1964. When Hagar bare Ishmael to Abram. That this signifies when the life of the affection of memory-knowledges brought forth the rational, is evident from the signification of “Hagar” as being the life of the affection of memory-knowledges; and from the signification of “Ishmael,” as being the rational first conceived, treated of above. As in this chapter the subject treated of is man’s rational, and as there is described the quality of the rational when constituted solely of truths, and also when of goods and of truths derived from goods, be it known that the rational cannot possibly be conceived and born, that is, formed, apart from knowledges [scientifica et cognitiones] but these knowledges must have use as their end, and when they have use, they have life as their end, for all life belongs to uses, because it belongs to ends, and therefore unless knowledges are learned for the sake of a life of uses, they are of no moment, because of no use.

[2] From these knowledges alone, without a life of use, the rational becomes as here described, resembling a wild-ass, morose, pugnacious, and characterized by a parched and dry life, from a kind of love of truth that is defiled with the love of self. But when these knowledges have use as their end, they receive life from uses, yet life of such a quality as is that of the uses. They who learn knowledges in order that they may be perfected in the faith of love-for true and real faith is love to the Lord and toward the neighbor-are in the use of all uses, and receive spiritual and celestial life from the Lord; and when they are in this life, they have a capacity to perceive all things of the Lord’s kingdom. In this life are all angels; and because they are in this life they are in intelligence itself and wisdom itself.

575. That by the days of man being a hundred and twenty years is signified that he ought to have remains of faith, appears from what has been said in the foregoing chapter (Genesis 5:3-4), concerning “days” and “years” signifying times and states; and also from the circumstance of the most ancient people from numbers variously compounded signifying states and changes of states in the church; but the nature of their ecclesiastical computation is now totally lost. Here in like manner numbers of years are mentioned, whose signification it is impossible for anyone to understand, unless he be first acquainted with the hidden meaning of each particular number from “one” to “twelve” and so on. It plainly appears that they contain within them something else that is secret, for that men were to live a “hundred and twenty years” has no connection with the preceding part of the verse, nor did they live one hundred and twenty years, as is evident from the people after the flood (chapter 11), where it is said of Shem that “he lived after he begat Arphaxad five hundred years;” and that Arphaxad lived after be begat Selah “four hundred and three years;” and that Selah lived after he begat Eber “four hundred and three years;” and that Eber lived after he begat Peleg “four hundred and thirty years;” and that Noah lived after the flood “three hundred and fifty years” (Genesis 9:28), and so on. But what is involved in the number “one hundred and twenty” appears only from the meaning of “ten” and “twelve” which being multiplied together make one hundred and twenty, and from the signification of these component numbers it may be seen that “one hundred and twenty” signifies the remains of faith. The number “ten” in the Word, as also “tenths” signify and represent remains, which are preserved by the Lord in the internal man, and which are holy, because they are of the Lord alone; and the number “twelve” signifies faith, or all things relating to faith in one complex; the number therefore that is compounded of these, signifies the remains of faith.