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Genesis 32

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1 At ipinagpatuloy ni Jacob ang kaniyang paglakad, at sinalubong siya ng mga anghel ng Dios.

2 At sinabi ni Jacob nang makita niya sila, Ito'y hukbo ng Dios: at tinawag niya ang pangalan ng dakong yaon na Mahanaim.

3 At si Jacob ay nagpasugo sa unahan niya kay Esau, na kaniyang kapatid sa lupain ng Seir, na parang ng Edom.

4 At inutusan niya sila, na sinasabi, Ganito ninyo sabihin sa aking panginoong kay Esau, Ganito ang sabi ng iyong lingkod na si Jacob, Dumoon ako kay Laban at ako'y natira roon hanggang ngayon.

5 At mayroon akong mga baka, at mga asno, at mga kawan, at mga aliping lalake at babae: at ako'y nagpasugo upang magbigay alam sa aking panginoon, upang makasumpong ng biyaya sa iyong paningin.

6 At ang mga sugo ay nagsipagbalik kay Jacob, na nagsipagsabi, Dumating kami sa iyong kapatid na kay Esau, at siya rin naman ay sumasalubong sa iyo, at apat na raang tao ang kasama niya.

7 Nang magkagayo'y natakot na mainam si Jacob at nahapis at kaniyang binahagi ang bayang kasama niya, at ang mga kawan, at ang mga bakahan, at ang mga kamelyo ng dalawang pulutong.

8 At kaniyang sinabi, Kung dumating si Esau sa isang pulutong, at kaniyang saktan, ang pulutong ngang natitira ay tatanan.

9 At sinabi ni Jacob, Oh Dios ng aking amang si Abraham, at Dios ng aking amang si Isaac, Oh Panginoon, na nagsabi sa akin, Magbalik ka sa iyong lupain at sa iyong kamaganakan, at gagawan kita ng magaling:

10 Hindi ako marapat sa kababababaan ng lahat ng kaawaan, at ng buong katotohanan na iyong ipinakita sa iyong lingkod: sapagka't dala ko ang aking tungkod, na dinaanan ko ang Jordang ito; at ngayo'y naging dalawang pulutong ako.

11 Iligtas mo ako, ipinamamanhik ko sa iyo, sa kamay ng aking kapatid, sa kamay ni Esau; sapagka't ako'y natatakot sa kaniya, baka siya'y dumating at ako'y saktan niya, ang ina pati ng mga anak.

12 At ikaw ang nagsabi, Tunay na ikaw ay gagawan ko ng magaling, at gagawin ko ang iyong binhi na parang buhangin sa dagat, na hindi mabibilang dahil sa karamihan.

13 At siya'y nagparaan doon ng gabing yaon; at kumuha ng mayroon siya na ipagkakaloob kay Esau na kaniyang kapatid;

14 Dalawang daang kambing na babae, at dalawang pung lalaking kambing; dalawang daang tupang babae, at dalawang pung tupang lalake,

15 Tatlong pung kamelyong inahin na pati ng kanilang mga anak; apat na pung baka at sangpung toro, dalawang pung asna at sangpung anak ng mga yaon.

16 At ipinagbibigay sa kamay ng kaniyang mga bataan, bawa't kawan ay bukod; at sinabi sa kaniyang mga bataan, Lumagpas kayo sa unahan ko, at iiwanan ninyo ng isang pagitan ang bawa't kawan.

17 At iniutos sa una, na sinasabi, Pagka ikaw ay nasumpungan ni Esau na aking kapatid, at ikaw ay tinanong na sinasabi, Kanino ka? at saan ka paroroon? at kanino itong nangasa unahan mo.

18 Kung magkagayo'y sasabihin mo, Sa iyong lingkod na kay Jacob; isang kaloob nga, na padala sa aking panginoong kay Esau: at, narito, siya'y nasa hulihan din naman namin.

19 At iniutos din sa ikalawa, at sa ikatlo, at sa lahat ng sumusunod sa mga kawan, na sinasabi, Sa ganitong paraan sasalitain ninyo kay Esau, pagkasumpong ninyo sa kaniya;

20 At sasabihin ninyo, Saka, narito, ang iyong lingkod na si Jacob, ay nasa hulihan namin, sapagka't kaniyang sinabi, Paglulubagin ko ang kaniyang galit sa pamamagitan ng kaloob na sumasaunahan ko, at pagkatapos ay makikita ko ang kaniyang mukha; marahil ay tatanggapin niya ako.

21 Gayon isinaunahan niya ang mga kaloob; at siya'y natira ng gabing yaon sa pulutong.

22 At siya'y bumangon ng gabing yaon, at isinama niya ang kaniyang dalawang asawa, at ang kaniyang dalawang alilang babae, at ang kaniyang labing isang anak at tumawid sa tawiran ng Jaboc.

23 At sila'y kaniyang isinama at itinawid sa batis, at kaniyang itinawid ang kaniyang tinatangkilik.

24 At naiwang magisa si Jacob: at nakipagbuno ang isang lalake sa kaniya, hanggang sa magbukang liwayway.

25 At nang makita nitong siya'y hindi manaig sa kaniya ay hinipo ang kasukasuan ng hita niya; at ang kasukasuan ni Jacob ay sinaktan samantalang nakikipagbuno sa kaniya.

26 At sinabi, Bitawan mo ako, sapagka't nagbubukang liwayway na. At kaniyang sinabi, Hindi kita bibitawan hanggang hindi mo ako mabasbasan.

27 At sinabi niya sa kaniya, Ano ang pangalan mo? At kaniyang sinabi, Jacob.

28 At sinabi niya, Hindi na tatawaging Jacob ang iyong pangalan, kundi Israel; sapagka't ikaw ay nakipagpunyagi sa Dios at sa mga tao, at ikaw ay nanaig.

29 At siya'y tinanong ni Jacob, at sinabi, Ipinamamanhik ko sa iyong sabihin mo sa akin ang iyong pangalan. At kaniyang sinabi, Bakit nagtatanong ka ng aking pangalan? At siya'y binasbasan doon.

30 At tinawag ni Jacob ang pangalan ng dakong yaon na Peniel; sapagka't aniya'y nakita ko ang Dios ng mukhaan, at naligtas ang aking buhay.

31 At sinikatan siya ng araw ng siya'y nagdadaan sa Penuel; at siya'y napipilay sa hita niya.

32 Kaya't hindi kumakain ang mga anak ni Israel ng litid ng balakang na nasa kasukasuan ng hita, hanggang ngayon: sapagka't hinipo ng taong yaon ang kasukasuan ng hita ni Jacob, sa litid ng pigi.

   

From Swedenborg's Works

 

Arcana Coelestia #3974

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3974. 'Give me my womenfolk' means that the affections for truth belonged to that natural, 'and my children' means as did the truths born from those affections. This is clear from the meaning of 'womenfolk' or 'wives' as affections for truth - his wife 'Leah' meaning the affection for external truth, and 'Rachel' the affection for internal truth, both dealt with often above; and from the meaning of 'children' as truths born from those affections. For 'sons' means truths, 489, 491, 533, 1147, 2623, 3373, and the children born of the womenfolk truths that spring from those affections.

It was a regulation among the Ancients that women given to slaves belonged to the master with whom they served, and so did the children born from them, as may be seen in Moses,

If you buy a Hebrew slave he shall serve for six years; and in the seventh he shall go out free, for nothing. If his master has given him a wife and she has borne him sons or daughters, the wife and her children shall belong to her master, and he shall go out by himself. 1 Exodus 21:2, 4.

It was because this was also a regulation in the Ancient Church and was therefore well known to Laban that he laid claim to Jacob's wives and children, as is evident in the next chapter,

Laban said to Jacob, The daughters are my daughters, and the sons are my sons, and the flock is my flock, and all that you see belongs to me. Genesis 31:43.

And because Jacob knows this he says to Laban, 'Give me my womenfolk and my children'. But this regulation as stated in Moses in the verses quoted above represented the right of the internal or rational man to the goods and truths of the external or natural man which the latter has obtained for itself. For a slave represented the truth of the natural man as that truth exists at first before genuine truths are instilled. The truth which is present at first is not truth but the outward appearance of it. Nevertheless it serves as the means by which genuine truths and goods are introduced, as has been shown already. For this reason once goods and truths have been instilled through that truth present at first, that is, through the service it renders, it is dispensed with, but the genuine truths obtained in that way are retained. It was for the sake of this representation that this law about slaves was laid down.

[2] But as for Jacob, he was not a slave who had been purchased, but a man from a more distinguished family than Laban. He himself - that is to say, Jacob - purchased Laban's daughters, and so also the children by them, through the service he rendered; for they were his instead of wages. Consequently Laban's assumptions concerning them were not correct. Furthermore 'a Hebrew slave' means the truth which serves to introduce genuine goods and truths, and his wife the affection for natural good. But Jacob's position was different from that of a slave. He represented the good of natural truth, and his wives the affections for truth. Nor does Laban have the same representation as the master in the law that has been quoted relating to a Hebrew slave. That is to say, he does not represent the rational, but a parallel good, 3612, 3665, 3778, which is such that it is not genuine good but the outward appearance of the genuine, serving to introduce truths, 3665, 3690, which were accordingly 'Jacob's'.

[3] These details which have been presented are indeed such as fall within the mental grasp of none but a very few, for most people do not know what the truth and good of the natural are, and that these are different from the truth and good of the rational. Still less do they know that goods and truths which are not genuine but only so to external appearance serve to introduce genuine truths and goods, especially at the outset of regeneration. All the same, as these details are contained in the internal sense of these words, and also in the internal sense of those that follow concerning Laban's flock from which Jacob obtained a flock for himself, they ought not to be passed over in silence. There will perhaps be some who grasp them. Any who have a strong desire to know such things, that is, who are stirred by an affection for spiritual good and truth, receive enlightenment in such matters.

Footnotes:

1. literally, with his own body

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