9387. 'And he rose early in the morning' means joy from the Lord. This is clear from the meaning of 'rising up' as that which implies a raising up towards higher things, dealt with in 2401, 2785, 2912, 2927, 3171, 4103; and from the meaning of 'the morning' and 'early' as the Lord and things that come from Him, such as peace, innocence, love, and joy, dealt with in 2405, 2780, 7681, 8426, 8812. The reason why 'the morning' and 'early' mean these things is that the changing seasons through the year of spring, summer, autumn, and winter, and also the changing times through the day of morning, midday, evening, and night correspond to just so many states in heaven. Morning accordingly corresponds to the coming and presence of the Lord, which takes place when an angel enters a state of peace, innocence, and heavenly love, and consequently has a feeling of joy. Regarding these correspondences, see 5672, 5962, 6110, 8426, 9213.

9320. 'For you shall utterly destroy them' means that evils must be completely removed. This is clear from the meaning of 'destroying' - when it has reference to evils and falsities, meant by the nations of the land of Canaan and their gods - as removing. The reason why 'destroying' means removing is that those governed by goodness and truth never destroy those ruled by evil and falsity, but merely move them away. This they do because good, not evil, governs their actions, and good comes from the Lord, who never destroys anyone. Those ruled by evil however and consequently by falsity try to destroy, and so far as they can they do destroy those governed by good. This they do because evil rules their actions. But since, when they try to do so, they make their attack on good which comes from the Lord, thus on what is of God, they destroy themselves, that is, they hurl themselves into damnation and into hell. Such is the law of order. And why it is such, see 4299, 7643, 7679, 7710, 7926, 7989, 8137, 8146, 8265, 8945, 8946.

[2] The reason why the Israelites and Jews were to destroy the nations of the land of Canaan was that they themselves represented spiritual and heavenly realities, while the nations represented hellish and devilish things, which can never exist together with those realities since they are opposites. The reason why they were allowed to destroy the nations was that no Church existed among them, only a representative of the Church, so that the Lord was not present among them either except through things of a representative nature, 4307. For they were interested in outward forms but not their inner substances, that is, in the worship that represented goodness and truth but not goodness and truth themselves. People like this are allowed to destroy, kill, and consign to slaughter and complete destruction. But people who are interested in outward forms and at the same time in their inner substance are not allowed to do those things, since their actions must be governed by good, and good comes from the Lord.

[3] The fact that the Jews and Israelites were such is declared explicitly by Moses,

Do not say in your heart, when Jehovah your God has thrust out the nations before you, Because of my righteousness Jehovah has brought me in to possess this land. It is not because of your righteousness and because of the uprightness of your heart; for you are a stiff-necked people. Deuteronomy 9:4-6.

And elsewhere,

They are a nation from whom counsel has perished, nor is there intelligence in them. From the vine of Sodom comes their vine, and from the fields of Gomorrah; their grapes are grapes of poison, they have clusters of bitterness. The poison of snakes (draco) is their wine, and the cruel poison of asps. Is not this hidden away with Me, sealed up in My treasuries? Deuteronomy 32:28, 32-34.

'The vine' in the internal sense means the Church, 1069, 5113, 6375, 6376, 9277; 'grapes' and 'clusters' mean the internal forms and the external forms of that Church's good, 1071, 5117, 6378; and 'wine' means that Church's internal truth, 1071, 1798, 6377. From this one may see what is meant by the assertions that their vine comes from the vine of Sodom and from the fields of Gomorrah, that their grapes are grapes of poison and clusters of bitterness, and that their wine is the poison of snakes and the cruel poison of asps. The fact that all this was known to Jehovah, that is, to the Lord, is meant by the remarks about its being hidden away with Him and sealed up in His treasuries.

[4] In John,

Jesus said to the Jews, You are from your father the devil, and the desires of your father you will to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and has not stood in the truth. John 8:44.

This is why they are called a wicked and adulterous generation, Matthew 12:39, as well as a brood of vipers, Matthew 3:7; 12:34; 23:33; Luke 3:7. That they were like this is also described by the Lord in His parables in Matthew 21:33-45; Mark 12:1-9; Luke 14:16-24; 20:9ff.

Regarding that nation, that it was the worst nation; that in their worship they were interested in outward forms but not their inner substance; that no Church existed among them, only a representative of the Church; but that nevertheless they were able to represent the internal realities of the Church, see 3398, 3479, 3480, 3732 (end), 3881 (end), 4208, 4281, 4288-4290, 4293, 4307, 4314, 4316, 4317, 4429, 4433, 4444, 4500, 4503, 4680, 4815, 4818, 4820, 4825, 4832, 4837, 4844, 4847, 4865, 4868, 4874, 4899, 4903, 4911-4913, 5057, 5998, 6304, 6832, 6877, 7048, 7051, 7248, 7401, 7439, 8301, 8588, 8788, 8806, 8814, 8819, 8871, 8882, 9284.

2780. 'In the morning Abraham rose up early' means a state of peace and innocence. This is clear from the meaning of 'in the morning', also of 'rising up in the early morning', when used in reference to the Lord, who is 'Abraham' here. 'The morning' in the universal sense means the Lord, and from this His kingdom. Consequently it means the celestial element of love in general and in particular, as shown in 2333. And as it means those things it means the state itself in which they exist, which state is one of peace and innocence. The state of peace in heaven is like that at dawn on earth. Within the state of peace in heaven all celestial and spiritual things manifest themselves, and from it they derive all their bliss, blessedness, and happiness, even as at dawn on earth when all things present themselves to man with a delightful and gladsome air, for each specific celestial or spiritual thing receives its character from the general affection, 920, 2384. The same applies to the state of innocence. This manifests itself within the state of peace and is something general and overall which brings itself to bear on all things of love and faith. Unless the latter possess innocence within them they lack their essential element. It is for this reason that nobody is able to enter heaven unless he possesses a measure of innocence, Mark 10:15. From this it is evident what 'in the morning' means in the internal sense, even more what is meant by the words 'in the morning he rose up early'. And since in the highest sense 'the morning' is the Lord, and He is the author of the state which brings into being and exerts an influence on the things that exist in His kingdom, 'in the morning' and 'rising up in the morning' also mean further things still which arise in that state and are related to the things that follow in the internal sense.