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Hesekiel第29章:16

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16 daß sich das Haus Israel nicht mehr auf sie verlasse und sich damit versündige, wenn sie sich an sie hängen; und sie sollen erfahren, daß ich der HERR HERR bin.

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Apocalypse Explained#342

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342.(5:13) And every created thing which is in heaven, and on the earth, and under the earth, and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, heard I saying. That this signifies the acknowledgment and thence the glorification of the Lord by the angels who are in the lowest parts of heaven, is clear from the signification of every created thing, as denoting all who are reformed. That to be created signifies to be reformed and regenerated, may be seen above, n. 294. Hence created thing signifies what is reformed and regenerated; but with respect to the angels, concerning whom these things are said, it signifies those who were reformed in the world, that is, created anew, for all such are in heaven. By created thing is meant the same as by creature in Mark:

Jesus said to the disciples, "Going into all the world, preach ye the gospel to every creature" (16:15).

Here by every creature are meant all those who receive the gospel, and can thereby be reformed; the rest are not meant by creatures, because they do not receive, but hear and reject.

[2] From these considerations it is evident what the quality of the Word is in the sense of the letter, namely, that it is said creature, and that it is said every created thing, which is in heaven and on the earth, and under the earth, and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them. He who does not know that the sense of the letter is composed of such things as appear before the eyes, and that by these things spiritual [things] are meant, may easily be led to believe, that by every created thing which is in heaven, and on the earth, and under the earth, and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, are meant the birds that fly in the heaven, the beasts that walk upon the earth, and the fishes that are in the sea; and the more so, because in various passages elsewhere in the Word, similar things are said of the birds of the heaven, the beasts of the earth, and also whales and fishes (as Ezekiel 39:17; Psalms 148:7; Job. 12:7, 8; Rev. 19:17; and elsewhere). But still those whose minds can be somewhat elevated above the sense of the letter, instantly perceive by interior sight that by those things are meant the angels and spirits who are in heaven and under heaven, and that these are those whom John heard when he was in the spirit; for it is said, "Heard I saying, Blessing, and honour, and glory, and power, be unto him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb, for ever and ever"; from which it is evident that the angels in the lowest parts of heaven are those who are meant by everything created which is in them. This indeed follows from the consideration, that in the verses which precede, the subject treated of is the angels of the higher heavens and the angels of the lower heavens, that they acknowledged and glorified the Lord (see above, n. 322, 355).

[3] It shall now be explained who are meant by those in heaven, who by those on the earth, and under the earth, and who by those in the sea; by all of whom are meant those who are in the ultimates of heaven, the higher there by those who are in heaven, the lower there by those who are on the earth and under the earth, and the lowest there by those who are in the sea. There are three heavens, and each heaven is divided into three degrees, and similarly the angels who are in them; therefore in each heaven there are higher, middle, and lower [angels]; these three degrees of the ultimate heaven are meant by those who are in heaven, who are on the earth, and such as are in the sea. (Concerning which distinction of the heavens and of each heaven, see the Arcana Coelestia 4938, 4939, 9992, 10005, 10017, 10068; and concerning the ultimate degree, n. 3293, 3294, 3793, 4570, 5118, 5126, 5497, 5649, 9216; and in the work concerning Heaven and Hell 29-40.) It ought to be known, that in the spiritual world, where spirits and angels are, the appearance of all things is similar to that of the natural world where men are, namely, that there are mountains, hills, earths, and seas (see above, n. 304). Upon the mountains dwell the angels who are in the third or inmost heaven, upon the hills there those who are in the second or middle heaven, and upon the earth, and under the earth, and in the seas, those who are in the first or ultimate heaven. But the seas in which the inhabitants of the lowest heaven dwell, are not as the seas in which the evil dwell; they differ in the waves. The waves of the seas of the lowest heaven in which are the well-disposed, are light and pure; but the waves of the seas in which the evil are, are gross and impure; thus the seas are altogether different.

[4] I have been sometimes granted to see those seas, and also to converse with those who are in them; and it was found that those were there who had been merely sensual in the world, but yet well-disposed; and because they were sensual, they could not understand what the Spiritual is, but only what the Natural is, nor could they perceive the Word, and the doctrine of the church from the Word, otherwise than sensually. All these appear to be as in a sea; but those who are there do not seem to themselves to be in a sea, but, as it were, in an atmosphere of a kind similar to that in which they lived when in the world; that they are in the sea appears only before those who are above them. At this day there is an immense number there, because so many at this day are sensual. This ultimate part of heaven corresponds to the soles of the feet. On this account it is, that seas are so often mentioned in the Word, and also the fishes therein; and by the seas there are signified the general things of truth which belong to the natural man, and by the fishes sensual scientifics, which are the lowest things of the natural man, consequently, those are signified who are of such a quality, or those who are in them [i.e. sensual scientifics]. (What sensual things, and what sensual men are, and that they are both good and evil, see the Doctrine of the New Jerusalem 50.) From these considerations it can now be known what is meant by every created thing which is in heaven, and on the earth, and under the earth, and which are in the sea, and all that are in them.

[5] Similar things are signified by seas and by the things that are therein, which are called fishes and whales, in the following passages. In David:

"Let the heaven and the earth praise" Jehovah, "the seas, and everything that creepeth therein. For God will save Zion, and will build the cities of Judah" (Psalms 69:34, 35).

It is said also everything that creepeth therein, and those who are sensual are meant. By Zion which God shall save, and by the cities of Judah which He shall build, are meant the celestial church and its doctrine, - by Zion that church, and by cities the doctrine thereof. The same are meant by these words in David:

"Praise Jehovah from the earth, ye whales and all deeps" (Psalms 148:7).

The same are meant by whales. Hence also it is that Egypt is called a whale (Ezekiel 29:3); for by Egypt is signified the scientific part in the natural man, and by a whale the Scientific in general.

[6] Similar things are also signified elsewhere by those expressions. In the same:

"Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of thy hands; thou hast put all things under his feet; the flock and all herds; and also the beasts of the field; the bird of the heaven, and the fishes of the sea" (Psalms 8:6-8).

Here the subject treated of is the Lord, and His Divine power over heaven and earth; and by the flock and the herds, the beasts of the field, the bird of the heaven, and the fishes of the sea, are meant men, spirits, and angels, as to their spiritual and natural [qualities]; and by the fishes of the sea those who are in the ultimates of heaven, as shown above.

In Job:

"Ask the beasts now, and they shall teach thee; or the birds of the heaven, and they shall tell thee; or the shoot of the earth, and it shall teach thee; and the fishes of the sea shall declare unto thee. Who knoweth not from all these that the hand of Jehovah hath wrought this?" (Job 12:7-9).

[7] In Ezekiel:

"The angel brought me again unto the door of the house; where, behold, waters issued out from under the threshold of the house towards the east. Then he said unto me, These waters issue out toward the eastern border, and descend into the plain, and come towards the sea; they are sent out into the sea that the waters may be healed; whence it comes to pass, every living soul that creepeth, whithersoever the rivers come, shall live; whence it cometh that there is exceeding many fish, because these waters shall come thither; and they are healed, that everything may live whither the river cometh. According to their kind shall the fish be, as the fish of the great sea, exceeding many. The miry places thereof and the marshes thereof are not healed; they go away into salt" (47:1, 8-11).

By the waters issuing from under the threshold of the house towards the east, are signified truths from a heavenly origin, the waters denoting truths; the east denoting the good of heavenly love, and the house denoting heaven and the church. The plain into which the waters descend, and the sea into which they come, signify the ultimates of heaven and the church, consequently, those who are in ultimates, concerning whom we have spoken above, namely, those who are in knowledges of truth only from the ultimate sense of the Word, and apprehend them naturally and sensually. These, when they are in simple good, receive influx out of the higher heavens, whence it is that they also receive the spiritual in their knowledges, and thence some spiritual life. This is meant by "the waters are sent out into the sea, that the waters may be healed; whence it comes to pass that every living soul which creepeth, whithersoever the rivers come, shall live." Likewise by these words: "Whence it cometh that there is exceeding many fish, because these waters come hither, and are healed." But those who are of such a nature, and not good, are meant by these words: "The miry places thereof, and the marshes thereof are not healed; they go away into salt." To go away into salt signifies not to receive spiritual life, but to remain in a life merely natural, which, separated from spiritual life, is defiled with falsities and evils, which miry places and marshes denote.

[8] Similar things are signified by the sea, and by the fishes of the sea, in Isaiah:

"Behold, at my rebuke I dry up the sea, I make the rivers into a wilderness; their fish stinketh, because there is no water, and dieth for thirst" (50:3).

By rebuke is signified the desolation of all truth; by the sea is signified where truth is in its ultimate; by water is signified truth from a spiritual origin; by dying for thirst is signified desolation from a lack of that truth; by the fishes of the sea are signified those who are in the ultimates of truth, in whom there is no life from a spiritual origin.

[9] Similar things are signified by the fishes of the sea in Ezekiel:

"In my zeal, in the fire of mine indignation I will speak; that the fishes of the sea may tremble before me, and the bird of the heavens, and the beast of the field, and every reptile that creepeth upon the earth" (Ezekiel [38]:19 1 , 20).

In Hosea:

"They rob on the highway, and bloods touch bloods; therefore the earth shall mourn, and everyone who dwelleth therein shall pine away, as to the beast of the field, and as to the bird of the heavens, and also the fishes of the sea they shall be gathered together" (4:2, 3).

And in Zephaniah:

"In consuming I will consume all things from upon the faces of the earth; I will consume man and beast; I will consume the bird of the heavens, and the fishes of the sea" (1:2, 3).

By man and beast when they are mentioned together, are signified the interior and exterior affections of good (see n. 7424, 7523, 7872). And by the fowls of the heaven and the fishes of the sea, are signified the affections of truth, and thoughts spiritual and natural, but, in the passages adduced, that they are about to perish.

[10] The reason that the sea and fishes signify such things is from the appearance in the spiritual world. All the societies there appear surrounded with an atmosphere corresponding with their affections and thoughts. Those in the third heaven, appear in an atmosphere pure as the ethereal [atmosphere]; those in the second heaven, appear in an atmosphere less pure, according to the nature of the air; the societies, however, in the ultimate heaven, appear surrounded with an atmosphere watery, as it were; but those who are in the hells appear surrounded with gross and impure atmospheres, some of them as in black waters, and others differently. It is the affections and the thoughts thence that produce those things around them; for spheres are exhaled from all, and these spheres are changed into such appearances. (Concerning those spheres, see the Arcana Coelestia 2489, 4464, 5179, 7454, 8630.) That those, however, who are in spiritual affection and the thought therefrom are signified by birds of the heaven, and those who are in natural affection and the thought therefrom, by fishes, is also from the appearance in the spiritual world; for there appear there both birds and fishes, over the earths birds, and in the seas fishes. It is the affections and the thoughts therefrom of those who are there that so appear. All know this who are in that world, and both the birds and the fishes have been often seen by me; that appearance is from correspondence. From these considerations it is evident why it is, that seas signify general things of truth, and whales and fishes the affections and thoughts of those who are in the generals of truth. That seas signify the general things of truth, may be seen in what was shown above, n. 275.

[11] The quality of those in the spiritual world who dwell in that watery atmosphere meant by seas, I wish to illustrate by one example only. Such, when they read these words in David,

"Everything that Jehovah willeth, he doeth in heaven and earth, in the seas and all deeps" (Psalms 135:6),

suppose that by heaven is meant the heaven visible before our eyes, and by the earth the habitable earth, and by the seas and deeps the seas and deeps, and thus that Jehovah does in them whatsoever He wills; and they cannot be led to believe that by heaven is meant the angelic heaven; by earth there, those who are below; and that by seas and by depths those there who are in ultimates. These things being spiritual, and above the sense of the letter, they are not willing, and scarcely are able, to perceive, because they see all things naturally and sensually.

[12] Hence also it is that by these words in the Apocalypse,

"I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away" (21:1),

it has been hitherto understood that the visible heaven and the habitable earth would perish, and that a new heaven and a new earth would appear; that by heaven here is meant the heaven where the angels are, and by the earth here is meant the church where men are. That they will become new, those who think merely naturally and sensually are unwilling [to admit], and, consequently, do not understand. For they do not suffer the mind to be raised out of merely natural light into spiritual light; for with them this is difficult, so much so that they can scarcely bear the Word to be understood otherwise than as the letter declares in its own sense, and as the natural man apprehends it. These persons are not unlike those birds that see and sing in obscure places, and in the light of day blink with the eyes and see little. The good among them are like those birds, and also like flying fishes; but the evil of that sort are like owls and horned-owls, which altogether shun the light of day, and they are like fishes which cannot be taken into the air without being deprived of life. The reason is, because with the good of that class, the internal spiritual man receives for a time spiritual influx from heaven, and hence some perception that it is so, although they do not see. With the evil, however, of that class the internal spiritual man is altogether shut; for every one has an internal and an external man, or both a spiritual and a natural; the internal or spiritual man sees from the light of heaven, but the external or natural man sees from the light of the world.

脚注:

1. NCBS Editor's note: Originally had Ezekiel 37:19, 20, but the quote is referencing Ezekiel 38:19, 20.

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

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Arcana Coelestia#5120

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5120. 'And put the cup onto Pharaoh's palm' means that the interior natural made these its own. This is clear from the meaning of 'putting the cup' to drink (and so the wine in the cup) as making one's own, for 'drinking' means making truth one's own, see 3168; and from the representation of 'Pharaoh' as the interior natural, dealt with in 5080, 5095, 5118. As is evident from what has gone before, the subject here is the regeneration of the sensory power meant by 'the cupbearer' which is subject to the understanding part of the interior man; consequently the subject is also the influx of truth and good and their reception in the exterior natural. But since these matters are quite beyond the understanding of those who do not have any distinct idea about the rational and about the natural, or any about influx, all further explanation is therefore abandoned.

[2] But there is more to be said about 'a cup' mentioned very many times in the Word - about how in the genuine sense it has the same meaning as wine, namely spiritual truth or the truth of faith which is derived from the good of charity, and about how in the contrary sense it means falsity which produces evil, and also falsity which is a product of evil. The reason 'a cup' has the same meaning as 'wine' is that the cup is the container and the wine the content and therefore the two constitute a single entity, with the result that one is used to mean the other. This meaning of 'a cup' in the Word is evident from the following places:

[3] In David,

O Jehovah, You will spread a table before me in the presence of enemies and will make my head fat with oil; my cup will overflow. Psalms 23:5.

'Spreading a table' and 'making the head fat with oil' stand for being endowed with the good of charity and love. 'My cup will overflow' stands for the fact that the natural will thereby be filled with spiritual truth and good. In the same author,

What shall I render to Jehovah? I will take the cup of salvation and call on the name of Jehovah. Psalms 116:11, 17.

'Taking the cup of salvation' stands for making the goods of faith one's own.

[4] In Mark,

Whoever gives you drink from a cup of water in My name, because you are Christ's, truly I say to you, he will not lose his reward. Mark 9:41.

'Giving drink from a cup of water in My name' stands for imparting the truths of faith from a small measure of charity.

[5] In Matthew,

Then taking a cup, and giving thanks, He gave it to them, saying, Drink from this, all of you; for this is My blood - that of the New Testament. Matthew 26:17, 28; Mark 14:27, 24; Luke 22:20.

The word 'cup' is used, not wine, because 'wine' has reference to the spiritual Church but 'blood' to the celestial Church. Both wine and blood however mean holy truth going forth from the Lord, though in the spiritual Church the holiness of faith springing from charity towards the neighbour is meant, whereas in the celestial Church the holiness of charity springing from love to the Lord is meant. The spiritual Church differs from the celestial in that the spiritual is moved by charity towards the neighbour, whereas the celestial is moved by love to the Lord. Furthermore the Holy Supper was established to represent and be a sign of the Lord's love towards the whole human race and man's reciprocal love towards Him.

[6] Because 'a cup' meant that which served to contain and 'wine' that which was contained, 'the cup' consequently meaning the external aspect of man and 'wine' the internal aspect of him, the Lord therefore said,

Woe to you Scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you cleanse the exterior of the cup and of the plate but the interiors are full of pillage and lack of restraint. Blind Pharisee! cleanse first the interior of the cup and of the plate and the exterior will be made clean also. Matthew 23:25, 16; Luke 11:39.

Here also 'cup' is used to mean in the internal sense the truth of faith. Cultivating the truth of faith without the good of faith is 'cleansing the exterior of the cup', the more so when the interiors are full of hypocrisy, deceit, hatred, revenge, and cruelty; for in this case the truth of faith exists solely in the external man and not at all in the internal, whereas cultivating and embracing the good of faith causes truths to be joined to good in the interior man. Furthermore when the truth of faith is cultivated without the good of faith, false ideas are accepted as truths; this is meant by 'cleansing first the interior of the cup, and the exterior will be made clean also'.

[7] It is similar with matters recorded in Mark,

There are many other things which the Pharisees and Jews have received carefully, the washing 1 of cups and of pots, and of bronze vessels, and of beds. Forsaking the commandment of God you keep to human tradition, the washing' of pots and of cups; and many other similar things you do. You reject the commandment of God, so that you may keep to your tradition. Mark 7:4, 8-9.

[8] As regards 'a cup' meaning in the contrary sense falsity which produces evil and also falsity produced by evil, this is clear from the following places: In Jeremiah,

Thus said Jehovah, the God of Israel, to me, Take this cup of the wine of anger from My hand, and make all the nations to which I send you drink it, in order that they may drink and stagger, and go mad because of the sword which I am going to send among them. So I took the cup from Jehovah's hand, and made all the nations drink to whom Jehovah sent me. Jeremiah 25:15-17, 28.

'The cup of the wine of anger' stands for falsity that produces evil. The reason falsity producing evil is meant is that as wine can make people drunk and make them of unsound mind, so too can falsity. Spiritual drunkenness is nothing other than unsoundness of mind caused by reasonings regarding matters of belief when a person does not believe anything which he does not apprehend - which unsoundness of mind leads to falsities and to evils that are the product of falsities, 1072. Hence the statement 'in order that they may drink and stagger, and go mad because of the sword which I am going to send'. 'Sword' means falsity at war against truth, 2799, 4499.

[9] In the Book of Lamentations,

Rejoice and be glad, O daughter of Edom. dweller in the land of Uz; to you also the cup will pass, you will be made drunk and uncovered. Lamentations 4:21.

'Being made drunk by the cup' stands for being made unsound in mind by falsities. 'Being uncovered', or shamelessly laid bare, stands for resulting evil, 213, 214.

[10] In Ezekiel,

You have walked in the way of your sister, therefore I will give her cup into your hand. Thus said the Lord Jehovih, You will drink your sister's cup, which is deep and wide; you will be laughed at and mocked, as an ample recipient. You will be filled with drunkenness and sorrow, with the cup of devastation and desolation. You will drink the cup of your sister Samaria, and crush it and crumple the pieces. Ezekiel 27:31-34.

This refers to Jerusalem, by which the spiritual aspect of the celestial Church is meant. 'The cup' in this case stands for falsity that is a product of evil; and because such falsity lays waste or destroys the Church, the expression 'the cup of devastation and desolation' is used.

In Isaiah,

Stir, stir, surge up, O Jerusalem, you who have drunk from the hand of Jehovah the cup of His anger; you have drunk the dregs of the cup of consternation. Isaiah 51:17.

In Habakkuk,

Drink, you also - that your foreskin may be revealed. The cup of Jehovah's right hand will come round to you, so that disgusting vomit may be upon your glory. Habakkuk 2:16.

In David,

A cup is in the hand of Jehovah; and He has mixed the wine, filled it with the mixed, and poured out from it. But they will suck out the dregs of it; all the wicked of the earth will drink from it. Psalms 75:8.

[11] In these places 'a cup' also stands for the insanity caused by falsities and resulting evils. It is called 'the cup of Jehovah's anger' and also 'of His right hand' for the reason that the Jewish nation believed, as the common people believe, that evils, and the punishments of evils and falsities, had no other origin than Jehovah, though in fact they originate in man and in the hellish crew who are present with him. From the appearance, and from a belief based on it, such statements occur many times; but the internal sense teaches how one ought to understand them and what to believe. On these matters, see 245, 592, 696, 1093, 1683, 1874, 1875, 2335, 2447, 3605, 3607, 3614.

[12] Since 'a cup', like 'wine', in the contrary sense means falsities that produce evils, and also falsities produced by evils, cup, as a consequence also means temptation, for temptation arises when falsity conflicts with truth and therefore evil with good. The word cup is used instead of and in reference to such temptation in Luke,

Jesus prayed, saying, If You are willing, let this cup pass from Me; nevertheless not My will, but Yours, be done. Luke 22:42; Matthew 26:39; Mark 14:36.

'Cup' here stands for temptation. Similarly in John,

Jesus said to Peter, Put your sword into its sheath; the cup which the Father has given Me, shall I not drink it? John 18:11.

And also in Mark,

Jesus said to James and John, You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I drink, and to be baptized with the baptism with which I am baptized? They said, We are able. But Jesus said to them, The cup indeed that I drink you will drink; and with the baptism with which I am baptized you will be baptized. Mark 10:38-39; Matthew 20:21, 13.

From this it is evident that 'cup' means temptation, for temptation comes about when evils use falsities to enter into conflict with goods and truths. 'Baptism' means regeneration which, being effected by means of spiritual conflicts, consequently means temptation also.

[13] In the completely contrary sense 'cup' means falsity that is a product of evil among those who are profaners, that is, with whom inwardly the exact opposites of charity are present but who put on an outward show of holiness. The word is used in this sense in Jeremiah,

Babel was a golden cup in Jehovah's hand, making the whole earth drunken. All nations have drunk of her wine, therefore the nations are mad. Jeremiah 51:7.

'Babel' stands for people with whom there is holiness outwardly but unholiness inwardly, 1182, 1326. The falsity which they veil with holiness is meant by 'a golden cup'. 'Making the whole earth drunken' stands for the fact that they lead those who belong to the Church, meant by 'the earth', into erroneous and insane ways. The profanities which they conceal beneath outward holiness involve nothing else than this - their intention to become the greatest and the wealthiest of all, to be worshipped as gods, the possessors of heaven and earth, and so to have dominion over people's souls as well as their bodies. And the means Used by them is their outward display of respect for Divine and holy things. Consequently they look, so far as their external man is concerned, like angels; but so far as their internal man is concerned they are devils.

[14] A similar description of Babel exists in John,

The woman was clothed in purple and scarlet, and covered 2 with gold and precious stones and pearls, holding in her hand a golden cup, full of abominations and the uncleanness of her whoredom. Revelation 17:4.

In the same book,

It has fallen, Babylon the great has fallen and become a dwelling-place of demons; for she has given all nations drink from the wine of the fury of her whoredom; and the kings of the earth have committed whoredom with her. I heard a voice from heaven, saying, Render to her as she has rendered to you; in the cup which she mixed, mix double for her. Revelation 18:2-4, 6.

In the same book,

The great city was divided into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell. The remembrance of Babylon the great was established before God, to give her the cup of the fury of the anger of God. Revelation 16:19.

In the same book,

The third angel said with a loud voice, If anyone worships the beast and his Image, he will drink from the wine of God's anger, poured unmixed as it is in the cup of His anger; and he will be tormented with fire and brimstone. Revelation 14:9-10.

脚注:

1. literally, baptisms or dippings

2. literally, gilded

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