The Bible

 

Genesis 5

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1 This [is] an account of the births of Adam: In the day of God's preparing man, in the likeness of God He hath made him;

2 a male and a female He hath prepared them, and He blesseth them, and calleth their name Man, in the day of their being prepared.

3 And Adam liveth an hundred and thirty years, and begetteth [a son] in his likeness, according to his image, and calleth his name Seth.

4 And the days of Adam after his begetting Seth are eight hundred years, and he begetteth sons and daughters.

5 And all the days of Adam which he lived are nine hundred and thirty years, and he dieth.

6 And Seth liveth an hundred and five years, and begetteth Enos.

7 And Seth liveth after his begetting Enos eight hundred and seven years, and begetteth sons and daughters.

8 And all the days of Seth are nine hundred and twelve years, and he dieth.

9 And Enos liveth ninety years, and begetteth Cainan.

10 And Enos liveth after his begetting Cainan eight hundred and fifteen years, and begetteth sons and daughters.

11 And all the days of Enos are nine hundred and five years, and he dieth.

12 And Cainan liveth seventy years, and begetteth Mahalaleel.

13 And Cainan liveth after his begetting Mahalaleel eight hundred and forty years, and begetteth sons and daughters.

14 And all the days of Cainan are nine hundred and ten years, and he dieth.

15 And Mahalaleel liveth five and sixty years, and begetteth Jared.

16 And Mahalaleel liveth after his begetting Jared eight hundred and thirty years, and begetteth sons and daughters.

17 And all the days of Mahalaleel are eight hundred and ninety and five years, and he dieth.

18 And Jared liveth an hundred and sixty and two years, and begetteth Enoch.

19 And Jared liveth after his begetting Enoch eight hundred years, and begetteth sons and daughters.

20 And all the days of Jared are nine hundred and sixty and two years, and he dieth.

21 And Enoch liveth five and sixty years, and begetteth Methuselah.

22 And Enoch walketh habitually with God after his begetting Methuselah three hundred years, and begetteth sons and daughters.

23 And all the days of Enoch are three hundred and sixty and five years.

24 And Enoch walketh habitually with God, and he is not, for God hath taken him.

25 And Methuselah liveth an hundred and eighty and seven years, and begetteth Lamech.

26 And Methuselah liveth after his begetting Lamech seven hundred and eighty and two years, and begetteth sons and daughters.

27 And all the days of Methuselah are nine hundred and sixty and nine years, and he dieth.

28 And Lamech liveth an hundred and eighty and two years, and begetteth a son,

29 and calleth his name Noah, saying, `This [one] doth comfort us concerning our work, and concerning the labour of our hands, because of the ground which Jehovah hath cursed.'

30 And Lamech liveth after his begetting Noah five hundred and ninety and five years, and begetteth sons and daughters.

31 And all the days of Lamech are seven hundred and seventy and seven years, and he dieth.

32 And Noah is a son of five hundred years, and Noah begetteth Shem, Ham, and Japheth.

   

From Swedenborg's Works

 

Arcana Coelestia #570

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570. The sons of God' means doctrinal matters concerning faith. This is clear from the meaning of 'sons', dealt with just above, and also from verse 4 of the previous chapter, where 'sons' meant the truths of the Church. Truths of the Church are matters of doctrine. These regarded in themselves were truths because those who are the subject here possessed them through what had been handed down to them from the most ancient people. It is for this reason that they are called 'the sons of God', and also because in relation to them evil desires are called 'the daughters of man'. Here it is describing the character of those people, that is to say, they were people who immersed the truths of the Church, which are holy, in their own desires, and in so doing polluted them, while at the same time confirming assumptions of which they were thoroughly persuaded. Anyone can judge what the situation must have been from what he finds in himself and in others. People who persuade themselves of any idea also confirm themselves in that idea by everything which they imagine to be the truth, including things in the Word of the Lord. For when people cling to the assumptions they have adopted and of which they are persuaded, they make everything favour and support them. And the more anyone loves himself, the more immovable he becomes. The character of those people will in the Lord's Divine mercy be described later on along with their dreadful persuasions, which are such that, miraculously, they are never allowed to flow in by their reasonings - for if they do they slay the entire rationality of other spirits present - but only from their evil desires. From this it is clear what the statement means about the sons of God seeing the daughters of man that they were fair, and their taking wives for themselves from all whom they chose, namely that they joined doctrinal matters concerning faith to evil desires, indeed to every such desire.

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