The Lords Love

Unit 1

1.1 Overview

The Lord’s Love looks at the nature and operation of the Lord’s love under five Broad Category Headings as follows:-

1. The nature of the Lord’s love
2. What the Lord’s love seeks to accomplish
3. How the Lord’s love operates
4. The effects and impacts of the Lord’s love
5. Responses to the Lord’s love or how it is received

On completion of this unit it is expected that you will be able to:-

1. Identify questions, concerns, issues, in regard to the course content and its requirements.
2. Develop a strategy to manage concerns or potential issues in consultation with your Tutor.
3. Write personal objectives related to the course theme that relate to your vision for ministry.
4. Be able to discuss your thinking behind creating the objective(s).
5. Demonstrate an awareness of your inner state(s).

In this course you will be exploring what the Word teachings concerning the Lord’s Love in the light of the teachings found in the Heavenly Doctrines. The course design is such that you will be given plenty of opportunity to explore and develop your own thoughts on the topic, but always with a view to integrating your findings into life.

The student will work closely with the Tutor on managing assignment and receiving feedback. We recognise that every person undertaking a course of study brings a unique perspective in keeping with their life experience and vision for ministry. Thus the College and the Student form an interactive partnership through which the Tutors and Student are able to learn, grow and develop together in their appreciation of the Lord’s Love that will benefit others. The overall objective for this course is to lay a foundation for a fuller appreciation of the Lord’s Love and an increased capacity to have this expressed more appropriately through the lives of those engaging in this course and beyond.

1.2 Objectives

The objectives around which the course is structured are specifically designed to encourage you to do this. You will be working to achieve 3 kinds of objectives in each Unit these are…

1. Conceptual Objectives
2. Application Objects
3. Devotional Objectives

In addition to these you will be required to create a Personal Ministry Objective to be achieved by the end of the course.

A basic framework is provided for the course with will assist you to structure your work. For this course it consists of the following 5 Broad Concept Headings …

1. The Nature of the Lord’s Love
2. What the Lord’s Love Seeks to Accomplish
3. How the Lord’s Love Operates
4. The Effects and Impacts of the Lord’s Love
5. Responses to the Lord’s Love or How it is Received

The course consists of 7 Units making up a total of approximately 80 credit hours of work. This includes administrative elements, tutorials, contact time, assignments, journal work, and basic course work requirements. The outline of the Units of work are as follows…

1. Introduction/Course Preview4hrs
2. Pre-Course Assessment6hrs
3. Working with the Bible I10hrs
4. Working with the Heavenly Doctrines25hrs
5. Working with the Bible II18hrs
6. Major Assignment16hrs
7. Post Course Assessment 2hrs

1.3 Journaling

1. Record how you are feeling in approaching the course before you begin to read through and preview the course material.
2. Read through all the course material and note down any thoughts/questions/concerns you have regarding the requirements of the course, its content, or any other aspects you want clarified.

As you preview the course material note down…

3. What aspects excite you most; those you find yourself unsure about; and those aspects you think will present a real challenge for you.
4. Your feelings in regard to the course material after you had finished going through it?

Then

5. Reflect on what you have noted down and highlight anything that stands out for you between what you recorded prior to reading through the material and your feelings afterward.

Be prepared to discuss your responses with your tutor

1.4 Integration Work Assignment

• Make a conscious effort each day to be more aware of the Lord’s love operating in your life and circumstances.
• Record your sense of the Lord’s Love as a result of this exercise and be ready for a discussion with your Tutor.
• Create two of your own personal objectives that relate to the theme of the Lord’s Love
• add how you would like to see this expressed through your life in supporting or serving the spiritual needs of others.
• Think about what you would like to see as real outcomes arising from exploring this topic by tying these in with your developing sense of personal ministry.
• In no more than 500 words explore the relationship you see between the objectives you have created and your vision for ministry.

Note: The term ministry is used here in the broadest possible sense and may relate to both ordained or non-ordained spheres of service/employment. Essentially it refers to where you see your talents/skills and abilities being used to support the spiritual well being of others.

1.5 Review for Tutorial

In preparation for this tutorial you need to have:-

• completed all Journal Work
• created and submitted at least 2 personal objectives
• submitted short essay related to personal objectives
• completed Integration Work
• previewed Unit 2 – Identified any questions, issues, concerns etc

It is expected that you will be able to engage with your Tutor in exploring the content of your essay relating the personal objectives you created to your vision for/sense of ministry in your discussions with your Tutor you will be able to share and expand on your Journal reflections, insights etc related to your Integration Work any questions and/or concerns you have arising from your preview of Unit 2 will be addressed to your satisfaction

Unit 2

2.1 Overview

The main objective is to have this knowledge serve as a foundation for directing your learning over the duration of the course and beyond.

On completion of this Unit it is expected that you will be able to:-

1. Organise your thoughts on the Lord’s Love in accordance with the Broad Category Headings for this course.
2. Gain a fuller sense of your existing knowledge of Scripture and the Doctrines in regard to the topic
3. So identify gaps in your knowledge in regard to the Lord’s Love and
4. Be able formulate a series of questions that can guide your thought throughout the course
5. Gain an appreciation of some of the difficulties that conflicts in Scripture
6. Identify and explore areas of discomfort and insecurity that the material brings to the fore for you.

2.2 Concept Map Assignment

Introduction to Concept Mapping

In learning to construct a concept map, it is important to begin with a domain of knowledge that is very familiar to the person constructing the map. Since concept map structures are dependent on the context in which they will be used, it is best to identify a segment of a text, a laboratory or field activity, or a particular problem or question that one is trying to understand. This creates a context that will help to determine the hierarchical structure of the concept map. It is also helpful to select a limited domain of knowledge for the first concept maps.

A good way to define the context for a concept map is to construct a Focus Question, that is, a question that clearly specifies the problem or issue the concept map should help to resolve. Every concept map responds to a focus question, and a good focus question can lead to a much richer concept map. When learning to construct concept maps, learners tend to deviate from the focus question and build a concept map that may be related to the domain, but which does not answer the question. It is often stated that the first step to learning about something is to ask the right questions.

Given a selected domain and a defined question or problem in this domain, the next step is to identify the key concepts that apply to this domain. Usually 15 to 25 concepts will suffice. These concepts could be listed, and then from this list a rank ordered list should be established from the most general, most inclusive concept, for this particular problem or situation at the top of the list, to the most specific, least general concept at the bottom of the list. Although this rank order may be only approximate, it helps to begin the process of map construction. We refer to the list of concepts as aparking lot, since we will move these concepts into the concept map as we determine where they fit in. Some concepts may remain in the parking lot as the map is completed if the mapmaker sees no good connection for these with other concepts in the map.

The next step is to construct a preliminary concept map. This can be done by writing all of the concepts on Post-its(TM), or preferably by using the IHMC CmapTools (Cañas et al., 2004b, http://cmap.ihmc.us) computer software program described below. Post-its allow a group to work on a whiteboard or butcher paper and to move concepts around easily. This is necessary as one begins to struggle with the process of building a good hierarchical organization. Computer software programs are even better in that they allow moving of concepts together with linking statements and the moving of groups of concepts and links to restructure the map. When CmapTools is used in conjunction with a computer projector, two or more individuals can easily collaborate in building a concept map and see changes as they progress in their work. CmapTools also allows for collaboration between individuals in the same room or anywhere in the world, and the maps can be built synchronously or asynchronously, depending on the mapmakers’ schedules.

It is important to recognize that a concept map is never finished. After a preliminary map is constructed, it is always necessary to revise this map. Other concepts can be added. Good maps usually result from three to many revisions. This is one reason why using computer software is helpful.

Once the preliminary map is built , cross-links should be sought. These are links between concepts in different segments or domains of knowledge on the map that help to illustrate how these domains are related to one another. Cross-links are important in order to show that the learner understands the relationships between the sub-domains in the map.

It is important to help students recognize that all concepts are in some way related to one another. Therefore, it is necessary to be selective in identifying cross-links, and to be as precise as possible in identifying linking words that connect concepts. In addition, one should avoid “sentences in the boxes”, that is, full sentences used as concepts, since this usually indicates that a whole subsection of the map could be constructed from the statement in the box. “String maps” illustrate either poor understanding of the material or an inadequate restructuring of the map. Figure 6 shows an example of a string map.

Students often comment that it is hard to add linking words onto the “lines” of their concept map. This is because they poorly understand the relationship between the concepts, or the meanings of the concepts, and it is the linking words that specify this relationship. Once students begin to focus-in on good linking words, and on the identification of good cross-links, they can see that every concept could be related to every other concept. This also produces some frustration, and they must choose to identify the most prominent and most useful cross-links. This process involves what Bloom (1956) identified as high levels of cognitive performance, namely evaluation and synthesis of knowledge. Concept mapping is an easy way to encourage very high levels of cognitive performance, when the process is done well. This is one reason concept mapping can also be a very powerful evaluation tool (Edmondson, 2000).

Finally, the map should be revised, concepts re-positioned in ways that lend to clarity and better over-all structure, and a “final” map prepared. When computer software is used, one can go back, change the size and font style, and add colors to “dress up” the concept map.

Thus, we see that concept maps are not only a powerful tool for capturing, representing, and archiving knowledge of individuals, but also a powerful tool to create new knowledge.

The Theory Underlying Concept Maps

2.3 Instructions

In order to complete the work for this Unit you can either download and install the free Concept Mapping software or use some other preferred method such as paper and coloured pens. You will need to email your maps to your tutor so hand drawn maps will need to be digitised. The cmap software can be found by clicking on the following link…

CMAP Software

Should you have a problem accessing the download then please contact your Tutor who will assist you.

Once you have installed the software you will be able to open the cmap file (it is also provided as a pdf below…)

Open PDF Document

This provides you with an example of a partitially completed map for the first focus question, “What is the nature of the Lord’s Love?“. You can use this map and develop it further, or you can start from scratch. If you use the map provided then be sure to use the “save as” option under the file menu to save it onto your own computer. You will then need to create a new map for each of the following focus questions…

• CMap 2. What does the Lord’s love seek to accomplish?
• CMap 3. How does the Lord’s love operate?
• Cmap 4. What are the effects or impacts of the Lord’s love?
• CMap 5. How is the Lord’s love received and responded to by those in the heavens, world of spirits, in hell and on earth?

2.4 Journal Work

1. Record how you felt when faced with the task of creating your Concept Maps. Recall the thoughts that these feelings generated as internal dialogue, what can you say about this?

2. List where you see you have gaps in your knowledge - which focus questions for the Lord’s love do you feel you have a good grip on?

3. Record 4 or 5 questions that sit with you in regard to the Lord’s love, and that you would like to see some movement on over the duration of this course. You should keep a hard copy of these and revisit them periodically as you move through the course jotting down relevant insights. You should be able to draw these from the work with your Concept Maps.

4. Are there any aspects of life in general that you find difficult to reconcile with your current understanding of the Lord’s Love? What aspects do you think others might others find difficult?

When you have completed all your maps email them to your tutor.

2.5 Assignment

You are asked to complete one of the following exercises. Either…

1. Write an essay that sets out your understanding of The Lord’s Love.Where possible give examples from your own experience of the Lord’s Love operating in your life. Organise your essay using the Broad Concept Headings (below) as its main subheadings.

OR

2. Take a major tragic news item and explore it in terms of your understanding of the Lord’s love using the 5 Broad Concept Headings as a guide.

Organise your Assignment using the 5 Broad Concept Headings (below) as its main subheadings.

1. The Nature of the Lord’s Love
2. What the Lord’s Love Seeks to Accomplish
3. How the Lord’s Love operates
4. The Effects and Impacts of the Lord’s Love
5. Responses to the Lord’s Love or How it is Received

2.5 Review for Tutorial

Allow 45-60 minutes for this Tutorial

In preparation for this tutorial you need to have…

• completed and submitted the following to your tutor no later than 2 days before your scheduled tutorial: the Concept Maps, either the Essay or News Item and your Journal work.
• have ready any questions issues etc ready to discuss/clarify with your Tutor.

It is expected that

• you will have a growing sense of where the gaps in your understanding of the Lord’s Love lie
• you will demonstrate an ability to hold questions and challenges the material is bringing up for you and show a willingness to discuss this with your Tutor
• previewed and read through the required work for Unit 3. Have ready any questions issues etc you need to discuss with your Tutor.

UNIT 3

Working with the Bible I

3.0 Objectives

On completion of this section students will:-

• be familiar with elements of the literal sense of the Bible relating to this topic and confident in accessing them
• to engage with passages that are unfamiliar and difficult as a spring board for further discovery
• will have built a better ability to be able to relate to and reflect on Biblical imagery in regard to their own states and spiritual experiences

3.1 Journal Work A

• As you work through this section of the course observe your own inability to express love as you would like in your daily life. Notice any tendency to justify unloving behaviour. How might this tendency in us, to justify such states, be related to the conflicted picture of the Lord’s love presented in the literal sense of Scripture.

3.2 Part A

1. Using a concordance or a digital bible, compile a list of Scriptural references that highlight the Lord’s love, care and mercy.
2. From these references make a final selection of those to explore the picture the Bible offers of the Lord and His care for us.
3. Locate these references in your Bible and familiarise yourself with them.

Hosea 11; Ps 91:11-16; Ps 37:25; Deut. 33:27; Ps 18:1-3; Is 1:18-19; Jn 17:6-26; Jn 10:14, 26-27; Mk 10:21; Lk 15:21-24; Lk 15:7; Lk 13:34; Jn 14:23; Jn 15:13-14; Jn 16:24

3.2 Part B

1. Using a concordance, compile a list of Scriptural references that highlight statements that seem to contradict the idea that the Lord is a God of love, care and mercy.

2. If your list doesn’t include the following references then locate the references in your Bible and familiarise yourself with them. Is 1:20; Deut 32:29; Mal 1:2-3; Ps 137:8-9; Gen 6:5-6; Num 11:10; 12:9; 12:22; 25:4; 32:10; 32:14; Deut 4:25 Ex 20:5; Is 45:7; Lev 14:34; Mal 2:9; 2Sm 18:19; 1Sam 15:1-3; Ps 38:1-2; Rev 3:19; 2Sam 7:14

3.2 Part C

Arrange your lists into columns (A4 Landscape) so that the first and second columns contain the contradictory passages. In the third column comment on the difficulty they may present to anyone reading them literally and note any thoughts you have that help reconcile them.

3.3 Journal Work B

• Reflect on states when you have doubted or struggled to have a sense of the Lord’s love and yet had a sense of Him holding you through it all despite this.
• Consider and share how you might be able to draw on this to assist others?
• be prepared to discuss your reflections with your tutor in the tutorial for this Unit.

3.4 Assignment Work

Either

• select 5 of the Scripture references from list B and write a reflective essay (750 words) showing how these can be reconciled to the image of the Lord presented in the Scripture references in list A.

OR

• arrange a selection of conflicting references under each of the Broad Concept headings as an outline for a public talk entitled Reconciling Conflicting Images of Divine Love. Create a bullet list of points showing how you intend to resolve conflicts under each heading.

3.5 Integration Work

Take one or two Scripture passages you found had a significant impact on/meaning for you as you worked through this unit.

Write up a short devotional reading consisting of

• the passage(s) of Scripture you have chosen –
• a paragraph of your reflections upon it framed for your reader using the themes of our sense of the closeness and absence of the Lord’s love and
• finish with a question for reflection that your reader can carry with them through their day to help them be aware of their sense of the Lord’s love.

3.6 Review for Tutorial

Allow 45-60 minutes for this Tutorial

In preparation for this tutorial you need to have…

• completed and submitted the following to your tutor no later than 2 days before your scheduled tutorial:
• work with contradictory biblical passages (3.2 Part C)
• the Assignment work requirements (3.4)
• Integration work requirements (3.5)

It is expected that:-

• You will be able to connect the material you are working with to things happening in your life; situations and personal spiritual development areas.
• you will demonstrate a developing ability to hold questions and challenges the material is bringing up for you.
• be able to discuss your Journal Work

UNIT 4

Working with the Heavenly Doctrines

4.0 Objectives

Upon completing this unit students will:

• further develop their ability to reflect on life situations, both personally and in ministry contexts.
• through applying the principles of the Heavenly Doctrines gain skills that foster spiritually positive outcomes.

It is expected that students…

• will be able to demonstrate an ability to organise references from the Heavenly Doctrines in support of key doctrinal principles.
• will develop an ability to work with doctrinal material critically through forming their own perspectives and questions
• will learn to identify doctrinal principles and reformulate them in terms of their application to ministry and/or general life situations.
• be able to reflect more deeply on their own inner states of life

In this section of the course you will be organising references from the Heavenly Doctrines under the following five Broad Concept Headings.

1. The Nature of the Lord’s Love
2. What the Lord’s Love Seeks to Accomplish
3. How the Lord’s Love Operates
4. The Effects and Impacts of the Lord’s Love
5. Responses to the Lord’s Love or How it is Received

4.1 Journal Work

Reflect on and record in a daily log how this activity has impacted on your perspective of, and responses in your life. Try to be aware of shifts in your states of feeling and thought both positive and negative and record what you believe is being highlighted for you for further spiritual growth work.

4.2 Research work

Open DOCX Document

Open the HDReferences file and then save a copy of this file on your computer to work with. Keeping the Broad Concept Headings in mind read through the list of references and summary statements and mark those that catch your interest. Using the New Christian Bible Study website or hard copies of the Heavenly Doctrines look up the references you have highlighted and allocate a Broad Concept Heading to each one. You will be using these specific references to explore the theme of the Broad Concept heading in more depth a little later on. You may find other references come to mind or are suggested in the references you look up, feel free to reference and explore these also, but remember to keep your focus on the relevance of what select within the context of the Broad Concept Headings for this course. You may feel that a single reference falls within more than one of the Broad Concept Headings. You are free to explore any of the references under as many of the headings as long as you can show how they fit within the headings you assign them to. Your final selection should contain not less than 10 major references under each Broad Concept Heading drawn from HDReference file and/or your own further exploration of the subject area. As you go record your thoughts on what each reference you have selected says in regard to the Broad Concept Heading you have placed it under. Be sure to note any new insights, trains of thought, unanswered questions and any challenges that your research has made to your current understanding of the subject area. Forward a copy of your arrangement of references under the Broad Concept Headings to your Tutor no later than 2 days prior to your scheduled tutorial for this section.

4.3 Assignment

Under each of the Broad Concept Headings below create a list that you feel are the main doctrinal points related to that heading found in the References you selected to work with.

1. The Nature of the Lord’s Love
2. What the Lord’s Love Seeks to Accomplish
3. How the Lord’s Love Operates
4. The Effects and Impacts of the Lord’s Love
5. Responses to the Lord’s Love or How it is Received

Now select one of the Broad Concept Headings above and using the points you have listed develop a presentation for a public forum. You must state who your audience is and show how your material relates to/meets your understanding of what that group’s life-needs/questions might be.

Then make a list of the potential questions that your presentation might draw from your target audience. List these along with a potential response drawn from your current understanding of the subject matter.

4.4 Journal Work

Reflect on how your work in developing the main points in each Broad Concept Heading is impacting on the wider sphere of your life - what connections can you draw that links your work in the Heavenly Doctrines with other areas of activity and/or relationships?

4.5 Review

In preparation for this tutorial you need to have:-

• submitted your Assignment.
• prepared to discuss your responses in your journal reflections with your tutor
• reviewed the next section of Unit 4
• able to connect the material you are working with to things happening in your life; situations and personal spiritual development areas.

4.6 Integration Work

Select a core principle that has been highlighted for you in your work with the Heavenly Doctrines for this section and make a concerted effort to be mindful of this truth/principle as something to govern your response(s) in the situations you are currently working through in your life.

List any new insights that have come to you in regard to the Lord’s love and its operation in difficult circumstances. Prepare a summary of your work for this section (1-2 A4 pages) and submit this to your tutor 2 days prior to the tutorial date.

UNIT 5

5.1 Overview

Working with the Bible II: Objectives

On completion of this section students will be able to:-

• draw on scripture and the Doctrines to handle confidently, comfortably and insightfully the whole concept of the Word becoming flesh.
• to use their insights and understanding to engage with others to contribute to and support peoples’ fluctuating sense of the Lord’s presence
• to readily draw upon their understanding of the nature and operation of the Lord’s love to support them in their own spiritual journey.

5.2 Reading

Ex. 4:18-26 18 So Moses went and returned to Jethro his father-in-law, and said to him, “Please let me go and return to my brethren who are in Egypt, and see whether they are still alive.” And Jethro said to Moses, “Go in peace.” 19 Now the LORD said to Moses in Midian, “Go, return to Egypt; for all the men who sought your life are dead.” 20 Then Moses took his wife and his sons and set them on a donkey, and he returned to the land of Egypt. And Moses took the rod of God in his hand. 21 And the LORD said to Moses, “When you go back to Egypt, see that you do all those wonders before Pharaoh which I have put in your hand. But I will harden his heart, so that he will not let the people go. 22 “Then you shall say to Pharaoh, ‘Thus says the LORD: “Israel is My son, My firstborn. 23 “So I say to you, let My son go that he may serve Me. But if you refuse to let him go, indeed I will kill your son, your firstborn.” ’ ” 24 And it came to pass on the way, at the encampment, that the LORD met him and sought to kill him. 25 Then Zipporah took a sharp stone and cut off the foreskin of her son and cast it at Moses’ feet, and said, “Surely you are a husband of blood to me!” 26 So He let him go. Then she said, “You are a husband of blood!”–because of the circumcision. 27 And the LORD said to Aaron, “Go into the wilderness to meet Moses.” So he went and met him on the mountain of God, and kissed him. 28 So Moses told Aaron all the words of the LORD who had sent him, and all the signs which He had commanded him. 29 Then Moses and Aaron went and gathered together all the elders of the children of Israel. 30 And Aaron spoke all the words which the LORD had spoken to Moses. Then he did the signs in the sight of the people. 31 So the people believed; and when they heard that the LORD had visited the children of Israel and that He had looked on their affliction, then they bowed their heads and worshiped.

Arcana Coelestia 7013-7068

AC (Elliott) n. 7013 7013. Verses 18-20 And Moses went and returned to Jethro his father-in-law, and said to him, I will go, I beg you, and return to my brothers who are in Egypt, and I will see whether they are still alive. And Jethro said to Moses, Go in peace. And Jehovah said to Moses in Midian, Go, return to Egypt; for all the men seeking your soul* are dead. And Moses took his wife and his sons, and caused them to ride on an ass, and returned to the land of Egypt; and Moses took the rod of God in his hand.

‘And Moses went and returned’ means a resumption of the former life. ‘To Jethro his father-in-law’ means governed by simple good. ‘And said to him, I will go, I beg you, and return to my brothers who are in Egypt’ means being raised to more internal and more spiritual life in the natural. ‘And I will see whether they are still alive’ means a perception of that life. ‘And Jethro said to Moses, Go in peace’ means assent and earnest desire. ‘And Jehovah said to Moses in Midian’ means enlightenment and corroboration received from the Divine in that state. ‘Go, return to Egypt’ means spiritual life in the natural. ‘For all the men seeking your soul are dead’ means the removal of falsities endeavouring to destroy the life of truth and good. ‘And Moses took his wife’ means the good linked to [the law from God). ‘And his sons’ means the truths from there. ‘And caused them to ride on an ass’ means the ideas which would be of service to the new kind of intelligence. ‘And returned to the land of Egypt’ means in the natural mind. ‘And Moses took the rod of God in his hand’ means that those things were from Divine power.

• i.e. life

AC (Elliott) n. 7014 7014. ‘And Moses went and returned’ means a resumption of the former life. This is clear from the meaning of ‘going’ as life, dealt with in 4882, 5493, 5605; from the meaning of ‘returning’, or going back, as living where he had done so formerly; and from the representation of ‘Moses’ as the Lord in respect of the law or truth from God, dealt with in 6771, 6827. When Moses was on Mount Horeb with Jehovah, who appeared in a flame of fire, he represented the Lord in respect of Divine Truth; but now that he is with Jethro his father-in-law, who is the good of the Church which is guided by the truth that goes with simple good, he represents the Lord in respect of truth from God. Here and elsewhere in the Word the internal sense describes how, during all the states of life which the Lord passed through in the world, He was making His Human Divine. These states followed one after another, as may be recognized from the fact that when He was a young child the Lord was like a young child, and after that grew in intelligence and wisdom, all the time instilling Divine Love into them till at length His Human too became Divine Love, which is Divine Being (Esse) or Jehovah. And this being the way in which the Lord put on the Divine - that is, in one state after another - He therefore first made Himself truth from God, after this Divine Truth, and finally Divine Good. These were the stages in the glorification of the Lord that are described here and elsewhere in the internal sense of the Word.

AC (Elliott) n. 7015 7015. ‘To Jethro his father-in-law’ means governed by simple good, that is to say, a resumption of the life governed by it. This is clear from the representation of ‘Jethro’, because he was the priest of Midian, as the good of the Church which is guided by the truth that goes with simple good, dealt with in 6827, this kind of good being meant by simple good; and from the meaning of ‘father-in-law’ as the good from which a joining together of good and truth springs, dealt with in 6827.

AC (Elliott) n. 7016 7016. ‘And said [to him],I will go, I beg you, and return to my brothers who are in Egypt’ means being raised to more internal and more spiritual life in the natural. This is clear from the meaning of ‘going and returning’ as a further state of life, and the further state of life here consists in being raised to more internal and more spiritual life, thus life closer to the Divine, for in reference to the Lord, whom ‘Moses’ represents, ‘going and returning’ is used to mean being raised to the Divine Being (Esse) or Jehovah, who was within Him and from whom He came; from the representation of the children of Israel, to whom ‘brothers’ refers here, as the Lord’s spiritual kingdom and consequently the spiritual Church, dealt with in 6426, 6637; and from the meaning of ‘Egypt’ as the natural, dealt with in 6147, 6252. From all this it is evident that ‘I will go, I beg you, and return to my brothers who are in Egypt’ means being raised to more internal and more spiritual life in the natural. For just as Moses’ dwelling in Midian meant life with those who are guided by the truth that goes with simple good, and so are governed by simple good, 7015, so now his dwelling with the children of Israel means life with those who are guided and governed by the truth and good of the spiritual Church, which is more internal and more spiritual than the former life. Regarding the fact that the good and truth of that Church are in the natural, see 4286, 4402.

AC (Elliott) n. 7017 7017. ‘And I will see whether they are still alive’ means a perception of that life. This is clear from the meaning of ‘seeing’ as understanding and perceiving, dealt with in 2325, 2807, 3764, 3863, 4403-4421, 4567, 4723, 5400; and from the meaning of ‘being alive’ or ‘living’ as spiritual life, dealt with in 5407. A perception of that life means a perceiving before-hand, for when anyone proposes something to himself he envisages it as if it were a present reality. He must project his mind into the situation involving that thing, and from this come desires, and from it a feeling of delight such as would belong to that thing if it were a present reality. In this way intermediate ends link themselves to the last and lowest end and make so to speak a single end.*

• intermediate ends is a philosophical term for the means, and last and lowest end a term for the effect.

AC (Elliott) n. 7018 7018. ‘And Jethro said to Moses, Go in peace’ means assent and earnest desire. This is clear from the meaning of ‘Jethro said to Moses’ as a reply, while assent and also earnest desire is meant by ‘go in peace’.

AC (Elliott) n. 7019 7019. ‘And Jehovah said to Moses in Midian’ means enlightenment and corroboration received from the Divine in that state. This is clear from the consideration that Jehovah was saying to Moses that he should return to Egypt, when in fact Moses had been commanded previously to do so by Jehovah, in Chapter 3:10 and following verses and Chapter 4:12 and following verses, and Moses had already prepared himself, as he had been commanded, for the journey. From this it becomes clear that the command given now means enlightenment and corroboration received from the Divine. The fact that this enlightenment and corroboration was received in that state, that is to say, in a state of truth that goes with simple good, is meant by the detail that Jehovah said what He said to Moses ‘in Midian’, ‘Midian’ being truth that goes with simple good. See 3242, 4756, 4788, 6777.

AC (Elliott) n. 7020 7020. ‘Go, return to Egypt’ means spiritual life in the natural. This is clear from the meaning of ‘going’ or ‘going and returning more internal and more spiritual life, dealt with above in 7016; and from the meaning of ‘Egypt’ as the natural, dealt with in 6147, 6252.

AC (Elliott) n. 7021 7021. ‘For all the men seeking your soul are dead’ means the removal of falsities endeavouring to destroy the life of truth and good. This is clear from the meaning of ‘being dead’ as the fact that they have been removed, since those who are dead have also been removed; from the meaning of the Egyptians, to whom ‘the men’ refers here, as those who are under the influence of falsities, dealt with in 6692; and from the meaning of ‘those seeking the soul’ as those who endeavour to destroy life. And since spiritual life is the life of truth which belongs to faith and of good which belongs to charity, it is called the life of truth and good. From all this it is evident that ‘all the men seeking your soul are dead’ means the removal of falsities endeavouring to destroy the life of truth and good. In the Word ‘soul’ (anima) is used to mean every living thing and is also attributed to living creatures (animalia). But the proper use of the word ‘soul’ is in reference to a human being; and when used in this way it can vary in meaning. A person himself is called a soul, because the life in general within him is called the soul; more specifically the life or activity of his understanding is called such, and so too is the life or activity of his will.

[2] But in the spiritual sense ‘soul’ is used to mean the life of truth belonging to faith and the life of good belonging to charity, or in general to mean a person himself in respect of his spirit that lives after death, which is the meaning that ‘soul’ has in Matthew,

Do not fear those who can kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Matt. 10:28.

In the same gospel,

What does it profit a person if he gains the whole world but suffers the loss of his soul? Or what will a person give as a price sufficient for the redemption of his soul? Matt. 16:26.

In Luke,

The Son of Man did not come to destroy people’s souls but to save them. Luke 9:56.

In Ezekiel,

You have desecrated Me among My people, to kill souls that ought not to die, and to keep alive souls that ought not to live. Ezek. 13:19.

In these places ‘soul’ stands for a person’s spiritual life, the life which is that of his spirit after death. ‘Killing the soul’, ‘suffering the loss of one’s soul’, and ‘destroying the soul’ stand for dying spiritually or being subject to damnation.

AC (Elliott) n. 7022 7022. ‘And Moses took his wife’ means the good linked to [the law from God]. This is clear from the representation of ‘Moses’ as the Lord in respect of the law or truth from God, dealt with already; and from the meaning of ‘wife’ as the good linked to it, dealt with in 4510, 4823. In the internal sense, and also in the highest sense in which the Lord is the subject, ‘the wife’ who was married to Moses represents the good that had been joined to truth, the reason for this being that every single thing in the spiritual world and in the natural world has the likeness of a marriage within it. The likeness of a marriage exists wherever there is that which is active and that which is passive; and both must be present with each other wherever anything comes into being. Unless they are joined together nothing can possibly be produced. One reason why the likeness of a marriage is present in all things is that all things have a connection with goodness and truth and so with the heavenly marriage, which is a marriage of goodness and truth; and the heavenly marriage has a connection with the Divine marriage, which is a marriage of Divine Good and Divine Truth. And another reason is, as has been stated, that nothing can be produced or brought into being unless there is that which is active and that which is passive, and so unless the likeness of a marriage exists. From all this it is plainly evident that the truth of faith devoid of the good of charity cannot produce anything, and neither can the good of charity devoid of the truth of faith. The two must be joined together to bear fruit and to establish the life of heaven in a person. Regarding the likeness of a marriage present in every single thing, see 1432, 2177, 2516, 5194. And since each detail of the Word has the marriage of goodness and truth within it, 683, 793, 801, 2516, 2712, 4138 (end), 5138, 6343, each detail of the Word has heaven within it, for heaven constitutes that actual marriage. And since each detail of the Word has heaven within it, each detail has the Lord within it, because the Lord is the All in all of heaven. All this shows how it comes about that ‘the wife of Moses’ represents the good that had been joined to truth, even in the highest sense in which the Lord is the subject, in the same way as Sarah the wife of Abraham represents such good, dealt with in 2063, 2065, 2172, 2173, 2198, and also Rebekah the wife of Isaac, in 3012, 3013, 3077.

AC (Elliott) n. 7023 7023. ‘And his sons’ means the truths from there. This is clear from the meaning of ‘sons’ as truths, dealt with in 489, 491, 533, 1147, 2623, 3373. The words ‘from there’ are used because the truths spring from the marriage spoken of immediately above.

AC (Elliott) n. 7024 7024. ‘And caused them to ride on an ass’ means the ideas which would be of service to the new kind of intelligence. This is clear from the meaning of ‘riding’ as ideas that belong to the understanding, here the ideas which would be of service to the new kind of intelligence which will enhance the life of those who belong to the spiritual Church, 7016 (the reason why ‘riding’ (equitare) means those ideas is that ‘a horse’ (equus) means the power of understanding - see the matters dealt with in 2761, 2762, 3217, 5321, 6534); and from the meaning of ‘an ass’ as truth that is of service, in this instance to the new kind of intelligence, dealt with in 2781, 5741, and also as factual knowledge, 5492.

AC (Elliott) n. 7025 7025. ‘And returned to the land of Egypt’ means in the natural mind. This is clear from the meaning of ‘the land of Egypt’ as the natural mind, dealt with in 5276, 5278, 5280, 5288, 5301.

AC (Elliott) n. 7026 7026. ‘And Moses took the rod of God in his hand’ means that those things were from Divine power. This is clear from the meaning of ‘the rod’ as power, dealt with in 4013, 4015, 4876, 4936, so that ‘the rod of God’ is Divine power. As may be seen above in 7011, ‘the rod’ means natural power while ‘the hand’ means spiritual power, and the natural derives its power from the spiritual; and this being so ‘the rod’ means power when it is being held in the hand. The origin of the meaning of ‘the rod’ as power lies in representatives in the next life, for there those who practise magic are seen with rods which also serve to provide them with power. This also explains why the magicians of Egypt had rods which they used in performing what seemed to be miracles, and why everywhere in their writings the ancients give magicians rods. From these considerations it may be recognized that ‘a rod’ is an emblem representing power, and also has a direct correspondence with it since rods are instruments through which power is actually exercised. But among magicians this involves a misuse of correspondence and is altogether ineffective except within the hells where they are, and then only within these because trickery and false impressions reign. Since there is a direct correspondence between a rod and power, Moses was commanded to take the rod in his hand and use it to do the signs. For the same reason kings have a sceptre, which is a short rod and serves as a sign of royal power. The correspondence of rod and power derives from the fact that a rod or staff supports the hand and arm, and so at the same time the body, and the hand and arm correspond to power in the Grand Man, see 878, 3387, 4931-4977, 5327, 5328, 5544, 6947, 7011.

AC (Elliott) n. 7027 7027. Verses 21-13 And Jehovah said to Moses, Go and return* to Egypt, see all the portents which I have put in your hand; and you are to do them before Pharaoh. And I will harden his heart, and he will not send the people away. And you are to say to Pharaoh, Thus said Jehovah, Israel is My son, My firstborn. And I say to you, Send My son away, and let him serve Me; and [if] you refuse to send him away, behold, I kill your son, your firstborn. ‘And Jehovah said to Moses’ means perception from the Divine. ‘Go and return to Egypt’ means spiritual life in the natural. ‘See all the portents which I have put in your hand’ means the means used by power from the spiritual at that time. ‘And you are to do them before Pharaoh’ means against molesting falsities. ‘And I will harden his heart, and he will not send the people away’ means obstinacy and so a failure to set free as yet. ‘And you are to say to Pharaoh’ means admonition. ‘Thus said Jehovah’ means from the Divine. ‘Israel is My son, My firstborn’ means that those guided and governed by spiritual truth and good have been adopted. ‘And I say to you’ means a command. ‘Send My son away’ means that they should refrain from molestation of the truths of the Church. ‘And let him serve Me’ means being raised into heaven to perform useful services from there. ‘And [if] you refuse to send him away’ means obstinacy right to the last. ‘Behold, I kill your son, your firstborn’ means the annihilation of faith devoid of charity, and the consequent devastation of truth among them.

• lit. In going to return

AC (Elliott) n. 7028 7028. ‘And Jehovah said to Moses’ means perception from the Divine. This is clear from the meaning of ‘saying’ in the historical narratives of the Word as perception, dealt with often; and its being from the Divine is meant by the words ‘Jehovah said’. The reason for the repetition here of the words ‘Jehovah said to Moses 2061, 2238, 2260, 2506, 2515, 2552.

AC (Elliott) n. 7029 7029. ‘Go and return to Egypt’ means spiritual life in the natural. This is clear from the meaning of ‘going and returning’ as being raised to more internal and more spiritual life, and from the meaning of ‘Egypt’ as the natural, both of which meanings are dealt with above in 7016.

AC (Elliott) n. 7030 7030. ‘See all the portents which I have put in your hand’ means the means used by power from the spiritual at that time. This is clear from the meaning of ‘the portents’ or miracles as the means used by Divine power, dealt with in 6910; and from the meaning of ‘hand’ as spiritual power, dealt with in 7011. From these meanings it is evident that ‘see all the portents which I have put in your hand’ means the means used by power from the spiritual.

AC (Elliott) n. 7031 7031. ‘And you are to do them before Pharaoh’ means against molesting falsities. This is clear from the representation of ‘Pharaoh’ as falsity molesting the truths of the Church, dealt with in 6651, 6679, 6683, 6692. The reason why ‘you are to do them before Pharaoh’ means against those falsities is that this command follows in sequence the words that come before it. For these words - ‘see all the portents which I have put in your hand’ - mean the means used by power from the spiritual, that is, used against molesting falsities. In the internal sense the matters to which the words of the sense of the letter are applied follow one another in sequence.

AC (Elliott) n. 7032 7032. ‘And I will harden his heart, and he will not send the people away’ means obstinacy and so a failure to set free as yet. This is clear from the meaning of ‘hardening’ as obstinacy, and from the meaning of ‘heart’ is that a new perception is meant, as the will, dealt with in 2930, 3888, so that the words used here mean an obstinate determination that springs from the will, and therefore from a delight in doing what is evil since what is present in the will is that in which one takes delight, and that in which one takes delight springs from the love one has; and from the meaning of ‘not sending the people away’ as an obstinate unwillingness to set free, thus a failure to set free as yet. It says here and in places further on that Jehovah hardened Pharaoh’s heart. Such wording is based on appearances and on the general idea about the Divine, that all things are brought about by Him. But this should be understood in exactly the same kind of way as the attribution to Jehovah or the Lord of evil, anger, fury, devastation, and many other things like these should be, 2447, 6071, 6991, 6997.

[2] As regards the obstinacy of those who are steeped in falsities and the resulting evils and in evils and the resulting falsities, it should be recognized that the nature of it is such that it defies description. They never leave off, unless they are deterred by harsh punishments and the fears these create; exhortations and threats have no effect whatever. The reason for this is that for them the delight of life consists in doing evil, a delight which they acquired while they lived in the world, chiefly because they loved solely themselves, not their neighbour, and so did not have any Christian charity. Because people like this do not allow themselves to be led by the Lord, their actions are motivated by their own selfish will, which is evil owing to heredity and also to the actual life they lead. And people whose actions are motivated by their own selfish will do what is evil from a love of evil, since what comes from the will comes from love. From love springs the delight they feel in doing evil, and in the measure that this delight reigns in them obstinacy reigns in them.

[3] It is not evident in the world that this is so, but that is because in the world they are restrained by self-love and love of the world, for they are afraid they would suffer loss of reputation, consequently of monetary gain and of position if they were to do evil openly. Laws and fear for their lives also serve to keep them in check. But if those restraints did not exist they would quickly seek to ruin all who are not favourably disposed towards them, plunder everyone’s resources, and ruthlessly kill anyone. This is what the person is like inwardly, that is, as to his spirit, though he may not seem in the world to be like that, as may be seen perfectly clearly from those who are in the next life. Those who have been like that in the world have external things taken away from them and are left to [the desires of] their own will, thus to their own loves; and when they have been left to these nothing gives them greater delight than doing what is evil. They also do it with such obstinate determination that they never leave off, unless, as has been stated, they suffer punishments, after which they sink into hell. All this shows what a person is like who has no charity towards the neighbour, also that everyone’s life awaits him, not his external life as a citizen which could be seen in the world, but his spiritual life, which was internal and unseen in the world.

AC (Elliott) n. 7033 7033. ‘And you are to say to Pharaoh’ means admonition. This is clear from the meaning of ‘saying’, when done by Divine command, as admonition; and from the representation of ‘Pharaoh’ as falsity molesting the truths of the Church, thus those who are steeped in falsity and engage in molestation, dealt with in 6651, 6679, 6683, 6692.

AC (Elliott) n. 7034 7034. ‘Thus said Jehovah’ means from the Divine, that is to say, admonition from Him. This is clear from what has been stated immediately above, and also from what appears immediately below.

AC (Elliott) n. 7035 7035. ‘Israel is My son, My firstborn’ means that those guided and governed by spiritual truth and good have been adopted. This is clear from the meaning of ‘son’, when used by Jehovah or the Lord to speak of those who belong to the spiritual Church, as one who has been adopted, dealt with below; from the meaning of ‘firstborn’ as the faith that is wedded to charity, which the spiritual Church possesses, dealt with in 367, 2475, 3725, 4925, 4926, 4928, 4930; and from the representation of ‘Israel’ as the spiritual Church, dealt with in 6637. ‘Israel is My son, My firstborn’ means that those guided and governed by spiritual truth and good - that is, those belonging to the spiritual Church - have been adopted and so recognized as sons because the Lord saved them by His Coming into the world, see 6854, 6914. For this reason also, as well as by virtue of their faith in the Lord, they are called ‘the firstborn son’; and they are the ones who are meant by the Lord in John,

And other sheep I have which are not of this fold; I must bring them also, and they will hear My voice, and there will be one flock and one Shepherd. John 10:16.

AC (Elliott) n. 7036 7036. ‘And I say to you’ means a command. This is clear from the meaning of ‘saying’, when used by Jehovah, as a command.

AC (Elliott) n. 7037 7037. ‘Send My son away’ means that they should refrain from molestation of the truths of the Church. This is clear from the representation of ‘Pharaoh’ as falsity molesting the truths of the Church, dealt with in 6651, 6679, 6683, 6692; from the meaning of ‘send away’ as a command that they should refrain; and from the meaning of ‘son’ as those who are guided and governed by spiritual truth and good and have been adopted, dealt with just above in 7035. From all this it is evident that ‘send My son away’ means that they should refrain from molestation of those guided by the truths of the Church.

AC (Elliott) n. 7038 7038. ‘And let him serve Me’ means being raised into heaven to perform useful services from there. This is clear from the meaning of ‘serving Jehovah (or the Lord)’ as performing useful services; and being raised into heaven, to perform useful services from there is meant by ‘they shall serve Me’ for the following reason: Those who belong to the spiritual Church and have been saved by the Lord’s Coming are the subject, in particular those who were on the lower earth before the Lord’s Coming but were later raised into heaven, 6854, 6914, and therefore came into a state in which they performed useful services. The reason why performing useful services is meant by ‘serving the Lord’ is that true worship consists in the performance of such services, thus in the exercise of charity. Anyone who thinks that serving the Lord consists solely in going to church regularly, listening to the preaching there, and saying his prayers, and that that is sufficient, is much mistaken. True worship of the Lord consists in performing useful services; and such services during a person’s life in the world lie in a proper fulfillment of his function by each person, whatever his own position, that is, in serving his country, its communities, and his neighbour with all his heart. They also lie in honest dealings with fellow human beings and in the diligent discharge of duties, with full regard for each person’s character. These useful deeds are the principal ways of exercising charity and the principal means of worshipping the Lord. Going to church regularly, listening to sermons, and saying one’s prayers are also necessary; but without the useful deeds they have no value at all, for they do not constitute a person’s life but teach what that life ought to be like. The angels in heaven get nothing but happiness out of being useful; and they receive it in proportion to their usefulness. So true is this that to them usefulness is what makes heaven.

[2] It is in keeping with Divine order that usefulness should determine the measure of happiness, as may be recognized from the different aspects of a person and the things they correspond to in the Grand Man, such as the external senses - sight, hearing, taste, smell, and touch - which, as shown at the ends of quite a number of chapters, correspond in that way. Associated with these senses therefore are delights, which are determined completely by the functions they perform. The greatest is the sensory delight associated with conjugial love, because of the very great use it performs, for it leads to the propagation of the human race, which populates heaven. After this comes the delight linked with taste, which possesses so great a delight because it helps to nourish the body and keep it healthy, on which healthy mental activity depends. The delight linked with smell is a lesser delight because it serves merely to reinvigorate and so also help to keep a person healthy. The delight associated with hearing and that associated with sight come in last place because they only receive impressions which will be of future usefulness, and because they serve the understanding part of the mind but not so much the will part.

[3] From these and other considerations like them it becomes evident that useful services are the determining factor in the happiness imparted by the Lord in heaven, and that those services are the chief way in which the Lord is worshipped. This goes to explain why John reclined at table on the Lord’s breast, and why the Lord loved him more than the rest. It was not on account of John himself, but because he represented times when charity is exercised, that is, useful services are performed. Regarding John’s representation of those things, see the Prefaces to Chapters 18 and 22 of Genesis, and 3974.

7038a ‘And [if] you refuse to send him away’ means obstinacy right to the last. This is clear from the meaning of ‘refusing to send him away’ as a failing to set free owing to obstinate determination, as above in 7032.

AC (Elliott) n. 7039 7039. ‘Behold, I kill your son, your firstborn’ means the annihilation of faith devoid of charity, and the consequent devastation of truth among them. This is clear from the meaning of ‘killing’ as annihilation; and from the meaning of ‘firstborn son’, that is to say, of Pharaoh and the Egyptians, as faith devoid of charity, dealt with in 3325. For ‘Pharaoh’ and ‘the Egyptians’ have represented the facts known to the Church, 4749, 4964, 4966, 6004, thus known facts which form part of faith since these facts are ones that the Church possesses. But because they turned that factual knowledge into magic, 6692, and their deeds were as a consequence evil and devoid of any charity, the mere knowledge of matters of faith, thus faith without charity, is meant by ‘their firstborn sons’. That the mere knowledge of them is meant by ‘the firstborn of Egypt’ is evident from the meaning of ‘the firstborn of Israel’ as the faith that is wedded to charity, dealt with above in 7075.

[2] The expression ‘faith devoid of charity’ is used, but faith in this case is used to mean the mere knowledge of matters of faith, because faith cannot exist where there is no charity. With those who are not governed by charity matters of faith are merely items stored in the memory; and in the memory they take the same form as any other factual knowledge. Nor does any real knowledge of the truth that composes faith reside there, because it has been debased by false ideas and also serves as the means to bolster up falsities. Since this is what faith devoid of charity is like, it is annihilated among the wicked in the next life, with whom truth suffers complete devastation. This is allowed to happen to prevent them from using truths as the means to attain evil objectives, and so to prevent hell from dominating in any way among them over such things as belong to heaven, and to guard against their being left hanging as a consequence between heaven and hell. Such annihilation and such devastation of truth is what is meant by the firstborn in Egypt being killed. The destruction after that of the Egyptians in the Sea Suph represented a subsequent state of damnation or spiritual death of such people; for once they have been deprived of matters of faith or truth, which were like wings lifting them up, they immediately drop like weights into hell.

AC (Elliott) n. 7040 7040. Verses 24-26 And he was on the way in the lodging-place, and Jehovah came to meet him and sought to kill him. And Zipporah took a flint, and cut off the foreskin of her son, and caused it to touch his feet, and said, Surely a bridegroom of blood* are you to me! And He ceased from him’. Then she said, A bridegroom of blood* in regard to circumcisions. ‘And he was on the way in the lodging-place’ means that the attention of the descendants of Jacob was focused on outward forms without their inner meaning. ‘And Jehovah came to meet him**’ means opposition. ‘And sought to kill him’ means that a representative Church could not be established among those descendants. ‘And Zipporah took a flint’ means that the representative Church used truth to demonstrate the actual nature. ‘And cut off the foreskin of her son’ means the removal of filthy kinds of love, as a result of which the internal is laid bare. ‘And caused it to touch his feet’ means a demonstration of the actual nature of the natural then. ‘And said, Surely a bridegroom of blood are you to me!’ means that it was full of every kind of violence and hostility towards truth and goodness. ‘And He ceased from him’ means that they were allowed to be representative. ‘Then she said, A bridegroom of blood in regard to circumcisions’ means that although the internal was full of violence and hostility towards truth and goodness, circumcision was nevertheless accepted as a sign representative of purification from filthy kinds of love.

• lit. bloods ** i.e. from seeking to kill him

AC (Elliott) n. 7041 7041. ‘And he was on the way in the lodging-place’ means that the attention of the descendants of Jacob was focused on outward forms without their inner meaning. This becomes clear from the representation of ‘Moses’ here. In what has gone before and in what will follow the subject in the internal sense is the spiritual Church, meant by ‘the children of Israel’; but the three verses here deal with how the Church was to have been established among Jacob’s descendants but could not in fact be established among them because their attention was focused on outward forms without their inner meaning. Here therefore Moses does not represent the Law or the Word; instead he represents that nation, descendants of Jacob, whose leader he was to become, and so represents that nation’s worship as well. For everywhere in the Word a leader, judge, or else king represents the nation or people whose leader, judge, or king he is since he is its head, see 4789. This explains why Moses is not referred to here by name, though he is meant by the one who ‘was on the way in the lodging-place’, and why Jehovah at this point ‘came to meet him and sought to kill him’, when yet previously He had commanded him so clearly to go and return to Egypt. His being ‘on the way means what is established, while ‘the lodging-place’ means the external natural or that which exists on the level of the senses, 5495. And since, as has been stated, the subject is the Church that was to have been established among Jacob’s descendants, the level on which that nation focused is meant, namely an external level without any internal level, and so an external natural level or that of the senses, separated from any inner level. When separated from any inner level the sensory level is full of illusions and consequently falsities, and it stands in opposition to forms of the truth and good of faith, see 6948, 6949.

[2] Before the things that come next are explained, see what has been shown already regarding the descendants of Jacob:

Among them there was a representative of the Church, but no real Church, 4281, 4288, 6304.

Divine worship among them was wholly external without anything internal, and they were driven to that worship by external means, 4281, 4433, 4844, 4847, 4865, 4899, 4903.

They were not chosen, yet they stubbornly insisted that they should be the Church, 4290, 4293.

They were such that they could represent holy things even though they were governed by bodily and worldly kinds of love, 4293, 4307.

That nation was like this right from the start, 4314, 4316, 4317.

Very many other things which have been shown concerning that nation, 4444, 4459 (end), 4503, 4750, 4815, 4818, 4820, 4825, 4832, 4837, 4868, 4874, 4911, 4913, 5057, 6877.

AC (Elliott) n. 7042 7042. ‘And Jehovah came to meet him’ means opposition. This is clear from the meaning of ‘coming to meet’ as opposition, opposition to the establishment of any Church among that nation. Opposition to the Divine is what is meant when it says that Jehovah came to meet him. To judge from the sense of the letter it seems as though Jehovah or the Divine was the opposer, since it says ‘Jehovah came to meet him’. But the internal sense is that it was an opposition to the Divine; for the Divine never places Himself in opposition to anyone. Rather it is the person or nation who place themselves in opposition to the Divine; and when they do so it seems, because they cannot abide the Divine, as though there were resistance from the Divine. What this is like may be recognized from those who enter the next life and wish to enter heaven, yet are not the kind of people who can stay there. When their wish is granted and they are on their way, near the entrance to heaven, they seem to themselves to be like monsters and begin to feel pain and torment because they cannot abide the truth and goodness that are there. They think that heaven and the Divine have placed themselves in opposition to them, when in fact they are the ones, having an opposite attitude of mind, who bring it on themselves. From this one may also see that the Divine does not place Himself in opposition to anyone, but that it is a person who places himself in opposition to the Divine.

AC (Elliott) n. 7043 7043. ‘And sought to kill him’ means that a representative Church could not be established among those descendants. This is clear from the meaning of ‘seeking to kill’ as not receiving, dealt with in 3387, 3395, here therefore as not receiving or choosing that nation in order that a representative Church might be established among them. That nation is what Moses their future leader and head is consistently used to mean in these three verses, see above in 7041.

That nation was not chosen, yet it stubbornly insisted that it should be the Church, see 4290, 4293.

No Church, only a representative of the Church was established among that nation, 4281, 4288, 6304.

Holy things of the Church can be represented even by wicked people, for in a representation no attention is paid to the person who represents, only to the thing represented by him, 3670, 4208, 4281.

Something similar to what is meant here in the internal sense is contained in Num. 14:12, where it says that Jehovah wished to destroy that nation completely and in their place raise up from Moses another nation, and also where it says that Jehovah regretted that He was going to lead, or that He had led that people into the land of Canaan.

AC (Elliott) n. 7044 7044. ‘And Zipporah took a flint’ means that the representative Church used truth to demonstrate the actual nature. This is clear from the representation of ‘Zipporah’ here as the representative Church; and from the meaning of ‘a flint’ as the truth of faith. The use of knives made of flint to carry out circumcision meant the use of the truths of faith to carry out purification from filthy kinds of love, 2039, 2046, 2799; for circumcision was an act that represented purification from those kinds of love, 2799. The reason why purification is effected by means of the truths of faith is that these truths teach what good is and also what evil is, and so what ought to be done and what ought not to be done. And when a person knows those truths and wishes to act in accordance with them, he is being led by the Lord and purified by the Divine means that are His. Since the truths of faith teach what evil is and what good is it is evident that ‘Zipporah took a flint’ means the use of truth to demonstrate the actual nature. The fact that ‘Zipporah’ represents the representative Church is clear from the things that follow in these verses.

AC (Elliott) n. 7045 7045. ‘And cut off the foreskin of her son’ means the removal of filthy kinds of love, as a result of which the internal is laid bare. This is clear from the meaning of ‘cutting off’ as removing; from the meaning of ‘the foreskin’ as earthly and bodily love which defiles spiritual and celestial love, dealt with in 3412, 4462; and from the meaning of ‘son’ as the truth which the representative Church possesses. For the meaning of ‘son’ as truth, see 489, 491, 533, 1147, 2623, 3773; and the reason why the truth which that Church possesses is meant here is that ‘Zipporah’ represents that Church and calls him ‘her son’. She also uses him to show the actual nature of that nation and consequently the actual nature of its worship. ‘The foreskin’ means filthy kinds of love for the following reason: The loins and genital organs correspond to conjugial love, 5050-5062; and since they correspond to conjugial love they also correspond to every kind of celestial and spiritual love, 686, 4277, 4280, 5054. The foreskin therefore corresponds to the kinds of love that are very much external, which are called bodily and earthly loves. If these loves are devoid of the internal kinds of love that are called spiritual and celestial loves, they are filthy, as they were with that nation which had externals without an internal. The words ‘without an internal’ are used, and by this is meant no acknowledgement of truth and no affection for good, thus no faith and no charity; for these are qualities that belong to the internal man and from them spring ways of exercising charity, which are external forms of good. The Lord speaks of that internal, when it is devoid of faith and charity and yet full of evils and falsities, as that which is ‘empty’, in Matt. 12:43-45. This is what ‘external without an internal’ serves to describe. So then ‘the foreskin’ means the kinds of love that are very much external; therefore when those kinds of love have been removed, meant by Zipporah’s cutting off the foreskin, the actual nature of them is seen, and the internal is accordingly laid bare.

AC (Elliott) n. 7046 7046. ‘And caused it to touch his feet’ means a demonstration of the actual nature of the natural then. This is clear from the meaning of ‘causing to touch’ as demonstrating, for a thing can be demonstrated by means of the sense of touch; and from the meaning of ‘feet’ as the natural, dealt with in 2162, 3147, 3761, 3986, 4280, 4938-4951. A demonstration of the actual nature of the natural means a demonstration of the inner character of that nation, which can be seen when the shell of their outward behaviour is removed. What is within a person in the world cannot be seen until his shell is removed. In the case of the evil their outward actions are altogether different from their inner will and thought. For a person can give an impression of being honourable; he can give an impression of being righteous, and also of being governed by Christian good, which is charity - so effectively that people think he is like that inwardly. He is also driven to do this by fear that he may suffer the loss of gain, reputation, and position, be subject to punishments under the law, or suffer loss of life. But when such fears have been removed and his inner self governs his actions, then like a madman he plunders another person’s goods, and lusts for murder and blood, even of fellow citizens, as happens in civil wars. The fact that a person can be like this inwardly may be seen still more plainly in the wicked in the next life, since externals are removed from them and internals laid bare, regarding which see 7039. That removal reveals that very many who seemed to be like angels in the world are devils.

[2] This great discrepancy between what exists inwardly and what exists outwardly is a sign that a person is entirely perverted. With him who has honesty, righteousness, and goodness within him no such discrepancy exists; he speaks as he thinks, and thinks as he speaks. It is altogether different with those who have no honesty, righteousness, or goodness within them. With them there is a discrepancy between interiors and exteriors. That is what the Jewish nation was like, as described by the Lord in these words in Matthew,

Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you cleanse the exterior of the cup and the plate but the interiors are full of pillage and lack of restraint. Blind Pharisee! cleanse first the interior of the cup and the plate, in order that the exterior may be made clean also. Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you make yourselves like white-washed sepulchres, which outwardly do indeed appear beautiful, but within are full of dead people’s bones and of all uncleanness. So too do you outwardly appear righteous to men (homo) but inwardly you are full of hypocrisy and iniquity. Matt. 13:25-28.

AC (Elliott) n. 7047 7047. ‘And said, Surely a bridegroom of blood are you to me!’ means that it was full of every kind of violence and hostility towards truth and goodness. This is clear from the meaning here of ‘a bridegroom’ as a representative of the Church or the external aspect of it since the representative Church itself is ‘the bride’ (in these three verses ‘Moses’ represents that nation, and a representative of the Church among them, see above in 7041. While ‘Zipporah’ represents the representative Church,7044; and since ‘Zipporah’ represents the representative Church and ‘Moses’ the external aspect of it, Zipporah does not call him her man or husband but ‘a bridegroom’, for a bride can represent something dissimilar from that which the bridegroom represents, unlike man or husband and wife since the bond of marriage makes them one); and from the meaning of ‘blood’ as violence done to charity, dealt with in 374, 1005, and also as truth falsified and rendered profane, 4735, 6978, thus hostility towards truth and goodness.

AC (Elliott) n. 7048 7048. ‘And He ceased from him’ means that they were allowed to be representative. This is clear from the meaning of ‘ceasing from him’, that is to say, from killing him, as their being allowed to be representative. For the statement that Jehovah sought to kill him meant that a representative Church could not be established among that nation, 7043, and therefore when it says here that ‘He ceased from him’ the meaning is that they were allowed to be representative, that is, a representative of the Church, but no actual Church was allowed to be established among that nation. It is one thing to represent a Church, and another to be an actual Church, as is evident from the fact that even those who are wicked can represent a Church, but only the good can actually be a Church; for representing a Church is something entirely external, see 3670, 4208, 4281.

AC (Elliott) n. 7049 7049. ‘Then she said, A bridegroom of blood in regard to circumcisions’ means that although the internal was full of violence and hostility towards truth and goodness, circumcision was nevertheless accepted as a sign representative of purification from filthy kinds of love. This is clear from the meaning of ‘a bridegroom of blood’ as full of every kind of violence and hostility towards truth and goodness, dealt with above in 7047; and from the meaning of ‘circumcision’ as a sign representative of purification from filthy kinds of love, dealt with in 2039, 2632, 3412, 3417, 4462, 4486, 4493. Zipporah says these words because now that nation was allowed to represent the Church, meant by the statement that He ceased from killing him, 7048. The reason why circumcision became a sign representative of purification is that cutting off the foreskin meant the removal of filthy kinds of love, as a result of which the internal is laid bare, 7045. When therefore no attention at all is paid to what is internal, as was the situation with that nation whose attention was focused on outward forms without their inner meaning, one is left with circumcision or cutting off the foreskin as a sign, that is to say, a sign that means the removal of filthy kinds of love, and so means purification. It was for this reason that that practice could serve as a representative sign.

AC (Elliott) n. 7050 7050. These three verses, as is evident from each detail in them, contain arcana that no one can ever know about without the internal sense. How could anyone know what the meaning is when it says, after He had commanded Moses to go to Egypt, that Jehovah then immediately came to meet him and sought to kill him while he was on the way? How could anyone know what the meaning is when it says that having cut off her son’s foreskin Zipporah caused it to touch his feet and told Moses that he was a bridegroom of blood to her, and then a little later said, A bridegroom of blood in regard to circumcisions? Who can fail to see that these details have arcana concealed within them and that those arcana cannot possibly be made known except from the internal sense?

AC (Elliott) n. 7051 7051. People who know nothing at all about the internal sense of the Word cannot help thinking that the Israelite and Jewish nation was chosen in preference to every other nation and was therefore of superior quality to all the rest, as those who belonged to that nation also thought. And what is so astonishing, this is not only what that nation itself thinks but also what Christians think, no matter how well they know that this nation is eaten up by filthy kinds of love, by foul avarice, hatred, and pride, and in addition to this belittles and also loathes things of an internal nature that belong to charity and faith and are the Lord’s. The reason why Christians also think that this nation was chosen in preference to others is that they think a person is chosen and saved as a result of mercy, irrespective of the life he leads, so that those who are criminal can be received into heaven just as well as the godly and upright. They give no consideration to the idea that choice or election is all-embracing, that is to say, that it includes all who lead a good life. Nor do they consider that the Lord’s mercy is shown to every person who refrains from evil and wishes to lead a good life, and so who allows himself to be led by the Lord and to be regenerated, a process which is being effected throughout the course of his life.

[2] This goes to explain too why the majority of people in the Christian world also believe that that nation will again be chosen, and that when this happens they will be led back into the land of Canaan. And this belief is also in keeping with the sense of the letter, for example in the following places: Isaiah 10:20-23; 11;11, 12; 29:14-end; 43:5, 6; 49:6-26; 56:8, 60:4; 61:3-10; 62: Jeremiah 3:14-19; 15:4, 14; 16:13, 15; 23:7, 8; 24:9, 10; 31:31, 33; 25:29; 29:14, 18; 30:3, 8-11; 31:8-10, 17; 33:16, 20, 26; Ezekiel 5:10, 12, 15; 16:60; 20:41; 22;15, 16; 34:12, 13; 37:21, 22; 38:12; 39:23, 27, 28; Daniel 7:27; 12:7; Hosea 3:4, 5; Joel 2:32; 3; Amos 9:8, 9 and following verses; Micah 5:7, 8. It is on the basis of these as well as other places that even Christians think that nation will again be chosen and led into the land of Canaan. They think this even though they know that nation is waiting for the Messiah who will then lead the nation in, and are at the same time aware that its waiting for Him is in vain, and that the Messiah’s or Christ’s kingdom is not of this world, which means that the land of Canaan into which the Messiah will lead them is heaven.

[3] Such people give no thought to the idea that the Word has a spiritual sense within it and that in that sense Israel is not meant by Israel, Jacob by Jacob, or Judah by Judah, but that the things which they represent are meant by them. Nor do they give any thought to what the historical sections record regarding that nation - what it was like in the wilderness and what it was like after that in the land of Canaan, namely that it was at heart idolatrous - or to what the Prophets say about it and about its spiritual whoredom and its abominations. What that nation is like is described in the following words contained in the Song in Moses,

I will conceal My face from them; I will see what their future will be, for they are a perverse generation, sons in whom there is no faithfulness. I would have said, I will expel them to the remotest corners, I will make the memory of them cease from mankind, except that enemies might say, Our hand is high, and not Jehovah has done all this. For they are a nation from whom counsel has perished, nor is there intelligence in them. From the vine of Sodom comes their vine, and from the fields of Gomorrah; their grapes are grapes of poison, they have clusters of bitterness. The poison of snakes (draco) is their wine, and the cruel poison of asps. Is this not hidden away with Me, sealed up in My treasuries? Vengeance is Mine, and recompense; in time their foot will slip, for near is the day of their destruction, and the things to come upon them hasten on. Deut. 31:20, 26-28, 32-35.

Jehovah gave Moses the words of this song, see Deut. 31:19, 21. The Lord too spoke about what that nation was like, in John,

You are from your father the devil, and the desires of your father you will to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and has not stood in the truth. John 8:44.

And many other places besides these show what that nation was like.

[4] The reason why, although they know these things, Christians believe that that nation will at length be converted to the Lord and at that time led into the land where they lived before is, as has been stated, that they have no knowledge of the internal sense of the Word. Another reason is their supposition that it makes no difference what kind of life a person leads, and that even evil which has become deeply rooted through repeated actions in no way prevents a person - through faith, even if it has existed for only one part of an hour - from being made spiritual, being regenerated, and so being accepted by the Lord. They also suppose that admission into heaven is solely a matter of mercy, and that this is shown towards one particular nation, thus not towards all in the whole world who receive the Lord’s mercy. Those who think in that way do not know that it is altogether contrary to the Divine that some should be chosen and born to salvation and heaven, and others should not be chosen but born to damnation and hell. To think about the Divine in that kind of way would be shocking, for making such choices would show a complete lack of mercy, when in fact the Divine is Mercy itself. From all this it may now be recognized that the Israelite and Jewish nation was not and never will be the chosen nation; also that not a trace of the Church existed or could exist with that nation, only a representative of the Church; and that it was preserved right up to the present day because of the Old Testament Word, regarding which see 3479.

AC (Elliott) n. 7052 7052. Verses 27-31 And Jehovah said to Aaron, Go to meet Moses, to the wilderness. And he went, and he came to meet him in the mountain of God, and kissed him. And Moses told Aaron all Jehovah’s words with which He had sent him, and all the signs which He had commanded him. And Moses and Aaron went, and gathered together all the elders of the children of Israel. And Aaron spoke all the words which Jehovah had spoken to Moses, and did the signs before the eyes of the people. And the people believed, and heard that Jehovah had visited the children of Israel, and that He had seen their affliction; and they bowed, and bowed down.

‘And Jehovah said to Aaron’ means the truth presented by doctrinal teachings and perception from the Divine within it. ‘Go to meet Moses’ means that it was to be joined to truth going forth directly from the Divine. ‘To the wilderness’ means a situation prior to that in which no such thing exists. ‘And he went, and he came to meet him in the mountain of God’ means a joining together within the good of love there. ‘And kissed him’ means the affection belonging to the joining together. ‘And Moses told Aaron all Jehovah’s words’ means an influx of truth going forth directly from the Lord’s Divine into truth that goes forth in an indirect way, and instruction in specific doctrinal teachings. ‘With which He had sent him’ means which go forth. ‘And all the signs which He had commanded him’ means enlightenment together with corroboration as a result of that enlightenment. ‘And Moses and Aaron went’ means the life of both when joined together. ‘And gathered together all the elders of the children of Israel’ means the chief characteristics of wisdom that the spiritual Church possessed. ‘And Aaron spoke all the words which Jehovah had spoken to Moses’ means doctrinal teachings received thereby from the Divine. ‘And did the signs before the eyes of the people’ means a corroboration suited to the ability to grasp things. ‘And the people believed, and heard’ means faith and hope. ‘That Jehovah had visited the children of Israel’ means those who belonged to the spiritual Church - [their faith and hope] that they would be delivered and saved by the Lord’s Coming. ‘And that He had seen their affliction’ means after such great temptations. ‘And they bowed, and bowed down’ means humility.

AC (Elliott) n. 7053 7053. ‘And Jehovah said to Aaron’ means the truth presented by doctrinal teachings and perception from the Divine within it. This is clear from the meaning of ‘said’ as perception, dealt with often, and therefore ‘Jehovah said’ means perception from the Divine; and from the representation of ‘Aaron’ as teachings that present what is true and good, dealt with in 6998, 7009, thus the truth they present. All doctrinal teachings are presentations of the truth, for such teachings deal with what is true and the good that springs from it (and when they do so they are called teachings about faith) and they deal with what is good and the truth that is derived from it (in which case they are referred to as teachings about charity). Yet both are presentations of the truth.

AC (Elliott) n. 7054 7054. ‘Go to meet Moses’ means that it was to be joined to truth going forth directly from the Divine. This is clear from the meaning of ‘going to meet’ as being joined to; and from the representation of ‘Moses’ as truth going forth directly from the Divine, dealt with above in 7010.

AC (Elliott) n. 7055 7055. ‘To the wilderness’ means a situation prior to that in which no such thing - no such joining together - exists. This is clear from the meaning of ‘the wilderness’ as a situation in which there is as yet little of life, dealt with in 1927, thus where there is no good and consequently no truth, 4736, for these are what bring things to life. But the meaning here is a situation in which truth going forth directly from the Divine is not joined together with truth that goes forth in an indirect way. The fact that that was where a joining together was to be effected is meant by Aaron’s going to meet Moses, to the wilderness. As regards that joining together, it should be recognized that truth which goes forth from the Divine in an indirect way may exist with a person, and yet not be joined to truth going forth directly from the Divine.

[2] But since this matter is very obscure let some examples be used to shed light on it. Take people who think and teach in accordance with the teachings of their Church which they have corroborated for themselves, but who do not know whether they are true on any grounds other than the fact that they form part of what the Church teaches and that they have been propounded by learned and famous men. Truth that goes forth from the Divine in an indirect way may exist with those people, yet for all that it is not joined to truth going forth directly from the Divine. For if it were so joined they would have an affection for knowing truth for its own sake and especially for the sake of the life they should lead. They would also as a consequence be endowed with a perception of whether matters taught by their Church were true before corroborating them for themselves, and would see whether the evidence corroborating each of those matters agreed with the truth itself.

[3] Take as another example the prophets through whom the Word was written. They wrote exactly as the spirit from the Divine dictated, for the actual words which they were to write were uttered in their ears. Truth with them was the kind that goes forth in an indirect way from the Divine, that is, through heaven; it was not therefore truth going forth directly from the Divine. For they had no perception of what the particular things they heard might mean in the internal sense because it is only when those two kinds of truth have been joined together that perception exists, as has been stated. The two kinds are rarely joined together with a person in this world, but they are so with all in heaven, above all with those in the inmost or third heaven. Nor are they joined together with a person in this world unless his regeneration has advanced so far that he can be raised from the level of the senses right up to the rational level of his mind and so be placed in the light of heaven where the angels are. With everyone influx from God does indeed come by both a direct and an indirect way, 6063, 7004; but no joining together of the two takes place except with those who have a perception of truth derived from good. For those with whom influx coming directly from God has been joined to that which comes indirectly allow themselves to be led by the Lord; but those with whom the two have not been joined together lead themselves and like to do so. From all this one may now see what ‘the wilderness’ is used to mean here, namely a situation in which no joining together exists.

AC (Elliott) n. 7056 7056. ‘[And he went, and] he came to meet him in the mountain of God’ means a joining together within the good of love there. This is clear from the meaning of ‘coming to meet’ as a joining together, dealt with just above in 7054; and from the meaning of ‘the mountain of God’ as the good of God’s love, dealt with in 6829. The situation here is that truth which goes forth directly from the Divine cannot be joined together with truth going forth in an indirect way except within good; for good is its very soil. Forms of truth are seeds which do not grow anywhere else than in good as their soil. Good is also the actual soul of truth; good must give truth its being and its life, if it is to be truth.

[2] Truth that goes forth directly from the Divine is called truth, though essentially it is good because it goes forth from Divine Good; but it is good with which all truth from God is united. It is called truth because in heaven it is seen as light, but this light is like springtime light, which is combined with a warmth that brings all things on earth to life. From this it may also be seen that truth going forth directly from the Divine cannot be joined together with truth that goes forth in an indirect way except within good, consequently unless a person is stirred by an affection for truth for its own sake, especially for the sake of what is good, and so for the sake of the life he should lead. For then the person is governed by good.

[3] Something more may be known about the nature of that joining together from the following considerations: Truth that goes forth directly from the Divine enters a person’s will; this is the path it takes. But truth which goes forth from the Divine in an indirect way enters a person’s understanding, and this being so, no joining together can take place unless will and understanding act as one, that is to say, unless the will desires what is good, and the understanding uses truth to endorse what is good. When therefore the two kinds of truth are joined together it seems as though the Lord is present; His presence is also felt. But when they are not joined the Lord is so to speak absent; but His absence is not felt if there is no perception and therefore knowledge of what His presence is.

AC (Elliott) n. 7057 7057. ‘And kissed him’ means the affection belonging to the joining together. This is clear from the meaning of ‘kissing’ as a joining together resulting from affection, dealt with in 3573, 3574, 4357, 5929, 6260.

AC (Elliott) n. 7058 7058. ‘And Moses told Aaron all Jehovah’s words’ means an influx of truth going forth directly from the Lord’s Divine into truth that goes forth in an indirect way, and instruction in specific doctrinal teachings. This is clear from the meaning of ‘telling’ as influx, dealt with in 5966; from the representation of ‘Moses’ as truth going forth directly from the Lord’s Divine, dealt with in 7010, 7054; from the representation of ‘Aaron’ as truth that goes forth in an indirect way from the Lord’s Divine, dealt with in 7009; and from the meaning of ‘all Jehovah’s words’ as specific doctrinal teachings. Instruction is meant by ‘Moses told Aaron’ those things, because instruction from the Divine is effected by means of influx, meant by ‘telling’. From all this it is evident that ‘Moses told all Jehovah’s words’ means an influx of truth going forth directly from the Lord’s Divine into truth that goes forth in an indirect way, and instruction in specific doctrinal teachings.

[2] As regards instruction in specific doctrinal teachings, it is imparted when truth going forth directly from the Lord’s Divine is joined to truth that goes forth in an indirect way; for then perception is imparted, see above in 7055. The two kinds of truth are joined together especially among the angels who are in the third or inmost heaven, those who are called celestial. They have a keen perception of both, and from that a clear feeling of the Lord’s presence. The reason for this is that they more than others are governed by good, for in them the good of innocence is present. As a consequence they are nearest the Lord, surrounded by flashing and so to speak burning light, for they see the Lord as the Sun, whose radiating light has that appearance because they are so near Him.

[3] The expression ‘truth going forth directly from the Lord’s Divine’ is used even though the subject here in the internal sense is the Lord when He was in the world and called upon His Father as if He were separate from Himself. But the situation then, as stated a number of times already, was that the Divine itself or Jehovah was within Him; for He had been conceived from Jehovah, whom for that reason He also called His Father, while calling Himself His Son. But at that time the weak Human inherited from His mother had come to the forefront in the Lord; and to the extent that it did so, Jehovah or the Divine itself which was within Him seemed to be absent, whereas to the extent that the Human that had been glorified or made Divine had come to the forefront in the Lord, Jehovah or the Divine itself was present, there in the Human itself. From this one may now know how to understand the idea that truth which had gone forth directly from the Divine came from the Lord’s Divine.

AC (Elliott) n. 7059 7059. ‘With which He had sent him’ means which - that is to say, specific doctrinal teachings - go forth. This is clear from the meaning of ‘being sent’ as going forth, dealt with in 2397, 4710.

AC (Elliott) n. 7060 7060. ‘And all the signs which He had commanded him’ means enlightenment together with corroboration as a result of that enlightenment. This is clear from the meaning of ‘the signs’ as enlightenment and corroboration of truths, dealt with in 7012.

AC (Elliott) n. 7061 7061. ‘And Moses and Aaron went’ means the life of both when joined together, that is to say, of truth going forth directly from the Lord’s Divine and truth that goes forth in an indirect way. This is clear from the meaning of ‘going’ as life, dealt with in 3335, 3690, 4882, 5493; from the representation of ‘Moses’ as truth going forth directly from the Divine, dealt with in 7010, 7054; and from the representation of ‘Aaron’ as truth going forth from the Lord in an indirect way, dealt with in 7009. So now, since the two men went together, the life of both kinds of truth when joined together is meant.

AC (Elliott) n. 7062 7062. ‘And gathered together all the elders of the children of Israel’ means the chief characteristics of wisdom which the spiritual Church possessed. This is clear from the meaning of ‘the elders’ as the chief characteristics of wisdom, thus things that accord with good, dealt with in 6524; and from the representation of ‘the children of Israel’ as the spiritual Church, dealt with in 6426, 6637.

AC (Elliott) n. 7063 7063. ‘And Aaron spoke all the words which Jehovah had spoken to Moses’ means doctrinal teachings received thereby from the Divine. This is clear from the meaning of ‘speaking’, when used in connection with the teachings represented by ‘Aaron’, as utterance and declaration, dealt with in 6987, 6999; from the representation of ‘Aaron’ as truth going forth in an indirect way from the Lord’s Divine, thus teachings that present what is true and good, dealt with in 6998, 7009; and from the meaning of ‘the words which Jehovah had spoken to Moses’ as from the Divine, that is, through truth that goes forth directly from the Lord’s Divine, the kind of truth that ‘Moses’ represents, 7010, 7054.

AC (Elliott) n. 7064 7064. ‘And did the signs before the eyes of the people’ means a corroboration suited to the ability to grasp things. This is clear from the meaning of ‘the signs’ as the corroboration of truths and thus a knowledge of them, dealt with in 6870; and from the meaning of ‘the eyes’ as the powers of inner sight or the understanding, dealt with in 2701, 3820, 4403-4421, 4523-4534, so that ‘before the eyes’ means suited to people’s understanding or ability to grasp things.

AC (Elliott) n. 7065 7065. ‘And the people believed, and heard’ means faith and hope. This is clear from the meaning of ‘believing’ as believing in a spiritual sense, which is faith, dealt with in 6956, 6970; and from the meaning of ‘hearing’ as obeying and also discerning, dealt with in 5017. Here having hope is meant, for when a person who possesses faith and is obedient comes to discern matters that corroborate they bring him hope; for hope arises out of them.

AC (Elliott) n. 7066 7066. ‘That Jehovah had visited the children of Israel’ means those who belonged to the spiritual Church - [their faith and hope] that they would be delivered and saved by the Lord’s Coming. This is clear from the meaning of ‘visiting’ as deliverance through the Lord’s Coming into the world, dealt with in 6895, and so salvation also (those who belonged to the spiritual Church were adopted and saved through the Lord’s Coming into the world, see 6854, 6914, 7035); and from the representation of ‘the children of Israel’ as the spiritual Church, dealt with in 6426, 6637. For the fact that ‘Jehovah’ in the Word is the Lord, see 1343, 1736, 2921, 3023, 3035, 5663, 6281, 6703, 6905.

AC (Elliott) n. 7067 7067. ‘And that He had seen their affliction’ means after such great temptations. This is clear from the meaning of ‘affliction’ as temptation, dealt with in 5356; and from the representation of ‘the children of Israel’ as those who belong to the spiritual Church, dealt with in 6426, 6637. Regarding the affliction or molestation by falsities, that is, the temptations which those belonging to the spiritual Church suffered before the Lord’s Coming, see 6854, 6914, 7037.

AC (Elliott) n. 7068 7068. ‘And they bowed, and bowed down’ means humility. This is clear from the meaning of ‘bowing, and bowing down as an expression of humility, dealt with in 2153, 6266. But ‘bowing’ is humility that is exterior and is present in those motivated by truth, whereas ‘bowing down’ humility that is interior and is present in those motivated by good, see 5682. The truth of this has often become apparent to me from those in the next life who are motivated by truth and those who are motivated by good. Those motivated by truth are so to speak rigid, standing upright as though they are stiff; and when they ought to humble themselves before the Divine they bend their body forwards only slightly. But those motivated by good are so to speak flexible; and when they humble themselves before the Divine they bow right down to the ground. For truth without good is utterly rigid; but when it regards good as the end in view that rigidity starts to change into flexibility. Good on the other hand is in itself flexible, and when it has truth introduced into it that truth too, because it develops into good there, becomes flexible. The reason why this happens is that truth cannot be set in its proper place in a heavenly form except by good, which means that in itself truth is inflexible. The form of heaven is utterly fluid and not at all resistant. As a consequence good, and truth with it set in its proper place, is of a similar nature, and is flexible, as has been stated.

5.3 Review

In preparation for this tutorial you need to have… completed the required Conceptual and Devotional (Journal) work submitted the required work to your Tutor 2 days prior to the date set for this tutorial previewed the next section of Unit 5 (Mini Assignment) and have ready any questions issues etc ready to discuss/clarify with your Tutor. It is expected that… in your discussions with your Tutor you will be able to connect the material you are working with to things happening in your life; situations and personal spiritual development areas. you will demonstrate a developing ability to hold questions and challenges the material is bringing up for you and show a willingness to express these with others (your tutor)

5.4 Journaling

• Reflect on what your work with this passage from Exodus is saying to you in regard to the Lord’s love and the way works in your and other people’s lives.
• Do you think that the Lord is really ever against us or sets out to deliberately frustrate what we desire?
• Be prepared to discuss your reflections with your Tutor in the tutorial for this section

5.5 Assignment

• For this section you will be working with Ex 4:24-26.
• You will need to read this in its context so read Ex 4:18-31.
• Also from the Heavenly Doctrines read through AC 7013-7068 to get a general sense of how they handle this story
• You will also need to get a good sense of what is contained in the summaries, AC 7013; 7027; 7040; 7052, and draw from them for the work required for this section.

The work for this exercise is meant to be of an exploratory nature and students should feel free to express their thoughts as such. It’s not about getting the interpretation “right”. The purpose of the exercise is to:-

• give you a sense of how a difficult passage in the literal sense can be worked with using your understanding of the Heavenly Doctrines
• and how the difficulties it presents might be resolved.

1. Summarise the passage from Exodus in terms of the sequence of events and list this below.

2. For each of the people involved use the AC passages or a Dictionary of Correspondences to get a sense of what they might represent within you. List your findings below.

3. Work through the text using a concordance (electronic Bible) to research the Hebrew meanings of key words and the meanings of names. List your findings below along with any comments as to insights these meanings provide.

4. Reflect on the work you have done in terms of its application to your sense of the regenerative process. In brief note form only record your thoughts in regard to this suggesting how the difficulties presented in the appearance in the literal sense of the Lord “seeking to kill” might be resolved. (You will be asked to expand on this later in the Mini Assignment for this Unit).

5. From your understanding of the process you have been exploring in this section list the key principles that you feel would be useful as a framework for helping someone through a difficult time in their life. Summarise these principles and comment on where you see their value in this regard.

UNIT 6

6.1 Major Assignment

On completion of this section you will have demonstrated an ability to integrate your work over all learning domains through drawing connections between your work with the themes concerning the nature and operation of the Lord’s love from the Sacred Scriptures, the Heavenly Doctrines and your personal life experience as illustrative of the principles and process connected with this and have demonstrated an ability to pull this material together in a range of different formats for presenting to others.

It is expected that you will be self directed in your engagement with devotional/journal work as you work to complete your Major Assignment.

Note: The work for the Major Assignment is structured around the set tutorials.

6.2 Instructions

The purpose for this assignment is for you to address three areas of thought in regard to the nature and operation of the Lord’s love and present your findings in a variety of formats.

Objective: To consolidate your thinking in regard to the nature and operation of the Lord’s love and present this in a variety of ways.

You are to prepare 3 submissions, one for each of a, b, & c below. The format for each submission is to be different and is to be selected from the options given.

Submission Topics

1. Compare and contrast how society in general views the nature and meaning of love with that presented in the Heavenly Doctrines. You may find reflecting on the following statement helpful: “Love is not feeling but our response to truth”

2. Describe the creative operation of the activity of Divine Love in terms of, end, cause and effect. Be sure to provide illustrations of the universal principles and their operation in the experience of personal regeneration.

3. Explore the relationship between Divine Love and Divine Wisdom and offer your thoughts on the importance of this relationship in effecting “salvation.”

The format options are:

• An Essay (1500 words)
• Public Presentation (PowerPoint or similar – include speaker’s notes and handouts)
• Small Group Study
• Mini Sermon

Note: Each submission must be in a different format i.e. you can’t use any given format more than once.

Note: The following passages from the Heavenly Doctrines are to serve as the main resource material for your submissions:

AC 1799[2]; AC 1803; DLW 47-55; DP 27.

In addition to these it is expected that you will also draw from elements of the work you have completed throughout the course (Conceptual, Application, Integration, and Journal/Devotional work) with a view to illustrating the points you make in your submissions. Also include references to Scripture particularly those that have impacted on you as you have worked through the course.

The following is suggested as a guide you in planning your assignment work:

• Read through the submission requirements a number of times
• Then read through the main resource material with what’s required of you clearly in mind.
• As you read make a note of which statements/principles etc relate to which submission
• Review your course work and do the same thing Note: Read the Preparation for Tutorials Guide to get a sense of how the work is to be structured around the tutorials for this Unit before beginning.

6.3 Assignment

Submission A:

• Compare and contrast how society in general views the nature and meaning of love with that presented in the Heavenly Doctrines.
• You may find reflecting on the following statement helpful: “Love is not feeling but our response to truth”

State which format you have chosen for Submission A

Provide an outline below for Submission A

Submission B:

• Describe the creative operation of the activity of divine love in terms of, end, cause and effect.
• Be sure to provide illustrations of the universal principles and their operation in the experience of personal regeneration.
• State which format you have chosen for Submission B
• Provide an outline for Submission B

Submission C:

• Explore the relationship between Divine Love and Divine Wisdom and offer your thoughts on the importance of this relationship in effecting “salvation.”
• State which format you have chosen for Submission C
• Provide an outline for Submission C

6.4 Submission

Planning for Major Assignment Submissions

As a guide you should allow 5 hours to complete your planning. You are required to submit an outline of your planning for each submission to your Tutor two days prior to the date set for Tutorial 13

In preparation for this tutorial you need to have…

• Completed your planning for the 3 submissions and submitted an outline for each one to your Tutor 2 days prior to the date set for Tutorial 1.
• Have ready any questions issues etc ready to discuss/clarify with your Tutor.

Towards the end of this Tutorial:-

• discussed the submission outlines for your Major Assignment and worked through any issues/questions
• You need to feel reasonably confident that you are now able to take your submissions to completion.

UNIT 7

7.1 Presentation

• The student will give an online presentation to members of the College Board of Studies.
• The presentation is to be 30 minutes long and will be followed by an exchange between the Student and the members of the panel.

Guidelines

• The presentation is to be an account of the students journey/process of moving through the course materials.
• Student to think about where you were they are at, in so far as this topic is concerned, at the start of the course, and where you are at the end of it.
• Note what’s shifted for you as a result of working through the course materials/requirements.
• Also be sure to highlight any specific areas that held significant interest for you, and say what it was about those areas that made them significant.
• In your conclusion say what questions were resolved, what questions remain open for you, and how a fuller understanding of the topic might be used to support people to live a spiritually focused life.