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Ezekiel第20章

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1 Now it came about in the seventh year, in the fifth month, on the tenth day of the month, that certain of the responsible men of Israel came to get directions from the Lord and were seated before me.

2 Then the word of the Lord came to me, saying,

3 Son of man, say to the responsible men of Israel, This is what the Lord has said: Have you come to get directions from me? By my life, says the Lord, you will get no directions from me.

4 Will you be their judge, O son of man, will you be their judge? make clear to them the disgusting ways of their fathers,

5 And say to them, This is what the Lord has said: In the day when I took Israel for myself, when I made an oath to the seed of the family of Jacob, and I gave them knowledge of myself in the land of Egypt, saying to them with an oath, I am the Lord your God;

6 In that day I gave my oath to take them out of the land of Egypt into a land which I had been searching out for them, a land flowing with milk and honey, the glory of all lands:

7 And I said to them, Let every man among you put away the disgusting things to which his eyes are turned, and do not make yourselves unclean with the images of Egypt; I am the Lord your God.

8 But they would not be controlled by me, and did not give ear to me; they did not put away the disgusting things to which their eyes were turned, or give up the images of Egypt: then I said I would let loose my passion on them to give full effect to my wrath against them in the land of Egypt.

9 And I was acting for the honour of my name, so that it might not be made unclean before the eyes of the nations among whom they were, and before whose eyes I gave them knowledge of myself, by taking them out of the land of Egypt.

10 So I made them go out of the land of Egypt and took them into the waste land.

11 And I gave them my rules and made clear to them my orders, which, if a man keeps them, will be life to him.

12 And further, I gave them my Sabbaths, to be a sign between me and them, so that it might be clear that I, who make them holy, am the Lord.

13 But the children of Israel would not be controlled by me in the waste land: they were not guided by my rules, and they were turned away from my orders, which, if a man does them, will be life to him; and they had no respect for my Sabbaths: then I said that I would let loose my passion on them in the waste land, and put an end to them.

14 And I was acting for the honour of my name, so that it might not be made unclean in the eyes of the nations, before whose eyes I had taken them out.

15 And further, I gave my oath to them in the waste land, that I would not take them into the land which I had given them, a land flowing with milk and honey, the glory of all lands;

16 Because they were turned away from my orders, and were not guided by my rules, and had no respect for my Sabbaths: for their hearts went after their images.

17 But still my eye had pity on them and I kept them from destruction and did not put an end to them completely in the waste land.

18 And I said to their children in the waste land, Do not be guided by the rules of your fathers or keep their orders or make yourselves unclean with their images:

19 I am the Lord your God; be guided by my rules and keep my orders and do them:

20 And keep my Sabbaths holy; and they will be a sign between me and you so that it may be clear to you that I am the Lord your God.

21 But the children would not be controlled by me; they were not guided by my rules, and they did not keep and do my orders, which, if a man does them, will be life to him; and they had no respect for my Sabbaths: then I said I would let loose my passion on them to give full effect to my wrath against them in the waste land.

22 And I was acting for the honour of my name, so that it might not be made unclean in the eyes of the nations, before whose eyes I had taken them out.

23 Further, I gave my oath to them in the waste land that I would send them wandering among the nations, driving them out among the countries;

24 Because they had not done my orders, but had been turned away from my rules, and had not given respect to my Sabbaths, and their eyes were turned to the images of their fathers.

25 And further, I gave them rules which were not good and orders in which there was no life for them;

26 I made them unclean in the offerings they gave, causing them to make every first child go through the fire, so that I might put an end to them.

27 For this cause, son of man, say to the children of Israel, This is what the Lord has said: In this your fathers have further put shame on my name by doing wrong against me.

28 For when I had taken them into the land which I made an oath to give to them, then they saw every high hill and every branching tree and made their offerings there, moving me to wrath by their offerings; and there the sweet smell of their offerings went up and their drink offerings were drained out.

29 Then I said to them, What is this high place where you go to no purpose? And it is named Bamah to this day.

30 For this cause say to the children of Israel, This is what the Lord has said: Are you making yourselves unclean as your fathers did? are you being untrue to me by going after their disgusting works?

31 And when you give your offerings, causing your sons to go through the fire, you make yourselves unclean with all your images to this day; and will you come to me for directions, O children of Israel? By my life, says the Lord, you will get no direction from me.

32 And that which comes into your minds will never take place; when you say, We will be like the nations, like the families of the countries, servants of wood and stone;

33 By my life, says the Lord, truly, with a strong hand and with an outstretched arm and with burning wrath let loose, I will be King over you:

34 And I will take you out from the peoples and get you together out of the countries where you are wandering, with a strong hand and with an outstretched arm and with burning wrath let loose:

35 And I will take you into the waste land of the peoples, and there I will take up the cause with you face to face.

36 As I took up the cause with your fathers in the waste land of the land of Egypt, so will I take up the cause with you says the Lord.

37 And I will make you go under the rod and will make you small in number:

38 Clearing out from among you all those who are uncontrolled and who are sinning against me; I will take them out of the land where they are living, but they will not come into the land of Israel: and you will be certain that I am the Lord.

39 As for you, O children of Israel, the Lord has said: Let every man completely put away his images and give ear to me: and let my holy name no longer be shamed by your offerings and your images.

40 For in my holy mountain, in the high mountain of Israel, says the Lord, there all the children of Israel, all of them, will be my servants in the land; there I will take pleasure in them, and there I will be worshipped with your offerings and the first-fruits of the things you give, and with all your holy things.

41 I will take pleasure in you as in a sweet smell, when I take you out from the peoples and get you together from the countries where you have been sent in flight; and I will make myself holy in you before the eyes of the nations.

42 And you will be certain that I am the Lord, when I take you into the land of Israel, into the country which I made an oath to give to your fathers.

43 And there, at the memory of your ways and of all the things you did to make yourselves unclean, you will have bitter hate for yourselves because of all the evil things you have done.

44 And you will be certain that I am the Lord, when I take you in hand for the honour of my name, and not for your evil ways or your unclean doings, O children of Israel, says the Lord.

45 Then the word of the Lord came to me, saying,

46 Son of man, let your face be turned to the south, let your words be dropped to the south, and be a prophet against the woodland of the south;

47 And say to the woodland of the South, Give ear to the words of the Lord: this is what the Lord has said: See, I will have a fire lighted in you, for the destruction of every green tree in you and every dry tree: the flaming flame will not be put out, and all faces from the South to the north will be burned by it.

48 And all flesh will see that I the Lord have had it lighted: it will not be put out.

49 Then I said, Ah, Lord! they say of me, Is he not a maker of stories?

   

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Apocalypse Explained#406

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406. Hitherto it has been shown what mountain signifies; it now remains to be shown what island signifies, for it is said,

"Every mountain and island were moved out of their places."

And elsewhere:

"Every island fled away, and the mountains were not found" (Apoc. 16:20).

By islands in the Word are not meant islands, nor those who dwell upon islands, but the natural man is meant as to the truths which are in him, and hence, in the abstract, the truths of the natural man are signified. The truths of the natural man are truths scientific (vera scientifica), which are under the view of the rational man, and the knowledges (cognitions) of truth are what are under the view of the spiritual man; knowledges of truth are what the natural man knows from the Word, and truths scientific are what the natural man sees from the Rational, by which also he is accustomed to confirm the truths of the church.

There are in man two minds, the one higher or interior, called the spiritual mind, and the other lower or exterior, called the natural mind. The natural mind is first opened and cultivated in men because this is nearest the world; the spiritual mind, however, is opened and cultivated afterwards, but only in proportion as man by life receives the knowledges of truth from the Word, or from doctrine from the Word; therefore it is not opened with those who do not apply them to the life. And when the spiritual mind is opened, then the light of heaven flows in through that mind into the natural [mind], and enlightens it, and thus this mind becomes spiritual-natural; for the spiritual mind then sees in the Natural, nearly as a man sees his face in a mirror, and acknowledges those things which agree with itself; but when the spiritual mind is not opened, as is the case with those who do not apply to their life the knowledges of truth and good in the Word, then a mind is still formed with such a man inwardly in the Natural, but this mind consists of actual evils and falsities. The reason is, that the spiritual mind is not opened, by which the light of heaven can be let into the Natural by a direct way, but only through chinks round about, whence a man has the faculty to think, to reason, and speak, and also the power to understand truths; but still not that of loving them, or of doing them from affection. For the faculty of loving truths because they are truths, is only possible by the influx of the light of heaven through the spiritual mind; for the light of heaven [flowing in] through the spiritual mind is conjoined with the heat of heaven, which is love, such as the light of the world is comparatively in the time of spring; but the light of heaven flowing only through chinks into the Natural, is a light separated from the heat of heaven, which is love, such as the light of the world is comparatively in the time of winter.

Hence it may be evident, that the man with whom the spiritual mind is opened, is like a garden and a paradise; and that the man with whom the spiritual mind is not opened, is like a desert, and land covered with snow; because the mind makes the man, for the mind of man consists of understanding and will; hence it is the same whether you say the mind or the man, or whether you say the spiritual and natural mind, or you say the spiritual and natural man. The natural mind, or natural man, as to its truths and falsities, is signified by islands in the Word; as to truths, with those with whom the spiritual mind is opened, and as to falsities, with those with whom the spiritual mind is shut.

[2] That these are signified by islands, is evident from the following passages in the Word.

In Ezekiel:

"Thus said the Lord Jehovih to Tyre; Shall not the islands shake at the sound of thy fall, when the wounded cry, when the slaughter is accomplished in the midst of thee? And all the princes of the sea shall come down from their thrones. The isles shall tremble in the day of thy fall, and the isles that are in the sea shall be troubled at thy departure. All the inhabitants of the isles were astonished at thee, and their kings were sore afraid, their faces were troubled" (26:15, 16, 18; 27:35).

In these two chapters the subject treated of is Tyre, by which is signified the church as to the knowledges (cognitions) of truth and good, and thence are signified in the abstract the knowledges of good and truth. The intelligence and wisdom of the men of the church, by the knowledges of truth and good from the Word, are here first treated of, and afterwards the church vastated as to these. The church vastated as to these, or where the knowledges of truth and good have perished, is described by what is said by the prophet in those verses; the vastation of the knowledges of truth and good by, "when the wounded cry, and when the slaughter is accomplished in the midst of thee," for by the wounded are meant those with whom truths are extinguished, and by the slaughter is meant the very extinction of truth and good. That then all the knowledges (cognitions) which man from his infancy has imbibed from the Word, and all the truths scientific by which he has confirmed them, are disturbed, moved out of their place, and recede, is signified by, "the islands shall shake, and all the princes of the sea shall come down from their thrones"; also by, "The isles shall tremble in the day of thy fall, and the isles that are in the sea shall be troubled"; the isles denoting such knowledges and scientifics as are in the natural man; the princes of the sea denoting primary things therein; the sea signifying the natural man and all things therein in general. That all the goods of truth of the natural man, from the knowledges of truth having been vastated, shall be changed as to their state, is signified by, "All the inhabitants of the isles were astonished at thee, and their kings were afraid, their faces were troubled." The inhabitants of the isles denote the goods of truth of the natural man; for by, to inhabit, in the Word, is signified to live, and by inhabitants, the goods of life; kings denote all truths from good; faces signify the interiors and the affections; to be astonished, afraid, and disturbed, signify to be altogether changed as to state. From these things it is evident what those things involve in the internal sense, namely, that all the knowledges of truth and good, and the confirming scientifics which a man from infancy has learnt from the Word, and from teachers, shall change their places and their state in the natural man, and are unseen, when falsities enter.

[3] In Isaiah:

"The king of Assyria shall lead the captivity of Egypt, and the crowd of Ethiopia [which is] to be carried away; then they shall be afraid and ashamed for Ethiopia their expectation, and for Egypt their glory; and the inhabitant of this isle shall say in that day, Behold, such is our expectation, whither we flee for help, that we may be delivered from before the king of Assyria; and how shall we be liberated?" (20:4-6).

From these words no one can perceive anything respecting the church, but only a something obscurely historical, the occurrence of which is not known, as that the king of Assyria shall lead away Egypt and Ethiopia into captivity, and that the dwellers of some isle would grieve in heart over it; but yet, here as elsewhere, the concerns of the church are treated of, which concerns are evident when it is known that the king of Assyria signifies the Rational perverted, and thence reasoning from false scientifics which favour the delight of the natural loves, over which the natural man grieves, because it is perverted thereby. For by, "the king of Assyria shall lead the captivity of Egypt, and the crowd of Ethiopia [which is] to be carried away," is signified, that the perverted Rational will claim to itself the scientifics of the natural man, and will confirm itself thereby, and also by its delights, which [such scientifics] favour. The king of Assyria denotes the perverted Rational; to lead captive, and carry away the crowd, denotes to apply them and to confirm them. Egypt denotes the scientific of the natural man, and Ethiopia denotes the delight which it favours. That the goods of truth of the natural man grieve on that account, or that the natural man, in which are the goods of truth, grieves, is signified by all those things that follow, namely, that "they shall be afraid and ashamed for Ethiopia their expectation, and for Egypt their glory; and the inhabitant of the isle shall say in that day"; with what follows. The inhabitant of the isle denotes the good of truth of the natural man, or the natural man in whom is the good of truth; the inhabitant signifying good, and an island truth, both in the natural man (as above). That there is such a sense in these words can hardly be believed, when yet it is therein.

[4] In the same:

"They shall lift up their voice, they shall shout; for the majesty of Jehovah they shall cry from the sea. Wherefore honour Jehovah in the fire (urim), the name of the God of Israel in the isles of the sea" (24:14, 15).

The vastation of the church is treated of in this chapter, and in these verses the establishment of a new church among the Gentiles; the joy of these is what is described by, "They shall lift up their voice, they shall shout; for the majesty of Jehovah they shall cry from the sea," or from the west. For by the sea, when the west is meant thereby, is signified the Natural. The reason is that those who dwell in the western quarter in the spiritual world are in natural good, but in the eastern quarter those who are in celestial good; and because the Gentiles, from whom the church [was formed], were in natural good, it is therefore said, honour ye Jehovah in the fire (urim), the name of the God of Israel in the isles of the sea. By this is signified that they would worship the Lord from the goods and truths of the natural man, for the term urim signifies fire, or a hearth, by which is denoted the good of love of the natural man. The isles of the sea signify the knowledges of truth and good, which are the truths of the natural man; and to honour signifies to worship and adore. By Jehovah and the God of Israel is meant the Lord, who is called Jehovah where the subject treated of is good, and the God of Israel where the subject is truth; it is therefore said, "honour ye Jehovah in the fire" (urim), that is, from good, and "the name of the God of Israel in the isles of the sea," that is, from truths. Hence also it is evident, that by the isles of the sea are signified the truths of the natural man.

[5] In the same:

"He shall not extinguish, neither break in pieces, till he have set judgment in the earth; and the isles shall hope in his law. Sing unto Jehovah a new song, his praise the end of the earth, ye that go down to the sea, its fulness; the isles, and the inhabitants thereof. Let the wilderness and the cities thereof lift up their voice, the villages that Kedar doth inhabit; let the inhabitants of the rock sing, let them shout from the top of the mountains. Let them give glory unto Jehovah, and declare his praise in the islands" (42:4, 10-12).

The Lord and the new church to be established by Him, are also here treated of, and by the isles are meant those who are only in truths from the natural man, and, consequently, who are as yet remote from true worship; hence by, "till he have set judgment in the earth, and the isles shall hope in his law," is signified, until He has given intelligence to those who belong to the church, and knowledges of truth to those who are more remote from the church. To set judgment denotes to give intelligence; to hope in the law denotes to give the knowledges of truth, for the earth signifies those who are of the church, and, in the abstract, the church itself as to intelligence from spiritual truths; and the isles, those who are remote from the church, and, in the abstract, the church as to the knowledges of truth and good, or the church as to the truths of the natural man corresponding to spiritual truths. By, "Sing unto Jehovah a new song, his praise the end of the earth, ye that go down to the sea, and the fulness thereof," is signified the worship of the Lord by those who are remote from the church, and, in an abstract sense, the worship of the natural man from truths and goods. To sing a song, and to praise, signify worship from a glad mind; the end of the earth signifies those who are in the ultimates of the church, and, in an abstract sense, the ultimates of it. The sea and the fulness thereof, signify the natural man and all things therein. The isles and the inhabitants signify the truths and goods of the natural man; the isles the truths thereof, and the inhabitants the goods thereof, as said above. What is signified by, "Let the wilderness and the cities thereof lift up their voice, and the villages that Kedar doth inhabit; let the inhabitants of the rock sing, let them shout from the top of the mountains," see above (n. 405), where they are explained. By, "Let them give glory unto Jehovah, and declare his praise in the islands," is signified worship from internals and externals. To give glory denotes worship from internals, and to declare praise denotes to worship from externals, for externals declare; and islands denote the truths of the natural man, from which worship [proceeds].

[6] In the same:

"Attend unto me, my people, and give ear unto me, O my nation; for a law shall proceed from me, and I will stir up my judgment for a light of the people. My justice is near, my salvation is gone forth, and mine arms shall judge the peoples; the isles shall hope in me, and on mine arm shall they trust" (51:4, 5).

These things are said concerning the Lord; "Attend unto me, my people, and give ear unto me, O my nation," signifies all of the church who are in truths and goods; people denoting those who are in truths, and nation those who are in goods. It is said, attend and give ear, in the plural, because all are meant. "A law shall proceed from me, and I will stir up my judgment for a light of the people," signifies that from Him [are] Divine good and Divine truth, whence is enlightenment; law signifying the Divine good of the Word, and judgment the Divine truth of the Word. For a light of the people signifies enlightenment. "My justice is near, my salvation is gone forth," signifies judgment, when those are saved who are in the good of love and in the truths thence. Justice is said of the salvation of those who are in good at the day of judgment, and salvation of the salvation of those who are in truths. "Mine arms shall judge the people," signifies judgment upon those of the church who are in falsities, people here being taken in an opposite sense. "The isles shall hope in me, and on mine arm shall they trust," signifies the approach of those to the church who are remote from the truths of the church, and their trust in the Lord; isles signifying, those who are remote from the truths of the church, because they are in natural light, and not yet in spiritual light from the Word; and to trust on His arm, signifies confidence in the Lord who has all power; arm, when said of the Lord, denoting omnipotence.

[7] In the same:

"Listen, O isles, and hearken, ye people from afar" (49:1).

Isles [stand] for those who are in truths, and people from afar for those who are in goods, and, in the abstract, truths and goods, both in the natural man. From afar is said of the goods in the natural man, whereas near [is said] of the goods in the spiritual man. People here signify goods, because in the original tongue they are called by a different expression from the people by whom are signified truths; for by this expression they are also denominated nations, by whom are signified goods, as is evident from the same expression in Genesis (25:26).

[8] In Jeremiah:

"Hear the Word of Jehovah, ye nations, and declare it in the isles afar off" (31:10).

Nations mean those who are in goods, and, in the abstract, goods; and islands mean those who are in truths, and, in the abstract, truths in the natural man. Afar off signifies remote from the truths of the church, which are spiritual (that afar off signifies this, may be seen, n. 8918); but those words, in the purely spiritual sense, signify that the internal man shall teach the external, or the spiritual the whole natural [man] the truths of the Word, for this it is that the nations declare in the islands afar off; but this pure sense, which the angels possess, can scarcely be perceived by men, because they are scarcely able to think apart from persons and places; because the thought of men is natural, and natural thought differs from spiritual thought in this, that it is tied down to places and persons, and is, consequently, more finite than the spiritual. This also is the reason why many things that have been explained, perhaps hardly fall into the ideas of the thought of those who keep the sight of the mind upon the meaning of the expressions.

[9] In David:

"The kings of Tarshish and of the isles shall bring a present; the kings of Sheba and Seba shall offer a gift" (Psalms 72:10).

These words relate to the Lord, and by to bring and offer a present is meant to worship. And by the kings of Tarshish and of the isles are meant the interior and exterior truths of the natural man; by the kings of Tarshish, the interior truths, and by the islands, the exterior truths thereof. By the kings of Sheba and Seba are meant the interior and exterior goods of the natural man; by Sheba, the interior goods thereof; and by Seba, the exterior goods thereof. By the truths of the natural man are meant the knowledges of truths, and by the goods of the natural man are meant the knowledges of goods. That these are meant by Sheba and Seba, may be seen, n. 1171, 3240; and that the former are meant by Tarshish, will be seen just below; and because those are meant, those also are meant who are in the knowledges of truth and good.

[10] In Isaiah:

"Who are these that fly as clouds, and as doves to their windows? Because the isles confide in me, and the ships of Tarshish in the beginning, to bring thy sons from far" (60:8, 9).

These things also are said concerning the Lord; and by them is signified that those who are in simple truth and good, who are such as perceive the truths of the Word in a natural manner, that is, according to the sense of the letter, and do them, would receive and acknowledge Him. The islands signify those who perceive the Word in a natural manner, that is, according to the sense of the letter; and "the ships of Tarshish in the beginning" denote the goods which they bear and do; for Tarshish signifies the natural man as to knowledges, and "Tarshish in the beginning" the natural man as to the knowledges of good, because there were gold and silver in Tarshish, and the ships carried these things thence (1 Kings 10:22), and gold in the beginning, by which is signified good; and because truths are from good, it is therefore said also, "to bring thy sons from far." And because by islands and the ships of Tarshish are signified the knowledges of truth and good pertaining to the natural man, it is therefore said, "Who are these that fly as clouds, and as doves to their windows?" clouds signifying the truths of the sense of the letter of the Word; doves, the goods therein; and windows, truths from good in light. (That ships signify the knowledges of truth and good from the Word, may be seen, n. 1977, 6385; and that windows signify truths in light, and thence the intellectual part, n. 655, 658, 3391.)

[11] In the same:

"Howl, ye ships of Tarshish; for Tyre is laid waste, so that there is no house, nor doth any one enter; from the land of Chittim he shall plainly come to them. The inhabitants of the island are silent, the merchant of Zidon who passeth over the sea, they have replenished thee. Blush, O Zidon, for the sea saith, I have not travailed, neither brought forth the fortification of the sea. I have not brought up young men, I have not brought virgins to adult age. At the report from Egypt they shall be seized with grief, as at the report of Tyre. Pass over into Tarshish; howl, ye inhabitants of the isle" (23:1, 2, 4-6).

The desolation of truth in the church is thus described; for by the ships of Tarshish are signified the knowledges of good from the Word, and by Tyre the knowledges of truth thence. That there is no longer good because there are no truths, is signified by, "Howl, ye ships of Tarshish, for Tyre is laid waste, so that there is no house, nor doth any one enter in." That falsities then enter until there are no longer any goods of truth and truths of good in the natural man, is signified by, "from the land of Chittim he shall plainly come to them." The inhabitants of the island are silent, the merchant of Zidon, who passeth over the sea, they have replenished thee. The land of Chittim signifies falsities; the inhabitants of the island signify the goods of truth in the natural man, as explained above; the merchant of Zidon signifies knowledges from the Word; who passeth over the sea, signifies, which are in the natural man; who have replenished thee, namely, the ships of Tarshish, signifies, who have enriched thee by them. The vastation of truth and good in the natural man is further described by, "Blush, O Zidon; for the sea saith, I have not travailed, neither brought forth the fortification of the sea. I have not brought up young men, I have not brought virgins to adult age." By Zidon, as well as by Tyre, are signified the knowledges of truth and good in the church. By, the sea, even the fortification of the sea, is signified the whole natural man; by, I have not travailed, neither brought forth, is signified that there is not anything of the church conceived or generated; by young men are signified the affections of truth, and by virgins the affections of good. That this was the case in consequence of knowledges from the Word and confirming scientifics being applied to falsities and evils, is signified by, "at the report from Egypt they shall be seized with grief, as at the report of Tyre." Egypt signifies scientifics; Tyre, knowledges (cognitions) from the Word; here those vastated by falsities and evils to which they are applied; and inasmuch as there is lamentation on this account, it is therefore said, they shall be seized with grief. That all good would thus perish in the natural man, and [all] truth therein, is signified by, pass over into Tarshish; howl, ye inhabitants of the isle. Tarshish signifies the interior goods and truths in the natural [man]; the inhabitants of the isle signify the exterior goods and truths therein, as also above; to howl signifies grief on account of vastation.

[12] In Jeremiah:

"I took the cup out of Jehovah's hand, and made all the nations to drink, unto whom Jehovah sent me. All the kings of Tyre, and all the kings of Zidon, and the kings of the isle which is in the passage of the sea" (Jeremiah 25:17-22).

Many nations are enumerated there that are not here adduced; by all these are signified the goods and truths of the church in general and in particular, which are vastated. And by the kings of Tyre and Zidon are signified the knowledges of truth and good from the Word, in the natural man; for all knowledges of truth and good, so far as they are knowledges, are in the natural man. Such become truths and goods when there is a life according to them, because they are received in the spiritual man by life. By, "the kings of the isle which is in the passage of the sea," are signified the knowledges of truth in the ultimate of the natural man, which is called the Natural Sensual, because through this there is a passage into the interiors of the natural man, the sea signifying the natural man in general (as may be seen above, n. 275, 342). The vastation of these things is meant by the cup of Jehovah which he made the nations to drink.

[13] In the same:

"Because of the day that cometh to lay waste all the Philistines, and to cut off from Tyrus and Zidon every helper that remaineth; for Jehovah layeth waste the Philistines, the remnant of the island of Caphtor" (47:4).

By the Philistines are meant those who are in faith alone, or in faith separate from charity, therefore they are also called the uncircumcised, by which is signified that they have no charity (see n. 2049, 3412, 8093, 8313). By cutting off from Tyre and Zidon every helper that remaineth, is signified that they have no longer any knowledge of truth and good; the helper that remaineth signifies that they are no longer concordant; the same is also signified by the remnant of the island of Caphtor.

[14] In the same:

"Pass over into the isles of the Chittimites, and see; send into Arabia, and consider well, and see whether there be such a thing, whether a nation hath changed their gods" (2:10, 12).

That they would pass over and send into the isles of the Chittimites and into Arabia, does not signify that they would send thither, but to all who live naturally in truths and goods according to their religion. The isles of the Chittimites denote where those are who live naturally in truths, and Arabia where they are who live naturally in goods, namely, according to their religion. The Chittimites and Arabia signify such persons and such things; for all those who have not the Word, or any revelation from heaven, and live according to their religion, live naturally; for to live spiritually is to live only according to truths and goods from the Word, and from revelation out of heaven.

[15] In Zephaniah:

"Jehovah will be formidable upon them: for he will make lean all the gods of the nations, that they may worship him, every one from his place; all the isles of the nations, ye Ethiopians also, shall be slain by my sword" (2:11, 12).

By these words in the internal sense, is signified that the falsities of evil will be dissipated, and that truths and goods will be given to those who indeed are in falsities, but not in the falsities of evil. By the gods of the nations, which Jehovah will make lean, are signified the falsities of evil; by gods, falsities; by the nations, evils; and by making lean is signified the removal of evils from falsities. By the isles of the nations, and by the Ethiopians, are signified those who indeed are in falsities, but not in the falsities of evil, and abstractedly, falsities, but not the falsities of evil. And because falsities not of evil are in the natural man, therefore, by the isles of the nations is signified the natural man as to those, or as to those falsities in the natural man; these falsities are signified by, slain by my sword. (Concerning the falsities of evil, and the falsities not of evil, see the Doctrine of the New Jerusalem 21.)

[16] In David:

"He shall have dominion from sea to sea, and from the river unto the ends of the earth. The islands shall bow themselves before him; and his enemies shall lick the dust" (Psalms 72:8, 9).

These things are said concerning the Lord; and by having dominion from sea to sea, and from the river unto the ends of the earth, is meant His dominion over all things of heaven and the church; for in the spiritual world the boundaries are seas, and the intermediates are earths, where there are habitations for angels and spirits. Hence by, "from sea to sea," are signified all things of heaven, and because all things of heaven all things of the church are also signified; for the goods of love, and the truths thence, constitute heaven and also the church, therefore by, "from sea to sea," are signified also all things of the church. All things of heaven and of the church are signified by, "from the river unto the ends of the earth"; but by these words are signified all things of heaven and of the church as to truths, and by, from sea to sea, all things of heaven and of the church as to goods. For seas in the spiritual world are the boundaries of the earth east and west; and in the earths from the east towards the west dwell those who are in the good of love; but the river signifies the first boundary, and the ends of the earth [signify] the last [boundaries] from south to north, where those dwell who are in truths from good, which boundaries also the rivers Jordan and Euphrates respectively represented to the land of Canaan. The places that are about the ultimate boundaries, are meant by islands, by which, therefore, are signified truths in ultimates; these, although they are not truths are still accepted as truths. For genuine truths are diminished from the centre towards the boundaries, because those who are around the boundaries are in natural light, and thus not in spiritual light. By enemies are signified evils, concerning whom it is said that they shall lick the dust, that is, that they are accursed.

[17] In the same:

"Jehovah reigneth; the earth shall rejoice; many isles shall be glad" (Psalms 97:1).

By these words is signified that the church where the Word is and the church where the Word is not, consequently, those who are in spiritual truths and those who are not in spiritual truths, shall rejoice on account of the Lord's kingdom. By the earth is signified the church where the Word is, and by the islands [the church] where the Word is not, consequently, those who are remote from spiritual truths; for the truths of the Word are alone spiritual, whereas with those who are outside the church, because they have not the truths of the Word, there are only natural truths; hence it is that they are called islands.

[18] By islands in the Word are not meant some islands of the sea, but places in the spiritual world inhabited by those who are in a natural knowledge of cognitions (scientia cognitionum) in some degree harmonising with the knowledges of truth and good in the Word; these places sometimes appear there as islands in the sea; whence, in an abstract sense, by islands are signified the truths of the natural man. This denomination is from the sea, in which there are islands, for the sea signifies the generals of truth, or the truths of the natural man in general. These things are signified by islands in Genesis:

"The sons of Javan were Elishah and Tarshish, Kittim and Dodanim. From these were the isles of the nations dispersed in their lands; every one after his tongue, after their families, in their nations" (10:4, 5).

And in Isaiah:

"He shall come to gather all nations and tongues, that they may come and see my glory. And I will set a sign among them, and I will send those that escape of them unto the nations, to Tarshish, Pul, and Lud, that draw the bow, to Tubal, and Javan, to the isles afar off, that have not heard my fame, neither have seen my glory; and they shall declare my glory among the nations" (66:18, 19; likewise Isaiah 11:10-12).

[19] Because most things in the Word have also an opposite sense, so also have islands; in which sense islands signify the falsities opposed to the truths which are in the natural man. In this sense islands are mentioned in the following passages.

In Isaiah

"I will make waste mountains and hills, and dry up all their herbs; and I will make the rivers islands, and I will dry up the pools" (42:15).

This may be seen explained in the preceding article.

In Ezekiel:

"I will send a fire on Magog, and among the careless inhabitants of the isles" (39:6).

In Isaiah:

"Anger to his adversaries, retribution to his enemies; to the islands he will retaliate retribution" (59:18).

In the same:

"Behold, the nations are as a drop of a bucket, and are counted as the dust of the balance: behold, he taketh up the isles as one of the least of things" (40:15).

The nations here mean evils, and the isles falsities.

In the same:

"Keep silence, O islands; let the people renew their strength; let them come near, then let them speak; let us come near together to judgment. The isles saw it, and feared; the ends of the earth trembled" (41:1, 5).

  
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Translation by Isaiah Tansley. Many thanks to the Swedenborg Society for the permission to use this translation.