6963. And behold his hand was leprous, as snow. That this signifies the profanation of truth, is evident from the signification of “hand,” as being power (n. 6947), and as being truth, because spiritual power consists in truth (n. 6948, 6960); and from the signification of “leprosy,” as being profanation, specifically, the profanation of truth (of which below). In the historic Word much is said about leprosy, and about its various appearances in the skin, and about the judgment thence to be formed of its quality—whether the leper was to be shut in, or to go out of the camp, or to be set at liberty; and also about leprosy in garments, in vessels, and in the very houses. Leprosy is so much treated of, not on account of leprosy as a disease, but because it signified the profanation of truth, thus for the sake of the spiritual sense; and because the Jews and the Israelites were capable of profaning truth more than other people.

[2] For if they had known the internal things of the Word, and the truths themselves which were represented by the rites of the church among them, and had faith in them, and yet had lived according to their inclination, namely in the love of self and the love of the world, in hatred and revenge among themselves, and in cruelty toward the Gentiles, they must needs have profaned the truths in which they once had faith; for to believe in truths and to live contrary to them, is to profane them. And therefore they were withheld as far as possible from the knowledges of internal truth (see n. 3398, 3489); insomuch that they did not even know that they would live after death; neither did they believe that the Messiah would come to save souls eternally, but to exalt that nation above all others in the universe. And because that nation was such, and also is such at this day, therefore they are still withheld from faith, even though they live in the midst of Christendom. Hence then it is that the nature of leprosy was so particularly described.

[3] That “leprosy” signifies the profanation of truth, is plain from the statutes concerning leprosy that are recorded by Moses in Leviticus 13. In this description there is contained in the internal sense the whole nature of the profanation of truth—as what the nature of this profanation is if recent, what if old, what if inward in man, what if also outward, what if curable, what if incurable, what are the means of cure, and other particulars, which cannot be at all known to anyone, except by means of the internal sense of the Word.

[4] But as it is profanations which are described by “leprosy,” it is not allowable to explain in detail what is contained in the description of it. Moreover, heaven is horrified at the bare mention of what is profane. I may quote this passage only:

If the leprosy effloresce fully in the skin, and the leprosy cover the whole skin of him that hath the plague, from his head even to his heel, under every look of the priest’s eyes; and the priest see, and behold the leprosy hath covered all his flesh, then he shall pronounce the plague clean; it is all turned white, he is clean. But in the day that there shall appear in him living flesh, he shall be unclean (Leviticus 13:12-14).

Unless it is known from the internal sense how the case herein is, namely, that he is clean who is all leprous from his head even unto his heel, it must appear like a paradox; but by “one leprous from his head to his heel” is meant one who knows internal truths, but does not acknowledge or believe them. Such a one is not inwardly in profanation, but outwardly, which profanation is removed, and therefore he is clean. But if he knows the truths of faith, and believes them, and yet lives contrary to them, he is in profanation inwardly, as is the case also with one who has once believed, and afterward denies. Therefore it is said, “in the day that there shall appear in him living flesh, he shall be unclean;” by “living flesh” is meant acknowledgment and faith (see what has been adduced above, n. 6959).

6948. And He said, Cast it to the earth. That this signifies the influx of the power of the Lord’s Divine natural into the sensuous, is evident from the signification of a “rod,” as being power in the natural, and when it is said of the Lord, as being the power proceeding from his Divine natural (of which just above, n. 6947) from the signification of “casting,” or “sending forth,” as being proceeding, thus influx; and from the signification of “the earth” as being man’s external (n. 82, 913, 1411, 1733), here his sensuous and corporeal, which are the outermosts, because the rod became a serpent, and by a “serpent” is signified the sensuous and corporeal man.

[2] By the Divine power of the Lord is here meant the Divine truth proceeding from the Lord, for there is power in Divine truth, insomuch that it is power itself (n. 3091, 4931, 6344, 6423). The Divine truth proceeding from the Lord flows into every man, through his interiors into the exteriors, even into the external sensuous and into the corporeal, and calls forth everywhere things correspondent in their order; in the sensuous, things correspondent such as appear in the world and upon the earth. But as the things which are in the world and upon the earth appear otherwise than as they are, they are therefore full of fallacies; and therefore when the sensuous is in these evils only, it must needs think against the goods and truths of faith, because it thinks from fallacies; and when Divine truth flows in, it must needs turn it into falsity.

[3] That a man who is not elevated from the sensuous, but is in it and thinks from it, thinks from fallacies, may be illustrated by examples: The fallacies in respect to the life of man-that it is of the body, when yet it is of the spirit in the body: in respect to the sight-that it is of the eye: in respect to the hearing - that it is of the ear: in respect to the speech-that it is of the tongue and mouth; when yet it is the spirit which sees, hears, and speaks, through these organs of the body. The fallacies in respect to life-that it is permanent in man, when yet it flows in. The fallacies in respect to the soul-that it cannot be in a human form, and in human senses and affections. The fallacies in respect to heaven and hell-that the former is above man, and the latter beneath him, when yet they are in him. The fallacies that objects flow into the exteriors, when yet what is external does not flow into what is internal, but what is internal into what is external. The fallacies in respect to the life after death-that it is impossible except together with the body. Besides the fallacies in natural things, which give rise to the self-contradictory conjectures of so many persons.

[4] Who cannot see that fallacies and the falsities thence derived have dominion instead of truths, merely from the dispute which long existed in respect to the circulation of the blood, which though supported by so many experimental proofs, nevertheless long remained in doubt; and also from the dispute about the sun-that it revolved once a day around this earth, and not only the sun, but also the moon, all the planets, and the whole starry heaven; and also from the dispute which still continues in respect to the soul, its conjunction with the body, and its seat therein. Seeing that the fallacies of the senses have dominion in such things, although their true character is plain from so many phenomena and effects, why should they not do so in such things as belong to heaven, which being spiritual are not plain except through correspondences?

[5] From all this it can now be seen what is the quality of man’s sensuous, viewed in itself, and left to itself; namely, that it is in fallacies, and thence in falsities, thus is against the truths and goods of faith. Hence it is that when man is in the sensuous and in its light, he is in thick darkness in respect to the things of the spiritual world, that is, in respect to those which are in light from the Divine; and that the sensuous light is turned into mere thick darkness when the light from heaven falls into it. The reason is, that the truths which are of the Divine light cannot be together with fallacies and the falsities thence derived; but [the falsities] extinguish [the truths] and thereby induce thick darkness.