5640. 'And he said to the one who was over his house' means that which belongs to the external Church. This is clear from the representation of 'the one who was over the house' as the external Church, when 'the one who is in the house' is the internal Church, dealt with in 1795. And since no attention is paid in the internal sense to the person, only to the spiritual reality, 5225, 5287, 5434, 'the one who was over the house' means that which belongs to the external Church.

4723. 'They saw him from a distance' means the Lord's Divine Human perceived remotely. This is clear from the meaning of 'seeing' as perception, dealt with in 2150, 3764; from the meaning of 'from a distance' as remotely; and from the representation of 'Joseph' - the one they saw from a distance - as the Lord as regards Divine Truth, dealt with in 4669. The reason the Lord's Divine Human is what 'Joseph' is used to mean here is that His Divine Human is the highest aspect of Divine Truth. There are two essentials which constitute the Church and as a consequence it has two main teachings, the first being that the Lord's Human is Divine, the second that love to the Lord and charity towards the neighbour constitute the Church, not faith separated from these. Being the primary aspects of Divine Truth, these too are represented by 'Joseph'. Anyone who represents Divine Truth in general also represents the specific aspects of Divine Truth. But which specific aspect is represented at any point is evident from the train of thought.