452. 'And out of their mouths issued fire and smoke and sulphur' signifies that in their thoughts and discussions interiorly regarded, there is nothing, and there proceeds out of them nothing but the love of self and the world which is the proprium of the will, the pride of self-intelligence which is the proprium of the understanding, and the lust of evil and untruth which is the general proprium flowing forth out of those two. 'Out of their mouths' is out of their thoughts and conversations; by 'fire' is signified the love of self and the world, which love is the proprium of man's will (n. 450, 468, 494); by 'smoke' is signified the pride of self-intelligence, which is the proprium of his understanding issuing out of the love of self and the world as smoke out of fire (n. 422); and by 'sulphur' is signified the lust of evil and untruth, which is the general proprium flowing forth out of those two. These things, however, are not apparent from their conversations before men in the world, but are manifestly apparent before angels in heaven, and this is why it is said that interiorly regarded they are such. In the following passages 'fire' signifies infernal love, and 'sulphur' the lusts flowing forth out of that love through the pride of self-intelligence:-
I will make it rain fire and sulphur upon him Ezek. xxxviii 22.
Jehovah shall rain upon the wicked fire and sulphur Ps. xi 6.
The day of Jehovah's vengeance, the torrents shall be turned into pitch, and the dust thereof into sulphur, the smoke thereof shall go up for ever Isa. xxxiv 8-10.
In the day that Lot went out of Sodom, it rained fire and sulphur out of heaven; even thus shall it be in the day that the Son of Man shall be revealed Luke xvii 29, 30; Gen. xix 24.
He who adores the beast and his image shall be tormented with fire and sulphur Rev. xiv 9, 10.
The beast, the false prophet and the devil were cast into the lake of fire and sulphur Rev. xix 20; xx 10; xxi 8.
The breath of Jehovah like a river of sulphur shall kindle the pile Isa. xxx 33.
The whole land is sulphur, salt, and burning; it shall not be sown, it shall not sprout forth, like the overthrow of Sodom and Gomorrah Deut. xxix 21-23.
Sulphur shall be scattered upon the habitation of the wicked Job xviii 15.
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