6. When man goes into this Egypt he must leave all his land, viz. all his temporal pleasure and lust of the flesh, and give up all to God, and hold nothing more for his own; but think that it is not his own, but that he is a minister and servant in it, that he should serve God and his fellow members therein, and so regulate his heart as a pilgrim in his journey, who is nowhere at home in this world. He must with Jacob sit in Joseph's, that is, in the Holy Ghost's, chariot, and go whithersoever the same, in this famine, will bring him. Then God goes in and with him, and blesses him, so that he works and brings forth much divine fruit, and his name becomes very great in the word of God.
7. But God does not for all that cast him out of his temporal possession. He brings his spirit up again into the works and labour of his hands, viz. into his worldly state, condition and employment, that therein he may serve God's deeds of wonder, also himself; and the members of his body, viz. his neighbours. Nothing will be taken away from him but only the unrighteousness, falsehood and untruth. God makes him now his servant in his state and condition; he may well keep and take along with him his cattle and his goods for his necessity, as Jacob did; but that which is false and wicked he must put away.
8. And when he does thus, then says God: Joseph shall lay his hand upon your eyes, that you may see. That is, Christ shall with his hand of grace lay hold on your sight, blind as to God, and lay his hand of the divine sun upon your eyes; and then you will come into divine vision and knowledge in yourself so that your reason will wonder whence such light, and [such] deep knowledge, comes to you.
- 9. Jacob came with seventy souls 1 in all, with all his children, and children's children: of which sixty-six were proceeded out of his loins, which went with him, for Joseph had hegotten two sons in Egypt (Gen.
- xlvi. 6, 7, 26, 27).
10. This number sixty-six 2 is a great and mystical number; as also the number seventy, which is the number of the great Babel: and the number sixty- six is the number of the beast and of the whore, from which Israel, and every child of God, must go forth.
11. This going forth of Israel is a true figure and image of the last exit and going forth of the children of Israel, viz. the right true Christian, which shall also go forth out of this Canaan, viz. out of Babel, in the end of the beast's and the whore's number: which signal star with the chariot of Joseph are clearly appeared.
12. For the great famine in the time of Jacob (wherein is the great hunger and want of heavenly food) is at hand. And not only a hunger of the soul after the bread of heaven, but also a great vehement (unheard of from the beginning of the world hitherto) impression of desire to selfhood, viz. to covetousness, extortion and pride.
13. The hunger in the wrath of God, after vanity, to devour it, is so great, that at present the powers of heaven do imprint their influence so, that all provision and blessing is consumed, and the mind of man is so hungry after vanity, that there is no rest at all upon earth for this desire.
14. Also the third Principle, viz. the spirit of the world, of the dominion in the four elements, impresses with its power, from whence all blessing is consumed, and instead thereof an insatiable hunger of covetousness is risen up; so that the beast and the whore, together with their worshippers, are so hungry after pride, covetousness, envy, anger, unchastity, whoredom and bestial voluptuousness, and so hard imprinted or impressed in such desire, that the time is already that this beast together with the whore must burst to pieces.
1 70 The number of Babel. 2 66 of the Beast and the Whore.
15. And then Jacob's spirit revives, and believes that Joseph is a prince in the land of Egypt, viz. in the conversion: and there will Joseph be manifested to his brethren. And then they must be ashamed of their falsehood and wickedness, that they have suppressed Joseph, and sold him, with lying, into misery.
6. When man goes into this Egypt he must leave all his land, viz. all his temporal pleasure and lust of the flesh, and give up all to God, and hold nothing more for his own; but think that it is not his own, but that he is a minister and servant in it, that he should serve God and his fellow members therein, and so regulate his heart as a pilgrim in his journey, who is nowhere at home in this world. He must with Jacob sit in Joseph's, that is, in the Holy Ghost's, chariot, and go whithersoever the same, in this famine, will bring him. Then God goes in and with him, and blesses him, so that he works and brings forth much divine fruit, and his name becomes very great in the word of God.
7. But God does not for all that cast him out of his temporal possession. He brings his spirit up again into the works and labour of his hands, viz. into his worldly state, condition and employment, that therein he may serve God's deeds of wonder, also himself; and the members of his body, viz. his neighbours. Nothing will be taken away from him but only the unrighteousness, falsehood and untruth. God makes him now his servant in his state and condition; he may well keep and take along with him his cattle and his goods for his necessity, as Jacob did; but that which is false and wicked he must put away.
8. And when he does thus, then says God: Joseph shall lay his hand upon your eyes, that you may see. That is, Christ shall with his hand of grace lay hold on your sight, blind as to God, and lay his hand of the divine sun upon your eyes; and then you will come into divine vision and knowledge in yourself so that your reason will wonder whence such light, and [such] deep knowledge, comes to you.
- 9. Jacob came with seventy souls 1 in all, with all his children, and children's children: of which sixty-six were proceeded out of his loins, which went with him, for Joseph had hegotten two sons in Egypt (Gen.
- xlvi. 6, 7, 26, 27).
10. This number sixty-six 2 is a great and mystical number; as also the number seventy, which is the number of the great Babel: and the number sixty- six is the number of the beast and of the whore, from which Israel, and every child of God, must go forth.
11. This going forth of Israel is a true figure and image of the last exit and going forth of the children of Israel, viz. the right true Christian, which shall also go forth out of this Canaan, viz. out of Babel, in the end of the beast's and the whore's number: which signal star with the chariot of Joseph are clearly appeared.
12. For the great famine in the time of Jacob (wherein is the great hunger and want of heavenly food) is at hand. And not only a hunger of the soul after the bread of heaven, but also a great vehement (unheard of from the beginning of the world hitherto) impression of desire to selfhood, viz. to covetousness, extortion and pride.
13. The hunger in the wrath of God, after vanity, to devour it, is so great, that at present the powers of heaven do imprint their influence so, that all provision and blessing is consumed, and the mind of man is so hungry after vanity, that there is no rest at all upon earth for this desire.
14. Also the third Principle, viz. the spirit of the world, of the dominion in the four elements, impresses with its power, from whence all blessing is consumed, and instead thereof an insatiable hunger of covetousness is risen up; so that the beast and the whore, together with their worshippers, are so hungry after pride, covetousness, envy, anger, unchastity, whoredom and bestial voluptuousness, and so hard imprinted or impressed in such desire, that the time is already that this beast together with the whore must burst to pieces.
1 70 The number of Babel. 2 66 of the Beast and the Whore.
15. And then Jacob's spirit revives, and believes that Joseph is a prince in the land of Egypt, viz. in the conversion: and there will Joseph be manifested to his brethren. And then they must be ashamed of their falsehood and wickedness, that they have suppressed Joseph, and sold him, with lying, into misery.
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