2441. The sun was gone forth upon the earth. That this signifies the last period, which is called the Last Judgment, is evident from the signification of the “rising of the sun,” when the subject treated of is the times and states of the church. That in the internal sense the times of the day, and also the times of the year, signify the successive states of the church, has been shown before (n. 2323); and that the dawn or morning signifies the Lord’s advent, that is, the approach of His Kingdom (n. 2405) so that in the passage before us the rising of the sun, that is, his “going forth upon the earth,” signifies the Lord’s presence itself; and this for the reason that both the “sun” and the “east” signify the Lord. (As to the “sun,” seen. 31, 32, 1053, 1521, 1529-1531, 2120; as to the “east,” n. 101.)

[2] The reason why the Lord’s presence is the same as the last period, which is called the Judgment, is that His presence separates the good from the evil, and results in the good being elevated into heaven, and the evil casting themselves down into hell; for in the other life the Lord is the Sun to the universal heaven (see n. 1053, 1521, 1529-1531), for it is the Divine Celestial of His love that so appears before their eyes and actually makes the very light of heaven. In so far therefore as the inhabitants of the spiritual world are in celestial love, so far are they elevated into that celestial light which is from the Lord; but in so far as they are remote from celestial love, so far do they cast themselves away from this light into infernal darkness.

[3] This therefore is the reason why the “rising of the sun,” by which is signified the presence of the Lord, involves both the salvation of the good and the damnation of the evil; and this is why it is now said for the first time that “Lot came to Zoar,” that is, that they who are here represented by Lot were saved; and presently that “Jehovah caused it to rain upon Sodom and Gomorrah brimstone and fire,” that is, that the evil were damned.

[4] To those who are in the evils of the love of self and of the world, that is, to those who are in hatreds against all things of love to the Lord and of charity toward the neighbor, the light of heaven actually appears as thick darkness; on which account it is said in the Word that to such the “sun was blackened;” by which is signified that they rejected everything of love and charity, and received everything that is contrary thereto. As in Ezekiel:

When I shall extinguish thee, I will cover the heavens, and make the stars thereof black; I will cover the sun with a cloud, and the moon shall not make her light to shine; all the luminaries of light in the heavens will I make black over thee, and will set darkness upon thy land (Ezekiel 31:7, 8).

Every one can see that by “covering the heavens,” “blackening the stars,” “covering the sun,” and “blackening the luminaries of heaven,” other things than these are signified.

[5] In like manner in Isaiah:

The sun shall be darkened in his going forth, and the moon shall not cause her light to shine (Isaiah 13:10).

And in Joel:

The sun and the moon are blackened, and the stars withdraw their shining (Joel 2:2, 10).

It is therefore evident what is signified by the Lord’s words in Matthew, where He is speaking of the last period of the church, which is called the Judgment:

Immediately after the affliction of those days, the sun shall be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven (Matthew 24:29)

where by the “sun” is not meant the sun; nor by the “moon,” the moon; nor by the “stars,” the stars; but by the “sun” are signified love and charity; by the “moon,” the faith thence derived; and by the “stars,” the knowledges of good and truth; which are said to be “obscured,” to “lose their light,” and to “fall from heaven,” when there is no longer any acknowledgment of the Lord, nor any love to Him, nor any charity toward the neighbor; and when these have become nought, the love of self with its falsities takes possession of the man; for the one thing is a consequence of the other.

[6] Hence we read also in John:

The fourth angel poured out his vial upon the sun; and it was given unto him to scorch men with fire, and men were scorched with great heat, and blasphemed the name of God (Revelation 16:8-9)

where also the last times of the church are treated of, when all love and charity are being extinguished; or, speaking according to the common mode, when there is no longer any faith. The extinction of love and charity is meant by the “pouring out of the vial upon the sun;” so that it was the love of self and its cupidities by which men were then “scorched with fire,” and “scorched with great heat;” and from which came the “blaspheming of the name of God.”

[7] By the “sun” the Ancient Church understood nothing else than the Lord and the Divine Celestial of His love; and therefore they were accustomed to pray toward the sun rising, while not thinking at all about the sun. But after their posterity had lost this also, together with the rest of their representatives and significatives, they began to worship the sun itself and also the moon; which worship spread to many nations, so much so that they dedicated temples to them, and set up pillars; and because the sun and the moon then took on an opposite signification, they came to signify the love of self and of the world, which are diametrically contrary to heavenly and spiritual love. Hence in the Word by the “worship of the sun and the moon” is meant the worship of self and of the world.

[8] As in Moses:

Lest thou lift up thine eyes unto heaven, and see the sun and the moon and the stars, all the army of the heavens, and thou be driven to bow down unto them, and serve them (Deuteronomy 4:19).

And again:

If he have gone and served other gods, and the sun and the moon, or any of the army of the heavens, which I have not commanded, then thou shalt stone them with stones, and they shall die (Deuteronomy 17:3, 5). (Deuteronomy 17:6)

Into such idolatry was the ancient worship turned when they no longer believed that anything internal was signified by the rites of the church, but only what was external.

[9] In like manner in Jeremiah:

At that time shall they spread out the bones of the kings of Judah, of the princes, of the priests, of the prophets, and of the inhabitants of Jerusalem, before the sun and the moon, and all the army of the heavens, which they have loved, and which they have served (Jeremiah 8:1-2).

The “sun” here denotes the love of self and its cupidities; their “spreading out the bones” signifies the infernal things that belong to such worshipers.

Again:

He shall break the pillars of the house of the sun, which are in the land of Egypt, and the houses of the gods of Egypt shall he burn with fire (Jeremiah 43:13).

The “pillars of the house” denote the worship of self.

2323. That “evening” signifies the time of visitation, is evident from the signification of “evening.” The states of the church are compared in the Word both to the seasons of the year and the times of the day; to the seasons of the year because to its summer, autumn, winter, and spring; to the times of the day because to its noon, evening, night, and morning; for the two things are similarly circumstanced. The state of the church which is called “evening,” is when there is no longer any charity, consequently when there begins to be no faith, thus when the church is ceasing to be; this is the “evening” that is followed by the “night” (see n. 22). There is also an “evening” when charity shines forth, consequently when faith does so, and thus when a new church is rising up; this “evening” is the twilight before the morning (see n. 883). Thus “evening” has both significations, for it is provided by the Lord that when a church is ceasing to be, a new one is rising up, and this at the same time; for without a church somewhere on the globe the human race cannot subsist, because it would have no conjunction with heaven (as shown above in n. 468, 637, 931, 2054).

[2] In the present chapter both states of the church are treated of, namely, the rising up of a new church, which is represented by “Lot,” and the destruction of the old, which is signified by “Sodom and Gomorrah;” as can be seen from the Contents. This is why it is here said that the two angels came to Sodom “in the evening;” and why there is told what was done in the evening (verses 1-3), what in the night (verses 4-14), what in the morning or rising dawn (verses 15-22), and what after the sun had gone forth (verses 23-26).

[3] As the “evening” signifies these states of the church, it also signifies the visitation which precedes Judgment; for when a Judgment is close at hand, that is, the salvation of the faithful and the condemnation of the unfaithful, then visitation precedes, or an exploration of what quality they are, that is, whether there is any charity and faith. This visitation takes place in the “evening;” and therefore the visitation itself is called “evening,” as in Zephaniah:

Woe to the inhabitants of the region of the sea, the nation of the Cherethites. The word of Jehovah is against you, O Canaan, the land of the Philistines; and I will cause to destroy thee, till there shall be no inhabitant. The remnant of the house of Judah shall feed in the houses of Ashkelon, in the evening shall they lie down; for Jehovah their God will visit them, and will bring back their captivity (Zeph. 2:5, 7).