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Ezekiel 17

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1 HE ENs Ord kom til mig således:

2 Menneskesøn, fremsæt en Gåde og tal i Lignelse til Israels Slægt;

3 sig: Så siger den Herre HE EN: Den store Ørn med vældigt Vingefang, lange Vinger, tæt Fjederham og brogede Farver kom til Libanon og tog Cederens Top;

4 Spidsen af dens Skud brød den af, bragte den til et Kræmmerland og satte den i en Handelsby.

5 Så tog den en Plante der i Landet og plantede den i en Sædemark ved rigeligt Vand...",

6 for at den skulde vokse og blive en yppig, lavstammet Vinstok, hvis anker skulde vende sig til den, og hvis ødder skulde blive under den. Og den blev en Vinstok, som skød Grene og bredte sine Kviste.

7 Men der var en anden stor Ørn med vældigt Vingefang og rig Fjederham; og se, Vinstokken bøjede sine ødder imod den og strakte sine anker hen til den, for at den skulde give den mere Vand end Bedet, den stod i.

8 På en frugtbar Mark ved rigeligt Vand var den plantet for at skyde Grene, bære Frugt og blive en herlig Vinstok.

9 Sig derfor: Så siger den Herre HE EN: Mon det lykkes den? Mon den første Ørn ikke rykker dens ødder op og afriver dens Frugt, så alle de friske Skud tørres hen? Der skal jo ingen kraftig Arm eller mange Folk til at rive den løs fra oden.

10 Se, den er plantet, men mon det lykkes den? Mon den ikke, så snart Østenvinden når den, hentørres i Bedet, den voksede i?

11 Og HE ENs Ord kom til mig således:

12 Sig til den genstridige Slægt: Ved I ikke, hvad dette betyder? Sig: Babels Konge kom til Jerusalem, tog Kongen og Fyrsterne og førte dem med hjem til Babel.

13 Derpå tog han entling af kongehuset og sluttede Pagt med ham og lod ham aflægge Ed. Landets Stormænd tog han dog med,

14 for at iget skulde holdes nede og ikke hovmode sig, men holde hans Pagt, at den måtte stå fast.

15 Men han faldt fra og sendte sine Bud til Ægypten, for at de skulde give ham Heste og Folk i Mængde. Mon det lykkes ham? Mon den, der bærer sig således ad, slipper godt derfra? Skal den, der bryder en Pagt, slippe fra det?

16 Så sandt jeg lever, lyder det fra den Herre HE EN: Hvor den Konge bor, som gjorde ham til Konge, hvis Ed han lod hånt om, og hvis Pagt han brød, der hos ham i Babel skal han .

17 Og Farao skal ikke hjælpe ham i Krigen med en stor Hær eller en talrig Skare, når der opkastes Stormvold og bygges Belejringstårne til Undergang for mange Mennesker.

18 Thi han lod hånt om Eden og brød Pagten trods givet Håndslag; alt dette gjorde han; han skal ikke undslippe!

19 Sig derfor: Så siger den Herre HE EN: Så sandt jeg lever: Min Ed, som han lod hånt om, og min Pagt, som han brød, vil jeg visselig lade komme over hans Hoved!

20 Jeg breder mit Net over ham, så han fanges i mit Garn, og jeg bringer ham til Babel for der at gå i ette med ham for den Troløshed, han viste mig.

21 Alle hans udvalgte Folk i alle hans Hære skal falde for Sværd, og de, der er til est, spredes for alle Vinde; og I skal kende, at jeg, HE EN, har talet.

22 siger den Herre HE EN: Så tager jeg selv en Gren af Cederens Top, af dens Skuds Spidser bryder jeg en tynd Kvist og planter den på et højt, knejsende Bjerg.

23 Israels høje Bjerg vil jeg plante den, og den skal skyde Grene og bære Løv og blive en herlig Ceder. Under den skal alle vingede Fugle bygge, i dens Grenes Skygge skal de bo.

24 Og alle Markens Træer skal kende, at jeg, HE EN, nedbøjer det høje Træ og ophøjer det lave, udtørrer det friske Træ og lader det tørre blomstre. Jeg, HE EN, har talt og grebet ind.

   


The Project Gutenberg Association at Carnegie Mellon University

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Apocalypse Explained # 578

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578. Out of their mouths went out fire, and smoke, and brimstone, signifies thoughts and consequent reasonings springing from the love of evil and from the love of falsity, and from the lust for destroying truths and goods by the falsities of evil. This is evident from the signification of the "mouth," as being thought and consequent reasoning respecting which see in the explanation of verse 19); from the signification of "fire," as being the love of self and the love of evil therefrom (See above, n. 504, 539); from the signification of "smoke," as being the dense falsity springing from the love of evil (See also above, n. 494, 539); and from the signification of "brimstone," as being the lust of destroying the truths and goods of the church by the falsities of evil.

[2] That this is the signification of "brimstone" can be seen from passages of the Word where it is mentioned. Thus in Moses:

Jehovah made brimstone and fire to rain upon Sodom and upon Gomorrah (Genesis 19:24).

In Luke:

In the same day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven, and destroyed them all. After the same manner shall it be in the day that the Son of man is revealed (Luke 17:29, 30).

Those who were in Sodom and Gomorrah mean those who are in the falsities of evil from the love of self; and since the falsities of evil from that love destroyed them, it rained brimstone and fire, "brimstone" because of the lust of destroying the church by the falsities of evil, and "fire" because that lust burst forth from the love of self. That it should be thus "when the Son of man should be revealed," signifies that then, too, falsities of evil from the love of self will destroy the church. Such rain appears in the spiritual world when the evil who are in falsities from that love are cast down into hell.

[3] In Moses:

What shall your sons say, and the alien, when they shall see the plagues of that land, and its sicknesses. The whole land is brimstone and salt, and a conflagration; it is not sown, it doth not spring up, nor doth any herb grow upon it, like the overthrow of Sodom and Gomorrah, Admah and Zeboiim (Deuteronomy 29:22, 23).

These were the curses with which the sons of Israel were threatened if they did not keep the commandments and statutes, and if they worshiped other gods; and because the church is thus laid waste and destroyed by the falsities of evil and the evils of falsity it is said that "the whole land is then brimstone, and salt, and conflagration," the "land" signifying the church; and "it will not be sown, nor spring up, nor any herb grow upon it," signifies that no longer will any truth from good be received or brought forth.

[4] In Isaiah:

Topheth is prepared of old; yea, for the king it is prepared; he shall go down into a deep and wide place; the pile thereof is fire and much wood; the breath of Jehovah like a stream of brimstone doth kindle it (Isaiah 30:33).

"Topheth" signifies the hell in which the direful and cruel love of destroying all the truths and goods of the church reigns, especially the cruel lust for destroying the goods of innocence; that this direful hell is from the falsities of evil is signified by "he shall go down into a deep and wide place;" the "king for whom it is prepared" signifies infernal falsity itself; "the pile thereof is fire and wood," signifies evils of every kind belonging to that love; and because that hell burns with a lust for destroying, it is said, "the breath of Jehovah like a stream of brimstone doth kindle it;" for there, as soon as they hear from anyone the truths of the church and perceive its goods, they are inflamed with a frenzy for destroying and extinguishing them.

[5] In Isaiah:

The day of Jehovah's vengeance, and the year of retribution for the controversy of Zion, and the brooks thereof shall be turned into pitch, and its dust into brimstone, and its land shall become burning pitch; it shall not be quenched night or day, the smoke thereof shall go up forever (Isaiah 34:8-10).

"The day of Jehovah's vengeance, and the year of retribution for the controversy of Zion" signifies the Lord's coming, and the Last Judgment then accomplished by Him; "the brooks shall be turned into pitch, and the dust into brimstone," signifies the hell into which those are cast, who are in the falsities of evil, and in the evils of falsity; the evil of infernal love and its punishment are signified by "the burning pitch shall not be quenched night or day;" and the direful falsity from that evil is signified by "the smoke shall go up forever."

[6] In Ezekiel:

And I will plead with Gog with pestilence and with blood; and I will rain upon him an overflowing rain and hailstones, fire and brimstone (Ezekiel 38:22).

By "Gog" is meant those who place all worship in a holy and pious external, and not in what is internal, and yet the quality of external worship is the same as the quality of its internal. It is said, "Jehovah shall rain upon them an overflowing rain, hailstones, fire, and brimstone," which signifies falsities and evils destroying all the truths and goods of the church; "fire and brimstone" mean the evils of falsity and the falsities of evil, both of which are diabolical.

[7] In David:

Jehovah shall rain upon the wicked snares, fire, and brimstone; and a wind of storms shall be the portion of their cup (Psalms 11:6).

This signifies that the wicked will be destroyed by their own evils of falsity and their own falsities of evil, which will destroy with them all truths of the church; "snares, fire, and brimstone," mean the evils of falsity and the falsities of evil; "the wind of storms which shall be the portion of their cup," signifies the destruction of all truth. Evidently it is not meant that Jehovah will rain fire and brimstone upon the wicked, for it is also said that "He will rain snares" upon them; therefore "fire and brimstone" signify such things as totally destroy the truths and goods of the church.

[8] Likewise in Job:

Brimstone shall be scattered upon the habitation of the wicked one (Acts of the Apostles 18:15).

"Brimstone" means such falsity of evil as destroys everything of the church with man; this is falsity from the evil of the love of self, such as those were in who dwelt in Sodom and Gomorrah, respecting which is said:

That it overthrew not only the cities and inhabitants, but also the plain and that which springeth up in the field (Genesis 19:25);

"that which springeth up in the field" signifies the truths of the church springing up. "Fire and brimstone" have a like signification in the following passages in Revelation:

If anyone worship the beast and his image he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone (Revelation 14:9, 10).

The beast and the false prophet were cast alive into the lake of fire burning with brimstone (Revelation 19:20).

The devil was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where are the beast and the false prophet (Revelation 20:10).

The murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone (Revelation 21:8).

  
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Thanks to the Swedenborg Foundation for their permission to use this translation.

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Psalms 110:5-7

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5 The Lord is at your right hand. He will crush kings in the day of his wrath.

6 He will judge among the nations. He will heap up dead bodies. He will crush the ruler of the whole earth.

7 He will drink of the brook in the way; therefore he will lift up his head.