9297. 'Three times in the year all your males shall be seen at the face of the Lord Jehovah' means the Lord's constant appearance and presence in like manner in the truths of faith as well. This is clear from the meaning of 'three times in the year' as complete and continuous, dealt with in 4495, 9198; from the meaning of 'being seen' as appearance and presence, dealt with in 4198, 5975, 6893; from the meaning of 'males' as the truth of faith, dealt with in 2046, 7838; and from the meaning of 'face', when attributed to Jehovah or the Lord, as the Divine Good of Divine Love, which is Mercy, dealt with in 222, 223, 5585, 7599. And since the Divine Good of Divine Love is Jehovah or the Lord Himself, 'being seen at the face of the Lord Jehovah' has the same meaning as being seen by the Lord. The Lord is indeed One who sees a person and establishes His presence with him, enabling the person to see Him; thus no one sees the Lord from himself but from the Lord present with him.

[2] How to understand the Lord's constant appearance and presence in the truths of faith as well must be stated briefly. The Lord's presence with a person is in the good residing with him, since good composes his life but not truth except in the measure that it derives from good. Consequently, as stated above in 9296, the Lord's dwelling-place is in the good of innocence with a person. When therefore a person has been regenerated the Lord is present not only in the good residing with him but also in the truths deriving from the good; for the truths now receive their life from the good and are the outward form in which good exists and through which the essential nature of the good can be recognized. These truths are what constitute the person's new understanding, which makes one with his new will. For as stated already, all things have connection with truth and with good, and a person's understanding is dedicated to truths, but his will to good, from which the truths derive. From this it is evident how to understand the Lord's appearance and presence then in the truths of faith as well. These are the things that are meant by the requirement that three times in the year every male was to be seen at the face of the Lord Jehovah. The reason why it says 'males shall be seen' is that the truth of faith is meant by 'a male'; and the reason why it says 'at the face of the Lord Jehovah' is that 'Jehovah' means the Divine Being (Esse), and 'the Lord' the Divine Coming-into-Being (Existere) that arises from that Being. Consequently being (esse) on the human level is good, and coming-into-being (existere) that arises from it is truth.

[3] In the Church it is said that faith comes from the Lord; but it should be recognized that faith which is rooted in charity comes from the Lord, not faith separated from charity. Faith separated from charity springs from the self and is called faith that is no more than persuasion, which is dealt with under Teachings About Charity and Faith in the preliminary section of the next chapter. A person can know whether his faith comes from the Lord or from the self, for the faith of anyone who is influenced by truths solely for the sake of a reputation for being learned, which will bring him position and wealth, and not for the sake of leading a good and useful life, is no more than persuasion that comes from the self and not from the Lord.

[4] There are also theoretical truths of faith and there are practical ones. The person who considers theoretical truths for the sake of practical ones and sees how the theoretical fit in with the practical, the person who therefore sees how the two combine to result in a good and useful life and feels an affection for them both with this end in view, he has the faith that comes from the Lord. The reason for this is that the useful life, which is his end in view, consists in the good that resides with him; and it is that life which gives form to all things, the truths of faith being the means. It is transparently evident from those in the next life that this is so. All without exception there are restored to the state of good which was theirs or to the state of evil which was theirs, thus to what had moved them to serve a useful life, that is, to what had been their end in view, or what they had loved above all things and what had therefore been the actual delight of their life. Everyone is restored to this. The truths or the falsities that have made one with that service remain. In addition to these many more are acquired which combine with those truths or falsities, giving the usefulness greater solidity and definite shape. So it is that spirits and angels are the outward forms of whatever use they serve. Evil spirits are forms of evil use; these are in hell. Good spirits or angels are forms of good use; these are in heaven. This also explains why the moment they are present spirits can be recognized for what they are. Their truths of faith can be recognized from their face and from the beautiful way it is shaped. Their actual good, or their usefulness, can also be recognized from the fire of love in their face which enhances its beauty, as well as from the sphere emanating from them. From all this it is again made clear what the Lord's presence in the truths of faith is.

6426. 'From there is the shepherd, the stone of Israel' means that from this springs all the goodness and truth which the spiritual kingdom possesses. This is clear from the meaning of 'the shepherd' as one who leads to the good of charity by means of the truth of faith, dealt with in 343, 3795, 6044 (here in the highest sense, since it has reference to the Lord, goodness and truth themselves are meant); from the meaning of 'the stone' as truth, dealt with in 1298, 3720, 3769, 3771, 3773, 3789, 3798; and from the representation of 'Israel' as the spiritual Church, dealt with in 3305, 4286, for 'Israel' is spiritual good or the good of truth, 4286, 4598, 5801, 5803, 5806, 5812, 5817, 5819, 5826, 5833. And since the good of truth is the essential element of the spiritual Church, 'Israel' means the spiritual Church, and in the highest sense the Lord's spiritual kingdom. From all this it is evident that 'from there is the shepherd, the stone of Israel' means that from this springs all the goodness and truth which the Lord's spiritual kingdom possesses.

[2] The reason why in the highest sense 'the stone of Israel' means the Lord with respect to the truth that His spiritual kingdom possesses is that in general 'the stone' means the temple, and specifically the foundation on which it stands. 'The temple' in turn means the Lord's Divine Human, as is clear in John 2:19, 21, and so does its 'foundation' in Matthew 21:42, 44, and in Isaiah 28:16. This meaning of 'the stone' in the highest sense - the Lord in respect to Divine Truth which His spiritual kingdom possesses - is evident in David,

The stone which the builders rejected has become the head of the corner. This has been done by Jehovah; it is marvellous in our eyes. Psalms 118:22-23.

'The stone' here is the Lord, as is made clear in Luke,

It is written, The stone which the builders rejected has become the head of the corner. Whoever falls onto that stone will be broken to pieces; but on whomever it falls, it will grind him to powder. Luke 20:17-18.

These things are spoken by the Lord regarding Himself. In Isaiah,

He is your fear, and He is your dread; for He will be a sanctuary, though He will be a stone to strike against and a rock to stumble over ¹ for both houses of Israel. Many among them will trip, and fall, and be broken to pieces. Isaiah 8:13-15.

Here the Lord is referred to. In the same prophet,

The Lord Jehovih said, Behold I [am He who] will lay in Zion a stone for a foundation, a tested stone, a precious corner-stone, surely founded. He who believes will not be hasty. Isaiah 28:16.

In Zechariah,

Jehovah Zebaoth will visit His flock, the house of Judah, and will place them as His glorious horse ² in battle. From Him comes the corner-stone, from Him the tent-peg, from Him the battle-bow. Zechariah 10:3-4.

[3] In Daniel,

You were watching, until a stone was cut out, not by means of hands, and it struck the statue on its feet, which were iron and clay, and smashed them to pieces. The stone that struck the statue became a great rock and filled the whole earth. The God of heaven will cause a kingdom to arise that will never be destroyed, and His kingdom will not be left to other people; it will crush and consume all those kingdoms, but will itself stand for ever. Inasmuch as you saw that the stone was cut out of the rock, not by means of hands, and it smashed the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver, and the gold . . . Daniel 2:34-35, 44-45.

Here 'the stone' is used in the highest sense to mean the Lord, and in the relative sense to mean His spiritual kingdom. When it says that 'the stone was cut out of the rock' the meaning is that it came out of the truth of faith, for the truth of faith is meant in the Word by 'rock'. And because the truth of faith is meant by 'the stone' and 'the rock', the Lord's spiritual kingdom is also what is meant, since the truth of faith and good ensuing from this truth prevail in that kingdom. Something similar is also meant by 'the stone' on which Jacob slept and which he afterwards set up as a pillar, described as follows,

Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, Surely Jehovah is in this place and I did not know it. And he was afraid and said, How awesome is this place! This is nothing other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven. And in the morning Jacob rose up early, and took the stone which he had placed as his headrest, and placed it as a pillar and poured oil on the top of it. He said, This stone which I have placed as a pillar will be God's house. Genesis 28:16-18, 22.

The fact that by 'the stone' the ancients understood the Lord in the highest sense and His spiritual kingdom in the relative sense is also plain to see in Joshua,

Joshua erected the stone under the oak which was in Jehovah's sanctuary. And Joshua said to all the people, Behold, this stone will be a witness to us, for it has heard all the sayings of Jehovah which He spoke to us. And it shall be a witness against you, lest you deny your God. Joshua 24:26, 17.

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