4385. 'And Esau said, Let me now place with you some of the people who are with me' means that some truths supplied by the truth of good might be joined. This is clear from the meaning of 'placing with you' as joining together, and from the meaning of 'the people who are with me' as some truths supplied by the truth of good 'The people' means truths, see 1259, 1260, 2928, 3295, 3581; and therefore 'the people who are with me' means truths of good. What truths of good are has been stated a number of times already. They are those truths which proceed from good and which the good flowing in by way of the internal man into the external holds within itself. As regards those truths being meant by the four hundred men that Esau had with him, see above in 4341. At this point therefore some of those truths are meant since the expression 'some of the people who are with me' is used.

1007. 'At the hand of man' means from his entire will, and 'at the hand of brother man' from his entire understanding. This is clear from the meaning of 'man' (homo), for the essential element and life of a person is his will - indeed the character of the will determines that of the person; and from the meaning of 'brother man' (vir), for where the understanding resides in man it is called 'brother man', as shown already in 367. Whether the understanding residing there is true, spurious, or false, it is still called 'brother man'. In fact the understanding is called 'a man' (vir), 158, 265, and 'the brother' of the will, 367. The reason why a defiled will and a defiled understanding are here called 'a man' (homo) and 'brother man' (vir) is that the subject here is profanation, the mere mention and consequent representation of which is not tolerated in heaven but instantly rejected with disgust. This is why such mild expressions are employed here. The sense of the words of the verse can be taken two different ways so to speak, so as to prevent those in heaven knowing that this verse contains such matters.