943. 'And the Lord God of the holy prophets has sent His angel to show unto His servants the things that must be done quickly' signifies that the Lord, from Whom is derived the Word of both covenants, has revealed through heaven to those who are in truths derived from Himself the things that are certainly going to be. 'The Lord God of the holy prophets' signifies the Lord from Whom is derived the Word of both covenants; for by 'the prophets' are signified those who teach truths out of the Word, and in the abstract sense the Church's doctrine of truth (n. 8, 173); and in a wide sense the Word itself. And because the Word is signified by 'the holy prophets', therefore by them is signified the Word of both covenants. 'He has sent His angel to show unto His servants the things that must be done quickly' signifies that the Lord has revealed to those who are in truths derived from Himself the things that are certainly going to be. [2] By the 'angel' here is signified heaven, as above (n. 5, 65, 644, 647, 648, 910); by 'servants' are signified those who are in truths from the Lord (n. 3, 380, 937); by 'quickly' is signified certainly (n. 4); consequently by 'the things that must be done quickly' is signified that are certainly going to be. The reason why by the 'angel' here is signified heaven is because the Lord spoke through heaven with John, and He also spoke through heaven with the prophets, and He, speaks through heaven when He speaks with every individual. This is because the angelic heaven in general is like One Man, whose soul and life is the Lord; and therefore everything that the Lord speaks He speaks through heaven, just as a man's soul and mind speaks through his body. That the entire angelic heaven as one whole resembles one Man, and that this is derived from the Lord, may be seen above (n. 5), and in the work concerning HEAVEN AND HELL, published at London, 1758 (n. 59-86). Also in ANGELIC WISDOM CONCERNING DIVINE PROVIDENCE (n. 64-69, 162-164, 201-204), and in ANGELIC WISDOM CONCERNING DIVINE LOVE AND WISDOM (n. 11, 19, 133, 288). [3] But I will declare this mystery. The Lord speaks through heaven, but still the angels there do not speak, neither do they know at all what the Lord is speaking; unless some of them by means of whom the Lord speaks out of heaven openly are with the man, as with John and some of the prophets. For the Lord's influx is through heaven, just as the influx of the soul is through the body. The body indeed speaks and acts and also feels something as the result of the influx, but yet the body does not do anything of itself as derived from itself, but is acted upon. It has been given [me] to know from much experience that the speech, in fact all the influx of the Lord, through heaven with men, is like that. The angels of heaven, and also the spirits below the heavens, know nothing about the man, just as the man does not know anything about them, because the state of spirits and angels is spiritual, and that of men is natural. These two states are associated together solely by means of correspondences, and association by means of correspondences causes them to be together in affections but not in thoughts; and therefore the one does not know anything about the other, that is, the man does not know about the spirits with whom he is as to affections, nor do the spirits know about the man, for what is not in thought but only in affection is not known, because it does not appear nor is it seen. Only the Lord knows the thoughts of men.