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Genesis 13

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1 Vstoupil tedy Abram z Egypta on i žena jeho i všecko, což měl, a Lot s ním, ku poledni.

2 (Byl pak Abram bohatý velmi na dobytek, na stříbro i na zlato.)

3 A šel cestami svými od poledne až do Bethel, až k místu tomu, kdež prvé byl stánek jeho, mezi Bethel a Hai,

4 K místu oltáře, kterýž tam byl prvé vzdělal, kdežto vzýval Abram jméno Hospodinovo.

5 Také i Lot, kterýž s Abramem chodil, měl ovce a voly i stany.

6 A nemohla jim země postačovati, aby spolu bydlili, proto že zboží jich bylo veliké, tak že nemohli spolu bydliti.

7 Odkudž vznikla nesnáz mezi pastýři stáda Abramova a mezi pastýři stáda Lotova; nebo Kananejští a Ferezejští tehdáž bydlili v zemi té.

8 Řekl tedy Abram k Lotovi: Nechžť, prosím, není nesnáze mezi mnou a tebou, a mezi pastýři mými a pastýři tvými, poněvadž muži bratří jsme.

9 Zdaliž není před tebou všecka země? Odděl se, prosím, ode mne. Půjdeš-li na levo, já na pravo se držeti budu; pakli půjdeš na pravo, na levo se držeti budu.

10 Pozdvih tedy Lot očí svých, spatřil všecku rovinu vůkol Jordánu, kteráž před tím, než Hospodin zkazil Sodomu a Gomoru, všecka až k Ségor svlažována byla, jako zahrada Hospodinova, a jako země Egyptská.

11 I zvolil sobě Lot všecku rovinu Jordánskou, a bral se k východu; a tak oddělili se jeden od druhého.

12 Abram bydlil v zemi Kananejské, ale Lot přebýval v městech té roviny, podav stanů až k Sodomě.

13 Lidé pak Sodomští byli zlí, a hříšníci před Hospodinem velicí.

14 I řekl Hospodin Abramovi, když se oddělil od něho Lot: Pozdvihni nyní očí svých, a pohleď z místa, na němž jsi, na půlnoci a na poledne, i na východ a na západ.

15 Nebo všecku zemi, kterouž vidíš, tobě dám a semeni tvému až na věky.

16 A rozmnožím símě tvé jako prach země; nebo jestliže kdo bude moci sčísti prach země, tedy i símě tvé sečteno bude.

17 Vstaň, projdi tu zemi na dýl i na šíř její; nebo tobě ji dám.

18 Tedy Abram hnuv se s stanem, přišel a bydlil v rovinách Mamre, kteréž jsou při Hebronu, kdežto vzdělal oltář Hospodinu.

   

From Swedenborg's Works

 

Arcana Coelestia #1557

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1557. 'Between Bethel and Ai' means the celestial and the worldly aspects of cognitions. This is clear from the meaning of 'Bethel' as the light of wisdom coming through cognitions, 1453, and from the meaning of 'Ai' as the light coming from worldly things, also dealt with in 1453. From what has been stated there the nature of the Lord's state at this time becomes clear, namely a childhood state - which is such that worldly things are present. In fact worldly things cannot be dispelled until truth and good are implanted in celestial things by means of cognitions, for a person cannot possibly tell celestial things from worldly until he comes to know and is aware of what the celestial is, and of what the worldly is. Cognitions turn a general and obscure idea into a clear and distinct one, and the clearer the idea is made by means of cognitions the more can worldly things be separated. That childhood state however is still holy because it is innocent.

[2] A state of ignorance or lack of knowledge in no way rules out holiness when there is innocence in it, for holiness dwells in ignorance that is innocent. With everybody apart from the Lord, holiness is unable to dwell anywhere else than in ignorance. If it does not dwell in this it is not holiness. Among the angels themselves, who possess a supreme light of intelligence and wisdom, holiness still dwells within ignorance, for they know and acknowledge that of themselves they know nothing and that whatever they do know comes from the Lord. They also know and acknowledge that all their knowledge, intelligence, and wisdom are as nothing in comparison with the Lord's infinite knowledge, intelligence, and wisdom, thus that all of theirs is lack of knowledge. Anyone who does not acknowledge that there is an infinite number of things he does not know compared with what he does know cannot possess the holiness present with angels that goes with ignorance or lack of knowledge. This holiness that goes with ignorance does not consist in knowing less than others but in the acknowledgement that from oneself one does not know anything at all, and that the things one does not know are infinite in comparison with the things one does know. But above all it entails regarding factual knowledge and intellectual concepts as being of small importance compared with celestial things, that is, things constituting the understanding as being of small importance compared with those constituting life. In the Lord's case, because He was to join human things to Divine things He advanced according to order and now reached first of all that celestial state such as had been His when a boy, in which state worldly things also were present. By passing on from this into a state even more celestial, He at length came into the celestial state of infancy, in which state He fully joined the Human Essence to the Divine Essence.

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