235. I will spue thee out of my mouth. That this signifies separation from knowledges derived from the Word is evident from the signification of spuing, when by the Lord, as being separation; not that the Lord separates them from Himself, but that they separate themselves from the Lord. The expression to spue is used, because the subject treated of is the lukewarm; and in the world what is lukewarm causes vomiting. This is also from correspondence; for the food which man takes corresponds to knowledges, and consequently, in the Word, signifies knowledges; therefore separation from them signifies non-admission; but because those who are here treated of do admit something from the Word, it signifies casting out, or vomiting (that food, from correspondence, signifies knowledges and intelligence therefrom, may be seen in Arcana Coelestia 3114, 4459, 4792, 5147, 5293, 5340, 5342, 5410, 5426, 5576, 5582, 5588, 5655, 8562; for knowledges nourish the internal man, or spirit, as food nourishes the external man, or body, n. 4459, 5293, 5576, 6277, 8418); and from the signification of out of the mouth, when said of the Lord, as being out of the Word. The reason why out of the mouth, when said of the Lord, signifies the Word is, that the Word is Divine truth, and this proceeds from the Lord, and what proceeds from Him and flows into man is said to be out of the mouth, although it is not out of the mouth, but is as light from the sun. For the Lord above the heavens, where the angels are, appears as a Sun; and the light therefrom is Divine truth, from which angels and men have all their intelligence and wisdom (as may be seen in the work, Heaven and Hell 116-125, and 126-140). It is therefore evident that by I will spue thee out of my mouth, is signified to separate from Divine truth, or, what amounts to the same, from knowledges derived from the Word.

[2] That those who are lukewarm, that is, neither cold nor hot, as those are who live from the doctrine of faith alone and justification thereby, of which we have spoken just above, are separated from knowledges derived from the Word, is not known to themselves, for they believe that they possess knowledges more than all others; but still they do not, indeed, they have scarcely any knowledge. The reason of this is, that the principles of their doctrine and religion are false; and from false principles nothing but falsities follow; therefore, when reading the Word, they keep the mind fixed in their falsities; consequently they either do not see truths, or if they do, they pass by or falsify them. The false principles referred to are, that salvation is by faith alone, and that man is justified by that faith. Such persons might know, if they would, that they are separated from knowledges derived from the Word, and that they do not see truths. For what is more frequently said by the Lord than that they ought to keep His words, His commandments, and do His will; and that every one shall be rewarded according to his deeds; as also that the whole Word is founded upon two commandments, which are, to love God, and to love the neighbour, and that to love God is to do His precept (John 14:21, 23, 24)? That these must be done in order to salvation, is said a thousand times in both Testaments; also that to hear and to know them is to no purpose unless they are done. But do those who have confirmed themselves in faith alone, and justification thereby, see those things? and if they do see them, do they not falsify them? This is why such persons have no doctrine of life, but a doctrine of faith alone; when nevertheless it is the life that forms the man of the church, and those things become his faith which enter into his life.

[3] That such persons are separated from knowledges derived from the Word is evident also from this, that they do not know that they will live as men after the death of the body; that it is the spirit in them which lives; that heaven and also hell are from the human race; that they know nothing at all of heaven and heavenly joy; neither of hell and infernal fire; thus nothing about the spiritual world; nothing about the internal or spiritual sense of the Word; about the glorification of the Lord's Human; about regeneration; about temptation, and about Baptism and what it involves; nothing about the Holy Supper, and about what flesh and blood, or bread and wine, therein signify; nothing about free-will; nothing about the internal man; nothing about charity, the neighbour, good, and love; neither do they know what remission of sins is; besides many other things contained in the Word. I have also heard the angels say that, when they are permitted to look into the church and see those who believe themselves to be intelligent from doctrine, they see mere thick darkness, and such intelligent ones, as it were, deep under waves.

[4] There are two reasons why they are separated from knowledges derived from the Word. The first is that they cannot be enlightened from the Lord; for the Lord flows into the good of man, and from that good enlightens him in truths, that is, He flows into man's love, and thence into his faith. The other reason is that they profane truths by falsifications; and those who do this are separated from truths themselves while they live in the world, so that they do not know them; but in the other life they reject all the things which, during their abode in the world, they had known from the Word. Both these separations are meant by being vomited out of the mouth. Similar things are meant by vomiting elsewhere in the Word; as in the following passages; in Isaiah:

"Jehovah hath mingled in the midst of Egypt a spirit of perversities; whence they have caused Egypt to go astray in every work thereof, even as a drunkard goeth astray in his vomit " (19:14).

Egypt signifies the knowledge (scientia) of things, both spiritual and natural; by mingling in the midst thereof a spirit of perversities is signified to pervert and falsify those things; by a drunkard are signified those who are insane in spiritual things; and, inasmuch as truths mingled with falsities are cast out, it is therefore said, "as a drunkard goeth astray in his vomit." (That Egypt signifies knowledge (scientia), may be seen, Arcana Coelestia 1164, 1165, 1186, 1462, 5700, 5702, 6015, 6651, 6679, 6683, 6692, 7296, and also the scientifics of the church, n. 7296, 9340, 9391; that the drunken signify those who are insane in spiritual things, n. 1072.)

[5] In Jeremiah:

"Drink ye, and be drunken, and spew and fall, and rise no more, because of the sword" (25:27).

To drink and be drunken is to imbibe falsities and mingle them with truths, and hence to be insane; to spew and fall, is altogether to cast out things falsified; the sword because of which they shall rise no more, signifies falsity destroying and vastating truth (see Arcana Coelestia 2799, 4499, 7102). It is therefore evident what is meant by spewing and falling.

Again:

"Make Moab drunken, because he hath lifted himself up against Jehovah, that he may wallow in his vomit" (48:26).

Moab signifies those who adulterate the goods of the church wherefore vomiting is said of them.

[6] Also in Habakkuk:

"Woe unto him that maketh a companion to drink even in being drunken, that thou mayest look upon their nakednesses. Thou shalt be satiated with shame more than glory; drink thou, also, and let thy foreskin be discovered; the cup of Jehovah shall go about unto thee, so that shameful spewing shall be upon glory " (2:15, 16).

To drink in being drunken, also signifies to imbibe truths and mingle them with falsities; the nakednesses upon which they look signifies the deprivation of truth and of intelligence therefrom (see Arcana Coelestia 1073, 5433, 9960); the foreskin which shall be discovered, signifies the defilement of good (see Arcana Coelestia 2056, 3412, 3413, 4462, 7225, 7245); glory signifies Divine truth, consequently the Word (see Arcana Coelestia 4809, 5922, 8267, 8427, 9429). It is therefore evident what is signified by shameful spewing upon glory.

[7] In Isaiah:

"These err through wine; through strong drink they wander out of the way; the priest and the prophet err through strong drink, they are swallowed up of wine, they err among the seeing, they stumble in judgment. Nay! all tables are full of the vomit of filthiness; there is no place. Whom shall he teach knowledge?" (28:7-9).

Here wine and strong drink, through which they are said to err, signify truths mingled with falsities; the priest and the prophet signify those who teach goods and truths, and, in the abstract, the goods and truths of the church; those who err among the seeing signify those who were about to see truths; to stumble in judgment signifies insanity; tables signify all those things which should nourish the spiritual life, for by tables are meant the food which is upon them, and food signifies all truths and goods, because these nourish spiritual life. Here, therefore, by tables being full of vomit and filthiness are signified the same things falsified and adulterated.

[8] In Moses:

"Defile not yourselves in any of these things; for in all these the nations are defiled which I cast out before you. And the land is defiled; therefore I do visit the iniquity thereof upon it, and the land itself vomiteth out her inhabitants; that the land spew not you out also when ye defile it, as it vomited out the nations that were before you" (Leviticus 18:24, 25, 28).

By the subject here treated of is meant all kinds of adulteries, by which, in the spiritual sense, are meant all kinds of adulterations of good and falsifications of truth, or profanations; and because evils and goods, as also falsities of evil and truths of good, cannot be together, but are cast out, therefore it is said that the land, that is the church, has vomited them out. From these things it is now evident what is signified by vomiting, I will vomit thee out of my mouth.

3813. As regards 'flesh', this means in the highest sense the Proprium of the Lord's Divine Human, which is Divine Good, and in the relative sense means the will side of the human proprium when made alive by the Proprium of the Lord's Divine Human, that is, by His Divine Good. This proprium is the one called the heavenly proprium which, in itself the Lord's alone, is appropriated to those who are governed by good and consequently by truth. Such a proprium exists with angels in heaven, and also with men whose interiors, that is, their spirits, are in the Lord's kingdom. But in the contrary sense 'flesh' means the will side of the human proprium, which in itself is nothing but evil, and not having been made alive by the Lord is called dead; and the individual himself is for that reason called dead.

[2] That 'flesh' in the highest sense means the Proprium of the Lord's Divine Human, and so His Divine Good, is clear from the Lord's words in John,

Jesus said, I am the living bread which came down from heaven; if anyone eats of this bread he will live for ever. The bread which I will give is My flesh, which I will give for the life of the world. The Jews disputed with one another, saying, How can this man give his flesh to eat? Jesus therefore said to them, Truly, truly, I say to you, Unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you will have no life in yourselves. He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day; for My flesh is truly food, and My blood is truly drink. He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood abides in Me, and I in him. This is the bread which came down from heaven. John 6:51-58.

Here it is quite evident that 'flesh' means the Proprium of the Lord's Divine Human, and so the Divine Good - His flesh in the Holy Supper being called 'the body'. His body or flesh in the Holy Supper is the Divine Good, and His blood the Divine Truth, see 1798, 2165, 2177, 3464, 3735. And since bread and wine have the same meaning as flesh and blood - that is to say, 'bread' is the Lord's Divine Good, and 'wine' His Divine Truth - bread and wine were commanded in place of flesh and blood. This is why the Lord says, 'I am the living bread; the bread which I will give is My flesh; he who eats My flesh and drinks My blood abides in Me and I in him; this is the bread which came down from heaven'. 'Eating' means being communicated, being joined to, and being made one's own, see 2187, 2343, 3168, 3513 (end), 3596.

[3] The same was represented in the Jewish Church by the law that the flesh of sacrifices was to be eaten by Aaron and his sons, by those persons who brought the sacrifice, and by others who were clean; and that this flesh was holy, see Exodus 12:7-9; 29:30-34; Leviticus 7:15-21; 8:31; Deuteronomy 12:27; 16:4. That being so, if any unclean person ate some of that flesh he was to be cut off from his people, Leviticus 7:21. The fact that these sacrifices were called 'bread', see 2165, and that that sacrificial flesh was called 'holy flesh', Jeremiah 11:15; Haggai 2:12. And in Ezekiel 40:43 where the new Temple is the subject, it is called 'the flesh of the offering which is on the tables in the Lord's kingdom', by which clearly worship of the Lord in His kingdom is meant.

[4] That 'flesh' in the relative sense means the will side of man's proprium when made alive by the Lord is Divine Good is clear also from the following places: In Ezekiel,

I will give them one heart, and will put a new spirit in your midst; and I will remove the heart of stone out of their flesh and will give them a heart of flesh. Ezekiel 11:19; 36:26.

'The heart of stone out of their flesh' stands for a will and proprium when not made alive, 'a heart of flesh' for a will and proprium when made alive; for 'the heart' is a representative of good in the will, see 2930, 3313, 3635. In David,

O God, You are my God; in the morning I seek You. My soul thirsts for You, my flesh in a dry land longs for You, and I am weary without water. Psalms 63:1.

In the same author,

My soul longs for the courts of Jehovah; my heart and my flesh shout for joy to the living God. Psalms 84:2.

[5] In Job,

I have come to know my Redeemer; He is alive; and at the last He will rise above the dust; and afterwards these things will be encompassed by my skin, and out of my flesh shall I see God, whom I shall see for myself; and my eyes will behold, and no other. Job 19:25-27.

'Being encompassed by skin' stands for the natural, such as a person possesses after death, dealt with in 3539. 'Out of his flesh seeing God' stands for the proprium when made alive, which is why Job says, 'Whom I shall see for myself; and my eyes will behold, and no other'. Since it was well known in the ancient Churches that 'flesh' meant the proprium, and since the Book of Job is a book of the Ancient Church, 3540 (end), he accordingly followed the custom of the day and drew on meaningful signs to speak of these, as of many other matters. Those therefore who conclude from what Job said that their dead body is going to be reassembled from the four winds and is going to rise again do not know the internal sense of the Word. Those who are conversant with that sense know that they will enter the next life in a body, but in a purer one. In that life people have purer bodies, for they behold one another, talk to one another, and are endowed with each of the senses, which though like those in the physical body are now keener. The body which a person carries around on earth is designed for activities on earth and therefore consists of flesh and bones, whereas the body that a spirit carries around in the next life is designed for activities in that life and does not consist of flesh and bones but of such things as correspond to these, see 3726.

[6] That 'flesh' in the contrary sense means the will side of the human proprium which in itself is nothing but evil is clear from the following places: In Isaiah,

Every man will eat the flesh of his own arm. Isaiah 9:20.

In the same prophet,

I will feed your oppressors with their own flesh, and they will be drunk with their blood as with new wine. Isaiah 49:26.

In Jeremiah,

I will feed them with the flesh of their sons and with the flesh of their daughters, and every man will eat the flesh of his companion. Jeremiah 19:9.

In Zechariah,

Those that are left will eat, every one the flesh of another. Zechariah 11:9.

In Moses,

I will chastise you seven times for your sins, and you will eat the flesh of your sons: and the flesh of your daughters will you eat. Leviticus 26:28-29.

The will side of the human proprium, or man's own natural inclinations, is described in this way because it is nothing but evil and consequent falsity, and so hatred against every form of truth or good, that are meant by 'eating the flesh of their own arm', 'the flesh of sons and daughters', and 'the flesh of another'.

[7] In John,

I saw an angel standing in the sun, who called out with a loud voice, saying to all the birds flying in mid-heaven, Come and gather yourselves to the supper of the great God, so that you may eat the flesh of kings, and the flesh of captains, and the flesh of mighty men, and the flesh of horses and those seated on them, and the flesh of all free men and slaves, both small and great. Revelation 19:17-18; Ezekiel 39:17-20.

Anyone may see that the flesh of kings, captains, mighty men, horses and those seated on them, free men and slaves, is not meant by such expressions. 'Flesh' accordingly has another meaning which has not been known up to now. The fact that evils resulting from falsities, and evils producing falsities, are meant - which evils originate on the will side of the human proprium - is evident from each expression used here.

[8] Since falsity which springs from the understanding side of man's proprium is meant by 'blood' in the internal sense, and evil which springs from the will side of his proprium by 'flesh', the Lord speaks of the person who is to be regenerated as follows,

As many as received Him, to them He gave power to be sons of God, to those believing in His name, who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. John 1:12-13.

For this reason 'flesh' is used to mean in general all mankind, see 574, 1050 (end). For whether you speak of man or of man's proprium it amounts to the same.

[9] That 'flesh' in the highest sense means the Lord's Divine Human is evident from the verses quoted above, as well as from the following in John,

The Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, glory as of the Only Begotten from the Father. John 1:14.

It is by virtue of this flesh that all other flesh is made alive, that is, by virtue of the Lord's Divine Human, every human being is made alive, through making His love his own, which is meant by 'eating the flesh of the Son of Man', John 6:51-58, and by eating the bread in the Holy Supper - for the bread is His body or flesh, Matthew 26:26-27.