4263. 'Two hundred she-goats and twenty he-goats; two hundred sheep and twenty rams' means Divine goods and accompanying truths. This is clear from the meaning of 'she-goats and sheep' as goods, dealt with in 3995, 4006, 4169; from the meaning of 'he-goats and rams' as truths, dealt with in 4005, 4170, in this case Divine goods and truths. The reason why goods and truths are mentioned so many times, and why they are meant by so many different things, is that everything in heaven or in the Church has a relationship with them - everything of love and charity with good, and everything of faith with truth. Yet the genera and species of good and truth are countless, indeed limitless, as becomes clear from the fact that all who are governed by good are within the Lord's kingdom and yet good is not one and the same with one community as it is with another, nor is it even one and the same with one individual within a community as it is with another. For it is by no means possible for one and the same good to exist in two individuals, still less in many, for if one and the same good existed in them, there would not even be two, let alone many of them. Every single whole consists of varying parts, doing so through heavenly harmony and concord.

3548. 'He went to his father, and said, My father. And he said, Behold, here I am; who are you, my son?' means a state of perception resulting from the presence of that truth. This becomes clear from the representation of Isaac, to whom 'father' refers here, and from the representation of Jacob, to whom 'son' refers, dealt with several times already; and also from the meaning of 'saying' as perceiving, also dealt with already. From these and all the other expressions used it is evident that it is a state of perception resulting from the presence of the truth represented by 'Jacob'. But the nature of this truth represented at this point by Jacob is evident from the internal sense of what comes before and after - that in outward form it is like the good and the truth acquired from good which are represented by 'Esau' and meant by his venison, but it is not so in inward form. With one who is being regenerated, that is, prior to his having been regenerated, the truth of the natural presents this outward appearance. Not indeed that the person himself sees it, for he is quite unaware of the presence of good and truth with him while he is being regenerated; but the eyes of angels who see such things in the light of heaven do behold it. Man is not even aware of what the good and the truth of the natural are, and being unaware of what they are he cannot perceive them. And because he does not perceive them in general nor is able to perceive them in particular, he does not perceive their differences, let alone their changes of state. Not perceiving these he is scarcely able to grasp from any description of them what this good and its truth are like. But as they are the subject in this chapter, an explanation is going to be given, so far as this can be made intelligible.