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131. These things saith he that hath the sharp two-edged sword. That this signifies the Lord who alone fights in temptations, is evident from the signification of a sword, as being truth fighting against falsity, and, in an opposite sense, falsity fighting against truth. It is called sharp, and two-edged, because it cuts on both sides. Because this is signified by sword, therefore it also signifies dispersion of falsities, and also temptation. That it signifies dispersion of falsities, may be seen above (n. 73). That it signifies temptation is because, in what is written to the angels of this church, temptations are treated of, and also because temptation is a combat of truth against falsity, and of falsity against truth. (That spiritual temptation is such combat, may be seen in The Doctrine of the New Jerusalem 187-201.) The reason why by these things saith he that hath the sharp two-edged sword, is meant the Lord as alone fighting in temptations is, that, in the preceding chapter, ver. 16, it is said that out of the mouth of the Son of man was seen going forth a sharp two-edged sword; and by the Son of man is meant the Lord as to Divine truth, as may be seen above, n. 63. (That the Lord alone fights in temptations, and not man at all, may be seen in The Doctrine of the New Jerusalem, 195-200.) The reason why by a sword is signified the combat of truth against falsity, and of falsity against truth, is, that by wars in the Word, are signified spiritual wars; and spiritual wars are those that take place between truths and falsities. And because wars in the Word have such a signification, therefore also all the arms used in war, as a sword, a spear, a bow, darts, a shield, and many others, signify specifically something pertaining to spiritual combat, especially the sword, because in wars they formerly fought with swords. (That wars signify spiritual combats may be seen in Arcana Coelestia 1659, 1664, 8295, 10455; and that hence, particular arms of war signify what belongs to spiritual combat, may be seen, n. 1788, 2686.)
[2] That a sword in the Word signifies truth combating against falsity, and falsity against truth, and hence the dispersion of falsities, and also spiritual temptation, is evident from many passages, of which we will adduce a few only by way of confirmation. Thus in Matthew:
Jesus said, that he was not come to send peace upon earth, but a sword (10:34);
where, by sword is meant the combat of temptation; the reason it is so said, was, that men at that time were immersed in falsities, and the Lord revealed interior truths; and falsities cannot be cast forth except by combats from those truths.
[3] In Luke:
Jesus said to the disciples "Now he that hath a purse, let him take it, and likewise a scrip; and he that hath no sword, let him sell his garment and buy one" (22:35-38).
By a purse and scrip are signified spiritual knowledges (cognitiones), thus truths; by garments are signified things proper to themselves; and by a sword is signified combat.
[4] Again in Jeremiah:
"O sword, against the Chaldeans, and against the inhabitants of Babylon, and against her princes, and against her wise men. O sword, against liars that they may become foolish; O sword, against her mighty men that they may be dismayed; O sword, against her horses and against her chariots; O sword, against her treasures that they may be spoiled; a drought upon her waters, that they may be dried up" (Arcana Coelestia 8185; that waters denote the truths of the church, may be seen above, n. 71; that treasure denotes knowledges, n. 1694, 4508, 10227; that horses denote intellectual things and chariots doctrinals, may be seen in the small work, The White Horse 2-5.)
[5] In Isaiah:
"Jehovah shall contend, and by his sword with all flesh, and the slain of Jehovah shall be multiplied" (66:16).
In Jeremiah:
"Upon all the hills in the desert the spoilers have come, because the sword of Jehovah devoureth from the end of the earth even to the end of the earth" (12:12).
In Ezekiel:
"Prophesy, and say, a sword well sharpened, and also well polished; it is sharpened to slay a slaughter, it is polished to glitter; the sword shall be repeated the third time; the sword of the slain, the sword of great slaughter penetrating into the secret chambers, that the heart may faint, and offences may be multiplied against all their gates will I set the point of the sword ah! it has become lightning" (21:9, 10, 14, 15, 28).
In Isaiah:
"Bring waters to meet him that is thirsty, with bread prevent him that wandereth; for before the sword shall they wander, before the drawn sword, and before the bended bow, and for the grievousness of war" (21:14, 15).
In Ezekiel:
"They shall quake with fear when I shall brandish my sword before their faces, that they may tremble every moment, a man for his own soul; by the swords of the mighty casting down the multitude of them" (32:10-12).
In David:
"The saints will be joyful in glory; they will sing aloud upon their beds. Let the high praises of God be in their mouth, and a two-edged sword in their hand" (Psalms 149:5, 6).
In the same:
"Gird thy sword upon thy thigh, O mighty. In thy honour ascend thy chariot, ride on the Word of truth; thy right hand shall teach thee wonderful things. Thine arrows are sharp" (Psalms 45:3-5).
And in the Apocalypse:
"And there was given to him sitting on the red horse a great sword " (6:4).
And in another place:
"And out of the mouth of him sitting upon the white horse goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations. And the remnant were slain with the sword of him that sat upon the horse" (19:15, 21).
By sword in the above passages is signified truth combating and destroying; this destruction is especially evident in the spiritual world, where those who are in falsities cannot sustain the truth. They are in a state of anguish, as if struggling with death when they come into the sphere of light, that is, where Divine truth is, and also they are thus deprived of truths, and vastated.
[6] As most expressions In the Word have also an opposite sense, so also has sword, and in that sense it signifies falsity combating against truth and destroying it. The vastations of the church, which take place when there are no longer any truths, but only falsities, are described in the Word by a sword, as in the following passages:
"They shall fall by the edge of the sword, and shall be led away captive among all nations; at length Jerusalem shall be trodden down of" all "nations, until the times of the nations shall be fulfilled" (Luke 21:24).
The consummation of the age, here treated of, is the last time of the church, when falsities shall prevail. To fall by the edge of the sword, denotes that truths would be destroyed by falsity; nations denote evils; by Jerusalem is signified the church.
[7] In Isaiah:
"I will make a man more rare than fine gold. Every one that is found shall be thrust through; and every one that is gathered together shall fall by the sword" (13:12, 15).
By the man who is rare, is denoted those who are in truths; to be thrust through and to fall by the sword, denotes to be consumed by falsities.
[8] In the same:
"In that day they shall cast away every man the idols of his silver, and the idols of his gold, which your own hands have made unto you. Then shall Asshur fall by the sword, not of a man (vir) and the sword, not of a man (homo), shall devour him but he who fleeth before the sword, his young men shall be for tribute" (31:7, 8).
The idols which their hands have made denote falsities from their own intelligence; by Asshur is denoted the Rational by which this is effected. To fall by the sword, not of a man (vir), and not of a man (homo), denotes not to be destroyed by any combat of truth against falsity. By he who fleeth before the sword, his young men shall be for tribute, is denoted, that the truth which is not destroyed shall be made subservient to falsities. That this is the meaning of those words is not evident in the sense of the letter; it is therefore evident how far removed is the spiritual sense from the sense of the letter.
[9] In Jeremiah:
"I have smitten your sons in vain; and they received not correction; your own sword hath devoured your prophets" (2:30).
In the same:
"Behold, the prophets say unto them, Ye shall not see the sword, neither shall ye have famine. By sword and famine shall those prophets be consumed. If I go forth into the field, then behold the slain with the sword; and if I enter into the city, then behold the sicknesses of famine" (14:13-18).
Both these passages treat of the vastation of the church as to truth: by prophets are meant those who teach truths, and by the sword which consumes them, falsity combating and destroying. By field is signified the church; by city doctrine; the slain with the sword in the field, denote those in the church with whom truths are destroyed; by the sicknesses of famine in the city is signified a defect of all truth in doctrine.
[10] In the same:
"They have denied Jehovah, and said, It is not he; neither shall evil come upon us: neither shall we see sword and famine" (5:12).
In the same:
"The young men shall die by the sword; their sons and their daughters shall die by famine" (11:22).
By young men are signified those who are in truths, and, in the abstract, truths themselves; to die by the sword is to be destroyed by falsities; sons and daughters signify the knowledges of truth and good; by famine is meant a defect of them.
[11] In Lamentations:
"We get our bread with the peril of our souls, because of the sword of the wilderness" (5:9).
By wilderness is meant where there is no good because no truth; by the sword thereof, the destruction of truth; bread denotes good, which is obtained with the peril of the soul because all good is implanted in man by truth.
[12] In Ezekiel:
"The sword without, and the pestilence and famine within; he that is in the field shall die by the sword, and he that is in the city, famine and pestilence shall devour him" (7:15).
By sword is here meant the destruction of truth; by pestilence, consequent extinction; and famine signifies a complete defect. The signification is similar in other places; as in Jeremiah (21:7; 29:17, 18; 34:17).
[13] In Zechariah:
"Woe to the shepherd of nought deserting the flock, a sword upon his arm, and upon his right eye; his arm in drying up shall dry up, and his right eye in darkening shall be darkened" (11:17).
A sword upon the arm denotes the destruction of the Voluntary as to good; by a sword upon the right eye is signified the destruction of the Intellectual as to truth; that all good and all truth would perish, is signified by its being said, that the arm in drying up shall dry up, and the right eye in darkening shall be darkened.
[14] In Isaiah:
"Thus shall ye say unto your master, Be not afraid of the words that thou hast heard, wherewith the servants of the king of Asshur have blasphemed Jehovah. Behold, I will cause him to fall by the sword in his own land. And Sennacherib the king of Asshur returned; and it came to pass, when he bowed himself in the house of Nisroch his god, his two sons smote him with the sword" (37:6, 7, 37, 38).
Because it is the Rational that acknowledges and that denies the Divine, and when it denies it seizes eagerly on every falsity instead of truth, and thus perishes, therefore this representative came to pass, that is, that the king of Asshur, because he blasphemed Jehovah, was smitten with the sword by his sons, in the house of Nisroch his god. Asshur signifies the Rational in both senses (see Deuteronomy 13:12, 13, 15, 16).
[15] This statute was made, because at that time all things were representative; to worship other gods is to worship from falsities; to be smitten with the sword is to perish by falsity; and to be burned with fire is to perish by the evil of falsity.
[16] In the same:
"Whosoever toucheth one that is slain with the sword in the field shall be unclean" (Numbers 19:16, 18, 19).
The slain in the field with the sword, represented those within the church who destroyed the truths which they had; by field is meant the church.
[17] That sword signifies falsities destroying truth is clear in David:
"The sons of men are inflamed; their teeth are as spears and darts, and their tongue a sharp sword" (Psalms 57:4).
"Behold, they belch out with their mouth, swords are in their lips" (Psalms 59:7).
Working iniquity "they whet their tongue like a sword; they make ready their bow with bitter words" (Psalms 64:3).
From these considerations it is clear what is signified by the words of the Lord to Peter:
"All they that take the sword shall perish by the sword" (Matthew 26:51, 52);
that is, those who believe falsities will perish by them.
[18] From these things it is now clear what is signified in the Word by sword in both senses. The reason why such things are signified by it, is also from appearances in the spiritual world. When spiritual combats take place there, which are combats of truth against falsity, and of falsity against truth, various weapons of war are seen there, as swords, spears, shields, and similar things; not that these combats are carried on by such things, for they are appearances only, representative of spiritual combats. When falsities fight keenly against truths, sometimes the glitter or sheen of a sword waving itself on both sides, and striking with great terror, is seen, by which those are dispersed who fight from falsities.
[19] From this it is clear what is meant by these words in Ezekiel:
"They shall be horribly afraid when I shall brandish my sword before their faces, that they may tremble at every moment for their own soul" (Ezekiel 32:10, 11, 12).
In the same:
"Prophesy, and say, a sword has been sharpened, and also well polished, that it may shine, that the heart may faint, ah! it has become lightning" (Ezekiel 21:9, 10, 15).
The reason why a sword causes such great terror is that iron, of which it is made, signifies truth in ultimates, and glitter and sheen are from the light of heaven, and its shining upon it; the light of heaven is Divine truth proceeding from the Lord; Divine truth, thus falling into those who are filled with falsity, strikes terror.
[20] It is therefore clear what is signified when Adam was cast out
"By cherubim being placed at the east of Eden, and the flame of a sword turning every way, and brandishing itself to guard the way to the tree of life (Genesis 3:24).
By the tree of life is signified celestial love, which is love to the Lord; by cherubim a guard; by the flame of a sword turning itself every way, the terrible driving away and rejection of all who are in falsities; the east of Eden denotes where the presence of the Lord is in that celestial love. By those words therefore is signified that all approach to the acknowledgment of the Lord alone is closed to those who do not live a life of love. That by sword is signified falsity is quite clear in Ezekiel, where is thus said of the prince of Tyre:
"They shall unsheath swords upon the beauty of thy wisdom " (28:7).
By the prince of Tyre is here signified intelligence derived from the knowledges (cognitiones) of truth; and because this is extinguished by falsities it is therefore said that they should unsheathe their swords upon wisdom, which could not have been said unless by swords were meant falsities.
131. These things saith He that hath the sharp two-edged sword, signifies the Lord, who alone combats in temptation. This is evident from the signification of "long sword" or "sword [romphaeae seu gladii]," as meaning truth combating against falsity, and in the opposite sense, falsity combating against truth. It is said to be "sharp two-edged," because it pierces on both sides. Because this is signified by "the long sword," dispersion of falsities is also signified by it, and also temptation. That it signifies dispersion of falsities, see above (n. 63. That the Lord alone combats in temptations, and not man at all, see in The Doctrine of the New Jerusalem 195-200.) By "long sword" or by "sword [romphaeam seu gladium]" is signified the combat of truth against falsity, and of falsity against truth, because by "wars" in the Word are signified spiritual wars, and spiritual wars are wars of truths against falsities and of falsities against truths; and as "wars" in the Word have such a signification, all weapons of war, as "sword," "spear," "bow," "arrows," "shield," and many others, signify each some special thing pertaining to spiritual combat; especially the "sword," because in wars they fight with swords. (That "wars" signify spiritual combats, see Arcana Coelestia 1659, 1664, 8295, 10455; consequently that each weapon of war signifies something pertaining to spiritual combat, see n. 1788, 2686)
[2] That "sword" in the Word signifies truth combating against falsity, and falsity against truth, and therefore the dispersion of falsities, and also spiritual temptation, can be seen from very many passages, of which I will introduce here only a few by way of confirmation. Thus in Matthew:
Jesus said that He came not to send peace on earth, but a sword (Matthew 10:34).
Here by "sword" is meant the combat of temptation. It was so said, because men at that time were in falsities, and the Lord uncovered interior truths, and only by combats from such truths can falsities be cast out.
[3] In Luke:
Jesus said to His disciples, Now he that hath a purse let him take it, likewise a wallet; and he that hath no sword let him sell his garments and buy one (Luke 22:35-38).
By "purse" and "wallet" spiritual knowledges, thus truths, are signified; "garments" signify what is their own; and by "sword" combat is signified.
[4] In Jeremiah:
A sword against the Chaldeans, and against the inhabitants of Babylon, and against her chiefs, and against her wise men. A sword against liars that they may become foolish; a sword against her mighty men that they may be dismayed; a sword against her horses and against her chariots; a sword against her treasures that they may be spoiled; a drought upon her waters that they may be dried up (Arcana Coelestia 8185; that "waters" are truths of the church, see above, n. 71; that "treasures" are knowledges, Arcana Coelestia, 1694, 4508, 10227; that "horses" are things intellectual, and "chariots" doctrinals, see White Horse 2-5.)
[5] In Isaiah:
Jehovah will plead, and with His sword with all flesh, and the slain of Jehovah shall be multiplied (Isaiah 66:16).
In Jeremiah:
Upon all the heights in the desert the devastators are come, because the sword of Jehovah devoureth from the end of the land even to the end of the land (Jeremiah 12:12).
In Ezekiel:
Prophesy and say, a sword sharpened and also furbished, it is sharpened to slay a slaughter, it is furbished that it may have luster; let the sword be doubled for the third time; the sword of the slain, the sword of great slaughter entering into the secret chambers that the heart may melt, and stumblings be multiplied; against all their gates will I set the point of the sword: Ah! It is made into lightning (Ezekiel 21:9-15, 28).
In Isaiah:
Bring waters to meet him that is thirsty, with bread prevent him that wandereth; for before the sword shall they wander, before the drawn sword, and before the bended bow, and for the grievousness of war (Isaiah 21:14, 15).
In Ezekiel:
They shall quake with fear when I shall make my sword to fly before their faces, that they may tremble every moment, a man for his own soul; by the swords of the mighty casting down their multitude (Ezekiel 32:10-12).
In David:
Let the saints exult in glory; let them sing upon their beds. Let the exaltations of God be in their throat, and a two-edged sword in their hand (Psalms 149:5, 6).
In the same:
Gird thy sword upon the thigh, O mighty one, in thy honor ascend the chariot, ride on the Word of truth, thy right hand shall teach thee wonderful things. Thine arrows are sharp (Psalms 45:3-5).
In Revelation:
There was given unto him that sat on the red horse a great sword (Revelation 6:4).
In another place:
Out of the mouth of him that sat on the white horse went forth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations. The rest were killed with the sword of him that sat upon the horse (Revelation 19:15, 21).
By "sword" in these passages is signified truth combating and destroying; this destruction is especially apparent in the spiritual world; there those that are in falsities cannot sustain the truth; when they come into the sphere of light, that is, where Divine truth is, they are in anguish, like those who are struggling with death; and thus also they are deprived of truths and are vastated.
[6] As most expressions in the Word have also a contrary sense, so also has "sword;" in that sense it signifies falsity combating against truth and destroying it. The vastations of the church, which take place when there are no longer any truths, but only falsities, are described in the Word by a "sword," as in the following passages:
They shall fall by the edge of the sword, and shall be led captive into all nations; Jerusalem shall finally be trodden down by all nations, until the times of the nations shall be fulfilled (Luke 21:24).
The consummation of the age, which is here treated of, is the last time of the church, when falsities are to prevail. "To fall by the edge of the sword" denotes that truth will be destroyed by falsity; "nations" here are evils and "Jerusalem" is the church.
[7] In Isaiah:
I will make a man more rare than fine gold. Everyone that is found shall be thrust through; and everyone gathered in shall fall by the sword (Isaiah 13:12, 15).
"A man who is rare" for those that are in truths; "to be thrust through" and "to fall by the sword" means to be consumed by falsity.
[8] In the same:
In that day they shall cast away every man the idols of his silver and the idols of his gold, which your own hands have made unto you. Then shall Asshur fall by the sword, not of a man [viri]; and the sword not of a man [hominis] shall devour him; but he who fleeth for himself before the sword, his young man shall be for tribute (Isaiah 31:7, 8).
"The idols which the hands have made" are falsities from self-intelligence; "Asshur" is the rational by which [per quod]. "To fall by the sword not of a man" [viri], and "not of a man" [hominis], is not to be destroyed by any combat of truth against falsity. "He who fleeth for himself before the sword, his young man shall be for tribute," means that the truth which is not destroyed shall be subservient to falsities. That this is the meaning of these words does not appear in the sense of the letter, which shows how far distant the spiritual sense is from the sense of the letter.
[9] In Jeremiah:
In vain I have smitten your sons; they accepted not correction; your own sword hath devoured your prophets (Jeremiah 2:30).
Behold, the prophet say, Ye shall not see the sword, neither shall ye have famine. By sword and by famine shall the prophets be consumed. If I go forth into the field, behold the slain with the sword; and if I enter into the city, then behold the sickness of famine (Jeremiah 14:13-18).
Both these passages treat of the vastation of the church in respect to truth; "prophets" are those who teach truths; and "the sword that consumes them" is falsity combating and destroying; "the field" is the church; "the city" is doctrine; "the slain with the sword in the field" are those in the church with whom truths are destroyed; "the famine" that is in the city is dearth of all truth in doctrine.
[10] In the same:
They have denied Jehovah when they have said, It is not He; neither shall evil come upon us; neither shall we see sword and famine (Jeremiah 5:12).
In the same:
The young men shall die by the sword; and their sons and their daughters shall die by famine (Jeremiah 11:22).
"Young men" are those who are in truths, and in the abstract, truths themselves; "to die by the sword" is to be destroyed by falsities; "sons and daughters" are the knowledges of truth and good; "famine" is a dearth of these.
[11] In Lamentations:
We get our bread with peril of our souls, because of the sword of the wilderness (Lamentations 5:9).
"The wilderness" is where there is no good because there is no truth; its "sword" is the destruction of truth; "bread" is good, which is got with "peril of souls," because all good is implanted in man by means of truth.
[12] In Ezekiel:
The sword is without, and pestilence and famine within; he that is in the field shall die with the sword; and he that is in the city, famine and pestilence shall devour him (Ezekiel 7:15).
"The sword" is the destruction of truth; "pestilence" consequent extermination; and "famine" complete dearth. Similarly in other places (as in Jeremiah 21:7; 29:17, 18; 34:17).
[13] In Zechariah:
Woe to the shepherd of nought forsaking the flock; a sword upon his arm, and upon his right eye; his arm in drying up shall dry up, and his right eye in growing dim shall grow dim (Jeremiah 11:17).
"A sword upon the arm" is the destruction of the voluntary in respect to good; "a sword upon the right eye" is the destruction of the intellectual in respect to truth; that all good and all truth are to perish is signified by "the arm in drying up shall dry up; and the right eye in growing dim shall grow dim."
[14] In Isaiah:
Thus shall ye say to your lord, Fear not for the words that thou hast heard, wherewith the lads of the king of Asshur have blasphemed Jehovah. Behold, I will cause him to fall by the sword in his own land. And Senacherib, king of Asshur, returned; and it came to pass, when he bowed himself in the house of Nisroch his god, his two sons smote him with the sword (119, 1186); the "sons" of that king signify falsities, and the "sword" signifies destruction by falsities.
[15] In Moses:
[It was commanded that] the city that worshiped other gods should be smitten with the sword, and burned up with fire (Deuteronomy 13:12-16).
This was decreed because at that time all things were representative; "to worship other gods" is to worship from falsities; "to be smitten with the sword" is to perish by falsity; and "to be burned up with fire" is to perish by the evil of falsity.
[16] In the same:
Whosoever in the field toucheth one that is slain with the sword shall be unclean (Numbers 19:16, 18, 19).
"One in the field slain with the sword" represented those within the church who destroyed truths with themselves; "the field" here is the church.
[17] That "sword" signifies falsity destroying truth is manifest in David:
The sons of man are set on fire; their teeth are spears and arrows, and their tongue a sharp sword (Psalms 57:4).
Behold, they belch out with their mouth, swords are in their lips (Psalms 59:7).
Workers of iniquity sharpen their tongues like a sword; they hurl their arrow with a bitter word (Psalms 64:3).
From this it is clear what is signified by the Lord's words to Peter:
All they that take the sword shall perish by the sword (Matthew 26:51-52);
namely, that those who believe falsities will perish by falsities.
[18] From this it is now evident what is signified in the Word by "the long sword," "the short sword," or the "sword" [romphaea, macharera, seu gladius] in both senses. Such things are signified by "sword" by reason also of appearance in the spiritual world. When spiritual combats take place there, which are combats of truth against falsity and of falsity against truth, various weapons of war, as swords, spears, shields, and the like are seen; not that the combats are maintained by these, but they are mere appearances, representative of spiritual combats. When falsities are fiercely combating truths, there sometimes appears from heaven the brightness or flashing of a sword vibrating every way, and causing great terror, by which those who are combating from falsities are dispersed.
[19] This makes clear what is meant by these words in Ezekiel:
They shall be horribly afraid when I shall brandish My sword before their faces, that they may tremble every moment for their soul (Ezekiel 32:10-12).
And in the same:
Prophesy and say, a sword, it is sharpened and also furbished, that it may have luster, that the heart may melt. Ah! It is made into lightning (Ezekiel 21:9-10, 15).
The sword causes so great terror because "iron," of which a sword is made, signifies truth in ultimates, and the brightness and flashing are from the light of heaven and from vibration of this light upon the sword. The light of heaven is Divine truth proceeding from the Lord. Divine truth thus falling upon those who are in falsities strikes terror.
[20] This also makes clear what is signified by this, that:
Cherubim, after Adam had been driven out, were made to dwell at the east of Eden, and the flame of a sword turning and vibrating every way, to guard the way to the tree of life (Genesis 3:24).
By the "tree of life" is signified celestial love, which is love to the Lord; by "cherubim" a guard; by the "flame of a sword turning every way" the terrific driving off and rejecting of all who are in falsities; the "east of Eden" is where the Lord's presence is in celestial love; by these words, therefore, is signified that every approach to the acknowledgement of the Lord alone is closed to him who does not live a life of love. That "sword" signifies falsity is clearly evident in Ezekiel, where it is said of the prince of Tyre:
They shall unsheathe the swords upon the beauty of thy wisdom (Ezekiel 28:7).
"The prince of Tyre" signifies intelligence from the knowledges of truth; because that is extinguished by falsities it is said that they should unsheathe their swords "upon wisdom," which could not have been said unless by "swords" falsities were meant.
131. "Haec dicit habens romphaeam ancipitem acutam." - Quod significet Dominum qui solus in tentationibus pugnat, constat ex significatione "romphaeae" seu "gladii", quod sit verum pugnans contra falsum, et in opposito sensu falsum pugnans contra verum; "anceps acuta" dicitur quia penetrat utrinque: hoc quia per "romphaeam" significatur, ideo per illam etiam significatur dispersio falsorum, et quoque tentatio. Quod dispersio falsorum, videatur supra (n. 73 1
); quod tentatio, est quia in scriptis ad Angelum hujus Ecclesiae agitur de tentationibus; quod etiam significetur tentatio per "romphaeam", est quia tentatio est pugna veri contra falsum et falsi contra verum. (Quod tentatio spiritualis sit talis pugna, videatur in Doctrina Novae Hierosolymae, n. 187-201.) Quod per "Haec dicit habens romphaeam ancipitem acutam" intelligatur Dominus quod solus in tentationibus pugnet, est quia in capite praecedente (vers. 16) dictum est quod visum quod ex ore Filii hominis ambulantis inter septem candelabra romphaea anceps acuta exiret ((cap. 1 vers. 16)); et per "Filium hominis" intelligitur Dominus quoad Divinum Verum (videatur supra, n. 63).
(Quod Dominus solus in tentationibus pugnet, et nihil homo, videatur in Doctrina Novae Hierosolymae, n. 195-200.)
Quod per "romphaeam" seu "gladium" significetur pugna veri contra falsum, et falsi contra verum, est quia per "bella" in Verbo significantur bella spiritualia, ac bella spiritualia sunt verorum contra falsa ac falsorum contra vera; et quia "bella" in Verbo talia significant, ideo etiam omnia arma belli, sicut "gladius", "hasta", "arcus", "tela", "clipeus", et plura, significant aliqua specialia pugnae spiritualis; "gladius" imprimis, quia in bellis pugnatur gladiis.
(Quod "bella" significent pugnas spirituales, videatur n. 1659, 1664, 8295, 10455; et quod inde singula arma belli significant aliquid pugnae spiritualis, n. 1788, 2686.)
[2] Quod "gladius" in Verbo significet Verum pugnans contra falsum, ac 2
falsum contra verum, ac inde dispersionem falsorum, et quoque tentationem spiritualem, constare potest a plurimis locis ibi, quorum aliqua hic confirmationis causa in medium afferre volo:
- Ut apud Matthaeum,
Jesus dixit se non venisse mittere pacem super terram, sed gladium (10:34);
per "gladium" ibi intelligitur tentationis pugna; causa, quod ita dictum sit, erat, quia homines eo tempore in falsis erant, et Dominus detexit vera interiora, et falsa non nisi quam per pugnas ex his veris possunt ejici.
[3] Apud Lucam,
Jesus dixit discipulis, "Nunc qui habet crumenam tollat, similiter peram; qui vero non habet, vendat Vestimenta sua, et emat gladium" (22:35-38);
per "crumenam" et "peram" significantur cognitiones spirituales, ita vera; per "vestimenta" significantur propria; et per "gladium" pugna.
[4] Apud Jeremiam,
"Gladie contra Chaldaeos, ... et contra habitatores Babelis, et contra principes ejus et contra sapientes ejus; gladie contra mendaces ut stultescant; gladie contra fortes ejus ut consternentur; gladie contra equos ejus, et contra currus ejus gladie contra thesauros ejus ut diripiantur; siccitas super aquas ejus ut exarescant" (50:35-38);
per "gladium" ibi significatur dispersio et vastatio veri; per singulos illos apud quos erit, ut per "Chaldaeos", "habitatores Babelis", "principes et sapientes ejus", "mendaces", "fortes", "equos", "currus", "thesauros", significantur illi aut illa quae vastabuntur; ut per "equos intellectualia, per "currus" doctrinalia, et per "thesauros" cognitiones: inde dicitur "Siccitas super aquas ejus ut exarescant" "aquae" enim sunt vera ecclesiae, "et siccitas ut exarescant" est vastatio.
(Quod "siccitas" et "exarescentia" sit ubi non verum, videatur n. 8185:
quod "aquae" sint vera ecclesiae, supra. n. 71:
quod "thesauri" sint cognitiones, n. 1694, 4508, 102272-5.)
[5] Apud Esaiam,
"Jehovah disceptabit, et in gladio suo cum omni carne, et multiplicabuntur confossi Jehovae" (66:16);
apud Jeremiam,
"Super omnes colles in deserto venerunt vastatores, quia gladius Jehovae devorans a fine terrae usque ad finem terrae" (12:12);
apud Ezechielem,
Propheta et dic, ... Gladius exacutus, etiamque expolitus, ut mactet mactationem exacutus est, ut sit ei splendor expolitus est;... Iteretur gladius tertio, gladius confossorum, gladius confossionis magnae penetralia penetrans, ut colliquescat cor, et multiplicentur offendicula; contra omnes portas eorum dabo aciem gladii; ab, factus est in fulgur" (Ezechiel 21:14-20, 33 [B.A. 9, 10, 14, 15, 18]);
apud Esaiam,
Obviam sitienti adferte aquas, ... cum pane praevenite vagabundum; nam coram gladio vagabuntur, coram gladio extenso et coram arcu tenso, et propter gravitatem belli" (21:14, 15);
apud Ezechielem,
"Cohorrescent... cum volare fecero gladium meum praeter faces eorum, ut trepident ad momenta vir propter animam suam, ... per gladius potentium dejiciens multitudinem eorum" (32:10-12);
apud Davidem,
"Exultabunt sancti in gloria, cantabunt super cubilibus suis; celsitudines Dei in gutture eorum, et gladius orium in manu eorum" (Psalms 149:5, 6);
apud eundem,
Accinge gladium tuum super femur tuum, O Potens;... in honore tuo conscende currum, equita super verbo veritatis, ... docebit Te mirabilia dextra tua; tela tua acuta" (Psalms 45:4-6 [B.A. 3-5]);
in Apocalypsi,
Data est machaera magna sedenti super equo rufo (6:4);
et alibi,
Ex ore sedentis super equo albo exibat "romphaea acuta, ut per eam percutiat gentes:... reliqui occisi sunt romphaea sedentis super equo" (19:15, 21 3
);
per "gladium" in illis locis significatur verum pugnans et destruens. Haec destructio apparet imprimis in mundo spirituali; illi ibi qui in falsis sunt non sustinent verum; anguntur sicut qui luctantur cum morte cum veniunt in sphaeram lucis, hoc est, ubi Divinum Verum est, et quoque sic deprivantur veris et vastantur.
[6] Sicut pleraque in Verbo etiam sensum oppositum habent, ita quoque "gladius"; et in eo sensu significat falsum pugnans contra verum, ac destruens illud. Vastationes ecclesiae, quae sunt quando ibi non amplius vera sed modo falsa, describuntur in Verbo per "gladium", ut in sequentibus his locis: -
"Cadent ore gladii, et captivabuntur inter omnes gentes; tandem Hierosolyma erit conculcata ab "omnibus" gentibus usque dum implebuntur tempora gentium" (Luca 21:24).
Consummatio saeculi, de qua ibi agitur, est ultimum tempus ecclesiae, quando regnatura falsa; "cadere ore gladii" est quod verum destruetur per falsum; "gentes" ibi sunt mala; "Hierosolyma" est ecclesia.
[7] Apud Esaiam,
"Rarum reddam hominem prae auro puro;... inventus confodietur; et omnis congregatus cadet gladio" (13:12, 15);
"homo" qui rarus, pro illis qui in veris; "confodi" et "cadere gladio" pro consumi falso.
[8] Apud eundem,
"In die illo rejicient vir idola argenti sui et idola auri sui, quae fecerunt vobis manus Vestrae... Tunc cadet Aschur gladio non viri, et gladius non hominis comedet eum; qui vero fugit sibi coram gladio juvenes ejus in tributum erunt" (31:7, 8);
"idola quae fecerunt manus" sunt falsa ex propria intelligentia; "Aschur" est rationale per quod; "cadere gladio non viri" et "non hominis", est non destrui per aliquam pugnam veri contra falsum; "qui fugit sibi coram gladio, juvenes ejus in tributum erunt", est verum quod non destruitur hoc serviet falsis: quod hic sensus istorum verborum sit, non apparet in sensu litterae; inde patet quantum distat sensus spiritualis a sensu litterae.
[9] Apud Jeremiam,
"In vanum percussi filios Vestros, et disciplinam non acceperunt; Comedit gladius vester prophetas Vestros" (2:30);
apud eundem,
"Ecce prophetae dicentes, Non videbitis gladium, et fames non erit vobis... gladio et fame consumentur prophetae;... si egredior in agrum, ecce confossi gladio; et si intro urbem, ecce aegritudines famis" (14:13-18);
agitur hic et ibi de ecclesiae vastatione quoad verum; "prophetae" sunt qui docent vera, et "gladius" qui consumit eos est falsum pugnans et destruens; "ager" est ecclesia, "urbs" est doctrina, "confossi gladio in agro" sunt apud quos in ecclesia destructa sunt vera, "fames" quae intra urbem est defectus omnis veri in doctrina.
[10] Apud eundem,
"Abnegarunt Jehovam quando dixerunt, Non Ille; non veniet super nos malum, ac gladium famemque non videbimus" (5:12);
apud eundem,
"Juvenes morientur gladio, ac filii filiaeque eorum morientur fame" (11:22);
"juvenes" sunt qui in veris, et abstracte ipsa vera; - "mori gladio" est destrui per falsa; "filii filiaeque" sunt cognitiones veri et boni; "fames" est defectus earum.
[11] In Threnis,
"Cum periculo animarum nostrarum adducimus panem nostrum propter gladium deserti" (5:9);
"desertum" est ubi non bonum quia non verum; "gladius" ejus est destructio veri; "panis" est bonum quod "cum periculo animarum" recipitur, quia omne bonum implantatur homini per verum.
[12] Apud Ezechielem,
"Gladius foris, ac pestis et fames intus; qui in agro gladio morietur; qui in urbe pestis et fames comedent" (7:15);
"gladius" est destructio veri; "pestis" est inde consumptio; "fames" est plenarius defectus: similiter alibi (Ut Jeremias 21:7; 29:17, 18; 34:17).
[13] Apud Sachariam,
"Vae pastori nihili deserenti gregem; gladius super brachio ejus, et super oculo dextro ejus; brachium ejus arescendo exarescet, et oculus dexter ejus caligando caligabit" (11:17);
"gladius super brachio" est destructio voluntarii quoad bonum, "gladius super oculo dextro" est destructio intellectualis quoad verum; quod periturum omne bonum et omne verum significatur per quod "brachium arescendo exarescet et oculus dexter caligando caligabit."
[14] Apud Esaiam,
"Sic dicetis ad dominum vestrum, ... Ne time propter verba quae audivisti, quibus blasphemarunt pueri regis Aschuris Jehovam"... ecce cadere faciam eum gladio in terra sua. Et Sancheribus rex Aschuris reversus est;... et factum est cum incurvaret se in domo 4
Nisroch Dei sui, "... duo "filii percusserunt eum gladio" (37:6, 7, [37,] 38);
quia rationale est quod agnoscit et quod negat Divinum, et cum negat arripit omne falsum loco veri et sic perit, ideo hoc repraesentativum exstitit, nempe quod rex Aschuris, quia blasphemavit Jehovam, a filiis in domo "Nisroch Dei sui percuteretur gladio; "Aschur" significat rationale in utroque sensu (n. 119, 1186); "filii" regis illius significant falsa; et "gladius" destructionem per illa.
[15] Apud Mosen,
Urbs quae colit alios deos, percuteretur gladio et combureretur igne (Deuteronomius 13:13, (14, 16,) 17 [B.A. 12, 13, 15, 16]);
hoc statutum erat, quia eo tempore omnia repraesentativa erant; "colere alios deos" est colere ex falsis; "percuti gladio" est perire falso; et "comburi igne" est perire malo falsi.
[16] Apud eundem,
Quisquis tetigerit in agro confossum gladio, immundus erit (Numeri 19:16, 18, 19);
"in agro confossus gladio" repraesentabat illos intra ecclesiam qui destruxerunt vera apud se; "ager" ibi est ecclesia.
[17] Quod "gladius" significet falsum destruens verum, patet apud Davidem:
"Inflammantur filii hominis, dentes eorum hasta et tela, et lingua eorum gladius acutus" (Psalms 57:5 [B.A. 4]);
"Ecce eructant ore suo, gladii in labiis eorum" (Psalms 59:8 [B.A. 7]);
Operantes iniquitatem "acuunt sicut gladium linguam suam, tendunt telum suum verbo amaro" (Psalms 64:4 [B.A. 3]).
Ex his patet quid significatur per Domini verba ad Petrum,
"Omnes accipientes gladium, per gladium peribunt" (Matthaeus 26:51, 52);
nempe, quod qui credunt falsa perituri sint per falsa.
[18] Ex his nunc patet quid per "romphaeam", "machaeram", seu "gladium" in Verbo in utroque sensu significatur. Quod talia per "gladium" significentur, est quoque ex apparentia in mundo spirituali. Quando ibi pugnae spirituales sunt, quae sunt pugnae veri contra falsum, et falsi contra verum, tunc apparent varia arma belli, sicut enses, hastae, clipei, et similia; non quod per talia illis pugnae sint, sed sunt modo apparentiae repraesentativae pugnarum spiritualium. Quando falsa acriter pugnant contra vera, tunc quandoque e caelo apparet splendor aut fulgur ensis utrinque se vibrantis, ex quo magnus terror; quo dissipantur illi qui ex falsis pugnant.
[19] Ex eo patet quid intelligitur per haec apud Ezechielem,
"Exhorrescent cum volare fecero gladium meum praeter facies eorum, ut trepident ad momenta propter animam suam" (32:10-12);
et apud eundem,
"Propheta et dic, ... gladius exacutus est, etiamque expolitus, ... ut sit ei splendor ut colliquescat cor ah, factus est in fulgur" (Ezech. 21:14-20, 33 [B.A. 9, 10, 15]).
Quod inde tantus terror sit, est quia ferrum, ex quo ensis, significat verum in ultimis, ac splendor et fulgur est ex luce caeli et ejus vibratione super eum: lux caeli est Divinum Verum procedens a Domino; Divinum Verum ita incidens in illos qui in falsis sunt terrorem incutit.
[20] Exinde quoque patet quid significatur per quod, ejecto Adamo,
"Ab oriente Edenis habitare facti sint cherubi, et flamma gladii hinc inde vertentis et vibrantis se ad custodiendum vitam ad arborem vitae" (Genesis 3:24);
per "arborem vitae" significatur amor caelestis, qui est amor in Dominum; per "cherubos" custodia; per "flammam gladii hinc inde vertentis se" terrifica abactio et rejectio omnium qui in falsis sunt; "oriens Edenis" est ubi praesentia Domini est in illo amore: significatur itaque per illa, quod omnis aditus clausus sit ad agnoscendum solum Dominum (ei) qui non vitam amoris vivit. Quod per "gladium significetur falsum, patet manifeste apud Ezechielem, ubi de principe Tyri hoc dicitur,
"Evaginabunt gladios super pulchritudinem sapientiae tuae" (28:7);
per "principem Tyri" significatur intelligentia quae ex cognitionibus veri; quia illa exstinguitur per falsa, ideo dicitur "super sapientiam", quod non dici posset nisi per "gladios" intelligerentur falsa.
Footnotes:
1. The editors made a correction or note here.
2. The editors made a correction or note here.
3. The editors made a correction or note here.
4. The editors made a correction or note here.