180. Since angels wear clothes in heaven, they have appeared clothed when they were seen in our world, like the ones seen by the prophets and the ones by the Lord's tomb, whose "appearance was like lightning and whose clothes were gleaming and white" (Matthew 28:3, Mark 16:5, Luke 22:4, 24:4, John 20:11-12, 13) and the ones seen in heaven by John whose "garments were of linen and white" (Revelation 4:4; 19:11, 13). And since intelligence comes from divine truth, the Lord's garments, when he was transfigured, were "gleaming and white as light" (Matthew 17:2, Mark 9:3, Luke 9:29: on light as divine truth emanating from the Lord, see 129 above). This is why garments in the Word mean things true and the intelligence that results from them, as in John: "Those who have not defiled their garments will walk with me in white, because they are worthy; whoever overcomes will be clothed with white garments" (Revelation 3:4-5); and "Blessed are those who are watchful and take care of their garments" (Revelation 16:15).

Concerning Jerusalem, meaning the church as it is focused on what is true, ¹ it says in Isaiah, "Rise up, put on your strength, O Zion; put on the garments of your beauty, O Jerusalem" (Isaiah 52:1); and in Ezekiel, "O Jerusalem, I have clothed you with linen, I have veiled you with silk, your garments are linen and silk" (Ezekiel 16:10, 13); and many other passages.

In contrast, someone who is not engaged with truths is said not to be wearing a wedding garment, as in Matthew: "When the king came in, he saw the one not wearing a wedding garment and said, 'Friend, how have you come in here without a wedding garment?' So that one was cast out into the outer darkness" (Matthew 22:11-13). The wedding house means heaven and the church by virtue of the Lord's union with them through his divine truth. This is why in the Word the Lord is called the Bridegroom and Husband, and heaven and the church the bride and wife.

Voetnoten:

1283. THE INTERNAL SENSE

The subject now is the Ancient Church in general and the fact that its internal worship in process of time was falsified and adulterated; and so as a consequence was its external worship, for the character of external worship depends on that of internal. The falsification and adulteration of internal worship is meant here by Babel. The fact that the historical events mentioned up to now, apart from those concerning Eber, are not true but made-up may also be seen from the details given in this chapter concerning the tower of Babel - men set out to build a tower whose head was in heaven; their lips were confused so that no one could hear another; it was Jehovah who confused them in this way. This fact may also be seen from the assertion that this was the origin of Babel and yet verse 10 of the previous chapter says that Babel was built by Nimrod. From this it is also clear that Babel does not mean a city, but some real thing, and that here it means worship whose interior features are not holy though its external appear so.