as a stream pent in, the spirit of Jehovah shall lift up an ensign against him. Then the Redeemer shall come to Zion (lix. 19). Again: It shall come to pass in that day, that the root of Jesse, which standeth for an ensign of the people, the nations shall seek; and his rest shall be glory (xi. 10). Inasmuch as a standard, which in the original tongue is ex- 4 pressed by the same term as an ensign, signified a gathering together, and when said of the Lord, protection also, therefore it was expressly commanded that a brazen serpent should be set for a standard, as is thus written in Moses: Jehovah said unto Moses, Make thee a fiery serpent, and set it upon a standard: and it shall come to pass, that every one that is bitten, when he looketh upon it, shall live. And Moses made a serpent of brass, and set it upon a standard: and it came to pass, that if a serpent had bitten any man, when he looked upon the serpent of brass, he lived again (Num. xxi. 8, 9). That the brazen serpent represented the Lord, may be seen in John (iii. 14, 15); that it also signified protection, is plain; for the healing effected by looking on the serpent which was on the standard, signified healing from evils of falsity by the looking of faith on the Lord. For the Lord says in the passage quoted from John: As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up: that whosoever believeth in Him, may not perish, but have eternal life.

8625. And he said, Because there is a hand against the throne of Jah. That this signifies because they wish to offer violence to the Lord's spiritual kingdom, is evident from the signification of a hand being against any one, as offering violence; and from the signification of the throne of Jah, as the Lord's spiritual kingdom. That the throne of Jah is the Lord's spiritual kingdom, is because throne is predicated of the Lord's royalty, and the Lord's spiritual kingdom corresponds to His royalty. There are two things. which are predicated of the Lord, namely, priesthood and royalty. The celestial kingdom corresponds to His priest

hood, and the spiritual kingdom to His royalty; for the Lord is called Priest from Divine good, and King from Divine truth. This latter, namely, Divine truth, is involved in the name Christ, and Divine good in the name Jesus (see n. 1728, 2015, 3004, 3009, 6148). Throne is predicated of the Lord's royalty, consequently of His spiritual kingdom, and in like manner Jah. What is meant by throne, may be seen above (n. 5313), and what by Jah (n. 8267). 2 As to the subject itself, namely, that they who are represented by Amalek, who are infernal genii that are in falsity from interior evil, wish to offer violence to the Lord's spiritual kingdom, this has been explained above (n. 8593, 8622). They who were in the falsity of this evil could not be driven away from those who were of the spiritual church, until the Lord came into the world and made the human in Himself Divine. They were then shut up in hell, out of which they can never rise; moreover communication, which takes place by influx, was altogether stopped. For the man of the spiritual church is in obscurity as to the truth of faith, and acknowledges it as truth because the church has said so, not because he has perceived it to be truth. This truth with them is made good, and therefore of conscience. If malignant genii were to flow into that obscurity, they would destroy the conscience in a thousand ways; for they do not act into the truths of faith therein, but into the affections themselves; and wheresoever they apperceive anything of affection for good, they pervert it in a moment so secretly that it cannot in anywise come to apperception; they assault ends themselves. In a word, their malignity cannot be described; but it may be compared with an unseen deadly poison, which penetrates to the very marrow. Concerning these genii, by the Divine mercy of the Lord, more shall be said from experience at the end of the chapters.

8626. Jehovah shall have war against Amalek from generation to generation. That this signifies that they were by

the Divine power of the Lord brought under the yoke and. were cast into hell, out of which they can never rise, is evident from the signification of Jehovah having war, as a casting into hell; and from the signification of from generation to generation, as for ever, thus that they can never rise out therefrom. That this was by the Divine power of the Lord, may be seen just above (n. 8625). That Jehovah having war means a casting into hell, is because Jehovah having war is perpetual victory. The infernal genii cannot in any wise wage war and fight against Jehovah, that is, the Lord; yet it appears to them that they fight, yea also at times that they conquer, when they subjugate those that are in evil; but still they have no power at all against the Divine. The least exercise of Divine power by a single nod instantly subdues the whole diabolical crew, though it consist even of myriads of myriads. It gives them however an opportunity of acting, so far as use may be effected thereby, and their evil can be turned by the Lord into good. On this subject, by the Divine mercy of the Lord, we shall speak elsewhere. From these things it may in some degree be evident, that by Jehovah having war with Amalek from generation to generation is signified subjugation by the Divine power of the Lord and casting into hell, out of which they can never rise again.

CONTINUATION CONCERNING THE

INHABITANTS AND

SPIRITS OF THE EARTH JUPITER.

8627. The inhabitants of the earth Jupiter make wisdom to consist in thinking well and justly on the occurrences in life. They derive this wisdom from their parents from infancy, and it is transmitted by succession to posterity, and thereby increases. They know nothing at all of the sciences, such as are cultivated on our earth, and they do not wish to know them. They call them shadows, and compare them to clouds which intercept the sun. This

idea concerning the sciences they have derived from some belonging to our earth, who in their presence boasted of their wisdom from their knowledge of the sciences.

8628. The spirits from our earth who thus boasted, were such as made wisdom to consist in what is of mere memory, as in the languages, in historical literature, in bare experimental discoveries, in terms especially such as are philosophical, and in other things of the kind, and did not use them as means to becoming wise, but made wisdom to consist in those knowledges themselves. Such persons, inasmuch as they have not cultivated their rational faculty by the sciences as means, in the other life have little perception; for they see only in terms and from terms, which there are as motes and as thick clouds before the intellectual sight. And they who have been conceited by reason of erudition in the sciences, have still less perception. But they who have used the sciences as means of annihilating the things which are of faith, have totally destroyed their understanding, and see in thick darkness like owls, mistaking falsity for truth, and evil for good. 2 The spirits of Jupiter, from conversation they had with such, concluded that the sciences induce shade and cause blindness. But they were told that on this earth the sciences may be means of opening the intellectual sight, which sight is in the light of heaven and instructs in such things as are of spiritual life; but inasmuch as self-love prevails and love of the world, and such things as are of merely natural and sensuous life therefrom, therefore the sciences are to those who are in these loves, means of becoming unwise, that is, of confirming themselves in favor of nature against the Divine, and in favor of the world 3 against heaven. They were further told that knowledges in themselves are spiritual riches, and that they who possess them are like those who possess worldly riches, which in like manner are means of performing use to one's self, one's neighbor, and one's country, and may be also the

means of doing evil; moreover that they are like clothes which serve for use and ornament, and also for pride, with those who desire to be honored for them alone. The spirits of the earth Jupiter understood these things well, but they were surprised that any who were men, should have preferred the things which lead to wisdom above wisdom itself; and that they should not see that to immerse the mind in such things, and not to elevate it beyond them, is to obscure and blind it.

8629. A certain spirit ascending from the lower earth came to me and said, that he had heard those things which I had spoken with the other spirits, but that he understood scarce anything that was said concerning spiritual life and light. He was asked whether he wished to learn of them. He said that he had not come with that intention; from which it might be concluded that he was unwilling. He was exceedingly stupid; yet it was told me by angels that during his life in the world as a man, he was among the more distinguished for erudition. He was cold, as was manifestly felt from his breath, which was a sign of merely natural light and no spiritual, thus that by his knowledge he had not opened, but closed to himself the way to the light of heaven.

8630. Inasmuch as the inhabitants of the earth Jupiter procure intelligence for themselves by another way than the inhabitants of our earth, and are moreover of another disposition derived from life, therefore they cannot be in company with them, but they either shun or repel them, if they approach. There are spheres, that are to be called spiritual spheres, which emanate, yea, pour forth continually from every society. These spheres are from the activity of the affections and consequent thoughts, thus they are of the life itself (concerning spheres, see n. 1048, 1053, 1316, 1504, 1505, 1507, 1508, 1510-1519, 2401, 4464, 5179, 6206, 7454, 6598-6613, 8063). All conso- 2 ciation in the other life is effected according to spheres.