4033. ¹ 'Those which came together later were Laban's' means that these things were left behind, that is to say, those that were compulsory. 'And those which came together first were Jacob's' means that the spontaneous things - those which were from his freedom - were joined together. This is clear from what has been stated immediately above in 4029, 4032. By the things that were compulsory are meant in this case those that had not been joined together, and were incapable of being joined; and by the things that were spontaneous those that had been joined, and also such as were capable of being joined. The reason why the latter are meant as well is that affections and the essential nature of those affections make spontaneous things what they are. After the good meant by 'Laban and his flock' has served the uses described above it is separated. That separation is dealt with in the next chapter.

脚注:

4029. 'So it was, whenever those came on heat - those of the flock which came together first' means the things that were spontaneous. This is clear from the meaning of 'coming on heat' as an intense desire, and the effect that resulted from this, dealt with above in 4018, 4019; from the meaning of 'the flock' as truth and good, also dealt with above; and from the meaning of 'those coming together first' as things that are spontaneous. This meaning of 'those which came together first' - namely things that are spontaneous - is evident from the sequence of thought in the internal sense. It is in addition evident from the consideration that anything done from affection is spontaneous, very much so when done from an intense desire, meant by 'coming on heat' - hence the use twice in this verse of the expression 'coming on heat'. And the meaning of 'those which came together first' is still further evident from the derivation of this expression in the original language as becoming joined together through deepest love, as well as from the subject here being the joining of truth and good in the natural which is effected only through that which is spontaneous, that is, done in freedom. From all this it may be seen that 'whenever those came on heat - those of the flock which came together first' or 'wherever those from the flock which came together first came on heat' means truths and goods which are spontaneous, that is, which are the product of freedom, or what amounts to the same, of deepest affection.

A person's feeling of freedom involves everything that is in keeping with his love or affection, see 2870.

Every joining together of truth and good is effected in freedom and none under compulsion, 2875, 3145, 3146, 3158.

Consequently all reformation and regeneration is effected through freedom, 1937, 1947, 2876-2881.

If it were possible to effect it through compulsion all would be saved, 2881.