8423. 'And it shall be double to what they shall gather day by day' means that they are to be joined together. This is clear from the meaning of 'being double' as being joined together, the reason why being joined together is meant by 'double' being that 'two' means conjunction, dealt with in 1686, 3519, 5194; from the meaning of 'gathering' as receiving, as above in 8418; and from the meaning of 'day by day', or every single day, as continually, as also above in 8418. The reason why 'two' means conjunction is that there are two realities to which everything that exists is related. Those two are goodness and truth, or what amounts to the same thing, love and faith since intrinsically good is love and truth is faith. Therefore also a person has two entities composing his life, namely will and understanding. A person's will has been fashioned to receive goodness or love, and his understanding to receive truth or faith. When the two are joined together it is called a marriage. For the two joined together resemble married partners, loving each other, conceiving and giving birth; and their offspring are called the fruit. From all these considerations one may now see why 'two' or 'double' means conjunction, for unless those two realities have been joined together nothing is ever born or produced. Let it be said in addition that those considerations prove plainly that faith without love or charity cannot produce any fruit; rather, fruit must be the product of both joined together.

5194. 'And it happened at the end of two years of days' means after the state when the joining together took place, that is to say, when the powers of the senses belonging to the exterior natural and those belonging to the interior natural were joined together, both of which powers are dealt with in the previous chapter. This is clear from the meaning of 'two years of days', that is, a period of two years, as a state involving a joining together; for 'two' means a joining together, 1686, 3519, while 'years' means states, as does 'days'. For the meaning of years' as states, see 487, 488, 493, 893, and for that of 'days', 27, 487, 488, 497, 2788, 3462, 3785, 4850. The reason 'two' means a joining together is that every single thing in the spiritual world, and consequently in the natural world, has two forces associated with it - goodness and truth. Good is an active inflowing force, truth a passive, recipient one. Also, because everything has these two forces associated with it, and because nothing can ever be brought forth unless the two are made one by becoming so to speak married to each other, a joining together is therefore meant by them.

[2] This type of marriage exists in every single thing within the natural order and its three kingdoms; without it nothing whatever can come into existence. For anything to come into existence within the natural order there needs to be heat and light, heat in the natural world corresponding to the good of love in the spiritual world, and light corresponding to the truth of faith. These two - heat and light - must act as one if anything is to be brought forth. If they do not act as one, as is the case in winter-time, nothing at all is brought forth. The same holds true on a spiritual level, as is quite evident with the human being, who has two mental powers - will and understanding. The will has been formed so that it may receive spiritual heat, that is, the good of love and charity, while the understanding has been formed so that it may receive spiritual light, that is, the truth of faith. Unless these two residing with a person make one nothing is brought forth, for the good of love devoid of the truth of faith cannot give definition and particular character to anything, while the truth of faith devoid of the good of love cannot bring anything into effect. So that the heavenly marriage may exist in a person therefore, or rather so that a person may be in the heavenly marriage, those two entities must make one in him. This explains why the ancients likened every single thing in the world, and every single thing within the human being, to a marriage, 54, 55, 568, 718, 747, 917, 1432, 2173, 2516, 2731, 2739, 2758, 3132, 4434, 4875, 5138. From all this one may see why it is that 'two' means a joining together.