628. And the angel stood near, saying.- That this signifies the will of the Lord, and command, is evident from the signification of standing near, which here denotes the will, of which we shall speak presently; and from the signification of angel, as denoting the Lord as to the Word, as shown above (n. 593); and from the signification of saying, when from the Lord, as denoting command, for that which the Lord says is to come to pass, or must be done by any one, is command. The reason why the angel standing near denotes in this passage the will of the Lord, is, that in the spiritual world, thought with the desire and will to see another, to speak with him, and give him a command, causes the other to be present, that is, to stand near. For in that world distances are not fixed and therefore measurable, as in the natural world; but similitude of affection, and of thought thence, causes presence, while their dissimilitude causes absence; all distances in that world have this origin. The basis of this fact is the universal law that the Lord is present with every one according to his love for Him, and according to his love towards the neighbour, and the thoughts therefrom. From this universal principle all distances, that is, presence and absence, among angels and spirits exist. When, therefore, any one desires to speak with another, that is to say, when he thinks about him, from a desire or will to speak with him, that other becomes immediately present, or he himself is present with him. That this is the case, may also be seen in Heaven and Hell 191-199), where space in heaven is treated of. From these things it is now evident why the angel standing near signifies the will of the Lord; for to stand near is to be present.

1179. 'Therefore it used to be said, Like Nimrod, mighty in hunting before Jehovah' means that since so many were being persuaded this became a proverbial expression. In addition to this it means that such a religion easily captivates people's minds. This becomes clear from what has been stated and also from the actual sense of the letter. Moreover because in early times names were given to real things this name was given to this form of worship, that is to say, it used to be said that 'Nimrod', meaning that form of worship, was 'mighty in hunting', that is, was one that captivated people's minds. The reason for the words 'before Jehovah' is that people with whom that form of worship existed called separated faith 'Jehovah' or 'a man Jehovah', as is clear from what has been stated already about Cain in 340, who likewise means faith separated from charity. The difference between Cain and Ham however lies in the fact that the former existed in the celestial Church which had perception, while the latter existed in the spiritual Church which had none. As a consequence the former was far more monstrous than the latter. In early times such people were called 'mighty', as in Isaiah,

All the glory of Kedar will be brought to an end, and the remainder of the number of the bows of the mighty men of the sons of Kedar will be diminished. Isaiah 21:16-17.

And in Hosea,

You have ploughed wickedness, you have reaped iniquity, you have eaten the fruit of lying, because you have trusted in your way, in the multitude of your mighty men. Hosea 10:13.

And in other places. They called themselves 'men' (vir) and 'mighty' from faith, for one particular word in the original language expresses the idea of being 'mighty' and at the same time that of a man (vir), and it is used in the Word in reference to faith, and indeed in both senses.