825. [verse 13] 'And clothed with a blood-stained garment, and His Name is called the Word of God' signifies Divine Truth in the ultimate sense or the Word in the letter, on which violence has been inflicted. By 'a garment' is signified truth clothing good (n. 166, 212, 328); and when the Word is treated of it signifies the Word in the sense of the letter, for this is like a garment with which its spiritual and celestial sense has been clothed. By 'blood' is signified violence inflicted on the Lord's Divine and on the Word (n. 327, 684). The reason that this is signified is because by 'blood' is signified the Lord's Divine Truths in the Word (n. 379, 653), and therefore by 'to shed blood' is signified to inflict violence on the Lord's Divine and on the Word. By 'the Word of God' is here signified the Word in the sense of the letter, for to this violence has been inflicted but not on the Word in the spiritual sense, because this sense was not known; and if it had been known violence would still have been inflicted on it. For this reason that sense was not revealed until after the last judgment was accomplished and a new Church was to be set up by the Lord. Nor is it being revealed at this day to anyone unless he is in Divine Truths from the Lord; see THE DOCTRINE or THE NEW JERUSALEM CONCERNING THE SACRED SCRIPTURE (n. 26). [2] That violence has been inflicted on the Lord's Divine and on the Word is quite plain from the Roman Catholic form of religion, and from the form of religion of the Reformed concerning faith alone. The Roman Catholic form of religion maintains that the Lord's Human is not Divine, and they have therefore transferred all things of the Lord to themselves. Again they maintain that the Word is to be interpreted exclusively by them; and the interpretation by them is everywhere contrary to the Divine Truth of the Word, as has been shown in the exposition of the preceding chap. xviii. In consequence it is plan that violence has been inflicted on the Word by that form of religion. The like has been done by the form of religion with the Reformed concerning faith alone. This, too, does not make the Lord's Human Divine. Also it founds theology upon a single saying of Paul falsely understood, and therefore makes of no account all the things that the Lord taught concerning love and charity and good works, which yet are so prominent that anyone can see them if only he has eyes to see. [3] The like was done with the Word by the Jews. Their religious view was that the Word had been written for no others but them, and thus that no others are there understood, and that the Messiah about to come would uphold them above all in the whole wide world. By these means and many others they have falsified and adulterated all things of the Word. This is understood by these words in Isaiah:-