7862. 'And thus you shall eat it' means enjoyment in a state of separation from the evil who have been molesters, and presentation at that time. This is clear from the meaning of 'eating' as enjoyment, dealt with above in 7849. Since the departure from Egypt is the subject, and separation from those who have been molesters is meant by it, that state is what one should understand by the instruction that 'thus' they were to eat it. The fact that preservation is also meant is self-evident.

774. The Lord is perpetually present with every person, wicked as well as good, for no one could live without His presence. But His coming is restricted to those who receive Him, and these are those who believe in Him and keep His commandments. It is the Lord's perpetual presence which gives a person the faculty of reason and the ability to become spiritual. This is brought about by the light which comes from the Lord as the sun of the spiritual world, which a person can receive in his understanding. That light is the truth which gives him the power of reasoning. The Lord's coming, however, takes place with the person who combines heat with that light, that is, combines love with truth. For the heat radiated by that same sun is love for God and towards the neighbour. The Lord's presence by itself, and the enlightenment it brings to the understanding, can be compared with the presence of sunlight in the world; unless it is combined with heat, everything upon earth is desolate. But the Lord's coming can be compared with the coming of heat, which happens in springtime. Since then heat is combined with light, the earth is softened up, seeds sprout and bear fruit. Such is the parallel between the spiritual environment of a person's spirit and the natural environment of his body.