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:

5657. 'That behold, each man's silver was in the mouth of his pouch' means that it was observed that the truths had been so to speak freely given. This is clear from the meaning of 'each man's silver in his sack' as truths freely given, dealt with in 5530, 5624, 'each man's silver in the mouth of his pouch' meaning much the same. The difference is that the latter statement means that the truths which were freely given were placed in the opening of the exterior natural; for 'the mouth of the pouch' means the opening of the exterior natural, 5497. The reason why so to speak freely is meant at this point is that they dwell in a state of uncertainty, unsure whether they want to be joined to the internal, for fear that they will cease to be of any worth. And when anyone dwells in a state of uncertainty he feels unsure about the truths that serve to corroborate.