servant," Matt. xx. 26, 27, xxiii. 11, 12: minister is here. predicated of good, and servant of truth. The same is signified by ministering and ministry in Isaiah lvi. 6, John xii. 26, Luke xii. 37; and in other places. Hence it is evident, that by charity and ministry, is signified spiritual affection and its operation; for good is of charity, and truth is of faith.

129." And faith, and thy endurance, and thy works," signifies, truth, and the desire of acquiring and teaching it. That faith signifies truth, may be seen above, n. 111; and that in such case endurance signifies study and labor in acquiring and teaching it, follows of course.

130. "And the last to be more than the first," signifies, the increase thereof from the spiritual affection of truth, which is of charity. By their last works being more than the first, are understood all things of their charity and faith, for these are the interior things from which works proceed, n. 73, 76, 94: these things increase, when charity is regarded in the first place, and faith in the second for charity is the spiritual affection of doing good, and from it comes the spiritual affection of knowing truth, good loving truth as meat does drink, for it desires to be nourished, and is nourished, by truths; hence it is, that they who are in genuine charity have a continual increase of truth. This then is what is signified by "I know thy last works to be more than the first."

131.Notwithstanding, I have a few things against thee," signifies, that the following things may possibly be a stumbling-block to them. For what now follows relates to faith separated from charity, which may be a stumbling-block to those who are in faith grounded in charity.

132. "Because thou sufferest that woman Jezebel," signifies, that among them there are some in the church who separate faith from charity, and account the former alone to be saving. That faith separated from charity is meant by the woman Jezebel, is evident from what now follows, when it is unfolded by the spiritual sense in its series, and compared with that faith; for these were the evil doings of Jezebel the wife of Ahab: namely, That she went and served Baal, and built him an altar in

Samaria, and made a grove, 1 Kings xvi. 31, 32, 33. That she slew the prophets of Jehovah, 1 Kings xviii. 4, 13. That she was desirous to slay Elijah, xix. 1, 2. That by treacherously suborning false witnesses, she took away Naboth's vineyard, and put him to death, xxi. 6, 7, and following verses. That by reason of these her evil doings, it was foretold to her by Elijah, that the dogs should eat her, xxi. 23. That she was thrown down from the window where she stood with her face painted, and that some of her blood was sprinkled upon the wall, and upon the horses, which trod her under foot, 2 Kings ix. 30, 32, 33, 34. As all the historical as well as the prophetical parts of the Word, signify the spiritual things of the church, so also do these; and that they signify faith separated from charity, is evident from the spiritual sense, and from collating them together; for by going and serving Baal, and building him an altar, and making a grove, is signified to serve lusts of all kinds, or what amounts to the same, to serve the devil, without thinking of any evil lust, nor of any sin, as they do who have no doctrine of charity and life, but only of faith. By slaying the prophets, is signified to destroy the truths of doctrine derived from the Word. By desiring to slay Elijah, is signified to desire to do the same to the Word. By taking away Naboth's vineyard, and slaying him, is signified the church, for the vineyard is the church: by the dogs which did eat her, are signified lusts. By her being thrown down from the window, her blood being sprinkled upon the wall, and her being trod under foot by the horses, is signified their destruction, for each of those particulars has its signification; window signifies truth in the light; blood signifies what is false; wall signifies truth in ultimates, and horse signifies understanding of the Word. Hence it may be concluded, that these things, collated together, coincide with faith separate from charity, as may further appear from what follows in the Apocalypse, where this faith is treated of.

133.Which calleth herself a prophetess," signifies, and who make it the essential doctrine of the church, and build all theology upon it. That by prophet, in

the Word, is signified doctrine of the church, may be seen above, n. 8, therefore the same is also signified by prophetess. That in the reformed Christian church, faith alone is received as the sole medium of salvation, and that thence works of charity, as not conducive to salvation, are separated from faith, is well known: hence it is, that the universal doctrine of the salvation of man, which is called theology, at this day constitutes that faith, consequently the woman Jezebel.

134. "To teach and to seduce my servants to commit whoredom," signifies, from which it comes to pass that the truths of the Word are falsified. By to teach and to seduce the servants of the Lord, is meant those who are able and willing to be instructed in truths from the Word; that they are called servants of the Lord who are in truths, may be seen above, n. 3, 128; and by committing whoredom, is signified to adulterate and falsify the Word: that this is the signification of committing whoredom, is, because in every particular of the Word there is a marriage of goodness and truth, and this marriage is broken when good is separated and taken away from truth. That in every particular of the Word there is a marriage of the Lord and the church, and thence a marriage of goodness and truth, may be seen in The Doctrine of the New Jerusalem concerning the Sacred Scripture, n. 80-90: for this reason it is, that to commit whoredom signifies to adulterate the good and falsify the truths of the Word; and because this is spiritual whoredom, therefore also they, who from their own reason, have falsified the Word, after death, when they come into the spiritual world, become addicted to whoredom: and, what has hitherto been concealed from the world, they who have confirmed themselves in faith alone to the exclusion of works of charity, are in the lust of committing the adultery of a son with his mother; that they are in the lust of committing so abominable a kind of adultery, has often been perceived in the spiritual world: remember this, and inquire after death, and the truth of it will be confirmed to you: I could not venture to reveal this before, because it would have offended the ear. This

adultery is signified by the adultery of Reuben with Bilha his father's concubine, Gen. xxxv. 22: for by Reuben that faith is signified, for which cause he was cursed by his father Israel, and afterwards his birthright was taken from him; for his father Israel, prophesying concerning his sons, said of Reuben, "Reuben, thou art my first-born, my might and the beginning of my strength, unstable as water, thou shalt not excel, because thou wentest up to thy father's bed; then defiledst thou it: he went up to my couch," Gen. xlix. 3, 4: therefore his birthright was taken from him. "Reuben was the first-born of Israel ;-but forasmuch as he defiled his father's bed, his birthright was given unto the sons of Joseph," 1 Chron. v. 1. That by Reuben was represented truth grounded in good, or faith grounded in charity, and afterwards truth separated from good, or faith separated from charity, will be seen in the explanation of chap. vii. 5. That by whoredoms are signified adulterations of good and falsifications of truth in the Word, may appear from the following passages: "When Joram saw Jehu, he said, Is it peace, Jehu? and he answered, What peace, so long as the whoredoms of thy mother Jezebel, and her witchcrafts, are so many?" 2 Kings ix. 22. By the whoredoms of Jezebel are not meant any whoredoms of hers, but her actions, as stated above, n. 132. "And your children shall wander in the wilderness forty years, and bear your whoredoms," Numb. xiv. 33. "And the soul that turneth after such as have familiar spirits, and after wizards, and all that go a whoring after them, I will cut off," Levit. xx. 6. "Lest thou make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land, and they go a whoring after their gods," Exod. xxxiv. 15, 16. "But thou didst trust, [O Jerusalem,] in thine own beauty, and playedst the harlot because of thy renown, and pouredst out thy whoredoms on every one that passed by. Thou hast also committed whoredom with the Egyptians thy neighbors, great of flesh, and hast increased thy whoredoms. Thou hast played the whore also with the Assyrians, because thou wast insatiable in committing whoredom. Thou hast moreover

multiplied thy whoredom in the land of Canaan unto Chaldea. But as a wife that committed adultery, which taketh strangers instead of her husband. They give gifts to all whores; but thou givest thy gifts to all thy lovers, that they may come unto thee on every side for thy whoredom. Wherefore, O harlot, hear the word of Jehovah," Ezek. xvi. 15, 16, 26, 28, 29, 32, 33, 35. Jerusalem, in this passage, is the Israelitish and Jewish church; by her whoredoms are meant adulterations and falsifications of the Word; and because in the Word by Egypt is signified the science of the natural man, by Ashur ratiocination thence derived, by Chaldea profanation of truth, and by Babylon profanation of good, therefore it is said that she committed whoredom with them. "There were two women, the daughters of one mother; and they committed whoredoms in Egypt; they committed whoredoms in their youth: one of them played the harlot when she was mine, and she doted on her lovers, on the Assyrians her neighbors. Thus she committed her whoredoms with them:-neither left she her whoredoms brought from Egypt. The other was more corrupt in her inordinate love than she, and in her whoredoms, more than her sister in her whoredoms. She increased her whoredoms,-and doted upon them, and sent messengers unto them into Chaldea. And the Babylonians came to her into the bed of love, and they defiled her with their whoredom," Ezek. xxiii. 2, 3, 5, 7, 11, 14, 16, 17. Here the two daughters of one mother are likewise the Israelitish and Jewish church, whose adulterations and falsifications of the Word are described as above by whoredoms. So in the following places: "Thou hast played the harlot with many lovers; and hast polluted the land with thy whoredoms and with thy wickedness. Hast thou seen that which backsliding Israel hath done? she is gone up upon every high mountain, and there bath played the harlot. And her treacherous sister Judah feared not, but went and played the harlot also. And it came to pass through the lightness of her whoredom, that she defiled the land, and committed adultery with stones and with stocks," Jerem. iii. 1, 6, 8, 9: and in