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Genesis 17

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1 And Abram was a son of ninety years and nine years; and Jehovah appeared to Abram, and said to him, I am God Shaddai*; walk thou before Me, and be thou perfect.

2 And I will give My covenant between Me and thee, and will multiply thee very exceedingly.

3 And Abram fell on his faces; and God spoke with him saying:

4 I, behold, My covenant is with thee, and thou shalt be for a father of a multitude of nations.

5 And thy name shall no more be called Abram; and thy name shall be Abraham, for as the father of a multitude of nations have I given thee.

6 And I will make· thee ·fruitful very exceedingly, and I will make thee into nations, and kings shall go·​·out from thee.

7 And I will raise·​·up My covenant between Me and thee and thy seed after thee, to their generations, for an eternal covenant, to be to thee for God, and to thy seed after thee.

8 And I will give to thee, and to thy seed after thee, the land of thy sojournings, all the land of Canaan, for an eternal possession; and I will be to them for God.

9 And God said to Abraham, And thou shalt keep My covenant, thou and thy seed after thee, to their generations.

10 This is My covenant, which you shall keep, between Me and you and thy seed after thee: every male shall be circumcised to you.

11 And you shall cut·​·off the flesh of your foreskin, and it shall be for a sign of a covenant between Me and you.

12 And a son of eight days shall be circumcised to you, every male in your generations, he that is born of the house, and he that is bought with silver from every son of a foreigner who is not of thy seed.

13 Circumcising he shall be circumcised that is born in thy house, and he that is bought with thy silver; and My covenant shall be in your flesh for an eternal covenant.

14 And the uncircumcised male, who is not circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin, that soul shall be cut·​·off from his peoples; he has made· My covenant ·of·​·none·​·effect.

15 And God said to Abraham, Sarai thy wife, thou shalt not call her name Sarai, for Sarah is her name.

16 And I will bless her, and will also give to thee a son from her; and I will bless her, and she shall be for nations; kings of peoples shall be from her.

17 And Abraham fell upon his faces, and laughed, and said in his heart, Shall one be·​·born to a son of a hundred years? And shall Sarah, who is a daughter of ninety years, give·​·birth?

18 And Abraham said to God, Would·​·that Ishmael might live before Thee!

19 And God said, Indeed Sarah, thy wife, shall give·​·birth to a son for thee, and thou shalt call his name Isaac; and I will raise·​·up My covenant with him for an eternal covenant, to his seed after him.

20 And as for Ishmael, I have heard thee; behold I will bless him, and will make· him ·fruitful, and will multiply him very exceedingly; twelve chiefs shall he beget, and I will make him into a great nation.

21 And My covenant will I raise·​·up with Isaac, to whom Sarah shall give·​·birth for thee at this appointed·​·time in the year after.

22 And He completed speaking with him; and God went·​·up from over Abraham.

23 And Abraham took Ishmael his son, and all that were born in his house, and all that were bought with his silver, every male among the men of Abraham’s house, and circumcised the flesh of their foreskin in this same day, as God spoke with him.

24 And Abraham was a son of ninety and nine years, when he was circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin.

25 And Ishmael his son was a son of thirteen years, when he was circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin.

26 In this same day was Abraham circumcised, and Ishmael his son.

27 And all the men of his house, he that was born in the house, and he that was bought with silver from the son of a foreigner, were circumcised with him.

   


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

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Arcana Coelestia # 2054

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2054. 'As an eternal covenant' means conjunction. This is clear from the meaning of 'a covenant' as conjunction, dealt with already. The subject here being those inside the Church, the word 'covenant' is repeated, though this time it is called 'an eternal covenant'. It is repeated not only because it is absolutely vital for people inside the Church to be circumcised, that is, to be purified from self-love and love of the world, as shown above in 2051, but also because the conjunction of the Lord and of His heaven with those inside the Church is the closest of all since it is effected through the goods and truths of faith. There is, it is true, a conjunction as well with those outside the Church, but that is more remote because the goods and truths of faith do not exist with them, as stated above in 2049. In the Lord's kingdom the Church is like the heart and lungs in man. Man's interior things are joined to those that are external by means of the heart and lungs, and in this way all the surrounding organs get their life. So it is with the human race as well. The conjunction of the Lord and of His heaven is closest with the Church, but more remote with those outside the Church who are like the organs which live by means of the heart and lungs. Celestial people resemble the heart, but spiritual people the lungs. The necessity for both of these to be purified is the reason why those inside the Church are dealt with specifically here and why the covenant is referred to twice.

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