Chapter 2.

Verses 1-20: After Jesus is Born

1. And when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came Magi from the east into Jerusalem,

2. Saying, “Where is He that is born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the east, and are come to worship Him.”

3. But having heard, Herod the king was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him.

4. And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where Christ should be born.

5. And they said unto him, “In Bethlehem of Judea; for thus it is written by the prophet:

6. ‘And thou Bethlehem, [of] the land of Judah, art by no means the least among the governors of Judah, for out of thee shall come a Governor, who shall shepherd My people Israel.’”

7. Then Herod, privately calling the Magi, precisely inquired of them at what time the star appeared.

8. And sending them to Bethlehem, he said, “Go and search earnestly for the little Child; and when you have found [Him], report to me, so that I also may come and worship Him.”

9. And when they had heard the king they went [out]; and behold, the star which they saw in the east went before them, till it came [and] stood over where the little Child was.

10. And having seen the star, they rejoiced with exceedingly great joy.

11. And coming into the house, they found the little Child with Mary His mother, and falling [down] they worshiped Him; and opening their treasures, they offered to Him gifts: gold, and frankincense, and myrrh.

12. And being warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they departed into their own country by another way.

13. And when they had departed, behold, the angel of the Lord appears in a dream to Joseph, saying, “Arise and take the little Child and His mother, and flee into Egypt, and be there until I tell thee; for Herod is about to seek the little Child to destroy Him.”

14. And when he arose, he took the little Child and His mother by night, and departed into Egypt,

15. And was there until the death of Herod, that it might be fulfilled which was declared by the Lord through the prophet, saying, “Out of Egypt have I called My Son.”

16. Then Herod, when he saw that he was mocked by the Magi, was exceedingly wrathful, and sent out and slew all the boys that were in Bethlehem, and in all her borders , from two years and under, according to the time which he had precisely inquired of the Magi.

17. Then was fulfilled what was declared by Jeremiah the prophet, saying,

18. “A voice was heard in Rama, lamentation, and weeping, and much howling, Rachel weeping [for] her children; and she was not willing to be comforted, because they are not.”

19. And when Herod was dead, behold, the angel of the Lord, in a dream appears to Joseph in Egypt,

20. Saying, “Arise, take the little Child and His mother, and go to the land of Israel; for they are dead who sought the soul of the little Child.”

Joseph’s struggle within himself — as to whether or not to accept Mary and the child — represents the spiritual battle which each of us must undergo in the course of our regeneration. It is one thing to receive the Lord in the understanding (represented by Joseph), but quite another to allow Him to order the things of our will — represented by the angel telling Joseph to take Mary as his wife. This is the fiercer battle which now begins “after Jesus is born.”

The antagonist is Herod, the king of Judea at the time of Jesus’ birth. Comfortable and secure in his role as the supreme ruler of the land, Herod is deeply troubled by the report of the Wise Men who say, “Where is He who is born King of the Jews?” Spiritually seen, Herod, as king of Israel, represents total self-absorption, our corrupt hereditary will, setting itself up as the ruler of our lives. This is our state after fourteen generations of captivity in Babylon — a state in which we are governed by our basest emotions: greed, control, anger, fear, hatred and jealousy. We can be sure that whenever we find ourselves in a state like this, Herod is sitting comfortably and securely on his throne. He is a tyrannical ruler, easily threatened, but not easily dethroned. His motivating force is to destroy the Lord in us — even at His birth — rather than relinquish his control over us.

God knows that we need divine protection from the wrath of Herod who represents our selfish desire to control. God therefore speaks to Joseph (as He does to us) in a dream, saying “Arise, take the young Child and His mother, flee to Egypt, and remain there until I bring you word; for Herod is about to seek the young Child to destroy Him” (2:13).

Egypt, at that time, was a world center for education and learning. Medicine, mathematics, poetry and many other fields of study were flourishing. So Jesus’ flight into Egypt represents the need that all of us have for basic education, not just the standard three “R’s,” (reading, ‘riting, and ‘rithmetic) but the fourth “R” as well — the basics of religion.

Religious truth, especially the most basic, can help defend us against the onslaughts of Herod — the despot of our lower nature, a fierce tyrant who strives to murder everything that is true in us, even in its most innocent beginning. This is represented by Herod’s massacre of the male children in and around Bethlehem: “Then Herod, when he saw that he was mocked by the wise men, was exceedingly angry; and he sent forth and put to death all the male children who were in Bethlehem, and in all its districts, from two years old and under” (Matthew 2:16; emphasis added).

The name “Bethlehem,” comes from two Hebrew words: “Beth” meaning “house” and “lechem” meaning “bread.” Therefore, Bethlehem means “House of Bread” — a place of spiritual nourishment. In the context of this episode, Herod’s destruction of all the male children of Bethlehem, two years old and under, represents how evil inclinations can destroy our earliest impulses to learn truth. These earliest desires to acquire knowledge of truth are symbolized by the male babies of Bethlehem. Whenever we fall into states of cynicism and skepticism, refusing to learn or trust the simple teachings of the Word, whenever we find ourselves without desire to seek the truth, and whenever the distractions of the world lure us away from the quest for wisdom, we can know that “Herod” has risen up in our hearts. A massacre has begun. “Herod in us” is striving to murder the innocent and tender qualities that have been born in our heavenly Bethlehem.

But if we flee to and remain in Egypt (as Jesus does), we will be protected. It is the place where our instruction begins. This is a temporary, but essential part of our spiritual development; temporary because we must eventually return to the land of Canaan where the truth will be applied to our lives; and essential, because these basic, natural truths are the only means by which we can be prepared to receive the higher insights that will eventually flow in from above. ¹

For most of us, the period of our instruction in basic truths can last for many years, well into adolescence and beyond. In fact, it never really ends. Throughout our lives we will continue to acquire knowledge, both worldly and spiritual. We will, as it were, “go down into Egypt.” And, as we do so, learning truth and putting it into our lives, we will begin to see how the literal teachings of scripture “open up” like parting clouds, revealing more and more of the interior truths they contain.

In Jesus’ own case, this process of acquiring basic truth was much more rapid. Although Matthew does not tell us how long Jesus remained in Egypt, we can safely assume He was still quite young when He left, for an angel of the Lord came to Joseph in a dream, saying, “Arise, take the young Child and His mother, and go to the land of Israel, for those who sought the soul of the young Child’s are dead” (Matthew 2:20; emphasis added).

Growing up in Nazareth

21. And he arose, [and] took the little Child and His mother, and came into the land of Israel.

22. And hearing that Archelaus reigned in Judea instead of his father Herod, he feared to go thither; but being warned in a dream, he departed into the parts of Galilee.

23. And coming, He dwelt in a city called Nazareth, so that it might be fulfilled which was declared by the prophets, that He should be called a Nazarene.

Eventually, Joseph, Mary, and the young Child decide to return to Judea. This represents the next step in our spiritual journey. Once we have learned the simple, basic, most literal truths of the Word (sojourning in Egypt), it is time to return to Judea. It is time to be further instructed, and to see what is more interiorly concealed within the letter of the Word. This is a necessary step in every person’s spiritual development. The letter of the Word serves as a literal history of people and places; it is an introduction to basic truth. It does not, however, reveal the full details of our spiritual journey, or provide the kind of discernment we need for the refinement of our souls. Not yet, but that will surely come when we are ready to receive further instruction.

Meanwhile, as the divine narrative continues, Joseph is “warned by God in a dream” that it is not yet time to return to their home. Though Herod is dead, his son is still in power. And so Mary, Joseph, and the young Child turn aside into the region of Galilee, into a city called Nazareth. This is yet another step on the journey of spiritual development. In the language of sacred scripture, it could be called, “growing up in Nazareth.

But what does it mean to “grow up in Nazareth”?

Nazareth of Galilee was a primitive region populated mostly by farmers, fishermen and uneducated tradespeople who knew very little about theology or the laws of the temple.

Unlike the well-educated (but misguided) religious leaders in Judea, the people of Galilee were not part of the religious establishment of the time. Although they had a strong belief in God, they were not familiar with the main doctrines taught by the religious leaders or the traditions of the temple authorities. And yet, a simple belief in God is often better than a more complicated belief system based on human reason rather than divine revelation. In this regard, the “learned world” often looks down upon people who believe in simplicity that there is a God, and that God is good. ²

The simple, hard-working, good people of Nazareth, therefore, symbolize the humility and simplicity we need to believe in God and live according to His teachings. It is remarkable that almost all the early disciples came from Galilee. It was not their theological training that made them receptive to the teachings of Jesus — for they had very little. In fact, it might be said that it was the absence of theological training — or to be more precise, the absence of false and misleading theology — that made them receptive to Jesus’ words. ³

Galilee, then, and the city of Nazareth which was in the region of Galilee, represent the simplicity of heart and the goodness of life that can receive God openly without skepticism or negativity. Because their religious principles are simple and uncomplicated — love God, love your neighbor — these people can receive Jesus’ teachings readily and with joy. All this is contained in the scriptural statement that Jesus grew up in Nazareth of Galilee, in the “land of the Gentiles.” ⁴ These words speak about a state in us “where Jesus grows up” — a state in which we are willing to receive basic truths simply, uncritically, and with joy.

As we shall see later in the narrative, the fact that Jesus grows up in Nazareth, in the land of the Gentiles, will be held against Him. The religious leaders will regard Him as poor and uneducated, untrained in their religious tenets, and therefore incapable of understanding or conveying spiritual truth to anyone. And yet, as this episode closes, we learn that His growing up in Nazareth is the fulfillment of prophecy, for we read, “And He came and dwelt in a city called Nazareth, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophets, ‘He shall be called a Nazarene’” (2:23).

As we reflect on this miraculous moment in the early life of Jesus, it becomes evident that those simple, most basic truths we learn (Egypt) must be protected in a place of simple trust and unalloyed faith (Nazareth of Galilee). This is a necessary stage in which early truths from the letter of the Word can deepen and develop. It is why we feel a natural desire to protect the innocence of children from corrupting influences — Herod, and the son of Herod. And it is the same with each of us as we learn new truth from the letter of the Word, and allow it to grow up within us in a state of simple faith.

脚注:

10134. 'You shall offer one lamb in the morning' means the removal of evils by means of the good of innocence from the Lord in a state of love and consequently of light in the internal man. This is clear from the meaning of 'offering a lamb', or sacrificing it, as the removal of evils by means of the good of innocence from the Lord, dealt with below; and from the meaning of 'the morning' as a state of love and consequently of light in the internal man, also dealt with below. The reason why 'offering (or sacrificing) a lamb' means the removal of evils by means of the good of innocence from the Lord is that burnt offerings and sacrifices were signs of purification from evils and consequently from falsities, or what amounts to the same thing, the removal of them, and the implantation of goodness and truth and the joining together of these by the Lord, 9990, 9991, 10022, 10042, 10053. As regards purification from evils, that it is the removal of them, see the places referred to in 10057; and as regards 'a lamb', that the good of innocence is meant, 10132.

[2] The reason why the removal of evils, and the implantation of goodness and truth and the joining together of these, is accomplished by means of the good of innocence from the Lord is that all good, if it is to be good, must have innocence within it. Without it good is not good; for innocence is not only the ground in which truths are sown but also the very essence of good. Therefore how far a person possesses innocence determines how far his good becomes good and his truth has life from good, consequently how far he is endowed with life and the evils present with him are removed. And so far as these are removed determines how far goodness and truth are implanted and are joined together by the Lord. All this explains why the continual burnt offering was made with lambs.

All good in heaven and in the Church has innocence within it, and without it good is not good, see 2736, 2780, 6013, 7840, 7887, 9262.

What innocence is, 3994, 4001, 4797, 5236, 6107, 6765, 7902, 9262, 9936.

[3] The reason why 'the morning' means a state of love and consequently of light in the internal man is that in the heavens angels experience different states involving their love and therefore their faith, just as in the world people pass through different times of day that affect the heat and at the same time the light there, those times of day being, as is well known, morning, midday, evening, and night. So it is that in the Word 'morning' means a state of love, 'midday' a state of light in clearness, 'evening' a state of light set in obscurity, and 'night' or twilight prior to morning a state of love set in obscurity.

Such changes from one state to another take place in heaven, see 5672, 5962, 6110, 7218, 8426.

Morning there is a state of peace and innocence, thus a state of love to the Lord, 2405, 2780, 8426, 8812, 10114.

Midday is a state of light in clearness, 3708, 5672, 9642.

Evening is a state of light set in obscurity, 3056, 3833, 6110.

There is no night in heaven, only twilight, 6110, by which a state of love set in obscurity is meant.

[4] The reason why 'the morning' means a state of love and consequently of light in the internal man is that when an angel's state is one of love and light he functions in his internal man; but when his state is one of light and love in obscurity he does so in his external man. For angels have an internal man and an external, but when they function in the internal the external is virtually dormant, whereas when they do so in the external their state is grosser and duller. So it is that when their state is one of love and light they function in their internal man, thus in what is for them the morning, and when their state is one of light and love set in obscurity they do so in their external, thus in what is for them the evening. From this it is evident that changes of state are effected by their being raised to more internal things, thus to a higher sphere of heavenly light and heat, consequently nearer to the Lord, or by their being let down to more external ones, into a lower sphere of heavenly light and heat, and therefore further away from the Lord.

[5] It should be remembered that more internal things are higher ones and so are closer to the Lord, whereas more external things are lower ones and so are further away from the Lord, and that light in the heavens is Divine Truth which composes faith, while heat in the heavens is Divine Good that constitutes love, both emanating from the Lord. For the Lord is the Sun in heaven, the source of all the life that angels have, and consequently of all the spiritual and celestial life that people in the world have, see the places referred to in 9548, 9684. Regarding more internal things, that they are higher ones and so are closer to the Lord, see 2148, 3084, 4599, 5146, 8325.

[6] The love and faith of a person who is being regenerated, and also of a person who has been regenerated, in like manner undergo changes of state by being raised to more internal things or let down to more external ones. But there are few who are able to reflect on this matter, because they are unaware of what thinking and willing within the internal man and within the external man are, or even of what the internal man is and what the external man is. Thinking and willing in the internal man implies doing so in heaven, for this is where the internal man is; but thinking and willing in the external man implies doing so in the world, for that is where the external man is. Therefore when love to God and faith resulting from it govern a person he functions in his internal man, since he is now up in heaven; but when his love and resulting faith are set in obscurity he functions in his external, since he is then down in the world.

[7] These states too are meant in the Word by 'morning', 'midday', 'evening', and 'night' or early morning twilight, as are states of the Church. The first state of the Church is likewise called 'morning' in the Word, the second state 'midday', the third 'evening', and the fourth or last 'night'. But when the Church has reached its night time, that is, when love to God and faith exist there no longer, morning emerges from twilight for another nation, where a new Church is established.

[8] For the situation with the Church in general is like that with a person in particular. His first state is a state of innocence, thus also one of love towards parents, nursemaid, and also children of his own age. His second state is a state of light, for when he becomes a youth he learns the things of light, that is, the truths of faith, and believes them. The third state is reached when he begins to love the world and to love himself, which happens when he becomes a young adult and when he thinks for himself; and to the extent that these loves increase, faith decreases, and together with faith charity towards the neighbour and love to God. The fourth and last state is reached when he has no interest in these, more so when he rejects them.

[9] Such states are also the states of every Church from its beginning to its end. Its first state is in like manner a state of early childhood, thus also one of innocence, and consequently of love to the Lord. This state is called 'morning'. The second state is a state of light. The third state is a state of light set in obscurity, which is that Church's 'evening'. And the fourth state is a state when there is no love nor consequently any light, which is its 'night'. This is so because evils increase daily; and to the extent that they increase, one person like a contagious disease infects another, especially parents their children. Furthermore hereditary evils are intensified by each succeeding generation and in that condition passed down.

[10] The fact that 'morning' means the first state of a Church and also a state of love is clear in Daniel,

The holy one said, For how long is this vision, the continual [burnt offering], and the desolating transgression? He said to me, Up to the evening, [when it is becoming] the morning, two thousand three hundred times; then the sanctuary will be made correct. Daniel 8:13-14.

This refers to the Lord's Coming. 'The evening' is the state of the Church before His Coming, but 'the morning' is the first state of the Church after His Coming, and in the highest sense it is the Lord Himself. The Lord is meant in the highest sense by 'the morning' because He is the Sun of heaven, and the Sun of heaven never sets but is always rising in the east. This also explains why the Lord is called 'the Rising' or 'the East', consequently 'the Morning' as well, see 101, 2405, 2780, 9668.

[11] In Isaiah,

One was calling to me from Seir, What of the night, what of the night, O watchman? The watchman said, Morning comes, and also the night. Isaiah 21:11-12.

'The watchman' is used to mean in the internal sense one who observes the states of the Church and the changes it undergoes, and so to mean every prophet. 'The night' is used to mean the final state of the Church, 'morning' its first state. 'Seir' from where the watchman calls means the enlightenment of nations who are in darkness, for which meaning of 'Seir', see 4240; and for that of 'the night' as the final state of the Church, 6000. 'Morning comes, and also the night' means that even though enlightenment comes to those who belong to the new Church, night remains with those who are in the old one. 'Morning' has the same meaning in David,

In the evening weeping will abide ¹ , in the morning singing. Psalms 30:5.

And in Isaiah,

Around evening time, behold, terror! Before the morning, he is no more. Isaiah 17:14.

[12] Since 'the morning' in the highest sense means the Lord, and consequently love received from Him and offered back to Him, the manna, which was heavenly bread, rained down every morning, Exodus 16:8, 12-13, 21. For the Lord is meant by the bread which comes down from heaven, thus by the manna, see John 6:33, 35, 48, 50; and by 'the bread' heavenly or celestial love, which is love received from and offered back to the Lord, is meant, 2165, 2177, 3464, 4217, 4735, 5405, 5915, 9545. And it is because the Lord is the rising (or the east) and the morning, and because heavenly love comes wholly from Him, that He rose in the morning on the sabbath day, Mark 16:9 ² . Therefore also the day before the feast of Passover was called the evening or eve; for the feast of Passover was a sign of the Lord's presence and of His deliverance of faithful believers from damnation, 7867, 9286-9292.

[13] Anyone acquainted with the internal sense of the Word may recognize what is implied by Peter's denial of the Lord three times before the cock crowed twice, Matthew 26:34, 74-75; Mark 14:30, 68, 72; Luke 22:34, 60-61; John 18:27. For Peter represented the Church's faith, or what amounts to the same thing, the Church as regards faith. The time when the cock crowed meant the final period of the Church, a time of day which was also called 'cock-crow'. The triple denial meant a complete denial of the Lord at the end of the Church. That Peter represented the Church's faith, and so the Church as regards faith, see Prefaces to Genesis 18, 22, and also 3750, 4738; and that the words addressed to Peter [Matthew 26:34] meant that within the Church the Lord would be denied when it reached its final period, 6000, 6073(end), 10087. The Lord is denied when there is no longer any faith; and there is no faith when there is no longer any charity. 'Three' means what is complete, see 2788, 4495, 7715, 8347, 9198, 9488, 9489; and this is why Peter was told that he would deny three times. The fact that this happened in twilight, when morning was about to arrive, is clear in John 18:28; and the fact that cock-crow and early morning twilight are one and the same thing is evident in Mark,

Watch, for you do not know when the Master of the house will be coming - in the evening, or at midnight, or at cock-crow, or in the morning. Mark 13:35.

From all this it now becomes clear what 'the morning' means.

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