16. Ik heb een paar keer met engelen over deze zaak gesproken, die hun verwondering erover uitspraken dat de mensen van de kerk niet wisten dat de Heer en de naaste liefhebben eruit bestaat het goede en het ware lief te hebben en dit te willen doen. Terwijl zij toch kunnen weten dat iemand zijn liefde betuigt door de dingen te willen en te doen die de ander wil; op deze manier wordt hij op zijn beurt liefgehad en verenigd met diegene die hij liefheeft, niet door hem lief te hebben zonder te doen wat hij wil, wat op zich niet liefhebben is. Ze zeiden ook dat men zou moeten weten dat het goede dat uit de Heer voortgaat een gelijkenis van Hem is, aangezien Hijzelf daarin aanwezig is, en dat diegenen die door middel van voornemen en doen het goede en het ware tot hoofdbestanddelen maken van hun leven, gelijkenissen van Hem worden en met Hem worden verenigd. ten slotte is willen, ergens van houden om te doen. Bovendien leert de Heer in het Woord dat dit zo is, door te zeggen: Wie mijn geboden heeft en ze bewaart, die is het, die Mij liefheeft... en Ik zal hem liefhebben... en bij hem wonen Johannes 14:21, 23). En elders: Indien gij mijn geboden bewaart, zult gij in mijn liefde blijven (Johannes 15:10, 12).
Apocalypse Explained #252
252. And will sup with him, and he with Me, signifies communicating to them the felicities of heaven. This is evident from the signification of "supping," as being to communicate the goods of heaven. "To sup" means to communicate, because "banquets," "feasts," "dinners," and "suppers" in the Word signify consociations by love, and thus a communication of love's delights, for all delights are of love. These things derive their signification from that of bread and of wine, which signify the good of love, celestial and spiritual; and from that of eating together, which signifies communication and appropriation. This was formerly signified by the paschal supper, and is at this day signified by the holy supper (See above, n. 146); and in The Doctrine of the New Jerusalem 210-222). Mention is made of "supping," because weddings were celebrated at supper time, and weddings signify the conjunction of good and truth, and the consequent communication of delights. It is therefore said in Revelation:
Blessed are they which are called to the marriage supper of the Lamb (Revelation 19:9);
and afterwards:
Come and be gathered together unto the supper of the great God (Revelation 19:17).
[2] As suppers signify consociations by love, and consequent communication of delights, therefore the Lord compared the church and heaven to a "supper," and also to a "wedding;" to a "supper" in Luke:
The master of the house made a great supper, and bade many; but all those that were called excused themselves. Therefore, being angry, he ordered his servant to bring in the poor, the maimed, the halt, and the blind; saying of those called, that none of them should taste of the supper (Luke 14:16-24).
(Nearly the same is meant by the wedding to which invitations were given in Matthew 22:1-15.) "Supper" here means heaven and the church; "those called who excused themselves" mean the Jews with whom the church then was; for the church specifically is where the Word is, and where the Lord is known through the Word. "The poor, the maimed, the halt, and the blind," mean those who are spiritually such, and who were then outside the church. Heaven and the church are here likened to "a supper" and to "a wedding," because heaven is the conjunction of angels with the Lord by love, and their consociation among themselves by charity, and the consequent communication of all delights and felicities; the like is true of the church, since the church is the Lord's heaven on the earth. (That heaven is the conjunction of the angels with the Lord by love, and also their mutual consociation by charity, see in the work on Heaven and Hell 13-19, and a consequent communication of all delights and felicities, n. 396-400)
[3] In the Word it is said in many places that in heaven they will "eat together;" and this means in the spiritual sense that they are to enjoy blessedness and felicity; thus "eating together" has here a like significance as "supping." Thus in Luke:
They shall come from the east and the west, and from the north and the south, and shall recline to eat in the kingdom of God (Luke 13:29).
And in Matthew:
Many shall come from the east and the west, and shall recline to eat with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, in the kingdom of the heavens (Matthew 8:11).
Those who are to "come from the east, the west, the north and the south," are all who are in the good of love, and in the truths of faith therefrom. (That the "four quarters" in the Word have such a signification, may be seen in the work on Heaven and Hell. n. 141-153: that "Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob," mean the Lord in respect to the Divine Itself and the Divine Human,Arcana Coelestia 1893, 4615, 6098, 6185, 6276, 6804, 6847; consequently "to recline to eat with them" means to be conjoined with the Lord, and to be consociated one to another by love, and by such conjunction and consociation to enjoy eternal blessedness and felicity, and this from the Lord alone.)
[4] In Luke:
Jesus said, Let your loins be girded about, and your lamps burning, and be ye yourselves like unto men waiting for their Lord when He shall return from the wedding, that when He cometh and knocketh they may open unto Him. Blessed are those servants whom the Lord when He cometh shall find watching; verily I say unto you, that He shall gird Himself, and make them to recline to eat, and drawing near, He will minister to them (Luke 12:35).
"The loins that are to be girded" mean the good of love (Arcana Coelestia 3021[1-8], 4280, 9961); "the lamps that are to be burning" signify the truths of faith from the good of love (Arcana Coelestia 9548, 9551, 9783); "girding Himself, making them to recline to eat, and ministering to them," signifies to bestow upon them every good.
[5] In the same:
Ye are they which have continued with Me in My temptations; I appoint unto you, even as My Father hath appointed unto Me, a kingdom, that ye may eat and drink at My table in the kingdom (Luke 22:28-30).
"To eat and drink at the Lord's table in the kingdom of God" is to be conjoined to the Lord by love and faith, and to enjoy heavenly blessedness.
[6] In Matthew:
Jesus said, I say unto you, I will not drink henceforth of this product of the vine, until that day when I will drink it new with you in My Father's kingdom (Matthew 26:29).
These words were spoken by the Lord after He instituted the Holy Supper; and "the product of the vine" signifies Divine truth from Divine good, and blessedness and felicity therefrom.
[7] The signification of "feast" is like that of "supper," in Isaiah:
In this mountain shall Jehovah make unto all peoples a feast of fat things, a feast of wines on the lees (Isaiah 25:6);
here the coming of the Lord is treated of, and "a feast of fat things" signifies the appropriation and communication of goods, and "a feast of wines on the lees," or the best wine, the appropriation of truths. (That "fat things" signify the goods of love, see Arcana Coelestia 353, 5943, 10033; and also the delights of love, n. 6409; and that "wine" signifies the good of charity, which in its essence is truth, n. 1071, 1798, 6377)
[8] The "wedding to which the ten virgins were invited" has a like meaning, of which in Matthew:
The kingdom of the heavens is like unto ten virgins, who took their lamps and went forth to meet the bridegroom. And five of them were prudent, and five were foolish. The foolish, when they took their lamps, took no oil with them; but the prudent took oil in their vessels with their lamps. Now while the bridegroom tarried they all slumbered and slept. But at midnight a cry arose, Behold the bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him. Then all those virgins arose, and trimmed their lamps. And the foolish said unto the prudent, Give us of your oil; for our lamps are going out. But the prudent answered, saying, Peradventure there will not be enough for us and you; go ye rather to them that sell, and buy for yourselves. And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came; and they that were ready went in with him to the wedding, and the door was shut. Afterward came the other virgins, saying, lord, lord, open to us. But he answered and said, Verily I say to you, I know you not (Matthew 25:1-12).
This treats of conjunction with the Lord by love and faith; this the "wedding" moreover signifies; "oil" signifies the good of love, and "lamps" the truth of faith. To make clear that in every particular that the Lord spoke there is a spiritual sense, I will lay open the particulars of the spiritual sense of this parable. "The kingdom of the heavens," to which the ten virgins are likened, means heaven and the church; "the ten virgins" signify all who are of the church ("ten" all, and "virgins" those who are in the affection of spiritual truth and good, which affection constitutes the church), therefore "Zion" and "Jerusalem," by which the church is signified, are called in the Word "virgins," as "the virgin Zion," and "the virgin Jerusalem," and in Revelation it is said that "virgins follow the Lamb." "The lamps that they took to go forth to meet the bridegroom" signify the truths of faith; "the bridegroom" means the Lord in respect to conjunction with heaven and the church by love and faith; for "a wedding" is treated of, which signifies that conjunction. "The five prudent virgins" and "the five foolish" signify those of the church who are in faith from love, and those who are in faith apart from love (the same as "the prudent and foolish" in Matthew 7:24, 26). "Midnight, when the cry arose," signifies the Last Judgment, and in general the end of man's life, when he will be adjudged either to heaven or to hell; "the foolish virgins then saying to the prudent, Give us of your oil, and the prudent answering that they should go to them who sell," signifies the state of all after death-that those who have not the good of love in faith, or the truth of faith from the good of love, then wish to acquire it for themselves, but in vain, since such as man's life has been in the world such he remains. From this it is clear what is signified by "the prudent virgins" going in to the marriage, and that the foolish who said, "Lord, Lord, open to us," received for answer, "Verily I say unto you, I know you not." "I know you not" signifies that the Lord was not conjoined to them, since spiritual love conjoins, and not faith without love; for the Lord has His abode with those who are in love, and in faith therefrom, and these He knows because He Himself is there.
Luke 23
1
The whole company of them rose up and brought him before Pilate.
2
They began to accuse him, saying, "We found this man perverting the nation, forbidding paying taxes to Caesar, and saying that he himself is Christ, a king."
3
Pilate asked him, "Are you the King of the Jews?" He answered him, "So you say."
4
Pilate said to the chief priests and the multitudes, "I find no basis for a charge against this man."
5
But they insisted, saying, "He stirs up the people, teaching throughout all Judea, beginning from Galilee even to this place."
6
But when Pilate heard Galilee mentioned, he asked if the man was a Galilean.
7
When he found out that he was in Herod's jurisdiction, he sent him to Herod, who was also in Jerusalem during those days.
8
Now when Herod saw Jesus, he was exceedingly glad, for he had wanted to see him for a long time, because he had heard many things about him. He hoped to see some miracle done by him.
9
He questioned him with many words, but he gave no answers.
10
The chief priests and the scribes stood, vehemently accusing him.
11
Herod with his soldiers humiliated him and mocked him. Dressing him in luxurious clothing, they sent him back to Pilate.
12
Herod and Pilate became friends with each other that very day, for before that they were enemies with each other.
13
Pilate called together the chief priests and the rulers and the people,
14
and said to them, "You brought this man to me as one that perverts the people, and see, I have examined him before you, and found no basis for a charge against this man concerning those things of which you accuse him.
15
Neither has Herod, for I sent you to him, and see, nothing worthy of death has been done by him.
16
I will therefore chastise him and release him."
17
Now he had to release one prisoner to them at the feast.
18
But they all cried out together, saying, "Away with this man! Release to us Barabbas!"--
19
one who was thrown into prison for a certain revolt in the city, and for murder.
20
Then Pilate spoke to them again, wanting to release Jesus,
21
but they shouted, saying, "Crucify! Crucify him!"
22
He said to them the third time, "Why? What evil has this man done? I have found no capital crime in him. I will therefore chastise him and release him."
23
But they were urgent with loud voices, asking that he might be crucified. Their voices and the voices of the chief priests prevailed.
24
Pilate decreed that what they asked for should be done.
25
He released him who had been thrown into prison for insurrection and murder, for whom they asked, but he delivered Jesus up to their will.
26
When they led him away, they grabbed one Simon of Cyrene, coming from the country, and laid on him the cross, to carry it after Jesus.
27
A great multitude of the people followed him, including women who also mourned and lamented him.
28
But Jesus, turning to them, said, "Daughters of Jerusalem, don't weep for me, but weep for yourselves and for your children.
29
For behold, the days are coming in which they will say, 'Blessed are the barren, the wombs that never bore, and the breasts that never nursed.'
30
Then they will begin to tell the mountains, 'Fall on us!' and tell the hills, 'Cover us.'
31
For if they do these things in the green tree, what will be done in the dry?"
32
There were also others, two criminals, led with him to be put to death.
33
When they came to the place that is called The Skull, they crucified him there with the criminals, one on the right and the other on the left.
34
Jesus said, "Father, forgive them, for they don't know what they are doing." Dividing his garments among them, they cast lots.
35
The people stood watching. The rulers with them also scoffed at him, saying, "He saved others. Let him save himself, if this is the Christ of God, his chosen one!"
36
The soldiers also mocked him, coming to him and offering him vinegar,
37
and saying, "If you are the King of the Jews, save yourself!"
38
An inscription was also written over him in letters of Greek, Latin, and Hebrew: "THIS IS THE KING OF THE JEWS."
39
One of the criminals who was hanged insulted him, saying, "If you are the Christ, save yourself and us!"
40
But the other answered, and rebuking him said, "Don't you even fear God, seeing you are under the same condemnation?
41
And we indeed justly, for we receive the due reward for our deeds, but this man has done nothing wrong."
42
He said to Jesus, "Lord, remember me when you come into your Kingdom."
43
Jesus said to him, "Assuredly I tell you, today you will be with me in Paradise."
44
It was now about the sixth hour, and darkness came over the whole land until the ninth hour.
45
The sun was darkened, and the veil of the temple was torn in two.
46
Jesus, crying with a loud voice, said, "Father, into your hands I commit my spirit!" Having said this, he breathed his last.
47
When the centurion saw what was done, he glorified God, saying, "Certainly this was a righteous man."
48
All the multitudes that came together to see this, when they saw the things that were done, returned home beating their breasts.
49
All his acquaintances, and the women who followed with him from Galilee, stood at a distance, watching these things.
50
Behold, a man named Joseph, who was a member of the council, a good and righteous man
51
(he had not consented to their counsel and deed), from Arimathaea, a city of the Jews, who was also waiting for the Kingdom of God:
52
this man went to Pilate, and asked for Jesus' body.
53
He took it down, and wrapped it in a linen cloth, and laid him in a tomb that was cut in stone, where no one had ever been laid.
54
It was the day of the Preparation, and the Sabbath was drawing near.
55
The women, who had come with him out of Galilee, followed after, and saw the tomb, and how his body was laid.
56
They returned, and prepared spices and ointments. On the Sabbath they rested according to the commandment.
