414. And who is able to stand? That this signifies, who shall bear and live? is plain from the signification of standing, when it is before the Lord, as denoting to bear [His presence] and live; here, that they are not able to bear it and live; for, as said above, the wicked not only come into trembling for fear, from the influx and consequent presence of the Lord, that is, of the Divine good and the Divine truth strongly and powerfully going forth and proceeding from Him, but also into torments from interior conflict, therefore, unless they fled thence and cast themselves down, they could not live; for from fear and torment death as it were befalls them; for the presence of the Divine mortifies evil as it vivifies good: from this state of such it is then said, "who is able to stand?" As also in Malachi:
"Who may abide the day of his coming? and who shall stand when he appeareth?" (iii. 2).
In Nahum:
"Who can stand up before his indignation? and who can stand in the fierceness of his anger?" (i. 6).
And in Joel:
"The day of Jehovah is great and very terrible; and who shall bear it?" (ii. 11).
Moreover, the expression, to stand, like [the expressions] to walk and to sit, in the Word, signifies, to be, and, to live; and, to stand, the same as to consist and subsist. As in Luke:
"The angel answered Zachariah, I am Gabriel, that stand in the presence of God" (i. 19).
And in the same:
"Watch all the time, that ye may be accounted worthy to stand before the Son of Man" (xxi. 36).
And because to stand also signifies to be, it is also said of Jehovah, in Isaiah,
"Jehovah standeth up to plead, and standeth to judge" (iii. 13, 14).
And in David:
"God hath stood in the assembly of God; he shall judge in the midst of the gods" (Ps. lxxxii. 1).
But whence it is that to stand signifies to be, shall be told elsewhere.
This page is part of 
© 2000-2001 The Academy of the New Church