415. 'Father of cattle' means good deriving from these, that is, from the holy things of love. This becomes clear from what has been shown already at verse 2 of this chapter, to the effect that 'a shepherd of the flock' means good that stems from charity. In the present verse, however, 'father' is used instead of shepherd, and 'cattle' instead of flock, with the words 'and of cattle', whose father he was, standing immediately after the word 'tent', from which it is clear that good stemming from the holiness of love is meant. And whether the dwelling-place, which was 'a cattle-fold', or 'father of those who dwelt in tent and cattle-folds' is understood here, goods stemming from the celestial things of love are meant, as is also clear from various parts of the Word, as in Jeremiah,
I will gather the remnant of My flock from all lands where I have driven them, and I will bring them back to their folds to give birth and multiply. Jer. 13:3.
In Ezekiel,
I will pasture them in a good pasture, and their fold will be on the mountains of the height of Israel; there they will lie down in a good fold, and on fat pasture they will pasture on the mountains of Israel. Ezek. 34:14.
Here 'folds' and 'pastures', referred to as 'fat', stand for goods that stem from love.
[2] In Isaiah,
He will give rain for your seed with which you will sow the ground; and bread, the produce of the ground, will be fat and full of it. On that day He will pasture your cattle in a broad grassland. Isa. 30:23.
Here 'bread' means that which is celestial, and 'fat on which they will pasture their flocks' goods stemming from that which is celestial. In Jeremiah,
Jehovah has redeemed Jacob; and they will come and sing on the height of Zion, and they will converge on the goodness of Jehovah, for the wheat, and the new wine, and the oil, for the young* of the flock and of the herd. And their life** will be like a watered garden. Jer 31:11, 12. Here the Holy of Jehovah is described by 'the wheat and oil', and goods deriving from it by 'the new wine and by the young' of the flock and of the herd', or cattle. In the same prophet,
Shepherds and their flocks of cattle will come against the daughter of Zion, they will pitch their tents against her round about; they will pasture, each in his own space. Jer. 6:3.
'The daughter of Zion' stands for the celestial Church, to which both 'tents' and 'flocks of cattle' have reference. * lit. the sons ** lit. soul