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Genesis 3

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1 Now the snake was wiser than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said to the woman, Has God truly said that you may not take of the fruit of any tree in the garden?

2 And the woman said, We may take of the fruit of the trees in the garden:

3 But of the fruit of the tree in the middle of the garden, God has said, If you take of it or put your hands on it, death will come to you.

4 And the snake said, Death will not certainly come to you:

5 For God sees that on the day when you take of its fruit, your eyes will be open, and you will be as gods, having knowledge of good and evil.

6 And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and a delight to the eyes, and to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit, and gave it to her husband.

7 And their eyes were open and they were conscious that they had no clothing and they made themselves coats of leaves stitched together.

8 And there came to them the sound of the Lord God walking in the garden in the evening wind: and the man and his wife went to a secret place among the trees of the garden, away from the eyes of the Lord God.

9 And the voice of the Lord God came to the man, saying, Where are you?

10 And he said, Hearing your voice in the garden I was full of fear, because I was without clothing: and I kept myself from your eyes.

11 And he said, Who gave you the knowledge that you were without clothing? Have you taken of the fruit of the tree which I said you were not to take?

12 And the man said, The woman whom you gave to be with me, she gave me the fruit of the tree and I took it.

13 And the Lord God said to the woman, What have you done? And the woman said, I was tricked by the deceit of the snake and I took it.

14 And the Lord God said to the snake, Because you have done this you are cursed more than all cattle and every beast of the field; you will go flat on the earth, and dust will be your food all the days of your life:

15 And there will be war between you and the woman and between your seed and her seed: by him will your head be crushed and by you his foot will be wounded.

16 To the woman he said, Great will be your pain in childbirth; in sorrow will your children come to birth; still your desire will be for your husband, but he will be your master.

17 And to Adam he said, Because you gave ear to the voice of your wife and took of the fruit of the tree which I said you were not to take, the earth is cursed on your account; in pain you will get your food from it all your life.

18 Thorns and waste plants will come up, and the plants of the field will be your food;

19 With the hard work of your hands you will get your bread till you go back to the earth from which you were taken: for dust you are and to the dust you will go back.

20 And the man gave his wife the name of Eve because she was the mother of all who have life.

21 And the Lord God made for Adam and for his wife coats of skins for their clothing.

22 And the Lord God said, Now the man has become like one of us, having knowledge of good and evil; and now if he puts out his hand and takes of the fruit of the tree of life, he will go on living for ever.

23 So the Lord God sent him out of the garden of Eden to be a worker on the earth from which he was taken.

24 So he sent the man out; and at the east of the garden of Eden he put winged ones and a flaming sword turning every way to keep the way to the tree of life.

   

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Arcana Coelestia # 566

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566. 'The face 1 of the ground' means the whole of that area where the Church was. This is clear from the meaning of 'the ground', for in the Word a careful distinction is made between ground (humus) and land or earth (terra). Whenever 'ground' is used it means the Church or some aspect of the Church. This too is the derivation of the name Man or Adam, which means ground. But when 'land' or earth' occurs in the Word it frequently means where the Church or some aspect of the Church does not exist, as in Chapter 1 where the word 'land' alone is used, because the Church or regenerate person did not as yet exist. Not until Chapter 2 is the word 'ground' used because the Church has by now come into being. The same applies in the present verse and in verses 4, 23, of the next chapter, where it is said that every being was to be wiped off the face 1 of the ground, meaning within that area where the Church was; and in verse 7 of the next chapter, where the subject is the Church that is to be created, 'to keep their seed alive on the face 1 of the ground'. 2 The same applies elsewhere in the Word, as in Isaiah,

Jehovah will have compassion on Jacob, and will still choose Israel, and will set them on their own ground. And the peoples will take them and bring them to their place, and the house of Israel will inherit them on Jehovah's ground. Isaiah 14:1-2.

This refers to the Church once it has come into being; but when in the same chapter the Church does not exist it is called the land, verses 9, 12, 16, 20, 21, 25, 26.

[2] In the same prophet,

And the ground of Judah will be a terror to Egypt. On that day there will be five cities in the land of Egypt which speak the language 3 of Canaan. Isaiah 19:17-18.

Here 'the ground' means where the Church exists, and 'the land' where it does not. In the same prophet,

The land will surely stagger like a drunken man. Jehovah will visit the host of the height on high, and the kings of the ground on the ground. Isaiah 24:20-21.

Here the meaning is similar. In Jeremiah,

Because of the ground which was cracked since there was no rain on the land, the farmers were put to shame, and covered their heads. Even the hind in the field has calved. Jeremiah 14:4-5.

Here 'the land' stands for that which includes the ground, and 'the ground' for that which includes the field.

[3] In the same prophet,

He led the seed of the house of Israel out of the north land and out of all the lands to where I have driven them. And they will dwell on their own ground. Jeremiah 23:8.

Here 'land' and 'lands' mean where Churches do not exist, 'the ground' where the Church or true worship does exist. In the same prophet,

I will render the remnants of Jerusalem, those who are left in this land, and those who are dwelling in the land of Egypt, and I will render them as a horror for evil to all the kingdoms of the land. And I will send sword, famine, and pestilence upon them, until they are consumed from the ground which I gave to them and their fathers. Jeremiah 24:8-10.

'The ground' stands for doctrine and worship arising out of it. And something similar is found in 25:5 of the same book.

[4] In Ezekiel,

I will gather you out of the lands into which you have been scattered. And you will acknowledge that I am Jehovah when I bring you back to the ground of Israel, into the land which I lifted up My hand to give to your fathers. Ezekiel 20:41-42.

'The ground' stands for internal worship. It is called 'the land' when internal worship does not exist. In Malachi,

I will rebuke the devourer for you, and he will not ruin for you the fruit of the ground, nor will the vine in the field fail you. And all the nations will call you blessed, for you will be a land of that which is pleasing. Malachi 3:11-12.

Here 'land' stands for that which includes, and so plainly stands for man who is actually called 'the land', when 'ground' stands for the Church or doctrine.

[5] In Moses,

Sing, O Nations, His people. He will reconcile His ground, His people. Deuteronomy 32:43.

This clearly stands for the Church of the gentiles, which is called 'the ground'. In Isaiah,

Before the boy knows to refuse evil and to choose good, the ground will be deserted which you loathe in the presence of its two kings. Isaiah 7:16.

This refers to the Coming of the Lord. 'The ground will be deserted' stands for the Church or true doctrine of faith. The words 'ground 'and 'field' are clearly used in this way because they are places that are sown, as in Isaiah,

He will give rain for your seed with which you may sow the ground. Oxen and young asses tilling the ground . . . Isaiah 30:23-24.

And in Joel,

The field has been laid waste, and the ground has been mourning because the corn has been laid waste. Joel 1:10.

From these quotations it is now clear that 'man', who in Hebrew is called Adam from the word for ground, means the Church.

Poznámky pod čarou:

1. literally, faces

2. The Hebrew in Genesis 7:3 in fact means earth or land. cf 722 below.

3. literally, lip.

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