6372. 'Or a lawgiver from between his feet' means truths from that kingdom in Lower things. This is clear from the meaning of 'a lawgiver' as truths, dealt with below, and from the meaning of 'feet' as natural things, dealt with in 2162, 3147, 3761, 3986, 4280, 4938-4952, 5327, 5328, thus lower ones; for natural things are beneath, and the celestial ones, spoken of just before now, are above. The expression 'a lawgiver from between his feet' is used to mean the spiritual of the celestial, or truth that is derived from good; for at that time there was no spiritual kingdom distinct and separate from the celestial kingdom, like that after the Lord's Coming; rather, it made one with the celestial kingdom, except that it formed the external part of it. For this reason the words 'from between his feet' are also used to mean truth that is derived from good, for the part in between the feet, from its communication with the loins, means that truth. Referring to this truth it is also said that it would be removed 'when Shiloh comes'; that is to say, its power and control, like the power and control of the celestial spoken of immediately above in 6371, would be removed.

[2] The celestial kingdom exercised its power and control in those times through that truth, which explains why this truth is called 'a lawgiver'. The same truth is also meant in the internal sense by 'lawgiver' in Isaiah,

Jehovah is our judge, Jehovah is our lawgiver, Jehovah is our king. Isaiah 33:12.

'Judge' stands for Him when He acts from good, 'legislator' when He acts from truth deriving from that good, and 'king' when He acts from truth - sources of action which also follow one another in that order. In David,

Gilead is Mine, Manasseh is Mine, and Ephraim is the strength of My head, Judah is My lawgiver. Psalms 60:7; 108:8.

'Judah the lawgiver' stands for celestial good and accompanying celestial truth. In Moses,

The well ¹ which the princes dug, which the chiefs of the people dug out, as directed by the lawgiver, with their staves. Numbers 21:18.

And in the same author,

Gad chose the best ² for himself, for there was the portion of the hidden lawgiver; from there came the heads of the people, he administered Jehovah's righteousness, and His judgements with Israel. Deuteronomy 33:21.

Here also 'lawgiver' stands for truth from good.

Poznámky pod čarou:

3761. 'Jacob lifted up his feet' means a raising up of the natural. This is clear from the meaning of 'lifting up' as a raising up, and from the meaning of 'the feet' as the natural, dealt with below. The raising up meant here is the subject of the chapter itself, namely a raising up from external truth towards internal good. In the highest sense the subject is how the Lord according to order raised His Natural even up to the Divine, rising up step by step from external truth towards internal good. In the representative sense it is how the Lord according to a similar order makes man's natural new when regenerating him. The fact that a person who is being regenerated in adult life progresses according to the order described in the internal sense of this chapter and of those that follow is known to few. This fact is known to few because few stop to reflect on the matter and also because few at the present day are able to be regenerated; for the last days of the Church have arrived when no charity exists any longer, nor consequently any faith. This being so, people do not even know what faith is, even though the assertion 'men is saved by faith' is on everyone's lips; and not knowing this they therefore have even less knowledge of what charity is. And since they know no more than the terms faith and charity and have no knowledge of what these are essentially, it has therefore been stated that few are able to reflect on the order in accordance with which a person is made new or regenerated, and also that few are able to be regenerated.

[2] Because the subject here is the natural, and the latter is represented by 'Jacob', it is not said that he rose up and went to the land of the sons of the east but that 'he lifted up his feet'. Both these expressions mean a raising up. As regards 'rising up' having this meaning, see 2401, 2785, 2912, 2927, 3171; and as regards the expression 'lifting up the feet' which occurs here, this is used in reference to the natural - 'the feet' meaning the natural, see 2162, 3147. 'The feet' means the natural or natural things because of their correspondence with the Grand Man - currently the subject at the ends of chapters. In the Grand Man those belonging to the province of the feet are those who dwell in natural light and little spiritual light. This also is why the parts beneath the foot - the sole and the heel - mean the lowest natural things, see 259, and why 'a shoe', which is also mentioned several times in the Word, means the bodily-natural, which is the lowest part of all, 1748.