9372. And He said unto Moses. That this signifies that which concerns the Word in general, is evident from the representation of Moses, as being the Word (of which below); and from the signification of “He said,” as involving those things which follow in this chapter, thus those which concern the Word (see n. 9370). (That Moses represents the Word, can be seen from what has been often shown before about Moses, as from the preface to Genesis 18; and n. 4859, 5922, 6723, 6752, 6771, 6827, 7010, 7014, 7089, 7382, 8601, 8760, 8787, 8805.) Here Moses represents the Word in general, because it is said of him in what follows, that he alone should come near unto Jehovah (verse 2); and also that, being called unto out of the midst of the cloud, he entered into it, and went up the mount (verses 16-18).

[2] In the Word there are many who represent the Lord in respect to truth Divine, or in respect to the Word; but chief among them are Moses, Elijah, Elisha, and John the Baptist. That Moses does so, can be seen in the explications just cited above; that so do Elijah and Elisha, can be seen in the preface to Genesis 18; and n. 2762, 5247; and that John the Baptist does so is evident from the fact that he was “Elias who was to come.” He who does not know that John the Baptist represented the Lord as to the Word, cannot know what all those things infold and signify which are said about him in the New Testament; and therefore in order that this secret may stand open, and that at the same time it may appear that Elias, and also Moses, who were seen when the Lord was transfigured, signified the Word, some things may here be quoted which are spoken about John the Baptist; as in Matthew:

After the messengers of John had departed, Jesus began to speak concerning John, saying, What went ye out into the wilderness to see? a reed shaken by the wind? But what went ye out to see? a man clothed in soft raiment? Behold, they that wear soft things are in kings’ houses. But what went ye out to see? a prophet? Yea, I say unto you, even more than a prophet. This is he of whom it is written, Behold I send Mine angel before Thy face, who shall prepare Thy way before Thee. Verily I say unto you, Among those who are born of women there hath not arisen a greater than John the Baptist; nevertheless he that is less in the kingdom of the heavens is greater than he. All the prophets and the law prophesied until John. And if ye are willing to believe, he is Elias who was to come. He that hath ears to hear, let him hear (Matthew 11:7-15; and also Luke 7:24-28).

No one can know how these things are to be understood, unless he knows that this John represented the Lord as to the Word, and unless he also knows from the internal sense what is signified by “the wilderness” in which he was, also what by “a reed shaken by the wind,” and likewise by “soft raiment in kings’ houses;” and further what is signified by his being “more than a prophet,” and by “none among those who are born of women being greater than he, and nevertheless he that is less in the kingdom of the heavens is greater than he,” and lastly by his being “Elias.” For without a deeper sense, all these words are uttered merely from some comparison, and not from anything of weight.

[3] But it is very different when by John is understood the Lord as to the Word, or the Word representatively. Then by “the wilderness of Judea in which John was” is signified the state in which the Word was at the time when the Lord came into the world, namely, that it was “in the wilderness,” that is, it was in obscurity so great that the Lord was not at all acknowledged, neither was anything known about His heavenly kingdom; when yet all the prophets prophesied about Him, and about His kingdom, that it was to endure forever. (That “a wilderness” denotes such obscurity, see n. 2708, 4736, 7313.) For this reason the Word is compared to “a reed shaken by the wind” when it is explained at pleasure; for in the internal sense “a reed” denotes truth in the ultimate, such as is the Word in the letter.

[4] That the Word in the ultimate, or in the letter, is crude and obscure in the sight of men; but that in the internal sense it is soft and shining, is signified by their “not seeing a man clothed in soft raiment, for behold those who wear soft things are in kings’ houses.” That such things are signified by these words, is plain from the signification of “raiment,” or “garments,” as being truths (n. 2132, 2576, 4545, 4763, 5248, 6914, 6918, 9093); and for this reason the angels appear clothed in garments soft and shining according to the truths from good with them (n. 5248, 5319, 5954, 9212, 9216). The same is evident from the signification of “kings’ houses,” as being the abodes of the angels, and in the universal sense, the heavens; for “houses” are so called from good (n. 2233, 2234, 3128, 3652, 3720, 4622, 4982, 7836, 7891, 7996, 7997); and “kings,” from truth (n. 1672, 2015, 2069, 3009, 4575, 4581, 4966, 5044, 6148). Therefore by virtue of their reception of truth from the Lord, the angels are called “sons of the kingdom,” “sons of the king,” and also “kings.”

[5] That the Word is more than any doctrine in the world, and more than any truth in the world, is signified by “what went ye out to see? a prophet? Yea, I say unto you, and more than a prophet;” and by, “there hath not arisen among those who are born of women a greater than John the Baptist;” for in the internal sense “a prophet” denotes doctrine (n. 2534, 7269); and “those who are born,” or are the sons, “of women” denote truths (n. 489, 491, 533, 1147, 2623, 2803, 2813, 3704, 4257).

[6] That in the internal sense, or such as it is in heaven, the Word is in a degree above the Word in the external sense, or such as it is in the world, and such as John the Baptist taught, is signified by, “he that is less in the kingdom of the heavens is greater than he;” for as perceived in heaven the Word is of wisdom so great that it transcends all human apprehension. That the prophecies about the Lord and His coming, and that the representatives of the Lord and of His kingdom, ceased when the Lord came into the world, is signified by, “all the prophets and the law prophesied until John.” That the Word was represented by John, as by Elijah, is signified by his being “Elias who is to come.”

[7] The same is signified by these words in Matthew:

The disciples asked Jesus, Why say the scribes that Elias must first come? He answered and said, Elias must needs first come, and restore all things. But I say unto you, that Elias hath come already, and they knew him not, but did unto him whatsoever they wished. Even so shall the Son of man also suffer of them. And they understood that He spoke to them of John the Baptist (Matthew 17:10-13).

That “Elias hath come, and they knew him not, but did unto him whatsoever they wished” signifies that the Word has indeed taught them that the Lord is to come, but that still they did not wish to comprehend, interpreting it in favor of the rule of self, and thus extinguishing what is Divine in it. That they would do the same with the truth Divine itself, is signified by “even so shall the Son of man also suffer of them.” (That “the Son of man” denotes the Lord as to truth Divine, see n. 2803, 2813, 3704)

[8] From all this it is now evident what is meant by the prophecy about John in Malachi:

Behold I send you Elijah the prophet before the great and terrible day of Jehovah cometh (Malachi 4:5).

Moreover, the Word in the ultimate, or such as it is in the external form in which it appears before man in the world, is described by the “clothing” and “food” of John the Baptist, in Matthew:

John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of Judea, had His clothing of camel’s hair, and a leathern girdle about his loins; and his food was locusts and wild honey (Matthew 3:1, 4).

In like manner it is described by Elijah in the second book of Kings:

He was a hairy man, and girt with a girdle of leather about his loins (2 Kings 1:8).

By “clothing,” or a “garment,” when said of the Word, is signified truth Divine there in the ultimate form; by “camel’s hair” are signified memory-truths such as appear there before a man in the world; by the “leathern girdle” is signified the external bond connecting and keeping in order all the interior things; by “food” is signified spiritual nourishment from the knowledges of truth and of good out of the Word; by “locusts” are signified ultimate or most general truths; and by “wild honey” their pleasantness.

[9] That such things are signified by “clothing” and “food” has its origin in the representatives of the other life, where all appear clothed according to truths from good, and where food also is represented according to the desires of acquiring knowledge and growing wise. From this it is that “clothing,” or a “garment,” denotes truth (as may be seen from the citations above; and that “food” or “meat” denotes spiritual nourishment, n. 3114, 4459, 4792, 5147, 5293, 5340, 5342, 5576, 5579, 5915, 8562, 9003; that “a girdle” denotes a bond which gathers up and holds together interior things, n. 9341; that “leather” denotes what is external, n. 3540; and thus “a leathern girdle” denotes an external bond; that “hairs” denote ultimate or most general truths, n. 3301, 5569-5573; that “a camel” denotes memory-knowledge in general, n. 3048, 3071, 3143, 3145, 4156; that “a locust” denotes nourishing truth in the extremes, n. 7643; and that “honey” denotes the pleasantness thereof, n. 5620, 6857, 8056). It is called “wild honey,” or “honey of the field,” because by “a field” is signified the church (n. 2971, 3317, 3766, 7502, 7571, 9139, 9295). He who does not know that such things are signified, cannot possibly know why Elijah and John were so clothed. And yet that these things signified something peculiar to these prophets, can be thought by everyone who thinks well about the Word.

[10] Because John the Baptist represented the Lord as to the Word, therefore also when he spoke of the Lord, who was the Word itself, he said of himself that he was “not Elias, nor the prophet,” and that he was “not worthy to loose the latchet of the Lord’s shoe,” as in John:

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and God was the Word. And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory. The Jews from Jerusalem, priests and Levites, asked John who he was. And he confessed, and denied not, I am not the Christ. Therefore they asked him, What then? Art thou Elias? But he said, I am not. Art thou the prophet? He answered, No. They said therefore unto him, Who art thou? He said, I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, Make straight the way of the Lord, as said Isaiah the prophet. They said therefore, Why then baptizest thou, if thou art not the Christ, nor Elias, nor the prophet? He answered, I baptize with water; in the midst of you standeth one whom ye know not; He it is who is to come after me, who was before me, the latchet of whose shoe I am not worthy to unloose. When he saw Jesus, he said, Behold the Lamb of God, who taketh away the sin of the world! This is He of whom I said, After me cometh a man who was before me; for he was before me (John 1:1, 14, 19-30).

From these words it is plain that when John spoke about the Lord Himself, who was Truth Divine itself, or the Word, he said that he himself was not anything, because the shadow disappears when the light itself appears, that is, the representative disappears when the original itself makes its appearance. (That the representatives had in view holy things, and the Lord Himself, and not at all the person that represented, see n. 665, 1097, 1361, 3147, 3881, 4208, 4281, 4288, 4292, 4307, 4444, 4500, 6304, 7048, 7439, 8588, 8788, 8806.) One who does not know that representatives vanish like shadows at the presence of light, cannot know why John denied that he was Elias and the prophet.

[11] From all this it can now be seen what is signified by Moses and Elias, who were seen in glory, and who spoke with the Lord when transfigured, of His departure which He should accomplish at Jerusalem (Luke 9:29-31); namely, that they signified the Word (“Moses” the historic Word, and “Elias” the prophetic Word), which in the internal sense throughout treats of the Lord, of His coming into the world, and of His departure out of the world; and therefore it is said that “Moses and Elias were seen in glory,” for “glory” denotes the internal sense of the Word, and the “cloud” its external sense (see the preface to Genesis 18, and n. 5922, 8427).

3301. That a “hairy garment” [tunica] signifies the truth of the natural, is evident from the signification of a “garment” [tunica] as being that which invests something else, and here therefore it signifies truth, because this invests good; for truth is as a vesture (n. 1073, 2576); or what is nearly the same, truth is a vessel receiving good (n. 1469, 1496, 1832, 1900, 2063, 2261, 2269); and also from the signification of “hairy,” as being the natural in respect to truth. “Hair,” or the “hair of the head,” is frequently mentioned in the Word, and there signifies the natural; the reason is that hair is an excrescence in the outermost parts of man, just as is the natural also relatively to his rational and to the interior things thereof. It appears to man, while he lives in the body, that the natural is his all, but this is so far from being true that the natural is rather an excrescence from his internals, as hair is from the things of the body. The two also proceed from the internals in almost the same way. Hence it is that men who in the life of the body have been merely natural, in the other life, when presented to view in accordance with that state, appear as if covered with hair over almost the whole face. Moreover man’s natural is represented by the hair of the head; when it is from good, it is represented by becoming and carefully arranged hair; but when not from good, by unbecoming and disheveled hair.

[2] It is from this representative that in the Word “hair” signifies the natural, especially as to truth; as in Zechariah:

And it shall come to pass in that day that the prophets shall be ashamed, a man by reason of his vision, when he hath prophesied, neither shall they wear a hairy tunic to deceive (Zech. 13:4).

“Prophets” denote those who teach truths, here those who teach falsities (n. 2534); “vision” denotes truths, here falsities; a “hairy tunic” denotes the natural as to truth; and because there was no truth, but rather falsity, it is said, “to deceive.” Prophets were clothed with such raiment in order to represent that truth, because it is external. Therefore also Elijah the Tishbite from such clothing is called a “hairy man” (2 Kings 1:8); and John, who was the last of the prophets, had “raiment of camel’s hair” (Matthew 3:4). (That “camels” are memory-knowledges in the natural man, may be seen above, n. 3048, 3071, 3143, 3145; and also that memory-knowledges are the truths of the natural, n. 3293)

[3] That the “hair of the head” signified the natural as to truth is plainly evident from the Nazirites, to whom it was commanded that during all the days of their Naziriteship no razor should pass upon their head, until the days were fulfilled during which they separated themselves to Jehovah, and then they should let down the locks of their head, and that then they should shave the head of their Naziriteship at the door of the tent of meeting, and should put the hair upon the fire which was under the eucharistic sacrifice (Numbers 6:5, 18). The Nazirites represented the Lord as to the Divine Human; and thence the man of the celestial church, who is a likeness of the the Lord, (n. 51); and the natural of this man is represented by the hair; and therefore, when the Nazirites were sanctified they were to put off their old or former natural man, into which they were born, and were to put on a new man; which was signified by the command that when the days had been fulfilled during which they were to separate themselves to Jehovah, they were to let down the locks of their head, and put them upon the fire under the sacrifice. For the state of the celestial man is such that he is in good, and from good knows all truths, and never thinks and speaks from truths about good, still less does he think and speak about good from memory-knowledges (see n. 202, 337, 2715, 2718, 3246). Moreover celestial men are such that before they put off that state they are in a natural so strong as to truth that they are able to battle with the hells; for it is truth that fights, and never good, as the hells cannot make even a distant approach to good. (That such is the case with truth and good may be seen above, n. 1950, 1951.)

[4] From this it is evident whence Samson had strength from his hair; concerning whom it is said:

The angel of Jehovah appeared to the woman saying, Behold thou shalt conceive, and bear a son, and no razor shall come upon his head; for the child shall be a Nazirite unto God from the womb (Judg. 13:3, 5);

and afterwards it is related that he told Delilah that if he should be shaven, his strength would depart from him, and he would be rendered weak; and after he had been shaven his strength departed, and the Philistines seized him; and afterwards, when the hair of his head began to grow again after he was shaven, his strength returned, so that he pulled down the pillars of the house (Judges 16). Who does not see that in these things there is a heavenly arcanum, which no one knows unless he has been instructed concerning representatives; namely, that the Nazirite represents the celestial man, and that so long as he had hair he represented the natural of this man, which as before said is in truth thus powerful and strong. And as at that time all representatives that were commanded by the Lord had such force and effect, this was the source of Samson’s strength. But Samson was not a sanctified Nazirite like those described above, namely, as having put on a state of good instead of truth. The effect of his strength by reason of his hair was principally from his representing the Lord, who from the natural man as to truth fought with the hells and subdued them, and this before he put on the Divine good and truth even as to the natural man.

[5] From this also it is evident why it was commanded that the high priest, upon whose head was poured the oil of anointing, and whose hand was consecrated to put on the garments, should not shave his head, nor rend his clothes (Leviticus 21:10); and similarly that the priests the Levites (where the new temple is treated of) were not to shave their heads, nor let down their hair (Ezekiel 44:20); namely, that they might represent the Lord’s Divine natural as to the truth which is from good, and which is called the truth of good. That “hair,” or a “head of hair” signifies the natural as to truth is evident also from the prophecies of the Word, as in Ezekiel:

I set thee as the bud of the field, whence thou didst grow, and didst grow up into beauties of beauties; the breasts have become firm, and thine hair was grown (Ezekiel 16:7); where Jerusalem is treated of, which here signifies the Ancient Church, which in process of time had become perverted. The “breasts become firm” denote natural good; the “hair that was grown,” natural truth.

[6] In Daniel:

I beheld till the thrones were cast down, and the Ancient of Days did sit. His raiment was white as snow, and the hair of His head like the pure wool; His throne was fiery flames (Daniel 7:9).

And in John:

In the midst of the lampstands one like unto the Son of man, clothed with a garment down to the foot, and girt about at the paps with a golden girdle. And His head and His hair were white as white wool, as snow; and His eyes were as a flame of fire (Revelation 1:13-14);

“hair white like pure wool” denotes the Divine natural as to truth. In the Word, and in the rituals of the Jewish Church, truth itself was represented by white, which being from good, is called “pure wool.” The reason why the representation of truth is by white, and the representation of good by red, is that truth is of light, and good is of the fire from which the light proceeds.

[7] Like other expressions in the Word, “hair” has also an opposite sense, and signifies the natural as to truth perverted, as in Isaiah:

In that day shall the Lord shave with a razor that is hired, in the passages of the river, with the King of Assyria, the head and the hair of the feet; and it shall also consume the beard (Isaiah 7:20).

In Ezekiel:

Son of man, take thee a sharp sword, a barber’s razor shalt thou take unto thee, and shalt cause it to pass upon thine head, and upon thy beard; and take thee balances to weigh, and divide the hairs. A third part shalt thou burn with fire in the midst of the city; thou shalt take a third part and smite with the sword round about the city; and a third part thou shalt scatter to the wind; and thou shalt take thereof a few in number, and bind them in thy skirts; and of these again shalt thou take, and cast them into the midst of the fire, and burn them in the fire; therefrom shall a fire come forth unto all the house of Israel (Ezekiel 5:1-4).

In this manner it is representatively described that there is no longer any interior and exterior natural truth, which is signified by the “hair” and the “beard.” That lusts have destroyed it is signified by its being “burned with fire”; that reasonings have destroyed it is signified by “smiting with the sword round about the city”; that false principles have destroyed it, is signified by “scattering it to the wind.” The meaning of this passage is similar to what the Lord teaches in Matthew, that of the seed, which is truth, some fell among thorns, some on the rock, and some upon the way (Matthew 13:1-9).

[8] That the “hair of the head” signifies the unclean truths and falsities which are of the natural man, was represented also by the command that when a woman that had been taken captive from the enemy was to be married, she was to be brought into the house, the hair of her head was to be shaved, her nails were to be pared, and the raiment of her captivity was to be put off (Deuteronomy 21:12-13); also that when the Levites were consecrated, the water of expiation was to be sprinkled upon them, they were to cause a razor to pass over all their flesh, and their clothes were to be washed, and thus they were to be cleansed (Numbers 8:7); and also that Nebuchadnezzar was driven out from men to eat grass like oxen, and his body to be wet with the dew of heaven, until his hair grew like eagles’ feathers, and his nails like birds’ claws (Daniel 4:33). That in leprosy the colors of the hair and beard were to be observed, as to whether they were white, reddish, yellow, black, and also those of the garments; and that he who was cleansed from leprosy should shave off all the hair of the head, beard, and eyebrows (Leviticus 13,14:8-9), signified unclean falsities from what is profane, which in the internal sense is “leprosy.”

[9] “Baldness” however signified the natural in which there was nothing of truth, as in Isaiah:

He is gone up to Bayith, and to Dibon, to the high places, to weep over Nebo, and Moab shall howl over Medeba; on all their heads is baldness, every beard is shaved (Isaiah 15:2).

In the same:

It shall come to pass that instead of braided work there shall be baldness, and branding instead of beauty (Isaiah 3:24).

That the children who said to Elisha, “Go up, thou bald-head; go up, thou bald-head,” were torn in pieces by bears from the wood (2 Kings 2:23-24) represented those who blaspheme the Word, speaking as if there were no truth in it; for Elisha represented the Lord as to the Word (n. 2762). From this it is now manifest how much power there was at that time in representatives.

3969. And said, God hath gathered my reproach. And she called his name Joseph, saying, Let Jehovah add to me another son. That this signifies in the supreme sense the Lord as to the Divine spiritual; in the internal sense, the spiritual kingdom, or the good of faith; and in the external sense, salvation, also fructification and multiplication, is evident from the representation of Joseph in the Word (concerning which below); and from the signification of “God hath gathered my reproach,” and also of “Let Jehovah add to me another son;” for he was named “Joseph” from “gathering” and “adding.” “God hath gathered my reproach,” signifies that Rachel was now no longer barren, and thus was not “dead,” as she said of herself to Jacob (verse 1, n. 3908). For by Rachel is represented the affection of interior truth, or the interior man as to truth (n. 3758, 3782, 3793, 3819). The interior man is as it were dead as to truth and good, if the exterior or natural man does not correspond to it in respect to goods and truths (see n. 3493, 3620, 3623).

[2] These must be conjoined with each other, so as to be not two, but together one man. This conjunction cannot come forth until the natural or external man has been prepared, that is, until it has received and acknowledged the general truths signified by the ten sons of Jacob by Leah and the handmaids; and until the good of the natural man has been conjoined with the truths therein, which conjunction is signified by the last son of Jacob by Leah, namely, by Zebulun, who was so called from “dwelling together” (n. 3960, 3961). After this conjunction has been effected, the interior man and the exterior enter into the heavenly marriage, spoken of above (n. 3952). The reason why they do not enter into it before, is a great secret; for it is the good of the interior man which then conjoins itself with the good of the exterior, and by means of this with the truth therein; and likewise the good of the interior man by means of the affection of the truth therein, conjoins itself with the good of the exterior man, and also with the truth therein; thus immediately and mediately (concerning which immediate and mediate conjunction see above, n. 3314, 3573, 3616). As the interior man is then first conjoined with the exterior, and as before this conjunction has been effected the interior man is as it were null, and thus is as it were dead (as stated above), it is therefore said, “God hath gathered my reproach.” This then is what is signified by the “reproach” which God is said to have “gathered,” that is, to have taken away, or from which He is said to have delivered her.

[3] But by the words which follow: “Let Jehovah add to me another son,” from which Joseph was named, another arcanum is signified, which is this. By Joseph there is represented the Lord’s spiritual kingdom, thus the spiritual man; for this kingdom is in every spiritual man. There are two things that constitute the spiritual man, namely, charity and faith; or what is the same, good and truth. The charity from which is faith, or the good from which is truth, is that which is represented by Joseph; and the faith in which is charity, or the truth in which is good, is that which is signified by “another son,” and is represented by Benjamin-concerning whom in Genesis 35:16-18. Thus “Joseph” is the celestial spiritual man; and “Benjamin” the spiritual celestial. What is the difference between these two may be seen from what has been very frequently said before concerning the good from which is truth, and the truth in which is good. This then is what is signified by Rachel’s other words: “Let Jehovah add to me another son.” But these arcana cannot be seen except by those who are in the charity of faith; for these are as to their interiors in the light of heaven, in which light there is also intelligence. But they cannot be seen by those who are only in the light of the world, for in this light there is not intelligence, except insofar as the light of heaven is within it. To the angels, who are in the light of heaven, these are among the most common things.

[4] From all this we can now see that by these words, “God hath gathered my reproach,” and “Let Jehovah add to me another son,” in the supreme sense is signified the Lord as to the Divine spiritual; and in the internal sense, the Lord’s spiritual kingdom, or the good of faith; for this is the spiritual in that kingdom. But that in the external sense by these words is signified salvation, also fructification and multiplication, is because this follows (see n. 3971). The Lord’s spiritual kingdom, as already repeatedly stated and shown, consists of those who are in charity and thereby in faith. It is distinct from the Lord’s celestial kingdom, for this contains those who are in love to the Lord, and thereby in charity. These constitute the third or inmost heaven; but those who are spiritual constitute the second or interior heaven.

[5] The reason why “God” is first mentioned—“God hath gathered my reproach,” and then “Jehovah”—“Let Jehovah add to me another son” is that the former name regards the ascent from truth to good, but the latter the descent from good to truth; for the spiritual man is in the good of faith (that is, in good from which there is truth); but before he becomes spiritual he is in the truth of faith (that is, in truth in which there is good); for “God” is used when the subject is truth; but “Jehovah” when it is good (n. 2586, 2807, 2822, 3921).

[6] That by Joseph is represented the Lord’s spiritual kingdom, or the spiritual man, and thus the good of faith, may also be seen from the passages in the Word where he is mentioned; as in the prophecy of Jacob, then Israel:

Joseph is the son of a fruitful one, the son of a fruitful one by a fountain, of a daughter, she marcheth upon the wall; the archers shall sorely grieve him and shall shoot at him, and shall hate him; but he shall abide in the strength of his bow; and the arms of his hands shall be made strong by the hands of the Mighty One of Jacob; from thence is the Shepherd, the Stone of Israel; by the God of thy father, and He shall help thee, and with Shaddai, and He shall bless thee with blessings of heaven from above, with blessings of the deep that lieth beneath, blessings of the breasts and of the womb; the blessings of thy father shall prevail over the blessings of my progenitors even to the desire of the everlasting hills; they shall be upon the head of Joseph, and upon the crown of the head of the Nazarite of his brethren (Genesis 49:22-26).

In these prophetic words there is contained in the supreme sense a description of the Lord’s Divine spiritual; and in the internal sense, of His spiritual kingdom. What each particular involves shall of the Lord’s Divine mercy be stated in the explication of that chapter.

[7] So in the prophecy of Moses:

To Joseph he said, Blessed of Jehovah be his land, for the precious things of heaven, for the dew, and for the deep that lieth beneath; and for the precious things of the fruits of the sun, and for the precious things of the increase of the months; and for the firstfruits of the mountains of the east, and for the precious things of the everlasting hills; and for the precious things of the earth and the fullness thereof; and the good will of him that dwelt in the bush; they shall come upon the head of Joseph, and upon the crown of the head of the Nazarite of his brethren (Deuteronomy 33:13-17).

[8] As Israel represented the Lord’s spiritual church (see n. 3305, 3654), therefore Jacob, then Israel, before his death said to Joseph:

Thy two sons, who were born unto thee in the land of Egypt, before I came unto thee into Egypt, are mine; Ephraim and Manasseh shall be mine, as Reuben and Simeon. The angel who hath redeemed me from all evil bless the lads, that my name may be named upon them, and the name of my fathers, Abraham and Isaac; and let them grow into a multitude in the midst of the land (Genesis 48:5, 16).

For there are two things that constitute the spiritual church-the understanding and the will, of which the understanding is represented by Ephraim, and the will by Manasseh. From this it is evident why Joseph’s two sons were adopted by Jacob, then Israel, and were acknowledged as his own. “Ephraim” is also frequently mentioned in the Word, especially the prophetic Word, and by him is there signified the intellectual of truth and good, which belongs to the spiritual church.

[9] In Ezekiel:

Jehovah said, Son of man, take thee one stick, and write upon it, For Judah and for the sons of Israel his companions; and take another stick and write upon it, For Joseph, the stick of Ephraim, and all the house of Israel his companions; and join them for thee one to another, into one stick, that they both may become one in thy ¹ hand. Thus said the Lord Jehovih, Behold, ² I will take the stick of Joseph, which is in the hand of Ephraim and the tribes of Israel his companions, and I will put them with the stick of Judah, and make them one stick, and they shall be one in My hand. And I will make them one nation in the land, in the mountains of Israel, and one king shall be king to them all, and they shall be no more two nations, and they shall no more be divided into two kingdoms again (Ezekiel 37:16-17, 19, 22).

The Lord’s celestial and spiritual kingdoms are here treated of. The celestial kingdom is “Judah” (n. 3654, 3881, 3921 the end); the spiritual kingdom is “Joseph;” and it is said that these kingdoms shall not be two, but one. They were also made into one by the coming of the Lord into the world.

[10] (That the spiritual were saved by the Lord’s coming, may be seen above, n. 2661, 2716, 2833, 2834.) It is the spiritual of whom the Lord speaks in John:

And other sheep I have which are not of this fold; them also I must bring, and they shall hear My voice, and there shall be one flock, and one Shepherd (John 10:16).

This is what is signified by the “two sticks, of Judah and Joseph, which shall be joined together into one, and shall be one in the Lord’s hand.” For the celestial constitute the third heaven, which is the inmost; but the spiritual the second heaven, which is the interior; and they are there one, because the one flows into the other (that is, the celestial into the spiritual), the spiritual kingdom being as a plane to the celestial, and in this way they have been firmly co-established. For the Divine celestial in the third or inmost heaven is love to the Lord; and the celestial spiritual there is charity. This charity is the chief thing in the second or interior heaven, where the spiritual are. This shows what is the nature of the influx, and also of the coestablishment by means of the influx. “Wood” signifies good, both the good of love to the Lord, and the good of charity toward the neighbor (n. 2784, 2812, 3720). For this reason it was commanded that Judah and Joseph should be “written upon sticks of wood,” which should “become one.”

[11] So in Zechariah:

I will strengthen the house of Judah, and I will save the house of Joseph, and I will cause them to dwell, for I have mercy upon them; and they shall be as though I had not left them; for I Jehovah am their God, and I will answer them (Zech. 10:6);

here again the subject is the two kingdoms, the celestial and the spiritual (the celestial being “Judah,” and the spiritual “Joseph”), and the salvation of the spiritual.

[12] In Amos:

Thus said Jehovah unto the house of Israel, Seek ye Me, and ye shall live. Seek Jehovah, and ye shall live, lest He break out like fire in the house of Joseph, and it devour, and there be none to quench it. Hate the evil, and love the good, and establish judgment in the gate; it may be that Jehovah God Zebaoth will be gracious unto the remnant of Joseph (Amos 5:4, 6, 15); where also the spiritual are signified by “Joseph;” the “house of Israel” is the spiritual church (n. 3305, 3654); “Joseph” is the good of this church, and it is therefore said, “Jehovah said unto the house of Israel, Seek ye Me, and ye shall live, lest He break out like fire in the house of Joseph.”

[13] In David:

Give ear, O Shepherd of Israel, Thou that leadest Joseph like a flock; Thou that sittest upon the cherubim, shine forth. Before Ephraim, and Benjamin, and Manasseh, stir up Thy might, and come and save us (Psalms 80:1-3);

here also in like manner “Joseph” is the spiritual man; “Ephraim, Benjamin, and Manasseh” are the three constituents of that church.

[14] Again:

Lift up the song and give the timbrel, the pleasant harp with the psaltery; blow the trumpet in the new moon, in the festival, on the day of our feast; for this is a statute for Israel, a judgment to the God of Jacob; he appointed it to Joseph for a testimony, when he went out against the land of Egypt; I heard a language that I knew not (Psalms 81:2-5).

That “Joseph” here is the spiritual church, or the spiritual man, is manifest from every word and expression; for in the Word there are terms that express spiritual things, and others that express celestial things, and this with uniformity throughout. In this passage there are words that express spiritual things; as “song,” “timbrel,” the “harp with the psaltery,” “blowing the trumpet in the new moon, in the festival on the day of our feast.” From this also it is manifest that the subject is the spiritual church, which is “Joseph.”

[15] In Ezekiel:

Thus said the Lord Jehovih, This shall be the border whereby ye shall inherit the land, according to the twelve tribes of Israel; the lines shall be to Joseph (Ezekiel 47:13); where the subject is the Lord’s spiritual kingdom; and it is therefore said, “the lines shall be to Joseph.” The Lord’s Divine Spiritual is that which is also called His “royalty;” for the Lord’s “royalty” is His Divine truth; and His “priesthood” is His Divine good (n. 2015, 3009, 3670). The Lord’s royalty itself is that which is represented by Joseph, in his being made king in the land of Egypt, which representation shall of the Lord’s Divine mercy be treated of in its place.

[16] As regards the Lord’s Divine Spiritual, or the Divine truth, which in the supreme sense is represented by Joseph, it is not in the Lord, but is from the Lord; for the Lord is nothing but Divine good; but the Divine truth proceeds from the Divine good. To speak comparatively, this is like the sun and its light; the light is not in the sun, but proceeds from it; or it is like a fire, the light of which is not in the fire, but proceeds from the fire. The Divine good itself is also compared in the Word to the “sun,” and to “fire,” and is likewise called the “sun” and “fire.” The Lord’s celestial kingdom lives from the good which proceeds from the Lord; but His spiritual kingdom from the truth thence derived; and therefore in the other life the Lord appears to the celestial as a sun; but to the spiritual as a moon (n. 1053, 1521, 1529-1531, 3636, 3643). Both heat and light proceed from the sun, the heat being-to speak comparatively-the good of love, which is also called celestial and spiritual heat; and the light, the truth thence derived, which is also called spiritual light (n. 3636, 3643). But within the celestial heat and spiritual light that in the other life proceed from the Lord as a sun, there are the good of love and the truth of faith, thus wisdom and intelligence (n. 1521-1523, 1542, 1619-1632, 2776, 3138, 3190, 3195, 3222, 3223, 3339, 3485, 3636, 3643, 3862); for all that which proceeds from the Lord is living.

[17] From this we can see what the Divine Spiritual is; and whence comes the spiritual kingdom, and the celestial kingdom; and that the spiritual kingdom is the good of faith, that is, charity, which flows in from the Lord immediately, and also mediately through the celestial kingdom. The Divine Spiritual that proceeds from the Lord is called in the Word the “spirit of truth,” and is holy truth; not being of any spirit, but of the Lord through a spirit sent by Him; as may be seen from the words of the Lord Himself in John:

When He, the Spirit of Truth, shall come, He will guide you into all the truth; for He shall not speak from Himself; but what things soever He shall hear, these shall He speak; and He shall declare unto you the things that are to come. He shall glorify Me; for He shall take of Mine, and shall declare it unto you (John 16:13-14).

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