6132. 'And said to him, We will not hide from [my] lord' means that it is well known to the internal. This is clear from the meaning of 'saying' as perception, dealt with above in 6063; from the representation of Joseph, to whom 'lord' refers here, as the internal, dealt with already; and from the meaning of 'not concealing from him' as being well known. The reason why 'not concealing' in the internal sense means being well known is that everything that exists and happens in the natural is well known to the internal; for the natural derives all that it is from the internal, from which therefore nothing can be hidden. Yet even so, the external sense, especially where it is historical, uses the kind of words that appear here. It is like when the Lord speaks to a person He first asks him about what is going on even though it is fully known to Him, as when the angel of Jehovah spoke to Hagar, Genesis 16:7-8; to Abraham, Genesis 18:9; and to Moses, Exodus 4:2. Nor can the external otherwise be content, for unless it declares something it does not think it can be known.

4985. 'And Joseph was beautiful in form' means the good of life springing from this, 'and beautiful in appearance' means the truth of faith springing from it. This is clear from the meaning of 'beautiful in form and beautiful in appearance', for 'the form' is the essence of a thing, whereas 'the appearance' is the outward manifestation derived from it. And since good is the actual essence and truth is the outward manifestation springing from it, 'beautiful in form' means the good of life and 'beautiful in appearance' the truth of faith. For the good of life is a person's essential being (esse) since it resides in his will, while the truth of faith is the manifestation of it since it inhabits his understanding. Indeed whatever inhabits the understanding is a manifestation of something that originates in the will. The essential being (esse) constituting a person's life resides in the intentions of his will, and the manifestation (existere) of his life resides in the thoughts of his understanding. A person's understanding is nothing else than an unfolding of his will, also the imparting of a form to it that enables its true nature to be seen in an outward appearance.

[2] From this one may see where the beauty - the beauty of the interior man - comes from. That is, it comes from the good present in the will by way of the truth of faith. The truth of faith presents that beauty in an outward form, but the good in the will is the supplier of that beauty and the producer of the outward form. Here is the reason for the indescribable beauty of the angels of heaven, for each is so to speak love and charity embodied in a form. When therefore anyone sees them in their beauty his deepest feelings are stirred. For the good of love received from the Lord shines forth from them through the truth of faith, enters into him, and stirs those feelings within him. From this, as also in 3821, one may see what is meant in the internal sense by 'beautiful in form and beautiful in appearance.