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7106. Verses 5-9. And Pharaoh said, Behold the people of the land are now many, and ye have made them cease from their burdens. And Pharaoh commanded in that day the taskmasters in the people, and their officers, saying, Ye shall no more give the people straw to make bricks, as yesterday and the day before yesterday; let them go and gather straw for themselves. And the tale of the bricks which they made yesterday and the day before yesterday, ye shall lay upon, them; ye shall not take away from it; for they are idle; therefore they cry, saying, Let us go and sacrifice to our God. Let the service be made heavier upon the men, and let them do it; and let them not regard the words of a lie. "And Pharaoh said," signifies the will of those who infest the truths of the church; "Behold the people of the land are now many," signifies the multitude of those who are of the spiritual church; "and ye have made them cease from their burdens," signifies that they have not infested enough; "and Pharaoh commanded in that day," signifies the cupidity of infesting the truths of the church while in that state; "the taskmasters in the people, and their officers, saying," signifies those who most closely infest and most closely receive; "Ye shall no more give the people straw," signifies the lowest memory-knowledges which are the most general of all; "to make bricks," signifies for the things fictitious and false that will be injected; "as yesterday and the day before yesterday," signifies not as in the former state "let them go and gather straw for themselves," signifies that they should procure for themselves these lowest memory-knowledges; "and the tale of bricks, which they made yesterday and the day before yesterday, ye shall lay upon them," signifies that the things fictitious and false must be injected in abundance as before; "ye shall not take away from it," signifies without diminution; "for they are idle," signifies that they are not assaulted enough; "therefore they cry, saying, Let us go and sacrifice to our God," signifies that consequently they have so much thought about such worship; "let the service be made heavier upon the men," signifies that the assault should be increased; "and let them do it," signifies to obtain the effect; "and let them not regard the words of a lie," signifies lest they turn to truths.

7107. And Pharaoh said. That this signifies the will of those who infest the truths of the church, is evident from the signification of "saying," as being will (of which in what follows); and from the representation of Pharaoh, as being those who infest the truths of the church (see n. 6651, 6679, 6683), thus who infest those who are of the spiritual church, for these are said to be in the truths of the church. That "saying" signifies to will, or the will, is because it involves the things which follow it; for when anyone wills anything, he utters it. As "he saith" involves the things which follow, it consequently signifies various things, as command (n. 7036); exhortation (n. 5012, 7033, 7090); communication (n. 3060, 4131, 6228); thought (n. 7094); properly, perception (n. 1791, 1815, 1819, 1822, 1898, 1919, 2080, 2862, 3509, 5687).

7108. Behold the people of the land are now many. That this signifies the multitude of those who are of the spiritual church, is evident from the signification of "the people of the land," as being those who are of the spiritual church (see n. 2928) for by "people" are signified those who are in the truths of faith (n. 1259, 1260, 3581), and by "land" is signified the church (n. 662, 1066, 1067, 1262, 1733, 1850, 2117, 2118, 3355, 4447, 4535, 4577).

7109. And ye have made them cease from their burdens. That this signifies that they have not infested enough, is evident from the signification of "burdens," as being infestations by falsities and the consequent combats (see n. 6757, 7104, 7105); hence "to make them cease from their burdens" denotes that they have ...

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