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Deuteronomy 33

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1 And this is the blessing with which Moses the man of God blessed the sons of Israel before his death.

2 And he said, Jehovah came from Sinai, and rose from Seir to them; He shone·​·forth from Mount Paran, and He came with a myriad of the holy ones; from His right·​·hand went a fire·​·of·​·law for them;

3 Yea, He loves the peoples. All His holy ones are in Thy hand, and they were prostrated at Thy feet; every one shall receive* of Thy words.*

4 Moses commanded us a law, even the possession of the assembly of Jacob.

5 And he was king in Jeshurun, when the heads of the people and the tribes of Israel were gathered together.

6 Let Reuben live, and not die; but his mortals will be few in number*.

7 And this is the blessing for Judah; and he said, Hear, Jehovah, the voice of Judah, and bring him to his people: let his hands be many for him; and be Thou a help to him from his adversaries.

8 And for Levi he said, Let thy Thummim and thine Urim be with thy merciful* Man, whom thou didst tempt at Massah*, and with whom thou didst strive by the waters of Meribah*;

9 who said to his father and to his mother, I have not seen him*; neither did he acknowledge his brothers, nor did he know his sons; for they have kept what· Thou ·sayest, and observed Thy covenant.

10 They shall instruct Jacob in Thy judgments, and Israel in Thy law; they shall set incense into Thy nose, and a whole·​·burnt·​·offering on Thine altar.

11 Jehovah, bless his force, and be·​·well·​·pleased with the work of his hands; strike the loins of those who rise·​·up against him and hate him, so that they rise· not ·up again.

12 For Benjamin he said, The beloved of Jehovah shall abide securely in Him; He shall cover· him ·over all the day, and between His shoulders he shall abide.

13 And for Joseph he said, Blessed of Jehovah be his land, for the precious·​·things of the heavens, for the dew, and for the abyss that coucheth beneath,

14 and for the precious·​·things of increase from the sun, and for the precious·​·things produced by the months,

15 and for the beginnings of the ancient mountains, and for the precious·​·things of the eternal hills,

16 and for the precious·​·things of the earth and her fullness, and for the good·​·pleasure of Him who inhabits the bramble; let it come to the head of Joseph, and to the top·​·of·​·the·​·head of the Nazarite* of his brothers.

17 The firstborn of his ox is honor for him, and horns of the unicorn are his horns; with them he shall charge·​·at the peoples as·​·one to the ends of the earth; and they are the myriads of Ephraim, and they are the thousands of Manasseh.

18 And for Zebulun he said, Be·​·glad, Zebulun, in thy going out; and, Issachar, in thy tents.

19 They shall call the peoples into the mountain; there they shall sacrifice sacrifices of justice; for they shall nurse on the abundance of the seas, and on a cache concealed by the sand.

20 And for Gad he said, Blessed be he that enlarges Gad; he abides as an old·​·lion, and tears the arm, yea, the top·​·of·​·the·​·head.

21 And he saw the first·​·parts for himself, because there was a part of the hidden* lawgiver, and thus came the heads of the people; he did the justice of Jehovah, and His judgments with Israel.

22 And for Dan he said, Dan is a lion’s whelp; he shall pounce from Bashan.

23 And for Naphtali he said, O Naphtali, satiated with good·​·pleasure, and full with the blessing of Jehovah; possess thou the west and the south.

24 And for Asher he said, Let Asher be blessed with sons; let him be well·​·pleasing to his brothers, and let him dip his foot in oil.

25 Thy shoe shall be iron and bronze; and as thy days, so shall be thy renown.

26 There is none like to the God of Jeshurun, who rides upon the heavens in thy help, and in His excellence on the higher·​·clouds.

27 The ancient God is thine abode, and beneath are the eternal arms; and He shall drive·​·out the enemy from before thee; and shall say, Blot· them ·out.

28 And Israel shall securely inhabit alone; the fount of Jacob shall be upon a land of grain and must*; also his heavens shall drip dew.

29 Happy art thou, O Israel; who is like to thee, O people saved by Jehovah, the Shield of thy help, and He who is the Sword of thine excellence! and thine enemies to thee shall be denied, and thou shalt tread on their high·​·places.

   


Thanks to the Kempton Project for the permission to use this New Church translation of the Word.

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Arcana Coelestia # 1788

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1788. That 'a shield' means protection against evils and falsities which is able to be trusted is clear without explanation, for repeated usage has made the saying familiar that 'Jehovah is a shield and buckler'. But what is meant specifically by 'a shield' becomes clear from the Word, namely that in reference to the Lord it means protection, and in reference to man trust in the Lord's protection. As 'war' means temptations, as shown in 1664, so every implement of war means some specific aspect of temptation and of defence against evils and falsities, that is, against the devil's crew who bring temptation about and do the tempting. Consequently 'shield' means one thing, 'buckler' another, 'target' another, 'helmet' another, 'spear' and also 'javelin' another, 'sword' another, 'bow and arrows' another, and 'breastplate' another. In the Lord's Divine mercy these will be dealt with individually later on.

[2] The reason why in reference to the Lord 'a shield' means protection against evils and falsities, and in reference to man trust in the Lord, is that it was a means of protection to the breast, and 'the breast' meant good and truth - good because the heart is within it, and truth because the lungs are within it. That 'a shield' has this meaning is clear in David,

Blessed be Jehovah my rock who trains my hands for battle and my fingers for war; my mercy, and my fortress, my stronghold and my deliverer, my shield and He in whom I trust. Psalms 144:1-2.

Here 'battle' and 'war' are the battle and war of temptations, and in the internal sense, of the Lord's temptations. 'A shield' in reference to Jehovah is protection, and in reference to man trust, as is quite evident.

[3] In the same author,

O Israel, trust in Jehovah! He is their help and their shield. O house of Aaron, trust in Jehovah! He is their help and their shield. You who fear Jehovah, trust in Jehovah! He is their help and their shield. Psalms 115:9-11.

Here the meaning is similar. In the same author,

Jehovah is my fortress, my God in whom I will trust. He will cover you with His wing, and under His wings will you put your trust. His truth is a buckler and target. Psalms 91:2, 4.

Here 'buckler and target' stands for protection against falsities.

[4] In the same author,

Jehovah is my rock (petra) and my fortress, and my deliverer, my God, my rock (rupee) in whom I trust, my shield and the horn of my salvation. Jehovah is a shield for all who trust in Him. Psalms 18:2, 30.

Here the meaning is similar. In the same author,

You who test the heart 1 and reins, a righteous God; my shield is with God who saves the upright in heart. Isaiah 7:9, 10.

'Shield' stands for trust. In the same author,

You have given me the shield of Your salvation, and Your right hand will support me. Psalms 18:35.

'Shield' stands for trust.

[5] In the same author,

The shields of the earth belong to God; He is highly exalted. Psalms 47:9.

'Shields' stands for trust. In the same author,

Jehovah God is a sun and shield; grace and glory will Jehovah give; no good thing will be withheld from those walking blamelessly. Psalms 84:11.

'Shield' stands for protection. In Moses,

Your blessings, O Israel! Who is like you, a people saved in Jehovah, the shield of your help, and One who is the sword of your excellency! Your enemies will be mistaken in regard to you. Deuteronomy 33:29.

'Shield' stands for protection.

[6] Even as weapons of war are attributed to those engaged in conflicts brought about by temptations, so also are the same weapons attributed to the enemies assailing and tempting. When attributed to the latter, the contrary meanings held by those weapons is being expressed; for example, 'a shield' in this case means the evils and falsities from which those enemies fight, and which they defend, and in which they put their trust, as in Jeremiah,

Prepare shield and buckler, and advance for battle. Harness the horses, and mount, O horsemen! Take up your stations in your helmets, polish your lances, put on your breastplates. Jeremiah 46:3-4.

There are many more examples besides these.

Poznámky pod čarou:

1. literally, hearts

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