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Oseas 2

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1 Decid a vuestros hermanos, Ammi, y vuestras hermanas, Ruhama:

2 Pleitead con vuestra madre, pleitead; porque ella no es mi mujer, ni yo su marido; quite, pues, sus fornicaciones de su rostro, y sus adulterios de entre sus pechos;

3 para que yo no la despoje desnuda, y la haga tornar como el día en que nació, y la ponga como un desierto, y la deje como tierra seca, y la mate de sed.

4 Ni tendré misericordia de sus hijos, porque son hijos de fornicaciones.

5 Porque su madre fornicó; la que los engendró fue avergonzada; porque dijo: Iré tras mis amantes, que me dan mi pan y mi agua, mi lana y mi lino, mi aceite y mi bebida.

6 Por tanto, he aquí yo cerco tu camino con espinas, y la cercaré con seto, y no hallará sus caminos.

7 Y seguirá a sus amantes, y no los alcanzará; los buscará, y no los hallará. Entonces dirá: Iré, y me volveré a mi primer marido; porque mejor me iba entonces que ahora.

8 Y ella no reconoció que yo le daba el trigo, y el vino, y el aceite, y que les multipliqué la plata y el oro con que hicieron a Baal.

9 Por tanto yo tornaré, y tomaré mi trigo a su tiempo, y mi vino a su sazón, y quitaré mi lana y mi lino que había dado para cubrir su desnudez.

10 Y ahora descubriré yo su locura delante de los ojos de sus amantes, y nadie la librará de mi mano.

11 Y haré cesar todo su gozo, su fiesta, su nueva luna y su sábado, y todas sus festividades.

12 Y haré talar su vid y su higuera, de la que ha dicho: Mi salario me son, que me han dado mis amantes. Y las reduciré a un matorral, y las comerán las bestias del campo.

13 Y visitaré sobre ella los tiempos de los baales, a los cuales incensaba, y se adornaba de sus zarcillos y de sus joyeles, y se iba tras sus amantes olvidada de mí, dice el SEÑOR.

14 Por tanto he aquí, yo la induciré, y la llevaré al desierto, y hablaré a su corazón.

15 Y le daré sus viñas desde allí, y el valle de Acor por puerta de esperanza; y allí cantará como en los tiempos de su juventud, y como en el día de su subida de la tierra de Egipto.

16 Y será que en aquel tiempo, dice el SEÑOR, me llamarás marido mío, y nunca más me llamarás Baali.

17 Porque quitaré de su boca los nombres de los baales, y nunca más serán mentados por su nombre.

18 Y haré por ellos concierto en aquel tiempo con las bestias del campo, y con las aves del cielo, y con las serpientes de la tierra; y quebraré arco, y espada, y batalla de la tierra, y los haré dormir seguros.

19 Y te desposaré conmigo para siempre; te desposaré conmigo en justicia, juicio, misericordia, y miseraciones.

20 Y te desposaré conmigo en fe, y conocerás al SEÑOR.

21 Y será que en aquel tiempo responderé, dice el SEÑOR, yo responderé a los cielos, y ellos responderán a la tierra;

22 y la tierra responderá al trigo, al vino, y al aceite, y ellos responderán a Jezreel.

23 Y la sembraré para mí en la tierra, y tendré misericordia de Lo-ruhama; y diré a Lo-ammi: pueblo mío tú; y él dirá: Dios mío.

   

From Swedenborg's Works

 

Arcana Coelestia #9470

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9470. 'And wool of she-goats' means the good from this, that is to say, from the good of mutual love. The reason why 'wool of she-goats' means this good is that 'a she-goat' means the good of innocence in the external or natural man, 3519, 7840, and therefore 'wool' means the truth belonging to that good. However, since not truth but good is meant, the original language does not actually say 'wool of she-goats', only 'she-goats', as is also the case in other places, such as in the following words in Exodus,

All the skilled 1 women brought what they had spun, violet, purple, twice-dyed scarlet, [and] fine linen thread; and all the women whose heart stirred them up in wisdom spun she-goats. Exodus 35:25-26.

'Spinning she-goats' stands for producing things woven from the wool of she-goats.

[2] The fact that 'wool' means truth from a celestial origin, which in itself is good, is clear from places in the Word where the actual word is used, as in Hosea,

[Their mother has committed whoredom.] She said, I will go after my lovers, those giving me my bread and my water, my wool and my linen. Therefore I will return and take back My grain in its season, and I will snatch away My wool and My linen. Hosea 2:5, 9.

This refers to a corrupted Church, meant here by 'mother'. 'The lovers' with whom she is said to have committed whoredom are those who pervert forms of good and truths. 'Bread' and 'water' mean internal forms of the good of love, and the internal truths of faith; 'wool' and 'flax' mean external ones.

[3] In Daniel,

I saw until thrones were placed, and the Ancient of Days was seated. His clothing was white as snow, and the hair of His head like pure wool. Daniel 7:9.

This refers to the Church laid waste so far as every truth of faith was concerned, and then restored by the Lord, its having been completely laid waste being meant in the words 'thrones were placed'. 'The Ancient of Days' is the Lord in respect of celestial good as this existed in the Most Ancient Church, which was a celestial Church. In the Word that good is called 'ancient', its external truth being meant by clothing which was 'white as snow', and its external good by hair of the head which was 'like pure wool'. Similar words occur in John,

... in the midst of the seven lampstands one like the Son of Man. His head and hair were white, like white wool, like snow. Revelation 1:13-14.

[4] This kind of truth, being in itself good because it is the outward form of celestial good, is again meant by 'wool' in Ezekiel,

Damascus was your merchant in the wine of Helbon and the wool of Zachar. 2 Ezekiel 27:18.

And in Isaiah,

Though your sins are like twice-dyed, they will be as white as snow. Though they are as red as scarlet, they will be as wool. Isaiah 1:18.

[5] Because Aaron's garments represented the kinds of realities that belong to the Lord's spiritual kingdom, thus the spiritual realities that belong to truth, his 'holy garments' were made of linen and not of wool. For 'linen' is spiritual truth, whereas 'wool' is celestial truth, which in comparison is good. On this account it says in Ezekiel,

The priests, the Levites, the sons of Zadok, when they enter the gates of the inner court they shall put on the linen garments, and no wool shall come upon them. The linen turbans shall be on their heads, the linen undergarments shall be over their loins. Ezekiel 44:17-18.

The fact that Aaron's garments were made not of wool but of linen is clear from Leviticus 16:4, 32.

[6] From all this it becomes clear that 'linen' means spiritual truth, which is the truth of the good of faith, whereas 'wool' means celestial truth, which is the truth of the good of love. And since those endued with the latter kind of truth cannot be endued with the former, because the two are as different as the light of the sun is from the light of the stars, it was laid down that no one should wear a garment made of wool and linen mixed together, Deuteronomy 22:10-11. The fact that between what is celestial and what is spiritual there is such a difference, and that both cannot be together in one and the same person, see the places referred to in 9277.

Footnotes:

1. literally, wise

2. The Hebrew word which Swedenborg, following the Latin version of Sebastian Schmidt, renders Zachar is not usually considered to be a proper name.

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

The Bible

 

Daniel 7:9

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9 I saw until thrones were placed, and one who was ancient of days sat: his clothing was white as snow, and the hair of his head like pure wool; his throne was fiery flames, [and] its wheels burning fire.