De Bijbel

 

Ézéchiel 41:21

Studie

       

21 Les poteaux du temple étaient carrés, et la face du sanctuaire avait le même aspect.

Commentaar

 

Two

  

The number "two" has two different meanings in the Bible. In most cases "two" indicates a joining together or unification. This is easy to see if we consider the conflicts we tend to have between our "hearts" and our "heads" -- between what we want and what we know. Our "hearts" tell us that we want pie with ice cream for dinner; our "heads" tell us we should have grilled chicken and salad. If we can bring those two together and actually want what's good for us, we'll be pretty happy. We're built that way -- with our emotions balanced against our intellect -- because the Lord is built that way. His essence is love itself, or Divine Love, the source of all caring, emotion and energy. It is expressed as Divine Wisdom, which gives form to that love and puts it to work, and is the source of all knowledge and reasoning. In His case the two aspects are always in conjunction, always in harmony. It's easy also to see how that duality is reflected throughout creation: plants and animals, food and drink, silver and gold. Most importantly, it's reflected in the two genders, with women representing love and men representing wisdom. That's the underlying reason why conjunction in marriage is such a holy thing. So when "two" is used in the Bible to indicate some sort of pairing or unity, it means a joining together. In rare cases, however, "two" is used more purely as a number. In these cases it stands for a profane or unholy state that comes before a holy one. This is because "three" represents a state of holiness and completion (Jesus, for instance, rose from the tomb on the third day), and "two" represents the state just before it.

Van Swedenborgs Werken

 

Scriptural Confirmations #54

  
/ 101  
  

54. 26. (In Hosea from beginning to end falsification is treated of, which is described by whoredom and Ephraim.)

[The sons of Israel shall abide many days: there shall be no king, no prince, no sacrifice, no image, no ephod, and no teraphim.] Then shall the sons of Israel return and seek Jehovah their God, and David their king, and come with fear to Jehovah, and to His goodness, in the last days (Hosea 3:4-5).

(I will return to my place, and they will seek Me in the morning (Hosea 5:15). Jehovah will revive us after three days, in the third day He will raise us up so that we shall live before Him; His going forth is prepared as the dawn (Hosea 6:2-3).)

(Woe unto them because they have wandered away from Me! destruction unto them! because they have transgressed, and I have redeemed them (Hosea 7:13).)

Devastation shall stand among thy people, there shall be laying waste, as in the day of battle (Hosea 10:14).

Ephraim feedeth on wind and followeth after the east wind, every day he increaseth lies and desolation, they make a covenant with the Assyrians, and oil is carried into Egypt (Hosea 12:2).

  
/ 101  
  

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