The Bible

 

創世記 11

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1 全地は同じ発音、同じ言葉であった。

2 時に人々は東に移り、シナルの地に平野を得て、そこに住んだ。

3 彼らは互に言った、「さあ、れんがを造って、よく焼こう」。こうして彼らは石の代りに、れんがを得、しっくいの代りに、アスファルトを得た。

4 彼らはまた言った、「さあ、とを建てて、その頂を天に届かせよう。そしてわれわれは名を上げて、全地のおもてに散るのを免れよう」。

5 時には下って、人のたちの建てるとを見て

6 言われた、「民は一つで、みな同じ言葉である。彼らはすでにこの事をしはじめた。彼らがしようとする事は、もはや何事もとどめ得ないであろう。

7 さあ、われわれは下って行って、そこで彼らの言葉を乱し、互に言葉が通じないようにしよう」。

8 こうしてが彼らをそこから全地のおもてに散らされたので、彼らは建てるのをやめた。

9 これによってその町の名はバベルと呼ばれたがそこで全地の言葉を乱されたからである。はそこから彼らを全地のおもてに散らされた。

10 セムの系図は次のとおりである。セム歳になって洪水の二年のにアルパクサデを生んだ。

11 セムはアルパクサデを生んで、五年生きて、男と女を生んだ。

12 アルパクサデは三十五歳になってシラを生んだ。

13 アルパクサデはシラを生んで年生きて、男と女を生んだ。

14 シラは三十歳になってエベルを生んだ。

15 シラはエベルを生んで年生きて、男と女を生んだ。

16 エベルは三十歳になってペレグを生んだ。

17 エベルはペレグを生んで三十年生きて、男と女を生んだ。

18 ペレグ三十歳になってリウを生んだ。

19 ペレグはリウを生んで、二年生きて、男と女を生んだ。

20 リウは三十歳になってセルグを生んだ。

21 リウはセルグを生んで、二七年生きて、男と女を生んだ。

22 セルグ三十歳になってナホルを生んだ。

23 セルグナホルを生んで、二年生きて、男と女を生んだ。

24 ナホル二十歳になってテラを生んだ。

25 ナホルはテラを生んで十九年生きて、男と女を生んだ。

26 テラは七十歳になってアブラムナホルおよびハランを生んだ。

27 テラの系図は次のとおりである。テラはアブラムナホルおよびハランを生み、ハランはロトを生んだ。

28 ハランは父テラにさきだって、その生れた地、カルデヤのウルで死んだ。

29 アブラムナホルをめとった。アブラム妻の名はサライといい、ナホルの妻の名はミルカといってハランの娘である。ハランはミルカの父、またイスカの父である。

30 サライはうまずめで、子がなかった。

31 テラはそのアブラムと、ハランである孫ロトと、アブラムである嫁サライとを連れて、カナンの地へ行こうとカルデヤのウルを出たが、ハランに着いてそこに住んだ。

32 テラの年は二五歳であった。テラはハランで死んだ。

   

From Swedenborg's Works

 

Arcana Coelestia #1306

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1306. That “a tower” is the worship of self, is evident from the signification of “a tower.” The worship of self exists when a man exalts himself above others even to the point of being worshiped. And therefore the love of self, which is arrogance and pride, is called “height,” “loftiness,” and “being lifted up;” and is described by all things that are high. As in Isaiah:

The eyes of man’s pride shall be humbled, and the loftiness of men shall be brought low, and Jehovah Himself alone shall be exalted in that day. For the day of Jehovah of Armies is upon everyone proud and high and upon everyone that is lifted up, and he shall be humbled; and upon all the cedars of Lebanon that are high and lifted up, and upon all the oaks of Bashan; and upon all the high mountains, and upon all the hills that are lifted up, and upon every lofty tower, and upon every fenced wall (Isaiah 2:11-18); concerning the love of self, which is described by the “cedars,” “oaks,” “mountains,” “hills,” and “tower” that are “high” and “lifted up.”

[2] Again:

There shall be rivers, streams of waters, in the day of the great slaughter, when the towers shall fall (Isaiah 30:25);

in like manner denoting the love of self, and the exalting of self in worship. And again:

Behold the land of the Chaldeans; this people was not; Asshur hath founded it in tziim; they will set up their watchtowers, they will raise up their palaces, he will make it a ruin (Isaiah 23:13);

said of Tyre and its vastation; “watchtowers,” expressed by another word, denote the phantasies therefrom.

In Ezekiel:

I will cause many nations to come up against thee, O Tyre, and they shall ruin the walls of Tyre, and destroy her towers; I will also scrape her dust from her, and will make her the dryness of a rock (Ezekiel 26:3-4).

The signification being similar.

[3] The love of self in worship, or the worship of self, is called a “tower,” for the reason that a “city” signifies a doctrine (as before shown, n. 402) and cities were formerly fortified with towers, in which there were watchmen; and there were also towers on the borders, which for this reason were called “towers of watchmen” (2 Kings 9:17; 17:9; 18:8), and “watchtowers” (Isaiah 23:13). And besides, when the church of the Lord is compared to a “vineyard,” those things which belong to worship and to its conservation are compared to a “winepress” and to “a tower in the vineyard,” as is evident in Isaiah 5:1-2; Matthew 21:33; Mark 12:1.

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

The Bible

 

Genesis 11

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1 The whole earth was of one language and of one speech.

2 It happened, as they traveled east, that they found a plain in the land of Shinar, and they lived there.

3 They said one to another, "Come, let's make bricks, and burn them thoroughly." They had brick for stone, and they used tar for mortar.

4 They said, "Come, let's build ourselves a city, and a tower whose top reaches to the sky, and let's make ourselves a name, lest we be scattered abroad on the surface of the whole earth."

5 Yahweh came down to see the city and the tower, which the children of men built.

6 Yahweh said, "Behold, they are one people, and they have all one language, and this is what they begin to do. Now nothing will be withheld from them, which they intend to do.

7 Come, let's go down, and there confuse their language, that they may not understand one another's speech."

8 So Yahweh scattered them abroad from there on the surface of all the earth. They stopped building the city.

9 Therefore its name was called Babel, because there Yahweh confused the language of all the earth. From there, Yahweh scattered them abroad on the surface of all the earth.

10 This is the history of the generations of Shem. Shem was one hundred years old and became the father of Arpachshad two years after the flood.

11 Shem lived five hundred years after he became the father of Arpachshad, and became the father of sons and daughters.

12 Arpachshad lived thirty-five years and became the father of Shelah.

13 Arpachshad lived four hundred three years after he became the father of Shelah, and became the father of sons and daughters.

14 Shelah lived thirty years, and became the father of Eber:

15 and Shelah lived four hundred three years after he became the father of Eber, and became the father of sons and daughters.

16 Eber lived thirty-four years, and became the father of Peleg.

17 Eber lived four hundred thirty years after he became the father of Peleg, and became the father of sons and daughters.

18 Peleg lived thirty years, and became the father of Reu.

19 Peleg lived two hundred nine years after he became the father of Reu, and became the father of sons and daughters.

20 Reu lived thirty-two years, and became the father of Serug.

21 Reu lived two hundred seven years after he became the father of Serug, and became the father of sons and daughters.

22 Serug lived thirty years, and became the father of Nahor.

23 Serug lived two hundred years after he became the father of Nahor, and became the father of sons and daughters.

24 Nahor lived twenty-nine years, and became the father of Terah.

25 Nahor lived one hundred nineteen years after he became the father of Terah, and became the father of sons and daughters.

26 Terah lived seventy years, and became the father of Abram, Nahor, and Haran.

27 Now this is the history of the generations of Terah. Terah became the father of Abram, Nahor, and Haran. Haran became the father of Lot.

28 Haran died before his father Terah in the land of his birth, in Ur of the Chaldees.

29 Abram and Nahor took wives. The name of Abram's wife was Sarai, and the name of Nahor's wife, Milcah, the daughter of Haran who was also the father of Iscah.

30 Sarai was barren. She had no child.

31 Terah took Abram his son, Lot the son of Haran, his son's son, and Sarai his daughter-in-law, his son Abram's wife. They went forth from Ur of the Chaldees, to go into the land of Canaan. They came to Haran and lived there.

32 The days of Terah were two hundred five years. Terah died in Haran.