10491. 'And the sons of Levi did according to the word of Moses' means put into effect by those in possession of truths springing from good. This is clear from the representation of 'the sons of Levi' as those in possession of truths springing from good, and in the abstract sense, without reference to persons, as truths springing from good, dealt with above in 10485; and from the meaning of 'doing according to the word of Moses' as putting into effect.

In ordinary life, we tend to think of "peace" as essentially "a lack of conflict." As a nation, if we're not at war, it's a time of peace. On a spiritual level, though, peace is something much more powerful, and much more active. Rather than looking at it as the "lack of conflict," in fact, you could look at it as "the active effect of non-conflict," a force drawing things together and unifying them. Ultimately, of course, that force is the Lord Himself, and the unity formed by His perfect love and His perfect wisdom. We feel it when we allow ourselves to be drawn to Him, described in the works of Swedenborg this way: "peace in the heavens is the divine nature intimately affecting everything good there with blessedness." We also feel it when what we want in our hearts is aligned with what we know to be right -- a state we achieve ever more fully as we move toward the Lord and toward heaven. These things are meant when the Bible talks about peace: the one-ness of purpose in the Lord, and the harmony we experience when our desires align with His loves and our thoughts align with His wisdom.