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Genezo 26

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1 Estis malsato en la lando, krom la antauxa malsato, kiu estis en la tempo de Abraham. Kaj Isaak iris al Abimelehx, la regxo de la Filisxtoj, en Gerar.

2 Kaj la Eternulo aperis al li, kaj diris: Ne iru Egiptujon, logxu en la lando, pri kiu Mi diros al vi.

3 Vivu kiel fremdulo en cxi tiu lando, kaj Mi estos kun vi, kaj Mi benos vin; cxar al vi kaj al via idaro Mi donos cxiujn cxi tiujn landojn, kaj Mi plenumos la jxuron, kiun Mi jxuris al via patro Abraham.

4 Kaj Mi multigos vian idaron simile al la steloj de la cxielo, kaj Mi donos al via idaro cxiujn cxi tiujn landojn, kaj benigxos per via idaro cxiuj popoloj de la tero;

5 pro tio, ke Abraham obeis Mian vocxon, kaj plenumadis Miajn arangxojn, Miajn legxojn, kaj Miajn instruojn.

6 Kaj Isaak eklogxis en Gerar.

7 Kaj kiam la homoj de tiu loko demandis pri lia edzino, li diris: SXi estas mia fratino; cxar li timis diri: Mia edzino; por ke la homoj de la loko ne mortigu lin pro Rebeka, cxar sxi estis belaspekta.

8 Unu fojon, kiam li estis tie jam de longa tempo, Abimelehx, la regxo de la Filisxtoj, rigardis tra la fenestro, kaj vidis, ke Isaak amuzigxas kun sia edzino Rebeka.

9 Tiam Abimelehx vokis Isaakon, kaj diris: Jen, sxi estas ja via edzino; kial do vi diris: SXi estas mia fratino? Kaj Isaak diris al li: CXar mi pensis, ke eble mi mortos pro sxi.

10 Kaj Abimelehx diris: Kion do vi faris al ni! preskaux jam kusxigxis unu el la popolo kun via edzino, kaj vi venigus sur nin krimon.

11 Kaj Abimelehx faris ordonon al la tuta popolo jene: Kiu tusxos cxi tiun viron aux lian edzinon, tiu mortos.

12 Kaj Isaak semis en tiu lando, kaj havis en tiu jaro centoble-mezuran rikolton; kaj la Eternulo lin benis.

13 Kaj tiu homo grandigxis kaj cxiam pli kaj pli grandigxadis, gxis li farigxis tre granda.

14 Kaj li havis tre multe da brutoj malgrandaj kaj brutoj grandaj kaj grandan servistaron; kaj la Filisxtoj enviis lin.

15 Kaj cxiujn putojn, kiujn elfosis la sklavoj de lia patro en la tempo de lia patro Abraham, la Filisxtoj sxtopis kaj plenigis ilin per tero.

16 Tiam Abimelehx diris al Isaak: Foriru de ni, cxar vi farigxis multe pli forta ol ni.

17 Kaj Isaak foriris de tie kaj arangxis siajn tendojn en la valo de Gerar, kaj tie li eklogxis.

18 Kaj Isaak denove elfosis la akvoputojn, kiujn oni elfosis en la tempo de lia patro Abraham kaj la Filisxtoj sxtopis post la morto de Abraham; kaj li donis al ili tiujn samajn nomojn, kiujn donis al ili lia patro.

19 Kaj la sklavoj de Isaak fosis en la valo kaj trovis tie puton kun fresxa akvo.

20 Kaj disputis la pasxtistoj de Gerar kun la pasxtistoj de Isaak, dirante: Al ni apartenas la akvo. Kaj oni donis al la puto la nomon Esek, cxar oni disputis pri gxi.

21 Kaj ili elfosis alian puton, kaj ankaux pri gxi ili disputis; kaj oni donis al gxi la nomon Sitna.

22 Kaj ili forigxis de tie kaj elfosis alian puton, kaj pri gxi oni ne disputis. Kaj li donis al gxi la nomon Rehxobot, dirante: Nun la Eternulo donis al ni vastan lokon, kaj ni multigxos sur la tero.

23 Kaj de tie li formigris al Beer-SXeba.

24 Kaj aperis al li la Eternulo en tiu nokto, kaj diris: Mi estas la Dio de via patro Abraham; ne timu, cxar Mi estas kun vi, kaj Mi benos vin kaj Mi multigos vian idaron pro Abraham, Mia servanto.

25 Kaj li konstruis tie altaron kaj pregxis al la Eternulo. Kaj li arangxis tie sian tendon, kaj la sklavoj de Isaak elfosis tie puton.

26 Kaj Abimelehx iris al li el Gerar, kaj ankaux lia amiko Ahxuzat kaj lia militestro Pihxol.

27 Kaj Isaak diris al ili: Por kio vi venis al mi? vi min ja malamas kaj forpelis min de vi.

28 Kaj ili diris: Ni vidis, ke la Eternulo estas kun vi; tial Ni diris: Estu jxuro inter Ni, inter Ni kaj vi, kaj Ni faru interligon kun vi,

29 ke vi ne faru al ni malbonon, kiel ni vin ne tusxis kaj kiel ni faris al vi nur bonon kaj lasis vin foriri en paco; vi estas nun benito de la Eternulo.

30 Kaj li faris por ili festenon, kaj ili mangxis kaj trinkis.

31 Kaj ili levigxis frue matene kaj jxuris al si reciproke. Kaj Isaak lasis ilin foriri, kaj ili foriris de li en paco.

32 Kaj en tiu tago venis la sklavoj de Isaak, kaj raportis al li pri la puto, kiun ili elfosis, kaj diris al li: Ni trovis akvon.

33 Kaj li donis al gxi la nomon SXiba; pro tio la nomo de la urbo estas Beer-SXeba gxis hodiaux.

34 Kiam Esav havis la agxon de kvardek jaroj, li prenis kiel edzinojn Jehuditon, filinon de Beeri la HXetido, kaj Basmaton, filinon de Elon la HXetido.

35 Kaj ili multe cxagrenis Isaakon kaj Rebekan.

   

From Swedenborg's Works

 

Arcana Coelestia #3419

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3419. And Isaac returned, and digged again the wells of waters which they had digged in the days of Abraham his father. That this signifies that the Lord opened those truths which were with the ancients, is evident from the representation of Isaac, as being the Lord as to the Divine rational, concerning which above; from the signification of “returning and digging again,” as being to open again; from the signification of “wells of waters,” as being the truths of knowledges (that “wells” are truths may be seen above, n. 2702, 3096; and that “waters” are knowledges, n. 28, 2702, 3058); and from the signification of “the days of Abraham his father,” as being a previous time and state as to truths, which truths are signified by the wells which they digged at that time, thus the truths which were with the ancients. (That “days” signify time and states may be seen above, n. 23, 487-488, 493, 893.) When “days” signify states, then by Abraham the father is represented the Lord’s Divine Itself before He adjoined to it the Human (n. 2833, 2836, 3251); when they signify time, then by Abraham the father are signified the goods and truths which were from the Lord’s Divine before He adjoined to it the Human, thus the goods and truths which were with the ancients.

[2] The truths which were with the ancients are at this day wholly obliterated, insomuch that scarcely anyone knows that they ever existed, and that they could be any other than what are taught at this day, when yet they were totally different. The ancients had Representatives and Significatives of the celestial and spiritual things of the Lord’s kingdom, thus of the Lord Himself; and they who understood such representatives and significatives were called the wise; and they were wise, for thereby they were able to speak with spirits and angels. For when angelic speech (which is incomprehensible to man because spiritual and celestial) descends to man, who is in a natural sphere, it falls into representatives and significatives such as are in the Word, and hence it is that the Word is a holy writing; for in order to be a full correspondence that which is Divine cannot be presented in any other way before the natural man.

[3] And as the ancients were in representatives and significatives of the Lord’s kingdom, in which there is nothing but celestial and spiritual love, they had also doctrinal things that treated solely of love to God and of charity toward the neighbor; and by virtue of these doctrinal things they were called the wise. From these doctrinal things they knew that the Lord would come into the world, and that Jehovah would be in Him, and that He would make the human in Himself Divine, and would thus save the human race. From these doctrinal things they also knew what charity is, namely, the affection of being of service to others without any end of recompense; and also what is the neighbor toward whom there should be charity, namely, all in the universe, but still each with discrimination. At this day these doctrinal things are utterly lost, and in place of them there are doctrinal things of faith, which the ancients accounted as relatively nothing.

At the present day the doctrinal things of love to the Lord and of charity toward the neighbor are rejected, in part by those who in the Word are called “Babylonians and Chaldeans,” and in part by those who are called “Philistines” and also “Egyptians”; and thus are so completely lost that there remains scarcely any trace of them. For who at the present day knows what that charity is which is devoid of all regard for self, and which is averse to everything that is for the sake of self? And who knows that the neighbor is everyone, with discrimination according to the kind and amount of good in him, thus that he is good itself, consequently in the supreme sense the Lord Himself, because He is in good, and good is from Him, and the good which is not from Him is not good, however much it may appear to be so? And because it is not known what charity is, and what the neighbor, it is not known who they are that in the Word are signified by the “poor,” the “miserable,” the “needy,” the “sick,” the “hungry” and “thirsty,” the “oppressed,” “widows,” “orphans,” “captives,” the “naked,” “sojourners,” the “blind,” the “deaf,” the “halt,” “maimed,” and others; when yet the doctrinal things of the ancients taught who these were, and to what class of the neighbor, and thus of charity, each belonged. The whole of the Word in the sense of the letter is written in accordance with these doctrinal things, so that he who has no knowledge of them cannot possibly know any interior sense of the Word.

[4] As in Isaiah:

Is it not to break bread to the hungry, and that thou bring the afflicted that are cast out to thy house; when thou seest the naked, that thou cover him, and that thou hide not thyself from thine own flesh? Then shall thy light break forth as the dawn, and thy healing shall spring forth speedily; and thy righteousness shall go before thee, the glory of Jehovah shall gather thee (Isaiah 58:7-8).

He who lays stress on the sense of the letter believes that if he merely gives bread to the hungry, takes into his house the poor outcasts or wanderers, and covers the naked, he will on this account come into the glory of Jehovah, or into heaven; when yet these are mere outward acts, and even the wicked may do them for the sake of self-merit; but by the “hungry,” the “afflicted,” and the “naked” are signified those who are spiritually such, thus different states of misery in which the man may be who is the neighbor, and toward whom charity is to be exercised.

[5] In David:

He that executeth judgment for the oppressed; that giveth bread to the hungry; Jehovah looseth the prisoners; Jehovah openeth the eyes of the blind; Jehovah raiseth up them that are bowed down; Jehovah loveth the righteous; Jehovah guardeth the sojourners; He upholdeth the fatherless and widow (Psalms 146:7-9); where by the “oppressed,” the “hungry,” the “prisoners,” the “blind;” the “bowed down,” the “sojourners,” the “fatherless” and “widow,” are not meant those who are commonly so called, but those who are such in respect to spiritual things, that is, in respect to their souls. Who these were, and in what state and degree they were neighbors, thus what charity was to be exercised toward them, was taught by the doctrinal things of the ancients. It is the same everywhere else in the Old Testament; for when the Divine descends into what is natural with man, it descends into such things as are works of charity, with discrimination according to genera and species.

[6] The Lord also spoke in like manner, because He spoke from the Divine Itself, as in Matthew:

Then shall the King say unto them on His right hand, Come ye blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you; for I was hungry, and ye gave Me to eat; I was thirsty, and ye gave Me to drink; I was a stranger, and ye took Me in; naked, and ye clothed Me; I was sick, and ye visited Me; I was in prison, and ye came unto Me (Matthew 25:34-36).

By the works here recounted are signified the universal genera of charity; and in what degree are the goods or the good men who are the neighbors toward whom charity is to be exercised; and that in the supreme sense the Lord is the neighbor, for He says:

Inasmuch as ye did it unto one of the least of these My brethren, ye did it unto Me (Matthew 25:40).

From these few examples it may be seen what is meant by the truths with the ancients. But that these truths are altogether obliterated by those who are in the doctrinal things of faith, and not in the life of charity, that is, by those who in the Word are called “Philistines,” is signified by the Philistines stopping up the wells after the death of Abraham, which is the subject next treated of.

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