10544. Verses 7-11 And Moses took a tent and pitched it for himself outside the camp, far from the camp, and called it the tent of meeting. And so it was, that everyone asking Jehovah a question went out to the tent of meeting which was outside the camp. And so it was, when Moses went out to the tent, that all the people rose and stood, each at the door of his tent, and looked after Moses ¹ until he had entered the tent. And so it was, when Moses entered the tent, that the pillar of cloud came down, and stood at the door of the tent, and talked to Moses. And all the people saw the pillar of cloud standing at the door of the tent; and all the people rose, and they bowed down, each at the door of his tent. And Jehovah spoke to Moses face to face, as a man (vir) speaks to his neighbour. And he returned to the camp, and his minister Joshua the son of Nun, a young man, did not move away from the midst of the tent.

'And Moses took a tent' means the holiness of worship, the Church, and the Word. 'And pitched it for himself outside the camp, far from the camp' means remote from the external things in which the interest of that actual nation lay. 'And called it the tent of meeting' means the external aspect of worship, the Church, and the Word, [which holds internal things within it.] 'And so it was, that everyone asking Jehovah a question went out to the tent of meeting which was outside the camp' means that all instruction regarding the truths and forms of good belonging to the Church and to worship was imparted to everyone through the outward sense of the Word, far removed from the external things in which alone the nation itself was interested. 'And so it was, when Moses went out to the tent, that all the people rose and stood, [each] at the door of [his] tent' means that that nation did not abide in the external aspect of the Word, the Church, and worship, but outside it. 'And looked after Moses until he had entered the tent' means that they see the external aspect of the Word, the Church, and worship, but that it goes beyond what they are capable of understanding. 'And so it was, when Moses entered the tent, that the pillar of cloud came down, and stood at the door of the tent, and talked to Moses' means that when the Word had gone beyond what they were capable of understanding, extremely poor visibility descended on them away to the outside, and yet there was clear perception from within. 'And all the people saw the pillar of cloud standing at the door of the tent' means the extremely poor visibility descending on those to the outside. 'And all the people rose, and they bowed down, each at the door of [his] tent' means that nation's holy regard for and adoration of what was external with them. 'And Jehovah spoke to Moses face to face' means Divine things in the Word that are joined together. 'As a man (vir) speaks to his neighbour' means the joining together of truth and good. 'And he returned to the camp' means going back to the external in which the interest of that nation lay. 'And his minister Joshua the son of Nun, a young man, did not move away from the midst of the tent' means Divine Truth ministering meantime in the holy things of the Church and worship in place of Moses.

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