3853. Verse 31 And Jehovah saw that Leah was hated, and He opened her womb; and Rachel was barren.

'Jehovah saw' means the Lord's foresight and providence. 'That Leah was hated' means that the affection for external truth was not so dear because it was further away from the Divine. 'And He opened her womb' means that this affection gave rise to the doctrines taught by the Churches. 'And Rachel was barren' means that interior truths were not received.

6628. It has been shown in various places in the explanations given already that teachings about charity were the teachings in the Ancient Churches, and that these teachings linked all the Churches together and in so doing made one Church out of many. For they recognized as members of the Church all those people who led a good and charitable life, and they called them their brothers, no matter how much otherwise they differed from them in truths, which at the present day are called matters of faith. People informed one another about those truths, and this was one of their charitable works. Neither were they annoyed if one person did not go along with the opinion of another; they knew that everyone accepts the truth insofar as he is governed by good.