4918. 'That behold, there were twins in her womb' means the two essentials of the Church. This is clear from the meaning of 'twins' as the two - good and truth - dealt with in 3299; and from the meaning of 'the womb' as the place where good and truth have been conceived and are lying, and consequently the place where the essentials of the Church are lying. In the genuine sense 'the womb' means the inmost centre of conjugial love where innocence is present, for the womb corresponds to that love in the Grand Man. Now because conjugial love has its origin in the love of good and truth, which love is at the heart of the heavenly marriage, and because this marriage is heaven itself or the Lord's kingdom, and the Lord's kingdom on earth is the Church, therefore 'the womb' also means the Church. For the Church exists where the marriage of good and truth exists. This explains why 'opening the womb' means the resulting doctrines taught by the Churches, 3856, as well as the ability to receive the truths and goods of the Church, 3967; while 'going out of the womb' means being born again or being regenerated, 4904, that is, becoming the Church since one who is born again or regenerated becomes the Church.

[2] Since 'going out of the womb' means rebirth, and therefore the Church, the Lord is called in the Word 'He who formed from the womb' and 'He who brought out of the womb', and those who have been regenerated and become the Church are said 'to have been carried from the womb', as in Isaiah,

Thus said Jehovah. your Maker. He who formed you from the womb, and who helps you. Isaiah 44:2.

In the same prophet,

Thus said Jehovah, your Redeemer, He who formed you from the womb. Isaiah 44:24.

In the same prophet,

Thus said Jehovah. who formed me from the womb to be His servant, to bring back Jacob to Him, and that Israel might be gathered to Him. Isaiah 49:5.

In David,

Jehovah who brought me out of the womb. Psalms 22:9.

In Isaiah,

Hearken to Me, O house of Jacob, and all the remnant of the house of Israel who have been carried from the womb, and borne from the belly. Isaiah 46:3.

In David,

The wicked are alienated from the womb, and go astray from the belly, with lying words. Psalms 58:3.

Here 'being alienated from the womb' means alienation from the good fostered by the Church, and 'going astray from the belly' straying from the truth. In Hosea,

The pains of childbirth will come upon him, he is an unwise son, for now he does not present himself at the womb of sons. Hosea 13:13.

'Not presenting himself at the womb of sons' stands for not coming to the good of truth fostered by the Church.

[3] In the same prophet,

Their glory will fly away like a bird, away from birth, from the belly, and from conception. Hosea 9:11.

This means that the truth of the Church will perish fully - 'from birth' being that to which birth is given, 'from the belly' that which is undergoing gestation, 'from conception' that which is taking rise. In Isaiah,

I knew that you would certainly act treacherously, and that you were called [a man] of transgression from the womb. Isaiah 48:8.

This means that from the time when the Church first began he was like this. In John,

A great sign was seen in heaven - a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet. and on her head a crown of twelve stars. Carrying in the belly however, she cried out in labour, and was in anguish to give birth. Revelation 12:1-2.

'The woman' is the Church, 252, 253, 255. 'The sun' with which she was clothed is the good of love, 30-38, 1529, 1530, 2441, 2495, 4060, 4696; 'the moon' which was under her feet is the truth of faith, 30-38, 1529, 1530, 2120, 2495, 4696; 'the stars' are cognitions of good and truth, 2495, 2849, 4697 - there being 'twelve stars' because 'twelve' means all things, thus all aspects of faith, 577, 2089, 2129 (end), 2130 (end), 3272, 3858, 3913; 'carrying in the belly' is the truth of the Church that had been conceived; 'being in labour and in anguish to give birth' is the fact that it was received with difficulty.

6669. 'In clay and in bricks' means on account of the evils which they devised and the falsities which they fabricated. This is clear from the meaning of 'clay' as good, and in the contrary sense as evil, dealt with below; and from the meaning of 'bricks' as falsities that people fabricate, dealt with in 1296. As regards the evils and falsities which those in hell devise and fabricate, see just above in 6666.

The fact that 'clay' means evil from which falsity is produced is evident from the following places in the Word: In Isaiah,

The wicked are like the troubled sea, when it cannot rest; its waters throw out mud and clay. Isaiah 57:20.

'Mud' stands for falsity from which evil is derived, and 'clay' for evil from which falsity is produced.

[2] In Jeremiah,

Your feet have sunk into the clay, [your close friends] have turned away backwards. Jeremiah 38:22.

'Feet sunk into the clay' stands for the natural sunken in evil. In Nahum,

Draw yourself water for the siege, strengthen your fortifications; go into the mud and tread the clay; renew the brick-kiln. There the fire will devour you, and the sword cut you off. Nahum 3:14-15.

'Treading the clay' stands for being prompted by evil to think what is false. In Habakkuk,

He will say, Woe to him who multiplies what is not his - how long? And to him who loads clay onto himself, Will there not rise up suddenly those who will bite you? Habakkuk 2:6-7.

'Loading clay onto himself' stands for taking up evil.

[3] In David,

Jehovah caused me to come up out of the pit of devastation, out of the muddy clay, and He set my feet upon a rock. Psalms 49:2.

In the same author,

I sank in deep clay, and there was no standing; I came into the depths of the waters, and a wave overwhelmed me. Snatch me out of the clay lest I sink, and out of the depths of the waters; and do not let the depth swallow me up. Psalms 69:2, 14-15.

'Clay' stands for evil from which falsity is produced. In Isaiah,

He will come against prelates as though against clay, as a potter treads mud. ¹ Isaiah 41:15.

[4] But in the following places 'clay' stands for good: In Isaiah,

Now, O Jehovah, You are our Father, we are the clay, and You are our potter; and we are all the work of Your hands. Isaiah 64:8.

'The clay' stands for the member of the Church who is being formed, thus for the good of faith by means of which that person is formed, that is, reformed.

[5] Similarly in Jeremiah,

Jehovah said to Jeremiah, Arise and go down to the potter's house, and there I will cause you to hear My words. I went down therefore to the potter's house, and behold, he made a work on the table. But the vessel that he was making was marred, like clay in the potter's hand. And he returned and made it into another vessel, as was right in the eyes of the potter to make it. Then the word of Jehovah came to me, saying, Like this potter can I not do to you, O house of Israel? Said Jehovah. Behold, like the clay in the hand of the potter, so are you in My hand, O house of Israel. Jeremiah 18:1-6.

'The house of Israel' stands for the Church that is to be formed. And it is because the good of charity and the truth of faith are used in the forming of it, and because such good and truth are meant by 'the clay' and 'the potter's vessel', that the prophet was commanded to go to the potter's house. This would not have happened if 'the clay' and 'the potter's vessel' had not had those meanings.

[6] There are other places too in which Jehovah or the Lord is called 'the potter' and the person who is being reformed 'the clay', namely Isaiah 29:15-16; 45:9; Job 10:9; 33:6. The incident in which the Lord made clay with His saliva and anointed the eyes of the man born blind and then commanded him to wash in the pool of Siloam, with the result that the blind man was made to see, John 9:6-7, 11, took place because it represented the reformation of man, who is born without any knowledge of truth. And that reformation is effected by means of the good of faith, meant by 'the clay'.

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