To be a vagabond or fugitive, according to Swedenborg, represents living without any knowledge of what is true, or any sense of what real goodness is.
This makes sense if you think about it:
If love flowing from the Lord is the substance of reality itself, and truth is how that love takes form and is put to work, then those things are essentially constant. Our understanding of them and our sense of them might change, evolve and (hopefully) expand, but in their essence they don’t change – they simply “are.”
If, however, we know nothing about them and have closed our hearts to them, then our feelings and ideas have no connection to anything constant. And without an anchor, they can be pushed in any and every direction by any faddish thought or fleeting desire that comes along.
It’s interesting that “fugitive” and “vagabond” (or “wanderer” in some translations) are often paired in the Bible. Typically in such pairings, one term relates more to intellectual things – ideas, thoughts, understanding, truth – and the other more to emotional things: desires, feelings, love, determination.
There are shades of meaning in regular language: A “fugitive” is generally someone fleeing from justice; a “vagabond” is simply wandering. Swedenborg does not spell out whether and how those difference relate to the spiritual meaning of the two terms when they are paired, however.
Passages from Swedenborg
Arcana Coelestia (Elliott) n. 382
382. ‘Being a wanderer and a fugitive in the land’ means not knowing what truth and good are. This is clear from the meaning in the Word of ‘wandering’ and of ‘fleeing’, as in Jeremiah,
Prophets and priests wander blind in the streets; they are defiled with blood. Things which have no power they touch with their garments. Lam. 4:13, 14.
Here ‘prophets’ stands for those who teach, ‘priests’ for those who live according to what is taught. ‘Wandering blind in the streets’ means not knowing what good and truth are.
[2] In Amos,
Part of one field had rain, and part of the field on which it did not rain dried up. So two or three cities will wander to one city to drink water, and they will not be satisfied. Amos 4:7, 8.
Here ‘the part of the field on which rain fell’ is the doctrine of faith that derives from charity, while ‘the part or section of the field on which it did not rain’ is the doctrine of faith devoid of charity. ‘Wandering to drink water’ similarly means searching for truth.
[3] In Hosea,
Ephraim has been stricken, their root has dried up, they will bear no fruit. My God will cast them away because they have not hearkened to Him, and they will be wanderers among the nations. Hosea 9:16, 17.
‘Ephraim’ stands for an understanding of truth, that is, for faith, since he was Joseph’ s firstborn. ‘A root which had dried up’ stands for charity that is incapable of bearing fruit. ‘Wanderers among the nations’ means that they have no knowledge of truth and good.
[4] In Jeremiah,
Go up against Arabia and lay waste the sons of the east. Flee, wander far away; the inhabitants of Hazer have plunged into the depths to dwell there. Jer. 49:28, 30.
‘Arabia’ and ‘the sons of the east’ stand for the possession of celestial riches, or things of love, which when laid waste are also spoken of as ‘fleeing and wandering’, or fugitives and wanderers, when they achieve nothing good at all. And ‘the inhabitants of Hazer’, or those who possess spiritual riches, which are things of faith, are spoken of as ‘plunging into the depths’, which means perishing.
In Isaiah,
All your chief men are wandering about together, on account of the bow they have been put in chains. They have fled from far away. Isa. 12:3.
This refers to ‘the valley of vision’, which is the delusion that faith can exist without charity. This explains why verse 14 below speaks of ‘a wanderer and afugitive’, that is, a person who, confessing faith in isolation from charity, has no knowledge at all of truth and good.
AC 3240 (3)
The prophecy concerning Arabia. In the forest in Arabia you will spend the night, O bands of Dedanites. To the thirsty bring water; O inhabitants of the land of Tema, meet with his bread the fugitive, for they will flee before the swords, before the drawn sword. Isa. 21:13-15.
‘Spending the night in the forest in Arabia’ stands for being made desolate as regards good. For ‘Arabia’ means those with whom celestial things exist, that is, the goods of faith, so that ‘speeding the night there in the forest’ is when goods exist no longer, and therefore means desolation, which is also described by ‘fleeing before the swords, before the drawn sword’. Celestial things, that is, the goods of faith – or what amount to the same, the works of charity – which are theirs, are meant by ‘bringing water to the thirsty, and with bread meeting thefugitive’.
AE 817 (3)
But because truths are the primary things of the church, for truths will teach men how to live, therefore a mark was set on Cain, lest any one should kill him; and it was appointed that if any one should kill him, he should be avenged seven-fold. And because truth without good is carried hither and thither, having nothing to lead it, consequently it successively wanders into falsities, and falls away from the way that leads to heaven; therefore Cain was banished from before the face of Jehovah, and became a vagabond and fugitive. The case is similar with respect to faith and charity, because faith belongs to truth, and charity to good. Thus the case is similar with respect to faith separate from charity as with what is said concerning Cain, that is, that it kills Abel its brother, which is charity, whence the church perishes. And this is signified by being banished from the ground, and becoming a vagabond and fugitive; for when faith is separated by charity then truth is successively turned into falsity, and so falls to decay.
Arcana Coelestia (Elliott) n. 390
390. People under the influence of falsity and evil live in constant fear of being killed, as is described in Moses,
And your land will be a desolation and your cities a waste. Among you who are left, I will introduce a softness into their heart, in the lands of their enemies, and the sound of a driven leaf will pursue them, and they will flee, like flight from the sword, and they will fall though no one is pursuing, and they will stumble each man over his brother, as though before the sword, though no one is pursuing. Lev. 26:33, 36, 37.
In Isaiah,
The treacherous act treacherously, and deal treacherously in the treachery of the treacherous. And he who is fleeing from the sound of the terror will fall into the pit. And he who is climbing out of the middle of the pit will be caught in the snare. His transgression will lie heavily upon him, and therefore he will fall and not rise again. Isa. 24:16-20.
In Jeremiah,
Behold, I am bringing a terror upon you. From all who are round about you you will be driven out, everyone straight before him,* and no one gathering thewanderer. Jer. 49:5.
In Isaiah,
We will flee upon a horse; and so will you flee. We will ride away on one that is swift; therefore those who pursue you will be made swift. One thousand at the rebuke of one, and at the rebuke of five will you flee. Isa. 30:16, 17.
These and other places in the Word describe how people who are under the influence of falsity and evil flee and are afraid of being killed. Fear above all else takes hold of them because no one is protecting them. Everyone who is under the influence of evil and falsity hates the neighbour. Consequently they all desire to kill one another.