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Ezequiel 1

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1 Y fue que a los treinta años, en el mes cuarto, a los cinco del mes, estando yo en medio de los cautivos junto al río de Quebar, los cielos se abrieron, y vi visiones de Dios.

2 A los cinco del mes, que fue en el quinto año de la transmigración del rey Joaquín,

3 vino Palabra del SEÑOR a Ezequiel sacerdote, hijo de Buzi, en la tierra de los caldeos, junto al río de Quebar; y vino allí sobre él la mano del SEÑOR.

4 Y miré, y he aquí un viento tempestuoso venía del aquilón, y una gran nube, y un fuego que venía revolviéndose, y tenía en derredor suyo un resplandor, y en medio de él, en medio del fuego una cosa que parecía como de ámbar,

5 y en medio de ella, la figura de cuatro animales. Y éste era su parecer: había en ellos semejanza de hombre.

6 Y cada uno tenía cuatro rostros, y cuatro alas.

7 Y los pies de ellos eran derechos, y la planta de sus pies como la planta de pie de becerro; y centelleaban a manera de bronce muy bruñido.

8 Y debajo de sus alas, a sus cuatro lados, tenían manos de hombre; y sus rostros y sus alas por los cuatro lados.

9 Con las alas se juntaban el uno al otro. No se volvían cuando andaban; cada uno caminaba en derecho de su rostro.

10 Y la figura de sus rostros era rostros de hombre; y rostros de león a la parte derecha en los cuatro; y a la izquierda rostros de buey en los cuatro; asimismo había en los cuatro rostros de águila.

11 Tales eran sus rostros; y tenían sus alas extendidas por encima, cada uno dos, las cuales se juntaban; y las otras dos cubrían sus cuerpos.

12 Y cada uno caminaba en derecho de su rostro; hacia donde el Espíritu diera que anduviesen, andaban; cuando andaban, no se volvían.

13 En cuanto a la semejanza de los animales, su parecer era como de carbones de fuego encendidos, como parecer de hachones encendidos : el fuego discurría entre los animales, y el resplandor del fuego; y del fuego salían relámpagos.

14 Y los animales corrían y tornaban a semejanza de relámpagos.

15 Y estando yo mirando los animales, he aquí una rueda en la tierra, con sus cuatro haces junto a los animales.

16 Y el parecer de las ruedas y su hechura parecía de Tarsis (o de Turquesa ). Y todas cuatro tenían una misma semejanza: su apariencia y su hechura como es una rueda en medio de otra rueda.

17 Cuando andaban, andaban sobre sus cuatro costados; no se volvían cuando andaban.

18 Y sus costillas eran altas y temerosas, y llenas de ojos alrededor en todas cuatro.

19 Y cuando los animales andaban, las ruedas andaban junto a ellos; y cuando los animales se levantaban de la tierra, las ruedas se levantaban.

20 Hacia donde el espíritu diera que anduviesen, andaban; hacia donde diera el espíritu que anduviesen, las ruedas también se levantaban tras ellos; porque el espíritu de los animales estaba en las ruedas.

21 Cuando ellos andaban, andaban ellas ; y cuando ellos se paraban, se paraban ellas ; y cuando se levantaban de la tierra, las ruedas se levantaban tras ellos; porque el espíritu de los animales estaba en las ruedas.

22 Y sobre las cabezas de cada animal aparecía un cielo a manera de un cristal maravilloso, extendido encima sobre sus cabezas.

23 Y debajo del cielo estaban las alas de ellos derechas la una a la otra; a cada uno dos, y otras dos con que se cubrían sus cuerpos.

24 Y oí el sonido de sus alas cuando andaban, como sonido de muchas aguas, como la voz del Omnipotente, cuando andaban; la voz de la palabra, como la voz de un ejército. Cuando se paraban, aflojaban sus alas.

25 Y se oía voz de arriba del cielo que estaba sobre sus cabezas, cuando se paraban y aflojaban sus alas,

26 Y sobre el cielo que estaba sobre sus cabezas, había una figura de un trono que parecía de piedra de zafiro; y sobre la figura del trono había una semejanza que parecía de hombre sentado sobre él.

27 Y vi una cosa que parecía como de ámbar, que parecía que había fuego dentro de ella, la cual se veía desde sus lomos para arriba; y desde sus lomos para abajo, vi que parecía como fuego, y que tenía resplandor alrededor

28 que parecía el arco del cielo que está en las nubes el día que llueve, así era el parecer del resplandor alrededor. Esta fue la visión de la semejanza de la gloria del SEÑOR. Y yo lo vi, y caí sobre mi rostro, y oí voz de uno que hablaba.

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Apocalypse Explained # 280

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280. And the third animal had a face like a man, signifies the appearance in ultimates of the Divine guard and providence in respect to wisdom. This is evident from the signification of "the face of a man," as being the affection of truth, "face" signifying affection, and "man" the recipient of Divine truth; and because man's rational is from this, "man" signifies wisdom; for man was created that he might be rational and wise; by this he is distinguished from the brute animals; for this reason "man" in the Word signifies wisdom. "Man" signifies both the affection of truth and wisdom, because the affection of truth and wisdom act as one; for he who is in the spiritual affection of truth, that is, who is affected by truth, or who loves truth because it is truth, is conjoined to the Lord, since the Lord is in His own truths, and is His truth with man; from this man has wisdom, and from this it is that man is a man. Some suppose that man is a man by reason of his face and body, and that by these he is distinguished from beasts, but they are in an error; man is a man by reason of his wisdom, consequently so far as anyone is wise so far is he a man. Those, therefore, who are wise, appear in heaven and in the light of heaven as men, with a brightness and beauty according to their wisdom; while those who are not wise-which is true of those who are in no spiritual affection, but merely in natural affection, in which man is when he loves truth not because it is truth but because he thence receives glory, honor, and gain-these in the light of heaven appear not as men but as monsters in various forms (See in the work on Heaven and Hell 70, 72, 73-77, 80; and what wisdom is, and what non-wisdom is, n. 346-356).

[2] That "man" in the Word signifies the affection of truth and wisdom therefrom, is evident from the following passages. In Isaiah:

Lord, how long? He said, until cities be devastated that they may be without inhabitant, and the houses that there may be no man in them, and the ground be devastated to a waste. Jehovah shall remove man, and forsaken places shall be multiplied in the midst of the land (Isaiah 6:11-12).

These things were not said of the devastation of the earth, that there should no longer be cities and houses therein, or that in these there should be no inhabitant or man, but they were said of the devastation of good and truth in the church; "cities" signifying the truths of doctrine; "inhabitant" the good of doctrine; "houses" the interiors of man which are of his mind; and "man" the spiritual affection of truth and wisdom therefrom. This is signified by "the houses shall be devastated, that there may be no man in them." The "land" that shall be devastated to a waste signifies the church. From this it is clear what is signified by "removing man," and by "multiplying the forsaken places in the midst of the land;" "a forsaken place" signifying where there is no good because there is no truth.

[3] In the same:

I will make a man [virum hominem] more rare than pure gold; and [the son of] man6 than the gold of Ophir (Isaiah 13:12).

A [son of] "man" [virum hominem] signifies intelligence, and "man" [hominem] wisdom, and that these were about to be at an end is signified by their being "made rare." Intelligence is distinguished from wisdom by this, that intelligence is the understanding of truth such as the spiritual man has, and wisdom is the understanding of truth such as the celestial man has, whose understanding is from the will of good. From this it is clear what is here signified by [son of] "man" [virum hominem], and what by "man" [hominem].

[4] In the same:

The inhabitants of the earth shall be burnt up, and few men shall be left (Isaiah 24:6).

The "inhabitants of the earth" signify the goods of the church, and these are said "to be burnt up" when the loves of self and of the world begin to rule; that the spiritual affection of truth and wisdom therefrom will then be at an end is signified by "few men will be left."

[5] In the same:

The highways have been laid waste; he that passeth through the way hath ceased; he hath made void the covenant, he hath rejected the cities, he regardeth not man (Isaiah 33:8).

This treats of the devastation of the church; "the highways that are laid waste" and "he that passeth through the way who hath ceased" signify that the goods and truths which lead to heaven are no more; "he hath made void the covenant" signifies no conjunction then with the Lord; "he hath rejected the cities" signifies that they spurn doctrine; "he regardeth not man" signifies that he makes no account of wisdom.

[6] In Jeremiah:

I saw the earth, when lo, it was void and empty; and towards the heavens, and their light was not. I saw, when lo there was no man, and all the fowl of the heavens were fled away (Jeremiah 4:23, 25).

This evidently does not mean the earth, that it was void and empty, nor the heavens that there was no light thence nor that there was not a man on the earth, nor that all the fowl of heaven were fled; what is really meant can be seen only from the spiritual sense of the Word. In that sense "earth" signifies the church; that it was "void and empty" signifies that there is no good and truth in the church; the "heavens," where there is no light, signify the interiors of man's mind which are the receptacles of the light of heaven; (the "light" that is not there is Divine truth and wisdom therefrom); therefore it is said, "I saw and lo there was no man"; the "fowl of heaven which were fled away" signify the rational and the intellectual.

[7] In the same:

Behold the days come, that I will sow the house of Israel and the house of Judah with the seed of man and with the seed of beast (Jeremiah 31:27).

"The house of Israel and the house of Judah" signify the church in respect to truth and in respect to good; "the seed of man and the seed of beast" signify the spiritual affection of truth and the natural affection of truth; for where "man and beast" are mentioned in the Word the spiritual and the natural or the internal and the external, are signified (See Arcana Coelestia 7424, 7523, 7872).

[8] In Zephaniah:

I will take away man and beast; I will take away the fowl of the heavens and the fishes of the sea; I will cut off man from the surfaces of the earth (Zephaniah 1:3).

"To take away man and beast" means to take away the spiritual affection of truth and the natural affection of truth; "to take away the fowl of the heavens and the fishes of the sea" means to take away spiritual truths and natural truths; and "to cut off man from the surfaces of the earth" means to cut off the affection of truth and wisdom.

[9] In Ezekiel:

Ye My flock, the flock of My pasture, ye are man; I am your God (Ezekiel 34:31).

The "flock of the pasture" signifies spiritual good and truth; the "pasture" is the reception of these from the Lord; it is therefore said, "ye are man, I am your God," "man" standing for the spiritual affection of truth and wisdom.

[10] In the same:

Behold, I am with you, and I will look unto you, and ye shall be tilled and sown; then I will multiply man upon you, the whole house of Israel; and the cities shall be inhabited, and the waste places shall be builded. I will cause man to walk upon you, My people Israel. Thus the Lord Jehovah hath said, Because ye say, Thou hast been a devourer of man and a bereaver of thy peoples, therefore thou shalt devour man no more, and thy sword shall not bereave any more; the desolate cities shall be full of the flock of man (Ezekiel 36:9-14, 38).

The restoration of the church is here treated of; "Israel" signifies the spiritual church, or the church that is in spiritual good, which is the good of charity; this church is here called "man" from the spiritual affection of truth that makes the church; therefore it is said, "I will multiply man upon you, the whole house of Israel, and I will cause man to walk upon you, My people Israel." "The flock of man," of which "the desolate cities shall be full," signifies spiritual truths of which the doctrines of the church shall be full; "the sword which shall not bereave any more" signifies that falsity shalt no longer destroy truth.

[11] In the same:

Thy mother is a lioness, she lay down among lions; one of her whelps rose up, it learned to tear the prey, it devoured men (Ezekiel 19:2, 3, 6).

"Mother" means the church, here the church perverted; the falsity of evil destroying truth is signified by "the lioness lying down among lions;" "her whelp which learned to tear the prey and devoured men" signifies the primary falsity of their doctrine, which destroyed truths and consumed every affection of them. These things were said of the princes of Israel, by whom primary truths are signified, but here, in a contrary sense, primary falsities.

[12] In Jeremiah:

Hazor shall become an abode of dragons, a waste even forever; a man [vir] shall not dwell there, nor a son of man [hominis] sojourn in her (Jeremiah 49:33).

The church that is in falsities and in no truths is here treated of; "Hazor" signifies the knowledges of truth; the knowledges of falsity are signified by "an abode of dragons;" that there is there no truth and no doctrine of truth is signified by "a man [vir] shall not dwell there, nor the son of man [hominis] sojourn in her," "man" meaning truth, and "the son of man" a doctrine of truth.

[13] In Revelation:

He measured the wall of the holy Jerusalem, a hundred and forty-four cubits, the measure of a man, which is that of an angel (Revelation 21:17).

That this signifies, that "the wall of the holy Jerusalem was a hundred and forty-four cubits, and that this was the measure of a man, which is that of an angel," no one can understand unless he knows what is signified by "the holy Jerusalem," by its "wall," by the number "one hundred and forty-four," likewise by "man," and by "angel." "The holy Jerusalem" signifies the church in respect to doctrine; "wall" signifies truth protecting; the number "one hundred and forty-four" signifies all truths from good in the complex; "man" signifies the reception of these from affection, and "angel" signifies the same; it is therefore said, "the measure of a man, which is that of an angel;" "measure" signifying quality. From this it is clear how these words are to be spiritually understood. (These things may be seen more clearly explained in The Doctrine of the New Jerusalem 1 .)

[14] Because "man" signifies the spiritual affection of truth and wisdom therefrom, "man" also signifies the church, because the church with man is a church from the spiritual affection of truth and wisdom therefrom. This makes clear what is meant by "Man" in the first chapters of Genesis, namely, the church that was the first of this earth and the most ancient; this is what is meant by "Adam," or "Man." The establishment of this church is described in the first chapter by the creation of heaven and earth; its intelligence and wisdom by paradise; and its fall by the eating of the tree of knowledge.

[15] But in the highest sense, by "man" is meant the Lord Himself, since from Him are heaven and the church, and the spiritual affection of truth and wisdom with each one of those who constitute heaven and the church; therefore in the highest sense the Lord alone is man; and men in both worlds, spiritual and natural, are men so far as they receive from the Lord truth and good, thus so far as they love truth and live according to it. And from this also it is that the whole angelic heaven appears as one man, and also each society there; and moreover, that the angels appear in a perfect human form. (See further on this in the work on Heaven and Hell 59-67, 68-72, 73-77, 87-102)

[16] It was on this account that the four cherubim, which signify the guard and providence of the Lord that the higher heavens be not approached except through the good of love, were seen as men, although they each had four faces; and that the Lord was seen above them as a Man. That the four cherubim were seen as men is evident in Ezekiel:

This was the appearance of the four animals; they had the likeness of a man, but each one had four faces (Ezekiel 1:5-6).

Likewise the two cherubim upon the mercy-seat were in face like men. That the Lord was seen above the four cherubim as a man is also stated in the same prophet:

Above the expanse which was over the head of the cherubim was as it were the appearance of a sapphire stone, the likeness of a throne, and upon the likeness of the throne a likeness as the appearance of a man upon it above (Ezekiel 1:26).

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

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Arcana Coelestia # 1164

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1164. That 'Cush' or Ethiopia means interior cognitions of the Word by which people confirm false assumptions is clear in Jeremiah,

Egypt comes up like the river, and like the rivers the waters are tossed about; and he said, I will go up, I will cover the earth, I will destroy the city and those who dwell in it. Go up, O horses, and rage, O chariots, and let the mighty men go forth, Cush and Put that handle the shield. Jeremiah 46:8-9.

In this case 'Egypt' stands for people who believe nothing they do not grasp through facts. As a result everything is subject to doubt, denial and falsification, meant by 'rising up, covering the earth, and destroying the city'. Here 'Cush' stands for the more universal and interior cognitions of the Word by which they confirm accepted false assumptions. 'Put' stands for cognitions drawn from the literal sense of the Word which are based on sensory appearances.

[2] In Ezekiel,

A sword will come upon Egypt, and there will be grief in Cush when the slain 1 falls in Egypt; and they will take her multitude, and her foundations will be destroyed. Cush and Put and Lud and all of Ereb 2 and Kub, and the sons of the land of the covenant will fall with them by the sword. Ezekiel 30:4-6.

Except from the internal sense nobody could possibly know what these statements mean. And if the names did not mean real things, these verses would have practically no meaning at all. In this case however 'Egypt' means the knowledge by means of which they wish to enter into the mysteries of faith. 'Cush and Put' are called 'her foundations' because they are cognitions drawn from the Word.

[3] In the same prophet,

On that day messengers will go forth from before Me in ships to terrify overconfident Cush, and there will be grief among them as in the day of Egypt. Ezekiel 30:9.

'Cush' stands for cognitions drawn from the Word which confirm falsities hatched out of facts. In the same prophet,

I will make the land of Egypt into waste places, an utter desolation, from the tower of Seveneh as far as the border of Cush. Ezekiel 29:10.

In this case 'Egypt' stands for facts, 'Cush' for cognitions of the interior things of the Word, which are 'the borders' beyond which knowledge does not go.

[4] In Isaiah,

The king of Asshur will lead away the captives of Egypt and the captives of Cush, boys and old men, naked and barefoot, and with buttocks uncovered, the nakedness of Egypt. And they will be dismayed and ashamed because of Cush their hope, and because of Egypt their glory. Isaiah 20:4-5.

Here 'Cush' stands for cognitions drawn from the Word by which falsities obtained through facts are confirmed. 'Asshur' is reasoning which carries away those who are captive. In Nahum,

Cush was her strength, Egypt too, and that without limit; Put and the Libyans were your help. Nahum 3:9.

This refers to a vastated Church where in a similar way 'Egypt' stands for facts and 'Cush' for cognitions.

[5] 'Cush' and 'Egypt' stand simply for cognitions and knowledge which are truths useful to people whose faith is grounded in charity. 'Cush and Egypt' is used in this good sense in Isaiah,

Jehovah said, The labour of Egypt, and the wares of Cush and of the Sabeans, men of stature, will come over to you and will be yours. They will follow after you in fetters, they will come over and bow down to you. To you they will make the supplication, God is with you only, and there is no other besides God. Isaiah 45:14.

'The labour of Egypt' stands for knowledge, 'the wares of Cush and the Sabeans' for cognitions of spiritual things which serve those who acknowledge the Lord, for all knowledge and every cognition are theirs.

[6] In Daniel,

The king of the north will have dominion over the secret hoards of gold and silver, and over all the precious things of Egypt; and the Libyans (Put) and the Cushites will follow in his 3 steps. Daniel 11:3.

'Put and Cush' here stands for cognitions drawn from the Word, 'Egypt' for facts. In Zephaniah,

From beyond the rivers of Cush are those who adore Me. Zephaniah 3:10.

This stands for those who are beyond the range of cognitions, and so for gentiles. In David,

Noblemen will come out of Egypt, Cush will hasten [to stretch out] her hands to God. Psalms 68:31.

Here 'Egypt' stands for knowledge, and 'Cush' for cognitions.

[7] In the same author,

I will mention Rahab and Babel among those who know Me; behold, Philistia and Tyre, with Cush. The latter was born here (in the city of God). Psalms 87:4.

'Cush' stands for cognitions drawn from the Word, hence the statement that he was 'born in the city of God'. Since 'Cush' means interior cognitions of the Word and intelligence acquired from these, it is therefore said that the second river going out of the garden of Eden encompassed the whole land of Cush. On this see what has appeared already in 117.

Poznámky pod čarou:

1. literally, the pierced

2. the Hebrew word rendered Ereb here is usually regarded not as a proper but as a common noun which means a mixed company.

3. The Latin means your but the Hebrew means his, which Swedenborg has in another place where he quotes this verse.

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