5703. 'And they took their seats in front of him' means that they were ranged in order, as determined by his presence. This is clear from the meaning of 'taking one's seat' here as being ranged in order, for they were placed in order by Joseph, as is evident from what immediately follows - they were astonished that the firstborn took his seat according to his birthright, while the youngest took his according to his youth; and from the meaning of 'in front of him' as determined by his presence.

[2] The truth of the matter is that in the highest sense 'Joseph' represents the Lord, 'the sons of Israel' the forms of good and the truths in the natural. When the Lord is present His very presence arranges everything into order. The Lord is order itself, and therefore wherever He is present order exists, and wherever order exists He is present. That order is described in what follows next, the aim of that order being to see that truths are properly arranged beneath good.

1053. That 'and the bow will be in the cloud' means the state of that man is clear from what has been stated and shown already about the bow in the cloud, that is to say, in the next life a person or soul is known among angels from his sphere; and as often as it pleases the Lord that sphere is represented by means of colours like those of the rainbow, variously according to each person's state as to faith in the Lord and thus respectively as to goods and truths of faith. In the next life colours present themselves to view, which on account of their brilliance and splendour are immensely superior in beauty to colours seen with the eyes on earth. Each colour represents something celestial or spiritual.

[2] Those colours derive from the light in heaven, and from the variegation of spiritual light, as stated above. Indeed angels live in light so bright that the light of the world is in comparison no light at all. The light of heaven in which angels live, compared with the light of the world, is as the light of the sun at midday to the light of a candle that is put out and ceases to give any light at all when the sun rises. In heaven there is celestial light and there is spiritual light. Let me compare the two by saying that celestial light is as the light of the sun, while spiritual light is as the light of the moon. But all manner of variation exists depending on the state of the angel receiving the light. The same applies to colours since they are a product of the light. In the heaven of celestial angels the Lord Himself is the Sun, and in the heaven of spiritual angels the Moon. To people who have no conception of the life which souls lead after death these matters are unbelievable. They are nevertheless completely true.