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Ezekiel 3

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1 And he said unto me, Son of man, eat what thou findest; eat this roll, and go, speak unto the house of Israel.

2 So I opened my mouth, and he caused me to eat that roll.

3 And he said unto me, Son of man, cause thy belly to eat, and fill thy bowels with this roll which I give thee. And I ate, and it was in my mouth as honey for sweetness.

4 And he said unto me, Son of man, go, get thee unto the house of Israel, and speak with my words unto them.

5 For thou art not sent to a people of strange language, and of difficult speech, [but] to the house of Israel;

6 not to many peoples of strange language and of difficult speech, whose words thou canst not understand: had I sent thee to them, would they not hearken unto thee?

7 But the house of Israel will not hearken unto thee, for none of them will hearken unto me. For all the house of Israel are hard of forehead and stiff of heart.

8 Behold, I have made thy face hard against their faces, and thy forehead hard against their foreheads.

9 As an adamant harder than flint have I made thy forehead. Fear them not, neither be dismayed at them, for they are a rebellious house.

10 And he said unto me, Son of man, all my words which I shall speak unto thee, receive in thy heart, and hear with thine ears;

11 and go, get thee to them of the captivity, unto the children of thy people, and speak unto them, and tell them, Thus saith the Lord Jehovah, -- whether they will hear or whether they will forbear.

12 And the Spirit lifted me up, and I heard behind me the sound of a great rushing, [saying,] Blessed be the glory of Jehovah from his place!

13 -- and the sound of the wings of the living creatures that touched one another, and the sound of the wheels beside them, and the sound of a great rushing.

14 And the Spirit lifted me up, and took me away; and I went in bitterness, in the heat of my spirit, and the hand of Jehovah was strong upon me.

15 And I came to them of the captivity at Tel-abib, that dwelt by the river Chebar, and I sat where they sat; and I sat there astonied among them seven days.

16 And it came to pass at the end of seven days, that the word of Jehovah came unto me, saying,

17 Son of man, I have appointed thee a watchman unto the house of Israel, and thou shalt hear the word from my mouth, and give them warning from me.

18 When I say unto the wicked, Thou shalt certainly die; and thou givest him not warning, nor speakest to warn the wicked from his wicked way, that he may live: the same wicked [man] shall die in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at thy hand.

19 But if thou warn the wicked, and he turn not from his wickedness, nor from his wicked way, he shall die in his iniquity; but thou hast delivered thy soul.

20 And when a righteous [man] doth turn from his righteousness, and do what is wrong, and I lay a stumbling-block before him, he shall die; because thou hast not given him warning, he shall die in his sin, and his righteous acts which he hath done shall not be remembered; but his blood will I require at thy hand.

21 And if thou warn the righteous [man], that the righteous sin not, and he doth not sin, he shall certainly live, for he hath taken warning; and thou hast delivered thy soul.

22 And the hand of Jehovah was there upon me; and he said unto me, Arise, go forth into the valley, and there I will talk with thee.

23 And I arose, and went forth into the valley, and behold, the glory of Jehovah stood there, like the glory which I saw by the river Chebar; and I fell on my face.

24 And the Spirit entered into me, and set me upon my feet; and he spoke with me, and said unto me, Go, shut thyself within thy house.

25 And thou, son of man, behold, they shall put bands upon thee, and shall bind thee therewith, and thou shalt not go out among them.

26 And I will make thy tongue cleave to the roof of thy mouth, that thou shalt be dumb, and shalt not be to them a reprover; for they are a rebellious house.

27 And when I speak with thee, I will open thy mouth, and thou shalt say unto them, Thus saith the Lord Jehovah: He that heareth, let him hear; and he that forbeareth, let him forbear: for they are a rebellious house.

   

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Apocalypse Revealed # 245

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245. The four living creatures, each individually having six wings about it. (4:8) This symbolizes the Word in respect to its powers and protections.

We have already shown above that the four living creatures symbolize the Word. We will see below that wings symbolize powers and also protections.

The number six symbolizes completeness in respect to truth and goodness, as six is formed of three and two multiplied together, and three symbolizes completeness in respect to truth (no. 505), while two symbolizes completeness in respect to goodness (no. 762).

Wings symbolize powers because they are means of rising upward. Moreover, in the case of birds they take the place of the arms in the human being, and arms symbolize powers.

Since wings symbolize powers, and each living creature had six wings, it is apparent from what we said above what power is symbolized by each one's wings, namely, that the wings of the lion symbolize the power of combating the evils and falsities arising from hell, this being the power of the Word's Divine truth from the Lord; that the wings of the calf symbolize the power to affect hearts, for the Divine truth of the Word affects people who read it reverently; that the six wings of the human being symbolize the power to perceive the nature of God and what pertains to God, as this is peculiarly the mark of a human being in reading the Word; and that the wings of the eagle symbolize the power to recognize truth and good, and so to acquire for oneself intelligence.

[2] As regards the wings of cherubim, we read in Ezekiel that their wings kissed each other, that they had wings also covering their bodies, and that they had the likeness of hands under their wings (Ezekiel 1:23-24; 3:13; 10:5, 21). Kissing each other symbolizes conjoint and unanimous action. Covering their bodies symbolizes protection against violation of the interior truths which constitute the spiritual sense of the Word. And having the likeness of hands under their wings symbolizes powers.

Regarding seraphim, too, we are told that they had six wings, and that with two of them they covered their face, and with two their feet, and with two they flew (Isaiah 6:2). Seraphim likewise symbolize the Word, or more accurately doctrine drawn from the Word. The wings with which they covered their faces and feet likewise symbolize protections. And the wings with which they flew symbolize powers, as before.

That flying symbolizes to perceive and teach, and in the highest sense to foresee and provide, is clear as well from the following:

(God) rode upon a cherub, He flew, and He traveled on the wings of the wind. (Psalms 18:10, cf. 2 Samuel 22:11)

I saw (an) angel flying through the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel... (Revelation 14:6)

[3] That wings symbolize protections is apparent from the following:

(Jehovah) covers you under His wing. (Psalms 91:4)

(To be hidden) under the shadow of (God's) wings... (Psalms 17:8)

(To trust) in the shadow of (His) wings. (Psalms 36:7; 57:1, cf. 63:7)

I spread My wing over you and covered your nakedness. (Ezekiel 16:8)

To you (shall be) healing in His wings. (Malachi 4:2)

As an eagle stirs up its nest, hovers over its young, spreading out its wings..., carrying them on its wings, so Jehovah... leads him... (Deuteronomy 32:11-12)

(Jesus said,) "O Jerusalem...! How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings... (Matthew 23:37, Luke 13:34)

  
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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.

Komentář

 

Israel

  

'The children of Israel,' in Isaiah 14:2, signify the Gentiles.

In Jeremiah 23:8, 'Israel' represents the spiritual natural church.

(Odkazy: Apocalypse Explained 768; Isaiah 2, 14; Jeremiah 8, 23)