392. The souls of them that were slain for the Word of God, and for the testimony which they held. That this signifies those who were rejected and hidden on account of the Divine truth, and their confession of the Lord, is plain from the signification of the slain, as denoting such as are rejected by the evil, and concealed by the Lord, of whom we shall treat presently; and from the signification of the Word of God, as denoting the Divine truth. What the Lord speaks is called the Word of God, and this is Divine truth. The Word or Sacred Scripture is nothing else; for all Divine truth is contained therein, but the truth itself does not there appear in its glory except before the angels, because the interior things of the Word, which are spiritual and celestial, come within their perception, and also constitute their wisdom. Therefore by the Word of God, in the genuine sense, is signified Divine truth, and in the highest sense, the Lord Himself, who spoke it, for He spoke from Himself, or from His Divine, and what proceeds from Him is also Himself.

[2] That the Divine proceeding is Himself, may be illustrated by this circumstance. Around every angel there is a sphere called the sphere of his life; this puts itself forth to a great distance from him. This sphere flows out, or proceeds from the life of his affection or love, therefore it is an extension of the life, such as it is in him, outside of him. This extension is effected in the middle atmosphere or spiritual aura, which is the aura of heaven. By that sphere an angel is perceived at a distance by others according to the quality of his affection; this it has also been granted me sometimes to perceive. But about the Lord there is a Divine sphere, which near Him appears as a Sun, which is His Divine love, from which that sphere proceeds into the whole heaven and fills it, and constitutes the light there; this sphere is the Divine proceeding from the Lord, which in its essence is Divine truth. A comparison is here made with the angels for the sake of illustration, in order that it may be known that the Divine proceeding from the Lord is the Lord Himself, because it is the proceeding of His love, and the proceeding is Himself outside of Himself; and from the signification of testimony, as denoting confession of the Lord, and the Lord Himself, of which we shall speak presently.

[3] That by the slain are here meant those who were rejected by wicked spirits, and concealed by the Lord, or removed from the eyes of others, and reserved to the day of the Last Judgment, is evident from what was said in the article above, and also from what follows in the two verses that treat solely of them. In the article above it was observed, that the former heaven which passed away, consisted of those who lived morally in externals, but yet were not spiritual, but merely natural, or who lived as it were a spiritual life, only from the affection or love of fame, honour, glory, and gain, thus for the sake of appearance. These, although they were inwardly evil, were still tolerated, and constituted societies in the higher places in the spiritual world; these societies, taken together, were called heaven, but the former heaven which afterwards passed away. Hence it came to pass, that all those who were spiritual, that is, who were not only outwardly but also inwardly good, could not be together with such, but withdrew from them, either of their own accord or from compulsion, and were subjected, where found, to persecutions; therefore they were concealed by the Lord, and reserved in their places to the day of Judgment, in order that they might constitute a new heaven; these, therefore, are those who are meant by the souls of the slain seen under the altar. Hence it is evident that by the slain are signified those who were rejected and hidden, for they were hated by the others on account of Divine truth and the confession of the Lord; and those who are hated are called the slain, for to hate is spiritually to kill. That they are meant by the souls of the slain, is evident also from what follows in the two verses where it is thus said concerning them:

"And they cried with a great voice, saying, How long, O Lord, who art holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth? And white robes were given unto every one; and it was said unto them, that they should rest yet a little time, until both their fellow-servants and their brethren, that should be killed as they were, should be fulfilled."

That those here spoken of are meant by the slain, no one can know except he to whom it has been revealed; for who, except from revelation, could know of whom the former heaven, mentioned in theApocalypse 21:1, consisted, and of whom the new heaven was formed; and that those of whom the new heaven was to be formed, were in the meantime concealed and reserved by the Lord? And unless these things had been revealed to some one, all the things contained in the Apocalypse in the internal sense must have remained hidden, because they principally treat of such things as were to take place in the spiritual world before the Last Judgment, also of those things that occurred during it, and after it.

[4] That by testimony is signified confession of the Lord, and the Lord Himself, is evident from the passages in the Word which follow. This signification thus derives its origin because the Word, in all things in general and particular, testifies concerning the Lord; for, in its inmost sense, it treats of the Lord alone, and in the internal sense, of the celestial and spiritual things that proceed from the Lord, and in the particular sense the Lord testifies concerning Himself with every one who is in the life of love and charity. For the Lord flows into the heart and life of such, and teaches them, especially concerning His Divine Human, for He gives to those who are in a life of love, to think of God under a human form, and God under a human form is the Lord. Thus do the simple think in the Christian world; and thus also do the Gentiles think, who live in charity according to their religious persuasion. Both of these are astonished when they hear the learned speak of God as not to be perceived under any human form, knowing that, in such case, they would see no God in their thought, and hence that they would have but little faith in the existence of a God, because the faith which is a faith of charity desires to comprehend in some way what is believed, for faith pertains to the thought, and to think what is incomprehensible is not to think, but only to know and thence to speak without any idea. The angels, even the wisest, do not think of God except as in the human form. To think otherwise is impossible to them, because their perceptions flow according to the form of heaven, which is the human form from the Lord's Divine Human (on which subject see the work concerning Heaven and Hell 59-86); also because the affections from which their thoughts come are from influx, and influx is from the Lord. These observations are made, in order that it may be known why it is that testimony signifies the Lord, namely, because the Lord testifies concerning Himself with all who receive His testification, and they are such as live a life of love to the Lord, and a life of charity towards the neighbour. The reason why these receive the testification and confess Him, is, that the life of love and charity opens the interior mind by the influx of light from heaven; for the life of love and charity is the Divine Life itself, for the Lord loves every one, and does good to every one from love; therefore, where that life is received, there the Lord is present, and is conjoined to him, consequently, He flows into his higher mind, which is called the spiritual mind, and by light from Himself opens it.

[5] That testimony signifies the Lord, and with man confession of the Lord from the heart, and specifically the acknowledgment of the Lord's Divine in His Human, is evident from this fact, that the law which was prescribed on Mount Sinai, and written upon two tables, and afterwards deposited in the ark, is called the Testimony; whence the ark also was called the ark of the testimony, and the tables also were called the tables of the testimony. And because this was most holy, therefore, the mercy-seat was placed over the ark, and over the mercy-seat were sculptured two cherubim, between which Jehovah, that is, the Lord, spoke with Moses and Aaron. Hence it is clear that the testimony signifies the Lord Himself; otherwise the mercy-seat would not have been placed over the ark, nor would the Lord have spoken with Moses and Aaron between the cherubim which was over the mercy-seat. When Aaron also entered within the veil, which he did once every year, he was first sanctified, and afterwards he burnt incense till the smoke of it covered the mercy-seat, which unless he had done, it is said that he would have died. From these things it plainly appears, that the testimony which was in the ark, and which was the law promulgated on Mount Sinai, and written on two tables of stone, signified the Lord Himself.

[6] That that law is called the testimony, is plain in Moses:

"Thou shalt put into the ark the testimony which I shall give thee" (Exodus 25:16).

"He put the testimony into the ark" (Exodus 40:20).

"The mercy-seat that is upon the testimony" (Leviticus 16:13).

"Leave the rods of the tribes before the testimony" (Num. 17:4).

That the tables and the ark were thence called the tables and the ark "of the testimony" (Exodus 25:22; 31:7, 18; 32:15). That the mercy-seat was placed over it, and over the mercy-seat two sculptured cherubim (Exodus 25:17-23; 26:34). That the Lord spoke with Moses and with Aaron between the two cherubim (Exodus 25:16, 21, 22; Numbers 17:4, and elsewhere). That they sanctified themselves before they entered thither, and that the smoke of the incense covered the mercy-seat lest they should die (Leviticus 16).

[7] That the testimony signifies the Lord, is also plain from this fact, that what was over the ark was called the mercy-seat; and the Lord is the Propitiator. The ark also, from the testimony in it, was the Holy of Holies, both in the tabernacle and in the temple, and hence the tabernacle was holy, and also the temple. The tabernacle and also the temple, represented heaven, and heaven is heaven from the Lord's Divine Human; whence it follows that by the testimony is signified the Lord as to His Divine Human. (That the tent of assembly represented heaven, may be seen, n. 9457, 9481, 9485, 10545. That the temple signified the same, may be seen above, n. 220; and that heaven is heaven from the Lord's Divine Human, in the work concerning Heaven and Hell 59-86.) The reason why the law promulgated from mount Sinai is called the testimony, is because that law, in a broad sense, signifies the whole Word, both historical and prophetical; and the Word is the Lord, according to these words in John:

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God; and the Word was made flesh" (1:1, 14).

The reason why the Word is the Lord is, that the Word signifies Divine truth, and all Divine truth proceeds from the Lord, for it is the light which in heaven enlightens the minds of the angels and also the minds of men, and gives them wisdom; this light in its essence is the Divine truth proceeding from the Lord as a Sun concerning which light see the work on Heaven and Hell 126-140). Hence it is that, after it is said that the Word was with God, and the Word was God, it is also said in John:

"In him was life; and the life was the light of men. That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world" (verses 4, 9, in that chapter).

[8] From these things it is also evident that the Lord is meant by the testimony; for the law written on two tables, which was called the testimony, signifies the Word in its whole extent, and the Lord is the Word. That the law, in a broad sense, signifies the Word in its whole extent, in a sense less broad the historical Word, and in a strict sense the ten precepts of the Decalogue, may be seen, n. 6762. This law was also called a covenant, and hence the tables on which it was written, were called the tables of the covenant, and the ark also was called the ark of the covenant (see Exodus 34:28; Num. 14:44; Deuteronomy 9:9, 15; Apoc. 11:19, and elsewhere); the reason of this was, that a covenant signifies conjunction, and the Word, or the Divine truth, is that which conjoins man with the Lord, otherwise no conjunction is possible. That a covenant signifies conjunction, may be seen, n. 665, 666, 1023, 1038, 1864, 1996, 2003, 2021, 6864, 8767, 8778, 9396, 10632. The reason why that law is called both a covenant and a testimony, is, because when it is called a covenant, the Word is meant, by means of which there is conjunction; and when it is called a testimony, the Lord Himself who conjoins is meant; also on the part of man, confession of the Lord, and acknowledgment of His Divine in His Human, which conjoin. From these things it can be seen why it is that, in the church, the Word is called a covenant; the Word which was before the Lord's Advent, the old covenant, and that which was after His Advent, the new covenant; it is called also the Old and New Testament, but it should be called Testimony.

[9] That by testimony is signified the Lord, and, on the part of man, confession of the Lord, and acknowledgment of His Divine in His Human, is plain also from these passages in the Word. In the Apocalypse:

"They overcame" the dragon "by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of the testimony. And the wrathful dragon went to make war with the remnant of her seed, who keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ" (12:11, 17).

And elsewhere:

"I am thy fellow-servant, and of thy brethren that have the testimony of Jesus. The testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy" (19:10).

By the testimony of Jesus being the spirit of prophecy is signified, that confession of the Lord, and the acknowledgment of His Divine in His Human, are the life of all truth, both in the Word, and in doctrine from the Word.

[10] And in another place:

"The souls of them that were slain with the axe for the testimony of Jesus, and for the word of God, have not received the mark upon their forehead and upon their hand" (20:4).

But this will be explained in what follows.

In David:

"Jerusalem is builded as a city that is compact together: and thither the tribes go up, the tribes of Jah, unto the testimony of Israel, to confess the name of Jehovah. For there the thrones for judgment are set" (Psalms 122:3-5).

By Jerusalem is signified the church as to doctrine, which is called builded, when established by the Lord; "as a city that is compact together," signifies doctrine in which all things are in order, a city denoting doctrine. Thither the tribes go up, the tribes of Jah, signifies that therein are all truths and goods in the aggregate. Unto the testimony of Israel, to confess the name of Jehovah, signifies confession and acknowledgment of the Lord there; for there the thrones for judgment are set, signifies that there is Divine truth according to which judgment is executed. That thrones signify this, see above, n. 253.

[11] In the same:

"Jehovah hath set up a testimony in Jacob, and a law in Israel" (Psalms 78:5).

By Jacob and Israel is signified the church; by Jacob the external church, and by Israel the internal church; and by the testimony and the law is signified the Word; by the testimony that which therein teaches the goods of life; and by the law that which therein teaches the truths of doctrine. Because those who are in the external church are in the good of life according to the truths of doctrine, and those who are in the internal church are in the truths of doctrine according to which the life [is formed], therefore, the testimony is said of Jacob; and the law, of Israel.

[12] In the same:

"If thy sons will keep my covenant, and the testimony that I shall teach them, thy sons shall also sit upon thy throne for evermore" (Psalms 132:12).

These things are said of David, but by David is there meant the Lord; by his sons are meant those who do the Lord's precepts; of them it is said: "If thy sons will keep my covenant" and My testimony; by covenant the same is meant as above by the law, namely, the truth of doctrine; and by testimony the same as above by testimony, namely, the good of life according to the truths of doctrine. Similar things are signified by covenant and testimonies in David (Psalms 25:10).

[13] Testimonies are mentioned in many passages in the Word and at the same time the law, precepts, commandments, statutes, and judgments; and by testimonies and commandments are there signified those things that teach life; by the law and precepts, those that teach doctrine; by statutes and judgments, those that teach rituals; as in the following passages in David:

"The law of Jehovah is perfect, recreating the soul; the testimony of Jehovah is sure, making wise the simple; the commandments of Jehovah are right, rejoicing the heart; the precept of Jehovah is pure, enlightening the eyes; the judgments of Jehovah are the truth, they are altogether just" (Psalms 14:7-9).

And in the same:

"Blessed are the sincere in the way, who walk in the law of Jehovah. Blessed are they that keep his testimonies, and that seek him with the whole heart. Thou hast taught thy commandments to be strictly kept. O that my ways were directed to keep thy statutes! Then shall I not be ashamed, when I have respect unto all thy precepts. I will confess to thee with uprightness of heart, when I shall have learned the judgments of thy justice" (119:1-7; similarly in verses 12-15, 88, 89, 151-156; and elsewhere).

10130. 'Everyone touching the altar will be sanctified' means whoever receives what is Divine and the Lord's. This is clear from the meaning of 'touching' as an imparting, conveying, and being received, dealt with below; from the meaning of 'the altar' as that which is representative of the Lord in respect of the good of love, at this point in heaven and in the Church, dealt with above in 10129; and from the meaning of 'being sanctified' as receiving what is Divine and the Lord's, also dealt with above, in 10128. The reason why 'touching' means an imparting, conveying, and being received is that a person's inner feelings are expressed by outward means, in particular by touch, and are thereby imparted and conveyed to another; and insofar as the will of the other is in tune and at one with his they are received. Whether you say the will or the love, it amounts to the same thing; for whatever a person loves he likewise wills. From this it also follows that the inner feelings a person has as a result of what he loves and therefore thinks are expressed through touch, and by means of it are imparted and conveyed to another. And insofar as the other loves the person expressing those feelings or loves the things which that person says and does, those feelings are received.

[2] This is especially apparent in the next life, for all people's actions there flow from the heart, that is, from their will or love. They are not allowed to act with gestures separate from their will or love, nor to speak with fraudulent lips, that is, separately from the thoughts of the heart. There it is evident how inner feelings are imparted and conveyed to another by touch, and how the other's reception of them is determined by his own love. Everyone's will or love constitutes the entire person there, and the sphere of life from it flows out from him like breath or an exhalation, envelops him, and constitutes an extension of himself, so to speak, around himself, in a way scarcely different from the emission around plants in the world, which is also detected at a distance through their odours, and also that around animals, which is actually detected by a dog with its keen sense of smell. There is a like emission from every human being, as also a wealth of experience makes known. But when a person lays aside the body and becomes a spirit or an angel that emission or exhalation is not material, as it was in the world; instead it is something spiritual flowing from his love. This love produces a sphere around him, which enables other spirits to detect at a distance what he is like. See what has been shown regarding this sphere in the places referred to in 9606.

[3] Since in their world this sphere is imparted and conveyed to another, and is received by him in accordance with his love, very many wonders occur there which are unknown to people in the world, such as,

1. People's presence with one another is always due to the likeness of their loves, and their absence from one another is always due to unlikeness.

2. All are brought into association with one another on the basis of their loves. Those governed by love to the Lord received from the Lord live in association with one another in the inmost heaven; those governed by love towards the neighbour received from the Lord live in association with one another in the middle heaven; and those governed by the obedience of faith, that is, those who do the truth for its own sake, live in association with one another in the lowest heaven. But those ruled by self-love and love of the world, that is, those who do what they do with selfish and worldly ends in view, live in association with one another in hell.

[4] 3. All turn their eyes towards those they love. Those who love the Lord turn their eyes towards the Lord as the Sun; those who love the neighbour with love received from the Lord turn their eyes towards the Lord as the Moon; and those who do the truth for its own sake act in a similar way. (Regarding the Lord as the Sun and as the Moon, see what has been shown in 1521, 1529-1531, 3636, 3643, 4060, 4321 (end), 5097, 5377, 7078, 7083, 7171, 7173, 8644, 8812.) And what is astonishing, whichever way they face, that is, whichever of the four quarters they turn towards, they still behold the Lord in front of them. The opposite is so with those in hell; the more they are ruled there by self-love and by love of the world, the more they turn from the Lord and have Him behind their back. And again this is so whichever way they face or whichever quarter they turn towards.

[5] 4. When an angel of heaven focuses his attention on others his inner feelings are imparted and conveyed to them, according to the amount and the essential nature of his love; and it is received by them according to the essential nature and the amount of their love. If therefore attention is focused by an angel of heaven on those who are good, it gives rise to gladness and joy; but if it is focused on the evil, it gives rise to pain and torment.

[6] But an imparting, conveying, and being received is also meant by touching with the hand because the whole body's capacity to act is concentrated in the arms and hands, and in the Word interior things are expressed by means of exterior ones. So it is that power is meant by 'the arms', by 'the hands', and especially by 'the right hand', see the places referred to in 10019, and what has been stated in 10023, 10076; and so it is that whatever resides with a person, thus the entire person in his capacity to act, is meant by 'the hands', see the places referred to in 10019. Furthermore all the outward senses of sight, hearing, taste, and smell are connected with touch, being varieties of touch, as is well known in the learned world.

[7] The meaning of 'touching' as an imparting, conveying, and being received is clear from a great number of places in the Word, of which let the following be brought to the fore: In Moses,

You shall anoint the tent of meeting, and the ark of the Testimony, and the table and all its vessels, and the lampstand and its vessels, and the altar of incense, and the altar of burnt offering and all its vessels, and the laver and its pedestal. Thus you shall sanctify them, that they may be the holy of holies. Everyone who touches them will be made holy. Exodus 30:26-29.

In the same author,

Everything that touches the remainder of the minchah and the remainder of the flesh from the sacrifices, which are for Aaron and his sons, will be made holy. Leviticus 6:18, 27.

In Daniel,

The angel touched Daniel ¹ and raised him onto his knees; and he touched his lips and opened his mouth; and again he touched him and strengthened him. Daniel 10:10, 16, 18.

In Isaiah,

One of the seraphim touched my mouth with the burning coal; he said, Behold, this has touched your lips, therefore your iniquity has departed and your sin is expiated. Isaiah 6:7.

In Jeremiah,

Jehovah put out His hand and touched my mouth, and said, I am putting ² My words into your mouth. Jeremiah 1:9.

In Matthew,

Jesus, stretching out a hand to the leper, touched him, saying, I am willing; be clean. And immediately his leprosy was cleansed. Matthew 8:3.

In the same gospel,

Jesus saw Peter's mother-in-law sick with a fever, and He touched her hand, and the fever left her. Matthew 8:14-15.

In the same gospel,

Jesus touched the eyes of the blind, and their eyes were opened. Matthew 9:29-30.

In the same gospel,

Jesus touched the eyes of the two blind men, and immediately they received sight. Matthew 20:34.

In Luke,

Jesus touched the servant's ³ ear and healed [him]. Luke 22:51.

In Mark,

They brought the sick to Jesus, that they might just touch the hem of His clothing; and as many as touched [Him] were made well. Mark 6:56; Matthew 14:36.

In Luke,

A woman suffering from a discharge of blood touched the hem of Jesus' garment; and immediately the flow of blood stopped. Jesus said, Who is it who touched Me? Someone touched Me; I perceived that power had gone out from Me. Luke 8:44-48.

In Mark,

They brought young children to Jesus, that He might touch them. And He took them up in His arms, laid His hands on them, and blessed them. Mark 10:13, 16.

[8] From these quotations it is evident that 'touching' means an imparting, conveying, and being received.

[9] This is similarly evident in places where uncleannesses are the subject, by which evils and falsities that come from the hells are meant in the internal sense, as in Moses,

Whoever touches the dead body of any person ⁴ will be unclean for seven days. Whoever touches a dead body, that of a person who has died ⁵ , and has not expiated himself, defiles Jehovah's dwelling-place; therefore this soul shall be cut off from Israel. Everyone who has touched on the surface of the field one slain with the sword, or one dead, or a human bone, or a sepulchre will be unclean for seven days. Whoever touches the water of separation will be unclean until the evening. Everything that the unclean person has touched will become unclean; and the soul who has touched it will be unclean until the evening. Numbers 19:11, 13, 16, 21-22.

In the same author,

He who touches unclean beasts, unclean creeping things, will be unclean until the evening. Everything onto which [any of them] falls will be unclean; whether it is a wooden vessel, a garment, water, an earthenware vessel, food, drink, an oven, a spring, a cistern, [or] a water-tank, it will be unclean. Leviticus 11:31-36.

The like occurs at Leviticus 5:2-3; 7:21.

In the same book,

[A person] who has a discharge is unclean. A man (vir) who touches that person's bed ..., if he sits on a vessel on which the person has sat ..., whoever touches that person's flesh [or] his garments ..., if someone suffering from a discharge spits on one who is clean ..., a seat ⁶ on which he rides ..., an earthenware vessel ..., a wooden vessel ..., he will be unclean. Leviticus 15:1-end.

So too one who touches a leper, Leviticus 22:4. In the same book,

If any of the carcass falls onto any sowing seed which is sown, it will be clean. But if water is put onto the seed, and the carcass falls onto it, it will be unclean. Leviticus 11:37-38.

[10] By these uncleannesses are meant various kinds of evils and consequent falsities coming from hell, which have been imparted, conveyed, and received. Each particular uncleanness means some specific evil; for evils are what render a person unclean, because they infect his soul. Also the evils in their hearts gush out of evil spirits and genii, and - depending on how convincing the false ideas accompanying evil are - they infect those who are present. This contagious influence is what is meant by touching uncleannesses.

[11] In Moses,

Of the fruit from the tree which is in the middle of the garden you shall not eat, nor shall you touch it, or else you will die. Genesis 3:3.

In the same book,

The angel who wrestled with Jacob, seeing that he did not prevail against him, touched the socket of his thigh, and the socket of the thigh was out of joint. Genesis 32:25.

In the same author,

Moses said that they should not touch anything that belonged to Korah, Dathan, and Abiram, lest they be consumed on account of all their sins. Numbers 16:26.

In Isaiah,

Depart, depart. Do not touch the unclean thing. Go out from the midst of her; be purified, bearers of Jehovah's vessels. Isaiah 52:11.

In Jeremiah,

They went astray blind in the streets, they are defiled with blood. Things which have no power they touch with their garments. Depart; he is unclean. They cry out to them, Depart, do not touch [us]. Lamentations 4:14-15.

In Haggai,

Behold, if a man carries ⁷ holy flesh in the skirt of his garment, and his skirt touches bread, or wine, or oil, or any food whatever, still it will not be made holy. If one who is unclean from a dead body ⁸ touches any of them whatever still he will be unclean. Haggai 2:12-14.

In Hosea,

Perjuring, and lying, and killing, and stealing, and committing adultery; they commit robbery, and blood touches blood ⁹ . Therefore the land will mourn. Hosea 4:2-3.

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