9341. 'And from the wilderness even to the River' means from delight belonging to the sensory level even to good and truth belonging to the rational level. This is clear from the meaning of 'setting the boundary' as the full range, dealt with immediately above in 9340; from the meaning of 'the wilderness' as a place where no one lives and nothing is grown, so that when it applies to the spiritual matters of faith and the celestial aspects of love 'the wilderness' is a place where no good nor any truth resides, as is the situation with the level of the senses (that this is what the sensory level of the human mind is like, see end of 9331), for no celestial good nor any spiritual truth exists on the sensory level, only delight and pleasure having a bodily and worldly origin exist there, which being so 'the wilderness' means this outermost level of mind in a member of the Church; and from the meaning of the Euphrates, to which 'the River' refers here, as good and truth belonging to the rational level. The reason why the Euphrates has this meaning is that Assyria lay there, and Assyria or Asshur means the rational level of the mind, 119, 1186.

[2] This rational level is meant by 'the Euphrates' where the words 'from the wilderness to the Euphrates' occur, and also 'from the river of Egypt to the Euphrates', as in Joshua,

From the wilderness and Lebanon even to the great river, the River Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites, and as far as the Great Sea, the going down of the sun, will be your boundary. Joshua 1:4.

And in Moses,

To your seed I will give this land, from the river of Egypt even to the great river, the River Euphrates. Genesis 15:18.

Similarly in David,

You caused a vine to journey out of Egypt. You sent out its shoots even to the sea, and its little branches to the River. Psalms 80:8, 11.

'A vine out of Egypt' stands for the spiritual Church represented by the children of Israel; 'to the sea' and 'to the River' stand for interior truths and forms of good. The like occurs in Micah,

They will come to you from Asshur and the cities of Egypt, and from Egypt even to the River, and from sea to sea, ¹ from mountain to mountain. Micah 7:12.

[3] But something different is meant by 'the Euphrates' when, from the middle of the land of Canaan as the standpoint, it is seen to be the furthest limit of the land on one side or that which encloses it on one side. In this case that river means the last and lowest level of the Lord's kingdom, that is, the last and lowest level of heaven and the Church in respect of rational goodness and truth. The fact that the boundaries of the land of Canaan, which were seas and rivers, meant the lowest things in the Lord's kingdom, see 1585, 1866, 4116, 4240, 6516. 'The Euphrates' therefore meant the kinds of truths and forms of good on the sensory level that were in agreement with truths and forms of good on the rational level. But since the sensory level of the human mind lies next to earth and the world and receives its impressions from them, 9331 (end), it does not acknowledge anything as good except that which delights the body, nor anything as truth except that which lends support to that delight. In this sense therefore 'the River Euphrates' means pleasure which is attributable to self-love and love of the world, and falsity that supports it with reasonings based on the illusions of the senses.

[4] These things are meant by 'the River Euphrates' in John,

A voice said to the sixth angel, Release the four angels who are bound at the great river Euphrates. They were released, and they killed a third part of mankind. Revelation 9:14-15.

'The angels bound at the Euphrates' stands for falsities which arise through reasonings based on the illusions of the senses, and which lend support to pleasures attributable to self-love and love of the world. In the same book,

The sixth angel poured out his bowl over the great river Euphrates, and its water was dried up to prepare the way of the kings who were from the rising of the sun. ² Revelation 16:12.

Here 'the Euphrates' stands for falsities from a similar origin. 'Dried up water' stands for those falsities after they had been removed by the Lord; and 'the way of the kings from the rising of the sun' stands for the fact that at that time the truths of faith were seen by and revealed to those governed by love to the Lord.

'Waters' are truths and in the contrary sense falsities, see 705, 739, 756, 790, 839, 2702, 3058, 3424, 4976, 7307, 8137, 8138, 8568, 9323.

'The way' is truth that has been seen and revealed, 627, 2333, 3477.

'The kings' are those with whom truths exist, 1672, 2015, 2069, 3009, 4575, 4581, 4966, 5044, 5068, 6148.

'The rising' or 'the east' is the Lord, also love from Him and to Him, 101, 1250, 3708.

'The sun' has the same meaning, 1529, 1530, 2440, 2495, 3636, 3643, 4060, 4696, 5377, 7078, 7083, 7171, 7173, 8644, 8812.

[5] In Jeremiah,

You have forsaken Jehovah your God at a time when He led you in the way. For this reason what have you to do with the way of Egypt, that you drink the waters of Shihor, or what [have you to do] with the way of Asshur, that you drink the waters of the River? Jeremiah 2:17-18.

'Leading in the way' stands for teaching truth. 'What have you to do with the way of Egypt, that you drink the waters of Shihor?' stands for, What have you to do with falsities arising through a perverse use of factual knowledge? 'What have you to do with the way of Asshur, that you drink the waters of the River?' stands for, What have you to do with falsities that arise on account of reasonings - reasonings which are based on the illusions of the senses and lend support to pleasures attributable to self-love and love of the world?

[6] In the same prophet,

Jehovah [said] to the prophet, Take the girdle which you have bought, which is over your loins, and arise, go away to the Euphrates, and hide it there in the cleft of a rock. He went away and hid it by the Euphrates. Afterwards it happened at the end of many days, that Jehovah said, Arise, go away to the Euphrates, take from there the girdle. Therefore he went away to the Euphrates and dug, and took the girdle from the place where he had hidden it. But behold, the girdle was spoiled; it was profitable for nothing. Jeremiah 13:3-7.

'The girdle of the loins' is the outward bond that holds within itself all things of love and consequently of faith. 'Being hidden in the cleft of a rock beside the Euphrates' means in a place where faith dwells in obscurity and is rendered no faith at all by falsities that are the product of reasonings. 'The girdle that had been spoiled, so that it was profitable for nothing' stands for the fact that then all the things of love and faith had been broken apart and scattered.

[7] When Jeremiah was to tie a stone to the book written by him and to throw it into the middle of the Euphrates, Jeremiah 51:63, the meaning was that the prophetical part of the Word would be destroyed by like falsities. In the same prophet,

The swift will not flee away, nor the strong man escape. Northwards on the bank of the River Euphrates they have stumbled and fallen. But Jehovah Zebaoth takes revenge on His adversaries, for the Lord Jehovah Zebaoth holds a sacrifice in the land of the north beside the River Euphrates. Jeremiah 46:6, 10.

Here also 'the River Euphrates' stands for truths that have been falsified and forms of good that have been adulterated by reasonings based on illusions, and therefore stands for factual knowledge which lends support to self-love and love of the world.

Footnotes:

6367. 'A lion's cub is Judah' means innocence with innate strength. This is clear from the meaning of 'a lion' as the good of love and the truth from that good in their power, dealt with below, so that 'a lion's cub' is innocence with strength. The reason why with innate strength is meant is that here 'Judah' represents the celestial element of love, and the celestial element of love resides in the will part of the mind, 895, 917, 4493, 5117, and thus possesses innate strength. For a person is born into things that belong to the will part. That being so, members of the Most Ancient Church, which was celestial, were born into the good of love, in the measure that good was present in their will. This then is why the strength is said to be innate. The reason 'a lion's cub' means innocence is that 'a lion' is the good of celestial love, and 'a cub', being so to speak its young child, accordingly means innocence.

[2] 'A lion' means the good of celestial love and the truth from that love in their power, and also in the contrary sense the evil of self-love in its power, as is clear from places in the Word where 'a lion' is mentioned. The good of celestial love is meant in John,

Behold, the Lion which is from the Tribe of Judah, the root of David, has prevailed to open the book and to loose its seven seals. Revelation 5:5.

Here the Lord is called 'the Lion' by virtue of the almighty power which His Divine Love and Divine Truth from that Love possess. There are also other places in the Word where Jehovah or the Lord is compared to a lion, as in Hosea,

They will go after Jehovah; He will roar like a lion, for He will roar, and respectfully [His] sons from the west ¹ will draw near. Hosea 11:10.

[3] Also in Isaiah,

Thus said Jehovah to me, As a lion roars, and a young lion over its prey, when there come up against him a full number of shepherds, by whose voice he is not dismayed, and by whose tumult he is not distressed, so Jehovah Zebaoth will come down to fight on Mount Zion and on its hill. Isaiah 31:4.

Here the almighty power of Divine Good is compared to 'a lion', and the almighty power of Divine Truth from that Good is compared to 'a young lion'. For it says that 'Jehovah Zebaoth will come down to fight on Mount Zion and on its hill', and 'Mount Zion' means the Good of Divine Love and 'its hill' the Divine Truth from that Good, 795, 796, 1430, 4210.

[4] For the same reason the four living creatures in Ezekiel and in John, meaning cherubs, had the faces of a human being, lion, ox, and eagle: In Ezekiel,

The likeness of the faces of the four living creatures - [each of] the four had the face of a human being, and the face of a lion on the right side, and [each of] the four had the face of an ox on the left side, and [each of] the four had the face of an eagle. Ezekiel 1:10; 10:14.

And in John,

Around ² the throne were four living creatures full of eyes in front and behind. And the first living creature was like a lion; the second living creature was like a calf; the third living creature had a face like a human being; the fourth living creature was like a flying eagle. Revelation 4:6-7.

The fact that the living creatures were cherubs is stated in Ezekiel to, which fact is also evident from the description of them in John, in which he says that they had 'eyes in front and behind'. The Lord's foresight and providence are meant by 'the cherubs', 308; and they had the face of a lion by virtue of the almighty power belonging to providence that Divine Truth from Divine Good possesses. So also with the cherubs around the new temple in Ezekiel 41:19.

[5] Celestial people in possession of the power supplied by the good and the truth from good which come from the Lord are meant by 'lions', as is evident in David,

There is no want to those fearing Jehovah. The young lions will lack and suffer hunger, but those seeking Jehovah will not lack any good thing. Psalms 34:9-10.

In the same author,

The [young] lions are roaring for plunder, and to seek from God their food. The sun rises, they are gathered together, and lie down in their dwelling-places. Psalms 104:21-22.

In Balaam's prophetic utterance,

At that time it will be said to Jacob and to Israel, What has God been doing? See, a people will rise up like an old lion, and like a young lion will lift itself up. He will not rest until he has devoured the prey. Numbers 23:23-24.

[6] And further on,

When Balaam saw Israel dwelling according to their tribes, he said, He crouches, he lies down like a lion, and like an old lion; who will rouse him? Numbers 24:2, 9.

The celestial is what is described here because celestial order is what the tribes represented by their encampments and was what Balaam saw in the spirit when he saw Israel dwelling according to their tribes, 6335. That order originates in Divine Good coming through Divine Truth from the Lord; and within that order resides all power, meant here by a crouching and recumbent lion.

[7] In Micah,

The remnant of Jacob will be with the nations, in the midst of many peoples, like a lion among the beasts of the forest, like a young lion among flocks of sheep, who, if he passes through, will tread down and tear in pieces, ³ and there is no deliverer. Your hand will be lifted up over your enemies, and all your adversaries will be cut off. Micah 5:8-9.

Here 'a lion' and a young lion stand for celestial good and celestial truth, which are 'the remnant of Jacob'. They also stand for that good and truth in Isaiah 21:8; Jeremiah 25:38; Ezekiel 38:13; Zechariah 11:3. And that same good and truth were also represented by the lions at Solomon's ivory throne, two next to the armrests ⁴ and twelve on the six steps, 1 Kings 10:18-20, and by the lions on the panels of the ten pedestals made of bronze, 1 Kings 7:29, 36.

[8] In the contrary sense 'a lion' means the evil of self-love in its power, as is evident from the following places: In Isaiah,

There will not be any lion there, and the savage of the wild animals will not go up on it; it will not be found there. But they will go free; thus the redeemed of Jehovah will return, and will come to Zion with song. Isaiah 35:9-10.

In Jeremiah,

Why has Israel become plunder? The young lions roar at him, they sound their voice; they turn his land into a waste. Jeremiah 2:14-15.

In the same prophet,

A lion has risen up from his thicket, and a destroyer of nations has set out; he has come from his place to turn the land into a waste. Jeremiah 4:7.

In the same prophet,

They did not know the way of Jehovah, the judgement of their God, therefore a lion from the forest has struck them down, and a wolf of the plains will devastate them. Jeremiah 5:4, 6.

In Nahum,

Where is the dwelling-place of lions, and the feeding-place ⁵ of the young lions, where the lion walked, the old lion, the lion's cub, and there is no one making them afraid? The lion tears in pieces enough for the cubs, and strangles for his old lionesses, and fills his caves with plunder, and his dwelling places with what he has pounced on. Behold, I am against you, said Jehovah Zebaoth, and I will burn her chariot in the smoke; but the sword will devour your young lions, and I will cut off your plunder from the earth. Nahum 2:11-13.

This refers to Nineveh.

In all these places 'a lion' stands for the power that the evil of self-love possesses, when it destroys and lays waste. 'A lion' has a like meaning in Jeremiah 12:8; 49:19; 50:17, 44; 51:38; Ezekiel 19:2-9; 32:2; Joel 1:6; Zephaniah 3:3; Psalms 57:4; 58:6; 91:13; Revelation 13:2.

Footnotes: