以色列人的教会要想代表属灵的东西，只能是在外在的行为上，因为当时的人对耶和华没有真正的观念，对耶和华或对其他的人没有真正的爱。这是西波拉所做的交易，他代表的是古代教会的人，他们确实还有这种内在的敬拜。

用电石割掉她儿子的包皮，代表着利用耶和华的教导，将外在的假象和邪恶的思想传给以色列人的教会--基本上禁止百姓按自己邪恶的欲望行事。这就暴露了以色列人的内部状态，也是邪恶的，但会让主把外在的敬拜和祭祀形式强加在他们身上。把包皮摸到她儿子的脚上（有些译本说是摩西的脚，但原文指出是婴儿的脚），代表了这些事要在外在的、自然的层面上做，因为那是脚的意思。

最后，西伯拉称摩西为 "血的新郎"（同样，有的译本说是 "丈夫"，但 "新郎 "更接近原文）。从最高的意义上说，"新娘 "代表教会，"新郎 "代表主--但这不是最高的意义。西波拉确实代表真正的教会，但作为 "血的新郎"，摩西代表的是以色列人心中的邪恶，以及他们对所要代表的美好事物的实际暴力。

在某些方面，我们很难听到以色列的子民被人用如此严厉的字眼来形容他们。我们习惯了把他们当作 "被拣选的 "民族，当作跟随耶和华，真神的人。但是，如果我们考虑到他们是多么经常、多么容易陷入偶像崇拜，以及他们的故事中所反映出的随意的残酷，我们就不难相信，他们的 "被拣选 "身份与他们是什么样的人没有什么关系，更多的是与他们在人类更大的属灵历史中所代表的东西有关。

(参考: 属天的奥秘7044, 7045, 7046, 7047)

5328. 'Or his foot' means all power in the natural. This is clear from the meaning of 'foot' as the natural, dealt with in 2162, 3147, 3761, 3986, 4280, 4931-4952. Here power within the natural is meant because 'lifting up the foot', like 'lifting up the hand', means power, though 'lifting up the hand' means power in the spiritual, whereas 'lifting up the foot' means power in the natural; for the parts within the body that are above the feet correspond to spiritual things. This is especially evident from the Grand Man or the three heavens.

[2] Whenever the whole of heaven is displayed visually as one human being, the inmost or third heaven presents itself as the head, the middle or second heaven presents itself as the body, and the lowest or first as the feet. The reason the inmost or third heaven presents itself as the head is that it is celestial; the reason the middle or second heaven presents itself as the body is that it is spiritual; and the reason the lowest or first presents itself as the feet is that it is natural. By 'the neck' therefore, since this is an intermediate part, is meant the inflow and communication of celestial things with spiritual ones; and by 'the knees', since these are likewise intermediate, is meant the inflow and communication of spiritual things with natural ones. From this it is evident that 'lifting up the hand' means power within the spiritual, while 'lifting up the foot' means power within the natural, and therefore that the power meant by 'the hand' has regard to the spiritual, namely to truth grounded in good, 3091, 3567, 4932. By the spiritual is meant that within the natural which belongs to the light of heaven, and by the natural that within the natural which belongs to the light of the world; for everything belonging to the light of heaven is called spiritual, and everything belonging to the light of the world is called natural.