6295. 'He too will be a people, and he too will become great' means that truth from good also, thus the celestial man, will be increased. This is clear from the meaning of 'a people' as truth, dealt with in 1259, 1260, 3581, 4619; from the meaning of 'becoming great as being increased; and from the representation of Manasseh, about whom these things are said, as good that belongs to the will in the natural and is born from the internal, dealt with in 6234, 6238, 6267. The fact that truth from good is a mark of the celestial man is clear from what has often been stated and shown already about the celestial man. That is to say, it has been shown that the celestial man is one who, led by his will, has a concern for good, and from this for truth, and that he is different from the spiritual man, in that the latter, led by his understanding, has a concern for truth and from this for good. And since 'Manasseh' means good belonging to the will he represents the celestial man - the external celestial man or member of the external celestial Church, to be exact. For 'Manasseh' is good belonging to the will within the natural, thus within the external man, whereas 'Joseph' is the member of the internal celestial Church because he represents good belonging to the will within the rational, thus within the internal man.

[2] Let something also be said briefly about the truth of good, a mark of the celestial man. This truth is indeed called truth, but really it is good. Residing with the celestial man is the good of love to the Lord and the good of love towards the neighbour, the good of love to the Lord forming the internal part of him, the good of love towards the neighbour the external part. This being so, the members of the celestial Church in the internal part of that Church are those who are governed by love to the Lord, and those in the external part are those governed by love towards the neighbour. The good of the latter love - love towards the neighbour residing with the celestial man - is what is here being called the truth of good and is represented by 'Manasseh'. For the celestial man is one who does not reason from truth, or even about truth, since he is able to perceive from good, that is, from the Lord through good, whether something is true or not true, 202, 377, 2715, 3146, 4448. Even so, the good of charity residing with him is what is called truth, but celestial truth.

4619. 'And was gathered to his peoples' means that it was now among the things which belonged to the Divine Natural. This is clear from the meaning, when representatives are involved, of 'being gathered to his peoples' as its ceasing to be the subject any longer, dealt with in 3255, 3276, and so here that it was now among the things which belonged to the Divine Natural, as also follows from what has been stated immediately above in 4618. The ancients used to say, when anyone died, that he was gathered to his peoples; and when they said this they meant in the proximate sense that he was among his own in the next life. For every human being while living in the body is in company with spirits and angels as to his spirit, and also comes among the same after death, 1277, 2379. This was what they meant by 'the peoples' to whom he was gathered. But in the internal sense of the Word, where the goods and truths of the Church, or the Lord's kingdom, are the subject, 'being gathered to one's peoples' means being among truths and goods which accord or correspond. Truths and goods exist with all heavenly communities, but because truths and goods there are interrelated as in blood relationships and relationships by marriage on earth, with every variation involved in these, 685, 917, 3815, 4121, 'his peoples' therefore means the truths which govern concordant communities, that is, communities which abide in those truths. As regards 'peoples' meaning truths, see 1259, 1260, 2928, 3295, 3581.