LEVITICUS 22
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Leviticus Chapter 22

Summary of the Spiritual Sense

  1. Instruction to those who are in good and in truth thence derived, that they cannot acknowledge and worship the Lord when defiled by various impurities, lest they should be guilty of profanation, vers. 1-9.
  2. Concerning those who are not qualified to appropriate good, lest there be profanation, vers. 10-16.
  3. That all worship from good must be perfect by truth, and no worship is acceptable which is imperfect on account of some evil or falsity, vers. 17-25.
  4. Further particulars concerning the worship of the Lord in order to avoid profanation, vers. 26-33.

The Contents of each Verse

  1. And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying,
  1. There is revelation from the Lord by Divine Truth giving perception, [more]
  1. Speak to Aaron and to his sons, that they separate themselves from the holy things of the children of Israel, which they hallow to me, and that they profane not my holy name: I am the Lord.
  1. With instruction to those who are in celestial and spiritual good, that they cannot but be separated from the worship of the Lord and its ministry with the man of the Spiritual Church, when impure, lest they should profane; since celestial and spiritual good and truth are the expression of Divine Good. [more]
  1. Say to them, Whosoever he be of all your seed throughout your generations, that approaches to the holy things, which the children of Israel hallow to the Lord, having his uncleanness upon him, that soul shall be cut off from before me: I am the Lord.
  1. And hence the celestial man and the spiritual man perceive that whoever would approach the Lord in genuine worship, by the acknowledgement that all good and truth and holiness are from Him, and yet profanes by doing this from selfish motives, is thereby separated from good and truth, and thus from the Lord, who is their origin. [more]
  1. What man soever of the seed of Aaron is a leper, or has an issue; he shall not eat of the holy things, until he be clean. And whoso touches any thing that is unclean by the dead, or a man whose seed goes from him;
  1. For he who thus profanes the truth externally or internally, because he is in the affection thereof from good, cannot appropriate good until he ceases to act from selfish motives in worship; and even the slightest contact with merely ceremonial worship, in which there is no spiritual life, or with worship from the affection of truth separated from good; [more]
  1. Or whoever touches any creeping thing, whereby he may be made unclean, or a man of whom he may take uncleanness, whatever uncleanness he has;
  1. Or with merely sensual delight whereby is impurity; or with any evil which tends to impurity of whatever kind, [more]
  1. The soul which touches any such shall be unclean until the even, and shall not eat of the holy things, unless he bathe his flesh in water.
  1. Such conduct renders a man impure until a change of state; and he cannot appropriate good until he is purified by the truth in the work of repentance. [more]
  1. And when the sun is down, he shall be clean; and afterward he shall eat of the holy things, because it is his bread.
  1. But when that state is passed by the rejection of selfish love, a person is pure; and he will then appropriate good, because it is his ruling delight, and can alone support his spiritual life. [more]
  1. That which dies of itself, or is torn of beasts, he shall not eat to defile himself therewith: I am the Lord.
  1. But good that is merely natural, or such as is mixed with evil unconsciously, he may not appropriate, because it renders him impure; his good must be wholly from the Lord. [more]
  1. They shall therefore keep my charge, lest they bear sin for it, and die therein, if they profane it: I am the Lord which sanctify them.
  1. Let the man of the church, therefore, worship from internal good and truth conjoined with external, lest he should lapse into evil, and be vastated on account of profanation; for good from the Lord is that which alone makes man holy. [more]
  1. There shall no stranger eat of the holy thing: a sojourner of the priest's, or an hired servant, shall not eat of the holy thing.
  1. It is impossible for one who is out of the church to appropriate good which is holy, or for the merely natural man to do so; nor can he who is in merely natural knowledge within the church, or who does what is right for the sake of gain do so. [more]
  1. But if a priest buy any soul, the purchase of his money, he shall eat of it; and such as are born in his house, they shall eat of his bread.
  1. But if a man is redeemed from sin by a life of good through obedience to the truth, he will then be able to appropriate good; and all who are in good internally, will be able to appropriate good externally. [more]
  1. And if a priest's daughter be married to a stranger, she shall not eat of the heave offering of the holy things.
  1. And if any one is in the affection of good, derived from the Lord, internally, and yet profanes that affection by conjoining it with the evil of selfish love, it will be impossible for such to appropriate good, which is perceived to be from the Lord. [more]
  1. But if a priest's daughter be a widow, or divorced, and have no child, and is returned to her father's house, as in her youth, she shall eat of her father's bread: but there shall no stranger eat thereof.
  1. But if any one in the affection of good be without truth or good, and unproductive of either, and yet there is internal association with good, as in the beginning of regeneration, good may still be appropriated; but merely natural affection cannot appropriate good. [more]
  1. And if a man eat of the holy thing unwittingly, then he shall put the fifth part thereof to it, and shall give to the priest the holy thing.
  1. Also if any one, from ignorance or inadvertence, profanes holy good, he must make restitution by the acknowledgement that he is, of himself, without remains of good, and that he receives good from the Lord. [more]
  1. And they shall not profane the holy things of the children of Israel, which they offer to the Lord;
  1. And no one, who is in good, ought to profane it by ascribing to himself what ought to be wholly ascribed to the Lord; [more]
  1. And so cause them to bear the iniquity that brings guilt, when they eat their holy things: for I am the Lord which sanctify them.
  1. For by so doing he brings upon himself a state of evil for which he is responsible, and vitiates his reception of good; and it must therefore be sincerely acknowledged that all good which renders man holy is from the Lord. [more]
  1. And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying,
  1. Further, there is revelation from the Lord by Divine Truth giving perception, [more]
  1. Speak to Aaron, and to his sons, and to all the children of Israel, and say to them, Whosoever he be of the house of Israel, or of the strangers in Israel, that offers his oblation, whether it be any of their vows, or any of their freewill offerings, which they offer to the Lord for a burnt offering;
  1. To those who are in celestial, spiritual, and natural good, that every one, whether he be of the internal or external church, who worships the Lord in freedom, with a view to the removal of evil, or from a feeling of gratitude, and yet inwardly has a desire to devote himself wholly to the Lord; [more]
  1. That you may be accepted, you shall offer a male without blemish, of the beeves, of the sheep, or of the goats.
  1. In order that his worship may be acceptable to the Lord, it must be free from any selfish or worldly motive; as to natural good; as to spiritual good; or as to the good of faith. [more]
  1. But whatever has a blemish, that shall you not offer: for it shall not be acceptable for you.
  1. But if it be contaminated with selfishness or worldliness, it cannot be accepted. [more]
  1. And whoever offer-eth a sacrifice of peace offerings to the Lord to accomplish a vow, or for a freewill offering, of the herd or of the flock, it shall be perfect to be accepted; there shall be no blemish therein.
  1. And he who would worship the Lord from freedom, so that thus the external man may be in harmony with the internal, both as to the will and understanding, or from love and from submission to the Divine Providence, as to the natural affections, or as to the spiritual, this worship must be perfect, and without an admixture of selfish or worldly motives. [more]
  1. Blind, or broken, or maimed, or having a discharge, or scurvy, or scabbed, you shall not offer these to the Lord, nor make an offering by fire of them upon the altar to the Lord.
  1. For the worship of the Lord ought not to be from ignorance, or from imperfect affections of the understanding or will, or from natural affections corrupted by sensual, worldly, or selfish defects, for these cannot be consecrated wholly to the Lord, or be fully devoted to the service of man. [more]
  1. Either a bullock or a lamb that has any thing superfluous or lacking in his parts, that may you offer for a freewill offering; but for a vow it shall not be accepted.
  1. But external or internal affections grounded in innocence, although imperfect, may yet be devoted to the Lord when worship is from freedom; but such worship is not acceptable if it be confirmed by the understanding and will together. [more]
  1. That which has its stones bruised, or crushed, or broken, or cut, you shall not offer to the Lord; neither shall you do thus in your land.
  1. And that affection which is impure or unholy, internally or externally through the violation of the heavenly marriage of love and wisdom, goodness and truth, charity and faith, or affection and intelligence, cannot be consecrated to the worship of the Lord internally or externally. [more]
  1. Neither from the hand of a foreigner shall you offer the bread of your God of any of these; because their corruption is in them, there is a blemish in them: they shall not be accepted for you.
  1. And neither is it in the power of merely natural love of any kind to promote the true worship of the Lord, because they are impure both in feeling and thought, and they cannot, therefore, give conjunction with the Lord. [more]
  1. And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying,
  1. Further, there is revelation from the Lord by Divine Truth giving perception, [more]
  1. When a bullock, or a sheep, or a goat, is brought forth, then it shall be seven days under the dam; and from the eighth day and thenceforth it shall be accepted for the oblation of an offering made by fire to the Lord.
  1. That every incipient natural affection, or spiritual affection, or affection of truth, is to be purified through the operation of the principle of good in the church; and that then in the new state following, it shall be devoted to the service of the Lord in genuine spiritual worship. [more]
  1. And whether it be cow or ewe, you shall not kill it and her young both in one day.
  1. And whether it be good in the natural or spiritual man, the good of the former is not to be commingled with the good of the latter, but the state of new spiritual life must succeed the former state. [more]
  1. And when you sacrifice a sacrifice of thanksgiving to the Lord, you shall sacrifice it that you may be accepted.
  1. Also in all the free worship of the Lord from a spirit of gratitude, there must be the conjunction of the external with the internal man; [more]
  1. On the same day it shall be eaten; you shall leave none of it until the morning: I am the Lord.
  1. The appropriation of the good thereof must be only in that preparatory state; nor shall any selfish or worldly motive corrupt it; for only pure affections are to be ascribed to the Lord, because they come from Him. [more]
  1. Therefore shall you keep my commandments, and do them: I am the Lord.
  1. And, indeed, true worship is by obedience to the Divine Commandments, internally and externally, by the help of the Lord. [more]
  1. And you shall not profane my holy name; but I will be hallowed among the children of Israel: I am the Lord which hallow you,
  1. Nor is Divine Truth from the Lord to be ascribed to self, and thus profaned; but the true spiritual man must be holy both inwardly and outwardly; and all holiness is through the internal man from the Lord, [more]
  1. That brought you out of the land of Egypt, to be your God: I am the Lord.
  1. And is communicated to man through the work of redemption, by actual deliverance from evil in each particular case, through the reception of Divine Truth and the conflict of temptations; and thus is man enabled to acknowledge the Lord as Divine Love manifested. [more]

References and Notes

  1.  This is evident, because by Jehovah is denoted the Divine Being as to His love, 2001; by speaking is denoted influx, 2951; by Moses is represented Divine Truth, or the Word, 7010; and by saying is denoted perception, 1791, 1822.

    [Back to 1]

  2.  Speaking to Aaron and to his sons denotes instruction to those who are in celestial and spiritual good, 2951, 7010, 9946; separating themselves from the holy things of the children of Israel denotes that they cannot but be separated from the worship of the Lord, 9903, 2776; also from the ministry of such worship, because all true worship is effected by good, which Aaron and his sons represented as priests, 9946; "which they hallow to me " clearly denotes that such worship and such ministry are holy; it is said "when impure" because this is implied, as may be known from what follows in the chapter; "that they profane not my holy name " denotes lest they should profane Divine Good and Divine Truth, by profaning the celestial and spiritual good and truth in themselves thence proceeding, 8882; and " I am the Lord" denotes that these are the expression of Divine Good, 2001.

    [Back to 2]

  3.  Say to them denotes that hence the celestial man and the spiritual man perceive, 9946, 1822; whoever he be of all your seed throughout your generations that approaches to the holy things, which the children of Israel hallow to the Lord, denotes whoever would approach the Lord in genuine worship, 9946, 10249, 2776,. 9903; the worship represented by the offering of sacrifices, which were "the holy things of the Lord," involves the acknowledgement that all good and truth and holiness are from Him, 349, 5619, 868; having his uncleanness upon him denotes to profane by the admixture of selfish motives, 8882, 10130; to be cut off from before the Lord denotes to be separated from good and truth, and thus from the Lord, 5302, 223; and "I am the Lord" denotes that the Lord is the origin of all good, 2001.

    [Back to 3]

  4.  What man soever of the seed of Aaron who is a leper or has an issue denotes one who profanes the truth externally or internally, because he is in the affection thereof from good, 6963, 10283, 10130, 10249, 9946; not eating of the holy things until he be clean denotes that he cannot appropriate good until he ceases to act from selfish motives in worship, 2187, 4545; whoever touches anything unclean by the dead denotes the slightest contact with merely ceremonial worship in which there is no spiritual life, 10130, 5407; and by a man whose seed goes from him is denoted worship from the affection of truth separated from good, 880, 1798, 4837.

    [Back to 4]

  5.  Whosoever touches any creeping thing by which he may be made unclean denotes contact with merely sensual delight whereby is impurity, 10130, 746; and a man of whom he may take uncleanness whatever uncleanness he has denotes any evil which tends to impurity of whatever kind, 7424, 10130.

    [Back to 5]

  6.  The soul which touches any such being unclean until the even denotes that such conduct renders a man impure until a change of state, 10130, 7844; and not eating of the holy things until he bathe his flesh in wafer denotes that he cannot appropriate good until he is purified by the truth in the work of repentance, 2187, 2776, 3147.

    [Back to 6]

  7.  His being clean when the sun is down denotes that when the state is passed by the rejection of selfish love a person is pure, 8615, 8487, 4545; and afterwards eating of the holy things because it is his bread denotes that he will then appropriate good because it is his ruling delight, and can alone support his spiritual life, 2187, 2776, 2165.

    [Back to 7]

  8.  That which dies of itself or is torn of beasts not being eaten to defile himself therewith denotes that he may not appropriate good which is merely natural, or such as is mixed with evil unconsciously, because it renders him impure, 2187, 4171, 10130; and "I am the Lord" denotes that his good must be wholly from the Lord, 2001.

    [Back to 8]

  9.  Keeping the Lord's charge denotes that the man of the church must therefore worship from internal good and truth conjoined with external, 3382; lest they bear sin for it denotes lest he should lapse into evil, 9156, 9937 end; dying therein denotes being vastated, or deprived of all good and truth, 2908; if they profane it denotes on account of profanation, 8882; and " I am the Lord which sanctify them " denotes that good from the Lord alone makes man holy, 2001, 8042.

    [Back to 9]

  10.  No stranger eating of the holy thing denotes that it is impossible for one out of the church to appropriate good which is holy, or, in other words, for the merely natural man to do so, 4544; and a sojourner, or foreign resident of the priest, and a hired servant not eating, denotes that neither can one within the church who is in merely natural knowledge, or one who does what is right for the sake of gain, do this, 8002.

    [Back to 10]

  11.  By one who was bought by the priest, the purchase of his money, or such as are born in his house, are denoted a man who is redeemed from sin by a life of good through obedience to the truth, and all who are in good internally, 5374, 9946, 1708; and by their eating of the bread is denoted appropriation, 2187, 2165.

    [Back to 11]

  12.  A priest's daughter married to a stranger not being allowed to eat of the heave offering of the holy things denotes that if any one is in the affection of good derived from the Lord internally, and yet profanes that affection by conjoining it with the evil of selfish love, it will be impossible for such to appropriate good celestial which is perceived to be from the Lord, 370315, 9946, 2173, 4544, 2187, 10093.

    [Back to 12]

  13.  A priest's daughter denotes one in the affection of good, 370315; being a widow, or divorced, denotes being without truth or good, 484416; not having any child denotes unproductive of either, 489; returning to her father's house denotes internal association with good, 370315; as in her youth denotes as in the beginning of regeneration, 3183; eating of her father's bread denotes that good may still be appropriated, 2187, 2165; and no stranger eating thereof denotes that merely natural affection cannot appropriate good, 4544, 2187.

    [Back to 13]

  14.  Any one eating of the holy things unwittingly denotes that if any one from ignorance or inadvertence profanes holy good, 9156, 10042 III., 2187, 2776; putting the fifth part to it denotes that he must make restitution by the acknowledgement that he is, of himself, without remains of good, 649, 9087, 9097; and giving to the priest the holy thing denotes that he receives good from the Lord, 9946, 10227, 2776.

    [Back to 14]

  15.  Not profaning the holy things of the children of Israel which they offer to the Lord denotes that no one who is in good ought to profane by ascribing to himself what ought to be ascribed wholly to the Lord, 8882, 2776, 9946.

    [Back to 15]

  16.  Causing them to bear iniquity that brings guilt denotes that by so doing he brings upon himself a state of evil for which he is responsible, 9937 end; when they eat the holy things denotes, in this case, when good is vitiated, 2187, 2776; and "I am the Lord which sanctify them " denotes that it must be sincerely acknowledged that all good which renders man holy is from the Lord, 2001, 8042.

    [Back to 16]

  17.  This is evident, because by Jehovah is denoted the Divine Being as to His love, 2001; by speaking is denoted influx, 2951; by Moses is represented Divine Truth, or the Word, 7010; and by saying is denoted perception, 1791, 1822.

    [Back to 17]

  18.  Speaking to Aaron, and to his sons, and to all the children of Israel, denotes instruction to those who are in celestial, spiritual and natural good, 9946, 4286; those of the house of Israel, or of the strangers in Israel, denote those of the internal or external church respectively, 3654, 7908; offering an oblation denotes the worship of the Lord, 923; vows and freewill offerings denote worship from freedom either for the removal of evil or from gratitude, 3880; and offering a burnt offering denotes full devotion to the Lord, 10053.

    [Back to 18]

  19.  A male without blemish denotes worship from good by means of truth, and free from any selfish or worldly motive, 725, 7837; of the beeves, of the sheep, or of the goats, denotes from natural good, from spiritual good, or from the good of faith, 2180, 2088, 4169; and "that you may be accepted" denotes clearly what is acceptable to the Lord, 9506.

    [Back to 19]

  20.  Not offering that which has a blemish, and its not being acceptable, denotes that if worship be contaminated with selfishness or worldliness it cannot be accepted, 7837, 9506.

    [Back to 20]

  21.  Offering a sacrifice of peace offerings to the Lord denotes worship from freedom, 10097; to accomplish a vow, or for a freewill offering, denotes so that thus the external man may be in harmony with the internal both as to the will and understanding; or from love and from submission to the Divine Providence as to the natural affections and as to the spiritual, 3880, 5913, 6126; and being perfect to be accepted, no blemish being therein, denotes that this worship must be perfect, and without any admixture of selfish and worldly motives, 7837, 9506.

    [Back to 21]

  22.  By blind, or broken, or maimed, or having a discharge, or scurvy, or scabbed, is denoted worship from ignorance, or from the imperfect affections of the understanding and will, or from natural affections corrupted by sensual, worldly or selfish defects, 2383, 9163, 210, 4302, 7524, chap 21:18-20; and not offering these to the Lord, nor making an offering by fire of them upon the altar to the Lord, is denoted that these affections cannot be consecrated wholly to the Lord, or be fully devoted to the service of man, 923, 10053, 10055.

    [Back to 22]

  23.  Either a bullock or a lamb that has anything superfluous or lacking in its parts, that may you offer for a freewill offering, denotes that external or internal affections grounded in innocence, although imperfect, may yet be devoted to the Lord when worship is from freedom, 10021, 10132, 10109 end, 581, 583, 16733, chap 21:18, 10097, 3880; and not offering these for a vow denotes" that such worship is not acceptable if it be confirmed by the understanding and will together, 3880, 9506.

    [Back to 23]

  24.  What has its stones bruised, or crushed, or broken, or cut, denotes an affection which is impure, or unholy, internally or externally, through the violation of the heavenly marriage of love and wisdom, goodness and truth, charity and faith, or affection and intelligence, 10303, 431, 2173, 5053, 5060, 9163, 9056, 279923; and not offering these to the Lord, nor doing thus in your land, denotes that such affections cannot be consecrated to the worship of the Lord internally or externally, 923, 683.

    [Back to 24]

  25.  Not offering the bread of God of any of these things from the hand of a foreigner denotes that neither is it in the power of merely natural love of any kind to promote the true worship of the Lord, 4544, 878, 2165, 923; and their corruption being in them, a blemish being in them, and their not being accepted, denote that such are impure both in feeling and thought, and that they cannot, therefore, give or have conjunction with the Lord, 10420, 7837, 683, 9506.

    [Back to 25]

  26.  This is evident, because by Jehovah is denoted the Divine Being as to His love, 2001; by speaking is denoted influx, 2951; by Moses is represented Divine Truth, or the Word, 7010; and by saying is denoted perception, 1791, 1822.

    [Back to 26]

  27.  A bullock, or a sheep, or a goat being brought forth denotes every incipient natural affection, or spiritual affection, or affection of truth, 2180, 2088, 4169, 264; it being seven days under its dam denotes that it is to be purified through the operation of the principle of good in the church, Gen. i. throughout, 716, 289, 290; and being accepted on the eighth day and thenceforth for the oblation of an offering made by fire to the Lord denotes that in the new state following it shall be devoted to the service of the Lord in genuine spiritual worship, 2044, 923, 10055.

    [Back to 27]

  28.  Whether it be a cow or ewe, not killing it and the young both in one day, denotes that whether it be good in the natural or spiritual man, the good of the former is not to be commingled with the good of the latter, but that the state of spiritual life must succeed the former state, 2180, 2088, 10024, 487, 2866.

    [Back to 28]

  29.  A sacrifice of thanksgiving to the Lord being sacrificed so that it may be accepted denotes that in all the free worship of the Lord from a spirit of gratitude there must be the conjunction of the internal with the external man, 3880, 9506, 10042 II., chap 1:3, 4.

    [Back to 29]

  30.  Being eaten on the same day denotes that the appropriation of the good thereof can only be in that preparatory state, 2187, 487; not leaving any of it until the morning denotes that no selfish motives shall corrupt it, 10114-7, 7860, 8480-3; and "I am the Lord" denotes that only pure affections are to be ascribed to the Lord, because they come from Him, 2001.

    [Back to 30]

  31.  Keeping the commandments of the Lord and doing them denotes that, indeed, true worship is by obedience to the Lord's commandments internally and externally, 3382, 5755; and "I am the Lord" denotes by the help of the Lord, 2001.

    [Back to 31]

  32.  "You shall not profane my holy name" denotes that Divine Truth from the Lord is not to be ascribed to self, 8882; " I will be hallowed among the children of Israel" denotes that the true spiritual man must be holy both inwardly and outwardly, 2001, 3654, 4286; and "I am the Lord which hallow you" denotes that all holiness is through the internal man from the Lord, 2001, 1557.

    [Back to 32]

  33.  "That brought you out of the land of Egypt to be your God" denotes that holiness is communicated to man through the work of redemption by actual deliverance from evil, in each particular case, through the reception of Divine Truth and the conflict of temptations, 8866, 2001; and "I am the Lord" denotes that thus is man enabled to acknowledge the Lord as Divine Love manifested, 2001.

    [Back to 33]

Discussion

It is necessary, in beginning to reflect upon what is now before us, to have a clear idea of what is meant spiritually by "the holy things of the children of Israel which they hallow to me." It is said, in the series, to mean the worship of the Lord, and the ministry of such worship; but what was offered to the Lord by the Israelites really represented the good affections which man, in worship, devotes to the service of the Lord, and acknowledges to be from the Lord. For all real worship consists in such devotion and such acknowledgement; and then the ministry of such worship is the external form which it takes, both in the performance of the uses which those good affections are intended to perform, and in the acknowledgement and worship of the Lord in the sanctuary. Hence, then, by the priests separating themselves from the holy things is strictly meant that in the performance of uses, and among those in public worship, any selfish motive which presents itself is to be carefully separated and rejected, this, of course, applying, not to the ministers of religion merely, but to every member of his congregation. This teaching, therefore, is very weighty teaching indeed, and is worthy of very serious consideration. For when we allow selfish motives to get mixed with the uses we perform, or with our worship, we then have our " uncleanness " upon us; and every one may know from experience how very apt he is to be troubled by selfish thoughts, more or less, in everything he does or says. And also we all know that if we indulge in and encourage these selfish feelings and thoughts we realty, just so far, are "cut off " or separated from the Divine presence.

But several things are mentioned which constitute such impurity as prevents man in worship from appropriating good and truth thence, which is signified by eating the holy things. These are leprosy, which, as we have seen, denotes the profanation of truth by applying it to selfish purposes externally; an issue, which signifies evil thoughts flowing from evil affections, and in this connection, because said of one representing worship from good, profanation internally; what is unclean by contact with a dead body or carcase, which denotes affection void of spiritual life, that is, without love; one whose seed goes from him, as representing truth separated from good; a creeping thing, as denoting what is merely sensual; that which dies of itself, which signifies affection merely natural which rejects good and truth; and what is torn of beasts, which denotes what is mixed with evil unconsciously. And it is easy to see that all these do prevent the spiritual man from receiving the Lord's life of good and truth; for we cannot properly worship and appropriate good and at the same time be contaminated with such things voluntarily; and if it is done involuntarily, that purification through sincere repentance, which is represented by washing, must follow. But here two things are to be very carefully noticed. Even after repentance, although this may appear paradoxical, a man is not wholly pure, as it is said, until even, that is, in the full sense, until his Judgement takes place, and the tares in him are separated from the wheat; and the reason why this is so is lest by a too sudden and violent removal of errors and their stimulating evils, good itself may be destroyed or suffer serious injury (Matt 13:29). And secondly, there must be, even during regeneration, and finally in the Judgement, that rejection of selfish love which is denoted by the sun going down. For while in one sense the going down of the sun signifies the decline of love to the Lord, in the other it denotes the passing away of selfish love. But it may be thought or said, "Can a person really cease to love himself, or to act from his own proper life?" And we must reply that this is not necessary, and would, in fact, be injurious, since the church is formed in the vivified proprium of man, and he could not otherwise reciprocate the Lord's love for him; he must, therefore, act as from himself, and, indeed, properly value his genuine spiritual heavenly function or use; but he can only do this by ceasing to be selfish in everything that he undertakes. It is not, therefore, the proper love of self that is the cause of all evil, but the perversion of it which is rightly called selfishness. And the truth of this view of the matter is strongly shown both in the literal and spiritual senses of the words, "They shall therefore keep my charge, lest they bear sin for it, and die therein if they profane it." It is a grand thing for us all that we must continually feel ourselves responsible for the proper use of the life which the Lord gives us.

In the next place it is to be observed that simply reading over the series of the spiritual sense of what now follows in the new period is sufficient in itself to show the great importance of the teaching that, so to speak, naturally arises in each sentence from the correspondences occurring. One out of the church may be capable of regeneration and of the appropriation of good, but yet he cannot advance, nor can his natural good become spiritual; nor can he who is only under instruction within the church do this, for both of these may not, as yet, have come into the proper exercise of the new will of good which is so essential to man's co-operation with the Lord. But the two cases that come next are very different, and we cannot fail to see their truth. We may note also the serious character of the following case. For this is a state of confirmed profanation. And it ought to have a very powerful influence upon every member of the church who has made some advance in the regenerate life so as to be in the affection of good, lest he might become a profaner as here described. But the case is different with one in the affection of good who is yet without the knowledge of good or truth, and the reason for it is obvious; and we may easily understand also how an error may be remedied by the acknowledgement of the Lord from a state of good through remains, as is described in the last instance given. But how do we, at any time, appropriate the holy thing unwittingly? We do so many times in our lives by being brought providentially under heavenly influences without any direct seeking on our part, as, for example, when we are reading a story it may be only for amusement, and something therein affects us by inspiring us with a good feeling or thought we did not anticipate, and which is stored up in our minds as remains afterwards to be implanted in our regenerated natural man when the right time or state comes. Let us reflect well, therefore, on those experiences, and gather strength from their remembrance in our serious conflicts and in the steady labours of our daily lives.

From a careful study of the following section two general and practical truths may be still more fully confirmed. First, in order to worship the Lord acceptably, that worship must not only be from good, or with affection, but it must be by means of truth; and this is signified by the oblation being a male; and secondly, it must be free from contamination by evils and falsities, this being denoted by its having no blemish. And, moreover, these general laws refer to the full consecration of the internal man to the Lord, which is denoted by a burnt offering, as well as to the devotion of the external man as to will and understanding in the same way, which is signified by vows and freewill offerings. And then the specific kinds of blemishes, or of falsities and evils, are worthy of attention. For there are six, the first three referring to the spiritual degree of the mind, and the other three to the natural degree. For to be blind, broken or maimed are more serious bodily troubles than to have sores, the scurvy or the scab, and consequently the former signify more serious spiritual defects than the latter, although these are bad enough. And who does not see at once from common perception, as well as from the mention of all these things in other parts of the Word, their natural correspondence? For surely an ignorant man, who is like one blind; a man whose affections are imperfect, who is like one broken; and one who not having these defects, but yet being unable to make progress in spiritual life, or to exhibit his knowledge or affection in his actions, who is like one lame, cannot acceptably worship the Lord! And so neither can he who, being enlightened internally and well disposed, and with no want of vigour, yet allows his merely natural affections, which may be compared to sores or a discharge; his merely sensual powers, which resemble the scurvy; or his merely corporeal delights, which may be compared to the scab, do so. We see that all this is true, and we feel bound, therefore, to heed well the Word in its internal sense as here set before us.

But now the next verse has a qualification which is not to be overlooked. Where there is defective worship proceeding from the heart, and thus free, which is accompanied by innocence external or internal, denoted by the bullock or the lamb respectively, that worship is taken as if it were perfect. But if it is confirmed by the understanding as well, it cannot be acceptable. And we see the reasonableness of this. A vow, in the best sense, of course, means the determination of the understanding from the will, or, in other words, a willingness that the Lord may provide, but here, as being connected with imperfect worship, it signifies that worship confirmed by the understanding. But see 388o9, and observe that in the quotations from the Word confession refers to the will, and vows to the understanding. And with regard to the other two verses of the section, what has already been said concerning the heavenly marriage, and here concerning a blemish, is sufficiently illustrative.

And now suppose we for a moment consider only the literal sense of the rest of this description. Then it is not easy to conceive why, on the birth of a certain animal to be sacrificed, it should remain exactly seven days under its dam, and not more nor less; why it might be offered on the eighth day in particular; and why a sacrifice of thanksgiving was to be eaten on the day when it was offered, and not on the next day; while also it seems strange that the children of Israel should be required to hallow and worship the Divine Being principally on account of their deliverance from Egyptian bondage. But when we are able, by the aid of the correspondences, and by enlightenment from the Lord, to enter into the internal sense, then we can understand why such particular directions were given even by the Lord Himself. It was in order that the Word might be written as it is for the benefit of the Spiritual Church which was to succeed the representative of a church in future ages. For the seven days denote the holy state of regeneration, and the eighth day the new state which succeeds; the mother and her young not being killed in one day denotes that the successive states of man's life ought not to be confused; the sacrifice of thanksgiving being eaten on the day in which it was offered, and none of it being left until the morning, signify that worship from gratitude should be conjoined with worship from love, and should not be contaminated with selfish love; and keeping the Lord's commandments, and not profaning His name, but hallowing Him, because of deliverance from Egyptian bondage, denote that obedience to the Lord with the holy states involved therein is to be because of deliverance from the bondage of the merely natural life, and consequent eternal conjunction with Him by love. But with regard to worship from gratitude, chap. vii. may also be reconsidered with advantage, as well as the commentary that follows it.

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