AC 3391 - "Look out through a window"

AC 3391

. . . to "look out through a window"
is to perceive those things
which appear by means of the internal sight,
which in general are knowledges
such as are of the external person.
Rational things, or what is the same,
appearances of truth, that is, truths spiritual,
are not knowledges,
but are in knowledges,
for they belong to the rational,
thus to the internal person,
and it is the internal person
which looks to the things of the external person,
thus to truths in knowledges.
For as knowledges are of the natural person,
they are vessels that receive rational things . . ..

~ For I Am God ~

For I am God, and not man --
the Holy One among you.
I will not come in wrath.
They will follow the Lord;
He will roar like a lion.
When He roars,
His children will come trembling from the west.
They will come trembling like birds from Egypt,
like doves from Assyria.
I will settle them in their homes," declares the Lord.

. . . the Lord God Almighty,
the Lord is His name of renown!
But you must return to your God;
maintain love and justice,
and wait for your God always.

(Hosea 11:9.5-11; 12:5-6)

AC 3384. 3387 - Rational Things Enlightened

AC 3384

. . . the rational things
which when enlightened by the Divine of the Lord
are appearances of truth.

AC 3387 [1-2, 3]

. . . if Divine truths themselves were to be opened,
they would not be received by those
who are in the doctrinal things of faith,
because they surpass all their rational apprehension,
thus all their belief,
and consequently nothing of good from the Lord
could flow in.
For good from the Lord, or Divine good,
can inflow solely into truths,
because truths are the vessels of good,
as often shown.

Truths or appearances of truth are given a person
to the intent that Divine good may be able
to form his understanding,
and thus the person himself.
For truths exist to the end
that good may flow in;
for without vessels or receptacles
good finds no place,
because it finds no state corresponding to itself;
and therefore where there are no truths,
or where they are not received,
there is no rational or human good,
consequently the person has no spiritual life.
In order therefore
that a person may nevertheless have truths,
and thereby have spiritual life,
appearances of truth are given to everyone
according to his apprehension;
which appearances are acknowledged as truths,
because they are such
that Divine things can be in them.

(An example:)
. . . whatever is said in the Word
concerning places and spaces,
and from them and by means of them,
is an appearance of truth;
and unless it were said by means of such appearances,
it would not be received at all,
consequently would be scarcely anything;
for so long as he is in the world,
that is, in space and time,
the idea of space and of time
is within almost everything of a person's thought,
both in general and in particular.

AC 3382 - "My Charge, My Commandments, My Statutes, and My Laws"

AC 3382  [1-2]

And kept My charge, My commandments,
My statutes, and My laws.
(Genesis 26:5)

That this means
by means of continuous revelations from Himself --
that is to say, as by means of temptations,
so also by means of these revelations
the Lord united the Divine Essence to the Human --
is evident from the fact that these words,
"keeping His charge, commandments,
statutes, and laws,"
involve all things of the Word,
namely, "charge," all things of the Word in general;
"commandments," the internal things;
"statutes," the external things;
and "laws," all things specifically.
Inasmuch as this is predicated of the Lord,
who from eternity was the Word,
and from whom all these things are,
in the internal sense
it cannot be meant
that He observed these things,
but that He revealed them to Himself
when He was in a state of unition
of the Human with the Divine.

These things do indeed appear at first view
rather remote from the sense of the letter,
and even from the proximate internal sense;
but still when the words are read by a person,
this is their sense in heaven;
for, as occasionally before said,
and as may be seen from examples given,
in its ascent toward heaven
the sense of the letter is put off;
and instead of it
another heavenly sense comes into view,
so different that it cannot be known
to be from the same source.
For those who are in heaven
are in the idea that in the internal sense
all things of the Word treat of the Lord;
and also that all things of the Word are from the Lord;
likewise that when He was in the world
the Lord thought from the Divine
and thus from Himself,
and acquired for Himself all intelligence and wisdom
through continuous revelations from the Divine;
and therefore from the above words
they perceive nothing else.
For "keeping the charge, commandments,
statutes, and laws" is not predicable of the Lord,
because He Himself was the Word,
consequently He Himself was the charge,
He Himself was the commandment,
He Himself the statute,
and He Himself the law;
for all these things have respect to Him
as the First from whom they are derived,
and as the Last to whom they tend.
Therefore in the supreme sense by the above words
nothing else can be meant
than the unition of the Lord's Divine with the Human,
through continuous revelations from Himself.

~ Come, Let Us Return to the Lord ~

"Come, let us return to the Lord.
He has torn us to pieces but He will heal us;
He has injured us but He will bind up our wounds.
After two days He will revive us;
on the third day He will restore us,
that we may live in His presence.
Let us acknowledge the Lord;
let us press on to acknowledge Him.
As surely as the sun rises,
He will appear;
He will come to us like the winter rains,
like the spring rains that water the earth."

(Hosea 6:1-3)

AC 3367, 3376 - Thought From the Divine

AC  3367

And Jehovah appeared unto him, and said.
(Genesis 26:2)

That this means thought from the Divine,
is evident from the meaning of "appearing,"
when said of the Lord, who is Jehovah,
as being the Divine Itself that was in Him.
That Jehovah was in the Lord,
and that the Lord Himself is Jehovah,
has been shown above in many places;
and that insofar as the Lord had united
the Human essence to the Divine,
so far He spoke with Jehovah as with Himself;
thus "Jehovah appearing to him,"
in the internal sense means from the Divine;
that thought is meant is evident from
the meaning of "saying,"
as being to perceive and also to think;
as has been frequently shown.

AC 3376

. . . there was thought from the Divine
not to go down to memory-knowledges,
but to rational things
which
when enlightened by the Divine
are appearances of truth,
and that from these would come
instruction from the Divine, and increase,
thus good and truth,
which are spiritual,
whereby there is conjunction
of the Lord with the things in His Word.
These things which before a person
appear thus scattered,
are yet in the internal sense conjoined together
in the most orderly manner,
and before the angels, or in heaven,
appear and are perceived
in a most beautiful series and connection;
indeed, are attended with angelic representatives
in a heavenly form;
and this with inexpressible variety.
Such is the Word throughout in its internal sense.

AC 3362 - Divine Truth and Appearance of Truth

AC 3362

Divine truths are such
that they cannot possibly be grasped by any angel,
still less by any person.
They go far beyond
the whole range of their understanding.
Yet so that the Lord may be joined
to angels and people
Divine truths flow in,
with both angels and people,
within appearances;
and when those appearances
have Divine truths within them,
then these Divine truths
can be received and acknowledged.
And this is done in such a way as is adequate
for everyone to grasp them.

AC 3365

. . . Divine truths from the Lord
present themselves before the rational
by means of appearances.
This is why matters of doctrine
are no more than the appearances of Divine truth,
that is, no more than celestial and spiritual vessels
that hold what is Divine within them.
And because they hold the Divine,
that is, the Lord,
within them,
they therefore stir a person's affection,
and thereby the Lord is joined
to angels and to people.

AC 3344 - Life From the Lord

AC 3344

In itself
whatever is from the Lord
is alive.

~ The One Who Looked Like a Man ~

On the twenty-fourth day of the first month,
as I was standing on the bank of the great river, Tigris,
I looked up and there before me was a man
dressed in linen,
with a belt of the finest gold around his waist.
His body was like chrysolite,
his face like lightning,
his eyes like flaming torches,
his arms and legs like the gleam of burnished bronze,
and his voice like the sound of a multitude.

. . . the one who looked like a man
touched me and gave me strength.
"Do not be afraid, O man highly esteemed," he said.
"Peace!
Be strong now; be strong."

(Daniel 10:4-6, 18-19)

AC 3332 - When the Spiritual Person Is Being Regenerated

AC 3332 [2-3]

. . . he first learns the doctrinal things of truth,
next is affected by them
(which is the good of the doctrinal things),
then that by taking a mental view
of these doctrinal things
he is affected with the truths in them
(which is the good of truth),
and lastly that he wills to live according to them,
which is the good of life.
In this way the spiritual person
when being regenerated
advances from the doctrine of truth to the good of life.
But when he is in the good of life
the order is inverted,
and from this good
he looks to the good of truth,
from this to the good of doctrinal things,
and from this to the doctrinal things of truth.
From this it may be known how a person
from being a sensuous person becomes spiritual,
and of what quality he is when he becomes spiritual.

That these goods, namely,
the good of life,
the good of truth,
and the good of doctrinal things,
are distinct from each other
can be seen by those who carefully consider the matter.
The good of life
is that which flows from the will;
the good of truth
is that which flows from the understanding;
and the good of doctrinal things
is that which flows from memory-knowledge.
The good which is doctrinal
has these other goods within it.

~ One of Daniel's Visions ~

"In my vision at night I looked,
and there before me was one like a son of man,
coming with the clouds of heaven.
He approached the Ancient of Days
and was led into His presence.
He was given authority, glory and sovereign power;
all peoples, nations and men of every language
worshiped Him.
His dominion is an everlasting dominion
that will not pass away,
and His kingdom is one that will never be destroyed.

(Daniel 7:13-14)

AC 3330 - The Spiritual Person In the Beginning

AC 3330

That in the spiritual person in the beginning
truth has the dominion,
is chiefly because in his first state
there are delights of the love of self
and of the world
which he believes to be good,
and which apply themselves to his truths,
and for the most part
produce the affection of truth in him;
for he then thinks that truths
may be serviceable to him
either for honor, or for gain,
or for reputation in the world,
or even for merit in the other life.
All these things excite
this affection of truth in him,
and also enkindle it;
and yet they are not good, but evil.
Nevertheless the Lord permits
that such things should influence him
in that first time,
because otherwise he could not be regenerated.
Intelligence and wisdom come in time;
in the meanwhile
through these truths
the person is introduced into good,
that is, into charity;
and when he is in this,
then for the first time he perceives what is good,
and acts from good,
and then judges and draws conclusions
from this good concerning truths;
and those which do not accord with this good
he calls false, and rejects.
Thus he rules over truths
as a master over his servants.

~ King Darius Honors the God of Daniel ~

Then King Darius wrote to all the peoples,
nations and men of every language
throughout the land:

"May you prosper greatly!

"I issue a decree that in every part of my kingdom
people must fear and reverence the God of Daniel.

"For He is the living God
and He endures forever;
His kingdom will not be destroyed,
His dominion will never end.
He rescues and He saves;
He performs signs and wonders
in the heavens and on the earth.
He has rescued Daniel
from the power of the lions."

(Daniel 6:25-27)

AC 3318 - "And He Was Weary"

 

AC 3318

And he was weary.
(Genesis 25:29)

That this means a state of combat,
is evident from the meaning of "weary," or "weariness,"
as being the state after combat;
here, a state of combat,
because the subject
is the conjunction of good with truth
in the natural person.

A person is nothing but an organ, or vessel,
which receives life from the Lord;
for a person does not live from himself.
The life which inflows with a person from the Lord
is from His Divine love.
This love, or the life thence derived,
inflows and applies itself to the vessels
which are in a person's rational,
and to those which are in his natural.
In consequence of the hereditary evil
into which a person is born,
and of the actual evil which he acquires,
these vessels are in a contrary position within him
relatively to the inflowing life,
yet insofar as the life which flows in
can dispose the vessels to receive it,
it does so dispose them.
These vessels in the rational person,
and in the natural,
are what are called truths,
but in themselves
they are merely perceptions
of the variations of form of these vessels,
and of the changes of state
according to which in diverse ways
these variations come forth,
being effected in the most subtle substances,
by methods inexpressible.
Good itself,
which has life from the Lord,
or which is life,
is that which flows in and disposes.

When therefore these vessels,
which are to be varied as to forms,
are as before said

in a contrary position and direction in respect to the life,
it is evident that they must be reduced

to a position in accordance with the life,
or into compliance with it.
This cannot possibly be effected

so long as the person is in that state

into which he is born,
and to which he has reduced himself;
for the vessels are not obedient,
being obstinately resistant,
and hardening themselves against the heavenly order
according to which the life acts;
for the good which moves them,
and with which they comply,
is of the love of self and of the world;
which good, from the gross heat that is in it,
causes them to be of such a quality;
and therefore before they can be rendered compliant
and fit to receive anything of the life of the Lord's love,
they must be softened.
This softening is effected by
no other means than temptations;
for temptations remove all that is of the love of self
and of contempt for others in comparison with self,
consequently all that is of self-glory,
and also of hatred and revenge on this account.
When therefore the vessels have been

somewhat tempered and subdued by temptations,
they begin to become yielding to, and compliant with,
the life of the Lord's love,
which continually flows in with man.

So it is then

that good begins to be conjoined with truths;

first in the rational person,
and afterwards in the natural;
for as before said

truths are nothing else

than perceptions of the variations of form

according to states that are continually being changed;
and these perceptions are from the life which flows in.
This is the reason why a person is regenerated,

that is, made new, by temptations;
or what is the same, by spiritual combats;

and that he is afterwards gifted with another nature;

being made mild, humble, simple, and contrite in heart.
From these considerations

it may now be seen what use temptations promote,

namely, that good from the Lord may not only flow in,

but may also dispose the vessels to obedience,

and thus conjoin itself with them.
That truths are vessels receptive of good,

may be seen above.
Here therefore, because the subject is

the conjunction of good and truth in the natural man,

and the first of conjunction takes place

by means of combats,

which are those of temptations,

it is evident that by "he was weary" i

s signified a state of combat.

But as regards the Lord,
who in the supreme sense is here treated of,
He by the most grievous temptation
combats reduced all things in Himself into Divine order,
insomuch that there remained nothing at all
of the human which He had derived from the mother,
so that He was not made new as are other men,
but altogether Divine.
For the person who is made new by regeneration
still retains in himself an inclination to evil,
and even evil itself;
but is withheld from evil
by an influx of the life of the Lord's love,
and this with a force exceeding great;
whereas the Lord utterly cast out all the evil
that was hereditary to Him from the mother,
and made Himself Divine,
even as to the vessels,
that is, as to truths.
This is that which in the Word is called "glorification."

 

AC 3316 - Pottage - a soup or a stew

AC 3316 [1, 2]

And Jacob boiled pottage.
(Genesis 25:29)

That this means a chaotic mass of doctrinal things,
is evident from the representation of Jacob,
as being the doctrine of natural truth,
thus the doctrinal things which are in the natural person;
and from the meaning of "pottage,"
as being a chaotic mass of such things.

The first state of the person who is being regenerated,
or in whom truth is being conjoined with good,
is that first of all in his natural person,
or in its storehouse called the memory,
there are amassed the doctrinal things of truth
without any certain order.
The doctrinal things therein at that time
may be compared to
some undigested and uncompounded mass,
and to a kind of chaos.
But this is to the end
that they may be reduced to order,
for whatever is to be reduced to order
is at first in this state of confusion;
and this is what is meant by the pottage
which Jacob boiled, that is, amassed.
These doctrinal things
are not reduced to order by themselves,
but by the good which flows into them,
and the good reduces them into order
in exact proportion to the amount and the quality
of its action upon them.
When good first longs for and desires
these doctrinal things,
to the end that it may conjoin them with itself,
it manifests itself
under the appearance of the affection of truth.

~ Daniel Praises the God of Heaven ~

"Praise be to the name of God for ever and ever;
wisdom and power are His.
He changes times and seasons;
He sets up kings and deposes them.
He gives wisdom to the wise
and knowledge to the discerning.
He reveals deep and hidden things;
He knows what lies in darkness,
and light dwells with Him.
I thank and praise You,
O God of my fathers:
You have given me wisdom and power,
You have made known to me what we asked of You,
You have made known to us
the dream of the king."

(Daniel 2:19.5-23)

AC 3314 - What the World Does Not Know About the Rational

AC 3314 [2]

. . . the world, even the learned world,
is ignorant of the most general truths upon the subject --
as that the rational is distinct from the natural,
and that it is good and truth
which constitute both the rational and the natural;
and still less is it known
that the rational must flow into the natural
in order for a person to be able to think,
and to will as he thinks.
As these most general truths are unknown,
the influx spoken of above
can with difficulty be comprehended;
and yet these are matters in regard to which
the angels have light,
and perceive things innumerable,
and this attended with the delight in which
they are when it is given them
at the same time to think concerning
the Lord's Divine in respect to the Human.
The person who is in good
and in whom there is what is angelic
while he is in the body,
is also gifted with some light from the Lord
on these and similar subjects;
but he who is not in good
feels a loathing when thinking of such things,
and the more so the more he thinks of them
as applied to the Divine
that pertains to the Lord's Human.
It is better therefore
that those who are of such a nature
should remove their mind from such subjects;
for they comprehend nothing of them,
and even reject them;
saying at heart,
What is this to me?
will bring me neither honors nor gain.

AC 3308 - "The Boys Grew Up"

AC 3308
 

The boys grew up.
(Genesis 25:27)

That this means the first state, namely,
of the conjunction of good and truth . . .
and from the meaning of the "boys,"
as being good and truth;
for good is represented by the "boy Esau,"
and truth by the "boy Jacob," . . ..
The case with good and truth
is the same as with offspring,
in that they are conceived, are in the womb,
are born, grow up, and also advance in age
even to the last.
That they are conceived, are in the womb,
and are born, pertains to the state of origin;
but that they grow up,
and advance in age even to the last,
pertains to the state of progress.
The state of progress advances
in succession from the birth,
and is a state of the conjunction of good and truth.
The first of this state
is that which is here meant by "growing up."
This state commences immediately after birth,
and is continued even to the last of life;
and with those who are in good,
after the life of the body to eternity.
The angels are thus being continually perfected.

AC 3304, 3305 - Reading the Word

AC 3304 [3]

Those who keep the mind solely in the historicals,
and who are not able to withdraw it from them,
do not know but that these and former passages
simply foretell the events which came to pass
 between Esau and Jacob,
and this conviction is confirmed also by what follows.
But the Word of the Lord is of such a nature
that the historicals are in their own series,
while the spiritual things of the internal sense
are in theirs;
so that the former may be viewed
by the external person,
and the latter by the internal person,
and that in this way there may be
a correspondence between the two, namely,
between the external person and the internal;
and this by means of the Word,
for the Word is the union of earth and heaven,
as has been frequently shown.
Thus in everyone
who is in a holy state while reading the Word,
there is a union of his external person
which is on the earth,
with his internal person
which is in heaven.

AC 3305 [2]

Those who abide in the mere sense of the letter
believe that by "Jacob" in the Word is meant
all that people which was descended from Jacob,
and for this reason they apply to that people
all things that have been said
historically and prophetically concerning Jacob.
But the Word is Divine chiefly in this respect,
that all things in it both in general and in particular
do not regard one nation or one people,
but the universal human race;
namely, that which is,
which has been,
and which will be;
and also that which is still more universal,
namely, the Lord's kingdom in the heavens;
and in the supreme sense,
the Lord Himself.
It is for this reason that the Word is Divine.

AC 3286 - Correspondence & Regeneration; AC 3286 - Old Becomes New

AC 3286 [3]

The work of regeneration is chiefly concerned
in bringing about the correspondence
of the natural person to the rational person,
not only in general,
but also in particular;
and the natural person
is reduced to correspondence by the Lord
through the rational,
in that good is insinuated into the rational,
and in this good as in ground
truths are implanted,
and then by means of rational truths
the natural is reduced to obedience;
and when it obeys,
then it corresponds;
and insofar as it corresponds,
so far is the person regenerate.

AC 3296 [2]

. . . as the Lord altogether changed
His human state into the Divine,
so also in a person,
when He regenerates him,
the Lord utterly changes the person's state,
for He makes his old person new.

AC 3279 - Generations; AC 3283 - The Natural and the Rational

AC 3279

'These are the generations of Isaac, Abraham's son'
(Genesis 25:19)

means the Lord's Divine Rational,
from which the Divine Natural sprang.
. . . Here . . . 'generations' has reference to the Lord,
Divine generations are meant.
That is to say,
the Divine Rational came into being
from the Divine itself,
which is meant by Isaac who was begotten by Abraham;
and the Divine Natural came into being
from the Divine Rational,
which is meant by Esau and Jacob
who were begotten by Isaac.
For Esau and Jacob represent the Lord's Divine Natural,
Esau as regards good,
and Jacob as regards truth,

AC 3283 [2]

The Lord's natural could not be made Divine
until truth had been allied to His Rational
and that truth had been made Divine -
for the influx into the natural
had to be an influx
from the Divine Good of the Rational
by way of Divine Truth there.
Indeed the entire life of the natural person
so far as knowing and acting
with understanding are concerned
is due to such an influx.
It is the rational in fact
that coordinates everything in the natural,
and in accordance with that coordination
fittingly regards the things that are there.
Indeed the rational
is like a higher faculty of seeing which,
when it looks at facts
belonging to the natural person,
is like someone looking down on to a plain below him.
The light of that faculty of seeing
is the light of truth,
but the origin of that light
rests with the good present in the rational.

AC 3267 - Loving the Neighbor in Charity, or Not

AC 3267 [3]

He who is in charity loves his neighbor,
and when the neighbor differs from him
in matters of belief,
he excuses it
provided that his neighbor lives in good and truth.
He also does not condemn the well-disposed Gentiles,
although they are ignorant of the Lord,
and do not know anything of the faith.
For he who is in charity,
that is, who lives in good,
receives from the Lord
truths of such a quality as agree with his good,
and Gentiles receive such truths
as in the other life
may be bent into truths of faith.
But he who is not in charity,
that is, who does not live in good,
can never receive any truth;
he may indeed know truth,
but it is not implanted in his life;
thus he may indeed have it in his mouth,
but not in his heart.
For truth cannot be conjoined with evil,
and therefore those who know the truths
which are called the articles of belief,
and do not live in charity or in good,
although they are in the church because born in it,
are yet not of the church,
for there is nothing of the church in them,
that is nothing of good
with which truth may be conjoined.

AC 3263 - The Spiritual Church, Ishmael, and Gentiles

AC 3263

And these are the births of Ishmael the son of Abraham.
(Genesis 25:12)

That this means the derivations
of the spiritual church represented by Ishmael,
is evident from the meaning of "births,"
as being the derivations of faith,
thus of the church;
from the representation of Ishmael,
as being those who are rational
and who are of the Lord's spiritual church;
and from the meaning of the "sons of Abraham,"
as being those who are in truth from the Lord;
for by "sons" are meant truths,
and by Abraham is represented
the Lord as to the Divine Human
also, from whom the spiritual have truth and good.

As regards the Lord's spiritual church,
be it known that it exists
throughout the universal world;
for it is not confined to those who have the Word
and thence know the Lord and some truths of faith;
but it exists also with those who have not the Word
and therefore are altogether ignorant of the Lord
and consequently know no truths of faith
(for all the truths of faith regard the Lord);
that is to say, this church exists among the Gentiles
who are remote from the church;
for there are many among them
who from rational light know that there is one God;
that He has created all things
and preserves all things;
and also that from Him is all good,
consequently all truth;
and that likeness to Him makes man blessed;
and moreover they live according to their religion,
in love to that God and in love toward the neighbor;
and from the affection of good
they do works of charity,
and from the affection of truth
they worship the Supreme Being.
The Gentiles who are of this character
are they who belong to the Lord's spiritual church;
and although while in this world
they do not know the Lord,
yet within themselves
they have the worship
and tacit acknowledgment of Him
when they are in good,
for in all good the Lord is present;
and therefore in the other life
they easily acknowledge Him,
and receive the truths of faith in Him
more readily than Christians do
who are not in good in this way . . ..

~ I Will Give You ~

I will give you a new heart
and put a new spirit in you;
I will remove from you
your heart of stone
and give you a heart of flesh.
And I will put My Spirit in you
and move you to follow My decrees
and be careful to keep My laws.

(Ezekiel 36:26-27)

AC 3254 - "Old Age"; AC 3260 - "May God Bless"

 AC 3254

In a good old age, an old man and sated.
(Genesis 25:8)

That this means something new in the representation,
is evident from the meaning
in the internal sense of "old age,"
as being to put off what is old
and put on what is new.
The reason why what is new, or a new state,
is meant in the internal sense by "old age,"
is that with the angels,
for whom is the internal sense of the Word,
there is no idea of time,
thus no idea of such things as belong to time,
as the ages of man --
infancy, childhood, youth, adult age, and old age.
But instead of all these
they have an idea of states,
thus instead of the time of infancy
they have an idea of the state of innocence;
instead of the time of childhood and youth
they have an idea of
the state of the affection of good and truth;
instead of adult age
they have an idea of the state of intelligence;
and instead of old age
an idea of the state of wisdom;
and as at this time of life
a person passes from the things of time
to those that are of a life without time,
and thus puts on a new state . . ..

AC 3260

Among the ancients,
when a work was to be commenced,
it was customary to say, "May God bless it;"
and by this was meant the same as is meant
by the expression of the wish,
"May it be prosperous and happy;"
and thus in a more remote sense, by,
"May God bless,"
as well as by, "May it be prosperous and happy,"
there is meant a beginning,
here the beginning of the representation by Isaac,
because this follows immediately after
the end of the representation by Abraham,
which is signified by his death.

~ The Way of the Lord ~

"Yet your countrymen say,
'The way of the Lord is not just.'
But it is their way that is not just.
If a righteous man turns from his righteousness
and does evil,
he will die for it.
And if a wicked man turns away from his wickedness
and does what is just and right,
he will live by doing so.
Yet, O house of Israel, you say,
'The way of the Lord is not just.'
But I will judge each of you
according to his own ways."

(Ezekiel 33:17-20)

AC 3245 - The Lord's Rational; AC 3249 - Charity Toward the Neighbor

AC 3245 [1-2]

The things which precede
and those which follow have regard to this fact --
that in the Lord's rational all things were made Divine.
For in the internal sense,
where Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob are treated of,
the subject is the Lord's Human,
and how it was made Divine.

There are two things
which properly constitute the Human,
namely, the rational and the natural;
the Lord's rational was represented by Isaac,
and His natural by Jacob;
the Lord made them both Divine;
how He made the rational Divine
is contained in what was said of Isaac,
but how He made the natural Divine
is contained in what is said of Jacob in what follows.
But this latter (that is, the natural)
could not be made Divine
until the rational had been made Divine,
for by means of the rational the natural was made so;
hence therefore it is
that by the words before us
are meant all Divine things in the Divine rational.

AC 3249

Charity toward the neighbor is nothing else
than a life according to the Lord's commandments.

AC 3234 - Abraham & Sarah; Abraham & Keturah; AC 3241 - The Spiritual Church

AC 3234

And Abraham added, and took a woman,
and her name was Keturah.
(Genesis 25:1)

"And Abraham added, and took a woman,"
means another state of the Lord,
whom Abraham represents;
Abraham and Sarah represented the Lord
as to the Divine celestial;
Abraham and Keturah represented the Lord
as to the Divine spiritual;
thus Abraham here represents the Lord
as to Divine good spiritual,
and his woman
as to Divine truth adjoined to this good;
"and her name was Keturah,"
means the essence of this Divine truth.

AC 3241 [3]

As those who are of the spiritual church
have no perception of what is good and true,
like those of the celestial church,
but acknowledge as truths
the things they have learned,
they are on this account
continually in dispute concerning them,
reasoning whether a thing is true;
and each person abides in that doctrine
(and calls it true)
which is of his own church.
This is the source of so many differences.
Moreover very many form their conclusions
concerning things good and true
from appearances and fallacies --
one in one way, another in another,
but none from any perception;
they do not even know what perception is;
and as their understanding is thus in obscurity
as to the goods and truths of faith,
it is not surprising that dissensions should arise
concerning the most essential
of all the things of faith, namely,
concerning the Divine,
the Human,
and the Holy Proceeding of the Lord.
The celestial perceive
that these are not three, but One;
but the spiritual abide in the idea of three,
although they desire to think that they are One.
Seeing then that there are dissensions
concerning that which is the most essential,
it is evident
that the varieties and differences of doctrinal things
must be innumerable.

AC 3224 - The Opening of the Interior Mind

 AC 3224 [3]

Truths and goods cannot be acknowledged,
except with those whose interior mind is open,
into which the light from the Lord may inflow;
and so far as this mind is open,
truths and goods are acknowledged.
This mind is open only with those
who are in innocence, in love to the Lord,
and in charity toward their neighbor;
but not with those who are in the truths of faith,
unless they are at the same time in the good of life.

AC 3207 - Good Itself, Truth and Appearances of Truth

AC 3207 [2-3, 5]

Good itself is holy,
because it is the Divine proceeding from the Lord,
and flows in by the higher way or gate in a person;
but insofar as its origin is concerned,
truth is not holy;
because it flows in by a lower way or gate,
and at first is of the natural person;
but when it is elevated from there
toward the rational person
it is by degrees purified;
and at the first sight of the affection of good
it is separated from memory-knowledges,
and puts on appearances of truth,
and thus comes near to good;
an indication that such is its origin,
and that it could not endure
the first sight of Divine good
until it has entered into the bridegroom's chamber
(that is, into the sanctuary of good),
and the conjunction has been effected;
for then truth no longer looks at good
from appearances, or through appearances;
but it is looked at from good apart from them.

Be it known, however, that neither with a person,
nor indeed with an angel,
are any truths ever pure, that is, devoid of appearances;
for all both in general and in particular
are appearances of truth;
nevertheless they are accepted by the Lord as truths,
provided good is in them.
To the Lord alone belong pure truths,
because Divine;
for as the Lord is Good itself,
so He is Truth itself.

In order that some idea may be formed
of what appearances of truth are,
let the following examples serve for illustration.

I.  A person believes
that he is reformed and regenerated
through the truth of faith;
but this is an appearance;
he is reformed and regenerated
through the good of faith,
that is, through charity toward the neighbor
and love to the Lord.

II.  A person believes
that truth enables us to perceive what good is,
because it teaches;
but this is an appearance;
it is good that enables truth to perceive,
for good is the soul or life of truth.

III.  A person believes
that truth introduces to good
when he lives
according to the truth which he has learned;
but it is good which flows into truth,
and introduces it to itself. 

IV.  It appears to a person
that truth perfects good,
when yet good perfects truth.

V.  Goods of life appear to a person
to be the fruits of faith;
but they are the fruits of charity.

From these few examples
it may in some measure be known
what appearances of truth are.
Such appearances are innumerable.

AC 3200 - The Rational Good Expecting Truth

And Isaac came from coming from Beer-lahai-roi;
and he dwelt in the land of the south.
And Isaac went out
to meditate in the field toward evening;
and he lifted up his eyes and saw,
and behold there were camels coming. 
(Genesis 24:62-63)

AC 3200

In these two verses is described
the state of rational good
when it is in expectation of the truth
that is to be conjoined with it as a bride to a husband.
In the two verses which immediately follow,
is described the state of truth when it is near,
and perceives the good with which it is to be conjoined.
But it is to be known that these states
did not come forth once only,
but continually during the Lord's whole life in the world,
until He was glorified.
The case is the same with the regenerate;
for they are not regenerated at once,
but continually during their whole life,
and even in the other life;
for a person can never be perfected.

And Rebekah lifted up her eyes, and saw Isaac,
and she alighted from off the camel.
And she said unto the servant,
What man is this that walks in the field to meet us?
And the servant said, It is my lord.
And she took a veil and covered herself.
(Genesis 24:64-65)

AC 3182 - Regarding Truth and Life; AC 8183 - The Role of Innocence; AC 8187 - Becoming a Kingdom of the Lord

 AC 3182

Truth is separated when the person
no longer from truth regards good,
but from good truth;
or what is the same,
when he no longer from doctrine regards life,
but from life doctrine.
For example: doctrine teaches the truth
that no one is to be held in hatred;
for whoever holds another in hatred,
kills him every moment.
In early life
a person scarcely admits the truth of this,
but as he advances in age and is being reformed,
he accounts this as one of the doctrinal things
according to which he ought to live.
At last he lives according to it;
and then he no longer thinks from the doctrine,
but acts from the life.
When this is the case,
this truth of doctrine is elevated out of the natural,
and indeed is separated from the natural
and implanted in good in the rational;
and this being effected
he no longer suffers the natural person
by any of its sophistry
to call it in doubt;
indeed he does not suffer the natural person to
reason against it.

AC 3183

. . . the affection of truth is not the affection of truth
unless innocence is in it;
for by innocence the Lord flows into this affection,
and indeed with wisdom,
since true innocence is wisdom itself . . ..

AC 8187 [3]

. . . with every person
who becomes a kingdom of the Lord,
the case also is this:
Before he becomes this kingdom,
that is, before he is being regenerated,
he is inwardly nothing but evil and falsity;
and infernal and diabolical spirits
have possession of that which is called the "gate"
(concerning which see n. 2851[2] quoted here:
As regards the signification of a "gate,"
there are in general two gates with every person;
the one opens toward hell,
and is opened to the evils and falsities therefrom;
in this gate are infernal genii and spirits;
the other gate opens toward heaven,
and is opened to good and the truths therefrom;
in this gate are angels.
There is thus a gate which leads to hell,
and a gate which leads to heaven.);
but when he is becoming a kingdom of the Lord,
that is, when he is being regenerated,
then evils and falsities, or what is the same,
infernal and diabolical spirits, are driven out,
and good and truth enter and inherit that place;
and then there is in him
a conscience of good and truth.
And as the case is in particular,
so also is it in general.

AC 3175 - What It Takes to Become a Person

AC 3175 [1, 2-3]

No person is ever ever born into any truth,
not even into any natural truth --
as that he should not steal, should not kill,
should not commit adultery, and the like;
still less is he born into any spiritual truth --
as that there is a God,
and that he has an internal which will live after death.
Thus of himself a person knows nothing
that relates to eternal life.
A person learns both these kinds of truth;
otherwise he would be much worse than a brute animal;
for from his hereditary nature
he loves himself above all
and desires to possess all things in the world.

. . . unless a person is rational, he is not a person;
and therefore according to
the quality and the measure of a person's rational,
such is the quality and the measure of the person.
A person cannot possibly be rational
unless he possesses good.
The good whereby a person surpasses the animals,
is to love God,
and to love the neighbor;
all human good is from this.
Into this good truth must be initiated and conjoined,
and this in the rational.
Truth is initiated into good and conjoined with it
when a person loves God and loves his neighbor,
for then truth enters into good,
inasmuch as good and truth mutually
acknowledge each other,
all truth being from good,
and having respect to good as its end and as its soul,
and thus as the source of its life.

AC 3170 - Unrest and Peace

AC 3170

. . . all unrest is from evil and falsity,
and all peace is from good and truth.

~ The Lord's Pleasure ~

"Do I take any pleasure in the death of the wicked?"
declares the Sovereign Lord.
"Rather, am I not pleased
when they turn from their ways and live?"

(Ezekiel 18:23)

AC 3160 - Laban and Bethuel

AC 3160 [1, 2]

And Laban and Bethuel answered and said,
The word has gone forth from Jehovah;
we cannot speak unto you evil or good.
(Genesis 24:50)

. . . by "Jehovah," so often named in the Old Testament,
no other is ever meant than the Lord.

The secret reason why Laban and Bethuel answered,
that is, the brother first and then the father,
is that while good from the rational person
is flowing into the natural,
it does not flow immediately into the truth there,
but into the good there,
and through the good into the truth;
and unless there is this influx
the affection of truth cannot come into actual being.
The affection of good in the natural person
is that which acknowledges,
and thus is that which first consents;
for there is an immediate communication
between rational good and natural good,
but not between rational good and natural truth.

AC 3158 - Freedom and Conjunction

AC  3158

Tell me; and if not, tell me.
(Genesis 24:49)

That this signifies their free state of deliberation . . ..
This is evident from the sense of the words themselves.
From all that has gone before
it is clear that while the sense of the letter in this chapter
is dealing with
the betrothal and marriage of Rebekah to Isaac,
the internal sense is dealing with
the introduction and joining together of truth and good,
for the introduction and joining together
of truth and good
is spiritual betrothal and spiritual marriage.
In both instances a free state to deliberate is necessary.
The necessity for it in betrothal and marriage
is well known,
but the necessity for it
in the introduction and joining together of truth and good
is not so well known
because it is not visible to the natural person
and belongs among the things that go on
quite apart from any reflecting on them.
Yet this activity continues moment by moment
in one who is being reformed and regenerated,
that is to say,
he experiences a free state
when truth is being joined to good.

Everyone may know, if he merely stops to think,
that nothing ever exists as a person's own
unless it forms part of his will.
That which belongs solely to the understanding
does not become a person's own
until it belongs also to his will,
for what belongs to the will
constitutes the essential being of a person's life,
whereas what belongs to the understanding
constitutes the manifestation of that essential being.
Consent flowing from the understanding alone
is not consent,
but all consent springs from the will.
Unless therefore the truth of faith
which belongs to the understanding
is received by the good of love
which belongs to the will
it is in no sense truth that has been acknowledged,
and so is not faith.
In order that it may be received
by good that belongs to the will
it is necessary that a free state should exist.
Everything that belongs in the will looks to be free.
The state itself of the will is freedom,
for what I will, I choose and desire
since that is what I love and acknowledge
as that which is good.
From this it becomes clear
that the truth of faith in no sense
becomes a person's own
until it has been accepted by the will,
that is, introduced and joined
to the good there,
which cannot happen except in a free state.

AC 4131 - Sweeping; AC 4137 - Washing

AC 4132 [1, 3]

The reason "to sweep" means to prepare and to be filled,
is that nothing else is required of a person
than to sweep the house;
that is, to reject the cupidities of evil
and the derivative persuasions of falsity;
for he is then filled with goods,
because good is continually flowing in from the Lord --
but into "the house," that is, into the person
who is purified from such things as impede the influx,
that is, which reflect, or pervert, or suffocate
the inflowing good.
So it was common with the ancients
to speak of sweeping or cleaning the house,
and of sweeping and preparing the way;
and by sweeping the house was meant
to purify one's self from evils,
and thereby to prepare one's self for goods to enter;
but by sweeping the way
was meant to prepare one's self
so that truths might be received.

In the opposite sense "to sweep the house"
is said also of the person
who deprives himself of all goods and truths,
and thus is filled with evils and falsities . . ..

AC 4137 [1-3, 7]

The unclean things of the natural person
are all those things which are of
the love of self and of the love of the world;
and when these unclean things have been washed away,
then goods and truths flow in,
for it is solely these unclean things
that hinder the influx of good and truth from the Lord.

For good is continually flowing in from the Lord,
but when it comes through
the internal or spiritual person
to his external or natural person,
it is there either perverted, turned back, or suffocated.
But when the things which are of
the love of self and of the love of the world
are removed,
then good is received there and is made fruitful;
for then man practices the works of charity.
This is evident from many considerations;
as when in misfortune, distress, and sickness,
the things that belong to the external or natural person
are merely lulled,
the person immediately begins to think piously
and to will what is good,
and also to practice works of piety insofar as he is able;
but when the state is changed,
there is a change also in all this.

These things were meant by
the washings in the Ancient Church,
and the same were represented in the Jewish Church.
The reason why they were meant in the Ancient Church,
but represented in the Jewish church,
was that the person of the Ancient Church
regarded the rite as a something external in worship,
and did not believe
that he was purified by that washing,
but by the washing away
of the impurities of the natural person,
which as before said are the things
which are of the love of self and of the world.
But the person of the Jewish Church
believed that he was purified by that washing;
neither knowing nor desiring to know
that the purification of the interiors was meant.

. . . unless the things that are of
the love of self and of the world
have been removed,
the internal things
which are of love to the Lord
and toward the neighbor
cannot possibly flow in,
as before said.

AC 4131 - The Process - for the Lord, for Us

AC 4131

The Lord's Divine rational was born
of the Divine truth itself conjoined with the Divine good.
The Divine rational is Isaac,
who was born to Abraham (who here is the Divine good)
of Sarah who here is the Divine truth . . ..
The rational of the Lord alone was thus born Divine,
and indeed from Himself;
for the veriest being of the Lord was Jehovah
or the Divine good itself;
and the veriest being of the Lord from this
was of Jehovah or was the Divine truth itself.
The Divine good in the rational, which is "Isaac,"
was thus born;
and this was not good separate from truth,
but was Divine good with Divine truth;
and yet both together are called good in the rational,
with which was to be conjoined truth
from the natural man, which truth is "Rebekah."
In order that the Lord might make His human Divine,
both as to good and as to truth,
and this by the ordinary way,
it could not be done otherwise;
for such is the Divine order,
according to which is all regeneration,
and thus according to which
was the Lord's glorification.

. . . For the ordinary way
is that instruction must precede,
and that influx takes place
to the degrees of instruction;
and that truth
continually comes into existence from there,
which is initiated,
and is afterwards conjoined
with the good of the rational.
From all this it may be seen
what is the nature of the arcana (secrets)
that are contained in the internal sense of the Word;
and that these arcana are such
as to be scarcely understood by a person
even as to their most general things;
and yet that they are evident to the angels,
together with innumerable particulars
which can never be uttered in words.

AC 3128 - Our Life Impacts Enlightenment

AC 3128 [2, 3]

. . . all good flows in by an internal way
(that is, by the way of the soul)
into a person's rational,
and through this into his faculty of knowing,
even into that which is of the senses;
and by enlightenment there
it causes truths to be seen.

. . . if the life of the natural person is such
that it does not receive the Divine good,
but either repels it, or perverts it, or suffocates it,
then the Divine good cannot be fitted in,
thus it cannot form for itself truths;
and consequently
the natural can no longer be enlightened;
for enlightenment in the natural person
is effected from good through truths;
and when there is no longer enlightenment,
there can be no reformation.