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Ezekiel 34

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1 And the word of Jehovah was unto me, saying,

2 Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel, prophesy, and say to them, Thus says the Lord Jehovih* unto the shepherds, Woe to the shepherds of Israel who are shepherds of themselves! Should not the shepherds pasture the flock?

3 You eat the fat, and you clothe yourselves with the wool, you sacrifice the nourished; but the flock you pasture not.

4 The sick you have not made·​·firm, neither have you healed him who was·​·sick, neither have you bound·​·up him who was broken, neither have you returned him who was expelled, neither have you sought him who was·​·lost; but with firmness and with severity you have had·​·dominion over them.

5 And they were scattered, from being without a shepherd; and they became food for every animal of the field, and they were scattered.

6 My flock wandered in all the mountains, and on every high hill; and My flock was scattered on all the faces of the earth, and none inquired and none sought them.

7 Therefore, ye shepherds, hear the word of Jehovah;

8 As I am alive, says the Lord Jehovih, surely because My flock was for plunder, and My flock was food to every wild·​·animal of the field, because there was no shepherd, neither did My shepherds inquire for My flock, but the shepherds pastured for themselves, and pastured not My flock;

9 therefore, O ye shepherds, hear the word of Jehovah;

10 thus says the Lord Jehovih; Behold, I am against the shepherds; and I will require My flock at their hand, and cause them to cease from pasturing the flock; neither shall the shepherds pasture themselves any·​·more; and I will rescue My flock from their mouth, and they shall not be food for them.

11 For thus says the Lord Jehovih; Behold, I, even I, will then inquire·​·after My flock, and seek· them ·out.

12 As a shepherd is seeking·​·out his drove in the day that he is in the midst of his flock that are exposed*; so will I seek·​·out My flock, and will rescue them from all the places where they have been scattered in the day of cloud and dense·​·darkness.

13 And I will bring· them ·out from the people, and bring· them ·together from the lands, and will bring them to their own ground, and pasture them in the mountains of Israel by the channels, and in all the dwellings of the land.

14 I will pasture them in a good pasture, and upon the high mountains of Israel shall their home be; there shall they lie·​·down in a good home, and in a pasture with·​·oil shall they pasture in the mountains of Israel.

15 I will shepherd My flock, and I will cause them to lie·​·down, says the Lord Jehovih.

16 I will seek him who was lost, and return him who was expelled, and will bind·​·up him who was broken, and will make·​·firm that which was·​·sick; but I will blot·​·out the fat* and the firm; I will pasture them with judgment.

17 And as for you, O My flock, thus says the Lord Jehovih; Behold, I am judging between the animals·​·of·​·the·​·flock*, between the rams and the he-goats.

18 Seems it a·​·little thing for you to have eaten up the good pasture, but must you trample with your feet the remainder of your pastures? And to have drunk of the submerged waters, must you dirty the remainder with your feet?

19 And as for My flock, they eat that which you have trampled with your feet; and they drink what is dirtied with your feet.

20 Therefore thus says the Lord Jehovih unto them; Behold, I, and I will judge between the well·​·fed animal·​·of·​·the·​·flock and between the lean animal·​·of·​·the·​·flock.

21 Because you have pushed with side and with shoulder, and charged·​·at all the sick with your horns, until you have scattered them outside;

22 and I will save My flock, and they shall no more be for plunder; and I will judge between the animals·​·of·​·the·​·flock*.

23 And I will raise·​·up one shepherd over them, and he shall shepherd them, even My servant David; he shall shepherd them, and he shall be their shepherd.

24 And I, Jehovah, will be their God, and My servant David a chief in their midst; I, Jehovah, have spoken.

25 And I will cut for them a covenant of peace, and will cause the evil animals to cease from the land; and they shall dwell securely in the wilderness, and sleep in the forests.

26 And I will put them and the places all around My hill as a blessing; and I will cause the shower to come·​·down in its time; there shall be showers of blessing.

27 And the tree of the field shall give her fruit, and the earth shall give her produce, and they shall be securely on their ground, and shall know that I am Jehovah, when I have broken the braces of their yoke, and rescued them from the hand of those who served themselves on them.

28 And they shall no more be plunder to the nations, neither shall the wild·​·animal of the land devour them; but they shall dwell securely, and none shall frighten them.

29 And I will raise·​·up for them a plant for a name, and they shall be no more consumed* by famine in the land, and they shall no more bear the humiliation of the nations.

30 And they shall know that I, Jehovah their God, am with them, and that they, even the house of Israel, are My people, says the Lord Jehovih.

31 And you are My flock, the flock of My pasture; you are man, and I am your God, says the Lord Jehovih.

   


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

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Apocalypse Explained # 482

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482. Verse 17. For the Lamb who is in the midst of the throne shall feed them, signifies that the Lord will instruct them out of heaven. This is evident from the signification of "the Lamb," as being the Lord in relation to Divine truth (of which see above, n. 297, 343, 464); also from the signification of "throne," as being heaven (of which also above, n. 253; "in the midst of the throne" signifies in the universal heaven, for "in the midst" signifies in each and every thing, that is, in the whole, see above, n. 213; also from the signification of "to feed" as being to instruct (of which presently). This makes evident that "the Lamb who is in the midst of the throne shall feed them" signifies that the Lord will instruct them out of heaven. It is here said, "the Lamb who is in the midst of the throne shall feed them," and above, "He who sitteth on the throne shall dwell over them" which makes it very clear that it is the Lord who is meant both by "He who sitteth on the throne," and by "the Lamb in the midst of the throne," but "He who sitteth on the throne" means the Lord in relation to Divine good, and "the Lamb in the midst of the throne" means the Lord in relation to Divine truth; for "to dwell," which is said of Him that sitteth upon the throne, is predicated of good (See above, n. 470); and "to feed," which is said of the Lamb, is predicated of truths; for "to feed" signifies to instruct in truths.

[2] In the Word of the Old Testament mention is frequently made of "Jehovah" and "God," also of "Jehovah" and "the Holy One of Israel," and both mean the Lord alone, "Jehovah" the Lord in relation to Divine good, and "God" and "the Holy One of Israel" the Lord in relation to Divine truth; it is thus said because of the marriage of Divine good and Divine truth in every particular of the Word. That "to feed" signifies to instruct can be seen without further explanation, since it is a custom derived from the Word to call those who teach "pastors" (or feeders), and those who are instructed "a flock;" but why they are so called is not yet known, and shall therefore be told. In heaven where all things that appear before the eyes are representative, representing under a natural appearance the spiritual things that angels think and by which they are affected; thus are their thoughts and affections presented before their eyes in such forms as exist in the world, that is, in forms similar to natural things, and this by virtue of the correspondence that is established by the Lord between spiritual things and natural. (This correspondence has been treated of in many places; also in the work Heaven and Hell, n. 87-102, and 103-115.) It is from this correspondence that in heaven flocks of sheep, lambs, and goats appear feeding in green pastures, and also in gardens; and these appearances spring from the thoughts of those who are in the goods and truths of the church, and who from these think intelligently and wisely. It is from this that mention is so often made in the Word of "flock," "pasture," as also of "feeding," and "feeder" (or shepherd); for the Word in the letter consists of such things as appear in heaven before the eyes, and these signify correspondent spiritual things.

[3] As it is known in the church that "to feed" signifies to instruct, "pasture" instruction, and "shepherd" an instructor, a few passages only in which "feeding" and "pasture" are mentioned shall be quoted without further explanation. In Isaiah:

In that day shall thy cattle feed in a broad meadow (Isaiah 30:23).

He shall feed His flock like a shepherd; He shall gather the lambs into His arm, and shall gently lead them that give suck (Isaiah 40:11).

He shall say to the bound, Go forth; to them that are in darkness, Reveal yourselves. They shall feed upon the ways, and in all the bare hills shall be their pasture (Isaiah 49:9).

In Jeremiah:

Against the shepherds that feed My people, ye have scattered My flock. Because of cursing the land mourneth; the pastures of the desert are dried up (Jeremiah 23:2, 10).

He shall feed Israel on Carmel and Bashan (Jeremiah 50:19).

In Ezekiel:

I will seek My flock and I will search them out. I will feed them upon the mountains of Israel by the watercourses, and in all the inhabited places of the land. I will feed them in a good pasture, and upon the mountains of the height of Israel shall their sheepcote be; there shall they lie down in a good sheepcote, and in a fat pasture shall they feed upon the mountains of Israel (Ezekiel 34:11, 13, 14).

In Hosea:

I did know thee 1 in the wilderness, in a land of drought; where they had pasture (Hosea 13:5, 6).

In Joel:

The droves of cattle are perplexed, because they have no pasture; and the droves of sheep are made desolate (Joel 1:18).

In Micah:

Out of Bethlehem of Ephrathah shall go forth one who shall stand and feed in the strength of Jehovah (Micah 5:2, 4).

Feed Thy people with Thy rod, the flock of Thine heritage; they shall feed in Bashan and Gilead (Micah 7:14).

In Zephaniah:

The remnants of Israel shall feed and lie down (Zephaniah 3:13).

In David:

Jehovah is my Shepherd, I shall not want; He will make me to lie down in pastures of herbage (Psalms 23:1, 2).

The Lord chose David; from following the ewes giving suck He brought him to feed Jacob His people, and Israel His inheritance; and he fed them in the integrity of his heart (Psalms 78:70-72).

Jehovah hath made us His people, and the flock of His pasture [keri]. Therefore we are His people and the flock of His pasture (Psalms 100:3).

In John:

Jesus said to Peter, Lovest thou Me? He said that he loved Him. He said unto him, Feed My lambs. He said a second time, Feed My sheep. Again He said a third time, Feed My sheep (John 21:15-17).

Also in many other passages, in which "to feed" signifies to instruct in truths, and "pasture" truths in which they are instructed.

Poznámky pod čarou:

1. The photolithograph has "them," but cf. AE 780; AC 6078.

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