41. Anything that is man's own has no life in it; and when depicted visually it looks like something hard as a bone and black. But anything that comes from the Lord does contain life. It has that which is spiritual and celestial within it, and when depicted visually it looks human and alive. It is perhaps incredible, but nevertheless absolutely true, that every expression, every idea, and every least thought of an angelic spirit is alive. In even the most detailed areas of his thought there is an affection that comes from the Lord, who is life itself. Consequently all that derives from the Lord has life within it, for it contains faith in Him, and is here meant by 'a living creature'. It then has the outward appearance of a body, meant here by that which is moving, or creeping. To man these matters remain arcana, but since the subject here is the living and moving creature, they ought at least to be mentioned here.

8236. 'And Jehovah saved Israel on that day from the hand of the Egyptians' means that in this state the Lord protected those belonging to the spiritual Church from any violence on the part of falsities arising from evil. This is clear from the meaning of 'saving' as protecting; from the meaning of 'on that day' as in this state, 'day' meaning state, see 23, 487, 488, 493, 893, 2788, 3462, 3785, 4850; from the representation of 'Israel' as those who belong to the spiritual Church, dealt with often; and from the representation of 'the Egyptians' as those steeped in falsities arising from evil, also dealt with often; from all of which it is evident that 'saving from their hand' is protecting from the violence of those steeped in falsities arising from evil.