Arcana Coelestia#7456
7456. 'Will they not stone us?' means that they would thereby demolish the truths of faith that related to worship. This is clear from the meaning of 'stoning' as demolishing and wiping out falsities, but in the contrary sense, when done by the evil, as demolishing and wiping out the truths of faith. If the vile, foul, and hellish things referred to above in 7454 were to enter in among people whose worship is holy its holiness would be destroyed. The reason for this is that when a person's worship is holy he is withheld from such things, and people who are governed by good in faith and life are raised above the level of the senses on which such things reside. But when such objects do enter in the foul things present on the sensory level are stirred up - that is, the things which a person is withheld from when his worship is holy, as has been stated, and which people governed by good are raised above - and the holiness of the worship is destroyed. Experience too demonstrates this plainly, for if, when a person offers worship to God, some foul object appears and is not removed, worship ceases and is destroyed. This is what is meant when it is said that if those steeped in falsities arising from evils were nearby they would demolish the truths of faith that relate to worship.
[2] As for the meaning of 'stoning', it should be recognized that the Jews and Israelites, among whom a representative of the Church had been established, had two kinds of capital punishment, one being stoning, the other hanging on wood. Stoning was used if anyone sought to destroy the truths relating to worship which were commanded, while hanging was used if anyone sought to destroy goodness of life. The reason why those who sought to destroy truths relating to worship were stoned was that a stone was a sign of truth and in the contrary sense of falsity, 643, 1298, 3720, 6426. And the reason why those who sought to destroy goodness of life were hanged on wood was that wood was a sign of good and in the contrary sense of the evil belonging to evil desires, 643, 2784, 2812, 3720.
[3] The fact that punishment by stoning would be used if anyone should destroy truths relating to worship is evident from the following places: In Ezekiel,
Finally they will cause an assembly to come up upon you, and they will stone you with stones and cut you up with their swords. Ezekiel 16:40.
This refers to the perverse Jerusalem and the destruction of the truth of faith by means of falsities. This is why it says that 'they will stone with stones' and also 'cut up with swords', for 'a sword' means truth engaged in conflict with falsity and destroying it, and in the contrary sense falsity engaged in conflict with truth and destroying it, 2799, 4499, 6353, 7102.
[4] A similar statement occurs elsewhere in the same prophet,
Cause an assembly to come up against them, in order that the assembly may stone them with stones and tear them apart with their swords. Ezekiel 23:46-47.
This refers to Jerusalem and Samaria, by which the Church is meant. Jerusalem means the celestial-spiritual Church, Samaria the spiritual Church, and this chapter describes how forms of the good and truth of faith were destroyed in them.
[5] In Moses,
If an ox strikes a man or woman with its horn so that the person dies, the ox shall surely be stoned. Exodus 21:28.
'Striking a man or woman with the horn' means falsity engaged in conflict with truth and goodness and destroying them. For 'the horn' is falsity engaged in conflict, and also the power of falsity, 2832, while 'man and woman' in the Word means truth and goodness; and this makes plain what the internal sense of that command is and why it was that the ox had to be stoned.
[6] In the same author,
Anyone blaspheming the name of Jehovah shall surely be killed; all the congregation shall certainly stone him. Leviticus 24:16.
'Blaspheming the name of Jehovah' means using malevolent falsities to do violence to truths and forms of good that relate to worship. 'The name of Jehovah' means everything in one embrace that is used to worship Jehovah, see 2724, 3006, thus every aspect of faith and charity, 6674. This also explains why the Israelite woman s son who blasphemed the name of Jehovah was led outside the camp and stoned, Leviticus 24:11, 14, 23. Furthermore it had been commanded that those who served other gods should be stoned, Deuteronomy 17:3, 5, and also those who enticed anyone to serve other gods, Deuteronomy 13:6-10. 'Serving other gods' means profane worship by means of which true worship is destroyed.
[7] If no evidence of virginity were found with a young woman when she married she was to be stoned because she had played the fool in Israel by committing whoredom in her father's house, Deuteronomy 22:20-21. The reason for this was that 'whoredom' meant the falsification of truth, thus the destruction of it, 2466, 4865. If a man lay in the city with a young woman, a virgin, who was betrothed to a man, both were to be stoned, Deuteronomy 22:23-24, and for the same reason, namely whoredom; for spiritual whoredom is the falsification of truth. In Luke 20:5-6, [one reads about the chief priests, scribes, and elders] coming to the conclusion among themselves that if they said John's baptism was from heaven [the Lord] would say, 'Why did you not believe him?' But if they said 'From men', all the people would stone them. Here also 'stoning' is spoken of because of opposition to the truth.
The reason why the Jews sought to stone Jesus because He said, Before Abraham was, I am, John 8:58-59, was that that nation believed this to be false. In a similar way they sought to stone Jesus because He said He and His Father were one, John 10:30-33; for they thought, as these verses also state, that this was blasphemy.
From all this one may now see what stoning was and why it was commanded, and also that punishment by stoning, administered since ancient times as its use in Egypt proves, was derived from the representatives of the Ancient Church.
John第9章
1
As he passed by, he saw a man blind from birth.
2
His disciples asked him, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?"
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Jesus answered, "Neither did this man sin, nor his parents; but, that the works of God might be revealed in him.
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I must work the works of him who sent me, while it is day. The night is coming, when no one can work.
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While I am in the world, I am the light of the world."
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When he had said this, he spat on the ground, made mud with the saliva, anointed the blind man's eyes with the mud,
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and said to him, "Go, wash in the pool of Siloam" (which means "Sent"). So he went away, washed, and came back seeing.
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The neighbors therefore, and those who saw that he was blind before, said, "Isn't this he who sat and begged?"
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Others were saying, "It is he." Still others were saying, "He looks like him." He said, "I am he."
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They therefore were asking him, "How were your eyes opened?"
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He answered, "A man called Jesus made mud, anointed my eyes, and said to me, 'Go to the pool of Siloam, and wash.' So I went away and washed, and I received sight."
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Then they asked him, "Where is he?" He said, "I don't know."
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They brought him who had been blind to the Pharisees.
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It was a Sabbath when Jesus made the mud and opened his eyes.
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Again therefore the Pharisees also asked him how he received his sight. He said to them, "He put mud on my eyes, I washed, and I see."
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Some therefore of the Pharisees said, "This man is not from God, because he doesn't keep the Sabbath." Others said, "How can a man who is a sinner do such signs?" There was division among them.
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Therefore they asked the blind man again, "What do you say about him, because he opened your eyes?" He said, "He is a prophet."
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The Jews therefore did not believe concerning him, that he had been blind, and had received his sight, until they called the parents of him who had received his sight,
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and asked them, "Is this your son, who you say was born blind? How then does he now see?"
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His parents answered them, "We know that this is our son, and that he was born blind;
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but how he now sees, we don't know; or who opened his eyes, we don't know. He is of age. Ask him. He will speak for himself."
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His parents said these things because they feared the Jews; for the Jews had already agreed that if any man would confess him as Christ, he would be put out of the synagogue.
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Therefore his parents said, "He is of age. Ask him."
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So they called the man who was blind a second time, and said to him, "Give glory to God. We know that this man is a sinner."
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He therefore answered, "I don't know if he is a sinner. One thing I do know: that though I was blind, now I see."
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They said to him again, "What did he do to you? How did he open your eyes?"
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He answered them, "I told you already, and you didn't listen. Why do you want to hear it again? You don't also want to become his disciples, do you?"
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They insulted him and said, "You are his disciple, but we are disciples of Moses.
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We know that God has spoken to Moses. But as for this man, we don't know where he comes from."
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The man answered them, "How amazing! You don't know where he comes from, yet he opened my eyes.
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We know that God doesn't listen to sinners, but if anyone is a worshipper of God, and does his will, he listens to him.
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Since the world began it has never been heard of that anyone opened the eyes of someone born blind.
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If this man were not from God, he could do nothing."
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They answered him, "You were altogether born in sins, and do you teach us?" They threw him out.
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Jesus heard that they had thrown him out, and finding him, he said, "Do you believe in the Son of God?"
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He answered, "Who is he, Lord, that I may believe in him?"
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Jesus said to him, "You have both seen him, and it is he who speaks with you."
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He said, "Lord, I believe!" and he worshiped him.
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Jesus said, "I came into this world for judgment, that those who don't see may see; and that those who see may become blind."
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Those of the Pharisees who were with him heard these things, and said to him, "Are we also blind?"
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Jesus said to them, "If you were blind, you would have no sin; but now you say, 'We see.' Therefore your sin remains.
