Spiritual Meaning of GENESIS 44:11-12
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AC 5765. Verses 11, 12. And they hastened, and they made everyone his bag come down to the earth, and opened every man his bag. And he searched; he began at the eldest, and left off at the youngest; and the cup was found in Benjamin‘s bag. "And they hastened," signifies impatience; "and made everyone his bag come down to the earth," signifies that they brought what was in the natural down to things of sense; "and opened every man his bag," signifies that they might thus make the matter manifest to themselves; "and he searched," signifies investigation; "he began at the eldest, and left off at the youngest," signifies order; "and the cup was found in Benjamin’s bag," signifies that interior truth from the celestial was with the intermediate.

AC 5766. And they hastened. That this signifies impatience, is evident from the signification of "hastening," when persons are eager to clear themselves, as being impatience.

AC 5767. And they made everyone his bag come down to the earth. That this signifies that they brought what was in the natural down to things of sense, is evident from the signification of "making to come down," when it has reference to what here follows, as being to bring to; from the signification of a "bag," as being the exterior natural (n. 5497); and from the signification of the "earth," when it is said that they "made come down to" it, as being the ultimate and lowest, thus the sensuous; for the sensuous is the lowest and ultimate, because things of sense are in the very threshold to the outside world. To bring to things of sense, is wholly to confirm that a thing is so; for the matter is then brought down to the evidence of the senses.

AC 5768. And opened every man his bag. That this signifies that they might thus make the matter manifest to themselves, is evident from the signification of "opening the bag," as being to open what is in the natural, thus to make the matter manifest.

AC 5769. And he searched. That this signifies investigation, is evident without explication.

AC 5770. He began at the eldest, and left off at the youngest. That this signifies order, is evident from what has been said above (n. 5704).

AC 5771. And the cup was found in Benjamin‘s bag. That this signifies that interior truth from the celestial was with the intermediate, is evident from the signification of the "cup," as being interior truth (n. 5736); and from the representation of Benjamin, as being the intermediate (n. 5411, 5413, 5443). That such truth from the celestial was with the intermediate, is signified by the cup being placed in Benjamin’s bag by Joseph‘s order. How these matters stand is clear from what has been said before.

Author:  E. Swedenborg (1688-1772).

Design:  I.J. Thompson, Feb 2002.

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