10455. And he said unto Moses, There is a voice of war in the camp. That this signifies an assault upon the truth and good which are of heaven and of the church, by falsities and evils which are from hell, is evident from the signification of “voice,” as being the thought and affection which are the interiors of the voice, thus the quality of the interiors (of which above, n. 10454); from the signification of “war,” as being the combat of truth from good with falsity from evil; and in the opposite sense, the combat of falsity from evil against truth from good (of which in what follows); and from the signification of “the camp,” as being the church and heaven, for these were represented by the camp of the sons of Israel (n. 10038). From this it is evident that by “a voice of war in the camp” is signified an assault upon the truth and the good of the church and of heaven by falsities and evils which are from hell. It is said “from hell,” because all falsities and evils are from thence, and because here by “the camp,” when the golden calf was worshiped in it, is signified hell (n. 10458).

[2] That these things are signified by “a voice of war in the camp,” is because the subject now treated of in the internal sense is the interiors of the Israelitish nation, which were so opposed to the truths and goods of the church and of heaven as utterly to reject them. For the interiors of that nation were possessed by the loves of self and of the world, and where these loves reign, there the truths and goods of the church are continually being assaulted, however much in worship the externals appear to be holy. With such persons the holiness of worship is a means, and eminence and wealth are the ends. Thus those things which are of heaven and the church are means, and those things which are of the world and of self are ends; and the end regarded has command in a man, and the means serve; from which it follows that with such persons heaven serves and the world rules; consequently that the world is in the highest place, thus in the place of the head; and heaven is in a lower place, thus in the place of the foot. Wherefore if heaven does not favor their loves, it is then cast down beneath the feet, and is trodden and trampled upon. Such is the inversion with those among whom the loves of self and of the world reign. From this also it is that when such persons are viewed by the angels, they appear upside down, with the head downward and the feet upward.

[3] The reason why “war” denotes the combat with truth and falsity, and in the opposite sense the combat of falsity against truth, is that in the spiritual sense “war” is nothing else. Such combats are also signified in the internal sense by “wars” in the historicals of the Word; also by “wars” in the propheticals, as can be seen from passages above adduced from the Word (n. 1664, 8273). He who does not know that by “wars” in the Word are signified wars in a spiritual sense, cannot know what is involved in the things related concerning wars in Daniel 7,8, 11; and Revelation throughout; and in the Gospels, where the last times of the church are foretold (Matthew 24:5-7; Mark 13:7-8; and in other places). Hence also it is that all instruments of war, such as swords, spears, shields, bows, arrows, and many others, signify such things as belong to spiritual combat (of which throughout in these explications).