934. The symbolism of cold as no love (that is, no charity) or faith, and of heat or fire as love (or charity) and faith, is attested by the following passages in the Word. In John, when he addressed the church of Laodicea:

I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. If only you were cold or hot! But since you are lukewarm and neither cold nor hot, I am about to spit you out of my mouth. (Revelation 3:15-16)

Being cold stands for having no charity, and being hot, for having a wealth of it. In Isaiah:

This is what Jehovah has said: "I will rest and watch in my established position, like a sheen of heat on the light, like a cloud of dew in the heat of harvest." (Isaiah 18:4)

This passage is about planting a new church. The heat on the light and the heat of harvest stand for love and charity. In the same author:

Jehovah's fire is on Zion and his furnace is in Jerusalem. (Isaiah 31:9)

Fire stands for love. In respect to the guardian beings that Ezekiel saw:

What the living creatures looked like: Their appearance was like burning embers of fire, like the appearance of lamps. The fire was moving along among the living creatures, and it had brilliance, and from the fire went out lightning. (Ezekiel 1:13)

[2] And in the same author, describing the Lord:

Above the expanse that was over the head of the guardian beings was a seeming appearance of sapphire stone, like a throne. And on the likeness of a throne was what looked like the appearance of a person on it, high above. And I saw the seeming form of a fiery ember, like the form of fire, within him all around, from the appearance of his hips and up; and from the appearance of his hips and down I saw the seeming appearance of fire, which had a brilliance all around. (Ezekiel 1:26-27; 8:2)

The fire stands for love. In Daniel:

The Ancient One sat; his throne was fiery flames, its wheels a burning fire. A river of fire was pouring forth and going out from before him. Thousands upon thousands were waiting on him, and myriads upon myriads were standing before him. (Daniel 7:9-10)

The fire stands for the Lord's love. In Zechariah:

"I will be to them," says Jehovah, "a wall of fire all around." (Zechariah 2:5)

This is about a new Jerusalem. In David:

Jehovah makes the spirits ¹ his angels, the flaming fire his attendants. (Psalms 104:4)

The flaming fire stands for something heavenly and at the same time spiritual.

[3] Since fire symbolized love, it also came to be used for representing the Lord, as is evident from the fire on the altar of burnt offering, which was never to be put out (Leviticus 6:9, 12-13), representing the Lord's mercy. That is why Aaron had to burn incense with fire taken from the altar of burnt offering before he could go in to approach the appeasement cover (Leviticus 16:12-13, 14). Furthermore, in order to symbolize the Lord's acceptance of the worship, fire was sent down from heaven and consumed the burnt offerings (Leviticus 9:24, for instance, and elsewhere).

In the Word, fire also symbolizes self-love and its craving, with which heavenly love cannot harmonize. That is why two of Aaron's sons were devoured by fire for using foreign fire in their sacrificial burning (Leviticus 10:1-2). Foreign fire is the totality of self-love and love of worldly gain, as well as all the cravings that accompany those loves.

Besides, ungodly individuals experience heavenly love in no other way than as a burning, consuming fire. For this reason, the Word describes the Lord as a consuming fire. The fire on Mount Sinai that represented the Lord's love or mercy, for instance, was perceived by the people as a devouring fire, which is why they told Moses not to make them listen to Jehovah God's voice or look at the huge fire or they would die (Deuteronomy 18:16). This is what the Lord's love or mercy looks like to people inflamed with self-love and materialism.

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