3763. Verses 2-3 And he saw, and behold, a well in the field, and behold, three droves of a flock there, lying nearby it; for out of that well they watered the droves; and there was a large stone over the mouth of the well. And all the droves would be gathered there; and they would roll the stone from over the mouth of the well and water the flock; and they would put the stone back in its place over the mouth of the well.

'He saw' means perception. 'Behold, a well' means the Word. 'In the field' means provided for the Churches. 'And behold, three droves of a flock there, lying nearby it' means the holy things that constitute the Churches and their matters of doctrine. 'For out of that well they watered the droves' means knowledge obtained from there. 'And there was a large stone over the mouth of the well' means that it was closed up. 'And all the droves would be gathered there' means that all the Churches and their doctrinal teaching come from there. 'And they would roll the stone from over the mouth of the well' means that they opened it up. 'And water the flock' means that the doctrine was drawn from it. 'And they would put the stone back in its place over the mouth of the well' means that it was closed up for the time being.

1165. In the Word 'Mizraim' or Egypt means knowledge, that is, various facts, by which people wish to probe into the arcana of faith and so confirm the false assumptions acquired in that way. 'Mizraim' also means simply knowledge, and so knowledge that is useful. This is clear not only from the places just quoted but also from very many others which would fill up page after page if they were all included. See Isaiah 19:1-end; Isaiah 30:1-3; 31:1-3; Jeremiah 2:18, 36; Jeremiah 42:14-end; Jeremiah 46:1-end; Ezekiel 16:26; 23:3; Ezekiel 29:1-end; Ezekiel 30:1-end; Hosea 7:11; 9:3, 6; 11:1, 5, 11; Micah 7:12 [NCBS: 7:15]; Zechariah 10:10-11; Psalms 80:8 and following verses.