4 Mose 19
1
Und der HERR redete mit Mose und Aaron und sprach:
2
Diese Weise soll ein Gesetz sein, das der HERR geboten hat und gesagt: Sage den Kindern Israel, daß sie zu dir führen ein rötliche Kuh ohne Gebrechen, an der kein Fehl sei und auf die noch nie ein Joch gekommen ist.
3
Und gebt sie dem Priester Eleasar; der soll sie hinaus vor das Lager führen und daselbst vor ihm schlachten lassen.
4
Und Eleasar, der Priester, soll von ihrem Blut mit seinem Finger nehmen und stracks gegen die Hütte des Stifts siebenmal sprengen
5
und die Kuh vor ihm verbrennen lassen, beides, ihr Fell und ihr Fleisch, dazu ihr Blut samt ihrem Mist.
6
Und der Priester soll Zedernholz und Isop und scharlachrote Wolle nehmen und auf die brennende Kuh werfen
7
und soll seine Kleider waschen und seinen Leib mit Wasser baden und darnach ins Lager gehen und unrein sein bis an den Abend.
8
Und der sie verbrannt hat, soll auch seine Kleider mit Wasser waschen und seinen Leib in Wasser baden und unrein sein bis an den Abend.
9
Und ein reiner Mann soll die Asche von der Kuh aufraffen und sie schütten draußen vor dem Lager an eine reine Stätte, daß sie daselbst verwahrt werde für die Gemeinde der Kinder Israel zum Sprengwasser; denn es ist ein Sündopfer.
10
Und derselbe, der die Asche der Kuh aufgerafft hat, soll seine Kleider waschen und unrein sein bis an den Abend. Dies soll ein ewiges Recht sein den Kindern Israel und den Fremdlingen, die unter euch wohnen.
11
Wer nun irgend einen toten Menschen anrührt, der wird sieben Tage unrein sein.
12
Der soll sich hiermit entsündigen am dritten Tage und am siebenten Tage, so wird er rein; und wo er sich nicht am dritten Tage und am siebenten Tage entsündigt, so wird er nicht rein werden.
13
Wenn aber jemand irgend einen toten Menschen anrührt und sich nicht entsündigen wollte, der verunreinigt die Wohnung des HERRN, und solche Seele soll ausgerottet werden aus Israel. Darum daß das Sprengwasser nicht über ihn gesprengt ist, so ist er unrein; seine Unreinigkeit bleibt an ihm.
14
Das ist das Gesetz: Wenn ein Mensch in der Hütte stirbt, soll jeder, der in die Hütte geht und wer in der Hütte ist, unrein sein sieben Tage.
15
Und alles offene Gerät, das keinen Deckel noch Band hat, ist unrein.
16
Auch wer anrührt auf dem Felde einen, der erschlagen ist mit dem Schwert, oder einen Toten oder eines Menschen Gebein oder ein Grab, der ist unrein sieben Tage.
17
So sollen sie nun für den Unreinen nehmen Asche von diesem verbrannten Sündopfer und fließendes Wasser darauf tun in ein Gefäß.
18
Und ein reiner Mann soll Isop nehmen und ins Wasser tauchen und die Hütte besprengen und alle Geräte und alle Seelen, die darin sind; also auch den, der eines Toten Gebein oder einen Erschlagenen oder Toten oder ein Grab angerührt hat.
19
Es soll aber der Reine den Unreinen am dritten Tage und am siebenten Tage entsündigen; und er soll seine Kleider waschen und sich mit Wasser baden, so wird er am Abend rein.
20
Welcher aber unrein sein wird und sich nicht entsündigen will, des Seele soll ausgerottet werden aus der Gemeinde; denn er hat das Heiligtum des HERRN verunreinigt und ist mit Sprengwasser nicht besprengt; darum ist er unrein.
21
Und dies soll ihnen ein ewiges Recht sein. Und der auch, der mit dem Sprengwasser gesprengt hat, soll seine Kleider waschen; und wer das Sprengwasser anrührt, der soll unrein sein bis an den Abend.
22
Und alles, was der Unreine anrührt, wird unrein werden; und welche Seele ihn anrühren wird, soll unrein sein bis an den Abend.
Arcana Coelestia #6854
6854. 'And I have come down to deliver them from the hand of the Egyptians' means that He would stoop down to them to release them from the power of false factual knowledge, which tries to destroy the truths of the Church. This is clear from the meaning of 'coming down' as stooping down, dealt with below; from the meaning of 'to deliver' as to release, for one who releases people from falsities delivers or sets them free; from the meaning of 'the hand' as the power, dealt with in 878, 3387, 3563, 4931-4937, 5544; and from the meaning of 'the Egyptians' as false factual knowledge, which is opposed to the Church's truths, dealt with in 6651, 6679, 6683, and so which tries to destroy them. As regards the Lord's coming down, the situation is that the Lord is said to come or stoop down when He comes to judgement, 1311, and also when He comes down to lower things, in this instance to those belonging to the spiritual Church, who are meant by 'the children of Israel'. For the subject in the internal sense is the way in which those people are molested by falsities, at which time they undergo temptations, and the way in which after that they are set free in order that they may be led into heaven.
[2] But the contents of the internal sense of this verse and of those that follow hold an even deeper mystery which the Church does not yet know about and which must therefore be disclosed. Those who are termed spiritual are people for whom only the understanding part of their mind, not the will part, can be regenerated. In the understanding part of their mind the Lord therefore implants a new will, a will which conforms to the teachings that compose the faith of their Church. These people, that is to say, spiritual ones such as these, were saved solely by the Lord's Coming into the world. The reason why is that the Divine passing through heaven, which was the Divine Human before the Lord's Coming, could not reach them; for to be sure the teachings of their Church were for the most part not truths, and consequently the good in their will was not good either, 6427. Since those people could be saved solely by the Lord's Coming, they could not be raised into heaven before then. They were therefore kept in the meantime on the lower earth, in places there which in the Word are called 'pits'. This lower earth was besieged on every side by the hells where there were falsities, by which they were molested greatly during that time. In spite of this however the Lord protected them. But after the Lord came into the world and made the Human within Himself Divine, He set free those who were in the pits there and raised them to heaven. From these He also formed the spiritual heaven which is the second heaven. This is what is meant by the Lord's descent into the lower parts 1 and by His deliverance of those who had been bound.
[3] This is the even deeper mystery that is described in the internal sense of this verse and of those that follow. See what has been shown already regarding those who are spiritual,
The spiritual are in obscurity so far as the truth and good of faith are concerned, 2708, 2715, 2718, 2831, 2849, 2935, 2937, 3241, 3833, 6289.
Their obscurity is lightened by the Lord's Divine Human, 2716, 4402.
Because they are in obscurity so far as the truth and good of faith are concerned they are under strong attack from the hells; but the Lord is constantly protecting them, 6419.
Those who are spiritual cannot have the will part of their mind regenerated, only the understanding part; and there the Lord forms a new will, 863, 875, 895, 927, 918, 1023, 1043, 1044, 2156, 4328, 4493, 5113.
The spiritual were saved by the Lord's Coming into the world, 2833, 2834, 3969.
[4] Various places in the prophetical part of the Word mention 'the bound' or 'the bound in the pit' and the fact that the Lord delivered them. The bound' should be taken to mean specifically those spoken of just above, as in Isaiah,
I Jehovah have called you in righteousness, and will hold your hand, because I will guard you, and give you to be a covenant of the people, 2 a light of the nations, to open the blind eyes, to bring the bound out of prison, out of the dungeon-house those who sit in darkness. Isaiah 42:6-7.
In the same prophet,
I have guarded you, and I have given you as covenant of the people - to restore the land; to share out the devastated inheritances; to say to the bound, Go out; to those who are in darkness, Reveal yourselves. They will feed along the ways, and on all slopes will their pasture be. Isaiah 49:8-9.
This plainly refers to the Lord. 'The bound' stands in particular for those who were held back on the lower earth until the Lord's Coming, when they were raised up to heaven, and in general for all who are governed by good, yet are held back as though bound by falsities, from which however they wish to break away.
[5] In Zechariah,
Through the blood of your covenant I will let out your bound ones from the pit. Zechariah 9:11.
In Isaiah,
They will surely be gathered together, the bound ones in the pit, and they will be shut up in the dungeon; after a multitude of days they will be visited. Isaiah 24:21.
'The bound ones in the pit' stands for the same people. And in addition to these places the same meaning can be seen from the following words in Isaiah,
Jehovah has anointed Me to bring good tidings to the poor. He has sent Me to bind up the broken in heart; to preach liberty to captives, to those who are bound, to him who is blind; to proclaim the year of Jehovah's good pleasure. Isaiah 61:1-2.
And elsewhere,
The people walking in darkness have seen a great light; those dwelling in the land of the shadow of death, upon them has the light shone out. Isaiah 9:2.
Imibhalo yaphansi:
1. i.e. hell
2. 'The Latin means for the people but the Hebrew means of the people, which Swedenborg has in some other places where he quotes this verse.
