26. Er is gezegd dat deze engelen meer wijsheid en heerlijkheid hebben dan de overigen, omdat ze het Goddelijke ware direct in hun leven hebben opgenomen en blijven opnemen, want zodra zij het Goddelijke ware horen willen en doen zij het ook, in plaats van ze in het geheugen op te nemen en daarna te overleggen of ze waar zijn. Zulke engelen weten onmiddellijk door de invloeiing (influx) vanuit de Heer of het waar is wat zij horen, want de Heer vloeit direct in iemands wil, maar indirect door middel van zijn wil in zijn denken. Of, wat hetzelfde is, de Heer vloeit direct in bij wat goed is, en indirect door middel van wat goed is, in bij wat waar is. Want wat tot de wil en de daaruit voortkomende activiteit behoort wordt goed genoemd, terwijl dat wat tot het geheugen en de daaruit voortkomende gedachten behoort heet waar. Inderdaad wordt iedere waarheid, zodra deze de wil binnenkomt in goed veranderd en in de liefde geplant, maar zolang waarheid in het geheugen en de daaruit voortkomende gedachten blijft, wordt het niet goed en komt het evenmin tot leven en wordt het ook niet door de persoon eigen gemaakt, omdat de mens een mens is vanwege zijn wil en daarna vanwege zijn verstand en niet vanwege zijn verstand gescheiden van zijn wil.

14. And they that hear the words of the prophecy, signifies that they live according to the doctrine of heaven. This is evident from the signification of "hearing," as being to perceive and obey (See Arcana Coelestia 2542, 3869, 4653, 5017, 7216, 8361, 8990, 9311, 9397, 10061); thus also to live according to that doctrine; for those who perceive and obey the doctrine of heaven live according to it; and from the signification of "the words of the prophecy," as being the truths that pertain to the doctrine of heaven; for "words" are truths (n. 4692, 5075); and "prophecy" is doctrine (n. 2534, 7269); here it is the doctrine of heaven, since it is prophecy belonging to the Word, and the Word is from heaven. To "hear" is to obey and to live, because with celestial angels the things that are heard enter into the life; but as this is a thing unknown, I would like to explain it briefly.

There are two senses given to man which serve as means of receiving the things whereby the rational is formed, and also the things by which man is reformed; these are the sense of sight and the sense of hearing; the other senses are for other uses. The things that enter by the sense of sight enter into man's understanding and enlighten it, for which reason by "sight" is signified the understanding enlightened, for the understanding corresponds to the sight of the eye, as the light of heaven corresponds to the light of the world. The things, however, that enter by the sense of hearing enter both into the understanding and into the will, and for this reason by "the hearing" is signified perception and obedience. Consequently, in human language, to "hear" anyone, and to "give ear to" anyone, also to "listen to," and "hearken to," are common expressions; and by "hearing anyone" is meant to perceive, and by "giving ear to," as also by "listening to" is meant to obey; while "hearkening to" means either perceiving or obeying. These expressions flowed down into human language out of the spiritual world, where man's spirit is. Their origin in the spiritual world shall also be explained.

[2] Those there who are in the province of the ear are obediences from perception. (That all who are in the spiritual world are in some province that is named from the members, organs, or viscera of man, because they correspond thereto, may be seen in the work on Heaven and Hell 87-102.) Moreover, the province of the ear is in the axis of heaven; into it, therefore, or into those who are there, the whole spiritual world flows in, with the perception that "thus must it be done;" for this is the reigning perception in heaven; from this it is that those who are in that province are obediences from perception. That the things that enter by hearing enter immediately through the understanding into the will, may be further illustrated by the way in which angels of the celestial kingdom, who are most wise, are instructed. These angels receive all their wisdom by hearing, and not by sight; for whatsoever they hear about Divine things, they receive in the will from veneration and love, and make it of their life; and because they receive these things not first in the memory, but immediately in the life, they do not speak about matters of faith, but when these are mentioned by others, they answer, "Yea, yea," or "Nay, nay," according to the Lord's words in Matthew 5:37. From this it is evident that hearing is given to man chiefly for the reception of wisdom, and sight for the reception of intelligence. Wisdom is to perceive, to will, and to do; and intelligence is to know and to perceive. (That the celestial angels imbibe wisdom by hearing, not by sight, may be seen in the work on Heaven and Hell 270-271; and more concerning those angels, n. 20-28.)

8990. 'And his master shall pierce his ear with an awl' means a representative sign of obedience. This is clear from the meaning of 'ear' as obedience, dealt with in 2542, 3869, 4551, 4652-4660; and from the meaning of 'piercing it with an awl' - that is to say, onto the door or onto the doorpost - as affixing, or at this point pledging forever, since it refers to obedience; and this is why the words follow, 'he shall serve him forever', that is, be obedient to him forever. From this it is evident that his master's piercing his ear with an awl, fixing it to the door or to the doorpost, is representative of obedience.

[2] The implications of all this may become clear from matters stated previously, where it has been shown that those imbued solely with truths and not with complementary good, that is, with faith and not with charity, are not free but slaves. Those whose actions spring from good or charity are free. They act from themselves; for actions that spring from good or charity spring from the heart, that is, from the will, and so from what is a person's own, since what exists in a person's will is his own and a deed springing from the will is said to go out of the heart. But those who are imbued solely with the truths of faith and not with the good of charity are slaves in comparison. They do not act from themselves since they have no good within themselves for actions to spring from; instead good is outside them, and they base their actions on it as often as they call it to mind. Those who stay like this through to the end of their lives remain permanently in this state after death. They cannot be brought to a state in which their actions spring from charitable affection, that is, from good; they can act only in obedience. In the Grand Man, which is heaven, they constitute those parts that serve more internal ones, like membranes and skins, 8977, 8980.

[3] All this shows what the situation is with faith alone, that is, with those who doctrinally place faith first and the good of charity second, indeed last. Those who place them in this order in the actual lives they lead are 'Hebrew slaves' in the representative sense; but those who place charity first, in the actual lives they lead, are free or 'the children of Israel' in the representative sense. From all this one may also conclude what the situation is with those who make salvation rest entirely on the truths of faith and not at all on the good of charity, that is to say, not at all on the actual life they lead. One may conclude that they cannot enter heaven; for good reigns in heaven, not truth without good, and truth is not truth, nor is faith faith, except with those imbued with good

[4] That his master's piercing his ear with an awl, fixing it to the door, is representative of obedience is also evident from the consideration that fixing his ear to the door means causing him to attend to the things commanded by his master who is in the room, that is, to hear him at all times and obey his instructions. At this point the things which good wills and commands are meant in the spiritual sense, for spiritual good is represented by the slave's master, 8981, 8986. Since 'the ear' means the hearing of obedience, there flows into human speech from an origin in the spiritual world the expression to tweak the ear, which stands for causing a person to pay attention and remember, and in like manner the expressions to hear and to hearken to someone, which stands for obeying him. For the inner meaning that very many words possess has sprung from correspondences from the spiritual world, as with expressions such as spiritual light and being enlightened by it which people use when speaking about matters of faith, and also spiritual fire and being animated by it when speaking about matters of love.

[5] The reason why piercing the ear was done with an awl was that 'an awl' has the same meaning as a pin or peg, namely affixing and joining onto, and in the spiritual sense pledging something. But an awl was a tool used by a servant, and therefore it served to represent the pledge of everlasting obedience by a slave. The meaning of 'a pin' or 'a peg' as affixing and joining onto is clear from the places where this object is mentioned, as in Isaiah 22:23; 33:20; 41:7; 54:2; Jeremiah 10:4; Exodus 27:19; 38:31; Numbers 3:37; 4:32.