585. And repented not of the works of their hands.- That this signifies those who have not actually turned themselves away from such things as are from the proprium, is evident from the signification of repenting as denoting to actually turn away from evil, of which in what follows; and from the signification of the works of their hands, as denoting those things that man thinks, wills, and does, from the proprium. That those things are signified by the works of the hands, will be clear from the passages in the Word that follow; also from this fact, that works are of the will, and thence of the understanding, or of the love and thence of the faith, as may be seen above (n. 98), and that hands signify power, and their hands [their] own proper power, thus also whatever proceeds from the proprium of man.

[2] In regard to the proprium of man, it must be observed, that it is nothing but evil, and the falsity therefrom. The voluntary proprium is evil, and the intellectual proprium thence is falsity; and this proprium man derives principally from parents, grandfathers, and ancestors, in a long series back, so that at length the hereditary [nature], which is his proprium, is nothing but evil successively accumulated and rendered compact. For every man is born into two diabolical loves, the love of self, and the love of the world, and from these loves all evils and falsities proceed, as from their own fountains; and because man is born into those loves, he is also born into evils of every kind. More may be seen concerning this in the Doctrine of the New Jerusalem 65-83).

[3] Because the proprium of man is of such a nature, therefore the Lord, from His Divine mercy, has provided the means by which he may be withdrawn from his proprium; these means are furnished in the Word, and when man acts in accordance with them, that is, when he thinks and speaks, wills and acts, from the Divine Word, then he is kept by the Lord in things Divine, and thus is withheld from his proprium. And as he perseveres in this course, as it were, a new proprium as well voluntary as intellectual, which is altogether separated from his own proprium, is formed in him by the Lord; thus man becomes as it were created anew. This is called his reformation and regeneration by truths from the Word, and by a life according to them. On this subject more may be seen in the Doctrine of the New Jerusalem, in the articles concerning Remission of sins (n. 159-172) and concerning Regeneration (n. 173-186). To repent is actually to turn oneself away from evils, because the quality of every man is according to his life, and the life of man principally consists in willing and thence in acting. It follows from this, that repentance, which is of the thought alone, and thence of the lips, and not at the same time of the will and thence of action, is not repentance, for in such case the life remains of the same quality afterwards as it was before. It is therefore evident, that to repent is actually to turn oneself away from evils, and to enter upon a new life, as may be seen in the Doctrine of the New Jerusalem 159-172).

[4] That the works of the hands signify those things that a man thinks, wills, and does, from the proprium, is evident from the following passages in the Word:

"Provoke me not to anger with the works of your hands, that I may not do evil to you. Yet ye have not hearkened unto me, that ye might provoke me to anger with the works of your hands for evil to you. Many nations and great kings shall make them to serve; and I will recompense them according to their work, and according to the deed of their hands" (Jeremiah 25:6, 7, 14).

"Work" and "deed of the hands" mean, in the external sense, their molten images and idols, but in the spiritual sense, the work of their hands signifies all the evil and falsity that proceed from [their] own love and [their] own intelligence. Molten images and idols, which are called the works of their hands, signify similar things, as will be seen in what follows, when the signification of idols is explained. Because the proprium of man is nothing but evil, thus in opposition to the Divine, therefore it is said, "provoke me not to anger with the works of your hands; that I may not do evil to you." To provoke God to anger signifies to be in opposition to Him, whence man has evil; and since all evils and falsities are from man's proprium, therefore it is said, "Many nations and great kings shall make them to serve," by which is signified, that evils from which are falsities, and falsities from which are evils, shall take possession of them, many nations denoting the evils from which falsities arise, and great kings falsities from which evils spring.

[5] Again, in the same prophet:

"The sons of Israel provoke me to anger with the work of their own hands" (32:30).

And again:

"Ye provoke me to anger with the works of your own hands, burning incense unto other gods in the land of Egypt" (44:8).

The works of their hands, in the spiritual sense, here mean worship from falsities of doctrine, which are from [man's] own intelligence, such worship being signified by burning incense to other gods in the land of Egypt, for to burn incense denotes worship, other gods denote falsities of doctrine, and the land of Egypt denotes the Natural, in which the proprium of man resides, and consequently whence [man's] own intelligence proceeds. This passage of the Word is thus understood in heaven.

[6] And again:

"I will utter my judgments with them touching their wickedness because they have forsaken me, and have burned incense unto other gods, and bowed themselves to the works of their own hands" (1:16).

By burning incense unto other gods, is here also signified worship from falsities of doctrine; and by bowing themselves to the works of their own hands, is signified worship from those things that are from [man's] own intelligence; and that they are from the proprium, and not from the Divine, is signified by that they have forsaken me.

[7] Thus also in Isaiah:

"In that day a man shall have respect unto his Maker, and his eyes shall look unto the Holy One of Israel. And he shall not have respect unto the altars, the work of his hands, neither shall regard that which his fingers have made" (17:7, 8).

This is spoken of the coming of the Lord, and a new church at that time. His Maker, to whom it is said a man shall at that day have respect, means the Lord as to Divine Good, and the Holy One of Israel, to whom his eyes shall look, means the Lord as to Divine Truth. The altars, the work of his hands and which his fingers have made, unto which a man shall not have respect, nor shall regard them, signifies worship from evils, and thence from falsities of doctrine originating in [man's] own intelligence. These words therefore mean that everything of doctrine will be from the Lord, and not from man's proprium, which is the case when man is in the spiritual affection for truth, that is, when he loves truth because it is truth, and not chiefly for the sake of his own reputation and name.

[8] Again, in the same prophet:

Jehovah "gave the gods" of the kings of Assyria "to the fire; for they were no gods, but the work of man's hands, wood and stone" (37:19).

The gods of the kings of Assyria signify reasonings from falsities and evils, which are in agreement with man's proprium, and are therefore also called the work of the hands of man. Wood and stone, or idols of wood and stone, signify the evils and falsities of religion and of doctrine originating in the proprium.

[9] Again:

"In that day every man shall cast away the idols of his silver, and the idols of his gold, which your own hands have made unto you for a sin; and then shall the Assyrian fall" (31:7, 8).

This refers to the restoration of the church; and by the idols of silver, and the idols of gold, which they shall in that day cast away, are signified the falsities and evils of religion and of worship, which they call truths and goods. And since the falsities and evils of religion and of worship are from [man's] own intelligence, therefore it is said, which your hands have made unto you. That there shall then be no reasonings from such things, is signified by, then shall the Assyrian fall.

[10] Again, in Jeremiah:

"Silver spread into plates is brought from Tarshish, and gold from Uphaz, the work of the workman, and of the hands of the founder; purple (hyacinthinum) and crimson (purpura) is their clothing, all the work of wise men" (10:9).

These describe the falsity and evil of religion and of worship which are confirmed from the sense of the letter of the Word. Silver spread into plates from Tarshish, signifies the truths of the Word in that sense, and gold from Uphaz, signifies the good of the Word in that sense. And because those falsities and evils are from [man's] own intelligence, therefore they are called the work of the workman, and of the hands of the founder. Also the truth of good, and the good of truth, from the sense of the letter of the Word, by which they confirm, and as it were invest, the falsities of evil and the evils of falsity, which are from [man's] own intelligence, are signified by the purple and crimson of the raiment, all the work of wise men.

[11] Moreover, the work of the workman, the artificer, and the smith, in the Word, also signifies such [part] of doctrine, religion, and worship, as originates in [man's] own intelligence; hence it was, that the altar, and also the temple, were, by command, built of whole stones, and not hewn by any workman or artificer. Of the altar it is written as follows in Moses:

"If thou make me an altar of stone, thou shalt not build it of hewn stones; for if thou lift up thy tool upon it, thou wilt profane it" (Exodus 20:25).

And in Joshua:

"Joshua built an altar unto the God of Israel in Mount Ebal, an altar of whole stones, over which no man had moved iron" (8:30, 31).

Again, concerning the temple it is said in the First book of Kings:

"The temple at Jerusalem was built of stone, whole as it was brought away; for there was neither hammer, axe, nor any tool of iron heard in the house while it was building" (6:7).

The altar, and afterwards the temple, were in an especial manner representative of the Lord as to Divine Good and Divine Truth, therefore the stones of which they were built, signified the truths of doctrine, of religion, and of worship, stones in the Word also denoting truths. That nothing of [man's] own intelligence should be added to the truths of doctrine and worship therefrom, and consequently be therein, was represented by the stones of which they were built being whole and not hewn, for the work of the workman, and of the artificer, signified such things. Also the tool, the hammer and the axe, and iron in general, signify truth in its ultimate, and this is especially falsified by man's proprium; for this truth is the same as the truth of the sense of the letter of the Word.

[12] These things are said concerning the signification of the works of the hands of man; but where works of the hands, in the Word, are ascribed to Jehovah, that is, to the Lord, they signify the reformed or regenerated man, also the church, and, specifically, the doctrine of truth and good pertaining to the church. These things are signified by works of the hands in the following passages.

Thus in David:

The works of the hands of Jehovah "are truth and judgment" (Psalm 111:7).

Again:

"Jehovah will perfect for me; thy mercy, O Jehovah, endureth for ever; forsake not the works of thine own hands" (Psalm 138:8).

And in Isaiah:

"Thy people are all just; they shall possess the land for ever, the shoots of my plants, the work of my hands, that I may be glorified" (60:21).

Again, in the same prophet:

"O Jehovah, thou art our father; we are the clay, but thou our potter; and we all are the work of thy hands" (64:8).

And again:

"Woe unto him that striveth with his Maker! Let the potsherd strive with the potsherds of the earth. Shall the clay say to him that fashioneth it, What makest thou? or thy work, He hath no hands? Thus saith Jehovah, the Holy One of Israel, and his Maker, They asked me signs upon my sons, and upon the work of my hands they command Me" (45:9, 11).

That here Jehovah, the Holy One of Israel, the Maker, means the Lord, is evident from what follows in verse 13, and the work of his hands means the man who is regenerated by Him, thus the man of the church.

[13] And again:

"Jehovah of hosts shall bless, saying, Blessed be Egypt my people, and Assyria the work of my hands, and Israel mine inheritance" (19:25).

Egypt here signifies the Natural, Assyria the Rational, and Israel the Spiritual; and Assyria is called the work of the hands of Jehovah, because it is this that is reformed in man, for the Rational is that which receives truths and goods, and from this the Natural. The Spiritual, that is to say, the Lord by spiritual influx is that which regenerates. In a word, the Rational is the medium between the Spiritual and the Natural; and the Spiritual, which regenerates, flows in by means of the Rational into the Natural, and thus the latter is regenerated.

Again, in Moses:

"Bless, Jehovah, his strength, and accept the work of his hands " (Deuteronomy 33:11).

This is said of Levi, who signifies the good of charity, and, in the highest sense, the Lord as to that good; reformation thereby is meant by the work of his hands.

6000. 'And God spoke to Israel in visions of the night' means obscure revelation. This is clear from the meaning of 'God spoke in visions' as revelation. For revelations were made either by means of dreams, or by night visions, or by daytime visions, or by utterances made within a person, or by utterances made outside him by angels who had become visible, as well as by utterances made outside by angels who had not become visible. Various kinds of revelation are meant in the Word by all these. 'A vision of the night' means revelation that is obscure, since 'night' means obscurity, 1712, 2514, and in the spiritual sense obscurity implies that truth is not visible. In the Word 'night' also means falsity due to evil; for people who because of evil are subject to falsity dwell in the obscurity of night, which is why all in hell are said to be in night. Those in hell do, it is true, have an inferior kind of light, for they see one another; but that light is like the light emitted by a coal fire, which is turned into darkness and pitch darkness when heavenly light flows in. This is why the inhabitants of hell are said to be in night and are called angels of the night and darkness, whereas the inhabitants of heaven are called angels of the day and light.

[2] The meaning of 'the night' as obscurity and also falsity may be seen in addition from the following places in the Word: In John,

Jesus said, Are there not twelve hours in the day? If anyone walks in the day he does not stumble. But if anyone walks in the night he stumbles, because the light is not in him. John 11:9-10.

'Twelve hours' stands for all states of truth. 'Walking in the day' stands for living in the truth, and 'walking in the night' for living in falsity.

[3] In the same gospel,

I must work the works of Him who sent Me while it is day; night is coming when nobody will be able to work. John 9:4.

'Day' stands for truth coming from good, and 'night' for falsity coming from evil. The first period of the Church is what is meant by 'day', for at this time truth is entertained by people because they are governed by good. But the final period of the Church is what is meant by 'night', for at that time no truth at all is entertained by its members, because they are not governed by good; and when someone is not governed by good, that is, by charity towards the neighbour, then even if told perfect truths he does not entertain them. In this situation there is no perception at all of what truth is, because the light of truth falls on matters of a bodily and worldly nature, to which alone such people give their attention and which alone they love and consider to have any reality. It does not fall on things of a heavenly nature because they are considered to be of little or no value at all compared with other things. Consequently the light of truth is swallowed up by and snuffed out in what is a mass of thick darkness, like sunlight falling on an object that is black. This is what is meant by 'night is coming when nobody will be able to work'; and the situation is like this at the present day.

[4] In Matthew,

While the bridegroom was tarrying all the virgins were drowsy and went to sleep. But at midnight there was a shout, Behold, the bridegroom is coming. Matthew 25:5-7.

'Midnight' too stands for the final period of the old Church when no faith at all exists because no charity at all does so, and also for the first period of the new Church. In Luke,

I tell you, in that night there will be two upon one bed; one will be taken, the other left. Luke 17:34.

'Night' in the same way here stands for the final period of the old Church, and the first of the new.

[5] In Matthew,

Jesus said to the disciples, All of you will be made to stumble [by sinning] against Me this night. And to Peter, This night, before the cock crows, you will deny Me three times. Matthew 26:31, 34.

The Lord allowed Himself to be arrested at night, and this was a sign that Divine Truth dwelt for them in the obscurity of night and that falsity springing from evil existed in place of it. Peter's denial of the Lord three times that night also represented the final period of the Church when the truth of faith is indeed taught, but no one believes it. This final period is 'night' because at this time people utterly deny the Lord in their hearts. For like the twelve tribes of Israel, the twelve apostles represented all the aspects of faith, 577, 2089, 2129 (end), 2130 (end), 3272, 3354, 3488, 3858, 3913, 3926, 3939, 4060; and Peter represented the faith of the Church, see Preface to Genesis 18, also Preface to Genesis 22, as well as 3750, 4738. So it was that the Lord said to Peter that he would deny Him three times that night, and to the disciples, 'All of you will be made to stumble [by sinning] against Me this night'.

[6] In Isaiah,

One was calling to me from Seir, Watchman, what of the night? Watchman, what of the night? The watchman said, Morning comes, and also the night.

This refers to the Coming of the Lord, which is 'morning'. That Coming took place when spiritual truth existed no longer on earth, which is 'the night'.

[7] In Zechariah,

There will be one day, which is known to Jehovah, not day nor night, because around evening time there will be light. It will happen, that on that day living waters will go out from Jerusalem. And Jehovah will be King over all the earth; on that day there will be one Jehovah, and His name one. Zechariah 14:7-9.

This too refers to the Lord, and also to a new Church. The prophecy that Jehovah, who will be King, will be one and that His name will be one refers to the Lord's Divine Human, which will be one with the Divine Himself, called the Father. Prior to the Lord's Coming the Divine Human was Jehovah in the heavens; for it was by His passing through the heavens that He presented Himself as a Divine Person before the eyes of many on earth. In those times the Divine Human was not so much one with the Divine Himself, called the Father, as when the Lord had made the Divine Human within Himself completely one with the Father. Prior to His Coming the two were seemingly distinct and separate, as is evident from Genesis 19:24, where it says that Jehovah rained on Sodom and Gomorrah brimstone and fire from ¹ Jehovah out of heaven, 2447. A day when it will be 'not day nor night' is the time when the Lord was born, for then it was 'evening', that is, when representatives in the Church came to an end. 'Light around evening time' is Divine Truth which is to appear then.

[8] In Isaiah,

Surely at night Ar has been laid waste, Moab has been cut off; surely at night Kir of Moab has been laid waste. Isaiah 15:1.

'Moab' stands for natural good, and in the contrary sense for adulterated good, 2468; in this text a laying waste of that good is referred to. Acts of laying waste are said to happen at night because they are occasions when truth is rendered obscure and falsity enters in. In Jeremiah,

The great city will weep bitterly in the night, and her tears are on her cheeks. Lamentations 1:2.

This refers to a desolation of truth, 'night' standing for falsity.

[9] In David,

You will not be afraid of the terror of the night, of the arrow that flies by day, nor of the death that lays waste at noonday. Psalms 91:5-6.

'The terror of the night' stands for falsities arising from evil that come from hell. 'The arrow that flies by day' stands for falsity that is taught openly and is destructive of good. 'The death that lays waste at noonday' is evil that is openly practised in life and is destructive of good. In John,

The gates of the holy Jerusalem will not be shut by day, for there is no night there. Revelation 21:25.

There will be no night there, nor do they need a lamp or light of the sun, for the Lord God gives them light. Revelation 22:5.

'There will be no night there' stands for no falsity there. In Daniel,

Daniel said, I saw in my vision when it was night. After this also I saw in visions of the night. Daniel 7:2, 7.

'Visions of the night' also stands for obscure revelation; for that chapter in Daniel describes four beasts and their horns, and gives many details belonging to revelation that was obscure. Something similar is involved with the different coloured horses that Zechariah saw at night, Zechariah 1:8 and following verses.

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