The Bible

 

Joel 1

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1 λόγος κυρίου ὃς ἐγενήθη πρὸς ιωηλ τὸν τοῦ βαθουηλ

2 ἀκούσατε δὴ ταῦτα οἱ πρεσβύτεροι καὶ ἐνωτίσασθε πάντες οἱ κατοικοῦντες τὴν γῆν εἰ γέγονεν τοιαῦτα ἐν ταῖς ἡμέραις ὑμῶν ἢ ἐν ταῖς ἡμέραις τῶν πατέρων ὑμῶν

3 ὑπὲρ αὐτῶν τοῖς τέκνοις ὑμῶν διηγήσασθε καὶ τὰ τέκνα ὑμῶν τοῖς τέκνοις αὐτῶν καὶ τὰ τέκνα αὐτῶν εἰς γενεὰν ἑτέραν

4 τὰ κατάλοιπα τῆς κάμπης κατέφαγεν ἡ ἀκρίς καὶ τὰ κατάλοιπα τῆς ἀκρίδος κατέφαγεν ὁ βροῦχος καὶ τὰ κατάλοιπα τοῦ βρούχου κατέφαγεν ἡ ἐρυσίβη

5 ἐκνήψατε οἱ μεθύοντες ἐξ οἴνου αὐτῶν καὶ κλαύσατε θρηνήσατε πάντες οἱ πίνοντες οἶνον εἰς μέθην ὅτι ἐξῆρται ἐκ στόματος ὑμῶν εὐφροσύνη καὶ χαρά

6 ὅτι ἔθνος ἀνέβη ἐπὶ τὴν γῆν μου ἰσχυρὸν καὶ ἀναρίθμητον οἱ ὀδόντες αὐτοῦ ὀδόντες λέοντος καὶ αἱ μύλαι αὐτοῦ σκύμνου

7 ἔθετο τὴν ἄμπελόν μου εἰς ἀφανισμὸν καὶ τὰς συκᾶς μου εἰς συγκλασμόν ἐρευνῶν ἐξηρεύνησεν αὐτὴν καὶ ἔρριψεν ἐλεύκανεν κλήματα αὐτῆς

8 θρήνησον πρός με ὑπὲρ νύμφην περιεζωσμένην σάκκον ἐπὶ τὸν ἄνδρα αὐτῆς τὸν παρθενικόν

9 ἐξῆρται θυσία καὶ σπονδὴ ἐξ οἴκου κυρίου πενθεῖτε οἱ ἱερεῖς οἱ λειτουργοῦντες θυσιαστηρίῳ

10 ὅτι τεταλαιπώρηκεν τὰ πεδία πενθείτω ἡ γῆ ὅτι τεταλαιπώρηκεν σῖτος ἐξηράνθη οἶνος ὠλιγώθη ἔλαιον

11 ἐξηράνθησαν οἱ γεωργοί θρηνεῖτε κτήματα ὑπὲρ πυροῦ καὶ κριθῆς ὅτι ἀπόλωλεν τρυγητὸς ἐξ ἀγροῦ

12 ἡ ἄμπελος ἐξηράνθη καὶ αἱ συκαῖ ὠλιγώθησαν ῥόα καὶ φοῖνιξ καὶ μῆλον καὶ πάντα τὰ ξύλα τοῦ ἀγροῦ ἐξηράνθησαν ὅτι ᾔσχυναν χαρὰν οἱ υἱοὶ τῶν ἀνθρώπων

13 περιζώσασθε καὶ κόπτεσθε οἱ ἱερεῖς θρηνεῖτε οἱ λειτουργοῦντες θυσιαστηρίῳ εἰσέλθατε ὑπνώσατε ἐν σάκκοις λειτουργοῦντες θεῷ ὅτι ἀπέσχηκεν ἐξ οἴκου θεοῦ ὑμῶν θυσία καὶ σπονδή

14 ἁγιάσατε νηστείαν κηρύξατε θεραπείαν συναγάγετε πρεσβυτέρους πάντας κατοικοῦντας γῆν εἰς οἶκον θεοῦ ὑμῶν καὶ κεκράξατε πρὸς κύριον ἐκτενῶς

15 οἴμμοι οἴμμοι οἴμμοι εἰς ἡμέραν ὅτι ἐγγὺς ἡμέρα κυρίου καὶ ὡς ταλαιπωρία ἐκ ταλαιπωρίας ἥξει

16 κατέναντι τῶν ὀφθαλμῶν ὑμῶν βρώματα ἐξωλεθρεύθη ἐξ οἴκου θεοῦ ὑμῶν εὐφροσύνη καὶ χαρά

17 ἐσκίρτησαν δαμάλεις ἐπὶ ταῖς φάτναις αὐτῶν ἠφανίσθησαν θησαυροί κατεσκάφησαν ληνοί ὅτι ἐξηράνθη σῖτος

18 τί ἀποθήσομεν ἑαυτοῖς ἔκλαυσαν βουκόλια βοῶν ὅτι οὐχ ὑπῆρχεν νομὴ αὐτοῖς καὶ τὰ ποίμνια τῶν προβάτων ἠφανίσθησαν

19 πρὸς σέ κύριε βοήσομαι ὅτι πῦρ ἀνήλωσεν τὰ ὡραῖα τῆς ἐρήμου καὶ φλὸξ ἀνῆψεν πάντα τὰ ξύλα τοῦ ἀγροῦ

20 καὶ τὰ κτήνη τοῦ πεδίου ἀνέβλεψαν πρὸς σέ ὅτι ἐξηράνθησαν ἀφέσεις ὑδάτων καὶ πῦρ κατέφαγεν τὰ ὡραῖα τῆς ἐρήμου

From Swedenborg's Works

 

Apocalypse Revealed #589

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589. Slain from the foundation of the world. This symbolizes the Lord's Divine humanity unacknowledged from the inception of the church.

To be shown that the Lamb slain means symbolically that the Lord's Divine humanity was not acknowledged, see nos. 59, 269, where the following declaration is explained:

I am the First and the Last, and am He who lives, and was put to death, and behold, I am alive forevermore. (Revelation 1:17-18)

And also this:

And I looked, and behold, in the midst of the throne... a Lamb standing as though slain... And they sang a new song, saying, "You are worthy to take the book..., because You were slain and have redeemed us to God... (Revelation 5:6, 9)

From the foundation of the world means, symbolically, from the inception of the church, both Jewish and Christian. That Jews did not acknowledge the Lord's Divine humanity is something people know. They also know that Roman Catholics did not. That the Protestant Reformed did not either may be seen in no. 294 above.

The foundation of the world does not mean the creation of the world, but the establishment of the church. For in its broadest sense the world means the whole world, including both good people and evil, and sometimes only the evil. But in a narrower sense the world has the same meaning as the earth, namely the church. That the world symbolizes the church may be seen in no. 551, and that the earth does in no. 285.

That to lay the foundation of the world or the earth means, symbolically, to establish the church, and that the foundation or founding of these symbolizes its establishment, may be seen from Isaiah 24:18; 40:21; 48:12-13; 51:16-17; 58:12.

That the world symbolizes the church may be seen from Matthew 13:37-39, John 1:9-10.

That the world is also the people of the church may be seen from John 12:19; 18:20.

It can be seen from this what the foundation of the world symbolizes. See also Matthew 25:34, Luke 11:50, John 17:24, Revelation 17:8.

  
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Many thanks to the General Church of the New Jerusalem, and to Rev. N.B. Rogers, translator, for the permission to use this translation.

The Bible

 

Revelation 5

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1 I saw, in the right hand of him who sat on the throne, a book written inside and outside, sealed shut with seven seals.

2 I saw a mighty angel proclaiming with a loud voice, "Who is worthy to open the book, and to break its seals?"

3 No one in heaven above, or on the earth, or under the earth, was able to open the book, or to look in it.

4 And I wept much, because no one was found worthy to open the book, or to look in it.

5 One of the elders said to me, "Don't weep. Behold, the Lion who is of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has overcome; he who opens the book and its seven seals."

6 I saw in the midst of the throne and of the four living creatures, and in the midst of the elders, a Lamb standing, as though it had been slain, having seven horns, and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God, sent out into all the earth.

7 Then he came, and he took it out of the right hand of him who sat on the throne.

8 Now when he had taken the book, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each one having a harp, and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints.

9 They sang a new song, saying, "You are worthy to take the book, and to open its seals: for you were killed, and bought us for God with your blood, out of every tribe, language, people, and nation,

10 and made us kings and priests to our God, and we will reign on earth."

11 I saw, and I heard something like a voice of many angels around the throne, the living creatures, and the elders; and the number of them was ten thousands of ten thousands, and thousands of thousands;

12 saying with a loud voice, "Worthy is the Lamb who has been killed to receive the power, wealth, wisdom, strength, honor, glory, and blessing!"

13 I heard every created thing which is in heaven, on the earth, under the earth, on the sea, and everything in them, saying, "To him who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb be the blessing, the honor, the glory, and the dominion, forever and ever! Amen!"

14 The four living creatures said, "Amen!" The elders fell down and worshiped.