The Bible

 

Ezekiel 9

Study

   

1 Kaj Li vokis al miaj oreloj per lauxta vocxo, dirante:Alproksimigxu la punantoj de la urbo, kaj cxiu havu en sia mano sian pereigilon.

2 Kaj jen ses homoj venis per la vojo de la supra pordego, kiu estas turnita norden, kaj cxiu havis en la mano sian detruilon, kaj inter ili estis unu vestita per tolo, kaj li havis skribilon cxe siaj lumboj. Ili venis, kaj starigxis apud la kupra altaro.

3 Kaj la majesto de Dio de Izrael levigxis de la kerubo, sur kiu gxi estis, al la sojlo de la domo. Kaj Li alvokis la homon, kiu estis vestita per tolo kaj havis skribilon cxe siaj lumboj.

4 Kaj la Eternulo diris al li:Trairu la urbon Jerusalem, kaj marku per litero Tav la fruntojn de tiuj homoj, kiuj gxemas kaj malgxojas pri cxiuj abomenindajxoj, kiuj estas farataj en la urbo.

5 Kaj al la aliaj Li diris tiel, ke mi povis auxdi:Iru tra la urbo post li, kaj frapu; via okulo ne indulgu, kaj vi ne kompatu.

6 Maljunulon, junulon, junulinon, infanojn, kaj virinojn eksterme mortigu; sed cxiun homon, sur kiu estas la litero Tav, ne tusxu; kaj komencu de Mia sanktejo. Kaj ili komencis de la maljunaj homoj, kiuj estis antaux la domo.

7 Kaj Li diris al ili:Malpurigu la domon, kaj plenigu la kortojn per mortigitoj; eliru! Kaj ili eliris, kaj komencis frapadi en la urbo.

8 Kiam ili finis la mortigadon kaj mi restis, tiam mi jxetis min vizagxaltere, ekkriis, kaj diris:Ho Sinjoro, ho Eternulo! cxu Vi ekstermos la tutan restajxon de Izrael, elversxante Vian koleron sur Jerusalemon?

9 Kaj Li diris al mi:La malpieco de la domo de Izrael kaj de Jehuda estas tre, tre granda, kaj la lando estas plena de sango, kaj la urbo estas plena de maljusteco; cxar ili diras:La Eternulo forlasis la landon, kaj la Eternulo ne vidas.

10 Tial ankaux Miaflanke Mia okulo ne indulgos, kaj Mi ne kompatos; ilian agadon Mi metos sur ilian kapon.

11 Kaj jen la viro, kiu estis vestita per tolo kaj havis skribilon cxe siaj lumboj, alportis respondon, dirante:Mi faris tion, kion Vi ordonis al mi.

   

From Swedenborg's Works

 

Arcana Coelestia #8940

Study this Passage

  
/ 10837  
  

8940. 'And if you make for Me an altar of stones' means a representative kind of worship in general that is composed of truths. This is clear from the meaning of 'an altar' as a representative of Divine worship in general, dealt with in 921, 2777, 2811, 4489; and from the meaning of 'stones' as truths, dealt with in 643, 1298, 3720, 3769, 3771, 3773, 3789, 3798, 6426, 8609. There is worship of the Lord that springs from good, and there is worship of Him that springs from truth. Worship of the Lord springing from good was represented by an altar of soil, and worship springing from truth by an altar of stone. Regarding the first and the second kinds of worship, see above in 8935. It was because an altar of stone was a sign of worship springing from truth that they were commanded to set up such an altar as soon as they crossed the Jordan and came into the land of Canaan, and to write on it the Commandments contained in the Law, that is, God's truths from heaven. For by the Ten Commandments are meant all God's truths in summary form. That altar is spoken of in Moses as follows,

When you cross the Jordan you shall set up for yourself large stones, and coat them with lime. Then you shall write on them all the words of the Law. Afterwards, you shall build there an altar to Jehovah your God, an altar of stones, which you shall not hew with any iron tool. 1 With whole stones you shall build the altar of Jehovah your God, and present 2 on it burnt offerings and eucharistic offerings. And you shall write on the stones of the altar the words of the Law, expressing them very plainly. Deuteronomy 27:1-8; Joshua 8:30-32.

[2] The reason why they were to write the words of the Law on stones of the altar was that truths were meant by 'stones', and worship that springs from truths by 'an altar of stones'. This was also the reason why the Ten Commandments, which were a sign of Divine Truths in their entirety, were inscribed on tablets of stone. The reason why it had to be done as soon as they crossed the Jordan was that the Jordan, which was the first and outermost boundary of the land of Canaan on the side where the wilderness lay, meant introduction into the Church or heaven, which is accomplished through cognitions or knowledge of truth and good, thus through truths from the Word, 4255. For all the rivers serving as boundaries of that land meant the first and outermost reaches of the Lord's kingdom, 4116, 4240. By 'the stones of the altar' the truths of faith are also meant in Isaiah,

He will remove sin when He makes all the stones of the altar like chalk-stones scattered about. Isaiah 27:9

This refers to the ruination of the Church. 'The stones of the altar like chalk-stones scattered about' stands for the truths of faith that inspire worship after something similar has happened to them. As regards altars in general, they were made out of soil, stones, bronze, wood, and also gold - out of bronze, wood, and gold because these materials served to mean good. For an altar of bronze, see Ezekiel 9:2; for an altar of wood, Ezekiel 41:22; and for an altar of gold, which was the altar of incense, 1 Kings 6:22; 7:48; Revelation 8:3. That 'bronze' means good, see 425, 1551; that 'wood' does so, 643, 2784, 2812, 3720, 8354; and that 'gold' does so as well, 113, 1551, 1552, 5658.

Footnotes:

1. literally, upon which you shall not strike iron

2. literally, cause to come up

  
/ 10837  
  

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

The Bible

 

Joshua 8:30-32

Study

      

30 Then Joshua built an altar to Yahweh, the God of Israel, in Mount Ebal,

31 as Moses the servant of Yahweh commanded the children of Israel, as it is written in the book of the law of Moses, an altar of uncut stones, on which no man had lifted up any iron. They offered burnt offerings on it to Yahweh, and sacrificed peace offerings.

32 He wrote there on the stones a copy of the law of Moses, which he wrote in the presence of the children of Israel.