The Bible

 

Бытие 3

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1 Хитрјйшій изъ всјхъ звјрей полевыхъ, которыхъ Іегова Богъ создалъ, былъ змјй. Онъ сказалъ женј: подлинно ли скізалъ Богъ: не јшьте плодовъ ни съ какого дерева въ саду?

2 Жена сказала змјю: мы јдимъ плоды съ деревъ въ саду.

3 Только плодовъ съ дерева, которое посреди сада, сказалъ Богъ, не вкушайте, и не прнкасайтесь къ нему чтобы не умереть.

4 И сказалъ змјй женј: не умрете;

5 но знаетъ Богъ, что въ день, въ который вы вкусите плода его, откроются глаза ваши, и вы будете, какъ Боги, знающіе добро и зло.

6 Женј показалось, что это дерево хорошо для пищи, и что оно пріятно для очей, и что прекрасно это дерево, потому что даетъ знаніе: и она взяла плодъ его, и јла; также дала мужу своему, и онъ јлъ.

7 Тогда у нихъ обоихъ открылись глаза, и они увидјли, что наги, и сшили смоковныя листья, и сдјлали себј опоясанія.

8 И услышали гласъ Іеговы Бога ходящаго въ саду во время прохлады дня, и скрылся человјкъ и жена его отъ лица Іеговы Бога между деревьями сада.

9 И воззвалъ Іегова Богъ къ человјку и сказалъ ему: гдј ты?

10 Онъ сказалъ: я услышалъ гласъ Твой въ саду и убоялся, потому что я нагъ, и скрылся.

11 А Онъ сказалъ: кто тебј сказалъ, что ты нагъ? развј ты вкусилъ отъ древа, отъ котораго Я запретилъ тебј вкушать?

12 И сказалъ человјкъ: жена, которую Ты мнј далъ, она дала мнј плодъ съ этого дерева, и я јлъ.

13 И сказалъ Іегова Богъ женј: что ты это сдјлала? и сказала жена: змјй обольстилъ меня, и я јла.

14 Тогда Іегова Богъ сказалъ змјю: за то, что ты это сдјлалъ, проклятъ ты предъ всјми скотами и предъ всјми звјрями полевыми Ты будешь ходить на чревј твоемъ, и будешь јсть прахъ во всј дни жизни твоей.

15 И вражду положу между тобою и между женою, и между сјменемъ твоимъ и между сјменемъ ея; оно будетъ поражать тебя въ голову, а ты будешь жалить его въ пяту.

16 Женј сказалъ: скорбь на скорбь наведу Я тебј въ беременности твоей; съ болјзнію будешь рождать дјтей; и къ мужу твоему влеченіе твое, и онъ будетъ господствовать надъ тобою.

17 И человјку сказалъ: за то, что ты послушалъ словъ жены твоей, и јлъ съ древа, о которомъ Я заповјдалъ тебј говоря: не вкушай отъ него, - проклята земля за тебя; съ скорбію будешь питаться отъ нея во всј дни жизни твоей.

18 Тернъ и волчецъ произраститъ она тебј; и ты будешь питаться полевою травою.

19 Въ потј лица своего будешь јсть хлјбъ, пока не возвратишься въ землю, поелику ты изъ нея взятъ; ибо ты персть, и въ персть возвратишься.

20 И нарекъ человјкъ женј своей имя: Ева, ибо сдјлалась матерью всјхъ живущихъ.

21 И сдјлалъ Іегова Богъ человјку и женј его одежды кожаныя и одјлъ ихъ.

22 И сказалъ Іегова Богъ: вотъ, человјкъ сталъ, какъ одинъ изъ Насъ, зная добро и зло; теперь, чтобы не простеръ руки своей, и не взялъ плода съ древа жизни, и не вкусилъ его, и не сталъ жить во вјкъ.

23 И выслалъ его Іегова Богъ изъ сада Едемскаго воздјлывать землю, изъ которой онъ взятъ.

24 И когда изгналъ человјка, тогда на востокъ у сада Едемскаго поставилъ Херувимовъ и пламенный, обращающійся мечъ, чтобы охранять путь къ древу жизни.

   

From Swedenborg's Works

 

Arcana Coelestia #7418

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7418. 'And strike the dust of the land' means that he should remove those things in the natural which are damned. This is clear from the meaning of 'striking' as removing; from the meaning of 'the dust' as that which is damned, dealt with below; and from the meaning of 'the land', at this point the land of Egypt, as the natural mind, dealt with above in 7409. The reason why 'the dust' means that which is damned is that the places on the fringes below the soles of the feet, where evil spirits are, look like a land. They look like an uncultivated and dry land, to be exact, below which there are certain kinds of hells. That land is what is called the damned land, and the dust there serves to mean that which is damned. I have been allowed on several occasions to see evil spirits shaking off the dust there from their feet when they wished to consign someone to damnation. I saw them doing this in a position on the right slightly in front of me, on the borders of the hell of magicians, where spirits who during their life in the world have possessed a knowledge of matters of belief, but have nevertheless led a life of evil, are cast down into the hell that is theirs. This then is why 'the dust' means that which is damned, and 'shaking off the dust' damnation.

[2] Since it had that meaning the Lord commanded the disciples to shake off the dust on their feet if they were not well received. What He said about this appears in Matthew as follows,

If anyone will not receive you or listen to your words, as you leave that house or city, shake off the dust on your feet. Truly I say to you, It will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah on the day of judgement than for that city. Matthew 10:14-15; Mark 6:11; Luke 9:5; 10:10-12.

Here the disciples are not meant by the disciples but all aspects of the Church, thus all aspects of faith and charity, 2089, 2129 (end), 2130 (end), 3354, 3858, 3913, 6397. 'Not receiving' and 'not listening to' mean rejecting the truths of faith and forms of the good of charity, while 'shaking off the dust on their feet' means damnation. And the reason why 'it will be more tolerable for Sodom and Gomorrah than that city' is that 'Sodom and Gomorrah' is used to mean those who lead a life of evil but have known nothing about the Lord and the Word, and so could not be receptive. From this it may become clear that a house or a city unreceptive of the disciples is not meant, but those who though they are within the Church do not lead the life of faith. Anyone may see that an entire city could not be damned for not receiving the disciples and instantly accepting the new teaching proclaimed by them.

[3] That which is damned is also meant by 'the dust' which people in former times placed on their heads in grief or when penitent, as in Jeremiah,

The elders of the daughter of Zion sit on the ground, they are silent; they have caused dust to come up over their heads, they have girded themselves with sackcloth; the virgins of Jerusalem have caused their heads to come down to the ground. Lamentations 2:10.

In Ezekiel,

They will cry out bitterly, and will cause dust to come up over their heads; they roll themselves in ashes. Ezekiel 27:30.

In Micah,

Do not weep at all in the house of Aphrah; roll yourself in the dust. Micah 1:10.

In John,

They threw dust onto their heads, and cried out, weeping and wailing. Revelation 18:19.

The same actions are referred to throughout the historical narratives of the Word. Casting dust over the head, prostrating body and head on the ground, and rolling over in the dust on it, represented self-abasement, which - when it is genuine - is such that the person acknowledges and perceives that he is damned, yet is rescued from damnation by the Lord, see 1327, 3994, 4347, 5420, 5957.

[4] The dust' into which the golden calf which they made in the wilderness was crushed and ground down likewise means that which is damned. This is spoken of in Moses as follows,

I took your sin which you had made, the calf, and I burnt it in the fire, and crushed it by grinding it right down until it was as fine as dust; and I threw its dust into the brook descending out of the mountain. Deuteronomy 9:11.

'Dust' again means that which is damned in the following places: In Genesis,

Jehovah God said to the serpent, On your belly you will go, and dust will you eat all the days of your life. Genesis 3:14.

In Micah,

Shepherd Your people as in the days of eternity. The nations will see and be ashamed at all their power; they will lick the dust like a serpent. Micah 7:14, 16-17.

In Isaiah,

For the serpent, dust will be his bread. Isaiah 65:25.

In the same prophet,

Come down and sit in the dust, O virgin daughter of Babel. Isaiah 47:1.

In David,

Our soul was bowed down to the dust, our belly clung to the earth. Psalms 44:25.

In the same author,

My soul clings to the dust; vivify me. Psalms 119:25.

In the Word 'dust' in addition means the grave, as well as that which is lowly, and that which is numerous too.

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