LEVITICUS 23
Other translations  -  previous  -  next  -  notes  -  discussion  -  Leviticus  -  BM Home  -  Full Page

Leviticus Chapter 23

Summary of the Spiritual Sense

  1. On the successive states of the regenerate life in general, involving states of conflict against evil succeeded by states of rest, vers. 1-3.
  2. The first subordinate state is one of deliverance from evil, involving the interior reception of truth conjoined with good, purification, and the arrangement of truths under good, vers. 4-8.
  3. The second subordinate state is that of the implantation of truth in good, vers. 9-22.
  4. Concerning revelation in consequence, vers. 23-25.
  5. Also concerning the plenary removal of evil in consequence, vers. 26-32.
  6. The third subordinate state is that of the implantation of good, involving gladness and joy of heart in all completeness and holiness, with states of peace and rest from the lowest principles to the highest, which are perpetually renewed, vers. 33-34.

The Contents of each Verse

  1. And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying,
  1. There is revelation from the Lord by Divine Truth giving the perception, [more]
  1. Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them, The set feasts of the Lord, which you shall proclaim to be holy convocations, even these are my set feasts.
  1. And instruction to the man of the Spiritual Church from which he discerns the successive general states of the regenerate life, under which particular states are arranged and governed from Divine Order. [more]
  1. Six days shall work be done: but on the seventh day is a Sabbath of solemn rest, an holy convocation; you shall do no manner of work: it is a Sabbath to the Lord in all your dwellings.
  1. But states of conflict against evil must precede, and be followed by states of rest and peace in general; in which all truths are arranged in order from good; neither shall man then act from selfish motives, nor endure temptations, good being freely and joyfully received from the Lord, even as to every particular state. [more]
  1. These are the set feasts of the Lord, even holy convocations, which you shall proclaim in their appointed season.
  1. And the general state involves those which are subordinate, in which also there is an arrangement of truths under good, and which man realizes in orderly succession. [more]
  1. In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month at even, is the Lord's passover.
  1. And the first subordinate state is one of deliverance from evil by the Lord, in which the state of faith from love is predominant, and is accompanied by a state of holiness, through submission to Divine Truth both as to the will and understanding. [more]
  1. And on the fifteenth day of the same month is the feast of unleavened bread to the Lord: seven days you shall eat unleavened bread.
  1. And then immediately follows, in that new state, purification from falsities, and thus a further state of holiness in consequence thereof, with the appropriation of good accordingly. [more]
  1. In the first day you shall have an holy convocation: you shall do no servile work.
  1. And therein the knowledges of truth are first arranged under good, during which there is no temptation. [more]
  1. But you shall offer an offering made by fire to the Lord seven days: in the seventh day is an holy convocation; you shall do no servile work.
  1. And the Lord is then acknowledged freely from good, and continually, the result of which is a more perfect arrangement of truths, and still greater freedom from temptation. [more]
  1. And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying,
  1. Again, there is revelation from the Lord by Divine Truth giving the perception, [more]
  1. Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them, When you be come into the land which I give to you, and shall reap the harvest thereof, then you shall bring the sheaf of the firstfruits of your harvest to the priest:
  1. Through influx and instruction to the man of the Spiritual Church, that when truths are beginning to be implanted in good, in the second subordinate state of the regenerate life, then are they collected together in order from a principle of willing obedience, which is acknowledged to be from the Lord. [more]
  1. And he shall wave the sheaf before the Lord, to be accepted for you: on the morrow after the Sabbath the priest shall wave it.
  1. And consequently, from good, the spiritual life of man is vivified; his worship is grateful and acceptable to the Lord; and is involved in a state of holy rest and peace which is perpetual. [more]
  1. And in the day when you wave the sheaf, you shall offer a he-lamb without blemish of the first year for a burnt offering to the Lord.
  1. And in this initiatory state of good, the Lord is worshiped from a state of innocence, wherein truth is acknowledged as the receptacle of good; all falsity and evil are removed; and there is fullness of consecration to the service of the Lord. [more]
  1. And the meal offering thereof shall be two tenth parts of an ephah of fine flour mingled with oil, an offering made by fire to the Lord for a sweet savour: and the drink offering thereof shall be of wine, the fourth part of an hin.
  1. And in this state there is included the interior reception of good conjoined with truth in fullness through remains, this being effected by the operation of pure love from the Lord, a sphere of rest and peace thence flowing and manifesting itself externally; and also there is an exterior state of truth conjoined with good in the understanding, whereby doctrine is elevated and begins to be spiritual. [more]
  1. And you shall eat neither bread, nor parched corn, nor fresh ears, until this selfsame day, until you have brought the oblation of your God: it is a statute for ever throughout your generations in all your dwellings.
  1. For neither can good be appropriated internally, nor the affection of good and truth externally, until this initiatory state of good takes place, when the Lord is first truly acknowledged, which is the external basis for the continual progress of regeneration, and for the reception of spiritual life, as to its particulars, to eternity. [more]
  1. And you shall count to you from the morrow after the Sabbath, from the day that you brought the sheaf of the wave offering; seven sabbaths shall there be complete:
  1. And the quality of this advancing state of the implantation of truth in good is perpetual and successive from the state of the initiation and vivification thereof by holy obedience to a further state of victory over evil and error resulting in one of rest and peace, [more]
  1. Even to the morrow after the seventh Sabbath shall you number fifty days; and you shall offer a new meal offering to the Lord.
  1. Which involves perpetual advancement, not only internally as to good, but externally as to a full state of truths for implantation, and of interior good conjoined with truth into which such implantation takes place; and thus the Lord is more fully acknowledged in a new state of worship. [more]
  1. You shall bring out of your habitations two wave loaves of two tenth parts of an ephah: they shall be of fine flour, they shall be baked with leaven, for first-fruits to the Lord.
  1. And then, indeed, man perceives that, as from himself, he acts from the affection of good conjoined with truth vivified by the Lord through remains; that there is a pure state of truth from good in the understanding; that it has been acquired through victory in temptations; and that it is an advancement towards the realization of good through the love of truth. [more]
  1. And you shall present with the bread seven lambs without blemish of the first year, and one young bullock, and two rams: they shall be a burnt offering to the Lord, with their meal offering, and their drink offerings, even an offering made by fire, of a sweet savour to the Lord.
  1. And now, therefore, the Lord is acknowledged from the operation of inmost good celestial, involving a holy state of innocence in fullness and free from falsity, and also the good of innocence in the external and internal man by co-operation and conjunction with the Lord, and thus full sanctification by that conjunction, both as to good and truth, and as to exterior truth and good, all acknowledged to be from the Lord through his pure love for man, and resulting in a further state of rest and peace. [more]
  1. And you shall offer one he-goat for a sin offering, and two he-lambs of the first year for a sacrifice of peace offerings.
  1. And besides this, there is the acknowledgement, in this state, that all evil and falsity are removed by the Lord; and that all the good of innocence is received from Him, in the truth thereof, in fullness in the internal and external man, so that the Lord is worshiped in perfect freedom. [more]
  1. And the priest shall wave them with the bread of the firstfruits for a wave offering before the Lord, with the two lambs: they shall be holy to the Lord for the priest.
  1. And thus the whole life of man is vivified from the Lord, as to good internally, and as to good externally from the state of the first implantation of truth in good to its completion; and the Lord is sincerely acknowledged to be the source of all good. [more]
  1. And you shall make proclamation on the selfsame day; there shall be an holy convocation to you: you shall do no servile work: it is a statute for ever in all your dwellings throughout your generations.
  1. And consequently, there is full revelation from the Lord in that state, a perfect arrangement of truths under good, and the cessation of temptations with all disposition to act from selfish and worldly motives in the worship of the Lord. [more]
  1. And when you reap the harvest of your land, you shall not wholly reap the corners of your field, neither shall you gather the gleaning of your harvest: you shall leave them for the poor, and for the stranger: I am the Lord your God.
  1. And now, therefore, when truth is implanted in good, it is no longer appropriated to selfish purposes in its ultimate expression with full power, internally; nor is that good to be contaminated with selfish motives externally; on the contrary they are ascribed to the Lord in works of charity and faith from charity, and this without any selfish or worldly motive. [more]
  1. And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying,
  1. Further, there is revelation from the Lord by Divine Truth giving the perception, [more]
  1. Speak to the children of Israel, saying, In the seventh month, in the first day of the month, shall be a solemn rest to you, a memorial of blowing of trumpets, an holy convocation.
  1. And instruction to the man of the Spiritual Church from which he perceives, that when the state of faith, or the state of truth leading to good, is at its close by the implantation of truth in good, a state of holy peace follows, with revelation from the Lord, and a rearrangement of truths under good. [more]
  1. You shall do no servile work: and you shall offer an offering made by fire to the Lord.
  1. And consequently the cessation of spiritual conflict, and of action from selfish and worldly love; and at the same time there is the worship of the Lord from pure heavenly love. [more]
  1. And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying,
  1. And again, there is revelation from the Lord by Divine Truth giving the perception, [more]
  1. Howbeit on the tenth day of this seventh month is the day of atonement: it shall be an holy convocation to you, and you shall afflict your souls; and you shall offer an offering made by fire to the Lord.
  1. That when truth is implanted, in good, there is also a plenary removal of evil, together with the rearrangement of truths under good, and confession that man of himself is nothing but evil, but that, from the Lord, he is enabled to worship Him from pure love. [more]
  1. And you shall do no manner of work in that same day: for it is a day of atonement, to make atonement for you before the Lord your God.
  1. And, therefore, no temptations are to be endured in that state, because it is the reconciliation of the external man with the internal, from the Lord, both as to good and truth, [more]
  1. For whatever soul it be that shall not be afflicted in that same day, he shall be cut off from his people.
  1. But if in that state any one is not disposed to acknowledge that man of himself is nothing but evil, he must be, en that account, separated from the church for the time being. [more]
  1. And whatever soul it be that does any manner of work in that same day, that soul will I destroy from among his people.
  1. Also if any one in that state of the church in general, engages in spiritual conflict, or acts from worldly and selfish motives, he must needs be separated. [more]
  1. You shall do no manner of work: it is a statute for ever throughout your generations in all your dwellings.
  1. For man, in the progress of regeneration, ought not to act from selfish and worldly motives, and this is true both as to the external and internal man, and also as to every particular state. [more]
  1. It shall be to you a Sabbath of solemn rest, and you shall afflict your souls: in the ninth day of the month at even, from even to even, shall you keep your Sabbath.
  1. And in this state there is a foretaste of heavenly rest and peace, and the sincere acknowledgement that man of himself is nothing but evil; and this is effected when the conjunction of faith with charity is about to take place in the obscurity arising out of a change from a former state to a new state; for states of obscurity must precede states of rest and peace in the Lord. [more]
  1. And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying,
  1. And further there is revelation from the Lord by Divine Truth giving the perception, [more]
  1. Speak to the children of Israel, saying, On the fifteenth day of this seventh month is the feast of tabernacles for seven days to the Lord.
  1. And instruction to the man of the Spiritual Church from which he perceives, that a new state must follow the implantation of truth in good which is the implantation of good in truth, and is the culmination of the work of regeneration from the Lord. [more]
  1. On the first day shall be an holy convocation: you shall do no servile work.
  1. And hence there is a new arrangement of truths under good, and the end of temptations with the final rejection of every selfish and worldly motive, [more]
  1. Seven days you shall offer an offering made by fire to the Lord: on the eighth day shall be an holy convocation to you; and you shall offer an offering made by fire to the Lord: it is a solemn assembly; you shall do no servile work.
  1. Involving a holy state of the worship of the Lord from pure love; a rearrangement of truths under good in that new state; of such holy worship as to the understanding as well as the will; and also an orderly arrangement of truths under good in the external man, with the rejection of selfish and worldly motives even there also. [more]
  1. These are the set feasts of the Lord, which you shall proclaim to be holy convocations, to offer an offering made by fire to the Lord, a burnt offering, and a meal offering, a sacrifice, and drink offerings, each on its own day:
  1. And these are the general subordinate states of the appropriation of good in regeneration involved in the most general or universal state, which occur according to order with every one, and in which a new arrangement of truths takes place for the worship of the Lord from pure love by full consecration; for the appropriation of interior good by acknowledgement of the Lord; and for the appropriation of spiritual truth according to the state; [more]
  1. Beside the sabbaths of the Lord, and beside your gifts, and beside all your vows, and beside all your freewill offerings, which you give to the Lord.
  1. Besides the most general or universal state; the acknowledgement that good is from the Lord; that man may be confirmed in truths; and that the worship of the Lord must be altogether from a state of freedom in ascribing all good to Him. [more]
  1. Howbeit on the fifteenth day of the seventh month, when you have gathered in the fruits of the land, you shall keep the feast of the Lord seven days: on the first day shall be a solemn rest, and on the eighth day shall be a solemn rest.
  1. And therefore in this final new state of the fullness of faith conjoined with charity, when these are made fruitful in good works there is gladness and joy of heart in all completeness and holiness, with states of peace and rest from the lowest principles to the highest which are perpetually renewed. [more]
  1. And you shall take you on the first day the fruit of goodly trees, branches of palm trees, and boughs of thick trees, and willows of the brook; and you shall rejoice before the Lord your God seven clays.
  1. And therefore also, in. this state, there is the enjoyment of all kinds of good from truths, namely from spiritual, rational, natural, and sensual truths; and also a full and holy state of rejoicing in the Lord from the heart and the understanding combined. [more]
  1. And you shall keep it a feast to the Lord seven days in the year: it is a statute for ever in your generations: you shall keep it in the seventh month.
  1. And this state shall be a perpetual holy state with the regenerated man, both as to Externals and as to Internals; yea, it is the culmination of the states of regeneration, commencing from acknowledgement by faith, and ending in enjoyment from love. [more]
  1. You shall dwell in booths seven days; all that are native in Israel shall dwell in booths:
  1. And this, indeed, is the celestial state of the man of the church of every degree, that is, of the man of the internal church and of the external, who is established in good. [more]
  1. That your generations may know that I made the children of Israel to dwell in booths, when I brought them out of the land of Egypt: I am the Lord your God.
  1. And thus every one may know that the holy state of good from the Lord appertains to the man of the Spiritual Church, when he is delivered by Him from the bondage of the merely natural man, so that he acknowledges Him in heart and understanding, by the conjunction of good and truth to eternity. [more]
  1. And Moses declared to the children of Israel the set feasts of the Lord.
  1. And it is of the Divine Providence that revelation is made concerning this holy process of regeneration, in which good is appropriated with joy and gladness — in the Word. [more]

References and Notes

  1.  This is evident, because by Jehovah is denoted the Divine Being as to His love, 2001; by speaking is denoted influx, 2951; by Moses is represented Divine Truth, or the Word, 7010; and by saying is denoted perception, 1791, 1822.

    [Back to 1]

  2.  Speaking to the children of Israel and saying to them, denotes instruction to the man of the Spiritual Church from which he discerns. 10355, 3654, 1791, l822; the set feasts of the Lord denote the successive states of the regenerate life, 9294; proclaiming these to be holy convocations denotes under which all truths are arranged in order according to their good, 7891; and "even these are my set feasts" denotes according to Divine Order, 5288, 37, 10133.

    [Back to 2]

  3.  Six days shall work be done denotes that states of conflict against evil must precede, 8888; the seventh day being a Sabbath of solemn rest denotes states of rest and peace in general following, 84, 8889, a holy convocation denotes in which all truths are arranged in order from good, 7891; not doing any manner of work denotes that neither shall man then act from selfish motives, or endure temptations, 8890, 8888; "it is a Sabbath to the Lord" denotes good freely and joyfully received from the Lord, 8889, 2001; and "in all your dwellings" denotes as to every particular state, 471.

    [Back to 3]

  4.  These being the set feasts of the Lord, even holy convocations which you shall proclaim in their appointed season, denotes that the general state involves those which are subordinate, 9294, in which there is an arrangement of truths under good, 7891, and which man realizes in orderly succession, 5288, 37, 10133.

    [Back to 4]

  5.  The first month, the fourteenth day of the month at even, being the Lord's passover, denotes that the first subordinate state is one of deliverance from evil by the Lord, 7867; the first month, the fourteenth day of the month, denotes when the state of faith from love is predominant, and is accompanied by a state of holiness, 859, 7900; and at even, or between the evenings, denotes through submission to the Divine Truth both as to the will and the understanding, because it is the end of the predominance of merely selfish love, and the beginning of obedience to the will of the Lord, 7844, and because the obedience, spoken of proceeds from the will and is guided by the understanding, 87503.

    [Back to 5]

  6.  The fifteenth day of the same month denotes in that new state, 8400, 92965; the feast of unleavened bread denotes purification from falsities, 9287, 9294; and seven days eating unleavened bread denotes a further state of holiness in consequence thereof, 716, eating denoting the appropriation of good accordingly, 2187.

    [Back to 6]

  7.  In the first day having a holy convocation, and doing no servile work, denotes that therein the knowledges of truth are first arranged under good, during which there is no temptation, 7891, 8888, 8890.

    [Back to 7]

  8.  Offering an offering made by fire to the Lord seven days, denotes that the Lord is then acknowledged freely from good, 923, 10055, 716; in the seventh day there being a holy convocation, denotes a more perfect arrangement of truths, 7891; doing no servile work denotes greater freedom from temptation, 8888, 8890; and continuity is denoted by sacrificing the seven days, because seven denotes not only holiness and rest and peace, but also fullness and completeness, 10127.

    [Back to 8]

  9.  This is evident, because by Jehovah is denoted the Divine Being as to His love, 2001; by speaking is denoted influx, 2951; by Moses is represented Divine Truth or the Word, 7010; and by saying is denoted perception, 1791, 1822.

    [Back to 9]

  10.  Speaking to the children of Israel and saying to them, denotes instruction to the man of the Spiritual Church, 10355, 3654, 1791, 1822; coming into the land given by the Lord and reaping the harvest thereof, denotes when truths are beginning to be implanted in good in the second subordinate state of the regenerate life, 9294, 3705; and bringing the sheaf of the firstfruits of the harvest to the priest, denotes that then are truths collected together in order from a principle of willing obedience, which is acknowledged to be from the Lord, 995, 10083.

    [Back to 10]

  11.  Waving the sheaf before the Lord to be accepted, denotes that from good the spiritual life of man is vivified or rendered active by the Lord, 9295; being accepted denotes that his worship is grateful and acceptable to the Lord, 9506; and waving the sheaf on the morrow after the Sabbath denotes that the vivification of truth by good is involved in a state of rest and peace which is perpetual, 84, 8889, 3998, John 14:27; 16:33.

    [Back to 11]

  12.  Offering a he-lamb without blemish of the first year to the Lord on the day when the sheaf is waved, denotes that, in this initiatory state of good, the Lord is worshiped from a state of innocence, wherein truth is acknowledged as the receptacle of good; all falsity and evil are removed; and there is fullness of consecration to the service of the Lord, 3994, 725, 7837, 7839, 349, 923.

    [Back to 12]

  13.  The meal offering being two tenth parts of an ephah of fine flour mingled with oil denotes that, in this state there is included the reception of good conjoined with truth in fullness through remains, 2177, 5194, 576; an offering made by fire to the Lord for a sweet savour denotes that this is effected by the operation of pure love from the Lord, a sphere of rest and peace thence flowing and manifesting itself externally, 10055, 10054; an the drink offering thereof being of wine the fourth part of a hin, denotes that there is an exterior state of truth conjoined with good in the understanding whereby doctrine is elevated and begins to be spiritual, 10137, 10262, 45815, John 2:1-11.

    [Back to 13]

  14.  Eating neither bread nor parched corn nor fresh ears until this self-same day, denotes that neither can good be appropriated internally nor the affection of good and truth externally, until this initiatory state of good takes place, 5212, 9295; bringing the oblation of your God denotes when the Lord is first truly acknowledged, 349, 923; and it being a statute for ever throughout your generations in all your dwellings, denotes that it is the external basis for the continual progress of regeneration and for the reception of spiritual life as to its particulars to eternity, 7884, 9845, 471.

    [Back to 14]

  15.  Counting denotes ascertaining the quality of states, 10217; bringing the wave sheaf denotes the beginning of the advancing state of the implantation of truth in good, 9294, 9295; the morrow denotes what is perpetual and successive, 3998; waving the sheaf denotes vivification, 10083; and seven sabbaths being completed denotes victory over evil and error, and a holy state of rest and peace, 716, 8889, 8890.

    [Back to 15]

  16.  Numbering fifty days to the morrow after the seventh Sabbath, denotes involving perpetual advancement not only internally as to good, but externally as to a full state of truths for implantation, 2252, 3998; and offering a new meal offering to the Lord denotes interior good conjoined with truth into which such implantation takes place, and that thus the Lord is more fully acknowledged in a new state of worship, 2177, 349.

    [Back to 16]

  17.  Bringing out of your habitations two wave loaves of two tenth parts of an ephah, denotes that then, indeed, man perceives that, as from himself, he acts from the affection of good conjoined with truth, vivified by the Lord through remains, 9295, 5194, 576; their being of fine flour denotes that there is a pure state of truth from good in the understanding, 2177; their being baked with leaven denotes that it has been acquired through victory in temptations, 8496, 7906; and their being for firstfruits to the Lord denotes that it is an advancement towards the realization of good through the love of truth, 9295, 10083.

    [Back to 17]

  18.  Presenting with the bread seven lambs denotes that now, therefore, the Lord is acknowledged from the operation of inmost good celestial, 349, 10132; seven denotes a holy state, 716; the first year denotes a state of fullness, 7839; without blemish denotes free from falsity, 7837; one young bullock and two rams denote the good of innocence in the external and internal man, 9391, 10042; two denotes conjunction, and thus on the part of the internal man in respect to the Lord, co-operation, 5194; a burnt offering denotes full sanctification by that conjunction, 10053; the meal offering and the drink offerings denote both as to good and as to truth interior, and as to truth and good exterior, 2177, 10137; an offering made by fire denotes all acknowledged to be from the Lord through His pure love for man, 10855; and of a sweet savour, or an odour of rest, to the Lord, denotes resulting in a further state of rest and peace, 10054.

    [Back to 18]

  19.  One he-goat being offered for a sin offering denotes that, also, there is the acknowledgement, in this state, that all evil and falsity are removed by the Lord by means of truth or faith, 4169, 725, 3400; and two he-lambs of the first year for a sacrifice of peace offerings denote that all the good of innocence is received from the Lord, in the truth thereof in fullness in the internal and external man, so that the Lord is worshiped in perfect freedom, 349, 10132, 5194, 725, 7839, 10097.

    [Back to 19]

  20.  By the priest waving all these thing's is denoted that thus the whole life of man is vivified or rendered active, or quickened by the Lord, as to good internally, and as to good externally, 9295, 10083, 10079; the waving of the sheaf denotes the beginning of the implantation of truth in good, and the waving of the bread of the firstfruits denotes the fullness of such implantation, vers. 11 and 20, 9223; and their being holy to the Lord for the priest denotes that the Lord is sincerely acknowledged to be the source of all the good appropriated by man, 8042, 2187, 6i487.

    [Back to 20]

  21.  Making proclamation on the self-same day denotes that, consequently, there is full revelation from the Lord in that state, 8802, 8815; there being a holy convocation denotes a perfect arrangement of truths under good, 7891; not doing any servile work denotes the cessation of temptation, 8890, 8888; and a statute for ever in all your dwellings throughout your generations, denotes that all disposition to act from selfish and worldly motives in the worship of the Lord has disappeared, 7884, 471, 9845.

    Observe here that whereas at the end of verse 14 "generations" comes before "dwellings" to indicate progress from general states to particular states, in this the reverse order occurs, to indicate that when truth is fully implanted in good, man is then in particulars in an orderly arrangement under generals.

    [Back to 21]

  22.  Not wholly reaping the corners of the field nor gathering the gleanings when the harvest is reaped, denotes that now, when truth is implanted in good, it is no longer appropriated to selfish purposes in its ultimate expression with full power internally, nor is this to be the case externally, 9295, 10669, 3310, 6188, 9494, 9273, 9146, chap 19:9; and their being left for the poor and the stranger, the Lord being God, denotes that, on the contrary, they are ascribed to the Lord in works of charity and faith from charity without any selfish or worldly motive, 4955, 10669, 2146, 2001, 7192, chap 19:10.

    [Back to 22]

  23.  This is evident, because by Jehovah is denoted the Divine Being as to His love, 2001; by speaking is denoted influx, 2951; by Moses is represented Divine Truth, or the Word, 7010; and by saying is denoted perception, 1791, 1822.

    [Back to 23]

  24.  Speaking to the children of Israel and saying, denotes instruction to the man of the Spiritual Church from which he perceives, 10355, 3654, 1791, 1822; in the seventh month, on the first day of the month being a solemn rest, denotes when the advancing state of faith, or the state of truth leading to good, is at its close by the implantation of truth in good, 851, 893, 894; a solemn rest or Sabbath denotes a state of holy peace following, 851; a memorial of blowing trumpets denotes revelation from the Lord, 8802, 8815, 6888, 8620; and a holy convocation denotes the rearrangement of truths under good, 7891.

    [Back to 24]

  25.  Doing no servile work denotes the cessation of spiritual conflict, and of action from selfish and worldly love, 8888, 8890; and an offering made by fire to the Lord denotes at the same time the worship of the Lord from pure heavenly love, 10055.

    [Back to 25]

  26.  This is evident, because by Jehovah is denoted the Divine Being as to His love, 2001; by speaking is denoted influx, 2951; by Moses is represented Divine Truth, or the Word, 7010; and by saying is denoted perception, 1791, 1822.

    [Back to 26]

  27.  The tenth day of the seventh month being the day of atonement, denotes that, when truth is implanted in good, there is also a plenary removal of evil, 2075, 10042 III.; it being a holy convocation denotes the rearrangement of truths under good, 7891; afflicting the soul denotes the confession that man of himself is nothing but evil, 1937, 1947; and an offering made by fire to the Lord denotes that, from the Lord, man is enabled to worship from pure love, 10055.

    Observe here that, in the references given, afflicting the soul is shown to mean self-compulsion; but nevertheless it is obvious that this self-compulsion carries with it, as a preliminary, the confession that man of himself is nothing but evil, and can only do good from the Lord by keeping His commandments as from himself. Thus, then, the expression "you shall afflict your souls" involves, in the internal sense, the confession that man of himself is nothing but evil; and it also involves the true humility spoken of in 19371, without which man cannot properly make the confession.

    [Back to 27]

  28.  Not doing any manner of work on that same day denotes that therefore no temptations are to be endured in that state, 8888, 8890; and it being a clay of atonement to make atonement for you before the Lord your God, denotes that it is the reconciliation of the external man with the internal, from the Lord, both as to good and truth, 10042 III., 683, 2001.

    [Back to 28]

  29.  Whatsoever soul not being afflicted on that day being cut off from his people, denotes that if in that state any one is not disposed to acknowledge that man of himself is nothing but evil, he must be, on that account, separated from the church for the time being, 1937, 1947, 10042 777., 5302, 1259.

    [Back to 29]

  30.  Whatsoever soul doing any manner of work on that day being destroyed from among his people, denotes that if any one in that state of the church in general engages in spiritual conflict, or acts from worldly and selfish motives, he must needs be separated, 8888, 8890, 5302, 1259.

    [Back to 30]

  31.  Doing no manner of work, and it being a statute for ever throughout your generations, etc., denotes that man, in the progress of regeneration, ought not to act from selfish and worldly motives; and that this is true both as to the external and internal man, and also as to every particular state, 8888, 8890, 7884, 471, 9845.

    [Back to 31]

  32.  It being a Sabbath of solemn rest denotes that in this state there is a foretaste of heavenly rest and peace, 851; afflicting the soul denotes the acknowledgement that man of himself is nothing but evil, 1937, 1947, ver. 27; and keeping the Sabbath on the ninth day of the month at even, from even to even, denotes that this is effected when the conjunction of faith with charity is about to take place in the obscurity arising out of a change from a former state to a new state; for states of obscurity must precede states of rest and peace in the Lord, 2075, 7844, 851.

    [Back to 32]

  33.  This is evident, because by Jehovah is denoted the Divine Being as to His love, 2001; by speaking is denoted influx, 2951; by Moses is represented Divine Truth, or the Word, 7010; and by saying is denoted perception, 1791, 1822.

    [Back to 33]

  34.  Speaking to the children of Israel, saying, denotes instruction to the man of the Spiritual Church from which he perceives, 10355, 3654, 1791, 1822; on the fifteenth day of this seventh month being the feast of tabernacles, denotes that a new state must follow the implantation of truth in good which is the implantation of good in truth, and is the culmination of the work of regeneration from the Lord, 9294, 9295, 92965, 716.

    [Back to 34]

  35.  The first day being a holy convocation, and no servile work being done, denotes that hence there is a new arrangement of truths under good, and the end of temptations with the final rejection of every selfish and worldly motive, 7891, 8888, 8890.

    [Back to 35]

  36.  ''Seven days shall you offer an offering made by fire to the Lord," denotes a holy state of the worship of the Lord from pure love, 716, 10055; the eighth day being a holy convocation denotes a rearrangement of truths under good in that new state, 92965, 7891; offering again an offering made by fire to the Lord denotes holy worship as to the understanding as well as the will, and thus what is reciprocal, 92965; "it is a solemn assembly " denotes an orderly arrangement of truths under good in the external man, 7891; and doing no servile work denotes the rejection of selfish and worldly motives even there also, 8888, 8890.

    [Back to 36]

  37.  These being the set feasts of the Lord denotes that these are the general subordinate states of the appropriation of good in regeneration, 9294; their being proclaimed to be holy convocations denotes in which a new arrangement of truths takes place, 7891; offering an offering made by fire to the Lord denotes the worship of the Lord from pure love, 10055; a burnt offering denotes full consecration, 10053; a meal offering and a sacrifice denote for the appropriation of interior good by acknowledgement of the Lord, 2177, 4581, 10079 end; and a drink offering each in its own day denotes for the appropriation of spiritual truth according to the state, 10137, 10262, 45815, 487.

    [Back to 37]

  38.  Besides the sabbaths of the Lord denotes besides the most general or universal state, 84, 8889; gifts denote the acknowledgement that good is from the Lord, 5619; besides your vows denotes that man may be confirmed in truths, 3880; besides your free will offerings denotes that the worship of the Lord must be altogether from a state of freedom, 3880, 10097; and what is given to the Lord denotes the acknowledgement that all good is from Him, 5619.

    [Back to 38]

  39.  The fifteenth day of the seventh month denotes the final new state of the fullness of faith conjoined with charity, 9294, 9295, 92965 2044, 851; the fruits of the earth gathered in denotes when faith and charity are made fruitful in good works, 7690; keeping the feast of the Lord seven days denotes gladness and joy of heart in all completeness and holiness, 9286, 9287, 2044, 716; and the first day being a solemn rest, and the eighth day being a solemn rest, denotes states of peace and rest from the lowest principles to the highest which are perpetually renewed, through the reciprocal conjunction of truth with good and of good with truth, 84, 8889, 92965.

    [Back to 39]

  40.  Taking on the first day the fruit of goodly trees, branches of palm-trees, boughs of thick trees, and willows of the brook, denotes that, in this state, there is the enjoyment of all kinds of good from truths, namely, from spiritual, rational, natural and sensual truths, 92965; and rejoicing before the Lord your God seven days denotes a full and holy state of rejoicing in the Lord from the heart and the understanding combined, 2001, 2044, 716.

    [Back to 40]

  41.  Keeping it a feast to the Lord seven days in a year denotes that this state shall be a perpetual holy state, 2044, 716; a statute for ever in your generations denotes perpetual externally, 7884; and keeping it in the seventh month denotes perpetual internally, 851; also the seventh month denotes the culmination of the states of regeneration commencing from acknowledgement by faith and ending in enjoyment from love, 851.

    [Back to 41]

  42.  Dwelling in booths seven days, and all that are native in Israel dwelling in booths, denotes that this indeed is the celestial state of the man of the church of every degree, that is, of the man of the internal church and of the external who is established in good, 92966.

    [Back to 42]

  43.  "That your generation may know that I made the children of Israel to dwell in booths, when I brought them out of the land of Egypt: I am the Lord your God," denotes that thus every one may know that the holy state of good from the Lord appertains to the man of the Spiritual Church, when he is delivered by Him from the bondage of the merely natural man, so that he acknowledges Him in heart and understanding by the conjunction of good and truth to eternity, 92966, 8866, 2001, 9845.

    [Back to 43]

  44.  Moses declaring to the children of Israel the set feasts of the Lord denotes that it is of the Divine Providence that revelation is made concerning this holy process of regeneration in which good is appropriated with joy and gladness in the Word, 7010, 3654, 10355, 9294, 2187.

    [Back to 44]

Discussion

Four things may be first thought of in beginning to consider the subjects of this chapter, namely, the Word in its literal sense, the correspondences of which it consists, the internal sense involved, and man's actual experience of the states described therein. The Word is distinct from every other book that has ever been written, because it is scrupulously constructed of correspondential expressions arranged in such a way that the collective sense resulting from their combination forms the internal or spiritual sense in a perfect series. And it may thus appear as if the literal sense produced the spiritual sense. But to confirm this appearance would be wrong. For, as a matter of fact, it is the internal sense of the Word, from the Lord, that has produced the external or literal sense, comparatively as the Lord from His Divine Love, by His Divine Wisdom, produces all things in the spiritual world, and thence all things in the natural world, thus causing the latter naturally to correspond to the former. And in thinking of the Word in this way we see that it is a Divine Work just as creation is, and not a human production in any way. It is simply and in reality Divine Wisdom, or Divine Truth in an ultimate form. And then it follows from this that the Word is the Divine Human in an ultimate form, which is the same thing as the essential Divine Life, or Love, in an ultimate form. And further, since finite human life is necessarily from the Infinite, and thus from the Divine Human life, we see at once how the Word from its very nature, so to speak, inevitably describes all the states of finite human beings in their regeneration. Nothing, therefore, could more perfectly describe ordinary human life and its changes than does the Word; and we here learn from it that, according to the general experience of human beings, there are alternate states of conflict and rest with man during regeneration. But we are not to imagine from the literal sense that the states of conflict are six times as much as the states of rest; for here, spiritually, the numbers denote the qualities of the states, and not their quantities; and briefly, six signifies simply combat, and seven, rest. And in the Word, as might be shown, had we space, both six and seven also denote fullness and completeness in different respects, and thus, in our chapter, six denotes all states of conflict, and seven all states of rest taken together, and hence, therefore, man's general state as distinguished from his particular states. It is important to notice this, and not to allow the ideas derived from the literal sense merely, to confuse our perceptions of the internal sense.

But we notice now that the Sabbath is called a holy convocation, and in the literal sense was, and still is, properly a holy convocation. Spiritually, however, this idea disappears, and we are to understand an arrangement into order of truths under the state of good by the Lord. For by good all truths are conjoined; from good truths have their life and activity; and according to good in truths is the quality of the man. And that is why it is said, "a Sabbath to the Lord in all your dwellings." For good dwells in truth as the man dwells in his house. And the particular good of one man is distinct from that of all others, and so also is his truth.

But the general state involves those which are subordinate, and the first is, naturally, deliverance from evil by the Lord; and this may be considered in its application to the human race as a whole, and to each individual. All men have been redeemed by the Lord's assumption of the Human, and therein overcoming the infernal powers which held man in bondage, thus preserving to him the liberty of choice between good and evil which, just at that time, was on the point of being lost. It is said "on the point of being lost" because then the power of evil with man was beginning to predominate absolutely, so that if the Lord had not effected redemption just when He did, the human race would have perished. For the safety of man depends upon the equilibrium between good and evil, or between heaven and hell, by virtue of which he is in freedom of choice. And it is manifest, upon due consideration, that at the time of the Lord's advent, and while this great redemption was being accomplished, all men of sound mind still had the liberty of making their choice, and were not compelled to choose evil. For example, what would have been the use of the preaching of John the Baptist if the people who heard him had not had power to repent, or of the Lord's teaching in Matt, vii., if men generally were not then in freedom? Man's freedom, then, has never been allowed to be absolutely lost, and it never will be.

But there must also be deliverance from evil in every individual, as well as in general. And this is effected by the Lord through the co-operation of man, since freedom consists in choosing to co-operate or not. Now the exercise of this freewill, or free determination, in the case of individuals, is represented in the account of the institution of the feast of the Passover, and is particularly signified by the choosing of the lamb or the goat, 7833, 7480; for these denote good from the Lord in innocence, which delivers man, and the eating thereof denotes the appropriation of that good, 7849-50, while the Wood of the animal sprinkled upon the two posts and the lintel of each house signifies the prior, reception of truths in the Natural. We cannot, however, enlarge upon these particulars here, only desiring to point out their importance, as descriptive of the way in which we are individually redeemed;. and the same remark applies to all that is said of the feast of unleavened bread, which denotes individual purification in the process of regeneration. But we may clearly see, from the study of this subject, exactly how universal redemption, and the particular and actual redemption of each person are connected. And we must take care to notice also that redemption, or deliverance from evil and consequent purification, are always going on with man, and thus are not only successive experiences, but simultaneous as well. We must be continually ceasing to do evil, as it is gradually revealed to us in ourselves by the Lord, and we must continually be learning to do well.

The second subordinate state in the regeneration of man next claims our special attention; is represented by the feast of Pentecost; and is a state of the implantation of truth in good. But this expression is not quite so easy to understand as that of deliverance from evil; and it may naturally be asked, " How is truth to be implanted in good?" The answer is very simple. Truths are implanted in good when a man wills the truth and when he loves and does it. But how can we will the truth and love it and do it, unless we know it? And hence it is clear that a state of instruction must precede in which truths are, as it were, sown in the ground and carefully cultivated, so that they may produce a plentiful harvest. The firstfruits of the harvest, therefore, is a very apt symbol of the first efforts which the regenerating man makes in living according to the truths he has learned; and that is, of course, why it is mentioned so particularly in connection with this second feast. It is exceedingly valuable to begin to live a life of principle, and not of mere impulse, in our early years. We mostly learn the truth then; but we are not always ready then to devote ourselves in obeying it. But here we see that the implantation of truth in good is to begin with deliverance from evil, and is to be perpetual. And each act of obedience is a step in the right direction. But before it begins there must be that acknowledgement of the Lord, which is denoted by the waving of the sheaf. This waving is the activity of the mind as the result of the Divine operation, or as immediately flowing out of it. The Passover was on the fourteenth, the Sabbath was on the fifteenth, and the waving was on the sixteenth day of the Jewish month Nisan. Thus we see the continuity of the states of man's life. We are to be perpetually implanting truth in good by our obedience in the course of regeneration. And we are thus to worship the Lord by devoting our affections of good and truth to Him, which is signified by the sacrifice of the lamb, by the meal offering and by the drink offerings. But yet we have not arrived at the crowning festival which is to denote and mark the full implantation of truth in good. There is some spiritual counting to do. For counting signifies to know something of the quality of our states. " So teach us to number our days, that we may get us an heart of wisdom " (Ps 90:12). The Lord alone it is Who knows the quality of all our states and enables us to comprehend them in some measure. And He arranges all our states, a thing which we cannot do. Also our states depend upon our advance in good by the implantation of truth therein. And hence again we may perceive the secret cause of this particular counting; of the repetition of waving; and of the additional and particular sacrifices, all understood spiritually, and culminating in "full revelation, a perfect arrangement of truths under good, and the cessation of temptations, and of all disposition to act from selfish and worldly motives in the worship of the Lord." But before closing this section one word may be said about the peculiarity of the new meal offering, at this feast, being baked with leaven. For it was appointed that the meal offering which was offered upon the altar (generally) should not be baked leavened (7906), and therefore it is remarkable that, in this case, there should be a new meal offering, contrary to the general practice, baked with leaven. Why? Evidently to denote that during the implantation of truth in good there is the combat of truth with falsity by which the truth is first purified.

And now, before proceeding to the third feast, which signifies the implantation of good, we notice that the feast of trumpets and the day of atonement intervene, the whole three taking place in the seventh month. There is nothing, however, in the literal sense to show emphatically why the intermediate celebrations should be exactly in that month, and on the days named. But the spiritual sense accounts for it fully. The seventh month clearly represents the culmination of the holy state of faith during which the work of the implantation of truth in good is going on. This the references clearly show, and also the peculiar signification of the first and tenth days of the month. A special revelation, so to speak, takes place on the full implantation of truth in good; and the implantation is accomplished in a full state of remains denoted by the number ten. And, moreover, it necessarily follows that then there is a plenary removal of evil, which is signified by the day of Atonement, the particulars concerning which have already been considered in the exposition of chap. xvi., and therefore no further observations need here be made upon it. But it may be clearly seen, on due reflection, that this plenary revelation and removal of evil comes according to man's actual experience, during the process of Judgement. For surely truth does not become good in us until evil is fully removed. And hence we may learn also the importance of the description of that process, so far as we are individually concerned, in HH 453-520.

And lastly, we have only a limited space in which to say one or two things about the third great feast which, as we have learned, signifies the implantation of good in truth. And be it remembered first of all, that the two states of our lives denoted by the second and the third great feasts, although according to our own consciousness taking place successively, since in the former we have not a full realization of the state of good in our natural life (for, as yet, the natural man is not one with the spiritual man owing to the activity of evil and error there), still it is a fact that the implantation of good from the Lord is also simultaneous with the implantation of truth. We are born, in short, at the same time, of water and of the spirit; and if we just think of this as we journey, it will be a very great consolation to us many a time, or in many of our states. There is no doubt whatever that the good which we shall finally realize in heaven is implanted in us by the Lord at a very early period of our lives, and this without in the slightest degree interfering with the state of our freedom to choose it or not, 1555.

Secondly, this feast was called not only the feast of the ingathering, which signifies the implantation of good, 9296, but also the feast of tabernacles, because then the people dwell in tents seven days, the reason for which being that a tent is like a house, and one dwelling in a tent therefore denotes good dwelling in truth, and, in another aspect, the internal man dwelling in the external, 2268, 3613, 3312, from which it may be seen, that as the feast of tabernacles; this celebration really denotes that when good is implanted, then the external man becomes one with the internal, and good is in ultimates. Let man, therefore, he continually, even in this life, in the endeavour to bring his external into harmony with his internal state as to good, that the agreement of the two in all fullness may be the more easily accomplished at last.

But thirdly it must be noticed how the fruit of goodly trees, and particularly of palm-trees, is mentioned in this connection. It was to show how in our perfect state we shall enjoy all kinds of good in fullness externally as well as internally. But literally, as is well known, palm-trees have no branches, but thereby are meant the immense branch-like leaves of the tree. This, however, does not affect the signification, as may appear from 92966, and also from the signification of leaves, 885. Hence, then, we discover from the study of the internal sense of all that is said about the annual feasts how completely the whole life of man is involved in his Regeneration, both as to his successive experiences, and as to the simultaneous operation of the Lord and the co-operation of man.

LEVITICUS 23    Other translations  -  previous  -  next  -  notes  -  discussion  -  Leviticus  -  BM Home  -  Full Page