6806. 'And God knew them' means that He endowed it with charity. This is clear from the meaning of 'knowing' - when used in reference to God, that is, to the Lord - as endowing with charity. For charity is what joins the Lord and man together and what causes the Lord to be present with him and consequently know him. The Lord, it is true, knows all people everywhere; but He knows none in the way a father does his children except those who are governed by the good of love and charity.

[2] This explains why the Lord says of those who are governed by good, whom He calls His own sheep,

I am the good Shepherd; and I know those who are My own, and am known by those who are My own. My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. John 10:14, 27.

But the Lord says of those who are governed by evil that He does not know them in Matthew,

Many will say to Me on that day, Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy by Your name, and by Your name cast out demons, and do many mighty works in Your name? But then I will declare to them, ! do not know you; depart from Me, you workers of iniquity. Matthew 7:22-23.

In the same gospel,

At length the remaining virgins came also, saying, Lord, Lord, open to us. But He replying said, Truly, I say to you, I do not know you. Matthew 25:11-12.

In Luke,

Once the Householder has risen up and shut the door, then you will begin to stand outside and to knock at the door, saying, Lord, Lord, open to us. But He replying will say to you, ! do not know where you come from. Then you will begin to say, We ate in Your presence and we drank; and You taught in our streets. But He will say, I tell you, I do not know where you come from; depart from Me, all you workers of iniquity! Luke 13:25-27.

[3] From this it is evident that the expression 'being known', when used by the Lord, means being governed by the good of charity, that is, being endowed with that good; for the good of charity comes entirely from the Lord. And the expression 'not being known' means being governed by evil. 'Knowing' implies being joined together; and how far a person is said to be known by the Lord depends on how far he has become joined to Him. The Lord does also know those who have not become joined, indeed He knows the tiniest details of every individual person, John 2:24-25; but because those people are governed by evil they experience a different kind of presence, which is more like absence. This does not mean that the Lord is absent; rather, the person or the spirit governed by evil is the one who is absent, and that absence is what the Lord's not knowing them describes. Something comparable to this occurs among angels and spirits whose states of life are like one another's; they appear to be near one another and so they know one another. But those whose states of life are not alike appear to be distant from one another and for that reason do not know one another either. In short similarity of state causes people in the next life to be visibly present and to be known, while dissimilarity of state causes them to be absent to the sight and not to be known.