611. But in the days of the voice of the seventh angel, when he is about to sound.- That this signifies the last state of the church, and then revelation of Divine Truth, is evident from the signification of the days of the voice of the seventh angel, as denoting the last state of the church; for the progressive changes of the state of the church are described by the sounding of the seven angels, therefore the voice of the seventh angel signifies the last state; and from the signification of, when he is about to sound, as denoting revelation then of Divine Truth. That by sounding a trumpet or horn is signified the influx of Divine Truth, and its revelation, may be seen above (n. 502). That its revelation is here signified, is evident from the following part of this verse, where it is said, "And the mystery of God shall be consummated, as he hath declared in good tidings to his servants the prophets." This signifies that the prediction concerning the coming of the Lord shall then be fulfilled. With the coming of the Lord there is also revelation of Divine Truth.

1837. That 'as the sun was going down' means the period of time and the state just before the close is clear from the meaning of 'the sun'. In the internal sense 'the sun' means the Lord, and because of this means the celestial things of love and charity, consequently love and charity themselves, dealt with already in 30-38, and 1053. From this it is evident that 'the going down of the sun' is the last period of time in the Church, which is called the close, when charity does not exist any longer. The Lord's Church is also compared to the times of day, its earliest time being compared to sunrise, or dawn and morning, and its final period to sundown, or evening and the shadows that fall then; for there is indeed a similarity between the two. In like manner the Church is compared to the seasons of the year, its earliest time being compared to spring when everything is flowering, while the time next to the last is compared to autumn when everything starts to die off. Indeed, the Church is also compared to metals, its first time being called golden, its last that of iron and clay, as in Daniel 2:31-33. These considerations show what is meant by 'as the sun was going down', namely that the period of time and the state just before the close are meant, for the sun had not yet gone down. In what follows the subject is the state of the Church when the sun had gone down, at which point thick darkness descended, and a smoking furnace and a flaming torch passed between the pieces.