4. In support of this, I would like in this first chapter simply to cite passages from the Word where it says “that day, ” “on that day, ” or “at that time, ” passages where “day” and “time” mean the Lord’s Coming. From Isaiah:

In the days to come it will happen that the mountain of Jehovah will be established as the highest of the mountains. On that day Jehovah alone will be exalted. The day of Jehovah Sabaoth is majestic and high above all. On that day people will throw away idols of their silver and gold. (Isaiah 2:2, 11-12, 20)

On that day the Lord Jehovih will take away adornments. (Isaiah 3:18)

On that day the branch of Jehovah will be beautiful and glorious. (Isaiah 4:2)

[Their enemy] will roar against the people on that day and look down on the earth. Behold, there is darkness and anxiety, and the light will be growing darker among their ruins. (Isaiah 5:30)

It will happen on that day that Jehovah will whistle to the fly at the very end of the rivers of Egypt. On that day the Lord will shave [Judah] at the crossings of the river. On that day he will bring [a young cow and two sheep] to life. On that day every place will become brambles and thorns. (Isaiah 7:18, 20-21, 23)

What will you do on the day of visitation? Who will come? On that day Israel will rely on Jehovah, the Holy One of Israel, in truth. (Isaiah 10:3, 20)

It will happen on that day that the nations will seek out the root of Jesse, the one who stands as a sign for the peoples, and glory will be his rest. Above all, on that day the Lord will seek out the remnant of his people. (Isaiah 11:10-11)

You will say on that day, “I will praise you, Jehovah.” You will say on that day, “Praise Jehovah! Call upon his name!” (Isaiah 12:1, 4)

The day of Jehovah is near; it will come from Shaddai like destruction. Behold, the cruel day of Jehovah is coming-a day of resentment, blazing wrath, and anger. I will violently move heaven, and the earth will be shaken out of its place, on the day of his blazing anger. His time is at hand and it will come, and the days will not be prolonged. (Isaiah 13:6, 9, 13, 22)

It will happen on that day that the glory of Jacob will be worn away. On that day, people will look back to their Maker, and their eyes [will look] toward the Holy One of Israel. On that day there will be cities of refuge in the forsaken parts of the forest. (Isaiah 17:4, 7, 9)

Those who dwell on [this] island will say on that day, “Look at what has happened to our hope!” (Isaiah 20:6)

On that day there will be five cities in the land of Egypt speaking the languages of Canaan. On that day there will be an altar to Jehovah in the center of Egypt. On that day there will be a highway from Egypt to Assyria, and Israel will be at the center of the land. (Isaiah 19:18-19, 23-24)

A day of tumult, trampling, and confusion from the Lord Jehovih Sabaoth... (Isaiah 22:5)

On that day Jehovah will punish the army of the high place and the monarchs of the earth. After a great many days they will be punished. Then the moon will blush and the sun will be ashamed. (Isaiah 24:21, 23)

It will be said on that day, “Behold, this is our God; we have waited for him to set us free.” (Isaiah 25:9)

On that day this song will be sung in the land of Jehovah: “We have a strong city.” (Isaiah 26:1)

On that day Jehovah will bring punishment with his sword. On that day answer him by saying, “A vineyard whose wine is pure.” (Isaiah 27:1-2, 12-13)

On that day Jehovah Sabaoth will become an ornate crown and a diadem. (Isaiah 28:5)

Then on that day the deaf will hear the words of the book, and the eyes of the blind will see out of the darkness. (Isaiah 29:18)

On the day of the great slaughter, when the towers fall, there will be a channel of waters. The light of the moon will be like the light of the sun on the day when Jehovah binds up the breach of his people. (Isaiah 30:25-26)

On that day they will each throw away the idols of their silver and gold. (Isaiah 31:7)

The day of Jehovah’s vengeance, the year of his recompense... (Isaiah 34:8)

These two things will come to you in one day: the loss of your children, and widowhood. (Isaiah 47:9)

My people will know my name, and on that day [they will know that] I am the one saying “Here I am!” (Isaiah 52:6)

Jehovah has anointed me to proclaim the year of Jehovah’s good pleasure and the day of vengeance for our God, to comfort all who are mourning. (Isaiah 61:1-2)

The day of vengeance is in my heart and the year of my redeemed has arrived. (Isaiah 63:4)

From Jeremiah:

In those days you will no longer say, “The ark of the covenant of Jehovah.” At that time they will call Jerusalem the throne of Jehovah. In those days the house of Judah will go to the house of Israel. (Jeremiah 3:16-18)

In that day the heart of the monarch will perish, and the heart of the royal family, and the priests and the prophets will be stunned. (Jeremiah 4:9)

Behold, the days are coming in which the earth will turn into a wasteland. (Jeremiah 7:32, 34)

They will fall among those who fall on the day of their visitation. (Jeremiah 8:12)

Behold, the days are coming in which I will execute judgment upon everyone whose foreskin has been circumcised. (Jeremiah 9:25)

In the time of their visitation they will perish. (Jeremiah 10:15)

There will be no remnant of them; I will bring evil upon them in the year of their visitation. (Jeremiah 11:23)

Behold, the days are coming in which it will no longer be said... (Jeremiah 16:14)

I will look at them in the back of the neck and not in the face on the day of their destruction. (Jeremiah 18:17)

Behold, the days are coming in which I will make this place a devastation. (Jeremiah 19:6)

Behold, the days are coming in which I will raise up for David a righteous branch who will rule as king. In those days Judah will be saved and Israel will dwell in safety. Therefore behold, the days are coming in which it will no longer be said... I will bring evil upon them in the year of their visitation. At the very last of days you will fully understand. (Jeremiah 23:5-7, 12, 20)

Behold, the days are coming in which I will turn back [the captivity of my people]. Alas, that day will be great, and there will be none like it. It will happen on that day that I will break the yoke and tear off the fetters. (Jeremiah 30:3, 7-8)

The day will come when the guards cry out on Mount Ephraim, “Arise, let us climb Zion to Jehovah our God.” Behold, the days are coming in which I will make a new covenant. The days are coming in which the city of Jehovah will be built. (Jeremiah 31:6, 27, 31, 38)

The days are coming in which I will perform the good word [that I promised]. In those days and at that time I will cause a righteous branch to grow for David. In those days Judah will be saved. (Jeremiah 33:14-16)

On that day I will bring words against this city for evil. You, though, I will rescue on that day. (Jeremiah 39:16-17)

That day will be a day of vengeance for the Lord Jehovih Sabaoth; he will take vengeance on his enemies. The day of destruction has come upon them, the time of their visitation. (Jeremiah 46:10, 21)

Because of the day that is coming for devastation... (Jeremiah 47:4)

I will bring upon [Moab] the year of visitation. Nevertheless I will bring back its captives at the very last of days. (Jeremiah 48:44, 47)

I will bring destruction upon them at the time of their visitation. Their youths will fall in the streets and all their men of war will be cut down on that day. At the very last of days I will bring back their captives. (Jeremiah 49:8, 26, 39)

In those days and at that time the children of Israel and the children of Judah will come together and seek Jehovah their God. In those days and at that time the iniquity of Israel will be sought, but there will be none. Woe to [the Babylonians], because their day has come, the time of their visitation. (Jeremiah 50:4, 20, 27, 31)

They are vanity, a work of errors; they will perish at the time of their visitation. (Jeremiah 51:18)

From Ezekiel:

The end has come; the end has come. It has come upon you like the morning. The time has come; the day of tumult is near. Behold the day; see, it has come. The trunk has blossomed; violence has sprouted. The day has arrived; the time has come upon their whole multitude. Their silver and gold will not rescue them on the day of Jehovah’s wrath. (Ezekiel 7:6-7, 10, 12, 19)

People were saying of the prophet, “The vision that he is seeing will not happen for many days; his prophecy concerns distant times.” (Ezekiel 12:27)

They will not be able to stand up in the war on the day of Jehovah’s wrath. (Ezekiel 13:5)

You pierced, godless prince of Israel, whose day has come, in the time of iniquity of the end... (Ezekiel 21:25, 29)

O city shedding blood in your own midst so that its time will come, you have made the days approach so that you will come to your years. (Ezekiel 22:3-4)

Surely on the day that I take their strength from them, on that day someone who has been rescued will come to you with information for you to hear. On that day your mouth will be opened to speak with the one who has been rescued. (Ezekiel 24:25-27)

On that day I will cause the horn of the house of Israel to grow. (Ezekiel 29:21)

Wail “Alas for the day, ” because the day of Jehovah is near, the day of Jehovah is near. It will be a day of cloud, a time for the nations. On that day messengers from me will go forth. (Ezekiel 30:2-3, 9)

On the day you go down into hell... (Ezekiel 31:15)

I myself will search for my flock, on a day when it is in the midst of your flock, and I will rescue them from all the places where they have been scattered on a cloudy and dark day. (Ezekiel 34:11-12)

On the day when I cleanse you from all your iniquities... (Ezekiel 36:33)

Prophesy and say, “Will you not know it on that day when my people Israel settle safely? In the days to come I will bring you against my land. [This will happen] on that day, on the day when Gog comes upon the land [of Israel]. In my zeal, in the day of my indignation, surely on this day there will be a great earthquake upon the land of Israel.” (Ezekiel 38:14, 16, 18-19)

Behold, it is coming; this is the day of which I have spoken. It will happen on that day that I will give Gog a burial place in the land of Israel, so that the house of Israel will know that I, Jehovah, am their God from that day on. (Ezekiel 39:8, 11, 22)

From Daniel:

God in the heavens has revealed mysteries concerning what will happen in the days to come. (Daniel 2:28)

The time came for the saints to establish the kingdom. (Daniel 7:22)

“Understand that the vision concerns the time of the end.” [Gabriel] said, “Behold, I am making known to you what will happen at the end of the wrath, because at the appointed time the end will come.” The vision of evenings and mornings is the truth. Hide the vision, because it is for many days. (Daniel 8:17, 19, 26)

I have come to make you understand what will happen to your people at the very last of days, because the vision applies to days yet to come. (Daniel 10:14)

Those who understand will be tested in order to be purified and cleansed, until the time of the end, since it is yet for an appointed time. (Daniel 11:35)

At that time Michael will rise up, the great leader who stands up for the children of your people. There will be a time of distress such as there has not been since the nation [began]. At this time, however, your people will be rescued-everyone who is found written in the book. (Daniel 12:1)

You, Daniel, close up the words and seal the book until the time of the end. But from the time when the daily offering is taken away and the abomination that causes devastation is set up, there will be one thousand two hundred and ninety days. You will arise into your inheritance at the end of days. (Daniel 12:4, 9, 11, 13)

From Hosea:

I will make an end of the kingdom of the house of Israel. On that day I will break the bow of Israel. Great will be the day of Jezreel. (Hosea 1:4-5, 11)

On that day you will call [me] “my husband.” On that day I will make them a covenant. On that day I will respond. (Hosea 2:16, 18, 21)

The children of Israel will turn back and seek Jehovah their God and David their king at the very last of days. (Hosea 3:5)

Come, let us return to Jehovah. After two days he will revive us; on the third day he will raise us up, and we will live in his presence. (Hosea 6:1-2)

The days of visitation have come; the days of retribution have come. (Hosea 9:7)

From Joel:

Alas for the day, because the day of Jehovah is at hand; it will come as destruction from Shaddai. (Joel 1:15)

The day of Jehovah is coming, a day of darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and thick darkness. Great is the day of Jehovah and extremely terrifying; who can endure it? (Joel 2:1-2, 11)

Upon my male and female servants I will pour out my spirit in those days. The sun will be turned into darkness and the moon into blood before the great and terrifying day of Jehovah comes. (Joel 2:29, 31)

In those days and at that time I will gather all nations together. The day of Jehovah is at hand. On that day it will happen that the mountains will drip with new wine. (Joel 3:1-2, 14, 18)

From Amos:

The strong of heart will flee naked on that day. (Amos 2:16)

On the day that I punish Israel for its sins... (Amos 3:14)

Woe to you who long for the day of Jehovah. What is the day of Jehovah to you? It will be a day of darkness and not of light. Surely the day of Jehovah will be a day of darkness and not of light, a day of thick darkness with no light at all. (Amos 5:18, 20)

The songs of the Temple will be howls on that day. On that day I will make the sun set at noon, and will darken the earth on a day of light. On that day beautiful young women and also young men will faint from thirst. (Amos 8:3, 9, 13)

On that day I will raise up the fallen tent of David. Behold, the days are coming when the mountains will drip with new wine. (Amos 9:11, 13)

From Obadiah:

On that day will I not destroy the wise of Edom? Do not rejoice over them on the day of their destruction, on the day of their distress. The day of Jehovah over all nations is at hand. (Obadiah 1:8, 12-15)

From Micah:

On that day the lament will be “We have been utterly destroyed.” (Micah 2:4)

At the very last of days the mountain of the house of Jehovah will be established on the top of the mountains. On that day I will gather the lame. (Micah 4:1, 6)

On that day I will cut off your horses and your chariots. (Micah 5:10)

The day of your watchmen, your visitation, has come. The day for building the walls is here. This is the day in which he will come to you. (Micah 7:4, 11-12)

From Habakkuk:

The vision is still set for an appointed time and speaks concerning the end. If it delays, wait for it, because it will surely come and will not be postponed. (Habakkuk 2:3)

Jehovah, do your work in the midst of the years; in the midst of the years you will make it known. God will come. (Habakkuk 3:2)

From Zephaniah:

The day of Jehovah is at hand. On the day of the sacrifice of Jehovah I will execute judgment upon the royal family and upon the children of the monarch. On that day there will be the sound of shouting. At that time I will examine Jerusalem with lamps. The great day of Jehovah is at hand. This day is a day of blazing wrath; a day of distress and repression; a day of destruction and devastation; a day of darkness and gloom; a day of clouds and thick darkness; a day of trumpets and shouting. On the day of the blazing wrath of Jehovah the whole earth will be devoured and he will make a prompt end to all those who dwell in the land. (Zephaniah 1:7-8, 10, 12, 14-16, 18)

... when the day of the wrath of Jehovah has not yet come upon us. Perhaps you may be hidden on the day of the wrath of Jehovah. (Zephaniah 2:2-3)

Wait for me until the day I rise up for plunder, because that will be my judgment. On that day you will not be ashamed of your deeds. On that day it will be said to Jerusalem, “Do not be afraid.” I will deal with your oppressors at that time. At that time I will bring you back. At that time I will gather you together to give you a name and praise. (Zephaniah 3:8, 11, 16, 19-20)

From Zechariah:

I will remove the iniquity of that land in one day. On that day each of you will invite your neighbor under a vine and under a fig tree. (Zechariah 3:9-10)

Then many nations will be joined to Jehovah on that day. (Zechariah 2:11)

In those days ten men will take hold of the hem of a man of Judah. (Zechariah 8:23)

Jehovah their God will save them on that day, as the flock of his people. (Zechariah 9:16)

My covenant was broken on that day. (Zechariah 11:11)

On that day I will make Jerusalem a heavy stone for all peoples. On that day I will strike every horse with confusion. On that day I will make the leaders of Judah like a fiery furnace surrounded by logs. On that day Jehovah will protect the inhabitants of Jerusalem. On that day I will seek to destroy all the nations [that are coming against Jerusalem]. On that day the mourning in Jerusalem will increase. (Zechariah 12:3-4, 6, 8-9, 11)

On that day a fountain will be opened for the house of David and for the inhabitants of Jerusalem. It will happen on that day that I will cut off the names of idols from the land. On that day the prophets will be ashamed. (Zechariah 13:1-2, 4)

Behold, the day of Jehovah is coming. On that day his feet will stand on the Mount of Olives. On that day there will be no light or radiance. One day that will be known to Jehovah, not day or night, there will be light around the time of evening. On that day living waters will go forth from Jerusalem. On that day Jehovah will be one, and his name one. On that day there will be a great panic from Jehovah. On that day “Holiness belongs to Jehovah” will be engraved on the bells of the horses. There will no longer be a Canaanite in the house of Jehovah on that day. (Zechariah 14:1, 4, 6-9, 13, 20-21)

From Malachi:

Who can bear the day of his coming? Who will stand when he appears? They will be mine on the day that I make them my treasure. Behold, the day is coming, burning like an oven. Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the great and terrifying day of Jehovah comes. (Malachi 3:2, 17; 4:1, 5)

From David:

In his days the righteous will flourish and there will be much peace, and he will reign from sea to sea, and from the river all the way to the ends of the earth. (Psalms 72:7-8)

There are other instances elsewhere.

3679. 'Esau saw that Isaac had blessed Jacob' means the thought which natural good had regarding the joining [to the Divine Rational] through the good of truth, represented by 'Jacob'. This is clear from the meaning of 'seeing' as thinking, for thinking is nothing else than inward seeing, or internal sight; from the representation of 'Esau' as the good of the natural, dealt with in 3300, 3302, 3322, 3404, 3504, 3576, 3599; from the meaning of 'being blessed' as a joining together, dealt with in 3504, 3514, 3530, 3565, 3584; from the representation of 'Isaac' as the Lord's Divine Rational as regards Divine Good, dealt with already; and from the representation of 'Jacob' as the good of truth, dealt with in 3669, 3677. From all this it is evident that 'Esau saw that Isaac had blessed Jacob' means the thought which natural good had regarding the joining through the good of truth.

[2] But as to what thought which natural good had regarding the joining through the good of truth may be, no wholly intelligible explanation is possible. Even so, let a brief explanation be given. The thought which natural good has is the thought which exists in the rational or internal man and from there in the natural or external man, in particular from the good of the rational man. It is the rational or internal man which thinks, not the natural or external; for the rational or internal man dwells in the light of heaven, a light which holds intelligence and wisdom from the Lord within it, 3195, 3339, 3636, 3643, whereas the external man dwells in the light of the world, a light which does not hold any intelligence or indeed life within it. Consequently unless the internal man thought within the external no thought at all could ever exist. Yet to the person himself it seems as though his thought were located within his external, for it is from things which have come in by way of the senses and belong to the world that he thinks.

[3] This matter is like the sight of the eye. A sensory-minded person imagines that the eye sees of itself, when in fact the eye is no more than an organ in the body by means of which the internal man sees things outside of the body, that is, things in the world. The same matter is also like speech. The sensory-minded person might imagine that the mouth and tongue spoke of themselves, and anyone who thinks somewhat more deeply that the larynx and interior organs activated by the lungs did so, when in fact it is the thought which speaks by means of those organic parts - for speech is nothing else than thought expressed in speech. Such delusions of the senses are very many. The matter under consideration is also similar to all the life manifested in the external man, in that the life of the internal is within it, as within its own material or physical organ. The same is so with thought.

[4] As long as he is living in the body a person thinks from the rational within the natural; but it is one thing when the natural corresponds to the rational, quite another when the natural does not correspond. When the natural does correspond a person is rational and thinks spiritually; but when the natural does not correspond, he is not rational, and is unable to think spiritually. For with one whose natural does correspond to his rational, a line of communication is open enabling the light of heaven to flow in from the Lord by way of the rational into the natural, and to enlighten it with intelligence and wisdom. As a consequence he is rational and thinks spiritually. But with one whose natural does not correspond to his rational the line of communication is closed, and no more than a limited amount of light exists in general round about which enters in through chinks by way of the rational into the natural. Consequently he is not rational and does not think spiritually. For as is the influx of the light of heaven into a person, so is his thinking. From this it is evident that the nature of every person's thought is determined by the way in which, as regards good and truth, the natural corresponds to the rational.

[5] But spirits and angels scarcely think in the same way as men do. Their thought, it is true, is likewise based ultimately in the natural; for they have with them the whole natural memory and its affections, though they are not allowed to use that memory, 2475-2479. But although they are not allowed to use this, it nevertheless serves them as the ground-work or foundation for the ideas comprising their thought. Consequently the ideas which comprise their thought are interior, and their speech does not take the form of verbal expressions as with men but the form of real things. From this it is evident that with them also the nature of their thought is determined by that of the correspondence of their natural with their rational. Evident also is the fact that there are some spirits who are rational and think spiritually, and others who are not rational and do not think spiritually, the difference between the two depending entirely on the nature of their affections and consequent thoughts of things during their lifetime, that is, depending on the state of the life which they have acquired to themselves in the world.

[6] Therefore what thought may be which natural good possesses is evident to some extent from what has just been said above. That is to say, it is thought existing within the good of the natural. (According to spirits' way of thinking it is called the thought which natural good has, but according to men's it is called thought within the good of the natural.) It is within the latter - within the good of the natural - that the rational thinks. When good is the end in view, the thought which natural good has regarding the joining through the good of truth is accordingly thought within the natural - regarding the end in view. That is to say, it is thought about how truth can be joined to it, and joined according to Divine order, by the ordinary way, which, as often stated already, comes from the kinds of things that are external and therefore exist - in the ordered sequence of things - as those that are last or outermost. The entire regeneration of the natural begins with these. These outermost or last things are initial cognitions, such as those learned by infants and children, dealt with in 3665 (end).

[7] At first the truth of good, represented by 'Esau', is not in outward form joined to the good of truth, represented by 'Jacob', for in relation to the truth of good the good of truth exists inversely, 3669. Nevertheless they are joined together inmostly, that is, as regards ends in view. For the end that truth springing from good has in view is, as has been stated that truths may be joined according to order to itself, while the end in view of good springing from truth is the same. And since it is the end in view that joins them together, those two also are therefore so joined together, 3562, 3565. The inversion of order in the early stages is merely the means to an attainment of the end in view.