2803. That the Divine Truth is the “son,” and the Divine Good the “father,” is evident from the signification of a “son,” as being truth (see n. 489, 491, 533, 1147, 2633); and of a “father,” as being good; and also from the conception and birth of truth, which is from good. Truth cannot be and come forth [existere] from any other source than good, as has been shown many times. That the “son” here is the Divine Truth, and the “father” the Divine Good, is because the union of the Divine Essence with the Human, and of the Human Essence with the Divine, is the Divine marriage of Good with Truth, and of Truth with Good, from which comes the heavenly marriage; for in Jehovah or the Lord there is nothing but what is infinite; and because infinite, it cannot be apprehended by any idea, except that it is the being and the coming forth [esse et existere] of all good and truth, or is Good itself and Truth itself. Good itself is the “Father,” and Truth itself is the “Son.” But because as before said there is a Divine marriage of Good and Truth, and of Truth and Good, the Father is in the Son, and the Son is in the Father, as the Lord Himself teaches in John:

Jesus saith unto Philip, Believest thou not that I am in the Father and the Father in Me ? Believe Me that I am in the Father and the Father in me (John 14:10-11).

And again in the same Evangelist:

Jesus said to the Jews, Though ye believe not Me, believe the works; that ye may know and believe that the Father is in Me, and I in the Father (John 10:36, 38).

And again:

I pray for them; for all Mine are Thine, and Thine are Mine; and that they all may be one, as Thou Father art in Me, and I in Thee (John 17:9-10, 21).

And again:

Now is the Son of man glorified, and God is glorified in Him; if God be glorified in Him, God shall also glorify Him in Himself. Father, glorify Thy Son, that Thy Son also may glorify Thee (John 13:31-32; 17:1).

[2] From this may be seen the nature of the union of the Divine and the Human in the Lord; namely, that it is mutual and alternate, or reciprocal; which union is that which is called the Divine Marriage, from which descends the heavenly marriage, which is the Lord’s kingdom itself in the heavens—thus spoken of in John:

In that day ye shall know that I am in My Father, and ye in Me, and I in you (John 14:20).

And again:

I pray for them, that they all may be one, as Thou Father art in Me and I in Thee, that they also may be one in us, I in them and Thou in Me; that the love wherewith Thou hast loved Me may be in them, and I in them (John 17:21-23, 26).

That this heavenly marriage is that of good and truth, and of truth and good, may be seen above (n. 2508, 2618, 2728, 2729 and following numbers).

[3] And because the Divine Good cannot be and come forth without the Divine Truth, nor the Divine Truth without the Divine Good, but the one in the other mutually and reciprocally, it is therefore manifest that the Divine Marriage was from eternity; that is, the Son in the Father, and the Father in the Son, as the Lord Himself teaches in John:

And now O Father, glorify Thou Me with Thyself, with the glory which I had with Thee before the world was (John 17:5, 24).

But the Divine Human which was born from eternity was also born in time; and what was born in time, and glorified, is the same. Hence it is that the Lord so often said that He was going to the Father who sent Him; that is, that He was returning to the Father. And in John:

In the beginning was the Word (the “Word” is the Divine Truth itself), and the Word was with God, and the Word was God; the same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by Him, and without Him was not anything made that was made. And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, the glory as of the Only-begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth (John 1:1-3, 14; see also John 3:13; 6:62).

6917. Vessels of silver, and vessels of gold. That “vessels of silver” signify the memory-knowledges of truth, and “vessels of gold” the memory-knowledges of good, is evident from the signification of “vessels,” as being memory-knowledges (see n. 3068, 3079); memory-knowledges are called “vessels” because they are generals, and can contain within them innumerable truths and manifold goods; from the signification of “silver” as being truth, and of “gold” as being good (n. 1551, 1552, 2954, 5658). (That the “silver” of Egypt denotes true and suitable memory-knowledge may be seen above, n. 6112.) As to the “vessels of silver and gold” with the Egyptians being the memory-knowledges of truth and the memory-knowledges of good, when yet by the “Egyptians” both here and in what precedes, and also in what follows, are signified false memory-knowledges, be it known that in themselves these knowledges are not truths, neither are they falsities, but that they become truths with those who are in truths, and falsities with those who are in falsities, this being the effect of their application and use. It is with man’s memory-knowledges as with his riches and wealth. Riches and wealth are hurtful to those who are in evil, because they apply them to evil uses; but they are useful to those who are in good, because they apply them to good uses. If therefore the riches and wealth which pertain to the evil are transferred to the good, they become good.

[2] The same is true of memory-knowledges. For example: with the Egyptians there remained many things from the representatives of the Ancient Church, as is manifest from their hieroglyphics, but as they applied those things to magic, and hence made an evil use of them, therefore to them they were not true memory-knowledges, but false memory-knowledges; yet the same in the Ancient Church were true memory-knowledges, because they applied them rightly to Divine worship.

To take also as an example, altars and sacrifices; these with the Hebrew nation, and afterward with the Jewish and Israelitish nation, were true rituals, because they applied them to the worship of Jehovah; but with the nations in the land of Canaan they were false rituals, because they applied them to the worship of their idols, and therefore also it was commanded that the altars of these nations should everywhere be destroyed. It is the same with numberless other things. Therefore by those who are in evils and falsities many memory-knowledges can be acquired which are capable of being applied to good uses, and thus of becoming good.

[3] Such are also signified by the spoiling of the nations in the land of Canaan and by the wealth, the herds, the cattle, the houses, the vineyards, which the sons of Israel there took for spoil. This is still plainer from the gold and silver taken from the nations for spoil being also applied to a holy use, as is evident from the second Book of Samuel:

There were in his hand vessels of silver, and vessels of gold, and vessels of brass: these also did King David sanctify unto Jehovah, with the silver and gold which he had sanctified of all the nations which he subdued; of the Syrians, of Moab, and of the sons of Ammon, and of the Philistines, and of Amalek, and of the spoil of Hadadezer son of Rehob, king of Zobah (2 Samuel 8:10-12).

And the merchandise of Tyre and her harlot hire shall be holiness to Jehovah; it shall not be stored up, nor kept back; but her merchandise shall be for them that dwell before Jehovah, to eat till they are sated, and for the ancient to cover himself (Isaiah 23:18).

These things also which the women of the sons of Israel borrowed from the Egyptians, and thus took for spoil, were afterward applied to the use of constructing the ark and many other of the holy things of their worship.