from death (Hosea 13:14).

"To redeem" meaning to deliver and free from damnation.

In David:

Bless Jehovah, O my soul, who hath redeemed thy life from the pit (Psalms 103:1, 4).

"To redeem from the pit" means to free from damnation; "the pit" meaning damnation. In the same:

Draw nigh unto my soul, redeem it, and because of my enemies ransom me (Psalms 69:18).

"To draw nigh to the soul" signifies to conjoin it to Himself; "to redeem it" signifies to deliver from evils; "because of my enemies ransom me" signifies to free from falsities, "enemies" meaning falsities. In the same:

Let the redeemed of Jehovah say, whom He hath redeemed out of the hand of the distressing enemy (Psalms 107:2).

"The redeemed of Jehovah" means those who are delivered from evil; "whom He hath redeemed out of the hand of the distressing enemy" means those whom He has freed from falsities. In Jeremiah:

I am with thee, to save thee and to rescue thee; and I will rescue thee out of the hand of the evil, and I will ransom thee out of the hand of the violent (Jeremiah 15:20-21).

"To ransom out of the hand of the violent" means to free from falsities that offer violence to the good of charity; the "violent" signifying such falsities, consequently those also who are in them.

[14] In David:

Let Israel hope in Jehovah, for with Jehovah there is mercy, and in Him is much ransom, and He shall ransom Israel out of all his iniquities (Psalms 130:7-8).

"Ransom" means liberation; "Israel" the church; and to reform those who are of the church and free them from falsities is signified by "He shall ransom Israel out of all his iniquities."

In the same:

Let integrity and uprightness preserve me; for I have waited for thee. Ransom Israel, O God, out of all his distresses (Psalms 25:21-22).

"To ransom Israel out of distresses" means here also to free those who are of the church from falsities, which straiten.

In Isaiah:

Is My hand shortened, that there is no ransoming? or is there no power in Me to rescue? (Isaiah 50:2).

That "ransoming" means liberation is evident, for it is said also, "Is My hand shortened, or is there no power in Me to rescue." In David:

God shall hear my voice; He shall ransom my soul in peace (Psalms 55:17-18);

"to ransom" here means to free.

In the same:

Unto Thee will I sing psalms with the harp, Thou Holy One of Israel. My lips shall praise; and my soul, which Thou hast ransomed (Psalms 71:22-23).

"To ransom the soul" means to free from falsities; for "soul" in the Word signifies the life of faith, and "heart" the life of love; therefore "to ransom the soul" signifies to free from falsities and to give the life of faith.

[15] In the same:

Ransom me from the oppression of man, that I may keep Thy precepts (Psalms 119:134).

"To ransom from the oppression of man" signifies to free from the falsities of evil, for "man" signifies the spiritual affection of truth and wisdom therefrom, and in the contrary sense, as here, the lust of falsity and insanity therefrom; the "oppression of man" signifies the destruction of truth by falsities.

In the same:

Into Thine hand I will commend my spirit; Thou hast ransomed me, O Jehovah, God of truth (Psalms 31:5);

"to ransom" means to free from falsities and to reform by means of truths; and because this is signified by "ransom" it is said, "O Jehovah, God of truth." In the same:

Crime is in the hands of sinners, and their right hand is full of a bribe. But as for me, I walk in mine integrity; ransom me, and be merciful unto me (Psalms 26:10-11);

"to ransom" meaning to free from falsities and to reform. In the same:

He shall redeem their soul from fraud and violence; and precious shall their blood be in His eyes. And he shall live, and to him shall He give of the gold of Sheba; and He shall pray for him continually; all the day shall He bless them (Psalms 72:14-15).

The "needy" are here treated of, by whom those are signified who desire truths from spiritual affection; of these it is said that "He shall redeem their soul from fraud and violence," which signifies liberation from falsities and evils that destroy the goods of love and the truths of faith; the reception of Divine truth by them is signified by "precious shall their blood be in His eyes;" their reformation is described "he shall live, and to him shall He give of the gold of Sheba; and He shall pray for him continually; all the day shall He bless him;" "the gold of Sheba" is the good of charity; "to pray for him continually" signifies that they shall constantly be withheld from falsities and kept in truths; and "all the day shall He bless him" signifies that they shall constantly be in the good of charity and faith, for this is a Divine benediction; while to withhold from falsities and to keep in truths is "to pray for him continually."

[16] In Isaiah:

Thus said Jehovah, For nought ye have been sold, and not by silver shall ye be redeemed. My people went down into Egypt to sojourn there, but Assyria oppressed them for nought (Isaiah 52:3-4).

This treats of the desolation of truths by knowledges and by the reasonings of the natural man from them; for "My people went down into Egypt to sojourn there" signifies the instruction of the natural man in knowledges and cognitions of truth; "Egypt" signifies knowledges and also cognitions, but such as are from the sense of the letter of the Word; and "to sojourn" signifies to be instructed; "Assyria oppressed them for nought" signifies the falsification of knowledges by the reasonings of the natural man; "Assyria" signifying reasonings, and "to oppress for nought" falsifications, for falsities are nought because there is nothing of truth in them. Knowledges are thus falsified when the natural man separate from the spiritual forms conclusions; this is why it is said, "For nought ye have been sold, and not by silver shall ye be redeemed;" "for nought to be sold" signifies from self or from the selfhood to alienate oneself from falsities and renounce them; and "not by silver to be redeemed" signifies that one cannot be delivered by means of truth from the falsities of evil; "silver" signifying truth, and "to be redeemed" signifying to be delivered from the falsities of evil and to be reformed.

[17] In Zechariah:

I will bring them together, because I will ransom them; and then shall they be multiplied; I will sow them among the peoples; and I will bring them back out of the land, and will bring them together out of Assyria; and I will lead them to the land of Gilead and to Lebanon (Zechariah 10:8-10).

This treats of the restoration of the church, and reformation by means of truth from good; and "I will bring them together, because I will ransom them" signifies the dispersion of falsities and reformation by means of truths; therefore it is said, "they shall be multiplied, and I will sow them among the peoples," which signifies the multiplication and insemination of truth from good; "to bring them back out of the land of Egypt, and to bring them together out of Assyria" signifies (as above) to withdraw them from the falsifying of truth that they are in by their reasonings from knowledges; "to lead them to the land of Gilead and to Lebanon" signifies to the good of the church, which is the good of charity, and to the good and truth of faith; the former is "the land of Gilead" and the latter "Lebanon. "

[18] From this it can be seen what is signified in the spiritual sense by Jehovah's "leading the people out of Egypt" and "ransoming them," as in Moses:

I will rescue you from bondage, and I will redeem you with a stretched-out arm, and with great judgments (Exodus 6:6).

I led you out of Egypt with a stretched-out arm, and I ransomed you out of the house of bondmen (Deuteronomy 7:8; 9:26-29; 13:5; 15:15; 24:18).

Thou in Thy mercy hast led Thy people whom Thou hast redeemed; Thou hast guided them in the strength of Thy hand to the habitation of Thy holiness (Exodus 15:13).

And in Micah:

I made thee to go up out of the land of Egypt, and ransomed thee out of the house of bondage (Micah 6:4).

This means in the sense of the letter that they were led by the Divine power out of Egypt, where they had been made bondmen; but in the internal or spiritual sense no such thing is meant, but it means that those who are of the church, that is, those that are reformed by the Lord by means of truths and a life according to them, are delivered and freed from evils and from the falsities thence, for these are the things that make man a bondsman; this is the spiritual sense of these words, and in this sense are the angels when man is in the sense of the letter.

[19] Moreover, by "redemption" the angels understand deliverance from evils and liberation from falsities in the following passages. In Moses:

I will put a ransom between My people and Pharaoh's people (Exodus 8:23).

In David:

He hath sent a ransom unto His people; He hath commanded His covenant for ever; holy and fearful is His name (Psalms 111:9).

In Matthew:

What is a man profited if he shall gain the whole world, but shall cause the loss of his soul? or what price shall a man give sufficient for the redemption of his soul? (Matthew 16:26; Mark 8:36-37);

"redemption" here meaning deliverance from damnation.

[20] From this it can be seen what the Lord's redeeming mankind signifies, namely, that He delivered and freed them from hell and from the evils and falsities that continually rise up therefrom and bring man into condemnation, and that He continually delivers them and frees them. This deliverance and liberation was effected by His subjugating the hells; and the continual deliverance and liberation by His glorifying His Human, that is, making it Divine, for thereby He keeps the hells continually subjugated; this, therefore is what is signified by His redeeming man, and by His being called in the Word "Redeemer," as in the following passages. In Isaiah:

Fear not, thou worm of Jacob, and ye mortals of Israel; I am He that helpeth thee, and thy Redeemer the Holy One of Israel (Isaiah 41:14).

Thus said Jehovah, the Redeemer of Israel, His Holy One, because of Jehovah who is faithful, the Holy One of Israel, who hath chosen thee (Isaiah 49:7).

Our Redeemer is Jehovah of Hosts, His name the Holy One of Israel (Isaiah 47:4).

Thus said Jehovah your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel (Isaiah 43:14).

That all flesh may know that I Jehovah am thy Savior and thy Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob (Isaiah 49:26).

That thou mayest know that I Jehovah am thy Savior and thy Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob (Isaiah 60:16).

By the "Holy One of Israel," and the "Mighty One of Jacob," who is here called "Redeemer," is meant the Lord in respect to the Divine Human, and by "Jehovah" is meant His Divine Itself. The Lord in respect to His Divine Human is called "the Holy One of Israel," and "the Mighty One of Jacob," and the "Strong One of Jacob," because "Israel" and "Jacob" signify the church, thus those who are regenerated and reformed, that is, redeemed by the Lord, for these alone are of the church, that is, constitute the church of the Lord.

[21] That the Lord's Divine Human is what is called "the Holy One" is evident in Luke:

The angel said unto Mary, The Holy Spirit shall come upon thee, and the power of the Most High shall overshadow thee; therefore the Holy Thing born of thee shall be called the Son of God (Luke 1:35).

And that the Lord in respect to the Divine Human is "the Strong One of Jacob," and the "Mighty One of Jacob;" in the same:

The angel said unto Mary, Behold, thou shalt conceive in the womb, and bring forth a Son. He shall be great, and He shall reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there shall be no end (Luke 1:30-33).

"The house of Jacob" evidently means the Lord's church, not the Jewish nation.

[22] Because the Lord's Human was equally Divine with His Divine Itself that took on the Human, Jehovah is called "the Redeemer" in the following passages.

In Isaiah:

Thus said Jehovah thy Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel, I am Jehovah thy God (Isaiah 48:17).

Jehovah of Hosts is His name; and thy Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel the God of the whole earth shall He be called (Isaiah 54:5).

In David:

O Jehovah, my ¹ Rock and my Redeemer (Psalms 19:14).

In Jeremiah:

Their Redeemer is strong; Jehovah of Hosts is His name (Jeremiah 50:34).

In Isaiah:

Thou, O Jehovah, art our Father, our Redeemer; from everlasting is Thy ² name (Isaiah 63:16).

From this it can now be seen how this saying of the Lord is to be understood:

The Son of man came to give His soul a redemption for many (Matthew 20:28; Mark 10:45);

namely, that they might be delivered and freed from hell; for the passion of the cross was the last combat and complete victory by which He subjugated the hells, and by which He glorified His Human (See The Doctrine of the New Jerusalem 293-297, 300-306).

3858. Since the subject in the verses that follow now is the twelve sons of Jacob, and since the twelve tribes of Israel were named after them as their fathers, let an introductory statement be made here about what the tribes mean and why there were twelve. Nobody as yet has known the arcanum lying within these considerations, for people have believed that the historical descriptions of the Word are purely history and hold nothing more of the Divine within them than their ability to be made to apply to matters of a holy nature when these are under discussion. Consequently they have also believed that the twelve tribes meant nothing else than the divisions of the Israelitish people into so many separate nations or general families, when in fact Divine realities are implied in those tribes. That is to say, those tribes mean so many universal divisions of faith and love and so mean things that constitute the Lord's kingdom in heaven and on earth, each tribe in particular meaning some universal division. But what exactly each tribe means will be evident from the verses that follow directly after this, where the subject is the sons of Jacob after whom the twelve tribes were named. In general the twelve tribes meant everything constituting the doctrine of truth and good, that is, of faith and love; for these - that is to say, truth and good, or faith and love - constitute the Lord's kingdom, since what are essentially matters of truth or faith constitute the whole of thought there, and what are essentially matters of good or love constitute the whole of affection. And because the Jewish Church was established so as to represent the Lord's kingdom the divisions of that people into twelve tribes therefore meant those things of His kingdom. This is an arcanum which has not previously been disclosed.

[2] Twelve means all things in general, as shown already in 577, 2089, 2129, 2130 (end), 3272, while 'tribes' means matters of truth and good, or of faith and love, so that 'the twelve tribes' means all of these. Let this meaning of 'the twelve tribes' be substantiated here from the Word before each one is dealt with individually. In John,

The holy city New Jerusalem, having twelve gates, and above the gates twelve angels, and names written which are those of the twelve tribes of the sons of Israel. The wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them the names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb. He measured the city with the measuring rod, twelve thousand stadia. And he measured its wall, a hundred and forty-four cubits, which is the measure of a man, that is, of an angel. The twelve gates were twelve pearls. Revelation 21:12, 14, 16-17, 21.

'The holy city', or the New Jerusalem, means the Lord's new Church, as is evident from each detail of this description. Previous chapters refer to what the condition of the Church was going to be like before its end; this chapter refers to a new Church. That being so, 'the gates', 'the wall', 'the foundations' mean nothing else than things constituting the Church, which are those of charity and faith since these constitute the Church.

[3] From this it may be clear to anyone that 'twelve' used so many times in that description, also 'tribes', and 'apostles' too, are not used to mean twelve, or tribes, or apostles, but that 'twelve' is used to mean all things in their entirety; see what has been shown in 577, 2089, 2129, 2130 (end), 3272. The same is true of the number 'a hundred and forty-four', for this is twelve twelves. And since 'twelve' means all things it is evident that 'the twelve tribes' means all things constituting the Church, which, as stated above, are truth and good, or faith and love. The same is also true of 'the twelve apostles' who as well represented all things constituting the Church, that is, all things of faith and love, see 2129, 3354, 3488, 3857. That number is therefore called 'the measure of a man, that is, of an angel', by which is meant a state of truth and good. For 'measure' means state, see 3104, and 'man' means that which constitutes the Church, as is evident from things said about the meaning of 'man' in 478, 479, 565, 768, 1871, 1894, and also from the fact that the Lord's kingdom is called the Grand Man, which it is called by virtue of good and truth which come from the Lord, dealt with at the ends of chapters in 3624-3649, 3741-3750. And 'angel' has the same meaning, 1705, 1754, 1925, 2821, 3039.

[4] As in John, so also in the Prophets, in the Old Testament Word, is the new Jerusalem referred to, where in a similar way the Lord's new Church is meant, as in Isaiah 65:18-19, and following verses; in Zechariah 14; and in particular in Ezekiel, Chapters 40-48, where the new Jerusalem, the new Temple, and a new earth describe in the internal sense the Lord's kingdom in heaven, and the Lord's kingdom on earth, which is the Church. The contents of those chapters, plainer than anywhere else, show what 'earth', 'Jerusalem', 'Temple', and everything in them meant, and also what 'the twelve tribes' means. For the subject of those chapters is the division of the land and the inheritance of it according to tribes, as well as the city and its walls, foundation, and gates, and everything that was to go with the Temple there. From those chapters let simply matters relating to the tribes be quoted here,

The Lord Jehovih said, This is the boundary of your inheritance of the land, according to the twelve tribes of Israel. You shall divide this land according to the tribes of Israel. But you shall divide it by lot as an inheritance, and for sojourners sojourning in your midst. They shall cast lots with you for an inheritance in the midst of the tribes of Israel. Ezekiel 47:13, 21-23.

As regards the land, it will be for the prince as a possession in Israel. And the princes will no longer oppress My people, and the land they will give to the house of Israel according to their tribes. Ezekiel 45:8.

Concerning inheritances and how they were assigned to individual tribes which are also referred to there by name, see Ezekiel 48:1 and following verses; and concerning the gates of the city which are named after the tribes of Israel, verses 31-34 of the same chapter.

[5] Quite plainly, when the tribes are spoken of here it is not the tribes who are meant, for by that time ten tribes had long since been scattered throughout the whole world, and had not subsequently returned. Nor can they possibly return, for they have become gentiles. And yet reference is made to each individual tribe, and to how it was to inherit the land and what its boundary was to be. What the boundary for the tribe of Dan was to be is stated in verse 2; what the boundary for the tribe of Asher was to be in verse 3; what those of Naphtali, Manasseh, Ephraim, Reuben, and Judah were to be, and concerning the inheritance of the Levites; and what the boundaries of Benjamin, Simeon, Issachar, Zebulun, and Gad were to be in verses 4-29. In addition to all this that chapter declares that the city was to have twelve gates named after the tribes of Israel - three gates facing north, those of Reuben, Judah, and Levi; three gates facing east, those of Joseph, Benjamin, and Dan; three gates facing south, those of Simeon, Issachar and Zebulun; and three gates facing west, those of Gad, Asher, and Naphtali, in verses 31-34.

[6] From all this it is evident that 'the twelve tribes' means all things that belong to the Lord's kingdom, and so all that are matters of faith and love, for these constitute the Lord's kingdom, as stated above. Because the twelve tribes meant all things of the Lord's kingdom they also represented that kingdom by their encampments and by their travellings. In Moses it is said that they were to encamp according to the tribes around the Tent of Meeting - to the east, Judah, Issachar, and Zebulun; to the south, Reuben, Simeon, and Gad; to the west, Ephraim Manasseh, and Benjamin; and to the north, Dan, Asher, and Naphtali, and as they were encamped so they travelled, Numbers 2:1-end. In all this they represented the Lord's kingdom, as is quite evident from Balaam's prophecy,

When Balaam lifted up his eyes and saw Israel dwelling according to tribes, the Spirit of God came upon him and he delivered his utterance, and said, How good your tabernacles are, O Jacob; your dwelling-places, O Israel! They are like valleys that are planted, like gardens beside a river, like aloes Jehovah has planted, like cedars beside the waters. Numbers 24:2-3, 5-6.

The fact that Balaam received from Jehovah these words spoken by him is explicitly stated in Numbers 22:8, 18-19, 35, 38; 23:5, 12, 16, 26; 24:2, 13.

[7] From this also it is evident what the inheritances of the land of Canaan according to tribes represented, in connection with which it is said in Moses that he was to take a census of the congregation of the children of Israel, according to their fathers' houses; a census of those twenty or more years old, everyone going into the army of Israel. The land was to be distributed by lot; according to the names of their fathers' tribes they were to receive an inheritance, Numbers 26:2, 7-56; 33:54; 34:19-29. And Joshua's actual division of the land by lot according to tribes is described in Chapters 13, 15, 19 of the Book of Joshua. From these particular details it is evident that the Lord's kingdom was represented, as has been stated; for the land of Canaan meant that kingdom, see 1585, 1607, 3038, 3481, 3705.

[8] The reason why they are called 'armies' and why it is said that 'they encamped according to their armies and travelled according to their armies', Numbers 2:4, 6, 8, 11, 13, 15, 19, 21-23, 26, 28, 30, is that 'an army' had the same meaning [as 'a tribe'], namely truths and goods, see 3448. And the Lord is called Jehovah Zebaoth or 'Jehovah of Armies (or Hosts)' 3448. They were for these reasons called 'the armies of Jehovah' when they departed from Egypt, as in Moses,

It happened at the end of the four hundred and thirty years, on that same day it happened that all the armies of Jehovah were to come out of the land of Egypt. Exodus 12:41.

Anyone may recognize that such people in Egypt, and after that in the wilderness, were not called 'the armies of Jehovah' except in a representative sense, for no good or truth was present in them, the worst of all nations.

[9] From this it is also quite evident what was meant by the names of the twelve tribes on Aaron's breastplate, which was called the Urim and Thummim. Concerning the breastplate the following is said in Moses,

There shall be four rows in it and twelve stones. These stones shall be according to the names of the sons of Israel, twelve according to their names. The engravings of a signet, for each one over its name, there shall be for the twelve tribes. Exodus 28:17, 21; 39:14.

For 'Aaron' represented the Lord's Divine priesthood, and therefore all the vestments worn by him as high priest meant Divine celestial and spiritual things. But the exact meaning of those vestments will in the Lord's Divine mercy be clear where they are the subject. Since the breastplate itself was most holy, the names of it were representations of all the essential characteristics of love and faith in the Lord. These are the Urim and Thummim. The reason why the names were engraved on the precious stones was that 'stones' in general meant truths, 1298, 3720, and 'precious stones' truths shining through from good, 114. And because the name of each individual tribe meant some essential characteristic, a specific stone was also allocated for each tribe, Exodus 28:17-20; 39:10-13, which expressed by means of its colour and transparence the characteristic meant by that tribe. This was how Jehovah or the Lord gave answers by means of the Urim and Thummim.

[10] The two shoham stones which were on the two shoulder-pieces of the ephod had a similar representation but in a lesser degree than the twelve stones on the breastplate. For 'the shoulders' meant all power, and so the Lord's omnipotence, 1085, whereas 'the breast' or heart and lungs meant Divine celestial and spiritual love - 'the heart' Divine celestial love, 'the lungs' Divine spiritual love, see 3635 and the end of the present chapter where the Grand Man and its correspondence with the province of the heart and the province of the lungs is the subject. The two stones on the shoulder-pieces of the ephod are referred to in Moses as follows,

You shall take two shoham stones and engrave on them the names of the sons of Israel, six of the names on one stone and the remaining six names on the other stone, according to their births. You shall put two stones on the shoulder-pieces of the ephod, stones of remembrance for the sons of Israel. Exodus 28:9-12; 39:6-7.

[11] Because 'the tribes' meant what are essentially matters of truth and good, or faith and love, and each tribe meant some universal aspect of these, and since the tribe of Levi meant love, as will be evident from the explanation at verse 34 below, one can therefore recognize what was meant by their placing rods, one for each tribe, in the Tent of Meeting and by Levi's rod alone blossoming with almonds. All this is described in Moses as follows,

He was told to take twelve rods, one rod for each head of their fathers' houses, and these were to be left in the Tent of Meeting, the name of Aaron being written on the rod of Levi. Aaron's rod was placed in the middle of them. And the next day, behold, Aaron's rod for the tribe of Levi had blossomed; it had produced buds, ¹ so that it flowered and produced almonds. Numbers 17:2-8.

These occurrences meant that love was the essential, also the first and foremost, thing of all in the Lord's kingdom and that love is the source of all fruitfulness. And the reason why Aaron's name was on the rod was that Aaron represented the Lord as regards His Divine priesthood. For by the Lord's priesthood is meant Divine Good, which essentially is His love and mercy, and by the Lord's kingship is meant Divine Truth which stems from Divine Good, see 1728, 2015 (end), 3670.

[12] From what has been introduced so far one may now see what 'tribes' and 'the twelve tribes' mean in the following places: In John,

I heard the number of the sealed, a hundred and forty-four thousand sealed out of every tribe of Israel - twelve thousand sealed out of the tribe of Judah, twelve thousand sealed out of the tribe of Reuben, twelve thousand sealed out of the tribe of Gad, twelve thousand sealed out of the tribe of Asher, twelve thousand sealed out of the tribe of Naphtali, twelve thousand sealed out of the tribe of Manasseh, twelve thousand sealed out of the tribe of Simeon, twelve thousand sealed out of the tribe of Levi, twelve thousand sealed out of the tribe of Issachar, twelve thousand sealed out of the tribe of Zebulun, twelve thousand sealed out of the tribe of Joseph, twelve thousand sealed out of the tribe of Benjamin. Revelation 7:4-8.

In Moses,

Remember the days of old, understand the years of generation after generation.

When the Most High gave to the nations an inheritance, when He separated the sons of man, He fixed the boundaries of the peoples according to the number of the sons of Israel. Deuteronomy 32:7-8.

In David,

Jerusalem, built as a city which is closely compacted together, to which the tribes go up, the tribes of Jah, a testimony to Israel, to confess the name of Jehovah. Psalms 122:3-4.

[13] In Joshua, who was told,

The Ark of the Covenant of the Lord of all the earth is going to pass over before you into the Jordan. Take twelve men from the tribes of Israel, one man from each tribe. And it will happen when the soles of the feet of the priests bearing the Ark of Jehovah, the Lord of all the earth, rest in the waters of the Jordan, that the waters of the Jordan will be cut off. They will stand in one heap. Joshua 3:11-17.

And further,

Take out of the midst of the Jordan, from the places where the priests' feet stood, twelve stones which you are to prepare and carry with you. And let each man take a stone on his shoulder, according to the number of the tribes of Israel, that it may be a sign that the waters of the Jordan were cut off. Moreover Joshua set up twelve stones in the middle of the Jordan, beneath the places where the feet of the priests bearing the Ark of the Covenant had stood. Joshua 4:1-9.

Also in the description about Elijah,

Elijah took twelve stones, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob, to whom the word had come, Israel shall be your name; and he built an altar to the name of Jehovah. 1 Kings 18:31-32.

[14] That 'the tribes' means the goods of love and the truths of faith is also clear from the Lord's words in Matthew,

Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and glory. Matthew 24:30.

Here 'all the tribes of the earth will mourn' means that the acknowledgement of truth and the life of good will not exist any longer, for the subject in that chapter is the close of the age. Similarly in John,

Behold, He is coming with clouds, and every eye will see Him, and those who pierced Him; and all the tribes of the earth will wail over Him. Revelation 1:7.

What 'coming in the clouds of heaven' means, see Preface to Genesis 18. See in addition what I have been shown from experience about the number 'twelve', in 2129, 2130.

[15] The reason why all things of faith and love are called 'tribes' is that the same expression in the original language also means a sceptre and a rod. For 'a sceptre' and also 'a rod' mean power, as will in the Lord's Divine mercy be shown elsewhere. For this reason the noun 'tribe' entails the idea that forms of good and truth possess within them all power from the Lord. And angels too are therefore referred to as 'powers' and also 'principalities', for 'princes' means the first and foremost aspects of charity and faith, such as the twelve princes descended from Ishmael, Genesis 25:16, see 2089, as well as the princes who were leaders of the tribes, Numbers 7; 13:4-16.

[16] From what has been said up to now about the twelve tribes one can recognize why the Lord's disciples, who later on were called apostles, were twelve in number, and that like the tribes they represented the Lord's Church as regards goods and truths, 2129, 3354, 3488, 3857. 'Peter' represented faith, 'James' charity, and 'John' the works that flow from charity, see the Prefaces to Genesis 18, 22, and also 3750. This is also quite evident from the things which the Lord said about them and to them.

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