9160. Even unto God shall come the word of them both; he whom God shall condemn. That this signifies a searching and a judging by means of truth, is evident from the signification of “even unto God shall come the word,” as being a searching by means of truth (of which below); and from the signification of “condemning,” as being a judging and awarding of the penalty to him who has transgressed. That “even unto God shall come the word” signifies a searching by means of truth, is because “coming to God” denotes to come to the judges, who from truth were to search concerning this matter. Therefore also it is said “he whom God shall condemn,” with the verb in the plural number. Moreover, in the original tongue God is called El, in the singular number, but more frequently Elohim, in the plural; for the reason that the Divine truth proceeding from the Lord is shared in heaven in many ways among the angels; for as many as are the angels, so many are the recipients of truth Divine, each in his own manner (n. 3241, 3744-3746, 3986, 4149, 5598, 7236, 7833, 7836). Hence it is that the angels are called “gods” (n. 4295, 4402, 7268, 7873, 8301); and also “judges,” because the judges were not to judge from themselves, but from the Lord. They judged also from the law of Moses, and thus from the Word which is from the Lord. Even at this day judgment is administered from the Lord when it is done from conscience, in accordance with truths.

[2] In the Word the Lord is called “God” from the Divine truth which proceeds from Him; and “Jehovah” from the Divine good (n. 4402, 6303, 6905, 7268, 8988). Hence where good is treated of in the Word, the Lord is called “Jehovah,” and “God” where truth is treated of (n. 2586, 2769, 2807, 2822, 3921, 4402, 7268, 8988); thus “God” denotes truth (n. 4287, 7010, 7268). From all this it is now evident what is signified by “if the thief be not caught, the lord of the house shall be brought unto God” (verse 7); and here by “even unto God shall come the word of them both, and he whom God shall condemn, shall repay;” and also what is signified by “God” in the following passages:

Aaron shall speak for thee unto the people; and it shall come to pass that he shall be to thee for a mouth, and thou shall be to him for God (Exodus 4:16).

That “Moses” denotes the Divine truth, or the Law; and that “for a mouth” denotes the doctrine therefrom, which was represented by Aaron, see n. 7010. Again:

Jehovah said unto Moses, See, I have made thee a god to Pharaoh; and Aaron thy brother shall be thy prophet (Exodus 7:1. 7265).

And in the first book of Samuel:

Aforetime in Israel, when a man went to inquire of God, thus he said, Come and let us go to the Seer; for he that is now called the prophet was beforetime called the Seer (1 Samuel 9:9); where “the Seer” and “the prophet” denote truth Divine, and the doctrine of truth and good thence derived (n. 2534, 7269).

7236. According to their armies. That this signifies according to the genera and species of good in truths, is evident from the signification of “armies,” as being the truths which are of faith (see n. 3448). But the goods of the spiritual church are in their essence nothing else than truths, for these are called goods when the life is according to them. Hence by “armies,” when said of the regenerate within the spiritual church, are signified the goods of truth, or goods in truths. The reason why it is said that the sons of Israel were to be “led forth according to their armies,” is that it is said of them when going out of Egypt; in the internal sense when they come out of combats with falsities, thus after they have waged spiritual warfare. By their being “led forth according to their armies” is properly meant that they were to be classified as to goods in truths, thus into classes according to the qualities of good, and this in order that they might represent the Lord’s kingdom in the heavens, where all have been classified and allotted a place in the Grand Man according to the quality of the good, both generically and specifically.

[2] From the heavens (as all there have been classified according to goods) it can be seen how manifold and various good is, for it is so various that one is never in the like good with another; nay, if myriads of myriads were multiplied to eternity, the good of one would not be like that of another; just as one person has not the like face as another; moreover, in the heavens good forms the faces of the angels. That there is perpetual variety is because every form consists of various distinct things, for if two things were exactly alike, they could not be two things, but one. Hence also it is that in nature there is never one thing in every respect like another.

[3] That which makes good so various is truth; for when truth is conjoined with good it qualifies it. The reason why truth is so manifold and various that it can so greatly vary good, is that truths are countless, and interior truths are in a different form from exterior truths, and because the fallacies which are of the external senses adjoin themselves, and also falsities which are of concupiscences. Seeing then that truths are so countless, it can be seen that by means of the conjunctions so many varieties arise that one thing can never be the same as another. This is clear to him who knows that from only twenty-three letters, put together in different ways, there can arise the words of all languages, and even with a perpetual variety if there were thousands of languages. What then may not arise from thousands and myriads of various things such as truths. And this is confirmed by the common maxim, “many men, many minds,” that is, there are as many diversities of ideas as there are men.