Spiritual Meaning of EXODUS 24:1-2
[2] In the Word there are many who represent the Lord in respect to truth Divine, or in respect to the Word; but chief among them are Moses, Elijah, Elisha, and John the Baptist. That Moses does so, can be seen in the explications just cited above; that so do Elijah and Elisha, (n. 2135a, 2762, 5247); and that John the Baptist does so is evident from the fact that he was "Elias who was to come." He who does not know that John the Baptist represented the Lord as to the Word, cannot know what all those things infold and signify which are said about him in the New Testament; and therefore in order that this secret may stand open, and that at the same time it may appear that Elias, and also Moses, who were seen when the Lord was transfigured, signified the Word, some things may here be quoted which are spoken about John the Baptist; as in Matthew:--
Alter the messengers of John had departed, Jesus began to speak concerning John, saying, What went ye out into the wilderness to see? a reed shaken by the wind? But what went ye out to see? a man clothed in soft raiment? Behold, they that wear soft things are in kings’ houses. But what went ye out to see? a prophet? Yea, I say unto you, even more than a prophet. This is he of whom it is written, Behold I send Mine angel before Thy face, who shall prepare Thy way before Thee. Verily I say unto you, Among those who are born of women there hath not arisen a greater than John the Baptist; nevertheless he that is less in the kingdom of the heavens is greater than he. All the prophets and the law prophesied until John. And if ye are willing to believe, he is Elias who was to come. He that hath ears to hear, let him hear (Matt. 11:7-15; Luke 7:24-28);
no one can know how these things are to be understood, unless he knows that this John represented the Lord as to the Word, and unless he also knows from the internal sense what is signified by "the wilderness" in which he was, also what by "a reed shaken by the wind," and likewise by "soft raiment in kings‘ houses;" and further what is signified by his being "more than a prophet," and by "none among those who are born of women being greater than he, and nevertheless he that is less in the kingdom of the heavens is greater than he," and lastly by his being "Elias." For without a deeper sense, all these words are uttered merely from some comparison, and not from anything of weight.
[3] But it is very different when by John is understood the Lord as to the Word, or the Word representatively. Then by "the wilderness of Judea in which John was" is signified the state in which the Word was at the time when the Lord came into the world, namely, that it was "in the wilderness," that is, it was in obscurity so great that the Lord was not at all acknowledged, neither was anything known about His heavenly kingdom; when yet all the prophets prophesied about Him, and about His kingdom, that it was to endure forever. That "a wilderness" denotes such obscurity, (n. 2708, 4736, 7313). For this reason the Word is compared to "a reed shaken by the wind" when it is explained at pleasure; for in the internal sense "a reed" denotes truth in the ultimate, such as is the Word in the letter.
[4] That the Word in the ultimate, or in the letter, is crude and obscure in the sight of men; but that in the internal sense it is soft and shining, is signified by their "not seeing a man clothed in soft raiment, for behold those who wear soft things are in kings’ houses." That such things are signified by these words, is plain from the signification of "raiment," or "garments," as being truths (n. 2132, 2576, 4545, 4763, 5248, 6914, 6918, 9093); and for this reason the angels appear clothed in garments soft and shining according to the truths from good with them (n. 5248, 5319, 5954, 9212, 9216). The same is evident from the signification of "kings‘ houses," as being the abodes of the angels, and in the universal sense, the heavens; for "houses" are so called from good (n. 2233, 2234, 3128, 3652, 3720, 4622, 4982, 7836, 7891, 7996, 7997); and "kings," from truth (n. 1672, 2015, 2069, 3009, 4575, 4581, 4966, 5044, 6148). Therefore by virtue of their reception of truth from the Lord, the angels are called "sons of the kingdom," "sons of the king," and also "kings."
[5] That the Word is more than any doctrine in the world, and more than any truth in the world, is signified by "what went ye out to see? a prophet? yea, I say unto you, and more than a prophet;" and by, "there hath not arisen among those who are born of women a greater than John the Baptist;" for in the internal sense "a prophet" denotes doctrine (n. 2534, 7269); and "those who are born," or are the sons, "of women" denote truths (n. 489, 491, 533, 1147, 2623, 2803, 2813, 3704, 4257).
[6] That in the internal sense, or such as it is in heaven, the Word is in a degree above the Word in the external sense, or such as it is in the world, and such as John the Baptist taught, is signified by, "he that is less in the kingdom of the heavens is greater than he;" for as perceived in heaven the Word is of wisdom so great that it transcends all human apprehension. That the prophecies about the Lord and His coming, and that the representatives of the Lord and of His kingdom, ceased when the Lord came into the world, is signified by, "all the prophets and the law prophesied until John." That the Word was represented by John, as by Elijah, is signified by his being "Elias who is to come."
[7] The same is signified by these words in Matthew:--
The disciples asked Jesus, Why say the scribes that Elias must first come? He answered and said, Elias must needs first come, and restore all things. But I say unto you, that Elias hath come already, and they knew him not, but did unto him whatsoever they wished. Even so shall the Son of man also suffer of them. And they understood that He spake to them of John the Baptist (Matt. 17:10-13);
that "Elias hath come, and they knew him not, but did unto him whatsoever they wished" signifies that the Word has indeed taught them that the Lord is to come, but that still they did not wish to comprehend, interpreting it in favor of the rule of self, and thus extinguishing what is Divine in it. That they would do the same with the truth Divine itself, is signified by "even so shall the Son of man also suffer of them." That "the Son of man" denotes the Lord as to truth Divine, (n. 2803, 2813, 3704).
[8] From all this it is now evident what is meant by the prophecy about John in Malachi:--
Behold I send you Elijah the prophet before the great and terrible day of Jehovah cometh (Mal. 4:5).
Moreover the Word in the ultimate, or such as it is in the external form in which it appears before man in the world, is described by the "clothing" and "food" of John the Baptist, in Matthew:--
John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of Judea, had his clothing of camel’s hair, and a leathern girdle about his loins; and his food was locusts and wild honey (Matt. 3:1, 4).
In like manner it is described by Elijah in the second book of Kings:--
He was a hairy man, and girt with a girdle of leather about his loins (2 Kings 1:8).
By "clothing," or a "garment," when said of the Word, is signified truth Divine there in the ultimate form; by "camel‘s hair" are signified memory-truths such as appear there before a man in the world; by the "leathern girdle" is signified the external bond connecting and keeping in order all the interior things; by "food" is signified spiritual nourishment from the knowledge"’ of truth and of good out of the Word; by "locusts" are signified ultimate or most general truths; and by "wild honey," their pleasantness.
[9] That such things are signified by "clothing" and "food" has its origin in the representatives of the other life, where all appear clothed according to truths from good, and where food also is represented according to the desires of acquiring knowledge and growing wise. From this it is that "clothing," or a "garment," denotes truth; and that "food" or "meat" denotes spiritual nourishment, (n. 3114, 4459, 4792, 5147, 5293, 5340, 5342, 5576, 5579, 5915, 8562, 9003); that "a girdle" denotes a bond which gathers up and holds together interior things, (n. 9341); that "leather" denotes what is external, (n. 3540); and thus "a leathern girdle" denotes an external bond; that "hairs" denote ultimate or most general truths, (n. 3301, 5569-5573); that "a camel" denotes memory-knowledge in general, (n. 3048, 3071, 3143, 3145, 4156); that "a locust" denotes nourishing truth in the extremes, (n. 7643); and that "honey" denotes the pleasantness thereof, (n. 5620, 6857, 8056). It is called "wild honey," or "honey of the field," because by "a field" is signified the church (n. 2971, 3317, 3766, 7502, 7571, 9139, 9295). He who does not know that such things are signified, cannot possibly know why Elijah and John were so clothed. And yet that these things signified something peculiar to these prophets, can be thought by everyone who thinks well about the Word.
[10] Because John the Baptist represented the Lord as to the Word, therefore also when he spoke of the Lord, who was the Word itself, he said of himself that he was "not Elias, nor the prophet," and that he was "not worthy to loose the latchet of the Lord‘s shoe," as in John:--
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and God was the Word. And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory. The Jews from Jerusalem, priests and Levites, asked John who he was. And he confessed, and denied not, I am not the Christ. Therefore they asked him, What then? Art thou Elias? But he said, I am not. Art thou the prophet? He answered, No. They said therefore unto him, Who art thou? He said, I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, Make straight the way of the Lord, as said Isaiah the prophet. They said therefore, Why then baptizest thou, if thou art not the Christ, nor Elias, nor the prophet? He answered, I baptize with water; in the midst of you standeth one whom ye know not; He it is who is to come after me, who was before me, the latchet of whose shoe I am not worthy to unloose. When he saw Jesus, he said, Behold the Lamb of God, who taketh away the sin of the world! This is He of whom I said, After me cometh a man who was before me; for He was before me (John 1:1, 14, 19-30).
From these words it is plain that when John spoke about the Lord Himself, who was Truth Divine itself, or the Word, he said that he himself was not anything, because the shadow disappears when the light itself appears, that is, the representative disappears when the original itself makes its appearance. That the representatives had in view holy things, and the Lord Himself, and not at all the person that represented, (n. 665, 1097, 1361, 3147, 3881, 4208, 4281, 4288, 4292, 4307, 4444, 4500, 6304, 7048, 7439, 8588, 8788, 8806). One who does not know that representatives vanish like shadows at the presence of light, cannot know why John denied that he was Elias and the prophet.
[11] From all this it can now be seen what is signified by Moses and Elias, who were seen in glory, and who spake with the Lord when transfigured, of His departure which He should accomplish at Jerusalem (Luke 9:29-31); namely, that they signified the Word (" Moses" the historic Word, and" Elias" the prophetic Word), which in the internal sense throughout treats of the Lord, of His coming into the world, and of His departure out of the world; and therefore it is said that "Moses and Elias were seen in glory," for "glory" denotes the internal sense of the Word, and the "cloud" its external sense (n. 2135a, 5922, 8427).
. Come up unto Jehovah. That this signifies conjunction with the Lord, is evident from the signification of "coming up," as being to be raised toward interior things (n. 3084, 4539, 4969, 5406, 5817, 6007),consequently also to be conjoined (n. 8760). That it denotes conjunction with the Lord, is because by "Jehovah" in the Word is meant the Lord (n. 1343, 1736, 1793, 2004, 2005, 2018, 2025, 2921, 3023, 3035, 5663, 6280, 6303, 6905, 8274, 8864, 9315). A secret which also lies hidden in the internal sense of these words, is that the sons of Jacob, over whom Moses was the head, were not called and chosen; but they themselves insisted that Divine worship should be instituted among them (n. 4290, 4293); and therefore it is here said, "and He said unto Moses, Come up unto Jehovah," as if not Jehovah, but another, had said that he should come up. For the same reason in what follows it is said that "the people should not go up" (verse 2); and that "Jehovah sent not His hand unto the sons of Israel who were set apart" (verse 11); and that "the appearance of the glory of Jehovah was like devouring fire on the top of the mountain in the eyes of the sons of Israel" (verse 17); and lastly that Moses, being called the seventh day, "entered into the midst of the cloud." For by "the cloud" is meant the Word in the letter (n. 5922, 6343, 6752, 6832, 8106, 8443, 8781); and with the sons of Jacob the Word was separated from its internal sense, because they were in external worship without internal, as can be clearly seen from the fact that now, as before, they said, "all the words which Jehovah hath spoken we will do" (verse 3); and yet scarcely forty days afterward they worshiped a golden calf instead of Jehovah; which shows that this was hidden in their hearts while they were saying with their lips that they would serve Jehovah alone. But nevertheless those who are meant by "the called and the chosen" are those who are in internal worship, and who from internal worship are in external; that is, those who are in love to and faith in the Lord, and from this in love toward the neighbor. . Thou and Aaron. That this signifies the Word in the internal sense and the external sense, is evident from the representation of Moses, as being the Word (n. 9372). But when Aaron, who was his brother, is joined to him, then Moses represents the Word in the internal sense, and Aaron the Word in the external sense (n. 7089, 7382). . Nadab and Abihu. That hereby is signified doctrine drawn from both senses, is evident from the fact that they were sons of Aaron; and therefore when by "Aaron" is signified the Word, by his "sons" is signified doctrine; by the elder son, doctrine drawn from the internal sense of the Word; and by the younger son, doctrine drawn from the external sense of the Word. Doctrine drawn from the internal sense of the Word, and doctrine drawn from the external sense of the Word, are one doctrine, because those who are in the internal are also in the external. For the Lord’s church is everywhere internal and external. The internal church is of the heart, and the external is of the mouth; that is, the internal church is of the will, and the external is of the action. When in a man the internal makes one with the external, then that which is of the heart is also of the mouth; or that which is of the will is also of the action; or what is the same thing, then the heart is speaking in the mouth, and the will is acting in the action, without any disagreement; thus also faith is speaking, and love or charity is acting; that is, the Lord, from whom are faith and charity.[2] As Nadab and Abihu, sons of Aaron, represented doctrine from the Word, they were slain when they instituted worship from some other doctrine than that which is from the Word. This was represented by what is written of them in Moses:--
Nadab and Abihu, sons of Aaron, took each of them his censer, and put fire therein, and put incense thereon, and thus offered strange fire unto Jehovah, which He had not commanded them. Therefore there went forth fire from before Jehovah, and devoured them, that they died before Jehovah. And Moses said unto Aaron, This is that which Jehovah spake, saying, I will be sanctified in them that are nigh Me (Lev. 10:1-3);
by "strange fire in the censer" is signified doctrine from some other source than the Word; for "fire" denotes the good of love, and "incense" the truth of faith thence derived; and the good of love and the truth of faith are what enter into the doctrine which is from the Word, and make it. From this it is evident why they were devoured by fire from before Jehovah. "To be sanctified in them that are nigh," denotes with those who have been conjoined with the Lord through the good of love and the truth of faith from the Word. That "fire" denotes the good of heavenly love, (n. 934, 4906, 5071, 5215, 6314, 6832, 6834, 6849, 7324, 7852, 9055); and that "incense" denotes faith from the good of love, will be shown elsewhere.
. And seventy of the elders of Israel. That this signifies the chief truths of the church, or of doctrine, which agree with good, is evident from the signification of "seventy," as being what is full, thus all (n. 6508); and from the signification of "the elders of Israel," as being the chief truths of the church which agree with good, thus which are of the Word or of doctrine from the Word, because all these truths agree with good. That "the elders of Israel" denote these truths, (n. 6524, 8578, 8585). That those truths which are from the Word agree with good, is because they are from the Lord, and consequently have heaven within them; and if you will believe it, in every detail of the Word there is heaven in which is the Lord. . And bow yourselves afar off. That this signifies humiliation and adoration from the heart, and then the influx of the Lord, is evident from the signification of "bowing one‘s self," as being humiliation (n. 2153, 5682, 6266, 7068). That it also denotes adoration, is because humiliation is the essential of all adoration and of all worship, for without humiliation the Lord cannot be worshiped and adored, for the reason that the Divine of the Lord cannot flow into a proud heart, that is, into a heart full of the love of self, for such a heart is hard; and is called in the Word a "heart of stone." But the Divine of the Lord can flow into a humble heart, because this is soft, and is called in the Word a "heart of flesh." Such a heart is receptive of the influx of good from the Lord, that is, of the Lord. From this it is that by "bowing one’s self afar off" is not only signified humiliation and adoration from the heart, but also the influx of the Lord then. It is said the influx of the Lord, because the good of love and of faith, which flows in from the Lord, is the Lord. That "afar off" denotes from the heart, is because those who are in humiliation remove themselves from the Lord, for the reason that they regard themselves as unworthy to approach the most holy Divine, because while they are in humiliation they are in the self-acknowledgment that of themselves they are nothing but evil, nay, profane. When they acknowledge this from the heart, they are in true humiliation. From this it is evident that by "bow yourselves afar off" is signified humiliation and adoration from the heart, and the influx of the Lord then.[2] But the people of Israel were not in such humiliation and adoration, and only represented it by external gestures; for they were in external things apart from internal. Nevertheless when they humbled themselves they prostrated themselves to the earth, and also rolled in the dust, and cried out with a loud voice, and this for whole days. One who does not know what true humiliation is, could believe that this was humiliation of heart; but it was not the humiliation of a heart that looks to God from God, but of one that looks to God from self; and a heart that looks from self, looks from evil, for whatever proceeds from man as from himself is evil. The people of Israel were in the love of self and of the world more than all other peoples in the whole world, and believed themselves holy, provided they merely offered sacrifice, or washed themselves with water, not acknowledging that such things represented internal holiness, which belongs to charity and faith from the Lord. For all that is holy is not of man, but is of the Lord with man (n. 9229). They who humble themselves from belief in a holiness which is from themselves, and who adore from a love of God which is from themselves, humble themselves and adore from the love of self, thus from a heart that is hard and "of stone;" and not from a heart that is soft, and "of flesh;" and they are in external things and not at the same time in internal; for the love of self dwells in the external man, and cannot enter into the internal man, because the internal man is opened solely through love to and faith in the Lord, thus by the Lord, who therein forms man‘s heaven in which He dwells.
. And Moses, he alone, shall come near unto Jehovah. That this signifies the conjunction and presence of the Lord through the Word in general, is evident from the signification of "coming near," as being the conjunction and presence of the Lord; and from the representation of Moses, as being the Word in general (n. 9372). That by "Moses shall come near," is signified the conjunction and presence of the Lord through the Word, is because in the spiritual sense "to come near" signifies to be conjoined through love; for they who love each other are conjoined, because love is spiritual conjunction. It is a universal thing in the other life that all are conjoined according to the love of good and truth from the Lord; consequently the whole heaven is such conjunction. The case is similar with coming near to, or being conjoined with, the Lord. They who love Him are conjoined with Him, insomuch that they may be said to be in Him when they are in heaven; and all those love the Lord, consequently are conjoined with Him through love, who are in the good of life from the truths of faith; because the good from these truths is from the Lord; nay, is the Lord (John 14:20, 21).[2] But be it known that of himself a man cannot come near to the Lord and be conjoined with Him; but the Lord will come near to the man and be conjoined with him. And because the Lord draws man to Himself (John 6:44; 12:32), it appears as if man of himself comes near and conjoins himself. This takes place when the man desists from evils, for to desist from evils has been left to man’s will; that is, to his freedom. There then flows in good from the Lord, which is never wanting, for it is in the very life which man has from the Lord; but good together with life is received only in so far as evils have been removed. That the conjunction and presence of the Lord is through the Word, is because the Word is the union of man with heaven, and through heaven with the Lord; for the Word is Divine truth proceeding from the Lord. Wherefore they who are in this truth in respect to doctrine and life (that is, in respect to faith and love) are in the Divine proceeding from the Lord, thus are conjoined with Hint. From this it is plain that by "Moses, he alone, shall come near unto Jehovah," is signified the conjunction and presence of the Lord through the Word.
[3] That "coming near" denotes conjunction and presence, is because in the other life the distances of one from another are altogether according to the dissimilitudes and diversities of the interior things that belong to the thought and affection (n. 1273-1277, 1376-1381, 9104). Moreover withdrawals from the Lord, and approaches to Him, are precisely according to the good of love and the derivative faith from Him and to Him. For this reason the heavens are near to the Lord according to goods; and on the other hand the hells are remote from the Lord according to evils. From this it is evident why in the spiritual sense "to be near" and "to approach" denote to be conjoined; as also in the following passages:--
Jehovah is nigh unto all them that call upon Him, that call upon Him in truth (Ps. 145:18);
"to be nigh" denotes to be present and conjoined. Again:--
Blessed is he whom Thou choosest, and causest to approach; he shall dwell in Thy courts (Ps. 65:4);
"to approach" denotes to be conjoined.
[4] Again:--
0 Jehovah, draw nigh unto my soul; deliver me (Ps. 69:18).
Jehovah is nigh to the broken in heart (Ps. 34:18).
Let them cause My people to hear My words, and turn them from their evil way, and from the wickedness of their works. Am I a God near by, and not a God afar off? (Jer 23:22, 23).
That God is said to be "near by" those who desist from evils, and to be "afar off" from those who are in evils, is manifest. In Moses:--
Moses said unto Aaron, This is that which Jehovah spake, saying, I will be sanctified in those who are near Me (Lev. 10:3);
"to be sanctified in those who are near" denotes among those who are conjoined with the Lord through the good of love and truth of faith from the Word. In Jeremiah:--
Then his Magnificent One shall be from him, and his Ruler shall go forth from the midst of him, and I will cause him to approach, and he shall approach unto Me; for who is he that hath pledged his heart to approach unto Me? (Jer. 30:21);
speaking of the Lord, who is the "Magnificent One," and the "Ruler;" "to approach unto Jehovah" denotes to be united, for the approach of the Divine to the Divine is nothing else than union.
. And they shall not come near. That this signifies no separate conjunction and presence, is evident from the representation of Aaron, his sons Nadab and Abihu, and the seventy elders, who here are those who were "not to come near," as being the Word in the external sense, doctrine, and the chief truths of the church (n. 9374-9376); and from the signification of "coming near," as being the conjunction and presence of the Lord (n. 9378); here no conjunction and presence, because it is said "Moses alone shall come near, and they shall not." That it denotes no separate conjunction and presence is because by Moses is here represented the Word in general, or the Word in the whole complex (n. 9372), and also the Word in the internal sense (n. 9374); but by Aaron and his sons and the seventy elders is represented the Word in the external sense, and what is therefrom. As these cannot be separately conjoined with the Lord, seeing that the Lord is the Word in the whole complex, therefore it is said that there is no separate conjunction and presence. . And the people shall not come up with him. That this signifies no conjunction whatever with the external apart from the internal, is evident from the signification of "coming up," as being conjunction (n. 9373); here no conjunction, because it is said they "shall not come up." That it denotes no conjunction with the external sense of the Word apart from the internal, is because the sons of Jacob, who are here meant by "the people," were in what is external without what is internal (n. 3479, 4281, 4293, 4307, 4429, 4433, 4680, 4844, 4847, 4865, 4868, 4874, 4899, 4903, 4911, 4913, 6304, 8588, 8788, 8806, 8871). That they were in what is external without what is internal, is very manifest from the worship of the golden calf forty days after this time. They would have acted differently if they had been at the same time in what is internal, that is, in the good of love to and of faith in Jehovah; for this is what is internal Those who have been conjoined by this cannot go away to the worship of an idol, because their heart is far from it and because that people was conjoined with the Lord merely by external things, by which they represented internal things, therefore it is said "the people shall not come up," by which is signified that there is no conjunction whatever with an external that is devoid of an internal. The representations that are devoid of the knowledge, faith, and affection of the interior things that are represented, conjoin the thing, but not the person.[2] The case is the same with those who remain in the mere literal sense of the Word, and gather from it nothing of doctrine; for they are separated from the internal sense, because the internal sense is doctrine itself. The conjunction of the Lord with the external things of the Word is through its interior things; and therefore if the interior things have been separated, there is possible no other conjunction of the Lord with the external things than as with a gesture of the body without any agreement of the heart. It is the very same with those who are perfectly acquainted with all the particulars of the doctrine of their church, and yet do not apply them to life. These also are in external things devoid of what is internal, for with them the truths of doctrine are outside so long as they have not been inscribed on their life. The reason why there is no conjunction of the Lord with their truths, is that the Lord enters into a man‘s truths of faith through his life; thus through the soul which is in the truths.
EXODUS 24:1-2 - next - text - summary - Exodus - Full Page
| Author: E. Swedenborg (1688-1772). | Design: I.J. Thompson, Feb 2002. | www.BibleMeanings.info |