911. 21:18 The construction of its wall was of jasper. This symbolically means that with people of the New Church the Divine truth of the Word in its spiritual sense shines through every Divine truth in the literal sense.

The wall symbolizes the Word in its literal sense (no. 898). Its structure symbolizes everything in it, because everything in it is in its structure. Jasper has, on the whole, the same symbolic meaning as any precious stone, and in application to the Word a precious stone symbolizes the Divine truth of the Word in its literal sense through which the Divine truth in its spiritual sense shines through (nos. 231, 540, 726, 823). That jasper has the same symbolic meaning may be seen in no. 897 above.

The Divine truth shines through because Divine truth in the literal sense is seen in natural light, whereas Divine truth in the spiritual sense is seen in spiritual light. Consequently, when spiritual light flows into the natural sight in a person who is reading the Word, it enlightens him and he sees truths in it, for the objects of spiritual light are truths. The Word in its literal sense is also such that the more enlightened a person is by the influx of the light of heaven, the more truths he sees because of their connection and consequent form; and the more truths he sees in this way, the more interiorly is his rationality opened. For the rational faculty is the indispensable receptacle of heavenly light.