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1 Mosebok 25

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1 Og Abraham tok sig atter en hustru; hun hette Ketura.

2 Med henne fikk han Simran og Joksan og Medan og Midian og Jisbak og Suah.

3 Og Joksan fikk sønnene Sjeba og Dedan; og Dedans barn var assurerne og letuserne og le'ummerne

4 Og Midians barn var Efa og Efer og Hanok og Abida og Elda'a; alle disse var Keturas barn.

5 Og Abraham gav Isak alt det han eide.

6 Men sønnene til de medhustruer som Abraham hadde, gav han gaver og lot dem, mens han enn levde, flytte bort fra Isak, sin sønn, østover, til Østerland.

7 Abrahams levetid og den alder han nådde, var hundre og fem og sytti år.

8 Så opgav Abraham ånden og døde i en god alderdom, gammel og mett av dager, og han blev samlet til sine fedre.

9 Og Isak og Ismael, hans sønner, begravde ham i Makpela-hulen på den mark som hadde tilhørt hetitten Efron, Sohars sønn, østenfor Mamre,

10 den mark Abraham hadde kjøpt av Hets barn; der blev Abraham begravet likesom Sara, hans hustru.

11 Og efter Abrahams død velsignet Gud Isak, hans sønn. Og Isak bodde ved brønnen Lakai o'i.

12 Dette er Ismaels, Abrahams sønns ættetavle, han som Abraham fikk med egypterkvinnen Hagar, Saras trælkvinne.

13 Dette er navneneIsmaels sønner - de navn som de har i sin ættetavle: Nebajot, Ismaels førstefødte, og Kedar og Adbe'el og Mibsam.

14 og Misma og Duma og Massa,

15 Hadar og Tema, Jetur, Nafis og Kedma.

16 Dette var Ismaels sønner, og dette var deres navn, i deres byer og leire, tolv ættehøvdinger.

17 Ismaels leveår var hundre og syv og tretti år; så opgav han ånden og døde og blev samlet til sine fedre.

18 Og de bodde fra Havila til Sur, som ligger midt for Egypten, og bortimot Assyria; han nedsatte sig østenfor alle sine brødre.

19 Dette er historien om Abrahams sønn Isaks ætt: Abraham fikk sønnen Isak.

20 Og Isak var firti år gammel da han ektet ebekka, som var datter til arameeren Betuel fra Mesopotamia og søster til arameeren Laban.

21 Og Isak bad til Herren for sin hustru, for hun var barnløs; og Herren bønnhørte ham, og ebekka, hans hustru, blev fruktsommelig.

22 Men fosterne støtte til hverandre i hennes liv; da sa hun: Er det således, hvorfor skal jeg da være til? Og hun gikk for å spørre Herren.

23 Og Herren sa til henne: I ditt liv er det to folk, og fra ditt skjød skal to folkeslag skille sig at; det ene folk skal være sterkere enn det andre, og den eldste skal tjene den yngste.

24 Da nu hennes tid var kommet at hun skulde føde, se, da var det tvillinger i hennes liv.

25 Og den som kom først frem, var rød og over hele kroppen som en lodden kappe; og de kalte ham Esau*. / {* d.e. den lodne.}

26 Derefter kom hans bror frem, og hans hånd holdt i Esaus hæl, og ham kalte de Jakob*. Isak var seksti år gammel da de blev født. / {* d.e. han holder i hælen.}

27 Da nu guttene vokste til, blev Esau en dyktig jeger, en mann som holdt til i skog og mark; men Jakob var en stillferdig mann, som holdt sig ved teltene.

28 Og Isak holdt mest av Esau, for han var glad i vilt; men ebekka holdt mest av Jakob.

29 Engang da Jakob holdt på å koke en velling, kom Esau hjem fra marken og var rent opgitt.

30 Og Esau sa til Jakob: La mig få til livs noget av det røde, det røde du har der, for jeg er rent opgitt! Derfor kalte de ham Edom*. / {* d.e. den røde.}

31 Men Jakob sa: Selg mig først din førstefødselsrett!

32 Esau svarte: Jeg holder på å ; hvad skal jeg da med førstefødselsretten?

33 Da sa Jakob: Gjør først din ed på det! Og han gjorde sin ed på det og solgte så sin førstefødselsrett til Jakob.

34 Og Jakob gav Esau brød og linsevelling, og han åt og drakk og stod op og gikk sin vei. Således ringeaktet Esau førstefødselsretten.

   

From Swedenborg's Works

 

Arcana Coelestia #3310

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3310. That “a man of the field” signifies the good of life from doctrinal things, is evident from the signification of “field.” In the Word frequent mention is made of “earth” or “land,” of “ground,” and of “field;” and by “earth” or “land,” when used in a good sense, is signified the Lord’s kingdom in the heavens and on earth, thus the church, which is His kingdom on earth. The like is signified by “ground,” but in a more restricted sense (n. 566, 662, 1066-1068, 1262, 1413, 1733, 1850, 2117, 2118, 2928). The same is signified also by “field,” but in a sense still more restricted (n. 368, 2971); and as the church is not the church from doctrinal things except insofar as these have respect to the good of life as their end; or what is the same, unless these doctrinal things are conjoined with the good of life, therefore by “field” is principally signified the good of life; and in order that this may be of the church, there must be doctrinal things from the Word which have been implanted in this good. Without doctrinal things there is indeed good of life, but not as yet the good of the church, thus not as yet good truly spiritual, except only in the capacity of becoming so; as is the case with the good of life among the Gentiles who have not the Word, and therefore are ignorant of the Lord.

[2] That a “field” is the good of life in which are to be implanted the things which are of faith, that is, spiritual truths which are of the church, is very evident from the Lord’s parable in Matthew:

The sower went forth to sow, and as he sowed, some fell upon the hard way, and the birds came and devoured them; and others fell upon stony places where they had not much earth, and straightway they sprung up, because they had no deepness of earth; and when the sun was risen, they were scorched, and because they had no root, they withered away; and others fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them; but others fell upon the good ground and yielded fruit, some a hundredfold, some sixtyfold, some thirtyfold: he that hath an ear to hear, let him hear (Matthew 13:3-9; Mark 4:3-9; Luke 8:5-8).

Here four kinds of earth or ground in a field-that is, in the church-are treated of. That the “seed” is the Word of the Lord, thus truth, which is said to be of faith, and that the “good ground” is the good which is of charity, is evident, for it is the good in man that receives the Word; the “hard way” is falsity; a “stony place” is truth that has no root in good; “thorns” are evils.

[3] As regards the good of life from doctrinal things, which is signified by “a man of the field,” the case is this: They who are being regenerated, at first do what is good from doctrinal things, for of themselves they do not know what is good, but learn it from the doctrinal things of love and charity; from these they know who the Lord is; who is the neighbor; what love is, and what charity; thus what good is. When they are in this state they are in the affection of truth, and are called “men [viri] of the field;” but afterwards when they have been regenerated, they do not do what is good from doctrinal things, but from love and charity, for they are then in the good itself which they have learned through doctrinal things, and then are called “men [homines] of the field.” The case herein is as with one who by nature inclines to adulteries, thefts, and murders, but who learns from the commandments of the Decalogue that such things are of hell, and so abstains from them. In this state he is affected by the commandments because he is afraid of hell, and from these and likewise from many things in the Word he learns how he ought to direct his life; and in this case when he does what is good, he does it from the commandments. But when he is in good, he begins to be averse to the adulteries, thefts, and murders to which before he had been inclined; and when he is in this state, he no longer does what is good from the commandments, but from good, which then is in him. In the former state he learns good from truth; in the latter state he teaches truth from good.

[4] The same is the case also with spiritual truths, which are called doctrinal things, and are still more interior commandments; for doctrinal things are the interior truths that belong to the natural man. The first truths are of sense, the next are of memory-knowledge, the interior ones are of doctrine. These doctrinal truths are founded upon truths of memory-knowledge, for man can form and retain no idea, notion, or conception of them except from memory-knowledges. But truths of memory-knowledge are founded upon truths of the senses, for without sensuous things no memory-knowledges can be comprehended by man. These truths, namely, those of memory-knowledge and of sense, are what are signified by “a man skillful in hunting;” but doctrinal truths are those which are signified by a “man of the field.” In this way do these truths follow in succession with man; and therefore until he is of adult age, and through truths of sense and of memory-knowledge is in doctrinal truths, no man is able to be regenerated, for he cannot be confirmed in the truths of doctrine, except by means of ideas derived from the things of memory-knowledge and of sense. For nothing is possible in man’s thought, even as to the deepest arcanum of faith, that is not attended with a natural and sensuous idea, although the man is for the most part ignorant of the nature of it; but in the other life, if he desires it, it is presented to view before his understanding, and even, if he so wishes, before his sight; for however incredible it may appear, in the other life such things can be presented to the sight.

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