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Ezekiel 18

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1 HE ENs Ord kom til mig således:

2 Hvor tør I bruge det Mundheld i Israels Land: Fædre åd sure Druer, og Børnenes Tænder blev ømme.

3 Så sandt jeg lever, lyder det fra den Herre HE EN: Ingen skal mere bruge dette Mundheld i Israel.

4 Se, alle Sjæle er mine; både Faderens Sjæl og Sønnens Sjæl er mine; den Sjæl der synder skal .

5 Når en Mand er retfærdig og gør et og Skel,

6 ikke spiser på Bjergene eller løfter sit Blik til Israels Huses Afgudsbilleder eller skænder sin Næstes Hustru eller nærmer sig en Kvinde, så længe hun er uren,

7 eller volder noget Menneske Men, men giver sit Håndpant tilbage, ikke raner, men giver den sultne sit Brød og klæder den nøgne,

8 ikke låner ud mod Åger eller tager Opgæld, men holder sin Hånd fra Uret, fælder redelig Dom Mand og Mand imellem,

9 vandrer efter mine Anordninger og tager Vare på at udføre mine Lovbud, han er retfærdig, han skal visselig leve, lyder det fra den Herre HE EN.

10 Men avler han en Voldsmand til Søn, som udøser Blod og gør en eneste af disse Ting

11 medens han selv ikke gjorde nogen af disse Ting - spiser på Bjergene, skænder sin Næstes Hustru

12 volder de arme og fattige Men raner, ikke giver Håndpant tilbage, men løfter sit Blik til Afgudsbillederne, gør, hvad vederstyggeligt er,

13 låner ud mod Åger og tager Opgæld, så skal han ingenlunde leve; han har øvet alle disse Vederstyggeligheder, han skal visselig lide Døden, hans Blod skal komme over ham.

14 Men sæt, at Sønnen avler en Søn, som ser alle de Synder, Faderen gjorde, og at han bliver angst og ikke bærer sig således ad,

15 ikke spiser på Bjergene eller løfter sit Blik til Israels Huses Afgudsbilleder eller skænder sin Næstes Hustru

16 eller volder noget Menneske Men eller tager Håndpant eller raner, men giver den sultne sit Brød og klæder den nøgne,

17 holder sin Hånd fra Uret, ikke tager Åger eller Opgæld, men holder mine Lovbud og vandrer efter mine Anordninger, så skal han ikke for sin Faders Misgerning, men visselig leve.

18 Hans Fader derimod døde for sin Misgerning, fordi han øvede Vold, ranede og gjorde i sit Folk hvad ikke var godt.

19 Og I siger: "Hvorfor skulde Sønnen ikke bære Faderens Misgerning?" Nej, thi Sønnen gjorde et og Skel, holdt alle mine Lovbud og levede efter dem. Visselig skal han leve.

20 Den Sjæl, der synder, den skal ; Søn skal ikke bære Faders Misgeming, ej heller Fader Søns. Over den retfærdige skal hans etfærdighed komme, over den gudløse hans Gudløshed.

21 Men når den gudløse omvender sig fra alle de Synder, han har gjort, og holder alle mine Anordninger og gør et og Skel, da skal han visselig leve og ikke .

22 Ingen af alle de Overtrædelser, han har øvet, skal tilregnes ham; i Kraft af den etfærdighed, han øver, skal han leve.

23 Mon jeg har Lyst til den gudløses Død, lyder det fra den Herre HE EN, mon ikke til, at han omvender sig fra sin Vej, så han må leve?

24 Men når den retfærdige vender sig fra sin etfærdighed og gør Uret, lignende Vederstyggeligheder, som den gudløse øver, så skal ingen af de retfærdige Gerninger, han har gjort tilregnes ham; for den Troløshed, han øvede, og den Synd, han gjorde, skal han .

25 Og I siger: "HE ENs Vej er ikke ret!" Hør dog, Israels Hus! Er det min Vej, der ikke er ret? Er det ikke snarere eders Vej, der ikke er ret?

26 Når den retfærdige vender sig fra sin etfærdighed og gør Uret, skal han ; for den Uret, han gør, skal han .

27 Men når en gudløs vender sig fra den Gudløshed, han har øvet, og gør et og Skel, skal han holde sin Sjæl i Live.

28 Han vendte sig fra alle de Overtrædelser, han havde øvet; han skal visselig leve og ikke .

29 Og Israels Hus siger: "H ENs Vej er ikke ret!" Er det min Vej, Israels Hus, der ikke er ret? Er det ikke snarere eders Vej, der ikke er ret?

30 Derfor dømmer jeg enhver af eder efter hans Veje, Israels Hus, lyder det fra den Herre HE EN. Vend om og omvend eder fra alle eders Overtrædelser, at de ikke skal blive eder Årsag til Skyld.

31 Gør eder fri for alle de Overtrædelser, I har øvet imod mig, og skab eder et nyt Hjerte og en ny Ånd; thi hvorfor vil I , Israels Hus?

32 Thi jeg har ikke Lyst til nogens Død, lyder det fra den Herre HE EN. Omvend eder derfor, så skal I leve!

   


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Arcana Coelestia # 9210

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9210. 'You shall not be like a money-lender' means that it must be done in a spirit of charity. This is clear from the meaning of 'a money-lender' as someone who does good for the sake of gain; for a money-lender entrusts money to another for the sake of interest and gives help to another for the sake of reward. And since real charity does not have gain or reward as the end in view, but the neighbour's good, 'you shall not be like a money-lender' means that the thing must be done in a spirit of charity. Anyone who does not know what Christian charity is may think that it consists not only in giving to the needy and poor but also in doing good to his fellow citizen, country, or Church for any reason whatever, that is, with no matter what end in view. But he should recognize that the end is what gives all of a person's deeds their true character. If the end or intention is to do good for the sake of reputation, in order to acquire important positions or else monetary gain, the good that he does is not good because it is done for the sake of self and thus also originates in self. But if the end is to do good for his fellow citizen's, country's, or Church's sake, thus for his neighbour's sake, the good he does is good since it is done for the sake of good itself, which in general is the real neighbour, 5025, 6706, 6711, 6712, 8123, and so is also done for the Lord's sake since such good does not have its origin in the person but in the Lord, and what originates in the Lord is the Lord's. This is the good that is meant by the Lord in Matthew,

Insofar as you did it to one of the least of these My brothers you did it to Me. Matthew 25:40.

[2] As it is with good, so it is also with truth. Those who do the truth for its own sake do it also for the Lord's sake since it comes from Him. Doing truth for its own sake is doing good; for truth becomes good when it passes from the understanding into the will, and from the will goes out into actions. Doing good in this manner is Christian charity. People who do good in the spirit of Christian charity may sometimes look for reputation earned as a result of doing it, so as to obtain an important position or else monetary gain. But their attitude is altogether different from that of anyone for whom these things are his end in view. For they regard what is good and right as the essential, one and only thing that matters, and accordingly rank it in highest position. As for monetary gain in comparison with this, or an important position, or reputation for the sake of them, they regard as non-essential, and accordingly rank it in lowest position. When the eyes of people such as these are fixed on what is right and good they are like soldiers fighting in battle for their country. During it they give no thought at all to their life, nor thus to their status or their assets in the world, which compared with what they are doing are of no importance to them. But those who rank self and the world at the top are the kind of people who do not even see what is right and good, because their eyes are fixed on themselves and on gain.

[3] All this shows what doing good for a selfish or a worldly reason is, what doing good for the Lord's or for the neighbour's sake is, and what is the difference between them. The difference is as great as that between two opposites, thus as great as that between heaven and hell. Furthermore those who do good for their neighbour's or for the Lord's sake are in heaven; but those who do it for a selfish or a worldly reason are in hell. For those who do good for their neighbour and the Lord's sake love the Lord above all things and their neighbour as themselves - commandments which are 'the first of all the commandments', Mark 12:28-31. But those who do everything for selfish and worldly reasons love themselves above all things, thus more than God; and they not only despise their neighbour but also hate him if he does not make common cause with them and align himself with them. This is the meaning of the Lord's teaching in Matthew,

No one can serve two lords, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will cling to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon. Matthew 6:24.

There are people who do serve both; but they are called 'lukewarm, neither cold nor hot, who are spewed out', Revelation 3:15-16. All this now shows what money-lenders who took interest represented, namely those who do good for the sake of gain.

[4] It makes plain the origin of this prohibition, that they were not to be like a money-lender, charging a brother interest, as again declared elsewhere in Moses,

You shall not charge your brother interest on silver, interest on food, interest on anything on which it is charged. A foreigner you shall charge interest, but your brother you shall not charge interest; so that Jehovah your God may bless you in everything to which you set your hand 1 in the land which you are entering to possess it. Deuteronomy 23:19-20; Leviticus 25:36-38.

'Charging a brother interest on silver' means lending truths, that is, giving instruction in them, for the sake of gain, 'charging interest on food' hiring out forms of the good of truth for the sake of gain; for 'silver' means truth, 1551, 2954, 5658, 6914, 6917, and 'food' the good of truth, 5147, 5293, 5340, 5342, 5576, 5410, 5426, 5487, 5582, 5588, 5655, 5915, 8562. The reason why those who do not charge it are blessed by Jehovah in everything to which they set their hand in the land is that their affection is for goodness and truth, so that the happiness which angels in heaven possess is theirs; for that affection, or the good of that love, holds heaven within it for a person, 6478, 9174. The reason why foreigners could be charged interest was that those who do not acknowledge anything of goodness or truth and are unreceptive of them are meant by 'foreigners', 7996, that is, they are those who do good solely for the sake of gain. These must serve a person, for in comparison they are servants or slaves, 1097. In David,

He walks blameless and does righteousness, and speaks the truth in his heart. He does not lend his silver at interest, and does not take a bribe 2 against the innocent. He who does this will never be moved. Psalms 15:2, 5.

'Lending his silver at interest' means teaching for the sake solely of gain, thus doing good for the sake of reward. Something similar occurs in Ezekiel,

A righteous man who executes judgement and righteousness does not lend at interest and does not take increase. Ezekiel 18:5, 8.

In the same prophet,

He who withdraws his hand from the needy, does not take interest or increase, executes My judgements, [and] walks in My statutes will surely live. Ezekiel 18:17.

In the same prophet,

In you they have taken bribes 2 to shed blood; you have taken interest and increase, and seized gain of your companions by violence. Ezekiel 22:12.

These things are said about 'the city of blood', by which falsity destroying truth and good is meant, 9127. 'Taking interest and increase' means doing good for the sake of gain and reward, thus not in a spirit of charity. In true charity there is no thought of earning a reward, see 2371, 2373, 2400, 4007, 4174, 4943, 6388-6390, 6392, 6478.

Poznámky pod čarou:

1. literally, in every sending out of your hand

2. literally, a gift

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