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).

5248. And changed his garments. That this signifies as to what is of the interior natural, by putting on what is suitable, is evident from the signification of “changing,” as being to remove and reject; and from the signification of “garments,” as being what is of the interior natural (of which presently); hence it follows that what was suitable (signified by the new “garments”) was put on. “Garments” are often mentioned in the Word, and thereby are meant things beneath or without, and that cover things above or within; and therefore by “garments” are signified man’s external, consequently his natural, because this covers his internal and spiritual. Specifically by “garments” are signified truths that are of faith, because these cover the goods that are of charity. This signification has its origin from the garments in which spirits and angels appear clothed. Spirits appear in garments devoid of brightness, but angels in garments that are bright and are as it were made of brightness, for the very brightness around them appears as a garment, as appeared the raiment of the Lord when He was transfigured, which was “as the light” (Matthew 17:2), and was “white and flashing” (Luke 9:29). From their garments also the quality of spirits and angels can be known in respect to the truths of faith, because these are represented by garments, but truths of faith such as they are in the natural; for such as they are in the rational appears from the face and its beauty. The brightness of their garments comes from the good of love and of charity, which by shining through causes the brightness. From all this it is evident what is represented in the spiritual world by the garments, and consequently what is meant by “garments” in the spiritual sense. But the garments that Joseph changed, that is, put off, were the garments of the pit or prison, and by these are signified things fallacious and false, which in a state of temptations are excited by evil genii and spirits; and therefore by his “changing his garments” is signified rejection and change in respect to what is of the interior natural, and the garments he put on denoted such things as would be suitable, and therefore the putting on of things suitable is signified. See what has before been said and shown concerning garments: that what is celestial is not clothed, but what is spiritual and natural (n. 297); that “garments” denote truths relatively lower (n. 1073, 2576); that changing the garments was a representative of holy truths being put on, whence also came the changes of garments (n. 4545); that rending the garments was representative of mourning over truth lost and destroyed (see n. 4763 and what is signified by him that came in, not having on a wedding garment (n. 2132).

527. That the day should not shine for the third part of it, and the night likewise, signifies that the spiritual light of truth and the natural light of truth were completely extinguished. This is evident from the signification of "day," as being spiritual light, and from the signification of "night," as being natural light. This is the signification, since it was said above that "the third part of the sun, the third part of the moon, and the third part of the stars, were darkened;" and "day" means the light of the sun, and "night" the light of the moon and stars, since the sun gives light during the day, and the moon and the stars give light at night. In the first place, let something be said respecting light from the sun, which is called the light of the day, and respecting light from the moon and the stars, which is called "the light of the night."

[2] By light from the sun, which is called "the light of the day" and by "day," spiritual light is meant, such as the angels have who see the Lord as a sun; and by light from the moon and stars, which is called "the light of the night" and by "night," natural light is meant, such as the angels have who behold the Lord as a moon. (That the Lord appears to the angels both as a sun and as a moon, see in the work on Heaven and Hell, 116-125.) Those heavens behold the Lord as a sun that are in the spiritual affection of truth, that is, that love truth because it is truth. Because this is spiritual, therefore the light that is from the Lord as a sun is spiritual. But those heavens behold the Lord as a moon that are in the natural affection of truth, that is, that love truth that they may be learned and may instruct others. These love truth because of its usefulness to themselves, and not for the truth's own sake; therefore they are in a light that proceeds from the Lord as a moon. This light differs from the light that goes forth from the Lord as a sun, as the light of day from the sun differs from the light of night from the moon and stars in our world; and in like manner as the lights differ with them do truths differ, since Divine truth proceeding from the Lord produces all light in the heavens (See in the work on Heaven and Hell 126-140).

[3] Those, therefore, who are in spiritual light are in genuine truths, and also when they hear truths that they had not before known, they immediately acknowledge them and see that they are truths. It is otherwise with those who are in natural light. When such hear truths they receive them, not because they see or perceive them, but because they are told them by men of reputation in whom they have confidence; the faith, therefore, of most of such is from others, and yet they are in a life according to faith. Into these heavens all come who have lived well, although they have been in falsities of doctrine; nevertheless the falsities are there continually purified, until at length they appear as truths. This makes evident what is signified by "that the day should not shine for the third part of it, and the night likewise." (That "the third part" signifies all, fullness, and wholly, see above, n. 506.)

[4] "Day and night" here have a similar signification as "day and night" in the first chapter of Genesis, where it is said:

God said, Let there be light; and there was light. And God saw the light that it was good; and God divided between the light and the darkness. And God called the light day, and the darkness He called night. And there was evening and there was morning, the first day (Genesis 1:3-5).

And afterwards:

And God said, Let there be luminaries in the expanse of the heavens, to divide between the day and the night; and let them be for signs and for seasons, and for days and years. And God made two great luminaries; the great luminary to rule by day, and the lesser luminary to rule by night, and the stars. And God set them in the expanse of the heavens to give light upon the earth, and to rule by day and by night, and to divide between the light and the darkness. And there was evening and there was morning, the fourth day (Genesis 1:14-19).

The "light" that came the first day signifies the Divine light, that in itself and in its essence is Divine truth, thus spiritual light that enlightens the understanding. This chapter in the internal sense treats of the establishment of a church by the Lord with the most ancient people; and as the first thing is to have the understanding enlightened, for until that is enlightened by the Lord there is no reformation, thus no church with man, therefore first of all light is spoken of, or it is said that "light" was made on the first day. That "God saw the light that it was good" signifies that illustration and reception with them were good. But "darkness" signifies the lumen that is in the natural man, which is called natural lumen, because this lumen in comparison with spiritual light is like darkness, consequently this is meant by "darkness." For every man has a lower or exterior mind, and a higher or interior mind; the lower or exterior mind is the natural mind, which is called the natural man, while the higher or interior mind is the spiritual mind, and is called the spiritual man. The mind is called a man, for the reason that man is man because of his mind. These two minds, the higher and the lower, are altogether distinct; by the lower mind man is in the natural world, together with the men there, but by the higher mind he is in the spiritual world with the angels there.

These two minds are so distinct that while man is living in the world he does not know what is going on in himself in his higher mind; and when he becomes a spirit, as he does immediately after death, he does not know what is going on in his lower mind; therefore it is said "God divided between the light and the darkness, and He called the light day, and the darkness night." This makes evident that "day" signifies spiritual light, and "darkness" natural light. Because all the heavens are so divided that those who are in spiritual light are in light from the Lord as a sun, and those who are in spiritual-natural light are in light from the Lord as a moon (as was just said in this article), it is said, "Let there be two luminaries in the expanse of the heavens to divide between the day and the night, and to rule by day and by night, and to divide between the light and the darkness." From this, therefore, it is evident that "day" here means spiritual light, and "night" natural light, which in heaven is called spiritual-natural light.

[5] Day and night have a similar signification in the following passages. In David:

Jehovah who hath made the heavens by His intelligence, who hath spread out the earth above the waters; who hath made great luminaries, the sun for rule by day, the moon and stars for rule by night (Psalms 136:5-9).

In Jeremiah:

Jehovah giveth the sun for the light of the day, and the statutes of the moon and stars for the light of the night (Jeremiah 31:35).

In David:

Jehovah, the day is Thine, the night also is Thine; Thou hast prepared the light and the sun (Psalms 74:16).

In Jeremiah:

If ye have rendered void My covenant of the day and My covenant of the night, that there be no day and night in their time, My covenant also with David My servant shall become void, that he shall not have a son to reign upon his throne, and with the Levites the priests, My ministers. If I shall not have set ¹ My covenant of day and night, the statutes of heaven and earth, then I reject also the seed of Jacob and David (Jeremiah 33:20, 21, 25, 26).

"The covenants of the day and of the night" mean all the statutes of the church prescribed unto the sons of Israel in the Word, by which they had conjunction with heaven and through heaven with the Lord. These are called "the covenant of the day and of the night," because they are for heaven and also for the church, the spiritual things that are represented and signified are for heaven, and the natural things that represent and signify are for the church; therefore "the covenants of the day and of the night" are here called "the statutes of heaven and earth," and "the covenant of the night" is called "the statutes of the moon and stars;" "to render void" signifies not to keep. That unless these are kept there could be no conjunction with the Lord through Divine truth or through Divine good is signified by "My covenant with David shall become void, that he shall not have a son to reign upon his throne, and with the Levites the priests, My ministers," "the covenant with David" meaning conjunction with the Lord through Divine truth; "no son upon his throne" signifying no reception of Divine truth by anyone, and "the covenant with the Levites the priests, My ministers," meaning conjunction with the Lord through Divine good.

[6] In David:

If I shall say, Surely the darkness shall overwhelm me, even the night shall be light for me. Even the darkness shall not make darkness before Thee; but the night shall be light as the day; as the darkness so shall be the light (Psalms 139:11, 12).

This signifies that the natural man as well as the spiritual is enlightened by the Lord. Natural light is signified by "darkness" and "night," and spiritual light by "light" and "day." "The night shall be light as the day, and as the darkness so shall be the light," has the same signification as in Isaiah:

The light of the moon shall be as the light of the sun (Isaiah 30:26).

These things have been cited to make known that spiritual light is signified by "the day should not shine for the third part of it," and natural light by "the night likewise;" thus that these expressions have a similar signification as "light from the sun and light from the moon. "

Footnotes: