The Bible

 

Matthew 17:3

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3 And, behold, there appeared unto them Moses and Elias talking with him.

From Swedenborg's Works

 

Arcana Coelestia #9815

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9815. 'For glorious adornment' means in order to display Divine Truth as it exists in its inward form and its outward form in the spiritual kingdom lying adjacent to the celestial kingdom. This is clear from the meaning of 'glory' as Divine Truth, dealt with in the Preface to Genesis 18, and in 5922, 9429; and from the meaning of 'adornment' too as Divine Truth, but as it exists in its outward form. For the splendour and beauty of Divine Truth as they appear in outward things are meant by 'adornment'. So it is that the Word as to its internal sense is described as 'glory', but as to its external sense, in respect of the splendour and beauty which the internal imparts to it, is described as 'adornment'. Consequently the spiritual heaven, meant here by the holy garments that were 'for glorious adornment', is the glory, insofar as Divine Truth in its inward form is present there; and it is the adornment too, insofar as Divine Truth in its outward form is also present there.

[2] Something similar is meant by 'adornment' in the following places: In Jeremiah,

In His anger the Lord covers the daughter of Zion with a cloud. He has cast down from heaven to earth the adornment of Israel, and does not remember His footstool. Lamentations 2:1.

'The daughter of Zion' stands for the celestial Church, 'the adornment of Israel' for the spiritual Church, which is called 'the adornment' by virtue of the splendour and beauty of truth. Something similar occurs in Isaiah,

I have caused My righteousness to draw near, it is not far off, and My salvation will not delay. I will give salvation in Zion, My adornment to Israel. Isaiah 46:13.

In the same prophet,

Look out from heaven, from the dwelling-place of Your holiness and of Your adornment. Isaiah 63:15.

'The dwelling-place of holiness' stands for the celestial kingdom, and 'the dwelling-place of adornment' for the spiritual kingdom. In Daniel,

There came out one small-sized horn, and it grew exceedingly towards the south, and towards the east, and towards the adornment. 1 Daniel 8:9.

And elsewhere in the same prophet,

The king of the north too will stand in the land of adornment 1 with destruction in his hand; 2 and when he comes into the land of adornment 1 many will collapse. Daniel 11:16, 41.

'The land of adornment' stands for the Lord's Church where God's truth or the Word is.

Footnotes:

1. i.e. the land of Israel

2. literally, consummation through his hand

  
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Thanks to the Swedenborg Society for the permission to use this translation.

From Swedenborg's Works

 

Arcana Coelestia #6648

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6648. 'And multiplied and became very very numerous' means that they increased enormously in truths from good. This is clear from the meaning of 'multiplying' as increasing in truths, dealt with in 43, 55, 913, 983, 2846, 2847; and from the meaning of 'became numerous' as further branching out, thus a constant increase in truth. The reason why it is an increase in truth from good is that the subject now is the Church when it has been established. For so far as the establishment of the Church with a person is concerned, it happens as follows: While it is being established the person is governed by truths, and through them good increases. But once the Church has been established with him he is governed by good, and from good by truths, which are then constantly increasing. Little increase takes place while he lives in the world, because in the world concerns about food and clothing and about other matters prevent it. But in the next life the increase is vast, and goes on for evermore; for there is no end to wisdom from the Divine. In this way the angels are constantly being made more perfect, and in that same way all entering the next life are made into angels; for every aspect of wisdom is capable of infinite expansion and the aspects of wisdom are infinite in number. From this it may be seen that wisdom can go on increasing for evermore and still not reach very far beyond the first degree, the reason for this being that the Divine is the Infinite, and what has its origin in the Infinite is inevitably like that.

  
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Thanks to the Swedenborg Society for the permission to use this translation.