631. Because it is given to the nations.- That this signifies because it is perverted by evils of life and falsities of doctrine, is evident from the signification of nations as denoting those who are in evils as to life, and thence in falsities as to doctrine, and, in the abstract sense, evils of life and falsities of doctrine. That evils and falsities are signified by nations, may be seen above (n. 175:3, 331, 625). The reason why the external of the Word and thence of the church and worship is perverted by evils of life and falsities of doctrine, is, that the external of the Word, called the sense of its letter, is written according to appearances in the world, because it is for children and the simple minded. These have no perception of any thing that is contrary to appearances, therefore by means of the sense of the letter, in which are appearances of truth, they are introduced into interior truths, as they advance in age, and thus appearances are put off by degrees, and interior truths are implanted in their place. This may be illustrated by examples without number. As for instance, we pray that God may not lead us into temptations; this is said because it appears as though God thus leads, although He leads no one into temptations; also it is said that God is angry, punishes, casts into hell, brings evil upon the wicked, and many other things of a similar nature, when yet God is never angry, never punishes or casts into hell, neither does He at all do evil to any one; but a wicked man brings these things upon himself; for in evils themselves are contained the evils of punishment.
These things are thus said in many passages in the Word, because the appearance is such. Take as another example, that no one should call his father, Father; nor his master, Master (Matthew 23:8-10), although they must be so called. But it is so stated because by Father is meant the Lord, who creates and begets us anew, and because He alone teaches and instructs; therefore when a man is in a spiritual idea, he will then think of the Lord alone as the Father and Master; but the case is otherwise when a man is in a natural idea. Moreover, in the spiritual world or in heaven, no one knows any other father, teacher, or master, but the Lord, because spiritual life is from Him; the case is the same in other instances.
[2] From these considerations it is evident that the external of the Word, and thence the external of the church and of worship, consists of apparent truths, therefore those who are in evils of life apply it to favour their own loves, and the principles arising from them. It is therefore said, that the court, by which the external of the Word also is signified, "is given to the nations," and afterwards, that "they shall tread the holy city under foot." This comes to pass at the end of the church, when men are so far worldly, natural, and corporeal, that interior truths, called spiritual truths, cannot be at all seen, so it follows that they then entirely pervert the external of the Word which is the sense of its letter. Such a perversion of the sense of the letter of the Word took place also with the Jews at the end of the church with them; this is meant in the spiritual sense by the soldiers dividing the garments of the Lord, but not the coat (tunica, chiton [transliterated Greek]); this signifies that those who were of the church perverted all things of the Word as to the sense of its letter, but not the Word as to the spiritual sense, for they had no knowledge of this. A fuller explanation of this is given above (n. 64). The case is similar in the church at this day, because it is at its end; for at this day the Word is not explained according to spiritual truths, but according to the appearances of the sense of the letter, which are not only applied to confirm evils of life, but also falsities of doctrine; and because interior or spiritual truths are neither known nor received, it follows that the sense of the letter of the Word is perverted by evils of the will and thence falsities of the thought. This therefore is the signification of the court being given to the nations.
