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And there arose a new king over Egypt, who knew not Joseph. And he said unto his people, Behold, the people of the sons of Israel are many and numerous more than we. Come, let us use prudence with it; peradventure it will be multiplied, and it will be that wars will happen, and it will also join itself to our enemies, and fight against us, and go up out of the land. And they set over it princes of tributes, in order to afflict it with burdens. And it built cities of store-houses for Pharaoh, Pithom and Raamses. And as they afflicted it, so it was multiplied, and so it was increased. And they were moved with loathing because of the sons of Israel. And the Egyptians made the sons of Israel to serve with cruelty; and they rendered their life bitter with grievous service, in clay, and in bricks, and in all service in the field, with all their service wherein they made them serve with cruelty. Exodus 1: Verses 8-14.
Alienated truths
Arcana Coelestia 6652. Who knew not Joseph. That this signifies which were completely alienated from the internal, is evident from the signification of “not knowing,” as being to be alienated; for he who does not know truth, and does not desire to know it, is alienated from the truth of the church (that alienation is here signified is plain from what follows, for he severely and cruelly afflicted the sons of Israel, by whom is represented the church, n. 6637); and from the representation of Joseph, as being the internal (n. 6177, 6224). Memory-knowledges alienated from the internal are memory-knowledges opposed to the church; for the good and truth which make the church flow in through the internal; and if these are not received by the natural, the internal is closed, and so the man is alienated from good and truth, and then no other memory-knowledges which are in the natural are acknowledged as truths than those which are false. These are then multiplied, and the truths themselves are cast out of doors.
The strengthening of goods and truths through temptations
6663. And as they afflicted it, so it was multiplied. That this signifies that truths grew according to the infestations, is evident from the signification of “afflicting,” as being infestation; and from the signification of “being multiplied,” as being to grow in respect to truths (of which above, n. 6656). How the case herein is shall be told, because without experience of what is done in the other life, no one can now know what it is. Most spirits who come from the world and have lived the life of the Lord’s commandments, before they can be uplifted into heaven and joined to societies there, are infested by the evils and falsities pertaining to them, to the end that they may be removed (see n. 6639); for there are impurities which they have contracted in the life of the body that in no wise agree with heaven. The infestations take place by their being immersed in their evils and falsities; and while they are in them, spirits who are in like evils and falsities are present, and labor by every means to lead them away from truth and good. But still they are not immersed so deeply in their evils and falsities that the influx through the angels from the Lord may not prevail; and the balance is maintained with exactness. The purpose of this is, that he who is infested may seem to himself to be in freedom, and thus to fight against the evils and falsities of himself, yet with the acknowledgment, if not at the time, yet afterward, that all the power of resisting was from the the Lord, (n. 1937, 1947, 2881, 5660). When this is being done, not only are the truths and goods strengthened which had been implanted before, but more are instilled; this being the result of every spiritual combat in which the combatant is victorious. That it is so is also plain from common experience; for he who defends his opinion against others who attack it, confirms himself the more in his opinion, and then also finds other confirmations of it which he had not before observed, and also others which deny the opposite; and in this way he strengthens himself in his opinion, and also illustrates it with further considerations.
This is still more perfectly the case with spiritual combats, because the combat takes place in the spirit, and concerns goods and truths; and especially because the Lord is present and leads by the angels; for the contest is concerning eternal life and salvation. It is common in such combats for the Lord to turn into good all the evils which the hells intend; wherefore it is not permitted them to bring forth more or other evils than can be turned into good that is suited to him who is in combat. The reason of this originates in the fact that the Lord’s kingdom is a kingdom of uses, and therefore nothing can be done there that is not a source of good. From all this it can now be seen how it is to be understood that truths grow according to infestations, which is signified by “as they afflicted it, so it was multiplied.”
When what is of the proprium(own) is challenged
Conjugial Love 361. The reason why a man is on fire when his love is attacked shall now be disclosed. From its creation, the human form in its inmosts is a form of love and wisdom. In man, all affections of love and thence all perceptions of wisdom are arranged in most perfect order so that together they make a unanimous whole and thus a one. These affections and perceptions are substantiate, substances being their subjects. Since, therefore, the human form is composed of them, it is plain that if the love is attacked, then, in an instant or simultaneously, the whole form is attacked together with each and every thing therein. From creation it is implanted in all living things to will to remain in their own form. Therefore the whole structure wills this from its several parts, and the parts from the whole. Hence, when the love is attacked, it defends itself by its understanding, and the understanding by things rational and imaginative whereby it represents to itself the outcome; and, more especially, by those things which make one with the love which is attacked. Were this not done, the whole form would fall asunder because of the loss of that love.
[2] Hence then it is, that in order to resist attacks, love hardens the substances of its form and erects them into crests, as it were, being so many pricks; that is to say, it bristles up. Such is that exasperation of love which is called zeal. Therefore, if there is no opportunity to resist, anxiety arises, and grief; for the love foresees the extinction of its interior life together with the delights thereof. On the other hand, if the love is favored and soothed, the form relaxes, softens, dilates; and the substances of the form become smooth, bland, gentle, and alluring.
The hellish proprium loves what it idenitifes with as it’s own and thus these things are not supportive of practice
CL 392. V. THAT THIS SPHERE AFFECTS BOTH THE EVIL AND THE GOOD, AND DISPOSES EVERY ONE TO LOVE, PROTECT, AND SUPPORT HIS OFFSPRING FROM HIS OWN LOVE. It is the testimony of experience that the love of infants or storge is equally with the evil as with the good, and likewise with mild beasts and with savage; yea, that with evil men as with savage beasts it is sometimes stronger and more ardent. The reason is, because every love proceeding and flowing in from the Lord is turned in the subject into the life’s love of that subject. No animate subject feels otherwise than that it loves of itself, since it does not perceive the influx. When in addition it actually loves itself, it makes the love of infants its own love of self; for it sees itself, as it were, in them, and them in itself, and thus itself united with them.
True Christian Religion 400(4)… 3.It is said, for the sake of himself and those who belong to him; for he who loves himself loves also those who belong to him, who are especially his children and grandchildren, and in general all who make one with him, whom he calls his own. Loving these is loving himself, for he regards them, as it were, in himself, and himself in them. Among those whom he calls his own are also included all who praise, and honor, and pay court to him. All others he indeed looks upon with his bodily eyes as men, but with the eyes of his spirit he scarcely regards them otherwise than as specters.
… 5. The nature of the love of self can be made clear by comparison with heavenly love. Heavenly love is loving uses for the sake of the uses, or goods for the sake of the goods which a man does for the church, his country, human society, and the fellow citizen. But he who loves these for his own sake, loves them only as he loves his household servants, because they serve him. From this it follows that he who is in the love of self, wishes the church, his country, society, and his fellow citizens to serve him, instead of his serving them; he places himself above them, and them beneath himself.
TCR 431… But with those who are not in charity, there is no conjunction of charity with the love called parental love; consequently, many such parents love even wicked, immoral, and crafty children more than the good, moral, and discreet; thus they love those who are useless to the public, more than those who are useful.
Third Round posts are short audio clips taken from Round 3 comments offered in the online Logopraxis Life Group meetings. The aim is to keep the focus on understanding the Text in terms of its application to the inner life along with reinforcing any key LP principles that have been highlighted in the exchanges.
