9302. Verses 20-30. Behold I send an angel before thee, to guard thee in the way, and to bring thee to the place which I have prepared. Take heed of his face, and hear his voice, lest thou provoke him; for he will not endure your transgression, because My name is in the midst of him. For if hearing thou shalt hear his voice, and do all that I speak, I will act as an enemy against thine enemies, and I will act as an adversary against thine adversaries. When Mine angel shall go before thee, and shall bring thee unto the Amorite, and the Hittite, and the Perizzite, and the Canaanite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite; and I shall cut him off; thou shalt not bow down thyself to their gods, and shalt not serve them, and shalt not do after their works; for destroying thou shalt destroy them, and breaking shalt break in pieces their statues. And ye shall serve Jehovah your God, and He shall bless thy bread, and thy waters; and I will take away disease from the midst of thee. There shall not be one miscarrying, or barren, in thy land; the number of thy days I will fulfill. I will send My terror before thee, and I will trouble all the people to whom thou shalt come, and I will give to thee the neck of all thine enemies. And I will send the hornet before thee, and it shall drive out the Hivite, the Canaanite, and the Hittite, from before thee. I will not drive him out from before thee in one year; lest perchance the land be desolate, and the wild beast of the field be multiplied upon thee. By little and little I will drive him out from before thee, until thou be fruitful, and inherit the land.

“Behold I send an angel before thee,” signifies the Lord as to the Divine Human; “to guard thee in the way,” signifies His providence and guard from the falsities of evil; “and to bring thee to the place which I have prepared,” signifies introduction by Him into heaven according to the good of life and of faith; “take heed of his face,” signifies holy fear; “and hear his voice,” signifies obedience to the commandments which are from Him; “lest thou provoke him,” signifies a turning away from Him through falsities from evil; “for he will not endure your transgression,” signifies because these are opposed to truths from good; “because My name is in the midst of him,” signifies that from Him is all the good of love and truth of faith; “for if hearing thou shalt hear his voice,” signifies instruction in the commandments of faith, and reception; “and do all that I speak,” signifies compliance from faith and love; “I will act as an enemy against thine enemies,” signifies that the Lord will avert all falsities derived from evil; “and I will act as an adversary against thine adversaries,” signifies that He will avert all evils from which are falsities; “when Mine angel shall go before thee,” signifies a life in accordance with the commandments of the Lord; “and shall bring thee unto the Amorite, and the Hittite, and the Perizzite, and the Canaanite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite, and I shall cut him off,” signifies when the Lord has protected against the evils and falsities which infest the church, and has removed them; “thou shalt not bow down thyself to their gods,” signifies that falsities of evil are not to be worshiped; “and shalt not serve them,” signifies that neither are they to be obeyed; “and shalt not do after their works,” signifies that evils of life are not to be followed after; “for destroying thou shalt destroy them,” signifies that evils must be wholly removed; “and breaking shalt break in pieces their statues,” signifies in like manner the falsities of worship; “and ye shall serve Jehovah your God,” signifies the worship of the Lord alone; “and he shall bless thy bread, and thy waters,” signifies the increase of the good of love and truth of faith; “and I will take away disease from the midst of thee,” signifies protection from falsifications of truth and adulterations of good; “there shall not be one miscarrying, or barren, in thy land,” signifies that goods and truths will proceed in their order in continual progression; “the number of thy days I will fulfill,” signifies even to a full state; “I will send My terror before thee,” signifies the terror felt by those who are in the evils of falsity on account of the truths of good; “and I will trouble all the people,” signifies the dismay of all falsities; “to whom thou shalt come,” signifies at the presence of the Lord; “and I will give to thee the neck of all thine enemies,” signifies the flight and damnation of falsities; “and I will send the hornet before thee,” signifies the dread felt by those who are in falsities from evil; “and it shall drive out the Hivite, the Canaanite, and the Hittite, from before thee,” signifies the flight of the falsities that are from evils; “I will not drive him out from before thee in one year,” signifies no hasty flight or removal of them; “lest perchance the land be desolate,” signifies a deficiency in that case, and but little spiritual life; “and the wild beast of the field be multiplied upon thee,” signifies a flowing in of falsities from the delights of the loves of self and of the world; “by little and little I will drive him out from before thee,” signifies removal by degrees according to order; “until thou be fruitful,” signifies according to the increase of good; “and inherit the land,” signifies until in good, and thus regenerate.

3183. And her nurse. That this signifies from the innocence appertaining thereto (that they also sent this away, that is, separated it from themselves), appears from the signification of a “nurse,” or one that gives suck, as being innocence. Repeated mention is made in the Word of those that suck, and of those that give suck; and by the former is signified the first state of infants, which state it is evident must be a state of innocence; for when first born, man is introduced into a state of innocence, in order that this may be a plane for all the succeeding states, and be the inmost in them; which state is signified in the Word by a “suckling.” Next he is introduced into a state of the affection of celestial good, that is, of love toward his parents, which with such infants is in the place of love to the Lord; and this state is signified by an “infant.”

Afterwards he is introduced into a state of the affection of spiritual good, or of mutual love, that is, of charity toward his playmates, which state is signified by “boys.” As he advances further in age, he is introduced into a state of the affection of truth; this is signified by “young men;” and the subsequent states are signified by “men,” and finally by “old men.” This last state, signified by “old men,” is the state of wisdom, in which is the innocence of infancy; thus the first state and the last are united; and man when old, being again a little child, but wise, is introduced into the Lord’s kingdom.

[2] From all this it is evident that innocence is the first state, which is that of the sucking child. Hence also she that gives suck signifies innocence; for of the giver and the receiver, as of the actor and the one acted upon, a similar state is perceived. It is here said that they sent away also the nurse (or her who gave suck), to the intent that the affection of truth might be described, namely, that it was from innocence; for the affection of truth is not the affection of truth unless innocence is in it (see n. 2526, 2780, 3111); for by innocence the Lord flows into this affection, and indeed with wisdom, since true innocence is wisdom itself (see n. 2305, 2306); and in the eyes of the angels they who are in innocence appear as infants (n. 154, 2306).

[3] That in the Word a “sucking child” signifies innocence, is also evident from other passages; as in David:

Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings hast Thou founded strength (Psalms 8:2; Matthew 21:16); where “babes” denote celestial love, and “sucklings,” innocence.

In Jeremiah:

Wherefore commit ye great evil against your souls, to cut off from you man and woman, the infant and the suckling out of the midst of Judah, that I should leave you none remaining? (Jeremiah 44:7); where the “infant and the suckling” in like manner denote celestial love and the innocence thereof; and when these become none, then there are no longer any “remains,” that is, any good and truth remaining stored up by the Lord in the internal man (that these are remains, may be seen above, n. 1906, 2284); for all goods and truths perish together with innocence, inasmuch as innocence is immediately from the very Divine, and thus is the very essential in them all.

[4] Again:

The infant and the suckling faint in the streets of the city (Lam. 2:11); where the signification is the same. Again:

The whales draw out the breast, they give suck to their young ones; the daughter of My people is become cruel; the tongue of the suckling cleaveth to the roof of his mouth for thirst; the little children ask bread, and no man reaches it unto them (Lam. 4:3-4).

The “suckling” again denoting innocence; “little children,” the affections of good.

In Moses:

Without shall the sword bereave, and from the chambers terror, both the young man, and the virgin, the suckling with the old man (Deuteronomy 32:25).

The “sword bereaving the young man, the virgin, the suckling with the old man,” signifies that falsity will destroy the affection of truth, and the affection of good; also innocence together with wisdom.

In Isaiah:

They shall bring thy sons in their bosom, and thy daughters shall be carried upon the shoulder, and kings shall be thy nourishers, and their queens those who give thee suck (Isaiah 49:22-23); where “kings thy nourishers” denotes intelligence; and “queens those who give thee suck,” wisdom: and that this is of innocence, has been stated above.