5969. 'And his heart failed, for he did not believe them' means a lack of natural life and consequent lack of understanding. This is clear from the meaning of 'his heart failed' as a lack of life, and because these words have reference to 'Jacob', who represents natural good, 5965, it is a lack of natural life; and from the meaning of 'not believing' as a lack of understanding. The word consequent is used because the life that belongs to the will always precedes and that of the understanding follows; and the reason for this is that life resides solely in the will, not in the understanding except as life received from the will. This is clear from good which exists in the will and truth which exists in the understanding, in that good has life within it but not truth except as it receives it from that good. It is quite plain that what has life is always prior and what receives life from it is posterior. This explains the use of the expression 'a lack of natural life and consequent lack of understanding', meant by 'his heart failed, for he did not believe them'.

4517. 'To the Canaanite and the Perizzite' means those who are governed by good and truth. This is clear from the meaning of 'the Canaanite' here as those who are governed by the good of the Church, and 'the Perizzite' those who are governed by the truth of the Church. Canaanite and Perizzite have these meanings because the Ancient Church continued to exist in that land among those people, as stated just above in 4516. For in that land there were people who belonged to the Most Ancient Church, see 4447, 4454. There were also those who belonged to the Ancient Church, in particular the one called the Hebrew Church, which was why people from the land of Canaan were in general called the Hebrews, Genesis 40:15, and had altars and offered sacrifices, and why after they had become idolaters the command was frequently given for their altars to be destroyed. Therefore so long as the Church or something like the Church remained with them 'the Canaanites' meant the good of the Church and 'the Perizzites' the truth of the Church. But once everything of the Church with these had reached its end 'Canaanite' means evil and 'Perizzite' falsify, 1573, 1574.