The Bible

 

Ezekiel 8

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1 And it came to pass in the sixth year, in the sixth month, in the fifth day of the month, as I sat in my house, and the elders of Judah sat before me, that the hand of the Lord GOD fell there upon me.

2 Then I beheld, and lo a likeness as the appearance of fire: from the appearance of his loins even downward, fire; and from his loins even upward, as the appearance of brightness, as the color of amber.

3 And he put forth the form of a hand, and took me by a lock of my head; and the spirit lifted me up between the earth and the heaven, and brought me in the visions of God to Jerusalem, to the door of the inner gate that looketh towards the north; where was the seat of the image of jealousy, which provoketh to jealousy.

4 And behold, the glory of the God of Israel was there, according to the vision that I saw in the plain.

5 Then said he to me, Son of man, lift up thy eyes now the way towards the north. So I lifted up my eyes the way towards the north, and behold northward at the gate of the altar this image of jealousy in the entry.

6 He said furthermore to me, Son of man, seest thou what they do? even the great abominations that the house of Israel committeth here, that I should withdraw from my sanctuary? but turn thee yet again, and thou shalt see greater abominations.

7 And he brought me to the door of the court; and when I looked, behold a hole in the wall.

8 Then said he to me, Son of man, dig now in the wall: and when I had digged in the wall, behold a door.

9 And he said to me, Go in, and behold the wicked abominations that they do here.

10 So I went in and saw; and behold every form of creeping animals, and abominable beasts, and all the idols of the house of Israel, portrayed around upon the wall.

11 And there stood before them seventy men of the elders of the house of Israel, and in the midst of them stood Jaazaniah the son of Shaphan, with every man his censer in his hand; and a thick cloud of incense went up.

12 Then said he to me, Son of man, hast thou seen what the elders of the house of Israel do in the dark, every man in the chambers of his imagery? for they say, The LORD seeth us not; The LORD hath forsaken the earth.

13 He said also to me, Turn thee yet again, and thou shalt see greater abominations that they do.

14 Then he brought me to the door of the gate of the LORD'S house which was towards the north; and behold, there sat women weeping for Tammuz.

15 Then said he to me, Hast thou seen this, O son of man? turn thee yet again, and thou shalt see greater abominations than these.

16 And he brought me into the inner court of the LORD'S house, and behold, at the door of the temple of the LORD, between the porch and the altar, were about five and twenty men, with their backs towards the temple of the LORD, and their faces towards the east; and they worshiped the sun towards the east.

17 Then he said to me, Hast thou seen this, O son of man? Is it a light thing to the house of Judah that they commit the abominations which they commit here? for they have filled the land with violence, and have returned to provoke me to anger: and lo, they put the branch to their nose.

18 Therefore will I also deal in fury: my eye shall not spare, neither will I have pity: and though they cry in my ears with a loud voice, yet I will not hear them.

   

From Swedenborg's Works

 

Arcana Coelestia #5694

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5694. 'And he went to his bedchamber and wept there' means within itself, in an unseen manner. This is clear from the meaning of 'going to one's bedchamber' as within oneself, in an unseen manner. To say someone was 'entering his bedchamber' and also 'shutting the door' was a commonplace expression which the ancients used when they meant an action that should remain unseen. The expression had its origin in the meaningful signs which existed in the Ancient Church. For they would speak of 'the house', which they used in a spiritual sense to mean a person, 3128, and of its 'chambers' and 'bedchambers to mean the person's interiors. This is the reason why 'going to (or entering) one's bedchamber' meant within oneself, consequently so that one could not be seen. And since 'entering one's bedchamber' had this particular meaning, the expression is used in various places in the Word; as in Isaiah,

Go away, my people, enter your bedchambers, and shut your door behind you. Hide yourself, so to speak, for a little moment, until the anger passes over. Isaiah 26:20.

Quite clearly 'entering bedchambers' does not in this case mean entering bedchambers but keeping out of sight and within oneself.

[2] In Ezekiel,

He said to me, Have you not seen, son of man, what the elders of the house of Israel are doing in the dark, each in the chambers of his own idol? For they say, Jehovah does not see us. Ezekiel 8:12.

'Doing in the dark, each in the chambers of his own idol' stands for within themselves inwardly, in their thoughts. The interior aspects of their thought and affection were being represented to the prophet by means of 'chambers', and they were called 'the chambers of an idol'.

[3] In Moses,

Outside the sword will bereave - and out of the chambers terror - both young man and virgin, suckling together with a man in old age. Deuteronomy 32:15.

'The sword' stands for the vastation of truth and the punishment of falsity, 2799. 'Out of the chambers terror' stands for a person's interiors; for here too it is self-evident that one should not take 'the chambers' to mean chambers.

[4] In David,

He waters the mountains from His chambers. Psalms 104:13.

In the spiritual sense 'watering the mountains' is blessing those in whom love to the Lord and love towards the neighbour are present. For 'a mountain' means the celestial element of love, see 795, 1430, 4210, and therefore 'from His chambers' means from the interior parts of heaven. In Luke,

Whatever you have said in the dark will be heard in the light; and what you have spoken in the ear in bedchambers will be proclaimed on the housetops. Luke 12:3.

Here also 'bedchambers' stands for a person's interiors - what he has thought, what he has intended, and what he has mulled over. In Matthew,

When you pray, enter your bedchamber, and shut your door, and pray in secret. Matthew 6:6.

'Entering one's bedchamber and praying' stands for acting in an unseen manner; for these words had their origin in things of a representative nature.

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

The Bible

 

Matthew 6

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1 "Be careful that you don't do your charitable giving before men, to be seen by them, or else you have no reward from your Father who is in heaven.

2 Therefore when you do merciful deeds, don't sound a trumpet before yourself, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may get glory from men. Most certainly I tell you, they have received their reward.

3 But when you do merciful deeds, don't let your left hand know what your right hand does,

4 so that your merciful deeds may be in secret, then your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.

5 "When you pray, you shall not be as the hypocrites, for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen by men. Most certainly, I tell you, they have received their reward.

6 But you, when you pray, enter into your inner room, and having shut your door, pray to your Father who is in secret, and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly.

7 In praying, don't use vain repetitions, as the Gentiles do; for they think that they will be heard for their much speaking.

8 Therefore don't be like them, for your Father knows what things you need, before you ask him.

9 Pray like this: 'Our Father in heaven, may your name be kept holy.

10 Let your Kingdom come. Let your will be done, as in heaven, so on earth.

11 Give us today our daily bread.

12 Forgive us our debts, as we also forgive our debtors.

13 Bring us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. For yours is the Kingdom, the power, and the glory forever. Amen.'

14 "For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.

15 But if you don't forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.

16 "Moreover when you fast, don't be like the hypocrites, with sad faces. For they disfigure their faces, that they may be seen by men to be fasting. Most certainly I tell you, they have received their reward.

17 But you, when you fast, anoint your head, and wash your face;

18 so that you are not seen by men to be fasting, but by your Father who is in secret, and your Father, who sees in secret, will reward you.

19 "Don't lay up treasures for yourselves on the earth, where moth and rust consume, and where thieves break through and steal;

20 but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust consume, and where thieves don't break through and steal;

21 for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

22 "The lamp of the body is the eye. If therefore your eye is sound, your whole body will be full of light.

23 But if your eye is evil, your whole body will be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in you is darkness, how great is the darkness!

24 "No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other; or else he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You can't serve both God and Mammon.

25 Therefore, I tell you, don't be anxious for your life: what you will eat, or what you will drink; nor yet for your body, what you will wear. Isn't life more than food, and the body more than clothing?

26 See the birds of the sky, that they don't sow, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns. Your heavenly Father feeds them. Aren't you of much more value than they?

27 "Which of you, by being anxious, can add one moment to his lifespan?

28 Why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow. They don't toil, neither do they spin,

29 yet I tell you that even Solomon in all his glory was not dressed like one of these.

30 But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today exists, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, won't he much more clothe you, you of little faith?

31 "Therefore don't be anxious, saying, 'What will we eat?', 'What will we drink?' or, 'With what will we be clothed?'

32 For the Gentiles seek after all these things; for your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.

33 But seek first God's Kingdom, and his righteousness; and all these things will be given to you as well.

34 Therefore don't be anxious for tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Each day's own evil is sufficient.