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Numbers 3

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1 Now this is the history of the generations of Aaron and Moses in the day that Yahweh spoke with Moses in Mount Sinai.

2 These are the names of the sons of Aaron: Nadab the firstborn, and Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar.

3 These are the names of the sons of Aaron, the priests who were anointed, whom he consecrated to minister in the priest's office.

4 Nadab and Abihu died before Yahweh, when they offered strange fire before Yahweh, in the wilderness of Sinai, and they had no children. Eleazar and Ithamar ministered in the priest's office in the presence of Aaron their father.

5 Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying,

6 "Bring the tribe of Levi near, and set them before Aaron the priest, that they may minister to him.

7 They shall keep his requirements, and the requirements of the whole congregation before the Tent of Meeting, to do the service of the tabernacle.

8 They shall keep all the furnishings of the Tent of Meeting, and the obligations of the children of Israel, to do the service of the tabernacle.

9 You shall give the Levites to Aaron and to his sons. They are wholly given to him on the behalf of the children of Israel.

10 You shall appoint Aaron and his sons, and they shall keep their priesthood. The stranger who comes near shall be put to death."

11 Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying,

12 "Behold, I have taken the Levites from among the children of Israel instead of all the firstborn who open the womb among the children of Israel; and the Levites shall be mine:

13 for all the firstborn are mine. On the day that I struck down all the firstborn in the land of Egypt I made holy to me all the firstborn in Israel, both man and animal. They shall be mine. I am Yahweh."

14 Yahweh spoke to Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, saying,

15 "Count the children of Levi by their fathers' houses, by their families. You shall count every male from a month old and upward."

16 Moses numbered them according to the word of Yahweh, as he was commanded.

17 These were the sons of Levi by their names: Gershon, and Kohath, and Merari.

18 These are the names of the sons of Gershon by their families: Libni and Shimei.

19 The sons of Kohath by their families: Amram, and Izhar, Hebron, and Uzziel.

20 The sons of Merari by their families: Mahli and Mushi. These are the families of the Levites according to their fathers' houses.

21 Of Gershon was the family of the Libnites, and the family of the Shimeites: these are the families of the Gershonites.

22 Those who were numbered of them, according to the number of all the males, from a month old and upward, even those who were numbered of them were seven thousand five hundred.

23 The families of the Gershonites shall encamp behind the tabernacle westward.

24 The prince of the fathers' house of the Gershonites shall be Eliasaph the son of Lael.

25 The duty of the sons of Gershon in the Tent of Meeting shall be the tabernacle, and the Tent, its covering, and the screen for the door of the Tent of Meeting,

26 and the hangings of the court, and the screen for the door of the court, which is by the tabernacle, and around the altar, and its cords for all of its service.

27 Of Kohath was the family of the Amramites, and the family of the Izharites, and the family of the Hebronites, and the family of the Uzzielites: these are the families of the Kohathites.

28 According to the number of all the males, from a month old and upward, there were eight thousand six hundred, keeping the requirements of the sanctuary.

29 The families of the sons of Kohath shall encamp on the south side of the tabernacle.

30 The prince of the fathers' house of the families of the Kohathites shall be Elizaphan the son of Uzziel.

31 Their duty shall be the ark, the table, the lamp stand, the altars, the vessels of the sanctuary with which they minister, and the screen, and all its service.

32 Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest shall be prince of the princes of the Levites, with the oversight of those who keep the requirements of the sanctuary.

33 Of Merari was the family of the Mahlites, and the family of the Mushites. These are the families of Merari.

34 Those who were numbered of them, according to the number of all the males, from a month old and upward, were six thousand two hundred.

35 The prince of the fathers' house of the families of Merari was Zuriel the son of Abihail. They shall encamp on the north side of the tabernacle.

36 The appointed duty of the sons of Merari shall be the tabernacle's boards, its bars, its pillars, its sockets, all its instruments, all its service,

37 the pillars of the court around it, their sockets, their pins, and their cords.

38 Those who encamp before the tabernacle eastward, in front of the Tent of Meeting toward the sunrise, shall be Moses, and Aaron and his sons, keeping the requirements of the sanctuary for the duty of the children of Israel. The stranger who comes near shall be put to death.

39 All who were numbered of the Levites, whom Moses and Aaron numbered at the commandment of Yahweh, by their families, all the males from a month old and upward, were twenty-two thousand.

40 Yahweh said to Moses, "Number all the firstborn males of the children of Israel from a month old and upward, and take the number of their names.

41 You shall take the Levites for me (I am Yahweh) instead of all the firstborn among the children of Israel; and the livestock of the Levites instead of all the firstborn among the livestock of the children of Israel."

42 Moses numbered, as Yahweh commanded him, all the firstborn among the children of Israel.

43 All the firstborn males according to the number of names, from a month old and upward, of those who were numbered of them, were twenty-two thousand two hundred seventy-three.

44 Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying,

45 "Take the Levites instead of all the firstborn among the children of Israel, and the livestock of the Levites instead of their livestock; and the Levites shall be mine. I am Yahweh.

46 For the redemption of the two hundred seventy-three of the firstborn of the children of Israel, who exceed the number of the Levites,

47 you shall take five shekels apiece for each one; after the shekel of the sanctuary you shall take them (the shekel is twenty gerahs):

48 and you shall give the money, with which the remainder of them is redeemed, to Aaron and to his sons."

49 Moses took the redemption money from those who exceeded the number of those who were redeemed by the Levites;

50 from the firstborn of the children of Israel he took the money, one thousand three hundred sixty-five shekels, after the shekel of the sanctuary:

51 and Moses gave the redemption money to Aaron and to his sons, according to the word of Yahweh, as Yahweh commanded Moses.

   

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Arcana Coelestia #10093

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10093. 'That which has been waved, and that which has been heaved up' means what has been acknowledged and what has been perceived. This is clear from the meaning of the words 'that which has been waved', when they refer to the breast, as that which has been endowed with life through acknowledgement, dealt with above in 10091; and from the meaning of 'that which has been heaved up' as the Divine Celestial, which is the Lord's alone, perceived in heaven and in the Church, dealt with below. The implications of all this must be stated briefly. There are two kingdoms which comprise the heavens, the celestial and the spiritual. Divine Truth is acknowledged in the spiritual kingdom but perceived in the celestial kingdom. The reason why this should be so is that Divine Truth in the spiritual kingdom is received in the understanding part of the mind but in the celestial kingdom in the will part. What is received in the understanding part is termed 'acknowledged', and what is received in the will part is spoken of as 'perceived'. Furthermore those in the spiritual kingdom can do no more than acknowledge Divine Truth, whereas those in the celestial kingdom are able to perceive it. See what has been shown abundantly regarding those two kingdoms in the places referred to in 9277, 9596, 9684.

[2] As regards 'the heave offering', that which was Jehovah's or the Lord's and was given to Aaron on account of his representation is called 'the heave offering'. And since Aaron represented the Lord in respect of Divine Good, 9806, that part of sacrifices which was heaved up and given to Aaron represented that which is Divine and the Lord's, and is also called 'the anointing', in Moses,

The breast of the wave offering and the flank of the heave offering I have received from among the children of Israel from their eucharistic sacrifices, and I have given them to Aaron the priest and to his sons by a statute forever 1 from among the children of Israel. This is the anointing of Aaron and the anointing of his sons from the fire offerings to Jehovah, on the day he presented them 2 , to serve Jehovah in the priestly office. Leviticus 7:34-35.

The expression 'the anointing' is used because 'anointing' means consecrating to serve as a representative sign of the Lord in respect of Divine Good, see 9954, 10019. And in another place in the same author,

Jehovah spoke to Aaron, Behold, I have given you charge of My heave offerings; as regards all the holy things of the children of Israel, I have given them to you for the anointing, and to your sons. Yours shall the heave offering of [their] gift be, as regards every wave offering of the children of Israel, all the best 3 of pure oil, and all the best 3 of the new wine and the grain, of the firstfruits; and as regards all the firstfruits which they will give to Jehovah, they shall be yours. As regards every devoted thing, everything opening the womb of all flesh which they will bring to Jehovah, [it shall be yours.] From the firstborn of cow, sheep, and she-goat, the flesh shall be yours, just as the breast of the wave offering and just as the right flank are. Every heave offering of the holy things [I have given you]. You shall have no portion or inheritance in the land, because Jehovah is your portion and inheritance. Also, every heave offering from the tithes and the gifts which have been made to the Levites. Numbers 18:8-29.

From all this it is evident what the term 'heave offering' denotes, namely all the things that were Jehovah's, that is, the Lord's.

[3] And since the Levites represented the Divine Truths in heaven and in the Church which serve Divine Good, they were also given to Aaron instead of all the firstborn, which were Jehovah's, that is, the Lord's. They are spoken of in Moses as follows,

I have taken the Levites from the midst of the children of Israel, instead of every firstborn, that which opens the womb, from the children of Israel, that the Levites may be Mine; for every firstborn is Mine. And since the Levites have been given to Me, I have given them as gifts to Aaron and his sons. Numbers 3:12-13; 8:16-19.

Heave offerings are spoken of as gifts presented to Jehovah, that is, to the Lord, from among the children of Israel; but it should be understood that they are Jehovah's not by virtue of their being a gift but because He is the real owner; for nothing holy or Divine with a person belongs to the person, only to the Lord present with him. All that is good and true, as is well known in the Church, thus all that is holy and Divine, comes from the Lord God, and none at all from the person; and from this it is evident that when the gift is said to come from the person, this is due to appearances. This also is why the next verse states,

For it is a heave offering, and it shall be a heave offering from among the children of Israel, it is a heave offering to Jehovah.

This means that the heave offering from the children of Israel belongs to Jehovah, thus that the gift from them is a gift from the Lord. From this it is evident what a heave offering is.

Fußnoten:

1. literally, a statute of eternity

2. literally, he (i.e. Moses) caused them to draw near

3. literally, fat

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

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Arcana Coelestia #4489

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4489. 'Will these not be ours?' means that these two kinds of goods and truths would be alike and take the same form. This becomes clear from the train of thought, the essence of which is that the goods and truths of the Most Ancient Church, which in some measure still remained in existence among Hamor and Shechem and their families, would accord with the goods and truths which came from the Ancient Church and existed among the descendants of Jacob. For the observances which were established among the descendants of Jacob were nothing other than external things which represented and meant the internal things of the Most Ancient Church. 'Will these not be ours?' - or, Would they not belong to them? - means that they would be alike and take the same form.

[2] But let an example illustrate this matter. The altar on which they used to offer sacrifice was the chief representative of the Lord, 921, 2777, 2811. The altar was also for that reason fundamental to the worship in the Ancient Church that was called the Hebrew Church, and therefore every single thing that went into the construction of the altar was representative, such as its dimensions - its height, breadth, and length - its stones, its network of bronze, its horns; and so was the fire which was kept burning on it perpetually; and above all the sacrifices and burnt offerings. What they represented were the truths and goods which are the Lord's and which come from the Lord. These were the internal things of worship which, because they were represented in that external object, were alike and took the same form as the truths and goods of the Most Ancient Church. Its dimensions - its height, breadth, and length - meant in general the good, the truth, and the holiness from these, see 650, 1613, 3433, 3434, 4482. 'Its stones' meant in particular those truths that are more basic, 1298, 3720. 'The bronze' from which the network around the altar was made meant natural good, 425, 1551. 'The horns' meant the power of truth that springs from good, 2832. 'The fire' on the altar meant love, 934. 'The sacrifices and burnt offerings' meant celestial and spiritual things, according to their various kinds, 922, 1823, 2180, 2805, 2807, 2830, 3519. From all this it becomes clear that internal things were to be contained within external ones, and that internally the two sets of goods and truths would be alike. The same applies to all other external aspects of worship.

[3] But those who belonged to the Most Ancient Church had no interest in those external things because they were internal people, and the Lord flowed in by an internal way existing with them and taught them what was good. To them the variations and differences of good were truths, and from this they knew what every single thing in the world represented in the Lord's kingdom; for the whole world or whole natural order is a theatre representative of the Lord's kingdom, 2758, 3483. Those however who belonged to the Ancient Church were not internal people but external, as a consequence of which the Lord was not able with them to flow in by an internal way and teach them what was good, only by an external way. At first He flowed in and taught them by means of such things as were representatives and meaningful signs, from which the representative Church arose, and later on by means of matters of doctrine concerning good and truth which were so represented and meant, from which the Christian Church arose. In essence the Christian Church is identical so far as its internal form is concerned with the representative Church, but the representatives and meaningful signs of the latter were done away with after the Lord came into the world, for the reason that every single thing represented Him Himself and as a consequence the things of His kingdom, for these are derived from Him and are so to speak the Lord Himself.

[4] But the difference between the Most Ancient Church and the Christian Church is as great as that between the bright light of the sun by day and the inferior light of the moon or stars by night. For seeing goods by the internal or earlier way is like seeing in the daytime by the bright light of the sun, whereas seeing by the external or later way is like seeing in the night by the inferior light of the moon or stars. The difference was almost the same between the Most Ancient Church and the Ancient, except that those who belonged to the Christian Church could have dwelt in fuller light if they had acknowledged internal things, that is, if they had believed and practiced the truths and goods which the Lord taught. The actual good is the same in both, but the difference between them is that one sees that good in brightness, the other in obscurity. Those who see in brightness see countless arcana almost as angels in heaven do and also feel an affection for those which they see, whereas those who see in obscurity see scarcely anything that is free from doubt, and the things they do see mingle themselves with the shades of night, that is, with falsities. Nor can they inwardly feel any affection for them. Now because the good is the same in both, so also as a consequence is the truth; and this is why the words 'will these not be ours?' mean that the two sets of goods and truths would be alike and take the same form. For as stated already, Hamor and Shechem were part of the remnants of the Most Ancient Church, while the descendants of Jacob belonged to the Ancient Church called the Hebrew Church, though they were interested only in the external things of that Church. But the fact that Hamor and Shechem his son committed an enormous sin by accepting circumcision will be seen below in 4493.

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