13. In chapter 9 of Revelation we read,

The fifth angel sounded. And I saw a star fallen from heaven to the earth. To him was given the key to the bottomless pit. And he opened the bottomless pit, and smoke arose out of the pit like the smoke of a great furnace; and the sun and the air were darkened because of the smoke of the pit. And out of the smoke locusts came onto the earth. And to them was given power, as the scorpions of the earth have power. The shapes of the locusts were like horses prepared for battle. On their heads were what seemed to be golden crowns, and their faces were like human faces. They had hair like women’s hair, and their teeth were like those of lions. They had breastplates of iron, and the sound of their wings was like the sound of chariots with many horses running into battle. And they had tails like scorpions, and there were stingers in their tails. Their power was to hurt people for five months. And they had as king over them the angel of the bottomless pit, whose name in Hebrew is Abaddon, but in Greek he has the name Apollyon. [Revelation 9:1-3, 7-11]

Readers will not understand this either unless the spiritual meaning has been unveiled to them, because nothing in it is an empty statement. Everything, every detail, has meaning. It is about the state of the church when all the truth it has recognized in the Word lies in ruins, and when those who have become limited to their physical senses therefore convince themselves that falsities are truths.

[2] The star fallen from heaven means the ruined state of the truth that was once recognized.

The darkened sun and air mean the light of truth turned into darkness.

The locusts that came out of the smoke of the pit mean false beliefs built on the outward kind of thinking characteristic of people who have become limited to their physical senses and see and evaluate everything on the basis of deceptive appearances.

Scorpions mean the force of their rhetoric.

The locusts looking like horses prepared for battle means their rationalizing as though they understood what was true.

The locusts having what seemed to be golden crowns on their heads and having faces that looked human means that it seemed to them that they were triumphant and wise.

Their having hair like women’s hair means that it seemed to them that they were genuinely devoted to truth.

Their having teeth like those of lions means that their sensory impressions (which are the most superficial aspects of the earthly self) seemed to them to have power over everything.

[3] Their having breastplates like breastplates of iron means the arguments from deceptive appearances that they use in order to fight and prevail.

The sound of their wings being like the sound of chariots with many horses running into battle means their rationalizations, based on supposedly true teachings from the Word, for which they feel compelled to fight.

Their having tails like scorpions means their persuasive ability.

Their having stingers in their tails means their skills in using this ability to deceive.

Their having power to hurt people for five months means that they induce a kind of stupor in people who are devoted to understanding what is true and perceiving what is good.

Their having as king over them the angel of the abyss whose name is Abaddon and Apollyon means that their false principles come from hell, where all the people are totally materialistic and in love with their own intelligence.

[4] This is the spiritual meaning of these words, none of which is obvious in the literal meaning. It is the same throughout the Book of Revelation.

Bear in mind that, when spiritually understood, everything is bound together in an ongoing connection, and every single word in the literal or earthly meaning contributes to its elegant construction. So if one little word were taken away, a connection would be broken and a link would be lost. To prevent this from happening, the command not to take away a word is appended to the end of this prophetic book (Revelation 22:19). It is the same with the prophetic books of the Old Testament: so that nothing would be lost, the Lord’s divine providence arranged that their details were counted right down to the letters, which was done by the Masoretes.

9789. 'For their generations among the children of Israel' means eternity for the spiritual kingdom. This is clear from the meaning of 'generations' as eternity, dealt with below; and from the meaning of 'the children of Israel' as the spiritual Church, dealt with in 9340, thus also the spiritual kingdom. For the Lord's spiritual kingdom in heaven is the spiritual heaven; on earth it is the spiritual Church. The reason why 'generations' means eternity is that in the internal sense generations of faith and charity are meant, 613, 2020, 2584, 6239, 9042, 9079, and so things of heaven and the Church, which things are eternal. Also the children of Israel, to whom the word 'generations' applies, mean the Church, 9340. The fact that eternity is meant by 'generations' is evident from the following places in the Word: In Isaiah,

My righteousness will exist to eternity, and My salvation from generation to generation. ¹ Awake as in the days of old, the generations of eternity. ² Isaiah 51:8-9.

In the same prophet,

I will make you an eternal magnificence, ³ a joy of generation after generation. Isaiah 60:15.

In the same prophet,

Its smoke will go up to eternity. From generation to generation it will be laid waste; no one will pass through it for ever and ever. ⁴ Isaiah 34:10.

In David,

The counsel of Jehovah will stand to eternity, the thoughts of His heart to all generations. ⁵ Psalms 33:11.

In the same author,

I will praise Your name to eternity and forever. ⁶ Generation to generation will praise Your works. Psalms 145:2-4.

In the same author,

They will fear You with the sun, and before the moon, from generation to generation. ⁷ Psalms 72:5.

In Moses,

This is My name to eternity, and this is My memorial from one generation to another. ⁸ Exodus 3:15.

There are very many other places besides these. When it says that things will exist 'to eternity' and from 'generation to generation', 'eternity' has regard to the Divine Celestial or Good, and 'generation' to the Divine Spiritual or Truth. For in the Word, especially the prophetic part, two expressions that have reference to one and the same thing are very frequently used, as in the places quoted above in which eternity and generation to generation occur. They are used because of the heavenly marriage that is present in every single part of the Word. The heavenly marriage is a marriage of good and truth, or the Lord and heaven joined together, see the places referred to in 9263.

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