9275. 'And the needy of your people will eat' means being joined through the good of charity to those who possess few truths and still have a desire to receive instruction. This is clear from the meaning of 'eating' as communicating and being joined together, dealt with in 2187, 3596, 5643, 8001; from the meaning of 'the needy' as those who have few truths owing to lack of knowledge and still have a desire to receive instruction, dealt with in 9253; and from the meaning of 'people', at this point the people of Israel, as those who belong to the Church, dealt with in 4286, 6426, 6637, 8805. From these meanings it is evident that 'the needy of your people will eat' means joining the Church to those who possess few truths and still have a desire to receive instruction. The reason why the words 'being joined through the good of charity' are used is that such good joins people together, which is the subject dealt with in the very next paragraph.

8001. 'Shall eat it' means that he shall be together with them. This is clear from the meaning of 'eating' - eating the Passover lamb together with all the others - as communicating, and being joined together, dealt with in 2187, 5643. For the Passover supper represented, as stated above in 7836, 7891, 7996, 7997, groups of angels associated together according to forms of good and truths; and the statutes regarding foreigners, slaves, strangers, hired servants, and sojourners, who are dealt with in these verses, in the internal sense indicate who exactly could be integrated among them and who could not. This then is why 'eating' means being together with them or integrated among them, while 'not eating' means not being together among them, that is, being set apart from them.