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Tredje Mosebog 23

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1 HE EN talede fremdeles til Moses og sagde:

2 Tal til Israeliterne og sig til dem: Hvad angår HE ENs Festtider, hvilke I skal udråbe som Højtidsstævner, da er mine Festtider følgende:

3 I seks Dage skal der arbejdes, men den syvende Dag skal være en fuldkommen Hviledag med Højtidsstævne; I må intet Arbejde gøre, det er Sabbat for HE EN, overalt hvor I bor.

4 Følgende er HE ENs Festtider med Højtidsstævner, som I skal udråbe, hver til sin Tid:

5 På den fjortende Dag i den første Måned ved Aftenstid er det Påske for HE EN.

6 På den femtende Dag i samme Måned er det de usyrede Brøds Højtid for HE EN; i syv Dage skal I spise usyret Brød.

7 På den første Dag skal I bolde Højtidsstævne, I må intet Arbejde gøre.

8 I skal bringe HE EN Ildoffer i syv Dage. På den syvende Dag skal der holdes Højtidsstævne, I må intet Arbejde gøre.

9 HE EN talede fremdeles til Moses og sagde:

10 Tal til Israeliterne og sig til dem: Når I kommer til det Land, jeg vil give eder, og høster dets Høst, skal I bringe Præsten Førstegrødeneget af eders Høst.

11 Han skal udføre Svingningen med Neget for HE ENs Åsyn for at vinde eder Guds Velbehag; Dagen efter Sabbaten skal Præsten udføre Svingningen dermed.

12 Og på den Dag I udfører Svingningen med Neget, skal I ofre et lydefrit, årgammelt Lam som Brændoffer til HE EN,

13 og der skal høre to Tiendedele Eta fint Hvedemel, rørt i Olie, dertil som Afgrødeoffer, et Ildoffer for HE EN til en liflig Duft, og ligeledes en Fjerdedel Hin Vin som Drikoffer.

14 Brød, ristede Aks eller nyhøstet Horn må I ikke spise før denne Dag, før I har frembåret eders Guds Offergave. Det skal være eder en evig gyldig Anordning fra Slægt til Slægt, overalt hvor I bor.

15 Så skal I fra Dagen efter Sabbaten, fra den dag I bringer Svingningsneget, tælle syv Uger frem - det skal være hele Uger -

16 til Dagen efter den syvende Sabbat, I skal tælle halvtredsinds tyve bage frem; da skal I frembære et nyt Afgrødeoffer for HE EN.

17 Fra eders Boliger skal I bringe Svingningsbrød, to Brød, som skal laves af to Tiendedele Efa fint Hvedemel og bages syrede, en Førstegrødegave til HE EN.

18 Og foruden Brødet skal I bringe syv lydefri, årgamle Lam, en ung Tyr og to Vædre, de skal være til Brændoffer for HE en med tilhørende Afgrødeoffer og Drikoffer, et Ildoffer for HE en til en liflig Duft.

19 Og I skal ofre en Gedebuk som Syndoffer og to årgamle Lam som Takoffer.

20 Og Præsten skal udføre Svingningen med dem, med de to Lam, for HE ENs Åsyn sammen med Førstegrødebrødet, de skal være HE EN helligede og tilfalde Præsten.

21 På denne Dag skal I udråbe og holde et Højtidsstævne; I må intet Arbejde gøre. Det skal være eder en evig gyldig Anordning, overalt hvor I bor, fra Slægt til Slægt.

22 Når I høster eders Lands Høst, må du ikke høste helt hen til Kanten af din Mark, ej heller må du sanke Efterslætten efter din Høst; til den fattige og den fremmede skal du lade det blive tilbage. Jeg er HE EN eders Gud!

23 HE EN talede fremdeles til Moses og sagde:

24 Tal til Israeliterne og sig: Den første dag i den syvende Måned skal I holde Hviledag med Hornblæsning til Ihukommelse og med Højtidsstævne;

25 I må intet Arbejde gøre, og I skal bringe HE EN Ildofre.

26 HE EN talede fremdeles til Moses og sagde:

27 På den tiende Dag i samme syvende Måned falder Forsoningsdagen; da skal I holde Højtidsstævne, faste og bringe HE EN Ildofre;

28 I må intet Arbejde gøre på denne Dag, thi det er Forsoningsdagen, den skal skaffe eder Soning for HE EN eders Guds Åsyn.

29 Thi enhver, som ikke faster på denne Dag, skal udryddes af sin Slægt;

30 og enhver, der gør noget som helst Arbejde på denne Dag, det Menneske vil jeg udslette af hans Folk.

31 I må intet Arbejde gøre. Det skal være eder en evig Anordning fra Slægt til Slægt, overalt hvor I bor.

32 Den skal være eder en fuldkommen Hviledag, og I skal faste; på den niende Dag i Måneden om Aftenen, fra denne Aften til næste Aften skal I holde eders Hviledag.

33 HE EN talede fremdeles til Moses og sagde:

34 Tal til Israeliterne og sig: Den femtende Dag i samme syvende Måned skal Løvhyttefesten fejres, den skal fejres i syv Dage for HE EN.

35 På den første Dag skal der holdes Højtidsstævne, I må intet Arbejde gøre.

36 Syv dage skal I bringe HE EN Ildofre; og på den ottende Dag skal I holde Højtidsstævne og bringe HE EN Ildofre; det er festlig Samling, I må intet Arbejde gøre.

37 Det er HE ENs Festtider, hvilke I skal udråbe som Højtids stævner, ved hvilke der skal bringes HE EN Ildofre, Brændofre og Afgrødeofre, Slagtofre og drikofre, hver Dag de for den bestemte Ofre,

38 foruden HE ENs Sabbater og foruden eders Gaver og alle eders Løfteofre og alle eders Frivilligofre, som I giver HE EN.

39 Men den femtende Dag i den syvende Måned, når I har indsamlet Landets Afgrøde, skal I fejre HE ENs Højtid, og den skal fejres i syv Dage. På den første Dag skal der holdes Hviledag, og på den ottende Dag skal der holdes Hviledag.

40 Den første Dag skal I tage eder smukke Træfrugter, Palmegrene og Kviste af Løvtræer og Vidjer fra Bækkene og i syv Dage være glade for HE EN eders Guds Åsyn.

41 I skal fejre den som en Højtid for HE EN syv Dage om Året; det skal være eder en evig gyldig Anordning fra Slægt til Slægt; i den syvende Måned skal I fejre den.

42 I skal bo i Løvhytter i syv Dage, alle indfødte i Israel skal bo i Løvhytter,

43 for at eders Efterkommere kan vide, at jeg lod Israeliterne bo i Løvhytter, da jeg førte dem ud af Ægypten. Jeg er HE EN eders Gud!

44 Og Moses kundgjorde Israeliterne HE ENs Festtider.

   


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Arcana Coelestia # 2177

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2177. That 'meal of fine flour' means the spiritual and celestial ingredients [of the rational] which were present at that time with the Lord, and 'cakes' the same when both had been joined together, is quite clear from the sacrifices of the representative Church and from the minchah presented at the same time, which consisted of fine flour mixed with oil and made into cakes. Representative worship consisted primarily in burnt offerings and sacrifices. What these represented has been stated above where 'bread' was the subject, in 2165, namely the celestial things of the Lord's kingdom in heaven and of the Lord's kingdom on earth, which is the Church, and also the things of the Lord's kingdom or Church as it exists with every individual, and in general everything that is in essence love and charity, since these are celestial entities. In those times all the sacrifices were called 'bread'. Along with those sacrifices a minchah was included - which, as has been stated, consisted of fine flour mixed with oil to which also incense was added - and also a wine-offering.

[2] What these latter represented becomes clear too, namely things similar to those represented by sacrifices but of a lower order, thus the things which belong to the spiritual Church, and also those which belong to the external Church. It may become clear to anyone that such things would never have been prescribed unless they had represented Divine things, and also that each one represented some specific thing. For unless they had represented Divine things they would have been no different from similar things found among gentiles, among whom also there were sacrifices, minchahs, libations, and incense, as well as perpetual fires and many other things which had come down to them from the Ancient Church, especially from the Hebrew Church. But because they were separated from the internal, that is, the Divine things represented by them, those external forms of worship were nothing but idolatrous, as they also came to be among the Jews, who likewise sank into all kinds of idolatry. From this it may become clear to anyone that heavenly arcana were present within every form of ritual, especially so within the sacrifices and every detail of them.

[3] As regards the minchah, the nature of it and how it was to be made into cakes is described in a whole chapter in Moses - in Leviticus 2; also Numbers 15, and elsewhere. The law regarding the minchah is described in Leviticus in the following words,

Fire shall be kept burning unceasingly on the altar; it shall not be put out. And this is the law of the minchah: Aaron's sons shall bring it before Jehovah to the front of the altar, and he shall take up from it a fistful of fine flour of the minchah and of the oil of it and all the frankincense which is on the minchah, and he shall burn it on the altar; it is an odour of rest for a memorial to Jehovah. And the rest of it Aaron and his sons shall eat. Unleavened bread shall be eaten in a holy place. In the court of the tent of meeting shall they eat it. It shall not be cooked leavened; I have given it as their portion from My fire-offerings; it is most holy. Leviticus 6:13-17.

[4] The fire which was to be kept burning unceasingly on the altar represented the Lord's love, that is, His mercy, which is constant and eternal. 'Fire' in the Word means love, see 934, and therefore 'the fire-offerings made for an odour of rest' means the good pleasure which the Lord takes in those things that belong to love and charity. That 'odour' means good pleasure, that is, that which is pleasing, see 925, 1519. Their 'taking a fistful' represented their being required to love with all their soul or strength, for 'the hand' or 'the palm' of the hand means power, as shown in 878, from which 'the fist' also means the same. 'The fine flour together with the oil and the frankincense' represented all things of charity - 'fine flour' the spiritual ingredient of it, 'oil' the celestial, and 'frankincense' that which was in this manner pleasing. That 'fine flour' represents the spiritual ingredient is evident from what has just been stated and from what is stated below. That 'oil' represents the celestial ingredient, or the good or charity, see 886, and that 'frankincense' on account of its odour represents that which is pleasing and acceptable, 925.

[5] Its being 'unleavened bread' or not fermented means that it was to be genuine, thus something offered from genuineness of heart and having no uncleanness. The eating of the rest by Aaron and his sons represented man's reciprocation and his making it his own, and thus represented conjunction by means of love and charity; and it is for this reason that they were commanded to eat it 'in a holy place'. Hence it is called something most holy. These were the things which were represented by the minchah. It was also the way in which the representatives themselves were perceived in heaven; and when the member of the Church understood them in the same way his ideas were like the perception which the angels possess, so that he was in the Lord's kingdom in heaven even though he was on earth.

[6] For more about the minchah - what it was to consist of in any particular kind of sacrifice; the way in which it was to be baked into cakes; what kind was to be offered by those who were being cleansed, and also what kinds on other occasions (all of which would take too long to introduce and explain here) - see what is said about it in Exodus 29:39-41; Leviticus 5:11-13; 6:16-17, 19-21; 10:12-13; 23:10-13, 6, 17; Numbers 5:15 and following verses; 6:15-17, 19-20; 7: in various places; 28:5, 8, 9, 12-13, 20-21, 28-29; 29:3-4, 9-10, 14-15, 18, 21, 24, 27, 30, 33, 37

[7] 'Fine flour made into cakes' had in general the same representation as bread, namely the celestial ingredient of love, while 'meals represented its spiritual ingredient, as becomes clear in the places indicated above. The loaves which were called 'the bread of the Presence' or 'the shewbread' consisted of fine flour, which was made into cakes and placed on the table to provide an unceasing representation of the Lord's love, that is, of His mercy, towards the whole human race, and man's reciprocation. These loaves are spoken of in Moses as follows,

You shall take fine pour and bake it into twelve cakes; two-tenths [of an ephah] shall there be in one cake And you shall place them in two rows, six in a row, on the clean table before Jehovah. And you shall put pure frankincense on each row, and it shall be bread serving as a memorial, a fire-offering to Jehovah. Every sabbath day [Aaron] shall set it out in order before Jehovah continually; it is from the children of Israel as an eternal covenant. And it shall be for Aaron and his sons, and they shall eat it in a holy place, for it is to him the most holy of fire-offerings to Jehovah, by an eternal statute. Leviticus 24:5-9.

Every item and smallest detail mentioned here represented the holiness of love and charity, 'fine flour' having the same representation as meal of fine flour, namely that which is celestial and that which is spiritual that goes with it, and 'cake' the two when joined together.

[8] From this it is clear what the holiness of the Word is to those who possess heavenly ideas, and indeed what holiness was present within this particular representative observance, on account of which it is called 'most holy'. It is also clear how devoid of holiness the Word is to those who imagine that it does not have anything heavenly within it and who keep solely to externals. Exemplifying the latter are those who in the present verse under consideration perceive 'the meal' to be merely meal, 'the fine flour' merely fine flour, and 'the cake' merely a cake, and who imagine that these things have been stated without each one that is mentioned embodying something of the Divine within it. Their attitude is similar to that of those who imagine that the bread and wine of the Holy Supper are no more than a certain religious observance that does not have anything holy within it. Yet in fact it possesses such holiness that the minds of men are linked by means of it to the minds of those in heaven, when from an internal affection they think that the bread and wine mean the Lord's love and man's reciprocation, and by virtue of that interior thought and affection they abide in holiness.

[9] Much the same was implied by the requirement that when the children of Israel entered the land they were to present as a heave-offering to Jehovah a cake made from the first of their dough, Numbers 15:20. The fact that such things are meant is also evident in the Prophets, from' among whom for the moment let this one place in Ezekiel be introduced here,

You were adorned with gold and silver, and your raiment was of fine linen and silk and embroidered cloth. You ate fine flour, honey, and oil. You became exceedingly beautiful, and attained to a kingdom. Ezekiel 16:13.

This refers to Jerusalem, by which is meant the Church, which Church in its earliest days bore an appearance such as this, that is to say, the Ancient Church, which is described by means of raiment and many other adornments. Its affections for truth and good are also described by 'the fine flour, honey, and oil'. It may become clear to anyone that all these details mean in the internal sense something altogether different from what they do in the sense of the letter. And the same applies to Abraham's saying to Sarah, 'Take quickly three measures of meal of fine flour, knead it, and make cakes'. That 'three' means things that are holy has been shown already in 720, 901.

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