221. 'Breeze, or breath, ¹ of the daytime' means a time when the Church still had a residue of perception. This becomes clear from the meaning of 'day' and of 'night'. The most ancient people compared states of the Church to the times of the day and of the night. States when the Church still had light they compared to times of the day; therefore this verse speaks of 'the breath' or breeze of the daytime' as when they still had some residue of perception, from which they knew that they were fallen. The Lord too calls a state in which there is faith 'the daytime' and one in which there is none 'the night', as in John,

I must work the works of Him who sent Me while it is day; night is coming when nobody will be able to work. John 9:4.

The consecutive states of man's regeneration for the same reason were called 'days' in Chapter Genesis 1.

Footnotes:

657. Verse 9. And they of the peoples and tribes and tongues and nations shall see, signifies with all who are in the falsities and evils of religion, of doctrine, and of life. This is evident from the signification of "to see," as being to know, to perceive, and to understand; also from the signification of "peoples and tribes" as being those who are in the falsities of doctrine and religion; "peoples" in the Word mean all who are in truths or in falsities, whether they are of the church or of some religion out of the church (See n. 175, 331, 625); and "tribes" mean in the Word all who are in truths or in falsities of doctrine, for "tribes" signify all truths and falsities of doctrine (See above, n. 330, 430, 431, 454). From this it can be seen that "peoples and tribes" signify all who are in the truths or falsities of religion and of doctrine, here those who are in falsities, because it is said, "they shall see the bodies of the witnesses three days and a half, and shall not suffer them to be placed in sepulchers." This is evident also from the signification of "tongues and nations," as being those who are in the evils of doctrine and of life, for "tongues" signify the goods or evils of doctrine, and thence of religion (See above, n. 330, 455, 625); and "nations" signify the goods or evils of life (See also above, n. 175, 331, 625); from which it can be seen that "tongues and nations" signify all who are in the goods or the evils of doctrine and of life, here those who are in the evils, since it is said of them that "they shall see the bodies of the witnesses upon the street of the great city, and shall not suffer them to be placed in sepulchers."