1Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom. 2And five of them were wise, and five were foolish. 3They that were foolish took their lamps, and took no oil with them: 4But the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps. 5While the bridegroom tarried, they all slumbered and slept. 6And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him. 7Then all those virgins arose, and trimmed their lamps. 8And the foolish said unto the wise, Give us of your oil; for our lamps are gone out. 9But the wise answered, saying, Not so; lest there be not enough for us and you: but go ye rather to them that sell, and buy for yourselves. 10And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came; and they that were ready went in with him to the marriage: and the door was shut. 11Afterward came also the other virgins, saying, Lord, Lord, open to us. 12But he answered and said, Verily I say unto you, I know you not. 13Watch therefore, for ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man cometh. -Matthew 25:1-13 Bible, King James Version
The Aquarian Gospel of Jesus the Christ by Levi H. Dowling
CHAPTER 158.
34Behold, when he will come with all his messengers of light, the Book of Life, and that of Records, shall be opened up—the books in which the thoughts and words and deeds are written down. 35And every one can read the records he has written for himself, and he will know his doom before the judge shall speak, and this will be the sifting time. 36According to their records men will find their own.
Doctrine of Sacred Scriptures, by Emanuel Swedenborg, [1763], tr. by John F. Potts [1904] at sacred-texts.com
17 ...The parable of the ten virgins... In the spiritual sense, the "kingdom of God" means heaven and the church; the "bridegroom," the Lord; the "wedding," the marriage of the Lord with heaven and the church by means of the good of love and of faith. "Virgins" signify those who are of the church; "ten," all; "five," some; "lamps," the truths of faith; "oil," the good of love; to "sleep," and to "awake," the life of man in this world which is natural life, and his life after death which is spiritual; to "buy," to procure for themselves; to "go to them that sell and buy oil," to procure for themselves the good of love from others after death; and as this can then be no longer procured, although they came with their lamps and the oil they had bought to the door where the wedding was, yet the bridegroom said to them "I know you not." The reason is that after his life in this world a man remains such as he had lived in this world... The "bridegroom" signifies the Lord; the "kingdom of the heavens," the church; a "wedding," the marriage of the Lord with the church by means of the good of love and of faith; "ten," all; "five," some; to "sleep," a natural state; to "buy," to procure for one's self; a "door," entrance into heaven; and "not to know them," when spoken by the Lord, not to be in His love, is evident from many passages in the prophetic Word where these expressions have a like signification. It is because "virgins" signify those who are of the church that the virgin and daughter of Zion, of Jerusalem, of Judah, and of Israel are so often mentioned in the prophetic Word. And it is because "oil" signifies the good of love that all the holy things of the Israelitish church were anointed with oil...
Apocalypse Explained, by Emanuel Swedenborg, [1757-9], tr. by John Whitehead [1911], at sacred-texts.com
187.
[4] In Matthew: The kingdom of the heavens is like unto ten virgins, five of them were prudent, and five were foolish. While the bridegroom tarried, they all slumbered and slept; but the bridegroom coming, they all arose and trimmed their lamps. And when the foolish came, who had no oil in their lamps, and said, Lord, Lord, open to us, the Lord answered, I say unto you, I know you not. Be awake, therefore, for ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man cometh (Matt. 25:1-13). By "the ten virgins" all who are of the church are meant; by "five" some of them are meant; this is what these numbers signify; by "lamps" the things of faith are signified; by "oil" the things of love. By "the five prudent virgins," therefore, those who are in love and in faith therefrom are meant; but by "the five foolish virgins" those who are in no love, but in faith alone. As such are in no spiritual life (for only those who are in love and charity have spiritual life, because they only are in faith), so because such as these are shut out of heaven, it is said unto them, "I say unto you, I know you not." From this it is most evident what is signified by "Be awake, therefore, for ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man cometh," namely, that they should receive spiritual life, which those have who are in love and in faith therefrom. (But these things may be seen more fully explained in Arcana Coelestia, n. 4635-4638.)
Arcana Coelestia, by Emanuel Swedenborg, [1749-56], tr. by John F. Potts [1905-10], at sacred-texts.com
2130.
In regard to... the idea of a Last Judgment as presented to the good when they are being intromitted [or received] into heaven, I may relate how the case is. It is said in the Word that the door was shut, so that they could no longer be admitted; and that they had no oil, and came too late, and therefore were not admitted; by which things also there is signified the state of the Last Judgment. How these matters are and are to be understood, has been shown me. [2] I heard societies of spirits, one after another, saying in a clear voice that the wolf had wanted to carry them off, but that the Lord rescued them, and that so they were restored to the Lord, in consequence of which they rejoiced from the inmost heart, for they had been in despair, and thus in fear, that the door had been shut, and that they had come too late to be admitted. Such thought had been infused into them by those who are called "wolves " but it vanished on their being admitted, that is, on their being received by angelic societies, for intromission [or reception] into heaven is nothing else. The intromission [or reception] was seen by me as though it were made and continued with one society after another up to twelve, and that the twelfth society was intromitted (that is, received) with more difficulty than the eleven that had preceded it. There were afterwards admitted eight additional quasi [seemingly; apparently but not really] societies that I was told were of the female sex. When I had seen these things, it was said that this process of admission (that is, of reception) into the heavenly societies presents this appearance, and this continuously, in order, from one place to another; and also that heaven can never to eternity be filled, still less is the door shut; but the more there come thither, the more blessed and happy are those who are in heaven; because the harmoniousness is so much the stronger. [3] After these had been admitted, it appeared as if heaven were shut; for there were a number more who desired to be intromitted (that is, received) next. But they were answered that they could not be received as yet; which is signified by those who came too late, by the door being shut, by their knocking, and by their lacking oil in their lamps. Their not being admitted was because they were not yet prepared to be capable of being among the angelic societies, where there is mutual love, for, as before said (n. 2119 at the end), they who in this world have lived in charity toward the neighbor are by degrees raised into heaven by the Lord. [4] There were also other spirits who were ignorant of what heaven is, that it is mutual love, who also desired to be then admitted, supposing that admission is everything; but they were answered that it was not yet their time, but that they would be admitted at another time, when they were ready. The reason that the societies appeared to be twelve, was that by "twelve" are signified all things of the faith, as before said (n. 2129 at the end).
Apocalypse Explained, by Emanuel Swedenborg, [1757-9], tr. by John Whitehead [1911], at sacred-texts.com
375
...[41] Because "oil" signified the good of love to the Lord, and the good of charity towards the neighbor: The Lord likened the kingdom of the heavens to ten virgins, of whom five had oil in the lamps, and five had not; therefore the latter were called foolish, and the former prudent (Matt. 25:1-11). "The ten virgins" signify all who are of the church; and "five" signify some or a part of them, for such is the signification of the numbers "ten" and "five" in the Word; and "virgin" or "daughter" signifies the church; "oil" signifies the good of love to the Lord and the good of charity towards the neighbor; and "lamps" signify the truths that are called the truths of faith. From this the meaning of these words in the spiritual sense can be seen, namely, that the virgins that had no oil in their lamps, and consequently were not admitted into heaven, are those who know truths from the Word, or from the doctrine of the church, and yet are not in the good of love and charity, that is, do not live according to these truths; while the virgins who had oil in their lamps, and were received into heaven, are those who are in the good of love and charity, and thence in truths from the Word or from the doctrine of the church; which makes clear why the latter virgins are called "prudent," and the former "foolish."
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