3995. 'And the spotted and speckled among the she-goats' means that after this all the good of truth that has falsity and evil mingled within it will be 'Jacob's'. This is clear from the meaning of 'spotted' as falsity, and from the meaning of 'speckled' as evil, dealt with just above in 3993, and from the meaning of 'she-goats' as the good of truth, or the charity of faith, dealt with in 3519. The fact that all of this will be 'Jacob's' is also meant by the statement which follows, 'And that will be my wages'.

[2] What is meant by the good of truth, or the charity of faith, will be discussed briefly. While a person is being regenerated it seems as though the truth of faith takes precedence and as though the good of charity is secondary; but once he has been regenerated it is quite plain that the good of charity takes precedence, and that the truth of faith is secondary. For what is seen before regeneration is the appearance but what is seen after it is the reality of the situation, see 3539, 3548, 3556, 3563, 3570, 3576, 3603, 3616, 3701. For while a person is being regenerated he does what is good from the truth he has learned, it being from truth that he learns what good is. Yet it is the good present inwardly that performs what is good because good is flowing in from the Lord by an internal route, that is, by way of the soul, while truth flows in by an external route, that is, by way of the senses, which is that of the body. Truth which enters by the external route is adopted by the good present inwardly and is joined to it, an activity which continues until that person has been regenerated. Then a reversal takes place and truth is done from good. This shows what is meant by the good of truth and by the truth of good. It also explains why so many at the present day speak of the good deeds of charity as the fruits of faith, for these are what those deeds are seen to be when regeneration first begins. These people base such a conclusion on the appearance and know nothing else, for those who are being regenerated are few and none can have a knowledge of this matter except one who has been regenerated, that is, who has an affection for good, which is charity. It is from an affection for good, or charity, that it can be seen clearly, and also perceived, by him. People however who are not regenerate do not even know what the affection for good is, that is, what charity is, but reason about it as something foreign or extraneous to themselves. As a consequence they call charity the fruit of faith, when in fact faith is a product of charity. However, it does not matter very much whether simple people know which is prior and which is posterior, provided they are leading charitable lives, for charity is the life of faith.

[3] By the expression 'member of the flock' here is meant not only lambs but also sheep, kids, she-goats, rams, and he-goats, though only lambs and she-goats are actually mentioned. These alone are mentioned because 'lambs' means innocence, and 'she-goats' the charity of faith, these being the subject at this point in the internal sense. This too is why in the original language 'spotted' is expressed by a word which also means lambs, as in Isaiah 40:10-11, while 'speckled' is expressed by a word which also means a sheep breeder, as in 2 Kings 3:4; Amos 1:1.

3573. 'And kiss me, my son' means as to whether union is possible. This is clear from the meaning of 'kissing' as a uniting and joining together resulting from affection. Kissing, which is an external activity, is nothing else than the desire to become joined together, which is an internal activity; the two activities also correspond. The subject here, as is evident from what has been stated above, in the highest sense is the glorification of the Natural within the Lord, that is, how the Lord made the Natural within Him Divine. But in the representative sense the subject is the regeneration of the natural present in man and so the joining together of the natural and the rational; for the natural is not regenerate until it has been joined to the rational. This joining together is effected by means of both direct and indirect influx of the rational into the good and the truth of the natural; that is to say, by means of influx from the good of the rational directly into the good of the natural, and through the good of the natural into the truth of the natural, and by means of influx indirectly through the truth of the rational into the truth of the natural and from there into the good of the natural.

[2] These instances of a joining together are the subject here. They cannot possibly be achieved except through the means provided by the Divine. Indeed they are effected by means such as are quite unknown to man and of which he can gain scarcely any idea through the things which belong to the light of the world, that is, which belong to the natural light with him, but rather through the things belonging to the light of heaven, that is, to rational light. Nevertheless all those means have been disclosed in the internal sense of the Word, and are evident to those who know the internal sense, and so to angels who see and perceive countless details relating to this subject, of which scarcely one can be drawn out and explained adequately for man to grasp it.

[3] Yet from effects and the signs of those effects this joining of the rational to the natural is to some extent evident to man, for the rational mind, that is, the inward areas of will and understanding with a person ought to present themselves in his natural mind. Just as the natural mind presents itself in the face and facial expressions, so much so that the face is the outward expression of the natural mind, so ought the natural mind to be the outward expression of the rational mind. When rational and natural are joined together, as they are with those who are regenerate, whatever a person wills and thinks inwardly within his rational makes itself evident in his natural; and this in turn makes itself evident in the face. This is what the face is to angels and what it was to the most ancient people who were celestial. Indeed they were never afraid that others might know their ends and intentions, for they willed nothing but good. For anyone who allows himself to be led by the Lord never intends or thinks anything else. Where a state such as this exists the rational as regards good joins itself to the good of the natural directly, and through the good of the natural to the truths of the natural. It also joins itself indirectly through the truth there in the rational to the truth in the natural, and through this to the good there. All this effects an indissoluble joining together.

[4] But how far mankind is removed at the present day from this state, and so from the heavenly state, may be seen from the belief that practical wisdom requires one, in the world, to use words, also to perform acts, as well as to adopt facial expressions which are other than what one in fact thinks and intends. Indeed it is believed that one should so control the natural mind itself that in unison with its face it acts in quite an opposite way from inward thoughts and desires that flow from an evil end in view. To the most ancient people this was utterly abominable, and people who behaved in that way were expelled as devils from their community. From these considerations, as from effects and the signs of those effects, one may see what the joining together of the rational or internal man as regards good and truth with his natural or external man implies. One may thus also see what one who is an angel is like and what one who is a devil is like.