2508. She is my sister. That this signifies rational truth, is evident from the signification of a “sister,” as being rational intellectual truth (see n. 1495). That rational truth is a “sister,” can be seen only from the heavenly marriage; for the things which descend from this have kinships among themselves like the relationships and connections on earth (concerning which see n. 685, 917); and this with indefinite variety. The heavenly marriage itself exists solely between the Divine good and the Divine truth. From this there are conceived in man the intellectual, the rational, and the faculty of knowing; for without conception from the heavenly marriage man cannot possibly be imbued with understanding, with reason, or with knowledge, and consequently cannot be man. In proportion therefore as he receives from the heavenly marriage, in the same proportion is he man. The heavenly marriage is in the Lord Himself, thus the Lord is this marriage itself, for He is the Divine good itself and at the same time the Divine truth. Angels and men are in the heavenly marriage insofar as they are in love to the Lord and in charity toward the neighbor, and insofar as they are thence in faith; that is, insofar as they are in the Lord’s good, and thence in truth; and they are then called “daughters and sons,” and in their relation to one another “sisters and brothers;” but this with differences. The reason why rational truth is called a “sister” is that it is conceived from the influx of the Divine good into the affection of rational truths; the good which is thence in the rational is called a “brother,” and the truth which is thence, a “sister.” But this will be better seen from what is said by Abraham in verse 12 of this chapter: “and moreover truly she is my sister; she is the daughter of my father, but not the daughter of my mother; and she became my wife.”

918. Went forth out of the ark. That this involves also a state of freedom, is evident from what was said above (at verse 16) about going out of the ark. The quality of the freedom of the spiritual man appears from the consideration that he is ruled by the Lord through conscience. He who is ruled by conscience, or who acts according to conscience, acts freely. Nothing is more repugnant to him than to act against conscience. To act against conscience is hell to him, but to act according to conscience is heaven to him; and from this anyone may see that acting according to conscience is freedom.

The Lord rules the spiritual man through a conscience of what is good and true; and this conscience is formed, as already said, in man’s understanding, and is thus separated from what is of his will. And because it is wholly separated from what is of the will, it is very evident that man never does anything good of himself; and since all the truth of faith is from the good of faith, it is evident that man never thinks anything true from himself, but that this is from the Lord alone. That he seems to do these things from himself is only an appearance; and because it is so, the really spiritual man acknowledges and believes it. From this it is evident that conscience given to the spiritual man by the Lord is as it were a new will, and thus that the man who has been created anew is endowed with a new will and from this with a new understanding.