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Ezekiel 29

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1 Nang ikasangpung taon, nang ikasangpung buwan, nang ikalabing dalawang araw ng buwan, ang salita ng Panginoon ay dumating sa akin, na nagsasabi,

2 Anak ng tao, ititig mo ang iyong mukha laban kay Faraon na hari sa Egipto, at manghula ka laban sa kaniya, at laban sa buong Egipto;

3 Iyong salitain, at iyong sabihin, Ganito ang sabi ng Panginoong Dios: Narito, ako'y lalaban sa iyo, Faraong hari sa Egipto, na malaking buwaya na nahihiga sa gitna ng kaniyang mga ilog, na nagsabi: Ang ilog ko ay aking sarili, at aking ginawa sa ganang aking sarili.

4 At kakawitan kita ng mga pangbingwit sa iyong mga panga, at aking padidikitin ang isda ng iyong mga ilog sa iyong mga kaliskis; at isasampa kita mula sa gitna ng iyong mga ilog, na kasama ng lahat na isda ng iyong mga ilog na magsisidikit sa iyong mga kaliskis.

5 At ikaw ay aking iiwan tapon sa ilang, ikaw at ang lahat na isda ng iyong mga ilog: ikaw ay mabubuwal sa luwal na parang; ikaw ay hindi pipisanin, o pupulutin man; aking ibinigay kang pagkain sa mga hayop sa lupa, at sa mga ibon sa himpapawid.

6 At lahat ng nananahan sa Egipto ay makakaalam na ako ang Panginoon, sapagka't sila'y naging tukod na tambo sa sangbahayan ni Israel.

7 Nang kanilang pigilan ka sa iyong kamay, iyong binali, at iyong nilabnot ang kanilang mga balikat; at nang sila'y sumandal sa iyo, iyong binalian, at iyong pinapanghina ang kanilang mga balakang.

8 Kaya't ganito ang sabi ng Panginoong Dios: Narito, pagdadalhan kita ng tabak sa iyo, at aking ihihiwalay sa iyo ang tao at hayop.

9 At ang lupain ng Egipto ay magiging giba at sira; at kanilang malalaman na ako ang Panginoon. Sapagka't kaniyang sinabi, Ang ilog ay akin, at aking ginawa;

10 Kaya't, narito, ako'y laban sa iyo, at laban sa iyong mga ilog, at aking lubos na gigibain at sisirain ang lupain ng Egipto, mula sa moog ng Seveneh hanggang sa hangganan ng Etiopia.

11 Walang paa ng tao na daraan doon, o paa man ng hayop ay daraan doon, o tatahanan man siyang apat na pung taon.

12 At aking gagawing sira ang lupain ng Egipto sa gitna ng mga lupain na sira; at ang kaniyang mga bayan sa gitna ng mga bayang giba ay magiging sira na apat na pung taon; at aking pangangalatin ang mga taga Egipto sa gitna ng mga bansa, at aking pananabugin sila sa mga lupain.

13 Sapagka't ganito ang sabi ng Panginoong Dios: Sa katapusan ng apat na pung taon ay aking pipisanin ang mga taga Egipto, mula sa mga bayan na kanilang pinangalatan;

14 At aking ibabalik uli ang mga bihag sa Egipto, at aking pababalikin sila sa lupain ng Patros, na lupain na kinapanganakan sa kanila; at sila'y magiging doo'y isang mababang kaharian.

15 Siyang magiging pinakamababa sa mga kaharian; at hindi na matataas pa man ng higit kay sa mga bansa: at aking babawasan sila, upang huwag na silang magpuno sa mga bansa.

16 At hindi na magiging pagasa pa ng sangbahayan ni Israel, na nagpapaalaala ng kasamaan, pagka kanilang lilingunin sila: at kanilang malalaman na ako ang Panginoong Dios.

17 At nangyari, nang ikadalawang pu't pitong taon, nang unang buwan, nang unang araw ng buwan, ang salita ng Panginoon ay dumating sa akin, na nagsasabi:

18 Anak ng tao, pinapaglilingkod ng mabigat ni Nabucodonosor na hari sa Babilonia ang kaniyang kawal laban sa Tiro: lahat ng ulo ay nakalbo, at lahat ng balikat ay nalabnot; gayon ma'y wala siyang kaupahan, o ang kaniyang hukbo man, mula sa Tiro, sa paglilingkod na kaniyang ipinaglingkod laban doon.

19 Kaya't ganito ang sabi ng Panginoong Dios: Narito, aking ibibigay ang lupain ng Egipto kay Nabucodonosor na hari sa Babilonia; at dadalhin niya ang kaniyang karamihan, at kukunin ang samsam sa kaniya, at kukunin ang huli sa kaniya; at magiging kaupahan para sa kaniyang hukbo.

20 Ibinigay ko sa kaniya ang lupain ng Egipto na pinakaganti sa kaniya dahil sa kaniyang ipinaglingkod, sapagka't sila'y nagsipagpagal ng dahil sa akin, sabi ng Panginoong Dios.

21 Sa araw na yao'y aking palilitawin ang isang sungay upang tumulong sa sangbahayan ni Israel, at aking papangyayarihin ang iyong salita sa gitna nila: at kanilang malalaman na ako ang Panginoon.

   

From Swedenborg's Works

 

Apocalypse Explained #65

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65. And girt about the breasts with a golden girdle. That this signifies Divine good, is evident from the signification of breasts with a girdle, as being to surround the chest; breasts and a girdle are mentioned because the breasts stand out from the chest, and a girdle surrounds. The reason why Divine good proceeding from the Lord is here meant, is, that the chest in general, and the breasts in particular, have such a signification. The reason why these denote good proceeding, is, that all garments signify those things which proceed; for they are outside the body and clothe it; and the things which proceed from, are also outside the body and engird it. (That this is the case, is evident from what is shown in the work, Heaven and Hell, concerning the garments with which the angels are clothed, n. 177-182; that is to say that every one there is clothed with garments according to his affection of understanding and becoming wise, and this affection is what proceeds from them; for there is a sphere which proceeds from each angel and spirit, this being a sphere of affection, and is called the sphere of his life, and they have garments according to this sphere. That their garments are from that sphere, is not evident to their sight, but yet they know that it is so; concerning this sphere, see Arcana Coelestia 2489, 4464, 5179, 7454, 8630.)

[2] From these considerations it is evident that the Lord's garments signify the proceeding Divine, which is Divine truth united to Divine good, which fills the whole heaven, and enters into the interiors of the mind, and imparts intelligence and wisdom to him who receives it. This is what is meant by being clothed with white garments. Because proceeding Divine good is signified by the girdle with which the Lord was girded, therefore the girdle appeared to be of gold, for by gold is signified the good of love (as may be seen, Arcana Coelestia 113, 1551, 1552, 5658, 6914, 6917, 9510, 9874, 9881). The reason why breasts are mentioned instead of the chest, which was girt with the girdle is, because breasts signify spiritual love, and the chest itself the good thereof; this love is also signified by breasts in Isaiah:

"I will place thee for an eternal excellency, a joy of generation and generation. Thou shalt suck the milk of the nations, and shalt suck the breasts of kings" (60:15, 16).

Kings denote truths from good from the Lord (as may be seen above, n. 31); breasts and chest denote that good, which is the good of spiritual love.

[3] That the chest signifies the good of spiritual love is from correspondence with heaven; for the whole heaven corresponds to all things of man; the inmost or third heaven corresponds to the head; the middle or second to the chest, and the ultimate or first, to the feet. On account of such correspondence, heaven is also called the Grand Man (Maximus Homo); and because the inmost or third heaven corresponds to the head, therefore by the head is signified the good of celestial love, which is the good of love to the Lord. The reason of this is, that the good of celestial love reigns in and constitutes that heaven; and because the middle or second heaven corresponds to the chest, therefore by the chest is signified the good of spiritual love, which is the good of love towards the neighbour, because this good reigns in and constitutes that heaven. And because the ultimate or first heaven corresponds to the feet, therefore by feet is signified the good of natural from spiritual love, which is the good of faith; the reason is that, that good reigns in and constitutes that heaven. From these considerations it is clear why it is that the breasts signify spiritual love, and the chest its good. (But these things may be better understood from what is shown in the work, Heaven and Hell; especially from the articles which treat of the three heavens, n. 29-39, where it is shown, that the Divine of the Lord in the heavens is love to Him and charity towards the neighbour, see n. 13-19; that the whole heaven resembles one man, see n. 59-67; and that there is correspondence of heaven with all things of man, see n. 87-102; and in Arcana Coelestia 4938, 4939, 10087. It is permitted to adduce from that work, by way of illustration, these few things. That the chest signifies the good of spiritual love, is because within, in the chest, are the heart and lungs, and the heart from correspondence signifies celestial love and the lungs spiritual love, but the lungs fill the chest; that there is such a correspondence, see Arcana Coelestia 3383-3896, 9280, 9300; what celestial love is and what spiritual love, may be seen in the work, Heaven and Hell 23.)

  
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Translation by Isaiah Tansley. Many thanks to the Swedenborg Society for the permission to use this translation.

From Swedenborg's Works

 

Arcana Coelestia #6917

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6917. 'Vessels of silver' means factual knowledge of what is true, 'and vessels of gold' means factual knowledge of what is good. This is clear from the meaning of 'vessels' as known facts, dealt with in 3068, 3079 (known facts are called 'vessels' because they are general and can contain within them countless truths and manifold forms of good); from the meaning of 'silver' as truth, and of 'gold' as good, dealt with in 1551, 1552, 2954, 5658, 'the silver of Egypt' being factual knowledge that held truth in it and was appropriate, see 6112. As regards the vessels of silver and the vessels of gold in the hands of the Egyptians - that they mean factual knowledge of what is true and factual knowledge of what is good, even though here and in what has gone before, as well as in what follows, false factual knowledge is meant by 'the Egyptians - it should be recognized that in themselves known facts are neither true nor false. Rather, they become true in the hands of those who are guided by truths, and false in the hands of those who are steeped in falsities. What use they are put to and then made to serve is what determines which of these they become. The facts a person knows are like the wealth and riches he possesses. Wealth and riches in the hands of those governed by evil are ruinous because they put them to evil kinds of use, whereas wealth and riches in the hands of those governed by good are advantageous because they put them to good kinds of use. Therefore if wealth and riches in the hands of evil people are handed over to those who are good they become good. So too with factual knowledge.

[2] Among the Egyptians, for example, there remained a large number of the representatives that belonged to the Ancient Church, as is clear from their hieroglyphics. But because they applied them to magical practices and therefore made them serve an evil use, these things were for them not true factual knowledge but false. Yet in the Ancient Church the same knowledge had held what was true since people had put it to its correct use - to Divine worship. Take sacrifices on altars as another example. Among the Hebrew nation, and subsequently among the Jewish and Israelite nation, they were ritual acts that were true because they were put to use in the worship of Jehovah. But among the nations in the land of Canaan they were false ritual acts because they were put to use in the worship of their idols. This was why the command was also given to destroy those nations' altars wherever they were. The same holds true with a very large number of other things. For this reason many known facts can be learned from those who are steeped in evils and falsities, and put to good kinds of use, thus becoming good. Similar things were also meant by plundering the nations in the land of Canaan - by the wealth, large cattle, small cattle, houses, and vineyards which the children of Israel plundered there. The same thing is still further evident from the gold and silver plundered from the nations. This too was devoted to a sacred use, as is clear from the second Book of Samuel,

There were in his hand vessels of silver, and vessels of gold, and vessels of bronze. King David consecrated these also to Jehovah, along with the silver and gold that he had consecrated from all the nations which he had subdued - from the Syrians, [and] from Moab, and from the children of Ammon, and from the Philistines, and from Amalek, and from the plunder of Hadad Ezer the son of Rehob, king of Zobah. 2 Samuel 8:10-12.

And in Isaiah,

At length the merchandise of Tyre and her harlot's wages will be holy to Jehovah, they will not be hoarded or held back; but her merchandise will be for those that dwell before Jehovah to eat to their satiety and for one covering himself with what is ancient. Isaiah 23:18.

And also the objects which the women of the children of Israel asked of the Egyptians, thereby plundering them, were later on put to use in the making of the Ark, and to many other sacred objects in their worship.

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