3268. The firstborn of Ishmael, Nebaioth; and Kedar, and Adbeel, and Mibsam; and Mishma, and Dumah, and Massa; Hadar, and Tema, Jetur, Naphish, and Kedemah. That these signify all things that belong to the spiritual church, especially among the Gentiles, is evident from the representation of those who are here named, some of whom are mentioned elsewhere in the Word, particularly in the prophetical books-as Nebaioth, Kedar, Dumah, and Tema-and who there signify such things as belong to the spiritual church, especially among the Gentiles; moreover the same is manifest from their being twelve, for “twelve” signifies all things of faith, thus of the church, as will be shown hereafter; and for this reason it is said in the sixteenth verse that they were “twelve princes of their peoples.”

[2] That by Nebaioth and Kedar are represented the things that belong to the spiritual church, especially among the Gentiles, namely its goods and derivative truths, is evident in Isaiah:

The abundance of camels shall cover thee, the dromedaries of Midian and Ephah; all they from Sheba shall come; they shall bring gold and frankincense, and they shall proclaim the praises of Jehovah. All the flocks of Kedar shall be gathered together unto thee, the rams of Nebaioth shall minister unto thee; they shall come up with acceptance on Mine altar (Isaiah 60:6-7)

which in the supreme sense is said of the Lord, and in the relative sense of His kingdom. The “flocks of Kedar” denote spiritual good (that a “flock” is spiritual good may be seen above, n. 343, 415, 2566); the “rams of Nebaioth” denote spiritual truth (that a “ram” is spiritual truth may be seen above, n. 2833).

[3] That “Kedar” is Arabia is manifest from the following passages, and that Arabia was called “Kedar” from the son of Ishmael is evident from the fact that in both verses lands or nations are enumerated all of which are named from the sons and grandsons of Abraham-as Midian, Ephah, and Sheba (concerning which see above, verses 2-4); and here likewise Kedar and Nebaioth.

[4] In Ezekiel:

Arabia, and all the princes of Kedar, these were the merchants of thy hand; in lambs, and rams, and he-goats, in these were they thy merchants (Ezekiel 27:21);

treating of Tyre, that is, of those who are in the knowledges of good and truth. (That “Tyre” has this signification may be seen above, n. 1201.) “Arabia” denotes spiritual good; the “princes of Kedar,” spiritual truths; “lambs, rams, and he-goats” denote spiritual goods and truths.

[5] In Jeremiah:

Arise ye, go up to Kedar, and lay waste the sons of the east. Their tents and their flocks shall they take; they shall carry away for themselves their curtains, and all their vessels, and their camels (Jeremiah 49:28-29); where the subject is the vastation of the spiritual church, meant by “Kedar and the sons of the east.” “Tents and flocks” denote the goods of this church; “curtains and vessels,” its truths; the holy things of worship are what are signified by “tents and flocks,” and by “curtains and vessels;” and all the holy things of worship relate to good and truth.

[6] But those who are not in truth, because not in good, are those who are represented by the “Arabians and Kedarites in the wilderness” as in Isaiah:

Babylon shall not be inhabited forever, neither shall the Arabian pitch tent there (Isaiah 13:19-20).

In the same:

Let the wilderness and the cities thereof lift up [their voice], the villages that Kedar doth inhabit (Isaiah 42:11).

In Jeremiah:

By the ways hast thou sat for them, as an Arabian in the wilderness (Jeremiah 3:2).

In David:

Woe is me, that I sojourn in Meshech, that I dwell with the tents of Kedar (Psalms 120:5).

[7] In Isaiah:

In the forest in Arabia shall ye lodge, O ye travelling companies of Dedanites. Bring ye waters to meet him that is thirsty; ye inhabitants of the land of Tema forestall the fugitive with his bread. For they shall wander before the swords, from before the drawn sword, from before the bent bow, and from before the grievousness of war. For thus hath the Lord said unto me, Yet within a year, according to the years of a hireling, and all the glory of Kedar shall be consumed; and the residue of the number of bows of the mighty men of the sons of Kedar (Isaiah 21:13-17).

To “lodge in the forest of Arabia” denotes vastation as to truth; “the travelling companies of Dedanites” denote those who are in knowledges (n. 3240, 3241); “the inhabitants of the land of Tema” denote those who are in simple good, such as is that of the well-disposed Gentiles. It is evident that these were called “Tema” from Ishmael’s son. “Kedar” denotes those who are in simple truth; of whom it is said that they shall “wander from before swords, and from before the grievousness of war,” by which is signified that they will not endure temptation combats, because they are no longer in good.

[8] In Jeremiah:

Pass over to the isles of Kittim, and see; and send unto Kedar, and consider diligently, and see whether there hath been done such a thing, whether a nation hath changed gods, which yet are no gods (Jeremiah 2:10-11).

The “isles of Kittim” denote those who are more remote from worship, that is, Gentiles who are in simple good, and thereby in natural truth (n. 1156, 1158); that “Kedar” also denotes the same is manifest.

[9] In the same:

Then took I the cup from the hand of Jehovah, and made all the nations to drink, unto whom Jehovah had sent me; Dedan, and Tema, and Buz, and all that are clipped at the corner [of the beard]; and all the kings of Arabia, and all the kings of the west, that dwell in the wilderness (Jeremiah 25:17, 23-24); where also the vastation of the spiritual church is treated of, and Tema and Arabia are named along with several others, from which it is manifest that by “Tema,” as by “Arabia,” those are signified who are of the spiritual church; but to Arabia are attributed kings and cities, while princes and villages are ascribed to Kedar.

[10] Besides these, Dumah also is mentioned in Isaiah (21:11). The reason why by these nations are signified the things that belong to the spiritual church, is that the Ancient Church, which was spiritual, was also among them (n. 1238, 2385); their doctrinals and rituals differed, and yet they were one church because they did not make faith, but charity, essential. In course of time however, as charity ceased, even that which there was of the church with them was lost; yet there still remained a representative of the church by them, with variety according to what there had been of the church with them. Hence it is that wherever they are named in the Word, they themselves are not signified, but only that of the church in general which had been there.

3240. And Jokshan begat Sheba and Dedan. That this signifies the derivations from the first class, is evident from the representation of Jokshan and of his sons Sheba and Dedan, concerning whom something will be said in what follows. As here there are mere names, and the states and derivations of the Lord’s spiritual church are signified by them, the nature of such states and derivations in general must be declared. The celestial church differs from the spiritual church in this respect: Those who are of the celestial church, and are called celestial, are in love, that is to say they are in the good and truth of love; while those who are of the spiritual church, and are called spiritual, are in faith, that is, they are in the good and truth of faith. The good which the celestial have is that of love to the Lord, and their truth is that of love to the neighbor; whereas the good which the spiritual have is that of charity toward the neighbor, and their truth is that of faith, insofar as this truth is doctrine concerning charity. This shows that the Lord’s spiritual kingdom, as well as His celestial kingdom, has good and truth, but with much difference.

[2] Be it known moreover that they who are in each kingdom are distinguished among themselves by good and truth, for the reason that there are some who are more in good and others who are more in truth. From this then come the derivations, that is, the derivations of good and the derivations of truth. In the Lord’s spiritual kingdom the derivations of good are what are represented by the sons of Jokshan who are named in this verse; but the derivations of truth in this kingdom are what are represented by the sons of Midian who are named in the following verse. Now as there are two classes of the spiritual (those who are more in good, and those who are more in truth), they have therefore two kinds of doctrinals, namely, those of charity and those of faith; doctrinals of charity for those who are in the good of faith and are here signified by the sons of Jokshan; but doctrinals of faith for those who are in the truth of faith and are signified by the sons of Midian.

[3] Sheba and Dedan are those who constitute the first class, that is, those who in the Lord’s spiritual kingdom are in the good of faith, and who have doctrinals of charity. From this it follows that by “Sheba and Dedan” are signified the knowledges of celestial things, or what is the same, those who are in these knowledges, that is, who are in the doctrinals of charity; for doctrinals are knowledges, and the celestial of the spiritual man is that of charity. That “Sheba” and “Dedan” have this signification was shown in Part First (n. 117, 1168, 171, 1172); but there Sheba and Dedan are the great-grandsons of Ham, and are called sons of Raamah; but be it known that there were no such persons as Ham and Japheth and Shem, but that those who after the flood belonged to the church called “Noah” were distinguished as to goods and truths into three classes, and these were the names given to those classes (n. 736, 1062, 1065, 1140, 1141, 1162, and in other places). Nevertheless there were nations that were so called, but these nations were descended from others, as it is here plainly said that Sheba and Dedan were descended from Jokshan, the son of Abraham by Keturah.

[4] That “Sheba” signifies those who are in the knowledges of celestial things, thus who are in the good of faith, is evident from the passages cited above (n. 117, 1171); and that “Dedan” has a similar signification is also evident from the passages cited (n. 1172), and further from the following.

In Isaiah:

The prophecy concerning Arabia: in the forest in Arabia shall ye spend the night, ye companies of Dedan; bring ye waters to meet him that is thirsty, ye inhabitants of the land of Tema, with the bread thereof meet him that wandereth, for they shall wander before swords, before an outstretched sword (Isaiah 21:13-15).

“Spending the night in the forest,” signifies being desolated as to good; for by “Arabia” are meant those who are in celestial things, that is, who are in the good of faith, and “spending the night there in the forest” is being no longer in goods, from which comes desolation, which is also described by “wandering before swords, before an outstretched sword.” Celestial things, that is, the goods of faith, or what is the same, the works of charity in which they are, are signified by “bringing waters to meet him that is thirsty, and meeting with bread him that wandereth.”

[5] In Jeremiah:

I took the cup from the hand of Jehovah, and made all the nations drink unto whom Jehovah sent me: Jerusalem, and the cities of Judah, and her kings and her princes, to give them up to desolation; Pharaoh, king of Egypt, and his servants, and his princes, and all his people; and all the kings of Tyre, and all the kings of Zidon; Dedan, and Tema, and Buz, and all that are clipped at the corner [of the beard]; all the kings of Zimri, and all the kings of Elam, and all the kings of Media, and all the kings of the north (Jeremiah 25:17-19, 22-23, 25-26).

Here also the desolation of the spiritual church is treated of, the different classes of which church are enumerated in order, and are signified by “Jerusalem,” the “cities of Judah,” “Egypt,” “Tyre,” “Zidon,” “Dedan,” “Tema,” “Buz,” “Zimri,” “Elam,” “Media.”

[6] In Ezekiel:

Sheba and Dedan and the merchants of Tarshish and all the young lions thereof shall say to thee, Art thou come to take the spoil? Hast thou assembled thine assembly to take the prey? to carry away silver and gold, to take away cattle and goods, to take great spoil? (Ezekiel 38:13);

treating of Gog, by whom is signified external worship separate from internal, which is idolatrous (n. 1151); “Sheba and Dedan” denote the internal things of worship, namely, the goods of faith; “Tarshish” denotes a corresponding external worship; the “silver, gold, cattle, goods, spoil,” which Gog, or the external of worship separate from the internal, desires to take away, are the knowledges of good and truth for which they fight, and which those defend who are signified by “Sheba and Dedan;” wherefore these are called “young lions.” “Sheba” properly denotes those who are in the knowledges of good; “Dedan” those who are in the knowledges of truth from good.