3079. 'And her pitcher was on her shoulder' means vessels that receive truth, and a total effort to uphold that truth. This is clear from the meaning of 'a pitcher' as factual knowledge, and so a receptacle of truth, dealt with in 3068, and from the meaning of 'shoulder' as all power, and so total effort, dealt with in 1085. 'Pitchers' or water-pots, and also vessels generally, mean in the internal sense things that serve in the place of a receptacle, as facts and cognitions do in relation to truths, and as truths themselves do in relation to good. This becomes clear from many places in the Word. The temple and the altar vessels had no other meaning, and having that meaning they were also sacred. For no other reason were they sacred. That was why - when Belshazzar, along with his nobles and his wives, drank wine out of the vessels of gold and silver which Nebuchadnezzar his father had brought from the Temple in Jerusalem, and they praised the gods of gold, silver, bronze, iron, wood, and stone - writing appeared on the wall of his palace, Daniel 5:2 and following verses. 'The vessels of gold and silver' stands for cognitions of good and truth which were rendered profane; for 'the Chaldeans' means those who possess cognitions but have rendered them profane through the falsities within those cognitions, 1368, so that cognitions serve them for worshipping 'the gods of gold and silver' (Belshazzar being called 'king of the Chaldeans' in verse 30 of that same chapter).

[2] That 'vessels' means the external containers of spiritual things is also evident from other places in the Word, as in Isaiah,

Even as the children of Israel bring their gift in a clean vessel to the house of Jehovah. Isaiah 66:20.

This refers to the Lord's kingdom. 'A gift in a clean vessel' is a representative of the external man in relation to the internal. The one who brings the gift is the internal man, 'the clean vessel' a compatible external man, and so the things present in the external man, which are facts, cognitions, and matters of doctrine. In Jeremiah,

The cry of Jerusalem went up, and the nobles sent their inferiors to the waters; they came to the pits, they found no water, they returned with their vessels empty, they were ashamed. Jeremiah 14:2-3.

'Empty vessels' stands for cognitions with no truth in them, and also truths with no good in them. In the same prophet,

Nebuchadnezzar king of Babel has devoured me, he has troubled me, he has made me an empty vessel. Jeremiah 51:34.

'An empty vessel' stands in like manner for empty cognitions - 'Babel' being one who lays waste, see 1327 (end). In Moses,

Like valleys that are planted, like gardens beside a river. Waters will flow from buckets, and his seed will be towards many waters. Numbers 24:6-7.

These verses belong to Balaam's oracle concerning Jacob and Israel. 'Waters will flow from buckets' stands for truths flowing from cognitions. In the parable about the ten virgins it is said that five of them took oil in their vessels together with their lamps, but that the foolish did not, Matthew 25:4. 'Virgins' means affections; 'the wise took oil in their vessels' means that they took good within truths, and so charity within faith. 'Oil' is good, see 886; 'lamps' stands for love.

2362. That 'behold now, I have two daughters, who have not known a man' means the affections for good and for truth is clear from the meaning of 'daughters' as affections, dealt with in 489-491. 'They have not known a man' means that they have not been defiled by falsity, for 'a man' means rational truth, and also in the contrary sense falsity, 265, 749, 1007. There are two types of affection, namely the affection for good and the affection for truth, see 1997. The first - the affection for good - constitutes the celestial church and in the Word is called 'the daughter of Zion' and also 'the virgin daughter of Zion'.

[2] But the second - the affection for truth - constitutes the spiritual church, and in the Word is called 'the daughter of Jerusalem'; as in Isaiah,

She has despised you, she has scorned you, the virgin daughter of Zion; she wags her head behind you, the daughter of Jerusalem. Isaiah 37:22; 2 Kings 19:21.

In Jeremiah,

What shall I liken you to, O daughter of Jerusalem? What shall I equate you with and comfort you, O virgin daughter of Zion? Lamentations 2:13.

In Micah,

You, O tower of the flock, hill of the daughter of Zion, to you will it come and the former dominion will come, the kingdom of the daughter of Jerusalem. Micah 4:8.

In Zephaniah,

Shout with joy, O daughter of Zion! Make a noise, O Israel! Rejoice and exult with all your heart, O daughter of Jerusalem! Zephaniah 3:14.

In Zechariah,

Exult greatly, O daughter of Zion! Make a noise, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your king will come to you. Zechariah 9:9; Matthew 21:5; John 12:15.

[3] That the celestial Church, which is the Lord's celestial kingdom, is called 'the daughter of Zion' from the affection for good, that is, from love to the Lord Himself, see in addition Isaiah 10:32; 16:1; 52:2; 62:11; Jeremiah 4:31; 6:2, 23; Lamentations 1:6; 2:1, 4, 8, 10; Micah 4:10, 13; Zechariah 2:10; Psalms 9:14. And that the spiritual Church, which is the Lord's spiritual kingdom, is called 'the daughter of Jerusalem' from the affection for truth and so from charity towards the neighbour, see Lamentations 2:15. Both of those Churches, and the nature of each one, have been dealt with many times in Volume One.

[4] Because the celestial Church exists from love to the Lord which is present within love towards the neighbour it is likened in particular to an unmarried daughter or a virgin. Indeed it is also called 'a virgin', as in John,

These are the ones who were not defiled with women, for they are virgins; these are the ones who follow the Lamb wherever He goes; for they are spotless before God's throne. Revelation 14:4-5.

And so that the same might be represented in the Jewish Church, the priests were commanded not to marry widows but virgins, Leviticus 21:13-15; Ezekiel 44:22.

[5] From the contents of the present verse it becomes clear how pure the Word is in the internal sense, however else it may appear in the letter. For when these words are read, 'Behold now, I have two daughters, who have not known a man; let me now bring them out to you and you may do to them as is good in your eyes; only do nothing to those men', nothing else comes to mind than something impure, especially to those leading an evil life. Yet how chaste these words are in the internal sense is evident from the explanation already given, which is that they mean the affections for good and truth and the blessedness perceived from the enjoyment of those affections by people who do no violence to the Lord's Divinity and [proceeding] Holiness.