746. Because the accuser of our brethren is cast down.- That this signifies after those have been separated from heaven, and condemned to hell, who fought against the life of faith, which is charity, is evident from the signification of being cast down, when said of the dragon, as denoting that those meant by the dragon were separated from heaven and condemned to hell (concerning which see above, n. 739, 742), and from the signification of the accuser of our brethren, as denoting those who fought against the life of faith, which is charity. For an accuser signifies one who attacks, rebukes, and reproaches, for he who accuses also attacks, rebukes, and reproaches; moreover, in the original, an adversary and one who reproaches are expressed by the same word. What is wonderful, although those who are dragons make no account of life, yet they accuse the faithful in the spiritual world, if they observe [in them] any evil of ignorance, for they inquire into their life in order that they may reproach and condemn them, and therefore they are called accusers.

[2] But by the brethren whom they accuse are meant all those in the heavens, and also all those on earth who are in the good of charity. Such are called brethren because they all have one Father, that is, the Lord; and those who are in the good of love to the Lord, and in the good of charity towards the neighbour, are His sons, and are also called sons of God, sons of the kingdom, and heirs. It follows, therefore, that since they are the sons of one Father, they are also brethren. Moreover, it is the chief commandment of the Lord the Father, that they should love one another, consequently it is love that makes them brethren; love also is spiritual conjunction. From this it came to pass that with the ancients, in the churches in which charity was the essential, all were called brethren; the same was the case in our Christian Church at its beginning. This is why brother, in the spiritual sense, signifies charity. That formerly all those who were of one church called themselves brethren, and that the Lord calls those brethren, who are in love to Him and in charity towards the neighbour, is evident from many passages in the Word. But in order that what is signified by brother may be distinctly seen, it shall be illustrated from the Word.

[3] (1) All who were of the Israelitish Church called themselves brethren, as is clear from the following passages.

In Isaiah:

"Then shall they bring all your brethren, out of all nations, a gift to Jehovah" (66:20).

In Jeremiah:

"No one shall cause a Jew, his brother, to serve" (34:9).

In Ezekiel:

"Son of man, thy brethren, thy brethren, the sons of thy kindred and the whole house of Israel" (11:15).

In Micah:

"Until the remnant of his brethren return unto the sons of Israel" (5:3).

In Moses:

"Moses went out unto his brethren, that he might see their burdens" (Exodus 2:11):

Moses said unto Jethro his father-in-law,

"I will return to my brethren, who are in Egypt" (Exodus 4:18);

"When thy brother shall be impoverished" (Leviticus 25:25, 35, 47).

"But as to your brethren, the sons of Israel, a man shall not rule over his brother with rigour" (Leviticus 25:46);

"Would to God that we had died when our brethren died before Jehovah" (Numbers 20:3).

"Behold, a man of the sons of Israel came and brought unto his brethren a Midianitish woman" (Numbers 25:6).

"Thou shalt open thine hand to thy brother; when thy brother, a Hebrew man or Hebrew woman, shall be sold to thee, he shall serve thee six years" (Deuteronomy 15:11, 12).

"If any man shall steal the soul (animam) of his brethren and shall make gain thereof" (Deuteronomy 24:7).

"Forty times shall he strike him, and not exceed, lest thy brother be accounted vile in thine eyes" (Deuteronomy 25:3; and elsewhere).

It is evident from these passages that the sons of Israel were all called brethren among themselves; the chief reason of their being so called was that they were descended from Jacob, who was their common father; but a reason more remote was that brother signifies the good of charity, and as this good is the essential of the church, also all are spiritually conjoined by it. Another reason is that Israel, in the highest sense, signifies the Lord, and consequently the sons of Israel signify the church.

[4] (2) They also called themselves man and brother, and also companion and brother, as in the following passages.

In Isaiah:

"The land is darkened and the people are become as fuel for the fire; they shall not spare a man (vir) his brother, they shall eat a man (vir) the flesh of his own arm, Menasseh Ephraim, and Ephraim Menasseh" (9:19-21).

Man and brother signify truth and good, and, in the opposite sense, falsity and evil, it is therefore also said Menasseh shall eat Ephraim, and Ephraim Menasseh, for Menasseh signifies voluntary good, and Ephraim intellectual truth, both of the external church, and in the opposite sense evil and falsity. But these words may be seen explained above (n. 386:2, 440:4, 600:13, 617:29).

[5] In the same:

"I will mingle Egypt with Egypt, that they may fight, a man (vir) against his brother, and a man against his companion, city against city, and kingdom against kingdom" (19:2).

Egypt here signifies the natural man separated from the spiritual; and because this is in no light of truth, it is continually disputing about good and evil, and about truth and falsity; and such disputation is signified by "I will mingle Egypt with Egypt, that they may fight, a man against his brother, and a man against his companion," brother and companion signifying good from which is truth, and truth from good, and in the opposite sense, evil from which is falsity, and falsity from evil. Therefore it is also said, "City against city, and kingdom against kingdom, city denoting doctrine, and kingdom the church from doctrine, which will contend in a similar manner.

[6] In the same:

"They help a man his companion, and one saith to his brother, Be strong" (41:6).

The signification of companion and brother is similar to that explained above.

In Jeremiah:

"Take ye heed a man of his companion, and trust not in any brother; for every brother supplanteth, and every companion slandereth" (Jeremiah 60:4).

In the same:

"I will scatter them, a man with his brother" (13:14).

In the same:

"Thus shall ye say a man to his companion, and a man to his brother, What hath Jehovah answered" (23:35).

In the same:

"Ye have not hearkened unto me, to proclaim liberty a man to his brother, and a man to his companion" (34:9, 17).

In Ezekiel:

"A man's sword shall be against his brother" (38:21).

In Joel:

"They shall not drive forward, a man his brother" (2:8).

In Micah:

"They all lie in wait for bloods, they hunt, a man his brother, with a net" (7:2).

In Zechariah:

"Show kindness and compassion, a man to his brother" (7:9).

In Malachi:

"Wherefore do we deal treacherously, a man against his brother" (2:10).

In Moses:

"There was a thick darkness of darkness over all the land of Egypt, a man saw not his brother" (Exodus 10:22, 23).

In the same:

"At the end of seven years every creditor shall withhold his hand when he hath loaned anything to his companion, neither shall he urge his companion or his brother" (Deuteronomy 15:1, 2).

In the nearest sense a man means every one, and brother one of the same tribe, because in blood relationship; and companion means one who is of another tribe, because so only by alliance. But in the spiritual sense a man signifies every one who is in truths, and in the opposite sense, every one who is in falsities; brother signifies every one who is in the good of charity, and, in an abstract sense, that good itself, while companion signifies every one who is in truth from that good, and, in an abstract sense, that truth itself; and in the opposite sense these signify the evil opposite to the good of charity, and the falsity opposite to the truth from that good. The terms brother and companion are both used, because there are two things that make the church - charity and faith, just as there are two things that make the life of man, will and understanding. There are in man two things which act as one, as the two eyes, two ears, two nostrils, two hands and feet, two lobes of the lungs, two chambers of the heart, two hemispheres of the brain, and so on, of which one has reference to good from which is truth, and the other to truth from good. This is why it is said brother and companion, and why brother signifies good, and companion its truth.

[7] (3) The Lord calls those of His church who are in the good of charity brethren, as is clear from the following passages.

In the Evangelists:

Jesus "stretching out his hand over his disciples, said, Behold my mother and my brethren; whosoever shall do the will of my Father, he is my brother and sister and mother" (Matthew 12:49, 50; Mark 3:33-35).

The disciples over whom the Lord stretched out His hand signify all those who are of His church; His brethren signify those who are in the good of charity from Him; sisters, those who are in truths from that good; while mother signifies the church from these.

[8] In Matthew:

Jesus said to Mary Magdalene and to the other Mary, "Fear not, go ye, tell my brethren to go into Galilee, and there they shall see me" (28:10).

Here also brethren mean the disciples, who signify all those of the church who are in the good of charity.

In John:

Jesus said to Mary, "Go to my brethren, and say to them, I ascend to my Father" (20:17).

Similarly here the disciples are called brethren, because the disciples, equally as brethren, signify all those of His church who are in the good of charity.

[9] In Matthew:

"The King answering said unto them, I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it to one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me" (25:40).

That those who have done the good works of charity are here called by the Lord brethren is evident from the words which precede the above. It must, however, be understood that although the Lord is their Father, still He calls them brethren; but He is their Father from the Divine Love, and brother from the Divine which proceeds from Him. The reason is that all in the heavens are recipients of the Divine which proceeds from Him, and the Divine which proceeds from the Lord, of which they are recipients, is the Lord in heaven and also in the church; and this is not of angel or man, but of the Lord in them; therefore the good of charity itself in them, which is the Lord's own, He calls brother, as He also calls angels and men, because they are the recipient subjects of that good. In a word, the proceeding Divine, which is the Divine of the Lord in the heavens, is the Divine born of the Lord in heaven; therefore from that Divine, angels, who are its recipients, are called Sons of God, and since these are brethren, because of the Divine received in themselves, it is therefore the Lord in them who says "brother," for angels, when they speak from the good of charity, do not speak from themselves, but from the Lord.

This then is why the Lord says, "Inasmuch as ye have done it to one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me." The goods of charity, enumerated in the verses preceding, are therefore, in the spiritual sense, the brethren of the Lord, and are called brethren by the Lord, for the reason just given. The King, also, who thus calls them, signifies the proceeding Divine, which in one word is called Divine Truth or the Spiritual Divine, which in its essence is the good of charity.

[10] It must therefore be born in mind, that the Lord did not call them brethren because He was a man like themselves, according to an opinion received in the Christian world; for this reason it follows that it is not allowable for any man to call the Lord brother, for He is God even as to the Human, and God is not a brother, but a Father. The Lord is called brother in the churches on earth because the idea which they have of His Human is the same as that which they have of the human of another man; nevertheless the Lord's Human is Divine.

[11] Because kings formally represented the Lord as to Divine Truth, and as Divine Truth received by angels in the spiritual kingdom of the Lord is the same as Divine spiritual good, and as spiritual good is the good of charity, therefore the kings appointed over the sons of Israel called their subjects brethren, although on the other hand, the subjects were not permitted to call their king brother; much less should the Lord, who is King of kings and Lord of lords be so called.

So in David:

"I will declare thy name to my brethren; in the midst of the congregation will I praise thee" (Psalm 22:22).

In the same:

"I am become an alien to my brethren, and a stranger to my mother's sons" (Psalm 69:8).

In the same:

"For my brethren and companions' sake I will say peace be unto thee" (Psalm 122:8).

David spoke these things as though they were about himself, yet David, in the representative spiritual sense, here means the Lord.

In Moses:

"Thou shalt set over them a king from the midst of thy brethren; thou mayest not set over them a man that is a stranger, who is not thy brother; but let him not lift up his heart above his brethren" (Deuteronomy 17:15, 20).

The brethren out of whom a king might be set over them, signify all who are of the church, for it is said, "Thou mayest not set over them a man that is a stranger," a man that is a stranger signifying one not of the church.

[12] In the same:

"Jehovah thy God will raise up unto thee a prophet out of the midst of thee from thy brethren, like unto me; him shall ye obey" (Deuteronomy 18:15, 18).

This is a prophecy concerning the Lord, who is meant by the prophet whom Jehovah God will raise up from the brethren. They are called thy brethren, that is, of Moses, because Moses, in the representative sense, means the Lord as to the Word, and a prophet means one who teaches the Word; thus also the Word and doctrine from the Word are meant, and this is why it is said, "like unto me." That Moses represented the Lord as to the law, thus as to the Word, may be seen in the Arcana Coelestia 4859 at end, 5922, 6723, 6752, 6771, 6827, 7010, 7014, 7089, 7382, 9372, 10234).

[13] (4) That all those who acknowledge Him, and are in the good of charity from Him, are called brethren by the Lord, follows from this, that the Lord is the Father of all and the teacher of all, and from Him, as a Father, is all the good of charity, and from Him, as a teacher, all the truth of that good; therefore the Lord says in Matthew:

"Be not ye called teacher, for one is your teacher, the Christ, but all ye are brethren. And call [no man] your Father upon earth, for one is your Father who is in the heavens" (23:8, 9).

It is manifestly clear from this that the Lord's words must be spiritually understood. For what teacher is there who may not be called teacher? or what father is there who is not called father? But because father signifies good, and the Father in the heavens the Divine Good, and as teacher or Rabbi signifies truth, and the "teacher, the Christ," the Divine Truth, therefore, on account of the spiritual sense in all things of the Word, it is said that they should not call a father on earth their father, nor anyone teacher. This refers to the spiritual sense, but not to the natural sense. In the natural sense men may be called teachers and fathers, but representatively, that is to say, teachers in the world do indeed teach truths, but from the Lord, not from themselves; and fathers in the world are indeed good, and lead their children to good, but from the Lord, not from themselves. It therefore follows, that although they are called teachers and fathers, still they are not teachers, and fathers, but the Lord alone is Teacher and Father. To call, and to call any one by a name also signifies, in the Word, to recognise the quality of any one. Because all in heaven and in the church are disciples and sons of the Lord as their Teacher and Father, therefore the Lord says, "All ye are brethren"; for the Lord calls all in heaven and in the church sons and heirs, from their consociation by love from Him, and thus by mutual love which is charity. It is consequently from the Lord that they are brethren; in this way must the common saying be understood that all are brethren in the Lord.

[14] From these considerations also it is evident that the Lord means by brethren all those who acknowledge Him, and are in the good of charity from Him, consequently those who are of His church. Such also the Lord means by brethren in the following passages.

In Luke:

Jesus said to Peter, "When thou hast turned again, strengthen thy brethren" (Luke 22:32).

Brethren here do not mean the Jews, but all those who acknowledge the Lord and are in good from charity and faith, thus all who should receive the gospel through Peter, both Jews and Gentiles; for Peter, in the Word of the Evangelists, means truth from good, consequently also faith from charity, but here Peter means faith separated from charity, for just previously it is said of him, "Simon, lo, Satan hath demanded you, that he may sift you as wheat; but I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not" (verses 31, 32); and afterwards it is said to him, "I say unto thee, Peter, the cock shall not crow this day until thou hast thrice denied that thou knowest me" (verse 34). Such also is faith without charity. But by Peter turned again is signified truth from good, which is from the Lord, or faith from charity, which is from the Lord, therefore it is said, "When then thou hast turned again, strengthen thy brethren."

[15] In Matthew:

"Peter said, Lord, how oft shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him?" (18:21).

In the same:

"So also will my heavenly Father do to you, if ye from your hearts forgive not every one his brother their trespasses" (18:35).

In the same:

"If thy brother hath sinned against thee, go and accuse him between thee and him alone; if he hear thee, thou hast gained thy brother" (18:15).

Here brother means the neighbour in general, thus every man, but specifically one whoever he may be who is in the good of charity and thus in faith from the Lord; for these passages treat of the good of charity, since to forgive one who sins against you is of charity. It is also said, "If he hear, thou hast gained thy brother," which signifies if he acknowledges his trespasses, and turns again.

[16] Again in Matthew:

"Why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother's eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye? Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me cast out the mote out of thine eye, when yet there is a beam in thine own eye? Thou hypocrite, cast out first the beam out of thine own eye, and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother's eye" (7:3-5).

Here also the term brother is used, because the subject treated of is charity; for to cast out the mote out of a brother's eye signifies to give instruction about falsity and evil, and to reform. The reason why the Lord said "a mote out of thy brother's eye," and "a beam out of one's own eye," is that a spiritual sense is contained in every thing which the Lord spoke; for without that sense, of what consequence would it be to see a mote in the eye of another, and not consider a beam in one's own eye, or to cast a beam out of one's own eye before one casts a mote out of another's eye? For a mote signifies a small falsity of evil, and a beam a great falsity of evil, while the eye signifies the understanding and also faith. Mote and beam signify the falsity of evil because wood signifies good; thus a beam signifies the truth of good, and, in the opposite sense, the falsity of evil, and the eye the understanding and faith. It is therefore plain what is signified by seeing the mote and the beam, and by casting them out of the eye. That wood signifies good, and, in the opposite sense, evil, may be seen in the Arcana Coelestia 643, 3720, 4943, 8354, 8740), and that the eye signifies the understanding, and also faith (n. 2701, 4403-4421, 4523-4534, 9051, 10569), and also above (n. 37, 152). Moreover, in some passages beam is mentioned, and it signifies falsity of evil. As in Genesis 19:8; 2 Kings 6:2, 5, 6; Habak. 2:11; Cant. 1:17.

[17] Again in Matthew:

"He who doeth and teacheth shall be called great in the kingdom of the heavens. I say unto you, Except your justice shall exceed the justice of the Scribes and Pharisees, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of the heavens. Ye have heard that it was said to them of old time, Thou shalt not kill, but whosoever shall kill shall be liable to the judgment; but I say unto you, That whosoever is angry with his brother rashly shall be liable to the judgment; but whosoever shall say to his brother, Raca, shall be liable to the council; but whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be liable to the gehenna of fire. If thou offer thy gift upon the altar, and there remember that thy brother hath ought against thee, leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy way, first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift" (5:19-24).

In the whole of that chapter the subject treated of is the interior life of man, which is that of his soul, consequently of his will and the thought therefrom, thus it treats of the life of charity, which is the spiritual moral life. Of this life the sons of Jacob knew nothing before, because even from their fathers downward they were external men. On this account also they were kept in the observance of external worship, according to external statutes that represented the internal things of worship and of the church. But the Lord in this chapter teaches that the interior things of the church ought not only to be represented by external acts, but must also be loved and done from the soul and heart. Therefore that whosoever from interior life teaches and does the external things of the church will be saved, is signified by "He who doeth and teacheth shall be called great in the kingdom of the heavens." "Except your justice shall exceed the justice of the Scribes and Pharisees, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of the heavens," signifies that unless the life be internal, and from that, external, heaven is not in man and man is not received into heaven; justice signifies the good of life from the good of charity, and to exceed that of the Scribes and Pharisees signifies that the life must be internal, and not external without the internal. The Scribes and Pharisees were only in representative externals, and not in internals.

External from internal life is taught in the commandment of the decalogue, "Thou shalt not kill." But they did not know that wishing to kill a man is the same as killing him, therefore it is first said, "Ye have heard that it was said to them of old time, Thou shalt not kill, and whosoever shall kill shall be liable to the judgment." For the opinion had prevailed among the Jews from ancient time, that it was lawful to kill those who injured them, especially the Gentiles, and that they were only to be punished for it lightly or grievously according to the state of the case in regard to the enmity manifested, consequently only as to the body and not as to the soul; this is meant by being liable to the judgment.

[18] That he who without adequate cause thinks ill of his neighbour, and turns himself away from the good of charity, will be punished lightly as to the soul, is signified by Whosoever is angry with his brother rashly shall be liable to the judgment; to be angry signifies to think ill, for it is distinguished from "to say Raca," and "to say Thou fool." Brother means the neighbour, and also the good of charity, and to be liable to the judgment means to be examined and punished according to circumstances. That he who from evil thought slanders his neighbour, and thus holds the good of charity in contempt as of no account, will be grievously punished, is signified by Whosoever shall say to his brother, Raca, shall be liable to the council, - for to say Raca signifies from evil thought to slander the neighbour, thus to hold in contempt the good of charity as of no account, to say Raca signifying to account as nothing, thus of no account, and brother the good of charity. That he who hates the neighbour, that is he who altogether turns away from the good of charity, is condemned to hell, is signified by Whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be liable to the gehenna of fire, - to say "Thou fool" denoting entire aversion, brother denoting the good of charity, and gehenna of fire denoting the hell where those are who hate that good and thus the neighbour. Three degrees of hatred are described by these three, the first is that of evil thought, which is "to be angry," the second is that of a consequent evil intention, which is "to say Raca," and the third is that of an evil will, which is "to say Thou fool." All these are degrees of hatred against the good of charity; for hatred is the opposite of this good. The three degrees of punishment are signified by the judgment, the council, and the gehenna of fire, punishments for the evils of a lighter kind being signified by the judgment, punishments for those of a more grievous kind by the council, and for the most grievous of all, by the gehenna of fire.

[19] Since the whole of heaven is in the good of charity towards the neighbour, and the whole of hell is in anger, enmity, and hatred against the neighbour, and as these are the opposites of that good, and as the worship of the Lord when it is internal is worship from heaven, but is not worship if anything of it is from hell, and yet external worship without internal is from hell, therefore it is said, "If thou offer thy gift upon the altar, and there remember that thy brother hath aught against thee, go thy way, first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift upon the altar." The gift upon the altar signifies the worship of the Lord, from love and charity; brother means the neighbour, and in the abstract, the good of charity; to have aught against thee signifies anger, enmity or hatred, and to be reconciled signifies the dispersion of these, and consequent conjunction by love.

[20] It is evident from these things that the Lord meant by brother the same as by neighbour; and neighbour, in the spiritual sense, signifies good in its whole extent; and good in its whole extent is the good of charity. Brother has a similar meaning in the spiritual sense in many passages in the Old Testament.

As in Moses:

"Thou shalt not hate thy brother in thine heart" (Leviticus 19:17).

In David:

"Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity" (Psalm 133:1).

In this sense also, Lot called the inhabitants of Sodom brethren (Genesis 19:7); and this is also meant by "the covenant of brethren" between the sons of Israel and Edom (Amos 1:9); and by "the brotherhood between Judah and Israel" (Zech. 11:14). For by the sons of Israel and Edom, also by Judah and Israel, are not meant these in the spiritual sense, but the goods and truths of heaven and the church, which are all conjoined one with another.

386. And with hunger. That this signifies by privation, lack, and ignorance of the knowledges of truth and good, is plain from the signification of hunger, as denoting the privation of the knowledges of truth and good, also a lack and ignorance of them. These things are signified by hunger in the Word. The reason that these things are signified by hunger, is, because by meat and drink are signified all things that nourish and sustain the spiritual life, which in general are the knowledges of truth and good. The spiritual life itself has need equally of nourishment and support as the natural life; therefore when man is deprived of them, or when they fail, or when they are unknown and yet are desired, that life is said to be in famine. Natural foods also correspond to spiritual foods, as bread to the good of love, wine to the truths thence, and other meats and drinks specifically to their own goods and truths. This has been treated of throughout in the numbers preceding, and will be treated in those following. It is said that hunger signifies deprivation of the knowledges of truth and good, also a lack and ignorance thereof, because there is deprivation with those who are in evils and the falsities thence, a lack with those who cannot know them, because they are not in the church or in its doctrine, and ignorance, with those who know that [such knowledges] exist and thence desire them. These three are signified by famine in the Word, as is evident from the passages there in which famine, the hungry, thirst, and the thirsty, are named.

[2] (i) That famine signifies a deprivation of the knowledges of truth and good which takes place with those who are in evils and the falsities thence, is plain from the following passages. In Isaiah:

"In the wrath of Jehovah of hosts is the land darkened, the people are become fuel for the fire; a man shall not spare his brother. And if he shall snatch on the right hand, he shall yet be hungry; and if he shall eat on the left hand, they shall not be satisfied; they shall eat every man the flesh of his own arm; Manasseh, Ephraim; and Ephraim, Manasseh; they together against Jehovah" (Isaiah 9:18-21).

No one can understand these words but from the internal sense, nor even the subject treated of, which is the extinction of good by falsity, and of truth by evil. The perversion of the church by falsity, is meant by the land being darkened in the wrath of Jehovah of hosts; and the perversion thereof by evil, is meant by the people becoming fuel for the fire; the land darkened, signifies the church where there is not truth, but only falsity; and fuel for the fire, signifies the consuming of it by the love of evil, fire denoting the love of evil; falsity destroying good, is meant by, "a man shall not spare his brother," man (vir) and brother signifying truth and good, here man [signifying] falsity, and brother good, because it is said, he shall not spare him. The consequent deprivation of all good and of all truth, however it may be sought for, is meant by, "if he shall snatch on the right hand, he shall yet be hungry; and if he shall eat on the left hand, they shall not be satisfied"; the right hand signifying good from which is truth, and the left hand, truth from good. To snatch at and to eat those things, signifies to seek for; and to be hungry and not be satisfied, denotes to be deprived of. That evil will extinguish all truth, and falsity all good, is meant by, "they shall eat every man the flesh of his own arm," the flesh of the arm denoting the power of good by truth, man denoting falsity, and to eat denoting to extinguish. That thence all the will of good and the understanding of truth perish, is meant by Manasseh eating Ephraim, and Ephraim Manasseh. (That Manasseh denotes the will of good, and Ephraim the understanding of truth, may be seen, n. 3969, 5354, 6222, 6234, 6238, 6267, 6296.) That this is the case with those who are in evils and falsities, is meant by, "they together against Jehovah"; for when the will is in good and the understanding in truth, then they are with Jehovah; because they are both from Him; but when the will is in evil, and the understanding in falsity, then they are against Jehovah.

[3] In the same:

"Rejoice not thou, whole Philistea, that the rod that smiteth thee is broken; for from the serpent's root shall come forth a basilisk, the fruit of which shall be a flying serpent. I will kill thy root with famine, and it shall slay thy remainder" (14:29, 30).

Almost similar things are meant by these [words,] in the internal sense, but those are here treated of who believe that the interior sight alone of the natural man is faith, and that by the latter or the former they are justified and saved, thus denying that the good of charity is of any efficacy. Those who are of such a nature, are meant by the Philistines, and a company of them by Philistea (as may be seen, n. 3412, 3413, 8093, 8313). That this false principle, which is faith alone, or faith separated from charity, destroys all the good and truth of the church, is meant by its being said, from the serpent's root shall come forth a basilisk, the serpent's root denoting that false principle, and a basilisk denoting the destruction of the good and truth of the church thereby. That thence arises reasoning from absolute falsities, is meant by, the fruit of which shall be a flying serpent, a flying serpent denoting reasoning from falsities. The deprivation of all truth, and thence of all good, is meant by, "I will kill thy root with famine, and famine shall slay thy remainder," famine denoting the deprivation of truth and good, and the remainder denoting all things brought forth from that principle. That such things are meant, has also been made evident by experience itself. Those who have confirmed themselves in the principle concerning faith alone in doctrine and in life, are seen in the spiritual world as basilisks, and their reasonings as flying serpents.

[4] In the same:

Who formeth a God, and casteth a molten image, and it profiteth not. "He worketh the iron with the tongs, and operateth upon it with the coal, and he formeth it with pointed hammers; so he worketh it by the arm of his strength; he is even hungry until his strength faileth, neither doth he drink until he is weary" (44:10, 12).

The formation of doctrine from the proprium, both from the intellect and the love, is described by these words. By forming a God, is signified doctrine from [one's] own understanding; and by casting a molten image, from self-love. By working the iron with the tongs, and operating upon it with the coal, is signified the falsity which he calls truth, and the evil which he calls good; iron denoting falsity, and a fire of coal denoting the evil of self-love. By, "he formeth it with pointed hammers," is signified by ingenious reasonings from falsities that they may appear to be coherent; by, "so he worketh it by the arm of his strength," is signified from the proprium; by, "he is even hungry until his strength faileth, neither doth he drink until he is weary," is signified that there is nowhere anything of good or anything of truth; to hunger signifies the deprivation of good, and not to drink the deprivation of truth. And until his strength faileth, and until he is weary, signifies till nothing of good and nothing of truth remains. How can he who looks at the Word from the sense of the letter only, suppose otherwise than that the formation of a graven image is here described? Yet any one can see that such a description of the formation of a graven image involves nothing spiritual. Nay, more, it would be superfluous to say, that he even hungers until he has no strength, neither doth he drink until he is weary. But not only in the Word here, but also elsewhere, the formation of a religion and doctrine of falsity is described by idols, graven and molten images, which signify the falsities of religion, and of doctrine originating from [man's] own understanding, and from self-love (see n. 8869, 8932, 8941, 9424, 10406, 10503).

[5] In the same:

"These two things are come unto thee; who shall be sorry for thee? devastation and a breach and famine and the sword" (51:19).

By famine is here also meant the deprivation of the knowledges (cognitions) of good, even till there is no more good; and by the sword the deprivation of the knowledges (cognitions) of truth, even till there is no more truth; therefore mention is also made of devastation and a breach, devastation signifying that there is no more good, and a breach that there is no more truth.

[6] In the same:

"Thus said the Lord Jehovih, Behold, my servants shall eat, but ye shall be hungry; my servants shall drink, but ye shall be thirsty; behold, my servants shall rejoice, but ye shall be ashamed" (65:13).

Here, also, by being hungry and thirsty is meant to be deprived of the good of love and the truths of faith, by being hungry to be deprived of the good of love, and by being thirsty to be deprived of the truths of faith; by eating and drinking are signified the communication and appropriation of goods and truths; and by the servants of the Lord Jehovih, those who receive goods and truths from the Lord; hence it is evident what is signified by, "Behold, my servants shall eat, but ye shall be hungry; my servants shall drink, but ye shall be thirsty." That the former shall have eternal happiness, but the latter unhappiness, is signified by, "Behold, my servants shall rejoice, but ye shall be ashamed."

[7] In Jeremiah:

"By the sword, by famine, and by pestilence will I consume them; Yet I said, Ah, Lord Jehovih! behold the prophets say unto them, Ye shall not see the sword, neither shall ye have famine; wherefore thus said Jehovah against the prophets prophesying in my name, when I sent them not; yet they say the sword and famine shall not be in this land, by the sword and by famine shall these prophets be consumed; the people to whom they prophesy shall be cast out in the streets of Jerusalem, neither shall there be any to bury them" (14:12, 13, 15, 16).

By sword, famine, and pestilence, is signified the deprivation of truth and good, and thence of spiritual life, by falsities and evils; by the sword, the deprivation of truth by falsities; by famine, the deprivation of good by evils; and by the pestilence, the deprivation of spiritual life. By prophets are meant those who teach the truths of doctrine, and, in an abstract sense, the doctrinals of truth. Hence it is evident what is signified by all these, namely, that those who teach the doctrine of falsity and evil shall perish by the things which are signified by sword and famine. That those also who receive that doctrine from them are separated from all the truth of the church, and damned, is signified by, "they shall be cast out in the streets of Jerusalem, neither shall there be any to bury them"; the streets of Jerusalem denoting the truths of the church, to be cast out in them denoting to be separated from those truths, and not to be buried denoting to be damned.

[8] Similar things are signified by the sword, famine, and pestilence in the following passages, namely, by the sword, the deprivation of truth by falsities; by famine, the deprivation of good by evils; and by pestilence, the consumption and deprivation of spiritual life thence.

In Jeremiah:

"They shall be consumed by the sword, and by famine, that their carcase may be meat to the birds of the heavens, and to the beast of the earth" (16:4).

The dead body being meat to the birds of the heavens, signifies damnation by falsities; and their being meat to the beast of the earth, damnation by evils.

In the same:

"They denied Jehovah, when they said, He is not; neither shall evil come upon us; and we shall not see sword and famine " (5:12).

In the same:

"Behold, I will visit upon them; the young men shall die by the sword; their sons and their daughters shall die by famine" (11:22).

In the same:

"Give their sons to the famine, and make them flow down upon the hands of the sword, that their wives may become bereaved and widows, and their men be put to death, their young men smitten by the sword in war" (18:21).

In the same:

"I will send upon them the sword, the famine, and the pestilence, and will make them like vile figs, that cannot be eaten for badness. And I will pursue after them with the sword, with famine, and with pestilence" (29:17, 18).

In the same:

"I will send the sword, the famine, and the pestilence upon them, till they be consumed from off the land that I gave to them and to their fathers" (24:10).

In the same:

"I proclaim a liberty for you, to the sword, to the pestilence, and to the famine; and I will deliver you up to commotion in all the kingdoms of the earth" (34:17).

In the Evangelists:

"Nation shall be roused against nation, and kingdom against kingdom; and there shall be pestilences, and famines, and earthquakes, in divers places" (Matthew 14:7; Mark 13:8; Luke 21:11).

In Ezekiel:

"Because thou hast defiled my sanctuary, a third part of thee shall die with the pestilence, and with famine shall they be consumed in the midst of thee; and a third part shall fall by the sword round about thee; and I will scatter a third part to every wind. When I shall send among them the evil arrows of famine, which shall be for their destruction; whilst I will send them to destroy you; yet, for all that, I will increase the famine upon you, until I break your staff of bread. And I will send upon you famine and the evil wild beast, and I will make thee bereaved; and pestilence and blood shall pass through thee" (5:11, 12, 16, 17).

In the same:

"The sword from without, and the pestilence and famine within; he who is in the field shall die by the sword, but him who is in the city shall the famine and the pestilence devour" (7:15).

In the same:

"On account of all the evil abominations they shall fall by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence. He who is far off shall die by the pestilence; he who is near shall fall by the sword; and he who remaineth and hath been kept alive, shall die by the famine" (6:11, 12).

In Jeremiah:

"But if ye say, We will not dwell in this land, that you may not obey the voice of Jehovah your God; [saying,] No; but we will go into the land of Egypt, where we shall see no war, and shall not hear the sound of the trumpet, and shall not hunger for bread; and there will we dwell; hear ye the word of Jehovah, If ye wholly set your faces to go into Egypt, and come to sojourn there, it shall come to pass, that the sword, which ye feared, shall seize you there in the land of Egypt, and the famine, whereof ye were fearful, shall follow close after you in Egypt; and there ye shall die. And they shall die there by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence; neither shall one of them remain by reason of the evil that I will bring upon you. And ye shall be a reviling, and an astonishment, and reproach; neither shall ye see this place any more. Now therefore know certainly that ye shall die by the sword, by the famine, and by the pestilence, in the place whither ye have desired to come in order to sojourn there" (42:13-18, 22; 44:12, 13, 27).

By Egypt is here signified the Natural, and by coming into Egypt and sojourning there, is signified to become natural. (That Egypt denotes the scientific of the natural man, and that hence it denotes the Natural, and the land of Egypt the natural mind (mens) may be seen, n. 4967, 5079, 5080, 5095, 5160, 5276, 5278, 5280, 5288, 5301, 5799, 6015, 6147, 6252, 7353, 7648, 9340, 9391; and that to sojourn denotes to be instructed, and to live, n. 1463, 2025, 3672.) From these considerations it is evident what is signified in the spiritual sense by, they should not come into Egypt, and they should then die by the sword, the famine, and the pestilence, namely, if they became merely natural, they would be deprived of all truth, good, and spiritual life; for the natural man separate from the spiritual is in falsities and evils, and thence in infernal life - (That the natural man separate from the spiritual is of such a nature, may be seen in the Doctrine of the New Jerusalem 47, 48); - it is therefore said that if they came into it, they should be a reviling, and an astonishment, and a reproach, neither should they see this place [any more]. By the place which they should see [no more] is meant the state of the spiritual man, the same as by the land of Canaan. Such things are also signified by the murmurings of the sons of Israel in the wilderness, in that they desired so often to return into Egypt, therefore also manna was given to them, by which is signified spiritual nourishment (Exodus 16:2, 3, 7-9, 22).

[9] In Ezekiel:

"Then I shall stretch out mine hand against the house of Israel, that I may break its staff of bread, and send famine into it, and cut off man and beast from it. When I shall cause the evil wild beast to pass through the land, and it shall bereave it, that it become a desolation. When I shall send my four evil judgments upon Jerusalem, the sword, and the famine, and the evil wild beast, and the pestilence, to cut off from it man and beast" (14:13, 15, 21).

In these words is described the vastation of the church. The house of Israel and Jerusalem denote the church; by breaking the staff of bread is signified to destroy everything celestial and spiritual, by which [it is] to be nourished; for bread implies everything of heaven and the church, or all spiritual nourishment; and by cutting off man and beast (bestiam), is signified all spiritual and natural affection; therefore by the sword, the famine, the evil wild beast [feram], and the pestilence, are signified the destruction of truth by falsity, of good by evil, of the affection of truth and good by the lusts arising from evil loves, and the consequent extinction of spiritual life; these are called the four evil judgments, which are also meant by the sword, by hunger, by death, and by the evil wild beast in this verse of the Apocalypse. That it is the vastation of the church which is thus described, is evident.

[10] The three evils signified by the famine, the sword, and the pestilence, were also announced by the prophet Gad to David, after he had numbered the people (2 Sam. 24:13). No one can know why such evils were denounced against David because of his numbering the people, unless he knows that the people of Israel represented, and thence signified, the church as to all its truths and goods, and that to number signified to know the quality thereof, and afterwards to arrange and dispose them according to it. Because no one can know and do this but the Lord alone; and the man who attempts to do so, deprives himself of all good and truth, also of spiritual life, therefore because David did this representatively, those three [evils] were proposed to him, of which he might choose one. Who does not see that there was nothing evil in numbering the people, and that the evil on account of which David and his people were punished was concealed interiorly, namely, in the representatives in which the church then was? In those passages adduced, famine signifies the deprivation of the knowledges of truth and good, and thence the deprivation of all truth and good.

[11] (ii) That famine also signifies the lack of them [i.e. of knowledges], which is with those who cannot know them, because they are not in the church or in the doctrine thereof, is plain from the following passages.

In Amos:

"Behold, the days come, in which I will send a famine into the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of Jehovah; that they may wander from sea to sea, from the north to the east; they shall run to and fro to seek the word of Jehovah, and shall not find it. In that day shall the fair virgins and youths faint for thirst" (8:11-13).

Here is explained what is meant by famine and by thirst, namely, that a famine of bread is not meant, nor a thirst for waters, but of hearing the word of Jehovah, thus that it is a lack of the knowledges (cognitions) of good and truth that is meant; and that these are not in the church, or in the doctrine thereof, is described by, they shall wander from sea to sea, and from the north unto the east, to seek the word of Jehovah, and shall not find it. From sea to sea signifies on all sides, for the last boundaries in the spiritual world appear as seas, where truths and goods take their beginning and are terminated; therefore seas in the Word signify the knowledges of truth and good, also scientifics in general. From the north to the east, also signifies on all sides, where truth and good are; the north denoting where truth is in obscurity, and the east denoting where good is. Because a lack of the knowledges of good and truth is signified by hunger and thirst, therefore it is also said, in that day shall the fair virgins and youths faint for thirst"; fair virgins denoting the affections of truth from good, and young men denoting the truths themselves that are of good, the thirst by which they shall faint denoting the lack thereof. (That virgins signify the affections of good and truth, may be seen, n.2362, 3963, 6729, 6775, 6788; and that young men signify truths themselves, and intelligence, see n. 7668.)

[12] In Isaiah:

"Therefore my people shall live in banishment for want of knowledge; and men of famine shall be the glory thereof, and the multitude thereof dried up with thirst" (5:13).

The desolation or destruction of the church for want of the knowledges of good and truth, is signified by, "My people shall live in banishment for want of knowledge." The Divine truth which constitutes the church is signified by glory; that this is not, and that, consequently, good is not, is signified by the glory thereof being men of famine, men of famine denoting those who have no perception of good, and no knowledges of truth; and that hence they have no truth is signified by the multitude thereof being dried up with thirst, to be dried up with thirst denoting a lack of truth, and multitude in the Word being said of truths.

[13] In the same:

"Let the people seek their God, the law, and the testimony; for they shall pass through it perplexed and famished; and it shall come to pass, that when they hunger, they shall be indignant, and shall curse their king, and their gods, and shall look upwards; they shall look also to the land, but behold straitness and thick darkness" (8:19-22).

Those who are in falsities from a lack of the knowledges of truth and good, and their indignation in consequence are here treated of; the defect is described by their looking upwards, and also regarding the earth, but behold, straitness and thick darkness. To look upwards and to regard the earth, denotes [to look] everywhere where are goods and truths. But, "behold, straitness and thick darkness," denotes that they are nowhere [to be found], but absolute falsities, thick darkness denoting dense falsity. Their indignation in consequence is described by, "and it shall come to pass, that when they hunger, they shall be indignant, and shall curse their king and their gods, to be hungry denotes a desire to know; king denotes falsity; the gods denote the falsities of worship thence; and to curse denotes to detest.

[14] In Lamentations:

"Lift up thy hands" to the Lord "over the soul of thy children, that faint for hunger in the top of all the streets" (2:19).

Lamentation over those who are to be instructed in the knowledges of good and truth by which spiritual life is attained, is described by, "Lift up thy hands to the Lord over the soul of thy children"; and the want of those knowledges is described by their fainting for hunger in the top of all the streets; hunger denotes want; streets denote truths of doctrine; to faint in the top of them, denotes their absence.

[15] In the same:

"Servants have ruled over us; neither is there any to deliver out of their hand. We get our bread with the peril of our souls because of the sword of the wilderness. Our skins are black like an oven because of the storms of famine" (5:8-10).

By the servants that have ruled while there was none to deliver out of their hand, are signified evils of life and falsities of doctrine, in general evil loves and false principles. We get our bread with the peril of our souls, because of the sword of the wilderness, signifies that there is no good from which the true spiritual life [results], in consequence of the falsity everywhere reigning; the bread denotes the good from which spiritual life [is derived]; the sword denotes falsity destroying; and the wilderness denotes where there is no good because no truth, for all good with man is formed by truths, therefore, where there are not truths, but falsities, good is not. Our skins are black like an oven because of the storms of famine, signifies that for want of the knowledges of good and truth the natural man is in its own evil love. The skin, from correspondence with the grand man or heaven, signifies the natural man; to be black like an oven, signifies to be in its own evil from falsities; and the storms of famine signify an entire lack of the knowledges of good and truth.

[16] In Luke:

"Woe unto you that are full! for ye shall hunger" (6:25).

By the full in the Word are meant those who have the Word, where are all the knowledges (cognitions) of good and truth; and by being hungry is meant being in need of them, and being deprived of them.

In Job:

"Blessed is the man whom God hath chastened; therefore reject not the discipline of Schaddai. In famine he shall redeem thee from death; and in war from the hands of the sword" (5:17, 20).

This treats of those who are in temptations; temptations are signified by, "whom God hath chastened," and by, "the discipline of Schaddai." By Schaddai also are signified temptations, deliverance from them, and consolation after them (as may be seen, n. 1992, 3667, 4572, 5628, 6229). Famine in which he shall be redeemed, signifies temptation as to the perception of good, in which he shall be delivered from evil; to redeem is to deliver; and the hand of the sword in the war, signifies temptation as to the understanding of truth, war also denoting temptation or combat against falsities.

[17] (iii) That famine in the Word also signifies ignorance of the knowledges of truth and good, as applied to those who know that there are such knowledges and thence desire them, is plain from the following passages. In Matthew:

"Blessed are they who hunger for justice, for they shall be filled" (5:6).

To hunger for justice signifies to desire good, for in the Word justice is said of good.

And in Luke:

"God hath filled the hungry with good things; and the rich he hath sent empty away" (1:53).

They that hunger denote those who are in ignorance of the knowledges of truth and good, and yet in the desire of them and the rich, those who possess in abundance those knowledges, but have no desire for them. That the former are enriched, is signified by God filling them with good things; and that the latter are deprived thereof, is signified by God sending them away empty.

[18] In David:

"Behold, the eye of Jehovah is upon them that fear him, to deliver their soul from death, and to keep them alive in famine " (Psalms 33:18, 19).

By them that fear Jehovah are meant those who love to do His precepts. By delivering the soul from death, is signified from evils and falsities, and thence from damnation; and by keeping them alive in famine, is signified to give spiritual life according to the desire. The desire for the knowledges of truth and good is the spiritual affection of truth, which exists only with those who are in good of life, that is, who do the Lord's precepts, who, as has been said, are meant by them that fear Jehovah.

[19] Again:

"Let them confess his mercy to Jehovah, that he satisfieth the longing soul, and filleth the hungry soul with good" (Psalms 107:8, 9).

To satisfy the longing soul, and to fill the hungry soul with good, means for those who desire truths and goods; the longing soul signifying those who desire truths, and the hungry soul, those who desire goods.

Again:

"There is no want to them that fear" Jehovah. "The young lions do lack, and suffer hunger; but they that seek Jehovah shall not want any good thing" (Psalms 34:9, 10).

Here also they that fear Jehovah, who have no want, signify those who love to do the Lord's precepts; and they that seek Jehovah, who shall not want any good thing, signify those who are therefore loved by the Lord, and receive goods and truths from Him. The young lions that lack, and suffer hunger, signify those who know and are wise from themselves; to lack and suffer hunger denote that they have neither truth nor good. (What lions in both senses signify, may be seen, n. 278.)

[20] Again:

Jehovah "who executeth judgment for the oppressed; who giveth bread to the hungry. Jehovah who looseth the prisoners" (Psalms 146:7).

By the oppressed are here meant those who are in falsities from ignorance; their oppression is from spirits who are in falsities; therefore, it is said Jehovah executeth judgment for them, by vindicating them from those that oppress. By the hungry are meant those who desire goods, and because the Lord nourishes them, it is said Jehovah "giveth bread to the hungry"; to give bread denotes to nourish, and spiritual nourishment consists in knowledge (scientia), intelligence, and wisdom. And by those that are bound are meant those who desire truths, but are withheld from them by falsities of doctrine, or by ignorance, because they have not the Word. Therefore to loose the bound denotes to liberate from them. (That such are called bound, may be seen, n. 5037, 5086, 5096.)

[21] Again:

Jehovah "turneth the wilderness into a lake of waters, and a land of dryness into the going forth of waters. And there he maketh the hungry to dwell, that they may prepare a city of habitation; and sow the fields, and plant vineyards, and make fruit of increase" (107:35-37).

These words are to be understood altogether otherwise than according to the sense of the letter, namely thus, that those who are ignorant of the knowledges of truth, and yet are desirous of knowing them, shall be greatly enriched and opulent; for by Jehovah turning the wilderness into a lake of waters, is signified that where there was ignorance there shall be abundance of truth, a wilderness denoting where there is ignorance of truth, and a lake of waters an abundance of it. By turning a land of dryness into the going forth of waters, is signified the same in the natural man, for the land of dryness denotes where there is ignorance of truth, the going forth of waters denotes abundance; the natural man denotes the going forth, and waters denote truths. That "He maketh the hungry to dwell there," signifies that [He maketh] those [live] who are in the desire for truth; to dwell denotes to live, and they that are hungry denote those who desire. "That they may prepare a city of habitation," signifies to form for themselves a doctrine of life; a city denoting doctrine, and a habitation denoting life. That they may "sow the fields, and plant vineyards, and make fruit of increase," signifies to receive truths, to understand them, and to do them; to sow fields denotes to be instructed and to receive truths; to plant vineyards denotes to receive those [truths] in the understanding, that is, in the spirit, for vineyards denote spiritual truths, whence to plant them denotes spiritually to receive, that is, to understand those [truths]; to make fruit of increase denotes to do them and to receive goods, for fruits are the deeds and goods of charity.

[22] Again:

"Jehovah knoweth the days of the upright; and shall be their inheritance for ever. They shall not be ashamed in the time of evil; and in the days of famine they shall be satisfied" (Psalms 37:18, 19).

The days of the upright signify the states of those who are in good, and in the truths thence, or those who are in charity, and in the faith thence. By Jehovah being their inheritance for ever, is signified that they are His own and are in heaven; by their not being ashamed in the time of evil, is signified that they shall conquer when they are tempted by evils; and by their being satisfied in the days of famine, is signified that they shall be supported by truths, when they are tempted and infested by falsities. The time of evil and the day of famine, signify states of temptations; and temptations are from evils and falsities.

[23] In the first book of Samuel:

"The bows of the mighty were broken, and they that stumbled were girded with strength. The full have hired themselves for bread; and the hungry have ceased, even until the barren hath borne seven, and she that hath many children hath failed" (2:4, 5).

Here, by the full who have hired themselves for bread, and by the hungry who have ceased, are signified those who wish for and desire goods and truths. The rest may be seen explained above (n. 257 and 357).

[24] In Isaiah:

"The fool speaketh foolishness, and his heart worketh iniquity, to practise hypocrisy, and to utter error against Jehovah, to make empty the hungry soul, and to cause the drink of the thirsty to fail" (32:6).

He is here called a fool who is in falsities and evils from the love of self, consequently, from his own intelligence. Falsities are meant by the foolishness which he speaks; and evils, by the iniquity which his heart works. The evils which he speaks against goods are meant by the hypocrisy which he practises; and the falsities which he speaks against truths, by the error which he speaks against Jehovah. That this is to persuade and destroy those who desire goods and truths, is meant by making empty the hungry soul, and causing the drink of the thirsty to fail; the hungry soul denoting those who desire goods, and he who thirsteth for drink, those who desire truths.

[25] Again:

"If thou draw out thy soul to the hungry, and satisfy the afflicted soul, thy light shall arise in darkness, and thy thick darkness be as the noonday" (58:10).

By these words is described charity towards the neighbour, here towards those who are in ignorance, and at the same time in the desire of knowing truths, and in grief on account of the falsities by which they are possessed; and that with those who are in that charity, falsities shall be dispelled, and truths give light and shine. Charity towards those who are in ignorance, and at the same time in the desire of knowing truths, is meant by, if thou draw out thy soul to the hungry; the hungry denoting those who desire, and the soul denoting the intelligence of truth instructing. That it is so with those who are in grief on account of the falsities with which they are possessed, is meant by, if thou wouldst satisfy the afflicted soul; that with those who are in such charity, ignorance will be dissipated, and truths give light and shine, is meant by, thy light shall arise in darkness, and thy thick darkness be as the noonday. Darkness signifies the ignorance of the spiritual mind, and thick darkness the ignorance of the natural mind; light also signifies truth in the light, in like manner noonday. Such enlightenment have they who, from charity or spiritual affection, instruct those who are in falsities from ignorance; for that charity is a receptacle of the influx of light or truth from the Lord.

[26] Again:

Is not this the fast which I have chosen? to break thy bread to the hungry, and to bring the afflicted outcasts into thy house? when thou seest the naked, and coverest him" (58:6, 7).

Similar things are meant by these words; for, by breaking bread to the hungry, signifies from charity to communicate to, and instruct, those who are in ignorance, and who at the same time are desirous of knowing truths. To bring the afflicted outcasts into the house, signifies to amend and restore those who are in falsities, and thence in grief; the afflicted outcasts denoting those who are in grief from falsities. For those who are in falsities stand without, whereas those who are in truths are in the house; for the house denotes the intellectual mind, into which truths only are admitted, for it is opened by truths from good. On account of such signification it is also added, "when thou seest the naked and coverest him"; to be naked signifying to be without truths, and to cover signifying to instruct; for garments in the Word signify truths clothing (as may be seen above, n. 195).

[27] Again:

"They shall not hunger nor thirst; neither shall the heat nor the sun smite them; for he that hath mercy on them leadeth them, even unto the springs of waters shall he guide them" (49:10).

That they shall not hunger nor thirst does not signify that they shall not hunger and thirst for natural food and drink; and that the natural heat and sun shall not smite them, does not signify that they shall not become hot from these; similarly, that they are to be led unto the springs of waters. Whoever thinks does he not see that other things are there meant? By to hunger and thirst, therefore, are signified to hunger and thirst for such things as pertain to eternal life, or which give it, which in general have reference to the good of love and the truth of faith, hunger to the good of love, and thirst to the truth of faith. The heat and the sun signify warmth from the principles of falsity and the love of evil; for these take away all spiritual hunger and thirst; the springs of waters unto which the Lord will lead them, signify enlightenment in all truth, a spring or fountain denoting the Word, and also doctrine from the Word; waters denoting truths; and to lead, when said of the Lord, denoting to enlighten. From these considerations it is evident what is signified by the Lord's words in John:

"I am the bread of life; he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst" (6:35).

Here it is evident that to hunger is to come to the Lord, and that to thirst is to believe on Him; to come to the Lord is to do His commandments.

[28] Because these things are signified by hungering and thirsting, it is also evident what is signified in the Lord's words in Matthew:

The King, said to them on the right hand, I was an hungered, and ye gave me to eat; I was thirsty, and ye gave me to drink; I was a sojourner, and ye took me in. And he said to them on the left hand, that he was an hungered, and they gave him no meat; that he was thirsty, and they gave him no drink; that he was a sojourner, and they took him not in (25:34, 35, 41-43).

By hungering and thirsting are signified to be in ignorance and in spiritual want, and by giving to eat and drink, are signified to instruct and to enlighten from spiritual affection or charity; therefore it is also said, I was a sojourner, and ye took me not in, for by sojourners are signified those who are out of the church, and desire to be instructed and receive the doctrinals of the church, and to live according to them (see n. 1463, 4444, 7908, 8007, 8913, 9196). In the Word also we read of the Lord, that He hungered and thirsted, whereby is meant, that from His Divine love He willed and desired the salvation of the human race.

[29] That He hungered we read in Mark:

"When they were come from Bethany," Jesus "hungered; and, seeing a fig-tree afar off having leaves, he came, if haply he might find anything thereon; but when he came to it he found nothing but leaves, for it was not the time of figs. Therefore he said unto it, Let no man eat fruit of thee for ever. And the disciples, in the morning, as they passed by, saw the fig-tree dried up from the roots" (11:12, 14-20; Matthew 21:19, 20).

He who does not know that all things of the Word contain a spiritual sense, may think that the Lord did this to the fig-tree from indignation because He hungered but by the fig-tree here is not meant a fig-tree, but the church as to natural good, and specifically the Jewish Church. That there was not any natural good therein, because nothing spiritual, but only some truths from the sense of the letter of the Word, is signified by, Jesus seeing a fig-tree afar off having leaves, came if haply He might find anything thereon; but when He had come to it He found nothing but leaves. Leaves signify the truths of the sense of the letter of the Word. That with that nation there would nowhere be any natural good of the church, because they are in dense falsities and in evil loves, is signified by Jesus saying, "Let no man eat fruit of thee for ever," and by the fig-tree being dried up from the roots. It is also said, that it was not the time of figs, and thereby is meant that the church was not yet commenced. That the beginning of a new church is meant by the fig-tree, is evident from the Lord's words (in Matthew 24:32, 33; Mark 13:28, 219; and in Luke 21:28-31). From these considerations it is evident what is there signified by hungering. (That the fig-tree signifies the natural good of the church, see n. 217, 4231, 5113; and that the leaves signify the truths of the natural man, see above (n. 109).)

[30] That the Lord thirsted we read in John:

"Jesus knowing that all things were now accomplished, that the scripture might be fulfilled, said, I thirst. And there had been placed a vessel full of vinegar; and they filled a sponge, and put it upon hyssop, and put it to his mouth. And when Jesus had received the vinegar he said, It is finished" (19:28-30).

Those who think of these things only naturally and not spiritually, may suppose that they involve nothing more than that the Lord thirsted, and that then vinegar was given to Him; but because all things which the Scripture said concerning Him were then consummated, and He came into the world to save mankind, therefore He said, I thirst, by which is meant that from Divine love He willed and desired the salvation of the human race. But that vinegar was given to Him, signifies that in the coming church there would be no genuine truth, but truth mingled with falsities, such as exist with those who separate faith from charity, or truth from good, this being signified by vinegar. Their putting it upon hyssop signified a certain purification of it, for by hyssop is signified an external means of purification (as may be seen, n. 7918). That every particular of the things related in the Word concerning the Lord's passion, involves and signifies Divine, celestial, and spiritual things, may be seen above (n. 83). From the passages adduced above it is evident what famine signifies in the Word. Let them be examined and well considered, and it will be seen by such as think at all interiorly, that natural famine, hunger, and thirst, can in no way be meant, but, spiritual.