3365. 'And Isaac went to Abimelech the king of the Philistines, to Gerar' means matters of doctrine concerning faith. This is clear from the representation of 'Isaac' as the Lord as regards the Divine Rational, dealt with in 1893, 2066, 2072, 2083, 2630 - 'Isaac' being the Lord's Divine Rational as regards Divine Good, 3012, 3194, 3210, and also as regards Divine Truth, which is represented by Isaac's marriage to Rebekah, 3012, 3013, 3077, so that 'Isaac' here represents the Lord as regards the Divine Truth joined to the Divine Good of the Rational, since Isaac was accompanied by Rebekah, and she was called his sister; from the representation of 'Abimelech' as the doctrine of faith which has regard to rational concepts, 2504, 2509, 2510, 2533; from the meaning of 'the king of the Philistines' as matters of doctrine - 'the king' in the internal sense being truth that is the truth of doctrine, see 1672, 2015, 2069, and 'the Philistines' the knowledge of cognitions, which are also matters of doctrine, 1197, 1198; and from the meaning of 'Gerar' as faith, 1209, 2504. From these meanings one may see what 'Isaac went to Abimelech the king of the Philistines, to Gerar' means, namely that the Lord is the source of the doctrine of faith which has regard to rational concepts, or what amounts to the same, to matters of doctrine concerning faith.

[2] The expression 'matters of doctrine' is used to describe all those things that constitute doctrine, and insofar as that doctrine is able to be received and to be acknowledged in heaven by angels and on earth by men it is said to have regard to rational concepts. Actually it is the rational that receives and acknowledges them; but the rational is such that it cannot possibly comprehend Divine things, for it is finite, and what is finite cannot comprehend anything of what is Infinite. For this reason Divine truths from the Lord present themselves before the rational by means of appearances. This is why matters of doctrine are no more than the appearances of Divine truth, that is, no more than celestial and spiritual vessels that hold what is Divine within them. And because they hold the Divine, that is, the Lord, within them, they therefore stir a person's affection, and thereby the Lord is joined to angels and to men.

765. Up to now the subject has been the temptation of the member of the Church called Noah. Verses 6-10 have first of all dealt with his temptation involving things of the understanding, which are truths of faith. After that verses 11-12, have dealt with his temptation involving things of the will, which have in view the good deeds of charity. The purpose of the temptations was that the member of the Church, that is, that the new Church, might be born again by means of them, during the time that the Most Ancient Church was dying out. As stated already, this Church was quite different in disposition from the Most Ancient Church; that is to say, it is a spiritual Church, whose nature is such that this individual is born again by means of doctrinal matters concerning faith. Once these have been implanted, conscience is instilled into him to prevent his doing things contrary to the truth and good of faith. In this way charity is conferred on him which then governs his conscience, from which he accordingly starts to act. From these considerations it becomes clear what a spiritual man is; he is not one who imagines that faith without charity saves, but one who makes charity the essential element of faith, and acts from it. To bring such a person or Church into being was the end in view, and this is why this Church itself is dealt with next. The fact that it is the Church which is dealt with next becomes clear also from the repetition so to speak of the same point, for it is said here that, 'On that very day Noah went in, and Shem and Ham and Japheth, Noah's sons, and Noah's wife, and the three wives of his sons with them, into the ark', which is similar to verse 7 above, though that verse reads, 'And Noah went in, and his sons and his wife, and his sons' wives with him into the ark'. Since the subject is now the Church however, the sons Shem, Ham, and Japheth are mentioned by name; and when so mentioned by name they mean the member of the Church. But when they are called 'sons without the addition of their names they mean truths of faith. In addition, what has been stated already in verses 8-9, about beasts and birds going into the ark is repeated once again in verses 14-16, but with certain changes that are here fitting and applicable to the Church.