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Joel 2

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1 Stød i horn på Zion, blæs alarm på mit hellige Bjerg! Alle i landet skal bæve, thi HE ENs Dag, den kommer;

2 ja, nær er Mulms og Mørkes Dag, Skyers og Tåges Dag. Et stort, et vældigt Folk er bredt som Gry over Bjerge. Dets Lige har aldrig været, skal aldrig komme herefter til fjerneste Slægters År.

3 Foran det æder Ild, og bag det flammer Lue; foran det er Landet som Eden og bag det en øde Ørk; fra det slipper ingen bort.

4 At se til er de som Heste, som Hingste farer de frem;

5 det lyder som raslende Vogne, når de hopper på Bjergenes Tinder, som knitrende Lue, der æder Strå, som en vældig Hær, der er rustet til Strid.

6 Folkeslag skælver for dem, alle Ansigter blusser.

7 Som Helte haster de frem, som Stridsmænd stormer de Mure; enhver går lige ud, de bøjer ej af fra vejen.

8 De trænger ikke hverandre, hver følger sin egen Sti. Trods Våbenmagt styrter de frem uden at lade sig standse, de kaster sig over Byen,

9 stormer Mulen i Løb; i Husene trænger de ind, gennem Vinduer kommer de som Tyve.

10 Foran dem skælver Jorden, Himlen bæver; Sol og Måne sortner, Stjernerne mister deres Glans.

11 Foran sin Stridsmagt løfter HE EN sin øst, thi såre stor er hans Hær, ja, hans Ords Fuldbyrder er vældig; thi stor er HE ENs Dag og såre frygtelig; hvem holder den ud?

12 Selv nu, så lyder det fra HE EN, vend om til mig af ganske Hjerte, med Faste og Gråd og Klage!

13 Sønderriv Hjerterne, ej eders Klæder, vend om til HE EN eders Gud! Thi nådig og barmhjertig er han, langmodig og rig på Miskundhed, han angrer det onde.

14 Måske slår han om og angrer og levner Velsignelse efter sig, Afgrødeoffer og Drikoffer til HE EN eders Gud.

15 Stød i Horn på Zion, helliger Faste, udråb festlig Samling,

16 kald Folket sammen, helliger et Stævne, lad de gamle samles, kald Børnene sammen, også dem, som dier Bryst; lad Brudgom gå ud af sit Kammer, Brud af sit Telt!

17 Imellem Forhal og Alter skal Præsterne, HE ENs Tjenere, græde og sige: "HE E, spar dog dit Folk! Overgiv ej din Arv til Skændsel, til Hedningers Spot! Hvi skal man sige blandt Folkene: Hvor er deres Gud?"

18 Og HE EN blev nidkær for sit Land og fik Medynk med sit Folk.

19 Og HE EN svarede sit Folk: Se, jeg sender eder korn, Most og Olie, så I kan mættes deraf; og jeg vil ikke længer gøre eder til Skændsel iblandt Hedningerne.

20 Fjenden fra Nord driver jeg langt bort fra eder og støder ham ud i et tørt og øde Land, hans Fortrop ud i Havet i Øst og hans Bagtrop i Havet i Vest, og han skal udsprede Stank og ilde Lugt; thi han udførte store Ting.

21 Frygt ikke, Jord, fryd dig, vær glad! Thi HE EN har udført store Ting.

22 Frygt ikke, I Markens Dyr! Thi Ørkenens Græsmarker grønnes, og Træerne bærer Frugt; Figentræ og Vinstok giver alt, hvad de kan.

23 Og I, Zions Sønner, fryd eder, vær glade i HE EN eders Gud! Thi han giver eder Føde til Frelse, idet han sender eder egn, Tidligregn og Sildigregn, som før.

24 Tærskepladserne skal fyldes med Korn, Persekummerne løbe over med Most og Olie.

25 Og jeg godtgør eder de År, da Græshoppen, Springeren, Æderen og Gnaveren hærgede, min store Hær, som jeg sendte imod eder.

26 I skal spise og mættes og love HE EN eders Guds Navn, fordi han handler underfuldt med eder; og mit Folk skal i Evighed ikke blive til Skamme.

27 Og I skal kende, at jeg er i Israels Midte, og at jeg, og ingen anden er HE EN eders Gud; og mit Folk skal i Evighed ikke blive til Skamme.

28 Og det skal ske derefter, at jeg vil udgyde min ånd over alt kød, eders Sønner og eders Døtre skal profetere, eders gamle skal drømme drømme og eders unge skue Syner;

29 også over Trælle og Trælkvinder vil jeg udgyde min Ånd i de Dage.

30 Og jeg lader ske Tegn på Himmelen og på Jorden, Blod, Ild og øgstøtter.

31 Solen skal vendes til Mørke og Månen til Blod, før HE ENs store og frygtelige Dag kommer.

32 Men enhver, som påkalder HE ENs Navn, skal frelses; thi på Zions Bjerg og i Jerusalem skal der være Frelse, som HE EN har sagt; og til de undslupne skal hver den høre, som HE EN kalder.

   


The Project Gutenberg Association at Carnegie Mellon University

The Bible

 

Habakkuk 3:18

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18 Men jeg vil frydes i HE EN, juble i min Frelses Gud.


The Project Gutenberg Association at Carnegie Mellon University

From Swedenborg's Works

 

Apocalypse Explained #916

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916. Having authority over the fire, signifies thus as to celestial and spiritual love. This is evident from the signification of "fire," as being love in both senses, namely, love to the Lord, which exists with those in heaven who are called celestial angels, and love towards the neighbor, which exists with those in heaven who are called spiritual angels; and in the contrary sense love of self, which exists with those in hell who are called devils, and love of the world, which exists with those in hell who are called satans. (That these loves are signified in the Word by "fire" may be seen above in 68, 496, 504, 539.) It is said of this angel that "he had authority over the fire," because the devastation of the church as to the good of love is treated of, and the devastation as to that is attributed to this angel, as the devastation as to the truth of doctrine is attributed to the former angel, who was therefore said to have "a sharp sickle in his hand." This makes clear what is meant by its being said that this angel "had authority over the fire;" namely, that he will lay waste celestial and spiritual love, and all things of it in the church.

[2] The devastation of the church is attributed to an angel, as elsewhere in the Word it is attributed to the Lord. But this is said of the Lord merely in the sense of the letter, but is not so understood in the spiritual sense. For truth in the sense of the letter is like a face seen through a veil, while truth in the spiritual sense is like a face uncovered; or truth in the sense of the letter is like a cloud, while the truth in the spiritual sense is like light and its splendor; or again, truth in the sense of the letter is what appears to be truth to the sensual man, while truth in the spiritual sense is truth to the spiritual-rational man. For example, it is said in the Word that the sun rises, moves forward, and sets, making days and years, which is wholly according to the way it appears to the sensual man. Nevertheless, the rational man thinks of the sun as not moving, and of the earth as moving; which shows that man's understanding thinks in a reverse way of the things that appear before the senses in order that they may be presented before it in the light of truth. It is similar with the things here said in Revelation of "Him who sat on the white cloud" and of the angels, namely, that "they send the sickle into the harvest and reap it," and that "they gather the clusters of the vineyard of the earth, and cast them into the wine press of the anger of God." All this, too, is said according to the way it appears to the sensual man; and yet it must be reversed, and understood according to its spiritual sense.

[3] All this makes clear that a sensual man, such as one is in the ages of infancy and early childhood, also the simple-minded, can think about and believe these and like things according to the sense of the letter, as that God takes away good and truth from men on account of their wickedness; while the adult man who wishes to be wise will not explain these things in the sense that this is done by God, that is, that He takes away from man all good and truth and infuses in the place of them evil and falsity, or that He devastates the church, or even that He is angry and wrathful. For if a wise adult should explain such expressions according to the sense of the letter and confirm them by reasonings, he would destroy the genuine truth itself such as it is in heaven, and consequently would close up heaven to himself. For how could anyone enter heaven with a belief that God is angry and revengeful, that He punishes, and the like, when the angels of heaven are in the perception that God is never angry, and never works vengeance, or punishes? Would they not turn themselves away from such a one and bid him depart, and immediately close the door after him? So is heaven closed to those who, while they live in the world, explain the sense of the letter of the Word even so as to destroy Divine truth in the heavens; which truth is also the same as the truth of the spiritual sense, which is in all the particular truths of the natural sense which constitute the sense of the letter of the Word.

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