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Daniel 7

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1 In the first year of Belshazzar king of Babylon, Daniel saw a dream and visions of his head upon his bed: then he wrote the dream; he told the sum of the matters.

2 Daniel spoke and said, I saw in my vision by night, and behold, the four winds of the heavens broke forth upon the great sea.

3 And four great beasts came up from the sea, different one from another.

4 The first was like a lion, and had eagle's wings: I beheld till its wings were plucked; and it was lifted up from the earth, and made to stand upon two feet as a man, and a man's heart was given to it.

5 And behold, another beast, a second, like unto a bear, and it raised up itself on one side; and [it had] three ribs in its mouth between its teeth; and they said thus unto it: Arise, devour much flesh.

6 After this I saw, and behold, another, like a leopard, and it had four wings of a bird upon its back; and the beast had four heads; and dominion was given to it.

7 After this I saw in the night visions, and behold, a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, and exceeding strong; and it had great iron teeth: it devoured and broke in pieces, and stamped the rest with its feet; and it was different from all the beasts that were before it; and it had ten horns.

8 I considered the horns, and behold, there came up among them another, a little horn, before which three of the first horns were plucked up by the roots; and behold, in this horn were eyes like the eyes of a man, and a mouth speaking great things.

9 I beheld till thrones were set, and the Ancient of days did sit: his raiment was white as snow, and the hair of his head like pure wool; his throne was flames of fire, [and] its wheels burning fire.

10 A stream of fire issued and came forth from before him; thousand thousands ministered unto him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him: the judgment was set, and the books were opened.

11 I beheld therefore, because of the voice of the great words that the horn spoke; I beheld till the beast was slain, and its body destroyed, and it was given up to be burned with fire.

12 As for the rest of the beasts, their dominion was taken away; but their lives were prolonged for a season and a time.

13 I saw in the night visions, and behold, there came with the clouds of heaven [one] like a son of man, and he came up even to the Ancient of days, and they brought him near before him.

14 And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him: his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom [that] which shall not be destroyed.

15 As for me Daniel, my spirit was grieved in the midst of my body, and the visions of my head troubled me.

16 I came near unto one of them that stood by, and asked him the certainty of all this. And he told me, and made me know the interpretation of the things:

17 These great beasts, which are four, are four kings, [that] shall arise out of the earth.

18 But the saints of the most high [places] shall receive the kingdom, and they shall possess the kingdom for ever, even to the ages of ages.

19 Then I desired to know the certainty concerning the fourth beast, which was different from them all, exceeding dreadful, whose teeth were of iron, and its nails of brass; which devoured, broke in pieces, and stamped the rest with its feet;

20 and concerning the ten horns that were in its head, and the other that came up, and before which three fell: even that horn that had eyes, and a mouth speaking great things, and whose look was more imposing than its fellows.

21 I beheld, and that horn made war with the saints, and prevailed over them;

22 until the Ancient of days came, and judgment was given to the saints of the most high [places]; and the appointed time arrived, and the saints possessed the kingdom.

23 He said thus: The fourth beast shall be a fourth kingdom upon the earth, which shall be different from all the kingdoms, and shall devour the whole earth, and shall tread it down, and break it in pieces.

24 And as to the ten horns, out of this kingdom shall arise ten kings; and another shall arise after them; and he shall be different from the former, and he shall subdue three kings.

25 And he shall speak words against the Most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most High [places], and think to change seasons and the law; and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and a half time.

26 And the judgment shall sit, and they shall take away his dominion, to consume and to destroy it unto the end.

27 But the kingdom and the dominion, and the greatness of the kingdoms under the whole heavens, shall be given to the people of the saints of the most high [places]. His kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey him.

28 So far is the end of the matter. As for me Daniel, my thoughts much troubled me, and my countenance was changed in me; but I kept the matter in my heart.

   

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De Verbo (The Word) # 5

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5. V. The spiritual sense of the Word and its natural sense.

I have sometimes talked with spirits who were unwilling to know anything about the spiritual sense of the Word, saying that its natural sense is the only meaning the Word has, and this is holy because it comes from God. They asserted that if a spiritual sense were to be accepted, the literal form of the Word would be worthless. Many of them insisted on this, but they received a reply from heaven, that the Word without a spiritual sense in it would not be Divine, and because the spiritual sense is its soul, it is consequently Divine, in fact alive; for without this the literal sense would be as if dead. The real holiness of the Word consists in this. Thus the Word can be compared to the Divine Man, who is the Lord; in Him there is not only a natural Divine, but also a spiritual Divine and a celestial Divine. This is why the Lord calls Himself the Word. It was also said that the real holiness of the Word lies in its literal sense, and that this is more holy than the others, the internal senses, because it is the wrapping and container of the others, and it is like the body which is made alive by the soul. So the Word in its literal or natural sense possesses its fullness and also its power; and by its means a person is linked with the heavens, which would be separated from mankind but for the literal sense. Everyone knows and acknowledges that the Word is in its depths spiritual, but up to now it has been obscure where this spirituality was hidden.

[2] But since the spirits who took a stand on behalf of the literal sense alone were unwilling to be convinced by these arguments, there was produced countless passages from the natural sense, which could never be understood without the spiritual sense. For instance there are in the Prophets lists of nothing but names; many kinds of animals are named, such as lions, bears, oxen, calves, dogs, wolves, owls, ojim, 1 dragons; also mountains and forests, and many other things besides, which would mean nothing without a spiritual sense.

For instance, what might be the meaning of a dragon described as red with seven heads and seven diadems on its heads, pulling down with its tail a third of the stars of heaven, and wanting to swallow the baby to which the woman was about to give birth; the woman being given the two wings of the great eagle to fly into the desert, where the dragon ejected water from its mouth after her like a river? Again, without the spiritual sense it would not be known what was the meaning of the dragon's two beasts; by the one which came up out of the sea, resembling a leopard, with feet like a bear's and a mouth like a lion's; and by its other beast which came up out of the ground, as described in Revelation Chapters 12 and 13. Again, what is the meaning there of the Lamb opening the seal of the book, horses coming out, first a white one, then a red, then a black and then a pale one, described in Revelation 6, as well as the other things in that book? Again, in Zechariah, what is the meaning of the four horns and the four smiths (Chapter 1:18-21); the lamp-stand and the two olive trees next to it (Chapter 4); the four chariots coming out between the two mountains, attached to which were horses, red, black, white and dappled (Chapter 6)? Again, the ram and the he-goat and their horns, with which they fought each other in Daniel (Chapter 8); and the four beasts coming up out of the sea (Chapter 7); not to mention vast quantities of similar things? To convince them further it was cited what the Lord said to the disciples in Matthew (Chapter 24) about the ending of the age and His coming again, which no one could understand without the spiritual sense.

[3] The existence of a spiritual sense in every detail of the Word can also be confirmed by some of the Lord's sayings, which could not be grasped unless understood spiritually. For instance, no one would be allowed to call his father on earth 'father', nor 'teacher' or 'master', because they have one Father, Teacher and Master (Matthew 23:7-10); or that they should not judge for fear of being judged (Matthew 7:1-2); or that a husband and wife are not two, but one flesh (Matthew 19:5-6), although they are not one flesh in the natural sense. Nor is there any prohibition of judging one's companion or neighbour as regards his natural life, for this is in society's interest; but the prohibition is on judging him as regards his spiritual life, for this is known to none but the Lord. Again, the Lord did not forbid calling one's father 'father', nor a teacher 'teacher', nor a master 'master' in the natural sense, but He did in the spiritual sense. In this there is only one Father, Teacher and Master. And the same is true in other cases.

[4] They were convinced by this that there is a spiritual sense contained in the natural sense of the Word, and that still the real holiness of the Word resides in its literal sense, because all the inner meanings of the Word are fully present in it. In addition it was proved that the literal sense also exhibits clearly everything which teaches the way to salvation, and so how to live and what to believe. Also, every teaching of the church is to be drawn from the literal sense of the Word, and proved by it; not purely by the spiritual sense, since this does not permit linking with heaven and through heaven with the Lord, but this must take place by means of the literal sense. For the Lord's Divine influence coming through the Word extends from first to last.

Poznámky pod čarou:

1. Possibly to be emended to ochim, which are mentioned along with ziim and ijim, apparently nocturnal birds: see Isaiah 13:21-22. -Translator

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

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Revelation 13

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1 And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy.

2 And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion: and the dragon gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority.

3 And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed: and all the world wondered after the beast.

4 And they worshipped the dragon which gave power unto the beast: and they worshipped the beast, saying, Who is like unto the beast? who is able to make war with him?

5 And there was given unto him a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies; and power was given unto him to continue forty and two months.

6 And he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme his name, and his tabernacle, and them that dwell in heaven.

7 And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them: and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations.

8 And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.

9 If any man have an ear, let him hear.

10 He that leadeth into captivity shall go into captivity: he that killeth with the sword must be killed with the sword. Here is the patience and the faith of the saints.

11 And I beheld another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spake as a dragon.

12 And he exerciseth all the power of the first beast before him, and causeth the earth and them which dwell therein to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed.

13 And he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men,

14 And deceiveth them that dwell on the earth by the means of those miracles which he had power to do in the sight of the beast; saying to them that dwell on the earth, that they should make an image to the beast, which had the wound by a sword, and did live.

15 And he had power to give life unto the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed.

16 And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads:

17 And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.

18 Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is Six hundred threescore and Six.