162. Internal Meaning of Ezekiel, Chapter 39

1-6 Those who are in the mere sense of the letter and in external worship, will come into the church, but will perish. These are meant by Gog. (2)

7-8 This will take place when the Lord comes and establishes the church. (3, 1)

9-10 This church will then disperse all the evils and falsities of such, (3)

11-16 and will wholly destroy them. (3, 16)

17-22 The new church that will be established by the Lord will be imbued with goods of all kinds, (11)

23-24 and the former church will be destroyed because of evils and falsities. (3)

25-29 The Lord will then gather together a church from all nations. (11)

On a natural level, there are a variety of things that can cause shame. We might be ashamed of physical weakness or ugliness; we might be ashamed of a lack of education or a menial job; we might be ashamed of a dirty house or a misbehaving child. On a deeper level we would be ashamed to have people know our dark thoughts and unspoken desires. All of these have to do with our failings, our sense of not being good enough. And so it is in the Bible, where "shame" represents a knowledge and acknowledgement of our own evil, its hold on us and the delight we take in it.