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1 Moreover the Spirit lifted me up, and brought me unto the east gate of Jehovah's house, which looketh eastward: and behold, at the door of the gate five and twenty men; and I saw in the midst of them Jaazaniah the son of Azzur, and Pelatiah the son of Benaiah, princes of the people.
1-3. Beginning of the perversion of the church by means of falsities (the "caldron" here meaning doctrine, and the" flesh" the people.) P. P.
1, 24. See Chapter VIII., 3. R. 36.
See Chapter III., 12-14. R. 945.
See Chapter III., 12-1 4. L. 52.
See Chapter III., 12-14. T. 157·
2 And he said unto me, Son of man, these are the men that devise iniquity, and that give wicked counsel in this city;
3 that say, The time is not near to build houses: this city is the caldron, and we are the flesh.
2, 3, 7. The pot (caldron) stands for the city or the people in it, and the flesh for evil; for the slain, who are called the flesh, are those with whom good and truth are extinguished. A. 8408.
The pot is here the doctrine of falsity from evil, for so the city is called where iniquity is devised, and wicked counsel is given. The city is doctrine. A. 10105·
2, 4, 15. The prophet Ezekiel was called the son of man. L.28.
4 Therefore prophesy against them, prophesy, O son of man.
5 And the Spirit of Jehovah fell upon me, and he said unto me, Speak, Thus saith Jehovah: Thus have ye said, O house of Israel; for I know the things that come into your mind.
6 Ye have multiplied your slain in this city, and ye have filled the streets thereof with the slain.
7 Therefore thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Your slain whom ye have laid in the midst of it, they are the flesh, and this city is the caldron; but ye shall be brought forth out of the midst of it.
4-7. by falsifications of the truth of doctrine. P. P.
6. The prophets who prophesied falsity were cast out in to the streets of Jerusalem, and there was none to bury them. R. 501.
By the slain in the Word are understood those who perish by falses, for the sword with which they are slain signifies the false destroying truth. By the city is signified the doctrine of truth. By filling the streets with the slain is signified the devastation of truths by falses. E. 652.
6, 7. By the pierced are signified those who have extinguished the truths of the church in themselves by falsities and evils. A. 4503.
The devastated are called the pierced. They are said to be pierced (or thrust through) because a sword, by which this is done, signifies the false destroying truth. Coro. 59.
By the prophets is described the vastation and desolation by the sword, famine and pestilence. By the sword is understood falsity, by famine the defect of good and truth, by pestilence the evil of life. D. P., Page 26.
8 Ye have feared the sword; and I will bring the sword upon you, saith the Lord Jehovah.
9 And I will bring you forth out of the midst thereof, and deliver you into the hands of strangers, and will execute judgments among you.
10 Ye shall fall by the sword; I will judge you in the border of Israel; and ye shall know that I am Jehovah.
11 This city shall not be your caldron, neither shall ye be the flesh in the midst thereof; I will judge you in the border of Israel;
8, 9. To bring a sword means falsities from evil fighting against truth from good; to deliver in to the hands of strangers is that they should believe and serve those falsities. A. 10287.
8-11. It will be even worse, and they shall perish by reason of things falsified. P. P.
12 and ye shall know that I am Jehovah: for ye have not walked in my statutes, neither have ye executed mine ordinances, but have done after the ordinances of the nations that are round about you.
12. because they will pervert all things. P. P.
12, 20. The reason why judgments are truths is that all judgment is effected by truth. All laws, so far as they belonged to the representative church were in general called judgments and statutes. A. 8972.
See Chapter V., 6, 7. E. 946.
13 And it came to pass, when I prophesied, that Pelatiah the son of Benaiah died. Then fell I down upon my face, and cried with a loud voice, and said, Ah Lord Jehovah! wilt thou make a full end of the remnant of Israel?
14 And the word of Jehovah came unto me, saying,
13. The state of the consummation of the Israelitish church is described in both the historic and prophetic parts of the Word. Coro. 59.
13-16. All who are in falsities must be scattered: the church will consist of few. P. P.
13, 17, 21. See Chapter VIII., 1. A. 2921.
15 Son of man, thy brethren, even thy brethren, the men of thy kindred, and all the house of Israel, all of them, are they unto whom the inhabitants of Jerusalem have said, Get you far from Jehovah; unto us is this land given for a possession.
15. Formerly all who were of one church called themselves brethren. The Lord names those brethren who are in love to Him, and in charity toward their neighbor. E. 746.
16 Therefore say, Thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Whereas I have removed them far off among the nations, and whereas I have scattered them among the countries, yet will I be to them a sanctuary for a little while in the countries where they are come.
16. The Lord in heaven, and so heaven itself, is called a habitation of holiness. A. 9229.
A sancturary means the Lord Himself, for the Lord Jehovah and Jehovah in the Word is the Lord. A. 9479.
17 Therefore say, Thus saith the Lord Jehovah: I will gather you from the peoples, and assemble you out of the countries where ye have been scattered, and I will give you the land of Israel.
18 And they shall come thither, and they shall take away all the detestable things thereof and all the abominations thereof from thence.
19 And I will give them one heart, and I will put a new spirit within you; and I will take the stony heart out of their flesh, and will give them a heart of flesh;
20 that they may walk in my statutes, and keep mine ordinances, and do them: and they shall be my people, and I will be their God.
17-20. A new church will be instituted by the Lord, which will be in truths from Him. P. P.
19. The stony heart out of their flesh stands for the voluntary and proprium not vivified, and the heart of flesh for the same vivified. The heart is representative of the good of the will. A. 3813.
By spirit is meant the life of the regenerate, which is called regenerate life. L. 49,
The conjunction of the will and the understanding in man is meant in the Word by heart and soul, and by heart and spirit. By the heart is meant the will and its love, and by the soul and the spirit, the understanding and its wisdom. Life 86.
Flesh signifies good, the good of the church. R. 832.
Flesh signifies good with man, the heart of flesh is the will and love of good. E. 1082.
By a new heart is meant the will of good, and by a new spirit the understanding of truth. The Lord operates these in those who do what is good, and believe what is true. T. 143.
By heart in the Word is signified love, therefore a heart of flesh signifies the love of good. T. 705.
20. By their being His people, and He Himself being with them, their God, is signified that they are the Lord's, and the Lord theirs. R. 883.
21 But as for them whose heart walketh after the heart of their detestable things and their abominations, I will bring their way upon their own heads, saith the Lord Jehovah.
21. By the head is signified the whole man. Anointing the head means the whole body. A. 10011.
See Chapter IX., 10. E. 577.
See Chapter V., 11. E. 1045.
at the time when the former church is being destroyed. P. P.
22 Then did the cherubim lift up their wings, and the wheels were beside them; and the glory of the God of Israel was over them above.
23 And the glory of Jehovah went up from the midst of the city, and stood upon the mountain which is on the east side of the city.
22. That the Lord is called the God of Israel. L. 39.
The Lord is called the God of Israel. T. 93.
22. 23. The mountain which is on the east signifies nothing else than what is celestial, which is of love and charity; and that is of the Lord, for it is said that the glory of Jehovah stood thereon. A. 1250.
See Chapter X., 18, 19. A. 5922.
Wisdom and intelligence from the Divine are meant by glory. R. 8427.
The Divine truth is meant by glory. R. 629.
By the cherubim signified the Lord as to Divine providence and defence. By the glory of the God of Israel is signified Divine truth proceeding from the Lord. As Divine truth, which is light, proceeds from the Lord as a sun, in the angelic heaven, therefore, the glory of Jehovah was seen to ascend from the midst of the city, and to stand upon the mountain which is on the east side of the city; for by the city is understood Jerusalem, and thereby is understood the church as to doctrine. The mountain on the east side of the city was the mount of Olives. E. 422.
The Word will enlighten the new church. P. P.
24 And the Spirit lifted me up, and brought me in the vision by the Spirit of God into Chaldea, to them of the captivity. So the vision that I had seen went up from me.
25 Then I spake unto them of the captivity all the things that Jehovah had showed me.
24, 25. This is made manifest to those who are in spiritual captivity. P. P.
Chapter mentioned. Who in the Christian world would have known anything about heaven and hell, if it had not pleased the Lord to open in some one the sight of his spirit? M. 26., T. 851.
Author: Emanuel Swedenborg (Compiled by Robert S. Fischer 1925)
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