386. And with famine, signifies by the deprivation, lack, and ignorance of the knowledges of truth and good. This is evident from the signification of "famine," as being the deprivation of the knowledges of truth and good, also the lack and ignorance of them. These are signified by "famine" in the Word. This is the signification of "famine" because "food and drink" signify all things that nourish and sustain spiritual life, and these in general are the knowledges of truth and good. The spiritual life itself needs nourishment and support just as much as the natural life does; so it is said to be famished when a man is deprived of these knowledges, or when they fail, or when they are unknown and yet are desired. Moreover, natural foods correspond to spiritual foods, as bread to the good of love, wine to the truths therefrom, and other foods and drinks to particular goods and truths, which have been treated of in several places before, and will be treated of in what follows. It is said that "famine" signifies 1. the deprivation of the knowledges of truth and good, 2. lack, and 3. ignorance of them, since there is deprivation with those who are in evils and in falsities therefrom; lack with those who cannot know them, because they are not in the church or in its doctrine; and ignorance with those who know that there are knowledges, and therefore desire them; these three things are signified by "famine" in the Word, as can be seen from the passages there in which "famine," "the hungry," "thirst," and "the thirsty," are mentioned.

[2] 1. That "famine" signifies the deprivation of the knowledges of truth and good which exists with those who are in evils and thence in falsities, is evident from the following passages. In Isaiah:

In the fury of Jehovah of Hosts is the land obscured, and the people are become as the food of the fire; a man shall not pity his brother. And if he shall cut down on the right hand he shall be hungry, and if he shall eat on the left hand they shall not be satisfied; they shall eat every man the flesh of his own arm; Manasseh Ephraim, and Ephraim Manasseh; they together against Judah ¹ (Isaiah 9:19-21).

Except from the internal sense no one can understand this, nor can even know what is treated of. This treats of the extinction of good by falsity, and of truth by evil. The perversion of the church through falsity is meant by "in the fury of Jehovah of Hosts is the land obscured;" and the perversion of it through evil is meant by "the people are become as the food of the fire;" "the land obscured" signifies the church where there is no truth, but only falsity; and "the food of the fire" signifies the consumption of the truth by the love of evil, "fire" meaning the love of evil. That falsity destroys good is meant by "a man shall not pity his brother," "man" [vir] and "brother" signifying truth and good, here "man" signifies falsity, and "brother" good, because it is said that "he shall not pity him." The consequent deprivation of all good and of all truth, however much it may be sought, is meant by "if he shall cut down on the right hand he shall be hungry, and if he shall eat on the left hand they shall not be satisfied," "right hand" signifying good from which is truth, and "left hand" truth from good, "to cut down, ² and to eat these" signifies to seek, and "to be hungry and not be satisfied" means to be deprived of; that evil extinguishes all truth and falsity all good is meant by "they shall eat every man the flesh of his own arm," "flesh of the arm" meaning the power of good through truth, "man" falsity, and "to eat" to extinguish. That thence all the will of good and the understanding of truth perishes is meant by "Manasseh shall eat Ephraim, and Ephraim Manasseh." (That "Manasseh" means the will of good, and "Ephraim" the understanding of truth, see Arcana Coelestia 3969, 5354, 6222, 6234, 6238, 6267, 6296.) That this is with those who are in evils and falsities is meant by "they together against Judah;" for when the will is in good and the understanding in truth these are with Jehovah, since they are both from Him; but when the will is in evil and the understanding in falsity they are against Jehovah.

[3] In the same:

Be not glad, O Philistia, all of thee, because the rod that smiteth thee is broken; for from the serpent's root shall come forth a basilisk, and his fruit shall be a fiery-flying serpent. I will cause thy root to die with famine, and it shall slay thy remnant (Isaiah 14:29-30).

Nearly the like is meant by this in the internal sense; but here those are treated of who believe that faith is merely the interior sight of the natural man, and that they are justified and saved by such sight or faith, thus denying that the good of charity has any effect. Such as these are meant by "the Philistines," and a collection of them by "Philistia" (See Arcana Coelestia 3412, 3413, 8093, 8313). That this false principle, which is faith alone or faith separated from charity, destroys every good and truth of the church is meant by "from the serpent's root shall come forth a basilisk," the "serpent's root" meaning that false principle, and "basilisk" the destruction of the good and truth of the church thereby. That reasoning from mere falsities springs from this is meant by "his fruit shall be a fiery-flying serpent," "fiery-flying serpent" meaning reasoning from falsities. The deprivation of all truth and thence of all good is meant by "I will cause thy root to die with famine, and famine shall slay thy remnant," meaning all things hatched out of that principle. That such is the meaning has been made evident also by experience itself. Those who in doctrine and in life have confirmed themselves in the principle of faith alone are seen in the spiritual world as basilisks, and their reasonings as fiery-flying serpents.

[4] In the same:

Who formeth a god, and casteth a molten image, and it profiteth not? he fashioneth iron with the tongs, and worketh it in the coal, and formeth it with sharp hammers; so he worketh it by the arm of his power; yea, he is hungry until there is no power, neither doth he drink, until he is weary (Isaiah 44:10, 12).

This describes the formation of doctrine both from one's own understanding and from one's own love. "To form a god" signifies doctrine from one's own understanding; and "to cast a molten image," from one's own love; "he fashioneth the iron with the tongs, and worketh it in the coal" signifies the falsity that he calls truth and the evil that he calls good, "iron" meaning falsity, and "the fire of coal" the evil of one's own love; "he formeth it with sharp hammers" signifies by ingenious reasonings from falsities so that they may seem to hold together; "so he worketh it by the arm of his power" signifies from what is his own; "yea, he is hungry until there is no power, neither doth he drink, until he is weary" signifies that there is nothing whatever of good or of truth, "to be hungry" signifies the deprivation of good, and "not to drink" the deprivation of truth, "until there is no power," and "until he is weary" signify till there is nothing of good and nothing of truth left. Who that looks at the Word from the sense of the letter only, can see in this anything but a description of the formation of a molten image? Yet he must see that there is nothing spiritual involved in such a description of the formation of a molten image; also that there is no need of saying that "he is hungry until there is no power, neither doth he drink until he is weary;" nevertheless not only here but elsewhere in many places in the Word, the formation of a religion and of the doctrine of falsity is described by "idols," "graven images" and "molten images." (That these signify the falsities of religion, and of doctrine originating from one's own understanding, and from one's own love, see Arcana Coelestia 8869, 8932, 8941, 9424, 10406, 10503)

[5] In the same:

These two things have met thee; who shall be sorry for thee? devastation and a breach, and famine and sword (Isaiah 51:19).

Here, too, "famine" means the deprivation of the knowledges of good, even till there is no more good; and "sword" the deprivation of the knowledges of truth, even till there is no more truth; therefore "devastation" and "breach" are mentioned, "devastation" signifying that there is no more good, and "breach" that there is no more truth.

[6] In the same:

Thus said the Lord Jehovih, Behold, My servants shall eat, but ye shall be hungry; My servants shall drink, but ye shall be thirsty; behold, My servants shall be glad, but ye shall be ashamed (Isaiah 65:13).

Here, also, "to be hungry and thirsty" means to be deprived of the good of love and the truths of faith, "to be hungry" to be deprived of the good of love, and "to be thirsty" to be deprived of the truths of faith; "to eat and to drink" signifies communication and appropriation of goods and truths; and "the servants of the Lord Jehovih," those who receive goods and truths from the Lord; this makes clear what is signified by "Behold, My servants shall eat, but ye shall be hungry; My servants shall drink, but ye shall be thirsty;" that the Lord's servants shall have eternal happiness, but the others unhappiness is signified by "Behold, My servants shall be glad, but ye shall be ashamed."

[7] In Jeremiah:

By the sword, by famine, and by pestilence I consume them; Yet I said, Ah Lord Jehovih! behold the prophets say unto them, Ye shall not see the sword, neither shall ye have famine. Therefore thus said Jehovah against the prophets prophesying in My name, although I sent them not, yet they say, Sword and famine shall not be in this land. By sword and by famine shall these prophets come to an end; the people to whom they prophesy shall be cast out in the streets of Jerusalem, and there shall be no one to bury them (Jeremiah 14:12-13, 15-16).

"Sword, famine, and pestilence," signifies the deprivation of truth and of good, and thus of spiritual life through falsities and evils; "sword" signifying the deprivation of truth through falsities, "famine" the deprivation of good through evils, and "pestilence" the deprivation of spiritual life. "Prophets" mean those who teach the truths of doctrine, and in an abstract sense, the doctrinals of truth. This makes clear what is signified by all this, namely, that those who teach the doctrine of falsity and evil shall perish through these things that are signified by "sword and famine;" and that those who receive the doctrine from them are separated from every truth of the church, and are damned, is signified by "they shall be cast out in the streets of Jerusalem, there shall be no one to bury them," "the streets of Jerusalem" meaning the truths of the church, "to be cast out in them" meaning to be separated from those truths, and "not to be buried" meaning to be damned.

[8] "Sword, famine, and pestilence," have a like signification in the following passages, "sword" signifying the deprivation of truth through falsities, "famine" the deprivation of good through evils, and "pestilence" the consequent deprivation of spiritual life. In Jeremiah:

They shall be consumed by the sword and by famine, that their carcass may be for food to the fowl of the heavens and to the beast of the earth (Jeremiah 16:4);

"their carcass may be for food to the fowl of the heavens" signifying damnation by falsities, and "for food to the beast of the earth" damnation by evils. In the same:

They have denied Jehovah when they said, It is not He; neither shall evil come upon us; neither shall we see sword and famine (Jeremiah 5:12).

In the same:

Behold I will visit upon them; the young men shall die by the sword, their sons and their daughters shall die by famine (Jeremiah 11:22).

In the same:

Give their ³ sons to the famine, and make them flow down upon the hands of the sword, that their wives may become bereaved and widows, and their men be slain by death, their young men smitten by the sword in war (Jeremiah 18:21).

In the same:

I will send upon them sword, famine, and pestilence, and will make them like the horrible figs, that cannot be eaten for badness. And I will pursue after them with the sword, with famine, and with pestilence (Jeremiah 29:17-18).

In the same:

I will send against them the sword, famine, and pestilence, until they come to an end from upon the ground that I gave to them and to their fathers (Jeremiah 24:10).

In the same:

I proclaim to you a liberty, to the sword, to the pestilence, and to the famine; and I will give you up for commotion by all the kingdoms of the earth (Jeremiah 34:17).

In the Gospels:

Nation shall be roused against nation, and kingdom against kingdom; and there shall be pestilences, and famines, and earthquakes, in diverse places (Matthew 24:17; Mark 13:8; Luke 21:11).

In Ezekiel:

Because thou hast defiled My sanctuary, a third part of thee shall die with the pestilence, and with famine shall they be consumed in the midst of thee; and a third part shall fall by the sword round about thee; and a third part I will disperse to every wind. When I shall send upon them the evil arrows of famine, that shall be for destruction, when I shall send them to destroy you; but yet I will increase the famine upon you, until I have broken for you the staff of bread. And I will send upon you famine and the evil wild beast, and I will make thee bereaved; and pestilence and blood shall pass through thee (Ezekiel 5:11-12, 5:16-17).

In the same:

The sword without, and pestilence and famine within; he that is in the field shall die by the sword, but he that is in the city famine and pestilence shall devour him (Ezekiel 7:15).

In the same:

Because of all the evil abominations, they shall fall by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence. He that is far off shall die by pestilence; he that is near shall fall by the sword; and he that remaineth and is preserved shall die by famine (Ezekiel 6:11-12).

In Jeremiah:

But if ye say, We will not dwell in this land, that ye may not obey the voice of Jehovah your God; saying No, but we will come into the land of Egypt, where we shall see no war, and shall not hear the sound of the trumpet, and shall not hunger for bread, and there will we dwell: hear ye the word of Jehovah, If ye wholly set your faces to enter into Egypt, and come to sojourn there, it shall come to pass that the sword that ye fear shall overtake you there in the land of Egypt, and the famine about which ye were solicitous shall cleave to you there in Egypt, and there ye shall die. And they shall die there by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence; neither shall one of them remain, because of the evil that I will bring upon you. ⁴ And ye shall be for an execration and an astonishment, and for a reproach; and ye shall see this place no more. Now therefore know certainly, that ye shall die by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence in the place whither ye have desired to come to sojourn there (Jeremiah 42:13-18, 42:22; 44:12-13, 44:27).

"Egypt" here signifies the natural, and "to come into Egypt and to sojourn there" signifies to become natural. (That "Egypt" means the knowing faculty [scientificum] that belongs to the natural man, and thus the natural, and "the land of Egypt" means the natural mind, see Arcana Coelestia 4967, 5079-5080, 5095, 5276, 5278, 5280, 5288, 5301, 5160, 5799, 6015, 6147, 6252, 7353, 7648, 9340, 9391 and that "to sojourn" means to be instructed, and to live, n. 1463, 2025, 3672.) From this it can be seen what is signified in the spiritual sense by "their not going into Egypt, and their dying then by the sword, the famine, and the pestilence," namely, that if they became merely natural, they would be deprived of all truth and good and spiritual life; for the natural man separate from the spiritual is in falsities and evils, and thus in infernal life. (That the natural man separate from the spiritual is such, see in The Doctrine of the New Jerusalem 47-48.) Therefore it is said that if they went into Egypt "they should be for an execration and an astonishment and a reproach, neither would they see this place;" "the place they would not see" meaning the state of the spiritual man, the same as "the land of Canaan." Like things are signified by the murmurings of the sons of Israel in the wilderness, because they so often desired to return into Egypt; therefore manna was also given to them, which signifies spiritual nourishment (Exodus 16:2-3, 16:7-9, 16:22).

[9] In Ezekiel:

When I shall stretch out Mine hand against the house of Israel to break for it the staff of bread, and send famine upon it, and cut off from it man and beast; then I will cause the evil wild beast to pass through the land, and will bereave it, that it may become a desolation; then I will send my four evil judgments upon Jerusalem, sword and famine, and the evil wild beast, and pestilence, to cut off from it man and beast (Ezekiel 14:13, 15, 21).

This describes the vastation of the church; "the house of Israel" and "Jerusalem" meaning the church; "to break the staff of bread" signifies to destroy everything celestial and spiritual by which the church should be nourished, for "bread" involves everything belonging to heaven and the church, or all spiritual nourishment; "to cut off man and beast" signifies every spiritual and natural affection; therefore "the sword, the famine, the evil wild beast, and the pestilence," signify the destruction of truth by falsity, of good by evil, of the affection of truth and good by the lusts arising from evil loves, and the consequent extinction of spiritual life. These are called "the four evil judgments," and are also meant by "the sword, famine, death, and the evil wild beast," in this verse of Revelation. Evidently it is the vastation of the church that is thus described.

[10] The three evils that are signified by "famine, sword, and pestilence" the prophet Gad also announced to David when he had numbered the people (2 Samuel 24:13). No one can know why David was threatened with these because of his numbering the people unless he knows that the people of Israel represented and thence signified the church in respect to all its truths and goods, and that "to number" signifies to know the quality thereof, and afterwards to arrange and dispose them according to it. Because no one but the Lord knows and does this, and because the man who does it deprives himself of all good and truth and of spiritual life, and because David did this representatively, therefore these three evils were offered him, one of which he might choose. Who cannot see that there was nothing wrong in numbering the people, and that the evil on account of which David and the people were punished was hidden interiorly, that is, in the representatives in which the church then was? In the passages that have been cited, "famine" signifies the deprivation of the knowledges of truth and good, and the consequent loss of all truth and good.

[11] 2. That "famine" signifies also the lack of knowledges with those who cannot know them because they are not in the church or in the doctrine thereof, is evident from the following passages. In Amos:

Behold, the days shall come in which I will send a famine into the land, not a famine for bread, nor a thirst for waters, but for hearing the words of Jehovah; that they may wander from sea to sea, from the north to the sunrise, they may run to and fro seeking the word of Jehovah, and shall not find it. In that day shall the beautiful virgins and the youths faint for thirst (Amos 8:11-13).

This explains what is meant by "famine" and "thirst," namely, that a famine for bread is not meant, nor a thirst for waters, but for hearing the word of Jehovah, thus that it is a lack of the knowledges of good and truth that is meant; and that these are not in the church or in its doctrine is described by the words, "they shall go from sea to sea, and from the north to the sunrise, seeking the word of Jehovah, and shall not find it," "from sea to sea" signifying on every side, for the outmost boundaries in the spiritual world, where truths and goods begin and terminate appear like seas; consequently "seas" in the Word signify the cognitions of truth and good, also knowledges [scientifica] in general; "from the north to the sunrise" signifies also on every side where truth and good are, "the north" meaning where truth is in obscurity, and "the sunrise" where good is. Because "famine and thirst" signify a lack of the knowledges of good and truth, therefore it is also said "in that day shall the beautiful virgins and the youths faint for thirst," "the beautiful virgins" meaning the affections of truth from good, and "youths" the truths themselves that are from good, "the thirst for which they shall faint" meaning the lack of these. (That "virgins" signify the affections of good and truth, see Arcana Coelestia 2362, 3963, 6729, 6775, 6788; and "youths" the truths themselves, and intelligence, Arcana Coelestia 7668[1-4])

[12] In Isaiah:

Therefore My people shall be carried away for the lack of knowledge; and the glory thereof shall be men of famine, and the multitude thereof shall be parched with thirst (Isaiah 5:13).

The desolation or destruction of the church from lack of the knowledges of good and truth is signified by, "My people shall be carried away for lack of knowledge." The Divine truth that constitutes the church is signified by "glory;" that this is not, and consequently good is not, is signified by "the glory thereof shall be men of famine," "men of famine" meaning those who are in no perception of good, and in no knowledges of truth; and that consequently there is no truth is signified by "the multitude thereof shall be parched with thirst," "to be parched with thirst" meaning the lack of truth, "multitude" in the Word being predicated of truths.

[13] In the same:

The people shall seek after their God, the law, and the testimony; for they shall pass through it perplexed and famished; and it shall come to pass that when they shall hunger they shall rage, and shall curse their king and their gods, and shall look upwards; they shall look also to the earth, but behold distress and thick darkness (Isaiah 8:19-22).

This treats of those who are in falsities from lack of the knowledges of truth and good, and their indignation on that account; the lack is described by "they shall look upwards, and they shall look also to the earth, but behold distress and thick darkness," "to look upwards and to look to the earth" means to look everywhere for goods and truths; "but behold distress and thick darkness" means that these are nowhere to be found, but mere falsities only, "thick darkness" meaning dense falsity. Their indignation on this account is meant by "it shall come to pass that when they shall hunger they shall rage, and shall curse their king and their gods," "to hunger" meaning to desire to know, "king" falsity, "the gods" the falsities of worship therefrom, and "to curse" to detest.

[14] In Lamentations:

Lift up thy hands to the Lord respecting the soul of thy babes, who have fainted for famine at the head of all the streets (Lamentations 2:19).

Lamentation over those who ought to be instructed in the knowledges of good and truth, by which they may have spiritual life, is described by "Lift up thy hands to the Lord respecting the soul of thy babes;" and the lack of these knowledges is described by "who have fainted for famine at the head of all the streets," "famine" meaning lack, "streets" the truths of doctrine, "to faint at the head of them" meaning that there are no truths.

[15] In the same:

Servants have ruled over us, there is no one to free us out of their hand. We bring in our bread with the peril of our souls because of the sword of the wilderness. Our skins are black like an oven because of the tempests of famine (Lamentations 5:8-10).

"Servants that have ruled with no one to free us out of their hand" signify the evils of life and the falsities of doctrine, in general, evil loves and false principles; "we bring in our bread with the peril of our souls because of the sword of the wilderness" signifies that there is no good from which there may be spiritual life itself, because of the falsity everywhere reigning; "bread" means the good from which there may be spiritual life; "sword" falsity destroying; and "the wilderness" where there is no good because no truth; for all good with man is formed by truths, therefore where there are no truths but only falsities there is no good; "our skins are black like an oven because of the tempests of famine" signifies that because of the lack of the knowledges of good and truth the natural man is in its own evil love; "the skin," from correspondence with the Greatest Man or heaven, signifies the natural man; "to be black like an oven" signifies to be in one's own evil from falsities; and "tempests of famine" signify a complete lack of the knowledges of good and truth.

[16] In Luke:

Woe unto you that are full! for ye shall hunger (Luke 6:25).

"The full" in the Word mean those who have the Word, in which are all the knowledges of good and truth; and "to hunger" means to lack these, and also to be deprived of them. In Job:

Blessed is the man whom God hath chastened; therefore reject not the discipline of Schaddai. In famine He shall redeem thee from death; and in war from the hands of the sword (Job 5:17, 20).

This treats of those who are in temptations; temptations are signified by "whom God hath chastened," and by "the discipline of Schaddai." "The Almighty (Schaddai)" signifies temptations, deliverance from them, and consolation after them (See Arcana Coelestia 1992, 3667, 4572, 5628, 6229). "The famine in which he shall be redeemed" signifies temptation in respect to the perception of good, in which he shall be delivered from evil; "to redeem" meaning to deliver; and "the hand of the sword in war" signifies temptations in respect to the understanding of truth, "war" also meaning temptation or combat against falsities.

[17] 3. That "famine" in the Word also signifies ignorance of the knowledges of truth and good, such as are with those who know that there are knowledges and therefore desire them, is evident from the following passages. In Matthew:

Blessed are they that hunger after righteousness, for they shall be satisfied (Matthew 5:6).

"To hunger after righteousness" signifies to desire good, for in the Word "righteousness" is predicated of good. In Luke:

God hath filled the hungry with good things; and the rich He hath sent empty away (Luke 1:53).

"The hungry" are those who are ignorant of the knowledges of truth and good, and yet desire them; and "the rich" are those who have an abundance of them, but no desire for them. That the former are enriched is signified by "God hath filled them with good things;" and that the latter are deprived of them is signified by "The rich He hath sent away empty."

[18] In David:

Behold, the eye of Jehovah is upon them that fear Him, to deliver their soul from death, and to keep them alive in famine (Psalms 33:18-19).

"Those that fear Jehovah" mean those who love to do His commandments; "to deliver the soul from death" signifies from evils and falsities, and thus from damnation; and "to keep them alive in famine" signifies to give spiritual life according to desire. A desire for the knowledges of truth and good is a spiritual affection of truth, which is given only to those who are in the good of life, that is, who do the Lord's commandments; and these, as has been said, are meant by "those that fear Jehovah."

[19] In the same:

Let them confess to Jehovah His mercy, for He satisfieth the longing soul, and the hungry soul He filleth with good (Psalms 107:8-9).

"To satisfy the longing soul, and to fill with good the hungry soul," applies to those who long for truths and goods, "the longing soul" signifying those who long for truths, and "the hungry soul" those who long for goods. In the same:

There is no want to them that fear Jehovah. The young lions shall lack, and suffer hunger; but they that seek Jehovah shall not want any good (Psalms 34:9-10).

Here, too, "those that fear Jehovah to whom there is no want," signify those who love to do the Lord's commandments; and "they that seek Jehovah who shall not want any good," signify those who in consequence are loved by the Lord, and receive truths and goods from Him. "The young lions that lack and suffer hunger", signify those who have knowledge and wisdom from themselves, "to lack and suffer hunger" meaning that they have neither truth nor good. (What "lions" in both senses signify, see n. 278)

[20] In the same:

Jehovah who executeth judgment for the oppressed; who giveth bread to the hungry; Jehovah, who looseth the bound (Psalms 146:7).

The "oppressed" here mean those who are in falsities from ignorance; such are oppressed by spirits who are in falsities; therefore it is said that "Jehovah executeth judgment for them," by rescuing them from those that oppress. "The hungry" mean those who desire goods; and as such are nourished by the Lord, it is said "Jehovah giveth bread to the hungry," "to give bread" meaning to nourish, and spiritual nourishment is knowledge, intelligence, and wisdom. "The bound" mean those who desire truths but are withheld from them by the falsities of doctrine or by ignorance, because they have not the Word; therefore "to loose the bound" means to free from falsities. (That such are called "bound," see Arcana Coeles (Arcana Coelestia 5037[1-6], 5086, 5096) tia, n. 5037, 5086, 5096.)

[21] In the same:

Jehovah turneth the wilderness into a pool of waters, and a land of drought into a springing forth of waters. And there He maketh the hungry to dwell, that they may prepare a city of habitation, and sow fields, and plant vineyards, and make fruit of increase (Psalms 107:35-37).

The meaning of these words is wholly different from the sense of the letter, namely, that those who are ignorant of the knowledges of truth and yet desire to know them shall be enriched and abundantly supplied with them; for "Jehovah turneth the wilderness into a pool of water" signifies that in place of ignorance of truth there shall be abundance of truth, "wilderness" meaning when there is ignorance of truth, and "a pool of waters" abundance of it; "to turn a land of drought into a springing forth of waters" signifies the like in the natural man, for "a land of drought" means where there is ignorance of truth, "the springing forth of waters" is abundance, the natural man is "the springing forth," and "waters" are truths; "there He maketh the hungry to dwell" signifies those who desire truth, "to dwell" meaning to live, and "the hungry" those who desire; "that they may prepare a city of habitation" signifies that they form for themselves a doctrine of life, "city" meaning doctrine, and "habitation" life; "that they may sow fields and plant vineyards, and make fruit of increase," signifies to receive truths, to understand them, and to do them; "to sow fields" meaning to be instructed and to receive truths; "to plant vineyards" meaning to receive truths in the understanding, that is, in the spirit, for "vineyards" mean spiritual truths; therefore "to plant" them means to receive them spiritually, that is, to understand them; "to make fruit of increase" means to do them and to receive goods, for "fruits" are the deeds and goods of charity.

[22] In the same:

Jehovah knoweth the days of the perfect, and He shall be their inheritance forever. They shall not be ashamed in the time of evil; and in the days of famine they shall be satisfied (Psalms 37:18-19).

"The days of the perfect" signify the states of those who are in good and in truths therefrom, or those who are in charity and in faith therefrom. "Jehovah shall be their inheritance forever" signifies that they are His own and are in heaven; "they shall not be ashamed in the time of evil" signifies that they shall conquer when they are tempted by evils; and "in the days of famine they shall be satisfied" signifies that they shall be upheld by truths when they are tempted and infested by falsities, "time of evil" and "days of famine" signifying the states of temptations, and temptations are from evils and falsities.

[23] In the first book of Samuel:

The bows of the mighty are broken, but they who had stumbled have girded strength about them; they that are full have hired themselves for bread; and they that are hungry have ceased; even until the barren hath borne seven, and she that hath many sons hath failed (1 Samuel 2:4-5).

"They that are full have hired themselves for bread, and they that are hungry have ceased," signify those who wish for and long for goods and truths. The rest may be seen explained above (n. 257, 357).

[24] In Isaiah:

For the fool speaketh foolishness, and his heart doeth iniquity, to practice hypocrisy, and to speak error against Jehovah, to make empty the hungry soul, and to cause the drink of the thirsty to fail (Isaiah 32:6).

He is here called "a fool" who is in falsities and evils from the love of self, consequently from self-intelligence. Falsities are meant by the "foolishness" that he speaks; and evils by the "iniquity" that his heart does. The evils that he speaks against goods are meant by "the hypocrisy" that he practices; and the falsities that he speaks against truths, by the "error" that he speaks against Jehovah; "to make empty the hungry soul, and to cause the drink of the thirsty to fail" means to persuade and destroy those who desire goods and truths, "the hungry soul" meaning those who desire goods, and "he that thirsteth for drink" meaning those who desire truths.

[25] In the same:

If thou shalt draw out thy soul to the hungry and satisfy the afflicted soul, thy light shall arise in darkness and thy thick darkness be as the noonday (Isaiah 58:10).

This describes charity towards the neighbor, here towards those who are in ignorance, but at the same time in a desire to know truths, and in grief on account of the falsities that possess them, and signifies that with those who are in such charity falsities are dispersed and truths shine and become radiant. Charity towards those that are in ignorance and at the same time in a desire to know truths is meant by "If thou shalt draw out thy soul to the hungry," "the hungry" meaning those who desire, and "the soul" is the understanding of truth instructing. This being done to those who are in grief because of the falsities that possess them is meant by "if thou shalt satisfy the afflicted soul;" that ignorance is dispelled and truths shine and become radiant with those who are in such charity is meant by "thy light shall arise in darkness, and thy thick darkness be as the noon day;" "darkness" signifying the ignorance of the spiritual mind, and "thick darkness" the ignorance of the natural mind, "light" truth in light, "noonday" the like. Such illustration those have who from charity or spiritual affection instruct such as are in falsities from ignorance; for such charity is a receptacle of the influx of light or of truth from the Lord.

[26] In the same:

Is not this the fast that I choose, to break thy bread to the hungry, and to bring the afflicted outcasts into thy house, when thou shalt see the naked and shalt cover him? (Isaiah 58:6-7).

These words have a like meaning, for "to break bread to the hungry" signifies from charity to communicate to and instruct those who are in ignorance and at the same time in a desire to know truths; "to bring the afflicted outcasts into the house" signifies to correct and reform those who are in falsities, and thence in grief, "afflicted outcasts" meaning those who are in grief from falsities; for those who are in falsities stand without, while those who are in truths are in the house, "house" meaning the intellectual mind, into which truths only are admitted, since that mind is opened by means of truths from good. Because this is what is signified it is added, "when thou shalt see the naked and shalt cover him," the "naked" signifying those that are without truths, and "to cover" signifying to instruct; for "garments" in the Word signify truths investing (See above, n. 195).

[27] In the same:

They shall not hunger nor thirst, neither shall the heat nor the sun smite them; for He that hath compassion on them leadeth them forth, even unto the springs of waters shall He guide them (Isaiah 49:10).

That "they shall not hunger nor thirst" does not mean that they are not to hunger nor thirst for natural food and drink; and "neither shall the heat nor sun smite them" does not mean that they will not become heated by these; the same is true of their being led unto the springs of waters. Who that thinks about it does not see that something else is here meant? "To hunger and thirst" therefore signifies to hunger and thirst for such things as pertain to eternal life or give that life, and these, in general, have reference to the good of love and the truth of faith, "hunger" to the good of love, and "thirst" to the truth of faith; "heat" and "sun" signify the heat from the principles of falsity and the love of evil, for these take away all spiritual hunger and thirst; "the springs of waters, unto which the Lord will guide them" signify illustration in all truth, "spring" or "fountain" meaning the Word, and also the doctrine from the Word, "waters" truths, and "to guide" in reference to the Lord, meaning to illustrate. From this the significance can be seen of the Lord's words in John:

I am the bread of life; he that cometh to Me shall not hunger, and he that believeth on Me shall never thirst (John 6:35).

Here evidently "to hunger" is to come to the Lord, and "to thirst" is to believe on Him; to come to the Lord is to do His commandments.

[28] This signification of "hungering and thirsting" makes evident also the signification of the Lord's words in Matthew:

The king said to them on the right hand, I was an hungered, and ye gave me to eat, I was thirsty and ye gave me to drink, I was a sojourner and ye took me in. And He said to them on the left hand, that He was an hungered and they gave Him not to eat, and He was thirsty and they gave Him not to drink; that He was a sojourner and they took Him not in (Matthew 25:34-35, 37, 41-44).

"To hunger and to thirst" signifies to be in ignorance and in spiritual want, and "to give to eat and drink" signifies to instruct and to illustrate from spiritual affection or charity; it is therefore also said, "I was a sojourner and ye took me not in," "sojourner" signifying those who are out of the church, but who wish to be instructed and to receive the doctrinals of the church and to live according to them (See Arcana Coelestia 1463[1-3], 4444, 7908, 8007, 8013, 9196).

Furthermore, we read in the Word that the Lord hungered and thirsted, which means that from His Divine love He willed and desired the salvation of the human race.

[29] That He hungered we read in Mark:

When they were come from Bethany, Jesus hungered; and seeing a fig-tree afar off having leaves, He came, if haply He might find anything thereon; but when He had come to it He found nothing but leaves, for it was not the season for figs. Therefore He said unto it, No one eat any fruit of thee forever. And the disciples in the morning as they passed by, saw the fig-tree dried up from the roots (Mark 11:12-14, 20; Matthew 21:19-20).

One who does not know that all things of the Word contain a spiritual sense, may believe that the Lord did this to the fig-tree from indignation because He was hungry; but "fig-tree" means here not a fig-tree, but the church in relation to natural good, in particular, the Jewish Church. That there was no natural good in that church, because nothing spiritual, but only some truths from the sense of the letter of the Word, is signified by "Jesus seeing a fig-tree afar off having leaves, came, if haply He might find anything thereon; but when He had come to it He found nothing but leaves," "leaves" signifying the truths of the sense of the letter of the Word. That with that nation, because they were in dense falsities and in evil loves, nothing whatever of the natural good of the church would ever exist is signified by "Jesus said, No one eat any fruit of thee forever, and the fig-tree was dried up from the roots." It is also said that "it was not the season for figs," and this means that the church was not yet begun; that the beginning of a new church is meant by "a fig-tree," is clear from the Lord's words (Matthew 24:32, 33; Mark 13:28, 29, and in Luke 21:28-31). From this it can be seen what "hungering" here signifies. (That "a fig-tree" signifies the natural good of the church, see Arcana Coelestia 217, 4231, 5113; and that "leaves" signify the truths of the natural man, see above, n. 109.)

[30] That the Lord thirsted we read in John:

Jesus, knowing that all things were now finished, that the Scripture might be fulfilled said, I thirst. And there had been placed a vessel full of vinegar; and they filled a sponge and placed it upon hyssop, and put it to His mouth. And when Jesus had received the vinegar He said, It is finished (John 19:28-30).

Those who think of these things only naturally and not spiritually may believe that they involve nothing more than that the Lord thirsted, and that vinegar was then given Him; but it was because all things that the Scriptures said of Him were then finished, and because He came into the world to save mankind that He said, "I thirst," which means that from Divine love He willed and desired the salvation of the human race; and that "vinegar was given Him" signifies that in the coming church there would be no genuine truth, but truth mixed with falsities, such as there is with those who separate faith from charity or truth from good; this is what "vinegar" signifies; "they placed it upon hyssop" signifies some kind of purification by it, for "hyssop" signifies an external means of purification (See Arcana Coelestia 7918). That every particular related in the Word respecting the Lord's passion involves and signifies Divine celestial and Divine spiritual things, may be seen above n. 83. From the passages cited above it can be seen what "famine" signifies in the Word. Let them be examined and considered, and it will be seen by those who are in any interior thought that natural famine, hunger, and thirst, can by no means be meant, but spiritual famine, hunger, and thirst.

Imibhalo yaphansi:

3325. 'Sell me - as if today - your birthright' means that in the short term the doctrine of truth was apparently prior. This is clear from the meaning of 'selling' as claiming for oneself; from the meaning of 'as if today' as in the short term (for in the internal sense of the Word 'today' means that which is perpetual and eternal, 2838. But to avoid its meaning perpetual and eternal the expression 'as if today' is used, the expression as if indicating that it was so apparently); and from the meaning of 'birthright' as the fact that it - that is to say, the doctrine of truth, which Jacob represents, 3305 - is prior.

[2] By the expressions prior and priority of place, describing the birthright, are meant not only first in time but also first in degree; that is to say, it is a question of which one is to have dominion, good or truth? For until it has been joined to good truth is always prior; or what amounts to the same, until they have been regenerated, people governed by truth believe that truth is prior to and higher than good. That is how it appears at that time; but once truth with them has been joined to good, that is, once they have been regenerated, they see and perceive that truth is posterior and lower than good, and with them good has dominion over truth. This is what is meant by that which Isaac his father told Esau,

Behold, of the fatness of the earth will be your dwelling, and of the dew of heaven from above. And by your sword you will live, and you will serve your brother; and it will be, when you have dominion, that you will break his yoke from above your neck Genesis 27:39-40.

[3] But because within the Church those who are not being regenerated outnumber those who are, and those who are not base their judgements on what is the appearance, it has therefore been disputed, even from ancient times, whether priority of place belongs to truth or to good. With those who have not been regenerated and also with those who are not completely regenerate the opinion prevails that truth is prior, for they have not yet acquired a perception of good; and as long as anybody is without a perception of good he is in the dark or ignorant regarding these matters. But because those who have been regenerated are governed by good itself, they are able to discern from resulting intelligence and wisdom what good is, and that good comes from the Lord and flows in by way of the internal man into the external, doing so constantly without the person being aware of it. They are able to perceive that it joins itself to the truths of doctrine that are in the memory, and that as a consequence good in itself is prior even though it has not appeared so beforehand. This then is why the dispute arose about which one was prior and higher than the other, a dispute which was represented by Esau and Jacob, as well as by Perez and Zerah, Judah's sons by Tamar, Genesis 38:28-30, and also after that by Joseph's sons, Ephraim and Manasseh, Genesis 48:13-14, 17-20. The dispute arises because the spiritual Church is such that it has to be led to good by means of truth, and while being led to good it does not have the perception of good except insofar as this, quantitatively and qualitatively, lies concealed within the affection for truth. At that time it is indistinguishable from the delight of self-love and of love of the world which exists at the same time within that affection and is believed to be good.

[4] Good however is the firstborn, that is, good flowing from love to the Lord and from love towards the neighbour, for no other good is good except that which flows from these. This becomes clear from the fact that life is present within good but not within truth except the life received from good, and from the fact that good flows into truths and gives them life, as may be seen clearly from what has been stated and shown already in 3324 about good and truth. For this reason all in whom love to the Lord and charity towards the neighbour are present are called 'the firstborn'. They were also represented in the Jewish Church by firstborn creatures - that is, when these are understood in the relative sense; for the Lord is the Firstborn, and those people are likenesses and images of Him.

[5] The Lord as regards His Divine Human is the Firstborn. This is clear in David,

He will cry to Me, You are My Father, My God, and the Rock of My Salvation; I will also make Him the Firstborn, supreme over the kings of the earth. My mercy I will keep for Him for ever, and My covenant will stand firm for Him, and I will establish His seed for ever, and His throne as the days of the heavens. Psalms 89:26-29.

This refers to the Lord. And in John,

From Jesus Christ the faithful witness, the Firstborn from mortal men, and Prince of the kings of the earth. Revelation 1:5.

And to fulfil those things that had been written regarding Him and that represented Him He was also the Firstborn Son, Luke 2:7, 22-23.

[6] The Lord also calls 'the firstborn' those in whom love to Him and charity towards the neighbour are present because they are likenesses and images of Him This is clear in John,

The hundred and forty-four thousand purchased from the earth - these are the ones who were not defiled with women, for they are virgins; these are the ones who follow the Lamb wherever He goes; these have been purchased from men as firstfruits (the firstborn) to God and the Lamb, and in their mouth no lie was found, for they are spotless before God's throne. Revelation 14:3-5.

'A hundred and forty-four', or twelve times twelve, stands for those who have the faith that is grounded in charity, 3272, 'thousands' for countless numbers or for them all, 2575, 'virgins' for the good that flows from love to the Lord and from charity towards the neighbour, 2362, 3081, and so for those with whom innocence is present, which is also the meaning of 'following the Lamb' since the Lord by virtue of His innocence is called 'the Lamb'. This is why they are called the firstfruits or the firstborn.

[7] From these quotations it is evident that the Lord as regards the Divine Human was represented in the Jewish Church by firstborn beings, as also are those with whom love to Him is present, for they abide in the Lord. But the firstborn beings mentioned in the Word have a dual representation. They represent the Lord as regards Divine celestial love and as regards Divine spiritual love. The Lord's Divine celestial love is specific to the celestial Church, or to those belonging to that Church, who are called celestial on account of their love to the Lord. The Lord's Divine spiritual love is specific to the spiritual Church, or to those belonging to that Church, who are referred to as spiritual on account of their love to the neighbour. The Lord's Divine love goes out to all, but because people receive it variously - the celestial person in one way, the spiritual in another - it is said to be specific.

[8] Concerning the firstborn beings which represented the Lord as regards Divine celestial love, and also the people who belonged specifically to the celestial Church, the following is said in Moses,

The firstborn of your sons you shall give to Me. You shall do the same with your oxen and your flock. Seven days it shall be with its mother; on the eighth you shall give it to Me. And you shall be men who are sanctified to Me. Exodus 22:29-31.

The reason why it was to stay seven days with its mother was that the seventh day meant the celestial man, 84-87, and that seven consequently means that which is holy, 395, 433, 716, 881. The reason why on the eighth day they were to be given to Jehovah was that the eighth day meant the continuation from a new beginning, that is to say, the continuation of love, 2044. In the same author,

The firstborn among beasts, which is given as the firstborn to Jehovah, no man shall consecrate it; whether an ox or of the herd, it is Jehovah's. Leviticus 27:26, 27.

In the same author,

The firstfruits of all that is in the land, which they bring to Jehovah, shall be yours (Aaron's); every clean person in your house shall eat them. All that opens the womb among all flesh which they offer to Jehovah, man and beast, shall be yours. Nevertheless you shall redeem the firstborn of man, and the firstborn of unclean beasts you shall redeem. The firstborn of an ox, or the firstborn of a sheep, or the firstborn of a goat you shall not redeem; they are holy. Their blood you shall sprinkle over the altar and burn their fat as a fire-offering for an odour of rest to Jehovah. Numbers 18:13, 15-18.

In the same author,

Every firstborn male that is born among your herds and among your flocks you shall sanctify to Jehovah your God; you shall do no work by means of the firstborn of your oxen, and you shall not shear the firstborn of your flock. And if there is a blemish in it, lameness or blindness, any ill blemish whatever, you shall not sacrifice it to Jehovah your God. Deuteronomy 15:19-22.

[9] Because 'the firstborn [among beasts]' represented the Lord and those who are the Lord's by virtue of love to Him, the tribe of Levi was therefore taken instead of all the firstborn, the reason for this being that Levi represented the Lord as regards His love. Also, Levi means love, for Levi is a name that means to cling to and to be joined together - and 'to cling to' and 'to be joined together' in the internal sense is love. This will in the Lord's Divine mercy be dealt with later on, at Genesis 29:34. Regarding the Levites the following is said in Moses,

Jehovah spoke to Moses. saying, Behold, I Myself will take the Levites from the midst of the children of Israel, instead of every firstborn, that which opens the womb, from the children of Israel; and the Levites will be Mine. For every firstborn is Mine; on the day I struck every firstborn in the land of Egypt I sanctified every firstborn for Myself in Israel; from man even to beast they shall be Mine. Numbers 3:11-13.

In the same author,

Jehovah said to Moses, Number every firstborn male from the children of Israel, a month old and over, and take the number of their names. And take the Levites for Me - I am Jehovah - instead of every firstborn among the children of Israel, and the beast of the Levites instead of every firstborn among the beasts of the children of Israel. Numbers 3:40-41, and following verses.

Also Numbers 8:14, 16-18. And the Levites were given to Aaron, Numbers 8:19, because Aaron represented the Lord as regards the priesthood, that is, as regards Divine love; for the priesthood represented the Lord's Divine love, see 1728, 2015 (end).

[10] Concerning the firstborn creatures however which represented the Lord as regards Divine spiritual love, and also the people who belonged specifically to the spiritual Church, the following is said in Jeremiah,

With weeping they will come, and with supplications I will lead them, I will bring them to springs of water in a straight path on which they will not stumble; and I will be a Father to Israel, and Ephraim will be My firstborn. Jeremiah 31:9.

This refers to a new spiritual Church. 'Israel' stands for spiritual good, 'Ephraim' for spiritual truth, who is called 'the firstborn' because the subject is a Church that is to be established in which the understanding - which is the holder of truth - is apparently the firstborn. Indeed Ephraim took Reuben's place and became the firstborn, Genesis 48:5, 20; 1 Chronicles 5:1. He did so because Joseph, whose sons were Ephraim and Manasseh, represented the Lord as regards Divine spiritual love. But fundamentally Israel, that is, spiritual good, is the firstborn. This is clear in Moses,

Jehovah said to Moses, You shall say to Pharaoh, Thus said Jehovah, My firstborn son is Israel, and I say to you, Send My son so that he may serve Me, and you have refused to send him; behold, I kill your son, the firstborn. Exodus 4:22-23.

Here 'Israel' in the highest sense is the Lord as regards Divine spiritual love, and in the relative sense those in whom spiritual love, that is, charity towards the neighbour, is present.

[11] In the case of the spiritual Church, in the beginning or when it is about to be established, it is the doctrine of truth that is the firstborn with the external Church and the truth taught by doctrine the firstborn with the internal Church - or what amounts to the same, the doctrine of faith is the firstborn with the external Church and faith itself with the internal Church. But once it has been set up, or is a reality among its members, it is the good flowing from charity that is the firstborn with the external Church and charity itself with the internal Church. When however the Church does not allow itself to be established, as happens when it is no longer possible for the member of the Church to be regenerated, it gradually retreats from charity and turns aside to faith. Furthermore it no longer concerns itself with life but with doctrine; and when that happens it casts itself into shadows and sinks into falsities and evils. In so doing it ceases to be a Church and brings about its own annihilation. This was represented by Cain, in that he slew Abel his brother - Cain meaning faith separated from charity, and Abel the charity which he annihilated, see 340, 342, 357, 362, and following paragraphs. Later on it was represented by Ham - and Canaan his son - in that he mocked Noah his father, 1062, 1063, 1076, 1140, 1141, 1162, 1179. After that it was represented by Reuben, Jacob's firstborn, in that he defiled his father's bed, Genesis 35:22, and at length by Pharaoh and the Egyptians, in that these afflicted the children of Israel. It is clear from the Word that all these were accursed, as the following shows:

Cain

Jehovah said, What have you done? The voice of your brother's blood is crying out to Me from the ground. And now you are cursed from the ground, which has opened its mouth to receive your brother's blood from your hand. Genesis 4:10-11.

Ham and Canaan

Ham, the father of Canaan, saw his father's nakedness and pointed it out to his two brothers. And Noah awoke from his wine. He said, Cursed be Canaan, a slave of slaves will he be to his brothers. Genesis 9:22, 24-25.

Reuben

Reuben, my firstborn, you are my strength, and the beginning of my power, excelling in eminence, and excelling in might. Unstable as water, may you not excel, for you went up to your father's bed; then you defiled it. He went up to my couch. Genesis 49:3-4.

This was why he was deprived of the birthright, 1 Chronicles 5:1. The same was represented by Pharaoh and the Egyptians, and therefore their firstborn sons and firstborn creatures were slain. This is clear from their representation as facts, 1164, 1165, 1186, for whenever anyone enters into the arcana of faith along the path of factual knowledge, he no longer believes anything, apart from that which he is able to grasp through sensory evidence and factual knowledge. In that case things which belong to the doctrine of faith, and above all those which are matters of charity, he perverts and annihilates.

[12] These are the considerations which are represented in the internal sense by the slaying of the firstborn sons and firstborn creatures of Egypt, referred to in Moses as follows,

I will pass through the land of Egypt during that night, and will strike all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from man even to beast; and on all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgement; I am Jehovah. And the blood will be a sign on your houses where you are; and when I see the blood I will pass by over you, and the plague will not be on you for a destroyer when I strike the land of Egypt. Exodus 12:12-13.

'The firstborn of Egypt' is doctrinal teaching regarding faith and regarding charity, which is perverted, as has been stated, by means of facts. 'The gods of Egypt' on whom judgement would be executed are falsities. No plague would be brought by the destroyer where there was blood on houses means in the highest sense the place where the Lord as regards Divine spiritual love resides, and in the relative sense where spiritual love, that is, charity towards the neighbour, resides, see 1001.

[13] Further reference to Pharaoh and the Egyptians is made in the same book as follows,

Moses said, Thus said Jehovah, As at midnight I will go out into the midst of Egypt, and all the firstborn in the land of Egypt will die, and Pharaoh's firstborn who was to sit on his throne, even to the firstborn of the servant-girl who is behind the mill, and all the firstborn of the beasts. But on all the children of Israel not a dog will move its tongue, from man even to beast. Exodus 11:4-7.

And after that,

It happened at midnight, that Jehovah struck all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from Pharaoh's firstborn who was to sit on his throne even to the firstborn of the prisoner who was in the dungeon, ¹ and all the firstborn of the beasts. Exodus 12:29.

The reason why it took place at midnight was that 'night' means the final state of the Church when there is no faith any longer because there is no charity any longer, 221, 709, 1712, 2353. In David,

He struck all the firstborn in Egypt, the beginning of powers in the tents of Ham. Psalms 78:51.

In the same author,

Then Israel came to Egypt, and Jacob became a sojourner in the land of Ham. God struck all the firstborn in their land, the beginning of all their powers. Psalms 105:23, 36.

'The tents of Ham' is the name given to the worship of the Egyptians, which is based on false assumptions that result from truth separated from good, or what amounts to the same, from faith separated from charity - 'tents' meaning worship, see 414, 1102, 1566, 2145, 2152, 3312, and 'Ham' faith separated from charity, 1062, 1063, 1076, 1140, 1141, 1162, 1179.

[14] This confirms yet again that 'the slaying of the firstborn of Egypt' had no other meaning. Now because all the firstborn of Egypt had been slain, and yet so that the firstborn might represent the Lord as regards Divine spiritual love and at the same time represent those who are governed by that love, [the Israelites] were commanded to sanctify all the firstborn the instant they were leaving. These matters are stated in Moses as follows,

Jehovah spoke to Moses, saying, Sanctify to Me all the firstborn, whatever opens the womb among the children of Israel; with man and with beast let them be Mine. You shall make over to Jehovah all that opens the womb, and every firstling of a beast, that are yours; the males shall be Jehovah's. And every firstling of an ass you shall redeem in the herd. If you do not redeem it, you shall break its neck. And all the firstborn of man among your sons you shall redeem. And it shall be - when your son asks you in time to come, saying, What is this? - that you shall say to him, By a strong hand Jehovah led us out of Egypt, from the home of slaves. And so it was, that Pharaoh hardened himself against sending us away, and Jehovah slew all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of man even to the firstborn of the beasts. Therefore I sacrifice to Jehovah all that open the womb, the males, and all the firstborn of my sons I redeem. Exodus 13:1-2, 12-15; 34:19-20; Numbers 33:3-4.

From all these quotations one may now see what is meant in the spiritual sense by the birthright.

Imibhalo yaphansi: