9042. And shall strike a pregnant woman. That this signifies the injuring of the good which is from truth, is evident from the signification of "to strike," as being to injure; and from the signification of "a pregnant woman," as being the formation of good from truth. That this is signified by "a pregnant woman," is because the regeneration of man, which is the generation of the spiritual life in him, is meant in the internal sense of the Word by the generation of his natural life which is from his parents. For when a man is born anew, he is then first conceived, afterward carried as in the womb, and finally is born. And because regeneration, or the generation of spiritual life, is the conjunction of truth and of good, that is, of faith and of charity, therefore by "carrying in the womb" is signified the initiation of truth into good. From this it is plain what is signified by "a pregnant woman," namely, the state of the formation of good from truths. (That "the womb" denotes where truth and good lie conceived, see n. 4918, 6433; and that "to be in the womb," and "to come forth from the womb" denote to be regenerated, n. 4904, 8043; also that "generations" and "births" denote those of faith and charity, n. 613, 1145, 1255, 2020, 2584, 6239.) [2] The state of the formation of good from truths is also signified by "a pregnant woman" in Jeremiah:
Behold I bring them from the land of the north, and I will gather them from the sides of the earth; among them the blind and the lame, she that is pregnant, and she that bringeth forth together (Jer. 31:8). In the internal sense this treats of a new church from the Lord, in which sense by "bringing them from the land of the north" is signified from an obscure state of faith (see n. 3708); by "the sides of the earth from which they shall be gathered" is signified where the truth and good of the church begin, for "the earth" denotes the church (n. 566, 662, 1066, 1067, 1262, 1413, 1607, 1733, 1850, 2117, 2118, 2928, 3355, 4447, 4535, 5577, 8011, 8732), and its "sides" denote where its first and its last are; by "the blind" are signified those who are in ignorance of truth, and yet receive truth when instructed (n. 2383, 6990); by "the lame," those who are in good, but not genuine good because of their ignorance of truth (n. 4302); by "she that is pregnant," those in whom good is being formed by means of truths; and by "she that bringeth forth," those who are in the life of faith in act (n. 3905, 3915, 3919). That such things are here signified can be seen from the fact that otherwise it would have been superfluous and worthless to make mention of "the blind and lame," or of "she that is pregnant, and she that bringeth forth together."
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