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356. And he that sat on him had a bow. That this signifies the doctrine of charity and faith thence, from which evils and falsities are fought against and dispersed, is clear from the signification of one sitting on a white horse, as denoting the Word (of which we have treated just above); and from the signification of a bow as denoting the doctrine of charity and faith, from which evils and falsities are combated and dispersed. That by a bow is signified that doctrine, will be seen in what follows. Here something shall first be said concerning doctrine:
I. That no one can understand the Word without doctrine;
II. That no one can fight against evils and falsities, and dissipate them, without doctrine from the Word;
III. That no one within the church where the Word is can become spiritual without doctrine from the Word;
IV. That doctrine cannot be procured from any other source than from the Word, and by no others but those who are in enlightenment from the Lord;
V. That all things of doctrine are to be confirmed by the sense of the letter of the Word.
I. That no one can understand the Word without doctrine, is evident from this fact, that the sense of its letter consists of pure correspondences, which contain in themselves spiritual things, thus it consists of such things as are in the world and partake of its nature. Hence it is that the sense of the letter is natural and not spiritual, accommodated, nevertheless, to the apprehension of the simple who do not elevate their ideas above such things as they see before their eyes. For this reason it also contains things that do not appear to be spiritual, although the whole Word inwardly is purely spiritual, because it is Divine. On this account there are many things in the sense of the letter which can serve for no doctrine of the church at this day, and many things which can be applied to various and diverse principles, whence, heresies; but still there are many things intermingled, from which doctrine may be gathered and formulated, especially the doctrine of life, which is the doctrine of charity, and of faith thence. But he who reads the Word from doctrine, sees there all things that are confirmatory, and also many things which lie hidden from the eyes of others; nor does he suffer himself to be drawn away into strange doctrines by those things therein that do not appear to agree, and which he does not understand; for everything of doctrine that he sees therein [appears] to him in clearness, and the rest are obscure to him. Therefore doctrine, which consists of genuine truths, is like a lamp to those who read the Word; and, on the other hand, the Word, to those who read it without doctrine, is like a candlestick without a light, put in an obscure place, by which nothing conducing to salvation can be there seen, known, sought for, and found. Such persons, besides, may be led away into error of every kind, to which the mind inclines from some love, or is drawn from some principle. Hence it is evident that no one can understand the Word without doctrine.
[2] II. No one can fight against evils and falsities, and disperse them, without doctrine from the Word.
This is evident from this fact, that from doctrine truths can be seen in their own light, and in their proper order, but not from the Word without doctrine, which is manifest from what has just been said; and if truths cannot be seen, neither can falsities and evils be seen, for the latter are opposed to the former; and yet all combat against evils and falsities is from truths, that is, by means of truths from the Lord. Therefore he who reads the Word without doctrine, may easily fight for falsity against truth, and for evil against good, by confirming those things by a wrong interpretation and application of the sense of the letter of the Word; hence it follows that the man is not reformed; for he is reformed by the dispersion of evils and of the falsities thence, by truths applied to the life. This now is what is meant by the white horse which was seen, and by him that sat on him, who had a bow; for by a white horse is signified the understanding of truth from the Word, and by the bow is signified the doctrine of charity and of the faith thence, from which evils and falsities are fought against and dispersed.
[3] III. No one within the church where the Word is, can become spiritual without doctrine from the Word.
This is evident from what has now been said, namely, that the Word without doctrine is not understood, and that without doctrine from the Word no one can fight against evils and falsities; for man becomes spiritual by a life according to Divine truths (these he does not know without doctrine) and by the removal of evils and falsities, which is not effected without doctrine, as said above; without these two man is not reformed, thus does not become spiritual, but remains natural, and confirms his natural life by the sense of the letter of the Word, which is natural, by wrongly interpreting and applying it. It is said, "within the church where the Word is," because those who are out of the church have not the Word, and hence know nothing concerning the Lord; and no one becomes spiritual except from the Lord. But still all those who acknowledge a God, and worship Him under the human form, and live in charity according to a religious persuasion agreeing with the Word, are prepared by the Lord to receive spiritual life, which also they do receive in the other life (concerning which circumstance see the work concerning Heaven and Hell 318-328; and above, n. 107, 195). Man becomes spiritual by regeneration, and regeneration is effected by water and the spirit, that is, by truths and by a life according to them (as may be seen in the Doctrine of the New Jerusalem 173-186; that baptism in the Christian world is for a sign and memorial thereof, n. 202-209, in the same work).
[4] IV. Doctrine can be procured from no other source but the Word, and by none but those who are enlightened by the Lord.
This is evident from this consideration, that the Word is Divine truth itself, and of such a quality that the Lord is in it, for the Lord is in His own Divine truth which proceeds from Him; therefore those who form doctrine from any other source than the Word, do not form it from the Divine truth nor from the Lord. Moreover, in every particular of the Word there is a spiritual sense, in which sense the angels of heaven are, whence there is conjunction of heaven with the church by means of the Word; therefore those who form doctrine from any other source than from the Word, do not form it in conjunction with heaven, whence nevertheless, all enlightenment comes. (That the conjunction of heaven with man is by the Word, may be seen in the work concerning Heaven and Hell 303-310.) Hence it is evident that doctrine is to be procured from no other source but the Word, and by none but those who are enlightened by the Lord. Those are enlightened by the Lord who love truths because they are truths; these, because they do them, are in the Lord and the Lord in them.
[5] V. All things of doctrine are to be confirmed by the sense of the letter of the Word.
This is evident from this consideration, that the Divine truth is in the sense of the letter in its fulness, for that is the final sense, and in it is the spiritual sense; therefore, when doctrine is confirmed thence, the doctrine of the church is also the doctrine of heaven, and there is conjunction by the correspondences. This may be illustrated by this consideration alone: When man thinks any truth, and confirms it by the sense of the letter, it is perceived in heaven, but not if he does not confirm it; for the sense of the letter is the basis into which the spiritual ideas that the angels possess terminate, nearly in the same manner as expressions are the basis into which the sense of the thought falls and is communicated to another. That this is the case might be confirmed by much experience from the spiritual world; but this is not the place to adduce it.
356. And he that sat on him had a bow, signifies the doctrine of charity and faith from that understanding, by which evils and falsities are combated and dispersed. This is evident from the signification of "he that sat on a white horse," as meaning the Word (respecting which just above); also from the signification of "bow," as meaning the doctrine of charity and faith, by which evils and falsities are combated and dispersed. That "bow" signifies this doctrine will be seen in what follows. Here first let something be said respecting doctrine:
1. Without doctrine no one can understand the Word.
2. Without doctrine from the Word no one can fight against evils and falsities, and disperse them.
3. Without doctrine from the Word no one within the church, where the Word is, can become spiritual.
4. Doctrine can be acquired from no other source than from the Word, and by none except those who are in illustration from the Lord.
5. All things of doctrine must be confirmed by the sense of the letter of the Word.
In respect to the first, namely, "Without doctrine no one can understand the Word," it can be seen from this, that the sense of the letter consists of pure correspondences, which contain in themselves things spiritual, thus it consists of such things as are in the world and in its nature. From this it is that the sense of the letter is natural and not spiritual, accommodated, however, to the apprehension of the simple, who do not elevate their ideas above such things as they see before their eyes. From this it is, moreover, that it contains such things as do not appear to be spiritual, although the whole Word inwardly in itself is purely spiritual, because it is Divine. For this reason there are in the sense of the letter many things that cannot serve as doctrine for the church at this day, and many things that can be applied to various and diverse principles, and from this heresies arise; yet there are many things intermingled from which doctrine can be gathered and formed, especially the doctrine of life, which is the doctrine of charity and of faith therefrom. But he who reads the Word from doctrine sees there all things that confirm, as well as many things that lie concealed from the eyes of others; nor does he suffer himself to be drawn away into strange doctrines by those things in the Word that do not seem to agree, and that he does not understand; for all things of doctrine that he sees there are clear to him, and other things are obscure to him. Doctrine, therefore, which consists of genuine truths is as a lamp to those who read the Word; but on the other hand, to those who read the Word without doctrine it is like a lampstand without a light, placed in a dark place, by means of which nothing conducive to salvation can there be seen, known, inquired into, or found; moreover, one who so reads it is liable to be led away into any errors to which the mind is bent by some love, or is drawn by some principle. From this it can be seen that without doctrine no one can understand the Word.
[2] Second, "That without doctrine from the Word no one can fight against evils and falsities, and disperse them," can be seen from this, that from doctrine truths can be seen in their own light and in their own order, but not from the Word without doctrine. This is clear from what has just been said. But if truths cannot be seen, neither can falsities and evils be seen, for the latter are the opposite of the former; and yet all combat against evils and falsities is from truths, that is, by means of truths from the Lord; consequently he who reads the Word without doctrine may easily be led to fight for falsity against truth and for evil against good, by confirming evils and falsities by a wrong interpretation and application of the sense of the letter of the Word; and as a consequence the man is not reformed; for man is reformed by the dispersion of evils and the falsities of evil, by means of truths applied to the life. This is what is here meant by "the white horse" that was seen, and by "he that sat on him having a bow;" for "a white horse" signifies the understanding of truth from the Word, and "a bow" signifies the doctrine of charity and of faith therefrom by which evils and falsities are combated and dispersed.
[3] Third, "That without doctrine from the Word no one within the church, where the Word is, can become spiritual," can be seen from what has now been said, namely, that without doctrine the Word is not understood, and that without doctrine from the Word evils and falsities cannot be combated; for man becomes spiritual by means of a life according to Divine truths, which he does not know without doctrine, and by removing evils and falsities, which cannot be done without doctrine, as was said above. Without these two man is not reformed, thus does not become spiritual, but remains natural, and confirms his natural life by the sense of the letter of the Word, which is natural, by wrongly interpreting and applying it. It is said, within the church, where the Word is, since those who are out of the church do not have the Word, and therefore know nothing about the Lord; and no one becomes spiritual except from the Lord; and yet all who acknowledge a God and worship Him under the human form, and live in charity according to a religious principle that is in accord with the Word, are prepared by the Lord to receive spiritual life, and do receive it in the other life (on which we see in the work on Heaven and Hell 313-328; and above, n. 107, 195 313-328). Man becomes spiritual by regeneration, and regeneration is effected by "water and the spirit," that is, by means of truths and a life according to them (See in The Doctrine of the New Jerusalem, n. 173-186; that baptism in the Christian world is for a sign and memorial of regeneration, n. 202-209, in the same work).
[4] Fourth, "That doctrine can be acquired from no other source than from the Word, and by none except those who are in illustration from the Lord," can be seen from this, that the Word is Divine truth itself, and is such that the Lord is in it; for the Lord is in His Divine truth that proceeds from Him; those, therefore, who frame doctrine from any other source than from the Word, do not frame it from Divine truth nor from the Lord. Moreover, in the particulars of the Word there is a spiritual sense, and the angels of heaven are in that sense; consequently there is a conjunction of heaven with the church by means of the Word; those, therefore, who frame doctrine from any other source than the Word do not frame it in conjunction with heaven, from which nevertheless is all illustration. (That the conjunction of heaven with man is by means of the Word, see in the work on Heaven and Hell 303-310.) From this it is evident that doctrine is to be acquired from no other source than the Word, and by none except those who are in illustration from the Lord. They are in illustration from the Lord who love truths because they are truths; and because such as these do them, they are in the Lord and the Lord is in them.
[5] Fifth, "That all things of doctrine must be confirmed by the sense of the letter of the Word," can be seen from this, that Divine truth in the sense of the letter is in its fullness; for that is the ultimate sense, and the spiritual sense is in it; when, therefore, doctrine has been confirmed by that sense the doctrine of the church is also the doctrine of heaven, and there is conjunction by correspondence. Let this be illustrated by this only: when man thinks any truth and confirms it by the sense of the letter, it is perceived in heaven, but not if he does not confirm it; for the sense of the letter is the basis into which spiritual ideas, which are the angels' ideas, close, much the same as words are the basis into which the meaning of the thought falls and is communicated to another. That this is so might be confirmed by much experience from the spiritual world; but this is not the place to present it.
356. "Et sedens super illo habens arcum." - Quod significet inde doctrinam charitatis et fidei, ex qua pugnatur contra mala et falsa, ac dissipantur illa, constat ex significatione "sedentis super equo albo", quod sit Verbum (de qua mox supra); et ex significatione "arcus", quod sit doctrina charitatis et fidei, ex qua pugnatur contra mala et falsa, ac dissipantur illa. Quod per "arcum" significetur doctrina illa, videbitur in sequentibus; hic primum dicetur aliquid de Doctrina:-
(1) Quod nemo possit intelligere Verbum absque doctrina.
(2) Quod nemo possit pugnare contra mala et falsa, et dissipare illa, absque doctrina ex Verbo.
(3) Quod nemo possit absque doctrina ex Verbo intra ecclesiam, ubi Verbum est, fieri spiritualis.
(4) Quod doctrina non possit aliundae comparari quam ex Verbo, et non ab aliis quam qui in illustratione sunt a Domino.
(5) Quod omnia doctrinae confirmanda sint per sensum litterae Verbi.
Quod primum attinet, nempe, Quod nemo possit intelligere Verbum absque doctrina, constare potest ex eo, quod sensus litterae ejus sit ex meris correspondentiis, quae in se continent spiritualia, ita ex talibus quae sunt in mundo et ejus natura. Inde est quod sensus litterae sit naturalis et non spiritualis, accommodatus tamen captui simplicium, qui ideas suas non supra talia quae vident ante oculos, elevant. Inde est quod talia etiam contineat quae non apparent spiritualia, tametsi totum Verbum intus in se est pure spirituale, quia est Divinum; quapropter plura in sensu litterae sunt quae non inservire possunt pro aliqua doctrina ecclesiae hodie, et plura quae applicari possunt variis et diversis principiis, unde haereses; sed usque plura intermixta sunt ex quibus colligi et formari potest doctrina, imprimis doctrina vitae, quae est doctrina charitatis et inde fidei. At qui legit Verbum ex doctrina, is videt ibi omnia quae confirmant, et quoque plura quae latent coram oculis aliorum; nec patitur se abstrahi in aliena ab illis ibi quae non apparent concordare, et quae non intelligit, nam ei in claro sunt omnia doctrinae quae ibi videt, et reliqua ei sunt in obscuro: quapropter est doctrina, quae consistit ex genuinis veris, legentibus Verbum sicut lucerna; et vicissim est Verbum illis qui absque doctrina id legunt, sicut candelabrum absque lumine positum in obscuro loco, per quod ibi nihil videri, sciri, inquiri et inveniri potest, quod saluti conducit, praeter quod abduci possint in quoscunque errores, in quos mens ex aliquo amore inclinat, aut ex aliquo principio trahitur. Inde constare potest quod nemo possit intelligere Verbum absque doctrina.
[2] Secundo, Quod nemo possit pugnare contra mala et falsa, et dissipare illa, absque doctrina ex Verbo, constare potest ex eo, quod ex doctrina videri possint vera in sua luce et in suo ordine, non autem ex Verbo absque doctrina, quod patet ex mox antecedentibus; et si non possunt videri vera, nec possunt videri falsa et mala, sunt enim haec opposita illis: et tamen omnis pugna contra mala et falsa est ex veris, hoc est per vera a Domino; quapropter qui legit Verbum absque doctrina, facile pugnare potest pro falso contra verum et pro malo contra bonum, confirmando illa per sinistram interpretationem et applicationem sensus litterae Verbi; inde sequitur quod homo non reformetur, reformatur enim per dissipationem malorum et inde falsorum per vera applicata vitae. Hoc nunc est quod intelligitur per quod "visus equus albus, et sedens super illo habens arcum", per "equum album" enim significatur intellectus veri ex Verbo, et per "arcum" significatur doctrina charitatis et inde fidei, ex qua pugnatur contra mala et falsa, ac dissipantur illa.
[3] Tertio, Quod nemo possit absque doctrina e Verbo intra ecclesiam, ubi Verbum est, fieri spiritualis, constare potest ex illis quae nunc dicta sunt, quod nempe Verbum absque doctrina non intelligatur, et quod absque doctrina ex Verbo non possit pugnari contra mala et falsa; homo enim spiritualis fit per vitam secundum Divina Vera, quae non scit absque doctrina, et per remotionem malorum et falsorum, quae nec fit absque doctrina, ut supra dictum est; et absque duabus illis homo non reformatur, ita non fit spiritualis, sed manet naturalis, et confirmat vitam suam naturalem per sensum litterae Verbi, qui est naturalis, sinistre interpretando et applicando illum. Intra ecclesiam, ubi Verbum, dicitur, quia illi qui extra ecclesiam sunt non habent Verbum, et inde nihil sciunt de Domino, et nemo spiritualis fit nisi a Domino; sed usque omnes illi qui Deum agnoscunt et colunt sub forma Humana, et vivunt in charitate secundum religiosum concordans cum Verbo, ad spiritualem vitam recipiendam praeparantur a Domino, quam etiam recipiunt in altera vita (de qua re videatur in opere De Caelo et Inferno 318-328; et supra, n. 107, 195(a)). Homo spiritualis fit per regenerationem; et regeneratio fit per "aquam et spiritum", hoc est, per vera et per vitam secundum illa (videatur in Doctrina Novae Hierosolymae, n. 173-186:
quod Baptismus in Christiano orbe sit in signum et in memoriale ejus, n. 202-209 ibi).
[4] Quarto, Quod doctrina non aliunde possit comparari quam ex Verbo, et quod non ab aliis quam qui in illustratione sunt a Domino, constare potest ex eo, quod Verbum sit ipsum Divinum Verum, et tale ut in illo sit Dominus; est enim Dominus in suo Divino Vero quod procedit ab Ipso: quare qui aliunde faciunt doctrinam quam ex Verbo, non faciunt ex Divino Vero, nec ex Domino. Praeterea in singulis Verbi est sensus spiritualis, in quo sensu sunt angeli caeli; inde est per Verbum conjunctio caeli cum ecclesia; quare qui aliunde faciunt doctrinam quam ex Verbo, non faciunt illam in conjunctione cum caelo, unde tamen illustratio ; (quod Conjunctio Caeli cum Homine sit per verbum, videatur in opere De Caelo et Inferno 303-310); inde patet quod doctrina non aliunde comparanda sit quam ex Verbo, et quod non ab aliis quam qui in illustratione sunt a Domino. In illustratione sunt a Domino, qui amant vera quia vera sunt; hi, quia faciunt illa, in Domino sunt et Dominus in illis.
[5] Quinto, Quod omnia doctrinae confirmanda sint per sensum litterae Verbi, constare potest ex eo, quod Divinum Verum in sensu litterae sit in suo pleno; est enim ille sensus ultimus, et in illo est sensus spiritualis; quare cum doctrina inde confirmata est, est doctrina ecclesiae etiam doctrina caeli, et conjunctio est per correspondentias. Hoc illustretur per hoc solum: quando homo aliquod verum cogitat, et id per sensum litterae confirmat, quod id percipiatur in caelo; non autem si non confirmat: est enim sensus litterae basis in quam ideae spirituales, quae sunt angelis, desinunt, paene sicut voces sunt basis in quas sensus cogitationis cadit et communicatur alteri: quod ita sit, per multam experientiam e mundo spirituali confirmari potest; sed non hujus loci est illam hic adducere.