10262. Een hin; dat dit de hoeveelheid van de verbinding betekent, staat vast uit de betekenis van de hin, die een maat van vloeistoffen was, hier van olie, dus de hoeveelheid van de verbinding.

Met de olie wordt immers het hemels Goddelijk Goede van de Heer aangeduid, dat het verbindende zelf is van alle dingen in de hemelen; vandaar wordt met de maat ervan de hoeveelheid van de verbinding en de hoedanigheid van de verbinding aangeduid.

Dat het hemels Goddelijk Goede van de Heer het verbindende zelf is van alle dingen, is omdat dit het Zijn Zelf van het leven van alles is; het maakt immers alles levend door het Goddelijk Ware voortgaande vanuit dat Goddelijk Goede en het maakt levend volgens de hoedanigheid van de opneming.

De engelen zijn de opnemingen en eveneens de mensen; de waarheden en de goedheden bij hen geven het hoedanige; hierdoor immers vindt de opneming plaats, dus de verbinding.

Twee maten die tot heilig gebruik dienden, worden in het Woord vermeld: de ene voor vloeistoffen, die de hin werd genoemd, de andere voor vaste stoffen, die de efa werd genoemd.

Met de hin werd de olie en de wijn gemeten en met de efa het meel en de bloem; de maat hin die voor de olie en de wijn was, werd in vieren verdeeld; en de maat efa werd in tienen verdeeld.

Dat de maat hin in vieren was verdeeld, had als oorzaak, dat het opnemende zou worden aangeduid, want vier is de verbinding en dat de maat efa in tienen was verdeeld, had als oorzaak, dat het opnemende zou worden aangeduid en de hoedanigheid ervan werd met getallen aangewezen, want tien betekent veel, alles en het volle.

Dat vier de verbinding is, zie de nrs. 8877, 9601, 9674, 10136, 10137; en dat tien veel, alles en het volle is, evenzo honderd, nrs. 1988, 3107, 4400, 4638, 8468, 8540, 9745, 10253.

Dat de maat hin voor de olie en de wijn bij de slachtoffers was, en dat zij in vieren was verdeeld en de maat efa voor het meel en de bloem, dat voor het spijsoffer in de slachtoffers was, kan vaststaan in (Exodus 29:40; Leviticus 5:11; 23:13; Numeri 15:3-10; 28:5,7,14).

Hieruit blijkt dat met de hin de hoeveelheid van de verbinding wordt aangeduid en met de efa de hoeveelheid van de opneming; de olie verbond ook de meelbloem en deze nam op, want in het spijsoffer was olie en meelbloem.

Bovendien waren er ook andere maten die algemeen werden gebruikt, zowel voor vaste stoffen als voor vloeistoffen: de maten voor de vaste stoffen werden homer en omer genoemd en de maten voor de vloeistoffen kor en bath.

Een homer hield tien efa’s in en een efa tien omers en een kor hield tien bath in en een bath tien kleinere delen, (Exodus 16:36; Ezechiël 45:11,13,24).

Maar bij Ezechiël, waar over de nieuwe tempel wordt gehandeld, bestaat een andere verdeling van efa en bath; daar worden efa en bath niet verdeeld in tienen, maar in zessen en daar stemt de hin overeen met de efa, zoals blijkt bij de profeet, (Ezechiël 45:13,14,24; 46:5,7,11,14).

De oorzaak hiervan is dat daar niet wordt gehandeld over het hemels goede en de verbinding ervan, maar over het geestelijk goede en over de verbinding dáárvan; en in het geestelijk rijk stemmen de getallen twaalf, zes en drie overeen, aangezien daarmee alle dingen worden aangeduid en wanneer daarvan wordt gesproken met betrekking tot de ware en de goede dingen, alles van het ware en het goede in samenvatting.

Dat dit wordt aangeduid met twaalf, zie de nrs. 3272, 3858, 3913, 7973; ook met zes, nrs. 3960, 7973, 8148, 10217; eender met drie, waarmee wordt aangeduid van het begin tot het einde, dus het volle en ten aanzien van de dingen, alles, nrs. 2788, 4495, 5159, 7715, 9825, 10127.

Dat deze getallen eendere dingen behelzen, is omdat de grotere getallen iets eenders betekenen als de enkelvoudige, waaruit zij door vermenigvuldiging ontstaan, nrs. 5291, 5335, 5708, 7973.

Aangezien met de hin wordt aangeduid de hoeveelheid van de verbinding, ook met het geestelijk ware, werd daarom eveneens met het spijsoffer in de slachtoffers van een ram het derde deel van een hin olie genomen en tot het drankoffer een derde deel wijn, (Numeri 15:6,7); met de ram immers wordt het geestelijk goede aangeduid, nrs. 2830, 9991.

Hieruit wordt nu opnieuw duidelijk, dat met de getallen in het Woord dingen worden aangeduid; waartoe zou anders de aanwijzing van hoeveelheid en maat door getallen dienen, die zo vaak voorkomen bij Mozes en bij Ezechiël en elders voorkomt?

130. Verse 12. And to the angel of the church in Pergamum write, signifies for remembrance to those within the church who are in temptations. This is evident from the signification of "writing," as being for remembrance (See Arcana Coelestia 8620); and from the signification of "angel," as being a recipient of Divine truth, and in the highest sense Divine truth itself proceeding from the Lord (of which more in what follows); and from the signification of the "church in Pergamum," as being those within the church who are in temptations.

That these are meant by the "church in Pergamum" is clear from the things written to that church, which follow. From no other source can it be known what is signified by each of the seven churches. For as was shown before, what is meant is not any church in Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, or Laodicea, but all who are of the Lord's church, and by each of these churches something that constitutes the church with man is meant. And as the first things of the church are the knowledges of truth and good, and the affections of spiritual truth, these are first treated of, namely, in what is written to the angel of the Ephesian church and of the Smyrnean church; of the knowledges of truth and good to the angel of the Ephesian church, and of the spiritual affection of truth to the angel of the Smyrnean church. And as no one can be imbued with the knowledges of truth and good in respect to life, and be steadfast in the spiritual affection of truth, unless he undergoes temptations, so temptations are now treated of in what is written to the angel of the church in Pergamum. From this it appears in what order the things follow that are taught under the names of the seven churches.

[2] It is said "To the angel of the church, write," and not, To the church, because by "angel" is signified Divine truth, which makes the church; for Divine truth teaches how man is to live that he may become a church. That "angel" in the Word, in its spiritual sense, does not mean any angel, but in the highest sense, Divine truth proceeding from the Lord, and in a respective sense, he that receives it, can be seen from this, that all the angels are recipients of Divine truth from the Lord, and no angel is of himself an angel; but he is so far an angel as he receives Divine truth; for angels more than men know and perceive that all the good of love and all the truth of faith are from the Lord, not from themselves, and as the good of love and the truth of faith constitute their wisdom and intelligence, and as these constitute the whole angel, they know and say that they are merely recipients of the Divine proceeding from the Lord, and thus are angels in the degree in which they receive it. On this account they desire that the term "angel" should be understood spiritually, that is, in a sense abstracted from persons, and as meaning Divine truths. By Divine truth is meant at the same time Divine good, because these proceed from the Lord united (See in the work on Heaven and Hell, n.

[133-140] ¹ .

[3] And as Divine truth proceeding from the Lord constitutes the angel, by "angel" in the Word in the highest sense is meant the Lord Himself, as in Isaiah:

The angel of the faces of Jehovah delivered them, in His love and His pity He redeemed them, and took them up, and carried them all the days of eternity (Isaiah 63:9).

In Moses:

The angel who hath redeemed me from all evil, bless them (Genesis 48:16).

In the same:

I send an angel before thee to keep thee in the way; take ye heed of His faces, for my name is in the midst of Him (Exodus 23:20-23).

[4] As the Lord in respect to Divine truth is called an "angel," so also Divine truths are meant by "angels" in the spiritual sense, as in the following passages:

The Son of man shall send His angels, and they shall gather out of His kingdom all things that cause stumbling. In the consummation of the age the angels shall come forth and sever the wicked out of the midst of the just (Matthew 13:41, 49).

In the consummation of the age the Son of man shall send His angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and shall gather together the elect from the four winds (Matt. 24:3, 31).

When the Son of man shall come in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then shall He sit upon the throne of His glory (Matthew 25:31).

Jesus said, After this ye shall see heaven opened, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of man (John 1:51).

In these passages, in the spiritual sense, by "angels" Divine truths and not angels are meant. So when it is here said that, in the consummation of the age, "the angels are to gather out all things that cause stumbling," "are to sever the wicked from the midst of the just," "are to gather together the elect from the four winds with a great sound of a trumpet," and that "the Son of man with the angels is to sit upon a throne of glory," it is not meant that angels, together with the Lord, are to do these things, but that the Lord alone will do them by means of His Divine truths; for angels have no power of themselves, but all power is the Lord's through His Divine truth (See in the work on Heaven and Hell 230-233). That "ye shall see the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of man," means the like, namely, that Divine truths should be in Him and from Him.

[5] Moreover, in other places also "angels" mean Divine truths from the Lord, consequently the Lord in respect to Divine truths, as:

To the seven angels were given seven trumpets, and the angels sounded on the trumpets (Revelation 8:2, 6-8, 10, 12, 13; 9:1, 13, 14).

It is said that to the angels were given trumpets, and that they sounded thereon, because "trumpets" and their "sound" signify Divine truth to be revealed (See above, n. 55). Similar things are also meant:

By the angel warring against the dragon (Revelation 12:7, 9);

By the angel flying in the mid-heaven, having the eternal

gospel (Revelation 14:6);

By the seven angels pouring out the seven bowls (Rev. 16:1-4, 8, 10, 12);

By the twelve angels upon the twelve gates of the New Jerusalem (Revelation 21:12).

That this is so will also be seen in what follows.

[6] That by "angels" are meant Divine truths which are from the Lord is clearly manifest in David:

Jehovah maketh His angels winds, and His ministers a flaming fire (Psalms 104:4);

by which words are signified Divine truth and Divine good; for the "wind" of Jehovah in the Word signifies Divine truth, and His "fire" Divine good (as can be seen from what is shown in the Arcana Coelestia, as that the "wind of the nostrils" of Jehovah is Divine truth, n.8286; that the "four winds" are all things of truth and good, n. 3708, 9642, 9668; consequently "to breathe" in the Word signifies the state of the life of faith, n. 9281; from which it is evident what is signified by Jehovah's "breathing" into the nostrils of Adam (Genesis 2:7); by the Lord's "breathing" upon His disciples (John 20:22); and by these words, "The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the voice thereof, but knowest not whence it cometh" (John 3:8); concerning which see n. 96, 97, 9229, 9281 also n. 1119, 3886, 3887, 3889, 3892, 3893; that "flaming fire" is Divine love, and therefore Divine good, see in the work on Heaven and Hell 133-140, 566-568; and above, n. 68).

[7] That "angel" signifies Divine truth proceeding from the Lord is clearly manifest from these words in Revelation:

He measured the wall of the New Jerusalem, a hundred and forty-four cubits, the measure of a man, which is that of an angel (Revelation 21:17).

That the wall of the New Jerusalem is not the measure of an angel anyone can see, but that all protecting truths are there meant by an "angel" is evident from the signification of the "wall of Jerusalem," and of the number "one hundred and forty-four." (That the "wall" signifies all protecting truths, see Arcana Coelestia 6419; that the number "one hundred and forty-four" signifies all things of truth in the complex, n. 7973; that "measure" signifies the quality of a thing in respect to truth and good, n. 3104, 9603, 10262. These things may also be found explained as to the spiritual sense, in The small work on The New Jerusalem and its Doctrine 1.)

[8] Because by "angels" in the Word Divine truths are signified, therefore the men through whom Divine truths are made known are sometimes called "angels" in the Word, as in Malachi:

The priest's lips ought to guard knowledge, and they shall seek the law at his mouth, because he is the angel of Jehovah (Malachi 2:7).

He is said to be the "angel of Jehovah," because he teaches Divine truth; not that he is the angel of Jehovah, but the Divine truth that he teaches is. Moreover, it is known in the church that no one has Divine truth from himself. "Lips" also here signify the doctrine of truth, and "law" Divine truth itself. (That "lips" signify the doctrine of truth, see Arcana Coelestia 1286, 1288; and that "law" signifies Divine truth itself, see n. 3382, 7463)

[9] From this it is that John the Baptist also is called an angel:

Jesus said, This is he of whom it is written, Behold, I send Mine angel before Thy face, who shall prepare Thy way before Thee (Luke 7:27).

John is called an "angel," because by him, in the spiritual sense, is signified the Word, which is Divine truth, in like manner as by Elias (See Arcana Coelestia 7643, 9372, and what is signified; this is what is meant by the persons mentioned in the Word, see n. 665, 1097, 1361, 3147, 3670, 3881, 4208, 4281, 4288, 4292, 4307, 4500, 6304, 7048, 7439, 8588, 8788, 8806, 9229).

[10] It is said that by "angels" in the Word, in its spiritual sense, Divine truths proceeding from the Lord are meant, because these constitute the angels; when angels utter these truths, they speak not from themselves, but from the Lord. The angels not only know that this is so, but they also perceive it. The man who believes that nothing of faith is from himself, but that all faith is from God, also knows this, indeed, but he does not perceive it. That nothing of faith is from man, but all faith is from God, is the same as saying that nothing of truth that has life is from man, but all truth is from God, for truth is of faith and faith is of truth.