3797. 'And the flock of Laban his mother's brother' means the Church and doctrine from that origin. This is clear from the meaning of 'the flock' as the Church and doctrine, dealt with in 3767, 3768, 3783. The reason why Laban is also called 'his mother's brother' here is that this phrase again means acknowledgement of the origin, as in the previous paragraph.

62. FROM THE ARCANA COELESTIA

Love is the esse of man's life (n. 5002). Man, spirit, and angel, are altogether as their love is (n. 6872, 10177, 10284). Man has for an end what he loves (n. 3796). What man loves and has for an end reigns universally with him, that is, in each and all things (n. 3796, 5130, 5949). Love is spiritual heat, and the very vital principle of man (n. 1589, 2146, 3338, 4906, 7081-7086, 9954, 10740). All the interiors with man, which are of his understanding and will, are disposed in a form according to his ruling love (n. 2023, 3189, 6690). Love is spiritual conjunction (n. 1594, 2057, 3939, 4018, 5807, 6195-6196, 7081-7086, 7501, 10130). Hence all in the spiritual world are consociated according to their loves (ibid.). Affection is continuation of love (n. 3938). All delight, pleasure, happiness, and joy of heart, are of love; and their quality is according to the quality of the love (n. 994-995, 2204). There are as many genera and species of delights and pleasures as there are of the affections which are of the love (n. 994-995, 2204). The delight of the love is more vile in proportion as it is more external (n. 996). Man after death has such a life as is the quality of his love (n. 2363).

3101. 'So as to know whether Jehovah had prospered his way or not' means regarding Divine Truth, as to what sort it was. This is clear from the meaning of 'way' as truth, dealt with in 627, 2333. The Divine nature of that truth is meant by the words 'whether Jehovah had prospered' which amounts to the same as, whether it was from Jehovah, that is, from the Divine. Accordingly what sort of truth is meant, for the truths that are summoned from the natural man into the rational man are not all received, only those that accord with the good there, and on being sown and implanted in this way act as one with that good. The rest, even though they may have appeared as truths prior to being raised up, are nevertheless not received because they are not acknowledged. Good is that which acknowledges its own truth, and truth that which acknowledges its own good. That it was an acknowledgement of what sort of truth it was, and that thus this truth was received, is also evident from what follows next.