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.

From Swedenborg's Works

 

Arcana Coelestia #1016

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1016. 'Swarm over the earth and multiply in it' means increases in good and truth in the external man, which man is 'the earth' - 'swarming' having reference to goods, and 'multiplying' to truths. This is clear from what has just been stated, and also from the meaning of 'the earth' as the external man. For these matters, see what has been stated and shown at verse 1 of this chapter, in 983.

[2] The expressions 'swarm over the earth' and so 'multiply in it' are used for the following reason: With a regenerate person nothing multiplies in his external man, that is, no good or truth at all is ever increased, unless it is the product of charity. Charity is like the warmth in springtime or summer that causes grass, plants, and trees to grow. Without charity, or spiritual warmth, nothing grows, and this is why the first expression used here is 'swarm over the earth' which has reference to goods that flow from charity, by means of which good and truth are multiplied. Anyone may grasp how this is so; nothing with a person grows and multiplies unless some affection is there. The delight that is part of the affection not only causes something to take root, but also causes it to grow. Everything depends on the influence of the affection.

[3] That which a person loves he freely takes in, retains, and treasures - and so everything that supports some affection. Those which do not support it he has no interest in, regards as worthless, in fact rejects. But the character of the affection determines that of the multiplication. With somebody who is regenerate it is an affection for good and truth deriving from charity given by the Lord. Consequently whatever supports an affection deriving from charity he takes in, retains, and treasures, and so strengthens himself in goods and truths. This is what is meant by 'swarm over the earth and multiply'.

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

The Bible

 

Genesis 9:1

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1 And God blessed Noah and his sons, and said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth.