Apocalypse Explained # 570
570. And the four angels were loosed.- That this signifies liberty to reason from fallacies, is clear from the signification of the four angels bound at the river Euphrates, as denoting reasonings from fallacies pertaining to the sensual man, not received before (see above, n. 569:1); it therefore follows, that by their being loosed is signified that there is now liberty to reason from fallacies. The reason that there is now this liberty, is, that the sensual man reasons only from such things as are in the world, and that he can see with his eyes; but he says that those things which are within or above them have no existence, because he does not see them. For this reason he denies, or does not believe in the existence of those things which pertain to heaven and the church, because they are above his thoughts, and because he ascribes all things to nature. The sensual man thinks thus with himself, or in his spirit, but otherwise before the world, for before the world he speaks from his memory, also concerning spiritual things from the Word, or from the doctrine of the church, and the things which he utters resemble those which are spoken by the spiritual man. Such is the state of the men of the church at its end; and although they may speak eloquently, or preach as it were from a spiritual source, still all this proceeds from the ultimate Sensual, in which their spirit is, which, when left to itself, reasons against these things, because it reasons from fallacies, and therefore from falsities.
Jeremiah 13:1-7
1
Thus says Yahweh to me, Go, and buy yourself a linen belt, and put it on your waist, and don't put it in water.
2
So I bought a belt according to the word of Yahweh, and put it on my waist.
3
The word of Yahweh came to me the second time, saying,
4
Take the belt that you have bought, which is on your waist, and arise, go to the Euphrates, and hide it there in a cleft of the rock.
5
So I went, and hid it by the Euphrates, as Yahweh commanded me.
6
It happened after many days, that Yahweh said to me, Arise, go to the Euphrates, and take the belt from there, which I commanded you to hide there.
7
Then I went to the Euphrates, and dug, and took the belt from the place where I had hidden it; and behold, the belt was marred, it was profitable for nothing.