8223.“叫水回到埃及人”表邪恶所生的虚假将流回到那些沉浸于邪恶所生的虚假之人身上，并把他们包围。这从“水”和“埃及人”的含义清楚可知：“水”是指虚假（6346，7307，8137，8138节），因此“叫水回到”表示虚假的流回或返回，在此也指包围，因为他们红海的水包围，而红海的水是指那些属于教会，陷入与仁分离之信，并过着邪恶生活之人的邪恶所生的虚假；“埃及人”是指那些沉浸于邪恶所生的虚假之人，如前面频繁所述。至于虚假将流回或返回到那些企图将它们注入以色列人所代表的处于真理和良善的人是怎么回事，可参看前文（8214节）；在那里已经说明，针对他人的邪恶会返回到自己身上，这来源于以下神序律法：你们愿意人怎样待你们，你们也要怎样待人（马太福音7:12）。这条律法在灵界是永恒不变的，它是代表性教会所制定的报应律法，即以下律法的源头：
若有别害，就要以命偿命，以眼还眼，以牙还牙，以手还手，以脚还脚，以烙还烙，以伤还伤，以打还打。（出埃及记21:23-25）
利未记：
人若使他邻舍有残疾，他怎样行，也要照样向他行：以骨折还骨折，以眼还眼，以牙还牙。他怎样叫人有残疾，也要照样使他有残疾。（利未记24:19，20）
申命记：
若见证人以谎言答复他的弟兄，你们就要待他如同他想要待的弟兄。（申命记19:18，19）
从这些经文很清楚地看出，这些律法来源于灵界永恒不变的普世律法，也就是说这条律法：你们愿意人怎样待你们，你们也要怎样待人。这清楚表明当如何理解这个观念，即：人们打算施加到别人身上的邪恶所生的虚假会流回或返回到他们自己身上。
但在来世，这条律法的情况是这样：当某种类似或报应行为是邪恶的时，它是由恶人施加的，从来不是由善人施加的；也就是说，它来自地狱，而非天堂。因为地狱，或在那里的恶人，有一种无止境的欲望，想要对他人行恶；这完全是他们生活的快乐。因此，一经允许，他们就会行恶，不在乎对象是谁，不关心他是坏是好，是同伴还是仇敌。由于这符合秩序的律法，即：邪恶会回到那些意欲邪恶的人身上，所以当这条律法允许时，他们就会冲进邪恶中。这一切由地狱里的恶人来行，天堂里的善人从不做这种事。后者不断渴望向他人行善，因为这是他们生活的快乐；因此一有机会他们就行善，既向仇敌也向朋友行善。事实上，他们也不抵抗邪恶，因为秩序的律法扞卫并保护良善和真理。正因如此，主说：
你们听见有话说，以眼还眼，以牙还牙。只是我告诉你们，不要抵抗恶人。你们听见有话说，当爱你的邻舍，恨你的仇敌。只是我告诉你们：要爱你们的仇敌，为咒诅你们的祝福，向恨恶你们的行善；这样，就可以作你们天父的儿子。（马太福音5:38，39，43-45）
在来世经常发生的事是，当恶灵想将邪恶施加于善人时，他们会受到严厉的惩罚，他们针对别人的邪恶会回到他们自己身上。在这种时候，表面上看，报复行为似乎来自善人那一方。但它并不是一种报复行为，也并非来自善人，而是来自恶人，秩序的律法给了他们如此行的机会。事实上，善人不想让他们受到任何伤害，但仍无法将惩罚的痛苦从他们身上拿走，因为那时善人被保守在良善的意图中，就像一个法官看见一个犯罪分子受到惩罚，或像一个父亲看见他的儿子被老师惩罚。实施惩罚的恶人出于一种行恶的强烈欲望行事，而善人则出于对行善的情感或喜爱行事。由此可见当如何理解上面所引用的主在马太福音中关于爱仇敌和报应律法的这些话，主并未废除这条律法，而是解释了它；也就是说，那些处于天堂之爱的人不可以报应或报复为快乐，而要以行善为快乐；祂的话也要这样来理解：保护良善的秩序的实际律法通过恶人自动实现这一点。
Potts(1905-1910) 8223
8223. And let the waters return upon the Egyptians. That this signifies that the falsities from evil would flow back to those, and would environ those, who are in falsities from evil, is evident from the signification of "waters," as being falsities (n. 6346, 7307, 8137, 8138); consequently by "let the waters return" is signified the flowing back or return of the falsity, here also an environment, because by the waters of the sea Suph, which denote the falsities from evil of those who being of the church had been in faith separate and in a life of evil; and from the signification of "the Egyptians," as being those who are in falsities from evil (of which frequently above). How the case herein is, that the falsities would flow back or return to those who intended to pour them forth upon those who were in truth and good, who are represented by the sons of Israel, see above (n. 8214), namely, that the evil which is intended to others returns upon themselves, and that this arises from the law of Divine order: "Do not to another save only what thou wouldest others should do to thee" (Matt. 7:12). From this law, which in the spiritual world is constant and perpetual, the laws of retaliation delivered in the representative church derived their origin; namely, the following:
If any harm shall happen, thou shalt give life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, burning for burning, wound for wound, blow for blow (Exod. 21:23-25). If a man hath caused a blemish in his neighbor; as he hath done, so shall it be done to him; fracture for fracture, eye for eye, tooth for tooth; as he hath caused a blemish in a man, so shall it be caused in him (Lev. 24:19, 20). If a witness shall answer a lie against his brother, ye shall do to him as he had thought to do to his brother (Deut. 19:18, 19). From these passages it is clearly evident that these laws originate from that universal law which in the spiritual world is constant and perpetual, namely, that thou art not to do to others except as thou wouldst that others should do to thee. Thus it is clear how it is to be understood that the falsities from evil which are intended to be inflicted on others, flow back or return upon the persons themselves. [2] But the case with this law in the other life is further as follows. When the like, or retaliation, is evil, it is inflicted by the evil, and never by the good; that is, it comes from the hells, and never from the heavens. For the hells, or the evil who are there, are in the continual cupidity of doing evil to others, for this is the very delight of their life; and therefore as soon as it is permitted, they do evil, caring not to whom, whether he is evil or good, whether he is a companion or an enemy; and as it is from a law of order that evil returns upon those who intend evil, consequently, when it is permitted by the law, they rush on them. This is done by the evil who are in the hells, never by the good who are in the heavens, for these latter are in the continual desire of doing good to others, because this is the delight of their life; and therefore as soon as there is an opportunity, they do good both to foes and to friends; nay, they do not resist evil, for the laws of order defend and protect what is good and true. Hence it is that the Lord says, "Ye have heard that it hath been said, An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth; but I say to you that evil must not be resisted. Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbor, and hate thine enemy; but I say to you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, impart benefits to them that hate you; that ye may be sons of your Father in the heavens" (Matt. 5:38, 39, 43-45). [3] It frequently happens in the other life that when evil spirits wish to inflict evil on the good, they are grievously punished, and that the evil which they intend to others returns upon themselves. At the time this appears as if it were revenge from the good; but it is not revenge, neither is it from the good, but from the evil, to whom an opportunity is then given from the law of order. Nay, the good do not wish evil to them, but still they cannot take away the evil of punishment, because they are then kept in the intention of good-just like a judge when he sees a malefactor being punished, or like a father when he sees his son punished by his master. The evil who punish do it from the cupidity of doing evil; but the good from the affection of doing good. From all this it can be seen what is meant by the Lord's words concerning love for an enemy, in Matthew, as above; and concerning the law of retaliation, which was not abrogated by the Lord, but explained; namely, that they who are in heavenly love ought not to have delight in retaliation or revenge, but in imparting benefits; and that the very law of order, which protects what is good, performs it from itself, through the evil ones.
Elliott(1983-1999) 8223
8223. 'And let the waters return onto the Egyptians' means that the falsities arising from evil would flow back onto and surround those steeped in falsities arising from evil. This is clear from the meaning of 'the waters' as falsities, dealt with in 6346, 7307, 8137, 8138, so that 'let the waters return' means falsity flowing back or recoiling on them, at this point surrounding them too, since they were surrounded by the waters of the Sea Suph, which are the falsities arising from evil of those belonging to the Church who have championed faith separated from charity and led a life of evil; and from the meaning of 'the Egyptians' as those steeped in falsities arising from evil, dealt with very often. For what this implies when it is said that the falsities would flow back or recoil on those whose aim was to pour them out onto those governed by truth and good, who are represented by 'the children of Israel', see above in 8214. There it is shown that the evil which they aim in the direction of others recoils on themselves, and that this has its origin in the following law of God's order, You are not to do to another anything except that which you wish others to do to you. Matt 7:12. This law, which is unchanging and everlasting in the spiritual world, is the source of the laws of retaliation that were laid down in the representative Church, that is to say, the following laws in Moses,
If harm should come about you shall give soul for soul, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, burning for burning, wound for wound, blow for blow. Exod 21:23-2,In the same author,
If a man disfigures his neighbour, it shall be done to him as he has done - fracture for fracture, eye for eye, tooth for tooth. As he has disfigured the person, so it shall be done to him. Lev 24:19, 20.
In the same author,
If a lying witness replies with a lie against his brother, you shall do to him as he has thought to do to his brother. Deut 19:18, 19.
From these quotations it is plainly evident that these laws have their origin in the universal law that is unchanging and perpetual in the spiritual world, that is to say, the law that you are not to do to others anything except that which you wish others to do to you. This shows clearly how to understand the idea that the falsities arising from evil which people aim to inflict on others flow back or recoil on themselves.
[2] But the situation with that law in the next life is in addition such that when some like or retaliatory action carried out is evil it is inflicted by the evil, and never by the good; that is, it comes from hell and never from heaven. For hell or the evil there have an unending desire to do evil to others; that is altogether the delight of their life. They perform evil therefore the moment they are allowed to; and they do not care whom they do it to. They do not care whether the person is bad or good, companion or foe. And since it accords with a law of order that the evil which people aim in the direction of others recoils on themselves, they rush in to do it when this law allows it. The evil in hell behave in this way, the good in heaven never do. The latter desire constantly to do good to others, for that is the delight of their life, and therefore the moment the opportunity exists they do good both to enemies and to friends. Nor indeed do they resist evil, for the laws of order defend and protect what is good and true. This is why the Lord says,
You have heard that it was said, An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth. But I say to you, Evil is not to be resisted. You have heard that it was said, You shall love your neighbour and hate your enemy. But I say to you, Love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. Matt 5:38, 39, 43-45.
[3] It is a frequent occurrence in the next life for the evil to be severely punished when they wish to inflict evil on the good, and for the evil which they aim at others to recoil on themselves. Such an occurrence has the appearance of being an act of revenge on the part of the good. But it is not an act of revenge; nor are the good responsible for what happens but evil people who are allowed the opportunity by the law of order so to act. Indeed the good do not wish them any harm, but they cannot take away from them the misery of punishment because they are held intent on good, exactly like a judge when he sees a wrong-doer being punished or like a father when he sees his son being punished by his teacher. The evil who carry out punishment act from an inordinate desire to do ill, whereas the good act from a fondness for doing good. From all this one may see what should be understood by the Lord's words in Matthew, quoted above, about loving one's enemy, and about the law of retaliation, which the Lord did not set aside but opened out; that is to say, He explained that those governed by heavenly love should take no delight in any act of retaliation or revenge but in doing good. His words should also be taken to mean that the actual law of order which protects good achieves this of itself by means of those who are evil.
Latin(1748-1756) 8223
8223. `Et revertantur aquae super Aegyptios': quod significet quod falsa ex malo redundarent ad illos, et circumfunderent illos qui in falsis ex malo, constat ex significatione `aquarum' quod sint falsa, de qua n. 6346, (x)7307, 8137, 8138; inde per `revertantur aquae' significatur (x)redundatio seu relapsus falsi, hic quoque circumfusio {1}, (x)quia ab aquis maris Suph, quae sunt falsa ex malo illorum qui ab Ecclesia in fide separata ac in vita mali fuerunt; et ex significatione `Aegyptiorum' quod sint qui in falsis ex malo, de qua saepius. Quomodo cum hoc se habet, quod falsa redundarent seu relaberentur ad illos qui {2}intendebant effundere ea super illos qui in vero et bono, qui per `filios Israelis' repraesentantur, videatur supra n. 8214, quod nempe malum quod intenditur aliis relabatur super ipsos, et quod hoc oriatur ex lege ordinis Divini, Ne alteri facias nisi quod vis ut alii faciant tibi, Matth. vii 12;ex hac lege, quae in mundo spirituali constans et perpetua est, leges talionis, quae latae sunt in Ecclesia repraesentativa, originem duxerunt, nempe hae apud Moschen, Si damnum contigerit, dabis animam pro anima, oculum pro oculo, dentem pro dente, manum pro manu, pedem pro pede, ustionem pro ustione, vulnus pro vulnere, plagam pro plaga, Exod. xxi 23-25:
apud eundem, Si vir dederit defectum in proximo suo, quemadmodum fecit, sic fiet illi, fractura pro fractura, oculus pro oculo, dens pro dente; quemadmodum defectum dederit in homine, sic dabitur in ipso, Lev. xxiv 19, 20:
apud eundem, Si testis mendacii mendacium responderit contra fratrem suum, facietis illi quemadmodum cogitavit facere fratri suo, Deut. xix 18, 19;
ex his manifeste patet quod hae leges ex universali illi, quae in mundo spirituali constans et perpetua est, quod nempe non {3}facias aliis nisi quemadmodum {4}vis ut alii tibi faciant, originem ducant. Sic liquet quomodo intelligendum quod falsa ex malo, quae {5}inferri aliis intenduntur, redundent seu relabantur super ipsos. 2 Sed cum illa lege {6}in altera vita se ita porro habet: simile seu talio, cum (t)malum est, {7}infertur a malis, et nusquam a bonis, {8}seu venit ab infernis, et nusquam (c)a caelis; inferna enim seu mali qui ibi, in continua cupiditate sunt malum faciendi aliis, nam id ipsum {9}est vitae eorum jucundum, quare ut primum permittitur, malum faciunt, nec curant cui, sive malus sit {10}sive bonus, sive socius {10}sive hostis; et quia ex lege ordinis est ut malum relabatur super ipsos qui malum intendunt, inde cum ex lege permittitur, irruunt; hoc faciunt mali qui in infernis, nunquam boni qui in caelis, hi enim' in continuo desiderio bonum faciendi aliis {11}sunt, nam id jucundum vitae illorum est, quare ut primum datur copia, bonum faciunt tam inimicis quam amicis; {12} immo nec resistunt malo, nam leges ordinis defendunt (c)et tutantur bonum (c)et verum; inde est quod Dominus dicat, Audivistis quod dictum sit, Oculum pro oculo, et dentem pro dente; Ego vero dico vobis, Non resistendum esse malo: audivistis quod dictum sit, Amabis proximum tuum, et odio habebis inimicum tuum; Ego vero dico vobis, Amate inimicos vestros, (x)benedicite maledicentibus vobis, benefacite odio vos habentibus {13}; ut sitis filii Patris vestri Qui in caelis, Matth. v 38, 39, 43-45. 3 Saepius in altera vita contingit quod mali, cum inferre volunt malum bonis, graviter puniantur, (c)et quod {14} malum quod aliis in tendunt relabatur super ipsos; hoc apparet tunc sicut vindicta ex bonis; sed non est vindicta, nec est a bonis sed ex malis, quibus tunc ex lege ordinis datur copia; immo boni nec illis malum volunt, sed usque non possunt malum poenae auferre, quia tunc in intentione boni tenentur, plane sicut judex cum videt maleficum puniri, aut {15}sicut pater cum suum filium a magistro {16}; mali qui puniunt faciunt id ex cupiditate malum faciendi, boni autem ex affectione bonum faciendi; ex his constare potest quid intelligitur per Domini verba de dilectione inimici apud Matthaeum supra; et de lege talionis, quae non a Domino {17} abrogata est sed explicata, quod nempe qui in amore caelesti sunt non jucundum in talione seu vindicta habere debeant sed in benefaciendo; et quod ipsa lex ordinis, quae tutatur bonum, id ex se faciat, per malos. @1 i ab illis$ @2 effundebant$ @3 faciendum$ @4 vult ut alii faciant sibi, latae sint$ @5 inferre aliis intenditur$ @6 ita se in altera vita$ @7 inferatur illis$ @8 hoc est, quod$ @9 After jucundum$ @10 d sive i vel$ @11 After desiderio$ @12 i imo non vindicant$ @13 i et orate pro laedentibus et persequentibus vos$ @14 i ita$ @15 cum pater$ @16 i, quia per poenam bonum illi$ @17 i hic$