7038.“好叫他事奉我”表被提到天堂，好从那里履行功用或服务。这从“事奉耶和华或主”的含义清楚可知，“事奉耶和华或主”是指履行功用或服务；“好叫他事奉我”表示被提到天堂，好从那里履行功用或服务的原因是：所论述的主题是那些属于属灵教会，并通过主的降临而得救的人，尤其是那些在主降临之前在低地，后来被提到天堂（6854，6914节），由此进入履行功用或服务状态的人。“事奉主”之所以表示履行功用或服务，是因为真正的敬拜在于履行功用或服务，因而在于行仁爱。人若以为事奉主仅在于定期去教会，在那里听讲道，祷告，并且这就足够了，就大错特错了。对主的真正敬拜在于履行功用或服务；人在世生活期间，这类功用或服务在于每个人在自己的岗位上正确履行职责，从而发自内心为自己的国家、社区和邻舍服务，诚实地对待同伴，
照各人的性格而谨慎、勤勉地履行各种职责。这些功用是主要的仁爱行为，也是敬拜主的主要手段。定期去教会、听讲道、祷告也是有必要的；但没有上述功用，它们根本没有任何价值，因为它们并不构成一个人的生命，而是教导这种生命应是什么样子。天上的天使只从功用并照功用获得一切幸福。因此，对他们来说，功用就是天堂。
根据神性秩序，幸福取决于功用，或说功用决定了幸福的程度；这从人的不同方面，和它们在大人里面所对应的事物可以看出来；如外在感官，即视觉、听觉、味觉、嗅觉、触觉，如许多章节末尾所示，它们便以这种方式相对应。因此，与这些感官有关的快乐完全取决于它们所发挥的功能。最大的，是与婚姻之爱有关的感官快乐，因为婚姻之爱所发挥的功用是最大的，它带来人类的繁衍，而人类则构成天堂。接下来是味觉的快乐，味觉之所以具有如此大的快乐，是因为它有助于滋养身体，使它保持健康，而健康的心理活动依赖于健康的身体。嗅觉的快乐要小一些，因为它仅有助于添加力量，从而也助于健康。听觉和视觉的快乐排在最后，因为它们只接受服务于功用的印象，还因为它们服务于心智的理解力部分，不那么服务于意愿部分。
从这些和其它类似事实明显可知，在天堂，主照着功用或服务赐予幸福；这些功用或服务是敬拜主的主要方式。这解释了为何约翰在席上斜靠在主的怀里，并且主爱他胜过其他人。这不是由于约翰本人的缘故，而是因为他代表仁爱的实施，也就是功用或服务的履行。约翰代表这些事物（参看创世记18章和22章序言，3934节）。
7038a.“你若不肯放他走”表顽固到底。这从“不肯放他走”的含义清楚可知，“不肯放他走”是指由于顽固而没有释放，如前所述（7032节）。
Potts(1905-1910) 7038
7038. That they may serve Me. That this signifies elevation into heaven in order to perform uses therefrom, is evident from the signification of "serving Jehovah," or the Lord, as being to perform uses; and as this is said of those of the spiritual church who have been saved by the coming of the Lord, and who before His coming were in the lower earth, and were afterward elevated into heaven (n. 6854, 6914), and thereby came into a state of performing uses, therefore by "that they may serve Me" is signified elevation into heaven in order to perform uses therefrom. That "to serve the Lord" denotes to perform uses, is because true worship consists in the performance of uses, thus in the exercises of charity. He who believes that serving the Lord consists solely in frequenting a place of worship, in hearing preaching there, and in praying, and that this is sufficient, is much mistaken. The very worship of the Lord consists in performing uses; and during man's life in the world uses consist in everyone's discharging aright his duty in his station, thus from the heart being of service to his country, to societies, and to the neighbor, in dealing sincerely with his fellow, and in performing kind offices with prudence in accordance with each person's character. These uses are chiefly the works of charity, and are those whereby the Lord is chiefly worshiped. Frequenting a place of worship, hearing sermons, and saying prayers, are also necessary; but without the above uses they avail nothing, because they are not of the life, but teach what the life must be. The angels in heaven have all happiness from uses, and according to uses, so that to them uses are heaven. [2] That happiness is from Divine order according to uses, can be seen from the things in man which correspond to those which are in the Grand Man; as those from the external senses, namely, from sight, hearing, taste, smell, and touch, which as has been shown at the end of many chapters, are correspondent. These senses therefore have delights exactly in accordance with the uses which they perform; the most delightful is the sense of conjugial love, on account of its greatest use, because from this comes the propagation of the human race, and from the human race, heaven; the delight of taste follows next, because it serves for the nourishment and thereby for the health of the body, in accordance with which is the sound action of the mind; the delight of smell is less, because it merely serves for recreation: and thus also for health; the delight of hearing and that of sight are in the last place, because they merely take up those things which will be of service to uses, and wait upon the intellectual part, and not so much the will part. [3] From these and other like facts it becomes plain that it is uses according to which happiness is given in heaven by the Lord; and that it is uses through which the Lord is mainly worshiped. From this it is that John lay on the Lord's breast at table, and that the Lord loved him more than the rest; but this was not for his own sake, but because he represented the exercises of charity, that is, uses. (That John represented these, see the preface to Gen. 18 and 22, and n. 3934.)
7038a. And if thou refuse to send him away. That this signifies obstinacy even to the last, is evident from the signification of "refusing to send him away," as being not to liberate in consequence of obstinacy (as above, n. 7032).
Elliott(1983-1999) 7038
7038. 'And let him serve Me' means being raised into heaven to perform useful services from there. This is clear from the meaning of 'serving Jehovah (or the Lord)' as performing useful services; and being raised into heaven, to perform useful services from there is meant by 'they shall serve Me' for the following reason: Those who belong to the spiritual Church and have been saved by the Lord's Coming are the subject, in particular those who were on the lower earth before the Lord's Coming but were later raised into heaven, 6854, 6914, and therefore came into a state in which they performed useful services. The reason why performing useful services is meant by 'serving the Lord' is that true worship consists in the performance of such services, thus in the exercise of charity. Anyone who thinks that serving the Lord consists solely in going to church regularly, listening to the preaching there, and saying his prayers, and that that is sufficient, is much mistaken. True worship of the Lord consists in performing useful services; and such services during a person's life in the world lie in a proper fulfillment of his function by each person, whatever his own position, that is, in serving his country, its communities, and his neighbour with all his heart. They also lie in honest dealings with fellow human beings and in the diligent discharge of duties, with full regard for each person's character. These useful deeds are the principal ways of exercising charity and the principal means of worshipping the Lord. Going to church regularly, listening to sermons, and saying one's prayers are also necessary; but without the useful deeds they have no value at all, for they do not constitute a person's life but teach what that life ought to be like. The angels in heaven get nothing but happiness out of being useful; and they receive it in proportion to their usefulness. So true is this that to them usefulness is what makes heaven.
[2] It is in keeping with Divine order that usefulness should determine the measure of happiness, as may be recognized from the different aspects of a person and the things they correspond to in the Grand Man, such as the external senses - sight, hearing, taste, smell, and touch - which, as shown at the ends of quite a number of chapters, correspond in that way. Associated with these senses therefore are delights, which are determined completely by the functions they perform. The greatest is the sensory delight associated with conjugial love, because of the very great use it performs, for it leads to the propagation of the human race, which populates heaven. After this comes the delight linked with taste, which possesses so great a delight because it helps to nourish the body and keep it healthy, on which healthy mental activity depends. The delight linked with smell is a lesser delight because it serves merely to reinvigorate and so also help to keep a person healthy. The delight associated with hearing and that associated with sight come in last place because they only receive impressions which will be of future usefulness, and because they serve the understanding part of the mind but not so much the will part.
[3] From these and other considerations like them it becomes evident that useful services are the determining factor in the happiness imparted by the Lord in heaven, and that those services are the chief way in which the Lord is worshipped. This goes to explain why John reclined at table on the Lord's breast, and why the Lord loved him more than the rest. It was not on account of John himself, but because he represented times when charity is exercised, that is, useful services are performed. Regarding John's representation of those things, see the Prefaces to Chapters 18 and 22 of Genesis, and 3974.
7038a 'And [if] you refuse to send him away' means obstinacy right to the last. This is clear from the meaning of 'refusing to send him away' as a failing to set free owing to obstinate determination, as above in 7032.
Latin(1748-1756) 7038
7038. {1} `Et (x)serviat Mihi': quod significet elevationem in caelum ad usus inde praestandos, constat ex significatione `servire Jehovae seu Domino' quod sit usus praestare; et quia agitur de illis qui ab Ecclesia spirituali salvati sunt per Adventum Domini, et qui illorum ante (t)Adventum Domini fuerunt {2}in terra inferiore, et dein elevati in caelum, n. 6854, 6914, {3}ac inde venerunt in statum usus praestandi, ideo per `servient Mihi' significatur elevatio in caelum ad usus inde praestandos. Quod `servire Domino' sit usus praestare, est inde, quia verus cultus consistit in praestatione usuum, ita in charitatis exercitiis; qui credit quod servire Domino consistat solum in frequentare {4}templum, audire ibi {5}praedicationem, et precari, et quod hoc satis sit, multum fallitur; ipse cultus Domini consistit in praestandis usibus; et usus {6}sunt, cum homo vivit in mundo, ut quisque in sua statione functionem suam {7}rite obeat, ita inserviendo patriae, societatibus, et proximo, ex corde, utque sincere cum socio agat, et {8}officia praestet prudenter secundum cujusvis quale; hi usus sunt praecipue exercitia charitatis, et sunt per quae praecipue colitur Dominus; frequentatio templi, auditio praedicationum, et preces, sunt quoque necessaria; sed absque illis usibus nihil valent, nam illa non sunt vitae, sed docent qualis vita erit. Angeli in caelo omnem felicitatem habent ex usibus, et secundum usus, {9}adeo ut usus sint illis caelum. 2 Quod ex ordine Divino secundum usus sit felicitas, constare potest ex illis quae apud hominem correspondent illis quae in Maximo Homine, {10}prout ex sensibus externis, {11}nempe ex visu, auditu, gustu, odoratu, tactu, qui quod correspondeant, ad finem plurium capitum ostensum est; his sensibus inde sunt jucunda prorsus secundum usus quos praestant; {12}jucundissimum (d)est sensus amoris conjugialis ob maximum usum, quia inde propagatio generis humani, et ex genere humano caelum; jucundum gustus dein sequitur, cui tale jucundum est quia inservit nutricioni, ac inde sanitati corporis, secundum quam mens sane agat; jucundum odoratus est minus jucundum, {13}quia modo inservit recreationi {14}, ac ita quoque sanitati; jucundum auditus et jucundum visus ultimo loco sunt quia modo excipiunt illa quae inservitura sunt pro usibus, ac intellectuali parti, non ita voluntariae, famulantur. 3 Ex his et aliis similibus {15}patescit quod usus sint secundum quos a Domino datur felicitas in caelo; et quod usus sint per quos Dominus principaliter colitur {16}; (m)inde est quod Johannes ad pectus Domini ad mensam accubuerit, et Dominus illum prae ceteris amaverit, sed hoc non propter ipsum, sed quia {17}repraesentavit exercitia charitatis, hoc est, usus; quod Johannes illa repraesentaverit, videatur Praefatio ad xviii et xxii Gen. (c)et n. 3934.(n) @1 In A this and the next are each numbered 7038; in I they appear as a single .$ @2 e$ @3 et sic$ @4 cultum Ipsius in templo$ @5 praedicationes, et vocare precibus$ @6 After mundo$ @7 sincere$ @8 dispenset officia quae charitatis$ @9 et usus sunt$ @10 ut$ @11 qui sunt corporis prout visus, auditus, gustus, odoratus, tactus$ @12 i et$ @13 qui$ @14 i interiorum cerebri$ @15 constare potest$ @16 i et servitur$ @17 repraesentabat$7038[a]. `Et renuis dimittere illum': quod significet obstinationem usque ad ultimum, constat ex significatione `renuere dimittere illum' quod sit ex obstinato non liberatio, ut supra n. 7032.