La Bibbia

 

2 Mosebok 30

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1 Så skal du gjøre et alter til å brenne røkelse på; av akasietre skal du gjøre det.

2 Det skal være en alen langt og en alen bredt, firkantet, og to alen høit; hornene på det skal være i ett med det.

3 Du skal klæ det med rent gull både ovenpå og på sidene rundt omkring og på hornene; og du skal gjøre en gullkrans på det rundt omkring.

4 Og du skal gjøre to gullringer til det og sette dem nedenfor kransen, på begge sider av det; du skal sette to på hver side; de skal være til å stikke stenger i, så alteret kan bæres på dem.

5 Stengene skal du gjøre av akasietre og klæ dem med gull.

6 Og du skal sette alteret foran forhenget som henger foran vidnesbyrdets ark, foran nådestolen som er ovenover vidnesbyrdet, hvor jeg vil komme sammen med dig.

7 Og Aron skal brenne velluktende røkelse på det; hver morgen når han steller lampene, skal han brenne den.

8 Og når han setter lampene op mellem de to aftenstunder, skal han også brenne den; det skal være et stadig røkoffer for Herrens åsyn hos eders efterkommere.

9 I skal ikke ofre fremmed røkelse på alteret, heller ikke brennoffer eller matoffer; og I skal ikke helle ut drikkoffer på det.

10 Én gang om året skal Aron gjøre soning for dets horn; med blodet av sonings-syndofferet skal han én gang om året gjøre soning for det, slekt efter slekt; det er høihellig for Herren.

11 Og Herren talte til Moses og sa:

12 Når du holder manntall over Israels barn, da skal alle de som kommer med i manntallet, gi Herren løsepenger for sitt liv når de telles, så det ikke skal komme nogen ulykke over dem fordi de telles.

13 Dette skal enhver gi som kommer med i manntallet: en halv sekel efter helligdommens vekt - sekelen er tyve gera - denne halve sekel er en gave til Herren.

14 Enhver som kommer med i manntallet fra tyveårsalderen og opover, skal gi denne gave til Herren.

15 Den rike skal ikke gi mere og den fattige ikke mindre enn en halv sekel når I gir gaven til Herren som løsepenger for eders liv.

16 Og du skal ta imot løsepengene av Israels barn og bruke dem til arbeidet ved sammenkomstens telt, så det kan være til å minne om Israels barn for Herrens åsyn, til løsepenger for eders liv.

17 Og Herren talte til Moses og sa:

18 Du skal gjøre et kar av kobber med fotstykke av kobber til å tvette sig i; og du skal sette det mellem sammenkomstens telt og alteret og ha vann i det.

19 Og Aron og hans sønner skal tvette sine hender og sine føtter i det.

20 Når de går inn i sammenkomstens telt, skal de tvette sig med vann forat de ikke skal ; likeså når de treder frem til alteret for å gjøre tjeneste og brenne ildoffer for Herren.

21 De skal tvette sine hender og sine føtter forat de ikke skal ; dette skal være en evig lov for dem, for ham og hans ætt, slekt efter slekt.

22 Og Herren talte til Moses og sa:

23 Ta dig krydderier av ypperste slag, av den edleste myrra fem hundre sekel og av krydder-kanel halvt så meget, to hundre og femti sekel, og av krydder-kalmus to hundre og femti sekel

24 og av kassia fem hundre sekel efter helligdommens vekt og en hin olivenolje.

25 Av det skal du lage en hellig salvings-olje, en kryddersalve, slik som det gjøres av dem som lager salver; en hellig salvings-olje skal det være,

26 og med den skal du salve sammenkomstens telt og vidnesbyrdets ark

27 og bordet med alt som dertil hører, og lysestaken med det som hører til den, og røkoffer-alteret

28 og brennoffer-alteret med alt som dertil hører, og karet med sitt fotstykke.

29 Og du skal hellige dem, så de blir høihellige; hver den som rører ved dem, skal være hellig.

30 Og du skal salve Aron og hans sønner, og du skal hellige dem til å tjene mig som prester.

31 Og du skal tale til Israels barn og si: Dette skal være min hellige salvings-olje hos eder, slekt efter slekt.

32 På et annet menneskes legeme må den ikke komme, og I skal ikke lage nogen annen olje således blandet som den; hellig er den, hellig skal den være for eder.

33 Den som lager maken til denne kryddersalve, eller som bruker den på en uinnvidd, han skal utryddes av sitt folk.

34 Og Herren sa til Moses: Ta dig røkelses-krydderier, stakte og sjønegl og galban - disse tre slags krydderier - og ren virak; det skal være like meget av hvert.

35 Av det skal du gjøre røkelse, en krydderblanding slik som det gjøres av dem som lager salve, saltet, ren, hellig.

36 Og du skal støte noget av det smått og legge det foran vidnesbyrdet i sammenkomstens telt, hvor jeg vil komme sammen med dig; høihellig skal det være for eder.

37 Og ingen annen røkelse skal I lage eder således blandet som denne; hellig for Herren skal den være dig.

38 Den som lager maken til den for å røke med, han skal utryddes av sitt folk.

   

Dalle opere di Swedenborg

 

Apocalypse Explained #1151

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1151. And ointment and frankincense signifies profaned worship from spiritual love. This is evident from the signification of "ointment," as being the good of spiritual love (of which presently); also from the signification of "frankincense," as being the truth of spiritual good (See n. 491). "Ointment and frankincense" signify spiritual love because the incense offerings were made with these; and the incense offerings signified spiritual love because of the fragrant smoke that went up from the holy fire in the censers. Spiritual love is love towards the neighbor, which makes one with the love of uses. There are two loves of heaven, and thus of the church, from which the Lord is worshipped; celestial love, which is love to the Lord, and spiritual love, which is love towards the neighbor; the former is signified by "cinnamon and perfumes," the other by "ointment and frankincense." Moreover, all worship is from love; the worship that is not from one or the other of these loves is no worship, but only an external act in which there is inwardly nothing of the church. That the incense offerings signified worship from spiritual love may be seen (n. 324, 491-492, 494, 567). Ointment means a compound of aromatics that was used in the incense offerings, as can be seen from these words in Moses:

Take unto thee sweet spices, stacte, and onycha, and galbanum, sweet spices with pure frankincense. And thou shalt make it an incense; an ointment, the work of the perfumer, salted, pure, holy; and thou shalt beat some of it very small, and put it before the testimony in the Tent of meeting where I shall meet with thee; it shall be unto you the holy of holies (Exodus 30:34-37).

Here all these things are called "the ointment of the perfumer." (The particulars are explained in Arcana Coelestia 10289-10308.)

(Continuation respecting the Athanasian Faith)

[2] There is infernal freedom and there is heavenly freedom. Infernal freedom is that into which man is born from his parents, and heavenly freedom is that into which man is reformed by the Lord. From infernal freedom man has the will of evil, the love of evil, and the life of evil; while from heavenly freedom he has the will of good, the love of good, and the life of good; for as has been said before, a man's will, love and life, make one with his freedom. These two kinds of freedom are opposites of each other, but the opposition is not evident except so far as man is in one and not in the other. But a man cannot come out of infernal freedom into heavenly freedom unless he compels himself. To compel oneself is to resist evil and to fight against it as if from oneself, but still to implore the Lord for help. Thus a man fights from the freedom that is inwardly in him from the Lord against the freedom that is outwardly in him from hell. While he is in the combat it seems to him that it is not freedom from which he fights, but a kind of compulsion, because it is against that freedom into which he was born; and yet it is freedom, since otherwise he would not fight as if of himself.

[3] But this inward freedom from which he fights, which seems like compulsion, is afterwards felt as freedom, for it becomes like what is involuntary, spontaneous, and as it were innate, comparatively like one's compelling his hand to write, to work, to play a musical instrument, or to contend in games, for after a while the hands and arms do these things as if of themselves or spontaneously; for man is then in good because he is then removed from evil and is led by the Lord. When a man has compelled himself to act in opposition to infernal freedom he sees and perceives that infernal freedom is servitude and that heavenly freedom is freedom itself, because it is from the Lord. The essence of the matter is this, that so far as a man compels himself by resisting evils, so far the infernal societies with which he acts as one are removed from him, and he is introduced by the Lord into heavenly societies, with which he acts as one. On the other hand, if a man does not compel himself to resist evils he remains in them. That this is so I have learned through much experience in the spiritual world, and further, that evil does not withdraw in consequence of any compulsion that comes from punishments, or from fear of them afterwards.

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

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Arcana Coelestia #9905

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9905. 'And you shall put into the breastplate of judgement the Urim and Thummim' means the radiance of Divine Truth from the Lord in last and lowest things. This is clear from the meaning of 'the breastplate of judgement' as Divine Truth shining forth from the Lord's Divine Good, dealt with in 9857; and from the meaning of 'the Urim and Thummim' as the light and radiance from there. The reason why light and radiance are meant by 'the Urim and Thummim' is that through the stones in the breastplate varying radiations of the light of heaven were emitted, these being determined by the answers given through them. This also explains why they assumed different colours. For the Divine Truth emanating from the Lord's Divine Good manifests itself to the angels as light; it is the source of all the light of heaven. The colours from it, which are modifications of that light among the angels, are variations of intelligence and wisdom among them; for all wisdom and intelligence is a product of that Divine Truth or light. From this it may be recognized that radiations of that light in various colours are the medium through which Divine Truths coming as answers present themselves in the heavens. A similar function was served by the Urim and Thummim when God was asked something. But it should be remembered that whenever a radiance was seen in them the answer was declared at the same time by an audible voice. This declaration was made through angels, to whom what they declared had been revealed by the Lord through such a radiance; for as has been stated, this is how Divine Truths coming as answers present themselves in heaven.

[2] The light of heaven is Divine Truth emanating from the Lord's Divine Good, see 1053, 1521-1533, 1619-1632, 2776, 3094, 3138, 3167, 3190, 3195, 3222, 3223, 3337, 3339, 3341, 3636, 3643, 3862, 3993, 4060, 4180, 4302, 4408, 4414, 4415, 4419, 4527, 4598, 5400, 6032, 6313, 6315, 6608, 6907, 7174, 8644, 8707, 8861, 9399, 9407, 9570, 9571 (end).

Colours appear in heaven, being modifications of that light among the angels, and so variations of intelligence and wisdom among them, 3993, 4530, 4677, 4742, 4922, 9466, 9467, 9865.

[3] The meaning of the words 'Urim' and 'Thummim' also goes to show that all this is so; for 'Urim' means a shining fire, and 'Thummim' the radiance from it. A shining fire is the Divine Truth emanating from the Divine Good of the Lord's Divine Love, and the radiance is that Truth on last and lowest levels, thus in effects. It should be recognized however that 'Thummim' in the Hebrew language means wholeness; it is in the angelic language that it means radiance. The expression 'in the angelic language' is used because when angels talk to one another they are thinking of the very essence of some matter as perceived deep within themselves, thus they speak in terms of its essential nature. What they express flows from those insights into appropriate sounds audible to the angels alone. The appropriate sound for the radiance of Divine Truth is Thummim. This then is the source of the term. Angels have a similar understanding of the word thum, meaning that which is whole or wholeness, whenever someone reads it in the Hebrew language. This explains why in the internal sense of the Word 'that which is whole' is used to mean Divine Truth on the level of effects, which is a life led in keeping with Divine commandments, as is made clear in a large number of places in the Word, such as Joshua 24:14; Judges 9:16, 19; Psalms 25:21; 37:37; 84:11; 101:2; 119:1.

[4] This also explains why the Urim and Thummim are called the judgement of the children of Israel, as well as the breastplate of judgement, and also the judgement of the Urim; for 'judgement' means Divine Truth in doctrine and life, see above in 9857. From all this it may now become clear that by means of the Urim and Thummim, that is, by means of the radiance produced by the light of heaven, the breastplate revealed Divine Truths in the natural sphere, thus on last and lowest levels. A like radiance also presents itself in the minds of those who are guided by truths springing from good. This radiance declares to them, so to speak provides the answers, when with heartfelt desire they seek to know what is true and love it as that which is good. That this kind of radiance is the means by which Divine Truth from heaven is revealed in the natural man of those who are enlightened by the Word is something which the world has no idea of, because the world does not know of any light from heaven that shines in the human understanding. But I have been allowed to realize and actually see that all this is so.

[5] In addition it should be recognized that this radiance appears on last and lowest levels because all forms of light from the Divine reach right down to the furthest ends; and since they reach down that far they also shine in them and from them. This now explains why the breastplate was placed over the ephod and above the girdle of it; for the ephod represented Divine Truth on last and lowest levels, 9824, while its girdle represented a common bond that existed to hold all things in connection, 9828, 9837. This is why verse 28 of the present chapter says, And they shall tie the breastplate from its rings to the rings of the ephod, so that it is above the girdle of the ephod and the breastplate will not come away from upon the ephod. The reason why the names of the sons of Israel were in addition engraved [on the stones] was that the twelve tribes also represented all aspects of Divine Good and Truth in the heavens, consequently heaven and all the communities there, though that representation varied according to the order in which they are mentioned in the Word, see 3858, 3862, 3926, 3939, 4060, 4603, 6335, 6337, 6397, 6640, 7836, 7891, 7973, 7996, 7997.

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