Bible

 

Exodus 31

Studie

   

1 And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying,

2 See, I have called by name Bezaleel the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah:

3 And I have filled him with the spirit of God, in wisdom, and in understanding, and in knowledge, and in all manner of workmanship,

4 To devise curious works, to work in gold, and in silver, and in brass,

5 And in cutting of stones to set them, and in carving of timber, to work in all manner of workmanship.

6 And I, behold, I have given with him Aholiab the son of Ahisamach of the tribe of Dan; and in the hearts of all that are wise-hearted I have put wisdom; that they may make all that I have commanded thee:

7 The tabernacle of the congregation, and the ark of the testimony, and the mercy-seat that is upon it, and all the furniture of the tabernacle,

8 And the table and its furniture, and the pure candlestick with all its furniture, and the altar of incense,

9 And the altar of burnt-offering, with all its furniture, and the laver and its foot,

10 And the clothes of service, and the holy garments for Aaron the priest, and the garments of his sons, to minister in the priest's office,

11 And the anointing oil, and sweet incense for the holy place: according to all that I have commanded thee, shall they do.

12 And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying,

13 Speak thou also to the children of Israel, saying, Verily my sabbaths ye shall keep: for it is a sign between me and you throughout your generations; that ye may know that I am the LORD that doth sanctify you.

14 Ye shall keep the sabbath therefore: for it is holy to you. Every one that profaneth it shall surely be put to death: for whoever doeth any work therein, that soul shall be cut off from among his people.

15 Six days may work be done, but in the seventh is the sabbath of rest, holy to the LORD: whoever doeth any work in the sabbath-day, he shall surely be put to death.

16 Wherefore the children of Israel shall keep the sabbath, to observe the sabbath throughout their generations, for a perpetual covenant.

17 It is a sign between me and the children of Israel for ever: for in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day he rested and was refreshed.

18 And to Moses, when he had made an end of communing with him upon mount Sinai, he gave two tables of testimony, tables of stone, written with the finger of God.

   

Ze Swedenborgových děl

 

Arcana Coelestia # 10330

Prostudujte si tuto pasáž

  
/ 10837  
  

10330. 'And I have filled him with the spirit of God' means influx and enlightenment received from Divine Truth which emanates from the Lord's Divine Good. This is clear from the meaning of 'filling with the spirit of God' as influx and enlightenment received from Divine Truth. In respect of what Jehovah does 'filling' is influx, while on man's side it is enlightenment; and 'the spirit of God' is Divine Truth which emanates from the Lord's Divine Good. The reason why 'filling', in respect of what Jehovah or the Lord does, is influx, while on man's side it is enlightenment, is that 'influx' is a term which serves to describe all the good and all the truth that come from heaven and originate in the Lord; and since that influx causes a person to be enlightened the term 'enlightenment' serves to describe what happens on man's side. Regarding 'the spirit of God', that it is this Divine Truth emanating from the Lord's Divine Good, see 9818.

[2] Since few know what the influx of Divine Truth and what the resulting enlightenment in a person are like, let something about these matters be stated here. The Church recognizes that all the good of love and truth of faith has its source not in a person himself but in heaven - in what is Divine there - as it resides with him. It is also recognized that those who receive that truth and good have enlightenment. Such influx and enlightenment however are brought about in the following manner. The nature of a person is such that he is able to use his inner powers of thought and will to look downwards or to look upwards. Looking downwards consists in looking away to the world and to self; and looking upwards consists in looking towards heaven and towards God. The person looking outwards is self-directed; this is called looking downwards because when a person is self-directed he looks towards hell. But a person looking in an inward direction is not self-directed but is directed by the Lord; this is called looking upwards because as to his inner powers of will and understanding he is then raised by the Lord towards heaven, and so towards the Lord. Those inner powers themselves are literally raised up, and at the same time are literally drawn away from the body and the world. When this happens the person's inner powers do literally pass into heaven, and into its warmth and light. As a result he receives influx and enlightenment. The light of heaven shines in his understanding, for the Divine Truth which radiates from the Lord as the sun constitutes that light; and the warmth of heaven heats his will, for the good of love which radiates at the same time from the Lord as the sun composes this warmth. Since the person is then among angels they impart an understanding of truth and an affection for good to him, that is, the Lord does so through them.

This imparting is what the terms 'influx and enlightenment' serve to describe.

[3] But it should be recognized that the extent to which influx and enlightenment are brought about depends on the person's ability to receive what is imparted; and this ability depends on his love of truth and good. People therefore who have a love of truth and good because they see truth and good as the end in view are raised up; but those who have a love of truth and good because they see self and the world, not truth and good, as the end in view are constantly looking and gravitating downwards. These as a consequence cannot be raised, and so cannot receive Divine influx from heaven and become enlightened. Their intelligence or understanding, which to them seems to be an understanding of truth, is the product of a light in which a fool sees things - a light shining before their mind's eye which radiates from notions which they have proved to themselves and gone on to convince themselves of. Whether true or false however, it still provides a brightness, which however turns into total darkness when light from heaven flows in. I have been shown vividly that this is so. From all this it may be seen what the origin is of the great number of heresies that arise in the world. That is to say, they arise because their founders and leaders have looked towards themselves, having their own glory as their end in view, and have regarded those things which belong to the Lord and to heaven as means to that end.

  
/ 10837  
  

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

Ze Swedenborgových děl

 

Arcana Coelestia # 10292

Prostudujte si tuto pasáž

  
/ 10837  
  

10292. 'Stacte' means an affection for truth on the level of the senses. This is clear from the meaning of 'stacte' as truth on the level of the senses, an affection for that truth being meant on account of the sweet smell this spice has. For an odour means perception, a sweet odour meaning perception that is pleasing, a foul and stinking odour perception that is displeasing; and any pleasure or displeasure that perception brings is attributable to and in keeping with the affection belonging to love, see 925, 1514, 1517-1519, 3577, 4624-4634, 4748, 5621, 10054. It should be remembered in general that all things whatever in the vegetable kingdom, both those which woodlands yield and those which gardens, fields, and plains produce, such as trees, crops, flowers, grass, and vegetables, mean spiritual and celestial realities generally and specifically. The reason why this should be so is that the whole natural order is a theatre representative of the Lord's kingdom, see in the places referred to in 9280.

[2] 'Stacte' means an affection for truth on the level of the senses because it is mentioned first; for there are four spices from which the incense was made, even as there are four spices from which the anointing oil was prepared. And the one that is mentioned first is the most external, as was that mentioned first in the preparation of the anointing oil, namely the best myrrh, by which the perception of truth on the level of the senses is meant, see 10252 above.

[3] The reason why four spices were used in the preparation of both the oil and the incense was that they meant levels of truth in their proper order, from outward to inmost; and in a person they follow one another in that same order. For a person has an external, called the external man, and an internal, called the internal man; and in each of these there is a more external level and a more internal one. The most external level is called that of the senses; this therefore is what is meant by 'stacte'. What the level of the senses is and what it is like, see 9996, 10236.

[4] The fact that 'stacte' means an affection for truth on the level of the senses cannot be corroborated from other places in the Word because it is not mentioned anywhere else. Yet another kind of stacte, for which also a different word is used in the original language, is mentioned among those spices which were taken down into Egypt, Genesis 37:25; 43:11; and by those commodities which were taken down to Egypt such things as exist in the external or natural man are implied. This is because 'Egypt' means factual knowledge, which belongs to the natural man, see in the places referred to in 9391.

  
/ 10837  
  

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