10634. 'Which have not been created in all the earth nor in all nations' means that never before has a Divine Word such as this been present in the world, either where the Church exists or where it does not exist. This is clear from the meaning of 'marvellous things' as the Divine things present in the Word, dealt with immediately above in 10633, which are referred to as 'created' ones when they are Divine from inmost to outermost levels or first to last; from the meaning of 'in all the earth' as wherever the Church exists, for 'the earth' in the Word means the Church, see in the places referred to in 9325; and from the meaning of 'in all nations' as where the Church does not exist, for 'nations' in the Word means those who are outside the Church, because they do not dwell in the light of truth derived from the Word.

[2] The reason why it says that Jehovah is about to do marvels 'which have not been created in all the earth' is that 'creation' means that which is Divine from inmost to outermost levels or first to last. For everything that comes from the Divine begins in Him and continues in accord with true order right through to the lowest and final level. That is, it passes through the heavens right on into the world, which serves as the lowest level, the level on which it comes to rest; for the natural world constitutes the lowest level of Divine order. That which has origins such as these is what the word 'created' is used to refer to. Every created thing in the world is both brought into being and kept in being in accord with that true order; and also the member of the Church who has been regenerated by the Lord by means of truths from the Word is fashioned in accord with it. All this explains why in the Word the Lord is referred to as the Creator, while the person who has been regenerated is referred to as one created anew, see 10373, 10545. The Word too is fashioned in accord with that true order, and since the nature of it is such the word 'created' is used in reference to its marvels.

[3] The same words - 'Before all your people I will do marvels which have not been created in all the earth nor in all nations' - mean in the historical sense that Jehovah was about to perform miracles among the Israelite people which were unheard of in all the earth. In the internal sense however not miracles should be understood but marvels which the Lord was about to do, in that He was about to provide a Word which would be such that by means of it heaven would be joined to the Church, and, to take a universal view, the Lord would be joined to the human race. The idea that the Word is a marvel such as this is unintelligible to those who know nothing at all about the correspondence of natural things with spiritual ones. And people who know nothing at all about the spiritual level on which angels think are also unaware of the inner presence of anything within all the details of the Word, which hold heaven and so Divine life within them. But in fact through correspondence angels perceive every single expression in the Word on a spiritual level when people in the world do so on a natural level. This and nothing else is what makes the Word Divine, so marvellous that there is nothing more marvellous.

10545. 'And Moses took a tent' means the holiness of worship, the Church, and the Word. This is clear from the meaning of 'a tent' in the highest sense as the Lord, also heaven and the Church, and in the relative sense as everything holy belonging to heaven and the Church, consequently also the holiness of worship and the holiness of the Word; for worship and the Word belong to the Church, and they are the Lord's since they are derived from Him. The reason why 'a tent' means these things is that the most ancient people used to live in tents and also to hold their holy worship in them. Among these people the celestial Church existed, and this was holier than all the Churches that came after it. For the one they worshipped was the Lord; for them Jehovah was none other than Him. And since it was He who led them, they were in direct contact with the angels of heaven, as a consequence of which they possessed heavenly wisdom that comes from the Lord. The establishment of that Church is what the creation of heaven and earth in the first chapter of Genesis describes, and their wisdom is what paradise describes; for 'heaven and earth' in the Word means the Church, 'paradise' means intelligence and wisdom, and 'man' (homo) means the Church itself, as does 'the ground', from which the name Adam derives.

'Heaven and earth' in the Word means the Church, 'heaven' the internal Church and 'earth' the external Church, see 1733, 1850, 2117, 2118, 3355(end), 4535, 10373.

Intelligence and wisdom is described by paradise-like and other gardens, 100, 108, 2702, 3220.

'Man' means the Church, 478, 768, 4287, 9276, and so does 'the ground', 566, 1068.

'Creating man' means establishing the Church, 16, 88, 10373.

See in addition 8891, 9942.

[2] Because this Church was the Lord's beloved more than all the rest and the Lord had His home with them in their tents (for the Lord is said to have His home with the person who loves Him, John 14:23), therefore to commemorate these things the tabernacle or tent of meeting was erected among the Israelite nation, to house their holy worship. And this was why the feast of tabernacles or tents was instituted.

[3] The fact that 'tent' means those holy things, and in particular the holiness of worship, is clear from the following places: In Isaiah,

Sing, O barren one that did not bear. Enlarge the place of your tent, and let them stretch out the curtains of your dwelling-places. Isaiah 54:1-2.

'Enlarging the place of the tent' means doing so to the things which belong to the Church and consequently to those which belong to worship. 'Stretching out the curtains of the dwelling-places' means multiplying truths, 'curtains' meaning the Church's truths, see 9595, 9596, 9606, 9756. 'Barren one' means the person with whom the Church's truths and forms of good have not existed hitherto, 3908, 9325.

[4] In Jeremiah,

The whole land has been laid waste. Suddenly My tents have been laid waste, My curtains in a moment. Jeremiah 4:20.

'The land' means the Church, see in the places referred to in 9325; and since the Church is the Church by virtue of forms of the good of love and by virtue of the truths of faith it says that tents and curtains have been laid waste, 'tents' being the Church's forms of good and 'curtains' its truths.

[5] In the same prophet,

My tent has been laid waste, and all My ropes torn away. My sons have gone away from Me, and they are not. There is no one stretching out My tent any more, or setting up My curtains. For the shepherds have become stupid. Jeremiah 10:20-21.

Similar things are meant here by 'tent' and 'curtains'. 'Ropes torn away' means that goodness and truth are no longer joined together, nor truths to one another. Therefore also it says 'My sons have gone away', for truths are meant by 'sons'.

'Ropes' means a joining together, see 9777, 9854, 9880.

'Sons' means truths, 489, 491, 533, 2623, 2803, 2813, 3373, 3704, 4257, 9807.

[6] In David,

O Jehovah, who will sojourn in Your tent? Who will dwell on Your holy mountain? He who walks blameless and who does righteousness, and speaks the truth in his heart. Psalms 15:1-2.

'Sojourning in Jehovah's tent' means abiding in heaven, and in the good of love there. In the same author,

I will remain in Your tent forever. Psalms 61:4.

Here the meaning is similar.

[7] In Amos,

On that day I will raise up the tent of David that is fallen down, and I will close up its breaches and restore its destroyed places. Amos 9:11.

'The tent of David' means the Lord's Church and the holiness that goes with worship of Him. 'Closing up breaches and restoring destroyed places' means renewing those things by moving falsities away from them. 'David' in the Word means the Lord, see 1888, 9954, so that 'the tent of David' means the Lord's Church and the holiness that goes with worship. In Jeremiah,

Behold, I will bring back the captivity ¹ of the tents of Jacob, and will have compassion on his dwellings. Jeremiah 30:18.

'The tents of Jacob' and 'his dwellings' stand for the Church's forms of good and its truths.

[8] Since forms of good present in the Church and in worship are meant by 'tents', forms of evil present in worship and in the Church are meant in the contrary sense by 'tents', as may be recognized from the following places: In Jeremiah,

I will liken the daughter of Zion to one who is comely. Shepherds and their flocks will come to her and pitch their tents against her round about. Jeremiah 6:2-3.

In the same prophet,

Go up against Arabia, and lay waste the sons of the east. They will take their tents and their flocks, their curtains and all their vessels. Jeremiah 49:28-29.

In Hosea,

What will you do on the solemn day, and on the day of the feast of Jehovah? For behold, they have gone away on account of the devastation; the thorn will possess their precious things of silver, the nettle will be in their tents. Hosea 9:5-6.

In David,

He smote all the firstborn of Egypt, the beginning of strength in the tents of Ham. Psalms 78:51.

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