The Meaning of Noah and the Flood
By OffTheLeftEye Staff
Is the Noah’s Ark story in the book of Genesis really about God destroying creation? A spiritual Bible interpretation of the story reveals its true meaning.
In this video, host Curtis Childs guides us through the revelations about the Old Testament parable that eighteenth-century philosopher Emanuel Swedenborg had during his spiritual experiences. Swedenborg’s perspectives transcend literal interpretations to provide a hopeful lesson about salvation. While it may seem like the Bible story is about God destroying creation, Swedenborg’s spiritual perspectives suggest that it symbolizes God’s still-ongoing efforts to save us from self-destruction.
Arcana Coelestia #1063
1063. 'Ham was the father of Canaan' means that from the corrupted Church arose worship in external things devoid of internal, which worship is meant by Canaan. This similarly is clear from what follows, for the content of this verse is introductory to what follows. That Ham means the corrupted Church, that is, people who make faith separated from charity the chief thing of religion, is clear in David,
He smote all the firstborn in Egypt, the beginning of strength in the tents of Ham. Psalms 78:51.
'The firstborn of Egypt' represented faith devoid of charity. That faith is called 'the firstborn of Egypt', see what has appeared already in 352, 367; and that faith is consequently called 'the beginning of strength', as it is here in David, see Genesis 49:3, which refers to Reuben, who, being Jacob's firstborn, represented faith and is called 'the beginning of strength'. 'The tents of Ham' is worship arising out of such faith. That 'tents' means worship, see what has appeared already in 414. Egypt is for this reason called 'the land of Ham' in Psalms 105:23, 27; 106:22.
[2] Because such people, who in the Ancient Church were called 'Ham', led lives that consisted of every evil desire, and merely babbled on about their being able to be saved by faith no matter how they lived, the ancients saw them as having, from the heat of evil desires, a black appearance; hence they were called Ham 1 '. The reason Ham is called 'the father of Canaan' is that such people do not care at all how a person lives, provided he attends religious services, for they still have the desire for worship of some kind. External worship is the only worship for them. Internal worship, which belongs solely to charity, they reject; which is why Ham is called 'the father of Canaan'.
Footnotes:
1. The Hebrew adjective ham means hot.