soul; which afterwards becomes a prince over the Egyptian house of flesh and blood. In which house the heathenish Pharaoh dwells, viz. the bestial spirit. Over that is this Joseph set for a ruler and governor, and is a ruler over reason, and governs it with Joseph's, viz. with God's, spirit.
16. This is thus, as to one part, the spiritual figure of Jacob, wherewith the spirit alludes to the future kingdom of Christ, where now at present in the fulfilling it alludes thus also in the children of Christ, and does yet so always lead them.
17. But we see especially in this figure the way of God, how God's mind is far other than man's. What man loves, in that God hides himself; for that pleases him well which in the eye of the world is simple and despised, which depends on him alone, and fears him.
18. Jacob loves the beautiful Rachel, and desires her. But the line of the Covenant, in which Christ should be born, would not pass through Rachel, but Leah; also Rachel could not conceive till Leah had brought forth the root or line of the kingly priesthood and princedom,! viz. Levi and Judah.
19. for the priesthood came from Levi, and out of Judah came the sceptre of the kingdom, and the Prince Christ according to the humanity; to signify that Christ will be born and manifested in these men alone, and brings and works his priesthood of the Holy Ghost in them, who go forth from the love of themselves, and the pleasure of the flesh, and are in the eye of the world softly, bashful, simple and despised; who esteem themselves unworthy of such honour, and do not account such divine working to be their own, and pride themselves therewith, as the proud Pharisees did, and still do.
1 Principality.
20. For this Leah desires only to bear children for Jacob, that she might be acceptable to him, seeing otherwise, in respect of her bleareyedness,l she was disregarded. Thus also the true children of God desire therefore only to walk in the divine power, with teaching2 and a simple life in the ways of God, that they may please God and serve him.
- 21. And again: we see here by Jacob's seed that the line of Christ would not manifest itself in his first seed with Leah, that Christ might not be manifested in human pleasure or lasciviousness of fleshly lust, for Leah first bare Reuben (who defiled the bed3 of his father) (Gen.
- xxix. 32), to signify that this root sprang from human lust.
22. But when Leah was discouraged, because she was despised, and would fain go out of that contempt, then she bare Simeon, who was of an acute wit,4 of whom Jacob said, when he was to die, when he prophesied concerning all his children, from what root each of them was: The brethren, Simeon and Levi, their swords are murdering weapons. My soul, come not into their counsel, and let not my honour be in their churches or assemblies (Gen. xlix. 5, 6); to signify that he was sprung from the line of zeal or jealousy, wherein Leah was jealous and discontented that she was thus disesteemed, as she then said, The Lord has heard that I was thus disesteemed, and has given me this [son] also (Gen. xxix. 33).
- 23. But when she cried unto the Lord in her zeal for deliverance from her disesteem, then she was pregnant, and bare Levi (Gen.
- xxix. 34), viz. the root of the Levitical priesthood, a type of the kingdom of Christ. For she cried to God that her husband might be again joined to her in love, as she speaks after this manner: Now will my husband be joined to me again; to signify that God, with the Levitical priesthood, in a type, would be joined again to man, and would, in a type of the kingdom of Paradise, dwell among them again, as was done in the time of Moses.
soul; which afterwards becomes a prince over the Egyptian house of flesh and blood. In which house the heathenish Pharaoh dwells, viz. the bestial spirit. Over that is this Joseph set for a ruler and governor, and is a ruler over reason, and governs it with Joseph's, viz. with God's, spirit.
16. This is thus, as to one part, the spiritual figure of Jacob, wherewith the spirit alludes to the future kingdom of Christ, where now at present in the fulfilling it alludes thus also in the children of Christ, and does yet so always lead them.
17. But we see especially in this figure the way of God, how God's mind is far other than man's. What man loves, in that God hides himself; for that pleases him well which in the eye of the world is simple and despised, which depends on him alone, and fears him.
18. Jacob loves the beautiful Rachel, and desires her. But the line of the Covenant, in which Christ should be born, would not pass through Rachel, but Leah; also Rachel could not conceive till Leah had brought forth the root or line of the kingly priesthood and princedom,! viz. Levi and Judah.
19. for the priesthood came from Levi, and out of Judah came the sceptre of the kingdom, and the Prince Christ according to the humanity; to signify that Christ will be born and manifested in these men alone, and brings and works his priesthood of the Holy Ghost in them, who go forth from the love of themselves, and the pleasure of the flesh, and are in the eye of the world softly, bashful, simple and despised; who esteem themselves unworthy of such honour, and do not account such divine working to be their own, and pride themselves therewith, as the proud Pharisees did, and still do.
1 Principality.
20. For this Leah desires only to bear children for Jacob, that she might be acceptable to him, seeing otherwise, in respect of her bleareyedness,l she was disregarded. Thus also the true children of God desire therefore only to walk in the divine power, with teaching2 and a simple life in the ways of God, that they may please God and serve him.
- 21. And again: we see here by Jacob's seed that the line of Christ would not manifest itself in his first seed with Leah, that Christ might not be manifested in human pleasure or lasciviousness of fleshly lust, for Leah first bare Reuben (who defiled the bed3 of his father) (Gen.
- xxix. 32), to signify that this root sprang from human lust.
22. But when Leah was discouraged, because she was despised, and would fain go out of that contempt, then she bare Simeon, who was of an acute wit,4 of whom Jacob said, when he was to die, when he prophesied concerning all his children, from what root each of them was: The brethren, Simeon and Levi, their swords are murdering weapons. My soul, come not into their counsel, and let not my honour be in their churches or assemblies (Gen. xlix. 5, 6); to signify that he was sprung from the line of zeal or jealousy, wherein Leah was jealous and discontented that she was thus disesteemed, as she then said, The Lord has heard that I was thus disesteemed, and has given me this [son] also (Gen. xxix. 33).
- 23. But when she cried unto the Lord in her zeal for deliverance from her disesteem, then she was pregnant, and bare Levi (Gen.
- xxix. 34), viz. the root of the Levitical priesthood, a type of the kingdom of Christ. For she cried to God that her husband might be again joined to her in love, as she speaks after this manner: Now will my husband be joined to me again; to signify that God, with the Levitical priesthood, in a type, would be joined again to man, and would, in a type of the kingdom of Paradise, dwell among them again, as was done in the time of Moses.
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