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).

7891. And there shall be to you in the first day a holy convocation. That this signifies that in the beginning all shall be together, is evident from the signification of “the first day,” as being the beginning, namely, of liberation from those who have infested, and thus from damnation; and from the signification of “a holy convocation,” as being that all shall be together. Convocations took place in order that the whole assemblage of Israel might be together, and might thus represent heaven; for they were then all distinguished into tribes, and the tribes into families, and the families into houses. (That heaven along with the societies there was represented by the tribes, the families, and the houses of the sons of Israel, see n. 7836.) Therefore those convocations were called holy, and took place at every feast (Leviticus 23:27, 36; Numbers 28:26; 29:1, 7, 12). From this the feasts themselves were called “holy convocations,” for it was commanded that all the males should be present at them. That the feasts were called “holy convocations” is evident in Moses:

These are the set feasts of Jehovah, which ye shall call holy convocations, to offer a fire-offering unto Jehovah (Leviticus 23:37).

That at such times all males were to be present, in the same:

Three times in a year shall every male of thine appear together before Jehovah thy God, in the place which He shall choose; in the feast of unleavened things, and in the feast of weeks, and in the feast of tabernacles (Deuteronomy 16:16).

780. Verse 2. And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, signifies reasonings that are discordant, and yet appear as if they cohere. This is evident from the signification of "a beast coming up out of the sea," which is here treated of, as being reasonings from the natural man confirming the separation of faith from life (See above, n. 774), so here it means such reasonings; also from the signification of a "leopard," as being reasonings that are discordant and yet appear as if true. Such is the signification of a "leopard" because the skin of the leopard is marked and variegated with spots, from which variegation it appears not unbeautiful; also because it is a fierce and insidious animal, and swifter than the others in seizing its prey; and because those are of like character who are versed in reasoning adroitly in confirming the dogma of the separation of faith from good works by reasonings from the natural man, and because this dogma, although it is inconsistent with truths, is made to appear as if it cohered with truths, therefore that beast appeared as to its body like a leopard.

[2] As this is the signification of the "leopard," I will first illustrate by some examples how those who separate faith from its life, which is good works, make things that are discordant to appear by their reasonings to be coherent. In many passages of the Word heresies are represented by "idols" which the workman forms by various means until he makes them appear in the figure of a man, and yet no life can be imparted to them so that they may see, hear, move the hands and feet, and speak. This I have also seen done in the spiritual world by some who had separated faith from good works; and this work continued for many hours; and when the idol had been made it appeared the sight of many like an image of a man, but before the eyes of angels like a monster. Moreover, they wished to impart to it something of life by means of their arts; but this they were unable to do.

[3] Such things take place in the spiritual world, because all things that are seen in that world are representative of spiritual things, which are presented in such forms as exist in this world; consequently beasts of the earth of every kind and birds of heaven are seen there; also houses and apartments in them, with various decorations, likewise gardens and paradises full of trees bearing fruits and flowers, also tables are seen and eatables of every kind upon them, with innumerable other things, which, however, are all from a spiritual origin, and are therefore representative of spiritual things. For the same reason some there form various things by means of which spiritual things are presented in effigy. This is why they also desired to exhibit faith separated from good works under the image of a man in order to persuade the simple by that appearance that that heretical dogma is Divine truth. For every truth from the Lord is in its form a man; therefore the angels, as they are recipients of Divine truth from the Lord, are human forms, yea, whatever is with an angel from Divine truth has such a form. (That this is so can be seen from many things in the work on Heaven and Hell, especially in n. 460.) That "idols" signify in the Word false doctrinals from self-intelligence that appear as truths, can be seen above n. 587. This has been said to make known that upon all heresies, and especially upon this universal one of the separation of faith from good works, an appearance can be induced by reasonings as if they were from truths and not from falsities.

[4] But this shall be illustrated by an example. Who may not be brought to believe that faith alone is the only means of salvation, since man is unable to do good of himself which is good in itself? For this appears to everyone at first sight as a consequence, and thus to agree with truth; and it is not then recognized to be a reasoning from the natural man confirming the separation of faith from good works; and when a man has been persuaded by this reasoning he thinks that there is no need to attend to his life, because he has faith. But he who is in this persuasion is not aware that to do good from the Word, that is, because it is commanded in the Word, is to do good from the Lord, and that thus a man may do good from himself, and yet may believe that it is from the Lord. But about this more will be said in what follows. From this much it can be seen how the appearance can easily be induced by reasonings that this falsity which universally prevails in the Christian Church is in agreement with this truth, that every good that is good in itself is from the Lord, and not at all from man, from which it is inferred that a man can cease doing good and yet be saved; when in fact, this is altogether in disagreement with the truth.

[5] That such is the signification of the "leopard" can be seen from the following passages. In Jeremiah:

Can the Ethiopian change his skin, or the leopard his spots? Then can ye also do good who have been taught to do evil (Jeremiah 13:23).

"Can the Ethiopian change his skin" signifies that evil cannot change its nature, for "the Ethiopian" because he is wholly black, is evil in its form, and the skin, because it is the outermost part of man, and corresponds to his sensual, means his nature. "Or the leopard his spots" signifies that neither can the falsity of evil change, "leopard" here meaning the falsity from evil, since it means truth falsified by reasonings; and "spots" mean things falsified. As both of these are against good it is said, "Then may ye also do good who have been taught to do evil." It is said that both are against good, namely, evil and the falsity of evil, because evil of the will and falsity of the understanding therefrom are meant. Evil of the will is evil from one's nature, and falsity of the understanding becomes evil by act; for the will acts and does evil by means of the understanding.

[6] In Isaiah:

Righteousness shall be the girdle of His loins, and truth the girdle of His hips; therefore the wolf shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard with the kid, the calf and the young lion and the fatling together, and a little boy shall lead them (Isaiah 11:5, 6).

This is said of the Lord and of His kingdom, and of the state of innocence and peace therein. That this is said of the Lord is evident from the first verse of this chapter, where it is said that "there shall go forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse, and a shoot out of his roots shall bear fruit." "Righteousness shall be the girdle of His loins, and truth the girdle of His hips," signifies that the Divine good proceeding from the Lord's Divine love shall conjoin those in heaven and in the church who are in love to Him; and that the Divine truth proceeding from Him shall conjoin those in heaven and in the church who are in love towards the neighbor. "Righteousness" when predicated of the Lord means the Divine good, and "His loins" means those who are in love to Him; "truth" means the Divine truth; "His hips" mean those who are in love towards the neighbor; and "girdle" signifies the conjunction with these in heaven and in the church. "Therefore shall dwell" signifies the state of peace which exists when nothing of evil from hell is feared, because it can do no harm; "the wolf with the lamb and the leopard with the kid" signifies that no evil or falsity shall harm those who are in innocence and in charity from the Lord; a "wolf" signifying the evil that is the opposite of innocence, and that endeavors to destroy it, a "leopard" meaning the falsity that is the opposite of charity and that endeavors by reasonings in favor of faith to destroy charity; "a lamb" signifying innocence, and a "kid" charity. "The calf also and the young lion and the fatling together" signifies that infernal falsity shall not harm the innocence of the natural man, or any affection for good of the natural man; a "calf" signifying the innocence of the natural man, a "fatling or ox" the affection of the natural man, and a "lion" infernal falsity in respect to its power and eagerness to destroy Divine truth. "And a little boy shall lead them" signifies the state of innocence and love to the Lord in which they will be; "boy" signifying innocence together with love to the Lord, for love to the Lord makes one with innocence; because those who are in that love are also in innocence, as those are who are in the third heaven, and who consequently appear to the eyes of others like infants and boys.

[7] In Jeremiah:

A lion out of the forest hath smitten the great men of Jerusalem; the wolf of the plains shall devastate them; the leopard is watching against their cities; everyone that shall go out shall be torn in pieces, because their prevarications have been multiplied, their backslidings have become strong (Jeremiah 5:6).

This is said of the falsification of truth in the church. "The great men of Jerusalem" mean those who excel others in teaching truths and goods; and "Jerusalem" means the church in respect to doctrine. "A lion out of the forest" that smote the great men, signifies the dominion of infernal falsity; the "wolf" that shall devastate them signifies the dominion of evil therefrom; both of these, the falsity and the evil, destroying the truths and goods of the church. "The leopard watching against the cities" signifies reasonings from the falsities of evil against the truths of doctrine, "cities" signifying doctrinals, thus the truths of doctrine. "Everyone that shall go out shall be torn in pieces" signifies that everyone who recedes from the truths of doctrine shall be destroyed by falsities. The "prevarications" that have been multiplied signify the falsifications of truth; the "backslidings" that have become strong signify the adulterations of good. That the falsifications of truth and the adulterations of good are signified by "prevarications" and "backslidings" is evident from the following verse, where it is said that "they committed adultery, and entered in crowds the house of the harlot," which signifies these falsifications and alterations.

[8] In Habakkuk:

Whose horses are lighter than eagles ¹ and more fierce than the wolves of the evening, so that her horsemen spread themselves (Habakkuk 1:8).

This is said of the devastation of the church by the adulteration of truth, which is signified by the Chaldean nation, of which these things are spoken. "Whose horses are lighter than leopards" signifies the eagerness to seduce by reasonings, and a consequent expertness in seducing; such eagerness and expertness are signified by their "lightness" or "swiftness;" "horses" here signifying reasonings from the natural man. And as "horses" and "leopards" have a like signification it is said, "whose horses are lighter than leopards." "More fierce than the wolves of the evening" signifies craftiness in deceiving by fallacies; the fallacies of the senses are here signified by "the wolves of the evening" because the fallacies are from the sensual man, which in darkness sees falsities as truths. "So that her horsemen spread themselves" signifies that the truths of the Word by adulteration become heresies; "horsemen" signify heresies because "horses" mean reasonings by which falsities are confirmed.

[9] In Daniel:

The third beast coming up out of the sea was like a leopard, which had four wings like birds' wings upon its back (Daniel 7:6).

The successive devastation of the church is here depicted by "the four beasts coming up out of the sea," and this third beast, which was "like a leopard," has a similar signification as the leopard here treated of in Revelation, namely, reasonings that are discordant and yet appear as if coherent; "which had four wings like birds' wings upon its back" signifies appearing like the understanding of good and truth from the application thereto of the sense of the letter of the Word.

[10] In Hosea:

I knew thee in the wilderness, in the land of droughts; when they had pasture they were satiated; when they were satiated their heart was elated; therefore they have forgotten Me, therefore am I become to them as a lion, as a leopard will I watch over the way (Hosea 13:5-7).

"I knew thee in the wilderness, in the land of droughts," signifies a state without good and without truths; "wilderness" meaning a state without good, and "land of droughts" a state without truths; "when they had pasture they were satiated" signifies when goods and truths were given them, that is, when they were instructed respecting them from the Word, even to the full nourishment of the soul; "when they were satiated their heart was elated" signifies when by reason of such fullness they exalted themselves above all others, believing that for that reason heaven was for them alone and for no others. "Therefore they have forgotten Me" signifies that pride has obliterated goods and truths, and thus their desire and with it their heart has receded from the Lord. "Therefore am I become to them as a lion" signifies the consequent devastation of every truth of the church; "and as a leopard will I watch over the way" signifies the falsification of truth by reasonings from the natural man; a "leopard" signifying falsification by reasonings; "the way" truth leading to good, and "to watch" the intention to pervert. This is said of the Lord in the sense of the letter of the Word, from the appearance of truth, in which nevertheless lies hidden the genuine truth (which is the spiritual sense of the Word) that it is not the Lord that as a lion devastates the church, or that as a leopard falsifies truths by reasonings, but it is the man himself that does this when his heart is lifted up. From this it is clear what is signified in the Word by a "leopard."

Footnotes: