3542. 'And on the smooth of his neck' means so that truth which disjoined was not apparent. This is clear from 'smooth' or 'the smooth' having reference to truth, dealt with in 3527, and from the meaning of 'the neck' as that which joins together, dealt with below. Here therefore, since the appearance was 'on the smooth of his neck' it means so that truth which disjoins was not apparent. The implications of all this may be seen from what has been stated and shown above in 3539, to the effect that the good and the truths which flow from the understanding but not at the same time from the will are neither good nor truths, no matter how much they seem to be so to outward appearance. And if the will is bent on evil, good and truths are disjoined and do not join together. But if the will is in some measure desirous of good, they do not in that case disjoin but join together, even though the order in which they stand is the reverse of proper order; for it is by means of such good and truths that a person is regenerated. And because such good and truths standing thus serve first in the regeneration of man it is said that truth which disjoined would not be apparent. But more of this in what follows below.

[2] The reason why 'the neck' means that which joins together is that higher things with man which belong to the head communicate with lower that belong to the body by means of the neck between. Consequently both influx and communication, and therefore conjunction, are meant by that which lies between. This will be seen far more clearly from the correspondences of the Grand Man with the parts of the human body, to be dealt with at the ends of chapters. The same is consequently meant in the Word by 'the neck', as in Isaiah,

His spirit, like an overflowing stream, will divide even at the neck. Isaiah 30:28.

Here 'an overflowing stream' stands for falsity flowing over in this fashion. 'Dividing at the neck' stands for blocking and cutting off the communication and consequent joining together of higher things with lower ones, which are blocked and cut off when spiritual good and truth are not being received.

[3] In Habakkuk,

You crushed the head from the house of the wicked, laying bare the foundation even at the neck. Habakkuk 3:13.

'Crushing the head from the house of the wicked' stands for destroying false assumptions. 'Laying bare the foundation even at the neck' stands for preventing thereby any joining together. In Jeremiah,

Entangled transgressions have risen up above my neck. He has struck at my strength; the Lord has given me into [their] hands; I am unable to rise up again. Lamentations 1:14.

'Entangled transgressions have risen up above my neck' stands for falsities coming up towards interior or rational things.

[4] Because 'the neck' meant that communication and joining together, 'bands around the neck' therefore meant the cutting off and so the destruction of truth, which occurs when spiritual things that are flowing in constantly from the Lord are no longer allowed to pass into the rational part of a person's mind, nor as a consequence into the natural part. It is this cutting off or destruction that is represented by Jeremiah's being told to make bands and bars for himself and put them on his neck; to send them to different peoples and say that they would be serving Nebuchadnezzar the king of Babel; and to say that those who did not place their necks under his yoke would be visited by sword, famine, and pestilence; but those who did bring their necks under it would be left in the land, Jeremiah 27:2-3, 8, 11. 'Placing the neck under the yoke of the king of Babel and serving him' stands for being made desolate as regards truth and vastated as regards good. For 'Babel' means one who lays waste, see 1327 (end); and people undergo vastation to prevent holy things from being profaned, 301-303, 1327, 1328, 2426, 3398, 3399, 3402. And since evil and falsity come to be served once the influx of good and truth has been cut off, 'placing the neck under the yoke' also means serving. In the same prophet,

Jehovah said, I will break the yoke of Nebuchadnezzar king of Babel from over the neck of all nations within two years. Jeremiah 28:11.

This stands for their being delivered from vastation. In Isaiah,

Shake yourself from the dust, arise, sit, O Jerusalem; loose the bonds from your neck, O captive daughter of Zion. Isaiah 52:2.

'Loosing the bonds from the neck' stands for letting in and receiving good and truth In Micah,

Behold, against this family I am devising this evil from which you will not remove your necks nor go erect, for that will be a time of evil. Micah 2:3.

'Not removing necks from evil' stands for not letting truth in. 'Not going erect' stands for not looking up to higher things, that is, to those of heaven, 248.

4433. 'And he took her, and lay with her, and ravished her' means that there was no other way in which it could be joined to the affection for truth meant by the sons of Jacob, her brothers. This is clear from the meaning of 'taking her, lying with her, and ravishing her' as being joined together, though not in the rightful way, which is through betrothal. But the meaning these words carry, that there was no other way in which they could be joined together, cannot be seen by anyone unless he knows the fuller implications of them. Interior truth received from the Ancients, which is meant by 'Shechem the son of Hamor the Hivite', is the truth which among the Ancients had served the internal dimension of the Church, and so had been the internal dimension of their statutes, judgements, and laws, in short of their religious observances and the like. Those truths were their matters of doctrine on which they based their lives, which were in fact matters of doctrine concerning charity; for in ancient times those who belonged to the genuine Church had no other kind of doctrine. These same truths may be called, in relation to doctrine, the interior truths of faith, but in relation to life, goods. If a Church was to be established among the nation descended from Jacob it was necessary for them to be introduced into those truths and goods. For unless internal things are present within external ones, that is, unless people have internal things in mind when involved with external ones - and unless at the same time they feel an affection for internal things or at least unless they feel an affection for external things on account of internal ones, nothing of the Church is there. Internal things constitute the Church, for the Lord is present within these; that is to say, spiritual and celestial things originating in Him are present within them.

[2] But the nation descended from Jacob, that is, the Israelitish and Jewish nation, was unable to be introduced in the rightful way which is through betrothal, for the reason that their external worship did not correspond [to anything internal]. For they received from their fore-fathers - from Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob - the worship established by Eber, which was different externally from the worship of the Ancient Church, see 1238, 1241, 1343, 2180. And because that worship was different, interior truths which existed among the Ancients were not able to be joined to it in the rightful way through betrothal, only in the way described in this chapter. This enables one to understand what is involved in the assertion that there was no other way in which it could be joined to the affection for truth meant by 'the sons of Jacob, Dinah's brothers'.

[3] But although a joining together could have been effected in this way, in accordance with the law, also known to the Ancients, which is set out in Exodus 22:16; Deuteronomy 22:28-29, the character of that nation was nevertheless such that it would by no means allow any joining of interior truth received from the Ancients to the external forms of worship that existed among the descendants of Jacob, 4281, 4290, 4293, 4307, 4314, 4316, 4317. Among that nation therefore no Church could be established, but instead merely that which was a representative of the Church, see 4281, 4288, 4307. The character of that nation, which was such that it was not only unable to receive interior truths but also completely annihilated them among themselves, is represented in this chapter by the sons of Jacob answering Shechem and Hamor deceitfully, verse 13; and after that by Simeon and Levi's smiting the city with the edge of the sword and killing Shechem and Hamor, verses 25-26; and by the rest of the sons coming upon the slain and plundering the city, and taking away the flocks, the herds, and whatever there was in the city, in the field, and in the houses, verses 27-29. This shows what is meant by the prophetical utterances of Jacob, who by then was Israel,

Simeon and Levi are brothers; instruments of violence are their swords. Into their secret place let my soul not come; in their congregation let not my glory be united; for in their anger they killed a man, and in their pleasure they hamstrung an ox. Cursed be their anger, for it is fierce, and their fury, for it is severe. I will divide them in Jacob, and will scatter them in Israel. Genesis 49:5-7.