436. From this it can now be seen what the three tribes first named, "Judah, Reuben, and Gad," signify in particular, as also what the three signify in the complex; for the names of persons and places in the Word signify things, not only each by itself signifying its own thing, but in the complex they signify the thing in series. The thing in series that is signified by these three names, "Judah, Reuben, and Gad," is that all who are in love to the Lord, and from that in truths, and through truths in the good of life, are in the inmost or third heaven; for such have the three degrees of life opened; the inmost degree is where love to the Lord has its seat, the middle degree is where truths from that good have their seat, and the ultimate degree is where the good of life has its seat. In every man there are three degrees of life; in those who are in the third heaven the inmost degree is open, for this is opened immediately from the Lord with those who are in love to Him, for through love there is conjunction and thus reception; because of this they are in all truths, which they see in themselves, and by means of these they are in the good of life. (That there are three degrees of life in every angel may be seen in the work on Heaven and Hell 33, 34; that the third degree is opened with those who are in the third heaven, n. 208, 209; what the quality of the angels of the third heaven is, n. 24-26, 267, 270, 271.)

271. Such are the angels of the third heaven because they are in love to the Lord, and that love opens the interiors of the mind to the third degree, and is a receptacle of all things of wisdom. It must be understood also that the angels of the inmost heaven are still being continually perfected in wisdom, and this differently from the angels of the outmost heaven. The angels of the inmost heaven do not store up Divine truths in the memory and thus make out of them a kind of science; but as soon as they hear them they perceive them and apply them to the life. For this reason Divine truths are as permanent with them as if they were inscribed on them, for what is committed in such a way to the life is contained in it. But it is not so with the angels of the outmost heaven. These first store up Divine truths in the memory and stow them away with their knowledge, and draw them out therefrom to perfect their understanding by them, and will them and apply them to the life, but with no interior perception whether they are truths; and in consequence they are in comparative obscurity. It is a notable fact that the angels of the third heaven are perfected in wisdom by hearing and not by seeing. What they hear from preachings does not enter into their memory, but enters directly into their perception and will, and comes to be a matter of life; but what they see with their eyes enters into their memory, and they reason and talk about it; which shows that with them the way of hearing is the way of wisdom. This, too, is from correspondence, for the ear corresponds to obedience, and obedience belongs to the life; while the eye corresponds to intelligence, and intelligence is a matter of doctrine. ¹ The state of these angels is described in different parts of the Word, as in Jeremiah:

I will put My law in their mind, and write it on their heart. They shall teach no more everyone his friend and everyone his brother, saying, Know ye Jehovah; for they shall all know Me, from the least of them even unto the greatest of them (Jeremiah 31:33, 34).

And in Matthew,

Let your speech be Yea, yea, Nay, nay; what is more than these is from evil (Matthew 5:37).

"What is more than these is from evil" because it is not from the Lord; and inasmuch as the angels of the third heaven are in love to the Lord the truths that are in them are from the Lord. In that heaven love to the Lord is willing and doing Divine truth, for Divine truth is the Lord in heaven.

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