Arcana Coelestia # 4601
4601. 'That Reuben went and lay with Bilhah his father's concubine' means the profanation of good by means of faith separated from charity; 'and Israel heard' means that this faith was cast aside. This is clear from the representation of 'Reuben' as faith present in doctrine and in the understanding, which is the attribute of the Church that is born first, dealt with in 3861, 3866, at this point when that faith has been separated from charity, dealt with below; and from the meaning of 'lying with Bilhah his father's concubine' as the profanation of good, for committing adultery means perverting or adulterating forms of good, 2466, 2729, 3399, but 'lying with a father's concubine' profaning them; and from the meaning of 'Israel heard' as the fact that this faith was cast aside. In the proper sense the expression 'Israel heard' means that the spiritual Church knew this and assented to it, for 'hearing' means hearkening, while 'Israel' means the spiritual Church. But the fact that the true Church does not assent to it will be evident from what is going to be said about Reuben. In the internal sense however the meaning is that that faith was cast aside, for although Jacob's feelings and thoughts concerning this unmentionable and outrageous deed are not stated, his utter disgust and abhorrence is evident from his prophecy concerning Reuben,
Reuben, you my firstborn, are my strength and the beginning of my might, excelling in eminence, and excelling in power. Unstable as water, may you not excel, for you went up to your father's bed; then you profaned It. He went up to my couch. Genesis 49:3-4.
The same is also evident from the fact that because of what he did Reuben was deprived of the birthright, 1 Chronicles 5:1. These considerations show that 'Israel heard' means that that faith was cast aside. As regards the birthright meaning the faith of the Church, see 352, 2435, 3325.
[2] The profanation of good by faith separated from charity takes place when people acknowledge and believe the truth of the Church and its good and yet lead lives contrary to these. Indeed with those who in understanding and consequently in life separate matters of faith from those of charity, evil is joined to truth and falsity to good; and it is this joining together that is called profanation. The situation is different with those who, though they know what the truth and good of faith are, nevertheless do not in their hearts have any belief in these. See what has been stated and shown already concerning profanation in 301-303, 571, 582, 593, 1001, 1003, 1008, 1010, 1059, 1327, 1328, 2051, 2426, 3398, 3399, 3402, 3489, 3898, 4050, 4289; also that the profanation of good by faith separated from charity was represented by Cain when he killed Abel, by Ham when he was cursed by his father, and by the Egyptians when they were drowned in the Red Sea, 3325, 1 as well as here by Reuben, 3325, 3870.
[3] In order that members of the spiritual Church might be saved the Lord miraculously separated the understanding part of their minds from the will part and imparted to the understanding the ability to accept a new will, 863, 875, 895, 927, 928, 1023, 1043, 1044, 2256, 4328, 4493. When therefore the understanding takes hold of and perceives the [truth and] good of faith and makes these its own, and yet the person's own will - that is, his will to do evil - reigns and rules, truth comes to be joined to evil and good to falsity. This joining of truth to evil and of good to falsity is profanation and is meant by eating and drinking in an unworthy manner in the Holy Supper. From people like this the good meant by the body and the truth meant by the blood [cannot] be separated; for when these have been joined to falsity and evil as described, they cannot be separated ever at all, and as a consequence the deepest hell awaits those persons. But those who know what the truth and good of faith are and yet in their hearts have no belief in them, as is the case with the vast majority of people at the present day, are unable to profane them because the understanding does not accept them and absorb them into itself.
[4] The subject here is the casting aside of this faith, for in what follows immediately after this the subject is truths and goods in their genuine order, and immediately after that the joining of these to the rational or understanding part, 'the sons of Jacob' who in the verses immediately after this are mentioned by name being truths and goods in that order, 'Isaac' the rational or understanding part, and 'Jacob's coming with his sons to Isaac' being in the internal sense that joining to the understanding part.
Notas de rodapé:
Exodus 2
1
And a man of the house of Levi went and took a daughter of Levi.
2
And the woman conceived, and bore a son. And she saw him that he was fair, and hid him three months.
3
And when she could no longer hide him, she took for him an ark of reeds, and plastered it with resin and with pitch, and put the child in it, and laid [it] in the sedge on the bank of the river.
4
And his sister stood afar off to see what would happen to him.
5
And the daughter of Pharaoh went down to bathe in the river; and her maids went along by the river's side. And she saw the ark in the midst of the sedge, and sent her handmaid and fetched it.
6
And she opened [it], and saw the child, and behold, the boy wept. And she had compassion on him, and said, This is [one] of the Hebrews' children.
7
And his sister said to Pharaoh's daughter, Shall I go and call thee a wet-nurse of the Hebrew women, that she may nurse the child for thee?
8
And Pharaoh's daughter said to her, Go. And the damsel went and called the child's mother.
9
And Pharaoh's daughter said to her, Take this child away and nurse it for me, and I will give [thee] thy wages. And the woman took the child and nursed it.
10
And when the child was grown, she brought him to Pharaoh's daughter, and he became her son. And she called his name Moses, and said, Because I drew him out of the water.
11
And it came to pass in those days, when Moses was grown, that he went out to his brethren and looked on their burdens; and he saw an Egyptian smiting a Hebrew, one of his brethren.
12
And he turned this way and that way, and when he saw that there was no man, he smote the Egyptian, and hid him in the sand.
13
And he went out on the second day, and behold, two Hebrew men were quarrelling; and he said to him that was in the wrong, Why art thou smiting thy neighbour?
14
And he said, Who made thee ruler and judge over us? dost thou intend to kill me, as thou killedst the Egyptian? Then Moses feared, and said, Surely the matter is known.
15
And Pharaoh heard of this matter, and sought to slay Moses. But Moses fled from before Pharaoh, and dwelt in the land of Midian. And he sat by the well.
16
And the priest of Midian had seven daughters; and they came and drew [water], and filled the troughs, to water their father's flock.
17
And the shepherds came and drove them away; but Moses rose and helped them, and watered their flock.
18
And when they came to Reuel their father, he said, Why are ye come so soon to-day?
19
And they said, An Egyptian delivered us out of the hand of the shepherds, and also drew [water] abundantly for us, and watered the flock.
20
And he said to his daughters, And where is he? why then have ye left the man behind? Call him, that he may eat bread.
21
And Moses consented to remain with the man; and he gave Moses Zipporah his daughter.
22
And she bore a son, and he called his name Gershom; for he said, I have been a sojourner in a foreign land.
23
And it came to pass during those many days, that the king of Egypt died. And the children of Israel sighed because of the bondage, and cried; and their cry came up to God because of the bondage;
24
and God heard their groaning, and God remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob;
25
and God looked upon the children of Israel, and God acknowledged [them].
