844. Verse 18. Here is wisdom, signifies that this is their doctrine in all its complex, which is thought to be wisdom, although it is insanity. This is evident from the signification of "here is wisdom," as being that all those things that have been said of the dragon and his two beasts is the doctrine of those who have separated faith from life, which however is not wisdom, as it is reputed, but insanity. That this is the meaning of "here is wisdom" follows from what precedes, that "no one is able to buy* and sell save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name," which signifies that no one should learn or teach anything else but what had been acknowledged, and thus accepted in doctrine. From this it can be concluded that "wisdom" here means wisdom in their own eyes; which, nevertheless, is insanity appearing to them to be wisdom. Insanity is meant by "wisdom," because those who are in falsities, when they have confirmed their falsities believe themselves to be wiser than others. The evil do the like when they are in their evils and are contriving devices by which they may do evil to the good; they then appear to themselves to be ingenious, yea even wiser than others, and yet before the eyes of angels they appear crazy. And this is why their insanity when they are in falsities is called in the Word "wisdom and intelligence," as in the following passages:
O Lord God, Thou hast hid these things from the wise and intelligent, and hast revealed them unto babes (Matt. 11:25; Luke 10:21). Woe to the wise in their own eyes, and the intelligent before their own faces (Isa. 5:21). I will visit upon the fruit of the proud heart of the king of Assyria and upon the splendor of the exaltation of his eyes; for he hath said, In the power of my hand I have done it, and by my wisdom; because I was intelligent (Isa. 10:12, 13). Surely the princes of Zoan are fools, the wise of the counselors of Pharaoh; how say ye unto Pharaoh, I am the son of the wise (Isa. 19:11). The wisdom of his wise men shall perish, and the intelligence of his intelligent shall hide itself (Isa. 29:14). He casteth the wise men backward (Isa. 44:25). A sword against the inhabitants of Babylon, and against her princes, and against her wise ones (Jer. 50:35). This is why the magi in Babylon and elsewhere were called wise men (Dan. 2:48). From this it is clear that wisdom is predicated in the Word also of those who are not wise, also of those who are insane from falsities, like as "diadems" are attributed to them (as to the dragon, Rev. 12:3, and to his beast in the first verse of this chapter); and it is said of the woman who sat on the scarlet beast:
That she was arrayed in purple and scarlet, gilded with gold, adorned with precious stones and pearls (Rev. 17:4). Likewise the evil are called "strong" and "mighty," when in fact they are anything but strong and mighty (see above, n. 783). * The photolithograph has "edere et vendere" for "emere et vendere."
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