4882. And went. That this signifies life, is evident from the signification of “going,” as being to live (n. 3335, 3690). That in the internal sense “to go” is to live does indeed appear rather remote or abstracted from the ideas of thought in which man is, and this because man is in space and in time, and has formed the ideas of his thought therefrom, as for instance his idea of going, advancing, journeying, traveling, and moving. As these actions exist in space, and also in time, and as space and time are therefore inwoven in his ideas concerning them, it is difficult for man to apprehend that states of life are signified by them. But when the idea from space and time concerning them is separated or put off, there results the spiritual thing which is signified. For in the spiritual world or in heaven nothing of space or time enters the ideas, but instead what belongs to the state of life (n. 1274, 1382, 2625, 2788, 2837, 3356, 3404, 3827, 4814). It does indeed appear to spirits and angels that they advance and move from place to place, just as it appears to men; but still it is changes of the state of life that produce this appearance; just as it appears to them, as well as to men, that they live from themselves, when yet they do not live from themselves, but from the Divine of the Lord from whom is the all of life. These appearances with the angels are called real, because they appear as if they really were.

[2] I have sometimes spoken with spirits about these appearances; and those who are not in good, and consequently not in truth, are unwilling to hear that it is an appearance that they live of themselves, for they wish to live of themselves. But besides their being shown by living experience that they do not live of themselves, and that progressions from place to place are changes and progressions of the state of life, they were also told that they might be satisfied in not knowing but that they have life from themselves, as they could have no more even if the life in them were really from themselves; but that still it is better to know how the case really is, because then they are in the truth, and if in the truth, they are also in the light of heaven, for the light of heaven is the truth itself which is from the Divine of the Lord; and thus they would neither claim good for themselves, nor would evil adhere to them. The angels are in this truth, not only by knowledge, but also by perception.

[3] That times and spaces in the spiritual world are states of life, and that the all of life is from the Lord, may be seen from the following experience. Every spirit and angel sees the good at the right, and the evil at the left, and this to whatever quarter he turns; the good and the evil so appear to him if he looks toward the east, and so if he looks to the west, or to the south, or the north. This is true of every spirit and angel; so that if two were looking, one toward the east, and the other toward the west, still to both the good would appear on the right, and the evil on the left. The appearance is the same to those who are remote from the spirits who are seen, even though these should be behind them. From this it may be clearly inferred that the all of life is from the Lord, or that the Lord is in the life of everyone; for the Lord appears there as the sun, and on His right are the good, or the sheep, and on his left are the evil, or the goats. Hence it is similar with everyone, because as already said the Lord is the all of life. This cannot but seem a paradox to man, because so long as he is in the world he has ideas from worldly things, and consequently from space and time; whereas in the spiritual world, as said above, the ideas are not from space and time, but from the state of the affections and of the derivative thoughts. From this also it is that spaces and times in the Word signify states.

3404. And Isaac sowed in that land. That this signifies interior truths which are from the Lord appearing to the rational, is evident from the signification of “sowing,” as being in the supreme sense Divine truth which is from the Lord who is the sower (n. 3038); and in the internal sense the truth and good with man thence derived (n. 3373); and from the signification of “land,” as being the rational things which when enlightened by the Divine are appearances of truth (n. 3368); or what is the same, interior truths which are from the Lord appearing to the rational; which appearances, or which truths, are of a higher degree, being treated of in the internal sense as far as verse 14. The angels are in these appearances of truth, which are such that they immeasurably transcend the understanding of man during his life in the world.

[2] In order that it may be still more evident what these appearances of truth are, take also the following example. It is known that the Divine is infinite as to being, and eternal as to manifestation, and that the finite is not capable of comprehending the infinite, nor indeed the eternal, for the eternal is the infinite as to manifestation; and as the Divine Itself is infinite and eternal, all things which are from the Divine are also infinite and eternal, and being infinite cannot possibly be comprehended by angels, because these are finite. For this reason the things which are infinite and eternal are presented before the angels in appearances which are finite; but still in such appearances as are very far above the sphere of man’s comprehension. For example, man cannot possibly have any idea of the eternal except from time; and this being the case, he cannot possibly comprehend what is from eternity, thus what the Divine was before time, or before the world was created. And so long as there is in his thought anything of an idea from time, if he thinks on the subject he must necessarily fall into errors from which he cannot be extricated. But to the angels, who are not in the idea of time, but in the idea of state, it is given to perceive this most clearly, for the eternal with them is not the eternal of time, but the eternal of state, without the idea of time.

[3] Hence it is manifest in what appearances the angels are in comparison with man, and how much their appearances are above those with man; for man cannot have the smallest thought apart from time and space; whereas the angels derive nothing from these; but in their stead from state as to being and as to manifestation. From all this we can see what is the nature of the appearances of truth here treated of, and which are of a higher degree. In what follows, the appearances of truth of a lower degree are treated of in their order, even as they are adapted to mankind.