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).

8806. And sanctified the people. That this signifies the veiling over of the interiors that they may appear to be in the holiness of faith, is evident from what was unfolded above (n. 8788); but it was there set forth what was the sanctification with the Israelitish people, namely, that it was a veiling over of the interiors, so that as to their externals they might appear to be in what was holy when they were in representative worship; and that unless their interiors had then been veiled over, they would not only have defiled the holiness of worship by foul thoughts and evil affections, but would also have totally destroyed it, so that nothing celestial and spiritual which was represented in the external things would have been perceived therefrom in heaven.

[2] But as by “the sons of Israel” are here meant those who are of the spiritual church, it shall be briefly told what is meant by “sanctification” with these. They who are of the spiritual church and live a life of truth and from this a life of good, are withheld from evils and are kept in good by the Lord. The good which is from the Lord is holy with them. Consequently insofar as they receive good from the Lord, so far they are holy; and they receive so much of good from the Lord, that is, are so far holy, as they live a life of good according to the genuine truths of faith, and at the same time believe that all the good which they then think and do is from the Lord. Then, too, evils with them are separated so as not to appear at all, especially those which they have derived hereditarily from parents, and which are filthy, because they have been successively accumulated with the parents for many ages back, and thus amassed in the offspring. These are the interiors which with those who are of the spiritual church are hid away and as it were veiled over (n. 966, 1667, 2307, 2308, 3701, 4317, 8550). Hence it is that all the will they possess hereditarily is destroyed. For this cause a new will is formed with them in the intellectual part by means of truths of faith from the Lord. This is the reason why, when they are being regenerated, they are led by means of truths to good; and afterward when they have been regenerated, from good into the truths of good. Hence it is evident how a new will is created in them by the Lord. (That this is formed in the intellectual part with those who are of the spiritual church, see n. 863, 875, 895, 927, 1023, 1043, 1044, 1555, 2256, 4328, 4493, 5113, 6125)

539. And there arose smoke out of the well, as the smoke of a great furnace.- That this signifies dense falsities thence from the evils of earthly and corporeal loves, is evident from the signification of smoke, which denotes the falsity of evil, of which we shall speak presently; and from the signification of the well of the abyss, which denotes the hell where those are who have falsified the Word (see above, n. 537); and from the signification of a great furnace, which denotes the evils of earthly and corporeal loves, from which such falsities break forth, of which we shall speak in the following article. Smoke signifies the falsity of evil, because it proceeds from fire, and fire signifies the loves of self and of the world, and all evils thence; therefore also the hells which are in falsities from the evils of those loves, and more so where those are who have falsified the Word by applying it to favour those loves, appear in a fire as of a great furnace, from which ascends a dense smoke mixed with fire. I have also seen them, and it was evident that the loves of those who were there caused the appearance of such fire, and that the falsities issuing therefrom presented the appearance of a fiery smoke. But such things do not appear to those who are there; for they are in those loves and in the falsities thence; in them is their life; they are tormented by these in various ways, and not by material fire and smoke, such as are in our natural world as may be better seen from the article in the work concerning Heaven and Hell 566-575), where what is meant by infernal fire and by gnashing of teeth is explained.

[2] That smoke signifies the dense falsity which goes forth from evil, is evident from the following passages.

Thus in Moses:

Abraham "looked toward the faces of Sodom and Gomorrah, and toward all the faces of the land of the plain, and he saw, and lo, the smoke of the land went up as the smoke of a furnace" (Genesis 19:28).

Sodom and Gomorrah, in the spiritual sense, mean those who are altogether in the loves of self, therefore the smoke seen by Abraham to rise out of the earth after the burning [of those cities], signifies the dense falsity pertaining to those who are entirely in that love. For those who love themselves above all things, are in the utmost darkness as to things spiritual and celestial, being merely natural and sensual, and altogether separated from heaven; and then they not only deny Divine things, but also contrive falsities, by which they destroy them. These falsities are signified by the smoke seen to arise from Sodom and Gomorrah.

[3] In the same:

"And the sun went down, and there was thick darkness, and behold a smoking furnace, and a torch of fire that passed between those pieces" (Genesis 15:17).

These things are said concerning the posterity of Abraham from Jacob, as is evident from the preceding parts of that chapter. The sun going down signifies the last time, when there is a consummation; and thick darkness arising signifies evil in the place of good, and falsity in the place of truth. "Behold a smoking furnace," signifies very dense falsity from evils; the torch of fire signifies the heat of disorderly desires, and that these separated them from the Lord is signified by its passing between the pieces. These things are more fully explained in the Arcana Coelestia 1858-1862).

[4] Again, in Moses:

"Moses brought forth the people out of the camp to meet with God; and they stood at the nether parts of the mount. And mount Sinai was altogether on a smoke, because Jehovah descended upon it in fire; and the smoke thereof ascended as the smoke of a furnace, and the whole mount quaked greatly" (Exodus 19:17, 18).

And afterwards it is said:

"And all the people saw the voices and the torches and the voice of the trumpet, and the mountain smoking; and the people saw it, and they were moved and stood afar off. And they said unto Moses, Speak thou with us, and we will hear; but let not God speak with us, lest we die" (Exodus 20:18, 19).

These things represented the nature and quality of that people, for Jehovah, that is the Lord, appears to every one according to his quality. To those who are in truths from good, He appears as a serene light, but to those who are in falsities from evil, as smoke from fire; and because that people was in earthly and corporeal loves, and thence in the falsities of evil, therefore the Lord from mount Sinai appeared to them as a devouring fire, and as the smoke of a furnace. That the sons of Jacob were of such a character is shown in many places in the Arcana Coelestia, from which a number of passages are quoted in the Doctrine of the New Jerusalem 248); and that the Lord appears to every one according to his quality, as a vivifying and recreating fire to those who are in good, and as a consuming fire to those who are in evil, may be seen in the Arcana Coelestia 934, 1861, 6832, 8814, 8819, 9434, 10551). The signification of the remaining details in the passages above adduced, is also given in the Arcana Coelestia, where the book of Exodus is explained.

[5] The signification of smoke and fire in the following passages in David is similar:

"Because he was wroth, there went up a smoke out of his nostrils, and a fire out of his mouth devoured; coals were kindled by him. He bowed the heaven also, and came down; and thick darkness was under his feet" (Psalm 18:7-9; 2 Sam. 22:8, 9).

This does not mean that smoke and devouring fire ascended from Him, for there is no wrath in Him; but it is so said, because the Lord thus appears to those who are in falsities and evils, for they view Him from their own falsities and evils.

[6] Similar things are signified by the following in the same:

"He looketh on the earth, and it trembleth; he toucheth the mountains, and they smoke" (Psalm 104:32).

And again:

"Bow thy heavens, O Jehovah, and come down; touch the mountains, and they shall smoke" (Psalm 144:5).

And in Isaiah:

"Howl, O gate, cry, O city; thou whole Philistia, art dissolved; for there cometh a smoke from the north" (14:31).

By the gate is signified truth which introduces into the church; by city is signified doctrine. By Philistia is signified faith; hence by howl, O gate, cry, O city, thou whole Philistia, art dissolved, is signified the vastation of the church as to the truth of doctrine, and thence as to faith. The north signifies the hell where and whence are the falsities of doctrine and the falsities of faith, and the smoke those falsities themselves. Therefore by smoke coming from the north is signified falsity vastating from the hells.

[7] So in Nahum:

"Behold, I will burn her chariot in the smoke, and the sword shall devour thy young lions" (2:13).

The subject here treated of is the vastation of the church. By burning the chariot in the smoke is signified the perversion of all the truths of doctrine into falsities, smoke signifying falsity, and chariot denoting doctrine. By the sword shall devour the young lions, is signified that falsities will destroy the principal truths of the church, young lions denoting the principal and defensive truths of the church, and sword denoting falsity destroying truth.

[8] So in Joel:

"I will show wonders in the heavens and in the earth, blood and fire, and pillars of smoke" (2:30).

These things are said concerning the Last Judgment, and by blood, fire, and pillars of smoke, are signified the truth of the Word falsified, the good thereof adulterated, and absolute falsities therefrom. Blood denotes the truth of the Word falsified, fire, its good adulterated, and pillars of smoke denote the absolute and dense falsities thence.

[9] Again, in David:

"The wicked shall perish, and the enemies of Jehovah as the glory of lambs shall be consumed; in smoke shall they be consumed" (Psalm 37:20).

By the wicked perishing, and the enemies of Jehovah being consumed in smoke, is signified that they shall perish by means of the falsities of evil. Those who are in falsities are called wicked, and enemies those who are in evils, while smoke denotes the falsity of evil.

[10] Again:

"As smoke is driven away, so shalt thou drive them away; as wax melteth before the fire, so the wicked shall perish before God" (Psalm 68:2).

The destruction of the wicked is here compared to smoke driven away by the wind, and to wax which melts before the fire, because smoke signifies falsities, and fire, evils.

[11] So in Isaiah:

"The heavens shall vanish away like smoke, and the earth shall wax old like a garment" (51:6).

Here also smoke signifies falsity, in which they should perish who were in the former heaven; and by the garment waxing old is signified truth destroyed by the falsities of evil. Comparison is made with smoke vanishing away, and with a garment waxing old, because comparisons in the Word are also correspondences, and are equally significative.

[12] So in Hosea:

"They sin more and more, and make them a molten image of their silver, and idols in their intelligence, all of it the work of the craftsmen; therefore they shall be as the morning cloud, and as the early falling dew that passeth away, as the [chaff] that is driven with the whirlwind out of the floor, and as the smoke out of the chimney" (13:2, 3).

By these words are described doctrinals which are from [man's] own intelligence in which are evils of falsity, and falsities of evil. Such doctrinals are signified by the molten images of silver, and by idols. Their silver signifies that which is from [man's] own intelligence, and the work of the craftsmen signifies that intelligence; therefore it is also said, that they have made them idols in their own intelligence, all of it the work of the craftsmen. That those doctrinals because they are falsities, would pass away, is signified by their passing away as smoke out of the chimney. The reason why they are said to be as the morning cloud, and as the early falling dew that passeth away, and as [the chaff] out of the floor, is, because the church in its beginning is as the morning cloud, as the early falling dew, and as corn on the threshing floor, by which are signified truths of good, and goods of truth, which yet successively pass away, and are changed into falsities of evil, and into evils of falsity.

[13] By smoke is also signified falsity in other passages in the Apocalypse; as in the following:

"Out of the horses' mouths issued fire and smoke and brimstone. By these was the third part of men killed, by the fire, and by the smoke, and by the brimstone" (9:17, 18).

Again:

"The smoke of their torment ascendeth up unto ages of ages" (14:11).

And again:

"The smoke of Babylon rose up unto ages of ages" (19:3).

[14] Because fire signifies love in both senses, both heavenly love and infernal love, and smoke signifies that which flows from love, both the falsity from infernal love, and the truth from heavenly love, therefore smoke also, in a good sense, signifies holy truth; this is what smoke from the fire of the incense offerings signifies, as may be seen above (n. 494), and also in the following passages:

"Jehovah shall create over every dwelling-place of mount Zion, and over her assemblies, a cloud by day and smoke, and the shining of a flaming fire by night; for over all the glory a covering" (Isaiah 4:5).

This passage may be seen explained above (n. 294:10, 504:11).

Again, in the same prophet:

"The posts of the thresholds were moved at the voice of the seraphim that cried, and the house was filled with smoke" (6:4).

And in the Apocalypse it is written:

"The temple was filled with smoke from the glory of God, and from his power" (15:8).

And again:

"The smoke of the offerings of incense, with the prayers of the saints, ascended up before God out of the angel's hand" (8:4).