737. 'Noah was a son of six hundred years' means his initial state of temptation. This is clear from the fact from here down to Eber in Chapter 11 nothing else is meant by numbers, years of age, or names than real things, as was the case also with the ages and names of all those mentioned in Chapter 5. Here 'six hundred years' means the initial state of temptation. This becomes clear from its prime factors which are ten and six multiplied again by ten. When the same factors are involved it makes no difference whether the number arrived at is large or small. As for ten, this has been shown already at 6:3 to mean remnants, while the meaning of six here as labour and conflict is clear from places throughout the Word. For the situation is this: What has gone before dealt with man's preparation for temptation, that is to say, he was supplied by the Lord with truths of the understanding and with goods of the will. These truths and goods are remnants, but they are not brought forth so as to be acknowledged until man is being regenerated. In the case of those who are being regenerated by means of temptations the remnants existing with any man are for the angels present with him. From these remnants they draw out those things with which they protect him against the evil spirits who activate falsities with him and in this way attack him. It is because remnants are meant by 'ten' and conflict by 'six' that six hundred years are spoken of, a number in which ten and six are the prime factors and which means a state of temptation.

[2] As regards conflict being the particular meaning of 'six', this is clear from Genesis 1, which describes the six days of man's regeneration prior to his becoming celestial. During those six days there was constant conflict, but on the seventh day came rest. Consequently there are six days of labour, and the seventh is the sabbath, a word which means rest. This also is why a Hebrew slave was to serve for six years and in the seventh was to go free, Exodus 21:2; Deuteronomy 15:12; Jeremiah 34:14, and why for six years they were to sow the land and gather in the produce, but in the seventh they were to leave it alone, Exodus 23:10-12. The same applied to a vineyard. It is also the reason why in the seventh year the land was to have a sabbath of rest, a sabbath to Jehovah, Leviticus 25:3-4. Because 'six' means labour and conflict it also means the dispersion of falsity, as in Ezekiel,

Behold, six men coming from the direction of the upper gate, which looks towards the north, every man with a weapon of dispersion in his hand. Ezekiel 9:2.

And in the same prophet, against Gog,

I will cause you to turn about, and I will split you into six, and cause you to come up from the uttermost parts of the north. Ezekiel 39:2.

Here 'six' and 'splitting into six' stand for dispersion, 'the north' for falsities, and 'Gog' for people who seize on doctrinal matters based on things of an external nature with which they destroy internal worship. From Job,

He will deliver you in six troubles, and in a seventh no evil will touch you. Job 5:19.

This stands for the conflict that constitutes temptations.

[3] 'Six' occurs in other parts of the Word where it does not mean labour, conflict, or the dispersion of falsity, but the holiness of faith. In these instances it is related to twelve, which means faith and all things of faith in their entirety, and to three which means that which is holy. Consequently there is also a genuine derivative meaning to the number six, as in Ezekiel 40:5, where the man's measuring rod with which he measured the holy city of Israel was six cubits long; and in other places. The reason for this derivative is that in the conflict of temptation the holiness of faith is present, and also that six days of labour and conflict look forward to the holy seventh day.

7926. 'To inflict the plague on Egypt' means as a result of which damnation comes to those belonging to the Church who have been governed by faith separated from charity. This is clear from the meaning of 'the plague', which in this case is the death of the firstborn, as the damnation of those belonging to the Church [who have been governed by faith] separated from charity, dealt with in 7766, 7778. For 'Egypt' - that is, the Egyptians - means those who have had a knowledge of those kinds of things that belong to the Church, yet have separated life from religious teaching, that is, charity from faith. The Egyptians too were like them, for they possessed a knowledge of the things belonging to the Church at that time, a Church that was representative. They were familiar with the representations of spiritual realities through natural things, which constituted the ceremonies of the Church at that time, and were accordingly familiar with correspondences, as is plainly shown by their hieroglyphics, which were pictures of natural things representing spiritual realities. This explains why 'the Egyptians' means those who have a knowledge of matters of faith yet lead an evil life. In the next life such people undergo vastation of all that composes faith, that is, all that composes the Church, and are eventually damned. That damnation is what is understood in the internal sense by the death of the firstborn in Egypt.

[2] Since it says 'Jehovah will go through to inflict the plague on Egypt', and these words mean the presence of the Divine, as a result of which damnation comes to those belonging to the Church who have been governed by faith separated from charity, something must be said to explain all this. Jehovah or the Lord does not present Himself among those in hell in order to inflict damnation; but even so His presence is what brings it about. The hells have a constant desire to molest the good and also a constant longing to rise into heaven and dislodge those who are there, though their efforts cannot get them past those living in the outermost parts of heaven. For it is enmity constantly exhaling hostility and violence. But the Lord makes unceasing provision to keep those living in the outermost parts of heaven secure and undisturbed. This He accomplishes by His presence among them. When those belonging to hell bring themselves to where the Lord is present, that is, into His presence, they cast themselves into the miseries of vastation, and eventually into damnation; for as shown already in various places, the Lord's presence which they run into brings those things about. From this it is evident that the Lord does not present Himself among them in order to inflict the miseries of punishment on them, but that they cast themselves into those miseries. These considerations show that nothing but good is attributable to the Lord, and that everything bad is attributable to those themselves who are immersed in evil, thus that the ones to inflict vastation, damnation, and hell on the evil are the evil themselves. This shows one how to understand 'Jehovah will go through to inflict the plague on Egypt'.