4875. 'Your cord' means through truth, that is to say, truth accompanying the token of consent. This is clear from the meaning of 'a cord' as truth. The reason 'a cord' means truth is that it is one of the items associated with 'garments', and 'garments' in general means truths, for the reason that as garments clothe the flesh, so truths clothe good, 297, 2132, 2576, 4545, 4763. Among the ancients therefore whatever clothing they wore meant some specific or individual truth. Consequently a tunic had one meaning, a chlamys another, and a toga another; also coverings for the head, such as a turban and a mitre, had one meaning, coverings for the thighs and feet, such as breeches, stockings, and so on, had another meaning. But 'a cord' meant outermost or lowest truth, for it was made from threads twisted together, by which the final demarcation of that kind of truth was meant. This kind of truth is again meant by 'a cord' in Moses,

Every open vessel on which there is no covering [or] cord [to fasten it] is unclean. Numbers 19:15.

By this was meant that nothing should exist without having an outer limit, for that which does not have an outer limit is 'open'. Furthermore outermost truths serve as the outer limit and terminus of interior truths.

4820. 'And he took her and came [in] to her' means that the tribe of Judah joined itself to these, that is to say, to evils begotten by falsities springing from evil. This is clear from the meaning of 'taking her', that is to say, making her his wife, and of 'coming (or going in) to her' as being joined together, dealt with frequently already; for in the internal sense marriages represent the joining together of good and truth, because good and truth are the source of them, 2727-2759. But in the contrary sense marriages represent the joining together of evil and falsity, in this case the joining of the tribe of Judah to these; for what is said here refers to Judah who, as seen above in 4815, means the tribe named after him. It is not said that he took her as his wife, only 'he took her and came [in] to her'. This wording is used because the coupling was an illicit one, 4818, and also because, without actually saying so, it points out that the union was not a marriage but whoredom, and thus that the sons born from her were also the result of whoredom. The fact that after this she is called his wife - in the words 'And the days were multiplied, and Shua's daughter died, the wife of Judah', verse 12 - will be discussed below.