The Bible

 

Ezekiel 5

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1 And thou, son of man, take thee a sharp knife that shaveth the hair: and cause it to pass over thy head, and over thy beard: and take thee a balance to weigh in, and divide the hair.

2 A third part thou shalt burn with fire in the midst of the city, according to the fulfilling of the days of the siege: and thou shalt take a third part, and cut it in pieces with the knife all round about: and the other third part thou shalt scatter in the wind, and I will draw out the sword after them.

3 And thou shalt take thereof a small number: and shalt bind them in the skirt of thy cloak.

4 And thou shalt take of them again, and shalt cast them in the midst of the fire, and shalt burn them with fire: and out of it shall come forth a fire into all the house of Israel.

5 Thus saith the Lord God: This is Jerusalem, I have set her in the midst of the nations, and the countries round about her.

6 And she hath despised my judgments, so as to be more wicked than the Gentiles; and my commandments, more than the countries that are round about her: for they have cast off my judgments, and have not walked in my commandments.

7 Therefore thus saith the Lord God: Because you have surpassed the Gentiles that are round about you, and have not walked in my commandments, and have not kept my judgments, and have not done according to the judgments of the nations that are round about you:

8 Therefore thus saith the Lord God: Behold I come against thee, and I myself will execute judgments in the midst of thee in the sight of the Gentiles.

9 And I will do in thee that which I have not done: and the like to which I will do no more, because of all thy abominations.

10 Therefore the fathers shall eat the sons in the midst of thee, and the sons shall eat their fathers: and I will execute judgments in thee, and I will scatter thy whole remnant into every wind.

11 Therefore as I live, saith the Lord God : Because thou hast violated my sanctuary with all thy offences, and with ail thy abominations: I will also break thee in pieces, and my eye shall not spare, and I will not have any pity.

12 A third part of thee shall die with the pestilence, and shall be consumed with famine in the midst of thee: and a third part of thee shall fall by the sword round about thee: and a third part of thee will I scatter into every wind, and I will draw out a sword after them.

13 And I will accomplish my fury, and will cause my indignation to rest upon them, and I will be comforted: and they shall know that I the Lord have spoken it in my zeal, when I shall have accomplished my indignation in them.

14 And I will make thee desolate, and a reproach among the nations that are round about thee, in the sight of every one that passeth by.

15 And thou shalt be a reproach, and a scoff, an example, and an astonishment amongst the nations that are round about thee, when I shall have executed judgments in thee in anger, and in indignation, and in wrathful rebukes.

16 I the Lord have spoken it: When I shall send upon them the grievous arrows of famine, which shall bring death, and which I will send to destroy you: and I will gather together famine against you: and I will break among you the staff of bread.

17 And I will send in upon you famine, and evil beasts unto utter destruction: and pestilence, and blood shall pass through thee, and I will bring in the sword upon thee. I the Lord have spoken it.

   

Commentary

 

Fury

  

Fury is a receding from good, and anger is a receding from truth.

In Genesis 49:20, this signifies turning away from confirmed truth. (Arcana Coelestia 6359)

In Exodus 15:7, this signifies the fury of lusts and their endeavor to inflict violence. (Arcana Coelestia 8284)

In Zephaniah 1:15, this signifies the advent of the Lord to judgment. (Divine Love and Wisdom 5)

In Revelation 14:10, this signifies truth from which comes good. (Apocalypse Revealed 635)

(References: Arcana Coelestia 3517, 3614, 4052)

From Swedenborg's Works

 

Arcana Coelestia #3614

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3614. 'Until your brother's wrath turns back' means until the state changes; and 'until your brother's anger turns back from you' means the subsequent stage of the state with natural good. This is clear from the meaning of 'wrath' and of 'anger' as states that are antagonistic to each other, dealt with below. And when these states become such that they cease to be antagonistic any longer and begin to join together, wrath is said to turn back and anger to turn back. Consequently 'until your brother's wrath turns back' means until the state changes, and 'until your brother's anger turns back' means the subsequent stage of the state with natural good. 'Wrath' implies something different from 'anger', as may be seen from the fact that in addition to their being similar expressions it is a pointless repetition to say, 'Until your brother's wrath turns back' and then 'until your brother's anger turns back'. What each implies is evident from the general explanation and also from that to which wrath and anger are each used to refer. 'Wrath' is used in reference to truth, in this case to the truth of good, represented by 'Esau', while 'anger' is used in reference to that good itself.

[2] 'Wrath' and 'anger' are mentioned many times in the Word, but in the internal sense they do not mean wrath or anger but that which is antagonistic. The reason for this is that whatever is antagonistic towards any affection produces wrath or anger; so that in the internal sense simply forms of antagonism are meant by those two expressions. 'Wrath' is used to describe that which is antagonistic towards truth and 'anger' that which is antagonistic towards good; but in the contrary sense 'wrath' describes that which is antagonistic towards falsity or the affection for it, that is, towards false assumptions, while 'anger' describes that which is antagonistic towards evil or the desire for it, that is, towards self-love and love of the world. Also, in this contrary sense actual wrath is meant by 'wrath', and actual anger by 'anger'; but when those expressions are used in reference to good and truth the wrath and anger which are manifestations of zeal are meant. And because this zeal is to outward appearance like wrath and anger it is called such in the sense of the letter.

[3] As regards 'wrath' or 'anger' in the internal sense meaning simply forms of antagonism, this may be seen from the following places in the Word: In Isaiah,

Jehovah's indignation is against all the nations, and wrath against all their host. Isaiah 34:2.

'Jehovah's indignation against the nations' stands for antagonism towards evil - 'the nations' meaning evils, see 1259, 1260, 1849, 1868, 2588 (end). 'Wrath against all their host' stands for antagonism towards falsities derived from that evil, for by 'the stars' - here called 'the host of heaven' - are meant cognitions, and so truths, and in the contrary sense falsities, see 1128, 1808, 2120, 2495, 2849. In the same prophet,

Who gave Jacob over to plunder, and Israel to spoilers? Was it not Jehovah against whom we have sinned? And He poured out upon him the wrath of His anger. Isaiah 42:24-25.

'Wrath of anger' stands for antagonism towards falsity stemming from evil, 'Jacob' for people under the influence of evil, and 'Israel' for those under the influence of falsity.

[4] In the same prophet,

I have trodden the winepress alone, and from the peoples there was no man (vir) with Me. I trod them in My anger, and destroyed them in My wrath. And I trod down the peoples in My anger, and made them drunk in My wrath. Isaiah 63:3, 6.

This refers to the Lord and His victories in temptations. 'Treading' and 'treading down in anger' stand for victories over evils, 'destroying' and 'making drunk in wrath' for victories over falsities. In the Word 'treading down' has reference to evil, and 'making drunk' to falsity. In Jeremiah,

Thus said the Lord Jehovih. Behold, My anger and My wrath have been poured out on this place, on man, and on beast, and on the tree of the field, and on the fruit of the ground; and it will burn and not be quenched. Jeremiah 7:20.

Both are mentioned - 'anger' and 'wrath' - because both evil and falsity are the subject.

[5] In the Prophets, whenever evil is mentioned so also is falsity, even as whenever good is mentioned so also is truth, the reason being the heavenly marriage, which is the marriage of good and truth in every detail of the Word, 683, 793, 801, 2173, 2516, 2712. It is also why 'anger' and 'wrath' are both mentioned; otherwise one of them would be enough. In the same prophet,

I Myself will fight against you with outstretched hand and strong arm, and in anger, and in wrath, and in great indignation; and I will smite the inhabitants of this city, both man and beast. Jeremiah 21:5-6.

Here in a similar way 'anger' has reference to the punishment of evil, 'wrath' to the punishment of falsity, and 'indignation' to that of both. Since anger and wrath describe antagonism they also mean punishment, for things antagonistic to one another also clash with one another; and in that case evil and falsity suffer punishment. For evil holds within itself antagonism towards good, and falsity holds within itself antagonism towards truth. And because there is antagonism a clash also occurs; and from this punishment results, see 696, 967.

[6] In Ezekiel,

And My anger will be accomplished, and I will make My wrath on them die down, and I will be comforted; and they will know that I Jehovah have spoken in My zeal, when accomplishing My wrath on them - when executing judgements on you in anger and in wrath and in wrathful rebukes. Ezekiel 5:13, 15.

Here also 'anger' stands for the punishment of evil, and 'wrath' for the punishment of falsity, that result from antagonism and consequent aggression. In Moses,

Jehovah will not be pleased to pardon him, for then the anger of Jehovah, and His zeal, will smoke against that man, and Jehovah will separate him as evil from all the tribes of Israel. The whole land will be brimstone and salt, a burning; it will not be sown, and it will not sprout, nor will any plant come up on it, as at the overthrow of Sodom and Gomorrah, of Admah and Zeboiim, which Jehovah overthrew in His anger and His wrath. And all the nations will say, Why has Jehovah done this to this land? What means the heat of this great anger? Deuteronomy 29:20-21, 23-24.

Since 'Sodom' means evil, and 'Gomorrah' falsity deriving from this, 2220, 2246, 232, and the nation to which Moses is referring here is compared to those nations as regards evil and falsity, the expression 'anger' is used in reference to evil, 'wrath' in reference to falsity, and 'the heat of anger' to both. Such passions as these are attributed to Jehovah or the Lord according to the appearance, for the Lord does seem to man to display such when man enters into evil and evil punishes him, see 245, 592, 696, 1093, 1683, 1874, 2335, 2395, 2447, 3605.

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