Apocalypse Explained, volume 1 - Swedenborg Foundation

APOCALYPSE EXPLAINED 90Take a razor and pass it over the head and beard (Ezek. 5:1).Shame shall be upon every face, and baldness upon all heads (Ezek.7:18).In Amos:In David:Every head was made bald (Ezek. 29:18).I will bring up baldness upon every head (Amos 8:10).God shall bruise the head of his enemies, the hairy scalp of himthat goeth on in his guilt (Ps. 68:21).In these passages and in others, by “cutting off the hair of thehead,” “shaving the beard,” and inducing baldness is signified todeprive of all truth and good; since he that is deprived of ultimatesis also deprived of things prior, for prior things have existence andsubsistence in ultimates, as was said above. Moreover, in the worldof spirits there are seen some that are bald, and I have been toldthat they are such as have abused the Word, and have applied thesense of the letter, which is Divine truth in ultimates, to wickedpurposes, and therefore have been deprived of all truth. These aremost malignant. Many of them are of the Babylonish body. Angels,on the contrary, appear with becoming hair.67. As white wool, as snow signifies in respect to good and truththerein. This is evident from the signification of “white wool” asbeing good in ultimates (of which presently); and from thesignification of “snow,” as being truth in ultimates. “Snow” meanstruth in ultimates by reason of the water of which it is composed,and its whiteness and brightness. (That “water” signifies truth, seebelow, n, 71; and that “whiteness,” and “brightness” signify truthfrom the transparency of light, see Arcana Coelestia, n. 3301, 3993,4007, 5319, 8459.) “White wool” signifies good in ultimates,because wool upon lambs and sheep has a signification like that ofhair upon man; and “lambs,” and “sheep” signify good, “lambs”