3063. And do mercy. That this signifies an influx of love is evident from the essence of mercy, as being love. Love is itself turned to mercy and becomes mercy when anyone who is in need of help is regarded from love or charity; hence mercy is the effect of love toward the needy and miserable. But here by “mercy” in the internal sense is meant love; and by “doing mercy” is meant an influx of love, because it is from the Lord’s Divine Itself into His Divine Human; for it was the Lord’s Divine love through which He made His Human Divine; for love is the very being of life, and no one has Divine love but the Lord.

(See what has been said before concerning the Lord’s love, namely: That His life was love toward the universal human race, n. 2253: That from this love He fought, n. 1690, 1789, 1812, 1813, 1820: That it transcends all understanding, n. 1799, 2077: That the Lord is Divine love itself, n. 2077, 2500, 2572: That “Jehovah” is love, n. 1735: That nothing lives but love, n. 1589: That whoever has mutual love has the Lord’s life, n. 1799, 1802, 1803: That love and charity are the celestial itself, n. 1419, 1824)

2250. Wilt Thou also destroy the righteous with the wicked? That this signifies the Lord’s grief from love toward the human race, and His intercession urging that possibly there might be what is good adjoined to them although they were evil, is evident from the zeal of love that here shines forth, and still more in verse 25 (Genesis 18:25) just below, where it is said, “Be it far from Thee to do according to this thing, to cause the righteous to die with the wicked, that so the righteous be as the wicked; be it far from Thee; shall not the Judge of all the earth do judgment?” The same is evident from the signification of “the righteous” as being good (see n. 612, 2235), and from the signification of “the wicked” as being opposite to “the righteous,” that is, opposite to good, thus evil. It is likewise evident from these words, as also from the things that follow in this chapter, that there is intercession. The Lord’s intercession for the human race existed at the time when He was in the world, and in fact when He was in a state of humiliation, for as before said, He then spoke with Jehovah as with another. But of course in His state of glorification when the Human Essence has become united to the Divine Essence, and is itself also Jehovah, He does not intercede, but has mercy and affords aid from His Divine, and saves. It is Mercy itself which is the intercession, for such is its essence.