Spiritual Meaning of
Spiritual Meaning of |
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That in the Word a sucking child signifies innocence, is also evident from other passages; as in David:--
Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings hast Thou founded strength (Ps. 8:2; Matt. 21:16);
where babes denote celestial love, and sucklings, innocence. In Jeremiah:--
Wherefore commit ye great evil against your souls, to cut off from you man and woman, the infant and the suckling out of the midst of Judah, that I should leave you none remaining? (Jer. 44:7)
where the infant and the suckling in like manner denote celestial love and the innocence thereof; and when these become none, then there are no longer any remains, that is, any good and truth remaining stored up by the Lord in the internal man. That these are remains, see (AC 1906, 2284); for all goods and truths perish together with innocence, inasmuch as innocence is immediately from the very Divine, and thus is the very essential in them all.
[4] Again:--
The infant and the suckling faint in the streets of the city (Lam. 2:11);
"there the signification is the same. Again:--
The whales draw out the breast, they give suck to their young ones the daughter of My people is become cruel the tongue of the suckling cleaveth to the roof of his mouth for thirst; the little children ask bread, and no man reaches it unto them (Lam. 4:3, 4)
the suckling again denoting innocence; little children, the affections of good. In Moses:--
Without shall the sword bereave, and from the chambers terror, both the young man, and the virgin, the suckling with the old man (Deut. 32:25)
the sword bereaving the young man, the virgin, the suckling with the old man, signifies that falsity will destroy the affection of truth, and the affection of good; also innocence together with wisdom. In Isaiah:--
They shall bring thy sons in their bosom, and thy daughters shall be carried upon the shoulder, and kings shall be thy nourishers, and their queens those who give thee suck (Isa. 49:22, 23)
where kings thy nourishers denotes intelligence; and queens those who give thee suck, wisdom: and that this is of innocence, has been stated above.
from AC 3183
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