4550. 'And they gave to Jacob all the gods of the foreigner which were in their hand' means that [natural good] did, as far as possible, cast aside all falsities. This is clear from the meaning of 'the gods of the foreigner' as falsities, dealt with in 4544, and from the meaning of 'which were in their hand' as, as far as possible. For 'the hand' means power, 878, 3387, and therefore 'that which is in one's hand' means within one's power, or as far as possible. 'They gave them to Jacob' means that good cast aside those falsities, for in this chapter 'Jacob' represents the good of the natural, 4538.

4544. 'Remove the gods of the foreigner which are in the midst of you' means that falsities were to be cast aside. This is clear from the meaning of 'removing' as casting aside, and from the meaning of 'the gods of the foreigner' as falsities; for in the Word 'gods' means truths and in the contrary sense falsities, 4402. Those people were called 'foreigners' who were outside the Church and therefore those who were subject to falsities and evils, 2049, 2115; and this explains why 'the gods of the foreigner' means falsities.