Arcana Coelestia (Elliott) n. 5134

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5134. 'And bring me out of this house' means a release from evils. This is clear from the meaning of 'bringing out' as a release, and from the meaning of 'house' as good, dealt with in 710, 1708, 2048, 2233, 3128, 3652, 3720, 4982, and therefore, in the contrary sense, as evil. From this it is evident that 'bring me out of this house' means a release from evils, a meaning that also follows the preceding train of thought, which is this: When faith is received within the exterior natural, which is the subject here, 5130, a correspondence is effected, 5131, and when charity is received, 5132, and a communication is thereby effected with the interior natural, 5133, the exterior natural is at that point released from the evils which had caused the celestial represented by 'Joseph', 5086, 5087, 5106, to become alienated - that alienation being meant by the words which follow next, stating that he was taken away by theft. Furthermore, when the natural is regenerated by means of charity and faith it is released from evils; for when it is regenerated the evils are set apart and cast away from the centre, where they were previously, to the fringes, which the light of truth from good does not reach. In man's case evils are set apart in this manner; yet they still remain, for they cannot be completely destroyed. But with the Lord, who made the natural within Himself Divine, evils and falsities were cast out and completely destroyed. For the Divine cannot have anything at all in common with evils and falsities, or be encompassed by them, as is the case with man; for the Divine is the Essential Being (Esse) of good and truth, and that Being exists an infinite distance away from everything evil and false.


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