2246. They went toward Sodom. That this signifies thought concerning the human race as being in such great evil, is evident from the signification of "Sodom," as being evil from the love of self (see above, n. 2220); and of "looking forth toward the faces of Sodom," as being toward the state of the human race (n. 2219). That "Sodom" signifies the state of the human race as being in such great evil, is because by "Sodom" is not meant Sodom, but all those in the universal world who are in the love of self; and by the description of Sodom is represented the state of all who are in that evil, as is evident from what follows. That the love of self is the fountain of all evils, thus evil itself, is evident from what was said and shown of it before (n. 2045, 2057, 2219), and therefore it is here said that they were in such great evil.
