3122. With regard to this truth, by which charity is meant, there is more to be said: The most ancient people, who were celestial, understood nothing else by mercy and truth from the Lord than the reception ¹ of the influx of love to the Lord and from this of charity towards the neighbour; but the ancients, who were spiritual, took mercy and truth present with them from the Lord to mean charity and faith. The reason for this was that those who were celestial never thought about the things that are matters of faith or truth but about those that are matters of love or good, as becomes clear from what has been stated already about the celestial man in 202, 337, 2669, 2715. Furthermore it was by means of charity towards the neighbour that celestial people were led into love to the Lord when they were being reformed and regenerated. From this it is evident that 'mercy from the Lord' is used to mean nothing else than a perception of the influx of love to Him, and 'truth' to mean the influx of charity towards the neighbour from that inflowing love.

[2] With those who are spiritual however it is different. These do think about the things that are matters of faith, and when they are being reformed and regenerated it is by means of the things which are matters of faith that they are led into charity towards the neighbour. Consequently when spiritual people are the subject 'mercy from the Lord' is used to mean the influx of charity towards the neighbour, and 'truth' to mean the influx of faith. Nevertheless once the spiritual man has been regenerated this faith becomes charity, for now he acts from charity, so much so that anyone among them who does not act from charity is not regenerate, whereas anyone who does act from charity is regenerate. Also, he now has no interest at all in matters of faith or truth, for his life springs from the good of faith, and no longer from the truth of faith. Indeed truth has now so joined itself to good that it ceases to be seen except as the form which good takes, that is, faith is now nothing else so to speak than the form which charity takes.

[3] From this one may see what the most ancient people meant, and what the ancients meant, by mercy and truth which are mentioned so many times in the Word, as in David,

The king will dwell for ever before God. Prepare mercy and truth, let them watch over him. Psalms 61:7.

In the same author,

Mercy and truth will meet, righteousness and peace will kiss each other. Psalms 85:10.

In the same author,

The Lord God is great in mercy and truth. Psalms 86:15.

In the same author,

My truth and My mercy will be with Him. Psalms 89:24.

In the same author,

Jehovah has remembered His mercy and His truth to the house of Israel. Psalms 98:3.

In the same author,

O Jehovah, not to us, but to Your name give glory, for the sake of Your mercy and Your truth. Psalms 115:1.

In Micah,

Jehovah God will give truth to Jacob, mercy to Abraham, which You have sworn to our fathers from days of old. Micah 7:20.

Here 'Jacob' stands for the Lord's external man, 'Abraham' for the internal as regards the human. In Hosea,

Jehovah's controversy with the inhabitants of the land because there is no truth, and no mercy, and no knowledge of God. Hosea 4:1.

'No truth' stands for no reception of the influx of charity, 'no mercy' for no reception of the influx of love, 'no knowledge of God' for no reception of the influx of the truth of faith.

Footnotes:

1598. 'And moved his tent as far as Sodom' means a reaching out towards evil desires. This is clear from the meaning of 'Sodom' as evil desires, dealt with above at verse 10. These words are analogous to what was stated previously in verse 10 about 'all the plain of Jordan being well-watered, like the garden of Jehovah, like the land of Egypt as you come to Zoar', which was a reference to the External Man when united to the Internal - 'the land of Egypt as you come to Zoar' meaning facts obtained from affections for good. Here however 'Lot dwelt in the cities of the plain, and moved his tent as far as Sodom' means the external man when not united to the internal, and by these words are meant facts obtained from affections or desires for evil. Indeed that verse described the beauty of the External Man when united to the Internal, whereas this verse describes its ugliness when not united, and further still the next verse where it is said, 'And the men of Sodom were evil and great sinners before Jehovah'. How ugly the external man is when separated from the internal may become clear to anyone from what has been stated about self-love and its desires which are the principal cause of the severance. As is the beauty of the External Man when united to the internal, so is the ugliness of it when not united. For regarded in itself the external man is nothing other than the servant of the internal. It is something instrumental whereby ends in view pass into uses, and uses manifest themselves in an effect, and thus all things may be accomplished. The reverse happens when the external man separates itself from the internal and wishes to serve only itself, even more when it wishes to have dominion over the internal, which, as has been shown, happens principally because of self-love and its desires.