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Genesis 39

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1 Now Joseph was taken down to Egypt; and Potiphar the Egyptian, a captain of high position in Pharaoh's house, got him for a price from the Ishmaelites who had taken him there.

2 And the Lord was with Joseph, and he did well; and he was living in the house of his master the Egyptian.

3 And his master saw that the Lord was with him, making everything he did go well.

4 And having a high opinion of Joseph as his servant, he made him the overseer of his house and gave him control over all he had.

5 And from the time when he made him overseer and gave him control of all his property, the blessing of the Lord was with the Egyptian, because of Joseph; the blessing of the Lord was on all he had, in the house and in the field.

6 And he gave Joseph control of all his property, keeping no account of anything, but only the food which was put before him. Now Joseph was very beautiful in form and face.

7 And after a time, his master's wife, looking on Joseph with desire, said to him, Be my lover.

8 But he would not, and said to her, You see that my master keeps no account of what I do in his house, and has put all his property in my control;

9 So that no one has more authority in this house than I have; he has kept nothing back from me but you, because you are his wife; how then may I do this great wrong, sinning against God?

10 And day after day she went on requesting Joseph to come to her and be her lover, but he would not give ear to her.

11 Now one day he went into the house to do his work; and not one of the men of the house was inside.

12 And pulling at his coat, she said, Come to my bed; but slipping out of his coat, he went running away.

13 And when she saw that he had got away, letting her keep his coat,

14 She sent for the men of her house and said to them, See, he has let a Hebrew come here and make sport of us; he came to my bed, and I gave a loud cry;

15 And hearing it he went running out without his coat.

16 And she kept his coat by her, till his master came back.

17 Then she gave him the same story, saying, The Hebrew servant whom you have taken into our house came in to make sport of me;

18 And when I gave a loud cry he went running out without his coat.

19 And hearing his wife's account of what his servant had done, he became very angry.

20 And Joseph's master took him and put him in prison, in the place where the king's prisoners were kept in chains, and he was there in the prison-house.

21 But the Lord was with Joseph, and was good to him, and made the keeper of the prison his friend.

22 And the keeper of the prison put all the prisoners under Joseph's control, and he was responsible for whatever was done there.

23 And the keeper of the prison gave no attention to anything which was under his care, because the Lord was with him; and the Lord made everything he did go well.

   

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Arcana Coelestia #5236

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5236. 'And a Hebrew boy was there with us' means that owing to temptation the guiltlessness of the Church had been cast away there. This is clear from the meaning of 'a boy' as guiltlessness, dealt with below; and from the meaning of 'Hebrew' as a person belonging to the Church, dealt with in 5136, thus some attribute of the Church. His having been cast away there owing to temptation is meant by the words 'was there', that is to say, in custody; for 'custody', in which Joseph had been placed, means a state of temptation, 5036, 5037, 5039, 5044, 5045, that state being the subject in Chapters 39, 40.

[2] The reason 'a boy' [or older 'child'] 1 means guiltlessness is that in the internal sense a young child means innocence. References are made in the Word to suckling, young child, and older child, by whom three degrees of innocence are meant, the first degree being meant by 'suckling', the second degree by 'young child', and the third by 'older child'. But because an older child is one who is beginning to lose his innocence, he therefore means the kind of innocence that is called guiltlessness. Because three degrees of innocence are meant by 'suckling', 'young child', and 'child', three degrees of love and charity are also meant by them, for the reason that celestial and spiritual love, which is love to the Lord and charity towards the neighbour, can have no existence except within innocence. It should be recognized however that the innocence of sucklings, young children, and older ones is purely external and that no internal innocence exists with anyone until he has been born anew, that is, has so to speak become a suckling, young child, and older child once again. These are the states meant in the Word by these three, for the internal sense of the Word has only that which is spiritual as its meaning, and therefore has purely spiritual birth - called rebirth and also regeneration - as its meaning.

[3] The fact that the innocence called guiltlessness is meant by 'a child' is clear in Luke,

Jesus said, Whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child will not enter it. Luke 18:17.

'Receiving the kingdom of God like a child' means receiving charity and faith because of one's innocence In Mark,

Jesus took a child, set him in the midst of them and took him up in His arms. He said to them, Whoever takes up one of such children in My name is taking up Me. Mark 9:36-37; Luke 9:47-48.

'A child' here is a representation of innocence; anyone who takes this up is taking up the Lord because He is the Source from which every trace of innocence is derived. Anyone may see that 'taking up a child in the Lord's name' does not mean taking up a child, so that something heavenly is represented by such an action.

[4] In Matthew,

When the children in the temple cried out, Hosanna to the son of David, [the chief priests and scribes] were indignant. Therefore Jesus said to them, Have you not read that out of the mouth of young children and sucklings You have perfected praise? Matthew 21:15-16; Psalms 8:2.

The children's cry 'Hosanna to the son of David' was voiced so as to represent the truth that innocence alone acknowledges and accepts the Lord, that is, that those who have innocence within them do so. The words 'out of the mouth of young children and sucklings You have perfected praise' mean that there is no other path than innocence along which praise can go to the Lord. Along this path alone can any communication be established, any influx take place, or consequently any approach be made. This is why the Lord says, in the same gospel,

Unless you are converted and become as children you will not enter the kingdom of heaven. Matthew 18:3.

[5] In the following places too 'a boy' [or 'a child'] means innocence: In Zechariah,

The streets of the city will be full of boys and girls playing in its streets. Zechariah 8:5.

This refers to a new Jerusalem, or the Lord's kingdom. In David.

Praise Jehovah, Young men and also virgins, old men and children. Psalms 148:12

In the same author,

Jehovah redeems 2 Your life from the pit. He satisfies your mouth with what is good, so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's. 3 Psalms 103:4-5.

In Joel,

Over My people they have cast lots, for they have given a boy for a harlot and have sold a girl for wine which they have drunk. Joel 3:3.

In Jeremiah,

I will scatter throughout you man and woman, and I will scatter throughout you old man and boy, and I will scatter throughout you young man and virgin. Jeremiah 51:12.

In Isaiah,

To us a boy is born, to us a son is given, upon whose shoulder is the government; and He will call His name, Wonderful, Counsellor, God, Hero, Father of Eternity, Prince of Peace. Isaiah 9:6.

Fusnotat:

1. The Latin word puer used for a boy may also be used to mean simply a child, male or female, as in several places in the remainder of this paragraph.

2. The Latin means renews, but the Hebrew means redeems, which Swedenborg has in another place where he quotes this verse.

3. literally, so that you are renewed like the eagle with your childhood

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