to the life. He was let into a state similar to that in which he had been when there for in the other life every one may easily be let into the state of life which he had in the world, since the state of his life remains with him after death and his respiration was communicated to me, such as he then had. It was free, and attended with enjoyment, slow, regular, deep, filling the breast; but when he was contradicted, there was somewhat as it were rolling itself and creeping in the abdomen, from the continuation of the respiration; and when he imagined that what he pronounced was Divine, he perceived it from the respiration being more tacit, and as it were in agreement therewith. It was afterward shown me by whom such popes are gov- 4 erned, namely, by a crowd of sirens who are above the head, who have contracted a nature and life of insinuating themselves into all kinds of affections, with a design of acquiring rule, and of subjecting others to themselves, and of destroying whomsoever they can for the sake of themselves, using for this purpose holiness and innocence as means. They are afraid for themselves, and act cautiously, but when occasion offers, they rush into cruelty without any mercy, in pursuit of their own ends.

CHAPTER TWENTY-NINTH.

3751. By way of preface to the preceding chapter we explained what the Lord foretold concerning the last time of the church (in Matt. chap. xxiv., from the fifteenth to the eighteenth verses). Following this order we have now to unfold before this chapter, the contents of the succeeding verses (19-22), namely, these words: But wo unto them that are with child, and to them that give suck in those days! And pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the sabbath. For then shall be great affliction, such as was not since the beginning of the world even until now, neither shall be. And except those days should be shortened there should no flesh be preserved; but for the elect's sake those days shall be shortened.

3752. What these words signify, no one can ever comprehend unless he be enlightened by the internal sense. That they are not said concerning the destruction of Jerusalem, appears from many things in this chapter, as from this: "Except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be preserved; but for the elect's sake those days shall be shortened;" and from the following: "After the affliction of those days the sun shall be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be moved; and then shall appear the sign of the Son of man, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and glory;" and from other passages. That neither are they said concerning the destruction of the world, is also plain from many things in the same chapter, as from those which precede: "He that is on the housetop, let him not come down to take away anything out of

his house, and he who is in the field, let him not return back to take his garments;" and also from these which are now brought under consideration: "Pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the sabbath;" and . from the following: "Then two shall be in the field, the one shall be taken, the other left; two shall be grinding at the mill, the one shall be taken, the other left." But it is manifest that they are said concerning the last time of the` church, that is, concerning its vastation, which is then said. to be vastated, when there is no longer any charity.

3753. Every one who thinks holily concerning the Lord, and who believes that the Divine was in Him, and that He spoke from the Divine, may know and believe that the above words, like the rest which the Lord taught and spoke, were not spoken of one nation only, but of the universal human race; and not of its worldly, but of its spiritual state; and also, that the Lord's words comprehended the things which are of His kingdom and of the church, for these are Divine and eternal. Whoever believes in this manner, concludes that these words, "Wo unto them that are with child, and to them that give suck in those days," do not signify those that are with child and give suck; and that these words, "Pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the sabbath" do not signify any flight on account of worldly enemies; and so as to the rest.

3754. In the preceding verses three states of perversion of good and truth in the church were treated of; in the present verses a fourth state is treated of, which is also the last. Concerning the first state it was shown that it was this, that men began no longer to know what was good and true, but disputed among themselves concerning good and truth, whence came falsities (n. 3354). Concerning the second state, that it was this, that they began to despise good and truth, and also to hold them in aversion, and thus that faith in the Lord was about to expire, according to the degrees in which charity was about to cease (n. 3487,

3488). Concerning the third state, that it was a state of desolation of the church as to good and truth (n. 3651, 3652). Concerning the fourth state, we are now to show .that it is that of the profanation of good and truth. That this state is here described, may be evident from all the particulars in the internal sense, which is as follows.

3755. But wo unto them that are with child, and to them that give suck in those days signifies those who are imbued with the good of love to the Lord and the good of innocence. "Wo" is a form of expression signifying the danger of eternal damnation; to be with child is to conceive the good of heavenly love; to give suck is also a state of innocence; those days mean the states in which the church 2 then is. And pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the sabbath signifies removal from those things, that it be not done precipitately, in a state of too much cold or of too much heat. Flight is removal from a state of the good of love and innocence, just now spoken of; flight in the winter is removal therefrom in a state of too much cold; cold is when there is aversion to love and innocence, which is induced by the loves of self; flight on the sabbath is removal from them in a state of too much heat; heat is external sanctity, when self-love and the love 3 of the world are within. For then shall be great affliction, such as was not since the beginning of the world even until now, neither shall be signifies the highest degree of perversion and vastation of the church as to good and truth, which is profanation; for profanation of what is holy occasions death eternal and much more grievous than any other states of evil, and so much the more grievous as the goods and truths profaned are of an interior kind; and as such interior goods and truths are open and known in the Christian Church, and are profaned, therefore it is said that then shall be great affliction such as was not from the beginning of the world even until now, neither shall be. 4 And except those days should be shortened, there should no

flesh be preserved; but for the elect's sake those days shall be shortened signifies the removal of those who are of the church from interior goods and truths to exterior, so that they may still be saved who are in the life of good and truth; by the days being shortened, is signified a state of removal; by no flesh being preserved, is signified that otherwise none could be saved; by the elect are signified those who are in the life of good and truth.

3756. That this is the internal sense of these words might be fully shown as that by those who are with child, are signified those who first imbibe good; and that by those who give suck, are signified those who imbibe a state of innocence; by flight, removal from good and innocence; by winter, aversion to such goods by self-love possessing the interiors; and by flight on the sabbath, profanation, which has place when there is holiness in externals, and the love of self and the world within. But as the same words and similar expressions occur throughout in what follows, by the Divine mercy of the Lord their signification shall then be shown to be such as is here stated.

3757. As to the profanation of what is holy, however, few know what it is; but it may be evident from what has been said and shown concerning it above, namely, that they can profane holy things who know, and acknowledge, and imbibe good and truth, but not they who do not acknowledge, and still less they who do not know (see n. 593, 1008, 1010, 1059, 3398); thus that they who are within the church can profane holy things, but not they who are without (n. 2051); that they who are of the celestial church can profane holy goods, and that they who are of the spiritual church can profane holy truths (n. 3399); that therefore interior truths were not discovered to the Jews, lest they should profane them (n. 3398); that the gentiles can least of all profane (n. 2051); that profanation is a commixture and conjunction of good and evil, also of truth and falsity (n. 1001, 1003, 2426); that this was signified