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Ezequiel第43章

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1 Então me levou à porta, à porta que dá para o oriente.

2 E eis que a glória do Deus de Israel vinha do caminho do oriente; e a sua voz era como a voz de muitas águas, e a terra resplandecia com a glória dele.

3 E a aparência da visão que tive era como a da visão que eu tivera quando ele veio destruir a cidade; eram as visões como a que tive junto ao rio Quebar; e caí com o rosto em terra.

4 E a glória do Senhor entrou no templo pelo caminho da porta oriental.

5 E levantou-me o Espírito, e me levou ao átrio interior; e eis que a glória do Senhor encheu o templo.

6 Então ouvi uma voz que me foi direita de dentro do templo; e um homem se achava de pé junto de mim.

7 E disse-me: Filho do homem, este é o lugar do meu trono, e o lugar das plantas dos meus pés, onde habitarei no meio dos filhos de Israel para sempre; e os da casa de Israel não contaminarão mais o meu nome santo, nem eles nem os seus reis, com as suas prostituições e com os cadáveres dos seus reis, nos seus altos,

8 pondo o seu limiar ao pé do meu limiar, e os seus umbrais junto aos meus umbrais, e havendo apenas um muro entre mim e eles. Contaminaram o meu santo nome com as abominações que têm cometido; por isso eu os consumi na minha ira.

9 Agora lancem eles para longe de mim a sua prostituição e os cadáveres dos seus reis; e habitarei no meio deles para sempre.

10 Tu pois, ó filho do homem, mostra aos da casa de Israel o templo, para que se envergonhem das suas iniqüidades; e meçam o modelo.

11 E se eles se envergonharem de tudo quanto têm feito, faze- lhes saber a forma desta casa, a sua figura, as suas saídas e as suas entradas, e todas as suas formas; todas as suas ordenanças e todas as suas leis; escreve isto à vista deles, para que guardem toda a sua forma, e todas as suas ordenanças e as cumpram.

12 Esta é a lei do templo: Sobre o cume do monte todo o seu contorno em redor será santíssimo. Eis que essa é a lei do templo.

13 São estas as medidas do altar em côvados (o côvado é um côvado e um palmo): a parte inferior será de um côvado de altura e um côvado de largura, e a sua borda, junto a sua extremidade ao redor, de um palmo; e esta será a base do altar.

14 E do fundo, desde o chão até a saliência de baixo, será de dois côvados, e de largura um côvado; e desde a pequena saliência até a saliência grande será de quatro côvados, e a largura de um côvado.

15 E o altar superior será de quatro côvados; e da lareira do altar para cima se levantarão quatro pontas.

16 E a lareira do altar terá doze côvados de comprimento, e doze de largura, quadrado nos quatro lados.

17 E a saliência terá catorze côvados de comprimento e catorze de largura, nos seus quatro lados; e a borda, ao redor dela, será de meio côvado; e o fundo dela será de um côvado, ao redor; e os seus degraus darão para o oriente.

18 E disse-me: Filho do homem, assim diz o Senhor Deus: São estas as ordenanças para o altar, no dia em que o fizerem, para oferecerem sobre ele holocausto e para espargirem sobre ele sangue.

19 Aos sacerdotes levitas que são da linhagem de Zadoque, os quais se chegam a mim para me servirem, diz o Senhor Deus, darás um bezerro para oferta pelo pecado.

20 E tomarás do seu sangue, e o porás sobre as quatro pontas do altar, sobre os quatro cantos da saliência e sobre a borda ao redor; assim o purificarás e os expiarás.

21 Então tomarás o novilho da oferta pelo pecado, o qual será queimado no lugar da casa para isso ordenado, fora do santuário.

22 E no segundo dia oferecerás um bode, sem mancha, para oferta pelo pecado; e purificarão o altar, como o purificaram com o novilho.

23 Quando acabares de o purificar, oferecerás um bezerro, sem mancha, e um carneiro do rebanho, sem mancha.

24 Trá-los-ás, pois, perante o Senhor; e os sacerdotes deitarão sal sobre eles, e os oferecerão em holocausto ao Senhor.

25 Durante sete dias prepararás cada dia um bode como oferta pelo pecado; também prepararão eles um bezerro, e um carneiro do rebanho, sem mancha.

26 Por sete dias expiarão o altar, e o purificarão; assim o consagrarão.

27 E, cumprindo eles estes dias, será que, ao oitavo dia, e dali em diante, os sacerdotes oferecerão sobre o altar os vossos holocaustos e as vossas ofertas pacíficas; e vos aceitarei, diz o Senhor Deus.

   

来自斯威登堡的著作

 

Apocalypse Explained#70

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70. The reason why the feet are said to be like unto fine brass is, that by fine brass is meant brass polished and shining, like something fiery; and brass in the Word signifies natural good. Metals, like all other things in the Word, are significative. Gold in the Word signifies celestial good, which is inmost good; silver signifies its truth, which is spiritual good; brass natural good, which is ultimate good, and iron its truth, which is natural truth. That such things are signified by metals, is from correspondence; for many things are seen in heaven shining like gold and silver, and also many things shining like brass and iron. And it is there known, that by those things are signified the above-mentioned kinds of good and truth; this is why the ancients, who were in the knowledge of correspondences, named the ages after those metals. The first age they called the golden age, because innocence, love and wisdom therefrom, then reigned; but the second age they called the silver age, because truth from that good, or spiritual good, and intelligence therefrom, then reigned; the third age they called the brazen, or copper, age, because only natural good, which is what is just and sincere pertaining to moral life, then reigned; but the last age they called the iron age, because only truth without good then reigned, and when that reigns, then also falsity reigns. The reason why the ages were thus distinguished, was from the spiritual signification of those metals.

[2] From these considerations it is evident what is signified by the statue of Nebuchadnezzar, seen in his dream,

"whose head was of gold, the chest and arms of silver, the belly and thighs of brass, the legs of iron, and the feet partly of iron and partly of clay" (Dan. 2:32, 33).

The state of the church from its first time to its last as to good and truth, is here signified; its last time was when the Lord came into the world.

When it is known that gold signifies celestial good, silver spiritual good, brass natural good, and iron natural truth, many arcana in the Word where those metals are mentioned can be known. For example, what is signified by these words in Isaiah:

"For brass I will bring gold, for iron I will bring silver, and for wood brass, and for stones iron; I will also make thy government peace, and thine exactors justice" (60:17).

[3] But as the signification of brass is what is here treated of, as being natural good, it is necessary only to adduce a few passages where brass is mentioned and signifies that good. Thus in Moses:

"Asher acceptable to his brethren, and dipping his foot in oil; iron and brass thy shoe, and as thy day, thy fame" (Deuteronomy 33:24, 25).

Asher, as one of the tribes, signifies the happiness of life, and the delight of the affections (see Arcana Coelestia 3938, 3939, 6408); to dip the foot in oil signifies natural delight (that oil denotes delight, see n. 9954, and that the foot denotes the Natural, see above, n. 69); the shoe being iron and brass signifies the lowest Natural derived from truth and good, shoe denoting the lowest Natural (see n. 1748, 1860, 6844); iron is its truth, and brass its good, as above. Again,

"Jehovah thy God will bring thee into a rich land; a land out of whose stones thou shalt cut iron, and out of whose mountains brass" (Deuteronomy 8:7, 9).

And in Jeremiah:

"I will give thee unto this people for a fortified wall of brass, that they may fight against thee, and not prevail over thee" (15:20).

And in Ezekiel:

"Javan, Tubal, and Mesech, they were thy merchants; with the soul of man and vessels of brass they gave thy merchandise" (27:13).

In this chapter the merchandises of Tyre are treated of, by which are signified the knowledges (cognitiones) of good and truth. By the names Javan, Tubal, and Mesech, are signified those things that pertain to good and truth, to which the knowledges relate; the soul of man denotes the truth of life; vessels of brass denote scientifics of natural good.

[4] (What is signified by Tyre, may be seen, Arcana Coelestia 1201; what by merchandises, n. 2967, 4453; what by Tubal and Mesech, n. 1151; what by Javan, n. 1152, 1153, 1155; what by the soul of man, n. 2930, 9050, 9281; what by vessels, n. 3068, 3079, 3316, 3318.)

Again, in the same prophet:

The feet of the cherubs "shone like the appearance of polished brass" (1:7).

(What the cherubs and the feet signify, may be seen above, n. 69.) And in the same prophet:

"I saw, and, lo, a man, whose appearance was like the appearance of brass, and a thread of flax in his hands; he stood in the gate" (40:3).

Because the angel here mentioned measured the wall and the gates of the house of God, which signify the externals of the church, his appearance was seen to be the appearance of brass.

He who knows that brass signifies the external of the church, which in itself is natural, may in some measure understand why the altar of burnt-offering was overlaid with brass, and the gate round it was of brass, and the vessels of brass (Exodus 27:1-4), also why the great vessel, which was called the sea, with the twelve oxen under it, and the ten lavers with the bases, and also all the vessels of the tabernacle for the house of God, were made by Solomon of polished brass (1 Kings 7:43-47). He who knows what brass signifies, can also enter into the arcanum why a serpent of brass was commanded to be set up for the people to look at, concerning which it is thus written in Moses:

"Jehovah sent serpents among the people, which bit the people. And he said unto Moses, Make thee a serpent, and set it upon a pole; and it shall come to pass that every one that is bitten, when he hath looked upon it, shall live. And Moses made a serpent of brass, and set it upon a pole, and it came to pass, that when a serpent had bitten any man, and he looked upon the serpent of brass, he lived" (Numbers 21:6, 8, 9).

That the Lord was signified by that serpent, He himself teaches in John:

"As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life" (3:14, 15).

By the serpent is signified the ultimate of life in man, which is called the external Sensual, which is natural. To represent this ultimate, which in the Lord was Divine, among the sons of Israel, with whom all things were representative, a serpent of brass was made; and the signification was, that, if they looked to the Divine Human of the Lord, they would revive, that is, if they believed in Him, they should have eternal life, as the Lord himself also teaches. (That to see in the spiritual sense is to believe, may be seen above, n. 37, 68; and that a serpent denotes the external Sensual, which is the ultimate of the life of man, see Arcana Coelestia 195-197, 6398, 6949, 10313.) That brass and iron in the Word also signify what is hard, as in Isaiah 48:4; Dan. 7:19; and other places, will be seen in the following pages.

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