The Bible

 

1 Mose 2

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1 Also ward vollendet Himmel und Erde mit ihrem ganzen Heer.

2 Und also vollendete Gott am siebenten Tage seine Werke, die er machte, und ruhete am siebenten Tage von allen seinen Werken, die er machte;

3 und segnete den siebenten Tag und heiligte ihn, darum daß er an demselben geruht hatte von allen seinen Werken, die Gott schuf und machte.

4 Also ist Himmel und Erde worden, da sie geschaffen sind, zu der Zeit, da Gott der HERR Erde und Himmel machte

5 und allerlei Bäume auf dem Felde, die zuvor nie gewesen waren auf Erden, und allerlei Kraut auf dem Felde, das zuvor nie gewachsen war. Denn Gott der HERR hatte noch nicht regnen lassen auf Erden, und war kein Mensch, der das Land bauete.

6 Aber ein Nebel ging auf von der Erde und feuchtete alles Land.

7 Und Gott der HERR machte den Menschen aus einem Erdenkloß, und er blies ihm ein den lebendigen Odem in seine Nase. Und also ward der Mensch eine lebendige Seele.

8 Und Gott der HERR pflanzte einen Garten in Eden gegen Morgen und setzte den Menschen drein, den er gemacht hatte.

9 Und Gott der HERR ließ aufwachsen aus der Erde allerlei Bäume, lustig anzusehen und gut zu essen, und den Baum des Lebens mitten im Garten und den Baum des Erkenntnisses Gutes und Böses.

10 Und es ging aus von Eden ein Strom, zu wässern den Garten, und teilete sich daselbst in vier Hauptwasser.

11 Das erste heißt Pison, das fleußt um das ganze Land Hevila, und daselbst findet man Gold.

12 Und das Gold des Landes ist köstlich, und da findet man Bedellion und den Edelstein Onyx.

13 Das andere Wasser heißt Gihon, das fließt um das ganze Mohrenland.

14 Das dritte Wasser heißt Hiddekel, das fleußt von Assyrien. Das vierte Wasser ist der Phrath.

15 Und Gott der HERR nahm den Menschen und setzte ihn in den Garten Eden, daß er ihn bauete und bewahrete.

16 Und Gott der HERR gebot dem Menschen und sprach: Du sollst essen von allerlei Bäumen im Garten;

17 aber von dem Baum des Erkenntnisses Gutes und Böses sollst du nicht essen. Denn welches Tages du davon issest, wirst du des Todes sterben.

18 Und Gott der HERR sprach: Es ist nicht gut, daß der Mensch allein sei; ich will ihm eine Gehilfin machen, die um ihn sei.

19 Denn als Gott der HERR gemacht hatte von der Erde allerlei Tiere auf dem Felde und allerlei Vögel unter dem Himmel, brachte er sie zu dem Menschen, daß er sähe, wie er sie nennete; denn wie der Mensch allerlei lebendige Tiere nennen würde, so sollten sie heißen.

20 Und der Mensch gab einem jeglichen Vieh und Vogel unter dem Himmel und Tier auf dem Felde seinen Namen; aber für den Menschen ward keine Gehilfin gefunden, die um ihn wäre.

21 Da ließ Gott der HERR einen tiefen Schlaf fallen auf den Menschen, und er entschlief. Und nahm seiner Rippen eine und schloß die Stätte zu mit Fleisch.

22 Und Gott der HERR bauete ein Weib aus der Rippe, die er von dem Menschen nahm, und brachte sie zu ihm.

23 Da sprach der Mensch: Das ist doch Bein von meinem Bein und Fleisch von meinem Fleisch. Man wird sie Männin heißen, darum daß sie vom Manne genommen ist.

24 Darum wird ein Mann seinen Vater und seine Mutter verlassen und an seinem Weibe hangen, und sie werden Sein ein Fleisch.

25 Und sie waren beide nackend, der Mensch und sein Weib, und schämeten sich nicht.

   

From Swedenborg's Works

 

Arcana Coelestia #8891

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8891. 'For in six days Jehovah made heaven and earth, and the sea' means regenerating and vivifying the things in the internal man and in the external. This is clear from the meaning of 'six days' as states of conflict, dealt with just above in 8888, and - when used in reference to Jehovah, that is, the Lord - as His labour with a person before he is regenerated, 8510; from the meaning of 'heaven and earth' as the Church or Lord's kingdom in a person, 'heaven' being in his internal man and 'earth' in his external, dealt with in 82, 1411, 1733, 1850, 2117, 2118 (end), 3355 (end), 4535, so that a person who has been regenerated is meant, that is, one who has acquired new life and accordingly been vivified; and from the meaning of 'the sea' as the sensory awareness adhering to the bodily level of a person's mind, dealt with in 8872.

[2] The present verse deals with the sanctifying of the seventh day or institution of the sabbath, describing it as follows,

In six days Jehovah made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day; therefore Jehovah blessed the sabbath day, and sanctified it.

When people's thinking does not extend beyond the sense of the letter they cannot do other than suppose that the creation described in the first and second chapters of Genesis is the creation of the universe, and that there were six days within which heaven, earth, the sea, and all that is in them were created, and at length the human being in God's likeness. Yet is there anyone pondering on the details who fails to see that the creation of the universe is not what is meant there? For there are things in those chapters which common sense tells anyone are not literally true, for example, that days existed before the sun and moon, that light and darkness did so, and that plants and trees sprang up, when in fact it is through those [great] lights that light is given, light and darkness are divided, and so days come into being.

[3] Further on after these details, others of a similar nature follow which scarcely anyone who thinks more deeply will consider to have been literally possible, such as these: The woman was built out of the man's rib; two trees were placed in paradise, the fruit of one of which they were forbidden to eat; a serpent spoke from one of them to the wife of man (homo), who had been the wisest of mortal beings; what it said - what came out of the serpent's mouth - deceived them both; and the whole human race, numbering so very many thousands of thousands, was therefore condemned to hell. As soon as they are contemplated these and similar details there inevitably seem nonsensical to those who entertain any doubt about the holiness of the Word; and they lead to a denial of the Divine there. However it should be realized that every detail there down to the smallest is Divine; they all contain arcana which are clearly visible to angels in heaven, as in broad daylight. The reason why this should be so is that angels do not see the literal meaning of the Word but what lies within it, that is, spiritual and celestial realities, and Divine ones within these. When the first chapter of Genesis is read they perceive no other creation than the new creation of a human being, which is called regeneration. This is what is described there, 'paradise' being the wisdom of a person created anew. 'The two trees in the middle of it' are the two mental powers of that person, which are a will desiring good, meant by 'the tree of life', and an understanding seeing truth, meant by 'the tree of knowledge'. And the reason why they were forbidden to eat from this tree was that a person who has been regenerated or created anew ought no longer to be led by an understanding that sees truth but by a will desiring good, or else his newness of life is destroyed. Regarding these matters, see 202, 337, 2454, 2715, 3246, 3652, 4448, 5895 (end), 5897 (end), 7877, 7923, 7992, 8505, 8506, 8510, 8512, 8516, 8539, 8643, 8648, 8658, 8690, 8701, 8722. Consequently Adam or Man and Eve his wife there are used to mean a new Church, and 'eating from the tree of knowledge' to mean the decline of that Church from good into truth, consequently from love to the Lord and towards the neighbour into faith without such love. And this came about through reasoning arising from self-intelligence, that reasoning being meant by 'the serpent', see 195-197, 6398, 6399, 6949, 7293.

[4] From all this it is evident that the historical narratives regarding creation, and regarding the first human being and paradise, are the descriptions of fictitious historical events, containing heavenly and Divine realities within them. Making up such stories was in keeping with the accepted custom in the ancient Churches; and the custom also spread from them to many outside the Church, who in a similar way produced descriptions of fictitious historical events, wrapping up arcana within them, as is evident from writers belonging to most ancient times. For the ancient Churches were well acquainted with what such things as exist in the world meant in heaven. Nor were great exploits of sufficient importance for them to write about, only the things of heaven. Things of heaven occupied their minds because they thought on a more internal level than people do at the present day and so were in contact with angels; and for this reason they gained a delight out of putting together such stories. But they were led by the Lord to images which would be held sacred in Churches. Out of these they composed stories in which everything had a correspondence

[5] All this shows what 'heaven and earth' is used to mean in the first verse of the first chapter of Genesis - the internal Church and the external Church. The fact that they are meant by 'heaven and earth' is also clear from places in the Prophets which speak of a new heaven and a new earth, by which a new Church is to be understood, see 82, 1411, 1733, 1850, 2117, 2118 (end), 3355 (end), 4535.

From all this it is now evident that 'in six days Jehovah made heaven and earth, and the sea' means regenerating and vivifying the things in the internal man and in the external man.

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