2 Agony, and a troubled heart, because of sin.
The Fifty-Seventh Chapter
How Jacob came to Laban, and kept his sheep for him fourteen years for his two Daughters; what the Spiritual Figure of Christ's Bride contained under it signifies. How God sets Jacob in Christ's figure, and so sports with the Type of Christ 1
1. WHEN Jacob must now in sorrow go away from his parents, and so avoid his brother Esau, and commit himself to God in the blessing of him, then God brought him to his beloved bride, with whom he spent a while in joy with patience, till he returned again with great riches to his father.
2. This is first a worldly history and example,2 under which the spiritual figure of the kingdom of Christ is represented, for if the poor sinner turn to God, then he attains, first of all the blessing, viz. the Baptism of Christ, whereby the Holy Ghost baptises him in the inward ground; and then3 it sets him in the process of Christ under the banner of his cross, and bids him go forth from his father's Adamical house of sin, and make towards the path of Christ's pilgrimage.
3. And there he must lay the hard stone of reason under his head, and rest and sleep upon this stone of reason; that is, reason must stand still, and the mind must in itself turn in to the grace of God in the most inward ground in highest humility, and most willingly enter upon the pilgrimage of Christ, as Jacob here did; and then meets him his most amiable bride and beautiful Rachel, viz. the noble Virgin Sophia of the divine wedlock enjoyment 4 in the love and humanity of Christ.
1 Gen. xxix. 2 Or, precedent. 3 Secondly.
4 Or, amorousness.
4. First he comes to the (Gen. xxix. 2) well, where the noble Sophia gives her sheep drink; that is, the soul is led to Christ's fountain, out of which the water of eternal life does spring; there he first sees and demands of the shepherds, where the noble Sophia feeds her flock. The shepherds signify the children of Christ, viz. teachers of the word of Christ, in whom the spirit of Christ is, who also feed his sheep. There the penitent man asks for his eternal kindred and friends, viz. For the Paradisical house,! wherein his grandfather Adam dwelt; then those shepherds show him that house, and also the beautiful Rachel, which is born in this house, viz. the noble Sophia.
5. Who, when the poor soul discovers these things, looks amiably upon the soul; whence the soul is kindled in great love, and rolls away the great stone from the well, and gives the sheep of noble Sophia drink (Gen. xxix. 10); that is, the soul rolls away all its earthly lusts, which were a cover upon the wellspring of eternal life, and gives drink and food to the poor needy sheep of Christ, the sheep of this noble Sophia, and kisses the noble Sophia with its burning desire to the love of Christ.
6. And when the noble Virgin Sophia sees this, and that the poor soul discovers all its perils that it has undertaken for her, then she runs to her Father, and tells him that her beloved suitor and friend is abroad with the sheep of Christ, and helps to give them drink. That is, the love of Christ presses with the poor soul's desire into God the Father, and says, This soul is my friend, my bridegroom. Then God the Father commands that he be brought into his house; as here Rachel did to Jacob, and told it to her father who Jacob was, and what his purpose was (Gen. xxix. 12). And so also Christ shows his Father what the poor, troubled, perplexed soul's purpose is, when it comes to him.
2 Agony, and a troubled heart, because of sin.
The Fifty-Seventh Chapter
How Jacob came to Laban, and kept his sheep for him fourteen years for his two Daughters; what the Spiritual Figure of Christ's Bride contained under it signifies. How God sets Jacob in Christ's figure, and so sports with the Type of Christ 1
1. WHEN Jacob must now in sorrow go away from his parents, and so avoid his brother Esau, and commit himself to God in the blessing of him, then God brought him to his beloved bride, with whom he spent a while in joy with patience, till he returned again with great riches to his father.
2. This is first a worldly history and example,2 under which the spiritual figure of the kingdom of Christ is represented, for if the poor sinner turn to God, then he attains, first of all the blessing, viz. the Baptism of Christ, whereby the Holy Ghost baptises him in the inward ground; and then3 it sets him in the process of Christ under the banner of his cross, and bids him go forth from his father's Adamical house of sin, and make towards the path of Christ's pilgrimage.
3. And there he must lay the hard stone of reason under his head, and rest and sleep upon this stone of reason; that is, reason must stand still, and the mind must in itself turn in to the grace of God in the most inward ground in highest humility, and most willingly enter upon the pilgrimage of Christ, as Jacob here did; and then meets him his most amiable bride and beautiful Rachel, viz. the noble Virgin Sophia of the divine wedlock enjoyment 4 in the love and humanity of Christ.
1 Gen. xxix. 2 Or, precedent. 3 Secondly.
4 Or, amorousness.
4. First he comes to the (Gen. xxix. 2) well, where the noble Sophia gives her sheep drink; that is, the soul is led to Christ's fountain, out of which the water of eternal life does spring; there he first sees and demands of the shepherds, where the noble Sophia feeds her flock. The shepherds signify the children of Christ, viz. teachers of the word of Christ, in whom the spirit of Christ is, who also feed his sheep. There the penitent man asks for his eternal kindred and friends, viz. For the Paradisical house,! wherein his grandfather Adam dwelt; then those shepherds show him that house, and also the beautiful Rachel, which is born in this house, viz. the noble Sophia.
5. Who, when the poor soul discovers these things, looks amiably upon the soul; whence the soul is kindled in great love, and rolls away the great stone from the well, and gives the sheep of noble Sophia drink (Gen. xxix. 10); that is, the soul rolls away all its earthly lusts, which were a cover upon the wellspring of eternal life, and gives drink and food to the poor needy sheep of Christ, the sheep of this noble Sophia, and kisses the noble Sophia with its burning desire to the love of Christ.
6. And when the noble Virgin Sophia sees this, and that the poor soul discovers all its perils that it has undertaken for her, then she runs to her Father, and tells him that her beloved suitor and friend is abroad with the sheep of Christ, and helps to give them drink. That is, the love of Christ presses with the poor soul's desire into God the Father, and says, This soul is my friend, my bridegroom. Then God the Father commands that he be brought into his house; as here Rachel did to Jacob, and told it to her father who Jacob was, and what his purpose was (Gen. xxix. 12). And so also Christ shows his Father what the poor, troubled, perplexed soul's purpose is, when it comes to him.
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