“This is the ordinance of the Passover: No foreigner shall eat of it.”
Exodus 12:43
Dear members and friends,
At first sight, this verse might appear to be difficult to accept as the order from loving God. Why should a “foreigner” be excluded from the Passover? If the Passover represents God’s deliverance, why would God’s saving meal not be open to everyone?
The divine mission that Swedenborg felt initially was to explain verses like this one. The spiritual meaning would take us to a more cohesive message. For Swedenborg, the people, places, and events of the Word symbolize realities within the human person. Egypt represents the natural mind, which became dominant and enslaved what is spiritual, while Israel represents the spiritual dimension of the human person that is willing to be led by the Lord. The Exodus is therefore not only a historical journey from one place to another. Rather this illustrates the process by which we are led out of spiritual bondage.
In this light, the “foreigner” represents something within us that remains foreign to the spiritual life. It could be an affection, desire, thought, or intention that is essentially not compatible with our relationship with the Lord. The Passover lamb represents the Lord’s Divine Human and, in particular, the innocence and love through which Gold delivers us. To eat the Passover represents receiving that Divine life—not merely believing something about God, but allowing the Lord’s love and truth to enter into our will and understanding to transform our inner self.
There are parts of ourselves that may initially feel foreign to a life of love, truth, forgiveness, humility, or trust in the Lord. But through regeneration, what was once foreign can gradually become integrated into a new spiritual life. The Lord does not merely take us out of Egypt; He teaches us how to become people who no longer belong to Egypt inwardly.
My brothers and sisters in God, let us take a moment of prayer this week. Let us acknowledge where we are, who we are, and what we are doing. Then, let us take a deeper step into our acknowledgements, and observe to see the gentle, yet subtle presence and guidance of our God, Creator.
Blessings,
Rev. Junchol Lee