4926. 'And she said, Why have you made a breach upon yourself?' means this truth's apparent separation from good. This is clear from the meaning of 'a breach' as an infringement upon and perversion of truth through its separation from good, dealt with below. Here 'making a breach' plainly means pulling away the twice-dyed thread from the hand and so separating good; for good is meant by 'twice-dyed', 4922. As regards this separation being an apparent one, this follows from the fact that it appeared to the midwife that a separation had taken place; but in reality it was not the twin with the twice-dyed thread who came out but his brother, who represents truth. On these matters, see what has been shown immediately above in 4925, where it is shown that good is in actual fact the firstborn but that truth appears to be such. This can be illustrated further still from the functions and members within the human body. The appearance is that the members and organs are first and that the functions these perform are subsequent; for the organs and members present themselves to the eye and are also known before their functions are seen or known. But in spite of this appearance the functions are prior to the members and organs since these derive their existence from the functions they serve and so receive their own forms to accord with these functions. Indeed the function itself gives them these forms and accommodates them to itself. If this were not so, all the individual parts of the human body could not possibly act together in so harmonious a way that they make a single whole. The same may be said about good and truth. The appearance is that truth is first, but in reality good is, in that good gives truths the forms they take and accommodates them to itself. Therefore regarded essentially truths are nothing else than goods which have been given form, that is, they are the forms good takes. In relation to good, truths are also like the internal organs and the fibres of the body in relation to the functions these perform. Also, regarded essentially good is nothing else than the function.

[2] The meaning of 'a breach' as an infringement upon truth and a perversion of it through its separation from good is also clear from other places in the Word, as in David,

Our storehouses are full, yielding food and still more food; our flocks are thousands, and ten thousands in our streets, our oxen are laden; there is no breach. Psalms 144:13-14.

This refers to the Ancient Church as it was in its youth. 'The food' with which 'the storehouses are full' stands for spiritual food, that is, for truth and good. 'Flocks' and 'oxen' stand for forms of good, internal and external. 'There is no breach' stands for the fact that truth has not suffered any infringement upon it or perversion of it through separation from good.

[3] In Amos,

I will raise up the tent of David that is fallen down, and I will close up their breaches, and I will restore its destroyed places; and I will build it as in the days of old. Amos 9:11.

This refers to a Church where good is present. 'The tent of David that is fallen down' means the good of love and charity received from the Lord. For 'a tent' meaning that good, see 414, 1102, 2145, 2152, 3312, 4128, 4391, 4599, and 'David' the Lord, 1888. 'Closing up the breaches' stands for correcting falsities which have entered in through the separation of truth from good. 'Building it as in the days of old' stands for as the state of the Church was in ancient times. In the Word that state at that time is called 'the days of eternity', 'the days of old', and also 'of generation upon generation'.

[4] In Isaiah,

He that is of you is building the waste places of old; raise up the foundations of generation upon generation, and may you be called the one repairing the breach, the one restoring paths to dwell in. Isaiah 58:12.

This refers to a Church where charity and life are the essential thing. 'Repairing the breach' again stands for correcting falsities which have crept in through the separation of good from truth, the origin of all falsity. 'Restoring paths to dwell in' stands for truths which are linked to good, for 'paths' or ways are truths, 627, 2333, and 'dwelling in' is used in reference to good, 2268, 2451, 2712, 3613.

[5] In the same prophet,

You saw that the breaches of the city of David were very many, and you collected the waters of the lower pool. Isaiah 22:9.

'The breaches of the city of David' stands for falsities of doctrine. 'The waters of the lower pool' stands for traditions by which they introduced blemishes into the truths contained in the Word, Matthew 15:1-6; Mark 7:1-13. In Ezekiel,

You have not gone up into the breaches and made a hedge for the house of Israel, so that you might stand in war on the day of Jehovah. Ezekiel 13:5.

In the same prophet,

I sought from among them a man making a hedge and standing in the breach before Me for the land, that I should not destroy it; but I found none. Ezekiel 22:30.

'Standing in the breach' stands for defending and guarding against the intrusion of falsities. In David,

Jehovah said He would destroy the people, unless Moses His chosen had stood in the breach before Him. Psalms 106:23.

'Standing in the breach' again means guarding against the intrusion of falsities; 'Moses' here meaning the Word - see Preface to Chapter 18 of Genesis, and 4859 (end).

[6] In Amos,

They will drag out the last of you with fish-hooks; you will go out through the breaches, every one from her own region; and you will cast down the palace. Amos 4:2-3.

'Going out through the breaches' stands for doing so through falsities resulting from reasonings. 'The palace' means the Word and consequently the truth of doctrine that is grounded in good. And because 'breaches' means falsity which arises through the separation of good from truth, the same is also meant in the representative sense by 'strengthening and repairing the breaches of the house of Jehovah', 2 Kings 12:5, 7-8, 12; 22:5. In the second Book of Samuel,

It grieved David that Jehovah had made a breach into Uzzah; therefore he called that place Perez Uzzah. 2 Samuel 6:8.

This refers to Uzzah, who died because he touched the ark. 'The ark' represented heaven, or in the highest sense the Lord, and therefore Divine Good. But 'Uzzah' represented that which ministers, and so represents truth since truth ministers to good. This separation is meant by 'a breach into Uzzah'.

4922. 'And bound on his hand a twice-dyed thread' means that a sign was placed on it, namely on that power - 'twice-dyed' meaning good. This is clear from the meaning of 'binding on the hand' as placing a sign on power, for 'the hand' means power, 4920; and from the meaning of 'twice-dyed' as good, in particular spiritual good. The reason 'twice-dyed' means spiritual good is that this expression describes a shade of scarlet, and in the next life whenever one sees scarlet spiritual good is meant, which is the good of charity towards the neighbour. For all colours clearly visible in the next life mean something connected with good and truth since they are products of the light of heaven, which essentially is wisdom and intelligence flowing from the Lord's Divine. The variegations or modifications of that light are consequently variegations and so to speak modifications of wisdom and intelligence, and therefore of good and truth. For details about the light in heaven flowing from the Lord's Divine wisdom and intelligence, where the Lord is seen as the Sun, see 1053, 1521-1533, 1619-1632, 2776, 3138, 3167, 3190, 3195, 3222, 3223, 3225, 3337, 3339, 3340, 3485, 3636, 3643, 3862, 3993, 4180, 4214, 4302, 4405, 4408, 4413, 4415, 4523-4533; and for details about colours having their origin in that light and about their being variegations and modifications of that light, and therefore of intelligence and wisdom, 1042, 1043, 1053, 1624, 3993, 4530, 4677, 4742.

[2] As regards 'twice-dyed' meaning spiritual good, this is evident from places in the Word where this expression is used, as in Jeremiah,

If therefore you have been laid waste, what will you do? If you clothe yourself in twice-dyed and deck yourself with ornaments of gold, in vain will you make yourself beautiful; your lovers will abhor you. Jeremiah 4:30.

This refers to Judah. 'Clothing yourself in twice-dyed' stands for spiritual good, 'decking yourself with ornaments of gold' for celestial good. In 2 Samuel,

David lamented over Saul and over Jonathan, and wrote it down that they teach the children of Judah the bow. Daughters of Israel, weep over Saul who clothed you in twice-dyed delicately, ¹ and placed an ornament of gold on your apparel. 2 Samuel 1:17-18, 24.

Here 'teaching the bow' stands for teaching the doctrine of love and charity, for 'the bow' means that doctrine. 'Clothing in twice-dyed' stands for spiritual good, as previously, and 'placing an ornament of gold on one's apparel' for celestial good.

[3] Such being the meaning of 'twice-dyed', instructions were also given to use twice-dyed scarlet on the curtains of the Dwelling-place, the veil, the covering for the door of the tent, the covering to the gate of the court, the table of the Presence when they were about to set out, Aaron's sacred vestments such as the ephod, the breastplate of judgement, and the fringes of the robe of the ephod:

The curtains of the Dwelling-place

You shall make for the Dwelling-place ten curtains - fine-twined linen, and violet and purple and twice-dyed scarlet. Exodus 26:1.

The veil

You shall make a veil of violet and purple, and of twice-dyed scarlet, and of fine-twined linen. Exodus 26:31.

The covering for the door of the tent

You shall make a covering for the door of the tent, of violet and purple and twice-dyed scarlet, and of fine-twined linen. Exodus 26:36.

[4] The covering to the gate of the court

For the gate of the court you shall make a covering of violet and purple and twice-dyed scarlet, and fine-twined linen, the work of an embroiderer. Exodus 27:16.

The table of the Presence when they were about to set out

When the camp sets out they shall spread over the table of the Presence a cloth of twice-dyed scarlet, and shall cover this with a covering of badger skin. Numbers 4:8.

The ephod

You shall make an ephod out of gold, violet and purple, and twice-dyed scarlet, fine-twined linen, the work of a craftsman; and the girdle similarly. Exodus 28:5-6, 8; 39:2-3.

The breastplate of judgement

You shall make the breastplate of judgement, the work of a craftsman, like the work of the ephod, out of gold, violet, and purple. and twice-dyed scarlet, and fine-twined linen. Exodus 28:15.

The fringes of the robe of the ephod

Pomegranates of violet, and purple, and twice-dyed scarlet. Exodus 28:33.

[5] It was because the Tent of Meeting with the Ark in it represented heaven that the colours mentioned in these places were required. They meant in their order celestial and spiritual things, as follows: 'Violet and purple' meant celestial kinds of good and truth, 'twice-dyed scarlet and fine-twined linen' spiritual kinds of good and truth. Anyone believing that the Word is holy can recognize that each has a specific meaning, and anyone believing that the Word is holy for the reason that it has been sent down from the Lord by way of heaven can recognize that the celestial and spiritual things belonging to His kingdom are meant. Similar instructions were given, in cleansings from leprosy, to use 'cedarwood, scarlet, and hyssop', Leviticus 14:4, 6, 52; and to cast 'cedarwood and hyssop and twice-dyed of purple' on to the fire in which the red heifer was being burned, from which the water of separation was prepared, Numbers 19:6.

[6] The profanation of good and truth is described by similar words in John,

I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast, full of blasphemous names. It had seven heads and ten horns. The woman was clothed in purple and scarlet. and covered ² with gold and precious stones and pearls. holding in her hand a golden cup, full of abominations and the uncleanness of whoredom. Revelation 17:3-4.

And after this,

Woe, woe, the great city, you that were clothed in fine linen and purple and scarlet, and covered' with gold and precious stones and pearls. Revelation 18:16.

This refers to 'Babel' by which the profanation of good is meant, 1182, 1283, 1295, 1304, 1306-1308, 1321, 1322, 1326, in this case the profanation both of good and of truth, which is 'Babylonian'. Among the Prophets in the Old Testament 'Babel' describes the profanation of good and 'Chaldea' the profanation of truth.

[7] In the contrary sense 'scarlet' means the evil that is the contrary of spiritual good, as in Isaiah,

Though your sins are like scarlet, they will be white as snow. Though they are red as crimson, ³ they will be as wool. Isaiah 1:18.

The reason 'scarlet' means this evil is that 'blood', likewise, because of its red colour, in the genuine sense means spiritual good or charity towards the neighbour, and in the contrary sense violence done to charity, 374, 1005.

脚注: