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584. And the rest of the men who were not killed in these plagues.- That this signifies those who have not perished from the disorderly desires above mentioned, is evident from the signification of the rest of the men who were not killed, as denoting all those who have not perished. That to be killed, in the Word, signifies to be spiritually killed, or to perish in eternal death (morte aeterna), may be seen above (n. 547, 572); and from the signification of "these plagues," as denoting the disorderly desires above mentioned, or, the disorderly desires springing from the love of evil, and the love of falsity, also the lust (concupiscentia) of destroying the truths and goods of the church by the falsities of evil; all these are signified by the fire, smoke, and brimstone, going forth out of the mouths of the horses, (see above, n. 578). These are called plagues, because by plagues in the Word, are signified such things as destroy spiritual life with men, and therefore the church; they also signify those things that cause death understood in a spiritual sense, and these refer mainly to the disorderly desires arising from the loves of self and of the world; for these loves are the roots from which evils and falsities of every class and species are born and spring up.
[2] Such things are also signified by plagues in the following passages in the Apocalypse:
The two witnesses "have power over waters to turn them to blood, and to smite the earth with every plague as often as they desire" (11:6).
So again:
"Men blasphemed God because of the plague of the hail; for the plague thereof was exceeding great" (16:21).
And again:
"In one day shall the plagues come to" Babylon, "death, and mourning, and famine" (18:8).
And again:
"I saw seven angels having the seven last plagues, through which must be consummated the wrath of God" (15:1, 6, 8).
By plagues are meant such things as bring spiritual death upon man, which, consequently, altogether destroy and devastate the church with men individually, and thus generally, as will be seen in the explanation of the passages that follow where plagues are mentioned, and especially where the seven last plagues are treated of.
[3] Similar things are understood by plagues in the following passages in the prophets.
Thus in Isaiah:
"The light of the moon shall be as the light of the sun, and the light of the sun shall be sevenfold, in the day that Jehovah shall bind up the breach of his people, and heal the wound of their plague" (30:26).
And in Jeremiah:
"Thy bruise is incurable, and thy plague is grievous. For I have smitten thee with the plague of an enemy. I will restore health unto thee, and I will heal thee of thy plagues" (30:12, 14, 17).
Again, in the same prophet:
"Every one that goeth by" Edom, "shall hiss at all the plagues thereof" (49:17).
Again:
"Every one that goeth by Babylon shall hiss at all her plagues" (50:13).
And in Moses:
"If thou wilt not observe to do all the words of the law, Jehovah will make thy plagues wonderful, even great plagues, and of long continuance, and evil diseases, and of long continuance. Every disease, and every plague, which is not written in the book of this law, will Jehovah secretly bring upon thee, until thou be destroyed" (Deuteronomy 28:58, 59, 61).
Plagues here signify spiritual plagues, which do not destroy the body, but the soul, and which are also enumerated in that chapter in Deuteronomy (verses 20-68).
[4] What plagues signify in the spiritual sense, is described by correspondences in Zechariah:
"This shall be the plague, wherewith Jehovah shall smite all the people that shall fight against Jerusalem; the flesh of each one shall consume away so that he shall stand upon his feet, and his eyes shall consume away in their holes, and his tongue shall consume away in his mouth. And so shall be the plague of the horse, of the mule, of the camel, and of the ass, and of every beast that shall be in those camps, as this plague" (455:8),where this prophecy also is explained. Almost similar things are signified by the plagues of the horse, the mule, the camel, the ass, and every beast; for by the plague of these is signified the loss of all understanding of truth, both spiritual and natural; and by the plague of the beast is signified the loss of all affection for good.
[5] In Luke it is said that in the same hour in which John sent, Jesus "cured many of their diseases and plagues of evil spirits; and unto many that were blind he gave sight" (444:13), where the spiritual sense of this parable is explained.
584. Verse 20. And the rest of the men who were not killed in these plagues, signifies who did not perish by the cupidities above mentioned. This is evident from the signification of "the rest of the men who were not killed," as being all those who did not perish. "To be killed" signifies in the Word to be killed spiritually, which is to perish in eternal death (See above, n. 547, 572). Also from the signification of "these plagues," as being the cupidities above mentioned, namely, those signified by "fire, smoke, and brimstone going out of the mouth of the horses," which signify the cupidities that arise from the love of evil and the love of falsity, also the lusts of destroying the truths and goods of the church by the falsities of evil (as may be seen above, n. 578. These are called "plagues," because "plagues" signify in the Word such things as destroy the spiritual life, consequently the church in men, and which therefore induce death understood in the spiritual sense. These in brief have reference to the cupidities springing from the loves of self and of the world; for these loves are the roots from which evils and falsities of every genus and species spring up and grow.
[2] Such also is the signification of "plagues" in the following passages in Revelation:
The two witnesses have power over the waters, to turn them into blood, and to smite the earth with every plague as often as they will (Revelation 11:6).
Again:
Men blasphemed God because of the plague of the hail, for the plague thereof was exceeding great (Revelation 16:21).
Again:
In one day shall the plagues of Babylon come, death and mourning and famine (Revelation 18:8).
And again:
I saw seven angels having the seven last plagues, through which is to be finished the wrath of God (Revelation 15:1, 6, 8). That "plagues" mean such things as induce upon man spiritual death, consequently that wholly destroy and devastate the church with men in particular and thus in general, will be seen in the explanation of the passages that follow, where "plagues" are mentioned, and especially where "the seven last plagues" are treated of.
[3] "Plagues" have a like meaning in the following passages in the prophets. In Isaiah:
The light of the moon shall be as the light of the sun, and the light of the sun shall be sevenfold, in the day that Jehovah shall bind up the breach of His people, and shall heal the wound of their plague (Isaiah 30:26).
In Jeremiah:
It is desperate for thy bruise, thy plague is sore. I have smitten thee with the plague of an enemy. I will make health to ascend upon thee; I will heal thee of thy plague (Jeremiah 30:12, 14, 17).
In the same:
Everyone that passeth by Edom shall hiss at all the plagues thereof (4 Jeremiah 49:17).
In the same:
Everyone that passeth by Babylon shall hiss at all her plagues (Jeremiah 50:13).
In Moses:
If they will 1not take heed to do all the words of the law, Jehovah will make thy plagues wonderful, great plagues and lasting, and evil and lasting diseases. Also every disease and every plague which is not written in the book of this law will Jehovah secretly send upon thee until thou be destroyed (Deuteronomy 28:58, 59, 61).
"Plagues" here signify spiritual plagues, which destroy the soul, not the body, and which are enumerated in this chapter of Deuteronomy (verses 20-68).
[4] What "plagues" signify in the spiritual sense is described by correspondences in Zechariah:
This shall be the plague wherewith Jehovah will plague all the peoples that shall wage war against Jerusalem; his flesh shall waste away as he standeth upon his feet, and his eyes shall waste away in their sockets, and his tongue shall waste away in his mouth. So shall be the plague of the horse, of the mule, of the camel, of the ass, and of every beast that shall be in those camps, as this plague (455.) Almost the same things are signified by "the plagues of the horse, the mule, the camel, the ass, and every beast," for the "plague" of these signifies the loss of all understanding of truth, as well spiritual as natural; and "the plague of the beast" signifies the loss of all affection for good.
[5] In Luke:
In the same hour in which John sent unto Him, Jesus cured many of diseases and plagues of evil spirits; and on many that were blind He bestowed sight (444, where this parable is explained in its spiritual sense.)
Footnotes:
1. Latin has "they will," the Hebrew "thou whilt," as also in Apocalypse Explained 696; Arcana Coelestia 2826, 6752.
584. [Vers. 20.] "Et reliqui homines, qui non occisi sunt in plagis his." - Quod significet qui non perierunt ex cupiditatibus supradictis, constat ex significatione "reliquorum hominum qui non occisi sunt", quod sint omnes illi qui non perierunt; quod "occidi" in Verbo significet spiritualiter occidi, quod est perire morte aeterna, videatur supra (n. 547-572): et ex significatione "plagarum harum", quod sint cupiditates supradictae, quae nempe significantur per "ignem", "fumum" et "sulphur" exeuntia ex oribus equorum, per quae quod significatae sint cupiditates oriundae ex amore mali et amore falsi, tum concupiscentiae destruendi vera et bona ecclesiae per falsa mali, videatur supra (n. 578). Illa dicuntur "plagae", quia per "plagas" in Verbo significantur talia quae destruunt vitam spiritualem apud homines, et consequenter ecclesiam, proinde quae inducunt mortem in spirituali sensu intellectam; quae in summa se referunt ad cupiditates scaturientes ex amoribus sui et mundi; hi enim amores sunt radices, ex quibus omnis generis et omnis speciei mala et falsa propullulant et nascuntur.
[2] Talia per "plagas" etiam signi. ficantur in sequentibus in Apocalypsi,
Duo testes "potestatem habent super aquas, ut Vertant eas in sanguinem, et percutiant terram omni plaga, quoties voluerint" (11:6);
alibi,
"Blasphemarunt homines Deum prae plaga grandinis, quia magna erat plaga ejus valde" (16:21);
alibi,
"In una die venient plagae" Babyloni, "mors et planctus et fames" (18:8);
et alibi,
"Vidi.... septem angelos habentes septem plagas ultimas, per quas consummanda erat ira Dei" (15:1, 6, 8).
Quod per "plagas" intelligantur talia quae inducunt homini mortem spiritualem, consequenter quae prorsus perdunt et devastant ecclesiam apud homines in particulari et sic in communi, videbitur in explicatione locorum sequentium, ubi nominantur "plagae", et imprimis ubi de "septem plagis ultimis" agitur.
[3] Similia per "plagas" intelliguntur apud Prophetas in sequentibus locis:
- Apud Esaiam,
"Erit lux lunae sicut lux solis, et lux solis erit septupla, .... in die quo obligabit Jehovah fracturam populi sui, et vulnus plagae ejus sanabit" (30:26);
apud Jeremiam,
"Desperatum confractioni tuae, aegra plaga tua, .... plaga hostis percussi te;.... ascendere faciam sanitatem tibi, a plagis tuis sanabo te" (30:12, 14, 17);
apud eundem,
"Omnis transiens praeter" Edomum.... "sibilabit super omnibus plagis ejus" (49:17);
apud eundem,
"Omnis transiens praeter Babelem.... sibilabit super omnibus plagis ejus" (50:13);
apud Mosen,
"Si non 1
custodias facere omnia verba Legis.... , mirabiles reddet Jehovah plagas tuas, .... plagas magnas et constantes, et morbos malos et constantes:.... omnem morbum et omnem plagam, quae non scripta in Libro Legis hujus, occulte mittet Jehovah super te, usque dum perdaris" (Deutr. 28 [58,] 59, 61):
per "plagas" ibi significantur plagae spirituales, quae non corpus sed animam perdunt (quae etiam in eo capite in Deuteronomio enumerantur a vers. 20 ad 68).
[4] Quid "plagae" in spirituali sensu significant, describitur per correspondentias apud Sachariam,
"Haec erit plaga qua percutiet Jehovah omnes populos qui pugnabunt contra Hierosolymam, contabescet caro cujusque ut ipse stet super pedibus suis, et oculi ejus contabescent in foraminibus suis, et lingua ejus contabescet in ore ejus. .... Ita habebit se plaga equi, muli, cameli, asini et omnis bestiae, quae erit in castris illis, juxta plagam hanc" (14:12, 15);
haec dicta sunt de illis qui per falsa conantur destruere vera ecclesiae; "Hierosolyma" significat ecclesiam quoad vera doctrinae: et "pugnare contra illam" est conari destruere illa per falsa: quod "contabescet caro cujusvis ut ipse stet super pedibus" significat quod apud illos qui id conantur, peritura sit omnis voluntas boni, et quod illi sic futuri mere naturales corporei, caro" enim significat voluntatem ac ejus bonum aut malum, "pedes" significant illa quae sunt naturalis hominis, inde "stare super illis" significat ex illis soliS vivere: quod "oculi contabescent in foraminibus suis" significat quod periturus sit omnis intellectus veri ("oculi" illum significant); quod " contabescet lingua in ore ejus" significat quod peritura sit omnis perceptio veri et affectio boni. (De his videatur supra, n. 455 [b] , ubi hoc propheticum etiam explicatum est.) Similia paene significantur per "plagas equi, muli, cameli, asini, et omnis bestiae"; per "plagam" enim eorum significatur jactura omnis intellectus veri tam spiritualis quam naturalis, et per "plagam bestiae" significatur jactura omnis affectionis boni.
[5] Apud Lucam,
Eadem hora qua misit Johannes, Jesus "sanavit multos a morbis et plagis spirituum malorum, et caecis multis donavit videre" (7:21):
per "plagas spirituum malorum" intelliguntur obsessiones et status calamitosi inflicti hominibus tunc a malis spiritibus, qui tamen omnes significabant status correspondentes spirituales; omnes enim sanationes morborum factae a Domino significabant sanationes spirituales; inde miracula Domini erant Divina; ut hoc, quod "caecis multis donaverit videre", per quod significabatur quod illis qui in ignorantia veri fuerunt dederit intelligere vera doctrinae, Per
Plagas quas latrones inflixerunt homini descendenti a Hierosolyma in Jerichuntem (Luca 10:30),
etiam significantur plagae spirituales, quae erant falsa et mala infusa peregrinis et gentibus a Scribis et Pharisaeis. (videatur supra, n. 444 [c] , ubi haec parabola quoad sensum spiritualem explicata est.)
Footnotes:
1. The editors made a correction or note here.