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1 Mose 24:11

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11 Da ließ er die Kamele sich lagern außen vor der Stadt bei einem Wasserbrunnen, des Abends um die Zeit, wenn die Weiber pflegten herauszugehen und Wasser zu schöpfen,

from the Writings of Emanuel Swedenborg

 

Arcana Coelestia #3101

Studere hoc loco

  
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3101. 'So as to know whether Jehovah had prospered his way or not' means regarding Divine Truth, as to what sort it was. This is clear from the meaning of 'way' as truth, dealt with in 627, 2333. The Divine nature of that truth is meant by the words 'whether Jehovah had prospered' which amounts to the same as, whether it was from Jehovah, that is, from the Divine. Accordingly what sort of truth is meant, for the truths that are summoned from the natural man into the rational man are not all received, only those that accord with the good there, and on being sown and implanted in this way act as one with that good. The rest, even though they may have appeared as truths prior to being raised up, are nevertheless not received because they are not acknowledged. Good is that which acknowledges its own truth, and truth that which acknowledges its own good. That it was an acknowledgement of what sort of truth it was, and that thus this truth was received, is also evident from what follows next.

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

from the Writings of Emanuel Swedenborg

 

Arcana Coelestia #2063

Studere hoc loco

  
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2063. 'You will not call by her name Sarai, for Sarah will be her name' means that He will cast off the human and put on the Divine. This is clear from what has been stated at verse 5 above regarding Abraham, where it is said, 'No longer will your name be called Abram, but your name will be Abraham', words which in a similar way mean that He will cast off the human and put on the Divine, dealt with in 2009. Indeed the letter H added to Sarah's name was taken from the name of Jehovah, in order that Sarah, like Abraham, might represent the Lord's Divine, that is to say, in order that the Divine marriage of Good and Truth in the Lord might be represented - 'Abraham' being Divine Good and 'Sarah' Divine Truth. And from that marriage the Divine Rational, which is Isaac, was to be born.

[2] Divine Good, which in itself is love, and in relation to the entire human race is mercy, was the Lord's Internal, that is, Jehovah, who is Good itself. This Good is represented by 'Abraham'. Truth that was to be joined to Divine Good was represented by 'Sarai', but once this too has become Divine, it is represented by 'Sarah', for the Lord advanced towards union with Jehovah gradually, as mentioned in various places above. 'Sarai' represented truth not yet Divine - when it was still not so thoroughly united to Good that Good was the source of truth. But once it was so thoroughly united to Good that it stemmed from Good it was at that point Divine, and Truth itself was in that case also Good since it was truth inhering in Good. Truth tending towards good so that it may be united to good is one thing, while truth so united to good that it stems completely from good is another. Truth tending towards good is still drawing on something of what is human, but once it is united completely to good it casts aside everything that is human and takes on what is Divine.

[3] This matter, like others previously, can be illustrated by what occurs with man. When a person is being regenerated, that is, when he is to be joined to the Lord, he moves towards that conjunction by means of truth, that is, by means of the truths of faith, for nobody can be regenerated except by means of cognitions of faith, which are the truths by means of which he moves towards such conjunction. These truths the Lord goes to meet by way of good, that is, of charity, and introduces this charity into the cognitions of faith, that is, into its truths. For all truths are the recipient vessels of good; and therefore the more genuine the truths are and the more they are multiplied, the more abundantly is good able to accept them as vessels, to bring them into a state of order, and only then to reveal itself, doing so in the end in such a way that the truths are not seen, except insofar as good shines through them. In this way truth becomes celestial-spiritual. And since the Lord is present solely within the good that flows from charity, a person is in this manner joined to the Lord, and by means of good, that is, of charity, has conscience conferred on him, from which he then thinks what is true and does what is right. But this conscience is a conscience in keeping with the truths and the things that are right into which good or charity has been introduced.

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