Bible

 

에스겔 39:5

Studie

       

5 네가 빈들에 엎드러지리라 이는 내가 말하였음이니라 나 주 여호와의 말이니라

Ze Swedenborgových děl

 

Arcana Coelestia # 5585

Prostudujte si tuto pasáž

  
/ 10837  
  

5585. 'Saying, You will not see my face' means that no compassion will show itself. This is clear from the meaning of 'face', when used in reference to a person, as his interiors, that is to say, his affections and consequent thoughts, dealt with in 358, 1999, 2434, 3527, 3573, 4066, 4796, 4797, 5102. But when used in reference to the Lord, for the Lord is represented in the highest sense by 'Joseph', 'face' means mercy and compassion, and therefore 'not seeing his face' means a lack of mercy or absence of compassion. Not that the Lord lacks any compassion, for He is pure mercy; but when the intermediary that effects the joining to Him is not present it does seem to a person as though there is no compassion in the Lord. The reason for this is that if no intermediary effecting the joining together is present, no acceptance of good takes place. And if there is no acceptance of good, evil is present instead. If at this time the person calls out to the Lord because evil prompts him to do so, thus for selfish reasons in defiance of anyone else's needs, he is not heard, in which case it seems as though no compassion shows itself.

[2] As regards 'Jehovah's (or the Lord's) face' meaning mercy, this is evident from the Word; for understood properly 'Jehovah's (or the Lord's) face' is Divine love itself, and being Divine love it is the face of mercy since mercy is the expression of love towards the human race set in such miseries. The truth that 'Jehovah's (or the Lord's) face' is Divine Love may be seen from the Lord's face when He was transfigured in the presence of Peter, James, and John; that is, when He displayed His Divinity to them,

His face shone like the sun. Matthew 17:2.

It has been shown already that 'the sun' is Divine Love, see 30-38, 1521, 1529-1531, 2441, 2495, 3636, 3643, 4060, 4321 (end), 4696. The Lord's actual Divinity had never previously appeared in any face; but His Divine Human had so appeared, through which, seemingly within which, Divine Love - which in relation to the human race is Divine Mercy - showed itself. This Divine Mercy within the Divine Human is called 'the angel of His face' in Isaiah,

I will cause the mercies of Jehovah to be remembered. He has rewarded 1 them according to His mercies, and according to the abundance of His mercies; and He became their Saviour. And the angel of His face saved them; in His love and in His pity He redeemed them. Isaiah 63:7-9.

The expression 'the angel' is used because 'angels' in the Word means in the internal sense some attribute of the Lord, 1925, 2821, 4085, in this case His mercy, which is why the phrase 'the angel of His face' is used.

[3] 'Jehovah's (or the Lord's) face' is not only mercy but also peace and goodness since these are attributes of mercy, as may also be seen from the following places: In the Blessing,

Jehovah make His face shine upon you and be merciful to you. Jehovah lift up His face upon you and give you peace. Numbers 6:25-26.

Here it is quite evident that 'making His face shine' means showing mercy, and 'lifting up His face' means granting His peace. In David,

God be merciful to us and bless us, and make His face shine upon us. Psalms 67:1.

Here also 'face' stands for mercy. In the same author,

Turn us back, O God, and make Your face shine, that we may be saved. Psalms 80:3, 7, 19.

Here the meaning is similar. In the same author,

Deliver me from the hand of my enemies and my pursuers. Make Your face shine upon Your servant. Psalms 31:15-16.

Likewise in Psalms 119:134-135. In Daniel,

Hear, our God, the prayer of Your servant, and his supplications, and make Your face shine upon Your sanctuary that has been made desolate. Daniel 9:17.

Here also 'making His face shine' stands for showing mercy.

[4] In David,

Many are saying, Who will cause us to see good? Lift up the light of Your face upon us. Psalms 4:6-7.

'Lifting up the light of His face' stands for His imparting good because of His mercy. In Hosea,

Let them seek My face; when they are in distress, in the morning let them seek Me. Hosea 5:15.

In David,

Seek My face! Your face, O Jehovah, will I seek. Psalms 27:8-9.

In the same author,

Seek Jehovah and His strength; seek His face continually. Psalms 105:4.

'Seeking Jehovah's face' stands for seeking His mercy. In the same author,

I, in righteousness, shall see Your face. Psalms 17:15.

And in Matthew,

See that you do not despise any of these tiny ones; for I say to you that their angels in heaven always see the face of My Father who is in heaven. Matthew 18:10.

'Seeing God's face' stands for the enjoyment of peace and good because of His mercy.

[5] But the contrary of this is the hiding or concealment and also the turning away of the face, by which showing no compassion is meant, as in Isaiah,

In an overflowing of My anger I hid My face from you for a moment; but with eternal mercy I will have mercy on you. Isaiah 54:8.

'An overflowing of anger' stands for temptation in which, because the Lord does not seem to show mercy, the words 'I hid My face from you for a moment' are used. In Ezekiel,

I will turn My face away from them. Ezekiel 7:22.

In David,

How long, O Jehovah, will You forget me [as if] for ever? How long will You hide Your face from me? Psalms 13:1

In the same author,

Do not hide Your face from me; do not cast aside Your servant in anger. Psalms 17:8, 9.

In the same author,

Why, O Jehovah, do You abandon my soul? Why do You hide Your face from me? Psalms 88:14.

In the same author,

Make haste, answer me, O Jehovah. MY spirit is consumed. Do not hide Your face from me, lest I become like those going down into the pit. Cause me to hear Your mercy in the morning. Psalms 143:7-8.

And in Moses,

My anger will flare up against this people on that day, so that I forsake them, and I will hide My face from them, and they will be devoured. I will certainly hide My face on that day, because of all the evil which they have done. Deuteronomy 31:17-18.

'Anger flaring up' stands for turning oneself away, 5034, and 'hiding one's face' for not showing any compassion.

[6] These actions are attributed to Jehovah or the Lord, for the reason that although He is never angry and never turns away or hides His face He is said to do so because that is how it seems to someone under the influence of evil. For the person under the influence of evil turns himself away and hides the Lord's face from himself; that is, he removes His mercy from himself. The fact that it is the evils present with a person that do this is also clear from the Word, as in Micah,

Jehovah will hide His face from them at that time, inasmuch as they have rendered their deeds evil. Micah 3:4.

In Ezekiel,

Because they transgressed against Me, therefore I hid My face from them. According to their uncleanness and according to their transgressions I have dealt with them and have hidden My face from them. Ezekiel 39:23-24.

In particular in Isaiah,

Your iniquities are what separate you from your God, and your sins what cause. His face to hide from you. Isaiah 59:2.

From these and many other places one may see the internal sense, which shows itself in various places and is discovered by one who is looking for it.

Poznámky pod čarou:

1. Reading retribuit (has rewarded), which Swedenborg has in his rough draft and also in 221, for retribuet (will reward)

  
/ 10837  
  

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

Ze Swedenborgových děl

 

Arcana Coelestia # 9297

Prostudujte si tuto pasáž

  
/ 10837  
  

9297. 'Three times in the year all your males shall be seen at the face of the Lord Jehovah' means the Lord's constant appearance and presence in like manner in the truths of faith as well. This is clear from the meaning of 'three times in the year' as complete and continuous, dealt with in 4495, 9198; from the meaning of 'being seen' as appearance and presence, dealt with in 4198, 5975, 6893; from the meaning of 'males' as the truth of faith, dealt with in 2046, 7838; and from the meaning of 'face', when attributed to Jehovah or the Lord, as the Divine Good of Divine Love, which is Mercy, dealt with in 222, 223, 5585, 7599. And since the Divine Good of Divine Love is Jehovah or the Lord Himself, 'being seen at the face of the Lord Jehovah' has the same meaning as being seen by the Lord. The Lord is indeed One who sees a person and establishes His presence with him, enabling the person to see Him; thus no one sees the Lord from himself but from the Lord present with him.

[2] How to understand the Lord's constant appearance and presence in the truths of faith as well must be stated briefly. The Lord's presence with a person is in the good residing with him, since good composes his life but not truth except in the measure that it derives from good. Consequently, as stated above in 9296, the Lord's dwelling-place is in the good of innocence with a person. When therefore a person has been regenerated the Lord is present not only in the good residing with him but also in the truths deriving from the good; for the truths now receive their life from the good and are the outward form in which good exists and through which the essential nature of the good can be recognized. These truths are what constitute the person's new understanding, which makes one with his new will. For as stated already, all things have connection with truth and with good, and a person's understanding is dedicated to truths, but his will to good, from which the truths derive. From this it is evident how to understand the Lord's appearance and presence then in the truths of faith as well. These are the things that are meant by the requirement that three times in the year every male was to be seen at the face of the Lord Jehovah. The reason why it says 'males shall be seen' is that the truth of faith is meant by 'a male'; and the reason why it says 'at the face of the Lord Jehovah' is that 'Jehovah' means the Divine Being (Esse), and 'the Lord' the Divine Coming-into-Being (Existere) that arises from that Being. Consequently being (esse) on the human level is good, and coming-into-being (existere) that arises from it is truth.

[3] In the Church it is said that faith comes from the Lord; but it should be recognized that faith which is rooted in charity comes from the Lord, not faith separated from charity. Faith separated from charity springs from the self and is called faith that is no more than persuasion, which is dealt with under Teachings About Charity and Faith in the preliminary section of the next chapter. A person can know whether his faith comes from the Lord or from the self, for the faith of anyone who is influenced by truths solely for the sake of a reputation for being learned, which will bring him position and wealth, and not for the sake of leading a good and useful life, is no more than persuasion that comes from the self and not from the Lord.

[4] There are also theoretical truths of faith and there are practical ones. The person who considers theoretical truths for the sake of practical ones and sees how the theoretical fit in with the practical, the person who therefore sees how the two combine to result in a good and useful life and feels an affection for them both with this end in view, he has the faith that comes from the Lord. The reason for this is that the useful life, which is his end in view, consists in the good that resides with him; and it is that life which gives form to all things, the truths of faith being the means. It is transparently evident from those in the next life that this is so. All without exception there are restored to the state of good which was theirs or to the state of evil which was theirs, thus to what had moved them to serve a useful life, that is, to what had been their end in view, or what they had loved above all things and what had therefore been the actual delight of their life. Everyone is restored to this. The truths or the falsities that have made one with that service remain. In addition to these many more are acquired which combine with those truths or falsities, giving the usefulness greater solidity and definite shape. So it is that spirits and angels are the outward forms of whatever use they serve. Evil spirits are forms of evil use; these are in hell. Good spirits or angels are forms of good use; these are in heaven. This also explains why the moment they are present spirits can be recognized for what they are. Their truths of faith can be recognized from their face and from the beautiful way it is shaped. Their actual good, or their usefulness, can also be recognized from the fire of love in their face which enhances its beauty, as well as from the sphere emanating from them. From all this it is again made clear what the Lord's presence in the truths of faith is.

  
/ 10837  
  

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