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1 Efter Josvas død spurte Israels barn Herren: Hvem av oss skal først dra op mot kana'anittene og stride mot dem?

2 Og Herren sa: Juda skal dra op; jeg har gitt landet i hans hånd.

3 Da sa Juda til sin bror Simeon: Dra op med mig til min lodd og la oss stride mot kana'anittene! Så skal jeg og dra med dig til din lodd. Og Simeon drog med ham.

4 Så drog Juda op, og Herren gav kana'anittene og ferisittene i deres hånd; de slo dem i Besek, ti tusen mann.

5 I Besek traff de på Adoni-Besek og stred mot ham; de slo kana'anittene og ferisittene,

6 men Adoni-Besek flyktet, og de forfulgte ham og grep ham og avhugg hans tommelfingrer og tommeltær.

7 Da sa Adoni-Besek: Sytti konger med avhugne tommelfingrer og tommeltær sanket smuler under mitt bord; som jeg gjorde, har Gud gjort mot mig igjen. Og de førte ham til Jerusalem, og der døde han.

8 Og Judas barn stred mot Jerusalem og inntok det og slo det med sverdets egg, og de satte ild på byen.

9 Siden drog Judas barn ned for å krige mot de kana'anitter som bodde i fjellbygdene og i sydlandet og i lavlandet.

10 Og Juda drog imot de kana'anitter som bodde i Hebron - Hebrons navn var før Kirjat-Arba - og de slo Sesai og Akiman og Talmai.

11 Derfra drog han mot innbyggerne i Debir - Debirs navn var før Kirjat-Sefer.

12 Og Kaleb sa: Den som vinner over Kirjat-Sefer og inntar det, ham vil jeg gi min datter Aksa til hustru.

13 Og kenisitten Otniel, Kalebs yngre bror, inntok det; og han gav ham sin datter Aksa til hustru.

14 Og da hun kom (til sin manns hus), egget hun ham til å be hennes far om en jordeiendom, og hun sprang ned av asenet. Da sa Kaleb til henne: Hvad vil du?

15 Hun svarte: Gi mig en avskjedsgave! Du har giftet mig bort til dette tørre sydlandet, Gi mig nu vannkilder! Så gav Kaleb henne de øvre og de nedre kilder.

16 Efterkommerne av kenitten, Moses' svoger, drog med Judas barn fra Palmestaden* op til Juda ørken, som ligger sønnenfor Arad; og de kom og bosatte sig blandt folket der. / {* 5MO 34, 3.}

17 Siden drog Juda ut med sin bror Simeon, og de slo de kana'anitter som bodde i Sefat; de slo byen med bann; derfor kalte de den Horma.

18 Og Juda inntok Gasa med tilhørende bygder og Askalon med tilhørende bygder og Ekron med tilhørende bygder.

19 Og Herren var med Juda, så han tok fjellbygdene i eie; men han var ikke i stand til å drive bort innbyggerne i dalen, for de hadde jernvogner.

20 Og de gav Hebron til Kaleb, således som Moses hadde sagt, og han drev de tre Anaks sønner bort derfra.

21 Men jebusittene, som bodde i Jerusalem, fikk Benjamins barn ikke drevet bort, og jebusittene blev boende sammen med Benjamins barn i Jerusalem og har bodd der til denne dag.

22 Josefs barn drog også ut; de gikk imot Betel, og Herren var med dem.

23 Og Josefs barn sendte speidere til Betel - byen hette før Luz -

24 og speiderne fikk se en mann som gikk ut av byen, og de sa til ham: Vis oss hvor vi kan komme inn i byen! Så vil vi vise barmhjertighet mot dig.

25 Og han viste dem hvor de kunde komme inn i byen, og de slo byen med sverdets egg; men mannen og hele hans slekt lot de gå.

26 Og mannen drog til hetittenes land, og han bygget en by og kalte den Luz; det navn har den hatt til denne dag.

27 Men Manasse drev ikke bort innbyggerne i Bet-Sean med tilhørende småbyer eller i Ta'anak med tilhørende småbyer eller innbyggerne i Dor med tilhørende småbyer eller innbyggerne i Jibleam med tilhørende småbyer eller innbyggerne i Megiddo med tilhørende småbyer; og det lyktes kana'anittene å bli boende der i landet.

28 Men da Israel blev sterkt, gjorde de kana'anittene arbeidspliktige, men de drev dem ikke bort.

29 Og Efra'im drev ikke bort de kana'anitter som bodde i Geser, men kana'anittene blev boende midt iblandt dem i Geser.

30 Sebulon drev ikke bort innbyggerne i Kitron og innbyggerne i Nahalol, men kana'anittene blev boende midt iblandt dem og blev arbeidspliktige.

31 Aser drev ikke bort innbyggerne i Akko og innbyggerne i Sidon og Ahlab og Aksib og Helba og Afik og ehob,

32 men aserittene bosatte sig midt iblandt kana'anittene som bodde i landet; de drev dem ikke bort.

33 Naftali drev ikke bort innbyggerne i Bet-Semes og innbyggerne i Bet-Anat, men bosatte sig midt iblandt kana'anittene som bodde i landet, og innbyggerne i Bet-Semes og Bet-Anat blev arbeidspliktige under dem.

34 Og amorittene trengte Dans barn op i fjellene; de lot dem ikke få komme ned i dalen.

35 Det lyktes amorittene å bli boende i Har-Heres, i Ajalon og i Sa'albim; men Josefs barns hånd lå tungt på dem, og de blev arbeidspliktige.

36 Amorittenes grense gikk fra Akrabbim-skaret, fra Hassela og opefter.

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Exploring the Meaning of Judges 1

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

Judges 1: The continuing conquest of Canaan.

The book of Judges follows on almost seamlessly from Joshua. It is called ‘Judges’ because a number of regional leaders arose and made judgments for the people, often actively defending Israel from outside oppression. A pattern emerges in Judges: Israel disobeys the Lord – an enemy oppresses Israel – the Lord raises a leader – the leader is victorious against the enemy – there is peace for a time – Israel disobeys the Lord again.

There were twelve judges in all, about whom we either hear very much or next to nothing. The number twelve (as with the twelve tribes of Israel, the twelve disciples, and other examples in the Word), stands for all the various aspects of spirituality that we need to understand, develop, and put to use. A clue is often found in the meaning of their names, because biblical names are nearly always linked to spiritual qualities, such as ‘courage’, or ‘one who walks with God’ (see Swedenborg’s work, Arcana Caelestia 10216).

The theme of this first chapter is the further conquest of the land. The Israelites asked the Lord, “Who shall go up and fight for us?” And the Lord said that the tribe of Judah would go, because the Lord had delivered the land into their hand. Judah then called on the tribe of Simeon to join them, and they won many battles against the Canaanites still in the land.

One Canaanite king, Adoni-bezek, fled and was captured by the Israelites, who then cut off his thumbs and big toes. Adoni-bezek said that God had dealt justice by punishing him, as he had previously cut off seventy kings’ thumbs and big toes, and they had to gather scraps of food under his table.

Then Caleb, a leader of Israel during the journey through the wilderness, said that the man who took Kirjath-sepher (Caleb’s inheritance city) from the Canaanites would marry his daughter, Achsah. Caleb’s nephew, Othniel, took the city and Achsah was given to him. Achsah asked her father for the blessing of springs of water, and Caleb gave her the upper and lower springs.

Next, spies were sent to Bethel. They met a man there, and said that if he directed them the entrance to the city, they would show him mercy. He helped them, and they took the city but showed mercy on the man and all his family. After all of this, the man built a new city called Luz in the land of the Hittites.

The chapter ends by listing the twelve tribes, as well as the Canaanite peoples who remained unsubdued in each of their territories.

*****

The overarching spiritual theme of Judges is the process of our regeneration. As the opening of Judges reminds us, there were still parts of the land and various tribes that Israel needed to conquer. In fact, the Israelites never finished driving enemies out of their land. In the same way, we need to control our inherited human nature, but it is never completely wiped out (see Swedenborg’s work, Divine Love and Wisdom 238).

During regeneration, we will discover deeper and subtler self-centered states in ourselves, which need to be mitigated. Each judge raised by the Lord stands for our determination to deal with these states, using the Word as a guide. This brings us a period of peace, followed by the start of another personal discovery.

When the Israelites chose which tribes would fight for them, it was no coincidence that they selected Judah and Simeon. Judah (who was a prominent tribe of Israel) and Simeon (who usually acts with another tribe) stand for the highest things in our spiritual life: our love for the Lord, and our obedience to the Lord’s Word. Choosing Judah and Simeon as our strength will always bring victory in our regeneration (see Arcana Caelestia 3654 and Apocalypse Explained 443).

The spiritual meaning in the story of Adoni-bezek is about taking away the power of our self-love, as cutting off thumbs and big toes makes hands and feet virtually useless. When we work on our lower nature, we are to minimize its control over us. It is the same with any influences from hell; their power must end. Adoni-bezek’s comment about doing the same to seventy kings vividly describes how self-love can only lead to our downfall (Arcana Caelestia 10062[4]).

The delightful story of Caleb, Achsah and Othniel illustrates that after battle, there is rest and reward. In the same way, we strengthen the ‘marriage’ of good and truth in us after overcoming spiritual struggles (see Swedenborg’s work, Divine Love and Wisdom 409). The springs of water given to Achsah stand for the truths which flow into our mind, both about the ‘upper’ things of the Lord and heaven, and those ‘lower’ ones about spiritual life and responsibility.

The episode about the man from Bethel means that when we open up our life to the Lord to allow Him to guide us, we become blessed (Arcana Caelestia 3928). Then our life can be re-built in very practical and good ways, represented by the Hittites.

The final mention of the Canaanites still in the land points to the continuing presence of our unregenerate qualities. Although we may progress through the work of regeneration, we are still human, and we will always have flaws left to improve on.

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Arcana Coelestia # 3928

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3928. 'And she called his name Naphtali' means the essential nature of it, that is to say, of the temptation in which one overcomes and also of the resistance offered by the natural man. This is clear from the meaning of 'name' and of 'calling the name' as the essential nature, dealt with in 144, 145, 1754, 1896, 2009, 2724, 3421. The particular nature is that which is meant by 'Naphtali', for the name Naphtali is derived from the word 'wrestlings'. And for the same reason 'Naphtali' represents this second general truth of the Church. Temptation is the means by which the internal man is joined to the external, for they are at variance with each other but are made to agree and to correspond by means of temptations. The external man is indeed such that of itself it does not desire anything except bodily and worldly things; these are the delights of the natural man's life. But the internal man - when opened towards heaven and desiring the things of heaven, as is the case with those who are able to be regenerated - takes delight in heavenly things. And when a person undergoes temptations these two types of delight conflict with each other. The person is not directly aware of the conflict, because he is not aware of what heavenly delight is and of what hellish delight is, let alone that they are so utterly contrary to each other. But celestial angels cannot be present at all with a person in his bodily and worldly delight until this has been made subservient, that is to say, until bodily and worldly delight is no longer regarded as an end in itself but something which is meant to be subservient to heavenly delight, as shown above in 3913. Once this has been achieved the angels are able to reside with that person in both; but in this case his delight becomes blessedness, and at length happiness in the next life.

[2] Anyone who believes that the delight of the natural man prior to regeneration is not hell-like, and that devilish spirits are not in possession there, is much mistaken. He is unaware of what the situation is with man - that prior to regeneration genii and spirits from hell have possession of his natural man, no matter how much he seems to himself to be like any other person, and also that he is able to participate with everybody else in what is holy and to reason about the truths and goods of faith, indeed is able to believe that he has become strong in these. If this person does not feel within himself some measure of affection for what is right and fair in his daily work, and for what is good and true in society and in life, let him recognize that his kind of delight in things is the kind that exists with those in hell, for his delight entails no other love than self-love and love of the world. And when these constitute his delight no charity or any faith is present within it. The only means that will weaken and dispel this delight once it has become predominant is the affirmation and acknowledgement of the holiness of faith and of the good of life, which is the first means meant, as shown above, by Dan, and after this by temptation, which is the second means and is meant by Naphtali; for this second means follows the other. Indeed people who do not affirm and acknowledge the goodness and the truth which constitute faith and charity are unable to enter any conflict brought about by temptation as there is nothing within to oppose the evil and falsity towards which natural delight gravitates.

[3] In other places in the Word where Naphtali is mentioned he means a person's state following temptations, as in the prophecy of Jacob, who by then was Israel,

Naphtali is a hind let loose, giving beautiful words. Genesis 49:21.

'A hind let loose' stands for the affection for natural truth in a state that is free, which arises following temptation. This state is also what is at stake within temptations, which are meant by 'Naphtali', for the battle fought in temptations is a struggle for freedom. Likewise in Moses' prophecy,

To Naphtali he said, Naphtali, satisfied with favour, and full with the blessing of Jehovah, will possess the west and the south. Deuteronomy 33:23.

For the representations of Jacob's sons, and of the tribes, depend on the order in which they are mentioned, 3862. And in the prophecy of Deborah and Barak,

Zebulun is a people that consigned its soul to die, as did Naphtali, on the heights of the field. Judges 5:18.

This too refers in the internal sense to the conflicts brought about by temptations, and to a person's presence among those who do not fear anything evil because they are rooted in forms of truth and good, meant by 'being on the heights of the field'.

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