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Hosea 9

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1 Ne gxoju, ho Izrael, ne estu gaja, kiel la popoloj, cxar vi malcxaste forigxis de via Dio, vi preferas proamajxajn donacojn ol cxiujn grenejojn plenajn de greno.

2 Tial drasxejo kaj vinpremejo ne nutros ilin, la mosto mankos en gxi.

3 Ili ne logxos en la lando de la Eternulo; Efraim revenos en Egiptujon, kaj en Asirio ili mangxos malpurajxon.

4 Ili ne versxoferos al la Eternulo vinon, kaj ne estos agrablaj al Li; iliaj oferoj estos kiel pano de suferantoj:cxiuj gxiaj mangxantoj farigxos malpuraj; cxar ilia pano devas esti nur por ili mem, gxi ne devas veni en la domon de la Eternulo.

5 Kion vi faros en la tago de solena kunveno kaj en la tago de festo de la Eternulo?

6 CXar vidu, ili forkuras de malfelicxo; Egiptujo ilin kolektos, Memfis ilin enterigos; sur la loko, kie trovigxis iliaj amataj argxentajxoj, kreskos urtiko, dornoj estos en iliaj tendoj.

7 Venis la tempo de punvizito, Venis la tagoj de repago; Izrael ekscios, cxu malsagxa estis la profeto, cxu freneza estis la viro inspirita, parolante pri viaj multaj malbonagoj kaj pri la granda malboneco.

8 La gardisto de Efraim estis antauxe kun mia Dio; nun profeto metas kaptilojn sur cxiuj liaj vojoj, kaj malamo estas en la domo de lia Dio.

9 Profunde ili malbonigxis, kiel en la tagoj de Gibea; Li rememoros iliajn malbonagojn, Li punos iliajn pekojn.

10 Kiel vinberojn en la dezerto Mi trovis Izraelon; kiel unuan frukton sur la figarbo en la komenco de gxia matureco Mi vidis viajn patrojn; sed ili iris al Baal-Peor, kaj konsekris sin al la hontindajxo, kaj farigxis abomeninduloj, kiel ilia amato.

11 La honoro de Efraim forflugos kiel birdo; ne estos nasko, nek gravedeco, nek gravedigxo.

12 Kaj se ili ecx edukus siajn infanojn, Mi tamen seninfanigos ilin, ke ili ne havu homojn; cxar ve al ili, kiam Mi forigos Min de ili.

13 Efraim, kiel Mi vidas, estas plantita sur bela loko, kiel Tiro; tamen Efraim elirigos siajn infanojn al la mortiganto.

14 Donu al ili, ho Eternulo, tion, kion Vi promesis doni; Donu al ili ventron aborteman kaj mamojn sekigxintajn.

15 Ilia tuta malboneco estas en Gilgal; tie Mi ekmalamis ilin; pro iliaj malbonaj agoj Mi elpelos ilin el Mia domo; Mi ne plu amos ilin; cxiuj iliaj princoj estas defalintoj.

16 Efraim estas batita; ilia radiko sekigxis; ili ne plu donos fruktojn; ecx se ili naskos, Mi mortigos la karan frukton de ilia ventro.

17 Mia Dio ilin forpusxos, cxar ili ne auxskultis Lin; kaj ili vagados inter la nacioj.

   

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Sacred Scripture # 79

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79. There are many passages in the prophets about our understanding of the Word, passages about the church, where it tells us that the church exists only where the Word is properly understood, and that the quality of a church depends on the quality of the understanding of the Word among its members. There are also many passages in the prophets that describe the church among the Israelite and Jewish people, a church that was utterly destroyed and annihilated by the distortion of the Word’s meaning or message, for this is exactly what destroys a church.

[2] The name Ephraim in the prophets, especially in Hosea, symbolizes both true and false understandings of the Word, because Ephraim in the Word means the understanding of the Word in the church. It is because the understanding of the Word makes a church that Ephraim is called “a precious child, and one born of delights” (Jeremiah 31:20), “the firstborn” (Jeremiah 31:9), “the strength of Jehovah’s head” (Psalms 60:7; 108:8), “powerful” (Zechariah 10:7), and “filled with a bow” (Zechariah 9:13); and the children of Ephraim are called “armed” and “bow-shooters” (Psalms 78:9). The bow means a body of teaching from the Word fighting against what is false.

So too, Ephraim was transferred to the right of Israel and blessed, and accepted in place of Reuben (Genesis 48:5, 11, and following; [1 Chronicles 5:1]). And therefore Ephraim, together with his brother Manasseh, was exalted over all by Moses in his blessing of the children of Israel in the name of their father Joseph (Deuteronomy 33:13-17).

[3] The prophets, especially Hosea, also use “Ephraim” to describe what the church is like when its understanding of the Word has been lost, as we can see from the following:

Israel and Ephraim will stumble. Ephraim will be desolate. Ephraim is oppressed and broken in judgment. I will be like a lion to Ephraim: I will tear them and leave; I will carry them off and no one will rescue them. (Hosea 5:5, 9, 11, 14)

What shall I do to you, Ephraim? Your holiness goes away like a cloud at dawn and like the morning dew that falls. (Hosea 6:4)

[4] They will not dwell in the land of Jehovah: Ephraim will go back to Egypt and will eat what is unclean in Assyria. (Hosea 9:3)

The land of Jehovah is the church, Egypt is the preoccupation of the earthly self with mere facts, and Assyria is rationalizing based on those facts; all of which lead to distortion of the Word in regard to the way it is understood. That is why it says that Ephraim will go back to Egypt and will eat what is unclean in Assyria.

[5] Ephraim feeds on the wind and chases the east wind. Every day he increases lies and devastation. He makes a covenant with Assyria, and oil is carried down into Egypt. (Hosea 12:1)

To feed on the wind, chase the east wind, and increase lies and devastation is to distort what is true and in this way destroy the church.

[6] Much the same is also meant by Ephraim’s whoredom, since whoredom means distortion of the way the Word is understood - that is, distortion of its genuine truth. See the following passages:

I know Ephraim; he has committed whoredom in every way and Israel has been defiled. (Hosea 5:3)

I have seen something foul in the house of Israel: Ephraim has committed whoredom there, and Israel has been defiled. (Hosea 6:10)

Israel is the church itself and Ephraim is the understanding of the Word that is the source of the church and that determines its quality, so it says that Ephraim has committed whoredom and Israel has been defiled.

[7] Since the church among Jews had been completely destroyed because of its distortions, it says of Ephraim,

Am I to give you up, Ephraim? Am I to hand you over, Israel? Like Admah? Shall I make you like Zeboiim? (Hosea 11:8)

Since the book of the prophet Hosea, from the first chapter to the last, is about the distortion of the Word and the consequent destruction of the church, and since whoredom means the distortion of truth in the church, the prophet was commanded to represent that state of the church by taking a whore as his wife and fathering children by her (chapter 1); and also by forming a relationship with a woman who was committing adultery (chapter 3).

[8] These instances have been presented so that readers may know and be assured from the Word that the quality of a church depends on the quality of the understanding of the Word in it - outstanding and priceless if its understanding comes from genuine truths from the Word, but in ruins, actually filthy, if it comes from distortions.

For further evidence that Ephraim means the understanding of the Word, and in its opposite sense a distorted understanding leading to the destruction of the church, you may check some other passages that deal with Ephraim: Hosea 4:17-18; 7:1, 11; 8:9, 11; 9:11-13, 16; 10:11; 11:3; 12:1, 8, 14; 13:1, 8, 14; Isaiah 17:3; 28:1; Jeremiah 4:15; 31:6, 18; 50:19; Ezekiel 37:16; 48:5; Obadiah verse 19; Zechariah 9:10.

  
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Thanks to the Swedenborg Foundation for their permission to use this translation.