3256. And Isaac and Ishmael his sons buried him. That this signifies that the representation of the Lord is now taken up by Isaac and Ishmael, can be seen from the signification of “burying.” (That being “buried” denotes to be resuscitated and to rise again, was shown above, n. 2916.) As the representation of the Lord by Abraham is here treated of, as regards this state having come to an end, and that now the representation by Isaac and Ishmael begins, therefore by “burying” in this case is signified the resuscitation of this state; for the significations are determined in accordance with their application to the things of which they are predicated. The case with the representatives in the Word is that they are continuous, although they appear as if interrupted by the deaths of those who represent; their deaths however do not signify any interruption, but a continuation; and therefore their burials signify that the representative is resuscitated and continued in someone else.

1854. Thou shalt be buried in a good old age. That this signifies the enjoyment of all goods by those who are the Lord’s, is evident from the fact that those who die and are buried do not die, but pass from an obscure life into a clear one. For the death of the body is merely the continuation and also the perfection of the life, and they who are the Lord’s then first come into the enjoyment of all goods, which enjoyment is signified by “a good old age.” The expressions that they “died,” were “buried,” and were “gathered to their fathers,” are often met with, but in the internal sense these do not signify the same as in the sense of the letter. In the internal sense are such things as are of the life after death and are eternal; but in the sense of the letter are such as are of the life in the world and belong to time.

[2] Consequently they who are in the internal sense (as the angels are) when such expressions are met with never abide in ideas of death and burial, but in such as relate to the continuance of life, for they regard death as nothing but the putting off of those things which are of grossest nature and of time, and as being a continuation of the real life; in fact they do not know what death is, for they think nothing about it. And the like is the case with the ages of man, so that when it is here said “in a good old age,” the angels have no perception at all of old age, indeed they do not know what old age is, for they are constantly verging toward the life of early manhood and of youth. Such life, and consequently the celestial and spiritual things of it, are what are meant when “a good old age” and similar expressions occur in the Word.