4242. And he commanded them, saying, Thus shall ye say unto my lord Esau. That this signifies the first acknowledgment of good as being in the higher place, may be seen from the signification here of “commanding the messengers to say,” as being reflection and the consequent perception that it is so (see n. 3661, 3682), consequently acknowledgment; and from the representation of Esau, as being good (n. 4234, 4239). That good was in the higher place is signified by his not calling Esau his “brother,” but his “lord,” and also (as follows) by his calling himself his “servant,” and afterwards speaking in the same manner. (That while man is being regenerated truth is apparently in the first place and good in the second; but good in the first place and truth in the second when he has been regenerated, may be seen above, n. 1904, 2063, 2189, 2697, 2979, 3286, 3288, 3310, 3325, 3330, 3332, 3336, 3470, 3509, 3539, 3548, 3556, 3563, 3570, 3576, 3579, 3603, 3701.) This is also what is meant by the prophetic utterance of Isaac the father to Esau his son:

By thy sword shalt thou live, and thou shalt serve thy brother; and it shall come to pass when thou shalt have the dominion, that thou shalt break his yoke from off thy neck (Genesis 27:40).

It is the inversion of state foretold in these prophetic words which is treated of in the present chapter.

3548. And he came unto his father and said, My father; and he said, Behold me, who art thou my son? That this signifies a state of perception from the presence of that truth, is evident from the representation of Isaac, who is here the “father;” and from the representation of Jacob, who is here the “son,” concerning which several times before; also from the signification of “saying,” as being to perceive, concerning which likewise above. From these and from the rest of the expressions it is evident that the signification herein is a state of perception from the presence of that truth which is represented by Jacob; but what is the quality of this truth which is now represented by Jacob is manifest from the internal sense of what goes before and of what follows, namely, that in outward form it appears like the good and the truth of good which are represented by Esau and are signified by his hunting, but that it is not such in its internal form. The natural as to truth in the man who is being regenerated, that is, before he has been regenerated, appears of this character, not indeed in the sight of man, for he knows nothing about the good and truth with him during regeneration; but in the sight of the angels, who see such things in the light of heaven. Man does not even know what the good and truth of the natural are; and because he does not know this, he cannot perceive it; and because he does not perceive it in general, neither can he perceive it in particular; thus he cannot perceive the differences, and still less the changes of their state; and this being so, he can with difficulty comprehend from any description how the case is with this good and its truth. But as these matters are what are treated of in this chapter, therefore in what follows the subject is to be unfolded insofar as it can be apprehended.