1054. 'I see it' means that he is such as can be regenerated. This is clear from the fact that in reference to the Lord the expression 'seeing someone' means knowing his character. For the Lord knows all people from eternity and has no need to see the character of anyone. When someone is such as can be regenerated, the Lord is spoken of as 'seeing him', as He is also said 'to lift up His face on him'. When however he is unable to be regenerated, the Lord is not spoken of as seeing him or of lifting up His face on him, but is spoken of as 'turning His eyes or face away from him', though it is not the Lord who turns these away but man. Consequently in previous verses where the subject has been the whole human race among whom very many are not able to be regenerated, the wording is not 'when I see the bow in the cloud', but when the bow is seen in the cloud', verse 14. The same applies to the Lord's seeing as to His remembering, which means in the internal sense having mercy, as dealt with above in 840, 1049. See what has appeared already in 626.

840. That 'and God remembered' means the end of temptation and the start of renewal is clear from what comes before and after this. 'God remembered' in particular means His being merciful. His remembering is mercy, and this is attributed to Him especially when temptation is past because at that time new light is shining. As long as temptation lasts, a person assumes that the Lord is not present, for he is being harassed by evil genii, so harassed in fact that sometimes he has so great a feeling of hopelessness as scarcely to believe in the existence of any God at all. Yet at such times the Lord is more present than that person can possibly believe. But once temptation subsides he receives comfort, and for the first time believes that the Lord is present. Consequently, because He appears to do so, 'God's remembering' mentioned here means the end of temptation and the start of renewal. God, and not Jehovah, is said to have remembered because the person's state is still that which comes before regeneration. But once he has been regenerated the name Jehovah is used, as in verses 20-21, at the end of this chapter. The reason 'God' is used here is that faith has not yet been joined to charity. A person is for the first time said to be regenerate when he acts from charity. It is in charity that Jehovah is present, and not so much in faith before this has been joined to charity. In the next life charity constitutes a person's very being (esse) and life. Jehovah is Being (Esse) and Life itself, and this is why before a person has this being and life, not Jehovah but God is said to reside with him.