3765. 'Behold, a well' means the Word. This is clear from the meaning of 'a well' as the Word and also as doctrine drawn from the Word, dealt with in 2702, 3096, 3424. The Word is called 'a well' here because the subject is the natural, which by itself can do no more than understand the literal sense of the Word. But the Word is called 'a spring' when the subject is the rational, by which one is able to see the internal sense of the Word.

774. '[Every] wild animal according to its kind' means all spiritual good, '[every] beast according to its kind' all natural good, and '[every] creeping thing that creeps over the earth [according to its kind]' all sensory and bodily good. This has been stated and shown already in 45, 46, 142, 143, 246. At first glance however it does not look at all possible for 'wild animal' to mean spiritual good. It becomes clear that it does so from the train of thought: first of all 'they' are mentioned, that is, the member of the Church, after that 'wild animal', then 'beast', and finally 'creeping thing'. Consequently 'wild animal' embodies something nobler and more excellent than 'beast' does, the reason being that in Hebrew the word used also means a living creature which contains a living soul. And so here also it does not mean a wild animal but a living creature containing a living soul, for it is the same word. That 'living creatures, beasts, and creeping things that creep over the earth' means things of the will has been stated and shown already, and further evidence will be shown later on where birds are dealt with.