Arcana Coelestia volume 7 - Swedenborg Foundation

ARCANA COELESTIA 35784972. And he was a prosperous man. That this signifies that allthings were provided is evident from the signification of “beingprosperous,” when said of the Lord, as being that it was provided,namely, that he should be enriched with all good.4973. And he was in the house of his lord the Egyptian. That thissignifies that it might be initiated into natural good is evident fromthe signification of a “lord” as being good, of which presently, andfrom the signification of an “Egyptian” as being memoryknowledgein general, and hence the natural (see n. 4967). That tobe “in a house” is to be initiated is because a “house” is the mind inwhich good is (see n. 3538), here the natural mind; and moreover“house” is predicated of good (n. 3652, 3720). There is in man anatural mind and a rational mind; the natural mind is in hisexternal man, the rational mind in his internal. Memoryknowledgesare the truths of the natural mind, which are said to be“in their house” when they are conjoined there with good; for goodand truth constitute together one house, as husband and wife. Butthe goods and truths here treated of are interior; for theycorrespond to the celestial of the spiritual from the rational, whichis represented by Joseph. The interior corresponding truths in thenatural mind are applications to uses, and the interior goods thereinare uses.[2] The name “Lord” is often used in the Word; and one who hasno knowledge of the internal sense supposes that nothing more ismeant by it than what is meant by the use of this term in commonspeech; but “Lord” is never used in the Word except where good istreated of, and the same is true of “Jehovah”; but when truth istreated of, “God” and “King” are used. For this reason by a “lord”is signified good, as is evident from the following passages. InMoses:Jehovah your God, he is God of gods, and Lord of lords (Deut.10:17).In David: