The Bible

 

Genesis 10

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1 And these are the generations of the sons of Noah: Shem, Ham, and Japheth; and to them were sons born after the flood.

2 The sons of Japheth: Gomer, and Magog, and Madai, and Javan, and Tubal, and Meshech, and Tiras.

3 And the sons of Gomer: Ashkenaz, and Riphath, and Togarmah.

4 And the sons of Javan: Elishah, and Tarshish, Kittim, and Dodanim.

5 From these came the distribution of the isles of the nations, according to their lands, every one after his tongue, after their families, in their nations.

6 And the sons of Ham: Cush, and Mizraim, and Phut, and Canaan.

7 And the sons of Cush: Seba, and Havilah, and Sabtah, and Raamah, and Sabtecha. And the sons of Raamah: Sheba and Dedan.

8 And Cush begot Nimrod: he began to be mighty on the earth.

9 He was a mighty hunter before Jehovah; therefore it is said, As Nimrod, the mighty hunter before Jehovah!

10 And the beginning of his kingdom was Babel, and Erech, and Accad, and Calneh, in the land of Shinar.

11 From that land went out Asshur, and built Nineveh, and Rehoboth-Ir, and Calah,

12 and Resen, between Nineveh and Calah: this is the great city.

13 -- And Mizraim begot the Ludim, and the Anamim, and the Lehabim, and the Naphtuhim,

14 and the Pathrusim, and the Casluhim, out of whom came the Philistines, and the Caphtorim.

15 -- And Canaan begot Sidon, his firstborn, and Heth,

16 and the Jebusite, and the Amorite, and the Girgashite,

17 and the Hivite, and the Arkite, and the Sinite,

18 and the Arvadite, and the Zemarite, and the Hamathite. And afterwards the families of the Canaanites spread themselves abroad.

19 And the border of the Canaanite was from Sidon, as one goes to Gerar, up to Gazah; as one goes to Sodom, and Gomorrah, and Admah, and Zeboim, up to Lesha.

20 These are the sons of Ham, after their families, after their tongues, in their lands, in their nations.

21 And to Shem -- to him also were [sons] born; he is the father of all the sons of Eber, the brother of Japheth the elder.

22 The sons of Shem: Elam, and Asshur, and Arphaxad, and Lud, and Aram.

23 And the sons of Aram: Uz, and Hul, and Gether, and Mash.

24 -- And Arphaxad begot Shelah; and Shelah begot Eber.

25 And to Eber were born two sons: the name of the one was Peleg, for in his days was the earth divided; and his brother's name was Joktan.

26 And Joktan begot Almodad, and Sheleph, and Hazarmaveth, and Jerah,

27 and Hadoram, and Uzal, and Diklah,

28 and Obal, and Abimael, and Sheba,

29 and Ophir, and Havilah, and Jobab: all these were sons of Joktan.

30 And their dwelling was from Mesha, as one goes to Sephar, the eastern mountain.

31 These are the sons of Shem, after their families, after their tongues, in their lands, after their nations.

32 These are the families of the sons of Noah, after their generations, in their nations. And from these came the distribution of the nations on the earth after the flood.

   

From Swedenborg's Works

 

Arcana Coelestia #1250

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1250. That 'the mountain of the east' means charity, indeed charity from the Lord, is clear from the meaning of 'a mountain' in the Word as love to the Lord and charity towards the neighbour, as shown already in 795. And that 'the east' means the Lord, and consequently the celestial things of love and charity, see again what has appeared already in 101, and also in the following places: In Ezekiel,

The cherubs lifted up their wings. The glory of Jehovah went up from over the midst of the city and stood upon the mountain, which is on the east of the city. Ezekiel 11:22-23.

Here 'the mountain which is on the east' means nothing other than the celestial manifestation of the love and the charity that is the Lord's, for it is said that 'the glory of Jehovah stood there'. In the same prophet,

He brought me to the gate, to the gate facing the way of the east. And behold, the glory of the God of Israel came from the way of the east. Ezekiel 43:1-2.

Here 'the east' has a similar meaning.

[2] In the same prophet,

And he brought me back by the way of the outer gate of the sanctuary, which faces the east, and it was shut. And Jehovah said to me, This gate shall be shut and not opened, and no man shall enter by it; but Jehovah, the God of Israel, will enter by it. Ezekiel 44:1-2.

Here similarly 'the east' stands for the celestial manifestation of the love that is the Lord's alone. In the same prophet,

When the prince makes a freewill offering, a burnt offering, and peace offerings, as a freewill offering to Jehovah, one shall open for him the gate facing towards the east, and he shall make his burnt offering and his peace offerings, as he shall do on the sabbath day Ezekiel 46:12.

Here similarly it stands for that which is celestial, which essentially is love to the Lord.

[3] In the same prophet,

He brought me back to the door of the house, and behold, waters were issuing out from below the threshold of the house towards the east, for the house faced east. Ezekiel 47:1, 8.

This refers to the new Jerusalem 'The east' stands for the Lord, and so for the celestial manifestation of love, while 'waters' means things that are spiritual. Here the same is meant by 'the mountain of the east'. Furthermore those who dwelt in Syria were called 'the sons of the east', who will in the Lord's Divine mercy be spoken of later on.

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