Everyone knows the phrase “the natural order of things.” It means that everything is in its proper place, occupying the niche it is meant to fill. A parallel that is unknown, but even more important, would be “the spiritual order of things,” meaning that every spiritual thing is in its proper spiritual place, occupying the spiritual niche it is meant to fill. This is, of course, what Swedenborg says the Lord intends for us, and what happens when we accept life and love from him by setting our hearts on being good and filling our minds with the true ideas that lead to good.
Of course, things are frequently out of order, because even the best of us still love ourselves to some degree, and love things of the world. Ideally, we will repeatedly turn to the Lord and ask for his help with the cleanup, putting things back where they belong in the “spiritual order of things.” This is what is meant when the Bible talks about restoring things – it means putting them back into their proper spiritual place.
Passages from Swedenborg
Arcana Coelestia (Elliott) n. 5165
5165. ‘And he restored the chief of the cupbearers to his supervision over [Pharaoh’s] drink’ means that the sensory impressions belonging to the understanding part were accepted and made subordinate. This is clear from the representation of ‘the chief of the cupbearers’ as in general the sensory impressions subject to the understanding part, dealt with above; and from the meaning of ‘restoring to his supervision over [Pharaoh’s] drink’ as restoring to order beneath the understanding part. ‘Restoring to a position’ means restoring to order so as to occupy the lowest position, see 5125; but here a restoration to supervision over the drink is spoken of because that supervision and the kinds of drink that were the objects of it, such as wine, new wine, strong drink, and water, have reference to things of the understanding, as also do giving to drink and actual drinking, 3069, 3168, 3772, 4017. From this it is evident that ‘restoring the chief of the cupbearers to his supervision over [Pharaoh’s] drink’ means a restoration to order of the sensory impressions belonging to the understanding, and thus the acceptance and subordination of them.
AC 9213
[2] The things stated above show what people should understand by the explanation that factual knowledge of truths which has been dispersed by illusions that are a product of sensory impressions is to be restored before the arrival of a state of shade induced by delights belonging to external kinds of love, meant by ‘If you take your companion’s clothing as a pledge you shall restore it to him even at the going in of the sun’. They should understand that truths removed by illusions are to be restored while the person is still in the light of truth; for while in that light he can regain them and also dispel the falsities that illusions have introduced. But he cannot do so when in a state of shade induced by delights belonging to external kinds of love, because those delights turn truths away, and the shade does not receive them. So the illusions cling to the person and are adopted as his own. The reason why external delights or those of the external man are like this is that they attach themselves to the world, and are also aroused and so to speak brought alive by its heat. It is different with internal delights or bliss, or those of the internal man. These attach themselves to heaven, and are also aroused and brought alive by its heat, which is love coming from the Lord.
Arcana Coelestia (Elliott) n. 5125
5125. ‘And will restore you to your position’ means that the impressions received through the senses subject to the understanding part were restored to order, to occupy the lowest position. This is clear from the representation of ‘the cupbearer’, regarding whom these words are said, as the powers of the senses subject to the understanding part, dealt with in 5077, 5082, and therefore the impressions received through the senses in the external natural (for it is not the actual powers of the senses that arerestored to order but the impressions which have come through the senses into the person’s false notions); and from the meaning of ‘restoring to a position’ as restoring to order.
Arcana Coelestia (Elliott) n. 2569
2569. ‘And gave to Abraham’ means, imparted these to the Lord…… This is clear from the representation of ‘Abraham’ as the Lord, dealt with many times already, while ‘….and he restored to him Sarah his wife’ means…. when the Divine spiritual had been joined to the Divine celestial is clear from the meaning of ‘Sarah his wife’ as spiritual truth joined to celestial good, dealt with in 2507. The internal sense of the words in this verse is evident from what has been stated, namely that when the Human within Him had been united to the Divine, and the Divine to the Human, the Lord had complete knowledge not only of Divine celestial and spiritual things, but also of infra-celestial and infra-spiritual, that is, of rational and natural things. For from the Divine, as from the Source of all light, all things are seen as existing in the present moment.