3394. Surely behold she is thy woman, and how saidst thou, She is my sister? That this signifies that if Divine truth it was not also rational, is evident from the signification of “woman,” here Rebekah, as being the Divine truth of the Lord’s Divine rational (n. 3012, 3013, 3077); and from the signification of “sister,” as being rational truth (n. 3386); thus “behold she is thy woman, and how saidst thou, She is my sister?” signifies that because truth is Divine, it cannot be rational.
[2] With this arcanum the case is this: The spiritual, not having perception as the celestial have, do not know that with a regenerated man Divine truth becomes rational truth. They do indeed say that all good and all truth are from the Lord; yet as these come forth in their rational, they suppose them to be their own, and thus as it were from themselves; for the spiritual cannot be separated from their own, and their own so wills it; although as regards this matter with the celestial, these perceive Divine good and truth in the rational, that is, in the rational things which when enlightened by the Divine of the Lord are appearances of truth (n. 3368), even in the natural, that is, in the things of sense and memory-knowledge; and as the celestial are in such a state, they are able to acknowledge that all good and truth flow in from the Lord; and also that there is a perceptive power of good and truth that is communicated and appropriated to them by the Lord, and that constitutes their delight, bliss, and happiness. It was from this that the most ancient people, who were celestial men, in all the objects which they saw with their eyes perceived nothing but celestial and spiritual things (n. 1409).
[3] Inasmuch as the regenerated spiritual man is here treated of, who through regeneration from the Lord has received Divine good in a new will, and Divine truth in a new understanding; and inasmuch as such persons are in no other perception than that, as before said, if truth were rational it could not be Divine, thus that if it were Divine it would have nothing in common with what is rational, therefore it is here said that if it was Divine truth it was not also rational. This likewise is the reason why such persons are desirous that the things of faith should be believed in simplicity, without any mental view of them on the part of the rational, not being aware that not anything of faith, not even its deepest secret, is comprehended by any man without some rational idea, and also a natural one, but of what quality he does not know (n. 3310). Hereby they may indeed protect themselves against those who reason about everything from what is negative as to whether it is so (n. 2568, 2588); but to those who are in the affirmative concerning the Word (namely, that it is to be believed) such a position is hurtful, as they may thus take away from anyone his freedom of thought, and even bind the conscience to that which is in the highest degree heretical by in this way dominating both the internal and the external things of a man. This and also the above is what is signified by Abimelech’s saying to Isaac, “Behold she is thy woman, and how saidst thou, She is my sister?”
