4085. 'And the angel of God said to me in a dream, Jacob. And I said, Behold, here I am' means perception from the Divine, and presence within that obscurity. This is clear from the meaning of 'saying' in historical narratives of the Word as perceiving - often dealt with already; from the meaning of 'the angel of God' as from the Divine (for when mentioned in the Word 'an angel' means something essentially the Lord's, that is, something belonging to the Divine, 1925, 2319, 2821, 3039, the reason being that no angel speaks from himself but from the Lord, especially when he does so in a dream, as he does here to Jacob. What is more, angels are such that they are annoyed if anything of what is good and true spoken by them is attributed to themselves; and so far as possible they remove any such ideas existing in others, especially in man. For they know and perceive that everything good and true which they think, will, and carry into effect originates in the Lord, and so in the Divine. And from this it may be seen that in the Word something essentially the Lord's, that is, something Divine, is meant by 'angels'); and from the meaning of 'in a dream' as within obscurity, dealt with in 2514, 2528. Presence within the natural, where it dwells in obscurity, is the meaning of Jacob's reply.

2528. 'God said to him in the dream' means a perception that was less obscure. This is clear from what has been stated and explained above in 2514. The reason why in this chapter the name 'God' is used but not 'Jehovah', except in the last verse, is that spiritual matters, that is, matters of doctrine concerning faith, are the subject. For when spiritual matters are referred to, the name 'God' is used, but when celestial matters, that is, love and charity, are dealt with, the name Jehovah' is used, see 709, 732, 2001.