According to Swedenborg, a person's name in the Bible represents his or her entire spiritual nature, their whole state of love (good or evil) and thought (from heavenly wisdom to infernal insanity). This is why the name of the Lord is so important; it represents and embodies His perfect love and perfect wisdom, which is everything that we should worship and follow. It's easy to see that names are important in the Bible. Jehovah changed Abram and Sarai to Abraham and Sarah, changed Jacob to Israel and included in the Ten Commandments the order that believers "shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain." In the New Testament, Zacharias was told to name John the Baptist "John," and both Joseph (Matthew 1:21) and Mary (Luke 1:31) were told to name Jesus "Jesus." Jesus himself renamed Simon as Peter, and included the phrase "hallowed be thy name" in the Lord's prayer.

(Odkazy: Luke 1)

Title: Selling Everything to Joseph

Topic: Salvation

Summary: Spiritual famine may eventually drive us to attribute to the Lord all of our truth and love and even our capacity to receive those qualities.

References:
Genesis 47:13-26
Deuteronomy 30:7-10
2 Kings 23:25
Psalms 51:14-19
Isaiah 2:10-18
Joel 2:12-13
Acts of the Apostles 5:1-11
1 Corinthians 6:12-15
Revelation 9:20-21; 16:8-11

This video is a part of the Spirit and Life Bible Study series, whose purpose is to look at the Bible, the whole Bible, and nothing but the Bible through a Swedenborgian lens.