The Bible

 

Genesis 1

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1 In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.

2 And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.

3 And God said, Let there be light: and there was light.

4 And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness.

5 And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And the evening and the morning were the first Day.

6 And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters.

7 And God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament: and it was so.

8 And God called the firmament Heaven. And the evening and the morning were the second day.

9 And God said, Let the waters under the heaven be gathered together unto one place, and let the dry land appear: and it was so.

10 And God called the dry land Earth; and the gathering together of the waters called he Seas: and God saw that it was good.

11 And God said, Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed, and the fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed is in itself, upon the earth: and it was so.

12 And the earth brought forth grass, and herb yielding seed after his kind, and the tree yielding fruit, whose seed was in itself, after his kind: and God saw that it was good.

13 And the evening and the morning were the third day.

14 And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years:

15 And let them be for lights in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth: and it was so.

16 And God made two great lights; the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night: he made the stars also.

17 And God set them in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth,

18 And to rule over the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness: and God saw that it was good.

19 And the evening and the morning were the fourth day.

20 And God said, Let the waters bring forth abundantly the moving creature that hath life, and fowl that may fly above the earth in the open firmament of heaven.

21 And God created great whales, and every living creature that moveth, which the waters brought forth abundantly, after their kind, and every winged fowl after his kind: and God saw that it was good.

22 And God blessed them, saying, Be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let fowl multiply in the earth.

23 And the evening and the morning were the fifth day.

24 And God said, Let the earth bring forth the living creature after his kind, cattle, and creeping thing, and beast of the earth after his kind: and it was so.

25 And God made the beast of the earth after his kind, and cattle after their kind, and every thing that creepeth upon the earth after his kind: and God saw that it was good.

26 And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.

27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.

28 And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.

29 And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat.

30 And to every beast of the earth, and to every fowl of the air, and to every thing that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is life, I have given every green herb for meat: and it was so.

31 And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. And the evening and the morning were the sixth day.

Commentary

 

Resurrection, the first

  

'The first resurrection,' mentioned in Revelation 20:5, 6, does not mean a first resurrection, but the essence and primary part of resurrection, which is salvation and eternal life. There is only one resurrection to life. A second does not happen, and is not mentioned anywhere in the Bible.

(References: Apocalypse Explained 6; Apocalypse Revealed 851; Revelation 20:5-6)

From Swedenborg's Works

 

Apocalypse Explained #907

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907. Having upon his head a golden crown. That this signifies Divine good girded for judgment, is evident from the signification of a golden crown upon the head, as here denoting the Divine good girded for judgment; because the subject treated of in what now follows, is the separation of the good from the evil, which separation precedes the Last Judgment; thus the Son of man, by whom is meant the Lord as to Divine truth or the Word, girded to separate the good from the evil, and afterwards to execute judgment. That this is meant by the golden crown upon the head of the Son of man, is evident from the kings amongst the sons of Israel, and also amongst the ancients. They represented the Lord, because, when girded for war, and in their battles, they wore golden crowns (concerning which see above, n. 553). The reason was that kings represented the Lord as to Divine truth, and this conjoined with Divine good proceeds from the Lord. Therefore, that this might be represented, the kings wore crowns of gold; for gold signifies good, as may be seen above (n. 242). That a golden crown signifies good and wisdom therefrom, and that truths are what are crowned, may also be seen above (n. 272).

[2] The mystery concealed in this fact is, that Divine good judges no one but Divine truth. The reason is, that Divine good loves all, and in proportion as man follows, draws him to heaven; but Divine truth separated from good condemns all, and judges to hell. Therefore, in order that all might not be condemned and judged to hell, but that Divine good might moderate and raise to heaven, as far as possible, there was a golden crown upon the head, by which is signified Divine good girded for judgment, that is, to moderate. That Divine good judges no one but Divine truth, is meant by these words of the Lord:

"The Father judgeth no man, but hath committed all judgment unto the Son" (John 5:22).

By the Father is meant the Divine good, and by the Son Divine truth. That by the Father is meant Divine good, may be seen above (n. 200, 254); and by the Son, Divine truth (n. 63, 151, 724). Also by these words:

The Father hath given "to the Son to execute judgment, because he is the Son of man" (John 5:27).

That by the Son of man is signified Divine truth, may also be seen above (n. 778).

[3] But still it is to be understood, that the Lord judges no one by Divine truth; but Divine truth, viewed in itself, judges that man who receives it not, but rejects it, as is quite evident from the Lord's words:

Jesus said, "If any one hear my words, and yet believe not, I judge him not; for I came not to judge the world, but to save the world; he who despiseth me, and receiveth not my words, hath one that judgeth him; the word that I have spoken, the same shall judge him in the last day" (John 12:47, 48; also John 3:17).

By the word is meant Divine truth, for this is in the Word, and is the Word. That this, viewed in itself, will judge a man, and not the Lord Himself by it, is quite clear, for the Lord says, "I judge him not, for I came not to judge the world, but to save the world." The reason why the Lord Himself does not judge is, that He is Divine Love, and also Divine good united with Divine truth; and this cannot be separated from Him, for they are one; and Divine good does not judge any one, but saves, as said above. So also does the Divine truth which, united with the Divine good, proceeds from the Lord.

Its being said in John, that it is given to the Son to execute judgment, is to be understood in the same sense as where it is said of Him, that He is angry, wrathful, and casts into hell, although the Lord is never angry with any one, nor does He cast into hell; but man casts himself there; upon which subject, see what is said in the work concerning Heaven and Hell 545-550). So also it is the contempt and rejection of Divine truth, consequently falsity from evil, that judges man; thus also it is the man himself.

[4] How Divine truth, strictly considered, judges a man, shall also be explained. The man who is in falsities from evil by reason of contempt for and rejection of Divine truth, hates it, and burns to destroy it in every one who is in it from the Lord. And when he attempts this, he is like a person who casts himself into the fire, or dashes his face against a rock, the cause of which is not in the fire, or in the rock, but in the man himself, who does this. For the fact is that Divine truth never fights against falsity from evil, but the latter against the former.

  
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Translation by Isaiah Tansley. Many thanks to the Swedenborg Society for the permission to use this translation.