Metaphysical meaning of Mattan (mbd)
Mattan, mat'-tan (Heb.)--strength; firmness; adult; a gift; present; death of them.
a A priest of Baal who was slain before the altars of Baal in Jerusalem (II Kings 11:18). b Father of Shephatiah, an Israelite of note, who accused Jeremiah of treason, in the days of Zedekiah, king of Judah (Jer. 38:1).
Meta. Mattan bespeaks the fullness of strength and stability (strength, firmness, adult) as being of and from Spirit (a gift, present).
The Mattan who was a priest of Baal signifies a ruling thought belonging to man's formal concepts of religion. It leads the truer thoughts of the consciousness (Israelites) into idolatry by causing them to look to an outer personal God, with form and shape, and therefore limited, as the source of their strength and good; it also leads them to believe the outer manifest world and conditions to be real. Thus it leads to death (death of them) instead of life, and must be put out of consciousness.
The Mattan who was the father of Shephatiah of Judah also refers to a religious thought that relies too much on outer appearances, instead of having cultivated the spiritual faith and intuition that enable one to look back of the seeming to the real inner guidance and endurance of Spirit. Thus this thought belongs to the truer consciousness of man, but for the time being it fails to work for the best good of the individual.
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Preceding Entry: Matrites
Following Entry: Mattanah
