1118. Verse 7. How much she hath glorified herself and lived luxuriously, signifies how much of glory and consequent pleasure they have acquired for themselves from their dominion over heaven and over the world. This is evident from the signification of "glorifying herself," as being to acquire glory, also from the signification of "living luxuriously," as being to take pleasure; that it means from their dominion over heaven and over the world is evident, for this is the source of their glory and pleasure.

(Continuation respecting the Athanasian Faith and respecting the Lord)

[2] It is because the idea of God as Man is implanted in everyone that many peoples and nations have worshiped gods who either were men or appeared to them as men, as Greece, Italy, and certain kingdoms under their rule worshipped Saturn, Jupiter, Neptune, Pluto, Apollo, Mercury, Juno, Minerva, Diana, Venus and her boy, and others, and ascribed to them the government of the universe. They distributed divinity among so many persons, because from intuition they saw God as Man, and therefore viewed all the attributes, properties, and qualities of God as persons, and thence also the virtues, affections, inclinations, and knowledges as persons. It was also from intuition that the inhabitants of the countries round about Canaan, as well as those of the regions within it, worshiped Baalim, Ashtaroth, Beelzebub, Chemosh, Milcom, Molech, and others, some of whom had lived as men.

[3] Again, it is from intuition that in Christian Gentilism at this day there are those who worship saints as gods, bending the knee before their idols, kissing them, baring the head before them in the ways where they are set up, and worshiping at their graves; and even doing the same to the Pope, whose shoes and even his footsteps they press with their lips, and would salute him as a god if religion allowed it. These and other practices are from an intuition, that is, a desire to worship a visible god, and not an airy something which is nothing but smoke to them. But the idea of God as Man that flows in from heaven is so perverted with many that either a man of the world or an idol is worshiped in place of God, comparatively as the bright light of the sun is turned into colors not beautiful, and its summer heat into foul stenches, according to the objects upon which they fall. But it is for reasons stated above that the idea of God becomes an idea of a little cloud, or of a mist, or of the inmost of nature, ideas that exist among Christians, but rarely among other nations who enjoy any light of reason, as the Africans and some others.

1198. 'From whom they came forth' means that cognitions, as these exist with them, are facts. This is clear from what has been stated. These are not said to have been 'begotten' by those who belonged to Egypt but to have 'gone forth', for they are not such as use natural and factual knowledge to reason about spiritual and celestial things and in so doing fabricate for themselves doctrinal teachings, as do those described before. Instead they learn cognitions of faith from another source, but have no other end in view to knowing and retaining these in the memory than they have with other things in which they have no interest beyond merely knowing them, and only then for the reason that by so knowing they may be promoted to positions of importance, and for other like reasons. So different is knowledge of cognitions of faith from knowledge of natural things that the two have scarcely anything in common. This explains why they are not said to have been 'bore' but to have 'gone forth' from them. Such being the character of 'Philistines' they inevitably pervert cognitions of faith by means of reasonings from them, and as a consequence fabricate false doctrines for themselves. They belong therefore among those who are barely able to be regenerated and to receive charity, both because they are uncircumcised at heart and because the false assumptions and consequently the life of their understanding hinder and prevent.