208. Behold I have set before thee an open door, and no one is able to shut it. That this signifies that they will be admitted into heaven, and that it will be denied to no one who is of such a quality is evident from the signification of setting before them an open door, as being to admit into heaven, of which we shall treat in what follows; and from the signification of no one is able to shut it, as being that entrance will not be denied; for when a door is shut, entrance is denied, and when it is not shut it is not denied. The reason why it is open to those who are in charity is, that these are treated of in what is written to this church (see above, n. 203). Hence it is evident that by I have set before thee an open door, and no one is able to shut it is signified, that all such will be admitted into heaven, and that it will be denied to none of them. That to set before them an open door signifies to admit them into heaven is evident indeed from common speech, but nevertheless it is from correspondence; for a house and all things belonging to a house correspond to the interiors of man's mind, and from that correspondence they also signify such things in the Word. That this is the case is evident from representatives and appearances in heaven, where there are palaces, houses, rooms, bed-chambers, vestibules, courts, and within them various things for use. These things the angels have from correspondence; whence it is that the wiser angels have palaces more magnificent than those enjoyed by those who are less wise. (But concerning these things, see the work, Heaven and Hell 183-190, where the habitations of the angels of heaven are treated of.) And because palaces, houses, and all the things belonging to a house correspond, it is also evident that outer doors, inner doors, and gates correspond also, and that they correspond to entrance and admission; also when a door is seen open, it is a sign that there is permission to enter, and when it is shut, that there is not.

[2] Moreover, when novitiate spirits are introduced into a heavenly society, a way is opened to them by the Lord which leads to it; and when they come thither a gate is seen with a door at the side, where there are keepers who admit them, and afterwards there are others who receive and introduce them.

From these considerations, it is evident that outer doors (januae), and inner doors (ostia), and gates in the Word signify introduction into heaven; and because the church is the Lord's heaven on earth, they also signify introduction into the church; and because heaven or the church is in man, therefore they also signify approach and entrance with man, concerning which something shall be said presently. And because all the things that signify heaven and the church also signify the things pertaining to heaven and the church, and here introductory things which are truths from good, these being from the Lord; and because those things are from the Lord, and hence are His, indeed are Himself in them, therefore by outer door (janua), inner door (ostium), and gate to heaven and the church, in the highest sense, is meant the Lord. Hence it is evident what the words of the Lord signify in John:

Jesus said: "Verily I say unto you, he that entereth not by the door (janua) into the sheepfold, but climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber. But he that entereth in by the door is the shepherd of the sheep; to him the porter openeth. I am the door (ostium) of the sheep, by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out and find pasture" (10:1, 2, 3, 7, 9).

That to enter in by the door (ostium) here denotes to enter in by the Lord, is evident, for it is said, "I am the door of the sheep." To enter in by the Lord is to approach Him, to acknowledge Him, to believe in Him, and to love Him, as He Himself teaches in many passages. Thus is a man admitted into heaven, and in no other way; therefore the Lord says, "By me if any man enter in, he shall be saved"; and also "he who climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber."

[3] He therefore who approaches the Lord, acknowledges Him and believes in Him, is said to open the door (ostium) to the Lord, that He may enter in; as in the Apocalypse:

"Behold I stand at the door (ostium) and knock; if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me" (3:20).

How these things are to be understood, will be explained in the following pages, where the things mentioned are treated of. Here we shall only say something concerning the doors (ostia) or gates in man, because it is said, I stand at the door and knock.

There are two ways which lead to man's Rational, one from heaven and the other from the world; by the way from heaven good is introduced, by the way from the world truth is introduced. In proportion as the way from heaven is opened to a man, in the same proportion he is affected with truth, and becomes rational, that is, in the same proportion he sees truth by the light of truth; but if the way from heaven is shut, he does not become rational, because he does not see truth, and yet truth from the light of truth constitutes the Rational. A man may indeed reason concerning truth, and from reasoning or from memory he may speak of it; but he is not able to see whether it is truth or not. To think well concerning the Lord and the neighbour, opens the way from heaven; but to think otherwise shuts that way. Because there are two ways which lead into man, there are also two doors (januae) or gates by which influx enters: by the door or gate which is open from heaven, the spiritual affection of truth from the Lord enters, because good enters by that door, as said above, and all spiritual affection of truth is from good; but by the door or gate which is open from the world, enter all knowledge from the Word, and from preaching thence, because thereby truth enters, as also said above, for knowledges from the Word and from preaching thence are truths. The spiritual affection of truth adjoined to those knowledges constitutes man's Rational, and enlightens it according to the quality of the truth conjoined with good, and according to the quality of the conjunction.

[4] These few observations may be sufficient for the present concerning the gates or doors pertaining to man. Because outer doors (januae), inner doors (ostia), and gates signify admission into heaven and into the church, therefore they also signify truths from good which are from the Lord, because by means of them this admission is effected, as is evident from the following passages. Thus in Isaiah:

"Open ye the gates that the just nation that keepeth faithfulnesses may enter in" (26:2).

According to the sense of the letter it is here meant that those who are just and faithful should be admitted into those cities, but according to the internal sense, that such should be admitted into the church: for gates signify admission; a just nation signifies those who are in good; keeping faithfulnesses signifies those who are thence in truths.

[5] Again:

"Thy gates shall be open continually; they shall not be shut day nor night; to bring unto thee the hosts of the nations, and their kings shall be brought down. And the nation and kingdom that will not serve thee shall perish. Thou shalt call thy walls Salvation, and thy gates Praise" (60:11, 12, 18).

The subject here treated of is the Lord and the church which He was about to establish; and by the above particulars is described the perpetual admission into it of those who are in good and thence in truths. By the gates being open continually, and not shut day nor night, is signified perpetual admission; by the host of the nations are signified those who are in good, and by kings those who are in truths; and that all should serve the Lord is meant by the nation and kingdom that will not serve thee shall perish. (That nation or nations signify those who are in good, may be seen above, n. 175, and that kings signify those who are in truths, n. 31.)

[6] Again:

"Thus said Jehovah to his anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I have holden, to subdue nations before him; that I may loose the loins of kings, to open before him the doors (januae) that the gates may not be shut; I will give him the treasures of darkness, and hidden riches of secret places" (45:1, 3).

Here also the Lord is treated of, and the church to be established by Him. By opening the doors (januae), and by the gates not being shut, is signified perpetual admission; by nations and kings are signified those who are in goods and truths, and, in the abstract, goods and truths, as said above; by treasures of darkness and hidden riches of secret places, is signified interior intelligence and wisdom from heaven; for the things that enter by the gate which is open from heaven, and of which we have spoken above, come in secretly, and influence all the things that are with man, whence arises the spiritual affection of truth, whereby things before unknown are revealed.

[7] In Jeremiah:

"If ye bring in no burden through the gates of this city on the Sabbath day, but hallow the Sabbath day, then shall there enter through the gates of this city kings and princes sitting upon the throne of David, riding upon the chariot and on horses, and the city shall be inhabited to eternity" (17:24, 25).

Any one may see what is meant by these things in the sense of the letter; nevertheless it can be known that something more holy is contained in them, because they form part of the Word; and everything in the Word contains those things that pertain to heaven and the church, and these alone are holy; thus what is holy in this passage can only be known from the internal sense. By the Sabbath day in that sense is meant the conjunction of the Divine Human of the Lord with heaven and the church; by the city mentioned in this passage is meant Jerusalem, that is, the church: by bringing in no burden through the gates of the city is meant that they should not admit that which is from man's proprium, but that which is from the Lord. By kings and princes entering into the gates of the city are meant Divine truths, which should then be revealed to them; by their sitting upon the throne of David is meant that these truths are from the Lord. By riding upon the chariot and on horses is meant that thence they would be in the doctrine of truth and in intelligence; and by dwelling there to eternity is meant life and eternal salvation. (That by Sabbath, is signified the conjunction of the Divine Human of the Lord with heaven and the church, may be seen,Arcana Coelestia 8494, 8495, 8510, 10356, 10360, 10367, 10370, 10374, 10668, 10730. That by Jerusalem is signified the church, 402, 3654, 9166. That by burden or work on the Sabbath day is signified not to be led by the Lord but by the proprium, n. 7893, 8495, 10360, 10362, 10365. That by kings and princes are signified those who are in Divine truths, and, in the abstract, Divine truths, see above, n. 29, 31. That by chariot is signified the doctrine of truth, and by horses the Intellectual, see the small work, The White Horse 1-5.)

[8] Again, in the Apocalypse, it is said of the New Jerusalem,

"Having a wall great and high, twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and names written thereon which are the names of the twelve tribes of the sons of Israel; the twelve gates were twelve pearls; the gates of it shall not be shut" (21:12, 21, 25).

That gates signify Divine truths introductory to the New Church, thus those who are in truths from good from the Lord is evident from the explanation of these words in the small work, The New Jerusalem 1, etc.); which is also evident from this consideration, that it is said there were twelve gates, twelve angels upon the gates, and the names of the twelve tribes written thereon, and that the twelve gates were twelve pearls. By twelve are signified all, and is said of truths from good, see Arcana Coelestia 577, 2089, 2129, 2130, 3272, 3858, 3913, similarly by angels, see above, n. 130, 200; also by the twelve tribes of Israel, Arcana Coelestia 3858, 3926, 4060, 6335; and also by pearls.)

[9] In Jeremiah:

"Out of the north evil shall be opened that they may come, and every one set his throne at the door (ostium) of the gates of Jerusalem, and at all its walls round about, because they have forsaken me" (1:14, 15, 16).

The subject here treated of is the destruction of the church: the north signifies falsity, in this case the falsity from which evil is derived; to come and set every one his throne at the door of the gates of Jerusalem, is to destroy the introductory truths of the church by falsities; and at all the walls round about, denotes all the truths that are for a defence.

[10] In Isaiah:

"Howl, O gate; cry, O city; thou, whole Philistia, art dissolved because, from the north cometh smoke" (14:31).

Again:

"The choicest of thy valleys shall be filled with the chariot; and the horsemen shall set themselves in array even to the gate, he hath made bare the covering of Judah" (22:7, 8).

In these passages also the destruction of the Church is treated of; and by the gates there mentioned introductory truths are signified, which are destroyed; those truths are called the covering of Judah, because by Judah is signified celestial love, as may be seen above (n. 119), and those truths cover and protect that love. Again

"The remnant in the city is wasteness, and the gate is smitten even to devastation" (24:12).

[11] In Jeremiah:

"Judah mourned, and the gates thereof languished" (14:2).

In the book of Judges:

"The villages ceased in Israel: he hath chosen new gods; then to assault the gates" (5:7, 8).

In Ezekiel:

"Tyrus hath said over Jerusalem, Aha, she is broken, the doors (januae) of the peoples, she is brought over to me" (26:2).

Here also the subject treated of is the destruction of the church. By Tyrus are signified the knowledges (cognitiones) of truth and good, which are introductory truths; and by Jerusalem is signified the church as to the doctrine of truth. It is therefore evident why Jerusalem is here called the doors (januae) of the peoples; also what is signified by Tyrus saying, "Aha, she is broken, the doors of the peoples; she is brought over to me, I shall be filled."

[12] Since, as said above, by doors (januae) and by gates is signified admission, and, specifically, introductory truths are signified, which are truths from good from the Lord, it is evident what is signified by these in the following places. In David

"Lift up your heads, O ye gates; and be ye lift up, ye doors (ostia) of the world, that the king of glory may come in" (Psalms 24:7, 9).

Again:

Recount the praises of Jehovah "in the gates of the daughter of Zion" (Psalms 9:14).

Again:

"Jehovah loveth the gates of Zion more than all the dwellings of Jacob" (Psalms 87:2).

By Zion and by the daughter of Zion is meant the celestial church. Again, in Isaiah:

"Thy Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel; the God of the whole earth he is called. I will make thy windows of agates, and thy gates of carbuncles" (54:5, 12).

In Matthew:

The five prudent virgins entered into the marriage, "and the door (ostium) was shut," and the five foolish virgins came and knocked, but the door was not opened to them (25:10, 11, 12).

In Luke:

Jesus said "Strive to enter in at the strait gate (portam) for many will seek to enter in, and will not be able. When once the master of the house is risen up, and hath shut to the door (januam), then shall ye begin to stand without, and to knock at the door (januam), saying, Lord, Lord, open unto us; but he shall answer and say unto you, I know you not whence ye are" (13:24, 25).

In these two passages the state of man after death is treated of, that those who are in faith alone, and not in love, cannot be admitted into heaven, even although they should then desire it, and this in consequence of the nature of their faith. And this is what is signified by the door being shut, and their being refused admission when they knocked.

[13] Because gates signify introductory truths, therefore it was ordained among the statutes,

That the elders should sit at the gates and judge (Deuteronomy 21:19; 22:15-21; Amos. 5:12, 15; Zech. 8:16).

It was also therefore commanded, that "They should write the precepts upon the posts and gates" (Deuteronomy 6:8, 9).

And it was also among the statutes,

That the ear of the servant who was not willing to go out free in the seventh year, should be bored through at the door (januam) (Exodus 21:6; Deuteronomy 15:17).

By servants of the sons of Israel were signified those who were in truths and not in good; and by freemen, those who were in good and thence in truths. By the ear being bored through at the door was signified perpetual obedience and servitude, because they were not desirous to be introduced into good by means of truths; for those who are in truth and not in good, are perpetually in a servile state, not being in the spiritual affection of truth; for it is the affection of love that makes man free (as may be seen in The Doctrine of the New Jerusalem 141-149). Moreover introductory truths as to their quality are described by the covering of the door of the tent, and by the covering of the door of the tabernacle (Exodus 26:14, 36, 37; 38:18); also by the numerical measurements of the doors and gates of the house of God and of the temple in Ezekiel (40:6, 8-11, 13-15, 18, 19, 20, 24, 27, 28, 32, 35, 37; 41:1-3, 11, 17-20, 23-25; 42:2, 12, 15; 43:1-4; 44:1-3, 17; 46:1-3, 8, 12, 19; 47:1, 2; 48:31-34). He who knows what the particular numbers there mentioned signify, may know many arcana concerning those truths. Mention is also made of the gates of the house of Jehovah towards the north and towards the east, in the same prophet (8:3, 5; 10:19).

2336. That 'the street' means truth becomes clear from many places in the Word, as in John where the New Jerusalem is referred to,

The twelve gates were twelve pearls, each gate was one pearl; and the street of the city was pure gold, like transparent glass. Revelation 21:21.

[2] 'The New Jerusalem' is the Lord's kingdom which because it is being described as regards good and truth is described by walls, gates, and streets. By the last of these -'the streets' - are meant all avenues of truth which lead to good, that is, all those of faith which lead to love and charity. And because truths in this way become part of good, and so are made transparent from good, it is said that 'the street was pure gold, like transparent glass'. In the same book,

Out of the middle of the street of it, and of the river, on this side and on that, was the tree of life bearing twelve fruits. Revelation 22:2.

This also refers to the New Jerusalem or the Lord's kingdom. 'The middle of the street' is the truth of faith, by means of which good comes and which after that stems from good. 'The twelve fruits' are those called the fruits of faith, for 'twelve' means all things of faith, as shown in 577, 2089, 2129, 2130.

[3] In Daniel,

Know and perceive that from the going forth of the Word to restore and to build Jerusalem until the Messiah, the Leader, there will be seven weeks - and sixty-two weeks; and it will be restored and built with street and moat. Daniel 9:25.

This refers to the Coming of the Lord, 'it will be restored with street and moat' meaning that there will be truth and good at that time. The fact that Jerusalem was not restored and built at that time is well known; and that it is not to be restored and built anew anyone may also know provided he does not fix his ideas on a worldly kingdom but on a heavenly kingdom meant in the internal sense by Jerusalem.

[4] In Luke,

The householder said to his servant, Go out quickly into the streets and lanes of the city and bring in here the poor, the maimed, the lame, and the blind. Luke 14:21.

People who confine themselves to the sense of the letter gain nothing more from this verse than the idea that the servant was to go everywhere, and that this is what is meant by 'streets and lanes', and that he was to fetch in everybody, and that this is what is meant by 'the poor, the maimed, the lame, and the blind'. But each and all of these words, being the Lord's, embody arcana within them. The command that he should go out into the streets and lanes means that he was to search everywhere for some genuine truth, that is, for truth which shines out of good, or through which good shines. The command that he should bring in the poor, the maimed, the lame, and the blind, means that such people were to be brought in as had in the Ancient Church been called the poor, maimed, lame, or blind - that is, he was to bring in those who were such as regards faith but who had led good lives, and who for this reason ought to be taught about the Lord's kingdom - thus to bring in gentiles who were as yet uninformed.

[5] Because 'streets' meant truths it was a representative custom among the Jews to teach in the streets, as is evident from Matthew 6:2, 5, and Luke 13:26-27. Wherever 'streets' are mentioned in the Prophets they mean in the internal sense either truths or things contrary to truths, as in Isaiah,

Judgement is cast away backwards, and justice stands afar off, for truth has stumbled in the street, and uprightness cannot come in. Isaiah 59:14.

In the same prophet,

Your sons fainted and lay at the head of every street. Isaiah 51:20.

In Jeremiah,

Death has come up into our windows, it has entered our palaces, cutting off the small child from the street and the young men from the lanes. Jeremiah 9:21.

[6] In Ezekiel,

By means of the hoofs of his horses Nebuchadnezzar will trample all your streets. Ezekiel 26:11.

This refers to Tyre, which means cognitions of truth, 1201. 'The hoofs of the horses' are facts which pervert the truth. In Nahum,

In the streets the chariots rage; they rush about in the lanes. Nahum 2:4.

'Chariots' stands for the doctrine of truth, which is said 'to rage in the streets' when falsity has replaced truth. In Zechariah,

Old men and old women will again dwell in the streets of Jerusalem. And the streets of the city will be full of boys and girls playing in the streets. Zechariah 8:4-5.

This refers to affections for truth, and consequent forms of joy and gladness. There are other places besides these, such as Isaiah 24:11; Jeremiah 5:1; 7:34; 49:26; Lamentations 2:11, 19; 4:8, 14; Zephaniah 3:6.