564. [verse 16] 'And the land helped the woman, and the land opened its mouth and swallowed up the river that the dragon cast forth out of his mouth' signifies that the reasonings that the dragonists produce derived from plentiful untruths fall to nothing as a result of the spiritual truths rationally understood, which the Michaels of whom the New Church [consists] bring forward. By 'the land' that 'helped the woman' is signified the Church as to doctrine (n. 285); and because it treats of the reasonings derived from untruths that the dragonists produce, the means by which 'the land', that is, the Church, 'helps the woman' are truths out of the Word. By 'to open the mouth' is signified to bring those truths forward; by 'the river that the dragon cast forth out of his mouth' reasonings derived from plentiful untruths are signified (n. 563); by 'to swallow up' is signified to make them fall to nothing. By 'Michaels' are understood men of the New Church, by 'Michael' the wise ones there, and by 'his angels' the rest. [2] Since in the New Church the dogma that the understanding is to he held captive under obedience to faith is rejected, and in its place it is received that the truth of the Church is to be seen in order that it may be believed (n. 224), and because truth cannot be seen otherwise than rationally, it is therefore said 'as a result of the truths rationally understood'. How can any man who closes his understanding to such things as are of salvation and eternal life be led by the Lord and conjoined with heaven? Is it not the understanding which will be enlightened and taught? And what is an understanding closed by religion but thick-darkness, such a thick-darkness as rejects the enlightening light away from itself? Again, who can acknowledge any truth and hold on to it unless he sees it? What is a truth unseen but a word not understood, which with sensual corporeal men is usually retained in the memory, but with the wise cannot be [so retained]? In fact the wise cast empty words out of the memory, that is, words that have not entered by virtue of understanding; such as, that the one God is three in respect to Persons, also that the Lord born from what is eternal is not one and the same with the Lord born in time, that is, that one Lord is God but not the other. Then again, that the life of charity, consisting in good works and also in repentance from evil works, effects nothing towards salvation. A wise man does not understand this, and therefore by virtue of his rationality says, 'Does religion then effect nothing? Is it not religion to shun evil and do good? Will not the doctrine of the Church teach this, as also what a man is going to believe, so that he may do the goods of religion from God?'