[2] "It came to pass at that time," signifies the state in which the Lord was when His rational was made Divine; "and Abimelech, and Phicol the captain of his army, said unto Abraham," signifies the human rational things from memory-knowledges that were to be adjoined to the doctrine of faith, which in itself is Divine; "saying, God is with thee in all that thou doest," signifies that it was Divine to all things both in general and in particular;

[3] "and now swear unto me here by God," signifies affirmation; "that thou wilt not be false to me," signifies without a doubt; "nor to my son, nor to my son’s son," signifies concerning the things of faith; "according to the kindness that I have done unto thee," signifies the rational things in which the Lord had been previously instructed; "thou shalt do unto me and to the land wherein thou hast sojourned," signifies what is reciprocal.

[4] "And Abraham said, I will swear," signifies all that is affirmative. "And Abraham reproved Abimelech," signifies the Lord‘s indignation; "because of the well of water which Abimelech’s servants had taken away," signifies as to the doctrine of faith, that the memory-knowledges desired to attribute it to themselves.

[5] "And Abimelech said," signifies a reply. "I know not who hath done this word," signifies that the rational dictated something different; "neither didst thou tell me," signifies that it was not from the Divine; "neither heard I of it but today," signifies that it was now first disclosed.

[6] "And Abraham took flock and herd, and gave to Abimelech," signifies the Divine goods implanted in the rational things of doctrine signified by "Abimelech;" "and they two struck a covenant," signifies conjunction thus. "And Abraham set seven ewe lambs of the flock by themselves," signifies the holiness of innocence.

[7] "And Abimelech said unto Abraham, What are these seven ewe lambs which thou hast set by themselves," signifies that he should be instructed and would acknowledge. "And he said, Because these seven ewe lambs shalt thou take of my hand," signifies that the holiness of innocence is from the Divine; "that it may be a witness unto me," signifies certainty; "that I have digged this well," signifies that the doctrine was from the Divine. " Therefore he called that place Beer-sheba," signifies the state and quality of the doctrine; "because there they sware both of them," signifies from the conjunction.

[8] "And they struck a covenant in Beer-sheba," signifies that human rational things were adjoined to the doctrine of faith; "and Abimelech rose up, and Phicol the captain of his army, and they returned into the land of the Philistines," signifies that nevertheless these things had no part in the doctrine.