2093. Whom Sarah shall bear unto thee. That this signifies the Divine truth conjoined with the Divine good, from which it will come forth, is evident from the representation of “Sarah,” as being the Divine truth (spoken of before, n. 2063, 2081); and from the representation of “Abraham,” as being the Divine good (treated of, n. 2063, and in several other places).

[2] How the Lord’s first rational was conceived and born, has been stated in the foregoing chapter, where “Ishmael” is treated of, by whom that rational was represented. But here, and also in the following chapter, that rational is treated of which was made Divine by the Lord, and this by the conjunction, as by marriage, of the Divine good with the Divine truth. The first rational cannot be conceived otherwise than by the influx of the internal man into the affection of memory-knowledges in the external man; nor can it be born otherwise than from the affection of memory-knowledges, which was represented by Hagar, Sarah’s handmaid (as shown in the preceding chapter, n. 1896, 1902, 1910, etc.).

[3] But the second or Divine rational is not conceived and born in this way, but by means of the conjunction of the truth of the internal man with the good of the same, and the influx thence derived. With the Lord this was effected of His own proper power from the Divine itself, that is, from Jehovah. As has been repeatedly stated above, His internal man was Jehovah; and the good itself that was represented by Abraham belonged to His internal man, as also did the truth itself that was represented by Sarah, and therefore both were Divine. From this source therefore was the Lord’s Divine rational conceived and born; and in fact from the influx of the good into the truth, and thus by means of the truth; for the chief characteristic of the rational is truth (as before said, n. 2072). On this account it is here said, “whom Sarah shall bear unto thee,” which signifies Divine truth conjoined with Good, from which that Divine rational will come forth; and above (at verse 17) it was said that Sarah was a “daughter of ninety years,” which signifies that the truth conjoined with good shall do this.

[4] With every man whatever because he has been created in the likeness and image of God, the like, but not the equal of this takes place, that is to say, his first rational is also conceived and born by means of the influx of his internal man into the life of the affection of memory-knowledges in his external man; but his second rational, from the influx of the good and truth from the Lord through his internal man. This second rational he receives from the Lord when he is being regenerated, for he then perceives in his rational what the good and the truth of faith are. In man the internal man is above his rational, and is the Lord’s (see n. 1889, 1940).

1889. In this chapter it is the same with the names Abram, Sarai, Hagar, and Ishmael; and what they involve may be seen from the CONTENTS, and further on from the explication of each name in its place. But these matters are of a nature that does not admit of easy explication, for the subject treated of in connection with these names is the Lord’s rational, and how it was conceived and born, and what its quality was before it was united to the Lord’s Internal, which was Jehovah. The reason why this subject is not of easy explication, is that at this day it is not known what the internal man is, what the interior, and what the exterior. When the rational is spoken of, or the rational man, some idea can be formed of it; but when it is said that the rational is the intermediate between the internal and the external, few if any comprehend it. Yet as the subject here treated of in the internal sense is the Lord’s Rational Man, and how it was conceived and born by the influx of the internal man into the external, and as it is these very matters that are involved in the historical facts stated concerning Abram, Hagar, and Ishmael, therefore in order to prevent what we have to say in the following explication from being utterly unintelligible, be it known that in every man there is an internal man, a rational man which is intermediate, and an external man, and that these are most distinct from one another. (Concerning this subject see what was said above, n. 978.)