The Bible

 

Genesis 16:12

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12 and he is a wild-ass man, his hand against every one, and every one's hand against him -- and before the face of all his brethren he dwelleth.'

From Swedenborg's Works

 

Arcana Coelestia #1917

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1917. 'May Jehovah judge between me and you!' means the Lord's righteous anger. This is clear from what has just been stated, and so is clear without explanation. Nobody can gain a fuller grasp of these matters except people who have experienced conflicts brought about by temptations. Temptations bring states of vastation and desolation, states of despair, and consequently of grief and anger, in addition to other inward painful emotions. These things occur varyingly and alternatingly according to the states of evil and falsity which evil genii and spirits arouse and against which conflict takes place. Devilish spirits like nothing better than to discover some falsity; indeed it is quite common for them to introduce a falsity from themselves into a person, and then at the same time to charge him with possessing it. This was why the Lord's anger was so great, for within His first rational there was no falsity, but there was the appearance of truth which in itself was not true, as dealt with already in 1661, 1911 (end).

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