9818. Whom I have filled with the spirit of wisdom. That this signifies in whom Divine truth has been inscribed, is evident from the signification of “the spirit of wisdom,” when said of those who are in celestial good, as being Divine truth (of which in what follows); they are said to be “filled with it” when what has been inscribed remains. The case herein is that those who are in the celestial kingdom of the Lord do not know truths from memory-knowledge, and the consequent faith; but from internal perception; for they are in the good of love from the Lord, and all truths have been ingrafted in this good. The good itself has been implanted in their will part, and the derivative truth in their intellectual part. With them the will part and the intellectual part act absolutely as a one, differently from those who are in the spiritual kingdom. From this it is that those who are in the celestial kingdom of the Lord do not from their intellectual part know truths, but perceive them; for the good that has been implanted in the will is presented in its quality and in its form in the understanding, and is there in a light as it were flaming. With them, truth is the form of good, and the quality of it, which is not seen but perceived, is from good. From this it is that they never dispute about truths, insomuch that when they discourse about truths, they say that it is so, or is not so, nothing further; for anything further is not from good. These are they who are meant in Matthew:

Let your discourse be, Yea, yea; Nay, nay; whatsoever is more than these is from evil (Matthew 5:37).

(That they who are in the celestial kingdom of the Lord are of this character, see n. 2715, 2718, 3246, 4448, 5113, 6367, 7877, 9166, 9543; what the difference is between those who are in the celestial kingdom, and those who are in the spiritual kingdom, may be seen in the places cited in n. 9276.)

[2] From all this it can now be seen what is meant by Divine truths being “inscribed.” The word “spirit” is used in many passages in the Word, and when said of man, by his “spirit” is signified the good and truth that have been inscribed on his intellectual part, consequently there is signified the life of this part. That when predicated of man, “spirit” has this signification, is because in respect to his interiors man is a spirit, and in respect to these is also in company with spirits. On this subject see what has been abundantly shown above, namely, that there are spirits and angels with man, and man is directed by the Lord by means of them (n. 50, 697, 986, 2796, 2886, 2887, 4047, 4048, 5846-5866, 5976-5993); that man is among spirits and angels such as he is himself (n. 4067, 4073, 4077, 4111); and that every man has a spirit through which his body has life (n. 4622).

[3] From this it can be known what is meant by “Spirit” when said of the Lord, namely, the Divine truth that proceeds from His Divine good, and that when this Divine truth flows in with man, and is received by him, it is “the Spirit of Truth,” “the Spirit of God,” and “the Holy Spirit;” for it flows in immediately from the Lord, and also mediately through angels and spirits (see the pl aces cited in n. 9682); that “the Spirit of Truth,” “the Spirit of God,” and “the Holy Spirit,” denote this, will be seen in what follows. For it must first be shown that in the Word, “spirit,” when said of man, denotes the good and truth that has been inscribed on his intellectual part, consequently that it denotes the life of this. For there is the life of the intellectual part, and the life of the will part; the life of the intellectual part is to know, to see, and to understand, that truth is true, and that good is good; whereas the life of the will part is to will and to love truth for the sake of truth, and good for the sake of good. This latter life is called in the Word “heart;” but the former is called “spirit.”

[4] That such is the case is evident from the following passages in the Word, in Ezekiel:

Make for you a new heart and a new spirit; why will ye die, O house of Israel? (Ezekiel 18:31).

I will give you a new heart, and I will put a new spirit in the midst of you (Ezekiel 36:26);

“a new heart” denotes a new will; and “a new spirit,” a new understanding.

In Zechariah:

Jehovah stretcheth forth the heavens, and layeth the foundation of the earth, and formeth the spirit of man in the midst of him (Zechariah 12:1);

where “stretching forth the heavens, and laying the foundation of the earth” denotes a new church (that the church is meant by “heaven and earth,” see n. 1733, 1850, 2117, 2118, 3355, 4535); “to form the spirit of man in the midst of him” denotes to regenerate him in respect to the understanding of truth and good.

[5] In David:

Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a steadfast spirit in the midst of me. Cast me not away from before Thee, and take not the Spirit of Thy holiness from me. Restore unto me the joy of Thy salvation; and let an ingenuous spirit uphold me. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and a contrite heart God doth not despise (Psalms 51:10-12, 17);

“a clean heart” denotes a will that is averse to evils, which are unclean; “a steadfast spirit” denotes the understanding and faith of truth; “a broken spirit,” and “a broken heart,” denote a state of temptation and the consequent humiliation of the life of both of these. That “spirit” denotes life, is plain from each of the above expressions. The Divine truth, from which is this life, is “the Spirit of holiness.”

In Matthew:

A generation that maketh not its heart right, and whose spirit is not constant with God (Psalms 78:8);

“a heart not right” denotes that the will is not right; “a spirit not constant with God,” denotes that the understanding and faith are not constant.

[6] In Moses:

Jehovah God made worse the spirit of Sihon king of Heshbon, and hardened his heart (Deuteronomy 2:30);

in this passage also “spirit” and “heart” denote the two lives, which are said to be “hardened” when there is no will of understanding truth and good, nor of doing them.

In Ezekiel:

Every heart shall melt, and all hands shall be let down, and every spirit shall be contracted (Ezekiel 21:7); where the meaning is similar.

In Isaiah:

Jehovah, that giveth soul unto the people upon the earth, and spirit to them that walk therein (Isaiah 42:5);

“giving soul to the people” denotes the life of faith (that “soul” denotes the life of faith, see n. 9050); and “giving spirit” denotes the understanding of truth.

Again:

With my soul have I desired Thee in the night; yea, with my spirit in the midst of me have I awaited Thee in the morning (Isaiah 26:9); where the meaning is similar.

[7] Conceive ye refuse, bring forth stubble; your spirit the fire shall devour (Isaiah 33:11).

“The spirit which the fire shall devour,” denotes the understanding of truth, thus intelligence; “fire” denotes evil affection, which being from evil destroys.

[8] In Ezekiel:

Woe to the foolish prophets that go away after their own spirit (Ezekiel 13:3).

That which cometh up upon your spirit shall never come to pass (Ezekiel 20:32).

Not one hath done so, and the rest who have the spirit: what therefore the one, seeking the seed of God? Therefore take heed by your spirit, that he may not deal treacherously against the wife of thy youth (Malachi 2:15).

Blessed is the man to whom Jehovah imputeth not iniquity, provided in his spirit there is no deceit (Psalms 32:2).

Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of the heavens (Matthew 5:3.)

Jesus said unto His disciples, Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation; the spirit indeed is ready, but the flesh is weak (Matthew 26:41).

It is very evident that in these passages by “spirit” is meant the very life of man; that it denotes the intellectual life, or the life of truth, can be seen from the fact that by “spirit” in the natural sense is meant the life of man’s respiration; and that the respiration of the lungs corresponds to the life of truth, which is the life of faith and from this of the understanding; while the beating of the heart corresponds to the life of the will, thus of the love. That there is this correspondence of the lungs and of the heart, see n. 3883-3896, 9300, 9495; from which it can be seen what life is meant in the spiritual sense by “spirit.”

[9] That in a general sense “spirit” denotes the life of man’s respiration, is very plain in David:

Thou hidest Thy face, they are troubled; Thou gatherest their spirit, they expire. Thou sendest forth Thy spirit, they are created (Psalms 104:29-30).

Answer me, O Jehovah, my spirit hath been consumed; hide not Thy faces from me (Psalms 143:7).

My spirit hath been consumed, my days extinguished (Job 17:1).

Jesus, taking the hand of the maid that was dead, said, Maid arise. And so her spirit returned, and straightway she rose up (Luke 8:54-55).

Every man is become foolish with knowledge, a graven image is a lie, and there is no spirit in it (Jeremiah 10:14; 51:17).

He carried me forth in the spirit of Jehovah, and set me in the midst of the valley. And there the Lord Jehovih said to the dry bones, Behold I bring spirit into you, that ye may live. Thus said the Lord Jehovih, Come from the four winds, O spirit, and breathe into these slain; and the spirit came into them, and they lived again (Ezekiel 37:1, 5, 9-10).

The two witnesses were slain by the beast that came up out of the abyss; but after three days and a half the spirit of life from God entered into them, that they should stand upon their feet (Revelation 11:7, 11).

[10] From these passages it is very manifest that “spirit” denotes the life of man. That specifically it denotes the life of truth, which is the life of man’s intellectual part, and is called intelligence, is clear in John:

The hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshipers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth. God is a spirit, therefore those who worship Him must worship in spirit and in truth (John 4:23-24).

Forasmuch as an excellent spirit, both of knowledge and of understanding, was in him (Daniel 5:12, 14).

John grew, and waxed strong in spirit (Luke 1:80).

The child Jesus grew, and waxed strong in spirit, and was filled with wisdom (Luke 2:40).

He whom the Father hath sent speaketh the words of God; for God hath not given the spirit by measure to him (John 3:34).

“spirit” here denotes intelligence and wisdom; “speaking the words of God” denotes to speak Divine truths.

[11] From all this it is now evident what is signified by “spirit” in John:

Jesus said to Nicodemus, Except a man be born of water and of the spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which hath been begotten of the flesh is flesh; and that which hath been begotten of the spirit is spirit (John 3:5-6); where “to be begotten of water” denotes by means of truth; and “to be begotten of the spirit” denotes the consequent life from the Lord, which is called spiritual life. (That “water” denotes the truth through which is regeneration, see n. 2702, 3058, 3424, 4976, 5668, 9323; but “the flesh” denotes what is man’s own, in which there is nothing of spiritual life, n. 3813, 8409)

[12] The like is signified by “spirit” and “flesh” in the same:

It is the spirit that maketh alive; the flesh profiteth nothing; the words that I speak to you are spirit, and are life (John 6:63);

“the words which the Lord spoke” are Divine truths, the life thence derived is “the spirit.”

In Isaiah:

Egypt is man and not God; and his horses are flesh, and not spirit (Isaiah 31:3);

“Egypt” denotes memory-knowledge in general; “his horses” denote memory-knowledge from the intellectual, which is called “flesh, and not spirit” when there is nothing of spiritual life therein. (That “Egypt” denotes memory-knowledge, see the places cited in n. 9340, 9391; that “horses” denote the intellectual, n. 2761, 2762, 3217, 5321; and that “the horses of Egypt” denote memory-knowledges from the intellectual, n. 6125, 8146, 8148.) He who does not know what is signified by “Egypt,” by “horses,” and also by “flesh” and “spirit,” cannot possibly know what these words involve.

[13] When it is known what is signified by “spirit” in regard to man, it can be known what is signified by “Spirit” when it is said of Jehovah or the Lord, to whom are attributed all things belonging to man; as face, eyes, ears, arms, hands, and also a heart and a soul; thus also a Spirit, which in the Word is called “the Spirit of God,” “the Spirit of Jehovah,” “the Spirit of His mouth,” “the Spirit of holiness,” or “the Holy Spirit.” That by the “Spirit” is meant the Divine truth that proceeds from the Lord, is evident from many passages in the Word, in Ezekiel. The reason why the Divine truth that proceeds from the Lord is signified by “the Spirit of God,” is that the whole life of man is thence, and those have heavenly life who receive this Divine truth in faith and love. That this is “the Spirit of God,” the Lord Himself teaches in John:

The words that I speak to you are spirit, and are life (John 6:63);

“the words which the Lord spoke” are Divine truths.

[14] Again:

Jesus cried with a great voice, saying, If anyone thirst, let him come unto Me, and drink. Whosoever believeth in Me, as the Scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow streams of living water. This said He of the Spirit, which they that believe in Him should receive; for the Holy Spirit was not yet, because Jesus was not yet glorified (John 7:37-39).

That by “the Spirit which they that believe in the Lord were to receive” is meant the life which is from the Lord, and which is the life of faith and of love, is plain from the details of this passage; for “thirsting and drinking” signify a longing to know and perceive truth; “streams of living water which shall flow from the belly” denote truths Divine. From this it is evident that “the Spirit which they should receive,” which is also called “the Holy Spirit,” denotes life from the Divine truth which proceeds from the Lord, which life (as just said) is called “the life of faith and of love,” and is the very spiritual and celestial life with man. The reason why it is said that “the Holy Spirit was not yet, because Jesus was not yet glorified,” is that while the Lord was in the world He Himself taught Divine truth; but when He was glorified, which was after the resurrection, He taught it through angels and spirits. This holy thing which proceeds from the Lord, and flows into man through angels and spirits, whether manifestly or not manifestly, is “the Holy Spirit” there mentioned; for it is the Divine truth that proceeds from the Lord that is called “holy” in the Word (see n. 9680).

[15] From this it is that the Holy Spirit is called “the Spirit of Truth,” and that it is said that “He will lead into all truth;” and that “He shall not speak of Himself, but what things soever He shall hear from the Lord;” and that “He shall receive from the Lord the things that He will proclaim” (John 16:13-14); and also that when the Lord departed from the disciples, “He breathed into them, and said, Receive ye the Holy Spirit” (John 20:21-22). The respiration signifies the life of faith (n. 9229, 9281); consequently the inspiration [or breathing] of the Lord signifies a capability imparted to men to perceive Divine truths, and thus to receive the life of faith; whence also comes the word “spirit” from “blowing” and from “wind,” because from the respiration; and therefore spirit is sometimes called “wind.” That the respiration of the lungs corresponds to the life of faith, and the beating of the heart to the life of love, see n. 3883-3896, 9300, 9495.)

[16] The like is signified by “inspiration” [or “breathing into”] in the book of Genesis:

And Jehovah breathed into man’s nostrils the soul of lives (Genesis 2:7).

From this the Lord is called “the spirit of our nostrils” (Lamentations 4:20). And as Divine truth consumes and vastates the evil, it is said in David:

The foundations of the world were revealed at the blast of the spirit of Thy nostrils (Psalms 18:15).

By the breath of God they perish, and by the spirit of His nostrils are they consumed (Job 4:9).

By the word of Jehovah were the heavens made, and all the army of them by the spirit of His mouth (Psalms 33:6);

“the word of Jehovah” denotes Divine truth; in like manner “the spirit of His mouth.” That this denotes the Lord is evident in John:

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and God was the Word. All things were made by Him. And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us (John 1:1, 3, 14).

[17] That Divine truth, from which is the heavenly life of man, is signified by “the Holy Spirit,” is plain also from the following passages,

In Isaiah:

There shall go forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse; and the spirit of Jehovah shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and intelligence, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and of the fear of Jehovah (Isaiah 11:1-2).

These words are said of the Lord, in whom Divine truth, consequently Divine wisdom and intelligence, are called “the Spirit of Jehovah;” and this Spirit is called “the spirit of wisdom and intelligence, of counsel, of might, and of knowledge.”

Again:

I have put My Spirit upon Him; he shall bring forth judgment to the nations (Isaiah 42:1);

speaking here also of the Lord; “the Spirit of Jehovah upon Him” denotes Divine truth, consequently Divine wisdom and intelligence. Divine truth is also called “judgment” (n. 2235).

[18] Again:

When the enemy shall come as a pent-up stream, the spirit of Jehovah shall lift up a standard against him (Isaiah 59:19).

The spirit of the Lord Jehovih is upon Me; therefore Jehovah hath anointed Me to preach glad tidings to the poor (Isaiah 61:1);

speaking here also of the Lord; the Divine truth which was in the Lord while He was in the world, and which He Himself then was is “the Spirit of Jehovah.”

[19] That “the Spirit of Jehovah” denotes Divine truth, and that the man who receives it has heavenly life therefrom is still more evident from the following passages,

In Isaiah:

Until the spirit be poured upon you from on high, then shall the wilderness become a fruitful field; then judgment shall dwell in the wilderness (Isaiah 32:15-16).

The subject here treated of is regeneration; “the spirit from on high” denotes life from the Divine; for “the wilderness becoming a fruitful field,” and “judgment dwelling in the wilderness,” signifies intelligence where there was none before, thus new life.

[20] In like manner in Ezekiel:

That ye may know that I will give My spirit in you, that ye may live (Ezekiel 37:13-14).

Then I will not hide My faces any more from them; for I will pour out My spirit upon the house of Israel (Ezekiel 39:29).

I will pour out My spirit upon all flesh, and upon the manservants and upon the maidservants in those days will I pour out My spirit (Joel 2:28-29).

I am full of might with the spirit of Jehovah, and with judgment and strength to declare to Jacob his transgression, and to Israel his sin (Micah 3:8).

The horses that go forth into the land of the north have quieted my spirit in the land of the north (Zechariah 6:8).

I will pour waters upon him that is thirsty, and streams upon the dry land; I will pour out My spirit upon thy seed (Isaiah 44:3).

That in these passages “the Spirit of Jehovah” denotes the Divine truth, and through this the life of faith and of love, is evident; that it flows in immediately from the Lord and also mediately from Him through spirits and angels, may be seen above (n. 9682).

[21] In like manner in another passage in Isaiah:

In that day shall Jehovah Zebaoth be for a crown of ornament and for a diadem of beauty to the remains of His people; and for a spirit of judgment to him that sitteth upon judgment, and for strength to them (Isaiah 28:5-6); where “a crown of ornament” denotes the wisdom which is of good; “a diadem of beauty,” the intelligence which is of truth; and “a spirit of judgment,” Divine truth, for judgment is predicated of truth (n. 2235, 6397, 7206, 8685, 8695, 9260, 9383).

[22] Again:

The Angel of the faces of Jehovah delivered them; in His love and in His pity He redeemed them; yet they rebelled, and embittered the Spirit of His Holiness; whereby He was turned to be their enemy. He put the Spirit of His Holiness in the midst of him; the Spirit of Jehovah led him (Isaiah 63:9-11, 14);

here “the Spirit of holiness” denotes the Lord as to Divine truth, thus the Divine truth which is from the Lord; “the N. Angel of His faces” denotes the Lord as to Divine good, for “the face of Jehovah” denotes love, mercy, and good.

In Revelation:

The testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy (Revelation 19:10);

“the testimony of Jesus” denotes the Divine truth which is from Him and concerning Him (n. 9503).

[23] In David:

Jehovah God maketh His angels spirits; and His ministers a flaming fire (Psalms 104:4); where “making the angels spirits” denotes receptions of Divine truth; and “making them a flaming fire” denotes receptions of Divine good, that is, of Divine love.

In Matthew:

John said, I baptize you with water unto repentance; but He that cometh after me shall baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire (Matthew 3:11); where “to baptize” denotes to regenerate; “with the Holy Spirit” denotes by means of Divine truth; and “with fire” denotes from the Divine good of the Divine love. (That “to baptize” denotes to regenerate, see n. 5120, 9088; and that “fire” denotes the Divine good of the Divine love, n. 4906, 5215, 6314, 6832, 6834, 4849, 7324

[24] In Luke:

If ye, being evil, know how to give good things to your children; how much more shall the Father who is in Heaven give the Holy Spirit to them that ask Him? (Luke 11:13);

“to give the Holy Spirit” denotes to enlighten with Divine truth, and to endow with the life thence derived, which is the life of intelligence and wisdom.

In Revelation:

The seven lamps of fire burning before the throne are the seven Spirits of God (Revelation 4:5).

In the midst of the elders a Lamb standing, having seven horns, and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God, sent forth into all the earth (Revelation 5:6).

That in these passages “Spirits” do not mean spirits, is evident from the fact that the lamps and the eyes of the Lamb are called “the Spirits of God;” for “lamps” denote Divine truths (n. 4638, 7072), and “eyes” denote the understanding of truth, and when said of the Lord, the Divine intelligence and wisdom (n. 2701, 4403-4421, 4523-4534, 9051); from which it is evident that “the Spirits of God” signify Divine truths.

[25] When therefore it is known that “the Holy Spirit” denotes the Divine truth that proceeds from the Lord, which is holiness itself, the Divine meaning of the Word can be known wherever mention is made of “the Spirit of God,” and “the Holy Spirit;” as in the following passages, in John:

I will ask the Father that He may give you another Paraclete, that He may abide with you forever; the Spirit of Truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth Him not, neither knoweth Him; but ye know Him, for He abideth with you, and shall be in you. I will not leave you orphans. The Paraclete, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He shall teach you all things, and put you in mind of all things that I have said unto you (John 14:16-18, 26).

When the Paraclete shall come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, the Spirit of Truth, who goeth forth from the Father, He shall bear witness of Me; and ye shall bear witness (John 15:26-27).

I tell you the truth; it is expedient for you that I go away; if I go not away, the Paraclete will not come unto you; but if I go away, I will send Him unto you (John 16:7).

[26] From these passages it is again evident that the Divine truth proceeding from the Divine good which is “the Father,” is “the Paraclete,” and “the Holy Spirit,” and therefore also He is called “the Spirit of Truth;” and it is said of Him that “He shall abide in them,” that “He shall teach all things,” that “He shall bear witness of the Lord.” In the spiritual sense “to bear witness of the Lord” denotes to teach about Him. Its being said that “the Paraclete who is the Holy Spirit is sent from the Father in the name of the Lord,” and again that “the Lord will send Him from the Father,” and afterward that “the Lord Himself will send Him,” is because the Father signifies the Divine Itself which is in the Lord, and consequently that the Father and He are one, as the Lord plainly declares in John 10:30; 14:9-11.

[27] In Matthew:

All sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men; but the blasphemy of the Spirit shall not be forgiven unto men. If anyone shall say a word against the Son of man, it shall be forgiven him; but whosoever shall speak against the Holy Spirit, it shall not be forgiven him, neither in this age, nor in that which is to come (Matthew 12:31-32);

“to say a word against the Son of man” denotes against truth Divine not yet implanted or inscribed in the life of man (that “the Son of man” denotes the Divine truth, see n. 9807); but “to speak against the Holy Spirit” denotes against the Divine truth that has been implanted or inscribed in the life of man, especially against the Divine truth about the Lord Himself. To speak against this, that is, to deny it after it has once been acknowledged, is profanation; and the profanation is of such a nature that it utterly destroys the interiors of man; and from this it is said that this sin cannot be forgiven. (What profanation is, see n. 3398, 3898, 4289, 4601, 6348, 6959, 6963, 6971, 8394, 8882, 9298)

[28] And again:

Jesus said unto the disciples, Go ye, and baptize in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit (Matthew 28:19);

“the Father” here denotes the Divine Itself; “the Son” denotes this Divine Itself in a human form; and “the Holy Spirit” denotes the Divine which proceeds. Thus there is one Divine, and yet a Trinity. That the Lord is the Divine Itself under a human form, He Himself teaches in John:

From henceforth ye have known the Father, and have seen Him; he that seeth Me seeth the Father; I am in the Father, and the Father in Me (John 14:7, 9-10).

2702. And she saw a well of water. That this signifies the Lord’s Word from which are truths, is evident from the signification of a “well of water,” and of a “fountain,” as being the Word, and also doctrine from the Word, consequently also truth itself; and from the signification of “water,” as being truth. That a “well in which there is water,” and a “fountain,” denote the Lord’s Word, and also doctrine from the Word, consequently also truth itself, may be seen from very many passages. A “well,” and not a “fountain,” is spoken of here, because the spiritual church is treated of, as also in the following verses of this chapter:

Abraham reproved Abimelech because of the well which the servants of Abimelech had taken away (Genesis 22:25).

So too in the twenty-sixth chapter:

All the wells which the servants of Isaac’s father digged in the days of Abraham his father, the Philistines had stopped up. And Isaac returned, and digged the wells of water which they had digged in the days of Abraham his father, and the Philistines had stopped them up after the death of Abraham. And Isaac’s servants digged in the valley, and found there a well of living water. And they digged another well, and for that they strove not. And it came to pass in that day that Isaac’s servants came and told him concerning the well which they had digged, and said unto him, We have found water (Genesis 26:15, 18-22, 22, 25, 32).

Here by “wells” nothing else is signified than doctrinal matters about which they contended, and those about which they did not contend. Otherwise their digging wells and contending so many times about them would not be of so much importance as to be worthy of mention in the Divine Word.

[2] The “well” spoken of by Moses signifies in like manner the Word, or doctrine:

They journeyed to Beer; this is the well whereof Jehovah said unto Moses, Gather the people together, and I will give them water. Then sang Israel this song: Spring up, O well; answer ye from it. The princes digged the well, the willing of the people digged it, in the lawgiver, with their staves (Numbers 21:16-18).

As a “well” signified these things, there was therefore this prophetic song in Israel, in which the doctrine of truth is treated of, as is evident from every particular in the internal sense. Hence came the name “Beer” [a well], and hence the name “Beersheba,” and its signification in the internal sense, as being doctrine itself.

[3] But doctrine in which there are no truths is called a “pit,” or a “well in which there is no water” as in Jeremiah:

Their nobles have sent their little ones to the water; they came to the pits, they found no water; they returned with their vessels empty (Jeremiah 14:3); where “waters” denote truths; and “pits where they found no water,” doctrine in which there is no truth. In the same:

My people have committed two evils: they have forsaken Me the fountain of living waters, to hew them out pits, broken pits, that can hold no waters (Jeremiah 2:13); where “pits” in like manner denote doctrines that are not true; and “broken pits,” fabricated doctrines.

[4] That a “fountain” is the Word, and also doctrine, consequently truth, may be seen in Isaiah:

The afflicted and the needy seek waters, and there are none; their tongue faileth for thirst. I Jehovah will hear them, the God of Israel will not forsake them; I will open rivers upon the hillsides, and fountains in the midst of the valleys; I will make the wilderness a pool of waters, and the dry land springs of waters (Isaiah 41:17-18); where the desolation of truth is treated of, which is signified by the afflicted and needy seeking for waters when there are none, and by their tongue failing for thirst; and then their consolation, refreshment, and instruction after desolation are treated of (as in the verses about Hagar now being explained), signified by Jehovah opening rivers upon the hillsides, making fountains in the midst of the valleys, and the wilderness into a pool of waters, and the dry land into springs of waters; all which things relate to the doctrine of truth, and to the affection thence derived.

[5] In Moses:

Israel dwelt securely alone at the fountain of Jacob, in a land of corn and new wine; yea, his heavens drop down dew (Deuteronomy 33:28).

The “fountain of Jacob” denotes the Word and the doctrine of truth therefrom. Because the “fountain of Jacob” signified the Word and the doctrine of truth therefrom, when the Lord came to the fountain of Jacob, He spoke with the woman of Samaria, and taught what is signified by a “fountain” and by “water,” as described in John:

Jesus came to a city of Samaria called Sychar, and Jacob’s fountain was there; Jesus therefore being wearied with His journey, sat thus by the fountain. There cometh a woman of Samaria to draw water. Jesus saith unto her, Give Me to drink: Jesus said, If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith unto thee, Give Me to drink, thou wouldst ask of Him that He should give thee living water. Everyone that drinketh of this water shall thirst again; but whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst, but the water that I shall give him shall become in him a fountain of water springing up unto eternal life (John 4:5-7, 10, 13-14).

As “Jacob’s fountain” signified the Word, the “water” truth, and “Samaria” the spiritual church (as is frequently the case in the Word), the Lord spoke with the woman of Samaria, and taught that the doctrine of truth is from Him; and that when it is from Him, or what is the same, from His Word, it is a fountain of water springing up unto eternal life; and that truth itself is living water.

[6] Again:

Jesus said, If any man thirst, let him come unto Me, and drink; whosoever believeth in Me, as the Scripture saith, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water (John 7:37-38).

And in the same:

The Lamb that is in the midst of the throne shall feed them, and shall lead them unto living fountains of water; and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes (Revelation 7:17).

In the same:

I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely (Revelation 21:6);

“rivers of living water,” and “living fountains of waters,” denote truths that are from the Lord, or from His Word; for the Lord is the Word. The good of love and of charity, which is solely from the Lord, is the life of truth. He is said to be “athirst” who is in the love and affection of truth; no other can “thirst.”

[7] These truths are also called “fountains of salvation” in Isaiah:

With joy shall ye draw waters out of the fountains of salvation; and in that day shall ye say, Confess to Jehovah, call upon His name (Isaiah 12:3-4).

That a “fountain” is the Word, or doctrine from it, is plain also in Joel:

It shall come to pass in that day that the mountains shall drop down new wine, and the hills shall flow with milk, and all the streams of Judah shall flow with waters, and a fountain shall go forth out of the house of Jehovah, and shall water the stream of Shittim (Joel 3:18); where “waters” denote truths; and a “fountain out of the house of Jehovah,” the Lord’s Word.

[8] In Jeremiah:

Behold I will bring them from the north country, and gather them from the sides of the earth; and among them the blind and the lame; they shall come with weeping, and with supplications will I bring them unto fountains of waters in a straight way, wherein they shall not stumble (Jeremiah 31:8-9);

“fountains of waters in a straight way” manifestly denote the doctrinal things of truth; the “north country,” ignorance or desolation of truth; “weeping” and “supplications,” their state of grief and despair; and to be “brought to the fountains of waters,” refreshment and instruction in truths (as here, where Hagar and her son are treated of).

[9] The same things are also thus described in Isaiah:

The wilderness and the parched land shall be glad for them, and the desert shall rejoice and blossom as the rose; budding it shall bud, and shall rejoice even with rejoicing and singing; the glory of Lebanon has been given unto it, the honor of Carmel and Sharon; they shall see the glory of Jehovah, the honor of our God. Make ye firm the enfeebled hands, and strengthen the tottering knees. The eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped; in the wilderness shall waters break out, and streams in the desert; and the dry place shall become a pool, and the thirsty ground springs of waters (Isaiah 35:1-3, 5-7); where the “wilderness” denotes the desolation of truth; “waters,” “streams,” “lakes,” and “springs of waters,” the truths that are a refreshment and joy to those who have been in vastation, whose joys are there described with many words.

[10] In David:

Jehovah sendeth forth fountains into the valleys, they shall run among the mountains; they shall give drink to every wild beast of the field, the wild asses shall quench their thirst. He watereth the mountains from His chambers (Psalms 104:10-11, 13);

“fountains” denote truths; “mountains,” the love of good and truth; to “give drink,” instructing; “wild beasts of the field,” those who live from this (see n. 774, 841, 908); “wild asses,” those who are solely in rational truth (n. 1949-1951).

[11] In Moses:

Joseph is the son of a fruitful one, the son of a fruitful one by a fountain (Genesis 49:22);

a “fountain” denotes doctrine from the Lord. In the same:

Jehovah thy God bringeth thee into a good land, a land of rivers, of waters, of fountains, and of depths going forth in valley and in mountain (Deuteronomy 8:7).

The “land” denotes the Lord’s kingdom and church (n. 662, 1066, 1067, 1262, 1413, 2571); which is called “good” from the good of love and charity; “rivers,” “waters,” “fountains,” and “depths,” denote the truths thence derived. In the same:

The land of Canaan, a land of mountains and valleys, that drinketh water of the rain of heaven (Deuteronomy 11:11).

[12] That “waters” are truths, both spiritual and rational, and also those of memory-knowledge, is manifest from these passages in Isaiah:

Behold the Lord Jehovih Zebaoth doth take away from Jerusalem and from Judah the whole staff of bread, and the whole staff of water (Isaiah 3:1).

In the same:

Bring ye waters to him that is thirsty; meet the fugitive with his bread (Isaiah 21:14).

In the same:

Blessed are ye that sow beside all waters (Isaiah 32:20).

In the same:

He that walketh in righteousnesses, and speaketh uprightnesses, shall dwell on high; his bread shall be given, his waters shall be faithful (Isaiah 33:15-16).

In the same:

Then shall they not thirst, He shall lead them in the desert, He shall cause the waters to flow out of the rock for them; He cleaveth the rock also, and the waters flow out (Isaiah 48:21; Exodus 17:1-8; Numbers 20:11, 13).

[13] In David:

He clave the rocks in the wilderness, and gave them to drink abundantly as out of the deeps. He brought streams out of the rock and caused waters to run down like a river (Psalms 78:15-16); where the “rock” denotes the Lord; “waters,” “rivers,” and “deeps” from it, denote truths from Him. In the same:

Jehovah maketh rivers into a wilderness, and water-springs into dry ground; He maketh a wilderness into a pool of waters, and a dry land into water-springs (Psalms 107:33, 35).

In the same:

The voice of Jehovah is upon the waters; Jehovah is upon many waters (Psalms 29:3).

In the same:

A river, the streams whereof shall make glad the city of God, the holy place of the tabernacles of the Most High (Psalms 46:4).

In the same:

By the Word of Jehovah were the heavens made, and all the army of them by the breath of His mouth; He gathereth the waters of the sea together as a heap, He layeth up the deeps in storehouses (Psalms 33:6-7).

In the same:

Thou dost visit the earth, and delightest in it greatly; thou enrichest it, the river of God is full of waters (Psalms 65:9).

In the same:

The waters saw Thee, O God, the waters saw Thee, the deeps also trembled; the clouds poured out waters; Thy way was in the sea, and Thy path in many waters (Psalms 77:16-17, 19).

It is manifest to everyone that the “waters” here do not signify waters, and that it is not meant that the deeps trembled, nor that the way of Jehovah was in the sea, and His path in the waters; but that spiritual waters are meant, that is, spiritual things which are of truth; otherwise this would be a heap of empty words.

In Isaiah:

Ho every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters and he that hath no silver, come ye, buy (Isaiah 55:1).

In Zechariah:

It shall come to pass in that day that living waters shall go out from Jerusalem, half of them toward the eastern sea, and half of them toward the western sea (Zech. 14:8).

[14] Moreover where the church is treated of in the Word as about to be planted and as having been planted, and where it is described by a paradise, a garden, a grove, or by trees, it is usual for it to be also described by waters or rivers which irrigate; by which either spiritual, rational, or memory things (which are of truth) are signified-as in the description of Paradise in Genesis (2:8-9); which is also described by the rivers there (verses 10 to 14), signifying the things of wisdom and intelligence (see n. 107-121). The same is true in many other places in the Word, as in Moses:

As valleys are they planted, as gardens by the river, as sandal-wood trees which Jehovah hath planted, as cedars beside the waters; waters shall flow from his buckets, and his seed shall be in many waters (Numbers 24:6-7).

In Ezekiel:

He took of the seed of the land, and planted it in a field of sowing, he placed it beside many waters; it budded, and became a luxuriant vine (Ezekiel 17:5-6).

That a “vine” and a “vineyard” signify the spiritual church may be seen above (n. 1069). In the same:

Thy mother was like a vine in thy likeness, planted by the waters; she became fruitful and full of branches by reason of many waters (Ezekiel 19:10).

In the same:

Behold Asshur was a cedar in Lebanon; the waters nourished him, the deep made him high, going with her rivers round about his plant; and she sent out her canals unto all the trees of the field (Ezekiel 31:4).

[15] In the same:

Behold upon the bank of the river were very many trees on this side and on that. He said unto me, These waters issue forth toward the eastern border, and shall go down into the plain, and shall go toward the sea; and being sent into the sea the waters are healed. And it shall be that every living soul that creepeth, in every place whither the two rivers come, shall live; and there shall be a very great multitude of fish, because these waters are come thither; and they shall be healed, so that everything whithersoever the river cometh shall live. The miry places thereof and the marshes thereof shall not be healed; they shall be given up to salt (Ezekiel 47:7-9, 11).

Here the New Jerusalem, or the Lord’s spiritual kingdom, is described: the “waters going forth to the eastern border,” signify spiritual things from celestial things, which are truths from a celestial origin; that is, faith from love and charity (n. 101, 1250). To “go down into the plain,” signifies doctrinal things which are of the rational (n. 2418, 2450). To “go toward the sea,” signifies to memory-knowledges; the “sea” is the collection of them (n. 28); the “living soul which creepeth,” signifies their delights (n. 746, 909, 994); which will “live from the waters of the river,” that is, from spiritual things from a celestial origin. “Much fish” denotes an abundance of applicable memory-knowledges (n. 40, 991). The “miry places and the marshes” denote things not applicable and impure; being “given up to salt,” denotes being vastated (n. 2455).

In Jeremiah:

Blessed is the man that trusteth in Jehovah; he shall be like a tree planted by the waters, and that sendeth forth its roots by the river (Jeremiah 17:7-8).

In David:

He shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth its fruit in its season (Psalms 1:3).

In John:

He showed me a pure river of water of life, bright as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb; in the midst of the street of it, and on this side of the river and on that was the tree of life bearing twelve fruits (Revelation 22:1-2).

[16] Seeing that in the internal sense of the Word “waters” signify truths, therefore in the Jewish Church, for the sake of representation before the angels with whom the rituals were viewed spiritually, it was commanded that the priests and Levites should wash themselves with water when they came near to minister, and indeed out of the laver between the tent and the altar; and later, out of the brazen sea and the other lavers around the temple, which were in place of a fountain. So too for the sake of the representation was the institution of the water of sin or of purgation that was to be sprinkled upon the Levites (Numbers 8:7); also that of the water of separation, from the ashes of the red heifer (Numbers 19:2-19); and that the spoils from the Midianites should be cleansed by water (Numbers 31:19-25).

[17] The waters which were given out of the rock (Exodus 17:1-8; Numbers 20:1-13; Deuteronomy 8:15) represented and signified an abundance of spiritual things or truths of faith from the Lord. The bitter waters which were healed by the wood (Exodus 15:23-25) represented and signified that the truths which are not pleasing become acceptable and grateful from good, that is, from the affection of it. (That “wood” signifies good which is of affection, or of the will, may be seen ab ove, n. 643.) From all this it may now be known what “water” denotes in the Word, and hence what the water in baptism denotes, of which the Lord speaks thus in John:

Except a man be born of water and of the spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God (John 3:5);

namely, that “water” is the spiritual of faith, and the “spirit” the celestial of it; thus that baptism is the symbol of the regeneration of man by the Lord by means of the truths and goods of faith. Not that regeneration is effected by baptism, but by the life signified in baptism, into which life Christians who have the truths of faith, because they have the Word, must come.