4358. 'And said, Who are these with you?' means acknowledgement. This becomes clear from the fact that questions in the sense of the letter are not such in the highest sense, for the Lord, who is the subject in that highest sense, has no need to ask man any questions since He knows every single thing. Consequently this question 'Who are these with you?' means acknowledgement, for 'Esau' represents the Lord as regards Divine Natural Good, and Divine Good acknowledges instantly the truths which it has to join to itself. What is more, all good does so, for good cannot exist without the things it calls truths, nor can truths exist without that which they call good. The two join together of their own accord; but as is the good so are the truths it joins to itself. It is good that acknowledges them and links itself to them like a husband to his wife; indeed the joining together of good and truths is a marriage in the spiritual sense, 2508, 2618. For good acknowledges its own truth, and truth its own good, and thereby they are joined together, see 3101, 3102, 3161, 3179, 3180.

3392. 'And behold Isaac was laughing with Rebekah his wife' means that Divine Good was present within Divine Truth, that is, to Divine Good Divine Truth was allied. This is clear from the representation of 'Isaac' as the Divine Good of the Lord's Rational, dealt with in 3012, 3194, 3210; from the meaning of 'laughing' as the love of truth or affection for it, dealt with in 2072, 2216; and from the representation of 'Rebekah' as the Divine Truth of the Lord's Rational, dealt with in 3012, 3013, 3077. From this it is evident that 'Isaac was laughing with Rebekah his wife' means that Divine Good was present together with Divine Truth. The meaning that these words have in the whole train of thought is that at first spiritual truth is received because it is called Divine, but that subsequently it is received because it holds within it that which is Divine and is clearly visible to those who are being regenerated and becoming members of the spiritual Church. These are the ones who are meant by 'Abimelech', that is, those who possess the doctrine of faith and have regard to the truths held within cognitions, dealt with just above in 3391.