9940. 'So that they may be pleasing before Jehovah' means what is Divine and the Lord's in them. This is clear from the meaning of 'pleasing' - when Jehovah, that is, the Lord, is the subject - as what is Divine and comes from Him. For what is pleasing to the Lord is that present with man, spirit, or angel, which is Divine and His; then it is another in whom He sees it, and for this reason it is pleasing. Things from the Lord are relatively near or further away from Him; and they are said to exist by His will, or good pleasure, or consent, or permission. Those that exist by His will are the nearest to Him; those that do so by His good pleasure are a little further away from Him; those that exist by His consent are further away than that; and those that do so by His permission are the furthest away from Him. These are degrees of influx and reception of what is Divine; but each degree contains countless aspects, which are distinct and separate from those in the next degree; and those countless aspects are arcana of heaven, of which only a few fall within the range of human understanding, as for example merely with those which come to exist by His permission. Although these are in the lowest degree, nevertheless because the arcana they embrace in that degree are countless, they confuse a person when he views them from the standpoint of cycles that recur in the natural order, appearances, and especially the illusions of the senses. But the arcana belonging to permission are relatively few in comparison with the arcana belonging to the higher degrees, which are the things which come to exist by the Lord's consent, good pleasure, and will.