475. And they did wash their robes.- This signifies the removal of falsities by means of temptations, as is evident from the signification of washing, which denotes to purify from falsities and evils, consequently to remove them; for the evils and falsities which men, spirits, and angels have, are not taken away, but removed, and when removed they appear as though taken away (concerning this fact see the Doctrine of the New Jerusalem 166, 170); washing therefore signifies to remove falsities, and thus to purify; and from the signification of robes as denoting truths in general, protecting, see above (n. 395). But in the present case "by robes" before they were washed and made white, are signified falsities from which they were purified. For those who are in falsities from ignorance appear in the spiritual world at first in dusky garments of various colours, and while in temptations, in squalid garments; but when they come out of temptations, they appear in white robes, which shine according to their state of purification from falsities. Every one in the other life appears in garments which accord with the truths and the falsities which he has; for this reason garments signify truths, and in the opposite sense, falsities, as may be seen above (n. 195, 271). It is evident from these things, what is signified by washing their robes and making them white.

[2] In ancient times, when all the external things of the church were representative and significative of things spiritual and celestial, washings were customary, and they represented purifications from falsities and evils. Washings had this signification, because waters signified truths, while filth signified falsities and evils, and all purification from falsities and evils takes place by means of truths. That waters signify truths may be seen above (n. 71). Washings were therefore instituted with the sons of Israel by command. For a representative church was established among them, everything pertaining to which signified spiritual things, and the washings signified purifications from evils and falsities, and thence regeneration. On this account a laver of brass was placed at the door of the tent of the congregation, (Exodus 30:18-20); and also lavers of brass were placed without the Temple, one great [laver] called "the molten sea," and ten smaller lavers (1 Kings 7:23-39).

[3] Because washings signified such things, therefore when Aaron and his sons were inaugurated into the priesthood, Moses was commanded to wash them with water at the door of the tabernacle, and so to sanctify them (Exodus 29:4; 40:12; Leviticus 8:6). For priests represented the Lord as to Divine Good, as kings represented Him as to Divine Truth; consequently the priests also represented the Divine sanctity, which is pure without blemish. Aaron and his sons received this representation through the washing by Moses; wherefore it is said, that they should thus be sanctified, although they themselves received no sanctity by the washing.

[4] Therefore it was also commanded that Aaron and his sons should wash their hands and feet before they entered the tent of the congregation, and before they ascended the altar to minister, and it is said "that they die not," and that it should be to them "a statute of an age" (Exodus 30:18-21, chap. 40:30, 31); and that Aaron should wash his flesh before he put on the garments of the ministry (Leviticus 16:4, 24). By washing the hands and feet was signified the purification of the natural man, and by washing the flesh, the purification of the spiritual man. Hence also it was commanded, that the Levites should be sanctified by being sprinkled with the water of expiation, and by shaving their flesh, and washing their garments (Num. 8:6, 7). This was done to the Levites because they attended to the external things of the church under Aaron and his sons; and the purification of the external things of the church was represented by the sprinkling of the water of expiation, by shaving their flesh, and washing their garments.

[5] Moreover, all who became unclean by touching unclean things also washed themselves and their garments, and thus were said to be made clean. As for example, they who had eaten of the carcase of an unclean beast, or of what was torn (Leviticus 17:15, 16); he who touched the bed of one that had a flux, or who had sat upon the vessel, upon which that one had sat, or who had touched his flesh (Leviticus 15:5-12). The leper, after his cleansing, had to wash his garments, shave off all his hair, and wash himself with water (Leviticus 14:8, 9); and in fact the very vessels that were made unclean by the touch of the unclean, had to be passed through waters (Leviticus 11:32); besides in many other references. He who supposes that they who washed their flesh, or hands and feet, or garments, were thereby cleansed and sanctified, that is to say, purified from their sins, is much deceived. For sins are not washed away or removed as filth is by water, or by means of water, but they are washed away, that is, removed, by means of truths, and a life according to them, and this alone was what was represented by washings; for waters signify truths, and truths, when there is a life according to them, purify men.

[6] That these external things contribute nothing to purification from evils and falsities, is clearly taught by the Lord in Matthew:

"Woe unto you, Scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye cleanse the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess. Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse first the inside of the cup and of the platter, that the outside of them may be clean also" (23:25, 26).

The Lord gave similar teaching when the Jews and Pharisees rebuked His disciples for not washing their hands before they eat, for he said, that that would not defile a man, but every evil which goeth forth from the heart (Matthew 15:1, 2, 19, 20; Mark 7:1-23; Luke 11:38, 39). It is therefore clear that the Jews, by their washings, were never sanctified and cleansed from their spiritual defilements, which are the evils issuing from the heart, because these evils reside within, and in the world have no relation to the filth which adheres to the body. It is said, that the inside of the cup and of the platter is to be cleansed in order that the outside may be clean also; for the exterior with man cannot be cleansed before the interior, since by means of the interior the exterior is cleansed. By the cup and platter are signified the interiors and exteriors of man, which receive truth and good, for the cup is the container of wine, and the platter the container of food; and wine (vinum) signifies truth, and food signifies good, just as bread does. It is therefore evident what is signified, in the spiritual sense, by cleansing first the inside of the cup and of the platter, that the outside may be clean also.

[7] The same also is meant by the washing of the feet of the disciples, concerning which the Lord thus spoke to Peter:

"He that is washed needeth not save to wash his feet, but is clean every whit" (John 13:10).

Here by, "he that is washed," is signified inward purification; and by, "needeth not save to wash his feet," is signified, that then he is to be outwardly cleansed, for the feet signify the external or natural man, as may be seen above (n. 69). Concerning this interior truth more may be seen in the Doctrine of the New Jerusalem 179, 181); and in the Arcana Coelestia, where the following subjects are illustrated, namely, that each man, both the internal or spiritual, and the external or natural, must be purified in order that a man may be purified, and that the external must be purified by the internal (n. 3868, 3870, 3872, 3876, 3877, 3882). The internal man is purified before the external, because the internal is in the light of heaven, and the external in the light of the world (n. 3321, 3325, 3469, 3493, 4353, 8746, 9325). The external or natural man is purified by the Lord through the internal or spiritual (n. 3286, 3288, 3321). A man is not purified until the external or natural man is also purified (n. 8742-8747, 9043, 9046, 9061, 9325, 9334). Unless the natural man be purified, the spiritual man is closed (n. 6299); and as to the truths and goods of faith and of love he is as it were blind (n. 3493, 3969).

The internal man is purified by knowing, understanding, and thinking the truths of the Word, and the external man, by willing and doing them. From these considerations the meaning of the Lord's words to Peter is now clear, "He that is washed needeth not save to wash his feet, but is clean every whit;" and also the Lord's words to the Pharisees; "Cleanse first the inside of the cup and of the platter, that the outside of them may be clean also."

[8] That the internal man is purified by means of the truths of faith, and the external by a life according to them, is meant also by these words of the Lord, "Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God" (John 3:5). Water signifies the truths of faith, and the spirit, a life according to them.

[9] From these observations the signification of washing in the following passages is evident.

Thus in Ezekiel:

"I washed thee with waters; yea, I thoroughly washed away thy bloods from upon thee, and I anointed thee with oil" (16:9).

This was said of Jerusalem, which signifies the church; the purification of the church from falsities and evils is signified by, I washed thee with waters; yea I thoroughly washed away thy bloods from upon thee. To wash with waters signifies to purify it by means of truths, and to wash away bloods signifies to purify from evils and falsities. To imbue it with the good of love is signified by, I anointed thee with oil, oil denoting the good of love.

[10] In Isaiah:

"When the Lord shall have washed away the filth of the daughters of Zion and shall have purged the bloods of Jerusalem from the midst thereof, in the spirit of judgment, and in the spirit of cleansing" (4:4).

To wash away the filth of the daughters of Zion, signifies to purify the affections of those who are of the celestial church from the evils of the love of self, filth denoting the evil of the love of self, daughters, the affections, and Zion, the church which is in love to the Lord, and is therefore called the celestial church. To wash away the bloods of Jerusalem signifies to purify the affections from the falsities of evil, bloods denoting those falsities. In the spirit of judgment, and in the spirit of cleansing, signifies, by the understanding of truth, and by the affection for truth, for spirit denotes the Divine Truth which proceeds from the Lord, the spirit of judgment, the understanding of truth thence, and the spirit of cleansing, the spiritual affection for truth, since it is this which cleanses.

[11] Again, in Job:

"If I wash myself in waters of snow, and make my hands clean with lye; yet shalt thou plunge me into the pit, and mine own clothes shall abhor me" (9:30, 31).

These words mean, that if any one desire to purify himself, even by means of truths and goods which are, or seem to be genuine, he will still lead himself into falsities. To wash himself denotes to purify himself; waters of snow denote the truths which are, or seem to be, genuine; lye denotes the good from which [such waters come]; and the pit denotes what is false. That consequently truths falsified exist, is meant by mine own clothes shall abhor me, clothes denoting truths, which are said to abhor a man when he falsifies them, and this is the case when he thinks out and forms conclusions from his own intelligence.

[12] In Moses:

"Who washes his garment in wine, and his covering in the blood of grapes" (Genesis 49:11).

These words are spoken of Judah, who there signified the Lord as to Divine Truth; that He completely purified this in His Human, when He was in the world, is signified by His washing His garment in wine, and His covering in the blood of grapes, garments and covering signifying His Human, and wine and the blood of grapes, the Divine Truth. These things are explained in the Arcana Coelestia 6377, 6378).

[13] That washing, signifies to purify from falsities and evils, is evident in Isaiah:

"Wash you, make you clean; put away the evil of your doings from before mine eyes; cease to do evil" (1:16).

Because to wash signifies to remove falsities and evils, it is therefore said, "put away the evil of your doings from before mine eyes; cease to do evil."

[14] In Jeremiah:

"O Jerusalem, wash thine heart from wickedness, that thou mayest be saved. How long shall thoughts of thine iniquity lodge within thee?" (4:14).

And in David:

"Wash me thoroughly from mine iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin. Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow" (Psalm 51:2, 7).

Here to wash clearly denotes to purify from falsities and evils, for it is said, "wash me thoroughly from mine iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin," and afterwards "wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow." To wash from iniquity denotes purification from falsities, and from sin denotes from evils, for iniquity is spoken of falsities, and sin, of evils. Because the water of expiation also was prepared from hyssop, it is therefore said, "purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean."

[15] In Jeremiah:

"Though thou wash thee with nitre, and take thee much lye, thine iniquity is marked before me" (2:22).

Here also it is clear that washings only represented and thence signified spiritual washings, which are purifications from falsities and evils, for it is said, "Though thou wash thee with nitre, and take thee much lye, yet thine iniquity is marked before me."

[16] Similarly in David:

"I have cleansed my heart in vain, and washed my hands in innocency. For all the day long have I been plagued, and my chastisement until the mornings" (Psalm 73:13, 14).

Here, to wash his hands in innocency, denotes to declare himself to be innocent and pure from evils and falsities; for the washing of the hands was also a testification of innocence; as also is evident from the fact that Pilate washed his hands and said, "I am innocent of the blood of this just one" (Matthew 27:24).

[17] Because washings signified purifications from falsities and evils, and because the blind signified those who do not see truths, and thence are in falsities, therefore the Lord told the blind man, whose eyes he anointed with clay made of spittle, to wash himself in the pool of Siloam; and he afterwards washed and came seeing (John 9:6, 7, 11, 15). The blind man here represented those who can see nothing of truth because they are sensual, and see only those things which appear before the external senses, and therefore they drink in fallacies instead of truths, and apply the sense of the letter of the Word to confirm them. The clay made of spittle signifies sensual truth, such as is contained in the Word for such persons. The waters of the lake or pool of Siloam signify the truths of the Word for all things even to the pools of water in Jerusalem, were significative; and by washing is signified to purify from fallacies, which in themselves are falsities. Hence the signification of these things in a series is evident; for all the miracles and works of the Lord, when He was in the world, signified celestial and spiritual Divine things, that is, such things as have reference to heaven and the church, and this because they were Divine, and the Divine always operates in ultimates from primaries (ex primis), and so in fulness. Ultimates are such things as appear before the eyes in the world; for this reason the Lord spoke, and the Word was written by means of such things in nature, which are correspondences.

[18] The case is similar with the miracle wrought on Naaman the leper at the command of Elisha, recorded as follows in the second book of Kings:

Naaman the Syrian was afflicted with leprosy, and was bidden by a messenger from Elisha to wash himself seven times in Jordan, and his flesh should come again to him and he should be clean, and at length Naaman "went down and dipped himself in Jordan seven times, and then his flesh came again like unto the flesh of a little child, and he was clean" (5:10, 14).

Naaman, of Syria, the leper, represented and signified those who falsify the knowledges of truth and good from the Word, for leprosy signifies falsifications, and Syria, the knowledges of truth and good. The waters of Jordan signified truths introductory to the church, which are the knowledges of truth and good from the Word, for the river Jordan was the first boundary by which the land of Canaan was entered, and by the land of Canaan was signified the church; hence the waters of Jordan signified introductory truths, which are the first knowledges of truth and good from the Word. On account of this signification of the waters of Jordan, Naaman was commanded to wash himself in it seven times, which signified purification from falsified truths. Seven times signify what is in fulness, and when used of holy things, it signifies such holy things as Divine truths are. By reason of this signification of seven times, it is said that his flesh was restored as the flesh of a little child, and by the flesh being restored is signified spiritual life, such as those have who are regenerated by means of Divine truths.

[19] Because the waters of Jordan signify truths introductory to the church, which are the knowledges of truth and good from the Word, and since washing therein signifies purification from falsities, and thence reformation and regeneration by the Lord, therefore baptism was instituted, and it was first administered in Jordan by John (Matthew 3:11-16; Mark 1:4-13). The rite of baptism signified initiation into knowledges from the Word concerning the Lord, His coming, and salvation from Him. And because man is reformed and regenerated by the Lord by means of truths from the Word, therefore baptism was commanded by the Lord (Matthew 28:19). For truths from the Word are the means by which man is reformed and regenerated, and it is the Lord who reforms and regenerates. More may be seen concerning this in the Doctrine of the New Jerusalem 202-209).

[20] John said that he baptized with water, but that the Lord baptized with the Holy Spirit and with fire (Luke 3:16; John 1:33). By this is meant, that John only inaugurated them into knowledges from the Word concerning the Lord, and so prepared them to receive Him, but that the Lord Himself regenerates man by Divine Truth and Divine Good proceeding from Himself; for John represented the Word just as Elijah did; the water with which John baptized signified introductory truths, these being knowledges concerning the Lord from the Word. The Holy Spirit signifies Divine Truth proceeding from the Lord; fire, the Divine Good proceeding from Him; and baptism, regeneration by the Lord, by means of Divine Truths from the Word.

[21] Washings were instituted in the ancient churches, and afterwards baptisms in their place, which nevertheless were only representative and significative rites, in order that heaven might be conjoined with the human race, and specifically with the man of the church. For heaven is conjoined to man when he is in ultimates, that is, in such things as are in the world as to his natural man, and in such things as are in heaven as to his spiritual man; there cannot be conjunction in any other way. It was for this reason that baptism and the Holy Supper were instituted, and that by means of such things as are in the world the Word was written, and that it contains a spiritual sense, wherein are heavenly things; and that the sense of the letter of the Word is natural, and contains a spiritual sense within it. That by means of this the Word conjoins the angels of heaven with the men of the church, may be seen in the work concerning Heaven and Hell 303-310); and in the little work Concerning the White Horse, from beginning to end. That the Holy Supper also conjoins, may be seen [in the Doctrine of the New Jerusalem] (n. 210-222); the case is the same in regard to baptism. But yet he who believes that baptism contributes anything to the salvation of man, unless he be at the same time in the truths of the church and in a life according to them, is much deceived. For baptism is an external act, and apart from what is internal, contributes nothing to salvation, but it does contribute to it where the external is conjoined with the internal. The internal of Baptism is this, that by means of truths from the Word, and a life according to them, evils and falsities are removed by the Lord, and thus man is regenerated, as the Lord also teaches in Matthew (23:26, 27), by means of the things explained above in this article.

3305. 'And he called his name Jacob' means the doctrine of natural truth. This is clear from the meaning of 'calling the name' or calling by name as the essential nature, dealt with just above in 3302. The essential nature represented by 'Jacob' is the doctrine of natural truth, as becomes clear from the representation of Esau as good constituting the life of natural truth, 3300, and from very many places in the Word where he is mentioned. There are two elements which constitute the natural, as there are two which constitute the rational, and indeed which constitute the whole person - the first being that of life, the second that of doctrine. The element of life belongs to the will, that of doctrine to the understanding. The former is called good, but the latter truth. It is that good which is represented by Esau, but this truth by Jacob; or what amounts to the same, it is good constituting the life of natural truth that is represented by Esau, and the doctrine of natural truth that is represented by Jacob. Whether you speak of the good constituting the life of natural truth and of the doctrine of natural truth, or of those in whom such doctrine and life are present, it amounts to the same, for the good constituting the life and the doctrine of truth cannot exist apart from their subject. Without their subject they are mere abstractions, yet they nevertheless have regard to the person in whom they exist. Consequently Jacob here means people who possess the doctrine of natural truth.

[2] Those who confine themselves to the sense of the letter suppose that in the Word Jacob is used to mean every one of those people descended from Jacob, and for that reason they apply to those people everything that has been stated about Jacob either as history or as prophecy. But the Word is Divine in that first and foremost every single thing within it has regard not just to one particular nation or people but to the whole human race, namely to everyone present, past, and future. More than that, it has reference to the Lord's kingdom in heaven; and in the highest sense to the Lord Himself. This is what makes it a Divine Word. If it were concerned with merely one particular nation it would be human only and would have nothing more of the Divine within it than the existence among that nation of holy worship. The fact that such worship did not exist among the people called 'Jacob' may be known to anyone. For this reason also it is evident that 'Jacob' is not used in the Word to mean Jacob, nor 'Israel' to mean Israel - for almost everywhere in prophetical parts, when Jacob is referred to, Israel is mentioned too. And no one can know what is meant specifically by the first or what by the second except from that sense which lies more deeply and conceals the arcana of heaven within itself.

[3] In the internal sense therefore 'Jacob' means the doctrine of natural truth, or what amounts to the same, people who possess that doctrine, no matter what nation they belong to; and in the highest sense 'Jacob' is used to mean the Lord, as becomes clear from the following places: In Luke,

The angel said to Mary, You will conceive in your womb and bear a Son, and you shall call His name Jesus. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give to Him the throne of His father David, so that He will reign over the house of Jacob for ever, and of His kingdom there will be no end. Luke 1:31-33.

Everyone recognizes that here 'the house of Jacob' was not used to mean the Jewish nation or people, for the Lord's kingdom included not merely that people but all throughout the world who have faith in Him, and from faith have charity. From this it is clear that when the angel used the name Jacob he did not mean the people of Jacob. Nor consequently are those people meant anywhere else. Nor are the references to the seed of Jacob, the sons of Jacob, the land of Jacob, the inheritance of Jacob, the king of Jacob, and the God of Jacob, which occur so many times in the Old Testament Word, meant literally.

[4] It is similar with the name Israel, as in Matthew,

The angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, saying, Rise, take the Boy and His mother, and flee into Egypt, and be there until I tell you. He rose and took the Boy and His mother by night, and departed into Egypt, so that what had been said by the prophet might be fulfilled, when he said, Out of Egypt have I called My Son. Matthew 2:13-15.

In the prophet this promise is stated as follows,

When Israel was a boy I loved him, and out of Egypt I called my son. Hosea 11:1.

Here it is quite evident that 'Israel' is the Lord. From the sense of the letter however nothing more may be known beyond the fact that 'the boy Israel' means the immediate descendants of Jacob who came into Egypt and at a later time were summoned from there. It is similar in other places where the names Jacob and Israel occur, although it is not apparent from the sense of the letter, as in Isaiah,

Hear, O Jacob my servant, and Israel whom I have chosen, Thus said Jehovah who made you and formed you from the womb, who helps you, Fear not, O my servant Jacob, and Jeshurun whom I have chosen, for I will pour out waters upon thirsty land, and rivers upon the dry. I will pour out My spirit upon your seed, and My blessing upon your sons. This one will say, I am Jehovah's, and another will call himself by the name of Jacob, and he will write with his hand, Jehovah's, and surname himself by the name of Israel. Isaiah 44:1-3, 5.

Here 'Jacob' and 'Israel' plainly stand for the Lord, and 'the seed' and 'the sons of Jacob' for those having faith in Him.

[5] In the prophecy concerning Israel's sons, in Moses,

Joseph will sit in the strength of his bow, and the arms of his hands will be made strong by the hands of the mighty Jacob; from there is the Shepherd, the Stone of Israel. Genesis 49:24.

Here also 'the mighty Jacob' and 'the Stone of Israel' plainly stand for the Lord. In Isaiah,

My glory will I not give to another. Hearken to Me, O Jacob, and O Israel whom I called: I am the same; I am the first; I am also the last. Isaiah 48:11-12.

Here again 'Jacob' and 'Israel' are the Lord. In Ezekiel,

I will take the stick of Joseph which is in the hand of Ephraim and of the tribes of Israel his companions, and I will add them to it, to the stick of Judah, and make them into one stick, that they may be one in My hand. I will take the children of Israel from among the nations where they have gone, and will gather them from all around and bring them on to their own land. And I will make them into one nation in the land, on the mountains of Israel; and one king will be king to them all, and they will no longer be two nations, nor will they ever be divided into two kingdoms again. My servant David will be king over them, and they will all have one shepherd. At that time they will dwell in the land which I gave to Jacob my servant, in which your fathers dwelt. They will dwell in it, they, and their sons, and their sons' sons even for ever. David My servant will be their prince for ever. I will make with them a covenant of peace; it will be an eternal covenant with them. I will bless ¹ them, and multiply them, and I will set My sanctuary in their midst for evermore. Thus will My dwelling-place be with them, and I will be their God. and they will be My people, so that the nations may know that I Jehovah sanctify Israel, to be My sanctuary in their midst for evermore. Ezekiel 37:19, 21-22, 24-28.

Here again it is quite clear that 'Joseph', 'Ephraim', 'Judah', 'Israel', 'Jacob', and 'David' are not used to mean those persons, but in the highest sense Divine spiritual things within the Lord and which exist in the Lord's kingdom and in His Church. Anyone may know that David will not be, as is said, their king and prince for ever, but that 'David' is used to mean the Lord, 1888. Anyone may also know that Israel will not be gathered together from where they have been scattered, or that they will be sanctified, or, as is said, that the sanctuary will be set in their midst, but that, as is well known, 'Israel' in the representative sense means all those who have faith.

[6] In Micah,

I will surely gather Jacob, all of you, I will surely assemble the remnant of Israel; I will put them together, like the sheep of Bozrah. Micah 2:12.

Here the meaning is similar. In Isaiah,

Those who are to come Jacob will cause to take root. Israel will blossom and flower, and the face of the earth will be filled with produce. Isaiah 27:6.

Here also the meaning is similar. In the same prophet,

Thus said Jehovah, who redeemed Abraham, to the house of Jacob, Jacob will no more be ashamed, and no more will his face grow pale. For when he sees his male children, the work of My hands, in his midst they will sanctify My name, and they will sanctify the Holy One of Jacob, and will fear the God of Israel. And those who err in spirit will know understanding. Isaiah 29:22-24.

In the same prophet,

Jehovah said to His anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I have grasped, to subdue nations before him, and I will ungird the loins of kings, to open doors before him, and gates may not be closed: I will go before you and make straight the crooked places; I will break in pieces the doors of bronze and cut asunder the bars of iron, I will give you the treasures of concealed places, and the secret wealth of hoarded objects, that you may know that it is I, Jehovah, who called you by your name, the God of Israel. For the sake of My servant Jacob, and of Israel My chosen, I have called you by your name. I have surnamed you when you did not know Me. Isaiah 45:1-4.

This also clearly refers to the Lord. In Micah,

In the latter days the mountain of the house of Jehovah will be established at the head of the mountains. Many nations will come and say, Come and let us go up to the mountain of Jehovah, and to the house of the God of Jacob, that He may teach us about His ways, and we will go in His paths. For out of Zion will go forth teaching, and the word of Jehovah from Jerusalem. Micah 4:1-2.

In David,

Jehovah loves the gates of Zion more than all the dwelling-places of Jacob. Glorious things are to be spoken in you, O city of God. Psalms 87:1-3.

In Jeremiah,

They will serve Jehovah their God and David their king, whom I will raise up for them. And do not fear, O My servant Jacob, and do not be dismayed, O Israel, for behold, I am saving you from afar. Jeremiah 30:9-10.

In Isaiah,

Listen to Me, O islands, and hearken, O peoples from afar. Jehovah called me from the womb, from my mother's body ² He remembered my name. And He said to me, You are My servant Israel in whom I will be rendered glorious. Isaiah 49:1, 3.

In the same prophet,

Then will you take delight in Jehovah and I will convey you over the high places of the earth, and I will feed you with the heritage of Jacob. Isaiah 58:14.

In the same prophet,

I will bring forth seed from Jacob, and from Judah the heir of My mountain, so mat My chosen ones may possess it, and My servants may dwell there. Isaiah 65:9.

[7] In all these places 'Jacob' and 'Israel' are used in the highest sense to mean the Lord, and in the representative sense the Lord's spiritual kingdom, and the Church which is the Church by virtue of the doctrine of truth and the life of good - 'Jacob' meaning those who are in the external aspects of that Church, and 'Israel' those who are in the internal. These and very many other places show that nowhere is 'Jacob' used to mean Jacob, or 'Israel' to mean Israel, any more than when the names 'Isaac' and 'Abraham' are used Isaac or Abraham is meant, as in Matthew,

Many will come from the east and from the west and will recline with Abraham, and Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven. Matthew 8:11.

In Luke,

You will see Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and all the prophets in the kingdom of God. Luke 13:28.

And in the same gospel,

Lazarus was carried by the angels into Abraham's bosom. Luke 16:22.

For in heaven angels have no knowledge at all of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Angels there perceive nothing else from those words when read by man than the Lord as regards the Divine and the Divine Human. When man reads about reclining with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob they perceive nothing else than being with the Lord; and when about being in Abraham's bosom nothing else than resting in the Lord. Such wording has been used however because mankind at that time was so far removed from things of an internal nature that it neither knew nor wished to know anything other than this, that everything in the Word was to be taken literally. And when the Lord spoke to them in that literal manner He did so in order that they might receive faith, and also at the same time in order that the internal sense might be contained within what He said, by means of which mankind was joined to Himself. This being so one may see what is meant in the Old Testament Word by 'the God of Jacob' and by 'the Holy One of Israel', namely the Lord Himself. For places where 'the God of Jacob' means the Lord, see 2 Samuel 23:1; Isaiah 2:3; 41:21; Micah 4:2; Psalms 20:1; 46:7; 75:9; 76:6; 81:1, 4; 84:8; 94:7; 114:7; 132:2; 146:5; and for places where 'the Holy One of Israel' means the Lord, Isaiah 1:4; 5:19, 24; 10:20; 12:6; 17:7; 29:19; 30:11-12, 15; 31:1; 37:23; 41:14, 16, 20; 43:3, 14; 45:11; 47:4; 48:17; 49:7; 54:5; 55:5; 60:9, 14; Jeremiah 50:29; Ezekiel 39:7; Psalms 71:22; 78:41; 89:18.

Imibhalo yaphansi: