Jesus, knowing that all things were not finished, that the Scripture might be fulfilled said, I thirst. And there had been placed a vessel full of vinegar; and they filled a sponge and placed it upon hyssop, and put it to His mouth. And when Jesus had received the vinegar He said, It is finished." John 19:28-30
Those who think of these things only naturally and not spiritually may believe that they involve nothing more than that the Lord thirsted, and that vinegar was then given Him; but it was because all things that the Scriptures said of Him were then finished, and because He came into the world to save mankind that He said,,, "I thirst," which means that from Divine love He willed and desired the salvation of the human race; and that "vinegar was given Him" signifies that in the coming church there would be no genuine truth, but truth mixed with falsities, such as there is with those who separate faith from charity or truth from good; this is what "vinegar" signifies; "they placed it upon hyssop" signifies some kind of purification by it, for "hyssop" signifies an external means of purification (AC 7918). Every particular related in the Word respecting the Lord's passion involves and signifies Divine celestial and Divine spiritual things....
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Wow! There is a very striking point in this passage, namely... "that "vinegar was given Him" signifies that in the coming church there would be no genuine truth, but truth mixed with falsities, such as there is with those who separate faith from charity or truth from good; this is what "vinegar" signifies; "they placed it upon hyssop" signifies some kind of purification by it, for "hyssop" signifies an external means of purification (AC 7918)."
I hadn't see this before, but it shows the Lord's prescience concerning the first Christian Church and that even in spite of the perverse response to His life and teaching in the doctrines of salvation by faith alone there would still be some use of purification served by that church. What a wonderful and mixed teaching this is, and how powerful in its symbolism!!
-- Mike Gladish, Calgary
The Calgary New Church Project
www.CalgaryProject.org
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