9126. 'And is struck, and he dies' means if in this situation harm is done to it, so great that it is wiped out. This is clear from the meaning of 'being struck', when said of truth or good, as being injured or suffering harm, as in 9034, 9058; and from the meaning of 'dying' as being wiped out. The reason why truth and good are meant here is that 'the thief' or 'the theft' means that which has been taken away, thus good and truth, as also in the words that follow in verse 4, If the theft is certainly found in his hand, whether it is ox or ass, or member of the flock, [and they are] alive ... 'Ox', 'ass', and 'member of the flock' mean exterior and interior forms of good and truths; and they are called 'the theft' because they are in the thief's hand. The like applies to silver and vessels in verse 7, in that these as well mean interior and exterior truths. 'The thief' has the same meaning as 'the theft' because in the abstract sense, in which things are understood in abstraction from a person, 'the thief' is the theft, that is, the truth or good that has been taken away, see immediately above in 9125.

4797. The changes that take place in the state of their affections are also clearly visible in angels' faces. When they are in their own community the face they present is their own particular one; but when they enter another community the affections for goodness and truth belonging to this other community bring a change to their faces. Yet their own true face is so to speak the basic surface, which is identifiable within all the changes that take place. I have witnessed the consecutive variations taking place in keeping with the affections of the communities with which they were communicating. For every angel is in some province of the Grand Man and so communicates generally and widely with all throughout the same province, even though he is in one part of that province to which he specifically corresponds. I have seen them bringing variations to their faces by changing from one border-line of affection to another; yet I observed that they preserved the same faces in general, so that the ruling affection shone out in every variation of them. Thus their faces displayed the full range of that entire affection.

[2] And what was quite astonishing, the changes which affections undergo from young childhood to adult life were also shown by variations in the face. I was allowed to see how much of young childhood was preserved in adult life, and that it was this that gave adult life its essentially human quality. For innocence - the external form of it - is present in a young child, and innocence constitutes that essentially human quality; indeed innocence is so to speak the basic attribute into which love and charity from the Lord can enter. When a person is being regenerated and becoming wise the innocence of infancy which has been external becomes internal. Consequently true wisdom resides in no other abode than innocence, 2305, 2306, 3183, 3994; also, no one can enter heaven except one who has some degree of innocence, according to the Lord's words,

Unless you become as young children you will not enter the kingdom of heaven. Matthew 18:3; Mark 10:15.