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Acts 20

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1 And after the uproar was ceased, Paul called unto him the disciples, and embraced them, and departed for to go into Macedonia.

2 And when he had gone over those parts, and had given them much exhortation, he came into Greece,

3 And there abode three months. And when the Jews laid wait for him, as he was about to sail into Syria, he purposed to return through Macedonia.

4 And there accompanied him into Asia Sopater of Berea; and of the Thessalonians, Aristarchus and Secundus; and Gaius of Derbe, and Timotheus; and of Asia, Tychicus and Trophimus.

5 These going before tarried for us at Troas.

6 And we sailed away from Philippi after the days of unleavened bread, and came unto them to Troas in five days; where we abode seven days.

7 And upon the first day of the week, when the disciples came together to break bread, Paul preached unto them, ready to depart on the morrow; and continued his speech until midnight.

8 And there were many lights in the upper chamber, where they were gathered together.

9 And there sat in a window a certain young man named Eutychus, being fallen into a deep sleep: and as Paul was long preaching, he sunk down with sleep, and fell down from the third loft, and was taken up dead.

10 And Paul went down, and fell on him, and embracing him said, Trouble not yourselves; for his life is in him.

11 When he therefore was come up again, and had broken bread, and eaten, and talked a long while, even till break of day, so he departed.

12 And they brought the young man alive, and were not a little comforted.

13 And we went before to ship, and sailed unto Assos, there intending to take in Paul: for so had he appointed, minding himself to go afoot.

14 And when he met with us at Assos, we took him in, and came to Mitylene.

15 And we sailed thence, and came the next day over against Chios; and the next day we arrived at Samos, and tarried at Trogyllium; and the next day we came to Miletus.

16 For Paul had determined to sail by Ephesus, because he would not spend the time in Asia: for he hasted, if it were possible for him, to be at Jerusalem the day of Pentecost.

17 And from Miletus he sent to Ephesus, and called the elders of the church.

18 And when they were come to him, he said unto them, Ye know, from the first day that I came into Asia, after what manner I have been with you at all seasons,

19 Serving the Lord with all humility of mind, and with many tears, and temptations, which befell me by the lying in wait of the Jews:

20 And how I kept back nothing that was profitable unto you, but have shewed you, and have taught you publickly, and from house to house,

21 Testifying both to the Jews, and also to the Greeks, repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ.

22 And now, behold, I go bound in the spirit unto Jerusalem, not knowing the things that shall befall me there:

23 Save that the Holy Ghost witnesseth in every city, saying that bonds and afflictions abide me.

24 But none of these things move me, neither count I my life dear unto myself, so that I might finish my course with joy, and the ministry, which I have received of the Lord Jesus, to testify the gospel of the grace of God.

25 And now, behold, I know that ye all, among whom I have gone preaching the kingdom of God, shall see my face no more.

26 Wherefore I take you to record this day, that I am pure from the blood of all men.

27 For I have not shunned to declare unto you all the counsel of God.

28 Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood.

29 For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock.

30 Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them.

31 Therefore watch, and remember, that by the space of three years I ceased not to warn every one night and day with tears.

32 And now, brethren, I commend you to God, and to the word of his grace, which is able to build you up, and to give you an inheritance among all them which are sanctified.

33 I have coveted no man's silver, or gold, or apparel.

34 Yea, ye yourselves know, that these hands have ministered unto my necessities, and to them that were with me.

35 I have shewed you all things, how that so labouring ye ought to support the weak, and to remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he said, It is more blessed to give than to receive.

36 And when he had thus spoken, he kneeled down, and prayed with them all.

37 And they all wept sore, and fell on Paul's neck, and kissed him,

38 Sorrowing most of all for the words which he spake, that they should see his face no more. And they accompanied him unto the ship.

   

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Leviticus 23:1

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1 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,

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Arcana Coelestia #8593

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8593. 'And Amalek came' means falsity arising from interior evil. This is clear from the representation of 'Amalek' as falsity arising from interior evil, dealt with below. Who exactly are steeped in falsity arising from interior evil, and what they are like, must be stated first. Interior evil is that which resides with a person, hidden inwardly. It is concealed in his will and consequently in his thinking, not a trace of it being apparent outwardly, in his actions, speech, or face. People ruled by this kind of evil strive by every method and skill to hide it away, to conceal it under an outward show of being honourable and righteous, and an outward show of love of the neighbour. Nevertheless their only thought is how to inflict harm, and so far as possible to use others to inflict it, taking care to prevent anyone from seeing that they are the instigators. They also disguise actual evil so that it does not look like evil. The greatest delight of their life is to contemplate such things and secretly try to carry them out. This is called interior evil. Those ruled by this evil are called evil genii and in the next life they have been completely separated from those who are ruled by exterior evil and are called spirits. The former - the evil genii - have their hell behind a person, that is, behind his back, where they live in various caverns. But the evil spirits have their hell in front of a person, and also to the sides. The genii belong in the Grand Man to the province of the cerebellum, and also to that part of the spinal cord which sends out the fibres and nerves that control involuntary actions.

[2] One may say further of the falsity arising from this interior evil that it is not like the falsity arising from evil that the evil spirits possess, because it is in itself evil. Those ruled by this evil do not attack the truths of faith but forms of the good of faith. They act through corrupt affections; through these they pervert good thoughts, doing so in a way almost inconceivable. Because they are like this their hells are completely separated from the hells of evil spirits, so completely that they have scarcely any contact with them; and they are separated in order that they may also be separated from members of the spiritual Church. For if they were to flow in from their hells, the member of that Church would be destroyed because they would act very secretly on his conscience and would pervert it, which they would do by inflating his corrupt affections. Those hellish genii never attack a person openly, or when he can offer strong resistance, but when it is seen that the person is slipping and may therefore give in. At this point they are suddenly at hand, and give him a shove so that he falls completely. This is also represented by Amalek's coming up to attack Israel now, as well as at a later time when the children of Israel set themselves against Jehovah and were afraid of the nations in the land of Canaan,

Then also Amalek came down with the Canaanite from the mountain, and struck down the children of Israel as far as Hormah. Numbers 14:43, 45.

[3] From all this one may recognize what those people are like who are represented by Amalek, and the reason for the judgement pronounced over him by Jehovah that war will be waged against them forever and that the memory of them will be wiped out from under heaven, in accordance with the following words in the final verse of the present chapter,

Because the hand of the evil ones is against the throne of Jah, the war of Jehovah will be against Amalek from generation to generation.

And in Deuteronomy,

Remember what Amalek did to you on the way when you came out of Egypt, that he met you on the way, and cut off at your rear all the weak, when you were tired and weary; he did not fear God. When Jehovah your God has given you rest, you shall wipe out the memory of Amalek from under heaven; you shall not forget. Deuteronomy 25:17-19.

Also in the first book of Samuel,

Jehovah declared to Saul through Samuel, I have resolved to punish 1 what Amalek did to Israel, how he set [himself] against him on the way when he came up from Egypt. Therefore go and strike Amalek, and utterly destroy all that he has; do not spare him, but kill man and woman, infant and suckling, ox and sheep, camel and ass. But Saul spared Agag the king, and the best of the flock and the oxen, and of the fatlings, 2 and the rams, and all that was good. Therefore it was declared to Saul that because of this he would no longer be king over Israel. 1 Samuel 15:2-3, 9, 23.

The declaration that the memory of Amalek should be wiped out and that everything there should be utterly destroyed meant that evil genii should have no contact whatever with those belonging to the spiritual Church; for they are in contact with those who are not governed by truths but from an evil affection uphold falsities.

[4] Who can fail to see that except for some more deeply hidden reason Jehovah would never have said that war was to be waged forever against Amalek, that the memory of him was to be wiped out from under heaven, and that everything there was to be utterly destroyed, though all this was not in fact carried out? That more deeply hidden reason why these things were said and done is embodied in Samuel's words to Agag the king of the Amalekites, whom Saul had spared,

Agag the king of Amalek went to Samuel delicately. 3 But Samuel said, As your sword has bereaved women, so shall your mother become the most bereaved of women. And Samuel cut him in pieces before Jehovah. 1 Samuel 15:32-33.

'Going delicately' means the outwardly charming ways that such people have in the presence of others. 'Your sword has bereaved women' means that their falsity does violence to good affections; 'your mother shall become the most bereaved of women' means that evil affection which originates in the will, not in the understanding, will hold sway among them; 'and Samuel cut him in pieces before Jehovah' means that they were separated from those ruled by falsity arising from evil that originated in the understanding, that is, genii were separated from spirits, as stated above. For the meaning of 'women' as affections, see 568, 6014, 8337; and for 'sword' as falsity engaged in conflict and laying waste, 2799, 4499, 7102.

Note a piè di pagina:

1. literally, visit

2. literally, of the second sort

3. literally, In delights

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