4544. Put away the gods of the stranger which are in the midst of you. That this signifies that falsities should be rejected, is evident from the signification of “to put away,” as being to reject; and from the signification of the “gods of the stranger,” as being falsities. For by “gods” in the Word are signified truths, and in the opposite sense falsities (n. 4402); and those were called “strangers” who were outside of the church, consequently those who were in falsities and evils (n. 2049, 2115). Therefore the “gods of the stranger” denote falsities.

10489. 'Go to and fro from gate to gate in the camp' means wherever anything lies open from what is internal into what is external. This is clear from the meaning of 'going to and fro' as considering and looking around from one end to the other; from the meaning of 'gate' as an opening, dealt with above in 10483, so that 'from gate to gate' means wherever anything lies open; and from the meaning of 'the camp' as hell, also dealt with above in 10483, thus also what is external, for what is external separated from what is internal constitutes hell in a person. From these meanings it is evident that 'going to and fro from gate to gate in the camp' means considering and looking around wherever that which lies open from what is internal into what is external exists. The implications of this will be stated in the next paragraph. The reason why what is external separated from what is internal constitutes hell in a person is that heaven resides in what is internal in him, as shown above in 10472; consequently what is external when separated from that heaven constitutes hell. All this is made clearer still by the consideration that those who are interested only in external things separated from internal ones are ruled by hellish kinds of love, namely self-love and love of the world. Also the person whose external has been separated from his internal is in actual fact in hell, though he is not aware of it while he lives in the world.

5911. 'And you shall be near me' means an everlasting joining together. This is clear from the meaning of 'being near' as an everlasting joining together; for 'coming to Joseph' means a joining together, 5909, and therefore 'being near him', constantly near him, is an everlasting joining together.