Daniel 10
1
In the third year of Cyrus, king of Persia, a secret was unfolded to Daniel, whose name was Belteshazzar; and the thing was true, even a hard work: and he had knowledge of it, and the vision was clear to him.
2
In those days I, Daniel, gave myself up to grief for three full weeks.
3
I had no pleasing food, no meat or wine came into my mouth, and I put no oil on my body till three full weeks were ended.
4
And on the twenty-fourth day of the first month I was by the side of the great river;
5
And lifting up my eyes I saw the form of a man clothed in a linen robe, and round him there was a band of gold, of the best gold:
6
And his body was like the beryl, and his face had the look of a thunder-flame, and his eyes were like burning lights, and his arms and feet like the colour of polished brass, and the sound of his voice was like the sound of an army.
7
And I, Daniel, was the only one who saw the vision, for the men who were with me did not see it; but a great shaking came on them and they went in flight to take cover.
8
So I was by myself, and I saw this great vision, and all my strength went from me; and the colour went from my face.
9
But the sound of his words came to my ears, and on hearing his voice I went into a deep sleep with my face to the earth.
10
Then a hand gave me a touch, awaking me, and putting me on my knees and my hands.
11
And he said to me, O Daniel, you man dearly loved, take in the sense of the words I say to you and get up on to your feet: for to you I am now sent; and when he had said this to me I got on to my feet, shaking with fear.
12
Then he said to me, Have no fear, Daniel; for from the first day when you gave your heart to getting wisdom and making yourself poor in spirit before your God, your words have come to his ears: and I have come because of your words.
13
But the angel of the kingdom of Persia put himself against me for twenty-one days; but Michael, one of the chief angels, came to my help; and when I came he was still there with the angel of the kings of Persia.
14
Now I have come to give you knowledge of the fate of your people in the later days; for there is still a vision for the days.
15
And after he had said these words to me, I kept my face turned to the earth and was unable to say anything.
16
Then one whose form was like the sons of men put his finger on my lips; and opening my mouth, I said to him who was before me, O my lord, because of the vision my pains have come on me, and I have no more strength.
17
For how may this servant of my lord have talk with my lord? for, as for me, straight away my strength went from me and there was no breath in my body.
18
Then again one having the form of a man put his hand on me and gave me strength.
19
And he said to me, O man greatly loved, have no fear: peace be with you, be strong and let your heart be lifted up. And at his words I became strong, and said, Let my lord say on, for you have given me strength.
20
Then he said, It is clear to you why I have come to you. And now I will give you an account of what is recorded in the true writings:
21
But I am going back to make war with the angel of Persia, and when I am gone, the angel of Greece will come. And there is no one on my side against these, but Michael, your angel.
Arcana Coelestia # 1102
1102. 'He will dwell in the tents of Shem' means so that the internal features of worship may be present in the external features. This becomes clear from all that has been stated already about Shem, to the effect that 'Shem' is the internal Church or internal worship, and that external worship is something altogether soulless or unclean if it does not have internal worship to give it life and sanctify it. That 'tents' means nothing else than the holiness of love and worship arising out of this becomes clear from the meaning of 'tents' dealt with already in 414. Among the ancients 'wandering about and dwelling in tents' was common expression, and by 'tents' in the internal sense was meant holy worship, for the reason that the most ancient people not only wandered about with tents but also dwelt in tents and used to celebrate holy worship in them. Consequently 'wandering about and dwelling' also meant in the internal sense living.
[2] In addition to the places quoted already in 414, let the following as well serve to confirm that 'tents' means holy worship: In David,
God forsook the dwelling-place at Shiloh, the tent where He dwelt with man. Psalms 78:60.
Here 'tent' has a similar meaning to the Temple, in which God is said 'to dwell' when He is present with someone within love. For this reason the individual in whose life holy worship had a place was called by the ancients 'a tent', and later 'a temple'. In Isaiah,
Enlarge the place of your tent, and let the curtains of your habitations be stretched out. Isaiah 54:1.
This stands for enlightenment in the things that belong to true worship. In Jeremiah,
The whole land has been laid waste; suddenly My tents have been laid waste, My curtains in a moment. Jeremiah 4:20.
Here it is quite evident that tents are not meant but holy worship. In Zechariah,
Jerusalem will dwell yet again in her own place, in Jerusalem Jehovah will save the tents of Judah. Zechariah 12:6-7.
Here 'the tents of Judah' stands for worship of the Lord arising out of the holiness of love.
[3] From these quotations it now becomes clear what 'dwelling in the tents of Shem' means, namely, so that internal worship may be present in external. But because 'Japheth', the member of the external Church, has little knowledge of what internal things are, a brief description of him will be given. When a person feels or perceives within himself that he has thoughts regarding the Lord which are good and thoughts regarding the neighbor which are good, and he wishes to perform acts of kindness for him, but not for the sake of any gain or for the sake of his own position, and when he feels that he has pity for anyone who suffers misfortune, and more so for him who errs in regard to the doctrine of faith, he may then know that 'he is dwelling in the tents of Shem', that is, that there are with him things of an internal nature by means of which the Lord is working.
