31. That 'the great lights' mean love and faith, and are also mentioned as the sun, the moon, and the stars, is clear from various places in the Prophets, as in Ezekiel,

When I have blotted you out, I will cover the heavens and darken their stars, I will cover the sun with a cloud, and the moon will not give its light. All the bright lights in the heavens I will make dark over you, and I will put darkness over your land. Ezekiel 32:7-8.

This refers to Pharaoh and the Egyptians, who are used in the Word to mean the sensory and the factual. The meaning here is that they will have blotted out love and faith by means of sensory evidence and factual knowledge. In Isaiah,

The day of Jehovah for making the earth a desolation; for the stars of the heavens and their constellations ¹ will not give their light; the sun will be darkened in its rising, and the moon will not shed its light. Isaiah 13:9-10.

In Joel,

The day of Jehovah is coming, a day of darkness and thick darkness. The earth quakes before Him, the heavens tremble, the sun and moon are darkened, and the stars withdraw their shining. Joel 2:10.

[2] In Isaiah, in reference to the Lord's Coming and the enlightenment of gentiles, and so to a new Church, in particular to individuals who are in darkness but who are beginning to receive the light and be regenerated,

Arise, shine, for your light has come. Behold, darkness is covering the earth, and thick darkness the peoples, but Jehovah will arise upon you, and nations will walk towards your light, and kings to the brightness of your rising. Jehovah will be for you an everlasting light; your sun will no more go down nor your moon be withdrawn, for Jehovah will be for you an everlasting light. Isaiah 60:1-3, 19-20.

In David,

Jehovah makes the heavens by intelligence, He spreads out the earth upon the waters, He makes the great lights, the sun to have dominion over the day, and the moon and stars to have dominion over the night. Psalms 136:5-9.

And in the same author,

Praise Jehovah, sun and moon, praise Him, all stars of light! Praise Him, heaven of heavens, and waters that are above the heavens! Psalms 148:3-4.

[3] In all of these places 'the lights' mean love and faith. Because the lights represented and meant love and faith in the Lord, the Jewish Church was commanded to keep a light burning all the time from evening till morning, for every command which that Church received was representative of the Lord. Concerning this light it is said,

Command the sons of Israel that they take oil for the light, to cause a lamp to burn continually. In the Tent of Meeting outside the veil which is before the testimony Aaron and his sons shall tend it from evening to morning before Jehovah. [Exodus 27:20-21]

That this means the love and faith which the Lord kindles and causes to shine in the internal man, and by means of the internal man in the external man, will in the Lord's Divine mercy be shown at that point in Exodus.

Footnotes:

6255. Verses 10-14 And the eyes of Israel were weak ¹ because of old age; he could not see. And [Joseph] made them draw near him, and [Israel] kissed them and embraced them. And Israel said to Joseph, I did not think to see your face, and behold, God has caused me to see your seed also. And Joseph brought them away from his thighs and bowed down, his face to the earth. And Joseph took them both, Ephraim in his right hand to Israel's left, and Manasseh in his left to Israel's right, and made them draw near him. And Israel put out his right hand and placed it on Ephraim's head, who was the younger, and his left hand on Manasseh's head; crosswise he put out his hands, for Manasseh was the firstborn.

'And the eyes of Israel were weak' means his obscurity of discernment. 'Because of old age' means because he was in the final phase of his representation. 'He could not see means not noticing. 'And [Joseph] made them draw near him' means presence. 'And [Israel] kissed them' means a joining together resulting from an affection for truth. 'And embraced them' means a joining together resulting from an affection for good. 'And Israel said to Joseph' means a raising up to the internal. 'I did not think to see your face' means that he had not entertained any hope of an inflowing of his love. 'And behold, God has caused me to see your seed also' means that not only an inflow of love was discerned, but also the goodness and truth springing from it. 'And Joseph brought them away from his thighs' means that the good belonging to the will and the truth belonging to the understanding within the natural were brought away from an affection originating in love on the part of spiritual good. 'And bowed down, his face to the earth' means an expression of humility by them. 'And Joseph took them both, Ephraim in his right hand to Israel's left' means truth belonging to the understanding, to occupy the second place. 'And Manasseh in his left hand to Israel's right' means good belonging to the will, to occupy the first place. 'And made them draw near him' means a linking together. 'And Israel put out his right hand and placed it on Ephraim's head' means that he considered truth to occupy the first place. 'Who was the younger' means though in fact it occupies the second place. 'And his left hand on Manasseh's head' means that he considered good to occupy the second place. 'Crosswise he put out his hands' means thus out of keeping with true order. 'For Manasseh was the firstborn' means since good does indeed occupy the first place.

Footnotes: