639. Which stand before the God of the earth.- This signifies the things that are Divine which proceed from the Lord, and which are of Him in heaven and in the church, as is evident from the signification of the God of the earth, as denoting the Lord, who is the God of heaven and earth, and, specifically, the God of the church in heaven and in the world; for earth (terra) in the Word signifies the church, and the church is in heaven as well as in the world. The reason why heaven and the church also are there understood by earth, is, that there are lands (terrae) in the spiritual world just as in the natural world, and in external appearance they are very similar in that world to what they are in this. For this reason the God of the earth means the God of heaven and earth, and, specifically, the God of the church in heaven and in the world. That the Lord is the God of heaven and earth, He Himself teaches in Matthew:

Jesus said," All power is given unto me in heaven and on earth" (28:18).

And from the signification of standing before Him, as denoting to be from Him, thus what is of Him in heaven and in the church.

[2] In various places in the Word it is said of angels and of men of the church that they stand before God, also that they walk before Him, and in the spiritual sense, by standing before God is signified life (esse) from Him, and by walking before God is signified to live according to life (esse) from Him. For all the life (esse) of heaven and the world proceeds from the Lord, being the proceeding Divine which created and formed every thing in heaven and in the world; this is called the Word in John (1:1-3); and the Word there mentioned is the proceeding Divine, which is called the Divine Truth, from which all things were made and created. Since this extends itself in every direction around the Lord as the Sun, it is properly said to stand before Him, for from every quarter and direction it looks to the Lord as its common centre; and this in its essence is the Lord in heaven, because it is the proceeding Divine, and that which proceeds is of Him from whom it proceeds, in fact, it is He Himself; just as the heat and light proceeding from the sun is of the sun. Therefore all the angels, being recipients of this proceeding Divine, which is called the Divine Truth, turn themselves to the Lord, and hence are continually in His presence. For, as stated, the proceeding Divine looks to the Lord as its centre from which it proceeds and to which [it returns]; consequently the angels also, who are the recipients of Divine Truth, and are Divine truths as it were in form. It is from this fact that the angels are said to stand before the Lord, for "to stand" is properly used in reference to Divine Truth, because it surrounds the Lord as a Sun.

[3] To stand before God signifies also in the following passages to be in the Divine Truth, consequently with the Lord.

In Luke:

"The angel said, I am Gabriel, that standeth before God" (1:19).

In the First Book of Kings:

"I saw Jehovah sitting upon his throne, and all the host of the heavens standing near him, on his right hand and on his left" (22:19).

In Jeremiah:

"There shall not be cut off from Jonadab a man to stand before me all the days" (35:19).

In David:

"At thy right hand standeth the queen in best gold of Ophir" (Psalm 45:9).

In Luke:

"Watch at all times, that ye may be accounted worthy to stand before the Son of Man" (21:36).

In the Apocalypse:

"The great day of his anger cometh, and who can stand?" (6:17);

"All the angels stood around the throne, and the elders and the four animals" (7:11).

"I saw seven angels who stood before God" (8:2).

In Zechariah:

Two olive trees, and two berries of olives, which are "the two sons of the olive tree, standing near the Lord of the whole earth" (4:11, 12, 14); and in other places.

It is also said concerning the Lord Himself that "He stood to judge," because it is said of the Divine proceeding from the Lord, which is called Divine Truth, since judgment is from it.

Thus in Isaiah:

"Jehovah stood up to plead, and standeth to judge" (3:13);

and in David:

"God stood in the assembly of God, in the midst of the gods He will judge" (Psalm 82:1).

By the assembly of God, and by the gods in the midst of whom Jehovah stood, are meant the angels, who, in the spiritual sense, signify Divine truths; and because the Lord in heaven is the Divine Truth, therefore the term to stand is used in reference to Him. From these considerations it is now evident that to stand before the God of the earth signifies the Divine proceeding from the Lord, which is of Him in heaven and in the church. That those who are in this are meant, is clear also from this fact, that "to stand before the God of the earth" is stated of the two olive trees and the two lampstands, which signify good and truth, consequently the proceeding Divine. See also the preceding article (n. 638).

288. (Verse 9) And when the animals gave glory and honour and thanks. That this signifies Divine truth, Divine good and glorification, is evident from the signification of glory and honour, when said of the Lord, as being Divine truth and Divine good; glory denotes Divine truth, and honour Divine good, concerning which we shall speak presently; and from the signification of thanks, as being glorification. What is here meant by glorification shall be first explained. Glorification, when from the Lord, is the perpetual influx of Divine good united to Divine truth with angels and with men; and with both the former and the latter, glorification of the Lord is reception and acknowledgment in heart that all good and truth are from the Lord, and consequently all intelligence, wisdom and happiness; this is signified, in the spiritual sense, by giving thanks. All glorification also of the Lord which comes from the angels of heaven and the members of the church, is not from themselves, but flows into them from the Lord. The glorification which is from men and not from the Lord is not from the heart, but only from the activity of the memory, and so from the mouth; and what proceeds only from the memory and the mouth, and not by means of them from the heart, is not heard in heaven, consequently is not received by the Lord, but passes into the world like any other sonorous words. This glorification is not acknowledgment in heart that all good and all truth are from the Lord. It is said acknowledgment in heart, by which is meant from the life of the love; for the heart, in the Word signifies love, and love is a life according to the Lord's precepts. When man is in this life, then there is glorification of the Lord, which is the acknowledgment from the heart that all good and all truth are from the Lord.

This is also meant by being glorified in these words in John:

"If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you. Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; and that ye shall be my disciples" (15:7, 8).

[2] The reason why the four animals, which were cherubim, gave glory and honour and thanks, is that Divine truth and Divine good and glorification, which are signified by glory, honour and thanks, proceed and flow-in from the Lord; for those cherubim signify the Lord as to providence and guardianship (see above, n. 277). They were in the midst of the throne and about the throne (as is clear from the 6th verse of this chapter) and upon the throne was the Lord (verse 2). It is therefore evident that those things were from the Lord. But reception and acknowledgment in heart are meant by the words of the verse following, where it is said, that after these things were heard, "The four-and-twenty elders fell down before him that sat upon the throne, and worshipped him that liveth unto the ages of the ages, and cast their crowns before the throne."

[3] In the Word mention is frequently made of glory and honour, and glory everywhere signifies truth, and honour good. The reason why they are mentioned together is because in each particular of the Word there is the heavenly marriage, which is the conjunction of truth and good. And the reason why such marriage is in each particular of the Word is that the Divine which proceeds from the Lord is Divine truth united to Divine good; and because these together constitute heaven, and also the church, therefore they are together in every particular of the Word, and similarly, the Divine from the Lord, and the Lord Himself. This is why the Word is most holy. (That there is such a marriage in all things of the Word, may be seen above, n. 238, and in Arcana Coelestia 2516, 2712, 3004, 3005, 3009, 4138, 5138, 5194, 5502, 6343, 7022, 7945, 8339, 9263, 9314). That glory signifies Divine truth from the Lord, may be seen above (n. 33).

[4] That honour signifies Divine good, follows from what has been said concerning the heavenly marriage in every part of the Word; as is also evident from the following passages. In David:

"Jehovah made the heavens, glory and honour are before him, strength and beauty are in his sanctuary" (Psalms 96:5, 6).

By the heavens is meant the Divine which proceeds from the Lord, because the heavens are from that; and because the Divine which proceeds, and which constitutes the heavens, is Divine truth and Divine good, it is therefore said, "glory and honour are before him"; by sanctuary is meant the church; the Divine good and the Divine truth therein are meant by strength and beauty. (That the Divine of the Lord constitutes the heavens, may be seen in the work, Heaven and Hell 7-12, and that the Divine of the Lord in the heavens is Divine truth and Divine good, n. 7, 13, 133, 137, 139, 140).

[5] Again:

"O Jehovah, God very great; thou art clothed with glory and honour" (Psalms 104:1).

By being clothed with glory and honour, when said of Jehovah, is signified His girding Himself with Divine truth and Divine good, for these proceed from Him, and thence gird Him, and thus constitute the heavens; therefore in the Word they are called His garments and covering (as may be seen above, n. 65 and 271).

[6] Again:

"The works of Jehovah are great. Glory and honour are his work" (Psalms 111:2, 3).

By the works of Jehovah are meant all things that proceed from, and are effected by Him; and because they have reference to Divine truth and good, it is therefore said, "Glory and honour are his work."

[7] Again:

"Generation to generation shall praise thy works, and shall declare thy virtues. I will speak of the honour of the magnificence of thy glory, and will meditate on the words of thy wonders, and I will make known to the sons of men his virtues, and the glory of the honour of his kingdom" (Psalms 145:4, 5, 12).

The honour of the magnificence of Thy glory, denotes the Divine good united to the Divine truth, and the glory of the honour, denotes the Divine truth united to the Divine good. The reason of this form of expression is that the union is reciprocal. For from the Lord proceeds the Divine good united to the Divine truth; but by the angels in heaven, and by men in the church, Divine truth is received, and is united to Divine good; hence it is said, the glory of the honour of his kingdom; for by His kingdom are meant heaven and the church.

[8] Again:

"Glory and honour thou wilt lay upon him. For thou makest him a blessing for ever" (Psalms 21:5, 6).

These things are spoken concerning the Lord, and by glory and honour upon Him are meant all Divine truth and Divine good.

[9] Again:

"Gird thy sword upon thy thigh, O powerful one, in thy glory and thine honour; in thine honour mount, ride upon the word of truth" (Psalms 45:3, 4).

This passage treats also of the Lord; and to gird the sword upon the thigh signifies Divine truth fighting from Divine good (that this is signified by a sword upon the thigh, may be seen, Arcana Coelestia 10488). And because from Divine truth He subjugated the hells, and brought the heavens into order, therefore it is said, O powerful one in glory and honour, and also, in honour mount and ride upon the word of truth. In honour mount and ride upon the word of truth signifies to act from Divine good by means of Divine truth.

[10] Again:

"Thou hast made him to lack a little of the angels, but thou hast crowned him with glory and honour" (Psalms 8:5).

This also is spoken of the Lord. His state of humiliation is described by causing Him to lack a little of the angels, His state of glorification by His being crowned with glory and honour. By glorifying is meant the uniting of the Lord's Divine itself with His Human, and the making this latter also Divine.

[11] In Isaiah:

"Be glad ye wilderness and dry place, and let the plain of the wilderness exult and flourish as a rose, in flourishing let it flourish and exult; the glory of Lebanon is given to it, the honour of Carmel and Sharon; they shall see the glory of Jehovah and the honour of our God" (35:1, 2).

Here the enlightenment of the nations is treated of; their ignorance of truth and good is signified by the wilderness and the dry place; their joy in consequence of instruction in truths and enlightenment therefrom is signified by being glad, exulting and flourishing; the glory of Lebanon which shall be given to them signifies Divine truth; and the honour of Carmel and Sharon signifies the Divine good which they receive. It is therefore said that they shall see the glory of Jehovah and the honour of our God.

[12] Again, in the Apocalypse:

"And the nations of them which are saved shall walk in the light of it, and the kings of the earth do bring their glory and honour into it. And they shall bring the glory and honour of the nations into it" (21:24, 26).

This is said of the New Jerusalem, by which is signified the New Church in the heavens and on earth. By the nations therefore are signified all those who are in good; and by the kings of the earth are signified all those who are in truths from good; concerning both of these it is said that "they shall bring their glory and honour into it," by which is meant worship from the good of love to the Lord, and from the truths of faith which are from the good of charity towards the neighbour.