The Bible

 

Бытие 19

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1 Между тјмъ, два Ангела пришли въ Содомъ вечеромъ, когда Лоть сидјлъ у воротъ Содомскихъ. Лотъ увидјлъ и всталъ на встрјчу имъ, и поклонился лицомъ до земли.

2 И сказалъ: государи мои! пожалуйте, зайдите теперь въ домъ раба вашего, и ночуйте, и умойте ноги ваши, и вставъ по утру, пойдете въ путь свой. Но они сказали: нјтъ, мы ночуемъ на улицј,

3 Онъ же сильно упрашивалъ ихъ: и они зашли къ нему, и пришли въ домъ его. Онъ сдјлалъ имъ угощеніе, и испекъ прјсные хлјбы; и они јли.

4 Еще не легли они спать, какъ городскіе жители, Содомляне, отъ молодаго до стараго, весь народъ со всјхъ концевъ города, окружили домъ.

5 И кричали Лоту; и говорили ему: гдј люди, пришедшіе къ тебј въ эту ночь? выведи ихъ къ намъ, мы познаемъ ихъ,

6 Лотъ вышелъ къ нимъ за дверъ, и заперъ за собою дверь.

7 И сказалъ: пожалуйте, братія, не дјлайте зла!

8 Вотъ, у меня двј дочери, которыя не знаютъ мужа; выведу лучше я ихъ къ вамъ, дјлайте съ ними, что вамъ угодно; только не дјлайте сего съ людями сими, ибо они для того и пришли подъ кровъ дома моего!

9 Но они сказали: подойди сюда! И сказали: не ужели одинъ пришлецъ, пришедшій сюда, можеть судить насъ? за это мы хуже сдјлаемъ съ тобою, нежели съ ними. И сильно наступали на сего человјка, на Лота, и подошли, чтобы выломать дверь.

10 Тогда гости простерли руки свои, и взяли Лота къ себј въ домъ, и дверь заперли;

11 а людей, бывшихъ за дверьми дома, отъ малаго до большаго, поразили слјпотою, такъ, что они измучились, искавъ двери.

12 Наконецъ гости сказали Лоту: кто у тебя есть еще здјсь? Зять ли, сыновья ли твои, дочери ли твои, и кто бы ни былъ у тебя въ семъ городј, всјхъ выведи изъ сего мјста.

13 Ибо мы истребимъ сіе мјсто; потому что великъ отсюда вопль къ Іеговј, и Іегова послалъ насъ истребить его.

14 Итакъ, Лотъ пошедъ, и говорилъ съ зятьями своими, которые брали за себя дочерей его, и сказалъ: встаньте, выдьте изъ сего мјста; ибо Іегова истребитъ сей городъ; но зятьямъ его показалось, что онъ шутитъ.

15 Когда взошла заря, Ангелы начали торопить Лота, говоря: встань, возми жену свою, и двухъ дочерей своихъ, находящихся здјсь, чтобы не погибнуть и тебј за беззаконія сего города.

16 Но какъ онъ медлилъ, то они, по милости къ нему Іеговы, взяли за руки его, и жену его и двухъ дочерей его, и, выведши, поставили его внј города.

17 Когда же вывели ихъ вонъ изъ города, то одинъ изъ нихъ сказалъ: спасай жизнь твою; не оглядывайся назадъ, и нигдј не останавливайся на равнинј сей; спасайся на гору, чтобы тебј не погибнуть.

18 Но Лотъ сказалъ имъ: нјтъ, Господи!

19 Вотъ рабъ Твой обрјлъ благодать предъ очами Твоими, и велика милость Твоя, которую Ты сдјлалъ со мною, что спасъ жизнь мою; но я не могу спастись на гору, чтобъ не застигла меня бјда сія, и чтобы мнј не умереть.

20 Вотъ ближе бјжать въ сей городъ, онъ же и малъ; позвольте мнј спасаться въ него; не правда ли, что онъ малъ? и сохранится жизнь моя.

21 И сказалъ ему; вотъ, Я въ угодность тебј и сіе сдјлаю, не истреблю города, о которомъ ты говоришь,

22 Поспјшай, спасайся въ него; ибо Я не могу сдјлать Своего дјла, пока ты не придешь туда. Потому и дано имя городу сему: Цоаръ.

23 Солнце взошло надъ землею, и Лотъ пришелъ въ Цоаръ.

24 Тогда Іегова на Содомъ и Гоморръ дождемъ пролилъ сјру и огнь отъ Іеговы съ небесъ.

25 И истребилъ города сіи, и всю равнину сію, и всјхъ жителей городовъ сихъ, и произрастенія земли.

26 Жена же Лотова оглянулась назадъ, и обратилась въ соляной столпъ.

27 Между тјмъ, Авраамъ утромъ, пошелъ на то мјсто, гдј стоялъ предъ лицемъ Іеговы;

28 и посмотрјлъ онъ къ Содому и Гоморру, и на все пространство равнины: и увидјлъ, и се, восходитъ дымъ съ земли, какъ дымъ изъ печи.

29 Такимъ образомъ Богъ, истребляя города равнины сей, вспомнилъ о Авраамј, и вывелъ Лота изъ среды истребленія, когда истреблялъ города, въ которыхъ жилъ Лотъ.

30 Потомъ Лотъ вышелъ изъ Цоара, и сталъ жить въ горј, и съ нимъ двј дочери его: ибо онъ боялся жить въ Цоарј. Итакъ, онъ жилъ въ пещерј, и съ нимъ двј дочери его.

31 И сказала старшая младшей: отецъ нашъ старъ; и нјтъ человјка на землј, который бы вошелъ къ намъ по обычаю всей земли.

32 Итакъ напоимъ отца нашего виномъ, и переспимъ съ нимъ, и возставимъ отъ отца нашего племя.

33 И въ ту ночь напоили отца своего виномъ; и пошла старшая, и спала съ отцемъ своимъ: а онъ не зналъ, какъ она легла и какъ встала.

34 На другой день старшая сказала младшей: вотъ, я спала вчера съ отцемъ моимъ; напоимъ его виномъ и въ сію ночь; и ты поди, спи съ нимъ, и возставимъ отъ отца нашего племя.

35 И напоили отца своего виномъ и въ сію ночь; и встала младшая, и переспала съ нимъ; и онъ не зналъ, какъ она легла, и какъ встала.

36 И сдјлались обј дочери Лотовы беременны отъ отца своего.

37 Старшая родила сына, и нарекла ему имя: Моавъ; сей есть отецъ Моавитянъ, такъ-называемыхъ до сего дня.

38 Младшая также родила сына, и нарекла ему имя: Бен-Амми; сей отецъ Аммонитянъ, такъ-называемыхъ до сего дня.

   

From Swedenborg's Works

 

Arcana Coelestia #2454

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2454. That 'his wife looked back behind him' means that truth turned away from good and looked towards matters of doctrine is clear from the meaning of 'looking back behind him' and from the meaning of 'a wife'. Looking back behind him means looking towards matters of doctrine, which have a relationship with truth, and not towards life in accordance with them, which has a relationship with good, as stated above in 2417. That which is secondary is referred to as 'behind him' and that which is primary as 'before him'. The fact that truth is secondary and good primary has been shown quite often. For truth belongs to good, since the essence and life of truth is good. 'Looking behind him' therefore means looking towards truth which constitutes doctrinal teaching, and not towards good which constitutes life in accordance with doctrinal teaching. That these points are what is meant becomes quite clear from the Lord's words, where also, referring to the final period of the Church or close of the age, He says in Luke,

On that day, whoever will be on the housetop with his vessels in the house, let him not come down to take them away; and whoever is in the field, let him likewise not turn back to behind him. Remember Lot's wife. Luke 17:31-32.

[2] These words of the Lord are by no means intelligible without the internal sense, and so are unintelligible unless one knows what is meant by 'being on the housetop', by 'vessels in the house', by 'coming down to take them away', by 'the field', and lastly by 'turning back to behind him'. According to the internal sense 'being on the housetop' means resting on good; for 'a house' means good, see 710, 2231, 2233. 'Vessels in the house' means truths which belong to good; for truths are the vessels for good, see 1496, 1832, 1900, 2063, 2269. 'Going down to take them away' means, as is evident, turning away from good towards truth, for since good is primary it is also higher, while truth, being secondary, is also lower. That 'the field' is the Church, so called from the seed which it receives, and consequently that those people are 'fields' in whom there is the good taught by doctrine, is clear from many places in the Word. These considerations show what 'turning back to behind him' means, namely turning away from good and looking towards matters of doctrine. And it is because these things are meant by the expression 'Lot's wife', that 'remember Lot's wife' is added. The reason it is not said that she looked 'behind herself' but 'behind him' is that 'Lot' means good, see 2324, 2351, 2371, 2399. This explains why, when Lot was told what to do, verse 17, the words used were, 'Do not look back behind you'.

[3] The reason why in Luke it is said 'let him not turn back to behind him' and not 'to the things behind him' is that celestial people are unwilling even to mention anything that is a matter of doctrine, see 202, 337. This is why no such thing is mentioned in Luke, only the words 'to behind him'.

[4] These same matters are described in Matthew as follows,

When you see the abomination of desolation, foretold by the prophet Daniel, then let those who are in Judea flee into the mountains. Let him who is on the housetop not go down to take anything away out of his house; and let him who is in the field not return back to take his clothes. Matthew 24:15-17.

Here 'the abomination of desolation' is the state of the Church when there is no love and no charity. When these have been destroyed abominable things predominate. 'Judea' means the Church, and in particular the celestial Church, as is evident from both the historical and prophetical sections throughout the Old Testament Word, while 'the mountains into which they were to flee' means love to the Lord and consequent charity towards the neighbour, see 795, 1430, 1691. 'He who is on the housetop' means good flowing from love, as stated just above. 'Going down to take anything away out of his house' means turning away from good towards truth, as has also been stated above, while 'he who is in the field' means members of the spiritual Church, as is evident from the meaning of 'field' in the Word. 'Let him not return back to take his clothes' means not turning away from good towards truth that constitutes doctrinal teaching - 'clothes' meaning truths, for truths clothe good like garments, see 1073. Anyone may see that all those things which the Lord has said in that section about the close of the age mean things altogether different and embody arcana, such as that those in Judea were to flee into the mountains, that the one on the housetop was not to go down and bring anything out of the house, and that the one in the field was not to return back to take his clothes. Similar to this is the statement in verse 17 that Lot was not to look back behind him, and that made here that his wife did look back behind him and became a pillar of salt. In addition this matter is clear from the meaning of 'a wife' as truth, dealt with in 915, 1468, and from the meaning of 'Lot' as good, dealt with in 2324, 2351, 2371, 2399; hence the words 'after him'.

[5] Truth is said to turn away from good and look towards matters of doctrine when the member of the Church no longer takes to heart what kind of life he leads, only what kind of doctrine he possesses. Yet it is life according to doctrine, not doctrine separate from life, that makes anyone a member of the Church; for when doctrine is separated from life, then because good, in which life consists, has been vastated, truth as well, in which doctrine consists, is vastated, that is, it becomes 'a pillar of salt'. This is something anyone who looks to doctrine alone and not to life may know, by considering whether, even though doctrine teaches such things, he in fact believes in the resurrection, heaven, hell, and indeed the Lord, and so in everything else which doctrine teaches.

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