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Jezekilj 16

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1 Opet mi dođe reč Gospodnja govoreći:

2 Sine čovečji, pokaži Jerusalimu gadove njegove,

3 I reci: Ovako veli Gospod Gospod Jerusalimu: Postanjem i rodom ti si iz zemlje hananske; otac ti beše Amorejac a mati Hetejka.

4 A o rođenju tvom, kad si se rodila, nije ti pupak odrezan i nisi okupana vodom da bi bila čista, niti si solju natrvena ni pelenama povita.

5 Oko te ne požali da ti učini šta od toga i da ti se smiluje: Nego ti bi bačena u polje, jer beše mrska duša tvoja onog dana kad si se rodila.

6 I idući mimo tebe i videvši te gde se valjaš u svojoj krvi, rekoh ti: Da si živa u svojoj krvi! I opet ti rekoh: Da si živa u svojoj krvi!

7 I učinih da rasteš na hiljade kao trava u polju; i ti naraste i posta velika i dođe do najveće lepote; dojke ti napupiše, i dlake te probiše; ali ti beše gola naga.

8 I idući mimo tebe pogledah te, i gle, godine ti behu godine za ljubljenje; i raširih skut svoj na te, i pokrih golotinju tvoju, i zakleh ti se i učinih veru s tobom, govori Gospod Gospod, i ti posta moja.

9 I okupah te vodom, i sprah s tebe krv tvoju, i pomazah te uljem.

10 I obukoh ti vezenu haljinu, i obuh ti crevlje od jazavca, i opasah te tankim platnom i zastreh te svilom.

11 I nakitih te nakitom, i metnuh ti narukvice na ruke i grivnu oko vrata.

12 I grivnu oko čela metnuh ti, i oboce u uši, slavan venac na glavu.

13 I ti beše okićena zlatom i srebrom, i odelo ti beše od tankog platna i od svile i vezeno, jeđaše belo brašno i med i ulje, i beše vrlo lepa, i prispe do carstva.

14 I raziđe se glas o tebi po narodima radi lepote tvoje, jer beše savršena krasotom mojom, koju metnuh na te, govori Gospod Gospod.

15 Ali se ti osloni na lepotu svoju, i prokurva se s glasa svog, te si prosipala kurvarstvo svoje svakome koji prolažaše, i bivala si njegova.

16 I uzevši od haljina svojih načinila si šarene visine, i kurvala si se na njima, kako nikada nije bilo niti će biti.

17 I uzevši krasni nakit svoj od mog zlata i od mog srebra što ti dadoh, načinila si sebi muške likove, i kurvala si se s njima.

18 I uzevši vezene haljine svoje zaodela si ih, i ulje moje i kad moj stavila si pred njih.

19 I hleb moj, koji ti dadoh, belo brašno i ulje i med, čim te hranjah, postavila si pred njih za miris ugodni. Tako je bilo, govori Gospod Gospod.

20 I uzimala si sinove svoje i kćeri svoje koje si rodila, i njih si im prinosila da se spale. Malo li beše kurvarstva tvog,

21 Te si i sinove moje klala i davala si ih da im se provedu kroz oganj?

22 I uza sve gadove svoje i kurvarstva svoja nisi se opominjala dana mladosti svoje kad si bila gola i naga i valjala se u krvi svojoj.

23 I posle sve zloće svoje, (Teško, teško tebi! Govori Gospod Gospod,)

24 Sagradila si sebi kuću kurvarsku, i načinila si sebi visine na svakoj ulici,

25 Na svakoj rasputici načinila si sebi visinu, i nagrdila si svoju lepotu, i razmetala si noge svoje svakome koji prolažaše, i umnožila si kurvarstvo svoje.

26 Kurvala si se sa sinovima misirskim, susedima svojim velikog tela, i umnožila si kurvarstvo svoje da bi me razgnevila.

27 Zato gle, digoh ruku svoju na te i umalih obrok tvoj, i dadoh te na volju nenavidnicima tvojim, kćerima filistejskim, koje beše stid od sramotnog puta tvog.

28 Kurvala si se sa sinovima asirskim, jer se ne mogaše nasititi; kurvala si se s njima, i opet se nisi nasitila.

29 I umnožila si kurvarstvo svoje u zemlji hananskoj sve do haldejske, i ni tako se nisi nasitila.

30 Kako je iznemoglo srce tvoje, govori Gospod Gospod, kad činiš sve što čini najgora kurva,

31 Kad si gradila kurvarsku kuću na svakoj rasputici i činila visinu na svakoj ulici! A ni kao kurva nisi, jer nisi marila za platu;

32 Nego kao žena preljubočinica, koja mesto muža svog prima druge.

33 Svim kurvama daje se plata, a ti si davala platu svim milosnicama svojim i darivala si ih da dolaze k tebi sa svih strana da se kurvaju s tobom.

34 I tako je u tebe naopako prema ženama u tvom kurvarstvu: Jer niko ne ide za tobom da se kurva, i ti daješ platu, a ne daje se tebi plata; to je naopako.

35 Zato, kurvo, čuj reč Gospodnju.

36 Ovako veli Gospod Gospod: Što se otrov tvoj prosu, i što se u kurvanju tvom otkrivala golotinja tvoja tvojim milosnicima i svim gadnim idolima tvojim, i za krv sinova tvojih, koje si im dala,

37 Zato, evo, ja ću skupiti sve milosnike tvoje, s kojima si se milovala, i sve koje si ljubila, i sve na koje si mrzela, skupiću ih sve oko tebe, i otkriću im golotinju tvoju da vide svu golotinju tvoju.

38 I sudiću ti kako se sudi onima koje čine preljubu i onima koje krv prolivaju, i daću te na smrt gnevu i revnosti.

39 I predaću te u njihove ruke, te će razoriti tvoju kuću kurvarsku i raskopati visine tvoje, i svući će haljine s tebe, i uzeće ti krasni nakit i ostaviće te golu nagu.

40 I dovešće na te ljudstvo, te će te zasuti kamenjem, i izbošće te mačevima svojim.

41 I popaliće kuće tvoje ognjem, i izvršiće na tebi sud pred mnogim ženama, i učiniću te ćeš se okaniti kurvanja i nećeš više davati plate.

42 I namiriću gnev svoj nad tobom, i revnost će se moja ukloniti od tebe, i umiriću se, i neću se više gneviti.

43 Zato što se nisi opominjala dana mladosti svoje, nego si me dražila svim tim, zato, evo, i ja ću obratiti put tvoj na tvoju glavu, govori Gospod Gospod, te nećeš činiti grdila niti kakvih gadova svojih.

44 Gle, ko god govori priče, govoriće o tebi priču, i reći će: Kakva mati, takva joj kći.

45 Ti si kći matere svoje, koja se odmetnula od muža svog i dece svoje, i sestra si sestara svojih, koje se odmetnuše od muževa svojih i dece svoje, mati vam je Hetejka a otac Amorejac.

46 A starija ti je sestra Samarija s kćerima svojim, koja ti sedi s leve strane, a mlađa ti je sestra koja ti sedi s desne strane Sodom sa kćerima svojim.

47 A ti ni njihovim putem nisi hodila, niti si činila po njihovim gadovima, kao da ti to beše malo, nego si bila gora od njih na svim putevima svojim.

48 Tako ja živ bio, govori Gospod Gospod, sestra tvoja Sodom i kćeri njene nisu činile kako si činila ti i tvoje kćeri.

49 Evo, ovo beše bezakonje sestre tvoje Sodoma: U ponosu, u izobilju hleba i bezbrižnom miru beše ona i kćeri njene, a ne pomagahu siromahu i ubogom;

50 Nego se ponašahu i činjahu gadove preda mnom, za to ih zatrh kad videh.

51 Samarija nije zgrešila pola koliko ti, jer si počinila gadova svojih više nego one, te si opravdala sestre svoje svim gadovima svojim koje si učinila.

52 I ti dakle, koja si sudila sestrama svojim, nosi sramotu svoju za grehe svoje, kojima si postala grđa od njih; one su pravednije od tebe; i ti se dakle stidi i nosi sramotu, kad si opravdala sestre svoje.

53 Ako dovedeš natrag njihovo roblje, roblje sodomsko i kćeri njene, i roblje samarijsko i kćeri njene, dovešću i tvoje roblje iz ropstva među njima.

54 Da nosiš sramotu svoju i da se stidiš za sve što si činila, i da im budeš uteha.

55 Ako se sestre tvoje, Sodom i kćeri njene povrate kao što su bile, i ako se Samarija i kćeri njene povrate kao što su bile, povratićeš se i ti i kćeri tvoje kao što ste bile.

56 Jer usta tvoja ne pominjaše Sodom, sestru tvoju, u vreme oholosti tvoje,

57 Pre nego se otkri zloća tvoja kao u vreme sramote od kćeri sirskih i od svih što su oko njih, kćeri filistejskih, koje te sramoćahu sa svih strana.

58 Nosi nevaljalstvo svoje i gadove svoje, govori Gospod.

59 Jer ovako veli Gospod Gospod: Učiniću ti kako si ti učinila prezrevši zakletvu i prestupivši zavet.

60 Ali ću se ja opomenuti zaveta svog koji sam učinio s tobom u vreme mladosti tvoje, i utvrdiću ti večan zavet.

61 Tada ćeš se opomenuti puteva svojih i postidećeš se kad primiš sestre svoje starije od sebe i mlađe, koje ću ti dati za kćeri, ali ne po tvom zavetu.

62 I ja ću utvrditi zavet svoj s tobom, i poznaćeš da sam ja Gospod,

63 Da se opomeneš i postidiš i da ne otvoriš više usta od sramote, kad ti oprostim sve što si učinila, govori Gospod Gospod

   

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Arcana Coelestia #10283

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10283. 'It shall not be poured onto the flesh of a person' means no imparting [of what is the Lord's] to a person's proprium or self. This is clear from the meaning of 'the flesh of a person' as his proprium, dealt with below; and from the meaning of 'pouring onto' as imparting to. For 'pouring' has a similar meaning to 'touching'; but 'pouring' is used in connection with liquids, namely oil, wine, and water, and 'pouring out' in connection with Divine, heavenly, and spiritual realities, whereas 'touching' is used in connection with dry substances and with bodily things. For the meaning of 'touching' as imparting, see 10130. From this it follows that 'the anointing oil shall not be poured onto the flesh of a person' means that there is no imparting of the Divine Good of the Lord's Divine Love to a person's proprium or self, because a person's proprium is nothing but evil and the Lord's Divine Good cannot be imparted to what is evil.

A person's proprium or self is nothing but evil, see 210, 215, 694, 731, 874-876, 987, 1023, 1024, 1047, 5660, 5786, 8480.

[2] One part of the human proprium belongs to the will and the other part to the understanding; the will part consists of evil, and the understanding part of falsity arising from this. The former - the will part of the proprium - is meant by human flesh, and the understanding part by the blood of that flesh. The truth of this is clear from the following places: In Matthew,

Jesus said, Blessed are you, Simon, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven. Matthew 16:17.

It is plainly evident that 'flesh' here, and also 'blood', means the human proprium or self.

[3] In John,

As many as received Him, to them He gave power to be sons of God, who were born, not of blood 1 , nor of the will of the flesh, but of God. John 1:12-13.

'Blood' here means falsities that come out of the understanding part of the human proprium, and 'the will of the flesh' evils that spring from the will part of it. For the meaning of 'blood' as falsity arising from evil, thus what is in the understanding part of the proprium as a result of what is in the will part, see 4735, 9127.

[4] In Isaiah,

I will feed your oppressors with their flesh and they will be drunk with their blood as with new wine. Isaiah 49:26.

'Feeding them with their flesh' and 'making them drunk with their blood' stands for filling them up with evil and the falsity of evil, thus with what is of the proprium or what is one's own; for both the evil and the falsity come out of the proprium.

[5] In Jeremiah,

Cursed is the man (homo) who trusts in man (homo) and makes flesh his arm. Jeremiah 17:5.

'Trusting in man and making flesh his arm' means trusting in oneself and one's proprium.

[6] In Isaiah,

The people have become as fuel for the fire. If any of them cuts down on the right he will be hungry, and if any eats on the left they will not be satisfied. Each will eat the flesh of his own arm 2 ; Manasseh [will eat] Ephraim, and Ephraim Manasseh. Isaiah 9:19-21.

'Fuel for the fire' means making the evils or desires of self-love and love of the world one's own, 'being hungry' and 'not being satisfied' mean not accepting the good or the truth of faith, and 'the flesh of his arm' means both parts of the human proprium, 'Manasseh' meaning evil in the will, 'Ephraim' falsity in the understanding, and 'eating' making one's own.

'Fire' means the evils or desires of self-love and love of the world, see 5071, 5215, 6314, 6832, 7324, 7575, 9141.

The reason why 'being hungry' and 'not being satisfied' mean not accepting the good or the truth of faith is that 'hunger' or famine and 'thirst' mean desolation with regard to goodness and truth, 5360, 5376, 6110, 7102, 8568(end).

'The right' means good from which truth emanates, and 'the left' truth through which good comes, 10061; consequently 'being hungry if any of them cuts down on the right, and not being satisfied if any eats on the left' means that no matter how much instruction they may receive about goodness and truth they will not accept them.

[7] 'Manasseh' means good in the will, 5351, 5353, 5354(end), 6222, 6234, 6238, 6267, and 'Ephraim' truth in the understanding, 3969, 5354, 6222, 6234, 6238, 6267, so that in the contrary sense 'Manasseh' means evil in the will and 'Ephraim' falsity in the understanding, since almost everything in the Word also has a contrary meaning.

'Eating' means making one's own, 3168, 3513(end), 3596, 4745, from which it is evident what 'eating the flesh of his own arm' means, namely making evil and falsity originating in the proprium one's own.

The expression 'flesh of the arm' is used because 'the arm', like 'the hand', means the powers present in a person, in which he puts his trust, see in the places referred to in 10019.

[8] In Zechariah,

I said, I will not feed you. Let the one that is dying die; [the sheep] that are left will eat, every one the flesh of another. Zechariah 11:9.

'Not feeding' stands for not teaching and reforming, 'dying' for loss of spiritual life, and 'eating the flesh of another' for making evils originating in the proprium of another one's own.

[9] In Ezekiel,

Jerusalem committed whoredom with the sons of Egypt, her neighbours, the great in flesh. Ezekiel 16:26.

'Jerusalem' stands for the perverted Church, 'committing whoredom with the sons of Egypt, the great in flesh' for falsifying the Church's truths by means of factual knowledge which begins in the natural man alone, thus by means of factual knowledge based on sensory evidence.

'Jerusalem' means the Church, see 402, 2117, 3654, in this instance the Church when it has been perverted.

'Committing whoredom' means falsifying truths, 2466, 2729, 8904.

'Sons' means truths, or else falsities, 1147, 3373, 4257, 9807.

'Egypt' means factual knowledge, in either [a good or a bad] sense, see in the places referred to in 9340, and also the natural, in the places referred to in 9391.

Consequently the words 'the great in flesh' describe people who, relying on sensory evidence, reason and draw conclusions about the Church's truths. Those who do this lay hold of falsities as truths, for to rely on sensory evidence to reason and draw conclusions about anything is to rely on the illusions of the bodily senses. People therefore who are ruled by their senses are meant by 'the great in flesh'; for their own bodily perceptions govern their thinking.

[10] In Isaiah,

Egypt is man (homo) and not God, and his horses are flesh, but not spirit. Isaiah 31:3.

Here also 'Egypt' stands for factual knowledge, 'his horses' for a power of understanding consisting of this. That power is called 'flesh, not spirit' when people use what is their own and not God's to draw conclusions.

By 'horses' is meant the power of understanding, see 2761, 2762, 3217, 5321, 6534, and by 'the horses of Egypt' factual knowledge supplied from a perverted understanding, 6125, 8146, 8148.

[11] The fact that 'flesh' means a person's proprium or selfhood, or what amounts to the same thing, his own evil will, is clear in Moses, where the subject is the Israelite people's desire for flesh to eat, described as follows,

The rabble who were in the midst of the people had a strong craving and said, Who will feed us with flesh? Jehovah said, Tomorrow you will eat flesh. Not for one day will you eat it, nor for two days, nor for five days, nor for ten days, nor for twenty days, [but] for a whole month. And a wind set out from Jehovah, and it cut off the quails from the sea and sent them down 3 over the camp, about two cubits above the surface of the land. The people rose up that whole day, and the whole night, and the whole of the next day, and gathered them and spread them out all around the camp. The flesh was still between their teeth, before it could be swallowed, and Jehovah's anger flared up against the people, and He struck the people with an extremely great plague. So he called the name of the place The Graves of Craving. Numbers 11:4, 18-20, 31-34.

[12] The fact that 'flesh' meant that nation's proprium becomes clear from every detail in these verses; for unless this had been meant what evil could there have been in their desire for flesh, especially as flesh had been promised them on a previous occasion, Exodus 16:12? But since it meant the proprium, thus an evil will, which that nation possessed in greater measure than other nations, it says - when they desired flesh - that they 'had a strong craving', on account of which they were struck with a great plague, and on account of which the place where they were buried was called The Graves of Craving. Whether you speak of an evil will or of craving, it amounts to the same thing, for an evil will consists in craving. The human proprium has no desire for anything apart from what belongs to itself; it has no desire for anything that concerns the neighbour or anything that concerns God, unless this is beneficial to itself. Since that nation was like this it says that they would eat flesh not for one day, not for two, not for five, nor for ten, nor for twenty, but for a whole month, meaning that this nation would be like that forever (for 'a whole month' means forever); and for the same reason it says that while the flesh was still between their teeth, before it could be swallowed, they were struck with a great plague. For by 'teeth' the bodily level of the proprium, the lowest of a person's mind, is meant, 4424(end), 5565-5568, 9062. The fact that this nation was like this may be seen in the places referred to in 9380, and in the Song of Moses, at Deuteronomy 32:20, 22-26, 28, 32-34.

[13] In the Word spirit is set in contrast to flesh, for 'spirit' means life from the Lord and 'flesh' life from man, as in John,

It is the Spirit which bestows life, the flesh does not profit anything. The words that I speak to you, they are spirit and they are life. John 6:63.

From this it is clear that 'spirit' means life from the Lord, which is the life of love to Him and faith in Him, received from Him, and that 'flesh' means life from man, thus his selfhood. This is why it says 'the flesh does not profit anything'. Something similar is meant elsewhere in John,

That which has been born from the flesh is flesh, but that which has been born from the spirit is spirit. John 3:6.

In David,

God remembered that they were flesh; a spirit which would pass away would not come back. Psalms 78:39.

[14] Since 'flesh' in reference to man means his proprium, which consists of the evil of self-love and love of the world, it is evident what 'flesh' means when used in reference to the Lord, namely His Proprium, which consists of the Divine Good of Divine Love. This is what 'the Lord's flesh' means in John,

The bread which I will give you is My flesh. Unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you will have no life in you. Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life; for My flesh is truly food and My blood is truly drink. John 6:51, 53-55.

'The flesh' of the Lord means the Divine Good of His Divine Love, and 'the blood' the Divine Truth emanating from that Divine Good, so that they are similar in meaning to the bread and wine in the Holy Supper; and those Divine Realities are His own, present within His Divine Human, see 1001, 3813, 4735, 6978, 7317, 7326, 7850, 9127, 9393, 10026, 10033, 10152. Also, the sacrifices represented forms of good that originate in the Lord, and therefore the flesh of those sacrifices meant forms of good, 10040, 10079. Furthermore, various places in the Word use the expression 'all flesh', by which every human being should be understood, as in Genesis 6:12-13, 17, 19; Isaiah 40:5-6; 49:26; 66:16, 23-24; Jeremiah 25:31; 32:27; 45:5; Ezekiel 20:48; 21:4-5; and elsewhere.

Footnotes:

1. literally, bloods

2. literally, they will eat, a man (vir) the flesh of his own arm

3. Reading demisit (sent down) for dimisit (allowed to depart)

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