9392. Verses 6-8 And Moses took half of the blood and put it in bowls, and half of the blood he sprinkled over 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 has spoken we will do and hear. And Moses took the blood, and sprinkled it over the people, and said, Behold, the blood of the covenant which Jehovah has made with you according to all these words. 'And Moses took half of the blood' means Divine Truth which has become a matter of life and of worship.

'And put it in bowls' means present with a person, in the things forming his memory. 'And half of the blood he sprinkled over the altar' means Divine Truth from the Lord's Divine Human. 'And he took the book of the covenant' means the Word in the letter to which the Word in heaven was joined. 'And read it in the ears of the people' means to be listened to and obeyed. 'And they said, All that Jehovah has spoken we will do and hear' means receiving the truth that emanates from the Lord's Divine Human, and obeying it with heart and soul. 'And Moses took the blood, and sprinkled it over the people' means making a person well-adapted to receive it. 'And said, Behold, the blood of the covenant' means that by means of this truth the Lord's Divine Human is joined to heaven and to earth. 'Which Jehovah has made with you according to all these words' means that the Lord accomplishes the joining together by means of every single part of the Word.

4217. 'And Laban went and resumed to his place' means the end of the representation by means of Laban. This is clear from the meaning of 'returning to his place' as going back to a previous state - for 'place' means state, see 2625, 2837, 3356, 3387, 3404 - and therefore the words used here mean the end of the representation by means of Laban. All that has been shown makes it clear that every single part of the Word has an interior content, which is of such a nature that it is suited to the perception of the angels present with man. For example, when the word 'bread' is used in the Word the angels do not call to mind material bread but spiritual bread, and so instead of bread perceive the Lord who, as He Himself teaches in John 6:33, 35, is the Bread of life. And because they perceive the Lord they perceive the things which derive from Him, and therefore His love towards the whole human race. In so doing they perceive at the same time man's reciprocal love to the Lord, for these two kinds of love are knit together within one idea occupying their thought and affection.

[2] Not unlike this are the thoughts of the person who has a holy mind, when he receives the bread in the Holy Supper; for at that time he does not think of the bread but of the Lord and His mercy, and of the things which constitute love to Him and charity towards the neighbour, because he is thinking about repentance and amendment of life. Yet the way people think about these things varies according to the degree of holiness present not only in their thought but also in their affection. From this it is evident that when 'bread' is mentioned in the Word no idea of bread presents itself to angels but the idea of love and of countless things connected with love. It is similar when wine is referred to in the Word and also received in the Holy Supper. In this case angels do not think at all of wine but of charity towards the neighbour. This being so, and since man in this way is linked to heaven and through heaven to the Lord, bread and wine have been made the symbols and unite a person who leads a holy life to heaven, and through heaven to the Lord.

[3] The same applies to every detail within the Word, and therefore the Word is the means by which man is united to the Lord. If that uniting means did not exist heaven would not be able to flow in with man - for without a means no uniting together would be possible - but would remove itself from him. And if heaven were removed it would no longer be possible for anyone to be led to that which is good, not even to physical and worldly good. Instead all restraints, including external ones, would be abolished. For the Lord governs the person in whom good dwells by means of internal restraints, which are those of conscience, whereas the person in whom evil dwells is governed solely by external restraints. If these were abolished everybody governed solely by external restraints would become insane in the way a person is insane who has no fear of the law, no fear for his life, nor any fear of losing position and gain, and so of reputation - for these are the external bonds - and so the human race would perish. This explains why the Word exists, and the true nature of the Word. The Lord's Church where the Word exists is like the heart and the lungs, and the Lord's Church where it does not exist is like all the other internal organs which get their life from the heart and lungs - see 637, 931, 2054, 2853.