36. Zij die het geloof van de liefde gescheiden hebben, weten zelfs niet eens wat geloof is. Wanneer zij aan geloof denken, weten sommigen niet anders dan dat het een overdenken is, en anderen dat het een denken over de Heer is; weinigen dat het de leer van het geloof is. Geloof is echter niet slechts het weten van alle dingen, welke de leer van het geloof behelst en de erkenning daarvan, maar bovenal de gehoorzaamheid aan alle dingen die zij leert. Het eerste wat zij leert en waaraan men moet gehoorzamen, is de liefde tot de Heer en de liefde tot de naaste: wie niet in die liefde is, is niet in het geloof, hetgeen de Heer zo duidelijk leert, dat daar geen twijfel over kan bestaan, zoals bij Markus:

‘Het eerste van alle geboden is: Hoor Israël, de Heer onze God is een enig Heer; daarom zult gij de Heer uw God liefhebben uit geheel uw hart en uit geheel uw ziel en uit geheel uw gemoed en uit geheel uw kracht. Dit is het eerste gebod. En het tweede hieraan gelijk, is dit: Gij zult uw naasten liefhebben als uzelf. Daar is geen ander gebod groter dan deze’, (Markus 11:28-35).

Bij Mattheüs noemt Hij dat het eerste en grote gebod, en zegt:

‘Aan deze geboden hangt de wet en de profeten’, (Mattheüs 22:34-39). De wet en de profeten zijn de gehele Leer en het gehele Woord.

7232. Verses 26-30 It was this Aaron and Moses to whom Jehovah said, Lead the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt according to their armies. These are the ones who spoke to Pharaoh king of Egypt, to lead the children of Israel out of Egypt. It was this Moses and Aaron. And so it was on the day Jehovah spoke to Moses in the land of Egypt, that Jehovah spoke to Moses, saying, I am Jehovah; speak to Pharaoh king of Egypt all that I speak to you. And Moses said before Jehovah, Behold, I am uncircumcised in the lips, and how will Pharaoh hear ¹ me? 'It was this Aaron and Moses' means that it was from these that the teachings and the law of God among those people sprang. 'To whom Jehovah said' means from whom a command came. 'Lead the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt' means that those who belonged to the Lord's spiritual kingdom were to be delivered. 'According to their armies' means in accordance with the genera and species of good within truths. 'These are the ones who spoke to Pharaoh king of Egypt' means the warning from them to those who molest by means of utter falsities. 'To lead the children of Israel out of Egypt' means to leave them and not molest them. 'It was this Moses and Aaron' means that this warning came from the law from God and the teachings derived from it. 'And so it was on the day Jehovah spoke to Moses in the land of Egypt' means the state of the Church at that time, when the command was given through the law from God to those who belonged to the Lord's spiritual kingdom, when they were still in close proximity to those in hell. 'That Jehovah spoke to Moses, saying' means instruction from the Divine. 'I am Jehovah' means Divine confirmation. 'Speak to Pharaoh king of Egypt all that I speak to you' means warnings given to those who molest by means of utter falsities, warnings delivered by things that flow in from the Divine. 'And Moses said before Jehovah' means the thought regarding the law of God that those steeped in falsities entertained. 'Behold, I am uncircumcised in the lips' means that it is impure. 'And how will Pharaoh hear me?' means that for that reason those steeped in falsities are not going to accept it.

Voetnoten:

1044. 'And it will be for a sign of the covenant between Me and the earth' means a token of the Lord's presence in charity, 'the earth' here being a person's proprium. This is clear from what has been stated already. That 'the earth' means a person's Proprium is clear from the internal sense and from the whole train of thought. Above it was stated that 'this is the sign of the covenant between Me and you and every living soul that is with you' meant whatever has been regenerated; but here the wording is different - 'it will be for a sign of the covenant between Me and the earth'. From this, and also from the repetition of 'sign of the covenant', it is evident that something different is meant here, and indeed that 'the earth' is that which has not been regenerated, and which is incapable of being, namely the will part of a person's proprium.

[2] When somebody is regenerate he belongs to the Lord so far as the understanding Part of his mind is concerned but belongs to himself so far as the will part of it is concerned. These two parts in the spiritual man are opposed to each other. But although the will part of a person's proprium is opposed, its continuing presence is nevertheless inevitable. Indeed all the obscurity in the understanding part, that is, all the thickness of his cloud, originates there. It is constantly flowing in from there, and in the measure it flows in so the cloud in the understanding part thickens; but in the measure it is taken away, the cloud thins out. This is why 'the earth' here means a person's proprium. That 'the earth' means the bodily part of man's nature as well as having many other meanings has been shown already.

[3] The relationship between those two parts is like two parties who were first of all joined together by a covenant of friendship - as will and understanding were in the member of the Most Ancient Church - and then the friendship was broken off and hostility arose, as happened when man corrupted totally the will part of him. After that, when the covenant is renewed, the hostile part presents itself as though the covenant were with it. But no covenant is made with it because it is utterly opposed and contrary. It is made instead with that which flows in from it, as has been stated, that is, with the understanding part of the proprium. The sign or token of the covenant is this, that to the extent the Lord is present in the understanding part of the proprium the will part of it will be taken away. The relationship between the two is just like that of heaven and hell. The understanding part of a regenerate person, by virtue of the charity in which the Lord is present, is heaven, while the will part of him is hell. To the extent the Lord is present in heaven, hell is removed; for when he subsists from himself man is in hell, but when he does so from the Lord he is in heaven. Man is constantly being raised up from hell into heaven, and so far as he is raised up his hell is taken away from him. The sign or token therefore that the Lord is present rests in the fact that man's own will is taken away. The possibility of that removal is achieved by means of temptations and many other means of regeneration.