3798. That Jacob came near and rolled the stone from over the mouth of the well' means that the Lord, by virtue of natural good, disclosed the interior contents of the Word. This is clear from the representation of 'Jacob' as the Lord's Divine Natural, dealt with already, here as regards the good in it, and from the meaning of 'rolling the stone from over the mouth of the well' as disclosing the interior contents of the Word, dealt with in 3769, 3771, 3773, 3789. The reason why the highest sense here means that the Lord by virtue of natural good disclosed the interior contents of the Word is that 'Jacob' here represents good within the Natural. For Jacob takes on the representation of good because truth had now to be allied to it through the affection which 'Rachel' represents, see just above in 3775, 3793; and it is by virtue of good that the interior contents of the Word are disclosed, 3773.

[2] It is plainly evident that the Word is disclosed by virtue of good. Everyone looks from the love present in him at the things that belong to that love; and what he sees he calls truths because these are in harmony with it. Everyone's love holds the light of his life within it, for love is like a flame which radiates light. The nature of a person's love or flame therefore determines that of the light of truth with him. Those who are stirred by a love of good are able to see the things belonging to that love, and so to see the truths that are in the Word. They do so according to the amount and the quality of their love of good, for light or intelligence flows in from heaven, that is, from the Lord by way of heaven. This is why, as already stated, no one is able to see and acknowledge the interior contents of the Word except one whose life is governed by good.

3861. 'And she called his name Reuben' means the essential nature of it, which is described. This is clear from the meaning of 'name' and 'calling the name' as the essential nature, dealt with in 144, 145, 1754, 1896, 2009, 2724, 3006, 3421. That nature itself is described by the statement, 'Because Jehovah has seen my affliction, for now my husband will love me', the literal meaning of the name Reuben. Spiritually however all names in the Word mean real things, as has been shown often, see 1224, 1264, 1876, 1888; and among me ancients when a name was given it meant some state, 340, 1946, 2643, 3422. Here it will be seen that the names of all the sons of Jacob mean the universal attributes of the Church. Also one specific universal attribute has been combined within each name, but what that attribute is no one can possibly know unless he knows the internal sense embodied in the words from which each son's name is derived. That is, he needs to know the internal sense embodied in 'has seen' from which Reuben is derived, and in 'has heard' from which Simeon is derived, and in 'has clung to' from which Levi is derived, and in 'to confess' from which Judah is derived, and so on with all the other sons.