9371. THE INTERNAL SENSE.

Verses 1-2. And He said unto Moses, Come up unto Jehovah, thou and Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel; and bow yourselves afar off; and Moses, he alone, shall come near unto Jehovah; and they shall not come near; and the people shall not come up with him. “And He said unto Moses,” signifies that which concerns the Word in general; “come up unto Jehovah,” signifies conjunction with the Lord; “thou and Aaron,” signifies the Word in the internal sense and the external sense; “Nadab and Abihu,” signifies doctrine from both senses; “and seventy of the elders of Israel,” signifies the chief truths of the church which are of the Word, or of doctrine, and which agree with good; “and bow yourselves afar off,” signifies humiliation and adoration from the heart, and then the influx of the Lord; “and Moses, he alone, shall come near unto Jehovah,” signifies the conjunction and presence of the Lord through the Word in general; “and they shall not come near,” signifies no separate conjunction and presence; “and the people shall not come up with him,” signifies no conjunction whatever with the external apart from the internal.

17. These approximate or general explanations of the preceding words, not being presented in a continuous series, will seem disconnected; this is the result of each expression being explained separately, and of the subjoining of the internal sense to the sense of the letter, which is different, each being immediately considered apart. This however, does not happen with the angels, who are in the internal sense. These do not see the sense of the letter, nor do they know anything about it, but the internal sense only; and because they see this in the light of heaven, they see it in such a series, in such connection, and also in such fulness and, consequently, in such wisdom, as, cannot be expressed and described by any human words. The ideas of angels, being spiritual, also conjoin all the contents in a wonderful manner, and embrace more things than a man can conceive or express by his ideas, which are natural, even as to the thousandth part.