Apocalypse Explained, volume 1 - Swedenborg Foundation

APOCALYPSE EXPLAINED 505signification of “nakedness,” as being the deprivation of truth andgood from the understanding, because of the deprivation of themfrom the will, or the deprivation of the truth which is of faith,because there is no good which is of love (see above, n. 240a). Andbecause this deprivation is signified by “nakedness,” “the shame ofnakedness” signifies filthy loves, for these appear when they are notremoved by the love of good and by the faith of truth therefrom.For man is born into two loves, which are the love of self and thelove of the world, therefore by heredity he derives the inclination tolove self and the world above all things; these loves are filthy loves,because out of them all evils flow, namely, contempt of others incomparison with oneself, enmity against those who do not favoroneself, hatred, revenge, craftiness, and deceits of every kind. Theseloves with their evils cannot be removed except by the two loves,which are the love to the Lord and the love towards the neighbor;from these man inclines to love the Lord above all things, and theneighbor as himself. These two loves are pure loves, since they areout of heaven from the Lord. Moreover, from these all goods flow;so far, therefore, as man is in these, so far the filthy loves intowhich he is born are removed, even until they do not appear; andthey are removed by the Lord by means of truths. From this it canbe seen that “I counsel thee to buy of Me white garments, that thoumayest be clothed, that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear,”signifies that they should acquire for themselves genuine truths, andfrom these intelligence from the Lord, that filthy loves may notappear.245. And anoint thine eyes with eye salve, that thou mayest see,signifies that the understanding may be somewhat opened. This isevident from the signification of “eyes,” as being the understanding(see above, n. 152); therefore “to anoint the eyes that thou mayestsee” signifies that the understanding may be opened. It is said “toanoint with eye salve,” because “eye salve” means an ointmentmade out of flour mixed with oil, and “flour” signifies the truth offaith, and “oil” the good of love. (That “flour” signifies the truth offaith, see Arcana Coelestia, n. 2177, 9995; and that “oil” signifiesthe good of love, n. 3728, 4582, 4638.) This is so said because theunderstanding sees nothing of truth unless the will is in good, for