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Ezekiel 29

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1 I det tiende år, på den tolvte dag i den tiende måned kom HE ENs Ord til mig således:

2 Menneskesøn, vend dit Ansigt mod Farao, Ægyptens Konge, og profeter mod ham og hele Ægypten.

3 Tal og sig: Så siger den Herre HE EN: Se, jeg kommer over dig, Farao, Ægyptens Konge, du store drage, som ligger midt i dine Strømme, som siger: "Nilen er min, jeg skabte den selv!"

4 Jeg sætter Kroge i Kæberne på dig og lader dine Strømmes Fisk hænge ved dine Skæl og drager dig op af dine Strømme med alle deres Fisk, som hænger ved dine Skæl.

5 Jeg slænger dig hen i Ørkenen med alle dine Strømes Fisk; på åben Mark skal du falde, ej samles op eller jordes; til Jordens Dyr og Himlens Fugle giver jeg dig som Føde.

6 Og kende skal hver en Ægypter, at jeg er HE EN. Fordi du har været en ørkæp for Israels Hus -

7 du splintredes, når de greb om dig, og flænged dem hele Hånden; du brast, når de støtted sig til dig, fik hver en Lænd til at vakle -

8 derfor, så siger den Herre HE EN: Se, jeg bringer Sværd over dig og udrydder Folk og Fæ af dig;

9 Ægypten skal blive til Ørk og Øde; og de skal kende, at jeg er HE EN, fordi du sagde: "Nilen er min, jeg skabte den selv!"

10 Se, derfor kommer jeg over dig og dine Strømme og gør Ægypten til Øde og Ørk fra Migdol til Syene og Ætiopiens Grænse.

11 Hverken Mennesker eller Dyr skal sætte deres Fod der, ingen skal færdes der, og det skal ligge hen uden Indbyggere i fyrretyve År.

12 Jeg gør Ægypten til en Ørk blandt øde Lande, og Byerne skal ligge øde hen blandt tilintetgjorte Byer i fyrretyve År; og jeg spreder Ægypterne blandt Folkene og udstrør dem i Landene.

13 Thi så siger den Herre HE EN: Efter fyrretyvears Forløb vil jeg sanke Ægypterne sammen fra de Folkeslag, de er spredt iblandt,

14 og vende Ægyptens Skæbne og føre dem tilbage til Patros, det Land, de stammer fra, og der skal de blive et lille ige.

15 Det skal blive mindre end de andre iger og ikke mere svinge sig op over Folkene; jeg gør dem få i Tal, for at de ikke mere skal råde over Folkene.

16 Og fremtidig skal de ikke være Israels Huss Tillid og således minde mig om dets Misgerning, når det slutter sig til dem; og de skal kende, at jeg er den Herre HE EN.

17 I det syv og tyvende År på den første Dag i den første Måned kom HE ENs Ord til mig således:

18 Menneskesøn! Kong Nebukadrezar af Babel har ladet sin Hær udføre et stort Arbejde mod Tyrus; hvert Hoved er skaldet, hver Skulder flået, og hverken han eller Hæren fik Løn af Tyrus for det Arbejde, han udførte imod det.

19 Derfor, så siger den Herre HE EN: Se, jeg giver Kong Nebukadrezar af Babel Ægypten; han skal bortføre dets igdom, tage Bytte og røve ov der; og det skal være hans Hærs Løn;

20 som Vederlag for hans Arbejde giver jeg ham Ægypten, fordi de sled for mig, lyder det fra den Herre HE EN.

21 På den Dag lader jeg et Horn vokse frem for Israels Hus, og dig giver jeg at åbne din Mund iblandt dem; og de skal kende, at jeg er HE EN.

   


The Project Gutenberg Association at Carnegie Mellon University

Ze Swedenborgových děl

 

Apocalypse Revealed # 759

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759. "And the merchants of the earth have become rich owing to the potencies of her delights." This symbolizes the greater and lower in rank in the Roman Catholic hierarchy who by their dominion over sacred things strive for Divine majesty and superregal glory, who continually seek to establish it by multiplying the number of monasteries and possessions under their control, and by collecting and accumulating the world's treasures without end, and who thus procure for themselves physical and natural delights and gratifications by claiming for themselves a celestial and spiritual dominion.

The merchants of Babylon can only mean the greater and lower in rank in their church hierarchy, because in verse 23 of this chapter we are told that they are the great men of the earth. And the potencies of her delights with which they have become rich can only mean the dogmas that are the means by which they acquire for themselves dominion over people's souls, and so also over their possessions and wealth. People know that they collect these without end and swell their treasuries with them, and also that they make merchandise of the sanctities of the church, by selling salvation, for example, or heaven, in exchange for offerings and gifts made to monasteries and their saints and images, or in exchange for masses, indulgences and various dispensations.

[2] Who cannot see that if the papal dominion had not been broken at the time of the Protestant Reformation, Roman Catholics would have scraped together the possessions and wealth of all the kingdoms in the whole of Europe? And that then they would have made themselves the sole lords, and everyone else their servants? Do they not have the greatest part of their wealth from preceding centuries when they had power over emperors and kings, whom they could excommunicate and depose if they did not obey? And do they not still have annual incomes that are immense, and treasuries full of gold, silver, and precious stones?

The same barbarous lust for dominion is still lodged in the hearts of many of them, and is restrained only by a fear of its loss if it should extend beyond accepted limits.

Of what use, however, are such great incomes, treasures and possessions to them, other than to be delighted by them, to pride themselves on having them, and to establish their dominion to eternity?

It can be seen from this what is here symbolized by merchants of the earth who have become rich owing to the potencies of Babylon's delights.

They are called merchants also in Isaiah:

(The inhabitants of Babylon) are as stubble. Fire has burned them; they do not deliver their soul from the power of the flame... Such are... your merchants from your youth. (Isaiah 47:14-15)

[3] In the Word, to be a merchant or trader means, symbolically, to be engaged in procuring for oneself spiritual riches, which are concepts of truth and goodness, and in an opposite sense, concepts of falsity and evil, and to use the first to gain heaven, and the second to gain the world. For that reason the Lord likened the kingdom of heaven to a merchant seeking beautiful pearls (Matthew 13:45-46), and the people in the church to servants who were given talents with which to trade and gain more (Matthew 25:14-30), or who were given ten minas with which to likewise trade and gain more (Luke 19:12-26).

Moreover, because Tyre symbolizes the church in respect to its concepts of truth and goodness, therefore the whole of chapter twenty-seven in Ezekiel has trading and gain as its subject, and we are told concerning Tyre:

In your wisdom and your understanding you have gained... for yourself... gold and silver into your treasuries; and by the great wisdom in your trading you have increased your riches... (Ezekiel 28:4-5)

And elsewhere:

...Tyre... has been laid waste..., whose merchants are princes, and its traders the honorable of the earth. (Isaiah 23:1, 8)

Also, the corrupt church among Jews in the land of Canaan is called the land of trade (Ezekiel 16:3, 29; 21:30; 29:14).

  
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Many thanks to the General Church of the New Jerusalem, and to Rev. N.B. Rogers, translator, for the permission to use this translation.