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Genesis 20

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1 And Abraham journeyed thence toward the land of the south, and dwelt between Kadesh and Shur, and he sojourned in Gerar.

2 And Abraham said of Sarah his wife, She is my sister; and Abimelech king of Gerar sent and took Sarah.

3 And God came to Abimelech in a dream of the night, and said to him, Behold thou wilt·​·die on·​·account·​·of the woman whom thou hast taken, for she is married to a husband.

4 And Abimelech had not come·​·near to her; and he said, Lord, wilt Thou kill also a just nation?

5 Said he not to me, She is my sister? And she herself also Said, He is my brother; in the integrity of my heart and in the innocence of my hands have I done this.

6 And God said to him in the dream, I also know that in the integrity of thy heart thou hast done this; and I also kept· thee ·back from sinning against Me; therefore I did not allow thee to touch her.

7 And now return the wife of the man, for he is a prophet; and he shall pray for thee, and thou shalt live; and if thou return her not, know thou that dying thou shalt die, thou and all that are thine.

8 And Abimelech got·​·up·​·early in the morning, and called all his servants, and spoke all these words in their ears; and the men feared exceedingly.

9 And Abimelech called Abraham, and said to him, What hast thou done to us? And wherein have I sinned against thee that thou hast brought on me and on my kingdom a great sin? Thou hast done with·​·me deeds that ought not to be done.

10 And Abimelech said to Abraham, What sawest thou that thou hast done this word?

11 And Abraham said, Because I said, Surely there is no fear of God in this place, and they will kill me on·​·account·​·of the matter of my wife.

12 And also, truly, she is my sister, being the daughter of my father, only not the daughter of my mother, and she became for me a wife.

13 And it was, as God caused me to depart* from the house of my father, that I said to her, This is thy mercy which thou shalt do with·​·me; at every place whither we shall come, say of me, He is my brother.

14 And Abimelech took flock and herd, and menservants and handmaids, and gave to Abraham; and returned to him Sarah his wife.

15 And Abimelech said, Behold my land is before thee; dwell in that which is good in thine eyes.

16 And to Sarah he said, Behold I have given a thousand of silver to thy brother; behold it is to thee a covering of the eyes to all that are with thee, and with all; and she was vindicated.

17 And Abraham prayed to God, and God healed Abimelech, and his wife, and his maidservants; and they gave·​·birth.

18 For restraining Jehovah had therefore restrained every womb of the house of Abimelech, on·​·account·​·of the word of Sarah, Abraham’s wife.

   


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

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Arcana Coelestia # 2679

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2679. 'And she went and wandered in the wilderness of Beersheba' means a state of wandering from one position to another in matters of doctrine regarding faith. This is clear from the meaning of 'going and wandering in the wilderness' as a state of wandering from one position to another, and from the meaning of 'Beersheba' as the doctrine of faith, dealt with at the end of this chapter, where it is said that Abraham and Abimelech made a covenant in Beersheba, verse 32, and Abraham planted a grove in Beersheba, verse 33. The present verse describes the nature of the state to begin with of those who are being reformed, that is to say, it is a state when they are carried away into various errors. For they are given by the Lord to think much about eternal life, and so to think much about the truths of faith; but because they do so from the proprium, as has been stated, they cannot do other than wander into this position and then into that both in doctrine and in life. Thus they hold to that as being the truth which has been instilled into them since early childhood, or which is impressed on them by others, or which they think out for themselves, quite apart from the consideration that various affections of which they are not aware exist to mislead them. These people are like fruit as yet unripe, to which shape, beauty, and flavour cannot be given in an instant, or like tender blades of corn which are unable to flower or to grow ears in an instant. The ideas however which enter in at that time, even though they are for the most part erroneous, are nevertheless such as may serve to promote growth; and later on when those persons are being reformed, such erroneous ideas are partly separated, and partly are of use in imparting so to speak nourishment and juices to the life that follows. These in turn can be adapted partly to the implantation subsequently of goods and truths by the Lord, and partly to serving as the ultimate planes for spiritual things. Thus they serve continuously as means to reformation, which means follow consecutively in an unbroken chain and order. For every least thing with man is foreseen by the Lord and is provided by Him for his future state which continues for ever. This is done for his own good, to the extent that this is in any way possible and the person allows himself to be led by the Lord.

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