1066、“全地都是从这些人散布开来的”表示这三种教义产生了后来的所有教义，无论真假，这从“地”的含义清楚可知。在圣言中，“地或陆地”具有各种含义。从普遍意义上说，它表示教会所在或曾经所在的地方或区域，如迦南地，犹大地，以色列地。因此，它在普遍意义上表示每个教会成员，因为地名来源于住在地上的人，我们从日常用语中都知道这一点。因此，在古时，当人们谈到“全地”时，他们不是指全世界的所有陆地，或整个地球，仅仅是指有教会存在的陆地，因而是指教会本身；这从以下圣言经文清楚看出来，如以赛亚书：
看哪，耶和华使地空虚，地必全然空虚。地要悲哀颠倒。地要被其上的居民污秽。所以诅咒吞灭这地，地上的居民被焚烧，剩下的人稀少。水闸从高处都开了，地的根基也震动了。地全然被打破；地尽都崩裂；地剧烈摇晃。地要摇摇晃晃，好像醉酒的人；又摇来摆去，好像棚屋。它的罪过在其上沉重，它必塌陷，不能复起。（以赛亚书24:1，3-6，18-21）
此处“地”表示住在其上的人，事实上表示教会之人，因而表示教会本身和已洁除或荒废的教会事物。当这些事物被洁除或荒废时，经上就说它们被“空虚”、“震动”、“摇摇晃晃，好像醉酒的人”、“摇来摆去”、“塌陷，不能复起”。
“地”或“陆地”表示人，因而表示由人组成的教会，这一点可见于玛拉基书：
所有民族都必称你们为有福的，因你们必成为可喜爱的陆地。（玛拉基书3:12）
“地”表示教会，这一点可见于以赛亚书：
你们岂不明白大地的根基？（以赛亚书40:21）
此处“大地的根基”表示教会的根基。同一先知书：
看哪，我造新天新地。（以赛亚书65:17；66:22；启示录.21:1）
“新天新地”表示主的国度和教会。撒迦利亚书：
耶和华铺张诸天，建立地基，在人中间形成人的灵。（撒迦利亚书12:1）
此处“地”表示教会。和前面一样，在创世记：
起初，神创造天地。（创世记1:1）
天地都完成了。（创世记2:1）
这些是天地的诞生。（创世记2:4）
无论在哪个地方，“地”都表示被创造、形成和作成的教会。约珥书：
地在祂面前颤抖，诸天摇撼，日月昏暗。（约珥书2:10）
“地”表示教会和教会的事物；当这些事物被洁除或荒废时，经上就说“天地”震动，“日月”，即爱和信，昏暗。
耶利米书：
我观看地，看，地空虚混沌。我观看天，天也无光。（耶利米书4:23）
此处“地”明显表示一个没有教会的任何事物的人。同一先知书：
全地必然荒凉，我却不毁灭净尽。因此，地要悲哀，诸天也必黑暗。（耶利米书4:27-28）
此处“地”也表示教会，其外层是“地”，内层是“天”；论到这“天”，经上说它们必黑暗，没有光，这时良善的智慧和真理的聪明不复存在。在这种情况下，地也“空虚混沌”；要成为一个教会的教会成员同样如此。在其它地方，“全地”也只表示教会，这一点可见于但以理书：
第四兽必是地上的第四国，与一切国不同，必吞吃全地，并且践踏打碎它。（但以理书7:23）
“全地”表示教会和教会的事物；因为圣言不像世俗作家那样论述君主的权力，而是论述神圣事物和教会的状态，在此由“地上的国”来表示。
耶利米书：
必有大暴风从地极刮起；到那日，耶和华所杀戮的从地的这一头直到地的那一头。（耶利米书25:32-33）
此处“从地的这一头直到地的那一头”表示教会和教会的一切事物。以赛亚书：
全地得安息、享平静；他们皆发声欢呼。（以赛亚书14:7）
此处“全地”表示教会。以西结书：
全地欢乐的时候。（以西结书35:14）
此处“全地”也表示教会。以赛亚书：
我怎样起誓不再使挪亚的诸水漫过大地。（以赛亚书54:9）
“地”在此表示教会，因为此处论述的主题是教会。
在圣言中，“陆地或地”因表示教会，故也表示不是教会的东西，因为每个这样的词都有一个反面或对立的意义。例如，这适用于外邦人的各种陆地，一般适用于迦南地之外的所有陆地。因此，“陆地或地”也表示人民和教会之外的个人，因而表示外在人、他的意愿、他的自我等等。在圣言中，“地”这个词很少表示全世界，除非当它表示整个人类的状态，无论是属教会的，还是不属教会的时。由于地包括土地，土地也表示教会，土地又包括田地，所以“地”这个词涉及许多事物，具有很多含义。至于它表示什么，这从所论述的主题，也就是这个词所论及的主题明显看出来。由此清楚可知，此处挪亚的儿子所散布的“全地”不是指全世界，或整个人类，而是指教会所拥有的一切教义，无论真假。
New Century Edition
Cooper(2008,2013)
[NCE]1066. From them the whole earth scattered out means that these gave rise to all subsequent doctrinal systems, both those based on truth and those based on falsity, as the symbolism of the earth shows.
The earth, or land, is understood in various ways in the Word. In the most general sense it is taken to refer to the place — the territory — where the church is or was. Examples are the land of Canaan, the land of Judah, the land of Israel. So it is used generally for everyone in the church, since the land is named after the people living there, as is also common in everyday speech. Long ago, then, whenever people spoke of the whole earth, they had in mind not the whole globe but only the land where the church existed and consequently the church itself. The following passages from the Word will illustrate this. In Isaiah:
Jehovah is emptying the earth. The earth will be emptied bare. The earth will mourn, will be confused. And the land will be defiled beneath its inhabitants; on this account a curse will devour the land. Therefore the inhabitants of the land will be destroyed by fire, and the humanity left behind will be a pittance. The floodgates in the heights opened and the earth's foundations shook. The earth was shattered utterly. The earth split wide open. The earth quaked, tottering. The earth staggers helplessly like a drunkard and sways back and forth like a shack; and its transgression will weigh on it, and it will fall and not rise again. (Isaiah 24:1, 3-4, 5, 6, 18, 19, 20-21)
The earth, or land, stands for the people in it, specifically the people of the church — and so the church itself — and for those aspects of the church that have been purged. While being purged they are said to be emptied, to shake, stagger like a drunkard, sway, fall, and not rise.
[2] In the following verse from Malachi, the land symbolizes humankind and consequently the church, which is composed of humankind:
All nations will proclaim you fortunate, because you will be a land of pleasure. (Malachi 3:12)
The earth stands for the church in Isaiah:
Do you not understand the foundations of the earth? (Isaiah 40:21)
The earth's foundations stand for the church's foundations. In the same author:
Look — I am creating new heavens and a new earth! (Isaiah 65:17; 66:22; Revelation 21:1)
New heavens and a new earth stand for the Lord's kingdom and the church. In Zechariah:
Jehovah is stretching out the heavens and founding the earth and forming the human spirit in the middle of it. (Zechariah 12:1)
The earth stands for the church here, as it also does above:
In the beginning, God created heaven and earth. (Genesis 1:1)
The heavens and the earth were completed. (Genesis 2:1)
These are the births of heaven and earth. (Genesis 2:4)
In each of these instances, the earth stands for the church, which was created, formed, and made. In Joel:
Before him the earth shook, the heavens trembled; the sun and moon turned black. (Joel 2:10)
The earth stands for the church and for everyone in the church. When the church is being purged, heaven and earth are said to shake, while the sun and moon — love and faith — are said to grow black.
[3] In Jeremiah:
I looked at the earth when, indeed, there was void and emptiness; and to the heavens, and these had no light. (Jeremiah 4:23)
The earth clearly stands for a person who has not a bit of religion inside. In the same author:
The whole earth will be stripped bare, yet I will not make a full end. Because of this the earth will mourn and the heavens will be draped in black. (Jeremiah 4:27-28)
Again it stands for the church, whose external aspects are the earth and whose internal aspects are the heavens, which are described as draped in black and as having no light when there is no longer a wise appreciation of goodness or an intelligent understanding of truth. Under those circumstances, the earth is also void and empty, and the same is true of any person in the church who would otherwise be a church.{*1} There are other places as well in which the whole earth means the church and only the church. In Daniel:
The fourth creature will be a fourth kingdom on the earth, which will differ from all the kingdoms and consume the whole earth and trample it and crush it. (Daniel 7:23)
The whole earth stands for the church and the people in it. The Word, after all, does not talk about the power exercised by sovereigns, as secular literature does, but about sacred topics and about the conditions in the church symbolized by the earth's monarchies.
[4] In Jeremiah:
A huge storm will be stirred up from the edges of the earth, and the people stabbed by Jehovah will on that day reach from the ends of the earth to the ends of the earth. (Jeremiah 25:32-33)
"From the ends of the earth to the ends of the earth" stands for the church and for everyone in the church. In Isaiah:
The whole earth is at rest and quiet; they raised a glad shout. (Isaiah 14:7)
The whole earth stands for the church. In Ezekiel:
As the whole earth rejoices, ... (Ezekiel 35:14)
Here too the whole earth stands for the church. In Isaiah:
I swore that the waters of Noah would no longer pass over the earth. (Isaiah 54:9)
The earth stands for the church, since the church is the subject in this passage.
[5] Because the earth or land in the Word symbolizes the church, it also symbolizes what is not the church. (Every word like this has contrary or opposite meanings.) This is true of the different lands the surrounding nations lived in, or to put it generally, all lands outside that of Canaan.
For this reason, the earth is also taken as standing for the people, and for a person outside the church, and so for the outer self, with its will, its desire for autonomy, and so on. Rarely does the Word use it to mean the entire globe, unless it is symbolizing the situation of the whole human race in regard to religion or nonreligion.
Moreover, since the earth is what contains the ground (which is also the church) and the ground is what contains a field, the term holds many different nuances and accordingly symbolizes many different things. Just what the term symbolizes is to be gleaned from the subject under discussion, the subject to which the term applies, because this is the reality that underlies the term.
From all this it can now be seen that in this verse the whole earth, which scattered out from Noah's sons, symbolizes not the whole inhabited world, or the whole human race, but all the doctrinal systems of the various religions — both the systems based on truth and the ones based on falsity.
Footnotes:
{*1} On the identification of an individual person as a church, see 82, 872, 933:1. [LHC]
Potts(1905-1910) 1066
1066. And from these was the whole earth overspread. That this signifies that from them were derived all doctrines, both true and false, is evident from the signification of "earth." "Earth" or "land" in the Word, is used with various meanings. In the universal sense it denotes the place or region where the church is, or where it has been, as the land of Canaan, the land of Judah, the land of Israel. Thus it denotes universally everyone that belongs to the church, since the land is predicated of the man who is in it, as we know in common speech. In ancient times therefore when men spoke of the "whole earth" they did not mean the whole globe, but only the land where the church was, and thus the church itself; as is evident from the following passages in the Word. In Isaiah:
Behold, Jehovah maketh the earth empty; the earth shall be utterly emptied; the earth shall mourn and be confounded; the earth also shall be polluted under the inhabitants thereof; therefore shall the curse devour the earth; therefore the inhabitants of the earth shall be burned, and man shall be left feeble. The cataracts from on high are opened, and the foundations of the earth do shake; the earth is utterly broken; the earth is clean dissolved; the earth is moved exceedingly; the earth reeling shall reel like a drunken man, and shall be moved to and fro like a hut, and the transgression thereof shall be heavy upon it, and it shall fall, and not rise again (Isa. 24:1, 3-6, 18-20).The "earth" here denotes the people who are in it, and in fact the people of the church, thus the church itself, and the vastated things of the church, of which when vastated it is said that they are "emptied" "moved exceedingly" "reel like a drunken man" "move to and fro" and "fall, not to rise again." [2] That by "earth" or "land" is signified man, consequently the church, which is of man, may be seen in Malachi:
All nations shall call you happy; for ye shall be a delightsome land (Mal. 3:12). That "earth" denotes the church is seen in Isaiah:
Have ye not understood the foundations of the earth? (Isa. 40:21), where the "foundations of the earth" denote the foundations of the church. Again:
For, behold, I create new heavens and a new earth (Isa. 65:17; 66:22; Rev.21:1). "New heavens and a new earth" denote the kingdom of the Lord and the church. In Zechariah:
Jehovah, who stretcheth forth the heavens, and layeth the foundation of the earth, and formeth the spirit of man within him (Zech. 12:1), meaning the church. Also, as before, in Genesis:
In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth (Gen. 1:1). And the heavens and the earth were finished (Gen. 2:1). These are the nativities of the heavens and of the earth (Gen. 2:4), everywhere denoting the church created, formed, and made. In Joel:
The earth quaked before Him, the heavens trembled, the sun and the moon were darkened (Joel 2:10), meaning the church and the things of the church; when these are vastated, "heaven and earth" are said to quake, and the "sun and moon" to grow dark, that is, love and faith. [3] In Jeremiah:
I beheld the earth, and lo a void and emptiness; and the heavens, and they had no light (Jer. 4:23). Here the "earth" plainly denotes the man in whom there is not anything of the church. Again:
The whole earth shall be desolate; yet will I not make a full consummation; for this shall the earth mourn, and the heavens above be black (Jer. 4:27-28). Here also the church is meant, whose exteriors are the "earth" and the interiors the "heavens" of which it is said that they shall be black, with no light in them, when there is no longer wisdom of good and intelligence of truth. Then the earth also is empty and void; and in like manner the man of the church who should be a church. That by the "whole earth" is meant in other places also only the church, may be seen in Daniel:
The fourth beast shall be a fourth kingdom upon earth, which shall be diverse from all the kingdoms, and shall devour the whole earth, and shall tread it down, and break it in pieces (Dan. 7:23);
the "whole earth" denotes the church and what is of the church; for the Word does not treat, like profane writings, of monarchial sovereignties, but of the holy things and states of the church, which are here signified by the "kingdoms of the earth." [4] In Jeremiah:
A great tempest shall be raised up from the uttermost parts of the earth; and the slain of Jehovah shall be at that day from one end of the earth even unto the other end of the earth (Jer. 25:32-33);
here "from one end of the earth even unto the other end of the earth" means the church and everything that is of the church. In Isaiah:
The whole earth is at rest and is quiet; they break forth into singing (Isa. 14:7), where the "whole earth" denotes the church. In Ezekiel:
When the whole earth rejoiceth (Ezek. 35:14), where also the "whole earth" denotes the church. In Isaiah:
I have sworn that the waters of Noah should no more go over the earth (Isa. 54:9), where the "earth" denotes the church, because the church is there treated of. [5] Because "land" or "earth" in the Word signifies the church, it signifies also what is not the church, for every such word has contrary or opposite meanings; as for example the various lands of the Gentiles; in general all lands outside the land of Canaan. "Land" is therefore taken also for the people and for the man outside the church, and hence for the external man, for his will, his Own, and so forth. The term is rarely used in the Word for the whole world, except when the whole human race is meant as regards their state, whether of the church or not of the church. And because the earth is the containant of the ground, which also signifies the church, and the ground is the containant of the field, the word "earth" signifies, because it involves, many things; and what it signifies is evident from the subject treated of, which is that of which the term is predicated. From all this it is evident that by the "whole earth" that was overspread by the sons of Noah, is not signified the whole world, or the whole human race, but all the doctrines both true and false that were of the churches.
Elliott(1983-1999) 1066
1066. That 'from them the whole earth was overspread' means that from these three all doctrines have been derived, both true and false, is clear from the meaning of 'the earth'. In the Word 'the earth' has various meanings. In the universal sense it stands for the place or region where the Church is or once was, for example, the land of Canaan, the land of Judah, the land of Israel. It thus stands in that universal sense for every member of the Church, for a land takes its name from the people who inhabit it, as is also well known from everyday speech. In ancient times therefore when people spoke of 'the whole earth' they did not mean every land throughout the world but only that part of the earth where the Church existed, and so the Church itself, as becomes clear from the following places in the Word: In Isaiah,
Jehovah is emptying the earth, the earth will be utterly emptied. The earth will mourn and be turned upside down. And the earth will be polluted under its inhabitants. Therefore a curse will devour the earth, therefore the inhabitants of the earth will be scorched and few men left. The floodgates from on high have been opened, and the foundations of the earth have been shaken. The earth has been utterly broken. The earth has been utterly rent asunder. The earth is violently shaken. The earth staggers altogether like a drunken man, and sways to and fro like a hut. Its transgression will lie heavily upon it, and it will fall, and it will not rise again. Isa 24:1, 3-6, 18-21.
'Earth' stands for the people inhabiting it, in particular the people of the Church, and so stands for the Church itself, and the things that are the Church's that have been vastated. These when being vastated are spoken of as 'being emptied', 'being shaken', 'staggering like a drunken man', 'swaying', 'falling and not rising'.
[2] That 'earth' or 'land' means man, and consequently the Church which is made up of men, is seen in Malachi,
All the nations will declare you blessed, for you will be a land of delight. Mal 3:12.That 'the earth' stands for the Church is seen in Isaiah,
Do you not understand the foundations of the earth? Isa 40:21.
Here 'foundations of the earth' stands for the foundations of the Church. In the same prophet,
Behold I am creating new heavens and a new earth. Isa 65:17; 66:22; Rev 21:1.
'New heavens and a new earth' stands for the Lord's kingdom and the Church. In Zechariah,
Jehovah is He who stretches out the heavens and founds the earth, and forms the spirit of man within him. Zech 12:1.
'Earth' stands for the Church, as in earlier chapters,
In the beginning God created heaven and earth. Gen 1:1.The heavens and the earth were finished. Gen 2:1. These are the generations of heaven and earth. Gen 2:4.
In each instance 'earth' stands for the Church being 'created', 'formed', and 'made'. In Joel,
The earth quaked before Him, the heavens trembled. The sun and the moon were darkened. Joel 2:10.
'Earth' stands for the Church, and for the things that are the Church's. When these things are being vastated, 'heaven and earth' are said to quake, 'the sun and moon' to grow dark, that is, love and faith.
[3] In Jeremiah,
I looked to the earth, when behold, that which is void and empty; and to the heavens, and they had no light. Jer 4:23.
Here 'the earth' plainly stands for the person who does not have anything of the Church within him. In the same prophet,
The whole earth will be desolate, yet I will not bring it to a close. For this the earth will mourn and the heavens be black. Jer 4:27, 18.
Here likewise the Church is meant, whose exterior things are 'the earth' and interior 'the heavens'. These are referred to as 'being black and having no light' when there is no longer any wisdom arising from good or intelligence from truth. In that case the earth is also 'void and empty', as is the member of the Church who ought to be an embodiment of the Church. That 'the whole earth' is also used in other places to mean the Church alone is seen in Daniel,
The fourth beast will be a fourth kingdom on the earth, which will be different from all the kingdoms and will devour the whole earth, and trample it down, and break it in pieces. Dan 7:23.
'The whole earth' stands for the Church and for the things that are the Church's; for the Word does not deal, as secular authors do, with the powers of monarchs, but with sacred matters, and with states of the Church, which are meant by 'kingdoms of the earth'.
[4] In Jeremiah,
A great tempest will be raised up from the sides of the earth, and the slaina of Jehovah on that day will be from one end of the earth to the other end of the earth. Jer 15:32, 33.
Here 'from one end of the earth to the other end of the earth' stands for the Church and for everything that is the Church's. In Isaiah,
The whole earth is at rest and is quiet; they burst into cries of joy. Isa 14:7.
Here 'the whole earth' stands for the Church. In Ezekiel,
As the whole earth rejoices. Ezek 35:14.
Here too 'the whole earth' stands for the Church. In Isaiah,
I swore that the waters of Noah should go no more over the earth. Isa 54:9.
Here 'the earth' stands for the Church since the Church is the subject here. Because in the Word the earth means the Church it also means what is not the Church, for every such expression has a contrary or opposite sense. This applies, for example, to the various lands of the gentiles, in general to all lands outside the land of Canaan. 'Land' also stands therefore for the people and for the individual outside of the Church, and from this for the external man - for his will, for his proprium, and so on.
[5] In the Word 'earth' rarely stands for the whole world except when it is used to mean the state of the whole human race, whether of the Church or not of the Church. And because the earth includes the ground, which also means the Church, and the ground includes the field, the expression 'earth', entailing many things, has many meanings. But what it means is evident from the subject under discussion to which it refers. From this it now becomes clear that here 'the whole earth was overspread by the sons of Noah' does not mean the whole world, that is, the whole human race, but all doctrines, both true and false, which Churches possessed.
Latin(1748-1756) 1066
1066. Quod 'ab illis dispersa est tota terra' significet quod inde derivatae sint omnes doctrinae, tam verae quam falsae, constat a significatione 'terrae': terra in Verbo accipitur varie, in sensu universali pro loco seu tractu ubi est Ecclesia, vel ubi fuit Ecclesia, sicut terra Canaan, terra Jehudae, terra Israelis, ita universaliter pro omni Ecclesiae, nam terra praedicatur ex homine qui ibi, ut notum quoque est in communi sermone; quare antiquitus cum dicebant 'totam terram,' non intellexerunt totum terrarum orbem sed modo terram ubi Ecclesia et sic ipsam Ecclesiam; sicut constare potest a sequentibus in Verbo locis; apud Esaiam, Jehovah evacuans terram:... evacuando evacuabitur terra;... lugebit, confundetur terra:... et terra contaminabitursub habitatoribus suis;... propterea maledictio comedet terram:... ideo exurentur habitatores terrae, et relictus erit homo pusillum.... Cataractae ab alto apertae sunt, et commota sunt fundamenta terrae; confringendo confracta est terra; disrumpendo disrupta est terra; nutando emota est terra; titubando titubat terra sicut ebrius; et hinc inde vacillat sicut tugurium; et gravis erit super eam praevaricatio ejus, et cadet, et non addet surgere, xxiv 1, 3-6, 18-21;'terra' pro populo qui ibi, et quidem pro populo Ecclesiae, ita pro Ecclesia, et pro vastatis illis quae Ecclesiae, de quibus cum vastantur, praedicatur 'evacuari, commoveri, titubare sicut ebrius, vacillare, cadere non surgere.' [2] Quod per 'terram' significetur homo, consequenter Ecclesia quae hominis, apud Malachiam, Praedicabunt vos beatos omnes gentes, quia eritis vos terra beneplaciti, iii 12. Quod terra pro Ecclesia, apud Esaiam, Annon intelligitis fundamenta terrae? xl 21;
ubi 'fundamenta terrae' pro fundamentis Ecclesiae: apud eundem, Ecce Ego creans caelos novos, et terram novam, lxv 17; lxvi 22; Apoc. xxi 1;
'caeli novi et terra nova' pro regno Domini et Ecclesia: apud Zachariam, Jehovah extendens caelos et fundans terram, et formari spiritum hominis in medio ejus, xii I;
pro Ecclesia; sicut etiam prius, In principio creavit Deus caelum et terram, Gen. i 1;
Absoluti sunt caeli et terra, Gen. ii 1;
Hae nativitates caeli et terrae, ibid. vers. 4;
ubivis pro Ecclesia, quae 'creata, formata, facta': apud Joelem, Coram Ipso commota est terra, contremuerunt caeli; sol et luna atrati sunt, ii 10;
pro Ecclesia, et pro illis quae sunt Ecclesiae; quae cum vastantur dicitur 'caelum et terra commoveri, sol et luna nigrescere,' hoc est amor et fides: [3] apud Jeremiam, Vidi terram, cum ecce vacuum et inane, et ad caelos, et non lux illorum, iv 23;
manifeste hic 'terra' pro homine in quo non aliquid Ecclesiae: apud eundem, Desolata erit tota terra, et consummationem non faciam propter hoc lugebit terra, et atrati erunt caeli, iv 27, 28;
similiter pio Ecclesia, cujus exteriora sunt 'terra,' et interiora 'caeli: de quibus praedicatur quod 'atrati sint, et illis nulla lux' cum non amplius sapientia boni et intelligentia veri; tunc quoque terta es 'vacua et inanis'; similiter homo Ecclesiae qui foret Ecclesia: quo per 'totam terram' etiam alibi intelligatur solum Ecclesia, apud Danielem, Bestia quarta regnum quartum erit in terra, quod diversum erit ab omnibus regnis, et comedet totam terram, et conculcabit illam, et conteret illam, vii 23;
'tota terra' pro Ecclesia et pro illis quae sunt Ecclesiae; nam in Verbo non agitur de potestatibus monarchicis, quod profanorum scriptorum est, sed de sanctis, et de statibus Ecclesiae, qui per 'regna terrae significantur: [4] apud Jeremiam, Procella magna suscitabitur a lateribus terrae, et erunt confossi Jehovae in die illo, a fine terrae usque ad finem terrae, xxv 32, 33 ibi 'a fine terrae ad finem terrae' pro Ecclesia et pro omni quod Ecclesiae: apud Esaiam, Quiescit et quieta est tota terra, insonuerunt jubilo, xiv 7; ibi 'tota terra' pro Ecclesia: apud Ezechielem, Sicut laetatur tota terra, xxxv 14;
ubi etiam 'tota terra' pro Ecclesia: apud Esaiam, Juravi non transituras aquas Noahi amplius super terram, liv 9;
ubi 'terra' pro Ecclesia, nam ibi agitur de Ecclesia. Terra, quia in Verbo significat Ecclesiam, etiam significat non Ecclesiam, nam cuique tali voci sunt sensus contrarii seu oppositi, sicut terrae diversae gentium, in genere omnes terrae extra terram Canaanem: ideo quoque 'terra' accipitur pro populo, et pro homine extra Ecclesiam, inde pro homine externo, pro ejus voluntate, pro ejus proprio, et sic porro; [5] raro in Verbo pro universo terrarum orbe nisi significetur tunc universum genus humanum quoad statum eorum Ecclesiae vel non Ecclesiae. Et quia terra est continens humi, quae etiam est Ecclesia, et humus continens agri, ideo est vox significans, quia involvit, plura, sed quid significat, patet a re, ut a suo subjecto, de qua agitur, et praedicatur. Exinde nunc constare potest quod hic per 'totam terram, quae a filiis Noahi dispersa' non significetur universus terrarum orbis seu universum genus humanum, sed omnes doctrinae tam verae quam falsae quae Ecclesiarum fuerunt.