新基督教圣经研究

圣经文本

 

Genesis第49章

学习

   

1 And Jacob sent for his sons, and said, Come together, all of you, so that I may give you news of your fate in future times.

2 Come near, O sons of Jacob, and give ear to the words of Israel your father.

3 Reuben, you are my oldest son, the first-fruit of my strength, first in pride and first in power:

4 But because you were uncontrolled, the first place will not be yours; for you went up to your father's bed, even his bride-bed, and made it unclean.

5 Simeon and Levi are brothers; deceit and force are their secret designs.

6 Take no part in their secrets, O my soul; keep far away, O my heart, from their meetings; for in their wrath they put men to death, and for their pleasure even oxen were wounded.

7 A curse on their passion for it was bitter; and on their wrath for it was cruel. I will let their heritage in Jacob be broken up, driving them from their places in Israel.

8 To you, Judah, will your brothers give praise: your hand will be on the neck of your haters; your father's sons will go down to the earth before you.

9 Judah is a young lion; like a lion full of meat you have become great, my son; now he takes his rest like a lion stretched out and like an old lion; by whom will his sleep be broken?

10 The rod of authority will not be taken from Judah, and he will not be without a law-giver, till he comes who has the right to it, and the peoples will put themselves under his rule.

11 Knotting his ass's cord to the vine, and his young ass to the best vine; washing his robe in wine, and his clothing in the blood of grapes:

12 His eyes will be dark with wine, and his teeth white with milk.

13 The resting-place of Zebulun will be by the sea, and he will be a harbour for ships; the edge of his land will be by Zidon.

14 Issachar is a strong ass stretched out among the flocks:

15 And he saw that rest was good and the land was pleasing; so he let them put weights on his back and became a servant.

16 Dan will be the judge of his people, as one of the tribes of Israel.

17 May Dan be a snake in the way, a horned snake by the road, biting the horse's foot so that the horseman has a fall.

18 I have been waiting for your salvation, O Lord.

19 Gad, an army will come against him, but he will come down on them in their flight.

20 Asher's bread is fat; he gives delicate food for kings.

21 Naphtali is a roe let loose, giving fair young ones.

22 Joseph is a young ox, whose steps are turned to the fountain;

23 He was troubled by the archers; they sent out their arrows against him, cruelly wounding him:

24 But their bows were broken by a strong one, and the cords of their arms were cut by the Strength of Jacob, by the name of the Stone of Israel:

25 Even by the God of your father, who will be your help, and by the Ruler of all, who will make you full with blessings from heaven on high, blessings of the deep stretched out under the earth, blessings of the breasts and of the fertile body:

26 Blessings of sons, old and young, to the father: blessings of the oldest mountains and the fruit of the eternal hills: let them come on the head of Joseph, on the crown of him who was separate from his brothers.

27 Benjamin is a wolf, searching for meat: in the morning he takes his food, and in the evening he makes division of what he has taken.

28 These are the twelve tribes of Israel: and these are the words their father said to them, blessing them; to every one he gave his blessing.

29 And he gave orders to them, saying, Put me to rest with my people and with my fathers, in the hollow of the rock in the field of Ephron the Hittite,

30 In the rock in the field of Machpelah, near Mamre in the land of Canaan, which Abraham got from Ephron the Hittite, to be his resting-place.

31 There Abraham and Sarah his wife were put to rest, and there they put Isaac and Rebekah his wife, and there I put Leah to rest.

32 In the rock in the field which was got for a price from the people of Heth.

33 And when Jacob had come to the end of these words to his sons, stretching himself on his bed, he gave up his spirit, and went the way of his people.

   

来自斯威登堡的著作

 

Apocalypse Explained#447

学习本章节

  
/1232  
  

447. Of the tribe of Zebulun were sealed twelve thousand.- That this signifies the conjunction with the Lord of those who are in the third heaven is evident from the representation and thence the signification of Zebulun and the tribe named after him, as denoting the conjunction with the Lord of those who are in the third heaven. For the name Zebulun in Hebrew is derived from [a word meaning] cohabitation, and cohabitation in the spiritual sense signifies conjunction, such as exists with those who love each other. Zebulun here signifies the conjunction with the Lord of those who are in the third heaven, because the nine preceding tribes signify all those who are in the heavens and come into the heavens; and there are three heavens, the inmost, the middle, and the ultimate, and none come into heaven but those whom the Lord conjoins to Himself, therefore the three tribes last named signify conjunction with the Lord. The tribe of Zebulun signifies the conjunction with the Lord of those who are in the third heaven; the tribe of Joseph, the conjunction with the Lord of those who are in the second heaven; and the tribe of Benjamin, the conjunction with the Lord of those who are in the ultimate heaven.

[2] In the highest sense, Zebulun signifies the union of the Divine itself and the Divine Human in the Lord; in the internal sense, the conjunction of the Lord with heaven and the church, and specifically, the conjunction of good and truth therein, since this conjunction is the cause of the conjunction with the Lord of those who are in the three heavens, and in the church. For the Lord flows into them with the good of love and charity, and conjoins it to the truths which they have, and by means of it He conjoins men and angels to Himself. These are the things signified by "cohabitation," from which Zebulun is named. That these things are signified by Zebulun may be seen in the Arcana Coelestia 3960, 3961), where the words of his mother Leah when she brought him forth are explained, which are these:

"And Leah conceived, and bare a sixth son to Jacob. And Leah said, God hath endowed me with a good dowry; now will my husband cohabit with me, because I have borne him six sons; and she called his name Zebulun" (Genesis 30:19, 20).

[3] From these significations of Zebulun, it is evident what is signified by him in the following passages; as in the prophecy of Israel concerning his sons:

"Zebulun shall dwell at the haven of the seas; and he shall be for a haven of ships; and his border shall be over unto Zidon" (Genesis 49:13).

Here, Zebulun signifies the conjunction of good and truth, which is also called the heavenly marriage. To dwell at the haven of the seas, signifies the conjunction of spiritual things with natural truths, for the sea denotes scientifics, which are natural truths. To dwell at a haven of ships, signifies spiritual conjunction with doctrinals from the Word, ships denoting doctrinals and knowledges of all kinds. His border being over unto Zidon, signifies extension to the knowledges of good and truth from the celestial kingdom. These things may be seen more fully explained in the Arcana Coelestia 6382-6386).

[4] Similarly in the prophecy of Moses concerning the sons of Israel:

"Of Zebulun he said, Rejoice, Zebulun, in thy going forth; and Issachar, in thy tents. They shall call the people unto the mountain; there they shall sacrifice sacrifices of justice; for they shall suck the abundance of the sea, and the hidden treasures of the sand" (Deuteronomy 33:18, 19).

That Zebulun here also signifies the conjunction of good and truth, may be seen in a previous article (n. 445:5), where this prophecy is explained. Similarly in the prophecy of Deborah and Barak in the book of Judges:

"Out of Machir, shall come down legislators, and out of Zebulun they who handle the staff of the scribe. Zebulun a people that devoted the soul to die, and Naphtali upon the high places of the field. The kings came, they fought, then fought the kings of Canaan in Taanach by the waters of Megiddo; they took no gain of silver. They fought from heaven; the stars in their courses fought against Sisera" (5:14, 18, 19, 20).

The subject in this prophecy is the combat of truth from good against falsity from evil. The king of Canaan, who reigned in Hazor, and Sisera, the chief of his army, who fought against Barak and Deborah, signify the falsity of evil; Barak and Deborah, the truth of good. And because the tribes of Naphtali and Zebulun signified combat from the truth which is from good, the tribe of Naphtali, combat, and the tribe of Zebulun, the conjunction of good and truth, therefore these two tribes only and not the other tribes were chosen to go into the combat (Judges 4:6). That this combat signified such things, is evident from the prophecy pronounced by Deborah and Barak, which treats in the spiritual sense of the victory of truth from good over falsity from evil, and of the purification and reformation of the church. Here therefore, Out of Machir shall come down legislators, signifies, that the truths of good shall flow from the good of life, for Machir has a signification similar to that of Manasseh, for he was the son of Manasseh (Genesis 50:23; Josh. 13:31); and legislators signify those who are in the truths of good, and in the abstract, the truths of good itself. And out of Zebulun they who handle the staff of the scribe, signifies intelligence from the conjunction of truth and good, for Zebulun signifies here, as above, the conjunction of truth and good, and the staff of the scribe, intelligence. Zebulun a people that devoted the soul to die, and Naphtali upon the high places of the field, signifies combat in the natural man by means of truths from the spiritual man, and from its influx and conjunction; the high places of the field signify the interior things of the spiritual man, from which the natural man fights. The kings came, they fought, then fought the kings of Canaan, signifies the falsities of evil against which there is combat. In Taanach by the waters of Megiddo, signifies those falsities and their nature. They took no gain of silver, signifies that they took and carried away nothing of truth from good, silver denoting truth from good. They fought from heaven, the stars in their courses fought against Sisera, signifies combat by means of the knowledges of truth and good, which come through heaven from the Lord, stars denoting such knowledges, and courses denoting truths.

[5] Zebulun and Naphtali also signify the conjunction of truth and good by combat against falsities and evils, and consequent reformation, in these words in Matthew:

Jesus "leaving Nazareth, came and dwelt in Capernaum, which is upon the sea coast, in the borders of Zebulun and Naphtali; that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying, The land of Zebulun, and the land of Naphtali, by the way of the sea, beyond Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles; the people which sat in darkness saw a great light; and to them which sat in the region and shadow of death light is sprung up. From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent; for the kingdom of heaven is at hand" (4:13-17; Isaiah 9:1, 2).

That these words in Isaiah were spoken concerning the Lord, is evident, for it is said, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet "wherefore the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, also Galilee of the Gentiles," signify the establishment of the church with the Gentiles, who are in the good of life and receive truths, and are thus in the conjunction thereof, and in combat against evil and falsities. That the establishment of the church and the reformation of such Gentiles are there meant, is also evident from the statement that it was "beyond Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles," and also that the people who sat in darkness saw a great light, and that to them that sat in the region and shadow of death light sprang up.

[6] Zebulun and Naphtali, in the highest sense, signify the union of the Divine itself with the Divine Human of the Lord by means of temptations admitted into Himself, and the victories which He obtained by His own power; as in David (Psalm 68:27-29) explained above (no. 439:5). Because such things were signified by Zebulun, therefore, the tribe of Judah, together with the tribes of Issachar and Zebulun, encamped to the east about the tent of the congregation (Num. 2:3-10). For the encampments of the sons of Israel around the tent of the congregation represented and thence signified the arrangement of the angelic societies in heaven; and those who are in conjunction with the Lord through love to Him are there in the east. The tribe of Judah represented love to the Lord, and the tribe of Zebulun, conjunction with Him.

  
/1232  
  

Translation by Isaiah Tansley. Many thanks to the Swedenborg Society for the permission to use this translation.

©2024 New Christian Bible Study Corporation. All rights reserved. Printed from newchristianbiblestudy.org