Arcana Coelestia (Elliott) n. 9454

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9454. These mercies are what is meant in John,

As many as received Him, to them He gave power to be sons of God, to those believing in His name, who were born, not of blood,a nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man (vir), but of God. John 1:12, 13.

Those born 'of blood' are people who are opposed to forms of the good of faith and charity, 'of the will of the flesh' those who are immersed in evils springing from self-love and love of the world, and 'of the will of man' those who are steeped in falsities arising from those evils. Being 'born of God' means being regenerated. The truth that no one can enter heaven unless he is being regenerated is stated in the same gospel,

Truly, truly I say to you, Unless a person is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God. Truly, truly I say to you, Unless a person has been born of water and the spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. John 3:3, 5.

'Being born of water' means through the truth of faith, and 'being born of the spirit' through the good of love. All this now makes it clear who exactly they are whose sins have been forgiven, and who exactly they are whose sins have not been forgiven. a lit. bloods

EXODUS 25

  1. And Jehovah spoke to Moses, saying,
  2. Speak to the children of Israel, and let them take for Me an offering; from everyone whose heart is willing,a you are to take My offering.
  3. And this is the offering which you shall take from them: Gold and silver, and bronze,
  4. And violet, and purple, and twice-dyed scarlet, and fine linen, and wool of she-goats,
  5. And skins of red rams,b and skins of badgers, and pieces of shittim wood;c
  6. Oil for the light, spices for the anointing oil, and for the incense of spices;
  7. Shohamd stones, and stones of fillingse for the ephod and for the breastplate.
  8. And they are to make Me a sanctuary, that I may dwell in their midst.
  9. In accordance with all that I show you, the pattern of the dwelling-place and the pattern of all its vessels, just so you shall make it.
  10. And they are to make an ark of shittim wood; two cubits and a half shall be its length, and a cubit and a half its breadth, and a cubit and a half its height.
  11. And you shall overlay it with pure gold, on the inside and on the outside you shall overlay it; and you shall make on it a rim of gold round about.
  12. And you shall cast four rings of gold for it, and put them on its four corners; and two rings shall be on one side of it and two rings on the other side of it.
  13. And you shall make poles of shittim wood, and overlay them with gold.
  14. And you shall put the poles into the rings on the sides of the ark, to carry the ark on them.
  15. The poles must be in the rings of the ark; they must not be removed from it.
  16. And you shall put into the ark the Testimony which I shall give you.
  17. And you shall make a mercy-seat from pure gold; two cubits and a half shall be its length, and a cubit and a half its breadth.
  18. And you shall make two cherubs; from solid gold you shall make them, at the two ends of the mercy-seat.
  19. And make one cherub at the end on one side, and one cherub at the end on the other side; of one piece with the mercy-seat you shall make the cherubsf on its two ends.
  20. And the cherubs shall be spreading out their wings upwards, covering over the mercy-seat with their wings, and their faces of a man towards his brother;g the faces of the cherubs shall be towards the mercy-seat.
  21. And you shall put the mercy-seat onto the ark, up above; and into the ark you shall put the Testimony which I shall give you.
  22. And I will meet with you there, and I will speak to you from up above the mercy-seat, from between the two cherubs which are over the ark of the Testimony, [declaring] everything that I shall command you for the children of Israel.
  23. And you shall make a table of shittim wood; two cubits shall be its length, and a cubit its breadth, and a cubit and a half its height.
  24. And you shall overlay it with pure gold; and you shall make for it a rim of gold round about.
  25. And you shall make for it a rail of a hand's breadth round about; and you shall make a rim of gold for its rail round about.
  26. And you shall make for it four rings of gold, and you shall put the rings on the four corners which are on its four feet.
  27. The rings shall be close to the rail, as houses for the poles to carry the table.
  28. And you shall make the poles from shittim wood, and overlay them with gold, and the table shall be carried with them.
  29. And you shall make its dishes, and its cups, and its small dishes, and its small brushes, with which it shall be covered; from pure gold you shall make them.
  30. And you shall put on the table the bread of faces, towards My faces unceasingly.h
  31. And you shall make a lampstand from pure gold; solid shall the lampstand be made.i Its shaft and its branch, its cups, its pomegranates, and its flowers shall be of one piece with it.j
  32. And there shall be six branches going out of its sides, three branches of the lampstand out of one side of it, and three branches of the lampstand out of the other side of it.
  33. There shall be three almond-shaped cups on one branch, a pomegranate and a flower, and three almond-shaped cups on one branch,k a pomegranate and a flower - thus for the six branches going out of the lampstand.
  34. And on [the shaft of] the lampstand there shall be four almond-shaped cups, its pomegranates and its flowers.
  35. And there shall be a pomegranate under [the first] two branches out of it, and a pomegranate under [the second] two branches out of it, and a pomegranate under [the third] two branches out of it - for the six branches going out of the lampstand.
  36. Their pomegranates and their branches shall be of one piece with it,j all [shall be part] of it, one solid [piece made] from pure gold.
  37. And you shall make its seven lamps; and let it cause its lamps to go up and give light before its faces.l
  38. And its tongs and its trowelsm [shall be made] from pure gold.
  39. A talent of pure gold shall [be used to] make it, together with all these vessels.
  40. And see to it that you make them in accordance with the pattern of them which you were given to seen on the mountain.

Notes

a lit. from with every man (vir) whom his heart moves of its own accord
b The Hebrew is usually taken to mean ram skins which have been dyed red.
c i.e. wood from the shittah tree, generally thought to be a species of acacia. But see 9472.
d A Hebrew word for a precious stone, probably an onyx
e i.e. stones to be set in the ephod and the breastplate
f lit. from (or out of) the mercy-seat you shall make the cherubs
g i.e. and they shall be facing each other
h i.e. you shall set the bread of the Presence (or the showbread) on the table before Me unceasingly
i i.e. the lampstand shall consist throughout solely of pure gold
j lit. shall be from (or out of) it
k i.e. on the opposite branch
li.e. when its lamps are lit it will shed light directly in front of it
m i.e. tools to trim the wicks and to scoop out waste products
n lit. And see and make in the pattern of them which you were caused to see

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