41. Anything that is man's own has no life in it; and when depicted visually it looks like something hard as a bone and black. But anything that comes from the Lord does contain life. It has that which is spiritual and celestial within it, and when depicted visually it looks human and alive. It is perhaps incredible, but nevertheless absolutely true, that every expression, every idea, and every least thought of an angelic spirit is alive. In even the most detailed areas of his thought there is an affection that comes from the Lord, who is life itself. Consequently all that derives from the Lord has life within it, for it contains faith in Him, and is here meant by 'a living creature'. It then has the outward appearance of a body, meant here by that which is moving, or creeping. To man these matters remain arcana, but since the subject here is the living and moving creature, they ought at least to be mentioned here.

4243. 'With Laban I have sojourned, and have stayed until now' means that it had taken to itself the good meant by 'Laban'. This is clear from the representation of 'Laban' as intermediate good, that is, good which is not genuine good but nevertheless serves to introduce genuine truths and goods, dealt with in 3974, 3982, 3986 (end), 4063; from the meaning of 'sojourning' as receiving instruction, dealt with in 1463, 2025; and from the meaning of 'staying' or 'staying wish' as that which has reference to the life of truth when accompanied by good, dealt with in 3613, at this point as taking to oneself. From this it is evident that the words 'With Laban I have sojourned, and have stayed until now' mean that it had taken to itself the good meant by 'Laban'.

[2] The implications of all this are as follows: Truth cannot be implanted in good unless means exist to effect this. Those means were the subject in previous chapters, where Jacob's sojourning and staying with Laban, and the flock he acquired there, are referred to. The present chapter deals with the process by which truth and good are joined together, and so with an inversion of state, when order is turned around so that truth is made subordinate to good. Truth seemingly occupies the first position during the time a person is learning truth from an affection for it, though he is not as yet living in accordance with it to any real extent. But good occupies the first position when he does live in accordance with the truth he has learned from an affection for it, for in that case truth becomes good since that person now believes that good consists in acting in accordance with truth. People who are regenerate are governed by this good, as also are those who possess conscience, that is, who no longer reason whether it is the truth but do it because it is the truth, and so who have taken it to themselves in faith and in life.