9132. 'He shall be sold for his theft' means alienation. This is clear from the meaning of 'being sold' as alienation, dealt with in 4752, 4758, 5886, at this point the alienation of the good or truth that has been taken away, and of which nothing remains, 9131; and from the meaning of 'for his theft' as making amends and undertaking restoration with some other good or truth in place of that which has been taken away, meant by 'making repayment', 9130. For the thief was sold in order that repayment might be made for the theft.

What this verse implies is that when a person can see that good or truth with him is being taken away by falsity arising from evil he is guilty of the violence done to them, since he knows full well what he is doing. For when a person knows full well what he is doing his deeds spring from his will and at the same time from his understanding, and so from his entire person since a person is a person by virtue of both those powers of mind. And a deed springing from both springs from falsity that arises out of evil - from falsity because it springs from the understanding, and from evil because it springs from the will. This is what makes the person guilty.

A person makes that his own which comes from his understanding and at the same time from his will, see 9009, 9069, 9071.

A person becomes guilty if he does not use his power of understanding to restrain evil in his will when he sees it, 9075.

9075. 'And also its owner shall die' means damnation of the internal man. This is clear from the meaning of 'the owner of the ox' as the internal man, dealt with above in 9069; and from the meaning of 'dying' as damnation, also dealt with above, in 9008. The reason why an ox was to be stoned and its owner to die if he knew that the ox was accustomed to gore, yet did not keep it in, lies with the spiritual meaning of this judgement or law, which is this: A person who is aware of an evil in himself and does not restrain it is guilty; for he approves it and in so doing snuffs out the light of truth, and along with it he crushes the seed of a belief in the truth the moment it is implanted. And when this has been snuffed out good from the Lord is not received. As a result the internal man cannot be opened and consequently endowed with spiritual life, which is the life of the truth and good of faith. When this is a person's state he leads a natural life, which is that of the external man. But this life without spiritual life is dead, the result of which is damnation, 7494.