730. And the woman fled into the wilderness.- That this signifies the church among a few, because with those who are not in good, and therefore not in truths, appears from the signification of the woman, as denoting the church (concerning which see above, n. 707); from the signification of the wilderness, as denoting where there are no truths because there is no good, of which we shall speak presently; and from the signification of fleeing thither, as denoting to tarry among those who are not in truths, because not in good; and as, at the end of the church, there are few who are in truths from good, therefore it signifies among a few. It is evident from this what these words involve, namely, that a New Church, which is called the Holy Jerusalem, and is signified by the woman, can as yet be instituted only with a few, because the former church is become a wilderness; and the church is called a wilderness (desertum) when there is no longer any good; and where there is no good there are no truths. When the church is such, then evils and falsities reign, which hinder the reception of its doctrine, which is the doctrine of love to the Lord and of charity towards the neighbour, with its truths; and when doctrine is not received, there is no church, for the church is from doctrine.

[2] Something shall first be said concerning the fact that there are no truths where there is no good. By good is meant the good of a life according to truths of doctrine from the Word. The reason is, that the Lord never flows immediately into truths with man, but mediately through his good; for good is of his will, and the will is the man himself; from the will the understanding is brought forth and formed. For the understanding is so connected with the will, that what the will loves the understanding sees and also brings forth into the light; if therefore the will is not in good, but in evil, then the influx of truth from the Lord into the understanding produces no effect, for it is dissipated, because it is not loved; in fact, it is perverted, and the truth is falsified. It is evident from this why the Lord does not flow immediately into man's understanding except so far as the will is in good. The Lord can enlighten the understanding with every man, and thus flow in with Divine truths, since every man has the ability to understand truth, and this for the sake of his reformation; nevertheless the Lord does not flow in, because truths remain only so far as the will has been reformed. Moreover, it would be dangerous to so enlighten the understanding in truths as to produce belief, except so far as the will acts as one with it, for man would then be able to pervert, adulterate, and profane truths, and this would be most damnatory. Besides, so far as truths are known and understood, and are not at the same time lived, they are nothing but lifeless truths, and lifeless truths are like statues which are without life. From these things it is evident why there are no truths where there is good not in essence, but only in form.

[3] The quality of the man of the church is such at its end because he then loves the things of the body and of the world above all things, and when these are loved supremely, then those which pertain to the Lord and heaven are not loved; for no one can at the same time so serve two masters as to love the one and hate the other, since they are opposites. For from the love of the body, which is the love of self, and from the love of the world, which is the love of riches - when these are loved above all things - evils of every kind flow forth, and falsities from evils, and these are the opposites of goods and truths, which come from love to the Lord, and from charity towards the neighbour. It is evident from these few observations why the woman is said to have fled into the wilderness, that is, among a few, because with those who are not in good, and thus not in truths.

[4] In many places in the Word mention is made of wilderness (desertum), and also of desert (solitudo) and waste, and these signify the state of the church when there is no longer any truth therein because there is no good. This state of the church is called a wilderness (desertum), because the place in the spiritual world, where those dwell who are not in truths because not in good, is like a wilderness (desertum), where there is no verdure in the plains, no harvest in the fields, no fruit trees in the gardens, - a barren land, parched and dry. Moreover wilderness, in the Word, signifies the state of the church with the nations who are in ignorance of truth, and yet in the good of life according to their religion, from which they have a desire for truths. Wilderness also signifies in the Word the state of those who are in temptations, because in temptations goods and truths are shut in by the evils and falsities that come forth and are presented to the mind. That wilderness has these significations in the Word is evident from the passages therein where mention is made of wilderness (desertum).

[5] (1). A wilderness (desertum) means the state of the church, when there is no longer any truth therein, because there is no good, as is evident from the following passages.

In Isaiah:

"Is this the man that moveth the earth, that maketh kingdoms tremble, that hath made the world a wilderness (desertum), and destroyed the cities thereof" (14:16, 17).

This is said of Lucifer, by whom Babel is meant; and to move the earth, make kingdoms tremble, and make the world a wilderness, signifies to destroy all the truths and goods of the church, earth denoting the church, kingdoms its truths, world its goods, and wilderness where these are no longer. To destroy its cities signifies its doctrinals, a city denoting doctrine. The adulteration of the Word, by which doctrine and thus the church are destroyed, is here signified by Babel.

[6] In the same:

"Upon the land of my people shall come up the thorn of the briar, because upon all the houses of gladness in the joyous city; for the palace shall be a wilderness (desertum), the multitude of the city left behind. The hill and the watch-tower shall be over the caves for ever, a joy of wild asses, a pasture for flocks" (32:13, 14).

Upon the land of my people shall come up the thorn of the briar, signifies falsity of evil in the church, the thorn of the briar denoting falsity of evil, and land (terra) denoting the church. Upon all the houses of gladness in the joyous city, signifies where the goods and truths of doctrine from the Word have been received with affection. What is signified by "The palace shall be a wilderness, the multitude of the city left behind. The hill and the watch-tower shall be over the caves, a joy of wild asses, a pasture for flocks," may be seen above (n. 410:7), where they are explained.

[7] In the same:

"By my rebuke I dry up the sea, I make the rivers into a wilderness (desertum), the fish thereof shall stink, because there is no water, and shall die with thirst" (50:2).

To make the rivers into a wilderness signifies to deprive the understanding of truths, consequently to deprive man of intelligence; the rest of the passage may be seen explained above (n. 342:8).

In Jeremiah:

"I beheld, when lo! Carmel was a wilderness (desertum), and all the cities were desolated before Jehovah; the whole land shall be a waste" (4:26, 27).

Carmel signifies the spiritual church, which is in truths from good; that this was a wilderness, signifies that there were in it no truths from good; the cities which are desolated signify doctrinals without truths; the whole land being a waste signifies the church destitute of good and consequently of truths.

[8] In the same:

"Many shepherds have destroyed my vineyard, they have trodden my field under foot, they have made the field of my desire a wilderness (desertum) of solitude, upon all the hills in the wilderness spoilers have come, because the sword of Jehovah devoureth from the end of the land to the end thereof" (12:10, 12).

The truths and goods of the church being completely destroyed by falsities from evil, is signified by They have destroyed the vineyard, trodden the field under foot, made the field of desire a wilderness of solitude, and the spoilers have come upon all the hills in the wilderness, because the sword of Jehovah devoureth; - vineyard and the field signify the church as to truth and good, the field of desire the church as to doctrine, while a wilderness of solitude signifies where these are not; the spoilers in the wilderness signify evils from the absence of truths; the sword of Jehovah devouring signifies falsity destroying; from the end of the earth to the end of the earth, signifies all things of the church.

[9] In Lamentations:

"With the peril of our souls we get our bread, because of the sword of the wilderness (desertum)" (5:9).

To get bread with the peril of their souls, signifies the difficulty and danger of procuring for themselves truths of life from the Word; because of the sword of the wilderness, signifies because the falsity of evil prevails in the church and falsifies truths, and thus destroys them.

[10] In Ezekiel:

"The vine is now planted in the wilderness (desertum), in a land of drought and thirst" (19:13).

Vine signifies the church, which in the beginning of the chapter is called a mother who became a lioness; it is said to be planted in the wilderness when there is no longer any truth therein, because no good; a land of drought means where there is no good but evil instead of it, and a land of thirst means where there is no truth, but falsity instead of it.

[11] In Hosea:

"Contend with your mother, that she may put away her whoredoms from her faces, lest peradventure I strip her naked and set her as in the day of her birth, and make her as a wilderness (desertum), and set her as a land of drought, and slay her with thirst" (2:2, 3).

This treats of the church that has falsified the truths of the Word; mother denotes the church, and her whoredoms the falsifications of truth. To deprive the church of all truth, as it was before it was reformed, is signified by stripping her naked, and setting her as in the day of her birth; wilderness and land of drought signifies the church without good. To slay with thirst signifies the deprivation of truth; thirst is said of truths, because water, for which one thirsts, signifies truth, while drought has reference to the want of good, because it is a result of being scorched.

[12] In the same:

"He is fierce among the brethren; an east wind, the wind of Jehovah, shall come, coming up from the wilderness (desertum), and his spring shall become dry, and his fountain shall be dried up" (13:15).

This is said of Ephraim, by whom is meant the understanding of the Word, which is called fierce among the brethren when it eagerly defends falsities, and fights for them against truths. An east wind, the wind of Jehovah, signifies the ardour of desire arising from a love for and a pride in destroying truths; this is said to come up from the wilderness, when it is from an understanding in which there are no truths from good but only falsities from evil; such an understanding is a wilderness because it is empty and void. That such ardour and pride destroys everything of doctrine and of the Word, is signified by "his spring shall become dry, and his fountain shall be dried up," a spring signifying doctrine, and a fountain the Word.

[13] In Joel:

"Unto thee, O Jehovah, do I cry, because the fire hath consumed the dwellings of the wilderness and the flame hath burned up all the trees of the field; because the beasts of the field hath panted after thee, because the brooks of waters are dried up, and the fire hath consumed the dwellings of the wilderness (desertum)" (1:19, 20).

The fire hath consumed the dwellings of the wilderness and the flame hath burned up all the trees of the field, signifies that the love of self and the pride of their own intelligence have consumed all perception of good, and all understanding of the truth of doctrine from the sense of the letter of the Word; fire signifies the love of self, and flame the pride of their own intelligence; the dwellings of the wilderness signify the goods of doctrine from the sense of the letter of the Word, and the trees of the field the cognitions of its truth; the sense of the letter of the Word is called a wilderness when it is understood only naturally, thus according to appearances, and not at the same time spiritually, or according to the genuine sense. The beasts of the field pant after Thee, signifies the lamentations of those who are natural, and yet desire truths. That beasts signify the affections of the natural man may be seen above (n. 650). Because the brooks of waters are dried up, and the fire hath consumed the dwellings of the wilderness, signifies that there are consequently no longer any truths and goods of life.

[14] In the same:

"The day of Jehovah cometh; a fire devoureth before him, and behind him a flame burneth; the land is as the garden of Eden before him, but behind him a wilderness (desertum) of wasteness, and nothing escaped him" (2:1, 3).

The day of Jehovah means the end of the church, which is called the consummation of the age, and the Lord's coming at that time. That at the end of the church the love of self, and consequently the pride of [man's] own intelligence, consumes all the goods and truths of the church is signified by a fire devoureth before him, and behind him a flame burneth, fire signifying the love of self, and flame the pride of [man's] own intelligence (as above). The land before him is as the garden of Eden, but behind him a wilderness of wasteness, signifies that in the beginning, when that church was established with the ancients, there was the understanding of truth from good, but at its end falsity from evil; the garden of Eden denoting the understanding of truth from good, and wisdom therefrom, and a wilderness of wasteness denoting no understanding of truth from good, and thus insanity from falsities that are from evil; by nothing escaping him is signified that there is nothing whatever of truth from good.

[15] In Isaiah:

"The land (terra) mourneth and languisheth, Lebanon is ashamed and is withered, Sharon is become as a wilderness (desertum), Bashan is shaken, and Carmel" (33:9).

These words also describe the devastation of good and the desolation of truth in the church. Lebanon signifies the church as to the rational understanding of good and truth. Sharon, Bashan, and Carmel, signify these as to the knowledges of good and truth from the natural sense of the Word, the devastation and desolation of these being signified by mourning, languishing, and withering, and becoming like a wilderness, wilderness meaning where there is no truth, because no good.

[16] In Jeremiah:

"Because the land (terra) is full of adulteries, because the land mourneth on account of the curse, the pastures of the wilderness (desertum) have become dry" (23:10).

The land full of adulteries signifies the church in which the goods and truths thereof from the Word are adulterated; the curse, on account of which the land mourneth, signifies all evil of the life and falsity of doctrine; while by the pastures of the wilderness, which have become dry, are signified the knowledges of good and truth from the Word, pastures denoting those knowledges because they nourish the mind, and wilderness, the Word when it is adulterated.

[17] In David:

Jehovah "turneth rivers into a wilderness (desertum), and the springing forth of water into dry ground, a land of fruit into saltness, for the wickedness of them that dwell therein" (Psalm 107:33, 34).

The rivers which are turned into a wilderness signify intelligence from the understanding of truth and of the Word in its interior sense - which has been devastated by falsities from evils; rivers denoting such things as belong to intelligence, and a wilderness, where these things are absent and falsities from evil in their place. The springing forth of waters that are turned into dry ground, signify that the ultimate things of the understanding, called the knowledges (cognitiones) of truth and good, have no light of truth and no spiritual affection for truth, waters signifying truths, dry ground, lack of these from the absence of light and affection, and springing forth, the ultimates of truths such as are the truths of the sense of the letter of the Word. The land of fruit which shall be turned into saltness, signifies the good of love and of life profoundly vastated by falsities, saltness denoting the devastation of truth by falsities; and as all devastation by falsities comes from evil of life, it is therefore added, "for the wickedness of them that dwell therein."

[18] In Jeremiah:

"Lift up thine eyes unto the hills, and see where thou hast been defiled; upon the ways hast thou sat as an Arab in the wilderness (desertum), whence thou hast profaned the land with thy whoredoms and thy wickedness" (3:2).

These words also describe the adulteration and falsification of the Word, which are signified by being defiled and committing whoredom. Lift up thine eyes to the hills and see where thou hast been defiled, signifies to observe that the knowledges of truth and good in the Word have been adulterated; to lift up the eyes signifies to observe, hills signify those knowledges because the trees and groves which are upon them signify knowledges; hills also signify the goods of charity which are thus destroyed. Upon the ways hast thou sat as an Arab in the wilderness, signifies to lie in wait lest any truth should come forth and be received, ways denoting the truths of the church, to sit in them denoting to lie in wait; and an Arab in the wilderness means one who, like a robber in the wilderness, kills and plunders. Thou hast profaned the land with thy whoredoms and wickedness, signifies the falsification of the truths of the Word by evils which have come to be ends of the life.

[19] In the same:

"O generation, see ye the Word of Jehovah; have I been a wilderness (desertum) to Israel, have I been a land of darkness?" (2:31).

That all good of life and truth of doctrine is taught in the Word, and not evil of life and falsity of doctrine, is meant by See ye the Word of Jehovah, have I been a wilderness to Israel, have I been a land of darkness?

[20] In Joel:

"Egypt shall be a wasteness, and Edom a wilderness (desertum) of wasteness, for the violence of the sons of Judah, whose innocent blood they have shed in their land" (3:19).

Egypt and Edom signify the natural man, which has perverted the truths and goods of the Word that it must be so destroyed, as to see only such things as serve for purposes of confirmation, is signified by Egypt shall be a wasteness, and Edom a wilderness of wasteness; that this will be on account of the adulteration of all good and truth in the Word is signified by For the violence of the sons of Judah, whose innocent blood they have shed, - the violence of the sons of Judah signifying the adulteration of the Word as to good, and the shedding of innocent blood the adulteration of the Word as to its truths. That Judah signifies a celestial church, and also the Word, may be seen above (n. 211, 433); and that to shed innocent blood signifies to do violence to Divine Truth, thus to adulterate the truth of the Word, may also be seen above (n. 329). The adulteration of the Word is affected by the knowledges (scientifica) of the natural man, when these are applied to confirm falsities and evils, and the natural man becomes a wasteness and a wilderness when its knowledges are used to confirm falsity and evil, Egypt signifying those knowledges, and Edom the pride that falsifies by means of these.

[21] In Malachi:

"Esau I hated, and I made his mountains a waste, and gave his heritage to the dragons of the wilderness (desertum)" (1:3).

Esau signifies the love of the natural man; his mountains signify evils from that love, and his heritage signifies falsities from those evils, while the dragons of the wilderness signify mere falsifications from which these come.

Since all things of the Word had been adulterated with the Jewish nation, and there was no longer any truth because there was no good, therefore John the Baptist was in the wilderness, which represented the state of that church, about which it is thus written in the Evangelists:

John the Baptist "was in the wilderness, until the days of his appearing unto Israel" (Luke 1:80); and "he preached in the wilderness of Judea (Matthew 3:1-3; Mark 1:2-4; Luke 3:2, 4, 5);

and in Isaiah,

"The voice of one crying in the wilderness (desertum), Prepare the way of Jehovah, make plain in the desert (solitudo) a path for our God" (40:3).

[22] Therefore also the Lord says concerning Jerusalem, which means the church as to doctrine,

"Your house shall be left deserted" (Luke 13:35).

A house deserted signifies the church without truths because without good.

In Matthew:

"If they say to you, Lo," Christ is "in the wilderness (desertum), go not forth; if in the secret chambers, believe not " (Matthew 24:26).

These words may be seen explained in the Arcana Coelestia 3900); for by Christ is meant the Lord as to Divine Truth, consequently as to the Word and as to doctrine from the Word; and false Christs, concerning whom those things are said, signify falsities of doctrine from falsified truths of the Word. From the passages now quoted from the Word it is evident that a wilderness means a church in which there are no truths because no good, consequently where there is falsity because there is evil; for where truth and good do not exist, there falsity and evil are; both cannot exist together, which is meant by the words of the Lord, that no man can serve two masters.

[23] (2) A wilderness (desertum) also signifies the state of the church with the nations who were in ignorance of truth, and yet in good of life according to their religion, from which they desired truths, as is also evident from the passages in the Word, where the church to be established among the nations is treated of.

In Isaiah:

"The spirit shall be poured out upon you from on high, then the wilderness (desertum) shall be a fruitful field, and the fruitful field shall be counted for a forest; judgment shall dwell in the wilderness, and justice shall abide in the fruitful field" (32:15, 16).

This is said of those who are in natural good, and are being reformed. Influx out of heaven into such is signified by The spirit shall be poured out upon you from on high. That truth from a spiritual origin shall then be implanted in them, is signified by The wilderness shall be a fruitful field, - a wilderness denoting the natural man destitute of truths, and the fruitful field, or land of harvest, denoting the natural man made fruitful in truths; that as a result it will possess the knowledge (scientia) of the cognitions of truth and good, is signified by The fruitful field shall be counted for a forest; forest is said in reference to the natural man as a garden is to the spiritual, therefore a forest signifies knowledge (scientia), and a garden intelligence. That in it there will consequently be what is right and just is signified by Judgment shall dwell in the wilderness, and justice shall abide in the fruitful field; judgment and justice, in the spiritual sense, signify truth and good, but in the natural sense, what is right and just.

[24] In the same:

"I will open rivers upon the heights, and set fountains in the midst of the valleys; I will turn the wilderness (desertum) into a pool of waters, and the dry land into springs of waters; I will give in the wilderness the cedar of shittah, the myrtle and the oil tree; I will set in the desert (solitudo) the fir, the pine, and the box" (41:18, 19).

This also treats of the reformation and enlightenment of the nations. To open rivers upon the heights, and to set fountains in the midst of the valleys, signifies to give intelligence from spiritual truths and from natural truths, rivers upon the heights signifying intelligence from spiritual truths, and fountains in the midst of the valleys intelligence from natural truths. To turn the wilderness into a pool of waters, and the dry land into springs of waters, signifies to fill the spiritual and the natural man with truths, where before there were no truths; the spiritual man in which there were no truths is meant by a wilderness, since truth was not previously there, and the natural man in which there was no truth, is meant by dry land, since into it there had previously been no spiritual influx. Truths in abundance for the spiritual man are meant by the pool of waters, and truths in abundance for the natural man are meant by the springs of waters. To set in the wilderness the cedar of shittah, the myrtle, and the oil tree, signifies to give rational truths and the perception of them; and to set in the desert the fir, the pine, and the box, signifies similarly, natural truths, which are knowledges (scientifica) and cognitions, with the understanding of them; the cedar denoting higher rational truth, the myrtle, lower rational truth, and the oil tree, the perception of good, and thus of truth; the fir denotes higher natural truth; the pine, lower natural truth; and the box, the understanding of good and truth in the natural man.

[25] In David:

"He turneth the wilderness (desertum) into a pool of waters, and the dry land into the springing forth of waters; and there he maketh the hungry to dwell, that they may build a city of habitation" (Psalm 107:35, 36).

This is also said of the enlightenment of the nations. To turn the wilderness into a pool of waters has a signification similar to that above; and there he maketh the hungry to dwell, signifies for those who desire truths, these being meant in the Word by the hungry and thirsty. That they may build a city of habitation, signifies that out of those truths they may formulate for themselves doctrine of life, a city denoting doctrine, and to inhabit denoting to live.

[26] In Isaiah:

"Behold, I do a new thing, now it shall spring forth, I will also make a way in the wilderness (desertum), rivers in the desert (solitudo); the wild beasts of the field shall honour me, the dragons and the daughters of the owl, because I will give waters in the wilderness, rivers in the desert, to give drink to my people, my chosen" (43:19, 20).

This also is said of the new church to be established by the Lord among the nations. By wilderness is signified the state of the church with those who are ignorant of truth, and yet desire to know it. But the signification of the details of this passage in the spiritual sense may be seen explained above (n. 518).

[27] In the same:

"Jehovah will comfort Zion, he will comfort all her waste places, and he will make her wilderness (desertum) like Eden, and her desert (solitudo) like the garden of Jehovah; gladness and joy shall be found in her, confession and the voice of singing" (51:3).

This also is said of a new church among the nations who will acknowledge the Lord; such church is meant by Zion, and its establishment and the reformation of the nations by being comforted. The wilderness, that shall be made like Eden, and the desert like the garden of Jehovah, signify wisdom and intelligence from love to the Lord, which those have who before had no understanding of truth, and no perception of good. But these things have been explained above (n. 721).

[28] In David:

"The habitations of the wilderness (desertum) drop, and the hills gird themselves with exultation; the meadows are clothed with flocks, and the valleys are covered with corn" (Psalm 65:12, 13).

This also is said of the church among the nations. By "the habitations of the wilderness drop (stillant)" is signified that their minds, which before were in ignorance of truth, acknowledge and receive truths, to drop being said of the influx, acknowledgment, and reception of truth; habitations denote the interiors of man's mind, and wilderness denotes a state of ignorance of truth. The hills gird themselves with exultation, signifies that goods with them receive truths with joy of heart; the meadows are clothed with flocks, and the valleys covered with corn, signifies that both the spiritual mind and the natural mind receive truths suitable to themselves, meadows signifying those things that belong to the spiritual mind, and thus to the rational, and valleys those which belong to the natural mind, while a flock signifies spiritual truth, and corn signifies natural truth.

[29] In Isaiah:

"Let them sing praise, the end of the earth, those that go down to the sea, and the fulness thereof, the islands and the inhabitants thereof; let the wilderness (desertum) and the cities thereof lift up the voice, the villages which Arabia doth inhabit; let the inhabitants of the rock sing, let them cry out from the top of the mountains" (42:10, 11).

This is said of the church with those who have been removed from the truths of the church because they were natural and sensual; their state of ignorance is meant by the wilderness, and the joy which they feel from the proclamation of the truth and from its knowledges is meant by singing praise and lifting up the voice. The rest has been explained above (n. 406:5).

[30] Since the state of ignorance of truth, in which the nations were, is signified by a wilderness, a desire for truth by hunger, and instruction from the Lord by feeding, therefore, it came to pass that the Lord departed into a wilderness (desertum), taught the multitude there which sought Him, and afterwards fed them. That this took place in a wilderness can be seen in Matthew 14:13-22; 15:32-38; Mark 6:31-43; 8:1-9; Luke 9:12-17; for all things which the Lord did, and all things connected with Him, were representative, because they were correspondences, so also were these things. From these passages, and those cited above, it is evident that a wilderness (desertum) signifies such a state with man as is uncultivated and uninhabited, thus a state not yet vitalized by what is spiritual; consequently, in reference to the church, it signifies a state unvivified by truths; thus it signifies the religion of the nations, which was almost empty and void, because they did not possess the Word wherein are truths, and thus did not know the Lord, who teaches them. And because they did not possess truths, therefore their good did not differ from their truth; for good is like its truth, because the one belongs to the other. From these things it is evident what a wilderness signifies, where the nations are treated of, namely that they have no truth, and yet that they desire it in order that their good may be vivified.

[31] (3) A wilderness also signifies the state of those who are in temptations, because in them truths and goods are shut in by the falsities and evils that rise up and come before the mind, as is evident from the wandering of the sons of Israel in the wilderness forty years; for this represented every state of the temptations into which those come who are being regenerated, and of whom a church is about to be formed. Every man is born natural, and so lives, until he becomes rational, and when he has become rational, then he can be led by the Lord, and become spiritual; and this is effected by the implantation of the knowledges of truth from the Word, and, at the same time, by the opening of the spiritual mind, which receives the things of heaven, and by the calling forth and raising up of those knowledges out of the natural man, and by the conjunction of them with the spiritual affection for truth. This opening and conjunction is possible only through temptations, because in these man interiorly fights against the falsities and evils which are in the natural man; in a word, man is brought into the church, and becomes a church, by means of temptations. These things were represented by the wandering of the sons of Israel, and by their being led about in the wilderness. The state of the natural man before he is regenerated was represented by their dwelling in the land of Egypt, for the land of Egypt signified the natural man, with its knowledges (scientifica) and cognitions, together with the desires and appetites, which reside in it, as is evident from what has been said and shown above concerning Egypt (n. 654). But the spiritual state, which is the state of the church in man, was represented by the introduction of the sons of Israel into the land of Canaan; for the land of Canaan signified the church with its truths and goods, together with its affections and delights, which reside in the spiritual man, while the reformation and regeneration of man, before he from natural becomes spiritual, and thus a church, was represented by their wanderings and journeyings in the wilderness forty years.

[32] That this is the case, and that a wilderness signified a state of temptations, is evident from the following passages in Moses:

"Thou shalt remember all the way which Jehovah thy God led thee these forty years in the wilderness (desertum), that he might afflict thee, and try thee, and know what was in thine heart, whether thou wouldest keep his commandments or not; and he afflicted thee and caused thee to hunger, and fed thee with manna, which thou knewest not, neither have thy fathers known, that he might teach thee that man doth not live by bread alone, but by every word (enuntiatum) of the mouth of Jehovah doth man live; thy raiment waxed not old upon thee, neither did thy foot swell, these forty years" (Deuteronomy 8:2, 3, 4):

"In the wilderness (desertum) which thou sawest, Jehovah thy God bore thee, as a man doth bare his son, he went before you in the way to seek you out a place, in which ye might encamp, in fire by night to show you the way, and in a cloud by day" (Deuteronomy 1:31, 33).

Jehovah, "who led thee through the great and terrible wilderness (desertum) of the serpent, of the fiery serpent, and of the scorpion, and of drought, where there were no waters; who brought thee forth waters out of the rock of flint, and fed thee with manna in the wilderness, that he might afflict and try thee, to do thee good in thy latter end" (Deuteronomy 8:15, 16).

Again:

Jehovah found Jacob "in a land of wilderness (desertum), in emptiness, in howling, in a desert (solitudo); he led him about, he instructed him, he guarded him as the pupil of the eye" (Deuteronomy 32:10).

All these particulars, and all the details related in the book of Exodus concerning the journeyings of the sons of Israel in the wilderness, from their going forth from Egypt to their entrance into the land of Canaan, depict the temptations in which the faithful are, before they become spiritual, that is, before the goods of love and of charity and their truths, constituting the church in man, are implanted.

[33] He who knows what spiritual temptations are, knows that when a man is in them, he is so infested by evils and falsities that he scarcely knows but that he is in hell. He knows too that the Lord fights in man against temptations from within; also that He sustains him in the meantime with spiritual food and drink, which are the goods and truths of heaven; that the natural man loathes these things; that the natural man with its lusts is nevertheless thus subdued, and as it were dies; and that thus it is brought into subjection to the spiritual man; and that a man is thus reformed, and regenerated, and introduced into the church. All this is involved in what is related concerning the sons of Israel in the wilderness. But in order to make it clear that this is meant, it will be well to explain in detail some of the passages here quoted.

[34] 1. . That man in temptations is so infested by evils and falsities, that he scarcely knows but that he is in hell, is meant by "Jehovah led thee through the great and terrible wilderness of the serpent, of the fiery serpent, of the scorpion, and of drought, where there were no waters." The great and terrible wilderness signifies grievous temptations; the serpent, the fiery serpent, and the scorpion, signify evils and falsities with their persuasions proceeding from the sensual and natural man, serpents denoting evils therefrom, fiery serpents falsities therefrom, and scorpions persuasions; drought, where there were no waters, signifies a want of truth, and the interception of it. These things are also meant by the words, "that Jehovah might afflict thee, and try thee, and know what was in thine heart."

[35] 2. . That the Lord fights in man against evils and falsities from hell, is signified by Jehovah found Jacob in a wilderness, in emptiness, in howling, in a desert, He guarded him as the pupil of His eye; also by He bore him as a man doth bare his son; and by His going before them in fire by night and in a cloud by day.

3. . That the Lord sustains man in the meantime with spiritual meat and drink, which are the goods and truths of heaven, is signified by feeding them with manna, bringing forth waters for them out of the rock of flint, and by leading and instructing them, manna meaning the good of celestial love, and waters out of the rock of flint the truths of that good from the Lord.

4. . That in temptations the natural man loathes these things, is meant by the sons of Israel complaining so often of the manna, and longing for the foods of Egypt; wherefore it is here said, "Jehovah afflicted thee and caused thee to hunger, and fed thee with manna."

[36] 5. . That nevertheless the natural man with his lusts is subdued, and as it were dies, and is subject to the spiritual man, was represented by the death in the wilderness of all those who went forth out of Egypt, and desired to return thither, being unwilling to enter the land of Canaan; and by their children being introduced into that land. That such was the representation and signification of those circumstances, can be known and seen only from the spiritual sense.

6. . That man after temptations becomes spiritual, and is introduced into the church, and through the church into heaven, was represented by their being brought into the land of Canaan, for the land of Canaan signified the church, and also heaven; and this is signified by these words: "That Jehovah might afflict thee, and try thee, to do thee good in thy latter end." Their spiritual life is described by Jehovah's teaching them that man doth not live by bread alone, but by every word of the mouth of Jehovah. That their raiment waxed not old, and neither did their foot swell, signified that the natural man is not hurt by these afflictions, for garments signify the truths of the natural man, and the foot the natural man itself. Moreover forty, whether years or days, signifies the entire duration of temptations; as may be seen above (n. 633).

[37] Similar things are involved in these words in David:

"They wandered in the wilderness (desertum) in a solitary way, they found not a city of habitation, hungry and thirsty; when their soul fainted in the way, they cried out to Jehovah, he led them that they might go to a city of habitation" (Psalms 107:4-7).

This is said in general of those who have been redeemed, in particular of the sons of Israel in the wilderness; and the above words describe the temptations of such as are being regenerated by the Lord. The city of habitation which they found not, signifies the doctrine of life which constitutes the church in man; and as the church is formed in man by a life according to doctrine, when temptations have been passed through, it is said that Jehovah led them in a straight way, that they might go to a city of habitation; the want of truth even to despair, and yet desire for it, is signified by their being hungry and thirsty, and their soul fainting in the way.

[38] In Jeremiah:

"I remembered thy youth, the love of thine espousals, when thou wentest after me in the wilderness (desertum). They said not, Where is Jehovah, who caused us to come up out of the land of Egypt, who led us in the wilderness, in the land of the desert (solitudo) and of the pit, in a land of drought and of dense shade, in a land through which no man (vir) passed; and where no man (homo) dwelt; and I led you into a land of corn, to eat the fruit thereof and the good thereof" (2:2, 6, 7).

The youth and love of espousals which Jehovah remembered, signify the state of man's reformation and regeneration when from natural he becomes spiritual; since man is by this means conjoined to the Lord, and as it were espoused to Him, it is this that is meant by the love of espousals; and because this is effected by temptations, it is said, "When thou wentest after me in the wilderness" He led me in the wilderness, in the land of the desert and the pit, in a land of drought and dense shade, describes a state of temptations, a wilderness signifying that state, the land of the desert and the pit signifying that state as to the evils and falsities that come forth, while a land of drought and dense shade signifies the perception of good and the understanding of truth obscured. I led you into a land of corn, that ye might eat the fruit thereof and the good thereof, describes the state of man after temptations, which signifies introduction into the church in which there are truths of doctrine, by means of which there is an appropriation of the good of love and of charity, land signifying the church; land of corn denotes the church as to truths of doctrine, while to eat signifies to appropriate, fruit the good of love, and good the good of charity and of life.

[39] In Ezekiel:

"I will lead you out from the peoples, and will gather you from the lands, and I will lead you into the wilderness (desertum) of the peoples, and I will plead with you there face to face, even as I pleaded with your fathers in the wilderness of the land of Egypt; then will I cause you to pass under the rod, and I will bring you into the bond of the covenant" (20:34-37).

Here also a wilderness denotes a state of temptations, which state is called the wilderness of the peoples and also the wilderness of the land of Egypt, because the state of the natural man before regeneration is meant, which, because there are then no goods and truths in it, but only evils and falsities, is a wilderness and a desert (solitudo), but when falsities and evils have been driven out therefrom, and truths and goods implanted in their place, then from being a wilderness he becomes Lebanon and a garden. To plead with them in the wilderness face to face, signifies to show them to the life and to acknowledgment of what quality they are; for in temptations the evils and falsities of man come forth and appear; face to face means to the life and to acknowledgment. That after man has endured hard things, conjunction with the Lord, which is reformation, is effected, is signified by Then will I cause you to pass under the rod, and I will bring you into the bonds of the covenant, - to cause you to pass under the rod denoting to suffer hard things, and the bond of the covenant denoting conjunction with the Lord.

[40] In Hosea:

"I will visit upon her the days of the Baalim, in which she went after her lovers; therefore behold I will bring you into the wilderness (desertum), and afterwards I will speak upon her heart, and I will give her her vineyards thence, and the valley of Achor for a door of hope, and she shall answer there according to the days of her youth, and according to the days of her coming up out of the land of Egypt; and in that day thou shalt call me my husband, and shalt no more call me my Baal" (2:13-16).

The Baalim and lovers, after whom she went, signify such things as pertain to the natural man, and are loved, namely, desires and the falsities therefrom; that these must be removed by means of temptations is signified by I will bring you into the wilderness. That afterwards there will be consolation is signified by Afterwards I will speak upon her heart; that then they will have spiritual and natural truths is signified by I will give her her vineyards thence, and the valley of Achor. That afterwards they will have influx of good from heaven and consequent joy such as those had who were of the Ancient Churches, and who from natural became spiritual, is signified by She shall answer or sing there according to the days of her youth, and according to the days of her coming up out of the land of Egypt, - the days of youth signifying the times of the Ancient Church, and according to the days of her coming up out of the land of Egypt, signifying when from natural they have become spiritual. Conjunction with the Lord at that time through the affections for truth when the desires from the natural man have been rejected, is signified by In that day thou shalt call me my husband, and shalt no more call me my Baal.

[41] Since a wilderness signifies a state of temptations, and forty, whether years or days, the whole duration thereof from beginning to end, therefore the temptations of the Lord, which were the most dreadful of all, and which He sustained from childhood to the passion of the cross, are meant by the temptations of forty days in the wilderness, concerning which it is written as follows in the Evangelist:

"Jesus was led by the spirit into the wilderness (desertum), that he might be tempted of the devil; and when he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he afterwards hungered; and the tempter drew near unto him" (Matthew 4:1-3; Luke 4:1-3):

"The spirit urging" Jesus "caused him to go out into the wilderness (desertum), and he was in the wilderness forty days, tempted, and was with the beasts" (Mark 1:12, 13).

This does not mean that the Lord was tempted by the devil only forty days, and at the end of these, but that he was tempted throughout his whole life even to the last moment, when he suffered cruel anguish of heart in Gethsemane, and afterwards in the terrible passion of the cross; for by means of temptations admitted into the Human which He had from the mother, the Lord subjugated all the hells, and at the same time glorified His Human. But concerning these temptations of the Lord, see what is related in the Arcana Coelestia, and in the quotations brought together from that work in the Doctrine of the New Jerusalem 201). All these temptations of the Lord are signified by the temptations in the wilderness during forty days and forty nights, because wilderness signifies a state of temptations, and forty days and forty nights their whole duration. No more is recorded of these by the Evangelists, because thus much only was revealed concerning them; still in the prophets, and especially in the Psalms of David, they are described at length. The beasts with which the Lord is said to have been, signify infernal societies; and fasting here signifies affliction, such as exists in the combats of temptations.

[42] (4) A wilderness also signifies hell, because that is called a wilderness where there is no harvest or habitation, also where there are wild beasts, serpents, and dragons, which signify where there is no truth of doctrine, or good of life, consequently where there are desires (concupiscentiae) arising from evil loves, and thence falsities of every kind. And as these exist in hell, and the former in a wilderness, therefore a wilderness also signifies hell from correspondence. Moreover, the natural man in every one, so long as it is separated from the spiritual - as is the case before regeneration - is hell, because all the hereditary evil into which man is born resides in his natural man, and is cast out from it, that is, removed, only by means of the influx of Divine Truth through heaven from the Lord. And this influx into the natural man can come only through the spiritual, for the natural man is in the world, and the spiritual man in heaven, therefore the spiritual man must first be opened before the Lord out of heaven can remove the hell which is in the spiritual man.

[43] How this is removed was represented by the he-goat, called Azazel, which was cast out into the wilderness; for the he-goat from correspondence signifies the natural man, as to its affections and knowledges, and in the opposite sense, as to its desires and falsities. Of this he-goat it is written in Moses, that Aaron should take two he-goats, and cast lots upon them, one for the he-goat to be sacrificed, the other for Azazel; and after he had atoned for the tent of meeting and the altar with the blood of the sacrificed bullock and of the sacrificed he-goat, he should lay his hands upon the head of the he-goat Azazel, and confess upon it the iniquities and sins of the sons of Israel, which he should put upon the head of the he-goat, and afterwards should send him into the wilderness (desertum) by the hand of a man appointed.

"So the he-goat shall bear upon himself all the iniquities" of the sons of Israel "into a land cut off and into the wilderness; and also the skin, the flesh, and the dung of the bullock and of the sacrificed he-goat should be burned in the wilderness; thus should they be atoned for and cleansed from all their sins" (Leviticus 16:5-34).

These things were commanded in order that expiation might thereby be represented, that is, purification from evils and falsities. Two he-goats were taken to represent this, because a he-goat signified from correspondence the natural man, the he-goat that was to be sacrificed the natural man as to the part purified, and the he-goat that was to be sent into the wilderness the unpurified natural man. And this latter abounds with disorderly desires and impurities of every kind, as said above, therefore the he-goat was sent out of the camp into a land cut off and into the wilderness, that he might bear away the iniquities and sins of all in that church. A land cut off and the wilderness signify hell; Aaron's laying his hands upon its head, and confessing sins, represented communication and translation; for this comes to pass when man is purified or expiated from sins, for sins are then sent back to hell, and affections for good and truth are implanted in their place. These were represented in part by the fat from the bullock and from the other he-goat offered in sacrifice, also by their blood, and especially by the burnt-offering from the ram - concerning which see verses 5-24 in the same chapter; for the ram from correspondence signifies the natural man as to the good of charity. It must, however, be understood that the Israelitish people were not in the least purified from their sins by these things, but that simply the purification of the natural man, while he is being regenerated, was represented. All things pertaining to man's regeneration were represented by such external things, especially by sacrifices, and this was done for the sake of the conjunction of heaven with that church by means of those externals of worship, the internals which the externals represented being seen in the heavens. Who cannot see that the sins of a whole assembly could not be transferred to the he-goat, and borne by him to hell? From these details the signification of wilderness in its various senses is evident.

375. And see thou hurt not the oil and the wine. That this signifies, that it is provided that the internal or spiritual sense of the Word should not suffer hurt, either as to good or as to truth, is clear from the signification of oil as denoting the good of love, of which we shall speak presently; from the signification of wine, as denoting the truth of that good, for every good has its own truth, or every truth is of good, hence according to the quality of the good such is the truth; and from the signification of hurting, as denoting to do injury thereto. That it is the internal or spiritual sense of the Word as to good and truth that is here specifically signified by oil and wine, is clear from this consideration, that by wheat and barley are signified good and truth just as by oil and wine, but by wheat and barley the good and truth of the church in general, consequently, those who are in the sense of the letter of the Word; for the goods and truths that are in that sense of the Word, are goods and truths in general, the sense of the letter including the spiritual sense, and thereby spiritual goods and truths; therefore wheat and barley signify the goods and truths of the church in general, which belong to the sense of the letter of the Word; whereas oil and wine signify the goods and truths of the internal or spiritual sense of the Word. The latter are interior goods and truths, but the former exterior.

[2] That there are interior and exterior goods and truths, the former in the spiritual or internal man, the latter in the natural or external, is evident from what is said and shown in the work concerning Heaven and Hell, namely, that there are three heavens, and that the inmost or third heaven is in inmost goods and truths, or in those of the third degree; and that the middle or second heaven is in lower goods and truths, or those of the second degree; and that the ultimate or first heaven is in ultimate goods and truths, or in those of the first degree. Ultimate goods and truths, or those of the first degree, are such as are contained in the sense of the letter of the Word; therefore those who remain in that sense, and thence form doctrine for themselves, and live according thereto, are in ultimate goods and truths. These, since they do not see interior things, because they are not purely spiritual like the angels of the higher heavens, but spiritual-natural, are still in heaven, but in the ultimate, because the goods and truths that they have drawn from the sense of the letter of the Word, and which are with them, contain in them interior goods and truths pertaining to the spiritual sense of the Word, for they correspond, and by correspondence form one.

[3] For example: He who believes from the sense of the letter of the Word, that God is angry, that He condemns, and casts into hell those who live wickedly, although this is not truth in itself, because God is never angry, nor does He condemn man or cast him into hell; yet still, this with those who live well, and who thus believe because the Word in the letter says so, is accepted by the Lord as truth, because the truth inwardly lies concealed in it, as also is evident before the interior angels, although they themselves do not see it. Let this also serve as an example: He who believes that he shall enjoy long life, if he loves his father and mother, according to the precept of the Decalogue, and if he loves them on that account, and lives well, is accepted in like manner as if he had believed the real truth, for he does not know that by father and mother, in the highest sense, are meant the Lord and His kingdom; by father, the Lord, and by mother His kingdom; and that by prolongation of days, or length of life, is signified happiness to eternity. The case is similar in a thousand other instances. These things are mentioned that it may be known what is meant by the exterior and interior goods and truths of the Word, because by wheat and barley are signified exterior goods and truths, that is, those that are of the sense of the letter of the Word; whereas by oil and wine are signified interior goods and truths, that is, those that are of the spiritual sense of the Word.

[4] The reason why wheat and barley signify exterior goods and truths, or the goods and truths of the sense of the letter of the Word, is, because they are the harvest of the field, and do not serve for food until they are made into bread, and bread in the Word signifies interior goods, consequently, wheat and barley signify those things by which those goods [are formed], and such things are the goods and truth of the sense of the letter of the Word. But that oil and wine signify the interior goods, which are those of the internal or spiritual sense of the Word, is evident from their signification in the Word, as will be clear from what follows. The reason why injury is not to be done to these, is that they may not be profaned, for if they are known, and believed, and afterwards denied, or also if the life be contrary to them, they are then profaned; and to profane interior goods and truths, is to conjoin oneself with heaven, and at the same time with hell, which is altogether to destroy spiritual life; for the goods and truths that are believed, remain, and also the evils and falsities that succeed in their place by denial or by a life contrary to them. Hence there is a conjunction of the good and truth of heaven with the evils and falsities of hell, which cannot be separated, but must be torn asunder, and when they are torn asunder, everything of the spiritual life is destroyed. Hence it is that profaners after death are not spirits in human form, as others are, but they are mere fantasies, and seem to themselves to flit hither and thither without any thought; and at length they are separated from others, and cast down into the lowest hell of all; and because they do not appear in a human form as other spirits, therefore, they are no longer called he or she, but it, that is, not man; but more may be seen respecting the profanation of good and truth in the Doctrine of the New Jerusalem 169, 172).

[5] Because such a lot awaits those who profane the interior goods and truths of heaven and the church, therefore, the internal or spiritual sense of the Word, in which these are contained, was not opened to the Jews, because if it had been, they would have profaned it; and, therefore, neither was it opened to Christians, because these also, if it had been opened, would have profaned it. Hence also it was concealed from the latter as from the former, that there is any internal or spiritual sense in the sense of the letter, which is the natural [sense] of the Word. And in order that they should be ignorant of it, it was provided that the science of correspondences, which was the chief knowledge with the ancients, should be lost, so that the nature of correspondence should be entirely unknown, and, consequently, the nature of the spiritual sense of the Word. For the Word is written by pure correspondences, therefore, without this knowledge, the nature of the spiritual sense could not be known. This was provided by the Lord, lest genuine goods and truths themselves, in which the higher heavens are, should be profaned.

[6] But the reason why the internal or spiritual sense of the Word is at this day opened, is, because the Last Judgment is accomplished, and hence all things in the heavens and in the hells are reduced into order, and thus it can be provided by the Lord that profanations may not take place. That the internal or spiritual sense of the Word would be opened after the Last Judgment was accomplished, was foretold by the Lord in the Revelation (concerning which, see the small work concerning the White Horse). That no injury should be done to the internal or spiritual sense of the Word, is also signified by the Lord's garments being divided by the soldiers, and not the vesture, which was without seam, woven from the top throughout (John 19:23, 24). For by the Lord's garments is signified the Word; by the garments which were divided, the Word in the letter; by the vesture, the Word in the internal sense; and by the soldiers, those who fought for the goods and truths of the church. That such persons are signified by soldiers, may be seen above (n. 64, at the end); and that garments in the Word signify truths clothing good, and the Lord's garments signify Divine truth, thus the Word (also above, n. 64, 195).

[7] That oil signifies the good of love, is especially evident from the anointings among the sons of Israel, or in their church, which were performed by oil; for all things of the church were thereby consecrated, and when consecrated they were called holy, as the altar and the vessels thereof, the tent of the assembly and all things therein, likewise those who were appointed to the priesthood and their garments, and further the prophets, and afterwards the kings. Any one can see that oil itself does not sanctify, but that which is signified by oil, which is the good of love to the Lord from the Lord; this is signified by oil; when, therefore, persons or things were anointed with oil, from that moment they became representative, for the oil induced a representation of the Lord, and of the good of love from Him, the good of love to the Lord from the Lord, being the essential holy [element] of heaven and the church, by which everything Divine flows in. Hence the things of heaven and the church, which are called things spiritual, are holy in proportion as they contain this [element].

[8] The reason of the representation of holiness by oil is this: The Lord alone as to the Divine Human is the Anointed of Jehovah, for in Him, from conception, was the essential Divine good of the Divine love, and therefrom His Human was the essential Divine truth when He was in the world, and afterwards, by union with the essential Divine in Himself, He made that also the Divine good of the Divine love; and because all things of the church represented things Divine from the Lord, and, in the highest sense, the Lord Himself - for the church instituted with the sons of Israel was a representative church - therefore oil, by which was signified the Divine good of the Divine love, was used to introduce into representations; and afterwards the things or persons that were anointed were considered as holy, not that there was any holiness thereby in them, but because holiness was thereby represented in heaven, when they were [engaged] in worship.

[9] These observations are made in order that it may be known that oil signifies the good of love; but to make it more evident, I will explain every particular in order, namely:

[i] That in ancient times they anointed with oil the stones set up for statues.

[ii] Likewise the arms of war, as bucklers and shields.

[iii] Afterwards, that they anointed the altar and all the vessels thereof, and the tent of the assembly and all things therein.

[iv] Also besides, those who were appointed to the priesthood, and also their garments.

[v] And also the prophets.

[vi] And afterwards the kings, who were thence called the anointed.

[vii] That it was customary to anoint themselves and others with oil, to testify gladness of mind and benevolence.

[viii] And that hence it is evident that oil in the Word signifies good; the oil of holiness which was prepared for anointing those things that were to be used in the worship of the church, the Divine good of the Divine love; and oil in general, good and its delight.

[10] (i) That they anointed stones set up for statues, appears in the book of Genesis:

"Jacob rose up early in the morning, and took the stone that he had put under his head, and set it up for a statue, and poured oil on the top of it. And he called the name of that place Bethel. And he said, If I come again to my father's house in peace, this stone which I have set for a statue, shall be the house of God" (28:18-22).

The reason why stones were thus anointed, was, because by stones were signified truths, and truths without good have no spiritual life, that is, no life from the Divine; but when the stones were anointed with oil, then they represented truths from good, and in the highest sense, the Divine truth proceeding from the Lord's Divine good, who is thence called the Stone of Israel. The stones themselves set up were statues, and were accounted holy, and hence arose the use of statues among the ancients, and afterwards in their temples. Because, then, the stone set up by Jacob was representatively sanctified, therefore, Jacob called the name of the place Bethel, and said that that stone should be the house of God; Bethel signifies the house of God, and the house of God signifies the church as to good, and, in the highest sense, the Lord as to His Divine Human (John 2:19-22). (The remainder may be seen explained in the Arcana Coelestia. Besides there also that statues were set up by the ancients for a sign, for a witness, and for worship, n. 3727; that they were at first holy boundaries, n. 3727; that afterwards they were used in worship, n. 4580; what they signified, n. 4580, 10643. That stones signify truths, and the Stone of Israel the Lord as to Divine truth, n. 643, 1298, 3720, 6426, 8609, 9388, 9389, 10376. That the pouring of oil upon the head of a statue, or anointing it, was done that the representative of truth from good might be introduced, and thus might be used in worship, n. 3728, 4090.)

[11] (ii) That they anointed the arms of war, as bucklers and shields, is seen in Isaiah:

"Arise, ye princes, anoint the shield" (21:5).

And in the second book of Samuel:

"The shield of the heroes is polluted; the shield of Saul is not anointed with oil" (1:21).

The reason why the arms of war were anointed was, because they signified truths fighting against falsities; and truths from good are what prevail against them, but not truths without good; therefore the arms of war represented the truths by which the Lord Himself fights in man, against the falsities from evil from hell. (That arms of war signify truths fighting against falsities, may be seen, n. 1788, 2686, and above, n. 131, 367; and that wars in general signify spiritual combats, n. 1664, 2686, 8273, 8295; and enemies, evils and falsities, in general the hells, n. 2831, 8289, 9314.)

[12] (iii) That they anointed the altar and all vessels, also the tent of the assembly and all things therein, is clear in Moses:

"Jehovah said unto Moses, Thou shalt anoint the altar, and sanctify it" (Exodus 29:36).

In the same:

"Thou shalt make the oil of the anointing of holiness wherewith thou shalt anoint the tent of the assembly, and the ark of the testimony, and the tables and all the vessels thereof, and the candlestick, and all the vessels thereof, and the altar of incense, and the altar of burnt-offering, and all the vessels thereof, and the lavers and the base. Thus shalt thou sanctify them, that they may be holy of holies; every one who would touch them, shall sanctify himself "' (Exodus 30:25-29; 40:9-11; Leviticus 8:10-12; Num. 7:1).

The reason why the altars were anointed, and the tent of the assembly, with all things therein, was that they might represent the Divine and holy things of heaven and the church, consequently, the holy things of worship; and they could not represent them unless they had been consecrated by something significative of the good of love, for the Divine enters by the good of love, and is thereby present, consequently, also in worship, and without it, the Divine neither enters nor is present. (That the altar was an especial representative of the Lord, and thence of worship from the good of love, may be seen, n. 2777, 2811, 4489, 4541, 8935, 8940, 9388, 9389, 9714; and that the tabernacle with the ark was the special representative of heaven where the Lord is, n. 9457, 9481, 9485, 9594, 9632, 9596, 9784.)

[13] (iv) That they anointed those who were appointed to the priesthood, and their garments, is clear in Moses:

"Take the oil of anointing, and pour it upon the head of Aaron, and thou shalt anoint him" (Exodus 29:7 30:30).

In the same:

"Put upon Aaron the garments of holiness, and thou shalt anoint him, and sanctify him; that he may minister unto me in the priesthood. And thou shalt anoint his sons, as thou didst anoint the father, and it shall be that their anointing is to them an everlasting priesthood throughout their generations" (Exodus 40:13-15).

In the same:

"Moses poured of the oil upon Aaron's head, and anointed him to sanctify him. And afterwards he took of the oil of anointing, and of the blood which was upon the altar, and sprinkled it upon Aaron, upon his garments, upon his sons, and upon his sons' garments with him; and sanctified Aaron, his garments, and his sons, and his sons' garments with him (Leviticus 8:6, 12, 30).

The reason why Aaron and his sons were anointed, and their very garments, was, that they might represent the Lord as to the Divine good, and as to Divine truth thence; Aaron, the Lord as to the Divine good, and his sons, [the Lord] as to the Divine truth thence; and in general that the priesthood might represent the Lord as to His work of salvation. The reason of their garments being anointed (Exodus 29:29) was, because garments represented spiritual things clothing. (That Aaron represented the Lord as to Divine good, may be seen, n. 9806; that his sons represented the Lord as to Divine truth proceeding from Divine good, n. 9807; that the priesthood in general represented the Lord as to His work of salvation, n. 9809; that the garments of Aaron and his sons represented things spiritual, n. 9814, 9942, 9952.)

[14] Because consecration for the purpose of representation was effected by anointing, and by Aaron and his sons were represented the Lord and what proceeds from him, therefore, to Aaron and his sons were given the holy things of the sons of Israel, which were gifts given to Jehovah, and were called heave offerings; and it is said that they are the anointing, or for the anointing, that is, that they are a representation, or for a representation, of the Lord, and of the Divine things that proceed from Him; as appears from the following passages in Moses:

"The wave breast and the heave shoulder have I taken of the sons of Israel. This anointing of Aaron, and anointing of his sons, out of the burnt offerings of Jehovah, which he commanded to give them in the day that he had anointed them from among the sons of Israel" (Leviticus 7:34-36).

And elsewhere in the same:

"Jehovah spake unto Aaron, Behold I have given thee the charge of mine heave offerings as to the hallowed things of the sons of Israel; unto thee have I given them by reason of the anointing, and to thy sons, by an ordinance for ever. Every gift of theirs as to every meat offering, as to every sacrifice of sin and guilt, every trespass of the sons of Israel, all the fat of the pure oil, and all the fat of the new wine, and of the corn, their first-fruits which they shall give unto Jehovah, I have given them to thee, likewise everything devoted in Israel, every opening of the womb, thus every heave offering of things holy. Thou shalt have no inheritance in their land, neither shalt thou have any part in the midst of them; I am thy part and thine inheritance in the midst of the sons of Israel" (Num. 18:8-20).

From these considerations it is clear that anointing denotes representation, because by anointing they were consecrated or inaugurated into representation; and thereby was signified that all consecration into the holiness of heaven and the church is by means of the good of love from the Lord, and that the good of love is the Lord with them; because this is the case, it is said that Jehovah is his part and inheritance.

[15] (v) That they also anointed the prophets, is clear from the first book of Kings:

Jehovah said unto Elijah, "Anoint Hazael to be king over Syria; and Jehu anoint to be king over Israel; and Elisha anoint to be prophet instead of thee" (19:15, 16).

And in Isaiah:

"The spirit of the Lord Jehovih is upon me; therefore hath Jehovah anointed me to preach good tidings unto the poor" (61:1).

The reason why the prophets were anointed, was, because the prophets represented the Lord as to the doctrine of Divine truth, consequently, as to the Word; for the Word is the doctrine of Divine truth. (That the prophets represented, and thence signified, doctrine from the Word, may be seen, n. 2534, 7269; specifically Elijah and Elisha, n. 2762, 5247 at the end, 9372). That it is the Lord as to the Divine Human who is represented, thus through whom Jehovah anointed, the Lord Himself teaches in Luke (4:18-21).

[16] (vi) That they afterwards anointed kings, and that they were called the anointed of Jehovah, is clear from many passages in the Word (as 1 Sam. 10:1; 15:1; 16:3, 6; 24:7, 11; 26:9, 11, 16, 23; 2 Sam. 1:16; 2:4, 7; 5:3; 19:2 ¹ ; 1 Kings 1:34, 35; 19:15, 16; 2 Kings 9:3; 11:12; 23:30; Lamentations 4:20; Hab. 3:13; Psalms 2:2, 6; 20:6; 28:8; 45:8; 84:10; 89:21, 39, 51; 132:17; and elsewhere). The reason why kings were anointed, was, that they might represent the Lord as to judgment from Divine truth; wherefore, by kings in the Word, Divine truths are signified (see above, n. 31). The reason why kings were called the anointed of Jehovah, and why it was therefore sacrilege to injure them, was, because by the anointed of Jehovah is meant the Lord as to the Divine Human, although, as to the sense of the letter, it is applied to the king who was anointed with oil; for the Lord, when He was in the world, was the Divine truth itself as to the Human, and was the Divine good itself of the Divine love as to the very esse of His life, which in man is called the soul from the father, for He was conceived of Jehovah, Jehovah in the Word denoting the Divine good of the Divine love, which is the esse of the life of all; hence it is that the Lord alone was the anointed of Jehovah in very essence and in very deed, because the Divine good of the Divine love was in Him, and the Divine truth proceeding from that essential good in His Human when He was in the world. (See above, n. 63, 200, 228, 328; and in the Doctrine of the New Jerusalem 293-295, 303-305.) But the kings of the earth were not the anointed of Jehovah; they were so called, because they represented the Lord, who was alone the Anointed of Jehovah, and, therefore, it was sacrilege to hurt the kings of the earth on account of their anointing; but the anointing of the kings of the earth was effected by oil, whereas the anointing of the Lord as to the Divine Human was accomplished by the Divine good itself of the Divine love, which oil signified and anointing represented; hence it is that the Lord was called the Messiah and Christ, Messiah in the Hebrew tongue signifying anointed, and Christ the same in the Greek tongue (John 1:41; 4:25).

[17] From these considerations it is evident that when the anointed of Jehovah is mentioned in the Word, in a representative sense the Lord is meant. As in Isaiah:

"The spirit of the Lord Jehovih is upon me; therefore Jehovah hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the poor; he hath sent me to bind up the broken-hearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives" (Isaiah 61:1).

That it is the Lord as to the Divine Human, whom Jehovah anointed, is clear in Luke, where the Lord openly declares it in these words:

There was delivered unto Jesus "the book of the prophet Isaiah. And he opened the book, and found the place where it was written, The spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me, he hath sent me to preach the gospel to the poor; to heal the broken-hearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, to preach the accepted year of the Lord. After that, closing the book, he gave it to the minister, and sat down. But the eyes of all in the synagogue were fastened on him. He began to say unto them, This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears" (4:17-21).

In Daniel:

"Know therefore, and perceive, that from the going forth of the Word even to the restoration and building of Jerusalem even to Messiah the Prince, shall be seven weeks" (9:25).

To build Jerusalem denotes the establishment of the church, Jerusalem denoting the church; Messiah the Prince, or the Anointed, denotes the Lord as to the Divine Human.

[18] In the same:

"Seventy weeks are determined to seal up the vision and the prophet, and to anoint the Holy of holies" (9:24).

To seal up the vision and the prophet, denotes to conclude the things that are said in the Word concerning the Lord, and to complete them, to anoint the Holy of holies, denotes the Lord's Divine Human, in which was the Divine good of the Divine love, or Jehovah.

[19] The Lord is also meant by the anointed of Jehovah in the following passages. In David:

"The kings of the earth stood together, and the rulers consulted together, against Jehovah, and against his anointed. I have anointed my king upon Zion, the mountain of my holiness" (Psalms 2:2, 6).

The kings of the earth denote falsities, and the rulers denote the evils which are from the hells, against which the Lord when He was in the world fought, and which He conquered and subdued. The Anointed of Jehovah is the Lord as to the Divine Human from which He fought; Zion, the mountain of holiness, upon which He is called anointed as a king, is the celestial kingdom, which is in the good of love; this kingdom is the inmost of heaven and the inmost of the church.

[20] In the same:

"I have found David my servant; with the oil of holiness have I anointed him" (Psalms 89:20).

By David here, as also elsewhere, is meant the Lord (see above, n. 205); the oil of holiness with which Jehovah anointed him, denotes the Divine good of the Divine love; that it is the Lord who is here meant by David, is evident from the things which precede and those which follow, for it is said,

"Thou spakest in vision of thy Holy One, and saidst, I will set his hand also in the sea, and his right hand in the rivers. He shall call me, my Father. Also I will make him my first-born, higher than the kings of the earth. His seed will I establish for ever, and his throne as the days of the heavens" (verses 19, 25-27, 29; besides many other passages).

Similarly elsewhere in the same:

In Zion "will I make the horn of David to bud; I will prepare a lamp for mine anointed; his enemies will I clothe with shame, but upon himself shall his crown flourish" (Psalms 132:17, 18).

That here also the Lord is meant by David is evident from the preceding verses, in which it is said,

"We heard of him in Ephratah; we found him in the fields of the wood. We will go into his habitation; we will bow down ourselves at his footstool. Thy priests shall be clothed with justice; and thy saints shall shout for joy. For thy servant David's sake turn not away the faces of thine anointed" (verses 6-8, and following).

From this it is evident that the Lord as to His Divine Human is here meant by David, the anointed of Jehovah.

[21] In Jeremiah:

"They pursued us upon the mountains, they laid wait for us in the wilderness. The breath of our nostrils, the anointed of Jehovah, was taken in their pits, of whom we had said, Under his shadow we shall live among the nations" (Lamentations 4:19, 20).

Here, also, by the anointed of Jehovah is meant the Lord, for the assault on Divine truth by evils and falsities is here treated of, which is signified by, upon the mountains they pursued, and in the wilderness laid wait; the breath of the nostrils denotes heavenly life itself which is from the Lord (n. 9818).

[22] From these things it may now be known, why it was accounted sacrilege to injure the anointed of Jehovah, as is also plain from the Word. Thus, in the first book of Samuel:

David said, "Jehovah forbid that I should do this word unto my Lord, the anointed of Jehovah, and that I should put forth my hand against him, because he is the anointed of Jehovah" (24:6, 10).

So again:

"David said to Abishai, Destroy him not: for who can stretch forth his hand against the anointed of Jehovah, and be guiltless?" (1 Samuel 26:9).

In the second book of Samuel:

David said unto him, who said that he had slain Saul, "Thy blood be upon thy head; for thou hast said, I have slain the anointed of Jehovah" (2 Samuel 1:16).

And in another place:

"Abishai said, Shall not Shimei be put to death for this, that he cursed the anointed of Jehovah?" (19:21).

(That Shimei was therefore slain, by command of Solomon, may be seen in 1 Kings 2:36, to the end.)

[23] (vii) That it was customary to anoint themselves and others with oil, to testify gladness of mind and goodwill, is clear from the following passages. In Amos:

"Who drink out of bowls of wine, and anoint themselves with the first-fruits of the oils, but they are not grieved for the breach of Joseph" (6:6).

In Micah:

"Thou shalt tread the olive, but thou shalt not anoint thee with oil" (6:15), "for thou wilt not be glad."

In Moses:

"Thou shalt have olive trees throughout all thy border, but thou shalt not anoint thee with the oil" (Deuteronomy 28:40).

Similarly in Isaiah:

"To give them a head-dress instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of mourning" (61:3).

In David:

"Thy God hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows" (Psalms 45:7).

In the same:

"My horn shalt thou exalt like the horn of a unicorn; I shall grow old in fresh oil" (Psalms 92:10).

In the same:

"Wine maketh glad the heart of man, to make merry the faces with oil" (Psalms 104:15).

In Luke:

Jesus said to Simon, "I entered into thine house, and my head with oil thou didst not anoint; but this woman hath anointed my feet with ointment" (7:44, 46).

In Matthew:

"But thou, when thou fastest, anoint thine head, and wash thy face, that ye may not appear unto men to fast" (6:17).

[24] To fast signifies to mourn, because in mourning they fasted, and desisted from the expression of gladness, therefore they were then not in the habit of anointing themselves with oil; as in Daniel:

"I Daniel was mourning three weeks. I ate not the bread of desires, neither came flesh nor wine in my mouth, neither was I anointed with anointing, until three weeks of days were fulfilled" (10:2, 3).

From these passages it is plain that it was a customary thing to anoint themselves and others with oil; not with the oil of holiness, with which the priests, the kings, the altar and tabernacle were anointed, but with common oil, because this oil signified gladness and satisfaction, which is of the love of good; whereas the oil of holiness signified the Divine good; concerning which it is said:

"Upon man's flesh shall it not be poured, and in quality thereof ye shall not make any like it; it shall be holy unto you. He who shall prepare any like it, or who shall put any of it upon a stranger, shall be cut off from his people" (Exodus 30:32, 33, 38).

[25] (viii) That hence it is evident that oil in the Word signifies good; the oil of holiness, which was prepared for anointing those things that were used in the worship of the church [signifying] the Divine good of the Divine love, and oil in general, good and its delight, is evident also from other passages in the Word where oil is mentioned, as from the following.

[26] In David:

"Behold how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together! It is like the good oil upon Aaron's head, that descendeth upon the beard, even Aaron's beard; which descendeth upon the collar (os) of his garments; as the dew of Hermon that descendeth upon the mountains of Zion; there Jehovah hath commanded the blessing of life even to eternity" (Psalms 133:1-3).

No one can know what these words signify, unless he knows also what brethren signify, what the oil upon the head of Aaron, his beard, and the collar of his garments, and further what the dew of Hermon, and the mountains of Zion. By brethren are here signified good and truth, for these are called brethren in the Word; therefore, by, "Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together," is signified that all heavenly good and delight are in the conjunction of good and truth, because all heavenly good and pleasure is from the conjunction of good and truth; by the oil upon the head "that descendeth upon the beard, even Aaron's beard, that descendeth upon the collar of his garments," is signified that thence are all the good and delight of heaven, from inmost to ultimates. For by the head is signified the inmost, by the beard the ultimate; by descending upon the collar of his garments are signified the influx and conjunction of celestial good and spiritual good. (That in the Word good and truth are called brethren, may be seen, n. 367, 3160, 9806; that the head signifies what is inmost, n. 4938, 4939, 9656, 9913, 9914; the beard, what is ultimate, n. 9960; the collar of the garments, the influx and conjunction of celestial and spiritual good, consequently, of good and truth, n. 9913, 9914. And this is said of Aaron, because by him was represented the Lord as to Divine good, for all good and all conjunction of good and truth are from Him (n. 9806, 9946, 10017). By the dew of Hermon is signified Divine truth, and by the mountains of Zion is signified Divine good; hence by, "as the dew of Hermon that descendeth upon the mountains of Zion," is signified the conjunction of truth and good, which is there treated of; and because angels and men possess all spiritual life from that conjunction, it is also said, there Jehovah hath commanded the blessing of life to eternity. (That dew signifies Divine truth, may be seen, n. 3579, 8455; that mountains signify Divine good, and whence this is, n. 795, 4210, 6435, 8327, 8758, 10438, 10608; and that Zion signifies the church where the good of love is, n. 2362, 9055 at the end.) Hence it is plain what is the nature of the Word in its spiritual sense, although it sounds thus in the letter.

[27] In Ezekiel:

"I entered into a covenant with thee, that thou mightest be mine. And I washed thee with waters, yea, I washed away thy bloods from upon thee, and I anointed thee with oil. And I clothed thee also with needle work, and shod thee with badgers' skins, and I girded thee about with fine linen, and covered thee with silk. Thou didst eat fine flour, honey, and oil, whence thou art become exceeding beautiful, and hast prospered even to a kingdom" (16:8-10, 13).

These things are said of Jerusalem, by which is signified the church, therefore the particulars of these signify spiritual things pertaining to the church. That these expressions are not used of the inhabitants of Jerusalem, namely, that Jehovah washed them with waters, washed away their bloods, clothed them with needle work, and shod them with badgers' skins, is evident. But by washing with waters is signified to reform and purify by truths; by washing away bloods is signified to remove the falsities of evil; by anointing with oil is signified to endow with the good of love; by clothing with needle work, and shoeing with badgers' skins, is signified to instruct in the knowledges of truth and good from the sense of the letter or ultimate sense of the Word; by eating fine flour, honey, and oil, is signified to appropriate truth and good; by thence becoming beautiful, is signified to become intelligent; and by prospering even to a kingdom, is signified that they became a church, a kingdom denoting the church.

[28] In Jeremiah:

"Jehovah hath redeemed Jacob, therefore they shall come and sing in the height of Zion, and shall flow together unto the goodness of Jehovah; to the wheat, and to the new wine, and to the oil, and to the sons of the flock and of the herd; and their soul shall become as a watered garden" (31:11, 12).

By new wine and oil are signified truth and good; what the other expressions signify may be seen just above, n. 374.

[29] In Joel:

Be glad, ye sons of Zion, and rejoice in Jehovah your God; for he hath given you the seasonable rain in justice, so that your floors are full of pure corn, the presses overflow with new wine and oil" (Joel 2:23, 24).

Here also by new wine and oil are signified the truth and good of the church, the sons of Zion, to whom these things are said, signifying those who are of the church; by the seasonable rain in justice, is signified Divine truth flowing into good, whence are conjunction, fructification, and multiplication of them; and by the floors full of pure corn is signified fulness thence.

[30] In the same:

"The field is wasted, the land mourned; for the corn is wasted, the new wine is dried up, the oil languisheth" (1:10).

By these words is signified that all things of the church which, in general, have reference to the good of love, and the truth of faith, are devastated. The field, and also the land, denote the church; field, the church from the reception of truth, and the land, the church from the perception of good; corn denotes every thing thereof; the new wine denotes the truth, and oil the good.

[31] In Isaiah:

"I will sing to my beloved a song of my friend; my beloved had a vineyard in the horn of a son of oil, which he fenced, and gathered out the stones thereof, and planted it with a noble vine; and he looked that it should bring forth grapes, and it brought forth wild grapes" (5:1, 2).

By the vineyard which belonged to the beloved in the horn of a son of oil, is signified the spiritual church, which possessed truths from the good of love, and thus most excellent; for a vineyard signifies the spiritual church, or the church which is in truths from good; its consecration is meant by the horn of oil, for inaugurations were performed by oil out of a horn; and a son of oil denotes truth from good. By the beloved is meant the Lord, because He establishes the churches, of whom, therefore, it is said, "which he fenced, and gathered out the stones, and planted with a noble vine," a noble vine denoting spiritual truth from a celestial [origin], or truth from the good of love; by the grapes which he looked that it should bring forth, are signified the goods of charity, which are goods of life; and by the wild grapes which it brought forth, are signified evils opposed to the goods of charity, or evils of life.

[32] In Hosea:

"In that day, I will hear the heavens, and they shall hear the earth; and the earth shall hear the corn, and the new wine, and the oil; and they shall hear Israel. And I will sow her unto me in the earth" (2:21-23).

These things are said concerning a new church to be established by the Lord; and by hearing are meant to obey and to receive; following and succeeding in order, obedience and reception are thus described. That the heavens should receive from the Lord, is meant by, I will hear the heavens; that the church should receive from the heavens, thus from the Lord through the heavens, is meant by, the heavens shall hear the earth; the reception of good and truth by the church, is meant by, the earth shall hear the corn, and the new wine, and the oil; the new wine denoting truth, and the oil denoting good; and that those of the church, with whom there are good and truth, should thence receive, is meant by, they shall hear Israel. That the earth is not meant, nor its corn, new wine, and oil, but the church with its goods and truths, is clear, for it is said, "I will sow Israel unto me in the earth."

[33] In Isaiah:

"I will give in the wilderness the cedar of shittah, and the myrtle, and the oil-tree; I will set in the solitary place the fir, the pine, and the box" (41:19).

These things are said concerning the establishment by the Lord of the church amongst the Gentiles; and by the wilderness and by the solitary place is signified where there was before no good, because no truth; by the cedar of shittah, the myrtle, and the oil-tree, is signified spiritual and celestial good; and by the fir, the pine, and the box, are signified the good and truth thence in the Natural; for by every tree in the Word is signified something of the good and truth of the church; and the cedar of shittah, the myrtle, and the oil-tree, signify such things of the church as are in the spiritual or internal man; and the fir, the pine, and the box, such things of the church as are in the natural or external man.

[34] In David:

"[Jehovah is] my shepherd; I shall not want. He will make me to lie down in pastures of tender grass, he will lead me to waters of rests. Thou shalt prepare a table before me in the presence of mine enemies; my head shalt thou make fat with oil; my cup runneth over" (Psalms 23:1, 2, 5).

By these words, in the internal sense, is meant, that he who trusts in the Lord is led into all the goods and truths of heaven, and abounds in the delights thereof. By my shepherd is meant the Lord; by pastures of tender grass are signified the knowledges of truth and good; by waters of rests are signified the truths of heaven thence; by a table is signified spiritual nourishment; by making fat the head with oil is signified wisdom which is from good; by my cup runneth over is signified intelligence which is from truths, the cup signifying the same as the wine. They are called pastures of tender grass and waters of rests as if they were comparisons, because the Lord is called a shepherd, and the flock is led of the shepherd into green pastures and to limpid waters, but yet they are correspondences.

[35] In Ezekiel:

"Judah and the land of Israel were thy traders in the wheats of Minnith and Pannag, and in honey, oil, and balsam" (27:17).

This is said of Tyre, by which is signified the church as to the knowledges of truth and good; and so by Tyre are signified the knowledges of the truth and good of the church; and by Judah and the land of Israel, who were her traders, is signified the church, - by Judah the church as to good, and the land of Israel the church as to truths from good; and by trading is signified to procure to themselves, and to communicate to others. By the wheats of Minnith and Pannag are signified goods and truths in general; and by honey, oil, and balsam, specific goods and truths, - by honey and oil, goods; and by balsam, truths which are grateful from good, for all truths which are from good, are perceived in heaven as fragrant, and consequently grateful. This also was the reason why the oil of anointing was prepared of various fragrant things (concerning which see Exodus 30:22-33); as also the oil for the lamps (concerning which see Exodus 27:20, 21).

[36] In Moses:

Jehovah "fed him with the produce of the fields, he made him to suck honey out of the rock, and oil out of the stone of the rock" (Deuteronomy 32:12, 13).

These things are said of the ancient church. To suck oil out of the stone of the rock means to be imbued with good by the truths of faith, honey denoting natural good and delight, oil denoting spiritual good and delight; and rock and the stone of the rock denoting the truth of faith from the Lord. If spiritual things were not meant by these words, what could be meant by sucking honey out of the rock, and oil out of the stone of the rock?

[37] In Habakkuk:

"The fig-tree shall not blossom, neither shall there be produce from the vines; the olive shall beguile the labour, and the fields shall yield no meat" (3:17).

In this passage neither the fig-tree, nor the vine, nor the olive, nor fields, are meant, but heavenly things to which they correspond. The fig-tree corresponds to, and, therefore, signifies, natural good; the vine corresponds to spiritual good, which in its essence is truth; the olive, as the fruit from which the oil is, corresponds to the good of love in act; and fields correspond to all things of the church; produce and meats thence signify all things pertaining to spiritual nourishment; hence it is evident what those things signify in order.

[38] In Hosea:

"Ephraim feedeth on wind, they make a covenant with Assyria, and oil is carried down into Egypt" (12:1).

These words are not at all understood, unless it is known what Ephraim, Assyria, and Egypt signify. Man's intellectual proprium is here described, which, by reasonings from scientifics, perverts and adulterates the goods of the church. Ephraim denotes the Intellectual; Assyria, reasoning; and Egypt, the Scientific; hence, to carry down oil into Egypt, is to pervert the goods of the church by reasonings from scientifics.

[39] In Zechariah:

"I beheld a candlestick of gold; two olive trees by it, one upon the right side of the bowl, and the other upon the left side thereof. These are the two sons of oil that stand near the Lord of the whole earth" (4:1-3, 11, 14).

The two olive trees, and the two sons of oil, denote the good of love to the Lord, and the good of charity towards the neighbour; the latter upon His left hand, the former upon His right.

[40] Similarly in the Apocalypse:

"The two witnesses shall prophesy a thousand two hundred and three score days. These are the two olive trees, and the two candlesticks standing before the God of the earth" (11:3, 4).

The two olive trees and the two candlesticks denote the same goods, which, because they are from the Lord, are called the two witnesses; but more will be said concerning these in the explanation of them.

[41] Because oil signified the good of love to the Lord, and the good of charity towards the neighbour, therefore

The Lord likened the kingdom of the heavens to ten virgins, of whom five had oil in their lamps, and five had not; wherefore the latter were called foolish, and the former wise (Matthew 25:1-11).

By the ten virgins are signified all who belong to the church; and by five are signified some, or a part of them, for these are signified by the numbers ten and five in the Word. And by a virgin, or daughter, is signified the church; by oil are signified the good of love to the Lord, and the good of charity towards the neighbour; and by lamps are signified the truths, which are called truths of faith; hence it is evident what is meant by these words in the spiritual sense, namely, those who know truths from the Word, or from the doctrine of the church, and are not in the good of love and charity, that is, do not live according to them. They are the virgins who have no oil in their lamps, and who, therefore, are not admitted into heaven; but those who are in the good of love and of charity, and thence in truths from the Word, or from the doctrine of the church, are the virgins who have oil in their lamps, and are received into heaven. Hence it is clear why the latter are called prudent virgins, but the former foolish.

[42] Because oil signified the good of love and charity, and wine signified truth, therefore

The Lord says of the Samaritan, who, as he journeyed, saw on the way a man wounded by thieves, that he poured oil and wine into his wounds, and afterwards set him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn, and said that they should take care of him (Luke 10:30-37).

These things, in the spiritual sense, are thus perceived; by the Samaritan are meant the Gentiles who were in the good of charity towards the neighbour; by the man wounded by thieves are meant those who are infested by infernals, for they are thieves, because they injure and destroy man's spiritual life; by the oil and wine, which he poured into his wounds, are meant things spiritual, which heal man; by oil good, and by wine truth; by his setting him on his own beast, is signified his doing this according to his intelligence, so far as he was able, for a horse signifies the Intellectual, in like manner a beast of burden; his bringing him to an inn, and saying that they should take care of him, signifies, to those who are instructed in the doctrine of the church from the Word, and who are better able to heal him than he is who is still in ignorance; thus are these words understood in heaven, from which it is also evident that the Lord, when He was in the world, spake by pure correspondences, thus for the world and for heaven at the same time.

[43] Because oil signified the good of love and charity, and those are healed thereby who are spiritually sick, therefore it is said of the Lord's disciples,

"That they anointed many with oil, and healed them" (Mark 6:13).

What besides is signified by the oil prepared for the lamps, and what by the oil prepared for anointings, may be seen in the Arcana Coelestia 9778-9789; and n. 10250-10288), where they are explained. From these considerations it may now be seen, that by oil are signified celestial good and spiritual good, or the good of love to the Lord, and the good of charity towards the neighbour; by the oil of anointing, the good of love to the Lord from the Lord, and by the oil for the lamps, the good of charity from the Lord towards the neighbour.

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