9954. 'And you shall anoint them' means a representative sign of the Lord in respect of the good of love. This is clear from the meaning of 'anointing' as consecrating to serve as a representative sign, dealt with in 9474. The reason why to serve as a representative sign of the Lord in respect of the good of love is meant, or what amounts to the same thing, to serve as a representative sign of the good of love that comes from the Lord, is that 'oil', which was used to carry out anointing, means the good of love, 886, 4582, 4638, 9780. It is of interest to know what is implied in all this, since anointing has remained in practice from ancient times down to the present day (monarchs are anointed), and anointing is held to be holy today in just the same way as it was in former times. It was among the ancients - in whose times every act of worship involved the use of representative signs, that is to say, of such things as served to represent realities of a more internal nature, which are those of faith and love derived from the Lord and offered back to Him, thus which are Divine - that the practice of anointing came in; it came in because 'the oil' that was used to carry out the anointing was a sign of the good of love. For the ancients knew that the good of love was the essential reality which gives life to everything constituting the Church and worship. That good is the Essential Being (Esse) of life; for the Divine flows in by way of the good of love with a person and composes his life - heavenly life when truths are received within good. From this it is evident what anointing represented, and that because of its representation objects which had been anointed were called holy and also held to be holy. Such objects served the Church to represent Divine and heavenly realities, and in the highest sense the Lord Himself, who is Good itself, thus to represent the good of love which comes from Him, and also the truth of faith, to the extent that this has life from the good of love. This now explains why in ancient times they anointed stones set up as pillars, and also weapons of war, such as shields; later on the altar and all its vessels, as well as the tent of meeting and everything in it; and in addition those who were to serve in the priestly office, and their garments, also prophets, and at length kings, who were therefore called Jehovah's Anointed. It also became a common practice to anoint oneself and others to bear witness to gladness of mind and goodwill.

[2] 1. They anointed stones set up as pillars

This is clear in the Book of Genesis,

In the morning Jacob rose up early, and took the stone which he had placed as his headrest, and placed it as a pillar and poured oil on the top of it. Genesis 28:18.

The reason why stones were anointed in this manner was that truths were meant by 'stones', and truths devoid of good do not have the life of heaven, that is, life from the Divine, within them. When therefore stones had been anointed with oil they represented truths oiled with good, and in the highest sense Divine Truth emanating from the Lord's Divine Good, and so represented the Lord Himself, who was consequently called The Stone of Israel, 6426.

Truths are meant by 'stones', see 643, 1298, 3720, 3769, 3771, 3773, 3789, 3798, 6426, 8941, 9476.

They are in like manner meant by 'pillars', 3727, 4580, 9388, 9389.

'Anointing pillars' means causing truths to be oiled with good, thus to be the truths of good, and so to exist as good, 3728, 4090, 4582.

The fact that stones set up as pillars were held to be holy is clear in the same chapter of Genesis, where it says,

Jacob called the name of that place Bethel, and said, If I come back in peace to my father's house, this stone which I have placed as a pillar will be God's house. Genesis 28:19, 21-22.

Bethel is [a name meaning] God's house, and God's house is the Church, also heaven, and in the highest sense it is the Lord Himself, 3720.

[3] 2. They anointed weapons of war, such as shields

This is clear in Isaiah,

Rise up, O princes, anoint the shield. Isaiah 21:5.

And in the second Book of Samuel,

The shield of heroes was defiled, the shield of Saul was not anointed with oil. 2 Samuel 1:21.

The reason why weapons of war were anointed was that they were a sign of truths engaged in conflict against falsities, truths oiled with good being what prevail over them, but not truths devoid of good. When weapons of war had been anointed therefore they represented truths emanating from good that comes from the Lord, thus truths which the Lord Himself, when present with people, employs to fight on their behalf against falsities arising from evil, that is, against the hells. Regarding 'weapons of war', that they mean truths engaged in conflict against falsities, see 1788, 2686. For in the Word 'war' means spiritual conflict, 1664, 2686, 8273, 8295, and 'enemies' the hells, in general evils and falsities, 2851, 8289, 9314.

[4] 3. They anointed the altar and all its vessels, also the tent of meeting and everything in it

This is clear in Moses,

Jehovah said to Moses, You shall anoint the altar and sanctify it. Exodus 29:36.

In the same author,

You shall make the holy anointing oil, ¹ with which you shall anoint the tent of meeting, and the ark of the Testimony, and the table and all its vessels, and the lampstand and all its vessels, and the altar of incense, and the altar of burnt offering and all its vessels, and the laver and its base. Thus you shall sanctify them, that they may be most holy. Everyone who touches them will make himself holy. Exodus 30:25-29.

In the same author,

You shall take the oil of anointing, and anoint the dwelling-place and all that is in it, and sanctify it and all its vessels, that it may be holy. You shall also anoint the altar of burnt offering and all its vessels, and make the altar holy, that the altar may be most holy; and you shall anoint the laver and its base, and sanctify it. Exodus 40:9-11.

In the same author,

Moses anointed the dwelling-place and everything that was in it. After this he sprinkled some of the oil over the altar and all its vessels, and the laver and its shaft, to sanctify them. Leviticus 8:10-12; Numbers 7:1.

[5] The reason why the altar had to be anointed, also the dwelling-place and everything there, was that they might represent the Divine and holy things of heaven and of the Church, consequently the holy things of worship. They could not have represented these things unless they had been consecrated to do so by something such as served to represent the good of love. For the Divine comes in through the good of love, and through this good is present in heaven and in the Church, and therefore also in worship. Without that good the Divine cannot come in or be present, only what composes the human self, and with that self hell, and with hell evil and falsity; for the human self is nothing else. From this it is evident why anointing was effected by the use of oil; for 'oil' in the representative sense is the good of love, see 886, 4582, 4638, 9780; the altar was the chief representative of the Lord, and consequently of worship springing from the good of love, 2777, 2811, 4489, 4541, 8935, 8940, 9388, 9389, 9714; and the dwelling-place with the ark in it was the chief representative of heaven in which the Lord was present, 9457, 9481, 9485, 9594, 9596, 9632, 9784. As regards the human self or proprium, that it consists of nothing but evil and falsity, thus nothing but hell, 210, 215, 694, 874-876, 987, 1047, 3812 (end), 5660, 8480, 8941, 8944; and in the measure that what composes the human self is removed, the Lord can be present, 1023, 1044, 4007 (end).

[6] 4. They anointed those who were to serve in the priestly office, and their garments

This is clear in Moses,

Take the oil of anointing, and you shall pour it over Aaron's head, and you shall anoint him. Exodus 29:7; 30:30.

In the same author,

Clothe Aaron with the holy garments, ² and you shall anoint him and make him holy, that he may serve Me in the priestly office. And you shall anoint his sons, as you anointed the father; and it shall be, that their anointing may make them an everlasting priesthood throughout their generations. ³ Exodus 40:13-15.

In the same author,

Moses poured some of the oil over Aaron's head, and anointed him, to make him holy. Then he took some of the oil of anointing and some of the blood which was on the altar, and sprinkled it over Aaron, over his garments, over his sons, and over the garments of his sons with him, and sanctified Aaron, his garments, his sons also, and the garments of his sons with him. Leviticus 8:12, 30.

[7] The reason why Aaron had to be anointed, and his sons had to be anointed, also their actual garments, was that they might represent the Lord in respect of Divine Good, and in respect of Divine Truth emanating from that Good, Aaron representing the Lord in respect of that Divine Good and his sons in respect of the emanating Divine Truth, and in general that the priesthood might represent the Lord in respect of all the work of salvation. They had to be anointed in their garments, Exodus 29:29, because Aaron's garments represented the Lord's spiritual kingdom lying adjacent to His celestial kingdom. The celestial kingdom is where the good of love to the Lord derived from the Lord reigns, so that the flow of the Divine into the spiritual kingdom is accomplished by way of the good of love. This was why being consecrated to serve as a representative sign was accomplished by the use of oil, which in the spiritual sense is the good of love.

Aaron represented the Lord in respect of Divine Good, see 9806.

His sons represented the Lord in respect of Divine Truth emanating from Divine Good, 9807.

The priestly office in general represented the Lord in respect of all the work of salvation, 9809.

Aaron's garments represented the Lord's spiritual kingdom lying adjacent to His celestial kingdom, 9814.

His sons' garments represented the things that emanate from there, 9946, 9950.

The good of love to the Lord reigns in the celestial kingdom, see the places referred to in 9277.

[8] Since being consecrated to serve as a representative sign was accomplished by means of anointing, and since Aaron and his sons represented the Lord and what comes from Him, the holy things of the children of Israel - that is, the gifts which they presented to Jehovah, called 'heave offerings' - were given to Aaron and his sons; and they are spoken of as 'the anointing' and also as 'for the anointing', ⁴ meaning the representation or for the representation of the Lord, and what comes from Him, as is clear from the following in Moses,

The breast of the wave offering, and the flank of the heave offering I have received from the children of Israel, from the sacrifices of peace offerings; I have given them to Aaron and his sons. This is the anointing of Aaron and the anointing of his sons from the fire offerings to Jehovah, which I decreed to give them, on the day they were anointed, ⁵ from among the children of Israel. Leviticus 7:34-36.

And elsewhere in the same author,

Jehovah spoke to Aaron, Behold, I have given you charge of My heave offerings, even all the holy things of the children of Israel; I have given them to you for the anointing, and to your sons, as a statute forever. Every offering of theirs, even every minchah of theirs, even every sacrifice of sin offering and guilt offering, every wave offering of the children of Israel, all the best ⁶ of pure oil, and all the best ⁶ of the new wine and the grain, their firstfruits which they will give to Jehovah I have given to you. Also every devoted thing in Israel, everything opening the womb, thus every heave offering of holy things [shall be yours]. You shall not have an inheritance in their land, nor shall any portion be yours in their midst. I am your portion and your inheritance in the midst of the children of Israel. Numbers 18:8-20.

From these quotations it is evident that 'the anointing' means the representation, for it was through being anointed that they were consecrated to serve as a representative sign, a sign which meant that everything in heaven and the Church is made holy through the good of love which comes from the Lord, and that the good of love is the Lord as He is present with them. This explains why it says that Jehovah is his ⁷ 'portion and inheritance'.

[9] 5. They also anointed prophets

This is clear in the first Book of Kings,

Jehovah said to Elijah, Anoint Hazael as king over the Syrians, and anoint Jehu as king over Israel, and anoint Elisha as prophet in place of you. 1 Kings 19:15-16.

And in Isaiah,

The Spirit of the Lord Jehovih is upon Me, therefore Jehovah has anointed Me to bring good tidings to the poor. He has sent Me to bind up the broken in heart, to preach liberty to the captives. Isaiah 61:1.

The reason why prophets were anointed was that prophets represented the Lord in respect of teachings that present Divine Truth, thus in respect of the Word since this consists of teachings that present Divine Truth. Regarding prophets, that they represented the Word, see 3652, 7269, Elijah and Elisha in particular, 2762, 5247 (end), 9372. And - as the Lord Himself teaches in Luke 4:18-21 - the Lord in respect of His Divine Human is the One who is being represented, and so is the One who 'He whom Jehovah has anointed' is used to mean.

[10] 6. Afterwards they anointed kings, and these were called Jehovah's Anointed

This is clear from a large number of places in the Word, such as 1 Samuel 10:1; 15:1, 17; 16:3, 6, 12; 24:6, 10; 26:9, 11, 16, 23; 2 Samuel 1:16; 2:4, 7; 5:3; 19:21; 1 Kings 1:34, 45; 19:15-16; 2 Kings 9:3; 11:12; 23:30; Lamentations 4:20; Habakkuk 3:13; Psalms 2:2, 6; 20:6; 28:8; 45:7; 84:9; 89:20, 38, 51; 132:17; and elsewhere. The reason why they anointed kings was in order that they might represent the Lord in respect of judgement based on Divine Truth. Consequently truths that are God's are meant in the Word by 'kings', see 1672, 2015, 2069, 3009, 3670, 4575, 4581, 4966, 5044, 5068, 6148.

[11] Kings were called Jehovah's Anointed, and therefore it was utterly forbidden to do them harm, because 'Jehovah's Anointed' is used to mean the Lord's Divine Human, though in the sense of the letter the title is applied to a king who had been anointed with oil. While He was in the world the Lord was Divine Truth itself as to His Humanity, and Divine Good itself as to that Essential Being (Esse) constituting the life within Him, the equivalent of which in people is called the soul from the father; for He was conceived from Jehovah. In the Word Jehovah is the Divine Good of Divine Love, and that Good is the Essential Being (Esse) of every human life. Consequently the Lord alone was 'Jehovah's Anointed' in all that He was and in all that He did (ipsa essentia et ipso actu); for Divine Good was within Him, and Divine Truth emanating from that Good was within His Humanity while He was in the world, see the places referred to in 9194, 9315(end). Earthly kings were not Jehovah's Anointed, but served to represent the Lord, who alone was Jehovah's Anointed; and this was why, because they had been anointed, it was utterly forbidden to do harm to earthly kings. But the anointing of earthly kings was accomplished by the use of oil, whereas the anointing of the Lord in respect of His Divine Human was accomplished by means of the actual Divine Good of Divine Love which oil represented. This is why He was called Messiah and Christ, Messiah meaning the Anointed in Hebrew, and Christ meaning the like in Greek, John 1:41; 4:25.

[12] From all this it becomes clear that where the term 'Jehovah's Anointed' is used in the Word the Lord is meant, as in Isaiah,

The Spirit of the Lord Jehovih is upon Me, therefore Jehovah has anointed Me to bring good tidings to the poor. He has sent Me to bind up the broken in heart, to preach liberty to the captives. Isaiah 61:1.

The truth that the Lord in respect of His Divine Human is the One whom Jehovah had anointed is clear in Luke, where the Lord declares it explicitly in the following words,

The book of the prophet Isaiah was handed to Jesus, and He unrolled the book, and found the place where it was written, The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He has anointed Me. He has sent Me to bring good tidings to the poor, to heal the crushed at heart, ⁸ to preach good tidings of forgiveness to the bound, and of sight to the blind, to release the wounded with forgiveness, to preach the acceptable year of the Lord. After this He rolled up the book, gave it to the minister, and sat down. The eyes however of all who were in the synagogue were fixed on Him. He began to say to them, Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your ears. Luke 4:17-21.

[13] In Daniel,

Know therefore and perceive that from the going forth of the Word to restore and to build Jerusalem until the Messiah, the Prince, there will be seven weeks. Daniel 9:25.

'Building Jerusalem' means establishing the Church, 'Jerusalem' being the Church, 3654. 'The Messiah, the Prince', or the Anointed One, is the Lord in respect of the Divine Human. In the same prophet,

Seventy weeks have been decreed to seal up vision and prophet, and to anoint the Holy of Holies. Daniel 9:24.

'Sealing up vision and prophet' means drawing to a close those things that have been declared in the Word regarding the Lord and fulfilling them. 'Anointing the Holy of Holies' refers to the Lord's Divine Human in which the Divine Good of Divine Love, or Jehovah, was present.

[14] 'Jehovah's Anointed' is again used to mean the Lord in the following places: In David,

The kings of the earth have set themselves, and the masters of the earth have taken counsel together, against Jehovah and against His Anointed. I have anointed My king over Zion, the mountain of My holiness. Psalms 2:2, 6.

'The kings of the earth' are falsities, and 'the masters' evils, that come from the hells, against which the Lord fought while He was in the world, and which He overcame and subdued. 'Jehovah's Anointed' is the Lord in respect of His Divine Human, for from this Human He fought them. 'Zion, the mountain of holiness' over which, it says, the Anointed will be king, is the celestial kingdom, which is governed by the good of love. This kingdom is the inmost part of heaven and the inmost of the Church.

[15] In the same author,

I have found My servant David; with the oil of holiness I have anointed him. Psalms 89:20.

By 'David' here the Lord is meant, as also elsewhere, see 1888. 'The oil of holiness' with which Jehovah anointed Him is the Divine Good of Divine Love, 886, 4582, 4638. The fact that the Lord is the One who is meant in this verse by 'David' is evident from other verses before and after it, for among much else they say,

You spoke in a vision regarding Your Holy One, I will set His hand in the sea, and His right hand in the rivers. He will cry to Me, You are My Father. I will also make Him the Firstborn, supreme over the kings of the earth. I will establish His seed forever, and His throne as the days of the heavens. Psalms 89:19, 25-29.

[16] The like occurs elsewhere in the same author,

In Zion I will make the horn of David to spring forth, I will make ready a lamp for My Anointed; His enemies I will clothe with shame, and upon Himself His crown will flourish. Psalms 132:17-18.

Here also the Lord is meant by 'David', as is evident from previous verses in the Psalm which say,

Behold, we heard of Him in Ephrathah, we found Him in the fields of the wood. We will enter His dwelling-places, we will bow down at His footstool. Your priests will be clothed with righteousness, and Your holy ones will shout for joy. For Your servant David's sake do not turn away the face of Your Anointed. Psalms 132:6-10.

From these verses it becomes clear that the Lord in respect of His Divine Human is meant by 'David, Jehovah's Anointed'.

[17] In Jeremiah,

They pursued us over the mountains, they lay in wait for us in the wilderness. The Breath ⁸ of our nostrils, Jehovah's Anointed, was caught in their pits, of whom we had said, In His shadow we shall live among the nations. Lamentations 4:19-20.

Here also 'Jehovah's Anointed' is used to mean the Lord, for the subject is the assault made on Divine Truth by falsities and evils, meant by their pursuing over the mountains and lying in wait in the wilderness. 'The Breath of nostrils' is real heavenly life which comes from the Lord, 9818.

[18] From all this it may now be recognized why it was utterly forbidden to do harm to Jehovah's Anointed, as is again evident from the Word, for example in the first Book of Samuel,

David said, Jehovah forbid me that I should do this thing to my master, Jehovah's Anointed, and raise ¹⁰ my hand against him, since he is Jehovah's Anointed. 1 Samuel 24:6, 10.

And in another place,

David said to Abishai, Do not destroy him, for who can raise ¹¹ a hand against Jehovah's Anointed and be innocent? 1 Samuel 26:9.

In the second Book of Samuel,

David said to him who said he had killed Saul, Your blood is on your own head, because you have said, I have killed Jehovah's Anointed. 2 Samuel 1:16.

And in another place,

Abishai said, Shall not Shimei be killed on account of this, that he cursed Jehovah's Anointed? 2 Samuel 19:21.

Shimei was therefore put to death by Solomon's command, see 1 Kings 2:36-end.

[19] 7. It became a common practice to anoint oneself and others, to bear witness to gladness of mind and goodwill

This is clear in the following places: In Daniel,

I, Daniel, was mourning for three weeks. I did not eat pleasant bread, and flesh and wine did not come to my mouth, and I did not anoint myself at all, until the three whole weeks were completed. Daniel 10:2-3.

In Matthew,

When you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, so that you do not appear to people to be fasting, but to your Father in secret. Matthew 6:17-18.

'Fasting' means being in mourning. In Amos,

... who drink from bowls of wine, and anoint themselves with the best of oils, but feel no grief over the ruin of Joseph. Amos 6:6.

In Ezekiel,

I washed you with water, and washed away the blood from upon you, ¹² and anointed you with oil. Ezekiel 16:9.

This refers to Jerusalem, by which the Church is meant. In Micah,

You will tread olives but not anoint yourself with oil. Micah 6:15.

In Moses,

You will have olive trees within all your borders, but you will not anoint yourself with oil, because your olive will be shaken off. Deuteronomy 28:40.

In Isaiah,

To give them beauty ¹³ for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning. Isaiah 61:3.

In David,

Your God has anointed you with the oil of gladness more than your companions. Psalms 45:7.

In the same author,

You spread a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You make my head fat with oil. Psalms 23:5.

In the same author,

You will exalt my horn like that of a unicorn; I will grow old with green oil. ¹⁴ Psalms 92:10.

In the same author,

Wine gladdens the human heart, to cheer the face with oil. Psalms 104:15.

In Mark,

The disciples went out and anointed many sick people with oil, and healed them. Mark 6:13.

In Luke,

Jesus said to Simon, I entered your house, and you did not anoint My head with oil; but this woman has anointed My feet with ointment. Luke 7:44, 46.

[20] From all this it is evident that it became the practice to anoint themselves and others with oil. They did so not with 'the holy oil' with which priests, kings, the altar, and the tabernacle were anointed, but with ordinary oil because this oil was a sign of the gladness and bliss that belong to the good of love. 'The holy oil' however was a sign of Divine Good, about which it says, It shall not be poured on human flesh, and as to the composition of it, you shall not make any other like it; it shall be holy to you. The man who prepares any other like it, or who puts any of it on a foreigner, shall be cut off from his people. Exodus 30:32-33, 38.

Примітки:

6148. 'Only the ground of the priests he did not buy' means that the internal obtained for itself from the natural every capacity to receive good, because every such capacity came from itself. This is clear from the representation of 'Joseph', about whom these things are said, as the internal, dealt with already; from the meaning of 'the ground' as the receptacle of truth, dealt with above in 6135-6137, at this point the capacity to receive good, for the capacity of something is its inherent ability to receive, which causes a receptacle to be a receptacle (that capacity comes from good, that is, from the Lord through good, for if the good of love did not flow in from the Lord no one would ever have the capacity to receive truth or good. That inflow of the good of love from the Lord causes everything present inwardly in a person to be of a receptive nature. The truth that the capacity to receive good comes from the natural is meant by the fact that the ground lay in Egypt, since 'Egypt' means the natural in respect of factual knowledge, 6142); from the meaning of 'the priests' as good, dealt with below; and from the meaning of 'not buying' as not taking those capacities to itself - not in the way that it made truths and forms of the good of truth, together with their receptacles, its own, which came about through periods of desolation and sustainment - for the reason that those capacities came from itself, from the internal. All these meanings serve to show that 'only the ground of the priests he did not buy' means that the internal obtained for itself from the natural every capacity to receive good, because every such capacity came from itself.

[2] The implications of all this are that a person's capacities to receive truth and good come directly from the Lord; he obtains them without any help at all from himself. A person's capacity to receive goodness and truth is maintained in him unceasingly; and from that capacity he possesses understanding and will. But a person does not receive them if he turns to evil. The capacity to receive does, it is true, remain, but its access to thought and sensitivity is blocked, on account of which his capacity to see what is true and have a sensitive awareness of what is good perishes. And it perishes to the extent that he turns to evil and in faith and life becomes firmly settled in it. The fact that a person contributes nothing whatever to his capacity to receive truth and good is well known from the Church's teaching that nothing at all of the truth of faith and nothing at all of the good of charity comes from man but from the Lord. Yet a person can destroy that capacity residing with him. From all this one may now see how one should understand the idea that the internal obtained for itself from the natural every capacity to receive good, because every such capacity came from itself. The expression 'from the natural' is used because the inflow of good from the Lord is effected by the Lord through the internal into the natural; and once the capacity to receive has been obtained from there, the inflow takes place, for now there is reception, see 5828.

[3] So far as the meaning of 'the priests' as forms of good is concerned, it should be recognized that there are two realities which go forth from the Lord - goodness and truth. Divine Good was represented by priests, and Divine Truth by kings; and this is why 'the priests' means forms of good and 'the kings' truths. Regarding the attribution of Priesthood and Kingship to the Lord, see 1728, 2015 (end), 3670. In the representative Ancient Church those two offices of priest and king existed jointly in one personage, the reason for this being that goodness and truth which go forth from the Lord are united; and they are also joined together in heaven among the angels.

[4] A personage in the Ancient Church in whom the two offices existed joined together was called Melchizedek, a name meaning king of righteousness. This may be seen from the following statement about Melchizedek who came to Abraham, ¹

Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine; and he was a priest to God Most High. And he blessed Abraham. Genesis 14:18-19.

His representation of the Lord in both offices is evident from the fact that he was a king and at the same time a priest, and from the fact that he was allowed to bless Abraham and offer him bread and wine, which even at that time were the symbols of the good of love and the truth of faith. His representation of the Lord in both offices is further evident in David,

Jehovah has sworn and will not repent, You are a priest for ever after the manner of Melchizedek. Psalms 110:4.

These words were spoken in reference to the Lord. 'After the manner of Melchizedek' means that He is both King and Priest, that is, in the highest sense that Divine Good and Divine Truth go forth together from Him.

[5] Because a representative Church was going to be established also among the descendants of Jacob, they too were to have a single personage to represent jointly Divine Good and Divine Truth, which go forth from the Lord united. But on account of the wars and the idolatry of that people the two were in fact divided right from the start; those who ruled over the attended to sacred duties were referred to as the priests, who belonged to the seed of Aaron and were the Levites. At a later time the two functions were joined together in a single person, as they were in Eli and Samuel. Yet because the nature of the people was such that the representative Church could not be established among them, only a representative of the Church, on account of the practice of idolatry prevalent among them, the two functions were allowed to be separated. The Lord was then represented in respect of Divine Truth by kings and in respect of Divine Good by priests. The separation took place because the people desired it, not because the Lord took any pleasure in it, as is clear from the Word of Jehovah to Samuel,

Obey the voice of the people in all that they have said to you, for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected Me, that I should not reign over them; and show them the right of the king. 1 Samuel 8:7-end; 12:19-20.

[6] The reason why the two functions were not meant to be separated was that Divine Truth separated from Divine Good condemns all people, whereas Divine Truth united to Divine Good saves them. Judged by Divine Truth a person is condemned to hell, but Divine Good brings him out of there and raises him into heaven. Salvation comes of mercy and so sprigs from Divine Good; but damnation exists when a person rejects mercy and so casts Divine Good away from himself, as a consequence of which he is left to be judged by Truth. As regards 'kings' representing Divine Truth, see 1672, 1728, 2015, 2069, 3009, 3670, 4575, 4581, 4966, 5044, 5068.

[7] 'The priests' represented the Lord in respect of Divine Good, and for that reason good is meant by them. This becomes clear from the internal sense of all that was prescribed regarding the priesthood when Aaron was chosen, and after him the Levites, such as these prescriptions:

The High Priest alone should enter the Holy of holies and minister there. [Leviticus 16.]

Things holy to Jehovah were to be for the priest. Leviticus 23:20; 27:21.

They were not to have any portion or inheritance in the land, but Jehovah would be their portion and inheritance. Numbers 18:20; Deuteronomy 10:9; 18:1.

The Levites were given to Jehovah instead of the firstborn, and they were given by Jehovah to Aaron. Numbers 3:9, 12-13, Numbers 3:40-end; 8:16-19.

The high priest and the Levites were to be in the middle of the camp when they pitched it and when they were journeying. Numbers 1:50-54; 2:17; 3:23-38; 4:1-end.

No one from the seed of Aaron who had a blemish in himself was to approach to offer burnt offerings or sacrifices. Leviticus 21:17-20.

And there are many other prescriptions besides these, such as those in Leviticus 21:9-13, and elsewhere.

[8] In the highest sense all these prescriptions relating to the priests represented the Lord's Divine Good and therefore in the relative sense the good of love and charity. Aaron's vestments however, called 'vestments of holiness', represented Divine Truth from Divine Good. These matters will in the Lord's Divine mercy be dealt with in the explanations of what appears in Exodus.

[9] Since truth is meant by 'kings' and good by 'priests', 'kings and priests' are mentioned together many times in the Word, as in John, Jesus Christ has made us kings and priests to His God and Father. Revelation 1:6; 5:10.

By virtue of the truth of faith we are said to have been made 'kings', and by virtue of the good of charity to have been made 'priests', so that the truth and good residing with those who abide in the Lord have been joined together, in the way they are in heaven, as stated above. This is what is meant by 'being made kings and priests'.

[10] In Jeremiah,

It will happen on that day, that the heart of the king and of the princes will perish, and the priests will be dumbfounded and the prophets left wondering. Jeremiah 4:9.

In the same prophet,

The house of Israel is ashamed, they, their kings, their princes, and their priests, and their prophets. Jeremiah 2:26.

In the same prophet,

The kings of Judah, the princes, the priests, and the prophets, and the inhabitants of Jerusalem. Jeremiah 8:1.

In these places 'kings stands for truths, 'princes' for first and foremost truths, 1482, 1089, 5044, 'priests' for forms of good, and 'prophets' for those who teach, 2534.

[11] Quite apart from this it should be recognized that Joseph did not buy the ground of the priests. The fact that this was representative of the consideration that the whole of a person's capacity to receive truth and good comes from the Lord is evident from a similar law in Moses regarding the fields belonging to the Levites,

The field of the country surrounding the cities of the Levites shall not be sold, for it is their eternal possession. Leviticus 25:34.

The meaning here in the internal sense is that no one ought to lay any claim to the good of the Church, which is the good of love and charity, because that good is from the Lord alone.

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