9864. 'There shall be four rows of stones, the order being' means all of them joined together, that is to say, all the truths springing from good. This is clear from the meaning of 'four' as a joining together, dealt with in 1686, 9601, 9674; and from the meaning of 'rows of stones' as truths springing from good in their proper order. The setting of them in four rows, three in each row, was decreed in order that the joining together of all the truths springing from the same good, and so their perfection, might be represented; for 'four' means a joining together, as has been stated, and 'three' means perfection, 9825. Indeed since one and the same good is the source from which they all emanate, 9863, and is consequently the one to which they all look back, that good is what joins them all together.

[2] Things that happen in heaven may serve to cast light on all this and show that it is so. All without exception in heaven turn their face towards the Lord; and - marvel that it is - this happens whatever direction they turn to face. As a consequence of this all who are in heaven are joined together as one. But those who are outside heaven turn their face away from the Lord; and the further away they are from heaven the further away their faced is turned. As a consequence of this there is division among them, because they do not love God or their neighbour, only themselves and the world. But this is an arcanum which for those whose thought is ruled by the illusions of the senses is inconceivable; for they cannot at all comprehend how every face in heaven can be always looking, in whatever direction its owner turns, towards the Lord, who is the Sun there. See what has been introduced above in 9828 on this subject.

8877. 'On the third and on the fourth [generations]' means in a long sequence, and joined together. This is clear from the meaning of 'three' as what is complete from start to finish, dealt with in 2788, 4495, 7715, thus a long sequence, so that 'the third [generation on sons' is falsities in a long sequence (for the meaning of 'sons' as falsities, see immediately above in 8876); and from the meaning of 'four', like two, as joined together, dealt with in 1686, 5194, 8423, so that 'the third and the fourth [generations of] sons' are falsities joined together in a long sequence. This explanation of 'the third and the fourth [generations of] sons' must inevitably seem to be nonsensical or foreign to the meaning of the Word; but it should be remembered that in the internal sense numbers do not mean numbers but real things, see 482, 487, 575, 647, 648, 755, 813, 1963, 1988, 2075, 2252, 3252, 4264, 4495, 4670, 5265, 6175.