Arcana Coelestia (Elliott) n. 9402

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9402. Verses 9-11 And Moses and Aaron went up, Nadab and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel. And they saw the God of Israel; and under His feet there was so to speak a work of sapphire stone, and it was like the substance of the sky for clearness. And on the children of Israel who had been set apart He did not lay a hand;a and they saw God, and ate and drank.

'And Moses and Aaron went up, Nadab and Abihu' means the Word in its inward and outward senses, and teachings derived from both senses. 'And seventy of the elders of Israel' means all who are governed by good which results from truths. 'And they saw the God of Israel' means the Lord's coming and presence in the Word. 'And under His feet' means the lowest level of meaning, which is that of the letter itself. 'There was so to speak a work of sapphire stone' means that it is translucent with inner truths on that level, and that all things in it are translucent from the Lord. 'And it was like the substance of the sky for clearness' means the translucence of the angelic heaven. 'And on the children of Israel who had been set apart' means those restricted to the outward sense, separated from the inward. 'He did not lay a hand' means that truth in its power is not present there. 'And they saw God' means faith. 'And ate and drank' means being told about the good and truth of worship.

Notes

a lit. He did not send His hand


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