<< Ezekiel VIII >>

PARABLES: JERUSALEM'S IDOLATRY

1 And it came to pass in the sixth year, in the sixth month, in the fifth day of the month, as I sat in my house, and the elders of Judah sat before me, that the hand of the Lord Jehovah fell there upon me.
 2 Then I beheld, and, lo, a likeness as the appearance of fire; from the appearance of his loins and downward, fire; and from his loins and upward, as the appearance of brightness, as it were glowing metal.
 3 And he put forth the form of a hand, and took me by a lock of my head; and the Spirit lifted me up between earth and heaven, and brought me in the visions of God to Jerusalem, to the door of the gate of the inner court that looketh toward the north; where was the seat of the image of jealousy, which provoketh to jealousy.
 4 And, behold, the glory of the God of Israel was there, according to the appearance that I saw in the plain.
 5 Then said he unto me, Son of man, lift up thine eyes now the way toward the north. So I lifted up mine eyes the way toward the north, and behold, northward of the gate of the altar this image of jealousy in the entry.
 6 And he said unto me, Son of man, seest thou what they do? even the great abominations that the house of Israel do commit here, that I should go far off from my sanctuary? but thou shalt again see yet other great abominations.
 7 And he brought me to the door of the court; and when I looked, behold, a hole in the wall.
 8 Then said he unto me, Son of man, dig now in the wall: and when I had digged in the wall, behold, a door.
 9 And he said unto me, Go in, and see the wicked abominations that they do here.
 10 So I went in and saw; and behold, every form of creeping things, and abominable beasts, and all the idols of the house of Israel, portrayed upon the wall round about.
 11 And there stood before them seventy men of the elders of the house of Israel; and in the midst of them stood Jaazaniah the son of Shaphan, every man with his censer in his hand; and the odor of the cloud of incense went up.
 12 Then said he unto me, Son of man, hast thou seen what the elders of the house of Israel do in the dark, every man in his chambers of imagery? for they say, Jehovah seeth us not; Jehovah hath forsaken the land.
 13 He said also unto me, Thou shalt again see yet other great abominations which they do.
 14 Then he brought me to the door of the gate of Jehovah's house which was toward the north; and behold, there sat the women weeping for Tammuz.
 15 Then said he unto me, Hast thou seen this, O son of man? thou shalt again see yet greater abominations than these.
 16 And he brought me into the inner court of Jehovah's house; and behold, at the door of the temple of Jehovah, between the porch and the altar, were about five and twenty men, with their backs toward the temple of Jehovah, and their faces toward the east; and they were worshipping the sun toward the east.
 17 Then he said unto me, Hast thou seen this, O son of man? Is it a light thing to the house of Judah that they commit the abominations which they commit here? for they have filled the land with violence, and have turned again to provoke me to anger: and, lo, they put the branch to their nose.
 18 Therefore will I also deal in wrath; mine eye shall not spare, neither will I have pity; and though they cry in mine ears with a loud voice, yet will I not hear them.

1 And it came to pass in the sixth year, in the sixth month, in the fifth day of the month, as I sat in my house, and the elders of Judah sat before me, that the hand of the Lord Jehovah fell there upon me.
2 Then I beheld, and, lo, a likeness as the appearance of fire; from the appearance of his loins and downward, fire; and from his loins and upward, as the appearance of brightness, as it were glowing metal.

1. The name Lord Jehovah, Lord God, is used when the aid of omnipotence is more especially sought and implored. A. 2921.
1, 2. The Lord is represented in respect to Divine love. P. P.
1 et seq. See Chapter II., 4. D. P., Page 26.
    See Chapter II., 4. D. P., Page 56.
2. See Chapter I., 13. A. 934·

3 And he put forth the form of a hand, and took me by a lock of my head; and the Spirit lifted me up between earth and heaven, and brought me in the visions of God to Jerusalem, to the door of the gate of the inner court that looketh toward the north; where was the seat of the image of jealousy, which provoketh to jealousy.
4 And, behold, the glory of the God of Israel was there, according to the appearance that I saw in the plain.

3. Since by the spirit of man is meant his mind, therefore, by being in the spirit, which is sometimes said in the Word, is meant a state of the mind separate from the body. T. 157.
3, 4. Introductory truths as to their quality are described by the door of the temple. E. 208.
And it is shown how the holy of the Word has been profaned. P. P.
3 et seq. See Chapter III., 12, 14. L. 52.
    Of the prophets we read, that they were in the spirit or in vision. When they were in the spirit they saw such things as are in heaven, but when the Word was given to them, they were then in the body, and heard Jehovah speaking. R. 36.
    See Chapter III., 12-14. R. 945.
3, 5. Zeal with the Lord is not wrath, it only appears in externals as if it were, interiorly it is love. R. 216.
3, 6, 14, 15. The prophet saw the great abominations of the house of Israel. The door of the inner gate that looketh toward the north stands for the place where interior falsities are. A. 2851.
4. It is called the glory of Jehovah with regard to the inmost heaven, and the glory of the God of Israel with regard to the middle or spiritual heaven. That Divine truth in the heavens appears in glory is because in the spiritual heaven truth appears before the eyes as a bright cloud. A. 5922.
    The appearance of fire and a rainbow, and of brightness round about are called the glory of Jehovah, and of the God of Israel in Ezekiel Chapter I., 28. A. 7091.
See Chapter I., 28. A. 8427.
    The Lord is called the God of Israel. L. 39.
    The Divine truth is meant by glory. R. 629.
    That the Lord is called the God of Israel is evident from very many passages in the Word. T. 93.
    The Lord is called the God of Israel. D. P., Page 26.
    The same repeated in D. P., Page 56.

5 Then said he unto me, Son of man, lift up thine eyes now the way toward the north. So I lifted up mine eyes the way toward the north, and behold, northward of the gate of the altar this image of jealousy in the entry.
6 And he said unto me, Son of man, seest thou what they do? even the great abominations that the house of Israel do commit here, that I should go far off from my sanctuary? but thou shalt again see yet other great abominations.

5, 6. Namely, that they have separated themselves from the holy of the worship of the church. P. P.
5, 6, 8, 12, 16. See Chapter II., 1,3,6,8. A. 9807.
    See Chapter II., I, 3, 6, 8. L. 28.
    See Chapter II., I, 3, 6, 8. E. 63·
6-18. See Chapter V., II. E. 1045.

7 And he brought me to the door of the court; and when I looked, behold, a hole in the wall.
8 Then said he unto me, Son of man, dig now in the wall: and when I had digged in the wall, behold, a door.
9 And he said unto me, Go in, and see the wicked abominations that they do here.

7, 8. Speaking of the abominations of the house of Israel which they did in secret. To dig through the wall is to enter in secretly and to see what they are doing. A. 9125.
7-10. Unless affections for evil and falsities had bounds, the man would be insane, for insanities are nothing else than the loosening of such bounds, and thus there are non-terminations therin. In these bounds there are no internal ones, there is therefore inward insanity as to the thoughts and the affections which is keps from bursting forth by the extent of external bounds, (limits) such as affections for gain and honor, and for reputation as a means of requiring them, and the consequent fear of the law, and of the loss of life. This was represented in the Jewish church by these verses. A. 5145.
    Diabolical loves have perverted the lowest sense of the Word. P. P.

10 So I went in and saw; and behold, every form of creeping things, and abominable beasts, and all the idols of the house of Israel, portrayed upon the wall round about.

10. The form of creeping things signifies filthy pleasures whose interiors are lusts, and the interiors of these lusts are hatreds, revenges, cruelties, and adulteries. Such are the creeping things or lusts of pleasures from love of self or the world, or proprium. A. 994,
    Men as to their affections are signified by beasts. R.567.
    By these and various other things which were shown to the prophet are signified the awful lusts and falsities in which the Israelites were, by reason of their being altogether in externals without any internal. They who were such turned all representatives into idolatry. By beasts and reptiles of which images were made on account of their signifying affections of good and prudence, were represented lusts for what is evil and false. By the wall round about upon which they were seen painted are signified the interiors of the natural man. E. 650.

11 And there stood before them seventy men of the elders of the house of Israel; and in the midst of them stood Jaazaniah the son of Shaphan, every man with his censer in his hand; and the odor of the cloud of incense went up.

11. By burning incense in the opposite sense is meant burning it unto idols. A.9475.
    Here is meant worship from the loves of self and of the world by burning incense to idols. A. 10177.
    A cloud of incense in the opposite sense means what is false from evil. E. 494.
11, 12. Elders in the opposite sense are what is contrary to wisdom. A. 6524.
They have instituted a worship in accordance with diabolical loves. P. P.

12 Then said he unto me, Son of man, hast thou seen what the elders of the house of Israel do in the dark, every man in his chambers of imagery? for they say, Jehovah seeth us not; Jehovah hath forsaken the land.
13 He said also unto me, Thou shalt again see yet other great abominations which they do.
14 Then he brought me to the door of the gate of Jehovah's house which was toward the north; and behold, there sat the women weeping for Tammuz.

12. The interior things of their thought and affection were represented to the prophet by chambers, called chambers of the image. A. 5694.
    The ancients compared the mind of a man to a house and those things which are within man to chambers. The human mind is indeed like a house, for its component parts are distinct, scarce otherwise than as are the apartrnents of a house. A. 7353.
13, 14. by adulterating all things of good. P. P.

15 Then said he unto me, Hast thou seen this, O son of man? thou shalt again see yet greater abominations than these.
16 And he brought me into the inner court of Jehovah's house; and behold, at the door of the temple of Jehovah, between the porch and the altar, were about five and twenty men, with their backs toward the temple of Jehovah, and their faces toward the east; and they were worshipping the sun toward the east.
17 Then he said unto me, Hast thou seen this, O son of man? Is it a light thing to the house of Judah that they commit the abominations which they commit here? for they have filled the land with violence, and have turned again to provoke me to anger: and, lo, they put the branch to their nose.
18 Therefore will I also deal in wrath; mine eye shall not spare, neither will I have pity; and though they cry in mine ears with a loud voice, yet will I not hear them.

15, 16. The sun signifies love to the Lord, and in the opposite sense, love of self. The moon signifies intelligence from the Lord, and faith from Him. Hence the moon in the opposite sense signifies man's own intelligence, and faith from his selfhood. R. 919.
    and adoring the devil in the place of the Lord. P. P.
15, 16, 18. To adore the sun of this world and the moon and to bow down to them, signifies in the Word to love self, and the falses which are from self-love. Those who worship them were to be cut off. H. 122.
16. By the sun and its rising is meant the sun of the world and its rising, and thereby is signified the love of self which love is altogether opposite to love to the Lord. Thus it is that the sun of the world is presented in the idea of angels as something at the back, altogether obscure; but the Lord, who is the sun of heaven, appears before the face. A. 10584.
    That the sun of the world is not meant is evident from the fact that it was profane and abominable to adore the sun and moon of the world. To adore the sun of the world is to acknowledge nature as the creator and one's own prudence as the producer of all things, which involves the denial of God, and the denial of the Divine providence. R. 53.
    The sun of the world signifies the love of self which lets man into his proprium, and detains him therein, for he looks to himself continually, and the proprium of man is nothing but evil, and from evil is derived every falsity. E. 401.
The east in the opposite sense signifies the love of self, because this love is opposed to the love of the Lord. E. 422.
    They have closed against themselves the way to all mercy. P. P.
Chapter cited. Things seen by Ezekiel when in spirit he was carried away to Jerusalem, and saw abominations there. M. 26.
    Ezekiel was carried away to Jerusalem and saw the abominations there. T. 851.

Author: Emanuel Swedenborg (Compiled by Robert S. Fischer 1925)