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Prophets and Psalms, by Emanuel Swedenborg, [1761], tr. by J.E. Schreck [1900], at sacred-texts.com

Prophets and Psalms

Amos Chapter 1 Verses 1, 2 [The teaching of] the Lord about the Word and doctrine from the Word: 1 3-5 About those who pervert knowledges [cognitiones] from the Word which are of service to doctrine and who thus turn away also the good of those knowledges: these will perish. 3 6-8 About those who apply the Word to a heretical falsity: these will perish. 3 9, 10 About those who pervert knowledges [cognitiones] of good and truth, and thereby do injury to the external sense of the Word. 3 11, 12 About those who pervert the sense of the letter of the Word by falsity, by which doctrine perishes. 3 13-15 About those who falsify the truths of the sense of the letter of the Word: they do not resist in the day of combat, but destroy the truth of doctrine. 3, 15

Chapter 2 [Amos] 1-3 About those who adulterate the good of the sense of the letter of the Word: these destroy the good and truth of the church. 2 4, 5 About those who destroy the celestial things of the Word: they destroy both its celestial and its spiritual things. 2 6-8 About those who destroy the spiritual things of the church: these go away in consequence into falsities of every kind. 2 9-11 The Lord entirely removed falsities of evil when the church was instituted among them, and they were instructed. 2 [?12] 13-16 Nevertheless that church perverted all things, and hence it has become like one who has truth and yet is without truth, and thus perishes in the 2 time of judgment. 15

Chapter 3 [Amos] 1, 2 The church was instituted solely with the Israelitish nation, therefore falsities and evils must be examined there. 3 3-6 There cannot be at the same time a church and not a church, nor truths and at the same time falsities, without truths being snatched away. 3 7, 8 The Lord will surely reveal this; 3 9, 10 for from this it is clear how the church is devastated. 3 11 Therefore the truths of the church perish from falsities, 3 12 and the goods and truths of the Word will be carried off by them; 3 13-15 so also all things of the church. 3

Chapter 4 [Amos] 1-3 Those who pervert the doctrine of the church: they will also fall into falsities in outermost things. 2 4-6 They worship in externals according to the statutes, which will be similar [to genuine worship], but only in outermost things. 2 7, 8 Some things true will remain, when the rest are false, in consequence of which truths will have no power. 2 9 Afterward all things of the church are falsified, 3 10, 11 and finally they are profaned by sensual knowledges [scientifica], the profanation extending to all things of the church, so that there is hardly anything left. 3 12, 13 Exhortation to turn themselves to the Lord. 3

Chapter 5 [Amos] 1-3 Lamentation over the church because it has been successively devastated. 2 4-9 Exhortation to seek the Lord, that all things of the church may not perish through evils and falsities. 2 10-13 They reject truths because they are in self-intelligence. 2 14, 15 Exhortation to be converted. 2 16-20 Lamentation over the destruction of the church, and over their own destruction, when the Lord comes. 3 21, 22 Their worship cannot be accepted. 2 23-25 It will be accepted if they have good and truth. 2 26, 27 Otherwise they are deprived of all knowledge [cognitio] of truth and good. 2

Chapter 6 [Amos] Of the spiritual church which was instituted. 3 1, 2 It turned out worse than the religions of other nations. 3 3-6 It possesses all things of the church in abundance; they think nothing of the destruction of the church. 3 7-9 Therefore all things will perish, 3 10-12 until nothing remains, 3 13, 14 for the reason that they acquired those things from what is their own. 3

Chapter 7 [Amos] 1 The church grew from externals to externals. 3 [?2-]4-6 When externals were lost, there was a restoration. 3 7-9 When inmosts were reached, all things were destroyed, because they were contrary to God, 3 10-13 and contrary to all things of doctrine; 3 [?14], 15, 16 so that there was no longer any doctrine. 3 17 The church with all things pertaining to it will perish. 3

Chapter 8 [Amos] 1 A new thing of the church comes into existence. 11 2, 3 The old church comes to an end, 3 4-6 when there is nothing but adulteration of good and truth. 3 7-10 Therefore they will perish on the day of judgment. 15 11-14 Then there will no longer be any good or truth. 3, 15

Chapter 9 [Amos] 1-5 The last judgment upon them, and whithersoever they may flee, nowhere will there be an escape 15 6 from the Lord, who causes a church to be. 11 7 There were also churches before, which were devastated. 11, 2 8-10 Yet the church will not perish, but those who are in it perish. 2, 11 11, 12 A new church will be instituted by the Lord, which will acknowledge the Lord. 11 13-15 The doctrine of truth, and the understanding of it, will be in that church. 11

Obadiah Of those who are in self-intelligence and pervert the sense of the letter of the word; these are "Edom." 2 1-3 They must be combated, because they believe themselves to be more intelligent than others. 2 4, 5 They defend falsities by natural light, but they will perish, and with them, the falsities themselves. 2 6 They have pride. 2 7 They have no truths. 2 8, 9 They will perish on the day of judgment, because they have oppressed the church. 15 10-14 They destroy the church still further, and this is their delight. 3 15, 16 Destruction will come upon them on the day of judgment. 15 17 A new church will come into existence 11 18 in place of the former church, which is condemned. 11 19-21 The new church will be in the understanding of truth, and those that are in it will be saved. 11

Jonah Chapter 1 The conversion of the nations, which are meant by "Nineveh." 11 1-3 Those who were of the Jewish nation were commanded to teach the Word to the nations round about, but they would not, and thus they kept the Word among themselves alone. 11, 2 4-6 Knowledges [cognitiones] began to perish with them, and yet they lived unconcernedly. 2 7-9 The nations perceived that the state of the church was perverted among themselves, because of the loss of knowledges [cognitiones] among the Jews, and that the latter were unwilling to impart them to others outside of themselves. 11, 2 10-13 They should reject those things which were from the Jewish nation, because they were falsified, so that they might be saved. 11, 2 14-16 They prayed unto the Lord for salvation, which was effected for them, when the falsities from the Jewish nation had been removed. 17 17 [See next chapter.] 7, 6

Chapter 2 [Jonah] 1:17, 2:1-10 (H.B. 1-11) Prophecy concerning the Lord's combats with the hells, and concerning His most grievous temptations at the time, and concerning His state at the time; the "three days and nights during which Jonah was in the bowels of the fish," signify the entire duration of the combat with the hells. 7, 6

Chapter 3 [Jonah] 1-10 The nations, hearing from the Word of God about their sins, and that they would perish, were converted after repenting, and were heard by the Lord, and saved. 11

Chapter 4 [Jonah] 1-4 The Jewish nation became very angry at the salvation of the nations. 2 5-11 A representation of their being inflamed thereat. 2

Micah Chapter 1 The church in respect to the doctrine of truth and good. 1 1, 2 The descent of the Lord from heaven, and His coming into the world. 1 3 The state of heaven then became changed. 12 4-7 Then all the representatives of the church, which had been totally falsified, will be destroyed. 3 8-12 Consequent mourning, and that it will extend even to those who were in celestial good. 3 13-15 Hence even these will begin to be perverted. 3 16 Consequently they also will suffer deprivation of all truth. 3

Chapter 2 [Micah] 1, 2 Concerning thought with the intention of doing evil, that they also do it from the will. 3 3-5 Hence the church has become perverted. 3 6, 7 There is no longer any use to teach any except those who obey; 3 8, 9 therefore they do evils of every kind. 3 10, 11 They will perish, because they cannot be taught. 3 12, 13 Such things do not invade those who will be of the Lord's new church. 3

Chapter 3 [Micah] The perverted church. 3 1-3 They have destroyed all truths and goods even to the last things of the church. 3 4 Then they are not heard by the Lord. 3 5-7 Because they have perverted all things of the Word and of doctrine, they can no longer see and receive anything of truth and good. 3 8 The Lord in respect to the Word which He will declare unto them. 1 9-11 They falsify all the truths and goods of the Word, and yet they say, that God is with them. 3 12 Therefore the whole church will be destroyed. 3

Chapter 4 [Micah] 1, 2 A new church will be established by the Lord when He comes into the world, and it will be formed out of the nations. 11, 1 3, 4 Falsities and evils will no longer be there, but truths and goods, 11 5, 7, 10 under the Lord. 11 6, 7 Those who are in externals, and those who from ignorance are in things not true and good, will draw near. 11 8-10 Truths and goods with them will grow. 11 10-12 Falsities will not enter and destroy. 11 13 Falsities will be destroyed among them, 11

Chapter 5 [Micah] 1 (H.B. 4:14) however much they may infest. 11 2 (H.B. 5:1) The Coming of the Lord who is the God of the church, 1 3, 4 (H.B. 2, 3) who will gather the church together and teach those who are in it. 11 5, 6 (H.B. 4, 5) He will utterly destroy reasonings from falsities. 17 7 (H.B. 6) Then there will be salvation in that church, 17 8 (H.B. 7) but in the church in the Jewish nation there will be nothing but falsities of evil. 3 9 (H.B. 8) This church will have no power over the Lord's church, 11 10-15 (H.B. 9-14) and it will perish with all its falsities and evils. 3

Chapter 6 [Micah] Against the Jewish nation. 2 1-4 The Lord offered every good to them. 2 5 He protected them. 2 6-8 The Lord is not approached by externals of worship, but by internals, which are of truth and good. 2 9 The life of truth and good should be loved, 2 10, 11 and not the life of falsity and evil. 2 12 There is falsification of truth with them. 2 13 They could not be brought back by punishments; 2 14-16 therefore it must needs be that this church, having been overthrown, should perish. 2

Chapter 7 [Micah] 1-4 There is no longer any truth or good in the church; therefore the last time has come upon it. 3 5, 6 Then falsities and evils will combat amongst themselves, and against truths and goods. 3 7-9 Then the church will come, which will be in the light of truth, from the Lord. 11 10 The old church will be destroyed. 3 11, 12 A new church will be established, gathered from every nation, 11 13 when the old has been destroyed. [3] 14, 15 It will be taught and led. 11 16, 17 Infernal things will be removed from it. 11 18-20 The Divine compassion will be there. 11

Nahum Chapter 1 Verses 1, 2 The last judgment upon those who are in evils. 15 3-6 By virtue of His presence all things are revealed, and those who are of the perverted church will not endure. 15, 3 7 The Lord will protect those who trust in Him, 11 8-11 but those who are in falsities and evils will perish; 3 12-14 those, however, who are not of that church, and are in falsities from ignorance, will be received, and their falsities will be removed. 11 15 [See next chapter.] 1, 11

Chapter 2 [Nahum] 1:15, 2:1-3 (H.B. 2:1-4) The Lord's coming and the new church from Him, and the protection of that church by Him. 1, 11 3-6 (H.B. 4-7) On the day of judgment those will perish who have destroyed the church, and they will be cast into hell with tumult. 15, 3 7-10 (H.B. 8-11) All things of the church will be taken away from them. 3 11-13 (H.B. 12-14) Then they will no longer destroy the church and its sanctities. 3

Chapter 3 [Nahum] Respecting those who have falsified and adulterated the word. 15, 3 1-4 They will perish in hell. 15, 3 5-7 All their adulterations will be revealed, and they will perish. 15, 3 8-10 Knowledges [cognitiones et scientifica] will not save, because they will be dissipated, 15, 3 11, 12 because they will not protect them from perishing by falsities of evil, 15, 3 13-17 howsoever they have confirmed themselves by them, but in vain; 15, 3 18 neither will reasonings save. 15, 3 19 There is nothing of soundness, therefore their destruction. 15, 3

Habakkuk Chapter 1 Of violence and injustice. 3 1-5 Justice and truth perish. Grief on the part of the Lord, and directed to the Lord. 3 6-11 The Jewish church profaned all the truths and goods of the Word and of the church. 3 12-17 The Lord's grief continued, that the evil prevail over the good, and destroy them. 3

Chapter 2 [Habakkuk] 1-3 The Coming of the Lord-what will then take place. 1 4, 5 The love of self-it grows, and man grows vile therefrom. 3 6, 7 He is held in contempt by others, 3 8 and they pervert the goods and truths of the church. 3 9, 10, They are in their own intelligence, owing to which they are puffed up. 3 11 They judge from externals alone. 3 12, 13 A curse rests upon those who hatch doctrine out of falsities. 3 14 When the Lord comes, 1 15-17 he who leads others astray will then be ashamed, 3 18, 19 and falsities will then profit Him nothing. 3 20 This, when the Lord is in His Human. 1, 3

Chapter 3 [Habakkuk] 1-4 Prediction that the Lord will come into the world, to whom belongs Divine truth and good. 1 5-7 He will examine the church; it is not a church. 3 8-9 He will by His Divine truth dissipate the falsities of evil. 3 10-15 Judgment upon them, combat with them, their destruction, and their being cast into hell. 15 16, 17 Grief on account of their state, that there is no longer anything of the church. 3 18, 19 Then those who at heart acknowledge the Lord will be saved. 17

Zephaniah Chapter 1 1-3 All knowledge [cognitio] and understanding of truth will perish. 2 4-6 The church will perish because it is in mere falsities and evils in respect to doctrine and in respect to worship. 2 7, 8 The Lord will come and gather [people] together to the church. 1 9-11 Then those who have adulterated the truths of the Word will perish, and are to be cast into hell. 15 12-13 No truth will then be left in the church. 3 14-17 They will perish on the day of the judgment by the Lord. 15 18 They cannot be preserved. 15

Chapter 2 [Zephaniah] 1-3 They ought to be converted before the Lord comes to judgment, 15 4-6 for the evil will then perish on account of evils and falsities of many kinds. 15 7 Then some are to be saved. 16[?17] 8-10 Those who have adulterated the Word will utterly perish. 15, 3 11 They will perish that whoever is able may acknowledge the Lord. 15, 3 12-15 Those who have falsified the knowledges [cognitiones] of truth, by means of reasonings and knowledges [scientifica], and have thus destroyed the church, will utterly perish. 15, 3

Chapter 3 [Zephaniah] 1-4 Everything of the doctrine of truth and good has been perverted. 3 5 When the Lord comes He will investigate. 1 6-8 The evil will perish and are to be cast into hell. 15 9, 10 Then a new church made up of those who acknowledge the Lord will arise. 11 11, 12 Those who are in falsities of evil must be separated, and thus the few must be saved. 11, 16-[?17] 13-20 Then there will be a new church of those who will acknowledge the Lord, and He will remove evils and falsities from them; concerning this church. 11

Haggai Chapter 1 Verses 1-4 They believe that the Messiah will come to exalt them to glory, and yet the church among them has been devastated. 1, 3 5, 6 They could no longer be taught by the Word. 3 7-9 The church cannot be instituted among them, because everyone looks to Himself and not to the Lord; 3 10, 11 therefore no truth or good can be received by them. 3 12-15 The church will be instituted among those who are wise from the Word. 11

Chapter 2 [Haggai] 1-3 The church when first instituted was full of truths; at the present day it is devastated. 2 4, 5 Nevertheless a church will be instituted. 11 6-9 When the Lord comes into the world, this church will be an interior church. 1 10-14 An external without an internal is of no use, and still less when the external has been falsified; so is it in the former church, 3 15-17 where truth has been turned into falsity, in which there is hardly anything of the church, 3 18, 19 although there are truths in abundance in the Word.3 20-22 All things of the former church will be destroyed. 3 23 The church will be among others. 11

Zechariah Chapter 1 1-4 Those who were descended from Jacob were instructed in the things of the church, from the very beginning, but in vain. 2 5, 6 Therefore what happened to them was according to the Word. 2 7-10 The successive states of the church even to the end are represented, and the nature of their understanding of the Word is described. 2 11 It is found that there is no church. 2 12, 13 A new church which will be from the Lord. 11 14-16 The Lord will institute a new church when the former church has been completely perverted. 11, 3 17 He will institute it in place of the former. 11, 3 A new church from the Lord. 11 18-21 (H.B. 2:1-4) Falsities of evil which have destroyed everything of the church. 3

Chapter 2 [Zechariah] 1, 2 (H.B. 5, 6) Quality of the church about to be instituted, in respect to truth and good. 11 3-5 (H.B. 7-9) It will be vastly multiplied, and the Lord will be in it. 11 6-9 (H.B. 10-13) Those who have profaned holy things are to be separated and dispersed. 11, 3 10-13 (H.B. 14-17) The Lord will come, and those who are of the new church will acknowledge Him, and He will be with them. 1, 11

Chapter 3 [Zechariah] Of the new church. 11 1, 2 Infernal falsity from the former church will infest the new church which the Lord will establish. 11, 2 3-5 In this church there will be falsities of ignorance, which will be removed, and truths will be given in their place. 11 6-10 They will have understanding of truth from the Lord, to the extent in which they depart from falsities. 11

Chapter 4 [Zechariah] 1-7 Enlightenment of the new church by the Lord from the good of love by means of truth. 11 8-10 This is from the Lord. 11 11-14 There will also be in it truths from a celestial origin. 11

Chapter 5 [Zechariah] 1-4 Rejection of the Jewish church, because they have utterly perverted the church. 3 5-8 They have destroyed every good. 3 9-11 They will profane its truth still further. 3

Chapter 6 [Zechariah] 1-7 The doctrine of the new church from truths which are from the good of love and charity. 11 8 It will be with those who are in ignorance of truth. 11 9-14 A representative that the new church is from the Lord, with all the good and truth in it. 11 15 The church will be constituted of those who are without the church. 11

Chapter 7 [Zechariah] 1-7 The Jews desiring that after the Babylonish captivity the church might be with them, but this will not take place, because they have not turned away from falsities and evils. 2 8-11 They were told that they should keep the statutes, but they did not. 2 13, 14 Therefore the church will not be with them, but they will be dispersed. 2

Chapter 8 [Zechariah] 1-3 The Lord will institute a church in which will be the doctrine of truth and good, 11 4-6 where there will be wisdom and innocence. 11 7-9 Men are to be brought to it from all parts, and it will acknowledge the Lord. 11 10 There has been heretofore no protection from falsities of evil, which are from hell. 3 11, 12 It will be different in this church, where truths and goods will continue. 11 13-17 As the former church has perished through falsities of evil, so this one will continue in truths and goods. 3, 11 18, 19 It will be in humiliation and in the affection for truth. 11 20-23 It will grow and will increase in numbers from all who worship the Lord and love the Word. 11

Chapter 9 [Zechariah] 1, 2 The new church will be in knowledges [cognitiones] from the Word. 11 3, 4 Those who are in knowledges from the Word will destroy them. 3 5, 6 Likewise those who are in faith alone. 3 7, 8 They shall perish lest they ruin the church still further. 3 9 The Lord will come with Divine truth. 1 10, 11 After the old church has perished, a new one will be instituted subject to the Lord, who will reign over it. 3, 1 12-16 The Lord will fill them with truths, and will protect them. 11 17 They will possess intelligence. 11

Chapter 10 [Zechariah] 1 The Lord will spiritually bless those who seek Him. 17 2, 3 Those who have the Word are in falsities of evil and will perish. 3 4-6 Those who are in celestial good, of whom the church will consist where the Lord is, will fight 11 against falsities of evil; so also will those who are in spiritual good. 11, 7 7-10 They are to be gathered together out of every religion, and taught. 11 11 The Lord will protect them from falsities that are from hell, 11 12 because they worship the Lord. [11]

Chapter 11 [Zechariah] 1-3 Every external of the church has been devastated. 3 4, 5 Care is to be taken lest those who are in good be destroyed by them. 3 6 Falsities destroy the church. 2 7, 8 There are none to lead the people any longer, 2 9 but only such as destroy. 2 10, 11 The Lord's conjunction with them has been sundered. 3 12, 13 The Lord was betrayed by the Jews, because He taught them. 4, 9 14 The conjunction of truth and good has been sundered. 4, 9 15-17 The teacher and the leader destroy all things of the church by falsities of evil. 3

Chapter 12 [Zechariah] 1 The Lord forms the church. 11 2, 3 Nothing of the doctrine of truth will be in the church, therefore they will shun it. 3 4 There is no understanding of truth any longer, except with those who are in the Word and of the new church. 3, 11 5 Then they will learn the good of doctrine from the Lord. 11 6, 7 Then the Lord will destroy all falsities by the truths of the Word, lest doctrine should teach something else. 11 8 Then the church will be in doctrine respecting the Lord. 11 9 Then all men or all things that are contrary to that doctrine will be destroyed. 3 10 Then there will be a new church from the Lord. 11 10-14 All things and every single thing of the church will mourn. 3

Chapter 13 [Zechariah] 1 Then the Word will be for the Lord's new church. 11 2, 3 Falsities of doctrine and worship will both be utterly destroyed. 3 4, 5 Prophecy will cease, and there will be no more falsity of doctrine. 3 6, 7 Those with whom the church will be at the time will slay the Lord, with the intention of scattering those who believe in Him. 9 8, 9 Those who are of the devastated church will perish, and those who are of the new church are to be purified, and taught by the Lord. 3, 11

Chapter 14 [Zechariah] 1-5 The Lord's combats against the wicked, and their dispersion. 7 6, 7 Then there will be no truth, but in the Lord there will be Divine truth. 3, 12 8, 9 Then Divine truth will proceed from the Lord. 12 10, 11 Truth will be multiplied in the new church, and no falsity of evil will be there. 12 12 He who fights against those truths, will plunge into falsities of every kind. 3 13-15 Then follows the destruction of the church. 3 16-19 Then they will draw near to the worship of the Lord, even those from the nations who are external natural. 11 20, 21 Then from the good of charity, from which proceeds worship, there will be intelligence. 11

Malachi Chapter 1 1, 2 The Lord has instituted a church with those who could be in external truth, but who were not in external good. 11 3, 4 All external good has been destroyed, and hence also external truth. 3 5, 6 Although the church is there, yet they do not acknowledge the Lord. 3, 4 7, 8 They worship the Lord from evil and not from good. 4 9, 10, Therefore their worship is not accepted. 3 11 Those who are outside of the church worship the Lord, 11 12-14 but those who are within the church profane worship, and do not worship the Lord. 4

Chapter 2 [Malachi] 1-4 Unless they worship the Lord, all worship will be perverted and profane. 4 5-7 Through the Word it is granted them to have conjunction with the Lord, who is here meant by "Levi." 4 8-10 They have departed from the Word, and have thereby dissolved the conjunction. 4 11 They have worshipped another god, whence came profanation; 3, 4 12 wherefore they will perish. 3 13 Therefore their external worship is not accepted. 3 14-16 They have severed themselves from the church, 3 17 even by their calling evil good. 3

Chapter 3 [Malachi] [1], 2, 3 The Lord will come into the world, and will teach the Word in its purity. 11 4 The church, doctrine, and worship will then be as they had been among the ancients. 11 5, 6 The Lord will then execute judgment upon all who 15 have adulterated and destroyed the truths of the church. 2 7 They have done this from the beginning, and do not desist from it, 2, 3 8, 9 nor do they desist from adulteration, therefore this will bring about their ruin. 3, 2 10-12 If they had lived according to the statutes, they would have been in the good of the church. 2 13-15 They have confirmed themselves in this, that good is of no profit and that evil does no harm, because the good and the wicked are alike prosperous. 2 16 It is otherwise with those who trust in the Lord; 11, 1 17 they will be blessed of the Lord when He comes. 11, 1 18 Then the difference will be seen, 3, 11

Chapter 4 [Malachi] 2 (H.B. 3:20) and the good will be saved, 17 [?1], 3 (H.B. 3:[?19,] 21) and then the evil will be cast into hell, 15 4 (H.B. 3:22) because they have annulled the Word. 15, 3 5, [6] (H.B. 3:23[, 24]) John the Baptist will be sent before the Lord, lest that nation should then perish. 1