The Bible

 

Genesis 11

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1 Daɣ əddənet ket-net wər-itawašawal ar awal iyyanda.

2 Əmalan-tu aytedan ətagalatnen ad d-əhanen sas dənnəg, əgrawnen asalwa iyyan daɣ aṃadal ən Šinar, əɣsaran daɣ-as.

3 Ənamaṇṇan gar-essan: «Əndawat, ad-nagu bargitan, nassaŋŋ-en əs tamsay.» Əgan-tan daɣ adagg ən təhun, əgan kolta daɣ adagg ən talaq.

4 Təzzar əṇṇan: «Əndawat, əkrəsatanaɣ aɣrəm d ogga iḍḍasan ijənnawan, ilatanaɣ eṣəm ad wər nəwəziwəz fəl tasayt n aṃadal.»

5 Izzəbbad-du Əməli fəl ad-inəy aɣrəm d ogga win karrasan maddanəs n Adəm.

6 Təzzar iṇṇa Əməli: «Əntanay da əqqalan aɣrəf iyyanda, əššewalan awal iyyanda. Kud a wa da as əṣṣəntan wədi daɣ a ilkaman wər t-illa a dər z-əgmiyan arn-asan.

7 Əndawat, zabbatatana, ad-nəsənnəffəy awal-nasan fəl ad-ibas ətinəməsəsəgrin gar-essan.»

8 Den da a tan-izawwazawaz Əməli fəl tasayt n aṃadal kul, təzzar əzazzakken akaras n əɣrəm.

9 A di da fəl iga eṣəm Babel fəlas den da ad isannaffay Əməli awal ən maddanəs n Adəm, amaran den da tolas a tan izawwazawaz fəl tasayt n aṃadal.

10 Ənta da əzzurriya ən Šem: Šem iga ṭemeday n awatay as eraw Arfakšad, əššin elan dəffər əlwabil.

11 Šem iga ṣəmmosat ṭəmad n awatay dəffər təhut n Arfakšad, itaraw-du bararan əd təbararen.

12 Arfakšad as iga karadat təṃərwen n awatay əd ṣəmmos eraw Šela.

13 Arfakšad ig'əkkozat ṭəmad n awatay əd karad dəffər təhut ən Šela itaraw-du bararan əd təbararen.

14 Šela iga karadat təṃərwen n awatay as eraw Eber.

15 Šela ig'əkkozat ṭəmad n awatay əd karad dəffər təhut n Eber, itaraw-du bararan əd təbararen.

16 As iga Eber karadat təṃərwen n awatay d əkkoz eraw Feleg.

17 Eber iga əkkozat ṭəmad n awatay əd karadat təṃərwen dəffər təhut ən Feleg, itaraw-du bararan əd təbararen.

18 As iga Feleg karadat təṃərwen n awatay eraw Ru.

19 Feleg iga ṣanatat ṭəmad n awatay əd ṭaza dəffər təhut ən Ru, itaraw-du bararan əd təbararen.

20 As iga Ru karadat təṃərwen n awatay d əššin eraw Sərug.

21 Ru iga ṣanatat ṭəmad n awatay d əṣṣa dəffər təhut ən Sərug, itaraw-du bararan əd təbararen.

22 As iga Sərug karadat təṃərwen n awatay eraw Naxor.

23 Sərug iga ṣanatat ṭəmad n awatay dəffər təhut ən Naxor, itaraw-du bararan əd təbararen.

24 As iga Naxor ṣanatat təṃərwen n awatay əd ṭaza eraw Terax.

25 Naxor iga ṭemeday n awatay əd ṃaraw əd ṭaza dəffər təhut ən Terax, itaraw-du bararan əd təbararen.

26 As iga Terax əṣṣayat təṃərwen n awatay eraw Abram, Naxor əd Haran.

27 Ənta da əzzurriya ən Terax. Terax eraw Abram, Naxor, əd Haran. Haran eraw Lot.

28 Haran aba-tu dat ši-s daɣ akal wa daɣ ihu, daɣ əɣrəm n Ur wa n Kəl Kasday.

29 Abram əd Naxor əzlafan: Abram izlaf Saray, Naxor izlaf Milka, elles ən Haran, šis ən Milka əd Yiska.

30 Saray wər tətirəw, wər təla barar waliyyan.

31 Iddew Terax əd rur-es Abram d ahaya-nnet Lot ag Haran əd təḍaggalt-net Saray tanṭut ən rur-es Abram. Əg̣madan aɣrəm n Ur wa n kəl Kasday s akal ən Kanan. Əglan har oṣan aɣrəm ən Xaran, əɣsaran daɣ-as.

32 Taɣrəst ən Terax ṣanatat ṭəmad n awatay əd ṣəmmos, aba-tu daɣ Xaran.

   

From Swedenborg's Works

 

Arcana Coelestia #3778

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3778. 'And he said to them, Do you know Laban the son of Nahor?' means, Did they possess good from that stock? This is clear from the representation of 'Laban' as a parallel good springing from a common stock, dealt with in 3612, 3665, and from the representation of 'Nahor' as that common stock from which the good meant by 'Laban' springs - 'knowing' meaning, in the internal sense, from that source, as is evident from the train of thought. Let a brief statement be made about the representation of a parallel good by means of Nahor, Bethuel, and Laban. Terah who was the father of three sons - Abram, Nahor, and Haran, Genesis 11:27 - represents the common stock from which the Churches sprang. Terah himself was in fact an idolater, but representatives have no regard to the person, only to the actual subject represented by him, see 1361. And since the Jewish representative Church had its beginnings in Abraham and was re-established among his descendants from Jacob, Terah and his three sons take on the representation of Churches. Abram takes on the representation of the genuine Church as it exists among those who possess the Word, while Nahor his brother takes on that of the Church as it exists among gentiles who do not possess the Word. The Lord's Church is spread throughout the whole world, existing also among gentiles who lead charitable lives, as is evident from what has been shown in various places regarding the gentiles.

[2] This then is why Nahor, his son Bethuel, and Bethuel's son Laban represent a parallel good that springs from a common stock, that is, the good which exists with people who belong to the Lord's Church among the gentiles. This good differs from good coming in a direct line from the common stock, in that those gentiles do not have genuine truths which are joined to their good. Instead they have for the most part external appearances which are called illusions of the senses, for they do not possess the Word from which they may receive light. Actually good is in essence a single entity, but it acquires a specific character from the truths implanted in it and in this way is made various. The truths that are seen by gentiles as truths are in general the idea that they should worship some God from whom they seek their own good and to whom they attribute it - though they do not know so long as they live in this world that that God is the Lord; also the idea that they should adore their God under images which they hold sacred; besides many other ideas. But these ideas do not make it any less possible for them to be saved than for Christians, provided that they lead lives in which love to their God and love towards the neighbour are present. For by leading such lives they have the ability to receive interior truths in the next life, see 932, 1032, 1059, 2049, 2051, 2284, 2589-2604, 2861, 2863, 3263. This shows what is meant by a parallel good that springs from a common stock. For Nahor represents those outside the Church who by virtue of good are bound together as brethren, see 2863, 2864, 2868; Bethuel represents good as it exists with those who make up a first group of gentiles, 2865, 3665; and Laban represents the affection for external or bodily good, strictly speaking a parallel good springing from a common stock, 3612, 3665.

[3] This good is such that first of all it serves a person as a means for acquiring spiritual good, for it is external and bodily and derives from external appearances which in themselves are illusions of the senses. In childhood a person acknowledges nothing other than these as truth and good, and although taught what internal good and truth are he still has no more than a bodily concept of it. This being his concept at first, this kind of good and truth is the initial means by which interior truths and goods are brought in. This is the arcanum which Jacob and Laban represent here.

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

From Swedenborg's Works

 

Arcana Coelestia #661

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661. 'To destroy all flesh in which there is the spirit of life 1 [from] under the heavens' means that all the descendants of the Most Ancient Church would destroy themselves. This is clear from what has just been stated and also from the description of them given already to the effect that step by step they obtained by heredity from their forefathers a mental constitution that resulted in their being steeped more than anybody else in most dreadful persuasions. This came about chiefly because they plunged into their desires the doctrinal matters concerning faith which they had in their possession; and in so doing became such. The situation has been utterly different with people who have no doctrinal matters concerning faith in their possession and who live altogether in ignorance. They are incapable of doing the same, and so are incapable of profaning holy things, and in so doing of closing off the road for remnants. Consequently they are not capable of driving the Lord's angels away from themselves.

[2] As has been stated, remnants are all things of innocence, all those of charity, all those of mercy, and all those of the truth of faith, which a person has acquired from the Lord and learned since early childhood. Every single one of them lies stored away. And if a person did not acquire them, no innocence, charity, or mercy could possibly be present in his thinking and actions, and so no good and truth at all could be present. He would then be worse than any fierce monster, as he would also be if he did possess remnants of such things and yet so blocked their path with filthy desires and dreadful false persuasions that they could not do their work. Such was the nature of the people before the Flood who destroyed themselves and who are meant by 'all flesh in which there is the spirit of life 1 [from] under the heavens'. As shown already, 'flesh' means the whole of mankind in general and the bodily-minded man in particular. 'The spirit of life 1 ' means all life in general, but in a strict sense it was the life in people who had been regenerated. Here therefore the final descendants of the Most Ancient Church are meant. They are here called 'the spirit of life 1 ' or, as in Chapter 7:22 below, 'in whose nostrils is the breath of the spirit of life 1 ' because although no life of faith remained with them they nevertheless derived from their forefathers something of that Church's seed, which they stifled. 'Flesh under the heavens' means that which is merely bodily, 'the heavens' being things constituting man's understanding of truth and his will for good. When these have been separated from what is bodily, a person can stay alive no longer. That which sustains him is his conjunction with heaven, that is, with the Lord by way of heaven.

Footnotes:

1. literally, of lives.

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