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But Mary kept all these things, and pondered them in her heart.
The Joy of the Angels at the Lord's Birth
Ni Eric Carswell
Then the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid, for behold I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. (Luke 2:10-11)
These words of the angel were truly good tidings of great joy for all people. Although neither the shepherds nor anyone else in the world really understood the importance of what was begun that night, the angels did, and they had been unceasingly awaiting this event for centuries. They knew why there was cause for great rejoicing. The promised Messiah, the Savior and Redeemer of mankind, had finally been born. The unbounded joy of the heavens was seen by the shepherds. Suddenly with the angel who had spoken to them there was a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men." (Luke 2:14)
Why were the angels so joyful? We can hear the excitement in the voice of the angel that spoke to the shepherds. And we can imagine the shiver of wonder that must have filled the shepherds as they heard the resounding sound of the angelic multitudes praising God. What was the source of the angels' joy? What did the birth of the Lord on earth mean to them?
The angels had known that the Lord would be born on earth ever since the first hint of evil had appeared in mankind. At the moment that the first of the Lord's people began to turn away from innocently following Him the angels could foresee in a general way what would happen. With the human mind working the way that it did and does, the angels could foresee that the power of evil, once begun, would gradually increase. (cf. Arcana Coelestia 4687:2) With horror they recognized that eventually the human race would turn so far away from the Lord that it would no longer know anything true nor be able to do anything good. They recognized that the human race would turn completely from the Lord's life and His blessings, and they knew that when a complete separation took place, no human being would ever choose a heavenly life and would be condemned to the anger, discontent and destructiveness of an evil life.
Yet at the time of the first hint of evil, the Lord immediately foretold in prophecy that He would be born as a Savior to ensure that all people would always have a real choice between a heavenly life and a hellish one. By prophecies given to people on earth, both they and the angels knew that the Lord would make His advent. The angels understood that He would come as the Word made flesh, as a light to the world. He would let His infinite soul slowly fill a natural body. He would allow a mind to form within the workings of a natural brain - one precisely like yours and mine. He would learn the stories and laws of the Old Testament just like a child today can learn them. Then He would do something that no finite mortal could. He would slowly reveal to that natural mind and to the universal spiritual world the infinite life within revealed truth. He took words and ideas of truth that could exist within a human mind and showed their hidden glory. This revelation was an essential part of His mission on earth. It was an essential part of the process that the Writings of the New Church call “the glorification.” The Lord showed the infinite wisdom and the infinite love that had been hidden by the darkness of evil and the obscurity of limited human thought. The Lord Jesus Christ gave a power to revealed truth that is the salvation of all who seek to follow it - to all who follow revealed truth while seeking to serve their fellow human beings. The Lord became the Word made flesh so that we might behold His glory, so that we might have the light that will give us life.
All this lay in the distant future when the Lord's birth was first prophesied. Yet the prophecies themselves had great power. Yes, they were reassuring words, but they were something more. Faith in the promise of these prophecies accomplished something extremely powerful in itself. Faith in the Lord who was to come, brought about a loving relationship between human beings and God. (Arcana Coelestia 2034) This faith gave life and blessings to countless people. It sustained many in the human race till the Lord's birth actually occurred.
Over and over again, the Lord renewed the promise of His coming. But much time passed, and the promise of the Messiah was nearly forgotten. A few held onto their hope and waited, looking daily for the Lord to come. Wise men far distant from Judea watched the night sky looking for the sign that the Messiah had been born, and when they saw the star of wonder, they journeyed to bring gifts to the young infant. An old man in Jerusalem also waited for the Savior. When Simeon saw the infant Jesus and held Him in his arms. From a contented heart he spoke the remarkable words, "Lord, now let Your servant depart in peace, according to Your word; For my eyes have seen Your salvation, which You have prepared before the face of all people: A light to give light to the Gentiles and the glory of Your people Israel." (Luke 2:29-32)
Simeon certainly understood something of the meaning of the Lord's birth. Yet almost no one else in the world did. But the angels knew what the advent meant. The prophecies of the Lord's coming had been essential for the angels too. We are taught that if the process of the Lord's glorification had not been shown to the angels through the internal sense of the Word and also in the rites of the Jewish Church, the Lord would have been obliged to come into the world immediately after the fall of the first church from the golden age of mankind. (Arcana Coelestia 2523:1) For the angels the Old Testament served as a detailed prophecy of even the smallest aspects of the Jesus' life. From the Old Testament the angels knew the actual thoughts and perceptions of His whole life in the world.
The prophecy sustained hope with the angels. It held in check their fears when they foresaw the growing power of evil. Their deep apprehension was not just a general concern for a matter of principle or for the battle of evil against good in an abstract form. They were concerned for the salvation of each individual soul. They could see that the possibility of anyone getting to heaven was greatly endangered.
The angels are keenly aware of the state of the church with the human race. We provide a foundation for them. When the church within the hearts and minds of people in this world is weak and ignorant, the foundation is threatened. We are told of the sadness of angels when the people of the church are misled by false ideas and motivated by evil. Yes, the heavens are dependent on the people who make up the church on earth. If that quality of the church with human beings should completely fail, the heavens presently associated with us would have to be transferred to rest on other earths, and life would cease on this earth.
However, the concern of the angels was not for their own welfare. Their concern was for the happiness of others. They seek above all else to bring happiness to others. We read that "to save a soul from hell, the angels would regard death as nothing, indeed if it were possible, they would undergo hell for that soul." (Arcana Coelestia 2077:2) The angels suffered with and for those who wandered in spiritual darkness. They mourned over the sadness that filled the lives of so many. They waited and could do little to make life better for all who suffered. They waited, praying, hoping. They knew that the darkness and suffering would end when Jesus Christ, the Savior and Redeemer, came in glory. So it was that when the Lord was born, the angels rejoiced. They rejoiced the night of the first Christmas so long ago. And with joy they brought the news to a small group of shepherds who were in the fields that night watching over their flocks.
Yet they knew that the Lord's birth was only the beginning. Jesus would grow from infancy to adult life. He would undergo continual battles against the mind-numbing power of evil. His battles would continue to the final trial of the cross. The completion of His work would come as He rose from the tomb on the first Easter. He rose not merely as Jesus, but as the infinite God, Jesus Christ our Lord appearing in flesh and blood.
On the first Christmas, the angels knew that much had to occur before mankind was truly free to chose a life different from the misery and spiritual emptiness of hell. But after centuries of waiting, hoping and praying for this event, it had now begun. In the words of the angel, the birth of the Lord was indeed good news of great joy for all people.
The Lord’s birth and life did not mean that evil loves and false ideas became powerless. The Lord re-established the freedom to choose good loves and true ideas and many have and will choose them, but not all. Our hearts can be saddened and sometimes discouraged or angered by the evil that we can see large and small. There is a memorable experience taking place in the life after death that Swedenborg relates which dealt with a time of discouragement of his own (Conjugial Love 81). He had been reflecting on the terrible state of marriage with so many and was grieved in spirit. As he walked and talked sadly with an angel about these things there was suddenly a dazzling burst of light that lit up the whole sky and he heard the sound of a mighty angelic choir echoing across the sky. The angel explained the different songs of celebration they were hearing related to the Lord’s advent such as:
The voice of one crying in the wilderness, "Prepare the way of Jehovah...." ...Behold, the Lord Jehovih comes in strength.... He will feed His flock like a shepherd. (Isaiah 40:3, 10-11)
Unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given..., whose name shall be...Wonderful, Counselor, God, Hero, Father of Eternity, Prince of Peace. (Isaiah 9:6)
And there were also quotations about the Lord’s second coming. Swedenborg relates, “When I heard these things and understood their meaning, as a result my heart leapt, and I went home filled with joy” (Conjugial Love 81:5).
As we well know this also did not mean that there would soon be an end to sorrow and trouble in marriages. But it did mean there was hope and a future. If we stare too much at the sorrow and trouble this can grow to be all we see and the Lord’s role will diminish into a relatively small abstraction. In this state of mind there is no rejoicing, little hope and little energy to do what we can. It is not what the Lord and His angels would wish for us.
When we consider the Lord's birth, we too can be joyful. If the Lord had not come, we would not be alive today. If the Lord had not bowed the heavens and come down, nothing could save us from the natural patterns of thought and choice that bring us and others pain and hurt, that bring the reality of hell to us. It is valuable for us to come to an acknowledgement of the destructiveness within these natural patterns of thought and choice.
But something of the true spirit of Christmas is shown in the joy of the angels. Their joy was not because they directly benefited by the advent. The nature of angelic love is to feel another's joy as its own. The joy of the angels was for all mankind. In their joy they recognized the significance of the advent for the lives of so many people.
We can form some idea of their joy if we think of what the Lord's coming means to all those whom we love. When we watch loved ones and others we know learn and grow, it is not always easy. Perhaps we worry that they are making bad choices and that we cannot prevent it without taking away their essential freedom. It is then that we need to remember the Lord's coming. Because the Lord was born into the world, He is able to be very near to teach and lead our loved ones with His infinite wisdom and infinite love. He has come for them to lead them to receive as much of the joy of heaven as they possibly can. We can perhaps realize with joy that things may not be as hopeless as they sometimes seem. A knowledge of the Lord’s role can actually increase the energy and focus we have to wisely help those around us. We can be encouraged by the thought that an infinite and loving God is near and also working unceasingly with all human beings. And as we see their joy when they do what is good and right, we can feel something of this joy as our own and give thanks to the Lord.
The sense of another's joy is magnified many times with the angels. This is the joy with which the angels celebrated the birth of the Lord. They were rejoicing at the Lord's expression of His love and mercy to all of us. If we can enter into this joy of the angels, we will sense something of the true joy of Christmas. When this joy fills our hearts, we may echo the words of the angelic chorus, "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men."
(Mga Sanggunian: Luke 2:10)
Apocalypse Revealed # 567
567. REVELATION: CHAPTER 13
1. And I saw a beast rising up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and on its horns ten jewels, 1 and on its heads a blasphemous name.
2. Now the beast which I saw was like a leopard, whose feet were like those of a bear, and its mouth like the mouth of a lion. And the dragon gave it its power, its throne, and great authority.
3. And I saw one of its heads appearing as though fatally wounded, and its mortal injury was healed. And all the earth went marveling after the beast.
4. Then they worshiped the dragon which gave authority to the beast; and they worshiped the beast, saying, "Who is like the beast? Who can fight against it?"
5. And it was given a mouth speaking great and blasphemous things, and it was given authority to do so for forty-two months.
6. Then it opened its mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme His name, and against His tabernacle, and those who dwell in heaven.
7. It was granted it to make war with the saints and overcome them. And it was given authority over every tribe, tongue, and nation.
8. All who dwell on the earth will worship it, all whose names have not been written in the Book of Life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.
9. If anyone has an ear, let him hear.
10. Anyone who leads into captivity shall go into captivity; anyone who kills with the sword must be killed with the sword. Here is the patience and the faith of the saints.
11. Then I saw another beast coming up out of the earth, and it had two horns like a lamb and spoke like a dragon.
12. And it exercises all the authority of the first beast in its presence, and causes the earth and those who dwell in it to worship the first beast, whose mortal injury was healed.
13. It also performs great signs, so as to even make fire come down from heaven to earth in the sight of men,
14. and to lead astray those who dwell on the earth, because of the signs which it was granted to do in the presence of the beast, telling those dwelling upon the earth to make an image of the beast that was injured by the sword and lived.
15. It was also granted it to give breath to the image of the beast, that the image of the beast might speak and cause whoever does not worship the image of the beast to be killed.
16. And it causes all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive from it a mark on their right hand and on their foreheads,
17. so that no one can buy or sell if he does not have the mark or the name of the beast, or the number of its name.
18. Here is wisdom: let him who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man, and its number is 666.
THE SPIRITUAL MEANING
The Contents of the Whole Chapter
The dragon continues to be the subject in this chapter, which describes the doctrine and faith meant by the dragon. The character of that doctrine and faith among the laity, and then its character among the clergy. The beast rising up out of the sea describes the doctrine and faith among the laity (verses 1-10), and the beast coming up out of the earth the doctrine and faith among the clergy (verses 11-17).
Lastly it describes the clergy's falsification of the Word's truth (verse 18).
The Contents of the Individual Verses:
| Verse Contents | Spiritual Meaning |
|---|---|
| 1. And I saw a beast rising up out of the sea, | The laity in the Protestant Reformed churches who are caught up in the doctrine and faith of the dragon regarding God and salvation. |
| having seven heads | The irrationality resulting from their absolute falsities. |
| and ten horns, | Their great power. |
| and on its horns ten jewels, 2 | Their power to falsify many of the Word's truths. |
| and on its heads a blasphemous name. | Their denial of the Lord's Divine humanity and affirmation of their church's doctrine, drawn not from the Word but from their own intelligence. |
| 2. Now the beast which I saw was like a leopard, | Their heresy destructive of the church, being founded on the Word's truths falsified, |
| whose feet were like those of a bear, | full of misconceptions taken from the literal sense of the Word, read but not understood. |
| and its mouth like the mouth of a lion. | Their reasonings based on falsities as though on truths. |
| And the dragon gave it its power, its throne, and great authority. | This heresy prevails and reigns as a result of its acceptance by the laity. |
| 3. And I saw one of its heads appearing as though fatally wounded, | Their doctrine of faith alone does not accord with the Word, in which works are so often commanded. |
| and its mortal injury was healed. | A remedy for this explained. |
| And all the earth went marveling after the beast. | That doctrine and faith then accepted with joy. |
| 4. Then they worshiped the dragon which gave authority to the beast; | Their acknowledgment that the doctrine is such as declared by the leaders of the church and its teachers, who have caused the doctrine to prevail as a result of its acceptance by the general populace. |
| and they worshiped the beast, | An acknowledgment by the general populace that the doctrine is a sacred truth. |
| saying, "Who is like the beast? Who can fight against it?" | The preeminence of that doctrine because no one can dispute it. |
| 5. And it was given a mouth speaking great and blasphemous things, | It teaches evils and falsities. |
| and it was given authority to do so for forty-two months. | The scope to teach and practice the evils and falsities accompanying that doctrine even to the end of that church, until the beginning of a new one. |
| 6. Then it opened its mouth in blasphemies against God and His name, | Their assertions, which are scandalous, against the Divine itself and the Lord's Divine humanity, and at the same time against everything that the church has from the Word by which the Lord is worshiped. |
| and against His tabernacle, and those who dwell in heaven. | Scandalous assertions against the Lord's celestial church and against heaven. |
| 7. It was granted it to make war with the saints and overcome them. | They attacked the Word's Divine truths and overturned them. |
| And it was given authority over every tribe, tongue, and nation. | Their consequent dominion over everything connected with the church, over everything pertaining to its doctrine and over everything pertaining to its life. |
| 8. All who dwell on the earth will worship it, all whose names have not been written in the Book of Life of the Lamb | They all acknowledged that heresy as a sacred tenet of the church, all but those who believed in the Lord. |
| slain from the foundation of the world. | The Lord's Divine humanity unacknowledged from the inception of the church. |
| 9. If anyone has an ear, let him hear. | Let people who wish to be wise pay attention to this. |
| 10. Anyone who leads into captivity shall go into captivity; | Someone who uses that heresy to draw others away from believing rightly and living rightly is drawn by his own falsities and evils into hell. |
| anyone who kills with the sword must be killed with the sword. | Someone who uses falsities to destroy another's soul is destroyed by falsities and perishes. |
| Here is the patience and the faith of the saints. | Through the temptations or trials occasioned by these falsities a person of the Lord's New Church is examined to discover his character in respect to his life and faith. |
| 11. Then I saw another beast coming up out of the earth, | The clergy who are caught up in the dragon's doctrine and faith regarding God and salvation. |
| and it had two horns like a lamb and spoke like a dragon. | They quote the Word in speaking, teaching and writing as though it were the Lord's Divine truth, and yet it is truth falsified. |
| 12. And it exercises all the authority of the first beast in its presence, | They have defended the dogmas, and the dogmas prevail in consequence of it. |
| and causes the earth and those who dwell in it to worship the first beast, whose mortal injury was healed. | By supporting arguments they have established that what the general populace has accepted be acknowledged as a sacred tenet of the church. |
| 13. It also performs great signs, | Testifications that their teachings are true, even though they are false. |
| so as to even make fire come down from heaven to earth in the sight of men, | Assertions that their falsities are true. |
| 14. and to lead astray those who dwell on the earth, because of the signs which it was granted to do in the presence of the beast, | Through their testifications and assertions they lead people in the church into errors. |
| telling those dwelling upon the earth to make an image of the beast that was injured by the sword and lived. | They induce people in the church to accept as doctrine that faith is the only means of salvation, for the reason stated. |
| 15. It was also granted it to give breath to the image of the beast, that the image of the beast might speak | They were permitted to use the Word to defend the doctrine, so as to cause the doctrine to be seemingly animated by it. |
| and cause whoever does not worship the image of the beast to be killed. | They pronounce damnation on people who do not acknowledge their doctrine of faith as a sacred doctrine of the church. |
| 16. And it causes all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, | All the people in Protestant Reformed church, of whatever condition, degree of education, or degree of intelligence. |
| to receive from it a mark on their right hand and on their foreheads, | No one is acknowledged as a Protestant Reformed Christian but one who accepts that doctrine in faith and love. |
| 17. so that no one can buy or sell if he does not have the mark or the name of the beast, or the number of its name. | No one allowed to teach from the Word but one who acknowledges that doctrine and swears to a belief in it and love for it, and to such as is in conformity with it. |
| 18. Here is wisdom: | From what we have said and explained in this chapter, it is the part of a wise person to see and understand the nature of the doctrine and faith among the clergy regarding God and salvation. |
| let him who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, | One who is enlightened by the Lord can discern the character of the arguments the clergy use from the Word in defense of that doctrine and faith. |
| for it is the number of a man, | The character of the Word and so of the church. |
| and its number is 666. | Their character being this, that by them all the Word's truth has been falsified. |
THE EXPOSITION
And I saw a beast rising up out of the sea. This symbolizes the laity in the Protestant Reformed churches who are caught up in the doctrine and faith of the dragon regarding God and salvation.
The nature and character of the faith of the dragon may be seen in no. 537. The same faith continues to be the subject in this chapter, and the beast here that John saw rising up out of the sea means that faith among the laity, whereas the beast from the earth, described in verse 11, means that faith among the clergy.
That the dragon continues to be the subject here is apparent from the following statements in this chapter: that the dragon gave to the beast rising up out of the sea its power, its throne, and great authority (verse 2); that they worshiped the dragon which gave authority to the beast (verse 4); and, concerning the beast coming up out of the earth, that it spoke like a dragon (verse 11); and that it exercised all the authority of the first beast in the presence of the dragon (verse 12).
The laity are the people meant by the beast from the sea, and the clergy those meant by the beast from the earth, because the sea symbolizes the outer aspect of the church, and the land its inner aspect (no. 398 and elsewhere); and the laity are concerned with the external elements of the church's doctrine, while the clergy are concerned with its internal elements. That is why the beast from the earth is later called a false prophet. 3
That they are people in the Protestant Reformed churches is because the Protestant Reformed are the subject to the end of chapter 16, while Roman Catholics are the subject in chapters 17, 18. Then the subject after that is the Last Judgment and finally the New Church.
[2] These people were seen as beasts because the dragon is a beast, and because a beast in the Word symbolizes a person in respect to his affections - harmless and useful beasts a person in respect to good affections, and harmful and useless ones a person in respect to evil affections. People of the church are in general called sheep, therefore, and a company of them a flock, and one who teaches is called a shepherd.
That is also why the Word in respect to its power, affection, understanding and wisdom is described above in chapter four by four living creatures - a lion, a calf, an eagle and a human being - and an understanding of the Word by horses in chapter six.
The reason is that in the spiritual world a person's affections look at a distance like animals, as we have often said before; and regarded in themselves, animals are no more than embodiments of natural affections, while people are embodiments not only of natural affections, but also at the same time of spiritual affections.
[3] That animals mean people in respect to their affections can be seen from the following passages:
You... will cause to fall a kindly rain. You will confirm Your inheritance... The beast, Your congregation, 4 shall dwell in it. (Psalms 68:9-10)
...every wild beast of the forest is Mine, the beasts on a thousand mountains. I know every bird of the mountains; the beast of My fields is with Me. (Psalms 50:10-11)
...Assyria was a cedar in Lebanon... ...its height was exalted... All the birds of the heavens made their nests in its boughs, and under its branches all the beasts of the field brought forth their young, and in its shade all great nations made their home. (Ezekiel 31:3-6, cf. 31:10, 31:13, Daniel 4:10-16)
In that day I will make a covenant for them with the beast of the field, and with the bird of the heavens... And I will betroth you to Me forever. (Hosea 2:18-19)
Rejoice and be glad! ...Do not be afraid, you beasts of My fields, for the habitations of the wilderness have become grassy meadows. (Joel 2:21-23)
In that day there shall be a great tumult... Judah... will fight against Jerusalem... And such also shall be the plague on the horse, the mule, the camel, and the donkey, and every beast... And it shall come to pass that the remnant... shall go up (to Jerusalem). (Zechariah 14:13-16)
Birds shall abominate him, and every beast of the earth shall disdain him. (Isaiah 18:6)
...you, son of man..., "Say to every winged bird and to every beast of the field, '...Gather together... to My sacrifice... on the mountains of Israel... (Thus) I will set My glory among the nations.'" (Ezekiel 39:17-21)
(Jehovah) gathers the outcasts of Israel... Every beast of My fields, come... (Isaiah 56:8-9)
(Jehovah) will destroy Assyria... There shall lie down in her midst every wild beast of the nation, both the desert owl and the screech owl in her pomegranates... (Zephaniah 2:13-14)
(The sheep) were scattered without a shepherd, and they became food for every wild beast of the field... (Ezekiel 34:5, cf. 34:8)
I will cast you out on the face of the field, and cause to dwell on you every bird of the heavens. And with you I will satiate the wild beasts of the whole earth. (Ezekiel 32:4; see also 5:17; 29:5; 33:27; 39:4, Jeremiah 15:3; 16:4; 19:7; 27:5-6)
An enemy reproaches Jehovah... Do not deliver the life of (the) turtledove to the beast! (Psalms 74:18-19)
"I saw in... vision... four... beasts coming up from the sea... The first was like a lion, and had eagle's wings... ...a second, like a bear... ...(a third) like a leopard... ...and a fourth..., dreadful... (Daniel 7:2-7)
...the Spirit drove (Jesus) out into the wilderness. And He was... with the beasts; and the angels ministered to Him. (Mark 1:12-13)
[4] He was not with beasts, but with devils, who are here meant by beasts.
So also in other places where beasts and wild beasts are mentioned, such as Isaiah 35:9; 43:20; Jeremiah 12:4, 8-10; Ezekiel 8:10; 34:23, 25, 28; 38:18-20; Hosea 4:2-3; 13:8; Exodus 23:28-30; Leviticus 26:6; Deuteronomy 7:22; 32:24. Beasts in these places symbolize people in respect to their affections.
[5] Man and beast mentioned together in the following passages symbolize a person in respect to his spiritual affection and in respect to his natural affection: Jeremiah 7:20; 21:6; 27:5; 31:27; 32:43; 33:10-12; 36:29; 50:3; Psalms 36:6; Numbers 18:15.
All the animals that were sacrificed symbolized good affections. So, too, animals that were eaten. And the converse animals that were not to be eaten (Leviticus 20:25-26).
Mga talababa:
1.,. and 2. The word translated as "jewels" here means diadems or crowns in the original Greek and Latin, but the writer's definitions of the term elsewhere make plain that he regularly and consistently interpreted it to mean jewels or gems.
3. Revelation 16:13; 19:20; 20:10
4. The beast, Your congregation, reflects the Latin translation of the Bible by Sebastian Schmidt, which includes the phrase translated as Your congregation in parentheses as an alternate reading. This is actually the preferred reading, but "the beast" accords with Roman Catholic tradition.
