12. The sixth state is when he utters truths and performs good deeds from faith and consequently from love. What he brings forth at this point are called a living creature and a beast. And because at this point he starts to act from faith and also simultaneously from love, he becomes a spiritual man, who is called an image. The spiritual life of that man finds its delight in, and is sustained by, the things which are associated with cognitions of faith and with charitable acts, which are called his food; and his natural life finds its delight in, and is sustained by, those which belong to the body and the senses. The latter give rise to conflict until love rules and he becomes a celestial man.

5672. 'Until Joseph's coming at midday' means up to when the internal would be present with light. This is clear from the meaning of 'until his coming' as up to when it was present; from the representation of 'Joseph' as the internal, dealt with in 5648; and from the meaning of 'midday' as a state of light, 1458, 3195, 3708. ¹ The reason 'midday' means a state of light is that the times of day, such as morning, midday, and evening, correspond to states of light in the next life; and states of light there are states of intelligence and wisdom, for the reason that the light of heaven holds intelligence and wisdom within it. The changing states of light there are like those times of day on earth - morning, midday, and evening. The states of shade akin to evening do not however have anything to do with the sun there, which is the Lord who is constantly shedding His light, but with the selfhood that is essentially the angels' own. For insofar as this selfhood takes over in their lives they pass into a state of shade or evening; but insofar as this selfhood gives way to the heavenly selfhood they move into a state of light. From this one may see where the correspondence of midday to a state of light has its origin.

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