THE EXPLANATION of Isaiah Chapter 7

(Note: Rev. Smithson's translation of the Isaiah text is appended below the explanation)

1. AND it came to pass in the days of Ahaz the son of Jotham, the son of Uzziah, king of Judah, that Retzin, king of Syria, and Pekah the son of Remaliah, king of Israel, came up against Jerusalem to besiege it; but they could not prevail against it.

VERSE 1. All "wars", although they are of a civil nature, are representative in heaven of states of the church, and are correspondences thereto. Such were all the wars which are described in the Word, and such also are all wars at this day. The wars described in the Word are those which were carried on by the children of Israel with various nations as with the Amorites, the Ammonites, the Moabites, the Philistines, the Syrians, the EgyptIans, the Chaldeans, the Assyrians; and when the children of Israel, who represented the church, departed from their precepts and statutes, and fell Into the evils which were signified by those nations (for each particular nation with which the children of Israel waged war signified some particular kind of evil), then they were punished by that nation. For example, when they profaned the holy things of the church by foul idolatries, they were punished by the

Assyrians and Chaldeans, because by "Assyria and Chaldea" is signified the profanation of what is holy. What is signified by "the wars with the Philistines may be seen in The Doctrine of the New Jerusalem concerning Faith 50-54. Similar things are represented by wars at this day, wherever they are; for all the things which are done In the natural world correspond with spiritual things in the spiritual world, and all spiritual things concern the church. It is not known in this world which kingdoms in Christendom represent the Moabites and Ammonites, which the Syrians and Philistines, and which the Chaldeans and Assyrians, and the others with whom the children of Israel carried on wars nevertheless there are kingdoms in Christendom which represent those people. But what is the quality of the church upon earth, and what are the evils into which it falls; and on account of which it is punished with wars, cannot at all be seen In the natural world, because in that world appear externals only which do not constitute the church but it is seen in the spiritual world, where internals appear which do constitute the church, and there all are conjoined according to their various states. The conflicts of those in the spiritual world correspond to wars, which on both sides are, governed correspondentially by the Lord according to His Divine Providence. Divine Providence 251.

Kings of Judah and of Israel. - For the signification of "kings", when mentioned in the Word, see above, Chapter 1:1, the Exposition.

The Lord was called a "Man of war", and "Jehovah Zebaoth" or Jehovah of armies, from this circumstance, that when He was in the world, He alone, that is, of Himself, fought against the hells and subdued them. Hence it is the Lord who alone fights for man, and protects him, when he is assaulted by the hells, and this continually, especially in temptations, which are spiritual combats. In the Word, where mention is made of "war", in the internal sense, is meant spiritual war, which is against falsities and evils, or what is the same thing, which is against the devil, that is, the hells. (See Arcana Coelestia 1664, 2686)

The subject concerning the wars, or combats of the Lord against the hells, is treated of, in the internal sense, both in the histories and prophecies of the Word; in like manner concerning the wars and combats of the Lord for man. Amongst the ancients with whom the church of the Lord was, there was also a Word both historical and prophetical, which at this day is not extant. The historical Word was called The Book of the Wars of Jehovah, and the prophetical Word was called Enunciations [of Jehovah]. This Word is mentioned in Moses. (Numbers 21:24, 27)

That by the expression moshlem, "enunciations" or "proverbs", at verse 27, are signified prophetical declarations, is evident from the signification of that expression in Numbers 23:7, 18; 24:3, 15. By the "Wars of Jehovah" are there meant the Lord's combats and victories, when He was in the world, against the hells; and also His perpetual combats and victories afterwards for man, for the church, and for His kingdom. For the hells continually desire to raise themselves up, inasmuch as they breathe nothing else but dominion; but they are repressed by the Lord alone. Their attempts to climb upwards appear as ebullitions [or bubblings up], and as ejections [or heavings] of the back by man; but as often as they attempt this many are cast down more deeply thither. Arcana Coelestia 8273.

2. And when it was told to the house of David, that Syria did rest upon Ephraim; his heart, and the heart of his people, was moved, as the trees of the forest are moved before the wind.

Verse 2. Syria did rest upon Ephraim. - The understanding of the Word, both true and false, is described in the prophetic writings, particularly in the prophet Hosea, by "Ephraim"; for the understanding of the Word in "the church is signified in the Word by "Ephraim." Inasmuch as the understanding of the Word constitutes the church, therefore Ephraim is called

"a dear son, and a pleasant child"; (Jeremiah 31:20)

"The first-born"; (Jeremiah 31:9)

"The strength of the head of Jehovah"; (Psalm 60:7; 108:8)

"A mighty man"; (Zechariah 10:7)

"filled with the bow"; (Zechariah 9:13)

and the children of Ephraim are called "armed and shooters with the bow" (Psalm 78:9), for by a "bow" is signified doctrine derived from the Word combating with falsities.

For the same reason also, "Israel set his right hand upon Ephraim, and blessed him"; and he was also "accepted in lieu of Reuben"; (Genesis 48:5, 14) and for the same reason, "Ephraim, with his brother Manasseh, under the name of their father Joseph, was exalted by Moses, in his blessing of the children of Israel, above all the rest." (Deuteronomy 33:13-17)

But the state and nature of the church, when the understanding of the Word is destroyed, is also described in the writings of the prophets by "Ephraim", particularly in Hosea; as in these passages:

"Israel and Ephraim shall fall in their iniquity; Ephraim shall be desolate; Ephraim is oppressed and broken in judgment." (Hosea 5:5, 9, 11, 12, 13, 14)

"O Ephraim, what shall I do unto you? for your goodness is as a morning cloud, and as the early dew it goes away." (Hosea 6:4)

"They shall not dwell in the land of Jehovah, but Ephraim shall return to Egypt, and shall eat unclean things in Assyria." (Hosea 9:3)

The "land of Jehovah" is the church:

"Egypt" is the scientific principle of the natural man; and "Assyria" is reasoning founded on it; therefore it is said that "Ephraim shall return into Egypt, and shall eat unclean things in Assyria."

"Ephraim feeds on wind, and follows after the east wind; he daily increases lies and desolations; he makes a covenant with Assyria, and oil is carried into Egypt." (Hosea 12:1)

To "feed on wind", to "follow after the east wind", to "increase lies and desolations", is to falsify truths, and so to destroy the church.

The same is also signified by the "whoredom of Ephraim", for "whoredom" signifies the falsification of the understanding of the Word, that is, of its genuine truth, as in these passages:

"For now, O Ephraim, you committest whoredom, and Israel is defiled." (Hosea 5:3)

"I have seen a horrible thing in the house of Israel; Ephraim has committed whoredom there, and Israel is defiled." (Hosea 6:10)

"Israel" means the church itself, and "Ephraim" the understanding of the Word, which determines the state and quality of the church; wherefore it is said "Ephraim committeth whoredom, and Israel is defiled." But as the church amongst the children of Israel and Judah was totally destroyed by falsifications of the Word, therefore it is said of Ephraim, "I will give you up, Ephraim, I will deliver you up, Israel, I will make you as Admah, I will set you as Zeboim." (Hosea 9:8)

Now since the prophet Hosea, from the first chapter to the last, treats of the falsification of the genuine understanding of the Word, and of the consequent destruction of the church, therefore he was commanded, for the purpose of representing that state of the church, to "take unto himself a wife of whoredoms, and children of whoredoms"; (Hosea 1:2) and again, - to "take to himself an adulteress." (Hosea 3:1)

We have quoted these passages for the sake of showing and proving from the Word that the quality of the church is always determined by its understanding of the Word; and that it is excellent, and precious if its understanding be grounded on the genuine truths of the Word, but that it is destroyed, yea, filthy, 'if it be grounded on truths falsified. True Christian Religion 247.

3. And Jehovah said to Isaiah, Go out now to meet Ahaz, you, and Shearjashub your son, at the end of the aqueduct of the upper-pool, at the highway of the fuller's field;

4. And you shalt say unto him, Take heed, and be still: fear not, neither let your heart be faint, because of the two tails of these smoking firebrands; for the burning wrath of Retzin and of the Syrian, and of the son of Hemaliah.

5. Because Syria has devised evil against you; Ephraim, and the son of Remaliah,

6. Saying, "We will go up against Judah, and harass it; and we will make a breach into it for ourselves; and we will set a king to reign in the midst of it, even the son of Tabeal:

Verse 3. The upper pool. - The "pools" in Jerusalem signified truths such as are in the exterior and interior senses of the Word. Apocalypse Explained 453.

Verse 4. By "Retzin and Syria" is signified the rational principle perverted, and by "the son of Remaliah, the king of Israel", who is also called Ephraim, is signified the intellectual principle perverted; the intellectual principle, signified by "Ephraim, king of Israel", has relation to the Word; and the rational principle, signified by "Retzin and Syria", has relation to sciences which confirm, for man, in order to have the understanding of the Word, must also have rationality; and when these two principles are perverted, they look only downwards to the earth, and outwards to the world, as sensual men do who are in the falsities of evil; hence they are called "tails"; a "smoking firebrand" signifies the concupiscence of the false, and thence wrath against the truths and goods of the church. Apocalypse Explained 559. See also Arcana Coelestia 6952.

"Retzin, king of Syria", denotes here the knowledges of evil; for "Syria", in a good sense, means the knowledges of good; thus in the opposite sense the knowledges of evil. the "son of Remaliah the king of Samaria" signifies the knowledges of the false; the latter and the former are "tails", because lowest principles; "smoking firebrands" denote wrath, Arcana Coelestia 6952.

As to the meaning of the "tail", see a fuller Exposition below, Chapter 9:13, 14, also at Chapter 19:15.

By "Aram", or Syria, are signified the knowledges of good. "Aram", or Syria, signifies also in an opposite sense the knowledges of good perverted, according to what is usual in the Word, where the same expression is frequently applied in such a twofold signification. That "Aram" is thus used in two senses may be seen in Isaiah 7:4-6. Arcana Coelestia 1232.

7. Thus says the Lord Jehovih, It shall not stand, and it shall not be.

8. For the head of Syria shall be Damascus, and the head of Damascus, Retzin; and within threescore and five years Ephraim shall be broken, that he be no more a people.

9. And the head of Ephraim shall be Samaria, and the head of Samaria, Remaliah's son. If you will not believe, surely you shall not be established.

10. And Jehovah spake yet again to Ahaz, saying,

Verse 7. Lord Jehovih. - See the Exposition of Isaiah Chapter 3:15, and note.

Verse 8. For the head of Syria shall be Damascus, and the head of Damascus, Retzin, etc. - "Damascus" was the principal city of Syria, as appears from Isaiah 7:8; by which is signified nearly the same as by Syria. The last border of the land of Canaan, but beyond Dan, is signified by "Damascus", as in Amos 5:26, 27. The border of the holy land, or of the Lord's kingdom, towards the north, is also called the "border of Damascus." (Ezekiel 47:16) Arcana Coelestia 1715.

11. Ask you a sign from Jehovah your God; ask it either in the depth [beneath], or in the height above.

12. And Ahaz said, I will not ask; neither will I tempt Jehovah.

13. And Isaiah said, Hear you now, O house of David! Is it a small thing for you to weary men, that you should weary my God also?

Verses 11, 14. Ask you a sign, from Jehovah your God, etc. - The reason why these things were said to Ahaz, king of Judah, is, because the king of Syria and the king of Israel made war against him, even unto Jerusalem: on whose side also was the tribe of Ephraim: but still they did not prevail, by reason that the "king of Syria" there represented the external or natural [principle] of the church, the "king of Israel" the internal or spiritual [principle] thereof, and "Ephraim" the intellectual [principle]; but in this case those three principles, namely, the natural, spiritual, and intellectual, perverted, which were desirous to assault the doctrine of Truth, signified by the "king of Judah and Jerusalem", wherefore they did not succeed. But in order that Ahaz might be assured of their attempt being in vain, it is said to him that be might "ask a sign", that is, a testification that he might be assured; and option was given him whether it should be from heaven or from hell, which was signified by "the depth beneath" or in "the height above"; for the king was evil; but whereas "Jerusalem", by which is signified, the doctrine of Truth from the Word, was not to be destroyed by such before the advent of the Lord, therefore a miraculous sign was given to him, testifying concerning that subject, that is, that "a virgin should conceive, and bring forth a Son, whose name should be IMMANUEL", or God with us. That that church should afterwards be destroyed follows in that chapter. Apocalypse Explained 706.

14. Wherefore the Lord Himself shall give you a sign: Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a Son; and she shall call His name IMMANUEL.

Verse14. A virgin shall conceive, and bear a Son, and she shall call His name IMMANUEL. - That by "the Child born and the Son given, here and in chapter 9, is understood the Lord as to the Divine Human is evident; [see Matthew 1:23] and that the Lord as to that [principle] also is God, thus that His Human is Divine, is manifestly declared for it is said, that "His name shall be called God, God-with-us, the Father of Eternity."

Besides these passages, many others might also be adduced to confirm that the Lord by Father, in the Word, meant His own Divine Principle, which was the life or soul of His Human and not another [Person] separate from Himself; neither could He mean any other; hence the Divine and. Human in the Lord, according to the doctrine received in the Christian world are not two but one Person, altogether as soul and body, as is expressed in clear terms in the Athanasian Creed; and whereas God and Man in the Lord, are not two, but one Person, and so united as soul and body, it follows that the Divine [Principle] which the Lord had from conception was what He called Father, and the Divine Human what He called Son, consequently, that each was Himself Apocalypse Explained 852.

15. Butter and honey shall He eat, that He may know to refuse the evil, and to choose the good:

16. For before the Child shall know to refuse the evil, and to choose the good, the land, whose two kings you abhorrest, shall be forsaken.

17. But Jehovah shall bring upon you, and upon your people, and upon your father's house, days such as have not come, from the day that Ephraim departed, from Judah, namely the king of Assyria.

Verses 14-16. That the "Son whom a virgin shall conceive and bear, and whose name shall be called GOD-WITH-US", is the Lord as to His Human, is manifest. The appropriation of divine good spiritual and natural, as to the Human, is understood by "butter and honey shall He eat; divine good spiritual by "butter", and divine good natural by "honey", and appropriation by "eating"; and inasmuch as it is known how to refuse, or to reprobate evil, and to choose good in proportion as Divine Good spiritual. and natural is approprIated, therefore it is said that "He may know to refuse or to reprobate evil and choose good." That the church was deserted and vastated as to all Good and Truth by scientifics falsely applied, and by reasonings thence derived, is signified by the "land which they shall abhor, being then deserted by or from before her two kings"; the "land" signifies the church; the desertion thereof is understood by being "deserted and abhorred"; and the "two kings", who are the king of Egypt and the king of Assyria, signify scientifics ill applied, and reasosings thence derived; the king of Egypt those scientifics, and the king of Assyria those reasonings. That these are the kings who are here understood is evident from what presently follows in the same chapter, verses 17, 18, where Egypt and Assyria are mentioned; these things also are what principally devastate the church. Apocalypse Explained 617. See also 619.

That the "left" signify remains, see above, Chapter 1. 9, the Exposition.

Verse 16. By "the land being forsaken is signified the church, or the true doctrine of faith. Arcana Coelestia 566.

That these things are said of the Lord and of His coming is known. The "butter and honey which He shall eat" signify the goods of love; "butter" the good of celestial and spiritual love, and "honey" the good of natural love. By these things is understood that the Lord would appropriate to Himself the Divine, even as to His Humanity. To" eat "signifies to appropriate; that "the land would be forsaken or deserted before He knew to refuse evil and to choose good", signifies that nothing of the church would remain upon the earth, when He should be born; and because those, where the church was, rejected all divine Truth, and perverted all things of the Word, and explained them to favour their own purposes of self-love, wherefore it is said of the land, that is, the church, "which you abhorrest before her two kings"; "kings" signify the Truths of heaven and the church; "two kings", the Truth of the Word in its internal or spiritual sense, and the Truth of the Word in its external or natural sense. "Milk" (in verse 22), signifies Truth by which is Good; and because "butter" is Good thence derived, it is said that "of the abundance of milk [which the young cow and the two sheepwould give] everyone left in the midst of the land should eat" which signifies that all Truth should be of Good, [that is, derived from Good and Influenced by it.] Apocalypse Explained 304.

18. And it shall be in that day, that Jehovah shall hiss for the fly that is in the extremity of the rivers of Egypt, and for the bee that is in the land of Assyria:

19. And they shall come, and they shall rest all of them on the rivers of desolation, and in the clefts of the rocks, and on the thickets, and on all the courses.

Verses 18, 19. Jehovah shall hiss for the fly that is in the extremity of the rivers of Egypt, etc. - Thus is described the church vastated by scientifics falsely applied, and by reasonings thence derived, whereby the knowledges of truth from the good are perverted. The "fly in the extremity of the rrvers of Egypt signifies the false in the extreme parts or principles of the natural man. The extremes of the natural man are what are called things sensual, for the natural man is interior, middle, and exterior; the interior communicates with the spiritual man by means of the rational principle, but the exterior communicates with the world by the bodily senses, and the middle depends upon the senses of the body, and thence derives all that belongs to it; the falsities which are therein, and thus derived, are 'signified by "the fly in the extremity of the rivers of Egypt"; but by "the bee in the land of Assyria" are signified false reason!ngs thence derived; for by "Assyria" is signified the rational principle, and by "Egypt", the scientific principle of the natural man; and inasmuch as the rational principle derives all that it has from the scientifics of the natural man, hence the reasonings thereof are signified by "bees"; because bees suck out and derive their store from the flowers, as the rational [principle] of man does from the scientifics of the natural; here, however, by "bees" are signified false reasonings, because the rational principle collects what belongs to it from scientifics falsely applied. The reason why these things are likened to "flies" and "bees" is also grounded in correspondence, for, in the spiritual world, there appear flying insects of various kinds, but they are appearances from the ideas of the thoughts of spirits; and amongst the noxious are flies and bees of such a kind. The flies in "the extremity of the rivers of Egypt" derive their correspondence from their birth being from the filth of rivers. It is said that "they shall come and rest in the rivers of desolations, and in the clefts of the rocks", and thereby is signified that the falsities originating in scientifics and in reasonings thence derived, shall reside where there are no truths, but a faith originating in the false; "the rivers of desolations" denoting where there are no truths, and "the clefts of the rocks" denoting where is the faith of what is false it is also said "in all shrubs and in all courses", and thereby is signified that the knowledges and perceptions of truth are falsified by them; the "shrubs" denote the knowledges of truth, and "courses or ducts", perceptions which are falsified when the falsities above mentioned flow in. No one could see the arcana contained in these words, except from the internal sense, and at the same time from seeing and knowing what is in the spiritual world. Apocalypse Explained 410. See also Arcana Coelestia 7441.

20. In that day the Lord shall shave with a hired razor, by those beyond the river, by the king of Assyria, the head, and the hair of the feet; and it shall also consume the beard.

Verse 20. Treating of the state of the church in its end, when the Lord was about to come.That reasonings grounded in falsities would then deprive the men of the church of all wisdom and spiritual intelligence is described by the above words; the reasonings are signified by "the king of Ashur in the passages of the river", that is, Euphrates; the deprivation of essential Wisdom and intelligence thence derived, is signified by the hairs of the head and of the feet being shaved by a hired razor", and by the "beard being consumed" for by "hairs" are signified natural things into which spiritual things operate and into which they close, wherefore they signify, in the Word, the ultimates of wisdom and intelligence; the "hairs of the head", the ultimates of wisdom; the "beard", the ultimates of intelligence; and the "hairs of the feet", the ultimates of science; when these ultimate things do not exist, things prior cannot exist, as when there is no basis to a column, or foundations to a house. That they who have deprived themselves of intelligence by reasonings from fallacies and from falsities, appear in the spiritual world as bald, may be seen above, n. 66. Apocalypse Explained 569.

21. And it shall be in that day, that a man shall keep alive a young cow, and two sheep; .

22. And it shall be, that for the abundance of milk which they shall produce, he shall eat butter: for butter and honey shall everyone eat that is left in the midst of the land.

Verse 21. That "pasture", on which sheep and oxen feed, denotes Good and Truth which recreate and sustain the soul or spirit of man, is plain from the Lord's words in John 10:9, there "pasture" signifies the goods and truths pertaining to those who acknowledge the Lord and seek life from Him alone. Thus to "find pasture", signifies to be taught, illustrated, and nourished in divine Truths. Arcana Coelestia 6078. See also Apocalypse Revealed 914.

Because a shepherd signifies one who leads to the good of charity by the truth of faith, in the supreme sense a "Shepherd" denotes the Lord Himself. (John 10:11) Arcana Coelestia 6426.

Verse 22. The abundance of milk which they shall produce etc. - Treating of the New Church to be established by the Lord; and by "butter and honey" is signified spiritual and natural good, and by "eating" is signified to appropriate, as above; by" milk" is signified what is spiritual from a celestial origin, from which those goods are. Apocalypse Explained 617.

"Milk" signifies the truth by which is good, and inasmuch as butter signifies the good thence derived, therefore "for the abundance of milk shall everyone eat butter that is left in the midst of the land" signifies that all Truth shall be of or from Good. Apocalypse Explained 304.

23. And it shall be in that day, that every place, where there were a thousand vines for a thousand pieces of silver, shall be for briers and thorns.

24. With arrows and with the bow shall they come thither; for the whole land shall become briers and thorns.

Verses 23, 24. Describing the church vastated as to all Truth and Good. The quality of the church before, when genuine truths, which are truths from good, were in abundance, is described by there being a "thousand vines for a thousand pieces of silver"; a "thousand vines " denoting truths from good in abundance, and a "thousand pieces of silver" denoting their very high estimation as being genuine; "silver" signifies truth and a "thousand" signifies many, consequently, abundance. But what became the quality of the church when it was vastated as to all Truth and Good is described by these words :

"With the arrows and with the bow shall he come thither because, the whole land is a place of briers and thorns"; the "arrows" denote falsities destroying truths, and the "bow" is the doctrine of the false; a "place of briers" signifies the false from evil, and a "place of thorns", the evil from the false; the "land" is the church. Apocalypse Explained 357.

25. But as to all the mountains which are weeded with the mattock, thither shall not come the fear of briers and, of thorns: but it shall be for the sending forth of the ox, and for the treading of sheep.

Verse 25. The mountains which are weeded with the mattock, etc. - By "the mountains which are weeded with the mattock" are signified those who do good from the love of good; that the false and the evil shall not be with them, but good, as well natural as spiritual, is signified by "there not coming thither the fear of the briers and thorns, but it shall be for the sending forth of the ox and the treading of the sheep", or thither shall the ox be sent, and there the sheep shall tread; the "ox" signifying natural good, and the "sheep" spiritual good. Apocalypse Explained 304.

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Isaiah Chapter 7

1. AND it came to pass in the days of Ahaz the son of Jotham, the son of Uzziah, king of Judah, that Retzin, king of Syria, and Pekah the son of Remaliah, king of Israel, came up against Jerusalem to besiege it; but they could not prevail against it.

2. And when it was told to the house of David, that Syria did rest upon Ephraim; his heart, and the heart of his people, was moved, as the trees of the forest are moved before the wind.

3. And Jehovah said to Isaiah, Go out now to meet Ahaz, you, and Shearjashub your son, at the end of the aqueduct of the upper-pool, at the highway of the fuller's field;

4. And you shalt say unto him, Take heed, and be still: fear not, neither let your heart be faint, because of the two tails of these smoking firebrands; for the burning wrath of Retzin and of the Syrian, and of the son of Hemaliah.

5. Because Syria has devised evil against you; Ephraim, and the son of Remaliah,

6. Saying, "We will go up against Judah, and harass it; and we will make a breach into it for ourselves; and we will set a king to reign in the midst of it, even the son of Tabeal:

7. Thus says the'Lord Jehovih, It shall not stand, and it shall not be.

8. For the head of Syria shall be Damascus, and the head of Damascus, Retzin; and within threescore and five years Ephraim shall be broken, that he be no more a people.

9. And the head of Ephraim shall be Samaria, and the head of Samaria, Remaliah's son. If you will not believe, surely you shall not be established.

10. And Jehovah spake yet again to Ahaz, saying,

11. Ask you a sign from Jehovah your God; ask it either in the depth [beneath], or in the height above.

12. And Ahaz said, I will not ask; neither will I tempt Jehovah.

13. And Isaiah said, Hear you now, O house of David! Is it a small thing for you to weary men, that you should weary my God also?

14. Wherefore the Lord Himself shall give you a sign: Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a Son; and she shall call His name IMMANUEL.

15. Butter and honey shall He eat, that He may know to refuse the evil, and to choose the good:

16. For before the Child shall know to refuse the evil, and to choose the good, the land, whose two kings you abhorrest, shall be forsaken.

17. But Jehovah shall bring upon you, and upon your people, and upon your father's house, days such as have not come, from the day that Ephraim departed, from Judah, namely the king of Assyria.

18. And it shall be in that day, that Jehovah shall hiss for the fly that is in the extremity of the rivers of. Egypt, and for the bee that is in the land of Assyria:

19. And they shall come, and they shall rest all of them on the rivers of desolation, and in the clefts of the rocks, and on the thickets, and on all the courses.

20. In that day the Lord shall shave with a hired razor, by those beyond the river, by the king of Assyria, the head, and the hair of the feet; and it shall also consume the beard.

21. And it shall be in that day, that a man shall keep alive a young cow, and two sheep; .

22. And it shall be, that for the abundance of milk which they shall produce, he shall eat butter: for butter and honey shall everyone eat that is left in the midst of the land.

23. And it shall be in that day, that every place, where there were a thousand vines for a thousand pieces of silver, shall be for briers and thorns.

24. With arrows and with the bow shall they come thither; for the whole land shall become briers and thorns.

25. But as to all the mountains which are weeded with the mattock, thither shall not come the fear of briers and, of thorns: but it shall be for the sending forth of the ox, and for the treading of sheep.

569. Loose the four angels bound at the great river Euphrates, signifies the reasonings from fallacies pertaining to the sensual man, not before accepted. This is evident from the signification of "the angels at the river Euphrates," as being reasonings from the fallacies pertaining to the sensual man (of which presently); and because reasonings from such fallacies were not before accepted in the church these angels are said to be "bound" at that river, and they are said to be "four" because of the conjunction of falsity with evil, for this number signifies in the Word the conjunction of good and truth, and in the contrary sense, as here, the conjunction of evil and falsity (See above, n. 283, 384, 532). What precedes treats of the sensual man who is in the falsities of evil, and of the effect of the persuasions in which the sensual man is; therefore what now follows treats of the reasonings from the sensual. And because the sensual reasons only from such things as stand forth before the senses in the world, whenever it reasons respecting spiritual things, that is, the things of heaven and of the church, it reasons from fallacies, which are called the fallacies of the senses; therefore it is said here reasonings from the fallacies pertaining to the sensual man. But respecting these fallacies and reasoning from them more will be said in what follows.

[2] Here the state of the church at its very end is treated of, which is the state when the men of the church, having become sensual, reason from the fallacies of the senses; and when they reason from these respecting the things of heaven and the church they believe nothing at all because they understand nothing. It is known in the church that the natural man does not perceive the things of heaven unless the Lord flows in and enlightens, which influx is through the spiritual man; much less does the sensual man perceive these, for the sensual is the ultimate natural, to which the things of heaven, which are called spiritual things, are altogether in thick darkness. Genuine reasonings respecting spiritual things spring from the influx of heaven into the spiritual man, and thence through the rational into the knowledges and cognitions which are in the natural man, by means of which the spiritual man confirms himself. This way of reasoning respecting spiritual things is according to order. But reasonings about spiritual things that come from the natural man, and still more those that come from the sensual man, are entirely contrary to order; for the natural man cannot flow into the spiritual man and see anything there from itself, still less can the sensual man, since there is no physical influx; but the spiritual man can flow into the natural and from that into the sensual, since there is spiritual influx. (But on this see further in The Doctrine of the New Jerusalem 51, 277, 278.)

[3] From this what is meant by the things that now follow can be seen, namely, that at the very end of the church man speaks and reasons respecting spiritual things, or the things of heaven and the church, from the corporeal-sensual and thus from the fallacies of the senses; although therefore man then speaks in favor of Divine things he does not think in favor of them; for a man is able to speak in one way from the body while thinking in another way in his spirit; and while the spirit which thinks from the corporeal-sensual is unable to think in any other way than against Divine things, nevertheless from the corporeal-sensual it is able to speak in favor of them, and this especially for the reason that Divine things are to him the means of acquiring honor and gain. Every man has two memories, a natural memory and a spiritual memory, and he is able to think from either, from the natural memory when he is speaking with men in the world, but from the spiritual memory when he is speaking from the spirit; but man rarely speaks from the spirit with another, from the spirit he speaks only with himself, which is thinking. They who are sensual men are unable to speak with themselves from their spirit, or to think, in any other way than in favor of nature, consequently in favor of things corporeal and worldly, for the sensual man thinks from the sensual, and not from the spiritual; indeed, he is wholly ignorant of what the spiritual is, because he has closed the spiritual mind in himself, into which heaven flows with its light.

[4] But let us go on to explain these words, that "a voice was heard from the horns of the golden altar, saying to the sixth angel that he should loose the four angels bound at the river Euphrates." "The river Euphrates" signifies the rational, and thence also reasoning; this is the signification of this river because it divided Assyria from the land of Canaan, and "Assyria" or "Asshur" signifies the rational, and "the land of Canaan" the spiritual. There were three rivers, besides the sea, that were boundaries of the land of Canaan, namely, the river of Egypt, the river Euphrates, and the river Jordan. "The river of Egypt" signified the knowledge [scientia] of the natural man; "the river Euphrates" signified the rational which is in man from knowledges and cognitions; and "the river Jordan" signifies entrance into the internal or spiritual church; for "the regions beyond Jordan," where the tribes of Reuben and Gad and the half tribe of Manasseh had their inheritances allotted them, signified the external or natural church, and because that river was between those regions and the land of Canaan, and through it was the passage from one to the other, it signified entrance from the external church, which is natural, into the internal church which is spiritual. It was for this reason that baptism was there instituted, for baptism represented the regeneration of man, whereby the natural man is introduced into the church and becomes spiritual.

[5] This explains what these three rivers signify in the Word. All those places also outside of the land of Canaan signified such things as belong to the natural man, while those within the land of Canaan signified such things as belong to the spiritual man, thus the things of heaven and the church. Therefore the two rivers, "the river of Egypt" (or the Nile), and "the river of Assyria" (or the Euphrates), signified the terminations of the church, and also the introductions into the church. Moreover, cognitions and knowledges which are signified by "the river of Egypt," are what introduce, for without cognitions and knowledges no one can be introduced into the church nor perceive the things that belong to the church; for the spiritual man sees its spiritual things in knowledges [scientiae] by means of the rational, as man sees himself in a mirror, and recognizes himself in them, that is, its truths and goods, and moreover confirms its spiritual things by means of cognitions and knowledges, both those known from the Word and those known from the world.

[6] But "the river of Assyria" (or the Euphrates) signifies the rational, because man by the rational is introduced into the church. By the rational is meant the thought of the natural man from cognitions and knowledges, for a man who is imbued with knowledges [scientiae] is able to see things in series, that is, from first and mediate things to see the last, which is called the conclusion, and can therefore analytically arrange, turn over, separate, conjoin, and at length conclude things, even to a further end, and at length to the final end; which is the use that he loves. This, then, is the rational which is given to every man according to uses, which are the ends that he loves. Since everyone's rational comes into accord with the uses of his love, therefore it is the interior thought of the natural man from the influx of the light of heaven; and as man through rational thought is introduced into spiritual thought and becomes a church, so that river signifies the natural ¹ which introduces.

[7] It is one thing to be rational, and another to be spiritual; every spiritual man is also rational, but the rational man is not always spiritual, since the rational is in the natural man, that is, is its thought, while the spiritual is above the rational, and through the rational passes into the natural, into the cognitions and knowledges of its memory.

[8] But it is to be known that the rational does not introduce anyone into the spiritual, but it is only said to do so because such is the appearance; for the spiritual flows into the natural through the rational as a medium, and in this way it introduces. For the spiritual is the inflowing Divine, since it is the light of heaven, which is the Divine truth proceeding, and this light through the higher mind, which is called the spiritual mind, flows into the lower mind, which is called the natural mind, and conjoins this to itself, and through that conjunction causes the natural mind to make one with the spiritual; thus introduction is effected. Since it is contrary to Divine order for man to enter through his rational into the spiritual, therefore in the spiritual world there are angel guards to prevent this from taking place. This makes evident the signification of "the four angels bound at the river Euphrates," and afterwards the signification of "loosing" them. "The angels bound at the river Euphrates" signify the guard against man's natural entering into the spiritual things of heaven and the church, for thence would result nothing but errors and heresies, and at length denial.

[9] Moreover, in the spiritual world there are ways that lead to hell and ways that lead to heaven; also ways that lead from spiritual things to natural and thus to sensual things; and in those ways there are also guards lest anyone should go in the opposite direction, for thus he would fall into heresies and errors, as has just been said. These guards are set by the Lord at the beginning of the establishment of a church, and are also maintained, lest the man of the church from his own reason or his own understanding should invade the Divine things of the Word and thence of the church. But at the end, when the men of the church are no longer spiritual but are natural, and many are merely sensual, and thus there is no way open with the man of the church from the spiritual man into the natural, then these guards are removed and the ways are opened, and in these opened ways they advance in a contrary order, which is done by reasonings from fallacies. Thus ² it is that the man of the church speaks in favor of Divine things with the mouth, while in heart he thinks against them, that is, he is in favor of Divine things from the body and against them from the spirit; for reasoning respecting Divine things from the natural and sensual man has this effect. From this then the signification of "the four angels bound at the river Euphrates," and their being "loosed" can now be seen.

[10] That "the river Euphrates" signifies the rational, through which there is a way from the spiritual man into the natural, can be seen from the following passages in the Word. In Moses:

Jehovah made a covenant with Abram, saying, Unto thy seed I will give this land, from the river of Egypt even to the great river, the river Euphrates (Genesis 15:18).

In the sense of the letter this describes the extension of the land of Canaan, but in the internal sense it describes the extension of the church from its first boundary to its last; its first boundary is the knowing faculty [scientificum] which is of the natural man, the other boundary is the rational which is of the thought; the first, namely, the knowing faculty, which is of the natural man, is signified by "the river of Egypt," the Nile; while the rational, which is of the thought, is signified by "the river of Assyria," the Euphrates; to these two the spiritual church, which is signified by "the land of Canaan," extends itself, so too does the spiritual mind which is with the man of the church. Both these, the knowing faculty and the rational, are in the natural man, the one limit of which is the knowing and cognitive faculty, and the other is the intuitive and thinking faculty, and into these limits the spiritual man flows when it flows into the natural man; the conjunction of the Lord with the church by means of these is signified by the "covenant" that Jehovah made with Abram. Such is the signification of these words in the internal sense, while in the highest sense, they mean the union of the Divine Essence with the Lord's Human; according to this sense these words are explained in the Arcana Coelestia 1863-1866).

[11] In Zechariah:

His dominion shall be from sea even to sea, and from the river even to the ends of the earth (Zechariah 9:10; also in Psalms 72:8).

This was said of the Lord and of His dominion over heaven and earth; and the "dominion from sea even to sea" signifies the extension of natural things, and "the dominion from the river even to the ends of the earth" signifies the extension of rational and spiritual things (See also above, n. 518).

[12] In Moses:

The land of the Canaanites and Lebanon, even to the great river, the river Euphrates, behold I have given the land before you; go in and possess it by inheritance (Deuteronomy 1:7, 8).

In the same:

Every place whereon the sole of your foot shall tread shall be yours from the wilderness and Lebanon, from the river, the river Euphrates even unto the hinder sea shall your border be (Deuteronomy 11:24).

And in Joshua:

From the wilderness and this Lebanon, even to the great river, the river Euphrates, the whole land of the Hittites, and even to the great sea, the going down of the sun, shall be your border (Joshua 1:4).

In these passages the extension of the church from one limit to the other is described; one of its limits, which is the cognitive and knowing faculty, is signified by "Lebanon" and "the sea;" and the other limit, which is the intuitive and thinking faculty, is signified by "the river Euphrates;" the extension of the land of Canaan means the extension of the church, for in the Word "the land of Canaan" signifies the church. "River" is twice mentioned, namely, "the great river, the river Euphrates," because "the great river" signifies the influx of spiritual things into rational, and "the river Euphrates" the influx of rational things into natural, thus the two signify the influx of spiritual things through the rational into natural things.

[13] In Micah:

This is the day in which they shall even come to thee from Assyria, and to the cities of Egypt, and thence from Egypt even to the river, and from sea to sea, and from mountain to mountain (Micah 7:12).

This describes the establishment of the church by the Lord among the Gentiles, "this day" signifying the Lord's coming; the extension of the church among them from one limit to the other is signified by "they shall come from Assyria to the cities of Egypt and from Egypt to the river;" the extension of truth from one limit to the other is signified by "from sea to sea," and the extension of good by "from mountain to mountain. "

[14] In David:

Thou hast caused a vine to go forth out of Egypt; Thou didst drive out the nations and didst plant it. Thou hast sent out its boughs even unto the sea, and its shoots unto the river (Psalms 80:8, 11).

The "vine that God caused to go forth out of Egypt" means the sons of Israel, and signifies the church, for a "vine" signifies the spiritual church, and this was signified also by "the sons of Israel;" and because the church is called a "vine," it is said, "Thou didst plant it, Thou hast sent out its boughs even unto the sea, and its shoots unto the river," which describes the extension of the spiritual things of the church, the "sea" meaning one of its limits, and the "river," by which is meant the Euphrates, the other. The Euphrates:

As the fourth river that went out of Eden (Genesis 2:14);

also signifies the rational, for "the garden of Eden" (or Paradise) signifies wisdom. The signification of the other three rivers may be seen in the Arcana Coelestia 107-121).

[15] As "the river Euphrates" signifies the rational, so in the contrary sense it signifies reasoning; reasoning here means thinking and arguing from fallacies and falsities, while the rational means thinking and arguing from knowledges (scientiae) and from truths; for the rational is cultivated always by knowledges, and is formed by truths, therefore one who is led by truths or whom truths lead, is called a rational man; but a man who is not rational has the ability to reason, for by various reasonings he is able to confirm falsities, and also to induce the simple to believe them, which is done mainly by means of the fallacies of the senses (of which below).

[16] Such reasoning is signified by "the river Euphrates" in the following passages. In Jeremiah:

What hast thou to do with the way of Egypt, to drink the waters of Sihor? And what hast thou to do with the way of Assyria, to drink the waters of the river? (Jeremiah 2:18)

This signifies that spiritual things must not be searched into by means of the knowledges [scientifica] of the natural man, nor by means of reasonings therefrom, but by the means of the Word, thus out of heaven from the Lord; for those who are in spiritual affection, and in spiritual thought therefrom, see the knowledges [scientifica] of the natural man and reasonings therefrom as below them, but from these no one can see spiritual things; from above one can look down on lower things on every side, but not the reverse. To search into spiritual things by means of the knowledges of the natural man is signified by "What hast thou to do with the way of Egypt, to drink the waters of Sihor?" and by means of reasonings therefrom is signified by "what hast thou to do with the way of Assyria, to drink the waters of the river?" "Egypt and its river" signify the knowledges of the natural man, and "Assyria and its river" signify the reasonings from them.

[17] In Isaiah:

In that day shall the Lord shave with a razor that is hired in the crossings of the river, by means of the King of Assyria, the head and the hairs of the feet, and shall also consume the beard (Isaiah 7:20).

This treats of the state of the church at its end, when the Lord is about to come; that reasonings from falsities will then deprive the men of the church of all spiritual wisdom and intelligence is described by these words. The reasonings by which this is done are signified by "the king of Assyria, in the crossings of the river," namely, the Euphrates. The deprivation of spiritual wisdom and of spiritual intelligence therefrom is signified by "the hairs of the head and of the feet shall be shaven with a razor that is hired, and the beard shall be consumed;" for "hairs" signify natural things upon which spiritual things operate and into which they close; therefore "hairs" signify in the Word the ultimates of wisdom and intelligence, "the hair of the head" signifying the ultimates of wisdom, the "beard" the ultimates of intelligence, and "the hair of the feet" the ultimates of knowledge [scientia]. When these ultimates are not, there are no prior things, as when there is no base for the column, nor foundation for the house. Those who have deprived themselves of intelligence by means of reasonings from fallacies and from falsities appear bald in the spiritual world (See above, n. 66).

[18] In the same:

Behold the Lord hath made to go up upon them the waters of the river strong and many, the king of Assyria and all his glory; and he shall go up over all his channels, and shall go over all his banks; he shall go through Judah, he shall overflow and pass over (Isaiah 8:7, 8).

These words signify that each and every thing of the Word is to be falsified in the church by means of reasonings from fallacies and falsities; "the waters of the river strong and many, the king of Assyria," signifies reasonings from mere fallacies and falsities; "he shall go up over all his channels and over all his banks" signifies that by these each and every thing of the Word will be falsified; "Judah, which he will overflow and pass over," signifies the church where the Word is, and thus the Word.

[19] In Jeremiah:

Against the army of Pharaoh king of Egypt, which was by the river Euphrates which Nebuchadnezzar smote. Towards the north by the bank of the river Euphrates they stumbled and fell (Jeremiah 46:2, 6, 10).

This signifies the destruction of the church, and of its truths by false reasonings from knowledges [scientifica]; "the river Euphrates" signifies false reasonings; "Egypt and its army" confirming knowledges [scientifica]; "the north where they stumbled and fell," signifies the source of these falsities. (On this see above, n. 518.)

[20] In the same:

Jehovah told the prophet to buy a linen girdle, and to put it upon the loins, but not to draw it through water; and then to go to the Euphrates, and hide the girdle there in a hole of the rock. And he went and hid it by the Euphrates. Afterwards, at the end of many days, Jehovah said, Arise, go to the Euphrates, and take the girdle from thence. And he went and took it, and behold, the girdle was marred, it was profitable for nothing. Thus as the girdle cleaveth to the loins of a man, so have I made to cleave unto Me the whole house of Israel and the whole house of Judah, that they might be unto Me for a name, and for a praise, and for a splendor; but they would not hearken (Jeremiah 13:1-7, 11).

This represented of what quality the Israelitish and Jewish Church was and what it became; the "linen girdle which the prophet put upon his loins" signifies the conjunction of the church with the Lord by means of the Word; for the "prophet" signifies doctrine from the Word, and the "girdle upon the prophet's loins" signifies conjunction. Falsifications of the Word by evils of life and falsities of doctrine, and thence reasonings that favor these, are signified by "the girdle was marred in the hole of the rock by the Euphrates." For by means of the Word there is conjunction of the Lord with the church, and when the Word is perverted by reasonings that favor evils and falsities there is no longer any conjunction, and this also is what is meant by "the girdle was profitable for nothing." That this was done by the Jews is evident from the Word both of the Old and New Testaments. From the Word of the New Testament it is evident that they perverted all things written in the Word respecting the Lord, and all the essentials of the church, and that they falsified these by their traditions.

[21] In the same:

When thou hast made an end of reading this book thou shalt bind a stone to it and cast it into the midst of the Euphrates; and thou shalt say, Thus shall Babylon sink, and shall not rise again (Jeremiah 51:63, 64).

The prophet's "book" which he read, means in particular the Word that was in that book, but in general the whole Word; "he cast it into the midst of the Euphrates" signifies that in process of time the Word was falsified through reasonings that favor evils by those who are meant by "Babylon," who are such as adulterate the Word.

[22] In Isaiah:

And Jehovah shall make utterly accursed the tongue of the sea of Egypt; and with the vehemence of His wind shall He shake His hand over the river Euphrates, and shall smite it into seven brooks, to make a way with shoes. Then there shall be a highway for the remnant of His people which shall be left from Assyria; like as there was to Israel when he came up out of the land of Egypt (Isaiah 11:15, 16).

This signifies that before those who are in truths from good from the Lord, that is, who are of the church, all falsities and reasonings from them shall be dispersed, and that they shall pass safely as it were through the midst of them; this is so in the spiritual world with those whom the Lord protects. This has a similar meaning as "the drying up of the Sea Suph before the sons of Israel." Those who will pass through under the Lord's protection are signified by "the remnant of the people which shall be left from Assyria," "those left from Assyria" signifying those who have not perished by reasonings from falsities. The following in Revelation has a similar signification:

And the sixth angel poured out of his bowl upon the river Euphrates, and the water thereof was dried up, that the way of the kings who are from the rising of the sun might be made ready (Revelation 16:12).

This will be more fully explained below in its place.

[23] From this it can now be seen that "the river Euphrates" signifies the rational by means of which the spiritual mind enters into the natural, and that in the contrary sense it signifies reasoning from fallacies and from falsities. But it is to be known that reasonings are in a like degree as the thoughts are, since they descend from the thoughts; thus there are reasonings from the spiritual man which might better be called conclusions from reasons and from truths; there are reasonings from the natural man, and there are reasonings from the sensual man. Reasonings from the spiritual man are rational, and therefore might better be called conclusions from reasons and from truths, because they are from the interior and from the light of heaven; but reasonings from the natural man respecting spiritual things are not rational, however rational they may be in things moral and civil, which are evident before the eyes, because they are from natural light alone; but reasonings from the sensual man respecting spiritual things are irrational, because they are from fallacies and thus from ideas that are false; these are the reasonings here treated of in Revelation.

Notas de rodapé: