8398. And all the assemblage of the sons of Israel came unto the wilderness of Sin. That this signifies unto another state of temptation, is evident from the signification of “coming,” as being the abode of the successive that is signified by “journeying” (see n. 8397); from the signification of “the assemblage of the sons of Israel,” as being those who are of the spiritual church (n. 7843); from the signification of “the wilderness,” as being a state of undergoing temptations (see n. 8098); and from the signification of “Sin,” as being the quality of this state; for names include the whole quality of the state of the thing treated of, as has been abundantly shown above. From the temptation which is signified by the murmuring on account of the lack of bread and flesh, and from the consolation afterward which is signified by the manna and the quail, it is evident what “Sin” signifies, namely, the good which is from truth. Consequently “Sin,” which was a city of Egypt, and from which the wilderness of Sin took its name, in the opposite sense signifies the evil which is from falsity, in Ezekiel:

I will pour out My wrath upon Sin, the strength of Egypt; and I will cut off the multitude of No; and I will set a fire in Egypt, grieving Sin shall grieve, and No shall be for a breaking through, and Noph for the enemies daily; the young men of Aven and of Pi-beseth shall fall by the sword, and these shall go into captivity; and in Tehaphnehes the day shall be darkened, when I shall break there the yokes of Egypt (30:15-18);

[2] here are treated of those who are in memory-knowledges, and hatch therefrom falsities from which are evils; “Egypt” here denotes memory-knowledge; “Sin,” the evil which is from falsity; and “No,” the falsity from which is evil. That a deeper sense lies concealed here than that which stands forth in the letter, can be seen by everyone from this consideration alone-that the Word is Divine, and that, unless a deeper sense were in it, there would be scarcely any sense that can be apprehended, still less a sense containing what is holy. Hence it is very manifest that the names in the Word denote things, and that from them there results a general sense that is worthy of the Word which is from Jehovah. He who acknowledges the Word to be Divine cannot possibly deny this, provided he is willing to think from reason, or to form conclusions from an understanding that is for a while enlightened.

2625. At the appointed time. That this signifies when the rational was such as to receive, is evident from the signification of “time.” There are two things which while man lives in the world appear to be essential, because they are proper to nature, namely, space and time. Hence to live in space and time is to live in the world or in nature. But in the other life these two things are of no consequence. In the world of spirits indeed they do appear to be of some consequence, for the reason that spirits fresh from the body still retain the idea of natural things; yet it is not long before they perceive that there is no space and time there, but state instead; and that in the other life states correspond to spaces and times in nature; to spaces states as to Being [esse], and to times states as to Coming forth [existere]. (In regard to space or place see above, n. 1274, 1379, 1380, 1382)

[2] From this anyone can see what kind of an idea a man may have, while in the world or in nature, respecting the things of the other life and many arcana of faith; namely, that he is not willing to believe them until he apprehends them by means of the things in the world, nay, by sensuous things; for he must needs suppose that if he were to put off the idea of space and time, and still more space and time themselves, he would become absolutely nothing; and thus that he would have nothing left from which he could feel and think, except something confused and incomprehensible; when yet the case is exactly the reverse. Angelic life is of such a nature as to be the wisest and happiest of all.

[3] This is the reason why in the Word “ages” in the internal sense do not signify ages, but states; so that in this verse “old age” does not mean old age. And in the same way the numbers do not signify numbers, but some specific state, as for instance the number a hundred years, concerning which hereafter. From this we can now see that by the “appointed time” is signified the state when the rational was such as to receive.

[4] In regard to the specific matter here treated of, namely, that the Divine rational was and came forth from the unition of the Divine spiritual with the Divine celestial of the Lord, when the days were fulfilled for the human to be put off, and when the rational was such as to receive (all of which is signified in the internal sense by Sarah’s conceiving and bearing to Abraham a son to his old age at the appointed time), be it known that the human begins in the inmost of the rational (see n. 2106, 2194); and that the Lord advanced successively to the union of the Human Essence with the Divine Essence, and of the Divine Essence with the Human Essence (n. 1864, 2033, 2523); and this by His own power (n. 1921, 2025, 2026, 2083), by continual temptations and victories (n. 1737, 1813, 1690), and by continual revelations from His Divine (n. 1616, 2500); and this until at length He had expelled all the maternal human (n. 1414, 1444, 2574); and thus had made His Human Divine in respect to the rational, according to the things contained in this verse. Hence it is manifest what is to be understood by the days being fulfilled for the human to be put off, and by the rational being such as to receive.

[5] Some idea of this may be formed from what takes place in those who are being regenerated. The celestial things of love and the spiritual things of faith are not at once implanted in them by the Lord, but successively; and when by means of them the man’s rational has become such that it can receive, then for the first time is he becoming regenerate, for the most part by means of temptations in which he conquers. When these things take place, the days are fulfilled for him to put off the old man, and to put on the new. (Concerning man’s regeneration, see above, n. 677, 679, 711, 848, 986, 1555, 2475)