1076. Verse 15. And he saith unto me, The waters which thou sawest, where the harlot sitteth, signifies the doctrinals from the Papal Consistory in general, that is, all the other doctrinals. This is evident from the signification of "waters," as being the truths of the Word, and thus of the church, consequently doctrinals (see n. 71, 483, 518, 854); here truths falsified and profaned, because they are those upon which "the harlot sitteth," by which is signified Babylon, where all the holy things of the church are profaned. Also from the signification of "where the harlot sitteth," as being where the dominion of Babylon is, the "harlot" signifying the church that has become Babylon by the profanation of all things of good and truth (see above, n. 1032); and to "sit" signifying to have dominion (see above, n. 1033, 1038, 1062). And as "waters" signify the doctrinals that are in Babylon, and these proceed from the Papal Consistory, therefore "the waters where the harlot sitteth," signify the doctrinals that are from the Papal consistory; here all except the two that have just been mentioned. For the series of things from verses 12 to 17 is as follows: verses 12-14 treat of the profanation of the two truths which are the primary truths of the church, namely, the Lord's Divine authority over heaven and the church, and the Divine holiness of the Word; that is, that there are many within the kingdom of Babylon who have not profaned these, because they have not accepted them. Verse 15 treats of profaned goods and truths in general, thus of all other truths. Verses 16 and 17 treat of those who are outside of Babylon, who have acknowledged the Lord's Divine authority over the holy things of the church, and also the Divine holiness of the Word, who are those called the Reformed. This is the series of things in the internal sense from verses 12 to 17.
(Continuation respecting the Word)
[2] It has been said that the Divine truth proceeds from the Lord, and that the Word is from that, and that through the Word angels and men have wisdom. But so long as it is unknown how the Divine truth proceeds from the Lord, this may be said but it cannot be understood. The Divine truth, which is the same as the Divine wisdom, proceeds from the Lord as light and heat do from the sun. The Lord is the Divine love itself, and love appears in the heavens from correspondence as fire, and the Lord's Divine love as a sun, glowing and resplendent like the sun of the world. From that sun, which is high above the heavens where the angels are, and which is the Divine love, heat and light proceed; the heat therefrom is the Divine good, and the light therefrom is the Divine truth. The heat is the Divine good, because all the heat of life proceeding from love is felt as good, for it is spiritual heat; and the light is the Divine truth, because all the light proceeding from love is felt as truth, for it is spiritual light; consequently it is from that light that the understanding sees truths, and it is from that heat that the will is sensible of goods; and this is why in the Word love is meant by heavenly fire and wisdom by heavenly light. It is the same with a man and with an angel. Every angel and man is his own love, and a sphere flowing out from his love encompasses every man and angel. That sphere consists of the good of his love and of the truth of his love, for love produces both, as fire produces both heat and light; from the will of a man or angel it produces good, and from his understanding it produces truth. This sphere, when the man or angel is good, has an extension into the heavens in every direction according to the quality and the amount of the love, and into the hells in every direction when the man or angel is evil. But the sphere of the love of a man or an angel has a finite extension into a few societies only of heaven or hell, while the sphere of the Lord's love, because it is Divine, has an infinite extension, and creates the heavens themselves.
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