Arcana Coelestia #31
31. That 'the great lights' mean love and faith, and are also mentioned as the sun, the moon, and the stars, is clear from various places in the Prophets, as in Ezekiel,
When I have blotted you out, I will cover the heavens and darken their stars, I will cover the sun with a cloud, and the moon will not give its light. All the bright lights in the heavens I will make dark over you, and I will put darkness over your land. Ezekiel 32:7-8.
This refers to Pharaoh and the Egyptians, who are used in the Word to mean the sensory and the factual. The meaning here is that they will have blotted out love and faith by means of sensory evidence and factual knowledge. In Isaiah,
The day of Jehovah for making the earth a desolation; for the stars of the heavens and their constellations 1 will not give their light; the sun will be darkened in its rising, and the moon will not shed its light. Isaiah 13:9-10.
In Joel,
The day of Jehovah is coming, a day of darkness and thick darkness. The earth quakes before Him, the heavens tremble, the sun and moon are darkened, and the stars withdraw their shining. Joel 2:10.
[2] In Isaiah, in reference to the Lord's Coming and the enlightenment of gentiles, and so to a new Church, in particular to individuals who are in darkness but who are beginning to receive the light and be regenerated,
Arise, shine, for your light has come. Behold, darkness is covering the earth, and thick darkness the peoples, but Jehovah will arise upon you, and nations will walk towards your light, and kings to the brightness of your rising. Jehovah will be for you an everlasting light; your sun will no more go down nor your moon be withdrawn, for Jehovah will be for you an everlasting light. Isaiah 60:1-3, 19-20.
In David,
Jehovah makes the heavens by intelligence, He spreads out the earth upon the waters, He makes the great lights, the sun to have dominion over the day, and the moon and stars to have dominion over the night. Psalms 136:5-9.
And in the same author,
Praise Jehovah, sun and moon, praise Him, all stars of light! Praise Him, heaven of heavens, and waters that are above the heavens! Psalms 148:3-4.
[3] In all of these places 'the lights' mean love and faith. Because the lights represented and meant love and faith in the Lord, the Jewish Church was commanded to keep a light burning all the time from evening till morning, for every command which that Church received was representative of the Lord. Concerning this light it is said,
Command the sons of Israel that they take oil for the light, to cause a lamp to burn continually. In the Tent of Meeting outside the veil which is before the testimony Aaron and his sons shall tend it from evening to morning before Jehovah. [Exodus 27:20-21]
That this means the love and faith which the Lord kindles and causes to shine in the internal man, and by means of the internal man in the external man, will in the Lord's Divine mercy be shown at that point in Exodus.
Footnotes:
1. literally, orions
Luke 5
1
Now it happened, while the multitude pressed on him and heard the word of God, that he was standing by the lake of Gennesaret.
2
He saw two boats standing by the lake, but the fishermen had gone out of them, and were washing their nets.
3
He entered into one of the boats, which was Simon's, and asked him to put out a little from the land. He sat down and taught the multitudes from the boat.
4
When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, "Put out into the deep, and let down your nets for a catch."
5
Simon answered him, "Master, we worked all night, and took nothing; but at your word I will let down the net."
6
When they had done this, they caught a great multitude of fish, and their net was breaking.
7
They beckoned to their partners in the other boat, that they should come and help them. They came, and filled both boats, so that they began to sink.
8
But Simon Peter, when he saw it, fell down at Jesus' knees, saying, "Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, Lord."
9
For he was amazed, and all who were with him, at the catch of fish which they had caught;
10
and so also were James and John, sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon. Jesus said to Simon, "Don't be afraid. From now on you will be catching people alive."
11
When they had brought their boats to land, they left everything, and followed him.
12
It happened, while he was in one of the cities, behold, there was a man full of leprosy. When he saw Jesus, he fell on his face, and begged him, saying, "Lord, if you want to, you can make me clean."
13
He stretched out his hand, and touched him, saying, "I want to. Be made clean." Immediately the leprosy left him.
14
He commanded him to tell no one, "But go your way, and show yourself to the priest, and offer for your cleansing according to what Moses commanded, for a testimony to them."
15
But the report concerning him spread much more, and great multitudes came together to hear, and to be healed by him of their infirmities.
16
But he withdrew himself into the desert, and prayed.
17
It happened on one of those days, that he was teaching; and there were Pharisees and teachers of the law sitting by, who had come out of every village of Galilee, Judea, and Jerusalem. The power of the Lord was with him to heal them.
18
Behold, men brought a paralyzed man on a cot, and they sought to bring him in to lay before Jesus.
19
Not finding a way to bring him in because of the multitude, they went up to the housetop, and let him down through the tiles with his cot into the midst before Jesus.
20
Seeing their faith, he said to him, "Man, your sins are forgiven you."
21
The scribes and the Pharisees began to reason, saying, "Who is this that speaks blasphemies? Who can forgive sins, but God alone?"
22
But Jesus, perceiving their thoughts, answered them, "Why are you reasoning so in your hearts?
23
Which is easier to say, 'Your sins are forgiven you;' or to say, 'Arise and walk?'
24
But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins" (he said to the paralyzed man), "I tell you, arise, and take up your cot, and go to your house."
25
Immediately he rose up before them, and took up that which he was laying on, and departed to his house, glorifying God.
26
Amazement took hold on all, and they glorified God. They were filled with fear, saying, "We have seen strange things today."
27
After these things he went out, and saw a tax collector named Levi sitting at the tax office, and said to him, "Follow me!"
28
He left everything, and rose up and followed him.
29
Levi made a great feast for him in his house. There was a great crowd of tax collectors and others who were reclining with them.
30
Their scribes and the Pharisees murmured against his disciples, saying, "Why do you eat and drink with the tax collectors and sinners?"
31
Jesus answered them, "Those who are healthy have no need for a physician, but those who are sick do.
32
I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance."
33
They said to him, "Why do John's disciples often fast and pray, likewise also the disciples of the Pharisees, but yours eat and drink?"
34
He said to them, "Can you make the friends of the bridegroom fast, while the bridegroom is with them?
35
But the days will come when the bridegroom will be taken away from them. Then they will fast in those days."
36
He also told a parable to them. "No one puts a piece from a new garment on an old garment, or else he will tear the new, and also the piece from the new will not match the old.
37
No one puts new wine into old wineskins, or else the new wine will burst the skins, and it will be spilled, and the skins will be destroyed.
38
But new wine must be put into fresh wineskins, and both are preserved.
39
No man having drunk old wine immediately desires new, for he says, 'The old is better.'"
