429. Verse 4. And I heard the number of those sealed, signifies the quality of those who are in good who are separated from the evil. This is evident from the signification of "number," as being the quality of the thing treated of (of which presently); also from the signification of "those sealed," as being those who are in good, distinguished and separated from others (of which just above, n. 427. "Number" and "measure" are mentioned in many passages in the Word, and it is believed that these mean simply number and measure; but "number" and "measure" in the spiritual sense mean the quality of the thing treated of. The quality itself is determined by the numbers expressed, as here by the "hundred and forty-four thousand," and afterwards the "twelve thousand" out of every tribe. What is signified by these numbers will be told in the following article. Number signifies the quality of the thing treated of for the reason that the Word is spiritual, and therefore each and every thing that it contains is spiritual, and spiritual things are not numbered or measured, but still they fall into numbers and measures when they come down out of the spiritual world or out of heaven where the angels are into the natural world or upon the earth where men are; and likewise in the Word, when they come down out of its spiritual sense in which the angels are into the natural sense in which men are; the natural sense of the Word is the sense of its letter. This is why there are numbers in that sense, and why the numbers there signify things spiritual, or such as pertain to heaven and the church. That the spiritual things of heaven, such as the angels think and speak about, also fall into numbers, has often been shown to me. When they spoke with each other, what they said was determined into pure numbers, which were seen upon paper; and they afterwards said that this was what they had said determined into numbers, and that these numbers in series contained everything they had said; I was also taught what they signified and how they were to be understood; this will be spoken of frequently in what follows. (But respecting writings in pure numbers out of heaven, see in the work on Heaven and Hell 263; that all numbers in the Word signify the things of heaven and the church, see above, n. 203, 336[1-10])

292. And cast off their crowns before the throne, signifies humiliation, and then acknowledgment in heart that there is nothing of good from themselves, but that everything is from the Lord. This is evident from the signification of "crown," as being good and wisdom therefrom (See above, n. 272); also from the signification of "to cast off before the throne," that is to lay down there, as being to acknowledge from humiliation that this is not from oneself but from the Lord alone; for "to cast off" is to renounce from oneself, and "to lay down before the throne" is to acknowledge that it is from the Lord alone. The good here signified by "crowns" is the good of love and of charity; this good flows in from the Lord alone, and is received by the angels of heaven and by the men of the church in the truths that are from the Word. Truths from the Word with angels and men are in their memory; from it the Lord calls them out and conjoins them with good so far as the angel or man is in the spiritual affection of truth, and this affection he has when he lives according to the truths from the Word. Conjunction is effected in the interior or spiritual man, and from that in the exterior or natural man. This conjunction makes the church with man while he lives on the earth, and afterwards makes heaven with him; from which it is clear that without such conjunction no one can be saved; also that there is no conjunction of good and truth unless the man is living the life of love; to live the life of love is to do the Lord's commandments, for to love is to do, since what man loves that he wills and that he does, but what he does not love that he does not will and therefore does not do.