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Exodus第15章

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1 Then sang Moses and the children of Israel this song unto Jehovah, and spake, saying, I will sing unto Jehovah, for he hath triumphed gloriously: The horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea.

2 Jehovah is my strength and song, And he is become my salvation: This is my God, and I will praise him; My father's God, and I will exalt him.

3 Jehovah is a man of war: Jehovah is his name.

4 Pharaoh's chariots and his host hath he cast into the sea; And his chosen captains are sunk in the Red Sea.

5 The deeps cover them: They went down into the depths like a stone.

6 Thy right hand, O Jehovah, is glorious in power, Thy right hand, O Jehovah, dasheth in pieces the enemy.

7 And in the greatness of thine excellency thou overthrowest them that rise up against thee: Thou sendest forth thy wrath, it consumeth them as stubble.

8 And with the blast of thy nostrils the waters were piled up, The floods stood upright as a heap; The deeps were congealed in the heart of the sea.

9 The enemy said, I will pursue, I will overtake, I will divide the spoil; My desire shall be satisfied upon them; I will draw my sword, my hand shall destroy them.

10 Thou didst blow with thy wind, the sea covered them: They sank as lead in the mighty waters.

11 Who is like unto thee, O Jehovah, among the gods? Who is like thee, glorious in holiness, Fearful in praises, doing wonders?

12 Thou stretchedst out thy right hand, The earth swallowed them.

13 Thou in thy lovingkindness hast led the people that thou hast redeemed: Thou hast guided them in thy strength to thy holy habitation.

14 The peoples have heard, they tremble: Pangs have taken hold on the inhabitants of Philistia.

15 Then were the chiefs of Edom dismayed; The mighty men of Moab, trembling taketh hold upon them: All the inhabitants of Canaan are melted away.

16 Terror and dread falleth upon them; By the greatness of thine arm they are as still as a stone; Till thy people pass over, O Jehovah, Till the people pass over that thou hast purchased.

17 Thou wilt bring them in, and plant them in the mountain of thine inheritance, The place, O Jehovah, which thou hast made for thee to dwell in, The sanctuary, O Lord, which thy hands have established.

18 Jehovah shall reign for ever and ever.

19 For the horses of Pharaoh went in with his chariots and with his horsemen into the sea, and Jehovah brought back the waters of the sea upon them; but the children of Israel walked on dry land in the midst of the sea.

20 And Miriam the prophetess, the sister of Aaron, took a timbrel in her hand; and all the women went out after her with timbrels and with dances.

21 And Miriam answered them, Sing ye to Jehovah, for he hath triumphed gloriously; The horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea.

22 And Moses led Israel onward from the Red Sea, and they went out into the wilderness of Shur; and they went three days in the wilderness, and found no water.

23 And when they came to Marah, they could not drink of the waters of Marah, for they were bitter: therefore the name of it was called Marah.

24 And the people murmured against Moses, saying, What shall we drink?

25 An he cried unto Jehovah; And Jehovah showed him a tree, and he cast it into the waters, and the waters were made sweet. There he made for them a statute and an ordinance, and there he proved them;

26 and he said, If thou wilt diligently hearken to the voice of Jehovah thy God, and wilt do that which is right in his eyes, and wilt give ear to his commandments, and keep all his statutes, I will put none of the diseases upon thee, which I have put upon the Egyptians: for I am Jehovah that healeth thee.

27 And they came to Elim, where were twelve springs of water, and threescore and ten palm-trees: and they encamped there by the waters.

   

来自斯威登堡的著作

 

Arcana Coelestia#6125

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6125. 'In exchange for horses' means factual knowledge supplied from the understanding. This is clear from the meaning of 'horses' as ideas forming the understanding, dealt with in 2760-2762, 3217, 5321; and since they are spoken of in connection with Egypt, which means factual knowledge, 'horses' here are factual knowledge supplied from the understanding. But what factual knowledge supplied from the understanding is must be stated. There is an understanding part and there is a will part in the human mind, and these are situated not only in his internal man but also in his external. The human understanding is developing and growing from early childhood through to manhood, and it consists in a discernment of things gained from experience and formal knowledge, also a discernment of causes from effects as well as of consequences from a chain of causes. Thus the understanding part consists in a comprehension and perception of such things as are part of everyday life, public and private. An inflowing of light from heaven brings it into existence, and for that reason everyone's understanding is capable of being made more perfect. Understanding is given to everyone in accordance with his effort to make use of what he knows, in accordance with the life he leads, and in accordance with his individual character; no one lacks it provided he is of sound mind. A person is given it to the end that he may have freedom of choice, that is, have the freedom to choose good or evil. Unless he possesses an understanding like the one just described, he has no power of his own to make that choice; thus nothing could possibly be made his own.

[2] In addition to this it should be recognized that the understanding part of a person's mind is that which receives what is spiritual, so that it is the recipient of spiritual truth and good. For no good at all, that is, no charity, nor any truth at all, that is, any faith, can be instilled into anyone if he does not have that understanding part; but they are instilled in the measure that he does have it. This also explains why a person is not regenerated by the Lord until adult life when he does possess an understanding. Till then the good of love and the truth of faith fall like seed into utterly infertile soil. But once a person has been regenerated his understanding serves the function of enabling him to see and perceive what good is and from this what truth is. For the understanding converts things belonging to the superior light of heaven into those belonging to the inferior light of the natural world, as a consequence of which the former are then seen within the latter in the same way as a person's inner affections are seen in his face when it lacks all pretence. And because the understanding serves that function, many places in the Word where the spiritual side of the Church is referred to refer also to its power of understanding, a matter which will in the Lord's Divine mercy be dealt with elsewhere.

[3] From all this one may now see what is meant by factual knowledge supplied from the understanding, namely known facts which lend support to the things a person grasps and perceives with his understanding, whether those things are bad or good. Such facts are what are meant in the Word by 'horses from Egypt', as in Isaiah,

Woe to those who go down into Egypt for help, and rely on horses and trust in chariots because they are many, and on horsemen because they are extremely strong, but do not look to the Holy One of Israel and do not seek Jehovah. For Egypt is man (homo), not God; and his horses are flesh, not spirit. Isaiah 31:1, 3.

'Horses from Egypt' stands for factual knowledge supplied from a perverted understanding.

[4] In Ezekiel,

He rebelled against him by sending his ambassadors to Egypt, that ha might give him horses and many people. Will he prosper? Will he who does this be rescued? Ezekiel 17:15.

'Horses from Egypt' again stands for factual knowledge supplied from a perverted understanding, which knowledge is resorted to in matters of faith, though there is no belief in the Word, that is, in the Lord, apart from what that knowledge provides. Thus no belief ever comes to exist, for within a perverted understanding a negative attitude reigns.

[5] The destruction which such factual knowledge underwent is represented by the drowning of Pharaoh's horses and chariots in the Sea Suph; and since that knowledge is meant by 'horses' and false matters of doctrine by 'chariots', his horses and chariots are mentioned so many times in the description of that event, see Exodus 14:17-18, 27, 26, 28. And the Song of Moses and Miriam consequently contains these words,

Pharaoh's horse went, also his chariot, also his horsemen, into the sea; but Jehovah made the waters of the sea come back over them. Sing to Jehovah, for He has highly exalted Himself; He has thrown the horse and its rider into the sea. Exodus 15:19, 21.

[6] Similar factual knowledge is also meant by the things required before-hand for a king over Israel, in Moses,

If they desire a king, from among their brothers shall a king be set over them. Only let him not multiply horses for himself nor lead the people back into Egypt in order to multiply horses. Deuteronomy 17:15-16.

'A king' represented the Lord as regards Divine Truth, 1672, 1728, 2015, 2069, 3009, 3670, 4575, 4581, 4789, 4966, 5044, 5068, thus as regards intelligence since this comes, when it is genuine, from Divine Truth. The need for intelligence to be acquired through the Word, which is Divine Truth, and not through factual knowledge taken from one's own understanding is meant by the injunction that the king should not multiply horses or lead the people back into Egypt in order to multiply horses.

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