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Amós 7

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1 ASI me ha mostrado el Señor Jehová: y he aquí, él criaba langostas al principio que comenzaba á crecer el heno tardío; y he aquí, era el heno tardío después de las siegas del rey.

2 Y acaeció que como acabó de comer la hierba de la tierra, yo dije: Señor Jehová, perdona ahora; ¿quién levantará á Jacob? porque es pequeño.

3 Arrepintióse Jehová de esto: No será, dijo Jehová.

4 El Señor Jehová me mostró así: y he aquí, llamaba para juzgar por fuego el Señor Jehová; y consumió un gran abismo, y consumió una parte de la tierra.

5 Y dije: Señor Jehová, cesa ahora; ¿quién levantará á Jacob? porque es pequeño.

6 Arrepintióse Jehová de esto: No será esto tampoco, dijo el Señor Jehová.

7 Enseñóme así: he aquí, el Señor estaba sobre un muro hecho á plomo, y en su mano una plomada de albañil.

8 Jehová entonces me dijo: ¿Qué ves, Amós? Y dije: Una plomada de albañil. Y el Señor dijo: He aquí, Yo pongo plomada de albañil en medio de mi pueblo Israel: No le pasaré más:

9 Y los altares de Isaac serán destruidos, y los santuarios de Israel serán asolados; y levantaréme con espada sobre la casa de Jeroboam.

10 Entonces Amasías sacerdote de Beth-el envió á decir á Jeroboam, rey de Israel: Amós se ha conjurado contra ti en medio de la casa de Israel: la tierra no puede sufrir todas sus palabras.

11 Porque así ha dicho Amós: Jeroboam morirá á cuchillo, é Israel pasará de su tierra en cautiverio.

12 Y Amasías dijo á Amós: Vidente, vete, y huye á tierra de Judá, y come allá tu pan, y profetiza allí:

13 Y no profetices más en Beth-el, porque es santuario del rey, y cabecera del reino.

14 Entonces respondió Amós, y dijo á Amasías: No soy profeta, ni soy hijo de profeta, sino que soy boyero, y cogedor de cabrahigos:

15 Y Jehová me tomó de tras el ganado, y díjome Jehová: Ve, y profetiza á mi pueblo Israel.

16 Ahora pues, oye palabra de Jehová. Tú dices: No profetices contra Israel, ni hables contra la casa de Isaac:

17 Por tanto, así ha dicho Jehová: Tu mujer fornicará en la ciudad, y tus hijos y tus hijas caerán á cuchillo, y tu tierra será partida por suertes; y tú morirás en tierra inmunda, é Israel será traspasado de su tierra.

   

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Arcana Coelestia #9854

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9854. 'With the work of slender rope' means the mode of the joining together. This is clear from the meaning of 'slender rope' as that which serves to join things together. The reason why 'slender rope' means that which so serves to join things together is that such a cord is used to join one object to another. But in this instance it means the mode of the joining together, for the narrative is saying that the small chains of pure gold had to be made 'with the work' of slender rope. 'Slender rope' is used in the original language to describe a cord made from twisted and intertwined work, by which is meant in the internal sense a joining together such as that of truths within known facts and interlinking such facts, thus a joining together in the natural or external memory. The reason why this kind of joining together is meant is that the subject at this point is the joining together of truths through good in the last and lowest parts of the spiritual kingdom. For 'the ephod' and 'the breastplate', to which [the shoulder-pieces] were joined by means of the small chains made from 'the work of slender rope', mean the lowest levels of the spiritual kingdom, 9824. As regards what is intertwined or tangled, that it denotes factual knowledge, see 2831.

[2] In the next life also ropes appear, varying in the ways in which their strands are twisted together and varying in thickness; and they represent the varying modes by which things are joined together. This explains also why in the Word things which serve to join others together are meant by 'ropes', as in the following places: In Isaiah,

Woe to those who draw iniquity with ropes of vanity, and [whose] sin is like a cart rope! Isaiah 5:18.

'Ropes of vanity' are joinings together of falsities, through which iniquity or evil in life is brought in. In the same prophet,

Look upon Zion, the city of our appointed feast. May your eyes see Jerusalem, a quiet dwelling-place, a tent which will not be overthrown. Its pegs will never be removed, and none of its ropes will be pulled away. Your ropes have been loosed; they will not strengthen their mast. Isaiah 33:20, 23.

'Pegs' and 'ropes' stand for the things which serve to join together heaven's truths and forms of good; for the dwelling-place and tent, which the ropes spoken of here belong to, are heaven, 9457, 9481, 9485, 9615, 9784.

[3] In the same prophet,

Enlarge the place of your tent, and let them stretch out the curtains of your dwelling-places; do not stop [them]. Lengthen your ropes, and make your pegs firm. Isaiah 54:2.

And in Jeremiah,

My tent has been laid waste, and all My ropes torn away. Jeremiah 10:20.

Here also 'ropes' stands for things that serve to join others together and make them firm. 'Tent' stands for the Church, which is the Lord's heaven on earth. In Hosea,

I drew them with ropes of human kindness, 1 with thick ropes of love. Hosea 11:4.

Here 'ropes' plainly stands for things which join others together; for love is spiritual togetherness. In Ezekiel,

Asshur and Kilmad, they were your traders with the treasures of garments tied by means of ropes. Ezekiel 27:23-24.

This refers to Tyre, by which cognitions or knowledge of goodness and truth are meant, 1201. Outward joinings together of these are meant by 'garments tied by means of ropes'. In addition 'ropes' is also used in the Word to mean apportionments of inheritances and of the land, because ropes were used in measurements of them, as in Deuteronomy 32:9; Amos 7:17; Micah 2:4-5; Zechariah 2:1; Psalms 16:6; 78:55; 105:11; 140:5; and many times elsewhere.

Footnotes:

1. literally, with ropes of man (homo)

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