3085. These two verses describe the affection for truth - its origin, its nature, and the initial stage of its introduction. Its origin is described by the words 'Rebekah came out, who was born to Bethuel, the son of Milkah, the wife of Nahor, Abraham's brother'. These words convey in the internal sense the whole origin of that affection, see 3077, 3078. Its nature is described by the words 'her pitcher was on her shoulder', and 'the girl was very good looking'. These words describe its nature, see 3079-3081. The initial stage of its introduction is described by the words 'she went down to the spring, and filled her pitcher, and went up', as may be seen in 3082-3084. But these considerations, as stated above, are beyond the grasp not only of any ordinary human intellect but also of one that is more advanced. For such is the nature of the things contained in the internal sense in this chapter and in some of those that follow.

[2] The reason for this is that the idea can hardly enter anyone's head that there is a constant Divine influx by way of the internal man into the external man - that is, the idea that celestial and spiritual things flow by way of the rational man into the natural man, or what amounts to the same, into the natural things belonging to the external. Also, the idea that by means of that influx truths are constantly being summoned out of the natural man, raised up, and implanted in the good that is present in the rational can hardly enter in. And if not even these things are known to take place, what possibility is there of anyone knowing how the whole process takes place, a process involving wisdom so great, as it is from the Divine, that not the tiniest fraction can ever be explored? Only its most general aspects can be seen.

[3] This therefore being so, let no one be surprised that the things present here in the internal sense cannot be described intelligibly, and the things which are described are beyond human comprehension, for they have reference to and describe that process. Furthermore the internal sense exists chiefly for angels, to the end that by means of the Word communication may exist between heaven and man; and to the angels these things are among such as give them great delight, because food in heaven consists of everything that constitutes intelligence and wisdom. And to them the blessedness of wisdom and intelligence consists in whatever has the Lord as its subject.

7089. 'And afterwards Moses and Aaron came' means the Divine Law and the teachings derived from it. This is clear from the representation of 'Moses' as the Lord in respect of the Divine Law, dealt with in 6752; and from the representation of 'Aaron' as teachings that present what is good and true, dealt with in 6998. The expression 'Divine Law', which Moses represents, is used to mean the Word as it is in its internal sense, thus as it is in heaven, whereas the expression 'teaching' is used to mean the Word as it is in its literal sense, thus as it is on earth. How great the difference is may be recognized from the explanations given so far that have regard to the internal sense of the Word. Let the Ten Commandments, which specifically are called the Law, be used to illustrate the point. The literal meaning of them is that one should honour one's parents, not kill, commit adultery, or steal, and so on. But the internal sense is that one should worship the Lord, not harbour hatred, falsify what is true, or claim for oneself what is the Lord's. These are the ways in which those four commandments are understood in heaven, and the rest too in their own manner. For in heaven they know no other Father than the Lord; therefore instead of honouring parents they take the commandment to mean that the Lord should be worshipped. In heaven they do not know what it is to kill, for they live for ever; but instead of killing they understand harbouring hatred and harming another person's spiritual life. Nor in heaven do they know what it is to commit adultery; consequently they perceive instead what corresponds to that prohibition - being forbidden to falsify what is true. And instead of stealing they take the prohibition to mean that one should not take away from the Lord anything such as goodness and truth and claim it as one's own.

[2] This is what the Law and also the whole of the Word is like in heaven, and so what it is like in its internal sense. Indeed it is far more profound, for most of what they think and say in heaven cannot find expression in the words of human speech, because they are in the spiritual world, not the natural world, and things belonging to the spiritual world are as greatly superior to those belonging to the natural world as non-material things are to material. Yet because material things nevertheless correspond to them, material things can be used to disclose them. That is, natural speech can be used but not spiritual, for spiritual speech does not consist of material words but of spiritual words. And spiritual words consist of ideas that are converted into words in the spiritual atmosphere, and are represented by variegations of heavenly light, heavenly light being in itself nothing other than Divine intelligence and wisdom radiating from the Lord. All this shows what is meant by the Divine Law in its genuine sense, which 'Moses' represents, and what is meant by teaching, which 'Aaron' represents.