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1026. (Verse 21) And a great hail, as it were, the weight of a talent, came down from heaven upon men. That this signifies falsities in the highest degree infernal, destroying all understanding of truth with the men of the church, is evident from the signification of hail, as denoting infernal falsity, destroying all the truth and good of the church (concerning which see n. 503, 704). That hail is called great and, as it were, the weight of a talent, because falsities in the greatest degree infernal are meant. The quality of the falsities is compared with a talent; because a talent, in the computation of numbers, and in the weighing of silver, was the greatest sum. And by silver is signified truth, and, in the opposite sense, falsity; and by weight is signified what is heavy from evil, thus in the highest degree infernal. For falsity from evil is heavy and falls of itself into hell. And the above is evident from the signification of falling from heaven upon men, as denoting from hell, destroying the understanding of truth with the men of the church. For by men are signified the men of the church as to the understanding of truth; or, what is the same, the understanding of truth possessed by the men of the church is signified.
[2] The reason why to fall from heaven signifies to be from hell is, that the falsity here signified by a great hail does not come down from heaven, but rises up from hell. Hail does indeed fall from heaven in the spiritual, as in the natural world; for it is the rain that descends from heaven, congealed into hail from the cold which ascends from hell; the cold thence being the privation of heat or of heavenly love. Consequently, it follows that hail, as hail, does not descend from heaven, but that it is from hell. The case is similar with the rain of sulphur and fire from heaven. Rain signifies Divine truth from heaven, but hail Divine truth turned into infernal falsity; this takes place on its descent from heaven.
Concerning the Precepts of the Decalogue in general:-
[3] Because from the Lord as a Sun proceeds Divine truth united to Divine good, by which heaven and the world were made (John 1:1, 3, 10), it follows, that it is from this fact that everything in heaven and everything in the world have reference to good and to truth, and to their conjunction, in order that they may be something.
In these Ten Precepts are contained everything of Divine Good, and everything of Divine truth, and in them is also the conjunction thereof. But this conjunction is a mystery; for it is like the conjunction of love to the Lord and love towards the neighbour. Divine Good pertains to love to the Lord, and Divine truth to love towards the neighbour. For when a man lives according to Divine truth, that is, loves his neighbour, then the Lord flows in with Divine Good, and conjoins Himself to him.
[4] For this reason there were two tables, on which those Ten Precepts were written, and they were called the Covenant, which signifies conjunction. And they were afterwards placed in the ark, not one by the side of the other, but one above the other, for a testimony of the conjunction between the Lord and man. Upon one table were written the precepts of love to the Lord, and upon the other the precepts of love towards the neighbour. The three first precepts involve love to the Lord, and the six last precepts involve love towards the neighbour; while the fourth precept, which is, "Honour thy father and mother," is the mediating precept; for by father is there meant the Father in the heavens, and by mother is meant the church, which is the neighbour.
1026. Verse 21. And a great hail, as of the weight of a talent, cometh down from heaven upon men, signifies falsities in the greatest degree infernal destroying all the understanding of truth with the men of the church. This is evident from the signification of "hail," as being infernal falsity destroying all the truth and good of the church (See n. 503, 704). This hail is called "great," and "as the weight of a talent," because falsities in the greatest degree infernal are meant. The quality of the falsities is compared to a talent, because a talent was the largest denomination in the reckoning of money and the weighing of silver, and "silver" signifies truth, and in the contrary sense falsity, and "weight" signifies what is heavy from evil, thus in the greatest degree infernal; for falsity from evil is heavy and falls of itself into hell. Also from the signification of "coming down from heaven upon men," as being from hell destroying the understanding of truth with the men of the church; for by "men" men of the church as to the understanding of truth are meant, or what is the same, such understanding of truth as the men of the church possess.
[2] "Coming down from heaven" signifies to be from hell, because falsity, which is here signified by a "great hail," does not come down from heaven, but rises up from hell. Hail indeed falls from heaven in the spiritual world as in the natural world, since hail is rain that descends from heaven; but it is frozen into hail by the cold that rises up from hell, and that cold is the absence of heat or of heavenly love. From this it follows that hail does not come down as hail from heaven, but is from hell. It is the same with the rain of brimstone and fire from heaven. "Rain" of water signifies the Divine truth from heaven, but "hail" Divine truth changed into infernal falsity, which is done while it is coming down from heaven.
(Continuation: The Commandments in general)
[3] As Divine truth united to Divine good proceeds from the Lord as a sun, and by this, heaven and the world were made (John 1:1, 3, 10), it follows that it is from this that all things in heaven and in the world have reference to good and to truth and to their conjunction that they may be anything. These ten commandments contain all things of Divine good and all things of Divine truth, and there is also in them a conjunction of these. But this conjunction is hidden; for it is like the conjunction of love to the Lord and love towards the neighbor; Divine good belongs to love to the Lord, and Divine truth to love towards the neighbor; for when a man lives according to Divine truth, that is, loves his neighbor, the Lord flows in with Divine good and conjoins Himself. For this reason there were two tables on which these ten commandments were written, and they were called a covenant, which signifies conjunction; and afterwards they were placed in the ark, not one beside the other, but one above the other, for a testimony of the conjunction between the Lord and man. Upon one table the commandments of love to the Lord were written, and upon the other table the commandments of love towards the neighbor. The commandments of love to the Lord are the first three, and the commandments of love towards the neighbor are the last six; and the fourth commandment, which is "Honor thy father and thy mother," is the mediating commandment, for in it "father" means the Father in the heavens, and "mother" means the church, which is the neighbor.
1026. (Vers. 21.) "Et grando magna, quasi talenti pondo, descendit de caelo super homines." - Quod significet falsa maxime infernalia destruentia omnem intellectum veri apud homines ecclesiae, constat ex significatione "grandinis", quod sit falsum infernale destruens omne verum et bonum ecclesiae (de qua (supra), n. 503, 704): et grando illa dicitur "magna", et "quasi talenti pondo", quia intelliguntur falsa maxime infernalia; comparatur quale falsorum cum talento, quia talentum in computatione nummorum et in ponderatione argenti erat maxima summa, ac per "argentum" significatur verum, et in opposito sensu falsum, et per "pondo" significatur grave ex malo, ita maxime infernale; falsum enim ex malo est grave, et ex se delabitur in infernum: et ex significatione "descendere de caelo super homines", quod sit ex inferno destruens intellectum veri apud illos qui ab ecclesia; per "homines" enim significantur homines ecclesiae quoad intellectum veri; seu, quod idem, significatur intellectus veri qui est hominibus ecclesiae.
[2] Quod "descendere de caelo" significet esse ab inferno, est quia falsum, quod hic significatur per "grandinem magnam", non descendit e caelo, sed ascendit ex inferno; delabitur quidem grando e caelo in mundo spirituali, sicut in mundo naturali, est enim pluvia quae e caelo descendit; at haec congelescit in grandinem ex frigore quod ex inferno ascendit; frigus inde est privatio caloris seu amoris caelestis; inde sequitur quod grando ut grando non descendat e caelo, sed quod sit ex inferno. Simile est cum pluvia sulphuris et ignis e caelo. "Pluvia aquea" significat Divinum Verum e caelo; sed "grando" Divinum Verum conversum in falsum infernale, quod fit in via descensus e caelo.
[3] (De Praeceptis Decalogi in genere.)
Quoniam a Domino ut Sole procedit Divinum Verum unitum Divino Bono, et per illud factum est caelum et factus est mundus (Johannes 1:1, 3, 10), sequitur quod ex eo sit quod omnia in caelo et in mundo se referant ad bonum et ad verum, et ad conjunctionem illorum, ut fiat aliquid. In decem his praeceptis continentur omnia Divini Boni et omnia Divini Veri, et in illis quoque est horum conjunctio. Sed conjunctio eorum ibi est arcana; est enim sicut conjunctio amoris in Dominum et amoris erga proximum; Divinum Bonum est amoris in Dominum, et Divinum Verum est amoris erga proximum; nam cum homo secundum Divinum Verum vivit, hoc est, amat proximum, tunc influit Dominus cum Divino Bono, et Se conjungit. Idcirco binae tabulae erant, quibus decem illa praecepta fuerunt inscripta, et illae vocatae sunt "foedus", per quod significatur conjunctio: et deinde positae sunt in arca, non una juxta alteram, sed una supra alteram, in testimonium conjunctionis inter Dominum et hominem. Super una tabula scripta fuerunt praecepta amoris in Dominum, et super altera tabula scripta fuerunt praecepta amoris erga proximum. Tria praecepta prima sunt amoris in Dominum, et sex praecepta ultima sunt amoris erga proximum; et quartum praeceptum, quod est, "Honora Patrem tuum et Matrem tuam", est praeceptum medians; nam per "Patrem" ibi intelligitur Pater in caelis, et per "Matrem" ibi intelligitur ecclesia, quae est proximus.