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民数记 22

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1 以色列人起行,在摩押平原、约但河东,对着耶利哥安营。

2 以色列人向亚摩利人所行的一切事,西拨的儿子巴勒都见了。

3 摩押人以色列民甚多,就大大惧怕,心内忧急,

4 米甸长老:“现在这众人要把我们四围所有的,

5 他差遣使者往大边的毗夺去,到比珥的儿子巴兰本乡那里,召巴兰

6 这民比我强盛,现在求你来为我咒诅他们,或者我能得胜,攻打他们,赶出此。因为我知道,你为谁祝福,谁就得福;你咒诅谁,谁就受咒诅。

7 摩押长老米甸长老里拿着卦金,到了巴兰那里,将巴勒的都告诉了他。

8 巴兰:你们今夜在这里宿,我必照耶和华所晓谕我的回报你们。摩押的使臣就在巴兰那里下了。

9 临到巴兰那里,:在你这里的人都是谁?

10 巴兰回答:是摩押王西拨的儿子巴勒打发人到我这里来,

11 埃及出来的民遮满地面,你来为我咒诅他们,或者我能与他们争战,把他们赶出去。

12 巴兰:你不可同他们去,也不可咒诅那民,因为那民是蒙福的。

13 巴兰早晨起来,对巴勒的使臣:你们回本去罢,因为耶和华不容我和你们同去。

14 摩押的使臣就起来,回巴勒那里去,巴兰不肯和我们

15 巴勒又差遣使臣,比先前的又多又尊贵。

16 他们到了巴兰那里,对他:西拨的儿子巴勒这样:求你不容甚麽事拦阻你不到我这里

17 因为我必使你得极大的尊荣。你向我要甚麽,我就给你甚麽;只求你来为我咒诅这民。

18 巴兰回答巴勒的臣仆:巴勒就是将他满我,我行事小事也不得越过耶和华─我的命。

19 现在我请你们今夜在这里宿,等我得知耶和华还要对我甚麽。

20 当夜,临到巴兰那里,:这些人若召你,你就起来同他们去,你只要遵行我对你所

21 巴兰早晨起来,备上驴,和摩押的使臣一同去了。

22 因他去就发了怒;耶和华的使者站在上敌挡他。他着驴,有两个仆人跟随他。

23 耶和华的使者站在上,里有拔出来的刀,就从上跨进田间,巴兰便打驴,要叫他回

24 耶和华的使者就站在葡萄园的窄上;这边有,那边也有

25 耶和华的使者,就贴靠,将巴兰挤伤了;巴兰又打驴。

26 耶和华的使者又往前去,站在狭窄之处,左右都没有折的地方

27 耶和华的使者,就卧在巴兰巴兰发怒,用杖打驴。

28 耶和华叫驴开,对巴兰:我向你行了甚麽,你竟打我这三次呢?

29 巴兰对驴:因为你戏弄我,我恨不能中有刀,把你杀了。

30 驴对巴兰:我不是你从小时直到今日所的驴麽?我素常向你这样行过麽?巴兰:没有。

31 当时,耶和华使巴兰的眼目明亮,他就耶和华的使者站在上,里有拔出来的刀,巴兰便低头俯伏在地。

32 耶和华的使者对他:你为何这三次打你的驴呢?我出来敌挡你,因你所行的,在我面前偏僻。

33 见我就三次从我面前偏过去;驴若没有偏过去,我早把你杀了,留他存活。

34 巴兰耶和华的使者:我有罪了。我不知道你站在上阻挡我;你若不喜欢我去,我就转回。

35 耶和华的使者对巴兰:你同这些人去罢!你只要我对你。於是巴兰同着巴勒的使臣去了。

36 巴勒巴兰来了,就往摩押京城去迎接他;这城是在边界上,在亚嫩河旁。

37 巴勒对巴兰:我不是急急的打发人到你那里去召你麽?你为何不到我这里来呢?我岂不能使你得尊荣麽?

38 巴兰:我已经到你这里来了!现在我岂能擅自甚麽呢?将甚麽传给我,我就甚麽。

39 巴兰和巴勒同行,到基列胡琐。

40 巴勒宰了(原文作献)牛,送给巴兰和陪伴的使臣。

41 到了早晨,巴勒领巴兰到巴力的处;巴兰从那里观以色列营的边界。

   

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Arcana Coelestia # 7097

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7097. 'I do not know Jehovah' means that they have no interest in the Lord. This is clear from the meaning of 'not knowing' as having no interest in, for a person who has no interest in something says that he knows nothing about it; and 'Jehovah' is used to mean the Lord, see above in 7091. The implications of this, of Pharaoh's saying that he does not know Jehovah, are as follows: The Egyptians had known Jehovah since ancient times, the reason being that the Ancient Church had existed in Egypt also, as may be plainly recognized from the fact that they were in possession of the representatives and meaningful signs of that Church. Egyptian hieroglyphics are nothing else, for these served to denote spiritual realities; and people knew that they did in actual fact correspond to those realities. But because they began to use such representatives and signs in their sacred worship, to treat them as objects of worship and also at length to turn them into magic, and in so doing to become linked to the devil's crew in hell, they completely destroyed the Ancient Church among themselves. This is why in the Word 'the Egyptians' means facts known to the Church that have been perverted, and also falsities that are opposed to the truths of the Church.

[2] Once the worship of God had become perverted in this way in Egypt, then they were no longer allowed to worship Jehovah either, or at length even to know that Jehovah had been the God of the Ancient Church; and the reason why this happened was to prevent them from profaning the name of Jehovah. The fact that the name of Jehovah was also known at that time, before it was revealed once again to Abraham's descendants through Moses on Mount Horeb, is plainly evident from Balaam, who was from Syria. He not only knew Jehovah but also worshipped Him and offered sacrifice to Him, Numbers 22-24. From all this one may now see why Pharaoh said, 'Who is Jehovah whose voice I am to hear, [telling me] to send the people away? I do not know Jehovah.'

[3] But since 'Pharaoh' represents those in hell who are steeped in falsities and molest those belonging to the spiritual Church, what is involved in all this needs to be stated. Those in hell who molest members of the spiritual Church consist for the most part of the kind of people who have said that faith alone saves and yet have led a life contrary to faith. And since the life they have led, thus the evil which they have contemplated, planned, and carried out, remains after death of the body, therefore to defend the evils assimilated into their life they either employ the things which they have said were matters of faith or else reject them altogether. But to prevent them from misusing the truths of faith, these are taken away from them. And when those truths have been taken they seize on falsities, which are completely contrary to the truths of faith, and then use the falsities to molest those guided by truths. Doing this is then for them the delight of life. Quite a number of them, to acquire power, also learn magic. This is done by those who used various tricks which they devised in the world to deceive their neighbour, and being successful then attributed everything to their own prudence.

[4] Those who have become like this acknowledge the Father as the Creator of all things, but they do not acknowledge the Lord. Regarding the Lord they use similar words to Pharaoh's here regarding Jehovah, 'Who is Jehovah? I do not know Jehovah'. Indeed just as the whole sphere pervading heaven is full of an acknowledgement of and love for the Lord, so the whole sphere pervading the hells is full of a denial of the Lord and of hatred towards Him. Nor can they bear to hear His name mentioned. Those in hell are by nature such that admonitions and threats do not make them leave off, so great is the delight of their life to molest the upright and draw them away from their acknowledgement of the Lord and faith in Him. That delight is intensified by the admonitions they receive to leave off, for they lead them to imagine that those whom they molest will shortly be done for. These are the ones whom 'Pharaoh' and 'the Egyptians' are used to mean specifically.

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