251. The reason why the “serpent” means all evil in general, and specifically the love of self, is that all evil has had its rise from that sensuous part of the mind, and also from that memory-knowledge [scientifico], which at first were signified by the “serpent;” and therefore it here denotes evil of every kind, and specifically the love of self, or hatred against the neighbor and the Lord, which is the same thing. As this evil or hatred was various, consisting of numerous genera and still more numerous species, it is described in the Word by various kinds of serpents, as “snakes” “cockatrices” “asps” “adders” “fiery serpents” “serpents that fly” and “that creep” and “vipers” according to the differences of the poison, which is hatred. Thus we read in Isaiah:

Rejoice not thou, whole Philistia, because the rod which smiteth thee is broken, for out of the serpent’s root shall go forth a cockatrice, and his fruit shall be a flying fire-serpent (Isaiah 14:29).The “serpent’s root” denotes that part of the mind, or that principle, which is connected with the senses and with memory-knowledge [est sensuale et scientificum]; the “cockatrice” denotes evil originating in the falsity thence derived; and the “flying fire-serpent” the cupidity that comes from the love of self. By the same Prophet also similar things are elsewhere thus described:

They hatch cockatrice’s eggs, and weave the spider’s web; he that eateth of their eggs dieth, and when it is crushed there cometh out a viper (Isaiah 59:5).

The serpent described here in Genesis is called in the Revelation the “great and red dragon” and the “old serpent” and also the “devil and satan” that “deceives the whole world” (Revelation 12:3, 9; 20:2), where, and also in other places, by the “devil” is not meant any particular devil who is prince over the others, but the whole crew of evil spirits, and evil itself.

736. Verse 8. And they prevailed not, and their place was not found anymore in heaven, signifies that they were overcome, and that nowhere in the heavens henceforth is there a place that corresponds to the state of their life, which is a state of thought alone, and of no affection of good and truth. This is evident from the signification of "they prevailed not," as being that they were overcome in combat; also from the signification of "their place was not found anymore in heaven," as being that in the heavens henceforth there is no place that corresponds to the state of their life (of which presently). This does not exist henceforth, because the state of their life which is meant by "the dragon and his angels" is a state of thought alone, and of no affection of good and truth; for those who place everything of the church and thus everything of salvation in faith alone cannot be in any affection of good and truth, since such affection belongs to life. Every man has two faculties of life, which are called understanding and will; the understanding is that which thinks, and the will that which is affected, thus thought belongs to the understanding and affection to the will; consequently those who separate faith from the life merely think that a thing is so, and by so thinking, and on account of it, they say that they will be saved. And because they separate life from faith, they can be in no other than a natural affection, which is of the love of self and of the world; consequently they conjoin the affections of these loves to the things of their faith, which conjunction does not constitute the heavenly marriage which is heaven, but adultery which is hell, for it is the conjunction of truth with the affection of evil; and such adultery corresponds to the adultery of a son with a mother, as is evident from correspondences known in the spiritual world.

Nevertheless, the Lord provides that there shall be no conjunction of truth with evil, by allowing such to have no genuine truths but only truths falsified, which in themselves are falsities. And as such a conjunction pertains to faith separate, namely, that of falsity with evil, "the dragon," by whom those who are in such a faith are meant, is called" Satan" and "the devil;" "Satan" from falsity, and "devil" from evil, for as has been said above the conjunction of truth and good makes heaven with man, while the conjunction of falsity and evil makes hell with him. Such have no genuine truths, because all things of their faith are from the sense of the letter of the Word, and they do not consider that the truths that belong to that sense of the Word are appearances of truths, and that to accept and defend for truths themselves the appearances is to falsify the Word, according to what has been shown above (n. 715, 719, 720). This then is why "the dragon with his angels was cast out of heaven to the earth." "Their place was not found anymore in heaven" signifies that in the heavens henceforth there is no place that corresponds to their state of life, for the reason that all places in the heavens correspond to the life of the angels, consequently "place" signifies a state of life, as has been said above n. 731. And because the life of all the angels in the heavens is a life of the affection of good and truth, and those who are in faith alone (who are meant by "the dragon and his angels") have no affection of good and truth, so there is no place in the heavens corresponding to the state of their life. Moreover, all the angels in the heavens are spiritual affections, and every one of them thinks from his own affection and according to it; from which it follows that those who place everything of the church and thence of heaven in thinking, and not in living, when they become spirits think from their affections, which are the affections of evil and falsity, as has been said above, and in consequence their faith, which they made to be of the thought alone and not of life, is exterminated and dissipated. In a word, no one can have any spiritual affection, which is an affection of good and truth, except from the life of faith, which is charity; charity itself is the affection of good, and faith is the affection of truth, and both joined together into one are the affection of good and truth.