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Daniel 8

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1 ἔτους τρίτου βασιλεύοντος βαλτασαρ ὅρασις ἣν εἶδον ἐγὼ δανιηλ μετὰ τὸ ἰδεῖν με τὴν πρώτην

2 καὶ εἶδον ἐν τῷ ὁράματι τοῦ ἐνυπνίου μου ἐμοῦ ὄντος ἐν σούσοις τῇ πόλει ἥτις ἐστὶν ἐν ἐλυμαΐδι χώρᾳ ἔτι ὄντος μου πρὸς τῇ πύλῃ αιλαμ

3 ἀναβλέψας εἶδον κριὸν ἕνα μέγαν ἑστῶτα ἀπέναντι τῆς πύλης καὶ εἶχε κέρατα καὶ τὸ ἓν ὑψηλότερον τοῦ ἑτέρου καὶ τὸ ὑψηλότερον ἀνέβαινε

4 μετὰ δὲ ταῦτα εἶδον τὸν κριὸν κερατίζοντα πρὸς ἀνατολὰς καὶ πρὸς βορρᾶν καὶ πρὸς δυσμὰς καὶ μεσημβρίαν καὶ πάντα τὰ θηρία οὐκ ἔστησαν ἐνώπιον αὐτοῦ καὶ οὐκ ἦν ὁ ῥυόμενος ἐκ τῶν χειρῶν αὐτοῦ καὶ ἐποίει ὡς ἤθελε καὶ ὑψώθη

5 καὶ ἐγὼ διενοούμην καὶ ἰδοὺ τράγος αἰγῶν ἤρχετο ἀπὸ δυσμῶν ἐπὶ προσώπου τῆς γῆς καὶ οὐχ ἥπτετο τῆς γῆς καὶ ἦν τοῦ τράγου κέρας ἓν ἀνὰ μέσον τῶν ὀφθαλμῶν αὐτοῦ

6 καὶ ἦλθεν ἐπὶ τὸν κριὸν τὸν τὰ κέρατα ἔχοντα ὃν εἶδον ἑστῶτα πρὸς τῇ πύλῃ καὶ ἔδραμε πρὸς αὐτὸν ἐν θυμῷ ὀργῆς

7 καὶ εἶδον αὐτὸν προσάγοντα πρὸς τὸν κριόν καὶ ἐθυμώθη ἐπ' αὐτὸν καὶ ἐπάταξε καὶ συνέτριψε τὰ δύο κέρατα αὐτοῦ καὶ οὐκέτι ἦν ἰσχὺς ἐν τῷ κριῷ στῆναι κατέναντι τοῦ τράγου καὶ ἐσπάραξεν αὐτὸν ἐπὶ τὴν γῆν καὶ συνέτριψεν αὐτόν καὶ οὐκ ἦν ὁ ῥυόμενος τὸν κριὸν ἀπὸ τοῦ τράγου

8 καὶ ὁ τράγος τῶν αἰγῶν κατίσχυσε σφόδρα καὶ ὅτε κατίσχυσε συνετρίβη αὐτοῦ τὸ κέρας τὸ μέγα καὶ ἀνέβη ἕτερα τέσσαρα κέρατα κατόπισθεν αὐτοῦ εἰς τοὺς τέσσαρας ἀνέμους τοῦ οὐρανοῦ

9 καὶ ἐξ ἑνὸς αὐτῶν ἀνεφύη κέρας ἰσχυρὸν ἓν καὶ κατίσχυσε καὶ ἐπάταξεν ἐπὶ μεσημβρίαν καὶ ἐπ' ἀνατολὰς καὶ ἐπὶ βορρᾶν

10 καὶ ὑψώθη ἕως τῶν ἀστέρων τοῦ οὐρανοῦ καὶ ἐρράχθη ἐπὶ τὴν γῆν ἀπὸ τῶν ἀστέρων καὶ ἀπὸ αὐτῶν κατεπατήθη

11 ἕως ὁ ἀρχιστράτηγος ῥύσεται τὴν αἰχμαλωσίαν καὶ δι' αὐτὸν τὰ ὄρη τὰ ἀπ' αἰῶνος ἐρράχθη καὶ ἐξήρθη ὁ τόπος αὐτῶν καὶ θυσία καὶ ἔθηκεν αὐτὴν ἕως χαμαὶ ἐπὶ τὴν γῆν καὶ εὐωδώθη καὶ ἐγενήθη καὶ τὸ ἅγιον ἐρημωθήσεται

12 καὶ ἐγενήθησαν ἐπὶ τῇ θυσίᾳ αἱ ἁμαρτίαι καὶ ἐρρίφη χαμαὶ ἡ δικαιοσύνη καὶ ἐποίησε καὶ εὐωδώθη

13 καὶ ἤκουον ἑτέρου ἁγίου λαλοῦντος καὶ εἶπεν ὁ ἕτερος τῷ φελμουνι τῷ λαλοῦντι ἕως τίνος τὸ ὅραμα στήσεται καὶ ἡ θυσία ἡ ἀρθεῖσα καὶ ἡ ἁμαρτία ἐρημώσεως ἡ δοθεῖσα καὶ τὰ ἅγια ἐρημωθήσεται εἰς καταπάτημα

14 καὶ εἶπεν αὐτῷ ἕως ἑσπέρας καὶ πρωὶ ἡμέραι δισχίλιαι τριακόσιαι καὶ καθαρισθήσεται τὸ ἅγιον

15 καὶ ἐγένετο ἐν τῷ θεωρεῖν με ἐγὼ δανιηλ τὸ ὅραμα ἐζήτουν διανοηθῆναι καὶ ἰδοὺ ἔστη κατεναντίον μου ὡς ὅρασις ἀνθρώπου

16 καὶ ἤκουσα φωνὴν ἀνθρώπου ἀνὰ μέσον τοῦ ουλαι καὶ ἐκάλεσε καὶ εἶπεν γαβριηλ συνέτισον ἐκεῖνον τὴν ὅρασιν καὶ ἀναβοήσας εἶπεν ὁ ἄνθρωπος ἐπὶ τὸ πρόσταγμα ἐκεῖνο ἡ ὅρασις

17 καὶ ἦλθε καὶ ἔστη ἐχόμενός μου τῆς στάσεως καὶ ἐν τῷ ἔρχεσθαι αὐτὸν ἐθορυβήθην καὶ ἔπεσα ἐπὶ πρόσωπόν μου καὶ εἶπέν μοι διανοήθητι υἱὲ ἀνθρώπου ἔτι γὰρ εἰς ὥραν καιροῦ τοῦτο τὸ ὅραμα

18 καὶ λαλοῦντος αὐτοῦ μετ' ἐμοῦ ἐκοιμήθην ἐπὶ πρόσωπον χαμαί καὶ ἁψάμενός μου ἤγειρέ με ἐπὶ τοῦ τόπου

19 καὶ εἶπέ μοι ἰδοὺ ἐγὼ ἀπαγγέλλω σοι ἃ ἔσται ἐπ' ἐσχάτου τῆς ὀργῆς τοῖς υἱοῖς τοῦ λαοῦ σου ἔτι γὰρ εἰς ὥρας καιροῦ συντελείας μενεῖ

20 τὸν κριὸν ὃν εἶδες τὸν ἔχοντα τὰ κέρατα βασιλεὺς μήδων καὶ περσῶν ἐστι

21 καὶ ὁ τράγος τῶν αἰγῶν βασιλεὺς τῶν ἑλλήνων ἐστί καὶ τὸ κέρας τὸ μέγα τὸ ἀνὰ μέσον τῶν ὀφθαλμῶν αὐτοῦ αὐτὸς ὁ βασιλεὺς ὁ πρῶτος

22 καὶ τὰ συντριβέντα καὶ ἀναβάντα ὀπίσω αὐτοῦ τέσσαρα κέρατα τέσσαρες βασιλεῖς τοῦ ἔθνους αὐτοῦ ἀναστήσονται οὐ κατὰ τὴν ἰσχὺν αὐτοῦ

23 καὶ ἐπ' ἐσχάτου τῆς βασιλείας αὐτῶν πληρουμένων τῶν ἁμαρτιῶν αὐτῶν ἀναστήσεται βασιλεὺς ἀναιδὴς προσώπῳ διανοούμενος αἰνίγματα

24 καὶ στερεωθήσεται ἡ ἰσχὺς αὐτοῦ καὶ οὐκ ἐν τῇ ἰσχύι αὐτοῦ καὶ θαυμαστῶς φθερεῖ καὶ εὐοδωθήσεται καὶ ποιήσει καὶ φθερεῖ δυνάστας καὶ δῆμον ἁγίων

25 καὶ ἐπὶ τοὺς ἁγίους τὸ διανόημα αὐτοῦ καὶ εὐοδωθήσεται τὸ ψεῦδος ἐν ταῖς χερσὶν αὐτοῦ καὶ ἡ καρδία αὐτοῦ ὑψωθήσεται καὶ δόλῳ ἀφανιεῖ πολλοὺς καὶ ἐπὶ ἀπωλείας ἀνδρῶν στήσεται καὶ ποιήσει συναγωγὴν χειρὸς καὶ ἀποδώσεται

26 τὸ ὅραμα τὸ ἑσπέρας καὶ πρωὶ ηὑρέθη ἐπ' ἀληθείας καὶ νῦν πεφραγμένον τὸ ὅραμα ἔτι γὰρ εἰς ἡμέρας πολλάς

27 ἐγὼ δανιηλ ἀσθενήσας ἡμέρας πολλὰς καὶ ἀναστὰς ἐπραγματευόμην πάλιν βασιλικά καὶ ἐξελυόμην ἐπὶ τῷ ὁράματι καὶ οὐδεὶς ἦν ὁ διανοούμενος

   

From Swedenborg's Works

 

Arcana Coelestia #10455

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10455. 'And he said to Moses, There is the noise of war in the camp' means an assault on the truth and good which are heaven and the Church's by falsities and evils which come from hell. This is clear from the meaning of 'the noise' as thought and affection, which are the inner components of the noise, and so the essential nature of the interiors, dealt with above in 10454; from the meaning of 'war' as truth which springs from good fighting with falsity that arises from evil, and in the contrary sense as falsity which arises from evil fighting against truth that springs from good, dealt with below; and from the meaning of 'the camp' as the Church and heaven, for they are what the camp of the Israelites represented, see 10038. From these meanings it is evident that 'the noise of war in the camp' means an assault on truth and good which are the Church and heaven's by falsities and evils which come from hell. They are said to come from hell because all falsities and evils originate there, and because at this point in the narrative 'the camp', when the golden calf was worshipped in it, means hell, see below in 10458.

[2] The reason why these things are meant by 'the noise of war in the camp' is that the subject at present in the internal sense is the interiors of the Israelite nation. Their interiors were contrary to the truths and forms of good of the Church and of heaven, so completely contrary that they cast them away. For self-love and love of the world had taken possession of the interiors of that nation, and where those loves reign the Church's truths and forms of good are subject to constant attack, no matter how holy the outward acts of worship seem to be. The holiness in those people's worship is a means to an end, and eminence and wealth are their ends in view, so that the things of heaven and the Church are means, and those of the world and self are ends. The end which a person has in view is the master, while the means is the servant. From this it follows that with people like this heaven is the servant and the world is the master, and consequently that the world occupies the highest position, thus that of the head, while heaven occupies a lower position, thus that of the feet. If therefore heaven does not pander to those loves it is cast underfoot, trampled on, and trodden into the ground. Such an inversion exists with those with whom self-love and love of the world reign, which also explains why such people when looked at by angels appear inverted, head downwards and feet upwards.

[3] The reason why 'war' means truth fighting with falsity, and in the contrary sense falsity fighting against truth, is that 'war' in the spiritual sense is nothing other. Such conflicts are also meant in the internal sense by 'wars' in the historical narratives of the Word, as well as by 'wars' in the prophetical parts, as becomes clear from the places quoted from the Word in 1664, 8273. Anyone who does not know that in the Word wars in a spiritual sense are meant by 'wars' cannot know the implications contained in the details regarding the wars mentioned in Daniel, Chapters 7, 8, 11, also those mentioned in places throughout the Book of Revelation, and those in the Gospels where the final times of the Church are the subject, Matthew 24:5-7; Mark 13:7-8, and in other places. So it is also that all weapons of war - swords, spears, shields, bows, arrows, and more - mean the implements of spiritual conflict; these have been dealt with in the explanations in various places.

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

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