9373. Come up unto Jehovah. That this signifies conjunction with the Lord, is evident from the signification of “coming up,” as being to be raised toward interior things (see n. 3084, 4539, 4969, 5406, 5817, 6007), consequently also to be conjoined (n. 8760). That it denotes conjunction with the Lord, is because by “Jehovah” in the Word is meant the the Lord, (n. 1343, 1736, 1793, 2004, 2005, 2018, 2025, 2921, 3023, 3035, 5663, 6280, 6303, 6905, 8274, 8864, 9315). A secret which also lies hidden in the internal sense of these words, is that the sons of Jacob, over whom Moses was the head, were not called and chosen; but they themselves insisted that Divine worship should be instituted among them (according to wh at has been said in n. 4290, 4293); and therefore it is here said, “and He said unto Moses, Come up unto Jehovah,” as if not Jehovah, but another, had said that he should come up. For the same reason in what follows it is said that “the people should not go up” (verse 2); and that “Jehovah sent not His hand unto the sons of Israel who were set apart” (verse 11); and that “the appearance of the glory of Jehovah was like devouring fire on the top of the mountain in the eyes of the sons of Israel” (verse 17); and lastly that Moses, being called the seventh day, “entered into the midst of the cloud.” For by “the cloud” is meant the Word in the letter (n. 5922, 6343, 6752, 6832, 8106, 8443, 8781); and with the sons of Jacob the Word was separated from its internal sense, because they were in external worship without internal, as can be clearly seen from the fact that now, as before, they said, “all the words which Jehovah hath spoken we will do” (verse 3); and yet scarcely forty days afterward they worshiped a golden calf instead of Jehovah; which shows that this was hidden in their hearts while they were saying with their lips that they would serve Jehovah alone. But nevertheless those who are meant by “the called and the chosen” are those who are in internal worship, and who from internal worship are in external; that is, those who are in love to and faith in the Lord, and from this in love toward the neighbor.

7836. In the number of the souls, everyone for the mouth of his eating ¹ shall ye count for the lamb. That this signifies thus the filling up of the good, conformably to the innocence, from so many truths of good, according to the appropriation of the innocence, is evident from the signification of “the number of the souls,” as being so many truths of good, for “number” in the Word is predicated of truth, and “soul” of spiritual good; from the signification of “for the mouth of his eating,” as being according to the appropriation of it (that “to eat” denotes appropriation, see n. 3168, 3513, 3596, 3832); and from the signification of a “lamb,” as being innocence (n. 7832). The filling up of the good conformably to the innocence, is signified by “taking from the house of a near neighbor” such a number as may be sufficient for the lamb. (That “house” denotes good, see above, n. 7833.) It is said, “the truth of good,” and by this is meant the truth which is from good. For when they who are of the spiritual church are being regenerated, they are introduced to the good of charity by means of the truth of faith; but when they have been introduced to the good which is of charity, the truths which are afterward born thence are called the “truths of good.”

[2] But how the case is with what is contained in this verse cannot possibly be known unless it is known how it is with the societies in heaven; for the consociations of the sons of Israel according to tribes, families, and houses represented these societies. With the societies in heaven the case is this. The universal heaven is one society, which is ruled by the Lord as one man; the general societies there are as many as are the members, the viscera, and the organs in man; but the specific societies are as many as are the little viscera contained within each viscus, member, and organ; and the particular societies are as many as in these little viscera there are lesser parts constituting a greater one. That this is the case is plain from the correspondences of man, and of his members, organs, and viscera, with the Grand Man, that is, with heaven, which has been treated of from experience at the end of many chapters. From all this it can be seen how the case is with the distinctions of societies in heaven.

[3] But with each society in particular the case is this: it consists of many angels who are in agreement in respect to goods; these goods are various, for each angel has his peculiar good; but these various concordant goods are disposed by the Lord into such a form that together they present one good. Such societies were represented by the houses of the fathers among the sons of Israel. This is the reason why the sons of Israel were distinguished not only into tribes, but also into families and houses; and when they are mentioned, that the names of their fathers in order even to the tribe are mentioned; as of the father of Samuel, that he was of Mount Ephraim, whose “name was Elkanah, the son of Jeroham, the son of Elihu, the son of Tohu, the son of Zuph” (1 Samuel 1:1); also of the father of Saul, that he was “of Benjamin, whose name was Kish, the son of Abiel, the son of Zeror, the son of Bechorath, the son of Aphiah, the son of a man a Benjamite” (1 Samuel 9:1); and so of very many others. Such mention was made in order that in heaven might be known the quality of the good which, being successively derived from the first, was represented by the one spoken of.

[4] Moreover, in heaven the case is this. If a society is not complete, as it should be, there are then taken from elsewhere, from some neighboring society, as many as will fill up the form of that good, according to the necessity in each state, and its changes; for the form of the good varies as the state is changed. But be it further known that in the third or inmost heaven, which is next above the heaven where the spiritual are (for these constitute the middle or second heaven), innocence reigns, because the Lord, who is innocence itself, flows in immediately into that heaven; whereas into the second heaven, where the spiritual are, the Lord flows in with innocence mediately, namely, through the third heaven.

[5] This influx is that by which the societies in the second heaven are disposed or arranged in order according to their goods; and therefore the states of the good are changed according to the influx of innocence; and consequently the conjunctions of the societies there are varied. From all this it can be seen how is to be understood that which is in this verse in the internal sense, namely, that if the particular good of anyone is not sufficient for the innocence, conjunction shall be effected with the nearest good of truth, in order that the good may be filled up, conformably to the innocence, from so many truths of good, according to the appropriation of the innocence.

Footnotes:

1097. 'Canaan will be a slave to him' means that such people as make worship consist solely in external things are among those who are able to perform inferior services to members of the Church. This becomes clear especially from the representatives in the Jewish Church. In the Jewish Church the internal Church was represented by Judah and Israel - the celestial Church by Judah, the spiritual by Israel - and the external Church by Jacob. People however who made worship consist solely in external things were represented by 'the gentiles' whom they called foreigners. The latter were to be 'their slaves' and were to perform inferior services in the Church, as in Isaiah,

Aliens will stand and pasture your flock, and sons of the foreigner will be your field-workers and your vine-dressers; and you will be called the priests of Jehovah, you will be spoken of as the ministers of our God. You will eat the wealth of the gentiles, and in their glory will you glory. Isaiah 61:5-6.

Here celestial people are called 'the priests of Jehovah', spiritual people 'the ministers of God', while those who made worship consist solely in external things are called 'sons of the foreigner' who were to serve in their fields and vineyards.

[2] In the same prophet,

The sons of the foreigner will build up your walls, and their kings will minister to you. Isaiah 60:10.

Here similar reference is made to the service they were to render. In reference to the Gibeonites the following is said in Joshua,

You are cursed, and some of you will always be slaves, ¹ both hewers of wood and drawers of water for the house of my God. Joshua made them on that day hewers of wood and drawers of water for the congregation, especially for the altar of Jehovah. Joshua 9:23, 27.

It may be seen elsewhere whom the Gibeonites represented because of the covenant made with them, even though they belonged among those who were to be servants in the Church. Regarding foreigners, the law was laid down that if they would accept peace and open their gates they would become tributary and serve, ² Deuteronomy 20:11; 1 Kings 9:21-22. Every single detail written down in the Word concerning the Jewish Church was representative of the Lord's kingdom. The Lord's kingdom is such that everyone, no matter who or what kind of person, must perform a use. In His kingdom the Lord looks to nothing else than use. Even those in hell have to perform a use, though the uses they do perform are the lowest of all. Among those performing inferior uses are people in the next life whose worship has been wholly external, separated from internal.

[3] Furthermore representatives in the Jewish Church were such that no attention was paid to the person who represented, but to that which was represented by him. The Jews, for example, who were anything but celestial people, nevertheless represented these, while Israel, anything but a spiritual man, nevertheless represented that man; and it was similar with Jacob and the rest. The same applied to kings and priests; they nevertheless represented the Kingship and Holiness of the Lord. This matter becomes clearer still from the fact that even inanimate objects were representative, such as Aaron's garments, the altar itself, the tables with the leaves on them, the lamps, bread and wine; as well as oxen, calves, goats, sheep, kids, lambs, doves, and pigeons. And because the sons of Judah and Israel did no more than represent the internal and the external worship of the Lord's Church, and yet more than anybody else made all worship consist merely in external things, it is therefore they, more than all others, who may be called 'Canaan' according to his meaning here.

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