The Bible

 

Génesis 33

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1 Y alzando Jacob sus ojos miró, y he aquí venía Esaú, y los cuatrocientos hombres con él; entonces repartió él los niños entre Lea y Raquel y las dos siervas.

2 Y puso las siervas y sus niños delante; luego a Lea y a sus niños; y a Raquel y a José los postreros.

3 Y él pasó delante de ellos, y se inclinó a tierra siete veces, hasta que llegó a su hermano.

4 Y Esaú corrió a su encuentro, y le abrazó, y se echó sobre su cuello, y le besó; y lloraron.

5 Y alzó sus ojos, y vio las mujeres y los niños, y dijo: ¿Quiénes son éstos? Y él respondió: Son los niños que Dios ha dado a tu siervo.

6 Y se llegaron las siervas, ellas y sus niños, y se inclinaron.

7 Y vino Lea con sus niños, y se inclinaron; y después llegó José y Raquel, y también se inclinaron.

8 Y él dijo: ¿Qué te propones con todas estas cuadrillas que he encontrado? Y él respondió: El hallar gracia en los ojos de mi señor.

9 Y dijo Esaú: Suficiente tengo yo, hermano mío; sea para ti lo que es tuyo.

10 Y dijo Jacob: No, yo te ruego, si he hallado ahora gracia en tus ojos, toma mi presente de mi mano, que por eso he visto tu rostro, como si hubiera visto el rostro de Dios; y hazme placer.

11 Toma, te ruego, mi bendición que te es traída; porque Dios me ha hecho merced, y todo lo que hay aquí es mío. Y porfió con él, y la tomó.

12 Y dijo: Anda, y vamos; y yo iré delante de ti.

13 Y él le dijo: Mi señor sabe que los niños son tiernos, y que tengo ovejas y vacas paridas; y si las fatigan, en un día morirán todas las ovejas.

14 Pase ahora mi señor delante de su siervo, y yo me iré poco a poco al paso de la hacienda que va delante de mí, y al paso de los niños, hasta que llegue a mi señor a Seir.

15 Y Esaú dijo: Dejaré ahora contigo de la gente que viene conmigo. Y él dijo: ¿Para qué esto? Halle yo gracia en los ojos de mi señor.

16 Así se volvió Esaú aquel día por su camino a Seir.

17 Y Jacob partió a Sucot, y edificó allí casa para sí, e hizo cabañas para su ganado; por tanto llamó el nombre de aquel lugar Sucot.

18 Y vino Jacob sano a la ciudad de Siquem, que está en la tierra de Canaán, cuando venía de Padan-aram; y se asentó delante de la ciudad.

19 Y compró una parte del campo, donde tendió su tienda, de mano de los hijos de Hamor, padre de Siquem, por cien piezas de moneda.

20 Y asentó allí un altar, y lo llamó: El Fuerte Dios de Israel.

   

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Arcana Coelestia #4353

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4353. 'And kissed him' means an interior joining together brought about by love. This is clear from the meaning of 'kissing' as a joining together brought about by love, dealt with in 3573, 3574, 4215, in this case an interior joining together. The present verse deals with the joining of Divine Natural Good, meant by 'Esau', to Natural Truth, meant by 'Jacob'. It deals with this in general, whereas the verses which follow deal more specifically with that joining together. As regards the actual joining together, it is that which brings about a person's regeneration, for he is regenerated through the joining of the truths he knows to the good he cherishes, that is, through the joining of matters of faith to the deeds of charity. The process of that joining together is described fully in this verse and in those that follow. The subject, it is true, is the Lord - how He made His Natural Divine and therefore how He united Divine Good to Truth within the Natural; but because the regeneration of man is an image of the glorification of the Lord, 3138, 3212, 3296, 3490, that regeneration too is at the same time the subject in the internal sense. And because man can get an idea of regeneration more easily than he can of the Lord's glorification, let His glorification be illustrated by means of man's regeneration.

[2] It is evident from the explanations which have been given that the joining together of good and truths which leads to regeneration is a process that grows more and more interior; that is, truths are joined step by step more interiorly to good. For the object of regeneration is that the internal man may be joined to the external, and so the spiritual man be joined to the natural through the rational. Unless the two are joined together no regeneration is accomplished. Nor can that joining together be effected until good has first been joined to the truths within the natural; for the natural has to exist as the underlying groundwork, and things within the natural have to exist in correspondence with those above them. This is the reason why, when the natural is being regenerated, the joining together of good and truths becomes step by step more interior; for the spiritual first joins itself to the things that are inmost in the natural, and after that through these to those that are more exterior. Nor can man's internal join itself to his external unless the truth within that external becomes the good of truth, that is, becomes truth in will and action, 4337. Only then can they be joined together, for the Lord flows into a person through his internal man, especially through the good there. The good there is able to be joined to the good in the external man, but not directly to the truth.

[3] From this it becomes clear that the truth residing with man must first of all become truth in will and action, that is, become the good of truth, before the joining together of the rational and the natural, or of the internal man and the external, can come about. But in what way truth becomes the good of truth may be clear to anyone who gives his attention to it. Every Divine truth is related to the following two commandments: Love God above all things, and love your neighbour as yourself. These two commandments are the base from which truths are derived, the reason why truths exist, and the end to which truths lead - immediately or remotely. Therefore when truths are translated into action they are introduced step by step into their beginning and into their end, that is to say, into charity towards the neighbour and love to the Lord, and as a consequence truth becomes the good which is called the good of truth. Once truth becomes such it is able to be joined to the internal man, a conjunction which becomes step by step more interior as truths that are more interior are implanted within that good. Action comes first, then the desire for it in the person's will follows. For when a person is led by his understanding to carry out any action, he is at length led by his will to do it, till at last he has taken it on as an action performed habitually. When this point is reached it is introduced into the rational or internal man; and once it has been introduced, truth is no longer that which motivates him when he does a good action but good. For now he begins to feel within it something of what is blessed and so to speak of heaven. This remains with him after death, and by means of it the Lord raises him up to heaven.

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