More Symbolism

WAS BROUGHT DOWN TO EGYPT
ARCANA CEOLESTIA 4964

Was brought down to Egypt.
That this signifies to the memory-knowledges [scientifica]
of the church is evident from the signification of "Egypt"
as being memory-knowledge ….
In the Ancient Church there were doctrinal things
and there were memory-knowledges.
The doctrinal things treated of love to God
and of charity toward the neighbor;
but the memory-knowledges treated of the correspondences
of the natural world with the spiritual world,
and of the representatives of spiritual and celestial things
in things natural and earthly.
Such were the memory-knowledges of those
who were in the Ancient Church.

[2] Egypt was one of those countries and kingdoms
where the Ancient Church was;
but as in Egypt it was chiefly memory-knowledges
that were handed down to posterity,
therefore such knowledge in general is signified by "Egypt;"
and it is for this reason also
that Egypt is so often treated of in the prophetic Word,
and by it such knowledge is specifically meant.
The very magic of the Egyptians also had its origin thence;
for they were acquainted
with the correspondences of the natural world with the spiritual,
and afterward, when the church among them was at an end,
these correspondences were abused
by being turned to magical things.
Now because they had such knowledges
(that taught correspondences,
and also representatives and significatives)
and as these knowledges were of service
to the doctrinal things of the church,
especially to the understanding of those things
which were said in their Word . . .
by "being brought down to Egypt"
is signified to the memory-knowledges of the church.

SYMBOLISM IN THE CHRISTMAS STORY

SYMBOLISM IN THE CHRISTMAS STORY
DEVERBO 7 [2] - ROGER’S TRANSLATION

It can be seen from the wise men from the east
who came to see the Lord when He was born
that a knowledge of correspondences
remained with many eastern people
even down to the time of the Lord's advent.

That is why a star went before them,
and they brought with them gold, frankincense and myrrh.
And that is why the shepherds were told,
in order that they might know He was the Lord,
that this would be a sign to them:
that they would see Him in a manger,
wrapped in swaddling cloths,
because there was no room in the inn.

For the star which went before
symbolized knowledge from heaven,
inasmuch as stars in the Word symbolize concepts.
The gold symbolized celestial good,
the frankincense spiritual good,
and the myrrh natural good -
the three kinds of good from which everything of worship originates.
The manger where the shepherds found the infant Lord
symbolized spiritual nourishment,
because horses, which get their nourishment from mangers,
symbolize things having to do with the understanding.
The inn where there was no room symbolized the Jewish Church,
in which there was no spiritual nourishment at that time,
because everything of the Word,
and so everything of worship with them,
had by then been adulterated and perverted.
Therefore it is said that this would be a sign to them
that it was the Lord (Luke 2:12).

OUR SAVIOUR

OUR SAVIOUR
SELECTED PASSAGES

BRIEF EXPOSITION 57
...without the coming of the Lord into the world,
no mortal could have been saved,
and they are saved who believe in Him,
and live well.

ARCANA COELESTIA 14.
In the following work,
by the name Lord
is meant the Savior of the world,
Jesus Christ, and Him only;
and He is called "the Lord"
without the addition of other names.
Throughout the universal heaven
He it is who is acknowledged and adored as Lord,
because He has all sovereign power
in the heavens and on earth.
He also commanded His disciples so to call Him, saying,

"You call Me Lord, and you say well, for I am."
(John 13:13) 

And after His resurrection
His disciples called Him "the Lord."

MORE ON BETHLEHEM

MORE ON BETHLEHEM
ARCANA COELESTIA 4594 [2-3]

The reason why the Lord was born there and not elsewhere,
is that He alone was born a spiritual celestial man,
but all others natural,
with the capacity or ability to become either celestial or spiritual
by regeneration from the Lord.

The reason why the Lord was born a spiritual celestial man
was that He might make His Human Divine,
and this according to order from the lowest degree to the highest,
and might thus dispose into order
all things in the heavens and in the hells.
For the spiritual celestial is intermediate between
the natural or external man and the rational or internal man.

For from the most ancient time
"Ephrath" signified the spiritual of the celestial,
and therefore afterwards "Bethlehem" had the same signification.

THE LORD’S SOUL WAS JEHOVAH

THE LORD’S SOUL WAS JEHOVAH
ARCANA COELESTIA 2025 [4 & 5]

[4] The reason why the Lord so often attributes to the Father
that which is His own
(is because) Jehovah was in Him,
and consequently in everything that was His.

[5] From good, which is Jehovah's,
He united the Divine Essence to the Human Essence;
and from truth He united the Human Essence to the Divine Essence;
thus He did all things both in general and in particular from Himself;
in fact His Human was left to itself,
in order that He might fight of Himself against all the hells,
and overcome them;
and as He had life in Himself that was His own - as already said -
He overcame them by His own power and by His own forces,
as is also clearly stated in the Prophets,
in the passages that have been cited.
Consequently, as He acquired all things for Himself
by His own forces,
He became righteousness,
emancipated the world of spirits from infernal genii and spirits,
and thereby delivered the human race from destruction -
for the human race is ruled by means of spirits - and so redeemed it.
For this reason He is so often called
in the Word of the Old Testament
the Deliverer and the Redeemer, and the Saviour,
which is the meaning of His name Jesus.

WHY DID THE LORD COME INTO THE WORLD?

WHY DID THE LORD COME INTO THE WORLD?
DOCTRINE OF THE LORD 3

It will also be stated here, in a few words,
what is treated of in general and in particular concerning the Lord
in all the Prophets of the Old Testament,
from Isaiah even to Malachi: 


1. The Lord would come into the world in the fullness of time;
that is, when He was no longer known by the Jews,
and consequently when nothing of the Church remained;
and unless He should then come into the world and reveal Himself,
mankind would perish in eternal death; as He Himself says in John, 


If ye believe not that I am, ye shall die in your sins.
(John 8:24)


2. The Lord would come into the world
to accomplish a last judgment,
and thereby subjugate the then dominant hells.
This was effected by combats,
that is, by temptations admitted into His Human from the mother,
and by continual victories then;
and unless the hells should be so subjugated,
no person could possibly be saved. 


3. The Lord would come into the world
to glorify His Human, that is,
to unite it to the Divine which was in Him from conception. 


4. The Lord would come into the world
to establish a new Church,
which should acknowledge Him as Redeemer and Saviour
and by love and faith towards Him be redeemed and saved. 


5. He would then also arrange heaven in order,
so that it might make one with the Church.

6. The passion of the cross
would be the last combat or temptation,
by which He would fully conquer the hells
and fully glorify His Human.

THE GOVERNMENT SHALL BE UPON HIS SHOULDER

THE GOVERNMENT SHALL BE UPON HIS SHOULDER
SELECTED PASSAGES

HEAVEN & HELL 216.
As government from good,
which is the kind of government
that exists in the Lord's celestial kingdom, is called righteousness;
and government from truth,
which is the kind of government
that exists in the Lord's spiritual kingdom, is called judgment,
so the terms "righteousness and judgment" are used in the Word
when heaven and the church are treated of,
"righteousness" signifying celestial good,
and "judgment" spiritual good,
which good, as has been said above, is in its essence truth,
as in the following passages:

Of peace there shall be no end
upon the throne of David and upon His kingdom,
to establish it and to uphold it in judgment
and in righteousness
from henceforth and even to eternity.
(Isaiah 9:7)

ARCANA COELESTIA 4934
... the arms signify strength, and the hands power.

ARCANA COELESTIA 4937
By the "shoulder,"
in the Word is also signified all power...

Unto us a Child is born,
and the Government shall be upon His shoulder.
(Isaiah 9:6)