Arcana Coelestia # 10623
10623. 'Visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the sons and on the sons of sons' means the rejection and condemnation of evils and of a long line of falsities arising from them. This is clear from the meaning of 'visiting' as the casting out and condemnation of evils, dealt with below; from the meaning of 'the fathers' as forms of good, and in the contrary sense evils, dealt with in 3703, 5902, 6050, 10490; and from the meaning of 'the sons' as truths, and in the contrary sense falsities, dealt with in 1147, 10490, so that 'the sons of sons' means a long line of falsities arising from evils. By the casting out and condemnation of evils and of the falsities arising from them the casting out and condemnation of those ruled by such evils and falsities should be understood; for evils and falsities have no existence other than within their subjects 1 , that is, within people. It should be recognized that the falsities of evil are meant by 'the sons' because the fathers from whom they spring mean evils. What falsities of evil and falsities not of evil are, see in the places referred to in 10109.
[2] A person unacquainted with the internal sense of the Word may easily be led to believe that Jehovah visits the iniquity of the fathers on the sons and on the sons of sons, consequently that the sons are going to pay the penalty for their fathers' evils. But this is not the meaning of those words, as is plainly evident from the Divine law that fathers shall not die because of sons, nor sons because of fathers, but each because of his own evil, Deuteronomy 24:16. From this law it is evident that those words are to be understood differently from their literal meaning. The fact that those who are ruled by evils and the long line of falsities arising from them are meant by the fathers, their sons, and their sons' sons, is clear from the internal sense, in which evils and falsities are meant by fathers and sons. Angels - who also see a meaning in the Word when someone in the world reads it - do not understand anything other than this here by fathers and sons. For in heaven, where angels live, there is no knowledge, as there is among people on earth, of what a father is or of what a son is; for nobody there acknowledges anyone to be his father or anyone to be his son. There are no births there as there are in the world. When therefore father and son are mentioned in the Word angels think of spiritual births, which are those of goodness and truth or else of evil and falsity. Consequently they understand forms of good or else evils by fathers, and truths or else falsities by sons, since good is the father of truth and evil is the father of falsity.
[3] The reason why 'being visited' means being cast out and condemned is that this is what follows after evils reach their closing stage and comes before actual condemnation, meant in the Word by the last judgement. For visitation is the examination of a person to discover his true character. But this takes place in the next life, in particular when the individual person goes there from the world, and in general with all at the end of the Church, as stated immediately above in 10622. Regarding visitation, see what has been stated and shown in 6588, 6895, 10509.
Poznámky pod čarou:
1. Subject is used to mean something which really exists yet depends for its existence on something prior to itself.
Deuteronomy 24
1
When a man takes a wife, and marries her, then it shall be, if she find no favor in his eyes, because he has found some unseemly thing in her, that he shall write her a bill of divorce, and give it in her hand, and send her out of his house.
2
When she is departed out of his house, she may go and be another man's [wife].
3
If the latter husband hate her, and write her a bill of divorce, and give it in her hand, and send her out of his house; or if the latter husband die, who took her to be his wife;
4
her former husband, who sent her away, may not take her again to be his wife, after that she is defiled; for that is abomination before Yahweh: and you shall not cause the land to sin, which Yahweh your God gives you for an inheritance.
5
When a man takes a new wife, he shall not go out in the army, neither shall he be assigned any business: he shall be free at home one year, and shall cheer his wife whom he has taken.
6
No man shall take the mill or the upper millstone to pledge; for he takes [a man's] life to pledge.
7
If a man be found stealing any of his brothers of the children of Israel, and he deal with him as a slave, or sell him; then that thief shall die: so you shall put away the evil from the midst of you.
8
Take heed in the plague of leprosy, that you observe diligently, and do according to all that the priests the Levites shall teach you: as I commanded them, so you shall observe to do.
9
Remember what Yahweh your God did to Miriam, by the way as you came forth out of Egypt.
10
When you do lend your neighbor any kind of loan, you shall not go into his house to get his pledge.
11
You shall stand outside, and the man to whom you do lend shall bring forth the pledge outside to you.
12
If he be a poor man, you shall not sleep with his pledge;
13
you shall surely restore to him the pledge when the sun goes down, that he may sleep in his garment, and bless you: and it shall be righteousness to you before Yahweh your God.
14
You shall not oppress a hired servant who is poor and needy, whether he be of your brothers, or of your foreigners who are in your land within your gates:
15
in his day you shall give him his hire, neither shall the sun go down on it; for he is poor, and sets his heart on it: lest he cry against you to Yahweh, and it be sin to you.
16
The fathers shall not be put to death for the children, neither shall the children be put to death for the fathers: every man shall be put to death for his own sin.
17
You shall not wrest the justice [due] to the foreigner, [or] to the fatherless, nor take the widow's clothing to pledge;
18
but you shall remember that you were a bondservant in Egypt, and Yahweh your God redeemed you there: therefore I command you to do this thing.
19
When you reap your harvest in your field, and have forgot a sheaf in the field, you shall not go again to get it: it shall be for the foreigner, for the fatherless, and for the widow; that Yahweh your God may bless you in all the work of your hands.
20
When you beat your olive tree, you shall not go over the boughs again: it shall be for the foreigner, for the fatherless, and for the widow.
21
When you gather [the grapes of] your vineyard, you shall not glean it after yourselves: it shall be for the foreigner, for the fatherless, and for the widow.
22
You shall remember that you were a bondservant in the land of Egypt: therefore I command you to do this thing.
