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Genesis 4

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1 And the man knew Eve his wife, and she conceiveth and beareth Cain, and saith, `I have gotten a man by Jehovah;'

2 and she addeth to bear his brother, even Abel. And Abel is feeding a flock, and Cain hath been servant of the ground.

3 And it cometh to pass at the end of days that Cain bringeth from the fruit of the ground a present to Jehovah;

4 and Abel, he hath brought, he also, from the female firstlings of his flock, even from their fat ones; and Jehovah looketh unto Abel and unto his present,

5 and unto Cain and unto his present He hath not looked; and it is very displeasing to Cain, and his countenance is fallen.

6 And Jehovah saith unto Cain, `Why hast thou displeasure? and Why hath thy countenance fallen?

7 Is there not, if thou dost well, acceptance? and if thou dost not well, at the opening a sin-offering is crouching, and unto thee its desire, and thou rulest over it.'

8 And Cain saith unto Abel his brother, [`Let us go into the field;'] and it cometh to pass in their being in the field, that Cain riseth up against Abel his brother, and slayeth him.

9 And Jehovah saith unto Cain, `Where [is] Abel thy brother?' and he saith, `I have not known; my brother's keeper -- I?'

10 And He saith, `What hast thou done? the voice of thy brother's blood is crying unto Me from the ground;

11 and now, cursed [art] thou from the ground, which hath opened her mouth to receive the blood of thy brother from thy hand;

12 when thou tillest the ground, it doth not add to give its strength to thee -- a wanderer, even a trembling one, thou art in the earth.'

13 And Cain saith unto Jehovah, `Greater is my punishment than to be borne;

14 lo, Thou hast driven me to-day from off the face of the ground, and from Thy face I am hid; and I have been a wanderer, even a trembling one, in the earth, and it hath been -- every one finding me doth slay me.'

15 And Jehovah saith to him, `Therefore -- of any slayer of Cain sevenfold it is required;' and Jehovah setteth to Cain a token that none finding him doth slay him.

16 And Cain goeth out from before Jehovah, and dwelleth in the land, moving about east of Eden;

17 and Cain knoweth his wife, and she conceiveth, and beareth Enoch; and he is building a city, and he calleth the name of the city, according to the name of his son -- Enoch.

18 And born to Enoch is Irad; and Irad hath begotten Mehujael; and Mehujael hath begotten Methusael; and Methusael hath begotten Lamech.

19 And Lamech taketh to himself two wives, the name of the one Adah, and the name of the second Zillah.

20 And Adah beareth Jabal, he hath been father of those inhabiting tents and purchased possessions;

21 and the name of his brother [is] Jubal, he hath been father of every one handling harp and organ.

22 And Zillah she also bare Tubal-Cain, an instructor of every artificer in brass and iron; and a sister of Tubal-Cain [is] Naamah.

23 And Lamech saith to his wives: -- `Adah and Zillah, hear my voice; wives of Lamech, give ear [to] my saying: For a man I have slain for my wound, Even a young man for my hurt;

24 For sevenfold is required for Cain, And for Lamech seventy and sevenfold.'

25 And Adam again knoweth his wife, and she beareth a son, and calleth his name Seth, `for God hath appointed for me another seed instead of Abel:' for Cain had slain him.

26 And to Seth, to him also a son hath been born, and he calleth his name Enos; then a beginning was made of preaching in the name of Jehovah.

   

From Swedenborg's Works

 

Arcana Coelestia #353

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353. By “fat” is signified the celestial itself, which is also of the Lord. The celestial is all that which is of love. Faith also is celestial when it is from love. Charity is the celestial. All the good of charity is the celestial. All these were represented by the various kinds of fat in the sacrifices, and distinctively by that which covered the liver, or the caul; by the fat upon the kidneys; by the fat covering the intestines, and upon the intestines; which were holy, and were offered up as burnt-offerings upon the altar (Exodus 29:13, 22; Leviticus 3:3-4, 14; 4:8-9, 19, 26, 31, 35; 8:16, 25). They were therefore called the “bread of the offering by fire for a rest unto Jehovah” (Leviticus 3:14, 16). For the same reason the Jewish people were forbidden to eat any of the fat of the beasts by what is called “a perpetual statute throughout your generations” (Leviticus 3:17; 7:23, 25). This was because that church was such that it did not even acknowledge internal, much less celestial things.

[2] That “fat” signifies celestial things, and the goods of charity, is evident in the Prophets; as in Isaiah:

in Isaiah:

Wherefore do ye weigh silver for that which is not bread? and your labor for that which satisfieth not? Attend ye diligently unto Me, and eat ye that which is good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness (Isaiah 55:2).

And in Jeremiah:

I will fill the soul of the priests with fatness, and My people shall be satiated with My good (Jeremiah 31:14),

where it is very evident that fatness is not meant, but celestial spiritual good. So in David:

They are filled with the fatness of Thy house, and Thou makest them drink of the river of Thy deliciousnesses. For with Thee is the fountain of lives; in Thy light we see light (Psalms 36:8-9).Here “fatness” and the “fountain of lives” signify the celestial, which is of love; and the “river of deliciousnesses” and “light” the spiritual, which is of faith from love. Again in David:

My soul shall be satiated with marrow and fatness, and my mouth shall praise Thee with lips of songs (Psalms 63:5),

where in like manner “fat” denotes the celestial, and “lips of songs” the spiritual. That it is what is celestial is very evident, because it will satiate the soul. For the same reason the first fruits, which were the firstborn of the earth, are called “fat” (Numbers 18:12).

[3] As celestial things are of innumerable genera, and still more innumerable species, they are described in general in the song which Moses recited before the people:

Butter of kine, and milk of the flock, with fat of lambs and of rams, the sons of Bashan, and of goats, with the fat of the kidneys of wheat; and thou shalt drink the blood of the grape, unmixed (Deuteronomy 32:14).

It is impossible for anyone to know the signification of these expressions except from the internal sense. Without the internal sense, such expressions as the “butter of kine” the “milk of sheep” the “fat of lambs” the “fat of rams and goats” the “sons of Bashan” the “fat of the kidneys of wheat” and the “blood of the grape” would be words and nothing more, and yet they all and each signify genera and species of celestial things.

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