** Those Who Have Come Out of the Great Tribulation **

And he said, "These are they
who have come out of the  great tribulation;
they have washed their robes
and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.
Therefore,

"they are before the throne of God
and serve Him day and night in His temple;
and He who sits on the throne
will spread His tent over them.
Never again will they hunger;
never again will they thirst.
The sun will not beat upon them,
nor any scorching heat.
For the Lamb at the center of the throne
will be their shepherd;
He will lead them to springs of living water.
And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes."

(Revelation 7:14-17)

AC 6724 - When a Person Is Being Reformed; AC 6737 - Compassion

AC 6724 [2-3]

When a person is being reformed,
he is kept by the Lord
as to his internal 
in good and truth,
but as to his external 
he is let into his evils and falsities,
consequently among infernal spirits
who are in these evils and falsities.
These hover round him,
and endeavor by every method to destroy him.
But the good and truth
which flow in through the internal
render him so safe
that the infernal spirits cannot do him the least harm;
for that which acts inwardly
prevails immeasurably
over that which acts outwardly;
because what is interior,
in consequence of being purer,
acts upon each and every individual particular
of the exterior,
and thus disposes the external to its will.
But in this case there
must be good and truth in the external,
wherein the influx from the internal can be fixed;
and in this way good can be among evils and falsities,
and yet be in safety.
Everyone who is being reformed is let into this state,
and in this way the evils and falsities in which he is,
are removed,
and goods and truths are inserted in their place.

Unless this secret is known,
it cannot possibly be known
why around the Divine truth in a person
there are goods mixed with evils and falsities,
signified by the bitumen and pitch
wherewith the little ark was daubed
in which the infant was laid.
Be it known further that good
can be mixed with evils and falsities,
but that nevertheless
they are not on this account conjoined,
for each shuns the other,
and by a law of order
each separates itself from the other.
For good is of heaven,
and evil and falsity are of hell;
therefore, as heaven and hell are separate,
so also each and all things from them
separate themselves.

AC 6737

. . . when those who are in perception
feel compassion,
they know that they are
admonished by the Lord to give aid.

 

~ Salt ~

"Everyone will be salted with fire.

"Salt is good,
but if it loses its saltiness,
how can you make it salty again?
Have salt in yourselves,
and be at peace with each other.

(Mark 9:49-50)
__________________________

AC 9207 [3]

. . . "to be salted with fire"
denotes the longing of good for truth;
and "to be salted with salt"
denotes the longing of truth for good;
"salt that has lost its saltiness"
denotes truth without any longing for good;
"to have salt in oneself"
denotes to have this longing.

AC 10300

Salted.
That this signifies the longing of truth for good,
is evident from the signification of "salt,"
as being that longing for good 
which is of the love of truth (of which below);
hence "salted" denotes that in which is this longing.
The reason why there must be
a longing of truth for good
is that this longing is conjunctive of the two;
for insofar as truth longs for good,
so far it is conjoined with it.
The conjunction of truth and good
is what is called the heavenly marriage,
which is heaven itself with man;
and therefore when in Divine worship,
and in each and all things of it,
there is a longing for this conjunction,
heaven is in each and all things there.
Thus the Lord is in them.
This is signified by the requirement
that the incense should be salted.
Salt has this signification from its conjunctive nature;
for it conjoins all things,
and from this gives them relish . . ..

** Come and Look **

And I saw when the Lamb
had opened the first of the seals,
and I heard one of the four animals saying,
as with a voice of thunder,
Come and look.

(Revelation 6:1)

"And I saw when the Lamb had opened 
the first of the seals,"
signifies exploration by the Lord of all those
upon whom the Last Judgment was about to come
as to their understanding of the Word,
and thence as the their states of life.
"And I heard one of the four animals saying,
as with a voice of thunder,"
signifies, according to the Divine truth of the Word.
"Come and look,"
signifies a manifestation concerning the first in order.

AC 6693 - Cast Every Son Into the River

AC 6693

Saying, Every son that is born,
you shall cast him forth into the river.
(Exodus 1:22)

That this signifies that they should immerse in falsities
all truths which appear,
is evident from the signification of
"son," as being truth;
and from the signification of "river,"
as being things that belong to intelligence,
here in the opposite sense,
things contrary, thus falsities.
That "to cast forth" denotes to immerse is clear. 

~ The Apostles Report ~

The apostles gathered around Jesus
and reported to Him all they had done and taught.
Then, because so many people were coming and going
that they did not even have a chance to eat,
He said to them,
"Come with Me by yourselves to a quiet place
and get some rest."

(Mark 6:30-31)

** In His Right Hand **

And I saw in the right hand
of Him that sat on the throne,
a book written within and on the back,
sealed with seven seals.

(Revelation 5:1)

"And I saw in the right hand
of Him that sat on the throne,
a book written within and on the back,"
signifies the Lord as to His Divine itself from eternity,
who is omnipotent and omniscient,
and who is the Word.
"Sealed with seven seals,"
signifies that is altogether hidden
from the angel and man.

AC 6673 - Midwives; AC 6674 - His "Name"

AC 6673

That "midwives" denote the natural,
is because the natural receives
that which flows in from the Internal,
and thus as it were acts as a midwife.

AC 6674 [2, 8]

He who does not know
that a name denotes the quality and state
of the subject being treated of,
can believe that where a name is mentioned,
the name merely is meant;
thus when the Lord speaks of His "name,"
that it is merely the name,
when yet it is the quality of the worship,
that is, everything of faith and charity
by which He is to be worshiped, 
as in these passages:

Where two or three are gathered together in My name,
there am I in the midst of them.
(Matthew 18:20);
here the "name" is not meant,
but worship from faith and charity.

As many as received,
to them gave He power to be the sons of God,
to them that believe in His name.
(John 1:12);
here also by "name" is meant faith and charity,
whereby the Lord is worshiped.

These things have been written that you
may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God,
and that believing you may have life in His name.
(John 20:31);
where the sense is the same.

That the "name of Jehovah"
denotes everything by which He is worshiped,
thus in the supreme sense everything
that proceeds from the Lord,
is evident from the benediction:

Jehovah bless thee and keep thee,
Jehovah make His faces to shine upon thee,
and have mercy on thee;
Jehovah lift up His faces upon thee,
and give thee peace.
So shall they put My name upon the sons of Israel.
(Numbers 6:23-27)

From all this it is now clear what is meant
by this commandment of the Decalogue:

Thou shalt not take the name of thy God in vain;
for Jehovah will not hold him innocent
that takes His name in vain.
(Exodus 20:7);

also by
Hallowed be Thy name,
in the Lord's prayer (Matthew 6:9).

~ The Appointing of the Twelve Apostles ~

Jesus went up on a mountainside
and called to Him those He wanted,
and they came to Him.
He appointed twelve -- designating them apostles --
that they might be with Him
and that He might send them out to preach
and to have authority to drive out demons.
These are the twelve He appointed:
Simon (to whom He gave the name Peter);
James son of Zebedee and his brother John
(to them He gave the names Boanerges,
which means Sons of Thunder);
Andrew, Philip, Bartholomew,
Matthew, Thomas, James son of Alphaeus,
Thaddaeus, Simon the Zealot
and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed Him.

(Mark 3:13-19)

** A Throne Was Set in Heaven **

And behold, a throne was set in heaven,
And One sitting on the throne.
And He that sat was in appearance
like a jasper and a sardius stone;
and there was a rainbow round about the throne
in the appearance like an emerald.
(Revelation 4:2.5-3)

AR 225

"And, behold a throne was set in heaven,"
signifies the Judgment in a representative form.
"And One sitting on the throne,"
signifies the Lord.
"And He that sat was in appearance
like a jasper and a sardius stone,"
signifies the appearance of
the Lord's Divine wisdom and Divine love in ultimates.
"And there was a rainbow round about the throne
in appearance like an emerald,"
signifies the appearance of the same also
round about the Lord.

AC 6658 - A New Church in a Person

AC 6658

The church has indeed been set up anew with a person
when he does what is good from affection;
but still it has not been fully set up anew
until he has fought against evils and falsities,
thus until he has endured temptations;
after this he becomes truly a church,
and then is introduced into heaven . . ..

~ The Great Commission Given in Galilee ~

Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee,
to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go.
When they saw Him,
they worshiped Him;
but some doubted.
Then Jesus came to them and said,
"All authority in heaven and on earth
has been given to Me.
Therefore go and make disciples of all nations,
baptizing them in the name
of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
and teaching them to obey everything
I have commanded you.
And surely I am with you always,
to the very end of the age."

(Matthew 28:16-20)

** The Churches of Sardis, Philadlphia, Laodicea **

And unto the angel of the church in Sardis write . . .
And unto the angel of the church in Philadelphia write . . .
And unto the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write . . .(Revelation 3:1, 7, 14)

AR 154 - The Spiritual Sense of the Whole Chapter

People in the Christian world 
who are engaged in a lifeless worship, 
one without charity and faith, 
are described by the church in Sardis.
People who are governed by truths 
springing from goodness derived from the Lord 
are described by the church in Philadelphia.
People who base their beliefs 
sometimes on their own thinking, 
sometimes on the Word, 
and so profane holy things, 
are described by the church in Laodicea.
All of these, too, are called to the Lord's New Church.

AC 6645 - The Church Within a Person

AC 6645 [2]

The case with the church in a person 
is that it successively undergoes new states; 
for as a person is strengthened 
in the truth of faith and the good of charity, 
so he is introduced into other states, 
the former state then serving as a plane 
for the following state, and so on continually. 
Thus the person who is a church, 
or who is being regenerated, 
is continually led toward more interior things, 
thus more interiorly into heaven. 
That it is so done 
is because the Lord from love, 
which is infinite because Divine, 
wills to draw man even to Himself, 
and so to bless him with all glory and happiness, 
as also is very evident from the Lord's words in John:

I pray that they all may be one, 
as Thou Father art in Me, and I in Thee, 
that they also may be one in Us. 
The glory which Thou hast given Me 
I have given them, 
that they may be one even as We are one; 
I in them and Thou in Me. 
Father, I will that they whom Thou hast given Me 
be also with Me where I am; 
that they may see My glory 
which Thou hast given Me; 
for I have made known unto them Thy name, 
and I will make it known; 
that the love wherewith Thou hast loved Me 
may be in them, 
and I in them. 
(John 17:21-24, 26)

~ He Offered Them Bread and Wine ~

While they were eating,
Jesus took bread,
gave thanks and broke it,
and gave it to His disciples, saying,
"Take and eat; this is My body."

Then He took the cup,
gave thanks and offered it to them, saying,
"Drink from it, all of you.
This is My blood of the new covenant,
which is poured out for many
for the forgiveness of sins.
I tell you,
I will not drink of this fruit of the vine
from now on until that day
when I drink it anew with you
in My Father's kingdom."

When they had sung a hymn,
they went out to the Mount of Olives.

(Matthew 26-30)

** "He Who Has An Ear" **

He who has an ear, 
let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. 
'To him who overcomes 
I will give to eat from the tree of life, 
which is in the midst of the Paradise of God.'
(Revelation 2:7)

AR 68:7

"He who has an ear, 
let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches,"

signifies anyone who understands these things, 
ought to obey what the Divine truth of the Word teaches

those who will be of the New Church,

which is the New Jerusalem

"To him that overcomes"
signifies he who fights against evils and falsities, 
and is reformed. 
"Will I give to eat of the tree of life," 
signifies appropriation of the good of love and charity 
from the Lord.
"Which is in the midst of the paradise of God," 
signifies interiorly in the truths of wisdom and faith.

AC 6598 - Thinking Above the Sensual; AC 6617, 6619 - Countless Ideas

AC 6598

It is known that one man excels another 
in the capacity to understand and perceive 
what is honorable in moral life,
what is just in civil life, 
and what is good in spiritual life. 
The cause of this 
consists in the elevation of the thought 
to the things that pertain to heaven, 
whereby the thought is withdrawn 
from the external things of sense; 
for those who think solely from things of sense 
cannot see one whit 
of what is honorable, just, and good,
and therefore they trust to others 
and speak much from the memory, 
and thereby appear to themselves wiser than others. 
But those who are able to think 
above the things of sense, 
provided the things in the memory have been set in order, 
possess a greater capacity than others 
to understand and perceive,
and this according to the degree in which 
they view things from what is interior.

AC 6617

That there are countless things in one idea, 
has also been made evident to me from the fact 
that the angels perceive in a moment 
the life of a spirit and of a man 
by merely hearing him speak, 
or by looking into his thought; 
the angels of a lower heaven can see this, 
and still more the angels of a higher one.
A certain good spirit was taken up into the first heaven, 
and speaking with me from there he said 
that he saw infinite things 
in what I was then reading in the Word; 
when yet I myself 
had only a simple thought on the subject. 
Afterward he was taken up into a more interior heaven, 
and he said from there that he now saw still more things, 
and so many that what he had seen before 
were comparatively gross to him. 
He was next taken up into a heaven still more interior, 
where the celestial angels are, 
and he said from there 
that what he had before seen was scarcely anything 
compared with the things he now saw. 

AC 6619

That there are countless things in the ideas of thought, 
and that those which are in order within them 
are there from things more interior, 
was also evident to me 
while I read the Lord's Prayer morning and evening. 
The ideas of my thought 
were then always opened toward heaven, 
and countless things flowed in, 
so that I observed clearly 
that the ideas of thought taken 
from the contents of the Prayer 
were filled from heaven. 
And such things were also poured in 
as cannot be uttered, 
and also could not be comprehended by me; 
I merely felt the general resulting affection, 
and wonderful to say 
the things that flowed in were varied from day to day. 
From this I was given to know 
that in the contents of this Prayer 
there are more things 
than the universal heaven 
is capable of comprehending; 
and that with man 
there are more things in it 
in proportion as his thought 
has been opened toward heaven; 
and on the other hand, 
there are fewer things in it 
in proportion as his thought has been closed; 
for with those whose thought has been closed, 
nothing more appears therein 
than the sense of the letter, 
or that sense which is nearest the words.

~ "Woe to You" ~

"Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees,
you hypocrites!
You travel over land and sea to win a single convert,
and when he becomes one,
you make him twice as much a son of hell as you are.

. . . "Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees,
you hypocrites!

You give a tenth of your spices --
mint, dill and cummin.
But you have neglected 
the more important matters of the law -- 
justice, mercy and faithfulness.
You should have practiced the latter,
without neglecting the former.
You blind guides!
You strain out a gnat
but swallow a camel."

(Matthew 23:15, 23-24)

** The Seven Stars, the Seven Lampstands **

"The mystery of the seven stars 
which you saw in My right hand, 
and the seven golden lampstands."
(Revelation 1:20)

The secrets contained in the visions 
having to do with a new heaven and a new church.

"The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches,
signifies a new church in the heavens, 
which is the New Heaven.

"And the seven lampstands which you saw 
are the seven churches."

signifies the New Church on earth, 
which is the New Jerusalem 
descending from the Lord out of the New Heaven.

(from the exposition of Revelation Chapter 1, 
Apocalypse Revealed)

AC 6587, 6592 - The Internal and External of the Church

AC 6587 [2-3]

A church in order to exist must be internal and external, 
for there are those who are in the internal of the church, 
and those who are in its external; 
the former are few, 
but the latter are very numerous. 
Nevertheless with those with whom is the internal church, 
the external must be also, 
for the internal of the church 
cannot be separated from its external; 
and also with those with whom is the external church, 
the internal must be also, 
but with these the internal is in obscurity.

The internal of the church consists 
in willing good from the heart, 
and in being affected with good; 
and its external consists in doing it, 
and this according to the truth of faith 
which the man knows from good; 
but the external of the church consists 
in the devout performance of rituals, 
and in doing works of charity, 
according to the precepts of the church. 
From this it is evident that the internal of the church 
is the good of charity in the will. 
Therefore when this ceases, 
the church itself also ceases, 
for the good of charity is its essential. 
External worship indeed remains afterward, as before, 
but then it is not worship, but a rite, 
which is preserved because it has been so appointed; 
but this rite, which appears like worship, 
is like a shell without a kernel, 
for it is an external which remains wherein is no internal. 
When such is the state of the church it is at its end.

AC 6592

. . . the quality of the church 
when it is only in externals without internals, 
namely, that it is like 
the bony structure of a man without flesh.