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1 Mosebok 26

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1 Og det var atter hungersnød i landet - likesom forrige gang på Abrahams tid; og Isak drog til filistrenes konge Abimelek i Gerar.

2 Da åpenbarte Herren sig for ham og sa: Dra ikke ned til Egypten! Bo i det land som jeg sier dig!

3 Bli boende her i landet! Jeg vil være med dig og velsigne dig; for dig og din ætt vil jeg gi alle disse land - jeg vil holde den ed jeg har svoret Abraham, din far.

4 Og jeg vil gjøre din ætt tallrik som stjernene på himmelen, og jeg vil gi din ætt alle disse land, og i din ætt skal alle jordens folk velsignes,

5 fordi Abraham lød mitt ord og holdt alt det jeg bød ham å holde, mine bud, mine forskrifter og mine lover.

6 Så blev Isak boende i Gerar.

7 Og mennene der på stedet spurte ham ut om hans hustru. Da sa han: Hun er min søster. For han torde ikke si at hun var hans hustru; han tenkte: Mennene her på stedet kunde da slå mig ihjel for ebekkas skyld, siden hun er så vakker.

8 Da han nu hadde vært der en tid, hendte det engang at Abimelek, filistrenes konge, så ut gjennem vinduet og fikk se at Isak kjærtegnet ebekka, sin hustru.

9 Da kalte Abimelek Isak til sig og sa: Hun er jo din hustru, hvor kunde du da si: Hun er min søster? Isak svarte: Jeg tenkte jeg kunde komme til å miste livet for hennes skyld.

10 Da sa Abimelek: Hvorfor har du gjort dette mot oss? Hvor lett kunde det ikke ha hendt at en eller annen av folket hadde lagt sig hos din hustru, og da hadde du ført skyld over oss.

11 Så bød Abimelek alt folket og sa: Den som rører ved denne mann eller hans hustru, han skal late sitt liv.

12 Isak sådde korn der i landet og fikk det år hundre fold, for Herren velsignet ham.

13 Og han blev en rik mann, og blev rikere og rikere, så han til sist var overmåte rik.

14 Han eide småfe og storfe og mange tjenere, så filistrene blev misunnelige på ham.

15 Og alle de brønner som hans fars tjenere hadde gravd i Abrahams, hans fars dager, dem kastet filistrene til og fylte dem med jord.

16 Og Abimelek sa til Isak: Dra bort fra oss, for du er blitt oss altfor mektig.

17 Så drog Isak derfra og slo leir i Gerar-dalen og blev boende der.

18 Og Isak gravde op igjen de brønner som de hadde gravd i Abrahams, hans fars dager, og som filistrene hadde kastet til efter Abrahams død; og han gav dem de samme navn som hans far hadde gitt dem.

19 Og Isaks tjenere gravde i dalen og fant der en brønn med rinnende vann.

20 Men hyrdene fra Gerar trettet med Isaks hyrder og sa: Vannet hører oss til. Og han kalte brønnen Esek*, fordi de stredes med ham. / {* strid.}

21 Siden gravde de en annen brønn, og den trettet de også om; og han kalte den Sitna*. / {* fiendskap.}

22 Så brøt han op derfra og gravde ennu en brønn; den trettet de ikke om; og han kalte den ehobot* og sa: Nu har Herren gjort det rummelig for oss, så vi kan bli tallrike i landet. / {* åpent rum.}

23 Siden drog han derfra op til Be'erseba.

24 samme natt åpenbarte Herren sig for ham og sa: Jeg er Abrahams, din fars Gud; frykt ikke, for jeg er med dig, og jeg vil velsigne dig og gjøre din ætt tallrik for Abrahams, min tjeners skyld.

25 Der bygget han et alter og påkalte Herrens navn; og han slo op sitt telt der; og Isaks tjenere gravde der en brønn.

26 Siden kom Abimelek til ham fra Gerar, med Akussat, sin venn, og Pikol, sin hærfører.

27 Da sa Isak til dem: Hvorfor kommer I til mig, I som hater mig og har drevet mig bort fra eder?

28 De svarte: Vi har sett det grant at Herren er med dig; derfor sier vi: Kom, la oss sverge en ed oss imellem, vi og du, og la oss få gjøre en pakt med dig,

29 at du ikke skal gjøre oss noget ondt, likesom heller ikke vi har rørt dig, men bare gjort dig godt og latt dig fare i fred. Du er nu Herrens velsignede.

30 Så gjorde han et gjestebud for dem, og de åt og drakk.

31 Morgenen efter stod de tidlig op og svor hverandre sin ed; siden lot Isak dem fare, og de drog fra ham fred.

32 Samme dag hendte det at Isaks tjenere kom og fortalte ham om den brønn de hadde gravd, og sa til ham: Vi har funnet vann.

33 Og han kalte den Siba*; derfor heter byen Be'erseba** den dag i dag. / {* ed.} / {** 1MO 21, 31.}

34 Da Esau var firti år gammel, tok han til hustruer Judit, datter til hetitten Be'eri, og Basmat, datter til hetitten Elon.

35 Men de blev en hjertesorg for Isak og ebekka.

   

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Arcana Coelestia # 3419

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3419. And Isaac returned, and digged again the wells of waters which they had digged in the days of Abraham his father. That this signifies that the Lord opened those truths which were with the ancients, is evident from the representation of Isaac, as being the Lord as to the Divine rational, concerning which above; from the signification of “returning and digging again,” as being to open again; from the signification of “wells of waters,” as being the truths of knowledges (that “wells” are truths may be seen above, n. 2702, 3096; and that “waters” are knowledges, n. 28, 2702, 3058); and from the signification of “the days of Abraham his father,” as being a previous time and state as to truths, which truths are signified by the wells which they digged at that time, thus the truths which were with the ancients. (That “days” signify time and states may be seen above, n. 23, 487-488, 493, 893.) When “days” signify states, then by Abraham the father is represented the Lord’s Divine Itself before He adjoined to it the Human (n. 2833, 2836, 3251); when they signify time, then by Abraham the father are signified the goods and truths which were from the Lord’s Divine before He adjoined to it the Human, thus the goods and truths which were with the ancients.

[2] The truths which were with the ancients are at this day wholly obliterated, insomuch that scarcely anyone knows that they ever existed, and that they could be any other than what are taught at this day, when yet they were totally different. The ancients had Representatives and Significatives of the celestial and spiritual things of the Lord’s kingdom, thus of the Lord Himself; and they who understood such representatives and significatives were called the wise; and they were wise, for thereby they were able to speak with spirits and angels. For when angelic speech (which is incomprehensible to man because spiritual and celestial) descends to man, who is in a natural sphere, it falls into representatives and significatives such as are in the Word, and hence it is that the Word is a holy writing; for in order to be a full correspondence that which is Divine cannot be presented in any other way before the natural man.

[3] And as the ancients were in representatives and significatives of the Lord’s kingdom, in which there is nothing but celestial and spiritual love, they had also doctrinal things that treated solely of love to God and of charity toward the neighbor; and by virtue of these doctrinal things they were called the wise. From these doctrinal things they knew that the Lord would come into the world, and that Jehovah would be in Him, and that He would make the human in Himself Divine, and would thus save the human race. From these doctrinal things they also knew what charity is, namely, the affection of being of service to others without any end of recompense; and also what is the neighbor toward whom there should be charity, namely, all in the universe, but still each with discrimination. At this day these doctrinal things are utterly lost, and in place of them there are doctrinal things of faith, which the ancients accounted as relatively nothing.

At the present day the doctrinal things of love to the Lord and of charity toward the neighbor are rejected, in part by those who in the Word are called “Babylonians and Chaldeans,” and in part by those who are called “Philistines” and also “Egyptians”; and thus are so completely lost that there remains scarcely any trace of them. For who at the present day knows what that charity is which is devoid of all regard for self, and which is averse to everything that is for the sake of self? And who knows that the neighbor is everyone, with discrimination according to the kind and amount of good in him, thus that he is good itself, consequently in the supreme sense the Lord Himself, because He is in good, and good is from Him, and the good which is not from Him is not good, however much it may appear to be so? And because it is not known what charity is, and what the neighbor, it is not known who they are that in the Word are signified by the “poor,” the “miserable,” the “needy,” the “sick,” the “hungry” and “thirsty,” the “oppressed,” “widows,” “orphans,” “captives,” the “naked,” “sojourners,” the “blind,” the “deaf,” the “halt,” “maimed,” and others; when yet the doctrinal things of the ancients taught who these were, and to what class of the neighbor, and thus of charity, each belonged. The whole of the Word in the sense of the letter is written in accordance with these doctrinal things, so that he who has no knowledge of them cannot possibly know any interior sense of the Word.

[4] As in Isaiah:

Is it not to break bread to the hungry, and that thou bring the afflicted that are cast out to thy house; when thou seest the naked, that thou cover him, and that thou hide not thyself from thine own flesh? Then shall thy light break forth as the dawn, and thy healing shall spring forth speedily; and thy righteousness shall go before thee, the glory of Jehovah shall gather thee (Isaiah 58:7-8).

He who lays stress on the sense of the letter believes that if he merely gives bread to the hungry, takes into his house the poor outcasts or wanderers, and covers the naked, he will on this account come into the glory of Jehovah, or into heaven; when yet these are mere outward acts, and even the wicked may do them for the sake of self-merit; but by the “hungry,” the “afflicted,” and the “naked” are signified those who are spiritually such, thus different states of misery in which the man may be who is the neighbor, and toward whom charity is to be exercised.

[5] In David:

He that executeth judgment for the oppressed; that giveth bread to the hungry; Jehovah looseth the prisoners; Jehovah openeth the eyes of the blind; Jehovah raiseth up them that are bowed down; Jehovah loveth the righteous; Jehovah guardeth the sojourners; He upholdeth the fatherless and widow (Psalms 146:7-9); where by the “oppressed,” the “hungry,” the “prisoners,” the “blind;” the “bowed down,” the “sojourners,” the “fatherless” and “widow,” are not meant those who are commonly so called, but those who are such in respect to spiritual things, that is, in respect to their souls. Who these were, and in what state and degree they were neighbors, thus what charity was to be exercised toward them, was taught by the doctrinal things of the ancients. It is the same everywhere else in the Old Testament; for when the Divine descends into what is natural with man, it descends into such things as are works of charity, with discrimination according to genera and species.

[6] The Lord also spoke in like manner, because He spoke from the Divine Itself, as in Matthew:

Then shall the King say unto them on His right hand, Come ye blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you; for I was hungry, and ye gave Me to eat; I was thirsty, and ye gave Me to drink; I was a stranger, and ye took Me in; naked, and ye clothed Me; I was sick, and ye visited Me; I was in prison, and ye came unto Me (Matthew 25:34-36).

By the works here recounted are signified the universal genera of charity; and in what degree are the goods or the good men who are the neighbors toward whom charity is to be exercised; and that in the supreme sense the Lord is the neighbor, for He says:

Inasmuch as ye did it unto one of the least of these My brethren, ye did it unto Me (Matthew 25:40).

From these few examples it may be seen what is meant by the truths with the ancients. But that these truths are altogether obliterated by those who are in the doctrinal things of faith, and not in the life of charity, that is, by those who in the Word are called “Philistines,” is signified by the Philistines stopping up the wells after the death of Abraham, which is the subject next treated of.

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