Apocalypse Explained, volume 1 - Swedenborg Foundation

APOCALYPSE EXPLAINED 357“False prophets in sheep’s clothing, who inwardly are raveningwolves,” are those who teach falsities as if they were truths, andwho in appearance live a moral life, but who by themselves, whenthey think from their spirit, think of nothing but themselves andthe world, and are eager to deprive all others of truths.[14] In John:Jesus said to Peter, When thou wast younger thou girdedst thyselfand walkedst whither thou wouldest; but when thou shalt be old thoushalt stretch forth thy hands and another shall gird thee, and lead theewhither thou wouldest not (21:18).What these words signify in the spiritual sense may be seen above(n. 9); namely, that by “Peter” is meant the faith of the church;when he “was younger and girded himself and walked whither hewould” means the faith of the church at the beginning, when menare in the good of charity, that they then think about the truths ofthe church from the spiritual man, which is to think from theirspirit, thus from the spiritual affection of truth, that is, fromfreedom. But by “Peter when old, that he should stretch forth hishands and another should gird him,” is meant the faith of thechurch at its end, when faith would be without charity, that theythen would think nothing about the truths of the church fromthemselves, but from others, thus from doctrine only and not fromthe Word, which is relatively a servile state. For to believe whatanother says is servile, but to believe what one himself thinks fromthe Word is freedom; according to the Lord’s words in John:If ye abide in My Word, ye are truly My disciples; and ye shallknow the truth, and the truth shall make you free (8:31, 32).[15] In Luke:No man putteth a piece of a new garment on an old garment; elsethe new will rend the old, and the piece from the new agreeth not withthe old. And no man putteth new wine into old bottles; else the newwine will burst the bottles, and itself be spilt, and the bottles bedestroyed (5:36, 37; Matt. 9:16, 17; Mark 2:21, 22).