222. And I will write upon him the name of My God, signifies their quality in respect to Divine truth implanted in the life. This is evident from the signification of "writing upon one," when spoken of the Lord, as being to implant in the life (of which presently); also from the signification of "name," as being quality of state (See above, n. 148); and also from the signification of "God," as being Divine truth proceeding from the Lord in heaven, thus the Lord in heaven (concerning which see above, n. 220; for the Lord is above the heavens, appearing to those who are in heaven as a sun (See the work on Heaven and Hell 116-125). The Divine proceeding therefrom, which is called Divine truth, and which makes heaven in general and in particular, is what is meant in the Word by "God;" from this it is that angels are called "gods," and that "God," in the Hebrew is Elohim, in the plural. This makes clear why the Lord here says, "the name of My God;" and above, "I will make him a pillar in the temple of My God" n. 219; and below, "I will write upon him the name of the city of My God, of the New Jerusalem, which is coming down out of heaven from My God" n. 223.

[2] "To write upon one" means to implant in the life, because to write is to commit to paper anything from the memory, thought, or mind, that is to be preserved; in the spiritual sense, therefore, it signifies that which is to endure in man's life, inscribed on it and implanted in it. Thus the natural sense of this expression is turned into a spiritual sense; for it is natural to write upon paper and in a book, but it is spiritual to inscribe on the life, which is done when anything is implanted in the faith and love, since love and faith make man's spiritual life. Because "to write" signifies to implant in the life, it is said of Jehovah or the Lord that "He writes," and that "He has written in a book," meaning that which is inscribed by the Lord on man's spirit, that is, on his heart and soul, or what is the same, on his love and faith. Thus, in David:

My bone was not hidden from Thee when I was made in secret; upon Thy book were written all the days when they were fashioned, and not one of them is wanting (Psalms 139:15-16).

In the same :

Let them be blotted out of the book of lives, and not be written with the righteous (Psalms 69:28).

In Daniel:

The people shall be delivered, everyone that shall be found written in the book (Daniel 12:1).

In Moses:

Blot me, I pray Thee, out of the book which Thou hast written. And Jehovah said, Whosoever hath sinned against Me will I blot out of My book (Exodus 32:32-33).

In Revelation:

A book written within and on the back, sealed with seven seals, which no one could open but the Lamb only (Revelation 5:1).

Again:

All shall worship the beast whose names have not been written in the Lamb's book of life (Revelation 13:8; 17:8).

Again:

I saw that the books were opened: and another book was opened which is that of life; and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the book, ¹ according to their works. And if anyone was not found written in the book of life, he was cast into the lake of fire (Revelation 20:12-13, 20:15).

Again :

And there shall enter into the New Jerusalem only they that are written in the Lamb's book of life (Revelation 21:27).

In these passages it is not meant that they are written in a book, but that all things of faith and love are inscribed on man's spirit (as may be seen from the things shown in the work on Heaven and Hell 461-469).

[3] That "to write," in the Word, signifies to inscribe on and implant in the life, is clear from other passages where "writing" is mentioned. Thus in Jeremiah:

I will give My law in the midst of them, and will write it on their heart (Jeremiah 31:33).

"To give the law in the midst of them" means Divine truths in them; "in the midst" signifies inwardly with man (See Arcana Coelestia 1074, 2940, 2973); and "to write it on the heart" is to impress upon the love, for "heart" signifies love (See Arcana Coelestia 7542, 9050, 10336). In Ezekiel:

The prophet saw a roll of a book written front and back, and there were written thereon plaints, moaning, and woe (Ezekiel 2:9, 10; 3:1-3).

"The roll of a book written front and back" signifies the state of the church at that time, thus what the life was of those of the church; therefore "the roll of the book" means the same as "the book of life" mentioned above; and as their life was destitute of the goods of love and the truths of faith, it is said that "there were written thereon plaints, moaning, and woe":

That the law was inscribed on tables of stone, and written with the finger of God (Exodus 31:18; Deuteronomy 4:13; 9:10); signified that it must be impressed on the life (Arcana Coelestia 9416); for "the law," in a strict sense, means the ten commandments of the Decalogue, but in a broad sense, the whole Word (See Arcana Coelestia 6752, 7463); and "stone" signifies truth, here Divine truth (Arcana Coelestia 643[1-4], 1298, 3720, 6426, 8609, 10376). The like is signified by :

Their writing the words of the law upon the twelve stones taken out of the Jordan (Deuteronomy 27:2-4, 8; Joshua 4:3, seq .)

[4] In Ezekiel:

Son of man, take thee one stick, and write upon it, For Judah and for the sons of Israel, his fellows; and take another stick, and write upon it, For Joseph, the stick of Ephraim, and of all the house of Israel, his fellows; and then join them for thee one to another into one stick, that they both may be one in My ² hand (Ezekiel 37:16, 17).

What these things signify no one can know unless he knows what was represented by "Judah," and what by "Joseph." "Judah" represented the Lord's celestial kingdom, and "Joseph" His spiritual kingdom; and "writing them upon two sticks" signifies each one's state of love and of life therefrom. Their conjunction into one heaven is signified by "joining them one to another into one stick, that they both may be one in My hand." The signification of these words is like that of the Lord's words:

Other sheep also I have, which are not of this fold; them also I must bring; and there shall be one flock and one shepherd (John 10:16).

The writing was to be upon a stick, because a "stick (wood)" signifies good, and it is good that conjoins. (But these things will be more evident from what is shown in the Arcana Coelestia, namely, that the spiritual kingdom before the Lord's coming was not as it was after His coming, n. 6372, 8054; that it was the spiritual especially that were saved by the Lord's coming into the world, and that they were then conjoined with those who were of His celestial kingdom into one heaven, n. 2661, 2716, 2833, 2834, 3969, 6854, 6914, 7035, 7091, 7828, 7932, 8018, 8159, 8321, 9684. That there are two kingdoms, the celestial and spiritual, and that there are three heavens, and that these are conjoined into one heaven, see the work on Heaven 20-28, 29-40. That "Judah" in the representative sense signifies the Lord's celestial kingdom, Arcana Coelestia 3654, 3881, 5583, 5603, 5782, 6363; that " Joseph" signifies the Lord's spiritual kingdom, n. 3969, 3971, 4669, 6417; that " Ephraim" signifies the intellectual of the spiritual church, n. 3969, 5354, 6222, 6234, 6238, 6267, 6296; that "wood" signifies the good of love, n. 643, 3720, 8354.)

[5] In Isaiah:

This one shall say, I am Jehovah's; and another shall call himself by the name of Jacob; and another shall subscribe with his hand unto Jehovah, and surname himself by the name of Israel (Isaiah 44:5).

These things are said of the Lord and of His Divine Human. "Jacob" and "Israel," where the Lord is treated of, signifies His Human, and that the Human is Jehovah is meant by "This one shall say, I am Jehovah's," and "he shall subscribe with his hand unto Jehovah." (That "Israel" and "Jacob" are, in the highest sense, the Lord, see Arcana Coelestia 4286, 4570, 6424)

[6] In Jeremiah :

O Jehovah, the hope of Israel, all that forsake Me shall be ashamed, and they that depart from Me shall be written on the earth, because they have forsaken Jehovah, the fountain of living waters. Heal me, O Jehovah, that I may be healed (Jeremiah 17:13, 14). "To be written in the earth" is to be condemned on account of the state of life, since "earth" signifies what is condemned (See Arcana Coelestia n. 2327, 7418, 8306).

[7] This makes clear what is signified by the Lord's writing with His finger in the earth in John:

The Scribes and Pharisees brought to Jesus in the temple a woman taken in adultery; and they said, This woman was taken in the very act. They asked whether she should be stoned according to the law of Moses. Jesus stooped down, and with His finger wrote in the earth; and rising He said, He that is without sin among you let him first cast a stone at her; and again stooping down, He wrote in the earth. And when they heard these things, they went out one after another; and Jesus was left alone, and the woman; and He said to her, Woman, where are thine accusers; hath no man condemned thee? And He said, Go and sin no more (John 8:2-11).

The Lord's "writing in the earth" signifies the same as above in Jeremiah, "they that depart from Me shall be written in the earth," namely, that they also were condemned on account of adulteries; therefore He said, "He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her." The Lord's "writing twice in the earth" in the temple, signified their condemnation for adulteries in the spiritual sense; for the Scribes and Pharisees were those who adulterated the goods and falsified the truths of the Word, thus of the church; and "adulteries" in the spiritual sense are adulterations of good and falsifications of truth (See above, n. 141, 161); therefore that nation was also called by the Lord:

An adulterous and sinful generation (Mark 8:38).

Footnotes:

9049. 'You shall pay soul for soul' means the law of order that you shall do to your neighbour as you wish him to do to you, and therefore that it shall be done to you as you do to another. This is clear from the fact that paying soul for soul, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, and so on, means having done to you what you would do to another. The reason why this law was given to the children of Israel was that a similar law exists in the spiritual world. Anyone there who does good to another with all his heart receives good in like measure; and therefore one who does evil to another with all his heart receives evil in like measure. For good done with all one's heart carries its own reward together with it, and evil done with all one's heart carries its own punishment together with it. So it is that heaven is the reward for good people, and hell the punishment for evil ones. Considerable experience has allowed me to know that this is so. The situation with both groups is as follows. With someone who does good with all his heart good is flowing in from heaven on every side into his heart and soul and inspiring him greatly to act as he does. At the same time love and affection for the neighbour to whom he does the good is increasing, and with this love and affection a delight that is heavenly delight, beyond description. The reason why all this happens is that the good of love from the Lord reigns everywhere in heaven, flowing in unceasingly in the same measure as it is being given out to another. Similarly with someone evil who does evil to another with all his heart. Evil on every side is flowing in from hell into his heart and spurring him on greatly to act as he does. At the same time selfish love and affection is increasing, and with them the delight born of hatred and vengeance against those unsubmissive to him. The reason why all this happens is that the evil of self-love reigns everywhere in hell, flowing in unceasingly in the same measure as it is given out to another. When this happens those who punish are immediately present, and they deal roughly with the evil-doer. In this way evil along with its delight is kept in check.

[2] These things are so because the laws of order in the next life are not learned from books and then stored away in the memory, as they are with people in the world. Rather they are laws written on the heart, laws of evil on the heart of those who are evil, and laws of good on the heart of those who are good. For everyone takes with him into the next life that which has been fixed in his heart by his life in the world, that is to say evil in the case of evil people and good in the case of good ones.

[3] The law of order from which these things follow is that which the Lord has taught in Matthew,

All things whatever you wish people to do to you, do also to them; this is the Law and the Prophets. Matthew 7:12; Luke 6:31.

Order arises out of Divine Truth which comes from the Lord. In heaven the laws of order are truths springing from good, but in hell they are truths separated from good. They are said to be separated not on account of what the Lord does but of what man does. Good is separated when it is unreceived.

[4] The law called the law of retaliation is set out in Leviticus as follows,

Whoever strikes the soul of a beast shall make restitution, soul for soul. If a man has caused disfigurement in his neighbour as he has done, so shall it be done to him - fracture for fracture, eye for eye, tooth for tooth. As he has caused disfigurement in a person, so shall it be paid out to him. One striking a beast shall make restitution, and one striking a human being shall be killed. Leviticus 24:17-21.

Since evil carries its own punishment with it the Lord says that one should not resist evil. At the same time He explains what this law means for those in the spiritual world who are governed by good, in their relations with those ruled by evil, in the following words in Matthew,

You have heard that it was said, An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth. But I say, Evil is not to be resisted. But whoever smacks you on your right jaw, turn the other to him also. And if anyone wishes to drag you to court and take away your tunic, let him have your cloak also. Whoever compels you to go one mile, go with him two. Give to everyone asking from you, and from him desiring to receive a loan from you, do not turn away. Matthew 5:38-42.

[5] Who can fail to see that these words should not be taken literally? Who is going to turn his left jaw to one who has smacked him on the right jaw? Who is going to give his cloak to one who wishes to take away his tunic? Who is going to give what he has to all who ask for it? And who will not resist evil? But these words cannot be understood by anyone who does not know what the right jaw and the left, tunic and cloak, a mile, a loan, and all the rest are being used to mean. The subject in these verses is spiritual life or the life of faith, not natural life, which is the life of the world. In this chapter and the next the Lord reveals things of a more internal nature that belong to heaven; but He has done so by means of the kinds of things that exist in the world. He used such things in order that worldly-minded people might not understand them, only heavenly-minded people. And the reason why the worldly-minded people should be prevented from understanding was so that they would not profane the more internal truths of the Word; for by profaning these truths those people would cast themselves into the most horrible hell of all, which is the hell of profaners of the Word. This explains why the Lord has said in Luke,

To you it has been given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of God, but to everyone else in parables, that seeing they may not see, and hearing they may not hear. Luke 8:10.

And in John,

Isaiah said, He has blinded their eyes and hardened their heart, lest they should see with their eyes and understand with their heart, and should be converted and I should heal them. John 12:40.

It says 'lest I heal them' because those who are healed but then go back to falsities and evils commit profanation. These are the ones who are meant in Matthew 12:43-45.

[6] But what the Lord's words quoted above are used to mean in the internal sense must be stated now. They refer in the internal sense to those who wish to use falsities to destroy the truths of faith, that is, to destroy the spiritual life with a person when he is undergoing temptation, or suffering persecution, and with good spirits when they are subject to molestations from evil spirits. 'The jaw' means an affection for interior truth, 'the right jaw' being an affection for truth derived from good; 'smacking' means the act of injuring that affection; 'tunic' and 'cloak' mean truth in an outward form, 4677, 4741, 4742; 'dragging to court' means trying to destroy; 'mile' means that which leads to truth, for 'mire' is similar in meaning to 'way', which means that which leads to truth, see 627, 2333, 3477; and 'giving a loan' means informing, which shows what 'giving to all who ask' means, namely declaring everything composing one's belief in the Lord. The reason therefore why 'evil should not be resisted' is that evil can have no harmful effect at all on those governed by truth and good, for they are protected by the Lord.

[7] These are the things that lie concealed beneath those words spoken by the Lord, which being so, the Lord says simply, 'You have heard that it was said, An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth', quoting no further than this. He goes no further because 'an eye' means more internal truth of faith, and 'a tooth' more external truth of faith, as will be seen below. This shows in what way the Lord used words when He was in the world, that is to say, in the same way as they were used everywhere in the Old Testament Word - at the same time both for angels in heaven and for people in the world. For in itself His speech was Divine and heavenly, since it sprang from the Divine and came by way of heaven. But to present the truths He spoke He used such things as corresponded to them in the world. What such things correspond to is taught by the internal sense.

[8] The fact that 'smacking the jaw' or striking it means destroying truths is evident from places in the Word in which the expression 'striking the jaw' is used. And since in the genuine sense it means the destruction of truth, in the contrary sense it means the destruction of falsity, in which sense it occurs in David,

You will strike all my enemies on the jaw, You will break the teeth of the wicked. Psalms 3:7.

In Micah,

With a rod they will strike the judge of Israel on the jaw. Micah 5:1.

And in Isaiah,

The bridle of one that leads astray will be on the jaws of peoples. Isaiah 30:28.

'The face' means the affections, 4796, 4797, 4799, 5102, 5695, 6604. Consequently parts of the face mean such things as belong to the affections and correspond to the functions and uses they perform. The eye for example corresponds to the understanding of truth, the nostrils to the perception of truth, and parts of the mouth - the jaws, lips, throat, or tongue - to such things as belong to the utterance of truth, 4796 4805.