3796. 'And so it was, when Jacob saw Rachel the daughter of Laban his mother's brother' means an acknowledgement of the affection for that truth as to its origin. This is clear from the meaning of 'seeing' here as acknowledging, as is evident from the train of thought, and from the representation of 'Rachel' as the affection for interior truth, dealt with above in 3793. The expression 'the daughter of Laban his mother's brother' embodies the origin of that affection; that is to say, it came from a parallel good which had been joined in a brotherly relationship to rational truth represented by 'Rebekah, Jacob's mother'.

[2] As regards affections for truth and good, genuine affections for truth and good which are perceived by a person all have a Divine origin since they come from the Lord. But as they come down they branch off into various and different streams where they form new origins for themselves. For as they flow into affections which are not genuine but spurious, and into affections for evil and falsity present with a person, so they become varied. Affections which often have a similar outward appearance to genuine ones present themselves, but these are nevertheless not genuine inwardly. The only way to establish their true identity is to discover the end they have in view. If that end is selfish or worldly those affections are not genuine. But if the end is the good of the neighbour, the good of the community, the good of the country, and more still if it is the good of the Church and the good of the Lord's kingdom, they are genuine, for in that case the Lord is their end, since the Lord is within those varieties of good.

[3] But it is the mark of someone wise to be aware of which ends are present in himself. Sometimes it does seem as though his ends are selfish when in fact they are not, for the human being is such that in everything he considers how it affects himself. This he does regularly and habitually. But if anyone wishes to know the ends he himself has in view he has merely to take note of his feeling of delight - whether it is on account of his receiving praise and glory, or whether it is on account of his performing some unselfish service. If it is the latter delight which he feels, genuine affection is present in him. He ought also to take note of the varying states he passes through, for those states cause his feelings to vary considerably. A person is able to find these things out in himself, but not in others, for the ends in view to anyone's affection are known to the Lord alone. This is why the Lord said,

Do not judge, lest you are judged; do not condemn, lest you are condemned. Luke 6:37.

For a thousand people may apparently share the same affection for truth and goodness, and yet the affection in each of them may have a different origin, that is, each may have a different end in view.

[4] The reason the end makes the affection what it is - that is to say, genuine, spurious, or false - is that the end is the person's actual life. Indeed a person has as his end in view that which constitutes his life, or what amounts to the same, his love. When the good of the neighbour, the common good, the good of the Church and of the Lord's kingdom is the end in view, a person's soul is in the Lord's kingdom and so abides with the Lord. For the Lord's kingdom is nothing else than a kingdom of ends and purposes directed towards the good of the human race, 3645. Angels themselves present with a person are nowhere else than within his ends in view. To the extent that someone's end in view is such as that which exists in the Lord's kingdom, angels take delight in him and join themselves to him as a brother. But to the extent a person's end is himself, angels depart and evil spirits from hell draw near, for in hell no other end in view reigns. From these considerations one may see how important it is to find out and to know where one's affections originate; these can be known from nothing else than one's end in view.

785. Verse 3. And I saw one of his heads as if it had been wounded to death, signifies the discordance of their doctrinals with the Word, in which "love," "life," and "works," which do not at all agree with that religious principle, are so often mentioned. This is evident from the signification of the "heads" of that beast, as being the knowledge of the holy things of the Word which are falsified and adulterated (See above, n. 775). When the church and those of the church are treated of in the Word, "head" signifies intelligence and wisdom; and in the most universal sense the understanding of truth and the will of good. But as this treats of those who are not willing that the understanding should enter into the mysteries of faith, but who wish it to be held captive under obedience to their mysteries, and as these are described by "the dragon" and this his "beast," it follows that the "head" of this beast signifies knowledge [scientia]; for where the understanding does not see there is no intelligence, but in place of it knowledge. Moreover, intelligence cannot be predicated of those who are in falsities, but only knowledge (See about this in the New Jerusalem and its Heavenly Doctrine, n. 33). The above is evident also from the signification of "being wounded to death," as being in disagreement with the Word; for doctrine which disagrees with the Word is dead; and this death is what is signified by "being wounded to death."

[2] The discordance is that they separate the life of love, which is good works, from faith, and make faith alone justifying and saving, and they take away everything of justification and salvation from the life of love or from good works; and as loving and doing are mentioned in the Word in a thousand passages, and it is declared that man is to be judged according to his deeds and works, and as this does not agree with that religious principle, therefore this is what is signified by the death-stroke of the head of this beast. From this it can be seen that the words, "I saw one of the heads of the beast as if it had been wounded to death," signifies disagreement with the Word, in which "love," "life," and "works," which do not at all agree with that religious principle, are so often mentioned. That they do not agree is clearly evident from the fact that it is a dogma of that religion that faith alone, without the works of the law, justifies and saves, yea, that if anything of salvation be placed in works it is damnable, because of man's merit and what is his own [proprium] in them. For this reason many abstain from doing them, saying in their heart, Good works do not save me, and evil works do not damn me, because I have faith. From this principle they also assert that those are saved who about the hour of death declare with some confidence that they have faith, whatever their life may have been. But "deeds" and "works," also "doing" and "loving," are mentioned in the Word in a thousand passages, and as these disagree with that religious principle, therefore its dogmatists have devised means of conjoining them with faith. This, therefore, is the signification of the words "he saw one of the heads of the beast as if it had been wounded to death," and "the stroke of his death was healed, and the whole earth wondered after the beast." But how that stroke was healed, namely, by devised modes of conjunction, shall be said in the following article.

[3] In the first place, some passages shall here be quoted from the Word where "deeds," "works," "doing," and "working," are mentioned, that everyone may see the discordance that is here signified by "one of the heads wounded to death;" also that this stroke is wholly incurable unless man lives according to the precepts of the Word by doing them.

In Matthew:

Everyone that heareth My words and doeth them is like to a prudent man; but everyone that heareth My words and doeth them not is like to a foolish man (Matthew 7:24, 26).

In Luke:

Why call ye Me Lord, Lord, and do not the things that I say? Everyone who cometh to Me and heareth My words and doeth them is like a man that built a house upon a rock; but he that heareth and doeth not is like unto a man that built a house upon the ground without a foundation (Luke 6:46-49).

In Matthew:

He that was sown in good earth, this is he that heareth the Word and giveth heed, and who thence beareth fruit, and yieldeth some a hundred-fold, some sixty-fold, some thirty-fold (Matthew 13:23).

In the same:

Whosoever shall break the least of these commandments, and shall teach men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of the heavens; but whosoever doeth and teacheth them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of the heavens (Matthew 5:19).

In John:

Ye are My friends if ye do whatsoever I command you (John 15:14).

In the same:

If ye know these things happy are ye if ye do them (John 13:17).

In the same:

If ye love Me keep My commandments. He that hath My commandments and doeth them, he it is that loveth Me; and I will love him, and will manifest Myself unto him. And I ¹ will come unto him and will make ² My abode with him. But he that loveth Me not keepeth not My words (John 14:15, 21-24).

In Luke:

Jesus said, My mother and My brethren are those who hear My ³ word and do it (Luke 8:21).

In Matthew:

I was an hungered and ye gave Me to eat, I was thirsty and ye gave Me to drink, I was a sojourner, and ye took Me in, I was naked and ye clothed Me, I was sick and ye visited Me, I was in prison and ye came unto Me. And to these the Lord said, Come, ye blessed, possess as inheritance the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. And to those who had not done these things He said, Depart from Me, ye cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels (Matthew 25:31-46 the end).

In John:

My Father is the vinedresser; every branch that beareth not fruit He taketh away (John 15:1, 2).

In Luke:

Bring forth fruits worthy of repentance; every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit shall be hewn down and cast into the fire.

By their fruits ye shall know them (Luke 3:8, 9; Matthew 7:19, 20).

In John:

Herein is My Father glorified, that ye may bear much fruit and become My disciples (John 15:7, 8).

In Matthew:

The kingdom of God shall be taken away from them, and shall be given to a nation bringing forth the fruits thereof (Matthew 21:40-43).

In John:

He that doeth the truth cometh to the light, that his works may be made manifest that they have been wrought in God (John 3:21).

In the same:

We know that God heareth not sinners, but if anyone worship God and do His will, him He heareth (John 9:31).

In Matthew:

The Son of man shall come in the glory of His Father with His angels; and then He shall render unto everyone according to his deeds ( Matthew 16:27).

In John:

Then shall come forth they that have done goods into the resurrection of life, but they that have done evils into the resurrection of judgment (John 5:29).

In Revelation:

I will give unto you to everyone according to his works; he that overcometh and keepeth My works unto the end (Revelation 2:23, 26).

Their works shall follow them (John 14:13).

The dead were judged out of the things that were written in the books according to their works. And the dead were all judged according to their works (Revelation 20:12, 13).

Behold I come quickly; and My reward is with Me, to give unto everyone according to his works (Revelation 22:12).

Happy are they that do His commandments (Revelation 22:14).

He said to the angel of the church of Ephesus, I have against thee that thou hast left thy first charity; remember whence thou hast fallen, and do the first works; but if not, etc. (Revelation 2:4, 5).

It was said to the angel of the church in Smyrna, I know thy works; to the angel of the church in Pergamos, I know thy works; to the angel of the church in Thyatira, I know thy works; to the angel of the church in Sardis, I know thy works; and to the angel of the church in Philadelphia, I know thy works (Revelation 2:9, 13, 19; 3:1, 8).

These two chapters treat of the exploration and judgment of those seven churches as to what they are and will be from their works and according to their works.

[4] Also in the fifth, sixth, and seventh chapters of Matthew from their beginning to their end the Lord teaches good works, and what they must be, and that thence is heavenly happiness; likewise in the parables of the laborers in the vineyard, of the husbandmen and servants, of the traders to whom pounds [minae] were given and those to whom talents were given; of the fig-tree in the vineyard which was to be cut down if it bore no fruit; of the man wounded by robbers, to whom the Samaritan showed mercy, respecting whom the Lord asked the lawyer which of the three was a neighbor, who answered, "He that showed mercy," and Jesus said to him, "Go and do thou likewise;" of the ten virgins, of whom five had oil in their lamps and five had none, "oil in the lamps" signifying charity in faith; also in other passages.

[5] Moreover, the twelve disciples of the Lord represented the church in respect to all things of faith and charity in the complex; and of them, Peter, James, and John represented faith, charity, and good works in their order, Peter faith, James charity, and John good works; therefore the Lord said to Peter, when Peter saw John following the Lord:

What is that to thee, Peter? Follow thou Me, John; for Peter said of John, What of him? (John 21:21-22).

This signifies that those who do good works must follow the Lord. Because John represented the church in respect to good works, he reclined at the Lord's breast. That the church is with those who do good works is also signified by the Lord's words from the cross to John:

Jesus saw His mother, and spoke to the disciple whom He loved, who was standing by; and He said to His mother, Woman, behold thy son; and He said to that disciple, Behold thy mother; and from that hour that disciple took her unto himself (John 19:26-27).

This signifies that where good works are, there the church will be, for in the Word "woman," like as "mother," signifies the church. Thus much from the New Testament; there are yet more passages in the Old Testament, as where:

All are called blessed who keep and do the statutes, the judgments, and the commandments, and those cursed who do them not (as in Leviticus 18:5; 19:37; 20:8; 22:31-33; 26:3-4, 26:14, 26:16; Numbers 15:39-40; Deuteronomy 5:9-10; 6:25; 15:5; 17:19; 27:26 in a thousand other passages).

[6] Besides those passages in the Word where "deeds" and "doing" are mentioned there are also very many where "love" and "loving" are mentioned; and "loving" means the like as "doing," since he that loves does, for to love is to will, since everyone wills what he interiorly loves; and to will is to do, since everyone does that which he wills when he is able. Moreover, what is done is nothing but the will in act. Respecting love the Lord teaches in many passages (as in Matthew 5:43-48; 7:12; Luke 6:27-39, 6:43-49; 7:36-50 to the end; John 13:34, 35; 14:14-23; 15:9-19; 17:22-26; 21:15-23), and in brief in these words:

Thou shalt love the Lord thy God in thy whole heart and from thy whole soul; this is the first and great commandment. The second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. On these two commandments hang the law and the prophets (Matthew 22:35-38, 40; Luke 10:27, 28; Deuteronomy 6:5).

"To love God above all things, and the neighbor as oneself," is to do His commandments (John 14:21-24); and "the law and the prophets" signify the Word in all things and in every particular. From all these passages cited from the Word it is fully evident that it is not faith separated from good works that saves, but faith from good works and with them. For he who does good works has faith, but he who does them not has no faith.

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