5432. 'You are spies' means that they existed solely for the sake of gain. This is clear from the meaning of 'spies' here as being bent on material gain; indeed it is clear from the train of thought that nothing else is meant in the internal sense by 'spies'. For the internal sense here deals with the truths known to the Church which are to be made over to the natural as its own. But such a making over is not possible unless an influx takes place from the celestial of the spiritual through the intermediary, those truths known to the Church being 'the sons of Jacob', who are 'Joseph's brothers', the celestial of the spiritual being 'Joseph', and the intermediary being 'Benjamin'. The implications of all this have been stated in 5402. There it is shown that when the truths of faith which are known to the Church and are called its teachings are learned at the earliest stage of life, they are taken in and consigned to the memory as facts in the same way as any other factual knowledge. And they remain there as factual knowledge until the person begins to use his own ability to look at those truths and see for himself whether they really are truths, and - having seen that they are such - to act in conformity with them. That ability to look at such truths and this willingness to act in conformity with them cause them to be factual knowledge no longer. Now they are commandments to be obeyed in life, till at length they are his life; for they then pass into the life he leads and are made his own.

[2] People who have reached adult years, and especially those who have arrived at old age, but have not used their own ability to look at the truths known to the Church, called its doctrinal teachings, to see for themselves whether these really are truths, or to form any subsequent wish to live in conformity with them, inevitably retain them in exactly the same way as they do all other factual knowledge. Those truths remain solely in their natural memory, and from there in their mouth. When they speak truths they do so not from their interior man or heart, only from their exterior man or mouth. When this is a person's state he cannot possibly believe that the truths known to the Church are truths, no matter how much it might seem to him that he does believe that they are. The reason why it seems to him that he does believe they are truths is that he trusts other people and their ideas and firmly embraces them. To embrace firmly other people's ideas, no matter whether they are truths or falsities, is very easy, for it involves no more than the use of one's intellect.

[3] These truths known to the Church - that is, those people with whom they exist in the way explained immediately above - are meant by spies coming to see the nakedness of the land. For their belief in the teachings of their Church does not spring from any affection for truth but from an affection for securing important positions and personal gain. For this reason they themselves have scarcely any belief, and there is denial for the most part in their hearts. They regard the Church's teachings in the way a merchant does his wares, in that they seem to themselves to be well-taught and wise when from within themselves they see those teachings as untrue and yet they are able to convince the common people that they are true. It is quite evident from those in the next life that very many leaders of Churches are like this. Wherever they go in the next life they take with them the sphere emanating from their affections and consequent thoughts, and that sphere is clearly perceptible to others. From this sphere one can recognize quite plainly what kind of affection for truth and what kind of faith they have possessed. The same is not made plain in the world because no spiritual perception of such things exists there. This being so, those leaders of Churches do not reveal what they really think, for that would deprive them of what they seek to gain.

[4] The fact that these are 'spies' becomes perfectly clear from the consideration that they are the kind of people who do nothing else than find fault with, so as to accuse and condemn, those who adhere to truths grounded in good. Whether they belong to the Papists so-called, or to the Reformed, or to the Quakers, or to the Socinians, or to the Jews, are not such people, once they have firmly embraced the teachings of their Church, nothing else than 'spies'? They deride and condemn absolute truths, if these are known anywhere; for truths are not embraced by them because they are truths, the reason for this being that they are not moved by any affection for truth for its own sake, let alone for their life's sake, only for the sake of personal gain. Also, when such people read the Word they examine it closely with the sole intention of confirming what is already known and taught, and for the sake of material gain. Many of them examine the Word closely 'to see the nakedness of the land', that is, to see there the truths known to the Church not as truths but merely as means that will serve them to convince others, for the sake of their own personal gain, that they are truths.

[5] People however who are moved by an affection for truth for its own sake and for their life's sake, consequently for the sake of the Lord's kingdom, do indeed have faith in the teachings of the Church. But even so they examine the Word closely with no other end in view than to see the truth itself, as a result of which they develop a faith and a conscience that are their own. If anyone tells them that they ought to keep to the teachings of the Church in which they were born, they then think that they would have been told exactly the same if they had been born within Judaism, within Socinianism, Quakerism, or Christian Gentilism, or even outside the Church, and that everywhere they would say, This is where the Church is, this is where the Church is; truths exist here and nowhere else! This being what they think they decide to examine the Word closely, praying sincerely to the Lord for enlightenment as they do so. People like these do not upset anyone else within the Church, nor do they ever condemn others, for they recognize that the life led by everyone who is a Church is founded on the faith that is his own.

1551. That 'silver' means truths is clear from the meaning of 'silver' as truth. The most ancient people compared the goods and truths present in man to metals. Innermost or celestial goods which flow from love to the Lord they compared to gold, truths deriving from these to silver. Goods of a lower or natural kind however they compared to bronze, and truths of a lower kind to iron. Nor did they just compare them; they also called them such. This was the origin of periods of time being likened to those same metals and being called the golden, silver, bronze, and iron ages, for these followed in that order one after another. The golden age was the time of the Most Ancient Church, which was celestial man. The silver age was the time of the Ancient Church, which was spiritual man. The bronze age was the time of the Church that followed, and the iron age came after that. Similar things were also meant by the statue which Nebuchadnezzar saw in a dream, whose head was of fine gold, breast and arms of silver, belly and thighs of bronze, and shins of iron, Daniel 2:32-33. That periods of the Church were to follow one another in that order, and actually did so, is clear in that very chapter of the same prophet.

[2] That 'silver' in the internal sense of the Word wherever it is mentioned means truth, or in the contrary sense falsity, is clear from the following places: In Isaiah,

Instead of bronze I will bring gold, and instead of iron I will bring silver, and instead of wood, bronze, and instead of stones, iron. And I will make peace your assessment, and righteousness your tax-collectors. Isaiah 60:17.

Here it is evident what each metal means. The subject is the Lord's Coming, His kingdom, and the celestial Church. 'Instead of bronze, gold' is celestial good in place of natural good; 'instead of iron, silver' is spiritual truth in place of natural truth; 'instead of wood, bronze' is natural good in place of bodily good; 'instead of stone, iron' is natural truth in place of truth acquired through the senses. In the same prophet,

Ho, everyone who thirsts, come to the water, and he who has no money, ¹ come, buy and eat! Isaiah 55:1.

'He who has no money' ¹ is the person who does not know the truth but who nevertheless possesses the good that stems from charity, as is the case with many people inside the Church, and with gentiles outside it.

[3] In the same prophet,

The islands will wait for Me, the ships of Tarshish at their head, to bring your sons from afar, their silver and their gold with them, to the name of Jehovah your God, and to the Holy One of Israel. Isaiah 60:9.

This refers specifically to a new Church, or a Church among gentiles, and in general to the Lord's kingdom. 'Ships from Tarshish' stands for cognitions, 'silver' for truths, and 'gold' for goods, which are those things they 'will bring to the name of Jehovah'. In Ezekiel,

For your adornment you took vessels made of My gold and of My silver, which I had given you, and you made for yourselves figures of the male. Ezekiel 16:17.

Here 'gold' stands for cognitions of celestial things, 'silver' of spiritual things. In the same prophet,

You were adorned with gold and silver, and your raiment was fine linen and silk, and embroidered cloth. Ezekiel 16:13.

This refers to Jerusalem, by which the Lord's Church is meant, whose adornment is being described in this manner. In the same prophet,

Behold, you who are wise, there is no secret they have hidden from you; by your wisdom and by your intelligence you have acquired riches for yourself, and you have acquired gold and silver in your treasuries. Ezekiel 28:3-4.

Here, in what is said in reference to Tyre, 'gold' is plainly identified with the riches of wisdom, and 'silver' with the riches of intelligence.

[4] In Joel,

You have taken My silver and My gold, and My good and desirable treasures you have carried into your temples. Joel 3:5.

This refers to Tyre, Sidon, and Philistia, which mean cognitions, and these are 'the silver and the gold they took into their temples'. In Haggai,

The elect of all nations will come, and I will fill this house with glory. Mine is the silver, and Mine is the gold. The glory of this latter house will be greater than that of the former. Haggai 2:7-9.

This refers to the Lord's Church to which 'gold and silver' have reference. In Malachi,

He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver, and He will purify the sons of Levi. Malachi 3:3.

This refers to the Coming of the Lord. In David,

The words of Jehovah are pure words, silver refined in an earthen crucible, poured seven times. Psalms 12:6.

'Silver purified seven times' stands for Divine truth. At the time of their exodus out of Egypt the children of Israel were commanded that every woman should ask of her neighbour, and of her who sojourned in her house, vessels of silver and vessels of gold and garments, and that they should put them on their sons and on their daughters, and so despoil the Egyptians, Exodus 3:22; 11:2-3; 12:35-36. Anyone may see from this that the children of Israel would never have been ordered to steal and despoil the Egyptians of those possessions in that way if these did not represent some arcana. But what those arcana are may become clear from the meaning of 'silver and gold, garments, and Egypt', and from the fact that what these possessions represented is similar to the words here 'rich in the silver and gold from Egypt', used in reference to Abram.

[5] Just as 'silver' means truth so in a contrary sense it means falsity, for people under the influence of falsity imagine falsity to be the truth, as is also clear in the Prophets. In Moses,

You shall not covet the silver and the gold of the nations, nor take it for yourself, lest you be ensnared by it, for it is an abomination to Jehovah your God. You shall utterly detest it. Deuteronomy 7:25-26.

'The gold of the nations' stands for evils, and 'their silver' for falsities. In the same author,

You shall not make gods of silver to be with Me, nor shall you make for yourselves gods of gold. Exodus 20:23.

In the internal sense these words mean nothing other than falsities and evil desires, falsities being meant by 'gods of silver', and evil desires by 'gods of gold'. In Isaiah,

On that day everyone will spurn his idols of silver, and his idols of gold, which your hands have made for you - a sin. Isaiah 31:7.

'Idols of silver and idols of gold' stands for similar things that are false and evil 'Which your hands have made' stands for what is a product of the proprium. In Jeremiah,

They are foolish and stupid; that wood is a way of learning vanities! Beaten silver is brought from Tarshish, and gold from Uphaz, the work of the smith and of the hands of the moulder. Their clothing is violet and purple These are all the work of the wise. Jeremiah 10:8-9.

Here 'silver' and 'gold' quite clearly stand for similar things that are false and evil.

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