Metaphysical meaning of Lydia (mbd)
Lydia, lyd'-i-å (Gk. fr. Heb.)--travail- contention; strife; conception; pregnancy; childbirth; offspring.
A woman of Thyatira. She was "a seller of purple," and lived in Philippi. She accepted Paul's teaching and was baptized. Paul and Silas abode in her house while they were teaching in that city (Acts 16:14, 15).
Meta. The travail that the soul undergoes in conceiving and giving birth to spiritual ideals. Spiritual understanding is developed in the feminine realm of the soul. This is pictured in the words, "And a certain woman named Lydia, a seller of purple, of the city of Thyatira, one that worshipped God, heard us: whose heart the Lord opened to give heed."
Thyatira means burning incense; it represents the soul's intense desire for the higher expressions of life. When this inner urge comes forth with power (seller of purple) the Lord opens the heart and, like the disciples who said one to another, "Was not our heart burning within us, while he spake to us in the way, while he opened to us the scriptures?" we receive the heavenly message.
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Preceding Entry: Lydda
Following Entry: Lysanias
