572. That they should kill the third part of men, signifies of depriving themselves of all understanding of truth, and thus of spiritual life. This is evident from the signification of "to kill," as being to deprive of spiritual life (See above, n. 547); and from the signification of "men," as being the understanding of truth (See also above, n. 546, 547); "the third part," in reference to truths, means all (See above, n. 506); so here "to kill the third part of men" signifies the deprivation of all understanding of truth. It means to deprive themselves, because those who become sensual through evils of life and falsities of doctrine deprive ¹ themselves, by reasonings from fallacies, of the understanding of truth, but not others, except such as are sensual. They thus deprive themselves of spiritual life, because man has spiritual life through his understanding, for he becomes a spiritual man in the measure in which his understanding is opened and permits itself to be enlightened by means of truths. But it is by means of truths from good that the understanding is opened, not by means of truths without good; for man thinks truth so far as he lives in the good of love and charity. Truth indeed is the form of good, and all good with man is of his will, and all truth is of his understanding; therefore the good of the will presents its form in the understanding, and the form itself is thought from the understanding which is from the will.

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5806. 'And he alone is left to his mother' means that this is the only truth the Church possesses. This is clear from the representation of Benjamin, to whom 'the only one left' refers here, as new truth, dealt with just above in 5804; and from the meaning of 'mother' as the Church, dealt with in 289, 2691, 2717, 5581. With regard to the fact that this truth - represented here by 'Benjamin', and described above in 5804 - is the only truth the Church possesses, the situation is this: Such truth is truth springing from spiritual good, which is 'Israel'; and it is what 'Benjamin' represents when he is with his father, whereas truth even more interior is represented by him when he is with Joseph. The truth which Benjamin represents when he is with his father and which is called new truth is the only truth that enables a person to be a Church, for this new truth or those truths [spoken of in 5804] hold life received from good within them. That is, the person with whom the truths of faith exist rooted in good is a Church, not so the person with whom the truths of faith but no good of charity exist. With the latter person the truths are dead, even though they may have been the same truths. From all this one may see what the situation is with regard to the fact that this truth is the only truth the Church possesses.