The Bible

 

Genesis 6

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1 At nangyari, nang magpasimula na dumami ang mga tao sa balat ng lupa, at mangagkaanak ng mga babae,

2 Na nakita ng mga anak ng Dios, na magaganda ang mga anak na babae ng mga tao; at sila'y nangagsikuha ng kanikaniyang asawa sa lahat ng kanilang pinili.

3 At sinabi ng Panginoon, Ang aking Espiritu ay hindi makikipagpunyagi sa tao magpakailan man, sapagka't siya ma'y laman: gayon ma'y magiging isang daan at dalawang pung taon ang kaniyang mga araw.

4 Ang mga higante ay nasa lupa ng mga araw na yaon, at pagkatapos din naman na makasiping ang mga anak ng Dios sa mga anak na babae ng tao, at mangagkaanak sila sa kanila: ang mga ito rin ang naging makapangyarihan nang unang panahon na mga lalaking bantog.

5 At nakita ng Panginoon na mabigat ang kasamaan ng tao sa lupa, at ang buong haka ng mga pagiisip ng kaniyang puso ay pawang masama lamang na parati.

6 At nagsisi ang Panginoon na kaniyang nilalang ang tao sa lupa, at nalumbay sa kaniyang puso.

7 At sinabi ng Panginoon, Lilipulin ko ang tao na aking nilalang sa ibabaw ng lupa; ang tao at gayon din ang hayop, at ang mga umuusad at ang mga ibon sa himpapawid; sapagka't pinagsisisihan ko na aking nilalang sila.

8 Datapuwa't si Noe ay nakasumpong ng biyaya sa mga mata ng Panginoon.

9 Ito ang mga lahi ni Noe. Si Noe ay lalaking matuwid at sakdal noong kapanahunan niya: si Noe ay lumalakad na kasama ng Dios.

10 At nagkaanak si Noe ng tatlong lalake: si Sem, si Cham, at si Japhet.

11 At sumama ang lupa sa harap ng Dios, at ang lupa ay napuno ng karahasan.

12 At tiningnan ng Dios ang lupa, at, narito sumama; sapagka't pinasama ng lahat ng tao ang kanilang paglakad sa ibabaw ng lupa.

13 At sinabi ng Dios kay Noe, Ang wakas ng lahat ng tao ay dumating sa harap ko; sapagka't ang lupa ay napuno ng karahasan dahil sa kanila; at, narito, sila'y aking lilipuling kalakip ng lupa.

14 Gumawa ka ng isang sasakyang kahoy na gofer; gagawa ka ng mga silid sa sasakyan, at iyong sisiksikan sa loob at sa labas ng sahing.

15 At ganitong paraan gagawin mo: tatlong daang siko ang haba ng sasakyan, limang pung siko ang luwang, at tatlong pung siko ang taas.

16 Gagawa ka ng isang durungawan sa sasakyan; at wawakasan mo ng isang siko sa dakong itaas; at ang pintuan ng sasakyan ay ilalagay mo sa tagiliran; gagawin mong may lapag na lalong mababa, pangalawa at pangatlo.

17 At ako, narito, ako'y magpapadagsa ng isang baha ng tubig sa ibabaw ng lupa, upang lipulin sa silong ng langit ang lahat ng laman na may hininga ng buhay; ang lahat na nasa lupa ay mangamamatay.

18 Datapuwa't pagtitibayin ko ang aking tipan sa iyo; at ikaw ay lululan sa sasakyan, ikaw, at ang iyong mga anak na lalake, at ang iyong asawa, at ang mga asawa ng iyong mga anak na kasama mo.

19 At sa bawa't nangabubuhay, sa lahat ng laman ay maglululan ka sa loob ng sasakyan ng dalawa sa bawa't uri upang maingatan silang buhay, na kasama mo; lalake at babae ang kinakailangan.

20 Sa mga ibon ayon sa kanikanilang uri, at sa mga hayop ayon sa kanikanilang uri, sa bawa't nagsisiusad, ayon sa kanikanilang uri, dalawa sa bawa't uri, ay isasama mo sa iyo, upang maingatan silang buhay.

21 At magbaon ka ng lahat na pagkain na kinakain, at imbakin mo sa iyo; at magiging pagkain mo at nila.

22 Gayon ginawa ni Noe; ayon sa lahat na iniutos sa kaniya ng Dios, ay gayon ang ginawa niya.

   

From Swedenborg's Works

 

Apocalypse Revealed #748

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748. "And eat her flesh and burn her with fire." This symbolically means that Protestants will with hatred condemn and destroy in themselves the evils and falsities inherent in the Roman Catholic religion, and will renounce the religion itself and expunge it in themselves.

This is said of Protestants, who will deal thus with the harlot, that is, with the Roman Catholic religion. To eat her flesh means, symbolically, with hatred to condemn and destroy in themselves the inherent characteristics of that religion, which are evils and falsities, about which we will say more below. And to burn her with fire means, symbolically, to renounce that religion as profane and expunge it in themselves.

This is what burning with fire means because the penalty for profaning something holy was burning. Therefore, according to Divine law, people who profaned the name of Jehovah by worshiping other gods were burned with fire - they and all their belongings (Deuteronomy 13:12-18). Therefore Moses burned with fire the golden calf that the children of Israel were profanely worshiping (Exodus 32:20, Deuteronomy 9:21). Moreover, because two of Aaron's sons profaned holy things, they were consumed by fire from heaven (Leviticus 10:1-6). Nor is anything else symbolized by the fire and pyre in Tophet but the fire of hell, which awaits those who profane holy things (Isaiah 30:33, Jeremiah 7:11, 31-32; 19:5-6, 2 Kings 23:10), for there the people worshiped Molech with a heinous sacrifice. 1

[2] Since the fourth beast in Daniel 7 symbolizes a religion that profanes the Word and consequently the sanctities of the church (no. 717), therefore we are told that it was burned with fire (Daniel 7:11).

Now, because it is profane worship to worship a person instead of the Lord, we are accordingly told here that they burnt the harlot with fire, which symbolically means that they renounced the religion itself and expunged it in themselves.

To eat her flesh means, symbolically, with hatred to condemn and destroy in themselves the inherent characteristics of that religion, which are evils and falsities, because that is the symbolic meaning of eating her flesh. For flesh symbolizes the inherent characteristics of a thing which relate to goods and truths, and in an opposite sense, to evils and falsities, and to eat means, symbolically, to consume, thus to destroy.

That flesh symbolizes a person's inherent character, which in itself is evil, is clear from the following passages:

It is the spirit that gives life; the flesh profits nothing. (John 6:63)

That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. (John 3:6)

As many as received Him, to them He gave the right to be children of God...: who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh... (John 1:12-13)

(God) remembered that they were flesh, a breath that passes away and does not come again. (Psalms 78:39)

The Egyptians are men, and not God; and their horses are flesh, and not spirit. (Isaiah 31:3)

(Jerusalem) committed harlotry with the Egyptians..., great of flesh. (Ezekiel 16:26)

Jesus... said to (Peter), ."..flesh and blood has not revealed this to you...." (Matthew 16:17)

Cursed is the man who trusts in man and makes flesh his arm... (Jeremiah 17:5)

[3] Because flesh symbolizes a person's inherent character, and people who hate others attack their personal character with the intention of destroying it, therefore to eat the flesh has also this symbolic meaning, as in the following passages:

Let the dying die, and the cut off be cut off. Those that are left eat each other's flesh. (Zechariah 11:9)

They shall devour Israel with the whole mouth... Every man shall eat the flesh of his own arm - Manasseh, Ephraim, and Ephraim, Manasseh. (Isaiah 9:12, 20-21)

I will feed those who oppress you with their own flesh... (Isaiah 49:26)

...everyone shall eat the flesh of his friend... (Jeremiah 19:9)

To eat the flesh of sons and daughters (Jeremiah 19:9, Leviticus 26:29, Deuteronomy 28:53) means, symbolically, to destroy truths and goods in oneself, for sons symbolize truths, and daughters goods, as may be seen in nos. 139, 543, 545, 612[1-4] above.

Moreover, in the Word we find reference to "all flesh," and this symbolically means all mankind (Genesis 6:12-13, 17, 19).

Footnotes:

1. The heinous sacrifice consisted of "passing infants through the fire to Molech," by burning them alive on a sacrificial altar. Vestiges of this worship have been found elsewhere, as far as northern Africa. Tophet was a site in the valley of Hinnom at the foot of Mount Zion on the south side. Because of the nature of its worship, the valley of Hinnon (Ge' Hinnom = Gehenna) became synonymous with Hades or hell.

  
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Many thanks to the General Church of the New Jerusalem, and to Rev. N.B. Rogers, translator, for the permission to use this translation.