9341. 'And from the wilderness even to the River' means from delight belonging to the sensory level even to good and truth belonging to the rational level. This is clear from the meaning of 'setting the boundary' as the full range, dealt with immediately above in 9340; from the meaning of 'the wilderness' as a place where no one lives and nothing is grown, so that when it applies to the spiritual matters of faith and the celestial aspects of love 'the wilderness' is a place where no good nor any truth resides, as is the situation with the level of the senses (that this is what the sensory level of the human mind is like, see end of 9331), for no celestial good nor any spiritual truth exists on the sensory level, only delight and pleasure having a bodily and worldly origin exist there, which being so 'the wilderness' means this outermost level of mind in a member of the Church; and from the meaning of the Euphrates, to which 'the River' refers here, as good and truth belonging to the rational level. The reason why the Euphrates has this meaning is that Assyria lay there, and Assyria or Asshur means the rational level of the mind, 119, 1186.

[2] This rational level is meant by 'the Euphrates' where the words 'from the wilderness to the Euphrates' occur, and also 'from the river of Egypt to the Euphrates', as in Joshua,

From the wilderness and Lebanon even to the great river, the River Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites, and as far as the Great Sea, the going down of the sun, will be your boundary. Joshua 1:4.

And in Moses,

To your seed I will give this land, from the river of Egypt even to the great river, the River Euphrates. Genesis 15:18.

Similarly in David,

You caused a vine to journey out of Egypt. You sent out its shoots even to the sea, and its little branches to the River. Psalms 80:8, 11.

'A vine out of Egypt' stands for the spiritual Church represented by the children of Israel; 'to the sea' and 'to the River' stand for interior truths and forms of good. The like occurs in Micah,

They will come to you from Asshur and the cities of Egypt, and from Egypt even to the River, and from sea to sea, ¹ from mountain to mountain. Micah 7:12.

[3] But something different is meant by 'the Euphrates' when, from the middle of the land of Canaan as the standpoint, it is seen to be the furthest limit of the land on one side or that which encloses it on one side. In this case that river means the last and lowest level of the Lord's kingdom, that is, the last and lowest level of heaven and the Church in respect of rational goodness and truth. The fact that the boundaries of the land of Canaan, which were seas and rivers, meant the lowest things in the Lord's kingdom, see 1585, 1866, 4116, 4240, 6516. 'The Euphrates' therefore meant the kinds of truths and forms of good on the sensory level that were in agreement with truths and forms of good on the rational level. But since the sensory level of the human mind lies next to earth and the world and receives its impressions from them, 9331 (end), it does not acknowledge anything as good except that which delights the body, nor anything as truth except that which lends support to that delight. In this sense therefore 'the River Euphrates' means pleasure which is attributable to self-love and love of the world, and falsity that supports it with reasonings based on the illusions of the senses.

[4] These things are meant by 'the River Euphrates' in John,

A voice said to the sixth angel, Release the four angels who are bound at the great river Euphrates. They were released, and they killed a third part of mankind. Revelation 9:14-15.

'The angels bound at the Euphrates' stands for falsities which arise through reasonings based on the illusions of the senses, and which lend support to pleasures attributable to self-love and love of the world. In the same book,

The sixth angel poured out his bowl over the great river Euphrates, and its water was dried up to prepare the way of the kings who were from the rising of the sun. ² Revelation 16:12.

Here 'the Euphrates' stands for falsities from a similar origin. 'Dried up water' stands for those falsities after they had been removed by the Lord; and 'the way of the kings from the rising of the sun' stands for the fact that at that time the truths of faith were seen by and revealed to those governed by love to the Lord.

'Waters' are truths and in the contrary sense falsities, see 705, 739, 756, 790, 839, 2702, 3058, 3424, 4976, 7307, 8137, 8138, 8568, 9323.

'The way' is truth that has been seen and revealed, 627, 2333, 3477.

'The kings' are those with whom truths exist, 1672, 2015, 2069, 3009, 4575, 4581, 4966, 5044, 5068, 6148.

'The rising' or 'the east' is the Lord, also love from Him and to Him, 101, 1250, 3708.

'The sun' has the same meaning, 1529, 1530, 2440, 2495, 3636, 3643, 4060, 4696, 5377, 7078, 7083, 7171, 7173, 8644, 8812.

[5] In Jeremiah,

You have forsaken Jehovah your God at a time when He led you in the way. For this reason what have you to do with the way of Egypt, that you drink the waters of Shihor, or what [have you to do] with the way of Asshur, that you drink the waters of the River? Jeremiah 2:17-18.

'Leading in the way' stands for teaching truth. 'What have you to do with the way of Egypt, that you drink the waters of Shihor?' stands for, What have you to do with falsities arising through a perverse use of factual knowledge? 'What have you to do with the way of Asshur, that you drink the waters of the River?' stands for, What have you to do with falsities that arise on account of reasonings - reasonings which are based on the illusions of the senses and lend support to pleasures attributable to self-love and love of the world?

[6] In the same prophet,

Jehovah [said] to the prophet, Take the girdle which you have bought, which is over your loins, and arise, go away to the Euphrates, and hide it there in the cleft of a rock. He went away and hid it by the Euphrates. Afterwards it happened at the end of many days, that Jehovah said, Arise, go away to the Euphrates, take from there the girdle. Therefore he went away to the Euphrates and dug, and took the girdle from the place where he had hidden it. But behold, the girdle was spoiled; it was profitable for nothing. Jeremiah 13:3-7.

'The girdle of the loins' is the outward bond that holds within itself all things of love and consequently of faith. 'Being hidden in the cleft of a rock beside the Euphrates' means in a place where faith dwells in obscurity and is rendered no faith at all by falsities that are the product of reasonings. 'The girdle that had been spoiled, so that it was profitable for nothing' stands for the fact that then all the things of love and faith had been broken apart and scattered.

[7] When Jeremiah was to tie a stone to the book written by him and to throw it into the middle of the Euphrates, Jeremiah 51:63, the meaning was that the prophetical part of the Word would be destroyed by like falsities. In the same prophet,

The swift will not flee away, nor the strong man escape. Northwards on the bank of the River Euphrates they have stumbled and fallen. But Jehovah Zebaoth takes revenge on His adversaries, for the Lord Jehovah Zebaoth holds a sacrifice in the land of the north beside the River Euphrates. Jeremiah 46:6, 10.

Here also 'the River Euphrates' stands for truths that have been falsified and forms of good that have been adulterated by reasonings based on illusions, and therefore stands for factual knowledge which lends support to self-love and love of the world.

Notas de rodapé:

6000. 'And God spoke to Israel in visions of the night' means obscure revelation. This is clear from the meaning of 'God spoke in visions' as revelation. For revelations were made either by means of dreams, or by night visions, or by daytime visions, or by utterances made within a person, or by utterances made outside him by angels who had become visible, as well as by utterances made outside by angels who had not become visible. Various kinds of revelation are meant in the Word by all these. 'A vision of the night' means revelation that is obscure, since 'night' means obscurity, 1712, 2514, and in the spiritual sense obscurity implies that truth is not visible. In the Word 'night' also means falsity due to evil; for people who because of evil are subject to falsity dwell in the obscurity of night, which is why all in hell are said to be in night. Those in hell do, it is true, have an inferior kind of light, for they see one another; but that light is like the light emitted by a coal fire, which is turned into darkness and pitch darkness when heavenly light flows in. This is why the inhabitants of hell are said to be in night and are called angels of the night and darkness, whereas the inhabitants of heaven are called angels of the day and light.

[2] The meaning of 'the night' as obscurity and also falsity may be seen in addition from the following places in the Word: In John,

Jesus said, Are there not twelve hours in the day? If anyone walks in the day he does not stumble. But if anyone walks in the night he stumbles, because the light is not in him. John 11:9-10.

'Twelve hours' stands for all states of truth. 'Walking in the day' stands for living in the truth, and 'walking in the night' for living in falsity.

[3] In the same gospel,

I must work the works of Him who sent Me while it is day; night is coming when nobody will be able to work. John 9:4.

'Day' stands for truth coming from good, and 'night' for falsity coming from evil. The first period of the Church is what is meant by 'day', for at this time truth is entertained by people because they are governed by good. But the final period of the Church is what is meant by 'night', for at that time no truth at all is entertained by its members, because they are not governed by good; and when someone is not governed by good, that is, by charity towards the neighbour, then even if told perfect truths he does not entertain them. In this situation there is no perception at all of what truth is, because the light of truth falls on matters of a bodily and worldly nature, to which alone such people give their attention and which alone they love and consider to have any reality. It does not fall on things of a heavenly nature because they are considered to be of little or no value at all compared with other things. Consequently the light of truth is swallowed up by and snuffed out in what is a mass of thick darkness, like sunlight falling on an object that is black. This is what is meant by 'night is coming when nobody will be able to work'; and the situation is like this at the present day.

[4] In Matthew,

While the bridegroom was tarrying all the virgins were drowsy and went to sleep. But at midnight there was a shout, Behold, the bridegroom is coming. Matthew 25:5-7.

'Midnight' too stands for the final period of the old Church when no faith at all exists because no charity at all does so, and also for the first period of the new Church. In Luke,

I tell you, in that night there will be two upon one bed; one will be taken, the other left. Luke 17:34.

'Night' in the same way here stands for the final period of the old Church, and the first of the new.

[5] In Matthew,

Jesus said to the disciples, All of you will be made to stumble [by sinning] against Me this night. And to Peter, This night, before the cock crows, you will deny Me three times. Matthew 26:31, 34.

The Lord allowed Himself to be arrested at night, and this was a sign that Divine Truth dwelt for them in the obscurity of night and that falsity springing from evil existed in place of it. Peter's denial of the Lord three times that night also represented the final period of the Church when the truth of faith is indeed taught, but no one believes it. This final period is 'night' because at this time people utterly deny the Lord in their hearts. For like the twelve tribes of Israel, the twelve apostles represented all the aspects of faith, 577, 2089, 2129 (end), 2130 (end), 3272, 3354, 3488, 3858, 3913, 3926, 3939, 4060; and Peter represented the faith of the Church, see Preface to Genesis 18, also Preface to Genesis 22, as well as 3750, 4738. So it was that the Lord said to Peter that he would deny Him three times that night, and to the disciples, 'All of you will be made to stumble [by sinning] against Me this night'.

[6] In Isaiah,

One was calling to me from Seir, Watchman, what of the night? Watchman, what of the night? The watchman said, Morning comes, and also the night.

This refers to the Coming of the Lord, which is 'morning'. That Coming took place when spiritual truth existed no longer on earth, which is 'the night'.

[7] In Zechariah,

There will be one day, which is known to Jehovah, not day nor night, because around evening time there will be light. It will happen, that on that day living waters will go out from Jerusalem. And Jehovah will be King over all the earth; on that day there will be one Jehovah, and His name one. Zechariah 14:7-9.

This too refers to the Lord, and also to a new Church. The prophecy that Jehovah, who will be King, will be one and that His name will be one refers to the Lord's Divine Human, which will be one with the Divine Himself, called the Father. Prior to the Lord's Coming the Divine Human was Jehovah in the heavens; for it was by His passing through the heavens that He presented Himself as a Divine Person before the eyes of many on earth. In those times the Divine Human was not so much one with the Divine Himself, called the Father, as when the Lord had made the Divine Human within Himself completely one with the Father. Prior to His Coming the two were seemingly distinct and separate, as is evident from Genesis 19:24, where it says that Jehovah rained on Sodom and Gomorrah brimstone and fire from ¹ Jehovah out of heaven, 2447. A day when it will be 'not day nor night' is the time when the Lord was born, for then it was 'evening', that is, when representatives in the Church came to an end. 'Light around evening time' is Divine Truth which is to appear then.

[8] In Isaiah,

Surely at night Ar has been laid waste, Moab has been cut off; surely at night Kir of Moab has been laid waste. Isaiah 15:1.

'Moab' stands for natural good, and in the contrary sense for adulterated good, 2468; in this text a laying waste of that good is referred to. Acts of laying waste are said to happen at night because they are occasions when truth is rendered obscure and falsity enters in. In Jeremiah,

The great city will weep bitterly in the night, and her tears are on her cheeks. Lamentations 1:2.

This refers to a desolation of truth, 'night' standing for falsity.

[9] In David,

You will not be afraid of the terror of the night, of the arrow that flies by day, nor of the death that lays waste at noonday. Psalms 91:5-6.

'The terror of the night' stands for falsities arising from evil that come from hell. 'The arrow that flies by day' stands for falsity that is taught openly and is destructive of good. 'The death that lays waste at noonday' is evil that is openly practised in life and is destructive of good. In John,

The gates of the holy Jerusalem will not be shut by day, for there is no night there. Revelation 21:25.

There will be no night there, nor do they need a lamp or light of the sun, for the Lord God gives them light. Revelation 22:5.

'There will be no night there' stands for no falsity there. In Daniel,

Daniel said, I saw in my vision when it was night. After this also I saw in visions of the night. Daniel 7:2, 7.

'Visions of the night' also stands for obscure revelation; for that chapter in Daniel describes four beasts and their horns, and gives many details belonging to revelation that was obscure. Something similar is involved with the different coloured horses that Zechariah saw at night, Zechariah 1:8 and following verses.

Notas de rodapé: