6366. 'Your father's sons will bow down to you' means that truths will submit themselves of their own accord. This is clear from the meaning of 'bowing down' as submitting oneself, and from the meaning of 'father's sons' as truths that spring from spiritual good; for 'the sons of Israel' are spiritual truths, 5414, 5879, 5951, and 'Israel' is spiritual good, 5801, 5803, 5806, 5812, 5817, 5819, 5826, 5833. The reason why those truths submit themselves of their own accord is that when celestial love, represented by 'Judah', flows into spiritual truths, represented by 'the sons of Israel', it rearranges them into order and submits them in that condition to the Lord. For by flowing into spiritual things what is celestial has the capacity to produce that effect; that is, good has that capacity by flowing into truth. This also explains why the Lord's celestial kingdom is the inmost or third heaven, thus is the one closest to the Lord, while His spiritual kingdom is the middle or second heaven, and so is further away from the Lord. It is because they are arranged in this order that the Lord flows indirectly into the spiritual kingdom by way of the celestial kingdom, as well as directly. The nature of His inflow is such that the spiritual kingdom is maintained in order by means of the celestial and in that condition made submissive to the Lord. The inflow takes place from the celestial kingdom through love towards the neighbour, since that love is the exterior of the celestial kingdom and the interior of the spiritual kingdom and causes the two to be joined together, see 5922.

In most cases, the meaning of "before" is pretty straightforward, both as a way of assessing relative time, and in its use meaning "in someone's presence." It takes on a deeper significance, though, when used in connection with the Lord. To be "before" the Lord means not just in His presence, but also receiving the desire for good and the understanding of truth from Him, and living according to them. And when used as an assessment of time in connection with the Lord, "before" means "from eternity," and refers to a spiritual state rather than time as we experience it.

(Odkazy: Apocalypse Revealed 366, 617; Arcana Coelestia 6983, 8439, 9888)