Bible

 

Judges 7

Studie

   

1 καὶ ὤρθρισεν ιαρβαλ αὐτός ἐστιν γεδεων καὶ πᾶς ὁ λαὸς μετ' αὐτοῦ καὶ παρενέβαλον ἐπὶ πηγὴν αραδ καὶ παρεμβολὴ μαδιαμ ἦν αὐτῷ ἀπὸ βορρᾶ ἀπὸ γαβααθ αμωρα ἐν κοιλάδι

2 καὶ εἶπεν κύριος πρὸς γεδεων πολὺς ὁ λαὸς ὁ μετὰ σοῦ ὥστε μὴ παραδοῦναί με τὴν μαδιαμ ἐν χειρὶ αὐτῶν μήποτε καυχήσηται ισραηλ ἐπ' ἐμὲ λέγων ἡ χείρ μου ἔσωσέν με

3 καὶ νῦν λάλησον δὴ ἐν ὠσὶν τοῦ λαοῦ λέγων τίς ὁ φοβούμενος καὶ δειλός ἐπιστρεφέτω καὶ ἐκχωρείτω ἀπὸ ὄρους γαλααδ καὶ ἐπέστρεψεν ἀπὸ τοῦ λαοῦ εἴκοσι καὶ δύο χιλιάδες καὶ δέκα χιλιάδες ὑπελείφθησαν

4 καὶ εἶπεν κύριος πρὸς γεδεων ἔτι ὁ λαὸς πολύς κατένεγκον αὐτοὺς πρὸς τὸ ὕδωρ καὶ ἐκκαθαρῶ σοι αὐτὸν ἐκεῖ καὶ ἔσται ὃν ἐὰν εἴπω πρὸς σέ οὗτος πορεύσεται σὺν σοί αὐτὸς πορεύσεται σὺν σοί καὶ πᾶν ὃν ἐὰν εἴπω πρὸς σέ οὗτος οὐ πορεύσεται μετὰ σοῦ αὐτὸς οὐ πορεύσεται μετὰ σοῦ

5 καὶ κατήνεγκεν τὸν λαὸν πρὸς τὸ ὕδωρ καὶ εἶπεν κύριος πρὸς γεδεων πᾶς ὃς ἂν λάψῃ τῇ γλώσσῃ αὐτοῦ ἀπὸ τοῦ ὕδατος ὡς ἐὰν λάψῃ ὁ κύων στήσεις αὐτὸν κατὰ μόνας καὶ πᾶς ὃς ἐὰν κλίνῃ ἐπὶ τὰ γόνατα αὐτοῦ πιεῖν

6 καὶ ἐγένετο ὁ ἀριθμὸς τῶν λαψάντων ἐν χειρὶ αὐτῶν πρὸς τὸ στόμα αὐτῶν τριακόσιοι ἄνδρες καὶ πᾶν τὸ κατάλοιπον τοῦ λαοῦ ἔκλιναν ἐπὶ τὰ γόνατα αὐτῶν πιεῖν ὕδωρ

7 καὶ εἶπεν κύριος πρὸς γεδεων ἐν τοῖς τριακοσίοις ἀνδράσιν τοῖς λάψασιν σώσω ὑμᾶς καὶ δώσω τὴν μαδιαμ ἐν χειρί σου καὶ πᾶς ὁ λαὸς πορεύσονται ἀνὴρ εἰς τὸν τόπον αὐτοῦ

8 καὶ ἔλαβον τὸν ἐπισιτισμὸν τοῦ λαοῦ ἐν χειρὶ αὐτῶν καὶ τὰς κερατίνας αὐτῶν καὶ τὸν πάντα ἄνδρα ισραηλ ἐξαπέστειλεν ἄνδρα εἰς σκηνὴν αὐτοῦ καὶ τοὺς τριακοσίους ἄνδρας κατίσχυσεν καὶ ἡ παρεμβολὴ μαδιαμ ἦσαν αὐτοῦ ὑποκάτω ἐν τῇ κοιλάδι

9 καὶ ἐγενήθη ἐν τῇ νυκτὶ ἐκείνῃ καὶ εἶπεν πρὸς αὐτὸν κύριος ἀναστὰς κατάβηθι ἐν τῇ παρεμβολῇ ὅτι παρέδωκα αὐτὴν ἐν τῇ χειρί σου

10 καὶ εἰ φοβῇ σὺ καταβῆναι κατάβηθι σὺ καὶ φαρα τὸ παιδάριόν σου εἰς τὴν παρεμβολὴν

11 καὶ ἀκούσῃ τί λαλήσουσιν καὶ μετὰ τοῦτο ἰσχύσουσιν αἱ χεῖρές σου καὶ καταβήσῃ ἐν τῇ παρεμβολῇ καὶ κατέβη αὐτὸς καὶ φαρα τὸ παιδάριον αὐτοῦ πρὸς ἀρχὴν τῶν πεντήκοντα οἳ ἦσαν ἐν τῇ παρεμβολῇ

12 καὶ μαδιαμ καὶ αμαληκ καὶ πάντες υἱοὶ ἀνατολῶν βεβλημένοι ἐν τῇ κοιλάδι ὡσεὶ ἀκρὶς εἰς πλῆθος καὶ ταῖς καμήλοις αὐτῶν οὐκ ἦν ἀριθμός ἀλλὰ ἦσαν ὡς ἡ ἄμμος ἡ ἐπὶ χείλους τῆς θαλάσσης εἰς πλῆθος

13 καὶ ἦλθεν γεδεων καὶ ἰδοὺ ἀνὴρ ἐξηγούμενος τῷ πλησίον αὐτοῦ ἐνύπνιον καὶ εἶπεν ἐνύπνιον ἰδοὺ ἐνυπνιασάμην καὶ ἰδοὺ μαγὶς ἄρτου κριθίνου στρεφομένη ἐν τῇ παρεμβολῇ μαδιαμ καὶ ἦλθεν ἕως τῆς σκηνῆς καὶ ἐπάταξεν αὐτήν καὶ ἔπεσεν καὶ ἀνέστρεψεν αὐτὴν ἄνω καὶ ἔπεσεν ἡ σκηνή

14 καὶ ἀπεκρίθη ὁ πλησίον αὐτοῦ καὶ εἶπεν οὐκ ἔστιν αὕτη εἰ μὴ ῥομφαία γεδεων υἱοῦ ιωας ἀνδρὸς ισραηλ παρέδωκεν ὁ θεὸς ἐν χειρὶ αὐτοῦ τὴν μαδιαμ καὶ πᾶσαν τὴν παρεμβολήν

15 καὶ ἐγένετο ὡς ἤκουσεν γεδεων τὴν ἐξήγησιν τοῦ ἐνυπνίου καὶ τὴν σύγκρισιν αὐτοῦ καὶ προσεκύνησεν κυρίῳ καὶ ὑπέστρεψεν εἰς τὴν παρεμβολὴν ισραηλ καὶ εἶπεν ἀνάστητε ὅτι παρέδωκεν κύριος ἐν χειρὶ ἡμῶν τὴν παρεμβολὴν μαδιαμ

16 καὶ διεῖλεν τοὺς τριακοσίους ἄνδρας εἰς τρεῖς ἀρχὰς καὶ ἔδωκεν κερατίνας ἐν χειρὶ πάντων καὶ ὑδρίας κενὰς καὶ λαμπάδας ἐν ταῖς ὑδρίαις

17 καὶ εἶπεν πρὸς αὐτούς ἀπ' ἐμοῦ ὄψεσθε καὶ οὕτως ποιήσετε καὶ ἰδοὺ ἐγὼ εἰσπορεύομαι ἐν ἀρχῇ τῆς παρεμβολῆς καὶ ἔσται καθὼς ἂν ποιήσω οὕτως ποιήσετε

18 καὶ σαλπιῶ ἐν τῇ κερατίνῃ ἐγώ καὶ πάντες μετ' ἐμοῦ σαλπιεῖτε ἐν ταῖς κερατίναις κύκλῳ ὅλης τῆς παρεμβολῆς καὶ ἐρεῖτε τῷ κυρίῳ καὶ τῷ γεδεων

19 καὶ εἰσῆλθεν γεδεων καὶ οἱ ἑκατὸν ἄνδρες οἱ μετ' αὐτοῦ ἐν ἀρχῇ τῆς παρεμβολῆς ἐν ἀρχῇ τῆς φυλακῆς μέσης καὶ ἐγείροντες ἤγειραν τοὺς φυλάσσοντας καὶ ἐσάλπισαν ἐν ταῖς κερατίναις καὶ ἐξετίναξαν τὰς ὑδρίας τὰς ἐν ταῖς χερσὶν αὐτῶν

20 καὶ ἐσάλπισαν αἱ τρεῖς ἀρχαὶ ἐν ταῖς κερατίναις καὶ συνέτριψαν τὰς ὑδρίας καὶ ἐκράτησαν ἐν χερσὶν ἀριστεραῖς αὐτῶν τὰς λαμπάδας καὶ ἐν χερσὶν δεξιαῖς αὐτῶν τὰς κερατίνας τοῦ σαλπίζειν καὶ ἀνέκραξαν ῥομφαία τῷ κυρίῳ καὶ τῷ γεδεων

21 καὶ ἔστησαν ἀνὴρ ἐφ' ἑαυτῷ κύκλῳ τῆς παρεμβολῆς καὶ ἔδραμεν πᾶσα ἡ παρεμβολὴ καὶ ἐσήμαναν καὶ ἔφυγαν

22 καὶ ἐσάλπισαν ἐν ταῖς τριακοσίαις κερατίναις καὶ ἔθηκεν κύριος τὴν ῥομφαίαν ἀνδρὸς ἐν τῷ πλησίον αὐτοῦ ἐν πάσῃ τῇ παρεμβολῇ καὶ ἔφυγεν ἡ παρεμβολὴ ἕως βηθσεεδτα γαραγαθα ἕως χείλους αβωμεουλα ἐπὶ ταβαθ

23 καὶ ἐβόησαν ἀνὴρ ισραηλ ἀπὸ νεφθαλι καὶ ἀπὸ ασηρ καὶ ἀπὸ παντὸς μανασση καὶ ἐδίωξαν ὀπίσω μαδιαμ

24 καὶ ἀγγέλους ἀπέστειλεν γεδεων ἐν παντὶ ὄρει εφραιμ λέγων κατάβητε εἰς συνάντησιν μαδιαμ καὶ καταλάβετε ἑαυτοῖς τὸ ὕδωρ ἕως βαιθηρα καὶ τὸν ιορδάνην καὶ ἐβόησεν πᾶς ἀνὴρ εφραιμ καὶ προκατελάβοντο τὸ ὕδωρ ἕως βαιθηρα καὶ τὸν ιορδάνην

25 καὶ συνέλαβον τοὺς ἄρχοντας μαδιαμ καὶ τὸν ωρηβ καὶ τὸν ζηβ καὶ ἀπέκτειναν τὸν ωρηβ ἐν σουρ καὶ τὸν ζηβ ἀπέκτειναν ἐν ιακεφζηφ καὶ κατεδίωξαν μαδιαμ καὶ τὴν κεφαλὴν ωρηβ καὶ ζηβ ἤνεγκαν πρὸς γεδεων ἀπὸ πέραν τοῦ ιορδάνου

   

Komentář

 

Exploring the Meaning of Judges 7

Napsal(a) New Christian Bible Study Staff, Julian Duckworth

Judges 7: Gideon’s valiant three hundred men.

Gideon and all his men camped by the well of Harod, which can mean “eager”, and also “trembling.” The Lord told Gideon that his army was too large, which could lead Israel to boast that they won by their own efforts (rather than the Lord’s power). Gideon was instructed to send away anyone who was afraid; 22,000 went home, leaving 10,000.

Even still, the Lord said the army was too large, so Gideon tested the men by taking them down to the water to drink. The Lord directed Gideon to call out those who lapped water from out of their hands rather than kneeling down to drink with their mouths. Three hundred men were chosen by this method of selection.

The Lord then commanded Gideon to go down to the Midianite camp, and if he was afraid, to take his servant, Phurah. There, Gideon overheard one of the soldiers telling his companion that he’d had a dream, in which a loaf of bread came tumbling into the camp and struck one of the tents so that it collapsed. The other soldier said that this meant the Lord would give victory to Gideon.

Gideon gave each of his men a trumpet, and a pitcher containing a lit torch. They surrounded the Midianite camp, and at the command of Gideon, they blew their trumpets, broke their pitchers to show the torches, and shouted, “The sword of the Lord and of Gideon!” This caused panic in the camp, and every Midianite drew his sword against another, and many fled. Then Gideon ordered the capture and killing of the two Midianite princes, whose heads were brought to him.

*****

We must give glory to the Lord for successes that we seem to earn, as He alone does what is good. The Lord told Gideon to reduce the size of his army, to avoid the dangers of growing too proud. Since we live our lives as if we do everything ourselves, this is a constant threat. The fact that about two-thirds of Gideon’s army were afraid and went home shows the reality of our nature (see Swedenborg’s work, True Christian Religion 442).

Lapping water from the hand reflects our need to see and examine what we take into our minds. Water stands for truth, but it can also stand for false ideas. If we drink directly from the water, we accept indiscriminately and examine nothing. Cupping and holding the water in our hands means that we can see how to apply this truth through our attitudes and actions (see Swedenborg’s work, Arcana Caelestia 6047[2]).

Gideon’s army of only three hundred men was all it took to defeat the Midianites. The number ‘three’ stands for something which is complete or full in itself. Some spiritual examples include mind, body and soul, as well as celestial, spiritual and natural (see Swedenborg’s Apocalypse Explained 435[3] and 532[2]).

The dream Gideon overheard stands for the power of good (the bread) to break down the apparent power of what is evil and false (the tent) (Arcana Caelestia 4247[3]). The name of Gideon’s servant, Phurah, means “fruitfulness”, or “a winepress”, which is where Gideon was first called by the angel of the Lord.

The trumpet and the torch both stand for the power of truth to overcome evil and false ideas, the trumpet by its penetrating sound, and the torch by its illuminating light. There is no mention of swords for the army of Israel.

Finally, the oppression by the Midianites represents knowing what is true, but living a life governed by our own desires. This leads us increasingly further away from obeying the Lord. Of course, this must be addressed. The Midianites destroyed each other in their panic, meaning what is disorderly and against the Lord holds no validity, and eventually destroys itself (Arcana Caelestia 9320).

Ze Swedenborgových děl

 

Arcana Coelestia # 4247

Prostudujte si tuto pasáž

  
/ 10837  
  

4247. 'The messengers returned to Jacob, saying, We came to your brother, to Esau, and he also is coming to meet you' means that good flows in constantly so as to make them, that is to say, truths, its own. This is clear from the meaning of 'brother', who in this case is Esau, as good - that is to say, the good of the Lord's Divine Natural, dealt with above; and from the meaning of 'coming to meet' as flowing in, dealt with below. And because flowing in is meant, making its own is meant also.

[2] From what has been stated several times already on these matters one may see what the situation is with regard to good and truth, and with the influx of good into truth, and in this connection with good making truth its own. That is to say, one may see that good flows constantly into truth, and truth receives good, since truths are the vessels for good. The only vessels into which Divine Good can be placed are genuine truths, for good and truth match each other. When a person is moved by the affection for truth, as everyone is at first prior to being regenerated, good is constantly flowing in even then, but as yet it has no vessels, that is, no truths in which to place itself or make its own; for nobody at the outset of regeneration possesses any cognitions as yet. But because good at that time is flowing in constantly it produces the affection for truth, for there is no origin to the affection for truth other than the constant endeavour of Divine good to flow in. This shows that even at that time good occupies the first position and plays the leading role, although it seems as though truth did so. When a person is being regenerated however, which takes place in adult years when he possesses cognitions, good reveals itself, for he is then moved not so much by the affection for knowing truth as for doing it. For previously truth had been in the understanding, but now it is in his will, and when in his will it is in the person's true self, since the will constitutes the person's true self. With man the recurrent cycle of events exists in which every fact and every bit of knowledge is introduced through sight or hearing into his thought-process, and from there into his will, then passing from the will through thought into action. A similar cycle also exists starting from the memory which is so to speak an inner eye or inner sight. Starting from that inner sight it passes through the thought-process into the will, and from the will through thought into action; or else if some obstacle stands in the way it passes into the endeavour to act, that endeavour being actualized the moment the obstacle is removed.

[3] All of this shows the way in which good flows into truth and makes it its own. That is to say, it shows that first of all truths which belong to faith are introduced through hearing or sight and are then stored away in the memory, from where they are raised up one after another into the person's thought-process and at length introduced into his will. Once in the will they pass from there through thought into action, or if they are not able to pass into action they remain in the endeavour. The very endeavour is internal action, for as often as the opportunity exists it is made an external action. It should be realized however that although there is this cycle of events it is nevertheless good which produces the cycle. For the life which comes from the Lord flows solely into good, and thus through good, doing so from things that are inmost. It may be seen by anyone that the life flowing in through the things that are inmost produces the cycle, for without life nothing is produced. And since the life which comes from the Lord flows only into good and through good, good is consequently that which produces and that which flows into truths and makes them its own, to the extent that a person possesses cognitions of truth and at the same time is a willing recipient.

  
/ 10837  
  

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