10652. And his daughters commit whoredom after their gods, and make thy sons commit whoredom after their gods. That this signifies in this manner the profanation of good and of truth, is evident from the signification of “committing whoredom,” as being unlawful conjunction (of which above, n. 10648); from the signification of “his daughters,” or the daughters of the inhabitant of the land, as being the affections of evil; from the signification of “their gods,” as being the falsities of the affections of evil conjoined with truths, for by “their gods” are meant the gods of the daughters of the inhabitant of the land conjoined with sons of the Israelitish nation (see just above at n. 10651), which conjunction is the profanation of good; and from the signification of “making thy sons commit whoredom after their gods,” as being the conjunction of truth with falsities, which is the profanation of truth. (That “gods” denote falsities, see n. 4402, 4544, 7873, 8867; and that “sons” denote truths, n. 489, 491, 533, 1147, 3373, 4257, 9807, 10490.)

[2] These things are so said because the first conjunction of the affections of evil with truths, which is signified by “taking the daughters of the inhabitant of the land for thy sons,” is not as yet profanation; but the second conjunction is profanation, because this takes place when evil is applied to truth, and truth to evil, which is done by means of a wrong interpretation of truth, and the application of it to evil, and thus by the insertion of the one into the other. From this, truth no longer remains truth; but is killed and profaned.

[3] This profanation is also signified by “the whoredom of the people with the daughters of Moab,” of which we read in Moses:

Israel settled in Shittim, where the people began to commit whoredom with the daughters of Moab, and they called the people to the sacrifices of their gods, and the people did eat, and bowed themselves down to their gods. Therefore Jehovah said unto Moses, Take all the heads of the people, and hang them up to Jehovah before the sun. And the people were smitten; and there died from this plague twenty-four thousand (Numbers 25:1-2, 4-5, 9).

By “Moab” are signified those who adulterate goods (n. 2468, 8315); and by his “daughters,” the affections of this evil; and by “whoredom with them,” profanation; consequently the penalty was the hanging of the heads of the people before the sun, and the death of twenty-four thousand. For the sun of the world denotes the love of self (n. 10584); “hanging before it” denotes the total extinction of heavenly good; and “twenty-four thousand” denotes all the truths and goods of truth in the complex, in like manner as “twelve thousand” (n. 2089, 3913, 7973); their death denotes the extinction of all truths. This takes place with those who profane.

10578. And He said, thou canst not see My faces. That this signifies that the interior Divine things of the church, of worship, and of the Word cannot appear to the Israelitish nation, is evident from the signification of “the faces of Jehovah,” as being the interior Divine things of the church, of worship, and of the Word (see above, n. 10567, 10568); and from the signification of “seeing them,” as being to appear. That these interior Divine things cannot appear to the Israelitish nation, is evident from the fact that this is said to Moses, and Moses here bears relation as the head of the Israelitish nation (n. 10556). That the “faces of Jehovah” denote the interior Divine things of the Word, of the church, and of worship, is also evident from the fact that the like is signified by the “faces of Jehovah” as by the “glory of Jehovah,” for Moses said, “Make me see I pray Thy glory;” and Jehovah said, “Thou canst not see My faces;” and by “the glory of Jehovah” are signified the interior Divine things of the Word, of the church, and of worship (as may be seen above, n. 10574).

[2] How the case herein is can be seen from what has been frequently said before, namely, that the Israelitish nation could not possibly see the interior things of worship, of the church, and of the Word, because they were in external things separate from what is internal, thus neither could they “see the faces of Jehovah.” But those who are in external things not separate from what is internal, can all see the interior things of the Word, of the church, and of worship, thus they can “see the faces of Jehovah.” From this it follows that those can see them who are in love to the Lord, and also those who are in charity toward the neighbor; for love to the Lord and charity toward the neighbor open the internal man, and when this is open, the man in respect to his interiors is in heaven among the angels where the Lord is.

[3] But it shall here be briefly told what love to the Lord is, or what it is to love the Lord. He who believes that he loves the Lord, and does not live according to His commandments, is very much mistaken, for to live according to the Lord’s commandments is to love Him. These commandments are truths which are from the Lord, thus in which the Lord is; and therefore insofar as they are loved, that is, insofar as men live according to them from love, so far the Lord is loved. The reason is that the Lord loves man, and from love wills that he may be happy forever, and man cannot become happy except by a life according to His commandments, because by means of these a man is regenerated and becomes spiritual, and in this way can be raised into heaven. But to love the Lord without a life according to His commandments is not to love Him, for then there is not anything with the man into which the Lord may flow and raise him to Himself; because he is like an empty vessel; there being nothing of life in his faith, and nothing of life in his love. The life of heaven, which is called eternal life, is not poured into anyone immediately, but mediately. From all this it can be seen what it is to love the Lord, and also what it is to see the Lord, or His faces, namely, that He is seen from such faith and love.

[4] To live according to the commandments of the Lord is to live according to the doctrine of charity and of faith, which doctrine may be seen in what is prefixed to the several chapters of the Book of Exodus. That this is the case the Lord also teaches in John:

He that hath My commandments, and doeth them, he it is that loveth Me; and he that loveth Me shall be loved by My Father; and I will love him, and will manifest Myself to him. If a man love Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come unto him, and make Our abode with him. He that loveth Me not keepeth not My words (John 14:21, 23-24).

What is further signified by “the faces of Jehovah” shall be told in the article which now follows.