The Bible

 

Ezekiel 1:9

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9 joining one unto another [are] their wings, they turn not round in their going, each straight forward they go.

Commentary

 

#161 Seven More Breaches: Understanding Problems with Scripture

By Jonathan S. Rose

Title: Seven Other Breaches

Topic: Second Coming

Summary: We look at seven more issues that people can perceive as major problems with Scripture; and we look at the Divine remedy that heals all breaches.

Use the reference links below to follow along in the Bible as you watch.

References:
Exodus 17:14-16
Deuteronomy 7:6
1 Samuel 15:2-3
Nehemiah 13:23-25
1 Kings 8:63
1 Chronicles 29:21
Ezekiel 1:4-10
Revelation 4:7-8; 22:1-2
Leviticus 10:1
Numbers 16:29
1 Samuel 14:34
Exodus 32:9-end
Nahum 1:1
Judges 4:21
2 Kings 19:35
Judges 3:21-22
Psalms 137:8; 68:1-2
Deuteronomy 28:53-57
John 19:23
Revelation 19:11

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Spirit and Life Bible Study broadcast from 11/20/2013. The complete series is available at: www.spiritandlifebiblestudy.com

From Swedenborg's Works

 

Arcana Coelestia #9230

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9230. 'And you shall not eat flesh torn in the field' means that falsified good of faith must not be joined [to oneself]. This is clear from the meaning of 'flesh' as good, dealt with in 7850, 9127; from the meaning of 'the field' as the Church in respect of good, thus the Church's good, dealt with in 2971, 3766, 7502, 7571, 9139, 9141; from the meaning of 'torn' as something destroyed by falsities, thus also something falsified, dealt with in 5828; and from the meaning of 'eating' as making one's own and joining [to oneself], dealt with in 2187, 3168, 3513 (end), 3596, 4745, 5643, 8001. From these meanings it is evident that 'you shall not eat flesh torn in the field' means that the Church's good, or the good of faith, if it has been falsified, is not to be made one's own or joined [to oneself].

[2] A brief statement must be made here about what the good of faith is and what the truth of faith is. The good of faith is a term that denotes everything of the Church that has to do with life and service inspired by teachings of the Church that compose its faith, in short, everything that has to do with willing those things and doing them in a spirit of obedience; for the Church's truths of faith become, through people's willing them and doing them, forms of good. But the truth of faith is a term that denotes everything which does not as yet have useful service as its end in view or does not exist for the sake of its use in life. Consequently it is something a person comes to know and retain in the memory, then grasps with his understanding, and goes on to teach. As long as the Church's truths go no further than the understanding they are merely items of knowledge and known facts, and in contrast to forms of good stand outside the person himself. For the human memory and understanding are like the hall outside a room, and the will is so to speak the actual room, the will being the person himself. This shows what the truth of faith is and what the good of faith is. But the good that a person does in the first state, while he is being regenerated, is called the good of faith, whereas the good that he does in the second state, which is when he has been regenerated, is called the good of charity. When therefore a person doing good is governed by the good of faith, he does good in a spirit of obedience; but when someone doing good is governed by the good of charity, he does good out of affection. Regarding those two states with a person who is being regenerated, see 7923, 7992, 8505, 8506, 8510, 8512, 8516, 8643, 8648, 8658, 8685, 8690, 8701, 9224, 9227.

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