9372. And He said unto Moses. That this signifies that which concerns the Word in general, is evident from the representation of Moses, as being the Word (of which below); and from the signification of “He said,” as involving those things which follow in this chapter, thus those which concern the Word (see n. 9370). (That Moses represents the Word, can be seen from what has been often shown before about Moses, as from the preface to Genesis 18; and n. 4859, 5922, 6723, 6752, 6771, 6827, 7010, 7014, 7089, 7382, 8601, 8760, 8787, 8805.) Here Moses represents the Word in general, because it is said of him in what follows, that he alone should come near unto Jehovah (verse 2); and also that, being called unto out of the midst of the cloud, he entered into it, and went up the mount (verses 16-18).

[2] In the Word there are many who represent the Lord in respect to truth Divine, or in respect to the Word; but chief among them are Moses, Elijah, Elisha, and John the Baptist. That Moses does so, can be seen in the explications just cited above; that so do Elijah and Elisha, can be seen in the preface to Genesis 18; and n. 2762, 5247; and that John the Baptist does so is evident from the fact that he was “Elias who was to come.” He who does not know that John the Baptist represented the Lord as to the Word, cannot know what all those things infold and signify which are said about him in the New Testament; and therefore in order that this secret may stand open, and that at the same time it may appear that Elias, and also Moses, who were seen when the Lord was transfigured, signified the Word, some things may here be quoted which are spoken about John the Baptist; as in Matthew:

After the messengers of John had departed, Jesus began to speak concerning John, saying, What went ye out into the wilderness to see? a reed shaken by the wind? But what went ye out to see? a man clothed in soft raiment? Behold, they that wear soft things are in kings’ houses. But what went ye out to see? a prophet? Yea, I say unto you, even more than a prophet. This is he of whom it is written, Behold I send Mine angel before Thy face, who shall prepare Thy way before Thee. Verily I say unto you, Among those who are born of women there hath not arisen a greater than John the Baptist; nevertheless he that is less in the kingdom of the heavens is greater than he. All the prophets and the law prophesied until John. And if ye are willing to believe, he is Elias who was to come. He that hath ears to hear, let him hear (Matthew 11:7-15; and also Luke 7:24-28).

No one can know how these things are to be understood, unless he knows that this John represented the Lord as to the Word, and unless he also knows from the internal sense what is signified by “the wilderness” in which he was, also what by “a reed shaken by the wind,” and likewise by “soft raiment in kings’ houses;” and further what is signified by his being “more than a prophet,” and by “none among those who are born of women being greater than he, and nevertheless he that is less in the kingdom of the heavens is greater than he,” and lastly by his being “Elias.” For without a deeper sense, all these words are uttered merely from some comparison, and not from anything of weight.

[3] But it is very different when by John is understood the Lord as to the Word, or the Word representatively. Then by “the wilderness of Judea in which John was” is signified the state in which the Word was at the time when the Lord came into the world, namely, that it was “in the wilderness,” that is, it was in obscurity so great that the Lord was not at all acknowledged, neither was anything known about His heavenly kingdom; when yet all the prophets prophesied about Him, and about His kingdom, that it was to endure forever. (That “a wilderness” denotes such obscurity, see n. 2708, 4736, 7313.) For this reason the Word is compared to “a reed shaken by the wind” when it is explained at pleasure; for in the internal sense “a reed” denotes truth in the ultimate, such as is the Word in the letter.

[4] That the Word in the ultimate, or in the letter, is crude and obscure in the sight of men; but that in the internal sense it is soft and shining, is signified by their “not seeing a man clothed in soft raiment, for behold those who wear soft things are in kings’ houses.” That such things are signified by these words, is plain from the signification of “raiment,” or “garments,” as being truths (n. 2132, 2576, 4545, 4763, 5248, 6914, 6918, 9093); and for this reason the angels appear clothed in garments soft and shining according to the truths from good with them (n. 5248, 5319, 5954, 9212, 9216). The same is evident from the signification of “kings’ houses,” as being the abodes of the angels, and in the universal sense, the heavens; for “houses” are so called from good (n. 2233, 2234, 3128, 3652, 3720, 4622, 4982, 7836, 7891, 7996, 7997); and “kings,” from truth (n. 1672, 2015, 2069, 3009, 4575, 4581, 4966, 5044, 6148). Therefore by virtue of their reception of truth from the Lord, the angels are called “sons of the kingdom,” “sons of the king,” and also “kings.”

[5] That the Word is more than any doctrine in the world, and more than any truth in the world, is signified by “what went ye out to see? a prophet? Yea, I say unto you, and more than a prophet;” and by, “there hath not arisen among those who are born of women a greater than John the Baptist;” for in the internal sense “a prophet” denotes doctrine (n. 2534, 7269); and “those who are born,” or are the sons, “of women” denote truths (n. 489, 491, 533, 1147, 2623, 2803, 2813, 3704, 4257).

[6] That in the internal sense, or such as it is in heaven, the Word is in a degree above the Word in the external sense, or such as it is in the world, and such as John the Baptist taught, is signified by, “he that is less in the kingdom of the heavens is greater than he;” for as perceived in heaven the Word is of wisdom so great that it transcends all human apprehension. That the prophecies about the Lord and His coming, and that the representatives of the Lord and of His kingdom, ceased when the Lord came into the world, is signified by, “all the prophets and the law prophesied until John.” That the Word was represented by John, as by Elijah, is signified by his being “Elias who is to come.”

[7] The same is signified by these words in Matthew:

The disciples asked Jesus, Why say the scribes that Elias must first come? He answered and said, Elias must needs first come, and restore all things. But I say unto you, that Elias hath come already, and they knew him not, but did unto him whatsoever they wished. Even so shall the Son of man also suffer of them. And they understood that He spoke to them of John the Baptist (Matthew 17:10-13).

That “Elias hath come, and they knew him not, but did unto him whatsoever they wished” signifies that the Word has indeed taught them that the Lord is to come, but that still they did not wish to comprehend, interpreting it in favor of the rule of self, and thus extinguishing what is Divine in it. That they would do the same with the truth Divine itself, is signified by “even so shall the Son of man also suffer of them.” (That “the Son of man” denotes the Lord as to truth Divine, see n. 2803, 2813, 3704)

[8] From all this it is now evident what is meant by the prophecy about John in Malachi:

Behold I send you Elijah the prophet before the great and terrible day of Jehovah cometh (Malachi 4:5).

Moreover, the Word in the ultimate, or such as it is in the external form in which it appears before man in the world, is described by the “clothing” and “food” of John the Baptist, in Matthew:

John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of Judea, had His clothing of camel’s hair, and a leathern girdle about his loins; and his food was locusts and wild honey (Matthew 3:1, 4).

In like manner it is described by Elijah in the second book of Kings:

He was a hairy man, and girt with a girdle of leather about his loins (2 Kings 1:8).

By “clothing,” or a “garment,” when said of the Word, is signified truth Divine there in the ultimate form; by “camel’s hair” are signified memory-truths such as appear there before a man in the world; by the “leathern girdle” is signified the external bond connecting and keeping in order all the interior things; by “food” is signified spiritual nourishment from the knowledges of truth and of good out of the Word; by “locusts” are signified ultimate or most general truths; and by “wild honey” their pleasantness.

[9] That such things are signified by “clothing” and “food” has its origin in the representatives of the other life, where all appear clothed according to truths from good, and where food also is represented according to the desires of acquiring knowledge and growing wise. From this it is that “clothing,” or a “garment,” denotes truth (as may be seen from the citations above; and that “food” or “meat” denotes spiritual nourishment, n. 3114, 4459, 4792, 5147, 5293, 5340, 5342, 5576, 5579, 5915, 8562, 9003; that “a girdle” denotes a bond which gathers up and holds together interior things, n. 9341; that “leather” denotes what is external, n. 3540; and thus “a leathern girdle” denotes an external bond; that “hairs” denote ultimate or most general truths, n. 3301, 5569-5573; that “a camel” denotes memory-knowledge in general, n. 3048, 3071, 3143, 3145, 4156; that “a locust” denotes nourishing truth in the extremes, n. 7643; and that “honey” denotes the pleasantness thereof, n. 5620, 6857, 8056). It is called “wild honey,” or “honey of the field,” because by “a field” is signified the church (n. 2971, 3317, 3766, 7502, 7571, 9139, 9295). He who does not know that such things are signified, cannot possibly know why Elijah and John were so clothed. And yet that these things signified something peculiar to these prophets, can be thought by everyone who thinks well about the Word.

[10] Because John the Baptist represented the Lord as to the Word, therefore also when he spoke of the Lord, who was the Word itself, he said of himself that he was “not Elias, nor the prophet,” and that he was “not worthy to loose the latchet of the Lord’s shoe,” as in John:

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and God was the Word. And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory. The Jews from Jerusalem, priests and Levites, asked John who he was. And he confessed, and denied not, I am not the Christ. Therefore they asked him, What then? Art thou Elias? But he said, I am not. Art thou the prophet? He answered, No. They said therefore unto him, Who art thou? He said, I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, Make straight the way of the Lord, as said Isaiah the prophet. They said therefore, Why then baptizest thou, if thou art not the Christ, nor Elias, nor the prophet? He answered, I baptize with water; in the midst of you standeth one whom ye know not; He it is who is to come after me, who was before me, the latchet of whose shoe I am not worthy to unloose. When he saw Jesus, he said, Behold the Lamb of God, who taketh away the sin of the world! This is He of whom I said, After me cometh a man who was before me; for he was before me (John 1:1, 14, 19-30).

From these words it is plain that when John spoke about the Lord Himself, who was Truth Divine itself, or the Word, he said that he himself was not anything, because the shadow disappears when the light itself appears, that is, the representative disappears when the original itself makes its appearance. (That the representatives had in view holy things, and the Lord Himself, and not at all the person that represented, see n. 665, 1097, 1361, 3147, 3881, 4208, 4281, 4288, 4292, 4307, 4444, 4500, 6304, 7048, 7439, 8588, 8788, 8806.) One who does not know that representatives vanish like shadows at the presence of light, cannot know why John denied that he was Elias and the prophet.

[11] From all this it can now be seen what is signified by Moses and Elias, who were seen in glory, and who spoke with the Lord when transfigured, of His departure which He should accomplish at Jerusalem (Luke 9:29-31); namely, that they signified the Word (“Moses” the historic Word, and “Elias” the prophetic Word), which in the internal sense throughout treats of the Lord, of His coming into the world, and of His departure out of the world; and therefore it is said that “Moses and Elias were seen in glory,” for “glory” denotes the internal sense of the Word, and the “cloud” its external sense (see the preface to Genesis 18, and n. 5922, 8427).

483. And shall lead them unto living fountains of waters.- This signifies, in Divine truths, as is evident from the signification of living fountains of waters, which denote Divine truths. By living is signified living from the Divine; by a fountain is signified the Word, and by waters are signified truths thence. Mention is frequently made of living waters in the Word, and by these are meant truths, which come from the Lord and are received. The reason why they are said to be living, is that the Lord is Life Itself, as He Himself teaches, and that which comes from Life Itself is alive; but that which comes from man is dead. The Lord, in order to give life to truths, flows into them, by means of good, and the good vivifies them. He also flows in from the higher or interior, opens the spiritual mind, and gives to it the affection for truth; and the spiritual affection for truth is the very life of heaven in man. This is the life which the Lord instils into man by means of truths. Hence it is evident what living waters and living fountains of waters mean in the following passages.

[2] Thus in Isaiah:

"The poor and needy seek water, and there is none, and their tongue faileth for thirst. I will open rivers on the heights, and fountains in the midst of the valleys; I will make the wilderness (desertum) a pool of waters, and the dry land springs of waters" (41:17, 18).

The subject here is the salvation of the Gentiles by the Lord, and they are here called poor and needy from a want of and ignorance of truth; their desire to know truths from those who are in the church, where no truths existed, is described by their seeking water when there is none, and their tongue failing for thirst, water denoting truth, and thirst the desire thereof. That they shall be instructed by the Lord, is signified by, "I will open rivers on the heights, and fountains in the midst of the valleys." To open rivers denotes to impart intelligence; on the heights denotes in the interior man; in the midst of the valleys denotes in the exterior man, and to make fountains signifies to instruct in truths. To make the wilderness a pool of waters, and the dry land springs of waters, signifies abundance of truth with those who were before in want of and in ignorance [of truth]. The wilderness denotes where there is no good because no truth, and the dry land, where there is no truth and thence no good; a pool of water and springs of water denote abundance of the knowledges of truth. From this it is evident that waters, fountains, springs, rivers, and pools of water, are not here meant, but the knowledges of truth, and thence intelligence, whence comes salvation.

[3] In the same prophet:

"Behold, your God will come with vengeance, and will save you. Then shall the parched place become a pool, and the thirsty ground springs of waters" (35:4, 7).

These things also are said concerning the instruction of the Gentiles in truths, and their reformation by the Lord when He should come into the world. By the parched place becoming a pool, and the thirsty ground springs of waters, are signified things similar to those mentioned above, by which the wilderness shall become a pool or collection of waters, and the dry land springs of waters.

[4] In Jeremiah:

"They shall come with weeping; and with prayers will I bring them; I will lead them to fountains of waters in a straight way, let them not stumble in it" (31:9).

Here also the subject is the reception of the Lord by the Gentiles. That he would instruct them in genuine truths is signified by his leading them in a straight way, let them not stumble in it.

In Isaiah:

"They shall not hunger nor thirst, neither shall the heat nor the sun smite them; for he that hath mercy on them shall lead them, even by the fountains of water shall he guide them" (49:10).

Here also the instruction of the Gentiles by the Lord is treated of. Instruction in truths is meant by leading them by the springs of water.

[5] The signification of hungering and thirsting, may be seen above (n. 480), and also of heat and of sun (481).

In Joel:

"And it shall come to pass in that day that the mountains shall drop down new wine (mustum), and the hills shall flow with milk, and all the rivers of Judah shall flow with waters, and a fountain shall come forth out of the house of Jehovah, and shall water the stream of Shittim" (3:18).

The signification of "the mountains shall drop down new wine, and the hills shall flow with milk, and all the rivers of Judah shall flow with waters," is explained above (n. 433:13). A fountain shall go forth out of the house of Jehovah, and shall water the river of Shittim, signifies truth out of heaven from the Lord illustrating the scientifics and knowledges which are in the natural man.

[6] In David:

"Thou bringest forth, O earth, at thy presence, at the presence of the God of Jacob; who turned the rock into a lake of waters, the flint into a fountain of waters" (Psalm 114:7,8).

The lake of waters, and the fountain of waters here also mean truths in abundance, by which the church is formed; for by the earth bringing forth is signified the commencement of the church, which is said to bring forth, when truths are produced there, the earth denoting the church.

[7] So again:

Jehovah "who sendeth forth fountains into rivers; let them run between the mountains. They give drink to the beast of the fields; the wild asses quench their thirst. By them the fowl of the heavens have their habitation" (Psalm 104:10-12).

To send forth springs into the rivers signifies to give intelligence by means of truths from the Word; their going between the mountains, signifies that they are from the good of love; fountains denoting truths from the Word, rivers the things which pertain to intelligence, and mountains the goods of love. The instruction of those who are in the good of the church is signified by the words they give drink to the beast of the fields; and the instruction of those in the church who desire truths is signified by the wild asses quench their thirst; that thence the understanding is perfected, is signified by the fowl having their habitation near them. The beasts of the fields, in the spiritual sense, mean the Gentiles who are in the good of life, and wild asses, natural truth. Thirst means a desire for truths; and by the bird of the heavens are meant thoughts from the understanding.

[8] That a fountain, in the highest sense, means the Lord as to Divine Truth, or Divine Truth from the Lord, consequently the Word, is evident from the following passages.

In Jeremiah:

"My people have committed two evils; they have forsaken me, the fountain of living waters, to hew them out cisterns, broken cisterns, that hold no water" (2:13).

Here Jehovah, that is, the Lord, calls Himself a fountain of living waters, by which is signified the Word, or Divine Truth, consequently the Lord Himself, who is the Word; for it is said, "they have forsaken me, the fountain of living waters, to hew them out cisterns, broken cisterns, that hold no water," which signifies that they had framed to themselves doctrinals from their own intelligence, in which there are no truths. Cisterns denote doctrinals, broken cisterns denote doctrinals that are not consistent. That can hold no water, signifies in which there are no truths. Such are the doctrinals that are not from the Word, that is from the Lord through the Word (for the Lord teaches by means of the Word), but they are from man's own intelligence. That they were not taught by the Lord by means of the Word, is meant by the words they have forsaken the fountain of living waters.

[9] Again,

"All that forsake thee shall be ashamed, and they that depart from me shall be written in the earth, because they have forsaken Jehovah, the fountain of living waters" (17:13).

Here similarly Jehovah, that is, the Lord, calls Himself a fountain of living waters from the Divine Truth, which is from Himself. To be written in the earth signifies to be condemned, concerning which see above (n. 222:6).

[10] Again, in David:

"They shall be filled with the fatness of thy house; and thou shalt cause them to drink of the stream of delights. For with thee is the fountain of life; in thy light we see light" (36:8, 9).

Fatness signifies the good of love, and the stream of delights, truth from that good; to cause them drink denotes to teach. With thee is the fountain of life, signifies that Divine Truth is with the Lord and from Him; because this is signified by the fountain of life, it is therefore added, "in thy light we see light," for the light of the Lord signifies Divine Truth.

[11] In Zechariah:

"In that day there shall be a fountain opened to the house of David and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem for sin and for uncleanness. And it shall come to pass in that day, saith Jehovah of hosts, that I will cut off the names of the idols out of the land, also I will cause the prophets and the unclean spirit to pass out of the land" (13:1, 2).

Here also the subject is the coming of the Lord. That those who are in the kingdom of the Lord shall then understand the Word, or the Divine Truth contained therein, is signified by, "In that day there shall be a fountain opened to the house of David and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem," a fountain signifying the Word, the house of David and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spiritual kingdom of the Lord with those in the heavens and on the earth who are in Divine Truths; for sin and for uncleanness, signifies the removal of evils and falsities by means of truths from the Word. Because a fountain means the Word or the Divine Truth therein, it is therefore said, "I will cut off the names of the idols out of the land, also I will cause the prophets and the unclean spirit to pass out of the land." False religion is signified by idols, false doctrine by prophets, and the evils flowing from falsities of doctrine by the unclean spirit; for when man lives according to the falsities of religion and of doctrine, he becomes an unclean spirit.

[12] That Divine Truth from the Lord is meant by a fountain, the Lord Himself plainly teaches in John.

When He sat at Jacob's well in the land of Samaria, He said to the Samaritan woman, "Every one that drinketh of this water shall thirst again; but whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall become in him a well of water springing up unto eternal life" (4:6, 13, 14).

Here it is evident that the water which the Lord gives, does not mean water, but Divine Truth, for it is said from the water which the woman of Samaria came to draw, that a man thirsts again, but not so from the water which the Lord gives. That there is life in that truth, is meant by that water becoming in him a well of water springing up unto eternal life. That there is life in truths when the Lord gives them, may be seen in this article above. The reason why the Lord said these things to the woman of Samaria, when He sat at the well of Jacob, was, that by the Samaritans the Lord meant the Gentiles, who would receive Divine truths from Him; and by the woman of Samaria, the church from them; and by Jacob's well He meant Divine Truth from Himself, or the Word.

[13] In Moses:

"Thus Israel dwelleth in safety alone at the fountain of Jacob" (Deuteronomy 33:28).

These words form the conclusion of the prophecy of Moses concerning the sons of Israel. Because in that prophecy Israel signifies the church which is in Divine truths from the Word, therefore it is said at the fountain of Jacob, which means the Word, and thus also the Lord as to the Word; for He is the Word, because He is the Divine Truth, as He teaches in John (chap. 1:1-3). These things are said at the end of that prophecy, because in it the Word is treated of. The same is meant by that fountain in the prophecy of the patriarch Israel concerning Joseph:

"The son of a fruitful one is Joseph, the son of a fruitful one near a fountain" (Genesis 49:22).

A fountain here means the fountain of Jacob, for the field in which that fountain was situated, was given to Joseph by his father (John 4:5, 6). What is signified by Joseph being the son of a fruitful one near a fountain, may be seen above (n. 448:6). By a fountain is also meant the Word, and by fountains Divine truths therefrom, as in David:

"Bless ye God in the congregations, the Lord, from the fountain of Israel" (Psalm 68:26).

In the Apocalypse:

"I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely" (21:6).

In Isaiah:

"Therefore with joy shall ye draw waters out of the fountains of salvation" (12:3).

In David:

"All my fountains are in thee," O Jehovah (87:7).

[14] Since most things in the Word have an opposite sense, and so also have the words fountain and fountains, in which sense they signify the doctrine of falsities, and the falsities of doctrine, as in Jeremiah:

"I will dry up her sea, and make her fountain dry" (51:36).

This is spoken of Babylon; and by her sea are signified her falsities in their entirety, and by her fountain the doctrine of falsity.

[15] So in Hosea:

"An east wind shall come, the wind of Jehovah shall come up from the wilderness, and his fountain shall become dry, and his spring shall be dried up" (13:15).

This is spoken of Ephraim, who there signifies the perverted understanding of the Word, by which falsities are confirmed by means of the Word; the destruction thereof is signified by his fountain becoming dry, and his spring being dried up by the east wind, the wind of Jehovah from the wilderness. A fountain denotes the doctrine of falsity, a spring, the false thereof, and the east wind from the desert the destruction of it from fallacies which are from sensual externals. For sensual external things, when they are not illustrated from things internal, destroy the understanding of man, because all fallacies are thence derived.

[16] Again, in David:

"Thou didst break up the sea by thy strength; thou brakest the heads of the sea monsters in the waters. Thou brakest the heads of leviathan in pieces, and gavest him to be meat to the people of Tziim. Thou didst break through the fountains and the river; thou driedst up mighty rivers" (Psalm 74:13-15).

Here also, by fountains and rivers are signified the falsities of doctrine from man's own intelligence; the mighty rivers are confirmed principles of falsity thence. The sea monsters and leviathan signify the scientifics which pertain to the sensual and natural man, from which all falsity springs when the spiritual man above them is closed. Man's proprium resides in the sensual and natural man, therefore conclusions formed from these alone are formed from the proprium, or from man's own intelligence; for the Divine flows in through the spiritual man into the natural, but not into the natural when the spiritual above it is closed, whereas the spiritual man is opened by means of truths, and by a life according to them. The people Tziim to whom leviathan is said to be given for meat, signify those who are in infernal falsities.