7327 – 8657

sRef Ex@7 @19 S0′ 7327. ‘And there will be blood in all the land of Egypt’ means total falsification. This is clear from the meaning of ‘blood’ as the falsification of truth, dealt with immediately above in 7326; and from the meaning of ‘in all the land of Egypt’ as everywhere, thus total falsification. Total falsification takes place when falsity begins to reign, for a person then leads a life in keeping with his congenital and acquired evil, and finds delight in it. And since the truths of faith forbid such things he loathes them; and when he loathes truths wherever they exist, he casts them away from himself, or if he cannot do this he falsifies them.

sRef Ex@7 @19 S0′ 7328. ‘both in vessels of wood and in vessels of stone’ means of the good of charity and of the truth of faith – a total falsification of them. This is clear from the meaning of ‘vessels of wood’ as forms of the good of charity, dealt with in 2784, 2812, 3720; and from the meaning of ‘vessels of stone’ as forms of the truth of faith, dealt with in 1298, 3720, 6416.

sRef Ex@7 @20 S0′ 7329. ‘And Moses and Aaron did so, as Jehovah had commanded’ means putting it into effect. This is clear without explanation.

sRef Ex@7 @20 S0′ 7330. ‘And he lifted up the rod and struck the waters which were in the river’ means strong power directed against falsities. This is clear from what has been stated above in 7316. Strength is meant by his lifting up the rod and striking in that manner.

sRef Ex@7 @20 S0′ 7331. ‘Before the eyes of Pharaoh and before the eyes of his servants’ means to the discernment of all those who were molesting. This is clear from the meaning of ‘the eyes’ as discernment, dealt with in 4087, 4379; and from the representation of ‘Pharaoh’ as those who molest by means of falsities, dealt with previously. All those are meant when it says ‘before the eyes of Pharaoh and before the eyes of his servants’.

sRef Ex@7 @20 S0′ 7332. ‘And all the waters which were in the river were converted into blood’ means consequent falsification of all truth. This is clear from the meaning of ‘the waters which are in the river’ as falsities, dealt with above in 7707; and from the meaning of ‘blood’ as the falsification of truth, also dealt with above, in 7317, 7326. The reason why those in the next life who are steeped in falsities and engage in molestation are allowed to falsify truths is that then they are prevented from having contact through the truths of faith with those who are in heaven on one hand, and through evils of life with those who are in hell on the other. Therefore they cannot use such contact to acquire through truths any light at all from heaven, thus any intelligence, and make those truths serve the evils of their life. For if they could they would use the intelligence they had gained to justify evil, and so to subordinate the things of heaven residing with them to those of hell. They are also prevented in this way from leading astray simple and upright spirits with whom they have contact through truths. The evil in the next life among whom truths have not yet been falsified also know how to use those truths to gain control over others (for power resides within truths, so great that it is irresistible, 3091, 6344, 6427, 6948); and this is another way in which they would misuse truths. Furthermore the truths the evil know do not amend their lives in any way at all. They use them merely as means to do evil; when they cannot use them in this way the evil utterly deride truths. They are like wicked prelates who would ridicule the truths of doctrine if they could not use those truths for their own profit. These are the reasons why the evil are allowed to falsify the truths they know.

sRef Ex@7 @21 S0′ 7333. ‘And the fish which were in the river died’ means the destruction of factual knowledge of truth too. This is clear from what has been stated above in 7318, where the same words occur.

sRef Ex@7 @21 S0′ 7334. ‘And the river stank’ means aversion. This is clear from what has been stated above in 7319.

sRef Ex@7 @21 S0′ 7335. ‘And the Egyptians were unable to drink water from the river’ means that they wished to know as little as possible about it. This too is clear from what has been stated above, in 7320.

sRef Ex@7 @21 S0′ 7336. ‘And there was blood in the entire land of Egypt’ means total falsification, see above in 7327.

sRef Ex@7 @22 S0′ 7337. ‘And the magicians of Egypt did the same with their enchantments’ means that [by a misuse of order] the falsifiers among them produced something that looked the same. This is clear from the meaning of ‘Egyptian magic’ and ‘enchantments’ as misuses of Divine order, dealt with in 5223, 6052, 7296. As regards miracles, it should be recognized that Divine miracles are as different from miracles involving the use of magic as heaven is from hell. Divine miracles spring from Divine Truth and take place in accordance with true order. Effects on lowest levels are miracles when it pleases the Lord that they should present themselves in that form. Thus it is that all Divine miracles represent states of the Lord’s kingdom in heaven, and of the Lord’s kingdom on earth, which is the Church. And this is the inward form that Divine miracles take. This is the situation with all the miracles performed in Egypt, as it is with all the rest that are referred to in the Word. All the miracles too which the Lord Himself performed when He was in the world were signs of the future state of the Church. Opening the eyes of the blind, for example, and the ears of the deaf, loosing the tongues of the dumb, enabling the lame to walk, and making the maimed whole and the leprous too, were signs that the kind of people meant by the blind, deaf, dumb, lame, maimed, and leprous would receive the Gospel and be spiritually restored to health, which would be accomplished by the Lord’s Coming into the world.

[2] This is what Divine miracles are like as to the inward form they take. But miracles involving the use of magic hold nothing at all like that; they are performed by the evil to gain power over others, and in outward form seem to be the same as Divine miracles. The reason why they seem to be the same is that they start from order, and on its lowest level, where miracles present themselves, order always looks the same. Take for example the consideration that Divine Truth coming forth from the Lord has all power within it. This being so, truths also on the last and lowest levels of order have power within them, and therefore the evil use truths to gain power and exercise control over others.

[3] To give another example, it is in accordance with order that in the next life states of affection and thought give rise to people’s ideas of spatial position and distance, and that the distances seen to separate people from one another are determined by the differences in their states. The purpose behind this law of order from the Divine is that all within the Grand Man should be distinct from one another. But magicians in the next life misuse this law of order, for they bring about changes of state in others and then move them about, at one time to a position high up, at another to a position low down, and also force them into communities where they can serve as the magicians’ subordinates. They misuse order in countless other ways like this. From all this it is evident that although in outward form miracles involving the use of magic seem to be the same as Divine miracles, inwardly they nevertheless have a contrary end in view. That is to say, they have in view the destruction of things of the Church, whereas Divine miracles have inwardly as their end in view the building up of things of the Church. They are like two beautiful women, one of whom because of her promiscuity is wholly rotten within, while the other because of her chastity or true matrimonial love is wholly pure within. Outwardly those women are alike, but inwardly they are as different as heaven and hell.

sRef Ex@7 @22 S0′ 7338. ‘And Pharaoh’s heart was unyielding’ means obstinacy, as above in 7272, 7300.

sRef Ex@7 @22 S0′ 7339. ‘And he did not hear them’ means non-acceptance and disobedience, also as above, in 7224, 7275, 7301.

sRef Ex@7 @22 S0′ 7340. ‘As Jehovah had spoken’ means as accorded with what had been foretold, again as above, in 7302.

sRef Ex@7 @23 S0′ 7341. ‘And Pharaoh looked back and went to his house’ means thought and reflection based on falsities. This is clear from the meaning of ‘looking back’ as thought and reflection, for in the spiritual sense ‘looking back’ is not looking at something with one’s eyes but looking mentally, thus thinking and reflecting; and from the meaning of ‘Pharaoh’s house’ as falsity. For when ‘Pharaoh’ represents falsity his ‘house’ has the same meaning; and therefore ‘going to his house’ means [turning to] falsities. And since these words mean thought and reflection based on falsities, the phrase about his not taking this to heart follows. For a person whose thought is based on falsities does not take it to heart when the Divine warns him.

sRef Ex@7 @23 S0′ 7342. ‘And he did not take this to heart’ means resistance arising in the will and consequent obstinacy. This is clear from the meaning of ‘not taking something to heart’ as paying no attention; and since among the evil paying no attention to Divine things is the result of resistance arising in the will, this too is meant by those same words. And since ‘not taking it to heart’ implies the same as being unyielding, obstinacy is also meant, as previously in 7272, 7300, 7338. With respect to resistance arising in the will, it should be recognized that the will is what rules a person. Some people think that the understanding rules; but the understanding does not do so unless the will has the same leanings. The understanding accords with the will, for regarded in itself the understanding is nothing other than the outward form which the will takes. The expression ‘the will’ is used here to mean the desires that belong to a person’s love, for his will is nothing other. Those desires are what rule a person, for they are his life. If a person’s desires are those of self-love and love of the world, then his entire life is nothing else than such desires. Nor can he resist them, for to do so would be to resist his own life. Fundamental ideas of truth make no impression whatever. If the desires belonging to those kinds of love predominate they haul truth over to their own side and so falsify it, or if it does not fully support them reject it. This explains why fundamental ideas of truth taught by faith have no effect whatever on a person unless the Lord instills desires belonging to spiritual love, that is, love towards the neighbour. And in the measure that he receives those desires he receives also the truths of faith. The desires belonging to this love are what constitute the new will. From all this it may now be seen that a person never takes any truth to heart if his will is resistant to it. So it is that those in hell, having an affection or desires for evil within them, cannot receive the truths of faith, consequently cannot undergo correction. So it is too that the evil falsify the truths of faith, so far as they can.

sRef Ex@7 @24 S0′ 7343. ‘And all the Egyptians dug round about the river for water to drink’ means searching out truth which they could apply to falsities. This is clear from the meaning of ‘digging’ as searching out, dealt with below; from the meaning of ‘water round about the river’ as truths (the reason why ‘water round about the river’ is truths is that this water was outside the river and had not become blood; for the meaning of ‘water’ as truths, see 739, 790, 2702, 3058, 3424, 4976, 5668); and from the meaning of ‘drinking’ as applying to falsities. For the meaning of ‘drinking’ as applying, see 5709; for anyone who drinks something applies it to himself. But it should be recognized that the nature of the application when it takes place is determined by the character and state of the one who applies that thing to himself. A person with an affection for truth applies truths to himself in accordance with the state and character of this affection; but a person with an affection for falsity perverts and falsifies truths when he applies them to himself. This may be seen from the consideration that Divine Truth flows into everyone, yet is varied with each individual according to the state and character of his life. Those in hell therefore turn it into falsities, just as they turn Divine Good into evil, heavenly forms of love into devilish ones, mercy into hatred and cruelty, conjugial love into adultery. Thus they turn things into their opposites, which they do because of the opposite character and state of their life. This now explains why ‘all the Egyptians dug round about the river for water [to drink]’ means searching out truths which they could apply to falsities.

[2] The fact that among those steeped in falsities and evils truth is turned into falsity and good into evil, and also vice versa, is evident from the proverbial saying that to the pure all things are pure, and to the impure all things are impure. This may also be illustrated by natural phenomena, for instance by the light coming from the sun. The light is white, but the objects it flows into convert it into colours. It is made beautiful by objects that are beautiful, and ugly by those that are ugly. The same proverb may also be illustrated by the grafting of branches into trees. A branch grafted into the trunk bears its own fruit, and therefore the sap of the tree, as soon as it passes into the engrafted branch, Is varied. It now becomes the branch’s sap, suited to the production of its leaves and fruit. The situation is similar with the things that enter a human being.

sRef Num@21 @17 S3′ sRef Num@21 @18 S3′ [3] The reason why ‘digging’ means searching out is that ‘water’, ‘spring’, and ‘well’ which are dug out mean truths, which are not dug out but searched out. This is why in the original language this same word, when it is used in connection with truths, also means to search for. In prophetical statements however either ‘water’ or ‘spring’ is used instead of truth, and ‘digging’ instead of searching for; for this is what prophetic language is like, as is evident in Moses, where the spring at Beer is referred to, about which Israel sang this song,

Rise up, O spring! Answer over it! The well* which the princes dug, which the chiefs of the people dug out, as directed by the lawgiver, with their staves. Num. 21:16-18.

Here ‘spring’ means teachings presenting God’s truth, ‘digging’ means searching for it.
* lit. spring

sRef Ex@7 @24 S0′ 7344. ‘For they could not drink from the waters of the river’ means non-application through the use of utter falsities. This is clear from the meaning of ‘being unable to drink’ as non-application, for ‘drinking’ is applying, see immediately above in 7343; and from the meaning of ‘the waters of the river’ as falsities, also dealt with above, in 7307. What is meant by ‘being unable to drink from the waters of the river’ – which is that truths cannot be applied to falsities, that is, be falsified through the use of utter falsities – follows on also from the internal sense of what comes immediately before. That is to say, this meaning follows on from that of ‘digging for water to drink round about the river’, which is a searching for truths that they could apply to falsities. The reason why utter falsities cannot be used to apply truths to falsities is that they are intermediaries are present to bind them together. The intermediaries which bind them together are the illusions of the outward senses, and also statements made in the Word in accordance with outward appearances. Take for example the truth that nothing but good comes from the Lord, and never anything evil. This truth is falsified through illusions, such as that by His almighty power the Lord is able, if He wills, to take away evil, and that because He does not take it away He is the cause of it, which implies that evil too comes from the Lord. It is falsified by the use of statements made in the Word in accordance with outward appearances, such as that Jehovah or the Lord is angry, punishes, condemns, and casts into hell, when in actual fact the people themselves who are engrossed in evil are the ones who cause these things to happen to them. Consequently they bring upon themselves the evil inflicted as punishment, for in the next life the evil inflicted as punishment and the evil of which a person is guilty go together. Countless other truths can be falsified in ways like these.

sRef Ex@7 @26 S0′ sRef Ex@7 @25 S0′ sRef Ex@7 @27 S0′ sRef Ex@7 @28 S0′ sRef Ex@7 @29 S0′ 7345. Verses 25-29 And seven days were fulfilled after Jehovah struck the river.* And Jehovah said to Moses, Go to Pharaoh, and you shall say to him, Thus says Jehovah, Send My people away, and let them serve Me. And if you refuse to send them away, behold, I will plague all your borders with frogs. And the river will cause the frogs to crawl forth, and they will rise up and come into your house, and into your bedchamber, and onto your bed, and into the house of your servants, and onto your people, and into your ovens, and into your kneading bowls. And onto you, and onto your people, and onto all your servants the frogs will rise up.

‘And seven days were fulfilled after Jehovah struck the river’ means the end of the state after truths were falsified. ‘And Jehovah said to Moses’ means new instruction. ‘Go to Pharaoh, and you shall say to him’ means a command to be addressed to the molesters. ‘Thus says Jehovah, Send My people away in order that they may serve Me’ means that they should leave those who belong to the Church in order that in freedom they may worship their God. ‘And if you refuse to send them away’ means should they fail to leave them… ‘Behold, I will plague all your borders with frogs’ means reasonings arising from utter falsities. ‘And the river will cause the frogs to crawl forth’ means the reasonings arising from those falsities. ‘And they will rise up and come into your house, and into your bedchamber’ means that they will fill the mind, all the way through to its more internal parts. ‘And onto your bed’ means to its inmost parts. ‘And into the house of your servants, and of your people’ means everything in the natural. ‘And into your ovens, and into your kneading bowls’ means into delights belonging to evil desires. ‘And onto you, and onto your people, and onto all your servants the frogs will rise up’ means that the reasonings arising from falsities will be in every single part.
* In English versions of the Scriptures the division of chapters is made here.

sRef Ex@7 @25 S0′ 7346. ‘And seven days were fulfilled after Jehovah struck the river’ means the end of the state after truths were falsified. This is clear from the meaning of ‘seven days’ as a whole period from start to finish, thus a complete state, dealt with in 728, 6508 (the same meaning that ‘a week’ has, 2044, 3845) so that ‘seven days were fulfilled’ means the end of that period or state; and from the meaning of ‘after Jehovah struck the river’ as after truths were falsified. For when it says that the river was struck with Aaron’s rod and the waters became blood the meaning is that truths were falsified, see 7316, 7317, 7330, 7372.

sRef Ex@7 @26 S0′ 7347. ‘And Jehovah said to Moses’ means new instruction. This is clear from the meaning of ‘Jehovah said’, when something is commanded anew, as new instruction, dealt with in 7186, 7267, 7304.

sRef Ex@7 @26 S0′ 7348. ‘Go to Pharaoh, and you shall say to him’ means a command to be addressed to the molesters. This is clear from the meaning of ‘going (in) and saying’, when spoken by Jehovah, as a command; and from the representation of ‘Pharaoh’ as those who molest by means of falsities, dealt with in 7107, 7110, 7126, 7142.

sRef Ex@7 @26 S0′ 7349. ‘Thus says Jehovah, Send My people away in order that they may serve Me’ means that they should leave those who belong to the Church in order that in freedom they may worship their God. This is clear from the meaning of ‘sending’ as leaving; from the representation of the children of Israel, to whom ‘My people’ refers here, as those who belong to the spiritual Church, dealt with in 6426, 6637, 6862, 6868, 7075, 7062, 7198, 7201, 7215, 7223; and from the meaning of ‘serving Me’ as worshipping their God. The reason for saying ‘worship in freedom’ is that no worship was possible where falsities were molesting them; and a further reason is that all worship that is truly worship must take place in freedom, 1947, 2875, 2876, 2880, 2881, 3145, 3146, 3158, 4031.

sRef Ex@7 @27 S0′ 7350. ‘And if you refuse to send them away’ means should they fail to leave them . . . This is clear from the meaning of ‘sending’ as leaving, as immediately above in 7749, so that ‘if you refuse to send’ means should they not leave them.

sRef Ex@7 @27 S0′ 7351. ‘behold, I will plague all your borders with frogs’ means reasonings arising from utter falsities. This is clear from the meaning of ‘frogs’ as reasonings. Their arising from utter falsities is meant by their crawling forth from the river, as the next phrase in the verse declares, ‘the river of Egypt’ being falsity, see 6699, 7307; and because the words used here say that all their borders would be plagued with them, they also mean that the reasonings will arise not from falsified truths but from utter falsities. The reason for this is that reasonings which arise from falsified truths are turned at length into blasphemous contradictions of what is good and true. Furthermore real truths reject falsification from themselves since they cannot coexist with falsities, and all the time they are present with them they fight against them and at length free and separate themselves from them. This explains why after a person has falsified truths he at length renounces them altogether. If he did not do that falsities would have dominion over truths. So it is that after the evil in the next life have been cast into hell they are not allowed to use reasonings that arise from falsified truths, only those arising from utter falsities.

sRef Rev@16 @14 S2′ sRef Rev@16 @13 S2′ [2] The fact that ‘frogs’ are reasonings arising from falsities is clear in John,

I saw coming out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet three unclean spirits, like frogs. For they are spirits of demons, performing signs, to go out to the kings of the land and of the whole earth, to assemble them for the war of that great day of God Almighty. Rev. 16:13, 14.

‘Frogs’ are reasonings arising from falsities in opposition to truths, as is evident from every detail here; for it says that they came ‘out of the mouth of the dragon’, ‘out of the mouth of the beast’, and ‘out of the mouth of the false prophet’, and also that they were to go out ‘to the kings of the land, to assemble them for war’. ‘The kings of the land’ are the Church’s truths, for ‘kings’ are truths, and in the contrary sense falsities, see 1672, 1728, 2015, 2069, 3009, 3670, 4575, 4581, 4966, 5044, 5068, 6148, and ‘the land’ is the Church, 662, 1067, 1262, 1733, 1850, 2117, 2118, 3355, 4447, 4535, 5577. ‘War’ is spiritual conflict, 2686, thus war against the truths and forms of the good of faith. From all this it is evident that ‘frogs’ are reasonings arising from falsities in opposition to truths. In David,

He turned their waters into blood, and killed their fish. He caused frogs to crawl forth onto their land, into the chambers of their kings. Ps. 105:29, 30.

The expression ‘into the chambers of their kings’ is used because reasoning arising from falsities in opposition to truths is meant, ‘the chambers of kings’ being truths of a more internal nature, and in the contrary sense falsities of a more internal nature. For the meaning of ‘kings’ as truths, and in the contrary sense falsities, see immediately above.

sRef Ex@7 @28 S0′ 7352. ‘And the river will cause the frogs to crawl forth’ means the reasonings arising from those falsities. This is clear from the meaning of ‘the river of Egypt’ as falsity, dealt with in 6693, 7307; and from the meaning of ‘the frogs’ as reasonings, dealt with immediately above in 7351. The reason why ‘frogs’ are reasonings is that they live in water, in which they make talkative sounds and croak, and also live in unclean surroundings. What reasoning arising from utter falsities is will be illustrated by several examples. Reasoning arising from utter falsities takes place if a person attributes everything to natural forces and scarcely anything to the Divine, when in fact everything owes its existence to the Divine, and natural forces are merely the means by which it is brought into being. Reasoning arising from utter falsities takes place if a person believes that a human being is similar to an animal, being more perfect only by virtue of his ability to think, and for this reason believes that when he dies a human being is similar to an animal. Because he refuses to believe that a human being is linked to the Divine through thought which belongs to faith, and through affection which belongs to love, and as a consequence refuses to believe in resurrection and eternal life, what he says arises from utter falsities. It is similar with a person who believes that hell has no existence, and also with him who believes that a person has the pleasurable gift of life only while he is in the world and should therefore take full advantage of it, because when he dies he dies completely. Reasoning arising from utter falsities takes place if a person believes that all things are attributable to one’s own prudence and good fortune, and not to Divine Providence except on a very general level. It also takes place if a person believes that religion exists for no other reason than to keep the simple in check. Reasoning arising from utter falsities takes place in particular if people believe that the Word is not Divine. In short reasoning arising from utter falsities takes place if people refuse completely to believe God’s truths.

sRef Ex@7 @28 S0′ sRef Isa@26 @20 S0′ sRef Deut@32 @25 S0′ sRef Ezek@8 @12 S0′ sRef 2Ki@6 @12 S0′ 7353. ‘And they will rise up and come into your house, and into your bedchamber’ means that they will fill the mind, all the way through to its more internal parts. This is clear from the meaning of ‘house’ as a person’s mind, dealt with in 3538, 4973, 5023; and from the meaning of ‘bedchamber’ as the more internal parts of the mind. The reason why ‘bedchamber’ means the more internal parts of the mind is that it is a more internal part of the house. The more internal parts are meant by ‘chambers’, and those that are even more internal by ‘bedchambers’, in the following places: In Isaiah,

Go away, O people, enter your bedchambers, and shut your door behind you. Hide yourself, so to speak, for a little moment, until the anger passes over. Isa. 26:20.

In Ezekiel,

He said to me, Have you not seen, son of man, what the elders of the house* of Israel do in the dark, each in the chambers of his own idol? Ezek. 8:12.

In Moses,

Outside the sword will bereave and out of the chambers terror. Deut. 31:25.

In the second Book of Kings,

Elisha the prophet, who is in Israel, tells the king of Israel the words that you speak in your bed chamber. 2 Kings 6:12.

The ancients compared a person’s mind to a house, and the inward parts of a person to chambers. The human mind is indeed like a house, for the things it contains are virtually as distinct from one another as the chambers within a house. Those at the centre are the inmost parts of the mind, while those to the sides are the more external parts there. The ancients compared the latter to forecourts, and the parts which were outside but adjoining parts more internal they compared to porticos.
* The Latin means children but the Hebrew means house, which Sw. has in another place where he quotes this verse.

sRef Ex@7 @28 S0′ 7354. ‘And onto your bed’ means to its inmost parts. This is clear from the meaning of ‘bed’ as the inmost part; for when ‘bedchambers’ are the more internal parts, ‘bed’ is the inmost part within them.

sRef Ex@7 @28 S0′ 7355. ‘And into the house of your servants, and of your people’ means everything in the natural. This is clear from the meaning of ‘the house’ as a person’s mind the natural mind since it is used in reference to the Egyptians and Pharaoh’s servants (for the meaning of ‘house’ as the mind, see just above in 7353); and from the meaning of ‘Pharaoh’s servants and people’ as everything in the natural. Things present in the natural which serve to substantiate falsities are called ‘servants’; and for the use of ‘people’ to refer to truths, or in the contrary sense falsities, see 1259, 1260, 3295, 3581, 4619, 6451, 6465. From all this it is evident that ‘into the house of your (Pharaoh’s) servants and people’ means into everything in the natural.

sRef Ex@7 @28 S0′ 7356. ‘And into your ovens, and into your kneading bowls’ means into delights belonging to evil desires. This is clear from the meaning of ‘ovens’, since they are what bread is baked in, as forms of exterior good (forms of exterior good being those which exist in the natural and are as a general rule called delights; for when forms of interior good, which are offshoots of [heavenly] kinds of love and resulting affections, pass into the natural they are experienced as delights there, and these delights are meant in a good sense by ‘ovens’) or in the contrary sense, in which ‘ovens’ is used here, as delights belonging to evil desires, that is, delights springing from hellish kinds of love, which are self-love and love of the world; and from the meaning of ‘kneading bowls’ too as delights belonging to evil desires in the natural, but even more external ones since kneading bowls are the vessels in which the dough is prepared when bread is made. Another way of saying that reasonings will enter into delights belonging to evil desires is to say that it will be the delight of their life to use reasonings arising from falsities to deceive others and lead them astray. Indeed the evil take very great delight in spreading falsities around, proving that they are well-founded, mocking truths, and especially leading others astray.

sRef Hos@7 @7 S2′ sRef Hos@7 @6 S2′ sRef Hos@7 @4 S2′ [2] The fact that ‘an oven’ means delight belonging to affections that go with charity and faith, and in the contrary sense delight belonging to evil desires that go with selfish and worldly love, is evident in Hosea,

They are all committing adultery, like an oven heated by a baker; the raiser* ceases from kneading his dough. When like an oven they transform** their desire (animus) while they lie in wait, their baker being sleepy all night, in the morning it is burning, like a flaming fire. All become hot, like an oven, and devour their judges; all their kings fall. Hosea 7:4, 6, 7.

‘Oven’ stands for delight belonging to evil desires, which are evil people’s desires. ‘Burning’, ‘becoming hot’, and ‘flaming fire’ stand for the desires themselves, ‘fire being the desire for evil, see 1297, 1861, 2446, 5071, 5215, 6314, 6832, 7324 (end). ‘They devour their judges; all their kings fall’ stands for the fact that they destroy forms of good and truths. Anyone may see that without the internal sense in which such things are meant nobody can know what ‘they are all committing adultery, like an oven heated by a baker’ is, or ‘all become hot, like an oven, and devour their judges’, and ‘their kings fall’.

sRef Isa@31 @9 S3′ [3] ‘Oven’ is used in the good sense in Isaiah,

The saying of Jehovah, whose hearth is in Zion, and His oven in Jerusalem. Isa. 31:9.

‘Zion’ stands for the celestial Church, thus for the good of love, which is the good of this Church, ‘Jerusalem’ for the spiritual Church, thus for the good of love in this Church, which is the good of charity and consequently of faith, while ‘oven’ here stands for more internal delight belonging to affections for goodness and truth. ‘Oven’ has this meaning because the bread which is baked in an oven means the good of celestial and spiritual love, for which meaning of ‘bread’ see 276, 680, 2165, 2177, 3464, 3478, 3775, 3813, 4211, 4217, 4735, 4976, 5915. And as ‘oven’ receives its meaning from this, the bread called a minchah that was baked for sacrifices in an oven was distinguished from the minchah baked on a griddle, and from the minchah baked in a covered pan, Lev. 2:4, 5, 7. Different forms of the good of love were meant by these varieties of minchah.
* Whether the raiser means stirrer of the fire or raiser of the dough is not clear.
** lit. convert

sRef John@8 @44 S0′ sRef Ex@7 @29 S0′ 7357. ‘And onto you, and onto your people, and onto all your servants the frogs will rise up’ means that the reasonings arising from falsities will be in every single part. This is clear from what has been stated above in 7355. Every single person who is in the land of Egypt is meant by ‘Pharaoh, his people, and his servants’, thus falsities in every single part (it has often been shown above that falsities are meant by ‘Pharaoh and the Egyptians’). It should be recognized that those in hell, from whom the truths which they knew in the world have been taken away, cannot do anything other than speak falsities. This accounts for what happens when they appear in the world of spirits – when anyone of their sort speaks, what he says is known instantly to be false. The upright in the next life know it from ordinary experience. The fact that such people speak nothing but falsity is also plain from the Lord’s words in John,

You are from your father the devil, and the desires of your father you will to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and has not stood in the truth because the truth is not in him. When he speaks a lie he speaks from the things that are his own, for he is the teller of a lie and the father of it. John 8:44.

For everyone speaks in keeping with the impulses of his love; no one can speak contrary to them unless pretence, hypocrisy, fraudulence, or deceitfulness prompt him to do so, as is usually the case with the evil when they speak truths. But these truths which they speak are nevertheless falsities with them. On the other hand those who are guided by truth because they are motivated by good cannot do other than speak truths.

7358. INHABITANTS AND SPIRITS OF THE PLANET MARS

The mental picture that spirits and angels have places the planet Mars, as it places each of the other planets, in its own fixed position. Mars is placed on the left, out in front, and some distance away at breast level, thus outside the sphere where spirits belonging to our planet are. The spirits belonging to one planet are separated from those belonging to another because the spirits belonging to each planet are associated with some particular province in the Grand Man and consequently they have different and divergent modes of being. This divergence in their modes of being is what causes their visible separateness in positions either to the right or left of one another, and closer or further away.

7359. Some spirits once came to me from there and positioned themselves towards my left temple. In that position they breathed their speech onto me, but I did not understand it. It was, as it flowed, rather gentle; I had not, so far as I could remember, experienced a gentler flow before. It was like a very gentle breeze. It blew first onto my left temple and the upper part of my left ear, and from there went on towards my left eye, and little by little towards my right eye. After that it passed down, especially from my left eye, towards my lips; and on reaching my lips it went into and through my mouth. Indeed it went through my Eustachian tube into my brain. When that ‘breath’ from those spirits reached my brain I then understood their speech, and this enabled me to talk to them. I noticed that while they spoke to me my lips were made to move, and my tongue also to a small extent. This happened because of the correspondence of inward speech with outward speech. Outward speech consists of articulated sound which falls on the external membrane of the ear, [called the ear-drum,] and is conveyed from there into the brain by means of small organs, membranes, and fibres inside the ear.

7360. From all this I was allowed to know that the speech of the inhabitants of Mars was different from that of the inhabitants of our planet. That is to say, it was not audible but virtually soundless, introducing itself into inward hearing and sight by a shorter route, and being of such a nature was fuller and more perfect – fuller of ideas comprising thought – and so was by nature closer to the speech of spirits and angels. The actual affections which their speech contains are represented in their faces, while the thought contained in it is represented in their eyes. For with those people thought and speech act in unison with each other, as do affection and facial expressions. They consider it wicked to think one thing but say another, and to desire one thing but express another on their faces. They do not know what hypocrisy is, or what fraudulent pretence and deception are.

7361. I have also been allowed to know about the existence of this kind of speech among the most ancient people on our planet through my mixing with some of them, regarding which see 607, 608. To make this matter clearer let me repeat what I have been allowed to know through experience about the speech of the most ancient people belonging to our planet, namely the following told in 1118. By means of a certain influx that I am unable to describe I have been shown the type of speech which those people who belonged to the Most Ancient Church employed. It was not articulated, like the vocal speech of our own times, but was non-audible, produced not by external breathing but by means of internal breathing. I have also been allowed to ascertain the nature of their internal breathing. It came from between the navel and the heart and so through the lips without any sounds when they were speaking.

[2] It did not enter someone else’s ear by an external route, striking what is called the ear-drum, but by a certain internal route, and in point of fact by that part there which is nowadays called the Eustachian tube. I have been shown that by means of this type of speech they were able to express far more fully the feelings present in the mind (animus) and the ideas comprising their thought (cogitatio) than can possibly be done by articulated sounds or spoken words, which are similarly delivered by means of breath, which however is external. For not one word nor even any part of a word is delivered without the use of breath. But with those people of the Most Ancient Church it was delivered in a far more perfect way because it was done by means of internal breathing. And because this interior breathing is also far more perfect, it is more applicable and appropriate to the actual ideas comprising thought. In addition they even communicated by movements of the lips and by corresponding changes of facial expression. For, being celestial people, whatever they were thinking shone out of their face and eyes which altered correspondingly; the shape of their face and the life expressed in it would alter, and the light seen in their eyes would change. They were quite incapable of assuming facial expressions that did not accord with what they were thinking. Pretence, and still more deception, was to them something absolutely outrageous. Because that type of speech existed with them, and because they had internal breathing, they were therefore able to live in company with angels.

7362. The breathing of the spirits belonging to the planet Mars was also made known to me (for the fact that spirits and angels actually breathe, see 3884-3894). I perceived that their breathing was interior; starting from the region of the chest down towards the navel it rolled upwards from there by way of the breast towards the mouth where the breath was imperceptible. This proved to me, together with other evidence gained from experience, that they were of the celestial genius, and so were not unlike those who belonged to the Most Ancient Church on our planet.

7363. They talked to me about the life of the inhabitants on their planet. They said that people there are not under the control of any regime; rather they are divided into individual communities, large and small, and in these they associate with the kind of people whose minds match their own. They know in an instant from another’s face and speech whether his mind matches theirs, and in this they are rarely mistaken. Such people become friends in an instant; but they feel no aversion to everyone else, for there is no aversion, still less any hatred. They went on to say that their associations are delightful, and that they discuss with one another things that are happening in their communities, and especially those that are happening in heaven, since a large number of them enjoy open contact with the angels in heaven. One can also well believe this because they are such, and their manner of associating with one another is such, that all their communities throughout that planet taken together represent a general angelic community. For all the communities vary from one another, but the Lord links them all together by means of the heavenly form to make a single whole; for a single whole is made up of various parts properly assembled to produce the overall form.

7364. Those in their communities who begin to think what is wrong, and then go on to will it, are banished from their community and left alone on their own. As a consequence they lead a very wretched existence outside society, living among rocks or whatever; for their communities are no longer interested in them. Some such communities do try in various ways to compel those people to come to their senses; but when this proves to be all to no avail they sever their connection with them. In doing this they are taking precautions to prevent the desire to exercise control and the desire for gain from creeping in, that is, to prevent any who are moved by a desire to exercise control from setting themselves up over the community they are in, and after that over many other communities, and to prevent any moved by a desire for gain from seizing others’ possessions from them. Everyone there lives satisfied with what he has, and everyone lives satisfied with the respect in which he is held for being righteous and showing love towards the neighbour. This delightful and peaceful state of mind would be destroyed if those who think what is bad and will it were not cast out, and if judicious and firm steps were not taken to counteract in their earliest beginnings self-love and love of the world with whomever they exist. For these loves are what have been responsible for the conversion of communities into empires and kingdoms, within which there are few people who do not wish to exercise control and possess everything belonging to others. Few are they who do what is just and fair from a desire for what is just and fair, fewer still those who do what is good from charity, and what is true from faith. Those things are done instead from fear of the law, damnation, loss of life, loss of gain and position, and loss of reputation on account of these last.

7365. ‘Inhabitants and spirits of the planet Mars’ is continued at the end of the next chapter.

7366. 8

TEACHINGS ABOUT CHARITY

It has been stated above that self-love and love of the world residing with a person constitute hell. Now the nature of those loves must be stated, in order that a person may know whether he is ruled by those kinds of love, and consequently whether he has hell within himself or heaven; for a person has within himself either hell or heaven. The Lord teaches in Luke 17:21 that the kingdom of God resides within a person; therefore that is also where hell resides.

7367. Self-love reigns with a person, that is, a person is immersed in self-love, when in what he thinks and does he has no regard for his neighbour, thus no regard for the public, let alone the Lord, only for himself and for kith and kin. Consequently that love reigns when everything is done for his and their sakes alone; or if he does act for the public and his neighbour’s sake it is merely in order that others may see him doing it.

7368. That person is said to act for his own sake and that of kith and kin because he makes one with them, and they make one with him. When for instance anyone does something for the sake of his wife, children, grandchildren, sons-in-law, and daughters-in-law, he does it for his own sake since they are his own. The same is true of him who does it for the sake of other relatives, and for the sake of friends who go along with his love and thereby link themselves to him. For by being linked to him in that way they make one with him, that is, they see themselves bound up with him, and him with them.

7369. To the extent that a person is immersed in self-love he departs from love of the neighbour; consequently to the extent that a person is immersed in self-love he departs from heaven, for heaven is filled with love of the neighbour. From this it also follows that to the extent that a person is immersed in self-love he is in hell, for hell is filled with self-love.

7370. The person immersed in self-love is one who despises his neighbour in comparison with himself, and who regards his neighbour as an enemy if he is not favourably disposed towards him and does not defer to him. Immersed more deeply in self-love is one who therefore hates and persecutes his neighbour; and immersed even more deeply than that is one who is therefore consumed with vengeance against him and longs to ruin him. People like this at length love to vent their rage on their neighbour; and if these people are also adulterers they become cruel.

7371. The delight felt by those people in such attitudes of mind is the delight that belongs to self-love; and this delight when present with a person is hellish delight. Everything done by a person in accordance with his love is a form of delight, and therefore from such delight the nature of his love can also be known.

7372. The attitudes mentioned just above in 7370 serve as signs by which to recognize who exactly are immersed in self-love. What people seem like to outward appearance, no matter whether they are proud or submissive, is of no significance. For such attitudes reside in the interior man, and the interior man is hidden by the majority of people at the present day. The exterior man is taught to display behaviour that expresses love of the public and the neighbour, thus the opposites of those attitudes, and to do so for selfish and worldly reasons.

7373. Love of the world reigns with a person however, that is, a person is immersed in love of the world, when in what he thinks and does he looks for and is intent only on making gain, with no concern at all about whether it may do harm to the neighbour or to the public.

7374. Those people are immersed in love of the world who wish to rake in other people’s goods by artful moves they have devised, especially those who resort to trickery and deceit. Those immersed in that love are envious of others’ goods and covet them; and to the extent that they have no fear of laws they divest, indeed ransack them of their goods.

sRef Isa@14 @15 S0′ sRef Isa@14 @14 S0′ sRef Isa@14 @13 S0′ sRef Ex@9 @24 S0′ 7375. These two kinds of love grow in the measure that the restraints placed on them are loosened and in the measure that a person is carried away into them. They eventually grow beyond measure; they become so great that those people wish to have control not only over everything in their own kingdom but also over everything beyond it, even to the ends of the earth. Indeed when the restraints placed on those kinds of love are loosened they reach even up to the God of the universe, that is, they become so great that the people immersed in those loves wish to mount God’s throne and be worshipped as God Himself. Their desire is in keeping with the following words in Isaiah regarding Lucifer, by whom are meant those who are immersed in those loves and who are called ‘Babel’,

You said in your heart, I will go up the heavens, above the stars of God I will raise my throne, and I will sit on the mount of assembly, in the farthest parts of the north. I will go up above the heights of the clouds, and I will make myself like the Most High. But you have been sent down to hell. Isa. 14:13-15.

7376. From all this it may now be seen that those two kinds of love are the sources of all evils, for they are diametrically opposed to love towards the neighbour and love to the Lord. Accordingly they are diametrically opposed to heaven, where love to the Lord and love towards the neighbour reign. Consequently those kinds of love – self-love and love of the world – are what constitute hell with a person; for in hell these two kinds of love are what reign.

7377. But people are not immersed in those kinds of love if they aspire to important positions not for selfish reasons but for the sake of their country, or if they aspire to wealth not for its own sake but the sake of having the necessities of life both for themselves and their dependents, and for the sake of the good use it is put to, which gives them pleasure in being wealthy. Important positions and wealth with these people are means to doing good.

EXODUS 8*

1 And Jehovah said to Moses, Say to Aaron, Stretch out your hand with your rod over the rivers, over the streams, and over the pools, and cause frogs to rise up onto the land of Egypt.

2 And Aaron stretched out his hand over the waters of Egypt, and frogs rose up and covered the land of Egypt.

3 And the magicians of Egypt did the same with their enchantments, and they caused frogs to rise up onto the land of Egypt.

4 And Pharaoh called Moses and Aaron, and said, Plead with Jehovah to remove the frogs from me, and from my people; and I will send the people away to sacrifice to Jehovah.

5 And Moses said to Pharaoh, Have honour over me. Till when shall I plead for you, and for your servants, and for your people, so as the frogs will be eliminated from you, and from your houses, and survive only in the river?

6 And he said, Until tomorrow. And he said, Let it be according to your word, so that you may know that there is none like Jehovah our God.

7 And the frogs will be removed from you, and from your houses, and from your servants, and from your people, and survive only in the river.

8 And Moses and Aaron went out from Pharaoh; and Moses cried out to Jehovah about** the frogs which He had brought on Pharaoh.

9 And Jehovah did according to the word of Moses; and the frogs died out of the houses, out of the courtyards, and out of the fields.

10 And they gathered them into heaps [upon] heaps; and the land stank.

11 And Pharaoh saw that he could breathe again,*** and he made his heart stubborn, and did not hear**** them, as Jehovah had spoken.

12 And Jehovah said to Moses, Say to Aaron, Stretch out your rod and strike the dust of the land, and it will then be lice in all the land of Egypt.

13 And they did so; and Aaron stretched out his hand with his rod and struck the dust of the land, and there were lice on man and on beast. All the dust of the land became lice in the whole land of Egypt.

14 And the magicians did the same with their enchantments to bring forth lice, but they could not; and there were lice on man and on beast.

15 And the magicians said to Pharaoh, The finger of God is this. And Pharaoh’s heart was unyielding, and he did not hear**** them, as Jehovah had spoken.

16 And Jehovah said to Moses, Rise up in the morning early to stand before Pharaoh; behold, he goes out to the water. And you are to say to him, Thus says Jehovah, Send My people away and let them serve Me.

17 For if you do not send My people away, behold, I send onto you, and onto your servants, and onto your people, and into your houses, noxious flying insects; and the houses of the Egyptians will be full of the noxious flying insects, and also the land on which they are.

18 And I will set apart on that day the land of Goshen, on which My people stand, so that the noxious flying insects are not there; to the end that you may know that I am Jehovah in the midst of the land.

19 And I will place redemption between My people and your people; by tomorrow will this sign be.

20 And Jehovah did so; and extremely noxious flying insects came to the house of Pharaoh, and to the houses of his servants, and into all the land of Egypt. The land was ruined by the presence of the noxious flying insects.

21 And Pharaoh called Moses and Aaron, and said, Go, sacrifice to your God in the land.

22 And Moses said, It is ill-advised to do so, for we would be sacrificing the abomination of the Egyptians to Jehovah our God. Behold, should we sacrifice the abomination of the Egyptians before their eyes, will they not stone us?

23 We will go a way of three days***** into the wilderness, and sacrifice to Jehovah our God, as He has said to us.

24 And Pharaoh said, I will send you away to sacrifice to Jehovah your God in the wilderness; only you must certainly not go far away. Plead for me.

25 And Moses said, Behold, I go out from you, and I will plead with Jehovah to remove the noxious flying insects from Pharaoh, from his servants, and from his people, tomorrow; only do not let Pharaoh act deceitfully again in not sending the people away to sacrifice to Jehovah.

26 And Moses went out from Pharaoh and pleaded with Jehovah.

27 And Jehovah did according to the word of Moses; and He removed the noxious flying insects from Pharaoh, from his servants, and from his people. Not one was left.

28 And Pharaoh made his heart stubborn this time also, and did not send the people away.
* In English versions of the Scriptures the division of chapters is made at 7:26.
** lit. over the matter (or word) of
*** lit. respiration had come about, i.e. there was a respite from the plagues
**** lit. hear towards
*****i.e. a three days’ journey

sRef Ex@8 @0 S0′ 7378. CONTENTS

This chapter continues to deal in the internal sense with the vastation of those steeped in falsities who molest the upright in the next life. The first two stages of vastation were described in the previous chapter, and also the third stage partly, a stage in which they did nothing else than use reasonings arising from utter falsities – reasonings arising from utter falsities being meant by the frogs. This chapter continues to deal with these, and then goes on to deal with the fourth and fifth stages of the vastation of those steeped in falsities who molest the upright in the next life. The fourth stage was when they were subjected to evils which ruined all good present with them, including whatever natural good they had – these evils being meant by the lice produced from the dust of the land. The fifth stage was when they were subjected to the falsities arising from those evils, which ruined all truth – these falsities being meant by the noxious flying insects.

sRef Ex@8 @8 S0′ sRef Ex@8 @7 S0′ sRef Ex@8 @10 S0′ sRef Ex@8 @2 S0′ sRef Ex@8 @1 S0′ sRef Ex@8 @3 S0′ sRef Ex@8 @5 S0′ sRef Ex@8 @9 S0′ sRef Ex@8 @6 S0′ sRef Ex@8 @4 S0′ 7379. THE INTERNAL SENSE

Verses 1-10 And Jehovah said to Moses, Say to Aaron, Stretch out your hand with your rod over the rivers, over the streams, and over the pools, and cause frogs to rise up onto the land of Egypt. And Aaron stretched out his hand over the waters of Egypt, and frogs rose up and covered the land of Egypt. And the magicians of Egypt did the same with their enchantments, and they caused frogs to rise up onto the land of Egypt. And Pharaoh called Moses and Aaron, and said, Plead with Jehovah to remove the frogs from me, and from my people; and I will send the people away to sacrifice to Jehovah. And Moses said to Pharaoh, Have honour over me. Till when shall I plead for you, and for your servants, and for your people, so as the frogs will be eliminated from you, and from your houses, and survive only in the river? And he said, Until tomorrow. And he said, Let it be according to your word, so that you may know that there is none like Jehovah our God. And the frogs will be removed from you, and from your houses, and from your servants, and from your people, and survive only in the river. And Moses and Aaron went out from Pharaoh; and Moses cried out to Jehovah about* the frogs which He had brought on Pharaoh. And Jehovah did according to the word of Moses; and the frogs died out of the houses, out of the courtyards, and out of the fields. And they gathered them into heaps [upon] heaps; and the land stank.

‘And Jehovah said to Moses’ means instruction. ‘Say to Aaron’ means an influx of inward law into outward law. ‘Stretch out your hand with your rod’ means the power of inward truth directed through outward truth. ‘Over the rivers, over the streams, and over the pools’ means against falsities. ‘And cause frogs to rise up onto the land of Egypt’ means reasonings arising from utter falsities. ‘And Aaron stretched out his hand over the waters of Egypt’ means the effect of the power of inward truth directed through outward truth against falsities. ‘And frogs rose up’ means reasonings arising from utter falsities. ‘And covered the land of Egypt’ means that the natural mind became such. ‘And the magicians of Egypt did the same with their enchantments’ means a misuse of Divine order, whereby something that to outward appearances looks the same is produced. ‘And they caused frogs to rise up onto the land of Egypt’ means in the form of reasonings springing from the natural mind. ‘And Pharaoh called Moses and Aaron’ means the presence of the law of God. ‘And said, Plead with Jehovah’ means self-abasement resulting from weariness. ‘To remove the frogs from me, and from my people’ means in order that they might not be compelled to use reasonings arising from utter falsities. ‘And I will send the people away to sacrifice to Jehovah’ means that they would then leave those who belonged to the spiritual Church, so that they could worship their God. ‘And Moses said to Pharaoh’ means the reply. ‘Have honour over me’ means that the law of God was to be trusted. ‘Till when shall I plead for you, and for your servants, and for your people’ means intercession made for those steeped in falsities who engage in molestation. ‘So as the frogs will be eliminated from you, and from your houses’ means in order that the reasonings may come to an end. ‘Survive only in the river?’ means that they are destined to remain with falsities, in the place where these reside. ‘And he said, Until tomorrow’ means for evermore. ‘And he said, Let it be according to your word’ means an ensuing endorsement. ‘So that you may know that there is none like Jehovah our God’ means that there is one God and none besides Him. ‘And the frogs will be removed from you, and from your houses, and from your servants, and from your people’ means that they would not be compelled to use reasonings arising from utter falsities. ‘Survive only in the river’ means that they were to remain with falsities, in the place where these reside. ‘And Moses and Aaron went out from Pharaoh’ means a separation from those who used reasonings arising from utter falsities. ‘And Moses cried out to Jehovah about the frogs which He had brought on Pharaoh’ means intercession. ‘And Jehovah did according to the word of Moses’ means that it was so done according to the Lord’s word. ‘And the frogs died out of the houses, out of the courtyards, and out of the fields’ means that with those people reasonings arising from utter falsities, wherever they were present in the natural, came to an end. ‘And they gathered them into heaps [upon] heaps’ means that those false reasonings were arranged into bundles in the natural. ‘And the land stank’ means what was as a result foul and repulsive.
* lit. over the matter (or word) of

sRef Ex@8 @1 S0′ 7380. ‘And Jehovah said to Moses’ means instruction. This is clear from the meaning of ‘saying’ as instruction, dealt with in 7186, 7304. What is meant by the verb ‘say’ when used in the historical narratives of the Word is evident from what comes after it, for whatever follows goes together with it. The reason why at this point it means instruction is that Jehovah says what further things had to be done. Also ‘Moses’ represents the law of God, through which instruction is given by Jehovah.

sRef Ex@8 @1 S0′ 7381. ‘Say to Aaron’ means an influx of inward law into outward law. This is clear from the representation of ‘Moses’ as the law of God, dealt with in 6713, 6752; from the representation of ‘Aaron’ as teachings presenting what is good and true, dealt with in 6998, 7089, these teachings represented by ‘Aaron’ being nothing other than outward law emanating from inward law, that is, from the Divine through inward law; and from the meaning of ‘saying’ as influx, as in 6152, 6291, 7291. The reason why at this point ‘saying’ means influx is that Moses is commanded to ‘Say to Aaron’; ‘Moses’ is inward law, and ‘Aaron’ outward law, and influx from the Divine takes place through what is inward into what is outward. Inward law is God’s truth itself as it exists in heaven, while outward law is God’s truth as it exists on earth. Thus inward law is truth suited to angels, while outward law is truth suited to men.

aRef Isa@64 @4 S2′ [2] Since inward law, represented by ‘Moses’, is truth suited to angels, while outward law, represented by ‘Aaron’, is truth suited to men, let something be said about them here. Truth suited to angels is for the most part beyond the comprehension of men. This is clear from the consideration that in heaven things are seen and spoken such as eye has never seen, nor ear ever heard. The reason for this is that the things spoken of among angels are spiritual, which are withdrawn from natural things and consequently are far removed from the ideas and words belonging to man’s speech. For man has formed his ideas from things in the natural order, especially its grosser aspects, that is, from things which he has seen in the world and on earth, and has had physical contact with, that is, material things. Even though the ideas belonging to a person’s inward thought exist on a level above material things they are nevertheless founded on material things; and the level that ideas are founded on is the level on which they seem to exist. That is the level on which a person perceives the things he thinks about. From this one may see what the situation is with the truth of faith, and also the nature of that which comes within man’s range of thought, namely that which is called outward law and is represented by ‘Aaron’.

[3] Let the following example serve to shed light on this. Man can have no thought at all without ideas involving time and space; such ideas cling to practically every detail of what man thinks. If ideas formed from time and space were taken away from man he would not know what he thinks, and scarcely whether he thinks. Yet angels’ ideas have nothing of time or space within them, but states instead. The reason is that the natural world marks itself off from the spiritual world by the existence of time and space within it. The reason why time and space exist in the natural world, but states instead in the spiritual world, is this: In the natural world the sun appears to give rise to days and years by its apparent revolutions. It divides the days up into the four periods of night, morning, midday, and evening, and the years too into the four seasons of winter, spring, summer, and autumn, which it effects by means of variations of light and shade, as well as of warmth and coldness. And these divisions are the source of ideas of time and varying periods of it. Ideas of space arise from the use of periods as measurements; therefore where one exists, so does the other.

[4] But in the spiritual world the Sun of heaven, which is the source of spiritual light and spiritual heat, does not make circuits and revolutions which give rise to ideas of time and space. The light which flows from that Sun is God’s truth, and the heat which flows from that Sun is God’s goodness. These give rise to ideas of states among the angels, states of intelligence and faith being the product of God’s truth, and states of wisdom and love the product of God’s goodness. Variations in these states among the angels are what states of light and shade in the world, and also of warmth and coldness, correspond to, which are attributable to the sun since it is responsible for the existence of times and seasons and of spatial measurements. This example demonstrates to some extent what inward truth or truth suited to angels, called inward law, is like, and what outward truth or truth suited to men, referred to as outward law, is like. It also goes to explain why the things that angels discuss with one another are beyond man’s comprehension and also indescribable.

sRef Ex@8 @1 S0′ 7382. ‘Stretch out your hand with your rod’ means the power of inward truth directed through outward truth. This is clear from the meaning of ‘hand’ as spiritual power, which belongs to inward truth, and from the representation of ‘rod’ as natural power, which belongs to outward truth, both dealt with in 6947, 6948. For the fact that all power in the spiritual world belongs to truth, see 3091, 3787, 4931, 6344, 6423, 6948. Since ‘Moses’ represents inward law, which is the same as inward truth, and ‘Aaron’ represents outward law, which is the same as outward truth, and since inward truth flows into outward truth and gives it power, 7381, Moses’ word of command to Aaron ‘stretch out your hand with your rod’ means the power of inward truth directed through outward truth.

sRef Ex@8 @1 S0′ 7383. ‘Over the rivers, over the streams, and over the pools’ means against falsities. This is clear from the meaning of Egypt’s ‘rivers’ and ‘streams’ as teachings that consist of falsity, dealt with in 7323; and from the meaning of ‘pools’ as factual knowledge that is subservient to those teachings, dealt with in 7324. Accordingly, falsities are what are meant by ‘rivers, streams, and pools’.

sRef Ex@8 @1 S0′ 7384. ‘And cause frogs to rise up onto the land of Egypt’ means reasonings arising from utter falsities. This is clear from the meaning of ‘frogs’ as reasonings arising from utter falsities, dealt with in 7351, 7352. Frogs also correspond to reasonings arising from falsities, for all things without exception in the natural world have a correspondence with those in the spiritual world; and the reason for this is that what is natural comes into existence through what is spiritual. The whole natural system is therefore a theatre representative of the spiritual world, 2758, 3487, 4939.

sRef Ex@8 @2 S0′ 7385. ‘And Aaron stretched out his hand over the waters of Egypt’ means the effect of the power of inward truth directed through outward truth against falsities. This is clear from the representation of ‘Aaron’ as teachings presenting what is true and good, thus outward truth, dealt with in 6998, 7009, 7089; from the meaning of ‘hand’ as power, dealt with in 878, 4931-4937, at this point the power of inward truth directed through outward truth, as above in 7382; and from the meaning of ‘the waters of Egypt’ as falsities, dealt with in 6693, 7307, the effect being meant by the fact that he did stretch out his hand and the frogs rose up. From all this it is evident that ‘Aaron stretched out his hand over the waters of Egypt’ means the effect of the power of inward truth directed through outward truth against falsities.

sRef Ex@8 @2 S0′ 7386. ‘And frogs rose up’ means reasonings arising from utter falsities. This is clear from what has been stated above in 7384.

sRef Ex@8 @2 S0′ 7387. ‘And covered the land of Egypt’ means that the natural mind became such. This is clear from the meaning of ‘covering’, since it is used in regard to the natural mind, as the fact that it became filled with falsities and consequent reasonings, thus became such; and from the meaning of ‘the land of Egypt’ as the natural mind, dealt with in 5276, 5278, 5280, 5288, 5301.

sRef Ex@8 @3 S0′ 7388. ‘And the magicians of Egypt did the same with their enchantments’ means a misuse of Divine order, whereby something that to outward appearances looks the same is produced – see 7296, 7297, 7337, where similar words occur.

sRef Ex@8 @3 S0′ 7389. ‘And they caused frogs to rise up onto the land of Egypt’ means in the form of reasonings springing from the natural mind. This is clear from the meaning of ‘frogs’ as reasonings arising from utter falsities, dealt with in 7351, 7352, 7384; and from the meaning of ‘the land of Egypt’ as the natural mind, dealt with just above in 7387.

sRef Ex@8 @4 S0′ 7390. ‘And Pharaoh called Moses and Aaron’ means the presence of the law of God. This is clear from the meaning of ‘calling’ as presence, dealt with in 6177 (the reason why ‘calling’ means presence is that a person calls someone when he wishes to speak to him or to convey his thoughts, and in the next life it is in keeping with the law of order that the person to whom someone wishes to speak and desires to convey his thoughts comes to be present); from the representation of ‘Pharaoh’ as those who are steeped in falsities and engage in molestation, often dealt with already; and from the representation of ‘Moses’ as inward law, and the representation of ‘Aaron’ as outward law, both dealt with above in 7381.

sRef Ex@8 @4 S0′ 7391. ‘And said, Plead with Jehovah’ means self abasement resulting from weariness. This is clear from the meaning of ‘pleading with Jehovah’ as self-abasement, for one who pleads is self-abased, as likewise is one who asks another to plead on his behalf. The reason why ‘pleading’ means self-abasement is that angels pay no attention to the pleas, only to the self-abasement present in the person making them. For pleas made without self-abasement are no more than sounds made by the voice which do not penetrate the angels’ hearing and perception. The fact that weariness is the cause of the self-abasement, that is to say, a weariness that comes as a result of using reasonings arising from utter falsities, will be seen in what follows immediately below.

sRef Ex@8 @4 S0′ 7392. ‘To remove the frogs from me, and from my people’ means in order that they might not be compelled to use reasonings arising from utter falsities. This is clear from the meaning of ‘removing’ as not being compelled, for what caused the pleading was weariness resulting from their being compelled to use reasonings arising from utter falsities; from the meaning of ‘the frogs’ as reasonings arising from utter falsities, dealt with in 7351, 7352; and from the representation of Pharaoh, and also of the Egyptians, as those who are steeped in falsities and engage in molestation, dealt with often.

[2] With regard to that weariness which is the cause of the pleading or self-abasement in those who engage in molestation, it should be recognized that those people find this undelightful; for they are unable to do evil by the use of reasonings that arise from utter falsities, since the upright – who at this point are those members of the Lord’s spiritual Church whom they were molesting – laugh at utter falsities, which are contradictions of the truth. But they were able to do evil through their use of falsities based on illusions and appearances, by which they falsify truths, such truths being meant by ‘the blood’ into which the waters of Egypt were turned, 7317, 7326; for illusions and appearances mislead people since they cast a sort of shadow or veil over truths. Because they are unable to do any evil through their use of reasonings arising from utter falsities, that is, arising from total contradictions of the truth, they have found them to be undelightful and therefore beg to have them taken away. For nothing delights those in hell except doing evil, in whatever possible way. Indeed doing evil is the very delight of their life; so great is it that it constitutes their whole life. When therefore they are not allowed to do it weariness overtakes them. This is the reason why Pharaoh begged to have the plague of frogs taken away, but not that of blood described above, nor that of the lice described below. For ‘the plague of frogs’ means molestation through the use of reasonings arising from utter falsities, by the use of which however they are unable to do any evil; but ‘the plague of blood’ means molestation by the use of falsities arising from illusions and appearances, a molestation which gives them delight because they are able to do ill by means of it. And ‘the plague of lice’ means evils which give them delight because they are evils.

[3] A feeling of delight in doing evil exists in the next life with all those who in the world do not do good to their neighbour for their neighbour’s sake, to their country for their country’s sake, or to the Church for the Church’s sake, but for their own sake. Consequently they do not do what is true and good for the sake of what is true and good. The fact that their delight consists in doing evil is not evident in the world because the external man conceals it. But in the next life, when superficial things are taken away and a person is left with what he is inwardly, that delight then emerges and reveals itself. So it is that such people are in hell; for those who are there all love to do evil, whereas those in heaven all love to do good.

sRef Ex@8 @4 S0′ 7393. ‘And I will send the people away to sacrifice to Jehovah’ means that they would then leave those who belonged to the spiritual Church, so that they could worship their God. This is clear from the meaning of ‘sending away’ as leaving, as in 7311, 7349, 7350; from the representation of ‘the children of Israel’ as those belonging to the spiritual Church, as in 6426, 6637, 6862, 6868, 7035, 7062, 7198, 7201, 7215, 7123; and from the meaning of ‘sacrificing to Jehovah’ as worshipping their God. Sacrifices were signs of all worship as a general whole, see 6905, thus worship is mean thereby ‘sacrificing’.

sRef Ex@8 @5 S0′ 7394. ‘And Moses said to Pharaoh’ means the reply. This is clear from the meaning of ‘saying’, since it introduces words addressed to Pharaoh who has just spoken, as the reply, as also in 7103.

sRef Ex@8 @5 S0′ 7395. ‘Have honour over me’ means that God’s truth was to be trusted. This is clear from the meaning of ‘having honour’ as trusting; and from the representation of ‘Moses’ as the law of God, dealt with in 6723, 6752, and therefore as God’s truth, dealt with in 6771, 7014, 7382.

sRef Ex@8 @5 S0′ 7396. ‘Till when shall I plead for you, and for your servants, and for your people’ means intercession made for those steeped in falsities who engage in molestation. This is clear from the meaning of ‘pleading’, since it is done on behalf of another, as intercession; and from the representation of ‘Pharaoh’ as those who are steeped in falsities and engage in molestation, dealt with in 7107, 7110, 7126, 7142, 7717. Since these are represented by Pharaoh, ‘his servants’ and ‘his people’, when mentioned in addition, mean each and every one of them; for ‘servants’ are those who belong to a lower rank and minister, while ‘people’ are the individual ones. Empires and kingdoms are represented in heaven as a person, and the communities within them are represented as the parts of that person’s body, the monarch being so to speak its head. The reason why they are represented in that way traces back to this: The whole of heaven represents one human being, and the communities there represent the parts of his body, in accordance with the functions they perform. From this one may see how beautiful and delightful the representation in heaven of an empire, kingdom, or community would be if its citizens were linked to one another by charity and faith to form a body like that. Whenever possible the Lord also links communities together into that kind of body; for Divine Truth itself, which emanates from the Lord, introduces that state of order wherever that order is accepted. This is the origin of the state of order that exists in heaven. It exists on earth too, but the communities constituting it are scattered all over the earth and are made up of those who are governed by love to Him and charity towards the neighbour. But those scattered communities have been drawn together by the Lord in order that they too, like communities in heaven, may represent one human being. These communities exist not only within the Church but also outside it; and when taken all together they are called the Lord’s Church, drawn together from the good scattered throughout all the earth. That Church is also called a communion. This communion or Church is the Lord’s kingdom on earth linked to the Lord’s kingdom in heaven, and so to the Lord Himself.

sRef Ex@8 @5 S0′ 7397. ‘So as the frogs will be eliminated from you, and from your houses’ means in order that the reasonings may come to an end. This is clear from the meaning of ‘the frogs’ as reasonings arising from utter falsities, dealt with in 7351, 7352, 7384; from the meaning of ‘eliminating’ as coming to an end, for eliminating is used in reference to the frogs, but coming to an end in reference to reasonings; from the representation of ‘Pharaoh,’ from whom the frogs were to be eliminated, as those steeped in falsities who engage in molestation, dealt with immediately above in 7396; and from the meaning of ‘houses’ as parts of the natural mind. For ‘house’ means the natural mind, see 4973, 5023, 7353, and therefore the plural ‘houses’ means parts of it.

sRef Ex@8 @5 S0′ 7398. ‘Survive only in the river?’ means that they are destined to remain with falsities, in the place where these reside. This is clear from the meaning of ‘the river,’ here the river of Egypt, as falsity, dealt with in 6693, 7307; and from the meaning of ‘surviving’ as remaining. The situation is this: Everything without exception that enters a person’s mind remains with him, especially what is received with affection. People think that what enters has been completely eradicated and cast out when a person no longer recollects it. But it has been neither eradicated nor cast out; rather, it remains infixed either in the interior memory or among those thing in the exterior memory which have become familiar to the person. For what has become familiar is so to speak instinctive; it flows spontaneously and is not stimulated by any conscious summoning from the memory. A person’s speech is like this; the words he uses flow spontaneously from his thought, as do gestures and actions, and indeed his walk. The same applies also to thinking. These abilities enter in successive stages from infancy, and in time become familiar, when they flow spontaneously. These abilities, and others like them show that everything entering a person remains, and that things which become habitual, that is, familiar, cease to be recognized by him as being present in him, although they are present. The same applies to the falsities and evils entering a person, and also the truths and forms of good. Such things are what fashion him and make him the kind of person he is. Everything a person has seen, heard, thought, spoken, or done is recorded within him, see 2474, 2489. From all this one may now see how one should understand the idea that reasonings are destined to remain with falsities, in the place where these reside. For after falsities have been removed they are allotted places of their own elsewhere in the natural, and with the falsities go the endeavour and desire to use reasonings. But they are not, as they were before, the central and immediate object of mental attention. This explains why, as described in what follows, the frogs were gathered into heaps, and caused the land to stink, meaning that those false reasonings were arranged in the natural into bundles, producing what was foul and repulsive, see below in 7408, 7409.

sRef Ex@8 @6 S0′ 7399. ‘And he said, Until tomorrow’ means for evermore. This is clear from the meaning of ’till tomorrow’ as for evermore and into eternity, dealt with in 3998.

sRef Ex@8 @6 S0′ 7400. ‘And he said, Let it be according to your word’ means an ensuing endorsement. This is clear without explanation.

sRef Ps@95 @3 S0′ sRef Ps@113 @5 S0′ sRef Ex@8 @6 S0′ sRef Ps@96 @4 S0′ sRef Ps@77 @14 S0′ sRef Ps@136 @3 S0′ sRef Isa@46 @9 S0′ sRef Ps@136 @2 S0′ sRef Ps@77 @13 S0′ 7401. ‘So that you may know that there is none like Jehovah our God’ means that there is one God and none besides Him. This is clear from the consideration that when the historical sense says that ‘none is like Jehovah God’ the meaning in the internal sense is that there is no God besides Him, and that since there is none besides Him there is one God. In the Word it is frequently stated that there is none like Jehovah God, and also that there is no God like Him. It was stated in this way in the Word because in the land where the Church existed, as also in lands where the Church did not exist, people at that time worshipped a number of gods, and each person gave precedence to his own god over another’s god. They distinguished those gods from one another by their names, the God of the Israelites and Jews by the name Jehovah. The Jews and Israelites themselves also believed that a number of gods existed, but that Jehovah was greater than all others on account of His miracles. When therefore those miracles ceased they instantly declined into the worship of other gods, as is evident from the historical parts of the Word. They did, it is true, declare with their lips that there is one God and none besides Him, but they did not believe it in their hearts. This then explains why the Word says that Jehovah is greater than all other gods and that there is none like Him, as in David,

Who is a great God like God*? You are the God who does wonders. Ps. 77:13, 14.

In the same author,

Who is like Jehovah our God? Ps. 113:5.

In the same author,

A great God is Jehovah, and a great King above all gods. Ps. 95:3.

In the same author,

Great is Jehovah, and highly exalted; He is to be feared above all gods. Ps. 96:4.

Jehovah is therefore also called God of gods and Lord of lords in Ps. 136:2, 3; Dan. 2:47. However the truth which the internal sense contains – that there is one God and none besides Him – is evident in Isaiah,

Remember the former things of old, for I am God, and there is no God else; and there is not the like of Me. Isa. 46:9.
* The Latin means You but the Hebrew means God.

sRef Ex@8 @7 S0′ 7402. ‘And the frogs will be removed from you, and from your houses, and from your servants, and from your people’ means that they would not be compelled to use reasonings arising from utter falsities. This is clear from the meaning of ‘the frogs being removed’ as not being compelled to use reasonings arising from utter falsities, dealt with above in 7392; from the representation of ‘Pharaoh’ as those steeped in falsities who engage in molestation, dealt with previously; from the meaning of ‘houses’ as parts of the natural mind, dealt with in 7397; and from the meaning of ‘his servants’ and ‘his people’ as each and every one of those steeped in falsities who engage in molestation, also dealt with above, in 7396.

sRef Ex@8 @7 S0′ 7403. ‘Survive only in the river’ means that they were to remain with falsities, in the place where these reside. This is clear from what has been stated above in 7398, where the same words occur.

sRef Ex@8 @8 S0′ 7404. ‘And Moses and Aaron went out from Pharaoh’ means a separation from those who used reasonings arising from utter falsities. This is clear from the meaning of ‘going out’ as being separated from; from the representation of ‘Moses and Aaron’ as the law of God, ‘Moses’ being inward law and ‘Aaron’ outward law, dealt with in 7381; and from the representation of ‘Pharaoh’ as those steeped in falsities who engage in molestation, dealt with above in 7396, at this point those who use reasonings arising from utter falsities for molesting others.

sRef Ex@8 @8 S0′ 7405. ‘And Moses cried out to Jehovah about the frogs which He had brought on Pharaoh’ means intercession. This is clear from what comes before this, thus without any further explanation.

sRef Ex@8 @9 S0′ 7406. ‘And Jehovah did according to the word of Moses’ means that it was so done according to the Lord’s word, for although what Moses pleaded for came out of the mouth of Moses it nevertheless originated with the Lord. For whatever a person thinks and then speaks, and whatever he wills and then does, flows into him. A person is merely a receiving organ, see 6189-6215, 6307, 6327, 6466-6495, 6598-6606, 6613-6626; and so was Moses in the things that he spoke and did. This is why what is said here – ‘Jehovah did according to the word of Moses’ – means that it was so done in accordance with the Lord’s word, Jehovah’ in the Word being the Lord, see 1343, 1736, 2921, 3023, 3035, 5663, 6281, 6303, 6905.

sRef Ex@8 @9 S0′ 7407. ‘And the frogs died out of the houses, out of the courtyards, and out of the fields’ means that with those people reasonings arising from utter falsities, wherever they were present in the natural, came to an end. This is clear from the meaning of ‘dying’ as coming to an end; from the meaning of ‘the frogs’ as reasonings arising from utter falsities, dealt with above; from the meaning of ‘the houses’ as parts of the natural mind, dealt with above in 7397, at this point interior parts within it; from the meaning of ‘the courtyards’ as exterior parts of the natural mind (the natural has an interior and an exterior, see 3293, 3294, 4570, 5118, 5497, 5649); and from the meaning of ‘the fields’ as the more general and so even more exterior parts, since the fields are outside the houses and courtyards. Thus ‘the frogs died out of the houses, out of the courtyards, and out of the fields’ means that reasonings arising from utter falsities, wherever they existed in the natural, came to an end.

sRef Ex@8 @10 S0′ 7408. ‘And they gathered them into heaps [upon] heaps’ means that those false reasonings were arranged into bundles in the natural. This is clear from the meaning of ‘being gathered into heaps [upon] heaps’ as being arranged into bundles. Those reasonings are ‘gathered into heaps’ because all the contents of a person’s mind have been arranged into series, and into bundles so to speak, and then into series within series, or bundles within bundles, see 5339, 5530, 5881. The fact that they are arranged in this kind of way is evident from the way that all things are arranged within the body. There fibres can be seen arranged into bundles, and glands into clusters. This arrangement exists everywhere within the body, and in a much more perfect manner with the more refined substances that are not visible to the naked eye. That bundling allows itself to be seen especially in the brain, in the two substances there, one of which is called cortical, the other medullary; and it exists no less with those more refined substances, and lastly the most refined, where the forms that receive them are the actual forms receptive of life.

[2] The fact that forms or substances are receptive of life may be recognized from every detail to be observed in living things. It may also be recognized that recipient forms or substances are arranged or structured in the most appropriate way for the inflow of life. If life were not received by substances, that is, forms, there could be no living thing in the natural world, nor any in the spiritual world. Series of extremely fine threads, resembling bundles, are what constitute those forms. They likewise are receptive of life, and within those forms undergo perfect modification. For modifications depend on the forms, that is, substances, in which they occur and from which they arise; for the substances or forms determine what the modifications shall be. The reason why the learned have come to envisage the things that constitute a person’s life – the contents of his thought and will, for example – as entities without recipient substances or forms is that they have come to believe that life or the soul is either something flame-like or something air-like, and so the kind of thing that will be dispersed after death. This accounts for the insane notion of a large number of them that there is no life after death. From all this one may see how to understand the explanation that the false reasonings were arranged into bundles in the natural.

sRef Ex@8 @10 S0′ 7409. ‘And the land stank’ means what was as a result foul and repulsive. This is clear from the meaning of ‘stinking’ as that which is foul and repulsive, dealt with in 4516, 7161, 7319; and from the meaning of ‘the land’, here the land of Egypt, as the natural mind, dealt with in 5276, 5278, 5280, 5288, 5301.

sRef Ex@8 @14 S0′ sRef Ex@8 @15 S0′ sRef Ex@8 @12 S0′ sRef Ex@8 @11 S0′ sRef Ex@8 @13 S0′ 7410. Verses 11-15 And Pharaoh saw that he could breathe again,* and he made his heart stubborn, and did not hear** them, as Jehovah had spoken. And Jehovah said to Moses, Say to Aaron, Stretch out your rod and strike the dust of the land, and it will then be lice in all the land of Egypt. And they did so; and Aaron stretched out his hand with his rod and struck the dust of the land, and there were lice on man and on beast. All the dust of the land became lice in the whole land of Egypt. And the magicians did the same with their enchantments to bring forth lice, but they could not; and there were lice on man and on beast. And the magicians said to Pharaoh, The finger of God is this. And Pharaoh’s heart was unyielding, and he did not hear’ them, as Jehovah had spoken.

‘And Pharaoh saw that he could breathe again’ means that the weariness ceased. ‘And he made his heart stubborn’ means obstinacy. ‘And did not hear them’ means disobedience. ‘As Jehovah had spoken’ means as accorded with what had been foretold. ‘And Jehovah said to Moses’ means instruction anew. ‘Say to Aaron’ means an influx of inward law into outward law. ‘Stretch out your rod’ means commanding him to demonstrate the Divine power. ‘And strike the dust of the land’ means that he should remove those things in the natural which are damned. ‘And it will then be lice’ means that evils will rise up from them. ‘In all the land of Egypt’ means in the whole natural mind. ‘And they did so’ means putting it into effect. ‘And Aaron stretched out his hand with his rod’ means the power of inward truth directed through outward truth. ‘And struck the dust of the land’ means that the things which were damned were removed. ‘And there were lice on man and on beast’ means that evils rose up from those things – interior and exterior evils attached to wicked desires. ‘All the dust of the land became lice in the whole land of Egypt’ means that those evils rose up from the things that were damned. ‘And the magicians did the same with their enchantments to bring forth lice’ means the endeavour to pervert Divine order and produce something that looked the same in these things also. ‘But they could not’ means that they acted to no avail. ‘And there were lice on man and on beast’ means the evils, interior and exterior, that are attached to wicked desires. ‘And the magicians said to Pharaoh’ means perception and communication of it to those immersed in evils. ‘The finger of God is this’ means that the power came from the Divine. ‘And Pharaoh’s heart was unyielding’ means obstinacy. ‘And he did not hear them’ means disobedience. ‘As Jehovah had spoken’ means as accorded with what had been foretold.
* lit. respiration had come about, i.e. there was a respite from the plagues
** lit. hear towards

sRef Ex@8 @11 S0′ 7411. ‘And Pharaoh saw that he could breathe again’ means that the weariness ceased. This is clear from the meaning of ‘that he could breathe again’ as the fact that there was no longer anything undelightful, and so no longer any weariness. Regarding the weariness and lack of delight experienced by those who use reasonings that arise from utter falsities, see above in 7392. What is delightful causes a person to breathe freely and fully, whereas what is undelightful prevents him from breathing freely or fully. So it is that ‘he could breathe again’ means that what was undelightful – that is, the weariness – ceased.

sRef Ex@8 @11 S0′ 7412. ‘And he made his heart stubborn’ means obstinacy. This is clear from the meaning of ‘making the heart stubborn’, and also ‘hardening it’, and ‘making it unyielding’, as obstinacy, dealt with in 7272, 7300, 7305.

sRef Ex@8 @11 S0′ 7413. ‘And did not hear them’ means disobedience, as above in 7224, 7275, 7301, 7379, where similar words occur.

sRef Ex@8 @11 S0′ 7414. ‘As Jehovah had spoken’ means as accorded with what had been foretold, as above in 7302, 7740.

sRef Ex@8 @12 S0′ 7415. ‘And Jehovah said to Moses’ means instruction anew, as previously in 7186, 7216, 7267, 7304, 7380.

sRef Ex@8 @12 S0′ 7416. ‘Say to Aaron’ means an influx of inward law into outward law, as above in 7381.

sRef Ex@8 @12 S0′ 7417. ‘Stretch out your rod’ means commanding him to demonstrate the Divine power. This is clear from the meaning of ‘stretching out’ as exercising and demonstrating, as previously; and from the meaning of ‘the rod’ as power, dealt with in 4017, 4015, 4876, 4936, 6947, 7011, 7026. This power was Divine, because Aaron had no power at all; still less did the rod contain any. Rather Aaron and his rod were the instruments by means of which power was exercised. It was exercised by means of a rod because, within the Church, what the Divine commanded to be done was accomplished through representatives. (This was before the Lord’s Coming.) So it was that the stretching out of hand and rod accomplished what was commanded, for arm and hand correspond to power, and so too consequently does a rod. The reason why within the Church, before the Lord’s Coming, what the Divine commanded was accomplished through representatives was that every single thing commanded by Him represented the Lord, His kingdom in heaven, and His kingdom on earth, which is the Church. The truth of this may also be recognized from the Word in which every single thing has to do in the highest sense with the Lord, and in the internal sense with His kingdom and Church.

sRef Ex@8 @12 S0′ 7418. ‘And strike the dust of the land’ means that he should remove those things in the natural which are damned. This is clear from the meaning of ‘striking’ as removing; from the meaning of ‘the dust’ as that which is damned, dealt with below; and from the meaning of ‘the land’, at this point the land of Egypt, as the natural mind, dealt with above in 7409. The reason why ‘the dust’ means that which is damned is that the places on the fringes below the soles of the feet, where evil spirits are, look like a land. They look like an uncultivated and dry land, to be exact, below which there are certain kinds of hells. That land is what is called the damned land, and the dust there serves to mean that which is damned. I have been allowed on several occasions to see evil spirits shaking off the dust there from their feet when they wished to consign someone to damnation. I saw them doing this in a position on the right slightly in front of me, on the borders of the hell of magicians, where spirits who during their life in the world have possessed a knowledge of matters of belief, but have nevertheless led a life of evil, are cast down into the hell that is theirs. This then is why ‘the dust’ means that which is damned, and ‘shaking off the dust’ damnation.

sRef Matt@10 @15 S2′ sRef Matt@10 @14 S2′ [2] Since it had that meaning the Lord commanded the disciples to shake off the dust on their feet if they were not well received. What He said about this appears in Matthew as follows,

If anyone will not receive you or listen to your words, as you leave that house or city, shake off the dust on your feet. Truly I say to you, It will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah on the day of judgement than for that city. Matt. 10:14, 15; Mark 6:11; Luke 9:5, 10:10-12.

Here the disciples are not meant by the disciples but all aspects of the Church, thus all aspects of faith and charity, 2089, 2129 (end), 2130 (end), 3354, 3858, 3913, 6397. ‘Not receiving’ and ‘not listening to’ mean rejecting the truths of faith and forms of the good of charity, while ‘shaking off the dust on their feet’ means damnation. And the reason why ‘it will be more tolerable for Sodom and Gomorrah than that city’ is that ‘Sodom and Gomorrah’ is used to mean those who lead a life of evil but have known nothing about the Lord and the Word, and so could not be receptive. From this it may become clear that a house or a city unreceptive of the disciples is not meant, but those who though they are within the Church do not lead the life of faith. Anyone may see that an entire city could not be damned for not receiving the disciples and instantly accepting the new teaching proclaimed by them.

sRef Ezek@27 @30 S3′ sRef Lam@2 @10 S3′ sRef Rev@18 @19 S3′ sRef Micah@1 @10 S3′ [3] That which is damned is also meant by ‘the dust’ which people in former times placed on their heads in grief or when penitent, as in Jeremiah,

The elders of the daughter of Zion sit on the ground, they are silent; they have caused dust to come up over their heads, they have girded themselves with sackcloth; the virgins of Jerusalem have caused their heads to come down to the ground. Lam. 2:10.

In Ezekiel,

They will cry out bitterly, and will cause dust to come up over their heads; they roll themselves in ashes. Ezek. 27:30.

In Micah,

Do not weep at all in the house of Aphrah; roll yourself in the dust. Micah 1:10.

In John,

They threw dust onto their heads, and cried out, weeping and wailing. Rev. 18:19.

The same actions are referred to throughout the historical narratives of the Word. Casting dust over the head, prostrating body and head on the ground, and rolling over in the dust on it, represented self-abasement, which – when it is genuine – is such that the person acknowledges and
perceives that he is damned, yet is rescued from damnation by the Lord, see 1327, 3994, 4347, 5420, 5957.

sRef Micah@7 @17 S4′ sRef Micah@7 @14 S4′ sRef Micah@7 @16 S4′ sRef Deut@9 @21 S4′ sRef Gen@3 @14 S4′ sRef Isa@47 @1 S4′ sRef Isa@65 @25 S4′ sRef Ps@119 @25 S4′ sRef Ps@44 @25 S4′ [4] The dust’ into which the golden calf which they made in the wilderness was crushed and ground down likewise means that which is damned. This is spoken of in Moses as follows,

I took your sin which you had made, the calf, and I burnt it in the fire, and crushed it by grinding it right down until it was as fine as dust; and I threw its dust into the brook descending out of the mountain. Deut. 9:11.

‘Dust’ again means that which is damned in the following places: In Genesis,

Jehovah God said to the serpent, On your belly you will go, and dust will you eat all the days of your life. Gen. 3:14.

In Micah,

Shepherd Your people as in the days of eternity. The nations will see and be ashamed at all their power; they will lick the dust like a serpent. Micah 7:14, 16, 17.

In Isaiah,

For the serpent, dust will be his bread. Isa. 65:25.

In the same prophet,

Come down and sit in the dust, O virgin daughter of Babel. Isa. 47:1.

In David,

Our soul was bowed down to the dust, our belly clung to the earth. Ps. 44:25.

In the same author,

My soul clings to the dust; vivify me. Ps. 119:25.

In the Word ‘dust’ in addition means the grave, as well as that which is lowly, and that which is numerous too.

sRef Ex@8 @12 S0′ 7419. ‘And it will then be lice’ means that evils will rise up from them. This is clear from the meaning of ‘lice’ as evils. But what evils these are and where they originate becomes clear from the correspondence of evils with such parasites. They are primarily evils on the level of the senses or utterly external level of a person’s mind. This correspondence arises from the fact that lice live on the outside of the skin, among the dirt there and under scaly skin. The sensory level in those who have come to possess a knowledge of matters of belief yet lead a life of evil is also like this. When that knowledge is taken away from them, as happens to such persons in the next life, they are then mentally thick and stupid. They have appeared before me on several occasions; they are foul and repulsive. Molestations by evils are meant by the bitings of those parasites. This meaning of ‘lice’ cannot be substantiated from other places in the Word, for they are mentioned again only in David, where he refers to what took place in Egypt, Ps. 105:31.

sRef Ex@8 @12 S0′ 7420. ‘In all the land of Egypt’ means in the whole natural mind. This is clear from the meaning of ‘the land of Egypt’ as the natural mind, dealt within 5276, 5278, 5280, 5288, 5301.

sRef Ex@8 @13 S0′ 7421. ‘And they did so’ means putting it into effect. This is clear without explanation.

sRef Ex@8 @13 S0′ 7422. ‘And Aaron stretched out his hand with his rod’ means the power of inward truth directed through outward truth. This is clear from what has been stated above in 7382, where similar words occur.

sRef Ex@8 @13 S0′ 7423. ‘And struck the dust of the land’ means that the things which were damned were removed. This is clear from what has been stated above in 7418.

sRef Ex@8 @13 S0′ 7424. ‘And there were lice on man and on beast’ means that evils rose up from those things – interior and exterior evils attached to wicked desires. This is clear from the meaning of ‘lice’ as evils, dealt with in 7419; from the meaning of ‘man’ as good, dealt with in 4287, 5302, and so in the contrary sense as evil; and from the meaning of ‘beast’ as the affection for good, and in the contrary sense as the affection for evil, which is evil or wicked desire, dealt with in 45, 46, 142, 143, 246, 714, 715, 719, 776, 2179, 2180, 3218, 3519, 5198. But when the expression ‘man and beast’ is used, man’ means interior good, and in the contrary sense interior evil, while ‘beast’ means exterior good, and in the contrary sense exterior evil. The reason why ‘man’ means interior good or interior evil is that a person is truly human by virtue of his internal man and the nature of this, not by virtue of his external man; for without the internal the external man is not truly human. If the external man too is to be truly human it must be completely subject to the internal, so completely that it does not act by itself, only from the internal. The reason why ‘beast’ means exterior good and in the contrary sense exterior evil is that beasts do not have an internal side to them like that present in a human being. With them the internal side is merged into the external, so completely that it makes one with it, and at the same looks downwards or towards the ground without any uplifting towards more internal things. The expression ‘evils attached to wicked desires’ is used because all evils are objects of wicked desires; for wicked desires are the longings of a person’s loves. What makes interior evils different from exterior evils is this: Interior evils belong to thought and will, whereas exterior evils belong to actions. The fact that evils may be interior without being exterior is evident from the consideration that a person can be evil and yet to outward appearance look like an upright man, indeed like a man possessing faith and conscience. Some even know how to pretend to be angels when in fact inwardly they are devils. This is how great the difference can be between the inward appearance, which is that presented by the spirit, and the outward appearance, which is that presented by the body.

sRef Ex@8 @13 S0′ 7425. ‘All the dust of the land became lice in the whole land of Egypt’ means that those evils rose up from the things that were damned. This is clear from the meaning of ‘the dust of the land’ as that which is damned, dealt with above in 7418; from the meaning of ‘lice’ as evils, dealt with in 7419; and from the meaning of ‘the land of Egypt’ as the natural mind, also dealt with above, in 7420.

sRef Ex@8 @14 S0′ 7426. ‘And the magicians did the same with their enchantments to bring forth lice’ means the endeavour to pervert Divine order and produce something that looked the same in these things also. This is clear from the meaning of ‘did’ as the endeavour to achieve the same thing, for it goes on to say that they could not in fact achieve it; from the meaning of ‘the magicians’ and ‘enchantments’ as perverting Divine order and producing something similar to outward appearance, dealt with in 7296, 7297, 7337; and from the meaning of ‘bringing forth lice’ as producing the evils that are meant by ‘lice’, dealt with in 7419.

sRef Ex@8 @14 S0′ 7427. ‘but they could not’ means that they acted to no avail. This is clear without explanation.

sRef Ex@8 @14 S0′ 7428. ‘And there were lice on man and on beast’ means the evils, interior and exterior, [that are attached to wicked desires.] This is clear from what has been stated above in 7414, where similar words occur.

sRef Ex@8 @15 S0′ 7429. ‘And the magicians said to Pharaoh’ means perception and communication to those immersed in evils. This is clear from the meaning of ‘saying’ as perception, dealt with in 1791, 1815, 1819, 1822, 1898, 1919, 2080, 2619, 2862, 3509, 5743, and also as communication, 3060, 4131, 6228, 7291, 7381; from the meaning of ‘the magicians’ as those who pervert Divine order and produce something that looks the same to outward appearance, dealt with just above in 7426; and from the representation of ‘Pharaoh’ as those who are steeped in falsities and engage in molestation, dealt with in 6651, 6679, 6683, 7107, 7100, 7126, 7142, 7717, at this point those who are immersed in evils since they are now in a state of evil after the removal of the false reasonings, as is evident from what has gone before.

sRef Ex@8 @15 S0′ sRef Ps@8 @3 S1′ sRef Luke@11 @20 S1′ 7430. ‘The finger of God is this’ means that the power came from the Divine. This is clear from the meaning of ‘the finger of God’ as power from the Divine. The reason why ‘finger’ means power is that the fingers are parts of the hands, and by ‘hands’ is meant power, 878, 4931-4937, 6344, 6424, 6948. The meaning of ‘finger’ as power is clear from the following places also: In David,

When I look at the heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon and stars which You have established* … Ps. 8:3

In Luke,

Jesus said, If I cast out demons by the finger of God, surely the kingdom of God has come to you. Luke 11:20.

When Jesus took aside from the people the deaf man who spoke with difficulty and put His finger into his ears, and spat and touched his tongue, Mark 7:32, 33, this too was an action representative of Divine power.

sRef Ex@29 @20 S2′ sRef Lev@14 @14 S2′ sRef Lev@14 @16 S2′ sRef Lev@14 @17 S2′ [2] The fact that ‘finger’ represents power is also evident from rituals observed in the Church among the Jews, the ritual in which blood was put on the thumb, and the ritual in which the priest sprinkled blood with his finger, both commanded in the following places in Moses,

You shall slaughter the ram, and put some of the blood on the thumb of the right hand of Aaron and of his sons, and on the big toe of his right foot. Exod. 29:20.

The priest shall take some of the blood of the guilt-offering, and the priest shall put it on the lobe of the right ear of the one to be cleansed from leprosy, and on the thumb of his right hand, and on the big toe of his right foot. Then the priest shall dip his right finger in some of the oil which is on the palm of his left hand, and sprinkle some of the oil on his finger seven times before Jehovah. Some of the rest of the oil that is on his palm the priest shall put on the lobe of the right ear of the one to be cleansed, and on the thumb of his right hand, and on the big toe of his right foot. Lev. 14:14, 16, 17.

You shall take some of the blood of the young bull, and place it with your finger on the horns of the altar. Exod. 29:11.

Further places in which such rituals occur are Lev. 4:6; 9:9.

sRef Isa@17 @8 S3′ sRef Ps@144 @1 S3′ [3] All these rituals served to mean the hidden and holy things of heaven. This is clear from the consideration that the Word has a Divine origin and is inspired as to every tittle, Luke 16:17; and this being so, ‘thumb’ and ‘finger’ mean the power of good exercised through truth, as is evident from their internal sense in the places just quoted. Power is again meant by ‘finger’ in David,

Blessed be Jehovah, who trains my hands for conflict, and my fingers for war. Ps. 144:1

And in Isaiah,

He will not look to the altars, the work of his hands, and what his fingers have made. Isa. 17:8.

‘The altars’ stands for worship in general, 4541, ‘the work of hands’ and ‘what fingers have made’ for the kinds of things that are the product of what is properly one’s own, thus of one’s own power.
* lit. prepared

[7430a ‘And Pharaoh’s heart was unyielding’ means obstinacy, as above in 7272, 7300, 7305, 7412.]

sRef Ex@8 @15 S0′ 7431. ‘And he did not hear them’ means disobedience, as above in 7224, 7275, 7301, 7339.

sRef Ex@8 @15 S0′ 7432. ‘As Jehovah had spoken’ means as accorded with what had been foretold, as also above, in 7301, 7340, 7414.

sRef Ex@8 @16 S0′ sRef Ex@8 @19 S0′ sRef Ex@8 @18 S0′ sRef Ex@8 @17 S0′ sRef Ex@8 @20 S0′ 7433. Verses 16-20 And Jehovah said to Moses, Rise up in the morning early to stand before Pharaoh; behold, he goes out to the water. And you are to say to him, Thus says Jehovah, Send My people away and let them serve Me. For if you do not send My people away, behold, I send onto you, and onto your servants, and onto your people, and into your houses, noxious flying insects; and the houses of the Egyptians will be full of the noxious flying insects, and also the land on which they are. And I will set apart on that day the land of Goshen, on which My people stand, so that the noxious flying insects are not there; to the end that you may know that I am Jehovah in the midst of the land. And I will place redemption between My people and your people; by tomorrow will this sign be. And Jehovah did so; and extremely noxious flying insects came to the house of Pharaoh, and to the houses of his servants, and into all the land of Egypt. The land was ruined by the presence of the noxious flying insects.

‘And Jehovah said to Moses’ means further instruction. ‘Rise up in the morning early’ means being raised to an even greater sign of power. ‘To stand before Pharaoh’ means the appearance of the Divine to those immersed in evils. ‘Behold, he goes out to the water’ means that they proceeded from those evils to contemplate further falsities. ‘And you are to say to him, Thus says Jehovah’ means a command. ‘Send My people away and let them serve Me’ means that they should leave those who belong to the spiritual Church, in order that these may worship their God in freedom. ‘For if you do not send My people away’ means should they fail to leave them … ‘Behold, I send onto you, and onto your servants, and onto your people, and into your houses, noxious flying insects’ means that malevolent falsity will be present in every single aspect. ‘And the houses of the Egyptians will be full of the noxious flying insects, and also the land on which they are’ means that malevolent falsities will take possession of everything in the natural mind. ‘And I will set apart on that day the land of Goshen, on which My people stand, so that the noxious flying insects are not there’ means that they will not be able to use malevolent falsities to molest those who belong to the spiritual Church even though they are near them. ‘To the end that you may know that I am Jehovah in the midst of the land’ means the resulting discernment that the Lord is the only God of the Church. ‘And I will place redemption between My people and your people’ means the deliverance of those who belong to the spiritual Church from those in the hells nearby. ‘And tomorrow will this sign be’ means the manifestation of Divine power thereby for evermore. ‘And Jehovah did so’ means as it had been declared, so it was done. ‘And extremely noxious flying insects came to the house of Pharaoh, and to the houses of his servants, and into all the land of Egypt’ means that malevolent falsities burst out from every side among them. ‘And the land was ruined by the presence of the noxious flying insects’ means that [all] truth in the natural mind was corrupted.

sRef Ex@8 @16 S0′ 7434. ‘And Jehovah said to Moses’ means further instruction. This is clear from the meaning of ‘saying’, when done by Jehovah to Moses, as instruction, dealt with in 7186, 7226, 7267, 7304, 7380, 7415, at this point further instruction since it is a statement of what further things had to be done.

sRef Ex@8 @16 S0′ 7435. ‘Rise up in the morning early’ means being raised to an even greater sign of power. This is clear from the meaning of ‘rising up in the morning’ as being raised; for ‘rising up’ means being raised, see 2401, 2785, 2912, 2927, 3171, 4103, and so too does ‘morning’ mean being raised, 7306. Strictly speaking ‘rising up in the morning’ means a state of enlightenment, 3458, 3723. But since no enlightenment, which the Divine provides by an inflow of goodness and truth, is possible with the evil who are represented by Pharaoh and the Egyptians, only being raised to a state of awareness, ‘rising up in the morning early’ here therefore means the latter kind of raising. The fact that it is a raising to be made aware of an even greater sign of power is evident from what follows in which yet another new sign is referred to.

sRef Ex@8 @16 S0′ 7436. To stand before Pharaoh’ means the appearance of the Divine to those immersed in evils. This is clear from the meaning of ‘standing before someone’ as presence, at this point the appearance of the Divine since Moses who was told ‘to stand’ is the truth from God through which the Divine makes His appearance; and from the representation of ‘Pharaoh’ as those steeped in falsities, at this point those immersed in evils, as above in 7429.

sRef Ex@8 @16 S0′ 7437. ‘behold, he goes out to the water’ means that they proceeded from those evils to contemplate further falsities. This is clear from the meaning of ‘going out’ as proceeding in one’s thinking from evils to falsities, for when people immersed in evils proceed in their thinking from those evils to falsities they are said ‘to go out’ because evil, belonging as it does to the will, is inmost, and falsity, since it belongs to the understanding and therefore to thought, is outside it, and this is what ‘going out’ means in the spiritual sense (it also means evil action proceeding from an evil will, as stated in Mark 7:20-23); and from the meaning of ‘water’ as truths, and in the contrary sense falsities, dealt with in 739, 790, 2702, 3058, 3424, 4976, 5668, ‘the water of the river of Egypt’ to which Pharaoh is going to go out meaning falsities, 7307.

[2] As regards proceeding in one’s thinking from evils to falsities, it should be recognized that those who are immersed in evils cannot in their thinking do anything other than proceed from those evils to falsities, since evils are what they will and consequently love, and falsities are what they think and consequently believe. For what a person wills he also loves, and what he loves he also bolsters and defends. And evils cannot be bolstered or defended except by means of falsities, which is why, when evil is compared in the Word to a city, falsities are compared to the defensive walls surrounding the city. The reason why those immersed in evils proceed in their thinking to falsities, which they use to defend evils, is that evils are the very delights of their life, to so great an extent that they constitute their life itself. This being so, when they learn from others that those evils are indeed evils, then to guard against their being seen as such they think up falsities which they use to make people believe that the evils are not evils. But if the evils do not dare to make their appearance through falsities they are concealed inwardly and do not reveal themselves, except when fear of the law ceases to exist, or else fear of the loss of reputation for the sake of making gain or for the sake of attaining important positions. When these fears cease to exist the evils burst forth into the open either by way of duplicity or by way of hostility.

[3] From all this one may see that those who are immersed in evils cannot in their thinking do anything other than proceed from evils to falsities. The situation is also similar with those living in a state of goodness, in that in their thinking they cannot do anything other than proceed from good to truths. For goodness and truth go together, as also do evil and falsity, joined to each other so completely that a person who knows that someone is governed by good can know that he is guided by the truth that goes with his good. He can know too that a person who is immersed in evil is steeped in the falsity that goes with his evil, and that the extent to which he is steeped in falsity is determined by the strength of his ability to engage in reasoning and to pervert, and then the extent to which he fears loss of the reputation he needs to have for the sake of gain and position, and how much freedom he wishes to have to do evil. It is astonishing how after using falsities for a certain length of time to defend evils such people then convince themselves that evils are forms of good and that falsities are truths.

sRef Ex@8 @16 S0′ 7438. ‘And you are to say to him, [Thus says Jehovah]’ means a command, as in 7036, 7310.

sRef Ex@8 @16 S0′ 7439. ‘Send My people away and let them serve Me’ means that they should leave those who belong to the spiritual Church, in order that these may worship their God in freedom. This is clear from the meaning of ‘sending away’ as leaving; from the representation of the children of Israel, to whom ‘My people’ refers here, as those who belong to the spiritual Church, dealt with in 6426, 6637, 6862, 6868, 7075, 7062, 7198, 7201, 7215, 7223; and from the meaning of ‘serving Jehovah’ as worshipping. That they should worship in freedom is evident from what follows in verses 21-23, and also from the consideration that all worship which is truly worship must take place in freedom.

[2] The children of Israel are called Jehovah’s people not because they were any better than other nations but because they represented Jehovah’s people, that is, those who belonged to the Lord’s spiritual kingdom. The fact that they were no better than other nations is evident from their life in the wilderness, where they did not believe at all in Jehovah. Instead they believed in their hearts in the gods of the Egyptians, as is clear from the golden calf which they made for themselves and which they called their gods who had led them out of the land of Egypt, Exod. 32:8. The same fact is also evident from their life subsequently in the land of Canaan, dealt with in the historical sections of the Word; and the things said about them in the prophetical parts and finally by the Lord make it evident too.

[3] This also explains why few of them are in heaven; for the destiny they have met in the next life has been determined by the way they lived. Refuse to believe therefore that they have been chosen for heaven ahead of others. Those who believe that these people have been chosen for heaven ahead of others do not believe that each one’s life remains with him. Nor do they believe that a person has to be made ready for heaven throughout his entire life in the world, and that although this is accomplished by the Lord’s mercy, people are not admitted into heaven by mercy alone regardless of the life they have led in the world. The kind of notion they have of heaven and the Lord’s mercy is the result of teachings about faith alone and salvation by it without good works; for such people are unconcerned about life. Hence they also believe that evils can be purged away like dirt with water, and so believe that a person can be brought in an instant into leading a life of goodness and consequently be admitted into heaven. Such people do not know that if the evil were deprived of their life of evil they would have no life whatever, and also that if those who lead an evil life were admitted into heaven it would feel like hell to them, and the further they went into heaven the worse would that feeling become.

[4] All this now makes it clear that the Israelites and Jews had not by any means been chosen; they were simply accepted in order that they might represent the things of heaven. And this they had to do in the land of Canaan because the Lord’s Church had existed there since most ancient times and all places there had consequently become representative of heavenly and Divine realities. Then also the Word could be written, in which the names would serve to mean such things as belong to the Lord and His kingdom.

sRef Ex@8 @17 S0′ 7440. ‘For if you do not send My people away’ means should they fail to leave them… This is clear from the meaning of ‘sending away’ leaving; and from the meaning of ‘Jehovah’s people’ as those who belong to the Lord’s spiritual Church, as immediately above in 7439.

sRef Ex@8 @17 S0′ 7441. ‘behold, I send onto you, and onto your servants, and onto your people, and into your houses, noxious flying insects’ means that malevolent falsity will be present in every single aspect. This is clear from the meaning of ‘Pharaoh, his servants, and his people’ as every single part of the natural mind, dealt with in 7396, and when ‘into the houses’ is added, an entry into the interior parts of that mind as well is meant, as above in 7407; and from the meaning of ‘noxious flying insects’ as falsities arising out of the evil that was meant by the previous wonder, thus malevolent falsities. Exactly which falsities therefore are meant here by ‘noxious flying insects’, and what type they belong to, is evident from the evils they spring from. And those evils were evils that exist on the outermost levels of the natural mind, thus on those of the senses, see above in 7419. The falsities which spring from them belong to the same sort.

sRef Isa@7 @19 S2′ sRef Isa@7 @18 S2′ [2] The same falsities are what are also meant by ‘the flies of Egypt’ in Isaiah,

It will happen on that day, that Jehovah will whistle for the fly that is in the furthest part of the rivers of Egypt, and for the bee that is in the land of Asshur. They will come and all of them will rest in rivers of desolations, and in the clefts of rocks. Isa. 7:18, 19.

‘The fly in the farthest part of the rivers of Egypt’ is falsities which reside in the outermost parts of the natural mind, thus on the level of the senses nearest to the body. These falsities are compared to an insect like that sort of insect because on that level they are exactly like insects that fly in the air, obscure the things on more internal levels, and inflict harm on them. For the things which are there are for the most part figments of the imagination; they are illusions giving rise to reasonings that are like buildings founded on nothing but air. Mention of this kind of noxious flying insect occurs again only in David, in Ps. 78:45 and Ps. 105:31, where also the reference is to Egypt. It should be recognized that flying creatures in the Word all mean things that are connected with the understanding, consequently truths or in the contrary sense falsities, 40, 745, 776, 778, 866, 988, 3219, 5149. But the lowest sort of flying creatures, which are insects, mean truths, or in the contrary sense falsities, which are quite low-grade and obscure, as those are which belong properly to the level of the senses. For unless they receive light from the more internal levels, gloom and darkness completely envelop them; for they are nearest to the body and therefore close to earthly things that form the base on which heavenly things rest, and are immersed in thick darkness.

sRef Ex@8 @17 S0′ 7442. ‘And the houses of the Egyptians will be full of the noxious flying insects, and also the land on which they are’ means that malevolent falsities will take possession of everything in the natural mind. This is clear from the meaning of ‘filling’ as taking possession of; from the meaning of ‘the houses of the Egyptians’ as the interior parts of the natural mind, dealt with above in 7407; from the meaning of ‘noxious flying insects’ as malevolent falsities, dealt with immediately above in 7441; and from the meaning of ‘the land of Egypt’ as the natural mind in general, dealt with in 5276, 5178, 5180, 5288, 5301.

[2] A brief statement needs to be made about what is implied in the meaning here – by the idea that even the interior parts of the natural mind will be taken possession of by the falsities arising from evil which are present in the outermost parts of that mind. What a person has flowing into him from the Lord by way of heaven flows into the interior parts of him, and then spreads right down to the lowest or outermost levels, where he becomes conscious of it. Consequently it comes right down into the level of the senses, and through this into parts of the body. If the level of the senses is filled with mistaken ideas based on illusions and appearances, and especially if they are based on falsities, the truths that flow in are turned there into similar ideas, since they are received there in accordance with the form imposed on them, see 7743. Also to the extent that truths are turned into falsities the interior parts of the mind serving as channels for the passage of truths are closed. Eventually the opening is only just large enough for the smallest amount of influx that the person needs to engage in reasoning and to use falsities to justify evils.

sRef John@13 @10 S3′ sRef John@13 @9 S3′ [3] This being the situation with a person, it is necessary when he is being regenerated for his natural to be regenerated right down to the sensory level. For unless that level is regenerated no reception of truth and good takes place, because – as stated above – truth that is flowing in is perverted there and the interiors parts are in those circumstances closed. Consequently when the exterior parts have been regenerated the whole person has been regenerated. This was what the Lord meant by His words to Peter when He washed his feet, in John,

Simon Peter said, Lord, You are not to wash my feet only, but also my hands and head. Jesus said to him, He who has been washed has no need except to wash his feet, and the whole person is clean. John 13:9, 10.

‘Feet’ means the parts forming the natural, 2162, 3761, 3986, 4280, 4938-4952; ‘washing’ means purifying, 3147, 5954 (end); ‘hands’ means the interior parts of the natural; and ‘head’ means the parts forming the spiritual. These meanings show what precisely one should understand by ‘he who has been washed has no need except to wash his feet, and the whole person is clean’ – that a person has been regenerated when even the exterior parts forming the natural have been regenerated. When therefore a person has had even his natural regenerated everything on that level is subordinated to more internal levels. And when the contents of the more internal levels enter they flow into images on that level which serve as the general vessels to contain them, and through those images the person is made conscious of them. When this is the situation with a person, he has conscious feelings of an affection for the truth of faith and of an affection for the good of charity.

[4] But it is difficult for the actual level of the senses, which is the lowest of the natural, to be regenerated, because it is completely filled with material ideas formed from earthly, bodily, and worldly things. For this reason a person who is being regenerated, especially at the present day, does not undergo regeneration at the sensory level, only at the natural level immediately above it, to which the Lord raises him from the level of the senses when he thinks about the truths and forms of the good of faith. The ability to be raised from the sensory level is what is imparted to the person who is being regenerated by the Lord. Regarding what the sensory level is like, and the raising of thought above it, see 5084, 5089, 5094, 5125, 5118, 5767, 6183, 6201, 6310, 6311, 6598, 6612, 6614, 6622, 6624, 6844, 6845, 6948.

sRef Ex@8 @18 S0′ 7443. ‘And I will set apart on that day the land of Goshen, on which My people stand, so that the noxious flying insects are not there’ means that they will not be able to use malevolent falsities to molest those who belong to the spiritual Church even though they are near them. This is clear from the meaning of ‘setting apart’ as separating to prevent communication; from the meaning of ‘day’ as state, dealt with in 23, 487, 488, 493, 893, 2788, 3462, 3785, 4850, so that ‘setting apart on that day’ is separating during that state; from the meaning of ‘the land of Goshen’ as the middle or inmost part in the natural, dealt with in 5910, 6028, 6031, 6068, and also, since the children of Israel were in the land of Goshen, as the Church, 6649; from the representation of the children of Israel, to whom ‘Jehovah’s people’ refers here, as those who belong to the spiritual Church, dealt with above in 7439; and from the meaning of ‘noxious flying insects’ as malevolent falsity, dealt with above in 7441, so that ‘the noxious flying insects are not there’ means that they will not be able to flow in, and therefore not be able to use those falsities for molesting others. The reason why they would be unable to use those falsities to molest with is this: Those falsities are falsities arising from the evils present in the outermost parts of the natural mind which form the level of the senses, and those who have what is good and true within them can be raised above that level, and so above the falsities there, as accords with what has been stated immediately above in 7442. And when they are raised above it they are also separated from those who are steeped in the falsities there.

sRef Ex@8 @18 S0′ 7444. To the end that you may know that I am Jehovah in the midst of the land’ means the [resulting] discernment that the Lord is the only God of the Church. This is clear from the meaning of ‘knowing’ as discernment; and from the meaning of ‘the midst of the land’ as the place where those who belong to the Lord’s Church are in possession of truth and goodness, the inmost part being where truth grounded in good is, 3436, 6068, 6084, 6103. Thus ‘the midst (or middle) of the land’ means the Church, in the same way as ‘the land of Goshen’ does, referred to immediately above in 7443. ‘I am Jehovah’ means that He is the only I AM, thus the only God – ‘Jehovah’ in the Word being the Lord, see 1343, 1736, 2921, 3023, 3035, 5663, 6303, 6905, 6945, 6956. From all this it is evident that ‘to the end that you may know that I am Jehovah in the midst of the land’ means the discernment that the Lord is the only God of the Church.

sRef Ex@8 @19 S0′ 7445. ‘And I will place redemption between My people and your people’ means the deliverance of those who belong to the spiritual Church from those in the hells nearby. This is clear from the meaning of ‘redemption’ as being led out of hell, dealt with in 7105, and from its specific use in reference to those who are being delivered from vastation, 2959; from the representation of the children of Israel, to whom ‘My people’ refers here, as those who belong to the spiritual Church, dealt with above in 7439; and from the representation of the Egyptians, to whom ‘your people’ refers here, as those in the hells nearby who engage in molestation, dealt with in 7090. From all this it is evident that ‘I will place redemption between My people and your people’ means the deliverance of those who belong to the spiritual Church from those in the hells nearby.

sRef Ex@8 @19 S0′ 7446. ‘And tomorrow will this sign be’ means the manifestation of Divine power thereby for evermore. This is clear from the meaning of ‘tomorrow’ as for evermore, dealt with in 3998; and from the meaning of ‘a sign’ as a corroboration of the truth, and consequent knowledge of it, dealt with in 6870, and therefore the manifestation of Divine power. For in former times truth, and at the same time Divine power were made manifest by means of signs.

sRef Ex@8 @20 S0′ 7447. ‘And Jehovah did so’ means as it had been declared, so it was done. This is clear without explanation.

sRef Ex@8 @20 S0′ 7448. ‘And extremely noxious flying insects came to the house of Pharaoh, and to the houses of his servants, and into all the land of Egypt’ means that malevolent falsities burst out from every side among them. This is clear from the meaning of ‘noxious flying insects’ as malevolent falsities, dealt with above in 7441; and from the meaning of ‘the house of Pharaoh, the houses of his servants, and all the land’ as every single thing in the natural, dealt with in 7396, 7441, 7442, at this point from every single one or from every side, since the bursting out of those falsities is meant. The proximate meaning of the coming of the noxious flying insects to the house is that falsities entered where evils were present and joined themselves to the evils. But when falsities have been joined to evils the evils burst out by means of the falsities. So it is that ‘the noxious flying insects came to the house of Pharaoh, and to the houses of his servants, and into all the land of Egypt’ means that malevolent falsities burst out, and indeed from every side.

sRef Ex@8 @20 S0′ 7449. ‘And the land was ruined by the presence of the noxious flying insects’ means that all truth in the natural mind was corrupted. This is clear from the meaning of ‘being ruined’ as being corrupted; from the meaning of ‘the land of Egypt’ as the natural mind, dealt with in 5276, 5278, 5280, 5288, 5301; and from the meaning of ‘the noxious flying insects’ as malevolent falsity, dealt with in 7441. All truth is said to be corrupted, for truth is indeed totally corrupted by falsity springing from evil.

sRef Ex@8 @24 S0′ sRef Ex@8 @23 S0′ sRef Ex@8 @26 S0′ sRef Ex@8 @25 S0′ sRef Ex@8 @27 S0′ sRef Ex@8 @21 S0′ sRef Ex@8 @22 S0′ sRef Ex@8 @28 S0′ 7450. Verses 21-28 And Pharaoh called Moses and Aaron, and said, Go, sacrifice to your God in the land. And Moses said, It is ill-advised to do so, for we would be sacrificing the abomination of the Egyptians to Jehovah our God. Behold, should we sacrifice the abomination of the Egyptians before their eyes, will they not stone us? We will go a way of three days* into the wilderness, and sacrifice to Jehovah our God, as He has said to us. And Pharaoh said, I will send you away to sacrifice to Jehovah your God in the wilderness; only you must certainly not go far away. Plead for me. And Moses said, Behold, I go out from you, and I will plead with Jehovah to remove the noxious flying insects from Pharaoh, from his servants, and from his people, tomorrow; only do not let Pharaoh act deceitfully again in not sending the people away to sacrifice to Jehovah. And Moses went out from Pharaoh and pleaded with Jehovah. And Jehovah did according to the word of Moses; and He removed the noxious flying insects from Pharaoh, from his servants, and from his people. Not one was left. And Pharaoh made his heart stubborn this time also, and did not send the people away.

‘And Pharaoh called Moses and Aaron’ means the presence of the law of God. ‘And said, Go, sacrifice to your God in the land’ means that they would not stand in the way of their worshipping their God, provided that they did so in a place near them. ‘And Moses said’ means the reply. ‘It is ill-advised to do so, for we would be sacrificing the abomination of the Egyptians to Jehovah our God’ means that what was vile, foul, and hellish would enter in. ‘Behold, should we sacrifice the abomination of the Egyptians before their eyes’ means that if offered in their presence Divine worship would be molested by such things. ‘Will they not stone us?’ means that they would thereby demolish the truths of faith that related to worship. ‘We will go a way of three days into the wilderness’ means that they would remove themselves altogether, so as to be in freedom. ‘And sacrifice to Jehovah our God’ means that then there would be worship. ‘As He has said to us’ means as He had commanded. ‘And Pharaoh said, I will send you away to sacrifice to Jehovah your God in the wilderness’ means that they would leave them and not molest them, in order that they might worship their God in freedom. ‘Only you must certainly not go far away’ means although they would remain nearby. ‘Plead for me means that they should intercede. ‘And Moses said, Behold, I go out from you ‘ means the removal of the appearance of God’s truth among them. ‘And I will plead with Jehovah’ means intercession. ‘To remove the noxious flying insects from Pharaoh, from his servants, [and] from his people’ means in order that there may be an end to that state involving the malevolent falsities. ‘Tomorrow’ means for evermore. ‘Only do not let Pharaoh act deceitfully again in not sending the people away to sacrifice to Jehovah’ means provided that he does not deceive with lies and fail to leave, so that they may worship their God in freedom. ‘And Moses went out from Pharaoh’ means the removal of the appearance of God’s truth among those steeped in malevolent falsities. ‘And pleaded with Jehovah’ means intercession. ‘And Jehovah did according to the word of Moses’ means that it was so done according to the Lord’s word. ‘And He removed the noxious flying insects from Pharaoh, from his servants, and from his people’ means the end of this state of falsity. ‘Not one was left’ means a complete removal. ‘And Pharaoh made his heart stubborn this time also’ means obstinacy once again. ‘And did not send the people away’ means that they did not leave those who belonged to the spiritual Church.
* i.e. a three days’ journey

sRef Ex@8 @21 S0′ 7451. ‘And Pharaoh called Moses and Aaron’ means the presence of the law of God. This is clear from the meaning of ‘calling’ as presence, dealt with in 6177, 7790; and from the representation of ‘Moses and Aaron’ as the law of God, ‘Moses’ inward law and ‘Aaron’ outward law, dealt with in 7381, 7390.

sRef Ex@8 @21 S0′ 7452. ‘And said, Go, sacrifice to your God in the land’ means that they would not stand in the way of their worshipping their God, provided that they did so in a place near them. This is clear from the meaning of ‘said, Go’ as their not standing in the way; from the meaning of ‘sacrificing’ as worshipping, dealt with above in 7393; and from the meaning of ‘in the land’ – the land of Egypt – as in a place nearby. The meaning of ‘in the land’ as in a place nearby is evident from verses 21-24, from Moses’ reply that it would be ill-advised for them to do so, for they would be sacrificing the abomination of the Egyptians before their eyes, but that they should go a three days’ journey into the wilderness and sacrifice to Jehovah their God; and also from Pharaoh’s reply that they should certainly not go far away. Thus ‘the land’ is used to mean in the internal sense the place where those steeped in falsities and engaging in molestation are, regarding whose nearness, see 7090.

sRef Ex@8 @22 S0′ 7453. ‘And Moses said’ means the reply, as previously in 7103, 7394.

sRef Ex@8 @22 S0′ 7454. ‘It is ill-advised to do so, for we would be sacrificing the abomination of the Egyptians to Jehovah our God’ means that what was vile, foul, and hellish would enter in. This is clear from the meaning of ‘ill-advised to do so’ as something that cannot be done; from the meaning of ‘the abomination’ as what is vile, foul, and hellish; and from the meaning of ‘sacrificing to Jehovah God’ as worshipping their God, dealt with above in 7452. Consequently ‘sacrificing to Jehovah God the abomination of the Egyptians’ means that they would be worshipping God with a type of worship which was abominated by those steeped in falsities because of a hellish influence that was antagonistic to that worship and would molest it. What all this entails is also evident from things that reveal themselves in the next life. Each spirit there, and especially each community, is encompassed by a sphere consisting of his or its own faith and life. This sphere is a spiritual sphere, and from it the character of the spirit is recognized, and especially that of the community; for those who have the gift of perception perceive it, sometimes from quite a long way off. They can perceive it even though they may be hidden from view and make no contact through thought or speech. This spiritual sphere may be compared to the material sphere which surrounds a person’s body in the world. This sphere is a sphere consisting of odours emanating from him, and is detected by keen-scented animals. Regarding the spiritual sphere surrounding spirits, see 1048, 1053, 1316, 1504, 1519, 2401, 2489, 4464, 5179, 6206 (end).

[2] From all this it becomes clear that if hellish spirits were present near where people offering Divine worship were they would by means of their sphere molest those people; for in those circumstances those people offering Divine worship would perceive what was vile and abominable. This shows how one should understand the explanation that what was vile, foul, and hellish would enter in if they worshipped God in a place near them. From what has been stated about the spiritual sphere, or sphere consisting of faith and life, which emanates from each spirit, and especially from each community of spirits, it may also be recognized that nothing whatever of a person s thought, speech, or action in the world is hidden but is open to view, since they are what constitute that sphere. Such a sphere also emanates from a person’s spirit while he is in the body, in the world. And from this too one knows what kind of person he is. Do not suppose therefore that the things which a person thinks in secret or does in secret are hidden. They are as plainly evident in heaven as things seen in the light of the midday sun, as accords with the Lord’s words in Luke,

Nothing has been hidden that will not be revealed, or concealed that will not be made known. Therefore whatever you have said in the dark will be heard in the light; and what you have spoken in the ear in bedchambers will be proclaimed on the housetops. Luke 12:1, 7.

sRef Ex@8 @22 S0′ 7455. ‘Behold, should we sacrifice the abomination of the Egyptians before their eyes’ means that if offered in their presence Divine worship would be molested by such things. This is clear from the explanations immediately above in 7454.

sRef Ex@8 @22 S0′ 7456. ‘Will they not stone us?’ means that they would thereby demolish the truths of faith that related to worship. This is clear from the meaning of ‘stoning’ as demolishing and wiping out falsities, but in the contrary sense, when done by the evil, as demolishing and wiping out the truths of faith. If the vile, foul, and hellish things referred to above in 7454 were to enter in among people whose worship is holy its holiness would be destroyed. The reason for this is that when a person’s worship is holy he is withheld from such things, and people who are governed by good in faith and life are raised above the level of the senses on which such things reside. But when such objects do enter in the foul things present on the sensory level are stirred up – that is, the things which a person is withheld from when his worship is holy, as has been stated, and which people governed by good are raised above – and the holiness of the worship is destroyed. Experience too demonstrates this plainly, for if, when a person offers worship to God, some foul object appears and is not removed, worship ceases and is destroyed. This is what is meant when it is said that if those steeped in falsities arising from evils were nearby they would demolish the truths of faith that relate to worship.

[2] As for the meaning of ‘stoning’, it should be recognized that the Jews and Israelites, among whom a representative of the Church had been established, had two kinds of capital punishment, one being stoning, the other hanging on wood. Stoning was used if anyone sought to destroy the truths relating to worship which were commanded, while hanging was used if anyone sought to destroy goodness of life. The reason why those who sought to destroy truths relating to worship were stoned was that a stone was a sign of truth and in the contrary sense of falsity, 643, 1298, 3720, 6426. And the reason why those who sought to destroy goodness of life were hanged on wood was that wood was a sign of good and in the contrary sense of the evil belonging to evil desires, 643, 2784, 2812, 3720.

sRef Ezek@16 @40 S3′ [3] The fact that punishment by stoning would be used if anyone should destroy truths relating to worship is evident from the following places: In Ezekiel,

Finally they will cause an assembly to come up upon you, and they will stone you with stones and cut you up with their swords. Ezek. 16:40.

This refers to the perverse Jerusalem and the destruction of the truth of faith by means of falsities. This is why it says that ‘they will stone with stones’ and also ‘cut up with swords’, for ‘a sword’ means truth engaged in conflict with falsity and destroying it, and in the contrary sense falsity engaged in conflict with truth and destroying it, 2799, 4499, 6353, 7102.

sRef Ezek@23 @47 S4′ sRef Ezek@23 @46 S4′ [4] A similar statement occurs elsewhere in the same prophet,

Cause an assembly to come up against them, in order that the assembly may stone them with stones and tear them apart with their swords. Ezek. 23:46, 47.

This refers to Jerusalem and Samaria, by which the Church is meant. Jerusalem means the celestial-spiritual Church, Samaria the spiritual Church, and this chapter describes how forms of the good and truth of faith were destroyed in them.

sRef Ex@21 @28 S5′ [5] In Moses,

If an ox strikes a man or woman with its horn so that the person dies, the ox shall surely be stoned. Exod. 21:28.

‘Striking a man or woman with the horn’ means falsity engaged in conflict with truth and goodness and destroying them. For ‘the horn’ is falsity engaged in conflict, and also the power of falsity, 2832, while ‘man and woman’ in the Word means truth and goodness; and this makes plain what the internal sense of that command is and why it was that the ox had to be stoned.

sRef Deut@17 @5 S6′ sRef Deut@17 @3 S6′ sRef Lev@24 @16 S6′ sRef Lev@24 @11 S6′ sRef Lev@24 @14 S6′ sRef Lev@24 @23 S6′ sRef Deut@13 @7 S6′ sRef Deut@13 @9 S6′ sRef Deut@13 @10 S6′ sRef Deut@13 @8 S6′ sRef Deut@13 @6 S6′ [6] In the same author,

Anyone blaspheming the name of Jehovah shall surely be killed; all the congregation shall certainly stone him. Lev. 24:16.

‘Blaspheming the name of Jehovah’ means using malevolent falsities to do violence to truths and forms of good that relate to worship. ‘The name of Jehovah’ means everything in one embrace that is used to worship Jehovah, see 2724, 3006, thus every aspect of faith and charity, 6674. This also explains why the Israelite woman s son who blasphemed the name of Jehovah was led outside the camp and stoned, Lev. 24:11, 14, 23. Furthermore it had been commanded that those who served other gods should be stoned, Deut. 17:3, 5, and also those who enticed anyone to serve other gods, Deut. 13:6-10. ‘Serving other gods’ means profane worship by means of which true worship is destroyed.

sRef John@10 @32 S7′ sRef John@8 @58 S7′ sRef John@8 @59 S7′ sRef Deut@22 @24 S7′ sRef Luke@20 @6 S7′ sRef John@10 @31 S7′ sRef John@10 @30 S7′ sRef Luke@20 @5 S7′ sRef John@10 @33 S7′ sRef Deut@22 @20 S7′ sRef Deut@22 @23 S7′ sRef Deut@22 @21 S7′ [7] If no evidence of virginity were found with a young woman when she married she was to be stoned because she had played the fool in Israel by committing whoredom in her father’s house, Deut. 22:20, 21. The reason for this was that ‘whoredom’ meant the falsification of truth, thus the destruction of it, 2466, 4865. If a man lay in the city with a young woman, a virgin, who was betrothed to a man, both were to be stoned, Deut. 22:23, 24, and for the same reason, namely whoredom; for spiritual whoredom is the falsification of truth. In Luke 20:5, 6, [one reads about the chief priests, scribes, and elders] coming to the conclusion among themselves that if they said John’s baptism was from heaven [the Lord] would say, ‘Why did you not believe him?’ But if they said ‘From men’, all the people would stone them. Here also ‘stoning’ is spoken of because of opposition to the truth.

The reason why the Jews sought to stone Jesus because He said, Before Abraham was, I am, John 8:58, 59, was that that nation believed this to be false. In a similar way they sought to stone Jesus because He said He and His Father were one, John 10:30-33; for they thought, as these verses also state, that this was blasphemy.

From all this one may now see what stoning was and why it was commanded, and also that punishment by stoning, administered since ancient times as its use in Egypt proves, was derived from the representatives of the Ancient Church.

sRef Ex@8 @23 S0′ 7457. ‘We will go a way of three days into the wilderness’ means that they would remove themselves altogether, so as to be in freedom. This is clear from the meaning of ‘going a way of three days into the wilderness’ as removing themselves altogether. That this is the meaning follows from what the internal sense above contains – that they could not worship God in a place nearby, in the presence of those from hell, dealt with above in 7452, 7454-7456. So they would have to remove themselves altogether, so as to be in freedom.

sRef Ex@8 @23 S0′ 7458. ‘And sacrifice to Jehovah our God’ means that then there would be worship. This is clear from the meaning of ‘sacrificing to Jehovah’ as worship, dealt with above in 7393, 7452; and there is worship when people are in freedom, 7349.

sRef Ex@8 @23 S0′ 7459. ‘As He has said to us’ means as He had commanded. This is clear without explanation.

sRef Ex@8 @24 S0′ 7460. ‘And Pharaoh said, I will send you away to sacrifice to Jehovah your God in the wilderness’ means that they would leave them and not molest them, in order that they might worship their God in freedom. This is clear from the meaning of ‘sending away’ as leaving and so not molesting; and from the meaning of ‘sacrificing to Jehovah God’ as worshipping their God, dealt with above in 7458. Their being in freedom follows, for it says that they would offer sacrifice in the wilderness, consequently not in a place nearby, as previously. In a place nearby means not being in freedom, see 7454, 7456.

sRef Ex@8 @24 S0′ 7461. ‘Only you must certainly not go far away’ means although they would remain nearby. This is clear from the meaning of ‘not going far away’ as not being at a distance, that is, not a long way from the land of Egypt.

sRef Ex@8 @24 S0′ 7462. ‘plead for me’ means that they should intercede. This is clear from the meaning of ‘pleading for him’, when said by Pharaoh to Moses, as intercession, as above in 7396.

sRef Ex@8 @25 S0′ 7463. ‘And Moses said, Behold, I go out from you’ means the removal of the appearance of God’s truth among them. This is clear from the representation of ‘Moses’ as the law of God, dealt with in 6723, 6752, thus God’s truth also, 7014, 7381; and from the meaning of ‘going out’ as a removal, as above in 7404. For ‘Pharaoh called Moses and Aaron’ means the presence of God’s truth, 7451, and therefore ‘going out from him’ here means a removal. In considering the presence and removal of God’s truth among the evil, one should realize that truth from God sometimes appears to them, and that it does so through the presence of an angel near them. But with them truth from God does not come in by way of their interiors, as it does with the good, because their interiors are closed. It has an effect only on their exteriors. When this happens they are filled with fear and consequently self-abasement, for the presence of truth from God perturbs them and strikes fear into them that is like the fear of death. But when the truth from God is removed they return to their previous state of mind and have no fear. This is what is meant by the presence of the appearance of God’s truth and its removal. It was also represented by Pharaoh, by his self-abasement while Moses was present with him, and his promise to send the people away to sacrifice to Jehovah, and by his ‘making his heart stubborn after Moses had gone out from him’, verse 28. For as shown above, ‘Moses’ represented the law of God or God’s truth.

sRef Luke@10 @25 S2′ sRef Luke@2 @39 S2′ sRef John@12 @34 S2′ sRef Luke@10 @26 S2′ sRef John@10 @35 S2′ sRef Luke@2 @24 S2′ sRef John@10 @34 S2′ sRef John@15 @25 S2′ sRef Luke@2 @23 S2′ [2] The law of God and God’s truth are one and the same because the law of God means the Word, and accordingly God’s truth. The fact that ‘the law means the Word and accordingly God’s truth is clear from the following places: In John,

Jesus said, Is it not written in your law, I said, You are Gods? If He called them gods, with whom the Word came to be, and the Scripture cannot be broken . . . John 10:34, 35.

‘Written in the law’ stands for the presence of those words in the Word, for they are written in David. In the same gospel,

The crowd said, We have heard from the Law that the Christ remains forever. John 12:34.

These words too are written in David. In the same gospel,

Jesus said, In order that the Word written in the Law might be fulfilled, They hated Me without a cause. John 15:25.

This as well is found in David. In Luke,

It is written in the Law of the Lord that every male opening the womb should be called holy to the Lord; and that they should offer a sacrifice, in keeping with what is written in the Law of the Lord, of a pair of turtle-doves, or two young pigeons. Luke 2:23, 24, 39.

This command is contained in Moses. In the same gospel,

A lawyer testing Jesus said, What must I do to inherit eternal life? Jesus said to him. What is written in the Law? What is your reading of it? Luke 10:25, 26.

sRef Jer@31 @33 S3′ sRef Luke@16 @16 S3′ sRef Jer@26 @4 S3′ sRef Luke@16 @17 S3′ sRef Isa@42 @4 S3′ sRef Jer@26 @5 S3′ sRef Isa@8 @16 S3′ sRef Isa@30 @9 S3′ [3] In the same gospel,

The Law and the Prophets were until John. Since that time the kingdom of God is proclaimed. It is easier for heaven and earth to pass away than for one tittle of the Law to fall. Luke 16:16, 17.

There are other places besides this in which the Word is called the Law and the Prophets, such as Matt. 5:18; 7:12; 11:13; 22:36, 40. In Isaiah,

Bind up the testimony, seal the Law for the benefit of My disciples. Isa. 8:16.

‘The Law’ stands for the Word. In the same prophet,

. . . lying sons, sons who did not wish to hear the Law of Jehovah. Isa. 30:9.

In the same prophet,

He will set judgement on the earth, the islands hope for His Law. Isa. 42:4.

This refers to the Lord, ‘His Law’ standing for the Word. In the same prophet,

Jehovah will magnify His Law. Isa. 42:21.

In Jeremiah,

Thus said Jehovah, If you do not obey Me, to go in My Law which I have set before you, in order that you may hear the Word of My servants the prophets . . . Jer. 26:4, 5.

Here ‘the Law’ stands for the Word, and in very many other places besides. From this it is evident that ‘the Law’ is the Word, and since it is the Word it is God’s truth, as in Jeremiah,

This is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days, said Jehovah: I will put [My] Law in the midst of them, and will write it on their heart. Jer. 31:33.

Here ‘Jehovah’s Law’ stands for God’s truth.

sRef Isa@42 @21 S4′ [4] In a broad sense ‘the Law’ is the whole Word, in a narrower sense the historical section of the Word, in an even narrower sense the Word written through Moses, and in a restricted sense the Ten Commandments, see 6752.

From all this one may now see why Moses is said to represent both the law of God and God’s truth.

sRef Ex@8 @25 S0′ 7464. ‘And I will plead with Jehovah’ means intercession, as in 7396, 7462.

sRef Ex@8 @25 S0′ 7465. ‘To remove the noxious flying insects from Pharaoh, from his servants, and from his people’ means in order that there may be an end to that state involving the malevolent falsities. This is clear from the meaning of ‘noxious flying insects’ as malevolent falsities, dealt with in 7441; from the representation of ‘Pharaoh’ as those who are steeped in falsities arising from evils and engage in molestation, dealt with previously; and from the meaning of ‘his servants and his people’ as every single one of them, dealt with in 7396, 7441. The removal of those malevolent falsities from every single one of those molesters brings that state to an end. It should be recognized that every miracle that was performed in Egypt means some particular state which those people enter who are steeped in falsities and are molesters in the next life. There are ten states, one after another, which they enter, before they are completely divested of all truth, thus before they are cast into hell. For those who have a knowledge of matters of belief yet lead an evil life are not after death conveyed immediately to hell but in successive stages towards it. First it is proved to them that they are governed by evil, then their knowledge of matters of belief is taken away from them, and finally they are left with the evil life they lead; and all this is effected by means of a number of states one after another. These states are the things described by the miracles performed in Egypt and therefore the bad things that happened to the Egyptians before they were drowned in the Sea Suph. Without revelation these arcana cannot be known; to angels they are some of the most familiar.

sRef Ex@8 @25 S0′ 7466. For the meaning of ‘tomorrow’ as for evermore, see 3998, 7399.

sRef Ex@8 @25 S0′ 7467. ‘Only do not let Pharaoh act deceitfully again in not sending the people away to sacrifice to Jehovah’ means provided that he does not deceive with lies and fail to leave, so that they may worship their God in freedom. This is clear from the representation of ‘Pharaoh’ as those who are steeped in falsities arising from evils and engage in molestation; from the meaning of ‘acting deceitfully’ as deceiving with lies; from the meaning of ‘sending away’ as leaving; from the representation of the children of Israel, [to whom ‘the people’ refers here,] as those who belong to the spiritual Church; and from the meaning of ‘sacrificing to Jehovah’ as worshipping their God, dealt with in 7393, 7452, 7458. Which must be done in freedom, see 7454, 7456. From all this it is evident that ‘only do not let Pharaoh act deceitfully again in not sending the people away to
sacrifice to Jehovah’ means provided that he did not deceive with lies and fail to leave, so that those belonging to the spiritual Church may worship their God in freedom.

sRef Ex@8 @26 S0′ 7468. ‘And Moses went out from Pharaoh’ means the removal of the appearance of God’s truth among those steeped in malevolent falsities. This is clear from what has been stated above in 7463.

sRef Ex@8 @26 S0′ 7469. ‘And pleaded with Jehovah’ means intercession, as above in 7396, 7462.

7470. ‘And Jehovah did according to the word of Moses’ means that it was done according to the Lord’s word. This is clear from the explanation above in 7406.

7471. ‘And He removed the noxious flying insects from Pharaoh, from his servants, and from his people’ means the end of that state of falsity. This is clear from what has been stated above in 7465, where similar words occur.

7472. ‘Not one was left’ means a complete removal. This is clear without explanation.

sRef Ex@8 @28 S0′ 7473. ‘And Pharaoh made his heart stubborn [this time also]’ means obstinacy once again. This is clear from the meaning of ‘making one’s heart unyielding’, ‘hardened’, or ‘stubborn’ as obstinacy, dealt with in 7272, 7300, 7305.

sRef Ex@8 @28 S0′ 7474. ‘And did not send the people away’ means that they did not leave those who belonged to the spiritual Church. This is clear from the meaning of ‘sending away’ as leaving; and from the representation of the children of Israel, to whom ‘the people’ refers here, as those who belong to the spiritual Church, dealt with in 6426, 6637, 6862, 6868, 7035, 7062, 7198, 7201, 7215, 7223.

[2] With regard to the spiritual Church, represented here by the children of Israel, it should be recognized that it has an internal part and an external part, and that those people are in the internal part of the Church who are governed by the good of charity, while those are in the external part who are governed by the good of faith. People governed by the good of charity are those who out of charity towards the neighbour behold the truths of faith, whereas people governed by the good of faith are those who out of faith look towards charity. Thus the latter do good not out of affection belonging to charity but out of obedience belonging to faith, that is, because they are commanded to do it. These are precisely the ones who are represented here by the children of Israel, since they are the ones who are molested in the next life by those steeped in falsities. People who are governed by affection belonging to charity cannot be molested in the same way, for spirits who are steeped in falsities and evils cannot go near those governed by that good because the Lord is within that good. If they do suffer molestation, it involves only the illusions and appearances which have led them to believe things to be true which are not actually true, and such things as were presented by the teachings of their Church as truths but are not in fact truths. In the next life those people willingly reject falsities and accept truths, the reason being that the good of charity is receptive of truth because it loves it and is desirous of it.

[3] Since mention is made so many times of molestations what they are and what they are like must be stated. Molestations are brought about by introduction of falsity opposed to truths; but those falsities are refuted by an influx from heaven, that is, from the Lord by way of heaven, with those suffering such molestation. This kind of state is what those undergoing vastation of their falsities are held in, until they have absorbed the truths of faith, and, stage by stage, more internal truths. And in the measure that they have absorbed those truths they are released from molestation. Molestations are not temptations, since temptations when they take place involve torment of conscience. For people undergoing temptations are held in a state of damnation, which brings them torment and grief.

[4] All this shows what the vastations in the next life are like which those governed by the good of faith undergo. Those vastations are vastations of falsity. But with those who have not been governed by the good of faith, only by some truth of faith which with them is merely factual knowledge, and have led an evil life, the vastations are vastations of truth. Those who undergo vastation of falsities gradually absorb truths and forms of the good of faith and charity, whereas those who undergo vastation of truths gradually cast off truths and invest themselves with the evils which have been a feature of the life they led. From all this one may see what is meant in the Word by vastations and desolations.

7475. SPIRITS AND INHABITANTS OF THE PLANET MARS – continued

When spirits belonging to Mars look at themselves they see themselves as the kind of people they were in the world. That is also how others see them, for in the next life everyone is seen by others as he sees himself, because what he perceives is communicated to others. When I was astounded by this they said that they could not be seen in any other way, because when they had lived in the world they had known that they were spirits clothed with the body and because at that time they had given little thought to their body, concentrating instead on the life of their spirit within the body. Consequently when they enter the next life they are hardly aware that their state of life has altered, and since at this time also their thought is about the life of the spirit, as it had been in the world, they see themselves as they had seen themselves then. All spirits, it is true, are enveloped in a human form, yet not in one so well-defined as those of Martian spirits since the latter retain the kind of ideas they had in the world. Furthermore in the case of people who know and believe, when they are in the world, that in the next life they will live within a human form, that thought grows all the stronger as the body loses its strength. Therefore when they cast aside the body which has been their servant for a useful life in the world they remain the same, as a result of that idea imprinted on them, as they were in the world.

7476. Among the spirits who originate from the planets in our solar system those from Mars are the best of all. For the most part they are celestial people, not unlike those belonging to the Most Ancient Church on our planet, who were the subject in 1114-1125, and other places. When a representation is made of what those spirits are like, they are represented face in heaven and body in the world of spirits. And those of them who are angels are represented face towards the Lord and body in heaven.

sRef Matt@28 @18 S0′ 7477. In their acknowledgement and adoration of our Lord they excel other spirits. They say that He is the only God, that He rules both heaven and the material universe, and that He is the author of everything good. They have said that the Lord is the One who leads them, and that He also appears quite often among them on their planet. The truth that the Lord rules both heaven and the material universe is known to Christians on our planet too from the Lord’s words in Matthew,

All power in heaven and on earth has been given to Me. Matt. 28:18.

But Christians do not believe this as those belonging to the planet Mars do.

7478. Once when the Lord was mentioned I saw that those spirits adopted a humbled attitude, so deep and profound as to be indescribable. For in their humility their thought was that if left to themselves they were in hell, which being so they were totally unworthy of setting eyes on the Lord, who is Holiness itself. This thought arising from their belief affected them so profoundly that they were so to speak beside themselves, and it kept them on their knees until the Lord raised them up and so to speak pulled them out of hell. When they accordingly rise from that humbled condition those spirits are full of goodness and love, and consequently of heartfelt joy. But when they adopt that humbled attitude they do not, because they dare not, turn their faces to the Lord; instead they turn them away. Spirits who were around me said that they had never seen any humility like it.

7479. I have talked to some from that planet about what people there believe. They said that people there believe that they have nothing within themselves except what is filthy and from hell, and that anything good is the Lord’s. Indeed they went further than that, saying that left to themselves they are devils but that the Lord pulls them out of hell and constantly holds them back from it. They were astonished that I had so many evil spirits around me and also that these talked to me. But I was led to reply that they were allowed to be there in order that I might get to know what they were like and why they were in hell, and to know that their character and lot was due to the life they lived. I was also led to say that a number of these evil spirits were people whom I had been acquainted with when they lived in the world, during which time they had been appointed to high office yet had set their hearts on the world and nothing else. But, I added, no evil spirit, not even the most hellish, could ever do me harm since I was under the Lord’s constant protection.

7480. I was informed that [in the Grand Man] Martian spirits correlate with something that occupies a more inward Position in a person, something indeed that lies between the area of understanding and the area of will, namely thought which springs from affection, or – with the best of those spirits – affection which lies behind thought. For this reason their faces act in unison with their thought, and they are incapable of employing pretence in front of another, as mentioned previously in 7360, 7361, where those spirits are the subject.

7481. As this is what they correlate with in the Grand Man, that province lying between the cerebrum and the cerebellum corresponds to them. For with those whose cerebrum and cerebellum have been linked together so far as spiritual activities are concerned, the face acts in unison with thought, so that the affection itself which lies behind the thought shines from the face; and from the affection, together with certain signals given by the eyes as well, a general indication of the thought is given. That explains why, when those spirits were close by me, I had a distinct feeling that the front part of my head was being pulled towards the back part, thus the cerebrum towards the cerebellum.

7482. Once when Martian spirits were present with me and occupying my mental sphere spirits from our own planet arrived, wishing to place themselves too within that sphere. But these spirits belonging to our planet then became seemingly insane, for the reason that they were altogether unsuited to it. For spirits belonging to our planet have self and the world in view, and so their thought is directed towards themselves, whereas spirits belonging to Mars have heaven, thus the Lord and the neighbour in view, and therefore their thought is directed away from themselves. Consequently they have a conflicting outlook. But at that point angelic spirits belonging to Mars arrived, as a result of which communication was taken away, and so the spirits belonging to our planet departed.

7483. I had an inhabitant of that planet presented to me. His face was like that of inhabitants of our planet, but the lower part was black, though not because of a beard, which those people do not possess, but because of a blackness there instead. This too is a matter of correspondence. That blackness reached round both sides up to under the ears. The Upper part of the face was yellowish, like the faces of inhabitants of our planet who are not altogether white.

7484. They said that they fed themselves on the fruits of trees, and in particular on a round kind of fruit that sprouts in their soil, and in addition on vegetables too.

7485. They wear clothes there which are made of fibres obtained from the barks of certain trees. The consistency of the fibres is such that they allow themselves to be woven and can be stuck together by a kind of gum those people use.

7486. Besides other things they also said that they know how to make liquid fires there, to give them light at evening time and night.

7487. ‘Inhabitants and spirits of Mars’ is continued at the end of the next chapter.

7488. 9

TEACHINGS ABOUT CHARITY

From what has been said about self-love and love of the world it is evident that they are the root of all evils; and since they are the root of all evils they are the origin of all falsities. And conversely love to the Lord and love towards the neighbour are the source of every form of good; and since they are the source of every form of good they are the fount of all truths.

7489. This being so it is evident that to the extent that a person is moved by self-love and love of the world he is not moved by love towards the neighbour, still less by love to the Lord. For the former kinds of love are the opposite of the latter.

7490. It is also evident that to the extent that a person is moved by self-love and love of the world he is not conscious of what charity is, till at length he is unaware of its existence. Also such a person is to the same extent unconscious of what faith is, till at length he is unaware of its being anything at all. He is to the same extent unconscious of what conscience is, as well, till at length he is not aware of its existence. Indeed he is to that same extent unaware of what the spiritual is, and so of what the life of heaven is. Finally, it is evident that he has no belief in the existence of heaven or in the existence of hell, and consequently has no belief in the existence of life after death. These are the things that self-love and love of the world bring about when they reign.

7491. The good of heavenly love and the truth of faith accompanying it flow in constantly from the Lord; but where self-love and love of the world reign they are not received. With those in whom these loves reign – that is, constantly pervade their thinking, exist as their end in view, occupy their will, and constitute their life – goodness and truth flowing in from the Lord are either rejected, annihilated, or perverted.

7492. Those who reject them treat the good of love and the truth of faith with contempt and also loathing. Those however who annihilate them repudiate the good of love and the truth of faith and uphold evils and falsities, which are their opposites. But those who pervert them misrepresent the good of love and the truth of faith and then use them in support of evil and resulting falsity.

7493. The self-love and love of the world within a person start to reign when he comes to make his own decisions and to be responsible for his own actions; for then he starts to think from himself or what is his own, and starts to make those [evils] his own, which he does increasingly the more firmly he embraces evil in his life. To the extent that a person makes evils his own the Lord sets apart the good of innocence and of charity which he has received in infancy and childhood and receives from time to time after that, and He stores them away interiorly within the person. For the good of innocence and the good of charity cannot by any means exist together with the evils that are products of those loves, and the Lord is unwilling to let them be destroyed.

7494. People therefore who either pervert, annihilate, or reject the good of love and the truth of faith residing with them do not have life within themselves. For life received from the Divine consists in willing what is good and believing what is true. But those who do not will what is good, only what is evil, and do not believe what is true, only what is false, possess the opposite of life. This opposite of life is hell and is called death; and those people are called the dead. The fact that the life of love and faith is called life and also eternal life, and those who possess it within themselves are called living persons; and the fact that the opposite of life is called death, and also eternal death, and those [who possess the opposite of life within themselves] are called dead persons, is clear from a large number of places in the Word, such as Matt. 4:16; 8:21, 22; 18:8, 9; 19:16, 17, 29; John 3:15, 16, 36; 5:24, 25; 6:33, 35, 47, 48, 50, 51, 53, 57, 58, 67; 8-21, 24, 51; 10:10; 11:15, 26; 14:6, 19; 17:7; 20:31; and elsewhere.


EXODUS 9

1 And Jehovah said to Moses, Go to Pharaoh, and you are to tell him, Thus said Jehovah the God of the Hebrews, Send My People away, and let them serve Me.

2 For if you refuse to send them away and you still hold them back,

3 Behold, the hand of Jehovah will be on your livestock that are in the field, on the horses, on the asses, on the camels, on the herd, and on the flock – an extremely severe pestilence.

4 And Jehovah will make a distinction between the livestock of Israel and the livestock of the Egyptians, and nothing will die of all that belongs to the children of Israel.

5 And Jehovah set a fixed time, saying, Tomorrow Jehovah will do this thing in the land.

6 And Jehovah did this thing on the morrow, and all the livestock of the Egyptians died; and of the livestock of the children of Israel not one died.

7 And Pharaoh sent, and behold, not even one of the livestock of Israel had died. And Pharaoh’s heart was stubborn, and he did not send the people away.

8 And Jehovah said to Moses and to Aaron, Take for yourselves in fistfuls* the ashes of the furnace, and let Moses scatter them in the direction of heaven before Pharaoh’s eyes.

9 And there will then be dust over all the land of Egypt, and there will be on man and on beast sores breaking out into pustules, in all the land of Egypt.

10 And they took the ashes of the furnace, and stood before Pharaoh; and Moses scattered them in the direction of heaven, and sores producing pustules developed, breaking out on man and on beast.

11 And the magicians could not stand before Moses on account of the sores; for there were sores on the magicians and on all the Egyptians.

12 And Jehovah made Pharaoh’s heart unyielding, and he did not hear** them, as Jehovah had spoken to Moses.

13 And Jehovah said to Moses, Rise up in the morning early, and stand before Pharaoh; and you are to say to him, Thus said Jehovah the God of the Hebrews, Send My people away, and let them serve Me.

14 For this time I am sending all My plagues onto your heart, and onto your servants, and onto your people, in order that you may know that there is none like Me in the whole earth.

15 For now I could stretch out*** My hand, and strike you and your people with pestilence, and you would be cut off from the earth.

16 But yet for this reason have I caused you to stand**** – for you to see My power, and in order that My name may be declared in the whole earth.

17 You go on exalting yourself against My people by not sending them away.

18 Behold, about this time tomorrow I am causing it to rain an extremely heavy hail, of which there has not been the like in Egypt from the day it was founded even until now.

19 And now send, assemble your livestock and all that you have in the field; every man and beast that will be found in the field and will not be gathered home,***** the hail will come down on them and they will die.

20 And he that feared the word of Jehovah among the servants of Pharaoh caused his servants and his livestock to flee to the houses.

21 And he that did not take the word of Jehovah to heart left his servants and his livestock in the field.

22 And Jehovah said to Moses, Stretch out your hand towards heaven, and there will be hail in all the land of Egypt, on man and on beast, and on every plant of the field in the land of Egypt.

23 And Moses stretched out his rod towards heaven, and Jehovah gave forth voices****** and hail, and fire ran down to the earth; and Jehovah caused hail to rain onto the land of Egypt.

24 And there was hail, and at the same time fire running down******* in the midst of the hail, extremely heavy, of which there had not been the like in all the land of Egypt since it became a nation.

25 And the hail struck in all the land of Egypt everything that was in the field, from man and even to beast; and the hail struck every plant of the field, and broke every tree of the field.

26 Only in the land of Goshen, where the children of Israel were, there was no hail.

27 And Pharaoh sent and called Moses and Aaron, and said to them, I have sinned this time; Jehovah is righteous, and I and my people are wicked.

28 Plead with Jehovah, there have been enough of God’s voices’ and of hail; and I will send you away, and you will not continue to remain.

29 And Moses said to him, As I am going out of the city I will spread out my palms towards Jehovah; the voices’ will cease, and there will be no more hail, in order that you may know that the earth is Jehovah’s.

30 And [as for] you and your servants, I know that you do not yet fear the face of Jehovah God.

31 And the flax and the barley were struck; for the barley was a ripening ear, and the flax a stem.********

32 And the wheat and the spelt were not struck, for they were hidden.*********

33 And Moses went out from Pharaoh, from the city, and spread out his palms towards Jehovah; and the voices’ and the hail ceased, and the rain was not poured on the earth.

34 And Pharaoh saw that the rain and the hail and the voices****** had ceased; and he continued to sin, and made his heart stubborn, he and his servants.

35 And Pharaoh’s heart was made unyielding, and he did not send the children of Israel away, as Jehovah had spoken through the hand of Moses.
* lit. with the fullness of your fists
** lit. hear towards
*** lit. send
**** i.e. have raised you up
***** or to the house
****** i.e. claps of thunder
******* Sw. appears to have misread a Hebrew word here.
******** i.e. the pods were formed on the culms or stems
********* i.e. had not yet begun to mature in the ear

sRef Ex@9 @0 S0′ 7495. CONTENTS

This chapter continues to deal with the vastation of those who molest members of the spiritual Church. In the internal sense the chapter deals with the sixth, seventh, and eighth states or stages of their vastation, which the pestilence, the sores breaking out into pustules, and the rain in the form of hail describe. By these plagues is meant the laying waste of things of the Church present with them.

sRef Ex@9 @4 S0′ sRef Ex@9 @5 S0′ sRef Ex@9 @3 S0′ sRef Ex@9 @1 S0′ sRef Ex@9 @2 S0′ sRef Ex@9 @6 S0′ sRef Ex@9 @7 S0′ 7496. THE INTERNAL SENSE

Verses 1-7 And Jehovah said to Moses, Go to Pharaoh, and you are to tell him, Thus said Jehovah the God of the Hebrews, Send My people away, and let them serve Me. For if you refuse to send them away and you still hold them back, behold, the hand of Jehovah will be on your livestock that are in the field, on the horses, on the asses, on the camels, on the herd, and on the flock – an extremely severe pestilence. And Jehovah will make a distinction between the livestock of Israel and the livestock of the Egyptians, and nothing will die of all that belongs to the children of Israel. And Jehovah set a fixed time, saying, Tomorrow Jehovah will do this thing in the land. And Jehovah did this thing on the morrow, and all the livestock of the Egyptians died; and of the livestock of the children of Israel not one died. And Pharaoh sent, and behold, not even one of the livestock of Israel had died. And Pharaoh’s heart was stubborn, and he did not send the people away.

‘And Jehovah said to Moses’ means fresh instruction. ‘Go to Pharaoh, and you are to tell him’ means the appearance of the truth from God among those engaged in molestation. ‘Thus said Jehovah the God of the Hebrews’ means a command from the Lord, the God of the Church. ‘Send My people away, and let them serve Me’ means that they should leave those who belong to the spiritual Church, in order that these may worship the Lord. ‘For if you refuse to send them away and you still hold them back’ means if they obstinately continued to molest them. ‘Behold, the hand of Jehovah will be on your livestock that are in the field’ means the laying waste of the truth and good of faith which they had acquired from the Church to which they had belonged. ‘On the horses, on the asses, on the camels’ means intellectual concepts of and factual knowledge about the truth of faith. ‘On the herd, and on the flock’ means aspects of the will. ‘An extremely severe pestilence’ means an overall annihilation. ‘And Jehovah will make a distinction between the livestock of Israel and the livestock of the Egyptians’ means the difference between the forms of the truth and good of faith of those who belong to the spiritual Church and the forms of the truth and good of faith acquired from the Church which reside with those engaged in molestation. ‘And nothing will die of all that belongs to the children of Israel’ means that they will not be annihilated. ‘And Jehovah set a fixed time’ means a predetermining. ‘Saying, Tomorrow Jehovah will do this thing in the land’ means that this is how it will be with them for evermore, so far as the forms of the truth and good of faith belonging to the Church are concerned. ‘And Jehovah did this thing on the morrow’ means putting into effect what was predetermined. ‘And all the livestock of the Egyptians died’ means an annihilation of the truth and good of faith with those engaged in molestation. ‘And of the livestock of the children of Israel not one died’ means that no annihilation of faith took place among those who belonged to the spiritual Church. ‘And Pharaoh sent, and behold, not even one of the livestock of Israel had died’ means that it was made known to those engaged in molestation. ‘And Pharaoh’s heart was stubborn’ means obstinacy. ‘And he did not send the people away means that they did not leave them.

sRef Ex@9 @1 S0′ 7497. ‘And Jehovah said to Moses’ means fresh instruction, as previously in 6879, 6881, 6883, 6891, 7226, 7304, 7380.

sRef Ex@9 @1 S0′ 7498. ‘Go to Pharaoh, and you are to tell him’ means the appearance of the truth from God among those engaged in molestation. This is clear from the meaning of ‘going (in) to someone’ as becoming present or appearing, dealt with below; from the meaning of ‘telling’ as communication; from the representation of ‘Pharaoh’ as those who in the next life molest members of the spiritual Church, dealt with in 7107, 7110, 7126, 7142, 7220, 7228, 7317; and from the representation of Moses, who was to go in to Pharaoh and speak to him, as the truth from God, dealt with in 6771, 6827, 7014, 7382. The reason why ‘going (in) to’ means the presence or appearance is that in the spiritual sense things connected with the mind and therefore with thought are meant, and when ‘going (in) to someone is used in reference to thought, it means making that person present in one’s thought; for one who thinks about another causes that other to be present in his thought. And what is astonishing, in the next life when one person is thinking about another because he wishes to talk to him, that other becomes present with him. From this it is evident that in these matters there is a similarity between what goes on in the thinking of a person in the world and what takes place visibly in the next life. From all this one may now see that ‘going (in) to someone’ means the presence or appearance.

sRef John@7 @39 S0′ sRef Ex@9 @1 S0′ 7499. ‘Thus said Jehovah the God of the Hebrews’ means a command from the Lord, who is the God of the Church. This is clear from the meaning of ‘saying’ as a command, dealt with in 7036, 7107, 7310; and from the meaning of ‘the Hebrews’ as those who belong to the Church, and so the Church itself, dealt with in 5136, 5236, 6675, 6684, 6738, ‘Jehovah’, when that name is used in the Word, being the Lord, see 1743, 1776, 2921, 3023, 3035, 5041, 5663, 6280, 6281, 6303, 6905, 6945, 6956. In the Word the Lord is called ‘Jehovah’ in respect of Divine Goodness, for Divine Goodness is the Divine itself, and the Lord is referred to as ‘the Son of God’ in respect of Divine Truth. For Divine Truth goes forth from Divine Goodness, as the Son does from the Father, and is also said to be born from it. But something more must be said to show what this implies. When the Lord was in the world He made the Human He had assumed Divine Truth, and at that time called Divine Goodness, which is Jehovah, His Father. He did so because, as has been stated, Divine Truth goes forth and is born from Divine Goodness. But after the Lord had fully glorified Himself, which was accomplished on the Cross when He underwent His last temptation of all, He then also made the Human He had assumed Divine Goodness, which is Jehovah, and it was from that Divine Goodness that Divine Truth itself went forth out of His Divine Human. This Divine Truth is what is called the Holy Spirit and is the holiness that goes forth from the Divine Human. This shows what the Lord’s words in John are used to mean,

The Holy Spirit was not yet because Jesus was not yet glorified. John 7:39.

With regard to Divine Goodness and its being called ‘the Father’, and to Divine Truth and its being called ‘the Son’, see 3704.

sRef Ex@9 @1 S0′ 7500. ‘Send My people away, and let them serve Me’ means that they should leave those who belong to the spiritual Church, in order that these may worship the Lord. This is clear from the meaning of ‘sending away’ as leaving, as often before; from the representation of the children of Israel, to whom ‘My people’ refers here, as those who belong to the spiritual Church, dealt with in 4286, 6426, 6637, 6862, 6868, 7035, 7062, 7198, 7201, 7215, 7223; and from the meaning of ‘and let them serve Me’ as in order that they may worship the Lord. The meaning of ‘serving’ as worshipping is self-evident; and Jehovah whom they are to serve is the Lord, see immediately above in 7499.

sRef Ex@9 @2 S0′ 7501. ‘For if you refuse to send them away and you still hold them back’ means if they obstinately continued to molest them. This is clear from the meaning of ‘refusing’ as behaving obstinately, and therefore ‘refusing to send away’ is obstinately refusing to leave; and from the meaning of ‘holding back’ as continuing to molest, for those who are molested are held back by the evil spirits who molest them. The situation when this happens – when those who are molested by evil spirits are held back by them – is as follows: When evil spirits attack someone they know how to worm their way into the delights bound up with his desires, and also into the ideas attractive to his basic way of thinking, thus into the objects of his love. And for as long as they have wormed their way in like this they hold back the one they molest like a captive; and he cannot break free, however hard he tries, without Divine help from the Lord. For his love and their worming their way into the delights intrinsic to his love binds him to them. Such is the nature of this art that is practised by evil spirits and genii in the next life. What it is like is also evident from something similar in the world; when one person worms his way into the delights intrinsic to another person’s love he captivates him and also leads him on.

sRef Ex@9 @3 S0′ 7502. ‘behold, the hand of Jehovah will be on your livestock that are in the field’ means the laying waste of the truth and good of faith which they had acquired from the Church to which they had belonged. This is clear from the meaning of ‘the hand of Jehovah being on someone’ as a plague or punishment, for ‘hand’ means power, 4931-4937, 6292, 6947, 7188, 7189, and ‘the hand of Jehovah’ almighty power, 878, 3387, and since those who are confined to the superficial things of the Church are led by appearances to believe that every plague or punishment comes from Jehovah (for they attribute all things to His power), ‘the hand of Jehovah being on someone’ means punishment, in this instance laying waste or vastation (for the stages In the vastation of those who molested were punishments); from the meaning of ‘livestock’ as forms of the truth and good of faith, dealt with in 6016, 6045, 6049; and from the meaning of ‘the field’ as the Church, dealt with in 2971, 3310. ‘The field’ is the Church because ‘seed’ which is cast onto the field means the truths of faith, and also because ‘the products of the field’, such as wheat, barley, spelt, and forms of the good of charity, and truths of faith, thus the kinds of things that belong to the Church.

[2] To understand why it is that hellish spirits who molest the upright in the next life undergo vastation in respect of the truths of faith taught by the Church, it should be recognized that those who molest the upright belonged to the Church. Those who have not belonged to the Church cannot molest others who do belong to it. They cannot do so because falsities, which are opposed to the truths of faith taught by the Church, are what spirits use when they molest, and those who have been outside the Church cannot molest anyone by means of such falsities because they have never come to know them. It is those who have claimed to be believers but have lead an evil life that turn to falsities in the next life and molest the upright with them, see 7097, 7127, 7317. Therefore to prevent the truth of faith which they had acquired from the teachings of their Church while they were living in the world from affording them any light at all from heaven (for they take with them into the next life everything they have come to know in the life of the body; nothing whatever is missing), and to prevent them from using things seen in the light of heaven to lend support to the falsities and evils belonging to hell, everything like that is taken away from them, and they are left finally with the evils forming their life and with the resulting falsities. This vastation is the subject at present.

[3] The reason why those who have belonged to the Church but led an evil life are devastated in stages in this way before they are cast into hell is that they had come to know the truths of faith, which put them in contact with heaven. The heavenly communities with whom they were in contact in the world, and with whom they are still in contact in the next life, cannot be separated from them except in stages. For in heaven such is the nature of order originating in the Lord that nothing is carried out in a violent manner. Everything people do they do in freedom, of their own many other crops, are accord so to speak. Therefore those communities are not wrenched away from them, but separated gradually, so that those people may seem to depart of their own free will and accord. From this one may now see what vastation is like for those who have known the truths of faith taught by the Church and yet have led an evil life.

[4] Without revelation no one can be aware of what such vastation is like; for without revelation people have no knowledge of things that take place in the next life. And since people show little concern to find out from the Word about the truths and forms of the good of faith, because they have no affection for truth for its own sake, let alone for life’s sake, neither are such things revealed to them. Yet these things are discernible in the Word; indeed the whole sequence in which they occur and the course they take is presented in its internal sense. Since therefore people in the Church have no affection for knowing truth from the Word, only an affection – for worldly reasons – for substantiating the teachings of their Church, whether true or false, they know nothing whatever about the state after death, nothing about heaven, and nothing about hell. They do not even know what makes heaven or what makes hell with a person. In fact their ignorance is such that they teach and believe that anyone can be admitted into heaven, some believing that a person can be admitted by the power which they have arrogated to themselves, others by the Lord’s mercy, irrespective of the life the person has been leading. Scarcely any know that heaven is given to people while they live in the world, through a life of charity and faith, and that this life is enduring. These matters have been stated in order that people may know what members of the Church are like who advocate faith alone but are unconcerned about the life of faith; for these are the ones who are represented by the Egyptians here and in what follows below.

sRef Ex@9 @3 S0′ 7503. ‘On the horses, on the asses, on the camels’ means intellectual concepts of and factual knowledge about the truth of faith. This is clear from the meaning of ‘the horses’ as intellectual concepts, dealt with in 2761, 2762, 3217, 5321, 6125, 6534; from the meaning of ‘the asses’ as ideas which are of service to the understanding part of the mind, thus also factual knowledge, dealt with in 5492, 7024; and from the meaning of ‘the camels’ as factual knowledge in general, dealt with in 3048, 3071, 3143, 3145. These three groups of animals mean things that belong to the understanding part of the mind; the remainder – members of the herd and the flock – mean those that belong to the will part. So far as the understanding part is concerned, it is the one which receives the truths of faith. For the understanding is a person’s inner sight, which is enlightened by the light of heaven; and in the measure that it is enlightened the person discerns, sees, and acknowledges the truths of faith when he reads the Word. This explains why those who have a perception of the truth of faith are called the intelligent and wise, and also the enlightened. For the fact that the understanding part is the recipient of the truth of faith, see 5114, 6125, 6222.

sRef Ex@9 @3 S0′ 7504. ‘On the herd, and on the flock’ means aspects of the will. This is clear from the meaning of ‘the herd’ as the good of the exterior natural, and from the meaning of ‘the flock’ as the good of the interior natural, both of which are dealt with in 5913. And since good is meant by them the will part is meant; for all good is connected with the will, and all truth with the understanding.

sRef Ezek@5 @11 S0′ sRef Ezek@14 @21 S0′ sRef Ezek@5 @12 S0′ sRef Ps@91 @6 S0′ sRef Ezek@7 @15 S0′ sRef Ex@9 @3 S0′ sRef Ps@91 @5 S0′ sRef Amos@4 @10 S0′ 7505. ‘An extremely severe pestilence’ means an overall annihilation. This is clear from the meaning of ‘a pestilence’ as a laying waste of truth, and since it says ‘an extremely severe pestilence’ the annihilation of truth is meant. The fact that ‘a pestilence’ means a laying waste of truth is evident from the following places in the Word: In Ezekiel,

… when I shall send My four severe* judgements – sword, and famine, and evil wild animal, and pestilence – onto Jerusalem, to cut off man and beast from it. Ezek. 14:21.

‘Cutting off man and beast’ stands for the laying waste of good, interior and exterior. In the same prophet,

The sword is without, and pestilence and famine within; he that is in the field will die by the sword, but him that is in the city famine and pestilence will devour. Ezek. 7:15.

‘Pestilence’ stands for a laying waste of good. In the same prophet,

Therefore because you have defiled My sanctuary with all your abominations, a third part of you will die from pestilence, and be annihilated [by famine] in your midst. Ezek. 5:11, 12.

‘Pestilence’ stands for an annihilation of good. In Amos,

I have sent the pestilence upon you in the way of Egypt, I have killed your young men with the sword, along with your captured horses.** Amos 4:10.

‘The pestilence in the way of Egypt’ stands for a laying waste of good and truth by means of falsities, which are ‘the way of Egypt’. ‘I have killed young men with the sword, along with captured horses’ stands for a laying waste of truth, truths being meant by ‘young men’ and intellectual concepts by ‘horses’ as above in 7503. In David,

You will not be afraid of the terror of the night, of the arrow that flies by day, of the pestilence that creeps in thick darkness, of death that lays waste at noon-day. Ps. 91:5, 6.

‘The pestilence that creeps in thick darkness’ stands for evil that lays waste in concealment; ‘death that lays waste at noonday’ stands for evil which does so out in the open. ‘Pestilence’ occurs in other places besides these.
* lit. evil
** lit. the captivity of your horses

sRef Ex@9 @4 S0′ 7506. ‘And Jehovah will make a distinction between the livestock of Israel and the livestock of the Egyptians’ means the difference between the forms of the truth and good of faith of those who belong to the spiritual Church and forms of the truth and good of faith [acquired from the Church] which reside with those engaged in molestation. This is clear from the meaning of ‘making a distinction’ as a difference; from the meaning of ‘the livestock’ as forms of the truth and good of faith, as above in 7502; from the representation of ‘the children of Israel’ as those who belong to the spiritual Church, also dealt with above, in 7500; and from the meaning of ‘the livestock of the Egyptians’ as forms of good and truth belonging to the Church which reside with those who engage in molestation. Regarding ‘the Egyptians’, that they are those who belonged to the Church and therefore had a knowledge of the truth and good of faith, but led an evil life, and are those who engage in molestation in the next life, see 7097, 7127, 7317, 7501.

[2] Let the difference between forms of the truth and good of faith with those belonging to the Church who are saved and forms of the truth and good of faith which reside with those belonging to the Church who are damned be stated briefly. Forms of the truth and good of faith which reside with those who belong to the Church and are saved are rooted in the good of charity; and since the affection characteristic of charity constitutes the truly spiritual level of things, those forms of truth and good are spiritual, flowing in from the Lord by way of heaven. For those people’s interiors, which are receptive, are open to heaven. But forms of truth and good possessed by those who belong to the Church and are damned are not rooted in the good of charity, and so they are not spiritual. They do, it is true, flow in by way of heaven, but they are given a very cold and dark reception, very cold because the good of charity is lacking, and very dark because the light in which they receive them resembles the light of winter, a light which, compared with the light of heaven, is as thick darkness. These people’s interiors are not open to heaven but to the world; they turn the truth and good that flow in from heaven in a worldly direction. As a consequence, too, the ideas they have about the good and truth of faith are wholly natural, indeed material ones, which when represented in the spiritual world are ugly and bear no kind of resemblance to a human being. But the ideas about the truth and good of faith of those who belong to the Church and are saved are spiritual, and although they are embodied in material images of worldly things, yet they are separate from those images, for they can be raised above them. When the ideas of these people are represented in the spiritual world they are beautiful, and take on a resemblance to a human being. Such is the difference, no matter how much alike they seem to be to outward appearances, that is, when people speak and preach about them.

[3] What causes such a difference is the kind of life a person leads. For when good reigns in a person’s life, that is, good which springs from charity, it has an effect on his understanding, which is the receptacle of truth. It creates beautiful ideas about forms of the good and truth of faith. But when evil reigns in a person’s life, that is, the opposite of charity, that too has an effect on his understanding. It produces ugly ideas about forms of the good and truth of faith; and such ideas find no acceptance in heaven.

sRef Ex@9 @4 S0′ 7507. ‘And nothing will die of all that belongs to the children of Israel’ means that they will not be annihilated. This is clear from the meaning of ‘nothing dying’ as not being annihilated; from the meaning of the livestock, in reference to which it is said that ‘[nothing] will die’, as the truth and good of faith, dealt with above in 7502; and from the representation of ‘the children of Israel’ as those who belong to the spiritual Church. The reason why the forms of the good of faith and the truths of faith residing with those who belong to the Church cannot die is that they have been linked through charity to the Divine, and the Divine is life itself and He is eternal. Anything linked to life itself and to what is eternal cannot die or be annihilated. It remains for evermore, constantly being made more perfect. But because matters of faith residing with those who belong to the Church and are damned are not linked to the Divine, and do not consequently have life within them, they die; for they are like lifeless statues. And being lifeless those things are annihilated in the next life, that is, they are taken away.

sRef Ex@9 @5 S0′ 7508. ‘And Jehovah set a fixed time’ means a predetermining. This is clear without explanation.

sRef Ex@9 @5 S0′ 7509. ‘Saying, Tomorrow Jehovah will do this thing in the land’ means that this is how it will be with them for evermore, so far as the forms of the truth and good of faith belonging to the Church are concerned. This is clear from the meaning of ‘tomorrow or ‘on the morrow’ as for evermore, dealt with in 3998. The fact that the words here mean so far as the forms of the truth and good of faith belonging to the Church are concerned is evident from what comes before them, for those forms of truth and good are the subject there, that is to say, their annihilation among those meant by ‘the Egyptians’ and their permanent retention among those represented by ‘the children of Israel’.

sRef Ex@9 @6 S0′ 7510. ‘And Jehovah did this thing on the morrow’ means putting into effect what was predetermined. This is clear from the meaning of ‘doing this thing’ as putting into effect; and from the meaning of a fixed time, to which ‘the morrow’ refers here, as a predetermining, as above in 7508. When a predetermining by the Divine refers to what will be for evermore ‘the morrow’ is used to express it.

sRef Ex@9 @6 S0′ 7511. ‘And all the livestock of the Egyptians died’ means an annihilation of the truth and good of faith with those engaged in molestation. This is clear from the meaning of ‘dying – dying from pestilence – as an annihilation, as above in 7505, 7507; and from the meaning of ‘the livestock of the Egyptians’ as the Church’s truths and forms of good residing with those who engage in molestation, as also above, in 7506.

sRef Ex@9 @6 S0′ 7512. ‘And of the livestock of the children of Israel not one died’ means that no annihilation of faith took place among those who belonged to the spiritual Church. This is clear from the explanations just above in 7506, 7507.

sRef Ex@9 @7 S0′ 7513. ‘And Pharaoh sent, and behold, not even one of the livestock of Israel had died’ means that it was made known to those engaged in molestation. This is clear from the representation of ‘Pharaoh’ as those who engage in molestation, dealt with above in 7498. The fact that his sending and discovering none whatever of Israel’s livestock dead meant that it was made known to them is self-evident; that is to say, it was made known to them that none at all of the forms of good and truth of faith had perished among those who belonged to the spiritual Church.

sRef Ex@9 @7 S0′ 7514. ‘And Pharaoh’s heart was stubborn’ means obstinacy, as previously in 7272, 7300, 7305.

sRef Ex@9 @7 S0′ 7515. ‘And he did not send the people away’ means that they did not leave them, that is to say, did not leave those belonging to the spiritual Church whom they were molesting, see 7474, where the same words occur.

sRef Ex@9 @7 S0′ 7516. Verses 8-12 And Jehovah said to Moses and to Aaron, Take for yourselves in fistfuls* the ashes of the furnace, and let Moses scatter them in the direction of heaven before Pharaoh’s eyes. And there will then be dust over all the land of Egypt, and there will be on man and on beast sores breaking out into pustules, in all the land of Egypt. And they took the ashes of the furnace, and stood before Pharaoh; and Moses scattered them in the direction of heaven, and sores producing pustules developed, breaking out on man and on beast. And the magicians could not stand before Moses on account of the sores; for there were sores on the magicians and on all the Egyptians. And Jehovah made Pharaoh’s heart unyielding, and he did not hear** them, as Jehovah had spoken to Moses.

‘And Jehovah said to Moses and to Aaron’ means fresh instruction. ‘Take for yourselves in fistfuls’ means power, imparted in the measure that it could be received. ‘The ashes of the furnace’ means to arouse the falsities that are a product of evil desires, by being present with those engaged in molestation. ‘And let Moses scatter them in the direction of heaven’ means that those falsities were to be demonstrated to the inhabitants of heaven. ‘Before Pharaoh’s eyes’ means in his presence. ‘And there will then be dust over all the land of Egypt’ means the damnation of those falsities in the natural mind. ‘And there will be on man and on beast’ means products of interior and exterior evil. ‘Sores breaking out into pustules’ means resulting filthiness together with blasphemy. ‘In all the land of Egypt’ means in the whole natural mind. ‘And they took the ashes of the furnace’ means the falsities that are a product of evil desires. ‘And stood before Pharaoh’ means in the presence of those engaged in molestation. ‘And Moses scattered them in the direction of heaven’ means those falsities, demonstrated to the inhabitants of heaven. ‘And sores producing pustules developed, breaking out on man and on beast’ means filthiness together with blasphemy, that is a product of interior and exterior evil. ‘And the magicians could not stand before Moses on account of the sores’ means that they could not remain present – those who misused Divine order by producing something similar to the real thing in outward appearance. ‘For there were sores on the magicians’ means that similar filthiness came forth from them. ‘And on all the Egyptians’ means as appeared in those who were engaged in molestation. ‘And Jehovah made Pharaoh’s heart unyielding’ means that they remained obstinate. ‘And he did not hear them’ means that they did not obey. ‘As Jehovah had spoken to Moses’ means as accorded with what had been foretold.
* lit. with the fullness of your fists
** lit. hear towards

sRef Ex@9 @8 S0′ 7517. ‘And Jehovah said to Moses and to Aaron’ means fresh instruction. This is clear from the meaning of ‘Jehovah said’ as instruction, as above in 7497. The instruction is fresh because a new state is dealt with now, the previous one having come to an end. Instruction given by Jehovah comes through the truth that emanates from Him; and truth that emanates from Jehovah is represented by ‘Moses and Aaron’, inward truth by ‘Moses’ and outward truth by ‘Aaron’, 7382.

sRef Matt@26 @64 S0′ sRef Luke@22 @69 S0′ sRef Ex@9 @8 S0′ sRef Ps@89 @13 S0′ 7518. ‘Take for yourselves in fistfuls’ means the power, imparted in the measure that it could be received. This is clear from the meaning of ‘the fists’, or the hollows of the hands, as power. The reason why ‘the fists’ or the hollows of the hands means power is that ‘the hand’ means power, dealt with below, in the measure that it can be received being meant by ‘fullness’.* With regard to the meaning of ‘the fists’ or hollows of the hands, it should be recognized that in the Grand Man the arms correspond to power; and from this not only the actual arms mean power but also the shoulders, as well as the hands even to the fingers. For the meaning of the arms as power, see 878, 4932, 4934, 4975, 7205; the shoulders, 1085, 4937; the hands, 878, 3387, 5327, 5328, 5544, 6292, 6947, 7011, 7188, 7189; also the fingers, 7430; and regarding their correspondence in general, 4931-4937. The reason why all the parts belonging to the arm correspond to power is that the body exerts its power through them. All this serves to show what is meant by ‘sitting at the right hand’ in Matthew,

Jesus said, Hereafter you will see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of power. Matt. 26:64.

And in Luke,

Hereafter the Son of Man will be seated at the right hand of the power of God. Luke 22:69.

That is to say, one may see that the almighty power belonging to the Lord is meant; that is why ‘the right hand of power’ is used. So also in David,

You have an arm with power, strong is Your hand, Your right hand will be lifted up. Ps. 89:13.

From all this one may see how much light the internal sense provides in the Word. For unless one knew from that sense that ‘the right hand’ means power one would take those words to mean that the Lord was literally going to sit to the right of Jehovah.
* lit. with the fullness of your fists

sRef Ex@9 @8 S0′ 7519. ‘The ashes of the furnace’ means to arouse the falsities that are a product of evil desires, by being present with those engaged in molestation. This is clear from the meaning of ‘the ashes of the furnace’ as the falsities that are a product of evil desires, dealt with below. The fact that they are aroused through presence with those who molest is clear from what follows in the present verse, for it goes on to say that Moses scattered the ashes in the direction of heaven, before ‘Pharaoh’s eyes’, ‘before the eyes’ meaning presence, and ‘Pharaoh’ meaning those who engage in molestation, as has been shown often.

[2] The nature of these things cannot be known without revelation, for they are things such as take place in the next life and are unknown in the world. As long as evil spirits or those from hell have been removed and are separated from heaven, that is, from the good of love and the truth of faith which are there, they are unaware of the fact that they are under the influence of evils and falsities. For in these circumstances they believe falsities to be truths and evils to be forms of good. But as soon as heaven, that is, some heavenly community, moves closer towards them, they recognize them to be falsities and evils; for the truth of faith that flows in then enables them to recognize falsities, and the good of love that flows in enables them to recognize evils. Also the closer heaven comes, or the inflow from it of the good of love and truth of faith becomes more directly present, the worse are those evil spirits tormented by their own evils and falsities, because they cannot bear that goodness and truth.

[3] From all this one may now see why Moses was commanded to take the ashes of the furnace and to scatter them in the direction of heaven, and to do this before Pharaoh’s eyes, and why he, not Aaron, was commanded to scatter the ashes in the direction of heaven. For the requirement that the ashes should be scattered in the direction of heaven means the influx of heaven; the requirement that it should be done before Pharaoh’s eyes means in the presence of those who molest; and Moses, not Aaron, was told to do it because this situation is brought about among the evil by truth that goes forth directly from God, ‘Moses’ being truth that goes forth directly from God, ‘Aaron’ that which goes forth in an indirect way, see 7010. All this shows what is meant in the internal sense by the contents of this verse and those immediately following – that foul and filthy things that are products of evil desires, together with blasphemy, meant by ‘sores breaking out into pustules’, should be aroused. They are aroused when Divine Truth flows in and heaven moves closer.

[4] Anyone may see that Moses would never have been commanded by Jehovah to do such things – to take the ashes of the furnace and scatter them in the direction of heaven – unless some heavenly arcanum had lain within them. Jehovah would never have given orders for the employment of such means to produce their effect unless they had contained something heavenly to which they corresponded. From this one may see what the Word is like, that it is very full of arcana, but arcana that are not clearly visible in the sense of the letter.

[5] The reason why ‘the ashes of the furnace’ means falsities that are a product of evil desires is that ashes are formed from things that have been burnt. What is being burnt, as also the actual fire, in the Word means in the good sense good that is the object of heavenly affections, but in the contrary sense evil that is the object of hellish desires. For the fact that ‘fire’ means those things, see 934, 1861, 2446, 4906, 5071, 5215, 6314, 6832, 6834, 6849, 7324; and ‘burning’ means evil desires, 1297, 5215. So it is that ‘ashes’ means falsities, for falsities are the product of evil desires. Since evil desires are meant by ‘fire’ they are also meant by ‘a furnace’. ‘A furnace’, being a container, often implies the same as its contents.

sRef Mal@4 @1 S6′ [6] The fact that ‘a furnace’ means these things is clear from the following places: In Malachi,

Behold, the day is coming, burning like a furnace, and all the arrogant, and every evil-doer will be stubble; and the day that is coming will burn them up; it will leave them neither root nor branch. Mal. 4:1

‘Burning like a furnace’ stands for evil desires; ‘burning them up’ stands for burning with evil desires.

sRef Gen@19 @28 S7′ sRef Rev@9 @2 S7′ [7] In the book of Genesis,

Abraham looked out towards the face of Sodom and Gomorrah, and towards the whole face of the land of the plain; and he saw, and the smoke went up like the smoke of a furnace. Gen. 19:28.

‘The smoke of a furnace’ stands for falsities arising from evil desires. For ‘Sodom’ is evil desires that stem from self-love, and ‘Gomorrah’ is falsity arising from that evil, 2220, 2246, 2322. In John,

Out of the pit of the abyss there went up smoke, like the smoke of a furnace. Rev. 9:2.

‘The smoke of a furnace’ again stands for falsities arising from evil desires, ‘the pit of the abyss’ standing for hell.

sRef Matt@13 @41 S8′ sRef Matt@13 @42 S8′ [8] In Matthew,

The Son of Man will send His angels, who will gather out of His kingdom all offences, and those who work iniquity, and will send them into the furnace of fire. Matt. 13:41, 42.

‘The furnace of fire’ stands for evil desires; for the fire of evil desires is what is meant in the Word by hell-fire. Loves too are simply what fire people’s lives; and loves extend into desires.

sRef Nahum@3 @15 S9′ sRef Nahum@3 @14 S9′ [9] In Nahum,

Draw yourself water for the siege, strengthen your fortifications; go into the mud and tread the clay; renew the brick-kiln.* There the fire will devour you, the sword cut you off. Nahum 3:14, 15.

‘Going into the mud’ stands for entering into falsity, ‘treading the clay’ stands for stepping into evil, 6669. ‘The brick-kiln’* stands for the falsities which they fashion and which are introduced by the evil, 1296, 6669, 7113; ‘the fire’ stands for the desire for evil, 1861, 2446, 5071, 5215, 6832, 7324; and ‘the sword’ stands for falsity, 4499.

sRef Jer@43 @11 S10′ sRef Jer@43 @10 S10′ sRef Jer@43 @9 S10′ [10] In Jeremiah,

Take into your hand large stones, and hide them in the clay in the brick-kiln* which is at the gate of Pharaoh’s house in Tahpanhes, in the eyes of the men of the Jews, and say to them, Behold, I am sending and will bring Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babel, and will put his throne onto these stones which I have hidden, so that he may spread his tent over them. He will come and strike the land of Egypt. Jer. 43:9-11.

One cannot know what these verses mean without the internal sense. ‘Large stones’ are falsities; ‘the brick-kiln’* is the desire for falsity arising from evil; ‘Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babel’ is one who lays truth and goodness waste; the presence of his throne and tent on these stones means that he will cause falsities to reign; and ‘the land of Egypt’ which he will strike is the natural mind.
* lit. brick-furnace

sRef Ex@9 @8 S0′ 7520. ‘And let Moses scatter them in the direction of heaven’ means that those falsities were to be demonstrated to the inhabitants of heaven. This is clear from the meaning of ‘the ashes’ as falsities, dealt with below; and from the meaning of ‘scattering in the direction of heaven’ as demonstrating them to the inhabitants of heaven. The meaning of ‘scattering’ as demonstrating is self-evident, for by that action something is made visible; and ‘heaven’ is used to mean in the internal sense the angelic heaven. What is meant at this point is evident from what has been stated immediately above in 7519 – that the truth from God, which ‘Moses’ represents, was to demonstrate and make known to heaven the falsities which are a product of the evil desires of those who molest. This caused heaven to be present, and as a result of its presence the kinds of things among the evil which are meant by ‘sores breaking out into pustules’ were manifested. The fact that ‘the ashes [of a furnace]’ (favilla) means falsity can be substantiated from places where [other kinds of] ashes (cinis) are mentioned, for these have a similar origin and therefore have a similar meaning to the ashes [of a furnace], such as in Isaiah 44:15, 20; 58:5; Jer. 6:26; Ezek. 27:30; 28:18; Jonah 3:6; Ps. 102:9, 10; Job 2:8; 30:19.

sRef Ex@9 @8 S0′ 7521. ‘Before Pharaoh’s eyes’ means in his presence. This is clear without explanation.

sRef Deut@28 @24 S0′ sRef Deut@28 @15 S0′ sRef Deut@28 @16 S0′ sRef Ex@9 @9 S0′ 7522. ‘And there will then be dust in all the land of Egypt’ means the damnation of those falsities in the natural mind. This is clear from the meaning of ‘dust’ as that which is damned, dealt with above in 7418; from the meaning of ‘the ashes of the furnace’, which were turned into dust, as falsities that are the product of evil desires, dealt with just above in 7519, 7520; and from the meaning of ‘the land of Egypt’ as the natural mind, dealt with in 5276, 5278, 5280, 5288, 5301. The meaning of ‘dust’ as that which is damned is evident from the places in the Word quoted in 7418, and also from the following in Moses,

If you will not obey the voice of Jehovah your God, cursed shall you be in the city, cursed shall you be in the field. Jehovah will make the rain of your land dust and grit;** it will come down onto you from heaven until you are destroyed. Deut. 28:15, 16, 24.
* lit. brick-furnace
** lit. fine dust and thick dust

sRef Ex@9 @9 S0′ 7523. ‘And there will be on man and on beast’ means the products of interior and exterior evil. This is clear from the meaning of ‘man’ as the affection for good, and in the contrary sense as the desire for evil; and ‘beast’ is similar in meaning. But when ‘man’ and ‘beast’ are mentioned together, ‘man means interior affection or desire and ‘beast’ exterior; regarding both, see 7424. Interior good or else interior evil, which is meant by ‘man’, is that connected with intentions or ends in view, for intentions or ends in view are at a person’s core, whereas exterior good or else exterior evil, which is meant by ‘beast’, is that connected with thought and consequently, if nothing stands in the way, with action. Exterior good is meant by ‘beast’ because a person is in respect of his external or natural man no different from a beast; for he is endowed with similar desires and also cravings, as well as appetites and senses. And interior good is meant by ‘man because it is in respect of his internal or spiritual man that a person is a human being, on which internal level he is endowed with affections for what is good and true such as exist with the angels in heaven, and because he controls his natural or animal man, which is ‘a beast’, by means of that internal man. Regarding the meaning of ‘beast’ as the affection for good and in the contrary sense the desire for evil, see 45, 46, 142, 143, 246, 714, 715, 719, 776, 2179, 2180, 3218, 3519, 5198.

sRef Jer@7 @20 S2′ sRef Jer@21 @6 S2′ sRef Ezek@14 @21 S2′ sRef Ezek@25 @13 S2′ sRef Jer@50 @3 S2′ sRef Ezek@14 @13 S2′ sRef Ezek@14 @19 S2′ sRef Zeph@1 @3 S2′ [2] These things are what are meant by ‘man and beast’ in the following places too: In Jeremiah,

My anger and My wrath have been poured out on this place, on man and on beast. Jer. 7:20

In the same prophet,

I will strike the inhabitants of this city, both man and beast; they will die of a great pestilence. Jer. 21:6.

In the same prophet,

It will make her land a desolation, so that none may dwell in it; both man and beast have scattered themselves, they have gone away. Jer. 50:3.

In Ezekiel,

When a land has sinned against Me by committing great transgression, I will cut off from it man and beast. Ezek. 14:13, 19, 21.

In the same prophet,

I will stretch out My hand over Edom, and cut off from it man and beast, and make it a waste. Ezek. 25:13.

In Zephaniah,

I will consume man and beast, I will consume the birds of the air and the fish of the sea, and the stumbling-blocks with the wicked; and I will cut off man from the surface of the earth. Zeph. 1:3.

sRef Num@18 @15 S3′ sRef Jer@33 @10 S3′ sRef Ps@36 @6 S3′ sRef Jer@32 @43 S3′ sRef Jer@27 @5 S3′ sRef Jer@31 @27 S3′ sRef Jonah@3 @8 S3′ sRef Jonah@3 @7 S3′ [3] ‘Man and beast’ stands for interior and exterior good in the following places: In Jeremiah,

I have made the earth, man and beast, by My great strength. Jer. 27:5.

In the same prophet,

Behold, the days are coming, said Jehovah, in which I will sow the house of Israel and the house of Judah with the seed of man and the seed of beast. Jer. 31:17.

In the same prophet,

A desolation will the earth be, so that man and beast are not there. Jer. 32:43.

In the same prophet,

In the cities of Judah, and in the streets of Jerusalem, that have been devastated, there is no man and inhabitant, and there is no beast. Jer. 33:10; 51:62.

In David,

Your righteousness is like the mountains of God, Your judgements a great deep; You preserve man and beast, O Jehovah. Ps. 36:6.

It was because ‘man and beast’ meant such things that the firstborn of the Egyptians died, not only of men but also of beasts, Exod. 12:29, and that the firstborn were consecrated [to Jehovah], not only of men but also of beasts, Num. 18:15, and also that the king of Nineveh, following sacred religious practice, commanded that not only man but also beast should fast and also be clothed in sackcloth, Jonah 3:7-8.

sRef Ex@9 @9 S0′ 7524. ‘Sores breaking out into pustules’ means resulting filthiness together with blasphemy. This is clear from the meaning of ‘sore places’ as filthiness resulting from evils; and from the meaning of ‘pustules’ as blasphemy resulting from evils. Sores on a person’s body correspond to filthiness resulting from evils, and pustules to blasphemy. What is more, they would be present on every evil person if he were not being kept, all the time he is in the world, in the kind of state that allows him to receive the goodness and truth of faith. For the sake of that state the Lord prevents his evils from erupting into such ailments.

sRef Rev@16 @11 S2′ sRef Rev@16 @10 S2′ sRef Deut@28 @36 S2′ sRef Rev@16 @2 S2′ sRef Deut@28 @34 S2′ sRef Deut@28 @27 S2′ sRef Deut@28 @35 S2′ [2] The meaning of ‘sores’ as filthiness together with blasphemy is also evident in John,

The first angel poured out his bowl onto the earth, and evil and hurtful sores were produced on the people who had the mark of the beast. The fifth angel poured out his bowl onto the throne of the beast, and they blasphemed the God of heaven because of their distress and because of their sores. Rev. 16:2, 10, 11.

And in Moses,

Jehovah will strike you with the sores of Egypt, and with haemorrhoids, and the scab, and the itch, so that you cannot be healed; for you will be made mad by what your eyes will see.* Jehovah will strike you with evil sores on the knees and on the thighs, from which you cannot be healed. Jehovah will lead you away, and your king whom you set over you, to a nation which you have not known. Deut. 28:17, 34-36.

‘The sores of Egypt’ stands for filthiness together with blasphemy. And since blasphemy too is meant it says that they will be made mad by what their eyes see; for one who blasphemes God is unhealthy or insane.

[3] Different kinds of sores are called haemorrhoids, the scab, and the itch; and these mean just so many different kinds of falsities arising from evils. Sores on the knees and thighs have almost the same meaning. And since falsities are meant by them there follows immediately the statement that the king whom they set over themselves would be led away; for ‘king’ means truth and in the contrary sense falsity, 1672, 2015, 2069, 3009, 4581, 4966, 5044, 6148. Leprous sores, such as swellings, abscesses, pimples, inflammations, scurfy patches (porrigo), reddish-white sores (vitiligo), that are referred to in Lev. 13:1-end, are also of the same kind, for ‘leprosy’ in the spiritual sense is the profanation of truth, 6963.

sRef Ps@38 @5 S4′ sRef Isa@1 @6 S4′ sRef Ps@38 @4 S4′ [4] ‘Wounds’ too have the same kind of meaning, as is evident in Isaiah,

From the sole of the foot even to the head there is no soundness in it, [but] wounds, bruises, and recent blows. They are not pressed out, nor bound up, nor softened with oil. Isa. 1:6.

And in David,

My iniquities have gone over my head. My wounds have become putrid, they have rotted away because of my foolishness. Ps. 38:4, 5.
* lit. by the sight of the eyes with which you will look at [it]

sRef Ex@9 @9 S0′ 7525. ‘In all the land of Egypt’ means the natural mind, see just above in 7522.

sRef Ex@9 @10 S0′ 7526. ‘And they took the ashes of the furnace’ means the falsities that are a product of evil desires. This is clear from the meaning of ‘the ashes of the furnace’ as falsities that are a product of evil desires, dealt with above in 7519.

sRef Ex@9 @10 S0′ 7527. ‘And stood before Pharaoh’ means in the presence of those engaged in molestation. This is clear from the meaning of ‘standing before someone’ as being in his presence; and from the representation of ‘Pharaoh’ as those who engage in molestation, dealt with in 7107, 7110, 7126, 7142, 7220, 7228.

sRef Ex@9 @10 S0′ 7528. ‘And Moses scattered them in the direction of heaven’ means those falsities, demonstrated to the inhabitants of heaven. This is clear from what has been stated above in 7520, Where similar words occur.

sRef Ex@9 @10 S0′ 7529. ‘And sores producing pustules developed, breaking out on man and on beast’ means filthiness together with blasphemy, that is a product of interior and exterior evil. This is clear from the meaning of ‘sores producing pustules’ as falsities together with blasphemy, dealt with above in 7524; and from the meaning of ‘man and beast’ as interior and exterior evil, also dealt with above, in 7523.

sRef Ex@9 @11 S0′ 7530. ‘And the magicians could not stand before Moses on account of the sores’ means that they could not remain present – those who misused Divine order by producing something similar to the real thing in outward appearance. This is clear from the meaning of ‘being unable to stand before someone’ as being unable to remain present; from the meaning of ‘the magicians’ as those who misuse Divine order by producing something similar to the real thing in outward appearance, dealt with in 7296, 7337; and from the meaning of ‘sores as filthiness together with blasphemy, dealt with above in 7524.

sRef Ex@9 @11 S0′ 7531. ‘For there were sores on the magicians’ means that similar filthiness came forth from them. This is clear from what has been stated immediately above in 7530.

sRef Ex@9 @11 S0′ 7532. ‘And on all the Egyptians’ means as appeared in those who were engaged in molestation. This is clear from the meaning of ‘the Egyptians as those who engage in molestation, dealt with in 7097, 7717.

sRef Ex@9 @12 S0′ 7533. ‘And Jehovah made Pharaoh’s heart unyielding’ means that they remained obstinate. This is clear from the meaning of ‘the heart being made unyielding’, ‘hardened’, and ‘stubborn’ as obstinacy, dealt with in 7272, 7300, 7305. When it says that Jehovah made his heart unyielding the meaning in the internal sense is not that Jehovah but that they themselves made their heart unyielding, that is, remained obstinate. For the evil present with a person is what makes him unyielding or obstinately opposed to Divine things. Such evil comes out of the person himself; and it enters him from hell, not from heaven. Nothing but good can enter him from the Lord by way of heaven; evil cannot emanate from good, still less from Goodness itself. Evil emanates from origins of its own, that is to say, from the opposites of love to God and love towards the neighbour. Such origins reside with man, not at all with God. From this it is evident that when it states in the Word that God causes something bad to happen, it is a statement made in accordance with outward appearances. But for more on these matters see 2447, 6991, 6997.

sRef Ex@9 @12 S0′ 7534. ‘And he did not hear them’ means that they did not obey. This is clear from the meaning of ‘not hearing someone’ as not obeying, as also in 7224, 7275, 7301, 7779, 7413.

sRef Ex@9 @12 S0′ 7535. ‘As Jehovah had spoken [to Moses]’ means as accorded with what had been foretold, as previously in 7301, 7340, 7414, 7432.

sRef Ex@9 @14 S0′ sRef Ex@9 @13 S0′ sRef Ex@9 @16 S0′ sRef Ex@9 @17 S0′ sRef Ex@9 @15 S0′ sRef Ex@9 @18 S0′ 7536. Verses 13-18 And Jehovah said to Moses, Rise up in the morning early, and stand before Pharaoh; and you are to say to him,

Thus said Jehovah the God of the Hebrews, Send My people away, and let them serve Me. For this time I am sending all My plagues onto your heart, and onto your servants, and onto your people, in order that you may know that there is none like Me in the whole earth. For now I could stretch out* My hand, and strike you and your people with pestilence, and you would be cut off from the earth. But yet for this reason have I caused you to stand** – for you to see My power, and in order that My name may be declared in the whole earth. You go on exalting yourself against My people by not sending them away. Behold, about this time tomorrow I am causing it to rain an extremely heavy hail, of which there has not been the like in Egypt from the day it was founded even until now.

‘And Jehovah said to Moses’ means further instruction about what had to be done. ‘Rise up in the morning early, and stand before Pharaoh’ means raising those engaged in molestation to a higher level of awareness, by being present with them. ‘And you are to say to him, Thus said Jehovah the God of the Hebrews’ means a command from the Lord, who is the God of the Church. ‘Send My people away, and let them serve Me’ means that they should leave those who belong to the spiritual Church, in order that these may worship the Lord their God. ‘For this time I am sending all My plagues’ means that it would be possible for the evil things yet to come to rush in on them all together. ‘Onto your heart’ means into what is inmost. ‘Onto your servants, and onto your people’ means into every single part. ‘In order that you may know that there is none like Me in the whole earth’ means that they would know from this that the Lord was the only God. ‘For now I could stretch out My hand’ means that all communication could be taken away. ‘And strike you and your people with pestilence’ means so that total devastation would be effected. ‘And you would be cut off from the earth’ means that thus there would be no communication any longer through things of the Church. ‘But yet for this reason have I caused you to stand’ means that nevertheless communication would continue, and states would run their orderly course. ‘For you to see My power’ means so that they may ascertain how great God’s power is. ‘And in order that My name may be declared in the whole earth’ means that thus the Lord may be acknowledged, where the Church exists, as the only God. ‘You go on exalting yourself against My people’ means because he does not yet refrain from molesting those guided by truth and governed by good. ‘By not sending them away’ means and still does not leave. ‘Behold, about this time tomorrow I am causing it to rain an extremely heavy hail’ means falsities destroying all things of the Church among them. ‘Of which there has not been the like in Egypt from the day it was founded even until now’ means that no such destruction happens to any others in their natural mind.
* lit. send
** i.e. have raised you up

sRef Ex@9 @13 S0′ 7537. ‘And Jehovah said to Moses’ means further instruction about what had to be done, see above in 7517.

sRef Ex@9 @13 S0′ 7538. ‘Rise up in the morning early, and stand before Pharaoh’ means raising those engaged in molestation to a higher level of awareness, by being present with them. This is clear from the meaning of ‘rising up in the morning early’, dealt with in 7435; from the meaning of ‘standing
before someone’ as presence, dealt with in 7527; and from the representation of ‘Pharaoh’ as those who engage in molestation, dealt with in 7107, 7110, 7126, 7141, 7220, 7228.

sRef Ex@9 @13 S0′ 7539. ‘And you are to say to him, Thus said Jehovah the God of the Hebrews’ means a command from the Lord, who is the God of the Church. This is clear from the meaning of ‘saying’, when done by Jehovah or the Lord to those who are immersed in evils and engage in molestation, as a command, as in 7036, 7310; from the meaning of ‘the Hebrews’ as those who belong to the Church, and so are the Church, dealt with in 6675, 6684, 6738; and since the Lord is the one who is meant when the name Jehovah is used in the Word, see 1343, 1736, 2921, 3023, 3035, 5041, 5663, 6280, 6281, 6303, 6905, 6945, 6956, ‘Jehovah the God of the Hebrews’ means the Lord who is the God of the Church.

sRef Ex@9 @13 S0′ 7540. ‘Send My people away, and let them serve Me’ means that they should leave those who belong to the spiritual Church, in order that these may worship the Lord their God, see above in 7500, where similar words occur.

sRef Ex@9 @14 S0′ 7541. ‘For this time I am sending all My plagues’ means that it would be possible for the evil things yet to come to rush in on them all together. This is clear from the meaning of ‘plagues’ as evils, in this instance the evil things that had yet to come until they were completely cast into hell, which is why it says ‘all’ the plagues; and from the meaning of ‘sending’ as irrupting, for plagues or evil things are not sent by Jehovah or the Lord but irrupt from evil itself. For in the next life evil carries punishment with it and holds it so to speak within itself, 696, 967, 1857, 6559. This then is why ‘I am sending all My plagues’ means that all the evil things would rush in on them.

[2] Order requires that one plague should follow another and that for this reason the casting of the evil into hell should be done in stages. That is why the explanation here says merely that it would be possible for them to rush in all together. Since the member of the Church has no knowledge of what life is like after death he thinks that after life in the body a person is either raised instantly to heaven or cast instantly into hell. But in fact what happens to him takes place in stages, though considerably varying periods of time and states are involved in the process. In the case of the good who are to be raised to heaven evil is separated from them in successive stages, and they are filled at each stage with good according to their ability acquired in the world to receive it. But in the case of the evil who are to be cast into hell good is separated from them in successive stages, and they are filled at each stage with evil according to their ability acquired in the world to receive it. Furthermore a person in the next life goes on entering new states and undergoing changes. Those who are being raised to heaven are constantly being made more perfect, both then and afterwards for evermore. But those who are being cast into hell suffer bad experiences, both then and afterwards – experiences which become repeatedly grimmer, till they reach the point at which they do not dare to inflict harm on another. And after they have been cast into hell they remain there forever. They cannot be released from there because no desire for someone else’s good can be imparted to them, only a refusal to do harm to someone, from fear of punishment; for the desire to do it will never forsake them.

sRef Ex@9 @14 S0′ 7542. ‘Onto your heart’ means into what is inmost. This is clear from the meaning of ‘heart’ as that which belongs to a person’s will, thus to his love, dealt with in 2930, 3317, 3888, 3889, consequently what is central to the actual life within him; for his love, belonging intrinsically to his will, constitutes that life within him. This is why ‘heart’ means what is inmost. What is inmost in the case of the good is love to the Lord and love towards the neighbour, whereas what is inmost in the case of the evil is self-love and love of the world. The latter is what is meant here; and what is around it, constituting so to speak the surrounding parts, are the evils and falsities that lend support, arranged into order according to the ways in which they support it. In the next life they are brought out into the open in the order in which they have been arranged. First to come forth are those that occupy the outermost surrounding parts, then those that lie further in; and finally what is inmost is revealed. So it is that a person in the next life passes through a large number of states, and that the evil are afflicted in successive stages by scourges or plagues before they are cast into hell, as accords with what has been stated immediately above. What is inmost, which they come to last of all, is hell itself residing with them, for it is the evil that had been central to their love, and so the end which they held in view in everything they did and which in the world they had kept deeply hidden within them.

sRef Ex@9 @14 S0′ 7543. ‘Onto your servants, and onto your people’ means into every single part. This is clear from the meaning of ‘servants and people’ as every single person, thus every single part, dealt with in 7396.

sRef Ex@9 @14 S0′ 7544. ‘[In order] that you may know that there is none like Me in the whole earth’ means that they would know from this that the Lord was the only God. This is clear from what has been stated above in 7401.

sRef Ex@9 @15 S0′ 7545. ‘For now I could stretch out My hand’ means that [all] communication could be taken away. This is clear from the meaning of ‘hand’ as power, dealt with in 4931-4937, 6292, 6947, 7188, 7189, 7518, and ‘the hand of Jehovah’ as almighty power, 878, 3387, 7518. Consequently ‘stretching out the hand’ means demonstrating power, and doing so by an almighty power. That almighty power is described when Jehovah says that it would be possible for Him to send all the plagues onto Pharaoh’s heart, his servants, and his people, meaning that the evils could rush in all together, and so communication or contact with the things of heaven could be taken away. Such a demonstration of power is what is meant by the words that appear here. The situation with that communication has been spoken of previously. That is to say, it was shown previously that those who molest the upright in the next life are those who in the world were part of the Church, read the Word, knew the teachings of the faith of their Church, and also claimed to believe them, yet led an evil life. In the next life as long as they keep possession of those matters of faith they remain in contact with heaven and cannot be cast down into hell. Therefore those things are taken away from them in stages; and when they have been taken away those people no longer have anything to hold them up. Like weights without supports or like birds with their wings cut off they then fall straight down into the abyss. All this shows what is meant by the explanation that communication could be taken away from them.

sRef Ex@9 @15 S0′ 7546. ‘And strike you and your people with pestilence’ means so that total devastation would be effected. This is clear from the meaning of ‘pestilence’ as a laying waste of goodness and truth, dealt with in 7505, in this instance total devastation, since it says that ‘Pharaoh and his people’ would be struck by it, whereas previously in verse 3 it was only the livestock that would suffer. The pestilence at that point therefore does not mean total devastation but a general laying waste of the more external forms of the Church’s truth and good.

sRef Ex@9 @15 S0′ 7547. ‘And you would be cut off from the earth’ means that thus there would be no communication any longer through things of the Church. This is clear from the meaning of ‘being cut off’, when said of things of the Church, as being separated, and when they are separated – that is, when there is no longer any communication or contact with heaven through those things of the Church – that person sinks into hell, which is ‘being cut off’, see above in 7545; and from the meaning of ‘the earth’ as the Church, dealt with in 662, 1067, 1262, 1733, 1850, 2117, 2118 (end), 2571, 2928, 3355, 4535, 4447, 5577.

sRef Ex@9 @16 S0′ 7548. ‘But yet for this reason have I caused you to stand’ means that nevertheless communication would continue, and states would run their orderly course. This is clear from the meaning of ‘causing to stand’ – when used in reference to plagues or evils, which will not rush in all together, 7541, and to communication or contact with heaven, which will not be taken away from them, 7545 – as a declaration that nevertheless communication would continue, and therefore that states would run their orderly course, that is, those people would experience devastation
in successive stages, 7541.

sRef Ex@9 @16 S0′ 7549. ‘For you to see My power’ means so that they may ascertain how great God’s power is. This is clear without explanation.

sRef Ex@9 @16 S0′ 7550. ‘And in order that My name may be declared in the whole earth’ means that thus the Lord may be acknowledged, where the Church exists, as the only God. This is clear from the meaning of ‘name’ as everything in its entirety by which the Lord is worshipped, dealt with in 2724, 3006, 6674, and since the most essential aspect of worship is the acknowledgement that the Lord is the only God, that His Human is Divine, and that from His Human emanates everything of faith and love, ‘Jehovah’s name being declared’ means that the Lord should be acknowledged as the only God (for the Lord’s Divine Human is ‘the name of Jehovah’, see 2628, 6887); and from the meaning of ‘the earth’ as the Church, dealt with just above in 7547. When it says here and in very many other places that Jehovah or the Lord desires His virtue or power to be seen, and His name to be declared, and elsewhere that He desires people to worship and adore Him in humility, it seems as though He desires to display His glory and loves to be adored for His own sake. But the truth of the matter is altogether different. It is not for His own sake but for that of the human race; He is moved not by self-glory but by love. For He wishes to be joined to the human race, and to impart eternal life and happiness to it. But this cannot be accomplished unless a person worships Him in humility; and such humble worship does not exist unless the person acknowledges and believes that he himself is dust and ashes, that is, nothing but evil, that Jehovah or the Lord is the Greatest and Most Holy One, and that of himself he does not dare to approach Him. When a person worships Him in such humility the Lord can enter in with the life of His love, bringing him heaven and eternal happiness. This is the reason why Jehovah or the Lord extols His power and glory to so great an extent in the Word.

sRef Ex@9 @17 S0′ 7551. ‘You go on exalting yourself against My people’ means because he does not yet refrain from molesting those guided by truth and governed by good. This is clear from the meaning of ‘still exalting himself’ as not yet refraining from molesting; for molesters think that they have control over those molested by them when they see these in distress and still undelivered, even after they themselves have been warned not to molest; and from the representation of the children of Israel, to whom ‘My people’ refers here, as those who belong to the spiritual Church, or what amounts to the same, those who are guided by truth and governed by good, dealt with in 4286, 6426, 6637, 6862, 6868, 7035, 7062, 7198, 7201, 7215, 7213.

sRef Ex@9 @17 S0′ 7552. ‘By not sending them away’ means and still does not leave. This is clear from the meaning of ‘sending away’ as leaving, as several times before.

sRef Ex@9 @18 S0′ 7553. ‘Behold, about this time tomorrow I am causing it to rain an extremely heavy hail’ means falsities destroying all things of the Church among them. This is clear from the meaning of ‘rain in the form of hail’ as falsities arising from evil that destroy forms of the truth and good of faith, thus things of the Church. Those falsities are meant by ‘rain in the form of hail’ because then the raindrops are like stones and can destroy both men and beasts, as well as crops in the field, and also because they are pieces of ice. In general ‘rain’ means a blessing, or in the contrary sense a curse, 1445. When it means a blessing a flowing in and receiving of the truth of faith and the good of charity is meant; for that is a blessing. But when ‘rain’ means a curse falsity opposed to the truth of faith and evil opposed to the good of charity is meant, for these are a curse. ‘Rain in the form of hail’ however in general means a curse which is brought on by falsity arising from evil, in particular of falsity arising from evil that is opposed to the Church’s truths and forms of good.

sRef Ezek@38 @22 S2′ [2] These kinds of falsity are meant by ‘rain in the form of hail’ in the following places: In Ezekiel,

I will dispute with Gog with pestilence and blood; and deluging rain and hailstones, fire and brimstone will I cause to rain on him and on his hordes, and on the many peoples that are with him. Ezek. 38:22.

‘Gog’ stands for external worship separated from internal, thus for those who, when charity has been annihilated, make Divine worship consist entirely in external observances. ‘Hailstones’ stands for falsities that arise from evil.

sRef Ezek@13 @9 S3′ sRef Ezek@13 @11 S3′ [3] In the same prophet,

Let My hand be against the prophets who see vanity and divine a lie. Say to those who daub [the wall] with what is not suitable that it will fall. There will come deluging rain from which you, O hailstones, will fall; and stormy wind will tear it apart. Ezek. 13:9, 11.

‘Prophets who are seers of vanity and diviners of a lie’ stands for those who are teachers of evils and falsities. ‘Those who daub [the wall] with what is unsuitable’ stands for the fact that they fabricate falsities and make them look like the truth. These people are called ‘hailstones’ because of their falsities. But in the original language a different word, meaning intense hail, is used here and in the preceding quotation.

sRef Isa@30 @30 S4′ sRef Ps@78 @47 S4′ sRef Isa@28 @17 S4′ sRef Ps@78 @48 S4′ sRef Ps@78 @49 S4′ sRef Isa@28 @2 S4′ [4] In Isaiah,

Then Jehovah will cause His glorious voice* to be heard, and His arm will see repose, in the indignation of [His] anger, and the flame of a devouring fire, [in] scattering and deluging, and hailstones. Isa. 30:30, 31.

‘Hailstones’ stands for the laying waste of truth by means of falsities. In the same prophet,

Behold, powerful and strong is the Lord, like a deluge of hail, a killing tempest, like a deluge of mighty overflowing waters, He will cast them down to the earth with His hand. The hail will overturn the refuge of a lie, and the waters will deluge the hiding-place.** Isa. 28:2, 17.

‘A deluge’ stands for being plunged into falsities, and so for undergoing vastation of truth, 705, 739, 790, 5725, 6853, ‘a deluge of hail’ for the destruction of truth by means of falsities. In David,

He struck their vine with hail, and their sycamore-fig trees with heavy hail. And He gave up*** their beasts to the hail, and their flocks to coals of fire. He let loose on them His fierce anger. Ps. 78:47-49.

sRef Ps@18 @14 S5′ sRef Ps@18 @11 S5′ sRef Ps@105 @33 S5′ sRef Ps@18 @13 S5′ sRef Ps@147 @17 S5′ sRef Ps@147 @16 S5′ sRef Ps@18 @12 S5′ sRef Ps@105 @32 S5′ [5] In the same author,

He made their rain into hail, a flaming fire in their land; and He struck their vines and their fig trees, and broke to pieces the trees of their borders. Ps. 105:32, 33.

‘Hail’ and ‘rain’ stand for the laying waste of truth and good by means of falsities arising from evil. ‘Vine’ stands for the truth and goodness of the internal Church, ‘sycamore-fig’ and ‘fig’ for the truths and forms of good of the external Church. In the same author,

He who gives snow like wool, He sprinkles the hear-frost like dust; He who discharges His hail like balls – who can stand before His cold? Ps. 147:16, 17.

‘Hail’ stands for falsities arising from evils. In the same author,

He made darkness His hiding-place, and His surroundings His tent – darkness of waters, clouds of the heavens. From the brightness before Him, clouds passed with hail and coals of fire. Jehovah thundered in the heavens, and the Most High uttered His voice, hail, and coals of fire, so that He sent His arrows and scattered them. Ps. 18:11-14.

‘Hail’ stands for falsities arising from evils which lay waste truths and forms of good.

sRef Rev@8 @7 S6′ [6] In John,

The first angel sounded and there came hail, and fire mixed with blood; and it fell onto the earth so that a third part of the trees were burned, and all green grass was burned up. Rev. 8:7.

‘Hail’ stands for falsities arising from evil; ‘fire mixed with blood’ stands for evil desires together with falsified truths; ‘the trees which were burned’ stands for cognitions of truth that were destroyed by evil desires; and ‘the green grass that was burned up’ stands for known facts about truth that were destroyed in a similar way. For the meaning of ‘fire’ as evil desires, see 1297, 1861, 2446, 5071, 5215, 6314, 6832, 7314; of ‘blood’ as falsified truth, 4775, 6878, 7317, 7326; and of ‘trees’ as cognitions, 2722 (end), 2972.

sRef Josh@10 @11 S7′ [7] In Joshua,

It happened, when they fled before Israel on the descent of Beth Horon, that Jehovah cast down on them large [hail]stones from heaven, as far as Azekah, so that they died. Those who died from the hailstones were more than those whom the children of Israel killed with the sword. Josh. 10:11.

This refers to the five kings who camped against Gibeon. These kings and their peoples represented those who, being steeped in falsities arising from evils, therefore died from the hailstones. Balls of hail are called stones because ‘stones’ too mean falsities.

From all this one may see what is meant by ‘hail’ and by ‘rain in the form of hail’, namely falsities arising from evils. And since these falsities are meant, the laying waste of truth and good is also meant, for falsities arising from evils are what lay them waste.
* lit. the glory of His voice
** The Latin means they will deluge the hiding-place of waters, but the Hebrew means the waters will deluge the hiding-place, which Sw. has in his rough draft.
*** lit. shut up

sRef Ex@9 @18 S0′ 7554. ‘Of which there has not been the like in Egypt from the day it was founded even until now’ means that no such destruction happens to any others in their natural mind. This is clear from the meaning of rain in the form of hail, to which these words refer, as the destruction of truth by means of falsities, dealt with immediately above in 7553; from the meaning of ‘the land of Egypt’ as the natural mind, dealt with in 5276, 5278, 5280, 5288, 5301, ‘from the day it was founded even until now meaning that no such destruction happens to any others, because ‘day means state, ‘foundation’ the nature of that state, and ‘Egypt’ the natural mind in general. The reason why no such destruction happens to any others as happens to those who molest the upright in the next life is that those who so molest belonged to the Church when they were in the world, 7317, 7502. They are those who have filled their memory, which is part of their natural mind, with the kinds of things that are matters of faith acquired from the Word and from the teachings of their Church, and yet have led a life contrary to those things. Consequently when they undergo vastation, those matters of faith are wrenched out, and very much else attached to them, leaving deep, foul pits and craters. Such people’s evil desires, as well as their falsities, have inevitably become in some measure linked to those matters of faith. And since these cannot exist together with those falsities and evils it is evident that if they cannot be separated they are cast away to the sides, leaving empty spaces within, which emit a foul stench, for every foul stench arises out of evils mixed with forms of good, and of falsities mixed with truths. These things do not happen to those outside the Church, for they have no knowledge at all of truths of faith acquired from the Word. This is what is meant by the statement that no such destruction happens to any others in their natural mind.

sRef Ex@9 @18 S0′ 7555. Verses 19-21 And now send, assemble your livestock and all that you have in the field; every man and beast that will be found in the field and will not be gathered home,* the hail will come down on them and they will die. And he that feared the word of Jehovah among the servants of Pharaoh caused his servants and his livestock to flee to the houses. And he that did not take the word of Jehovah to heart left his servants and his livestock in the field.

‘And now send, assemble your livestock’ means that the truth of good should be gathered. ‘And all that you have in the field’ means what belongs to the Church. ‘Every man and beast’ means interior and exterior good. ‘That is found in the field’ means which belongs to the Church. ‘And will not be gathered home’ means which is not in safe keeping. ‘The hail will come down on them and they will die’ means that it will be completely destroyed by falsity. ‘And he that feared the word of Jehovah among the servants of Pharaoh’ means those things in the natural mind which were the Lord’s. ‘Caused his servants and his livestock to flee to the houses’ means that they were stored away and placed in safe keeping interiorly. ‘And he that did not take the word of Jehovah to heart’ means the things which were not from the Lord. ‘Left his servants and his livestock in the field’ means that they were not stored away and placed in safekeeping.
* or to the house

sRef Ex@9 @19 S0′ 7556. ‘And now send, assemble your livestock’ means that the truth of good should be gathered. This is clear from the meaning of ‘assembling’ as gathering; and from the meaning of ‘livestock’ as the good of truth, and also the truth of good, dealt with in 6016, 6045. What the truth of good and the good of truth are, see 2063, 3295, 3332, 3669, 3688, 3882, 4337, 4353, 4390, 5526, 5733. The subject in this and the next two verses is the goodness and truth which the Lord places in safe keeping even within the evil. For goodness and truth which have not been linked to evils and falsities are not laid waste but are stored away interiorly by the Lord and at a later time brought out for use. The goodness and truth placed in safe keeping within a person by the Lord are meant in the Word by ‘the remnant’, regarding which, see 468, 530, 560, 561, 576, 661, 798, 1738, 1906, 2284, 5135, 5342, 5344, 5897-5899, 6156.

sRef Ex@9 @19 S0′ 7557. ‘And all that you have in the field’ means what belongs to the Church. This is clear from the meaning of ‘the field’ as the Church, dealt within 2971, 3317, 3766, 4440, 4443, 7502.

sRef Ex@9 @19 S0′ 7558. ‘Every man and beast’ means interior and exterior good. This is clear from the meaning of ‘man and beast’ as interior and exterior good, dealt with above in 7424, 7523.

sRef Ex@9 @19 S0′ 7559. ‘That is found in the field’ means which belongs to the Church. This is clear from the meaning of ‘the field’ as the Church, dealt with just above in 7557.

sRef Ex@9 @19 S0′ 7560. ‘And will not be gathered home’ means which is not in safe keeping. This is clear from the meaning of ‘not being gathered home’ as not being placed in safe keeping. For ‘home’ or ‘house’ is the inner part of the natural mind where goodness and truth reside, and it is also the rational mind, and so where the real person is, dealt with in 3578, 4973, 5023, 7353. Therefore ‘being gathered home’ is being gathered to an inward position and stored away there. Goodness and truth are stored away inwardly and placed in safe keeping there by the Lord, even in the evil, in order that something of what makes them human may still remain; for without goodness and truth nobody is truly a human being. What are stored away and placed in safe keeping are indeed goodness and truth. Through them communication is effected with heaven; and to the extent that a person is in communication with heaven he is a human being. The evil, including those in hell, are – it is true – in communication with heaven; but they are in no way linked to it through goodness and truth. For the moment that goodness and truth flow down from heaven and enter hell they are turned into evil and falsity, and the link is instantly broken. This is what their communication is like. But through the goodness and truth stored away and placed in safe keeping interiorly a link does exist. With the evil however the truths and forms of good stored away there do no more than enable them to engage in reasoning, think and consequently speak on a sensory level, and thereby substantiate falsity and defend evil. Of all the goodness and truth that have been stored away and placed in safe keeping within them, no more than this can be released; for if more were released the truths and forms of good would be destroyed and so the evil would be left with nothing human at all.

sRef Ex@9 @19 S0′ 7561. ‘The hail will come down on them and they will die’ means that it – what belongs to the Church – will be completely destroyed by falsity. This is clear from the meaning of ‘the hail’ as falsity arising from evil, and consequently the laying waste of goodness and truth by means of falsities, dealt with in 7553; and from the meaning of ‘dying’ as ceasing to exist, dealt with in 494, 6587, 6593, and since it is used in connection with the laying waste of goodness and truth, being destroyed is meant.

sRef Ex@9 @20 S0′ 7562. ‘And he that feared the word of Jehovah among the servants of Pharaoh’ means those things in the natural mind which were the Lord’s. This is clear from the meaning of ‘he that feared the word of Jehovah’ as the things which are the Lord’s, for in the internal sense ‘one who fears’ is not used to mean a person who fears but a certain thing or reality (in heaven an idea involving a person is changed into an idea involving some reality, see 5225, 5287, 5434, and therefore ‘he that feared the word of Jehovah’ means the goodness and truth that are from the Lord); and from the meaning of ‘the servants of Pharaoh’ as things that belong to the natural mind. ‘Pharaoh’ is the natural in general, see 5160, 5799, and ‘his servants’ are therefore the things that are in the natural, or what amounts to the same, things that are in the natural mind, since the things in the natural which a person uses in thinking and reaching conclusions constitute his mind. Which things in the natural mind are the Lord’s and which are not the Lord’s, see below in 7564.

sRef Ex@9 @20 S0′ 7563. ‘Caused his servants and his livestock to flee to the houses’ means that they were stored away and placed in safe keeping interiorly. This is clear from the meaning of ‘servants’ as the things in the natural mind, as immediately above in 7562; from the meaning of ‘livestock’ as truth and good, also dealt with above, in 7556; and from the meaning of ‘the houses’ as the things present inwardly in a person, where goodness and truth from the Lord are stored away and placed in safe keeping, dealt with in 7560. From this it is evident that ‘he caused his servants and his livestock to flee to the houses’ means that the truths and forms of good which are in the natural mind, that is to say, the things which are the Lord’s, have been gathered and have been stored away and placed in safe keeping interiorly.

sRef Ex@9 @21 S0′ 7564. ‘And he that did not take the word of Jehovah to heart’ means the things which were not from the Lord. This is clear from the explanation above in 7562, where ‘he that feared the word of Jehovah’ means the things that were the Lord’s, and therefore conversely ‘he that did not take the word of Jehovah to heart’ means the things which were not from the Lord. Forms of good and truths are either the Lord’s or not the Lord’s. The Lord’s are those which a person puts into practice for the sake of his neighbour, his country, the Church, and the Lord’s kingdom, thus for the sake of truth and goodness themselves, and above all for the Lord’s sake. These forms of good and truths are the ones that are the Lord’s. But those that are not the Lord’s are the ones which a person puts into practice for the sake of himself as his end in view, and for the sake of the world as his end in view. These latter forms of good and truths sometimes seem in outward appearance to be like the former; but inwardly they are totally different, for the latter lead to self, the former away from self. The truths and forms of good which are not the Lord’s are also for the most part what a person puts into practice in a state of misfortune, sickness, grief, or fear, and not in a state of freedom; for these are also done for the sake of self. Every form of truth or good does indeed flow in from the Lord, but when a person turns the Lord’s goodness or truth directly towards himself it becomes man’s; it becomes the possession of him who turns it directly towards himself. For it becomes the good of self-love and love of the world. This is the kind of good that all evil people do to one another. From all this one may see which forms of good and truths are meant by forms of good and truths that are the Lord’s and by forms of good and truths that are not the Lord’s.

sRef Ex@9 @21 S0′ 7565. ‘Left his servants and his livestock in the field’ means that they were not stored away and placed in safe keeping. This is clear from the meaning of ‘being left in the field’ as being destroyed by the falsities arising from evils that are meant by ‘the hail from which they would die’, 7559-7561. These are things that were not stored away and placed in safe keeping, being the truths and forms of good which are not the Lord’s, spoken of immediately above in 7564. ‘Servants’ means the things in the natural mind, 7562, 7563, and ‘livestock’ the truths and forms of good which, since they are not the Lord’s, cannot be stored away interiorly.

7566. Verses 22-26 And Jehovah said to Moses, Stretch out your hand towards heaven, and there will be hail in all the land of Egypt, on man and on beast, and on every plant of the field in the land of Egypt. And Moses stretched out his rod towards heaven, and Jehovah gave forth voices* and hail, and fire ran down to the earth; and Jehovah caused hail to rain onto the land of Egypt. And there was hail, and at the same time fire running down** in the midst of the hail, extremely heavy, of which there had not been the like in all the land of Egypt since it became a nation. And the hail struck in all the land of Egypt everything that was in the field, from man and even to beast; and the hail struck every plant of the field, and broke every tree of the field. Only in the land of Goshen, where the children of Israel were, there was no hail.

‘And Jehovah said to Moses’ means a command. ‘Stretch out your hand towards heaven’ means attention drawn to heaven, which would then come nearer. ‘And there will be hail in all the land of Egypt’ means destructive falsity in the natural mind. ‘On man and on beast’ means interior and exterior good. ‘And on every plant of the field in the land of Egypt’ means every truth of the Church in the natural mind. ‘And Moses stretched out his rod towards heaven’ means communication with heaven. ‘And Jehovah gave forth voices’ means the departure and severance of communication with those governed by good and guided by truth. ‘And hail’ means those destructive falsities. ‘And fire ran down to the earth’ means evil desires. ‘And He caused hail to rain onto the land of Egypt’ means the natural mind, which falsities arising from evil took possession of. ‘And there was hail, and at the same time fire running down in the midst of the hail, extremely heavy’ means firm beliefs in what is false together with desires for evil. ‘Of which there had not been the like in all the land of Egypt’ means that such a state of the natural mind did not exist in any others. ‘Since it became a nation’ means from the day on which it happened that it was able to admit goodness and therefore truth into itself. ‘And the hail struck in all the land of Egypt’ means that that falsity destroyed the things which were in the natural mind. ‘Everything that was in the field’ means whatever was an attribute of the Church. ‘From man and even to beast’ means its good, interior and exterior. ‘And the hail struck every plant of the field’ means that those falsities destroyed all of the Church’s truth. ‘And broke every tree of the field’ means that they also destroyed all the Church’s cognitions of truth and good. ‘Only in the land of Goshen, where the children of Israel were, there was no hail’ means that they did not destroy anything where those who belonged to the spiritual Church were.
* i.e. there were claps of thunder
** Sw. appears to have misread a Hebrew word here.

sRef Ex@9 @22 S0′ 7567. ‘And Jehovah said to Moses’ means a command. This is clear from the meaning of ‘saying’ as a command, dealt with in 7036, 7107, 7710.

sRef Ex@9 @22 S0′ 7568. ‘Stretch out your hand towards heaven’ means attention drawn to heaven, which would then come nearer. This is clear from the meaning of ‘stretching out the hand’ as drawing attention to something, for an outstretched hand is used to draw attention to something and point it out; and from the meaning of ‘heaven’ as the angelic heaven. And since, when a person’s attention is drawn to heaven and it is pointed out to him, he also turns his gaze and thought in that direction, its coming nearer is also meant; for in the spiritual world things are brought nearer by focusing thought on them. The nature of these matters has, it is true, been discussed already in 7519. Even so, since they are the kinds of things that are unknown in the world, let a little more be said to illustrate them. When any change of state needs to take place with the evil undergoing vastation, such as happens to those who are the subject in the present chapters, the change is brought about by a more immediate inflow of goodness and truth from heaven. For the closer heaven comes to them, the more internal are the evils and falsities which are activated with them. Goodness and truth from heaven reach in towards the interiors; and the nearer heaven gets, the further in they reach. This explains why those from hell do not dare to move towards any heavenly community but get away as far as they can, see 4225, 4226, 4299, 4533, 4674, 5057, 5058, 7519. From all this one now may see what one is to understand by attention drawn to heaven, which would then come nearer, meant when it says that Moses should stretch out his hand towards heaven. A new state is being described now, that is to say, a state in which falsities arising from evils are destructive of all the Church’s forms of good and its truths residing with those who molest. And since this state is brought about by a more immediate inflow of truth from God and at the same time by heaven’s drawing closer, Moses is therefore told to stretch out his hand towards heaven.

sRef Ex@9 @22 S0′ 7569. ‘And there will be hail in all the land of Egypt’ means destructive falsity in the natural mind. This is clear from the meaning of ‘hail’ as destructive falsity arising from evils – destructive of all the goodness and truth of the Church, dealt with in 7553; and from the meaning of ‘the land of Egypt’ as the natural mind, dealt with in 5276, 5278, 5280, 5288, 5301.

sRef Ex@9 @22 S0′ 7570. ‘On man and on beast’ means interior and exterior good. This is clear from the meaning of ‘man and beast’ as interior and exterior good, dealt with in 7424, 7523.

sRef Jer@14 @5 S0′ sRef Ex@9 @22 S0′ sRef Jer@14 @6 S0′ sRef Matt@13 @24 S0′ sRef Matt@13 @26 S0′ sRef Ps@104 @14 S1′ 7571. ‘And on every plant of the field in the land of Egypt’ means every truth of the Church in the natural mind. This is clear from the meaning of ‘plant’ as truth, dealt with below; from the meaning of ‘the field’ as the Church, dealt with above in 7557; and from the meaning of ‘the land of Egypt’ as the natural mind, also dealt with above, in 7569. The reason why ‘plant’ means truth is that ‘the land’ means the Church, as also does ‘the field’; and all that they produce means either the truth of faith or the good of charity, since these are products of the Church. ‘Plant of the field’ is used to mean everything in general that is grown in the field, as is evident from the Lord’s parable in Matthew,

The kingdom of heaven may be likened to a person sowing good seed in his field. When the plant sprouted and bore fruit, then the tares appeared. Matt. 13:24, 26.

Here it is evident that ‘the plant’, a term used for what the field produces, means the Church’s truth, and ‘the tares’ falsity. The parable is, it is true, a comparison; but all comparisons in the Word are based on things that have a spiritual meaning, 3579. In David,

He causes the grass to grow for the beast, and the plant for man’s service, that he may bring forth bread from the earth. Ps. 104:14.

‘The plant’, a term used here also for what the field produces, in the internal sense means truth.

sRef Amos@7 @2 S2′ sRef Jer@12 @4 S2′ sRef Joel@2 @22 S2′ sRef Ps@23 @2 S2′ sRef Jer@14 @5 S2′ sRef Isa@15 @6 S2′ sRef Ps@23 @3 S2′ sRef Isa@42 @15 S2′ sRef Jer@14 @6 S2′ sRef Isa@42 @16 S2′ [2] In the same author,

He will make me lie down in pastures of the plant;* He will lead me to still waters; He will restore my soul. Ps. 23:2, 3.

‘Pastures of the plant’ stands for spiritual nourishment, nourishment of the soul. That is why it says ‘He will restore my soul’. In Isaiah,

The waters of Nimrim will be desolations, for the reason that the grass has withered away, the plant has been consumed, there is nothing green. [Isa. 15:6.

In the same prophet,

The inhabitants became plants of the field and edible grass, hay on the rooftops, and scorched earth before standing corn.] Isa. 37:17.

In the same prophet,

I will lay waste mountains and hills, and dry up every plant on them; and I will make streams into islands. And I will lead the blind in a way they do not know. Isa. 42:15, 16.

In Jeremiah,

How long will the land mourn and the plant of every field wither, on account of the wickedness of those who dwell in it? The beasts and the birds will be devoured. Jer. 12:4.

In the same prophet,

The hind in the field calved but left because there was no plant; and the wild asses stood on the hills, they gulped the wind like sea-monsters, for the reason that there was no plant. Jer. 14:5, 6.

In Joel,

Fear not, you beasts of My fields, for the dwelling-places of the wilderness have become abounding in plants; for the tree will bear its fruit, the fig tree and the vine will give their full yield. Joel 1:12.

In Amos,

When the locust had finished eating the plant of the land, I said, O Lord Jehovih, Pardon, I beg You. How will Jacob stand? for he is small. Amos 7:2.

sRef Rev@9 @4 S3′ sRef Zech@10 @1 S3′ [3] In Zechariah,

Ask rain from Jehovah in the time of the latter rain.** Jehovah will make rain-clouds, and will give them rain in showers, to everyone plants in his field.*** Zech. 10:1.

In John,

The fifth angel sounded and it was declared that they should not harm the grass of the earth, or any green thing, or any tree. Rev. 9:4.

Anyone may see that in these places ‘grass’ is not meant, nor ‘plant’, but instead the kinds of things that belong to the Church; ‘the plant of the land’ and ‘plant of the field’ are, it is plain, used to mean the truth of faith. Without such a spiritual sense no one would ever know what is meant in John by their declaring, when the fifth angel sounded, that they should not harm the grass of the earth, or any green thing. Nor would anyone know what is meant in Jeremiah when it says that ‘the hind in the field calved and left because there was no plant; and the wild asses gulped the wind like sea-monsters, for the reason that there was no plant’. And in very many other places no one would know what is meant. This shows how little understanding there is of the Word, and how earthly a person’s conception of very many things in it must be unless he knows what their spiritual meaning is, or at least knows that in every detail the Word is holy.
* i.e. green pastures
** i.e. the spring rain
*** lit. to [each] man the plant in the field

sRef Ex@9 @23 S0′ 7572. ‘And Moses stretched out his rod towards heaven’ means communication with heaven. This is clear from the meaning of ‘stretching out the rod towards heaven’ as drawing attention to, thus communicating, in accordance with the explanation above in 7568, ‘heaven’ meaning the angelic heaven.

sRef Ex@9 @23 S0′ 7573. ‘And Jehovah gave forth voices’ means the departure and severance of communication with those governed by good and guided by truth. This is clear from the meaning of ‘voices’, which are claps of thunder, as God’s truths which enlighten and perfect those in heaven, but frighten those in hell and subject them to vastation; and since they devastate the latter they mean the departure and severance of communication with those governed by good and guided by truth, this being the way in which they are devastated. The situation in all this is evident from what has been stated already in 7502, 7541, 7542, 7545, 7554. In these places it was shown that those who have belonged to the Church and consequently absorbed cognitions of truth and good from the Word, yet have led an evil life, have a line of communication with heaven through the truths and forms of good which they have brought with them from their time in the world, where they were in the Church. (A person brings with him into the next life whatever he knew in the world, indeed whatever he saw, heard, thought, spoke, willed, or did, see 2474, 2475, 2481-2486, 7398). This communication is what is taken away when they undergo vastation; and when communication has been taken away, so are truths and forms of good, and cognitions of them, removed. For whatever spirits, and indeed angels know flows in from the Lord by way of heaven, thus through communications that are made, see 6053-6058, 6180, 6215, 6307-6717, 6466-6495, 6613-6626. All this shows what is meant by a departure and severance of communication with those who are guided by truth and governed by good. The situation with God’s truth in heaven and in hell – the truth that is meant by ‘voices’ – is like that with claps of thunder on earth. On high mountains claps of thunder are heard as no more than a gentle, quiet sound; but on the land lying below they are heard as a frightening crash. In the same way God’s truth in heaven is gentle and mild, whereas in hell it is frightening.

sRef Isa@30 @30 S2′ sRef Isa@30 @29 S2′ sRef Isa@30 @31 S2′ [2] The meaning of ‘voices’, which are claps of thunder, as God’s truths that enlighten and perfect those in heaven, and that frighten those in hell and subject them to vastation, is evident from the following places: In Isaiah,

You will have joy of heart, as when one marches with a pipe to come to the mountain of Jehovah, to the Rock of Israel. Then Jehovah will cause His glorious voice* to be heard, and will cause His arm to see repose, in the indignation of [His] anger, and the flame of a devouring fire, [in] scattering, and deluging, and hailstones. For by the voice of Jehovah Asshur will be dismayed. Isa. 30:29-31.

Here ‘the voice of Jehovah’ stands for God’s truth which enlightens and perfects those who are governed by good but frightens those under the influence of evil and subjects them to vastation. In Joel,

The earth quaked before Him, the sun and moon were darkened, and the stars withdrew their shining; and Jehovah uttered His voice before His army, His camp is exceedingly great; for that which executes His word is uncountable. For great is the day of Jehovah, and extremely frightening. Joel 3:16.

Here the meaning is similar.

sRef Joel@3 @16 S3′ [3] In the same prophet,

Jehovah will roar from Zion, and from Jerusalem will give forth His voice; and the heavens and the earth will be shaken. But Jehovah will be a shelter for His people, and a fortification for the children of Israel. Joel 3:16.

‘The voice of Jehovah’ likewise stands for God’s truth. It is given forth ‘from Jerusalem’ because that city means the Lord’s spiritual kingdom, inhabited by those who are moved by truth to be governed by good and moved by good to be guided by truth.

sRef Ps@18 @14 S4′ sRef Ps@77 @18 S4′ sRef Ps@77 @17 S4′ sRef Ps@18 @13 S4′ [4] In David,

Jehovah thundered in the heavens, and the Most High gave forth His voice, hail, and coals of fire, so that He sent His arrows and scattered them, and many thunder-bolts, and threw them into confusion. Ps. 18:13, 14.

‘Giving forth voice, hail, and coals of fire’ stands for the devastation of truth and good by means of falsities and evil desires. In the same author,

The clouds dropped water, the skies gave voice, also Your arrows went out, the voice of Your thunder into the earth; the lightnings lit up the earth. Ps. 77:16-18.

‘A voice’ stands for God’s truth which enlightens those who belong to the Church.

sRef Ps@29 @7 S5′ sRef Ps@29 @8 S5′ sRef Ps@29 @5 S5′ sRef Ps@29 @3 S5′ sRef Ps@29 @9 S5′ sRef Ps@29 @4 S5′ [5] In the same author,

The voice of Jehovah is upon the waters, the God of glory causes it to thunder, Jehovah is over great waters; the voice of Jehovah is powerful; the voice of Jehovah is majestic; the voice of Jehovah breaks the cedars, Jehovah breaks to pieces the cedars of Lebanon; the voice of Jehovah strikes as flames of fire; the voice of Jehovah causes the wilderness to shake; the voice of Jehovah causes the hinds to calve, and strips the forests bare. Ps. 29:3-11.

Here ‘the voice of Jehovah’ stands for God’s truth and the power it has. Thus it also stands for the Word since this is God’s truth.

sRef Rev@10 @3 S6′ sRef Rev@10 @4 S6′ [6] In John,

A mighty angel coming down called out with a loud voice; and when he called out, seven thunders uttered their voices. I was about to write; but I heard a voice from heaven saying to me, Seal up the things which the seven thunders uttered, and do not write them. Rev. 10:3, 4.

‘Voices’ stands for God’s truth, ‘thunders’ for those who convey it, bringing it from heaven to earth. No one can fail to see that ‘thunders and ‘voices’ mean things that are Divine, not thunders and crashes. And since they mean Divine things and are called Jehovah’s voices it is evident that they are Divine Truth. This was why, when Jehovah came down on Mount Sinai and proclaimed Divine Truth, there were voices, lightnings, and thunders, Exod. 19:16; 20:18, and why He spoke out of the midst of the fire, Deut. 4:11, 12; 5:22-24.
* lit. the voice of His glory

sRef Ex@9 @23 S0′ 7574. ‘And hail’ means those destructive falsities. This is clear from the meaning of ‘hail’ as falsities arising from evils destroying the Church’s forms of good and its truths, 7553. ‘Hail’ means the kinds of falsities that destroy the Church’s truths and forms of good, as also does the pestilence in the earlier part of this chapter. For there are very many genera and species of falsities, as there are of the evils from which they spring. The falsities meant by ‘hail’ belong to the genus that destroy things of the Church and that can exist only with those who have been born within the Church yet have led a life contrary to the truths and the forms of the good of faith there. Proof of the existence of falsities, like evils, in a large number of genera and species is provided by the fact that the hells are divided up according to genera and species of evils and derivative falsities, and by the fact that the hells are countless. From this one may see what the situation is with the meaning of the miracles or plagues in Egypt as falsities and evils. That is to say, one may see that each plague – of blood, frogs, lice, noxious flying insects, pestilence, sores breaking out into pustules, hail, or locusts – means a different kind or genus of falsity and evil.

sRef Ex@9 @23 S0′ sRef Isa@30 @30 S0′ sRef Isa@30 @31 S0′ 7575. ‘And fire ran down to the earth’ means evil desires. This is clear from the meaning of ‘fire’ as evil desires, dealt with in 1297, 1861, 2446, 5071, 5215, 6314, 6832, 7324; and from the meaning of ‘running down to the earth’* as taking possession of the natural mind right down to the lowest levels of it, ‘the land of Egypt’ being the natural mind, see 5276, 5178, 5280, 5188, 5301. Since ‘hail’ means falsities and ‘fire’ the evils from which they spring, when ‘hail’ is mentioned so too is ‘fire’ in Isa. 30:30, 31; Ps. 18:12-15; 78:47-49; Rev. 8:7, as well as in the verse immediately after this,

And there was hail, and fire at the same time running down in the midst of the hail, extremely heavy.
* i.e. in the land of Egypt

sRef Ex@9 @23 S0′ 7576. ‘And He caused hail to rain onto the land of Egypt’ means the natural mind, which falsities arising from evil took possession of. This is clear from the meaning of ‘causing to rain’ as pouring onto, here being taken possession of (‘raining’ has reference to the activity of truth and goodness, or in the contrary sense to that of falsity and evil, for ‘rain’ is a blessing or it is a curse, 2445); from the meaning of ‘hail’ as falsity arising from evil, dealt with in 7553, 7574; and from the meaning of ‘the land of Egypt’ as the natural mind, as above in 7575.

sRef Ex@9 @24 S0′ 7577. ‘And there was hail, and at the same time fire running down in the midst of the hail, extremely heavy’ means firm beliefs in what is false together with desires for evil. This is clear from the meaning of ‘hail’ as falsity arising from evil, dealt with above in 7574, at this point firm belief in what is false since it says the hail was ‘extremely heavy’; from the meaning of ‘fire’ as the desire for evil, dealt with just above in 7575; and from the meaning of ‘running down in the midst’ as being together. Indeed the desire for evil is at the centre, for the falsity emanates from it.

[2] What is being described here is the state of those belonging to the Church who molest the upright in the next life – their state when the things of the Church with them, that is, the forms of good and the truths which they have claimed to believe in, have been laid waste. That is to say, their state is now one in which firm but false beliefs together with evil desires reign; for this is what their state inwardly is like. Those false beliefs and evil desires are inseparable; for when evil takes hold in a person’s life, falsity takes hold in his doctrine. When a person’s life is taken hold of by evil, the situation may seem to him to be entirely different, for when people claim with their lips to believe in truths drawn from the Word or from the teachings of their Church they fancy that they have a belief in them. It even appears to them as though they do; but in fact they have no such belief if their life is evil. For either they claim with their lips to believe in things which are different from what they really think, or they think something is true because they have been told and persuaded to believe that it is, and this belief they hold on account of their desire for gain and important positions. This means that when they are no longer striving for important positions or seeking after gain that belief falls away, and then those people take hold of falsities that fit in with their evil desires. Falsities fitting in with evil desires are present inwardly with those who lead an evil life, no matter how much they may think that they are not. The truth of this is made thoroughly plain in the next life when everything external has been taken away and those kinds of people have been left to their inner selves. Falsities now erupt, both those which had played a part in their thinking in the world and those which had not evidently done so. For those falsities erupt from the evils which had been part of their life, falsities being nothing other than evils producing reasons to support and justify themselves. From all this one may see what the state of those people in the next life is like, namely a state in which firm beliefs in what is false together with desires for what is evil rule them.

sRef Ex@9 @24 S0′ 7578. ‘Of which there had not been the like in all the land of Egypt’ means that such a state of the natural mind did not exist in any others. This is clear from the explanation above in 7554, where similar words occur.

sRef Ex@9 @24 S0′ 7579. ‘Since it became a nation means from the day on which it happened that it – the natural mind – was able to admit goodness and therefore truth into itself. This is clear from the meaning of ‘a nation’ as good, dealt with in 1159, 1259, 1260, 1416, 1849, 4574, 6005, and since the expression is used in reference to the land of Egypt, by which true factual knowledge belonging to the natural mind is meant, therefore ‘nation also means truth that springs from good; and from the meaning of ‘since it became’ as from the day on which it happened.

sRef Ex@9 @25 S0′ 7580. ‘And the hail struck in all the land of Egypt’ means that that falsity destroyed the things which were in the natural mind. This is clear from the meaning of ‘striking’ as destroying; from the meaning of ‘hail’ as falsity arising from evils, 7553; and from the meaning of ‘the land of Egypt’ as the natural mind, dealt with in 7569.

aRef 1Cor@2 @9 S0′ sRef Ex@9 @25 S0′ 7581. ‘Everything that was in the field’ means whatever was an attribute of the Church. This is clear from the meaning of ‘the field’ as the Church, dealt with above in 7557.

sRef Ex@9 @25 S0′ 7582. ‘From man and even to beast’ means its good, interior and exterior. This is clear from the meaning of ‘man and beast’ as interior and exterior good, dealt with in 7424, 7523.

sRef Ex@9 @25 S0′ 7583. ‘And the hail struck every plant of the field’ means that those falsities destroyed all of the Church’s truth. This is clear from the meaning of ‘plant of the field’ as the Church’s truth, dealt with above in 7571; from the meaning of ‘striking’ as destroying; and from the meaning of ‘hail’ as falsity, dealt with in 7553.

sRef Ex@9 @25 S0′ 7584. ‘And broke every tree of the field’ means that they also destroyed all the Church’s cognitions of goodness and truth. This is clear from the meaning of ‘tree’ as perceptions of goodness and truth, dealt with in 107, 2163, 2682, and also as cognitions of goodness and truth, 2722 (end), 2972.

sRef Ex@9 @26 S0′ 7585. ‘Only in the land of Goshen, where the children of Israel were, there was no hail’ means that they did not destroy anything where those who belonged to the spiritual Church were. This is clear from the meaning of ‘the land of Goshen’ as the inmost part of the natural mind, dealt with in 5910, 6028, 60311 6068, and as the Church, 6649; and from the representation of ‘the children of Israel’ as those who belong to the spiritual Church, dealt with in 6426, 6637, 6862, 6868, 7035, 7062, 7198, 7201, 7215, 7223.

sRef Ex@9 @30 S0′ sRef Ex@9 @29 S0′ sRef Ex@9 @28 S0′ sRef Ex@9 @27 S0′ 7586. Verses 27-30 And Pharaoh sent and called Moses and Aaron, and said to them, I have sinned this time; Jehovah is righteous, and I and my people are wicked. Plead with Jehovah, there have been enough of God’s voices* and of hail; and I will send you away, and you will not continue to remain. And Moses said to him, As I am going out of the city I will spread out my palms towards Jehovah; the voices’ will cease, and there will be no more hail, in order that you may know that the earth is Jehovah’s. And [as for] you and your servants, I know that you do not yet fear the face of Jehovah God.

‘And Pharaoh sent and called Moses and Aaron’ means the presence of the law of God. ‘And said to them’ means self-abasement. ‘I have sinned this time’ means a separation from truth and good. ‘Jehovah is righteous, and I and my people are wicked’ means that Divine Good could not tolerate the malevolence of the molesters, and that the current affliction had occurred as a result of this. ‘Plead with Jehovah’ means that they should intercede. ‘There have been enough of voices and hail’ means should those falsities come to an end. ‘And I will send you away, and you will not continue to remain’ means that they would leave them and no longer hold them back. ‘And Moses said to him’ means the reply. ‘As I am going out of the city’ means a separation. ‘I will spread out my palms towards Jehovah’ means intercession. ‘The voices will cease, and there will be no more hail’ means the end of that state. ‘In order that you may know that the earth is Jehovah’s’ means that from this it may be recognized that the Lord is the only God of the Church. ‘And [as for] you and your servants, I know that you do not yet fear the face of Jehovah God’ means that those engaged in molestation do not yet live in fear of the Lord.
* i.e. claps of thunder

sRef Ex@9 @27 S0′ 7587. ‘And Pharaoh sent and called Moses and Aaron’ means the presence of the law of God, as in 7390, 7451, where similar words occur.

sRef Ex@9 @27 S0′ 7588. ‘And said to them’ means self-abasement. This is clear from what follows immediately after – ‘I have sinned this time; Jehovah is righteous, and I and my people are wicked’, words which express self-abasement and go together with ‘said’.

sRef Ex@9 @27 S0′ 7589. ‘I have sinned this time’ means a separation from truth and good. This is clear from the meaning of ‘sinning’ as a cutting off and turning away from what is Divine, thus from truth and good, dealt with in 5229, 5474, 5841, consequently a separation also; for anyone who turns away from truth and good separates himself from them.

sRef Ex@9 @27 S0′ 7590. ‘Jehovah is righteous, and I and my people are wicked’ means that Divine Good could not tolerate the malevolence of the molesters, and that the current affliction had occurred as a result of this. This is clear from the consideration that Jehovah is Divine Good; for ‘Jehovah’ is used to mean the Divine Being (Esse), which is Divine Good, and ‘God’ to mean the Divine Coming-into-Being (Existere), which is Divine Truth, dealt with in 6905. Jehovah is said to be ‘righteous’ because He cannot tolerate the malevolence of molesters; for ‘Pharaoh and his people’ means those who engage in molestation, and malevolence is meant by their being ‘wicked’.

sRef Ex@9 @28 S0′ 7591. ‘plead with Jehovah’ means that they should intercede. This is clear from the meaning of ‘pleading’, when done on another’s behalf, as intercession, as in 7796, 7462.

sRef Ex@9 @28 S0′ 7592. ‘There have been enough of voices and hail’ means should those falsities come to an end. This is clear from the meaning of ‘its being enough’ as should they come to an end; from the meaning of ‘voices’, which are claps of thunder, as God’s truths which frighten the evil and subject them to vastation, and which by flowing in and becoming present activate the falsities arising from evil that are meant by ‘hail’, dealt with in 7573, ‘hail’ being falsities that are destructive of truths, 7553, 7574.

sRef Ex@9 @28 S0′ 7593. ‘And I will send you away, and you will not continue to remain’ means that they would leave them and no longer hold them back. This is clear from the representation of Pharaoh, who says these things about himself, as those who engage in molestation, dealt with often; from the meaning of ‘sending away’ as leaving; and from the meaning of ‘not continuing to remain’ as being held back no longer.

sRef Ex@9 @29 S0′ 7594. ‘And Moses said to him’ means the reply. This is clear without explanation.

sRef Ex@9 @29 S0′ 7595. ‘As I am going out of the city’ means a separation. This is clear from the meaning of ‘going out’ as a separation, dealt with in 6100, 7404, 7463; and from the meaning of ‘the city’, where Pharaoh was, as the falsity in which engaging in molestation are steeped. For ‘a city’ means doctrinal teaching, and since it means this it also means truth and in the contrary sense falsity, 401, 2268, 2451, 2712, 2943, 3216, 4492, 4493.

sRef Ex@9 @29 S0′ 7596. ‘I will spread out my palms towards Jehovah’ means intercession. This is clear from the meaning of ‘spreading out the palms towards Jehovah’, which is pleading, as intercession. Regarding ‘pleading’, see 7396, 7462, 7591; for ‘pleading’ is an activity of the mouth or speech, ‘spreading out the palms’ the performance of a gesture or action, which corresponds to a pleading of the heart. There are gestures or actions performed by the body that correspond to every affection in the mind. For example, falling down on one’s knees corresponds to self-abasement, casting oneself down flat onto the ground corresponds to even greater self-abasement, while a spreading out of one’s hands towards heaven corresponds to pleading, and so on. Those gestures or actions mean in the Word the actual affections to which they correspond, because they represent such affections. From this one can see what representations are.

sRef Ex@9 @29 S0′ 7597. ‘The voices will cease, and there will be no more hail’ means the end of that state. This is clear from the meaning of ‘the voices’, which are claps of thunder, as God’s truths subjecting the evil to vastation, dealt with in 7573; from the meaning of ‘hail’ as falsities destroying truths, dealt with in 7553, 7574; and from the meaning of ‘ceasing’ and ‘being no more’ as the end of them, thus the end of that state. For each plague means some particular state in the vastation undergone by those who molest the upright in the next life.

sRef Ex@9 @29 S0′ 7598. ‘[In order] that you may know that the earth is Jehovah’s’ means that from this it may be recognized that the Lord is the only God of the Church. This is clear from the meaning of ‘knowing’ as its being recognized; and from the meaning of ‘the earth’ as the Church, dealt with in 662, 1066, 1067, 1262, 1413, 1607, 1733, 1850, 4447, 4535, 5577 – ‘Jehovah’ being the Lord, see 1343, 1736, 2921, 3023, 3035, 5663, 6303, 6905, 6945, 6956. From this it is evident that ‘the earth is Jehovah’s’ means that the Church is the Lord’s, thus that the Lord is the only God of the Church, as in 7401, 7444, 7544.

sRef Ex@9 @30 S0′ 7599. ‘And [as for] you and your servants, I know that you do not yet fear the face of Jehovah God’ means that those engaged in molestation do not yet live in fear of the Lord. This is clear from the representation of ‘Pharaoh and his servants’ as those who engage in molestation, dealt with before; and from the meaning of ‘[not yet] fearing the face of Jehovah’ as having no fear of the Lord, the Lord being ‘Jehovah’ in the Word, see the places quoted immediately above in 7598. The expression ‘the face of Jehovah’ is used because it means mercy, and from this, peace and all good, 222, 223, 5585, and in the contrary sense the absence of mercy, peace, and good, 5585, 5592, 5816, 5823. The reason why the absence of mercy, peace, and good is meant by ‘the face of Jehovah’ is that the evil turn away from Jehovah or the Lord; for they turn away from the good of charity and the truth of faith in which the Lord is present. They then have what is the Lord’s behind their back, and what is their own facing them; and what is behind their back they neither see nor care about. All evil stems from this, consequently human unhappiness and hell.

sRef Ex@9 @30 S0′ 7600. Verses 31-end And the flax and the barley were struck; for the barley was a ripening ear, and the flax a stem.* And the wheat and the spelt were not struck, for they were hidden.** And Moses went out from Pharaoh, from the city, and spread out his palms towards Jehovah; and the voices’ and the hail ceased, and the rain was not poured on the earth. And Pharaoh saw that the rain and the hail and the voices*** had ceased; and he continued to sin, and made his heart stubborn, he and his servants. And Pharaoh’s heart was made unyielding, and he did not send the children of Israel away, as Jehovah had spoken through the hand of Moses.

‘And the flax’ means the truth of the exterior natural. ‘And the barley’ means its good. ‘Were struck’ means that they were destroyed. ‘For the barley was a ripening ear, and the flax a stem’ means that that good and truth were conspicuous and looked downwards. ‘And the wheat and the spelt’ means the good of the interior natural and its truth. ‘Were not struck’ means that they were not destroyed. ‘For they were hidden’ means because they were not conspicuous and because they turned in an inward direction. ‘And Moses went out from Pharaoh, from the city’ means a separation from them. ‘And spread out his palms towards Jehovah’ means intercession. ‘And the voices and the hail ceased’ means the end of that state. ‘And the rain was not poured on the earth’ means that those falsities no longer made their appearance. ‘And Pharaoh saw’ means a discernment. ‘That the rain and the hail and the voices had ceased’ means that it was the end of that state. ‘And he continued to sin’ means a departure still further away. ‘And made his heart stubborn, he and his servants’ means obstinacy. ‘And Pharaoh’s heart was made unyielding’ means that evil was the cause of their obstinate behaviour. ‘And he did not send the children of Israel away’ means so that they did not leave. ‘As Jehovah had spoken’ means as accorded with what had been foretold. ‘Through the hand of Moses’ means by means of the law from God.
* i.e. the pods were formed on the culms or stems
** i.e. had not yet begun to mature
*** i.e. claps of thunder

sRef Ex@9 @31 S0′ 7601. ‘And the flax’ means the truth of the exterior natural. This is clear from the meaning of’ the flax’ as truth, but the truth of the exterior natural, dealt with below. The natural is exterior and interior, see 4570, 5118, 5497, 5649, and therefore the truth and good there are interior and exterior, 3293, 3294. The truth and good of the exterior natural are meant by ‘the flax and the barley’, and the good and truth of the interior natural by ‘the wheat and the spelt’.

[2] This verse and the next deal with the truths and forms of good that were destroyed and laid waste, and the forms of good and truths that were not destroyed or laid waste. Thus they deal with the truths and forms of good that were stored away and placed in safe keeping for [future] use, and those which were not stored away and placed in safe keeping. For when those who are evil undergo vastation, that is, when they are being separated from truths and forms of good and are left with their own evils and falsities, those truths and forms of good that are present in the exterior natural – where they have become linked to falsities and evils – are what are laid waste. These truths and forms of good look downwards and cannot for that reason be safely stored away, as will be seen below in 7604, 7607. But the truths and forms of good of the interior natural are not laid waste but are taken to an even more interior position, where they are held in safe keeping for [future] use. Communication between the interior natural and the exterior is then closed to such an extent that no good or truth at all can pass from there into the exterior natural, apart from just a general kind of communication of them which enables those people to engage in reasoning and put together arguments to lend support to falsities and evils. Those forms of good and truths that are placed in safe keeping are meant in the Word by ‘the remnant’, dealt with in 468, 530, 560, 561, 576, 661, 798, 1738, 1906, 2284, 5135, 5342, 5344, 5897-5899, 6156, 7556. These then are the things which the two present verses deal with and which are meant by ‘the flax and the barley were struck; for the barley was a ripening ear, and the flax a stem’, and by ‘the wheat and the spelt were not struck because they were hidden’.

[3] The meaning of ‘flax’ or ‘linen’ as truth has its origin in representatives in heaven. In heaven those who are guided by the truth of the natural are seen clothed in white, like the whiteness of linen. The actual truth of the natural is also represented there as fabric made from the finer kind of flaxen threads. These threads have the appearance of silken ones, and clothing made from them has a similar appearance – brilliant, wonderfully translucent, and soft – if the truth represented in that way is rooted in good. But on the other hand those threads which look flaxen do not have a translucent, brilliant, or soft appearance, but a hard and brittle appearance, though they are still white, if the truth that is represented in that way is not rooted in good.

sRef Rev@15 @6 S4′ sRef Ezek@9 @3 S4′ sRef Ezek@9 @2 S4′ sRef Ezek@9 @4 S4′ sRef Dan@10 @5 S4′ [4] From all this one may now recognize what is meant when it says that the angels whom people saw appeared in garments of flax or linen, such as those referred to in John,

Out of the temple came the seven angels having the seven plagues, clothed in linen, white and splendid, and girded around their breasts with golden girdles. Rev. 15:6.

In Daniel,

I lifted up my eyes and saw, and behold, a man clothed in linen whose loins were girded with gold of Uphaz. Dan. 10:5.

In Ezekiel,

Behold, six men coming from the direction of the upper gate, each with a weapon of dispersion in his hand. But one man in the midst of them was clothed in linen and had a writer’s inkhorn at his side.* Ezek. 9:2.

More is said about this angel [clothed in linen] in verses 3 and 4 of the same chapter and in Chapter 10:2-7. The same prophet also says, in reference to the angel who measured the new temple, that he had a line of flax and a measuring rod in his hand, Ezek. 40:ff. Also, the angels who were seen in the Lord’s tomb appeared clothed in white, splendid and flashing like lightning, Matt. 28:3; Mark 16:5; Luke 14:4; John 20:11, 12.

sRef Lev@16 @3 S5′ sRef Lev@16 @4 S5′ sRef 2Sam@6 @14 S5′ sRef 1Sam@2 @18 S5′ sRef Ezek@44 @18 S5′ sRef Ezek@44 @17 S5′ sRef Ezek@44 @15 S5′ [5] Since ‘linen’ or ‘flax’ meant the truth of the exterior natural, and the exterior natural is what clothes things more internal, that truth is what was represented by the linen garments with which angels were seen to be clothed. It is also meant by the linen garments worn by Aaron whenever he ministered in the Holy Place, spoken of in Moses as follows, When Aaron comes into the Holy Place, he shall put on the holy linen tunic, and gird himself with a linen sash, and place the linen turban on himself. These are holy garments. Lev. 16:3, 4.

Similarly in Ezekiel,

The priests, the Levites, the sons of Zadok, when they enter the gates of the inner court they shall put on the linen garments, and no wool shall come upon them. When they minister in the gates of the inner court, and within, the linen turbans shall be on their heads, the linen under garments shall be over their loins. Ezek. 44:17, 18.

This is referring to the new temple and the New Jerusalem, which mean the Lord’s kingdom. For the same reason also the priests wore linen ephods, 1 Sam. 22:18; when the boy Samuel ministered before the Lord he wore a linen ephod, 1 Sam. 1:18; and David too wore a linen ephod when the ark was brought into his city, 2 Sam. 6:14.

sRef John@13 @5 S6′ sRef John@13 @4 S6′ [6] From all this one can also see why the Lord girded Himself with a linen towel when He washed the disciples’ feet, and wiped their feet with the linen towel with which He was girded, John 13:4, 5. Washing of the feet was a sign of purification from sins, which is accomplished by the truths of faith, since these teach a person how he ought to live.

sRef Jer@13 @7 S7′ sRef Jer@13 @4 S7′ sRef Isa@19 @9 S7′ sRef Jer@13 @6 S7′ sRef Jer@13 @1 S7′ [7] ‘Linen’ means truth in the following places too: In Jeremiah,

Jehovah said to the prophet, Go, buy yourself a linen girdle, and place it over your loins; but you are not to pass it through water. Take the girdle, and arise, go away to the Euphrates, and hide it in the cleft of a rock. At the end of many days, when he took the girdle from where he had hidden it, behold, the girdle was spoiled; it was profitable for nothing. Jer. 13:1-7.

‘The linen girdle over the loins’ represented truth arising from good, as it is in the beginning when the Church is established by the Lord, and as it becomes subsequently, when around the end it is has become spoiled and profitable for nothing. In Isaiah,

Those that make linen out of silk threads, and the weavers of curtains, will blush. Isa. 19:9.

This refers to Egypt. ‘Making linen out of silk threads’ stands for counterfeiting truths.

sRef Deut@22 @10 S8′ sRef Matt@24 @18 S8′ sRef Deut@22 @11 S8′ sRef Matt@24 @17 S8′ [8] In Moses,

You shall not plough with an ox and an ass together. You shall not put on a mingled garment made of wool and linen together. Deut. 22:10, 11.

‘Ox’ means the good of the natural, ‘ass’ its truth; and much the same is meant by ‘wool and linen’. Their being forbidden to plough with an ox and ass together or to put on a mingled garment made of wool and linen together meant that they were forbidden to be in two states at the same time, that is to say, in a state of good from which they looked to truth and at the same time in a state of truth from which they looked to good. These prohibitions embody much the same as those declared by the Lord in Matthew,

Let him who is on the roof of the house not go down to take anything out of his house; and let him who is in the field not turn back to get his clothing. Matt. 24:17, 18.

Regarding these prohibitions see 3652 (end). For those who look from good to truth are in the inner part of heaven, whereas those who look from truth to good are in the outer part. The latter look from the world towards heaven, the former from heaven towards the world. Consequently they are in a kind of inverse ratio to each other, and therefore if they were put together the one would destroy the other.
* lit. on his loins

sRef Joel@1 @9 S0′ sRef Joel@1 @10 S0′ sRef Judg@7 @13 S0′ sRef Ex@9 @31 S0′ sRef Joel@1 @11 S0′ 7602. ‘And the barley’ means its good. This is clear from the meaning of ‘the barley’ as the good of the exterior natural. The reason why ‘the barley’ means that good is that it is a product of the field and is a grain that serves for food. For ‘grain’ in general means the good of truth, 3580, 5295, 5410, 5959, as do ‘barley and wheat’ in particular – ‘barley’ the good of the exterior natural, and ‘wheat’ the good of the interior natural. The former is meant by ‘the barley’ in Joel,

The minchah has been cut off, and the drink offering, from the house of Jehovah; the priests have been mourning, the ministers of Jehovah. The field has been devastated, the land has been mourning because the grain has been laid waste, the new wine has failed, the oil languishes. Farmers have been put to shame, vine dressers have wailed over the wheat and over the barley, for the reason that the harvest of the field has perished. Joel 1:9-11.

The prophet is referring at this point to a laying waste of what is good and true, as is clear from what follows it there. Not those products therefore are meant by ‘the grain’, ‘the new wine’, ‘the wheat’, and ‘the barley’, but spiritual things; that is, ‘the wheat’ means interior good, and ‘the barley’ exterior good. ‘Barley’ has a similar meaning in Ezekiel 4:9 and Deut. 8:8. In the Book of Judges,

When Gideon reached the camp, there was a man recounting a dream to his companion. And he said, Behold, I have dreamed a dream; and behold, a cake of barley bread rolled towards the camp of Midian, and came all the way to a tent, and struck it so that it fell, and overturned it, and so the tent collapsed. Judg. 7:13.

‘Midian’ means those who are guided by the truth that goes with simple good, and in the contrary sense those who fail to lead a good life, 3242, 4756, 4788, 6777. This good is the good of the exterior natural and is meant by ‘barley bread’. But sensory pleasure, if this is what a person has in view instead of that good, is what is meant by ‘a cake of barley bread’. This is the state that the Midianites described here represented on that occasion.

sRef Ex@9 @31 S0′ 7603. ‘Were struck’ means that they were destroyed. This is evident without explanation.

sRef Ex@9 @31 S0′ 7604. ‘For the barley was a ripening ear, and the flax a stem’ means that that good and truth were conspicuous and looked downwards. This is clear from the meaning of ‘the barley’ and ‘the flax’ as the good and truth of the exterior natural, dealt with just above in 7601, 7602; and from the meaning of ‘a ripening ear’ and also ‘a stem’ as the fact that they were conspicuous, for the next verse says of ‘the wheat and the spelt’ that ‘they were hidden’, that is, were not conspicuous. The former are mature; the crop now stands out in the ear and on the stem, so that it is ready to fall. This means in the spiritual sense, which has to do with the good of faith and charity, that they looked downwards. The nature of all this is evident from what has been stated above in 7601. The reason why with those who are evil the forms of good and the truths in the exterior natural are looking downwards is that they exist together there with falsities and evils, and have become attached to them. All evils and falsities look downwards, that is, outwards towards the earth and the world, and therefore the forms of good and the truths attached to them do so too; for the evils and falsities drag them along by misapplying them. These forms of good and truths are ones that are laid waste with the evil. For if they were not laid waste the forms of good and the truths which have been stored away and placed in safe keeping by the Lord in the interior natural would come in, join themselves to those in the exterior natural, and so make one with them. Then they too would be bent downwards and so perish. Man is distinguished from animals by his being able to look upwards, that is, towards what is Divine. Without that ability man would be the same as a beast; for a beast can look only downwards. From this one may see why the forms of good and the truths which with those who are evil look downwards are taken away from them, and why, when they have been taken away, there is an end of communication with the interiors where forms of good and truths have been stored away and placed in safe keeping by the Lord for [future] use.

sRef Ex@9 @32 S0′ 7605. ‘And the wheat and the spelt’ means the good of the interior natural and its truth. This is clear from the meaning of ‘the wheat’ as the good of love and charity, dealt with in 3941, and – since it is a superior grain to barley – as the good of the interior natural; and from the meaning of ‘the spelt’ as the truth of the interior natural that goes with the good meant by ‘the wheat’. One may recognize that ‘the spelt’ means this truth from the consideration that when the Word speaks of good it also speaks of truth. It does so because the heavenly marriage, which is the marriage of goodness and truth, resides in each detail of the Word. Indeed it does so because the union of the Divine itself and the Divine Human within the Lord, to which union the marriage of goodness and truth in heaven corresponds, resides in its highest sense; and that being so, the Lord’s Divine itself and His Divine Human are the innermost being of the Word, see 683, 797, 801, 2173, 2516, 2618, 2712, 2803, 3132, 4138 (end), 5502, 6179, 6343. From this it is evident that ‘the spelt’ means the truth that goes with the good meant by ‘the wheat’.

sRef Ex@9 @32 S0′ 7606. ‘Were not struck’ means that they were not destroyed. This is evident without explanation.

sRef Ex@9 @32 S0′ 7607. ‘For they were hidden’ means because they were not conspicuous and because they turned in an inward direction. This is clear from the meaning of ‘they were hidden’ as not being conspicuous, in the spiritual sense not conspicuous because they were in the interior natural, where they turned in an inward direction. The reason why they could not be destroyed was that they looked to heaven and to the Lord, which is to look in an inward direction, not to the earth and the world, which is to look in an outward one. Let something brief be said about what looking in an inward direction and looking in an outward one is. Man has been created in such a way that he can look up above himself to heaven, even to the Divine, and also to look down beneath himself to the world and earth. This is what distinguishes man from animals. And man looks up above himself or to heaven, even to the Divine, when he has his neighbour, country, the Church, heaven, and above all the Lord as his end in view; but he looks down beneath himself when he has self and the world as his end in view. To have something as one’s end in view is to love it; for a person has what he loves as his end in view, and what he loves rules him completely, that is, in each part of his thought and will. While a person looks one way he does not look the other way. That is to say, while he looks towards the world and self he does not look towards heaven and the Lord, and vice versa; for they are in opposite directions.

[2] The fact that man can look above himself, that is, can think about the Divine, and can be joined to the Divine through love makes it plainly evident that there is a raising of the mind by the Divine, for by no means can anyone look above himself unless his mind is raised by Him who is above. From this it is also evident that everything good and true with a person is the Lord’s; and it is also evident from this that when a person looks down beneath himself he separates himself from the Divine and turns his interiors towards self and the world, in the same direction in which an animal’s are turned. And when he does that, to that extent the person sheds what makes him human. From all this one may now see what is meant by looking in an inward direction or above oneself, and by looking in an outward direction or beneath oneself.

sRef Ex@9 @33 S0′ 7608. ‘And Moses went out from Pharaoh, from the city’ means a separation from them. This is clear from the explanation above in 7595, where similar words occur.

sRef Ex@9 @33 S0′ 7609. ‘And spread out his palms towards Jehovah’ means intercession, as above in 7596.

sRef Ex@9 @33 S0′ 7610. ‘And the voices and the hail ceased’ means the end of that state, as above in 7597.

sRef Ex@9 @33 S0′ 7611. ‘And the rain was not poured on the earth’ means that those falsities no longer made their appearance. This is clear from the meaning of ‘the rain’, at this point rain which took the form of hail, as falsities, dealt with in 7553, 7574; and from the meaning of ‘not poured out on the earth’ as the fact that they – the falsities meant by the rain in the form of hail – came to an end and so did not make their appearance.

sRef Ex@9 @34 S0′ 7612. ‘And Pharaoh saw’ means a discernment. This is clear from the meaning of ‘seeing’ as a discernment, dealt with in 2150, 3764, 4723, 5400.

sRef Ex@9 @34 S0′ 7613. ‘That the rain [and] the hail and the voices had ceased’ means the end of that state, as above in 7597, 7610.

sRef Ex@9 @34 S0′ 7614. ‘And he continued to sin’ means a departure still further away. This is clear from the meaning of ‘continuing’ as even more and further still; and from the meaning of ‘sinning’ as a cutting off, departure, and separation from goodness and truth, dealt with in 5229, 5474, 5841, 7589.

sRef Ex@9 @34 S0′ 7615. ‘And made his heart stubborn, he and his servants’ means obstinacy. This is clear from the meaning of ‘making the heart stubborn’, ‘hardening it’, and ‘making it unyielding’ as behaving obstinately, dealt with in 7272, 7300, 7305.

sRef Ex@9 @35 S0′ 7616. ‘And Pharaoh’s heart was made unyielding’ means that evil was the cause of their obstinate behaviour. This is clear from the meaning of ‘the heart being made unyielding’ as behaving obstinately, dealt with immediately above in 7615. Where it says that he made his heart stubborn. The difference is that ‘making the heart stubborn’ is caused by falsity, whereas ‘making the heart unyielding’ is caused by evil.

sRef Ex@9 @35 S0′ 7617. ‘And he did not send the children of Israel away’ means so that they did not leave. This is clear from the meaning of ‘sending away’ as leaving, as often before; and from the representation of ‘the children of Israel’ as those belonging to the spiritual Church, whom they molested, dealt with in 6426, 6637, 6862, 6868, 7035, 7062, 7198, 7201, 7215, 7223.

sRef Ex@9 @35 S0′ 7618. ‘As Jehovah had spoken’ means as accorded with what had been foretold, as previously in 7302, 7340, 7414, 7432, 7535.

sRef 1Ki@15 @29 S0′ sRef 1Ki@16 @12 S0′ sRef 1Ki@16 @34 S0′ sRef Ex@9 @35 S0′ sRef 1Ki@16 @7 S0′ sRef 2Ki@14 @25 S0′ sRef 1Ki@14 @18 S0′ sRef 1Ki@17 @16 S0′ 7619. ‘Through the hand of Moses’ means by means of the law from God. This is clear from the meaning of ‘through the hand of someone’ as through an intermediary, dealt with below; and from the representation of ‘Moses’ as the law from God, dealt with in 6771, 6827. The reason why ‘speaking through the hand of someone’ means by means of that person or through an intermediary is that ‘the hand’ means power, 878, 3387, 4931-4937, 5327, 5328, 5544, 6292, 6947, 7011, 7518. Thus ‘the hand of someone’ is power exercised vicariously, which is the same as through an intermediary; for what is done through an intermediary is done through the power that another has within him. This explains the occurrence of that way of speaking in the Word, such as in the Books of Kings, which mentions a number of times the Word that Jehovah spoke ‘through the hand of someone’; for example, He spoke through the hand of Ahijah the prophet, I Kings 14:18; through the hand of Ahijah the Shilonite, 1 Kings 15:29; through the hand of Jehu the prophet, 1 Kings 16:7, 12; through the hand of Joshua, 1 Kings 16:34; through the hand of Elijah, 1 Kings 17:16; and through the hand of Jonah the prophet, 2 Kings 14:25.

7620. SPIRITS AND INHABITANTS OF THE PLANET MARS – continued

I saw a most beautiful flaming object, varying in colour; it was crimson, turning from brilliant white to a deepening red. The flame also made its colours glow beautifully. I also saw a hand, which was not holding the flame; rather, the flame clung to the hand. At first it caressed the back of the hand, after that the palm or hollow, and from there all around. This went on for some time. The hand together with the flaming object then moved further away, and where it stopped there was a patch of light, into which the hand disappeared. At this point the flaming object changed into a bird, which at first possessed colours like those of the flaming object, colours which were likewise sparkling. But those colours gradually changed, and as they did so, the vigorous life in the bird changed too. It flew round about, first around my head, and then frontwards from me into something narrow like a cubicle. And the further it flew in that direction, the more the life went out of it, till at length it became like a piece of stone. At first its colour was pearly, after that it was dull; but even though devoid of life it continued its flight.

7621. While the bird was flying around my head and still full of life a spirit appeared, who rose up from underneath, coming by way of the region of the loins into that of the breast. He wished to remove the bird from there. But as it was so beautiful the spirits around me prevented him from doing so; for they all had their eyes fixed on it. But that spirit who had risen up from underneath then did all he could to convince them that the Lord was with him, thus that the Lord inspired him in what he was doing. Although most of them did not believe this because he had risen up from underneath, nevertheless the spirits around me no longer prevented him from removing the bird. However, because at this time heaven was flowing into it he could not keep hold of the bird and immediately let it go free out of his hand.

7622. When all this had been completed the spirits around me who had watched the bird intently and the series of changes it had undergone talked to one another about it, and for a considerable length of time. They perceived that this kind of sight could only be a sign of something heavenly. They knew that the flaming object was a sign of heavenly love and affections; that the hand which the flame clung to was a sign of life and the power of life, and the changes of colour signs of variations in wisdom and intelligence that go with that life. They knew that the bird too had a similar meaning, the difference being that the flaming object was a sign of celestial love and aspects of that love, while the bird was a sign of spiritual love and aspects of this love. (Celestial love is love to the Lord, spiritual love is mutual love and charity towards the neighbour.) They knew too that the changes in the colours of the bird, and at the same time in the life it had within it until it became stone-like, were signs of the various successive changes in the intelligence that goes with that spiritual life.

[2] They knew furthermore that spirits who come up from underneath by way of the region of the loins into that of the breast are utterly convinced that the Lord is with them, and as a consequence believe that in all they do, even wicked and criminal acts, they are doing the Lord’s will. Yet although the spirits around me knew all these things they could not figure out who exactly were meant in the scene they had witnessed. Eventually they learned from heaven that the inhabitants of Mars were meant; that their celestial love, which still exists in a large number of them, was meant by the flame that clung to the hand; that their wisdom and intelligence was meant by the series of varying colours; and that the bird at first, when its colours were beautiful and it was full of life, meant their spiritual love, but then, when that bird became stone-like, lacking in life, and dull-coloured, it meant inhabitants who had forsaken the good of love for evil, yet still believed that the Lord was with them. But since there is more that has been disclosed and demonstrated to me about those inhabitants who are like this and about their state of life, let that be recorded at the end of the next chapter.

7623. 10

TEACHINGS ABOUT CHARITY

There are two entities which emanate from the Lord and which therefore in origin are Divine. One is GOOD, the other TRUTH. These two are therefore what reign in heaven, indeed what make heaven. And in the Church the two are called charity and faith.

7624. When good and truth emanate from the Lord they are completely united, so united that they are not two but one. For that reason also the two are one in heaven; and since they are one in heaven, heaven is a likeness of the Lord. So would the Church be if charity and faith there were one.

7625. The sun and its light may be used to form an idea of good which is synonymous with charity, and of truth which is synonymous with faith. When the light that emanates from the sun comes combined with heat, as happens in spring and summer, everything on earth grows and is alive. But when the light lacks heat, as in wintertime, everything on earth becomes inactive and dies off. In the Word also the Lord is compared to the sun, and truth combined with good which emanates from Him is compared to the light, in addition to which in the Word the truth of faith is called ‘light’ and the good of love ‘fire’. Love is also ‘the fire of life’, and faith ‘the light of life’.

7626. All this too may be used to form an idea of what a member of the Church is like when his faith is combined with charity – he is like a garden, like a park. But when faith is not combined with charity, he is like a solitary waste, like land covered with snow.

7627. The inferior light which his natural man possesses is alone sufficient to enable anyone to see that truth and good are compatible with each other and also capable of being linked together, while truth and evil are incompatible and incapable of being linked, and that faith and charity are in a similar way compatible. Actual experience bears witness to the same thing; one knows from experience that the person who pursues an evil life either has faith that is false, no faith at all, or an altogether antagonistic attitude towards faith. And – this is an arcanum – the person who pursues an evil life is directed by falsity attached to his evil, although he imagines that he is guided by truth. The reason why he imagines he is guided by truth is that he is under the influence of faith which is mere persuasion, a kind of faith that will be dealt with later on.

EXODUS 10

1 And Jehovah said to Moses, Go to Pharaoh; for I have made his heart stubborn, and the heart of his servants, in order that I may set these My signs in the midst of him;

2 And in order that you may tell in the ears of your son and your son’s son the deeds which I have performed in Egypt, and My signs which I have set among them, and that you may know that I am Jehovah.

3 And Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh, and said to him, Thus says Jehovah the God of the Hebrews, How long do you refuse to humble yourself* before Me? Send My people away, and let them serve Me.

4 For if you refuse to send My people away, behold, tomorrow I am bringing locusts into your border.

5 And they will cover the surface of the land, and one will not be able to see the land; and they will devour the residue of what escaped and was left to you from the hail, and will devour every tree growing up for you out of the field.

6 And your houses will be filled, and the houses of all your servants, and the houses of all the Egyptians – which** your fathers and your fathers’ fathers have not seen, from the day they have been on the ground even to this day. And he looked away and went out from Pharaoh.

7 And Pharaoh’s servants said to him, How long will this thing be a snare to us? Send the men away, and let them serve Jehovah their God. Do you not yet know that Egypt is perishing?

8 And Moses and Aaron were brought back to Pharaoh, and he said to them, Go, serve Jehovah your God. But just who will be going?***

9 And Moses said, We shall go with our children and with our old people; with our sons and with our daughters, with our flocks and with our herds we shall go; for it is a feast of Jehovah for us.

10 And he said to them, So Jehovah will be with you when I send you and your little children away! See that evil is on your faces.

11 Not so! Go now, you young men, and serve Jehovah; for this is what you seek. And he drove them out from Pharaoh’s face.

12 And Jehovah said to Moses, Stretch out your hand over the land of Egypt for the locusts, and they will come up over the land of Egypt and devour every plant in the land, all that the hail has left.

13 And Moses stretched out his rod over the land of Egypt, and Jehovah brought an east wind into the land the whole of that day and the whole night. Morning came, and the east wind brought the locusts.

14 And the locusts came up over all the land of Egypt, and rested at all the border of Egypt; they were extremely severe. Before them there were no such locusts like them, and there will not be such after them.

15 And they covered the surface of the whole land, and the land was darkened; and they devoured every plant in the land and all the fruit on the trees which the hail had caused to be left. And there was not left any green on tree and on plant of the field in the whole land of Egypt.

16 And Pharaoh hastened to call Moses and Aaron; and he said, I have sinned against Jehovah your God, and against you.

17 And now forgive, I beg you, my sin only this once, and plead with Jehovah your God, and let Him remove from upon me this death only.

18 And he went out from Pharaoh, and pleaded with Jehovah.

19 And Jehovah turned an extremely strong wind of the sea,**** and it lifted the locusts and cast them into the Sea Suph. Not one locust was left in all the border of Egypt.

20 And Jehovah made Pharaoh’s heart unyielding, and he did not send the children of Israel away.

21 And Jehovah said to Moses, Stretch out your hand towards heaven, and there will be thick darkness over the land of Egypt; and one will grope in the thick darkness.

22 And Moses stretched out his hand towards heaven, and there was intensely thick darkness in the whole land of Egypt three days.

23 No man could see his brother, and they did not rise up from their places for three days.***** And all the children of Israel had light in their dwellings.

24 And Pharaoh called Moses, and said, Go, serve Jehovah; only your flocks and your herds will stay behind. Your little children also will go with you.

25 And Moses said, You must also give into our hand sacrifices and burnt offerings, and we must make them to Jehovah our God.

26 And our livestock also must go with us; not a hoof must be left behind, for we must take some of them to serve Jehovah our God, and we ourselves do not know what we must serve Jehovah with until we get there.

27 And Jehovah made Pharaoh’s heart unyielding, and he would not send them away.

28 And Pharaoh said to him, Go away from me; take care not to see my face again. For on the day you see my face you will die.

29 And Moses said, Rightly have you spoken; I will not see your face again.
* lit. to be humbled
** i.e. the locusts
*** lit. Who and who are going?
**** i.e. a west wind
***** lit. They did not see, a man his brother, and they did not rise up, anyone from under himself for three days.

sRef Ex@10 @0 S0′ 7628. CONTENTS

This chapter goes on in the internal sense to deal further still with the vastation of those who molest people who belong to the spiritual Church. Now the ninth and tenth states or stages of their vastation are dealt with; the locusts and the thick darkness, meaning falsity arising from evil which devastates everything of the Church present with them, serve to describe those states.

sRef Ex@10 @6 S0′ sRef Ex@10 @2 S0′ sRef Ex@10 @3 S0′ sRef Ex@10 @4 S0′ sRef Ex@10 @1 S0′ sRef Ex@10 @5 S0′ 7629. THE INTERNAL SENSE

Verses 1-6 And Jehovah said to Moses, Go to Pharaoh; for I have made his heart stubborn, and the heart of his servants, in order that I may set these My signs in the midst of him; and in order that you may tell in the ears of your son and your son’s son the deeds which I have performed in Egypt, and My signs which I have set among them, and that you may know that I am Jehovah. And Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh, and said to him, Thus says Jehovah the God of the Hebrews, How long do you refuse to humble yourself* before Me? Send My people away, and let them serve Me. For if you refuse to send My people away, behold, tomorrow I am bringing locusts into your border. And they will cover the surface of the land, and one will not be able to see the land; and they will devour the residue of what escaped and was left to you from the hail, and will devour every tree growing up for you out of the field. And your houses will be filled, and the houses of all your servants, and the houses of all the Egyptians – which** your fathers and your fathers’ fathers have not seen, from the day they have been on the ground even to this day. And he looked away and went out from Pharaoh.

‘And Jehovah said to Moses’ means a command. ‘Go to Pharaoh’ means the presence of the truth from God with the molesting ones. ‘For I have made his heart stubborn, and the heart of his servants’ means that they remained obstinate, all in common with one another. ‘In order that I may set these My signs in the midst of him’ means in order that the evil may recognize that they are ruled by evil, and the good may be enlightened regarding the state of those within the Church who lead an evil life. ‘And in order that you may tell in the ears of your son and your son’s son the deeds which I have performed in Egypt’ means in order that those guided by truth and governed by good may know what happens to the ones belonging to the Church who molest the upright. ‘And My signs which I have set among them’ means in order that they may be enlightened regarding the state of those belonging to the Church who lead an evil life. ‘And that you may know that I am Jehovah’ means in order that it may thereby be made known to them that the Lord is the only God. ‘And Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh’ means the presence of God’s truth. ‘And said to him’ means discernment. ‘Thus says Jehovah the God of the Hebrews’ means a command from the Lord who is the God of the Church. ‘How long do you refuse to humble yourself before Me?’ means disobedience. ‘Send My people away, and let them serve Me’ means that they should leave those who belong to the spiritual Church, in order that these may worship the Lord. ‘For if you refuse to send them away means should they fail to leave … ‘Behold, I am bringing locusts into your border’ means that falsity will take possession of their outermost parts. ‘And they will cover the surface of the land’ means the lowest levels of the natural mind. ‘And one will not be able to see the land’ means a darkening of the whole natural mind as a result. ‘And they will devour the residue of what escaped and was left to you from the hail’ means the consumption of all things that have any element of truth in them. ‘And will devour every tree growing up for you out of the field’ means thus the consumption of all the religious knowledge that they get from the Church. ‘And your houses will be filled, and the houses of all your servants, and the houses of all the Egyptians’ means that falsity will reign in every single thing in the natural from the inner part of it to the outermost. ‘Which your fathers and your fathers’ fathers have not seen, from the day they have been on the ground even to this day’ means that since ancient times no such falsity had existed in the Church as existed there now. ‘And he looked away and went out from Pharaoh’ means deprivation of discernment, and separation.
* lit. to be humbled
** i.e. the locusts

sRef Ex@10 @1 S0′ 7630. ‘And Jehovah said to Moses’ means a command, that is to say, one that had to be conveyed to Pharaoh. This is clear from the meaning of ‘saying’, when the message is from Jehovah to those engaged in molestation, as a command, dealt with in 7036, 7107, 7310.

sRef Ex@10 @1 S0′ 7631. ‘Go to Pharaoh’ means the presence of the truth from God with the molesting ones. This is clear from the meaning of ‘going (in) to someone’ as presence, as in 5934, 6063, 6089, 7498; from the representation of ‘Moses’ as the truth from God, dealt with in 6771, 6827; and from the representation of ‘Pharaoh’ as the ones in the next life who molest those who belong to the spiritual Church, dealt with in 6651, 6679, 6683, 7107, 7110, 7126, 7142, 7220, 7228.

sRef Ex@10 @1 S0′ 7632. ‘For I have made his heart stubborn, and the heart of his servants’ means that they remained obstinate, all in common with one another. This is clear from the meaning of ‘making the heart stubborn’, ‘hardening it’, and ‘making it unyielding’ as remaining obstinate, dealt with in 7271, 7300, 7305; and from the representation of Pharaoh, whose ‘heart was made stubborn’, as those engaged in molestation – all in common with one another being meant when it says ‘he and his servants’, because the servants and he together make up his house. When it says that Jehovah made Pharaoh’s heart stubborn the meaning in the internal sense is that he himself made his heart stubborn. In ancient times everything bad was for simple people’s benefit attributed to Jehovah. It was attributed to Him because simple people could not have known, and most of them could not have understood either, how the origin of things that happened could lie anywhere else than in Jehovah. Nor could they have known how to understand the truth that Jehovah permits the devil’s crew to inflict evil and does not stop them, when yet He is all-powerful. Since simple people could not have grasped these matters, and also the intelligent could have scarcely done so, it was said, in keeping with what very many believed, that Jehovah was the author even of what was bad or evil. This is a common feature of the Word, whose literal sense is accommodated to the beliefs of simple people. The evil that is attributed in the Word to Jehovah has its origin in man, see 2447, 6071, 6991, 6997, 7533.

sRef Ex@10 @2 S0′ 7633. ‘And I will set these My signs in the midst of him’ means in order that the evil may recognize that they are ruled by evil, and the good may be enlightened regarding the state of those within the Church who lead an evil life. This is clear from the meaning of ‘signs’ as corroborations of truths, and so recognition of them, dealt with in 6870, and also enlightenment in them, 7012; therefore ‘setting signs in the midst of him’ means in order that the evil may recognize they are ruled by evil. As regards the further meaning, in order that the good may be enlightened regarding the state of those within the Church who lead an evil life, this is evident from what immediately follows. There it says, ‘And in order that you may tell in the ears of your son and your son’s son the deeds which I have performed in Egypt, and My signs which I have set among them’, meaning in order that those guided by truth and governed by good may know what happens to the ones belonging to the Church who molest the upright. The fact that those in the next life who molest the upright are people who have belonged to the Church and been acquainted with, yet led a life contrary to the commands that faith prescribes, see 7317, 7502, 7545, 7554.

sRef Ex@10 @2 S0′ 7634. ‘And in order that you may tell in the ears of your son and your son’s son the deeds which I have performed in Egypt’ means in order that those guided by truth and governed by good may know what happens to the ones belonging to the Church who molest the upright. This is clear from the meaning of ‘telling in the ears’ as in order that they may know and discern; from the meaning of ‘son and son’s son’ as those guided by truth and governed by good (‘son’ means truth, see 489-491, 1147, 2623, 3373, and ‘the sons of sons’ derivatives, 6583, but at this point ‘sons’ are those who are guided by truth and also governed by good, for those who belong to the Church are meant by them; this explains why ‘your son’s son’ is included in what is said to Moses, who represents the law of God, that is, Divine Truth emanating from the Lord’s Divine Good, thus Divine Truth to which Divine Good is united, 7623, 7624, from which Truth and Good the Church derives its existence); and from the meaning of ‘the deeds which I have performed in Egypt’ as what happens to those who in the next life molest the upright. The meaning of ‘signs’ as what happens, and of ‘Pharaoh and the Egyptians’ as those who engage in molestation in the next life, is evident from what has been stated in previous paragraphs in this chapter; and for the fact that those who engage in molestation are people who have belonged to the Church, see immediately above at the end of 7633.

sRef Ex@10 @2 S0′ 7635. ‘And My signs which I have set among them’ means in order that they may be enlightened regarding the state of those belonging to the Church who lead an evil life. This is clear from what has been stated just above in 7633, where similar words occur.

sRef Ex@10 @2 S0′ 7636. ‘In order that you may know that I am Jehovah’ means in order that it may thereby be made known to them that the Lord is the only God. This is clear from the meaning of ‘in order that you may know’ as in order that it may be made known to them. The reason why ‘I am Jehovah’ means that the Lord is the only God is that Jehovah means He Is, that is, the Source of the Being and Coming-into-Being (Esse et Existere) of all things, which must necessarily be unique and one. For the fact that ‘Jehovah’ is the Lord, see 1347, 1736, 2921, 3023, 3035, 5663, 6703, 6905, 6945, 6956; and for the fact that the words used here mean that He is the only God, 7401, 7444, 7544, 7598.

sRef Ex@10 @3 S0′ 7637. ‘And Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh’ means the presence of God’s truth. This is clear from the meaning of ‘going (in) to’ as presence, as above in 7631; and from the representation of ‘Moses and Aaron’ as God’s truth, ‘Moses’ inward truth, ‘Aaron’ outward, dealt with in 7089,
7382.

sRef Ex@10 @3 S0′ 7638. ‘And said to him’ means discernment. This is clear from the meaning of ‘saying’ as discerning, dealt with in 1791, 1815, 1819, 1822, 1898, 1919, 2080, 2619, 2862, 3395, 3509, 5743, 5877. The reason why ‘said’ here means discerning is that by ‘Moses and Aaron’ God’s truth is represented, ‘going to’ means its presence, and the presence of God’s truth leads to discernment.

sRef Ex@10 @3 S0′ 7639. ‘Thus says Jehovah the God of the Hebrews’ means a command from the Lord who is the God of the Church. This is clear from the meaning of ‘saying’, when the message is from Jehovah to those engaged in molestation, as a command, as above in 7630; and from the meaning of ‘the Hebrews’ as those who belong to the Church, dealt with in 5136, 6675, 6684, 6738, ‘Jehovah God’ being the Lord, see above in 7636.

sRef Ex@10 @3 S0′ 7640. ‘How long do you refuse to humble yourself before Me?’ means disobedience. This is clear from the meaning of ‘refusing to humble oneself’ as not obeying. The reason why it means this is that the words here are addressed to those ruled by evil, who are incapable of humbling themselves before the Divine. For self-abasement involves the recognition of the following two things: That one is altogether evil, and in comparison with the Divine almost nothing, and that the Divine is altogether Good, and infinite. The recognition of these two things is not possible with the evil because they are full of self-love. If they do humble themselves, they act out of fear, or to the end that they may acquire important positions or make material gain. Thus when they humble themselves they do so merely with the body and not at all in the mind, which sometimes is mocking; such is the nature of self-abasement when prompted by fear or engaged in for the sake of making gain or attaining important positions. The same is true of the evil in the presence of God, though they are not aware of it. For inwardly those who are ruled by evil as a result of self-love regard and magnify only themselves; and they turn away from all who are not favourably disposed towards them. Since no self-abasement exists with the evil, obedience is meant in the internal sense by ‘humbling yourself’, and so disobedience by ‘you refuse to humble yourself’.

sRef Ex@10 @3 S0′ 7641. ‘Send My people away, and let them serve Me’ means that they should leave those who belong to the spiritual Church, in order that these may worship the Lord. This is clear from what has been stated previously in 7500, where the same words occur.

sRef Ex@10 @4 S0′ 7642. ‘For if you refuse to send them away’ means should they fail to leave . . . This is clear from the meaning of ‘sending away’ as leaving, as often before, so that ‘refusing to send away’ is being unwilling to leave.

sRef Ex@10 @4 S0′ 7643. ‘Behold, I am bringing locusts into your border’ means that falsity will take possession of their outermost parts. This is clear from the meaning of ‘locusts’ as falsity in outermost parts, dealt with below; from the meaning of ‘border’ as outermost parts; and from the meaning of ‘bringing’, since it is used in connection with falsity, as taking possession of. It says that Jehovah will bring the locusts, but by this their being brought – brought by evil – is meant. This is similar to the attribution made to Jehovah, that is, to the Lord, where it says that ‘He made Pharaoh’s heart stubborn’; in actual fact it is made such by man, by the evil within him, see above in 7632. Evil does not originate in the Lord but springs from man because man diverts towards himself the good that flows in from the Lord, and instead of regarding, in every single thing, the Lord and what is the Lord’s regards himself. This self-regard gives rise to a craving to have dominion over all people and to possess all that others have; it gives rise to contempt for others, and hateful, vengeful, and cruel behaviour towards those who are not disposed to apply themselves to his interests; and also it gives rise to contempt for all things connected with faith and charity, for when these flow in from the Lord he focuses them onto himself and so away from the Lord.

[2] From all this one may see that man turns into evil the actual good that flows in from the Lord. It also goes to explain why in the next life the evil distance themselves from heaven as far away as they can get; for when heaven draws nearer to them, that is, when the inflow of goodness and truth becomes more forceful, they plunge with greater force into the opposite, that is, into evil and into falsity. Then to the extent that the evil and falsity increase, they drive truth out from themselves and bring about vastation within themselves. And to the same extent they also plunge into the evils brought by punishment; for in the next life evils and punishments are interconnected.

[3] The Lord is continually rearranging the heavens, and constantly adding new inhabitants of heaven whom He provides with dwellings and inheritances. When He does this heaven draws nearer, that is, flows in with greater force, as a consequence of which hellish spirits plunge with greater force into evils and falsities, and into the punishments that go with them; and since they plunge into evils and falsities, they bring about vastation within themselves, as has been stated. This process does not stop until they have brought about complete vastation and cast themselves deeply into the hells. From this it may be recognized that nothing but good emanates from the Lord, and that evil springs from those people themselves who are ruled by evil. From all this one may now see how to understand the statement that Jehovah, that is, the Lord, made Pharaoh’s heart stubborn, and the statement here that He will bring locusts, by which falsity arising from evil in outermost parts is meant.

sRef Ex@10 @14 S4′ sRef Ex@10 @15 S4′ [4] In the Word, in those places in which the laying waste of evils is referred to, the locust and the bruchus* are mentioned several times; and in those places ‘locust’ is used to mean in the internal sense falsity that lays waste the outermost parts. For as has been shown before, the human natural is interior and exterior. The falsity that is present in the outermost parts of the natural is meant by ‘locust’, and the evil there by ‘bruchus’. Because ‘locust’ is used to mean falsity present in the outermost parts of the natural it says that the locusts will be brought ‘into the border, and they will cover the surface of the land’, and later on in verses 14, 15.

The locusts came up over the land of Egypt, and rested at all the border of Egypt, and covered the surface of the whole land.

‘The border’ and ‘the surface’ mean the outermost and lowest parts, on which the more internal ones rest, that is, by which they are bounded.

sRef Ps@105 @34 S5′ sRef Ps@78 @46 S5′ sRef Ps@78 @45 S5′ [5] These things are what ‘the locust’ and ‘the bruchus’ are used to mean in David,

He sent among them swarms [of insects], which devoured them, and frogs which destroyed them; and He gave their crops to the bruchus, and their labour to the locust. Ps. 78:45, 46.

And elsewhere,

He spoke so that the locust might come and the bruchus, so that it would be without number. Ps. 105:34.

These verses, which speak about Egypt, refer to ‘the bruchus’, but no mention is made of it in Moses, only of ‘the locust’. The reason why ‘the bruchus’ also is referred to is that ‘the bruchus’ means evil and ‘the locust’ falsity, both of them in the outermost parts of the natural. But when ‘the locust’ alone is referred to it means both falsity and evil together, for ‘the locust’ is falsity arising from evil.

sRef Nahum@3 @16 S6′ sRef Nahum@3 @17 S6′ sRef Nahum@3 @15 S6′ [6] In Nahum,

There the fire will devour you, the sword cut you off; it will devour you like the bruchus. Multiply yourself like the bruchus, multiply yourself like the locust; you have multiplied your merchants, more than the stars of the heavens. The bruchus has spread out, and flown away. Your monarchs are like the locust, your emperors like the locust of locusts. Nahum 3:15-17.

This refers to ‘the city of blood’, which means teachings that uphold falsity. And since falsity and evil are multiplied chiefly in the outermost parts of the natural (because of the presence there of the illusions of the senses arising from worldly and earthly objects, and of the sensory enjoyments resulting from various kinds of appetites), the multiplication of evil and falsity is for that reason described by ‘the bruchus and locust’, as it also is in Judges 6:5; 7:12; and in Jeremiah 46:23. With regard to the sensory level, which is the last and lowest of the natural, that it is utterly full of illusions and consequently of falsities, see 5084, 5089, 5094, 6310, 6711, 6313, 6318, 6598, 6612, 6614, 6621, 6624.

sRef Joel@1 @4 S7′ sRef Deut@28 @39 S7′ sRef Joel@1 @5 S7′ sRef Joel@2 @24 S7′ sRef Joel@2 @25 S7′ sRef Deut@28 @38 S7′ sRef Joel@1 @6 S7′ sRef Joel@1 @7 S7′ [7] In Joel,

What the caterpillar (eruca) left the locust has devoured, and what the locust left the beetle (melolontha) has devoured, and what the beetle left the bruchus has devoured. Awake, you drunkards, and weep; and wail, all you drinkers of wine, because of the new wine that has been cut off. For a nation will come up over My land, strong, and without number; and it will turn My vine into a waste, and My fig tree into froth. Joel 1:4-7.

In the same prophet,

The threshing floors are full of clear grain, and the presses overflow with new wine and oil. And I will recompense you for the years that the locust has consumed, the beetle (melolontha), the bruchus, and the caterpillar (eruca). Joel 2:24, 25.

Here ‘the locust’ stands for falsity in the outermost parts which is laying waste truths and forms of good. In Moses,

You will carry much seed out into the field, but you will gather little, because the locust will consume it. You will plant vineyards, but you will not drink wine or gather [anything], for the worm will devour it. Deut. 28:38, 39.

Here ‘the locust’ stands for falsity arising from evil.

sRef Rev@9 @8 S8′ sRef Rev@9 @3 S8′ sRef Rev@9 @9 S8′ sRef Rev@9 @4 S8′ sRef Rev@9 @11 S8′ sRef Rev@9 @10 S8′ sRef Rev@9 @7 S8′ sRef Rev@9 @5 S8′ sRef Rev@9 @6 S8′ [8] In John,

Out of the smoke of the abyss that had been opened came locusts onto the earth, which were given power, as the scorpions of the earth have power. They were told not to harm the grass of the earth, or any tree, but men (homo) only who did not have the seal of God on their foreheads. They were not allowed to kill them, but to torment them for five months. The shapes of the locusts were like horses prepared for war, and on their heads there were so to speak crowns like gold, their faces being like the faces of men (homo). They had hair like women’s hair, and their teeth were like lions’ teeth. They had breastplates like breastplates of iron, and the sound of their wings was like the sound of chariots with many horses running to war. Finally, they had tails like scorpions, and the stings were in their tails, so that they could do harm to men (homo) for five months. They have a king over them, the angel of the abyss, whose name in Hebrew is Abaddon; but in Greek he has the name Apollyon. Rev. 9:3-11.

No one can see what all these things mean except from the internal sense. From each detail there viewed in accordance with the internal sense it is clear that ‘locusts’ means reasonings that are based on illusions and consequent falsities, and supported also by philosophical arguments. Thus in addition ‘locusts’ means the falsities which, being present in the outermost parts of the human mind and having a more earthly and bodily nature than all other falsities, can easily deceive and mislead people. For a person can embrace with ease ideas that agree with the senses, but with difficulty those that contradict them.

[9] To enable people to know that such things are meant by ‘locusts’, let the details of this passage be explained one by one. ‘The abyss’ out of which the locusts came is hell. ‘The grass of the earth’ which they were not to harm is factual knowledge, ‘tree’ recognition of what is good and true, and ‘men’ affections for what is good. Their being told to harm only men, not the grass of the earth or any tree, means that truth and good may come to be understood even when there is no living in accordance with them. ‘Those who have the seal on their foreheads’ are those who have been regenerated. Their being told to torment for five months those who did not have the seal of God on their foreheads means that they were to lay them waste. ‘Locusts like horses prepared for war’ are reasonings based on falsities that are used to fight against the Church’s truths. ‘On their heads crowns like gold’ and ‘faces like those of men’ mean that the reasonings have a similar appearance to truth and in origin seem to be good. ‘Hair like that of women’ and ‘teeth like the teeth of lions’ are the external things of the natural or the level of the senses, that is, the illusions there which give the appearance of good. ‘Breastplates of iron’ are external things giving the appearance of truth. ‘The sound of wings like that of chariots with many horses running to war’ means the falsities of doctrinal teachings which they use to fight with and which they fight for. ‘Tails like scorpions’ and ‘the stings in their tails’ are the injuries such things can inflict. ‘The king’ of the abyss is hellish falsity, ‘Abaddon’ destruction, ‘Apollyon’ reasoning based on falsities that seems to be based on truth, especially if those deemed to be wise support those falsities with philosophical arguments completely misapplied; for blind admiration of their wisdom leads people to have faith in them.

[10] In the good sense ‘locust’ means fundamental and very general truth, and also the pleasure it gives. This was why John had locusts as his food, and wild honey, Matt. 3:4; Mark 1:6. The reason why they were his food was that John represented the Word; and by his food as well as his clothing, which consisted of camel hair together with a skin girdle, he represented the Word in the external sense. For external pleasure is meant by ‘locusts and wild honey’, 5620, and external truth by a garment made of camel hair and by a skin girdle, 3301. This explains why John is understood to be the Elijah who is going to come and announce the Lord’s Coming, ‘Elijah’ being the Word, see Preface to Chapter 18 of Genesis, and 2762, 5247 (end). And Lev. 11:22 states that locusts were among the small creatures which people were allowed to eat.
* i.e. a (wingless) kind of locust, possibly the larva of a locust

sRef Ex@10 @5 S0′ 7644. ‘And they will cover the surface of the land’ means the lowest levels of the natural mind. This is clear from the meaning of ‘the surface’ as the external and so lowest levels; and from the meaning of ‘the land’, here ‘the land of Egypt’, as the natural mind, dealt with in 5276, 5278, 5280, 5188, 5301.

sRef Ex@10 @5 S0′ 7645. ‘And one will not be able to see the land’ means a darkening of the whole natural mind as a result. This is clear from the meaning of ‘not being able to see as a darkening, that is, the failure to perceive truth; and from the meaning of ‘the land of Egypt’ as the natural mind, as above in 7644. But a brief statement must be made to explain why, when the outermost contents of the natural are laid waste, the whole natural mind is darkened as a result. The interior parts of a person’s mind reach down into and are based on its lowest and outermost levels, where all its consecutive parts reside together. When there is nothing on the lowest levels but falsity and evil, truths and forms of good flowing from the interior parts into those lowest levels are flowing into evils and falsities there, as a consequence of which they are themselves turned into evils and falsities there. Therefore nothing but falsity and evil is apparent in the whole of the natural. This is what a darkening of the whole natural mind as a result, meant by ‘not being able to see the land’, describes. Here also is the reason why, when they have undergone vastation, hellish spirits are limited to the outermost parts of the natural. The inferior light they have, which is called the light of understanding, is not unlike the inferior light of this world, which in the next life becomes utterly thick darkness at the presence of the superior light of heaven. Since the outermost part of the natural, called the level of the senses, is filled with illusions and resulting falsities, and with self-indulgence and resulting evils, 6844, 6845, and since the hells are lit by that inferior light, the Lord provides a person when he is being regenerated with the ability to be raised above that level of the senses to more internal levels, see 6187, 6317, 7442.

sRef Ex@10 @5 S0′ 7646. ‘And they will devour the residue of what escaped and was left to you from the hail’ means the consumption of all things that have any element of truth in them. This is clear from the meaning of ‘devouring’ being consumed; and from the meaning of ‘the residue of what escaped and was left from the hail’ as truth that was not consumed or destroyed by the previous kind of falsity that is meant by ‘the hail’. For the meaning of ‘the hail’ as falsity, see 7553, 7574. The falsities meant by ‘the hail’ are falsities in the exterior natural, but the falsities meant by ‘the locusts’ are falsities in the outermost parts of it. The latter falsities are what consume the most general truths and forms of good; for comparatively external things are also comparatively general, and the most external ones are the most general. When general things have been destroyed particular ones are scattered, for the former are the containers, and the latter are their contents.

sRef Ex@10 @5 S0′ 7647. ‘And will devour every tree growing up for you out of the field’ means thus the consumption of all the religious knowledge that they get from the Church. This is clear from the meaning of ‘devouring’ as consumption, as immediately above in 7646; from the meaning of ‘tree’ as perceptions, and also cognitions or knowledge of truth and good, dealt with in 2722 (end), 2972; and from the meaning of ‘the field’ as the Church, dealt with in 2971, 3317, 3766, 4440, 7502, 7571.

sRef Ex@10 @6 S0′ 7648. ‘And your houses will be filled, and the houses of all your servants, and the houses of all the Egyptians’ means that falsity will reign in every single thing in the natural from the inner part of it to the outermost. This is clear from the meaning of ‘being filled’ as reigning, dealt with below; and from the meaning of ‘Pharaoh’s houses, the houses of all his servants, and the houses of all the Egyptians’ as every single thing in the natural, dealt with in 7753, 7355, at this point from the inner part of it to the outermost, in keeping with the explanation above in 7645. The reason why ‘being filled’ means reigning is that when a person’s mind is filled with falsities arising from evils, filled so completely that leading others astray by means of falsities and doing evil give him delight, he is said to be ruled by this delight; and the actual affection that controls him is called his reigning affection. That which fills a person’s entire mind, that is, both his thought and his will, is said to reign everywhere; what a person loves above all else and has as his end in view reigns in that universal way. It is present within every smallest part of his will and thought. What it is exactly that reigns everywhere may be recognized from the person’s pleasure when he attains his ends, or his disappointment when he does not. That which reigns everywhere in a person shapes the contours of his spirit; the face of his spirit is in exact accord with it. If evil and falsity reign, his spirit is clothed with a devilish form; but if goodness and truth reign the form is angelic. For regarded in itself the spirit is affection embodied in a form; and the dominant affection is the essential form itself, while all its other affections adapt themselves to this.

sRef Ex@10 @6 S0′ 7649. ‘Which your fathers and your fathers’ fathers have not seen, from the day they have been on the ground even to this day’ means that since ancient times no such falsity had existed in the Church as existed there now. This is clear from the meaning of ‘which (that is, the locusts) they have not seen’ as no such falsity had existed, ‘locusts’ being falsity in outermost parts, see above in 7643; from the meaning of ‘fathers, and fathers of fathers’ as since ancient times; and from the meaning of ‘the ground’ as the Church, dealt with in 566, 1068. ‘From the day they have been on it even to this day’ means the state in which the Church existed from that time to this, the state being meant by ‘the day’, see 23, 487, 488, 493, 2788, 3462, 4850. For more on this, see 7686.

sRef Ex@10 @6 S0′ 7650. ‘And he looked away and went out from Pharaoh’ means deprivation of discernment, and separation. This is clear from the representation of Moses, of whom it says that ‘he looked away and went out’, as the truth from God, and from the representation of ‘Pharaoh’ as those who engage in molestation, both of whom are dealt with above in 7631; from the meaning of ‘looking away’ as deprivation of discernment, for a person is deprived of discernment when the truth from God looks or turns away, that is, when the person turns away from that truth; and from the meaning of ‘going out’ as separation, dealt with in 6100, 7404.

sRef Ex@10 @9 S0′ sRef Ex@10 @10 S0′ sRef Ex@10 @7 S0′ sRef Ex@10 @8 S0′ sRef Ex@10 @11 S0′ 7651. Verses 7-11 And Pharaoh’s servants said to him, How long will this thing be a snare to us? Send the men away, and let them serve Jehovah their God. Do you not yet know that Egypt is perishing? And Moses and Aaron were brought back to Pharaoh, and he said to them, Go, serve Jehovah your God. But just who will be going?* And Moses said, We shall go with our children and with our old people; with our sons and with our daughters, with our flocks and with our herds we shall go; for it is a feast of Jehovah for us. And he said to them, So Jehovah will be with you when I send you and your little children away! See that evil is on your faces. Not so! Go now, you young men, and serve Jehovah; for this is what you seek. And he drove them out from Pharaoh’s face.

‘And Pharaoh’s servants said to him’ means a warning from those subject to fear. ‘How long will this thing be a snare to us?’ means that by behaving in that way they would be held captive by their own evil. ‘Send the men away, and let them serve Jehovah their God’ means that it is advisable to leave them, in order that they may worship the Lord their God. ‘Do you not yet know that Egypt is perishing?’ means that the things which have taken place go to show that all who give those simple people trouble are cast into hell, from where there is no escape. ‘And Moses and Aaron were brought back to Pharaoh’ means the presence of God’s truth as a result. ‘And he said to them’ means a readiness. ‘Go, serve Jehovah your God’ means that they will be left alone in order that they may worship the Lord. ‘But just who will be going?’ means Would not some be remaining? ‘And Moses said’ means the reply. ‘We shall go with our children and with our old people’ means the simple and the wise. ‘With our sons and with our daughters’ means those who have an affection for truth and those who have an affection for good. ‘With our flocks and with our herds we shall go’ means those governed by good, interior and exterior. ‘For it is a feast of Jehovah for us’ means worship of the Lord offered by every single one. ‘And he said to them’ means mockery. ‘So Jehovah will be with you when I send you and your little children away!’ means As though the Lord would be with them if they were left alone! ‘See that evil is on your faces’ means that no good resides in what they desire. ‘Not so!’ means a refusal. ‘Go now, you young men, and serve Jehovah’ means that those guided by truths that have been corroborated will be left alone, in order that they may worship the Lord. ‘For this is what you seek’ means that then they have what they desire. ‘And he drove them out from Pharaoh’s face’ means that the will of the molesters was totally opposed to God’s truth.
* lit. Who and who will be going?

sRef Ex@10 @7 S0′ 7652. ‘And Pharaoh’s servants said to him’ means a warning from those subject to fear. This is clear from the meaning of ‘saying’ – when those who see their own destruction address members of their company who remain obstinate – as a warning; and from the meaning of ‘Pharaoh’s servants’ as those who engage in molestation but belong to a lower order and are subject to fear. The fact that they are subject to fear is evident from the following things said by them, ‘How long will this be a snare to us? Send the men away, and let them serve Jehovah their God. Do you not yet know that Egypt is perishing?’. These words are, it is plain, spoken from a feeling of fear. Their being subject to fear is also evident from the consideration that ‘Pharaoh’s servants’ is used to mean the evil who engage in molestation, and the evil do not speak in favour of good except when moved to do so by fear, see 7280.

sRef Ex@10 @7 S0′ 7653. ‘How long will this thing be a snare to us?’ means that by behaving in that way they would be held captive by their own evil. This is clear from the meaning of ‘this thing being a snare’ as being held captive by their own evil, and so being led into the misery that punishment brings.

sRef Ex@10 @7 S0′ 7654. ‘Send the men away, and let them serve Jehovah their God’ means that it is advisable to leave them, in order that they may worship the Lord their God. This is clear from the meaning of ‘sending away’ as leaving; and from the meaning of ‘serving Jehovah’ as worshipping the Lord their God, as before in 7500, 7540, 7641.

sRef Ex@10 @7 S0′ 7655. ‘Do you not yet know that Egypt is perishing?’ means that the things which have taken place go to show that all who give those simple people trouble are cast into hell, from where there is no escape. This is clear from the meaning of ‘do you not yet know?’ as the fact that the things which have taken place may go to show; from the meaning of ‘perishing’ as being cast into hell, from where there is no escape (this is meant in the spiritual sense by ‘perishing’, just as ‘dying’ or ‘death’ – see 5407, 6119, 7494 – means damnation and hell); and from the meaning of ‘Egypt’ as molestation, dealt with in 7278, thus also those engaged in it. But since they are the speakers they are not referred to here as those who molest but as those who give trouble, for the evil excuse and make light of their evil. Nor are they spoken of as giving trouble to those who belong to the spiritual Church but to those simple people, for the word ‘simple’ is used by the evil to describe all who belong to the Church and lead a life in keeping with its truths and forms of good, which is a life of faith and charity.

sRef Ex@10 @8 S0′ 7656. ‘And Moses and Aaron were brought back to Pharaoh’ means the presence of God’s truth as a result. This is clear from the meaning of ‘being brought back’ as being made present; and from the representation of ‘Moses and Aaron’ as God’s truth, ‘Moses’ being internal truth and ‘Aaron’ external, dealt with in 7089, 7382.

sRef Ex@10 @8 S0′ 7657. ‘And he said to them’ means a readiness. This is clear from the description that follows in which, driven by fear, he was willing to send them away. This willingness or readiness is included in the words ‘he said to them’.

sRef Ex@10 @8 S0′ 7658. ‘Go, serve Jehovah your God’ means that they will be left alone in order that they may worship the Lord. This is clear from the meaning of ‘serving Jehovah’ as worshipping the Lord, as in 7500, 7540, 7641, 7654. The fact that ‘go’ or ‘go away’, when said by Pharaoh to Moses regarding the children of Israel, means that they are to be left alone, is self-evident.

sRef Ex@10 @8 S0′ 7659. ‘But just who will be going?’ means Would not some be remaining? This is clear without explanation. [For the question implies that some will be going, and so will not others be remaining?]*
* The sentence in brackets translates what appears in Sw.’s rough draft but not in printed editions.

sRef Ex@10 @9 S0′ 7660. ‘And Moses said’ means the reply. This is self-evident.

sRef Ex@10 @9 S0′ 7661. ‘We shall go with our children and with our old people’ means the simple and the wise. This is clear from the meaning of ‘children’, when they are linked with ‘old people’, as the simple; for ‘old people’ are the wise, 3183, 6524, 6890.

sRef Ex@10 @9 S0′ 7662. ‘With our sons and with our daughters’ means those who have an affection for truth and those who have an affection for good. This is clear from the meaning of ‘sons’ as the truths which the Church possesses, dealt with in 489, 491, 573, 1147, 2623, 3373, thus affections since truths devoid of affection for them are not anything; and from the meaning of ‘daughters’ as forms of good, dealt with in 489, 491, thus affections for good, 2362, 3963.

sRef Ex@10 @9 S0′ 7663. ‘With our flocks and with our herds we shall go’ means those governed by good, interior and exterior. This is clear from the meaning of ‘flocks’ as interior good, and of ‘herds’ as exterior good, dealt with in 5913, 6048. The words in this verse, saying that they would go with their children and old people, sons and daughters, and flocks and herds, are used to mean in the internal sense everything that belongs to the Church, both the external Church and the internal. What belongs to the external Church is meant by ‘children’, ‘sons’, and ‘herds’, and what belongs to the internal Church by ‘old people’, ‘daughters’, and ‘flocks’; for ‘old people’ are aspects of wisdom, ‘daughters’ affections for good, and ‘flocks’ genuine good. These are what belong to the internal Church; but ‘children’ are aspects of simplicity, ‘sons’ affections for truth, and ‘herds’ external good, these being what belongs to the external Church.

sRef Ex@10 @9 S0′ 7664. ‘For it is a feast of Jehovah for us’ means worship of the Lord offered by every single one. This is clear from the meaning of ‘a feast’ as worship with gladness of mind, dealt with in 7093. The reason why it is worship of the Lord is that ‘Jehovah’ in the Word is the Lord, 1343, 1736, 2921, 3023, 3035, 5663, 6307, 6905, 6945, 6956. The fact that worship by every single one is meant is evident from what comes immediately before, where it says that they would go with children and old men, with sons and daughters, and with flocks and herds.

sRef Ex@10 @10 S0′ 7665. ‘And he said to them’ means mockery. This is clear from the actual words that Pharaoh uses, ‘So Jehovah will be with you when I send you and your little children away!’ These are words of mockery.

7665a* ‘So Jehovah will be with you when I send you and your little children away!’ means As though the Lord would be with them if they were left alone! This is clear from the meaning of ‘So Jehovah will be with you!’ as As though the Lord would be with them! (‘Jehovah’ being the Lord, see just above in 7664); from the meaning of ‘sending away’ as leaving; and from the meaning of ‘little children’ as those who make up the father’s family or house, for the ‘little children’ here are those called ‘children’, ‘sons’, and ‘daughters’ in the verse immediately before.
* The whole of this paragraph found in Sw.’s rough draft was omitted from the first Latin edition.

sRef Ex@10 @10 S0′ 7666. ‘See that evil is on your faces’ means that no good resides in what they desire. This is clear from the meaning of ‘faces’ as the interiors in respect of the affections and resulting thoughts there, dealt with in 358, 1999, 2434, 3527, 3573, 4066, 4796, 4797, 5102, and since ‘faces’ means affections, it also means desires. Consequently ‘that evil is on your faces’ means that no good resides in their affections, that is, in what they desire.

sRef Ex@10 @11 S0′ 7667. ‘Not so!’ means a refusal. This is clear without explanation.

sRef Ex@10 @11 S0′ 7668. ‘Go now, you young men, and serve Jehovah’ means that those guided by truths that have been corroborated will be left alone, in order that they may worship the Lord. This is clear from the meaning of the command ‘go’ as the intimation that they will be left alone, as above in 7658; from the meaning of ‘young men’ as corroborated truths, dealt with below; and from the meaning of ‘serving Jehovah’ as worshipping the Lord, as above in 7654, 7664. The reason why ‘young men’ means those guided by truths that have been corroborated is that by sons, boys, young men, men, and old men’ are meant aspects of intelligence and wisdom in their true order. Such aspects instead of those male persons are understood in heaven; for those in heaven possess spiritual ideas which are such that images from the purely natural order or the world cannot enter them without being instantly sloughed off and transformed into the kinds of images that are more in keeping with the wisdom of heaven and with angelic thought. This is why ‘sons, boys, young men, men, and old men’ cannot in the spiritual sense mean those male persons, only corresponding spiritual realities, which are aspects of intelligence and wisdom. The fact that these are meant is plainly evident from the internal sense of the places in the Word where they are mentioned.

sRef Zech@13 @7 S2′ sRef Jer@31 @22 S2′ [2] In the Word ‘young men’ is used to mean those who have intelligence, or – on the level of abstract ideas on which angels think – intelligence itself. And since intelligence is meant by them, so is firmly established truth since this belongs to intelligence. Also the expression which is used here in the original language to denote young men is derived from strength and power, which truth receives from good, and so which firmly established truth receives. And this name is therefore applied to the Lord in Zechariah,

O sword, rise up against My shepherd, and against the (young) man, My neighbour. Strike the shepherd, and the sheep are scattered. Zech. 13:7.

These words were spoken in reference to the Lord, see Matt. 26:31. And also in Jeremiah,

How long do you wander around, O estranged daughter? Jehovah has created a new thing on the earth, a woman has surrounded a (young) man. Jer. 31:22.

sRef Amos@4 @10 S3′ [3] Another word for ‘young men in the original language stands for intelligence, and so for the truth that belongs to it, in Amos,

I have sent the pestilence upon you in the way of Egypt, I have killed your young men with the sword, along with captured horses.* Amos 4:10.

‘The way of Egypt’ stands for perverted factual knowledge, young men who have been killed’ for truths which have as a result been destroyed, and ‘captured horses’ for an understanding that has been led into error.

sRef Jer@9 @21 S4′ sRef Amos@8 @12 S4′ sRef Jer@49 @26 S4′ sRef Amos@8 @13 S4′ sRef Jer@49 @25 S4′ [4] In the same prophet,

They will wander from sea to sea, and from the north even to the east; they will run to and fro to seek the Word of Jehovah, and will not find it. On that day the beautiful virgins and the young men will faint from thirst. Amos 8:12, 13.

‘The beautiful virgins’ stands for the affection for truth, ‘the young men’ for intelligence, and ‘fainting from thirst’ for being deprived of truth; and this is why it says ‘they will run to and fro to seek the Word of Jehovah, and will not find it’. The fact that neither beautiful virgins, nor young men, nor fainting because of thirst are meant here is self-evident.

In Jeremiah,

Death has come up through our windows, it has entered our palaces, cutting off the young child from the street, young men from the lanes. Jer. 9:11.

In the same prophet,

How is the city of glory not forsaken, the city of My joy? Therefore her young men will fall in her streets. Jer. 49:25, 26; 50:30.

In the same prophet,

Hear now, all peoples, see my sorrow; my virgins and my young men have gone into captivity. Lam. 1:18.

In these places ‘young men’ stands for the truths that belong to intelligence.
* lit. the captivity of horses

sRef Ex@10 @11 S0′ 7669. ‘For this is what you seek’ means that then they have what they desire. This is clear without explanation.

sRef Ex@10 @11 S0′ 7670. ‘And he drove them out from Pharaoh’s face’ means that the will of the molesters was totally opposed to God’s truth. This is clear from the representation of Moses and Aaron, the ones who were ‘driven out’, as God’s truth, dealt with above in 7677; from the representation of ‘Pharaoh’ as those who engage in molestation, also dealt with above, in 7637; from the meaning of ‘face’ as the interiors in respect of the affections there, dealt with in 7666, and so the will, for affections belong to the will but thoughts to the understanding. The total opposition of the will is meant by ‘he drove them out from his face’; for anything contrary to the will, that is, to the affections belonging to the will, is driven out.

sRef Ex@10 @13 S0′ sRef Ex@10 @14 S0′ sRef Ex@10 @15 S0′ sRef Ex@10 @12 S0′ 7671. Verses 12-15 And Jehovah said to Moses, Stretch out your hand over the land of Egypt for the locusts, and they will come up over the land of Egypt and devour every plant in the land, all that the hail has left. And Moses stretched out his rod over the land of Egypt, and Jehovah brought an east wind into the land the whole of that day and the whole night. Morning came, and the east wind brought the locusts. And the locusts came up over all the land of Egypt, and rested at all the border of Egypt; they were extremely severe. Before them there were no such locusts like them, and there will not be such after them. And they covered the surface of the whole land, and the land was darkened; and they devoured every plant in the land and all the fruit on the trees which the hail had caused to be left. And there was not left any green on tree and on plant of the field in the whole land of Egypt.

‘And Jehovah said to Moses’ means instruction. ‘Stretch out your hand’ means an exercising of power. ‘Over the land of Egypt for the locusts’ means in order that falsity may take possession of the whole natural of the molesting ones. ‘And they will come up over the land of Egypt’ means an outpouring into everything there. ‘And devour every plant in the land’ means the total consumption of all truth. ‘All that the hail has left’ means which the previous falsity has not consumed. ‘And Moses stretched out his rod over the land of Egypt’ means exercising the power of God’s truth over the entire natural of the molesting ones. ‘And Jehovah brought an east wind’ means an agent of destruction. ‘The whole of that day and the whole of that night’ means all the perception, both that which was darkened and that which was not darkened, of the molesting ones. ‘Morning came’ means the state of heaven in rearranged order. ‘And the east wind brought the locusts’ means massive falsity present with the molesting ones, brought by the agent of destruction. ‘And the locusts came up over all the land of Egypt’ means the outpouring of falsity into everything in the natural. ‘And rested at all the border of Egypt’ means at the outermost parts there. ‘They were extremely severe’ means that they penetrated every single part. ‘Before them there were no such locusts like them, and there will not be such after them’ means that no such falsity has existed since the Church first began, and such will not exist again. ‘And they covered the surface of the whole land’ means that they took possession of the last and lowest levels of the natural mind. ‘And the land was darkened’ means that falsity was introduced where there had been truth. ‘And they devoured every plant in the land’ means that it consumed every known fact about truth. ‘And all the fruit on the trees’ means every recognition of good. ‘And they did not allow any green to be left’ means the obliteration of every sensory apprehension of truth. ‘On tree and on plant of the field’ means belonging to the things the Church recognized and knew. ‘In the whole land of Egypt’ means on every side in the natural.

sRef Ex@10 @12 S0′ 7672. ‘And Jehovah said to Moses’ means instruction. This is clear from the meaning of ‘saying’ – when Jehovah tells Moses, who represents God’s truth, what needs to be done – as instruction, dealt with in 6879, 6881, 6887, 6891, 7186, 7267, 7304, 7380.

sRef Ex@10 @12 S0′ sRef Ex@8 @6 S1′ sRef Ex@8 @5 S1′ sRef Ex@8 @17 S1′ sRef Ex@8 @16 S1′ sRef Ex@9 @22 S1′ sRef Ex@9 @23 S1′ 7673. ‘Stretch out your hand’ means an exercising of power. This is clear from the meaning of ‘stretching out’ as that which is connected with the exercising of control, dealt with below; and from the meaning of ‘hand’ as power, dealt with in 878, 3387, 4931-4937, 5327, 5328, 5544, 6292, 6947, 7011, 7188, 7189, 7518. The reason why ‘stretching out the hand’ means the exercising of power is that there is power in the hand or arm when it is stretched out. When therefore Jehovah is said to stretch out His hand or arm, boundless or infinite power in action is meant. This explains why Jehovah told Moses on so many occasions, when miracles were to be performed, to stretch out his hand or his rod; for example,

Stretch out your hand over the waters of Egypt, and they will be blood. Exod. 7:19.

Stretch out your hand over the rivers, and cause frogs to rise up. Exod. 8:1, 2.*

Stretch out your rod and strike the dust of the land, and it will then be lice. Exod. 8:11, 12.**

Stretch out your hand towards heaven, and there will be hail. Exod. 9:22, 23.

Such words would never have been used but for the meaning of ‘stretching out the hand’ in the highest sense as Jehovah’s almighty power.

sRef Josh@8 @18 S2′ sRef Josh@8 @19 S2′ sRef Josh@8 @26 S2′ [2] The same thing is meant by Joshua’s being told to stretch out his javelin, described in his book as follows,

Jehovah said to Joshua, Stretch out the javelin that is in your hand towards Ai. When therefore Joshua stretched out the javelin that was in his hand towards Ai, the ambush rose up quickly out of their place and ran, as soon as he stretched out his hand, and came to the city and took it. Joshua did not withdraw his hand which he had stretched out together with the javelin until all the inhabitants of Ai had been utterly destroyed. Josh. 8:18, 19, 26.

Being representative of God’s almighty power, this too, like all other representative actions when they were commanded in those times, had force.

sRef Isa@5 @25 S3′ sRef Ezek@25 @13 S3′ sRef Isa@14 @27 S3′ sRef Ezek@14 @9 S3′ sRef Ezek@25 @7 S3′ sRef Ezek@14 @13 S3′ sRef Jer@27 @5 S3′ sRef Jer@32 @17 S3′ sRef Jer@21 @5 S3′ sRef Isa@9 @17 S3′ sRef Isa@9 @12 S3′ sRef Ezek@25 @16 S3′ [3] There are a number of other places in which almighty power is described when it says that Jehovah ‘stretches out His hand’, or else His ‘outstretched hand’ or His ‘outstretched arm’ is spoken of. It is described by Jehovah stretching out His hand in Isaiah,

The anger [of Jehovah] has been roused against His people, and He has stretched out His hand over them and struck them, and the mountains were shaken. Isa. 5:25.

In Ezekiel,

I will stretch out My hand against him and destroy him. Ezek. 14:9, 13.

In the same prophet,

I will stretch out My hand against you, and give you as plunder to the nations. Ezek. 25:7.

I will stretch out My hand over Edom, and cut off from it man and beast. I will stretch out My hand over the philistines, and cut off . . . Ezek. 15:17, 16.

Other places like these are Ezek. 35:3; Isa. 31:3; Zeph. 1:4; 2:13. The use of ‘outstretched hand’ to describe almighty power occurs in Isaiah,

Jehovah’s outstretched hand is over all the nations; who will turn it back? Isa. 14:26, 27.

In Jeremiah,

I will fight with you with an outstretched hand and a strong arm, and in anger and in fury. Jer. 21:5.

In Isaiah,

Still His hand is outstretched. Isa. 9:11, 17; 10:4.

The use of ‘outstretched arm’ occurs in Jeremiah,

I have made the earth, man, and beast by My great strength and by My outstretched arm. Jer. 27:5.

In the same prophet,

You have made heaven and earth by Your great power and Your outstretched arm; there is no matter*** that is too impossible for You. Jer. 32:17.

Here it is self-evident that ‘outstretched arm’ means almighty power. The same applies to many other places in which the expression ‘by a strong hand and an outstretched arm’ is used, such as Deut. 4:34; 5:15; 7:19; 9:29; 11:2; 26:8; 1 Kings 8:42; 2 Kings 17:36; Jer. 32:21; Ezek. 10:33, 34.

sRef Isa@40 @22 S4′ sRef Isa@42 @5 S4′ sRef Jer@51 @15 S4′ sRef Isa@44 @24 S4′ sRef Zech@12 @1 S4′ [4] There are places too in which Jehovah is said to ‘stretch out the heavens’, and in these places also ‘stretching out’ means almighty power; that is to say, He expands the limits of heaven and fills those who are there with life and wisdom, as in Isaiah,

Jehovah is He who stretches out the heavens like a thin veil, and spreads them out like a tent to dwell in. Isa. 40:22.

In the same prophet,

Jehovah is He who stretches out the heavens, spreads out the earth, gives breath**** to His people upon it, and spirit to those who walk on it. Isa. 42:5.

In Jeremiah,

. . . He who makes the earth by His power, prepares the world by His wisdom, and stretches out the heavens by His intelligence. Jer. 51:15.

In Zechariah,

Jehovah is He who stretches out the heavens, and founds the earth, and forms the spirit of man within him. Zech. 12:1.

There are still more places besides these, such as Isa. 44:24; 45:12; Ps. 104:2.

From all this one may now see why Moses was commanded to stretch out his hand and rod, that miracles were performed when he did so, and that ‘stretching out the hand’ for that reason means the exercising of power, and in the highest sense almighty power.
* Exod. 8:5, 6 in English Bibles
** Exod. 8:16, 17 in English Bibles
*** or word
**** lit. soul

sRef Ex@10 @12 S0′ 7674. ‘Over the land of Egypt for the locusts’ means in order that falsity may take possession of the whole natural of the molesting ones. This is clear from the meaning of ‘the land of Egypt’ as the natural mind, dealt with in 5276, 5278, 5280, 5288, 5301, ‘Egypt’ being the natural, 6147, 6152; and from the meaning of ‘the locusts’ as falsity present with those engaged in molestation, in the outermost parts of their mind, dealt with in 7643.

sRef Ex@10 @12 S0′ 7675. ‘And they will come up over the land of Egypt’ means an outpouring into everything there. This is clear from the meaning of ‘coming up’ as being poured out, for ‘the locusts’ – meaning falsity present in outermost parts, and stretching from these into the inner parts – are said to ‘come up’ since the inner parts are one and the same as higher parts (the fact that falsity takes possession of inner parts as well when it takes possession of outer ones, see 7645); and from the meaning of ‘the land of Egypt’ as the natural mind, dealt with immediately above in 7674.

sRef Ex@10 @12 S0′ 7676. ‘And devour every plant in the land’ means the total consumption of all truth. This is clear from the meaning of ‘devouring’ as consuming; and from the meaning of ‘plant in the land’ as the Church’s truth, dealt with in 7571.

sRef Ex@10 @12 S0′ 7677. ‘All that the hail has left’ means which the previous falsity has not consumed. This is clear from the meaning of ‘has left’ as what it has not consumed; and from the meaning of ‘the hail’ as falsity arising from evil in the exterior natural, dealt with in 7557, 7574.

sRef Ex@10 @13 S0′ sRef John@1 @3 S0′ sRef John@1 @1 S0′ 7678. ‘And Moses stretched out his rod over the land of Egypt’ means exercising the power of God’s truth over the entire natural of the molesting ones. This is clear from the meaning of ‘stretching out the rod’ as an exercising of power, dealt with above in 7673; from the representation of ‘Moses’ as God’s truth, dealt with in 6752, 7010, 7014, 7382; and from the meaning of ‘the land of Egypt’ as the natural of those who molest, dealt with above in 7674. The Divine power which is described by ‘the hand of Moses’ is the power of God’s truth. All power belongs to truth, see 3091, 5623, 6344, 6423, 6948; indeed the power that Divine Truth going forth from Divine Goodness possesses is such that it has created all things throughout the universe. That Truth is meant by ‘the Word’ in John,

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. All things were made through Him. John 1:1, 3.

This explains why miracles were performed through Moses, for ‘Moses’ represents Divine Truth. Most people think that the Word or Divine Truth is merely what Jehovah has spoken and what He commands so to be done – this and nothing more. But in fact it is the Essential Being itself (Ipsum Essentiale), the source from which all things exist and the means by which they are kept in existence. That Essential Being (Esse) which emanates from Him and, arising from it, the Coming-into-Being (Existere) of all things is what is meant by Divine Truth. Some light on all this can be gained by considering the angels. From them emanates a sphere of charity and faith which is clearly perceptible and which also produces wondrous effects. From these one may form some idea of Divine Truth which emanates from the Lord’s Divine Goodness.

sRef Ex@10 @13 S0′ 7679. ‘And Jehovah brought an east wind’ means an agent of destruction. This is clear from the meaning of ‘an east wind’ as an agent of destruction. ‘An east wind’ has this meaning because it was dry and turbulent, and because it therefore withered the produce of that land, and by its force shattered trees, and ships at sea. This is why that wind, acting as an agent [of destruction], describes the effect that Divine power can have. In addition ‘the east’ means the good of love and charity, for the Lord is meant by it in the highest sense, 101, 1250, 3708. Also, being Divine, the good of love and charity is in origin very gentle, and consequently is also such in its movements when it passes into heaven. But when it comes down into hell it becomes rough and fierce, because the inhabitants of hell make it so. Therefore the inflow and presence there of that Divine good not only torments them but also devastates them. This too explains why a wind from the east or ‘an east wind’ means an agent of destruction.

sRef Hos@12 @1 S2′ sRef Ps@48 @7 S2′ sRef Jer@18 @17 S2′ sRef Ezek@17 @10 S2′ sRef Ezek@19 @12 S2′ sRef Hos@13 @15 S2′ sRef Ezek@27 @26 S2′ [2] The fact that this wind means an agent of destruction is evident from the places in which it is mentioned in the Word, as in Jeremiah,

Like an east wind I will scatter them before the enemy. Jer. 18:17.

In Ezekiel,

The vine that was planted, will it thrive?* When the east wind strikes it, will it not wither completely?. Ezek. 17:10.

In the same prophet,

That vine has been plucked up in anger, it has been cast down onto the ground, the east wind has dried its fruit. Ezek. 19:12.

In Hosea,

He will be among his brothers a ferocious one; an east wind will come, Jehovah’s wind rising up from the desert, and his spring mill become dry, and his fountain dried up. Hosea 13:15.

In David,

By an east wind You will shatter the ships of Tarshish. Ps. 48:7.

In Ezekiel,

They brought you down to many waters, those who despise you; the east wind broke you in the heart of the seas. Ezek. 27:26.

From these places it is evident that ‘an east wind’ means an agent of destruction, because it was a dry wind and a turbulent one. It therefore also means an agent of devastation, as in Hosea,

Ephraim feeds the wind, and pursues the east wind. All the day long he multiplies lies and devastation. Hosea 12:1.

‘Ephraim’ stands for the Church’s understanding, 5354, 6222, 6238. ‘Feeding the wind’ is multiplying lies, and ‘pursuing the east wind’ is multiplying devastation. A state of devastation and temptation is also called ‘the day of the east wind’ in Isaiah 27:7, 8.
* Reading num prosperabitur (will it thrive?), which Sw. has in another place where he quotes this verse and which is the meaning of the Hebrew, for non prosperabitur (it will not thrive)

sRef Ex@10 @13 S0′ 7680. ‘The whole of that day and the whole of that night’ means all the perception, both that which was darkened and that which was not darkened, of the molesting ones – that is to say, it was all destroyed. This is clear from the meaning of ‘day’ as a state of undarkened perception; and from the meaning of ‘night’ as a state of darkened perception. For periods of the day – morning, midday, evening, and night – correspond to degrees of enlightenment, that is, of intelligence and wisdom, 5672, 6110, and so to degrees of perception. In general day and night are called degrees of perception, not of enlightenment, because the evil who molest have no enlightenment, though they may still have perception. They have it for as long as there remains with them any knowledge at all of truth and goodness which they had acquired from the Church in which they had lived. For through truth and goodness they have contact with those who are in heaven. But once they have been deprived of such knowledge, as happens when they have undergone vastation, they no longer have any perception. Those in hell are, it is true, able to justify their evils, and also their falsities; but this is not perception. Perception is seeing that truth is truth and good is good, and also that evil is evil and falsity is falsity. But it is not perception when people see truth as falsity, or good as evil, and conversely see evil as good or falsity as truth. Those who do this have delusion instead of perception. That delusion takes on the appearance of perception, in that people such as they know how to justify falsities and evils by means of the kinds of ideas that suggest themselves to the senses and lend support to their evil longings.

sRef Ex@10 @13 S0′ 7681. ‘Morning came’ means the state of heaven in rearranged order. This is clear from the meaning of ‘morning’ as the Lord’s kingdom, and in the highest sense as the Lord Himself, dealt with in 22, 2333, 2405, 2540, 2780, and as a state of enlightenment, 3458, 3723, 5740, 5962, though at this point ‘morning’ means heaven in a state of order. The nature of this may be recognized from what has been stated in 7643. There it is shown that the evil undergo vastation as the Lord rearranges heaven; for the inflow of goodness and truth from heaven leads to the vastation which the evil undergo. Therefore when the Lord rearranges the heavens the hells too, which are opposite heaven, are automatically rearranged. They are moved away from heaven, to positions determined by the degrees of their evil, and they are allotted places determined by the variety of their evil. This shows that nothing but good emanates from the Lord, and that evil springs from those who are opposed to good and ultimately cannot bear it. From all this it is evident that ‘morning came’ here means the state of heaven in rearranged order.

sRef Ex@10 @13 S0′ 7682. ‘And the east wind brought the locusts’ means massive falsity present with the molesting ones, brought by the agent of destruction. This is clear from the meaning of ‘the east wind’ as the agent of destruction, dealt with just above in 7679; and from the meaning of ‘the locusts’ as falsity in outermost parts, dealt with in 7643, at this point massive falsity since it had taken possession of the whole natural mind, 7645.

sRef Ex@10 @14 S0′ 7683. ‘And the locusts came up over all the land of Egypt’ means the outpouring of falsity into everything in the natural. This is clear from what has been stated above in 7674, 7675. Where similar words occur.

sRef Ex@10 @14 S0′ 7684. ‘And rested at all the border of Egypt’ means at the outermost parts there. This is clear from the meaning of ‘the border’ as what is outermost, and therefore ‘rested at all the border’ means that the falsity, beginning at the outermost, penetrated all parts of the natural, and came to an end in the outermost parts, as accords with what has been shown in 7645.

sRef Ex@10 @14 S0′ 7685. ‘They were extremely severe’ means that they penetrated every single part. This is clear from the explanation here above in 7684.

sRef Ex@10 @14 S0′ 7686. ‘Before them there were no [such] locusts like them, and there will not be such after them’ means that no such falsity has existed since the Church first began, and such will not exist again. This is clear from the meaning of ‘locusts’ as falsity in outermost parts, dealt with in 7643; and the fact that no such falsity has existed or will exist, see also above in 7649. But this needs to be explained. The subject in the internal sense is in particular those who before the Lord’s Coming were on the lower earth and could not be raised to heaven before the Lord had come into the world, taken on the Human, and made it Divine, see 6854, 6914. Till then they were molested by evil ones who also belonged to the Church and subscribed to the truths of faith, yet led an evil life. Those who before the Lord’s Coming belonged to the Church and led an evil life were steeped in falsity, the like of which had not existed before then, nor ever will afterwards. The reason for this was that those called the Nephilim, also the Anakim and Rephaim, who belonged to the final descendants of the Most Ancient Church, had not yet been shut up in hell but wandered about, instilling dreadful and deadly persuasions wherever they could. They accordingly instilled them into evil people within the Church; and that was how such falsity came to exist with them. Regarding those Nephilim and their dreadful persuasions, see 310, 560, 562, 563, 570, 581, 586, 607 (end), 660, 805, 808, 1034, 1120, 1265-1272, 1673. When the Lord was in the world He cast them into a hell some distance away out in front on the left. Had He not done so very few people could have been saved, for the falsity which was instilled by them carried with it a dreadful power of persuasion, and was lethal; the like of it had never existed before and cannot exist ever again. Steeped in that kind of falsity were those who before the Lord’s Coming molested members of the spiritual Church. This is what the words at this point are used to mean in the internal sense. In particular they refer to those who were molesters then, but in general they refer to all who belong to the Church and molest the upright in the next life, of whom there are very many at the present day.

sRef Ex@10 @15 S0′ 7687. ‘And they covered the surface of the whole land’ means [that they took possession of] the last and lowest levels of the natural mind. This is clear from the meaning of ‘the surface’ as what is last and lowest, for it is the most external or outermost part of the land; and from the meaning of ‘the land’, which is the land of Egypt here, as the natural mind, dealt with above in 7674.

sRef Matt@8 @12 S0′ sRef Matt@6 @23 S0′ sRef Ex@10 @15 S0′ 7688. ‘And the land was darkened’ means that falsity was introduced where there had been truth. This is clear from the meaning of ‘darkness’ as falsities, dealt with in 1839, 1860, 4418, 4531, so that ‘being darkened’ is being subject to falsity. And since the vastation of those who belonged to the Church, had a knowledge of truths, but led an evil life, are the subject ‘the land was darkened’ means falsity where there has been truth. Truth is meant in the internal sense by ‘light’, and therefore falsity is meant by ‘darkness’; for truth and falsity are opposites like light and darkness. And those guided by truth dwell in actual light, whereas those under the influence of falsity dwell in actual darkness. The inferior light which those under the influence of falsity in the next life dwell in turns into thick darkness at the presence of the superior light of heaven, and into even thicker darkness with those who have belonged to the Church, because their falsity has stood in opposition to the truth of faith, as accords with the Lord’s words in Matthew,

If the light that is in you is darkness, how great is the darkness! Matt. 6:23.

And in the same gospel,

The sons of the kingdom will be thrown into outer darkness. Matt. 8:12.

‘The sons of the kingdom’ are members of the Church, and ‘outer darkness’ is more serious falsities, the term ‘outer’ being used because falsities in the outermost parts are more serious ones.

sRef John@12 @35 S2′ sRef Joel@2 @2 S2′ sRef Isa@5 @20 S2′ sRef Ezek@32 @8 S2′ sRef Joel@2 @1 S2′ sRef John@12 @46 S2′ sRef Ezek@32 @7 S2′ sRef Zeph@1 @15 S2′ sRef John@3 @19 S2′ sRef Jer@13 @16 S2′ [2] The fact that falsities are called ‘darkness’ is clear from a number of places in the Word, for example in John,

Light has come into the world, but men preferred darkness rather than light, for their works were evil. John 3:19.

In the same gospel,

Walk, as long as you have the light, lest darkness overtakes you. I have come as light into the world in order that all who believe in Me may not remain in darkness. John 12:35, 46.

In Isaiah,

Woe to those who speak of evil as good, and of good as evil, who put darkness for light, and light for darkness! Isa. 5:20.

In Jeremiah,

Give glory to Jehovah your God before He brings darkness and before your feet stumble on the twilight mountains; then you will look for light but He will turn it into the shadow of death, He will place it in thick darkness. Jer. 13:16.

In Ezekiel,

When I have blotted you out, I will cover the heavens and darken their stars. I will cover the sun with a cloud, and the moon will not give its light. All the bright lights in the heavens I will make dark over you, and I will put darkness over your land. Ezek. 32:7, 8.

In Joel,

The day of Jehovah is coming, it is near, a day of darkness and thick darkness, a day of cloud and gloom. Joel 2:1, 2; Amos 5:18, 20.

In Zephaniah,

A day of wrath is that day, a day of ruin and devastation, a day of darkness and thick darkness. Zeph. 1:15.

In these places ‘darkness’ means falsities. In addition ‘darkness’ in the Word means lack of knowledge of the truth, such as exists with gentiles who do not have the Word and know nothing about the Lord.


sRef Ex@10 @15 S0′ 7689. ‘And they devoured every plant in the land’ means that it consumed every known fact about truth. This is clear from the meaning of ‘devouring’ as consuming; and from the meaning of ‘a plant in the land’ as a known fact about truth. For ‘a plant in the field’ means a truth that the Church possesses, 7571, because ‘the field’ is the Church, but ‘a plant in the land’ means a known fact about truth, because ‘the land’ here is the natural mind, and truth as it exists in the natural mind is factual knowledge. Furthermore the evil are not in possession of any truth of faith, only of knowledge about the truth of faith. Some evil people within the Church are convinced that they do possess the truth of faith, but they do not; they are ruled by falsity and opposed to the truth of faith. The falsity they are ruled by is deeply hidden within them as long as they are in the world, but that deeply hidden falsity emerges and reveals itself in the next life when they undergo vastation of the truths of faith they had known.

sRef Ex@10 @15 S0′ 7690. ‘And all the fruit on the trees’ means every recognition of good. This is clear from the meaning of ‘fruit’ as the works of faith or of charity, thus forms of good (which is why the expression ‘being fruitful’ is used in reference to good, 43, 55, 913, 987, 2846, 2847); and from the meaning of ‘trees’ as perceptions, and also cognitions, dealt with in 103, 2163, 2722, 2972. The reason why ‘fruit’ means the works of charity, and so forms of good, is that the earliest existence of a tree is the fruit containing the seed and the final stage in its development is the fruit containing the seed, the intermediate stages of its development being the branches, that is, the leaves. It is similar with the good of love and truth of faith. The good of love is the initial seed when a person is being regenerated or ‘planted’, and it is also the final development. The intermediate stages are the truths of faith, which grow from the good of love as their seed and look constantly to the good of love as their final objective, just as the parts of a tree that are formed at intermediate stages look to their fruit containing the seed. The fact that ‘the fruit’ means forms of good is evident from a large number of places in the Word, such as Matt. 3:8, 9; 7:16-20; 12:33; 21:43; Luke 3:8, 9; 6:43-49; 13:6-10; John 15:2-8, 16; Isa. 37:31; Jer. 17:8; 32:19; Rev. 22:2.

sRef Rev@9 @4 S0′ sRef Rev@9 @1 S0′ sRef Isa@15 @6 S0′ sRef Rev@9 @3 S0′ sRef Ex@10 @15 S0′ 7691. ‘And they did not allow any green to be left’ means the obliteration of every sensory apprehension of truth. This is clear from the meaning of ‘not allowing to be left’ as obliterating; and from the meaning of ‘green’ as factual knowledge and sensory evidence, here sensory apprehension of truth, since ‘the fruit of the trees’ means recognition of good, 7690, and reference is being made to all the green on trees and on the plants of the field. ‘Green’ means sensory apprehension of truth because truths are meant by ‘plant’, ‘grass’, and ‘leaf of tree’, and from this a sensory apprehension of truth by their greenness. By sensory apprehension is meant the lowest level of perception. A sensory apprehension of truth is also meant by ‘green’ in Isaiah,

The waters of Nimrim will be desolations, for the reason that the grass has withered away, the plant has been consumed, there is nothing green. Isa. 15:6.

And in John,

The fifth angel sounded, and out came locusts; and they were told not to harm the grass of the earth, or any green thing. Rev. 9:4.

sRef Ex@10 @15 S0′ 7692. ‘On tree and on plant of the field’ means belonging to the things the Church recognized and knew. This is clear from the meaning of ‘a tree’ as a recognition of truth, dealt with just above in 7690; and from the meaning of ‘a plant of the field’ as a known fact about truth, also dealt
with above, in 7689.

sRef Ex@10 @15 S0′ 7693. ‘In the whole land of Egypt’ means on every side in the natural. This is clear from the meaning of ‘the land of Egypt’ as the natural mind, and so the natural, dealt with in 7674. Since ‘the locust’, which has been the subject here, means falsity in the outermost parts, that is, in the sensory level of the human mind, let me say what the sensory level is in order that people may thereby know what falsity in the outermost parts of the mind is. A sensory-minded person, or a person whose thought and actions are reduced to the sensory level, is one who does not believe anything unless it is palpable to his outward senses, and who is led solely by bodily appetites, pleasure-seeking desires, and covetous passions, and not by rational ways of thinking. Ideas that lend support to urges such as these are what he believes to be rational ways of thinking. Being like this a sensory-minded person denies the existence of everything of an internal nature, until at length he will not even allow it to be mentioned. Consequently he refuses in his heart to believe in anything whatever of heaven. He does not have any belief in life after death, because he considers life to reside solely in the body. He therefore also supposes that when he dies it will be the same for him as for an animal. That person thinks so to speak on the surface, that is, on the lowest or outermost levels, and he is totally unaware of the existence of interior thought that is dependent on the perception of what is true and good. The reason why he is not aware of this, nor even of the existence of an internal man, is that the inner parts of his mind look down towards things of the world, the body, and the earth, and make one with them. They have therefore been diverted from looking upwards or towards heaven, for they are turned in the opposite direction. Looking upwards or towards heaven does not consist in thinking about the things of heaven but in having them as one’s end in view, that is, loving them above all else. For in whatever direction love turns, the inner parts of a person’s mind turn, and so too his thought. All this goes to show the nature of the sensory level of a person’s mind, or the natural in its outermost parts, for a person who thinks on the sensory level is called sensory-minded.

sRef Ex@10 @20 S0′ sRef Ex@10 @19 S0′ sRef Ex@10 @16 S0′ sRef Ex@10 @17 S0′ sRef Ex@10 @18 S0′ 7694. Verses 16-20 And Pharaoh hastened to call Moses and Aaron; and he said, I have sinned against Jehovah your God, and against you. And now forgive, I beg you, my sin only this once, and plead with Jehovah your God, and let Him remove from upon me this death only. And he went out from Pharaoh, and pleaded with Jehovah. And Jehovah turned an extremely strong wind of the sea,* and it lifted the locusts and cast them into the Sea Suph. Not one locust was left in all the border of Egypt. And Jehovah made Pharaoh’s heart unyielding, and he did not send the children of Israel away.

‘And Pharaoh hastened to call Moses and Aaron’ means fear at this time of the truth from God. ‘And he said, I have sinned against Jehovah your God, and against you’ means an admission that he had disobeyed the Divine and the truth. ‘And now forgive, I beg you, my sin only this once means an appeal to them to disregard the disobedience. ‘And plead with Jehovah your God’ means intercession. ‘And let Him remove from upon me this death only’ means a plea that this falsity should not torment. ‘And he went out from Pharaoh’ means a separation. ‘And pleaded with Jehovah’ means intercession. ‘And Jehovah turned an extremely strong wind of the sea’ means a stoppage of the Divine inflow through heaven. ‘And it lifted the locusts’ means the end of that state. ‘And cast them into the Sea Suph’ means into hell. ‘Not one locust was left in all the border of Egypt’ means that those falsities in the outermost parts no longer made their appearance. ‘And Jehovah made Pharaoh’s heart unyielding’ means that the molesting ones remained obstinate. ‘And he did not send the children of Israel away’ means that they did not leave those belonging to the spiritual Church.
* i.e. a west wind

sRef Ex@10 @16 S0′ 7695. ‘And Pharaoh hastened to call Moses and Aaron’ means fear at this time of the truth from God. This is clear from the meaning of ‘hastening’ as acting out of fear, for all haste is the result of some feeling that has been aroused, in this case a feeling of fear, as is evident from Pharaoh’s words ‘I have sinned against Jehovah your God, and against you; plead with Him to remove from me this death only’; from the representation of ‘Pharaoh’ as those who engage in molestation, dealt with rather often; and from the representation of ‘Moses and Aaron’ as the truth from God, ‘Moses’ being inward truth and ‘Aaron’ outward truth, dealt with in 7089, 7382.

sRef Ex@10 @16 S0′ 7696. ‘And he said, I have sinned against Jehovah your God, and against you’ means an admission that he had disobeyed the Divine and the truth. This is clear from the meaning of ‘sinning’ as acting contrary to Divine order, dealt with in 5076, and turning away and separating oneself from it, thus from goodness and truth, 5229, 5474, 5841, 7589. As an extension of this, ‘sinning’ also means disobeying the Divine and the truth, for one who disobeys turns himself away. The Divine is what ‘Jehovah your God’ is used to mean, and the truth what Moses and Aaron are used to mean, 7695.

sRef Ex@10 @17 S0′ 7697. ‘And now forgive, I beg you, my sin only this once’ means an appeal to them to disregard the disobedience. This is clear from the meaning of ‘forgiving’ as disregarding, for forgiving is regarding someone not from the point of view of evil but good; and from the meaning of ‘sin’ as disobedience, as immediately above in 7696.

sRef Ex@10 @17 S0′ 7698. ‘And plead with Jehovah your God’ means intercession. This is clear from the meaning of ‘pleading with Jehovah’, when done on another’s behalf, as intercession, as in 7396, 7462.

sRef Ex@10 @17 S0′ 7699. ‘And let Him remove from upon me this death only’ means a plea that this falsity should not torment. This is clear from the meaning of ‘that He may remove this death’ as a plea that it should not torment; for ‘death’ means damnation and hell, 5407, 6119, and so also torment. The reason why those who molest beg to have this falsity taken away is that they no longer had any ability to reason against the truths of faith because they had been made devoid of those truths and were consequently in hellish gloom, which tormented them. For those in hell find no delight in using reasonings based on utter falsities, but they do find delight in using those based on truths falsified by means of illusions and appearances, see 7392.

sRef Ex@10 @18 S0′ 7700. ‘And he went out from Pharaoh’ means a separation. This is clear from the meaning of ‘going out’ as a separation, dealt with in 6100, 7404.

sRef Ex@10 @18 S0′ 7701. ‘And pleaded with Jehovah’ means intercession, as above in 7698.

sRef Ex@10 @19 S0′ 7702. ‘And Jehovah turned an [extremely] strong wind of the sea means a stoppage of the Divine inflow through heaven. This is clear from the meaning of ‘a wind of the sea ,which is a west wind, as a stoppage of the Divine inflow through heaven. For ‘an east wind’ has meant an agent of destruction by reason of the Divine inflow through heaven, see 7643, 7679, and therefore ‘a wind of the sea or west wind, blowing in the opposite direction to the east wind, means a stoppage of that inflow.

sRef Ex@10 @19 S0′ 7703. ‘And it lifted the locusts’ means the end of that state. This is clear from the meaning of ‘locusts’ as falsity in outermost parts, dealt with in 7643. And what is meant by ‘lifting’ the locusts is taking away the state which involves this falsity, thus the end of that state; this is similar to what has appeared before, where [the end of] ‘the hail’ is spoken of, 7597, 7610.

sRef Ex@10 @19 S0′ 7704. ‘And cast them into the Sea Suph’ means into hell. This is clear from the meaning of ‘the Sea Suph’ as hell, explained further on where the passage of the children of Israel through that sea and the destruction of the Egyptians in it is in the Lord’s Divine mercy to be dealt with. Being cast into hell should not be taken to mean that the falsity was taken away from the molesters and cast away somewhere else, but that it remained with them and linked them to hells where such things exist. For every state of evil and falsity that the evil in the next life enter links them to the hells where things belonging to that kind of state exist. Consequently they become linked to many hells during a series of stages they pass through before their vastation is completed. But a discussion of these matters from experience is to appear elsewhere.

sRef Ex@10 @19 S0′ 7705. ‘Not one locust was left in all the border of Egypt’ means that those falsities in the outermost parts no longer made their appearance. This is clear from the meaning of ‘locust’ as falsity. And since it is falsity in outermost parts, 7643, the phrase ‘in all the border of Egypt’ is used; for ‘the border’ is the outermost part, and ‘Egypt’ the natural. The fact that ‘not a locust was left’ means that none made an appearance is self-evident. For something similar said regarding ‘the hail’, see 7611.

sRef Ex@10 @20 S0′ 7706. ‘And Jehovah made Pharaoh’s heart unyielding’ means that the molesting ones remained obstinate. This is clear from the meaning of ‘making the heart unyielding’ as remaining obstinate, dealt with in 7272, 7300, 7305. When it says that Jehovah made Pharaoh’s heart unyielding the meaning in the internal sense is that he himself made his heart unyielding, see 7632; and the evil which in the Word is attributed to Jehovah has its origin in man, 2447, 6071, 6991, 6997, 7533.

sRef Ex@10 @20 S0′ 7707. ‘And he did not send the children of Israel away’ means that they did not leave those belonging to the spiritual Church. This is clear from the meaning of ‘sending away’ as leaving; and from the representation of ‘the children of Israel’ as those who belong to the spiritual Church, as in 7474, 7515, 7617.

sRef Ex@10 @21 S0′ sRef Ex@10 @22 S0′ sRef Ex@10 @23 S0′ 7708. Verses 21-23 And Jehovah said to Moses, Stretch out your hand towards heaven, and there will be thick darkness over the land of Egypt; and one will grope in the thick darkness. And Moses stretched out his hand towards heaven, and there was intensely thick darkness in the whole land of Egypt three days. No man could see his brother, and they did not rise up from their places for three days.* And all the children of Israel had light in their dwellings.

‘And Jehovah said to Moses’ means instruction. ‘Stretch out your hand towards heaven’ means exercising the power of God’s truth in heaven. ‘And there will be thick darkness over the land of Egypt’ means total deprivation of truth and good. ‘And one will grope in the thick darkness’ means the density of the falsity arising from evil. ‘And Moses stretched out his hand towards heaven’ means the power of God’s truth exercised in heaven. ‘And there was intensely thick darkness in the whole land of Egypt’ means total deprivation of truth and good. ‘Three days’ means a state made complete. ‘No man could see his brother’ means that they could not perceive the truth of any good. ‘And they did not rise up from their places’ means that there was no raising of the mind. ‘For three days’ means a complete state. ‘And all the children of Israel had light in their dwellings’ means that those belonging to the spiritual Church had enlightenment throughout their mind.
* lit. They did not see, a man his brother, and they did not rise up, anyone from under himself for three days.

sRef Ex@10 @21 S0′ 7709. ‘And Jehovah said to Moses’ means instruction, as previously in 7672.

sRef Ex@10 @21 S0′ 7710. ‘Stretch out your hand towards heaven’ means exercising the power of God’s truth in heaven. This is clear from the meaning of ‘stretching out the hand’ as an exercising of power, dealt with above in 7673; from the representation of Moses, the one who was told to ‘stretch out his hand’, as God’s truth, dealt with in 6723, 6752, 7010, 7014, 7382; and from the meaning of ‘heaven’ as the angelic heaven. How it is that exercising the power of God’s truth in heaven could bring about the new state among the molesting ones that is meant by ‘thick darkness’ is clear from what has been shown in 7643, 7679. There it has been shown that the Lord is continually rearranging heaven, and that He endows those in heaven, and newcomers, with celestial and spiritual good. This continual rearranging causes the vastation which the evil undergo in stages; for after rearrangement that good flows from a more immediate position towards the evil who are governed by the opposite of such good. (The inflow from God continues onwards right into what is opposed to it and in so doing keeps the hells bound and chained.) And since the evil turn all good into evil, they turn into greater evil the good that flows in from a more immediate position. The more they do so, the stronger is their resistance to what is good and true, that is, the fiercer is their molestation of it. So it is that the vastation they undergo proceeds in stages, till at length they are cast into hell, which is the final stage of it. From all this one may see that what emanates from the Lord is nothing but good, and that He does not lay waste the evil, still less cast them into hell, but that they themselves cause it to happen.

sRef Ex@10 @21 S0′ 7711. ‘And there will be thick darkness over the land of Egypt’ means total deprivation of truth and good. This is clear from the meaning of ‘thick darkness’ as total deprivation of truth and good. Various places in the Word mention ‘darkness’ (tenebrae) and also at the same time ‘thick darkness’ (caligo), and in those places ‘darkness’ has reference to falsity and ‘thick darkness’ to evil together with it. But the word that is used in this verse to express thick darkness denotes pitch-black darkness (tenebrae densissimae), which in the internal sense means the kinds of falsities that well up from evil. Such falsities arise with those who have belonged to the Church and led an evil life contrary to the commandments of religious belief which they knew. The evil from which those falsities well up is the opposite of the Church, the opposite of heaven, the opposite of the Lord, and so the direct opposite of goodness and truth. This state is now described by ‘thick darkness’.

sRef Isa@59 @10 S2′ sRef Isa@59 @9 S2′ sRef Joel@2 @1 S2′ sRef Amos@5 @20 S2′ sRef Joel@2 @2 S2′ [2] The fact that ‘darkness’ and ‘thick darkness’ are mentioned together in the Word, and that ‘darkness’ means the deprivation of truth, while ‘thick darkness’ means the deprivation of both truth and good, may be recognized in the following places: In Isaiah,

Judgement is far from us, and righteousness does not overtake us. We wait for light, but, behold, darkness; and for brightness, but we walk in thick darkness. We grope for the wall like the blind, and as if without eyes we grope; we stumble at midday as if it were twilight; among the living we are like the dead. Isa. 59:9, 10.

‘Judgement is far from us, and righteousness does not overtake us’ stands for the fact that there is no truth, and no good either, ‘judgement’ being used to refer to truth and ‘righteousness’ to refer to good, see 2235, 3997. ‘Waiting for light’ stands for awaiting truth, and ‘waiting for brightness’ stands for awaiting the good of truth since the brightness of light is derived from good. The fact that the expression ‘darkness’ is used in those verses as the opposite of ‘light’ and ‘judgement’, and so of truth, and ‘thick darkness’ as the opposite of ‘brightness’ and ‘righteousness’, and so of good, is self- evident. So it is that ‘darkness’ is the deprivation of truth, and ‘thick darkness’ the deprivation of both truth and good. In Amos,

Is not the day of Jehovah darkness and not light, and thick darkness, [and] no brightness in it? Amos 5:20.

Here the meaning is similar. In Joel,

The day of Jehovah is coming, a day of darkness and thick darkness, a day of cloud and gloom. Joel 2:2.

sRef Isa@8 @22 S3′ sRef Zeph@1 @15 S3′ [3] In Zephaniah,

The day of Jehovah a day of vastation and devastation, a day of darkness and thick darkness. Zeph. 1:15.

‘Darkness’ stands for the deprivation of truth, and ‘thick darkness’ for the deprivation of both truth and good. If ‘thick darkness’ were no different in meaning from ‘darkness’ it would be a pointless repetition, which is far from being a feature of the holy Word. In the Word it is common for a pair of expressions to describe one particular thing, the first having reference to truth or falsity, the second to good or evil. A like example occurs in Isaiah,

He will look to the earth, and behold, anguish and darkness; [he will be one] benighted by anguish, and by a thick darkness of colliding.* Isa. 8:11.

sRef Isa@29 @18 S4′ sRef Isa@58 @10 S4′ [4] ‘Darkness’ also means ignorance of the truth, such as exists among gentiles, and ‘thick darkness’ ignorance about what is good, in Isaiah,

On that day the deaf will hear the words of a book, and out of thick darkness and out of darkness the eyes of the blind will see. Isa. 29:18.

In the same prophet,

If you satisfy the afflicted soul, your light will rise in the darkness, and your thick darkness will be as midday. Isa. 58:10.

‘Darkness’ is falsities, see 7688.
* The Latin caligine impulsus may mean collided with in darkness, or – as Sw.’s reference to this text in 7711 can only mean – a thick darkness of colliding.

sRef Isa@59 @10 S0′ sRef Ex@10 @21 S0′ sRef Isa@59 @9 S0′ 7712. ‘And one will grope in the thick darkness’ means the density of the falsity arising from evil. This is clear from the meaning of ‘groping in thick darkness’ as a situation in which falsities arising from evil are so dense that one cannot recognize anything true or good at all. And if one goes in search of it one is like a person who gropes in thick darkness, stumbling and colliding with objects everywhere. This is why in Isaiah 8:22 the thick darkness is called a thick darkness of colliding, described in the same prophet as follows,

We walk in thick darkness. We grope for the wall like the blind, and as if without eyes we grope; we stumble at midday as if it were twilight; among the living we are like the dead. Isa. 59:9, 10.

sRef Ex@10 @22 S0′ 7713. ‘And Moses stretched his hand towards heaven’ means the power of God’s truth exercised in heaven. This is clear from what has been stated just above in 7710, where the same words occur.

sRef Ex@10 @22 S0′ 7714. ‘And there was intensely thick darkness in the whole land of Egypt’ means total deprivation of truth and good. This is clear from what has been stated above in 7711.

sRef Ex@10 @22 S0′ 7715. ‘Three days’ means a state made complete. This is clear from the meaning of ‘three days’ as a state made complete, dealt with in 2788, 4495. By a state made complete one should understand an entire state from beginning to end; for every state has its beginning, stages of development, and highest point, this period being what one should understand by a complete period and what is meant by ‘three days’.

sRef Ex@10 @23 S0′ 7716. ‘No man could see his brother’ means that they could not perceive the truth of any good. This is clear from the meaning of ‘seeing’ as understanding and perceiving, dealt with in 2150, 2325, 2807, 3764, 3863, 4407-4421, 4567, 4723, 5400; from the meaning of ‘man’ as truth, dealt with in 3134; and from the meaning of ‘brother’ as good, dealt with in 2360, 3303, 3803, 3815, 4121, 5409, 5686, 5692, 6756, and a man linked to his brother as the good of truth, 3459. From these meanings it is evident that ‘no man could see his brother’ means that they could not perceive the truth of any good.

sRef Ex@10 @23 S0′ 7717. ‘And they did not rise up from their places’ means that there was no raising of the mind. This is clear from the meaning of ‘rising up’ as raising towards more internal levels, that is, raising the mind, dealt with in 2401, 2785, 2912, 2927, 31711 3458, 3723, 4103, 4881, 6010, and therefore ‘they did not rise up’ means that there was no raising up.

sRef Ex@10 @23 S0′ 7718. ‘For three days’ means a complete state, as just above in 7715.

sRef Ex@10 @23 S0′ 7719. ‘And all the children of Israel had light in their dwellings’ means that those belonging to the spiritual Church had enlightenment throughout their mind. This is clear from the representation of ‘the children of Israel’ as those belonging to the spiritual Church, dealt with in 6426, 6637, 6862, 6868, 7035, 7062, 7198, 7201, 7215, 7223; from the meaning of ‘light’ as enlightenment, for light flowing from the Lord enlightens the understanding since that light holds intelligence and wisdom within it, see 1521, 1524, 1619-1632, 2776, 3138, 3167, 3190, 3195, 3222, 3123, 3339, 3636, 3643, 3997, 4302, 4408, from the meaning of ‘dwellings’ as parts of the mind. For ‘house’ means the human mind, 3538, 4973, 5023, 7353, and ‘rooms’ its inner parts, 7353; but ‘dwellings’ means all the parts of the mind. Furthermore ‘dwelling in’ means in the internal sense living, 1293, 3384, 3613, 4451, 60511 and therefore ‘dwellings’ are parts in which the elements of life reside, namely aspects of intelligence and wisdom, which – as is well known – belong to the mind. Also, in the next life, the exact nature of the light shining in angels’ dwellings or habitations is determined by the intelligence and wisdom present in the angels’ minds. And in the same measure that they have light, those who are their opposites, that is, those who engage in molestation, have thick darkness.

sRef Ex@10 @23 S0′ 7720. Verses 24-end And Pharaoh called Moses, and said, Go, serve Jehovah; only your flocks and your herds will stay behind. Your little children also will go with you. And Moses said, You must also give into our hand sacrifices and burnt offerings, and we must make them to Jehovah our God. And our livestock also must go with us; not a hoof shall be left behind, for we must take some of them to serve Jehovah our God, and we ourselves do not know what we must serve Jehovah with until we get there. And Jehovah made Pharaoh’s heart unyielding, and he would not send them away. And Pharaoh said to him, Go away from me; take care not to see my face again. For on the day you see my face you will die. And Moses said, Rightly have you spoken; I will not see your face again.

‘And Pharaoh called Moses’ means the presence of the law of God. ‘And said, Go, serve Jehovah’ means that they are to be left alone in order that they may worship the Lord their God. ‘Only your flocks and your herds will stay behind’ means but not from good. ‘Your little children also will go with you’ means that [they may worship Him] from truth. ‘And Moses said’ means the reply. ‘You must also give into our hand sacrifices and burnt offerings’ means that they must leave alone all the means through which worship must be offered. ‘And we must make them to Jehovah our God’ means which [worship] is acceptable to the Lord. ‘And our livestock also must go with us’ means that this [worship] must be from the good of truth. ‘Not a hoof shall be left behind’ means that nothing at all of the truth from good shall be lacking. ‘For we must take some of them to serve Jehovah our God’ means that they must be used in worship of the Lord. ‘And we ourselves do not know what we must serve Jehovah our God with’ means that what exactly will be needed for the worship to be performed is unknown. ‘Until we get there’ means until they have been removed from those steeped in utter falsities arising from evil. ‘And Jehovah made Pharaoh’s heart unyielding’ means that they remained obstinately opposed to the Divine. ‘And he would not send them away means that they had no mind to leave them. ‘And Pharaoh said to him’ means flaming anger at this point with God’s truth. ‘Go away from me means that he wished to know nothing at all about it. ‘Take care not to see my face again’ means that it should not enter their mind. ‘For on the day you see my face you will die’ means that if it did enter their mind it would be extirpated. ‘And Moses said’ means the reply. ‘Rightly have you spoken’ means that that is in truth so. ‘I will not see your face again’ means that God’s truth will not enter their mind again.

sRef Ex@10 @24 S0′ 7721. ‘And Pharaoh called Moses’ means the presence of the law of God. This is clear from the meaning of ‘calling to oneself’ as presence, dealt with in 6177, 7390, 7451; and from the representation of ‘Moses’ as the law of God, dealt with in 6727, 6752, 7014, 7382. The presence of the law of God with the molesters should not be taken to mean that they perceived where the plagues came from, at this point where the very dense falsity arising from evil, meant by ‘thick darkness’, came from. When the evil undergo vastation in the next life they are often allowed to perceive the origin of the miseries they suffer when they are punished, in order that they may know that the cause lies not in the Divine but in themselves. Experiences like this also happen quite often to those in hell, though only when they are in a quiescent state. It happens to them for a number of reasons, mainly in order that they may remember the evil deeds they performed in the world.

sRef Ex@10 @24 S0′ 7722. ‘And said, Go, serve Jehovah’ means that they are to be left alone in order that they may worship the Lord their God, as above in 7658.

sRef Ex@10 @24 S0′ 7723. ‘Only your flocks and your herds will stay behind’ means but not from good, that is to say, they may not worship the Lord from this. This is clear from the meaning of ‘flock’ as interior good, and the meaning of ‘herd’ as exterior good, both dealt with in 5913, 6048.

sRef Ex@10 @24 S0′ 7724. ‘Your little children also will go with you’ means that [they may worship Him] from truth. This is clear from the meaning here of ‘little children’ as truth, for ‘little children’ implies boys, adolescents, and young men, In short, their sons, who mean aspects of intelligence, thus truths, see 7668; and from the meaning of ‘going with you’ as an assurance that they are to be left alone in order that they may worship the Lord their God. Let me say what worshipping the Lord from good is, and what worshipping the Lord from truth without good is, meant here when Pharaoh says that the flocks and herds are to stay behind and the little children to go. The truest kind of worship consists in an offering made from good through truth, for the Lord is present in good; but worship offered from truth without good is not worship, only outward religious ceremony and action alone with nothing real in them since without good truth is no more than the knowledge of truth. To become the truth of faith that knowledge must be combined with good, and when combined with good it passes into the internal man and becomes faith. (The fact that faith without charity is not faith has been shown often.) From this one may see what worship from good is and what worship from truth without good is. By the good from which worship springs one should understand the good of life, good that has been made spiritual through combination with truth, for spiritual good derives its particular nature from truth, and the essence of truth is good, so that good is the soul of truth. From this one may again see what truth without good is like, namely like a body without its soul, that is, like a corpse.

sRef Ex@10 @25 S0′ 7725. ‘And Moses said’ means the reply, as is self-evident.

sRef Ex@10 @25 S0′ 7726. ‘You must also give into our hand sacrifices and burnt offerings’ means that they must leave alone all the means through which worship must be offered. This is clear from the meaning of ‘giving into the hand’ as leaving alone, for ‘hand’ means power, and therefore ‘giving into the hand’ means surrendering to their power, thus leaving them alone; and from the meaning of ‘sacrifices and burnt offerings’ as worship in general, thus the whole of worship, dealt with in 923, 6905. The reason why’ sacrifices and burnt offerings’ means the whole of worship is that sacrifices were the chief means through which Divine worship was offered, as becomes clear from the Books of Moses. For what has been shown already regarding sacrifices, see 922, 923, 1128, 1343, 1823, 2165, 2180, 2187, 2776, 2784, 2805, 2807, 2812, 2818, 2830, 3519, 6905.

sRef Ex@10 @25 S0′ 7727. ‘And we must make them to Jehovah our God’ means which – namely worship – is acceptable to the Lord. This is clear from what comes before; that is to say, ‘sacrifices and burnt offerings’ means worship, 7726, and ‘flocks and herds’, from which the sacrifices were taken, means the good from which the offering of worship is made, 7723, 7724, so that ‘making sacrifices and burnt offerings to Jehovah’ means an offering of worship from good which is acceptable – ‘Jehovah’ in the Word being the Lord, see 1343, 1736, 2921, 3023, 3035, 5041, 5663, 6280, 6281, 6307, 6905, 6945, 6956.

sRef Ex@10 @26 S0′ 7728. ‘And our livestock also must go with us’ means that this – that is to say, worship – must be from the good of truth. This is clear from the meaning of ‘livestock’ as the good of truth, dealt with in 6016, 6045. The fact that ‘going with us’ means in order that this good may be the source of that worship – worship in the form of sacrifices and burnt offerings – is self-evident.

sRef Ex@10 @26 S0′ 7729. ‘Not a hoof shall be left behind’ means that nothing at all of the truth from good shall be lacking. This is clear from the meaning of ‘a hoof’ as truth from good, dealt with below; and from the meaning of ‘not being left behind’ as not to be lacking, that is, from worship of the Lord. In the internal sense nearest to the literal ‘not a hoof shall be left behind’ means that nothing whatever shall be lacking, for the hoof is common to all livestock. But in the sense more internal than that ‘a hoof means truth in the last degree – that is, truth on the level of the senses, which is the lowest – and in the contrary sense falsity. The reason why ‘a hoof’ has this meaning is that ‘foot’ means the natural, and ‘sole of the foot’ the last and lowest level of the natural, 2162, 3147, 3761, 3986, 4280, 4938-4952, 5327, 5728, much the same being meant by ‘hoof’ since it is the sole of the foot in the case of livestock. And because the last and lowest level of the natural is meant by ‘hoof’ as it is by ‘sole’, truth forming that level of the natural is also meant; for when the natural is spoken of, truth and good are meant, or in the contrary sense falsity and evil. The natural is formed from these, and without them is devoid of any attributes.

sRef Isa@5 @28 S2′ [2] The fact that ‘hoof’, in particular that of a horse, means truth in the last and lowest degree, that is, truth on the level of the senses, and in the contrary sense falsity belonging to the same degree, becomes clear from the following places: In Isaiah,

Whose arrows are sharp, and all bows bent. His horses’ hoofs are considered as flint, his wheels as the whirlwind. Isa. 5:18.

This refers to a people laying waste. ‘Arrows’ means ideas fired from false doctrine, which they use to fight with, and ‘bow’ the doctrine itself, 2686, 2709. ‘Horses’ means powers of understanding, in this instance perverted ones, 2761, 2762, 3117, 5321, 6125, 6534. Which shows what ‘the hoofs’ of the horses means, namely falsity in the last and lowest degree.

sRef Jer@47 @3 S3′ [3] In Jeremiah,

. . . because of the sound of the beat of the hoofs of his mighty ones, on account of the noise of his chariot, the rumble of his wheels. Jer. 47:3

This refers to a people laying the Philistines waste. ‘The beat of the hoofs of his mighty ones’, that is, of horses, stands for open conflict of falsity against truth. ‘Chariot’ stands for teachings maintaining falsity, for ‘a chariot’ means teachings that maintain either truth or falsity, see 5321, 5945.

sRef Ezek@26 @11 S4′ sRef Ezek@26 @10 S4′ [4] In Ezekiel,

By reason of the abundance of his horses their dust will cover you; by reason of the noise of horsemen, and wheels, and chariots, your walls will be shaken; by means of the hoofs of his horses he will trample all your streets. Ezek. 26:10, 11.

This refers to Nebuchadnezzar laying Tyre waste. ‘Horses’ stands for perverted powers of understanding, as above, ‘horsemen’ for concepts that go with that kind of understanding, 6534. ‘The wheels’ that the chariots have stands for the falsities that are taught, ‘chariot’ being such teaching, as above, while ‘streets’ stands for truths, 2336. From this it is evident that ‘the hoofs of horses’ stands for falsities. If such were not meant, what would be the point of the statement ‘by reason of the abundance of his horses their dust will cover you; by reason of the noise of horsemen, and wheels, and chariots, your walls will be shaken; by means of the hoofs of his horses he will trample all your streets’? Without an inner meaning would they be anything more than empty sounds? In actual fact every expression used in the Word, being Divine in origin, carries weight.

sRef Ezek@32 @13 S5′ sRef Ezek@32 @12 S5′ sRef Ezek@32 @14 S5′ [5] In the same prophet,

They will devastate the pride of Egypt, in order that its multitude may be destroyed. And I will destroy all its beasts over many waters, in order that the foot of man (homo) may not disturb them any more, nor the hoof of beast disturb them. Then I will turn their waters into a depth,* and cause their rivers to flow like oil. Ezek. 32:12-14.

Nor are these details intelligible unless one knows what is meant by ‘Egypt’, by ‘the foot of man’, by ‘the hoof of beast’, by ‘waters’ over which beasts will be destroyed, which the foot of man and hoof of beast will disturb, and which will be turned into a depth. Waters and rivers of Egypt are collections of true factual knowledge, while ‘the hoof of beast’ is falsity on the last and lowest level of the natural that disturbs true factual knowledge.

sRef Micah@4 @13 S6′ [6] In Micah,

Arise and thresh, O daughter of Zion, for I will make your horn iron, and I will make your hoofs bronze, in order that you may crush many peoples. Micah 4:13.

Nor can anyone know without the internal sense what these things are, that is, unless he knows what is meant by ‘threshing’, ‘daughter of Zion’, ‘horn that will be made like iron’, ‘hoof that will be made like bronze’, both of which will be used ‘to crush many peoples’. ‘Daughter of Zion’ is the celestial Church, 1362; ‘horn’ is the power of truth that springs from good, 2832; ‘iron’ is natural truth that will have the ability to destroy falsities, 425, 426; ‘hoof’ is truth that springs from good in the last and lowest degree; and ‘bronze’ is natural good that will have power over evils, 425, 1551.

sRef Zech@11 @16 S7′ [7] In Zechariah,

I will raise up a shepherd in the land; he will not go** to [the sheep] that are to be cut off, he will not seek one tender in age, and he will not heal one that is maimed.*** But he will eat the flesh of the fat, and tear apart their hoofs. Zech. 11:16.

This refers to a stupid shepherd. ‘Eating the flesh of the fat’ stands for turning good into evil, ‘tearing apart the hoofs’ for turning truth into falsity.

[8] How superior in intelligence the ancients were to people at the present day becomes clear from the consideration that in regard to very many objects in the world they knew which realities in heaven they corresponded to, and therefore what their spiritual meanings were. This knowledge existed not only with those who belonged to the Church but also with those outside the Church, such as the people in Greece, the most ancient of whom employed images with spiritual meanings to depict those realities. But at the present day, since such meanings are entirely unknown, those images are called myths. Knowledge of such correspondences among the sages of old is evident from the fact that they spoke of a winged horse, which they called Pegasus, to depict the rise of intelligence and wisdom. With its hoof it broke open a fountain, at which there were nine virgins, and which was situated on a hill. For they knew that ‘the horse’ was a sign of the power of understanding, ‘its wings’ a sign of spirituality, ‘its hoofs’ a sign of the last and lowest degree of truth, which gave rise to intelligence, ‘virgins’ a sign of varieties of knowledge, ‘hill’ a sign of unanimity, and in the spiritual sense of charity, and so on with the rest. But such matters at the present day are some of those that are lost.
* i.e. allow them to settle so that they look clear and deep
** lit. visit
*** lit. broken

sRef Ex@10 @26 S0′ 7730. ‘For we must take some of them to serve Jehovah [our God]’ means that they must be used in worship of the Lord. This is clear from the meaning of ‘serving’ as worshipping, ‘Jehovah’ being the Lord, see above in 7727.

sRef Ex@10 @26 S0′ 7731. ‘And we ourselves do not know what we must serve Jehovah our God with’ means that what exactly will be needed for the worship to be performed is unknown. This is clear from the meaning of ‘serving Jehovah’ as worship of the Lord, as above in 7730

sRef Ex@10 @26 S0′ 7732. ‘Until we get there’ means until they have been removed from those steeped in utter falsities arising from evil. This is clear from the meaning of ‘getting there’ – that is, to the wilderness – as being removed from the Egyptians, thus from those steeped in utter falsities arising from evil, meant by ‘the Egyptians’ at this point. ‘Getting into the wilderness to offer sacrifice’ means being in a state removed from falsities, see 6904.

sRef Ex@10 @27 S0′ 7733. ‘And Jehovah made Pharaoh’s heart unyielding’ means that they remained obstinately opposed to the Divine, as above in 7706.

sRef Ex@10 @27 S0′ 7734. ‘And he would not send them away’ means that they had no mind to leave them. This is clear from the meaning of ‘not being willing’ as their having no mind to; and from the meaning of ‘sending away’ as leaving, as also above, in 7707, where similar words occur.

sRef Ex@10 @28 S0′ 7735. ‘And Pharaoh said to him’ means flaming anger at this point with [God’s] truth. This is clear from the meaning of ‘saying’, since what follows is included in that meaning, as flaming anger. For the words that follow ‘Pharaoh said to Moses’ are, ‘Go away from me; take care not to see my face again. For on the day you see my face you will die’, words that express anger with God’s truth, represented by ‘Moses’.

sRef Ex@10 @28 S0′ 7736. ‘Go away from me’ means that he wished to know nothing at all about it – about God’s truth. This is clear from the meaning of ‘go away from me’, when said by the evil regarding God’s truth, as their wishing to know nothing at all about it, since they reject it.

sRef Ex@10 @28 S0′ 7737. ‘Take care not to see my face again’ means that it should not enter their mind. This is clear from the meaning of ‘not seeing his face again’ as not entering their mind ever again, for ‘the face’ means the interiors, 1999, 2434, 3527, 3631, 4066, 4796-4798, 5102, 5165, 5168, 5695, in particular as regards affections. Thus the mind* is meant by ‘face’.
* i.e. the seat of intentions

sRef Ex@10 @28 S0′ 7738. ‘For on the day you see my face you will die’ means that if it did enter their mind it would be extirpated. This is clear from the meaning of ‘seeing the face’ as entering the mind, as immediately above in 7737; and from the meaning of ‘dying’ as being extirpated. The reason why Pharaoh now says that Moses should go from his presence and that if he saw his face he would die is that it now describes the state of the molesters when they are steeped in utter falsity arising from evil, the falsity meant by ‘thick darkness’. The more that those in hell become steeped in falsities arising from evil, the more they loathe truth, and at length loathe it so much that they refuse even to listen to anything true. For truth is contrary to falsity, and falsity is what pleases them because the evil from which that falsity springs is the delight of their life. This being so, they banish truth altogether from their mind, because it is contrary to the pleasure and delight of their life. Or if they do listen to that truth they suffer torment, 7519, so it is that because their state is that of falsity arising from evil, the state meant by ‘thick darkness’, they remove themselves from God’s truth, represented by ‘Moses’. That was why Pharaoh now told Moses to go from his presence and not see his face, and that if he did see it he would die. It was also why Moses replied, ‘Rightly have you spoken; I will not see your face ever again’.

sRef Ex@10 @29 S0′ 7739. ‘And Moses said’ means the reply, as is self-evident.

sRef Ex@10 @29 S0′ 7740. ‘Rightly have you spoken’ means that that is in truth so. This is clear from the meaning of ‘speaking rightly’ as its being so, indeed being meant also by ‘rightly’, 5434, 5437. By the explanation ‘that is in truth so is meant their arrival now at a state in which they have no wish at all to know anything about God’s truth; and should it enter their mind it would be thrown out, in keeping with what has been shown just above in 7738.

sRef Ex@10 @29 S0′ 7741. ‘I will not see your face again’ means that [God’s truth] will not enter their mind again. This is clear from the meaning of ‘not seeing the face’ as not entering the mind, in keeping with what has been stated above in 7737, 7738.


7742. INHABITANTS AND SPIRITS OF THE PLANET MARS – continued

The end of the previous chapter contains an account of a beautiful bird that once appeared and eventually turned to stone. There it was also stated that this bird was a representation of the state of the inhabitants of Mars – a representation of their celestial and spiritual love. There now follows below what I was allowed to know about that state and how it changed.

7743. It has been mentioned already that the inhabitants of Mars are governed by celestial love. They are the ones who were represented by the flaming object that acquired a beautiful sparkle from variations in its colour, and also by the bird with similar colourings. The fact that at the present day a large number of them are beginning to depart from that celestial love, to love knowledge alone, and to suppose that heavenly life lies solely in such knowledge, was represented by the bird when it had turned to stone. For the bird means spiritual life, and its being turned into stone means a life of knowledge but no love, which is not spiritual life any longer but a life cold as stone which nothing from heaven can enter. And their continuing to believe that the Lord is with them, as He is with those there whose lives are governed by celestial love, was meant and demonstrated by the spirit who rose up from below and wished to take the bird away.

7743a The bird of stone was also a representation of inhabitants of that planet who use a strange method to transform the life of their thoughts and affections into a virtual absence of life. What I have seen and heard about this follows below.

7744. There was once above my head a certain spirit who talked to me. From the sound of his voice I detected that he was in a trance-like state. Talking in this state he asked me many things; and what he asked was so sensible that a person fully awake could not have spoken more sensibly. I was allowed to perceive that he was a subordinate through whom angels spoke, and that while in that state he apprehended what they said and reproduced it; for he uttered nothing except what was true. If anything flowed from some other source he did indeed take it in, but he did not reproduce it. I asked him about his state. He said that that state was for him a peaceful one, devoid of all anxiety about things to come, while at the same time he performed useful services, which put him in contact with heaven. I was told that people like him in the Grand Man correlate with the vertical cleft which is situated in the brain between its two hemispheres and is in a state of tranquillity no matter how much turmoil there may be in the brain on either side.

7745. While I was talking to this spirit some other spirits brought themselves to the front of my head, where that spirit was, and pressed in on him. He therefore moved to one side and let them take his place. The newly-arrived spirits were talking to one another, but neither the spirits around me nor I myself could understand what they were saying. Angels informed me that they were spirits from the planet Mars, who knew how to talk to one another in such a way that the other spirits present would not understand or perceive anything of what they were saying. I was amazed that such a way of speaking could exist, since all spirits use a single way of speaking. I was amazed because all speech flows from thought, which is composed of individual ideas. and these ideas take the place of words in the spiritual world. Such idea-words, together with the thought behind them before it is expressed, are perceived plainly in the next life. I was told that those spirits know a certain way of moving their lips and face to form ideas that are unintelligible to others, and that at the moment they are using this way of speaking to one another they are artfully withholding their thoughts from others. They take particular care not to allow any of their affection to reveal itself, the reason why they do so being that if any of their affection is recognized their thought is evident since thought flows from affection. I was further informed that the inhabitants of Mars who suppose that heavenly life lies solely in knowledge and not in a life of love have devised this way of speaking, yet not all; and that they retain this when they become spirits. These are the ones who were meant specifically by the bird of stone; for to produce speech by means of facial expressions and movements of the lips when their affections are isolated and their thoughts withheld from others is to deprive their speech of life and make it like a statue. And by degrees they also make themselves like lifeless statues.

7746. But although they imagine that what they are talking about to one another is not understood by others, angelic spirits in fact perceive every detail of what they are saying. The reason for this is that it is impossible for them to withhold anything they think from them, as the following experience was to demonstrate to them. I began to think about the fact that spirits belonging to our planet feel no shame when they molest others, and this thought was coming to me from angelic spirits. The Martian spirits then admitted that this was what they were talking about to one another, and were astonished. In addition to this an angelic spirit disclosed many other things they were both talking and thinking about, in spite of the efforts they made to keep their thoughts from him.

7747. After this the Martian spirits flowed from above onto my face. The flow felt like thin streaks of rain, which was a sign that they did not have an affection for truth and good; for this is what something streaked represents. They now spoke to me plainly, saying that the inhabitants of their planet talk to one another in a similar manner [unintelligible to others]. I then told them that this was bad, because by acting in that way they block off inner thoughts and feelings and forsake them for outward ones, and then deprive those outward ones of their life too; and especially because there is no honesty in speaking in that kind of way. For those who are honest are unwilling to say or even think anything unless they are willing to let others know it, indeed all others, even the whole of heaven. But those who are not willing to allow others to know what they say pass judgement on others, they have a poor opinion of others and a good one of themselves, and at length, because they behave in that way habitually, they go so far as to think and speak ill even of the Church, heaven, and yes the Lord Himself.

7748. I was told that those who love knowledge alone and do not lead a life in accordance with it correlate with the inner membrane of the skull. But those who have adopted the habit of speaking without affection, and of keeping their thoughts to themselves and withholding them from others, also correlate with that membrane, but ossified, for they pass from possession of some spiritual life to complete lack of any life.

7749. Those who love knowledge alone and do not lead a life in accordance with it are usually led to boast of what they know; to themselves they seem to be wiser than everyone else. Thus they love themselves and despise others, especially those governed by good, whom they look upon as being simple and untaught. But an inversion of positions awaits them in the next life. Those who seemed to themselves to be wise become the stupid there, while the simple become the wise.

7750. Since the bird of stone represented those who are interested in knowledge alone and not in a life of love, and since as a consequence they have practically no spiritual life, let a final note be added here to show that those who are governed by a heavenly love and by knowledge subordinate to that love are the only ones to receive spiritual life. This final note must also show that a love holds within itself every bit of knowledge that belongs to that love. Take for example the animals on land, and also the creatures in the sky, the birds. They possess a knowledge of all the things that belong to their love. Each one’s love consists in feeding itself, living in safety, producing offspring, and providing its young with food. Living creatures therefore possess all the knowledge they require, for every creature has such knowledge within its love; this knowledge flows into its love as if entering a receptacle made for it. That knowledge with some creatures is such that one is bound to be amazed by it. It is said that creatures are born with that knowledge, and it is called instinct; but it is part of the love that governs them.

[2] If man were governed by his love – which is love to God and love towards his neighbour, the love that is properly man’s and marks him off from beasts – he would not only possess all the knowledge he requires, but also all the intelligence and wisdom. He would have no need to acquire these through learning, for they would flow from heaven into those two forms of love, that is, from the Divine by way of heaven. But since man is not governed by those forms of love but by their opposites, that is to say, by self-love and love of the world, he is inevitably born into complete ignorance and lack of knowledge. He is however brought by Divine means to some measure of intelligence and wisdom, though even then he does not actually enter into it at all unless he removes self-love and love of the world and thereby opens the way for love to the Lord and towards the neighbour.

[3] The truth that love to the Lord and love towards the neighbour hold all intelligence and wisdom within them may be recognized from those who were governed in the world by those loves. When they enter heaven in the next life they know and are wise in things such as they had never known before. Indeed like other angels they think and utter things there that are beyond description such as ear has never heard and mind has never known. The reason why they do so is that those forms of love hold within them the ability to receive such gifts.

7751. At the end of the next chapter something is going to be said about the spirits and inhabitants of the planet Jupiter.

7752. 11

TEACHINGS ABOUT CHARITY

All things in the universe have connection with goodness and truth. Things lacking connection with them are outside Divine order; and things lacking connection with the two together are unproductive of anything. Goodness is what produces things, and truth is the means by which it produces them.

7753. Let what has just been said serve to illustrate the situation with spiritual goodness and truth, which are called charity and faith. Let it illustrate that all things of the Church have connection with them, that things lacking connection with them have nothing of the Church within them, and also that things which do not contain both charity and faith bear no fruit, neither the good of charity nor the good of faith.

7754. Two forces must be present for anything to be produced, one being called the active force, the other the passive force. One without the other does not give birth to anything. In a member of the Church those two forces or vital powers are charity and faith.

7755. In the Church good is primary and truth secondary, that is, charity is primary and faith secondary. For truth that doctrine teaches, the truth of faith, exists for the sake of goodness of life; and the end for the sake of which something exists is what is primary.

7756. The situation involving the joining together in people of the good of charity and the truth of faith is this: The good of charity enters a person through his soul, whereas the truth of faith enters through hearing. The former flows in directly from the Lord, the latter indirectly through the Word. That being so, the path by which the good of charity enters is called the inward path, and the path by which the truth of faith enters is called the outward path. What enters by the inward path is not perceived because it does not pass into the person’s direct awareness; but what enters by the outward path is perceived because it does pass into his direct awareness. This accounts for the ascription of everything of the Church to faith. It is different with those who have been regenerated. They have a clear perception of the good of charity.

7757. The joining of the good of charity to the truth of faith takes place in a person s interiors. The good itself that flows in from the Lord adopts the truth there and makes it its own. In doing this it causes the good with a person to be good, and the truth to be truth; that is, it causes the charity to be charity and the faith to be faith. If the two are not joined together charity is not charity but merely natural goodness; and faith is not faith but merely knowledge of such things as are matters of faith, or sometimes more of an acceptance that a thing is true, brought about by inordinate desires for wealth and honour.

7758. When truth has been joined to good it is no longer called truth but good. So when faith has been joined to charity it is no longer called faith but charity. The reason for this is that a person then wills and does the truth; and what he wills and does is called good.

7759. To take further this matter of the joining of the good of charity to the truth of faith, that good is given its particular quality by truth, and truth derives its existence from good. From this it follows that the particular quality of good depends on the truths to which it is joined. Consequently good becomes genuine if the truths to which it is joined are genuine. Genuine truths of faith can exist within the Church, not so outside it, because the Word exists within the Church.

7760. Furthermore the good of charity also receives its particular quality from the quantity of the truths of faith, and in addition from the connection of one truth to another. This is how spiritual good is formed with a person.

7761. A clear distinction should be drawn between spiritual good and natural good. Spiritual good, as has been stated, derives its particular quality from the truths of faith, the quantity of them, and their connection with one another. But natural good is inborn, and also is engendered by things that happen by chance, such as misfortunes, illnesses, and the like. Natural good saves no one, whereas spiritual good saves all. The reason for this is that the good which is given form by the truths of faith provides heaven – that is, the Lord through heaven – with a level to flow into, in order to lead the person, withhold him from evil, and subsequently raise him to heaven. But natural good is not like that. People therefore whose good is merely natural can be carried away by falsity as easily as by truth, provided that in outward appearance the falsity looks like truth. They can also be led as easily by evil as by good, provided that the evil is presented as good. They are like feathers in the wind.

7762. The confidence or assurance which is spoken of as a confidence in faith, and is called faith, is not spiritual, only natural confidence or assurance. Spiritual confidence or assurance derives its existence and life from the good of love, not from the truth of faith separated from good. Confidence in separated faith is dead. Accordingly true confidence cannot exist with those who have led an evil life. Nor does even the confidence itself – confidence that a person is saved through the Lord’s merit irrespective of the life he led – have any basis in the truth.

EXODUS 11

1 And Jehovah said to Moses, One more plague I will bring onto Pharaoh and onto Egypt; afterwards he will send you away from here. When he sends everything away he will surely drive you out from here.

2 Say now in the ears of the people, and let them ask, a man from his companion and a woman from her companion, vessels of silver and vessels of gold.

3 And Jehovah gave the people favour* in the eyes of the Egyptians. Also the man Moses was exceedingly great in the land of Egypt, in the eyes of Pharaoh’s servants and in the eyes of the people.

4 And Moses said, Thus said Jehovah, About midnight I will go out into the midst of Egypt;

5 And all the firstborn in the land of Egypt will die, from Pharaoh’s firstborn who is to sit on his throne, even to the firstborn of the servant-girl who is behind the mill, and all the firstborn of the beasts.

6 And there will be a great cry in the whole land of Egypt, the like of which has never been, and the like of which will not be again.

7 And against all the children of Israel not a dog will move its tongue, against man (vir) and even against beast, so that you may know that Jehovah makes a distinction between the Egyptians and Israel.

8 And all these your servants will come down to me, and bow down to me, saying, Go out, you, and all the people at your feet!** And after that I will go out. And he went out from Pharaoh in wrath and anger.***

9 And Jehovah said to Moses, Pharaoh will not hear**** you, so that My wonders may be multiplied in the land of Egypt.

10 And Moses and Aaron performed all these wonders before Pharaoh; and Jehovah made Pharaoh’s heart unyielding, and he did not send the children of Israel away from his land.
* lit. grace
** i.e. and all who follow you
*** lit. the wrath of anger
**** lit. hear towards


sRef Ex@11 @0 S0′ 7763. CONTENTS

This chapter deals in the internal sense with the damnation of faith separated from charity, which is meant by the killing at midnight of the firstborn of Egypt. In addition it deals with the known facts about what is true and good which were to be passed over to those belonging to the spiritual Church, meant by the vessels of silver and gold which the children of Israel were to borrow from the Egyptians.

sRef Ex@11 @3 S0′ sRef Ex@11 @1 S0′ sRef Ex@11 @2 S0′ 7764. THE INTERNAL SENSE

Verses 1-3 And Jehovah said to Moses, One more plague I will bring onto Pharaoh and onto Egypt; afterwards he will send you away from here. When he sends everything away he will surely drive you out from here. Say now in the ears of the people, and let them ask, a man from his companion and a woman from her companion, vessels of silver and vessels of gold. And Jehovah gave the people favour* in the eyes of the Egyptians. Also the man Moses was exceedingly great in the land of Egypt, in the eyes of Pharaoh’s servants and in the eyes of the people.

‘And Jehovah said to Moses’ means instruction. ‘One more plague I will bring onto Pharaoh and onto Egypt’ means the final stage of vastation, which is damnation. ‘Afterwards he will send you away from here’ means that then they will be left alone. ‘When he sends everything away he will surely drive you out from here’ means that they will leave them completely, and will loathe and shun their presence. ‘Say now in the ears of the people’ means instructions and obedience. ‘And let them ask, a man from his companion and a woman from her companion, vessels of silver and vessels of gold’ means that factual knowledge of truth and of good must be removed from the evil who have belonged to the Church and be assigned to the good who belong to it. ‘And Jehovah gave the people favour in the eyes of the Egyptians’ means fear, on account of the plagues, which those immersed in evils had of those who belonged to the spiritual Church. ‘Also the man Moses was exceedingly great in the land of Egypt’ means respect for God’s truth now. ‘In the eyes of the servants and in the eyes of the people’ means with those who were in subordinate positions there.
* lit. grace

sRef Ex@11 @1 S0′ 7765. ‘And Jehovah said to Moses’ means instruction, as in 7186, 7267, 7704, 7380.

sRef Ex@11 @1 S0′ 7766. ‘One more plague I will bring onto Pharaoh and onto Egypt’ means the final stage of vastation, which is damnation. This is clear from the meaning of ‘one more plague’ as the last stage of vastation. It is evident from the explanation of what has gone before that the plagues brought onto Egypt meant consecutive states of vastation. The fact that the last stage is damnation – the damnation of faith separated from charity – will be evident from what is to follow; for the killing in Egypt of the firstborn means the damnation of that faith, ‘death’ being damnation and ‘the firstborn’ faith. Faith is said to be damned when matters of faith are used to support falsities and evils. When used in support of these, matters of faith go over to their side and become endorsements of them. This happens with those who separate faith from charity in both doctrine and life. But no faith in fact resides with them, only knowledge of such things as are matters of faith, though they call that knowledge faith. This is what one should understand by faith that is damned. Furthermore the people themselves in whom such matters of faith have been linked to falsities and evils end up in damnation after undergoing stages of vastation. Their damnation is made perceptible by the rotten and foul stink that emanates from them, worse than any emitted by those who have never subscribed to matters of faith. Their situation in particular is the same as that which arises in a general way. Generally, if an evil spirit approaches a heavenly community, where charity exists, its inhabitants smell plainly the foul stink emanating from him. They do so in particular situations in which such things as belong to heaven, that is, matters of faith, have co-existed in a person with such things as belong to hell. From all this it is now evident that ‘one more plague which will be brought onto Pharaoh and onto Egypt’ means the last stage of vastation, which is damnation. For ‘Pharaoh’ represents those who have been molesters, at this point those who are damned, and ‘Egypt’ means the natural mind, 5276, 5278, 5280, 5288, 5301, 6147, 6252.

sRef Ex@11 @1 S0′ 7767. ‘Afterwards he will send you away from here’ means that then they will be left alone. This is clear from the meaning of ‘sending away’ as leaving, as often before.

sRef Ex@11 @1 S0′ 7768. ‘When he sends everything away he will surely drive you out from here’ means that they will leave them completely, and will loathe and shun their presence. This is clear from the meaning of ‘sending everything away ‘as leaving completely; and from the meaning of ‘surely driving you out’ as loathing and shunning those belonging to the spiritual Church whom they have molested. For anyone who loathes another’s presence shuns it too, and also drives him away from himself. The reason why they now loathe and shun those who belong to the spiritual Church is that inflowing goodness and truth now torment them. The situation may be compared to painful sores which cannot stand even the touch of warm water or a breath of air on them, or to a damaged eye that cannot stand even gentle rays from the sun. So it is with those who molest. Their natural mind is now like something wounded in this way; after they have undergone vastation, that is, after things which have been matters of faith have been cast away, they feel pain when the slightest breath of goodness or truth blows on them, which gives rise to loathing.

sRef Ex@11 @2 S0′ 7769. ‘Say now in the ears of the people’ means instructions and obedience. This is clear from the meaning here of ‘saying’ as instructions, for Jehovah here says what the children of Israel are to do when they are about to depart from Egypt. Obedience is meant by ‘saying in the ears’, for the ears correspond to obedience and consequently serve to mean it, 2542, 3869, 4551, 4652-4660.

sRef Ex@11 @2 S0′ 7770. ‘And let them ask, a man from his companion and a woman from her companion, vessels of silver and vessels of gold’ means that factual knowledge of truth and of good must be removed from the evil who have belonged to the Church and be assigned to the good who belong to it. This is clear from the meaning of ‘vessels of silver and vessels of gold’ as factual knowledge of truth and of good, ‘silver’ being truth and ‘gold’ good, see 1551, 1552, 2954, 5658, 6112, and ‘vessels’ factual knowledge, 3068, 3079. That knowledge is referred to as vessels of truth and good because it contains them. The assumption is made that the facts which people know about truth or about good are the truths of faith themselves or the forms of the good of faith themselves. But they are not. Affections for truth and good are what compose faith; those affections flow into known facts, which are the appropriate vessels for them. Asking them from the Egyptians is, it is self-evident, taking them away and assigning them to oneself. This is why previously in Chapter 3:22 it says that they were to plunder the Egyptians, and subsequently in Chapter 11[:36] that they despoiled them. The reason why it says that ‘a man was to ask from his companion and a woman from her companion’ is that ‘a man’ has reference to and also means truth and ‘a woman’ has reference to and also means good.

sRef Matt@25 @29 S2′ sRef Matt@25 @28 S2′ sRef Matt@25 @26 S2′ sRef Matt@25 @30 S2′ sRef Matt@13 @12 S2′ [2] The implications of all this may be seen at the explanation of Exod. 3:21, 22 in 6914, 6917. That explanation shows that the factual knowledge itself of truth and of good which have been in the possession of those belonging to the Church who have been acquainted with the arcana of faith and yet have led a life of evil are transferred to those who belong to the spiritual Church. How the transfer is effected, see 6914. These things are meant by the Lord’s words in Matthew,

The Lord said to him who went away and hid the talent in the earth, Take the talent from him and give it to him who has ten talents, for to everyone who has, it will be given, so that he may have in abundance; but from him who does not have, even what he has will be taken away. Cast the useless servant into outer darkness. Matt. 25:25, 28-30; Luke 19:24-26.

And similar words in the same gospel,

To him who has, it will be given, so that he may have abundantly; but from him who does not have, even what he has will be taken away. Matt. 13:12; Mark 4:24, 25.

[3] The reason for the transfer is that the knowledge or cognitions of goodness and truth which the evil possess are applied to evil purposes, whereas the cognitions of goodness and truth that the good possess are applied to good purposes. The cognitions are the same, but the purposes to which any one person applies them gives them their specific character. Such cognitions may be compared to worldly wealth, which one person devotes to good purposes, and another to bad ones, so that the character of any one person’s wealth depends on the purposes to which he devotes it. This also shows that the same cognitions, like the same wealth, which the evil have possessed can pass into the possession of the good and serve good purposes. From all this one may now recognize what is represented when it says that the children of Israel were commanded to ask from the Egyptians vessels of silver and vessels of gold, and in so doing to despoil and plunder them. Such a despoilment or plundering would never have been commanded by Jehovah if such things had not been represented in the spiritual world.

sRef Isa@23 @18 S4′ [4] Things like these are what are meant in Isaiah,

At length the merchandise of Tyre and its harlot’s wages will be holy to Jehovah, it will not be hoarded or held back; but its merchandise will be for those that dwell before Jehovah to eat to their satiety, and for him who covers himself with what is ancient. Isa. 23:18.

This refers to ‘Tyre’, which means cognitions of goodness and truth, 1201. ‘Merchandise’ and ‘harlot’s wages’ are cognitions applied to evil purposes. Their being given to the good who will apply them to good purposes is meant by ‘its merchandise will be for those that dwell before Jehovah to eat to satiety, [and] for him who covers himself with what is ancient’.

sRef 2Sam@8 @12 S5′ sRef 1Ki@7 @51 S5′ sRef 2Sam@8 @11 S5′ sRef Micah@4 @13 S5′ [5] Also in Micah,

Arise and thresh, O daughter of Zion, for I will make your horn iron, and I will make your hoofs bronze, in order that you may crush many peoples. And I devoted their gain to Jehovah, and their riches to the Lord of the whole earth. Micah 4:13.

‘Crushing many peoples’ stands for devastating them. ‘The gain’ which was devoted to Jehovah and the Lord of the whole earth is cognitions of truth and goodness. Something similar is implied in 2 Sam. 8:11, 12, where it says that David consecrated to Jehovah the silver and gold which he had taken from the nations he had subdued, from the Syrians, from Moab, from the children of Ammon, from the Philistines, from Amalek, and from the spoil of Hadad Ezer; and in 1 Kings 7:51, that Solomon put among the treasures of Jehovah’s house the things consecrated by his father.

sRef Ex@11 @3 S0′ 7771. ‘And Jehovah gave the people favour in the eyes of the Egyptians’ means fear, on account of the plagues, which those immersed in evils had of those who belonged to the spiritual Church. This is clear from the explanation previously in 6914, where similar words occur.

sRef Ex@11 @3 S0′ 7772. ‘Also the man Moses was exceedingly great in the land of Egypt’ means respect for God’s truth now. This is clear from the representation of ‘Moses’ as God’s truth, dealt with often; from the meaning of ‘exceedingly great as respect, at this point respect as a result of fear since the evil in hell have no respect for the Divine apart from that due to fear (the words ‘in the eyes of the servants and in the eyes of the people’ show that respect is meant by ‘exceedingly great’); and from the meaning of ‘the land of Egypt’ as the natural mind, dealt with in 5276, 5278, 5280, 5288, 5301, 6147, 6152. From this it is evident that ‘the man Moses was exceedingly great in the land of Egypt’ means respect for God’s truth in the mind – in the mind of the molesting ones.

sRef Ex@11 @3 S0′ 7773. ‘In the eyes of the servants and in the eyes of the people’ means with those who were in subordinate positions there. This is clear from the meaning of ‘the servants’ and ‘the people’ as those who are subordinate; for ‘Pharaoh’ represents the chief ones who molested, under whom all the rest were subordinate. Those who were subordinate are meant because the evil no less than the good, or hell no less than heaven, have some system of government, that is to say, people in governing positions and those in subordinate ones, without which society would not hold together. But the way in which one person is subordinated to another in heaven is completely different from the way it happens in hell. In heaven all people are as equals, since one person loves another as brother loves brother; yet one exalts another above himself as that other excels him in intelligence and wisdom. A genuine love of what is good and true causes each one, spontaneously so to speak, to make himself subordinate to those who have a wiser discernment of good than he has and a more intelligent understanding of truth. Subordination in hell however involves domination and consequent ruthlessness. He who dominates behaves ruthlessly towards those who do not agree with every whim he has. For each one regards every one else as an enemy, though outwardly he treats him as a friend in order that they may band together to oppose the violence of others. Their banding together is like that of robbers. Those who are subordinate yearn constantly to dominate and also often break out in revolt. Then conditions there become deplorable, for then they do savage and cruel things to one another. This happens periodically. From all this one may see what subordination is like in the next life.

sRef Ex@11 @4 S0′ sRef Ex@11 @7 S0′ sRef Ex@11 @5 S0′ sRef Ex@11 @6 S0′ 7774. Verses 4-8 And Moses said, Thus said Jehovah, About midnight I will go out into the midst of Egypt; and all the firstborn in the land of Egypt will die, from Pharaoh’s firstborn who is to sit on his throne, even to the firstborn of the servant-girl who is behind the mill, and all the firstborn of the beasts. And there will be a great cry in the whole land of Egypt, the like of which has never been, and the like of which will not be again. And against all the children of Israel not a dog will move its tongue, against man (vir) and even against beast, so that you may know that Jehovah makes a distinction between the Egyptians and Israel. And all these your servants will come down to me, and bow down to me, saying, Go out, your and all the people at your feet!* And after that I will go out. And he went out from Pharaoh in wrath and anger.**

‘And Moses said, Thus said Jehovah’ means instruction. ‘About midnight’ means when vastation is completed. ‘I will go out into the midst of Egypt’ means the presence of the Divine everywhere then. ‘And all the firstborn in the land of Egypt will die’ means the damnation of faith separated from charity then. ‘From Pharaoh’s firstborn who is to sit on his throne’ means falsified truths of faith that occupy the first place. ‘Even to the firstborn of the servant-girl who is behind the mill’ means falsified truths of faith that occupy the very last place. ‘And all the firstborn of the beasts’ means adulterated forms of the good of faith. ‘And there will be a great cry in the whole land of Egypt’ means deep grief. ‘The like of which has never been, and the like of which will not be again’ means that the nature of the state was such that there could be none similar to it. ‘And against all the children of Israel not a dog will move its tongue’ means that with those belonging to the spiritual Church there would not be the smallest trace of damnation or grief. ‘Against man and even against beast’ means neither in respect of truth nor of good. ‘So that you may know that Jehovah makes a distinction between the Egyptians and Israel’ means so that the nature of the difference between those immersed in evil and those governed by good may be known. ‘And all these your servants will come down to me’ means those who are subordinate. ‘And bow down to me’ means respect for God’s truth generated by fear. ‘Saying, Go out, you, and all the people at your feet!’ means pleading to let them depart from those guided by the truth from God, highest to lowest. ‘And after that I will go out’ means that God’s truth will depart. ‘And he went out from Pharaoh in wrath and anger’ means a violent breaking off of the presence of God’s truth from those who are to be damned.
* i.e. and all who follow you
** lit. the wrath of anger

sRef Ex@11 @4 S0′ 7775. ‘And Moses said, Thus said Jehovah’ means instruction, as above in 7765.

sRef Ex@11 @4 S0′ 7776. ‘About midnight’ means when vastation is completed. This is clear from the meaning of ‘midnight’ as the time of thickest darkness, that is, utter falsity. For ‘night’ means a state of falsity, 2353, 6000, and ‘the middle’ of it is the peak, so that ‘midnight’ is when vastation is completed.

sRef Ex@11 @4 S0′ 7777. ‘I will go out into the midst of Egypt’ means the presence of the Divine everywhere then. This is clear from the meaning of ‘going out through the midst’, when Jehovah is said to do so, as the presence of the Divine. Everywhere is meant by ‘the midst’ when this is used in reference to the land, for ‘going out through the midst of Egypt’ is going out into all of it.

sRef Ex@11 @5 S0′ 7778. ‘And all the firstborn in the land of Egypt will die’ means the damnation of faith separated from charity. This is clear from the meaning of ‘dying’ as damnation, dealt with in 5407, 6119; and from the meaning of ‘the firstborn’ as the Church’s faith through which charity comes, dealt with in 352, 2435, 6344, 7035. But ‘the firstborn in the land of Egypt’ is faith devoid of charity, about which see above in 7766.

[2] As regards faith devoid of charity, there is more to be said. Faith that is devoid of charity is not faith but merely knowledge of such things as constitute faith. For the truths of faith look to charity as their ultimate end in view, and later on proceed from charity as their first end in view. From this it is evident that the things which constitute faith do not exist with those who have no charity, even though they have a knowledge of the truths of faith, as is well known. This knowledge is what they call faith. And when they use the facts they know about the truth and good of faith to support falsities and evils, they no longer have the truths and forms of the good of faith because these come to be like the falsities and evils that such truths and forms of good serve. For now the very falsities and evils which they support are seen in them.

[3] Things that constitute genuine faith look upwards to heaven and the Lord, whereas those that constitute faith separated from charity look downwards – and when they support evils and falsities – to hell, from which too it is evident that faith separated from charity is not faith. All this goes to show what is meant by the damnation of faith separated from charity, that is to say, of the truth of faith when falsified and the good of faith when adulterated. For when truth has been falsified it is no longer truth but falsity, and when good has been adulterated it is no longer good but evil; and faith itself is no longer faith composed of truth and good but of falsity and evil, no matter what it looks and sounds like to outward appearance. Furthermore, and this is an arcanum, the character of anyone’s faith is determined by the character of his life. If therefore his life is damned, so is his faith; for it is a faith composed of falsity when his life is a life of evil. It is not apparent in the world that this is so, but it is made plain in the next life. When the evil in that life are deprived of the truth and good they know there then emerge from evils the falsities which have lain hidden with those people.

sRef Matt@25 @11 S4′ sRef Matt@7 @23 S4′ sRef Matt@7 @22 S4′ sRef Matt@25 @12 S4′ [4] With some evil people a certain kind of conviction exists that the truth of faith is the truth; and this conviction too is thought to be faith. But it is not faith since it is induced by the intent to make it serve as the means by which wealth, important positions, and reputation can be acquired. As long as the truths they know are serving as the means to that end they love them for the sake of an evil intent. But when they no longer serve in that way they are abandoned, indeed are regarded as falsities. The term ‘persuasive faith’ is used to describe this kind of conviction, and it is what is meant by the Lord’s words in Matthew,

Many will say to Me on that day, Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy though Your name, and through Your name cast out demons, and do many mighty works in Your name? But then I will confess to them, I do not know you; depart from Me, you workers of iniquity. Matt. 7:22, 23.

The same kind of faith is also meant by ‘lamps without oil’ with the five foolish virgins, who also said, Lord, Lord, open to us. But He replying said, Truly, I say to you, I do not know you. Matt. 25:11, 12.

The truths of faith are meant by ‘lamps’, and the good of charity by ‘oil’, so that ‘lamps without oil’ are truths of faith devoid of the good of charity.

sRef Ex@11 @5 S0′ 7779. ‘From Pharaoh’s firstborn who is to sit on his throne’ means falsified truths of faith that occupy the first place. This is clear from the meaning of ‘firstborn’ as faith, dealt with in 352, 2435, 6344, 7035; from the representation of ‘Pharaoh’ as factual knowledge in general perverting the Church’s truths, dealt with in 6015, 6651, 6679, 6683, 6692, so that ‘Pharaoh’s firstborn’ is faith consisting of such truths, that is, faith consisting of falsified truths of faith; and from the meaning of ‘throne’ as the rule of truth, and in the contrary sense the rule of falsity, dealt with in 5313. The fact that ‘Pharaoh’s firstborn who is to sit on his throne’ means falsified truths of faith that occupy the first place is evident from the use of the words ‘even to the firstborn of the servant-girl who is behind the mill’, which mean falsified truths of faith that occupy the very last place; besides which the king’s son means that which is primary since the king is the head.

[2] Falsified truths occupying the first place are those which are taken to be essential truths, such as these: Faith saves a person irrespective of the life he has been leading; it saves a person in the final hour of his life; he is at that point pure and free from sins, which means that these are removed in an instant like dirt on the hands by water. Those falsified truths posit that faith does exist without charity, that so far as a person’s salvation is concerned it does not matter what kind of life he leads, and also that a person who is a devil can become an angel of God in an instant. Such notions and others like them are the falsified truths occupying the first place; those that are immediately derived from them occupy the second place; and those which are remotely derived from them occupy the last place. For every truth has a long wide-ranging sequence of derivations, some of which are in a direct line from it, some at an angle, while those that merely touch on that truth stand on the outermost edges.

[3] The fact that such notions and others like them are falsified truths of faith is very plain to see. Does anyone who thinks properly not know that the life of faith makes a person spiritual, not faith except to the extent that it has been integrated into his life? A person’s life is his love, and what he loves, that he wills and intends; and what he wills and intends, that he does. This is the essential nature (esse) of the person, not what he knows, or what he thinks but does not will. That essential nature of a person cannot possibly be changed into a different one by his thinking about mediation and salvation, only by new birth, which is being effected throughout a large part of his life. For he must be conceived, be born, and mature anew; and this is not effected by thinking and speaking, but by willing and acting.

[4] These matters have been stated because ‘Pharaoh’s firstborn’ and ‘the firstborn of the Egyptians’ mean faith separated from charity, which – as has been shown in what has gone before – is not faith but the knowledge of such things as constitute faith. The reason why ‘the firstborn of the Egyptians’ represented that kind of faith is that the Egyptians, more than all others who constituted the representative Church after the time of the Flood, possessed a knowledge of the religious observances of the Church, 4749, 4964, 4966, 6004. At that time all ceremonies were representative of spiritual realities in heaven. The Egyptians had a greater knowledge of these than all others had; but in course of time they began to love merely their knowledge of them. They now began to think, as one finds at the present day, that the Church consisted entirely in knowing the kinds of things that have to do with the Church, and no longer in a charitable life. Thus they turned the whole order of the Church upside down; and once this had been turned upside down truths which are called the truths of faith were inevitably falsified. For if truths are applied in ways contrary to Divine order – as happens when they are applied to evils, or in the case of the Egyptians to acts of magic – they are no longer truths with those people but acquire from the evils to which they are applied the nature of falsities.

[5] Let the calf-worship among Egyptians serve to illustrate this. They knew what a calf represented, namely the good of charity. As long as they knew this and had this in mind, then when they saw calves, or when they prepared calves at charitable feasts, such as the ancients held, or later on when calves were used in sacrifices, they thought in a way that was sane and at the same time in company with the angels in heaven since a calf is for them the good of charity. But when they began to make calves of gold, place them in their temples, and worship them, they thought in an insane manner and at the same time in company with the hells. In that way they turned a true representative into a false one.

sRef Ex@11 @5 S0′ 7780. ‘Even to the firstborn of the servant-girl who is behind the mill’ means falsified truths of faith that occupy the very last place. This is clear from the meaning of ‘the firstborn’ as faith, dealt with immediately above in 7779, and since faith is meant, so is truth in its entirety because truth, being that which one ought to believe, is the component of faith; and from the meaning of ‘a servant-girl’ as a rather external affection for truth, or an affection for knowledge, dealt with in 1895, 2567, 3835, 3849, and ‘the servant-girl behind the mill’ as the most external affection for knowledge since ‘behind the mill’ means that which occupies the very last place. The expression ‘behind the mill’ is used because ‘the mill’ has reference to matters of faith. For by means of a mill grain is ground into flour and so prepared for making bread, and ‘flour’ means truth which results in good, ‘bread’ the actual good that results from it. Thus ‘sitting at the mill’ is acquiring and learning the kinds of things that will be of service to faith, and through faith of service to charity. This is why when the ancients described learning the basic elements of faith they described it as ‘sitting at the mill’, or learning elements even more basic as ‘sitting behind the mill’. It is because such things were meant that in His teachings about the final period of the Church the Lord says,

Two women grinding at the mill; one will be taken and the other will be left behind. Matt. 24:41.

These words would never have been used if ‘the mill’ had not meant matters of faith. For what ‘the mill’ and ‘grinding’ mean in the internal sense, see 4335. With regard to the truths of faith that occupy the first place and those that occupy the very last, it should be recognized that the truths of faith which emanate directly from the good of charity occupy the first place, for they are the outward form taken by good, whereas the truths which occupy the last place are bare truths. For when truths derive in succession from good, each degree of them departs further away from it, till at length they become bare truths. This is the kind of truths meant by ‘servant-girls behind mills’.

sRef Ex@11 @5 S0′ 7781. ‘And all the firstborn of the beasts’ means adulterated forms of the good of faith. This is clear from the meaning of ‘the firstborn’ as faith; and from the meaning of ‘beast’ as affections for good, and in the contrary sense affections for evil, dealt with in 45, 46, 141, 143, 246, 714, 715, 719, 776, 2179, 2180, 3519, 4724, 5198. Such things come to be meant by ‘beasts’ from representatives in the next life, 3218; and for that reason also such things were meant by the ones used in sacrifices, 2180, 2805, 2807, 2870, 3519. And because ‘beasts’ meant these things ‘the firstborn of the beasts’ therefore means the good of truth, at this point when it had been adulterated since it was with the Egyptians, who perverted all truths and forms of good by applying them to evil purposes.

sRef Ex@11 @6 S0′ 7782. ‘And there will be a great cry in the whole land of Egypt’ means deep grief. This is clear from the meaning of ‘a cry’ – which goes up because the firstborn are dead, in the internal sense because of damnation – as grief. The reason why ‘a great cry’ means deep grief is that the greater the grief, the deeper it is.

sRef Ex@11 @6 S0′ 7783. ‘The like of which has never been, and the like of which will not be again’ means that the nature of the state was such that there could be none similar to it. This becomes clear from the explanations in 7649, 7686.

sRef Ex@11 @7 S0′ 7784. ‘And against all the children of Israel not a dog will move its tongue’ means that with those belonging to the spiritual Church there would not be the smallest trace of damnation or grief. This is clear from the representation of ‘the children of Israel’ as those who belong to the spiritual Church, dealt with in 6426, 6637, 6862, 6868, 7035, 7062, 7198, 7201, 7215, 7227; and from the meaning of ‘not a dog moving its tongue’ as there being not the smallest trace of damnation or grief. For these words express the opposite of ‘a great cry which there will be in the land of Egypt’, that is, deep grief, 7782 – deep grief on account of damnation, meant by the death of the firstborn.

sRef Matt@15 @26 S2′ sRef Matt@15 @27 S2′ sRef Matt@15 @28 S2′ [2] When it is said that there will not be the smallest trace of damnation with those who belong to the spiritual Church, that is, with those governed by the good of that Church, this should not be taken to mean that they are without any evil, but that they are withheld from evil and maintained in good by the Lord. What is properly their own is altogether evil and damned, but what is properly the Lord’s which they receive is good and so is free from all damnation. This is the meaning when it is said that there is no damnation at all with those who abide in the Lord.

[3] The expression ‘not a dog will move its tongue’ is used on account of the meaning that ‘a dog’ has. ‘A dog’ means the lowest of all within the Church, that is, the mean and lowly, as well as those outside the Church, and also those who blather a lot about things that have to do with the
Church and have little understanding of them. And in the contrary sense it means those who are altogether outside the faith of the Church and who subject matters of faith to abuse. The fact that ‘dogs’ means those outside the Church is clear in Matthew,

Jesus said to the woman who was Greek, a Syro-Phoenician, It is not good to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs. But she said, To be sure, Lord, but even the little dogs eat from the crumbs which fall from their masters’ table. Then Jesus answering said to her, O woman, great is your faith! Let it be to you as you desire. And her daughter was healed. Matt. 15:26-28; Mark 7:27, 28.

Here ‘children’ is used to mean those within the Church, and ‘dogs’ those outside it. Much the same is meant by the dogs that licked Lazarus sores, Luke 16:21; for ‘the rich man’ there is used to mean in the internal sense those who are within the Church and who consequently have an abundance of spiritual riches, which consist in knowledge of what is true and good.

sRef Isa@56 @10 S4′ sRef Ps@68 @23 S4′ sRef Ps@59 @6 S4′ sRef Ps@59 @7 S4′ sRef Ps@59 @14 S4′ sRef Matt@7 @6 S4′ [4] ‘Dogs’ stands for those occupying the lowest position within the Church who blather a lot about such things as have to do with the Church but have little understanding of them, and in the contrary sense those who hurl insults at the things which are matters of faith, in Isaiah,

His watchmen are all blind, they are without knowledge; they are all dumb dogs, they cannot bark – watching, lying down, loving to sleep. Isa. 56:10.

In David,

They make a noise like a dog, they go around in the city; for they belch with their mouth, swords are in their lips. Ps. 59:6, 7, 14.

In the same author,

That your foot may press into blood the tongue of your dogs. Ps. 68:23.

In Matthew,

Do not give what is holy to the dogs; do not cast your pearls before swine, lest perhaps they trample on them with their feet, and turn and tear you to pieces. Matt. 7:6.

This is why the most inferior of all things, which was to be cast away, is meant by ‘a dead dog’ in 1 Sam 24:14; 2 Sam. 9:8; 16:9.

sRef Ex@11 @7 S0′ 7785. ‘Against man and even against beast’ means neither in respect of truth nor of good. This is clear from the meaning of ‘man’ as truth, dealt with in 7134; and from the meaning of ‘beast’ as an affection for good, and so good itself, dealt with just above in 7781.

sRef Ex@11 @7 S0′ 7786. ‘So that you may know that Jehovah makes a distinction between the Egyptians and Israel’ means so that the nature of the difference between those immersed in evil and those governed by good may be known. This is clear from the meaning of ‘knowing’ as being made known; from the representation of ‘the Egyptians’ as those immersed in evil (previously ‘the Egyptians’ meant those steeped in falsity, but now that they have undergone vastation of the Church’s truths which they knew they mean those immersed in evil; for ‘the death of the firstborn’ means damnation, a state of evil); and from the representation of ‘the children of Israel’ as those who belong to the spiritual Church, dealt with above in 7784, thus those who are governed by good, since those who belong to the spiritual Church are led through faith to charity, that is, through truth to good.

sRef Ex@11 @8 S0′ 7787. ‘And all [these] your servants will come down to me’ means those who are subordinate. This is clear from the meaning of ‘Pharaoh’s servants’ as those who are subordinate, dealt with above in 7773.

sRef Ex@11 @8 S0′ 7788. ‘And bow down to me’ means respect for God’s truth generated by fear. This is clear from the representation of ‘Moses’ as God’s truth, dealt with often; and from the meaning of ‘bowing down’ as self-abasement, but at this point as respect generated by fear since it is said of those immersed in evil. The expression ‘respect generated by fear’ is used because the evil do not have any respect for God’s truth, not even for God Himself, other than that which is born in them out of fear. For those in hell love only themselves, and those who love only themselves have no respect for another. They focus onto themselves all respect due to others, even to God Himself. Where there is love there is respect; where there is no love there is no respect apart from that generated by fear. This explains why the evil in the next life suffer punishments, till eventually they do not dare to rise up against the good and molest them. For there are no other means that would deter them from doing evil than the fear of punishments.

sRef Ex@11 @8 S0′ 7789. ‘Saying, Go out, you, and all the people at your feet!’ means pleading to let them depart from those guided by the truth from God, highest to lowest. This is clear from the meaning of ‘going out’ as departing; from the representation of Moses, to whom ‘you’ refers here, as God’s truth; from the meaning of ‘the people’ as those guided by the truth from God (for the children of Israel, to whom ‘the people’ refers here, represent those who belong to the spiritual Church, that is, those who are guided by the truth of good and governed by the good of truth, at this point those guided by the truth from God since the expression ‘the people at your feet’ is used and ‘Moses’ represents God’s truth); and from the meaning of ‘at your feet’ as those who occupy a lower position, thus who are subordinate, since ‘feet’, meaning natural things, therefore means lower ones. For the natural world lies below the spiritual world, and ‘feet’ means natural things, see 2162, 7761, 3986, 4280, 4938-4952. All this explains why the words ‘the people at your feet’ are used. But they also mean highest to lowest, ‘Moses’ being the highest since he represents God’s truth, ‘the people at his feet’ every single person who is guided by the truth from God.

sRef Luke@12 @48 S0′ sRef Luke@12 @47 S0′ sRef Ex@11 @8 S0′ 7790. ‘And after that I will go out’ means that God’s truth will depart. This is clear from the meaning of ‘going out’ as departing; and from the representation of ‘Moses’ as God’s truth. These words mean that when those who have molested the upright are damned all God’s truth departs from them, for then their state is one in which their own evil reigns, and evil rejects and eliminates all God’s truth. Previously, before they were damned, they were, it is true, acquainted with the truths of faith; but even so, they did not have truths within themselves. Truths were on their lips but not in their hearts. Consequently, when they underwent vastation of those truths evil remained, and the falsity of evil that had lain concealed within them emerged at the same time also. For although they declared a belief in truths they were not guided by them but by falsities. Their declaration of belief in what is true did not spring from its proper origin – from good – but from evil; for gain, important positions, and reputation, and so self and the world, were the reasons for its existence with them. Truths which spring from that kind of origin cling to the surface, and therefore, when they are laid waste, they fall off like scales; and when they fall off they leave behind places with a terrible, rotten stink because of the falsities that emanate from the evils there. Such is the fate of those who have been acquainted with the truths of faith and yet have led a life contrary to them, as accords with the Lord’s words in Luke,

That servant who knows the Lord’s will, but neither prepares himself nor does his will, will be beaten with many [blows]. But he who does not know, although he does things worthy of blows, will be beaten with few. Luke 12:47, 48.

sRef Ex@11 @8 S0′ 7791. ‘And he went out from Pharaoh in wrath and anger’ means a violent breaking off of the presence of God’s truth from those who are to be damned. This is clear from the meaning of ‘going out’ as departing, at this point a violent breaking off since the words ‘in wrath and anger’ are used (in the end also, once damnation is reached, a violent breaking off takes place, for when people begin to feel a loathing of God’s truth, also to fear it, and at length to feel horror at its presence, they break away from it violently); from the representation of ‘Moses’ as God’s truth, dealt with often; from the representation of ‘Pharaoh’ as the ones who molested those who belonged to the spiritual Church, also dealt with often, but at this point those who are to be damned, damnation being meant by the declaration that the firstborn were going to be killed, 7778; and from the meaning of ‘wrath and anger’ as antagonism and loathing or aversion, dealt with in 3614, 5034, 5798. But when those feelings are attributed to the Divine, as they are here to Divine Truth, represented by ‘Moses’, it does not mean that the Divine turns away in aversion but that those immersed in evil do so, 5798. ‘Wrath’ is used in reference to falsity and ‘anger’ to evil, 3614.

sRef Ex@11 @8 S0′ 7792. Verses 9, 10 And Jehovah said to Moses, Pharaoh will not hear* you, so that My wonders may be multiplied in the land of Egypt. And Moses and Aaron performed all these wonders before Pharaoh; and Jehovah made Pharaoh’s heart unyielding, and he did not send the children of Israel away from his land.

‘And Jehovah said to Moses’ means an informing. ‘Pharaoh will not hear you’ means disobedience. ‘So that My wonders may be multiplied in the land of Egypt’ means in order that they may receive corroboration that they have had no faith but are ruled by evil. ‘And Moses and Aaron performed all these wonders before Pharaoh’ means that these stages of vastation, and the consequent corroborations that they are ruled by evil, were brought about by the truth emanating from God. ‘And Jehovah made Pharaoh’s heart unyielding’ means that they remained obstinate. ‘And he did not send the children of Israel away from his land’ means that they did not leave those who belonged to the spiritual Church.
* lit. hear towards

sRef Ex@11 @9 S0′ 7793. ‘And Jehovah said to Moses’ means an informing. This is clear from the meaning of ‘saying’, when Jehovah foretells what is going to take place, as an informing.

sRef Ex@11 @9 S0′ 7794. ‘Pharaoh will not hear you’ means disobedience. This is clear from the meaning of ‘hearing’ as obedience, dealt with in 2542, 3869, 4652-4660, 5017, 7216; and from the representation of ‘Pharaoh’ as those who have molested the upright in the next life, at this point these same molesters who are to be damned.

sRef Ex@11 @9 S0′ 7795. ‘So that My wonders may be multiplied in the land of Egypt’ means in order that they may receive corroboration that they have had no faith but are ruled by evil. This is clear from the meaning of the wonders and signs that were performed in Egypt as stages of vastation and consequent corroborations that they are ruled by evil, dealt with in 7633. For all those wonders were signs of an equal number of stages in the vastation undergone by those within the Church who had been acquainted with such things as are matters of faith and yet had led an evil life. And since these are the ones who molest the upright in the next life their state now is what is meant here, 7465. ‘Multiplying these wonders means the consecutive stages of those states. The reason why there are so many stages is that they serve to corroborate for the evil that they are ruled by evil and also to enlighten the good regarding the state of those within the Church who have led an evil life, 7673. If these reasons had not stood in the way the evil could have been damned without delay and let down into hell without going through so many consecutive changes of states.

sRef Luke@12 @3 S2′ sRef Luke@12 @2 S2′ [2] The fact that the evil pass through so many states before they are damned and let down into hell is completely unknown in the world. People think that a person is either damned or saved immediately, and that this is done without his having to go through anything. But the truth of the matter is different from that. Justice reigns there; no one is damned before he himself knows and is inwardly convinced that he is ruled by evil and cannot by any means have his being in heaven. His evils are also made plain to him, as accords with the Lord’s words in Luke,

Nothing has been hidden that will not be revealed, or concealed that will not be made known. Therefore whatever you have said in the dark will be heard in the light; and what you have spoken in the ear in bedchambers will be proclaimed on the housetops. Luke 12:2, 3, 9; Matt. 10:16; Mark 4:11.

And what is more, that person is also warned to refrain from evil. But when he cannot do so because he is ruled by evil the power to do ill through falsifications of truth and semblances of good is taken away from him. It is removed in stages, one after another; and eventually damnation follows, and being let down into hell, which happens when he comes into the evil of his life.

[3] The evil of a person’s life is evil constituting his will and consequently his thought. That is, it is what he is like inwardly, and would be like outwardly if laws did not stand in the way, or the fear that he might lose wealth, position, reputation, and even life. The life of his will and thought is what follows everyone after death, not his outward life, unless it emanates from his inward life. For outwardly a person feigns the opposite of his inner self; therefore when after death he undergoes vastation of externals, what he has been like in both will and thought made evident. This state is what every evil person is reduced to through the stages of vastation; for all vastation in the next life moves from externals to internals. All this shows what justice is like in the next life and what kind of experiences an evil person goes through before he is damned.

From this it is evident that ‘multiplying My signs in the land of Egypt’ means in order that they may receive corroboration that they have no faith but are ruled by evil. Regarding the absence of faith in those ruled by evil, see above in 7778.

sRef Ex@11 @10 S0′ 7796. ‘And Moses and Aaron performed all these wonders before Pharaoh’ means that these stages of vastation, and the consequent corroborations that they are ruled by evil, were brought about by the truth emanating from God. This is clear from the representation of ‘Moses and Aaron’ as God’s truth, ‘Moses’ truth that emanates directly from God, and ‘Aaron’ that which does so indirectly, dealt with in 7010, 7089, 7382; and from the meaning of ‘the wonders’ performed in Egypt or belonging to the Church who have led an evil life. The fact that those things are depicted by the wonders of Egypt may be recognized from the meaning of each wonder. And for the fact that they also depict corroborations that those people do not have faith but are ruled by evil, see immediately above in 7795. It says that ‘Moses and Aaron performed these wonders’, when in fact they were not Performed by them but by God. But what happened has been stated in that way because God’s truth is represented by ‘Moses and Aaron’, and the wonders were performed by God through the truth emanating from Himself, since all that God Himself performs is performed through the truth emanating from Him. God Himself is the Being (Esse) of all things, but the truth emanating from Him is the Coming-into-Being (Existere) of all things, which rises out of His Being. Good itself, which is God’s Being (Esse), brings forth all things by means of its Truth. It is said that the stages of vastation were brought about by the truth emanating from God; but it should be understood that Divine Truth is not the cause of them since God subjects no one to vastation. Rather, an evil person subjects himself to it through obstinate opposition to God’s truth by eliminating, rejecting, or perverting it, and through turning God’s goodness, which flows in unceasingly, into evil. This then is what subjects him to vastation; and from this it is evident where the cause of it lies, not in the inflow of goodness and truth from God – for unless they inflow life is non-existent – but in their conversion to evil and falsity, committed by the person who is ruled by evil.

sRef Ex@11 @10 S0′ 7797. ‘And Jehovah made Pharaoh’s heart unyielding’ means that they remained obstinate. This is clear from the meaning of ‘making the heart unyielding’ as remaining obstinate, dealt with in 7272, 7300, 7305. The fact that Jehovah does not make the heart unyielding or do anything bad, even though it is attributed to Him in the literal sense of the Word, see 7533, 7631, 7643.

sRef Ex@11 @10 S0′ 7798. ‘And he did not send the children of Israel away from his land’ means that they did not leave those who belonged to the spiritual Church. This is clear from the meaning of ‘sending away’ as leaving; and from the representation of ‘the children of Israel’ as those who belong to the spiritual Church, dealt with in 6426, 6637, 6861, 6868, 7035, 7062, 7198, 7201, 7215, 7223.

7799. SPIRITS AND INHABITANTS OF THE PLANET JUPITER

I have been allowed to have social contact with spirits and angels belonging to the planet Jupiter for a longer time than with the spirits of the other planets. For that reason there is rather more to be said about their state and the state of the inhabitants of their planet.

7800. The planet Jupiter is not indeed visible to those who are in the next life; but spirits from it are. They appear out in front on the left, some distance away, and constantly in that position. In that position also lies the planet as it exists in the idea spirits and angels have of it. The spirits of each planet are separated from those of others and are close to their own globe. The reason why they are separated is that they differ in nature from the others and occupy a different province in the Grand Man; and spirits with a different nature from others appear in positions as far away from them as their nature is different. This situation in which all spirits and angels appear separated and divided, occupying different positions and placed at various distances from one another in the next life, is due to the differences in their natures and dispositions; for position corresponds to state, 2625, 2837, 3356, 3387, 4321, 4882, 5605, 7381.

7801. There are many kinds of spirits from the planet Jupiter, but there are three kinds whom I have moved among and often talked to. One kind, which is also the lowest, have a dark, almost black appearance. These are held in contempt by the others and are called chastisers, because they chastise the inhabitants of their planet who lead evil lives. They have a constant desire to get to heaven. The second kind have faces from which the reflected light of a candle seems to shine. They are seen sitting like idols, for they allow themselves to be worshipped by others, especially by the servants they had in the world. For there they convinced those servants that they were people who mediated with the Lord. They are called holy ones by them, and also lords. The third kind, which is the best, excel all the others in intelligence and wisdom. They appear dressed in clothing that is blue – sky-blue – together with sparks of gold woven into it. But actual angels from that planet live together with the angels belonging to all other planets; for all who are truly angels constitute one all-inclusive heaven.

7802. It is common on that planet for spirits to talk to inhabitants and instruct them, and also to chastise them if they have been behaving badly. Since this is a subject about which their angels have told me many things I would like to mention them in order. The reason why spirits there talk to people is that they concentrate much of their thought on heaven and life after death, and in comparison with this give little thought to life in the world. They know that they will be alive after death, living in a state of happiness that depends on the condition into which their internal man was brought in the world. Talking to spirits and angels was also common on our planet in ancient times, and for the same reason, that their thought was concentrated on heaven and little on the world. But in course of time that live contact with heaven was cut off, as people ceased to be internal and became external, that is, as man began to concentrate his thought on the world and little on heaven, and especially when he ceased to believe any longer in the existence of heaven or hell, or in the presence within himself of a person and spirit that lives after death. For the belief at the present day is that the body lives independently, not that it receives life from its spirit. Therefore unless people today were allowed to believe that they will rise again in their bodies they would have no belief at all in resurrection.

7803. With regard to the talking of spirits to the inhabitants of the planet Jupiter, there are spirits who chastise, those who instruct, and those who rule them. The spirits who chastise come to the left side of a person’s body and lean round towards the back of it. Once they are there they draw from the person’s memory all his deeds and thoughts; for spirits do this with ease, because on reaching a person they immediately enter into all his memory, 6192, 6193, 6198, 6199, 6214. If they find that he has behaved badly or thought wrongly they reproach him and also chastise him with pain in the joints of his feet or his hands, or with pain around the region of the epigastrium. Spirits can also do this with great skill when they are allowed to. When such spirits come towards a person they strike horror and fear into him; this is how one knows of their arrival. Evil spirits can strike fear when they approach someone, especially those who were robbers when they lived in the world. To enable me to know how those spirits act when they come towards a member of their planet one such spirit was also allowed to approach me. When he was near I was plainly seized by horror and fear; yet I did not shake inwardly with fear, only outwardly, because I knew he was one of their kind of spirits. I also saw him; he looked like a dark cloud with little moving stars in it, moving stars being a sign of falsities, but fixed stars a sign of truths. He came to my left side towards my back, and also began to reproach me because of my deeds and thoughts, which he drew from my memory and started to misconstrue. But angels who were also present put a stop to what he was doing. When he realized that he was with someone other than a member of his own planet, he began to talk to me, saying that when he went towards a person he learned every single thing that person had done or thought. He reproached that person severely too, and also chastised him with various pains.

7804. The spirits however who instruct come likewise to those people’s left side, but more towards the front of them. They too reproach them, but in a gentler way, and then teach them how they are to conduct their lives. They too have a dark appearance, but they do not look like clouds as the first kind of spirits do. Instead they appear to be dressed in sackcloth. These are called instructors, whereas the first kind are called chastisers.

7805. When those spirits are present angelic spirits who also belong to their planet are present too. These station themselves by the person’s head and fill it in a special way so to speak. Their presence there is felt as gentle breath, for they dread to cause a person even the slightest pain or anxiety when they approach and exert an influence on him. They rule the spirits who are chastisers and instructors, preventing the chastisers from treating a person more severely than the Lord permits, and ensuring that the instructors say what is true. I have been allowed to talk to those angelic spirits also.

7806. There are two signs that may appear to those spirits when they are with a person. If they see an old man with a white face this is a sign that they are to say nothing but the truth. And if they see a face in a window this is a sign that they are to depart from there. That old man has appeared to me also. So has the face in the window; and when it did so the spirits departed from me instantly.

7807. While the chastiser spirit was with me the angelic spirits kept my face all the time cheerful and smiling, the area around my lips projecting, and my mouth [slightly] opened. (Angels can accomplish this very easily by means of influx.) They said that when they are present with the inhabitants of their planet they produce that kind of expression on their faces.

7808. If after chastisement and instruction a person again does what is bad, or has thoughts of doing it, and is not in that case moved to restrain himself by commandments conveying the truth, then if the chastiser spirit returns he is punished more severely. But the angelic spirits moderate the punishment to match the intention behind the deeds and the desire behind the thoughts.

7809. Spirits there speak to a person, but the person does not talk back to them, except to utter these words when he receives instruction, I will not do it again. Nor is he allowed to tell any of his own people that the spirit has spoken to him. If he does he is punished severely. While those spirits belonging to Jupiter were present with me they imagined at first that they were with a member of their own planet. But when I talked back to them, and also when I thought that I might wish to publish such experiences, and they were not allowed to chastise or instruct me, they realized that they were with a stranger.

7810. At another time a chastiser spirit came towards me and placed himself by my left side below the middle of my body, like the previous one, and also wished to administer punishment. But he was withheld from doing so by their angels, who were also present at that time. He showed me then the kinds of punishments that they were allowed to inflict on members of their own planet if they behaved badly or intended to do so. Besides the infliction of pain in their joints there was also that of painful constriction round their waist, which feels like being squeezed by a tight belt. Then there was repeated restriction of their breathing till they felt that they were suffocating, and also the denial of all food except bread. Finally if they did not give up doing the things they did, there hung over them the threat of death, which would deprive them of the joy of married partner, children, and companions. The consequent grief was brought home to them at the same time too.

7811. From all this it may be recognized that their angels who station themselves by a person’s head exercise a kind of judicial power over him; for the angels permit, moderate, prevent, and exert an influence. But I was allowed to tell them that they should not think they were the judges, but that the Lord alone is Judge, and that everything they order and command those spirits, the chastisers and the instructors, flows into them from Him, yet seems to come from themselves.

7812. In addition to the spirits who have just been mentioned there are also spirits who urge things that are contrary. They are those who when they lived in the world were banished from association with others because they were evil. When they arrive they look like fire moving
through the air, which comes down close to one’s face. They place themselves low down at a person’s hinder parts, and from there they direct what they say to the upper parts. They make statements that contradict things said by an instructor spirit under the direction of the angels; that is, they declare that the person does not need to conduct his life in accordance with that instruction, but to follow his own inclination and desire, and similar ideas. Usually these spirits arrive immediately after the first ones have departed. But people there know exactly who these spirits are and what they are like, and therefore do not worry about them. All the same, they learn in this way what evil is, and so what good is; for one learns from evil what good is, indeed one knows the nature of good from its opposite, to be exact. Every perception of something is arrived at by relating it to, and reflecting on its differences from, things that are contrary to it in varying ways and degrees.

7813. ‘Spirits and inhabitants of the planet Jupiter’ is continued at the end of the next chapter.

7814. 12

TEACHINGS ABOUT CHARITY

The human being has been created in such a way that he can look upwards or above self, and also downwards or below self. Looking above self consists in looking towards neighbour, country, Church, heaven, and especially the Lord; but looking below self is looking towards the earth, the world, and especially self.

7815. The reason why looking towards neighbour, country, and Church constitutes looking above self is that it is looking towards the Lord; for the Lord is within charity, and it is the nature of charity to look towards neighbour, country, and Church, that is, to desire their welfare. But people who turn away from them and desire only their own welfare look below self.

7816. Looking above self is being raised by the Lord to a higher level, for nobody can look above self unless he is raised to a higher level by Him who is above. But looking below self is of human origin since the person does not in that case allow himself to be raised up.

7817. Those who have the good of charity and faith within them look above self because they are raised by the Lord to a higher level, whereas those who do not have the good of charity and faith within them look below self because they are not raised up by the Lord. A person looks below himself when he channels towards himself truth and good flowing in from the Lord. And one who channels towards himself the goodness and truth flowing from the Lord sees self and the world in front of him. He does not see the Lord or His goodness and truth because these are behind his range of vision and come to be so indistinct that he pays no attention to them and eventually denies their existence.

7818. The expressions ‘looking above self’ and ‘looking below self’ are used to mean having certain things as one’s end in view, or loving them above all else. Thus ‘looking above self’ means having as one’s end in view what is the Lord’s and heaven’s, or loving this above all else; and ‘looking below self’ means having as one’s end in view what belongs to self and the world, or loving that above all else. Inwardly, furthermore, a person is actually facing the same way as his love faces.

7819. A person who has the good of charity and faith within him also loves self and the world; but he does so solely as the means to an end are loved. With him self-love looks to love of the Lord since he loves himself as a means to an end, which is that he may serve the Lord. And love of the world with him looks to love of the neighbour since he loves the world as a means because he loves the end, which is that he may serve his neighbour. When therefore the means is loved for the sake of the end, it is not the means one loves but the end.

7820. From this it may be seen that those who are renowned in the world, that is, hold higher positions and are better off than others, can look above self to the Lord just as much as those who do not hold high positions and are not well off. For they look above self when they regard having a high position and being well off as the means to an end and not an end itself.

7821. Looking above self is proper to the human being, whereas looking below self is proper to beasts. It follows therefore that to the extent that a person looks below himself or downwards he is a beast, and also an image of hell; but to the extent that he looks above himself or upwards he is a human being, and also an image of the Lord.


EXODUS 12

1 And Jehovah said to Moses and to Aaron in the land of Egypt – He said,

2 This month shall be for you the head of months; the first shall it be for you in the months of the year.

3 Speak to all the assembly of Israel, saying, On the tenth of this month they shall take for themselves each one a member of the flock according to the household of his fathers, a member of the flock according to the household.

4 And if the household is too small for a member of the flock, let him and his neighbour immediately next to his house take one, by the number of the souls; each of them according to the mouth of his eating, you shall make your count for the member of the flock.

5 A perfect member, a male, the son of a year it shall be to you; from the lambs and from the she-goats you shall take it.

6 And you shall keep it until the fourteenth day of this month; and all the congregation of the assembly of Israel shall slaughter it between the evenings.

7 And they shall take some of the blood and put it onto the two doorposts and onto the lintel, on the houses in which they will eat it.

8 And they shall eat the flesh on that night; roasted with fire, and [with] unleavened bread on bitter herbs, they shall eat it.

9 Do not eat any of it raw, nor boiled at all in water, but roasted indeed with fire, its head over its legs and over its middle.

10 And you shall not leave any of it until the morning; and what does remain of it until the morning you shall burn with fire.

11 And thus you shall eat it: Your loins girded, your shoes on your feet, and your rod in your hand. And you shall eat it in haste; it is a Passover to Jehovah.

12 And I will go through the land of Egypt on that night, and will strike all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from man (homo) even to beast; and on all the gods of Egypt I will make judgements. I am Jehovah.

13 And the blood will be a sign for you on the houses where you are; and I will see the blood and pass you by, and the plague will not be on you for the destroyer, when I strike the land of Egypt.

14 And that day shall be to you for a memorial, and you shall keep it as a feast to Jehovah, throughout your generations; you shall keep it as a feast by an eternal statute.

15 Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread; even on the first day you shall remove* yeast from your houses, for anyone eating anything made with yeast, that soul shall be cut off from Israel, from the first day until the seventh day.

16 And on the first day there shall be a holy convocation, and on the seventh day there shall be a holy convocation for you. No work shall be done on them; only what must be eaten by every soul, this alone shall be done by you.

17 And you shall observe [the feast of] unleavened bread, for on this same day I have brought your hosts out of the land of Egypt; and you shall observe this day throughout your generations by an eternal statute.

18 In the first [month], on the fourteenth day of the month in the evening you shall eat unleavened bread, until the twenty-first day of the month in the evening.

19 For seven days no yeast shall be found in your houses; for anyone eating anything made with yeast, that soul shall be cut off from the assembly of Israel, whether a sojourner or a native of the land.

20 You shall eat nothing made with yeast; in all your dwellings you shall eat unleavened bread.

21 And Moses called all the elders of Israel, and said to them, Draw out and take for yourselves a member of the flock according to your families, and slaughter the Passover.

22 And you shall take a bunch of hyssop, and you are to dip it in the blood that is in the basin and strike** the lintel and the two doorposts with the blood that is in the basin. And you shall not go out, no one out of the door of his house until the morning.

23 And Jehovah will go through to inflict the plague on Egypt; and He will see the blood on the lintel and on the two doorposts, and Jehovah will pass by the door and not allow the destroyer to come to your houses to inflict the plague.

24 And you shall keep this custom*** as a statute for yourself and your children for evermore.

25 And it shall be, when you come to the land which Jehovah will give you, as He has spoken, that you shall keep this service.

26 And it shall be, when your children say to you, What do you mean by this service?****

27 That you shall say, This is the Passover sacrifice to Jehovah, because He passed by the houses of the children of Israel in Egypt when He inflicted the plague on Egypt, and delivered our houses. And the people bowed, and bowed down.

28 And the children of Israel went and did as Jehovah had commanded Moses and Aaron – so they did.

29 And it happened at midnight, that Jehovah struck all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from Pharaoh’s firstborn who was to sit on his throne even to the firstborn of the prisoner who was in the dungeon***** and all the firstborn of the beasts.

30 And Pharaoh rose that night, and all his servants, and all the Egyptians; and there was a great cry in Egypt, for there was no house where there was not one dead.

31 And he called Moses and Aaron by night, and said, Rise, go out from the midst of my people, both you and the children of Israel; and go, serve Jehovah, in accordance with what you have spoken.

32 Take both your flocks and your herds, as you have spoken, and go; and may you also bless me.

33 And Egypt pressed the people, in a hurry to send them away from the land; for they said, We are all dying.

34 And the people carried their dough before the yeast was added, their kneading bowls bound up in their clothes on their shoulder.

35 And the children of Israel did according to the word of Moses; and they asked from the Egyptians vessels of silver and vessels of gold, and clothes.

36 And Jehovah gave the people favour****** in the eyes of the Egyptians, and they lent [these things] to them. And they despoiled the Egyptians.

37 And the children of Israel travelled from Rameses to Succoth, around six hundred thousand men (vir) on foot, besides young children.

38 And also a large mixed crowd went up with them, and flocks and herds, an extremely large acquisition of them.

39 And they baked the dough which they brought out of Egypt – unleavened cakes, since no yeast was added, because they were driven out of Egypt and could not wait, and also had not made for themselves provision for the way.

40 And the dwelling of the children of Israel, when they dwelt in Egypt, [lasted] four hundred and thirty years.

41 And so it was at the end of the four hundred and thirty years, even on this same day it was, that all the hosts of Jehovah went out of the land of Egypt.

42 This was the night when Jehovah was keeping watch,******* to lead them out of the land of Egypt; this is that night when Jehovah was keeping watch,******* for all the children of Israel [to observe] throughout their generations.

43 And Jehovah said to Moses and Aaron, This is the statute of the Passover: No son of a foreigner shall eat it.

44 And every man’s slave, a purchase paid for with silver,******** when you have circumcised him, shall eat it.

45 A stranger and a hired servant shall not eat it.

46 It shall be eaten in one house; you shall not bring any of the flesh outside the house, and you shall not break a bone of it.

47 All the assembly of Israel shall keep it.

48 And when a sojourner sojourns with you and would keep the Passover to Jehovah, every male he has shall be circumcised, and then he shall come near to keep it, and shall be as if a native of the land. And no uncircumcised person shall eat it.

49 There shall be one law for the native and for the sojourner sojourning in the midst of you.

50 And all the children of Israel did as Jehovah had commanded Moses and Aaron – so they did.

51 And so it was on this same day, that Jehovah brought the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt by their hosts.
* lit. cause to cease
** lit. cause to touch
*** lit. thing, matter, or word
**** lit. What is this service to you?
***** lit. in the house of the pit
****** lit. grace
******* lit. night of watchings to Jehovah
******** lit. And every slave of a man (vir), a purchase of silver

sRef Ex@12 @0 S0′ 7822. CONTENTS

This chapter deals in the internal sense with the deliverance of those belonging to the spiritual Church, and the damnation of those governed by faith separated from charity. The damnation of the latter and the deliverance of the former is represented by the Passover; and the states of charity and faith enjoyed by those who were delivered are represented by the observances to be kept on Passover days.

sRef Ex@12 @0 S0′ 7823. In the highest sense the Passover represents the damnation of unfaithful and the deliverance of faithful believers by the Lord when He was glorified. What their state was like then and what it will be like subsequently, both as a general whole and in every detail, is described in that highest sense by the Passover regulations.

sRef Ex@12 @1 S0′ sRef Ex@12 @2 S0′ 7824. THE INTERNAL SENSE

Verses 1, 2 And Jehovah said to Moses and to Aaron in the land of Egypt – He said, This month shall be for you the head of months; the first shall it be for you in the months of the year.

‘And Jehovah said to Moses and to Aaron’ means instructions given by God’s truth. ‘In the land of Egypt’ means when those belonging to the spiritual Church were still in close proximity to the molesters. ‘He said, This month shall be for you the head of months’ means that this state is the chief of all states. ‘The first shall it be for you in the months of the year’ means the starting point of all states following for evermore.

sRef Ex@12 @1 S0′ 7825. ‘And Jehovah said to Moses and to Aaron’ means instructions given by God’s truth. This is clear from the meaning of ‘saying’, when the message is from Jehovah regarding things to be established within the Church, as giving instructions, for ‘saying’ includes what comes after it; and from the representation of ‘Moses and Aaron’ as God’s truth, ‘Moses’ truth that emanates directly from God, ‘Aaron’ that which does so indirectly, dealt with in 7009, 7010, 7089, 7382.

sRef Ex@12 @1 S0′ 7826. ‘In the land of Egypt’ means when those belonging to the spiritual Church were still in close proximity to the molesters. This is clear from the meaning of ‘the land of Egypt’ as the place where the molesters were. For ‘Pharaoh’ and ‘the Egyptians’ represent and mean those belonging to the Church who have come to be governed by faith separated from charity and who molest the upright in the next life, 6692, 7097, 7107, 7110, 7116, 7142, 7317, and ‘the land of Egypt’ actual molestations, 7278, while ‘the children of Israel’ represent those belonging to the spiritual Church who undergo molestation, 6426, 6637, 6862, 6868, 7035, 7062, 7198, 72011 7215, 7223. And regarding the close proximity of the latter to molesters in the next life, see 7240. That close proximity is meant by the presence of the children of Israel in the middle of the land of Egypt – in the land of Goshen – and the molestations are meant by the burdens laid upon them. From this it is now evident that ‘Jehovah said to Moses and to Aaron in the land of Egypt’ means instructions given by God’s truth when those belonging to the spiritual Church were still in close proximity to the molesters.

sRef Ex@12 @2 S0′ 7827. ‘He said, This month shall be for you the head of months’ means that this state is the chief of all states. This is clear from the meaning of ‘month’ as the end of the state that is previous and the beginning of the one that comes next, thus a new state, dealt with in 3814; and from the meaning of ‘the head’, when used in reference to months of the year and in the internal sense to states of life, as the chief one. From this it is clear that ‘this month shall be for you the head of months’ means that this state is the chief of all states. The reason why that state is the chief one of all is contained in the words that come next.

sRef Ex@12 @2 S0′ 7828. ‘The first shall it be for you in the months of the year’ means the starting point of all states following for evermore. This is clear from the meaning of ‘being the first’, when used in reference to months of the year and in the internal sense to states of life, as the starting point; from the meaning of ‘the months’ as states, dealt with immediately above in 7827; and from the meaning of ‘the year’ as the period of life from start to finish, dealt with in 2906. Here, since it is speaking about members of the spiritual Church in the next life, whose period of life has a starting point but no finish, ‘the year’ means the period of life from the start and continuing for evermore (as ‘year’ can also mean, see end of 2906). The reason why this month became ‘the head of months’ and the first of all is that it means the starting point in the deliverance of those belonging to the spiritual Church who till then were in a state of captivity, since they were held back on the lower earth, where they were molested by the evil ones represented by Pharaoh and the Egyptians. The reason why their first state when they were delivered is the chief one of all and why it is the starting point of all following for evermore is that those who were there were delivered by the Lord’s Coming into the world. They could not possibly have been saved without the Lord’s Coming into the world; and their deliverance took place when the Lord rose again. From this it is evident that that state – when they were delivered – was for them the chief of all states. It was to be the same after that for all who belonged to the spiritual Church. They too could not have been saved unless the Lord had come into the world and glorified His Human, that is, made it Divine. With regard to those who belonged to the spiritual Church before the Lord’s Coming, that they were held back on the lower earth, and that the Lord delivered and saved them, see 6854, 6914; and in general, that members of the spiritual Church were saved by the Lord’s Coming, 2661, 1716, 6372, 7035, 7091 (end). So it is that the words under consideration here mean in the highest sense that the glorification and resurrection of the Lord, of His Human, are the source of all salvation.

sRef Ex@12 @2 S0′ 7829. Verses 3-6 Speak to all the assembly of Israel, saying, On the tenth of this month they shall take for themselves each one a member of the flock according to the household of his fathers, a member of the flock according to the household. And if the household is too small for a member of the flock, let him and his neighbour immediately next to his house take one, by the number of the souls; each of them according to the mouth of his eating, you shall make your count for the member of the flock. A perfect member, a male, the son of a year it shall be to you; from the lambs and from the she-goats you shall take it. And you shall keep it until the fourteenth day of this month; and all [the congregation of] the assembly of Israel shall slaughter it between the evenings.

‘Speak to all the assembly of Israel, saying’ means influx bearing instructions for all belonging to the spiritual Church. ‘On the tenth of this month’ means the state of the initiation of the interiors. ‘They shall take for themselves each one a member of the flock’ means in respect of innocence. ‘According to the household of his fathers, a member of the flock according to the household’ means according to each one’s specific kind of good. ‘And if the household is too small for a member of the flock’ means if the individual type of good is insufficient for innocence. ‘Then he and his neighbour immediately next to his house shall take one’ means being joined to the nearest good of truth. ‘By the number of the souls, [each of them] according to the mouth of his eating, you shall make your count for the member of the flock’ means making the good sufficient for the innocence by filling it out with truths of good in the exact quantity needed for assimilating innocence. ‘A perfect member’ means spotless innocence. ‘A male’ means which is characteristic of faith rooted in charity. ‘The son of a year it shall be to you’ means a complete state. ‘From the lambs and from the she-goats you shall take it’ means the good of innocence, interior and exterior. ‘And you shall keep it’ means the time and state of the initiation. ‘Until the fourteenth of the month’ means leading up to a holy state. ‘And all the congregation of the assembly of Israel shall slaughter it’ means preparation for enjoyment by all in general belonging to the spiritual Church. ‘Between the evenings’ means a last and first state.

sRef Ex@12 @3 S0′ sRef Ex@12 @2 S0′ 7830. ‘Speak to all the assembly of Israel, saying’ means influx bearing instructions for all belonging to the spiritual Church. This is clear from the meaning of ‘speaking’ as influx, dealt with in 2951, 5481, 5743 (its further meaning as giving instructions – about the observances to be kept when they are delivered – is evident from what follows); and from the meaning of ‘the assembly of Israel’ as all truths and forms of good in their entirety. ‘The assembly of Israel’ is used to refer to all the tribes, by which all aspects of truth and good, or all aspects of faith and charity, are meant, see 7858, 7926, 4060, 6335. And as these are meant [by ‘the tribes’], ‘the assembly of Israel’ means the spiritual Church, 6337; for truths and forms of good make the Church. For the representation of the spiritual Church by the children of Israel, see 6426, 6637, 6862, 6868, 7035, 7062, 7198, 7201, 7215, 7223.

sRef Ex@12 @3 S0′ 7831. ‘On the tenth of this month’ means the state of the initiation of the interiors. This is clear from the meaning of ‘the tenth’ – day, that is to say – as the state of the interiors. For ‘day’ means state, 23, 487, 488, 493, 576, 893, 1738, 2788, 3462, 3785, 4850, 5672, and ‘ten’ means remnants, 576, 1906, 2284, that is, the truths and forms of good stored away by the Lord in a person’s interiors, 1050, 1906, 2284, 5135, 5897, 7560, 7564. And since the remnants reside in his interiors, and they are used to prepare the person for and initiate him into receiving goodness and truth from the Lord, ‘the tenth day’ here means the state of the initiation of the interiors. With regard to a person’s being regenerated by means of remnants, and so to his being initiated by means of them into receiving the inflow of goodness and truth from the Lord, see 5342, 5898, 6156, and with regard to his contact with heaven through them, 7560, for those forms of good and truths originate in the Lord, not in man, 7564. ‘Month’ is used to mean a whole state from start to finish, 7814, thus the complete state of deliverance, which the Passover in its entirety means. From all this it is evident that ‘on the tenth of this month’ means the state of the initiation of the interiors. This state – of the initiation of the interiors – lasted from the tenth day of that month through to the fourteenth day of it, between which days the Passover animal was to be held in safe keeping. ‘The Passover animal’ means the good of innocence, which is inmost; thus this good which is inmost, together with the interiors in which it resides, was in the meantime to be isolated and kept away from such things as defile it. This state is the state of the initiation of the interiors, that is, of being made ready to receive the inflow of goodness and truth from the Lord. This is the holy meaning contained in the words under consideration, for without that holy meaning deeply concealed within them no command would have been given for the Passover animal to be taken on the tenth of the month and held in safe keeping until the fourteenth day, or for it to be slaughtered after that between the evenings, and to be eaten roasted with fire and not boiled in water. Nor would they have been commanded not to leave any of it till morning, to burn with fire what remained, not to break a bone of it, and much else. These regulations, as anyone who ponders on them may recognize, have to do with things of a holy nature which no one is as yet acquainted with; and these holy things are spiritual ones that belong to the Church and heaven, and that are concerned with the Divine from whom every detail of the Word has come down.

sRef Ex@12 @3 S0′ 7832. ‘They shall take for themselves each one a member of the flock’ means in respect of innocence. This is clear from the meaning of a lamb or she-goat, to which ‘a member of the flock’ refers here, as innocence, ‘a lamb’ innocence in the interior man, ‘a she-goat’ innocence in the exterior man, 3519.

sRef Ex@12 @3 S0′ 7833. ‘According to the household of his fathers, a member of the flock according to the household’ means according to each one’s specific kind of good. This is clear from the meaning of ‘household of fathers’ as one family’s good, distinct from another’s good; for ‘a father’s house’ means a person in respect of internal good, 3128. The implications of this are as follows: All the tribes of Israel mean all forms of the truth and good of faith and charity in their entirety, each tribe meaning one general kind of good or of truth, see 3858, 3926, 3939, 4060, 6375, 6377, 6640. Thus every separate family within a tribe meant a specific kind of good, and therefore the good of one specifically, distinct from another’s good. But the household of the fathers within a family meant an individual type belonging to one specific kind. The reason why all these kinds of good were meant by the tribes, families, and households into which the children of Israel were divided was in order that they might represent heaven; for the varieties of good there are divided into general, specific, and individual. And these determine the ways in which angels are linked to one another. It should be recognized that one person’s good is never exactly the same as another’s good. Rather, they are varied, so varied that they can be distinguished into higher overall categories, and these into lower sub-divisions, down to particular and most particular kinds. Regarding forms of the good of love and faith, that they are so varied, see 684, 690, 3241, 3267, 3744-3746, 3986, 4005, 4149, 5598, 7236. From this it may now be evident why they were commanded to take for themselves each one a member of the flock according to the household of his fathers, a member according to the household.

sRef Ex@12 @4 S0′ 7834. ‘And if the household is too small for a member of the flock’ means if the individual type of good is insufficient for innocence. This is clear from the meaning of ‘the household’ as an individual type of good, dealt with immediately above in 7833; from the meaning of ‘being too small’ as being insufficient; and from the meaning of ‘a member of the flock’ as innocence, also dealt with just above, in 7832.

sRef Ex@12 @4 S0′ 7835. ‘Then he and his neighbour immediately next to his house shall take one’ means being joined to the nearest good of truth. This is clear from the meaning of ‘taking’ – that is, taking along with one’s immediate neighbour, a single animal – as being joined together; and from the meaning of ‘neighbour next to his house’ as the nearest good of truth. The meaning of ‘immediate neighbour’ as the nearest is self-evident; and for the meaning of ‘house’ as good, see above in 7833. The term ‘good of truth’ is used because those belonging to the spiritual Church are the subject, and with them good is the good of truth, the good of truth being truth present in will and action. For when the truth of faith is received together with charitable affection it is implanted in the inward parts of the mind. And when that truth presents itself again, the affection to which that truth has been linked presents itself too, appearing in the form of good. So it is then that good in that Church is the good of truth, which is also called spiritual good.

sRef Ex@12 @4 S0′ 7836. ‘By the number of the souls, [each of them] according to the mouth of his eating, you shall make your count for the member of the flock’ means making the good sufficient for innocence by filling it out with truths of good in the exact quantity needed for assimilating innocence. This is clear from the meaning of ‘the number of the souls’ as the exact quantity of the truths of good, since ‘the number’ in the Word has reference to truth, and ‘a soul’ to spiritual good; from the meaning of ‘according to the mouth of his eating’ as the amount needed for assimilating it, ‘eating’ meaning assimilating or making one’s own, see 3168, 3517, 3596, 3832; and from the meaning of ‘the member of the flock’ as innocence, dealt with above in 7832. Making the good sufficient for innocence by filling it out is meant by the command to take from the house of an immediate neighbour the number that would be enough for the member of the flock, ‘the house’ meaning good, see above in 7873. When the expression ‘the truth of good’ is used here truth springing from good is meant. For when those who belong to the spiritual Church are being regenerated they are brought to the good of charity by means of the truth of faith; but once they have been brought to the good of charity, the truths born from it subsequently are called the truths of good.

[2] But how to understand these matters contained in this verse no one can possibly know unless he knows how the communities in heaven exist in relation to one another; for those communities were represented by the ways in which the children of Israel lived in association with one another according to tribes, families, and households. The communities of heaven are interrelated in a similar way, as follows: Heaven as a whole is one community, which the Lord governs as a single human being. The general communities there are the same in number as the members and various organs a person has, while the specific communities are the same in number as the component parts of each organ or member. And the individual communities are just so many as the smaller parts constituting larger ones. The truth of this is evident from the correspondences of the human being and of his members and various organs with the Grand Man, that is, with heaven, which have been described from experience at the ends of quite a number of chapters. From all this one may see what heaven is like so far as its organization into separate communities is concerned.

sRef 1Sam@9 @1 S3′ sRef 1Sam@1 @1 S3′ [3] But as regards what each community individually is like, it consists of a large number of angels who accord with one another in their types of good. The types of good are varying, for each one’s good is peculiar to himself; yet those varying types of good that are in accord with one another are organized by the Lord into the kind of form in which they stand together as a single body of good. Such communities were represented by the fathers’ houses among the children of Israel. This is the reason why the children of Israel were divided not only into tribes but also into families and households. And it is also why, when people are mentioned by name [in the Word], the names of their fathers are mentioned in order, right back to the tribe they belong to. It says, for example, of Samuel’s father in 1 Sam. 1:11 that he was from Mount Ephraim, and that his name was Elkanah, the son of Jeroham, the son of Elihu, the son of Tohu, the son of Zuph; and 1 Sam. 9:1 states that Saul’s father was from Benjamin, and that his name was Kish, the son of Abiel, the son of Zeror, the son of Bechorath, the son of Aphiah, the son of a Jeminite man.* Similar details concerning very many other fathers are given. When such were mentioned it was to the end that heaven might know the particular nature of the kind of good represented by that father, as it derived in consecutive degrees from the first.

[4] In heaven furthermore, if a community is not complete as it ought to be, then new members are taken from elsewhere, from some neighbouring community, just the number that will complete the form of that good. As many are taken as are needed in each state and in the changes it undergoes; for the form of good varies as the state changes. It should nevertheless be recognized that in the third or inmost heaven – which is immediately above the heaven where those who are spiritual are, since these constitute the middle or second heaven – innocence reigns. For the Lord, who is perfect innocence, flows directly into that heaven.

[5] But in the second heaven, where those who are spiritual are, the Lord flows in with innocence indirectly, that is to say, by way of the third heaven. This inflow is the means by which the communities in the second heaven are organized or arranged into order in respect of their types of good. Therefore the inflow of innocence is what leads to changes in the states of good and to consequent variations of the patterns linking communities to one another there. From this it becomes clear how one ought to understand the contents of this verse in the internal sense, namely as follows: If someone’s individual type of good is insufficient for innocence, it must be joined to the nearest good of truth, in order to make the good sufficient for the innocence by filling it out with truths of good in the exact quantity needed for assimilating innocence.
* i.e. a Benjaminite

sRef Ex@12 @5 S0′ 7837. ‘A perfect member’ means spotless innocence. This is clear from the meaning of ‘a member of the flock’ as innocence, dealt with above in 7832; and from the meaning of ‘perfect’ as without blemishes, and so spotless. The reason why it had to be without blemishes and spotless was that any blemish means in the spiritual world some falsity or evil.

sRef Ex@12 @5 S0′ 7838. ‘A male’ means which is characteristic of faith rooted in charity. This is clear from the meaning of ‘a male’ as the truth of faith, dealt with in 2046, 4005, and so faith rooted in charity, since the truth of faith is not the truth of faith unless it exists together with the good of charity, and springs from that good most of all. The reason why the Passover animal had to be a male was that that animal was a sign of the innocence of those belonging to the spiritual Church. And those belonging to the spiritual Church possess no other kind of good than that which is in itself the truth of faith; for this is called good when from charitable affection it is put into action, 7835. This is why it had to be a male animal. At other times female animals were also used in sacrifices, when worship springing from good was to be represented.

sRef Ezek@46 @13 S0′ sRef Ex@12 @5 S0′ 7839. ‘The son of a year it shall be to you’ means a complete state. This is clear from the meaning of ‘the son’ as truth, dealt with in 489, 491, 533, 1147, 2623, 1803, 1813, 3373, 3704; and from the meaning of ‘a year’ as a whole period from start to finish, dealt with in 2906, and so a complete state. What a complete state is must be explained. The expression ‘complete state’ is used when good is such that it lacks nothing it needs for receiving the inflow of innocence. The truths of faith when they have been joined to the good of charity cause good to be such; for spiritual good receives its specific quality from the truths of faith. This is how to understand what a complete state is, meant by ‘the son of a year’. But the state is not complete when truths have not as yet brought a specific quality to good, enabling it to receive a corresponding state of innocence. That complete state begins to exist when people look from good towards truths; it is not yet complete while they are looking from truths towards good. The second of these is the state of those undergoing regeneration, whereas the first is that of those who have been regenerated. Those undergoing regeneration are guided by truth that leads to good, those who have been regenerated by truth that springs from good; that is, the former live in obedience to truth, the latter are led by an affection to do it. The former are therefore members of the external Church, whereas the latter are members of the internal. Since ‘the son of a year’ meant a complete state, the command occurs so many times for a lamb or a kid, the son of a year, to be sacrificed, as in Exod. 29:38; Lev. 9:3; 12:6; 14:10; 23:12, 18, 19; Num. 6:12; 7:15ff, 87, 88; 15:27; 28:9, 11; and where the new temple is the subject in Ezekiel,

The prince shall make* a burnt offering of a lamb, a perfect, year-old lamb,** daily, to Jehovah; each morning he shall make* it. Ezek. 46:13.

Here ‘the new temple’ is used to mean the Lord’s spiritual kingdom. ‘The prince’ is those who know genuine truths and are led by them to good; ‘a burnt offering of a lamb’ is worship of the Lord that springs from the good of innocence; and ‘year-old’ means a complete state.
* The Hebrew means You shall make. But earlier verses in Ezekiel 46 refer to the prince.
** lit. a perfect son of a year

sRef Ex@12 @5 S0′ 7840. ‘From the lambs and from the she-goats you shall take it’ means the good of innocence, interior and exterior. This is clear from the meaning of ‘a lamb’ as the good of innocence, dealt with in 3994; and from the meaning of ‘a she-goat’ or of ‘a kid’ as the good of truth that has innocence within it, dealt with in 3995, 4005, 4006, 4871. For the meaning of ‘a lamb’ as the interior good of innocence, and of ‘a kid’ or ‘a she-goat’ as the exterior good of innocence, see 3519. What is meant by the good of innocence, interior and exterior, must be stated briefly. To be good, all good must have innocence within it. Without innocence good is devoid of its soul, so to speak. The reason for this is that the Lord flows in through innocence, and by means of it gives life to the good that exists with those who are being regenerated. The good that innocence gives life to is internal and external. Internal good resides with those who are called members of the internal Church, while external good resides with those who are members of the external Church. Members of the internal Church are those who have brought a specific quality to their good by means of interior truths such as belong to the internal sense of the Word, whereas members of the external Church are those who have brought a specific quality to their good by means of exterior truths such as belong to the literal sense of the Word. Members of the internal Church are those who are led to do good to the neighbour by an affection rising out of charity, whereas members of the external Church are led to do it by a sense of obedience. Every person who is being regenerated first becomes a member of the external Church, then later on a member of the internal Church. Those who belong to the internal Church excel in understanding and wisdom over those who belong to the external Church, and therefore also occupy a more internal position in heaven. From all this one may now see what the good of innocence, interior and exterior, is.

sRef Ex@12 @6 S0′ 7841. ‘And you shall keep it’ means the time and state of the initiation. This is clear from the meaning of the tenth day, from which the animal was to be kept until the fourteenth day, as the state of the initiation of the interiors, dealt with in 7831.

sRef Ex@12 @6 S0′ 7842. ‘Until the fourteenth of the month’ means leading up to a holy state. This is clear from the meaning of ‘the fourteenth day’ as a holy state. ‘Day’ means a state, see above in 7831, while ‘fourteen’ has the same meaning as seven, and ‘seven’ means what is holy, see 395, 433, 716, 881, 5265, 5268. For multiple numbers have meanings similar to those of their factors, 5291, 5335, 5708. This explains why the Passover had to begin on the fourteenth day of the month, continue for seven days, and end on the twenty-first day, which too means what is holy, because that number is the product of three multiplied by seven. That was why there had to be a holy convocation on the first day of the Passover, and a holy convocation on the twenty-first day [of the month], verse 16.

sRef Ex@12 @6 S0′ 7843. ‘And all the congregation of the assembly of Israel shall slaughter it’ means preparation for enjoyment by all in general belonging to the spiritual Church. This is clear from the meaning of ‘slaughtering’, when used in reference to the lamb or the she-goat for keeping the Passover, as preparation for enjoyment, the enjoyment of the good of innocence meant by the lamb and the she-goat; and from the meaning of ‘all the congregation of the assembly of Israel’ as by all in general belonging to the spiritual Church, dealt with above in 7830. ‘The congregation of the assembly’ means the truths of good which those belonging to that Church possess; for ‘congregation’ is used with reference to truth, 6355, and ‘assembly’ with reference to good.

sRef Ex@12 @6 S0′ sRef Deut@16 @6 S1′ sRef Deut@16 @4 S1′ 7844. ‘between the evenings’ means a last and first state. This is clear from the meaning of ‘evening’ as a state of falsity and also a state of ignorance of truth; for the shade of evening is falsity and also ignorance of truth. All the times of day, like all the seasons of the year, mean in the spiritual sense alternating states involving truth and good, 5672, 5962, 6110. The end of them and the beginning of them is the evening; consequently when it says ‘between the evenings’ it implies all those states. At this point therefore ‘between the evenings’ means the state of deliverance of those governed by truth springing from good, and the state of damnation of those governed by falsity arising from evil, states which are meant by the departure of the children of Israel from Egypt when the firstborn there were killed. The fact that all this is called ‘the evening’ is clear from the following in Moses,

You shall sacrifice* the Passover in the evening when the sun goes down, at the fixed time of your departure from Egypt. Deut. 16:4, 6.

[2] From this it is evident that the end of the state of molestations and the beginning of the state of the deliverance of those represented by the children of Israel is meant by ‘between the evenings’. From that beginning the state moves on for them towards morning, which is a raising to heaven. It is evident too that the end of the state of molestations and the beginning of the state of the damnation of those represented by the Egyptians is meant by ‘between the evenings’. But these people’s state moves on towards night, which is a casting into hell. The casting of the latter into hell is represented by being drowned in the Sea Suph, while the raising of the former to heaven is represented by being led into the land of Canaan.

[3] In the Word the expression ‘the evening’ is used in various places, and by it is meant a last phase of a Church and also a first phase of it – a last one with those among whom the Church is coming to an end, and a first with those among whom it is just beginning. This explains why ‘the evening’ primarily means the Lord’s Coming, for that was the time of the end of the former Church and of the beginning of the new. The first state of the new Church is also called ‘the evening’ since a member of the Church starts with light that is dim and advances to that which is clear, and this for him is the morning.

sRef Dan@8 @13 S4′ sRef Dan@8 @14 S4′ [4] The fact that the Lord’s Coming into the world is meant by ‘the evening’ and ‘the morning’ is clear in Daniel,

I heard a holy one speaking, For how long is this vision, the continual [burnt offering], and the transgression, and the treading down of the sanctuary and the host? And he said to me, Up to the evening [when it is becoming] morning two thousand three hundred times, for then the sanctuary will be made correct. Dan. 8:13, 14.

Here it is self-evident that ‘the evening’ is used to mean the last phase when the Church had been completely laid waste and the Lord came into the world, and ‘morning’ to mean light and the rise of a new Church from Him.

sRef Zech@14 @7 S5′ sRef Zeph@2 @7 S5′ sRef Ex@27 @20 S5′ sRef Ex@27 @21 S5′ [5] A similar prophecy appears in Zechariah,

There will be one day, which will be known to Jehovah, not day nor night, because around evening time there will be light. Zech. 14:7.

In Zephaniah,

Let there at length be a territory for the remnant of the house of Judah; they will pasture on them. In the houses of Ashkelon they will find rest in the evening, when Jehovah their God will visit them, and return their captives.** Zeph. 1:7.

‘The evening’ stands for the first state of an arising Church. Since ‘the evening’ meant the last state of an old Church and the first of a new, Aaron and his sons were commanded to cause a lamp to burn*** from evening until morning before Jehovah, Exod. 27:20, 21.

sRef Ezek@24 @18 S6′ sRef Jer@6 @4 S6′ sRef Ps@90 @6 S6′ [6] The fact that ‘the evening’ is the last state of the Church, when dense falsity reigns because there is no faith, and dense evil because there is no charity, is evident in Jeremiah,

Woe to us,**** for the day goes away, for the shadows of evening are set at an angle! Jer. 6:4.

In Ezekiel,

I spoke to the people in the morning, and my wife died at evening. Ezek. 24:18.

‘Wife’ stands for the Church. In David,

At dawn it will flourish and shoot up,***** at evening one will cut it down, it will wither. Ps. 90:6.
* The Latin means they shall sacrifice but the Hebrew means you shall sacrifice, which Sw. has in another place where he quotes this verse.
** lit. bring again their captivity
*** lit. to go up
**** The Latin means you but the Hebrew means us, which Sw. has in one other place where he quotes this verse.
***** lit. Pass on

7845. Verses 7-11 And they shall take some of the blood and put it onto the two doorposts and onto the lintel, on the houses in which they will eat it. And they shall eat the flesh on that night; roasted with fire, and [with] unleavened bread on bitter herbs, they shall eat it. Do not eat any of it raw, nor boiled at all in water, but roasted indeed with fire, its head over its legs and over its middle. And you shall not leave any of it until the morning; and what does remain of it until the morning you shall burn with fire. And thus you shall eat it: Your loins girded, your shoes on your feet, and your rod in your hand. And you shall eat it in haste; it is a Passover to Jehovah.

‘And they shall take some of the blood’ means holy truth belonging to the good of innocence. ‘And put it onto the two doorposts and onto the lintel’ means the truths and forms of good of the natural. ‘On the houses’ means the desires composing a will that seeks what is good. ‘In which they will eat it’ means enjoyment. ‘And they shall eat the flesh’ means enjoyment of what is good. ‘On that night’ means when the damnation of the evil takes place. ‘Roasted with fire’ means good that is the product of love. ‘And unleavened bread’ means what has been purified from all falsity. ‘On bitter herbs’ means through the unpleasant experiences of temptation. ‘They shall eat it’ means enjoyment. ‘Do not eat any of it raw’ means that it must not be devoid of love. ‘Nor boiled at all in water’ means that it must not come out of truth. ‘But roasted indeed with fire’ means that it must be a product of love. ‘Its head over its legs and over its middle’ means from what is inmost to what is external. ‘And you shall not leave any of it until the morning’ means the duration of this state before the state of enlightenment in heaven. ‘And what does remain of it until the morning you shall burn with fire’ means the state leading up to the end arrived at through temptations. ‘And thus you shall eat it’ means enjoyment in a state of separation from the evil who have been molesters, and preservation at that time. ‘Your loins girded’ means in respect of their interiors. ‘Your shoes on your feet’ means in respect of their exteriors. ‘And your rod in your hand’ means in respect of means. ‘And you shall eat it in haste’ means their feeling in their state of separation. ‘It is a Passover to Jehovah’ means the Lord’s presence, and deliverance by Him.

sRef Ex@12 @7 S0′ 7846. ‘And they shall take some of the blood’ means holy truth belonging to the good of innocence. This is clear from the meaning of ‘the blood’ as holy truth coming forth from the Lord, dealt with in 4735, 6978, 7317, 7326. And ‘the blood’ being that of the lamb, by which the good of innocence is meant, 3994, it is holy truth belonging to the good of innocence.

sRef Ex@12 @7 S0′ 7847. ‘And put it onto the two doorposts and onto the lintel’ means the truths and forms of good of the natural. This is clear from the meaning of ‘the doorposts’ as the truths of the natural; and from the meaning of ‘the lintel’ as the forms of good belonging to it. The reason why the doorposts and lintel have this meaning is that ‘the house’ means the actual person or his mind, and parts forming the door mean the things that serve to lead into it. These, it may be evident, are the truths and forms of good of the natural; for the natural man receives instruction first, before the rational man, and the ideas he learns during that time are natural ones, into which spiritual ideas, which are more internal, are gradually instilled. From this one may see in what way the truths and forms of good of the natural serve to lead in. Furthermore lintel and doorposts are similar in meaning to a person’s frontlets and hands; for it is in the nature of angelic ideas to associate natural objects with human characteristics. The reason for this is that the spiritual world or heaven is in form like a person, and therefore all things in that world – that is, all spiritual realities, which are truths and forms of good – have connection with that form, as has been shown where correspondences are the subject, at the ends of quite a number of chapters. And since in angelic ideas natural objects become spiritual realities a house does so too. To them it is a person’s mind; the bedrooms and other rooms are the inner parts of the mind, and the windows, doors, doorposts, and lintels are the outer parts leading in. Since angelic ideas are like this they are also filled with life; and that being so, things which in the natural world are lifeless objects become objects filled with life when they pass into the spiritual world. For everything spiritual is filled with life since it comes from the Lord.

sRef Deut@6 @9 S2′ sRef Deut@6 @8 S2′ sRef Deut@6 @5 S2′ [2] The fact that ‘doorposts and lintel’ is similar in meaning to a person’s ‘frontlets and hands’ may be seen from the following words in Moses,

You shall love Jehovah your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength. You are to bind them as a sign onto your hand, and let them be as frontlets between your eyes. And you are to write them onto the doorposts of your house, and on your gates. Deut. 6:5, 8, 9; 11:13, 18, 20.

Since they hold a similar meaning to each other both observances have been stated here.

sRef Ezek@45 @19 S3′ [3] As regards the meaning of ‘lintel and doorposts’ in the spiritual sense as the forms of good and the truths of the natural which lead into spiritual things, this is clear from the description in Ezekiel of the new temple, which means the spiritual Church. There reference is made many times to doorposts and lintels, objects which were also measured. This would never have been done unless those details had also meant something descriptive of the Church or of heaven, that is, something spiritual, such as the following details in that prophet,

The priest shall take some of the blood of the sin offering, and put it onto the doorpost of the house, and onto the four corners of the ledge of the altar, and onto the post of the gate of the inner court, on the first day of the month. Ezek. 45:19.

sRef Ezek@46 @2 S4′ sRef 1Ki@6 @31 S4′ sRef 1Ki@6 @33 S4′ [4] In the same prophet,

The prince shall enter by the way of the portico outside, and stand by the gate post; and the priests shall make his burnt offering. At that time he shall worship on the threshold of the gate. Ezek. 46:2.

Anyone may recognize that ‘the temple’ here is not used to mean the temple but the Lord’s Church, for the kinds of things described here in a number of chapters have never come about, and never will. In the highest sense ‘the temple’ is used to mean the Lord’s Divine Human. He Himself teaches this meaning in John 2:19, 21, 22; and in the representative sense ‘the temple is therefore used to mean His Church. For statements that the angel measured the lintels of this new temple, see Ezek. 40:9, 10, 14, 16, 24; 41:21, 25. This measuring of them would have had no importance unless ‘the lintels’, and also the numbers involved, had meant some aspect of the Church. Because ‘the doorposts and lintel’ meant the truths and forms of good in the natural, which serve to lead in, the ones in this new temple were square, Ezek. 41:21. For the same reason the doorposts in Solomon’s temple were made of planks of olive wood, 1 Kings 6:31, 33. ‘Olive wood’ meant the good of truth or the good which is that of the spiritual Church.

sRef Ex@12 @7 S0′ 7848. ‘On the houses’ means the desires composing a will that seeks what is good. This is clear from the meaning of ‘house’ as a person, dealt with in 3128, and as the human mind, 3538, 4973, 5023, 7353, consequently that which composes the will, at this point that which composes a will seeking what is good. The reason why ‘house’ also means the will is that a person is meant by it, and a person is a person primarily by virtue of what he wills. Furthermore, whether you say a person or his mind it amounts to the same thing. For a person is not a person by virtue of his physical body but by virtue of his mind; and what his mind is like – that is, what his understanding and will are like, primarily what his will is like – determine what kind of person he is.

sRef Ex@12 @7 S0′ 7849. ‘In which they will eat it’ means enjoyment. This is clear from the meaning of ‘eating’ as making one’s own, dealt with in 3168, 3513 (end), 4745, but at this point enjoyment since the subject is the state of initiation. The situation is this: When those who had been held back in safe keeping on the lower earth before the Lord’s Coming – 6854, 6914, 7091 (end), 7828 – were about to be delivered they had to be made ready to receive the inflow of goodness and truth from the Lord; for they were going to pass through the midst of hell. And to guard, as they passed through, against any inflow of evils and falsities from hellish spirits round about, they had to be made ready so that when they went through they would be fully equipped with truth and good. But this passage through hell will in the Lord’s Divine mercy be spoken about later on. That preparation or initiation into a state when goodness and truth were received is described by the things they were to do between the tenth day of the month and the fourteenth, and were to observe in connection with the eating of the Passover lamb.

sRef Ex@12 @8 S0′ 7850. ‘And they shall eat the flesh’ means enjoyment of what is good. This is clear from the meaning of ‘eating’ as enjoyment, dealt with immediately above in 7849; and from the meaning of ‘the flesh’ as the human proprium made alive by the Lord’s Divine Human, thus all the celestial and spiritual good present with a person, dealt with in 3813, 6968. The fact that ‘flesh’ has this meaning was very well known among the ancients; but at the present day people are so ignorant of it that everyone is amazed when ‘flesh’ is said to mean such. If one speaks of the proprium as the spiritual entity to which ‘flesh’ corresponds, people have no understanding of this. If one speaks of it as the symbolic meaning of ‘flesh’ they do, it is true, understand that, yet their idea is entirely different from that in which the natural object corresponds to the entity it symbolizes; that is to say, they see it as something completely separate. But in actual fact the spiritual or symbolized entity to which it corresponds is linked to it as a person’s sight is linked to his eye and his hearing to his ear, and as his thought, which is spiritual, is linked to the form his interiors assume, and through that form to his organs of speech, or as his will, which too is spiritual, is linked to the fibres forming his muscles with which he acts. The same kind of relationship exists with every spiritual entity and its counterpart, that is, with every entity that is symbolized and the natural object that has a correspondence with it.

sRef John@6 @55 S2′ sRef John@6 @56 S2′ sRef John@6 @54 S2′ sRef John@6 @53 S2′ [2] Who can fail to see that ‘flesh’ is not used by the Lord to mean flesh or ‘blood’ to mean blood in John,

Truly, truly, I say to you, Unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you will have no life in you. Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day. For My flesh is truly food, and My blood is truly drink. John 6:53-56.

Few at the present day know that ‘flesh’ was used to mean the Divine Good of the Lord’s Divine Love, which comes from His Divine Human, and ‘blood’ to mean the Divine Truth emanating from His Divine Good, and also a person’s reciprocation. And those who are capable of knowing this have no wish to know it. They have no wish to know it because they have no affection for truth for its own sake, only for the sake of inducements the world offers, and also because people who think on a natural level wish to understand everything on that level.

sRef Rev@19 @18 S3′ sRef Rev@19 @17 S3′ [3] These matters have been stated in order that people may know what is meant by ‘eating flesh’ in the Passover supper, and what is consequently meant by it in the Holy Supper, which was instituted at the Passover supper. Regarding the bread and wine, which have the same meaning as flesh and blood, in the Holy Supper, see 2165, 2177, 2187, 3464, 3478, 3735, 3813, 4211, 4217, 4735, 4976, 5915. The fact that ‘flesh’ is not flesh in the spiritual sense of the Word is, in addition to other places, plainly evident from the following in John,

Come and gather yourselves to the supper of the great God, so that you may eat [the flesh of kings, and] the flesh of captains, and the flesh of mighty men, and the flesh of horses and those seated on them, and the flesh of all free men and slaves, both small and great. Rev. 19:17, 18.

‘The flesh’, as it is used here, means varying kinds of good.

sRef Ex@12 @8 S0′ 7851. ‘On that night’ means when the damnation of the evil takes place. This is clear from the meaning of ‘night’ as a state of devastation of truth and good, dealt with in 221, 709, 2353, 7776, and so damnation. For when truth and good are no longer present, only falsity and evil, there is damnation, at this point the damnation of the ones who molested those belonging to the spiritual Church.

sRef Ex@12 @8 S0′ sRef Ex@12 @9 S1′ 7852. ‘Roasted with fire’ means good that is the product of love. This is clear from the meaning of ‘what is roasted with fire’ as the good of love; for ‘fire’ means love, 934, 4906, 5215, 6314, 6832, 6834, 6849, 7324, and ‘what is roasted’ that which has been infused with love, consequently good. In the Word what has been roasted is distinguished from what has been boiled. ‘What has been roasted’ means good, because it has been cooked by means of fire, while ‘what has been boiled’ is used to mean truth, because it has been cooked by means of water. A similar distinction is made here, for it says in verse 9, Do not eat any of it raw, nor bailed at all in water, but roasted indeed with fire. The reason for this is that ‘the Passover lamb’ means the good of innocence, which is the good of love to the Lord.

sRef John@21 @13 S2′ sRef John@21 @9 S2′ [2] All this shows what ‘the roasted fish’, in Luke 24:42, 43, means in the spiritual sense, and also ‘the fish placed over the fire of coals’ when the Lord appeared to the disciples, described in John as follows,

After the disciples got down onto the land they saw a fire of coals that had been set, and a small fish lying over it, and bread. Jesus came and took the bread and gave it to them, and did the same with the small fish. John 21:9, 13.

‘A fish’ means truth in the natural, 991, while ‘a fire of coals’ means good. Thus ‘a small fish lying over it’ means the truth of spiritual good within the natural. A person who does not believe in the existence of the internal sense within the Word inevitably thinks that the presence of the fish over the coal fire, when the Lord appeared to the disciples, and its being given them by the Lord to eat lack any deeper, hidden meaning.

sRef Isa@44 @16 S3′ sRef Isa@44 @19 S3′ [3] Since ‘roasted with fire’ means good that is the product of celestial and spiritual love, evil that is the product of selfish and worldly love is meant in the contrary sense by ‘roasted with fire’ in Isaiah,

He burnt part of it with fire, over part of it he ate flesh, he roasted a roast, in order that he might be satiated; also he was made warm. And he said, O brother,* I have been made warm, I have seen the fire. I have burned part of it with fire, and also I have baked bread over its coals, I have roasted flesh and am eating it. Isa. 44:16, 19.

This refers to worshippers of a carved image. ‘A carved image’ means falsity of evil, which is portrayed by such an image. ‘Roasting a roast’ and ‘roasting flesh’ are working evil under the influence of a filthy love. With regard to ‘fire’, that it is in the contrary sense the evil of self-love and love of the world, or the desires belonging to those kinds of love, see 1297, 1861, 2446, 5071, 5215, 6314, 6832, 7324, 7575.
* The word in the original language consists of three Hebrew letters, which with the vowel points of the Massoretic Text read as the interjection he’ach (ah!). But the Latin treats the same three letters as the (vocative) noun ha’ach (O brother).

sRef Ex@12 @8 S0′ 7853. ‘And unleavened bread’ means what has been purified from all falsity. This is clear from the meaning of what is ‘unleavened’, or has had no yeast added, as what has been purified from falsity, dealt with in 2342. The reason why ‘unleavened bread’ has this meaning is that ‘yeast’ means falsity, dealt with in what follows below.

sRef Ex@15 @25 S0′ sRef Ex@12 @8 S0′ sRef Ex@15 @23 S0′ sRef Ex@15 @24 S0′ sRef Rev@8 @11 S0′ sRef Rev@8 @10 S0′ sRef Isa@5 @20 S0′ sRef Isa@24 @9 S0′ 7854. ‘On bitter herbs’ means through the unpleasant experiences of temptation. This is clear from the meaning of ‘bitter herbs’, or bitterness, as what is undelightful, in this case the experiences of temptation. For the good of innocence, represented by ‘the Passover lamb’, cannot be assimilated by anyone except through temptations – ‘Unleavened bread’ means this kind of good; and since it is assimilated through temptations people were required to eat it ‘on bitter herbs’. What was more, that bread was for them, like the manna, ‘the bread of affliction’, Deut. 8:15, 16; 16:3, because it was without yeast, that is, any falsity arising from evil; for no one can bear pure truth or pure good. The use of ‘bitter’ to mean what is unpleasant is evident in Isaiah,

Woe to those who speak of evil as good, and of good as evil, who put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter! Isa. 5:20.

And in the same prophet,

They will not drink wine with singing, strong drink will be bitter to those drinking it. Isa. 24:9.

The use of ‘bitter’ to mean the unpleasant experiences of temptation is evident from the following words: In Exodus,

At length they came to Marah,* but they could not drink the waters for bitterness; for they were bitter. The people therefore grumbled against Moses; and when he cried to Jehovah, Jehovah showed him [some] wood, which he threw into the waters, and the waters were made sweet. There He established for him a statute and a judgement, that He tempted him there. Exod. 15:23-25.

And also in John,

A great star fell from heaven, burning like a torch. The name of the star is called Wormwood; and many people died from the waters, because they were made bitter. Rev. 8:10, 11.

‘Bitter waters’ here stands for the unpleasant experiences of temptation. People died from the waters’ stands for those who gave way in temptations.
* A name that means bitterness

sRef Ex@12 @8 S0′ 7855. ‘They shall eat it’ means enjoyment. This is clear from what has been stated above in 7849.

sRef Ex@12 @9 S0′ 7856. ‘Do not eat any of it raw’ means that it must not be devoid of love. This is clear from the meaning of ‘eating’ as enjoyment, as above in 7849; and from the meaning of ‘raw’ as devoid of the good of love. It is plain that this is what ‘raw’ means from the meaning of ‘roasted with fire’ as the good of love, dealt with above in 7852. Since ‘raw’ describes what has not been roasted with fire, it therefore means what is devoid of love.

sRef Matt@24 @18 S0′ sRef Matt@24 @17 S0′ sRef Luke@17 @31 S0′ sRef Luke@17 @32 S0′ sRef Ex@12 @9 S0′ 7857. ‘Nor boiled at all in water’ means that it must not come out of the truth of faith. This is clear from the meaning of ‘water’ as the truths of faith, dealt with in 2702, 3058, 3424, 4976, 5668, and therefore ‘boiled in water’ means what comes out of it, that is, good that is the outcome of the truth of faith. This kind of good is distinct from good that is the product of love, meant by ‘roasted with fire’, 7852. All spiritual good emanates either from faith, that is, comes through faith, or from love. While a person is being regenerated good in his case emanates from the truth of faith; for during that time he acts in accordance with truth not out of affection for truth but in obedience to it because it commands him so to act. Subsequently however, when he has been regenerated, he does what is good out of an affection for it, thus out of love. A very clear distinction is drawn in the Word between these two states with people, because no one can be in both states simultaneously. A person in the first state cannot enter the second before he has been regenerated; and a person in the second must not take himself back into the first. If anyone does take himself back he loses his affection to do what is good out of love, and slips back into the state of faith which had served to bring him to good, and even slides out of that state of faith. This is what is meant in the internal sense by the Lord’s words on the subject of the last judgement in Matthew,

Then let him who is on the housetop not go down to take anything out of his house; and let him who is in the field not return back to take his clothes. Matt. 24:17, 18.

The same is also meant by Lot’s wife, in that she looked back behind herself, Luke 17:31, 32.

All this may enable one to understand what being allowed to enjoy good that comes out of love is, but not good that comes out of the truth of faith, meant by the regulation that they were to eat flesh roasted with fire, but not any boiled in water.

sRef Zech@14 @21 S2′ [2] Worship of the Lord springing from faith and love was meant by sacrifices and burnt offerings – from faith by sacrifices and from love by burnt offerings. And glorification of the Lord and feelings of gladness for the enjoyment of good things that came from the Lord were meant by feasts of consecrated things. All this being so, they were allowed to boil flesh on such occasions. For glorification of the Lord and gladness for the enjoyment of good things emanates from an affection for the truth of faith, and so too does all thanksgiving (confessio). For evidence that the sacrificial flesh was boiled, see Exod. 29:31, 32; 1 Sam 2:13, 15; 1 Kings 19:21. The same is meant by ‘boiling’ in Zechariah,

On that day every pot in Jerusalem and in Judah will be holiness to Jehovah Zebaoth. And all who offer sacrifice will come and take from them and boil in them. Zech. 14:21.

sRef Ex@12 @9 S0′ 7858. ‘But roasted indeed with fire’ means that it must be a product of love. This is clear from the meaning of ‘roasted with fire’ as good that is the product of love, dealt with above in 7852.

sRef Ex@12 @9 S0′ 7859. ‘Its head over its legs and over its middle’ means from what is inmost to what is external. This is clear from the meaning of ‘the head’, when said to be ‘over the head and middle’, as what is inmost, for the head is on top, and what is on top is in the spiritual sense what is inmost, 2148, 3084, 4599, 5146 (for the meaning of ‘the head’ as the interiors and ‘the body’ as the exteriors, see 6436); from the meaning of ‘the legs’ as exteriors, for in relation to the head the legs are lower, and just as higher parts mean more internal ones, so lower parts mean more external ones; and from the meaning of ‘the middle’ as the parts that are lower still, as those of the belly and intestines are. The command that they were to roast the head over the legs and over the middle represented the necessity for interiors and exteriors to be combined, that is, to act as one. The interiors are what constitute the internal man, the exteriors what constitute the external man; or, the interiors are what constitute the spiritual man, while the exteriors are what constitute the natural man. These must be combined, that is, act as one, if a person is to have the Lord’s kingdom within him. They are separated when the natural or external man acts differently from what the spiritual or internal man desires. These considerations go to prove what was meant by the regulation that the Passover lamb should be roasted with fire, the head over the legs and middle. ‘The middle’ is used to mean the even more external part of the natural, which is the level of the senses. Anyone may see that a Divine arcanum is present within these commands, for the Passover lamb was the most holy thing in that Church. But that holy arcanum is indiscernible except through a spiritual understanding, such as is presented here, of the subject matter involved and the words used.

sRef Ex@12 @10 S0′ 7860. ‘And you shall not leave any of it until the morning’ means the duration of this state before the state of enlightenment in heaven. This is clear from the meaning of ‘the morning’ as heaven and the state of enlightenment there, dealt with in 2405, 3458, 3723, 5740, 5962. ‘Leaving nothing of it until that time’ plainly means the duration of that state, for at that time the prior state will come to an end. As has been shown already, the subject in the internal sense is the deliverance of those belonging to the spiritual Church from molestations. The state of their deliverance is represented by the Passover, and the state of their being raised to heaven by being led into the land of Canaan, this latter state being meant by ‘the morning’. These two states are entirely different from each other; they are like the state of the means to the end, and that of the end itself. When the state of the end itself is reached what belongs to the state of the means will have been accomplished. From this it is evident why they were commanded not to leave any of it till morning.

sRef Ex@12 @10 S0′ 7861. ‘And what does remain of it until the morning you shall burn with fire’ means the state leading up to the end arrived at through temptations. This is clear from the meaning of ‘what remains till morning’ as the state leading up to the last, the last being when they are raised to heaven (for ‘the morning’ means being raised to heaven and enlightenment there, see immediately above in 7860, and therefore the time before morning means the state leading up to this, during but not after which they were allowed to enjoy or eat what was left); and from the meaning of ‘burning with fire’ as undergoing temptations. Temptations are meant by ‘burning with fire’ because fire can be used to purify, and also because when a person enters temptations he is confronted with his evil desires, which are ‘fires’.

sRef Ex@12 @11 S0′ 7862. ‘And thus you shall eat it’ means enjoyment in a state of separation from the evil who have been molesters, and presentation at that time. This is clear from the meaning of ‘eating’ as enjoyment, dealt with above in 7849. Since the departure from Egypt is the subject, and separation from those who have been molesters is meant by it, that state is what one should understand by the instruction that ‘thus’ they were to eat it. The fact that preservation is also meant is self-evident.

sRef Ex@12 @11 S0′ 7863. ‘Your loins girded’ means in respect of their interiors. This is clear from the meaning of ‘the loins’ as those desires that belong to conjugial love, 3021, 4277, 4280, 5050-5062, thus those that belong to the love of goodness and truth, since conjugial love descends from this, 686, 2618, 2717-2759, 4434, 5054. For this reason, and because the loins are above the feet – which are the exteriors, dealt with immediately below – the interiors are meant by them. The requirement that their loins should be girded means being suitably made ready to receive the inflow of good and truth from the Lord, and also to act in accordance with what flows in. Every girding and clothing means a state in which one has been made ready to receive and act, for then every single thing is held in its proper place. It is different when they have not been girded.

sRef Ex@12 @11 S0′ 7864. ‘Your shoes on your feet’ means in respect of their exteriors. This is clear from the meaning of ‘shoes’ as the external or lowest parts of the natural, which in general overlie the interiors of the natural; and from the meaning of ‘the feet’ as the natural, dealt with in 2162, 3147, 3761, 3986, 4280, 4938-4952.

sRef Ex@12 @11 S0′ 7865. ‘And your rod in your hand’ means in respect of means. This is clear from the meaning of rod in hand’ – when journeying or travelling is referred to, and mention is made of ‘the loins’ and also ‘shoes on the feet’, which are the interiors and the exteriors – as means.

sRef Ex@12 @11 S0′ 7866. ‘And you shall eat it in haste’ means their feeling in their state of separation. This is clear from the meaning of ‘haste’ as a feeling, since haste is the expression of a feeling, dealt with in 7695. Here it is their feeling in their state of separation, for they had been separated from the
molesters, who are meant by ‘the Egyptians’.

sRef Ex@12 @11 S0′ 7867. ‘It is a Passover to Jehovah’ means the Lord’s presence, and deliverance by Him. This is clear from the things which have been stated up to this point, in particular regarding the deliverance of those belonging to the spiritual Church by the Lord’s Coming, 6854, 6914, 7035, 7091 (end), 7828. Regarding ‘Jehovah’ in the Word, that He is the Lord, see 1343, 1736, 2921, 3023, 3035, 5041, 5667, 6281, 6303, 6905.

sRef Ex@12 @14 S0′ sRef Ex@12 @15 S0′ sRef Ex@12 @16 S0′ sRef Ex@12 @13 S0′ sRef Ex@12 @12 S0′ 7868. Verses 12-16 And I will go through the land of Egypt on that night, and will strike all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from man (homo) even to beast; and on all the gods of Egypt I will make judgements. I am Jehovah. And the blood will be a sign for you on the houses where you are; and I will see the blood and pass you by, and the plague will not be on you for the destroyer, when I strike the land of Egypt. And that day shall be to you for a memorial, and you shall keep it as a feast to Jehovah, throughout your generations; you shall keep it as a feast by an eternal statute. Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread; even on the first day you shall remove* yeast from your houses, for anyone eating anything made with yeast, that soul shall be cut off from Israel, from the first day until the seventh day. And on the first day there shalt be a holy convocation, and on the seventh day there shall be a holy convocation for you. No work shall be done on them; only what must be eaten by every soul, this alone shall be done by you.

‘And I will go through the land of Egypt’ means presence among those who have engaged in molestation. ‘On that night’ means their state – a state of evil. ‘And will strike all the firstborn in the land of Egypt’ means the damnation of those governed by faith separated from charity. ‘From man even to beast’ means their evil desires, interior and exterior. ‘And on all the gods of Egypt I will make judgements’ means their falsities which are to be damned. ‘I am Jehovah’ means that the Lord is the only God. ‘And the blood will be’ means truth belonging to the good of innocence. ‘A sign for you on the houses where you are’ means that it bears witness to a will that seeks what is good. ‘And I will see the blood’ means the discernment of that truth by those who inflict damnation. ‘And pass you by’ means that it will stay away from there. ‘And the plague will not be on you for the destroyer’ means that damnation from hell will not enter in. ‘When I strike the land of Egypt’ means when those governed by faith separated from charity are damned. ‘And that day shall be to you for a memorial’ means the essential nature of that state in worship. ‘You shall keep it as a feast to Jehovah’ means worship of the Lord because of deliverance from damnation. ‘Throughout your generations’ means in those things that belong to faith and charity. ‘You shall keep it as a feast by an eternal statute’ means worship of the Lord in keeping with the order of heaven for those belonging to the spiritual Church. ‘Seven days’ means what is holy. ‘You shall eat unleavened bread’ means purification from falsities. ‘Even on the first day you shall remove yeast from your houses’ means that there must be no falsity whatever in good. ‘For anyone eating anything made with yeast’ means whoever makes falsity his own. ‘That soul shall be cut off from Israel’ means that he will be separated from those belonging to the spiritual Church, and that he will be damned. ‘From the first day until the seventh day’ means a holy and complete state. ‘And on the first day there shall be a holy convocation’ means that at the beginning all must be together. ‘On the seventh day there shall be a holy convocation for you’ means so must they be together at the end of the state. ‘No work shall be done on them’ means abstention during that time from earthly and worldly pursuits. ‘Only what must be eaten by every soul’ means when spiritual and celestial good is made their own. ‘This alone shall be done’ means that they must apply themselves at this time to these things only.
* lit. cause to cease

sRef Ex@12 @12 S0′ 7869. ‘And I will go through the land of Egypt’ means presence among those who have engaged in molestation. This is clear from the meaning of ‘going through’ – when it is a going ‘through the land’, and done by Jehovah – as presence; and from the meaning of ‘the Egyptians’ as the ones who have molested those belonging to the spiritual Church, dealt with in 6692, 7097. ‘The land of Egypt’ here stands for those molesters.

sRef Ex@12 @12 S0′ 7870. ‘On that night’ means their state – a state of evil. This is clear from the meaning of ‘night’ as a state when there is nothing but evil and falsity. For night describes the opposite of day and thick darkness the opposite of [clear] light, and ‘day’ and ‘[clear] light’ mean a state in which truth and good reign. This being so, ‘night’ also means the last phase of the Church, for at that time falsities and evils reign because there is no faith or charity, see 2353, 6000. In addition ‘night’ means when vastation is completed, 7776, and also damnation, 7851. From all this it is evident that the state of those who are in hell is called ‘night’. Not that the thick darkness of night envelops them, for they can see one another. But since the state of truth and good which exists in heaven is called ‘day’, the state of falsity and evil is called ‘night’. Also thick darkness exists in hell when any light at all from heaven flows into it; for then the inferior light which they see by is reduced to nothing and becomes thick darkness.

[2] The source of the inferior light they see by is, it is true, light from the Lord coming through heaven; for in the next life no light comes from anywhere else. But among those in hell that light from Him enters by way of the ability to understand what is true. The ability enabling them to understand remains with them, as it does with every human being, however much they may be steeped in evil or falsity. But when that heavenly light passes on into their will – that is to say, into unwillingness to understand – and consequently passes into the evil and falsity that reside with them, the heavenly light is turned for them into inferior light resembling that emitted from a coal fire. And, as has been stated, that inferior light is converted into utterly thick darkness by the light of heaven when this flows into it. Regarding the inferior light in hell, its being like that emitted from a coal fire, see 1528, 3340, 4418, 4571; and regarding its conversion into thick darkness at the presence of the light of heaven, 1783, 3412, 4533, 5057, 5058, 6000. From all this it may be recognized that in the next life the kind of light each one has depends on whether his ability to understand is furnished with truths springing from good or with falsities arising from evil.

sRef Ex@12 @12 S0′ 7871. ‘And will strike all the firstborn in the land of Egypt’ means the damnation of those governed by faith separated from charity. This is clear from the meaning of ‘striking’ as damnation, for striking is killing or putting to death, and ‘death’ in the spiritual sense means damnation, see 6119; from the meaning of ‘the firstborn’ – when used in reference to the Egyptians, who represent those steeped in falsities arising from evil – as faith separated from charity, 3325, 7039, 7766, 7778, 7779. In the genuine sense the expression ‘the firstborn’, when it describes a feature of the spiritual Church, means faith that is wedded to charity, see 367, 2435, 3325, 3494, 6344, 7035; therefore in the contrary sense ‘the firstborn’ is faith devoid of charity.

sRef Ex@12 @12 S0′ 7872. ‘From man even to beast’ means their evil desires, interior and exterior. This is clear from the meaning of ‘from man even to beast’ as the affection for interior good and exterior good, dealt with in 7424, 7523; for ‘man’ means the affection for interior good, and ‘beast’ the affection for exterior good. In the contrary sense, as at this point where the firstborn of the Egyptians are referred to, evil affections, or interior and exterior evil desires, are meant. For more about the meaning of ‘beasts’ as good affections, and in the contrary sense evil affections or desires, see 45, 46, 142, 143, 246, 714, 715, 719, 776, 1823, 2179, 2180, 2781, 3218, 3519, 5198.

sRef Ex@12 @12 S0′ 7873. ‘And on all the gods of Egypt I will make judgements’ means their falsities which are to be damned. This is clear from the meaning of ‘gods’ as falsities, dealt with below; and from the meaning of ‘making judgements’ as being damned, for to judge or to make judgements is to point either to life or to death; a judgement that points to life means salvation, one that points to death means damnation. The term ‘gods’ is used many times in the Word. When angels are called such, truths are meant, see 4295, 4402, 7268, and therefore in the contrary sense ‘the gods of the nations’ means falsities, 4402, 4544. The reason why truths are referred to as ‘gods’ is that truth emanates from God Himself and is in itself of God. Consequently those who receive that truth are called ‘gods’. Not that they are gods; rather, the truth with them is of God. This explains why in the original language God is referred to by the plural noun Elohim. God Himself is Divine Goodness, but what emanates from Him is Divine Truth which fills the whole of heaven. So then, because ‘god’ means truth, falsity is meant by that word in the contrary sense.

sRef Ex@12 @12 S0′ 7874. ‘I am Jehovah’ means that the Lord is the only God. This becomes clear from the explanations above in 7401, 7444, 7544, 7598, 7636.

sRef Ex@12 @13 S0′ 7875. ‘And the blood will be’ means truth belonging to the good of innocence. This is clear from the meaning of ‘the blood of the lamb’ as truth belonging to the good of innocence, as above in 7846.

sRef Ex@12 @13 S0′ 7876. ‘A sign for you on the houses where you are’ means that it bears witness to a will that seeks what is good. This is clear from the meaning of ‘being a sign as bearing witness; and from the meaning of ‘the houses’ as the desires composing a will that seeks what is good, dealt with above in 7848.

sRef Ex@12 @13 S0′ 7877. ‘And I will see the blood’ means the discernment of that truth by those who inflict damnation. This is clear from the meaning of ‘seeing’ as understanding and discerning, dealt with in 2150, 2325, 2807, 3764, 4403-4421, 4567, 4723, 5400 (its being the discernment by those who inflict damnation is shown in what follows); and from the meaning of ‘the blood’ as truth that belongs to the good of innocence, as above in 7846.

[2] What truth belonging to the good of innocence is must be stated. The good of innocence is the good of love to the Lord; for those governed by this love have innocence within them. This explains why those who are in the inmost or third heaven, being governed by love to the Lord, possess more innocence than all others. Because of their innocence those who are there look to others like young children, and yet they are the wisest of all in heaven, see 2306; for innocence resides within wisdom, 2305, 3495, 4797. The truth belonging to the good of innocence which exists with them is not the truth of faith but the good of charity. Those in the third heaven do not know what faith is, nor consequently what the truth of faith is; for they perceive intuitively the truth that composes faith, and in perceiving it intuitively know immediately that it is indeed the truth. They never engage in reasoning about whether it is such, let alone argue with one another about it. What is perceived in that intuitive way does not then come to be acquired knowledge. It is different with spiritual angels in the second heaven. The truth of faith leads them to the good of charity. They do therefore engage in reasoning about whether it is the truth or not, since they have no intuitive perception of