10047. 'And sprinkle it over the altar round about' means a joining to Divine Good. This is clear from the meaning of 'the blood', which was to be sprinkled over the altar round about, as Divine Truth, dealt with in 10026, 10033; and from the representation of 'the altar' as that which was representative of the Lord in respect of Divine Good, dealt with in 9388, 9389, 9714, 9964. From this it is evident that 'sprinkling the blood over the altar round about' means uniting Divine Truth to Divine Good within the Lord.

[2] The situation here is this: As has been stated above, the subject in the present chapter is the glorification of the Lord's Human, and in the representative sense the regeneration of a person by the Lord. As regards the glorification of the Lord's Human, this was accomplished by the uniting of Divine Truth to Divine Good. Divine Good, which is Jehovah, was within the Lord, as the soul from the father is within a person; for He had been conceived from Jehovah. He made His Human Divine Truth by Divine means, in particular by conflicts brought by temptations; and to the extent that He united Divine Truth to Divine Good He glorified His Human, that is, made it Divine. This uniting is what sprinkling the blood round about the altar means in the highest sense.

When in the world the Lord made His Human Divine Truth and united it to the Divine Good that was within Him, and in so doing He glorified His Human, see the places referred to in 9199 (end), 9315 (end).

Jehovah His Father means the Divine Good that was within Him, see the places referred to in 9194.

[3] Even as the Lord glorified His Human, so also He regenerates a person. For in the case of a person the Lord flows in with good by way of the soul, which is an inward path, and with truth by way of hearing and sight, which is an outward path. And to the extent that the person refrains from evils the Lord joins good to truth. The good then becomes the good of charity towards the neighbour and of love to God, while the truth becomes the truth of faith. In this way the Lord creates a new person or regenerates him, for the regeneration of a person, as stated above, is accomplished by purification from evils and falsities, the implantation of good and truth, and the joining together of them. The regeneration of a person, and in the highest sense the glorification of the Lord's Human, are what were represented by sacrifices and burnt offerings, 10022.

[4] It should be remembered that in burnt offerings the blood was sprinkled over the altar round about, as was likewise done in eucharistic or thanksgiving sacrifices, but that in sacrifices for guilt and for sin the blood was sprinkled at the base of the altar. Sprinkling the blood over the altar round about represented the total uniting of Divine Truth and Divine Good both in the internal man and in the external man, whereas sprinkling the blood at the base of the altar represented the uniting of Divine Truth and Divine Good solely in the external man.

[5] With those who have been regenerated a joining together takes place in the external man, according to the Lord's words in John,

He who has been washed has no need except to wash his feet, and the whole person is clean. John 13:9-10.

'Washing' means purification and regeneration, 3147, 9088, so that 'he who has been washed' means one who has been purified and regenerated; and by 'feet' the natural or external level in a person is meant, 2162, 3147, 4938-4952, 9406.

In burnt offerings the blood was sprinkled over the altar round about, Leviticus 1:5, 11, and also in eucharistic sacrifices, Leviticus 3:2, 8, 13. In sacrifices for guilt and sin the blood was sprinkled at the base of the altar, Leviticus 4:7, 18, 25, 30, 34; 5:9.

3241. 'And the sons of Dedan were Asshurim, and Letushim, and Leummim' means the derivatives from the second division. This becomes clear from the representation of 'Dedan' as those governed by the good of faith, or to be precise, those governed by the truth of faith derived from good, 3240 (end). The fact that they are derivatives from the second division is self-evident. These three sons mean in particular the truths of faith derived from good, though just what each one means can indeed be stated but not confirmed from elsewhere in the Word since they are not mentioned again.

[2] In the Lord's kingdom there are countless variations to goods and truths, yet all those countless variations make up one heaven. Indeed there are so many that one community is in no sense exactly like another, that is, governed by the same good and truth, see 684, 685, 690. One heaven there is made up of many varying parts arranged by the Lord in such a way that they all accord. This accordance or harmony of the many is effected by the Lord through the relationship which each of them has to Him, 551. It is like the organs, members, and viscera of the body. None is exactly like another. Yet although they are all different from one another they nevertheless make one, through the relatedness of them all to one soul, and through this soul to heaven and so to the Lord. For anything that has no connection with the Lord is in reality nothing. From this it may be seen that specific differences in truth and good are countless. But the kinds of these, indeed the most general kinds, which belong to the spiritual Church, are meant by these sons and grandsons of Abraham by Keturah.

[3] Because members of the spiritual Church do not have perception, as those of the celestial Church do, of what good and truth are, but instead acknowledge as truths things which they have had to learn, they are therefore constantly engaged in discussion about them and in reasoning whether they are true. Everybody adheres to the teaching which his own Church upholds and calls it the truth. This is what gives rise to so many differences. Furthermore the majority make their minds up about goods and truths from appearances and illusions - each one in a different way from another. But no one does so from any perception; indeed they do not know what perception is. Since their understanding is so darkened as regards goods and truths of faith, it is no wonder that disagreements exist about the most essential truth of all, that is to say, about the Lord's Divine, His Human, and His Holy proceeding from these. Those who are celestial perceive that these are not three but one, but in the case of those who are spiritual a mental image of three remains, though they are willing to think of them as one. Since therefore disagreements exist regarding this most essential truth, it may be seen that the variations and differences in matters of doctrine are countless. From this one may know the origin of the derivatives meant by the names of those mentioned at this point. But although there are so many variations and differences in matters of doctrine, or so many derivatives, nevertheless they all together form one Church when everyone acknowledges charity to be the essential thing of the Church, or what amounts to the same, when everyone regards life as the end in view of doctrine - that is, when everyone asks, How does a member of the Church live? rather than, What does he think? For in the next life everyone is allotted a place by the Lord that accords with the good constituting his life, not with the truth he knows from doctrine separated from that good.