to its falses and evils, n. 20, 349; by tongue is signified its doc- 588. And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, 589. Slain from the foundation of the world, signifies the the world also signifies the church, may be seen in Matt. xiii. 37-39; Joel i. 9, 10; and that the Lord from faith in him is called the Saviour of the world, John iii. 16-19; iv. 42; vi. 33, 51; viii. 12; ix. 4, 5; xii. 46, 47. That the world also means the people of the church, John xii. 19; xviii. 20. From hence it may be seen what is signified by the foundation of the world; also in Matt. xxv. 34; Luke xi. 50; John xvii. 24; Apoc. xvii. 11. 590. If any man have an ear, let him hear, signifies that they should attend to this, who desire to attain wisdom. That by having an ear to hear is signified to perceive and obey, and also to attend, may be seen above, n. 87; that it also means those who desire to attain wisdom, follows of course. Here it is said, "If any man have an ear let him hear," in order that they may attend to what goes before, and that otherwise they are not wise. 591. He that leadeth into captivity shall go into captivity, signifies that he who by means of this heretical doctrine misleads others from believing well and living well, will himself be drawn into hell by his own evils and falses. By leading into captivity is signified to persuade and draw over to his own party, that they may consent to and become adherents to that heresy, which is understood by the dragon and the beast, and so to draw aside from believing well and from living well. By going into captivity is signified to be drawn into hell by his own falses and evils. By captivity is here meant spiritual captivity, which consists in being seduced, and so drawn away from truths and goods, into falses and evils. That by captivity in the Word is meant this spiritual captivity, may appear from the following passages: "Hear, I pray you, all people, and behold my sorrow, my virgins and my young men are gone into captivity," Lament. i. 18. "God forsook the tabernacle of Shiloh, the tent which he placed among men, and delivered his strength into captivity," Psalm lxxviii. 60, 61. "The wind shall eat up all thy pastors, and thy lovers shall go into captivity; surely then shalt thou be ashamed for all thy wickedness," Jerem. xxii. 22. "I will make mine arrows drunk with the blood of the slain and of the captives," Deut. xxxii. 42. "They stoop, they bow down together, and their soul is gone into captivity," Isaiah xlvi. 1, 2. Jehovah hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound," Isaiah lxi. 1; Luke iv. 18, 19. "I have raised him up in righteousness; and he shall let go my captives, not for price nor reward," Isaiah xlv. 13. Thou hast ascended on high, thou hast led captivity captive," Psalm lxviii. 18. "Shall the lawful captive be delivered? Even the captives of the mighty shall be taken away, and the prey of the terrible shall be delivered," Isaiah xlix. 24, 25. "Shake thyself from the dust, arise, sit down, O Jerusalem, loose thyself from the bands of thy neck, O captive daughter of Zion," Isaiah lii. 1, 2; not to mention others; as Jerem. xlviii. 46, 47; 1. 33, 34; Ezek. vi. 1-10; xii. 1-12; Obad. i. 11; Psalm xiv. 7; 1. 33, 34; liii. 6. By the captivities of the sons of Israel by their enemies, spoken of in the book of Judges, and 2 Kings xxx., and in the prophets, were represented, and consequently signified spiritual captivities, of which elsewhere. By those that are bound, or prisoners, the same is signified as by captives in the following passages: "By the blood of thy covenant I have sent forth thy prisoners out of the pit, wherein is no water," Zech. ix. 11. "Let the sighing of the prisoner come before thee," Psalm lxxix. 11. "And they shall be gathered together as prisoners are gathered in the pit, and shall be shut up as in the prison," Isaiah xxiv. 22. "That made the world as a wilderness, that opened not the house of his prisoners," Isaiah xiv. 17. "The King said, I was in prison, and ye came not unto me," Matt. xxv. 36. Jesus said, "Ought_not this woman, being a daughter of Abraham, whom Satan hath bound, lo, these eighteen years, be loosed from this bond on the Sabbath day?" Luke xiii. 16. 592. He that killeth with the sword, must be killed with the sword, signifies that he who by means of falses destroys the soul of another, is himself destroyed by falses, and perishes. By a sword, a dagger, and a two-edged sword, is signified truth, and, in an opposite sense, falsity, both militant, n. 52, 836; therefore by killing and being killed is signified to destroy and be destroyed, or to ruin and to perish, which is effected by falses. 593. Here is the patience and the faith of the saints, signifies that the man of the Lord's New Church, by temptations derived from the spirits of the dragon, is explored as to the quality of his life and faith. By patience is here signified patience in temptations, and in such case exploration of man's quality as to life according to the Lord's commandments, and as to faith in the Lord; therefore it is said, here is patience and faith; by saints are signified they who are of the Lord's New Church, specifically they who are in divine truths therein, n. 586. Patience is predicated of temptations, whereby man is explored as to what he really is; likewise as in other parts of the Apocalypse, as in chap. i. 9; ii. 3, 19; iii. 10: that it means as to a life according to the Lord's commandments, and as to faith in him, is evident from these words, "They have no rest day nor night who worship the beast and his image, here is the patience of the saints; here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus," Apoc. xiv. 11, 12. 594. And I beheld another beast coming up out of the earth, signifies the clergy in the churches of the reformed who are principled in the doctrine and faith of the dragon concerning God and salvation. What the nature of the faith of the dragon is, may be seen above, n. 537. The laity are they who are meant by the beast which came up out of the sea, and the clergy by the beast which came up out of the earth; because by the sea is signified the external of the church, and by the earth its internal, n. 398, 567, and the laity are in the externals of church doctrine, and the clergy in its internals. That the clergy are now described, appears from all the particulars which follow, when understood in a spiritual sense; and manifestly from this circumstance, that this beast is also called the false prophet, Apoc. xvi. 13; xix. 20; xx. 10; and especially from the following passage: "And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and them that worshipped his image," xix. 20; that this beast wrought signs before the other, by which he seduced them, is said in this chapter in these words: "And he doeth great wonders, and deceiveth them that dwell on the earth, by the means of those miracles which he had the power to do in the sight of the beast, saying to them that dwell on the earth, that they should make an image to the beast, and worship it," verses 13 -15. 595. And he had two horns like a lamb, and he spake as a dragon, signifies that what they say, teach, and write, is from the Word, as though it were the Lord's divine truth, and yet it is truth falsified. By horns is signified power, n. 270, 443, here the power of speaking, teaching, and writing, thus of reasoning and arguing; his having horns like a lamb, signifies that they propagate these their notions as though they were divine truths of the Lord, because they are derived from the Word: for by a lamb is meant the Lord as to his Divine Humanity, and likewise as to the Word, which is divine truth from divine good; hence it is that upon this beast, which is also the false prophet, n. 594, there appeared two horns like a lamb; but that they were divine truths falsified, is signified by his speaking as a dragon that by those who are in the faith of the dragon concern ing God and salvation all the truths of the Word are falsified, may be seen above, n. 565. That these two things are signified by this beast having two horns like a lamb and speaking like a dragon, appears evidently from these words of the Lord in Matthew: "If any man shall say unto you, Lo, here is Christ, or there, believe it not; for there shall arise false Christs and false prophets, and shall show great signs and wonders, insomuch that if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect; behold I have told you before," xxiv. 23-25. By Christ is signified the same as here by lamb, viz., the Lord as to the divine truth of the Word; therefore their saying, "Lo, here is Christ," signi fies that they would say that this is the divine truth of the Word; but that the same would be falsified, is signified by these words, "If any one shall say unto you, Here is Christ, or there, believe it not, for there shall arise false Christs and false prophets." That these are they concerning whom the Lord utters this prediction, is plain from this consideration, that it is said they would show great signs and wonders, and would deceive, if possible, the elect; the same as is said of this beast, which is the false prophet, in verses 13, 14, of this chapter. The things which the Lord foretold in that chapter of Matthew relate to the last time or state of the church, which is there meant by the consummation of the age. 596. And he exerciseth all the power of the first beast before him, signifies that they confirmed the tenets which are signified by the dragon, and are received by the laity, and that they thence derive their influence and authority. That this is signified, may be seen from the explanation above concerning the power given by the dragon to the beast which rose out of the sea, n. 575, 579; and as this beast, which is the false prophet, exercised that power before the dragon, nothing else is signified than that they caused them to prevail by their confirmations. 597. And causeth the earth and them that dwell therein to worship the first beast whose deadly wound was healed, signifies that thus by their confirming arguments they have established this tenet, that it is to be acknowledged as a doctrine sacred in the church, that since no one can do good works from himself and fulfil the law, the only medium of salvation is faith in the righteousness and merit of Christ, who suffered for man, and thereby took away the sentence of the law. It is unnecessary to explain this any further, because it follows from the explanations given in n. 566, 577–582: by the earth and them that dwell therein, are signified the churches of the reformed as above; to worship signifies to acknowledge a thing to be sacred in the church, as appears also above; in the present instance it signifies to acknowledge as sacred that which is understood by the beast which rose out of the sea, after his death-wound was healed; and this has been explained already. 598. And he doeth great signs, signifies testifications that the things they teach are true, although they are false. By signs are signified testifications that things are true, because formerly signs were wrought to bear testimony to the truth; but after the cessation of signs and miracles, their signification still continues,. which is a testification of the truth; but in the present case by signs are signified testifications from the beast or false prophet, that his falses were truths, by reason that when they are confirmed they do not appear otherwise. That the testifications of a truth are signified by signs, may appear from the following passages: In the consummation of the age there |