Van Swedenborgs Werken

 

Hemelse Verborgenheden in Genesis en Exodus #3019

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3019. Dat de woorden ‘Abraham zei tot zijn knecht, de oudste van zijn huis’ de ordening en de invloeiing van de Heer betekenen in Zijn natuurlijke, hetgeen ‘de knecht, de oudste van het huis’ is, blijkt uit de betekenis van ‘zeggen’ hier, te weten bevelen, aangezien het tot een knecht is gericht; en aangezien er gehandeld wordt over de rangschikking van de dingen die in de natuurlijke mens zijn door het Goddelijke, betekent ‘zeggen’ ordenen en invloeien, want al wat gedaan wordt in de natuurlijke of uiterlijke mens, wordt geordend door de redelijke of innerlijke mens en vindt plaats door invloeiing. Dat ‘de knecht, de oudste van het huis’ het natuurlijke of de natuurlijke mens is, kan blijken uit de betekenis van de knecht, namelijk dat wat lager is en het hogere dient, of wat hetzelfde is, wat meer uiterlijk is en dient wat innerlijker is, zie de nrs. 2541, 2567. Alle dingen die tot de natuurlijke mens behoren, zoals wetenschappelijke dingen van elke soort, zijn niets anders dan dienstbare dingen, want zij zijn dienstbaar aan het redelijke, opdat dit evenwichtig kan denken en juist willen. Dat ‘de oudste van het huis’ de natuurlijk mens is, kan blijken uit wat hierna volgt.

  
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Nederlandse vertaling door Henk Weevers. Digitale publicatie Swedenborg Boekhuis, van 2012 t/m 2021 op www.swedenborg.nl

Van Swedenborgs Werken

 

Arcana Coelestia #4266

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4266. 'He gave them into the hand of his servants, drove by drove separately, and he said to his servants, Pass over in front of me and put a space between drove and drove' means an arrangement of them into the order in which they were to be introduced. This is clear from the meaning of 'giving into the hand' as providing with power, for 'the hand' means power, see 878, 3091, 3387, 3563; from the meaning of 'servants' as things which belong to the natural man, dealt with in 3019, 3020 - for all things in the natural or external man are subordinate to the spiritual or internal man, and therefore in relation to the latter all things in the natural man are servants and are actually called 'servants'; from the meaning of 'a drove' as facts and also cognitions, and so matters of doctrine, dealt with in 3767, 3768, which, as long as they remain in the natural or external man, that is, in the memory there, and have not yet been implanted in the spiritual or internal man, are meant by the droves which were given into the hand of those servants; from the meaning of 'separately' as to each one according to its own class, or according to its genus and species; from the meaning of 'passing over in front of me and puffing a space between drove and drove' as preparing a way for the good which was to be received - for the reception of good by truth and the joining together of these within the natural man is the subject here. From these specific details it is evident that this whole verse means the arrangement of them into the order in which they were to be introduced.

[2] As regards the introduction of truth into good within the natural man, this cannot by any means be explained intelligibly, for the member of the Church at the present day does not even know what the internal or spiritual man is even though he often speaks about it. Nor does he know that if he is to become a member of the Church, truth has to be introduced to good within his external or natural man; and he knows even less about any arranging into order effected by the Lord within that natural man so that this may become joined to the internal man. These considerations, which are very general ones, are at the present day so hidden from people's eyes that the existence of them is not even known. For that reason if one were to explain to them the specific details contained here in the internal sense concerning arrangement into order and concerning introduction, one would be declaring utter mysteries to them and so things wholly beyond what they are able to believe. One's words would therefore be uttered in vain, or so to speak sown like seed on water or sand. This is the reason why specific details are being passed over here, and in this and the following verses of this section no more than a general explanation is given.

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