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Daniel 8

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1 EN el año tercero del reinado del rey Belsasar, me apareció una visión á mí, Daniel, después de aquella que me había aparecido antes.

2 Vi en visión, (y aconteció cuando vi, que yo estaba en Susán, que es cabecera del reino en la provincia de Persia;) vi pues en visión, estando junto al río Ulai,

3 Y alcé mis ojos, y miré, y he aquí un carnero que estaba delante del río, el cual tenía dos cuernos: y aunque eran altos, el uno era más alto que el otro; y el más alto subió á la postre.

4 Vi que el carnero hería con los cuernos al poniente, al norte, y al mediodía, y que ninguna bestia podía parar delante de él, ni había quien escapase de su mano: y hacía conforme á su voluntad, y engrandecíase.

5 Y estando yo considerando, he aquí un macho de cabrío venía de la parte del poniente sobre la haz de toda la tierra, el cual no tocaba la tierra: y tenía aquel macho de cabrío un cuerno notable entre sus ojos:

6 Y vino hasta el carnero que tenía los dos cuernos, al cual había yo visto que estaba delante del río, y corrió contra él con la ira de su fortaleza.

7 Y vilo que llegó junto al carnero, y levantóse contra él, é hiriólo, y quebró sus dos cuernos, porque en el carnero no había fuerzas para parar delante de él: derribólo por tanto en tierra, y hollólo; ni hubo quien librase al carnero de su mano.

8 Y engrandecióse en gran manera el macho de cabrío; y estando en su mayor fuerza, aquel gran cuerno fué quebrado, y en su lugar subieron otros cuatro maravillosos hacia los cuatro vientos del cielo.

9 Y del uno de ellos salió un cuerno pequeño, el cual creció mucho al mediodía, y al oriente, y hacia la tierra deseable.

10 Y engrandecióse hasta el ejército del cielo; y parte del ejército y de las estrellas echó por tierra, y las holló.

11 Aun contra el príncipe de la fortaleza se engrandeció, y por él fué quitado el continuo sacrificio, y el lugar de su santuario fué echado por tierra.

12 Y el ejército fué le entregado á causa de la prevaricación sobre el continuo sacrificio: y echó por tierra la verdad, é hizo cuanto quiso, y sucedióle prósperamente.

13 Y oí un santo que hablaba; y otro de los santos dijo á aquél que hablaba: ¿Hasta cuándo durará la visión del continuo sacrificio, y la prevaricación asoladora que pone el santuario y el ejército para ser hollados?

14 Y él me dijo: Hasta dos mil y trescientos días de tarde y mañana; y el santuario será purificado.

15 Y acaeció que estando yo Daniel considerando la visión, y buscando su inteligencia, he aquí, como una semejanza de hombre se puso delante de mí.

16 Y oí una voz de hombre entre las riberas de Ulai, que gritó y dijo: Gabriel, enseña la visión á éste.

17 Vino luego cerca de donde yo estaba; y con su venida me asombré, y caí sobre mi rostro. Empero él me dijo: Entiende, hijo del hombre, porque al tiempo se cumplirá la visión.

18 Y estando él hablando conmigo, caí dormido en tierra sobre mi rostro: y él me tocó, é hízome estar en pie.

19 Y dijo: He aquí yo te enseñaré lo ha de venir en el fin de la ira: porque al tiempo se cumplirá:

20 Aquel carnero que viste, que tenía cuernos, son los reyes de Media y de Persia.

21 Y el macho cabrío es el rey de Javán: y el cuerno grande que tenía entre sus ojos es el rey primero.

22 Y que fué quebrado y sucedieron cuatro en su lugar, significa que cuatro reinos sucederán de la nación, mas no en la fortaleza de él.

23 Y al cabo del imperio de éstos, cuando se cumplirán los prevaricadores, levantaráse un rey altivo de rostro, y entendido en dudas.

24 Y su poder se fortalecerá, mas no con fuerza suya, y destruirá maravillosamente, y prosperará; y hará arbitrariamente, y destruirá fuertes y al pueblo de los santos.

25 Y con su sagacidad hará prosperar el engaño en su mano; y en su corazón se engrandecerá, y con paz destruirá á muchos: y contra el príncipe de los príncipes se levantará; mas sin mano será quebrantado.

26 Y la visión de la tarde y la mañana que está dicha, es verdadera: y tú guarda la visión, porque es para muchos días.

27 Y yo Daniel fuí quebrantado, y estuve enfermo algunos días: y cuando convalecí, hice el negocio del rey; mas estaba espantado acerca de la visión, y no había quien la entendiese.

   

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Arcana Coelestia # 10181

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10181. 'And two cubits shall its height be' means degrees of the good and truth, and the joining together of them. This is clear from the meaning of 'two' as a joining together, dealt with in 1686, 5194, 8423; and from the meaning of 'height' as degrees of the good and consequently of the truth, dealt with in 9489, 9773. By degrees of height degrees from inner to outer levels, or from inmost to outermost ones should be understood. Regarding the nature of these degrees, see what has been shown and made clear in 3405, 3691, 4145, 4154, 5114, 5146, 8603, 8945, 10099.

[2] There are two kinds of degrees - degrees extending along the length and breadth, and degrees of height and depth. The second kind are very different from the first. Degrees of length and breadth are such as follow in succession from the middle to outlying parts, whereas degrees of height pass from inner to outer levels. The first kind of degrees - those of length and breadth - are ones that grow continuously less and less from the middle to the outlying parts, just as light gets weaker as it flows from its source all the way to where it fades, or just as what the eye sees diminishes as it looks from things nearby to those in the far distance, or just as what the understanding sees lessens as it turns from matters which are in the light to those which depart into the shade. But degrees of height, which pass from inmost to outermost, or from highest to lowest, are not continuous but discrete. They are like the inmost parts of a seed in relation to the outer parts of it, or like the inmost levels of a human being in relation to the outermost, or like the inmost part of the angelic heaven in relation to the outermost part of it. These degrees are separate and distinct from one another like producer and product.

[3] Things in an inner degree are more perfect than those in an outer one, bearing no resemblance to them except through correspondences. This explains why those who are in the inmost heaven are more perfect than those in the middle heaven, and these are more perfect than those in the lowest. The same applies to a person in whom heaven is present. The inmost level of that person exists in a more perfect condition than the middle, and this in a more perfect condition than the lowest; and these are linked to one another solely through correspondences, the nature of which has been shown extensively in explanations given before.

[4] Without gaining an understanding of these degrees no one can possibly see how the heavens are distinct from one another, nor how the inner capabilities of a human being are distinct from outer ones, nor thus how the soul is distinct from the body. There can be no grasp at all of what the internal sense of the Word is and how it is distinct from the external sense, nor indeed how the spiritual world is distinct from the natural world. There cannot be even any understanding, either, of the nature and origin of correspondences and representations, and scarcely any of what influx is. People whose thought does not rise above the level of the senses do not grasp any of these distinctions. They see any increase or decrease in accordance with these degrees as something continuous, so that to them these degrees are like those of length and breadth, which consequently causes them to stand in a position far removed from true intelligence.

[5] These degrees are degrees of height, and therefore 'high' in the Word is used to mean that which is more internal, 2148, 4210, 4599, and being what is more internal it is also more perfect. So it is that in the Word the Lord is spoken of as the Highest, for He is perfection itself, Intelligence and Wisdom themselves, and Goodness and Truth themselves. So it is also that heaven is spoken of as being on high, for it is preserved in its state of perfection, intelligence, wisdom, goodness, and truth by the Lord; and hell is spoken of as being deep down, for no perfection, intelligence, or wisdom, nor any goodness or truth exist there.

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

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Arcana Coelestia # 9489

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9489. 'And a cubit and a half its height' means what is complete so far as degrees are concerned. This is clear from the meaning of 'a cubit and a half' as what is complete, dealt with immediately above in 9488; and from the meaning of 'height' as degrees so far as good and so far as truth are concerned. The reason why 'height' has this meaning is that all good and the truth derived from it emanates from the Lord, and the Lord is in the highest place of all, and therefore is called the Most High, 8153. For He is the Sun of heaven, 5097, 8812, and that Sun is above the heavens; it is also the centre from which the whole of heaven that is underneath is brought into being and kept in being. All heights in heaven, measured from its Sun as the centre, are differences in good and the truth derived from it. Consequently those in the inmost heaven are closer to the Lord, because they are governed by the good of love to Him, thus are governed by good more than all others are. Those in the middle heaven are further away from there because they are governed by a lower kind of good, and those in the lowest are still further away. But those in hell are altogether remote from the Lord, because they are ruled by evil and the falsity arising from it. They do not even look towards the Sun, but backwards, away from the Sun. When regarded by the angels therefore, they appear in an upside down position, feet upwards and head downwards. Now since distances and spatial dimensions in the next life are appearances determined by states of good and the truth derived from it, 9440, 'height' in the spiritual sense means degrees so far as good and so far as truth are concerned, that is, degrees away from the Most High, who is the Lord and so Divine Good itself.

[2] From this it is clear what 'height' means in the following places, as in Jeremiah,

They will come and sing on the height of Zion, and converge towards the goodness of Jehovah; and their soul will be like a watered garden. Jeremiah 31:12.

Here 'the height of Zion' stands for celestial good, which is the level of good above spiritual good. The meaning of 'height' as good is what accounts for the statement that they will 'converge towards the goodness of Jehovah'. In Ezekiel,

Asshur was a cedar in Lebanon. Its height was made high, and its branches were made long by many waters. It was beautiful in its greatness, in the length of its branches. Ezekiel 31:3, 5, 7.

'Asshur' stands for an enlightened power of reason, 'a cedar in Lebanon' for the spiritual Church, 'its height' for the degree of good.

[3] In the same prophet,

On the mountain height of Israel I will plant it. Ezekiel 17:23.

Again in the same prophet,

On My holy mountain, and on the mountain height of Israel, all the house of Israel will serve Me. Ezekiel 20:40.

'The mountain height of Israel' stands for the highest degree of good and of the truth derived from it among those belonging to the spiritual Church. Since most things in the Word have a contrary meaning as well, so too does 'height'. In the contrary sense it means the evil of self-love, and so haughtiness of mind, as in Isaiah 14:14; Ezekiel 31:10, 14; 32:5; Amos 2:9; Daniel 4:11, 20; and a number of other places. Another reason why 'height' means degrees so far as good and the truth derived from it are concerned is that what is 'high' means what is internal, and good becomes by degrees more perfect towards more internal parts. For the meaning of what is 'high' as what is internal, see 1735, 2148, 4210, 4599.

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