587. And idols of gold and of silver and of brass and of stone and of wood, signifies false doctrinals that are from self-intelligence, that favor the loves of the body and of the world, and principles derived therefrom. This is evident from the signification of "idols," as being the falsities of doctrine, of religion, and of worship, which are from self-intelligence. But what "idols of gold, of silver, of brass, of stone, and of wood," signify in particular can be seen from the signification of "gold, silver, brass, stone, and wood;" "gold" signifies spiritual good, "silver" spiritual truth, "brass" natural good, "stone" natural truth, and "wood" sensual good. All these goods and truths enter into genuine doctrine, because such doctrine is both from the spiritual and from the natural sense of the Word. When a false doctrinal is confirmed by the spiritual things of the Word it becomes an idol of gold and an idol of silver; but when it is confirmed by the natural things of the Word, such as belong to the sense of its letter, it becomes an idol of brass and stone; and when it is confirmed by the mere sense of the letter it becomes an idol of wood; for both the interior or spiritual and the exterior or natural senses of the Word can be applied to confirm falsities, as can be seen from innumerable heresies which are all confirmed thereby.

[2] Falsities become confirmed when the genuine sense of the Word is not understood, and for the reason that self-loves and the principles derived therefrom are dominant, and when these are dominant man sees nothing from the light of heaven, but whatever he sees is from the light of the world separated from the light of heaven; and when the light of the world is separated from the light of heaven there is thick darkness in things spiritual. It is to be known that the sons of Israel took from Egypt and also from the nations round about the foul custom of worshiping idols; and as they were merely external men they also had that worship implanted in them from natural inclination, as can be seen from the idolatries of so many of the kings of Judah and Israel related in the Word, and also from Solomon himself who was the wisest of them; but still these idols which they made for themselves and worshiped, when they are mentioned in the Word, signify in the spiritual sense false doctrinals from self-intelligence, from which and according to which is worship.

[3] This signification of idols, too, has its cause from the spiritual world; there evil spirits who have framed for themselves falsities of doctrine are seen fashioning idols and marking them in various ways until they appear to be in a human form; they also make selections from various representatives and fit them together so as to cohere, and thus counterfeit that form in externals. It has been permitted me to witness the formation of such idols by leaders of the church, who have persuaded themselves that falsities are truths; and as they excelled in ingenuity they knew how to join the particulars together assiduously, and afterwards to clothe them. Such an idol I have seen made by the English, by which they represented that faith alone is the essential of salvation, and that it produces the goods of charity without any cooperation from man. Idols are formed in the spiritual world by those who are in falsities of doctrine that are from self-intelligence, because Divine truths, from which is the genuine doctrine of the church, induce upon angels the human form; for this reason also angels signify in the Word Divine truths; and for this reason falsities of doctrine that are confirmed from the Word are presented as idols in the human form; truths of the Word that are falsified and that are used as confirmations induce that form, but because the truths are falsified an idol is presented that has no life.

[4] That "idols, graven images, and molten images," signify the falsities of doctrine, of religion, and of worship, can be seen from the following passages in the Word. In Isaiah:

The artificer casteth a graven image, and the refiner spreadeth it over with gold and casteth chains of silver. He that is too impoverished for an oblation chooseth wood that will not rot; he seeketh unto him a wise artificer to prepare a graven image that shall not be moved (Isaiah 40:19, 20).

This describes how doctrine is fused and welded together by means of falsities, thus by means of such things as are from self-intelligence, for these are all falsities. The "artificer," the "refiner," and the "wise artificer," whom he seeketh unto him, mean one who fashions and forms such a doctrine. "To spread it over with gold" signifies that it may appear in the external form as good; "to cast chains of silver" signifies that falsities may fit together and appear as truths; "to choose wood that doth not rot, and to prepare a graven image that shall not be moved," signifies that the doctrine may be acknowledged and not seem to be false.

[5] In Jeremiah:

Every man has become foolish by knowledge; every refiner is put to shame by the graven image; for his molten image is a lie, and there is no breath in them; they are vanity, and a work of errors; in the time of their visitation they shall perish (Jeremiah 10:14, 15; 51:17, 18).

Because a "graven image" signifies the falsity of doctrine, of religion, and of worship, therefore it is said, "every man has become foolish by knowledge, and every refiner is put to shame by the graven image;" the "knowledge by which man becomes foolish" signifies self-intelligence, wherefore falsity therefrom is signified by "the graven image;" such falsity is also meant by "the molten image is a lie, vanity, and a work of errors." That there is no spiritual life in falsities, or in the things that are from self-intelligence, is meant by "there is no breath in them;" for life is solely in Divine truths, that is, in truths that are from the Lord, as He teaches:

The words that I speak unto you are spirit and are life (John 6:63).

[6] In Jeremiah:

He hath cut wood out of the forest, the work of the hands of the workman with the axe. He doth deck it with silver and with gold; he doth fasten them with nails and with hammers, that it move not. They are rigid like a palm-tree, but they speak not; they must needs be borne, because they cannot go. They are both brutish and foolish; the wood is a teaching of vanities. Silver spread into plates is brought from Tarshish, and gold from Uphaz, the work of the workman and of the hands of the refiner; their garment is hyacinthine and purple; they are all the work of the wise. But Jehovah is the God of truth, He is the living God, and the King of an age (Jeremiah 10:3-5, 8-10).

That the "graven image" here means the falsity of doctrine, of religion, and of worship, fashioned and formed by the ingenious by means of self-intelligence, is evident from the particulars of this description when viewed in the spiritual sense. The self-intelligence by means of which it is cut out and formed is meant by "the work of the hands with the axe," and by "the work of the workman and of the hands of the refiner," and by "the work of the wise." That "the work of the hands of the workman and artificer" signifies what is from self-intelligence has been shown in the preceding article; the falsities that are from it are signified by "they are both brutish and foolish, the wood is a teaching of vanities;" that these have no life is signified by "they are rigid like a palm-tree, they speak not, they cannot go;" "to speak" and "to go" signify to live, and to live means to live spiritually. Confirmations from the Word are signified by "silver spread into plates brought from Tarshish," and by "gold from Uphaz," also by "hyacinthine and purple" which was their garment; "silver from Tarshish" signifies the truth of the Word, and "gold from Uphaz" the good of the Word, both falsified; "hyacinthine and purple" have a similar meaning. That every truth of doctrine, of religion, and of worship, is from Jehovah, that is, from the Lord, is meant by "Jehovah is the God of truth, the living God, the King of an age;" for the Lord is called "God" from Divine truth, and also "living," and "King."

[7] In Isaiah:

They that form a graven image are all of them vanity, and their most desirable things do not profit; and they are witnesses to themselves that they see not, and know not. For all his fellows shall be ashamed, and the workmen themselves. He fashioneth iron with the tongs, and worketh it in the coal, and strengthens ¹ it with sharp hammers, so he worketh it by the arm of his strength; yea, he is hungry until he hath no power, neither doth he drink water until he is exhausted. He fashioneth wood, he stretcheth out the line, and describeth it with a rule; he maketh it in its angles, and shapeth it by a circle, that he may make it in the form of a man, according to the beauty of man, to dwell in the house. To cut out for himself cedars, or he hath taken the box-tree or the oak; although it be for a man to burn, and he taketh of them to be warm, and also kindleth it to bake bread, yet he maketh a god and boweth himself down, he maketh of it a graven image and adoreth it. They know not nor discern, for they have forgotten so that their eyes do not see, and their hearts do not understand. And none taketh it into his heart, there is no knowledge or intelligence, neither doth he say, Is there not a lie in my right hand? (Isaiah 44:9-20).

This whole description of a "graven image" means the formation of doctrine from self-intelligence, and the particulars of the description signify the particulars of such formation. Why otherwise should there be in the Divine Word so extended a description of the mere formation of a graven image? That there is nothing but what is false, because it is from self-intelligence, is meant by "They that form a graven image are all of them vanity, and their most desirable things do not profit;" also by "they have no knowledge nor intelligence, neither doth he say, Is there not a lie in my right hand?" The self-intelligence out of which the falsity of doctrine is formed is described by "He fashioneth iron with the tongs, and worketh it in the coal by the arm of his power;" "to fashion iron with the tongs, and to work it in the coal," signifies to hammer out falsities that favor self-loves; to join falsities with falsities by means of fallacies that make them seem to be truths, is described by "he stretched out the line, and describeth it with a rule, he maketh it in its angles, he defineth it by a circle, that he may make it in the form of a man, according to the beauty of man, to dwell in the house;" "the form of a man" signifies an appearance of truth, and "the beauty of man," an appearance of intelligence therefrom, and "to dwell in the house" signifies an appearance of spiritual life therefrom. That from this there is no life of intelligence or of the perception of truth and good is signified by "They know not nor understand, their eyes do not see, and their hearts do not understand." It would be too lengthy to explain what each single thing signifies in particular in this description; it is only necessary that everyone shall be able to see that there is something signified more interior and wise than the mere formation of a graven image. Let it be known that in this description heavenly wisdom which is ineffable lies hidden, and that the angels are in this wisdom when these things are read by man, although the man thinks of nothing but a graven image and its formation; for there are here as many correspondences and as many arcana of wisdom therefrom as there are words.

[8] In Habakkuk:

What profiteth the graven image? For the maker thereof hath graven it; the molten image and the instructor of a lie? For the former of its lie trustest in it, since he maketh dumb gods. Woe unto him that saith to the wood, Awake; to the silent stone, Be watchful, it shall instruct! Behold, it is fixed with gold and silver, and there is no breath in the midst of it. But Jehovah is in the temple of His holiness (Habakkuk 2:18-20).

As a "graven image" means the falsity of doctrine, of religion, and of worship, in which there is nothing of spiritual life because it is from self-intelligence, it is said "What profiteth the graven image? For the maker thereof hath given it; the molten image and the instructor of a lie? in which the former of the lie trustest;" a "lie" signifying falsity, and "the instructor and former of a lie" signifying him who frames it; that there is no intelligence or life in it or from it is signified by "he maketh dumb gods, and there is no breath in the midst of it;" that every truth of doctrine, of the church, and of worship, is from the Lord alone is signified by "Jehovah is in the temple of His holiness;" "temple of holiness" meaning heaven, where and from which is Divine truth.

[9] In David:

Their idols are silver and gold, the work of the hands of man. They have a mouth but they speak not, eyes have they but they see not (Psalms 115:4, 5; 135:15, 16).

"Their idols are silver and gold" signifies external worship without internal, confirmed by the sense of the letter of the Word not understood, and also by the fallacies of the senses; "the work of the hands of man" signifies what is from self-intelligence (that "the work of the hands" means what is from self-intelligence, see in the preceding article). "They have a mouth but they speak not, eyes have they but they see not," signifies that from these there is no thought nor any understanding of truth.

[10] From self-intelligence nothing but falsity comes, because man's self [proprium] is nothing but evil, for it favors his own love and his own intelligence; such, therefore, do not seek truths for the sake of truths, but only for the sake of reputation, renown, glory, and gain, and when these are dominant heaven cannot flow in with its light and open the sight and enlighten, consequently they see like owls, moles, and bats, in the dark, according to these words in Isaiah:

In that day a man shall cast away the idols of his silver and the idols of his gold, which they made for themselves to bow down to the moles and to the bats (Isaiah 2:18, 20).

In Jeremiah:

A drought is upon her waters and they have become dry; for this is a land of graven images, and they boast of horrible things. Therefore the tziim and the ijim shall dwell there, and the daughters of the owl shall dwell therein (Jeremiah 50:38, 39).

"A drought upon her waters" signifies that there is no truth; "the tziim and the ijim" signify infernal falsities and evils, and "the daughters of the owl" signify the affections of falsity. This is said of the land of Chaldea, and of Babylon, which signify the profanations of truth and good by falsities that favor evils, which such frame for themselves for the sake of dominion.

[11] In Hosea:

They have made for themselves a molten image of their silver, idols in their intelligence, all of them the work of the artificers; those that sacrifice man kiss the calves (Hosea 13:2).

Because a "molten image" signifies a doctrinal from self-intelligence it is said, "They have made a molten image of their silver, idols in their intelligence, all of them the work of the artificers;" and because by means of it they destroy spiritual life and put on what is merely natural, it is said, "those that sacrifice man kiss the calves," "to sacrifice man" signifying to destroy spiritual life, and "to kiss the calves" signifying to become merely natural.

[12] In Isaiah:

Behold they are all an iniquity, their works are nothing; their molten images are wind and emptiness (Isaiah 41:29).

Evils of doctrine, of religion, and of worship, are signified by "they are all an iniquity, their works are nothing," and falsities by "their molten images are wind and emptiness;" "wind and emptiness" are predicated in the Word of falsities from self. In Jeremiah:

Why have they provoked Me to anger with their graven images and with the vanities of aliens? (Jeremiah 8:19).

"Vanities of aliens" also signify the falsities of religion, like as "graven images," therefore it is said, "with their graven images, with the vanities of aliens."

[13] In Ezekiel:

Every man of the house of Israel who shall make idols to ascend upon his heart, and shall put the stumbling block of iniquity before his faces, shall yet come to the prophet; shall I, Jehovah, answer him who cometh with a multitude of his idols? (Ezekiel 14:4).

Here, too, "idols" stand for the falsities of doctrine which are from self-intelligence; to accept these falsities and to acknowledge them is signified by "making idols to ascend upon his heart;" and to be affected by them and live according to them is signified by "putting the stumbling block of iniquity before his faces;" that to such the Lord cannot reveal the genuine truths of doctrine so long as they are in these falsities is signified by "if he shall come to the prophet, shall I, Jehovah, answer him who cometh with a multitude of his idols?" A "prophet" means one who teaches truths, and in the abstract sense the doctrine of genuine truth which is from the Lord; and "a multitude of idols" signifies falsities in abundance, for from one falsity assumed as a principle, falsities flow forth in abundance, together with falsities in a series from their connection; this is why they are called "idols," in the plural, and "a multitude of idols."

[14] In the same:

I will sprinkle clean waters upon you that ye may be cleansed from all your uncleannesses, and from all your idols will I cleanse you (Ezekiel 36:25).

Because "idols" signify falsities of doctrine it is said, "I will sprinkle clean waters upon you;" "clean waters" signifying genuine truths, and "to sprinkle them upon them" signifies to purify from falsities; these falsities are also called "uncleannesses," because they are falsities from evil, and falsities producing evil.

[15] In Micah:

I will make Samaria into a heap of the field, and I will make its stones to flow down into the valley, and I will open its foundations. Then all her graven images shall be beaten to pieces, and all the hire of her whoredom shall be burned up with fire, and all their idols will I lay waste; for she hath gathered them from the hire of a harlot, therefore to the hire of a harlot shall they return (Micah 1:6, 7).

"Samaria when it became idolatrous" represented the church devastated in respect to the truths of doctrine and the goods of life, or destroyed by the falsities of doctrine and by the evils of life; devastation in respect to all the truths of the church is signified by "it shall be made into a heap of the field, and its stones shall flow down into the valley, and its foundations shall be opened;" "the field" meaning the church; "the heap of the field" its devastation; "the stones" the truths of the church, and "foundations" the natural truths upon which the church is founded; the complete devastation of these is signified by "the stones shall flow down into the valley, and the foundations shall be opened;" the destruction of the church by the falsities of doctrine is signified by "her graven images shall be beaten to pieces, and her idols laid waste;" "the hire of whoredom which shall be burned up with the fire," signifies the falsification of truth by applications to favor the loves of self and of the world.

[16] "Graven images," "molten images," and "idols," have a similar signification in the following passages. In Isaiah:

As My hand hath found the kingdoms of the idols and their graven images of Jerusalem and Samaria, shall I not, as I have done unto Samaria and her idols, so do to Jerusalem and her idols? (Isaiah 10:10, 11).

Ye shall judge unclean the covering of the graven images of thy silver, and the plating of the molten images of thy gold; thou shalt disperse them as a menstruous thing; thou shalt call it dung (Isaiah 30:22).

In that day a man shall cast away the idols of his silver and the idols of his gold, which your hands have made for you a sin (Isaiah 31:7).

Lest thou say, Mine idol hath done these things, and my graven image, and my molten image hath commanded them (Isaiah 48:5).

They shall be turned backward, they shall be ashamed with shame, that trust in a graven image, that say to a molten image, Ye are our gods (Isaiah 42:17).

A lion upon a watchtower said Babylon is fallen, is fallen; and all the graven images of her gods he hath broken unto the earth (Isaiah 21:8, 9).

In Ezekiel:

Your altars shall be destroyed, and your sun images shall be broken; and I will make your slain to fall before your idols. And I will lay the carcasses of the sons of Israel before their idols (Ezekiel 6:4, 5).

In Micah:

In that day I will cut off thy graven images and thy statues out of the midst of thee; that thou mayest no longer worship the work of thy hands (Micah 5:10, 13).

In Moses:

And I will cast your bodies upon the bodies of your idols, and My soul shall abhor you (Leviticus 26:30).

The graven images of their gods shall ye burn up with fire; thou shalt not covet the silver or gold that is on them to take it unto thee, for it is an abomination to thy God (Deuteronomy 7:25).

Cursed be he who shall make a graven and a molten image, an abomination unto Jehovah, the work of the hands of the artificer, and shall put it in a secret place (Deuteronomy 27:15).

[17] "Idols of gold, silver, brass, stone, and wood," have a similar signification as:

The gods of gold, of silver, of brass, of iron, of wood, and of stone, that king Belshazzar praised when he drank wine with his nobles and wives out of the vessels of gold and silver that were brought from the temple of Jerusalem; on account of which the handwriting appeared on the wall, and the king [Nebuchadnezzar] ² was himself driven out from man, and became like a beast (Daniel 5:1, et seq.).

"The vessels of gold and silver of the temple of Jerusalem" signified the holy goods and truths of the church; "the gods of gold, silver, brass, iron, wood, and stone, which the king of Babylon then praised," have a similar meaning as "idols" of the same, and these signify the evils and falsities of doctrine and of worship; "to praise" signifying to worship; "to drink out of the vessels of the temple of Jerusalem and at the same time to praise or worship those gods" signifies the profanation of good and truth by evils and falsities in worship; and because by profanation everything spiritual in man is destroyed, and man without the spiritual is not a man, so Nebuchadnezzar was driven away from man and became like a beast.

[18] Because an external without an internal must not be worshiped, but only an external from an internal, thus the internal in the external, it was forbidden to make any graven image in the likeness of anything living on the earth, in Moses:

Ye shall not make you a graven image, the shape of any similitude, the figure of male or female, the figure of any beast that is on the earth, the figure of any winged bird that flieth under heaven, the figure of anything that creepeth on the ground, the figure of any fish that is in the waters under the earth (Deuteronomy 4:16-18; 5:8).

This was prohibited because the Jewish nation, more than all other nations, was in externals without internals, and thus in the worship of all the external things that the nations called holy; and to worship external things other than those that represented heavenly things, which were the altar, the sacrifice upon it, the Tent of meeting, and the temple, was idolatrous. The Jewish worship of these, indeed, was also an idolatrous worship, but inasmuch as the church with them was a representative church their worship was accepted for the sake of the representation, although it did not affect them in respect to their soul, as can be seen from the various things shown respecting that nation in Arcana Coelestia (See what is collected in The Doctrine of the New Jerusalem, n.248). And as the worship of an external anywhere else than where it was commanded, which was beside the tent in the desert and beside the temple and in the temple in Jerusalem, was the worship of the representative itself without any intuition of the thing represented, thus a worship of what is merely earthly apart from anything heavenly, therefore this was forbidden them, even to the extent that they should not make for themselves any graven images of such things; for the nature of that nation was such that as soon as they saw them made they worshiped them.

[19] That the idolatrous nations worshiped the images, not only of men but also of various beasts, birds, and creeping things, came from its having been handed down from the ancients that these objects signified things celestial and spiritual; as that "beasts" signified affections; "birds" the thoughts therefrom; and "creeping things" and "fishes" the same in the sensual-natural man. From this it came that when those who were in external worship without any internal heard that the holy things of heaven and the church were signified by these objects, they began to worship them; as the Egyptians, and from them the sons of Israel in the wilderness and afterwards in Samaria, worshiped calves, because "calves" with the ancients signified the good affections of the natural man.

Voetnoten:

400. And behold there was a great earthquake, signifies the state of the church entirely changed. This is evident from the signification of "earthquake," as being a change of state of the church, "earth" meaning the church, and its "quaking" a change of state. (That "the earth" means the church, see above, n. 304; and that its "quaking" means a change of state, see Arcana Coelestia 1273-1275, 1377, 3356.) That this prediction, which is signified by "the sixth seal was opened," involves a total change in the state of the church, is evident from what has been said before, and from what follows in this chapter. In what precedes it was predicted that the understanding of the Word in relation to good, and afterwards in relation to truth, would perish, and that at length there would be no understanding of the Word in consequence of the evils of life and the falsities of doctrine from them. The destruction of the understanding of the Word in relation to good was signified by "the red horse" that was seen to go forth from the opened seal of the book (of which above, n. 364; the destruction of the understanding of the Word in relation to truth was signified by "the black horse" that was seen (of which above, n. 372; and that in consequence of the evils of life and the falsities of doctrine there was no understanding of the Word was signified by "the pale horse" (of which above, n. 381; from this it follows that the state of the church was altogether changed. This is evident from what precedes; also from what follows, since it is said that "the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood, and the stars of heaven fell unto the earth," with many other things, which signify that there was no longer any good of love nor any truth of faith, nor any knowledges of good and truth; which makes clear that "a great earthquake" here signifies a total change in the state of the church.

[2] It is evident, moreover, from many passages in the Word, that "an earthquake" signifies a change in the state of the church; and some of these shall be cited in what follows. This signification of "earthquake" is from appearances in the spiritual world. In that world, as well as in the natural world, there are lands, valleys, hills, mountains, and on them societies of spirits and angels dwell. Before the new heaven was formed upon these places, they were seen to undergo remarkable changes; some appeared to sink down, some to be agitated and shaken, and some appeared to be rolled up, as the scroll of a book is rolled up, and to be borne away, and some appeared to shake and tremble as by a great earthquake. Such things were often seen by me before the new heaven was formed, and were always signs of a change there in the state of the church. When there was a quaking and trembling as from an earthquake it was a sign that the state of the church was changed in that place, and the amount of change was made evident from the extent and character of the earth's motion; and when the state of the church with them was completely changed from good into evil and from truth into falsity, the earth there appeared to be rolled up like the scroll of a book and to be taken away; this is what is meant by the words in verse 14 this chapter, namely, "and the heaven departed as a book rolled up." Like things also appeared to John, for when he saw these things he was in the spirit, as he himself says (Revelation 1:10; 4:2); and he who sees in the spirit sees the things that exist and appear in the spiritual world. This now makes clear that "an earthquake" signifies a change of state of the church, that is, from good into evil, and from truth into falsity.

[3] That "earthquakes" and "tremblings of the earth" have no other meaning in the Word can be seen from the following passages. In Joel:

The earth trembled before Him, the heavens quaked, the sun and the moon were blackened, and the stars withdrew their brightness (Joel 2:10).

"Earth and heavens" here, as often elsewhere, signify the church; "earth" the external church, and "heavens" the internal church. The external church means the worship from good and truth in the natural man; and the internal church, the good of love and the faith, which is in the spiritual man, from which is worship; for as there is an internal and an external man, or a spiritual and a natural man, so is it with the church, since the church is in man, and is made up of men in whom the church is. A change and perversion of the church is signified by "the earth trembled, and the heavens quaked;" "the sun and the moon were blackened" signifies that there is no good of love or truth of faith, and "the stars withdrew their brightness" signifies that there were no longer any knowledges of truth and good.

[4] In Isaiah:

I will make a man [virum hominem] more rare than fine gold; therefore I will make heaven to tremble, and the earth shall quake out of its place, in the fury of Jehovah of Hosts, and in the day of the fury of His anger (Isaiah 13:12-13).

"Man" [virum hominem] means intelligence, and "to make him more rare than fine gold" means that there is scarcely any intelligence left, intelligence meaning intelligence from truths, for all intelligence is from truths; "therefore I will make heaven to tremble, and the earth shall quake out of its place," signifies that the good of love and the truth of faith and worship therefrom in externals are dispersed, "heaven and earth" signifying here, as above, the internal and the external of the church; the internal of the church is the good of love and the good of faith, and its external is worship therefrom; for such as the internal of the man of the church is such is his external, since the external proceeds solely from the internal. Apart from the internal, external worship is inanimate, the voice is without spirit, and the thought from which is the voice, and the will from which is gesture, are without life, for there is nothing spiritual therein from which there is life. What is signified by "the fury of Jehovah, and the glowing of His anger," will be told in the explanation of verse 17, below.

[5] In the same:

The flood-gates from on high were opened, and the foundations of the earth quaked, in breaking the earth was broken, in shaking the earth was shaken, in staggering the earth staggers as a drunkard, it sways like a hut; and its transgression is heavy upon it; and it shall fall and shall not rise again (Isaiah 24:18-20).

This is most evidently said of the church, not of the earth; for who can think that the foundations of the earth have quaked, that the earth has been shaken, that it staggers like a drunkard, that it sways like a hut? But anyone can understand these words when, instead of the earth, the church is thought of. These words evidently signify a change and perversion of the church, for it is said "its transgression is heavy upon it, and it shall fall and shall not rise again;" "the flood-gates that were opened from on high," also mean an inundation of evil and of falsity.

[6] In David:

The earth tottered and quaked; the foundations of the mountains trembled, because He was wroth (Psalms 18:7).

This does not mean that it was the earth and its foundations that tottered and quaked, but the church and the truths upon which it was founded; for "earth" signifies the church, and the "foundations of the mountains" signify the truths on which the church is founded, which are truths from good; "because He was wroth" has the like signification as "the wrath of Jehovah," in the Word. Its being said that "the earth tottered and quaked, and the foundations of the mountains trembled," is from appearances in the spiritual world, where such things occur when the state of the church is changed with those who dwell there. Moreover, those who are in truths there dwell at the foot of mountains, for all the dwelling places of the angels are so arranged that those who are in the good of love to the Lord dwell upon mountains, and those who are in truths from that good dwell lower down. When the state of these in respect to truths is changed, their habitations, and thus the foundations of the mountains, tremble. That there are such things in the spiritual world, and that they exist from changes of the state of the church there, no one except he to whom it is revealed can know.

[7] In Nahum:

The mountains quake before Jehovah, and the hills dissolve, and the earth is burned up before Him, and the world and all that dwelt therein. His wrath is poured out like fire, and the rocks are torn down before Him (Nahum 1:5-6).

"Mountains" signify the church in which there is love to the Lord, and "hills" the church in which there is love towards the neighbor; so, too, "mountains" signify love to the Lord, and "hills" love towards the neighbor, for the reason that angels who are in love to the Lord dwell upon mountains, and those who are in love toward the neighbor dwell upon hills. When in place of love to the Lord love of self reigns, and in place of love towards the neighbor love of the world reigns, then the mountains are said "to quake," and the hills "to dissolve;" for this occurs in the spiritual world, not with the angels, who are in heaven, but with those spirits that made for themselves a semblance of heaven upon the mountains and hills before the Last Judgment. Because the love of self and the world is meant, it is said that "they dissolve," and that "the earth is burned up before Him, the world and all that dwell therein," also that "His wrath is poured out like fire," for "fire" signifies such loves, and "to dissolve" and "to be burned" signify to perish by them; "the rocks that are torn down," signify the truths of faith, because those who are in faith, and do good from obedience, although not from charity, dwell in the spiritual world upon rocks.

[8] In Job:

Jehovah who maketh the earth to tremble out of its place, so that the pillars thereof shake (Job 9:6).

And in Jeremiah:

Jehovah is God in truth, He is the living God, and King of an age; by His rage the earth quaketh, and the nations are not able to abide His indignation (Jeremiah 10:10).

Here, too, "the earth" signifies the church, but the church in which are falsities, which is said "to quake" when falsities are believed and are called truths. "Nations" signify the evils of falsity; the casting down into hell and destruction of these evils is signified by "the nations are not able to abide His indignation." Because "the earth" here signifies the church in which are falsities, it is said "God in truth, He is the living God, and the King of an age;" for Jehovah is called "God" and "King" from Divine truth, "a living God" from Divine truth in the heavens, and "King of an age," from Divine truth on the earth; and as good is also treated of in the Word wherever truth is treated of, because of the heavenly marriage in the particulars of the Word, and so on the other hand, where falsity is treated of, evil is also treated of, mention is made also of "the nations," by which the evils of falsity are signified. What the evils of falsity that flow from the falsities of doctrine are, may be illustrated as follows: where the doctrine prevails that faith alone and not the good of life saves, also that to one who has faith nothing of evil is imputed, and that a man may be saved by faith alone, even at the end of his life, provided he then believes that the Lord has delivered all from the yoke of the law by His fulfillment of it, and has made atonement by His blood, in that case the evils that a man does in consequence of such a faith are the evils of falsity.

[9] In Ezekiel:

In the day in which Gog shall come upon the ground of Israel, in My anger wrath shall go up, and in My zeal and in the fire of My indignation I will speak: Surely there shall be in this day a great earthquake upon the ground of Israel, that the fishes of the sea, and the fowl of the heavens, and the wild beast of the field, and every creeping thing that creepeth upon the ground, and every man who is upon the faces of the ground may quake before Me; and the mountains shall be thrown down and the steps shall fall, and every wall shall fall down to the earth (Ezekiel 38:18-20).

"Gog" signifies external worship without internal; "the ground of Israel" signifies the church; this makes clear what is signified by "in that day Gog shall come upon the ground of Israel;" that "then there shall be a great earthquake," signifies a change of the church, and its overthrow; for external worship derives its all from internal worship, so that the external is just such as the internal is, consequently where there is no internal worship the external worship is not worship but mere gesture and speech; the thought that is present at the time is solely from the natural memory, and the affection is from the body, such as arises from habit before men; "the fishes of the sea, the fowl of the heavens, the wild beast of the field, and every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth, shall quake" signifies all things of man; for "fishes of the sea" signify natural things in general, and in particular, knowledges there, "the fowl of the heavens" signify in general intellectual things, in particular, thoughts from truths, but here from falsities, "the wild beast of the field" signifies affection and lust for falsity and evil, and the creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth" signifies the sensual, which is the ultimate of the natural, with its delights and knowledges; and as these signify all things of man it is said, "and every man who is upon the faces of the ground," "every man" in the spiritual sense meaning everything of man in respect to intelligence and wisdom; "the mountains shall be thrown down, and the steps shall fall, and every wall shall fall down to the earth" signifies that every good of love and every truth of that good shall perish, and thus every evil and falsity will break in unresisted; "mountains" signifying the goods of love, "steps" the truths therefrom, and "wall" defense; and where there is no defense there every evil and falsity breaks in unresisted. Who does not see that this does not mean that fishes of the sea, the fowl of the heavens, the wild beast of the field, and the creeping thing of the ground are to quake before Jehovah?

[10] In Jeremiah:

At the sound of the fall of Edom and of the inhabitants of Teman the earth quaked, there is a cry, and the sound of it was heard in the sea of Suph (Jeremiah 49:21).

Here "Edom and the inhabitants of Teman" are not meant, but the evils and falsities that are opposed to the goods and truths of the celestial kingdom; therefore "at the sound of the fall of Edom and of the inhabitants of Teman the earth quaked" signifies that the church was changed and perished by those evils and falsities; "a cry, and the sound of it was heard in the sea of Suph" signifies their damnation; "the sea of Suph" meaning damnation; "cry" is predicated of the damnation of evil, and "sound" of the damnation of falsity. (That "the sea of Suph" signifies damnation and hell, see Arcana Coelestia 8099.)

[11] In David:

O God, Thou hast cast us off, Thou hast made a breach in us, Thou hast been angry; restore rest to us. Thou hast made the earth to quake; Thou hast broken it up; heal the breaches thereof, for it is moved (Psalms 60:1, 2).

"Breach" signifies a falling away of the church and the consequent perversion of truth and breaking in of falsity; this therefore is signified by "Thou hast made the earth to quake, Thou hast broken it up," also by "the earth is moved," "earth" meaning the church.

[12] In Haggai:

Yet once, it is for a little while, when I make the heavens and the earth and the sea and the dry land to quake, and then I will make all nations to quake that the choice of all nations may come; and I will fill this house with glory (Haggai 2:6-7).

This is said of the rebuilding of the temple in Jerusalem, and the "new temple" there signifies a new church that is to be established by the Lord. This is meant by "Yet once, it is for a little while," and by "then I will make all nations quake that the choice of all nations may come; and I will fill this house with glory," "nations" and "the choice of nations" signifying all who are in good (See above, n. 175, 331), "house" signifying the church, and "glory" Divine truth. This new church is further described by "the temple" in that chapter thus:

The glory of this latter house shall be greater than that of the former, for in this place I will give peace (Haggai 2:9).

The judgment in the spiritual world that will precede is described by "I make the heavens and the earth and the sea and the dry land to quake" "the heavens and the earth" meaning all interior things of the church, and "sea and dry land" all the exterior things of it.

[13] In the Gospels:

Nation shall be stirred up against nation, kingdom against kingdom; for there shall be pestilences, famines, and earthquakes, in divers places (Matthew 24:7; Mark 13:8; Luke 21:11).

"Nation shall be stirred up against nation, and kingdom against kingdom," signifies that evil is to fight with evil, and falsity with falsity, "nation" signifying the good of the church, and in a contrary sense its evil, and "kingdom" signifying the truth of the church, and in a contrary sense its falsity; "there shall be pestilences, famines, and earthquakes in divers places," signifies that there will no longer be any goods and truths, and knowledges of good and truth, and thus that the state of the church is changed, which is meant by "an earthquake." In these chapters of the Gospels the successive states of the church even to its consummation are foretold, but these are described by pure correspondences. (These are explained in Arcana Coelestia 3353-3356, 3486-3489, 3650-3655, 3751-3757, 3897-3901, 4056-4060, 4229-4231, 4332-4335, 4422-4434.)

[14] It is recorded also in the Word that there was an earthquake when the Lord suffered upon the cross, and also when the angel descended and rolled away the stone from the mouth of the sepulcher; and each of these earthquakes signified a change in the state of the church. Of the earthquake that occurred when the Lord suffered it is thus written:

The veil in the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom; and the earth did quake, and the rocks were rent. The centurion and they that were with him guarding Jesus, seeing the earthquake and the things that were done, feared exceedingly, saying, Truly this was the Son of God (Matthew 27:51, 54).

And of the earthquake that occurred when the angel descended and rolled away the stone from the mouth of the sepulcher it is said:

When Mary Magdalene came and the other Mary to see the sepulcher, and behold, there was a great earthquake; for the angel of the Lord descended from heaven, and coming, rolled away the stone from the mouth, and sat upon it (Matthew 28:1-2

These earthquakes occurred to indicate that the state of the church was then changed; for the Lord by His last temptation, which He endured in Gethsemane and upon the cross, conquered the hells, and put in order all things there and in the heavens, and also glorified His Human, that is, made it Divine; for this reason "there was an earthquake, and the rocks were rent." "The veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom" signified that His Human was made Divine; for within the veil was the ark in which was the Testimony, and "the Testimony" signified the Lord in respect to His Divine Human (See above 392). "The veil" signified the external of the church which was with the Jews and Israelites, and that covered their eyes that they might not see the Lord and Divine truth, or the Word in its own light. The "great earthquake" that occurred when the angel descended from heaven and rolled away the stone from the mouth of the sepulcher, has a like signification, namely, that the state of the church was altogether changed; for the Lord then rose again, and in respect to His Human assumed all dominion over heaven and earth, as He Himself says in Matthew (Matthew 28:18). "The angel rolled away the stone from the mouth and sat upon it" signifies that the Lord removed all the falsity that had shut off access to Him, and that He opened Divine truth, "the stone" signifying the Divine truth which the Jews had falsified by their tradition; for it is said that:

The chief priests and Pharisees sealed the stone with a guard; but that an angel from heaven removed it and sat upon it (Matthew 27:66; 28:2).

The things that have been said respecting these earthquakes, and the veil of the temple, and the stone before the mouth of sepulcher, are but a few, but the things signified by them are many, for each and everything that is written in the Gospels respecting the Lord's Passion involves arcana and is significative. The earthquakes mentioned elsewhere in Revelation also signify changes of the state of the church (as chap. Revelation 11:13; 16:17-19).