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Ezekiel 1

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1 Now it happened in the thirtieth year, in the fourth [month], in the fifth [day] of the month, as I was among the captives by the river Chebar, that the heavens were opened, and I saw visions of God.

2 In the fifth [day] of the month, which was the fifth year of king Jehoiachin's captivity,

3 the word of Yahweh came expressly to Ezekiel the priest, the son of Buzi, in the land of the Chaldeans by the river Chebar; and the hand of Yahweh was there on him.

4 I looked, and behold, a stormy wind came out of the north, a great cloud, with flashing lightning, and a brightness around it, and out of its midst as it were glowing metal, out of the midst of the fire.

5 Out of its midst came the likeness of four living creatures. This was their appearance: they had the likeness of a man.

6 Everyone had four faces, and each one of them had four wings.

7 Their feet were straight feet; and the sole of their feet was like the sole of a calf's foot; and they sparkled like burnished brass.

8 They had the hands of a man under their wings on their four sides; and the four of them had their faces and their wings [thus]:

9 their wings were joined one to another; they didn't turn when they went; each one went straight forward.

10 As for the likeness of their faces, they had the face of a man; and the four of them had the face of a lion on the right side; and the four of them had the face of an ox on the left side; the four of them also had the face of an eagle.

11 Such were their faces. Their wings were spread out above. Two wings of each one touched another, and Two covered their bodies.

12 Each one went straight forward: where the spirit was to go, they went; they didn't turn when they went.

13 As for the likeness of the living creatures, their appearance was like burning coals of fire, like the appearance of torches: [the fire] went up and down among the living creatures; and the fire was bright, and out of the fire went forth lightning.

14 The living creatures ran and returned as the appearance of a flash of lightning.

15 Now as I saw the living creatures, behold, one wheel on the earth beside the living creatures, for each of the four faces of it.

16 The appearance of the wheels and their work was like a beryl: and the four of them had one likeness; and their appearance and their work was as it were a wheel within a wheel.

17 When they went, they went in their four directions: they didn't turn when they went.

18 As for their rims, they were high and dreadful; and the four of them had their rims full of eyes all around.

19 When the living creatures went, the wheels went beside them; and when the living creatures were lifted up from the earth, the wheels were lifted up.

20 Wherever the spirit was to go, they went; there was the spirit to go: and the wheels were lifted up beside them; for the spirit of the living creature was in the wheels.

21 When those went, these went; and when those stood, these stood; and when those were lifted up from the earth, the wheels were lifted up beside them: for the spirit of the living creature was in the wheels.

22 Over the head of the living creature there was the likeness of an expanse, like the awesome crystal to look on, stretched forth Over their heads above.

23 Under the expanse were their wings straight, the one toward the other: each one had two which covered on this side, and every one had two which covered on that side, their bodies.

24 When they went, I heard the noise of their wings like the noise of great waters, like the voice of the Almighty, a noise of tumult like the noise of an army: when they stood, they let down their wings.

25 There was a voice above the expanse that was over their heads: when they stood, they let down their wings.

26 Above the expanse that was over their heads was the likeness of a throne, as the appearance of a sapphire stone; and on the likeness of the throne was a likeness as the appearance of a man on it above.

27 I saw as it were glowing metal, as the appearance of fire within it all around, from the appearance of his waist and upward; and from the appearance of his waist and downward I saw as it were the appearance of fire, and there was brightness around him.

28 As the appearance of the rainbow that is in the cloud in the day of rain, so was the appearance of the brightness all around. This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of Yahweh. When I saw it, I fell on my face, and I heard a voice of one that spoke.

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Apocalypse Explained #1022

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1022. To give unto her the cup of the wrath of His anger, signifies its devastation through direful falsities of evil. This is evident from the signification of a "cup," as being falsity from hell, which is the falsity of evil (See n. 960; and as it appears as if God were wrathful and angry on account of this it is called "the cup of the wrath of the anger of God," "wrath" on account of the falsity, and "anger" on account of the evil. So "to give unto her that cup" signifies to devastate, for the falsity of evil from hell devastates the church as to all good and truth. That the church meant by "Babylon" has been thus devastated will be made evident from the two following chapters.

(The Tenth Commandment)

[2] "Thou shalt not covet (or desire) thy neighbor's wife, his manservant, or his maidservant, his ox, or his ass." These are lusts after what is man's own, because the wife, manservant, maidservant, ox, and ass, are within his house, and the things within a man's house mean in the spiritual internal sense the things that are his own, that is, the wife means the affection of spiritual truth and good, "manservant and maidservant," the affection of rational truth and good serving the spiritual, and "ox and ass" the affection of natural good and truth. These signify in the Word such affections; but because coveting and desiring these affections means to will and eagerly desire to subject a man to one's own authority or bidding, it follows that lusting after these affections means the lusts of the love of self, that is, of the love of ruling, for thus does one make the things belonging to a companion to be his own.

[3] From this it can now be seen that the lust of the ninth commandment is the lust of the love of the world, and that the lusts of this commandment are lusts of the love of self. For, as has been said before, all lusts are of love, for it is love that covets; and as there are two evil loves to which all lusts have reference, namely, the love of the world and the love of self, it follows that the lust of the ninth commandment has reference to the love of the world, and the lust of this commandment to the love of self, especially to the love of ruling. (That all evils and the falsities therefrom flow from these two loves may be seen above, n. 159, 171, 394, 506, 517, 650, 950, 951, 973, 982, 1010, 1016; and in the New Jerusalem and its Heavenly Doctrine, n. 65-83.)

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

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Apocalypse Explained #950

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950. Clothed in linen clean and bright, signifies by means of the Divine truth or the Word from the spiritual sense. This is evident from the signification of "linen," as being truth, and in reference to the Lord or the Word, as being the Divine truth. This is called "clean" because it is genuine, and is called "bright" from the light in heaven, which light is brightness, since from it all things there are bright. The Divine truth that proceeds from the Lord is what appears to the eyes of angels as light, for the reason that the Divine truth enlightens their understanding; and what enlightens the understanding of angels is light to their eyes. Such is the Divine truth in heaven, and such is the Word in its spiritual sense; while Divine truth on the earth is such as the Word is in the sense of the letter, in which there are few genuine truths like those in heaven, but there are appearances of truth; and these only can the natural man receive. Nevertheless in these appearances of truth genuine truths like those in heaven lie stored up; for these are what are contained in the spiritual sense of the Word. All this makes clear that the words "there came out of the temple angels clothed in linen clean and bright" signify that the evils and falsities that have devastated the church were made manifest by the Divine truth, or the Word from its spiritual sense.

[2] There are many reasons why the spiritual sense of the Word has now been disclosed. First, because the churches in the Christian world have falsified all the sense of the letter of the Word, and this even to the destruction of the Divine truth in heaven, by which heaven has been closed up. In order, therefore, that heaven may be opened it has pleased the Lord to reveal the spiritual sense of the Word, in which sense is the Divine truth such as it is in heaven. For through the Word there is the conjunction of man with the Lord, and thus with heaven. When the Word is falsified even to the destruction of its genuine truth the conjunction perishes, and man is separated from heaven. In order, therefore, that he may again be conjoined with heaven, Divine truth such as it is in heaven has been revealed; and this has been confirmed by the spiritual sense of the Word, in which is that Divine truth. The second reason is that the falsities that have inundated and devastated the church can be dissipated only by means of the genuine truth laid open in the Word. Falsities and the evils therefrom and evils and the falsities therefrom can be seen in no other way than from truths themselves. For so long as genuine truths are not present, falsities and evils appear as in a kind of light. This light they have from confirmations by reasonings from the natural man, and by the sense of the letter explained and applied according to the appearances before that man. But when genuine truths are present, then first falsities and evils appear; for the light of heaven, which is in genuine truths, dissipates the delusive light of falsities and turns it into darkness. The third reason is, that, by means of the Divine truths of the Word that are in its spiritual sense, the New Church, which is meant by "the Holy Jerusalem" in Revelation, may be conjoined with heaven. For the Word is conjunction; but conjunction is effected only when man perceives the Word in a similar way as the angels perceive it. That "linen" signifies truth will be seen in the following article.

(Continuation: The First Commandment)

[3] "Thou shalt not make to thee other gods" includes not loving self and the world above all things; for that which one loves above all things is his god. There are two directly opposite loves, love of self and love to God, also love of the world and love of heaven. He who loves himself loves his own [proprium]; and as a man's own [proprium] is nothing but evil he also loves evil in its whole complex; and he who loves evil hates good, and thus hates God. He who loves himself above all things sinks his affections and thoughts in the body, and thus in his own [proprium], and from this he cannot be raised up by the Lord; and when one is sunk in the body and in his own [proprium] he is in corporeal ideas and in pleasures that pertain solely to the body, and thus in thick darkness as to higher things; while he who is raised up by the Lord is in light. He who is not in the light of heaven but in thick darkness, since he sees nothing of God, denies God and acknowledges as god either nature or some man, or some idol, and even aspires to be himself worshiped as a god. From this it follows that he who loves himself above all things worships other gods. The same is true, but in a less degree, of one who loves the world; for there cannot be so great a love of the world as of one's own [proprium]; therefore the world is loved because of one's own, and for the sake of one's own, because it is serviceable to it. The love of self means especially the love of domineering over others from the mere delight in ruling and for the sake of eminence, and not from the delight in uses and for the sake of the public good; while the love of the world means especially the love of possessing goods in the world from the mere delight in possession and for the sake of riches, and not from the delight in uses from these and for the sake of the good therefrom. These loves are both of them without limit, and rush on to infinity so far as opportunity is given.

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