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).

'Soft raiment,' as in Matthew 11:9, represents the internal sense of the Word.

(References: Arcana Coelestia 9372)

3923. 'Therefore she called his name Dan' means the essential nature of it. This is clear from the meaning of 'name' and 'calling the name' as the essential nature, dealt with in 144, 145, 1754, 1896, 2009, 2724, 3421. The particular nature is contained in the name Dan, for he was so called from the verb 'to judge'. But although he was given this name from that verb, it nevertheless includes those things meant in the whole of Rachel's utterance 'God has judged me, and also has heard my voice'. That is, the name Dan holds within it the good of life and the holiness of faith, and also in the highest sense the Lord's righteousness and mercy. This general essential of the Church is meant by Dan and represented by the tribe named after Dan, and it is the first that has to be affirmed and acknowledged before a person can be regenerated or become the Church. Unless such goodness and holiness are affirmed and acknowledged, all the other qualities constituting faith and life cannot possibly be received, nor therefore affirmed, still less acknowledged. For anyone whose affirmation does not go beyond faith to the holiness of faith, which is charity - for charity is the holiness of faith - and does not affirm that holiness of faith through the good of life, that is, through charitable works, can no longer have any enthusiasm for the essence of faith since he rejects it. Acknowledgement as well as affirmation is the first general attainment in a person who is being regenerated but the last with one who has been regenerated. This explains why Dan comes first with one who is to be regenerated and Joseph last, for Joseph is the spiritual man himself, but why Joseph comes first with one who has been regenerated and Dan last. The reason for this is that one who is to be regenerated is at the point of beginning to affirm that these qualities - the holiness of faith and the good of life - are truly such. But one who is regenerate - a spiritual man - has arrived at spiritual good itself, and from here he sees the affirmation of those qualities as that which comes last, because the things that constitute the holiness of faith and the good of life have become firmly established in him.

[2] That 'Dan' means this affirmative attitude which must exist first when a person is being regenerated may also be seen from other places in the Word where Dan is mentioned, for example from the prophecy of Jacob, who by then was Israel, concerning his own sons, Dan will judge his people as one of the tribes of Israel. Dan will be a serpent on the road, an asp on the path, biting the horse's heels; and its rider falls backwards. I am awaiting Your salvation, O Jehovah. Genesis 49:16-18.

'Dan' in this case stands for an affirmative attitude to truth. This attitude is spoken of as a serpent which will be on the road and an asp on the path when someone reasoning about truth does so from sensory evidence. 'Biting the horse's heels' means when that person resorts to the lowest level of the understanding - namely factual knowledge - and bases his conclusions on this. And the fact that when he does so he is drawn away from the truth is meant by 'its rider falls backwards', as a consequence of which it is said that 'I am awaiting Your salvation, O Jehovah'. For 'a serpent' means one who reasons from sensory evidence and from factual knowledge about Divine arcana, see 195-197; 'road' and 'path' mean truth, 627, 2333; 'the horse's heels' means the lowest level of the understanding, which is factual knowledge, 259 - 'a horse' meaning the understanding, 2761, 2762, the lowest level of which is meant by 'the heel'.

[3] In Moses' prophecy regarding the twelve tribes,

To Dan he said, Dan is a lion's whelp; he leaps out from Bashan. Deuteronomy 33:22.

'A lion' in the internal sense of the Word means the truth of the Church, on account of its strength, truth being that which fights and overcomes. 'A lion's whelp' therefore stands for the first stage truth passes through, which is one of affirmation and acknowledgement. The phrase 'from Bashan' is used because these begin in the good of the natural. In Jeremiah,

Wash your heart from wickedness, O Jerusalem, that you may be saved. How long are you causing your iniquitous thoughts to lodge within you? For there is a voice of one declaring from Dan, and of one causing iniquity to be heard from Mount Ephraim. Jeremiah 4:14-15.

'From Dan' stands for truth that is to be affirmed, 'from Mount Ephraim' for this being done from the affection for it.

[4] In the same prophet,

Await peace, and no good comes; for a time of healing, and behold, terror! From Dan the snorting of his horses was heard; at the sound of the neighing of his strong ones the whole land quaked. And they came and devoured the land and the fulness of it, the city and those dwelling in it. For behold, I am sending into you poisonous serpents which do not respond to charming; and they will bite you. Jeremiah 8:15-17.

'From Dan the snorting of horses was heard' stands for reasoning about truth from an unaffirmative attitude. 'The land which quaked' and 'they devoured the fulness of it' stand for the Church and all things constituting the Church. For people who reason about truth from an unaffirmative or negative attitude destroy everything that is part of faith. 'Poisonous serpents' stands for reasonings, as above.

[5] In Ezekiel,

Dan and Javan came and exchanged wrought iron at your fairs, cassia and calamus were in your trading. Ezekiel 27:19.

This refers to Tyre, which means cognitions of truth and good, 1201. 'Dan' stands for the first truths that are affirmed, 'fairs and tradings' for acquisitions of truth and good, 2967, 'wrought iron' stands for natural truth, which is primary, 425, 426, 'cassia and calamus' for the same, but natural truth from which good flows.

[6] In Amos,

On that day the beautiful virgins and the young men will faint for thirst. Those swearing to the offence of Samaria, who say, Your God lives, O Dan, and the way of Beersheba lives, they will both fall and not rise again. Amos 8:13-14.

'Your God lives, O Dan, and the way of Beersheba lives' stands for their negative attitude towards everything that constitutes faith and its doctrine - 'way' meaning truth, 627, 2333, and 'Beersheba' doctrine, 2723, 2858, 2859, 3466. The reason a negative attitude towards everything constituting faith is meant is that Dan was the last boundary of the land of Canaan, and Beersheba the first; that is, it was situated in the middle or inmost part of the land. For the land of Canaan represented and meant the Lord's kingdom, and so the Church, 1607, 3038, 3481, and therefore every detail of love and faith, since these constitute the Lord's kingdom and Church. Consequently everything in the land of Canaan was representative, being determined by the distances, positions, and boundaries there, 1585, 1866, 3686.

[7] The first - that is, the central or inmost - point of reference to the land, before Jerusalem became such, was Beersheba; for this was where Abraham and also Isaac lived. But the outermost point of reference or the last boundary was Dan. Consequently when everything in its entirety was meant the phrase 'Dan even to Beersheba' was used, as in the second Book of Samuel,

To transfer the kingdom from the house of Saul and to set up the throne of David over Israel and over Judah, from Dan even to Beersheba. 2 Samuel 3:10:.

In the same book,

David said to Joab, Go through all the tribes of Israel from Dan even to Beersheba. 2 Samuel 24:2, 15.

In the first Book of Kings,

Judah and Israel dwelt safely, every one under his vine and under his fig tree, from Dan even to Beersheba. 1 Kings 4:25.

This phrase is used in the historical sense to mean every part of the land of Canaan, but in the internal sense everything constituting the Lord's kingdom, and also everything constituting the Church.

[8] Dan means the first boundary, and also - as stated above - the last boundary, for the reason that the affirmative attitude towards truth and good is the first requirement of all when faith and charity begin to be present in a person, but the last when charity and consequently faith are established in him. This is also why the last lot fell to Dan when the land of Canaan was divided up for inheritance, Joshua 19:40 and following verses; for the lot was cast before Jehovah, Joshua 18:6.

[9] That lot fell therefore according to what each tribe represented. And since the lot to Dan did not fall among the inheritances of all the other tribes but beyond their boundaries, Judges 18:1, that tribe was also left out of the description in John, in Revelation 7:5-8, concerning each twelve thousand who had been sealed. For those who merely affirm truth and also good, but go no further, are not within the Lord's kingdom, that is, among those who have been sealed. Even very wicked people may know truths and goods, and may also affirm them; but the true nature of their affirming is recognized from the life they lead.

[10] Dan is also referred to as a boundary in Genesis 14:14, in which verse it is said that Abraham pursued his enemies as far as there, and in which verse Dan has a similar meaning. The city called Dan, it is true, had yet to be built by Dan's descendants at a later time, Joshua 19:47; Judges 18:29; but even at that time it was referred to as the first boundary when one was entering the land of Canaan but the last when one was leaving it, the inmost part of the land being Hebron, and later on Beersheba, where Abraham and Isaac lived.