[5] It is a fallacy that faith which is merely a matter of the thought is spiritual, when, notwithstanding, to love the Lord above all things, and the neighbour as oneself, is what is really spiritual; and to love is to will and do. It is a fallacy that faith is also given instantaneously, when, notwithstanding, a man must be purified from evils and from the falsities therefrom, and be regenerated by the Lord, which is a process of long continuance; and in proportion only as he is purified and regenerated does he receive spiritual faith. It is a fallacy that man can receive faith and be saved at the hour of death, whatever his life has been, when, notwithstanding, the life of a man remains, and he is judged according to his deeds and works. It is a fallacy that faith is communicated to children by baptism, when, notwithstanding, faith must be procured by the knowledges of truth and good, and by a life according to them. It is a fallacy that by faith alone the church exists in man, when, notwithstanding, it is by the faith of charity that the church exists in him; and charity pertains to the life, and not to faith separate from the life.

[8] It is a fallacy that the understanding must be held captive under obedience to faith, and that faith seen in the understanding is not spiritual faith, when, nevertheless, it is the understanding which is enlightened in the things of faith when the Word is read; and the understanding shut out from enlightenment does not know whether a thing be true or false; consequently faith in such a case does not become a man's own, but the faith of another in him; and this is a mere historical faith, which can see falsities as truths and truths as falsities. Hence comes the faith characterising heresies of all kinds.

[10] Such are the fallacies connected merely with faith separate from good works. There are still various others, which have reference not only to faith, but also to good works, to charity, and to the neighbour; and especially to their conjunctions with faith, which are artfully devised by the learned.

The reason why such fallacies are signified by the feet of a bear is, that by a bear are signified those who are in power from the natural sense of the Word, as well the upright as the wicked. And because by feet are signified natural things, therefore by the feet of the bear are signified the fallacies from which, by reasonings, they falsify the sense of the letter of the Word, and into which they turn the appearance of truth pertaining to that sense.

[11] That a bear signifies power from the natural sense of the Word, both with the upright and the wicked, is evident from the following passages. In 2 Kings:

"When Elisha went up to Bethel, as he was going in the way, there came boys out of the city and mocked him, and said to him, Go up thou bald head, go up thou bald head; and he looked back behind him, and saw them, and cursed them in the name of Jehovah; and there came two bears out of the forest, and tore in pieces forty-two children of them" (ii. 23, 24).

Why the boys were cursed by Elisha and therefore torn in pieces by two bears, because they called him bald head, cannot be known, unless it be known what Elisha represented, and what a bald head signifies, and also what is signified by the bears. That this was not done by Elisha from immoderate anger and an unjust reason, is evident from this, that he could not be so cruel because the little boys merely said, "Go up thou bald head." It was indeed an insult to the prophet, but not a sufficient reason for them to be torn in pieces by bears. But this occurred because Elisha represented the Lord as to the Word, thus the Word, which is from the Lord. By bald head was signified the Word deprived of the natural sense, which is the sense of the letter; and by the bears out of the wood is signified the power from the natural or literal sense of the Word, as was said above; and by the boys were signified those who blaspheme the Word because its natural sense is such as it is. By forty-two is signified blasphemy. It is now evident, therefore, that by those things was represented, and thence signified, punishment for blaspheming the Word.

For all the power and sanctity of the Word is contained in the sense of the letter; for if this sense did not exist, there would be no Word; since without it the Word would be like a house without a foundation, which would tremble, fall to pieces, and be destroyed. It would be also like a man without a skin, which covers and keeps the enclosed viscera in their place and order. And because baldness has this signification, and Elisha represented the Word, therefore the children were torn in pieces by bears, by which was signified the power from the natural sense of the Word, which is the sense of the letter, both with the upright and the wicked. From these things also it is evident, that the historical parts of the Word, equally with its prophetical parts, contain a spiritual sense.

[12] The signification of the bear which David smote is similar, concerning which it is written as follows in 1 Samuel:

"David said unto Saul, Thy servant was feeding his father's flock, and there came a lion and a bear, and took away a sheep of the flock; I went out after him, and smote him, and when he arose against me, I took hold of his beard and smote him, and slew him; thy servant smote both the lion and the bear; therefore this uncircumcised Philistine shall be as one of them, because he hath opprobriously defied the forces of the living God" (xvii. 34-37).

The reason why power was given to David to smite the lion and the bear which took away the sheep from the flock, was, that David represented the Lord as to Divine truth, by which those who belong to His church are instructed; and by the lion is signified the power of spiritual Divine truth, and in the opposite sense, as in this case, the power of infernal falsity against Divine truth; and by the bear is signified the power of natural Divine truth, and in the opposite sense, the power of falsity against that truth: but by the sheep from the flock are signified those who belong to the Lord's church. And because these things are represented, therefore power was given to David to smite the bear and the lion, in order that by this might be represented and signified the Lord's power of defending His own in the church by means of His Divine truth, from the falsities of evil which are from hell. That David took hold of the beard of the bear, involves a mystery, which may indeed be opened up, but can scarcely be comprehended. The beard signifies Divine truth in the ultimates, in which its very power consists. This truth even the evil, who are in falsities, do indeed confess with their mouth, but they misuse it in order to destroy it; when, however, it is taken away they have no longer any power; hence he slew the bear, and smote the lion. But this will be further explained elsewhere.

By Goliath, who was a Philistine, and thence uncircumcised, are signified those who are in truths without good; and truths without good are truths falsified, which in themselves are falsities. "Uncircumcised" signifies those who are in unclean corporeal loves; for the foreskin corresponds to those loves. It is evident, therefore, what the victory of David over Goliath represented.

[13] From these considerations it is evident why David is compared by Hushai to a bear bereaved in the field (2 Sam. xvii. 8).

In Daniel:

"Another beast ascending out of the sea, like to a bear, and it raised up itself upon its side, and it had three ribs in its mouth between its teeth; and they said unto it, Arise, devour much flesh" (vii. 5).

By the four beasts ascending out of the sea, is described the successive states of the church, even to the devastation which is its end: and by this other beast, which was like a bear, is signified the falsification of the truth of the Word, the power thereof still remaining in the sense of the letter. The desire to falsify its goods is signified by its raising itself up on one side. By the three ribs in the mouth between the teeth, are signified the knowledges of truth from the Word in abundance, which are perverted by reasonings from fallacies; and by eating much flesh, is signified the destruction of good by falsities; also the appropriation of evil.

[14] In Hosea:

"I am become to them as a lion, as a leopard will I watch by the way: I will meet them as a bear that is bereaved, and there will I devour as a fierce lion; the wild beast of the field shall rend them" (xiii. 7, 8).

The signification of "I am become to them as a lion, as a leopard will I watch by the way," was explained in the preceding article. By meeting them as a bear that is bereaved, is signified the falsification of the sense of the letter of the Word. By devouring as a fierce lion, is signified the destruction and devastation of every truth of the Word, and consequently of the church. The wild beast of the field shall rend them, signifies that they will perish by falsities from evil.

[15] In Lamentations:

"Although I cry and shout, he obstructeth my prayers, he hath fenced the ways with hewn stone, he hath overturned my paths; a bear lying in wait for me, a lion in secret places, he hath turned aside my ways, he hath made me desolate" (iii. 8-11).

This is a lamentation from God concerning the desolation of truth in the church. And that they cannot be heard because of falsities is signified by, although I cry and shout, he obstructeth my prayers. That falsities from man's own intelligence turn aside and reject the influx of truth is signified by, he hath fenced about the ways with hewn stone, he hath overturned my paths. By the ways and paths of God are signified truths leading to good, and by hewn stone are signified those things that are from man's own intelligence. Because these things are signified by hewn stone it was forbidden to construct an altar of hewn stones, and similarly with regard to the temple of Jerusalem. A bear lying in wait for me, signifies the natural man perverting the sense of the letter of the Word. A lion in secret places, signifies that the interior natural man, from the evils in him, perverts the entire meaning of the truth of the Word, and consequently of the church; whence come falsities. He hath turned aside my ways, he has made me desolate, signifies the devastation of the truth of the church.

[16] Again, in Amos:

"Woe to them that desire the day of Jehovah! What is the day of Jehovah to you? A day of darkness and not of light; as he who fleeth from a lion meeteth a bear, or who cometh to a house and leaneth his hand upon the wall, and a serpent biteth him" (v. 18, 19).

By the day of Jehovah is meant the Coming of the Lord, who is the Messiah whom they expected. And because they believed that He would deliver them from earthly enemies, and exalt them in glory above all nations, therefore they desired Him. But as the Lord did not come for the sake of any kingdom on earth, but for the sake of a kingdom in heaven; and because the Jewish nation was in the falsities of evil, which were then made manifest, therefore it is said, "Woe to them that desire the day of Jehovah; What is the day of Jehovah to you? A day of darkness, not of light." Darkness and not light denotes the falsities in which they were. As he who fleeth from a lion meeteth a bear, signifies fear on account of the dominion of falsity, in seeking truths from the sense of the letter of the Word, which they cannot but falsify. For he is said to flee from a lion and to meet with a bear, who is interiorly in falsity from evil, and is led to the knowledge of truths from the sense of the letter of the Word, which, because of the interior dominion of falsity from evil, he, in that case, cannot but pervert. He who cometh to a house, and leaneth his hand upon a wall, and a serpent biteth him, signifies that while, being of such a nature, he consults the Word in the sense of the letter, seeking what is good, he does not see that evils pervert it; the bite of the serpent here signifying the falsification which arises from the interior dominion of falsity from evil.

[17] Again, in Isaiah:

"The wolf shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard with the kid; the calf shall lie down, and the young lion and fatling together, and a little boy shall lead them; and the heifer and the bear shall feed, and their young shall lie down together; the lion shall eat straw like the ox" (xi. 6, 7).

What is signified by the wolf dwelling with the kid, and the calf and the young lion and the fatling lying down together, and a little boy leading them, was explained in the preceding article. By the heifer and the bear feeding, and their young lying down together, is signified that the power and desire of the natural man to falsify the truths of the Word, shall not hurt the good of the natural man and the affection thereof; the heifer denoting the affection of good and truth pertaining to the natural man; and the bear, the power and desire of the natural man to falsify the truths of the sense of the letter of the Word. The lion shall eat straw like an ox, signifies that infernal falsity, which bums to destroy the truths of the church, shall not hurt the affection of good pertaining to the natural man, either in the case of man in himself or of men among each other; and that neither shall it hurt the Word. Straw signifies the Word in the letter, which is perverted by infernal falsity, but cannot be perverted by those who are in truths from good.

[18] Again in the same prophet:

"We feel for the wall as the blind, we grope as they that have no eyes; we stumble at noon-day as in the twilight; among the living as dead. We roar as bears, and moaning we moan as doves; we look for judgment but there is none, salvation is far from us; for our prevarications are multiplied before thee, and our sins answer against us" (lix. 10, 11, 12).

We feel for the wall as the blind, and we grope as they that have no eyes, signifies that there is not any understanding of truth. We stumble at noon-day as in the twilight, signifies a falling into errors, although they are in the church where is the Word, by means of which they might come into the light of truth. Among the living as dead, signifies that they might be in spiritual life by the Word, and yet are not, because they are in falsities. We roar as bears, and moaning we moan as doves, signifies the grief of the natural man, and thence of the spiritual man. We look for judgment but there is none, salvation is far from us, signifies the hope of the enlightenment of the understanding, and thence of salvation, but in vain. Our prevarications before thee, are multiplied, and our sins answer against us, signifies, by reason of falsities from evil.