preceding things are said, is, because the primary falsity of those who are described by this church is, that they do not acknowledge the Lord's Divine Humanity, and therefore do not approach him.

94. "I know thy works;" that this signifies, that the Lord sees all their interiors and exteriors at once, is evident from the same explained above, n. 76; in the present case it denotes that he sees that they are in falses, and yet as to life in goods, which they believe to be goods of life, when yet they are not.

95. "And affliction and poverty (but thou art rich,") signifies, that they are in falses, and thence not in goods. To know their affliction signifies, to see that they are in falses, and to know their poverty signifies, to see that they are not in goods; for in the Word, affliction is predicated of falses, as above, n. 33; and poverty of the defect of goods; neither is spiritual poverty any thing else. Poor and needy are often mentioned in the Word, and in the spiritual sense by poor is understood one who is not in truths, and by needy one who is not in goods. These words are also added, "but thou art rich," but in a parenthesis, because in some copies they are omitted.

96. "And I know the blasphemy of them that say they are Jews, and are not," signifies, the false assertion that they possess the goods of love, when yet they do not. Blasphemy here signifies false assertion; by Jews are not signified Jews, but they who are in the good of love, and, abstractedly, goods of love; so by the blasphemy of them which say they are Jews, and are not, is signified the false assertion that they possess the goods of love, when yet they do not. By Jews are meant they who are in the good of love, because in the Word by Judah in a supreme sense is meant the Lord as to the divine good of divine love, and by Israel, the Lord as to the divine truth of divine wisdom; hence by Jews are signified they who are in the good of love from the Lord, and by Israel they who are in divine truths from the Lord : that these are meant by Jews, may appear from many passages, which will be adduced below, n. 350; something may also be seen on this subject in The Doctrine

of the New Jerusalem concerning the Lord, n. 51. In the abstract the goods of love are meant by Jews, because the spiritual sense is abstracted from persons, as may be seen above, n. 78, 79. He who is not aware, that by Jews, in the Word, are meant those who belong to the Lord's celestial church, by reason of their being principled in love to him, is liable to fall into many mistakes when reading the prophetical part of the Word ; but see below, n. 350.

97. "But are the synagogue of satan," signifies, because they are in falses as to doctrine. It is called synagogue, because Jews are mentioned, and as they taught in synagogues, by synagogue is signified doctrine; and because by satan is understood the hell of those who are in falses, therefore it is called the synagogue of satan. Hell is called the devil and satan, and by the hell which is called the devil, are understood such there as are in evils, properly who are in self-love; and by the hell which is called satan, are understood such there as are in falses, properly who are in the pride of self-derived intelligence: the hells are called the devil and satan, because all who are in them are called devils and satans. Hence then it may appear, that by their being the synagogue of satan, is signified that as to doctrine they are in falses. But as they who are in good as to life, and in falses as to doctrine, are here treated of, and as such know no other than that they are in good, and that their falses are truths, something shall be said respecting them. All the good of worship is formed by truths, and all truth is formed from good, therefore good without truth is not good, neither is truth, without good, truth; they appear indeed in their external form to be so, but still they are not. The conjunction of good and truth is called the heavenly marriage; from this is the church in man, and it is heaven in him; if therefore there are falses instead of truths in man, then he does good from a false ground, which is not good, for it is either pharisaical or meritorious, or natural connate good. But examples will illustrate this: He who is in this falsity, that he thinks he does good from himself, from his possessing the

faculty of doing good; the good of such a man is not good, because he himself is in it, and not the Lord. He who is in this falsity, that he can do good which is in itself good, without a knowledge of what is evil in himself, so without repentance, although he appears to do good, yet he does not do good, because without repentance he is in evil. He who is in this falsity, that good purifies him from evils, and does not know any thing of the evils in which he is, such a man does no other good than spurious good, which is inwardly contaminated by his evils. He who is in this falsity, that there is a plurality of gods, the good which such a man does is divided good, and divided good is not good. He who is in this falsity, that he believes the divinity in the Lord's Humanity is not like the soul in the body, cannot do good from him, and good not from the Lord is not good, for it is contrary to these words of the Lord: "Except a man abide in me and I in him, he cannot bring forth any fruit ; for without me ye can do nothing. If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch and is withered, and is cast into the fire and burned," John xv. 4, 5, 6: and so in many other instances; for good derives its quality from truths, and truths derive their esse from good. Who does not know, that the church is no church without doctrine, and doctrine must teach how a man is to think of God and from God; and how he is to act from God and with God; therefore doctrine must be derived from truths, to act according to which, is what is called good; whence it follows, that to act according to falses is not good. It is thought, that in the good which a man does, there is not any thing derived from truths or falses, when yet the quality of good is not derived from any other source, for they cohere together like love and wisdom, and also like love and foolishness; it is the love of the wise man which does good, but the love of the fool does what is like good in externals, but totally unlike it in internals; therefore the good of a wise man is like pure gold, but the good of a fool is like gold covering dirt.

98. "Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer," signifies, despair not when ye are infested by

evils and assaulted by falses, because they who are in goods as to life, and in falses as to doctrine, cannot but be so infested and assaulted. This is plain from what now follows.

99. "Behold, the devil shall cast some of you into prison," signifies, that their good of life will be infested by evils from hell. That this is signified by being cast into custody or into prison by the devil, is, because by the devil is meant the hell where they are who are in evils, and thus, abstractedly, the evil which is there and from thence, n. 97. To be cast into prison, denotes to be infested, because they who are infested by evils from hell, are as if they were bound in prison, for they cannot think any thing but evil, when yet they will what is good; hence comes combat and interior anxiety, from which they cannot be released, being like persons who are in bonds; the reason is, because their good is not good so far as it coheres with falses, and so far as it coheres with falses, evil is in it; therefore it is that which is infested. But this infestation does not exist in the natural world, but in the spiritual world, thus after death. It has often been permitted me to see their infestations; they lament, saying, that they have done good, and desire to do good, and yet now they cannot, because of the evils which surround them. But still they are not all alike infested, but more severely according as they have confirmed themselves in falses, therefore it is said the devil shall cast some of you into prison. That the confirmation of what is false is hurtful, may be seen in The Doctrine of the New Jerusalem concerning the Sacred Scripture, n. 91-97. In the Word, by prisoners the same is signified as here by those who will be cast into prison, as in these places: I will "give thee for a covenant of the people, to bring out the prisoners from the prison, and them that sit in darkness out of the prison-house," Isaiah xlii. 6, 7, xlix. 8, 9. "Jehovah hath sent me, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound," Isaiah lxi. 1. "By the blood of thy covenant I have sent forth thy prisoners out of the pit," Zech. ix. 11.

"God-bringeth out those which are bound with chains,' Psalm lxviii. 6. "Let the sighing of the prisoner come before thee," Psalm lxxix. 11. To hear the groaning of the prisoner, to loose those that are appointed to die," Psalm cii. 20. "Jehovah looseth the prisoners," Psalm cxlvi. 7. It is plain that by prisoners in these places are not meant those who are imprisoned in the world, but those who are imprisoned by hell, thus by evils and falses. Similar is the signification of these words of the Lord: "I was in prison, and ye came unto me," Matt. xxv. 36. As the Lord brings out of prison, or delivers from infestation, those who have been in good as to life, though in falses as to doctrine, he says, "Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer; also, "Be thou faithful, and I will give thee a crown of life."

100. "That ye may be tried," signifies, by falses fighting against them. The reason why this is signified is, because all spiritual temptation is a combat of the devil and the Lord, which shall have possession of man; the devil or hell brings out his falses, and reproaches and condemns him, but the Lord brings out his truths, and withdraws him from falses, and delivers him. It is this combat which appears to man as in himself, because it is from evil spirits who are with him, and is called temptation. That spiritual temptation is nothing else, I know by experience, because in my temptations I have seen the infernals who brought them on, and have perceived the influx from the Lord who delivered me.

101. "And ye shall have tribulation ten days," signifies that this will endure its full time, that is, as long as they are willing to abide in falses. Affliction here signifies infestation, of which above, n. 33, 95, thus temptation; and ten days signify the duration of that state to the full : therefore it follows, "Be thou faithful unto death," by which is signified the reception and acknowledgment of truths, until by their means falses are removed, and as it were abolished. That ten days signify duration of state to the full, is, because days signify states, and ten what is full; for times, in the Word, signify states, n. 947, and numbers designate their quality, n. 9. As ten signify what