9338. 'And inherit the land' means when governed by good, thus when regenerated. This is clear from the meaning of 'inheriting' as receiving as an heir, dealt with below; and from the meaning of 'the land', at this point the land of Canaan, as the Lord's kingdom, thus heaven, dealt with in 1413, 1437, 1607, 1866, 3038, 3481, 3705, 3686, 4240, 4447, so that 'inheriting the land' means receiving heaven as an heir to it. The proper way to understand the word 'heir', when used in reference to heaven, is a person who has life from the Lord, 2658, 2851, 3672, 7212, thus who is governed by good received from the Lord, who therefore has been regenerated. The fact that a person is in heaven, and so has been regenerated, when he is governed by good received from the Lord, see 9274 and the places referred to there.

[2] The fact that 'inheriting' has this meaning, when used in reference to heaven, is evident in Matthew,

Then the King will say to those who are at His right hand, Come, O blessed of My Father, possess as an inheritance the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; for I was hungry and you gave Me food, I was thirsty and you gave Me drink. Insofar as you did it to one of the least of these My brothers you did it to Me. Matthew 25:34-35, 40.

'Possessing as an inheritance the Lord's kingdom (or heaven)' is said here in regard to those governed by good; and the actual forms of the good of charity in their proper order are also enumerated. Finally it is said, 'Insofar as you did it to one of the least of these My brothers you did it to Me'. People are called the Lord's brothers if they are governed by good, 6756, thus also if they practise good; for good is the Lord present with a person. And this is why it says, 'Insofar as you did it to one of [the least of] these My brothers' (not simply 'brothers').

[3] In Revelation,

He who overcomes will receive all things by inheritance, and I will be his God and he will be My son. Revelation 21:7.

It says here of those who overcome that they will receive all things by inheritance; and because they are heirs they are called 'sons'. 'Overcoming' means using good and truth to fight with, for evil is overcome by means of good, and falsity by means of truth.

[4] In David,

God will save Zion and will build the cities of Judah; and they will dwell there and possess it by inheritance; and the seed of His servants will inherit it, and those loving His name will dwell in it. Psalms 69:35-36.

Here 'possessing by inheritance' has regard to those governed by celestial good, and 'inheriting' to those governed by spiritual good. Celestial good is the good of love to the Lord, and spiritual good is the good of charity towards the neighbour, 9277. In Isaiah,

He who trusts in Me will inherit the land, and will possess by inheritance My holy mountain. Isaiah 57:13.

[5] From all this it is evident what was meant by the division of the land of Canaan into twelve inheritances for the twelve tribes of Israel, in Chapters 14-19 of Joshua, and in Chapter 47:13-end and Chapter 48 of Ezekiel. For 'the land of Canaan' meant the Lord's kingdom, or heaven, 1413, 1437, 1607, 1866, 3038, 3481, 3686, 3705, 4240, 4447, and 'the twelve tribes' meant all forms of good and all truths in general and in particular, 3858, 3862, 3926, 3939, 4060, 6335, 6337, 6397, 6640. 'Twelve inheritances' accordingly meant heaven with all its heavens and communities, which divide off one from the next on the basis of forms of the good of love and consequently of truths of faith, 7836, 7891, 7996, so that in the abstract sense [without reference to persons] those inheritances mean forms of good themselves which originate in the Lord and therefore are the Lord in heaven.

[6] For heaven is nothing other than Divine Truth emanating from the Lord's Divine Good. The angels there are recipients of truth in good; and in the measure that they receive it they constitute heaven. Also - and this is an arcanum - the Lord dwells with an angel, and similarly with man, only in that which is His own with the angel or man; for the Divine must dwell in what is of God, not in what is of the self with anyone. This is meant by the Lord's words regarding His union with those governed by the good of love, in John,

On that day you will know that I am in the Father, and you in Me, and I in you. He who loves Me keeps My word, and We will come to him and make Our home with him. John 14:20, 23.

And elsewhere in the same gospel,

The glory which You have given Me I have given to them that they may be one even as We are one, that the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them. John 17:22, 26.

5536. 'You have bereaved me [of my children]' means that thus no Church existed any longer. This is clear from the representation of Jacob, the one who says this about himself, as the good of truth, dealt with in 3659, 3669, 3677, 3775, 4234, 4273, 4538 (and as the good of truth is represented, so also is the Church because good is the essential element of the Church. It therefore amounts to the same whether you say the good of truth or the Church, for the person who has the good of truth present with him has the Church present with him. 'Jacob' represents the Church, see 4286, 4520, and that being so his sons represent the truths known to the Church, 5403, 5419, 5427, 5458, 5512); and from the meaning of 'bereaving' as depriving the Church of its truths and forms of good, such as those here which are represented by Joseph, Benjamin, and Simeon, to whom reference is made directly after the words 'you have bereaved me'.

[2] 'Bereaving' is depriving the Church of its truths for the reason that the Church is likened to a marriage. Good is likened to the husband and truth to the wife, while the truths born from that marriage are likened to 'the sons' and the forms of good to 'the daughters', and so on. When therefore a state of bereavement or an action causing this is mentioned, the meaning is that the Church has been deprived of its truths and as a consequence ceases to be a Church. The expressions 'bereft' and 'bereavement' are also used in various other places in the Word, as in

Ezekiel,

I will send famine and evil wild animals upon you, and I will make you bereft. Ezekiel 5:17.

In the same prophet,

When I cause evil wild animals to pass through the land and they leave it bereft so that it becomes a desolation, with the result that no one passes through on account of the wild animals. Ezekiel 14:15.

In Leviticus,

I will send into you the wild animals of the field, which will leave you bereft and will cut off your beasts, ¹ and make you few in number, so that your roads are laid waste. Leviticus 26:22.

[3] In these quotations 'famine' stands for an absence of cognitions of good and truth and the consequent desolation, 'evil wild animals' for falsities derived from evils, and 'the land' for the Church. 'Sending famine and evil wild animals, and leaving the land bereft' stands for destroying the Church by means of falsities derived from evils and so depriving it completely of truths. In Jeremiah,

I will winnow them with a winnowing-fork in the gates of the land; I will bereave, I will destroy My people. Jeremiah 15:7.

Here also 'bereaving' stands for depriving of truths. In the same prophet,

Give their children over to the famine, and cause them to be wiped out by the power of the sword, ² so that their wives become bereaved [of children] and widows. Jeremiah 18:11.

'So that their wives become bereaved and widows' stands for their being left without truths or good.

[4] In Hosea,

As for the Ephraimites, their glory will fly away like a bird, away from birth, and from the belly, and from conception. Even if they bring up their sons, I will make them bereft of human beings. Hosea 9:11-12.

Here the meaning is similar. In Ezekiel,

I will cause human beings to walk upon you, even My people; and those human beings will by inheritance take possession of you and you will be an inheritance to them; no more will you bereave them [of their children]. Thus said the Lord Jehovih, Because they say to you, You have been one devouring human beings and one bereaving your peoples [of children]. Ezekiel 36:12-13.

Here also 'bereaving' stands for depriving of truths.

[5] In Isaiah,

Now hear this, you lover of pleasures, sitting securely, saying in her ³ heart, I am, and there is no one else like me; a widow I shall not sit, nor shall I know bereavement [of children]. But these two things will come to you in a moment in one day-bereavement and widowhood. Isaiah 47:8-9.

This refers to the daughter of Babel and to Chaldea, that is, to those who are outwardly holy but inwardly unholy and who call themselves the Church by virtue of that outward holiness. 'Bereavement and widowhood' stands for a deprivation of truth and good. In the same prophet,

Lift up your eyes round about, and see; they all gather together, they come to you. The children of your bereavements will say again in your ears, The place is too narrow for me; yield me a place to dwell in. But you will say in your heart, Who has begotten these for me, when yet I am bereft [of children] and alone, an exile and one who has been displaced? Who therefore has brought these up? I was left, alone. These, where were they? Isaiah 49:18, 20-21.

This refers to Zion, which is the celestial Church, and to its fruitfulness after it had been laid waste. 'The sons of bereavements' stands for the truths of which it was deprived when laid waste, but which were restored and underwent enormous increase.

Бележки под линия: