8081. 'And it shall be when your son asks you' means perception springing from truth that belongs to conscience. This is clear from the meaning of 'asking' as knowledge gained by perception, dealt with in 5597, 5800, 6250; and from the meaning of 'son' as truth, dealt with in 489, 491, 533, 1147, 2623, 3373. The fact that perception springing from truth that belongs to conscience is meant is evident from the explanation in 7935, where similar words occur. The expression 'springing from truth that belongs to conscience' is used because the conscience of members of the spiritual Church is a conscience composed of truth; for it is acquired from the things taught by the Church which are believed to be truths, whether they are in fact truths or not. But they become matters of conscience when they also become matters of life.

5800. 'My lord questioned his servants, saying' means perception of their thought. This is clear from the meaning of 'questioning' as perceiving another's thought, dealt with in 5597. The reason 'questioning' has this meaning is that in the spiritual world or heaven no one needs to ask another what he thinks about the kinds of things for which he - that other person - has an affection, because in that world one person can perceive the thought that flows from another's affection. Furthermore the internal represented by 'Joseph' does not question the external, which 'Jacob's sons' represent, since the external receives its entire existence from the internal. From this too it is evident that 'questioning' means the perception of their thought. Also, the Word refers in various places to Jehovah questioning a person, when in fact He knows every single thought in that person. But such references are made to Him because people cannot help believing that their thoughts, being inside them, cannot be known to anyone. This appearance and consequent belief explain why questioning takes place.