3164. 'And the servant brought out vessels of silver and vessels of gold, and garments' means truth and good, and the adornment of these. This is clear from the meaning in the internal sense of 'vessels of silver, vessels of gold, and garments' - 'silver' meaning truth, see 1551, 2048, and 'gold' good, 113, 1551, 1552. The words 'vessels of silver and vessels of gold' are used because they have reference to the affection for truth, meant here by 'Rebekah'. Indeed regarded in itself truth is nothing else than a vessel or recipient of good, 1496, 1832, 1900, 2063, 2261, 2269, 3068. Specifically, by 'vessels of silver' facts are meant since facts are the recipients of truth, and by 'vessels of gold' truths are meant because truths are the recipients of good. But as for 'garments' meaning adornment, this may be seen without explanation.

[2] In ancient times such things used to be given to a virgin at her betrothal. They were given to her because of the representation and the meaningful sign which denoted that 'a betrothed virgin' corresponded to the truth of the Church that was to be joined to good. This also is how the Ancient Church in its earliest days is described in Ezekiel,

When it was the time for falling in love, I clothed you with embroidered cloth, swathed you in fine linen, and covered you with silk, and I adorned you with ornaments, and put bracelets on your hands and a chain on your neck, and I put a jewel on your nose, and earrings on your ears, and a beautiful crown on your head. Thus were you adorned with gold and silver, and your garments were fine linen, and silk, and embroidered cloth. Ezekiel 16:8-13.

And when the same Church had departed from truth and good it is described in that chapter as follows,

You took some of your garments and made for yourself gaily-decked high places. And for your adornment you took vessels made of My gold and of My silver, which I had given you, and you made for yourselves figures of the male. And you took your embroidered garments and covered them. Ezekiel 16:16-18.

From these places it is quite evident that 'silver, gold, and garments' means nothing else than things that are the Church's, that is to say, truth and good, and things that belong to truth and good.

1496. 'I might have taken her to be my wife (mulier)' means that this being so He could have done violence to the truth that was to be joined to what is celestial. This becomes clear from what has just been stated as well as from what was stated above at verse 13. As to truth being joined to that which is celestial, the situation is that regarded in itself truth learned in childhood is nothing else than a vessel adapted for that which is celestial to be introduced into it. By itself truth has no life except from the celestial flowing in. The celestial consists in love and charity, and all truth exists from these; and because all truth exists from these it is nothing else than a kind of vessel. What is more, truths themselves are plainly manifested as such in the next life, for there it is not the truths themselves that are seen but the life they have within them, that is, the celestial things within them that consist of love and charity. It is from these that truths are made celestial and are called celestial truths. From this it may now become clear what intellectual truth is, and also that intellectual truth opened a way to celestial things residing with the Lord. Factual truth is one thing, rational truth another, and intellectual truth yet another. They follow on consecutively. Factual truth is a matter of knowledge; rational truth is factual truth confirmed by reason; while intellectual truth is joined to an internal perception that the thing is so. This kind of truth resided with the Lord in childhood, and with Him opened the way to celestial things.