Doctrine of Holy Scripture - Swedenborg Foundation

DOCTRINE OF HOLY SCRIPTURE 210Ephraim, together with his brother Manasseh (under the name of Josephtheir father), was exalted above all by Moses when he blessed the sons of Israel(Deut. 33:13–17).[3] The quality of the church when the understanding of theWord has been destroyed, is also described in the prophets by“Ephraim,” especially in Hosea, as is evident from the followingpassages:Israel and Ephraim shall stagger; Ephraim shall be in the solitude; Ephraimis oppressed and shattered in judgment. I will be unto Ephraim as a lion; Iwill tear and go away; I will carry off, and there shall be none to deliver (Hos.5:5, 9, 11–14).O Ephraim, what shall I do unto thee? For thy holiness is as a cloud of thedawn, and like the dew that falleth in the morning, it goeth away (Hos. 6:4)They shall not dwell in the land of Jehovah; but Ephraim shall return toEgypt, and shall eat in Assyria that which is unclean (Hos. 9:3).[4] The “land of Jehovah” is the church; “Egypt” is the memoryknowledge[scientificum] of the natural man; “Assyria” is thederivative reasoning: by these two the Word is falsified in respect tothe understanding of it, and therefore it is said that “Ephraim shallreturn to Egypt, and shall eat in Assyria that which is unclean.”[5] Again:Ephraim feedeth on wind, and followeth after the east wind; every day hemultiplieth lying and wasteness; he maketh a covenant with Assyria, and oil iscarried down into Egypt (Hos. 12:1).To “feed on wind,” to “follow after the east wind,” and to“multiply lying and wasteness” is to falsify truths, and thus destroythe church.[6] The like is signified also by the “whoredom” of Ephraim (for“whoredom” signifies the falsification of the understanding of theWord, that is, of its genuine truth) in the following passages: