533. A woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet. This symbolizes the Lord's New Church in heaven, which is the New Heaven, and the New Church to come on earth, which is the New Jerusalem.

That the woman here symbolizes the Lord's New Church is clear from the particulars in this chapter, understood in their spiritual meaning. To be shown that a woman elsewhere in the Word also symbolizes the church, see no. 434. A woman symbolizes the church because the church is called the Lord's bride and wife.

The woman here appeared clothed with the sun because the church is governed by love toward the Lord; for it acknowledges Him and keeps His commandments, and that is loving Him (John 14:21-24). That the sun symbolizes love may be seen in no. 53.

The moon appeared under the woman's feet because it means the church on earth, which was not yet conjoined with the church in heaven. The moon symbolizes the intelligence in a natural person, and faith (no. 413). And its being seen under the woman's feet means, symbolically, that it was a church to come on earth. Feet otherwise symbolize that same church after it has been conjoined.

[2] It should be known that the church exists in heaven just as on earth. For the Word is found there, and churches, and the preaching of sermons in them. Clerical and priestly orders exist there. For all the angels there were once people, and their departure from the world was for them but a continuation of life. Consequently they are perfected in love and wisdom, each one according to the degree of the affection for truth and goodness that he brought with him from the world.

The church among these is the church meant by the woman clothed with the sun, having on her head a crown of twelve stars. But because the church in heaven does not continue in existence unless there is also a church on earth that possesses an accordant love and wisdom, and this was yet to come, therefore the moon was seen under the woman's feet, which in particular here symbolizes faith, a faith which, as it exists today, is not a means of conjunction.

[3] The church in heaven does not continue in existence unless it is conjoined with a church on earth, because heaven where angels are, and the church where people are, function together, like the internal and external components in a person; and the internal component in a person does not continue in its proper condition unless the external component is joined to it. For the internal component without the external one is like a house without a foundation, or like seed on top of the ground and not in the ground, thus like something without a root - in a word, like a cause without an effect in which to abide.

It can be seen from this that it is an absolute necessity that a church exist somewhere in the world which has the Word and where the Lord is consequently known.

553. And on their heads as it were crowns like gold.- That this signifies, that they appear to themselves, when they reason, to be wise and conquerors, is evident from the signification of head, which denotes wisdom and intelligence, of which we shall speak presently; and from the signification of a crown of gold, as denoting a reward of victory (see above, n. 358). A crown like gold signifies the reward of victory, because kings, in ancient times, when in combats with their enemies, wore crowns of gold upon their heads, besides various other insignia which were then the mark of kings. The reason was, that kings represented the Lord as to Divine Truth, and Divine Truth fights from Divine Good; this therefore was represented by a crown of gold, while wisdom itself and intelligence were represented by the head upon which the crown was. Hence crowns were assigned to martyrs, for they fought from Divine Truth against falsities from evil, which are from hell, and came off conquerors, because they maintained the combat even unto death which they feared not. From these things it is evident, that by [the locusts] having upon their heads as it were crowns like gold, is signified, that those who are sensual men, from the persuasion of falsity in which they are, appear to themselves to be wise and conquerors.

[2] Since the locusts are described as to their heads, their faces, and their breasts, upon which were breast-plates, and as to their tails, their hair and teeth, it is important that the signification of their heads and the rest should be known.

The head, in the Word, signifies wisdom and intelligence, because these reside in it; but when those are treated of who are not in any wisdom and intelligence, because in falsities from evil, then the head signifies folly and insanity, because falsities and evils are therein and therefrom. In the present case, however, as those who are sensual and in the persuasion of falsity are treated of, the head properly signifies folly and insanity, for they see falsities as truths, and evils as goods, being perpetually in visions from fallacies. It is therefore said of them, that "on their heads as it were crowns like gold, and their faces as the faces of men," and many things that follow, all of which were appearances originating in their fantasy, wherefore, it is said, "as it were crowns," and "like gold." It is evident, from this that those appearances were not real, but fallacious appearances. For all the appearances which exist in the heavens are real, because they are correspondences. For the interior things pertaining to the affections and thence thoughts of the angels, when they pass to the sight of their eyes, are clothed in forms such as appear in the heavens, and because they are visible, they are called appearances, and are said to be correspondences, and they are real because from creation. But the case is otherwise in regard to the appearances in some of the hells, where are those who are in persuasions of falsity from evil; from these persuasions fantastic visions exist, in which there is inwardly nothing real, therefore they also vanish away upon the influx of only a single ray from the light of heaven. Of such a nature are the appearances here related concerning the locusts. But concerning appearances in the spiritual world, as well real as not real, see Heaven and Hell 170-176); as also above in the explanation (n. 369, 395).