9293. 'And My face shall not be seen empty-handed' means the reception of good out of mercy, and thanksgiving. This is clear from the meaning of 'Jehovah's face' as good, mercy, and peace, dealt with in 222, 223, 5585, 7599; and from the meaning of 'not being seen empty-handed', or not coming without a gift, as bearing witness because good has been received, and thanksgiving. For gifts which were offered to Jehovah meant the kinds of things that are offered to the Lord by a person from the heart and are accepted by the Lord. The situation with those gifts is as it is with all a person's deeds. A person's deeds are merely acts performed by the body, and when regarded in isolation from his will are no more than variously regulated, so to speak articulated movements, not unlike the movements of a machine, and so are lifeless. But deeds regarded together with the will are not like those movements. Rather they are outward expressions of the will displayed before the eyes, for deeds are nothing other than witness-bearers to such things as compose the will. They also derive their soul or life from the will. Therefore something similar may be said of deeds as of movements, namely that nothing in deeds has life apart from the will, just as nothing in movements has life apart from endeavour. Mankind also knows this to be so, for someone endowed with intelligence pays no attention to a person's deeds, only to his will, the source, the means, and the reason for the deeds. Indeed someone endowed with wisdom scarcely notices the deeds but rather sees in the deeds what his will is like and how great it is. The same applies to gifts, in that in them the Lord looks on the will. So it is that by 'gifts' offered to Jehovah, that is, to the Lord, such things as are present in the will or the heart are meant, 'the heart' being what the Word calls a person's will. From all this it is also evident how to understand the teaching in Matthew 16:27 that everyone will receive judgement in the next life according to his deeds or works, namely that he will receive it according to what is in his heart and consequently his life.

[2] It is evident from the Word that such things are meant by 'gifts offered to Jehovah', as in David,

Sacrifice and gift You have not desired; burnt offering and sin-sacrifice You have not sought. I have delighted to do Your will, O My God. Psalms 40:6, 8.

In Moses,

Jehovah your God, He is God of gods, and Lord of lords, who shows no partiality ¹ and does not accept a gift. ² Deuteronomy 10:17.

And in Matthew,

If you offer your gift on the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, you shall leave the gift there before the altar, and go away. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift. Matthew 5:23-24.

From this it is evident that gifts offered to the Lord served to bear witness to things offered from the heart, which are those of faith and charity. 'Being reconciled to a brother' means charity towards the neighbour.

[3] In the same gospel,

Wise men from the east came, and they offered gifts to the new-born Lord - gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Matthew 2:1, 11.

'Gold, frankincense, and myrrh' means all forms of the good of love and faith offered to the Lord, 'gold' being forms of the good of love, 'frankincense' forms of the good of faith, and 'myrrh' forms of both in external things. The reason why 'wise men from the east' offered them was that among some in the east there remained from ancient times the knowledge and wisdom of the people of old, which consisted in their understanding and seeing heavenly and Divine realities within things in the world and on earth. For it was well known to the ancients that all things had a correspondence and were representative, and therefore had a spiritual meaning, as is also evident from the gentiles' oldest books and their monuments. This was how they knew that gold, frankincense, and myrrh meant the forms of good that should be offered to God. They knew also from their prophecies, which were those of the Ancient Church and which have been spoken of in 2686, that the Lord would come into the world, at which time a star would appear to them, about which also Balaam, who likewise was one of 'the sons of the east', prophesied, Numbers 24:17 - see 3762. 'A star' furthermore means cognitions or knowledge of internal goodness and truth, which come from the Lord, 2495, 2849, 4697.

[4] In David,

The kings of Tarshish and of the islands will bring a gift, the kings of Sheba and Seba will bring a present; and all kings will bow down [to Him], and all nations will serve Him. Psalms 72:10-11.

These things were said in reference to the Lord. 'Bringing a gift' and 'bringing a present' mean the good of love and faith. For 'Tarshish' means doctrinal teachings about love and faith, 1156; 'Sheba and Seba' cognitions or knowledge of goodness and truth, 1171, 3240; 'kings' the Church's truths, 1672, 2015, 2069, 3009, 4581, 4966, 5044, 5068, 6148; and 'nations' the Church's forms of good, 1159, 1258-1260, 1416, 1849, 4574, 6005, 8771; from all of which meanings it is evident what 'all kings will bow down and all nations serve' is used to mean.

[5] In Isaiah,

They will announce My glory among the nations. At that time they will bring all your brothers from all nations as a gift to Jehovah, on horses, and in chariots, and in covered wagons, and on mules, and on fast runners, ³ to My holy mountain, Jerusalem, even as the children of Israel bring their gift in a clean vessel to the house of Jehovah. Isaiah 66:19-20.

A person unacquainted with the internal sense of the Word may think that these things were said of the Jews who were to be brought in such a manner to Jerusalem by gentile nations. But forms of the good of love to and faith in the Lord are what those prophetic words describe and what 'a gift' is used to mean. 'Horses', 'chariots', 'covered wagons', 'mules', and 'fast runners' on or in which they were to be brought mean intellectual concepts, doctrinal teachings, and factual knowledge of truth and good, as is evident from the meaning of these carriers - for example, from that of 'horses', 2760-2762, 3217, 5321, 6125, 6401, 6534, 8029, 8146, 8148; from the meaning of 'chariots', 5321, 5945, 8146, 8148, 8215; and from the meaning of 'mules', 2781.

[6] In Malachi,

He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver, and He will purify the sons of Levi and purge them like gold, and like silver, in order that they may bring to Jehovah a gift in righteousness. Then the gift of Judah and Jerusalem will be acceptable to Jehovah, as in the days of old, and as in former years. Malachi 3:3-4.

Since 'a gift offered to Jehovah' means the good of love and faith, it speaks here of their 'bringing to Jehovah a gift in righteousness' and of a gift 'acceptable to Jehovah'. 'Purifying the sons of Levi and purging them like gold and silver' means purifying goodness and truth from evils and falsities, 'the sons of Levi' being those who have faith and charity, thus who belong to the spiritual Church, 3875, 4497, 4502, 4503, and 'Judah' being the good of celestial love, thus those with whom that good exists, 3654, 3881.

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2761. That 'a white horse' means an understanding of the Word as regards its interior contents, or what amounts to the same, as regards the internal sense of the Word is clear from the meaning of 'a horse' as the understanding part of the mind. In prophetical parts of the Word 'a horse' and 'a rider' are referred to many times, but up to now nobody has known that 'a horse' means the understanding part of the mind, and 'a rider' one who has intelligence, as in the prophecy of Jacob, who by then was Israel, concerning Dan,

Dan will be a serpent on the road, a darting serpent on the path, biting the horse's heels; and its rider will fall backwards. I am awaiting Your salvation, O Jehovah. Genesis 49:17-18.

'A serpent' means one who reasons about Divine arcana on the basis of sensory evidence and factual knowledge, see 195. 'Road' and 'path' mean truth, 627, 2333, 'heel' means the lowest part of the natural, 259, 'horse' an understanding of the Word, and 'rider' one who teaches. From this it is evident what these prophetical words mean, namely that one who reasons about the truths of faith on the basis of sensory evidence and factual knowledge is interested solely in the lowest things belonging to the natural world and so believes nothing, which is 'falling backwards'. And this is why the words 'I am awaiting Your salvation, O Jehovah' are added.

[2] In Habakkuk,

O God, You ride on Your horses, Your chariots are salvation. You made Your horses to tread in the sea. Habakkuk 3:8, 15.

Here 'horses' stands for Divine Truths that are in the Word, 'chariots' for doctrine drawn from them, 'the sea' for cognitions, 28, 2120. And since these belong to an understanding of the Word from God, it is said, 'You made Your horses to tread in the sea'. Here, as in the quotation above from the Book of Revelation, horses are attributed to God, but this attribution would not be possible if they did not have such a meaning.

[3] In David,

Sing to God, sing praises to His name; exalt Him who rides on the clouds by His name lain. Psalms 68:4.

'Riding on the clouds' stands for an understanding of the Word as regards its interior contents or internal sense; for 'clouds' means the Word in the letter which has the internal sense within it - see the Preface to Genesis 18, where the meaning of 'the Lord's coming in the clouds of heaven with power and glory' is explained.

[4] In the same author,

Jehovah bowed the heavens and came down; and thick darkness was under His feet, and He rode on a cherub. Psalms 18:9-10.

'Thick darkness' here stands for clouds, 'riding on a cherub' for the Lord's providence preventing man's entering of himself into the mysteries of faith that are in the Word, 308. In Zechariah,

On that day there will be on the horse-bells, Holiness to Jehovah. Zechariah 14:20. 'The horse-bells' stands for an understanding of the spiritual things of the Word, which are holy.

[5] In Jeremiah,

There will enter through the gates of this city kings and princes seated on the throne of David, riding in chariots and on horses, they and their princes, the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem. And this city will be inhabited for ever. Jeremiah 17:25-26; 22:4.

'The city of Jerusalem' stands for the Lord's spiritual kingdom and Church. 'Kings' stands for truths, 1672, 2015, 2069, 'princes' for the first and foremost commandments of truth, 1482, 2089, 'David' for the Lord, 1888, 'men of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem' for those in whom there exists good that flows from love, charity, and faith, 2268, 2451, 2712. Thus 'riding in chariots and on horses' stands for being furnished with the doctrine of truth received from an internal understanding of the Word.

[6] In Isaiah, Then will you take delight in Jehovah and I will cause you to ride over the high places of the earth and cause you to eat the heritage of Jacob. Isaiah 58:14.

'Riding over the high places of the earth' stands for intelligence. In David,

A love song. Gird your sword on your thigh, O mighty one, [gird on] your glory and majesty. And in your majesty go on, ride on the word of truth, and of the meekness of righteousness. And your right hand will teach you marvellous things. Psalms 45:1, 3-4.

'Riding on the word of truth' stands plainly for intelligence based on truth, 'on the word of the meekness of righteousness' for wisdom based on good.

[7] In Zechariah,

On that day, said Jehovah, I will strike every horse with panic, and its rider with madness. And on the house of Judah I will open My eyes, and every horse of the peoples I will strike with blindness. Zechariah 12:4.

Here also 'horse' plainly stands for the understanding which was to be 'stricken with panic and blindness', and 'rider' for him with intelligence who was to be 'stricken with madness'. In Hosea,

Take away all iniquity and accept that which is good, and we will render the praises ¹ of our lips. Asshur will not save us, we will not ride on horses, and we will no more say Our God' to the work of our hands. Hosea 14:2-3.

'Asshur' stands for reasoning, 119, 1186, 'horse' for self-intelligence. 'Horse' and 'rider' are referred to in very many other places besides these.

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