1129. And the kings of the earth shall weep for her and wail over her.- That this signifies the mourning and grief of heart of those who have exercised that power, is evident from the signification of weeping over and wailing, which denotes mourning and grief of heart, of which we shall speak presently; and from the signification of the kings of the earth, who denote those who are in truths from good, and, in the opposite sense, those who are in falsities from evil, concerning which see above (n. 29, 31, 625, 1034, 1063); here those who exercise that power are signified, therefore they are called kings of the earth, the earth meaning the church. That these are signified by kings of the earth, is evident from what follows, for it is said who have committed whoredom with her, and lived delicately, which signifies those who were in falsities and evils from delight in that power. Those who are in truths from good, who are also signified by kings of the earth, can neither weep nor wail over her.

[2] The terms to weep and wail are used, because to weep signifies mourning on account of falsities, and to wail, mourning on account of evils, in both cases because they are lost. To weep then has reference to the falsity which they called truth, and to wail has reference to the evil which they called good. It is for this reason, that weeping and wailing are mentioned together in the Word. As in Jeremiah:

"O daughter of my people, make thee the mourning of an only-begotten, a wailing of bitternesses, because suddenly will the spoiler come upon us" (6:26).

Here it is said "mourning" because truth is destroyed, and "wailing" because good is destroyed. The spoiler signifies the deprivation of these, and thus the end of the church.

In Micah:

"I will make a wailing like dragons, and a mourning like the daughters of the owl" (1:8).

Because wailing has reference to good, and in the opposite sense, to evil, therefore it is said, "I will make a wailing like dragons," dragons denoting those who are in the lusts (cupiditatibus) of evil. And because mourning has reference to falsity, it is said, "I will make a mourning like the daughters of the owl," the daughters of the owl denoting those who are in falsities and the pleasures of them. Owls signify falsities because they see in darkness but not in the light.

In Zechariah:

"They shall wail over him, according to the wailing over an only-begotten, and they shall mourn over him according to the mourning over a first-begotten" (12:10).

Here also "wailing" is said of the deprivation of good, and mourning of the deprivation of truth.

Similarly in Jeremiah:

"Enter not into the house of mourning, neither go away to wail" (16:5).

Both mourning and wailing are mentioned on account of the marriage of good and truth; and also on account of that marriage which is not of good and truth - which is in every part of the Word.

[3] Continuation concerning the Athanasian Creed, and concerning the Lord.- That all things are from life itself, which is God, and which is Wisdom and Love, may also be illustrated by means of created objects, when they are considered from the standpoint of order. For it is from order that the angelic heavens, consisting of thousands and thousands of societies, act as one (unum agunt), through love to the Lord, and through love towards the neighbour, and that they are maintained in order by Divine truths, which are the laws of order. It is again from order that the hells beneath them, which are also distinguished into thousands and thousands of congregations, are kept in order by means of judgments and punishments; so that although they are hatreds and insanities, still they are unable to cause the least mischief to the heavens. It is also from order, that there is between the heavens and the hells that equilibrium, in which a man is in the world, and in which he is led to heaven if led by the Lord, to hell if led by himself. For it is a law of order, that man shall act in all that he does from freedom according to reason.

[4] Since so many myriads of myriads of men, from the creation of the world, have been pouring both into heaven and hell, and are perpetually pouring in like streams, each individual being of a dissimilar genius and love, it would have been utterly impossible for them to be consociated together into one, unless God were one, who is life itself, this life being wisdom itself, love itself, and therefore order itself. These things are said concerning heaven. But in the natural world, Divine order is evident from the sun, the moon, the stars, and the planets. The sun, according to appearance, makes years, days, and hours, also the seasons of the year - spring, summer, autumn, and winter; the divisions of the day - morning, mid-day, evening, and night. It vivifies all things on the earth, according to their reception of its heat in conjunction with its light, and of its light in conjunction with its heat. According to its reception it opens, disposes, and prepares living bodies and material substances, which are in and upon the earth, to receive influx from the spiritual world. Hence, in the time of spring, through the union of heat and light at that season, the birds of heaven and the beasts of the earth return into the love of prolification, and into the knowledge (scientia) of everything belonging to it. Plants also renew their functions and activities in the production of leaves, flowers, and fruits, and in these, seeds, for the continual perpetuation of their kinds and for their increase to infinity.

[5] It is also from order, that the earth produces plants, and that these supply animals with nourishment, while both the one and the other are serviceable to man, for food, clothing, and pleasure; and since man is the being in whom God dwells, all things in this way return to God from whom they are. From these considerations it is evident, that created things succeed each other in such order, that one exists for another; that they are perpetual ends - which are uses, and that ends which are uses constantly operating in such a way that they may return to God from whom they are. These things then testify, that all things were created from life itself, which is wisdom itself; and they further testify that the created universe is full of God.