Spiritual Meaning of EXODUS 10:12-15
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AC 7671. Verses 12-15. And Jehovah said unto Moses, Stretch out thy hand over the land of Egypt for the locust, and it shall come up upon the land of Egypt, and shall devour all the herb of the land, even all that the hail hath left. And Moses stretched out his rod over the land of Egypt, and Jehovah brought an east wind upon the land all that day, and all the night; and when it was morning, the east wind brought the locust. And the locust went up over all the land of Egypt, and rested in all the border of Egypt, very grievous; before it there was no such locust as this, and after it there shall not be such. And it covered the surface of the whole land, and the land was darkened: and it devoured all the herb of the land, and all the fruit of the tree which the hail had left; and there was not left any green thing in the tree and in the herb of the field, in the whole land of Egypt. "And Jehovah said unto Moses," signifies instruction; "Stretch out thy hand," signifies the rule of power; "over the land of Egypt for the locust," signifies that falsity may take possession of all the natural of the infesters; "and it shall come up upon the land of Egypt," signifies a pouring out into all things therein; "and shall devour all the herb of the land," signifies the consumption of all truth; "even all that the hail hath left," signifies which the former falsity has not consumed; "and Moses stretched out his rod over the land of Egypt," signifies the rule of the power of truth Divine over the whole natural of the infesters; "and Jehovah brought an east wind upon the land," signifies the means of destruction; "all that day, and all the night," signifies in everything of perception, both obscure and not obscure, with the infesters; "and when it was morning," signifies a state of heaven in order; "the east wind brought the locust," signifies dense falsity with the infesters through the means of destruction; "and the locust went up over all the land of Egypt," signifies the pouring out of falsity into all things of the natural; "and rested in all the border of Egypt," signifies from the extremes there; "very grievous," signifies that it pervaded all things and each; before it there was no such locust as this, and after it there shall not be such," signifies that such falsity has not been from the first time of the church, and shall not he "and it covered the surface of the whole land," signifies that it took possession of the ultimates of the natural mind; "and the land was darkened," signifies that falsity was brought in where truth was; "and it devoured all the herb of the land," signifies that it consumed all the memory-knowledge of truth; "and all the fruit of the tree which the hail had left," signifies all the knowing of good; "and there remained not any green thing," signifies that all sensitivity of truth was obliterated; "in the tree and in the herb of the field," signifies from the knowing and the memory-knowledge of the church; "in the whole land of Egypt," signifies on all sides in the natural.

AC 7672. And Jehovah said unto Moses. That this signifies instruction, is evident from the signification of "saying," when done by Jehovah to Moses, by whom is represented truth Divine, as being instruction (n. 6879, 6881, 6883, 6891, 7186, 7267, 7304, 7380).

AC 7673. Stretch out thy hand. That this signifies the rule of power, is evident from the signification of "stretching out," as being predicated of rule; and from the signification of "hand," as being power (n. 878, 3387, 4931-4937, 5327, 5328, 5544, 6292, 6947, 7011, 7188, 7189, 7518). That "to stretch out the hand" denotes the rule of power, is because the hand or arm has power when it is stretched out; and therefore when it is said of Jehovah that "He stretches out the hand" or "arm," there is signified power unlimited or infinite in act. This is the reason why Jehovah so often said to Moses when miracles were to be done, that he should "stretch out his hand" or "rod," as in the following passages:--

It would never have been so said unless by the stretching out of the hand, in the supreme sense, there was signified the omnipotence of Jehovah.

[2] So with what was said to Joshua, that he should "stretch out his spear," as we read in that book:--

as this was a representative of Divine omnipotence, it therefore had force, as had all representatives at that time, when commanded.

[3] In many passages also omnipotence is described by "Jehovah stretching out His hand," as also by "His outstretched hand," and by "His outstretched arm"--by "Jehovah stretching out the hand," in the following passages:--

Omnipotence is described by "an outstretched hand" in the following passages:--

Also by "an outstretched arm" in these passages:--

That in these passages by "an outstretched arm" is signified omnipotence, is manifest; and so in many other passages, where it is said "by a strong hand and a stretched out arm" (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. 20:33, 34).

[4] It is also said of Jehovah that "He stretches out the heaven," and here also by "stretching out" is signified omnipotence; that is, that He enlarges the boundaries of heaven, and fills its inhabitants with life and wisdom, as in the following passages:--

Besides elsewhere, as in (Isa. 44:24; 45:12; Ps. 104:2. From all this it can now be seen why Moses was commanded to stretch out his hand and rod, and that then miracles were done; and that thus by "stretching out the hand" is signified the rule of power, and in the supreme sense omnipotence.

AC 7674. Over the land of Egypt for the locust. That this signifies that falsity may take possession of all the natural of the infesters, is evident from the signification of "the land of Egypt," as being the natural mind (n. 5276, 5278, 5280, 5288, 5301); that "Egypt" denotes the natural, (n. 6147, 6252); and from the signification of "the locust," as being falsity in the extremes with those who infest (n. 7643).

AC 7675. And it shall come up upon all the land of Egypt. That this signifies a pouring out into all things therein, is evident from the signification of "to come up," as being to be poured out, for the "locust" signifies falsity in the extremes, and it is said to "come up" from the extremes toward the interiors, because interior things are the same as higher ones (that the interiors are taken possession of by falsity when the exteriors are, (n. 7645); and from the signification of "the land of Egypt," as being the natural mind (n. 7674).

AC 7676. And it shall devour all the herb of the land. That this signifies the total consumption of all truth, is evident from the signification of "devouring," as being to consume; and from the signification of "the herb of the land," as being the truth of the church (n. 7571).

AC 7677. Even all that the hail hath left. That this signifies which the former falsity has not consumed, is evident from the signification of "left," as being which it had not consumed; and from the signification of "the hail," as being falsity from evil in the exterior natural (n. 7553, 7574).

AC 7678. And Moses stretched out his rod over the land of Egypt. That this signifies the rule of the power of truth Divine over the whole natural of the infesters, is evident from the signification of "stretching out the rod," as being the rule of power (n. 7673); from the representation of Moses, as being truth Divine (n. 6752, 7004, 7010, 7382); and from the signification of "the land of Egypt," as being the natural of the infesters (n. 7674). The Divine power which is described by "the hand of Moses" is the power of truth Divine. All power is of truth, (n. 3091, 5623, 6344, 6423, 6948); nay, such power has the Divine truth which proceed from the Divine good, through it have been created all things in the universe. "The Word" signifies this truth in John:--

and from this it is that miracles were done by Moses, for Moses represents Divine truth. It is believed by most people that the Word, or Divine truth, is only speech from Jehovah, and a command that it be so done, and nothing further; but it is the very Essential, from which and by which are all things. That being (Esse) which proceeds from Him, and consequently the coming-forth (existere) of all things, is what is meant by "Divine truth." This can be illustrated from the angels; from whom there proceeds a sphere of charity and faith that is sensibly perceived, and that also produces wonderful effects; from which some idea can be formed of the Divine truth that proceeds from the Divine good of the Lord.

AC 7679. And Jehovah brought an east wind upon the land. That this signifies the means of destruction, is evident from the signification of "an east wind," as being a means of destruction. That an "east wind" has this signification is because it was dry and tempestuous, and consequently dried up the productions of that land, and by its force broke in pieces trees, and ships on the sea; from this, by it as a means is described the effect of Divine power. Moreover by the "east" is signified the good of love and of charity, because in the supreme sense the Lord is signified (n. 101, 1250, 3708). And in its origin, being Divine, the good of love and of charity is most gentle, consequently it is so in its advance into heaven; but when it sinks down to the hells, it becomes harsh and severe, because it is turned into this by those who are there. Therefore the influx and presence of this Divine good there not only torments, but also devastates them. From all this also it is that by a "wind from the east," or an "east wind" is signified a means of destruction.

[2] That by this "wind" is signified a means of destruction, is plain from the passages in the Word where it is mentioned, as in the following:--

From these passages it is evident that an "east wind" signifies a means of destruction, because it was dry and tempestuous; whence also it signifies a means of devastation, as in Hosea:--

where "Ephraim" denotes the intellectual of the church (n. 5354, 6222, 6238); "to feed on wind" is "to multiply a lie;" "and to pursue the east wind" is "to multiply vastation." A state of vastation and temptation is also called "the day of the east wind" in (Isa. 27:7, 8).

AC 7680. All that day, and all the night. That this signifies in everything of the perception both obscure and not obscure with the infesters, namely, there was destruction, is evident from the signification of "day," as being a state of perception not obscure; and from the signification of "night," as being a state of obscure perception; for the times of the day, morning, noon, evening, and night, correspond to the states of enlightenment that belong to intelligence and wisdom (n. 5672, 6110), thus to perceptions; and so in general do day and night. It is here said "perceptions," not "states of enlightenment," because the evil who infest have no enlightenment, and yet have perception; but they have perception only so long as any knowledge of truth and good from the church in which they have lived remains with them, for by means of truth and good they communicate with those who are in heaven. But when they have been deprived of these knowledges, which is done when they have been devastated, they then no longer have any perception. The infernals can indeed confirm their evils, and also their falsities, but this is not perception. Perception is to see that truth is truth, and good good; and also that evil is evil, and falsity falsity; but it is not perception to see truth as falsity and good as evil; or the reverse, evil as good and falsity as truth. They who do this, instead of perception, have phantasy, which produces an appearance of perception, whereby such know how to confirm falsities and evils by such things as are obvious to the senses and are in favor of concupiscences.

AC 7681. And when it was morning. That this signifies a state of heaven in order, is evident from the signification of "morning," as being the Lord’s kingdom, and, in the supreme sense, the Lord Himself (n. 22, 2333, 2405, 2540, 2780); and as being a state of enlightenment (n. 3458, 3723, 5740, 5962); but here by "morning" is signified heaven in order. How the case herein is, can be seen from what was said above (n. 7643), namely, that the evil are devastated as the Lord sets heaven in order; for the influx of good and truth from heaven causes devastation with the evil; and therefore when the Lord sets the heavens in order, then the hells, which are in the opposite, are set in order of themselves, and are removed from heaven according to the degrees of evil, and are allotted places according to the quality of their evil. From this it can be seen that from the Lord proceeds nothing but good, and that evil is from those who are against good, and who finally cannot endure it. From all this it is evident that by "morning" is here signified a state of heaven in order.

AC 7682. The east wind bought the locust. That this signifies dense falsity with the infesters through the means of destruction, is evident from the signification of "the east wind," as being a means of destruction (n. 7679); and from the signification of "the locust," as being falsity in the extremes (n. 7643), here dense falsity, because the whole natural was taken possession of by it (n. 7645).

AC 7683. And the locust went up over all the land of Egypt. That this signifies the pouring out of falsity into all things of the natural, is evident from what was said above (n. 7674, 7675), where are like words.

AC 7684. And rested in all the border of Egypt. That this signifies from the extremes there, is evident from the signification of "the border," as being that which is extreme or outermost, and therefore by "resting in all the border" is signified that falsity extended from the extremes into all things of the natural, and then terminated in the extremes, according to what was shown above (n. 7645).

AC 7685. Very grievous. That this signifies that it pervaded all things and each, is evident from what was unfolded above (n. 7684).

AC 7686. Before it there was no such locust as this, and after it there shall not be such. That this signifies that such falsity has not been from the first time of the church, and shall not be, is evident from the signification of the "locust," as being falsity in the extremes (n. 7643); such falsity has not been, nor shall be, (n. 7649). How the case herein is, shall be told. In the internal sense those are specifically treated of who before the Lord‘s coming were in the lower earth, and could not be uplifted into heaven before the Lord came into the world, and assumed the Human, and made it Divine (n. 6854, 6914). Meanwhile they were infested by the evil, who also had been of the church, and had confessed the truths of faith, but had lived a life of evil. They who before the Lord’s coming had been of the church and had been evil as to life, were in such falsity as had not been before, and shall not be afterward. The reason was that they who were called "Nephilim," also "Anakim" and "Rephaim," and were of the last posterity of the Most Ancient Church, were not yet shut up in hell, but wandered about and infused dire and deadly persuasions wherever they could, thus also into the evil in the church. This was the source of such falsity. With respect to these "Nephilim," and their direful persuasions, see (n. 310, 560, 562, 563, 570, 581, 585, 607, 660, 805, 808, 1034, 1120, 1265-1272, 1673). When the Lord was in the world, these were cast by Him into their hell, which is on the left in front at some distance. Unless this had been done, very few could have been saved, for the falsity which they infused had a direful persuasive power, and was deadly, such as never had been, and such as never can again be. With this falsity those had been imbued who before the Lord‘s coming infested those who were of the spiritual church. This is what is meant in the internal sense by the above words. These are they who are specifically treated of; but in general all are meant who are of the church and who infest the upright in the other life, of whom there are very many at this day.

AC 7687. And it covered the surface of the whole land. That this signifies that it took possession of the ultimates of the natural mind, is evident from the signification of "the surface," as being the ultimate, for it is the most external, or the extreme of the land; and from the signification of "the land," here the land of Egypt, as being the natural mind (n. 7674).

AC 7688. And the land was darkened. That this signifies that falsity was brought in where truth was, is evident from the signification of "darkness," as being falsities (n. 1839, 1860, 4418, 4531); thus "to be darkened" is to be in falsity; and as the devastation of those who have been of the church and have known truths, but have lived a life of evil, is here treated of, therefore by "the land was darkened" is signified falsity where truth was. Truth in the internal sense is signified by "light," and therefore falsity is signified by "darkness;" for truth and falsity are opposites, like light and darkness; and they who are in truth actually have light, and they who are in falsity actually have darkness. The light in which they are who are in falsity in the other life, becomes thick darkness at the presence of the light of heaven, and thicker darkness with those who have been of the church, because they had been in falsity against the truth of faith, according to the Lord’s words:--

"the sons of the kingdom" denote those who are of the church; "the outer darkness" denotes more grievous falsities; it is called "outer" because falsities in the outermosts or extremes are more grievous.

[2] That falsities are called "darkness," is evident from many passages in the Word, as in the following:--

In these passages "darkness" signifies falsities. In the Word "darkness" also signifies ignorance of truth, such as the Gentiles are in who have not the Word and know nothing of the Lord.

AC 7689. And it devoured all the herb of the land. That this signifies that it consumed all the memory-knowledge of truth, is evident from the signification of "devouring," as being to consume; and from the signification of "the herb of the land," as being the memory-knowledge of truth; for by "the herb of the field" is signified the truth of the church (n. 7571), because "field" denotes the church; but by "the herb of the land" is signified the memory-knowledge of truth, because "the land" here denotes the natural mind; and the truth of the natural mind is memory-knowledge; and moreover the evil have no truth by faith, but only the memory-knowledge of the truth which is of faith. Some evil men who are in the church persuade themselves that they are in truth by faith, but they are not; they are in falsity, and are against the truth of faith. That they are in falsity is hidden with them so long as they are in the world, but this hidden falsity comes forth and manifests itself in the other life when they are being devastated as to the truths of faith which they had known.

AC 7690. And all the fruit of the tree which the hail had left. That this signifies all the knowing of good, is evident from the signification of "fruit," as being the works of faith or of charity, thus goods, whence "to be fruitful" is predicated of good (n. 43, 55, 913, 983, 2846, 2847); and from the signification of "tree," as being perceptions, also knowledges (n. 103, 2163, 2722, 2972). The reason why "fruits" denote the works of charity, thus goods, is that the first of a tree is the fruit in which is the seed, and its last is the fruit in which is the seed, and its intermediates are the branches or leaves. So it is with the good of love and the truth of faith; the good of love is first when man is being regenerated or is being planted, and is also the last; the intermediates are the truths of faith, which are from the good of love as their seed, and continually look to the good of love as their last, just as the intermediates of a tree look to their fruit in which is the seed. "Fruits" signify goods, (Matt. 3:8, 10, 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).

AC 7691. And there was not left any green thing. That this signifies that all sensitivity of truth was obliterated, is evident from the signification of "not to be left," as being to be obliterated; and from the signification of "what is green," as being what is of memory-knowledge and the sensuous, here what is sensitive of truth, because by the "fruit of a tree" is signified the knowing of good (n. 7690), and because it is said "any green thing in the tree and in the herb of the field." That "green" denotes that which is sensitive of truth, is because by "herb," "grass," and "the leaf of a tree" are signified truths; hence their "greenness" signifies that which is sensitive of truth. By this sensitivity is signified the ultimate of perception. The sensitivity of truth is also signified by "what is green" in Isaiah:--

And in John:--

AC 7692. In the tree and in the herb of the field. That this signifies from the knowing and the memory-knowledge of the church, is evident from the signification of "tree," as being the knowing of truth (n. 7690), and from the signification of "the herb of the field," as being the memory-knowledge of truth (n. 7689).

AC 7693. In the whole land of Egypt. That this signifies on all sides in the natural, is evident from the signification of "the land of Egypt," as being the natural mind, thus the natural (n. 7674). As by the "locust," which is the subject here treated of, is signified falsity in the extremes, that is, in the sensuous of man, it must here be told what the sensuous is, so that it may be known what falsity in the extremes is. The sensuous man, or he who thinks and acts from the sensuous, is he who believes nothing except what is obvious to the outward senses, and who is led solely by the bodily appetites, by pleasures, and by concupiscences, and not by reasons, believing those to be reasons which favor such things. Such being the sensuous man, he therefore rejects everything internal, until at last he is not willing even to hear it mentioned; consequently at heart he denies whatever is of heaven: the life after death he certainly does not believe in, because he makes life to consist solely in the body, and therefore he supposes that he himself will die like a beast. He thinks as it were in the surface, that is, in the ultimates or in the extremes, and is quite ignorant of the existence of an interior thought according to the perception of truth and good. The reason why he does not know this, nor even that there is an internal man, is because his interiors look downward to the things of the world, of the body, and of the earth, with which they make a one; consequently they have been removed from looking upward, or to heaven, because they look in the opposite direction. To look upward, or to heaven, is not to think about the thing that belong to heaven, but it is to have these things as the end, that is, to love them more than all other things; for a man‘s interiors turn to where his love turns, and consequently so does his thought. From all this it can be seen what is the nature of man’s sensuous, that is, of his natural in the extremes; for that man is called sensuous who thinks from what is sensuous.

Author:  E. Swedenborg (1688-1772).

Design:  I.J. Thompson, Feb 2002.

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