3688. 'The sister of Nebaioth, as a wife in addition to the wives he had' means an affection for celestial truth more internally. This is clear from the meaning of 'a sister' as intellectual or rational truth, dealt with in 1495, 2508, 2524, 2556, 3386; from the representation of 'Nebaioth' as the good that constitutes the spiritual Church, dealt with in 3268 - therefore 'the sister of Nebaioth' means the affection for celestial truth, or what amounts to the same, the affection for spiritual good; from the meaning of 'wives' or the daughters of Heth as affections for truth from a non-genuine source, dealt with in 3470, 3620-3622, 3686, and from the meaning of 'taking a wife' as being brought into association or joined together. From all these meanings it is evident that these words, together with those that come immediately before them, mean the joining together of the good represented by 'Esau' with truth from a Divine source, thus with the affection for celestial truth more internally.

[2] The actuality of these matters is indeed as stated already, yet they are of such a nature that they can hardly be understood at all as long as the most general features of the subject remain unknown. Furthermore they are the kind of things in which the world of today does not have any interest, for it is earthly things, not heavenly ones, in which it is interested, for the reason, as people even say, that they see and know earthly things, but they do not see or know the heavenly. Now because what is contained in the internal sense of the Word has to be not merely disclosed but also explained, let an example be taken to show what the expressions the truth of good, which 'Esau' represents, and the good of truth, which 'Jacob' represents, are used to mean. At the same time the example will clarify the point that until a person has been regenerated the good of truth in relation to the truth of good exists inversely, but after he has been regenerated they are joined together. This example will accordingly illustrate the matters stated so far.

[3] Take as our example the kind of person who can be regenerated; for the Lord foresees that he can be, and because He foresees it He also makes provision for it. At the outset while a young child he does not yet know what the works of charity towards the neighbour are, for he does not yet know what charity is or what the neighbour is. Consequently because he knows from the Word that one ought to give to the poor and that anyone who does so has his reward in heaven he helps beggars more than all others for he believes that these are the poor who are meant in the Word. He does not take into account the fact that the kind of people who beg on the streets for the most part lead godless and even criminal lives, despise everything associated with Divine worship, and surrender themselves completely to laziness and inactivity. Nonetheless a person in the first stages of regeneration helps those people with all his heart. These good actions are examples of the good which springs from external truth and with which his regeneration begins. The truth of good, which is more internal, flows accordingly into those actions, fashioning these as directed by the cognitions which the child knows?

[4] At a later stage however, when more enlightened, he is willing to do good to all he believes to be poor and needy, but he still makes scarcely any distinction between the godly poor and needy and the ungodly poor and needy. He believes that all are to be regarded and rated equally as the neighbour. But when he becomes more enlightened in these matters he does make a distinction and provides help only to the good and upright. He knows that providing help to the evil does harm to many, for by the aid and support these get he gives them the opportunity to harm others. At length when he is being regenerated he does not do good to any but the good and the godly, for at this point he is not stirred by an affection simply for the person he does good to but by the good itself residing with that person. And since the Lord is present within all good and godliness he accordingly bears witness also, through his affection towards what is good, to his love to the Lord. When he is at heart moved by charity such as this he can become regenerate.

[5] From this it is evident that in relation to this state his previous state was an inverse one, that is to say, he believed that to be good which was not in fact good. Nevertheless at the beginning of regeneration he still had to put into practice that which, though not in fact good, he believed to be so since what he knew went no further and since more interior good that flows from charity was not able to enter into any truth apart from that of which he actually knew. It is also evident that more interior good was always present and fashioning it, and this good could not have manifested itself previously until by means of cognitions he had been gradually enlightened about the nature of goods and truths. From this it is evident to some extent what is meant by the good of truth, which 'Jacob' represents here, what is meant by the truth of good, which 'Esau' represents, and that at first these exist inversely but subsequently are joined together.

3470. 'And he took for a wife Judith the daughter of Beeri the Hittite, and also Basemath the daughter of Elon the Hittite' means the wedding to it of natural truth from a source other than genuine truth itself. This is clear from the meaning of 'a wife' as truth wedded to good, dealt with where Sarah and where Rebekah are the subject, 1468, 1901, 2063, 2065, 2172, 2173, 2198, 2507, 2904, 3012, 3013, 3077, here natural truth wedded to the natural good that is the subject here; and from the representation of 'Judith the daughter of Beeri the Hittite, and Basemath the daughter of Elon the Hittite' as truth from a source other than genuine truth itself. The Hittites were one of the upright nations in the land of Canaan, among whom Abraham dwelt and from whom he bought as a grave the cave of Machpelah, Genesis 23:3-end. The Hittites also represent the spiritual Church among the nations in that land, see 2913, 2986. And because that Church does not possess truth that is from the Word the same persons mean truth not derived from genuine truth itself. For a nation which represents a Church also means truth and good, as these exist with that Church, since it is by virtue of truth and good that a Church is a Church. When therefore a Church is spoken of, its truth and good are meant, and vice versa.

[2] The implications of this are that natural good of truth is not spiritual good, that is, it is not the good of faith nor the good of charity until it has been reformed. Natural good comes from parents, as stated immediately above in 3469, but spiritual good comes from the Lord. To receive spiritual good therefore a person has to undergo regeneration. At first, while this is taking place truths from a source other than genuine truth itself are allied to him, such as do not remain permanently with him but merely serve as the means by which genuine truths are brought in. Once these have been brought in, truths that are not genuine are separated. It is akin to the stages through which children pass: At first they learn very many things, including those that are childish - games and so on - not to make them wise but to prepare the way for them to receive the useful things that lead to wisdom. Once they have received the latter the former things are separated, indeed they are put away. Or it is like fruit which at first is filled with sour juice before it is able to receive sweet. The sour juice, which is not the genuine, is the means by which the sweet is brought in. As the latter comes in the former is dispelled.

[3] So it is with the natural part of man's mind when this is being regenerated, for natural good is such that of itself it is unwilling to obey and serve the rational as a slave does his master but wishes to take command. To render it submissive and subservient however it is chastened by means of states of vastation and temptation to the point when its cravings die down. At that point it is moderated by means of an influx from the Lord, by way of the internal man, of the good of faith and charity, even to the point where good acquired by heredity is gradually rooted out and a new good implanted in place of it. Into this new good truths of faith are introduced, like new fibres into the human heart, along which fibres new fluid is borne in, until a new heart has slowly been developed. The truths that are borne in at first cannot come from the genuine fount of truth because evils and falsities exist within the good present previously, which is natural good. Instead they are the kind of seeming truths or appearances of truth that have some affinity with genuine truths, and through which little by little the opportunity and place for those genuine truths to insert themselves is provided. Genuine good is like the blood in blood vessels or the fluid in fibres, bringing truths along and giving them shape. The good which takes shape in this way in the natural or external man is general, structured or joined together so to speak from particular and individual facets of spiritual good coming by way of the rational or internal man from the Lord, who alone forms and creates things anew. This explains why so many times in the Word the Lord is called One who forms and Creator.