The Bible

 

Genesis 18

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1 ὤφθη δὲ αὐτῷ ὁ θεὸς πρὸς τῇ δρυὶ τῇ μαμβρη καθημένου αὐτοῦ ἐπὶ τῆς θύρας τῆς σκηνῆς αὐτοῦ μεσημβρίας

2 ἀναβλέψας δὲ τοῖς ὀφθαλμοῖς αὐτοῦ εἶδεν καὶ ἰδοὺ τρεῖς ἄνδρες εἱστήκεισαν ἐπάνω αὐτοῦ καὶ ἰδὼν προσέδραμεν εἰς συνάντησιν αὐτοῖς ἀπὸ τῆς θύρας τῆς σκηνῆς αὐτοῦ καὶ προσεκύνησεν ἐπὶ τὴν γῆν

3 καὶ εἶπεν κύριε εἰ ἄρα εὗρον χάριν ἐναντίον σου μὴ παρέλθῃς τὸν παῖδά σου

4 λημφθήτω δὴ ὕδωρ καὶ νιψάτωσαν τοὺς πόδας ὑμῶν καὶ καταψύξατε ὑπὸ τὸ δένδρον

5 καὶ λήμψομαι ἄρτον καὶ φάγεσθε καὶ μετὰ τοῦτο παρελεύσεσθε εἰς τὴν ὁδὸν ὑμῶν οὗ εἵνεκεν ἐξεκλίνατε πρὸς τὸν παῖδα ὑμῶν καὶ εἶπαν οὕτως ποίησον καθὼς εἴρηκας

6 καὶ ἔσπευσεν αβρααμ ἐπὶ τὴν σκηνὴν πρὸς σαρραν καὶ εἶπεν αὐτῇ σπεῦσον καὶ φύρασον τρία μέτρα σεμιδάλεως καὶ ποίησον ἐγκρυφίας

7 καὶ εἰς τὰς βόας ἔδραμεν αβρααμ καὶ ἔλαβεν μοσχάριον ἁπαλὸν καὶ καλὸν καὶ ἔδωκεν τῷ παιδί καὶ ἐτάχυνεν τοῦ ποιῆσαι αὐτό

8 ἔλαβεν δὲ βούτυρον καὶ γάλα καὶ τὸ μοσχάριον ὃ ἐποίησεν καὶ παρέθηκεν αὐτοῖς καὶ ἐφάγοσαν αὐτὸς δὲ παρειστήκει αὐτοῖς ὑπὸ τὸ δένδρον

9 εἶπεν δὲ πρὸς αὐτόν ποῦ σαρρα ἡ γυνή σου ὁ δὲ ἀποκριθεὶς εἶπεν ἰδοὺ ἐν τῇ σκηνῇ

10 εἶπεν δέ ἐπαναστρέφων ἥξω πρὸς σὲ κατὰ τὸν καιρὸν τοῦτον εἰς ὥρας καὶ ἕξει υἱὸν σαρρα ἡ γυνή σου σαρρα δὲ ἤκουσεν πρὸς τῇ θύρᾳ τῆς σκηνῆς οὖσα ὄπισθεν αὐτοῦ

11 αβρααμ δὲ καὶ σαρρα πρεσβύτεροι προβεβηκότες ἡμερῶν ἐξέλιπεν δὲ σαρρα γίνεσθαι τὰ γυναικεῖα

12 ἐγέλασεν δὲ σαρρα ἐν ἑαυτῇ λέγουσα οὔπω μέν μοι γέγονεν ἕως τοῦ νῦν ὁ δὲ κύριός μου πρεσβύτερος

13 καὶ εἶπεν κύριος πρὸς αβρααμ τί ὅτι ἐγέλασεν σαρρα ἐν ἑαυτῇ λέγουσα ἆρά γε ἀληθῶς τέξομαι ἐγὼ δὲ γεγήρακα

14 μὴ ἀδυνατεῖ παρὰ τῷ θεῷ ῥῆμα εἰς τὸν καιρὸν τοῦτον ἀναστρέψω πρὸς σὲ εἰς ὥρας καὶ ἔσται τῇ σαρρα υἱός

15 ἠρνήσατο δὲ σαρρα λέγουσα οὐκ ἐγέλασα ἐφοβήθη γάρ καὶ εἶπεν οὐχί ἀλλὰ ἐγέλασας

16 ἐξαναστάντες δὲ ἐκεῖθεν οἱ ἄνδρες κατέβλεψαν ἐπὶ πρόσωπον σοδομων καὶ γομορρας αβρααμ δὲ συνεπορεύετο μετ' αὐτῶν συμπροπέμπων αὐτούς

17 ὁ δὲ κύριος εἶπεν μὴ κρύψω ἐγὼ ἀπὸ αβρααμ τοῦ παιδός μου ἃ ἐγὼ ποιῶ

18 αβρααμ δὲ γινόμενος ἔσται εἰς ἔθνος μέγα καὶ πολύ καὶ ἐνευλογηθήσονται ἐν αὐτῷ πάντα τὰ ἔθνη τῆς γῆς

19 ᾔδειν γὰρ ὅτι συντάξει τοῖς υἱοῖς αὐτοῦ καὶ τῷ οἴκῳ αὐτοῦ μετ' αὐτόν καὶ φυλάξουσιν τὰς ὁδοὺς κυρίου ποιεῖν δικαιοσύνην καὶ κρίσιν ὅπως ἂν ἐπαγάγῃ κύριος ἐπὶ αβρααμ πάντα ὅσα ἐλάλησεν πρὸς αὐτόν

20 εἶπεν δὲ κύριος κραυγὴ σοδομων καὶ γομορρας πεπλήθυνται καὶ αἱ ἁμαρτίαι αὐτῶν μεγάλαι σφόδρα

21 καταβὰς οὖν ὄψομαι εἰ κατὰ τὴν κραυγὴν αὐτῶν τὴν ἐρχομένην πρός με συντελοῦνται εἰ δὲ μή ἵνα γνῶ

22 καὶ ἀποστρέψαντες ἐκεῖθεν οἱ ἄνδρες ἦλθον εἰς σοδομα αβρααμ δὲ ἦν ἑστηκὼς ἐναντίον κυρίου

23 καὶ ἐγγίσας αβρααμ εἶπεν μὴ συναπολέσῃς δίκαιον μετὰ ἀσεβοῦς καὶ ἔσται ὁ δίκαιος ὡς ὁ ἀσεβής

24 ἐὰν ὦσιν πεντήκοντα δίκαιοι ἐν τῇ πόλει ἀπολεῖς αὐτούς οὐκ ἀνήσεις πάντα τὸν τόπον ἕνεκεν τῶν πεντήκοντα δικαίων ἐὰν ὦσιν ἐν αὐτῇ

25 μηδαμῶς σὺ ποιήσεις ὡς τὸ ῥῆμα τοῦτο τοῦ ἀποκτεῖναι δίκαιον μετὰ ἀσεβοῦς καὶ ἔσται ὁ δίκαιος ὡς ὁ ἀσεβής μηδαμῶς ὁ κρίνων πᾶσαν τὴν γῆν οὐ ποιήσεις κρίσιν

26 εἶπεν δὲ κύριος ἐὰν εὕρω ἐν σοδομοις πεντήκοντα δικαίους ἐν τῇ πόλει ἀφήσω πάντα τὸν τόπον δι' αὐτούς

27 καὶ ἀποκριθεὶς αβρααμ εἶπεν νῦν ἠρξάμην λαλῆσαι πρὸς τὸν κύριον ἐγὼ δέ εἰμι γῆ καὶ σποδός

28 ἐὰν δὲ ἐλαττονωθῶσιν οἱ πεντήκοντα δίκαιοι πέντε ἀπολεῖς ἕνεκεν τῶν πέντε πᾶσαν τὴν πόλιν καὶ εἶπεν οὐ μὴ ἀπολέσω ἐὰν εὕρω ἐκεῖ τεσσαράκοντα πέντε

29 καὶ προσέθηκεν ἔτι λαλῆσαι πρὸς αὐτὸν καὶ εἶπεν ἐὰν δὲ εὑρεθῶσιν ἐκεῖ τεσσαράκοντα καὶ εἶπεν οὐ μὴ ἀπολέσω ἕνεκεν τῶν τεσσαράκοντα

30 καὶ εἶπεν μή τι κύριε ἐὰν λαλήσω ἐὰν δὲ εὑρεθῶσιν ἐκεῖ τριάκοντα καὶ εἶπεν οὐ μὴ ἀπολέσω ἐὰν εὕρω ἐκεῖ τριάκοντα

31 καὶ εἶπεν ἐπειδὴ ἔχω λαλῆσαι πρὸς τὸν κύριον ἐὰν δὲ εὑρεθῶσιν ἐκεῖ εἴκοσι καὶ εἶπεν οὐ μὴ ἀπολέσω ἕνεκεν τῶν εἴκοσι

32 καὶ εἶπεν μή τι κύριε ἐὰν λαλήσω ἔτι ἅπαξ ἐὰν δὲ εὑρεθῶσιν ἐκεῖ δέκα καὶ εἶπεν οὐ μὴ ἀπολέσω ἕνεκεν τῶν δέκα

33 ἀπῆλθεν δὲ κύριος ὡς ἐπαύσατο λαλῶν τῷ αβρααμ καὶ αβρααμ ἀπέστρεψεν εἰς τὸν τόπον αὐτοῦ

   

From Swedenborg's Works

 

Arcana Coelestia #2288

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2288. Abraham returned to his place. That this signifies that the Lord returned into the state in which He had been before He perceived these things, is evident from the representation of Abraham in this chapter, as being the Lord in the human state; and from the signification of a “place,” as being a state (as shown above, Part First,n. 1273, 1378); thus to “return to his place,” in the internal sense, here signifies to return to the state in which He had been before. That while He lived in this world the Lord had two states, namely, a state of humiliation and a state of glorification, has been said and shown before. His state of humiliation was when He was in the human which He took by inheritance from the mother; His state of glorification was when He was in the Divine which He had from Jehovah His Father. The former state, namely, that of the human from the mother, the Lord altogether put off, and put on the Divine Human, when He passed out of the world, and returned to the Divine Itself, in which He was from eternity (John 17:5), together with the Human made Divine; from both of which comes the Holy which fills the universal heaven. Thus from the Divine Itself and the Divine Human, by means of the proceeding Holy, He directs the universe.

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

From Swedenborg's Works

 

Arcana Coelestia #1273

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1273. CHAPTER 1. CONCERNING THE SITUATION OF THE GRAND MAN; AND ALSO CONCERNING PLACE AND DISTANCE IN THE OTHER LIFE

Souls newly arrived from the world, when about to leave the company of the spiritual angels to go among spirits, and so at length to come into the society in which they had been while they lived in the body, are led about by angels to many mansions or abodes, that is, to societies which are distinct and yet conjoined with others; in some of which they are received, while in other cases they are led to still other societies, and this for an indefinite time, until they come to the society in which they had been while they lived in the body; and there they remain. From this moment they experience a new beginning of life. If the man is a dissembler, a hypocrite, or deceitful, who can assume a fictitious state, and a seemingly angelic disposition, he is sometimes received by good spirits; but after a short time he is dissociated, and then wanders about, without the angels, and begs to be received, but is rejected, and sometimes punished, and at last he is carried down among the infernals. Those who are taken up among angels after being vastated, also change their societies, and when they pass from one society to another they are dismissed with courtesy and charity, and this until they come into the angelic society which accords with the distinctive quality or genius of their charity, piety, probity, or sincere courtesy. I in like manner have been led through such “mansions,” and those who dwelt there conversed with me, that I might know how the case was in regard to this matter. It was given me at the time to reflect on the changes of place, and to see that they were nothing else than changes of state, my body remaining in the same place.

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