9224. The firstborn of thy sons thou shalt give to Me. That this signifies that also all the things of faith which are procured through these are to be ascribed to the Lord, and not to self, is evident from the signification of “the firstborn of the sons,” as being all things of the faith of the church (see n. 2435, 6344, 7035, 7039, 7778, 8042); and from the signification of “giving unto Me” as being to ascribe to the Lord, for by “Jehovah” in the Word is meant the Lord. All the things of faith, which are signified by “the firstborn of the sons,” are those which are from the good of charity, for faith comes forth from this good, because whether truths are taken from the Word or from the doctrine of the church, they cannot possibly become truths of faith unless there is good in which they may be implanted. The reason is that it is the understanding which first receives truths, because it sees them and introduces them to the will; and when they are in the will, then they are in the man, for the will is the man himself. Wherefore he who supposes that faith is faith with man before he wills these truths, and from willing does them, is very much mistaken. Previous to this the very truths of faith have no life. Everything that belongs to the will is called “good,” because it is loved. Thus truth becomes good, or faith becomes charity, in the will.

[2] There are two controversies which have infested the church from the earliest times; the one is whether faith or charity is the firstborn of the church; the other, whether faith separate from charity is saving. These controversies have arisen because, before a man has been regenerated, he perceives the truths which must be of faith; but not the good which is of charity. For the truths of faith enter by an external way, namely, by the hearing, and are stored up in the memory, and from this appear in the understanding. But the good of charity flows in by an internal way, namely, through the internal man out of heaven, that is, through heaven from the Lord, and therefore does not become a matter of perception until the truths which are called the truths of faith begin to be loved for the sake of a good use, and for the sake of life; and this takes place when they become of the will. From this then it is that faith was said to be the firstborn of the church, and also had attributed to it the right of primogeniture, that is, the right of priority and superiority over the good of charity; when yet the good of charity is actually prior and superior, and the truth of faith only apparently so (n. 3325, 3494, 3539, 3548, 3556, 3563, 3570, 3576, 3603, 3701, 4925, 4926, 4928, 4930, 4977, 5351, 6256, 6269, 6272, 6273).

[3] The reason why the man of the church has been in obscurity on these subjects, is that he did not perceive that all things in the universe bear relation to truth and to good, and that they must bear relation to both in order to be anything. Neither did he perceive that there are two faculties in man, called the understanding and the will, and that truth bears relation to the understanding, and good to the will; and that unless there is this relation to both, nothing is appropriated to the man. As these things have been in obscurity, and yet the ideas of man’s thought are founded upon such things, the error could not be made plain to the natural man; although if it had once been made plain, the man of the church would have seen, as in clear light from the Word, that the Lord Himself has said countless things about the good of charity; and that this good is the chief thing of the church; and that faith is not anywhere except in this good. The good of charity is to do what is good from the will of what is good. He would also have seen the errors that have been brought in by the doctrine of faith separate from charity; as, that a man can will evil and believe truth, consequently that truth can agree with evil; also that faith can make the life of heaven with a man whose life is infernal, and consequently that the one life can be transferred into the other; thus that those who are in hell can be raised into heaven, and live among the angels a life contrary to their former life; not considering that to live a life contrary to that with which the man has imbued himself in the world, is to be deprived of life, and that those who attempt this are like men in the death agony, who end their life in dreadful suffering. Such errors, and very many others, are brought in by the doctrine of faith separate from charity.

4926. And she said, Wherefore hast thou broken upon thee a breach? That this signifies its apparent separation from good, is evident from the signification of a “breach,” as being the infraction and perversion of truth by separation from good-of which presently. That “to break a breach” here is to pull off the double-dyed from the hand, and thus to separate good, is evident, for by “double-dyed” is signified good (n. 4922); that this was apparently so follows from the fact that it so appeared to the midwife; for this was not the one who had the double-dyed, but his brother, by whom is represented truth. On this subject see what is shown just above (n. 4925), namely that good is actually the firstborn, but truth apparently. This may be further illustrated from the uses and members in the human body. It appears as if the members and organs are prior, and that their uses follow; for the former are first presented to the eye, and are also known before the uses. Nevertheless the use is prior to the members and organs, these latter being from the uses, and therefore formed according to them; nay, the use itself forms them, and adapts them to itself. Unless this were so, all and each of the things in man would by no means conspire so unanimously to a one. It is similar with good and truth: it appears as if truth were prior, but it is good, for good forms truths and adapts them to itself; wherefore regarded in themselves truths are nothing else than goods formed, or forms of good. Truths also in respect to good are like the viscera and fibers in the body in respect to uses; and regarded in itself good is nothing else than use.

[2] That a “breach” signifies infraction of truth and perversion of it by separation from good, is evident also from other passages in the Word, as in David:

Our garners are full, affording from food to food; our flocks are thousands and ten thousands in our streets; our oxen are laden; there is no breach (Psalms 144:13-14);

treating of the Ancient Church, such as it was in its youth; the “food with which the garners were full” denotes spiritual food, that is, truth and good; “flocks” and “oxen” denote internal and external goods; “there is no breach” denotes that truth is not infracted or broken through by separation from good.

[3] In Amos:

I will raise up the tent of David that is fallen, and fence up the breaches thereof; and I will restore its ruins, and I will build it according to the days of eternity (Amos 9:11);

describing the church which is in good, the “tent of David that is fallen” being the good of love and charity from the Lord. (That “tent” is this good, may be seen above, n. 414, 1102, 2145, 2152, 3312, 4128, 4391, 4599, and that “David” is the Lord, n. 1888) To “fence up the breaches” means to amend the falsities which have entered by the separation of truth from good; “to build it according to the days of eternity” denotes according to the state of the church in ancient times; that state and those times are called in the Word the “days of eternity,” the “days of an age,” and also “of generation and generation”—as in Isaiah:

[4] Builds of thee the wastes of an age, the foundations of generation and generation; and thou shall be called, The repairer of the breach, The restorer of paths to dwell in (Isaiah 58:12);

describing the church in which charity and life is the essential. Here also “repairing the breach” denotes amending the falsities which have crept in by the separation of good from truth, every falsity being from this source; and “restoring paths to dwell in” denotes truths which are of good, for “paths” or “ways” are truths (n. 627, 2333), and “dwelling” is predicated of good (n. 2268, 2451, 2712, 3613).

[5] Again:

Ye saw the breaches of the city of David, that they were many; and ye gathered together the waters of the lower pool (Isaiah 22:9).

The “breaches of the city of David” denote falsities of doctrine, and the “waters of the lower pool” the traditions by which they made infractions of the truths that are in the Word (Matthew 15:1-6; Mark 7:1-14).

In Ezekiel:

Ye have not gone up into the breaches, neither have ye built up the fence for the house of Israel, that ye might stand in the war in the days of Jehovah (Ezekiel 13:5).

Again,

I sought from them a man that buildeth the fence, and standeth in the breach before Me for the land, that I should not destroy it; but I found none (Ezekiel 22:30);

to “stand in the breach” denotes to defend and to take heed lest falsities break in.

In David:

Jehovah said that He would destroy the people, unless Moses His chosen had stood before Him in the breach (Psalms 106:23); where also “to stand in the breach” denotes to take heed lest falsities break in. “Moses” is the Word (see pref ace to Gen. 18, and n. 4859e).

[6] In Amos:

They shall draw out your posterity with fish-hooks. Ye shall go forth through the breaches, everyone straight before her; and ye shall throw down the palace (Amos 4:2-3);

“to go forth through the breaches” denotes through falsities from reasonings; the “palace” is the Word, consequently the truth of doctrine which is from good. And as by “breaches” is signified the falsity which comes into existence by the separation of good from truth, the same is also signified, in the representative sense, by “strengthening and repairing the breaches of the house of Jehovah” (2 Kings 12:6-8, 12; 22:5). In the second book of Samuel:

It grieved David because Jehovah had broken a breach upon Uzzah; therefore he called that place Perez-Uzzah (2 Samuel 6:8);

speaking of Uzzah, who died because he touched the ark; by the ark was represented heaven, in the supreme sense the Lord, consequently Divine good; by Uzzah however was represented that which ministers, thus truth, for this ministers to good. The separation above described is signified by the “breach upon Uzzah.”