Portions: Matthew 16 - 20

Jesus turned and said to Peter,
"Get behind me, Satan! 
You are a stumbling block to Me;
you do not have in mind the things of God,
but the things of men."
(Matthew 16:23)

After six days Jesus took with Him
Peter, James and John the brother of James,
and led them up on a high mountain
by themselves.
There He was transfigured before them.
His face shone like the sun,
and His clothes became as white as the light.
(Matthew 17:1-2)

At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked,
'Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?"
He called a little child and had him stand among them.
And He said:  "I tell you the truth,
unless you change and become like little children,
you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.
Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this child
is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven."
(Matthew 18:1-4)

Now a man came up to Jesus and asked,
"Teacher, what good thing must I do to get eternal life?"
"Why do you ask Me about what is good?"
Jesus replied.
"There is only One who is good.
If you want to enter life,
obey the commandments."
(Matthew 19:16-17)

Jesus had compassion on them
and touched their eyes.
Immediately they received their sight
and followed Him.
(Matthew 20:34)

AC 8864 - "I am Jehovah thy God" (Exodus 20:2)

AC 8864
I am Jehovah thy God.
(Exodus 20:2)
That this signifies the Lord as to the Divine Human
universally reigning in each and all things of good and truth,
is evident from the fact that in the Word
no other than the Lord is meant by "Jehovah" . . .
that the Lord is called "Jehovah" from the Divine good,
which is the Divine Being,
but "God" from the Divine truth,
which is the Divine Coming-forth.
That it is the Divine Human of the Lord
which is here meant by "Jehovah God,"

[2] That the Divine Human of the Lord
is meant by "Jehovah God,"
is because the Divine Itself
which is in the Lord
cannot be seen in heaven, and not even perceived,
thus cannot be received in faith and love,
but the Divine Human only.
That the Divine Itself cannot
be communicated to the angels in heaven,
and still less to men on earth,
except through the Divine Human,
is known in the churches
from the words of the Lord in the Evangelists,
where He says that He is the "door,"
that He is the "mediator,"
that "no one can come to the Father but through Him,"
that "no one knows the Father but He,"
and that "no one hath seen the Father,"
not even any "shape" of Him.
From this it is plain that it is the Lord
who is here meant by "Jehovah God."
That it is He also who redeemed the human race
and liberated it from hell
is likewise known.
This is signified by the words which follow:
"who brought thee forth out of the land of Egypt,
out of the house of servants."
From all this it is now plain
that Jehovah God who spoke from Mount Sinai
denotes the Lord as to the Divine Human.

[3] That this is the first thing
which is said by the Lord from Mount Sinai,
is because this ought to reign universally
in each and all things that follow;
for what is said first
must be kept in the memory in the things that follow,
and must be regarded as the universal thing that is in them.
. . . The things said by the Lord are all of this nature,
namely, that the things said first
are to reign in the things which follow,
and are to involve them,
and so successively the things that follow in the series.
The things which follow in this chapter
are the commandments of the Decalogue,
which are internal truths,
and then the statutes,
which are external truths.
In both of these the Lord must reign as to the Divine Human,
for they are from Him, and are Himself,
because all truths that are truths proceed from Him,
and the things which proceed from Him are Himself.
That the Lord as to the Divine Human
must reign in each and all things of faith,
is also known in the churches, for it is there taught
that without the Lord there is no salvation,
and that all the truth and good of faith are from Him.
Thus as He is the source of faith,
He is the faith with a person,
and if the faith, He is also every truth
that is contained in the doctrine of faith,
which is from the Word.
From this also it is that the Lord is called "the Word."

Portions: Matthew 13 - 15

That same day
Jesus went out of the house and sat by the lake.
Such large crowds gathered around Him
that He got into a boat and sat in it,
while all the people stood on the shore.
Then He told them many things in parables . . .
(Matthew 13:1-3)

And He directed the people to sit down on the grass.
Taking the five loaves and two fish
and looking up to heaven,
He gave thanks and broke the loaves.
Then He gave them to the disciples,
and the disciples gave them to the people.
(Matthew 14:19)

He told the crowd to sit down on the ground.
Then He took the seven loaves and the fish,
and when He had given thanks,
He broke them and gave them to the disciples,
and they in turn to the people.
(Matthew 15:35-36)

AC 8861 - "And God spoke all these words, saying" (Exodus 20:1)

AC 8861
And God spake all these words, saying.
(Exodus 20:1)
. . . the things which God speaks
are nothing else than truths.
From this also truth Divine is called "the Word,"
and "the Word" is the Lord, according to John 1:1,
for the reason that when the Lord was in the world
He was the Divine truth itself,
and afterward when He was glorified
He became the Divine good,
and from that time forward
all Divine truth proceeds from Him.
This Divine truth is light to the angels,
which light is also that which illuminates our internal sight,
which is that of the understanding.

[2] As this sight does not see natural, but spiritual things,
it has for its objects in the spiritual understanding
the truths which are called the truths of faith;
but in the natural understanding
it has for its objects truths of the civil state
which relate to what is just,
and also truths of the moral state
which relate to what is reputable,
and lastly natural truths
which are conclusions from the objects of the external senses,
especially of the sight.
From all this it can be seen in what order truths follow,
and that all and each have their origin from truths Divine,
which are the internal beginnings of all things.
. . . for truth Divine is the highest essential,
and is the only substantial through which all things are.

Portions: Matthew 9 - 12

While Jesus was having dinner at Matthew's house,
many tax collectors and "sinners"
came and ate with Him and His disciples.
When the Pharisees saw this,
they asked His disciples,
"Why does your Teacher eat
with tax collectors and 'sinners'?"
On hearing this, Jesus said,
"It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick."
(Matthew 9:10-12)

He called His twelve disciples to Him
and gave them authority to drive out evil spirits
and to heal every disease and sickness.
These are the names of the twelve apostles:
first, Simon (who is called Peter) and his brother Andrew:
James son of Zebedee, and his brother John;
Philip and Bartholomew;
Thomas and Matthew the tax collector;
James son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus;
Simon the Zealot and Judas Iscariot who betrayed Him.
(Matthew 10:1-4)

"Come to Me,
all you who are weary and burdened,
and I will give you rest.
Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me,
for I am gentle and humble in heart,
and you will find rest for your souls.
For My yoke is easy
and My burden is light."
(Matthew 11:28-30)

"The good man brings good things
out of the good stored up in him,
and the evil man brings evil things
out of the evil stored up in him."
(Matthew 12:35)

AC 8838 - sanctify: to veil over or cover with a veil

AC 8838
For unless they were veiled over,
the Divine would penetrate and destroy,
because the presence of the Divine
is like a consuming fire to those who are not veiled over.
So it is that even the angels are veiled over with a cloud.
From all this it can be seen what is meant by being veiled over.
That this is signified by "being sanctified"
is because when they are veiled over
they appear in holiness,
for then the Divine can flow in
and present there a state of good
and a form of truth,
which cannot be effected without a veiling over.

Portions: Matthew 5 - 8

Now when He saw the crowds,
He went up on a mountainside and sat down.
His disciples came to Him,
and He began to teach them, saying:
"You have heart that it was said,
Love your enemies
and pray for those who persecute you,
that you may be sons of your Father in heaven."
(Matthew 5:1-2,43-45)

"The eye is the lamp of the body.
If your eyes are good,
your whole body will be full of light.
But if your eyes are bad,
your whole body will be full of darkness.
If then the light within you is darkness,
how great is that darkness!"
(Matthew 6:22-23)

"Which of you,
if his son asks for bread, will give him a stone?
Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake?
If you then, though you are evil,
know how to give good gifts to your children,
how much more will your Father in heaven
give good gifts to those who ask Him?
So in everything,
do to others what you would have them to do you,
for this sums up the Law and the Prophets."
(Matthew 7:9-12)

When He came down from the mountainside,
large crowds followed Him.
A man with leprosy came and knelt before Him and said,
"Lord, if You are willing, You can make me clean."
Jesus reached out His hand and touched the man.
"I am willing," He said.  "Be clean!"
Immediately he was cured of his leprosy.
Then Jesus said to him,
"See that you don't tell anyone.
But go, show yourself to the priest
and offer the gift Moses commanded,
as a testimony to them."
(Matthew 8:1-4)

AC 8814 - truth in the clouds; AC 8823 - truth sounding the trumpets

AC 8814
. . . the signification of "a cloud,"
as being truth accommodated to those
who are about to receive . . .
they did not understand internal things,
nor were they willing to understand them,
because these were contrary to their loves,
which were
- that they might be the most exalted
of all peoples in the world,
- and also the most opulent of all,
- and that all other nations might be as nothing
in comparison with them.
Where these loves are,
there heavenly loves cannot be received,
for these are extinguished and suffocated
by the worldly loves.
This is the reason why Jehovah, that is, the Lord,
appeared to them in a dense and heavy cloud,
in like manner 
as is the case in the other life,
where they who are in falsities from evil
are encompassed with a dense and black cloud
in accordance with the quality and the amount of the falsities.
This appears to everyone there before the eyes,
and yet the Sun there is continually shining.
Speaking generally,
the Divine in the other life appears to everyone
according to the quality of his faith and love.

AC 8823
. . . the signification of "the voice of the trumpet,"
as being heavenly or angelic truth
conjoined with what is Divine,
thus what is general of revelation;
for truth Divine is revelation,
and that which is made clear
through the medium of heaven
is general
relatively to the truth Divine itself in heaven . . ..
For the case herein is as it is with sound which is on high,
where the atmosphere is purer,
and the sound is silent;
but when it descends to lower regions
where the atmosphere is denser,
it becomes louder and more sonorous.
So it is with Divine truth and Divine good,
which in the highest are peaceful
and cause no disturbance whatever;
but when they descend toward lower things
they gradually become unpeaceful,
and finally tumultuous.
This is what is so described by the Lord
in the first book of the Kings
to Elijah, when he was in Horeb:

Go forth, and stand on the mountain before Jehovah;
behold Jehovah is passing by;
so that there was a great and strong wind
rending the mountains, and breaking in pieces
the rocks before Jehovah;
Jehovah was not in the wind.
Then after the wind an earthquake;
yet Jehovah was not in the earthquake.
After the earthquake a fire;
Jehovah was not in the fire.
Lastly after the fire a still small voice.*
(1 Kings 19:11, 12)
* The Latin has "a still thin voice" (vox silentii tenuis).

Portions: Matthew 1 - 4

All this took place to fulfill
what the Lord had said through the prophet:
"The virgin will be with child
and will give birth to a son,
and they will call Him "Immanuel"
- which means, "God with us."
(Matthew 1:22)

After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea,
during the time of King Herod,
Wise Men from the east
came to Jerusalem and asked,
"Where is He that is born king of the Jews?
We have seen His star in the east
and have come to worship Him."
(Matthew 2:1-2)

Jesus replied,
"Let it be so now;
it is proper for us to do this
to fulfill all righteousness."
Then John consented.
As soon as Jesus was baptized,
He went up out of the water.
At that moment heaven was opened,
and he saw the Spirit of God
descending like a dove and lighting on Him.
And a voice from heaven said,
"This is my Son, whom I love;
with Him I am well pleased."
(Matthew 3:15-17)

Jesus went throughout Galilee,
teaching in their synagogues,
preaching the good new of the kingdom,
and healing every disease and sickness
among the people.
News about Him spread all over Syria . . ..
Large crowds from Galilee,
the Decapolis, Jerusalem, Judea
and the region across the Jordan followed Him.
(Matthew 4:23-24,25)

AC 8806 - the good from the Lord is holy

AC 8806 [2]
Those who are of the spiritual church
and live a life of truth
and from this a life of good,
are withheld from evils
and are kept in good by the Lord.
The good which is from the Lord is holy with them.
Consequently insofar as they receive good from the Lord,
so far they are holy;
and they receive so much of good from the Lord,
that is, are so far holy,
as they live a life of good
according to the genuine truths of faith,
and at the same time believe
that all the good which they then think and do
is from the Lord.

Portions: Malachi 1 - 4

An oracle:
The world of the Lord to Israel through Malachi.
"When you bring blind animals for sacrifice,
is that not wrong?
When you sacrifice crippled or diseased animals,
is that not wrong?
Try offering them to your governor!
Would he be pleased with you?
Would he accept you?" says the Lord Almighty.
(Malachi 1:1,8)

"For the lips of a priest ought to preserve knowledge,
and from his mouth men should seek instruction -
because he is a messenger of the Lord Almighty."
 
 You have wearied the Lord with you words.
"How have we wearied Him?" you ask.
By saying,
"All who do evil are good in the eyes of the Lord,
and He is pleased with them"
or "Where is the God of justice?"
(Malachi 2:7,17)

"See, I will send My messenger,
who will prepare the way before Me.
Then suddenly the Lord you are seeking
will come to His temple;
the Messenger of the Covenant,
whom you desire, will come,"
says the Lord Almighty.
(Malachi 3:1)

"But for you who revere My name,
the Sun of righteousness will rise
with healing in Its wings."
(Malachi 4:2)

AC 8788 - Who makes the church?

AC 8788
. . . in order that there may be a church,
there must be with the person of the church
faith in the Lord,
and also love to Him,
and likewise love toward the neighbor.
These make the church.

[2] The church is represented
when the person makes worship consist in external things,
but in such as correspond to heavenly things.
The internal things are represented by external ones,
and the internal things are open in heaven,
with which there is consequent conjunction.

Portions: Zechariah 10 - 14

Ask the Lord for rain in the springtime;
it is the Lord who makes the storm clouds.
He gives showers of rain to men,
and plants of the field to everyone.
(Zechariah 10:1)

"For I will no longer have pity on the people of the land,"
declares the Lord.
(Zechariah 11:6)

"Then the leaders of Judah will say in their hearts,
'The people of Jerusalem are strong,
because the Lord Almighty is their God.
(Zechariah 12:5)

"On that day a fountain will be opened
to the house of David
and the inhabitants of Jerusalem,
to cleanse them from sin and impurity.
"On that day,
I will banish the names of the idols from the land,
and they will be remembered no more,"
declares the Lord Almighty.
(Zechariah 13:1-2)

A day of the Lord is coming . . .
'On that day His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives,
east of Jerusalem,
and the Mount of Olives will be split in two
from east to west, forming a great valley,
with half of the mountain moving north
and half moving south.
On that day there will be no light, no cold or frost.
It will be a unique day,
without daytime or nighttime -
a day known to the Lord.
When evening comes, there will be light.
On that day living water will flow out from Jerusalem,
half to the eastern sea and half to the western sea,
in summer and in winter.
The Lord will be king over the whole earth.
On that day there will be one Lord,
and His name the only name.
(Zechariah 14:1,4,6-9)

AC 8760 - reading the Word

AC 8780 [2-3]
By revelation here in the internal sense
is not meant revelation such as was made
to the Israelitish people from Mount Sinai,
namely, that the Lord spoke in a loud voice,
and the people standing around heard;
but such a revelation is meant as
is not made with a loud voice,
but inwardly in a person.
This revelation is made
by the enlightenment of the internal sight,
which is of the understanding,
when a person who is in the affection of truth from good
is reading the Word.
This enlightenment is then effected by the light of heaven,
which is from the Lord as the sun there.
That light enlightens the understanding
in much the same way as outward sight,
which is that of the eye, is enlightened by the light
which flows from the sun in the world.
When the understanding is enlightened by that Divine light
it perceives that to be the truth which is the truth,
inwardly acknowledges it,
and so to speak sees it.
This is what the revelation is like
which is received by those
with an affection for truth springing from good,
when they read the Word.

But they who are in the affection of truth from evil,
that is, who desire to know truths
merely for the sake of honors, gain, reputation, and the like,
these do not see truths, but only see things
which confirm the doctrinal things of their church,
whether they are true or false.
The light which then enlightens these
is not Divine light from heaven,
but is a sensuous light such as is that of the infernals (hell),
which light becomes mere thick darkness
at the presence of heavenly light.
For when these read the Word,
they are altogether blind to the truth
which does not make one with their doctrine . . ..

Portions: Zechariah 1 -9

In the eighth month of the second year of Darius,
the word of the Lord came to the prophet Zechariah
son of Berekiah, the son of Iddo:
"The Lord was very angry with your forefathers.
Therefore tell the people:
This is what the Lord says:
'Return to Me,' declares the Lord Almighty,
'and I will return to you,' says the Lord Almighty.
(Zechariah 1:1-3)

"Shout and be glad, O Daughter of Zion.
For I am coming, and I will live among you,"
declares the Lord.
"Many nations will be joined with the Lord in that day
and will become My people.
I will live among you
and you will know that the Lord Almighty
has sent Me to you."
(Zechariah 2:10-11)

Now Joshua (the high priest) was dressed in filthy clothes
as he stood before the angel.
The angel said to those who were standing before him,
"Take off his filthy clothes."
Then he said to Joshua,
"See, I have taken away your sin,
and will put rich garments on you."
(Zechariah 3:3-4)

Then the word of the Lord came to me:
"The hands of Zerubbabel
have laid the foundation of this temple;
his hands will also complete it.
Then you will know
that the Lord Almighty has sent me to you."
(Zechariah 4:8-9)

I looked again -
and there before me was a flying scroll!
(Zechariah 5:1)

Those who are far away will come
and help to build the temple of the Lord,
and you will know
that the Lord Almighty has sent me to you.
This will happen
if you diligently obey the Lord your God."
(Zechariah 6:15)

"'When I called, 
they did not listen;
so when they called,
I would not listen,'
says the Lord Almighty."
(Zechariah 7:13)

"Do not be afraid.
These are the things you are to do:
Speak the truth to each other,
and render true and sound judgment in your courts;
do not plot evil against your neighbor,
and do not love to swear falsely.
I hate all this," declares the Lord.
(Zechariah 8:16-17)

Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion!
Shout, Daughter of Jerusalem!
See, your King comes to you,
righteous and having salvation,
gentle and riding on a donkey,
on a colt, the foal of a donkey.
(Zechariah 9:9)

AC 8768, 8772 - this life

AC 8768 [2]
That they who have the Word . . .
know the truths and goods of faith,
and because this is so
they can above others live the life of heaven
and thus be conjoined with the Lord.
For good, which makes heaven with a person,
has its quality from the truths of faith;
thus good becomes more heavenly or more Divine
with those who have genuine truths,
which are truths from the Word;
but only if they are kept, that is,
if the life is according to them.

AC 8772 [2]
This life, namely, spiritual life,
is first acquired by knowing the truths which are of faith,
afterward by acknowledging them,
and finally by believing them.
When they are only known,
they are as it were at the gate;
when they are acknowledged,
they are in the entrance hall;
but when they are believed,
they are in the inner chamber.
Thus they advance
from exteriors toward interiors successively.
In the interior person is good,
which is continually flowing in from the Lord,
and there conjoining itself with truths,
and making them to be faith
and afterward to be charity.
This good attracts truths to itself,
for it has a longing for them,
in order that through them
it may procure for itself a quality
and thus emerge.

Portions: Zephaniah 3; Haggai 1 - 2

Sing, O Daughter of Zion;
shout aloud, O Israel!
Be glad and rejoice with all your heart,
O Daughter of Jerusalem!
(Zephaniah 3:14)

Then Haggai, the Lord's messenger,
gave this message of the Lord to the people:
"I am with you," declares the Lord.
So the Lord stirred up the spirit of Zerubbabel
son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah,
and the spirit of Joshua
son of Jehozadak, the high priest,
and the spirit of the whole remnant of the people.
They came and began to work
on the house of the Lord Almighty, their God,
on the twenty-fourth day of the sixth month
in the second year of King Darius.
(Haggai 1:13-15)

'The silver is Mine, and the gold is Mine,'
declares the Lord Almighty.
'The glory of this present house
will be greater than the glory of the former house,'
says the Lord Almighty.
'And in this place I will grant peace,'
declares the Lord Almighty.
(Haggai 2:8-9)

AC 8754 - "the wilderness of Sinai" (Exodus 19:1)

AC 8754
A few words shall here be said
about the good in which truths are to be implanted,
which good is here signified by "the wilderness of Sinai."
He who is being regenerated
is led by means of truth
to the intent that he may come to good,
that is, may know it,
and then will it,
and finally do it.
But when he is being led to good by means of truth,
he first comes to the good
in which the truths of faith have not yet been implanted;
for truths cannot be implanted until he is in good.
Before this they are indeed known,
because they are in the memory,
but at this time they are not in good,
but are outside of good.
Afterward when the person receives new life,
which he first receives when he is in good,
the truths of faith are implanted,
and as it were enter upon a marriage
with good in the internal person.
This good,
in which the truths of faith have not yet been implanted,
but which is still so disposed that they can be received,
is here meant by "the wilderness of Sinai."
No other good is meant than Christian good.

Portions: Habakkuk 2 - 3; Zephaniah 1 - 2

"Of what value is an idol,
since a man has carved it?
Or an image that teaches lies?
For he who makes it trusts in his own creation;
he makes idols that cannot speak.
But the Lord is in His holy temple;
let all the earth be silent before Him."
(Habakkuk 2:18,20)

Though the fig tree does not bud
and there are no grapes on the vines,
though the olive crop fails
and the fields produce no food,
though there are no sheep in the pen
and no cattle in the stalls,
yet I will rejoice in the Lord,
I will be joyful in God my Savior.
(Habakkuk 3:17-18)

The word of the Lord
that came to Zephaniah son of Cushi,
the son of Gedaliah, the son of Amariah,
the son of Hezekiah,
during the reign of Joshia
son of Amon king of Judah:
Be silent before the Sovereign Lord,
for the day of the Lord is near.
The Lord has prepared a sacrifice;
He has consecrated those he has invited."
(Zephaniah 1:1,7)

Seek the Lord,
all you humble of the land,
you who do what He commands.
Seek righteousness,
seek humility;
perhaps you will be sheltered
on the day of the Lord's anger.
(Zephaniah 2:3)

AC 8742-8743, 8746 - the internal and external of a person

AC 8742-8743, 8746
Everyone has an internal man and an external man;
the internal man is what is called the spiritual man,
and the external man is what is called the natural man.
Both must be regenerated for the man to be regenerated.

With the man who has not been regenerated
the external or natural man commands,
and the internal or spiritual man serves;
but with the man who has been regenerated
the internal or spiritual man commands,
and the external or natural serves.
This inversion cannot possibly exist
except through regeneration by the Lord.

The internal man is first regenerated by the Lord,
and afterward the external man,
and the latter by means of the former.
The internal man is regenerated
by thinking those things which are of faith,
and willing them;
but the external man
by a life according to them.
The life of faith is charity.

Portions: Nahum 1 - 3; Habakkuk 1

An oracle concerning Nineveh.
The book of the vision of Nahum the Elkoshite.

The Lord is slow to anger and great in power.
The Lord will not leave the guilty unpunished.
(Nahum 1:1,3)

"I am against you," declares the Lord Almighty.
"I will burn up your chariots in smoke,
and the sword will devour your young lions.
I will leave you no prey on the earth.
The voices of your messengers
will no longer be heard."
(Nahum 2:13)

O king of Assyria, your shepherds slumber;
your nobles lie down to rest.
Your people are scattered on the mountains
with no one to gather them.
Nothing can heal your wound;
your injury is fatal.
Everyone who hears the news about you
claps his hands at your fall,
for who has not felt your endless cruelty?
(Nahum 3:18-19)

The oracle that Habakkuk the prophet received.
How long, O Lord, must I call for help,
but You do not listen?
Or cry out to You, "Violence!"
but You do not save?
(Habakkuk:1:1-2)

AC 8711 - gain; AC 8717 - Divine Blessing

AC 8711
By "gain" in general is signified
all the falsity from evil
that perverts the judgments of the mind;
and as this is the case
with those who have the world as their end,
therefore by "those who hate gain"
are also signified those who are without a worldly end.

AC 8717 [2,3]
. . . by means of the truth proceeding from Himself
the Lord directs all things down to the veriest singulars;
not as a king in the world,
but as God in heaven and in the universe.
A king in the world exercises only a care over the whole,
and his princes and officers a particular care.
It is otherwise with God,
for God sees all things,
and knows all things from eternity,
and provides all things to eternity,
and from Himself
holds all things in their order.
 
But this subject falls with difficulty into the idea of any person,
and least of all
into the idea of those who trust in their own prudence;
for they attribute to themselves
all things that happen prosperously for them,
and the rest they ascribe to fortune, or chance;
and few to the Divine Providence.
Thus they attribute the things that happen to dead causes,
and not to the living cause.
When things turn out happily they indeed say that it is of God,
and even that there is nothing that is not from Him;
but few, and scarcely any, at heart believe it.
In like manner do those who place all prosperity
in worldly and bodily things, namely, in honors and riches,
and believe that these alone are Divine blessings;
and therefore
when they see many of the evil abound in such things,
and not so much the good,
they reject from their heart
and deny the Divine Providence in individual things,
not considering
that Divine Blessing is to be happy to eternity,
and that the Lord regards
such things as are of brief duration,
as relatively, are the things of this world,
no otherwise than as means to eternal things.
Wherefore also the Lord provides for the good,
who receive His mercy in time,
such things as contribute
to the happiness of their eternal life;
riches and honors
for those to whom they are not hurtful;
and no riches and honors
for those to whom they would be hurtful.

Portions: Micah 3 - 7

This is what the Lord says:
"As for the prophets who lead My people astray,
if one feeds them,
they proclaim 'peace';
if He does not,
they prepare to wage war against Him."
(Micah 3:5)

Many nations will come and say,
"Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord,
to the house of the God of Jacob.
He will teach us His ways,
so that we may walk in His paths."
The law will go out from Zion,
the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.
(Micah 4:2)

"But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah,
though you are small among the clans of Judah,
out of you will come for Me
one who will be ruler over Israel,
whose origins are from old, from ancient times.
Therefore Israel will be abandoned
until the time when she who is in labor gives birth
and the rest of his brothers return to join the Israelites.
He will stand and shepherd His flock
in the strength of the Lord,
in the majesty of the name of the Lord His God.
And they will live securely,
for then His greatness will reach the ends of the earth.
And He will be their Peace.
(Micah 5:2-5)

He has showed you, O man, what is good.
And what does the Lord require of you?
To act justly and to love mercy
and to walk humbly with your God.
(Micah 6:8)

But as for me,
I watch in hope for the Lord,
I wait for God my Savior;
my God will hear me.
(Micah 7:7)

AC 8685, 8694 - perception & revelation

AC 8685 [2]
. . . the person who is being regenerated
and becoming a church has two states;
in the first state he acts from truth,
in the second from good.
In both states the person is led by the Lord;
but in the first by immediate influx,
and in the second by influx both immediate and mediate.
Immediate influx is represented
by Moses judging the people alone;
but influx both immediate and mediate,
by the princes of thousands, of hundreds,
of fifties, and of tens, being chosen, to judge small affairs,
and to refer great affairs to Moses.
But these are arcana which scarcely anyone can understand,
except one who is in enlightenment from the Lord,
and through enlightenment in perception.
These two kinds of influx, and also the consequent effects,
can indeed be described,
but still they do not fall rightly into the thought
unless there is perception from heaven;
and perception from heaven is not given
except with those who are in the love of truth from good;
and not even then
unless they are in the love of truth from genuine good.

AC 8694 [2]
By "revelation"
is meant enlightenment when the Word is read,
and perception then;
for they who are in good and long for truth
are taught in this way from the Word;
but they who are not in good
cannot be taught from the Word,
but can only be confirmed in such things
as they have been instructed in from infancy,
whether true or false. T
he reason why those who are in good have revelation,
and those who are in evil have no revelation,
is that in the internal sense
each and all things in the Word treat of the Lord
and of His kingdom,
and the angels who are with a person
perceive the Word according to the internal sense.
This is communicated to the person who is in good,
and reads the Word,
and from affection longs for truth,
and consequently has enlightenment and perception.
For with those who are in good
and from this in the affection of truth,
the intellectual part of the mind is open into heaven,
and their soul, that is, their internal man,
is in fellowship with angels;
but it is otherwise with those who are not in good,
thus who do not from the affection of good long for truth;
to these heaven is closed.

Portions: Jonah 1 - 4; Micah 1 - 2

The word of the Lord came to Jonah son of Amittai:
"Go to the great city of Nineveh and preach against it,
because its wickedness has come up before Me."
But Jonah ran away from the Lord and headed for Tarshish.
(Jonah 1:1-3)

And the Lord commanded the fish,
and it vomited Jonah onto dry land.
(Jonah 2:10)

Then the word of the Lord came to Jonah a second time:
"Go to the great city of Nineveh and proclaim to it
the message I give you."
When God saw what they did
and how they turned from their evil ways,
He had compassion
and did not bring upon them
the destruction He had threatened.
(Jonah 3:1-2,10)

But Jonah was greatly displeased and became angry.
But the Lord replied,
"Have you any right to be angry?"
(Jonah 4:1,4)

The word of the Lord that came to Micha of Moresheth
during the reigns of Jotham, Ahaz
and Hezekiah, kings of Judah -
the vision he saw concerning Samaria and Jerusalem.
(Micah 1:1)

If a liar and deceiver comes and says,
'I will prophesy for you plenty of wine and beer,'
he would be just the prophet for this people!
(Micah 2:11)

AC 8678
That "to deal proudly"
(Exodus 18:11)
denotes the endeavor and the force used to rule,
is because this endeavor and the consequent force
are in all pride,
for pride is to love self more than others,
and to set self above them,
and to wish to exercise command over others;
and they who wish this
also despise others in comparison with self,
and also persecute from hatred and revenge
those who set themselves above them,
or do not pay them respect.
The love of self, which is pride,
is of such a quality
that so far as the rein is given it, 
it rushes on, growing step by step
to the utmost of the ability that is granted to it,
until at last it lifts itself to the very throne of God
with the desire to be in His stead.
Such are all who are in hell.

That pride of heart, 
which is the love of self,
repels from itself the Divine,
and removes heaven from itself,
can be plainly seen
from the state of reception of the Divine and of heaven,
which is a state of love toward the neighbor,
and a state of humiliation toward God.
So far as a person can humble himself before the Lord,
and so far as he can love his neighbor as himself,
. . . so far he receives the Divine,
and consequently is so far in heaven.

Portions: Amos 8 - 9; Obadiah 1

"The days are coming," declares the Sovereign Lord,
"when I will send a famine through the land -
not a famine of food or a thirst for water,
but a famine of hearing the words of the Lord.
Men will stagger from sea to sea
and wander from north to east,
searching for the word of the Lord,
but they will not find it."
(Amos 8:11-12)

"In that day I will restore David's fallen tent.
I will repair its broken places,
restore its ruins,
and build it as it used to be,
so that they may possess the remnant of Edom
and all the nations that bear My name,"
declares the Lord, Who will do all these things.
(Amos 9:11-12)

The vision of Obadiah.
This is what the Sovereign Lord says about Edom -
We have heard a message from the Lord:
An envoy was sent to the nations to say,
"Rise, and let us go against her for battle" -
Though you soar like the eagle
and make your nest among the stars,
from there I will bring you down,"
declares the Lord.
(Obadiah 1:1,4)

AC 8662 - application; AC 8665 - peace

AC 8662
. . . application precedes conjunction . . .

AC 8665
. . . in the supreme sense "peace" signifies the Lord,
and from this the state of the inmost heaven,
where they are 
who are in love to the Lord,
and from this in innocence.

Portions: Amos 3 - 7

The lion has roared -
who will not fear?
The Sovereign Lord has spoken -
who can but prophesy?
(Amos 3:8)

He who forms the mountains,
creates the wind,
and reveals His thoughts to man,
He who turns dawn to darkness,
and treads the high places of the earth -
the Lord God Almighty is His name.
(Amos 4:13)

Seek good, not evil,
that you may live.
Then the Lord God Almighty will be with you,
just as you say He is.
(Amos 5:14)

Woe to you who are complacent in Zion,
and to you who feel secure on Mount Samaria,
you notable men of the foremost nation,
to whom the people of Israel come!
(Amos 6:1)

This is what He showed me:
The Lord was standing by a wall
that had been built true to plumb,
with a plumb line in His hand.
And the Lord asked me,
"What do you see, Amos?"
"A plumb line," I replied.
The the Lord said,
"Look, I am setting a plumb line
among My people Israel;
I will spare them no longer.
(Amos 7:7-8)

AC 8644 - in and from

AC 8644
. . . be it known
that between Divine good and Divine truth
there is this distinction -
that Divine good is in the Lord,
and Divine truth is from the Lord.
It is as with the fire of the sun
and the light which is therefrom;
the fire is in the sun,
and the light is from the sun . . .

Portions: Joel 2 - 3 ; Amos 1 - 2

Blow the trumpet in Zion;
sound the alarm on My holy hill.
Let all who live in the land tremble,
for the day of the Lord is coming.
(Joel 2:1)

The Lord will roar from Zion
and thunder from Jerusalem;
the earth and the sky will tremble.
But the Lord will be a refuge for His people,
a stronghold for the people of Israel.
(Joel 16)

The words of Amos,
one of the shepherds of Tekoa -
what he saw concerning Israel
two years before the earthquake,
when Uzziah was king of Judah
and Jeroboam son of Jehoash was king of Israel.
(Amos 1:1)

For three sins of Judah,
even for four,
I will not turn back My punishment.
Because they have rejected the law of the Lord
and have not kept His decrees,
they have been led astray by false gods,
the gods of their ancestors followed,
I will send fire upon Judah
that will consume the fortresses of Jerusalem.
(Amos 2:4-5)

AC 8635-8638 - a new life, a spiritual life

AC 8635-8638
No one can be regenerated
unless he knows such things
as are of the new life, that is, of spiritual life;
for a person is introduced into this life
by means of regeneration.
The things which are of the new life, or of spiritual life,
are truths which must be believed,
and goods which must be done;
the former are of faith,
the latter of charity.

No one can know these things from himself,
for a person understands only those things
which have been obvious to his senses;
from these he has procured for himself a light
which is called natural light,
by virtue of which he sees nothing else
than what belongs to the world and to himself,
and not what belongs to heaven and to God;
these he must learn from revelation.

For example, that the Lord,
who was God from eternity,
came into the world to save the human race;
that He has all power in heaven and in earth;
that everything of faith and everything of charity,
thus everything of truth and good
is from Him;
that there is a heaven,
and that there is a hell;
that man will live to eternity,
in heaven if he has done well,
in hell if he has done evil.

These things and more are of faith,
which must be known by the person
who is to be regenerated;
for he who knows them can think them,
then will them,
and lastly do them,
and thus have new life.

Portions: Hosea 11 - 14; Joel 1

I will not carry out My fierce anger,
nor will I turn and devastate Ephraim.
For I am God, and not man -
the Holy One among you.
I will not come in wrath.
(Hosea 11:9)

But your must return to your God;
maintain love and justice,
and wait for your God always.
(Hosea 12:6)

When I fed them,
they were satisfied;
when they were satisfied,
they became proud;
then they forgot Me.
(Hosea 13:6)

Who is wise?
He will realize these things.
Who is discerning?
He will understand them.
The ways of the Lord are right;
the righteous walk in them,
but the rebellious stumble in them.
(Hosea 14:9)

The word of the Lord
that came to Joel son of Pethuel.
Declare a holy fast;
call a sacred assembly.
Summon the elders and all who live in the land
to the house of the Lord your God,
and cry out to the Lord.
(Joel 1:1,14)

AC 8620 - judgment

AC 8620
. . . no one except the Lord alone can judge any one
according to his acts;
because all acts proceed from final causes,
which lie deeply concealed within.
Man is judged according to these causes;
and no one knows them but the Lord.r

Portions: Hosea 5 - 10

I know all about Ephraim;
Israel is not hidden from me.
Ephraim, you have now turned to prostitution;
Israel is corrupt.
Their deeds do not permit them
to return to their God.
A spirit of prostitution is in their heart;
they do not acknowledge the Lord.
(Hosea 5:3-4)

"Come, let us return to the Lord.
He has torn us to pieces but He will heal us;
He has injured us but He will bind up our wounds.
After two days He will revive us;
on the third day He will restore us,
that we may live in His presence.
(Hosea 6:1-2)

Woe to them,
because they have strayed from me!
Destruction to them,
because they have rebelled against me!
I long to redeem them
but they speak lies against me.
(Hosea 7:13)

Israel cries out to me,
'O our God, we acknowledge you!'
But Israel has rejected what is good;
an enemy will pursue him.
They set up kings without My consent;
they choose princes without My approval.
With their silver and gold
they make idols for themselves
to their own destruction.
(Hosea 8:3-4)

My God will reject them
because they have not obeyed Him;
they will be wanderers among the nations.
(Hosea 9:17)

Sow for yourselves righteousness,
reap the fruit of unfailing love,
and break up your unplowed ground;
for it is time to seek the Lord,
until He comes
and showers righteousness on you.
(Hosea 10:12)

AC 8606 - why faith that looks to the Lord conquers; AC 8615 - arcana or secrets in the letter of the Word

AC 8606
The reason why the faith that looks to the Lord conquers,
is that in this case the Lord fights,
for the Lord is the faith,
because the faith is from Him.
But the faith which looks away from the Lord
to self and the world yields,
because the person then fights from himself.

AC 8615 [2-3]
Every person who reflects
can see that the things which are related in these verses
contain arcana (secrets) which do not appear in the letter
- as that Moses stood on a hill, and had a rod in his hand;
that Joshua conquered when Moses lifted up his hands,
and Amalek conquered when Moses let down his hands;
that they put a stone under him upon which he sat;
and that Aaron and Hur held up his hands,
and this until the setting of the sun.
Unless all and every one of these things
had corresponded to things that are in heaven,
they could not have contributed anything
to the battle with Amalek.

Correspondences have all power,
insomuch that what is done on earth
according to correspondences
avails (is of use) in heaven,
because correspondences are from the Divine.
Those who are in the good of love and of faith
are in correspondence,
and the Divine does all things that relate to them,
for from the Divine
come the good of love and the good of faith.
All the miracles recorded in the Word
were done by means of correspondences.
The Word has been so written
that every particular in it, even to the most minute,
corresponds to things that are in heaven.
Consequently the Word has Divine power;
and it conjoins heaven with earth,
for when the Word is read on earth,
the angels in heaven
are moved unto the holiness 
that is in the internal sense.
This is effected by means of the correspondences
of all the several expressions in the Word.

Portions: Daniel 12; Hosea 14 - 4

He replied,
"Go your way, Daniel,
because the words are closed up
and sealed until the time of the end.
Many will be purified, made spotless and refined,
but the wicked will continue to be wicked.
None of the wicked will understand,
but those who are wise will understand.
"As for you,
go your way til the end.
You will rest,
and then at the end of the days
you will rise
to receive your allotted inheritance.
(Daniel 12:9-10,13)

The word of the Lord that came to
Hosea son of Beeri
during the reigns of Uzziah, Jotham,
Ahaz and Hezekiah, kings of Judah,
and during the reign of Jeroboam
son of Jehoash king of Israel:
When the Lord began to speak through Hosea,
the Lord said to him,
"Go, take to yourself an adulterous wife
and children of unfaithfulness,
because the land is guilty of the vilest adultery
in departing from the Lord."
So he married Gomer daughter of Diblaim,
and she conceived and bore him a son.
(Hosea 1:1-3)

Their mother has been unfaithful
and has conceived them in disgrace.
She said, 'I will go after my lovers,
who give me my food and my water,
my wool and my linen,
my oil and my drink.'
Therefore I will block her path with thornbushes;
I will wall her in 
so that she cannot find her way.
(Hosea 2:5-6)

The Lord said to me,
"Go show your love to your wife again,
though she is loved by another
and is an adulteress.
Love her as the Lord loves the Israelites,
though they turn to other gods
and love the sacred raisin cakes."
(Hosea 3:1)

The Israelites are stubborn,
like a stubborn heifer.
How then can the Lord pasture them
like lambs in a meadow?
(Hosea 4:16)

AC 8599 - the origin of truth fighting

AC 8599
. . . truth fighting has power in it from good (Joshua);
for all the power which truth has,
is from the good which is in it.
The reason is that the Divine is in good,
and through good in truth;
but is not in truth without good.
That all the power of truth is from good;
and that all the power of good is from the Divine, 
is clear.

Portions: Daniel 8 11

"The vision of the evenings and mornings
that has been given you is true,
but seal up the vision,
for it concerns the distant future."
I Daniel, was exhausted and lay ill for several days.
Then I got up and went about the king's business.
I was appalled by the vision;
it was beyond understanding.
(Daniel 8:26-27)

While I was speaking and praying,
confessing my sin and the sin of my people Israel
and making my request to the Lord my God
for His holy hill -
while I was till in prayer,
Gabriel, the man I had seen in the earlier vision,
came to me in swift flight
about the time of the evening sacrifice.
(Daniel 9:20-21)

On the twenty-fourth day of the first month,
as I was standing on the bank of the great river,
the Tigris,
I looked up
and there before me was a man dressed in linen,
with a belt of the finest gold around his waist.
His body was like chrysolite,
his face like lightning,
his eyes like flaming torches,
his arms and legs like the gleam of burnish bronze,
and his voice like the sound of a multitude.
(Daniel 10:4-6)

He will pitch his royal tents
between the sea at the beautiful holy mountain.
Yet he will come to his end,
and no on will help him.
(Daniel 11:45)

AC 8573 - intercession

AC 8573 [2-3]
As regards intercession, the case is this.
There is intercession in all love,
consequently in all mercy;
for mercy is of love.
That he who loves, or who feels compassion,
continually intercedes, can be seen from examples.
-- A husband who loves his wife,
wishes her to be kindly received by others,
and to be well treated;
he does not say this in express terms,
but continually thinks it,
consequently is in silence continually entreating it,
and interceding for her.
-- Parents act in like manner
in favor of their children whom they love.
-- In like manner do those also
who are in charity for their neighbor;
and they who are in friendship for their friends.
From all this it can be seen
that there is constant intercession in all love.
It is the same in respect to the Lord's intercession
for the human race,
and in especial for those
who are in the good and truth of faith;
for toward them there is Divine, that is, infinite love;
and there is Divine, that is, infinite mercy.
He does not pray the Father for them,
and in this way intercede,
for this would be to act altogether after a human manner;
but He continually excuses, and continually forgives,
for He continually feels compassion;
and this is done on the part of the Lord Himself,
for the Lord and the Father are one (John 14:8-12).

A secret that lies still more interiorly hidden
in the word "intercession," shall also be told.
The Divine truth which proceeds from the Lord
continually intercedes in the manner described,
because it proceeds from the Divine love.
When the Lord was in the world
He was the Divine truth;
but since He was glorified,
which was effected when He rose again,
He is the Divine good.
It is the Divine good
which is meant in the Word in the internal sense
by "the Father,"
and the Divine truth
which is meant by "the Son".
And as in the Divine truth,
which proceeds from the Divine good,
there is continual intercession,
therefore it is said that the Son entreats the Father,
and intercedes for man.
This latter idea could be apprehended by man,
but the former with difficulty.

Portions: Daniel 5 - 7

"This is the inscription that was written:
Mene:  God has numbered the days of your reign
            and brought it to an end.
Tekel:  You have been weighed on the scales
            and found wanting.
Peres:  You kingdom is divided and given
            to the Medes and Persians."
(Daniel 5:25-28)

Then King Darius wrote to all the peoples,
nations and men of every language throughout the land:
"I issue a decree that in every part of my kingdom
people must fear and reverence the God of Daniel.
"For He is the living God and He endures forever;
His kingdom will not be destroyed,
His dominion will never end."
(Daniel 6:25-26)

"In my vision at night I looked,
and there before me was one like a Son of Man,
coming with the clouds of heaven.
He approached the Ancient of Days
and was led into His presence.
He was given authority, glory and sovereign power;
all peoples, nations and men of every language
worshiped Him.
His dominion is an everlasting dominion
that will not pass away,
and His kingdom is one that will never be destroyed.
(Daniel 7:13-14)

AC 8562 - good longs for the refreshing water that is truth

AC 8562
And there was no water for the people to drink.
(Exodus 17:1)
That this signifies a lack of truth
and of the consequent refreshment,
is evident from the signification of "water,"
as being the truth of faith;
and from the signification of "drinking,"
as being to be instructed in the truths of faith
and to receive them, here, to be refreshed;
for as water and drink refresh the natural life,
so truths and the knowledges of truth
refresh the spiritual life.
For he who is in spiritual life
longs for the sustenance of from such things
as are called heavenly food and drink,
which are the goods and truths of faith;
in like manner as he who is in natural life
longs for sustenance from such things
as are natural food and drink.

That temptation as to truth is now treated of,
is because temptation as to good
was treated of just before,
after which temptation they received the manna,
by which is signified good.
For when a person is endowed with good by the Lord,
he comes into a longing for truth,
and this longing is kindled according to the lack of truth,
because good continually strives after truth.
All the genuine affection of truth is from good.
The case here is like food,
which without drink
cannot nourish the natural life;
and it is also like it in
that food longs for drink,
with which it may be conjoined
so as to serve for use.
This then is the reason why temptation as to truth
follows immediately after temptation as to good.
Temptation attacks that which a person loves and longs for.

Portions: Daniel 2 - 4

Daniel replied,
"No wise man, enchanter, magician or diviner
can explain to the king
about the mystery he has asked about,
but there is a God in heaven who reveals mysteries.
He has shown King Nebuchadnezzar
what will happen in days to come.
Your dream and the visions that passed through your mind
as you lay on your bed are these:"
(Daniel 2:27-28)

Then King Nebuchadnezzar leaped to his feet in amazement
and asked his advisers,
"Weren't there three men that we tied up
and threw into the fire?
They replied, "Certainly, O king."
He said, "Look!  I see four men walking around in the fire,
unbound and unharmed,
and the fourth looks like a son of the gods."
(Daniel 3:24-25)

Now, I Nebuchadnezzar,
praise and exalt and glorify the King of heaven,
because everything He does is right
and all His ways are just.
And those who walk in pride
He is able to humble.
(Daniel 4:37)

AC 8547 - the One and Only Lord

AC 8547
. . . the One and Only Lord is alone Human
and that all derive from Him
that which enables them to be called human beings,
but that they are human only to the extent
that they are images of Him.
That is, they are human to the extent
that they love Him and love their neighbor,
thus to the extent that they are governed by good;
for the good of love and faith
is an image of the Lord.

Portions: Ezekiel 46 - 48; Daniel 1

"'Every day you are to provide a year-old lamb
without defect for a burnt offering to the Lord;
morning by morning you shall provide it.
You are also to provide with it
morning by morning
a grain offering,
consisting of a sixth of an ephah
with a third of a hin of oil
to moisten the flour.
The presenting of this grain offering to the Lord
is a lasting ordinance.'"
(Ezekiel 46:13-14)

The man brought me back to the entrance of the temple,
and I saw water coming out
from under the threshold of the temple toward the east
(For the temple faced east).
The water was coming down  from under 
the south side of the temple, south of the altar.
He said to me,
"This water flows toward the eastern region
and goes down into the Araba (Jordan Valley),
where it enters the Sea (the Dead Sea).
When it empties into the Sea,
the water there becomes fresh."
(Ezekiel 47:1,8)

"These will be the exits of the city:
Beginning on the north side, which is 4500 cubits long,
the gates of the city will be named after the tribes of Israel.
The three gates on the north side
will be the gate of Reuben,
the gate of Judah and the gate of Levi.
"On the east side, which is 4500 cubits long,
will be three gates:
the gate of Joseph,
the gate of Benjamin and the gate of Dan.
"On the south side, which measures 4500 cubits,
will be three gates:
the gate of Simeon,
the gate of Issachar and the gate of Zebulun.
"On the west side, which is 4500 cubits long,
will be three gates:
the gate of Gad,
the gate of Asher and the gate of Naphtali.
"The distance all around will be 18,000 cubits.
"And the name of the city from that time on will be:
THE LORD IS THERE."
(Ezekiel 48:30-35)

Then the king ordered Ashpenaz,
chief of his court officials,
to bring in some of the Israelites
from the royal family and the nobility -
young men without any physical defect,
handsome, showing aptitude for every kind of learning,
well informed, quick to understand,
and qualified to serve in the king's palace.
Among these were some from Judah:
Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah.
The chief official gave them new names:
to Daniel, the name Belteshazar;
to Hananiah, Shadrach;
to Mishael, Meshach;
and to Azariah, Abednego.
(Daniel 1:3-4,6-7)

AC 8513 - living according to order

AC 8513
Everything that is done according to Divine order
is inwardly open even to the Lord,
and thus has heaven in it;
but everything that is not done according to Divine order
is inwardly closed, and does not hold heaven within it.

[3]  How to live so that one's life is in keeping with order
is taught by the Word
and by religious teachings drawn from the Word.
The person who does not look beyond externals
can never grasp such ideas.
He does not know what the internal is;
he scarcely knows of the existence of the internal,
let alone that it can be opened up,
and that when it has been opened 
it has heaven within it.
 

Portions: Ezekiel 43 - 45

Then the man brought me to the gate facing east,
and I saw the glory of the God of Israel coming from the east.
His voice was like the roar of rushing waters,
and the land was radiant with His glory.
The vision I saw was like the vision I had seen
when He came to destroy the city
and like the visions I had seen by the Kebar River,
and I fell facedown.
The glory of the Lord entered the temple
through the gate facing east.
Then the Spirit lifted me up
and brought me into the inner court,
and the glory of the Lord filled the temple.
(Ezekiel 43:1-5)

Then the man brought me back
to the outer gate of the sanctuary,
the one facing east, and it was shut.
The Lord said to me,
"This gate is to remain shut.
It must not be opened;
no one may enter through it.
It is to remain shut
because the Lord, the God of Israel,
has entered through it.
(Ezekiel 44:1-2)

You are to use accurate scales,
an accurate ephah and an accurate bath.
The ephah and bath are to be the same size,
the bath contain a tenth of a homer
and the ephah a tenth of a homer;
the homer is to be the standard measure for both.
The shekel is to consist of twenty gerahs.
Twenty shekels
plus twenty-five shekels
plus fifteen shekels
equal one mina.
(Ezekiel 45:10-12)

AC 8505 - before and after regeneration

AC 8505 [2]
Before regeneration a person acts from truth,
but through it good is acquired;
for truth becomes good with him 
when it becomes of his will,
and thus of his life;
but after regeneration he acts from good,
and through it truths are procured.
To make this still clearer:
Before regeneration a person acts from obedience;
but after regeneration from affection.

Portions: Ezekiel 39 - 42

All the nations will know
that the people of Israel went into exile for their sin,
because they were unfaithful to me.
So I hid My face from them
and handed them over to their enemies,
and they all fell by the sword.
(Ezekiel 39:23)

I saw a wall completely surrounding the temple area.
The length of the measuring rod in the man's hand
was six long cubits,
each of which was a cubit and a handbreadth.
He measured the wall;
it was one measuring rod thick and one rod high.
(Ezekiel 40:5)

In the space above the outside of the entrance
to the inner sanctuary
and on the walls at regular intervals
all around the inner and outer sanctuary
were carved cherubim and palm trees.
Palm trees alternated with cherubim.
Each cherub had two faces:
the face of a man toward the palm tree on one side
and the face of a lion on the other.
They were carved all around the whole temple.
(Ezekiel 41:17-19)

Once the priests enter the holy precincts,
they are not to go into the outer court
until they leave behind the garments
in which they minister,
for these are holy.
They are to put on other clothes
before they go near the places
that are for the people.
(Ezekiel 42:14)

AC 8494, 8495 - "A rest, a sabbath holy to Jehovah" (Exodus 16:23)

AC 8494
A rest.
(Exodus 16:23)
That this signifies a state of peace when there is no temptation,
is evident from the signification of "a rest,"
such as there was on the days of the Sabbath,
as being a representative of a state of peace,
in which is effected the conjunction of good and truth.
But the six preceding days represented
the combat and labor, consequently the temptations,
which precede a state of peace;
for after temptations comes a state of peace,
and then there is the conjunction of good and truth.

AC 8495
A Sabbath holy to Jehovah is the morrow.
(Exodus 16:23)
That this signifies the conjunction of good and truth to eternity,
is evident from the signification of "the Sabbath,"
as being the conjunction of good and truth;
and from the signification of "the morrow,"
as being to eternity.
He who does not know what the Sabbath represented,
and thus what it signified,
cannot know why it was accounted the most holy of all things.
But the reason why it was accounted most holy
was that in the supreme sense it represented
the union of the Divine and the Divine Human in the Lord;
and in the relative sense
the conjunction of the Divine Human of the Lord
with the human race.
Consequently the Sabbath was most holy.

Portions: Ezekiel 35 - 38

You boasted against Me
and spoke against Me without restraint,
and I heard it.
This is what the Sovereign Lord says:
While the whole earth rejoices,
I will make you desolate.
(Ezekiel 35:13-14)

I will show the holiness of My great Name,
which has been profaned among the nations,
the Name you have profaned among them.
Then the nations will know
that I am the Lord,
declares the Sovereign Lord,
when I show Myself holy
through you
before their eyes.
(Ezekiel 36:23)

Then the nations will know
that I the Lord make Israel holy,
when My sanctuary is among them forever.
(Ezekiel 37:28)

And so I will show My greatness and My holiness,
and I will make Myself known in the sight of many nations.
Then they will know that I am the Lord.
(Ezekiel 38:23)

AC 8478 - care for the morrow

AC 8478 [2-4]
. . . in the internal sense care for the morrow is treated of,
 and as this care is not only forbidden,
but is also condemned
(that it is forbidden
is signified by that they were not to make a residue
of the manna till the morning,
and that it is condemned
is signified by that the worm was bred in the residue,
and it stank),
he who looks at the subject no deeper
than from the sense of the letter
may believe that all care for the morrow is to be cast aside,
and thus that the necessaries of life
are to be awaited daily from heaven;
but he who looks at the subject deeper than from the letter,
as for instance he who looks at it from the internal sense,
is able to know what is meant by "care for the morrow."
It does not mean
the care of procuring for oneself food and raiment,
and even resources for the time to come;
for it is not contrary to order
for anyone to be provident for himself and his own.
But those have care for the morrow
who are not content with their lot;
who do not trust in the Divine, but in themselves;
and who have regard for only worldly and earthly things,
and not for heavenly things.
With such there universally reigns
solicitude about things to come,
and a desire to possess all things
and to dominate over all . . ..
They grieve if they do not obtain the objects of their desire,
and feel anguish at the loss of them;
and they have no consolation,
because of the anger they feel against the Divine,
which they reject together with everything of faith,
and curse themselves.
Such are they who have care for the morrow. 

Very different is the case with those who trust in the Divine.
Though they have care for the morrow, still not have it,
because they do not think of the morrow with solicitude,
still less with anxiety.
Unruffled is their spirit
whether they obtain the objects of their desire, or not;
and they do not grieve over the loss of them,
being content with their lot.
If they become rich,
they do not set their hearts on riches;
if they are raised to honors,
they do not regard themselves as more worthy than others;
if they become poor,
they are not made sad;
if their circumstances are mean,
they are not dejected.
They know that for those who trust in the Divine
all things advance toward a happy state to eternity,
and that whatever befalls them in time
is still conducive to that end.
 
Be it known that the Divine Providence is universal,
that is, in things the most minute;
and that they who are in the stream of Providence
are all the time carried along
toward everything that is happy,
whatever may be the appearance of the means;
and that those are in the stream of Providence
who put their trust in the Divine and attribute all things to Him;
and that those are not in the stream of Providence
who trust in themselves alone
and attribute all things to themselves,
because they are in the opposite,
for they take away providence from the Divine,
and claim it for themselves.
Be it known also
that insofar as anyone is in the stream of Providence,
so far he is in a state of peace;
also that insofar as anyone is in a state of peace
from the good of faith, 
so far he is in the Divine Providence.
These alone know and believe
that the Divine Providence of the Lord
is in everything both in general and in particular,
even in the most minute things of all.
 

Portions: Ezekiel 31 - 34

"'Therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says:
Because it towered on high,
lifting its top above the thick foliage,
and because it was proud of its height,
I handed it over to the ruler of the nations,
for him to deal with
according to its wickedness.
(Ezekiel 31:10-11)

When I snuff you out,
I will cover the heavens and darken their stars;
I will cover the sun with a cloud,
and the moon will not give its light.
(Ezekiel 32:7)

The word of the Lord came to me:
"Son of man,
speak to your countrymen and say to them:
'When I bring the sword against a land,
and the people of the land
choose one of their men
and make him their watchman,
and he sees the sword coming against the land
and blows the trumpet to warn the people,
then if anyone hears the trumpet
but does not take warning
and the sword comes and takes his life,
his blood will be on his own head.
But if the watchman sees the sword coming
and does not blow the trumpet to warn the people
and the sword comes and takes the life of one of them,
that man will be taken away because of his sin,
but I will hold the watchman accountable for his blood.'"
(Ezekiel 33:1-4,6)

I will save My flock,
and they will no longer be plundered.
I will judge between one sheep and another.
(Ezekiel 34:22)

AC 8468 & AC 8469 - the Divine good

AC 8468 [2]
. . . all things in that kingdom (heaven)
shall have relation to good,
and also that the truth there will be good,
and that this shall be given in fulness . . ..

AC 8469
The universal thing that forms and brings into order
all things in general and in particular
is the Divine good of Divine love from the Lord.

Portions: Ezekiel 27 - 30

In your marketplace they traded with you
beautiful garments, blue fabric,
embroidered work and multicolored rugs
with cords twisted and tightly knotted.
(Ezekiel 27:24)

You were in Eden, the garden of God;
every precious stone adorned you:
ruby, topaz and emerald,
chrysolite, onyx and jasper,
sapphire, turquoise and beryl.
Your settings and mountings were made of gold;
on the day you were created
they were prepared.
(Ezekiel 28:13)

"'Egypt will no longer
be a source of confidence for the people of Israel
but will be a reminder of their sin
in turning to her for help.
Then they will know
that I am the Sovereign Lord.'"
(Ezekiel 29:16)

'"On that day
messengers will go out from Me in ships
to frighten Cush out of her complacency.
Anguish will take hold of them
on the day of Egypt's doom,
for it is sure to come.'"
(Ezekiel 30:9)

AC 8455 - the dew in the morning

AC 8455
"Dew" signifies the truth of peace
because in the morning it comes down from heaven
and appears upon the herbage like fine rain,
and has also stored up in it
something of sweetness or delight more than rain has,
whereby the grass and the crops of the field are gladdened;
and "morning" denotes a state of peace.
. . . peace is . . . is like dawn on the earth,
which gladdens minds with universal delight;
and the truth of peace is like the light of the dawn.
This truth, which is called "the truth of peace,"
is the very Divine truth in heaven from the Lord,
which universally affects all who are there,
and makes heaven to be heaven;
for peace has in it confidence in the Lord,
that He directs all things,
and provides all things,
and that He leads to a good end.
When a man is in this faith,
he is in peace,
for he then fears nothing,
and no solicitude about things to come disquiets him.
A man comes into this state
in proportion as he comes into love to the Lord.

[2] All evil, especially self-confidence,
takes away a state of peace.

[3]  Tranquility of mind, content, and gladness from success,
are relatively nothing;
for these affect only his externals;
whereas peace affects the inmost things of all . . ..

Portions: Ezekiel 24 - 26

In the ninth year,
in the tenth month on the tenth day,
the word of the Lord came to me:
"Son of man,
record this date, this very date,
because the king of Babylon
has laid siege to Jerusalem this very day."
(Ezekiel 24:1-2)

"Say to them,
'Hear the word of the Sovereign Lord.
This is what the Sovereign Lord says:
Because you said "Aha!"
over My sanctuary when it was desecrated
and over the land of Israel
when it was laid waste
and over the people of Judah
when they went into exile,
therefore I am going to give you
to the people of the East as a possession.
They will set up their camps
and pitch their tents among you;
they will eat your fruit and drink your milk."
(Ezekiel 25:3-4)

"Then all the princes of the coast
will step down from their thrones
and lay aside their robes
and take off their embroidered garments.
Clothed with terror,
they will sit on the ground,
trembling every moment,
appalled at you."
(Ezekiel 26:16)

AC 8439 - reception is nothing without application

AC 8439
. . . reception is not anything
unless there is also application, namely, to use.
For the influx from the Divine passes first into the perception
which is of the understanding with the person,
then it passes into the will,
and next into act, that is, into good work, which is use,
and there it ceases.
When the influx of good and truth from the Lord
makes this passage,
then the good and truth are appropriated to the person;
for then the influx goes down into the ultimate of order,
that is, into the ultimate of nature,
where all Divine influx aims to come.
The person in whom Divine influx thus advances
may be called "a way of heaven."

Portions: Ezekiel 20 -23

"I am the Lord your God;
follow My decrees and be careful to keep My laws.
Keep My Sabbaths holy,
that they may be a sign between us.
Then you will know that
I am the Lord your God.
(Ezekiel 20:19)

"Therefore groan, son of man!
Groan before them with broken heart and bitter grief.
And when they ask you,
'Why are you groaning?' you shall say,
'Because of the news that is coming.
Every heart will melt and every hand go limp;
every spirit will become faint
and every knee become as weak as water.'
It is coming!
It will surely take place, declares the Sovereign Lord.'"
(Ezekiel 21:6-7)

Her priests do violence to My law
and profane My holy things;
they do not distinguish between the holy and the common;
they teach that there is no difference
between the unclean and the clean;
and they shut their eyes to the keeping of my Sabbaths,
so that I am profaned among them.
(Ezekiel 22:26)

The Lord said to me:
"Son of man, will you judge Oholah and Oholibah?
Then confront them with their detestable practices . . .."
(Ezekiel 23:36)

AC 8247 - the glory of the Lord

AC 8247
The reason why 'the glory'
means the presence and the arrival of the Lord
is that in the highest sense
'glory' is the Divine Truth which emanates from the Lord;
and Divine Truth appears before angels' eyes
as the light and splendor from the Sun,
which is the Lord.

[4] Here also "the glory of Jehovah"
plainly denotes His presence.

The disciples said unto Jesus,
Tell us what shall be the sign of Thy coming?
Jesus said, Then shall appear the sign of the Son of man,
and they shall see the Son of man
coming in the clouds of heaven with power and glory.
(Matthew 24:3, 30)

The last time of the former church
and the first time of the new church
is here treated of;
"the Son of man"
signifies truth Divine proceeding from the Lord;
"the clouds of heaven"
signifies the Word in the sense of the letter;
"power and glory"
signifies the internal sense,
thus the Divine truth which shall then appear;
"the coming of the Lord"
signifies the acknowledgment of truth Divine
by those who are of the new church,
and the denial of it
by those who are of the old church.

Portions: Ezekiel 17 - 19

"'This is what the Sovereign Lord says:
I Myself will take a shoot
from the very top of a cedar and plant it;
I will break off a tender sprig from its topmost shoots
and plant it on a high and lofty mountain.
On the mountain heights of Israel I will plant it;
it will produce branches and bear fruit
and become a splendid cedar.
Birds of every kind will nest in it;
they will find shelter in the shade of its branches.
All the trees of the field will know
that I the Lord bring down the tall tree
and make the low tree grow tall.
I dry up the green tree
and make the dry tree flourish.
"'I the Lord have spoken,
and I will do it.'"
(Ezekiel 17:22-24)

Do I take any pleasure in the death of the wicked?
declares the Sovereign Lord.
Rather, am I not pleased
when they turn from their ways and live?
For I take no pleasure in the death of anyone,
declares the Sovereign Lord.
Repent and live!
(Ezekiel 18:23,32)

Take up a lament concerning the princes of Israel . . .
(Ezekiel 19:1)

AC 8403 - Can we be regenerated without temptation?

AC 8403 [2]
Those who have not been instructed
about a person's regeneration
suppose that a person
can be regenerated without temptation;
and some that he has been regenerated
when he has undergone one temptation.
But be it known
that without temptation no one is regenerated,
and that many temptations follow on, one after another.
The reason is that regeneration takes place to the end
that the life of the old person may die,
and the new heavenly life be insinuated,
which shows that there must needs be a fight,
for the life of the old person resists,
and is not willing to be extinguished,
and the life of the new person cannot enter
except where the life of the old person
has been extinguished.
So it is evident that there is a fight on both sides,
and this fight is a fiery one,
because it is for life.

"They will know that I am the Lord,
when I disperse them among the nations
and scatter them through the countries.
But I will spare a few of them
from the sword, famine and plague,
so that in the nations where they go
they may acknowledge all their detestable practices.
Then they will know that I am the Lord."
(Ezekiel 12:15-16)

"'Because they lead My people astray,
saying, "Peace," when there is no peace,
and because, when a flimsy wall is built,
they cover it with whitewash,
therefore tell those who cover it with whitewash
that it is going to fall.'"
(Ezekiel 13:10-11)

"Therefore say to the house of Israel,
'This is what the Sovereign Lord says:
Repent!
Turn from your idols
and renounce all your detestable practices.'"
(Ezekiel 14:6)

The word of the Lord came to me:
"Son of man, how is the wood of a vine better
than that of a branch on any of the trees in the forest?
Is wood ever taken from it to make anything useful?
Do they make pegs from it to hang things on?
And after it is thrown on the fire as fuel
and the fire burns both ends and chars the middle,
is it then useful for anything?"
(Ezekiel 15:1-4)

"'But you trusted in your beauty
and used your fame to become a prostitute.
You lavished your favors on anyone who passed by
and your beauty became his.'"
(Ezekiel 16:15)

AC 8399 - the spiritual person before & after regeneration

AC 8399
The good that is from truth
is the good that is in the spiritual person
before regeneration,
for he then does good from truth,
that is, because it has been so commanded,
consequently from obedience;
whereas the good from which is truth
is the good which is in the spiritual person
after regeneration,
for he then does good from affection.
The former good is signified by "Sin,"
the latter by "Sinai."
 

Portions: Ezekiel 6 - 11

"'This is what the Sovereign Lord says:
Strike your hands together and stamp your feet
and cry out "Alas!"
because of all the wicked and detestable practices
of the house of Israel,
for they will fall by the sword, famine and plague.'"
(Ezekiel 6:11)

"I will deal with them according to their conduct,
and by their own standards I will judge them.
Then they will know that I am the Lord."
(Ezekiel 7:27)

The Spirit lifted me up between earth and heaven
and in vision of God he took me to Jerusalem,
to the entrance to the north gate of the inner court,
where the idol that provokes to jealousy stood.
And there before me was the glory of the God of Israel,
as in the vision I had seen in the plain.
(Ezekiel 8:3-4)

The the Lord called to the man clothed in linen
who had the writing kit at his side and said to him,
"Go throughout the city of Jerusalem
and put a mark on the foreheads of those
who grieve and lament
over all the detestable things that are done in it."
(Ezekiel 9:3-4)

I looked, and I saw the likeness of a throne
of sapphire (or lapis luzuli) above the expanse
that was over the heads of the cherubim.
Then the glory of the Lord rose
from above the cherubim
and moved to the threshold of the temple.
The cloud filled the temple,
and the court was full of the radiance
of the glory of the Lord.
The sound of the wings of the cherubim
could be heard as far away as the outer court,
like the voice of God Almighty when He speaks.
(Ezekiel 10:1,4-5)

"I will give them an undivided heart
and put a new spirit in them:
I will remove from them their heart of stone
and give them the heart of flesh.
Then they will follow My decrees
and be careful to keep My laws.
They will be My people,
and I will be their God."
(Ezekiel 11:19-20)

AC 8367 - spiritual temptation; AC 8.87, 8391 - reflection & repentance

AC 8367
. . . after all spiritual temptation
there come enlightenment and affection,
thus pleasantness and delight;
pleasantness from enlightenment through truth,
and delight from the affection of good.

That consolation follows after temptations . . .
the reason is that by means of temptations
truths and goods are implanted and are conjoined,
consequently the person as to his spirit
is introduced interiorly into heaven,
and to the heavenly societies
with which he had previously been associated.
When the temptation is ended,
communication with heaven is opened,
which had previously been partly closed,
consequently enlightenment and affection,
and consequently pleasantness and delight;
for then the angels with whom communication is given,
flow in by means of truth, and by means of good.

AC 8387
He who wishes to be saved
must confess his sins
and do repentance.

AC 8391
He who leads a life of faith does repentance daily;
for he reflects upon the evils that are in him,
acknowledges them,
guards himself against them,
and supplicates the Lord for aid.
For from himself man is continually falling,
but is continually being raised up by the Lord.
He falls from himself when he thinks what is evil with desire;
and he is raised up by the Lord when he resists evil,
and consequently does not do it.

Portions: Ezekiel 1 - 5

I saw from what appeared to be His waist up
He looked like glowing metal, as if full of fire,
and that from there down He looked like fire;
and brilliant light surrounded Him.
Like the appearance of a rainbow
in the clouds on a rainy day,
so was the radiance around Him.
This was the appearance of the likeness
of the glory of the Lord.
When I saw it,
I fell face-down,
and I heard the Voice of One speaking.
(Ezekiel 1:27-28)

He said to me, "Son of man,
stand up on your feet and I will speak to you."
(Ezekiel 2:1)

"Again, when a righteous man
turns from his righteousness and does evil,
and I put a stumbling block before him, he will die.
Since you did not warn him,
he will die for his sin.
The righteous things he did will not be remembered,
and I will hold you accountable for his blood.
But if you do warn the righteous man not to sin
and he does not sin,
he will surely live because he took warning,
and you will have saved yourself."
(Ezekiel 3:20-21)

"Then lie on your left side
and put the sin of the house of Israel upon yourself.
You are to bear their sin
for the number of days you lie on your side.
I have assigned you the same number of days
as the years of their sin.
So for 390 days
you will bear the sin of the house of Israel.
"After you have finished this,
lie down again, this time on your right side,
and bear the sin of the house of Judah.
I have assigned you 40 days, a day for each year."
(Ezekiel 4:4-6)

"This is what the Sovereign Lord says:
This is Jerusalem,
which I have set in the center of the nations,
with countries all around her.
Yet in her wickedness
she has rebelled against My laws and decrees
more than the nations and countries around her.
She has rejected My laws
and has not followed My decrees."
(Ezekiel 5:5-6)

AC 8349 - all the affection of truth is from good; AC 8361 - the Lord

AC 8349
. . . all the delight of truth comes forth from good.
That the affection of truth derives its origin from good
is because good loves truth,
and truth loves good,
for these two are conjoined as in a marriage.
It is known that everyone desires
to be instructed in those things which he loves
and has as the end.
He who loves good, that is,
who wills from the heart to worship God
and to benefit his neighbor,
loves to be instructed in those things which lead thereto,
consequently in truths;
from which it can be seen
that all the affection of truth is from good.

AC 8361
. . . the Lord is in His commandments
when a person lives according to them . . ..

Portions: Lamentations 4 - 5

The punishment of my people
is greater than that of Sodom,
which was overthrown in a moment
without a hand turned to help her.
Those killed by the sword are better off
than those who die of famine . . ..
(Lamentations 4:6,9)

The crown has fallen from our head.
Woe to us, for we have sinned!
Because of this our hearts are faint,
because of these things our eyes grow dim . . ..
(Lamentations 5:16-17)