5432. 'You are spies' means that they existed solely for the sake of gain. This is clear from the meaning of 'spies' here as being bent on material gain; indeed it is clear from the train of thought that nothing else is meant in the internal sense by 'spies'. For the internal sense here deals with the truths known to the Church which are to be made over to the natural as its own. But such a making over is not possible unless an influx takes place from the celestial of the spiritual through the intermediary, those truths known to the Church being 'the sons of Jacob', who are 'Joseph's brothers', the celestial of the spiritual being 'Joseph', and the intermediary being 'Benjamin'. The implications of all this have been stated in 5402. There it is shown that when the truths of faith which are known to the Church and are called its teachings are learned at the earliest stage of life, they are taken in and consigned to the memory as facts in the same way as any other factual knowledge. And they remain there as factual knowledge until the person begins to use his own ability to look at those truths and see for himself whether they really are truths, and - having seen that they are such - to act in conformity with them. That ability to look at such truths and this willingness to act in conformity with them cause them to be factual knowledge no longer. Now they are commandments to be obeyed in life, till at length they are his life; for they then pass into the life he leads and are made his own.

[2] People who have reached adult years, and especially those who have arrived at old age, but have not used their own ability to look at the truths known to the Church, called its doctrinal teachings, to see for themselves whether these really are truths, or to form any subsequent wish to live in conformity with them, inevitably retain them in exactly the same way as they do all other factual knowledge. Those truths remain solely in their natural memory, and from there in their mouth. When they speak truths they do so not from their interior man or heart, only from their exterior man or mouth. When this is a person's state he cannot possibly believe that the truths known to the Church are truths, no matter how much it might seem to him that he does believe that they are. The reason why it seems to him that he does believe they are truths is that he trusts other people and their ideas and firmly embraces them. To embrace firmly other people's ideas, no matter whether they are truths or falsities, is very easy, for it involves no more than the use of one's intellect.

[3] These truths known to the Church - that is, those people with whom they exist in the way explained immediately above - are meant by spies coming to see the nakedness of the land. For their belief in the teachings of their Church does not spring from any affection for truth but from an affection for securing important positions and personal gain. For this reason they themselves have scarcely any belief, and there is denial for the most part in their hearts. They regard the Church's teachings in the way a merchant does his wares, in that they seem to themselves to be well-taught and wise when from within themselves they see those teachings as untrue and yet they are able to convince the common people that they are true. It is quite evident from those in the next life that very many leaders of Churches are like this. Wherever they go in the next life they take with them the sphere emanating from their affections and consequent thoughts, and that sphere is clearly perceptible to others. From this sphere one can recognize quite plainly what kind of affection for truth and what kind of faith they have possessed. The same is not made plain in the world because no spiritual perception of such things exists there. This being so, those leaders of Churches do not reveal what they really think, for that would deprive them of what they seek to gain.

[4] The fact that these are 'spies' becomes perfectly clear from the consideration that they are the kind of people who do nothing else than find fault with, so as to accuse and condemn, those who adhere to truths grounded in good. Whether they belong to the Papists so-called, or to the Reformed, or to the Quakers, or to the Socinians, or to the Jews, are not such people, once they have firmly embraced the teachings of their Church, nothing else than 'spies'? They deride and condemn absolute truths, if these are known anywhere; for truths are not embraced by them because they are truths, the reason for this being that they are not moved by any affection for truth for its own sake, let alone for their life's sake, only for the sake of personal gain. Also, when such people read the Word they examine it closely with the sole intention of confirming what is already known and taught, and for the sake of material gain. Many of them examine the Word closely 'to see the nakedness of the land', that is, to see there the truths known to the Church not as truths but merely as means that will serve them to convince others, for the sake of their own personal gain, that they are truths.

[5] People however who are moved by an affection for truth for its own sake and for their life's sake, consequently for the sake of the Lord's kingdom, do indeed have faith in the teachings of the Church. But even so they examine the Word closely with no other end in view than to see the truth itself, as a result of which they develop a faith and a conscience that are their own. If anyone tells them that they ought to keep to the teachings of the Church in which they were born, they then think that they would have been told exactly the same if they had been born within Judaism, within Socinianism, Quakerism, or Christian Gentilism, or even outside the Church, and that everywhere they would say, This is where the Church is, this is where the Church is; truths exist here and nowhere else! This being what they think they decide to examine the Word closely, praying sincerely to the Lord for enlightenment as they do so. People like these do not upset anyone else within the Church, nor do they ever condemn others, for they recognize that the life led by everyone who is a Church is founded on the faith that is his own.

5248. 'And changed his clothes' means the change made so far as coverings of the interior natural were concerned, by the putting on of what was rightly suited to this. This is clear from the meaning of 'changing as removing and casting aside, and from the meaning of 'clothes' as the coverings of the interior natural, dealt with below. The putting on of what was rightly suited, meant by 'new clothes', follows on from this. Frequent reference is made in the Word to clothes, by which are meant lower or outward things which, being such, serve to cover higher or inward ones. 'Clothes' consequently means the external part of man and therefore what is natural, since this covers the internal and the spiritual part of him. In particular 'clothes' means truths that are matters of faith since these cover forms of good that are embodiments of charity. This meaning of 'clothes' has its origin in the clothes that spirits and angels are seen to be wearing. Spirits are seen dressed in clothes that have no brightness, whereas angels are seen dressed in clothes full of brightness and so to speak made of brightness. For the actual brightness that surrounds them looks like a robe, much like the Lord's garments when He was transfigured, which were 'as the light', Matthew 17:2, and 'glistening white', Luke 9:29. From the clothes they wear one can also tell what kinds of spirits and angels they are so far as truths of faith are concerned since these are represented by their clothes, though only truths of faith such as exist within the natural. The truths of faith such as exist within the rational are revealed in the face and in the beauty it possesses. The brightness of their garments has its origin in the good of love and charity, for that good shines through and is the producer of the brightness. From all this one may see what is represented in the spiritual world by clothes and as a consequence what is meant in the spiritual sense by 'clothes'.

[2] But the clothes which Joseph changed - that is, cast aside - were those of the pit or prison-clothing, which mean the delusions and false ideas that are stirred up by evil genii and spirits in a state involving temptations. Consequently the expression 'he changed his clothes' means a casting aside and a change made in the coverings of the interior natural. And the clothes which he put on were ones such as were properly suitable, so that the putting on of what was rightly suited is meant. See what has been stated and shown already regarding clothes,

Celestial things are unclothed, but not so spiritual and natural ones, 297.

'Clothes' are truths, which are of a lower nature when they are compared with what they cover, 1073, 2576.

'Changing one's garments' was representative of the need to put on holy truths, and therefore 'changes of garments' had the same meaning, 4545.

'Rending one's clothes' was representative of mourning on account of the loss of truth, 4763.

What is meant by someone entering who was not wearing a wedding garment, 2132.