425、迄今为止，世人尚不知道“铜”表示属世良善，也不知道圣言所提到的每种金属在内义上都有某种特定含义，如：“金”表示属天良善，“银”表示属灵真理，“铜”表示属世良善，“铁”表示属世真理，其它金属也是如此；“木”和“石”同样如此。约柜、帐幕和圣殿所用的“金”、“银”、“铜”、“木”，以及类似材料就表示这类事物；对此，蒙主的神性怜悯，容后再述。从先知书明显看出，这就是它们的含义，如以赛亚书：
你也必吃列族的奶，又吮列王的乳。我要拿金子代替铜，拿银子代替铁，拿铜代替木头，拿铁代替石头；并要以和平为你的官长，以公义为你的税吏。（以赛亚书 60:16-17）
这论及主的降临，祂的国度和属天教会。“金子代替铜”表示属天良善代替属世良善；“银子代替铁”表示属灵真理代替属世真理；“铜代替木头”表示属世良善代替肉体的良善；“铁代替石头”表示属世真理代替感官真理。以西结书：
雅完人、土巴人、米设人都是与你交易人灵魂的；他们拿铜器兑换你的货物。（以西结书27:13）
此处的主题是推罗，推罗表示那些拥有属灵和属天财富的人；“铜器”表示属世良善。摩西五经：
那地的石头是铁，从它的山上你可以挖出铜来。（申命记8:9）
此处“石头”也表示感官真理；“铁”表示属世真理或理性真理；“铜”表示属世良善。但以理看见：
四活物或基路伯，它们的脚都灿烂如光明的铜。（以西结书1:7）
此处“铜”同样表示属世良善，因为人的“脚”代表属世之物。但以理也看见类似事物：
有一人身穿细麻衣，腰束乌法精金带。身体如水苍玉，手和脚如光明的铜。（但以理书10:5-6）
民数记（21:9）中提到的“铜蛇”代表主的感官和属世的良善（参看197节）。
New Century Edition
Cooper(2008,2013)
[NCE]425. The world is still unaware that bronze symbolizes earthly good, and that every metal named in the Word is a symbol for something in the inner meaning. Gold, for instance, symbolizes heavenly good, silver symbolizes spiritual truth, bronze earthly good, iron earthly truth, and so on with all the rest. The same is true for stone and wood. The gold, silver, bronze, and wood used in the ark and in the tabernacle symbolize these things, as do those used in the Temple, all of which will be taken up later, with the Lord's divine mercy.{*1} These symbolic meanings shine out in the prophets. In Isaiah, for example:
You will suck the milk of the nations, and you will suck the nipple of monarchs. For bronze I will bring in gold; and for iron I will bring in silver; and for wood, bronze; and for stones, iron; and I will make peace your property, and justice your taskmaster. (Isaiah 60:16-17)
This is about the Lord's Coming, his kingdom, and the church whose character is heavenly. "For bronze, gold" means heavenly goodness in place of earthly goodness. "For iron, silver" means spiritual truth in place of earthly truth. "For wood, bronze" means goodness on the earthly level in place of goodness on the bodily level. "For stones, iron" means truth on the earthly level in place of truth gained through the senses.{*2} In Ezekiel:
Javan, Tubal, and Meshech were your dealers in human souls; and vessels of bronze they sold as your trade goods. (Ezekiel 27:13)
The subject here is Tyre, which symbolizes those who have spiritual and heavenly riches; the vessels of bronze stand for earthly goodness. In Moses:
... a land whose stones are iron, and from its mountains you will mine bronze. (Deuteronomy 8:9)
Here too the stones stand for truth gained through the senses, iron stands for truth on the earthly plane, or truth in the rational mind, and bronze stands for good on the earthly plane. Ezekiel saw four living creatures (guardian beings) with feet gleaming "like the appearance of burnished bronze" (Ezekiel 1:7), where again bronze symbolizes good on the earthly level, because a person's foot represents the earthly level. Daniel likewise saw:
A man clothed in linen, and his hips were circled with the gold of Uphaz, and his body was like tarshish,{*3} his arms and his feet were like the appearance of burnished bronze. (Daniel 10:5-6)
The bronze snake mentioned in Numbers 21:9 represented goodness present in the Lord on the level of the senses and on the earthly plane. See the earlier discussion [197].
Footnotes:
{*1} On the sacred and symbolic use of these materials, see the explanations of Exodus 25-30 in volumes 14, 15. [LHC]
{*2} In Swedenborg's theology, the earthly level is the mind's lowest level and is closely connected with the physical world but remains a step above the body and its senses. See 259, 4038; see also note 2 in 8. [LHC]
{*3} For tarshish as a precious stone, see note 2 in 114. [LHC]
Potts(1905-1910) 425
425. It is unknown to the world at the present day that "brass" signifies natural good, and also that every metal mentioned in the Word has a specific signification in the internal sense-as "gold" celestial good; "silver" spiritual truth; "brass" natural good; "iron" natural truth; and so on with the other metals, and in like manner "wood" and "stone." Such things were signified by the "gold" "silver" "brass" and "wood" used in the ark and in the tabernacle and in the temple, concerning which, of the Lord's Divine mercy hereafter. That such is their signification is manifest from the Prophets, as from Isaiah:
Thou shalt also suck the milk of the Gentiles, and shalt suck the breast of kings. For brass I will bring gold, and for iron I will bring silver, and for wood brass, and for stones iron; I will also make thy tribute peace, and thine exactors righteousness (Isa. 60:16-17), treating of the Lord's advent, of His kingdom, and of the celestial church. "For brass gold" signifies for natural good celestial good; "for iron silver" signifies for natural truth spiritual truth; "for wood brass" signifies for corporeal good natural good; "for stones iron" signifies for sensuous truth natural truth. In Ezekiel:
Javan, Tubal, and Meshech, these were thy merchants, in the soul of man, and vessels of brass they gave thy trading (Ezek. 27:13), speaking of Tyre, by which are signified those who possess spiritual and celestial riches; "vessels of brass" are natural goods. In Moses:
A land whose stones are iron, and out of whose mountains thou mayest hew brass (Deut. 8:9), where also "stones" denote sensuous truth; "iron" natural, that is, rational truth; and "brass" natural good. Ezekiel saw:
Four living creatures, or cherubs, whose feet sparkled like the appearance of burnished brass (Ezek. 1:7), where again "brass" signifies natural good, for the "foot" of man represents what is natural. In like manner there appeared to Daniel, A man clothed in linen, whose loins were girded with gold of Uphaz, his body also was like the beryl, and his arms and his feet like the appearance of burnished brass (Dan. 10:5-6). That the "brazen serpent" (Num. 21:9) represented the sensuous and natural good of the Lord, may be seen above.
Elliott(1983-1999) 425
425. Up to now the world has not known that 'bronze' means natural good, nor indeed that every metal mentioned in the Word has some definite meaning in the internal sense. For example 'gold' means celestial good, 'silver' spiritual truth, 'bronze' natural good, 'iron' natural truth, and so on with all the rest. The same applies to stone and wood. These were the meanings of the gold, silver, bronze, and wood in the Ark and the Tabernacle, and of similar objects in the Temple, which in the Lord's Divine mercy will be dealt with later on. In the Prophets it is plain that such things are meant, as in Isaiah,
You will suck the milk of nations, and the breast of kings will you suck. Instead of bronze I will bring gold, and instead of iron, I will bring silver, and instead of wood, bronze, and instead or stones, iron. And I will make peace your assessment and righteousness your tax-collectors. Isa 60:16, 17.
This refers to the Coming of the Lord and to His kingdom, and to the celestial Church. 'Gold instead of bronze' means celestial good instead of natural good. 'Silver instead of iron' means spiritual truth instead of natural truth. 'Bronze instead of wood' means natural good instead of bodily good. 'Iron instead of stones' means natural truth instead of sensory truth. In Ezekiel,
Javan, Tubal, and Meshech, they were your merchants in the souls of men, and they gave vessels of bronze for your merchandise. Ezek 27:13
This refers to Tyre, which means people who are in possession of spiritual and celestial riches. 'Vessels of bronze' stands for natural goods. In Moses, A land whose stones are Iron, and from whose mountains you will dig out bronze. Deut 8:9.
Here similarly 'stones' stands for sensory truth, 'iron' for natural or rational truth, and 'bronze' for natural good. In the cases of the four living creatures or the cherubim seen by Ezekiel, whose feet sparkled like burnished bronze, Ezek 1:7, 'bronze' in a similar way means natural good, for the human foot represents that which is natural. Something similar was seen by Daniel,
A man clothed in linen whose loins were girded with gold of Uphaz and whose body was like tarshish.a His arms and feet were like the appearance of burnished bronze. Dan 10:5, 6
And for the fact that the bronze serpent mentioned in Num 21:9represented the Lord's good, sensory and natural, see what has been said already [in 197].
Latin(1748-1756) 425
425. Quod 'aes' significet bonum naturale, adhuc orbi ignotum est; tum quod unumquodvis metallum quod nominatur in Verbo, significet quoddam in sensu interno; ut 'aurum' bonum caeleste; 'argentum' verum spirituale; 'aes' bonum naturale; 'ferrum' verum naturale, et sic porro reliqua; similiter lapis et lignum; talia significata sunt per aurum, argentum, aes, lignum, in arca et tabernaculo; similia in templo, de quibus, ex Divina Domini Misericordia, in sequentibus: apud Prophetas elucet quod talia significentur; ut apud Esaiam, Suges lac gentium, et uber regum suges,... pro aere adducam aurum; et pro ferro adducam argentum; et pro lignis aes, et pro lapidibus ferrum; ponamque censum tuum pacem, et exactores tuos justitiam, lx 16, 17;ubi de Adventu Domini et Ipsius regno, et Ecclesia caelesti agitur; pro aere aurum; significat pro bono naturali bonum caeleste; 'pro ferro argentum' pro vero naturali verum spirituale; 'pro lignis aes' significat pro corporeo bono naturale bonum; 'pro lapidibus ferrum' significat pro sensuali vero naturale verum: apud Ezechielem, {x}Javan, Tubal et Meshech, hi mercatores tui, in anima hominis, et vasa aeris dederunt negotiationem tuam, xxvii 13;
ubi agitur de Tyro, per quem significantur qui possident divitias spirituales et caelestes, ubi 'vasa aeris' pro bonis naturalibus: apud Mosen, Terra, ejus lapides ferrum, et ex montibus ejus excides aes, Deut. viii 9;
ubi similiter 'lapides' pro vero sensuali, et 'ferrum' pro vero naturali seu rationali, et 'aes' pro bono naturali. 'Quatuor animalia, seu cherubi' visi Ezechieli, 'quorum pedes micantes sicut species aeris laevigati,' i 7; ibi 'aes' similiter significat bonum naturale, nam 'pes hominis' repraesentat naturale: similiter Danieli visus, Vir indutus linteis, et lumbi ejus cincti auro Uphasi, et corpus sicut tarshish, brachia ejus et pedes ejus sicut species aeris laevigati, Dan. x 5, 6. Quod 'serpens aeneus,' Num. xxi 9, repraesentaverit Domini Bonum sensuale et naturale, prius videas [n. 197].