4861. 'And sat in the gate of the fountains, which is on the road to Timnah' means that which lies between the truths of the Church and falsities. This is clear from the meaning of 'the fountains' as the truths of the Church which arise out of the Word, for 'a fountain' in the universal sense means the Word, dealt with in 2702, 3096, 3424. 'In the gate of them' means at the place of entry into them. And because the external truths which belong to the sense of the letter of the Word serve as the place of entry, these are meant by 'the gate'. Unless those truths receive light from internal truths, that is, from those which belong to the internal sense, they present themselves as falsities among those governed by evil. Therefore 'the gate of the fountains' here means that which lies between the truths of the Church and falsities. 'On the road to Timnah' means for the use of the Church, for 'Timnah' means a state when the interests of the Church are consulted, 4855, 4857.

1198. 'From whom they came forth' means that cognitions, as these exist with them, are facts. This is clear from what has been stated. These are not said to have been 'begotten' by those who belonged to Egypt but to have 'gone forth', for they are not such as use natural and factual knowledge to reason about spiritual and celestial things and in so doing fabricate for themselves doctrinal teachings, as do those described before. Instead they learn cognitions of faith from another source, but have no other end in view to knowing and retaining these in the memory than they have with other things in which they have no interest beyond merely knowing them, and only then for the reason that by so knowing they may be promoted to positions of importance, and for other like reasons. So different is knowledge of cognitions of faith from knowledge of natural things that the two have scarcely anything in common. This explains why they are not said to have been 'bore' but to have 'gone forth' from them. Such being the character of 'Philistines' they inevitably pervert cognitions of faith by means of reasonings from them, and as a consequence fabricate false doctrines for themselves. They belong therefore among those who are barely able to be regenerated and to receive charity, both because they are uncircumcised at heart and because the false assumptions and consequently the life of their understanding hinder and prevent.