6025. The further explication of these words will be omitted, because they are mere names. What they signify may be seen from the general explication given just above (n. 6024). And what the sons of Jacob themselves signify may be seen in the explication where their birth is treated of. This is worthy of note: that no son was born to the sons of Jacob in Egypt, whither they came, although they were still young; but their sons were all born in the land of Canaan, while they themselves were born in Paddan-aram, except Benjamin. This was of the Lord’s special Divine providence, in order that the things of the church might be represented by them from their very birth. The sons of Jacob being born in Paddan-aram represented that the man of the church must be born anew or regenerated by means of the knowledges of good and truth; for “Paddan-aram” signifies the knowledges of good and truth (n. 3664, 3680, 4107), and their birth represented the new birth through faith and charity (n. 4668, 5160, 5598), thus at first through the knowledges of these. But that their sons were all born in the land of Canaan represented that from thence are such things as are of the church, for the “land of Canaan” denotes the church (n. 3686, 3705, 4447, 4454, 4516, 5136, 5757). But that to Joseph were born sons in Egypt, was in order that there might be represented the dominion of the internal man in the external, especially the dominion of the celestial spiritual in the natural, “Manasseh” being the will, and “Ephraim” the intellectual, of the church, in the natural.

4454. And Shechem said unto her father and unto her brothers. That this signifies a consultation of the truth from the ancient Divine stock with the good and truth of this religiosity, is evident from the signification of “saying,” as here being to consult; from the representation of Shechem, as being truth from the ancient Divine stock (see above, n. 4447); from the signification of “father,” who here is Jacob, as being the good of truth (n. 4273, 4337); and from the signification of “brothers,” who here are the sons of Jacob, as being truths, of which above. That “Shechem” is truth from the ancient Divine stock is evident from what was adduced above (see n. 4447); for Hamor the Hivite, together with his nation and family, were remains in the land of Canaan of the Most Ancient Church, which was celestial. More than all the churches in the whole world was this church from the Divine, for it was in the good of love to the Lord. Their voluntary and their intellectual made a one, thus one mind, for which reason they had from good a perception of truth, for the Lord flowed in by an internal way into the good of their will, and through this into the good of their understanding, or into their truth; and this is the reason why this church was preeminently called “Man” (n. 477-479), and also a “likeness of God” (n. 51, 473, 1013). Hence it is evident why Hamor and Shechem are said to be from the ancient Divine stock (see also n. 4399). That the Most Ancient Church which was called “Man,” or by the Hebrew word “Adam,” was in the land of Canaan (as stated above, n. 4447), is very evident from their descendants called “Nephilim” (Genesis 6:4), who were said in Numbers 13:33 to have been in the land of Canaan (see n. 581). But at that time all that land was called the “land of Canaan” which extended from the river of Egypt to the Euphrates (Genesis 15:18).