The Bible

 

1 Mose 33

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1 Jakob hub seine Augen auf und sah seinen Bruder Esau kommen mit vierhundert Mann. Und teilete seine Kinder zu Lea und zu Rahel und zu beiden Mägden.

2 Und stellete die Mägde mit ihren Kindern vorne an und Lea mit ihren Kindern hernach und Rahel mit Joseph zuletzt.

3 Und er ging vor ihnen her und neigete sich siebenmal auf die Erde, bis er zu seinem Bruder kam.

4 Esau aber lief ihm entgegen und herzete ihn und fiel ihm um den Hals und küssete ihn; und sie weineten.

5 Und hub seine Augen auf und sah die Weiber mit den Kindern und sprach: Wer sind diese bei dir? Er antwortete: Es sind Kinder, die Gott deinem Knechte bescheret hat.

6 Und die Mägde traten herzu mit ihren Kindern und neigeten sich vor ihm.

7 Lea trat auch herzu mit ihren Kindern und neigeten sich vor ihm. Danach trat Joseph und Rahel herzu und neigeten sich auch vor ihm.

8 Und er sprach: Was willst du mit all dem Heer, dem ich begegnet bin? Er antwortete: Daß ich Gnade fände vor meinem HERRN.

9 Esau sprach: Ich habe genug, mein Bruder; behalt, was du hast.

10 Jakob antwortete: Ach nicht! Habe ich Gnade funden vor dir, so nimm mein Geschenk von meiner Hand; denn ich sah dein Angesicht, als sähe ich Gottes Angesicht; und laß dir's wohlgefallen von mir.

11 Nimm doch den Segen von mir an, den ich dir zugebracht habe; denn Gott hat mir's bescheret, und ich habe alles genug. Also nötigte er ihn, daß er's nahm.

12 Und er sprach: Laß uns fortziehen und reisen; ich will mit dir ziehen.

13 Er aber sprach zu ihm: Mein HERR, du erkennest, daß ich zarte Kinder bei mir habe, dazu Vieh und säugende Kühe; wenn sie einen Tag übertrieben würden, würde mir die ganze Herde sterben.

14 Mein HERR ziehe vor seinem Knechte hin. Ich will mählich hinnach treiben, danach das Vieh und die Kinder gehen können, bis daß ich komme zu meinem HERRN in Seir.

15 Esau sprach: So will ich doch bei dir lassen etliche vom Volk, das mit mir ist. Er antwortete: Was ist's vonnöten? Laß mich nur Gnade vor meinem HERRN finden.

16 Also zog des Tages Esau wiederum seines Weges gen Seir.

17 Und Jakob zog gen Suchoth und bauete ihm ein Haus und machte seinem Vieh Hütten; daher heißt die Stätte Suchoth.

18 Danach zog Jakob gegen Salem, zu der Stadt des Sichem, die im Lande Kanaan liegt (nachdem er aus Mesopotamien kommen war), und machte sein Lager vor der Stadt.

19 Und kaufte ein Stück Ackers von den Kindern Hemors, des Vaters Sichems, um hundert Groschen; daselbst richtete er seine Hütte auf.

20 Und richtete daselbst einen Altar zu und rief an den Namen des starken Gottes Israel.

   

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Arcana Coelestia #4353

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4353. And kissed him. That this signifies interior conjunction from love, is evident from the signification of “kissing,” as being conjunction from love (see n. 3573, 3574, 4215), here interior conjunction. In this verse the conjunction of the Divine good of the natural which is “Esau,” with the truth there which is “Jacob,” is treated of in general; but in what follows this conjunction is described specifically. As regards the conjunction itself, it is this which effects man’s regeneration; for man is regenerated by the fact that the truths in him are being conjoined with good, that is, that the things which belong to faith are being conjoined with those which belong to charity. The process is fully described in these and the following verses. The Lord is indeed the subject treated of how He made His natural Divine, consequently how He united Divine good to the truth in His natural. But as man’s regeneration is an image of the Lord’s glorification (n. 3138, 3212, 3296, 3490), this regeneration is also treated of at the same time in the internal sense. And as regeneration can fall into man’s idea, but not so fully the Lord’s glorification, the latter may be illustrated by the former.

[2] It is manifest from what has been explained that the conjunction of good with truths (by which regeneration is effected) progresses more and more interiorly; that is, truths are successively conjoined more interiorly with good. For the end of regeneration is that the internal man may be conjoined with the external, thus the spiritual with the natural through the rational. Without the conjunction of both of these there is no regeneration. Nor can this conjunction be effected until good has first been conjoined with truths in the natural; for the natural must be the plane, and the things that are in the natural must correspond. This is the reason why when the natural is being regenerated, the conjunction of good with truths becomes successively more interior. For the spiritual conjoins itself first with the things which are inmost in the natural, and then by means of these with those which are more exterior. Nor can man’s internal conjoin itself with his external, unless the truth in the external becomes the good of truth, that is, truth in will and act (n. 4337); for then for the first time they can be conjoined, inasmuch as the Lord flows in with man through his internal man, and in fact through the good therein. This good can be conjoined with good in the external man, but not good with truth immediately.

[3] From this it may be seen that the truth in man must first become truth in will and act (that is, the good of truth), before the conjunction of the rational with the natural, or the internal man with the external, can take place. But how truth becomes the good of truth, must be evident to everyone who pays attention. All Divine truth regards these two precepts-to love God above all things, and the neighbor as one’s self. It is these precepts from which and for the sake of which truths are, and to which truths tend, more nearly and more remotely. Therefore when truths are put into act, they are instilled successively into their beginning and their end, namely, into charity toward the neighbor, and into love to the Lord; and thereby truth becomes good, which is called the good of truth; and when this takes place, it can then be conjoined with the internal man, which conjunction becomes successively more interior, in proportion as more interior truths are implanted in this good. Act precedes, man’s willing follows; for that which a man does from the understanding, he at last does from the will, and finally puts it on as a habit; and it is then instilled in his rational or internal man. And when it has been instilled in this, the man no longer does good from truth, but from good; for he then begins to perceive therein somewhat of blessedness, and as it were somewhat of heaven. This remains with him after death, and by means of it he is uplifted into heaven by the Lord.

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