vrou
The Hebrew of the Old Testament has six different common words which are generally translated as "wife," which largely overlap but have different nuances. Swedenborg...
Eva
The name 'Eve' comes from the Hebrew word חַוָּה or 'Chava,' a form of the word for life, which is why she is called 'the...
geword
To beget or to be begotten is very similar in meaning to birth: It represents one spiritual state leading to the next spiritual state. "Beget,"...
Kain
'Cain' signifies the doctrine of faith separated from love. See Arcana Coelestia 338 and the sections that follow it.
gebaar
In a general sense, being "born" in the Bible represents one spiritual state producing another, usually some form of love or affection producing or "giving...
gesê
As with many common verbs, the meaning of “to say” in the Bible is highly dependent on context. Who is speaking? Who is hearing? What...
man
In general, men are driven by intellect and women by affections, and because of this men in the Bible generally represent knowledge and truth and...
Here
The Lord, in the simplest terms, is love itself expressed as wisdom itself. In philosophic terms, love is the Lord's substance and wisdom is His...
broer
Brethren (Gen. 27:29) signify the affections of good.
Abel
Abel signifies charity or love, in Genesis 4:2. (Divine Providence 242, Arcana Coelestia 325, and Arcana Coelestia 341). Abel signifies celestial love, which is loving...
landbouer
'A husbandman,' as mentioned in Amos 5:16, signifies the man of the church, because 'field' signifies the church regarding the implantation of truth. 'A husbandman,'...
vrugte
We tend to think of "fruit" in two ways in natural language. One is as food that grows on trees and vines, sweet and delicious,...
offer
It was customary in the representative Ancient Church, and later in the Jewish Church, when people went to the judges, and at a later time,...
kleinvee
A flock, as in Genesis 26, denotes interior or rational good. A flock signifies those who are in spiritual good. A flock signifies natural interior...
vet
Fat signifies the celestial principle. Fat things, full of marrow, signify goodnesses. Fat and blood signify interior goods and truths, and hence the Israelites, prior...
sê
As with many common verbs, the meaning of “to say” in the Bible is highly dependent on context. Who is speaking? Who is hearing? What...
sonde
In the Word three terms are used to mean bad things that are done. These three are transgression, iniquity, and sin, and they are here...
deur
In a general sense, doors in the Bible represent the initial desires for good and concepts of truth that introduce people to new levels of...
veld
A "field" in the Bible usually represents the Lord's church, and more specifically the desire for good within the church. It's where good things start,...
opgestaan
It is common in the Bible for people to "rise up," and it would be easy to pass over the phrase as simply describing a...
weet
Like so many common verbs, the meaning of "know" in the Bible is varied and dependent on context. And in some cases – when it...
stem
'Voice' signifies what is announced from the Word. 'Voice' often refers and is applied to things that cannot have a voice, as in Exodus 4,...
bloed
The internal meaning of “blood” is a little tricky, because Swedenborg gives two meanings that seem quite different. In most cases, Swedenborg links blood with...
mond
In most cases, "mouth" in the Bible represents thought and logic, especially the kind of active, concrete thought that is connected with speech. The reason...
hand
Scientists believe that one of the most crucial developments in the evolution of humans was bipedalism – walking on two legs. That left our hands...
grond
Is there any difference in meaning between “earth” and “ground”? At first it doesn’t seem so; both refer to the soil making up the land...
gee
Like other common verbs, the meaning of "give" in the Bible is affected by context: who is giving what to whom? In general, though, giving...
aarde
'Lands' of different nations are used in the Word to signify the different kinds of love prevalent in the inhabitants.
groot
The word "great" is used in the Bible to represent a state with a strong degree of love and affection, of the desire for good;...
land
"Earth" in the Bible can mean a person or a group of like-minded people as in a church. But it refers specifically to the external...
verberg
'To hide themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains,' as mentioned in Revelation 6:15, signifies being in evils and in falsities...
doodslaan
'To slay a man to his wounding,' means extinguishing faith, and 'to slay a young man to his hurt,' signifies extinguishing charity, as in Genesis...
teken
'A token,' as in Genesis 9:12, 13, 17, signifies causing it to be.
Eden
According to the Writings, “Eden” by itself means love, in most cases the love that comes from the Lord and our love for the Lord,...
Henog
'Hanoch' denotes those who are in the truth of faith.
bou
wrought (also entwined or entwisted) is predicated of the natural scientific principle, and in Isaiah 45:13, of divine natural truth.
Stad
In the ancient world cities were very nearly nations unto themselves – they existed within walls, with their own laws and customs, generally centered on...
noem
To call someone or summon someone in the Bible represents a desire for conjunction between higher and lower states of life. For instance, imagine someone...
naam
It's easy to see that names are important in the Bible. Jehovah changed Abram and Sarai to Abraham and Sarah, changed Jacob to Israel and...
seun
A child is a young boy or girl in the care of parents, older than a suckling or an infant, but not yet an adolescent....
Irad
'Irad,' the son of Enoch, in Genesis 4:18, signifies heretical doctrine derived from Cain.
Gebore
In a general sense, being "born" in the Bible represents one spiritual state producing another, usually some form of love or affection producing or "giving...
was die vader van
To beget or to be begotten is very similar in meaning to birth: It represents one spiritual state leading to the next spiritual state. "Beget,"...
die vader
To beget or to be begotten is very similar in meaning to birth: It represents one spiritual state leading to the next spiritual state. "Beget,"...
Mehújael
'Mehujael' signifies heresies.
Lameg
Lamech,' as in Genesis 4:18, signifies the vastation of the church when there was no longer any faith. Lamech,' as in Genesis 5:25, signifies the...
twee
The number "two" has two different meanings in the Bible. In most cases "two" indicates a joining together or unification. This is easy to see...
vroue
'Women,' as in Genesis 45:19, signify the affections of truth. But in Genesis 31:50, 'women' signify affections of not genuine truth, so not of the...
Ada
Adah, Lamech's wife, (Genesis 4:9), represents the mother of the celestial things of faith.
tweede
The number "two" has two different meanings in the Bible. In most cases "two" indicates a joining together or unification. This is easy to see...
Silla
Zillah, mentioned in Genesis 4:19, 22, was one of two wives of Lamech. She had two children, a son, Tubal-Cain, and a daughter, Naamah. "Lamech,...
Jabal
'Jabal, the father of people who dwell in tents, and of cattle,' as in Genesis 4:20, signifies doctrine concerning the holy things of love, and...
Jubal
'Jubal,' as in Genesis 4:21, signifies the doctrine of spiritual things in the new church which succeeded Lamech. Being 'the father of the harp and...
koper
Brass and iron as in Isaiah 48:4 and Daniel 7:19 signify what is hard.
suster
The Lord calls people who are in truth from the good of charity from Him 'sisters,' as in Matthew 12:50. 'Sister' denotes intellectual truth, when...
Hoor
Thanks to modern science, we now understand that hearing actually happens in the brain, not the ears. The ears collect vibrations in the air and...
luister
Thanks to modern science, we now understand that hearing actually happens in the brain, not the ears. The ears collect vibrations in the air and...
wond
'Wound,' as in Exodus 21:25, signifies a hurt done to the affection of love. 'To wound' signifies injuring the mind and spiritual life by falsities.
sewe
The number 'seven' was considered holy, as is well known, because of the six days of creation, and the seventh, which is the celestial self,...
Adam
Adam is one of the most crucial and most controversial figures in the Bible, dividing even the faithful into camps: those who believe he literally...
genoem
'To proclaim' signifies exploration from influx of the Lord.
God
When the Bible speaks of "Jehovah," it is representing love itself, the inmost love that is the essence of the Lord. That divine love is...
kind
A child is a young boy or girl in the care of parents, older than a suckling or an infant, but not yet an adolescent....