Arcana Coelestia # 10182
10182. 'Its horns shall be of one piece with it' means the powers of truth derived from the good of love and charity. This is clear from the meaning of 'horns' as the powers of truth, dealt with in 2832, 9719-9721. The reason why derived from the good of love and charity is meant is that all the power which truth possesses comes from that good. Therefore also the horns continued from the altar itself or were of one piece with it; for this altar was representative of the Lord, of His hearing and receiving everything of worship that springs from love and charity, 10177.
[2] The statement that all the power which truth possesses comes from the good of love is unintelligible to those who have only a material idea of power, and therefore the nature of that power must be described. In the heavens all power is derived from Divine Truth emanating from the Lord's Divine Good. This is the source of the power angels possess, for angels are recipients of Divine Truth from the Lord, 1752, 4295, 8192. By means of the power which they receive from that source they protect a person by removing the hells from him; for a single angel is stronger than a thousand who come from hell. This power is what Peter's keys serve to mean, though Peter, who in the same place is referred to as a rock, means the Lord in respect of the truth of faith springing from the good of love, see Preface to Genesis 22, and 3750, 4738, 6000, 6073(end), 6344(end), 10087, 'the Rock' being the Lord in respect of the truth of faith, 8581.
[3] The power that Divine Truth possesses is also meant by 'the voice of Jehovah' in David,
The voice of Jehovah is upon the waters; the voice of Jehovah is powerful; the voice of Jehovah breaks the cedars; the voice of Jehovah strikes a flame of fire; the voice of Jehovah causes the wilderness to shake; the voice of Jehovah strips the forests bare; Jehovah gives strength to His people. Psalms 29:3-5, 7-9, 11.
'The voice of Jehovah' is the Divine Truth emanating from His Divine Good, see 9926.
[4] The power that Divine Truth possesses is also meant by 'the Word' in John,
All things were made through the Word, and without Him nothing was made that was made. John 1:3.
'The Word' is the Divine Truth emanating from Divine Good, see 9987. Therefore also the Lord, when He was in the world, first made Himself Divine Truth, which is also meant in John 1:14 by the Word became flesh. The Lord made Himself Divine Truth then to the end that He might fight against all the hells and overcome them, and in so doing might restore all things to order there, and at the same time in the heavens, 9715, 9809, 10019, 10152.
[5] The fact that truths springing from good possess all power, while on the other hand falsities arising from evil have no power, is very well known in the next life. For this reason the evil who come there from the world have their belief, which is no more than persuasion, and also their knowledge of any truth, taken away from them. This then leaves them with the falsities belonging to their evil.
[6] The statement that truths springing from good possess such power is unintelligible to those who have the idea that truth or a belief in truth is no more than mental activity, when yet a person's mental activity, under the control of his will, constitutes all the strength which the body has; and if the Lord were to instill it through His Divine Truth into that body the person would possess the strength of Samson. But yet it is the Lord's good pleasure to impart strength to a person through faith springing from love in the things that belong to his spirit and that contribute to eternal life.
[7] From all this one may see what should be understood by the power of truth springing from good, the power meant by 'the horns' of both the altar of burnt offering and the altar of incense. That this power is meant by 'the horns' is clear from places in the Word where 'horns' are mentioned, as in Ezekiel,
On that day I will make a horn grow up for the house of Israel. Ezekiel 29:21.
In Amos,
Have we not by our own strength taken horns for ourselves? Amos 6:13.
In the first Book of Samuel,
Jehovah will give strength to His king, and exalt the horn of His anointed. 1 Samuel 2:10.
In David,
Jehovah has exalted the horn of His people. Psalms 148:14.
In the same author,
All the horns of the wicked I will cut off; the horns of the righteous will be exalted. Psalms 75:10.
In Jeremiah,
The Lord has cut down in His very fierce anger 1 the whole horn of Israel. And He has exalted the horn of your foes. Lamentations 2:3, 17.
In Ezekiel,
You push with side and shoulder, and butt with your horns all the weak sheep, until you have scattered them abroad. Ezekiel 34:21.
In Zechariah,
I saw four horns. The angel said, These are the horns which have scattered Judah, Israel, and Jerusalem. The smiths have come to cast down the horns of the nations lifting up their horn against the land of Judah. Zechariah 1:18-21.
In Moses,
His horns are unicorn horns 2 . With these he will strike the peoples together to the ends of the earth. Deuteronomy 33:17.
In these places it is self-evident that power is meant by 'horns', and indeed power in both senses, that is to say, of truth directed against falsity and of falsity directed against truth; for the state of the Church is the subject in the internal sense of every one of these places.
[8] Something similar occurs in Amos,
On that day I will visit the altars of Bethel, and the horns of the altar will be cut away and fall to the ground. Amos 3:14.
'The altars of Bethel' and 'the horns of the altar' mean the evils and falsities destroying the Church's goodness and truth, regarding which it says that they 'will be cut away'.
[9] From all this one may see what should be understood by 'the horns' mentioned so frequently by Daniel, and by John in the Book of Revelation. Daniel describes the beast which had ten horns and also a horn speaking, Daniel 7:8, 11, 20; and he says that the horn was making war with the saints and prevailing, until the Ancient of Days 3 came, Daniel 7:11, 21-22, 24. He also speaks about the horns of the ram and the horns of the he-goat, which they used to make war against each other, Daniel 8:3-21. And John mentions that the dragon had ten horns, Revelation 12:3, as did the beast coming up out of the sea, Revelation 13:1, and also the scarlet beast, Revelation 17:12. In this verse it is also stated that the ten horns are ten kings; and the same words occur in Daniel 7:24. By 'kings' in the Word truths are meant, and in the contrary sense falsities, see 1672, 2015, 2069, 3009, 4575, 4581, 4966, 5044, 5068, 6148.
[10] It is because 'horn' means truth in its power, or in the contrary sense falsity destroying truth, that speech is attributed to a horn in Revelation 9:13; Daniel 7:8; Psalms 22:21.
[11] The anointing of kings with oil from a horn, 1 Samuel 16:1, 13; 1 Kings 1:39, represented truth springing from good, in its power; for truths in their power are meant by 'horns', good by 'oil', and those who are guided by truths springing from good by 'kings'. For the meaning of 'oil' as good, see 886, 9780; and for that of 'kings' as those who are guided by truths springing from good, thus - in the abstract sense - as truths springing from good, 6148. So it is also that in Psalms 132:17 a horn is said to bud, because all spiritual budding is that of truth springing from good. Therefore also in former times they made [imitations of] budding horns.
All power belongs to good and is exercised through truth, or what amounts to the same thing, belongs to truth springing from good, see the places referred to in 10019.
Poznámky pod čarou:
1. literally, in the fierceness of His anger
2. i.e. horns that are high and powerful, like the horn of a unicorn
3. The Latin means the Son of Man but the original Aramaic means the Ancient of Days, which Swedenborg has in another place where he quotes these verses.
John 10
1
"Most certainly, I tell you, one who doesn't enter by the door into the sheep fold, but climbs up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber.
2
But one who enters in by the door is the shepherd of the sheep.
3
The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep listen to his voice. He calls his own sheep by name, and leads them out.
4
Whenever he brings out his own sheep, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice.
5
They will by no means follow a stranger, but will flee from him; for they don't know the voice of strangers."
6
Jesus spoke this parable to them, but they didn't understand what he was telling them.
7
Jesus therefore said to them again, "Most certainly, I tell you, I am the sheep's door.
8
All who came before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep didn't listen to them.
9
I am the door. If anyone enters in by me, he will be saved, and will go in and go out, and will find pasture.
10
The thief only comes to steal, kill, and destroy. I came that they may have life, and may have it abundantly.
11
I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.
12
He who is a hired hand, and not a shepherd, who doesn't own the sheep, sees the wolf coming, leaves the sheep, and flees. The wolf snatches the sheep, and scatters them.
13
The hired hand flees because he is a hired hand, and doesn't care for the sheep.
14
I am the good shepherd. I know my own, and I'm known by my own;
15
even as the Father knows me, and I know the Father. I lay down my life for the sheep.
16
I have other sheep, which are not of this fold. I must bring them also, and they will hear my voice. They will become one flock with one shepherd.
17
Therefore the Father loves me, because I lay down my life, that I may take it again.
18
No one takes it away from me, but I lay it down by myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. I received this commandment from my Father."
19
Therefore a division arose again among the Jews because of these words.
20
Many of them said, "He has a demon, and is insane! Why do you listen to him?"
21
Others said, "These are not the sayings of one possessed by a demon. It isn't possible for a demon to open the eyes of the blind, is it?"
22
It was the Feast of the Dedication at Jerusalem.
23
It was winter, and Jesus was walking in the temple, in Solomon's porch.
24
The Jews therefore came around him and said to him, "How long will you hold us in suspense? If you are the Christ, tell us plainly."
25
Jesus answered them, "I told you, and you don't believe. The works that I do in my Father's name, these testify about me.
26
But you don't believe, because you are not of my sheep, as I told you.
27
My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me.
28
I give eternal life to them. They will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand.
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My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all. No one is able to snatch them out of my Father's hand.
30
I and the Father are one."
31
Therefore Jews took up stones again to stone him.
32
Jesus answered them, "I have shown you many good works from my Father. For which of those works do you stone me?"
33
The Jews answered him, "We don't stone you for a good work, but for blasphemy: because you, being a man, make yourself God."
34
Jesus answered them, "Isn't it written in your law, 'I said, you are gods?'
35
If he called them gods, to whom the word of God came (and the Scripture can't be broken),
36
do you say of him whom the Father sanctified and sent into the world, 'You blaspheme,' because I said, 'I am the Son of God?'
37
If I don't do the works of my Father, don't believe me.
38
But if I do them, though you don't believe me, believe the works; that you may know and believe that the Father is in me, and I in the Father."
39
They sought again to seize him, and he went out of their hand.
40
He went away again beyond the Jordan into the place where John was baptizing at first, and there he stayed.
41
Many came to him. They said, "John indeed did no sign, but everything that John said about this man is true."
