The Bible

 

Genesis 1:28

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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.

From Swedenborg's Works

 

Arcana Coelestia #52

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52. As long as someone is a spiritual man, the dominion over him runs from external man to internal man, as is said here, 'They will have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air', and over the beasts, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth'. When however he becomes celestial and does what is good out of love, then the dominion over him runs from internal man to external man. This is how the Lord describes Himself, and so simultaneously the celestial man, who is a likeness of Him, in David,

You have given him dominion over the works of Your hands; You have put all things under his feet, flocks and all cattle, and also the beasts of the field, the birds of the air, 1 and the fish of the sea, and that crossing the paths of the seas. Psalms 8:6-8.

Here therefore the beasts are mentioned first, the birds next, and the fish of the sea after that, for the reason that the celestial man starts with love which resides in the will. With the spiritual man it is different. With him fish and birds, which have to do with the understanding, the domain of faith, come first, while beasts come afterwards.

Footnotes:

1. literally, bird of the heavens (or the skies)

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

From Swedenborg's Works

 

Arcana Coelestia #415

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415. 'Father of cattle' means good deriving from these, that is, from the holy things of love. This becomes clear from what has been shown already at verse 2 of this chapter, to the effect that 'a shepherd of the flock' means good that stems from charity. In the present verse, however, 'father' is used instead of shepherd, and 'cattle' instead of flock, with the words 'and of cattle', whose father he was, standing immediately after the word 'tent', from which it is clear that good stemming from the holiness of love is meant. And whether the dwelling-place, which was 'a cattle-fold', or 'father of those who dwelt in tent and cattle-folds' is understood here, goods stemming from the celestial things of love are meant, as is also clear from various parts of the Word, as in Jeremiah,

I will gather the remnant of My flock from all lands where I have driven them, and I will bring them back to their folds to give birth and multiply. Jeremiah 13:3.

In Ezekiel,

I will pasture them in a good pasture, and their fold will be on the mountains of the height of Israel; there they will lie down in a good fold, and on fat pasture they will pasture on the mountains of Israel. Ezekiel 34:14.

Here 'folds' and 'pastures', referred to as 'fat', stand for goods that stem from love.

[2] In Isaiah,

He will give rain for your seed with which you will sow the ground; and bread, the produce of the ground, will be fat and full of it. On that day He will pasture your cattle in a broad grassland. Isaiah 30:23.

Here 'bread' means that which is celestial, and 'fat on which they will pasture their flocks' goods stemming from that which is celestial. In Jeremiah,

Jehovah has redeemed Jacob; and they will come and sing on the height of Zion, and they will converge on the goodness of Jehovah, for the wheat, and the new wine, and the oil, for the young 1 of the flock and of the herd. And their life 2 will be like a watered garden. Jeremiah 31:11-12.

Here the Holy of Jehovah is described by 'the wheat and oil', and goods deriving from it by 'the new wine and by the young' of the flock and of the herd', or cattle. In the same prophet,

Shepherds and their flocks of cattle will come against the daughter of Zion, they will pitch their tents against her round about; they will pasture, each in his own space. Jeremiah 6:3.

'The daughter of Zion' stands for the celestial Church, to which both 'tents' and 'flocks of cattle' have reference.

Footnotes:

1. literally, the sons

2. literally, soul

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