140. Now because the Holy Spirit means the Divine truth, and this was in the Lord Himself and was the Lord Himself (John 14:6), and so because the Holy Spirit could not proceed from any other source, it is said:
The Holy Spirit was not yet, because Jesus was not yet glorified, John 7:39.
and after His glorification:
He breathed on His disciples and said, Receive the Holy Spirit, John 20:22.
The reason why the Lord breathed on the disciples and said this was that breathing on was the external sign standing for inspiration by God; and inspiration means being brought into contact with communities of angels. This will allow the understanding to grasp what the angel Gabriel said about the Lord's conception:
The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; so that the holy thing that is born of you will be called the Son of God, Luke 1:35.
Also:
The angel of the Lord said to Joseph in a dream, Do not be afraid to take Mary as your betrothed, for what is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit; and Joseph did not touch her until she had given birth to her first-born son, Matthew 1:20, 25.
The Holy Spirit stands there for the Divine truth proceeding from Jehovah the Father; it was this that came forth which was 'the power of the Most High' which overshadowed His mother. So this statement tallies with what John says:
The Word was with God, and the Word was God; and the Word was made flesh, John 1:1, 14.
For a demonstration that the Word there means the Divine truth see the Faith of the New Church (3 above).
