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Esekiel第23章

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1 Og Herrens ord kom til mig, og det lød så:

2 Menneskesønn! Der var to kvinner, døtre av en mor.

3 De drev hor i Egypten, i sin ungdom drev de hor; der trykket de deres bryster, der kjente de på deres jomfruelige barm.

4 Deres navn var: Ohola, den eldste, og Oholiba, hennes søster, og de blev mine og fødte sønner og døtre; og om deres navn er å si: Ohola er Samaria og Oholiba* Jerusalem. / {* Ohola d.e. hennes eget telt; så kalles Samaria fordi de ti stammer hadde sin egen selvvalgte gudstjeneste. Oholiba d.e. mitt (Herrens) telt er i det; så kalles Jerusalem fordi Herrens tempel var der.}

5 Ohola drev hor og var utro mot mig; hun optendtes av elskov til sine elskere, til assyrerne, som hadde nærmet sig henne,

6 klædd i blått purpur, fyrster og herrer, alle sammen fagre unge menn, ryttere på sine hester.

7 Hun holdt sig til dem i hor, til alle de ypperste av Assurs sønner; hun gjorde sig uren med alle dem som hun optendtes av elskov til - med alle deres avguder.

8 Men sitt horelevnet fra Egypten lot hun ikke fare; for de hadde ligget hos henne i hennes ungdom, og de hadde kjent på hennes jomfruelige barm, og de hadde utøst sitt hor over henne.

9 Derfor gav jeg henne i hennes elskeres hånd, i Assurs sønners hånd, som hun var optendt av elskov til.

10 De avdekket hennes blusel, tok hennes sønner og døtre og slo henne selv ihjel med sverdet; hun blev navnkundig blandt kvinnene, og de holdt dom over henne.

11 Og hennes søster Oholiba så det og drev det verre med sin elskov enn hun, og verre med sitt hor enn hennes søster hadde gjort.

12 Hun optendtes av elskov til Assurs sønner, fyrster og herrer, som hadde nærmet sig henne, prektig klædd, ryttere på sine hester, alle sammen fagre unge menn.

13 Jeg så at hun var blitt uren; en og samme vei gikk de begge.

14 Men hun drev sitt hor videre. Da hun så menn avbildet på veggen, billeder av kaldeerne malt med rødt,

15 omgjordet med belte om sine lender, med nedhengende farvede huer på sine hoder, alle sammen å se til som vognkjempere, en avbildning av Babels sønner, hvis fødeland er Kaldea,

16 da optendtes hun av elskov, så snart hun så dem med sine øine, og hun sendte bud til dem i Kaldea.

17 Og Babels sønner kom til henne, til elskovs samleie, og gjorde henne uren med sitt hor; men da hun var blitt uren ved dem, vendte hennes sjel sig bort fra dem.

18 Da hun drev sitt hor så åpenbart og avdekket sin blusel, vendte min sjel sig bort fra henne, likesom min sjel hadde vendt sig bort fra hennes søster.

19 Men hun drev sitt hor ennu videre; hun kom sin ungdoms dager i hu, da hun drev hor i Egyptens land,

20 og hun optendtes av elskov til horkarlene der, hvis kjøtt var som aseners kjøtt, og hvis utflod var som hesters utflod.

21 Så søkte du igjen til din ungdoms utukt, da egypterne kjente på din barm for dine ungdommelige brysters skyld.

22 Derfor, Oholiba, sier Herren, Israels Gud, så: Se, jeg egger dine elskere imot dig, dem som din sjel har vendt sig bort fra, og jeg lar dem komme over dig fra alle kanter.

23 Babels sønner og alle kaldeerne, Pekod og Sjoa og Koa*, og sammen med dem alle Assurs sønner fagre unge menn, fyrster og herrer alle sammen, vognkjempere, navnkundige menn, alle sammen ridende på hester. / {* tre nabofolk til kaldeerne.}

24 De skal komme over dig med krigsmakt, vogner og hjul, og med en skare av folkeslag; store skjold og små skjold og hjelmer skal de stille mot dig på alle kanter, og jeg vil overlate dommen til dem, og de skal dømme dig med sine dommer.

25 Jeg vil vise min nidkjærhet mot dig, og de skal fare frem mot dig i harme; din nese og dine ører skal de skjære av, og de som blir igjen av dig, skal falle for sverdet; de skal ta dine sønner og døtre, og de som blir igjen av dig, skal fortæres av ilden.

26 De skal dra dine klær av dig og ta dine prektige smykker.

27 Således vil jeg gjøre ende på din utukt og ditt horelevnet fra Egyptens land, og du skal ikke mere løfte dine øine til dem og ikke mere komme Egypten i hu.

28 For så sier Herren, Israels Gud: Se, jeg gir dig i deres hånd som du hater, i deres hånd som din sjel har vendt sig bort fra.

29 Og de skal fare frem mot dig i hat og ta alt det du har vunnet ved ditt strev, og la dig bli tilbake naken og bar, og din utuktige blusel og din skamløshet og ditt hor skal bli avdekket.

30 Dette skal de gjøre med dig fordi du i hor har løpet efter hedningefolk, fordi du har gjort dig uren med deres motbydelige avguder.

31 På din søsters vei har du gått; derfor rekker jeg dig det samme beger som hun måtte tømme.

32 sier Herren, Israels Gud: Din søsters beger skal du drikke, det dype og vide; du skal bli til latter og spott - det rummer meget.

33 Av rus og sorg skal du bli full - et ødeleggelsens og herjingens beger er din søster Samarias beger.

34 Du skal drikke det ut til siste dråpe, og du skal gnage på dets skår og sønderrive dine bryster; for jeg har talt, sier Herren, Israels Gud.

35 Derfor sier Herren, Israels Gud, så: Fordi du glemte mig og kastet mig bak din rygg; så bær da også du straffen for din utukt og ditt hor!

36 Og Herren sa til mig: Menneskesønn! Vil du dømme Ohola og Oholiba? Forehold dem deres vederstyggeligheter!

37 For de har drevet hor, og der er blod på deres hender, med sine motbydelige avguder har de drevet hor; ja, endog sine barn, som de hadde født mig, har de latt gå gjennem ilden for dem, forat de skulde ete dem.

38 Også dette gjorde de mot mig: Den samme dag gjorde de min helligdom uren og vanhelliget mine sabbater.

39 Når de hadde slaktet sine barn for sine motbydelige avguder, kom de samme dag i min helligdom og vanhelliget den; se, således gjorde de i mitt hus.

40 Ja, de sendte endog bud efter menn som skulde komme langveis fra; der blev skikket sendebud til dem, og se, de kom de som du hadde badet dig og sminket dine øine og smykket dig med prydelser for.

41 Og du satt på et prektig leie, og et bord stod dekket foran det, og min røkelse og min olje hadde du satt på bordet.

42 Lyden av en sorgløs mengde hørtes der inne*, og til de menn av folkehopen som var der, hentedes drikkebrødre fra ørkenen, og de satte armbånd på deres** hender og prektige kroner på deres hoder. / {* i Jerusalem.} / {** Oholas og Oholibas.}

43 Da sa jeg om den utslitte skjøge: Nu driver de rett hor med henne, ja med henne.

44 De gikk inn til henne som folk går inn til en skjøge; således gikk de inn til Ohola og Oholiba, de utuktige kvinner.

45 Men rettferdige menn skal dømme dem, som horkvinner dømmes og kvinner som utøser blod; for horkvinner er de, og blod er der på deres hender.

46 For så sier Herren, Israels Gud: Jeg vil føre en folkeskare frem mot dem og overgi dem til mishandling og ran.

47 Og folkeskaren skal stene dem og hugge dem sønder med sine sverd; deres sønner og døtre skal de slå ihjel, og deres hus skal de brenne op med ild.

48 Således vil jeg gjøre ende på utukten i landet, og alle kvinner skal la sig advare og ikke drive slik utukt som I.

49 Eders utukt skal legges på eder selv, og I skal bære straffen for eders synder med eders motbydelige avguder, og I skal kjenne at jeg er Herren, Israels Gud.

   

来自斯威登堡的著作

 

Apocalypse Explained#724

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724. And she brought forth a male child.- That this signifies the doctrine of truth, which is for the New Church, which is called the New Jerusalem, is plain from the signification of a son, as denoting truth, and of a male (masculus) child, as denoting the genuine truth of the church, consequently its doctrine, for the truth of the church from the Word is its doctrine, since doctrine contains the truths that are for the church. But the genuine doctrine of the church is the doctrine of good, that is the doctrine of life, which is that of love to the Lord and of charity towards the neighbour; still it is doctrine of truth, for doctrine teaches life, love, and charity, and so far as it teaches these it is truth. For when a man knows and understands what good is, what life is, what love is, and what charity is, he then knows and understands those things as truths, since he knows and understands what good is, how he ought to live, what love and charity are, and what kind of man he is who is in the life of love and charity. And as long as these things are matters of knowledge (scientia) and of the understanding, they are merely truths, and thus doctrines; but as soon as they, from being knowledge and understanding, pass over into the will, and thus into act, they are then no longer truths but goods, for interiorly man wills nothing but what he loves, and that which he loves is to him good.

From these things it is evident, that every doctrine of the church is a doctrine of truth, and that the truth of doctrine becomes good, and becomes that of love and charity, when from doctrine it passes into life.

[2] This doctrine, signified here by a male child, is especially the doctrine of love to the Lord, and of charity towards the neighbour, thus it is the doctrine of the good of life, but which is yet the doctrine of truth. That the doctrine of the good of love, and thence of life, is here signified by a male child, is evident from this, that the woman, who brought forth the son, was seen encompassed with the sun, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars. And the sun signifies love to the Lord, and the crown of twelve stars signifies the knowledges of good and truth; and from such a woman and mother, nothing could be born except what pertains to love and good, thus doctrine concerning them. This therefore is the male (masculus) child.

[3] That doctrine is for the New Church, which is called the New Jerusalem, because the woman treated of in this chapter is the one that is called the bride, the Lamb's wife, which was the holy city Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God (21:9, 10). This is why she was seen encompassed with the sun, for the sun means the Lord as to Divine Love, as may be seen above (n. 401, 525, 527, 708). The male child also signifies the doctrine of the church, because a son, in the Word, signifies truth, and the doctrine of the church is truth in its whole extent.

That a son, in the Word, signifies truth, is evident from what has been said before concerning the woman, the womb, and bringing forth, namely, that woman signifies the church, womb the inmost of love and the reception of truth from good, while to bring forth signifies the production and fructification of these. See above concerning woman (n. 707); the womb (n. 710); and bringing forth (n. 721). From this it follows that sons and daughters, since they are births, signify the truths and goods of the church, sons its truths, and daughters its goods; in a word, that all terms relating to marriage and thus to procreation on earth, signify such things as belong to the marriage of good and truth, thus father, mother, sons, daughters, sons-in-law, daughters-in-law, grandsons, and several other terms, signify goods and truths procreating, and goods and truths procreated, and in fact derivative goods and truths in their order.

[4] But it must be understood that goods and truths procreating are in the spiritual man, and those which are procreated are in the natural man; and that those which are in the spiritual man are like the father and mother, and those which are from these in the natural man are like brothers and sisters; and again that the truths and goods that are further procreated as if from sons married within marriageable limits, and from daughters married also within the same, are in the natural man, after these, as parents, have been raised up into the spiritual man. For all conception, and all travail or gestation in the womb take place in the spiritual man, but birth itself takes place in the natural man. The spiritual man is therefore continually enriched by the elevation into it out of the natural man, of truths and goods, which, like parents, will procreate anew; therein also all things are associated like the societies of heaven, according to the affections for truth and good, and their relationships and affinities. It is therefore clear that those spiritual procreations, like the natural procreations from a father and mother, are multiplied like families and houses on earth, and are made fruitful like trees from seeds, from which arise in the spiritual man gardens, called paradises, but groves and orchards in the natural, and shady forests in the sensual man.

[5] But because sons are mentioned in many places in the Word, and since it has not yet been known that they signify the truths of the church and of doctrine, out of many passages I will cite only the following for the purpose of proof.

In the Evangelists:

Jesus said, "He who leaveth houses, brethren, sisters, father, mother, wife, children, lands, for my name's sake, shall receive a hundredfold, and shall obtain the inheritance of life eternal" (Matthew 19:29; Mark 10:29, 30).

"Every one who cometh to me, and hateth not his father, mother, wife, children, brethren, and sisters, yea, his own soul, is not my disciple" (Luke 14:26).

Who cannot see that father, mother, wife, children, brethren, and sisters, also houses and lands, are not here meant, but such things as belong to man himself, and are called his own? For these things a man must leave and hate, if he desires to worship the Lord, to be His disciple, to receive a hundredfold, and to obtain the inheritance of life eternal. The things that are a man's own are those that are of his love, and thus of his life into which he is born, consequently they are evils and falsities of every kind; and because these are of his love and life, it is therefore said that he must also hate his own soul. These evils and falsities are signified by father and mother, wife, children, brethren, and sisters; for all those things, which belong to the love and life of man, or to the affection and the thought therefrom, or to the will and thus to the understanding, are formed and conjoined like generations, descending from one father and one mother, and are also distinguished as into families and houses. The love of self and consequent love of the world are their father and mother, and the desires arising therefrom, and their evils and falsities are the children, which are brethren and sisters. That this is the meaning is clearly evident from this, that the Lord could not desire that any one should hate his father and mother, or wife or children, or brethren or sisters, since this would be contrary to the spiritual love implanted in every one from heaven, which is that of parents for their children, of children for their parents, and also contrary to conjugial love, which is that of the husband for his wife, and of the wife for her husband, also contrary to mutual love, which is that of brothers and sisters for one another; in fact, the Lord even teaches that enemies must not be hated, but loved. It is evident from these things that the terms denoting consanguinities, affinities, and relationships in the Word, mean consanguinities, affinities, and relationships in a spiritual sense.

[6] In the same:

Jesus said to His disciples, "The brother shall deliver the brother to death, the father the son, and children shall rise up against their parents, and shall deliver them to death" (Matthew 10:21; Mark 13:12).

"The father shall be divided against the son, and the son against the father, the mother against the daughter, and the daughter against the mother, the mother-in-law against the daughter-in-law, and the daughter-in-law against the mother-in-law" (Luke 12:53).

That these things are not to be understood according to the letter is clear from what precedes, where Jesus says that He came not to give peace upon the earth, but division; and that "there shall be five in one house divided, three against two, and two against three," which signifies that falsities and evils will fight against truths and goods, and truths and goods against falsities and evils - which is the case when man comes into temptations and is being reformed; this combat is signified by division and rising up. That "the father shall be divided against the son, and the son against the father," signifies that evil will fight against truth, and truth against evil, the father there denoting the evil, which is man's proprium, and the son the truth which man has from the Lord. That the desire for falsity will fight against affection for truth, and affection for truth against the desire for falsity, is signified by "the mother shall be divided against the daughter, and the daughter against the mother," mother here denoting the desire for falsity, and daughter affection for truth; and so on. That this is the meaning is also evident from the words of the Lord elsewhere, where He says, that in Him "they shall have peace," thus not division (John 14:27; 16:33).

[7] In Luke, the angel said to Zechariah concerning John,

"He shall go before" the Lord "in the spirit and power of Elias, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the sons" (1:17).

And in Malachi:

"I will send to you Elijah the prophet, before the great and terrible day of Jehovah cometh, that he may turn the heart of the fathers to the sons, and the heart of the sons to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse" (4:5, 6).

John the Baptist was sent before to prepare the people for the reception of the Lord by baptism, for baptism represented and signified purification from evils and falsities, and also regeneration through the Word by the Lord. Unless this representation had preceded, the Lord could not have manifested Himself and taught and lived in Judea and Jerusalem, since He was God of heaven and God of earth under a human form, and could not have been in the midst of a nation which was in mere falsities as to doctrine, and in mere evils as to life. Unless therefore that nation had been prepared for the reception of the Lord by a representative of purification from falsities and evils by baptism, it would have been destroyed by diseases of every kind at the presence of the Divine Itself. This then is the signification of the words, "Lest I come and smite the earth with a curse." That this would have been the case is well known in the spiritual world, for there those who are in falsities and evils are direfully tormented and spiritually die at the presence of the Lord.

[8] The baptism of John was able to produce such an effect, because the Jewish church was a representative church, and with them all conjunction of heaven was effected by representatives, as is also evident from the washings commanded therein. As for example all who became unclean had to wash themselves and their garments, and were then regarded as clean; similarly the priests and Levites washed themselves before they entered the tent of assembly and afterwards the temple, to perform their sacred duties; also Naaman was cleansed from leprosy by washing in Jordan. Washing and baptism did not themselves purify them from falsities and evils, but they only represented, and thus signified, purification from these; nevertheless this was received in heaven, as though they themselves had been purified. It was in this way that heaven was conjoined with the people of that church through the baptism of John; and when heaven was thus conjoined to them, the Lord, who was the God of heaven, could manifest Himself to them, teach them, and dwell among them. That Jerusalem and all Judea, and all the region about Jordan went out to John, and were baptized by him in Jordan, confessing their sins, is evident in Matthew (chap. 3:5, 6), and that he said to them,

"O generation of vipers, who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come" (Luke 3:7).

That the Jews and Israelites were conjoined to heaven by means of representatives may be seen in the Doctrine of the New Jerusalem 248).

This now was the reason why John was sent before to prepare the way of the Lord, and to prepare the people for Him. It may be concluded from these things what is signified by turning the heart of the fathers to the sons, and the heart of the sons to the fathers, namely, that it means to induce a representation of the conjunction of spiritual goods with truths, and of truths with goods, thus of regeneration by the Lord by means of the Word. For regeneration is the conjunction of goods with truths, and of truths with goods, and it is the Lord who regenerates, and the Word which teaches.

[9] It was said of this John that he should go before the Lord in the spirit and power of Elijah, and that he was Elijah, because John, like Elijah, represented the Lord as to the Word, and thus signified the Word, which is from the Lord; and as there is Divine Wisdom and Divine Power in the Word, these are meant by the spirit and power of Elijah. That the Word is of such a nature may be seen in Heaven and Hell 303-310), and in the small work on the White Horse.

[10] That sons signify truths from the Word, is also evident from the following passages.

In David:

"Lo, sons are a heritage of Jehovah, the fruit of the belly a reward; as darts in the hand of a mighty man, so are sons of youth; happy is the man who hath his quiver full of them, they shall not be ashamed when they speak with enemies in the gate" (Psalm 127:3-5).

Sons who are a heritage of Jehovah, and the fruit of the belly which is a reward, mean the truths and goods of the church; sons mean truths, and the fruit of the belly means goods, for both of these are a reward and a heritage of Jehovah, that is, heaven, which is from truths and goods, namely, from the reception of them. Sons of youth, who are as darts in the hands of a mighty man, signify the truths of the Ancient Church, which were natural truths from a spiritual source; this church is meant by youth. And because these truths have all power against evils and falsities, it is therefore said, "As darts in the hand of a mighty man," darts signifying truths destroying falsities. Doctrine from truths is signified by quiver because it is also signified by bow; and as those who are in doctrine from those truths fear nothing from falsities, it is said, "Happy is the man that hath his quiver full of them; they shall not be ashamed when they speak with enemies in the gate;" not to be ashamed denoting not to be conquered, and enemies in the gate the falsities of evil which are from hell.

[11] In the same:

"Deliver me out of the hand of the sons of the stranger, whose mouth speaketh vanity, and their right hand is the right hand of a lie; for our sons are as plants, become great in their youth, and our daughters as cornerstones hewn out in the model of a palace" (Psalm 144:11, 12).

That the sons of the stranger here mean falsities is plain, for it is said, "Whose mouth speaketh vanity, and their right hand is the right hand of a lie;" and that our sons signify truths is also plain, for it is said, "They are as plants, become [great] in their youth," plants also denoting truths, and youth denoting here, as above, the Ancient Church, which possessed genuine truths. Our daughters signify the affections for truth, which are therefore compared to cornerstones hewn out in the model of a palace, because a palace is a representative of the understanding in which truths are in a beautiful form, and they are in a beautiful form when they are from affection for truth.

[12] In Micah:

"Make thee bald and poll thee, because of the sons of thy delights; enlarge thy baldness as the eagle, for they have gone away from thee" (1:16).

Mourning because the truths of the church are destroyed is described by making bald, and by polling themselves, for the hair signifies truths in ultimates, and those who are without truths in ultimates are also without internal truths; for this reason those in the spiritual world who have no truths from good appear bald. That truths are destroyed is signified by "the sons of thy delights have gone away from thee"; they are called sons of delights from the love of truths and consequent delights.

[13] In Zechariah:

"He saw two olive trees at the right hand of the lampstand and at the left, and he said, These are the two sons of the olive standing by the Lord of the whole earth" (4:11, 14).

The two olive trees signify the two churches, the celestial church and the spiritual church, the former at the right hand of the lampstand, and the latter at the left; the sons of the olive signify the truths of those churches, which are doctrinals.

[14] In the same:

"I will bend Judah for me, I will fill Ephraim with the bow, and I will stir up thy sons, O Zion, with thy sons, O Javan; and I will set thee as the sword of a mighty man" (9:13).

The sons of Zion and the sons of Javan signify the internal and external truths of the Word, the sons of Zion internal truths, and the sons of Javan external truths. The signification of the rest of the passage may be seen above (n. 357:1, 433:8), where it is explained. Because sons signify truths, it is said, that they shall be set as the sword of a mighty man, the sword of a mighty man signifying truth effectually destroying falsity.

[15] In Isaiah:

"I will raise up against them the Medes, whose bows shall dash in pieces the young men, and they will have no pity on the fruit of the belly, their eye will not spare the sons" (13:17, 18).

Because the Medes mean those who make no account of the truths and goods of the church, it is also therefore, said, "Their eye will not spare the sons," for sons denote the truths of the Word and of the church; but these things may be seen explained above (n. 710:24).

[16] In Jeremiah:

"My tent is laid waste, and all my cords plucked away; my sons have departed from me, and they are not" (10:20).

The tent which is laid waste, signifies the church as to the good of love and worship from it, for all worship in ancient times was performed in tents, and afterwards in the tent of assembly, in memory of which the feast of tents or tabernacles was instituted. All my cords are plucked away, signifies that there is no conjunction of truth with good, or of truths with each other, which thus fall apart; and consequently no conjunction of heaven with the church. My sons have departed from me, and they are not, signifies that the truths of the church from the Word have been dissipated, and that man has thus removed himself from the Lord.

[17] In the same:

"Behold, I bring back the captivity of the tents of Jacob, and I will have pity on his dwelling-places, that the city may be built upon her own heap, and the palace shall be inhabited after its own manner, and his sons shall be as aforetime, and his congregation shall be established before me" (30:18, 20).

The tents of Jacob and his dwelling-places, signify all things of the church and its doctrine; tents signify its goods, and dwelling-places its truths; their captivity signifies spiritual captivity which exists when the truths and goods of the Word cannot be perceived, because of the dominion of falsities. To shake off falsities and to teach truths is signified by bringing back the captivity. That the city may be built upon its own heap, signifies doctrine from truths, which has become a ruin through falsities, city meaning doctrine; and the palace shall be inhabited after its manner, signifies the spiritual understanding of truths, as was the case with the ancients, palace denoting the understanding of spiritual truths; for in the understanding there are spiritual truths in their own forms, which appear like palaces when they are presented to the sight. His sons shall be as aforetime, and his congregation shall be established before Me, signifies that the truths of the church shall be as they were with the ancients, and that their forms shall remain as they did with them in a restored conjunction, sons here denoting truths, and congregation their conjunction and arrangement into forms, such as exists in the understanding of the man of the church, from which he has intelligence; after its manner and aforetime, mean as with the ancients.

[18] In Lamentations:

"Mine eye runneth down with waters, because the counsellor who refresheth my soul is far from me; my sons are made desolate, because the enemy hath prevailed" (1:16).

Mourning because the church is devastated is meant by Mine eye runneth down with waters; its devastation as to truths is signified by My sons are made desolate; that this is done by the falsities of evil, is signified by The enemy hath prevailed, - the enemy denoting falsity of evil and the hell from which it springs.

[19] In Isaiah:

"Awake, awake, rise up, O Jerusalem, who hast drunk out of the hand of Jehovah the cup of his anger; thou hast sucked out the dregs of the cup of trembling; there is none to lead her of all the sons whom she hath brought forth, nor any to take her by the hand of all the sons whom she hath brought up. Thy sons have fainted, they lie at the head of all the streets" (51:17, 18, 20).

The restoration of the church, which had fallen into mere falsities of evil, is signified by Awake, awake, rise up, O Jerusalem, who hast drunk out of the hand of Jehovah the cup of His anger, thou hast sucked out the dregs of the cup of trembling. Jerusalem denotes the church as to doctrine, to awake and rise up denotes its restoration, to drink the cup of anger denotes falsity, and the dregs of the cup mere falsities from which are evils, and to attract these is signified by drinking and sucking. There is none to lead her of all the sons whom she hath brought forth, nor any to take her by the hand of all the sons whom she hath brought up, signifies that none of the truths of the Word which she has learned and imbibed will lead her away from falsities, sons here meaning truths. Thy sons have fainted, they lie at the head of all the streets, signifies that truths are dispersed by falsities of every kind; because sons denote truths, fainting signifies to be dissipated, and to lie at the head of all the streets signifies by means of falsities of every kind, for the streets of a city signify true doctrinals, here false doctrinals.

[20] In the same:

"Fear not, Jacob, I will bring thy seed from the east, and I will gather thee from the west; I will say to the north, Give up, and to the south, Keep not back, bring my sons from afar, my daughters from the end of the earth" (43:5-6).

This is not said of the posterity of Jacob, but of the Gentiles, of whom the church is to be formed. Jacob and his seed mean those who will be of that church. That it must be formed of those who are in falsities from ignorance, and thus in obscurity as to truths, is signified by I will gather thee from the west, and I will say to the north, Give up; and that these must not be repelled but accepted by those who are in the good of love and in the truths of doctrine in their lucidity, is signified by I will bring thy seed from the east, and I will say to the south, Keep not back; for the east signifies the good of love in lucidity, the south the truth of doctrine in lucidity, the west the good of love in obscurity, and the north the truth of doctrine in obscurity, such as those are in who, from ignorance of truth, are in falsities, and yet desire truths. Those quarters have such significations, because, in the spiritual world, all dwell distinctly in those quarters according to the light of truth and the affection for good in which they are. These things have a similar signification in Matthew, where it is said that the elect are to be gathered together "from the four winds, from the ends of the heavens, even to the ends of them" (24:31). That all those who are in falsities from ignorance, and yet in the desire for truth, are to be brought into that church, is signified by Bring my sons from afar, and my daughters from the end of the earth; sons denoting those who are in truths, and daughters those who are in affection for truths; thus also, in a sense removed from persons, they signify truths and their affections; and afar off and the end of the earth signify removal from the light of truth, because they are in falsities from ignorance, through not possessing the Word, and having no understanding of its meaning.

[21] In the same prophet:

"They shall hasten thy sons; thy destroyers and they that lay thee waste shall go out from thee; behold, I will lift up my hand towards the nations, and towards the peoples will I raise up my sign, that they may bring thy sons in the bosom, and carry thy daughters upon the shoulder" (Isaiah 49:17, 22).

This also treats of the establishment of a new church by the Lord. The sons whom they shall hasten, and whom they shall bring in the bosom, and the daughters whom they shall carry upon the shoulder, mean all those who are in truths and in affection for them, and in a sense removed from persons, truths themselves and affections for them with those who will be of the new church; destroyers and they that lay waste signify falsities of evil; that these must be removed is signified by They shall go out from thee.

[22] In the same:

"The isles shall trust in me, and the ships of Tarshish in the beginning, to bring thy sons from afar, their silver and their gold with them" (60:9).

This also is said of the church of the Gentiles; and the sons who shall be brought, signify those who will receive truths. The rest of the passage may be seen explained above (n. 50, 406:10, 514:5).

In Hosea:

"I will not destroy Ephraim, they shall go after Jehovah, like a lion he shall roar, because he shall roar, and with honour shall sons approach from the sea; with honour they shall come, as a bird from Egypt, and as a dove from the land of Assyria, and I will cause them to dwell in their own houses" (11:9-11).

Sons from the sea, signify truths scientific (vera scientifica) and rational truths; it is therefore said that "they shall come as a bird from Egypt, and as a dove from the land of Assyria"; Egypt signifying the Natural, and Assyria the Rational, both of them as to truths; but these things have also been explained above (n. 275:19, 601:7, 654:22).

[23] And in David:

"Hear this, all ye peoples, perceive in the ear, all ye inhabitants of the age, both the sons of man (homo) and the sons of man (vir), the rich and the poor together; my mouth shall speak wisdoms, and the meditation of my heart intelligences" (Psalm 49:1-3).

The sons of man (homo), signify spiritual truths which are from the Lord through the Word, and these are doctrinals, while the sons of man (vir), signify rational and natural truths, which are from the understanding, thus they signify the understanding of the Word; the rich and the poor, signify those who are wise from these in many things, and those who are wise in few things.

[24] In the same:

Jehovah, "return, look down from the heavens, and see and visit this vine, and the shoot which thy right hand hath planted, and upon the son whom thou hast made strong for thyself; let thy hand be for the man (vir) of thy right hand, for the son of man (homo) whom thou hast made strong for thyself" (Psalm 80:14, 15, 17).

This David said of the church and of himself, which is the sense of the letter, for by the shoot and by the son he meant himself; but in the spiritual sense, the vine and the shoot which Jehovah planted signify the spiritual church, represented by the sons of Israel. The son whom He made strong for Himself, signifies the truth of doctrine from the Word; the man of the right hand, for whom is the hand, and the son of man, whom He had made strong for Himself, signify the truth of the Word in the natural sense, which is the sense of the letter, and the truth of the Word in the spiritual sense, which is the internal sense.

[25] In Ezekiel:

"Behold, I will profane my sanctuary, the greatness of my strength, the desire of your eyes, and the fondness of your soul; and your sons and your daughters, whom ye have left, shall fall by the sword" (24:21, 25).

This describes the devastation of all truth which those have who are of the church. The sanctuary which He will profane signifies the Word from which is the church, for this is the sanctuary itself, since it is Divine Truth; from its power against falsities and evils, which are from hell, it is called The greatness of the strength of Jehovah; from intelligence and heavenly life therefrom, it is called The desire of your eyes, and the fondness of your soul. That all truths with affection for them will perish through falsities is signified by Your sons and your daughters shall fall by the sword, - sons denoting truths, daughters, affections for truth, and the sword, falsity destroying the truth.

[26] In Moses:

"When the Most High gave the nations an inheritance, when he separated the sons of man, he set the bounds of the people, according to the number of the sons of Israel" (Deuteronomy 32:8).

This is said of the ancient churches which preceded the Israelitish, and of the establishment of these by the Lord; the nations mean those who were in the good of love, and the sons of man those who were in truths of doctrine from that good; that these had all truths and goods is signified by He set the bounds of the people, according to the number of the sons of Israel. That the twelve sons of Israel, or the twelve tribes, represented and thus signified the church as to all truths and goods, may be seen above (n. 39, 430, 657).

[27] In Jeremiah:

"Shame hath devoured the labour of our fathers from our childhood, their flocks and their herds, their sons and their daughters; we lie down in our shame, and our reproach doth cover us" (3:24, 25).

In the same:

"Behold, I bring upon you a nation from afar, O house of Israel, which shall devour thy harvest and thy bread; it shall devour thy sons and thy daughters, it shall devour thy flock and thy herd, it shall devour thy vine and thy fig tree, it shall impoverish thy fortified [cities] in which thou trustest, with the sword" (5:15, 17).

These words in the spiritual sense, describe the devastation of all things of the church with the Israelites. The nation from afar, signifies the falsity of evil, which is the falsity of the sensual man, destroying truths; harvest, bread, sons, daughters, flock, herd, vine, and fig-tree, which that nation will devour, signify all things of the church; harvest and bread, its truths and goods in regard to nourishment; sons and daughters, its truths and goods in regard to generation; flock and herd, spiritual and natural truths and goods; vine and fig-tree, the internal and external spiritual church therefrom.

[28] In Ezekiel:

"Though these three men, Noah, Daniel, and Job, were in the midst of it, as I live, if they delivered their sons or their daughters, they only shall be delivered, and the land shall become a desolation; I will bring a sword upon the land, and I will cut off from it man and beast" (14:14, 16-18, 20).

By these words the devastation of the church is also described as to all the truths of good and the goods of truth, except with those who are reformed by means of truths from the Word, and by temptations; these are signified by Noah, Daniel, and Job. That with the rest all the truths of good and goods of truth will perish is signified by They should not deliver their sons or their daughters, but they only would be delivered; the devastation of the church by falsities is signified by The land shall become a desolation, and I will bring a sword upon the land, - land denoting the church, and sword falsity destroying truth. That all spiritual and natural truth will be destroyed, and that all intelligence and knowledge (scientia) of truth will consequently perish, is signified by I will cut off from it man and beast.

[29] In the same:

"The fathers shall eat the sons in the midst of thee, and the sons shall eat their fathers; I will execute judgments in thee, and all thy remnant I will scatter unto every wind" (5:10).

In Moses:

"[It was said] among the curses, that they should eat the flesh of their sons and of their daughters" (Leviticus 26:29).

The fathers shall eat the sons, and the sons the fathers, signifies that evils will destroy truths, and falsities goods, fathers denoting evils and goods, and sons falsities and truths; and because everything of spiritual life with man thus perishes, it is said that judgments will be executed, and the remnant scattered unto every wind, the remnant denoting the truths and goods stored up by the Lord in man from his infancy and childhood.

[30] We read also, that they led away their sons to idols to be devoured, and for food, and through the fire; as in the following passages.

In Ezekiel:

"Thou hast taken thy sons [and thy daughters] whom thou hast brought forth to me, and these thou hast sacrificed unto them to be devoured. Is this of thy whoredoms a small matter? Thou hast slaughtered my sons, and hast delivered them up, when thou madest them to pass through unto them. Thou art thy mother's daughter, and the sister of thy sisters, they loathed their husbands and their sons" (16:20, 21, 45).

These things are said of the abominations of Jerusalem. And by sacrificing their sons and daughters to idols to be devoured is signified to destroy and consume all the truths and goods of the church; to do this to truths from the Word, is signified by slaughtering the sons, and making them to pass through unto them; that the truths and goods of the Word are destroyed by falsifications and adulterations, is signified by whoredoms here and elsewhere in that chapter.

[31] In the same:

"I will pollute them with their gifts, in that they led through [the fire] every opening of the womb, that I might make them desolate. Wherefore ye offer gifts, when ye led your sons through the fire ye are polluted by all your idols" (20:26, 31).

To destroy truths by the evils of the love of self, and by desires from the proprium, is signified by leading the sons through the fire and [to destroy them] by falsities, is signified by being polluted with idols. That idols signify falsities of doctrine, and worship from [man's] own intelligence, may be seen above (n. 587).

[32] In the same:

Oholah and Oholibah "committed whoredom, and blood was in their hands, and with their idols they committed whoredom; their sons also whom they begat to me they led through unto them for food" (Ezekiel 23:37).

Oholah and Oholibah mean Samaria and Jerusalem, Samaria means the spiritual church, and Jerusalem the celestial, each as to doctrine. Falsifications and adulterations of the Word are signified by their committing whoredom, and by blood being in their hands; the falsities which thence spring up from [their] own intelligence are signified by their idols with which they committed whoredom; the signification of leading their sons through [the fire] to the idols for food, namely, that they destroyed the truths of the Word by falsities is therefore evident.

[33] As sons signify truths, therefore "the seeds which fell into the good ground" are called by the Lord "sons of the kingdom; " and "the tares" which denote falsities, sons of the evil (Matthew 13:38). Also those who are in truths are called "sons of light" (John 12:36); those who are in the marriage of truth and good from the Lord, are called "sons of the nuptials" (Mark 2:19); and those who are regenerated, "sons of God" (John 1:11-13). Because stones, in the Word, signify truths, John the Baptist said, "God is able of these stones to raise up sons unto Abraham" (Luke 3:8). That stones signify the truths upon which interior truths are based may be seen in the Arcana Coelestia 643, 1298, 3720, 6426, 8609, 10376).

[34] As sons signify truths, so in the opposite sense they also signify falsities, as in some of the passages quoted above, also in these words of Isaiah:

"Prepare the slaughter for her sons, for the iniquity of their fathers; that they may not rise and possess the land, and the faces of the earth be filled with cities. I will rise against them, and I will cut off from Babel the name and the residue, and the son and the grandson; and I will make her a heritage for the bittern, and pools of waters, and I will sweep her with the besom of destruction" (14:21-23).

This is said of Babel, which signifies adulteration of the Word and profanation. Here the total vastation of truth with those who are meant by Babel is treated of. That truths with them were utterly destroyed through adulteration of the Word is signified by Prepare the slaughter for her sons, that they may not rise and possess the land, and the faces of the earth be filled with cities; the land means the church in which there are truths, and cities mean doctrinals from mere falsities. That all truths from primaries to ultimates would perish, is signified by cutting off from Babel the name and the residue, the son and the grandson; that nothing whatever of truth would remain, is signified by she shall be swept with the besom of destruction.

[35] It must be understood that sons, in the passages above quoted, signify those who are in truths, or those who are in falsities. But because the spiritual sense of the Word has nothing in common with persons, therefore in that sense sons signify truths or falsities apart from the idea of personality. The spiritual sense is of such a nature, because the idea of person limits thought and its extension into heaven in every direction; for all thought that proceeds from affection for truth extends through heaven on all sides, nor has it any termination except like light into shade; but when a person is at the same time thought of, then the idea together with intelligence has its termination, where the person is; this is why sons, in the spiritual sense, signify truths or falsities considered apart from personality.

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

来自斯威登堡的著作

 

Apocalypse Explained#433

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433. Of the tribe of Judah were sealed twelve thousand. That this signifies love to the Lord, and that all who are in that love are in heaven, and come into heaven, is evident from the representation and consequent signification of Judah and his tribe, as denoting love to the Lord, concerning which we shall speak presently; from the signification of twelve thousand, as denoting all and all things, see above (n. 430); here, all who are in that love; and from the signification of the sealed, as denoting those who are distinguished and separated from those who are in evil, consequently those who are in good; also see above (n. 427). That they denote those who are in heaven, and come into heaven, follows as a consequence, for they were sealed in their foreheads, that is, were separated from the evil; for they are those of whom it is said in the Apocalypse,

"A Lamb standing on the mount Zion, and with him a hundred and forty and four thousand, having his Father's name written in their foreheads. These are they who were not defiled with women; for they are virgins. These were bought from among men, the first-fruits unto God and to the Lamb" (14:1, 3, 4).

Here by the mount Zion is signified heaven, where there is love to the Lord. For all who are signified by the twelve thousand out of every tribe, or by the hundred and forty and four thousand sealed in their foreheads, are they who acknowledge the Lord and love Him; therefore the first tribe named is the tribe of Judah, and by that tribe is signified love to the Lord. For, as was stated above (n. 431), the representation of heaven is according to the order in which the tribes are named, and from the first name, or the first tribe mentioned, flow the determinations and significations of those that follow, with variety.

[2] Moreover, no one is admitted into heaven but by the Lord, for the whole heaven is His, therefore no one can be there, or come there, unless he acknowledge Him and love Him. To love Him is not merely to love Him as to person, but to live according to His precepts. This the Lord teaches in unmistakable words:

"At that day ye shall know that I am in my Father, and ye in me, and I in you. He that hath my commandments and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me. If a man love me, he will keep my word; and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him. He that loveth me not keepeth not my sayings" (John 14:20-24).

It is said that they love the Lord, who do and observe His commandments and words, because His commandments and words signify Divine truths, and all Divine Truth proceeds from Him, and that which proceeds from Him is Himself; wherefore, when man lives the Divine Truth, then the Lord is in him, and he in the Lord; it is therefore said, "ye in me and I in you," and that He will come and make His abode with him. This, then, is to love the Lord. To love is also to be conjoined, for love is spiritual conjunction, and conjunction is effected by the reception of Divine Truth in doctrine and in life.

[3] Before it is shown from the Word that Judah, or the tribe named from Judah, signifies love to the Lord, the signification of Judah in the Word in every sense shall be explained. In the highest sense, Judah signifies the Lord as to celestial love; in the internal sense, the celestial kingdom of the Lord, and the Word; and in the external sense, doctrine from the Word such as relates to the celestial kingdom. And because in the highest sense the Lord as to celestial love is signified, and in the internal sense the celestial kingdom, therefore love to the Lord is also signified, for this love with man is reciprocal and reigns in the Lord's celestial kingdom. There are two kingdoms into which the whole heaven is distinguished, the celestial kingdom and the spiritual kingdom. The celestial kingdom consists of those who are in love to the Lord, and the spiritual kingdom, of those who are in love towards the neighbour. It is therefore evident, what is meant by celestial love, and spiritual love. Concerning these kingdoms, see Heaven and Hell 20-28). The Jews and Israelites represented these two kingdoms, the Jews, the celestial kingdom, and the Israelites, the spiritual kingdom. Judah also signifies the Word, because the Lord is the Word, and He assumed the Human in that tribe, in order that He might be the Word as to the Human also. In agreement with this fact it is said 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, and dwelt among us" (1:1, 14).

The Word signifies the Lord as to Divine Truth proceeding from His Divine Love. Those, therefore, are in the love of the Lord, who love the Divine Truth in the Word, by doing it.

[4] That the Lord, as to celestial love, is signified by Judah, also love to the Lord, and similarly the Word, is clear from the following passages.

In Moses:

"Judah, thou art he whom thy brethren shall praise; thy hand shall be on the neck of thine enemies; thy father's sons shall bow down before thee. Judah is a lion's whelp; from the prey, my son, thou art gone up; he stooped down, he couched as a lion, and as an old lion; who shall rouse him up? The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a law-giver from between his feet, until Shiloh come; and unto him shall be the obedience of the people. He binds his foal unto the vine, and his ass's colt unto the choice vine; he washeth his garment in wine, and his vesture in the blood of the grapes: his eyes shall be red with wine, and his teeth white with milk" (Genesis 49:8-12).

By Judah are here described, in the spiritual sense, the celestial kingdom of the Lord, and the Lord Himself as to celestial love. Celestial love is the love of the Lord received in the celestial kingdom, and spiritual love is the love of the Lord received in the spiritual kingdom. The signification of the above words is as follows: Thy brethren shall praise thee, signifies that the celestial church surpasses the rest; for the brethren or tribes named from the sons of Jacob, who were his brethren, signify the church. Thy hand shall be on the neck of thine enemies, signifies that the infernal and diabolical throng shall be expelled and kept back, enemies denoting those who are from hell. Thy father's sons shall bow down before thee, signifies the submission of all the truths of the church; to bow down is to submit themselves, the father's sons denoting all truths of the church, for all the truths of the church are implanted in those who are in love to the Lord, and are therefore in the celestial kingdom. Judah is a lion's whelp, signifies innocence with innate powers; for love to the Lord, considered in itself, is innocence, signified by whelp; innate powers are signified by a lion. From the prey, my son, thou art gone up, signifies the liberation of many from hell. He stooped down, he couched as a lion, and as an old lion, signifies the good of love, and truth thence in its power; for to stoop down, when stated of a lion, is to put himself into a powerful attitude. Who shall rouse him up? signifies that he is safe wherever he is, and that he cannot be moved by the hells. The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, signifies that power shall not depart from the good of celestial love; nor a law-giver from between his feet, signifies that the truths of the Word shall not [depart] from its ultimate sense; until Shiloh come, signifies the coming of the Lord, and tranquillity of peace at that time. And unto him shall be the obedience of the people, signifies truths from Him, and conjunction by means of them. He binds his foal unto the vine signifies the external church, and the truths thereof from the Lord; and his ass's colt unto the choice vine, signifies the internal church, and truths thereof from the Lord. He washeth his garment in wine, signifies the external or natural Human of the Lord, which is Divine Truth from His Divine Love; and his vesture in the blood of the grapes, signifies the Lord's internal or rational Human which is Divine Good from His Divine Love. His eyes shall be red with wine, signifies that the internal or rational Human is nothing but good; and his teeth white with milk, signifies that the external or natural Human is nothing but the good of truth. From the particulars in this description, it is evident that Judah does not mean Judah, but something eminently celestial, as described above. But these things are explained more in detail in the Arcana Coelestia 6363-6381).

[5] In Ezekiel:

"Thou son of man, take thee one stick, and write upon it, For Judah and for the sons of Israel his companions; then take one stick and write upon it, For Joseph, the stick of Ephraim, and of all the house of Israel. And afterwards join them one to another into one stick, that they may both be one in mine hand. Behold, I will take the stick of Joseph, which is in the hand of Ephraim, and of the tribes of Israel his companions, and will put it, even with the stick of Judah, and make them one stick. I will take the sons of Israel from among the nations, whither they be gone, and will gather them from every side, and bring them into their own land; and will make them into one nation upon the land in the mountains of Israel; and one king shall be king to them all; and they shall be no more two nations, neither shall they be divided into two kingdoms any more at all. David my servant shall be king over them, and shall be as one shepherd to them all; they shall also walk in my judgments, and observe my statutes, and do them. Then they shall dwell in the land that I have given unto Jacob my servant, wherein your fathers dwelt; and they shall dwell therein, they, and their sons, and their sons' sons for ever; and my servant David shall be their prince for ever. Moreover I will make a covenant of peace with them; it shall be an everlasting covenant with them; and I will place them, and multiply them, and will set my sanctuary in the midst of them for evermore. My tabernacle also shall be with them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people" (Ezekiel 37:16-27).

No one can know what these words signify, unless he know the signification of Judah and Israel, and of Joseph and Ephraim. That Judah and Israel are not meant, nor Joseph and Ephraim, is evident; for it is said that the tribes of Israel dispersed among the nations shall be gathered together and brought into the land of Canaan, and that David shall be their king and prince for ever, and that he shall dwell with them for ever. Who does not know that the tribes of Israel cannot be gathered together, and that David will not be king over them any more? Therefore it must be known what is signified in the spiritual sense by Judah, by the sons of Israel, also by Joseph and Ephraim, by David, and by the land of Canaan. By Judah, in the spiritual sense, is signified the Lord's celestial kingdom; by the sons of Israel, the Lord's spiritual kingdom; by Joseph and Ephraim, and by the tribes of Israel that are dispersed and are to be gathered together, are meant those who are beneath those kingdoms, because they are neither celestial nor spiritual, but natural, and yet are in the good of life according to their religion.

[6] These also are meant by the Lord where He says in John,

"And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold; them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one flock, and one shepherd" (10:16).

For these were not in heaven before the Lord's coming, but were taken there by Him after He had glorified His Human; the reason of this was, that the proceeding Divine could not previously reach them. When this is known, and also that David means the Lord as to Divine Truth proceeding from His Divine Human, the signification of the details in a series in the previous passage may be known. The reason why these things were written upon two pieces of wood, and the two pieces afterwards joined into one, was, that wood signifies the good of life, and all conjunction in heaven is brought about by means of good, and according to it. That wood signifies the good of life, may be seen in the Arcana Coelestia 643, 2784, 3720, 8354).

[7] In Isaiah,

when the Lord "shall set up an ensign for the nations, and shall assemble the outcasts of Israel, and gather together the dispersed of Judah, from the four corners of the earth, then the envy also of Ephraim shall depart, and the adversaries of Judah shall be cut off; Ephraim shall not envy Judah, and Judah shall not vex Ephraim. But they shall fly upon the shoulder of the Philistines towards the sea" (11:12-14).

These things were said concerning the salvation of the nations, which are also signified by the outcasts of Israel, and the dispersed of Judah, for it is said that the Lord shall set up an ensign for the nations. By the outcasts of Israel are meant those who are not in truths, but yet in the desire of learning them; and by the dispersed of Judah are meant those who are in the good of life, and by means of that in love to the Lord, for those who love to do good, love the Lord, the Lord being in that good, because it is from Him. Ephraim means the Intellectual, in this case, in harmony with the good of love; and that they shall no longer be at enmity with each other, is meant by, "At that time the envy also of Ephraim shall depart; Ephraim shall not envy Judah, and Judah shall not vex Ephraim." That they shall be separated from those who are in faith apart from charity, is signified by, "They shall fly upon the shoulder of the Philistines towards the sea." The Philistines towards the sea denote those who separate faith from charity or from the good of life, the sea signifying the ultimate of heaven where it ceases (desinit); and to fly upon the shoulder denotes to reject, and to separate themselves.

[8] In Zechariah:

"Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem; behold, thy King cometh unto thee; he is just and faithful. I will bend Judah for me, I will fill the bow Ephraim, and I will raise up thy sons, O Zion" (9:9, 13).

These things are said concerning the coming of the Lord and the establishment of a church by Him with those who are in the good of love and in the truths of doctrine thence. The daughter of Zion, and the daughter of Jerusalem, signify the church with them. Thy King who cometh just and faithful, is the Lord, from whom are the good of love and the truth of doctrine. I will bend Judah for me, I will fill the bow Ephraim, signifies that the church is to be established with those who are in the good of love to the Lord, and in the truths of doctrine thence. Judah here means those who are in the good of love to the Lord; and Ephraim, truths of doctrine; for Ephraim signifies the Intellectual of the church, and a bow, the doctrine of truth. That a bow signifies doctrine may be seen above (n. 357:1), where these things are also explained. Such are denoted by the sons of Zion. That the Jewish nation is not here meant by Judah, nor Ephraim by Ephraim, is evident; for the Lord's church was not established with the Jewish nation, for it was not received by them, and the tribe of Ephraim did not then exist.

[9] In the same:

"Jehovah of hosts will visit his flock, the house of Judah, and will make them as the horse of his glory in the battle. Out of him the corner, out of him the nail, out of him the bow of war. And I will strengthen the house of Judah, and I will save the house of Joseph, and I will cause them to dwell. And they of Ephraim shall be like a mighty man, and their heart shall rejoice as with wine" (Zech. 10:3-7).

By the house of Judah is here also meant the Lord's celestial kingdom, which consists of those who are in love to Him, and by Ephraim are meant those who are in the truths of doctrine thence. For all those who are in His celestial kingdom are in truths of doctrine, because they have truths, as it were, implanted in and inscribed on their hearts, as may be seen in Heaven and Hell 25, 26). The remainder of this passage is explained above (n. 355:28, 376:22).

[10] In the same:

"Sing and rejoice, O daughter of Zion; for, lo, I come, and I will dwell in the midst of thee. And many nations shall be joined to Jehovah in that day, and shall be my people. Jehovah shall make Judah a heritage for himself, his portion in the holy land, and shall choose Jerusalem again" (2:10-12).

That the Jewish nation is not meant here by Judah, nor Jerusalem by Jerusalem, is also very evident; for the subject is the coming of the Lord, at which time that nation altogether fell away, and Jerusalem was afterwards destroyed. And yet it is said, that "Jehovah shall make Judah a heritage for himself, his portion in the holy land, and shall choose Jerusalem again." Judah therefore means those who are in love to the Lord, and Jerusalem the church as to doctrine with them.

[11] So in Nahum:

"Behold, upon the mountains the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that proclaimeth peace! Keep thy feasts, O Judah, perform thy vows; for the wicked shall no more pass through thee; every one shall be utterly cut off" (1:15).

These words also refer to the Lord. His coming is meant by, "Behold, upon the mountains the feet of him that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace!" By keeping their feasts, and performing their vows, is signified to rejoice at His coming, and to worship Him; by the wicked no more passing through Judah, and every one being utterly cut off, is signified that evil shall not be with them, because they are in the Lord. These things could not have been said of the Jewish nation, but they are said of those who are in love to the Lord. It is therefore evident that such are meant by Judah.

[12] In Malachi:

"Behold, I send my messenger, who shall prepare the way before me; and the Lord shall suddenly come to his temple. Then shall the meat-offering of Judah and Jerusalem be pleasant to Jehovah, according to the days of an age, and according to the former years" (3:1, 4).

That these words relate to the coming of the Lord, and that by the messenger who should be sent to prepare the way before Him is meant John the Baptist, is known in the church. That the meat offering of Judah and Jerusalem shall then be pleasant to Jehovah, signifies that then there shall be acceptable worship from the good of love to the Lord. The meat-offering of Judah signifies that worship. That the worship of the Jewish nation and of Jerusalem was not acceptable is plain, for they did not acknowledge the Lord, but rejected Him altogether. According to the days of an age, and according to the former years, signifies according to the worship in the ancient churches. The Most Ancient Church which was before the flood, and was in love to the Lord, is signified by "the days of an age," or of eternity, and the Ancient Church which existed after the flood, and was a spiritual church, is meant by "the former years."

[13] In Joel:

"And it shall come to pass in that day, that the mountains shall drop down new wine (mustum), and the hills shall flow with milk, and all the rivers of Judah shall flow with waters, and a fountain shall come forth out of the house of Jehovah, and shall water the stream of Shittim. Egypt shall be a desolation, and Edom shall be a desolate wilderness, for the violence of the sons of Judah, whose innocent blood they have shed in their land. But Judah shall dwell for ever, and Jerusalem unto generation and generation" (3:18-20).

Here also the subject is the coming of the Lord, and the new heaven and the new earth at that time. The mountains shall drop down new wine (mustum), signifies that all truth shall be from the good of love. That mountains signify the good of love, see above (n. 405); and that wine (vinum) and new wine (mustum) signify truth, see also above (n. 376). The hills shall flow with milk, signifies spiritual life from the good of charity towards the neighbour. All the rivers of Judah shall flow with waters, signifies that from the particulars of the Word there shall be truths productive of intelligence. A fountain shall come forth from the house of Jehovah, and water the river of Shittim, signifies that out of heaven from the Lord shall come the truth of doctrine, which will enlighten those who are in cognitions and knowledges. Egypt shall be a desolation, and Edom shall be a desolate wilderness, signifies that false principles, and the evils of the love of self, both of them from the natural man, shall be destroyed. For the violence of the sons of Judah, whose innocent blood they have shed in their land, signifies on account of the falsified truths, and adulterated goods of the Word, which they have corrupted and destroyed. Judah shall dwell for ever, and Jerusalem unto generation and generation, signifies that the Word, and the doctrine of genuine truth thence, shall remain to eternity with those who are in love to the Lord. It is therefore evident also, that Judah is not meant there by Judah, nor Jerusalem by Jerusalem.

[14] In the same prophet:

"O Tyre, and Zidon, and all the coasts of the Philistines, speedily will I return your recompense upon your own head; because ye have taken my silver and my gold, and have carried into your temples my goodly pleasant things. The sons also of Judah, and the sons of Jerusalem, have ye sold unto the sons of the Grecians, that ye might remove them far from their borders" (Joel 3:4-6).

Tyre and Zidon, and the Philistines, mean those who have falsified the truths and goods of the Word; my silver and my gold, signify those truths and goods, and to carry them into their temples, signifies to falsify and profane them; to sell the sons of Judah, and the sons of Jerusalem to the sons of the Grecians, signifies to pervert and falsify all the truths and goods of the Word; the sons of Judah denote the goods of the Word, the sons of Jerusalem, its truths, and the sons of the Grecians, falsities; to remove them far from their borders, signifies far from truths themselves. He who does not know the spiritual sense of the Word, may suppose that those who were in Tyre and Zidon, and in Philistia, sold the sons of Judah and Jerusalem to the Grecians, but this is a prophecy in which the nations indicated signify things of the church.

[15] In Jeremiah:

"In those days the house of Judah shall walk with the house of Israel, and they shall come together out of the land of the north to the land that I gave for an inheritance unto your fathers" (3:18).

The subject of this passage is also the coming of the Lord, and the new church from Him. His coming is meant by the words "in those days," and the new church, by the house of Judah, and the house of Israel. The church formed of those who are in love to the Lord, is signified by the house of Judah, and the church formed of those who are in charity towards the neighbour, and called the spiritual church, by the house of Israel. They shall come together out of the land of the north to the land which I gave for an inheritance to their fathers, signifies that they shall come out of the ignorance and the falsities, in which they then were, into the cognitions and light of the truth of the church. The land of the north signifies a state of ignorance, and what is false in religion, and the land given for an inheritance to their fathers signifies the church which is in the cognitions and light of truth. These things are said concerning the Gentiles, out of whom a new church was to be formed; because it is well known that the house of Judah and the house of Israel did not come out of the land of the north when the Lord was in the world; for the Jews were in the land of Canaan at that time, and the Israelites had been scattered abroad.

[16] In the same prophet:

"Behold, the days come, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and he shall reign a king and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth. In his days shall Judah be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely: and this is his name whereby he shall be called, Jehovah our Justice" (Jeremiah 23:5, 6; 33:15, 16).

The subject here is clearly the Lord, the Branch of David who shall reign a king and shall be called Jehovah our justice. In his days Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely, signifies that those will be saved who are in love to Him, and in charity towards the neighbour, as stated above. It is evident that Judah was not saved, and that Israel was neither recalled, nor could be recalled, so as to dwell safely, that is, without infestation from evils and falsities.

[17] In the same prophet it is said:

"And I will bring Israel again to his habitation, that he may feed on Carmel and Bashan, and his soul shall be satisfied upon Mount Ephraim and Gilead. In those days, and in that time, the iniquity of Israel shall be sought for, and the sins of Judah, and they shall not be found" (Jeremiah 50:19, 20). Here, also, the subject is the establishment of the church among the Gentiles by the Lord, and these are meant by Israel, who shall be brought again to his habitation, and also by Judah, whose sins, it is said, shall not be found. That they shall be led by the Lord, and instructed in the good of charity, is meant by the words, And they shall feed on Carmel and Bashan, and on Mount Ephraim and Gilead.

[18] Again, in Zechariah:

"In that day, saith Jehovah, I will smite every horse with astonishment, and his rider with madness; and I will open mine eye upon the house of Judah. In that day will I make the governors of Judah like a furnace of fire among wood, and like a torch of fire in a sheaf; and they shall devour all the peoples round about, on the right hand and on the left; and Jerusalem shall dwell again in her own place, even in Jerusalem. Jehovah also shall save the tents of Judah first" (12:4, 6, 7).

The subject here is the devastation of the former church; and the establishment of a new church by the Lord. The devastation of the former church is described by the words, in that day, saith Jehovah, I will smite every horse with astonishment, and his rider with madness. For horse signifies the understanding of truth with man, and a rider, intelligence, as may be seen above (n. 355). The house of Judah signifies the church with those who are in the good of love to the Lord; concerning this it is said that the Lord shall open His eye upon it. That evils from hell shall be dispersed by them and with them, and also falsities, is signified by the words, in that day will I make the governors of Judah like a furnace of fire among wood, and like a torch of fire in a sheaf; and they shall devour all the peoples round about, on the right hand and on the left. That that church shall be safe from the infestation of evils and falsities, is signified by, "and Jerusalem shall dwell again in her own place, even in Jerusalem;" and that the Lord shall utterly save those who are in love to Him, is signified by, Jehovah shall save the tents of Judah first.

[19] Again, in Isaiah:

"The word" of Jehovah "concerning Judah and Jerusalem. And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the mountain of Jehovah shall be established at the head of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it. And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and we will go up to the mountain of Jehovah, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and let us walk in his paths" (2:1-3).

These things also are said of the new church to be established by the Lord. By the mountain of Jehovah, which shall then be established at the head of the mountains, is meant Zion, and it signifies the celestial church, and love to the Lord, which they possess who belong to that church. That this is the chief thing of the church, and that it shall increase and gain strength, is signified by its being at the head of the mountains, and exalted above the hills. That those who are in good shall acknowledge the Lord, and enter the church, is signified by all nations flowing to that mountain, for nations signify those who are in celestial good, which is the good of love to the Lord, and peoples, those who are in spiritual good, which is the good of charity towards the neighbour. Of the latter it is said, And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of Jehovah, to the house of the God of Jacob. That nations signify those who are in celestial good, and people, those who are in spiritual good, see above (n. 331).

[20] Again, in the same prophet:

"Jehovah, thy Redeemer, and thy Former from the womb, that confirmeth the word of his servant, and performeth the counsel of his messengers; that saith to Jerusalem, Thou shalt be inhabited; and to the cities of Judah, Ye shall be built, and I will raise up the waste places thereof" (Isaiah 44:24, 26).

Here again the subject is the coming of the Lord, who is "Jehovah thy Redeemer and thy Former from the womb." He is called Redeemer from the fact of His liberating from hell; and He is called the Former from the womb because He is the regenerator of man. The prediction of the prophets concerning Him, and concerning the salvation of man, is meant by the words He confirmeth the word of his servant, and performeth the counsel of his messengers. That those who are of His church are to be saved and to be instructed in the truths of heavenly doctrine, is meant by the words, That saith to Jerusalem, Thou shalt be inhabited, and to the cities of Judah, Ye shall be built. Jerusalem denotes the church, and the cities of Judah, the truths of heavenly doctrine. That the falsities, which destroy the church, shall be shaken off, is meant by, I will raise up the waste places thereof. It is a well-known fact that the Lord did not say Jerusalem should be inhabited and that the cities of Judah should be built, but that Jerusalem should be destroyed, and this actually came to pass.

[21] Again, in the same prophet:

"I will bring forth a seed out of Jacob, and out of Judah an inheritor of my mountains; in order that mine elect may possess it, and my servants may dwell there" (Isaiah 65:9).

Here Jacob and Judah, do not mean a people from Jacob, and a nation from Judah, but the church to be established by the Lord. By Jacob is meant the church which is in the good of life; and by Judah, the church which is in the good of love to the Lord, therefore Jacob means the external church, and Judah, the internal church. By seed are meant charity and faith, and by mountains the goods of love. Those who are in charity are called the elect, and those who are in truths from the good of love are called servants, it is therefore said, "In order that mine elect may possess it, and my servants may dwell there."

[22] Again, in Ezekiel:

"Judah, and the land of Israel, they were thy traders; they traded in the wheat of Minnith and pannag, and honey, and oil, and balm" (Ezekiel 27:17).

These words were spoken of Tyre, which signifies the church as to the cognitions of truth and good, and, therefore, the cognitions of truth and good of the church are signified by Tyre. Its merchandize and tradings are here treated of, and they describe how those cognitions are procured, in the present case, those which are procured from Judah and from the land of Israel. And because by Judah is signified the good of love, and by Israel, truth from that good, therefore its tradings are said to be wheat of Minnith and pannag, and honey, and oil, and balm, because by wheat of Minnith and pannag, are signified the truths and goods of the church of every kind. Honey signifies the good of love in the natural man; oil, the good of love in the spiritual man; and balm, the truths that are grateful from good. See above (n. 375:35), where these words are more fully explained. What the various nations mentioned in that chapter signify is evident from the commodities named therein when understood in the spiritual sense, and therefore, also what is meant by Judah, and Israel, for the commodities there named indicate it.

[23] That Judah does not mean the Jewish nation is also evident in Ezekiel (chapter 48), where the subject is the new land to be distributed among the twelve tribes of Israel, for they also are named there, and the precise portion of the land each should possess. Much is there said concerning the tribe of Judah, and it is said that the sanctuary should be in the midst of it (verses 8-22). From this it is perfectly clear that the tribes there named do not mean those tribes, for eleven of them were dispersed, and became Gentiles (gentes) from whom they could not be distinguished, for they were led away into perpetual exile. It is also evident that by the land there mentioned is not meant land, but the church, and consequently by the tribes there named are meant such things as pertain to the church, while Judah means the celestial church, or the church which is in love to the Lord, in which, therefore, is the sanctuary.

[24] Judah and Israel have a similar signification in David:

"Judah became his sanctuary, and Israel his dominion" (Psalm 114:2).

Sanctuary signifies, in the highest sense, the Lord Himself, and in a relative (respectivus) sense, the worship of Him from the good of love. Israel signifies the truth of the church from that good; and because all power belong to truths from good, or to good by means of truths, therefore it is said that Israel became His dominion. Since Judah signifies the celestial kingdom of the Lord, and Israel His spiritual kingdom, as stated above, and since the celestial kingdom constitutes the priesthood of the Lord in heaven, and the spiritual kingdom the royalty of the Lord, as may be seen in Heaven and Hell 24, 226), therefore the Lord in the Word is called a King, and in the evangelists, the King of the Jews (Matthew 2:2; John 18:33-37; 19:19). And by the Lord, as King of the Jews, is meant the Lord as to Divine Truth, proceeding from the Divine Good of His Divine Love. Kings therefore in the Word signify truths from good, see above (n. 31).

[25] In Jeremiah:

"Behold, the days are coming, in which I will sow the house of Israel and the house of Judah with the seed of man, and with the seed of beast; and in which I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah. This is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days; I will give my law in the midst of them, and write it upon their heart, and will be their God, and they shall be my people" (31:27, 31, 33).

Here also by the days are coming is meant the coming of the Lord. It is not therefore meant that a new covenant will then be made with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah, but with a new church to be established by the Lord, meant by the house of Israel, and by the house of Judah, in whose midst the law was to be given, and written on their heart. That this did not take place with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah, is well known, for they entirely rejected the Lord's covenant, as they do at this day. A covenant signifies conjunction with the Lord by means of love to Him, and they have the law or Divine Truth in them from this conjunction, both in doctrine and in life, and this is meant by the law in their midst, and written on their heart. To sow the house of Israel and the house of Judah with the seed of man, and with the seed of beast, signifies to reform those who are of a new church, by means of the truths and goods of intelligence and affection; for seed denotes truth, man, intelligence, and beast the good of affection. That beast has this signification, will be shown in what follows.

[26] In Zechariah:

"Many peoples and numerous nations shall come to seek Jehovah of hosts in Jerusalem, and to pray before Jehovah. In those days ten men out of all the languages of the nations shall take hold of the skirt of him that is a Jew, saying, We will go with you; for we have heard that God is with you" (8:22, 23).

He who does not know that a Jew means those who are in love to the Lord and thence in truths of doctrine, may be easily led to believe that these things were said concerning the Jews, and their introduction into the land of Canaan, and that all others who wish to be saved will then take hold of the skirt of their raiment, praying to be allowed to go with them. But when it is seen that these things are not said concerning any introduction into the land of Canaan and to Jerusalem there, and that a Jew does not mean those who are of that nation, but that Jerusalem means a new church to be established by the Lord, and a Jew, every one who is in the good of love to the Lord, and the skirt of a Jew, truth from that good, then the signification of all the details related in that chapter, and of these words in particular, may be apprehended. For the subject is the gathering together of the Gentiles and their coming to the church, a Jew meaning those who acknowledge the Lord and love Him, while taking hold of his skirt signifies the desire of knowing truth from Him; ten men out of all the languages of the nations mean all of any religion whatsoever, ten men signifying all, and the languages of the nations, their religious principles.

[27] From these things it is clear, how far removed those are from the truth who believe that in the end of the times the Jews will be converted to the Lord and taken to the land of Canaan. These also believe that by land, Jerusalem, Israel, and Judah, in the Word, are meant the land of Canaan, the city of Jerusalem, the Israelitish people, and the Jewish nation. But those who have hitherto held such a belief are to be excused, because they have known nothing of the spiritual sense of the Word, and have therefore been ignorant of the fact that the land of Canaan signifies the church, Jerusalem, the church as to doctrine, Israel, those who are of the spiritual church, and Judah, those who are of the celestial church. Also that when their introduction into the land of Canaan is spoken of by the prophets, the introduction of the faithful into heaven and into the church is meant. This introduction also took place, when the Lord came into the world, for then all those who had lived in the good of charity, and worshipped God under a human form, were taken to heaven. These were retained under heaven until the coming of the Lord, and were taken to heaven after the Lord had glorified His Human. These are they who are meant in many passages in the prophetic Word, where the captivity of the sons of Israel and Judah, and their return to their land, are spoken of. Those also are meant here who, after His coming, were to be introduced into the church, and thence into heaven, from the earth, not only where the Christian religion is received, but also everywhere else. Both the former and the latter are meant by Israel, Judah, and Jerusalem, where introduction into the land of Canaan is spoken of, as in the following passages: Isaiah 10:21, 22; 11:11, 12; 43:5, 6; 49:10-26; 56:8; 60:4; 61:1, 5, 9; Jeremiah 3:12-20; 16:15, 16; 23:7, 8; 30:2-11; 31:1-14, 23-40; 33:6-18; Ezekiel 16:60-62; 20:40-42; 34:11-16; 37:21-28; 39:21-29; Hosea 3:5; Joel 2:18-27; 2:32; Amos 9:12-15; and elsewhere.

[28] Let the two following passages serve as examples of those by which the Jews persuade themselves, and from which also Christians believe, that the Jewish nation will return to the land of Canaan, and be saved in a special manner.

Thus in Isaiah:

"Then they shall bring all your brethren out of all nations an offering unto Jehovah upon horses, and on chariots, and covered wagons, and upon mules, and upon swift beasts, to Jerusalem, the mountain of my holiness. For as the new heavens and the new earth which I will make, shall stand before me, so shall your seed and your name stand" (66:20, 22).

What these words particularly signify, may be seen above (n. 355:15, 405:26), where they are explained. The new heaven and new earth mean the heaven and the church of those who should be saved by the Lord after the glorification of His Human, as stated above.

[29] In the same prophet:

"I will lift up my hand towards the nations, and set up my standard towards the peoples; and they shall bring thy sons in their bosom, and thy daughters shall be carried upon the shoulder. And kings shall be thy nursing fathers, and their princes thy nursing mothers; they shall bow their faces towards the earth before thee, and lick up the dust of thy feet" (49:22, 23).

The subject throughout the whole of this chapter is the coming of the Lord, and also the salvation of those who receive Him, as is evident from verses 6-9. The salvation of the Jews is therefore not the subject, much less their restoration to the land of Canaan. That the Jewish nation is not meant in the passages here quoted, is also evident from this fact, that it was a very bad nation, and idolatrous in heart, and that they were not introduced into the land of Canaan on account of goodness and uprightness of heart, but because of the promise made to their fathers; and further, that they possessed no truths and goods of the church, but only falsities and evils, and that they were therefore cast out and expelled from the land of Canaan; this is evident from all those passages in the Word, in which that nation is referred to.

[30] What kind of nation that was, and that it was about to become a very bad nation, is described by Moses in his song, in these words:

"I will hide my faces from them, I will see what their posterity shall be; for they are a generation of perverseness, sons in whom is no faithfulness. I said, I would scatter them into the outermost corners, I would make the remembrance of them to cease from man. For they are a nation void of counsel, neither is there any understanding in them. For their vine is of the vine of Sodom, and of the fields of Gomorrah; their grapes are grapes of gall, their clusters are bitter. Their wine is the poison of dragons, and the cruel venom of asps. Is not this laid up in store with me, and sealed up among my treasures? To me belong vengeance, and retribution" (Deuteronomy 32:20-35).

The quality of the church among the Jews is described in these words, namely that it was in abominable falsities from evil. The quality of the church with them is meant by their vine being of the vine of Sodom and of the fields of Gomorrah, a vine signifying the church. The falsities from evil which existed among them, are meant by their grapes being grapes of gall, their clusters bitter, their wine the poison of dragons and the cruel venom of asps; for grapes signify the goods of the church, but grapes of gall and clusters of bitterness signify evils from abominable falsities. Their falsities themselves are meant by their wine being the poison of dragons and cruel venom of asps; for wine (vinum) signifies truth from the Word, but the poison of dragons and the venom of asps signify the monstrous falsity which exists from the falsified truths of the Word. That nation is similarly described in other parts of the Word, as in Deuteronomy, the book of Judges, the Prophets, and in Jeremiah 5:20-31; 7:8-34; 9:2-26; 11:6-17; 13:9-27; 19:1-15; 32:30-35; 44:2-24. That the Jewish nation was idolatrous in heart, is evident from the passages quoted above, and also from many others, as in Jeremiah:

"According to the number of thy cities were thy gods, O Judah; and according to the number of the streets of Jerusalem, have ye set up altars to burn incense unto Baal" (2:28, and 11:13).

[31] That they were not introduced into the land of Canaan because of any goodness and uprightness of heart, but because of the promise made to their fathers, is clear in Moses:

"Not for thy justice, or for the uprightness of thine heart, dost thou go to possess their land; but that he may establish the word which Jehovah sware unto thy fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Know, therefore, that Jehovah, thy God, giveth thee not this good land to possess it for thy justice; for thou art a stiff-necked people" (Deuteronomy 9:5, 6).

[32] That they possessed no truths and goods of the church but falsities and evils, is evident from the Word, where their whoredoms and adulteries are treated of; as in Jeremiah 3:1 to the end; Ezekiel 23:1 to the end. Whoredoms and adulteries, in the Word, mean the falsifications of truth, and the adulterations of good (n. 141, 161); therefore they were called by the Lord an adulterous generation (Matthew 12:39; Mark 8:38); and He also said that they were full of hypocrisy, iniquity, and impurity (Matthew 23:27, 28); and that they had falsified the Word by their traditions (Matthew 15:1-6; Mark 7:1-14). And in plain terms in John:

"Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father it is your will to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own, for he is a liar, and the father of it" (8:44).

A lie means falsity from evil; the devil, the extinction of all good; a murderer, the extinction of all truth. Father means both those who are of hell and those of that generation who had previously lived, even from the earliest times. To speak of his own, is to speak from what is innate.

[33] That thus everything of the church among them was destroyed, and that they were therefore rejected, is evident in Isaiah:

"The Lord Jehovah of hosts doth take away from Jerusalem and from Judah the staff and the stay, the whole staff of bread, and the whole stay of water, the mighty man, and the man of war, the judge, and the prophet, and the diviner, and the old man. For Jerusalem hath stumbled, and Judah is fallen; because their tongue and their doings are against Jehovah, to rebel against the eyes of his glory" (3:1, 2, 8).

By taking away the whole staff of bread, and the whole stay of water, is signified all the good of love, and the truth of faith, from which spiritual life exists; for bread denotes the good of love, and water, the truth of faith, and a staff and a stay denote powers, and thence everything pertaining to spiritual life. To take away the mighty man and the man of war, signifies all resistance against evils and falsities; to remove the judge and the prophet, signifies all the good and truth of doctrine; to remove the diviner and the old man, signifies all intelligence and wisdom. Their tongue and their doings are against Jehovah, to rebel against the eyes of his glory, signifies that everything in their doctrine and their life is altogether contrary to Divine Truth. Tongue denotes doctrine, doings denote the life, and the eyes of the glory of Jehovah, the Divine Truth; to rebel is to be against it.

[34] In the same prophet:

"What could have been done more to my vineyard? Judge between me and my vineyard. What could have been done more to my vineyard that I have not done in it? Wherefore I looked that it should bring forth grapes, but it brought forth wild grapes; and I will tell you what I will do to my vineyard; I will take away the hedge thereof, and it shall be eaten up; and break down the wall thereof, and it shall be trodden down; and I will lay it waste; it shall not be pruned or digged but there shall come up briars and thorns; I will also command the clouds that they rain no rain upon it" (Isaiah 5:3-6).

The vineyard here means the church with the Jewish nation. I looked that it should bring forth grapes, but it brought forth wild grapes, signifies, that instead of the goods of truth pertaining to the church with them there were evils of falsity. By taking away the hedge thereof that it may be eaten up, and breaking down the wall, that it may be trodden down, are signified its destruction as to goods and truths, so that evils and falsities break in, which are the thorns and briars that should come up. I will also command the clouds that they rain no rain upon it, signifies that they are no longer receptive of truth and good, through the Word out of heaven.

[35] The destruction of the church with that nation, is also treated of in Isaiah (7:17-19), and following verses; in Jeremiah (1:15); and in many other places. That nation was also cast out of the land of Canaan because of these things, first the Israelitish nation, and afterwards the Jewish nation; and for the reason that the land of Canaan signifies the heavenly Canaan, which is heaven and the church. The character of each of those nations is fully unfolded in the internal sense in Exodus (32 and 33), where the golden calf, which they made for themselves, is described, and on this account Jehovah threatened to consume them, and raise up from Moses another generation. All these things are explained in the Arcana Coelestia 10393-10512, and n. 10523-10557).

[36] The character of the Jewish nation is also described in the internal sense in Genesis [Genesis 38], where the subject is their origin from a Canaanitish woman, and from whoredom with a daughter-in-law. For there were three stocks of that nation, one from the Canaanitish woman whom Judah took to himself for a wife, and two from Tamar, who was the daughter-in-law of Judah, with whom he lay as with a harlot. These things are also explained in the Arcana Coelestia 4813-4930).

[37] Their character is also portrayed in Judas Iscariot, for he represented the Jewish nation, as to the church. For the twelve disciples of the Lord represented the church of the Lord in general, and each one of them some universal essential of it, Judas Iscariot representing it as it was with the Jews.

[38] In addition to the above, the following particulars concerning this nation may be seen in the Arcana Coelestia. A representative church was instituted with the Jewish nation, but there was no church in that nation itself (n. 4899, 4912, 6304). Therefore, as to the nation itself, there was a representative of a church, but not a real church (n. 4281, 4288, 4311, 4500, 6304, 7048, 9320, 10396, 10526, 10531, 10698). The Israelitish and Jewish nation was not elected, but received, in order to represent a church, because of the obstinacy with which their fathers and Moses persisted in desiring it (n. 4290, 4293, 7051, 7439, 10430, 10535, 10632). Their worship was merely external, void of all internal worship (n. 1200, 3147, 3479, 8871). They knew nothing of the internal things of worship, neither were willing to know (n. 301-303, 3479, 4429, 4433, 4680, 4844, 4847, 10396, 10401, 10407, 10694, 10701, 10707). In what way they regard the internal things of worship, of the church, and of the Word (n. 4865). Their interiors, which pertain to thought and affection, were filthy, full of the love of self and of the world, and of avarice (n. 3480, 9962, 10454-10457, 10462-10466, 10575). Therefore, the interior things of the church were not disclosed to them, for they would have profaned them (n. 2520, 3398, 3479, 4289). The Word was entirely closed to them, and still remains so (n. 3769). They see the Word from without, and not from within (n. 10549-10551). When, therefore, they were in worship their internal was closed (n. 8788, 8806, 9320, 9380, 9377, 9962, 10396, 10401, 10407, 10492, 10498, 10500, 10575, 10629, 10694). Yet that nation, above all others was of such a character that it could be in a holy external, while the internal was closed (n. 4293, 4311, 4903, 9373, 9377, 9380). Their state at such a time (n. 4311). They were preserved on account of the Word in the original tongue and because they could be kept in such a state (n. 3479). Their holy external was miraculously elevated into heaven by the Lord, and thus the interior things of worship, of the church, and of the Word, were there perceived (n. 3480, 4307, 4311, 6304, 8588, 10493 [10499], 10500, 10602). In order to effect this, they were constrained by external means to observe strictly the rituals and statutes in external form (n. 3147, 4281, 10149). Because they could be in a holy external apart from the internal, therefore the holy things of heaven and the church could be represented by them (n. 3479, 3881, 4208, 6306, 6589, 9377, 10430, 10500, 10570). They themselves were not affected by the holy things which they represented (n. 3479); for it matters not what the quality of the person is who represents, because representation regards the thing represented, and not the person representing, (n. 665, 1097, 1361, 3147, 3881, 4208, 4281, 4288, 4292, 4307, 4444, 4500, 6304, 7408, 7439, 8588, 8788, 8806). That that nation was worse than other nations; their character described from the Word of both Testaments (n. 4314, 4316, 4317, 4444, 4503, 4750, 4751, 4815, 4820, 4832, 5057, 5998, 7248, 8819, 9320, 10454-10457, 10462-10466). The tribe of Judah went more astray than the rest of the tribes (n. 4815). How cruelly they treated the nations from delight (n. 5057, 7248, 9320). That nation was idolatrous in heart, and above all others worshipped other gods (n. 3732, 4208, 4444, 4825, 5998, 6877, 7401, 8301, 8871, 8882). Their worship, viewed with respect to that nation itself, was also idolatrous, being external without any internal (n. 4281, 4825, 8871, 8882). They worshipped Jehovah only as to the name (n. 6877, 10559-10561, 10566); and solely on account of the miracles (n. 4299). They think erroneously who believe that the Jews are to be converted at the end of the church, and brought back into the land of Canaan (n. 4847, 7051, 8301). Many passages adduced from the Word concerning this fact, which are to be understood according to the internal sense, thus differently from what appears in the letter (n. 7051). The Word as to the external sense, was changed on account of that nation, but not as to the internal sense (n. 10453, 10461, 10603, 10604). Jehovah appeared to them from Mount Sinai, according to their quality, in a consuming fire, in a thick cloud, and in smoke, as of a furnace (n. 1861, 6832, 8814, 8819, 9434). The Lord appears to every one according to his quality, as a vivifying and recreating fire to those who are in good, and as a consuming fire to those who are in evil (n.934, 1861, 6832, 8814, 8819, 9434, 10551). One origin of this nation was from a Canaanitess, and the two other origins from whoredom with a daughter-in-law (n. 1167, 4818, 4820, [4825], 4874, 4899, 4913). That such origins signified the nature of their conjunction with the church, namely, that it was as with a Canaanitess, and with whoredom with a daughter-in-law (n. 4868, 4874, 4899, 4911, 4913). Concerning their state in another life (n. 939, 940, 5057). Because that nation, although of such a nature and character, represented the church, and because the Word was written amongst that nation, and concerning it, therefore Divine celestial things were signified by their names, as by Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Ephraim, Joseph, and the rest. Judah in the internal sense signifies the Lord as to celestial love, and His celestial kingdom (n. 3654, 3881, 5583, 5603, 5782, 6363). The prophecy of Israel concerning Judah (Genesis 49:8-12), in which the Lord is treated of, explained (n. 6362-6381). The tribe of Judah and Judea, signify the celestial church (no. 3654, 6364). The twelve tribes represented, and thence signified, all things of love and faith in the aggregate (n. 3858, 3926, 4060, 6335); therefore also heaven and the church (n. 6337, 6637, 7836, 7891). Their signification is according to the order in which they are named (n. 3862, 3926, 3939, 4603, and following numbers, also n. 6337, 6640). The twelve tribes were divided into two kingdoms, that the Jews might represent the celestial kingdom, and the Israelites the spiritual kingdom (n. 8770, 9320). The seed of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, signify the goods and truths of the church (n. 3373, 10445).

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