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From Swedenborg's Works

 

Precepts of the Decalog #1

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1. THE PRECEPTS OF THE DECALOGUE 1

After the The Last Judgment had been completed, a New Church meant by the New Jerusalem in the Revelation was promised.

1. Explain the whole of chapter 21. Then chapter 22:1-5.

2. Elsewhere in the Word, Jerusalem means the Church, as in the following places: 2

Isaiah 1:1, 4:4, 9:1.

2:2, 3:8, 5:3, 7:1, 10:10-12, 32, 22:10, 31:5, 33:20, 36:2, 7, 20, 37:10, 32, 40:2, 41:27, 44:26, 28, 52:1-2, 9, 62:1, 7, 64:10, 65:18, 66:10, 20.

27:13, 30:19.

2:3, 3:1.

4:3, 24:23, 28:14, 31:9, 65:19, 66:13.

5:3, 7:14, 22:21.

11:9, 51:17, 52:1-2, 62:6.

Daughter of Jerusalem: Lamentations 2:13, 15, Micah 4:8, Zephaniah 3:14, Zechariah 9:9.

Jeremiah 1:3, 15, 2:2, 3:17, 4:3, 10-11, 5:1, 6:1, 7:17, 34, 8:5, 9:11, 11:6, 13, 13:9, 14:2, 16, 17:19, 21, 26, 27, 19:7, 13, 22:19, 23:14, 15, 25:18, 26:18, 27:3, 20, 21, 31:2, 32:2, 44, 33:10, 13, 16, 34:19, 35:11, 36:9, 37:5, 12, 38:28, 39:8, 40:1, 44:2, 6, 9, 13, 17, 21, 51:50, 52:12, 13, 14.

4:16, 6:6, 34:1, 7, 19, 3:4.

27:18, 29:25, 34:8, 35:11.

24:1, 27:20, 29:1, 2, 4, 20.

4:5, 15:4, 34:6, 3:1, 3.

4:4, 8:1, 11:2, 9, 12-13, 13:13, 17:20, 25, 18:11, 19:3, 25:2, 32:32, 35:13, 17, 42:18.

4:14, 6:8, 13:27, 15:5, 52:29.

Lamentations 1:7, 8, 17, 2:10, 4:12.

Ezekiel 4:1, 7, 5:5, 8:3, 9:4, 8, 13:16, 14:22, 16:2-3, 17:12, 21:2, 20, 22, 22:19, 23:4, 33:21, 36:38.

24:2, 26:2.

4:16, 12:10.

11:15, 12:19, 15:6.

Daniel 1:1, 6:10, 9:2, 12, 16, 25.

5:2, 3, 9:7.Joel 3:1, 6, 16-17, 20.

Amos 2:5.

Obadiah 1:11, 20.

Micah 1:1, 5, 9, 12, 3:10, 12, 4:2.

Zechariah 1:12, 14, 16-17, 19, 2:2, 4, 12, 3:2, 7:7, 8:3-4, 8, 15, 12:2-3, 6, 14:4, 10-11, 17.

12:2, 9, 14:2, 12, 16.

14:8, 14, 9:10.

8:20, 12:6, 11, 14:21, 12:5, 7-8, 10, 13:1.

Malachi 3:4, 2:11.

Zephaniah 1:4, 12, 3:16.

Psalms 51:18, 79:1, 3, 122:3, 6, 125:2, 128:5, 137:6, 7, 147:12.

68:29, 135:21.

102:21, 116:19, 122:2, 137:5, 147:12.

3. Something about those matters which come before this in the Revelation - such as the dragon, the scarlet beast, and the destruction of them.

4. About the The Last Judgment. Already described, it is to be described further.

5. Why a New Church is established when the The Last Judgment has been completed.

6. Not before, to prevent holy things from being profaned.

7. It was promised at that time that the spiritual sense of the Word was to be disclosed; the The Doctrine of the New Jerusalem Regarding the Lord alone is the Word.

8. About His Coming at that time.

9. Therefore heaven has been opened to me.

II. It is now the end of the Church, and at the present time there are few that have any religion.

1. That the The Doctrine of the New Jerusalem Regarding the Lord is the only God Who rules heaven and earth, and therefore that God is One as to His person and essence, in Whom is the Trinity, is unknown; yet all religion is based upon knowledge of God, and upon the adoration and worship of Him.

2. That faith is nothing else but truth is unknown, nor is it known whether that which men call faith is the truth or not; take certain things from the small work 3 concerning the The Doctrine of the New Jerusalem Regarding the Lord.

Say what the faith of the present day is... then the degrees of justification; whether they are truths can be determined from what follows.

If this is indeed faith, there is no need of truths, nor of charity, nor even of any knowledge of them.

What charity is, is unknown.

Neither are evil and good known.

III. After death every man is still a man; he is then what his love is; and his love is that life which awaits everyone for ever.

1. Everybody is examined after death to reveal the nature of his love.

2. Every spirit is what his affection is.

3. The whole of heaven is divided into societies according to the variety in affections found there, and the whole of hell according to the variety in lusts.

4. The nature of man's affection and that of his thought are alike.

IV. The devil dwells with man in the evil, and the The Doctrine of the New Jerusalem Regarding the Lord in the good, things of his life.

V. Shunning evils is doing good, and this is religion itself.

1. Some things about combats and temptations.

2. Shunning evils involves nothing less than putting the devil to flight; in as much as a man does this, he is conjoined to the The Doctrine of the New Jerusalem Regarding the Lord and heaven is opened, and that for so long as he is not in hell.

VI. The man who is shunning evils because they are sins has faith; and the limits he reaches in shunning evils determines the amount of faith he has.

Some truths have to do with faith, others with life; in so far as the truths that have to do with life become part of one's life, truths that have to do with faith become part of one's faith, no more and no less.

Enumerate the truths that have to do with faith, which are otherwise matters of knowledge and are not faith.

About the Anglican Exhortation 4 before the Holy Supper, and also that of the Swedes: then from 'Impediments or Stumbling blocks of the Impenitent'. 5

Therefore there are two tables, and they are called a Covenant; in so far as one is done by man the second is laid open.

VII. The Ten Commandments of the Decalogue sum up all things of religion.

1. Further matters about the holiness of the Decalogue.

RECAPITULATION

A recapitulation on the seven articles; nobody can deny that they are religion itself.

Footnotes:

1. Editor's Note: This outline was drafted by Swedenborg, in Latin, in 1763. It wasn't published by Swedenborg, but has been published posthumously. Several English translations have been made, including one by John Chadwick in 1975, published by the Swedenborg Society in London. It is used here with their permission. This online version includes links to the Bible text, and to other texts of Swedenborg's works. It also includes some corrections to the scanned text of the 1975 translation. In addition, the editors for New Christian Bible Study Project editors have replaced Roman numbers with Arabic numbers, and have placed all footnotes at the end of the passage. Periods have been placed after numerals in numbered lists. The remaining footnotes were made by Dr. Chadwick.

2. i.e. DOCTRINA NOVAE HIEROSOLYMAE DE DOMINO which was being prepared at the same time, and was published in the same year as the work for which De Praeceptis Decalogi was an initial draft.

3. Nordenskjold omitted from his copy the Scripture references which follow. In the Autograph all have been carefully deleted except the heading Filia Hierosolymae and the titles Jeremias, Ezechiel, Daniel, Sacharias, Zephanias, and David.

4. See Doctrine of Life 5, True Christian Religion 772, Apocalypse Explained 250[4], 885[3], for quotations from this 'Exhortation'.

5. See Divine Providence 258[5], Apocalypse Explained 885[5] for quotations from this Appendix to the Lutheran Psalm Book. The Appendix was omitted from the revised edition of the latter published in 1819, and from subsequent editions.

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

The Bible

 

Isaiah 36:2

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2 And the king of Assyria sent Rabshakeh from Lachish to Jerusalem unto king Hezekiah with a great army. And he stood by the conduit of the upper pool in the highway of the fuller's field.

The Bible

 

Isaiah 66

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1 Thus says Yahweh, "Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool: what kind of house will you build to me? and what place shall be my rest?

2 For all these things has my hand made, and [so] all these things came to be," says Yahweh: "but to this man will I look, even to him who is poor and of a contrite spirit, and who trembles at my word.

3 He who kills an ox is as he who kills a man; he who sacrifices a lamb, as he who breaks a dog's neck; he who offers an offering, [as he who offers] pig's blood; he who burns frankincense, as he who blesses an idol. Yes, they have chosen their own ways, and their soul delights in their abominations:

4 I also will choose their delusions, and will bring their fears on them; because when I called, none did answer; when I spoke, they did not hear: but they did that which was evil in my eyes, and chose that in which I didn't delight."

5 Hear the word of Yahweh, you who tremble at his word: "Your brothers who hate you, who cast you out for my name's sake, have said, 'Let Yahweh be glorified, that we may see your joy;' but it is those who shall be disappointed.

6 A voice of tumult from the city, a voice from the temple, a voice of Yahweh that renders recompense to his enemies.

7 "Before she travailed, she brought forth; before her pain came, she delivered a son.

8 Who has heard such a thing? who has seen such things? Shall a land be born in one day? shall a nation be brought forth at once? for as soon as Zion travailed, she brought forth her children.

9 Shall I bring to the birth, and not cause to bring forth?" says Yahweh: "shall I who cause to bring forth shut [the womb]?" says your God.

10 "Rejoice with Jerusalem, and be glad for her, all you who love her: Rejoice for joy with her, all you who mourn over her;

11 that you may nurse and be satisfied at the comforting breasts; that you may drink deeply, and be delighted with the abundance of her glory."

12 For thus says Yahweh, "Behold, I will extend peace to her like a river, and the glory of the nations like an overflowing stream: and you will nurse. You will be carried on her side, and will be dandled on her knees.

13 As one whom his mother comforts, so will I comfort you; and you will be comforted in Jerusalem."

14 You will see [it], and your heart shall rejoice, and your bones shall flourish like the tender grass: and the hand of Yahweh shall be known toward his servants; and he will have indignation against his enemies.

15 For, behold, Yahweh will come with fire, and his chariots shall be like the whirlwind; to render his anger with fierceness, and his rebuke with flames of fire.

16 For by fire will Yahweh execute judgment, and by his sword, on all flesh; and the slain of Yahweh shall be many.

17 "Those who sanctify themselves and purify themselves [to go] to the gardens, behind one in the midst, eating pig's flesh, and the abomination, and the mouse, they shall come to an end together," says Yahweh.

18 "For I [know] their works and their thoughts: [the time] comes, that I will gather all nations and languages; and they shall come, and shall see my glory.

19 "I will set a sign among them, and I will send such as escape of them to the nations, to Tarshish, Pul, and Lud, who draw the bow, to Tubal and Javan, to the islands afar off, who have not heard my fame, neither have seen my glory; and they shall declare my glory among the nations.

20 They shall bring all your brothers out of all the nations for an offering to Yahweh, on horses, and in chariots, and in litters, and on mules, and on dromedaries, to my holy mountain Jerusalem, says Yahweh, as the children of Israel bring their offering in a clean vessel into the house of Yahweh.

21 Of them also will I take for priests [and] for Levites," says Yahweh.

22 "For as the new heavens and the new earth, which I will make, shall remain before me," says Yahweh, "so your seed and your name shall remain.

23 It shall happen, that from one new moon to another, and from one Sabbath to another, shall all flesh come to worship before me," says Yahweh.

24 "They shall go forth, and look on the dead bodies of the men who have transgressed against me: for their worm shall not die, neither shall their fire be quenched; and they will be loathsome to all mankind."

   

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