9392. Verses 6-8. And Moses took half of the blood, and put it into basins; and half of the blood he sprinkled on the altar. And he took the book of the covenant, and read it in the ears of the people; and they said, All that Jehovah hath spoken we will do and hear. And Moses took the blood, and sprinkled it on the people, and said, Behold the blood of the covenant that Jehovah hath made with you upon all these words. “And Moses took half of the blood,” signifies Divine truth that has been made of the life and of worship; “and put it into basins,” signifies with man in the things of his memory; “and half of the blood he sprinkled on the altar,” signifies Divine truth from the Divine Human of the Lord; “and he took the book of the covenant,” signifies the Word in the letter with which the Word in heaven has been conjoined; “and read it in the ears of the people,” signifies for hearkening and obedience; “and they said, All things that Jehovah hath spoken we will do and hear,” signifies the reception of the truth that proceeds from the Divine Human of the Lord, and obedience from the heart and soul; “and Moses took the blood, and sprinkled it on the people,” signifies adaptation to the reception of man; “and said, Behold the blood of the covenant,” signifies thereby the conjunction of the Lord in respect to the Divine Human with heaven and with earth; “that Jehovah hath made with you upon all these words,” signifies that there is conjunction with the Lord through each and all things of the Word.

1238. That by “Eber” is signified a nation also, whose father was Eber, one who was called by this name, is to be understood in this way. Those mentioned hitherto were the nations among whom the Ancient Church existed, and were all called sons of Shem, of Ham, of Japheth, and of Canaan, because by Shem, Ham, Japheth, and Canaan are signified the various worships of the church. Noah, Shem, Ham, Japheth, and Canaan never existed as men; but because the Ancient Church specifically, and in general every church, is such that it is true internal, corrupt internal, true external, and corrupt external, therefore the above-mentioned names were given in order that all the differences in general might be referred to them and their sons, as to their heads. Moreover the nations here named originally had such worship; and therefore are called the sons of one of the sons of Noah. And for the same reason also, such worships themselves are signified by the names of these nations in the Word.

[2] This first Ancient Church, signified by Noah and his sons, was not confined to a few, but extended over many kingdoms, as is evident from the nations mentioned, namely, Assyria, Mesopotamia, Syria, Ethiopia, Arabia, Lybia, Egypt, Philistia as far as Tyre and Sidon, and the whole land of Canaan, on this side and beyond Jordan. But afterwards in Syria a kind of external worship began, which from thence spread itself widely around, over many countries, especially over Canaan, and which was different from the worship of the Ancient Church. And as something of a church thus arose that was separate from the Ancient Church, there sprang up thence as it were a new church, which may therefore be called the Second Ancient Church. The first institutor of this was Eber, and therefore this church is called after Eber. At that time, as has been said before, all were distinguished into households, families, and nations. Each nation acknowledged one father, from whom also it was named, as is seen in various places in the Word. Thus the nation which acknowledged Eber as its father was called the Hebrew nation.