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Genesis 4

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1 And the man knew Eve his wife; and she conceived, and bare Cain, and said, I have gotten a man with [the help of] Jehovah.

2 And again she bare his brother Abel. And Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground.

3 And in process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto Jehovah.

4 And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And Jehovah had respect unto Abel and to his offering:

5 but unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell.

6 And Jehovah said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and Why is thy countenance fallen?

7 If thou doest well, shall it not be lifted up? and if thou doest not well, sin coucheth at the door: and unto thee shall be its desire, but do thou rule over it.

8 And Cain told Abel his brother. And it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother, and slew him.

9 And Jehovah said unto Cain, Where is Abel thy brother? And he said, I know not: am I my brother's keeper?

10 And he said, What hast thou done? the voice of thy brother's blood crieth unto me from the ground.

11 And now cursed art thou from the ground, which hath opened its mouth to receive thy brother's blood from thy hand;

12 when thou tillest the ground, it shall not henceforth yield unto thee its strength; a fugitive and a wanderer shalt thou be in the earth.

13 And Cain said unto Jehovah, My punishment is greater than I can bear.

14 Behold, thou hast driven me out this day from the face of the ground; and from thy face shall I be hid; and I shall be a fugitive and a wanderer in the earth; and it will come to pass, that whosoever findeth me will slay me.

15 And Jehovah said unto him, Therefore whosoever slayeth Cain, vengeance shall be taken on him sevenfold. And Jehovah appointed a sign for Cain, lest any finding him should smite him.

16 And Cain went out from the presence of Jehovah, and dwelt in the land of Nod, on the east of Eden.

17 And Cain knew his wife; and she conceived, and bare Enoch: and he builded a city, and called the name of the city, after the name of his son, Enoch.

18 And unto Enoch was born Irad: and Irad begat Mehujael: and Mehujael begat Methushael; and Methushael begat Lamech.

19 And Lamech took unto him two wives: the name of the one was Adah, and the name of the other Zillah.

20 And Adah bare Jabal: he was the father of such as dwell in tents and [have] cattle.

21 And his brother's name was Jubal: he was the father of all such as handle the harp and pipe.

22 And Zillah, she also bare Tubal-cain, the forger of every cutting instrument of brass and iron: and the sister of Tubal-cain was Naamah.

23 And Lamech said unto his wives: Adah and Zillah, hear my voice; Ye wives of Lamech, hearken unto my speech: For I have slain a man for wounding me, And a young man for bruising me:

24 If Cain shall be avenged sevenfold, Truly Lamech seventy and sevenfold.

25 And Adam knew his wife again; and she bare a son, and called his name Seth. For, [said she], God hath appointed me another seed instead of Abel; for Cain slew him.

26 And to Seth, to him also there was born a son; and he called his name Enosh. Then began men to call upon the name of Jehovah.

   

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Arcana Coelestia # 382

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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. Lamentations 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. Jeremiah 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. Isaiah 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 a fugitive', that is, a person who, confessing faith in isolation from charity, has no knowledge at all of truth and good.

  
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Thanks to the Swedenborg Society for the permission to use this translation.

Bible

 

Genesis 4

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1 The man knew Eve his wife. She conceived, and gave birth to Cain, and said, "I have gotten a man with Yahweh's help."

2 Again she gave birth, to Cain's brother Abel. Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the ground.

3 As time passed, it happened that Cain brought an offering to Yahweh from the fruit of the ground.

4 Abel also brought some of the firstborn of his flock and of its fat. Yahweh respected Abel and his offering,

5 but he didn't respect Cain and his offering. Cain was very angry, and the expression on his face fell.

6 Yahweh said to Cain, "Why are you angry? Why has the expression of your face fallen?

7 If you do well, will it not be lifted up? If you don't do well, sin crouches at the door. Its desire is for you, but you are to rule over it."

8 Cain said to Abel, his brother, "Let's go into the field." It happened when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel, his brother, and killed him.

9 Yahweh said to Cain, "Where is Abel, your brother?" He said, "I don't know. Am I my brother's keeper?"

10 Yahweh said, "What have you done? The voice of your brother's blood cries to me from the ground.

11 Now you are cursed because of the ground, which has opened its mouth to receive your brother's blood from your hand.

12 From now on, when you till the ground, it won't yield its strength to you. You shall be a fugitive and a wanderer in the earth."

13 Cain said to Yahweh, "My punishment is greater than I can bear.

14 Behold, you have driven me out this day from the surface of the ground. I will be hidden from your face, and I will be a fugitive and a wanderer in the earth. It will happen that whoever finds me will kill me."

15 Yahweh said to him, "Therefore whoever slays Cain, vengeance will be taken on him sevenfold." Yahweh appointed a sign for Cain, lest any finding him should strike him.

16 Cain went out from Yahweh's presence, and lived in the land of Nod, east of Eden.

17 Cain knew his wife. She conceived, and gave birth to Enoch. He built a city, and called the name of the city, after the name of his son, Enoch.

18 To Enoch was born Irad. Irad became the father of Mehujael. Mehujael became the father of Methushael. Methushael became the father of Lamech.

19 Lamech took two wives: the name of the one was Adah, and the name of the other Zillah.

20 Adah gave birth to Jabal, who was the father of those who dwell in tents and have livestock.

21 His brother's name was Jubal, who was the father of all who handle the harp and pipe.

22 Zillah also gave birth to Tubal Cain, the forger of every cutting instrument of brass and iron. Tubal Cain's sister was Naamah.

23 Lamech said to his wives, "Adah and Zillah, hear my voice. You wives of Lamech, listen to my speech, for I have slain a man for wounding me, a young man for bruising me.

24 If Cain will be avenged seven times, truly Lamech seventy-seven times."

25 Adam knew his wife again. She gave birth to a son, and named him Seth, "for God has appointed me another child instead of Abel, for Cain killed him."

26 There was also born a son to Seth, and he named him Enosh. Then men began to call on Yahweh's name.