8748. Exodus 19

1. In the third month from the going of the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt, on this day they came to the wilderness of Sinai.

2. And they travelled from Rephidim, and came to the wilderness of Sinai, and encamped in the wilderness; and there Israel encamped beside the mountain.

3. And Moses went up to God, and Jehovah called to him from the mountain, saying, Thus you shall say to the house of Jacob, and tell the children of Israel,

4. You have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and [how] I bore you on eagles' wings, and brought you to Myself.

5. And now, if you will indeed hear My voice and keep My covenant, you will be to Me a peculiar treasure ¹ more than all peoples; for all the earth is Mine.

6. And you will be for Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation. These are the words which you shall speak to the children of Israel.

7. And Moses came and called the elders of the people, and set before them all these words which Jehovah commanded him.

8. And all the people answered together and said, All that Jehovah has spoken we will do. And Moses brought back the people's words to Jehovah.

9. And Jehovah said to Moses, Behold, I am coming to you in the thickness of a cloud, in order that the people may hear when I speak to you, and also will believe in you forever. And Moses told the people's words to Jehovah.

10. And Jehovah said to Moses, Go to the people, and sanctify them today and tomorrow; and let them wash their garments.

11. And they will be ready by the third day; for on the third day Jehovah will come down before the eyes of all the people onto Mount Sinai.

12. And you are to set bounds for the people round about, saying, Take care not to go up into the mountain or to touch the border of it; everyone touching the mountain will surely die.

13. Let no hand touch it, for he will surely be stoned or will be killed by being shot with arrows; whether it is a beast or a man, it shall not live. When there is a long sounding with the jobel ² they shall go up into the mountain.

14. And Moses went down from the mountain to the people, and sanctified the people; and they washed their garments.

15. And he said to the people, Be ready by the third day; do not go near a woman.

16. And so it was on the third day, when it came to be morning, that there were voices ³ and lightnings, and a heavy cloud on the mountain, and the voice of a trumpet extremely loud; and all the people who were in the camp trembled.

17. And Moses caused the people to go out of the camp to meet God; and they stood at the foot ⁴ of the mountain.

18. And Mount Sinai was smoking, the whole of it, because Jehovah came down onto it in fire; and its smoke went up like the smoke of a furnace, and the whole mountain began to tremble greatly.

19. And the voice of the trumpet grew louder and louder ⁵ ; Moses spoke, and God answered him by a voice.

20. And Jehovah came down onto Mount Sinai, to the top of the mountain; and Jehovah called Moses to the top of the mountain, and Moses went up.

21. And Jehovah said to Moses, Go down, warn the people so that they do not perhaps break through to Jehovah to see [Him], and many of them fall.

22. And also the priests coming near Jehovah must sanctify themselves, so that Jehovah does not perhaps make a breach in them.

23. And Moses said to Jehovah, The people cannot go up to Mount Sinai; for You have warned us, saying, Set bounds to the mountain and sanctify it.

24. And Jehovah said to him, Go! go down; and you are to come up, you and Aaron with you. And do not let the priests and the people break through to come up to Jehovah, so that He does not perhaps make a breach in them.

25. And Moses went down to the people and told them.

CONTENTS

The subject in what follows now is in the internal sense the revelation of God's truth that is going forth from the Lord out of heaven. The present chapter deals with the preparation to receive that truth.

Imibhalo yaphansi:

267. The reason angels can accept so much wisdom is that their deeper levels are open, and wisdom, like any perfection, increases as one moves toward the deeper levels and as they are opened. ¹

In every angel there are three levels of life corresponding to the three heavens (see 29-40). People whose first level has been opened are in the first or most remote heaven. People whose second level has been opened are in the second or intermediate heaven. People whose third level has been opened are in the third or inmost heaven. The wisdom of angels in heaven is according to these levels; so the wisdom of angels of the third heaven vastly transcends the wisdom of angels of the intermediate heaven, and their wisdom in turn transcends that of angels of the farthest heaven (see above, 209-210, and on the nature of the levels, see 38).

The reason for these differences is that the elements of the higher levels are detailed, and those of the lower are general, the general ones being inclusive of the details. The ratio of details to generalizations is on the order of thousands or ten thousands to one, so this is the ratio between the wisdom of angels of a higher heaven and that of angels of a lower heaven.

However, the wisdom of these latter angels similarly transcends our wisdom, for we are engrossed in our bodies and their sensory operations, and these physical sensory faculties are on the lowest level of all. This fact enables us to see the nature of the wisdom of people who base their thinking on sensory information - that is, the ones we call sense-oriented people. Specifically, they have no access to wisdom, only to information. ² It is different, though, for people whose thoughts are raised above sensory matters, and even more for people whose deeper levels have been opened all the way into heaven's light.

Imibhalo yaphansi: