9551. Its shaft and its reed;* its cups. That this signifies spiritual things in the natural, is evident from the signification of a "shaft," a "reed," and a "cup" (which are prolongations from the lampstand itself, just as the arms, the hands, and the palms of the hands are from the body), as being spiritual things in the natural; for the natural is produced and derived from the spiritual; as is the spiritual from the celestial (see n. 9549). From this it is plain that as "the lampstand" signifies the Divine spiritual, the prolongations and derivations, which are called "the shaft, the reed, and the cups," denote spiritual things in the natural.
* Latin Calamus; Hebrew kaleh; both of which mean "a reed." "A reed" signifies the power of truth; as for instance the "golden reed" in Revelation 21; and as these six golden reeds that stood like arms out of the lampstand. Their being of gold causes these reeds to signify the power of the truth that comes from good. [REVISED.]