6. I shall now state briefly what Jerusalem means in the Word in its spiritual sense. Jerusalem means the church as regards its teaching. This is because the land of Canaan and no other was where the Temple was, and the altar, there sacrifices were made, so there was the worship of God. For this reason too three festivals were held there every year, and every male throughout the land was ordered to attend them. It follows that Jerusalem in the spiritual sense means the church as regards worship, or, what is the same thing, as regards its teaching. For worship is laid down in what is taught and is conducted in accordance with this. The reason it is called the holy city, the New Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven is that, in the spiritual sense of the Word, city and town mean teaching; and the holy city means the teaching of Divine truth, for it is Divine truth which is called holy in the Word. It is called the New Jerusalem for much the same reason that the earth is called new; for, as I said just above, earth means the church, and Jerusalem that church as regards its teaching. It is said to be coming down from God out of heaven because all Divine truth, the source of teaching, comes down out of heaven from the Lord. It is obvious that Jerusalem here does not mean a city, even though it was seen as a city, from its being said that its height was as its length and breadth, twelve thousand furlongs, and that the measurement of its wall was a hundred and forty-four cubits by the measure of a man, which is that of an angel (verses 16, 17). Also by it being described as made ready as a bride adorned for her husband (verse 2); and by the angel saying later on: