4874. And she said, Thy signet. That this signifies a token of consent, is evident from the signification of a “signet,” as being a token of consent. That a “signet” is a token of consent, is because in ancient times decrees were confirmed by a signet, and therefore by a signet is properly signified confirmation itself and testification that it is so. Tamar’s asking for his signet, kerchief, and staff, as a pledge that a kid of the goats would be sent, which afterwards she did not accept, involves a mystery which without the internal sense cannot possibly be known. The mystery is this: as a kid of the goats signified the genuine conjugial, consequently what is internal-for everything genuine is at the same time internal-and as there was not this on the part of Judah, Tamar therefore did not accept a kid of the goats, as appears from what follows; but instead of it took an external with which the internal of the church, signified by “Tamar,” might be conjoined. The external of the church is signified by the signet, kerchief, and staff; by the “signet” consent itself, by the “kerchief” external truth, and by the “staff” the power of this truth; moreover, these things are pledges of the conjunction of the external or natural man.

[2] The conjunction of internal truth with the external or with the religiosity of the Jewish nation, is represented by the conjunction of Tamar with Judah as a daughter-in-law with her father-in-law under the pretext of the duty of a husband’s brother; and the conjunction of the religiosity of the Jewish nation with the internal of the church is represented by the conjunction of Judah with Tamar as with a harlot. Moreover, the conjunctions are precisely of this nature; but their quality cannot be so well explained to the apprehension. To angels and good spirits, however, their quality is very manifest, for it is presented to them in the light of heaven, in which the arcana of the Word lie open as in clear day-quite otherwise than as in the light of the world, which exists with man. In brief: the representatives instituted with the posterity of Jacob were not precisely like those in the Ancient Church; but were for the most part like those in the church instituted by Heber, which was called the Hebrew Church. In this church were many new kinds of worship, such as burnt-offerings, sacrifices, and other things, which were unknown in the Ancient Church; but the internal of the church was not conjoined with these representatives in the same way as with those of the Ancient Church. But the way in which the internal of the church was conjoined with the representatives among the Jewish nation, and the converse, is described in the internal sense by the conjunction of Tamar with Judah as a daughter-in-law with her father-in-law under the pretext of the duty of a husband’s brother; and by the conjunction of Judah with Tamar as with a harlot. In regard to the Hebrew Church see above (n. 1238, 1241, 1327, 1343, 3031, 4516, 4517); and in regard to the sacrifices in this church not existing in the Ancient (see n. 923, 1128, 1343, 2180, 2818).

1238. That by “Eber” is signified a nation also, whose father was Eber, one who was called by this name, is to be understood in this way. Those mentioned hitherto were the nations among whom the Ancient Church existed, and were all called sons of Shem, of Ham, of Japheth, and of Canaan, because by Shem, Ham, Japheth, and Canaan are signified the various worships of the church. Noah, Shem, Ham, Japheth, and Canaan never existed as men; but because the Ancient Church specifically, and in general every church, is such that it is true internal, corrupt internal, true external, and corrupt external, therefore the above-mentioned names were given in order that all the differences in general might be referred to them and their sons, as to their heads. Moreover the nations here named originally had such worship; and therefore are called the sons of one of the sons of Noah. And for the same reason also, such worships themselves are signified by the names of these nations in the Word.

[2] This first Ancient Church, signified by Noah and his sons, was not confined to a few, but extended over many kingdoms, as is evident from the nations mentioned, namely, Assyria, Mesopotamia, Syria, Ethiopia, Arabia, Lybia, Egypt, Philistia as far as Tyre and Sidon, and the whole land of Canaan, on this side and beyond Jordan. But afterwards in Syria a kind of external worship began, which from thence spread itself widely around, over many countries, especially over Canaan, and which was different from the worship of the Ancient Church. And as something of a church thus arose that was separate from the Ancient Church, there sprang up thence as it were a new church, which may therefore be called the Second Ancient Church. The first institutor of this was Eber, and therefore this church is called after Eber. At that time, as has been said before, all were distinguished into households, families, and nations. Each nation acknowledged one father, from whom also it was named, as is seen in various places in the Word. Thus the nation which acknowledged Eber as its father was called the Hebrew nation.