THE
TRUE CHRISTIAN RELIGION
CONTAINING
THE UNIVERSAL THEOLOGY OF
THE NEW CHURCH
FORETOLD BY THE LORD IN DANIEL vii 13, 14,
AND IN THE REVELATION xxi 1, 2.
From the Latin
of
EMANUEL SWEDENBORG
SERVANT OF THE LORD JESUS CHRIST
THE SWEDENBORG SOCIETY (INCORPORATED)
20/21 BLOOMSBURY WAY, LONDON, W. C. 1
1950
Daniel vii 13, 14
I saw in the night visions; and, behold, one like the SON OF MAN came with the clouds of heaven; and there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, and all people, nations, and languages shall serve him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed.
Revelation xxi 1, 2
And I, John, saw a new heaven and a new earth; and I saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And one of the seven angels talked with me, saying, Come hither; I will shew thee THE BRIDE, THE LAMB’S WIFE. And he carried me away in the spirit to a great and high mountain, and shewed me that great city, the Holy Jerusalem, descending out of heaven from God.
And he that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I MAKE ALL THINGS NEW. And he said unto me, Write; for these words are faithful and true.
AUTHOR’S GENERAL TABLE OF CONTENTS
Nos.
The Faith of the New Heaven and the New Church in its General and in its
Particular Form 1-3
CHAPTER I
GOD THE CREATOR
THE UNITY OF GOD
I. The whole of the Sacred Scripture, and the doctrines thence derived
of the Churches in the Christian world, teach that there is a God, and
that He is one 5-7
II. There is a universal influx from God into the souls of men, that there
is a God, and that He is one 8
III. There is no nation in the whole world, possessing religion and sound
reason, which does not acknowledge that there is a God, and that He is one 9-10
IV. As to the nature of this one God, nations and peoples have differed, and
still differ, from several causes 11
V. Human reason may, if it will, perceive and conclude from many things in
the world, that there is a God, and that He is one 12
VI. Unless God were one, the universe could not have been created and preserved 13
VII. The man who does not acknowledge God, is excommunicated from the
Church and condemned 14
VIII. With the man who does not acknowledge one God, but several, no principle of the Church remains 15
THE DIVINE BEING WHICH IS JEHOVAH
I. The one God is called Jehovah from His Being, because He alone is, and
will be; and because He is the First and the Lest, the Beginning and the End, the Alpha and the Omega 19
II. The one God is Substance itself and Form itself, and angels and men are
substances and forms from Him; and as far as they are in Him, and He in them, so far are they images and likenesses of Him 20
III. The Divine Being is Being in itself, and at the same time Existing in itself 21-22
IV. The Divine Being and Existing in itself cannot produce another Divine
that is Being and Existing in itself; consequently there cannot be another
God of the same Essence 23
V. The idea of a plurality of Gods in ancient and also in modern times
arose because the nature of the Divine Being was not understood 24
THE INFINITY OF GOD, OR HIS IMMENSITY AND ETERNITY
I. God is Infinite, because He is and exists in Himself, and all things in
the universe are and exist from Him 28
II God is Infinite, because He was before the world, and thus before space and time arose 29
III. God, since the world was created, is in space apart from space, and in time apart from time 30
IV. The Infinity of God in relation to space is called immensity, and in relation to time, eternity; and although these relations exist, yet there is nothing of space in His immensity, and nothing of time in His eternity 31
V. Every one of enlightened reason, from very many things in the world, may see the Infinity of God 32
VI. Every created thing is finite, and the Infinite is in finite things as in its receptacles, and in men as in its images 33-34
THE ESSENCE OF GOD, WHICH IS DIVINE LOVE AND DIVINE WISDOM
I. God is Love itself and Wisdom itself, and these two constitute His Essence 37
II. God is Good itself and Truth itself, because Good is of Love, and Truth is of Wisdom 38
III. God, because He is Love itself and Wisdom itself, is also Life itself, in itself 39-40
IV. Love and Wisdom in God make one 41-42
V. The essence of Love is to love others outside itself, to desire to be one
with them, and to make them happy from itself 43-45
VI. These properties of the Divine Love were the cause of the creation of the
universe, and they are the cause of its preservation 46-47
THE OMNIPOTENCE, OMNISCIENCE AND OMNIPRESENCE OF GOD
I. Omnipotence, Omniscience and Omnipresence are attributes of the Divine Wisdom from the Divine Love 50-51
II. The Omnipotence, Omniscience and Omnipresence of God cannot be
understood unless it is known what order is; and unless it is known that
God is Order, and that at creation He introduced order into the universe,
and into all its parts 52-55
III. The Omnipotence of God in the universe and in all its parts, proceeds
and operates according to the laws of His order 56-58
V. God is Omnipresent from first things to last of His order 63-64
VI. Men was created a form of Divine Order 65-67
VII. A men has power against evil and falsity from the Divine
Omnipotence, and wisdom from the Divine Omniscience; and he is in
God from the Divine Omnipresence, so far as he lives according to the
Divine Order 68-70
THE CREATION OF THE UNIVERSE
No one can form a right idea of the creation of the universe unless some general
principles are first stated which will enlighten the understanding 75
The creation of the universe is described in five Memorabilia 76-80
CHAPTER II
THE LORD THE REDEEMER
I. Jehovah God descended and assumed the Human, in order to redeem
and save mankind 82-84
II. Jehovah God descended as the Divine Truth, which is the Word,
and yet He did not separate the Divine Good 85-88
III. God assumed the Human according to His own Divine order 89-91
IV. The Human, by which God sent Himself into the world, is the Son of
God 92-94
V. The Lord, by acts of redemption, made Himself Righteousness 95-96
VI. By the same acts, the Lord united Himself to the Father, and the
Father united Himself to Him 97-100
VII. Thus God became Man, and Man God, in one Person 101-103
VIII. The progress to union was His state of exinanition, and the union
itself is His state of glorification 104-106
IX. Hereafter no Christian can enter heaven unless he believes on the
Lord God the Savior 107-108
X. A corollary concerning the state of the Church before the coming
of the Lord, and its state afterwards 109
REDEMPTION
I. Redemption itself was the subjugation of the hells, the orderly
arrangement of the heavens, and thus the preparation for a new
spiritual Church 115-117
II. Without that redemption no man could have been saved, nor
could the angels have continued in a state of integrity 118-120
III. The Lord thus redeemed not only men but also angels 121-122
IV. Redemption was a work purely Divine 123
V. This redemption itself could not have been effected but by God
incarnate 124-125
VI. The Passion of the Cross was not redemption, but the last temptation
which the Lord endured as the Supreme Prophet; and it was the
means of the glorification of His Human 126-131
VII. It is a fundamental error of the Church to believe that the passion
of the cross was redemption itself; and this error, together with that
concerning three Divine Persons from eternity, has perverted the
whole Church so that nothing spiritual remains in it 132-133
CHAPTER III
THE HOLY SPIRIT AND THE DIVINE OPERATION
I. The Holy Spirit is the Divine Truth, and also the Divine Virtue and
Operation proceeding from the one God, in whom is the Divine Trinity,
thus from the Lord God the Savior 139-141
II. The Divine Virtue and Operation, signified by the Holy Spirit, consist,
in general, in reformation and regeneration; and following upon these,
renewal, vivification, sanctification and justification; and following
upon these again, purification from evils and remission of sins; and
finally salvation 142-145
III. The Divine Virtue and Operation, meant by the sending of the Holy
Spirit, with the clergy consist, in particular, in enlightenment and
instruction 146-148
IV. The Lord operates these virtues in those who believe on Him 149-151
V. The Lord operates of Himself from the Father, and not the reverse 153-155
VI. A man’s spirit is his mind, and whatever proceeds from it 156-157
A corollary. It is nowhere said in the Old Testament that the Prophets
spoke from the Holy Spirit, but from Jehovah God; but it is
otherwise in the New Testament 158
THE DIVINE TRINITY
I. There is a Divine Trinity, which consists of Father, Son and Holy Spirit 164-165
II. These three, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, are three essentials of one
God which make one, as soul, body and operation make one in a man 166-169
III. Before the creation of the world this Trinity did not exist; but after
the creation of the world, when God became incarnate, it was provided
for and came into existence, and was then in the Lord God the Redeemer
and Savior, Jesus Christ 170-171
IV. A Trinity of Divine Persons from eternity, or before the world was
created, is in idea, a trinity of gods; and this idea cannot be removed
by the oral confession of one God 172-173
V. A Trinity of Persons was unknown in the Apostolic Church, but
was put forward by the Nicene Council, then introduced into the
Roman Catholic Church, and from this into the Churches that
separated from it 174-176
VI. From the Nicene and also from the Athanasian doctrine concerning
the Trinity has arisen a faith in three gods which has perverted the
whole Christian Church 177-178
VII. Hence has arisen that abomination of desolation, and that affliction,
the like of which shall never again come to pass, which the Lord
foretold in Daniel, in the Evangelists, and in the Revelation 179-181
VIII. For the same reason, unless a new heaven and a new earth were
established by the Lord, no flesh should be saved 182
IX. From a trinity of Persons, each of whom is separately God,
according to the Athanasian Creed, have arisen many discordant and
incongruous ideas concerning God, which are delusive and monstrous 183-184
CHAPTER IV
THE SACRED SCRIPTURE, OR THE WORD OF GOD
I. The Sacred Scripture, or the Word of God, is the Divine Truth itself 189-192
II. In the Word there is a spiritual sense, hitherto unknown 193
(i) What the spiritual sense is 194
From the Lord proceed the Divine celestial, the Divine
spiritual and the Divine natural 195
(ii) The spiritual sense is in the whole of the Word, and in every
part of it 196-198
The Lord, when in the world, spoke by correspondences,
thus with a spiritual and at the same time a natural meaning 199
(iii) Because of the spiritual sense the Word is Divinely inspired,
and holy in every word 200
(iv) The spiritual sense has hitherto been unknown, but it was
known among the ancients; and concerning correspondences
among them 201-207
(v) Hereafter the spiritual sense of the Word will be made known
only to those who are in genuine truths from the Lord 208
(vi) Some wonderful things concerning the Word from its spiritual
sense 209
III. The sense of the Letter of the Word is the basis, the containant and
the support of its spiritual and celestial senses 210-213
IV. The Divine Truth, in the sense of the Letter of the Word, is in its
fulness, its sanctity and its power 214-216
(i) The truths of the sense of the Letter of the Word are meant
by the precious stones which formed the foundations of the
New Jerusalem, described in Revelation xxi. 17-21, and this
from correspondence 217
(ii) The goods and truths of the Word in the sense of its Letter
correspond to the Urim and Thummim on Aaron’s ephod 218
(iii) Goods and truths in ultimates, such as are in the sense of
the Letter of the Word, are meant by the precious stones in
the garden of Eden, where the king of Tyre is said to have
been, mentioned in Ezekiel 219
(iv) The same were represented by the curtains, veils and pillars
of the tabernacle 220
(v) The same were represented by the externals of the temple
at Jerusalem 221
(vi) The Word in its glory was represented in the Lord when
He was transfigured222
(vii) The power of the Word in ultimates was represented by
the Nazirites 223
(viii) Concerning the inexpressible power of the Word 224
V. The Doctrine of the Church must be taken from the sense of the
Letter of the Word, and be confirmed by it 225, 229, 230
(i) Without doctrine, the Word is unintelligible 226-228
(ii) Genuine truth, which is the source of doctrine, in the
sense of the Letter of the Word, is manifest only to those
who are enlightened by the Lord 231-233
VI. By the sense of the Letter of the Word there is conjunction with
the Lord, and association with the angels 234-239
VII. The Word is in all the heavens, and is the source of angelic wisdom 240-242
VIII. The Church exists from the Word, and its quality with man is
according to his understanding of the Word 243-247
IX. In every detail of the Word there is the marriage of the Lord and
the Church, and consequently the marriage of good and truth 248-253
X. Heresies may be formulated from the sense of the Letter of the
Word, but it is hurtful to confirm them 254-260
(i) Many things in the Word are appearances of truth, in
which genuine truths lie concealed 257
(ii) Fallacies arise from the confirmation of appearances of truth 258
(iii) The sense of the Letter of the Word is a guard for the
genuine truths which lie concealed within it 260
(iv) The sense of the Letter of the Word was represented, and
is signified in the Word by the Cherubim 260
XI. The Lord, when He was in the world, fulfilled all things in the
Word, and thus became the Word, that is, Divine Truth, even in
ultimates 261-263
XII. Previous to the Word which is now in the world, there was a Word
which is lost 264-266
XIII. By means of the Word those also have light who are outside the
Church, and do not possess the Word 267-272
XIV. Without the Word no one would have any knowledge of God,
of heaven and hell, of a life after death, and still less of the Lord 273-276
CHAPTER V
THE CATECHISM OR DECALOGUE EXPLAINED AS TO ITS EXTERNAL AND INTERNAL SENSES
I. In the Israelitish Church the Decalogue was holiness itself; and
concerning the holiness of the ark, in which was the Law 283-286
II. The Decalogue, in the sense of the Letter, contains the general
precepts of faith and life, but in the spiritual and celestial senses,
all precepts universally 287-290
III. THE FIRST COMMANDMENT: Thou shalt have no other God before me 291-296
IV. THE SECOND COMMANDMENT: Thou shalt not take the name of thy God in vain; for Jehovah will not hold him guiltless that taketh His name in vain 297-300
V. THE THIRD COMMANDMENT: Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labor and do all thy work; but the seventh day is the Sabbath to Jehovah thy God 301-304
VI. THE FOURTH COMMANDMENT: Honour thy father and thy mother, that thy days may be prolonged, and that it may be well with thee in the land 305-308
VII. THE FIFTH COMMANDMENT: Thou shalt not kill 309-312
VIII. THE SIXTH COMMANDMENT: Thou shalt not commit adultery 313-316
IX. THE SEVENTH COMMANDMENT: Thou shalt not steel 317-320
X. THE EIGHTH COMMANDMENT: Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor 321-324
XI. THE NINTH AND TENTH COMMANDMENTS: Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor’s house; thou shalt not covet thy neighbor’s wife, nor his man-servant, nor his maid-servent, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor anything that is thy neighbor’s 325-328
XII. The Ten Commandments of the Decalogue contain everything relating to love to God, and everything relating to love towards the neighbor 329-331
CHAPTER VI
FAITH
Preface: Faith is first in time, but charity is first in respect to end 336
I. A saving faith is faith in the Lord God the Savior, Jesus Christ 337-339
Since God is visible, in whom is the invisible 339
II. The sum and substance of faith is, that he who lives well and believes aright, is saved by the Lord 340-342
The first principle of a faith in Him is the acknowledgment that He is the Son of God 342
III. A man acquires faith by approaching the Lord, learning truths
from the Word, and living according to them 343-348
(i) Concerning the being of faith its essence, its state and its form 343 and foll.
(ii) Concerning merely natural faith, which is a persuasion, counterfeiting faith 345-348
IV. A number of truths, that cohere as one whole, exalts and perfects faith 349-354
(i) The truths of faith can be multiplied to infinity 350
(ii) The truths of faith are arranged in series, and thus, as it were, into groups 351
(iii) Faith is perfected according to the number and coherence of truths 352-353
(iv) The truths of faith, however numerous and diverse they may appear, make one from the Lord 354
(v) The Lord is the Word, the God of heaven and earth, the God
of all flesh, the God of the vineyard or Church, the God of
faith, and Light itself, Truth and Life eternal, shown from the
Word 354
V. Faith without Charity is not faith, and charity without faith is not
Charity, and neither has life except from the Lord 355-361
(i)A man can acquire faith for himself 356
(ii) A man can acquire charity for himself 357
(iii) A man can also acquire for himself the life of faith and charity 358
(iv) But nothing of faith, or of charity, or of the life of both, is
from man, but from the Lord alone 359
(v) The difference between natural faith and spiritual faith; the
latter is in the former from the Lord 360-361
VI. The Lord, charity and faith make one, like life, will and understanding
in men; and if they are divided, each perishes like a pearl reduced to
powder 362-367
(i) The Lord with all His Divine Love, and with all His Divine
Wisdom, thus with all His Divine Life, enters by influx
into every man 364
(ii) Consequently the Lord, with all the essence of faith and
charity, enters by influx into every men 365
(iii) Those things which flow in from the Lord are received by
man according to his state and form 366
(iv) The man, however, who separates the Lord, charity and
faith, is a form not recipient but destructive of them 367
VII. The Lord is charity and faith in men, and man is charity and faith
in the Lord 368-372
(i) It is by conjunction with God that a man has salvation and
eternal life 369
(ii) There cannot be conjunction with God the Father, but
with the Lord, and through Him with God the Father 370
(iii) Conjunction with the Lord is reciprocal, that is, the Lord
is in man, and man in the Lord 371
(iv) This reciprocal conjunction of the Lord and man is effected
by means of charity and faith 372
VIII. Charity and faith are together in good works 373-377
(i) Charity consists in willing what is good, and good works
consist in doing what is good from willing what is good 374
(ii) Charity and faith are merely fleeting mental abstractions
unless, whenever it is possible, they are expressed in
works, and exist together in them 375-376
(iii) Charity alone does not produce good works, still less
does faith alone; but good works are produced by charity
and faith together 377
IX. There is a true faith, a spurious faith, and a hypocritical faith 378-381
The Christian Church from its earliest infancy, began to be
infested and rent asunder by schisms and heresies 378
(i) The only true faith is faith in the Lord God, the Savior
Jesus Christ; and this faith is held by those who believe
Him to be the Son of God, and the God of heaven and earth,
and one with the Father. 379
(ii) Spurious faith is every faith that departs from the one true
faith, and is held by those who climb up some other way,
and regard the Lord not as God, but as a mere man 380
(iii) Hypocritical faith is not faith 381
X. The evil have no faith 382-384
(i) The evil have no faith, because evil is of hell, and faith is of
Heaven 383
(ii) Those in Christendom have no faith who reject the Lord
and the Word, although they live morally, and speak, teach and
write rationally, even about faith 384
CHAPTER VII
CHARITY, OR LOVE TOWARDS THE NEIGHBOR, AND GOOD WORKS
I. There are three universal loves, the love of heaven, the love of the
world, and the love of self 394-396
(i) The will and the understanding 397
(ii) Good and truth 398
(iii) Love in general 399
(iv) The love of self, and the love of the world in particular 400
(v) The external and the internal man 401
(vi) The merely natural and sensual man 402
II. These three loves, when they are rightly subordinated, make a man
perfect; but when not rightly subordinated, they pervert and invert him 403-405
III. Every man individually is the neighbor who ought to be loved, but
according to the quality of his good 406-411
IV. Man collectively, constituting not only smell and great societies but
also one’s country, which is composed of such societies, is the
neighbor that ought to be loved 412-414
V. The Church is the neighbor that is to be loved in a still higher
degree, and the Lord’s kingdom in the highest degree 415-416
VI. To love the neighbor, strictly speaking, is not to love the person,
but the good that is in the person 417-419
VII. Charity and good works are two distinct things, like willing what
is good and doing what is good420-421
VIII. Charity itself is to act justly and faithfully in the office, business and employment in which one is engaged, and towards those with whom one has any dealings 422-424
IX. The benefactions of charity ass giving to the poor and relieving the
needy, but with prudence 425-428
X. There are [public,] domestic and private duties of charity 429-432
XI. The recreations of charity are dinners, suppers and social intercourse 433-434
XII. The first thing of charity consists in putting away evils, and the
second, in doing good actions that are of use to the neighbor 435-438
XIII. In the exercise of charity, a man does not ascribe merit to works so
long as he believes that all good is from the Lord 439-442
XIV. Moral life, when it is at the same time spiritual, is charity 443-445
XV. The friendship of love, contracted with a person without regard to
his spiritual character, is detrimental after death 446-449
XVI. There are spurious charity, hypocritical charity and dead charity 450-453
XVII. The friendship of love among the wicked is intestine hatred of one
another 454-455
XVIII. The conjunction of love to God and love towards the neighbor 456-458
CHAPTER VIII
FREE WILL
I. The precepts and dogmas of the Church at this day concerning Free
Will 463-465
II. Two trees were placed in the garden of Eden, one of life and the
other of the knowledge of good and evil, to signify that Free Will
was given to men 466-469
III. Man is not life, but a form for the reception of life from God 470-474
IV. As long as a man lives in this world, he is kept midway between
heaven and hell, and there maintained in spiritual equilibrium, which
constitutes Free Will 475-478
V. From the permission to do evil, granted to the internal man of
every one, it is clearly evident that man has Free Will in spiritual
things 479-482
VI. Without Free Will in spiritual things there would be no use for the
Word; and consequently there would be no Church 483-484
VII. Without Free Will in spiritual things a man would have nothing
wherewith to enter into reciprocal conjunction with the Lord;
and consequently there would be no imputation, but mere
predestination, which is a detestable doctrine 485
The detestable tenets of predestination are disclosed 486-488
VII. Without Free Will in spiritual things, God would be the cause of
evil, and thus there would be no imputation of charity and faith 489-492
IX. Every spiritual principle of the Church which enters in freedom,
and is received from freedom, remains; but not otherwise 493-496
X. The will and the understanding of man function under this Free
Will; but the commission of evil in both worlds, the spiritual
and the natural, is restrained by laws; otherwise society in both
worlds would perish 497-499
XI. If men had not Free Will in spiritual things, it would be possible
for all men throughout the whole world, in a single day, to be
led to believe on the Lord; but this is impossible, because nothing
remains with a man but what he receives in the exercise of Free Will 500-502
Miracles are not wrought at this day, because they destroy Free
Will in spiritual things and compel belief 501
CHAPTER IX
REPENTANCE
I. Repentance is the first essential of the Church in man 510-511
II. Contrition, which at the present day is said to precede faith, and
which is followed by the consolation of the Gospel, is not repentance 512-515
III. Mere oral confession that one is a sinner is not repentance 516-519
IV. Man is born to evils of every kind, and unless he removes them
on his part by repentance, he remains in them; and whoever remains
in them cannot be saved 520-524
What is meant by the fulfillment of the law 523-524
V. Repentance begins with the knowledge of sin, and the examination
of some particular sin in oneself 525-527
VI. Actual repentance consists in a man’s examining himself
recognizing and acknowledging his sins, praying to the Lord,
and beginning a new life 528-531
VII. True repentance consists in a man’s examining not only the acts of
his life, but also the intentions of his will 532-534
VIII. Those also repent who, although they do not examine themselves,
yet abstain from evils because they are sins; and repentance of
this kind is likewise effected by those who do the works of charity
from a religious motive 535-537
IX. Confession ought to be made before the Lord God the Savior,
and also supplication for help and power to resist evils 558-560
X. Actual repentance is easy with those who have occasionally
practiced it; but extremely difficult for those who have never done so 561-563
XI. He who has never practised repentance, or who has not looked into
and examined himself, at length does not know what is condemnatory
evil and what is saving good 564-566
CHAPTER X
REFORMATION AND REGENERATION
I. Unless a man is born again and, as it were, created anew, he
cannot enter the kingdom of God 572-575
II. The new birth or creation is effected by the Lord alone, through
charity and faith as the two means, with the co-operation of man 567-578
III. Since all men have been redeemed, all can be regenerated, every
one according to his state 579-582
IV. Regeneration takes place in a manner analogous to that in which
man is conceived, carried in the womb, born and educated 583-586
V. The first act of the new birth, which is an act of the understanding,
is called reformation; and the second, which is an act of the will
and thence of the understanding, is called regeneration 587-590
VI. The internal man must be reformed first, and the external by
means of it; and in this way the man is regenerated 591-595
VII. When this takes place there arises a combat between the internal
and the external man; and then whichever conquers rules over the
other 596-600
VIII. The regenerate man has a new will and a new understanding 601-601
IX. A regenerate man is in communion with the angels of heaven,
and an unregenerate man in communion with the spirits of hell 607-610
X. As far as a man is regenerated, his sins are removed; and this
removal is the remission of sins 611-614
XI. Regeneration cannot take place without Free Will in spiritual things 615-617
XII. Regeneration is not possible without truths, by which faith is
formed, and with which charity conjoins itself (See what is said
concerning the male and female sexes in No. 585.) 618-620
CHAPTER XI
IMPUTATION
I. Imputation is one with the present Church’s faith which, it is
held, alone justifies 626-627
II. The imputation which forms part of the faith of the present day
is twofold, the imputation of Christ’s merit and the consequent
imputation of salvation 628-631
III. The faith which imputes the merit and righteousness of Christ
the Redeemer, first took its rise from the decrees of the Council
of Nice concerning three Divine Persons from eternity; and from
that time to the present this faith has been received by the whole
Christian world 632-635
IV. Faith which imputes Christ’s merit was not known in the Apostolic
Church, which existed earlier, and is nowhere meant in the Word 636-639
V. The imputation of the merit and righteousness of Christ is impossible 640-642
VI. There is imputation, but it is imputation of good and evil 643-646
VII. The faith and imputation of the New Church cannot possibly be
held along with the faith and imputation of the former Church; if
they were brought together such a collision and conflict would ensue
as to destroy every thing of the Church in a man 647-649
VIII. The Lord imputes good to every man, and hell imputes evil to every
man 650-653
IX. Faith decides the issue with what it conjoins itself. If true faith
conjoins itself with good, the decision is for eternal life; but if
faith conjoins itself with evil, the decision is for eternal death 654-657
CHAPTER XII
BAPTISM
I. Without a knowledge of the spiritual sense of the Word, no
one can know what the two sacraments, Baptism and the Holy
Supper, involve and effect 667-669
II. By the washing which is called Baptism is meant spiritual
washing. which is purification from evils and falsities, and thus
regeneration 670-673
III. Circumcision of the foreskin represented the circumcision of
the heart; and Baptism was instituted in place of circumcision
because of the Divine purpose that an internal Church should
succeed the external, which in all things, in general and in particular,
represented the internal Church 674-676
IV. The first use of Baptism is introduction into the Christian
Church, and at the same time insertion among Christians in the
spiritual world 677-680
V. The second use of Baptism is, that the Christian may know and
acknowledge the Lord Jesus Christ, the Redeemer and Savior,
and follow Him 681-683
VI. The third and final use of Baptism is, that man may be regenerated 681-683
VII. By the Baptism of John a way was prepared that Jehovah God
might descend into the world and accomplish the work of redemption 688-[691]
CHAPTER XIII
THE HOLY SUPPER
I. Without a knowledge of the correspondences of natural with
spiritual things, no one can know the uses and benefits of the Holy
Supper 698-701
II. From a knowledge of correspondences it may be known what is
meant by the flesh and blood of the Lord, and that the same is
meant by the bread and wine; namely, that by the flesh of the Lord,
and by the bread, is meant the Divine Good of His Love, and
also all the good of charity; and that by the blood of the Lord,
and by wine, is meant the Divine Truth of His Wisdom, and also
all the truth of faith; and that by eating is meant appropriation 702-710
From the Word it is shown what is meant by flesh 704-705
by blood 706
by bread 707
by wine 708
III. From an understanding of what has been said above, one may
perceive that the Holy Supper contains, both as to universals
and as to particulars, all things of the Church and all things of heaven 711-715
IV. In the Holy Supper the Lord is wholly present, and the whole of
His redemption 716-718
V. The Lord is present and opens heaven to those who worthily
approach the Holy Supper; and He is also present with those who
approach it unworthily, but does not open heaven to them;
consequently, as Baptism is an introduction into the Church,
so the Holy Supper is an introduction into heaven 719-721
VI. Those worthily approach the Holy Supper who have faith in the
Lord and charity towards the neighbor; thus those who are regenerate 722-724
VII. Those who worthily approach the Holy Supper are in the Lord,
and He in them; consequently, conjunction with the Lord is
effected by the Holy Supper 725-727
VIII. The Holy Supper, to those who worthily approach it, is like
a signature and seal that they are sons of God 728-730
CHAPTER XIV
THE CONSUMMATION OF THE AGE, THE COMING OF THE LORD, AND THE NEW CHURCH
I. The consummation of the age is the lest phase or end of the Church 753-756
II. The present day is the last phase of the Christian Church, which
the Lord foretold and described in the Gospels and in the Revelation 757-759
III. This last phase of the Christian Church is night itself, in which
the former Churches came to an end 760-763
IV. After this night there follows morning, and this is the Coming of the
Lord 764-767
V. The Coming of the Lord is not His Coming to destroy the visible
heaven and the habitable earth, and to create a new heaven and a
new earth, as many not understanding the spiritual sense of the
Word, have hitherto supposed 768-771
VI. This Coming of the Lord, which is the Second, takes place in
order that the evil may be separated from the good; and that
those may be saved who have believed and who now believe on
Him; and that from these there may be formed heaven and a
New Church on earth; and without this Coming no flesh could
be saved, Matthew xxiv. 22. 772-775
VII. This Second Coming Of the Lord is not in Person, but in the
Word, which is from Him, and thus is Himself 776-778
VIII. This Second Coming of the Lord is effected by means of a man,
to whom He has manifested Himself in person, and whom
He has filled with His spirit, to teach the doctrines of the New
Church through the Word from Him 779-780
IX. This is meant by the new heaven and the New Jerusalem
in Revelation xxi 781-785
X. This New Church is the crown of all the Churches that have
hitherto existed on the earth 786-791
SUPPLEMENT
I. The spiritual world 792-795
II. LUTHER, MELANCHTHON AND CALVIN in the spiritual world 796-799
(i) Luther in the spiritual world 796
(ii) Melanchthon in the spiritual world 797
(iii) Calvin in the spiritual world 798-799
III. The Dutch in the spiritual world 800-805
IV. The English in the spiritual world 806-812
V. The Germans in the spiritual world 813-816
VI. Roman Catholics in the spiritual world 817-821
VII. Roman Catholic Saints in the spiritual world 822-827
VIII. Mohammedans in the spiritual world 828-834
IX. Africans in the spiritual world 835-840
X. The Jews in the spiritual world 841-845
(End of Author’s numeration of Selections)
[XI.] The revelation of spiritual truth to Swedenborg; and his account of things seen and heard in the spiritual world 846-851
[XII.] A question proposed by a certain Electoral Duke of Germany,
who also held high rank in the Church 853
Containing
THE UNIVERSAL THEOLOGY OF THE NEW HEAVEN AND THE NEW CHURCH
THE FAITH OF THE NEW HEAVEN AND THE NEW CHURCH
This faith is presented at the outset in its general and in its particular form. It is so presented that it may serve as a preface to the whole work which follows, as a gateway, as it were, by which entrance is made to a temple, and as an epitome in which the subsequent details are duly summarized. It is said to be “The Faith of the New Heaven and the New Church” because heaven, where angels are, and the Church, in which men are, act as one like the internal and the external with man. Hence it is that the member of the Church, who is in the good of love from the truths of faith, and in the truths of faith from the good of love, is an angel of heaven as to the interiors of his mind. Thus he enters into heaven after death, and there enjoys happiness according to the degree in which those principles are united in him. It should therefore be known that this faith in its summary form is the index and gateway of the new heaven now being formed by the Lord.
[2] This is said to be the general form of the faith, and faith in its general form enters into all its particulars. It is a general article of faith that God is one in Essence and in Person, in whom is the Divine Trinity, and that He is the Lord God the Savior Jesus Christ. It is a general article of faith that no man could have been saved unless the Lord had come into the world. It is a general article of faith that He came into the world in order to remove hell from man, which He accomplished by victory in combats against it. He thus subdued it, and reduced it to a state of order and obedience to Himself. It is a general article of faith that He came into the world to glorify His Human, which He assumed in the world; that is, to unite it with the Divine, from whom it came. By this means He keeps hell in order and under obedience to Himself for ever. Since this could not have been done unless He had permitted temptations to assail His Human, even the most extreme-the passion of the Cross, therefore that also He endured. These are the general articles of faith concerning the Lord.
[3] The general form of faith on the part of man is that the should believe on the Lord; for belief on Him brings about conjunction with Him, and consequently salvation. To believe on Him is to have confidence that he saves; and since no one can have this confidence except the man who lives a good life, therefore this also is understood by believing on Him. This the Lord says in John:
“This is the will of the Father, that every one that believeth on the Son may have eternal life.” vi. 40.
An in another place:
“He that believeth on the Son hath eternal life; but he that believeth not the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abideth on him.” iii. 36.
* English convention would not allow the apparently indiscriminate use of capitals by Swedenborg to be followed in translation. Their use is followed only in those cases which would appear to conform to English practice:
1. Proper names; also the Demonstrative Pronoun He, His, Him; and the Reflexive and Emphatic Himself, when used of God.
2. Terms used to designate subjects for consideration.
3. Terms forming headings to chapters and sections.
4. Capitals are used to distinguish between attributes, qualities and activities Divine and human. The initial capital is used when the reference of the term Human is to the Lord, but not when the reference is to man.
“The Word was with God, and the Word was God … and the Word was made flesh.” i. 1, 14;
and again:
“I came forth from the Father, and am come into the world: again I leave the world and go to the Father.” xvi. 28;
and further:
“We know that the Son of God is come, and hath given us an understanding, that we may know Him that is true; and we are in Him that is true, even in His Son, Jesus Christ. This is the true God, and eternal life.” 1 John v. 20.
From these passages it is clear that unless the Lord had come into the world no one could have been saved. The case is similar to-day; and therefore unless the Lord comes again into the world in the Divine Truth, which is the Word, no one can be saved.
[2] The particulars of faith on man’s part are:
(1) God is one, in whom is the Divine Trinity, and He is the Lord God the Savior Jesus Christ.
(2) A saving faith is to believe on Him.
(3) Evil actions ought not to be done, because they are of the devil and from the devil.
(4) Good actions ought to be done, because they are of God and from God.
(5) Moreover these things ought to be done by man as of himself; but he should believe that they are from the Lord acting with him and through him.
The first two particulars have reference to faith, the next two to charity, and the fifth to the union of charity and faith, and thereby of the Lord and man.
GOD THE CREATOR
The Christian Church from the time of our Lord has passed through the various stages from infancy to extreme old age. Its infancy was in the time of the Apostles, when they preached throughout the whole world repentance and faith in the Lord God the Savior. That this was the substance of their preaching is evident from these words in the Acts of the Apostles, in which Paul testified
“both to the Jews, and also to the Greeks, repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ.” xx. 21.
It is worthy of note that several months ago* the Lord called together His twelve disciples, now angels, and sent them forth into the whole of the spiritual world, commanding them to preach the Gospel there anew, since the Church He had established through their labors has to-day so nearly reached its consummation that scarcely anything of it remains. This has come to pass because the Divine Trinity has been separated into three Persons, each of whom is God and Lord. [2] In consequence of this, a kind of insanity has pervaded the whole of theology, and also the Christian Church, so called from the name of the Lord. The term “insanity” is used because it has rendered men’s minds so confused that they do not know whether there is one God or three; one is on their lips, but three are in their minds, so that their minds and their lips, or their thought and their speech, are at variance. The result of this confusion is the denial that there is a God. This is the source of the materialism prevalent to-day. For while the lips speak of one God, and the mind thinks of three, does not the one idea destroy the other? [3] Consequently if a man thinks at all, he thinks of God as a mere name without any definite meaning. Since the idea of God, with every conception regarding Him, has been destroyed I propose to treat in due sequence of God the Creator, of the Lord the Redeemer, and of the Holy Spirit the Operator, and finally of the Divine Trinity, in order that what has been destroyed may be restored. This will happen whenever human reason is convinced by enlightenment from the Word that there is a Divine Trinity, and that this Trinity is in the Lord God the Savior Jesus Christ, just as the soul, the body and the operating energy are in man; and therefore that this article in the Athanasian Creed** is true:
In Christ, God and Man, or the Divine and the Human, are not two, but are in one Person; and as the rational soul and body is one man, so God and Man is one Christ.
* This was written A.D. 1771.
** Athanasian Symbol or Creed. Although bearing the name of Athanasius, it was probably composed by Hilary, in the century after the formulation of the Nicene Creed, A.D. 325. The name was given to it about the year A.D. 670 as an excellent system of the doctrines of Athansius concerning the Trinity and the Incarnation, principally in opposition to the Arians. It is received by the Romish Church and also by the Reformed.
Since the acknowledgment of God from a rational conception of Him is the very essence and soul of Theology, it is necessary to begin with the Unity of God. This will be demonstrated under the following headings:
(1) The whole of the Sacred Scripture, and the Doctrines thence derived of the Churches in the Christian World, teach that God is one.
(2) There is a universal influx into the souls of men that there is a God, and that He is one.
(3) Thus there is no nation in the whole world, possessing religion and sound reason, which does not acknowledge that there is a God, and that He is one.
(4) As to the nature of this one God nations and peoples have differed and still differ, from several causes.
(5) Human reason may, if it will, perceive and conclude from many things in the world, that there is a God, and that He is one.
(6) Unless God were one, the universe could not have been created and preserved.
(7) The man who does not acknowledge God is excommunicated from the church, and condemned.
(8) With the man who does not acknowledge one God but several, no principle of the church remains.
Each of these propositions will now be treated in order.
The whole of the Sacred Scripture teaches that there is a God, because its inmost content is no other than God, that is, the Divine which proceeds from Him; for it was dictated by God, and nothing can proceed from God but what is Himself, and therefore Divine; this the Scripture is in its inmost content. In its outer forms, however, derived from the inmost but on a lower plane, the Sacred Scripture has been accommodated to the perception of angels and men. In these forms, likewise Divine, it is called the Divine Celestial, the Divine Spiritual, and the Divine Natural. These are none other than veils of the Deity; since God Himself, as He is in the inmost of the Word, cannot be seen by any creature. For He said to Moses, when he prayed that he might see the glory of Jehovah,* that no one can see God and live. It is similar with the inmost of the Word, where God is in His Being (Esse) and in His Essence.
[2] Still the Divine, which is the inmost and is covered by such things as are accommodated to the perceptions of angels and; men, shines forth like light through crystals, but varied according to the state of mind which a man has formed for himself, either from God or from himself. With every one who has framed his mind according to the Divine Will, the Sacred Scripture is like a mirror in which he sees God, but each in his own way. That mirror is composed of truths which a man learns from the Word and according to which he fashions his life. It is thus evident that the
[3] Sacred Scripture is the fulness of God. That it teaches not only that there is a God, but also that He is one, can be seen from the truths which, as has been said, form that mirror, for they combine in a coherent series, and render it impossible for a man to think of God but as one. Hence every one whose reason has acquired some sanctity from the Word, knows as from himself that God is one, and he sees that it is like madness to say that there are more. The angels cannot open their lips to pronounce the word for “gods,” for the heavenly atmosphere in which they live opposes it.
The Sacred Scripture teaches that God is one not only in its general tenor but also particularly in many places, as in the following:
“Hear, O Israel; JEHOVAH OUR GOD is one JEHOVAH.” Deut. vi. 4, and also in Mark xxi. 29.
“Surely God is in thee; and there is none else.” Isa. xiv. 14.
“Have not I JEHOVAH (declared this)? and there is no God else beside Me.” Isa. xlv. 21.
“I am JEHOVAH thy GOD …and thou shalt know no God but Me.” Hos. xiii. 4.
“Thus saith JEHOVAH the King of Israel,… I am the first and I am the last; and besides Me there is no God.” Isa. xliv. 6.
“In that day … JEHOVAH shall be king over all the earth: in that day shall there be one JEHOVAH, and His name one.” Zech. xiv. 8, 9.
* Such reverence was attached to this name by the Jews that they refrained from using it except in special circumstances. For this reason the term LORD has been employed in versions of the Old Testament where the word for Jehovah appears in the original. Where Jehovah is printed herein in small capitals the A.V. has “the LORD.” Similarly with Zebaoth, of hosts.
“By hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand seeing ye shall see, and shall not perceive; … their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and should understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them.” xiii. 14, 15.
All these are like men who shun the light, and enter dark rooms where there are no windows, and grope about in search of food or money, till at length they acquire a vision like that of owls, and see in the dark. They are like a woman with several husbands, who is not a wife but a lascivious courtesan; or like a virgin who accepts rings from several suitors, and who after marriage with one continues to make assignations with the others.
The existence of an influx from God into man is implied in the general acknowledgment that all good which is in him and which is done by him, if it really is good, is from God; and also that all charity and all faith are from God. For it is written:
“A man can receive nothing, except it be given him from heaven.” John iii. 27;
and Jesus said:
“Without me ye can do nothing.” John xv. 5,
that is, nothing of charity or of faith. This influx is into the souls of men because the soul is the inmost and highest part of man, and influx from God enters into it, passes thence into what is beneath, and vivifies all according to reception. The truths of which faith will ultimately be formed enter indeed through the hearing, and are in this way implanted in the mind beneath the soul. The immediate effect of these truths, however, is only to dispose a man to receive influx from God through the soul, and his reception of influx is according to his disposition. Thus what would have been merely natural faith becomes transformed into spiritual, that is, real faith.
[2] This Divine influx into the souls of men inspires the idea that God is one because all that is Divine, in general and in particular, is God; and since all that is Divine forms a consistent unity, it cannot but inspire in man the idea of one God. This idea is confirmed continually as man is raised by Divine influence into the light of heaven. For angels in that light cannot compel themselves to utter the word for “gods.” Therefore also in speaking they end every sentence with a uniform accent, a result of the influx into their souls of the unity of God.
[3] Although there is this influx, yet many people think that the Divinity is separated into several Persons of the same Essence, because as this influx descends it enters into forms that do not correspond with it; and influx is varied according to the recipient form. This happens in all the subjects of the three kingdoms of nature. It is the same God who imparts life to man and to beast, but the recipient form renders the life in the one case bestial and in the other human. A similar result follows when a man induces on his mind the form of a beast. The influx from the sun into every plant is the same, but is varied according to the form of each. There is the same influx into the vine as into the thorn; but if a thorn is grafted on a vine, the influx is changed and flows through the graft according to the form of the thorn.
[4] The case is similar with the subjects of the mineral kingdom. The light that flows into the lime-stone and into the diamond is the same: in the one is translucent and opaque in the other. As to human minds, they vary according to their forms. There are those which are inwardly spiritual, fashioned by faith in God and life from Him. They become translucent and angelic through faith in one God. On the other hand those become dark and bestial who believe on several gods, a belief which is but little removed from faith in no God.
From the Divine influx into the souls of men, which has just been treated of, it follows that there is an internal dictate with every man that there is a God and that He is one. Still there are some who deny that there is a God, and who acknowledge nature as God. There are, moreover, those who worship several gods, and those also who set up images for gods. The reason for this is that they have closed up the interiors of their reason or understanding with worldly and corporeal things, and have thereby obliterated the primitive idea of God which was theirs in infancy, banishing at the same time all religion from their hearts. That Christians do acknowledge one God is evident from the general Confession of their faith, which is as follows:
The Catholic faith is this, that we worship one God in a trinity, the trinity in unity. There three Divine Persons, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, and yet there are not three Gods, but One God: there is one Person of the Father, another of the Son, and another of the Holy Spirit, and their Divinity is one, their glory equal, and their majesty co-eternal. Thus the Father is God, the Son is God, and the Holy Spirit is God; but, although we are compelled by Christian verity to confess each Person to be God and Lord, yet we are forbidden by the Catholic religion to say there are three Gods and three Lords.
Such is the Christian faith concerning the unity of God; but that the trinity and the unity of God in that Confession are inconsistent with each other, will be seen in the chapter on the Divine Trinity.
[2] The other nations in the world who possess religion and sound reason agree in acknowledging that God is one: all the Mohammedans* in their several dominions, the Africans in many kingdoms of their continent, the Asiatics in many of theirs, and also the modern Jews. In the golden age the most ancient people, who had any religion, worshiped one God, whom they called Jehovah. The same was the case with the ancient people in the age which followed, before monarchical governments were formed, when the lusts of the world and also of the flesh began to close the more interior parts of their understanding which, previously opened, were like temples and shrines for the worship of one God. It was to open again those inner recesses of the human mind, and so restore the worship of one God, that the Lord God established a Church among the posterity of Jacob, and set at the head of all the precepts of their religion the command:
“Thou shalt have no other gods before me.” Exod. xx. 3.
[3] The name Jehovah also which He assumed anew before them signifies the supreme and only Being (Ens), from whom everything is, that is and exists in the universe. The ancient Gentiles acknowledged Jove as the supreme God, probably so called from Jehovah, and they attributed Divinity to many others who composed his court. Wise men, however, in later times, as Plato** and Aristotle,*** declared that these mere not gods, but were so many properties, qualities, and attributes of the one God, and were called gods because something of the Divine entered into them.
* Mohammad, the founder of Mohammedanism or Islam, A.D. 571-632, was born at Mecca, where his father was spiritual and temporal head. He married a wealthy and devout widow, and owed much to her influence. In the visions to which he was subject he received confirmations of his Divine mission. He also received messages from Gabriel which were incorporated in the KORAN, the sacred book of Mohammedanism. Early persecution drove him from Mecca and in the year A.D. 622 he fled to Medina, where he was cordially welcomed. This flight, or Hejira, marks the beginning of the Mohammedan year, and from Medina he set out on his conquest of Arabia. Mohammedanism proclaims the unity of the God-head, and condemns idolatry; but the peaceful methods of propaganda soon gave place to ruthless persecution of infidels and merciless extermination of idolators.
** Plato, greatest of Greek philosophers, 427-347 B.C. His theory of ideas places the attainment of an exalted and spiritual yearning for a supersensible beauty only in an ideal world.
*** Aristotle, Greek philosopher, 384-322 B.C.; born at Stagiros, so called The Stagirite. He took all knowledge for his province, but had little appreciation of mathematics. He created the science of logic.
The first cause is that a rational conception of God, and a consequent acknowledgment of Him, are not attainable without revelation. Such a conception, with the consequent acknowledgment that “in Him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily,” is not attainable, except from the Word, which is the crown of revelations. For by the revelation there given man can approach God and receive influx from Him, and thereby, from being natural can become spiritual. In the earliest ages of the world revelation existed everywhere, but natural men perverted it in many ways, with the result that there arose disputes, dissensions, heresies and schisms in religion.
The second cause is that the natural man cannot perceive and apply to himself the things of God, but only the things of the world. It is therefore one of the doctrines of the Christian Church that the natural man is opposed to the spiritual, and that they war against each other. Hence it is that those who have learned from the Word, or other revelation, that there is a God, have differed and still differ, concerning His nature and unity. [2] Those whose mental vision depended upon the senses of the body, but who still wished to see God, made for themselves images of gold, silver, stone and wood, in order that under the guise of visible objects they might worship God. Others, rejecting this form of worship, formed their idea of God from the sun, moon and stars and other objects of nature. Others, again, who thought themselves wiser than the common people, but who yet remained natural, from the immensity of God and His omnipresence in creating the world, acknowledged nature as God, some recognizing Him in her inner operation and some in her outer manifestations. Some, on the other hand, in order to distinguish between God and nature, formed a conception of something most universal, which they termed the Being (Ens) of the universe. As, however, they know nothing more of God, this Being is merely a creature of their own reason, and has no meaning at all. [3] Conceptions of God are like mirrors in which He may be seen. Those who know nothing of God look for Him, as it were, on the back of a mirror; but this, being covered with quicksilver or some black preparation, does not reflect any image. Faith in God enters into a man by an inner way, from the soul into the higher parts of the understanding. Knowledge concerning God, from which are formed conceptions of Him, enters by an outer way, because it is derived from the revealed Word by the understanding through the senses of the body. Both these forms of influx meet midway in the understanding. There natural faith, which is merely persuasion, becomes spiritual faith, which is real acknowledgment: the human understanding therefore, is, as it were, a place of exchange, or a refining vessel, in which the change takes place.
This truth may be confirmed by innumerable testimonies from the visible world; for the universe is like a stage on which are continually being exhibited evidences that there is a God, and that He is one.
To illustrate this I will mention the following remarkable experience from the spiritual world.* I was once talking with angels and there were present some spirits who had just arrived from the natural world. When I saw them I wished them happiness on their arrival, and told them many things that were new to them about the spiritual world. After talking to them, I enquired of them what knowledge concerning God and nature they brought with them from the world. They replied that according to their knowledge nature is the agent by which all things are done in the universe; for God, after creation, endowed and impressed upon nature this faculty and power, and God merely sustains and preserves all things lest they should perish. Therefore the existence, production and reproduction of all things are to-day ascribed to nature. [2] To this I replied that nature of herself does nothing, but that it is God who operates through nature. When they asked for proof I said that those who believe in the Divine agency in the various works of nature can confirm their view from the many things they see in nature much more than those who believe in the agency of nature. Those who believe in the Divine agency in nature study the wonders that appear in the production of plants and animals. In the production of plants they see that from a tiny seed sown in the ground there issues a root, by means of the root a stem, and successively branches, buds, leaves, flowers and fruit, till finally new seeds are produced just as if the seed knew the order of the successive stages by which it should reproduce itself. What rational man can suppose that the sun, which is pure fire, knows this, or can endow its heat and light with the power to accomplish such things, or can intentionally perform uses? The man whose rational faculty has been elevated cannot do otherwise than suppose, when he sees and duly considers these things, that they are from Him who has infinite wisdom, that is, from God. Those who acknowledge the Divine agency in the various works of nature confirm their view when they see these things. On the other hand, those who do not acknowledge it regard these things from an inverted point of view. They derive the ideas in their mind from the senses of the body, and confirm them by the illusions of the senses of the body, and confirm them by the illusions of the senses, saying: ‘Surely you see the sun effecting all these things by its own heat and light-sun effecting all these things by its own heat and light. What you cannot see cannot exist.’
[3] Those who believe in the Divine study also the wonders that appear in the production of animals. First may be mentioned the egg. In it the chicken lies in its seed, with all things necessary for its formation and also for its future growth till it becomes a bird like its parent. Further, when regard is paid to winged creatures in general, the thoughtful mind is astonished at what is presented to it. For in the least as in the greatest, in the invisible as in the visible, that is, in the least of insects as in birds and great animals, there are organs of sense, namely sight, smell, taste and touch; also organs of motion, or muscles, for they fly and walk. There are viscera also, connected with the heart and lungs, and these are actuated by the brain. Those who ascribe all things to nature indeed see these things, but note only their existence, and say that nature produces them. They say this because they have turned away their minds from thinking of the Divine; and those who have done this, when they regard the wonders of nature, cannot think rationally, still less spiritually, but sensually and materially, and finally they think in nature from nature, and not above nature; they differ only from beasts in that, having rationality, they are capable of understanding, if they will.
[4] Those who have turned away from thinking of the Divine and have thereby become sensual and corporeal, do not realize that the sight of the eye is so gross that it sees many tiny insects as mere dark specks; and yet each is organized to feel and to move, and so has fibres and vessels, a minute heart and pulmonary tubes, viscera and brains. All these are composed of the purest substances in nature, and their structures correspond to life in its lowest degree, by which the minutest of them are distinctly actuated. Since the sight of the eye is so gross that many insects, each with its innumerable parts, appear to it as tiny, dark specks, it is manifest how gross the minds of sensual men must be who base their thoughts and conclusions on that sight, and consequently in what darkness they are with respect to spiritual things.
[5] Every man, if he will, may confirm his belief in the Divine from the visible things in nature; and he does so who thinks about God and His omnipotence in creating the universe, and about His omnipresence in preserving it. As for instance when he observes the fowls of the air, how every species knows its own proper food, and where it may be found, and recognizes its own kind by sound and sight; how birds can distinguish friends and enemies among other birds, know the mating season, choose their mates, skillfully build their nests, lay their eggs and sit upon them; and how they know the time of hatching when they help their young out of the shell. These they love most tenderly, cherishing them under their wings, providing them with food, and supporting them until they are able to provide for themselves, and in their turn perform the same offices. Every man who is disposed to think of the Divine influx through the spiritual world into the natural may see it in those things; and, if he will, he may say in his heart that such knowledge cannot be communicated to these creatures from the sun through its heat and light. For the sun, from which nature derives her own origin and essence, is pure fire, and consequently its emanations of heat and light are completely void of life. It may therefore be concluded that such things are the result of Divine influx through the spiritual world into the ultimates of nature.
[6] Every one also may confirm his belief in the Divine when he considers those insects which, impelled by the craving of a sort of love, ardently seek for a change from their earth-bound state to one like that of heaven. For this purpose they creep into suitable places, weave round themselves a cocoon and thus, as it were, return into the womb to be born again, becoming pupae and finally butterflies. When they have passed through these changes and put on their beautiful wings, after their kind, they fly into the air as into a heaven of their own, where they sport in happy mood, choose mates, lay their eggs, and provide for themselves a posterity. In this state they feed upon a sweet and pleasant nectar drawn from the flowers. Any one who confirms his belief in the Divine from the visible things of nature sees an image of man’s earthly state in them as insects, and of his heavenly state in them as butterflies. Those, however, who confirm their belief in nature, see these things indeed, but as they have renounced all belief in the heavenly state, they call them merely the operations of nature.
[7] Again, every man may confirm his belief in the Divine from the visible things of nature when he studies the well-known facts about bees. They know how to gather wax and honey from roses and other flowers, and build cells like little houses, arranged in the form of a city, with passages by which to go in and out. They scent from afar the flowers and herbs from which they gather the wax for their homes and honey for food; and laden with these they fly back in the right direction to their own hive, and thus provide for themselves food for the coming winter, as if they foresaw its approach. They also set over themselves a queen, from whom to propagate their posterity. They provide a sort of palace for her with guards, called drones, and when her time comes, accompanied by them, she proceeds from cell to cell and lays her eggs, which her attendants seal up to protect them from the air. In this way a new progeny arises. When its time comes to perform similar offices it is driven from the hive. The swarm first gathers itself into a band so as not to be scattered, and then flies abroad to seek a home for itself. About autumn the drones, having brought in neither wax nor honey, are taken out and deprived of their wings, to prevent them from returning and consuming the food they had expended no labor to collect. Many other facts might be added; but from those just related it is evident that for the sake of the use they perform to mankind, from the Divine influx through the spiritual world, they have a form of government resembling that of men on earth, and indeed that of angels in heaven. [8] Any one of sound reason may see that the bees do not acquire their instincts from the world of nature, and that the sun, from which nature is derived, has no form of government like that of heaven.
From these and similar observations in the animal world he who believes in nature and worships her confirms his belief in her; while he who believes in God and worships Him confirms his belief in Him. The spiritual man sees what is spiritual in them, but the natural man only what is natural, each according to his own nature. For myself such things have been manifestations of Divine influx from the spiritual world into the natural. Consider also whether one could think analytically concerning any form of government, or any civil law, or any morel virtue, or any spiritual truth unless the Divine wisdom entered by influx through the spiritual world. For my own part, I never could, nor can I now, as I have perceptibly and manifestly observed this influx continuously, for twenty-six years: I therefore speak from my own experience.
[9] Could nature regard use as an end, and arrange uses into their orders and forms? No one could do this but one who is wise, and no one could so order and form the universe but God, whose wisdom is infinite. No other could foresee and provide for man food and clothing, food from the harvests of the fields, the fruits of the earth, and from animals, and clothing from the same. It is a wonderful thing that those humble insects called silk-worms should clothe with silk and magnificently adorn men and women, from kings and queens, even to menservants and maidservants; that those humble insects called bees should furnish wax for lamps to illuminate temples and palaces. These and many other things are outstanding proofs that God Himself, acting through the spiritual world, directs all the operations of nature.
[10] I should add that in the spiritual world I have seen some who had so confirmed their belief in nature from what they saw while in this world that they became atheists. In the light of the spiritual world their understanding appeared open from beneath but closed from above, because in thought they looked downwards to the earth, and not upwards to heaven. Over the sensual faculty, which is the lowest part of the understanding, there appeared as it were a veil, sparkling with infernal fire. With some it appeared black as soot, with others livid, corpse-like in color. No one, therefore, ought to confirm himself in a belief in nature from nature’s manifestations: these rather furnish grounds for belief in God.
* We render thus “memorabile” (pl. memorabilia). Swedenborg uses this term for the illustrative narratives he gives, as those appended to chapters of TRUE CHRISTIAN RELIGION, of things seen and heard in the spiritual world. The reader should reserve judgment on Swedenborg’s descriptions of experiences in the spiritual world till he has satisfied himself as to the reality as well as the nature of that world. See 851, and Tafel’s Doc., Vol. 2, pp. 415-416.
The unity of God may be inferred from the creation of the universe, because it is a work coherent as a unity from first to last, and dependent upon one God as the body depends upon its soul. The universe was so created that God may be present everywhere, keep every part under His own direction, and maintain its unity for ever, that is, preserve it. For this reason Jehovah God declares
that He is the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End, the Alpha and the Omega, Isa. xliv. 6; Rev. i. 8, 17;
and in another place,
that He maketh all things, stretcheth forth the heavens, and spreadeth abroad the earth by Himself. Isa. xliv. 24.
This great system which is called the Universe is a work cohering as a unity from first to last because God in creating it had one end in view, namely, an angelic heaven from the human race; and all things of which the world consists are means to that end: for he who wills the end, wills also the means. [2] Therefore he who looks upon the world as a work comprising the means to that end can look upon the created universe as a coherent unity and can see that the world is a complex of uses in successive order for the service of the human race, from which the angelic heaven is formed. The Divine Love can, from its own Divine nature, design no other end than the eternal happiness of men, and the Divine Wisdom can produce nothing but uses, as means to that end. From the contemplation of the world in the light of this universal idea every wise man may understand that the Creator of the universe is one, and that His Essence is Love and Wisdom. There is, therefore, nothing in the universe in which does not reside some use, more or less remote, for the service of man. His food and clothing he derives from the produce of the earth and from animals. [3] It is a wonderful thing that those humble insects, called silk-worms, should clothe with silk and magnificently adorn men and women, from kings and queens even to menservants and maid-servants; and that those humble insects, the bees, should furnish wax for lamps to illuminate temples and palaces.
Those who view things in the world signify, and not comprehensively in a series in which are ends, mediate causes and effects, and who do not refer Creation to the Divine Love through the Divine Wisdom, cannot that the universe is the work of one God, and that He is present in every single use, because He is present in the end. For whoever is in the end is also in the means, since the end is interiorly involved in all the means, actuating and directing them. [4] Those who do not regard the universe as the work of God and the habitation of His Love and Wisdom, but as the work of nature and a receptacle for the heat and light of the sun, close the higher parts of their minds to God and open the lower parts to the devil. They thus put off the nature of men and put on that of animals, and not only do they believe they are like animals but they even become animals; for they become foxes in cunning, wolves in ferocity, leopards in treachery, tigers in cruelty, and crocodiles, serpents, owls and night-birds in their respective qualities. In the spiritual world they appear at a distance like those creatures, for their evil loves assume such animal forms.
The man who does not acknowledge God is excommunicated from the Church because God is the All-in-all of the Church, and Divine things, which are called theological, constitute it. Therefore a denial of God is a denial of everything pertaining to the Church; and this very denial excommunicates him, so that man himself and not God is the author of his exclusion. He is also condemned, because whoever is excommunicated from the Church is likewise excluded from heaven, for the Church on earth and the angelic heaven make one, like the internal and the external, and like the spiritual and the natural in man. For man was created by God to be in the spiritual world as to his internal, and is the natural world as to his external. He was thus created a native of both worlds in order that the spiritual, or that which is of heaven, should be implanted in the natural, which is of the world, like a seed sown in the ground, so that he might thus acquire an existence fixed and eternal. [2] The man who by a denial of God has excluded himself from the Church, and thereby from heaven, has closed his internal man as to his will, and thus as to his nature’s love, for a man’s love is received into his will, and abides there. He cannot, however, close his internal man as to his understanding, for if he were to do this he would no longer be a man. The love which his will does entertain attracts falsities into the higher parts of his understanding, which thus become closed as it were to the truths of faith and the goods of charity; thus more and more against God and the spiritual things of the Church. In this way he is excluded from communion with the angels of heaven. He thereupon enters into communion with the satans of hell; and as all satans deny God, and form absurd ideas concerning Him and the spiritual things of the Church, so also does the man who is joined with them.
[3] When he is in the spirit, as when left to himself at home, he allows his thoughts to be led away by the pleasures of the evil and the falsity which he has conceived and allowed to come forth within himself. He then thinks that there is no God, but that God is merely a name uttered from pulpits to keep the common people in obedience to the laws of justice framed by society. He also thinks that the Word, from which the clergy proclaim God, is a collection of visionary records whose sanctity is derived from authority. Moreover, the Decalogue, or Catechism,* is only a little book which, after its use in childhood, may be discarded, for it enjoins that parents should be honored, and forbids murder, adultery, theft, and false witness, enactments which everyone knows are part of the civil law of every country. He regards the Church as a congregation of simple, credulous and weak-minded people, who fancy they see what they do not see. He regards man, and himself a man, merely as a beast, and thinks that life after death will be the same for both. These are the opinions of his internal man whatever his external man may declare. [4] For, as has been said above, every man has an internal and an external. His internal constitutes the man, and is called his spirit, and lives on after death, but his external is buried in the grave. Whilst in his external, he has been enabled to play the hypocrite by living a moral life, but at his death, because of his denial of God, he is condemned. Every man, as to his spirit, is associated with his like in the spiritual world, and is as one with them. I have frequently been permitted to see the spirits of persons still living, some in angelic and some in infernal societies. I have also been permitted to converse with them for days together, and I have been astonished that a man, while living the life of the body, should be so utterly ignorant of the life of the spirit. It was, therefore, manifest that whoever denies God is already among the condemned, and after death joins his companions.
* Catechismus, a book or summary of religious instruction. See 325.
He who in faith acknowledges, and in heart worships, one God is in the communion of saints on earth, and in the communion of angels in heaven. These are called communions, and in reality they are so; because they are in one God, and one God is in them. They are also in conjunction with the whole angelic heaven, and, I venture to say, with all and every one there; for they are all like the children and offspring of one father, similar in mind, character and features, so that they mutually recognize each other. The angelic heaven is arranged into societies according to all the varieties of the love of good, which are directed towards one universal love, the love of God. From this love all derive their origin who in faith acknowledge and in heart worship one God, the Creator of the universe, and at the same time the Redeemer and Regenerator.
[2] It is quite otherwise with those who approach and worship not one God but several, or who profess one with the lips and yet think of three; as do those in the Church to-day who divide God into three Persons, and declare each Person by Himself to be God, and attribute to each Person separate qualities or properties not possessed by another. Thus it happens that not only is the unity of God actually divided, but also theology itself, and likewise the human mind in which it should reside. What can result from this but perplexity and incoherence in the things of the Church? That such is the state of the Church to-day will be shown in the Appendix to this work. The truth is that the division of God, or of the Divine Essence, into three Persons, each of whom by Himself or singly is God, leads to a denial of God. It is as though a man were to enter a temple to worship, and should see over the altar one God depicted as the Ancient of Days, another as the High Priest and a third as a flying Aeolus,* with this inscription: “These three are one God,” or as if he were to see the Unity and the Trinity depicted as a man with three heads, or with three bodies under one head, which is the form of a monster. If any one should enter heaven with such an idea he would assuredly be cast out headlong, even though he were to say that the head or heads signified Essence, and the body or bodies distinct properties.
* Aeolus, god of the winds.
I will add here an illustrative experience.
I saw some persons, who had lately come from the natural world into the spiritual world, conversing about three Divine Persons from eternity. They were dignitaries of the Church, and one of them was a bishop. They approached me, and after some talk about the spiritual world, of which they had known nothing before, I said, “I heard you speaking about three Divine Persons from eternity. I beg you to explain this great mystery according to the ideas you acquired in the natural world from which you have just come.” Then the Primate, regarding me, said: “I see that you are a layman, so I will expound for your instruction the ideas in my mind concerning this great mystery. These ideas were, and still are, that ‘God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Ghost sit in the midst of heaven on lofty, magnificent seats or thrones. God the Father sits on a throne of pure gold, with a sceptre in His hand. God the Son sits at His right hand on a throne of pure silver, with a crown on His head, and God the Holy Ghost sits beside them on a throne of brilliant crystal, holding a dove in His hand. Round them in triple row are hanging lamps, glittering with precious stones; and some distance away from this circle stand countless angels, all worshipping and singing praises. Further, God the Father holds continuous converse with His Son concerning those who were to be justified, and together they decree and determine who on earth are worthy to be received among the angels and to be crowned with eternal life. On hearing their names, God the Holy Ghost forthwith hurries to them over the length and breadth of the earth, bearing with Him the gifts of righteousness, as so many tokens of salvation, for those who are to be justified; and as soon as He arrives and breathes upon them, He disperses their sins as a fan disperses smoke from a furnace and clears it away. He also removes the stony hardness from their hearts and imparts to them the softness of flesh. At the same time He renews their spirits or minds and regenerates them, endowing them with the countenances of little children. Finally He marks their foreheads with the sign of the cross, calling them the elect and the children of God.'”
Having finished this discourse the Primate said to me: “Thus I explained this great mystery in the world; and because most members of our Order there applauded my opinions I am persuaded that you, a layman, will also approve of them.” [2] When the Primate had said this I looked at him, and at the dignitaries who were with him, and I noticed that his words met with their full approval. So in reply I said: “I have well considered the exposition of your faith, and have gathered from it that you have conceived and still hold a merely natural, sensual and indeed material idea of the triune God, from which inevitably flows the idea of three Gods. Is it not sensual to think of God the Father seated upon a throne with a sceptre in His hand, and of the Son, seated upon His throne with a crown on His head, and of the Holy Ghost, seated upon His throne with a dove in His hand, and then running over the length and breadth of the earth to give effect to what He hears? Since such a result follows from your teaching I cannot approve of what you have said. For from my earliest years I could not admit into my mind any other idea than that of one God; and because I entertained this idea and still hold it, all that you have said has no weight with me. In due course I understood that by the throne upon which the Scripture says Jehovah sits is meant His kingdom; by the sceptre and crown, His government and dominion; by sitting at the right hand, the omnipotence of God by the agency of His Human; and by those things which are related of the Holy Ghost, the operations of the Divine omnipresence. Admit, my lord bishop, the idea of one God, give it reasonable consideration, and you will at length see clearly the truth of it.
[3] You indeed say that God is one, for you make the Essence of those three Persons one and indivisible; yet you do not allow any one to say that the one God is one Person, but three, lest the idea of three Gods which you entertain should be lost. You also ascribe to each Person a property distinct from that of another; and do you not in this way divide the Divine Essence? Since this is so, how can you say, and at the same time think, that God is one? I could excuse you if you said that the Divine is one; but when any one hears it stated that “the Father is God, the Son is God, and the Holy Ghost is God; and that each Person singly is God,” how can he think that God is one? Is it not a contradiction which cannot possibly be believed? They cannot be called one God: they can be called alike Divine, as may be shown from the following illustrations. When several men form a Senate, or a Sanhedrin, or a Council, they cannot be called one God; but when they are all in complete agreement, it can be said that they are of one mind. It cannot be said of three diamonds of the same substance that they are one diamond, but that they are of one substance. Each diamond moreover differs from the others in value, according to its weight; but this would not be so if they were one, and not three. [4] However, I perceive that you call one God three Divine Persons, each of whom by Himself and singly is God, and insist that every member of the Church should say so, because every one of sound and enlightened reason throughout the whole world acknowledges that God is one and therefore you would be ashamed to say otherwise. Yet while you are saying ‘one God,’ but with three in your thoughts, shame does not check the words on your lips: you give them utterance.” On hearing this the bishop retired with his clerics; and as he departed he turned and tried to call out, “There is one God,” but could not, for his thoughts checked his tongue. Then his lips parted and he called out, “Three Gods.” At this strange sight the bystanders laughed loudly and went their way.
At this they laughed, saying, “You are jesting; it is otherwise with the Divine Essence, which is one and not tripartite, indivisible and so not divided: it is not subject to partition and division.” [3] When I heard these words I rejoined, “Well, let us make this the subject of discussion.” I then asked, “What do you understand by Person, and what does it mean?” They replied: “The word Person means not any part or duality in another, but what subsists of itself. This is how all the Leaders of the Church define Person, and we agree with them.” I said, “Is this then your definition of Person?” and they replied, “It is.” So I continued: “As there is no part of the Father in the Son, and no part of either in the Holy Ghost, it follows that each is independent in judgment, jurisdiction and power. There is nothing, therefore, to unite them but the will, which is one’s own, and only communicable at pleasure; are not the three Persons thus three Gods? Further, you have defined Person as what subsists of itself. Consequently there are three substances into which you separate the Divine Essence, and yet this Essence, you also say, is incapable of division, being one and indivisible. Moreover to each substance, that is, to each Person, you attribute properties which are not in another and which cannot he communicated to another, namely, imputation, mediation and operation. What conclusion can follow from this but that the three Persons are three Gods?” At these words they withdrew, saying that they would consider those points and afterwards give their answer.
[4] A wise man who was standing by and heard this discussion said: “I have no desire to examine this important subject by means of such subtleties of argument; but apart from these I clearly see that in the thoughts of your minds there are three Gods. You are ashamed, however, to publish these thoughts abroad to the whole world, for if you did so you would be called madmen and fools. Therefore, to avoid that ignominy you find it convenient to confess one God with your lips.” The three disputations, however, still holding their own opinion, paid no regard to his words, and as they departed kept muttering some terms borrowed from Metaphysics. From this I presumed that this was the oracle from which they would give their answers.
* Moses, the Books of the Bible comprising the Pentateuch, traditionally ascribed to Moses.
** Saturnus, Saturn, earliest king of Latium, became Roman god of civilization.
*** Jupiter or Jove, son of Saturn.
**** Neptune, god of the sea.
***** Pluto, king of the lower world.
****** Apollo, god of divination, healing, poetry and music.
******* Diana, sister of Apollo, goddess of the chase.
******** Minerva, daughter of Zeus, goddess of wisdom.
********* Venus, goddess of love.
In the first place the Divine Being (Esse) will be treated of, and afterwards the Divine Essence. It would appear as if they were one and the same; but Being is more universal than Essence, for Essence presupposes Being, and from Being Essence derives its origin. The Being of God, or the Divine Being, cannot be described, for it transcends every idea of human thought; and nothing enters human thought but the created and the finite, not the uncreated and the infinite, thus not the Divine Being. The Divine Being is Being itself, from which all things are, and which must be in all things that they may exist. A further conception of the Divine Being may be formed from the following articles:
(1) The one God is called Jehovah from His Being, because He alone is, was, and will be; and because He is the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End, the Alpha and the Omega.
(2) The one God is Substance itself and Form itself, and angels and men are substances and forms from Him; and as far as they are in Him, and He in them, so far are they images and likenesses of Him.
(3) The Divine Being is Being in itself, and at the same time Existing (Existere) in itself.
(4) The Divine Being and Existing in itself cannot produce another Divine that is Being and Existing in itself; consequently there cannot be another God of the same Essence.
(5) The idea of a plurality of Gods in ancient and also in modern times arose because the nature of the Divine Being was not understood.
Each of these articles will now be explained in order.
It is well known that Jehovah signifies “I Am” and “Being”; and that God was so called from the most ancient times appears from the Book of Creation, or Genesis, where in the first chapter He is called God, but in the second and following chapters, Jehovah God. Afterwards, when the descendants of Abraham through Jacob forgot the name of God during their sojourn in Egypt, it was recalled to their remembrance as it is written:
“Moses said unto God, what is thy name? God said: I Am thee that I Am. Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I Am hath sent me unto you, and thou shalt say, JEHOVAH God of your fathers hath sent me unto you: this is my name for ever, and this is my memorial unto all generations.” Exod. iii. 13, 14, 15.
Since the only God is the I Am, and Being (Esse) or Jehovah, there is nothing in the created universe which does not derive its being (esse) from Him. How this is will be seen below. The same is also meant by these words:
“I am the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End, the Alpha and the Omega.” Isa. xliv. 6; Rev. i. 8, 11; xxii. 13;
by which is meant that He is the Self and only One from first things to last, and that all things are from Him.
[2] God is called the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End because Alpha is the first and Omega the last letter in the Greek alphabet, and therefore they signify all things in the complex. This is because every letter of the alphabet in the spiritual world has a signification of its own; and every vowel, because it is a symbol of sound, signifies something of affection or love. From this arose spiritual or angelic speech and writing. Hitherto it has been unknown that there is a universal language,* the language of all angels and spirits, which has nothing in common with any language of men in the world. Into the use of this language every man comes after death, for it is implanted in every one from creation, and therefore throughout the whole spiritual world all can understand one another. I have frequently been permitted to hear this language, and I have compared it with languages in the world and found that it agrees in not the least particular with any natural language on earth. It differs from these in its fundamental principle that each letter of every word has a particular signification. For this reason God is now called the Alpha and the Omega, by which is meant that He is the Self and only One from first things to last, and that all things are from Him. Concerning this language and its written form expressing the spiritual thought of angels, see the work CONJUGIAL LOVE, NOS. 326-329, and also the following Nos. herein [280, 365, 386].
* Sed hoc est Arcanum hactenus ignotum. Arcanum, what is shut up, enclosed, from arceo, to shut up, and area, an ark, chest or box.
Since God is Being (Esse), He also is Substance, for unless Being is Substance it is only a figment of the mind. For substance is an entity that subsists; and He who is a substance is also a form, for unless a substance is also a form, it is only a figment of the mind. Therefore both substance and form can be predicated of God, but in such a way that He is the only, the very, and the first Substance and Form. That this Form is the very Human Form, that is, that God is very Man, in whom are all things in an infinite degree, is shown in the work entitled, THE ANGELIC WISDOM CONCERNING THE DIVINE LOVE AND WISDOM, published at Amsterdam, in the year 1763. It is also shown there that angels and men are substances and forms created and organized to receive Divine things flowing into them through heaven; therefore in the Book of Genesis they are called images and likenesses of God, i. 26, 27; and in other places, “His sons,” and “born of Him.” In the course of this work it will be fully demonstrated that, as far as a man lives under the Divine guidance, that is, as far as he suffers himself to be led by the Lord, so far he becomes, more and more interiorly, an image of Him. Unless the idea were formed of God that He is the first Substance and Form, and that His Form is the very Human Form, the minds of men would readily acquire for themselves vague, fantastic ideas concerning God Himself, the origin of man, and the creation of the world. They would regard God as nature in her first principles, as the expanse of the universe, or as an empty unreality. They would think of the origin of men as a concatenation of elements fortuitously adopting the human form; and of the creation of the world as a combination of substances and forms derived from points and geometrical lines, which, as nothing can be predicated of them, are in themselves nothing. With such minds, everything of the Church is, as it were, involved in Stygian* darkness, or gloom of Tartarus.**
* Styx, river in the lower regions.
** Tartarus, the infernal regions.
Jehovah God is Being in itself because He is the I Am, the Self, the only One, and the First, from eternity to eternity, from whom is everything that is, else it would not be. In this way, and not otherwise, is He the Beginning and the End, the First and the Last, the Alpha and the Omega. It cannot he said that His Being is from itself, for this phrase “from itself” supposes what is prior, and postulates time; but time is not applicable to the Infinite, which is said to be “from eternity.” It also supposes another God, who is God in Himself, thus a God from God, or that God formed Himself, and so would not be uncreated or infinite, because He thus would have made Himself finite from Himself or from another. Because God is Being in itself it follows that He is Love in itself, Wisdom in itself, and Life in itself; and that He is the Self, from whom all things are, and to whom all things are related that they might have existence. That God is Life in itself, and thus God, is evident from the words of the Lord in John v. 26; and in Isaiah:
“I am the Lord that maketh all things; that stretcheth forth the heavens alone; that spreadeth abroad the earth by myself.” xliv. 24;
and that He alone is God, and beside Him there is no God, Isa. xlv. 14, 21; Hos. xiii. 4.
God is not only Being in itself but also Existing in itself, because there is no Being unless it exists, just as there is no Existing apart from Being, for the one implies the other. Similarly there can be no substance unless it is also form, as nothing can be predicated of substance without form, and substance lacking quality is nothing in itself. The reason for using the terms Being and Existing and not Essence and Existence is because a distinction must be made between Being and Essence, and consequently between Existing and Existence, as between prior and posterior, what is prior being more universal than what is posterior. The terms infinity and eternity are applicable to the Divine Being; but to the Divine Essence and Existence, Divine Love and Divine Wisdom are applicable, and through these two omnipotence and omnipresence, and so these will be treated in order.
The difference between them is like that between those who stand in a clear light and see men near them and touch them, and those who stand in a dense mist, and cannot distinguish between men and trees or rocks. Or the difference is like that between men in a city upon a high mountain, who go from place to place and talk with their fellow-citizens, and men who look down from that mountain and do not know whether what they see are men or beasts or statues. Indeed the difference is like that between those who stand on some planet and see their own friends there, and those who, from another planet, look out through telescopes and say they see men there, when yet they only see, as it were, moon light reflected from stretches of land and patches of water as dark spots. There is a similar difference between seeing God and Divine things from Him with those who are in faith and the life of charity, and with those who are merely in the knowledge of such things; consequently between natural and spiritual men. Moreover, those who deny the Divine sanctity of the Word, and yet carry their religious ideas as it were in a sack upon their backs, do not see God, but only repeat His name as parrots would.
It has been shown above that the one God, who is the Creator of the universe, is Being and Existing in itself, and thus God in Himself. Hence it follows that there cannot be a God from God, because the very Essential Divine, which is Being and Existing in itself, could not exist in another. It is the same thing whether the phrase “begotten of God” or “proceeding from Him” is used; it still implies that he is produced by God, and this differs little from being created by Him. Therefore to introduce into the Church the faith that there are three Divine Persons, each of whom singly is God and of the same Essence, and one born from eternity and the third proceeding from eternity, is to destroy utterly the idea of the unity of God, and with it all idea of Divinity, and so banish all spirituality from the rational mind. The consequence is that man is no longer man but merely a creature of nature, differing from the beast only in that he has the power of speech. He is also opposed to all that is spiritual in the Church, for the natural man calls it foolishness. This is the sole reason for the great heresies concerning God that have arisen; so that the separation of the Divine Trinity into Persons has brought upon the Church not only night but also spiritual death. [2] That an identity of three Divine Essences is an offence to reason was made manifest to me from angels, who declared that they could not utter the expression “three equal divinities.” Moreover, if any one were to approach them with the intention of uttering it, he would be forced to turn back; and if he were to utter it, he would become like a human log and be thrown down. He would then depart to join those in hell who acknowledge no God. The truth is that to implant in infants and young people the idea of three Divine Persons, with which is inevitably associated the idea of three Gods, is to deprive them of all spiritual milk, thereafter of all spiritual food, and finally of all spiritual reason, with the result that spiritual death is brought upon those who confirm themselves in such an idea. Those who in faith and heart worship one God, the Creator of the universe, and also the Redeemer and Regenerator, are as the city of Zion in the time of David, and as the city of Jerusalem in the time of Solomon after the Temple was built. The Church, however, which believes in three Persons, and in each as a distinct God, is like the city of Zion and Jerusalem after their destruction by Vespasian,* and like the Temple there destroyed by fire. Further, the man who worships one God, in whom is the Divine Trinity, becomes more and more alive and angelic; but he who confirms his belief in a plurality of Gods from a plurality of Persons becomes more and more like a lay-figure, fashioned with movable joints, within which stands Satan, speaking through its jointed mouth.
* Vespasian, Emperor of Rome, A.D. 69-79, in whose reign the Jews were finally subdued, Jerusalem captured and the Temple destroyed, A.D. 70, by his son Titus.
It was shown above in No. 8 that the unity of God is most intimately inscribed on the mind of every man, since it is in the midst of all that flows from God into the soul of man. It has, however, not descended thence into the human understanding, because there has been wanting the knowledge by which man must ascend to meet God. Every one should prepare the way for God, that is, should prepare himself for His reception; and this is done by means of knowledge. The knowledge which has hitherto been wanting to enable the understanding to perceive that God is one, that only one Divine Being is possible, and that all things in nature are from Him may be summarized as follows:
(1) There is a spiritual world, where spirits and angels are, and into which every man comes after death.
(2) In that world is a Sun, which is pure Love from Jehovah God, who is in the midst of it.
(3) From that Sun proceed heat, which in its essence is love, and light, which in its essence is wisdom.
(4) From these all things in that world are spiritual, and affect the internal man, forming the will and the understanding.
(5) From His Sun Jehovah God produced not only the spiritual world, and all things spiritual in it, innumerable and substantial, but also the natural world, and all things natural in it, likewise innumerable but material.
(6) The distinction between what is spiritual and what is natural, and what the spiritual is in its essence.
(7) There are three degrees of love and wisdom according to which the angelic heavens are arranged.
(8) The human mind is divided into the same number of degrees, so that after death it may be raised into one of these heavens, depending upon the life a man has lived in accordance with his faith.
(9) And lastly, not a single one of all those things could have existed but from the Divine Being, which is self-existent, and so the First, and the Beginning, from which are all things.
This knowledge has hitherto been wanting; yet it is by this knowledge that man may ascend and know the Divine Being. [2] It is said that man ascends; but it is to be understood that he is raised by God; for man has free will in acquiring knowledge for himself, and as he acquires it from the Word by means of his understanding, he thus prepares the way by which God may descend and raise him. The knowledge in its sequence by which man’s understanding ascends, while God all the time holds him in His hand and leads him, may be compared to the steps of the ladder seen by Jacob. This was set up on the earth, and its top reached to heaven, and the angels ascended on it, and Jehovah stood above it, Gen. xxviii. 12, 13. It is quite otherwise when this knowledge is wanting, or when a man despises it. In that case the elevation of the understanding may be compared to a ladder raised from the ground to a window of the first story of a magnificent palace when men have their abode, and not to the windows of a second story where spirits are, and still less to the windows of the third story where angels dwell. It is for this reason that a man remains merely in the atmospheres and material forms of nature to which his senses of sight, hearing and smell are restricted, and from which he derives no other ideas of heaven and the Being and Essence of God than those that are atmospherical and material. While a man thinks from such ideas, he forms no judgment concerning God whether He exists or not, or whether He is one or more; and still less what His nature is as to Being and Essence. Hence arose the idea of a plurality of Gods in ancient and also in modern times.
I will add this illustrative experience.
Awaking once out of sleep I fell into profound meditation about God; and when I looked up, I saw above me in heaven a very bright light, oval in form. As I gazed intently at that light it gradually receded from the centre towards the circumference, and then heaven lay open before me. I saw magnificent scenes, and angels standing in a circle towards the south of the opening, conversing with one another. As I ardently desired to hear what they were saying it was granted me to hear first the sound of their voices, which was full of heavenly love, and then their speech, which was full of wisdom from that love. They were talking together about the one God, about conjunction with Him, and consequent salvation. Most of what they said could not be expressed in words of any natural language; but as I had several times been in the company of angels in that heaven, and understood their speech because I was in their state, I was able to understand them now and select from their conversation some particulars which may be expressed intelligibly in natural language.
[2] They said that the Divine Being is One, the Same, the Self and indivisible. This they illustrated by spiritual ideas, saying that the Divine Being cannot possibly be divided into several, each of whom has the Divine Being, and yet remain One, the Same, the Self and indivisible; for each would think from His own Being from Himself, and singly by Himself. If then their thoughts proceeded unanimously from, and were influenced by, one another, there would be several unanimous Gods, and not one God, for unanimity, by which is meant the agreement of several, and at the same time, of each from himself and by himself, does not accord with the unity of God but with a plurality. They did not add “of Gods,” because they could not, for the light of heaven from which their thought was derived, and the atmosphere in which their speech was voiced, prevented them. They also said that when they wished to utter the word for “Gods,” and say that each is a Person by Himself, the effort resulted in their saying there is one God, nay, only One. [3] Moreover, they added that the Divine Being is Divine Being in itself, not from itself, because the phrase “from itself” supposes Being in itself from another prior to it; thus it postulates a God from God, which is impossible. What is from God is not called God, but Divine: for a God from God, and a God born of God from eternity, and a God from God, proceeding through a God born from eternity, are but words in which there is no light from heaven. They further said that the Divine Being, which in itself is God, is the Same, not simply the Same but infinitely so; that is, the Same from eternity to eternity. He is the Same everywhere, with everyone and in everyone, whereas all variation and change are in those who receive Him, according to their state.
That the Divine Being, which is God in itself, is the Self, they illustrated as follows. God is the Self because He is Love itself and Wisdom itself, or Good itself and Truth itself, and consequently Life itself. Unless these were the Self in God, they would not exist in heaven and on earth, because there would be nothing of them related to the Self, for every quality depends for its existence upon the fact that there is a Self from which it is derived and to which it is related. This Self, which is the Divine Being, is not in place, but is with those, and in those, who are in place according to their reception of Him, since neither place nor progression from place to place can be predicated of Love and Wisdom, or of Good and Truth and consequently Life, which form the Self in God and which indeed are God. In this way there is omnipresence; therefore the Lord says that “He is in the midst of them; that He is in them and they in Him.” [4] But because He cannot be received by any one as He is in Himself, He appears as He is in His Essence, that is, as a Sun above the angelic heavens, the light proceeding from which is Himself as to Wisdom, and the heat is Himself as to Love. He Himself is not that Sun; but the Divine Love and Wisdom in their first emanation from Him appear round about Him as a Sun to the angels. He Himself in the Sun is Man, our Lord Jesus Christ, both as to the Divine Source of all things and as to the Divine Human, for the Self, which is Love itself and Wisdom itself, was His soul from the Father, thus the Divine Life, which is Life in itself. It is otherwise in the case of man. In him the soul is not life, but a recipient of life. This the Lord also teaches when He says,
“I am the way, the truth and the life”;
and in another place,
“As the Father hath life in Himself so hath He given to the Son to have life in Himself.” John v. 26.
Life in Himself is God. They added that those who are in any spiritual light can perceive from these things that the Divine Being, because it is One, the Same, the Self, and consequently indivisible, cannot be in several; and that any declaration that this is possible could only be made on grounds that are manifestly contradictory.
* Athanasius, born at Alexandria, A.D. 296-373. He became bishop there and early displayed those powers of mind and determination which established him as the recognized champion of orthodoxy. Banished and reinstated several times as the influence of Arius rose and declined, he finally regained his position, and the Creed that bears his name became the principal standard of orthodox Christianity.
There are two things peculiar to the natural world which cause all things there to be finite: one is space and the other is time; and because that world was created by God, and space and time were created together with it, and make it finite, the sources from which these two things are derived, namely immensity and eternity, will now be treated, for the immensity of God has relation to space, His eternity to time, and His infinity comprehends both immensity and eternity. Because infinity transcends the finite, and any knowledge of it transcends the finite mind, therefore, in order that some perception of it may be obtained, it will be treated in the following series:
(1) God is infinite, because He is and exists in Himself, and all things in the universe are and exist from Him.
(2) God is infinite, because He was before the world, and thus before space and time arose.
(3) God, since the world was created, is in space apart from space, and in time apart from time.
(4) Infinity in relation to space is called immensity, and in relation to time, eternity; and although these relations exist, yet there is nothing of space in His immensity, and nothing of time in His eternity.
(5) Everyone of enlightened reason, from very many things in the world, may see the infinity of God the Creator.
(6) Every created thing is finite, and the infinite is in finite things as in its receptacles, and in men as in its images.
An explanation of each of these articles will now be given.
It has been shown above that God is one, the Self, and the Primary Being of all things, and that all things which are, which exist and which subsist in the universe, are from Him; it therefore follows that He is infinite. It will be shown in what follows that human reason can see this from very many things in the created universe. However, although the human mind may acknowledge from these that the primary Entity (Ens) or first Being (Esse) is infinite, yet it cannot know its nature, and therefore cannot define it otherwise than as the Infinite All. The human mind can only declare that this subsists in itself, and consequently is the very and the only Substance; and, since nothing can be predicated of substance unless it is form, that it is the very and the only Form. But what do these conclusions amount to as they throw no light on the nature of the infinite? For the human mind, although highly analytical and elevated, is itself finite, and its finite quality cannot be separated from it. It is, therefore, quite incapable of comprehending the infinity of God as it is in itself, and thus God. It may, however, see Him obscurely, as it were, from behind; as it is said of Moses, when he prayed to see God, that he was placed in a cleft of a rock and saw His back parts, Exod. xxxiii. 20-23. By the back parts of God are meant the visible things in the world, and in particular the things apparent in the Word. Hence it is clear that it is vain to desire to know what God is in His Being or in His Substance. It is enough to acknowledge Him from finite, that is, created things, in which He is infinitely. The man who persists in seeking more than this may be compared to a fish lifted into the air, or to a bird placed under the receiver of an air-pump, which, when the air is extracted, begins to gasp, and then dies. He may also be compared to a ship, which, when overwhelmed by a storm, fails to answer her helm and is borne upon rocks and quicksands. So it is with those who seek to comprehend the infinity of God from within, and who are not content to be convinced by manifest tokens from without. It is related of a certain philosopher of old that he threw himself into the sea because he could not see or comprehend by the light (lumen) of his own mind the eternity of the world. What would he have done had he wished to comprehend the infinity of God?
In the natural world there are times and spaces, whereas in the spiritual world these do not exist actually, but still they appear to exist. The reason why space and time were introduced into the material universe was that one thing might be distinguished from another, large from small, many from few, thus quantity from quantity and quality from quality; and that by their means the bodily senses might be able to distinguish their objects and the senses of the mind theirs, and might thus be stimulated, and exercise thought and judgment. Time came into being in the natural world with the rotation of the earth round its axis, and with the progression of those rotations from point to point in its orbit, these changes being apparently caused by the sun from which the whole terraqueous globe receives its heat and light. Thence arose the times of the day, morning, noon, evening and night; and also those of the year, namely spring, summer, autumn and winter; the times of the day according to light and darkness, and those of the year according to heat and cold. On the other hand space was introduced into the natural world when the earth was formed into a globe and filled with material substances, the various parts of which are distinct from one another, and at the same time are subject to extension.
In the spiritual world, however, there are no material spaces with corresponding times, but yet there are appearances of them; and these appearances are according to the different states in which are the minds of the spirits and angels there. Thus times and spaces there are in conformity with the affections of their will, and consequently with the thoughts of their understanding: but still these appearances are real, for they are constant according to their states.
[2] The common opinion regarding the state of souls after death, and also of angels and spirits, is that they are not in any state in which there is anything of extension, and therefore not in space and time. Hence it is said that souls after death are somewhere,* which cannot be defined, and that spirits and angels are merely breath, and only to be thought of as ether, air, vapour or wind; when nevertheless they are substantial men, living together as men do in the natural world, in space and in time, which, as was observed, depend upon the states of their mind. If it were not so, that is, if space and time did not exist there, that universe, into which are gathered the souls of men, and where angels and spirits dwell, could be drawn through the eye of a needle or be concentrated on the tip of a single hair. This would be possible if there was no extension of substance there; but since there is this extension angels live together separately and distinctly, in fact, more distinctly than men with whom there is extension of matter. However, time there is not divided into days, weeks, months and years, for the Sun does not appear to rise and set, nor to travel round, but it remains stationary in the East, midway between the zenith and the horizon. There is space also in that world because all things there are substantial, just as in the natural world they are material; but more will be said on this subject in the section of this chapter on Creation.
[3] From what has been said it may be understood that space and time put limits to all things in general and in particular in both worlds, and consequently that men as well as angels and spirits are finite, not only as to their bodies but also as to their souls. From all these considerations it may be concluded that God is Infinite, that is, not finite, because He, as the Creator, the Former and the Maker of the universe, made all things finite; and this He did by means of His Sun, in the midst of which He is, and which consists of His Divine Essence, that proceeds from Him as a sphere. It is there and from there that finiteness begins, but its progression extends to the last things in the natural world. It follows therefore that God is Infinite in Himself, because He is uncreated. The reason why the infinite appears as nothing to man is that he is finite, and thinks from what is finite, so that if the finite, which adheres to his thought, were taken away, he would imagine that nothing would be left; whereas the truth is that God is infinitely All, and man, in respect to himself, is nothing.
* Pu, Greek pou, where?, somewhere, whereabouts, abode.
That God, and the Divine which proceeds immediately from Him, is not in space, although He is omnipresent, and with every man in the world, with every angel in heaven, and with every spirit under heaven, cannot be comprehended by merely natural thought, but it may, in some degree, by spiritual thought. The reason is that space is associated with merely natural conceptions, as these are formed from objects in the world, in every one of which, as these are visible to the eye, there is space. Everything great and small there is spatial, likewise everything that has length, breadth and height; in a word, every measure, figure and form there is spatial. Nevertheless a man may, in some degree, comprehend this idea by his natural thought if he admits into it some spiritual light. However, something must first be said concerning spiritual thought. This derives nothing from space, but everything from state. State has relation to love, life, wisdom, affections, joys, and, in general, to good and truth. A truly spiritual idea concerning these has nothing in common with space: it is on a higher level, and looks down upon spatial ideas beneath it as heaven looks down upon the earth.
[2] God is present in space apart from space, and in time apart from time because He is always the same from eternity to eternity, the same before the creation of the world as after it. There was neither space nor time in God and in His sight before creation, but after it, so that because He is the same, He is in space apart from space, and in time apart from time. Hence it follows that nature is separate from Him, while yet He is omnipresent in it, just as life is present in every substantial and material part of man, yet does not mingle with them; or as light is in the eye, sound in the ear, and taste in the tongue, and also as ether is in land and water, by which the terraqueous globe is held together and made to revolve, and so on. If those active factors were removed, the substantial and the material things would immediately collapse and be dispersed. Indeed, if God were not present in all its parts and at all times in the human mind, it would dissolve like a bubble in the air, and both divisions of the brain, in which it acts from first principles, would melt away like froth; thus all that is human would become as the dust of the earth, or as an odour wafted away on the breeze.
[3] Since God is in all time yet apart from time, therefore in His Word He speaks of the past and of the future as of what is present; as in Isaiah:
“Unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given, … and His name shall be called … The mighty God,… The Prince of Peace.” ix. 6;
and in David:
“I will declare the decree: the Lord hath said unto me, Thou art My Son; this day have I begotten Thee.” Ps. ii. 5.
These words were spoken of the Lord who was to come; thus also it is said again:
“A thousand years in Thy sight are but as yesterday.” Ps. xc. 4.
That God is everywhere present in the created universe, while yet there is nothing of the world in Him, that is, nothing of space and time, can be perceived by the observant and attentive reader in many other places in the Word, as in this passage from Jeremiah:
“Am I a God at hand,… and not a God afar off? Can any hide himself in secret places, that I shall not see him? … do not I fill heaven and earth?” xxiii. 23, 24.
The infinity of God in relation to space is called immensity because “immense” is predicated of what is great and ample, and also of what is extended, and, in this respect, of what is spacious. On the other hand, the infinity of God in relation to time is called eternity, because “to eternity” is predicated of things whose unending progress is measured by time. For example, spatial relations are predicated of the earth regarded as a globe, and temporal relations with respect to its rotation and progression, the latter being the cause of times and the former of spaces; and so they are represented by the senses to the perception of reflecting minds. In God, however, there is nothing of space and time, as was shown above, and yet these have their origin from God. Hence it follows that His infinity in relation to space is meant by immensity, and His infinity in relation to time, by eternity. But in heaven the angels understand by the immensity of God His Divinity as to His Being (Esse), and by eternity, His Divinity as to His Existing (Existere); and also by immensity His Divinity as to Love, and by eternity His Divinity as to Wisdom. Those conceptions result because they remove space and time from the idea of Divinity. Since, however, man can think only from such ideas as are derived from space and time, he can comprehend nothing of the immensity of God before the existence of space and nothing of His eternity before the existence of time. Indeed, when he tries to form such conceptions, his mind as it were sinks into a swoon. He is like one who has fallen into the water from a wrecked ship, or like one who is being swallowed up by an earthquake. Moreover, should he persist in his speculations, he might easily lose his reason and be led to the denial of God. I was once in a state like this, thinking what God was from eternity, what He did before the creation of the world, whether He deliberated about creation, and thought out a plan for it; whether deliberative thought was possible in a pure vacuum, and other vain conceits. But lest I should be driven mad by such speculations, I was raised into the sphere and light in which the interior angels are; and after my former ideas of space and time were partly removed, it was granted me to see that the eternity of God is not an eternity of time; and because time did not exist before the creation of the world, that it was utterly vain to think of God in this way. Moreover, because the idea of the Divine from eternity, thus apart from time, does not involve days, years and ages, as all these are but a moment to God, I concluded that the world was created by God, not in time, but that time was introduced by God with creation.
In this connection I shall mention this noteworthy circumstance.
MEMORABILIA.
At one extremity of the spiritual world there appear two statues in monstrous human form, with open mouths and distended jaws, which seem to devour those who imagine vain and senseless ideas about God from eternity. These statues represent the illusions into which they plunge themselves who indulge in absurd and groundless speculations concerning God before He created the world.
The following are some of the considerations from which human reason may see the infinity of God. 1. In the whole of creation there are not two things the same. Human learning, supported by reason, has perceived and proved that there is no identity in things which exist simultaneously, and yet the substantial and the material things of creation, regarded individually, are infinite in number. It may be concluded from the rotation of the earth that no two results are identical in the succession of events in the world, because, owing to the inclination of her axis, the same position never recurs. Again, from a consideration of human faces it is clear that there is no identity, for in the whole of creation there is not one face exactly like another, nor can there be to eternity; and this infinite variety can only exist from the infinity of God the Creator.
[2] 2. The mind of one man is never exactly like that of another, whence arises the saying, “Many men, many minds.” Therefore, the mind of one man, that is, his will and his understanding, is never exactly like that of another man. Consequently the speech of one man with respect to sound, and also to the thought from which it springs, likewise his actions with respect to gesture and affection, are never exactly the same as another’s. From this infinite variety also the infinity of God the Creator can be seen as in a mirror.
[3] 3. In every seed, both animal and vegetable, there is implanted a certain immensity and eternity: an immensity, because it can be multiplied to infinity, and an eternity, because that multiplication has continued without interruption from the creation of the world, and still continues, and will continue for ever. As an example from the animal kingdom take the fish of the sea. If they multiplied according to the number of their seed, they would so fill the ocean within twenty or fifty years that it would consist of fish only, and the water would consequently overflow and destroy the whole earth. To prevent this, it was provided by God that some fish should be food for others. It would be the same with the seeds of plants; for if all those were sown which were produced from one plant each year, within twenty or thirty years they would cover the surface not of one earth only but of several. For there are some shrubs of which single seeds produce some a hundred and some a thousandfold. The truth of this would appear if the experiment were to be made of continuing the production of one plant successively for twenty or thirty times. Thus from a consideration of both plants and animals the immensity and eternity of God may be seen, for these qualities necessarily impart their own resemblance as a common feature.
[4] 4. The infinity of God may also appear to every one of enlightened reason from the infinity to which may extend every science, and consequently the intelligence and wisdom of every man, both of which may grow as a tree from seed, and as forests and gardens from trees. It is impossible to assign them limits, man’s memory being their planting ground, his understanding their place of germination, and his will where they bear fruit. These twin faculties, the understanding and the will, are such that they can progress in culture and perfection to the end of life in the world and afterwards to eternity.
[5] 5. The infinity of God the Creator may also be seen from the infinite number of the stars, which are so many suns, with a like number of worlds. In a little work* describing things seen, it has been shown that in the starry heavens there are earths on which are men, animals, birds and plants.
[6] 6. The infinity of God has appeared still more evident to me from a consideration of the angelic heaven and also of hell. These are organized into innumerable societies or congregations according to all the varieties of the love of good and of evil, and every man finds a place according to his love. For all members of the human race are gathered there from the creation of the world, and will be gathered for all ages to come. Although each one has his own dwelling place, still all are so grouped there that the universal angelic heaven represents one Divine Man, and the universal hell one monstrous devil. From these two, and their innumerable wonders, there appears clearly visible the immensity of God, together with His omnipotence.
[7] 7. Every one, if he will but slightly elevate his rational faculty, may perceive that eternal life, which every man has after death, cannot be granted save by an eternal God.
[8] 8. Moreover, there is a certain infinity in many things some of which are perceived by man in natural light (lumen),** and some in spiritual light. In natural light (lumen), man may recognize geometrical series, which extend to infinity. Again, within the three degrees of altitude there is progression to infinity, for the first degree, called the natural, can never be perfected and raised to the second degree, called the spiritual, nor can this be raised to the perfection of the third degree, called the celestial. Similarly with end, cause and effect, for effect cannot be continued to become its own cause, nor cause to become its own end. This may also be illustrated from the atmospheres, of which there are three degrees: the aura is the highest, the ether is under it, and beneath this is the air. No quality of the air can be raised to any quality of the ether, nor can any quality of the ether be raised to any quality of the aura, yet in each there is progression towards the perfection of its own qualities to infinity. In spiritual light it may be seen that natural love, which is merely animal, cannot be raised to spiritual love, with which man has been endowed from creation. It is similar with the natural intelligence of the animal compared with the spiritual intelligence of man; but as these things are as yet unknown in the world, they will be explained in another place. From what has been said it is evident that all things in general in the world are perpetual types of the infinity of God the Creator; but how things in particular resemble things in general, and represent the infinity of God, is a matter not easily understood. It is like an ocean on which the human mind can sail; but it must beware lest a storm, arising from man’s lower nature, should overwhelm the ship with its masts and sails from the poop, on which, confident in himself, stands the natural man.
* THE EARTHS IN THE UNIVERSE.
** That is, in the light of his natural intelligence. By lumen, light, is meant not the physical light of the sun, but the intellectual light of natural intelligence that comes from human learning, from natural science, and from reasoning therefrom. Lux is used for physical light, light in general, and also for spiritual light, or the light of spiritual intelligence. When lumen is used in the original Latin it is translated by light followed by lumen in brackets, thus (lumen).
Every created thing is finite because all things are from Jehovah God by means of the Sun of the spiritual world, which constitutes the first sphere surrounding Him. That Sun is formed of substance proceeding from Him, the essence of which is Love. From that Sun, by means of its heat and light, was created the universe from first things to last. This however is not the place to explain in order the course of Creation, the scheme of which will be described later. At this point it is important only to know that one thing was formed from another, and that degrees originated therefrom, three in the spiritual world, three corresponding to these in the natural world, and a like number in the inactive matter of which the terraqueous globe consists. The origin and nature of these degrees have been fully explained in the work entitled THE ANGELIC WISDOM CONCERNING THE DIVINE LOVE AND THE DIVINE WISDOM, published at Amsterdam in 1763, and in a small work entitled THE INTERCOURSE BETWEEN THE SOUL AND THE BODY, published in London in 1769. By means of these degrees all posterior things are receptacles of prior things, these of still prior things, and so on to the receptacles of the first things which form the Sun of the angelic heaven, and in this way finite things are receptacles of the infinite. This also accords with the wisdom of the Ancients who held that all things in general and in particular are divisible to infinity. It is a common idea that, because the finite cannot grasp the infinite, finite things cannot be receptacles of the infinite. However, from what has been said in my works on Creation, it is evident that God first limited His infinity by substances sent out from Himself. From these arose the first sphere encompassing Him, which constitutes the Sun of the spiritual world. Afterwards, by means of that Sun, He formed the rest of the spheres, even to the last, which consists of inactive matter. In this way, by means of degrees He completed step by step the finite state of the world. This explanation is given here for the satisfaction of human reason, which does not rest unless it perceives a cause.
“And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness…. So God created man in His own image, in the image of God created He him.” Gen. i. 26, 27;
from which it follows that man is an organ recipient of God, and that he is an organ according to the quality of his reception. The human mind, from which and according to which man is man, is formed into three regions according to three degrees. In the first degree it is celestial, in which are the angels of the highest heaven. In the second degree it is spiritual, in which are the angels of the middle heaven, and in the third degree it is natural, in which are the angels of the lowest heaven. [2] The human mind, organized according to these three degrees, is a receptacle of Divine influx; but the Divine flows in only as far as a man prepares the way, or opens the door. If he does this to the highest or celestial degree, then the man becomes truly an image of God, and after death, an angel of the highest heaven; but if he prepares the way, or opens the door, only to the middle or spiritual degree, then the man becomes indeed an image of God, but not so perfectly, and after death he becomes an angel of the middle heaven; but if he prepares the way, or opens the door, only to the lowest or natural degree, then the man, if he acknowledges God and worships Him with real piety, becomes an image of God in the lowest degree, and after death becomes an angel of the lowest heaven. If, however, he does not acknowledge God, and does not worship Him with real piety, he puts off the image of God, and becomes like some animal, except that he still enjoys the faculty of understanding, and thence of speech. If he then closes the highest natural degree, which corresponds to the highest celestial, he becomes, as to his love, like a beast of the earth; but if he closes the middle natural degree, which corresponds to the middle spiritual, he becomes as to his love, like a fox, and as to his intellectual sight, like a nocturnal bird; but if he also closes the lowest natural degree with respect to what is spiritual there, he becomes, as to his love, as a wild beast, and as to his understanding of truth, like a fish.
[3] The Divine Life, which animates man by influx from the Sun of the angelic heaven, may be compared to the light of the sun of this world and its influx into a transparent object. The reception of that life in the highest degree may be compared to the influx of light into a diamond, its reception in the second degree to the influx of light into a crystal, and its reception in the lowest degree to the influx of light into glass or into a transparent membrane. If, however, this degree were to be quite closed with respect to what is spiritual there, as happens when God is denied and satan worshiped, the reception of life from God may be compared to the influx of light into the opaque substances of the earth, such as rotten wood, the putrid vegetation of a marsh, filth, and so on; for man then becomes a spiritual corpse.
In this connection I will now relate the following spiritual experience.
I was once reflecting with amazement on the vast number of men who ascribe Creation, and consequently all things that are under the sun and all things that are above it, to nature and who assure themselves that everything they see is the work of nature. When they are asked why they ascribe these things to nature and not to God, although they sometimes join in the general confession that God created nature, and could therefore ascribe what they see to God just as well as to nature, they reply in subdued and scarcely audible tone, “What is God but nature?” They are persuaded that Creation is the work of nature, and that this insanity is wisdom. In their conceit they regard those who acknowledge God to be the Creator of the universe as so many ants, creeping along the ground and treading the beaten track, or as butterflies fluttering through the air. They call their opinions dreams, or baseless illusions, and ask, “Who has ever seen God, and who does not see nature?” [2] As I continued in my reflections an angel stood by my side and said to me, “What is the subject of your meditation?” I replied, “It is the great number of those who believe that nature exists from herself, and is thus the creator of the universe. Whereupon the angel said to me: “All hell consists of such persons, who are called there satans and devils: satans if they have confirmed their belief in nature and have consequently denied God, and devils if they have lived wickedly and have thus expelled all acknowledgment of God from their hearts. But let me take you to the colleges in the south western quarter, where such persons reside before they enter hell.” He then took my hand and conducted me thither. There I saw small houses in which were studies, and in the centre, one which appeared to be the principal. It was built of black stones, overlaid with plates which resembled glass, sparkling like gold and silver, such as those made of selenite or mica, and here and there were interspersed glittering shells.
[3] We approached this study and knocked at the door, which was presently opened by one who bade us welcome. He then hurried to a table and brought four books, saying, “These books represent the wisdom which is lauded at this day in many kingdoms. This book, or wisdom, is esteemed by many men in France, this by many in Germany, this by some in Holland,* and this by some in Britain.” He continued: “If you wish to see it, I shall make these four books shine before your eyes.” He then poured forth and shed around them the glory of his own reputation, and the books instantly shone as with a light; but this brightness as quickly vanished from our sight. Thereupon we asked him what he was engaged in writing. He replied that he was about to bring forth from his treasure-store matters of the deepest wisdom, and would expound them under the following heads: 1. Whether nature is from life, or life from nature. 2. Whether the centre is from the expanse, or the expanse from the centre.
[4] 3. Concerning the centre of the expanse and of life. Having said this he seated himself at the table while we walked about his spacious study. He had a candle on the table, for the light of the sun did not shine into the room, but only a light like that of the nocturnal light of the moon. To my wonder the candle seemed to move round about the room, and thus to illuminate it; but because it had not been trimmed it gave out but little light. Whilst he wrote we saw images of various forms hitting from the table to the walls, like beautiful Indian birds in that pale light. When, however, we opened the door, in the bright sunlight they appeared like birds of night with wings of tracery-work; for they were appearances of truth, confirmed into fallacies and ingeniously connected by him to form a continuous theme.
[5] After we had seen these things, we approached the table and asked him what he was now writing. He replied: “On the first subject, Whether nature is from life, or life from nature.” He added that he could confirm either proposition and prove it to be true; but because of a secret fear which he entertained he ventured to prove only this proposition, ‘that nature is from life’ but not, ‘that life is from nature.’ Thereupon we courteously asked him what it was he was afraid of. He replied that he was afraid he would be called a naturalist, and thus an atheist, by the clergy, and a man of unsound reason by the laity, since they believe only from a blind faith, or see with the sight of those who confirm such a faith. [6] Then we, with a certain indignation in our zeal for the truth, said: “Friend, you are much mistaken. Your wisdom, which is only an ingenious talent for writing, has led you astray, and the glamour of renown has induced you to confirm what you do not believe. Do you not know that the human mind is capable of being raised above sensual things, which enter the thoughts through the bodily senses, and that, when it is so raised, it sees things relating to life above, and those relating to nature below? What is life but love and wisdom, and what is nature but their receptacle, through which they produce their effects or perform their uses? Can life and nature be one unless as agent and instrument are one? Can light be one with the eye, or sound with the ear? Whence come their sensations but from life, and their forms but from nature? What is the human body but an organ of life? Is not every single part of it organically formed to produce what the love wills and the understanding thinks? Are not the organs of the body from nature, and love and thought from life? And are not these entirely distinct from each other? Elevate your mental ingenuity but a little and you will see that affection and thought are related to life: that affection is related to love, that thought is related to wisdom, and that both are related to life, for, as was said above, love and wisdom are life. Now raise your faculty of understanding a little higher still, and you will see that love and wisdom cannot exist unless they have their origin somewhere: that their origin is Love itself and Wisdom itself, and consequently Life itself; and that these are God, from whom nature is derived.”
[7] We then conversed with him about his second proposition: Whether the centre is from the expanse, or the expanse from the centre; and we asked him why he discussed this question. He replied: “In order to determine the centre and the expanse of nature and of life, and thus the origin of each.” When we asked what his opinion was, he replied as in the former case, that he could confirm each proposition, but that, from fear of losing his reputation, he would prove that the expanse is from the centre, “Although I know,” he added, “that before the sun, there existed, everywhere in the expanse, something which of itself flowed into order, and thus into a centre.” [8] Addressing him again with zealous fervour we said, “Friend, you are beside yourself.” On hearing this, he drew back his chair from the table, and with a startled look in his eyes, but smiling incredulously, he listened as we continued: “What could be more insane than to say that the centre is from the expanse? For by your centre we understand the sun, and by your expanse the universe, and thus that the universe existed without the sun. But does not the sun give rise to nature and all her properties, which depend solely upon the light and heat proceeding from the sun through the atmospheres? We have already spoken about these things as being somewhere; but their origin we will now explain in what follows. Are not the atmospheres and all things upon the earth as surfaces, and the sun as their centre? What would all these be without the sun, or how could they subsist a single moment without it? What then were all these things before the sun? Could they have existed, and is not subsistence perpetual existence? Since, therefore, the subsistence of all things in nature depends upon the sun, it follows that their existence also depends upon it. Everyone sees this and acknowledges it from his own perception.
[9] Does not what is posterior subsist as well as exist from what is prior? If then the surface were prior and the centre posterior, would not the prior subsist from the posterior, which is contrary to the laws of order? For how could posterior things produce prior, or exterior things interior, or grosser things purer? How then could surfaces, of which the expense is formed, produce the centre? Who does not see that this is contrary to the laws of nature? We have adduced these arguments from a rational analysis to prove that the expanse exists from the centre, and not the centre from the expense, although everyone who thinks rightly sees this without such arguments. You said that the expanse of itself flowed into the centre. Did it thus by chance flow into such marvelous and stupendous order that one thing serves another, and each and all subserve man and his eternal life? Could nature, from some kind of love through some kind of wisdom, propose ends, provide for causes and so produce effects that such things should exist in their proper order? Could she make angels of men and a heaven from angels, and cause those who are there to live for ever? Consider these things well. Give due consideration to these arguments and your idea of the existence of nature from nature will vanish.”
[10] We next asked him what he had thought, and what he still thought, about his third proposition: Concerning the centre and the expanse of nature and of life. ‘Did he believe that the centre and the expense of life were the same as the centre and the expanse of nature?’ He replied that he was at a loss what to believe. At first he had thought that the inner activity of nature was life, and that love and wisdom, which are the essentials of the life of man, had their origin there; and that the sun’s fire, by means of its heat and light, produced this activity through the medium of the atmospheres. Now, however, from what he had heard of the life of men after death, he was in doubt, and so his mind was borne now upwards, now downwards; when upwards, he recognized a centre of which he had formerly known nothing, and when downwards, he saw the centre which he had believed to be the only one. He perceived that life was from the centre of which he had formerly known nothing, that nature was from the centre which he had believed was the only one, and that each centre had an expense around it.
[11] This, we replied, was right, provided he would also regard the centre and expanse of nature as originating from the centre and the expanse of life, and not the reverse. We then instructed him that above the angelic heaven there is a Sun which is pure love, fiery in appearance like the sun of this world; that from the heat of that Sun angels and men have their will and love, and from its light they have understanding and wisdom; and that the things from it are called spiritual, while those that proceed from the sun of this world are containants or receptacles of life, and are called natural. Further, that the expense of the centre of life is called the spiritual world, which subsists from its own Sun, while the expanse of the centre of nature is called the natural world, which subsists from its sun. Now, since space and time cannot be predicated of love and wisdom, but instead of them, states, it follows that the expense around the Sun of the angelic heaven is not an extension, although it is within the extension of the natural sun, and present with the living subjects of the natural world according to their reception of it; and their reception is according to their forms and states.
[12] But then he enquired, “Whence does the sun of this world or nature derive its fire?” and we answered that it comes from the Sun of the angelic heaven, which is not fire, but Divine Love, the first proceeding from God, who is in its midst. As he wondered at this we proceeded to explain it in the following way. “Love in its essence is spiritual fire: hence fire in the Word in its spiritual sense signifies love. For this reason the clergy in places of worship pray that heavenly fire may fill the heart, by which they mean heavenly love. Among the Israelites the fire on the altar and the fire in the lampstand in the Tabernacle represented nothing but the Divine Love. The heat of the blood, the vital heat of men and of animals in general, has no other origin than the love which constitutes their life. It is for this reason that man burns, grows warm and is inflamed as his love is roused to zeal, or stirred to burning wrath. Therefore, since spiritual heat, which is love, produces natural heat in men, causing their faces and limbs to burn and glow, it is evident that the fire of the natural sun has come from no other source than the fire of the spiritual Sun, which is Divine Love.
[13] Now, since the expense arises from the centre, and not the reverse, as we said above, and the centre of life, or the Sun of the angelic heaven, is the Divine Love, the first Proceeding from God who is in the midst of that Sun; and since from it is the expense of that centre which is called the spiritual world; since also from that Sun has come the sun of this world, and from this sun its expense which is called the natural world, it is plain that the universe was created by God.” We thereupon took our departure, and he accompanied us beyond the hall of his study, still conversing about heaven and hell and the Divine providence with newly acquired wisdom.
* Batavia, Holland.
We have distinguished between the Being of God and the Essence of God, because there is a distinction between the Infinity of God and the Love of God, Infinity being predicated of the Being of God and Love of the Essence of God; for, as was observed above, the Being of God is more universal than the Essence of God, and the Infinity more universal than the Love of God. Therefore the term infinite is applicable to the essentials and attributes of God, which are all called infinite. Thus the Divine Love, and the Divine Wisdom and the Divine Power are said to be infinite; not that the Being of God existed before His Essence, but because it enters into His Essence as an adjunct, cohering with, determining, forming, and at the same time, exalting it. This subject, as in previous cases, will be treated under separate articles in the following order:
(1) God is Love itself and Wisdom itself, and these two constitute His Essence.
(2) God is Good itself and Truth itself, because Good is of Love, and Truth is of Wisdom.
(3) Love itself and Wisdom itself are Life itself, which is Life in itself.
(4) Love and Wisdom in God make one.
(5) The essence of love is to love others outside itself, to desire to be one with them, and to make them happy from itself.
(6) These properties of Divine Love were the cause of the creation of the universe, and they are the cause of its preservation.
Each article will now be treated in order.
Our first ancestors perceived that love and wisdom are the two essentials to which are related all the infinite things which are in God and which proceed from Him. In succeeding ages, however, as men withdrew their minds from heaven and immersed them in worldly and corporeal things, they lost this power of perception. They gradually lost the knowledge of what love is in its essence, and hence what wisdom is in its essence, and ceased to be aware that love cannot exist apart from form, and that it functions only in and through form. Now since God is Substance itself and Form itself, the only and thus the first, whose Essence is Love and Wisdom, and since from Him all things were made which are made, it follows that He created the universe with everything in it, from Love by means of Wisdom; and consequently that the Divine Love, together with the Divine Wisdom, is in every created subject. Love, moreover, is not only the essence which forms all things; but it also unites and conjoins them, and thus keeps them in connection when formed. These truths may be illustrated by innumerable things in the world, as for instance, by the heat and light from the sun, the two essentials and universals by means of which all things on the earth exist and subsist. Heat and light are in the world because they correspond to the Divine Love and the Divine Wisdom, for the heat, which proceeds from the Sun of the spiritual world, in its essence is love, and the light, which is derived from it, in its essence is wisdom.
[2] Illustration may also be found in the two essentials and universals by means of which human minds exist and subsist, namely, the will and the understanding, for of these two the mind of every man is constituted. The reason why these two are in everything of the mind and function there is that the will is the receptacle and habitation of love, and the understanding of wisdom. These two faculties therefore correspond to the Divine Love and the Divine Wisdom, from which they derive their origin. Further illustration may be found in the two essentials and universals by means of which human bodies exist and subsist, namely, the heart and the lungs, or the systole and diastole of the heart and the respiration of the lungs. These, as is well known, operate in every part of the body, because the heart corresponds to love and the lungs to wisdom. This correspondence is fully demonstrated in the ANGELIC WISDOM CONCERNING THE DIVINE LOVE AND THE DIVINE WISDOM, published at Amsterdam. [3] That love, as bridegroom and husband, produces or begets all forms, but by means of wisdom, as bride and wife, may be proved by innumerable things both in the spiritual and in the natural world. However, this only need be observed here, that the whole angelic heaven is arranged into its own form and maintained in it from the Divine Love by means of the Divine Wisdom. Those who deduce the creation of the world from any other source than the Divine Love by means of the Divine Wisdom, and who do not know that these two constitute the Divine Essence, descend from rational to ocular vision, and greet nature as the creator of the universe; and consequently they conceive chimaeras and bring forth phantoms. The thoughts from which they reason are fallacies, and their conclusions are eggs in which are birds of night. These cannot be called minds, but eyes and ears without understanding, or thoughts without a soul. They talk of colours as if they existed without light, of the existence of trees without seed, and of all things in this world as if they existed without the sun, regarding derivatives as primitives, and effects as causes. Thus they turn everything upside down, lull to sleep the watchful powers of reason and see nothing but dreams.
It is universally known that all things have relation to good and truth, and this is a proof that all things have derived their existence from love and wisdom; for everything that proceeds from love is called good, from the feeling it arouses; and whatever is delightful by which love manifests itself is every man’s good.* On the other hand, everything that proceeds from wisdom is called truth, for wisdom consists of nothing but truths, and it affects its objects with the pleasantness of light which is perceived as truth from good. Love therefore comprises all varieties of good, and wisdom all varieties of truth; but both the former and the latter are from God, who is Love itself and consequently Good itself, and Wisdom itself and consequently Truth itself. Hence it is that in the Church there are two essentials, called charity and faith, of which all things of the Church are constituted and which will ever be in them. For all the goods in the Church have relation to charity, and are called charity, and all its truths have relation to faith, and are called faith. The delights of love, which are also the delights of charity, cause what is delightful to be called good; and the pleasures of wisdom, which are also the pleasures of faith, cause what is pleasant to be called truth; for what is delightful and what pleasant constitute their life, and without life derived from these, goods and truths are inanimate and sterile.
[2] The delights of love are of two kinds, as are also the pleasures which apparently are of wisdom; for there are delights of the love of good and delights of the love of evil, and consequently there are pleasures of the faith of truth and pleasures of the faith of falsity. The two delights of love, from the feeling they arouse in their subjects, are called goods, and the two pleasures of faith, from their perception, are also called goods, but because these are in the understanding, they are in reality truths. Nevertheless these two kinds of delights and pleasures are the direct opposites of each other, the good of the one love being good and the good of the other love being evil; so also the truth of the one faith is true, and the truth of the other faith is false. That love, however, whose delight is essentially good, is like the heat of the sun, fructifying, quickening, and acting on a fertile soil, on useful plants and fields of corn, and, wherever it acts, producing as it were a paradise, a garden of the Lord, a veritable land of Canaan; and the pleasure of its companion truth is like the light from the sun in spring-time, and the light flooding a crystal casket of beautiful flowers, which, when opened up, breathes out a grateful perfume. On the other hand, the delight of the love of evil is like the heat of the sun parching, withering, and acting on sterile soil and on noxious plants, such as thorns and brambles, and wherever it acts, producing an Arabian desert, where lurk hydras and fiery serpents; while the pleasure of its falsity is like the light from the sun in winter, and like the light that finds its way into a wine-skin in which are worms swimming about in sour wine and creeping things of a noisome smell.
[3] It should be known that every good fashions itself into a form by means of truths, and also clothes itself with them, and thus distinguishes itself from any other good; further, that goods of one kind bind themselves into groups, and at the same time envelop these in a covering, and in this way distinguish themselves from others. The formation of these groups may be exemplified from all things, in general and in particular, in the human body. It is evident that something like this takes place in the human mind because there is a perpetual correspondence between all things of the mind and all things of the body. Consequently it follows that the human mind is an organized form, consisting of spiritual substances interiorly, and of natural substances exteriorly, and in the last resort of matter. That mind, the delightful things of whose love are good, consists interiorly of spiritual substances, such as exist in heaven; but the mind, whose delights are evil, consists interiorly of spiritual substances such as exist in hell. The evils of the latter are bound into groups by means of falsities, but the goods of the former into groups by means of truths. This grouping of good and evil explains why our Lord said,
that the tares must be gathered into bundles to be burnt, and likewise all things that offend. Matt. xiii. 30, 40, 41; John xv. 6.
* The translation adopted changes vera to amaena. Thus jucundum = delightful (to the feelings) is predicated of good, and amaenum = pleasant (to the sight) is predicated of truth.
It is written in John:
“The Word was with God, and the Word was God…. In Him was life; and the life was the light of men.” i. 1, 4.
By God is there signified the Divine Love, and by the Word the Divine Wisdom. The Divine Wisdom is essentially life, and life is essentially the light which proceeds from the Sun of the spiritual world, in the midst of which is Jehovah God. Divine Love forms life, as fire forms light. There are two properties in fire, burning and brilliance; from its burning proceeds heat and from its brilliance light. Similarly there are two properties in love, one to which the burning of fire corresponds, and which in a certain way intimately affects the will of man, and the other to which the brilliance of fire corresponds, and which similarly affects his understanding. From these two properties man derives his love and his intelligence; for as has been said several times before, there proceeds from the Sun of the spiritual world heat, which in its essence is love, and Light, which in its essence is wisdom. These two flow into everything in the universe and intimately affect them; and in the case of men, they flow into the will and the understanding, for these two are created to be the receptacles of influx, the will to be the receptacle of love, and the understanding to be the receptacle of wisdom. It is therefore evident that a man’s life dwells in his understanding, that its quality depends upon his wisdom, and that it is modified by the love of his will.
“As the Father hath life in Himself, so hath He given to the Son to have life in Himself.” v. 26.
By this is meant that as the Divine itself, which was from eternity, lives in itself, so also the Human, which it assumed in time, lives in itself. Life in itself is life itself and the only life, from which all angels and men live. Human reason may see this from the light which proceeds from the sun of the natural world. This light is not creatable, but the forms which receive it are created; for the eyes are its recipient forms, and the light flowing into them from the sun causes them to see. It is similar with life which, as has been said, is the light which proceeds from the Sun of the spiritual world. This light is not creatable, but continually flows in, and both illumines and vivifies the understanding of man. Consequently, since light, life and wisdom are one, wisdom is not creatable, nor are faith, truth, love, charity and good; but their recipient forms are created, and these forms are the minds of men and of angels. Let each one therefore beware lest he persuade himself that he lives from himself and that he is wise from himself: that he believes, loves, perceives truth, and wills and does good from himself. For as far as any one indulges in such persuasions so far does he turn his mind downward from heaven to earth, and from being spiritual he becomes natural, sensual and corporeal. In effect he closes the higher regions of his mind, and thus becomes blind to all that belongs to God, to heaven and to the Church. Then whatever he may happen to think, reason or say about these things is nothing but foolishness, because all is done in darkness; and yet he deludes himself that it is the result of wisdom. For when the higher regions of his mind are closed, where dwells the true light (lux) of life, there opens up below these a region of the mind to which only the light (lumen) of the world is admitted. When separated from the light (lux) of the higher regions this is a delusive light (lumen), in which falsities appear as truths and truths as falsities; and reasoning from falsities appears as wisdom and from truths as madness. In this case a man believes he possesses the keen sight of an eagle, whereas he no more sees the realities of wisdom than a bat sees in the light of noon-day.
Every wise man in the Church knows that all the good of love and of charity is from God, and likewise all the truth of wisdom and of faith. Human reason can see that this is so, provided it knows that the origin of love and wisdom is from the Sun of the spiritual world, in the midst of which is Jehovah God, or which is the same thing, that it is from Jehovah God operating through that Sun which encompasses Him. The heat proceeding from that Sun is in its essence love, and the light in its essence is wisdom; it is therefore perfectly clear that love and wisdom are one in virtue of that origin, and consequently in God, from whom that Sun derives its origin. This may be illustrated also from the sun of the natural world, which is pure fire; for heat proceeds from its burning quality and light from its brilliance, and thus both are one in their origin. [2] But that they are divided as they proceed is evident from their subjects,* some of which receive more heat and some more light. This is especially the case with men. Amongst men the light of life, which is intelligence, and the heat of life, which is love, are divided. This happens because man must be reformed and regenerated, which cannot be accomplished unless the light of life, which is intelligence, should teach what he ought to will and to love.
Nevertheless it should be known that God continually works for the union of love and wisdom in man, but that man, unless he looks to God and believes on Him, continually works for their separation. Therefore as far as these two, the good of love or charity, and the truth of wisdom or faith, are united in a man, so far he becomes an image of God, and is raised heavenwards and then into heaven, where angels dwell. On the other hand, as far as these two are divided by a man, so far he becomes an image of Lucifer** and the dragon, and is cast downwards from heaven to the earth, and afterwards under the earth into hell. From the union of these two principles the state of man becomes like that of a tree in spring-time when heat and light are present equally, causing it to bud, blossom and bear fruit; but from the division of these two the state of man becomes like that of a tree in winter, when heat withdraws from light, causing it to be stripped bare of every leaf and green shoot. [3] When spiritual heat, which is love, is separated from spiritual light, which is wisdom, or what is the same thing, when charity is separated from faith, man becomes like ground that is sour or rotten, which breeds worms, and if it produces vegetation the leaves are eaten up by swarming pests. For the allurements of the love of evil, which in themselves are lusts, break forth, and the understanding, instead of subduing and curbing them, loves, pampers and cherishes them. In a word, to divide love and wisdom, or charity and faith, which God continually endeavours to unite, is as it were to rob the face of its ruddiness for the paleness of death, or to deprive it of its white lustre, leaving only the fiery red of a burning brand. Or it is like dissolving the conjugial*** tie between two partners, thus making the wife a harlot and the husband an adulterer; for love or charity is like the husband and wisdom and faith like the wife. When these two are separated there ensue spiritual whoredom and adultery, which are falsification of truth and adulteration of good.
* A subject-subjectum-is that in which attributes, powers, and qualities are, and by which they are rendered effective. See 621:7.
** Lucifer, fabled son of Aurora, or of Jupiter, morning star, day.
*** “… vinculum conjugiale.” Here and elsewhere throughout this work the word conugialis as well as conjugalis is translated conjugial, in preference to marriage, on account of the new spiritual concept introduced by Swedenborg. In the first translation of Swedenborg’s DE AMOR CONJUGIALI the Rev. John Clowes introduced the word conjugial as a translation of conjugialis; but in this he is not followed by some translators of Swedenborg. In the first translation of T. C. R. Clowes translates this phrase, vinculum conjugiale, as “the marriage tie.”
* This addition in parentheses is in accordance with what is said lower: horum cogitationes repraesentantur per noctuas.
There are two things which make the Essence of God, namely, Love and Wisdom, and there are three things which make the essence of His Love, namely, to love others outside of itself, to desire to be one with them, and to make them happy from itself. The same three things also make the essence of His Wisdom, because, as has been shown above, Love and Wisdom make one in God: while Love wills these things, Wisdom gives effect to them. [2] The first essential, to love others outside of itself, is recognized from the Love of God towards the whole human race; and for their sake God loves all things He has created, because they are means; for he who loves the end loves also the means. All persons and all things in the universe are outside of God because they are finite, and God is infinite. Yet the Love of God approaches and extends not only to good persons and good things, but also to evil persons and evil things; consequently not only to persons and things in heaven, but also to those in hell; thus not only to Michael* and Gabriel, but also to the devil and satan, for God is everywhere, and from eternity to eternity the same. He says also:
“He maketh His sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust.” Matt. v. 45.
[3] The reason, however, why evil persons and things are still evil is in the subjects and objects themselves, because they do not receive the Love of God in its own quality and interior nature, but according to their own nature, just as the thorn and nettle receive the heat of the sun and the rain of heaven.
The second essential of the Love of God, to desire to be one with them, is perceived from His conjunction with the angelic heaven, with the Church on earth, with every individual there, and with every good and truth which enters into and constitutes man and the Church. Moreover, love viewed in itself is nothing but an endeavor towards conjunction; therefore, in order that this object of the essence of love might be attained, God created man in His own image and likeness by which conjunction might be effected. That the Divine Love is ever directed towards this union is evident from the words of the Lord,
that He desires that they may be one, He in them and they in Him, and that the Love of God may be in them, John xvii. 2, 22, 23, 26.
[4] The third essential of the Love of God, to make them happy from itself, is recognized from eternal life, or blessedness, happiness and felicity without end, which He gives those who receive His Love. For as God is Love itself so also is He Blessedness itself, since all love breathes out from itself what is delightful, and the Divine Love breathes out blessedness itself, happiness and felicity to eternity. Thus God makes angels happy from Himself, and also men after death, by conjunction with them.
* Michael, the archangel.
* This combines the separate actions indicated by osculatur, palpat et conjungit manus.
That these three essentials of the Divine Love were the cause of Creation may be clearly seen from a careful examination of them. That the first, which is to love others outside of itself, was a cause is evident from the universe, which is outside of God as the world is outside of the sun, and to which He can extend His love, and in which He can exercise His love and consequently rest; as it is written that after God had created the heaven and the earth, He rested; and thus originated the Sabbath day, Gen. ii. 2, 3. That the second, which is to desire to be one with them, was a cause is evident from the creation of man in the image and likeness of God. By this is meant that man was made a form recipient of love and wisdom from God, so that He could unite Himself with man and, for his sake, with the whole universe and everything in it, as these are but means; for conjunction with a final cause implies also conjunction with mediate causes. That all things were created for the sake of man is evident from the Book of Creation, or Genesis, i. 28, 29, 30. That the third essential of Divine Love, which is to make others happy from itself, is a cause of Creation is evident from the angelic heaven, which is provided for every man who receives the Love of God, where all are made happy from God alone. These three essentials of the Love of God are also the cause of the preservation of the universe, for preservation is perpetual creation, just as subsistence is perpetual existence; and as the Divine Love from eternity to eternity is the same, it is and it remains in the world after its creation such as it was when the world was being created.
To the above will now be added this spiritual experience. I was once conversing with two angels, one from the eastern heaven and the other from the southern. When they perceived that I was meditating upon the mysteries of wisdom involved in love, they asked if I knew anything of the schools of wisdom in their world. On my replying that I did not yet, they said: “There are several where those, who love truths from spiritual affection, or truths because they are truths and the means of attaining wisdom, meet together at an appointed sign, and discuss and determine matters requiring more than ordinary consideration.” They then took me by the hand saying: “Come with us, and you shall see and hear, for to-day the signal for a meeting has been given.” I was conducted across a plain to a hill, at the foot of which was an avenue of palm trees stretching to the top. We entered this avenue and ascended, and at the top or summit of the hill was a grove within whose trees the ground was raised to form a sort of theatre, with a smooth floor of small colored stones. Around it in the form of a square were seats on which lovers of wisdom sat, and in the centre of the theatre was a table on which was laid a sealed paper.
[2] Those who were seated invited us to places that were still unoccupied, but I replied: “I have been brought here by two angels to see and hear but not to take a seat.” The two angels then walked to the table in the middle of the door, and, breaking the seal on the paper, they read out to those who were seated the mysteries of wisdom written on the paper which they were now to discuss and unfold. These had been written by angels of the third heaven and deposited on the table. They consisted of three subjects, the first of which was, What is the image of God and what is the likeness of God in which man was created? The second was, Why is man not born into the knowledge relating to any love, while beasts and birds both noble and vile are born into the knowledge relating to all their loves? The third was, What is meant by the tree of life, what by the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, and what by eating of them? Underneath was written: “Combine your answers to these three questions into one, write it upon a fresh paper and place it on the table, and we shall see it. If your decision appears well-balanced and just, each of you shall be awarded the prize of wisdom.” Having read these words the two angels retired and were borne away to their own heaven. Thereupon those who were seated began to discuss and unfold the propositions laid before them. They spoke in order, first those who sat on the north, then those on the west, next those on the south, and lastly those on the east. They began with the first subject of consideration, namely, What is the image of God and what is the likeness of God in which man was created? In the first place from the Book of Creation in the presence of all were read these words:
“God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness:… So God created man in His own image, in the likeness (A.V., image) of God created He him.” Gen. i. [26, 27];
“In the day that God created man, in the likeness of God made He him.” Gen. v. 1.
[3] Those who sat on the north spoke first. They said: “The image of God and the likeness of God are the two lives breathed into man by God, which are the life of the will and the life of the understanding; for it is written:
“JEHOVAH God breathed into his nostrils the breath of lives (A.V., life), and man became a living soul.” Gen. ii. 7.
These words seem to mean that there was breathed into him the will of good and the perception of truth, and thus the soul of lives; and because life was breathed into him by God, an image and a likeness signify integrity from love and wisdom, and from justice and judgment in him.” Those who were seated on the west agreed with this opinion, but with this addition, that the state of integrity inspired into him by God at creation is continually inspired by God into every man since; but that it is in man as in a recipient, and man, as a recipient, is an image and likeness of God. [4] Afterwards the third in order, who sat on the south, said: “The image of God and the likeness of God are two distinct things, but united in man at creation; and we see, as by a kind of interior light, that the image of God may be destroyed by man, but not the likeness of God. This seems to be implied by the fact that Adam retained the likeness of God after he had lost the image of God, for it is said after the curse:
“Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil.” Gen. iii. 22;
and later he is called the likeness of God, and not the image of God, Gen. v. 1. But let us leave it to our friends who sit on the east and are therefore in a higher light to say what is properly an image of God, and what a likeness of God.”
[5] Then after a silence, those who were seated on the east rose; and looking up to the Lord they resumed their seats and said: “An image of God is a recipient of God; and because God is Love itself and Wisdom itself, an image of God is the result of the reception of love and wisdom from God in a man. On the other hand, a likeness of God is a perfect likeness and full appearance as if love and wisdom were in a man and consequently were altogether his own; for then he feels just as if he loves from himself and is wise from himself, or that he wills good and understands truth from himself; whereas he does none of these things from himself, but from God. God alone loves from Himself and is wise from Himself, because God is Love itself and Wisdom itself. The likeness or appearance that love and wisdom, or goodness and truth, are in a man as his own causes him to be a man, and enables him to be united with God, and so live for ever. Hence it follows that man is man because be is able to will good and to understand truth, altogether as from himself, and yet to know and believe that good and truth are from God; for as he knows and believes this, God implants His image in him. It would be otherwise were he to believe that love and wisdom were from himself and not from God.”
[6] Having spoken these words, and being inspired with zeal for the truth they continued as follows: “How can a man receive any love and wisdom, retain it and give it forth unless he feels it as his own? How can there be conjunction with God by means of love and wisdom unless there is something reciprocal on the part of man to effect conjunction? For without reciprocation no conjunction is possible. What is necessary for conjunction is that a man should love God and do the things that are of God as if from himself, and yet in the belief that he does so from God. Moreover, how can a man live to eternity unless he is conjoined with the eternal God? And consequently how can a man be man unless he has that likeness in him?” [7] All agreed with these words and said: “Let our conclusion be drawn up in accordance with these sentiments.” This they did as follows: “A man is a recipient of God, and a recipient of God is an image of God; and since God is Love itself and Wisdom itself, a man is a recipient of these, and a recipient becomes an image of God in so far as it receives Him. Further, a man is a likeness of God because he feels in himself that the things which are from God are in him as his own. Still he is an image of God from that likeness only in so far as he acknowledges that love and wisdom, or good and truth in him are not his own, and consequently are not from himself, but that they are only in God, and consequently from God.”
[8] After this they took up the second subject of inquiry: Why is man not born into the knowledge relating to any love, while beasts and birds, both noble and vile, are born into the knowledge relating to all their loves? They first confirmed the truth of the proposition by various considerations. Then they instanced that in the case of man he is born into no knowledge, not even into knowledge concerning conjugial love. They made inquiry and found out from investigators that an infant does not even know from innate knowledge its mother’s breast, but that it learns this from its mother or its nurse by being put to the breast; and that it only knows how to suck from having learned it by continual suction in its mother’s womb. Afterwards it does not know how to walk, or how to articulate sound in any human language, or even how to give expression to its affections of love as beasts do. Moreover, it does not know what food is suitable for it, as beasts do, but lays hold of whatever comes its way, clean or unclean, and puts it into its mouth. The investigators also said that without instruction man knows nothing at all about sexual love: that not even do maidens and youths have such knowledge except by instruction from others. In short, a man is born corporeal like a worm, and remains so, unless he learns to know, to understand, and to be wise from others. [9] After this they confirmed that beasts, both noble and vile, as animals of the earth, the birds of heaven, reptiles, fish and insects, are born into all knowledge of the loves of their life, as into what relates to their nourishment, habitation, sexual love, propagation of their kind and up-bringing of their young. These things they confirmed by the wonderful things they recalled to memory from what they had seen, heard and read in the natural world where they formerly lived, and where there are not representations, but real beasts. When the truth of this proposition was thus proved, they turned their minds to investigate and discover reasons by which they might resolve and explain this mystery. They all said that these things could only be from the Divine Wisdom, to the end that man may be man and beast may be beast; and that thus the imperfection of man at his birth is his perfection, and the perfection of beasts at their birth is their imperfection.
[10] Then those on the north first expressed their views, and they said: “Man is born without knowledge that he may be able to acquire all knowledge. If, however, he were born with knowledge he would not be able to acquire any beyond what was innate, and would therefore not be able to appropriate any to himself.” This they illustrated by means of the following comparison. “When a man is born he is at first like ground in which no seed has been sown, but which can receive all kinds of seed, cause them to grow and bear fruit. Beasts on the other hand are like ground already sown and covered with grass and herbs. This ground receives no other seed than what has already been sown; and if it were to receive other seed it would choke them. Hence a man takes many years to reach maturity, and during this time he can be cultivated like the ground, and bring forth, as it were, all kinds of grain, flowers and trees. A beast, however, reaches maturity in a few years, during which it cannot be cultivated to produce anything but what was innate.”
[11] Those on the west next spoke, and they said: “A man is not born with knowledge, like a beast, but with faculty and inclination, with faculty to know and with inclination to love; and not only to love whatever relates to himself and the world, but also whatever relates to God and heaven. Consequently a man is by birth an organism, at first living only an uncertain kind of life, using external but no internal senses, to the end that he may live a life of ever-increasing fulness, and become first a natural, then a rational, and finally a spiritual man. This would not be possible if, like the beasts’, his knowledge and his loves were innate. For such knowledge and love would limit this progression, whereas innate faculties and inclinations set no bounds, and thus a man may be perfected in knowledge, intelligence and wisdom to eternity.”
[12] Those on the south next took up the subject and said: “It is impossible for a man to acquire any knowledge from himself, but he must acquire it from others, since no knowledge is born with him. Moreover, as he cannot acquire any knowledge from himself, neither can he acquire any love, for where there is no knowledge there is no love, knowledge and love being inseparable companions. They can no more be separated than the will and the understanding, or affection and thought, or essence and form. Therefore as man acquires knowledge from others, love joins it as a companion. The universal love which joins it is the love of knowing, and afterwards that of understanding and of being wise. [13] Man only, and not beasts, has these loves, and they flow in from God. We agree with our friends on the west that a man is not born with any love, and consequently, not with any knowledge, but that he is born only with an inclination to love, and consequently with a faculty to receive knowledge, not indeed from himself, but from others, that is, through others: ‘through others,’ because neither have these acquired anything from themselves, but originally from God. We agree also with our friends on the north that a man, when born, is like ground in which no seed has been sown, but in which all kinds, both good and bad, can be planted. It is for this reason that man was called homo from humus, ‘the ground,’ and Adam from Adama, which also means ‘the ground.’ We add, however, that beasts are born with all kinds of natural love, and consequently with the knowledge concerning these. Still from this knowledge they do not exercise the power of knowing, thinking, understanding, nor do they become wise; but they are impelled by their love almost as blind men are led along the streets by their dogs, for they are blind as to intellectual sight; or rather they are like sleep-walkers, whose actions are all done blindly, and whose mental faculties are sound asleep.”
[14] Lastly those on the east spoke, and they said: “We agree with what our brethren have stated, that a man knows nothing from himself, but only from others and through others, in order that he may realize and acknowledge that all his knowledge, intelligence and wisdom are from God; otherwise a man could not be born and begotten of God, and become an image and likeness of Him. For he becomes an image of God as he acknowledges and believes that all the good of love and charity and all the truth of wisdom and faith which he has received and continues to receive are from God, and that none whatever is from himself; and he is a likeness of God in that he sensibly perceives these things in himself as if they were from himself. He so feels because he is not born with knowledge, but acquires it; and what a man acquires appears to him to be from himself. God grants that he should have this feeling that he may be a man and not a beast. Since by it he wills, thinks, loves, knows, understands and becomes wise as from himself, he acquires knowledge, exalts it to intelligence, and by using it converts it into wisdom. In this way God conjoins man to Himself and a man conjoins himself to God. This would have been impossible had God not provided that a man should be born in total ignorance.”
[15] After this statement all desired that a conclusion should be drawn up from the views expressed, and this was done as follows: “A man is born without knowledge in order that he may acquire all knowledge, advance to intelligence, and thence to wisdom. He is born with no love that he may acquire all love by the intelligent use of knowledge; and particularly that he may acquire love of God by love towards the neighbor, that he may thus be conjoined to God, and consequently become a man and live for ever.”
[16] Thereupon they took up the paper and read the third subject of inquiry, which was: What is meant by the tree of life, what by the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, and what by eating of them? As this is a subject of unusual difficulty, all requested that those on the east should explain it, because those from the east are in that fiery light which is the wisdom of love. This wisdom is meant by the Garden of Eden, in which were planted those two trees. They replied: “We will express our views, but as man does not derive anything from himself but from God, we will speak from Him, but still as from ourselves.” They then spoke as follows: “A tree signifies a man, and its fruit the good of life. Hence by the tree of life is signified a man living from God; and because love and wisdom, and charity and faith, or good and truth, constitute the life of God in a man, by the tree of life is signified a man who has those qualities from God, and who consequently has eternal life. The same is signified by the tree of life of which it will be granted to eat, Rev. ii. 7; and xxii. 2, 14. [17] By the tree of the knowledge of good and evil is signified a man who believes that he lives from himself, and not from God; thus that love and wisdom, charity and faith, that is, good and truth, are in a man as his own, and not God’s. He believes this because he thinks and wills, speaks and acts to all appearance as if from himself; and because a man by such a belief persuades himself that he is a god, therefore the serpent said:
“God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as God (A.V., gods), knowing good and evil.” Gen. iii. 5.
[18] By eating of those trees is signified reception and appropriation: by eating of the tree of life, the reception of eternal life, and by eating of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, the reception of eternal death or damnation. By the serpent is meant the devil as to the love of self and the pride of self-intelligence. Love of self is the possessor of that tree, and men who are in the pride of that love are such trees. Those therefore are in great error who believe that Adam was wise and did good from himself and that his was a state of integrity, seeing that Adam himself was cursed for that belief; for this is signified by eating of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. For this reason he fell from the state of integrity he enjoyed while he believed that he was wise and did good from God, and not from himself; for this is meant by eating of the tree of life. The Lord alone, when He was in the world, was wise and did good from Himself, because the Divine itself was in Him and was His from birth; therefore also by His own power He became the Redeemer and Savior.” [19] From these arguments they came to this conclusion: “By the tree of life, and by the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, and by eating of them is meant that God in a man is his life, and His presence brings heaven and eternal life; but death for a man is the rooted belief that his life is not God but man himself, and this brings hell and eternal death, which is meant by damnation.”
[20] After this they looked at the paper which had been left by the angels upon the table, and read what was written as a post-script: “Unite these three in one general conclusion.” They brought them together and saw that the three formed a coherent sequence which they expressed as follows: “Man was created to receive love and wisdom from God, yet to all appearance as if from himself, and this for the sake of reception and conjunction; and therefore a man is not born with any love, nor any knowledge, nor even any power of loving and of becoming wise from himself. Therefore if he ascribes all the good of love and all the truth of wisdom to God, he becomes a living man; but if he ascribes them to himself, he becomes a dead man.” This they wrote upon a fresh paper and laid it on the table; and suddenly angels appeared in a bright cloud, and carried the paper into heaven. When it was read there those who sat on the seats heard words of approbation. Immediately there appeared one flying as it were from heaven, with two wings about his feet and two about his temples, bringing the rewards which consisted of robes, caps and laurel wreaths. When he alighted he presented to those who sat on the north opal-colored robes, to those on the west scarlet-colored robes, and to those on the south caps having their borders adorned with bands of gold and pearls, and ornamented on the top of the left side with diamonds cut in the form of flowers; but to those on the east he presented laurel wreaths with rubies and sapphires among the leaves. Then, decorated with these rewards, they all went joyfully home from the school of wisdom.
We have treated of the Divine Love and the Divine Wisdom, and shown that these two are the Divine Essence. We shall now treat of the omnipotence, omniscience, and omnipresence of God, because these three proceed from the Divine Love and the Divine Wisdom in much the same manner as the power and the presence of the sun are in this world, and in every part of it, by means of its heat and light. Also, the heat from the Sun of the spiritual world, in the midst of which is Jehovah God, is in its essence Divine Love, and the light therefrom is, in its essence, Divine Wisdom. From this it is clear that as infinity, immensity, and eternity pertain to the Divine Being, so omnipotence, omniscience, and omnipresence pertain to the Divine Essence. But as these three attributes of the Divine Essence have not hitherto been understood, because the method of their activity according to the laws of order was unknown, they will be explained in separate articles as follows:
(1) Omnipotence, omniscience, and omnipresence are attributes of the Divine Wisdom from the Divine Love.
(2) The omnipotence, omniscience, and omnipresence of God cannot be understood unless it is known what order is; and unless it is known that God is order, and that at creation He introduced order into the universe and into all its parts.
(3) The Omnipotence of God, in the universe and in all its parts, proceeds and operates according to the laws of His order.
(4) God is Omniscient, that is, He perceives, sees, and knows all things, even to the most minute, that are done according to order, and also from these, whatever is done contrary to order.
(5) God is Omnipresent in all things from first to last of His order.
(6) Man was created a form of Divine order.
(7) A man has power against evil and falsity from the Divine omnipotence, wisdom concerning good and truth from the Divine omniscience, and is in God from the Divine omnipresence, so far as he lives according to the Divine order.
These articles will now be treated separately.
That omnipotence, omniscience and omnipresence are attributes of the Divine Wisdom from the Divine Love, but not of the Divine Love through the Divine Wisdom is an abstruse heavenly truth (arcanum) which has yet entered the mind of any one, because no one has hitherto known what love is in its essence, and what wisdom is in its essence, and still less concerning the influx of the one into the other. For love with all that pertains to it flows into wisdom and there abides, like a king in his kingdom, or a master in his house, leaving to its judgment the whole direction of justice, and since justice is an attribute of love, and judgment of wisdom, leaving to wisdom the whole authority of love. This truth will be made clear in what follows; in the meantime let it stand as a general principle. That God is omnipotent, omniscient, and omnipresent by means of the wisdom of His Love is meant by these words in John:
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. …. All things were made by Him, and without Him was not anything made that was made. In Him was life, and the life was the light of men…. The world was made by Him: … and the Word was made flesh.” i. 1, 3, 4, 10, 14.
By the Word is there meant Divine Truth, or, what amounts to the same, Divine Wisdom. Therefore also it is called life and light, and life and light are nothing but wisdom.
“Justice and judgment are the support. (A. V., habitation) of Thy throne.” Ps. lxxxix. 14.
“Let him that glorieth glory in this,… (that I am the Lord) which exercise … judgment and righteousness in the earth.” Jer. ix. 24.
“JEHOVAH is exalted…for He hath filled the earth (A.V., Zion) with judgment and righteousness.” Isa. xxxiii. 6.
“Let judgment run down as waters, and righteousness as a mighty stream.” Amos v. 24.
“Thy righteousness is like the great mountains; Thy judgments are a great deep.” Ps. xxxvi. 6.
“He shall bring forth His (A.V., thy) righteousness as the light, and Thy judgment as the noon-day.” Ps. xxxvii. 6.
“He shall judge His (A.V., thy) people with righteousness, and His (A.V., thy) poor with judgment.” Ps. lxxii. 2.
“When I shall have learned Thy righteous judgments…. Seven times a day do I praise Thee because of Thy righteous judgments.” Ps. cxix. 7, 164.
“I will betroth me unto Thee (A.V., thee unto me) in righteousness and in judgment.” Hos. ii. 19.
“Zion shall be redeemed with judgment, and her converts with righteousness.” Isa. i. 27.
“Upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom,… to establish it with judgment and with justice.” Isa. ix. 7.
“I will raise unto David a righteous branch, and a king shall reign … and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth.” Jer. xxiii. 5; xxxiii. 15.
In other places it is said that men ought to do justice and judgment,
as in Isa. i. 21, v. 16, lviii. 2; Jer. iv. 2, xxii. 3, 13, 15; Ezek. viii. 5, xxxiii. 14, 16, 19; Amos vi. 12; Micah vii. 9; Deut. xxxiii. 21; John xvi. 8, 10, 11.
Many grave absurdities have crept into the minds of men, and thence into the Church by the introduction of innovations, because men have not understood the order in which God created the universe, and every part of it. The number and nature of these views will be evident from the mere record of them in the following pages. In the first place what order is may be explained by this general definition of the term: Order is the quality of disposition, determination, and activity of the parts, substances, or entities which constitute form, giving rise to state, whose perfection is produced by wisdom from its own love, or whose imperfection is brought about by insane reasoning from lust. In this definition mention is made of substance, form and state; and by substance is at the same time meant form, because all substance is form, and the quality of form is its state, the perfection or imperfection of which results from order. However, since these things are metaphysical, they will necessarily appear obscure until they are illustrated by references to particular examples, which will be done in what follows.
God is omnipotent because He is able to do all things from Himself, and the power of all others is derived from Him. His power and will are one; and since He wills nothing but good, therefore He can do nothing but good. In the spiritual world no one can do anything contrary to his own will, and this they derive from God, whose power and will are one. God also is good itself, so that while He does good, He is in Himself, and to go out of Himself is impossible. It is therefore clear that His omnipotence proceeds and operates within the sphere of the extension of good, which is infinite; for this sphere from its inmost fills the universe and everything in it, and from its inmost rules over the things that are without in so far as they unite according to their order. If they do not enter into this conjunction, this sphere still sustains them, and strives with all its endeavor to bring them into the order that harmonizes with the universal order in which God Himself is in His omnipotence, and according to which He acts. If this is unavailing, they are cast out from Him, yet nevertheless this sphere, from its inmost, continues to sustain them. It may be evident from this that the Divine omnipotence can in no wise go out from itself to make contact with any evil, nor can it promote evil from itself. For evil turns itself away, and thus it happens that evil is completely separated from God and cast into hell, between which and heaven, where He is, there is a great gulf. From these few considerations it may be seen how foolish those are who think, and more so who believe, and still more so who teach that God can condemn, curse, and cast any one into hell; that He can predestine the soul of any to eternal death, avenge injuries, be angry, and punish. The fact is that He cannot turn Himself away from any man, nor look upon him with a stern countenance. Such things as these are contrary to His Essence, and what is contrary to this is contrary to Himself.
If the Divine omnipotence went out equally to do evil as well as good, what difference would there be between God and the devil? The difference would be like that between two monarchs, one of whom is both king and tyrant, and the other only a tyrant whose power is so constricted that he cannot exercise the beneficent functions of a king; or like that between two shepherds, one of whom may tend both sheep and the leopard, while the other may not exercise this choice. Any one can see that good and evil are opposites, and if God from His omnipotence could will both, and could carry out His will, He would in fact be able to accomplish nothing, and would have no power, much less omnipotence. It would be as if two wheels were to act against each other, turning in opposite directions, so that each wheel would consequently stop, and remain completely at rest. Or it would be as if a ship were to be caught in a current running contrary to its course: it would be carried away and lost if its anchor did not bring it to rest. Or it would be as if a man had two wills at variance with one another, one of which was forced to remain dormant while the other was active; but if each were active at the same time, a raging madness would seize hold of his mind.
From this absurd belief concerning the omnipotence of God it would follow that God could change every goat among men into a sheep, and at His own good pleasure transfer him from His left to His right hand. Then also He could transform the spirits of the dragon into angels of Michael,* and bestow the sight of an eagle upon a man with the intellect of a mole; in a word make a human owl into a human dove. These things, however, God cannot do, because they are contrary to the laws of His order, although His constant will and endeavor is to bring them about. If He could have done such things He would not have permitted Adam to listen to the serpent and take the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, and put it to his mouth. Nor would He have permitted Cain to kill his brother, David to number the people, Solomon to erect temples to idols, and the kings of Judah and of Israel to profane the Temple, as they so often did. Indeed, if He could have done so, He would have saved, without exception, the whole human race through the redemption wrought by His Son, and extirpated the whole of hell. Such omnipotence as this the Gentiles of old attributed to their gods and goddesses. Thus arose their fables, as that Deucalion and Pyrrha threw stones behind them, which became men, that Apollo** changed Daphne into a laurel, that Diana*** changed a hunter into a stag, and that another goddess turned the maidens of Parnassus into magpies. It is a similar belief concerning the Divine omnipotence which is prevalent today, and from it have spread, throughout the religious world, so many fanatical and consequently heretical opinions.
* Michael, the archangel.
** Apollo, god of divination, healing, poetry and music.
*** Diana, sister of Apollo, goddess of the chase.
God is omniscient, that is, He perceives, sees, and knows all things because He is Wisdom itself and Light itself; and Wisdom itself perceives all things, and Light itself sees all things. That God is Wisdom itself was shown above; and He is Light itself because He is the Sun of the angelic heaven which enlightens the understanding of all, both angels and men. For as the eye is illumined by the light of the natural sun, so is the understanding illumined by the light of the spiritual Sun; and not only illumined but also filled with intelligence according to the love of receiving it, since that light in its essence is wisdom. Therefore in David it is said:
that God dwelleth in light inaccessible;
and in Revelation:
that in the New Jerusalem they have no need of a candle, because the Lord God enlighteneth them.
In John also it is said
that the Word which was with God, and which was God, is the Light which lighteth every man that cometh into the world.
By the Word is meant Divine Wisdom. The angels therefore enjoy clearness of light in proportion to their wisdom; and therefore also when light is mentioned in the Word wisdom is meant.
Those whose understandings are in the light of wisdom are like men standing at mid-day on a mountain top, who see clearly all that is below; and those who are in a still higher light are like those who observe through telescopes objects around and beneath them as if close at hand. Those, however, who are in the delusive light of hell from the confirmation of falsities are like men who, standing on the same mountain in the night time with lanterns in their hands, see nothing but the objects nearest them, and even their forms indistinctly and their colors vaguely. The man who is in some light of truth, but nevertheless in a life of evil, while he remains in the delight of the love of evil, at first sees truths only as a bat sees linen hanging out in a garden, towards which it flies as to a place of refuge. Afterwards he becomes like a bird of night, and at length like an owl. He then may be compared to a chimney-sweep, clinging in a dark flue, who when he looks upward sees the sky through smoke, but when he looks downward sees only the fire-place from which the smoke rises.
“If I ascend up into heaven, Thou art there; if I make my bed in hell, behold Thou art there.” Ps. cxxxix. 8;
and in another place:
“Though they dig into hell, thence shall My hand take them.” Amos ix. 2.
God is omnipresent from first things to last of His order by means of the heat and light from the Sun of the spiritual world, in the midst of which He is. By means of this Sun order was created, and from it He sends out the heat and light which pervade the universe from first things to last, producing life in men and in all animals, and also the vegetable life in every germinating thing on the earth. Heat and light enter by influx into all things in general and in particular, causing every subject to live and grow according to the order impressed upon it at Creation; and because God is not extended, and yet fills all things in the universe that are extended, He is omnipresent. It has been shown elsewhere that God is in all space yet without space, and in all time without time, and consequently that the universe as to its essence and order is the fullness of God; and because this is so, by His omnipresence He perceives all things, by His omniscience He provides for all things, and by His omnipotence He administers all things. Hence it is evident that omnipresence, omniscience, and omnipotence make one, or that each implies the other, and thus that they cannot be separated.
Presence with angels and spirits is of this nature because every affection of love, and consequently every thought of the understanding is in space without space, and in time without time. For every one can think of a brother, relative, or friend in the Indies and have him then, as if were, present with him. Similarly he can feel affection for his friends by calling them to remembrance. By these examples which are familiar to every one the Divine omnipresence may in some measure be illustrated. The thoughts of men furnish other examples; for when any one recalls to memory what he has seen on his travels in various places, he, as it were, re-visits them. Indeed physical sight acts in a somewhat similar manner. It does not notice distance except by means of intermediate objects, which serve as a measure. The sun itself would be close to the eye, would in fact appear to be in it, unless intervening objects indicated its remoteness, as writers on optics point out in their books. Presence of this nature pertains both to the intellectual and to the physical sight of man, because his spirit sees by means of his eyes; but this is not so with animals, for they have no spiritual sight. From these considerations it is evident that God is omnipresent from first things to last of His order: that He is also omnipresent in hell was shown in the preceding article.
* …into a similar affection of love. …in similem affectionem amoris. In general, by affectio is meant the relation or disposition toward a thing produced in a person by some influence (Lewis and Short). In A.E. 1175 it is stated: “By affection is meant the same as love but love is as the fountain and affections are as the streams that how from it, thus also they are its continuations.” In D.P. 194 affections are called loves, ” … the life’s love produces from itself subordinate loves called affections.” In CHARITY, 8, we have “a spiritual love or affection,” and “a … natural love or affection,” and in 152: “His life and his soul become a love of use, or an affection of use.”
** Luther, Martin, A.D. 1483-1646, the leader of the Protestant Reformation in Germany, was born at Eisleben, Saxony. He was a student at Erfurt in law and divinity, and was ordained priest in A.D. 1507. He left Erfurt for a chair in the university of Wittenberg, where his preaching attracted great attention. Here he made his first public protest against the Romish Church by condemning the sale of indulgences. The Lutheran Church dates its origin from the year A.D. 1520 when Luther was expelled from the Romish Church. It assumed a more definite shape on the publication in A.D. 1530 of the Augsburg Confession. This was drawn up by Melanchthon and Luther as the principal standard of the Church. The final establishment of the Lutheran Church was made possible by the friendly offices of Maurice, Elector of Saxony.
*** Calvin, John, A.D. 1509-1564, was called by Melanchthon “The theologian of the sixteenth century.” He studied law as well as theology, became a Protestant and induced the authorities of Geneva to renounce Popery. The friend of John Knox, he exercised a powerful influence on Scottish Protestantism. His views may be summarized thus: particular election; particular redemption; moral inability in a fallen state; free grace; and ultimate salvation for the elect, notwithstanding many failings and aberrations on the part of the believer. In its leading features his theology is that of Augustine.
**** Melanchthon, the foremost scholar among the early Protestants, A.D. 1497-1560. He met Luther at Wittenberg where he was professor of Greek. He exercised a powerful influence over Luther, and was mainly responsible for drawing up the Augsburg Confession. On Luther’s death he became the leader of the Lutherans.
Man was created a form of Divine order because he was created an image and likeness of God; and because God is order itself, he was created an image and likeness of order. Order first originated and has since continued to subsist from these two, Divine Love and Divine Wisdom. As man was created to be a recipient of these, he was also created in the order according to which they operate in the universe, and especially according to which they operate in the angelic heaven, for the whole of heaven is thus a form of Divine order on the largest scale, and is in the sight of God as one man. There is also a complete correspondence between heaven and man; for there is not a single society in heaven which does not correspond to one of the members, viscera, or organs in man. Therefore in heaven it is said that such and such a society is in the province of the liver, the pancreas, the spleen, the stomach, the eye, the ear, the tongue, and so forth. The angels themselves also know what part of the body is represented by the province in which they live. The truth of this I have been able to observe from actual demonstration. I have seen a society of angels, consisting of several thousands, as one man; from which it was evident to me that heaven in the aggregate is an image of God, and that an image of God is a form of Divine order.
Man has power against evils and falsities from the Divine omnipotence so far as he lives according to Divine order, because no one can resist evils and their falsities but God alone. For all evils and their falsities are from hell, where they combine, forming as it were a unity, as do all kinds of good and their truths in heaven. As was said above, all heaven appears as one man in the sight of God, while hell is like a giant monster; so that to oppose one evil and its falsity is to oppose that monstrous giant, or all hell, and this no one can do but God, because He is omnipotent. From this it is evident that unless a man approaches the omnipotent God, he has of himself no more power against evil and its falsity than a fish has against the ocean, or a flea against a whale, or a speck of dust against an avalanche; and much less than a locust has against an elephant, or a fly against a camel. Moreover, a man has still less power against evil and its falsity because he is born in evil, and evil cannot act against itself. It follows, therefore, that unless a man lives according to order, that is, unless he acknowledges God, His omnipotence, and its protection against hell; and further, unless he, on his part, also fights against evil in himself, for both are implied by order, he must sink down to hell, and be there overwhelmed, driven about by one evil after another as a boat is tossed on the sea by storms.
[2] The man who raises his mind to God and acknowledges that all the truth of wisdom is from Him, and at the same time lives according to order, is like one who, standing upon a lofty tower, sees below him a populous city and all the activity of its streets. The man, however, who confirms in his own mind that all the truth of wisdom is from the natural light (lumen) within him, and thus from himself, is like one who remains in a cave at the foot of that tower, looking through clefts in it towards the same city, but who sees nothing there except the wall of one house, and how the bricks are built into it. Moreover, the man who derives wisdom from God, is like a bird flying on high, which surveys everything in the gardens, woods, and farms beneath, and flies towards whatever can be of use to its wants. The man, however, who derives from himself such things as pertain to wisdom, believing they can in no way be of God, is like the hornet which, flying close to the ground, lights upon the first dung-hill it sees, and delights in its stench. Every man while he lives in the world walks midway between heaven and hell. Consequently he is in equilibrium, and has freedom of will to look upward to God or downward to hell. If he looks upward to God, he acknowledges that all wisdom is from Him, and as to his spirit he actually is in the company of angels in heaven; but he who looks downward, as every one does who lives in falsity from evil, is as to his spirit actually in the company of devils in hell.
He wills that man should be in Him, and that He should be in man. John xv. 4.
[2] Man is in God by a life according to order, because God is omnipresent in the inmost parts of the universe and everything therein, for these are in order. In those things, however, which are contrary to order, as is the case with those things alone which are outside the inmost parts, God is omnipresent, continually striving with them in the constant effort to reduce them to order. Therefore so far as a man suffers himself to be brought into order, God is omnipresent in his whole being, and consequently God is in him and he is in God. The absence of God from a man is no more possible than the absence from the earth of the sun with its heat and light. Earthly objects, however, do not enjoy the full influence of the sun except when they receive its heat and light in springtime and summer. [3] These considerations may be applied to the Divine omnipresence, because a man is in spiritual heat and at the same time in spiritual light, that is, in the good of love and in the truths of wisdom, only in so far as he is in order. However, spiritual heat and light differ from natural heat and light, for natural heat departs from the earth and its objects in winter, and natural light withdraws during the night in consequence of the earth’s rotation round its own axis and its revolution round the sun; but it is not so with spiritual heat and light, for God is present with every one by means of His Sun, which does not change as the sun of this world appears to do. It is man who turns himself away as the earth turns from its sun; and when he turns away from the truths of wisdom he is like the earth turned away from the sun at night, but as he turns from the good of love he is like the earth turned away from the sun in winter. From this comparison may be seen the correspondence existing between the effects and uses of the Sun of the spiritual world and those of the sun of the natural world.
To the above will now be added three Memorabilia. The first is as follows:
I once heard beneath me a sound like the roaring of the sea; and when I asked what it was, one informed me that it was a disturbance among spirits gathered in the lower earth which is just over hell. Presently the ground that formed a roof over them opened up, and there flew through the opening birds of night in flocks, spreading towards the left. Immediately after them rose swarms of locusts, lighting on the herbage of the earth and turning it everywhere into a desert. In a little while, coming in quick succession from the birds of night, I heard screamings, and on one side a confused clamor as if from spectres in the woods. Then I saw beautiful birds from heaven spreading towards the right, brilliant with wings like gold, streaked and spotted with silver, while on the heads of some were crests in the form of crowns. While I gazed at these things with wonder suddenly from the lower earth, where the disturbance was, a spirit arose who was able to assume the form of an angel of light, calling out: “Where is he who speaks and writes about the order to which the omnipotent God has bound Himself in relation to man? We have heard his views through the covering that is over us.” Being now above that earth he hurried along a paved way, and approaching me, he instantly put on the appearance of an angel of heaven, and in an assumed voice said: “Are you the man who thinks and speaks about order? Tell me briefly what order is, and some facts concerning it.”
[2] To this I replied: “I will tell you the general principles, but not particulars, because you cannot understand them,” and I proceeded to enumerate them as follows: (1) God is order itself. (2) He created man from order, in order, and for order. (3) He created man’s rational mind according to the order of the whole spiritual world, and his body according to the order of the whole natural world. On this account man was called by the Ancients a heaven in little, and a world in little. (4) Therefore it is a law of order that a man from his own little heaven or little spiritual world should govern his own microcosm or little natural world, just as God from His great heaven or spiritual world governs the macrocosm or natural world in all things in general and in particular. (5) It is a consequent law of order that a man ought to enter into faith by truths from the Word, and into charity by good works, and so reform and regenerate himself. (6) It is a law of order that a man should purify himself from sins by his labor and power, and not stand still, believing in his own impotence, and expecting God forthwith to wash away his sins. (7) It is a further law of order that a man should love God with all his soul and with all his heart, and his neighbor as himself, and not wait in the expectation that these loves will be put into his mind and heart in an instant by God, just as bread from the baker’s is put into his mouth. And there are many more laws like these.”
[3] When the satan heard these things he replied in a bland voice infused with cunning: “What is this that you say? That a man by his own power must enter into order by the practice of its laws? Do you not know that a man is not under the law but under grace, that all things are given him of free grace, that he cannot acquire anything for himself unless it be given him from heaven, and that in spiritual matters of himself he has no more power of action than the pillar which was Lot’s wife, or Dagon the idol of the Philistines in Ekron? Consequently that it is impossible for a man to justify himself, for this is accomplished by faith and charity?” To this I merely replied: “It is also a law of order that a man must, by his own labor and power, procure for himself faith by truths from the Word, and yet he must believe that not a particle of faith is from himself but from God. Also that a man must justify himself by his own labor and power, but in the belief that not even a jot of justification is from himself but from God. Has it not been commanded that a man must believe on God and love Him with all his strength, and his neighbor as himself? Think, therefore, and say how these things could have been commanded by God, if a man had not the power to obey and to do them?” [4] When the satan heard this his appearance changed, and his countenance, which was bright at first, became sallow and quickly darkened, and speaking in undisguised tones he said, “You utter paradox upon paradox.” Thereupon sinking down towards his own companions he disappeared. The birds on the left together with the spectres uttering their strange cries plunged into the sea which is there called Suph. The locusts in their flight followed them, and both air and land were cleared of these dire creatures, the disturbance below ceased and all became tranquil and serene.
[2] There stood beside them certain spirits of simple faith and upright in heart, some with flaming eyes, some as if stupefied, some as if intoxicated and some gasping as they listened to the discussion. They muttered to one another: “What have we to do with these ravings? These spirits have become infatuated with their belief that God the Father imputes the righteousness of His Son to whomsoever He wills, and whenever He pleases, and sends the Holy Spirit to ratify the assurances of that righteousness; and lest any man should claim for himself the least part in the work of his salvation, he must be just like a stone in the matter of justification, and like a stock in regard to spiritual things.” Then one of them made his way into the company and in a loud voice exclaimed: “O fools! Your reasoning is utterly futile. You evidently do not know that the omnipotent God is order itself, and that the laws of order are countless in number, as numerous indeed as the truths contained in the Word. God cannot act contrary to those laws, for this would be to act contrary to Himself, and thus not only contrary to justice but also contrary to His own omnipotence.”
[3] He looked and there appeared on his right hand some distance away a sheep, and a lamb, and a dove in flight; and on his left a goat, a wolf, and a vulture; and he said: “Do you suppose that God, by His omnipotence, could change that goat into a sheep, or that wolf into a lamb, or that vulture into a dove, or the reverse? No: for it is against the laws of His order, of which not even a tittle can fail, according to His own words. How then can He impart the righteousness of His Son’s redemption to any one who stubbornly opposes the laws of His righteousness? How can righteousness itself commit unrighteousness and predestine any one to hell, and consign him to the fire which the devil kindles and feeds? O fools! There is nothing of the spirit in you. Your faith has seduced you. That faith is like a snare in your hands to catch doves.” On hearing these words a certain magician appeared to make of that faith a snare and hung it on a tree, saying, “Watch me catch that dove!” Presently a hawk flew towards the snare, and putting its neck into it was caught, while the dove, seeing the plight of the hawk, flew past. Those who stood by were amazed at the sight, and exclaimed, “This display is an assurance of righteousness.”
* Lucifer, fabled son of Aurora, or of Jupiter, morning star, day.
** Supralapsarian, one who maintains that the decree of election as regards eternal salvation of some and the eternal reprobation of others was a part of the original plan; and that the fall of Adam was predestinated from all eternity. (Supra, beyond, and lapsus, the fall.)
[2] As they said this they looked at me and I at them: and observing their perplexity I said: “I will entreat the Lord for you and offer you a remedy from Him by making this matter clear to you; but for the present merely by citing some examples. The omnipotent God created the world from the order which is in Himself, and thus in the order in which He is, and according to which He rules; and He has endowed the universe and every part of it with its own order, man with his own order, and beast, bird, fish, worm, every tree and even the grass with its own particular order. As examples will make this clear I will briefly mention the following. The laws of order have been prescribed for man to the end that he should acquire for himself truths from the Word, consider them from his natural faculties, and as far as he is able, from his rational faculty, and so procure for himself a natural faith. On the other hand the laws of order as they relate to God are that He should draw near and fill those truths with His Divine light, and so fill with His Divine Essence man’s natural faith, which of itself is mere knowledge and persuasion: for thus only does natural faith become a saving faith.
The case is the same with charity, some particulars of which we will now briefly review. God, according to His laws of order, cannot remit the sins of any one except in so far as he, according to his laws of order, abstains from them; nor can God regenerate man on the spiritual plane except in so far as he, according to his laws, regenerates himself on the natural plane. God is continually endeavoring to regenerate, and thus to save man; but this He cannot do unless man prepares himself to become a recipient, and so clears the way for God’s entry by opening the door. The bridegroom cannot enter the chamber of a maiden before she becomes his bride, for she closes the door and keeps the key herself; but when she becomes his bride she gives the key to her husband. [3] God could not, by His omnipotence, have redeemed man unless He had Himself become man, nor could He have made His Human Divine unless His Human had first been like that of an infant, and later like that of a child; and unless His Human had afterwards formed itself into a recipient and abiding-place into which the Father of it might enter. This took place as the Lord fulfilled all things in the Word, that is, all the laws of order in it; and as He completed this work, He united Himself with the Father and the Father became united with Him. These few things are adduced by way of illustration to show you that the Divine omnipotence is within the bounds of order, and that its government, which is called providence, is in accordance with order, and that it acts continually and to eternity in conformity with the laws of its own order; moreover that it cannot act against them, nor change the slightest particle of them, because order with all its laws is Himself.”
[4] At these words a glory of golden light streamed through the roof like flying cherubs in the air, and its ruddy glow lighted up the heads of some of those present backward from the temples, but not their foreheads as yet, for they murmured, “We still do not know what omnipotence is.” However I replied: “This will be revealed to you when the words have just heard are more fully understood.”
* Augustus Octavius, first and greatest of Roman Emperors, 63 B.C.-A.D. 14. He ruled as an absolute monarch although appearing to preserve the republican constitution.
** Nero, Emperor of Rome, A.D. 37-68, noted for his indiscriminate brutality and cruel persecution of the Christians.
[2] When they caught sight of me near them some ran towards me and said with some vehemence: “Are you the one who has circumscribed God with laws as with bonds? What presumption! By this you have also shattered our faith on which our salvation is founded, in the centre of which we place the righteousness of the Redeemer, next to this the omnipotence of God the Father, and to these we add the operation of the Holy Spirit. We attribute the efficacy of this faith to the absolute impotence of man in spiritual matters, for whom it is enough to proclaim the fullness of justification, which is imparted to this faith from the omnipotence of God.” “But I have heard,” continued one of them, “that you see only absurdity in this faith, because it contains nothing on the part of man in the Divine order.” On hearing these words I said in a loud voice: “Learn the laws of Divine order, and then examine your faith, and you will see a great wilderness in which is a leviathan, long and sinuous, with nets coiled round it in an inextricable knot. But do as Alexander is reported to have done, who, when he saw the Gordian knot, drew his sword, severed it, and thus loosed its entanglements. Then throwing it on the ground, he trod its cords under foot.”
[3] At these words those who were gathered round bit their tongues, as though to sharpen them for a crushing retort; but they did not dare to reply, for they saw heaven opened above me and heard a voice thence saying: “Restrain yourselves, and first hear what order is, according to whose laws the omnipotent God acts.” And the voice continued: “God from Himself, as from order, created the universe in order and for order. In like manner He created man, and established in him the laws of his own order, by virtue of which he became an image and likeness of God. The substance of these laws is that he should believe on God and love his neighbor; and so far as he does this from his natural powers, he makes himself a recipient of the Divine omnipotence, and God unites Himself to man and man to God. Consequently his faith becomes a living and a saving faith, and his practice a living and saving charity. It should be known, however, that God is always present, striving and acting in every man, even touching his free will, but never forcing it. For if He should violate man’s free will, his dwelling place in God would be destroyed, and only God’s dwelling place in man would remain. This dwelling place is in all men, whether on earth, in heaven, or in hell, for it is the source of their power to will and to understand. But there is no reciprocal dwelling of man in God, unless with those who live according to the laws of order prescribed in the Word; and they become images and likenesses of Him. To them paradise is given for a possession, and the fruit of the tree of life for food; but the others gather round the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, hold converse there with the serpent, eat of this tree, and are afterwards driven from paradise; nevertheless God does not forsake them, but they forsake God.”
[4] Those who wore caps understood these things and approved them, but those who wore turbans denied their truth, saying, “Does not this mean a limitation of omnipotence? and a limitation of omnipotence implies a contradiction.” To this I replied: “It is not a contradiction to act with omnipotence according to the laws of justice with judgment, or according to laws inscribed on love from wisdom. It is a contradiction, however, that God should be able to act contrary to the laws of His own justice and love, for this would not be from judgment and wisdom. Such a contradiction is involved in your faith that God can of mere grace justify an unrighteous man, and single him out with all the gifts of salvation and the rewards of life. I will, however, briefly state what is meant by the omnipotence of God. God from His omnipotence created the universe, and at the same time introduced order into all its parts. He also from His omnipotence preserves the universe and perpetually maintains order there with all its laws; and should anything lapse from order, He brings it back and restores it again. Further, God from His omnipotence established the Church, and revealed in the Word its laws of order. When it lapsed from order He restored it; and when its fall was complete, He Himself came down into the world, and by means of the Human which He assumed, He clothed Himself with omnipotence, and restored it.
[5] From His omnipotence and also from His omniscience God examines every one after death and prepares the righteous, or the sheep, for their places in heaven, and of them He forms heaven; but He prepares the unrighteous, or the goats, for their places in hell, and of them He forms hell. He arranges both into societies and communities, according to all the varieties of their love, which are as numerous in heaven as the stars in the natural firmament; and He unites the societies in heaven into one, so that they appear as one man before Him. In like manner He unites the communities in hell, so that they appear as one devil; and He separates the latter from the former by a gulf, lest hell should do violence to heaven, and lest heaven should cause torment to hell, for those who are in hell suffer torment should they receive influx from heaven. Unless God from His omnipotence were to continue acting thus every moment, a savage nature would enter into men until they could no longer be restrained by the laws of any order, and thus the human race would perish. These things, and others of a like nature, would happen unless God were order, and omnipotent in order.” Having heard this, those who wore caps departed with their caps under their arms, praising God; for in that world the intelligent wear caps. It is different with those who wear turbans, for they are bald, and baldness is a sign of dullness. As they all departed the latter went away to the left, but the former to the right.
Since the subject of this first Chapter is God the Creator, the Creation of the universe by Him must also be treated, as in the following Chapter, where the subject is the Lord the Redeemer, Redemption shall also be considered. No one, however, can form a right idea of the creation of the universe unless some general principles are first stated which will enlighten the understanding, such as the following:
[2] (1) There are two worlds, the spiritual world where angels and spirits are, and the natural world where men are. (2) In each world there is a sun, and the Sun of the spiritual world is pure love from Jehovah God, who is in the midst of it. From that Sun proceed heat and light, the heat from it being, in its essence, love, and the light, in its essence, being wisdom. These two affect the will and the understanding of man, the heat affecting his will and the light his understanding. But the sun of the natural world is pure fire, and therefore its heat and light are dead, and serve as a covering and means to spiritual heat and light by which they may be conveyed to man. [3] (3) Moreover, the heat and light which proceed from the Sun of the spiritual world, and consequently all things that exist in that world by their means, are substantial, and are called spiritual; and the heat and light which proceed from the sun of the natural world, and consequently all things that exist in this world by their means, are material and are called natural. [4] (4) In each world there are three degrees, called degrees of altitude, and consequently three regions according to which the three angelic heavens are arranged. Men’s minds are also arranged in three degrees and regions, which thus correspond to the three angelic heavens; and other things in each world have a similar arrangement. [5] (5) There is a correspondence between the things in the spiritual and those in the natural world. [6] (6) There is an order into which all things in both worlds were created. [7] (7) Unless a right idea of these things be first of all obtained, the human mind, from mere ignorance of them, may easily conceive the idea of the creation of the universe by nature, and yet assert on ecclesiastical authority alone that nature was created by God; but because it knows not how, if it continues to examine the matter more closely, it falls into naturalism, which denies God. Since, however, a large volume would be required to explain and demonstrate in an adequate manner these articles in detail, and, moreover, as this does not properly belong to a system of theology, which is the subject of this book, even as an illustration or as an argument, I shall merely relate some memorabilia from which one may derive an idea of the creation of the universe by God, which may result in an adequate conception being attained.
Five memorabilia illustrating the subject of creation. The first experience. One day I was meditating upon the creation of the universe. This was noticed by angels above me on the right, where dwelt those who sometimes meditated and reasoned on this subject; so one of them came down and invited me to join them, and I, being in the spirit, accompanied him. On my arrival, I was conducted to the court of their prince where I saw some hundreds assembled, and the prince was in their midst. One of them said: “From our place here we perceived that you were meditating upon the creation of the universe. On several occasions we have considered the same subject, but we have not been able to come to any definite conclusion, because our thoughts were obsessed by the idea of a chaos, as of a great egg from which came forth the universe and all its parts in their order. Since, however, we now perceive that so great a universe could not have been so produced, another idea has clung to our minds, that all things were created by God out of nothing; and yet we also see that out of nothing nothing is made. From these two ideas our minds are not yet able to free themselves and perceive, with any degree of clearness, how creation was effected. We have, therefore, called you from the place where you were that you might give us the results of your meditation on the subject.”
[2] On hearing these words I replied: “I will do so;” and I said: “I had long considered this matter without reaching any conclusion; but after I was admitted by the Lord into your world, I perceived it was vain to form any conclusion about the creation of the universe unless it is first known that there are two worlds, one in which the angels are, and the other in which men are; and that after death men pass from their own world into the other world. Then I perceived that there were two suns, from one of which all spiritual things proceed, and from the other, all natural things; and that the Sun, from which all spiritual things proceed, is pure Love from Jehovah God, who is in its midst, and that the sun, from which all natural things proceed, is pure fire. When I learned these things, it was once granted me, in a state of enlightenment, to perceive that the universe was created by Jehovah God by means of the Sun, in the midst of which He is; and since Love cannot exist apart from Wisdom, I saw that the universe was created by Jehovah God from His Love by means of His Wisdom. The truth of this is clearly proved by everything I have seen in the world in which you are, as well as in the world in which I am as to the body.
[3] However, it would take too long to explain fully how creation proceeded from its beginning; but once, when in a state of enlightenment, I perceived that by means of light and heat from the Sun of your world spiritual atmospheres, which are in themselves substantial, were created one from another. As there are three of these atmospheres, and consequently three degrees of them, three heavens were formed, one for the angels who are in the highest degree of love and wisdom, another for those in the second degree, and a third for those in the lowest degree. As this spiritual universe cannot exist without a natural universe in which to produce its effects and perform its uses, I perceived that at the same time there was created a sun from which all natural things proceed, and that, in a similar manner by means of it, through the medium of its light and heat, three atmospheres were created, encompassing the former as the shell surrounds its kernel or as the bark of a tree surrounds the wood; and that finally, by means of these atmospheres, the terraqueous globe was formed, where are men, beasts and fish, also trees, shrubs and plants growing from earthly substances composed of soil, stones and minerals. [4] This, however, is but a most general sketch of creation and its progress, detailed particulars of which would require volumes to explain. But all things point to the conclusion that God did not create the universe out of nothing, for, as you have just remarked, out of nothing nothing is made; but He did so by means of the Sun of the angelic heaven, which is from His own Being, and consequently is pure Love united with Wisdom. That the universe, by which is meant both worlds, the spiritual and the natural, was created from the Divine Love by means of the Divine Wisdom, is clearly proved by everything in it; and if you study those things in their order and connection, you will be able to see them clearly by the light of your own understandings.
It has to be borne in mind, however, that Love and Wisdom, which form one in God, are not Love and Wisdom in any abstract sense, but are in Him as a substance, for God is Substance and Essence itself, the only and consequently the first, which is self-existent and self-subsistent. [5] That all things in general and in particular were created from the Divine Love and Divine Wisdom is meant by these words in John:
“The Word was with God, and the Word was God…. All things were made by Him … and the world was made by Him.” i. 1, 3, 10.
In this passage God signifies the Divine Love, and the Word signifies Divine Truth, or Divine Wisdom; for which reason the Word is also called light; and by light, when spoken of God, is meant Divine Wisdom.” When I had finished speaking and was preparing to take my leave, tiny rays of light came down through the angelic heavens from the Sun there into their eyes, and through these into the interiors of their minds; and being thus enlightened, they agreed with what I had said. Then they followed me to the entrance hall, and my former companion accompanied me to my house, and thence re-ascended to his own society.
[3] When the angels had listened to all this they replied: “You speak in this way because you are merely sensual. All who are in hell have their thoughts immersed in the bodily senses, above which they have no power to elevate their minds: we therefore excuse you. A life of evil and consequently a belief in what is false have closed the interiors of your minds, so that any elevation above what is sensual in you is not possible, unless in a state removed from the evils of life and the falsities of faith. For a satan, as well as an angel, has the power to understand truth when he hears it; but he does not retain it, because evil destroys truth, and introduces falsity. We perceive, however, that you are now in a state removed from evil, and so can understand the truth we speak. Attend therefore to what we are about to say.” Then they continued: “You once lived in the natural world and died there, and are now in the spiritual world. Before this did you know anything about the life after death? Did you not formerly deny it, thus making yourselves the equals of the beasts? Had you then any knowledge of heaven and hell, or of the light and heat of this world, or of the fact that you are no longer within the sphere of nature, but above it? For this world with everything in it is spiritual, and spiritual things are so far above natural things that not even the least thing of nature, in which you were, can come into this world. But, because you believed that nature is a god or a goddess, you believe also that the light and heat of this world are the light and heat of the natural world; which is far from being the case, for natural light is darkness here, and natural heat is cold. You knew nothing of the Sun of this world, from which proceed our light and heat. You did not know that this Sun is pure Love, and that the sun of the natural world is pure fire, from which nature exists and subsists; whereas from the Sun of heaven, which is pure Love, life itself, which is Love and Wisdom, exists and subsists; and consequently that nature, which you regard as a god or a goddess, is absolutely dead. [4] Under the care of a proper escort you can ascend with us into heaven, and with a similar escort we can descend with you into hell. In heaven are to be seen things magnificent and beautiful, but in hell things vile and unsightly. The reason for this difference is that all in heaven worship God, but all in hell worship nature; and the magnificent and beautiful things in heaven are correspondences of the affections of the love of good and truth, and the vile and unsightly things in the hells are correspondences of the affections of the love of evil and falsity. Judge then from all these considerations whether God or nature is all in all.” To this the satans replied: “In the state in which we are at the moment we can conclude from what we have heard that there is a God; but when the delight of evil takes possession of our minds we see nothing but nature.”
[5] The two angels and the satans were standing not far from me, so that I saw and heard them; and, behold! around them I saw many who had been renowned for their learning in the natural world. I was surprised to observe that those scholars stood now near the angels and now near the satans and agreed with those beside whom they stood; and I was informed that the change in the position they took up indicated the change in their attitude of mind, as it agreed now with one side, and now with the other, for they were as fickle in their faith as Vertumnus, the god of change; and the angels continued: “We will tell you something you will find hard to believe. We once looked down upon those on the earth who were celebrated for their learning, and found that six hundred out of a thousand were in favor of nature, and the rest in favor of God. Moreover, the latter are in favor of God, not from any understanding of the matter, but merely because they frequently repeated, from what they had heard, that nature is from God; for frequent repetition from the recollections of memory, and not at the same time from intelligent thought, induces a kind of faith.”
[6] Thereupon the satans were provided with an escort, and in the company of the two angels they ascended into heaven, and saw its magnificence and splendor. While they were there illumined by the light of heaven, they acknowledged that there is a God, and that nature was created to be subservient to the life that is from God, and that nature in itself is dead, and so does nothing of itself, but is actuated by life. After seeing these things, and understanding them, they descended; and as they went down, their love of evil returned, closing their understanding as to what is above, and opening it as to what is below. Then there appeared over it, as it were, an awning overshadowing it, flashing with infernal fire; and immediately their feet touched the ground, it yawned beneath them and they sank down again to their own.
[2] After I had seen these things, the angel said: “Turn your face to the east”; and I saw a garden in which were fruit trees, as orange, citron, olive, vine, fig, and pomegranate; and bushes which bore berries. He then told me to look towards the south, and I saw crops of various kinds of grain, such as wheat, millet, barley, and beans, and surrounding them rose-gardens with their beautifully variegated colors. Towards the north I saw groves of chestnut trees, palms, limes, planes, and other leafy trees. When I had seen these the angel said: “All these things which you have seen are correspondences of the affections of the love of the angels who are near you, and who were accustomed to say to what affection each of the objects corresponded. Moreover, not only these things, but all things that can be presented to our view, are correspondences, such as houses and the utensils in them, tables, food, clothing, even money in gold and silver, also diamonds and other precious stones, with which wives and virgins are adorned in the heavens. From all these things we perceive the nature of every one as to love and wisdom. The objects in our homes which are of use to us remain there always; but with those who pass from one society to another such things change according to their associations.
[3] These things have been shown to you that you may see creation in general exemplified in a particular type. For God is Love itself and Wisdom itself: the affections of His Love are infinite, as are also the perceptions of His Wisdom, and of these all things which appear on the earth are correspondences. This is the origin of birds and beasts, trees and shrubs, corn and grain, herbs and grass. For God is not spatial, but is in space everywhere, so that He is in the universe from first things to last; and because He is omnipresent, such correspondences of the affections of His Love and Wisdom exist throughout the whole natural world; while in our world, which is called the spiritual world, there are similar correspondences with those who receive affections and perceptions from God. There is this difference, however; such things in our world are created instantly by God, according to the affections of the angels, whereas in your world they were so created at the beginning, but with the provision that they should be perpetually renewed by propagation one from another, and thus that creation should be continued. [4] Creation in our world is instantaneous, and in yours continuous by propagation, because the atmospheres and ground of our world are spiritual, while the atmospheres and ground of your world are natural, and natural things were created that they might invest spiritual things just as skins clothe the bodies of men and animals, as the outer and inner bark clothe the trunks and branches of trees, as the mater and membranes clothe the brain, as the tegument clothes the nerves, as the delicate membranes clothe the nervous fibres, and so on. It is for this reason that all things in your world are permanent, and are constantly renewed year by year. The angel added: “Report what you have seen and heard to the inhabitants of your world, for till now they have been in complete ignorance concerning the spiritual world; and without some idea of it, no one can possibly know, or even guess, that creation is continuous in our world, and that it was the same in your world when the universe was created by God.”
[5] After this we talked on various subjects, and finally about hell. It was remarked that none of the things seen in heaven are seen in hell, but only their opposites, since the affections of the love of those in hell, which are evil lusts, are the opposites of the affections of the love in which the angels of heaven are. Therefore, with those in hell, and especially in their desert places, there appear birds of night, such as bats and owls, wolves, leopards, tigers, rats, and mice; also poisonous creeping things of every kind, as dragons and crocodiles; and where there is any herbage, there grow up brambles, nettles, thorns, and thistles, as well as poisonous plants. These at times vanish, and then nothing is to be seen but heaps of stones, and marshes in which frogs croak. All these are also correspondences, but as has been said, correspondences of the affections of their love, which are evil lusts. Such things, however, are not created there by God, nor were they created by Him in the natural world, where similar things exist. For all things which God created, and continues to create, were and are good; whereas such things as those arose on the earth together with hell, which came into being from men, who, by turning away from God, after death became devils and satans. However, as these terrible things began to be offensive to our ears, we turned our thoughts away from them, and called to mind what we had seen in heaven.
[3] Then another, hearing this, said: “You are speaking under a delusion. Every one knows that the original source of all things was chaos, which with its bulk had filled a fourth part of the universe. In its centre was fire, all round it was ether, and surrounding this again was matter. This chaos developed fissures, through which the fire burst, as it does from Aetna* and Vesuvius,** and formed the sun. After this was formed the ether rushed forth, enveloping it, and from this an atmosphere was formed. Finally the matter that was left gathered together into a globe, and formed the earth. As for the stars, they are only luminaries in the expanse of the universe, originating from the fire and light of the sun; for the sun was at first like an ocean of fire, but, lest it should consume the earth, it detached from itself small shining bodies of fire; and these, taking up their position in the surrounding space, completed the universe, and thus was formed its firmament.”
[4] Amongst them, however, there stood one who said: “You are mistaken. In your own eyes you appear to be wise, and I but a simpleton; yet in my simplicity I have believed, and do still believe, that the universe was created by God; and since nature belongs to the universe, and is thus universal, it was created at the same time. If, however, nature created herself, would she not have existed from eternity? But oh, what madness!” Then one of the so-called wise came nearer and nearer, and putting his left ear close to the mouth of the speaker, for his right ear was stopped as with cotton-wool, asked what he had said. The latter repeated his remarks. Thereupon the other looked round to see whether any priest was near; and noticing one by the side of the person who had been speaking, he replied: “I also acknowledge that Universal nature is from God, but….” Then he went away, whispering to his companions, “I said that because there was a priest standing by; but you and I know that nature is from nature; and as nature is thus God, therefore I said that universal nature is from God, but….” [5] The priest, however, overhearing the whispers, said: “Your wisdom, which is merely philosophic, has led you astray, and has closed the interiors of your minds so that no light from God and His heaven can flow in and enlighten you: you have utterly extinguished it.” And he added: “Consider, therefore, and decide among yourselves whence came your souls, which are immortal. Was it from nature, or were they also in that great chaos at the same time?”
When he heard this the former speaker withdrew to his companions, asking them to assist him in solving this knotty problem; and they came to the conclusion that the human soul is nothing but ether, that thought is nothing but a modification of the ether by the action of the sun’s light, and that ether belongs to nature. And they said: “Every one knows that we speak by means of the air, and that thought is nothing but speech in a purer air called ether. Therefore thought and speech make one. Every one can observe this from what takes place during infancy. The infant first learns to speak, and then to speak with himself, that is, to think. What then is thought but a modification of the ether, and the sound of speech but a modulation of it? We conclude therefore that the soul, which thinks, is derived from nature.”
[6] Some of them, not indeed dissenting, illustrated the position by saying that souls came into being when the ether emerged from that great chaos, and then in the highest region divided itself into innumerable individual forms, which infuse themselves into men when they begin to think from the purer air; and these forms are then called souls. On hearing this another said: “I grant that the individual forms produced from the ether in the higher regions may have been innumerable; but still, the men born since the creation of the world have exceeded the number of those forms. How then could those ethereal forms have been sufficient? I have therefore formed the opinion that the souls of men, departing out of their mouths when they die, return to them after several thousand years, when they enter upon and pass through a life similar to the one they lived before. It is well known that many wise men believe in such a process, and in the doctrine of Metempsychosis.” In addition to these several other conjectures were put forth by the rest, which I pass over as being utterly absurd.
[7] After a short time the priest returned, and the one who had before spoken of the creation of the universe by God, told him their conclusions regarding the soul. When he heard these, the priest said: “You have spoken just as you thought in the natural world, not knowing that you are in that world no longer, but in another, which is called the spiritual world. All who have become sensual and corporeal by confirming their belief in nature, suppose that they are still in the same world in which they were born and brought up; because in that world their bodies were material, but here they are in a substantial body and the substantial man sees himself and those around him precisely as the material man does. For the substantial is the primitive element of the material; and because you think, see, smell, taste and speak as you did in the natural world, therefore you believe that nature is the same in both worlds, although, as a matter of fact, the nature of this world differs, and is as remote from the nature of the material world as the substantial from the material, or the spiritual from the natural, or what is prior from what is posterior. Because nature in the world where you formerly lived is in itself dead, therefore you, by confirming your belief in it, have become, as it were, dead with regard to what relates to God, to heaven and to the Church, and also to your own souls. Nevertheless, every man, whether he be evil or good, may be elevated as to his understanding into the light in which the angels of heaven are, and may then see that there is a God and a life after death; and that the soul of man is not formed from ether, and thus from the nature of the material world, but that it is spiritual, and therefore that it will live for ever. The understanding may be in that angelic light provided only that the natural loves which are worldly and cling to the world and its nature, and which are also corporeal and cling to the body and its proprium,*** are removed.”
[8] Thereupon those loves were removed by the Lord, and they were permitted to speak with angels; and from their conversation in that state they perceived that there is a God, and that they were living in another world after death. They were, therefore, overcome with shame, and called out: “We have been mad!” As this, however, was not their proper state and consequently in a short time became tedious and irksome, they turned away from the priest, and would no longer listen to him. They went back to their former loves, which were merely natural, mundane and corporeal, going towards the left from society to society till they came to a road along which the delights of their own loves were wafted to them. So they said: “Let us take this road.” Down they went and at length they came to those who were in the delights of similar loves. Still downward they proceeded, but because their delight was to do evil, and this they had done to many on the way, they mere put in prison, and became demons. Then their delight was turned to misery, for by punishment and dread of punishment they were restrained from indulging in their former pleasures, which constituted their nature. They asked those who were in the same prison if this was to be their life for ever. Some of them replied: “We have been here for several ages, and we are to remain here for ages of ages; for the nature which we contracted in the world cannot be changed, or expelled by punishment; and should it be expelled at any time by this means, yet after a short interval it returns.”
* Aethna, Aetna, volcano of Sicily.
** Vesuvius, volcano in Campania, Italy.
*** The Latin word proprium when used as a substantive means “what is one’s own.” Swedenborg uses it in a special sense involving “what is of the self.”
[3] I further asked what he and his society believed about religion. He replied: “To us, who are learned above the mass of men, religion is nothing but a bewitchment of the common people, enveloping their feelings and imaginations as a rare atmosphere, in which flit about pious notions like butterflies in the air; and their faith, which connects those ideas into a system, is like a silk-worm in its cocoon, from which it emerges as the king of butterflies. For the illiterate community love imaginary things, transcending the bodily senses and the thoughts that spring from them, from a desire to fly. They even make for themselves wings, that they may soar upward like eagles and boastfully cry to those on the earth, ‘Look at me!’ We believe what we see, and we love what we touch.” Then touching his love he said: “This I believe, because I see and touch her; but as for that other nonsense, we throw it out of the window, casting it from us with a burst of laughter.”
[4] After this I asked what he and his associates believed concerning heaven and hell. He replied, with a derisive laugh: “What is heaven but the lofty ethereal firmament, and the angels there but spots, wandering round the sun, and the archangels but comets with long tails, upon which the whole crowd dwells? And what is hell but marshes, where frogs and crocodiles become devils in the imagination of simple people? All other ideas about heaven and hell are mere trumpery, devised by some prelate to win glory from an ignorant multitude.” All these things he spoke just as he had thought concerning them in the world, not knowing that he was now living after death, and forgetting all that he had heard when he first entered the spiritual world. Therefore also, when I questioned him regarding the life after death, he replied that it was a figment of the imagination; and that probably some vapor rising from a buried corpse in a form resembling a man, or some so-called spectre, about which people spread fables, had suggested such a thing to the popular imagination.
When I heard this I could no longer refrain from bursting into laughter, and I said: “Satan, you are raving mad. Are you not now in form a man? Do you not talk, see, hear, and walk? Pray recollect that you once lived in another world, which you have forgotten, and that you are now living after death, and have been speaking just as you did before.” The power to recollect was restored to him: his memory returned, and thoroughly ashamed he cried out: “I am mad! I have seen heaven above, and have heard angels there uttering things ineffable; but that was when I first came here. However, I will keep this in mind to tell it to my companions whom I have just left, and perchance they also will be ashamed.” He kept repeating that he would call them madmen; but as he went down, forgetfulness took the place of recollection. So when he arrived among them, he was as mad as they, and called madness what he had heard from me. Such is the state of thought and conversation of satans after death. Those who have confirmed themselves in belief in falsities are called satans, and devils those who have confirmed themselves in evils of life.
* Venus, goddess of love.
THE LORD THE REDEEMER
In the previous chapter we treated of God the Creator and also of creation; but in this chapter we shall treat of the Lord the Redeemer and also of redemption; and in the following chapter we shall treat of the Holy Spirit and also of the Divine operation. By the Lord the Redeemer we mean Jehovah in the Human for it will be shown in the following pages that Jehovah Himself descended and assumed the Human in order to effect our redemption. He is called the Lord and not Jehovah, because Jehovah in the Old Testament is called the Lord in the New, as is evident from the following passages. In Moses it is said:
“Hear, O Israel: JEHOVAH our God is one JEHOVAH: And thou shalt love JEHOVAH God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul.” Deut. vi. 4, 5.
But in Mark it is said:
“The Lord our God is one Lord. And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul.” xii. 29, 30.
Then in Isaiah it is said:
“Prepare ye the way of JEHOVAH, make straight in the desert a highway for our God.” xl. 3.
But in Luke it is said:
“Thou shalt go before the face of the Lord to prepare His ways.” i. 76.
In other passages the same distinction is made. The Lord also commanded His disciples to call Him Lord, and therefore He is so called by the Apostles in their Epistles, and afterwards by the Apostolic Church, as is evident from its Creed, which is called The Apostles’ Creed. This was because the Jews dared not utter the name “Jehovah” on account of its holiness; and also because by Jehovah is meant the Divine Being, which was from eternity; and the Human, which He assumed in time, was not that Being. What is meant by the Divine Being, or Jehovah, was shown in the previous chapter, numbers 18-26, and numbers 27-35. For this reason, both here and in the following pages, by the Lord we mean Jehovah in His Human; and since knowledge of the Lord surpasses in excellence all knowledge in the Church, and even in heaven, some revelation of it will now be made in the following series of articles:
(1) Jehovah the Creator of the universe descended and assumed the Human, in order to redeem and save mankind.
(2) He descended as the Divine Truth, which is the Word; and yet He did not separate the Divine Good.
(3) He assumed the Human according to His own Divine order.
(4) The Human, by which He sent Himself into the world, is what is called the Son of God.
(5) The Lord, by acts of redemption, made Himself righteousness.
(6) By the same acts He united Himself to the Father, and the Father united Himself to Him, also according to the Divine order.
(7) Thus God became Man, and Man God, in one Person.
(8) The progress to union was His state of exinanition,* and the union itself is His state of glorification.
(9) Hereafter no Christian can enter heaven unless he believes on the Lord God the Savior, and approaches Him alone.
Each of these articles will now be treated separately.
* Or state of humiliation, during which the maternal heredity was being removed.
It is believed at this day in the Christian Churches that God, the Creator of the universe, beget a Son from eternity, who descended and assumed a human in order to redeem and save mankind. This, however, is erroneous, and cannot be upheld when it is considered that God is one, and that it is utterly opposed to reason to say that the one God beget a Son from eternity, and that God the Father, together with the Son and the Holy Spirit, each of whom separately is God, is one God. This absurd belief is completely dissipated, like a falling star in the air, when it is shown from the Word that Jehovah God Himself descended and became Man and also the Redeemer. [2] The first point, that Jehovah God Himself descended and became Man, is evident from the following passages:
“Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and shall bear a son, who shall be called God with us (A.V., Immanuel).” Is. vii. 14; Matt. i. 23.
“Unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon His shoulder: and His name shall be called Wonderful,…the mighty God, the everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace.” Is. ix. 6.
“It shall be said in that day, Lo, this is our God; we have waited for Him, and He will save us: this is JEHOVAH; we have waited for Him, we will be glad and rejoice in His salvation.” Is. xxv. 9.
“The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, prepare ye the way of JEHOVAH, make straight in the desert a highway for our God, … and all flesh shall see it together.” Is. xl. 3, 6.
“Behold, the Lord Jehovih (A.V., Lord God), will come with strong hand, and His arm shall rule for Him; behold, His reward is with Him … He shall feed His flock like a shepherd.” Is. xl. 10, 11.
“Sing and rejoice, O daughter of Zion: for lo, I come, and I will dwell in the midst of thee, saith JEHOVAH: and many nations shall be joined to JEHOVAH in that day.” Zech. ii. 10, 11.
“I JEHOVAH have called thee in righteousness,… and will give thee for a covenant to the people … I am JEHOVAH; that is my name: and my glory will I not give to another.” Is. xlii 6, 8.
“Behold the days come, … that I will raise unto David a righteous branch, and a king shall reign … and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth,… and this is His name … JEHOVAH our righteousness.” Jer. xxiii. 6, 6; xxxiii. 15, 16.
Besides these there are other passages where the Coming of the Lord is called the Day of Jehovah,
as Is. xiii. 6, 9, 13; Ezek. xxxi. 15; Joel i. 15, ii. 1, 11, iii. 1, 14, 18; Amos v. 13, 18, 20; Zeph. i. 7-18; Zech. xiv. 1, 4-21; and in other places.
[3] That Jehovah Himself descended and assumed the Human is clearly evident in Luke, where it is written:
“Then said Mary unto the angel, How shall this be, seeing I know not a man? And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Spirit shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God.” i. 34, 35.
And in Matthew:
The angel said to Joseph, the husband of Mary, in a dream, that what was conceived in her was of the Holy Spirit. And Joseph knew her not till she had brought forth her son: “And he called His name Jesus.” i. 20-25.
It will be seen in the third chapter of this work that by the Holy Spirit is meant the Divine which proceeds from Jehovah God. Everyone knows that a child receives his soul and life from his father, and that the body is from the soul. What then is more clearly stated than that the Lord received His soul and life from Jehovah God? And since the Divine cannot be divided, what is more evident than that the Divine itself of the Father was His soul and life? It was for this reason that the Lord so often called Jehovah God His Father, and Jehovah God called Him His own Son. What, then, could one hear more unreasonable than that the soul of our Lord was derived from Mary, His mother, as both Roman Catholics and Protestants at this day affirm, as in a dream, not being as yet awakened by the light of the Word?
“Have not I JEHOVAH? And there is no God else besides me; a just God and a Savior; there is none besides me.” Is. xlv. 21, 22.
“I am JEHOVAH; and besides me there is no Savior.” xliii. 11.
“I am JEHOVAH thy God …, and thou shalt know no god but me; for there is no Savior besides me.” Hos. xiii. 4.
“And all flesh shall know that I Jehovah am thy Savior and thy Redeemer.” Is. xlix. 26; lx. 16.
“As for our Redeemer, JEHOVAH ZEBAOTH is His name.” Is. xlvii. 4.
“Their Redeemer is strong; JEHOVAH ZEBAOTH is His name.” Jer. l. 34.
“JEHOVAH, my rock (A.V., strength) and my Redeemer.” Ps. xix. 14.
“Thus saith JEHOVAH, thy Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: I am JEHOVAH thy God.” Is. xlviii. 17; xliii. 14; xlix. 7.
“Thus saith JEHOVAH, thy Redeemer, … I am JEHOVAH that maketh all things … alone … by myself.” Is. xliv. 24.
“Thus saith JEHOVAH the King of Israel, and his Redeemer, JEHOVAH ZEBAOTH, I am the First and I am the Last, and besides me there is no God.” Is. xliv. 8.
“Thou, JEHOVAH, art our Father, … our Redeemer; thy name is from everlasting.” Is lxiii. 16.
“With everlasting kindness will I have mercy on thee, saith JEHOVAH thy Redeemer.” Is. liv. 8.
“Thou hast redeemed me, JEHOVAH of truth.” Ps. xxxi. 6.
“Let Israel hope in JEHOVAH: for with JEHOVAH there is mercy, and with Him there is plenteous redemption. And He shall redeem Israel from all his iniquities.” Ps. cxxx. 7, 8.
“JEHOVAH God, and thy Redeemer the Holy One of Israel; the God of the whole earth shall He be called.” Is. liv. 6.
From these and many other passages every man who has eyes, and a mind that is opened up through the use of them, may see that God, who is one, descended, and became man, in order to accomplish the work of redemption. Everyone may see this as in the light of morning, when he considers these Divine declarations which have just been quoted. Those, however, who are in the darkness of night through having confirmed themselves in the belief of the birth of another God from eternity, and of His descent and redemption, close their eyes to these Divine declarations, and then consider how they may apply them to the confirmation of their own false views, and so pervert them.
There are two things which constitute the Essence of God: Divine Love and Divine Wisdom, or what is the same, Divine Good and Divine Truth. It has been shown above in numbers 36-48, that these two are the Essence of God. These two are also meant in the Word by Jehovah God: by Jehovah is meant the Divine Love or the Divine Good, and by God the Divine Wisdom or the Divine Truth. Therefore it is that in the Word they are distinguished in various ways; at one time the name Jehovah is used alone, at another time the name God; for when the Divine Good is treated, the name Jehovah is used, and when the Divine Truth is the subject the name God is used; while when both are being treated, the expression Jehovah God is used. That Jehovah God descended as the Divine Truth, which is the Word, is evident from this passage in John, where it is said:
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God…. All things were made by Him; and without Him was not anything made that was made … And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us.” i. 1, 3, 14.
By the Word is there meant Divine Truth, because the Word, which is received in the Church, is Divine Truth itself, for it was dictated by Jehovah Himself; and what is dictated by Jehovah is Divine Truth in its purity, and can be nothing else. [2] As the Word passed through the heavens down to this world, it was accommodated to the angels in heaven and also to men in the world. There is thus in the Word at spiritual sense, in which the Divine Truth appears in clear light, and a natural sense, in which the Divine Truth is but dimly seen. Therefore it is the Divine Truth in this Word that is meant in John. Moreover, this is evident from this consideration that the Lord came into the world to fulfil all things in the Word; and for this reason we so often read that this or that was done by Him that the Scripture might be fulfilled. The Divine Truth is also meant by the Messiah or Christ, by the Son of Man, and by the Holy Spirit the Comforter, whom the Lord sent after His departure from the world.
It will be seen in the chapter on the Sacred Scripture that the Lord represented Himself as that Word in the Transfiguration on the Mount before His three disciples, Matt. xvii.; Mark ix.; and Luke ix.; and also before John in the Revelation, i. 12-16. [3] That the Lord, when in the world, was the Divine Truth, is evident from His words:
“I am the way, and the truth, and the life.” John xiv. 8;
and from these words:
“We know that the Son of God is come, and hath given us an understanding, that we may know the truth (A.V., him that is true); and we are in the truth (A.V., him that is true), even in His Son Jesus Christ, This is the true God and eternal life.” 1 John v. 20.
It is still further evident from the fact that He is called the Light, as in these passages:
“That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world.” John i. 4, 9.
“Jesus said unto them, Yet a little while is the light with you. Walk while ye have the light, lest darkness come upon you …. While ye have light, believe in the light, that ye may be the children of light.” John xii. 35, 36, 48.
“I am the light of the world.” John ix. 5.
Simeon said: “Mine eyes have seen thy salvation, … a light to lighten the Gentiles.” Luke ii. 30, 32.
“This is the condemnation, that light is come into the world,… But he that doeth truth cometh to the light.” John iii. 19, 21.
and other passages might be quoted where by light is meant the Divine Truth.
“Gird thy sword upon thy thigh, O Mighty; ascend in thy majesty, ride upon the Word of truth; and thy right hand shall teach thee wonderful things. Thine arrows are sharp, and thine enemies shall fall under thee.” (A.V., variously). Ps. xlv. 3, 4, 5.
These words are spoken of the Lord concerning His combats with the hells, and His victories over them.
that “by the Word all things were made, and without it not anything was made that was made.” i. 3, 10,
and in David:
“By the Word of JEHOVAH were the heavens made; and all the host of them by the breath of His mouth.” Ps. xxxiii. 6.
that the power of the Highest overshadowed Mary, Luke i. 35;
and by the power of the Highest is signified the Divine Good. The same is also evident from passages where He Himself says that the Father is in Him, and that He is in the Father; that all things which the Father hath are His, and that the Father and He are one; besides many other similar declarations. By the Father is meant the Divine Good.
In the section concerning the Divine omnipotence and omniscience it was shown that God at the creation introduced order into the universe and all its parts; and accordingly that the omnipotence of God proceeds and operates in the universe and all its parts according to the laws of His order. This has been treated above in numbers 49-74. Now since God came down, and since He is Order itself, as is there shown, it was necessary, in order for Him actually to become Man, that He should be conceived, carried in the womb, and be born; and that He should be educated, acquiring in due course the knowledge by which He might attain to intelligence and wisdom. Therefore as to His Humanity He was an infant like any other infant, a boy like any other boy, and so on; but with this sole difference, that He passed through those progressive states sooner, more fully and more perfectly than others. That He advanced in this way according to order is manifest from these words in Luke:
“The child Jesus grew, and waxed strong in spirit; and increased in wisdom and age (A.V., stature), and in favor with God and man.” ii. 40, 52.
That He did so sooner, more fully and more perfectly than others appears from the account recorded of Him in the same Evangelist,
that as a boy, twelve years old, He sat in the Temple in the midst of the doctors and taught; and that all who heard Him were astonished at His understanding and answers. ii. 46, 47; and also iv. 16-22, 32.
This was done because the Divine order is that a man should prepare himself for the reception of God; and as he prepares himself so God enters into him, as into His own dwelling-place and home. Such preparation is effected by means of the knowledge of God and of the spiritual things belonging to the Church, and thus by intelligence and wisdom. For it is a law of order that so far as a man approaches and draws near to God, which he must do entirely as of himself, so far God approaches and draws near to him, and interiorly conjoins Himself to him. It will be shown further in the following numbers that the Lord advanced to complete union with His Father according to this order.
This in fact has been done. It has been declared that God could beget a Son from eternity, and then cause a third God to proceed from Himself and the Son. Also that He could be angry with the human race, put them under a curse, and then be willing to show them mercy through the Son, by the Son’s intercession and the remembrance of His cross. Further that He can impart His Son’s righteousness to man, and implant it in his heart like the simple substance of Wolff,* in which, as this author says, is all the merit of the Son that cannot be divided, since if it were divided it would come to nothing. Moreover that He can, as by a Papal Bull, remit sin to whomsoever He will, or cleanse the most impious sinner from his dark evils, making a man, who is as black as a devil, as white as angel of light; and this while he remains inert as a stone, and inactive as a statue or an idol. Many are the other inane notions which those may spread abroad, as the winnower’s fan scatters chaff into the air, who with no knowledge and acknowledgment of any order, suppose the Divine Power to be absolute. Such men, in respect to spiritual matters which belong to heaven, the Church, and therefore to eternal life, may wander from Divine truths as a blind man in a wood, who now stumbles over stones, now dashes his forehead against a tree, and now entangles his hair in its branches.
* Wolff, Johann Christian, A.D. 1679-1754, a German philosopher of little originality or depth. His leading ideas are taken from Leibnitz.
The Lord frequently declared that the Father sent Him, and that He was sent by the Father,
as in Matt. x. 40; xv. 24; John iii. 17, 34; v. 3, 24, 36, 37, 38; vi. 29, 38, 40, 44, 57; vii. 16, 18, 28, 29; viii. 16, 18, 29, 42; ix. 4; and in many other places.
He speaks thus because by being sent into the world is meant descending and coming among men; and this was done by means of the Human which He assumed through the Virgin Mary. The Human is also actually the Son of God, because it was conceived of Jehovah God as Father, according to Luke i. 32, 35. He is called the Son of God, the Son of Man, and the Son of Mary. By the Son of God is meant Jehovah God in His Human, by the Son of Man the Lord as to the Word, and by the Son of Mary the Human, strictly so-called, which He assumed. It will be shown in what follows that the Son of God and the Son of Man have those meanings. It is, however, manifest from man’s generation that by the Son of Mary is meant merely the Human, because the soul is from the father and the body from the mother. For the soul is in the seed of the father, and this is clothed with a body in the mother; or what is the same, all that is spiritual in man is from the father, and all that is material is from the mother. In the case of the Lord, what was Divine in Him was from Jehovah the Father, and what was Human was from the mother; and these two united are the Son of God. That this is so is clearly manifest from the Lord’s Nativity, which is thus recorded by Luke:
The angel Gabriel said to Mary: “The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God.” i. 35.
The Lord called Himself “sent by the Father” for this reason also that “one sent” has the same meaning as angel, for the word angel in the original language means “sent,” as in Isaiah:
“The angel of the faces of JEHOVAH (A.V., the angel of the Lord) saved them: in His love and in His pity He redeemed them.” lxiii. 9;
and in Malachi:
“The Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to His temple, even the angel (A.V., messenger) of the covenant, whom ye delight in. iii. 1, and in other passages.
That the Divine Trinity-God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, is in the Lord, and that the Father in Him is the Divine Source of all things, the Son the Divine Human, and the Holy Spirit the Divine Proceeding, will be seen in the third chapter of this work, on the Divine Trinity.
“I saw in visions,… and, behold, a watcher and an Holy One came down from heaven.” Dan. iv. 13.
“God will come (A.V., came) from Teman, and the Holy One from Mount Paran.” Habak. iii. 3.
“I am JEHOVAH, your Holy One, the Creator of Israel.” Is. xliii. 15.
“Thus saith JEHOVAH, the Redeemer of Israel, and His Holy One.” xlix. 7.
“I am JEHOVAH thy God, the Holy One of Israel, thy Savior.” xliii.3.
“As for our Redeemer, JEHOVAH ZEBAOTH is His name, the Holy One of Israel.” xlvii. 4.
“Thus saith JEHOVAH, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel.” xliii. 14; xlviii. 17.
“JEHOVAH ZEBAOTH is His name; and thy Redeemer the Holy One of Israel.” liv. 5.
“They tempted God, and (A.V. limited) the Holy One of Israel.” Ps. lxxviii. 41.
“They have forsaken JEHOVAH, they have provoked the Holy One of Israel.” Is. i. 4.
They said: “Cause the Holy One of Israel to cease from before us. Wherefore thus saith the Holy One of Israel.” xxx. 11, 12.
“That say, Let Him hasten His work that we may see it: and let the counsel of the Holy One of Israel draw nigh and come.” v. 19.
“In that day … they shall stay upon JEHOVAH, the Holy One of Israel, in truth.” x. 20.
“Cry out and shout, O daughter of Zion: for great is the Holy One of Israel in the midst of thee.” xii. 6.
It is said also of the God of Israel: “At that day … his eyes shall have respect to the Holy One of Israel.” xvii. 7.
“The poor among men shall rejoice in the Holy One of Israel.” xxix. 19; xli. 18.
“Their land was filled with sin against the Holy One of Israel.” Jer. li. 5;
also see Isaiah lv. 5, lx. 9, and elsewhere.
By the Holy One of Israel is meant the Lord as to His Divine Human; for the angel said to Mary:
“That holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God.” Luke i. 35.
That Jehovah and the Holy One of Israel are one, although named separately, is evident from the passages just quoted, which declare that Jehovah is the Holy One of Israel. That the Lord is called the God of Israel is also evident from numerous passages, as the following:
Is. xvii. 6; xxi. 10, l7; xxiv. l5; xxix. 23; Jer. vii. 3; ix. 15; xi. 3; xiii. l2; xvi. 9; xix. 3, 16; xxiii. 2; xxiv. 6; xxv. 15, 27; xxix. 4, 8, 21, 26; xxx. 2; xxxi. 23; xxxii. l4; xxxiii. 4; xxxiv. 2, 13; xxxv. 13, 17, 18, 19; xxxvii. 7; xxxviii. 17; xxxix. 16; xlii. 9, 15, l8; xliii. 10; xliv. 2, 7, 11, 25; xlviii. 1; l. 18; ii. 33; Ezek. viii. 4; ix. 3; x. 19, 20; xi. 22; xliii. 2; xliv. 2; Zeph. ii. 9; Ps. xli. 13; lix. 5; lxviii. 8.
The Lord declares in many places that no one can see the Father, or know Him, or come to Him, or believe on Him, except through His Human. If this declaration is disregarded, all the precious seed of the Church is changed into what is of less esteem: the seed of the olive becomes that of the pine; the seeds of the orange, the citron, the apple and the pear become those of the willow, the elm, the linden, and the oak; the vine becomes a marsh reed, and wheat and barley become mere chaff. Indeed all spiritual food becomes like dust, or food such as serpents eat, for spiritual light in man becomes natural (the light of his natural intelligence), and at length becomes sensual corporeal, which regarded in itself is a delusive light. Man in fact becomes like a bird which, attempting to fly when its wings are clipped, falls to the ground, and walking about sees nothing more around it than what lies at its feet. Then with respect to the spiritual things of the Church which would benefit his eternal life, his ideas are as worthless as the forecasts of a soothsayer. Such are the results when man regards the Lord God, the Redeemer and Savior, as merely the Son of Mary, that is, as a mere man.
* Socinians, members of a religious sect taking their name from Faustus Socinus, A.D. 1539-1604, and his uncle Laelius Socinus. They are antitrinitarians, denying the personality of the Holy Ghost and the Divinity of Christ. Early Socians believed in the miraculous conception and that Christ was entitled to Divine worship; but modern Socinians, chiefly Unitarians, deny both.
** Calvin, John, A.D. 1509-1564, was called by Melanchthon “The theologian of the sixteenth century.” He studied law as well as theology, became a Protestant and induced the authorities of Geneva to renounce Popery. The friend of John Knox, he exercised a powerful influence on Scottish Protestantism. His views may be summarized thus: particular election; particular redemption; moral inability in a fallen state; free grace; and ultimate salvation for the elect, notwithstanding many failings and aberrations on the part of the believer. In its leading features his theology is that of Augustine.
It is asserted and believed in the Christian Churches to-day that to the Lord alone belong merit and righteousness in virtue of the obedience which He yielded to God the Father while in the world, and especially by His Passion on the Cross. It is, however, imagined that the Passion on the Cross was itself the work of redemption, when yet it was not the work of redemption that was thereby effected, but the glorification of His Human. This will be treated in the following section on Redemption. The acts of redemption, by which the Lord made Himself Righteousness, were these: He carried out a last judgment, which took place in the spiritual world, separating the evil from the good, and the goats from the sheep; He drove out from heaven those who made common cause with the beasts of the dragon, founded a new heaven from those who were worthy, and a hell from the unworthy, and successively reduced all things everywhere to order; and finally He established the New Church. These were the acts of redemption by which the Lord made Himself Righteousness; for righteousness consists in doing all things according to Divine order, and in restoring to order whatever has departed from it, for Divine order itself is righteousness. Such things are signified by the words of the Lord when He says
that “it becometh me to fulfil all the righteousness of God.” Matt. iii. 15;
and by these passages in the Old Testament:
“Behold, the days come … that I will raise unto David a righteous branch, and a king shall reign … and shall execute … righteousness in the earth … and this is His name, JEHOVAH our Righteousness.” Jer. xxiii. 5, 8; xxxiii. 15, 16;
“I that speak in righteousness, mighty to save.” Is. lxii. 1;
He shall sit “upon the throne of David … to establish it with judgment and with justice.” ix. 7;
“Zion shall be redeemed … with righteousness.” i. 27.
“Except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven.” Matt. v. 20.
“Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” Matt. v. 10.
“In the consummation of the age (A.V., At the end of the world), the angels shall come forth, and sever the wicked from among the righteous.” (A.V., the just). Matt. xiii. 49;
and in other passages. By the righteous in the Word are meant those who have lived according to Divine order, since the Divine order is righteousness. Righteousness itself, which the Lord became by the acts of redemption, cannot be ascribed to any man, nor can it be inscribed upon him, adapted to his nature and conjoined to him, except as light can be to the eye, sound to the ear, will to the muscles of one acting, thought to the lips of one speaking, air to the lungs in respiration, heat to the blood, and so on. In these cases everyone may see from his own observation that there is influx and contiguity, but no conjunction. Righteousness, however, is acquired so far as a man practices it, and this he does as he acts towards his neighbor from a love of what is righteous and true. Righteousness dwells in the good itself, that is, in the use itself which he performs; for the Lord declares that every tree is known by its fruit. Every man may know another from his works, if he regards the end and purpose of the will, and the intention and cause from which they are done. Such things all the angels regard, as well as all wise men in this world. In general, every plant and shrub that springs from the ground is known by its flower, seed and use; every metal by its excellence; every stone by its quality; likewise every field, every kind of food, every beast of the field and every bird of the air; why should man not be so known? The quality of a man’s works, and upon what this depends, will be explained in the chapter on Faith.
Union was effected by the acts of redemption, because the Lord performed those by His Human, and as He did so, the Divine, by which is meant the Father, drew nearer, assisted and co-operated; and at length they were so united as to be not two but one. This union is the Glorification, which will be treated in what follows.
It will now be shown in the first place that the union of the Father and the Son, or of the Divine and the Human, in the Lord is like the union of the soul and body; and afterwards that this union is reciprocal. A union like that of soul and body is maintained in the Athanasian Creed,* which is received throughout the whole Christian world as the doctrine concerning God. We there read:
“Our Lord Jesus Christ is God and Man; and although He is God and Man, yet they are not two but one Christ. He is one, because the Divine took the Human to itself; yea, He is altogether one, and He is one Person; for as the soul and body is one man, so God and Man is one Christ.”
But in this passage it is meant that this union exists between the Son of God from eternity and the Son born in time. However, since God is one and not three, if by that union is meant union with the one God from eternity, that doctrine agrees with the Word, where we read
that He was conceived of Jehovah the Father, Luke i. 34, 35,
whence He derived His soul and His life. Therefore He says
that He and His Father are one, John x. 30;
that he who sees and knows Him, sees and knows the Father, John xiv. 9;
“If ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also.” John viii. 19;
“He that receiveth me, receiveth Him that sent me.” John xiii. 20;
“Which is in the bosom of the Father.” John i. 18;
that all things that the Father hath, are His, John xvi. 15;
that he is called the everlasting Father, Is. ix. 8;
that therefore He has power over all flesh, John xvii. 2,
and all power in heaven and in earth, Matt. xxviii. 18.
From these and many other passages in the Word it may be clearly seen that the union of the Father and the Son is like that of soul and body. Therefore also in the Old Testament He is frequently called JEHOVAH, JEHOVAH ZEBAOTH, and JEHOVAH the Redeemer, as may be seen in number 83.
* Athanasian Symbol or Creed. Although bearing the name of Athanasius, it was probably composed by Hilary, in the century after the formulation of the Nicene Creed, A.D. 325. The name was given to it about the year A.D. 670 as an excellent system of the doctrines of Athansius concerning the Trinity and the Incarnation, principally in opposition to the Arians. It is received by the Romish Church and also by the Reformed.
“Philip, believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? … Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father in me.” John xiv. 10, 11;
“That ye may know and believe that the Father is in me, and I in Him.” x. 38;
“That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee.” xvii. 21;
“Father, all mine are thine, and thine are mine.” xvii. 10.
The union is reciprocal, because there cannot be any union or conjunction between two, unless they mutually approach each other. All conjunction in the whole of heaven, in the whole of the world and in the whole of man arises solely from the reciprocal approach of one to the other, and consequently from the unity of will on both sides: hence arises homogeneity and sympathy, unanimity and concord in all particulars affecting each. Such is the reciprocal union of soul and body in every man; the union of man’s spirit with the sensory and motor organs of the body; the union of the heart and lungs; the union of the will and the understanding; the union of all members and viscera in man, in themselves and with one another; the union of minds with all who interiorly love one another, for it is inscribed on all love and friendship, as it is the nature of love to desire to love and to be loved. There is reciprocal union of all things in the world that are perfectly united, as the union of the sun’s heat with the heat of wood and stone, of vital heat with the heat of all fibres in living things; as the union of tree with the root,* through the root with the tree, and through the tree with the fruit; such is the union between the magnet and iron, and so on. Unless union arises from the reciprocal and mutual approach of one to the other it is only an external, and not an internal union, which in time is mutually dissolved, and sometimes so entirely that the parties no longer recognize one another.
* The two Latin Editions of 1857 and 1906 suggest humi for arboris so that the translation would read: “the union of soil with root…”
“He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, dwelleth in me, and I in him.” John vi. 56;
“Abide in me and I in you… He that abideth in me and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit.” xv. 4, 5;
“If any man … open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.” Rev. iii. 20;
besides other passages. This union is effected by a man drawing near to the Lord, and by the Lord, drawing near to him; for it is a sure and immutable law that so far as a man draws near to the Lord, the Lord draws near to him. More will be seen concerning this in the chapter on Charity and Faith.
That Jehovah God became Man, and Man God, in one Person, follows as a conclusion from the preceding articles of this chapter, particularly from these two: “Jehovah, the Creator of the universe descended and assumed the Human, in order to redeem and save mankind,” nos. 82-84; and “The Lord, by the acts of redemption, united Himself to the Father, and the Father united Himself to Him, thus reciprocally and mutually,” nos. 97-100. From that reciprocal union it is clearly evident that God became Man, and Man God, in one Person. The same also follows as a consequence from the Union of both, which is like that of soul and body. That this is in agreement with the faith of the Church at this day, as it is set forth in the Athanasian Creed,* may be seen above, no. 98. It is also in agreement with the faith of the Evangelical Protestants, as stated in their chief book of orthodoxy, called the Formula Concordiae,** where it is strongly established, both from the Sacred Scripture and the Fathers, as well as by rational arguments, that the Human Nature of Christ was exalted to Divine majesty, omnipotence and omnipresence, and also that in Christ Man is God and God Man; as may be seen in that work, p. 607, 765. Moreover it has been proved in this chapter that Jehovah God, as to His Human, is called in the Word, JEHOVAH, Jehovah God, JEHOVAH ZEBAOTH, (A.V., the Lord of Hosts), and also the God of Israel. Therefore, Paul says
that in Jesus Christ “dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead bodily.” Coloss. ii. 9;
and John says
that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, “is the true God, and eternal life.” 1 John v. 20.
That the Son of God, properly speaking, means His Human, may be seen above, no. 92 and following. Moreover, Jehovah God calls both Himself and Him Lord; for it is written:
“The Lord said unto my Lord, Sit thou at my right hand.” Ps. cx. 1;
and in Isaiah:
“Unto us a child is born, unto us a Son is given: … and His name shall be called God, the everlasting Father.” ix. 8.
By the Son is also meant the Lord as to His Human in David:
“I will declare the decree: JEHOVAH hath said unto me, Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten thee…. Kiss the Son, lest He be angry, and ye perish from the way.” Ps. ii. 7, 12.
A Son born from eternity is not here meant, but the Son born in the world, for this is a prophecy concerning the Lord who was to come, and therefore it is called the decree which Jehovah announced to David. It is also written before in the same Psalm:
“I have anointed my King upon Zion,” ver. 6,
and later,
“I shall give Him the nations for an inheritance,” ver. 6.
Therefore, “this day” does not mean from eternity, but in time, for with Jehovah the future is present.
* Athanasian Symbol or Creed. Although bearing the name of Athanasius, it was probably composed by Hilary, in the century after the formulation of the Nicene Creed, A.D. 325. The name was given to it about the year A.D. 670 as an excellent system of the doctrines of Athansius concerning the Trinity and the Incarnation, principally in opposition to the Arians. It is received by the Romish Church and also by the Reformed.
** Form of Concord, Formula Concordiae, designed to effect an amicable adjustment of the differences among the Lutherans, by drawing them more closely to their principal standard, the Augsburg or Augustan Confession. Most of the Lutheran Churches add this Formula to their standard creeds.
“The mother of Jesus saith unto Him, They have no wine. Jesus saith unto her, Woman, what have I to do with thee? Mine hour is not yet come.” John ii. 3, 4;
and elsewhere;
“When Jesus saw” from the cross “His mother, and the disciple standing by whom He loved, He saith unto His mother, Woman, behold thy son! Then saith He to the disciple, Behold thy mother!” John xix. 26, 27;
and once He did not acknowledge her.
It was told Jesus “by certain, which said, Thy mother and thy brethren stand without, desiring to see thee. And He answered and said unto them, My mother and my brethren are these which hear the Word of God, and do it.” Luke viii. 20, 21; Matt. xii. 46-50; Mark iii. 31-35.
Thus the Lord did not call her “mother,” but “woman,” and entrusted her to John as a mother; in other places she is called His mother, but not by Himself. [2] This is also proved by the fact that He did not acknowledge Himself to be the Son of David: for we read in the Evangelists
that Jesus asked the Pharisees, “saying, What think ye of Christ? whose Son is He? They say unto Him, The Son of David. He saith unto them, How then doth David in spirit call Him Lord, saying, The Lord said unto my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand, till I make thine enemies thy footstool? If David then call Him Lord, how is He his Son? And no man was able to answer Him a word.” Matt. xxii. 41-48; Mark xii. 35-37; Luke xx. 41-44; Ps. cx. 1.
[3]* To the above I will add this account of an incident not hitherto recorded:**
It was once granted me to speak with Mary, the mother. She was then passing by, and appeared in heaven over my head, clothed in white raiment like silk. Pausing for a little she said that she had been the mother of the Lord, for He was born of her; but that He, having become God, put off all the Human He had from her; and therefore that she now worships Him as her God, and is unwilling that any one should acknowledge Him as her Son, because the whole Divinity is in Him.
From what has been said this truth is now clear that Jehovah is Man in first things and in last, as the following passages declare:
“I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending,… which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty.” Rev. i. 8, 11.
When John saw the Son of Man in the midst of the seven candle-sticks, he fell at His feet as dead; and He laid His right hand upon him, saying, “I am the first and the last.” Rev. i. 13, 17; xxi. 6;
“Behold, I come quickly, to give every man according as his work shall be. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last.” xxii. 12, 13.
Again in Isaiah it is written:
“Thus saith JEHOVAH the King of Israel, and His Redeemer JEHOVAH ZEBAOTH; I am the first, and I am the last.” xliv. 6; xlviii. 12.
* This passage is in quotation marks in Original Edition.
** This incident is repeated in 827 with variations.
[2] Since a man’s soul is the real man, and is spiritual in its origin, it is clear why the mind, temper, disposition, inclination and affection of the father’s love dwell in the succeeding offspring, and return and display themselves from generation to generation. This is the reason why many families, even whole nations, are known by the resemblance they bear to their original progenitor; there is a common likeness which shows itself in the countenance of every one of the race: and this likeness is not changed except by the spiritual things of the Church. The common likeness of Jacob and Judah, by which their posterity are distinguished from others, still persists, because they have hitherto firmly adhered to their religion. For in the seed from which every one is conceived there is a graft, or offshoot, of the father’s soul in its fullness, within a kind of covering composed of natural elements. By means of this his body is formed in the womb of the mother, which may be in the likeness either of the father or of the mother, the likeness of the father still remaining within, and continually endeavoring to bring itself forth; and if it cannot do so in the first generation, it effects it in those that follow. The likeness of the father is in its fullness in the seed because, as has been stated, the soul is spiritual in its origin, and what is spiritual has nothing in common with space; and therefore the likeness remains the same, as well in small compass as in large. When the Lord was in the world, by the acts of redemption He put off the whole of the Human which He had from the mother and put on a Human from the Father, the Divine Human; therefore in Him Man is God, and God Man.
It is known in the Church that the Lord, when in the world, passed through two states, called states of exinanition and glorification. The state of exinanition is described in many passages of the Word, especially in the Psalms of David, also in the Prophets, and particularly in Isaiah liii., where it is said,
“He hath poured out His soul unto death.” verse 12.
This same state was His state of humiliation before the Father, for in it He prayed to the Father, saying that He does His will, and ascribes all that He did and said to the Father.
That He prayed to the Father, is evident from these passages: Matt. xiv. 23; Mark 36; vi. 46; xiv. 32-39; Luke v. 16; vi. 12; xxii. 41-44; John xvii. 9, 15, 20.
That He did the will of the Father: John iv. 34; v. 30.
That He ascribed all that He did and said to the Father: John viii. 28-28; xii. 49-50; xiv. 10;
indeed, He even cried out on the cross: “My God, My God, why hast thou forsaken me?” Matt. xxvii. 46; Mark xv. 34;
and moreover, unless He had been in this state, He could not have been crucified. The state of glorification is also the state of union. He was in this state when He was transfigured before His three disciples; and also when He wrought miracles; and when He said that He and the Father are one, that the Father is in Him and He in the Father, and that all things the Father had are His; and when the union was fully completed, that He had “power over all flesh,” John xvii. 2; and that He had “all power in heaven and in earth,” Matt. xxviii. 18; besides many other passages to the same effect.
It will be fully proved in the chapters on Free Will, on Charity and Faith, and on Reformation and Regeneration that every man who, from being natural becomes spiritual, passes through two states, that he enters through the first into the second, and so from the world enters into heaven. We shall merely observe here that in the first state, which is called the state of reformation, the man is at full liberty to act according to the rationality of his understanding; and that in the second, which is the state of regeneration, he is also in the same liberty, but now wills and acts, thinks and speaks from a new love and a new intelligence from the Lord. For in the first state his understanding plays the first part, and his will the second; but in the latter state the will plays the first part and the understanding the second; but still the understanding acts from the will, and not the will [directed] by the understanding.* The union of good and truth, of charity and faith, and of the internal and external man is likewise effected in the same way.
* …and not the will [directed] by the understanding, non autem voluntas per intellectum. Per has the force not so much as of “through” or “by means of,” as of “at the direction of.”
These two states are also represented by various stages in the animal kingdom: the first by beasts and birds so long as they remain with their parents, whom they follow continually and by whom they are nourished and guided; and the second when they leave their parents and provide for themselves. In the case of caterpillars, the first state is when they creep and feed on leaves, and the second when they cast their skins and become butterflies. These two states are also represented in the subjects of the vegetable kingdom: the first when the plant springs from the seed, and puts forth branches, shoots and leaves; and the second when it bears fruit and produces new seeds. This process may be compared to the union of good and truth, since the several parts of a tree correspond to truths, and the fruit to good. The man who continues in the first state, and does not enter upon the second, is like a tree that bears leaves only, and not fruit, concerning which it is said in the Word
that it must be rooted up and cast into the fire, Matt. xxi. 19; Luke iii. 9; xiii. 8-10; John xv. 5, 8.
He is also like a servant who does not wish to be free, concerning whom it was decreed
that he should be brought to the door, or to the door-post, and his ear bored through with an awl. Exod. xxi. 6.
Servants are those who are not united to the Lord, but the free are those who are united to Him, for the Lord says:
“If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.” John viii. 36.
It is written in Isaiah:
“Behold, I create new heavens and a new earth: and the former shall not be remembered, nor come into mind…. Behold, I create Jerusalem a rejoicing, and her people a joy.” lxv. 17, 18;
and in Revelation:
“I saw a new heaven and a new earth, and … I saw … the holy … Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband…. And He that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new.” xxi. 1, 2, 5.
It is also said in many places
that none should enter heaven but those who were written in the Lamb’s book of life, Rev. xiii. 8; xvii. 8; xx. 12, 15; xxi. 27.
By heaven in those passages is not meant the heaven that appears to our eyes, but the angelic heaven. By Jerusalem is not meant any city coming out of heaven, but the Church which shall descend from the Lord out of that angelic heaven; and by the Lamb’s book of life is not meant some book written in heaven, which shall be opened, but the Word which is from the Lord, and which treats of Him. It has been confirmed, proved and established in the preceding sections of this chapter that Jehovah God, who is called the Creator and Father, descended and assumed the Human in order that men might approach and be united to Him. For who, when he draws near to a man, approaches his soul, or who can do so? He approaches the man himself, whom he sees and addresses face to face. It is the same with God the Father and the Son; for God the Father is in the Son, as the soul is in its body.
[2] That men ought to believe on the Lord God the Savior is evident from these passages in the Word:
“For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” John iii. 16.
“He that believeth on Him (the Son) is not condemned, but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.” iii. 18.
“He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him.” iii. 36.
“The bread of God is He that cometh down from heaven, and giveth life unto the world…. He that cometh to me shall never hunger, and he that believeth on me shall never thirst.” vi. 33, 35.
“This is the will of Him that sent me, that every one which seeth the Son, and believeth on Him, may have everlasting life: and I will raise him up at the last day.” vi. 40.
“Then said they unto Him (Jesus), what shall we do, that we might work the works of God? Jesus answered … This is the work of God, that ye believe on Him whom He (the Father) hath sent.” vi. 28, 29.
“Verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me hath everlasting life.” vi. 47.
“Jesus … cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink. He that believeth on me … out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water.” vii. 37, 38.
“If ye believe not that I am He, ye shall die in your sins.” viii. 24.
“Jesus said … I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: And whosoever liveth and believeth in me, shall never die.” xi. 25, 26.
Jesus said, “I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth on me should not abide in darkness.” xii. 46; viii. 12.
“While ye have light, believe in the light, that ye may be the children of light.” xii. 36.
It is also written
that they should abide in the Lord, and the Lord in them, xiv. 20; xv. 1-5; xvii. 23;
and this is effected by faith.
Paul testified “both to the Jews and also to the Greeks, repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ.” Acts xx. 21.
“I am the way, and the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” John xiv. 6.
[3] That whosoever believes the Son believes on the Father, since, as has been said above, the Father is in Him as the soul is in the body, is evident from these passages:
“If ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also.” John viii. 19; xiv. 7.
“He that seeth me seeth Him that sent me.” xii. 45.
“He that receiveth me receiveth Him that sent me.” xiii. 20.
The reason of this is
that no one can see the Father and live, Exod. xxxiii. 20.
Therefore the Lord says:
“No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, He hath declared Him.” John i. l8.
“Not that any man hath seen the Father, save He which is of God, He hath seen the Father.” vi. 46.
“Ye have neither heard His voice at any time, nor seen His shape.” v. 37.
There are, however, those who do not know anything about the Lord, as is the case with many inhabitants of Asia, Africa and the Indies. If they believe on one God and live according to the precepts of their own religion, they are saved by their faith and life. For imputation is to those who know, and not to those who are in ignorance, just as the blind are not blamed when they stumble; for the Lord says:
“If ye were blind, ye should have no sin: but now ye say, We see; therefore your sin remaineth.” John ix. 41.
I will here make known this fact hitherto unknown, that some months ago the Lord called together the twelve Apostles, and sent them forth throughout the whole spiritual world, just as He had formerly sent them into all the natural world, with the command to preach this gospel. Each Apostle has his own province assigned to him, and they are now executing this command with all zeal and industry. More will be said concerning this subject in the last chapter of this book, which deals particularly with the Consummation of the Age, the Coming of the Lord, and the New Church.
All the Churches before the Coming of the Lord were representative Churches, which could see Divine truths only in the shadow of darkness; but after the Coming of the Lord into the world a Church was established by Him which saw Divine truths, or rather, which could see them, in light. The difference between those Churches is all the difference between evening and morning; the state of the Church before the Coming of the Lord is also called in the Word evening, and its state after His Coming, morning. The Lord, before His Advent into the world, was indeed present with the men of the Church, but mediately, through angels who represented Him; whereas, since His Advent, He is present with the members of the Church immediately; for in the world He put on the Divine Natural, in which He is present with men. The glorification of the Lord is the glorification of His Human, which He assumed in the world, and the glorified Human of the Lord is the Divine Natural. That this is the case is evident from the fact that the Lord rose from the tomb with His whole body which He had in the world, leaving nothing behind; consequently He took with Him from the tomb the Natural Human itself, complete from first things to last. Therefore after His resurrection He said to the disciples who believed that they saw a spirit:
“Behold my hands and my feet, that it is I myself: handle me, and see; for a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as yea see me have.” Luke xxiv. 37, 39.
From this it is clear that His natural body by glorification was made Divine. Therefore Paul says
that in Christ “dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily.” Coloss. ii. 9;
and John says
that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, “is the true God.” 1 John v. 20,
Hence the angels know that the Lord alone, in the whole spiritual world, is fully Man.
[2] It is well known in the Church that all worship with the Israelitish and the Jewish race was merely external, and that it shadowed forth the internal worship which the Lord revealed. Thus worship before the Coming of the Lord consisted in types and figures, which represented true worship in appropriate imagery. Indeed the Lord Himself appeared among the people of old, for He said to the Jews:
“Your father Abraham rejoiced to see my day; and he saw it, and was glad . . . I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am.” John viii. 56, 58.
As the Lord, however, was only represented at that time, which representation was effected by angels, so all things relating to the Church with the Jews were made representative; but after He came into the world, those representations came to an end. The interior reason for this was that the Lord, while in the world, put on the Divine Natural, from which He enlightens not only the internal spiritual man, but also the external natural man. If both of these are not enlightened at the same time, the man remains as it were in the shadow of darkness; but if both are so enlightened he is, as it were, in the light of day. When only the internal man is enlightened, and not at the same time the external, or when only the external and not the internal, it is as when one sleeps and dreams. When he awakens, he remembers his dream, and from it fashions various conclusions, which nevertheless are imaginary. He may be likened also to one walking in his sleep, who supposes the objects he sees are seen in the light of day.
[3] The difference between the state of the Church before the Lord’s Coming and after it is like the difference seen in reading a paper by one who reads it at night by the light of the moon and stars, and by one who reads it in the sunlight. In the pale light of the moon the eye is liable to error, but not in the brilliant light of the sun. Thus it is written concerning the Lord:
“The God of Israel said, the Rock of Israel spake to me … He shall be as the light of the morning when the sun riseth, even a morning without clouds.” 2 Sam xxiii. 3, 4.
The God of Israel, and the Rock of Israel, is the Lord. In another place it is written:
“The light of the moon shall be as the light of the sun, and the light of the sun shall be sevenfold, as the light of seven days, in the day that JEHOVAH bindeth up the breach of His people.” Is. xxx. 26.
These words are spoken of the state of the Church after the Coming of the Lord. Briefly, the state of the Church before the Coming of the Lord may be compared to an old woman, whose face was painted, and who thought herself beautiful because of the bright colour of the paint; whereas the state of the Church after the Coming of the Lord may be compared to a maiden, comely in her native beauty. Again, the state of the Church before the Coming of the Lord may be compared to the rind of any fruit, as the orange, apple, pear, or grape, and its flavour; whereas the state of the Church after His Coming may be compared to the inner parts of these fruits and their flavour; and other similar comparisons may be made. There is this difference in the state of the Church because the Lord, after He put on the Divine Natural, enlightens the internal spiritual man and the external natural man at the same time. For while the internal man only is enlightened, without the external, or the external only without the internal, the shadow of darkness persists.
At this point the following Memorabilia will now be set forth.
The first experience. I once saw in the spiritual world a wandering fire in the air falling to the ground, surrounded by a brilliant light. It was a meteor, commonly called a dragon. I noted the place where it fell, but it disappeared in the gray morning light before the rising sun, as these phenomena do. After dawn I went to the place where I had seen it fall in the night, and behold, the ground there was a mixture of sulphur, fragments of iron and clay. Suddenly there appeared two tents, one directly over the place and the other near it, towards the south. Then looking up, I saw a spirit falling like lightning from heaven, and thrown into the tent which stood directly over the spot where the meteor fell. I then stood in the doorway of the other tent which was near-by towards the south, and I saw the spirit standing at the door of his tent. I asked him why he fell so precipitately from heaven, and he replied that he was cast down as an angel of the dragon by the angels of Michael,* because he had expressed something of the faith in which he had confirmed himself while in the world. “For instance,” said he, “God the Father and God the Son are two, and not one. Now all in the heavens at this day believe that they are one, like soul and body. Whatever contradicts this, is like an irritant in their nostrils, or an awl perforating their ears, causing them great pain. Whoever, therefore, maintains a contrary opinion is ordered to depart; and if he refuses, he is cast down headlong.”
[2] On hearing this I said, “Why did you not believe as they did?” He replied that after leaving the world no one could believe anything but what he had impressed upon himself and become confirmed in. This remains fixed, he said, and cannot be rooted out, especially what relates to God; for every one has a place in heaven according to his idea of God. I then asked him by what arguments he had confirmed his belief that the Father and the Son were two. He answered: “By what is stated in the Word, that the Son prayed to the Father, not only before, but also during, His Passion on the Cross; and also that He humbled Himself before the Father. How then can they be one, as the soul and body are one in a man? For who prays as to another, and humbles himself as before another, while he himself is that other? No one acts in this way, much less the Son of God. Moreover, the whole Christian Church in my time divided the Divinity into Persons, each of whom is one by himself, Person being defined as that which is self-subsistent.” [3] When I heard him say this I replied: “From your remarks I perceive that you know nothing of how God the Father and Son are one, and in consequence you have confirmed yourself in the false opinions which the Church to this day entertains concerning God. Do you not know that the Lord, when in the world, had a soul like every other man? Whence had He that soul but from God the Father? This is abundantly evident from the Word of the Evangelists. What then is that which is called the Son, but the Human, which was conceived by the Divine of the Father and born of the virgin Mary? A mother cannot conceive a soul, for this is totally opposed to the order according to which every man is born; nor can God the Father implant a soul from Himself and then withdraw from it, as every father in the world can, since God is His own Divine Essence, and this is one and indivisible; and because it is indivisible, it is Himself. For this reason the Lord says that the Father and He are one, that the Father is in Him and He in the Father, and there are many other expressions to the same effect. Those who drew up the Athanasian Creed** had a faint impression of this; and therefore, after they had divided God into three Persons, they still declare that in Christ, God and Man, that is, the Divine and the Human, are not two, but one, like the soul and body in a man.
[4] “That the Lord when in the world prayed to the Father as to another, and humbled Himself before the Father as before another, was according to the order established at the creation. This is immutable, and according to it every one must progress towards union with God. This order is that as man unites himself to God by a life according to the laws of order, which are the Commandments of God, so God unites Himself to man, and from being natural makes him spiritual. In like manner the Lord united Himself to His Father, and God the Father united Himself to Him. Was not the Lord, when an infant, like an infant, and when a child, like a child? Is it not written that He increased in wisdom and favour; and later that He asked the Father to glorify His Name, that is, His Human? To glorify is to make Divine by union with Himself. Hence it is evident that the Lord prayed to the Father when in the state of His exinanition, which was a state of His progression towards union.
[5] “That same order is inscribed on every man at creation, and accordingly, as a man prepares his understanding by means of truths from the Word, he adapts it to the reception of faith from God; and as he prepares his will by works of charity, he accommodates it to the reception of love from God; just as when a workman cuts a diamond, he prepares it to receive and reflect the brilliant rays of light; and so on. To prepare oneself for the reception of God, and union with Him, is to live according to Divine order, and all the Commandments of God are laws of order. These the Lord fulfilled to every letter, and so became a recipient of Divinity in all its fulness. Therefore Paul says, that in Jesus Christ dwells all the fulness of the Godhead bodily; and the Lord Himself declares that all things that the Father hath are His. [6] It must be further borne in mind that the Lord alone is active in man, and that man himself is merely passive. Man is indeed an active agent, but only through the influx of life from the Lord; for it is owing to this perpetual influx from the Lord that man appears to act from himself. It is because of this appearance that he has Free Will, which is given him that he may prepare himself to receive the Lord, and so be united to Him. This union would not be possible unless it were reciprocal; and it becomes reciprocal when man acts from his own freedom, and yet by faith attributes all activity to the Lord.”
[7] After this I asked him whether he, like the rest of his companions, confessed that God is one. He replied that he did. Then I said: “But I am afraid the confession of your heart is that there is no God. Does not every word of the mouth proceed from thought in the mind? It must follow therefore that the confession of the lips that God is one will drive out from the mind the thought that there are three. On the other hand, the thought of the mind will drive out the lip confession that there is one: and what conclusion then will necessarily result but that there is no God? When this opinion that there are three is held in the mind, as there is no room for intermediate opinions between thought and speech, the mind comes to the conclusion concerning God, that nature is God, and concerning the Lord, that He received His soul either from the mother or from Joseph: and both of these opinions are held by all the angels of heaven in utter aversion.” When I said this, the spirit was sent away to the abyss, mentioned in Rev. ix. 2, and the following verses, where the angels of the dragon discuss the mysteries of their faith.
[8] The next day, when I looked towards the same place, I saw, instead of the tents, two statues in the human form, made of the dust of the ground, which was a mixture of sulphur, iron and clay. One statue appeared to have a sceptre in the left hand, a crown on the head, a book in the right hand, and an ornament for the breast bound obliquely with a cincture set with precious stones, and a robe flowing behind toward the other statue; but these adornments of the statue were the effects of phantasy. Then a voice was heard from the abyss, uttered by some spirit of the dragon, saying “This statue represents our faith as a queen, and the other behind it represents charity as her servant.” The other statue was composed of a similar mixture of dust, and was set up at the extremity of the robe which flowed from behind the queen. It held a paper in its hand on which was written: “Beware, lest you approach too near, and touch the robe.” Then suddenly a shower of rain fell from heaven, thoroughly saturating the statues, which, composed as they were of a mixture of sulphur, iron and clay, began to effervesce, as happens with a mixture of these ingredients when water is poured upon it. Then bursting into flames from the fire generated within them, they were reduced to heaps of ashes, which afterwards appeared as burial mounds on the ground.
* Michael, the archangel.
** Athanasian Symbol or Creed. Although bearing the name of Athanasius, it was probably composed by Hilary, in the century after the formulation of the Nicene Creed, A.D. 325. The name was given to it about the year A.D. 670 as an excellent system of the doctrines of Athansius concerning the Trinity and the Incarnation, principally in opposition to the Arians. It is received by the Romish Church and also by the Reformed.
[2] There was once a large assembly in the world of spirits, and the conversation turned upon this subject. Some said that not to be able to speak except as one thought, when in company with the good, was rather hard for those who had not formed right conceptions of God and of the Lord. In the assembly were some Protestants, with many of their clergy, and near by were some Roman Catholics, among them being several monks. Both of these parties at once declared that it was not at all hard, saying, “Why must one speak otherwise than as one thinks? If it happens that a man does not think aright, can he not keep his lips closed and remain silent?” Then one of the clergy said, “Who does not think aright concerning God and the Lord?” Some of the assembly suggested that they should try and see. So they asked those who, when thinking about God, had confirmed themselves in their belief in a trinity of Persons, to utter from their thought the words “One God”; but they could not. They performed many twists and contortions with their lips, but they could not make them pronounce words other than those which conformed to their thoughts, which were of three Persons and consequently of three Gods.
[3] Next, those who had confirmed their belief in faith separate from charity were asked to pronounce the name “Jesus”; but they could not, yet they were all able to say “Christ” and also “God the Father.” They wondered at this, and on inquiry they discovered the reason to be that they prayed to God the Father for the sake of the Son, and not to the Saviour Himself; and Jesus means Saviour. [4] They were then asked, from their thought concerning the Human of the Lord, to say the words, “Divine Human.” Not one of the clergy present was able to do so, but some of the laymen were able; so this became the subject of serious discussion.
(1) First of all the following passages in the Evangelists were read to them:
that “the Father hath given all things into the hand of the Son,” John iii. 35;
that “the Father hath given the Son power over all flesh,” John xvii. 2;
“All things are delivered unto me of my Father.” Matt. xi. 27;
“All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.” Matt. xxviii. 18.
They were requested to bear in mind that, according to these passages, Christ is God of heaven and earth in respect of His Divine and of His Human, and so to utter the words, “Divine Human”; but still they could not, and they said that, although from these passages they had in their understanding a certain idea of it, there was no acknowledgment, and therefore they were unable to pronounce the words.
[5] (2) Afterwards the passage from Luke i. 32, 34, 35, was read to them, which declares that the Lord as to His Human was the Son of Jehovah God, and that He is there called the Son of the Highest, and everywhere else the Son of God, and also the Only Begotten. They were asked to keep this in mind, and also the fact that the Only Begotten Son of God, born in the world, must of necessity be God, as the Father is God, and to utter the words, “Divine Human”; but they said, “We cannot, because our spiritual thought, which is interior, admits into the thought nearest to speech no ideas but such as are similar to itself.” For this reason, they added, they perceived that they could not divide their thoughts, as they did in the natural world.
[6] (3) Then the following words of the Lord to Philip were read to them:
“Philip saith, Lord, show us the Father.” Jesus said unto him: “He that hath seen me hath seen the Father . . . Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me?” John xiv. 8-11;
and other passages also, which declare
that “the Father and He are one,” as in John x. 30.
They were asked to keep this in their thought, and then to say, “Divine Human”; but as that thought was not rooted in the acknowledgment that the Lord is God even with respect to His Human, they could not, although they twisted their lips till they were angry, endeavouring to force their mouths to utter the words. This was because, among those in the spiritual world, the ideas of thought which arise from acknowledgment unite with the words of the tongue, and where those ideas do not exist, neither do words, for only such ideas become expressed in words.
[7] (4) The following words from the doctrine universally received in the Christian Church were then read to them:
“The Divine and the Human in the Lord are not two, but one; yea, one Person, united like soul and body in man.”
This is from the Athanasian Creed,* and has been acknowledged by the Church Councils; and it was added: “You can therefore surely have some idea from the acknowledgment that the Human of the Lord is Divine, because His soul is Divine, this being in accordance with the doctrine of your Church, which you acknowledged in the world. Moreover, it was added, “the soul is the essence itself of a man, and the body is its form; and essence and form make one, like being (esse) and existing (existere), or like cause and effect.” They accepted this idea, and from it endeavored to pronounce the words, “Divine Human” but they could not, for their interior idea of the Human of the Lord utterly destroyed this new-fangled idea, as they called it.
[8] (5) Thereupon the following passages from John were read to them:
“The Word was with God, and the Word was God … And the Word was made flesh.” John i. 1, 14;
and also this:
“This (Jesus Christ) is the true God, and eternal life.” 1 John v. 20;
and this passage from Paul:
“In Him (Christ Jesus) dwelleth all the fulness of the God-head bodily.” Coloss. ii. 9.
They were then asked to think according to the tenor of these words, that God, who was the Word, became Man; that He was the true God; and that in Him dwelt all the fulness of the Godhead bodily. They did so, but in their external thought only. Therefore they were unable, because of the resistance of their internal thought, to say the words, “Divine Human.” They said frankly that they could not maintain the idea of the Divine Human, because God is God, and man is man, and God is a spirit, “and of a spirit,” they added, “we have no idea except that it is wind or ether.”
[9] (6) At length they were reminded of what the Lord said:
“Abide in me, and I in you…. He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.” John xv. 4, 5;
and as some of the English clergy were present, this passage was read to them from their exhortation at the Holy Communion:
“For, when we spiritually eat the flesh of Christ and drink the blood, then we dwell in Christ, and Christ in us”;**
and the request was made to them: “If you now think that this is impossible unless the Human of the Lord is Divine, repeat the words, ‘Divine Human’ from acknowledgment in thought.” But still they could not do this, so deeply impressed upon them was the idea that what is Divine cannot be human, and what is human cannot be Divine, and that the Lord’s Divine was from the Divine of the Son born from eternity, and His Human like the human of any other man. Upon this they were asked: “How can you think so? Can a rational mind conceive of a Son born of God from eternity?”
[10] (7) After this the Evangelical Protestants were addressed. They were reminded that both the Augustan Confession*** and Luther**** taught that the Son of God and the Son of Man in Christ are one Person, that even as to His Human Nature He is omnipotent and omnipresent; that in respect to this Nature He sits at the right hand of God the Father, governs all things in heaven and on earth, fills all things, is with us, and dwells and operates in us; that there is no division of worship, because by the Nature which is discerned, the Divinity which is not discerned is worshiped, and that in Christ, God is Man and Man God. On hearing this they asked, “Is it really so?” and looking grave they said: “We did not know this before. That is why we cannot say the words, ‘Divine Human.'” And first one and then another said: “We have read this, and even written it; and yet when we deeply considered it, it was a matter of mere words, carrying no interior idea whatever.”
[11] (8) Finally, those who were conducting the inquiry turned to the Roman Catholics and said: “Perhaps you can say ‘Divine Human,’ because you believe that, in your Eucharist,***** Christ is wholly present in the bread and wine, and in every part of them. You also worship Him as God most holy when you exhibit and carry about the Host. Then you call Mary Deipara, or Mother of God, thereby acknowledging that she brought forth God, that is, the Divine Human.” They then endeavored to pronounce the words, but were unable, because there intervened the material idea of the body and blood of Christ, and also the belief that His Human is separable from the Divine, and that it is actually separated in the person of the Pope, to whom His Human power only, and not His Divine, is transferred. Then one of the monks rose and said that he could think of a divine human in respect of the most holy virgin Mary, and also in respect of a saint in his own monastery; and another monk approaching, said: “According to the idea which I now entertain, I can pronounce the words ‘Divine Human’ in reference to his Holiness the Pope, rather than to Christ;” but some of the Catholics drew him back, saying, “Shame on you!” [12] Thereupon heaven was seen open, and there appeared, as it were, tongues of fire descending and lighting upon some of the assembly, who then began to proclaim the Divine Human of the Lord, saying: “Put away the idea of three Gods, and believe that in the Lord dwells all the fulness of the Godhead bodily, and that the Father and He are one as the soul and body are one, and that God is not wind or ether, but is Man. Then will you be conjoined with heaven, and from the Lord will be able to name Jesus, and to say, ‘Divine Human.'”
* Athanasian Symbol or Creed. Although bearing the name of Athanasius, it was probably composed by Hilary, in the century after the formulation of the Nicene Creed, A.D. 325. The name was given to it about the year A.D. 670 as an excellent system of the doctrines of Athansius concerning the Trinity and the Incarnation, principally in opposition to the Arians. It is received by the Romish Church and also by the Reformed.
** In Orig. Ed. this passage from the exhortation to the Communion read to the members of the English clergy is in English: “For, when we spiritually eat the flesh of Christ and drink the blood, then we dwell in Christ, and Christ in us.”
*** Augustan or Augsburg Confession, presented by the Lutherans to Charles V at Augusta or Augsburg, in A.D. 1530. This is one of the standard books of faith to which members of the Lutheran Church subscribe. Melanchthon was mainly responsible for its composition.
**** Luther, Martin, A.D. 1483-1646, the leader of the Protestant Reformation in Germany, was born at Eisleben, Saxony. He was a student at Erfurt in law and divinity, and was ordained priest in A.D. 1507. He left Erfurt for a chair in the university of Wittenberg, where his preaching attracted great attention. Here he made his first public protest against the Romish Church by condemning the sale of indulgences. The Lutheran Church dates its origin from the year A.D. 1520 when Luther was expelled from the Romish Church. It assumed a more definite shape on the publication in A.D. 1530 of the Augsburg Confession. This was drawn up by Melanchthon and Luther as the principal standard of the Church. The final establishment of the Lutheran Church was made possible by the friendly offices of Maurice, Elector of Saxony.
***** Eucharist, Holy Supper, thanksgiving.
[2] When I heard this, being in the spirit, I approached them and said: “Here I am. What is the matter?” Immediately one of them, who I afterwards learned was a German, a native of Saxony, said in an authoritative tone: “How dare you overturn the worship which has been established in the Christian world for so many centuries, and which is founded on the teaching that God the Father should be invoked as the Creator of the universe, His Son as the Mediator, and the Holy Ghost as the Operator? And you divest the first and the last God of our personality, although the Lord Himself says, ‘When ye pray, say, “Our Father who art in the heavens, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come.”‘ Are we not here commanded to invoke God the Father?” At these words there was silence, and all who agreed with him stood like brave soldiers on board men-of-war, ready to cry out when they see the enemy’s fleet: “Now let us fight: victory is sure.” [3] Then I began to speak, and I said: “Which of you does not know that God came from heaven, and became Man? For it is written, ‘The Word was with God, and the Word was God. And the Word was made flesh.’ Moreover, which of you does not know,”-and here I looked at the Evangelicals among whom was that dictatorial one who had addressed me-“that in Christ, who was born of the virgin Mary, God is Man, and Man is God?” Upon this the company murmured; so I said: “Do you not know this? It is according to the doctrine of your own Confession, called the Formula Concordiae,* where this is stated and confirmed by many proofs.” Then the dictator, turning to the company, asked if they knew this. They replied: “We have not given much attention to what is said in that Book concerning the Person of Christ, but we have spent much labor studying the Article on Justification by Faith Alone. However, if it is so written in that Book, we agree.” Hereupon one of them, recalling it to memory, said: “It is so written; and furthermore, that Christ’s Human Nature with all its attributes, has been exalted to Divine Majesty, and also that Christ in that Nature sits at the right hand of His Father.”
[4] When they heard this they were silent. After this confirmation I continued saying, “Since this is the case, what then is the Father but the Son, and the Son but the Father?” As this, however, again offended their ears, I proceeded: “Hear the very words of the Lord. If you would not attend to them before, attend to them now. He said: ‘I and the Father are one; the Father is in me, and I am in the Father; Father, all mine are thine, and all thine are mine; and, he that seeth me, seeth the Father.’ What else do these words mean but that the Father is in the Son, and the Son in the Father? Also that they are one, like the soul and body in a man, and therefore that they are one Person? This also must be your belief if you believe the Athanasian Creed** where the same things are stated. However, from the passages just quoted take this declaration of the Lord’s: ‘Father, all mine are thine, and all thine are mine.’ What else does this mean but that the Divine of the Father belongs to the Human of the Son, and the Human of the Son to the Divine of the Father; consequently that in Christ God is Man, and Man is God, and thus that they are one, as the soul and body are one? [5] Similarly every man may say of his own soul and body, that all thine are mine, and all mine are thine; thou art in me, and I am in thee; he that seeth me, seeth thee; we are one with regard both to person and life. The reason of this is, that the soul is in the whole and every part of a man; for the life of the soul is the life of the body, and there is a mutual relation between them. From this it is plain that the Divine of the Father is the soul of the Son, and that the Human of the Son is the body of the Father. Whence has a son his soul but from his father, and his body, but from his mother? We speak of the Divine of the Father, and by this we mean the Father Himself, since He and His Divine are the same thing, the Divine being one and indivisible. It is also evident that this is the case from these words of the angel Gabriel to Mary: ‘The Holy Spirit shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee; therefore, also, that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God’; and a little before He is called ‘The Son of the Highest,’ and in another place ‘The only-begotten Son’; but you, who call Him only the Son of Mary, destroy the idea of His Divinity. This idea, however, is destroyed only among the learned clergy and the erudite laity who, when they raise their thoughts above the things of bodily sense, regard the glory of their own reputation, which not only obscures but even extinguishes the light by which the glory of God enters.
[6] “Let us now return to the Lord’s Prayer, where it is said: ‘Our Father, who art in the heavens, hallowed be thy name: thy kingdom come.’ You that are here present understand by these words the Father in His Divine alone; whereas I understand them as relating to Him in His Human. By the latter term is also meant the name of the Father; for the Lord said, ‘Father, glorify thy name,’ that is, Thy Human; and when this is done, then the kingdom of God comes. This prayer was enjoined for the present time, in order that God the Father might be approached by means of His Human. The Lord has also declared: ‘No man cometh unto the Father but by me’; and it is written in the Prophet: ‘Unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given; and His name shall be called … The mighty God, The everlasting Father’; and in another place: ‘Thou, JEHOVAH, art our Father, our Redeemer; thy name is from everlasting’; and in numerous other places, where the Lord our Saviour is called JEHOVAH. This is the true explanation of the words of that prayer.”
[7] After I had said this, I looked upon them, and noted the changes in their countenances according to the changes in the states of their minds; and I observed some assenting and looking towards me, and some dissenting and turning away from me. Then towards the right I saw a cloud opaline in colour, and a dark cloud towards the left. Under each was, as it were, a falling shower, that under the latter being like rain in the late Autumn, while that under the former was like dew in the early Spring time. Then suddenly, from being in the spirit, I was in the body again, and so I returned from the spiritual to the natural world.
* Form of Concord, Formula Concordiae, designed to effect an amicable adjustment of the differences among the Lutherans, by drawing them more closely to their principal standard, the Augsburg or Augustan Confession. Most of the Lutheran Churches add this Formula to their standard creeds.
** Athanasian Symbol or Creed. Although bearing the name of Athanasius, it was probably composed by Hilary, in the century after the formulation of the Nicene Creed, A.D. 325. The name was given to it about the year A.D. 670 as an excellent system of the doctrines of Athansius concerning the Trinity and the Incarnation, principally in opposition to the Arians. It is received by the Romish Church and also by the Reformed.
[2] “In their youth they learned to confirm the doctrine of Faith Alone, as well as some teaching about God; and after attaining to higher offices in the Church, they maintained their views for some time. However, because they then began to think no more about God and heaven, but about themselves and the world, thus not about eternal blessedness and happiness but about temporal eminence and wealth, they cast out the doctrines which they had received in their early years, from the interiors of their rational mind, which communicate with heaven, and which are therefore in the light (lux) of heaven, into the exteriors of the rational mind, which communicate with the world, and which are therefore in the light (lumen)* of the world, and at length they relegated them to the natural plane of the senses. Consequently the doctrinals of the Church have become with them matters of lip service only, and no longer matters of thought from reason, still less of affection from love. Because they have reduced themselves to such a state as this, they do not give admittance to the Divine Truth which has relation to the Church, nor to any genuine good which has relation to religion. It is as if their minds were like bottles, filled with fragments of iron mixed with powdered sulphur. If water is poured upon this mixture, heat is generated and then fire, which causes the bottles to burst. In like manner, when they hear, and admit through their ears, any mention of living water, which is the genuine truth of the Word, they become heated, and violently flare up, and cast it out as something which would burst their heads.
[3] “Those are they who appeared to you like apes, riding on red and black horses, with their bodies turned the wrong way, and with the bridle-reins round their necks; since those who do not love the truth and good of the Church derived from the Word, do not desire to view the fore parts of a horse, but only its hinder parts; for a horse signifies the understanding of the Word, a red horse signifying the understanding of the Word destroyed as to good, and a black horse the understanding of the Word destroyed as to truth. They raised shouts of battle against those who rode upon white horses, because a white horse signifies the understanding of the Word as to truth and good; and they appeared to draw back their horses because they feared the combat, lest the truth of the Word should become known to many, and so come to light. This is the interpretation of the incident.”
[4] The angels continued, saying: “We belong to the Society in heaven which is called Michael,** and we were commanded by the Lord to descend to the place called Armageddon, from which the horsemen you saw sallied forth. With us in heaven Armageddon signifies the state and desire of the mind to wage war, prompted by falsified truths, arising from the love of domination and pre-eminence over all; and because we perceive in you a desire to know something of that war, we will give you some account of it. On our descent from heaven we went to that place Armageddon, and saw several thousands assembled there. We did not join that assembly, but there were some houses to the south of that place, and these we entered. In them were children with their teachers, who received us kindly; and we were delighted with their company. They were all attractive in appearance, with vitality flashing from their eyes and an engaging eagerness in their conversation. The life in their eyes arose from their perception of truth, and their eagerness in conversation from their affection of good. We therefore presented them with caps, the borders of which were ornamented with bands of gold thread interwoven with pearls; and we also gave them garments parti-colored in white and blue. We asked them if they ever looked into the neighboring place called Armageddon. They replied that they did, through a window under the roof of the house, and that they saw a large assembly there, but under various forms, at one time appearing like noble men, at another, not like men but like statues and graven images, and round them a company on bended knees. These also appeared to us under various guises, some like men, some like leopards, and some like goats with their horns thrust downwards, digging up the ground. We interpreted for them these transformations, explaining who were represented and what was signified by them.
[5] “But to come to the point. When those who formed the assembly heard that we had entered those houses, they said to one another: ‘What are they doing among the children? Let us send some of our company to turn them out.’ So they sent some, and when they came to us they said: ‘Why did you enter those houses? Where do you come from? We, by authority, command you to depart.’ To this we replied: ‘You have no authority to command that. You appear indeed in your own eyes like giant Anakim, and those who are here like dwarfs; but still you have no power or authority here, except by cunning, which nevertheless will be of no avail. So tell your companions that we have been sent here from heaven, to see whether there is any religion with you or not; and if there is not, you will be cast out of the place where you now are. Propose, therefore, to your companions this question, which involves the very essence of the Church and of religion, how they understand these words in the Lord’s Prayer, “Our Father, who art in the heavens, hallowed be thy name; thy kingdom come.”‘
“When they heard these words, they said at first: ‘What is the meaning of this?’ but afterwards they agreed to convey the proposed question. They went away and reported those things to their companions, who said: ‘What is the meaning of this proposal?’ However, they understood that behind this question there lay the desire to know whether those words affirmed their belief in the way of approach to God the Father which our faith taught.*** Therefore they said: ‘The meaning of the words is plain, that we ought to pray to God the Father, and because Christ is our Mediator, that we ought to pray to God the Father for the sake of the Son.’ Forthwith in their indignation they determined to come to us and say so to our faces, adding further that they would pull our ears.
“So they left that place, and went into a grove near the houses where the children were with their teachers. In the centre of this grove was a level clearing like an arena. Having joined hands, they entered this, and found us there waiting for them. On the ground were heaps of turf like little green mounds; and they sat down on these, saying, ‘We will not stand in their presence, but sit.’ Then one of them, who could assume the appearance of an angel of light, and who was asked by the others to speak with us, said: ‘You have proposed to us that we should explain how we understand those first words in the Lord’s Prayer. I say, therefore, to you that according to our interpretation they signify, that we ought to pray to God the Father; and because Christ is our Mediator, and we are saved by His merit, we ought to pray to God the Father from faith in His merit.’
[6] “Thereupon we said to them: ‘We are from a Society in heaven which is called Michael, and we have been sent to see you, and to enquire whether you, who are assembled in this place, have any religion or not; for the idea of God enters into everything of religion, and by it conjunction is effected, and by conjunction, salvation. We in heaven, like men on earth, repeat that prayer daily, and in doing so we do not think of God the Father, because He is invisible, but we think of Him in His Divine Human, because in this He is visible; and in this He is by you called Christ, but by us the Lord, and thus the Lord to us is the Father in the heavens. Moreover, the Lord taught us that He and the Father are one; that the Father is in Him, and He in the Father; and that he who seeth Him, seeth the Father. He taught also that no one cometh to the Father but by Him; and that it is the will of the Father that men should believe on the Son; and that he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him. From these passages it is manifest that the Father is to be approached through Him and in Him; and since this is the case, He also taught that all power is given Him in heaven and on earth. It is said in that prayer, “Hallowed be thy name, thy kingdom come:” and we have shown from the Word that His Divine Human is the Father’s name, and that the Father’s kingdom then comes when the Lord is approached directly, and not when God the Father is approached directly. Therefore also the Lord commanded His disciples to preach the kingdom of God; and this is the kingdom of God.’
[7] “On hearing these words our opponents said: ‘You quote many passages from the Word, and possibly we may have read them there, but we do not remember. Therefore open the Word in our presence, and read those passages from it, especially that which says that the Father’s kingdom comes when the Lord’s kingdom comes.’ Then they said to the children: ‘Bring hither the Word;’ and they brought it. We then read from it the following passages:
John came preaching the Gospel of the kingdom. Jesus said, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand.’ Mark i. 14, 15; Matt. iii. 2.
Jesus Himself preached the Gospel of the kingdom, and said that the kingdom of God was at hand. Matt. iv. 17, 23; ix. 35.
Jesus gave commandment to His disciples that they should preach and show the glad tidings of the kingdom of God. Mark xvi. 15; Luke viii. 1; ix. 60. So also the Seventy taught, whom He sent forth. Luke x. 9, 11;
besides what is taught in other places, as Matt. xi. 5; xvi. 28; Mark ix. 1; xi. 10; Luke iv. 43; xxi. 31; xxii. 18.
The kingdom of God which was preached was the Lord’s kingdom, and thus the Father’s kingdom, as is evident from these passages:
‘The Father … hath given all things into His (the Son’s) hand.’ John iii. 35;
The Father hath given the Son power over all flesh. John xvii. 2;
‘All things are delivered unto me of my Father,’ Matt. xi. 27;
‘All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. xxviii. 18.
It is also evident from these passages:
‘JEHOVAH ZEBAOTH is His name; and thy Redeemer the Holy One of Israel; the God of the whole earth shall He be called.’ Isa. liv. 5;
‘I saw … and behold, one like the Son of Man…. And there was given Him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people and nations … should serve Him: His dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and His kingdom that which shall not be destroyed.’ Dan. vii. 13, 14;
‘And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of His Christ; and He shall reign for ever and ever.’ Rev. xi. 15; xii. 10.
[8] “We further instructed them from the Word that the Lord came into the world, not only to redeem angels and men, but also that they might be united to God the Father through Him and in Him; for He taught
that those who believe on Him are in Him, and He in them. John vi. 56; xiv. 20; xv. 4, 5.
When they heard this they asked, ‘How then can your Lord be called Father?’ We replied: ‘That appears from what has just been read, and also from these passages:
‘Unto as a child is born, unto us a Son is given; and His name shall be called…. The mighty God, The everlasting Father. Isa. ix. 6
‘Doubtless thou art our Father, though Abraham be ignorant of us, and Israel acknowledge us not: thou, JEHOVAH, art our Father, our Redeemer; thy name is from everlasting.’
Did He not say to Philip, who desired to see the Father,
‘Hast thou not known me, Philip? he that hath seen me hath seen the Father.’ John xiv. 9; xii. 45.
Who else, then, is the Father but He whom Philip saw with his eyes? To this we added: It is said throughout the whole Christian world that those who are of the Church constitute the body of Christ, and are in His body. How, then, can any man of the Church approach God the Father but through Him in whose body he is? Otherwise he must go quite out of the body and so approach Him. Finally, we informed them that at this day the Lord is establishing a New Church which is signified by the New Jerusalem in the Revelation, in which there will be the worship of the Lord alone, as in heaven, and that thus everything contained in the Lord’s Prayer from beginning to end will be fulfilled. So fully did we confirm all this from the Word in the Evangelists, and in the Prophets, as well as from the Revelation, which from beginning to end treats of that Church, that they grew tired of listening.
[9] “The men from Armageddon were so angry at hearing these things that they desired at every turn to interrupt our remarks. Finally they did interrupt, calling out: ‘You have spoken against the doctrine of our Church, which teaches that God the Father is to be approached directly, and that men should believe on Him; you are thus guilty of a violation of our faith. Leave this place, therefore, or you will be turned out. Inflamed with angry passion they now proceeded to carry out their threats; but at that instant, being endowed with power, we struck them with blindness, so that they could not see us; but rushing forth they ran, not knowing whither, and some fell into the abyss mentioned in Revelation ix. 2. This is now in the region lying to the south-east, where dwell those who confirm their belief in justification by faith alone. Those among them who confirm it from the Word, are sent forth to a desert part, where they reach the outskirts of the Christian world, and associate with the heathen.”
* See footnote on 3:8.
** Michael, the archangel.
*** The phrase ad Deum Patrem is attached to viam. quod velint scire, num illa confirmant viam fidei nostrae ad Deum Patrem.
It is acknowledged throughout the Church that to the Lord there pertain two offices, that of priest and that of king; but as few persons know in what these offices consist it shall now be explained. The Lord, from the office of priest, is called Jesus, and Christ from the office of king. In the Word also, from the office of priest, He is called Jehovah and Lord, and from the office of king, God and the Holy One of Israel, as well as King. These two offices are distinct from each other like love and wisdom, or what is the same, like goodness and truth. Therefore whatever the Lord did, and whatever function He performed, from Divine Love or Divine Good, He did from His priestly office; but whatever He did from Divine Wisdom or Divine Truth, He did from His kingly office. In the Word also priest and priesthood signify Divine Good, and king and kingship signify Divine Truth; and these were represented by the priests and kings in the Israelitish Church. Redemption pertains to both offices; but in what respect to the one, and in what to the other, will be shown in what follows. That the subject in its details may be clearly understood, the exposition will be arranged under the following heads or articles:
(1) Redemption itself was the subjugation of the hells, the orderly arrangement of the heavens, and thus the preparation for a New Spiritual Church.
(2) Without that redemption no man could have been saved, nor could the angels have continued in a state of integrity.
(3) The Lord thus redeemed not only men but also angels.
(4) Redemption was a work purely Divine.
(5) This redemption itself could not have been effected but by God incarnate.
(6) The passion of the cross was not redemption, but the last temptation which the Lord endured as the Supreme Prophet; and it was the means of the glorification of His Human, that is, of union with the Divine of His Father.
(7) It is a fundamental error of the Church to believe that the passion of the cross was redemption itself; and this error, together with that concerning three Divine Persons from eternity, has perverted the whole Church so that nothing spiritual remains in it.
A detailed exposition of each article will now be given.
That redemption consists in these three things I can declare with the utmost certainty, for the Lord also at this day is accomplishing a redemption, which began in the year 1757, together with the Last Judgment, which was then completed. From that time right up to the present this redemption has continued, because now is the time of the Lord’s Second Advent, and a New Church is to be established, which would be impossible unless the hells were first reduced to subjection and the heavens restored to order. As it was granted me to see all this, I can describe how the hells were subdued, and how the founding of the new heaven and its orderly arrangement were effected; but the description would require an entire volume. However, in a little work, published in London, in 1758, I have shown how the Last Judgment took place. The subjugation of the hells, the orderly arrangement of the heavens, and the establishment of a New Church constituted redemption, because without these operations no man could have been saved. Moreover, they follow in order; for the hells had first to be subdued before a new angelic heaven could be formed; and this had to be formed before a New Church could be established on earth; because men in the world are so connected with the spiritual world that their minds are in unison with angels in heaven or with spirits in hell. But this subject will be dealt with in the last chapter of this work where the Consummation of the Age, the Coming of the Lord, and the New Church are specifically treated.
“Who is this that cometh from Edom, with dyed garments from Bozrah? this that is glorious in His apparel, travelling in the greatness of His strength? I that speak in righteousness, mighty to sate. Wherefore art thou red in thine apparel, and thy garments like him that treadeth in the winefat? I have trodden the wine-press alone; and of the people there was none with me: for I will tread them in mine anger, and trample them in my fury; and their blood shall be sprinkled upon my garments, and I will stain all my raiment. For the day of vengeance is in mine heart, and the year of my redeemed is come. . . Mine own arm brought salvation unto me . . . and I will bring down their strength to the earth. . . For He said, Surely they are my people, my children. . . So He was their Saviour. . . . In His love and pity He redeemed them.” Isa. lxiii. 1-9.
These words are spoken of the Lord’s combat against the hells. By the garment in which He was honourable, and which was red, is signified the Word, which was violated by the Jewish people. His combat against the hells and His victory over them are described by His treading them in His anger, and trampling them in His fury. That He fought alone, and from His own power, is described by these words:
“Of the people there was none with me. Mine own arm brought salvation unto me . . . and I will bring down their strength to the earth.” That He thus saved and redeemed them, is signified by these words: “So He was their Saviour. . . . In His love and pity He redeemed them.” That this was the cause of His Coming is under-stood by these words: “The day of vengeance is in mine heart, and the year of my redeemed is come.”
[2] Again, it is written in Isaiah:
“And He saw that there was no man, and wondered that there was no intercessor: therefore His arm brought salvation unto Him, and His righteousness, it sustained Him. For He put on righteousness as a breastplate, and an helmet of salvation upon His head; and He put on the garments of vengeance for clothing, and was clad with zeal as a cloak. . . . And the Redeemer shall come to Zion.” lix. 16, 17, 20.
In Jeremiah it is written:
They were dismayed. “Their mighty ones are beaten down, and are fled apace, and look not back. . . . For this is the day of JEHOVIH ZEBAOTH, a day of vengeance, that He may avenge Him of His adversaries: and the sword shall devour, and it shall be satiate.” xlvi. 5, 10.
These passages relate to the Lord’s combat against the hells, and His victory over them. It is written also in
David:
“Gird thy sword upon thy thigh, O Most Mighty. . . . Thine arrows are sharp in the heart of the king’s enemies; whereby the people fall under thee. Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever. . Thou lovest righteousness . . . therefore God hath anointed thee.” Ps. xlv. 3-7;
and in many other places.
[3] As the Lord conquered the hells alone, without help from any angel, He is therefore called
Mighty, and a Man of War, Isa. xlii. 13; ix. 6;
the King of glory, JEHOVAH strong and mighty in battle, Ps. xxiv. 8, 10;
the mighty God of Jacob, Ps. cxxxii. 2;
and in many places He is called JEHOVAH ZEBAOTH, that is, JEHOVAH of Hosts. Further, His Coming is called ‘The day of JEHOVAH, terrible and cruel, a day of indignation, of flaming anger, of wrath, of vengenance, of destruction, of war, of a trumpet, of noise, of tumult,’ and so on. It is written also in the Evangelists,
“Now is the judgment of this world: now shall the prince of this world be cast out.” John xii. 31;
“The prince of this world is judged.” xvi. 11;
“Be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.” xvi. 33.
“I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven.” Luke x. 18.
By the world, the prince of the world, Satan, and the Devil, is signified hell.
[4] Moreover, in the Revelation, from beginning to end, is described the character of the Christian Church at the present day; and there is foretold that the Lord will come again, and subdue the hells, and form a new angelic heaven, and afterwards establish a New Church on earth. All these things are there predicted, but they have not been disclosed till the present time. The reason of this is that the Book of Revelation, like all the prophetical parts of the Word, was written by pure correspondences; and unless these had been disclosed by the Lord, scarcely any one could have rightly understood a single verse in that Book. However, for the sake of the New Church, all things therein have now been made known in the work entitled, APOCALYPSE REVEALED, published at Amsterdam, in the year 1766; and they will understand these things who believe the Word of the Lord as it is written in Matthew xxiv., concerning the present state of the Church and His Coming. But this belief is as yet only vague and uncertain with those who have the belief of the Church of to-day in a trinity of Divine Persons from eternity, and in the Passion of Christ as constituting redemption itself, so deeply implanted in their hearts that it cannot be eradicated. They resemble those described in the incident recorded in No. 113. They are like bottles filled with fragments of iron and powdered sulphur. When water is poured into them, heat is at first generated and then fire, which causes the bottles to burst. In like manner when they hear anything of that living water, which is the genuine truth of the Word, and when it enters into their minds either through their eyes or their ears, they become heated, and violently flare up, and cast it out as something which would burst their heads.
It shall first be stated what redemption is. To redeem means to deliver from condemnation, to save from eternal death, to rescue from hell, and to release the captive and the bound from the power of the devil. This the Lord did by subduing the hells and founding a new heaven. Man could not otherwise have been saved, because the spiritual world is so connected with the natural that they cannot be separated. The connection is primarily with the interiors of men, called their souls and minds, those of good men being connected with the souls and minds of angels, and those of evil men with the souls and minds of infernal spirits. So close is this connection that if angels and spirits were removed from a man, he would fall down dead, like a log; and in the same way they would cease to exist if men were withdrawn from them. Hence it is plain why redemption took place in the spiritual world, and why heaven and hell had to be reduced to order before a Church could be established on earth. That this is so is very evident from what is said in the Book of Revelation, that after the new heaven was formed, there came down out of that heaven the New Jerusalem, which is the New Church. xxi. 1, 2.
[3] The case is similar with the angels when the Church on earth perishes; for then the lower heavens pass away. This is because the heavens consist of men from the earth; and when there remain no longer any goodness of heart and truth from the Word among men, the heavens are overwhelmed by the evils which surge up, and they are suffocated by them as by a flood of Stygian waters. Nevertheless, the Lord makes provision elsewhere for these angels; and they are preserved till the day of the Last Judgment, when they are raised up into a new heaven. These are they who are meant in the Revelation:
“I saw under the altar the souls of them that were slain for the Word of God, and for the testimony which they held: And they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on earth? And white robes were given unto every one of them; and it was said unto them, that they should rest yet for a little season, until their fellow-servants also and their brethren, that should be killed as they were, should be fulfilled.” vi. 9, 10, 11.
[3] Hence, then, it may appear evident, that without redemption by the Lord, no man could be saved, nor could the angels remain in their state of integrity. The only refuge from destruction for any one is in the Lord; for He says:
“Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine, no more can ye, except ye abide in me. I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing. If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered: and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned.” John xv. 4-6.
This follows from what was stated in the preceding article, that unless redemption had been wrought by the Lord, the angels could not have continued in their state of integrity. To the reasons already mentioned the two following may be added. (1) At the time of the Lord’s First Coming, the hells had increased to such an extent as to fill the whole world of spirits, which lies between heaven and hell; and thus not only did they disturb the lowest heaven, but they also made attacks upon the middle heaven, which they infested in a thousand different ways; and which would have been brought to destruction had not the Lord protected it. This uprising of the hells is meant by the tower that was built in the land of Shinar, whose top was to reach unto heaven; but the enterprise of its builders was frustrated by the confusion of tongues. They were dispersed, and the city was called Babel. Gen. xi. 1-9. What is there signified by the tower, and by the confusion of tongues is explained in the ARCANA CAELESTIA, published in London. [2] The hells had increased to such an extent because at the time the Lord came into the world the whole earth had completely alienated itself from God by idolatry and magic; and the Church which had existed among the Children of Israel, and latterly among the Jews, was entirely destroyed by the falsification and adulteration of the Word. As both Jews and Gentiles passed into the spiritual world after death, they so increased and multiplied that they could not have been driven out had not God Himself come down, with the strength of His Divine arm. How this was effected is described in the little work, THE LAST JUDGMENT, published in London, in the year 1758. It was accomplished by the Lord when He was in the world. A similar judgment has been effected by the Lord at the present day, since, as has been said above, this is the time of His Second Coming, which is foretold throughout the Revelation, and in Matthew xxiv. 3, 30; in Mark xiii. 26; in Luke xxi. 27; in the Acts of the Apostles i. 11; and elsewhere. The difference is, that at His First Coming the hells had been greatly increased by idolators, magicians and falsifiers of the Word; while at His Second Coming they were increased by so-called Christians, both those who were imbued with naturalism, and those who falsified the Word by confirming from it their vain belief in three Divine Persons from eternity, and in the passion of the Lord as constituting redemption itself; for these are signified in Revelation xii. and xiii., by the dragon and his two beasts.
[3] (2)* The second reason why the Lord also redeemed angels is, that not only every man, but also every angel, is withheld from evil and maintained in good by the Lord; for no one, whether angel or man, is in good of himself, but all good is from the Lord. When, therefore, the footstool of the angels, which is in the world of spirits, was removed from under them, they were like a person sitting on a throne when its supports are taken away. That the angels are not pure in the sight of God is evident from the prophetical parts of the Word, and also from the Book of Job; and likewise from this consideration that there is not a single angel who was not once a man. This confirms that section on the Faith of the New Heaven and the New Church in its general and in its particular form, prefixed to this work, where it is said,
That the Lord came into the world in order to remove hell from man; which He accomplished by victory in combats against it. He thus subdued it, and reduced it to a state of obedience to Himself.
Further,
That Jehovah God came down and assumed the Human; to the end that He might restore order to all things in heaven, … and in the Church. For at that time the power of the devil, that is, of hell, prevailed over the power of heaven, and on earth the power of evil prevailed over the power of good. Consequently mankind was threatened with imminent destruction. This impending destruction Jehovah God prevented by means of His Human, and so He redeemed both angels and men…. From this it is clear that unless the Lord had come into the world no one could have been saved. The case is similar to-day; and therefore unless the Lord comes again into the world … no one can be saved. See above, Nos. 2, 3.
* This passage is in quotation marks in Original Edition.
He who knows the nature of hell, and the height to which it had risen and overflowed the whole world of spirits at the time of the Lord’s Coming, and with what power the Lord cast it down and dispersed it, afterwards reducing it to order, together with heaven, cannot but be astonished, and exclaim that all was a work purely Divine. In the first place, the nature of hell may be realized from the fact that it consists of countless myriads, since it is composed of all those who from the creation of the world have alienated themselves from God by evils of life and falsities of faith. In the second place, the height to which hell had risen and overflowed the whole world of spirits at the time of the Lord’s Coming has been described in some measure in the preceding articles. The nature of hell at the time of the Lord’s First Coming has never been made known to any one, because it is not revealed in the sense of the letter of the Word; but its nature at the time of His Second Coming I was permitted to see with my own eyes; and from the description, which is recorded in the little work on THE LAST JUDGMENT, published in London in 1768, it is possible to form some idea of its former state. [In the third place,]* this little work also describes with what power the Lord cast down that hell and dispersed it. It would, however, be useless labor to repeat what I have there set forth as an eye-witness, because that book is extant, and there are still numerous copies at the printer’s in London. Every reader of that book may clearly see that what the Lord accomplished was the work of an omnipotent God. [2] In the fourth place, the manner in which the Lord afterwards reduced to order all things both in heaven and in hell has not yet been described by me, because the work of bringing the heavens and the hells into order has continued since the day of the Last Judgment until now, and still continues. Nevertheless, if it is desired, it shall be made known after this book has been published. With respect to myself, I have seen, and do see daily, the Divine omnipotence in this matter plainly manifest. The latter work, however, (reducing to order heaven and hell) is properly that of redemption, but the former (casting down the insurgent hell) is properly that of the Last Judgment. Those who regard the two as separate works may see many things which, in the prophetical parts of the Word, lie concealed under figures, but which stand out plainly revealed when brought to the light of the understanding by an explanation of their correspondence.
[3] This two-fold Divine work of redemption can be illustrated only by comparisons, and then but faintly. It may be compared to a battle against the armies of all the nations in the world, armed with spears, shields, swords, muskets and cannon, and led by skillful and cunning generals and officers. These are so described because many in hell excel in arts unknown in our world, and practice them among themselves, studying how they may attack, ensnare, besiege, and assault those who are in heaven. [4] The Lord’s combat with hell may also be compared, though imperfectly, to a battle against the wild beasts of the whole earth, and to their overthrow and subjugation, till not one of them dares to come forth and attack any man, who is in the Lord. Consequently if such a man presents a threatening countenance, they instantly shrink back, as if they felt a vulture at their breast, endeavoring to pierce them to the heart. Infernal spirits are also described in the Word by wild beasts, and are meant by the wild beasts among whom the Lord is said to have been forty days. Mark i. 13. [5] The work of the Lord may be compared also to the resistance which is offered to the whole body of the ocean, as it surges with its waves through broken dykes, over the countryside and cities. The subjugation of hell by the Lord is also meant by His calming the sea, by saying,
“Peace, be still.” Mark iv. 38, 39; Matt. viii. 26; Luke viii. 23, 24;
for the sea, there, as in many other passages, signifies hell.
[6] The Lord, by the same Divine power, fights at this day against hell in every one who is being regenerated; for hell attacks all such persons with diabolical fury; and if the Lord does not resist and subdue it, man cannot but succumb. For hell is like a monstrous man, or a huge lion, with which it is also compared in the Word; therefore unless the Lord kept that lion or monster bound hand and foot, a man, though rescued from one evil, would of necessity fall into another, and later into many more.
* The four points detailed are not clearly distinguished, therefore insert “In the third place.”
In the preceding article it was shown that redemption was a work purely Divine; consequently, that it could only have been effected by an omnipotent God. It could not have been accomplished but by God incarnate, that is, made Man, because Jehovah God, as He is in His infinite essence, cannot approach hell, much less enter into it, for He is in purest and first things. Therefore, if Jehovah God being such in Himself were but to breathe upon those who are in hell, He would instantly destroy them; for He said to Moses, who desired to see Him:
“Thou canst not see my faces (A.V. face): for there shall no man see me, and live.” Exod. xxxiii. 20.
If, therefore, Moses could not see Him, much less could those who are in hell, where all are in things ultimate and most gross, and thus most remote from God; for they are natural in the lowest degree. Consequently, if Jehovah God had not assumed the Human, and so clothed Himself with a body which was in ultimates, He would have undertaken any work of redemption in vain. For who can attack an enemy unless he approaches him, and is equipped with arms for the fight? Or who can drive off and destroy dragons, serpents and basilisks in a desert unless he covers his body with a coat of mail and his head with a helmet, and advances with a spear in his hand? Or who can capture whales in the sea without a ship and the tackle necessary for the purpose? By such instances it may be possible, not indeed to make comparisons, but to illustrate how the omnipotent God could not have joined combat with the hells unless He had first assumed the Human.
[2] It must be understood, however, that the Lord’s combat with the hells was not one of words, as between opponents in a discussion or in a law-suit. Such a combat would be fruitless: but it was a spiritual combat, that of Divine Truth from Divine Good, which was the very vital principle of the Lord; and the influx of this, through the medium of sight, no one in the hells can resist. It has such power that the infernal spirits (genii), as soon as they perceive it, flee away, cast themselves into the depths and creep into caves to hide themselves, as is described in Isaiah
“And they shall go into the holes of the rocks, and into the caves of the earth, for fear of JEHOVAH when He ariseth to shake terribly the earth.” ii. 19;
and in the Revelation:
All “hid themselves in the dens of the rocks and in the rocks of the mountains: And said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of Him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb.” vi. 15, 16.
[3] What kind of power the Lord possessed from the Divine Good when He effected the Last Judgment in the year 1757 may be seen from what is described in the little work on that subject. It hurled from their places hills and mountains which infernal spirits had seized in the world of spirits, transporting them to a distance, and causing some to sink into the earth. It overwhelmed in a flood their cities, villages and fields, tore up their lands from their very depths, and cast them with their inhabitants into whirl-pools, swamps and marshes; and much more. All this was done by the Lord alone, by the power of Divine Truth from Divine Good.
There are two things for which the Lord came into the world, and by means of which He effected the salvation of men and angels, namely, redemption and the glorification of His Human. These two are distinct from each other, but yet they make one with regard to salvation. It has been shown in the preceding articles that redemption was a combat with the hells, their subjugation, and afterwards the orderly arrangement of the heavens; but glorification was the uniting of the Lord’s Human with the Divine of His Father, which was effected gradually, and fully completed by the passion of the cross. For every man, on his part, ought to approach God; and as man approaches, so God on His part, enters. It is in this case as with a temple, which first must be built by men’s hands, and afterwards consecrated. Then prayer must be offered that God may be present, and there unite Himself with the Church. That union was completed by the passion of the cross, because it was the last temptation which the Lord underwent in the world, and conjunction is effected by temptations. In them a man, to all appearance, is left to himself; nevertheless, this is not so, for at such a time God is most intimately present with him in the interiors of his mind, and supports him. Therefore, when any one conquers in temptation, he becomes most closely conjoined with God; and thus it was with the Lord in His union with His Father. That the Lord in the passion of the cross was left to Himself is evident from His cry upon the cross:
“My God, why hast thou forsaken me?”
and also from His own words:
“No man taketh my life from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again. This commandment have I received of my Father.” John x. 18.
It may therefore be evident that the Lord suffered not as to His Divine but as to His Human, and that then the most intimate, and thus the most complete union was effected. This may be illustrated by the fact that when a man suffers in body, his soul does not suffer, but only grieves; while God takes away this grief after victory, and wipes it away as one wipes tears from the eyes.
When Judas was gone out, “Jesus said, Now is the Son of Man glorified, and God was glorified in Him. If God be glorified in Him, God shall also glorify Him in Himself, and shall straightway glorify Him.” John xiii. 31, 32.
Here glorification is spoken both of God the Father and of the Son, for it is said that God is glorified in Him, and will glorify Him in Himself. It is evident, therefore, that glorification signifies union.
“Father, the hour is come; glorify thy Son, that thy Son also may glorify thee.” John xvii. 1, 5.
This is said because the union was reciprocal, and, as is also said, the Father was in Him and He in the Father.
“Now is my soul troubled.” And He said: “Father, glorify thy name. Then came there a voice from heaven, saying, I have both glorified it, and will glorify it again.” John xii. 27, 28.
This was said because the union was effected successively, or by degrees.
“Ought not Christ to have suffered these things, and to enter into His glory?” Luke xxiv. 28.
Glory in the Word when spoken of the Lord signifies Divine Truth united to Divine Good. Hence it is clearly evident that the Lord’s Human is Divine.
The Lord said, “A prophet is not without honor, save in his own country, and in his own house.” Matt. xiii. 57; Mark vi. 4; Luke iv. 24.
Jesus said: “It cannot be that a prophet perish out of Jerusalem.” Luke xiii. 33.
“And there came a fear upon all: and they glorified God, saying, That a great prophet is risen up among us.” Luke vii. 16.
They said concerning Jesus: that He was the prophet of Nazareth. Matt. xxi. 11; John vii. 40, 41.
Moreover, it is written in Deut. xviii. 15-19, that a prophet should be raised up from among their brethren, whose word they should obey.
to loose the sackcloth from off his loins, and to put off the shoe from his foot, and to go naked and barefoot for three years, for a sign and a wonder. Isa. xx. 2, 3.
The prophet Ezekiel was commanded, for the purpose of representing the state of the Church,
to prepare stuff for removing, and to remove to another place in the eyes of the Children of Israel, and to bring forth the stuff by day, and to go forth at even, through a hole dug in the wall, and to cover his face, so that he should not see the ground; and that thus he should be a sign to the house of Israel, and should say: “I am your sign: like as I have done, so shall it be done unto you.” Ezek. xii. 3-7, 11.
The prophet Hosea was commanded, for the purpose of representing the state of the Church,
to take to himself a harlot to be his wife. So he took her, and she bore him three children, one of whom he called Jezreel, and another Not-to-be-pitied, and the third Not-a-people. Hos. i. 2-9. And again he was commanded to go and love a woman beloved of her friend, yet an adulteress, whom he also bought for himself. iii. 1, 2.
A certain prophet was also commanded
to put ashes on his eyes, and suffer himself to be smitten and beaten. 1 Kings xx. 35, 37.
For the purpose of representing the state of the Church the prophet Ezekiel was commanded
to take a tile, and portray upon it Jerusalem, to lay siege to it, to cast a trench and mound against it, to put an iron baking-pan between him and the city, and to lie upon his left side and upon his right side. Then he was commanded to take wheat, barley, lentils, millet and fitches, and to make bread of them; and also to make a cake of barley, baked with human excrement; and because he prayed that it might not be so, he was permitted to make it with cow’s dung. He was commanded: “Lie thou also upon thy left side, and lay the iniquity of the house of Israel upon it: according to the number of the days that thou shalt lie upon it thou shalt bear their iniquity. For I have laid upon thee the years of their iniquity, according to the number of the days, three hundred and ninety days: so shalt thou bear the iniquity of the house of Israel. And when thou hast accomplished them, lie again on thy right side, and thou shalt bear the iniquity of the house of Judah.” Ezek. iv. 1-15.
[2] The prophet by these signs bore the iniquities of the house of Israel and of the house of Judah, but he did not take them away and so expiate them; he only represented them and pointed them out, as is plain from what follows in the same chapter:
And JEHOVAH said, Even thus shall the Children of Israel eat their defiled bread…. Behold, I will break the staff of bread…. That they may want bread and water, and be left alone, a man and his brother (A.V. astonied one with another), and consume away for their iniquity. Ezek. iv. 13, 16, 17.
The same therefore is understood concerning the Lord, where it is said:
Surely He hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows … JEHOVAH hath laid on Him the iniquity of us all; … that by His knowledge He justified many, and Himself bore their iniquities. Isa. liii. 4, 6, 11;
and throughout the whole of this chapter, which treats of the passion of the Lord.
[3] The Lord as The Prophet represented the state of the Jewish Church with respect to the Word, as is evident from the particulars of His passion: as that He was betrayed by Judas, and was taken and condemned by the chief priests and elders; that they buffeted Him, smote His head with a reed, and put on Him a crown of thorns; that they divided His garments and cast lots upon His vesture; that they crucified Him, gave Him vinegar to drink, and pierced His side; that He was buried, and on the third day rose again. His betrayal by Judas signified that He was betrayed by the Jewish nation, which at that time possessed the Word and which was represented by Judas. His being taken and condemned by the chief priests and elders signified that it was done by the whole of that Church. Their buffeting Him, spitting upon His face, scourging Him, and smiting His head with a reed, signified that they acted in like manner toward the Word, with respect to its Divine truths; and their putting a crown of thorns upon Him signified that they had falsified and adulterated those truths. Their dividing His garments and casting lots upon His vesture signified that they had dissipated all the truths of the Word, but had not injured its spiritual sense, which the Lord’s vesture represented. His crucifixion signified that they had destroyed and profaned the whole Word. Their offering Him vinegar to drink signified that the truths of the Word were altogether falsified, and therefore He did not drink it. Their piercing His side signified that they had totally extinguished all the truth and all the good of the Word. His burial signified the removal of what yet remained from the mother, and His rising again the third day signified the glorification, or union of His Human with the Divine of the Father. Hence it is manifest that to bear iniquities does not mean to take them away: it represents the profanation of the truths of the Word.
“I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep…. Therefore doth my Father love me.” John x. 11, 17.
There is no doctrine at the present time more extensively promulgated in the books of the orthodox, or more zealously taught and inculcated in the schools, or more frequently preached and proclaimed from the pulpit than this: “God the Father, being angry with the human race, not only removed it from His presence, but involved it in a general condemnation, and thus excommunicated it; but because He was gracious, He persuaded or stirred His Son to descend and take upon Himself the condemnation which had been decided, and thus appease the wrath of His Father; and by this means only could the Father look with any favor on mankind. This was done by the Son, who, by taking upon Himself the condemnation pronounced upon the human race, suffered Himself to be scourged by the Jews, spit upon, and finally crucified as one accursed of God, Deut. xxi. 23. Moreover, after this was done, the Father was propitiated, and from love of His Son, cancelled the condemnation; but only in the case of those for whom the Son should intercede, and thus He became a Mediator in the presence of the Father for ever.”
[2] These and similar doctrines are at this day proclaimed in the Churches, re-echoing from their walls as an echo resounds from the woods, and filling the ears of all present. Any one, however, whose reason is enlightened, and made sound by the Word, can see that God is mercy and pity itself, because He is love itself and Goodness itself, and that these are His Essence. It is, therefore, a contradiction to say that mercy itself or goodness itself can look upon a man with anger, and decide upon his condemnation, and still remain His own Divine Essence. Such things are scarcely ever ascribed to an upright man or to an angel, but only to a wicked man or to an infernal spirit; it is therefore impious to ascribe them to God. [3] If inquiry be made into the cause of so widespread a belief, it will be found to be this, that men have assumed the passion of the cross to be redemption itself; hence have flowed those ideas as falsities in a continuous series flow from one false principle; as from a cask of vinegar nothing but vinegar can come forth, or from an insane mind nothing but insanity. For from a single conclusion there branch forth propositions of a like nature; they are latent in it, and emerge in due order. So from the belief that the passion of the cross is redemption many more opinions, offensive and dishonoring to God, can come forth and be spread abroad till that happens which is spoken of by Isaiah:
“Priest and prophet have erred through strong drink… they stumble in judgment…. All tables are full of vomit and filthiness. Isa. xxviii. 7, 8.
What is this but praying to three Gods in their order? And wherein does this conception of the Divine government differ from that of an aristocracy, or hierarchy, or that triumvirate which once ruled Rome, except instead of a triumvirate it may be called a tripersonate? There is then nothing easier for the devil than to put in practice the old maxim: “Divide and rule.” This is in effect to distract men’s minds, to excite rebellious movements, now against one God and now against another, as has been done since the time of Arius* until now, and thus to cast down from His throne the Lord God the Savior, who has all power in heaven and in earth.” Matt. xxviii. 18; and to set upon it some creature of his own, and to ascribe worship to him, or if this worship is withheld, to withhold it also from the Lord Himself.
* Arius, theologian of Alexandria, A.D 256-336; founder of Arianism, affirming that Christ was an originated Being. Excommunicated by bishops of Egypt for denying that Christ was made of the same substance (homo-ousion) of any previously existing substance. To settle the consequent dispute Constantine called the Council of Nicaea, A.D. 325. Athanasius successfully led the opposition to Arius; and Arius, with Eusebius, who also refused to accept the Athanasian position, was banished.
To these things will now be added the following Memorabilia.
The first experience. I once entered a temple in the world of spirits, where there was a large congregation; and before the sermon they reasoned together about redemption. The temple was square with no windows in the walls, but there was a great opening overhead in the centre of the roof, through which light from heaven entered and illuminated it better than if there had been windows at the sides. While they were talking about redemption, suddenly a black cloud, coming from the north, covered the opening and caused such darkness that they could not see each other, and scarcely any one could see his own hand. While they stood amazed at this, the black cloud parted in the middle, and through the aperture angels were seen descending from heaven, who dispersed the cloud on each side so that it became light again in the temple. Then the angels sent down one of their number into the temple who, in the name of the rest, asked the congregation the subject of their discussion, which had caused such a dense cloud to gather over them, depriving them of light and bringing on darkness. They replied that they were discussing redemption, maintaining that it was effected by the Son of God through the passion of the cross, by which means He made expiation for the human race and delivered man from condemnation and eternal death. To this, the angel who had been sent down said: “How was it effected through the passion of the cross? Please explain this.” [2] A priest then came forward and said: “I will explain in order what we know and what we believe: ‘God the Father, being angry with mankind, condemned it and shut it out from His pity; and, having declared all men doomed and accursed, delivered them over to hell. He desired His Son to take that condemnation upon Himself; who consented, and for that purpose descended, assumed the Human, and suffered Himself to be crucified and the condemnation of mankind to be thus transferred to Himself: for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a wooden cross. The Son thus appeased the Father by His intercession and mediation; and then the Father, out of love for the Son, and moved by the anguish exhibited by Him on the cross, determined that He would pardon, “But only those to whom I impute thy righteousness, and these will I make children of grace and blessing from being children of wrath and curse, and I will justify and save them. The rest will remain, as was before decreed, children of wrath.” This is our faith, and this is the righteousness which God the Father implants in our faith, the faith which alone justifies and saves.”
[3] When the angel heard this he was silent for a long time, standing motionless with astonishment. Then he broke silence and said: “Can the Christian world be so insane, and wander from sound reason into such madness, and establish its fundamental doctrine of salvation on such paradoxes? Who cannot see that those opinions are diametrically opposed to the Divine Essence itself, that is, to God’s Divine Love and Divine Wisdom, and at the same time to His omnipotence and omnipresence? No upright master could act so towards his men-servants and his maid-servants; nor even a wild beast towards its cubs, nor a wild bird towards its young: it is unspeakable. Moreover, it is contrary to His Divine Essence to annul the call made to every individual of the human race; to change the order established from eternity, which in effect is, that every one should be judged according to his life; to withdraw love and mercy from any man, and much more from the whole human race; and to be brought back again to mercy by the sight of His Son’s anguish, that is, to be brought back again to His own Essence, since mercy is the Essence itself of God. It is unspeakable to suppose that He ever departed from it, for that Essence is Himself from eternity to eternity. It is also impossible to implant in such a thing as your faith the righteousness of redemption, which in itself belongs to Divine omnipotence, and to impart and ascribe it to a man, and to declare him, for no other reason, righteous, pure and holy.
[4] It is impossible, by mere imputation, to forgive anyone’s sins, to renew him, to regenerate and save him, and thus to convert unrighteousness into righteousness and a curse into a blessing. Would it not be possible, if such were the case, to turn hell into heaven, and heaven into hell, or to make the dragon Michael,* and Michael the dragon, and so to end the combat between them? For what is needed but to remove the imputation your faith assumes from the one and bestow it on the other? Were this possible we in heaven should live in constant dread. It is not according to justice and judgment that one should take upon himself the sin of another, that the wicked be made innocent, and the crime be thus washed away. Surely this is contrary to justice, both Divine and human. The Christian world is ignorant as yet of the existence of order, and more so of the nature of that order which God introduced at the time He created the world; nor does it know that God cannot act contrary to it, as then He would be acting contrary to Himself, for God is order itself.”
[5] The priest understood what the angel said, because the angels who were above shed upon him the light of heaven. Then with a sigh he said: “What is to be done? At this day all men so preach and pray and believe. This prayer is spoken by all: ‘Good Father, have mercy on us, and forgive our sins for the sake of thy Son’s blood, which He shed for us on the cross,’ and to Christ they pray: ‘Lord, intercede for us;’ to which we priests add: ‘Send us the Holy Spirit.'” Thereupon the angel said: “I have observed that the priests prepare an eye-salve from the Word, but not from a spiritual understanding of it, with which they anoint the eyes of those who are blinded by their faith; or they make for themselves a sort of plaster from it, which they place upon the wounds their dogmas cause; but still they are not healed, because they are too deep-seated. Go therefore to him who stands yonder;”-and he pointed to me-“he will teach you from the Lord that the passion of the cross was not redemption, but that it was the uniting of the Lord’s Human with the Divine of the Father; whereas redemption consisted in the subjugation of the hells, and the establishment of order in the heavens; and unless these operations had been effected by the Lord when He was in the world, there would have been no salvation for any one either on earth or in heaven. He will also teach you the order which was introduced at creation, according to which those must live who would be saved; and that those who live according to it will be numbered among the Redeemed and will be called the Elect.”
When the angel finished speaking, windows were opened up on the sides of the temple, through which light entered from the four quarters of the world, and in the brilliant light there appeared flying cherubs. The angel was then borne aloft to his companions above the aperture, and we retired elated by our experience.
* Michael, the archangel.
At that moment, by the Lord’s command, three angels descended from heaven and joined me, that from an interior perception I might converse with those who entertained the idea of three Gods, particularly on the subject of mediation, intercession, propitiation and expiation, functions which they attribute to the second Person or the Son, but not till after He became Man. As He became Man many ages after the creation, during which those four means of salvation did not exist, so God the Father was not propitiated, no expiation was made for the human race, and no one was sent from heaven who acted as intercessor and mediator.
[4] Then speaking from an inspiration that came upon me, I said to them: “Come near, as many of you as can, and hear what is meant in the Word by mediation, intercession, expiation and propitiation. These are four terms expressing the grace of the one God in His Human. God the Father can nowhere be approached, nor can He come to any man, because He is infinite and dwells in His own Being, which is Jehovah, by whom a man, if he were approached, would be consumed as wood is consumed by fire and reduced to ashes. This is evident from what He said to Moses, who desired to see Him:
that no man can see Him and live. Exod. xxxiii. 20;
and the Lord says
that no man hath seen God at any time, except the Son, who is in the bosom of the Father. John i. 18; Matt. xi. 27:
also
that no one hath heard the voice of the Father nor seen His shape. John v. 37.
We read indeed that Moses saw Jehovah face to face, and held actual converse with Him; but this was done by means of an angel, as was the case also with Abraham and Gideon. Now since God the Father in Himself is of such a nature, He was pleased to assume the Human and in this to admit men to Himself, and so hear and talk with them. It is this Human which is called the Son of God, and which mediates, intercedes, propitiates and expiates. I will explain therefore what is signified by those four terms used in reference to the Human of God the Father.
[5] “Mediation signifies that the Human is a medium by which a man may come to God the Father, and God the Father to him, and so teach and lead him that he may be saved. Therefore the Son of God, by whom is meant the Human of God the Father, is called the Savior, and on earth Jesus, that is, Salvation. Intercession signifies perpetual mediation, for Love itself, to which belong mercy, pity and grace, perpetually intercedes, that is, mediates for those who do His commandments, and whom therefore He loves. Expiation signifies the removal of sins in which a man would become immersed were he to approach Jehovah not clothed with His Human. Propitiation signifies the operation of pity and grace, to prevent a man from bringing himself into condemnation by sin; and it likewise signifies protection, lest he should profane what is holy. This was the signification of the mercy-seat over the ark in the tabernacle. [6] It is well known that God spoke in the Word according to appearances, as when it is said that He is angry, that He avenges, tempts, punishes, casts into hell, condemns, and even that He does evil; when yet He shows anger to no one, never takes revenge, tempts, punishes, casts into hell, nor does He condemn; such things are as far removed from God as hell is from heaven, and infinitely farther. They are forms of speech then, used only according to appearances. Such also in another sense are expiation, propitiation, intercession and mediation; for these are forms of speech expressive of approach to God and of grace from God through His Human. Because these have not been understood men have divided God into three, and upon these three have founded the whole doctrine of the Church, and so have falsified the Word. Hence has arisen, ‘the abomination of desolation’ foretold by the Lord in Daniel, and again in Matthew xxiv.” On these words the company of spirits around me withdrew, and I noticed that those who actually entertained the idea of three Gods were looking towards hell; while those who thought of one God, in whom is a Divine Trinity which is in the Lord God the Savior, looked towards heaven; and to them appeared the Sun of heaven, in which is Jehovah in His Human.
[3] On hearing these things I was much amazed that learned men, who had spent some time in the spiritual world, yet remained so ignorant in regard to heavenly things; but I perceived the reason was that they, through confidence in their own intelligence, did not suffer themselves to be instructed by the truly wise. However, that they might not remain any longer ignorant of what is meant by the Son’s sitting at the right hand of the Father, I raised my hand, requesting them to listen to a few things I wished to say on the subject. As they assented, I said: “Do you not know from the Word that the Father and the Son are one, and that the Father is in the Son, and the Son in the Father? This the Lord plainly declares, John x. 30; and xiv. 10, 11. If you do not believe these words, you divide God into two, and then you cannot but think of God naturally, sensually, indeed materially. This, moreover, has been done in the world since the time of the Council of Nice, which introduced the doctrine of three Divine Persons from eternity, by virtue of which it turned the Church into a theater, furnishing it with a painted curtain before which the fictitious characters performed new roles. Who does not know and acknowledge that God is one? If you acknowledge this in heart and spirit, all that you have said vanishes of itself, rebounding into the air like idle talk from the ear of a wise man.”
[4] At these words many were enraged, and wished to pull my ears, and bid me be silent; while the president of the assembly indignantly said: “This discussion is not about the unity and the plurality of God, because we believe in both, but about what is involved in the statement that the Son sits at the right hand of His Father. If you know any thing about this, say on.” I replied: “I will speak; but, I pray you, calm the disorder.” So I continued: “To sit at the right hand does not mean literally to sit at the right hand, but it signifies the omnipotence of God by means of the Human which He assumed in the world. By this He is in last things as He is in first; and by this He entered into, destroyed and subdued the hells, and also restored the heavens to order. Thus He redeemed both men and angels, and continues to redeem them to eternity. If you consult the Word, and are capable of being enlightened, you will see that by the right hand is there signified omnipotence, as in Isaiah:
My hand also hath laid the foundations of the earth, and my right hand hath spanned the heavens. xlviii. 13;
The Lord hath sworn by His right hand, and by the arm of His strength. lxii. 8;
Thy right hand hath holden me up. Ps. xviii. 35;
Look upon the Son whom thou hadst made strong for thyself. Let thy hand be upon the Man of thy right hand, upon the Son of Man whom thou madest strong for thyself. Ps. lxxx. 15, 17.
From this it is evident how the following is to be understood:
JEHOVAH said unto my Lord, Sit thou at my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool. JEHOVAH shall send the rod of thy strength out of Zion: rule thou in the midst of thine enemies. Ps. cx. 1, 2.
The whole of this Psalm treats of the Lord’s combat with the hells and their subjugation. Since the right hand of God signifies omnipotence, therefore the Lord says
that He shall sit on the right hand of power. Matt. xxvi. 64;
and
On the right hand of the power of God. Luke xxii. 69.”
[5] At this the company raised a noisy clamor; but I said: “Take heed to yourselves: there may perchance appear a hand from heaven; and when it appears, as it has appeared to me, it inspires an incredible terror of its power. It was convincing proof to me that the right hand of God signifies omnipotence.” Scarcely had I said this when there appeared under heaven a stretched-out hand, at the sight of which such terror seized them that they rushed in crowds to the doors. Some rushed to throw themselves out of the windows, and some fell down in a faint. I remained unperturbed, and calmly walked out after them. Some distance away I turned and saw the college enveloped in a dark cloud; and I was told from heaven that this happened because they spoke from a belief in three Gods, but that the former light would return when a company with saner views should assemble there.
[3] At this his companions on the left, who were beardless and wore curled wigs and had ruffled collars round their necks, clapped their hands and called out: “You have spoken most wisely. We know that we cannot receive anything which is not given us from heaven. Let that prophet tell us whence faith comes, and what else faith means; it is impossible that there should be any other, or have any other source. To produce any other faith, which really is faith, than this is as impossible as it is to ride to one of the constellations in the heavens, take a star from it, pocket it and carry it off.” This he said in order that he might bring into ridicule among his companions every new faith.
[4] On hearing this the men on the right, who were bearded and wore their own hair, were indignant. Then one of them stood up, an old man, but who later appeared to be young: for he was an angel from heaven, where to grow old is to grow young, and he said: “I have heard the nature of your faith which your leader in the pulpit has so extolled. What is that faith, however, but the tomb of our Lord after His resurrection, closed again by the soldiers of Pilate? I have opened it, and seen nothing but jugglers’ rods, with which the magicians in Egypt performed miracles. Truly that faith of yours is to all outward appearance like a chest constructed of gold, and set with precious stones; but when opened it is empty, unless perchance there is in its corners the dust of relics of pontifical dignitaries; for these have the same faith, only by them at the present day it is overlaid with external sanctities. Moreover, to use comparisons, it is like a vestal virgin among the ancients who was buried alive for having let the sacred fire go out; and I can assure you that in my eyes it is like the golden calf, around which the Children of Israel danced after the departure of Moses when he ascended Mount Sinai to Jehovah. [5] Do not be surprised that I have used such comparisons in speaking of your faith, for so we speak of it in heaven. But our faith is, was, and ever shall be, in the Lord God the Savior, whose Human is Divine and whose Divine is Human. It is a faith accommodated to man’s reception, and by it the spiritual Divine is united to what is natural in man; and it becomes a spiritual faith in the natural, in consequence of which the natural becomes as it were illuminated from the spiritual light in which our faith is. The truths which constitute this faith are as numerous as the several verses in the sacred Volume; and all those truths are like stars which by their own peculiar lights give manifestation and form to the faith. A man acquires this faith from the Word by the light (lumen) of his own natural intelligence, in which, however, it is only knowledge, thought, and persuasion. But the Lord, with those who believe on Him, causes this faith to become conviction, trust and confidence; thus natural faith becomes spiritual, and is made living by means of charity. Amongst us this faith is like a queen adorned with as many precious stones as the wall of the holy Jerusalem, Rev. xxi. 17-20.
[6] Do not suppose, however, that what I have said is mere boasting; and, that it may not be thus lightly regarded, I will read out some passages from the Holy Word, from which it will be evident that our faith is not, as you suppose, in a man, but in the true God, in whom resides all Divinity. John says,
that Jesus Christ is the true God, and eternal life. I Epis. v. 20;
Paul says,
that in Christ, dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead bodily. Coloss. ii. 9;
and in the Acts of the Apostles it is written,
that he testified both to the Jews and also to the Greeks, repentance toward God and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ. xx. 21;
and the Lord Himself says,
All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Matt. xxviii. 18.
But these are only a few passages.”
[7] Thereupon the angel looked towards me and said: “You know what the Evangelical Protestants, so called, believe, or are likely to believe, concerning the Lord the Savior. Read out some passages from their creed that we may know whether they are so foolish as to believe that His Human is merely human, or whether they ascribe any Divinity to Him, and in what manner.” Then in the presence of all the assembly I read the following passages from several collected from their standard orthodox work, called the Formula Concordia,**** published at Leipzig,***** in the year 1758:
In Christ the Divine and Human Natures are so united as to make one Person, pp. 806, 762.
Christ is truly God and Man in one indivisible Person, and remains so for ever, pp. 609, 673, 762.
In Christ God is Man, and Man is God, pp. 607, 765.
Christ’s Human Nature is exalted to all Divine Majesty, proved also from many of the Fathers, pp. 844-852, 860-865, 869-878.
Christ as to His Human Nature is omnipresent, and fills all things, pp. 768, 783-785.
Christ as to His Human Nature has all power in heaven and in earth, pp. 775, 776, 780.
Christ as to His Human Nature sits on the right hand of the Father, pp. 608, 764.
Christ as to His Human Nature is to be invoked, proved by many quotations from Scripture, p. 226.
The Augustan Confession very highly approves of that worship, p. 19.******
[8] After reading these passages I turned to the President and said: “I know that all here present are associated with their like in the natural world; tell me, I pray, do you know with whom you are associated?” He replied in a solemn tone of voice: “I do. I am associated with a famous man,******* a leader of battalions in the army of the Church’s famous men.” As he replied in a tone of such solemnity I said: “Pardon me, if I ask whether you know where that famous man lives,” and he said: “I do. He lives not far from Luther’s******* tomb.” Upon this I said, with a smile, “Why do you speak of his tomb? Do you not know that Luther has risen, and has now renounced his errors concerning justification by a faith in three Divine Persons from eternity? He has, therefore, been transferred to the company of the blessed in the new heaven, and he smiles as he sees his followers still holding these absurd views.” He replied: “I know it; but what is that to me?” Thereupon, speaking in the same solemn tone in which he had addressed me, I said: “Please convey to the celebrated person with whom you are associated my fear that contrary to the orthodoxy of his own Church he has incontinently robbed the Lord of His Divinity; or he has suffered his pen to plough a furrow in which he has thoughtlessly planted the seed of naturalism, by writing against the worship of the Lord our Savior.” To this he replied: “I cannot do this. While he and I are almost of one mind on this matter, what I say he does not understand, but all that he says I understand perfectly. For the spiritual world penetrates the natural world, and perceives the thoughts of men there; but this is not reciprocal: such is the nature of the association between spirits and men.”
[9] As I had now entered into conversation with the President, I said: “If I may be permitted, I will ask another question. Do you know that the orthodoxy of the Evangelicals, in the manual of their Church called the Formula Concordiae, teaches that in Christ God is Man and Man God, and that His Divine and His Human are, and will remain for ever, in one indivisible Person? How then could you and he defile the worship of the Lord with naturalism?” To this he replied: “I know it, and yet I do not know it.” I therefore continued: “I ask your friend, although he is absent, or you in his place, from whom had the Lord our Savior His soul? If you answer, from His mother, you talk foolishly; if from Joseph, you profane the Word; but if from the Holy Spirit, you speak truly, provided that by the Holy Spirit you mean the Divine, proceeding and operating; and therefore that the Lord is the Son of Jehovah God. [10] Again I ask, what is meant by hypostatic union? If you say it is like that between two persons, one superior and one inferior, you talk foolishly; for thus you could make God the Savior two Persons as you make God three. If, however, you say it is a personal union, like that of soul and body, you say rightly; and this is in agreement with your own doctrine and also with that of the Fathers, as you may see by consulting the Formula Concordiae, pp. 765-768; and also the Athanasian Creed,******** where it is said:
The right faith is, that we believe and confess, that our Lord Jesus Christ is God and Man; who, although He is God and Man, yet He is not two, but one Christ: one altogether, not by confusion of substance, but by unity of Person; for as the reasonable soul and flesh is one man, so God and Man is one Christ.
[11] I ask, moreover, what was the damnable heresy of Arius,********* on account of whom the Council of Nice was summoned by the Emperor Constantine the Great,********** but that he denied the Divinity of the Lord’s Human? Further, tell me who do you suppose is meant by these words in Jeremiah:
“Behold, the days come … that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a king shall reign … and this is His name … JEHOVAH our Righteousness.” xxiii. 5, 8; xxxiii. 13, 16.
If you say, the Son from eternity, you talk foolishly, for He was not the Redeemer; but if you say, the Son born in time, who was the only-begotten Son of God, John i. 18; iii. 16, you say rightly, for He by redemption became the righteousness of which you make your faith consist. Read also Isaiah ix. 6, as well as other passages, where it is foretold that Jehovah Himself would come into the world.” At these words the President was silent, and turned away.
[12] After these proceedings the President was about to close the council with prayer, when suddenly a man started up from the company on the left, having on his head a mitre and over that a cap. He touched the cap with his finger, and said: “I also am associated with a man in your world, who is held in high honor there. This I know, for I speak from him as from myself.” I then inquired where that eminent person*********** lived. He replied: “At Gottenburg; and from him I once got the idea that this new doctrine of yours savors of Mohammedanism.”************
On hearing this, I observed that all those on the right, where the Apostolic Fathers stood, were astounded, and their countenances changed; and I heard them expressing what was in their minds by their exclamations: “What a crime is this! What an age!” However, to appease their just indignation, I stretched forth my hand, and begged for a hearing. This was granted, and I said: “I know that a person of that eminence wrote something of the kind in a letter which he afterwards published; but if he had known at the time what a blasphemous charge this is, he would certainly have torn the letter up with his fingers, and thrown it into the fire. Such a slander as that is meant by the Lord’s words to the Jews, when they said that Christ wrought miracles by some other than Divine power, Matt. xii. 22-32; to which the Lord adds in the same place:
“He that is not with me is against me; and he that gathereth not with me scattereth abroad.” v. 30.
At these words the associated spirit looked down, but soon looked up again and said: “I have heard things from you harder than ever.” But I continued: “In the case against me there are two charges, Naturalism and Mohammedanism. These are wicked lies, craftily devised, and two deadly stigmas, designed to prejudice the desires of men, and deter them from the holy worship of the Lord.” I then turned to the associated spirit who had just spoken, and I said: “Tell your friend at Gottenburg, if you can, to read what the Lord says in Revelation iii. 18, and also in ii. 16.”
[13] When I said this an uproar arose; but it was calmed by a light sent down from heaven, which caused many of those on the left to cross over to those on the right, those only remaining who did not think deeply, and who therefore relied on the word of some teacher; as well as those who believed that the Lord is merely human. From both of these the light sent down from heaven appeared as it were to be thrown back, and to fall upon those who passed over from the left to the right.
* This Number is in quotation marks in Original Edition. See TAF. DOC. I, p. 58.
** Lucifer, fabled son of Aurora, or of Jupiter, morning star, day.
*** Calvin, John, A.D. 1509-1564, was called by Melanchthon “The theologian of the sixteenth century.” He studied law as well as theology, became a Protestant and induced the authorities of Geneva to renounce Popery. The friend of John Knox, he exercised a powerful influence on Scottish Protestantism. His views may be summarized thus: particular election; particular redemption; moral inability in a fallen state; free grace; and ultimate salvation for the elect, notwithstanding many failings and aberrations on the part of the believer. In its leading features his theology is that of Augustine.
**** Form of Concord, Formula Concordiae, designed to effect an amicable adjustment of the differences among the Lutherans, by drawing them more closely to their principal standard, the Augsburg or Augustan Confession. Most of the Lutheran Churches add this Formula to their standard creeds.
***** Leipzig, capital of province of same name, seat of highest court of justice in Germany.
****** Augustan or Augsburg Confession, presented by the Lutherans to Charles V at Augusta or Augsburg, in A.D. 1530. This is one of the standard books of faith to which members of the Lutheran Church subscribe. Melanchthon was mainly responsible for its composition.
******* The famous man here referred to was Dr. Ernesti (1707-1781), who lived at Eisleben, in Saxony, where Luther was buried. Republished some violent attacks on Swedenborg and his writings, to which Swedenborg wrote a brief reply. This reply refers to the spiritual narratives recorded in T. C. R. Nos. 846-851. It also mentions No. 137 as having been written with particular reference to Dr. Ernesti, and then inserted in T. C. R. It should be noted that No. 137 and Nos. 846-851 are in quotation marks in the original edition. See Tafel’s DOCUMENTS, Vol. 1, p. 58.
******** Luther, Martin, A.D. 1483-1646, the leader of the Protestant Reformation in Germany, was born at Eisleben, Saxony. He was a student at Erfurt in law and divinity, and was ordained priest in A.D. 1507. He left Erfurt for a chair in the university of Wittenberg, where his preaching attracted great attention. Here he made his first public protest against the Romish Church by condemning the sale of indulgences. The Lutheran Church dates its origin from the year A.D. 1520 when Luther was expelled from the Romish Church. It assumed a more definite shape on the publication in A.D. 1530 of the Augsburg Confession. This was drawn up by Melanchthon and Luther as the principal standard of the Church. The final establishment of the Lutheran Church was made possible by the friendly offices of Maurice, Elector of Saxony.
********** Athanasian Symbol or Creed. Although bearing the name of Athanasius, it was probably composed by Hilary, in the century after the formulation of the Nicene Creed, A.D. 325. The name was given to it about the year A.D. 670 as an excellent system of the doctrines of Athansius concerning the Trinity and the Incarnation, principally in opposition to the Arians. It is received by the Romish Church and also by the Reformed.
*********** Arius, theologian of Alexandria, A.D 256-336; founder of Arianism, affirming that Christ was an originated Being. Excommunicated by bishops of Egypt for denying that Christ was made of the same substance (homo-ousion) of any previously existing substance. To settle the consequent dispute Constantine called the Council of Nicaea, A.D. 325. Athanasius successfully led the opposition to Arius; and Arius, with Eusebius, who also refused to accept the Athanasian position, was banished.
************ Constantine, Emperor of Rome, A. D. 272-337. A convert to Christianity, he summoned the Council of Nice, A.D. 325 to settle the Arian controversy. This Council gave its name to the Nicene Creed which resulted, and which subsequently became the standard creed of the Christian Church.
************* That eminent person here referred to was Dr. O. A. Ekehom, A.D. 1716-1784, who was appointed Dean of Gottenburg in A.D. 1761. He wrote a detailed charge against the doctrines of Swedenborg, virulently attacking them, yet declaring that he was not acquainted with the religious system of Swedenborg, and that he would not take any trouble, to become acquainted with it. See references to him in Tafel’s DOCUMENTS CONCERNING SWEDENBORG, Vol. 2, p. 1133.
************** Mohammad, the founder of Mohammedanism or Islam, A.D. 571-632, was born at Mecca, where his father was spiritual and temporal head. He married a wealthy and devout widow, and owed much to her influence. In the visions to which he was subject he received confirmations of his Divine mission. He also received messages from Gabriel which were incorporated in the KORAN, the sacred book of Mohammedanism. Early persecution drove him from Mecca and in the year A.D. 622 he fled to Medina, where he was cordially welcomed. This flight, or Hejira, marks the beginning of the Mohammedan year, and from Medina he set out on his conquest of Arabia. Mohammedanism proclaims the unity of the God-head, and condemns idolatry; but the peaceful methods of propaganda soon gave place to ruthless persecution of infidels and merciless extermination of idolators.
THE HOLY SPIRIT AND THE DIVINE OPERATION
When clerics, who have entertained any correct idea of our Lord the Savior, enter the world of spirits, which generally happens the third day after their death, their first instruction is concerning the Divine Trinity, and particularly concerning the Holy Spirit. This they are informed is not a God by itself, but when mentioned in the Word, it means the Divine Operation proceeding from the one omnipresent God. They are particularly instructed concerning the Holy Spirit because very many fanatics after death fall under the insane delusion that they themselves are the Holy Spirit; and many belonging to the Church, who while in the world believed that the Holy Spirit spoke through them, terrify others with the words of the Lord in Matthew xii. 31, 32, declaring that to speak against what the Holy Spirit has breathed into them is the unpardonable sin. Those who, after instruction, abandon the belief that the Holy Spirit is a God by itself, are then informed that the unity of God is not divided into three Persons, each of whom is singly God and Lord, according to the Athanasian Creed,* but that the Divine Trinity is in the Lord the Savior, as the soul, the body and the virtue thence proceeding are in every man. They are then prepared to receive the faith of the New Heaven; and after this preparation a way is opened for them to a society in heaven where a like faith prevails; and a dwelling-place is given them with kindred spirits, among whom they live in a state of blessedness for ever. Now, as we have treated of God the Creator, and of the Lord the Redeemer, it is necessary that we should also treat of the Holy Spirit; and the treatment of this subject, like that of the others, will be under particular heads, as follows:
(1) The Holy Spirit is the Divine Truth, and also the Divine Virtue and Operation proceeding from the one God, in whom is the Divine Trinity, thus from the Lord God the Savior.
(2) The Divine Virtue and Operation, signified by the Holy Spirit, consist in general in reformation and regeneration; and following upon these, renewal, vivification, sanctification and justification; and following upon these again, purification from evils and remission of sins; and finally, salvation.
(3) The Divine Virtue and Operation, meant by the sending of the Holy Spirit, with the clergy consist in particular in enlightenment and instruction.
(4) The Lord operates these virtues in those who believe on Him.
(5) The Lord operates of Himself from the Father, and not the reverse.
(6) Man’s spirit is his mind, and whatever proceeds from it.
* Athanasian Symbol or Creed. Although bearing the name of Athanasius, it was probably composed by Hilary, in the century after the formulation of the Nicene Creed, A.D. 325. The name was given to it about the year A.D. 670 as an excellent system of the doctrines of Athansius concerning the Trinity and the Incarnation, principally in opposition to the Arians. It is received by the Romish Church and also by the Reformed.
The Holy Spirit, strictly speaking, signifies the Divine Truth, thus also the Word; and in this sense the Lord Himself is also the Holy Spirit. Since, however, in the Church at this day the Holy Spirit is regarded as the Divine Operation, which in reality is justification, therefore this is here assumed to be the Holy Spirit. This, moreover, is being specially treated because the Divine Operation is effected by means of the Divine Truth, which proceeds from the Lord; and that which proceeds is of one and the same essence with Him from whom it proceeds; like these three, the soul, the body and the proceeding activity, which together constitute one essence. With man this is merely human, but with the Lord it is Divine and at the same time Human, such a union having been effected after glorification as exists between what is prior and its posterior, and between an essence and its form. Thus the three Essentials, which are called Father, Son and Holy Spirit, are one in the Lord.
[2] It was shown above that the Lord is Divine Truth itself, or the Divine Verity; and that the Holy Spirit is also the same is evident from the following passages:
“And there shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse… And the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon Him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might … and He shall smite the earth with the rod of His mouth, and with the breath of His lips shall He slay the wicked. And righteousness shall be the girdle of His loins, and faithfulness the girdle of His reins.” Isa. xi. 1, 2, 4, 5.
“When the enemy shall come in like a flood, the Spirit of JEHOVAH shall lift up a standard against him. And the Redeemer shall come to Zion.” Isa. lix. 19, 20.
“The Spirit of the LORD JEHOVAH is upon me; because JEHOVAH hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek.” lxi. 1; Luke iv. 18.
“This is my covenant with them … My Spirit that is upon thee, and my words … shall not depart out of thy mouth … from henceforth and for ever.” Isa. lix. 21.
[3] Since the Lord is Truth itself, therefore everything that proceeds from Him is truth; and this is meant by the Comforter, who is also called the Spirit of Truth, and the Holy Spirit, as is evident from the following passages:
“Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send Him unto you.” John xvi. 7.
“When He, the Spirit of truth is come, He will guide you into all truth: for He shall not speak of Himself; but whatsoever He shall hear, that shall He speak.” John xvi. 13.
“He shall glorify me; for He shall receive of mine, and shall show it unto you. All things that the Father hath are mine: therefore said I, that He shall take of mine, and shall show it unto you.” xvi. 14, 15.
“And I will pray the Father, and He shall give you another Comforter…. even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth Him not, neither knoweth Him: but ye know Him for He dwelleth with you, and shall be in you. I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you,” and ye shall see me. xiv. 16-19.
“But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth … He shall testify of me.” xv. 26;
and in xiv. 26 He is called the Holy Spirit.
[4] That the Lord by the Comforter, or Holy Spirit, meant Himself is evident from His saying, that the world knew Him not:
“But ye know Him; I will not leave you comfortless; I will come to you; and ye shall see me.” And in another place He says: “I am with you always, even unto the end of the age. (A.V. world) Matt. xxviii. 20.
It is evident also from His saying that He shall not speak from Himself, but He shall take of mine.
“The Holy Spirit was not yet, because Jesus was not yet glorified.” John vii. 39;
and after glorification,
He breathed on the disciples, and said: “Receive ye the Holy Spirit.” John xx. 22.
The Lord breathed on the disciples and said these words, because breathing was an external representative sign of Divine inspiration; and inspiration is introduction into angelic societies. From these things may be understood what the angel Gabriel said concerning the conception of the Lord:
“The Holy Spirit shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee, shall be called the Son of God.” Luke i. 35.
Again:
The angel of the Lord said to Joseph in a dream, “Fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife; for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit… and Joseph knew her not till she had brought forth her first-born son.” Matt. i. 20, 25.
The Holy Spirit in these passages is the Divine Truth proceeding from Jehovah the Father; and this Proceeding is the power of the Highest which then overshadowed the mother: which agrees with what is said in John,
“The Word was with God, and the Word was God … and the Word was made flesh.” Ch. i. 1, 14.
The Word there signifies the Divine Truth, as may be seen above, No. 3, on the Faith of the New Church.
These are the virtues in their order which the Lord makes effective in those who believe on Him, and who adapt and prepare themselves to receive Him and become His dwelling-place. This is brought about by means of Divine Truth, and in the case of Christians, by means of the Word, as this is the only means by which a man approaches the Lord, and into which the Lord enters. For, as was said above, the Lord is the Divine Truth itself, and whatever proceeds from Him is Divine Truth. It is, however, Divine Truth from good that is to be understood, and this is the same as faith from charity, for faith is nothing but truth, and charity is nothing but goodness. By means of Divine Truth from good, that is, by means of faith from charity, a man is reformed and regenerated; then renewed, quickened, sanctified and justified; and according as those virtues progress and develop, he is also purified from evils: and purification from these is the remission of sins. However, all these several operations of the Lord cannot here be explained in detail, for each requires its exposition to be confirmed from the Word and rationally illustrated; and this does not belong to our present subject. The reader is therefore referred to later parts of this work which treat in due order of Charity, Faith, Free Will, Repentance, Reformation and Regeneration. It should be known that the Lord without ceasing renders effective those saving graces in every man, for they are the steps to heaven, and the Lord wills the salvation of all men; thus the salvation of all is the end He has in view, and He who wills the end wills also the means. The Lord’s Coming, His Redemption, and the Passion of the Cross, were all for the sake of man’s salvation, Matt. xviii. 11; Luke xix. 10; and as man’s salvation was, and eternally is, the end He has in view, it follows that the operations just mentioned are mediate ends, while salvation is the ultimate end.
“A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit … And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in the way of salvation. (A.V., in my statutes.) Ezek. xxxvi. 26, 27; xi. 19.
“Create in us (A.V., me) a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me… Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation; and uphold me with thy free Spirit.” Ps. li. 10, 12.
JEHOVAH “formeth the spirit of man within him.” Zech xii. 1.
“With my soul have I desired thee in the night; yea, with my spirit within me will I seek thee early.” Isa. xxvi. 9.
“Make you a new heart and a new spirit: for why will ye die, O house of Israel?” Ezek. xviii. 31;
and in other passages. In these places a new heart means the will of good, and a new spirit, the understanding of truth. The Lord operates these virtues in those who do good and believe the truth, that is, in those who are principled in faith originating in charity, as is evident from the statements above, that God gives a soul to those who walk in that faith, which is called a free spirit; and that man also ought to do his part is evident from these words.
“Make you a new heart and a new spirit: for why will ye die, O house of Israel?”
that, when Jesus was baptized, the heavens were opened, and John saw the Holy Spirit descending like a dove, Matt. iii. 16; Mark i. 10; Luke iii. 21, 22; John i. 32, 33.
This took place because baptism signifies regeneration and purification; and these are also represented by a dove. Any one can see that the dove was not the Holy Spirit, and that the Holy Spirit was not in the dove. In heaven doves frequently appear, and whenever they are seen the angels know that they are correspondences of the affections and the thoughts thence arising, concerning regeneration and purification, in some persons who are near by. Therefore as soon as they approach those persons, and converse with them on some other subject than that which occupied their thoughts when that appearance was presented, the doves instantly vanish. The case is the same with many things that appeared to the prophets, as when John saw a lamb on Mount Sion, Rev. xiv. 1: and in other passages. Any one can see that the Lord was not that Lamb, nor in it, but that it was a representation of His innocence. Hence is evident the error of those who conclude that there are three Persons in the Trinity from the dove seen when the Lord was baptized, and from the voice heard at the same time from heaven, saving, “This is my beloved Son.”
That the Lord regenerates man by means of faith and charity is signified by these words of John the Baptist,
“I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance: but He that cometh after me … shall baptize you with the Holy Spirit, and with fire.” Matt. iii. 11; Mark i. 8; Luke iii. 16.
To baptize with the Holy Spirit and with fire is to regenerate by means of the Divine Truth of faith, and by the Divine Good of charity. The same is signified by these words of the Lord:
“Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.” John iii. 5.
By water here, as elsewhere in the Word, is signified truth in the natural or external man, and by spirit is signified truth from good in the spiritual or internal man.
The operations of the Lord, enumerated in the previous article, namely, reformation, regeneration, renewal, vivification, sanctification, justification, purification, the remission of sins, and finally salvation, are effected by influx from the Lord in both clergy and laity; and are received by those who are in the Lord, and who have the Lord in them,
John vi. 56; xiv. 20; xv. 4, 5.
However, the clergy in particular receive enlightenment and instruction because these relate to their office, inauguration into the ministry brings them with it. They believe, moreover, that when they preach with zeal, they are inspired, like the Lord’s disciples, on whom He breathed, saying:
“Receive ye the Holy Spirit.” John xx. 22. See also Mark xiii. 11.
Some declare that, they have perceived the influx. But they ought to be very careful not to persuade themselves that the zeal which takes hold of many when preaching is the Divine operation in their hearts. For a similar and even more ardent zeal prevails with fanatics, and with those whose doctrines are false in the extreme, who lightly esteem the Word, and who worship nature instead of God. They also cast faith and charity, as it were, into a bag behind their back; but when they preach and teach, they hold it in front of them, like a ruminatory stomach, from which they draw out and disgorge what they know will serve as food for their hearers.
Zeal, regarded in itself, is intense ardor of the natural man. If there is in it the love of truth, then it is like the sacred fire which flowed into the Apostles, as is thus described in the Acts:
“And there appeared unto them cloven tongues, like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit.” ii. 3, 4.
However, if the love of falsity lies concealed within that zeal or intense ardor, it is then like fire imprisoned in wood, which bursts out and burns down the house. I beseech you, who deny the sanctity of the Word and the Divinity of the Lord, take the bag off your back and open it, which you may freely do in the privacy of your own home, and you will see. I know that those who are meant by Lucifer* in Isaiah, and who belong to Babylon, when they enter a church, and still more when they ascend the pulpit, especially those who call themselves members of the Society of Jesus,** are carried away by a zeal which with many arises from an infernal love. They make their voices resound more vehemently and they heave deeper sighs than those whose zeal arises from a heavenly love. It will be seen later in No. 155 that there are two other spiritual operations relating to the clergy in addition to enlightenment and instruction.
* Lucifer, fabled son of Aurora, or of Jupiter, morning star, day.
** Jesuiticus Ordo, the Society of Jesus, founded by Ignatius Loyola, A. D. 1534, to stem the rising tide of Protestantism. See DP 222:2.
It is the same in the human mind, whose spiritual organization is of a similar nature; that is, as was stated above, the human mind is divided into three regions, the highest, which is also the inmost, being called the celestial, the middle the spiritual, and the lowest the natural. The minds of all those who deny the sanctity of the Word and the Divinity of the Lord, think in the lowest region. However, because they from infancy have also been instructed in the spiritual things of the Church, and still retain them, although regarding them as inferior to natural things, which are the various kinds of scientific, political, civil and moral knowledge; and because these spiritual things remain on the lowest plane of their minds and nearest to speech, they speak from them in churches and in assemblies; and, what is wonderful, they do not know but that they speak and teach from their own sincere belief. Nevertheless when they are free, as they are in their own home, the door which closed the internal of their minds is opened, and then sometimes they laugh at those things which they preached in public, saying in heart that theology is but a specious snare for catching doves.
“and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spake as a dragon.” Rev. xiii. 11.
That beast is afterwards called the false prophet. They are like robbers in a city where good citizens dwell; and then they act morally and speak reasonably; but on returning to the woods they are wild beasts again. They are also like pirates who are men when on land, but savage monsters at sea. Whether they parade on land or stroll about the city they are like panthers clothed in sheep-skins, or like apes dressed in men’s clothing, wearing masks over their own faces to represent the human countenance. They may also be likened to a courtesan who anoints herself with perfume, rouges her face and puts on a robe of white silk, embroidered with flowers; but when she returns to her own house, she, unadorned, infects her paramours with her own disease. That such is the real character of those who in their hearts deny the sanctity of the Word and the Divinity of the Lord it has been granted me to know by the experience of years in the spiritual world. For there all are at first suffered to remain in their externals, but afterwards, on the removal of these, they are brought into their internal state, and then the comedy of their lives is turned to tragedy.
The Lord renders effective these virtues, which are meant by the sending of the Holy Spirit, in those who believe on Him, that is, He reforms, regenerates, renews, quickens, sanctifies, justifies, purifies from evils, and finally saves them, as is evident from all those passages in the Word, quoted in No. 107, which prove that they have salvation and eternal life who believe on the Lord. It is evident moreover from this passage: Jesus said,
“He that believeth on me as the Scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. But this spake He of the Spirit, which they that believe on Him should receive.” John vii. 38, 39;
and also from this:
“The testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.” Rev. xix. 10.
By the spirit of prophecy is meant the truth of doctrine derived from the Word; prophecy signifies nothing else but doctrine, and to prophesy signifies to teach doctrine; and by the testimony of Jesus is meant acknowledgment from faith in Him. The same is meant by testimony of Him when it is said
that the angels of Michael* overcame the dragon “by the blood of the Lamb, and by the Word of His (A.V. their) testimony … and the dragon went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.” Rev. xii. 11, 17.
* Michael, the archangel.
* To believe in the Lord as the Christ, the Son of God, is an intellectual act, within the province of the understanding. Belief is usually followed by in. To believe on takes belief in for granted; but in addition throws the whole of the life, body and soul, upon the Lord, and is an act within the province of the will. See No. 159:7.
By operating is here meant the same as sending the Holy Spirit, since the operations already mentioned are operations of the Lord. They are in general, reformation, regeneration, renewal, vivification, sanctification, justification, purification from evils, remission of sins and salvation, which are at this day ascribed to the Holy Spirit as a God by Himself. That these operations are of the Lord from the Father, and not the reverse, will be first confirmed from the Word, and then illustrated by rational considerations. It is confirmed from the Word by the following passages:
“But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, He shall testify of me.” John xv. 28.
“If I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send Him unto you.” xvi. 7.
The Comforter, the Spirit of truth “shall not speak of Himself … He shall receive of mine, and shall show it unto you. All things that the Father hath are mine … therefore said I, that He shall take of mine, and shall show it unto you.” xvi. 13, 14, 15.
“The Holy Spirit was not yet; because that Jesus was not yet glorified.” vii. 39.
Jesus breathed on the disciples, “and saith, Receive ye the Holy Spirit.” xx. 22.
“Whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If ye shall ask anything in my name, I will do it.” xiv. 13, 14.
From these passages it is clear that the Lord sends the Holy Spirit, that is, that it is He who effects those operations which are at this day ascribed to the Holy Spirit as a God by Himself: for He said that He would send the Holy Spirit from the Father; and that He would send Him to you. That the Lord sends the Holy Spirit is also clear from the statements that the Holy Spirit was not yet, because Jesus was not yet glorified; that after His glorification He breathed on His disciples, and said: “Receive ye the Holy Spirit;” that He also said: “Whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do;” and that the Comforter would receive from Him what He should announce. The Comforter is the same as the Holy Spirit, as may be seen from John xiv. 20. God the Father does not render these virtues effective of Himself through the Son, but the Son of Himself from the Father, as is evident from the following:
“No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, He hath declared Him.” John i. 18;
and in another place:
“Ye have neither heard the Father’s (A.V., His) voice at any time, nor seen His shape. v. 37.
Accordingly it follows from these statements that God the Father operates in and upon the Son, but not through Him, while the Lord operates of Himself from His Father; for He says:
“All things that the Father hath are mine.” John xvi. 15; that the Father hath given all things into the hand of the Son, iii. 35;
also:
“As the Father hath life in Himself, so hath He given to the Son to have life in Himself.” v. 28;
and further:
“The words that I speak unto you, they are spirit and they are life.” vi. 63.
The Lord says that the Spirit of truth proceeds from the Father (John xv. 26) because it proceeds from God the Father into the Son, and out of the Son from the Father. Therefore He also says:
“At that day ye shall know that the Father is in me … and that I am in my Father, and ye in me, and I in you.” John xiv. 11, 20.
From these plain statements of the Lord the error of the Christian world is clearly manifest, namely that God the Father sends the Holy Spirit to man; and also the error of the Greek Church that God the Father sends out the Holy Spirit immediately. This truth, that the Lord sends it of Himself from God the Father, and not the reverse, is from heaven; and the angels call it a mystery, because it has not hitherto been revealed to the world.
[2] It is the same with every minister in the Church, whether he is in truth or in falsity. Each has his own manner of expression and his own intelligence, and each speaks from his own mind, that is, from the spirit which he possesses as his own. Take for example the case of the Protestants, whether Evangelical or Reformed. After they have been instructed in the dogmas taught by Luther,* Melanchthon,** or Calvin,*** these leaders or their dogmas do not speak, of themselves, through their disciples, but the disciples speak, of themselves, from their leaders and their dogmas. Every dogma, moreover, may be explained in a thousand different ways; for each is like a horn of plenty, from which every one takes what favors and suits his own genius, and then explains it according to his own peculiar talent.
[3] This may be illustrated also by the action of the heart in and upon the lungs, and by the reaction of the lungs themselves from the heart. These are two distinct actions, yet reciprocally united, for the lungs respire of themselves from the heart, but not the heart through the lungs; for if this were to happen, the action of both would cease. It is the same with the action of the heart in and upon the internal organs of the whole body; the heart propels the blood in every direction, but the organs draw from it, each one its share according to the use which it performs, and according to which it functions, thus the action of each is different.
[4] The same may also be illustrated by the following considerations. Evil derived from parents, called hereditary evil, acts in and upon man; so also does good from the Lord, the latter from above or from within, the former from beneath or from without. If evil were to act through man, he would not be capable of reformation, nor would he be subject to blame; and likewise, if good from the Lord were to act through man, he would not be capable of reformation; but as each depends on man’s free choice, he becomes guilty when he acts of himself from evil, and guiltless when he acts of himself from good. Now since evil is the devil, and good is the Lord, he becomes guilty if he acts from the devil, and guiltless if he acts from the Lord. It is from this free choice, which every man has, that the possibility of his reformation arises.
[5] It is the same with the whole internal and external in man. These are perfectly distinct, but yet reciprocally united; the internal acts in and upon the external, but not through it, as the internal includes innumerable things from which the external chooses only such as are suited to its purposes. For in the internal man, by which is meant his voluntary and perceptive mind, there are vast collections of ideas, and if they were to flow out in speech, it would be like the rush of wind from a pair of bellows. The internal, from the comprehensive nature of what it includes, may be compared to an ocean, or to a bed of flowers, or to a garden, from which the external selects what is adequate for its use. The Word of the Lord is like an ocean, a bed of flowers and a garden: and when it is present in any degree of fulness in the internal of a man, he then speaks and acts of himself from the Word, and not the Word through Him. It is the same with the Lord, because He Himself is the Word; that is, the Divine Truth and the Divine Good therein. The Lord acts of Himself, or from the Word, in and upon man, but not through him, because a man, in freedom, acts and speaks from the Lord when he does so from the Word.
[6] This, however, may be better illustrated by the mutual intercourse between the soul and the body. These two are perfectly distinct, but are reciprocally united; the soul acts in and upon the body, but not through it, while the body acts of itself from the soul. The soul does not act through the body, because they do not consult and deliberate with each other. The soul does not command or request the body to do or to say this or that; nor does the body demand or beg the soul to give or supply anything, for all that belongs to the soul belongs also to the body, mutually and reciprocally. This is the case with the Divine and the Human of the Lord; for the Divine of the Father is the soul of His Human, and the Human is His body; and the Human does not ask His Divine to say what it shall say or do. Therefore the Lord says:
“At that day ye shall ask in my name: and I say not unto you, that I will pray the Father for you; for the Father Himself loveth you, because ye have loved me.” John xvi. 26, 27.
“At that day” is after the glorification, that is, after perfect and complete union with the Father. This is an interior truth revealed from the Lord Himself for those who will form His New Church.
* Luther, Martin, A.D. 1483-1646, the leader of the Protestant Reformation in Germany, was born at Eisleben, Saxony. He was a student at Erfurt in law and divinity, and was ordained priest in A.D. 1507. He left Erfurt for a chair in the university of Wittenberg, where his preaching attracted great attention. Here he made his first public protest against the Romish Church by condemning the sale of indulgences. The Lutheran Church dates its origin from the year A.D. 1520 when Luther was expelled from the Romish Church. It assumed a more definite shape on the publication in A.D. 1530 of the Augsburg Confession. This was drawn up by Melanchthon and Luther as the principal standard of the Church. The final establishment of the Lutheran Church was made possible by the friendly offices of Maurice, Elector of Saxony.
** Melanchthon, the foremost scholar among the early Protestants, A.D. 1497-1560. He met Luther at Wittenberg where he was professor of Greek. He exercised a powerful influence over Luther, and was mainly responsible for drawing up the Augsburg Confession. On Luther’s death he became the leader of the Lutherans.
*** Calvin, John, A.D. 1509-1564, was called by Melanchthon “The theologian of the sixteenth century.” He studied law as well as theology, became a Protestant and induced the authorities of Geneva to renounce Popery. The friend of John Knox, he exercised a powerful influence on Scottish Protestantism. His views may be summarized thus: particular election; particular redemption; moral inability in a fallen state; free grace; and ultimate salvation for the elect, notwithstanding many failings and aberrations on the part of the believer. In its leading features his theology is that of Augustine.
By a man’s spirit, in the strict sense of the term, is meant simply his mind, for it is this which lives after death, and is then called a spirit; if good, an angelic spirit, and afterwards an angel; but if evil, a satanic spirit, and afterwards a satan. The mind of every man is the internal, or real man, and is within the external man, which constitutes its body; therefore, when the body is laid aside at death, the internal man is in a complete human form. So they are mistaken who suppose that a man’s mind is only in his head. It is there only in the principles from which first proceeds everything that a man thinks from the understanding and does from the will. Moreover, it resides in the body in derivatives formed for sensation and action; and because it is inwardly connected with the bodily structures, it imparts to them sensation and motion. It also inspires a sort of perception that the body thinks and acts of itself; but every wise man knows that this is a fallacy. Now because a man’s spirit thinks from the understanding and acts from the will, and because the body does not act from itself but from the spirit, it follows that a man’s spirit means his intelligence and the affection of his love, and whatever proceeds and acts from them. That a man’s spirit signifies such things as pertain to his mind, is obvious from many passages in the Word, which need only to be quoted to show that it is so. The following are a few taken from many.
Bezaleel “was filled with the spirit of wisdom, understanding and knowledge.” Exod. xxxi. 3.
Nebuchadnezzar testified of Daniel, that “an excellent spirit of knowledge and understanding and wisdom was in him.” Dan. v. 12.
“Joshua … was full of the spirit of wisdom.” Deut. xxxiv. 9.
“Make you a new heart and anew spirit.” Ezek. xviii. 31.
“Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” Matt. v. 3.
“I dwell … in a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble.” Isa. lvii. 15.
“The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit.” Ps. li. 17.
I will give “the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness.” Isa. lxi. 3; besides other passages to the same effect.
That spirit also signifies such things as relate to a perverse and wicked mind is evident from these passages:
He said to the foolish prophets “that follow their own spirit.” Ezek. xiii. 3.
“Ye shall conceive chaff; ye shall bring forth stubble: as to your spirit (A.V., breath) fire shall devour you. Isa. xxxiii. 11.
“If a man walking in the spirit … and do lie.” Micah ii. 11.
“A generation … whose spirit was not steadfast with God.” Ps. lxxviii. 8.
“The spirit of whoredoms.” Hos. v. 4; iv. 12.
“Every heart shall melt and every spirit shall faint.” Ezek. xxi. 7.
“That which cometh into your spirit (A.V., mind), shall not be at all.” Ezek. xx. 32.
“And in whose spirit there is no guile.” Ps. xxxii. 2.
The spirit of Pharaoh was troubled, Gen. xli. 8.
and also the spirit of Nebuchadnezzar. Dan. ii. 2.
From these and many other passages it is clearly manifest that the spirit signifies the mind of man, and whatever belongs to it.
“The spirit took me up, and brought me in a vision by the Spirit of God into Chaldea, to them of the captivity. So the vision that I had seen went up from me.” Ezek. xi. 1, 24.
The spirit took him up, and he heard behind him an earthquake, iii. 12, 14.
The spirit lifted him up between the earth and the heaven, and brought him to Jerusalem, and he saw abominations. viii. 3, and following verses.
He saw four living creatures, which were cherubs, and various things with them, i. and x.;
and a new earth, and a new temple, and an angel measuring them, xl. to xlviii.
That he was then in vision, and in the spirit, appears from xl. 2, and xliii. 5.
[2] The case was the same with Zechariah, with whom there was then an angel, when he saw
a man riding among the myrtle-trees, i. 8, and following verses; four horns, v. 18; and a man with a measuring line in his hand, ii. 1-5; and following verses.
Joshua the high priest, iii. 1; a flying roll, v. 1-6,
and four chariots and horses coming out from between two mountains. vi. 1, and following verses.
Daniel was in a similar state
when he saw four beasts come up from the sea, and many things relating to them. vii. 1-3;
and when he saw the battles of the ram and the goat, viii. 1 and following verses.
That he saw those things in vision is declared in vii. 1, 2, 7, 13; viii. 2; x. 1, 7, 8.
The angel Gabriel appeared to him in vision, and talked with him, ix. 21.
[3] John experienced the same when he wrote the Rook of Revelation, for he says
he “was in the Spirit on the Lord’s day.” Rev. i. 10;
that he was “carried away in the spirit into the wilderness.” xvii. 3;
and “to a great and high mountain” in the spirit, xxi. 10: that he saw “in the vision,” ix. 17;
and in other places that “he saw” what he described, as the Son of Man in the midst of the seven candlesticks, a tabernacle, a temple, an ark and an altar in heaven; the book sealed with seven seals, and horses going out of it; four animals around the throne; the twelve thousand chosen out of each tribe; the Lamb on Mount Sion; locusts ascending from the bottomless pit; the dragon and his war with Michael;** the woman bringing forth a male child, and fleeing into the wilderness on account of the dragon; two beasts, one ascending out of the sea and the other out of the earth; the woman sitting upon a scarlet-colored beast; the dragon cast into a lake of fire and brimstone; a white horse and a great supper; the descent of the Holy City Jerusalem, whose gates, walls and foundations he described; the river of the water of life, and the trees of life bearing fruit every month; and many other things. Peter, James and John were in a similar state when they saw Jesus transfigured; and Paul also, when he heard ineffable words from heaven.
* Apocalypse, the Revelation.
** Michael, the archangel.
Since this chapter has treated of the Holy Spirit, it deserves to be specially noticed that in the Word of the Old Testament no mention is made of the Holy Spirit, but only of the Spirit of holiness (A.V., Holy Spirit), in three places, once in David, Ps. ii. 11 and twice in Isaiah lxiii. 10, 11. In the Word of the New Testament, however, both in the Evangelists and in the Acts of the Apostles, as well as in their Epistles, it is mentioned frequently. The reason is because the Holy Spirit existed for the first time when the Lord came into the world, for it proceeds out of Him from the Father;
for the Lord only is Holy, Rev. xv. 4.
Therefore it is also said by the angel Gabriel to the mother Mary:
“That holy thing which shall be born of thee.” Luke i. 35.
It is written:
“The Holy Spirit (A.V., Holy Ghost) was not yet; because that Jesus was not yet glorified.” John vii. 39;
and yet it is said before this that the Holy Spirit filled Elizabeth, Luke i. 41; and Zechariah, Luke i. 67; and also Simeon, Luke ii. 25. This was because they were filled with the Spirit of Jehovah the Father, which was called the Holy Spirit, on account of the Lord who was already in the world. This is also the reason why it is nowhere stated in the Word of the Old Testament that the Prophets spoke from the Holy Spirit, but from Jehovah; for it is everywhere said, “Jehovah spoke to me,” “The Word of Jehovah came to me,” “Jehovah said,” “The saying of Jehovah.” That no one may have any doubt upon the matter, I will quote only from Jeremiah, where these expressions occur: Ch. i. 4, 7, 11, 12, 13, 14, 19; ii. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 9, 19, 22, 29, 31; iii. 1, 6, 10, 12, 14, 16; iv. 1, 3, 9, 17, 27; v. 11, 14, 18, 22, 29; vi. 6, 9, 12, 15, 16, 21, 22; vii. 1, 3, 11, 13, 19, 20, 21; viii. 1, 3, 12, 13; ix. 3, 8, 9, 12, 13, 17, 22, 23, 24, x. 1, 2, 18; xi. 1, 6, 9, 11, 21, 22; xii. 14, 17; 11-15, 25; xiv. 1, 10, 14, 15; xv. 1, 2, 3, 6, 11, 19, 20; xvi. 1, 3, 5, 9, 14, 16; xvii. 5, 19, 20, 21, 24; xviii. 1, 5, 6, 11, 13; xix. 1, 3, 6, 12, 15; xx. 4; xxi. 4, 7, 8, 11, 12; xxii. 2, 5, 8, 11, (16), 18, 24, 29, 30; xxiii. 2, 5, 7, 12, 15, 24, 29, 31, 38, xxiv. 3, 5, 8; xxv. 1, 3, 7, 8, 9, 15, 27, 28, 29, 32; xxvi. 1, 2, 18; xxvii. 1, 2, 4, 8, 11, 16, 19, 21, 22; xxviii. 2, 12, 14, 16; xxix. 4, 8, 9, 16, 19, 20, 21, 25, 30, 31, 32; xxx. 1-5, 8, 10, 11, 12, 17, 18; xxxi. 1, 2, 7, 10, 15, 16, 17, 23, 27, 28, 31-38; xxxii. 1, 6, 14, 15, 25, 26, 28, 30, 36, 42, (44); xxxiii. 1, 2, 4, 10, (11), 12, 13, 17, 19, 20, 23, 25; xxxiv. 1, 2, 4, 8, 12, 13, 17, 22; xxxv. 1, 13, 17, 18, 19; xxxvi. 1, 6, 27, 29, 30; xxxvii. 6, 7, 9; xxxviii. 2, 3, 17; xxxix. 15-18; xl. 1; xlii. 7, 9, 15, 18, 19; xliii. 8, 10; xliv. 1, 2, 7, 11, 24, 25, 26, 30; xlv. 1, 2, 5; xlvi. 1, 23, 25, 28; xlvii. 1; xlviii. 1, 8, 12, 30, 35, 38, 40, 43, 44, 47; xlix. 2, 5, 6, 7, 12, 13, 16, 18, 26, 28, 30, 32, 35, 37, 38, 39; l. 1, 4, 10, 18, 20, 21, 30, 31, 33, 35, 40; li. 25, 33, 36, 39, 52, 58. These passages are in Jeremiah alone. It is similarly recorded in all the other Prophets, and not that the Holy Spirit spoke, nor that Jehovah spoke to them by the Holy Spirit.
To these things I will add the following Memorabilia.
The first experience. Once, when I was in company with some angels in heaven, I saw at some distance below me a great smoke, from which fire burst forth at intervals. Thereupon I said to the angels who were conversing with me that few persons in that world know that the smoke seen in the hells arises from falsities confirmed by reasoning, and that the fire is anger kindled against those who maintain contrary opinions. To this I added that it is as little known in that world as in the natural world where I live in the body, that flame is nothing but smoke ignited. That such is the case I have often proved experimentally, by applying a lighted stick to the smoke rising from a wood-fire. Then I saw the smoke turn into flame of the same form, for all the separate particles of smoke become little sparks, which blazed up together, as also happens with gun-powder when ignited. It is the same, I said, with this smoke which we see below; it consists of as many falsities as there are smoke particles, and the fire that blazes out there is the heat of zeal for those falsities. [2] The angels then said to me: “Let us pray the Lord for permission to go down and draw near that we may see what are the falsities which occasion such a smoke and blaze among the spirits there.” This was granted, and forthwith there appeared around us a column of light extending down to the place. Then we saw four companies of spirits vehemently maintaining that God the Father, because He is invisible, ought to be approached and worshiped, and not His Son who was born in the world, because He is a man and visible. Further, on looking round, I saw on the left a number of learned clergy, and behind them some unlearned; and on the right a number of learned laymen, with some unlearned behind them; while between them and us was a yawning impassable gulf.
[3] We turned our attention to the left, where were the clergy, the learned and the unlearned; and we heard the learned reasoning concerning God in the following manner: “We know from the doctrine of our Church, which, so far as it relates to God, is unanimously received throughout the whole of Europe, that God the Father, because He is invisible, ought to be approached, and at the same time God the Son and God the Holy Spirit, who are also invisible, because they are co-eternal with the Father. We know also that God the Father is the Creator of the universe, and is therefore present in the universe wherever we turn our eyes, and graciously hearkens to our prayers; and, after accepting the Son’s mediation, He sends the Holy Spirit, who pours into our hearts the glory of the Son’s righteousness, and blesses us. We, therefore, who are duly appointed doctors of the Church, have felt in our bosoms, when preaching, the holy influence of that sending, and from its presence in our minds have breathed forth our devotion. We are thus affected because we direct all our senses towards the invisible God, who operates not merely in our intellectual sight but universally throughout our whole system of mind and body by the spirit He sends out. The worship of a visible God, or one presented to our minds as a man, would not produce such results.”
[4] At these words the unlearned clergy, who stood behind, applauded and said: “Whence can holiness come but from the Divine, who is unseen and imperceptible? At the bare mention of such a God our countenances expand, we are gladdened as by a soothing, fragrant atmosphere, and we beat our breasts. The case is otherwise with a visible and perceptible Deity. When the mention of this enters our ears it becomes merely natural and not Divine. For a similar reason the Roman Catholics repeat their masses in Latin, bring out the host from the sacred recess of the altar and exhibit it, ascribing to it certain mystical divine properties, before which, as before the most profound mystery, the people fall on their knees, and breathe out the breath of sanctity.”
[5] Thereupon I turned to the right where stood the learned laity with the unlearned behind them, and from the learned I heard the following: “We know that the wisest of the ancients worshiped an invisible God whom they called Jehovah; but after these, in the age which succeeded, men made gods of their deceased rulers, among whom were Saturn,* Jupiter,** Neptune,*** Pluto,**** Apollo,***** and also Minerva,****** Diana,******* Venus,******** Themis,********* and erected temples to them, and paid them Divine worship. In course of time this worship degenerated, and from it idolatry arose, with which at length the whole world was obsessed. We, therefore, entirely agree with our priests and elders that there have been, and now are, three Divine Persons from eternity, each of whom is God; and it is enough for us that they are invisible.” Thereupon the unlearned who stood behind, added: “We agree: is not God God, and man man? We know, however, that if any one should suggest that God is man, the common people, who entertain a sensual idea of God, would agree.”
[6] After these words their eyes were opened, and they observed us near them; and then, angry because we had heard them, they were silent. But the angels, by a power given to them, closed the exterior or lower plane of their thoughts from which they had spoken, and opened the interior or higher plane, and from this induced them to speak of God; and then they said: “What is God? We have neither seen His shape nor heard His voice. What therefore is God but nature in her first and last principles? We have seen her, because she is apparent to our eyes, and we have heard her, for she is audible to our ears.” On hearing this we enquired of them whether they had ever seen Socinus,********** who acknowledged God the Father only, or Arius,*********** who denied the Divinity of the Lord the Savior, or any of their followers. They replied that they had not. “They are in the abyss beneath you,” we said, and presently some of them were summoned thence, and questioned about God. They answered in similar terms to those who had just spoken adding, “What is God? We can make as many gods as we please.” [7] We then said: “It is useless to talk with you about the Son of God who was born in the world, but this we will declare: Lest faith respecting God, faith in Him, and faith from Him, which in the first and second age was like a beautifully colored bubble in the air, should, because no one ever saw Him, in the third and following age dissolve into the void, it pleased Jehovah God to descend and assume the Human, and in this way to make Himself visible to men, and convince them that He is not a product of the reason but the Self, who was, and is, and will be from eternity to eternity; and that God (Elohim) is not a mere word of three syllables, but that He is the all of everything from Alpha to Omega; consequently that He is the life and salvation of all who believe on Him as visible, and not of those who say that they believe on an invisible God. For to believe, to see, and to know make one; therefore the Lord said to Philip:
‘He that seeth and knoweth me, seeth and knoweth the Father.’
Elsewhere He declared
that it is the will of the Father that men should believe on the Son, and that he who believes on the Son has eternal life, but he who believes not the Son shall not see life, but the anger of God abides on him. These things He says in John iii. 15, 16, 36; and xiv. 6-15.”
On hearing this many in the four companies burned so with anger that smoke and flame poured out of their nostrils. We therefore departed, and the angels, after accompanying me home, ascended to their own heaven.
* Saturnus, Saturn, earliest king of Latium, became Roman god of civilization.
** Jupiter or Jove, son of Saturn.
*** Neptune, god of the sea.
**** Pluto, king of the lower world.
***** Apollo, god of divination, healing, poetry and music.
****** Minerva, daughter of Zeus, goddess of wisdom.
******* Diana, sister of Apollo, goddess of the chase.
******** Venus, goddess of love.
********* Themis, goddess of justice.
********** Socinians, members of a religious sect taking their name from Faustus Socinus, A.D. 1539-1604, and his uncle Laelius Socinus. They are antitrinitarians, denying the personality of the Holy Ghost and the Divinity of Christ. Early Socians believed in the miraculous conception and that Christ was entitled to Divine worship; but modern Socinians, chiefly Unitarians, deny both.
*********** Arius, theologian of Alexandria, A.D 256-336; founder of Arianism, affirming that Christ was an originated Being. Excommunicated by bishops of Egypt for denying that Christ was made of the same substance (homo-ousion) of any previously existing substance. To settle the consequent dispute Constantine called the Council of Nicaea, A.D. 325. Athanasius successfully led the opposition to Arius; and Arius, with Eusebius, who also refused to accept the Athanasian position, was banished.
[2] As we were conversing in this way I saw towards the north a paved way so crowded with spirits that there was scarcely room to step between any two of them. I told the angels that I had seen this road before, with spirits moving along it like companies of an army; that I had heard that this was the road along which passed all spirits on their departure from the natural world; and that it was crowded with such a vast number of spirits because many thousands of men died every week, all of whom, after death, entered that world. To this the angels added: “That road comes to an end in the centre of this world where we now are; and it does so because on the side towards the east are the societies that are in love to God and love towards the neighbor. On the left towards the west are the societies of those who are in the opposite loves, while forward, towards the south are the societies of those who excel others in intelligence; therefore all on arriving from the natural world proceed first to this point. While they are here they continue in the external life in which they last were in the former world; but afterwards they gradually enter into their own inner life, and their characters are examined. After examination the good are conducted to their own places in heaven, and the wicked to theirs in hell.”
[3] We stopped at the centre where the crowded way terminated, and said: “Let us stay here awhile and talk with some of the new-comers.” From the crowd as it moved on we chose twelve, and as they had all just arrived from the natural world they did not know but that they were still there. We asked them their views about heaven and hell, and a life after death. In reply to this one of them said: “Our clergy impressed upon me the belief that we shall live after death, and that there is a heaven and a hell. Consequently I have believed that all who live a moral life go to heaven, and since all do live a moral life, that no one goes to hell; and that hell therefore is a fable, invented by the clergy to deter men from living wickedly. What matters it how I think about God? Thought is only like chaff, or like a bubble on the water which bursts and is gone.”
Another near him said: “My belief is that heaven and hell exist, and that God rules heaven and the devil hell: and because they are enemies, and consequently opposed to each other, the one calls evil what the other calls good. I think also that the moral man, who can dissemble, and who can act so as to make evil appear good and good evil, sides with both. What does it signify whether I am under the one master or the other, if he is but kind to me? Evil and good equally give delight to men.”
[4] A third, standing beside him, said: “What advantage is it to me if I believe in the existence of heaven and hell? Who has ever come from them and described them? If every man were living after death, why should not one from so great a multitude have returned and reported the fact?”
A fourth near him said: “I will tell you why no one has returned and reported. When a man has breathed out his spirit and died, he then becomes a spectre and dissolves away; or he is like the breath of the mouth, which is only wind. How can such a thing return and speak with any one?”
A fifth following him said: “Wait, my friends, till the day of the last judgment, for all will then return to their own bodies, and you will see them and speak with them, and each will tell the other what has befallen him.”
[5] A sixth, who was standing opposite, laughed and said: “How can a spirit that is wind, return into a body eaten up by worms, or into a skeleton dried up by the sun and reduced to dust? How can an Egyptian, turned into a mummy, which has been compounded by the apothecary with extracts and emulsions, and swallowed in potions and powders, return and give a report? Wait then, if such is your belief, till the last day; but your waiting, even to eternity, will be in vain.”
After this one a seventh said: “If I believed in heaven and hell, and consequently in a life after death, I would also believe that birds and beasts likewise continued to live: for are not some of them as moral and rational as men? It is denied that beasts live after death; therefore I deny that men do. The reasoning is the same in each case; the one follows from the other, for what is man but an animal?”
An eighth standing behind him came forward and said: “Believe if you will there is a heaven, but I do not believe there is a hell. Is not God omnipotent, and able to save every one?”
[6] Then a ninth, touching this one’s hand, said: “God is not only omnipotent, but He is also merciful, and cannot send any one into eternal fire; and if any one should be there, He cannot but take him out and lift him up.”
A tenth, running out from his place into their midst, exclaimed: “I also do not believe in hell. Did not God send His Son, who atoned for and took away the sins of the whole world? What power has the devil against that? And since he has no power, what then is meant by hell?”
An eleventh, who was a priest, flaring up as he heard this, said: “Do you not know that those are saved who have obtained the faith on which is inscribed the merit of Christ, and that those whom God elects obtain that faith? Election is according to the will of the Almighty, and His judgment determines who are worthy of it. Who can prevail against these Divine prerogatives?”
The twelfth, who was a politician, remained silent; but on being pressed to sum up the replies, he said: “I shall express no positive opinion about heaven and hell, and the life after death, for no one knows anything about them. Nevertheless you should allow the clergy, without abusing them, to preach such things; for in this way the minds of the common people are kept bound to laws and rulers by all invisible chain. Upon this hangs the public welfare.”
[7] We were amazed to hear such opinions, and said to one another: “Although these are called Christians, they are not men; neither are they beasts, but are men-beasts.” However in order to rouse them from their sleep, we said: “There is a heaven, and a hell, and a life after death. You will be convinced of this as soon as we have dispelled your ignorance concerning the state of life in which you now are. For in the first days after death every one imagines he is still living in the same world in which he was before, the past seeming like a sleep: and when a person awakes, he seems to be where he formerly lived. Thus it is with you to-day; therefore you have spoken just as you thought in the former world.” As their ignorance was dispelled by the angels they saw they were now in another world among persons they did not know, and they called out, “Where are we?” We replied: “You are no longer in the natural world, but are now in the spiritual world, and we are angels.” Then, after they were thoroughly wakened up, they said: “If you are angels, show us heaven.” However, we answered: “Stay here for a short time, and we will return.” On returning half an hour later we saw them awaiting us, and we said, “Follow us to heaven.” They followed and we went up together. As we were with them, the keepers of the gate opened it and admitted us. We then asked those who received new arrivals at the entrance to examine them. They turned them round and saw that the back parts of their heads were quite hollow; and they said: “Depart from this place, because the delight of your love is to do evil, and you have no conjunction with heaven; for in your hearts you have denied God and despised religion.” Thereupon we said to them: “Make no delay, for otherwise you will be cast out.” So they hastened down and departed.
[8] On the way home we spoke of the reason why in the spiritual world the back of the head are hollow with those whose delight is to do evil. I said the reason was this: man has two brains, one in the back part of the head, called the cerebellum, and the other in the front, called the cerebrum. In the cerebellum resides the love of the will, and in the cerebrum the thought of the understanding: and when the thought of the understanding does not lead the love of a man’s will, the inmost parts of the cerebellum, which in themselves are heavenly, collapse, and a hollowness is the result.
Then in the heat of his zeal he replied: “How can you say so?” I therefore explained myself saying: “Is it not contrary to reason to suppose that God the Father ceased to be gracious towards mankind, and condemned and excommunicated them? Is not Divine grace an attribute of the Divine Essence? To cease to be gracious, therefore, would be to depart from the Divine Essence, and this would mean that He would be no longer God. Is it possible for God to be alienated from Himself? Believe me, grace on God’s part, as it is infinite, is also eternal. On man’s part it may be lost, if he does not accept it; but if grace were to depart from God, the whole of heaven as well as the whole of mankind would perish. Therefore, grace on God’s part endures to eternity, not only towards angels and men, but even towards devils in hell. Since this then is according to reason, why do you say that the only access to God the Father is through faith in the merit of the Son, when yet there is perpetual access through grace?
[3] “Moreover, why do you say, access to God the Father for the sake of the Son, and not through the Son? Is not the Son the Mediator and Savior? Why then do you not approach Him who is Mediator and Savior? Is He not God and Man? On earth who approaches directly a Caesar, a king, or a prince? Will there not be required one to procure admission and introduce him? Do you not know that the Lord came into the world that He might introduce us to the Father, and that there is no access to Him except through the Lord, access that is perpetual if you directly approach the Lord Himself, since He is in the Father, and the Father in Him? Search now the Scriptures, and you will see that this is in agreement with them; and that your way to the Father is contrary to them as it is contrary to reason. I tell you further that it is presumption to climb up to God the Father and not to approach through Him who is in the bosom of the Father, and who alone is with Him. Have you not read John xiv. 6?” When the old man heard this he flew into such a rage that he sprang from his seat, and called to his scribes to put me out. As I walked out at once of my own accord he threw after me out of the door the first Book that he happened to lay his hand on: and that Book was the Word.
* Suecia, Sweden.
[2] When this dispute was thus ended, there ascended from the abyss some spirits who appeared first like locusts, and afterwards like dwarfs. In the world they had prayed to God the Father and had confirmed in themselves the doctrine of justification by faith alone, and they were such as are referred to in Revelation, Ch. ix. 1-11. They maintained that they saw in clear light, and also from the Word, that a man is justified by faith alone without the works of the Law. Being asked by what faith, they replied: “By faith in God the Father.” However, after examination, they were told from heaven that they did not understand a single doctrinal truth from the Word. When they insisted that they saw their truths in light, they were told that they saw them in a delusive light. “What is a delusive light?” they asked, and they were informed it is a light arising from the confirmation of falsity and corresponding to the light of owls and bats, to which darkness is light and light darkness. [3] Proof of this was the fact that when they looked up towards heaven, where is Light itself, they saw darkness, and when they looked down towards the abyss, whence they came, they saw light. Annoyed at this proof, they said that by this reasoning light and darkness are nothing but states of the eye, according to which light is called light and darkness darkness. But it was shown them that theirs was a delusive light, arising from the confirmation of falsity, and that it was merely an activity of their mind, originating in the fire of their lusts, not unlike the light associated with cats, whose eyes, in cellars in the night, appear like blazing candles, because of their burning appetite for mice. When they heard this they became angry, and declared that they were neither cats nor like cats, for they could see if they wished; but fearing they would be asked why they did not wish, they retired and betook themselves to their abyss. Those who dwell there, and others like them, are called by the angels owls and bats, and also locusts.
[4] When they returned to their companions in the abyss, and reported what the angels had said, namely, that they did not know any truth of doctrine, not even one, and that they had been called owls, bats and locusts, a tumult arose; and they said: “Let us pray God for permission to go up, and we will prove clearly that we have many truths of doctrine, which the archangels themselves will acknowledge.” As they prayed to God their prayer was granted, and they went up, to the number of three hundred. When they appeared above ground they said: “In the world we were celebrated and renowned because we knew and taught the mysteries of justification by faith alone; and from the proofs which we used we have not only seen the light, but have seen it as a brilliant radiance, and so we see it now in our rooms. Yet we have heard from our companions, who were with you, that that light is not light, but darkness, because, as you said, we have no truth of doctrine from the Word. We know that every truth of the Word shines brightly, and it is our belief that this is the source of our illumination when pondering deeply our mysteries. We will, therefore, prove that we possess truths from the Word in great abundance.” Then they continued: “We have this truth, that there is a Trinity, God the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit and that we ought to believe in the Trinity. We have this also, that Christ is our Redeemer and Savior. And this, that Christ alone is righteousness, and that merit is His alone; and that he is unjust and wicked who would ascribe to himself any of His merit and righteousness. We have this truth also, that no man can do any spiritual good of himself, and that all good, which is good in itself, is from God. And this, that there is a merit-seeking and a hypocritical good, and that such good is evil. And this, that good works ought to be done. And this, that there is faith, and that men ought to believe in God, and that every one has life according to his belief; besides many other truths derived from the Word. Which of you can deny any of these? And yet you said that in our schools we have not a single truth. Surely you are ungracious in making such a charge against us.”
[5] They were then answered as follows: “All those things which you have advanced are true in themselves; but with you they are truths falsified, and these are falsities, because they are derived from a false principle. That this is so we shall give you ocular proof. Not far from here is a place upon which the light of heaven falls directly. In the centre of it there is a table, and if a paper is placed upon it on which is written a truth from the Word, the paper, by virtue of that truth, shines like a star. Therefore, write your truths on a paper, and let it be placed on the table, and you will see.” They did so, and gave the paper to an attendant who placed it on the table. He then told them to move away and look at the table. They moved away and looked, and lo! the paper shone like a star. Thereupon the attendant said: “You see that those are truths which you have written on the paper. Now approach nearer, and fix your gaze on the paper.” They did so, and suddenly the light disappeared, and the paper became black, as though covered with soot from a furnace. The attendant then said: “Touch the paper with your hands; but take care that you do not touch the writing.” When they did so, a flame burst forth and consumed the paper.
When they had seen this they were told that if they had touched the writing, they would have heard a report, and would have had their fingers burnt. Then some who were standing behind said: “You see now that the truths you have misused to confirm the mysteries of your justification theory are truths in themselves, but in you they are truths falsified.” They then looked upwards, and heaven appeared to them like blood, and afterwards like thick darkness; and they themselves appeared to the eyes of the angelic spirits, some like bats, some like owls and some like other birds of night. So they fled away into their own states of darkness, which shone in their eyes with a delusive light.
[6] The angelic spirits who were present were astonished, because they had before known nothing of that place and the table there; and presently a voice came to them from the southern quarter saying: “Come this way, and you will see something still more wonderful.” So they went, and entered a room whose walls shone like gold; and they saw a table there also, upon which the Word lay, decorated all round with precious stones, arranged in a heavenly design. The angel attendant said: “When the Word is opened, a light of inexpressible brilliance shines from it; and at the same time from the precious stones there arises the appearance of a rainbow over and around the Word. When an angel from the third heaven approaches, there appears over and around the Word a rainbow on a red ground; when an angel from the second heaven approaches and looks at it, the rainbow appears on a blue ground; when an angel from the lowest heaven approaches and looks, the rainbow appears on a white ground; and when a good spirit approaches and looks, there appears a light variegated like marble.” The truth of this was then demonstrated to them. The angel attendant continued: “Should any one approach who has falsified the Word, the brightness first vanishes. If he comes nearer and looks on the Word, there arises the appearance of blood around it, and he is then warned to depart, because there is danger.”
[7] A certain man, however, who in the world had been a leading writer on the doctrine of justification by faith alone came up boldly and said: “While I was in the world I did not falsify the Word. I exalted charity together with faith, and taught that, in a state of faith in which a man exercises charity and does the works of charity, he is renewed, regenerated and sanctified by the Holy Spirit. In such a case, faith is not alone, that is, without good works, just as a good tree is not without fruit, the sun without light, and fire without heat. I also reproved those who declared that good works were unnecessary. Moreover, in my teaching I insisted on the importance of the Commandments of the Decalogue, and also of repentance; and thus in a wonderful way I made everything in the Word relate to the Article on Faith, which I still explained and proved to be alone saving.”
In the confidence of his assertion that he had not falsified the Word, he approached the table, and, disregarding the warning of the angel, he touched the Word. Immediately fire and smoke burst forth from the Word, followed by a crash and an explosion, which hurled him into a corner of the room, where he lay for some time as if dead. The angelic spirits were much surprised at this, but they were informed that this leader more than others had exalted the good works of charity, as if proceeding from faith; but that he meant only those relating to society, called moral and civil, which have as their end the world and worldly prosperity, and which have no regard to salvation. By works too, he had understood some hidden operations of the Holy Spirit, about which man knows nothing, which are generated when he is in a state of faith.
[8] The angelic spirits then conversed with one another about the falsification of the Word. They agreed that to falsify the Word is to select truths from it and apply them to the confirmation of what is false, which is to separate them from the Word and destroy them; for example, to relate all those truths, quoted by the spirits from the abyss, to the faith of the present day, and to explain them in accordance with it. That this faith is impregnated with falsities will be shown in what follows. Consider this truth from the Word, that charity ought to be practiced, and that good should be done to the neighbor. If any one confirms his belief that this should be done, but not for the sake of salvation, since all such good which a man does is for the sake of merit and therefore not really good, he takes that truth from the Word, separates it from the Word, and destroys it. For it is the man who has his salvation in view that the Lord in His Word enjoins to love his neighbor, and from that love to do good to him. So also is it in other cases.
We have now treated of the following subjects: God the Creator and Creation, the Lord Redeemer and Redemption, the Holy Spirit and the Divine Operation. Having thus treated of the Triune God, we must now treat of the Divine Trinity, which is known, and yet unknown, in the Christian world. For by this doctrine alone is a right idea of God acquired; and a right idea of God is in the Church like the sanctuary and altar in the Temple, and like the crown on the head and sceptre in the hand of a king, sitting upon his throne. On this doctrine depends the whole body of theology, like a chain upon its first link; and, if you will believe it, every one has his place in heaven according to his idea of God, for it is a kind of touchstone by which gold and silver, that is, the nature of good and truth in a man, are tested, since man has no saving good except from God, nor any truth which does not derive its quality from the very inmost of good. In order, however, that the nature of the Divine Trinity may be clearly seen, an exposition of it will be given in detail, arranged under the following articles:
(1) There is a Divine Trinity, which consists of Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
(2) These three, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, are three essentials of one God, which make one, as soul, body and operation make one in a man.
(3) Before the creation of the world this Trinity did not exist; but after the creation of the world, when God became incarnate, it was provided for and came into existence, and was then in the Lord God, the Redeemer and Savior, Jesus Christ.
(4) A Trinity of Divine Persons from eternity, or before the world was created, is in idea a Trinity of Gods; and this idea cannot be removed by the oral confession of one God.
(5) A Trinity of Persons was unknown in the Apostolic Church, but was put forward by the Nicene Council, then introduced into the Roman Catholic Church, and from this into the Churches that separated from it.
(6) From the Nicene and also from the Athanasian doctrine concerning the Trinity has arisen a faith which has perverted the whole Christian Church.
(7) Hence has sprung that abomination of desolation and that affliction, the like of which has not been nor ever shall be, which the Lord foretold in Daniel, in the Evangelists and in the Revelation.
(8) For the same reason, unless a new heaven and a new church were established by the Lord, no flesh should be saved.
(9) From a trinity of persons, each of whom is separately God, according to the Athanasian Creed,* have arisen many discordant and incongruous ideas concerning God, which are delusive and monstrous.
These articles will now be explained separately.
* Athanasian Symbol or Creed. Although bearing the name of Athanasius, it was probably composed by Hilary, in the century after the formulation of the Nicene Creed, A.D. 325. The name was given to it about the year A.D. 670 as an excellent system of the doctrines of Athansius concerning the Trinity and the Incarnation, principally in opposition to the Arians. It is received by the Romish Church and also by the Reformed.
This is clearly evident from the Word, particularly from these passages:
The angel Gabriel said to Mary: “The Holy Spirit shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God.” Luke i. 35.
Here mention is made of three, the Highest, who is God the Father, the Holy Spirit and the Son of God.
When Jesus was baptized, “Lo, the heavens were opened,” and John saw “the Holy Spirit descending like a dove, and lighting upon Him; and lo, a voice from heaven, saving, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” Matt. iii. 16, 17; Mark i. 10, 11; John i. 32.
It appears still more clearly from these words of the Lord to His disciples:
“Go ye therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” Matt. xxviii. 19;
and further from these words in John,
“There are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word and the Holy Spirit.” 1 John v. 7.
In addition to these passages it is recorded that the Lord prayed to His Father, that He spoke of Him and with Him, and said that He would send the Holy Spirit, and also that He did send it. Moreover, the Apostles in their Epistles frequently make mention of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. From these references it is evident that there is a Divine Trinity, which consists of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
[2] This was the paralyzing result of not reading the Word under the Lord’s guidance; and every one who does not so read it, reads it guided by his own intelligence; and this is like an owl regarding matters which are seen only in spiritual light, as are all the essentials of the Church. When such a man reads those passages in the Word which relate to the Trinity, and, thence forms the opinion that although they are three, still they are one, this appears to him like an answer from an oracle, which he merely mumbles because he does not understand it. For if he were to examine it closely, it would simply be an enigma, which becomes the more involved in darkness the more he tries to solve it; till at length he begins to think concerning it without using his understanding, which is like trying to see without using the eyes. In short, those who read the Word under the guidance of their own intelligence, which is the case with all who do not acknowledge the Lord as the God of heaven and earth, and who consequently do not approach and worship Him alone, may be likened to boys at play, who tie a handkerchief over their eyes, and try to walk in a straight line. They even imagine they are so walking, but with every step they are going now to the one side and now to the other, till they stumble against a stone and fall to the ground.
[3] Such men may also be compared to mariners who, sailing without a compass, steer their ship against rocks, and so perish. They are also like a man walking over a wide field in a thick fog, who sees a scorpion, and supposes it to be a bird; and while trying to catch it and take it up in his hand, receives a deadly wound. They may also be compared to a cormorant or a kite, which, seeing a small part of the back of a great fish above the water, darts down and fixes its beak in it; but is drawn under water by the fish and drowned. They are also like one who enters a labyrinth without either guide or clue: the farther he penetrates the more difficult he makes it to find his way out. The man who does not read the Word under the guidance of the Lord, but under the guidance of his own imagines himself to be as keen-sighted as a lynx, and to have more eyes than Argus,* when yet interiorly he does not see a single truth, but only what is false; and having persuaded himself that this is true, it appears to him like the pole star by which he directs all the sails of his thought. He has then no more discernment of truth than a mole, and what he does discern he bends in favor of his own delusions, and so perverts and falsifies the holy things of the Word.
* Argus, the watcher with a hundred eyes.
In everything there are general and particular essentials which together constitute one essence. The general essentials of a man are his soul, body and operation; and that these constitute one essence is evident from this fact that one exists from the other, and for the sake of the other, in a continuous series; for a man has his beginning from the soul, which is the very essence of the seed. It, moreover, not only initiates but also produces in its own order the parts of the body, and later the activities, or operations, which result from the co-operation of soul and body. Thus from the production of one from the other, and their interpenetration and conjunction, it is evident that these three are of one essence, and are therefore called three essentials.
In the Christian world at the present day a Divine Trinity is acknowledged as existing before the creation of the world. It is based on the belief that Jehovah God from eternity begot a Son, and that the Holy Spirit then came forth from both, and that each of these three is God by Himself or separately, since each is a Person subsisting from Himself. This, however, as it is not in accordance with reason, is termed a mystery, an approach to which can only be made by supposing that to these three there pertains one Divine Essence, by which is meant eternity, immensity, omnipotence and, consequently, equal Divinity, Glory and Majesty. But this trinity is one of three gods, and thus is not a Divine Trinity, as will be shown in what follows. Moreover, the Trinity of Father, Son and Holy Spirit, which was provided for and came into existence after God became incarnate, and so after the creation of the world, is a Divine Trinity, because it is of one God, as is evident from all that precedes. This Divine Trinity is in the Lord God, the Redeemer and Savior, Jesus Christ, because the three essentials of one God, which constitute one essence, are in Him. That all the fullness of the Godhead is in Him, as Paul declares, is evident also from the Lord’s own words, that all that the Father hath is His, and that the Holy Spirit speaks not from itself but from Him; and further that when He rose, He took from the sepulchre His whole human body, both the flesh and the bones,
Matt. xxviii. 1-8; Mark xvi. 5, 6; Luke xxiv. 1-3; John xx. 11-15,
unlike all other men. This also He testified openly to the disciples, saying,
“Behold my hands and my feet, that it is I myself: handle me, and see; for a spirit hath not flesh and bones, as ye see me have.” Luke xxiv. 39.
From this every man may be convinced, if he is willing, that the Human of the Lord is Divine, and consequently that in Him God is Man and Man is God.
That a trinity of Divine Persons from eternity is a trinity of gods is plainly evident from the following passage in the Athanasian Creed:*
“There is one Person of the Father, another of the Son, and another of the Holy Ghost. The Father is God and Lord, the Son is God and Lord, and the Holy Ghost is God and Lord; nevertheless there are not three gods and lords, but one God and Lord; for as we are compelled by Christian verity to acknowledge each Person by Himself to be God and Lord, so are we forbidden by the Catholic religion to say there are three gods or three lords.”
This creed is received as ecumenical, or universal by the whole Christian Church, and from it is derived all that is at this day known and acknowledged concerning God. Every one who reads this creed with his eyes open may see that only a trinity of gods was understood by those who formed the Nicene Council, from which came forth, as a posthumous production, this Athanasian Creed. That not only was a trinity of gods understood by them, but also that no other trinity is understood throughout the Christian world, follows from the fact that all its knowledge of God is derived from that creed, to which every one pays literal obedience. [2] I appeal to every one, whether layman or clergyman, both learned masters and doctors of divinity consecrated bishops and archbishops, to purple-robed cardinals, even to the Roman Pontiff himself, whether any other trinity than a trinity of gods is at the present day understood in the Christian world.
Let each one consult himself, and then declare the ideas he has formed. From the words of this generally received doctrine concerning God it is as manifest and clear as water in a crystal cup, that there are three Persons, each of whom is God and Lord; also that according to Christian verity men ought to confess or acknowledge each Person separately to be God and Lord, but that the Catholic or Christian religion or faith forbids them to say or name three gods and lords; and thus that verity and religion, or truth and faith, are not one thing, but two, at variance with one another. Moreover it was added that there are not three gods and lords, but one God and Lord, lest they should be exposed to the ridicule of the whole world, for who can forbear derision at the idea of three gods? Who does not see the contradiction in this addition?
[3] If, however, they had said that the Divine Essence belongs to the Father, and the Divine Essence to the Son, and the Divine Essence to the Holy Spirit, and that there are not three Divine Essences, but that the Divine Essence is one and indivisible, then this mystery would be comprehensible; that is, when by the Father is understood the originating Divine, by the Son the Divine Human therefrom, and by the Holy Spirit the proceeding Divine, which are the three constituents of one God; or if the Divine of the Father is understood to be like the soul in man, the Divine Human like the body of that soul, and the Holy Spirit like the operation proceeding from both, then indeed three essences are understood, but they belong to one and the same Person, and thus constitute one indivisible Essence.
* Athanasian Symbol or Creed. Although bearing the name of Athanasius, it was probably composed by Hilary, in the century after the formulation of the Nicene Creed, A.D. 325. The name was given to it about the year A.D. 670 as an excellent system of the doctrines of Athansius concerning the Trinity and the Incarnation, principally in opposition to the Arians. It is received by the Romish Church and also by the Reformed.
[2] But do you, my friend, not only cut down that tree, but also dig up its root, and then plant in your garden trees yielding good fruit. Take heed, therefore, lest the idea of three gods becomes fixed in your mind, while your mouth, which is void of idea, says “one God.” What then is the understanding above the memory, which thinks of three Gods, and the understanding below the memory, from which the mouth at the same time says “one God,” but like a conjurer on the stage, who can impersonate two characters by crossing from one side to the other? He can say something on one side and contradict it on the other, and by thus expressing opposing sentiments, can call himself a wise man on one side and a fool on the other. The result is that should he stand in the middle and look in each direction he must think there is no reality in the one or in the other. Thus perchance the understanding must conclude that there is neither one God nor three, and consequently that there is no God at all. This is the source of the naturalism that is prevalent at the present day.
In heaven no one can utter the words “a trinity of Persons,” each of whom separately is God, for the heavenly aura itself, through which the thoughts of angels travel in waves like sounds in our air, offers resistance. Only a hypocrite can do this; but the sound of his speech grates in that aura like the gnashing of teeth, or croaks like a raven trying to emulate a song-bird. I have heard from heaven, moreover, that to destroy a belief, implanted in the mind and confirmed in favor of a trinity of gods, by the oral confession of one God is as impossible as to draw a tree through its seed, or a man’s chin through a hair of his beard.
By the Apostolic Church is meant the Church which existed in various places not only in the time of the Apostles but for two or three centuries later. Then men began to wrench the door of the Temple off its hinges and to rush like thieves into its sanctuary. By the Temple is understood the Church, by the door the Lord God the Redeemer, and by the sanctuary His Divinity; for Jesus says:
“Verily, I say unto you, he that entereth not by the door into the sheepfold, but climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber … I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved.” [John x. 1, 9.]
[2] This crime was committed by Arius* and his adherents. A council was therefore convened by Constantine the Great** at Nice, a city in Bithynia; and to destroy the pernicious heresy of Arius, those assembled there devised, decided upon Divine Persons from eternity, the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, to each of whom, by Himself and in Himself, belonged personality, existence and subsistence. Further, that the second Person, or the Son, descended and assumed the Human, and accomplished the work of redemption; and consequently that Divinity pertains to His Human by hypostatic union, through which He has close affinity with God the Father. From that time numerous impious heresies concerning God and the Person of Christ began to spring up from the earth, which exalted the head of Antichrist, divided God into three and the Lord the Savior into two, and thus destroyed the Temple which the Lord had built by means of His Apostles, and this with such effect that not one stone was left upon another which was not thrown down, according to His own words in Matt. xxiv. 2. In this passage by the Temple is meant not only that at Jerusalem, but also the Church, the consummation or end of which is treated of in that chapter. [3] But what else could be expected from that Council, and those that succeeded it, which similarly divided the Divinity into three, and placed the incarnate God below them on their footstool? For they removed the head of the Church from its body, by “climbing up another way”; that is, they passed by Jesus Christ, climbing up to God the Father as to another Divinity, with only the merit of Christ on their lips, in order that God, on account of it, might be merciful; and thus that justification might directly flow into them with all its train, namely, remission of sins, renewal, sanctification, regeneration and salvation, and this without the use of any effort on man’s part to bring it about.
* Arius, theologian of Alexandria, A.D 256-336; founder of Arianism, affirming that Christ was an originated Being. Excommunicated by bishops of Egypt for denying that Christ was made of the same substance (homo-ousion) of any previously existing substance. To settle the consequent dispute Constantine called the Council of Nicaea, A.D. 325. Athanasius successfully led the opposition to Arius; and Arius, with Eusebius, who also refused to accept the Athanasian position, was banished.
** Constantine, Emperor of Rome, A. D. 272-337. A convert to Christianity, he summoned the Council of Nice, A.D. 325 to settle the Arian controversy. This Council gave its name to the Nicene Creed which resulted, and which subsequently became the standard creed of the Christian Church.
“I believe in God the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth; and in Jesus Christ, His only Son our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the Virgin Mary; and in the Holy Ghost.”
Here no mention is made of any Son from eternity, but of a Son conceived by the Holy Ghost, and born of the Virgin Mary; for those who framed that creed knew from the Apostles
that Jesus Christ was the true God, 1 John v. 20;
that in Him dwelt all the fullness of the Godhead bodily, Coloss. ii. 9;
that the Apostles preached faith in Him, Acts xx. 21; and that He had all power in heaven and in earth, Matt. xxviii. 18.
with a mouth like a lion, a body like a leopard and feet like a bear. Rev. xiii. 2.
[2] It is said in heaven that at the conclusion of the Council of Nice those things happened which the Lord foretold to His disciples:
“The sun shall be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken.” Matt. xxiv. 29.
In fact the Apostolic Church was like a new star appearing in the starry heaven; but the Church, after the two Nicene Councils, was like the same star obscured and rent asunder, as has sometimes happened in the world of nature, according to the observations of astronomers. In the Word it is written
that Jehovah God dwells in light inaccessible.
Who then could approach Him unless He dwelt in light accessible, that is, unless He descended, and assumed the Human, and in it became the Light of the world? John i. 8; xii. 46. Every one may see that to approach Jehovah the Father in His own light is as impossible as to take the wings of the morning and on them fly to the sun, or to feed on the sun’s rays instead of material food, or for a bird to fly in the ether, or a stag to run in the air.
As was shown above in No. 172 from the Nicene and Athanasian Creeds* the trinity, according to them, is a trinity of gods. From them arose the faith of the present Church, which is a belief in God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit: in God the Father, as imputing the righteousness of His Son, the Savior, and ascribing it to man; in God the Son, as interceding and mediating; and in the Holy Spirit, as actually inscribing on man the imputed righteousness of the Son, and sealing it when confirmed by justifying, sanctifying and regenerating him. This is the faith of the present day, which alone is sufficient to prove that a trinity of gods is acknowledged and worshiped. [2] From the faith of every Church is derived all its worship and doctrine: and it can therefore be said that such as its faith is, such is its doctrine. Hence it follows that this faith in three gods has perverted everything pertaining to the Church, for faith is the first principle and doctrinal teachings are derivatives, and derivatives take their essence from their first principle. If any one examines the particulars of this doctrine in relation to God, the Person of Christ, charity, repentance, regeneration, free will, election, and the use of the sacraments of Baptism and the Holy Supper, he will clearly see that a trinity of gods enters into every one of them; and if it does not actually appear to be in them, yet it is the source from which they flow. It is not possible, however, at this point to undertake such an examination; but since it is expedient to do so for the sake of opening men’s eyes, an Appendix will therefore be added to this work in which this point will be demonstrated.
[3] The faith of the Church respecting God is like the soul in the body, and particulars of doctrine are like its members. Moreover, faith in God is like a queen, and doctrinal tenets are like the officers of her court; and as these depend on the authority of the queen, so doctrinal tenets depend on the declarations of faith. From the nature of this faith may be seen how the Word is understood in the Church, for faith bends and attracts to itself whatever it can, as it were with cords. If it is a false faith, it plays the harlot with every truth in the Word; it puts a wrong interpretation upon it, and falsifies it, and renders a man insane in regard to spiritual matters. If however it is a true faith, then the whole Word is in harmony with it, and the God of the Word, who is the Lord God the Savior, sheds light and breathes upon it His Divine assent, and makes a man wise.
[4] The faith of the present day, which in its internal form is a faith of three gods but is its external form is a faith of one God, has extinguished the light in the Word, and removed the Lord from the Church, and has thus turned its morning into night, as will also be seen in the Appendix. This was done by heretics before the Council of Nice, and then by the heretics of that Council and those who followed.
But what confidence ought to be placed in Councils which do not enter
“by the door into the sheepfold, but climb up some other way,” according to the words of the Lord in John x. 1, 9?
Their deliberations are not unlike the steps of a blind man by day, or those of a man who has the use of his eyes by night, neither of whom sees the ditch before he falls into it. For example, what confidence ought to be placed in Councils which have established the Pope’s vicarship, the canonization of the dead, the invocation of them as deities and the worship of their images, the authority of indulgences, the division of the Eucharist,** and so on? Moreover, what confidence ought to be placed in a Council which established the abominable doctrine of predestination, and hung this up before the temples of their Church as the palladium of their religion? But do you, my friend, go to the God of the Word, and so to the Word, and in this way enter by the door into the sheepfold, that is, the Church, and you will be enlightened. You will then see for yourself as from a mountain top not only the errors of many others, but also the tracks of your own former wanderings in the dark forest at the foot of the mountain.
* Athanasian Symbol or Creed. Although bearing the name of Athanasius, it was probably composed by Hilary, in the century after the formulation of the Nicene Creed, A.D. 325. The name was given to it about the year A.D. 670 as an excellent system of the doctrines of Athansius concerning the Trinity and the Incarnation, principally in opposition to the Arians. It is received by the Romish Church and also by the Reformed.
** Eucharist, Holy Supper, thanksgiving.
* Jupiter or Jove, son of Saturn.
** Neptune, god of the sea.
*** Pluto, king of the lower world.
In Daniel it is written:
“At length there shall be desolation upon the bird of abominations, even until the consummation and the decision: it shall drop upon the devastation.” (A.V., And for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate.) ix. 27.
In Matthew the Evangelist, the Lord says:
“Then many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many … when ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand.)” xxiv. 11, 15;
and afterwards in the same chapter,
“Then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.” v. 21.
This affliction and abomination are treated of in seven chapters in the Revelation. They are meant
by the black horse and the pale horse coming out of the book whose seal the Lamb opened, Rev. vi. 5-8;
also by the beast rising out of the abyss, which made war with the two witnesses, and slew them, xi. 7, and following verses; by the dragon which stood before the woman that was about to be delivered, to devour her child, and pursued her into the wilderness, and there cast out from his mouth water as a flood that he might drown her, xiii; by the beasts of the dragon, one rising out of the sea, and the other out of the earth, xiii.;
also by the three spirits like frogs, which came forth out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet, xvi. 13;
and further by this, that after the seven angels had poured out the vials of the wrath of God, in which were the seven last plagues, upon the earth, upon the sea, upon the fountains and rivers, upon the sun, upon the throne of the beast, upon the Euphrates,* and lastly into the air, there was a great earthquake, such as was not since men were upon the earth, xvi.
The earthquake signifies the overthrow of the Church, which is effected by falsities and falsifications of truth; and this is signified also by
the great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world. Matt. xxiv. 21.
The same is meant by these words:
“The angel thrust in his sickle, and gathered the vine of the earth, and cast it into the great wine-press of the wrath of God. And the wine-press was trodden … and blood came out … even unto the horses’ bridles, by the space of a thousand and six hundred furlongs.” Rev. xiv. 19, 20.
Blood signifies truth falsified; and there are many other passages in those seven chapters to the same effect.
* Euphrates, river of Syria.
Matt. xxiv.; Mark xiii.; and Luke xxi.,
are described the successive states of the decline and corruption of the Christian Church. In those chapters by the great affliction, such as was not since the beginning of the world, neither shall be, is meant, as elsewhere in the Word, the infestation of truth by falsities to such a degree that there does not remain a single truth which is not falsified and consummated. This is also meant by the abomination of desolation in those passages, and by the desolation upon the bird of abominations, and by the consummation and the decision in Daniel; and the same is described in the Revelation, in those passages which have just been quoted. This happened because the Church did not acknowledge the Unity of God in the Trinity, and His Trinity in Unity in one Person, but in three. The Church has therefore been based on the mental idea of three gods, but on the lip confession of one God. Thus men have separated themselves from the Lord to such it degree that they have no idea of Divinity in His Human Nature now left, although He is God the Father Himself in the Human; and on this account He is called
the Father of Eternity, Isa. ix. 6;
and He says to Philip: “He that seeth me (A.V., hath seen) seeth (A.V., hath seen) the Father.” John xiv. 7, 9.
It is written in Matthew:
“Then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be. And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved.” xxiv. 21, 22.
This chapter treats of the consummation of the age, by which is meant the end of the present Church; therefore, by shortening those days is meant bringing it to an end and establishing a new one. Who does not know that unless the Lord had come into the world and accomplished redemption no flesh could have been saved? and to accomplish redemption means to form a new heaven and a New Church. That the Lord would come again into the world He foretold in the Evangelists:
Matt. xxiv. 30, 31; Mark xiii. 28; Luke xii. 40, xxi. 27;
and in the Revelation, particularly in the last chapter. It has also been shown above in the section on redemption that He is to-day accomplishing the work of redemption, by forming a new heaven and establishing a new church in order that man may be saved. [2] There is a great truth, hitherto unknown, underlying the fact that unless a New Church is established by the Lord no flesh can be saved. This is, that as long as the dragon with his crew remained in the world of spirits, into which he was cast, it was impossible for any Divine truth conjoined with Divine good to pass through to men on earth, without being perverted and falsified, or destroyed. This is what is meant in the Revelation by these Words:
The dragon “was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him …Woe to the inhabiters of the earth and of the sea! for the devil is come down unto them (A.V., you), having great wrath. xii. 9, 12, 13.
But when the dragon was cast into hell, xx. 10, then
John saw the new heaven and the new earth, and the New Jerusalem descending from God out of heaven, xxi. 1, 2.
By the dragon are meant those who are in the faith of the present Church.
MEMORABILIA.
I have sometimes conversed in the spiritual world with those who hold the doctrine of justification by faith alone, and I have told them that their doctrine is erroneous and absurd, that it induces carelessness, blindness, sleep and night in spiritual matters, and consequently brings death to the soul. I exhorted them to give it up, but I received the reply: “Why give it up? The superiority of the learning of the clergy over that of the laity depends solely upon this doctrine.” But I answered that they evidently did not regard the salvation of souls as an end in view, but the superiority of their own reputation; and therefore, because they applied the truths of the Word to their own false principles, and thus defiled them, they were angels of the abyss, called Abaddons and Apollyons, Rev. ix. 11, by whom are signified those who destroy the Church by the complete falsification of the Word. But they replied: “How can this be? By our knowledge of the mysteries of this faith we are oracles, and from this faith as from a shrine we deliver responses; and so we are not Apollyons but Apollos.”* Indignant at this I said: “If you are Apollos you are also leviathans. The chief among you are crooked leviathans, and those lower in station are piercing leviathans,** whom God shall punish with His sore and great sword.” Isa. xxvii. 1. But they laughed at these words.
* Apollo, god of divination, healing, poetry and music.
** primi vestrum Leviathanes tortuosi, et seeundi vestrum Leviathanes oblongi. Isa. xxvii. 1.
From the doctrine of three Divine Persons from eternity, which in itself is the head of all the doctrinal teachings in Christian Churches, have arisen many unbecoming ideas concerning God, unworthy of the Christian world, which ought to be, and which might be, a light to all peoples and nations in the four quarters of the earth, on the subject of God and His Unity. All who live outside the Christian Church, Mohammedans,** Jews and also Gentiles, whatever religion they profess, hold Christianity in aversion, solely because of its belief in three gods. Its missionaries know this; and they are therefore particularly cautious in expounding the trinity of Persons, as it is in the Nicene and Athanasian Creeds, since in doing so they might be shunned and ridiculed.
[2] The following are the discordant, unreal and worthless ideas which have arisen from the doctrine of three Divine Persons from eternity, and which still arise in the mind of every one who continues to believe in the words of that doctrine, and which surge into his range of thought from what he hears and reads: Somewhere overhead God the Father sits on high, the Son at His right hand, and the Holy Spirit before them, attending to what is said, who instantly runs over the whole earth, dispensing the gifts of justification according to what has been decided, inscribing them on the hearts of men, and changing them from children of wrath to children of grace, and transforming them from the condemned to the elect. I appeal to the learned, both clergy and laity, whether they entertain in their minds any other view of the Trinity than this, for it flows spontaneously from that doctrine, as may be seen in the Narrative above, No. 16. [3] Where this view is held there is also curiosity regarding what the three Persons conversed about with one another before the world was created; whether about the world that was to be created, about those who were to be predestined and justified, according to the Supralapsarians,*** or even about redemption; and also regarding what they now converse about with one another since the creation of the world, the Father speaking from His authority and power of imputation, the Son from His power of mediation. Thus it will be concluded that imputation, which is election, comes from compassion roused by the Son’s pleading for all men, and particularly for some to whom the Father is moved to show favor from His love of the Son, and from the agony which He saw Him endure on the cross.
Who cannot see that such ideas concerning God are but ravings of the mind? And yet they are in the Christian Churches the holy things, themselves, to be revered by the lips but not to be examined by the mind, because they transcend reason, and if raised from the memory into the understanding, would drive a man mad. Nevertheless this does not remove the idea of three gods, but it induces a stupid faith, from which a man thinks about God like who dreams in his sleep, or who walks in the darkness of night, or like one blind from his birth who walks in the light of day.
* Athanasian Symbol or Creed. Although bearing the name of Athanasius, it was probably composed by Hilary, in the century after the formulation of the Nicene Creed, A.D. 325. The name was given to it about the year A.D. 670 as an excellent system of the doctrines of Athansius concerning the Trinity and the Incarnation, principally in opposition to the Arians. It is received by the Romish Church and also by the Reformed.
** Mohammad, the founder of Mohammedanism or Islam, A.D. 571-632, was born at Mecca, where his father was spiritual and temporal head. He married a wealthy and devout widow, and owed much to her influence. In the visions to which he was subject he received confirmations of his Divine mission. He also received messages from Gabriel which were incorporated in the KORAN, the sacred book of Mohammedanism. Early persecution drove him from Mecca and in the year A.D. 622 he fled to Medina, where he was cordially welcomed. This flight, or Hejira, marks the beginning of the Mohammedan year, and from Medina he set out on his conquest of Arabia. Mohammedanism proclaims the unity of the God-head, and condemns idolatry; but the peaceful methods of propaganda soon gave place to ruthless persecution of infidels and merciless extermination of idolators.
*** Supralapsarian, one who maintains that the decree of election as regards eternal salvation of some and the eternal reprobation of others was a part of the original plan; and that the fall of Adam was predestinated from all eternity. (Supra, beyond, and lapsus, the fall.)
* Trinitas Divine, est sicut Unio maximi pretii, at … est sicut unio. Here Unio with initial capital = the pearl, but unio with small initial = a pearl.
To the above will be added the following Memorabilia. The first is this. In the spiritual world there are climates and zones just as in the natural world, there being nothing in the latter world that does not exist also in the former: but they differ in origin. In the natural world varieties of climate depend upon the distance of the sun from the equator; but in the spiritual world they vary according to the distance of the affections of the will and the resulting thoughts of the understanding from true love and faith; for of these all things in the spiritual world are correspondences. In the frigid zones in the spiritual world things appear similar to those in the frigid zones of the natural world. The ground there seems to be frozen, the waters also, and wow appears to cover all things. Those come there and settle down who in the natural world lulled their understanding to sleep by their indolence in thinking on spiritual matters, and who consequently were too indolent to perform any uses; they are called northern spirits. [2] I once had a strong desire to see some district in the frigid zone where these northern spirits dwell, and accordingly I was conducted in spirit towards the north, to a region where all the land appeared covered with snow, and all the water frozen. It was the Sabbath day, and I saw a number of men, that is, spirits similar in stature to men in the natural world. On account of the cold they had their heads covered with lion skins, the animals’ faces over their own, while their bodies, back and front down to the loins, were covered with leopard skins, and their feet with bear skins. I saw also many riding in chariots, some of which were carved in the shape of a dragon with horns projecting forwards. These were drawn by small horses, which had their tails docked, galloping furiously like wild beasts, while the drivers, holding the reins in their hands, continually urged them on their course. I then saw that they were flocking to a temple, which had not been visible because it was covered with snow; but the keepers of the temple were clearing the snow away, digging out an entrance for the worshippers as they arrived; and they, dismounting, made their way in.
[3] I was then permitted to view the inside of the church, which was brilliantly lit with lamps and candles. The altar was of hewn stone, and behind it hung a tablet with this inscription: “THE DIVINE TRINITY, FATHER, SON AND HOLY SPIRIT, WHO ARE IN ESSENCE ONE GOD, BUT IN PERSON THREE.” Presently a priest who was standing at the altar, after kneeling three times before the tablet ascended the pulpit with a book in his hand, and began his sermon by speaking of the Divine Trinity: “Oh, how great a mystery, that God in the Highest should have begotten a Son from eternity and by Him should have brought forth the Holy Spirit, three that are united by essence but separated by their properties of imputation, redemption and operation! If, however, we look into these things and use our reason, our vision is dimmed, and a darkness rises before it like that before the eye when one gazes on the unshaded sun. Therefore, my hearers, on this subject let us keep our understanding in obedience to faith.”
[4] Continuing he said: “Oh, how great a mystery is our holy faith, which affirms that God the Father imputes the righteousness of His Son, and sends the Holy Spirit, who, because of that imputed righteousness, sets in operation the pledges of justification, which in brief are the remission of sins, renewal, regeneration and salvation. A man, however, knows no more of the influx and working of justification than does the pillar of salt into which Lot’s wife was turned, nor does he know any more of its indwelling or state than a fish in the sea. But, my friends, there is a treasure hid in this faith, so fenced in and hidden away that not a particle of it can be seen. Therefore on this subject also let us keep our understanding in obedience to faith.”
[5] He sighed and again continued: “Oh, how great a mystery is election! He becomes one of the elect to whom God imputes this faith, which, of free determination and pure grace he infuses into whomsoever, and whenever, He pleases. When this is taking place, a man is like a stock; but after it has taken place, he becomes like a tree. The fruits, however, which are good works, hang indeed from that tree, which in a representative sense is our faith, but still they do not essentially belong to it. Therefore the value of that tree is not in its fruit. As this, however, sounds like heterodoxy, and yet is a mystical truth, let us, my brethren, keep our understanding in obedience to this faith.”
[6] Then after a short pause, hesitating as if he were recalling something else from his memory, he went on: “From the store of mysteries I will produce still one more, namely, that a man has not a grain of Free Will in spiritual things. For our leaders and priestly rulers in the Church in their theological canons declare that in matters of faith and salvation, which are properly called spiritual, a man has no power to will, think, understand, or even to accommodate and apply himself to receive them. Therefore I, speaking for myself, say that a man of himself has no more power to think rationally and talk sensibly on such matters than a parrot, a magpie or a raven; consequently that a man in spiritual matters is truly an ass, and a man only in natural things. But, my friends, lest this subject should trouble your reason, let us, as in the case of the others, keep our understanding in obedience to faith. For our theology is a bottomless abyss; if you try to fathom it in the light of your understanding you will be overwhelmed and perish like a shipwrecked mariner. However, hear what I say. We are nevertheless in the very light of the Gospel, which shines aloft over our heads; but, alas! the hair of our heads and the bones of our skulls block its way and prevent it from penetrating into the inner chamber of our understanding.”
[7] When he had thus spoken, he descended from the pulpit, and after he had offered up a prayer at the altar, the service was at an end. I then approached some of the congregation who were conversing together. Among them was the priest, and those standing around him were saying: “We are eternally grateful to you for such a magnificent sermon, so replete with wisdom.” But I said to them: “Did you understand any of it?” They replied, “We took it all in with all our ears; but why do you ask if we understood it? Is not the understanding numb in relation to such subjects?” At these words the priest said: “Blessed are ye because hearing ye have not understood; for in this way ye have salvation.”
[8] Afterwards I spoke to the priest and asked him whether he had taken a degree. He replied: “I am a Master of Arts.” I then said: “Well, Master, I heard you preaching mysteries; but if you only know them as such, and do not know anything of their inner content, you know nothing; for they are like boxes fastened with a triple lock; and if you do not open them and look in, which can only be done by means of the understanding, you do not know whether they contain things of value or things of no value, or even hurtful things. They may contain asp’s eggs, or spider’s webs, according to the description in Isa. lix. 5.” On my saying this, the priest looked at me with a scowl on his face, and the worshipers departed, and mounted their chariots, intoxicated with paradoxes, infatuated with empty words and enveloped with darkness in all things relating to faith and the means of salvation.
[2] Then one of them seeing me said: “Would you like to see our place of worship, in which there is an image representing our faith” “I went and looked; and lo! the temple was magnificent, and in its centre was the image of a woman, clothed in a scarlet robe, holding in her right hand a gold coin, and in her left a string of pearls. But both the image and the temple were an illusion; for infernal spirits have the power of calling up by means of illusions magnificent representations, by closing the interiors of the mind, and opening its exteriors only. When I noticed that all this was such a trick, I prayed to the Lord; and suddenly the interiors of my mind were opened, and then I saw, instead of the magnificent temple, a building rent from top to bottom, where nothing was secure. Instead of the women, I saw hanging within the building an image with its head like a dragon, its body like a leopard, its feet like those of a bear and its mouth like that of a lion, precisely like the beast rising up out of the sea as described in Rev. xiii. 2. Instead of a floor there was a marsh, in which was a great number of frogs; and I was told that under the marsh there was a large hewn stone, beneath which lay the Word, entirely concealed. On seeing these things I said to the illusion-monger: “Is this your place of worship?” and he replied, “It is.” But suddenly his interior vision was then opened, and by it he saw what I saw. Thereupon he called out with a loud voice: “What is this, and how comes it about?” I said: “It is due to light from heaven, which reveals the quality of every form, and thus it discloses the quality of your faith, which is separated from spiritual charity.”
[3] Immediately a wind blew from the east, and carried away the temple and the image, and also dried up the marsh, thus exposing the stone, beneath which lay the Word. After this a warmth like that of spring breathed from heaven; and lo! in the same place appeared a tabernacle, plain in its outward form. The angels who were with me said: “Behold the tabernacle of Abraham, as it was when the three angels came to him and foretold the birth of Isaac. It appears plain to the eye, but yet as light from heaven flows down it becomes more and more magnificent.” Then they were permitted to open up the heaven where dwell spiritual angels, who excel in wisdom; and from the light which thereupon flowed down, the tabernacle appeared like the temple at Jerusalem. On looking within I saw that the foundation stone, under which the Word reposed, was set round with precious stones, from which it flashed its light like lightning upon the walls where were placed statues of cherubs, and beautifully lit them up with its iridescent beams.
[4] As I gazed with wonder at these things, the angels said: “You will now see something more wonderful still.” They were then permitted to open up the third heaven, where dwell celestial angels, who excel in love; and in the flaming light which thereupon flowed down, the temple completely vanished, and in its place there appeared the Lord alone, standing upon the foundation stone, which was the Word, in appearance as He was seen by John, Rev. i. But as the interiors of the angels’ minds were then filled with a holiness which moved them to fall prostrate, the passage of light from the third heaven forthwith closed by the Lord, and that from the second heaven left open. Then the former appearance of the temple returned, and also that of the tabernacle, which, however, appeared in the centre of the temple. By this was illustrated the meaning of these words in Rev. xxi. 3:
“Behold the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them;”
and also of these words:
“And I saw no temple” in the New Jerusalem: “for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it.” v. 22.
[2] The first proposition and subject of inquiry was, Who assumed the Human in the Virgin Mary? An angel standing at the table on which the Word lay, read to them these words in Luke:
The angel said to Mary, “Behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a Son, and shalt call His name Jesus. He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest … Then said Mary unto the angel, How shall this be, seeing I know not a man? And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Spirit shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God.” i. 31, 32, 34, 36.
He also read these words in Matthew:
The angel said to Joseph in a dream, “Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife; for that which is begotten in her is of the Holy Spirit … And Joseph … knew her not till she had brought forth her first-born Son: and he called His name Jesus.” i. 20, 25;
And besides these passages, he read many more from the Evangelists,
as Matt. iii. 17; xvii. 6; John i. 18; iii. 18; xx. 31,
and many others where the Lord, as to His Human, is called the Son of God, and where He, from His Human, calls Jehovah His Father. He also read passages from the Prophets, where it is foretold that Jehovah Himself would come into the world; among them these two passages in Isaiah:
“It shall be said in that day, Lo, this is our God; we have waited for Him to save us (A.V., and He will save us): This is Jehovah; we have waited for Him, we will be glad and rejoice in His salvation.” xxv. 9.
“The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of JEHOVAH, make straight in the desert a highway for our God…. And the glory of JEHOVAH shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together…. Behold the Lord JEHOVIH comes in strength (A. V., will come with strong hand)…. He shall feed His flock like a shepherd.” xl. 3, 5, 10, 11.
[3] The angel continued: “Since Jehovah Himself came into the world, and assumed the Human, therefore He is called in the Prophets the Savior and the Redeemer.” Then he read to them the following passages:
“Surely God is in thee; and there is no God else. Verily thou art a God that hidest thyself, O God of Israel, the Savior.” Isa. xlv. 14, 15.
“Am not I JEHOVAH? and there is no God else besides me a just God, and a Savior: there is (A.V., none) besides me. xlv. 21.
“I, even I, am JEHOVAH, and besides me there in no Savior.” xliii. 11.
“I am JEHOVAH thy God … and thou shalt know no God but me; for there is no Savior besides me.” Hos. xiii. 4.
“That all flesh shall know that I JEHOVAH am thy Savior and thy Redeemer.” Isa. xlix. 26; lx. 16.
“As for our Redeemer, JEHOVAH ZEBAOTH is His name.” Isa. xlvii. 4.
“Their Redeemer is strong: JEHOVAH ZEBAOTH is His name.” Jer. l. 34.
“JEHOVAH, my Rock and my Redeemer.” Ps. xix. 14.
“Thus saith JEHOVAH thy Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel; I am JEHOVAH thy God.” Isa. xlviii. 17: xliii. 3:
“Thou, JEHOVAH, art our Father, our Redeemer from everlasting is thy name.” Isa. lxiii. 16.
“Thus saith JEHOVAH, thy Redeemer I am JEHOVAH that maketh all things, and alone by myself (A.V., that stretcheth forth the heavens alone: that spreadeth abroad the earth by myself). xliv. 24.
“Thus saith JEHOVAH the King of Israel, and His Redeemer JEHOVAH ZEBAOTH; I am the first and I am the last: and besides me there is no God.” Isa. xliv. 6.
“JEHOVAH ZEBAOTH is His name; and thy Redeemer the Holy One of Israel; the God of the whole earth shall He be called.” liv. 5.
“Behold the days come … that I will raise onto David a righteous Branch, who shall reign as King (A.V., and a King shall reign and prosper) and this is His name JEHOVAH our Righteousness.” Jer. xxiii. 5, 6; xxxiii. 15, 16.
In that day “JEHOVAH shall be king over all the earth; In that day shall there be one JEHOVAH, and His name one.” Zech. xiv. 9.
[4] Convinced by all these passages, those who sat on the seats unanimously declared that Jehovah Himself assumed the Human for the purpose of redeeming and saving mankind. But then a voice was heard from some Roman Catholics, who had hid themselves behind the altar, saying, “How could Jehovah God become Man? Is He not the Creator of the universe?” One of those on the second row of seats turned and said, “Who was it then?” and he who was behind the altar, now standing close to it, said, “The Son from eternity.” But he was answered: “Is not the Son from eternity, according to your confession, also Creator of the universe? And what is a Son and a God born from eternity? And how is it possible for the Divine Essence, which is one and indivisible, to be separated, and for one part of it to descend, and not the whole of it at the same time?”
[5] The second subject of inquiry concerning the Lord was, Whether, according to this reasoning, the Father and He are one, as the soul and the body are one? They said that this question followed, because the soul is from the father. Then one of those who sat on the third row of seats read from the confession of faith, called the Athanasian Creed,* the following passage:
“Although our Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is God and Man, yet there are not two, but one Christ: yea, He is absolutely one. He is one Person; for as the soul and body make one man, so God and Man is one Christ.”
He added that the Creed containing these words is accepted throughout the whole Christian world, even by the Roman Catholics. Then they said: “What need have we of further proof? God the Father and He are one, as the soul and body are one; and since this is the case, we perceive that the Human of the Lord is Divine, because it is the Human of Jehovah. We also perceive that the Lord ought to be approached as to His Divine Human, and that this is the only possible way to approach the Divine called the Father.”
This conclusion the angel confirmed by further quotations from the Word, among which were the following
“Unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given … and His name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, The Mighty God, the everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.” Isa. ix. 8:
and in the same Prophet:
“Though Abraham be ignorant of us, and Israel acknowledge us not: thou, JEHOVAH, art our Father, our Redeemer thy name is from everlasting.” lxiii. 16:
and in John:
“Jesus … said, He that believeth on me … believeth on Him that sent me. And he that seeth me seeth Him that sent me.” xii. 44, 46.
“Philip saith unto Him … show us the Father … Jesus saith unto him he that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, Show us the Father? Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? … Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father in me.” John xiv. 8-11.
Jesus said, “I and the Father are one.” John x. 30.
Further there is this passage:
“All things that the Father hath are mine” … and all mine are the Father’s. John xvi. 15: xvii. 10.
And finally,
“Jesus saith I am the way, and the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me. John xiv. 8.
[6] To this the reader added that the same things that are here said by the Lord concerning Himself and His Father may also be said by a man concerning himself and his soul. Having heard these things they all declared with one heart and voice that “the Human of the Lord Divine, and that one must come to this Human in order to come to the Father; since Jehovah God, by means of it, sent Himself into the world, and made Himself visible to the eyes of men, and thus accessible. In like manner He made Himself visible, and thus accessible in a human form, to the ancients: but then it was by means of an angel: and as this form was representative of the Lord who was to come, all things of the Church with the ancients were representative.
[7] After this there followed a deliberation concerning the Holy Spirit; but first there stated the idea held by most persons concerning God the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, namely that God the Father sat on high, and the Son at His right hand; and that they sent forth from themselves the Holy Spirit to enlighten, instruct, justify and sanctify men. But a voice was then heard from heaven saying, “We do not uphold that idea. Who does not know that Jehovah God is omnipresent? He who knows and acknowledges this will also acknowledge that it is He who enlightens, instructs, justifies and sanctifies, and not a mediating God distinct from Him, much less one distinct from these two, as one person is distinct from another. Therefore let the former idea, which is foolish, be removed, and let the latter, which is correct, be received, and then you will have a clear perception of this subject.”
[8] A voice was then heard from the Roman Catholics, who stood near the altar of the temple, saying, “What then is the Holy Spirit, mentioned in the Word in the writings of the Evangelists and Paul, by which so many learned men among the clergy, especially our clergy, declare that they are guided? What person in the Christian world to-day denies the Holy Spirit and His operations?” At this one of those who were seated on the second row turned round and said: “You say that the Holy Spirit is a Person by Himself and a God by Himself. But what is a person going out and proceeding from a person but an outgoing and proceeding operation? One person cannot go out and proceed from another, but operation can. Or what is a God going out and proceeding from a God but the outgoing and proceeding Divine? One God cannot go out and proceed from another, but the Divine can from one God.” [9] On hearing this, those occupying the seats unanimously agreed to this conclusion: “The Holy Spirit is not a Person by Himself, and thus not a God by Himself; but it is the Holy Divine going out and proceeding from the one only omnipresent God, who is the Lord.” To this the angels, standing at the golden table upon which was the Word, said: “It is well determined. We nowhere read in the Old Testament that the prophets spoke the Word from the Holy Spirit, but from Jehovah: and whenever the Holy Spirit is mentioned in the New Testament it signifies the proceeding Divine, which enlightens, instructs, quickens, reforms and regenerates.”
[10] After this there followed another subject of inquiry concerning the Holy Spirit, namely, From whom proceeds the Divine meant by the Holy Spirit; from the Father, or from the Lord? While they were considering this, there shone a light from heaven, and by it they perceived that the Holy Divine, which is meant by the Holy Spirit, does not proceed out of the Father through the Lord, but out of the Lord from the Father, just as in the case of a man; his activity does not proceed from his soul through the body, but out of the body from the soul. This the angel who stood at the table confirmed by the following passages from the Word:
“He whom the Father (A. V., God) hath sent speaketh the words of God: for God giveth not the Spirit by measure unto Him. The Father loveth the Son, and hath given all things into His hand.” John iii. 34, 35.
“There shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse … and the Spirit of JEHOVAH shall rest upon Him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might.” Isa. xi. 1, 2.
The Spirit of JEHOVAH was put upon Him, and was in Him, xlii. 1; lix. 19, 20; lxi 1. Luke iv. 18.
“When the Holy Spirit (A. V., the Comforter) is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father.” John xv. 26;
“He shall glorify me; for He shall receive of mine, and shall show it unto you. All things that the Father hath are mine: therefore said I, that He shall take of mine, and shall show it unto you.” xvi. 14, 15;
“If I depart, I will send the Comforter to you.” xvi. 7;
“The Comforter is the Holy Spirit.” xiv. 26;
“The Holy Spirit was not yet, because that Jesus was not yet glorified.” vii. 39;
After His glorification, however.
Jesus breathed on the disciples and said unto them, “Receive ye the Holy Spirit.” xx. 22.
And in the Revelation:
“Who shall not glorify thy name, O Lord? for thou only art holy.” xv. 4.
[11] Since the Divine operation of the Lord, from His Divine omnipresence, is meant by the Holy Spirit, therefore when the Lord spoke to His disciples concerning the Holy Spirit whom He would send from the Father, He also said:
“I will not leave you comfortless…. I go away and come to you…. At that day ye shall know that I am in my Father, and ye in me, and I in you.” John xiv. 18, 20, 28;
and just before He departed out of the world, He said:
“Lo, I am with you always, even unto the consummation of the age. (A. V., the end of the world).” Matt. xxviii. 20.
Having read these passages to them, the angel said: “From these and many other passages from the Word, it is evident that the Divine, which is called the Holy Spirit, proceeds out of the Lord from the Father.” Whereupon those on the seats declared: “This is Divine Truth.”
[12] Finally this resolution was drawn up: “From the deliberations in this council, we clearly see, and therefore acknowledge as holy truth, that in the Lord God the Savior Jesus Christ there is the Divine Trinity consisting of the originating Divine, which is called the Father, the Divine Human, which is called the Son, and the proceeding Divine, which is called the Holy Spirit; and we declare that in Christ ‘dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily.’ Col. ii. 9. Thus there is one God in the Church.”
After reaching these conclusions the grand council rose; and the angel, who was the keeper of the treasury, came and brought each of those who sat upon the seats splendid robes, interwoven here and there with threads of gold, saying, “Receive ye the wedding garments.” They were then conducted in glory to the new Christian heaven, with which the Church of the Lord on earth, which is the New Jerusalem, will be united.
* Athanasian Symbol or Creed. Although bearing the name of Athanasius, it was probably composed by Hilary, in the century after the formulation of the Nicene Creed, A.D. 325. The name was given to it about the year A.D. 670 as an excellent system of the doctrines of Athansius concerning the Trinity and the Incarnation, principally in opposition to the Arians. It is received by the Romish Church and also by the Reformed.
THE SACRED SCRIPTURE OR THE WORD OF THE LORD
I. THE SACRED SCRIPTURE, OR THE WORD, IS THE DIVINE TRUTH ITSELF.
It is generally agreed that the Word is from God, is divinely inspired, and therefore holy; but hitherto it has remained unknown wherein its divinity resides; for the Word in the Letter appears like common writing in a strange style, lacking the sublimity and brilliance which are apparently features of the literature of the world. For this reason the man who worships nature instead of God, and who consequently thinks from himself and his own proprium* and not from heaven from the Lord, may easily fall into error respecting the Word and into contempt for it, and say within himself as he reads it “What does this mean? What does that mean? Is this Divine? Can God, to whom belongs infinite wisdom, speak in this way? Where is its sanctity, or whence is it derived but from man’s religious credulity?”
* The Latin word proprium, used as a substantive, means “what is one’s own.” Swedenborg uses it in a special sense, involving “what is of the self.”
Jesus said: “The words that I speak unto you, they are spirit and they are life.” John vi. 63.
Jesus said to the woman at Jacob’s well: “If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldst have asked of Him, and He would have given thee living water…. Whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.” John iv. 8, 10, 14.
By Jacob’s well is signified the Word,
as also in Deut. xxxiii. 28;
therefore the Lord, because He is the Word, sat there, and spoke with the woman; and by living water is signified the truth of the Word.
Jesus said: “If any man thirst, let him come unto Me, and drink. He that believeth on Me, as the Scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water.” John vii. 37, 38.
Peter said unto Jesus: “Thou hast the words of eternal life.” John vi. 68.
Jesus said: “Heaven and earth shall pass away; but my words shall not pass away.” Mark xiii. 31.
The words of the Lord are truth and life, because He is the truth and the life, as He teaches in John:
“I am the way, and the truth, and the life.” xiv. 6:
and in the same Book:
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God … In Him was life; and the life was the light of men.” i. 1, 4.
By the Word is understood the Lord as to Divine Truth, in which alone there is life and light. For this reason the Word, which is from the Lord, and which is the Lord, is called
“a fountain of living waters,” Jer. ii. 13, xvii. 13, xxxi. 9;
“a well (A.V., wells) of salvation.” Isa. xii. 3:
“a fountain,” Zech. xiii. 1;
“a river of water of life,” Rev. xxii. 1.
It is said also:
“The Lamb, which is in the midst of the throne, shall feed them, (A.V., and shall lead them), unto living fountains of waters.” vii. 17.
Further quotations might be given where the Word is also called “the sanctuary and the tabernacle,” in which the Lord dwells with man.
Who does not acknowledge, and agree when it is asserted, that the Word, because it is Divine, is in its inmost content spiritual? But who has hitherto known what the spiritual is, and where in the Word it lies concealed? What the spiritual is will be shown in a narrative at the conclusion of this chapter, and where it lies concealed in the Word in what now follows. The Word is spiritual in its inmost content because it descended from Jehovah the Lord, and passed through the angelic heavens; and the Divine Itself, which in itself is ineffable and incomprehensible, was adapted in its descent to the perception of angels, and lastly to that of men. Hence the Word has a spiritual sense which is within the natural sense just as the soul is in man, or as the thought of the understanding is in speech, or as the affection of the will is in act. And if we may compare it with visible things in the world of nature, the spiritual sense is within the natural sense as the whole of the brain is within its enveloping membranes or coverings, or as the young shoots of a tree are within their coverings of bark, or as the embryo of the chicken is within the shell of the egg: and so on. As the fact that there is such a spiritual sense has not hitherto been made known by any one through Divine inspiration, this truth, in itself surpassing all truths that have so far been revealed, must now be made clear to the understanding. This will be done as it is explained in the following articles:
(1) What the spiritual sense is.
(2) This sense is in the whole of the Word, and in every part of it.
(3) Because of this sense the Word is Divinely inspired, and holy in every word.
(4) This sense has hitherto been unknown.
(5) Hereafter it will be made known only to those who are in genuine truths from the Lord.
(6) Some wonderful things concerning the Word from its spiritual sense.
Each of these articles will now be treated separately.
The spiritual sense of the Word is not that which shines from the sense of the Letter when any one searches the Word and explains it to prove some dogma of the Church. This may be called the literal and ecclesiastical sense of the Word; but the spiritual sense is not apparent in the sense of the Letter; it is interiorly within it, as the soul is in the body, or as the thought of the understanding is in the eye, or as the affection of love is in the countenance. It is this sense especially that makes the Word spiritual, not only for men, but also for angels; and therefore the Word by means of this sense communicates with the heavens. Since the interior content of the Word is spiritual, it is written by pure correspondences; and what is thus written exhibits in its ultimate sense the style of the Prophets, the Evangelists and the Revelation. This style, ordinary as it may appear, yet has stored up within it all Divine and angelic wisdom. What is meant by correspondence may be seen in the work entitled, “Heaven and Hell,” published in London in 1758, where it treats of the correspondence of all things in heaven with all things in man, (n. 87-202); and the correspondence of all things in heaven with all things on earth, (n. 103-115). This will be more fully explained by examples from the Word; and these will be given presently.
This cannot be better seen than from examples, such as the following: John says in the Revelation:
“I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse; and He that sat upon him was called Faithful and True; and in righteousness He doth judge and make war. His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on His head were many crowns; and He had a name written that no man knew but He Himself: And He was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood; and His name is called The Word of God. And the armies which were in heaven followed Him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean…. And He hath on His vesture and on His thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS. And I saw an angel standing in the sun; and he cried with a loud voice, saying, Come and gather yourselves together unto the great supper (A.V., the supper of the great God); That ye may eat the flesh of kings, and the flesh of captains, and the flesh of mighty men, and the flesh of horses, and of them that sit on them, and the flesh of all, free and bond, both small and great.” xix. 11-18.
What these words signify no one can see but from the spiritual sense of the Word; and no one can see the spiritual sense of the Word but from a knowledge of correspondences, for all the words are correspondences and not one is without meaning. The science of correspondences teaches the signification of a white horse, of Him that sat upon it, of His eyes which were like a flame of fire, of the crowns which were on His head, of the vesture dipped in blood, of the white linen with which they who were of His army in heaven were clothed, of the angel standing in the sun, of the great supper to which they should come and gather themselves, and also of the flesh of kings, captains and many others which they were to eat.
[2] The particular signification of each of those things in the spiritual sense may be seen explained in “The Apocalypse Revealed,” n. 820-838; and also in the small work on “The White Horse”; it is therefore unnecessary to explain them here at great length. In those books it is shown that in the passage just quoted the Lord is described as to the Word. By His eyes, which were as a flame of fire, is meant the Divine Wisdom of His Divine Love; by the crowns, which were on His head, and by the name which no one knew but Himself, are meant the Divine truths of the Word from Him, and that no one knows what the Word is in its spiritual sense, except the Lord and those to whom He reveals it; also, by His vesture dipped in blood is meant the natural sense of the Word, which is the sense of its Letter, to which violence had been done. It is very evident that it is the Word which is thus described, for it is said, “His name is called The Word of God.” It is also clear that it is the Lord who is meant, for it is said that the name of Him who sat upon the white horse was “King of kings and Lord of lords,” the same term being used in Rev. xvii. 14, where it is said: “And the Lamb shall overcome them: for He is Lord of lords, and King of kings.” That the spiritual sense of the Word would be revealed at the end of the Church is signified not only by what is said of the white horse, and of Him that sat upon it, but also by the great supper to which all were invited to come by the angel standing in the sun, to eat the flesh of kings and captains and the rest, by which is meant the appropriation of good of all kinds from the Lord. All these expressions would be without meaning, and without life and spirit, unless there was within them a spiritual sense, as the soul is within the body.
“Her light was like unto a stone most precious, even like a jasper stone, clear as crystal; And had a wall great and high, and had twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and names written thereon which are the names of the twelve tribes of the Children of Israel. The wall was a hundred and forty-four cubits, according to the measure of a man, that is, of the angel. And the building of the wall of it was of jasper; and its foundations of all manner of precious stones, of jasper, sapphire, chalcedony, emerald, sardonyx, sardius, chrysolite, beryl, topaz, chrysopraus, jacinth and amethyst. The gates were twelve pearls. The city itself was pure gold, like clear glass; and it was four-square, the length, the breadth and the height being equal, twelve thousand furlongs;” with many other particulars.
That all these things are to be understood spiritually may be evident from the fact that by the New Jerusalem is meant a New Church to be established by the Lord, as is shown in “The Apocalypse Revealed,” n. 880. Since by Jerusalem is there signified the Church, it follows that everything said of it as a city, of its gates, its wall, the foundations of the wall, and their dimensions, contains a spiritual sense, for whatever relates to the Church is spiritual. What those things signify is shown in “The Apocalypse Revealed,” n. 896-925; it is therefore needless to explain them at great length. It is sufficient to know from that work that there is a spiritual sense in every particular of that description, like the soul in the body. Apart from that sense nothing that is there written could be understood as relating to the Church; as that the city was of pure gold, its gates of pearl, its wall of jasper, the foundations of the wall of precious stones; that the wall was a hundred and forty-four cubits, which is the measure of a man, that is, of the angel, and that the city was in length, breadth and height twelve thousand furlongs: with many other particulars. Any one, however, who has a knowledge of the spiritual sense from the science of correspondences understands those things, as for instance that the wall and its foundations signify the doctrinal teachings of the Church, derived from the sense of the Letter of the Word, and that the numbers twelve, one hundred and forty-four, and twelve thousand signify everything belonging to that Church, namely, the sum total of its truths and goods.
“Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken: and then shall appear the sign of the Son of Man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of Man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And He shall send His angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.” Matt. xxiv. 29, 30, 31.
These words, in their spiritual sense, do not mean that the sun and moon shall be darkened, that the stars shall fall from heaven, that the sign of the Lord shall appear in heaven, and that He shall be seen in the clouds, as well as angels with trumpets; but by all the words there are meant spiritual things relating to the Church, of whose final state they are spoken. In the spiritual sense by the sun which shall be darkened is meant love to the Lord; by the moon which shall not give her light is meant faith in Him; and by the stars which shall fall from heaven are meant knowledges of truth and good. By the sign of the Son of Man in heaven is meant the appearing of Divine Truth in the Word from Him; and by the tribes of the earth which shall mourn is meant the failure of all the truth of faith, and of all the good of love. By the Coming of the Son of Man in the clouds of heaven, with power and glory, is meant the revelation of the Lord’s presence in the Word; by the clouds of heaven is meant the sense of the Letter of the Word; and by glory is meant the spiritual sense of the Word. By the angels with a great sound of a trumpet is meant heaven, whence comes Divine Truth; and by the gathering together of the elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other, is meant a new heaven and a New Church, to be formed of those who have faith in the Lord, and who live according to His commandments. That the darkening of the sun and moon, and the falling of the stars to the earth, are not meant is clearly manifest from the Prophets, where similar statements are made concerning the state of the Church at the time when the Lord should come into the world; as in Isaiah:
“Behold, the day of the Lord cometh, cruel both with wrath and fierce anger…. The stars of heaven and the constellations thereof shall not give their light: the sun shall be darkened in his going forth, and the moon shall not cause her light to shine. And I will punish the world for their evil.” [xiii. 9, 10, 11] and see xxiv. 21, 23;
in Joel:
“The day of JEHOVAH cometh a day of darkness and of gloominess…. The sun and moon shall be darkened, and the stars shall withdraw their shining.” ii. 1, 2 … iii. 15;
and in Ezekiel:
“I will cover the heaven, and make the stars thereof dark; I will cover the sun with a cloud, and the moon shall not give her light. All the bright lights of heaven will I make dark over thee, and set darkness upon thy land.” xxxii. 7, 8.
By the day of Jehovah is meant the Advent of the Lord, which took place at a time when there was no longer any good of love and truth of faith left in the Church, nor any knowledge of the Lord; therefore it is called a day of darkness and gloominess.
“The kingdom of the heavens is like (A.V., Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened) unto ten virgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom. And five of them were wise, and five were foolish. They that were foolish took their lamps, and took no oil with them: but the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps. While the bridegroom tarried, they all slumbered and slept. And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the bridegroom cometh go ye out to meet him. Then all those virgins arose, and trimmed their lamps. And the foolish said unto the wise, Give us of your oil; for our lamps are gone out. But the wise answered, saying, (A.V., Not so;) lest there be not enough for us and you: but go ye rather to them that sell, and buy for yourselves. And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came: and they that were ready went in with him to the marriage; and the door was shut. Afterwards came also the other virgins, saying, Lord, Lord, open to us. But he answered and said; Verily I say unto you, I know you not.” Matt. xxv. 1-12.
That in every part of this parable there is a spiritual sense, and consequently a Divine holiness, none can see but those who know that there is a spiritual sense, and are acquainted with the nature of it. In the spiritual sense, by the kingdom of the heavens is meant heaven and the Church, by the bridegroom is meant the Lord, and by the wedding is meant the marriage of the Lord with heaven and the Church by means of the good of love and the truth of faith. By the virgins are meant those who belong to the Church; by ten are meant all, and by five a certain part; by lamps are meant the things of faith, and by oil the things of the good of love. By sleeping and waking are meant the natural life of man in the world, and his spiritual life after death. By buying is meant to procure for themselves; and by going to those that sell, and buying oil, is meant to procure for themselves the good of love from others, after death. Because this can no longer be acquired after death, therefore, although they came to the marriage door with their lamps and the oil they had purchased, still the bridegroom said to them, “I know you not.” This is because man, after his life in the world is over, remains such as he had been in the world. From these things it is evident that the Lord spoke by pure correspondences, and this because He spoke from the Divine that was in Him and was His own. Because virgins signify those who belong to the Church, therefore in the Prophetical Word is there such frequent mention of virgin, and daughter of Zion, of Jerusalem, of Judah, and of Israel; and because oil signifies the good of love, therefore all the holy things of the Church were anointed with oil. The case is the same with the other parables, and with all the words spoken by the Lord. For this reason the Lord declares that His words are spirit and life, John vi. 63.
It is asserted in the Church that the Word is holy, because Jehovah the Lord spoke it; but since its holiness is not apparent in the sense of the Letter alone, any one who begins to doubt its holiness on that account, confirms his doubts by many things he afterwards reads in the Word, for he says to himself, “Is this holy? Is this Divine?” Accordingly, lest such thoughts should enter the minds of many and ultimately prevail, and the Word consequently be rejected as a book of no value, and the Lord’s conjunction with man be thereby cut off, it has pleased the Lord at this time to reveal its spiritual sense, in order that it may be known where within it its Divine holiness lies concealed. Some examples may be given to illustrate this. In the Word mention is sometimes made of Egypt, Assyria, Edom, Moab, the children of Ammon, the Philistines, Tyre, Sidon, and Gog. Any one who does not know that by these names are signified things of heaven and the Church may erroneously conclude that the Word treats much of peoples and nations, and but little of heaven and the Church, thus much of worldly and little of heavenly things. When he knows, however, what is signified by these peoples or by their names, he may be led from error to the truth.
[2] The case is the same when any one sees in the Word frequent mention of gardens, woods and the trees that grow in them, as the olive, the vine, the cedar, the poplar, and the oak; and of the lamb, the sheep, the goat, the calf and the ox; and also of mountains, hills, valleys, and the fountains, rivers, and waters found there; and of many similar things. He who knows nothing of the spiritual sense of the Word cannot but suppose that it is only those objects which are meant. He does not know that by a garden, grove and wood are meant wisdom, intelligence, and knowledge; by the olive, the vine, the cedar, the poplar and the oak are meant the good and truth of the Church, celestial, spiritual, rational, natural and sensual; by the lamb, the sheep, the goat, the calf and the ox are meant innocence, charity, and natural affection; and by mountains, hills and valleys are meant the higher, the lower and the lowest things of the Church. [3] Again, he does not know that by Egypt is signified the scientific principle, by Assyria the rational, by Edom the natural, by Moab the adulteration of good, by the children of Ammon the adulteration of truth, by the Philistines faith without charity, by Tyre and Sidon the knowledge of good and truth, and by Gog external worship without the internal. In general, by Jacob in the Word is meant the natural Church, by Israel the spiritual Church and by Judah the celestial Church.
When a man knows these things he may realize that the Word treats solely of heavenly things, and that the things of this world are merely the subjects in which those heavenly things are. [4] Another example from the Word will illustrate this truth. We read in Isaiah:
“In that day shall there be a highway out of Egypt to Assyria, and the Assyrian shall come into Egypt, and the Egyptian into Assyria; and the Egyptians shall serve with the Assyrians. In that day shall Israel be the third with Egypt and with Assyria, even a blessing in the midst of the land: Whom JEHOVAH ZEBAOTH shall bless, saying, Blessed be Egypt my people, and Assyria the work of my hands, and Israel mine inheritance.” xix. 23-25.
These words, in the spiritual sense mean that at the time of the Lord’s Coming the scientific, the rational, and the spiritual shall become one, and the scientific shall serve the rational, and both shall serve the spiritual; for, as has been said, by Egypt is meant the scientific principle, by Assyria the rational, and by Israel the spiritual. By the day, twice mentioned, is meant the First and the Second Coming of the Lord.
That all things in nature, both general and particular, and also all things in the human body, correspond to spiritual things is shown in the work “Heaven and Hell,” n. 87-105. What correspondence is, however, has hitherto been unknown; yet in most ancient times it was very well known, for to those who lived then the science of correspondences was the science of sciences, and was so universal that all their treatises and books were written by correspondences. The Book of Job, a book of the Ancient Church, is full of correspondences. The hieroglyphics of the Egyptians and the myths of antiquity were of a like nature. All the ancient Churches were representative of spiritual things; the ceremonies and also the statutes on which their worship was founded, consisted of pure correspondences. Of a like nature were all the things of the Church established among the Children of Israel; their burnt-offerings, their sacrifices, their meat-offerings and their drink-offerings, with all things connected with them, were correspondences. So also was the tabernacle, with everything in it; and likewise their feasts, as the feasts of unleavened bread, the feast of tabernacles, and the feast of the first fruits; and also the priesthood of Aaron and the Levites, and their holy garments. What the spiritual things were to which all these corresponded is shown in the “Arcana Caelestia,” published in London. Moreover, all the statutes and judgments relating to their worship and life were also correspondences. Now because Divine things manifest themselves in the world in correspondences, therefore the Word was written by pure correspondences. Therefore also the Lord, since He spoke from the Divine, spoke by correspondences. For whatever proceeds from the Divine manifests itself in nature in such things as correspond to what is Divine; and these things then have stored up within them Divine things called celestial and spiritual.
All these things which the diviners of the Philistines decided upon were correspondences, as is evident from their signification, which is as follows. The Philistines themselves signified those who are in faith separated from charity; and Dagon represented that form of religion. The emerods, with which they were smitten, signified natural loves, and these, if separated from spiritual love, are unclean; and mice signified the devastation of the Church by falsifications of truth. The new cart signified the natural doctrine of the Church; for a cart in the Word signifies doctrine derived from spiritual truths. The cows signified good natural affections; the golden emerods signified natural loves purified and rendered good; and the golden mice signified the vastation of the Church brought to an end by means of good, for gold in the Word signifies good. The lowing of the cows in the way signified the difficulty of converting the lusts of evil in the natural man into good affections. The offering up of the cows and the cart as a burnt-offering signified that in this way the God of Israel was propitiated. All these things which the Philistines did on the advice of their diviners were correspondences, and from this it is clear that a knowledge of correspondences was long preserved among the Gentiles.
The knowledge of correspondences remained among many eastern nations even until the Coming of the Lord. This may be seen from the story of the wise men from the East, who came to the Lord at His nativity.
A star went before them, and they brought with them gifts; gold, frankincense and myrrh. Matt. ii. 1, 2, 9, 10, 11.
For the star which went before them signified knowledge from heaven; gold, celestial good; frankincense, spiritual good; and myrrh, natural good; and from these three all worship proceeds. Still there was no knowledge whatever of correspondences among the Israelitish and Jewish nation, although all the particulars of their worship, all the statutes and judgments given to them by Moses, and everything contained in the Word, were pure correspondences. The reason of this was that they were at heart idolaters, and consequently were not even willing to know that any part of their worship had a celestial and spiritual meaning. They believed that all those things were holy in themselves; if therefore the celestial and spiritual things had been revealed to them, they would not only have rejected, but would even have profaned them. For this reason heaven was so closed to them that they hardly knew that there was a life eternal. That such was the case is very evident from the fact that they did not acknowledge the Lord, although the whole Sacred Scripture prophesied concerning Him, and foretold His Coming. They rejected Him for the sole reason that He taught them about a heavenly and not about an earthly kingdom; for they desired a Messiah who should exalt them above all the nations in the world, and not one who should make their eternal salvation His chief regard.
This is because no one can see the spiritual sense except from the Lord alone, and unless he is in Divine truths from the Lord. For the spiritual sense of the Word treats only of the Lord and of His kingdom; and in the understanding of that sense are His angels in heaven, for that sense is His Divine Truth there. Man can violate Divine Truth, if he has a knowledge of correspondences and by it proceeds to explore the spiritual sense of the Word from his own intelligence; since by a few correspondences known to him he may pervert the spiritual sense, and even force it to confirm what is false. This would be to offer violence to Divine Truth, and consequently to heaven also, where it resides. Therefore, if any one desires to discover that sense from himself, and not from the Lord, heaven is closed to him; and then he either sees no truth, or falls into spiritual insanity.
This is also because the Lord teaches every one by means of the Word. Moreover, He teaches from the knowledge which a man already possesses, and does not directly impart new knowledge. Therefore, if a man is not principled in Divine truths, or if he has only acquired a few truths as well as falsities, he may by their means falsify the truths, as is done by every heretic with regard to the sense of the Letter of the Word. Lest therefore any one should enter into the spiritual sense, and pervert genuine truth which belongs to that sense, guards are placed over it, called cherubim in the Word.
In the natural world wonderful appearances do not proceed from the Word because the spiritual sense is not manifest there; nor is it interiorly received by man, as it is in itself. In the spiritual world, however, wonderful things do appear from the Word, for there all men are spiritual, and spiritual things affect the spiritual man just as natural things affect the natural man. I will now mention a few of the many wonderful things that arise in the spiritual world from the Word. The Word itself placed in the shrines of the temples there, shines before the eyes of the angels like a great star, and sometimes like a sun, and from the bright radiance which surrounds it there also appear as it were beautiful rainbows. This happens whenever a shrine is opened. [2] I was also able to observe, that all the individual truths of the Word cast a radiance, from this fact that when any verse from the Word is written upon a piece of paper, and the paper is thrown into the air, the paper shines with a radiance in the form in which it has been cut; so that spirits by means of the Word can produce various shining forms, including those of birds and fish. But what is still more wonderful, if any person rubs his face, his hands, or the clothes he is wearing, against the open Word, so as to touch the writing with them, his face, hands and clothes shine as though he were standing in a star, encompassed with its light. This I have often seen to my great wonder; and it was thus evident to me why the face of Moses shone, when he brought down the Tables of the Covenant from Mount Sinai.
[3] Besides those wonderful things that appear in the spiritual world arising from the Word, there are many others of a different nature. For instance, if any one who is principled in falsities looks upon the Word as it lies in its sacred place, darkness rises up before his eyes, and the Word appears to him black, and at times as if covered with soot; while if he touches the Word, a loud explosion follows, and he is thrown into a corner of the room, where he lies for a time as if dead. Again, if a passage from the Word is written upon a piece of paper by a person who is in falsities, and the paper is thrown up towards heaven, then a similar explosion follows in the air between his eye and heaven; the paper is torn into shreds and disappears. The same thing happens if the paper is thrown towards an angel* standing near by, as I have often witnessed. [4] In this way it has become clear to me that those who are in falsities of doctrine have no communication with heaven by means of the Word, but that their reading of it is dissipated on the way, and vanishes like gunpowder enclosed in paper, when ignited and thrown into the air. The reverse happens with those who are in truths of doctrine from the Lord through the Word. Their reading of the Word penetrates even into heaven and effects conjunction with the angels there. The angels themselves, when they descend from heaven to discharge any duty below, appear surrounded with little stars, particularly about the head, for this is a sign that they are principled in Divine truths from the Word.
[5] Moreover, in the spiritual world there are things similar to those on earth; but all things there have a spiritual origin. Thus there are gold and silver, and precious stones of all kinds; and the spiritual origin of these is the sense of the Letter of the Word. This is why, in the Revelation, the foundations of the wall of the New Jerusalem are described as twelve precious stones, for the foundations of its wall signify the doctrines of the New Church derived from the sense of the Letter of the Word. For the same reason also, in Aaron’s ephod there were twelve precious stones, called Urim and Thummim, and by means of these stones responses were given from heaven. Besides these, there are many more wonderful things arising from the Word, which have relation to the power of its indwelling truth. This power is so great that a description of it would surpass all belief. It is such that in the spiritual world it overturns mountains and hills, removes them to a distance and casts them into the sea. Many are the other wonders it performs, for in short, the power of the Lord by virtue of the Word is infinite.
* si charta illa projicitur ad augulum, reading angelum for angulum.
In everything Divine there is a first, a middle, and a last; the first passes through the middle to the last, and so exists and subsists; consequently the last is the basis. Again, the first is in the middle, and by means of the middle in the last, and thus the last is the containant; and because the last is the containant and the basis, it is also the support. In the phraseology of the learned these three may be called end, cause and effect; also, being, becoming and existing: the end is being, the cause is becoming, and the effect is existing. Consequently, in every thing that is complete there is a trine, called the first, the middle, and the last; also the end, the cause, and the effect. When one understands these things then also does one understand that every Divine work is complete and perfect in its last; and also that the whole is in the last, because the prior things are simultaneously therein.
Isaiah “walked naked and barefoot three years.” Isa. xx. 3.
Jehovah called Samuel three times, and Samuel ran three times to Eli, and Eli understood the third time. 1 Sam. iii. 1-8.
Jonathan told David to hide himself in the field three days. Jonathan then shot three arrows at the side of the stone, and finally David bowed himself three times before Jonathan. 1 Sam. xx. 12-42.
Elijah stretched himself three times on the widow’s son. 1 Kings xvii. 21.
Elijah commanded to pour water on the burnt offering three times. 1 Kings xviii. 34.
Jesus said “The kingdom of heaven is like unto leaven, which a woman took and hid in three measures of meal, till the whole was leavened.” Matt. xiii. 33.
Jesus said to Peter that he would deny Him thrice. Matt. xxvi. 34.
Jesus said three times to Peter, “Lovest thou Me?” John xxi. 15, 16, 17.
Jonah was in the whale’s belly three days and three nights. Jonah i. 17.
Jesus said that He would destroy the Temple, and that He Himself would rebuild it in three days.* Matt. xxvi. 61.
Jesus prayed three times in Gethsemane. Matt. xxvi. 39-44.
Jesus rose again on the third day. Matt. xxviii. 1.
There are many other passages where the number three is mentioned; and it is used where a work finished and perfect is treated of because this is the meaning of that number.
* Quod Jesus dixerit, quod Templum dissolveret, et Ipse illud per Tres Dies reaedificaret. Matt. xxvi. 31 (A.V., 61). Note that in this reference this is the testimony of the false witnesses.
that Jehovah will create upon all the glory a covering. iv. 5.
The Word, in the sense of the Letter, is in its fulness, its sanctity, and its power, because the two prior or interior senses, called the spiritual and the celestial, are simultaneously in the natural sense, which is the sense of the Letter, as was said above, n. 210 and 212; but how they are present simultaneously will now be shown at greater length. In heaven and in the world there are two kinds of order, a successive order and a simultaneous order; in successive order one thing succeeds and follows after another, from the highest to the lowest; but in simultaneous order one thing exists side by side with another, from what is inmost to what is outmost. Successive order is like a column with steps from highest to lowest; while simultaneous order is like a work coherent in concentric circles from the centre even to the last surface. We will now state how successive order becomes in the ultimate or last form simultaneous order. The highest things of successive order become the inmost of simultaneous order, and the lowest things of successive order become the outmost of simultaneous order, just as if a column of steps were to sink down and form a coherent body in a plane. Thus the simultaneous is formed from the successive; and this is so in all things both in the natural and in the spiritual world, in general and in particular. For everywhere there is a first, a middle and a last, the first passing through the middle and proceeding to the last. It should, however, be clearly understood that there are degrees of purity, according to which each order is constituted.
Apply this now to the Word. The celestial, the spiritual and the natural proceed from the Lord in successive order, and in the ultimate or last form they are in simultaneous order; thus, then, the celestial and the spiritual senses of the Word are simultaneously in its natural sense. When this is understood it may be seen how the natural sense of the Word is the containant, the basis, and the support of its spiritual and celestial senses; and also how Divine Good and Divine Truth are, in the sense of the Letter of the Word, in their fulness, their sanctity, and their power. From this it may be evident that the Word is the Word itself in its sense of the Letter, for within this there reside spirit and life. This is meant by what the Lord says:
“The words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.” John vi. 63;
for the Lord spoke His words in the natural sense. The celestial and spiritual senses are not the Word, without the natural sense; for so they are like spirit and life without a body; or, as has been said above in n. 213, like a palace which has no foundation.
“Woe unto you Scribes and Pharisees … for ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess. Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse first the inside of the cup and the platter (A.V., that which is within the cup and the platter) that the outside of them may be clean also.” Matt. xxiii. 25, 26.
In this passage the Lord spoke by similitudes and comparisons, which at the same time are correspondences. He used the words “cup and platter”; and a cup not only means but also signifies the truth of the Word; for by the cup is meant wine, and wine signifies truth; by the platter however is meant food, and food signifies good. Therefore to cleanse the inside of the cup and the platter signifies to purify the interiors of the mind, which relate to the will and thought, by means of the Word. “That the outside may be clean also” signifies that thus the exteriors may be purified; and the exteriors are deeds and words, for these derive their essence from the interiors.
[3] Again, Jesus said:
“There was a certain rich man, which was clothed in purple and fine linen, and fared sumptuously every day: And there was a certain beggar, named Lazarus, which was laid at his gate, full of sores.” Luke xvi. 19, 20.
In this passage also the Lord spoke by similitudes and comparisons, which were correspondences and contained spiritual things. By the rich man is meant the Jewish nation, called rich because they possessed the Word, which contains spiritual riches. By the purple and fine linen with which the rich man was clothed are signified the good and truth of the Word, by the purple its good, and by the fine linen its truth. By faring sumptuously every day is signified the delight of the Jewish nation in having the Word, and in hearing many passages from it read in their temples and synagogues. By the beggar Lazarus are meant the Gentiles, because they did not possess the Word. By Lazarus lying at the gate of the rich man is meant that the Gentiles were despised and rejected by the Jews; and his being full of sores signifies that the Gentiles from their ignorance of truth were in many falsities. [4] The Gentiles are meant by Lazarus, because the Lord loved the Gentiles as He loved Lazarus, whom He raised from the dead, John xi. 3, 5, 36; who is called His friend, John xi. 11 and who sat with Him at table, John xii. 2. From these two passages it is evident that the truths and goods of the sense of the letter of the Word are like vessels, and like the clothing of unveiled good and truth, which lie concealed in the spiritual and celestial senses of the Word.
[5] Since this is the nature of the Word in the sense of the Letter, it follows that those who are principled in Divine truths, and who believe that the Word is interiorly holy and Divine, and especially those who believe that the Word is of this nature by virtue of its spiritual and celestial senses, see Divine truths in natural light, while they read the Word in a state of enlightenment from the Lord. For the light of heaven, in which is the spiritual sense of the Word, flows into the natural light in which is the sense of the Letter of the Word, and enlightens man’s intellectual faculty, called the rational, enabling him to see and acknowledge Divine truths, both when they are manifest and when they lie concealed. These truths, together with the light of heaven, flow into the minds of some men, even when they are unconscious of the fact.
(1) The precious stones which formed the foundations of the New Jerusalem.
(2) The Urim and Thummim on Aaron’s ephod.
(3) Also the precious stones in the Garden of Eden, where the King of Tyre is said to have been.
(4) Also the curtains, veils and pillars of the Tabernacle.
(5) Likewise the external parts of the Temple at Jerusalem.
(6) The Word in its glory was represented in the Lord, when He was transfigured.
(7) The power of the Word in ultimates was represented by the Nazirites.*
(8) Concerning the inexpressible power of the Word.
These points shall now be illustrated separately.
* Nazirite, one consecrated to the service of God. A.V., Nazarite.
It was stated above in n. 209 that there are precious stones in the spiritual world, just as in the natural world, and that they derive their spiritual origin from the truths in the sense of the Letter of the Word. This appears incredible, and yet it is true. Therefore, wherever precious stones are mentioned in the Word, truths are understood by them in the spiritual sense. Hence it follows that by the precious stones which are said to have formed the foundations of the walls around the city, New Jerusalem, are signified the truths of the doctrine of the New Church, because by the New Jerusalem is meant the New Church as to doctrine from the Word. Therefore by its wall, and by the foundations of the wall, nothing else can be meant but the external of the Word, that is, the sense of its Letter; for it is this sense from which there is doctrine, and by means of doctrine, the Church and this sense is like a wall with foundations, that surrounds and secures the city. The following things are recorded in the Revelation concerning the New Jerusalem and its foundations:
“The angel measured the wall of the city Jerusalem, an hundred and forty and four cubits, according to the measure of a man, that is, of the angel. And the wall had twelve foundations, garnished with all manner of precious stones. The first foundation was jasper; the second, sapphire; the third, a chalcedony; the fourth, an emerald; the fifth, sardonyx; the sixth, sardius; the seventh, chrysolite; the eighth, beryl; the ninth, a topaz; the tenth, a chrysoprasus; the eleventh, a jacinth; the twelfth, an amethyst.” Rev. xxi. [14], 17-20.
The foundations of the wall were twelve, formed of the same number of precious stones, because the number twelve signifies all things pertaining to truth from good, and so, in this passage, all things pertaining to doctrine. However, this passage and its context may be seen explained in detail, and confirmed by parallel passages from the Prophetical Books of the Word, in our work “The Apocalypse Revealed.”
The Urim and Thummim were on Aaron’s ephod, for by his priesthood the Lord was represented as to Divine Good, and the work of salvation. By the garments of the priesthood, or of its holiness, were represented Divine truths from the Lord. By the ephod was represented Divine Truth in its ultimate, and thus the Word in the sense of the Letter, for this is Divine Truth in its ultimate. Therefore by the twelve precious stones with the names of the Twelve Tribes of Israel, which were the Urim and Thummim, were represented Divine truths from the Divine Good in the whole complex. Concerning these things it is thus written in Moses:
“They shall make the ephod … of blue, and of purple, of scarlet double-dyed and fine twined linen…. And they shall (A.V., thou shalt) make the breastplate of judgment after the work of the ephod … and thou shalt set in it settings of stones, even four rows of stones: the first row shall be a ruby (A.V., sardius), a topaz, and an emerald (A.V., carbuncle): the second row shall be a chrysoprasus (A.V., emerald), a sapphire, and a diamond; the third row a lapis-lazuli (A.V., ligure), an agate, and an amethyst; and the fourth row a beryl, a sardius (A.V., onyx), and a jasper…. The stones shall be according to the names of the sons (A.V., children) of Israel; the engravings of the signet shall be according to the name of every one for the twelve tribes…. And Aaron shall bear on the breastplate of judgment the Urim and Thummim … and they shall be upon Aaron’s heart, when he goeth in before JEHOVAH.” Exod. xxviii. 6, 15-21, [29], 30.
What the garments of Aaron, his ephod, robe, coat, mitre, and girdle represented is explained in the “Arcana Caelestia,” published in London, where in treating of that chapter it is shown that by the ephod was represented Divine Truth in its ultimate. By the precious stones upon it were represented truths transparent from good. By twelve arranged in four rows were represented all those truths from first to last; by the twelve tribes, everything relating to the Church; by the breastplate, Divine Truth from Divine Good in a universal sense; by the Urim and Thummim, the brilliancy of Divine Truth from Divine Good in ultimates; for Urim is a shining fire, and Thummim, brilliancy in the angelic language, and integrity in the Hebrew. It is also shown that responses were given by the variegations of light and at the same time by tacit perception, or by a living voice; with many other particulars. From this it may be evident that by these stones were also signified truths from good in the ultimate sense of the Word; and that by no other means are responses given from heaven, because in that sense is the Divine proceeding in its fulness.
It is written in Ezekiel: King of Tyre,
“Thou sealest up thy sum, full of wisdom, and perfect in beauty. Thou hast been in Eden, the garden of God; every precious stone was thy covering, the ruby (A.V., sardius), the topaz, and the diamond; the beryl, the sardonyx, and the jasper the sapphire, the chrysoprasus (A.V., emerald), and the emerald (A.V., carbuncle); and gold.” Ezek. xxviii. 12, 13.
By Tyre in the Word is signified the Church as to the knowledges of good and truth; by the king is signified the truth of the Church; by the Garden of Eden is signified wisdom and intelligence from the Word; and by precious stones are signified truths translucent from good, such as are in the sense of the Letter of the Word. Because this is the signification of those stones therefore they are called his covering, and it may be seen above in n. 213 that the sense of the Letter covers the interior things of the Word.
The tabernacle which was built by Moses in the wilderness represented heaven and the Church; therefore the pattern of it was shown by Jehovah on Mount Sinai. Consequently everything that was in that tabernacle, as the lampstand, the golden altar for incense, and the table on which was the shewbread, represented and signified the holy things of heaven and the Church. The Holy of Holies, where was the Ark of the Covenant, represented and therefore signified the inmost of heaven and the Church. The Law itself, written on two tables, signified the Word; and the cherubim over it signified guards to prevent the violation of the holy things Of the Word. Now, because external things derive their essence from internal things, and both of these derive theirs from what is inmost, which in the tabernacle was the Law, therefore the holy things of the Word were represented and signified by all things belonging to the tabernacle. It follows, therefore, that the ultimates of the tabernacle, namely its curtains, veils and pillars, which were its coverings, containants and supports, signified the ultimates of the Word, which are the truths and goods of the sense of its Letter. Because such things were signified, therefore
“all the curtains and veils were made of fine twined linen, of blue, and purple, and scarlet double-dyed, with cherubim.” Exod. xxvi. 1, 31, 38.
What was represented and signified, in general and in particular, by the tabernacle and everything in it, is explained in the “Arcana Caelestia,” where that chapter is treated of. It is there shown that the curtains and veils represented the external things of heaven and the Church, thus also the external things of the Word. Further, that fine linen signified truth from a spiritual origin; blue, truth from a celestial origin; purple, celestial good; scarlet double-dyed, spiritual good; and cherubim, the guards of the interiors of the Word.
This is because the temple, as well as the tabernacle, represented heaven and the Church; but the temple represented the heaven in which are spiritual angels, whereas the tabernacle represented the heaven where celestial angels are. Spiritual angels are they who are in wisdom from the Word, while celestial angels are they who are in love from the Word. That the temple at Jerusalem, in the highest sense, signified the Divine Human of the Lord, He Himself teaches in John:
“Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up…. But He spake of the temple of His body.” John ii. 19, 21;
and where the Lord is meant, the Word also is meant, because He is the Word. Now, since the interior things of the temple represented the interior things of heaven and the Church, thus also of the Word, therefore its exterior things represented and signified the exterior things of heaven and the Church, thus also the exterior things of the Word, which are the sense of its Letter. Concerning the exterior things of the temple it is written
that they were built of stone, whole and unhewn, and of cedar within; and that all its walls were carved with cherubim, palm trees, and open flowers; and that the floor was overlaid with gold. 1 Kings vi. 7, 29, 30.
By all these things are also signified the externals of the Word, which are the holy things of the sense of its Letter.
Concerning the Lord’s Transfiguration before Peter, James and John, it is said:
that “His face did shine as the sun, and His raiment became like light; and there appeared Moses and Elias talking with Him. A bright cloud overshadowed the disciples, and a voice was heard out of the cloud, saying This is my beloved Son … hear ye Him.” Matt. xvii. 1-5.
I have been informed that the Lord on this occasion represented the Word. His face, which shone as the sun, represented the Divine Good of His Divine Love; and His raiment, which became like light, the Divine Truth of His Divine Wisdom. Moses and Elias represented the historical and the prophetical Word; Moses, the Word written by him, and in general the historical Word; and Elias, the whole prophetical Word. The bright cloud, which overshadowed the disciples, represented the Word in the sense of the Letter. Therefore out of this cloud a voice was heard, saying, “This is my beloved Son … hear ye Him,” as all declarations and responses from heaven are only made by means of ultimates, such as are in the sense of the Letter of the Word; for they are made in fulness from the Lord.
We read in the Book of Judges concerning Samson, that he was a Nazirite from his mother’s womb, and that his strength lay in his hair. Moreover, by Nazirite and Naziriteship is signified hair. He himself made it clear that his strength lay in his hair, when he said:
“There hath not come a razor upon mine head; for I have been a Nazirite from my mother’s womb: if I be shaven, then my strength will go from me, and I shall become weak, and be like any other man.” Judges xvi. 17.
No one can possibly know why the Naziriteship, by which is signified hair, was instituted, and why Samson’s strength lay in his hair, unless he knows what is signified by the head in the Word. The head signifies intelligence, which angels and men possess from the Lord by means of Divine Truth. Hair, therefore, signifies intelligence from Divine Truth in ultimates or extremes. Because this was signified by hair it was therefore ordained as a law for the Nazirites,
that they should not shave the hair of their head, because it was the Naziriteship of God upon their head. Num. vi. 1-21.
For the same reason it was also ordained
that the High Priest and his son should not shave their head, lest they should die, and wrath should come upon the whole house of Israel. Lev. x. 8.
Since the hair, on account of this signification grounded in correspondence, was so holy, therefore the Son of Man, who is the Lord as to the Word, is described even to His hairs, which
“were white like wool, as white as snow.” Rev. i. 14.
So also the Ancient of Days is described, in Daniel vii. 9.
Since the hair signifies truth in ultimates, thus the sense of the Letter of the Word, therefore those who despise the Word in the spiritual world become bald; while on the contrary, those who have honored the Word and regarded it as holy, appear with beautiful hair. It was on account of this correspondence
that the forty-two children who called Elisha bald-head, were torn to pieces by two she-bears. 2 Kings ii. 23, 24.
For Elisha represented the Church as to doctrine from the Word, and she-bears signify the power of truth in ultimates. The power of Divine Truth, or the Word, is in the sense of the Letter, because the Word in that sense is in its fulness, and the angels of the Lord’s two kingdoms and men are simultaneously in that sense.
* Nazirite, one consecrated to the service of God. A.V., Nazarite.
Scarcely any one at this day knows that there is any power in truths; for it is supposed that truth is only the utterance of some one in authority, which ought on that account to be obeyed; consequently that it is only like breath from the mouth, or sound in the ear. Whereas truth and good are the principles of all things in both the spiritual and natural worlds, and they are the means by which the universe was created and by which it is preserved, and also the means by which man was made; therefore these two are the all-in-all of everything. That the universe was created by Divine Truth is expressly declared in John:
“In the beginning was the Word and the Word was God. All things that were made were made by the Word and the world was made by it.” John i. 1, 3, 10;
and in David:
“By the Word of JEHOVAH were the heavens made.” Ps. xxxiii. 6.
By the Word in both passages is meant Divine Truth. As the universe was created by it, so also it is preserved by it; for just as subsistence is perpetual existence, so preservation is perpetual creation. [2] Man was made by Divine Truth, because all things in him have relation to the understanding and the will, the understanding being the receptacle of Divine Truth, and the will that of Divine Good. Consequently the human mind, which consists of those two principles, is nothing but a form of Divine Truth and Divine Good, spiritually and naturally organized: the human brain is such a form. Further, because the whole man depends upon the mind, all the constituents of the body are appendages, which are actuated and live from those two principles.
[3] Hence it may now be evident why God came into the world as the Word, and became Man. He did so in order to effect redemption; for God at that time by means of the Human, which was Divine Truth, assumed all power, overthrew the hells, which had encroached upon the heavens the home of the angels, subdued them, and brought them under obedience to Himself. This He did not by any oral word, but by the Divine Word, which is Divine Truth; and afterwards He opened up a great gulf between the hells and the heavens, over which no one from hell can pass. Should any one make the attempt, on his first step he is tortured like a serpent on plates of hot iron, or upon a mass of ants; for no sooner do devils and satans detect the odor of Divine Truth, than they cast themselves into the abyss, and hurry into caverns, which they stop up so effectively that not a crevice remains open. This is because their will is obsessed by evils and their understanding by falsities, thus by what is opposed to the Divine Good and the Divine Truth; and since the whole man consists of those two principles of life, as was said before, they are so grievously tortured from head to foot on the perception of what is opposed to them.
From this it may be evident that the power of Divine Truth is ineffable; and because the Word, which the Christian Church possesses, is the containant of Divine Truth in three degrees, it is evident that this is what is meant in John i. 3, 10. That this power is beyond description I could prove from much documentary evidence from my experience in the spiritual world; but as this surpasses belief, or appears incredible, I forbear to produce it. However you may see it in part at least related in n. 209 above. From what has been said this important truth may be established, that the Church which is principled in Divine truths from the Lord has power over the hells, and is that Church of which the Lord said to Peter,
“Upon this rock I will build my Church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.” Matt. xvi. 18.
The Lord said this after Peter’s confession that
‘Christ was the Son of the living God,’ verse 18.
This truth is meant in that passage by the rock; for a rock everywhere in the Word means the Lord as to Divine Truth.
It was shown in the previous article that the Word, in the sense of the Letter, is in its fulness, its sanctity and its power, and since the Lord is the Word, and the First and the Last, as He declares in the Revelation, i. 17, it follows that He is eminently present in that sense, teaching and enlightening men from it. Proof of this will be given in due order as follows:
(1) Without doctrine, the Word is unintelligible.
(2) Doctrine must be taken from the sense of the Letter of the Word.
(3) But Divine Truth, which is the source of doctrine, is manifest only to those who are enlightened by the Lord.
This is because the Word in the sense of the Letter consists of pure correspondences, so designed that spiritual and celestial things may be simultaneously in it, and that every word of it may contain them and serve as their basis. For this reason Divine truths in the sense of the Letter are rarely unveiled. For the most part they are veiled, and being so are called appearances of truth, being accommodated to the perception of simple people, whose thoughts do not rise above what they see with their eyes. There are, moreover, some things which appear like contradictions, whereas there is not a single contradiction in the Word, when it is regarded in its own spiritual light. In some parts of the Prophets also there are names of places and persons recorded from which no meaning can be gathered. [2] Since then this is the nature of the Word in the sense of the Letter, it may be evident that without doctrine it cannot be understood. Some examples may make this clear. It is said
that “JEHOVAH repents,” Exod. xxxii. 12, 14; Jonah iii. 9; iv. 2.
It is also said
that “JEHOVAH does not repent.” Num. xxiii. 19; 1 Sam. xv.
These passages cannot be reconciled without doctrine. It is said
that “JEHOVAH visits the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation.” Num. xiv. 18:
and it is also said
that “a father shall not die for a son, neither a son for a father, but everyone shall die in his own sin.” Deut. xxiv. 16.
In the light of doctrine these passages are not contradictory, but are in perfect agreement.
[3] Jesus says:
“Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened.” Matt. vii. 8; xxi. 21, 22.
Without doctrine it might be believed that every one will receive what he asks; but doctrine explains that what is given is whatever a man asks in accordance with the Lord’s will; for this the Lord teaches:
“If ye abide in Me, and My words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you. John xv. 7.
[4] The Lord says:
“Blessed are the poor, for theirs is the kingdom of God.” (A.V., Blessed be ye poor: for yours is the kingdom of God). Luke vi. 20.
Without doctrine it might be supposed that heaven is for the poor, and not for the rich; but doctrine teaches that the poor in spirit are here meant, for the Lord says:
“Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” Matt. v. 3.
[5] Again, the Lord says:
“Judge not, that ye be not judged. For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged.” Matt. vii. 1, 2; Luke vi. 37.
Without doctrine one might be induced to conclude that the judgment that he is wicked, ought not to be passed on a wicked man; whereas, according to doctrine, one may pass judgment, provided it is just, for the Lord says:
“Judge righteous judgment.” John vii. 24.
[6] Jesus says:
“Be not ye called teacher (A.V., Rabbi): for one is your teacher (A.V., Master), even Christ. And call no man your father upon the earth: for one is Your Father, which is in heaven. Neither be ye called masters: for one is your Master, even Christ.” Matt. xxiii. 8, 9, 10.
Without doctrine it might appear that may not call any one teacher, father, or master; but doctrine teaches that we may do so in the natural sense, but not in the spiritual.
[7] Jesus said to the disciples:
“When the Son of Man shall sit in the throne of His glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.” Matt. xix. 28.
From these words it might be concluded that the disciples were also to judge, whereas they cannot judge any one. Doctrine therefore will explain this mystery, by teaching that the Lord alone, who is omniscient, and who knows the hearts of all, will judge and can judge; and that by His twelve disciples is meant the Church as to all the truths and goods which it possesses from the Lord by means of the Word; therefore doctrine concludes that it is these which will judge every one, according to the Lord’s words in John iii. 17, 18; xii. 47, 48. There are many other passages in the Word similar to these, from which it is clearly evident that the Word without doctrine is unintelligible.
This is because the Lord is present in that sense, teaching and enlightening the mind; for the Lord never acts except in fulness, and the Word in the sense of the Letter is in its fulness, as was said above; therefore doctrine must be taken from the sense of the Letter. The doctrine of genuine truth may also be fully drawn from the literal sense of the Word; for the Word in that sense is like a person clothed, but whose face and hands are uncovered. Everything in the Word pertaining to man’s faith and life, and thus to his salvation, is there unveiled. The rest is veiled; and in many places where it is veiled it is nevertheless visible, as things appear to a woman when they are seen through a thin veil of silk over her face. Moreover, as the truths of the Word increase from the love of them, and are co-ordinated by love, they become more and more translucent and obvious.
Enlightenment comes from the Lord alone, and is granted to those who love truths because they are truths, and who apply them to the uses of life; with others, there is no enlightenment in the Word. Enlightenment comes from the Lord alone, because the Word is from Him, and consequently He is in it; and it is granted to those who love truths because they are truths, and who apply them to the uses of life, because they are in the Lord and the Lord in them; for the Lord is Truth itself, as was shown in the chapter concerning Him. Then the Lord is loved when men live according to His Divine truths, and so perform uses from them, according to these words in John:
“At that day ye shall know … that ye are in Me, and I in you. He that hath My commandments and keepeth them, he it is that loveth Me … and I will love him, and will manifest Myself to him … and I (A.V., we) will make My (A.V., our) abode with him.” John xiv. 20, 21, 23.
These are they who are enlightened when they read the Word, and with whom the Word is lucid and transparent. With them the Word so appears, because there is a spiritual as well as a celestial sense in every part of it, and these senses are in the light of heaven. Therefore by means of these senses and their light, the Lord flows into the natural sense of the Word and into the light of this sense in man. Consequently a man acknowledges the truth from an interior perception, and afterwards sees it in his own thought. This happens as often as he is in the affection of truth for its own sake; for perception comes from affection, and thought from perception; and thus arises that acknowledgment which is called faith.
that they have eyes, and see not, and ears, and do not understand.” Matt. xiii. 14, 15.
Hence their light in spiritual things pertaining to the Church is merely natural, and their mental vision like that of one who in bed sees spectres when he awakens, or like that of a sleep-walker, who fancies himself wide awake when he is fast asleep.
I have also seen such persons admitted into heaven; when, however, they were discovered to be without truths, they were cast out; but there remained with them the conceit that they merited heaven. It is different with those who have studied the Word from the affection of knowing the truth because it is truth, and because it is serviceable to the uses not only of their own life but also the life of their neighbor. I have seen these persons raised up into heaven, and thus into the light in which is Divine Truth, and at the same time exalted into that angelic wisdom and its happiness which the angels of heaven enjoy.
* Michael, the archangel.
There is conjunction with the Lord by means of the Word because He is the Word, that is, the Divine Truth itself and the Divine Good therein. Conjunction is effected by the sense of the Letter because the Word in that sense is in its fulness, its sanctity, and its power, as was shown above in the article upon it. This conjunction is not apparent to man, but it exists in the affection of truth and in its perception. There is association with angels by means of the sense of the Letter because within it there are the spiritual and the celestial senses, and the angels are in those senses; the angels of the Lord’s spiritual kingdom are in the spiritual sense of the Word, and the angels of His celestial kingdom are in its celestial sense. These two senses are unfolded* from the natural sense of the Word when a man, who regards the Word as holy, is reading it. This unfolding is instantaneous, and thus also is his association with the angels.
* hi bini Sensus evolvuntur. This unfolding is instantaneous, Evolutio est instantanea. The root idea of evolution in English is the development of a lower to a higher form, the higher retaining the essential features of the lower. The senses of the Word are discrete degrees: the celestial and the spiritual are not developments of the natural. The celestial and the spiritual are the end and the cause, the natural being the effect. The cause and the end cannot by any development be produced from the effect, and so cannot be said to evolve from the effect. Thus while evolvo and evolutio are used in this Number, it does not follow that the directly derived English words, evolve and evolution, are the best terms to translate them. “Unfold” and “unfolding” would appear to express what happens when a man who regards the Word as holy reads it. The inner senses are not developments of the natural sense: they are unfolded as inner contents in an outer vessel, the vessel never developing into, that is, becoming its contents.
[2] The sixth Commandment is: “Thou shalt not commit adultery.” By committing adultery a man understands committing whoredom, and indulging in obscene practices, lascivious conversation, and filthy thoughts; a spiritual angel understands the adulteration of the good of the Word, and the falsification of its truth; and a celestial angel understands the denial of the Lord’s Divinity, and the profanation of the Word.
[3] The seventh Commandment is: “Thou shalt not steal.” By stealing, a man understands stealing, defrauding, and depriving a neighbor of his property under any pretext whatever; a spiritual angel understands depriving others of the truth and good of their faith, by means of falsity and evil; and a celestial angel understands attributing to oneself what belongs to the Lord, and claiming for oneself the Lord’s righteousness and merit.
[4] The eighth Commandment is: “Thou shalt not bear false witness.” By bearing false witness, a man understands lying, and defamation; a [spiritual] angel understands declaring and persuading that falsity is truth, and evil good, and the reverse; and a celestial angel understands blaspheming the Lord and the Word.
[5] From these examples it may be seen how the spiritual and celestial senses are unfolded and drawn from the natural sense of the Word which contains them. And what is wonderful, the angels draw out their own senses without knowing what the man’s thoughts are. Still, the thoughts of angels and men make one by correspondence, like end, cause and effect; for ends actually exist in the celestial kingdom, causes in the spiritual kingdom, and effects in the natural kingdom. In this way, then, association of men with angels results through the instrumentality of the Word.
“The words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.” John vi. 63.
“The water that I shall give you (A.V., him) shall be … a well of water springing up into everlasting life.” John iv. 14.
“Man doth (A.V., shall) not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.” Matt. iv. 4.
“Labor … for that meat which endureth unto everlasting life, which the Son of Man shall give unto you. John vi. 27.
That the Word exists in the Heavens has hitherto been unknown. Indeed, it could not be known as long as the Church was ignorant of the fact that angels and spirits are men, in appearance and body like men in our world, with surroundings similar in all respect to those of men on earth. The only difference is, that angels are spiritual, and all their environment has a spiritual origin, while men in this world are natural, and all their environment has a natural origin. As long as men did not know this, they could not know that the Word exists also in the heavens, and is read by angels there, as well as by spirits beneath the heavens. Lest this should remain unknown for ever, it has been granted me to be in the company of angels and spirits, to converse with them, and to see their surroundings, and afterwards to relate the many things which I saw and heard. This I have done in the work “Heaven and Hell,” published in London in the year 1758. In that work it may be seen that angels and spirits are men, and that they are surrounded by all things in abundance which surround men in this world. That angels and spirits are men may be seen in that work, n. 73-77, and n. 453-458; and that they are surrounded by things similar to those which surround men in this world, n. 170-190. Also that they have Divine worship, and preaching in their temples, n. 221-227; with writings and books, n. 258-264, as well as the Sacred Scripture, or the Word, n. 259.
[2] Since the writing of angels is of this nature, the names of persons and places which occur in the Word with them are written with these signs. Thus the wise understand the spiritual and celestial signification of each name; as, for example, that Moses means the Word of God which he wrote, and in a general sense, the historical Word; Elijah, the prophetic Word; Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the Lord as to the Divine celestial, the Divine spiritual and the Divine natural; Aaron, the Lord’s priesthood, and David, the Lord’s kingship. The names of the sons of Jacob, or the twelve tribes of Israel, signify various things pertaining to heaven and the Church; so also the names of the Lord’s disciples. Zion and Jerusalem signify the Church as to doctrine from the Word; the land of Canaan, the Church itself; and places and cities there, on both sides of the Jordan, signify various things pertaining to the Church and its doctrine. It is the same with numbers; these are not found in copies of the Word in heaven, but instead of them, the things to which the numbers correspond. From this it may be evident that the Word in heaven, as to its literal sense, is similar to our Word, and at the same time corresponds to it; and therefore that they are one.
[3] It is a wonderful circumstance that the Word in the heavens is so written that the simple understand it in simplicity, and the wise in wisdom. For there are many curves and marks over the letters, which, as was said above, exalt the sense. The simple neither regard nor understand these; but the wise pay attention to them, each according to his degree of wisdom, even to the wisest. A copy of the Word, written by angels under the Lord’s inspiration, is kept by every considerable society in its sacred repository, in case the Word elsewhere should suffer alteration in any point. The Word in our world is like the Word in heaven, in that the simple understand if in simplicity, and the wise in wisdom; but this is effected in a different manner.
There is no doubt that the Church exists from the Word, for it was shown above that the Word is Divine Truth, n. 189-192; that the doctrine of the Church is from the Word, n. 225-233; and that conjunction with the Lord is effected by means of the Word, n. 234-239. It may, however, be doubted that it is the understanding of the Word which constitutes the Church, as there are some who believe that they belong to the Church because they have the Word, read it or hear it from a preacher, and know something of the sense of the Letter, although they do not know how certain passages are to be understood; while some regard this of no importance. It will be necessary, then, to prove that it is not the Word, but the understanding of it, which constitutes the Church, and that the quality of the Church is according to the understanding of the Word with those who are in the Church.
The Word, with those who search it for the truths of faith and the goods of life, is like the wealth of the King of Persia or that of the Emperors of Mongolia* and China; and men of the Church are like officers placed in charge of this treasure, who have the privilege of taking as much as they choose for their own use. Those, however, who only have the Word and read it, but who do not seek out genuine truth for their faith and genuine good for their life, are like those who only know by hearsay that such great wealth exists, the Word and who do not derive from it any understanding of genuine truth and any will to genuine good, are like those who fancy themselves rich on wealth but who never receive a single penny of it. Those who have the Word and who do not derive from it any understanding of genuine truth and any will to genuine good, are like those who fancy themselves rich on wealth borrowed from others, or as possessors of estates, houses and merchandise merely hired by them. Every one sees that this is a delusion. They are indeed, like men who strut about in gorgeous garments and who ride in gilded chariots with footmen in front, alongside and behind, and who notwithstanding can claim none of this grandeur as their own.
* Mongolia, the country of the Monguls or Moguls.
a “dear son” and “a pleasant child.” Jer. xxxi. 20;
the “first-born,” xxxi. 9;
“the strength of the head of Jehovah,” Ps. lx. 7, cviii. 8;
“a mighty man.” Zech. x. 7;
“filled with the bow,” ix. 13;
The sons of Ephraim are called
“armed, and shooters with the bow” Ps. lxxviii. 9;
for a bow signifies doctrine from the Word fighting against falsities. For the same reason also
Ephraim was transferred to Israel’s right hand, and blessed; and accepted in place of Reuben, Gen. xlviii. 5, 11, and following verses.
For the same reason also
Ephraim with his brother Manasseh, under the name of their father Joseph, was exalted above all the rest by Moses in his blessing of the children of Israel. Dent. xxxiii. 13-17.
[2] The nature of the Church when the understanding of the Word is destroyed is also described in the Prophets by Ephraim, particularly in Hosea; as in the following passages:
“Israel and Ephraim shall fall together … Ephraim shall be desolate… Ephraim is oppressed and broken in judgment.” Hos. v. 5, 9, 11-14.
“O Ephraim, what shall I do unto thee? … for your holiness (A.V., goodness), is as a morning cloud, and as the early dew it goeth away.” Hos. vi. 4.
“They shall not dwell in the land of JEHOVAH; but Ephraim shall return to Egypt, and shall eat an unclean thing in Assyria.” Hos. ix. 3.
The land of Jehovah is the Church; Egypt is the scientific principle of the natural man, and Assyria is reasoning therefrom; by these two the Word as to its interior understanding is falsified, and therefore it is said that Ephraim shall return to Egypt, and shall eat an unclean thing in Assyria.
[3] “Ephraim feedeth on wind and followeth after the east wind: he daily increaseth lies and desolation; and he maketh (A.V., they do make) a covenant with the Assyrians, and oil is carried into Egypt.” Hos. xii. 1.
To feed on wind, to follow after the east wind, and to increase lies and desolation, is to falsify truths, and so to destroy the Church. The same is also signified by the whoredom of Ephraim; for whoredom signifies the falsification of the understanding of the Word, that is, of its genuine truth, as in these passages:
“I know Ephraim … he has altogether committed (A.V., thou committest) whoredom, and Israel is defiled.” Hos. v. 3
“I have seen an horrible thing in the house of Israel: there is the whoredom of Ephraim, and Israel is defiled.” Hos. vi. 10.
Israel is the Church itself, and Ephraim, the understanding of the Word, from which and according to which the Church exists; therefore it is said that Ephraim commits whoredom, and Israel is defiled.
[4] As the Church among the people of Israel and Judah was totally destroyed by falsifications of the Word, it is said of Ephraim,
“I will (A.V., How shall I) give thee up, Ephraim, I will deliver thee up, Israel, I will make thee as Admah, I will set thee as Zeboim.” Hos. xi. 8.
Now since the Prophet Hosea, from the first chapter to the last, treats of the falsification of the genuine understanding of the Word, and the consequent destruction of the Church, and since by whoredom is signified the falsification of truth in the Word, therefore he was commanded to represent this state of the Church,
by taking a harlot for his wife, and begetting children by her. Hos. iii.
and again
by taking a woman who was an adultress. Hos. iii.
These passages are quoted that it may be known and proved from the Word that the quality of the Church is according to its understanding of the Word; excellent and precious if its understanding is founded on genuine truths from the Word, but ruined and defiled if founded on truths falsified.
Hitherto it has not been recognized that there is in every detail of the Word the marriage of the Lord and the Church, and consequently the marriage of good and truth; nor could it be seen, because the spiritual sense of the Word had not been revealed till now, and this sense alone can make this marriage evident. For there are two senses in the Word, called the spiritual and the celestial, concealed within the sense of the Letter; what belongs to the spiritual sense has special reference to the Church, and what belongs to the celestial sense, to the Lord. The content also of the spiritual sense has reference to Divine Truth, and the content of the celestial sense to Divine Good; and consequently there is in the Word this marriage. However, this is apparent only to those who, from the spiritual and celestial senses of the Word, know the signification of words and names, some words and names being predicated of good, some of truth, and some including both references. Therefore, without a knowledge of this signification, this marriage in every detail of the Word cannot be seen, and consequently this interior truth has not hitherto been discovered. Since there exists such a marriage in every detail of the Word, therefore double expressions frequently occur in it, which seem like repetitions of the same thing. They are, however, not repetitions; but one relates to good and the other to truth, and when both are taken together they effect the conjunction of good and truth, and so combine them into one. This also is the ground of the Divine sanctity of the Word; for in every Divine work there is a conjunction of good with truth, and of truth with good.
There are two faculties of life in every man, the understanding and the will, the understanding being the receptacle of truth, and thence of wisdom, the will being the receptacle of good, and thence of charity. These two faculties ought to make one, that a man may be a member of the Church; and they are united when a man forms his understanding from genuine truths, apparently of himself, and when his will is filled with the good of love, which is done by the Lord. In this way a man has the life of truth and the life of good, the life of truth in his understanding and the life of good in his will; and when these are united, they form not two lives but one. This is the marriage of the Lord and the Church, and also the marriage of good and truth in man.
In the Word also many other things are closely associated; as fire and flame, gold and silver, brass and iron, wood and stone, [bread and water], bread and wine, purple and fine linen, and so on. This is because fire, gold, brass, wood, bread and purple are used with reference to good, while flame, silver, iron, stone, water, wine and fine linen are used with reference to truth. In like manner it is said that men should love God with all the heart and with all the soul; and also that God will create in man a new heart and a new spirit, for heart is used with reference to the good of love, and soul and spirit with reference to the truths of faith. There are, moreover, some expressions which partake of both good and truth, and are used by themselves, without the addition of others; but these and many other things are evident only to the angels, and to those who, while they perceive the natural sense, understand also the spiritual sense.
“Ah sinful nation, a people laden with iniquity!” Isa. i. 4.
“The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light…. Thou hast multiplied the nation.” Isa. ix. 2, 3.
“O Assyrian, the rod of mine anger … I will send him against an hypocritical nation, and against the people of my wrath will I give him a charge.” Isa. x. 5, 6.
“And in that day there shall be a root of Jesse, which shall stand for an ensign of the people; to it shall the nations (A.V., Gentiles) seek.” Isa. ii. 10.
“Jehovah, (A.V., He) who smote the people … with a continual stroke, He that ruled the nations in anger.” Isa. xiv. 8.
“In that time shall the present be brought unto JEHOVAH ZEBAOTH of a people scattered and peeled … a nation meted out and trodden underfoot.” Isa. xviii. 7.
“Therefore shall the strong people glorify Thee, the city of the terrible nations shall fear Thee.” Isa. xxv. 3.
“Jehovah (A.V., He) will destroy…the face of the covering cast over all people, and the veil that is spread over all nations.” Isa. xxv. 7.
“Come near … ye nations; and hearken, ye people.” Isa. xxxiv. 1.
“I … have called thee … for a covenant to the people, for a light of the nations.” (A.V., Gentiles.) Isa. xlii. 6.
“Let all the nations be gathered together, and let the people be assembled.” Isa. xliii. 9.
“Behold, I will lift up mine hand to the nations (A.V., Gentiles), and set up my standard to the people.” Isa. xlix. 22.
“Behold, I have given Him for a witness to the people, a leader and commander to the nations.” (A.V., people). Isa. lv. 4.
“Behold, a people cometh from the north country, and a great nation … from the sides of the earth.” Jer. vi. 22.
“Neither will I cause thee to hear (A.V., men to hear in thee), the shame of the nations (A.V., the heathen) any more, neither shalt thou bear the reproach of the people any more.” Ezek. xxxvi. 15.
“All people and nations … should serve Him.” Dan. vii. 14.
“Let not the nations (A.V., the heathen) use a byword against them and say among the people, Where is their God?” Joel ii. 17.
“The residue of my people shall spoil them, and the remnant of my nation (A.V., people) shall possess them.” Zeph. ii. 9.
“Many people and numerous (A. V., strong) nations shall come to seek JEHOVAH in Jerusalem.” Zech. viii. 22.
“Mine eyes have seen thy salvation, Which Thou hast prepared before the face of all people; A light to lighten the nations.” (A.V., Gentiles). Luke ii. 30-32.
“Thou hast redeemed us … by Thy blood out of every people and nation.” Rev. v. 9.
“Thou must prophesy again before … peoples and nations.” Rev. x. 11.
“Thou hast made me the head of the nations (A.V., the heathen): a people whom I have not known shall serve me.” Ps. xviii. 43.
“JEHOVAH bringeth the counsel of the nations (A.V., the heathen) to nought: He maketh the devices of the people of none effect.” Ps. xxxiii. 10.
“Thou makest us a byword among the nations (A.V., the heathen), a shaking of the head among the people.” Ps. xliv. 14.
“JEHOVAH shall subdue the people under us, and the nations under our feet … God reigneth over the nations (A.V., the heathen): the princes of the people are called together.” Ps. xlvii. 3, 8, 9.
“Let the people praise Thee … and let the nations sing for joy: for Thou shalt judge the people righteously, and lead the nations upon earth.” Ps. lxvii. 3, 4, 5.
“Remember me, JEHOVAH, with the favor that thou bearest unto Thy people … that I may rejoice in the gladness of Thy nations.” Ps. cvi. 4, 5, and in other places.
Nations and peoples are mentioned together, because by nations are meant those who are in good and in the opposite sense, those who are in evil; and by peoples those who are in truths, and in the opposite sense, those who are in falsities. For this reason those who belong to the Lord’s spiritual kingdom are called peoples, and those who belong to His celestial kingdom are called nations; for all in the spiritual kingdom are in truths and consequently in intelligence, while all in the celestial kingdom are in good, and consequently in wisdom.
“And behold, joy and gladness, slaying oxen.” Isa. xxii. 13.
“They shall obtain joy and gladness, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away.” Isa. xxxv. 10; li. 11.
“Is not … joy and gladness cut off from the house of our God”? Joel i. 16.
“The voice of joy shall cease and the voice of gladness.” Jer. vii. 34; xxv. l0.
“The fast of the tenth month shall be to the house of Judah joy and gladness.” Zech. viii. 19.
“Be glad in Jerusalem, and rejoice in her.” Isa. lxvi. 10.
“Rejoice and be glad, O daughter of Edom.” Lam. iv. 21.
“Let the heavens be glad (A.V., rejoice), and let the earth rejoice (A.V., be glad).” Ps. xcvi. 11.
“Make me to hear joy and gladness.” Ps. ii. 8.
“Joy and gladness shall be found in Zion, thanksgiving, and the voice of melody.” Isa. ii. 3.
“There shall be gladness; and many shall rejoice at His birth.” Luke i. 14.
“I will cause to cease … the voice of joy (A.V., mirth), and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride.” Jer. vii. 34; xvi. 9; xxv. 10.
“Again there shall be heard in this place … the voice of joy, and the voice of gladness; the voice of the bridegroom, and the voice of the bride.” Jer. xxxiii. 10, 11; and elsewhere.
Both joy and gladness are mentioned in these passages because joy is used with reference to good, and gladness, with reference to truth; that is, joy has reference to love, and gladness to wisdom. For joy pertains to the heart, and gladness to the spirit; that is, joy pertains to the will, and gladness to the understanding. It is evident that the marriage of the Lord and the Church is also involved in these dual expressions, as mention is made of
“the voice of joy and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride.” Jer. vii. 34; xvi. 9; xxv. 10; xxxiii. 10, 11;
for the Lord is the bridegroom and the Church is the bride.
That the Lord is the bridegroom, may be seen in Matt. ix. 16; Mark ii. 19, 20; Luke v. 38;
and, that the Church is the bride, may be seen in Rev. xxi. 2, 9; and xxii. 17.
Therefore John the Baptist said of Jesus:
“He that hath the bride is the bridegroom.” John iii. 29.
It was shown above that the Word cannot be understood without doctrine, and that doctrine is like a lamp to make genuine truths visible. This is because the Word is written by pure correspondences; consequently many things in it are appearances of truth, and not unveiled truths. Many of these are adapted to the comprehension of the merely natural man, yet in such a way that the simple may understand them in simplicity, the intelligent intelligently, and the wise in wisdom. Now since the Word is of this nature, appearances of truth, which are truths veiled, may be taken for unveiled truths; and when these are confirmed, they become fallacies, which in themselves are falsities. All the heresies, both past and present, in the Christian world have arisen because men have taken appearances of truth for genuine truths, and have confirmed them.
Heresies themselves do not condemn men; but men are condemned by confirming from the Word falsities which are inherent in heresy, by reasoning from the natural man, and by an evil life. For every one is born into the religion of his native country or of his parents, and is initiated into it from his infancy. He later adheres to it, nor can he of himself get rid of its falsities, because of his business connections in the world and because of his inability to perceive religious truths. What does condemn is living an evil life, together with the confirmation of falsities to the utter destruction of genuine truth. That man is not sworn to falsity who adheres to his own form of religion and believes in God; and, if a Christian, who believes in the Lord, regards the Word as holy, and from religious principles lives according to the Commandments of the Decalogue. Therefore, when he hears the truth and perceives it according to his capacity, he can accept it, and thus be rid of his falsity. It is otherwise with the man who has confirmed the falsities of his religion; as a falsity confirmed remains, and cannot be eradicated. For after confirmation, a falsity is as though a man has sworn to it, especially if it agrees with his self-love, or with the pride of his own intelligence.
“He placed at the east of the garden of Eden cherubim, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to keep the way of the tree of life.” Gen. iii. 23, 24.
[2] No one can know what these words signify unless he knows the signification of cherubim, the garden of Eden, the tree of life therein, and also the flaming sword which turned every way. These particulars are explained under this chapter in the work, “Arcana Caelestia,” published in London, as follows: cherubim signify a guard; the way of the tree of life signifies access to the Lord, which men obtain by means of the truths of the spiritual sense of the Word; and the flaming sword turning every way signifies Divine Truth in ultimates which, like the Word in the sense of the Letter, can be so turned. The same is meant by the cherubim of gold placed over the extremities of the mercy-seat which was above the ark in the tabernacle, Exod. xxv. 18-21. The Word was signified by the ark because the Decalogue was the foremost of its contents, and a guard was signified by the cherubim. On this account the Lord talked with Moses between the cherubim,
Exod. xxv. 22; xxxvii. 8; Num. vii. 89.
He spoke in the natural sense, for He never speaks with man except in fulness, and in the sense of the Letter Divine Truth is in its fulness, as may be seen above, n. 214-224. The same is signified by the cherubim upon the curtains of the tabernacle and upon the veil; Exod. xxvi. 31; for the curtains and the veils of the tabernacle signified the ultimates of heaven and the Church, and consequently of the Word, n. 220; also by the cherubim carved on the walls and doors of the temple at Jerusalem, 1 Kings vi. 20, 32, 35, as may be seen above, n. 221; and also by the cherubim in the new temple, Ezek. xli. 18, 19, 20.
[3] Since cherubim signified a guard lest the Lord, heaven, and Divine Truth as it is interiorly within the Word, should be approached immediately instead of mediately through ultimates, therefore, it is said of the king of Tyre:
“Thou sealest up the sum, full of wisdom, and perfect in beauty. Thou hast been in Eden the garden of God; every precious stone was Thy covering … Thou, O cherub, art the spreading forth of the covering (A. V., art the anointed cherub that covereth) … I have destroyed (A.V., I will destroy) thee, O covering cherub, from the midst of the stones of fire.” Ezek. xxviii. 12, 13, 14, 16.
Tyre signifies the Church as to the knowledges of truth and good; and hence the king of Tyre signifies the Word, which is the source of that knowledge. It is evident that the king here signifies the Word in its ultimate, and the cherubim a guard, for it is said: “Thou sealest up the sum, every precious stone was thy covering; thou, O cherub, art the spreading forth of the covering,” and “O covering cherub.” By the precious stones also mentioned here are signified the contents of the sense of the Letter, as may be seen above, n. 217, 218.
Since by cherubim is signified the Word in ultimates, and also a guard, therefore it is said in David:
“JEHOVAH bowed the heavens also, and came down … and He rode upon a cherub.” Ps. xviii. 9, 10.
“O Shepherd of Israel … Thou that dwellest between the cherubim, shine forth.” Ps. lxxx. 1.
“JEHOVAH sitteth between the cherubim.” Ps. xcix. 1.
To ride upon the cherubim, and to sit upon them, means on the ultimate sense of the Word. Divine Truth in the Word and the nature of that Truth are described by the four animals, which are also called cherubim, in Ezek. i. ix. and x.; and also by the four animals in the midst of the throne, and near the throne, Rev. iv. 6; and following verses. See “Apocalypse Revealed,” published by me at Amsterdam, n. 239, 275, 314.
That the Lord when in the world fulfilled all things in the Word, and thus became Divine Truth, or the Word, even in ultimates, is meant by the following passage in John:
“And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.” John i. 14.
To be made flesh is to become the Word in ultimates; and what the Lord was, as the Word in ultimates, He showed to His disciples when He was transfigured,
Matt. xvii. 2-9; Mark ix. 2-9; and Luke ix. 28-36.
It is there said that Moses and Elias appeared in glory; and by Moses is meant the Word which was written by him, and in general the historical Word, and by Elias the prophetical Word. The Lord, as the Word in ultimates, was also represented before John in the Revelation, i. 13-16, where all the details in the description of Him signify the ultimates of Divine Truth, or of the Word. The Lord before the Incarnation was indeed the Word or Divine Truth, but in first principles; for it is said:
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” John i. 1.
When, however, the Word was made flesh, then the Lord became the Word in ultimates also; and from this fact He is called
The First and the Last. Rev. i. 8, 11, 17; ii. 8; xxi. 6; xxii. 13; Isa. xliv. 6.
“Think not that I am come to destroy the Law or the Prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil.” Matt. v. 17.
Jesus “went into the synagogue … and stood up for to read. And there was delivered unto Him the Book of the Prophet Esaias. And when He had opened the Book, He found the place where it was written, The Spirit of JEHOVAH is upon me, because He hath anointed me to preach the Gospel to the poor; He hath sent me to heal the broken-hearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind…. To preach the acceptable year of the Lord. And He closed the Book;” and He said: “This day is this Scripture fulfilled in your ears.” Luke iv. 16-21.
“That the Scripture may be fulfilled, He that eateth bread with Me hath lifted up his heel against Me.” John xiii. 18.
“None of them is lost, but the son of perdition; that the Scripture might be fulfilled.” John xvii. 12.
“That the saying might be fulfilled which He spake, of them which thou gavest me have I lost none.” John xviii. 9.
Jesus said to Peter, “Put up again thy sword into his place…. But how then shall the Scripture be fulfilled, that thus it must be? … But all this was done that the Scripture might be fulfilled.” Matt. xxvi. 52, 54, 56.
“The Son of man indeed goeth, as it is written of Him … but the Scriptures must be fulfilled.” Mark xiv. 21, 49.
“And the Scripture was fulfilled, which saith, and He was numbered with the transgressors.” Mark xv. 28; Luke xxii. 37.
“That the Scripture might be fulfilled, which saith, They parted my raiment among them, and for my vesture they did cast lots.” John xix. 24.
“After this, Jesus knowing that all things were now accomplished, that the Scripture might be fulfilled.” John xix. 28.
“When Jesus therefore had received the vinegar, He said, It is finished,” that is, fulfilled. John xix. 30.
“These things were done, that the Scripture should be fulfilled. A bone of Him shall not be broken. And again, another Scripture saith, They shall look on Him whom they pierced.” John xix. 36, 37.
That the whole Word was written concerning Him, and that He came into the world to fulfil it, He also taught the disciples, before His departure, is these words:
“Then He said unto them, O fools, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken! Ought not Christ to have suffered these things, and to enter into His glory? And beginning at Moses and all the Prophets, He expounded unto them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself.” Luke xxiv. 28-27.
Moreover, Jesus said:
“All things must be fulfilled which were written in the law of Moses, and in the Prophets, and in the Psalms, concerning Me.” Luke xxiv. 44.
That the Lord when in the world fulfilled everything in the Word, even to its minutest particulars, is evident from His own words:
“For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle* shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.” Matt. v. 18.
From these passages it may now be clearly seen that by the Lord’s fulfilling all things of the law is not meant that He fulfilled all the Commandments of the Decalogue, but all things in the Word. All things in the Word are also understood by the law, as may be evident from the following passages:
“Jesus answered them, Is it not written in your law, I said, Ye are gods?” John x. 34;
but this is written in Ps. lxxxii. 6.
“The people answered Him, We have heard out of the law that Christ abideth for ever.” John xii. 34;
and this is written in Ps. lxxxix. 29, cx. 4, and in Dan. vii. 14.
“That the Word might be fulfilled that is written in their law, They hated Me without a cause.” John xv. 25:
and this is written in Ps. xxxv. 19.
“It is easier for heaven and earth to pass, than one tittle of the law to fail.” Luke xvi. 17.
In these and other passages throughout the Word, the law means the whole Sacred Scripture.
* Jotha una, aut unum corniculum. Tittle is a form of tit, meaning something small, or, according to Skeat, a jot. In this passage (A. V.) Tittle is used to translate corniculum, literally a little horn; and in Luke xvi. 17 to translate apex. Apex means an extreme point; the small spike wound round with wool at the top of a priest’s cap; also a letter, or a part of a letter. Both words are represented in the Greek in those two passages by keraia, a horn. This is also translated a kern, or flourish at the end of a letter; thus a small part of a letter; or according to Liddell and Scott, a tittle. See also 278, 483, 581.
Previous to the Word which was given by Moses and the Prophets to the people of Israel, worship by sacrifices was known, and men prophesied from the mouth of Jehovah. This is evident from what is recorded in the Books of Moses. That worship by sacrifices was known may be seen from the following references.
The children of Israel were commanded to destroy the altars of the Gentiles, break their images, and cut down their groves. Exod. xxxiv. 13; Deut. vii. 5, and xii. 3.
Israel in Shittim began to commit whoredom with the daughters of Moab, and called the people unto the sacrifices of their gods, and the people ate with them. Num. xxv. 1, 2.
Balaam, who was from the land of Syria, caused altars to be built, and sacrificed oxen and sheep. Num. xxii. 40, and xxiii. 1, 2, 14, 29, 30.
He also prophesied concerning the Lord, saying that there should come a Star out of Jacob, and a Sceptre should rise out of Israel. Num. xxiv. 17;
and he prophesied from the mouth of JEHOVAH. Num. xxii. 13, 18; xxiii. 3, 5, 8, 16, 26; and xxiv. 1, 13.
From these passages it is evident that Divine worship, almost like that instituted by Moses among the people of Israel, existed among the Gentiles. That it also existed before the time of Abraham is plain from what is written by Moses, Deut. xxxii. 7, 8; but still more plain from the fact that Melchizedek, king of Salem, brought forth bread and wine, and blessed Abram; and that Abram gave him tithes of all, Gen. xiv. 18-20. Melchizedek represented the Lord, for he is called the priest of the most high God, Gen. xiv. 18; and it is said of the Lord by David,
“Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchizedek.” Ps. cx. 4.
This was why Melchizedek brought forth bread and wine, the holiest things of the Church, as they still are holy in the Sacred Supper. Besides these there are many other evident proofs that, previous to the Israelitish Word, there existed a Word from which such revelations were derived.
“Wherefore it is said in the Book of ‘The Wars of Jehovah,’ I proceeded to Supha, to the brooks of Amen, and to the water-course of brooks which turned away where Ar is inhabited, and which halted at the border of Moab.”* (A.V., What he did in the Red Sea-margin, Vaheb and Suphah-, and in the brooks of Amen, And at the stream of the brooks that goeth down to the dwelling of Ar, and lieth upon the border of Moab.) Num. xxi. 14, 15.
By the wars of Jehovah mentioned in that Word, as in ours, are meant and described the Lord’s combats with the hells, and His victories over them, when He should come into the world. The same combats are also understood and described in many passages in the historical parts of our Word, as in the wars of Joshua with the nations of the land of Canaan, and in the wars of the Judges and kings of Israel.
[2] From the prophetical parts of that Word Moses has quoted the following:
“Wherefore the Enunciators say (A.V., they that speak in proverbs), Come into Heshbon, let the city of Sihon be built and prepared: For there is a fire gone out of Heshbon, a flame from the city of Sihon: it hath consumed Ar of Moab, and the lords of the high places of Arnon. Woe to thee, Moab! thou art undone, O people of Chemosh! he hath given his sons that escaped, and his daughters, into captivity unto Sihon, king of the Amorites.** We have shot at them: Heshbon is perished even unto Dibon, and we have laid them waste even unto Nophah, which reacheth unto Medeba.” Num. xxi. 27-30.
The translators render “Enunciators,” “composers of proverbs,” but they should be called “Enunciators,” and their compositions “prophetical enunciations,” as is evident from the signification of the word “Moshalim” in the Hebrew tongue, which means not only proverbs, but also prophetical enunciations; as in Num. xxiii. 7, 18; and xxiv. 3, 15. It is there said that Balaam uttered “his enunciation” (A.V., parable), which was also prophetical, concerning the Lord. His enunciation is called “Mashal” in the singular; moreover what Moses quotes are not proverbs, but prophecies.
[3] That Word, like ours, was Divinely inspired, as is evident from a passage in Jeremiah, where almost the same language is used:
“A fire has gone (A.V., shall come) forth out of Heshbon … and a flame from the midst of Sihon, and has devoured (A.V., shall devour) the corner of Moab, and the crown of the head of the sons of Shaon (A.V., of the tumultuous ones). Woe be unto thee, O Moab! the people of Chemosh perisheth: for thy sons are taken away into captivity, and thy daughters into captivity.” Jer. xlviii. 45, 48.
In addition to those Books, mention is made by David and by Joshua of the prophetical Book of the ancient Word, called the Book of Jasher, or the Book of the Upright. David refers to it in the following passage:
“David lamented … over Saul and over Jonathan … Also he bade them teach the children of Judah the use of the bow; behold, it is written in the Book of Jasher.” 2 Sam. i. 17, 18.
In Joshua it is mentioned in this passage:
Joshua said, “Sun, stand thou still upon Gibeon; and thou, Moon, in the valley of Ajalon! … Is not this written in the Book of Jasher?” Josh. x. 12, [13].
* vadebam in Supha, et fluvios Arnonem, et aquae ductum fluviorum, qui declinavit ubi habitatur Ar, et sistit se ad terminum Moabi, Num. xxi. 14, 15. The Schmidius Hebrew-Latin copy of the Bible used by Swedenborg has vahebam; and Swedenborg has noted in the margin objvahebam. It would appear that as the result of consideration he decided vadebam was the correct word.
** Amorites, the name generally applied to the primitive inhabitants of Canaan.
* Tartaria, Tartary, country of Central Asia.
There cannot be conjunction with heaven unless there exists somewhere on the earth a Church in possession of the Word by means of which the Lord is known; for the Lord is the God of heaven and earth, and without Him there is no salvation. That conjunction with the Lord and association with angels are effected by means of the Word, may be seen above in n. 234-240. It is enough that there is a Church in possession of the Word, even although it should consist of comparatively few persons; nevertheless by means of the Word the Lord is present throughout the whole world, for it is the means by which conjunction is effected between heaven and the human race.
* Mohammad, the founder of Mohammedanism or Islam, A.D. 571-632, was born at Mecca, where his father was spiritual and temporal head. He married a wealthy and devout widow, and owed much to her influence. In the visions to which he was subject he received confirmations of his Divine mission. He also received messages from Gabriel which were incorporated in the KORAN, the sacred book of Mohammedanism. Early persecution drove him from Mecca and in the year A.D. 622 he fled to Medina, where he was cordially welcomed. This flight, or Hejira, marks the beginning of the Mohammedan year, and from Medina he set out on his conquest of Arabia. Mohammedanism proclaims the unity of the God-head, and condemns idolatry; but the peaceful methods of propaganda soon gave place to ruthless persecution of infidels and merciless extermination of idolators.
that it was with God, and was God; that it lighteth every man that cometh into the world; and that this light also shineth in darkness. John i. 1, 5, 9.
The Word there means the Lord as to Divine Truth.
“The people which sat in darkness, saw great light; and to them which sat in the region and shadow of death light is sprung up.” Isa. ix. 2; Matt. iv. 18.
“Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken … and then they shall see the Son of Man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.” Matt. xxiv. 29, 30.
The sun there means the Lord as to love; the moon, the Lord as to faith; the stars, the Lord as to the knowledges of truth and good; the Son of Man, the Lord as to the Word; a cloud, the sense of the Letter of the Word; glory, the spiritual sense of the Word, beaming through the sense of the Letter; and power, the power of the Word.
There are some men who maintain from firm conviction that without the Word a man can know of the existence of God, heaven and hell, and of all else taught by the Word. Therefore, as they do not believe in the Word, but in themselves, one may not argue with them from the Word, but from the light (lumen) of natural reason. Inquire then, by the light of reason, and you will find that there are two faculties of life in man, called the understanding and the will; and that the understanding is subject to the will, and not the will to the understanding; for the understanding merely teaches and points out what ought to be done from the will. This is why many men of bright natural genius, who have a particularly clear understanding of the moral principles of life, yet do not live according to them; it would be otherwise if they willed these things. Inquire further, and you will find that man’s will is his proprium, which is evil from birth; and in consequence of this, that falsity pervades his understanding. Having learned these things, you will perceive that a man of himself does not desire to understand anything but what comes from the proprium of his will; and that unless there were some other source of knowledge, man from the proprium of his will would not desire to understand anything but what related to himself and the world; anything beyond this would be in darkness. For instance, if, when looking at the sun, moon and stars, he should reflect on their origin, he could not but think that they are self-originated. He could not think any more profoundly than many of the learned men in the world who, although they know from the Word that God created all things, yet acknowledge nature as their creator. Still more would they do so had they known nothing from the Word. Is it credible that Aristotle,* Cicero,** Seneca*** and other ancient sages who have written about God and the immortality of the soul first derived their knowledge from their own understanding? No, they obtained it by tradition from others who first learned it from the ancient Word, which has been mentioned above. Nor do writers on natural religion derive their knowledge from themselves: they only confirm by rational deduction what they learn from the Church which has the Word; and it is possible that some of those who confirm truths do not believe them.
* Aristotle, Greek philosopher, 384-322 B.C.; born at Stagiros, so called The Stagirite. He took all knowledge for his province, but had little appreciation of mathematics. He created the science of logic.
** Cicero, Marcus Tullius, 106-43 B.C. He was one of the greatest orators, men of letters, and statesmen of the Roman Republic.
*** Seneca, Lucius Annaeus, 5 B.C.-A.D. 65, a Stoic philosopher, rhetorician, dramatist, and chief minister to Nero.
* Parnassius, belonging to Parnassus, 276; subst. Parnassium, hill near Athenaeum, the city in the spiritual world of the Greek sages.
** Heliconeus, belonging to Helicon. Subst. Heliconeum, hill near Athenaeum, the city in the spiritual world of the Greek sages.
*** Lucifer, fabled son of Aurora, or of Jupiter, morning star, day.
To the above I shall add the following Memorabilia.
The first is this: One day, being in the spirit, I wandered over various parts of the spiritual world that I might observe the representations of heavenly things which are to be seen in many places there. In a certain house, where there were angels, I saw large money-bags, containing a great quantity of silver; and as these were open, it seemed as if any one might take out, or even steal, the silver deposited there; but near them were two young men, who acted as guards. The place where the bags were laid looked like a manger in a stable. In an adjoining room were some modest maidens, in the company of a chaste married woman. Near the room were standing two children, who, I was told, were above being played with as infants, but should be treated as wise persons. Then I saw a courtesan, and a horse lying dead.
When I had seen these things, I was informed that they represented the natural sense of the Word, within which is the spiritual sense. The large money-bags full of silver signified knowledge of truth in great abundance. The fact that they were open, and yet guarded by young men, signified that every one might take from them knowledge of truth, but that care must be taken lest any one should violate the spiritual sense, which contains pure truths. The manger, like that in a stable, signified nourishment for the understanding. This is the signification of a manger, for a horse, which eats from it, signifies the understanding. The modest maidens, who were seen is the adjoining room, signified the affections of truth; the chaste married woman, the conjunction of good and truth; and the children, the innocence of wisdom. For the angels of the highest heaven, who are the wisest of all, appear at a distance, from their innocence like little children. The courtesan, with the dead horse, represented the falsification of truth by many at the present day, by which all understanding of truth perishes, because a courtesan signifies falsification, and a dead horse, an understanding dead to all truth.
They informed me that writing in the third heaven consisted of letters inflected and variously curved, each of which contained a certain meaning; that the vowels there represented sound, which corresponds to affection; that in that heaven they cannot pronounce the vowels i and e, but employ instead of them y and eu; and that the vowels a, o, and u are in use among them, because these have a full sound. They also said that they did not sound any consonants hard, but soft, and for this reason certain Hebrew letters had dots within them, as a sign that they should have a soft pronunciation. They added that a hardness in sounding letters was in use in the spiritual heaven, because there the angels are in truths; and truth admits of hardness; but not so, good in which are the angels of the Lord’s celestial or third heaven. They said, moreover, that they had the Word among them written in letters inflected with the up-tuned flourishes (tittles) which have a meaning of their own. From this it was plain what is signified by these words of the Lord:
“One jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.” Matt. v. 18;
and also
“It is easier for heaven and earth to pass, than one tittle of the law to fail.” Luke xvi. 17.
[3] It may be stated, as a circumstance not already known, that the ancient Word which existed in Asia before the Israelitish Word, is still preserved among the people of Great Tartary.* I have conversed in the spiritual world with spirits and angels from that country, who informed me that the inhabitants possess a Word, and have possessed it from ancient times, according to which they observe their own form of Divine worship, and which consists of pure correspondences. They said also that it contains the Book of Jasher which is mentioned in Joshua x. 12, 13, and in 2 Sam. i. 17, 18; and also that they possess the Books called “The Wars of Jehovah” and “The Enunciations,” which are mentioned by Moses in Numbers xxi. 14, 15, and 27 to 30. When I read to them the words that Moses quoted from these Books, they looked up to see whether they were in the original, and they found them there. It was thus evident to me that they still possess the ancient Word. In the course of our conversation they said that they worship Jehovah, some as an invisible, and some as a visible God.
[4] They told me further that they do not allow strangers to come among them, except the Chinese, with whom they cultivate peaceful relations, because the Emperor of China is from their country. They also said that they are so numerous that they do not believe there is another country in the whole world more densely populated. This, indeed, is credible from the great length of the wall which the Chinese built long ago as a protection against invasion from that people. I have, moreover, heard from angels that the early chapters of Genesis, which treat of creation, Adam and Eve, the Garden of Eden, and their children and posterity till the Flood, and of Noah and his sons, are also contained in that Word, from which they were copied by Moses. The angels and spirits from Great Tartary occupy a southern district towards the East, and live in isolation, as the country they inhabit is an elevated plateau, to which they admit no one from the Christian world. Should any make their way up they are placed under guard and not allowed to depart. They live thus isolated because they possess a different Word.
* Tartaria, Tartary, country of Central Asia.
[2] When he heard me mention the difference between the spiritual and the natural, he said: “What is the difference? Is it not like that between what is more and what is less pure? Thus, what is the spiritual but a purer degree of the natural?” I replied, “Such is not the difference. The natural can never by any sublimation become the spiritual. The difference is like that between prior and posterior, and between these there is no finite ratio. For the prior is in the posterior, as a cause is in its effect; and the posterior is from the prior, as an effect is from its cause. The one, therefore, is not apparent to the other.” Thereupon the wise youth replied: “I have given consideration to this difference, but so far to no purpose. I wish I could perceive it.” So I said: “Not only shall you perceive the distinction between the spiritual and the natural, but you shall also see it.”
I then proceeded as follows: “You are in a spiritual state when with your companions, but in a natural state when with me. You converse with them in the spiritual language, which is common to every spirit and angel, but you converse with me in my native tongue; for every spirit and angel, when conversing with a man, uses that man’s own language, consequently French with a Frenchman, Greek with a Greek, Arabic with an Arab, and so on.
[3] That you may know the difference between spiritual and natural language, go and say something to your friends. Then, retaining the words in your memory, return and repeat them to me.” He did so, and returning with the words on his lips, he uttered them; and the words proved to be utterly strange and foreign, such as are not found in any language in the natural world. From this experiment, several times repeated, it became clear that all in the spiritual world speak a spiritual language, which has nothing in common with any natural language; and that every man comes of himself into that language after death. I once proved also that the very sound of spiritual language differs so much from that of natural language that even a loud spiritual sound is quite inaudible to a natural man, and a natural sound to a spiritual man.
[4] Afterwards I asked him and some bystanders to withdraw to their friends, write a sentence on a piece of paper, and then return to me with the paper and read it. They did so, and returned with the paper in their hands; but when they proceeded to read it, they could not, for the writing consisted only of certain alphabetic characters, with little curves above, each of which had some particular meaning. Since each letter of the alphabet there has a particular meaning, it is evident why the Lord is called the Alpha and the Omega. After repeatedly withdrawing, writing on and returning to read what they had written, they found that their writing involved and comprehended innumerable things which natural language could in no wise express; and they were told that this was because the spiritual man’s thoughts are incomprehensible and ineffable to the natural man, and cannot be expressed in any other writing or language.
[5] Thereupon, as the bystanders would not see for themselves how spiritual thought so far transcends natural thought that it can only be expressed relatively, I said to them: “Try this experiment. Withdraw to your spiritual society, think on some subject, and then, retaining your thoughts, return and express them to me.” They withdrew, thought upon a subject, retained their thoughts, and returned; but when they proceeded to express what they had thought on the matter, they could not, for they found that idea of natural thought adequate to express any idea of purely spiritual thought. They were thus unable to find words to express it for ideas of thought become words in speech. After repeating this experiment frequently, they became convinced that spiritual ideas are supernatural, inexpressible, ineffable, and incomprehensible to the natural man. Because these are so transcendent they said that spiritual ideas or thoughts were, relatively to natural ideas, ideas of ideas, and thoughts of thoughts, and therefore that they expressed qualities of qualities, and affections of affections; and consequently that spiritual thoughts were the beginnings and origins of natural thoughts. Thus it was evident that spiritual wisdom was the wisdom of wisdom, and therefore inexpressible by any man, however wise, in the natural world.
[6] It was then declared from the higher heaven, that there is a wisdom still more interior or higher, called celestial, bearing the same relation to spiritual wisdom as spiritual wisdom bears to natural; and that celestial, spiritual, and natural wisdom proceed by influx according to the order of the heavens, from the Lord’s Divine Wisdom, which is infinite. Upon this the man who was conversing with me said: “I see this, because I perceive that one natural idea, contains many spiritual ideas, and one spiritual idea contains many celestial ideas. It follows from this that, what is analyzed does not become more and more simple, but more and more complex, because it approaches nearer and nearer to the infinite, which contains all things infinitely.”
[7] These explanations being completed. I said to the bystanders: “From these three experiments you see the nature of the difference between spiritual and natural; and also the reason why the natural man is invisible to the spiritual man, and the spiritual to the natural, although they are both in a perfect human form. Because of this form it would appear that each should see the other; but interior things, belonging to the mind, constitute that form, and the minds of spirits and angels are formed of spiritual things, while the minds of men, so long as they live in the world, are formed of natural things.” After this a voice was heard from the higher heaven saying to one of those standing by, “Come up hither.” He went up, and on his return, he said that the angels had not previously known the differences between the spiritual and the natural, because never before had they been given the opportunity to compare the two in one man who was in both worlds at the same time, and without such comparison those differences could not be known.
[8] Before we separated we had some further conversation on this subject, and I said: “Those differences exist solely because you in the spiritual world are substantial, and not material; and material things have their beginnings in substantial things, for matter is but the aggregation of substances. Accordingly, you are in a world of origins and elementaries, but we in a world of derivatives and composites. You are in particulars, but we in generals; and as generals cannot enter into particulars, so neither can natural things, which are material, enter into spiritual things, which are substantial, any more than a ship’s cable can enter or be drawn through the eye of a sewing needle, or a nerve enter one of the fibres of which it is composed. This, then, is the reason why the natural man cannot conceive the thoughts which the spiritual man thinks, and consequently cannot express them in words; what, therefore, Paul heard from the third heaven he called ineffable.
[9] Moreover, to think spiritually is to think apart from time and space, but to think naturally is to think in time and space, for to every idea of natural thought there adheres something of time and space, but not to any idea of spiritual thought. This is because the spiritual world is not in space and time, as the natural world is, but only in their semblance. In this respect also spiritual thoughts and perceptions differ from natural. For this reason you can think of the Essence and the Omnipresence of God as existing from eternity, that is, you can think of God as existing before the creation of the world, because you think of the Essence of God apart from time, and of His Omnipresence apart from space; and thus you comprehend things which transcend the natural ideas of man.”
[10] I then related to them that once I was thinking about the Essence and Omnipresence of God from eternity, that is, concerning God before the creation of the world. As I could not yet remove space and time from the ideas of my thought, I became anxious, because there entered my mind the idea of nature instead of God; but I was told to remove the ideas of space and time, and I should see. I was enabled to remove them, and I saw; and from that time I have been able to think of God as existing from eternity but not at all of nature as existing from eternity, because God is in all time apart from time, and in all space apart from space; whereas nature in all time is in time, and in all space is in space. Thus nature, with her time and space, must have had a beginning, but not, so God, who is apart from time and space; therefore nature is from God, not from eternity, but in time, together with her time and space.
[2] (2) After some days they perceive that they are in a world where there are established various societies, called the world of spirits, which is intermediate between heaven and hell. All the innumerable societies there are wonderfully arranged according to natural affections, both good and evil; those arranged according to good natural affections have communication with heaven, and those according to evil affections with hell.
[3] (3) The newly arrived spirit, or spiritual man, is conducted from place to place, and is introduced to various societies, both good and bad, and observations are made of his reaction to good and truth, and to evil and falsity.
[4] (4) If he is responsive to good and truth, he is led away from evil and introduced into good societies, visiting one after another till he comes to one which corresponds with his own natural affection. There he enjoys the good which corresponds with that affection, till he puts off the natural affection and puts on the spiritual; and then he is raised up into heaven. This, however, takes place with those who in the world have lived a life of charity and thus also of faith, which means that they have believed on the Lord, and shunned evils as sins.
[5] (5) Some have confirmed themselves in falsities by rational conviction, especially by means of the Word. They, therefore, have lived a life merely natural, and thus evil, for falsities attend evils, and evils adhere to falsities. These, because they are not responsive to good and truth, but to evil and falsity, are led away from good and introduced in turn into evil societies, till they arrive at one which corresponds with the lusts of their love.
[6] (6) As these, however, while in the world had assumed the appearance of good affections in their outward life, although in their internals these were nothing but evil affections or lusts, they are kept at times in their externals. Those who had exercised authority over communities of men in the world, are set over one or other of the societies in the world of spirits, over the whole or over a part, according to the extent of the authority they formerly exercised. But because they have no love for truth and justice, and cannot even be taught to know what truth and justice are, after a few days they are deposed. I have seen such men transferred from one society to another, and the administration in each entrusted to them; but I have seen them just as often deposed, after a brief spell of office.
[7] (7) After frequent deposition some, becoming tired, do not wish, and others, becoming afraid at the loss of their reputation, have not the heart to seek further office. They therefore retire and settle down, sadder men. They are then led away to a sequestered district where there are cottages which they occupy. Work of some kind is there given them to do; and if they do it they receive food. If they do not work, they go hungry, so that necessity compels them to work. Food there is similar to the food in our world, but it has a spiritual origin, and is given from heaven by the Lord to all according to the uses they perform: to the idle none is given, for they perform no use.
[8] (8) After a time they become tired of their work, and then they go outside their cottages. If they have been priests they have a longing to build; and immediately there appear piles of hewn stones, bricks, beams, and boards; also heaps of reeds and rushes, of clay, lime and pitch. At the sight of these materials their desire to build is roused, and they begin to construct a house, taking up now a stone, now a piece of timber, now a reed, and now some mortar. These they place one upon another at random, but to their own eyes, in due order. However, what they build by day, collapses at night. Next day they make a collection from the fallen rubbish and build again; and this they do till they are tired of building. All this is done from correspondence, for they had been in the habit of collecting passages from the Word to confirm the falsities of their faith; and this is the manner in which falsities build up a Church.
[9] (9) After a time they go away weary, and sit down in solitary idleness: and since, as was just stated, no food is given from heaven to the idle, they begin to grow hungry, and their only thoughts are how to obtain food to satisfy their craving. When in this state there come to them certain people of whom they ask alms, but these say: “Why do you sit thus idle? Come home with us, and we will give you work to do, and feed you.” Then they gladly get up and go home with them; and each has his work assigned to him, and receives food for doing it. All, however, who have confirmed themselves in falsities of faith, cannot do works of any good use, but only works of evil use; and, moreover, they do not perform their tasks faithfully but fraudulently and unwillingly. So they neglect their work, and care only to move about, talk, go for a walk and sleep; and as they cannot be induced by their masters to do any more work, they are dismissed as useless.
[10] (10) When dismissed, they eagerly look around, and they see a path leading to a cavern. When they reach it the door is opened; they enter and ask if there is any food within. On being told that there is they ask permission to remain. Permission is granted; they are admitted and the door is closed behind them. Then the overseer of the cavern comes and says: “You cannot go out of this place any more. You see your companions; they all work, and according to what they do food is given them from heaven. I am telling you this that you may know.” Their companions also say to them: “Our overseer knows for what work each one is fitted and he apportions it daily. When you finish it food is given to you; but if you do not finish it neither food nor clothing is given. If any one does any injury to another, he is thrown into a corner of the cavern on to a bed of noisome dust where he is miserably tortured. This continues till the overseer perceives in him some sign of penitence. Then he is released and ordered back to his work.”
[11] He is also told that every one is at liberty after his work to go for a walk, converse, and afterwards go to sleep. He is also taken to a remoter part of the cavern where there are courtesans. He is permitted to take one of these for himself, and call her his wife; but any breach of marital relations is forbidden under pain of punishment.
It is of such caverns, which are nothing but eternal work-houses, that hell consists. I have been permitted to enter and examine several of them, in order that I might make this known. All who were there appeared to be degraded; and not one of them knew who, or in what employment, he had been in the world. However, the angel who accompanied me, pointed out to me one who had been a servant in the world, one a soldier, one an officer, one a priest, one a person of rank, and one a man of great wealth. Yet they did not know but that they had been slaves and companions of a like nature, because they had been inwardly alike, although outwardly unlike; and in the spiritual world all are associated according to their interiors.
[12] In general, the hells consist exclusively of such caverns or workhouses, but those where satans dwell differ from those where devils dwell. Those are called satans who have been principled in falsities and consequently in evils; and devils, those who have been principled in evils, and consequently in falsities. In the light of heaven satans appear livid like corpses, or dark like mummies; while devils appear with a swarthy glow, or black like soot; but in features and form all are monstrous. Yet in their own light, which is like that from burning charcoal, they do not look like monsters, but like men. This appearance is granted them that they may be capable of mutual association.
THE CATECHISM OR DECALOGUE EXPLAINED AS TO ITS EXTERNAL AND INTERNAL SENSES
There is not a nation in the whole world which does not know that it is evil to murder, to commit adultery, to steal and to bear false witness; also that unless precautions against these evils were taken by means of laws there would be an end of kingdoms, republics, indeed of any form of established society whatever. No one therefore can suppose that the Israelitish nation was so particularly stupid as not to know that these were evils. One may wonder then that those laws, universally known throughout the world, should have been promulgated in so miraculous a manner from Mount Sinai by Jehovah Himself. The reason why they were so miraculously promulgated was that men might know that those laws were not only civil and moral but also Divine laws; and that to act contrary to them was not only to do evil against the neighbor, that is, against one’s fellow citizen and the state, but also to sin against God. Therefore those laws, by their promulgation from Mount Sinai by Jehovah, became also laws of religion. It is evident that whatever Jehovah commands, He commands as a principle of religion, to be observed for the sake of salvation. But before an explanation of the commandments is given, something must be said concerning their holiness, that it may be clear that they are essentially religious.
The Commandments of the Decalogue were the first principles of the Word, and consequently the first principles of the Church which was to be established among the Israelitish nation. They were moreover in short summary form an epitome of the whole of religion by which is effected the conjunction of God with man, and of man with God; consequently they were holy above all else. Their supreme holiness is clearly evident from the following circumstances. Jehovah Himself, the Lord, attended by angels, descended upon Mount Sinai in fire, and thence promulgated them by word of mouth. Bounds were set about the Mount lest anyone should approach and die. Neither the priests nor the Elders drew near, but Moses only. The Commandments were written on two tables of stone by the finger of God. The face of Moses shone when he brought down the two tables the second time. The tables were afterwards deposited in the ark, and this was placed in the inmost sanctuary of the tabernacle. Over the ark was placed the mercy-seat, above which were placed the golden cherubim. The inmost sanctuary of the tabernacle, where the ark was kept, was called the Holy of holies. Outside the veil, behind which was the ark, were placed many objects representing the holy things of heaven and the Church, namely, the table overlaid with gold, on which was the shew-bread, the golden altar of incense, and the golden lampstand with seven lamps, and also the curtains round about, made of fine linen, purple and scarlet. The holiness of the whole of this tabernacle was derived solely from the Law which was in the ark. On account of this holiness of the tabernacle, arising from the Law in the ark, all the people of Israel mere commanded to encamp about it in order, according to their tribes, and to march in order after it, when a cloud was over it by day, and a fire by night. On account of the holiness of the Law, and the presence of Jehovah in it, Jehovah talked with Moses from over the mercy seat between the cherubim, and the ark was called “The Presence of Jehovah.” Aaron was not permitted to enter within the veil, except with sacrifices and incense, lest he should die.
On account of the presence of Jehovah in and about the Law miracles were also wrought by the ark, within which was the Law. Thus the waters of Jordan were divided, and while the ark rested in the midst of the river, the people passed over on dry ground. The walls of Jericho fell because the ark was carried round them. Dagon, the god of the Philistines, first fell down on his face before it, and afterwards lay, with his head and the palms of his hands cut off, upon the threshold of his temple. The Bethshemites, to the number of many thousands, were smitten on account of it, and Uzzah died because he touched it. The ark was brought, with sacrifice and jubilations, to Zion by David; and afterwards by Solomon into the temple at Jerusalem, where it constituted the sanctuary. From these and many other circumstances it is manifest that the Decalogue was holiness itself in the Israelitish Church.
Jehovah descended in fire on Mount Sinai, and then the mountain smoked and trembled, and there were thunders and lightnings, a thick cloud and the voice of a trumpet, Exod. xix. 16-18; Deut. iv. 11; v. 22-26.
The people, before the descent of Jehovah, prepared and sanctified themselves three days, Exod. xix. 10, 11, 15.
Bounds were set round about the Mount, lest anyone should approach or touch the border of it, and die; and not even the priests were permitted to approach, but Moses only, Exod. xix. 12, 13, 20-24; xxiv. 1, 2.
The Law was promulgated from Mount Sinai, Exod. xx. 2-17; Deut. v. 6-21.
The Law was inscribed on two tables of stone, and written with the finger of God. Exod. xxxi. 18: xxxii. 15, 16; Deut. ix. 10.
When Moses brought the tables down from the mountain the second time, his face so shone that he covered his face with a veil while he talked with the people. Exod. xxxiv. 29-25.
The tables were laid up in the ark. Exod. xxv. 16; xl. 20; Deut. x. 5; 1 Kings viii. 9.
The mercy-seat was put over the ark, and the cherubim of gold placed over the mercy-seat. Exod. xxv. 17-21.
The ark with the mercy-seat and the cherubim was put in the tabernacle, and constituted the first and thus the inmost part of it; the table overlaid with gold, on which was the shew-bread, the golden altar of incense, and the candlestick with the lamps of gold, constituted the outer part of the tabernacle; and the ten curtains of fine linen, purple and scarlet, constituted its outermost part. Exod. xxv. 1 to the end; xxvi. 1 to the end; xl. 17-28.
The place where the ark was kept was called the Holy of holies. Exod. xxvi. 33.
The whole of the people of Israel encamped round about the tabernacle in order, according to their tribes, and marched in order after it. Num. ii. 1 to the end.
Then there was a cloud over the tabernacle by day, and fire by night. Exod. xl. 38; Num. ix. 15 to the end; xiv. 14; Deut. i. 33.
Jehovah spoke with Moses above the ark, between the cherubim. Exod. xxv. 22; Num. vii. 89.
The ark, because of the Law which was in it, was called, “The Presence of Jehovah”; for when the ark set forward, Moses said, “Rise up, JEHOVAH,” and when it rested, “Return, JEHOVAH,” Num. x. 35, 36; and see further, 2 Sam. vi. 2; Ps. cxxxii. 7, 8.
On account of the holiness of the Law it was not lawful for Aaron to enter within the veil, except with sacrifices and incense. Lev. xvi. 2-14 and following verses.
Because of the presence of the Lord’s power in the Law which was in the ark, the waters of Jordan were divided, and while it rested in the middle, the people passed over on dry ground. Joshua iii. 1-17; iv. 5-20.
When the ark was carried about the walls of Jericho they fell down. Josh. vi. 1-20.
Dagon, the god of the Philistines, fell to the ground before the ark, and afterwards lay, with his head and the palms of his hands cut off, upon the threshold of his temple. 1 Sam. v.
The Bethshemites, to the number of many thousands, were smitten on account of the ark. 1 Sam. v. and vi.
Uzzah died because he touched the ark. 2 Sam. vi. 7.
The ark was brought to Zion by David with sacrifices and jubilations. 2 Sam. vi. 1-19;
and it was brought by Solomon into the temple at Jerusalem, where it constituted the sanctuary. 1 Kings vi. 19 and following verses; and viii. 3-9.
“Behold, I stand at the door and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to Him, and will sup with him, and he with me.” Rev. iii. 20.
The tables of stone, on which the Law was written, were called the tables of the covenant, and the ark was called from them the ark of the covenant, and the Law itself the covenant, as may be seen in Num. x. 33; Deut. iv. 13, 23; v. 2, 3; ix. 9; Joshua iii. 3, 11; 1 Kings viii. 21; Rev. xi. 19; and in other places.
Since a covenant signifies conjunction, it is said of the Lord
that “He will be for a covenant to the people.” Isa. xlii. 6; and xlix. 8.
He is also called the angel of the covenant. Mal. iii. 1;
and His blood the blood of the covenant. Matt. xxvi. 28; Zech. ix. 11; and Exod. xxiv. 4-10.
And therefore the Word is called the old covenant and the new covenant; for covenants are entered into for the sake of love, friendship, association and conjunction.
therefore the Commandments of the Law are called the ten words. Exod. xxxiv. 28: Deut. iv. 13; and x. 4.
They are so called because ten signifies all, and words signify truths; for there were more than ten words. That ten signifies all, and tithes were appointed on account of that signification, may be seen in “The Apocalypse Revealed,” No. 101; and that the Law comprises all things of religion will be seen in what follows.
It is well known that in the Word the Decalogue is called pre-eminently the Law, because it contains everything that pertains to doctrine and life; and not only everything regarding God, but also everything regarding man. The Law was therefore written on two tables, one treating of God, and the other of man. It is also known that everything pertaining to doctrine and life has reference to love to God and love towards the neighbor; and everything pertaining to these loves is contained in the Decalogue. This is the teaching of the whole Word, as is evident from the following words of the Lord:
“Jesus said … Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind … and thy neighbor as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.” Matt. xxii. 37-10.
The Law and the Prophets signify the whole Word. And again:
A certain lawyer, tempting Jesus, said: “Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” and Jesus said unto him: “What is written in the Law? how readest thou? And he answering said, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbor as thyself.” And Jesus said: “This do, and thou shalt live.” Luke x. 25-28.
Now since love to God and love towards the neighbor are the whole of the Word, and the first table of the Decalogue contains in summary form all things relating to love to God, and the second, all things relating to love towards the neighbor, it follows that the Decalogue contains everything that pertains to doctrine and life. When one considers the two tables it is evident that they are so connected that God from His table regards man, and man in his turn from his table regards God; and thus the regard is reciprocal. Moreover it is such that God, on His part, never ceases to regard man, and to do whatever may concern his salvation; and if man receives and does what is written in his table, reciprocal conjunction is effected, and the result is according to the Lord’s promise in His words to the lawyer: “This do, and thou shalt live.”
“This is the law of the trespass offering.” Lev. vii. 1.
“This is the law of the sacrifice of peace offerings.” Lev. vii. 11.
“This is the law of the meat offering.” Lev. vi. 14 and following verses.
“This is the law of the burnt offering, of the meat offering, and of the sin offering, and of the trespass offering, and of the consecrations.” Lev. vii. 37.
“This is the law of the beasts, and of the fowl.” Lev. xi. 46, 47.
“This is the law for her that hath born a male or a female.” Lev. xii. 7.
“This is the law of leprosy.” Lev. xiii. 59; xiv. 2, 32, 54, 57.
“This is the law of him that hath an issue.” Lev. xv. 32.
“This is the law of jealousy.” Num. v. 29, 30.
“This is the law of the Nazirite.” Num. vi. 13, 21.
This is the law (of cleansing). Num. xix. 14.
This is the law of a red heifer. Num. xix. 2.
The law for a king. Deut. xvii. 15-19.
The whole Book of Moses indeed is called the Law:
Deut. xxxi. 9, 11, 12, 26; and also in the New Testament, as in Luke ii. 22; xxiv. 44; John i. 45; vii. 23; viii. 5; and in other places.
By the works of the Law Paul means these statutes when he says:
“A man is justified by faith without the deeds of the Law.” Rom. iii. 28.
This is evident from what there follows, and also from his words to Peter whom he blamed for Judaising, saying three times in one verse,
that no man is justified by the works of the Law. Gal. ii. 16.
That the Law in its widest sense means the whole Word is evident from the following passages:
Jesus said, “Is it not written in your Law…. Ye are gods?” John x. 34.
This is written in Ps. lxxxi. 6,
“The people answered Him, We have heard out of the Law that Christ abideth for ever.” John xii. 34;
this is in Ps. lxxxix. 20; Ps. cx. 4; Dan. vii. 14,
“That the word might be fulfilled that is written in their Law, They hated me without a cause.” John xv. 25;
this is written in Ps. xxxv. 10,
The Pharisees said, “Have any of the rulers … believed on Him? but this people who knoweth not the Law…” John vii. 48, 49.
“It is easier for heaven and earth to pass, than one tittle of the Law to fail.” Luke xvi. 17.
By the Law in these and in many other passages in David is meant the whole Sacred Scripture.
“The kingdom of God (A.V., heaven) is like to a grain of mustard seed, which a man took, and sowed in his field. Which indeed is the least of all seeds; but when it is grown, it is the greatest among herbs, and becometh a tree, so that the birds of the air come and lodge in the branches thereof.” Matt. xiii. 31, 32; Mark iv. 31, 32; Luke xiii. 18, 19. Compare also Ezekiel xvii. 2-8.
The infinity of spiritual seeds, or truths in the Word, may be evident from the wisdom of the angels, which is wholly from the Word, and which increases with them to eternity. The wiser they become the more clearly do they see that wisdom is without end; and they perceive that they are only in its entrance hall, and cannot, even in the smallest degree, attain to the Lord’s Divine Wisdom, which they call a fathomless deep. Now since the Word has come out of this fathomless deep, because it is from the Lord, it is clear that in all its parts there is a certain infinity.
THOU SHALT HAVE NO OTHER GOD (A.V., GODS) BEFORE ME.
These are the words of the first commandment. Exod. xx. 3, and Deut. v. 7. In the natural sense, which is the sense of the Letter, it first of all means that idols ought not to be worshiped; for there follow the words:
“Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of anything that is in the heavens (A.V., heaven) above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the waters (A.V., water) under the earth: Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I JEHOVAH thy God am a jealous God.” Exod. xx. 3-6.
This commandment first of all means that idols ought not to be worshiped, because before that time, and after it until the Lord’s Coming, idolatrous worship was prevalent in a great part of Asia. The reason for this form of worship was that all the Churches before the Lord’s Coming were representative and typical; and types and representations were such that Divine things were exhibited under various figures and sculptures; and these, when their signification was lost, the common people began to worship as gods. Such worship was observed among the Israelitish nation when in Egypt, as may be evident from the golden calf, which they worshiped in the wilderness instead of Jehovah. Moreover it is clear from many passages, both in the historical and in the prophetical Word, that they never abandoned that worship.
that no one, for thirty days, should ask any petition of God but of the king alone, on pain of being cast into the den of lions, Dan. vi. 8 to the end.
* Saturnus, Saturn, earliest king of Latium, became Roman god of civilization.
** Jupiter or Jove, son of Saturn.
*** Neptune, god of the sea.
**** Pluto, king of the lower world.
***** Apollo, god of divination, healing, poetry and music.
“It shall be said in that day, Lo, this is our God: we have waited for Him, and He will save us: This is JEHOVAH: we have waited for Him, we will be glad and rejoice in His salvation.” Isa. xxv. 9.
“The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of JEHOVAH, make straight in the desert a highway for our God…. And the glory of JEHOVAH shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together. Behold, the Lord Jehovih comes (A.V., will come) with strong hand…. He shall feed His flock like a shepherd.” Isa. xl. 3, 6, 10, 11.
“Surely God is in thee; and there is no God else. Verily thou art a God that hidest thyself, O God of Israel, the Savior.” Isa. xlv. 14, 16.
“Am not I JEHOVAH? and there is no God else besides me.” Isa. xiv. 21, 22.
“I am JEHOVAH; and besides me there is no Savior.” Isa. xliii. 11; Hos. xiii. 4.
“And all flesh shall know that I, JEHOVAH, am thy Savior and thy Redeemer.” Isa. xlix. 26; Isa. lx. 16.
“As for our Redeemer, JEHOVAH ZEBAOTH is His name.” Isa. xlvii. 4; Jer. l. 34.
“JEHOVAH is my Rock (A.V., strength) and my Redeemer.” Ps. xix. 14.
“Thus saith JEHOVAH, thy Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel; I am JEHOVAH thy God.” Isa. xlviii. 17; xliii. 14; xlix. 7; [liv.] 8.
“Thus saith JEHOVAH, thy Redeemer, … I am JEHOVAH that maketh all things … by myself.” Isa. xliv. 24.
“Thus saith JEHOVAH the King of Israel, and his Redeemer JEHOVAH ZEBAOTH; I am the first, and I am the last; and besides me there is no God.” Isa. xliv. 6.
“JEHOVAH ZEBAOTH is His name; and thy Redeemer the Holy One of Israel; The God of the whole earth shall He be called.” Isa. liv. [5,] 8.
“Though Abraham be ignorant of us, and Israel acknowledge us not: thou, JEHOVAH, art our Father, our Redeemer; thy name is from everlasting.” Isa. lxiii. 18.
“Unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given … and His name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.” Isa. ix. 6.
“Behold, the days come … that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign … and this is His name … JEHOVAH our Righteousness.” Jer. xxiii. 5, 6; xxxiii. 15, 16.
Philip said to Jesus: “Shew us the Father … Jesus saith unto him … he that hath seen me hath seen the Father…. Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me?” John xiv. 8-10.
In Jesus Christ “dwelleth till the fulness of the Godhead bodily.” Col. ii. 9.
“We are in the truth in Jesus Christ (A.V., we are in Him that is true, even in His Son Jesus Christ). This is the true God and eternal life. Little children, keep yourselves from idols.” 1 John v. 20, 21.
From these passages it is clearly evident that the Lord our Savior is Jehovah Himself, who is at once Creator, Redeemer, and Regenerator. This is the spiritual sense of this commandment.
[2] The human mind is like a house of three storeys: in the lowest are those who have confirmed their belief in three gods from eternity, while in the second and third storeys are those who acknowledge and believe in one God in a visible human form, who is the Lord God the Savior. The sensual and corporeal man, since he is merely natural, is, regarded in himself, nothing but an animal, and differs from the brute beast only in being able to speak and reason. He is, therefore, like one living in a menagerie where there are wild beasts of every kind, where now he plays the lion, now the bear, now the tiger, the leopard or the wolf. He may even play the part of the sheep; but he then laughs in his heart.
[3] The merely natural man thinks of Divine truths only in terms of worldly things, and thus from the fallacies of the senses, above which he cannot raise his mind. Therefore the doctrine of his faith may be compared to pottage made of chaff, on which he feeds as a dainty; or to the bread and cakes which Ezekiel the Prophet was commanded to make of wheat, barley, beans, lentils, and fitches, mixed with the dung of a man or of an ox, in order that he might represent the Church as it was among the Israelitish nation, Ezek. iv. 9 and following verses.
It is similar with the doctrine of the Church which is founded and built upon three divine persons from eternity, each of whom singly is God. [4] One might see the extraordinary nature of this faith if it were presented to the eye as it really is. For example, picture the three persons standing in order beside one another, the first distinguished by a sceptre and crown, the second holding in his right hand a Book, which is the Word, and in his left a cross of gold sprinkled with blood, and the third furnished with wings, standing on one foot ready to fly forth and act; and above them the inscription, “These three persons, being so many gods, are one God.” What wise man, on seeing such a picture, would not say in his heart, “Alas, what a delusion!” Different indeed would his words be if he were to see a picture of one Divine Person, with rays of heavenly light about His head, with the superscription. “This is our God, at once the Creator, Redeemer, and Regenerator, and thus the Savior.” Would not that wise man prize such a picture as this, carry it to his home in adoration, and with the sight of it bring joy to his own mind and that of his wife, and to the minds of his children and servants?
THOU SHALT NOT TAKE THE NAME OF JEHOVAH THY GOD IN VAIN; FOR JEHOVAH WILL NOT HOLD HIM GUILTLESS THAT TAKETH HIS NAME IN VAIN.
In the natural sense, which is the sense of the Letter, this commandment means not only taking the name itself in vain, but also mis-using it in various forms of conversation, especially in falsehoods or lies, in taking oaths unnecessarily or to free oneself from blame of having evil intentions-oaths which are mere imprecations-and in sorceries and incantations. To swear, however, by God and His holiness, by the Word and the Gospel, at coronations, inaugurations into the priesthood, and on appointments to positions of trust, is not to take the name of God in vain, unless he who swears, afterwards breaks his engagements. Moreover, the name of God, being itself holy, must be used constantly in the holy offices of the Church, as in prayers, hymns, and in every act of worship; and also in preaching, and in writing on ecclesiastical subjects. For God is in everything that pertains to religion; and when He is solemnly invoked He is present by means of His name, and hears; in these things the name of God is hallowed.
That the name of Jehovah God is in itself holy the very name makes evident, for the Jews, from their earliest days, have not dared to say “Jehovah”; and for their sake neither the Evangelists nor the Apostles would mention it. Instead of Jehovah they said Lord, as may be seen from various passages of the Old Testament transcribed into the New, where instead of Jehovah the name Lord is used,
as in Matt. xxii. 37, and Luke x. 27, when compared with Deut. vi. 5: and in other places.
That the name Jesus is also holy is well known from the declaration of the Apostle that at that name knees shall bow in heaven and on earth; and further because that name cannot be uttered by any devil in hell. There are many names of God which must not be taken in vain, as Jehovah, Jehovah God, Jehovah Zebaoth, the Holy One of Israel, Jesus and Christ, and the Holy Spirit.
“From the rising of the sun shall he call upon my name.” Isa. xxvi. 8, 13; [Isa. xli. 25].
“From the rising of the sun, even unto the going down of the same, my name shall be great among the Gentiles; and in every place incense shall be offered unto my name…. Ye have profaned my name in that ye say, The table of JEHOVAH is polluted … and ye have snuffed at my name when ye brought that which was torn, and the lame, and the sick.” Mal. i. 11-13.
“All people will walk every one in the name of his god, and we will walk in the name of JEHOVAH our God.” Mic. iv. 5.
They were to worship Jehovah in the one place where He should choose to place His name. Deut. xii. 6, 11, 13, 14, 18: Deut. xvi. 2, 6, 11, 15, 16;
that is, where He should establish His worship.
Jesus said, “Where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.” Matt. xviii. 20.
“But as many as received Him, to them gave He power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on His name.” John i. 12.
“But he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.” John iii. 18.
Believing, they shall have life in His name. John xx. 31.
Jesus said: “I have manifested thy name to the men … And I have declared unto them thy name.” John xvii. [6], 26.
The Lord said: “Thou hast a few names even in Sardis.” Rev. iii. 4.
In these and in many other passages the name of God means the Divine which proceeds from God and by which He is worshiped. The name Jesus Christ means everything that pertains to redemption and to His doctrine, and thus to salvation: Jesus means everything pertaining to salvation by redemption, and Christ, everything pertaining to salvation by His doctrine.
“All manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men; but the blasphemy of the Spirit (A.V., against the Holy Ghost) shall not be forgiven.” Matt. xii. 31, 32.
Blasphemy of the Spirit means blasphemy against the Divinity of the Lord’s Human, and against the holiness of the Word. That the Divine Human of the Lord is meant by the name of Jehovah God in the celestial or highest sense is evident from these passages:
Jesus said, “Father, glorify thy name. Then came there a voice from heaven, saying, I have both glorified it, and will glorify it again.” John xii. 28.
“And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If ye shall ask anything in my name, I will do it.” John xiv. 13, 14.
In the Lord’s Prayer, in the celestial sense, nothing else is signified by the words,
“Hallowed be thy name;”
likewise by His name in Exod. xxiii. 21; and in Isa. lxiii. 18. Since blasphemy of the Spirit is not remitted to man, according to the words in Matt. xii. 31, 32, and since this is the meaning in the celestial sense, therefore there is added to this commandment: “for JEHOVAH will not hold him guiltless that taketh His name in vain.”
Jesus said, “I am the good shepherd … the sheep hear His voice, and He calleth His own sheep by name, and leadeth them out.” John x. 3, 11.
The same are meant in this passage:
“I have (A.V., thou hast) a few names even in Sardis which have not defiled their garments … I will write upon him that overcometh … the name of the city, New Jerusalem … and my new name.” Rev. iii. 4, 12.
Gabriel and Michael* are not the names of two persons in heaven; but by these names are meant all those in heaven who are in wisdom concerning the Lord, and who worship Him.
The names also of persons and places in the Word do not mean persons and places, but things of the Church. Moreover, in the natural world a name does not mean the name only, but also the character of the person, because this is intimately associated with his name. For in common speech it is said of one man that he does this or that for the sake of his name, or for the reputation of his name; of another, that he has a good name, by which is meant that he is renowned for qualities that are in him, as natural ability, learning, merits, and so on. Everyone knows that he who reviles and slanders any as to his name, also reviles and slanders the actions of his life. These are associated in idea, and consequently the reputation of his name is destroyed. Similarly he who treats with ignominy the name of king, duke and potentate, casts opprobrium upon their majesty and dignity. In like manner he who employs a contemptuous tone in uttering the name of anyone, contemns at the same time the actions of his life. As this happens in the case of everyone, there is a general law in all nations forbidding the abuse and vilification of a person’s name, as this involves his character and reputation.
* Michael, the archangel.
REMEMBER THE SABBATH DAY TO KEEP IT HOLY. SIX DAYS SHALT THOU LABOR AND DO ALL THY WORK; BUT THE SEVENTH DAY IS THE SABBATH TO JEHOVAH THY GOD.
That this is the third commandment may be seen from Exod. xx. 8, 9, 10; and Deut. v. 12, 13. In the natural sense, which is the sense of the Letter, this commandment means that six days are for man and his labors; and the seventh for the Lord, and for man’s rest which comes from Him. Sabbath in the original tongue means rest. The sabbath with the children of Israel was the sanctity of sanctities, because it represented the Lord, the six days representing His labors and combats with the hells, and the seventh His victory over them, and thus rest; and because the sabbath day was representative of the fitting end of the whole of the Lord’s work of redemption, therefore it was holiness itself. However, when the Lord came into the world, and representations of Him consequently ceased, that day became a day of instruction in Divine things, and thus also a day of rest from labors, and of meditation on such matters as pertain to salvation and eternal life; and also a day for the exercise of love towards the neighbor. It became a day of instruction in Divine things, as is evident from the fact
that the Lord on that day taught in the Temple and in the synagogues, Mark vi. 2; Luke iv. 10, 31, 32; xiii. 10; and that He said to the man who was healed, “Take up thy bed and walk;” and to the Pharisees, that it was lawful for His disciples on the sabbath day to gather the ears of corn, and eat. Matt. xii. 1-9; Mark ii. 23 to the end; Luke vi. 1-6: John v. 9-19.
All these things in the spiritual sense signify instruction in matters of doctrine. That day also became a day for the exercise of love towards the neighbor, as is evident from what the Lord both did and taught on the sabbath day,
Matt. xii. 10-14; Mark iii. 1-9; Luke vi. 6-12; xiii. 10-18; xiv. 1-7; John v. 9-19; vii. 22, 23; ix. 14-16.
These and the previous passages show why the Lord said
that He is the Lord also of the sabbath. Matt. xii. 8; Mark ii. 28; Luke vi. 5;
and because He said this, it follows that the sabbath day was representative of Him.
(1) Regeneration takes place in a manner like that in which a man is conceived, carried in the womb, born and educated.
(2) The first step of the new birth is called reformation, which is of the understanding; and the second is called regeneration, which is of the will, and thence of the understanding.
(3) The internal man has first to be reformed, and afterwards the external man by means of the internal.
(4) A combat then arises between the internal and the external man; and whichever conquers rules over the other.
(5) The regenerate man has a new will and a new understanding;
and from the rest of the chapter.
The reformation and the regeneration of man are signified by this commandment in the spiritual sense because they are analogous to the Lord’s labors and combats with the hells, to His victory over them, and to His subsequent rest. For the Lord reforms and regenerates man, and makes him spiritual, in the same way as He glorified His Human and made it Divine. This is what is meant by “following Him.” That the Lord had His combats, and that they are called labors, is evident from Isa. liii. And lxiii.; and that man’s struggles are also called labors may be seen in Isa. lxv. 23, and Rev. ii. 2, 3.
“For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon His shoulder: and His name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace. Of the increase of His government and peace there shall be no end.” Isa. ix. 6, 7.
Jesus said, “Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you.” John xiv. 27.
Jesus said, “These things have I spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace.” John xvi. 33.
“How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of Him that bringeth good tidings, that publisheth peace … that saith … Thy King (A. V., God) reigneth!” Isa. lii. 7.
“Jehovah shall deliver (A. V., hath delivered) my soul in peace.” Ps. lv. 18.
“The work of Jehovah is (A. V., of righteousness shall be) peace; and the effect of righteousness, quietness and assurance forever. And my people shall dwell in a peaceable habitation, and in sure dwellings, and in quiet resting places.” Isa. xxxii. 17, 18.
Jesus said to the Seventy whom He sent forth, “Into whatsoever house ye enter, first say, ‘The peace of the Lord. (A. V., Peace be to this house.) And if a son of peace be there, your peace shall rest upon him.'” (A. V., upon it). Luke x. 5, 6; Matt. xii. 12, 13, 14.
“He will speak peace unto His people…. Righteousness and peace shall kiss each other.” (A.V., have kissed.) Ps. lxxxv. 8, 10.
When the Lord Himself appeared to His disciples, He said, “Peace be unto you.” John xx. 19, 21, 26.
Moreover, the state of peace into which the faithful will be admitted by the Lord is treated of in Isa. lxv. and lxvi., and in other places. Into this state those will come who are received into the New Church which is now being established by the Lord. What that peace is, in its essence, which is enjoyed by the angels, and by those who are in the Lord, may be seen in the work on “Heaven and Hell,” Nos. 284-290. From these considerations also, it is evident why the Lord calls Himself Lord of the Sabbath, that is, of rest and peace.
“They shall sit every man under his vine and under his fig-tree; and none shall make them afraid.” Mic. iv. 4; Isa. lxv. 21, 23.
It may also be likened to recreation of the mind, and rest after heavy toil; and to the consolation mothers feel after they have brought forth, when their mother love begins to manifest its delights. It may be likened also to the calm after storms, dark clouds and thunder; and to spring after the close of a severe winter, when the lands seem to express their joy in the tender shoots, and the gardens, fields and woods, in their buds and blossoms. It may also be compared to the state of mind of those who, after storms and dangers at sea, reach port and set foot on the longed-for land.
HONOR THY FATHER AND THY MOTHER, ONLY THAT THY DAYS MAY BE PROLONGED, AND THAT IT MAY BE WELL WITH THEE IN THE LAND.
So reads this commandment is Exod. xx. 12, and in Deut. v. 16. By ‘honoring thy father and thy mother’ in the natural sense, which is the sense of the Letter, is meant honoring parents, being obedient and attentive to them, and showing gratitude to them for benefits. For they feed and clothe their children, and introduce them into the world, where they may play their part as public-spirited and moral persons; and they also lead them to heaven, by the precepts of religion. Thus parents provide not only for the temporal well-being of their children, but also for their eternal happiness; and all these things they do from the love implanted in them by the Lord, in whose stead they act. In a limited sense this commandment means the honoring of guardians by their wards whose parents are dead. In a wider sense, it means honoring the king and magistrates, since they provide what is necessary for the whole community in general, as parents do for their families in particular. In the widest sense, it means that men should love their country, since it nourishes and protects them; and therefore their country is called their Father-land from the word father: but parents also must pay honor to their country, and to their king and magistrates, and teach their children to do the same.
“Call no man your father upon the earth: for one is your Father, which is in heaven.” Matt. xxiii. 9.
This was said for children and angels in heaven, but not for children and men on earth. The Lord teaches the same thing in the common prayer of the Christian Churches, “Our Father, who art in the heavens, hallowed be thy name.” In the spiritual sense, mother means the Church, because, as a mother on earth nourishes her children with natural food, so the Church nourishes her children with spiritual food. In the Word, therefore, the Church is everywhere called mother, as in Hosea,
“Plead with your mother … for she is not my wife, neither am I her husband.” Hos. ii. 2, 5;
and in Isaiah,
“Where is the bill of your mother’s divorcement, whom I have put away?” Isa. l. 1; and in Ezek. xvi. 45; xix. 10;
and in the Evangelists:
Jesus, stretching forth His hand toward the disciples, said, “My mother and my brethren are these which hear the Word of God, and do it.” Matt. xii. 48, 49; Mark iii. 33-35; Luke viii. 21; John xix. 25-27.
“Unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given, and His name shall be called … The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.” Isa. ix. 6.
“Thou art our Father, though Abraham be ignorant of us, and Israel acknowledge us not: Thou …. art our Father, our Redeemer; thy name is from everlasting.” Isa. lxiii. 18.
Philip said, “Show us the Father … Jesus saith unto him …. He that seeth me seeth the Father (A.V., hath seen) and how sayest thou then, Show us the Father? . . . Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father in me.” John xiv. 8-11; John xii. 46.
That the Church of the Lord is meant by mother in this sense is evident from these passages:
“I saw the holy city, New Jerusalem … prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.” Rev. xxi. 2.
The angel said to John, “Come hither, I will show thee the bride, the Lamb’s wife … and he showed me that … city, the Holy Jerusalem.” Rev. xxi. 9, 10.
“The marriage of the Lamb is come, and His wife hath made herself ready … Blessed are they which are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb.” Rev. xix. 7, 9;
and see also Matt. ix. 15; Mark ii. 19, 20; Luke v. 34, 35: John iii. 29: [xix.] 25-27.
By the New Jerusalem is meant the New Church, which is at this day being established by the Lord, as may be seen in “The Apocalypse Revealed,” Nos. 880, 881. It is this Church, and not the former, which is the wife and mother in this sense. The spiritual offspring, which are the fruits of this marriage, are the goods of charity and the truths of faith; and those who are principled in these from the Lord are called the sons of the marriage, the sons of God, and born of God.
“Praise ye JEHOVAH from the heavens … Praise ye Him, sun and moon … Praise Him from the earth, ye dragons and all deeps … fruitful trees and all cedars: Beasts, and all cattle; creeping things, and flying fowl: Kings of the earth, and all people…. Both young men and maidens.” Ps. cxlviii. 1-12;
and in Job: “But ask now the beasts, and they shall teach thee; and the fowls of the air, and they shall tell thee: or the shrub of the earth (A.V., Or speak to the earth), and it shall teach thee; and the fishes of the sea shall declare unto thee. Who knoweth not in all these that the hand of JEHOVAH hath wrought this” Job xii. 7, 8, 9.
“Ask and they shall teach” signifies observe, study, and judge from these things that the Lord Jehovih created them.
THOU SHALT NOT KILL.
This commandment, “Thou shalt not kill,” in the natural sense not only forbids killing a man, and inflicting on him any wound which may cause his death, but also mutilating his body. It also forbids any deadly injury to his name and reputation, for many hold reputation and life itself in equal estimation. In a wider natural sense murder signifies deadly enmity, hatred and revenge, for murder lurks within these like fire in wood under ashes. Infernal fire is nothing else, and therefore we speak of being inflamed with hatred, and burning with revenge. These passions are murder in intention, though not in act; and if fear of the law of retaliation and revenge were taken away from them they would break forth into act, especially if the intention is linked with treachery or ferocity. That hatred is murder is evident from these words of the Lord,
“Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not kill; and whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgment: But I say unto you, That whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of hell fire.” Matt. v. 21, 22.
This is because everything belonging to the intention belongs also to the will, and so belongs to the deed in its essential nature.
“Thus saith JEHOVAH my God; Feed the flock of the slaughter; Whose possessors slay them. Zech. xi. 4, 5, 7.
“We are killed all the day long: we are counted as sheep for the slaughter.” Ps. xliv. 22.
“Jacob shall cause them that come (A.V., He shall cause them that come of Jacob) to take root … is he slain according to the slaughter of them that are slain by him?” Isa. xxvii. 6, 7.
“The stranger (A.V., thief) cometh not but for to steal, and to kill … I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly. John x. 10;
besides in other places, as in Isa. xiv. 21; xxvi. 21; xxvii. 9 for [Ezek. xxxvii. 9]; Jer. iv. 31; Jer. xii. 3; Rev. ix. 4; Rev. xi. 7. This is why the devil is called “a murderer from the beginning.” John viii. 44.
the “Lamb standing as it had been slain.” Rev. v. 6; Rev. xiii. 8;
and by the “Lord crucified.” Rev. xi. 8; Heb. vi. 6; Gall. iii. 1.
THOU SHALT NOT COMMIT ADULTERY.
In the natural sense, this commandment means not only the committing of adultery, but also obscenity of will and conduct, and consequently impurity of thought and speech. That merely to lust is to commit adultery is evident from the words of the Lord:
“Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not commit adultery: But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh upon a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart.” Matt. v. 27, 28.
This is because lust, when in the will, acquires the nature of an act; for into the understanding enters allurement only, but into the will, intention; and the intention of lust is the deed. More, however, may be seen on this subject in the work, “Conjugial Love and Scortatory Love,” published at Amsterdam in 1768, where the following subjects are dealt with: The opposition between conjugial and scortatory love, Nos. 423-443; fornication, Nos. 444-460; the several kinds and degrees of adultery, Nos. 478-499; the lust of deflowering virgins, Nos. 501-505; the lust of indulging in varieties, Nos. 506-510; the lust of violation, Nos. 511, 512: the lust of seducing innocence, Nos. 513, 514; the imputation of love, both scortatory and conjugial, Nos. 523-531. All these things are implied by this commandment in its natural sense.
“Run to and fro through the streets of Jerusalem … and seek if ye can find a man, if there be any that executeth judgment, that seeketh the truth . . . When I had fed them to the full, they then committed adultery.” Jer. v. 1, 7.
“I have also seen in the prophets of Jerusalem an horrible thing: they commit adultery, and walk in lies.” Jer. xxiii. 14.
“They have committed villainy in Israel, and have committed adultery … and have spoken lying words in my name.” Jer. xxix. 23.
“They committed (A.V., shall commit) whoredom … because they have left off to take heed to the Lord.” Hos. iv. 10.
I will cut off “the soul that turneth after such as have familiar spirits, and after wizards, to go a whoring after them.” Lev. xx. 6.
“Lest then make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land, and they go a whoring after their gods.” Exod. xxxiv. 15.
Because Babylon above all others defiles and falsifies the Word, she is called the great whore, and it is said of her in the Revelation
“She made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication.” Rev. xiv. 8.
The angel said to John, “I will show unto thee the judgment of the great whore…. With whom the kings of the earth have committed fornication.” Rev. xvii. 1, 2.
“He hath judged the great whore, which did corrupt the earth with her fornication.” Rev. xix. 2.
Because the Jewish nation had falsified the Word, it was called by the Lord
“an adulterous generation.” Matt. xii. 39; xvi. 4; Mark viii. 38;
and “the seed of the adulterer.” Isa. lvii. 3.
There are many other places in the Word, where by adulteries and whoredoms are meant defilement and falsification of the Word,
as in Jer. iii. 6, 8; Jer. xiii. 27; Ezek. xvi. 15, 16, 26, 29, 32, 33: xxiii. 2, 3, 5, 7, 11, 14, 17: Hos. v. 3; vi. 10; Nah. iii. 4.
Moreover, adulterers may be compared to covenant-breakers, who violate their engagements; and also to the satyrs and lewd spirits of the ancients, that wandered about the woods, crying out, “Where are there virgins, betrothed maidens, and wives, with whom we may sport?” In the spiritual world adulterers actually appear like satyrs and Priapi.* They may also be compared to rank-smelling goats, and to dogs that run about the streets, looking about and smelling for other dogs to satisfy their lust. Their virility when they do become husbands, may be compared to the blossoming of tulips in spring, which after a few weeks drop their flowers and wither away.
* Priapus, god of procreation, lewd spirit or god.
THOU SHALT NOT STEAL.
In the natural sense, this commandment forbids theft, robbery, and piracy in time of peace; and, in general, the taking away of any one’s property secretly or under any pretext whatever. It extends also to all forms of imposition and unlawful gain, usury and exaction, as well as to the payment of stated contributions and taxes, and the discharge of debts. Workmen transgress this commandment, who are dishonest and fraudulent in performing their duties; merchants, who practice deception in regard to their goods, in respect of weight, measure and the accounts they render; and officers, who fail to pay soldiers their just wages. Judges also transgress against it, who are influenced by friendship, bribery, relationship, or any other cause in giving judgment, by perverting the laws and corrupting the course of justice, and who thus deprive others of property which they legally possess.
“He that entereth not by the door into the sheep-fold, but climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber … The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy.” John x. 1, 10.
“Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth but in heaven … where thieves do not break through nor steal.” Matt. vi. 19, 20.
“If thieves came to thee, if robbers by night, (how art thou cut off!) would they not have stolen till they had enough?” Gbad. Verse 5.
“They shall run to and fro in the city; they shall run upon the wall; they shall climb up upon the houses; they shall enter in at the windows like a thief.” Joel ii. 9.
“For they commit falsehood and the thief cometh in and the troop … spoileth without.” Hos. vii. 1.
THOU SHALT NOT BEAR FALSE WITNESS AGAINST THY NEIGHBOR.
To bear false witness against the neighbor, to testify falsely, means in the natural sense first of all to bear false witness before a judge, or before others not in a court of justice, against anyone accused on a groundless charge of some crime; and to affirm this by the name of God, or by anything else that is holy, or by oneself or the honor of one’s name. In a wider natural sense, this commandment forbids all kinds of lies and hypocritical practices in civil life which have an evil purpose in view; and also traducing and defaming the neighbor to the injury of his honor, his name, and his reputation, on which his whole character depends. In the widest natural sense, it forbids treachery, deceit, and premeditated evil against anyone, arising from various causes, as enmity, hatred, revenge, envy, rivalry and the like; for these evils involve the sin of false witness.
“If ye were blind, ye should have no sin: but now ye say, We see; therefore your sin remaineth.” John ix. 41.
In the Word this kind of falsity is meant by a lie, and falsity from intention is meant by deceit, as in the following passages:
“We have made a covenant with death, and with hell are we at agreement . . . we have made lies our refuge, and under falsehood have we hid ourselves.” Isa. xxviii. 15.
“This is a rebellious people, lying children, children that will not hear the law of JEHOVAH.” Isa. xxx. 9.
“From the prophet even unto the priest every one maketh a lie.” (A.V., dealeth falsely). Jer. viii. 10.
“The inhabitants thereof have spoken lies, and as for their tongue, deceit is in their mouth.” (A.V., their tongue is deceitful in their mouth). Micah vi. 12.
“Thou shalt destroy them that speak a lie.” (A.V., leasing): JEHOVAH will abhor … the deceitful man.” Ps. v. 6.
“They have taught their tongue to speak a lie … their (A.V., thine) habitation is in the midst of deceit.”* Jer. ix. 5, 6.
Since falsity is meant by a lie, therefore the Lord says
when the devil “speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own.” John viii. 44.
A lie signifies falsity and false speaking also in these passages:
Jer. xxiii. 14, 32; Ezek. xiii. 6-9; xxi. 29; Hos. vii. 1; xii. 1; Nah. iii. 1; Ps. cxx. 2, 3.
* habitare illorum in medio doli. Jer. ix. 15 (A. V., 5, 6). Note that in A. R. 624, where this text is quoted, illorum is replaced by tuum, in conformity with the Hebrew text.
Exod. xxv. 16, 21, 22; xxxi. 7, 18; xxxii. 15; xi. 20; Lev. xvi. 13; Num. xvii. 4, 10.
And because the Lord is the Truth itself, He says of Himself, that He testifieth:
that the Lord is the Truth itself, John xiv. 6; Rev. iii. [7, 14]; and that He testifieth, and is His own witness. John iii. 11; viii. 13-19; xv. 26; xviii. 37, 38.
THOU SHALT NOT COVET THY NEIGHBOR’S HOUSE; THOU SHALT NOT COVET THY NEIGHBOR’S WIFE, NOR HIS MAN-SERVANT, NOR HIS MAID-SERVANT, NOR HIS OX, NOR HIS ASS, NOR ANYTHING THAT IS THY NEIGHBOR’S.
In the Catechism* now in use, the above is divided into two commandments, one forming the ninth, which is “Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor’s house,” and the other, the tenth, which is “Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor’s wife, nor his man-servant, nor his maid servant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor anything that is thy neighbor’s.” As these two commandments constitute a unity, and form one verse in Exod. xx. 17, and in Deut. v. 21, I propose to treat them together, not because I would wish them to be joined into one, as I prefer they should be separated into two as formerly, since the commandments are called the “Ten Words.” Exod. xxxiv. 28; Deut. iv. 13; x. 4.
* This alludes to the Catechism used by the roman Catholics and also by the Lutherans; but in the Catechism of the Church of England and other Protestants, these two Commandments are united as one, and the first Commandment is divided into two.
that if anyone covets the wife of another “he hath committed adultery with her already in his heart.” Matt. v. 27, 28;
and the external man never becomes internal, nor acts as one with the internal, until lusts are removed. This also the Lord teaches when He says:
“Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees … for ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess. Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse first that which is within the cup and platter, that the outside of them may be clean also.” Matt. xxiii. 25, 26;
and He teaches the same throughout the whole chapter. The internal evils, which are characterized as Pharisaical, are the lust for what is forbidden in the first, second, fifth, sixth, seventh and eighth commandments. It is well known that the Lord, when in the world, taught the internal things of the Church, which consist in not desiring evils. He so taught that the internal and the external man should be united, for this is to be born again, the subject of the Lord’s conversation with Nicodemus, John iii.; and no one can be born again, or regenerated, and consequently become internal, except from the Lord.
In order that these two commandments should have regard to all those that precede, and include a prohibition against lusting after the evils referred to, therefore there is first mentioned the neighbor’s house, after that his wife, then the man-servant, the maid-servant, the ox, and the ass, and lastly, everything that is the neighbor’s. For the house involves all that follows, as it contains the husband, the wife, the man-servant, the maid-servant, the ox and the ass. The wife, who is next mentioned, involves what follows, for she is the mistress, as the husband is the master, in the house; and the man-servant and the maid-servant are under them, and the oxen and the asses are under the servants; and lastly, there come all things beneath or beyond these, included in the words, “anything that is thy neighbor’s.” From this, it is evident that these two commandments have regard to all those that precede in general and in particular, both in a wide and in a restricted sense.
“The flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh.” Gal. v. 17:
and by James,
“Every man is tempted when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed. Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin; and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.” James i. 14, 16;
and also by Peter:
The Lord reserves “the unjust unto the day of judgment to be punished: but chiefly them that walk after the flesh in the lust of uncleanness.” 2 Peter ii. 9, 10.
In short, these two commandments, understood according to the spiritual sense, have regard to all the evils referred to in the spiritual sense of the preceding commandments, and forbid lusting after them. The same is true of their celestial sense, and repetition of particulars is therefore unnecessary.
In eight commandments of the Decalogue, the first, the second, the fifth, the sixth, the seventh, the eighth, the ninth and the tenth, nothing is said of love to God and love towards the neighbor. It is not said that God is to be loved, or that the name of God is to be hallowed, or that the neighbor is to be loved, and thus that he should be dealt with sincerely and uprightly, but only, “Thou shalt have no other god before me; thou shalt not take the name of God in vain; thou shalt not kill; thou shalt not commit adultery; thou shalt not steal; thou shalt not bear false witness; thou shalt not covet what is thy neighbor’s.” Thus it is said in general that evil must not be willed, thought, and done against God, nor against the neighbor. Such things as relate directly to love and charity have not been commanded, but only such things as are opposed to them have been forbidden, because in so far as a man shuns evils as sins, he desires the good of love and charity. That the first principle of love to God and of love towards the neighbor is to shun evil, and the second is to do good, will be seen in the chapter on Charity.
[2] There are two opposite loves, the love of willing and doing good, and the love of willing and doing evil; the latter is infernal, and the former heavenly, for all hell is in the love of doing evil, and all heaven is in the love of doing good. Now since a man is born into evils of every kind, and consequently from his birth inclines to such things as belong to hell and as he cannot enter heaven unless he is born again, that is, regenerated, it is necessary that evils, which are of hell, must be removed before he can will the good which is of heaven; for no one can be adopted by the Lord until he is separated from the devil. How evils are removed, and man is led to good, will be shown in the two chapters on Repentance and Reformation.
[3] That evils must first be removed, before the good which a man does becomes good in the sight of God, is thus taught by the Lord in Isaiah:
“Wash you, make you clean; put away the evil of your doings from before mine eyes … learn to do well … Though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool. Isa. i. 16, 17, 18.
Similar to this is the following passage in Jeremiah:
“Stand in the gate of JEHOVAH’S house, and proclaim there this word … Thus saith JEHOVAH ZEBAOTH, the God of Israel, Amend your ways and your doings … Trust ye not in lying words, saying, The temple of JEHOVAH, The temple of JEHOVAH, The temple of JEHOVAH (that is, the Church) is here (A.V., are these). Will ye steal, murder, and commit adultery, and swear falsely…. And come and stand before me in this house, which is called by my name, and say, We are delivered, while ye do (A.V., to do) all these abominations? Is this house … become a den of robbers? Behold, even I have seen it, saith JEHOVAH.” Jer. vii. 2, 3, 4, 9, 10, 11.
[4] That prayer to God is not heard before there is washing or purification from evils, is also taught is Isaiah:
Jehovah saith, “Ah sinful nation, a people laden with iniquity … they are gone away backward… When ye spread forth your hands, I will hide mine eyes from you; yea, when ye make many prayers, I will not hear.” Isa. i. 4, 15.
That love and charity follow when a man keeps the commandments of the Decalogue, by shunning evils, is evident from these words of the Lord in John:
Jesus said, “He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him … and we will make our abode with him.” John xiv. 21, 23.
By commandments are here meant especially the commandments of the Decalogue, which are that evils must neither be done nor lusted after; for then follow the love of man to God and the love of God towards man, just as good follows when evil is removed.
1. So far as any one does not worship other gods, he worships the true God.
2. So far as any one does not take the name of God in vain, he loves what is from God.
3. So far as any one has no desire to commit murder, and to act from hatred and revenge, he wishes well to the neighbor.
4. So far as any one has no desire to commit adultery, he desires to live chastely with his wife.
5. So far as any one has no desire to steal, he practices sincerity.
6. So far as any one has no desire to bear false witness, he wishes to think and speak the truth.
7. and 8. So far as any one does not covet what is his neighbor’s, he wishes well to his neighbor in the enjoyment of his possessions.
It is therefore clear that the commandments of the Decalogue contain all that relates to love to God and love towards the neighbor; and so Paul says,
“He that loveth another hath fulfilled the law. For this, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not kill, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, Thou shalt not covet; and if there be any other commandment, it is briefly comprehended in this saying, namely, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. Love worketh no ill to his neighbor: therefore love is the fulfilling of the law.” Rom. xiii. 8, 9, 10.
To these must be added two Canons for the use of the New Church:
1. No one of himself can shun evils as sins, and do good that is good in the sight of God; but so far as anyone shuns evils as sins, he does good, not of himself, but from the Lord.
2. A man ought to shun evils as sins, and fight against them as of himself; and if he shuns evils for any other reason than that they are sins, he does not really shun them, but only prevents them from appearing before the world.
[4] A man ought to purify himself from evils and not expect the Lord to do this for him. Otherwise he would be like a servant with face and clothes covered with soot and filth, who should go to his master and say, “My lord, wash me.” Would not his master say to him, “You foolish servant, what do you mean? See, there are water, soap, and a towel; have you not hands of your own and power to use them? Wash yourself.” And the Lord God will surely say, “You have from me the means of purification, and also the will and the power. Therefore use these my gifts and endowments as your own, and you will be purified;” and so on. That the external man must be cleansed, but by means of the internal, is taught by the Lord throughout the twenty-third chapter of Matthew.
To the above will now be added four Memorabilia.
The first is as follows: I once heard loud shouts coming from the lower regions, and sounding as if bubbling through water. On the left I heard the shout, “Oh, how just they are!” on the right, “Oh, how learned!” and from behind, “Oh, how wise!” As I wondered whether there are also in hell just, learned and wise persons, I felt a strong desire to see if there are. A voice from heaven then said to me, “You shall see and hear.” I left the house in spirit, and saw before me an opening, which I approached; and as I looked down, behold there was a ladder, and by this I descended. When I got down, I saw a plain covered with shrubs, amongst which were growing thorns and nettles. I enquired whether this was hell, and I was told that it was the lower earth, which is immediately above hell. I then made my way in the direction of the various cries; and first I proceeded to the quarter from which came the shout, “Oh, how just!” and I saw a company of those who in the world had been judges, influenced by friendship and bribes. I then went towards the second cry, “Oh, how learned!” and I saw a company of those who in the world had been reasoners; and then I went in the direction of the third cry, “Oh, how wise!” and I saw a company of those who in the world had been confirmers. I went back, however, from these latter assemblies to the first, consisting of those judges who had been influenced by friendship and bribes, and who had been proclaimed just. I saw on one side as it were an amphitheater, built of brick, and roofed with black tiles; and I was told that this was their tribunal. It had three entrances on the north side, and three on the west, but none on the south and east, an indication that their decisions were not based on justice, but were arbitrary. [2] In the centre of the amphitheater a fireplace was seen, into which servants who attended to the fire were casting pieces of pine wood, dipped in sulphur and pitch, the flames of which, flickering on the plastered walls, formed pictures of birds of evening and birds of night. Now the fireplace and its flickering light forming such images, were representations of their decisions, because they were able to color the points at issue in any trial, and give them any appearance their favor directed.
[3] Half-an-hour after, I saw some old men and youths, clad in gowns and robes, enter the amphitheater. Laying aside their caps, they took their seats at tables, to proceed to judgment. As I listened, I noticed how skillfully and ingeniously, keeping their friendships in view, they twisted and perverted their judgments to give them the appearance of justice. This they did to such a degree that they themselves saw no difference between justice and injustice; and their persuasion to this effect was evident from the expression of their faces and the tone of their voices. I then received enlightenment from heaven, and this enabled me to perceive the particulars of the case in regard to right and wrong. I saw how industriously they veiled over injustice and gave it the appearance of justice, selecting some statute which favored their own side, and upon which they rested the matter in question, and by skillful argument putting everything else aside. After the trials, their decisions were reported to their clients, friends and patrons; and they, in return for the favor shown them, kept shouting for a long distance, “Oh, how just! Oh, how just!”
[4] Thereupon I conversed with the angels of heaven about these judges, and told them some of the things which I had seen and heard; and the angels said, “These judges seem to other men to be gifted with the keenest intellectual vision, although they have not the least perception of what is just and equitable. For if you take from them their motives of friendship, they sit in judgment like statues, and merely say, “I grant it; I agree to this or that.” This is because all their decisions are prejudiced, and prejudice with partiality attends the case from beginning to end. Consequently they see in it nothing but their friend’s interest, and they look askance at whatever is against him, and even frown upon it. If they do take it under consideration, they involve it in the intricacies of argument, as a spider entangles its captives in its web, and devours them. Apart, therefore, from the bias of their prejudice, they see nothing of legal right. They have been examined as to whether they could perceive legal right, but were found to be unable. At this, the inhabitants of your world will doubtless wonder; but tell them that this is a truth which the angels of heaven have verified. Since these judges have no perception of what is just, therefore in heaven we do not look upon them as men, but as monstrous images in human form, whose heads are composed of partiality, their breasts of injustice, their hands and feet of confirmation, and the soles of their feet of justice; and if justice does not favor the interest of a friend, they cast it to the ground and trample upon it. [5] But you shall now see them in their true character, for their end is near at hand.” And behold, the ground suddenly opened, the tables collapsed, together with the whole amphitheater, and the men were swallowed up, thrown into caverns and imprisoned.
I was then asked whether I wished to see them there; and, lo! I saw them with faces as if of polished steel, and bodies from the neck to the loins like graven images clothed with leopard skins, and feet like serpents. I also saw their law books, which had been piled upon the tables, turned into playing cards; and now, instead of sitting in judgment, their business was to make vermilion into paints to bedaub the faces of courtesans, and give them the semblance of beauty. After seeing these things, I desired to go to the other two assemblies of mere reasoners and mere confirmers; but a voice said to me: “Wait a little; angels from a society immediately above them will be given you as companions, and through these you will receive light from the Lord, and see marvelous things.”
[2] Having heard this, I requested the angels to conduct me to them; and they brought me to a cave from which a flight of steps led down to the lower earth. We descended, and proceeding in the direction of the cry, “Oh, how learned!” we saw several hundred persons standing in one place, and stamping on the ground. Surprised at this sight, I enquired why there were so standing and beating the ground with their feet; and I added that they should soon stamp a hollow in the ground. At this the angels smiled and said, “They appear to stand in the one place, because they have no thoughts about anything on the ground that it exists, but only as to whether it does exist, always arguing; and as long as their thought makes no progress, they seem to tread and trample upon one spot, without advancing one step forward.” The angels continued: “Such persons who come from the natural world into this, and hear that they are in another world, form themselves into companies in many places, and ask where heaven is, and where hell is, and also where God is. Moreover, even after being instructed they still begin to reason, to argue, and to dispute about whether there is a God. This happens because in the natural world to-day there are so many materialists who, in their own company and in the company of others, when the discourse turns upon religion, make the existence of God a matter of debate; and the discussion on this subject seldom terminates in the belief that there is a God. Later, these persons associate more and more with the wicked; for no one can do anything that is good from the love of good, except from God.”
[3] I was then conducted to their assembly, and to me they seemed good looking and handsomely dressed. The angels said, “This is their appearance in their own light; but if light from heaven flows down upon them, both their faces and their clothing undergo a change.” The light of heaven was admitted, and then their faces took on a dusky hue, and they seemed to be clothed in black sack-cloth; but on the removal of this light, they appeared as before. After a short time I spoke to several of the company, and said, I heard from the crowd around you the cry, ‘Oh, how learned!’ May I be permitted then to converse with you on matters of the deepest learning?” They replied: “Mention any subject you please, and we will endeavor to give you a satisfactory answer.” So I asked, “What kind of religion is necessary for the salvation of man?” To this they replied “We will divide this question into several parts; and we cannot answer until we have come to a decision upon these. Our inquiry, then, will proceed under the following heads: 1. Is religion anything? 2. Is there such a thing as salvation, or not? 3. Is there any one religion more efficacious than another? 4. Is there a heaven and a hell? 5. Is there eternal life after death? with many other points in addition.” I then raised the first question: Is religion anything? Thereupon they began to discuss this with a wealth of argument; and I begged them to refer it to the assembly. They did so, and the general answer was, that it was a matter requiring so much investigation that it could not be finished in an evening. Then I asked whether they could complete it in a year; and one of them replied that it could not be done in a hundred years. To this I rejoined: “In the meantime you are without religion; and because salvation depends upon it, you are without any conception of what salvation is, without any faith in it, or any hope of attaining it.” The same one answered, “Ought it not first to be proved whether there is such a thing as religion, what it is, and whether it is anything real? If there is such a thing, it must be for the wise; if not, but only a fiction, it must be for the common people. It is well known that religion means a bond; but the question arises, for whom? If it is only for the common people, it is nothing in itself; but if it is also for the wise, then it is something.”
[4] Thereupon I said: “You are anything but learned, because you can entertain only one subject of thought, namely, whether a thing is; and your discussion is limited to, whether a thing is, or is not. No one can be learned unless he knows something for certain, and makes progress in it, as a man makes progress in walking step by step, till he gradually attains to wisdom. Otherwise you do not touch truths even with your finger nail, but you remove them more and more out of sight. Thus, to reason only as to whether a thing is, is like reasoning as to whether a hat and a shoe will fit, without ever putting them on. It follows then that you do not know whether anything is, or whether it exists only in idea; thus whether there is such a thing as salvation, or eternal life after death, whether one religion is better than another, and whether there is a heaven and a hell. On these subjects you cannot form any conception as long as you halt at the first step, and stand there beating the sand, instead of setting one foot before the other in order to make progress. Take heed lest your minds, halting thus outside the door of decision, should interiorly harden, and become statues of salt.”
With these words I departed, and they in their indignation threw stones after me. Then they appeared to me like graven images, devoid of human reason. I asked the angels concerning their lot; and they told me that the lowest of them are sent down to a desert place, and compelled to carry burdens. There, as they are incapable of acting rationally, they babble nonsense, and at a distance appear like asses bearing burdens.
[2] One of the angels, however, said, “Let us not approach them, but let us summon one from the assembly.” So we called one, and taking him aside, we conversed on various subjects; and he advanced such confirmatory proofs as to make every one of them appear to be true. When we asked him if he could also prove the contrary points of view, he replied that he could, just as easily. Then, speaking frankly and in all sincerity, he said, “What is truth? Is there anything true in the nature of things but what man makes true? State any proposition you please, and I will make it true.” I then asked him to make this proposition true, that faith is the all in all of the Church. This he did with such skill and ingenuity that the learned by-standers were amazed, and applauded him. Thereupon I begged him that he should prove this true, that charity is the all in all of the Church, and he did so; and also that charity has nothing to do with the Church. He dressed up both sides of the question with such pleasing appearances that the by-standers looked at one another and said, “Is not this a wise man?” Then I said, “Do you not know that charity is to live well, and that faith is to believe well? Does not he who lives well, also believe well? and consequently does not faith belong to charity, and charity to faith? Do you not see that this proposition is true?” He replied, “First let me prove it true, and then I shall see it;” and having proved it true he said, “Now I see it.” Soon after, however, he proved the contrary proposition true, and said, “I see that this also is true.” At this we smiled and said, “Are not these contrary propositions? How then, can two contraries appear true?” To this he replied with warmth, “You are mistaken; both propositions are true; for nothing is true but what a man makes so.”
[3] There was standing near a person who in the world had been an ambassador of the highest rank. He was surprised at this assertion, and said, “I agree that reasoning like this is prevalent in the world; nevertheless you are not of sound mind. If you can, prove this to be true, that light is darkness, and darkness light.” He replied, “I will do so with ease. Light and darkness are only states of the eye. Is not light changed to shade when the eye is withdrawn from strong sunlight, as when a man has kept his eye fixed intently on the sun? Every one knows that a change then comes over the state of the eye, and light thereupon appears as shade; while on the other hand, when the former state of the eye is restored, that shade appears as light. The owl sees the darkness of night as the light of day, and the light of day as the darkness of night, and even the sun itself is nothing but a dark and dusky globe. If a man had eyes like an owl’s, which would he call light and which darkness? Light then, is only a state of the eye, and if it is so, is not light darkness, and darkness light? Therefore both propositions are true.”
[4] As this confirmation puzzled some of those present, I said: “I have observed that this confirmer does not know that there is true light and false light, and that both appear as light; still, false light in reality is not light, but darkness relatively to true light. The owl is in false light; for within its eyes is the lust of pursuing and devouring birds. This light enables its eyes to see in the night, just as cats see, whose eyes gleam in barns with a light like candles. It is a false light, kindled within their eyes by the lust of pursuing and devouring mice. It is thus evident that the light of the sun is true light, and false light is the light of lust.”
[5] The ambassador then asked the confirmer to prove the proposition true, that a crow is white, and not black. He replied that he would do that too with ease. He continued: “Take a needle or a sharp knife, and clear away the quills and feathers of a crow. Then, remove the quills and feathers, and look at the crow’s skin. Is it not white? The blackness surrounding it is but a shade, which by no means determines the color of the crow. Consult authorities on optics, and they will inform you that blackness is merely a shade. Again, grind a piece of black stone or glass into a fine powder, and you will see that the powder is white.” But the ambassador replied: “Does not the crow appear black to the sight?” The confirmer answered: “Would you, as a man of sense, consider a thing from appearance? You may, indeed, say that according to appearance a crow is black, but you cannot imagine that to be the case. For example, you may say that, according to appearance, the sun rises and sets; but, as a man of sense, you cannot think so, because the sun is motionless, and it is the earth that moves. It is the same with the crow; appearance is but appearance. Say what you will, a crow is wholly and essentially white; and indeed whitens as it ages, as I myself have seen.” The by-standers now looked at me. I therefore said: “It is true that the quills and feathers of a crow are within of a whitish color, as is also its skin; but this is the case not only with crows, but also with all birds in the universe. Yet every man distinguishes birds by the appearance of their color; otherwise we might say that every bird is white, which is absurd and pointless.” [6] The ambassador then put this question to him, “Can you prove it true that you are insane?” To this he replied, “I can, but I do not choose. Who, pray, is not insane?” Finally, they asked him to say in all sincerity, whether he was joking, or whether he believed that nothing is true but what a man makes true; and he replied, “I swear that I believe it.”
Thereupon that universal confirmer was sent to the angels to be examined as to his true character. After examination they said that he did not possess a single grain of understanding, because all above the rational with him was closed, and only what was below the rational was open. Spiritual light is above the rational, and below the rational is natural light; and this light is of such a nature in man that he can confirm whatever he pleases. If, however, spiritual light does not flow into natural light, a man does not see whether anything true is true, nor, consequently, whether anything false is false; for this discernment arises solely from the presence of spiritual light in natural light, and spiritual light is from the God of heaven, who is the Lord. That universal confirmer is, therefore, neither a man nor a beast, but a beast-man.
[7] I spoke to the angels concerning the lot of such persons, asking whether they can be with the living, since a man has life and understanding from spiritual light. They said that these men when alone cannot think at all, and consequently cannot speak, but stand like mute automatons, as it were, in a deep sleep; but that they wake up as soon as any sound strikes their ears. They added that those who are inwardly evil become like them; for into them can flow no spiritual light from above, but only something of a spiritual quality by way of the world, and from this they acquire their skill in confirming. [8] As they said this, I heard a voice from the examining angels, saying, “Form a general conclusion from what you have heard.” I accordingly concluded: It is not the mark of an intelligent man to be able to confirm whatever he pleases; but to be able to see and confirm that to be true which is true, and that to be false which is false.
After this I looked towards the assembly where the confirmers were standing, surrounded by the crowd calling out, “Oh, how wise!” and I saw a dusky cloud overshadowing them, and in the cloud owls and bats on the wing. I was informed that the owls and bats flying about in the cloud were correspondences, and consequently presented appearances of the thoughts of those confirmers; for confirmations of falsities, in order that they may be given the appearance of truths, are represented in the spiritual world in the form of night birds, whose eyes gleam with a false light within them, by which they see objects in the dark as in the light. This false spiritual light those have who confirm falsities till they appear as truths, and are afterwards believed to be truths. All those have vision of a secondary character, that is, they see from effects, and are completely lacking in sight of a primary nature, that is, they do not see from causes.
I then heard that they were disputing sharply and warmly with one another about connate ideas, as to whether any such were in men from birth, as is, they asserted, the case with beasts. Those who maintained the negative side of the question turned away from those who maintained the affirmative; and at length they separated into two distinct parties, like two armies in array about to engage with drawn swords; but as they had no swords, they waged the contests with keen-edged words. [2] Then suddenly an angelic spirit stood in their midst and, speaking in a loud voice, said, “Some little distance away I heard you warmly disputing about connate ideas, as to whether any such were in men, as in beasts; but I tell you, that men have no connate ideas, and that beasts have no ideas at all. You are, therefore, wrangling about nothing, or, as the saying goes, about goats’ wool, or about the beard on the new-born generation.” When they heard this they were all infuriated, and shouted, “Turn him out; he is contradicting common sense.” But as they essayed to put him out, they perceived that he was encompassed with heavenly light, which they could not break through; for he was an angelic spirit. They therefore drew back, and retired some distance from him. Thereupon the light was withdrawn, and he said to them, “Why are you angry? First hear me, and consider the reasons I bring forward, and then form your own conclusion from them. I foresee that those of better judgment will approve of this, and will calm the storm that has risen in your minds.” To this they replied, though still in an indignant tone, “Well, speak on, and we will listen.”
[3] Then he began as follows: “You believe that beasts have connate ideas, and this you conclude because their actions seem to proceed from thought; and yet they have no thought at all. Now ideas are only predicable of thought, and it is characteristic of thought to act in a certain way for a definite reason. Consider, therefore, whether the spider, which weaves its web with the most perfect art, thinks in its little head: ‘I will extend my threads in this order, and connect them with cross threads, lest my web should be torn asunder by successive gusts of wind. Where the ends of the threads meet to form the centre I will prepare a place for myself, from which I will observe whatever happens; so that I may run to the spot if a fly gets entangled, quickly fall upon him, and bind him fast; and he shall serve me for food.’ Again, does the bee think in its little head: ‘I will fly abroad where I know there are fields of flowers, and from them I will gather wax and honey. Of the wax I will build little cells touching one another in orderly arrangement, so that my companions and I may go in and out easily as if along streets. Then we will store them with honey in abundance, sufficient for the coming winter, that we may not perish?’ not to mention other wonderful things in which they show political and economic prudence not only equal to, but even in cases surpassing that of men. (See above, No. 12.)
[4] Further, does the great drone wasp think in its little head: ‘My companions and I will build ourselves a tiny house of a thin, paper-like substance, whose inside walls we will make in the form of a labyrinth. In its inmost recess we will provide a sort of meeting-place, which shall have a way in and a way out, so skillfully devised that no living creature other than one of our own family may find its way to the retreat where we assemble?’ Again, does the silk-worm, while still a caterpillar, think in its little head: ‘Now is the time to prepare myself for the spinning of silk, to the end that, when the spinning is finished, I may fly abroad and sport with my companions in the air, into which I could not previously rise, and provide for myself a progeny?’ In like manner do other caterpillars think as they creep along walls and become nymphs, aurelias, chrysalises, and finally butterflies? Does a fly form any idea about meeting with another fly, in this place and not in that?
[5] The case is the same with animals of a larger growth as with these little creatures; as with birds and feathered fowl of every kind, when they pair, build their nests, lay their eggs, sit on them, hatch their young, provide them with food, train them till they are able to fly, when they drive them away from the nest, as if they were not their offspring; with innumerable other instances. It is the same also with beasts, serpents, and fishes. Which of you cannot see from what has just been said that the spontaneous acts of these creatures do not flow from thought, of which alone ideas can be predicated? The error that beasts have ideas arises solely from the belief that they think just as men do, and that speech makes the only difference between them.”
[6] After this, the angelic spirit looked around; and as he saw they were still hesitating whether to believe that beasts have thought or not, he continued his discourse, and said: “I perceive that, from a similarity in the actions of the brute beasts and men, you still entertain the idea, based upon appearances, that animals think. I will therefore explain to you the source of those actions. Every beast, bird, fish, reptile and insect has its own natural, sensual and corporeal love, which resides in the brain within the head. By means of the brain the spiritual world has immediate influx into their bodily senses, and through these, determines their actions. For this reason their bodily senses are much more keen than those of men. This influx from the spiritual world is called instinct, so called because it exists apart from any connection with thought. There are also some things accessory to instinct derived from habit. But their love, through which determination to action comes from the spiritual world, is solely concerned with feeding and propagation. It is not concerned with knowledge of any kind, intelligence and wisdom, by means of which in that order love is gradually formed in man.
[7] “That man also has no connate ideas may be clearly evident from the fact that he has no connate thought; for where there is no thought, there is no idea, as these exist reciprocally the one from the other. This may be concluded from the case of new-born infants, who can do nothing but suck and breathe. That they can suck is not due to anything connate, but to continual sucking in the mother’s womb; and they are able to breathe, because they live, breathing being a universal accompaniment of life. Their bodily senses themselves are in a state of the greatest obscurity, out of which they gradually emerge by means of the objects on which they are exercised, just as their movements are trained by persistent practice. As they gradually learn to utter words, pronouncing them at first with no idea of their meaning, there arises a certain obscure element of fancy. As this becomes clearer, it gives rise to an obscure element of imagination, and thence of thought. With the development of this state of mind, ideas begin to exist; and ideas, as was said above, are one with thought, and thought grows from a state without thought by instruction. Thus men have ideas, not indeed connate, but formed; and from these ideas their speech and actions flow.” That nothing is connate in man except the faculty of acquiring knowledge, intelligence and wisdom, and also the inclination to love, not only these, but also the neighbor and God, may be seen above in a Narrative, No. 48, and also in one later.
Thereupon I looked around and saw not far away Leibnitz* and Wolff,** both very interested in the arguments advanced by the angelic spirit. Leibnitz then came forward and intimated his agreement with them; but Wolff withdrew, vacillating between denial and agreement, for he had not the same strength of interior judgment as Leibnitz.
* Leibnitz, German philosopher, A.D. 1646-1716. He maintained the metaphysical against mechanical causes in the interpretation of the world. He taught the pre-established harmony of the universe, founded upon spiritual agencies, dependent only upon God, which reflected in themselves the whole universe.
** Wolff, Johann Christian, A.D. 1679-1754, a German philosopher of little originality or depth. His leading ideas are taken from Leibnitz.
FAITH
The wisdom of the ancients taught that the universe as a whole and in all its parts has relation to good and truth, and consequently that all things of the Church relate to love or charity, and faith; for everything proceeding from love or charity is called good, and everything proceeding from faith is called true. Now since charity and faith are distinctly two, and yet make one in man, in order that he may belong to the Church, that is, that the Church may be in him, it was therefore a matter of controversy and dispute among the ancients which of the two should be first, and which had the right to be called the first-born. Some said that truth should have priority, and consequently faith was first, while some said that good should have priority and, consequently charity was first. For they saw that a man, soon after his birth, learns to speak and think, and in this way to become perfected in understanding, which is effected by means of knowledge, and thus he learns and understands what is true. They also saw that by these means in process of time he learns and understands what is good; consequently he first learns what faith is, and afterwards what charity is. Those who thus understood the matter supposed that the truth of faith was the first-born, and that the good of charity came later; to faith, therefore, they attributed the honor and the prerogative of primo-geniture. However, they were so confused by the wealth of argument in favor of faith that they did not perceive that faith is not faith unless united to charity, and that charity is not charity unless united to faith, and thus that they make one; otherwise that neither the one nor the other has a place in the Church. That faith and charity are absolutely one will be shown in the pages that follow.
[2]** “In this preface, however, I will explain briefly how or in what manner they make one, as this is of importance in making clear what follows. Faith, by which is also meant truth, is first in time; but charity, by which is also meant good, is first in respect to end. Now that which is first in respect to end is actually first, because it is primary and consequently first-born; whereas, that which is first in time is not actually first, but only apparently so. To make this clear it will be illustrated by comparisons, as by what happens in the building of a temple, and of a house, in the laying out of a garden, and the cultivation of a field. In the building of a temple, the first thing in time is to lay the foundation, to erect the walls, to put on the roof, and then to place an altar in position and set up a pulpit; but what is first in respect to end is the worship of God therein, the purpose for which those things are done. In the building of a house, the first thing in time is to build its exterior, and then to furnish it with all necessary conveniences; but what is first in respect to end is a commodious dwelling for the owner and those who are to be of his household. In the laying-out of a garden, the first thing in time is to level the ground, to prepare the soil, to plant trees, and to sow what will be of use; but what is first in respect to end is the enjoyment of its fruits. In the cultivation of a field, the first thing in time is to level the ground, to plough, harrow, and sow; but what is first in respect to end is the harvest, thus also use. From these illustrations all may conclude what is first in itself. For in building a temple or a house, in laying out a garden and preparing a field, every one looks to use in the first place, keeping this ever before him and turning it over in his mind, while he provides the means to attain it. We conclude, therefore, that the truth of faith is first in time, but that the good of charity is first in respect to end; and that the latter, being primary, is actually the first-born in the mind.”
[3] It is now necessary to know what faith and charity are, each in its essence; and this can only be done by considering each under a number of propositions, those concerning faith and those concerning charity.
The propositions concerning faith are:
I. A saving faith is faith in the Lord God the Savior, Jesus Christ.
II. The sum and substance of faith is, that he who lives well and believes aright, is saved by the Lord.
III. A man acquires faith by approaching the Lord, learning truths from the Word, and living according to them.
IV. A number of truths, that cohere as one whole, exalts and perfects faith.
V. Faith without charity is not faith, and charity without faith is not charity, and neither has any life except from the Lord.
VI. The Lord, charity, and faith make one, like life, will, and understanding in man; and if they are divided, each is destroyed, like a pearl reduced to powder.
VII. The Lord is charity and faith in man, and man is charity and faith in the Lord.
VIII. Charity and faith are together in good works.
IX. There is a true faith, a spurious faith, and a hypocritical faith.
X. The evil have no faith.
These propositions shall now be explained separately.
* Orig. Ed. Has 326.
** This section is in quotation marks in Original Edition.
A saving faith is faith in God the Savior, because He is God and Man, and He is in the Father, and the Father in Him, and thus they are one; therefore those who approach Him, at the same time approach the Father also, and thus the one and only God; and there is no saving faith in any other. That we ought to believe, or have faith, in the Son of God, the Redeemer and Savior, who was conceived of Jehovah and born of the virgin Mary, and called Jesus Christ, is evident from the commands so frequently repeated by Him, and afterwards by His apostles. That He enjoined faith in Himself is plainly evident from the following passages:
Jesus said, “This is the Father’s will which hath sent me…. That every one which seeth the Son, and believeth on Him, may have everlasting life: and I will raise him up at the last day.” John vi. 40.
“He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him.” John iii. 36.
“That whosoever believeth in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” John iii. 15, 16.
“Jesus said … I am the resurrection and the life; he that believeth in me … shall never die.” John xi. 25, 26.
“Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me hath everlasting life. I am that bread of life.” John vi. 47, 48.
“I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst.” John vi. 35.
“Jesus cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink. He that believeth on me, as the Scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water.” John vii. 37, 38.
They said to Jesus: “What shall we do, that we might work the works of God? Jesus answered and, said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on Him whom He (the Father) hath sent.” John vi. 28, 29.
“While ye have light, believe in the light, that ye may be the children of light.” John xii. 36.
“He that believeth on the Son of God is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.” John iii. 18.
“But these things are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is … the Son of God: and that believing ye might have life through His name.” John xx. 31
“For if ye believe not that I am He, ye shall die in your sins.” John viii. 24.
Jesus said: “When He is come, ‘the Comforter, the Spirit of truth,’ He will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: Of sin, because they believe not on me.” John xvi. 8, (9).
“I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith which is in the Son of God (A.V., of the Son of God).” Gal. ii. 20.
Paul testified “to the Jews, and also to the Greeks, repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ.” Acts xx. 21.
He brought Paul out, “and said … what must I do to be saved? and he said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.” Acts xvi. 30, 31.
“He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life. These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God, that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God.” 1 John v. 12, 13.
“We who are Jews by nature, and not sinners of the Gentiles, Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ.” Gal. ii. 15, 16.
As their faith was in Jesus Christ, and as such faith is also from Him, therefore they called it the faith of Jesus Christ, as in the passage just quoted, Gal. ii. 18, as well as in the following passages:
“The righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all of them that believe … that He might be the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.” Rom. iii. 22, 26.
That he may have the righteousness “Which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is from the God of faith.” (A.V., of God by faith.) Phil. iii. 9.
“Here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.” Rev. xiv. 12.
“Through faith which is in Christ Jesus.” 2 Tim. iii. 15.
In Jesus Christ is “faith which worketh by love.” Gal. v. 8.
From these passages it may be seen what Paul means by faith in that saying often quoted to-day in the Church,
“Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law.” Rom. iii. 28.
It is not a faith in God the Father, but in His Son; still less is it a faith in three gods ranked in order, as faith in one from whom, faith in another for the sake of whom, and faith in a third by means of whom, [the Divine operations are effected.] It is believed in the Church that its tri-personal faith is meant by Paul in this passage, because the Church for fourteen centuries, that is, since the Nicene Council,* has acknowledged no other faith, and consequently has known no other, believing as it does that it was the only faith, and that no other was possible. Therefore whenever faith occurs in the Word of the New Testament, this tri-personal faith is supposed to be meant, and to it everything there has been applied. Consequently there has perished the only faith that is saving, namely, faith in God the Savior; and as a result many errors and irrational paradoxes have crept into the teachings of the Church. For every one of its doctrines which would teach and point out the way to heaven, that is, to salvation, depends upon faith; and because all these errors and paradoxes have crept into its faith, it was deemed necessary to proclaim the dogma that the understanding must be kept in subjection to faith. Now since “faith” in the quotation from Paul, Rom. iii. 28, does not mean faith in God the Father, but in His Son; and since the works of the law do not mean those of the law of the Decalogue, but of the Mosaic law intended for the Jews, as is evident from the subsequent part of that Epistle, and also from similar passages in the Epistle to the Galatians, ii. 14, 15, the foundation stone of the faith of to-day gives way, and the temple built upon it collapses like a house sinking into the ground, leaving only its roof above the surface.
* Nice (Nicaea), city of Asia Minor, in Bithynia. In A.D. 325 it was the seat of a Council summoned to settle the Arian controversy. The creed there adopted is known as the Nicene Creed.
[2] In short, faith in an invisible God is actually blind, because the human mind does not see its God; and the light of this faith, not being spiritual natural, is a false light. It is like the light of the glow-worm, or that seen in marshes, or over sulphurous ground in the night-time, or in decaying wood. Whatever is seen by this light is delusive, the apparent being mistaken for the real. Faith in an invisible God glows in such a light, particularly when God is thought to be a spirit, and spirit is thought of as ether. Hence it follows that man regards God as he does the ether, and therefore seeks for Him in the universe; and not finding Him there, he believes nature to be the God of the universe. This is the source of the materialism that prevails to-day. The Lord has declared
that no one hath ever heard the voice of the Father, or seen His shape, John v. 37;
and also:
“no man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, He hath declared Him.” John i. 18;
that no one hath seen the Father, save He who is with the Father, He hath seen the Father, John vi. 46;
also that no man cometh unto the Father, but by Him, John xiv. 6;
and further
that he sees and knows the Father, who sees and knows Him, John xiv. 7 and following verses.
[3] Faith, however, in the Lord God the Savior is different, because He is God and Man, and can be approached and beheld in thought. This faith is not indeterminate, but has an object from which it is derived and toward which it is directed. Once it has been received, it remains; as when any one has once seen an emperor or a king, as often as he recalls him to mind, his image appears. A man sees that faith as it were a bright cloud and an angel in the midst of it, inviting him to approach and be raised up to heaven. So the Lord appears to those who have faith in him; and He draws near to every man so far as man knows and acknowledges Him, that is, so far as he knows and obeys His commandments, by shunning evil and doing good. At length He enters his house, and makes His abode with him together with the Father, who is in Him, according to these words in John:
Jesus said, “He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him … and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.” John xiv. 21, 23.
These things were written in the presence of the Lord’s twelve Apostles, who were sent to me by the Lord while I was writing them.
* Socinians, members of a religious sect taking their name from Faustus Socinus, A.D. 1539-1604, and his uncle Laelius Socinus. They are antitrinitarians, denying the personality of the Holy Ghost and the Divinity of Christ. Early Socians believed in the miraculous conception and that Christ was entitled to Divine worship; but modern Socinians, chiefly Unitarians, deny both.
Every Christian agrees that man was created for eternal life, and that every man may inherit it provided he lives according to the means of salvation prescribed in the Word; and so does every heathen who has religion and sound reason. The means of salvation, however, are manifold, and yet they all, in general and in particular, have relation to living well and believing aright, consequently to charity and faith; for to live well is charity, and to believe aright is faith. These two general means of salvation are not only prescribed to man in the Word, but are also commanded. It follows, therefore, that man can obtain for himself eternal life from power appointed and granted to him by God. So far as man uses this power, and at the same time looks to God, God increases it, so that all that was merely natural charity is transformed into spiritual charity, and all that was merely natural faith into spiritual faith. In this way does God give life to dead charity and faith, and at the same time, to man himself.
[2] There are two things which must be united before it can be said that a man lives well and believes aright: these two are called in the Church the internal man and the external man. When the internal man wills what is good, and the external man does what is good, they become one, the external man acting from the internal, and the internal through the external. It is in this way that man acts from God, and God acts through man. On the other hand, if the internal man wills what is evil, and yet the external man does what is good, nevertheless both act from hell, because the man’s willing is from hell, and his doing is hypocritical; and in every hypocritical deed lurks his infernal will, like a snake in the grass, or like a worm in a flower.
[3] That man is rich in knowledge of the profound truths of heaven and the world who knows that there is an internal man, and an external man; and who also knows what they are, and that they can act as one in reality, as well as in appearance; and moreover that the internal man lives after death, but that the external man is buried in the grave. Such a man has it within him to acquire abundantly the hidden truths of heaven and also of the world. He who unites his own internal and external man in good becomes happy to eternity; while he who separates them, or still worse, who unites them in evil, is miserable to eternity.
Is not this inscribed by God on every man and on every creature? Can a father and a mother reject their children, or a bird its young, or a beast its cubs? Even tigers, panthers and serpents cannot but love their offspring. For God to do otherwise would be contrary to the order in which He is, and according to which He acts and also contrary to the order into which He has created mankind. As it is impossible for God to condemn any one who lives well and believes aright, so on the other hand it is impossible for Him to save any one who lives an evil life and consequently believes what is false. For this again is contrary to order, and equally contrary to His Omnipotence, which cannot proceed except along the path of justice; and the laws of justice are truths, which cannot be changed; for the Lord says,
“It is easier for heaven and earth to pass, than one tittle of the Law to fail.” Luke xvi. 17.
Every one who knows anything of the essential nature of God and of man’s Free Will may perceive this. He knows, for example, that Adam was at liberty to eat of the tree of Life, and also of the tree of knowledge of good and evil. If he had eaten only of the tree or trees of life, would it have been possible for God to drive him out of the garden? I believe that it would not. But, after he had eaten of the tree of knowledge of good and evil, would it have been possible for God to retain him in the garden? In this case also I believe that it would not. Similarly God cannot cast into hell any angel who has been received into heaven, nor can He introduce into heaven any one who has been condemned as a devil. That from His Divine Omnipotence He cannot do either may be seen above in the section on the Divine Omnipotence, Nos. 49-70.
Thus it is necessary that this first principle of faith should be confirmed and established from the Word, and therefore the following passages are adduced from it.
The angel said to Mary, “Thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth [a Son], and shalt call His name Jesus. He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest…. Then said Mary unto the angel, How shall this be, seeing I know not a man? And the angel answered … The HOLY SPIRIT shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God.” Luke i. 31, 32, 34, 35.
When Jesus was being baptized there came a voice from heaven, saying, “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” Matt. iii. l6, 17; Mark i. 10, 11; Luke iii. 21, 22.
So again, when Jesus was transfigured, a voice came from heaven, saying, “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear ye Him.” Matt. xvii. 5; Mark ix. 7; Luke ix. 35.
[2] Jesus asked His disciples, “Who do men say that I am?” Peter answered, “Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.” And Jesus … said … “Blessed are thou, Simon, son of Jones (A.V., Bar-Jona) … I say unto thee … upon this rock I will build my Church.” Matt. xvi. 13, 16, 17, 18.
The Lord said that upon this rock He would build His Church, that is, on the truth and confession that He is the Son of God; for rock signifies truth, and also the Lord as to Divine Truth. Therefore the Church does not exist in any one who does not confess this truth that He is the Son of God; and for this reason it was said above that this is the first principle of faith in Jesus Christ, and consequently faith in its origin.
John the Baptist “saw, and bare record that He is the Son of God.” John i. 34.
Nathaniel, the disciple, said to Jesus, “Thou art the Son of God; thou art the King of Israel.” John i. 49.
The twelve disciples said, “We believe … that thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.” John vi. 69.
He is called the only begotten Son of God, the only begotten of the Father, “which is in the bosom of the Father.” John i. 14, 18; iii. 16.
Jesus Himself confessed before the High Priest that He was the Son of God. Matt. xxvi. 63, 64; Matt. xxvii. 43; Mark xiv. 61, 62; Luke xxii. 70.
Those who were in the ship came and worshiped Jesus, saying, “Of a truth thou art the Son of God.” Matt. xiv. 33.
The eunuch who desired to be baptized, said to Philip, “I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.” Acts viii. 37.
Paul, after his conversion, preached Jesus, ‘that He was the Son of God.’ Acts ix. 20.
Jesus said, “The hour is coming … when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God: and they that hear shall live.” John v. 25.
“He that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.” John iii. 18.
“These things are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God: and that believing ye might have life through His name.” John xx. 31.
“These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God, that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God.” 1 John v. 13.
“We know that the Son of God is come, and hath given us to know Him that is true (A.V., an understanding that we may know Him that is true); and we are in Him that is true, even in His Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God, and eternal life.” 1 John v. 20.
“Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God, God dwelleth in him, and he in God.” 1 John iv. 15.
See also other places, as Matt. viii. 29; Matt. xxvii. 40, 43, 54; Mark i. 1; Mark iii. 11; Mark xv. 39; Luke viii. 28; John ix. 35; John x. 36; John xi. 4, 27; John xix. 7; Rom. i. 4; 2 Cor. i. 19; Gal. ii. 20; Eph. iv. 13; Heb. iv. 14; Heb. vi. 6; Heb. vii. 3; Heb. x. 29; 1 John iii. 8; 1 John v. 10; Rev. ii. 18.
The same is taught in many other places, where Jehovah calls Him Son, and where He Himself calls Jehovah His Father, as in the following passage:
“Whatsoever the Father doeth, this also doeth the Son … As the Father raiseth up the dead, and quickeneth them, so doeth the Son … As the Father hath life in Himself, so hath He given to the Son to have life in Himself . . . All men should honor the Son, even as they honor the Father.” John v. 19-27.
Besides these numerous passages there is also this in David:
“I will declare the decree: JEHOVAH hath said unto me, Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten thee. Kiss the Son, lest He be angry, and ye perish from the way; for His wrath will be shortly kindled (A.V., when His wrath is kindled but a little). Blessed are all they that put their trust in Him.” Ps. ii. 7, 12.
[3] From these passages this conclusion is reached, that every one who desires to be truly a Christian, and to be saved by Christ, ought to believe that Jesus is the Son of the living God. He who does not believe this, but who only believes that he is the son of Mary, implants in his mind various ideas concerning Him that are hurtful, and destructive of that salvation, as may be seen above in Nos. 92, 94, 102. Of such it may be said, as of the
Jews, that they put on His head a crown of thorns, instead of a royal crown, and also give Him vinegar to drink, and cry, “If thou art the Son of God, come down from the cross;” [Matt. xxvii. 29, 34, 40], or, as the tempter, the devil, said, “If Thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread;” or, “If Thou be the Son of God, cast Thyself down.” Matt. iv. 3-6.
Such persons profane His Church and His Temple, and make it a den of thieves. They make the worship of Christ like that of Mohammed,* and make no distinction between true Christianity, which is the worship of the Lord, and naturalism. They may be likened to persons traveling by car or coach over thin ice, which breaks under them. They are submerged, and all are overwhelmed, men, horses and coach, in the icy water. They may also be compared to those who make a little boat of reeds and canes, which they daub with pitch to make it hold together. On it they launch into the deep; but there the pitch is washed away, and they are drowned in the waters of the ocean, swallowed up and buried in its depths.
* Mohammad, the founder of Mohammedanism or Islam, A.D. 571-632, was born at Mecca, where his father was spiritual and temporal head. He married a wealthy and devout widow, and owed much to her influence. In the visions to which he was subject he received confirmations of his Divine mission. He also received messages from Gabriel which were incorporated in the KORAN, the sacred book of Mohammedanism. Early persecution drove him from Mecca and in the year A.D. 622 he fled to Medina, where he was cordially welcomed. This flight, or Hejira, marks the beginning of the Mohammedan year, and from Medina he set out on his conquest of Arabia. Mohammedanism proclaims the unity of the God-head, and condemns idolatry; but the peaceful methods of propaganda soon gave place to ruthless persecution of infidels and merciless extermination of idolators.
Before I proceed to show how faith originates, namely, by approaching the Lord, learning truths from the Word, and living according to them, it is necessary to state first in summary form what constitutes faith, so that the general idea present in all the particulars of faith may be discerned. It will thus be possible to understand more clearly not only this chapter on Faith, but also those that follow on Charity, Free Will, Repentance, Reformation, Regeneration and Imputation; for faith enters into and vivifies every part of any theological system, both in general and in particular, as the blood does the members of the body. The doctrine of the present Church concerning faith is generally known throughout the Christian world, and particularly by its clergy; for the libraries of the teachers in the Church are filled with books solely on faith, and on faith alone, since scarcely anything beyond that is regarded at this day as properly theological. Before, however, we undertake an examination and consideration of what the present day Church teaches concerning faith (which will be done in an Appendix), the general principles which the New Church teaches respecting its faith, will now be presented. They are as follows.
1. Confidence in the Lord God, the Savior Jesus Christ.
2. Trust that he who lives well, and believes aright, is saved by Him.
THE ESSENCE (Essentia) OF THE FAITH OF THE NEW CHURCH is:
Truth from the Word.
THE EXISTENCE (Existentia) of THE FAITH OF THE NEW CHURCH is:
1. Spiritual sight;
2. Harmony of Truths;
3. Conviction;
4. Acknowledgment inscribed on the mind.
THE STATES OF THE FAITH OF THE NEW CHURCH are:
1. Infant faith, adolescent faith, adult faith;
2. Faith from genuine truth, and faith from the appearances of truth;
3. Faith of the memory, faith of the reason, faith of light;
4. Natural faith, spiritual faith, celestial faith;
5. Living faith and miraculous faith;
6. Free faith and forced faith.
THE FAITH OF THE NEW CHURCH, BOTH IN ITS UNIVERSAL AND IN ITS PARTICULAR FORM, may be seen above in Nos. 2 and 3.
1. Spurious faith, in which falsities are mixed with truths.
2. Meretricious faith, from truths falsified, and adulterous faith from goods defiled.
3. Closed or blind faith which is a faith in things mystical, which are believed, but without any discernment whether they are true or false, or whether they transcend reason or are contrary to it.
4. Wandering faith which is a faith in several gods.
5. Purblind faith, which is a faith in any other than the true God, and, among Christians, in any but the Lord God, the Savior.
6. Hypocritical or pharisaical faith, which is a faith of the lips, and not of the heart.
7. Visionary and perverted faith, or falsity made to appear as truth by ingenious confirmation.
1. Spurious faith, in which falsities are mixed with truths, may be compared to that disease of the eye affecting the sight, described as a white speck on the cornea, which causes dimness of sight.
2. Meretricious faith, which is a faith from truths falsified, and adulterous faith, which is a faith from goods defiled, may be compared to that disease of the eye affecting the sight, called glaucoma, which is a drying up and hardening of the crystalline humor.
3. Closed or blind faith, which is a faith in things mystical, which are believed, but without any discernment whether they are true or false, or whether they transcend reason or are contrary to it, may be compared to that disease of the eye, called gutta serena, and amaurosis, which is a loss of vision, although the eye appears to have normal sight, caused by an obstruction of the optic nerve.
4. Wandering faith, which is a faith in several gods, may be compared to that disease of the eye called cataract, which is a loss of sight arising from an obstruction between the sclerotic coat and the uvea.
5. Purblind faith, which is a faith in any other than the true God, and, among Christians, in any but the Lord God the Savior, may be compared to that disease of the eye called strabismus, or squinting.
6. Hypocritical or pharisaical faith, which is a faith of the lips, and not of the heart, may be compared to atrophy of the eye, and consequent loss of sight.
7. Visionary and perverted faith, or falsity made to appear as truth by ingenious confirmation, may be compared to that disease of the eye called nyctalopia, by which there is vision in darkness, but from deceptive light.
“Abide in me, and I in you … for without me ye can do nothing.” John xv. 4, 5.
That it is faith in the Lord, is evident from the numerous passages quoted above in Nos. 337, 338, to the effect that a man ought to believe in the Son. Now, since faith is from the Lord and in the Lord, it may be said that the Lord is faith itself; for its life and essence are in Him, and consequently from Him.
[2] Secondly, faith is formed by man’s learning truths from the Word; for faith in its essence is truth, because all things which enter into faith are truths. Faith, therefore, is nothing but a complex of truths shining in the human mind; for truths teach not only that we ought to believe, but also in whom we ought to believe, and what we ought to believe. Truths must be taken from the Word, because all truths leading to salvation are contained therein; and they are effective, because they are given by the Lord, and are consequently inscribed on the whole angelic heaven; so that when a man learns truths from the Word, he enters into closer communion and consociation with angels than he realizes. Faith without truths is like seed without kernel, which when ground yields nothing but bran; whereas faith formed of truths is like fruitful seed, yielding flour when ground. In a word, the essentials of faith are truths; and if these do not enter into it and constitute it, faith is but a voice whistling in its sound; but if they do enter into it and constitute it, faith is like a voice bearing tidings of salvation.
[3] Thirdly, faith is formed by man’s living according to truths; because spiritual life is a life according to truths, and truths do not really live until they are ultimated in deeds. Truths without deeds are matters of thought only; and, if they do not also become matters of the will, they are only at the entrance into man, and thus are not inwardly in him. The will is the man himself, and thought is the man only in the degree and quality in which it enters into conjunction with the will. He who learns truths, and does not do them, is like one who scatters seed in a field, and does not harrow it in; with the result that the seed becomes swollen with the rain and worthless. He, however, who learns truths and does them, is like one who sows his seed and harrows it in. Then the seed, quickened by the rain, grows up into a good crop, and becomes of use for food. The Lord says:
“If ye know these things, happy are ye if ye do them.” John xiii. 17;
and in another place:
“But he that received seed into the good ground is he that heareth the Word, and attendeth to it (A.V., understandeth it); which also beareth fruit, and doeth (A.V., bringeth forth). Matt. xiii. 23;
and again:
“Whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock…. And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand.” Matt. vii. 24, 26.
The words of the Lord are all truths.
From the idea of faith prevalent at the present time, it cannot be realized that faith, in its comprehensive sense, is an aggregate of truths, and still less that a man can contribute anything towards its attainment. Nevertheless, faith in its essence is truth, for it is truth in its own light; and just as truth can be acquired, so also can faith. Who cannot approach the Lord, if he is so disposed? Who, again, if he so desires, cannot collect truths from the Word? And every truth in and from the Word shines as light, and truth, when seen in light, is faith. The Lord, who is Light Itself, enters by influx into every man; and He causes truths from the Word, in whomsoever there should be any present, to shine as the light, and so to become the truths of faith. This is what the Lord means in John, where He says
that men should abide in the Lord, and that His words should abide in them, John xv. 7;
and the words of the Lord are truths. But to enable one to understand rightly the proposition that “a number of truths, that cohere as one whole, exalts and perfects faith,” the subject will be treated under the following heads:
(1) The truths of faith can be multiplied to infinity.
(2) They are arranged in series, and thus, as it were, into groups.
(3) Faith is perfected according to the number and coherence of truths.
(4) Truths, however numerous and diverse they may appear, make one from the Lord, who is the Word, the God of heaven and earth, the God of all flesh, the God of the vineyard or Church, the God of faith, and Light itself, Truth, and Life eternal.
[2] He who does not know that the human mind is organized, or that it is a spiritual organism terminating in a natural organism, in which and according to which the mind operates ideas or thinks, must suppose that perceptions, thoughts and ideas are only radiations and variations of light flowing into the head, and setting up forms which a man perceives and acknowledges as reasons. This, however, is foolishness; for it is universally known that the head contains the brains, that the brains are organized, that the mind has its seat in them, and that its ideas acquire fixity there, becoming permanent according to their reception and confirmation. The question, therefore, arises, What is the nature of this organization? and the answer is, that it is the arrangement of all things in series, and as it were into groups, and that the truths of faith are so arranged in the human mind. That this is the case may be illustrated by the following considerations.
[3] The brain consists of two substances, one of which is glandular, called the cortical and cineritious substance, and the other fibrillous, called the medullary substance. The first, or glandular substance, is arranged in clusters, like grapes on a vine. These clustered formations are its series. The other, called the medullary substance, consists of continual groupings of little fibres proceeding from the glands of the former, and these groupings form its series. All the nerves which proceed from the brain and pass down into the body, for the performance of various functions, are nothing but groups and bundles of fibres, and so are all the muscles, and in general, all the viscera and organs of the body. All these are of such a nature, because they correspond to the series in which the mental organism is arranged.
[4] Moreover, in all nature there is nothing which is not formed in series, composed of little groups; every tree, shrub, herb and plant, in fact every ear of corn and blade of grass, in general and in particular, is so formed. The universal cause of this is that Divine truths have such a conformation; for it is written that all things were created by the Word, that is by Divine Truth, and that the world also was made by it, John i. 1 and following verses. From this it may be seen that, unless there was such an arrangement of substances in the human mind, man would possess no power to reason analytically. This power every one enjoys according to this arrangement, and thus according to the number of truths cohering in group form; and this arrangement is according to his use of reason from freedom.
The light and glory of faith that is composed of many harmonious truths may be compared to the illumination of temples by numerous candlesticks, of houses by chandeliers, and of streets by lamps. The exaltation of faith by truths in great numbers may be compared to the heightened effect in volume and melody produced by increasing the number of musical instruments in an orchestra; and to the increase of fragrance from a mass of sweet-smelling flowers; and so on. The power of a faith composed of many truths set in array against falsity and evil, may be compared to the stability of a temple, built of stones well cemented together, with buttress columns strengthening its walls and supporting its paneled roof. It may also be compared to an army formed into a square, where the soldiers stand side by side, thus combining their strength for united action; and finally it may be compared to the muscles by which the whole body is interwoven which, notwithstanding their number and situation in places far apart, concentrate their united power, and thus act with greater effect.
[2] That the Lord is the Word, and thus all the truth of heaven and the Church, is evident from this passage in John:
“The Word was with God, and the Word was God … And the Word was made flesh.” John i. 1, 14.
That the Lord is the God of heaven and earth is evident in Matthew:
Jesus said, “All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.” Matt. xxviii. 18.
That the Lord is the God of all flesh is evident in John:
The Father has given the Son “power over all flesh.” John xvii. 2.
That the Lord is the God of the vineyard or Church is shown in Isaiah:
“My well-beloved hath a vineyard.” Isa. i. 1, 2;
and in John:
“I am the vine, ye are the branches,” John xv. 5.
That the Lord is the God of faith is evident from Paul:
“Thou hast the righteousness of the faith of Christ, from the God of faith (A.V., having righteousness ‘which is through the faith of Christ, from the God of faith’).” Phil. iii. 9.
That the Lord is Light itself is evident in John:
“That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world.” John i. 9;
and in another place,
Jesus said: “I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth on me should not abide in darkness.” John xii. 46.
That the Lord is Truth itself is also shown in John:
“Jesus said … I am the way, the truth, and the life.” John xiv. 6.
That the Lord is Life eternal is declared by John:
“We know that the Son of God is come into the world … that we may know Him that is true; and we are in the truth in Jesus Christ. (A.V., and we are in Him that is true; even in …. Jesus Christ). This is the true God, and eternal life.” 1 John v. 20.
[3] To the above it should be added that a man, owing to his worldly occupations, can acquire for himself only a few truths of faith. Still, if he approaches the Lord, and worships Him alone, he receives the power to know all truths. Thus every true worshiper of the Lord, on hearing any truth of faith which he had not known before, instantly sees, acknowledges and accepts it, for the Lord is in him, and he is in the Lord. Consequently the light of truth is in him, and he is in the light of truth; for, as has been said above, the Lord is Light itself and Truth itself. The following experience may confirm this. I once saw a certain spirit who, when in company with others, seemed to be of simple faith, because he acknowledged the Lord alone as God of heaven and earth, and confirmed his faith by several truths from the Word. He was taken up into heaven among some wiser angels; and I was told that there he was as wise as they; indeed that he spoke truths in abundance, entirely as of himself, of which he had known nothing before.
[4] This will be the state of those who come into the Lord’s New Church, and is the state described in Jeremiah:
“This shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days … I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts … And they shall teach no more every man his neighbor, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them.” Jer. xxxi. 33, 34
Their state will also be like that described in Isaiah:
“And there shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse … truth (A. V., faithfulness) shall be the girdle of His reins. The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid … And the sucking child shall play on the hole of the asp, and the weaned child shall put his hand on the cockatrice’ den … for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of JEHOVAH, as the waters cover the sea. And in that day there shall be a root of Jesse … to it shall the Gentiles seek: and His rest shall be glorious.” Isa. xi. [1, 5], 6-10.
* Quod simile sit cum Veritstibus fidei, ex quibus Ecclesia est Ecclesia, a Domino. The comma after Ecclesia throws back a Domino to fidei. Other translations translate as though a Domino were attached to Ecclesia.
The present day Church has separated faith from charity by declaring that faith alone, without the works of the law, justifies and saves; and also, that charity cannot be united with faith, because faith is from God, while charity, so far as it finds expression in works, is from man. That the Church would adopt such a position never entered the mind of any of the apostles, as is evident from their epistles; but this separation and division was introduced into the Christian Church when they divided the one God into three persons, and ascribed to each equal divinity. It will be shown in the succeeding section that there is no faith without charity, and no charity without faith, and that neither has life except from the Lord; but here, in order to prepare the way, proof of the following propositions will be presented:
(1) A man can acquire faith for himself;
(2) And also charity;
(3) And further, the life of both;
(4) But nothing of faith, or of charity, or of the life of both, is from man, but from the Lord alone.
“Man is altogether corrupt and dead to what is good; so that in human nature since the fall, and before regeneration, there was left and still remains, not a spark of spiritual strength, by which he can of himself be prepared to receive God’s grace, or apprehend it when offered, or be capable of retaining it of and by himself. Nor can he in spiritual things, understand, believe, embrace, think, will, begin, finish, act, operate, co-operate, or apply or adapt himself to grace, or do anything towards conversion, wholly or by halves, or in the smallest degree. Further, man in spiritual things, which regard the salvation of the soul, is like the statue of salt into which Lot’s wife was turned, or like a life-less stock or stone, without the use of eyes, mouth, or any of the senses. Nevertheless he has the power of motion, that is, he can direct his limbs, attend public assemblies, and hear the Word and the Gospel.”
This teaching is to be found in the book of the Evangelical Protestants, called the “Formula Concordiae”* in the Leipzig** edition of 1756, pp. 656, 658, 881, 662, 663, 671, 672, 673, to which book, and therefore to which faith, ministers subscribe when they take the oath at their inauguration. The faith of the Reformed Churches is the same. But what man, possessing sound reason and religion, would not deride such doctrine as absurd and ridiculous? For he would say within himself, “If this were the case, what then is the Word, what is religion, what is the ministry, and what is preaching but mere inanity and meaningless sounds?” Tell a pagan with any judgment, whom you wish to convert, that he is merely passive in regard to conversion and faith, and he will look upon Christianity as one would look upon an empty vessel. For if you take away from a man all power of believing as of himself, what is he but an empty vessel? These matters, however, will be presented in a clearer light in the chapter on Free Will.
* Form of Concord, Formula Concordiae, designed to effect an amicable adjustment of the differences among the Lutherans, by drawing them more closely to their principal standard, the Augsburg or Augustan Confession. Most of the Lutheran Churches add this Formula to their standard creeds.
** Leipzig, capital of province of same name, seat of highest court of justice in Germany.
“Thou shalt love the Lord with all thy heart, and with all thy soul and thy neighbor as thyself.” Matt. xxii. 34-39.
And Jesus said: “A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another . . . by this shall ye be known (A.V., shall all men know) that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.” John xiii. 34, 35; and for similar sayings see xv. 9, and xvi. 27.
It is also said that a man ought to bear good fruit, like a good tree; and that he who does good shall be recompensed at the resurrection and there are many other passages to the same effect. But what is the purpose of this teaching unless a man could of himself practice charity, and in some way procure it for himself? Can he not give alms, relieve the needy, and do good at home and at his business? Can he not live according to the commandments of the Decalogue? Has he not a soul by which he can do these things, and also a rational mind by which he can direct himself to do them for certain ends? Can he not consider that he should do them because they are commanded in the Word, and consequently by God? There is no man that does not possess this power, because the Lord imparts it to every one; and He gives it as something of man’s own, for every one, when he practices charity, supposes that he does so of himself.
“He that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst … and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out.” John vi. 35, 37.
“Jesus stood and cried … If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink.” John vii. 37;
and in another place it is written:
“The kingdom of heaven is like [unto a certain king] which made a marriage for his son, And sent forth his servants to call them that were bidden to the wedding … Then saith He, Go ye therefore into the highways, and as many as ye shall find, bid to the marriage.” Matt. xxii. 1-9.
Every one knows that the invitation or call is universal, as is also the grace of reception.
A man procures life by approaching the Lord, because the Lord is Life itself, not only the life of faith, but also the life of charity. The Lord is that life, and man receives life from Him, as is evident from the following passages:
“In the beginning was the Word … In Him was life; and the life was the light of men.” John i. 1, 4.
“As the Father raiseth up the dead, and quickeneth them; even so the Son quickeneth whom He will.” John v. 21.
“As the Father hath life in Himself, so hath He given to the Son to have life in Himself.” John v. 26.
“The bread of God is He which cometh down from heaven, and giveth life unto the world.” John vi. 33.
“The words that I speak unto you, they are spirit and they are life.” John vi. 63.
Jesus said: “He that followeth me … shall have the light of life.” John viii. 12.
“I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.” John x. 10.
“He that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live.” John xi. 25.
“I am the way, and the truth, and the life.” John xiv. 6.
“Because I live, ye shall live also.” John xiv. 19.
“These are written … that … ye might have life through His name.” John xx. 31.
He is “eternal life.” 1 John v. 20.
By life in faith and charity is meant spiritual life, which is imparted by the Lord to man in his natural life.
“A man can receive nothing, except it be given him from heaven.” John iii. 27;
and Jesus said:
“He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.” John xv. 5.
By this it is to be understood that a man of himself can acquire for himself nothing but natural faith; and this is a persuasion that a thing is so because some person of authority has said it. Nor can he acquire anything but natural charity, which is an endeavor to obtain favor, for the sake of some reward; in such faith and charity there is man’s proprium, but no life as yet from the Lord. Still, by both of these a man prepares himself to become a receptacle of the Lord; and, so far as he does so, the Lord enters and causes his natural faith and charity to become spiritual, and thus both to become living. This is done when a man approaches the Lord as the God of heaven and earth.
Because man was created an image of God, he was created a habitation of God; therefore the Lord says,
“He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me and I will love him” and come unto him, and make my abode with him. John xiv. 21, 23;
and again:
“Behold, I stand at the door and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.” Rev. iii. 20.
From this it follows that, as a man prepares himself on the natural plane to receive the Lord, so the Lord enters and makes all things within him spiritual, and consequently living. On the other hand, as a man does not prepare himself, he puts the Lord away, and does everything from himself; and what a man does from himself has no life in it. These things, however, cannot be seen at all clearly until Charity and Free Will have been dealt with; after which more will be seen on the subject in the chapter on Reformation and Regeneration.
[2] Now, since faith is of light, and charity of heat, it is evident that so far as a man is in the light and heat proceeding from the Sun of the spiritual world, he is in spiritual faith and charity; but that, so far as he is in the light and heat proceeding from the sun of the natural world, he is in natural faith and charity. From this it is evident that as spiritual light and heat are inwardly within natural light and heat, as in their receptacle and repository, so spiritual faith and charity are inwardly within natural faith and charity. This influx of spiritual faith and charity takes place in the degree that man progresses from the natural to the spiritual world; and this he does as he believes on the Lord, who, as He Himself teaches, is Light itself, the Way, the Truth, and the Life.
[3] This being so, it is evident that, when a man is in spiritual faith, he is also in natural faith; for, as was stated, spiritual faith is within natural faith. Moreover, since faith is of light, it follows that by the influx of spiritual light, the natural of man becomes, as it were, translucent, and according to the nature of the union of faith and charity, it acquires a beautiful coloring; for charity glows red from the flame of spiritual fire, and faith gleams white from the splendor of the light issuing from it. The contrary happens if the spiritual is not within the natural, but the natural is inwardly within the spiritual. This takes place with men who reject faith and charity; with them the internal of their mind, in which they are when left to their own thoughts, is infernal; and they also think from hell, although they do not know this. However, the external of their mind, from which they converse with their associates in the world, is apparently spiritual, but still it is filled with the unclean things of hell. They are therefore in hell, for they are in an inverted state compared with the former, or spiritually minded.
[2] So far as faith and charity in a man become spiritual, he is withdrawn from his proprium; and he regards neither himself, nor reward, nor recompense, but only the delight of perceiving the truth of faith, and of doing the good of charity. As this spirituality increases, this delight becomes for him blessedness. From this is man’s salvation, which is called eternal life. This state of a man may be compared to the most beautiful and pleasant things on earth; and it is so compared in the Word, for example, to fruit-bearing trees and to the gardens in which they grow, to fields full of flowers, to precious stones, to delicacies, and also marriages, festivities and rejoicings.
[3] However, when the reverse is the case, that is, when the natural is interiorly within the spiritual, and man as to his internals is consequently a devil, although as to his externals like an angel, he may be compared to a dead man in a coffin of costly wood overlaid with gold; to a skeleton dressed up in robes like a man, borne along in a splendid coach; or to a corpse laid in a sepulchre built like the temple of Diana.* Indeed, the internal of such a man may be represented by a nest of serpents in a cave, but his external by butterflies with wings of every color, which fasten their obnoxious eggs to the leaves of useful trees, to the destruction of their fruits. Nay, his internal man may be compared to a hawk and his external to a dove, and his faith and charity to the flight of the hawk over the fleeing dove, which it wears out at last, and then swoops down upon her and devours her.
* Diana, sister of Apollo, goddess of the chase.
In the first place some truths shall be stated which have hitherto been unknown in the learned and consequently in the ecclesiastical world; they are as unknown as things buried in the earth, although they are treasures of wisdom. If they are not dug up and given to the public, man will labor in vain to attain a just knowledge of God, faith, charity and the state of his own life, and how he ought to regulate it, and prepare it for a state of eternal life. These truths are as follows: A man is a mere organ of life. Life, with all pertaining to it, enters by influx from the God of heaven, who is the Lord. There are two faculties of life in man, called the will and the understanding; the will is the receptacle of love, and the understanding the receptacle of wisdom; and thus also the will is the receptacle of charity, and the understanding the receptacle of faith.
[2] Whatever a man wills, and whatever he understands, enter into him by influx from without; the goods of love and charity, and the truths of wisdom and faith enter from the Lord, and everything contrary to these from hell. The Lord has provided that a man may inwardly feel as his own what thus enters from without, and consequently give it forth from himself as his own, although nothing of it is his. Nevertheless, it is imparted to him as his own on account of his Free Will, in which reside his will and thought, and also on account of the knowledge of good and truth imparted to him; for from these he can freely choose whatever is conducive to his temporal and to his eternal life. [3] A man who regards these matters with unsteady or clouded vision may draw from them many irrational conclusions; but a man who considers them fairly and clearly, may draw from them wise conclusions. For this reason it was necessary to set forth at the beginning of this work certain conclusions and teachings concerning God and the Divine Trinity, and afterwards to establish others relating to Faith and Charity, Free Will, and Reformation and Regeneration, and also Imputation, as well as to Repentance, Baptism, and the Holy Supper, as means.
(1) The Lord, with all His Divine Love, and with all His Divine Wisdom, thus with all His Divine Life, enters by influx into every man;
(2) Consequently, with all the essence of faith and charity;
(3) But they are received by man according to his form.
(4) The man, however, who separates the Lord, charity and faith, is a form not recipient but destructive of them.
that man was created an image of God, and that God breathed into his nostrils the breath of lives, Gen. i. 27; ii. 7.
By this is meant that man is an organ of life, and not life itself. God could not create another being like Himself; if this has been possible, there would have been as many gods as there are men. Nor could He create life, just as light cannot be created; but He could create man a form adapted to life, as He created the eye a form adapted to light; and God could not divide His Essence, nor can He, for this is one and indivisible. Since, therefore, God alone is life, it follows indubitably that God, from His own life, quickens every man, and that a man, without this quickening, would be a mere sponge as to his flesh, and a mere skeleton as to his bones, with no more life in him than there is in a clock, which is kept in motion by a pendulum, together with a weight or spring. This being the case, it follows also that God enters by influx into every man with all His Divine Life, that is, with all His Divine Love and Divine Wisdom, these two constituting His Divine Life, as may be seen above Nos. 39, 40; for the Divine is indivisible.
[2] How God thus enters man may be perceived in some measure by considering how the sun of this world, with all its essence consisting of heat and light, enters by influx into every tree, shrub and flower, and into every stone, common as well as precious. Every object takes in its own portion of this general influx, and the sun does not divide up its light and heat, distributing a part here and a part there. So it is with the Sun of heaven, from which proceeds Divine Love as heat, and Divine Wisdom as light. These two enter by influx into the minds of men as the heat and light of the sun of this world enter into their bodies, quickening them according to the quality of the recipient form, and each takes in what it needs from the common influx. In this sense the words of the Lord may be applied:
Your Father “maketh His sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust.” Matt. v. 45.
[3] Moreover, the Lord is omnipresent, and wherever He is, He is there with His whole essence; and it is impossible for Him to take any portion from it, giving a part to one and a part to another. He imparts it as a whole, and affords man an opportunity to take in little or much. He also says that He makes His abode with those who keep His commandments, and the faithful are in Him, and He in them. In short, all things are full of God, and every one takes his portion from that fullness. The case is similar with all things that are common or general, as with the atmospheres and oceans. An atmosphere is of the same character in its least as in its greatest parts; it does not dispense a part of itself for man’s respiration, another for the flight of birds, another for the sails of a ship, and another for the arms of a windmill. Each one of these takes from the atmosphere its own portion, and applies what is necessary to its own purposes. It is similar also with a granary full of grain; the owner takes from it his requirements for the day, but the granary does not dispense the corn.
Infinite things are contained in the heat and light which proceed from the Lord, although they are perceived as if they were the simple phenomena of heat and light. This may be illustrated by various examples taken from the natural world, as for instance: the sound of a man’s voice and speech is heard only as a simple sound yet when the angels hear it they perceive in it all the affections of his love, and they also detect their nature and quality. That such things are latent in the sound a man may gather in some measure from the tone of any one conversing with him, for he can notice whether there is present contempt, or sarcasm, or hatred, or on the other hand, love, benevolence, or joy, or other affections. Much of the same nature be present in a glance of the eye, when one person looks at another. [4] Further illustration may be afforded by the fragrance from a spacious garden and extensive flower-covered fields. The fragrance they breathe forth may consist of myriads of different odors, which are yet perceived as one. It is the same with many other things which outwardly appear as one, but inwardly are manifold. Thus sympathy and antipathy are only emanations from the mind of affections which attract or repel according to their reception. Although these emanations, so different in their nature, are innumerable, and are not felt by any bodily sense, yet they are perceived as one by the sense of the soul; and according to them all conjunctions and associations in the spiritual world are effected. These instances have been brought forward to illustrate what was said above concerning the spiritual light which proceeds from the Lord. It has within it all that pertains to wisdom, and thus to faith; and it is the light from which the understanding sees and perceives rational things analytically, as the eye sees natural things symmetrically.
* quod nihil deesse possit, quin home ex Domino, quia omnipraesens est, possit desumere omne bonum quod charitatis est. Ex in this context means “as far as … is concerned.” A is usually used with verbs of receiving to denote the source.
[2] The life of God in all its fullness is present not only with the good and pious, but also with the wicked and impious, and in like manner with the angels of heaven and the spirits of hell. The difference is that the wicked obstruct the way and close the door to prevent God from entering the lower regions of their minds, whereas the good prepare the way, and open the door, and invite God to enter the lower regions of their minds and dwell there, just as He has His dwelling-place in the highest regions of the mind. They thus adapt the state of their will to the influx of love and charity, and the state of their understanding to the influx of wisdom and faith, consequently to the reception of God. The wicked, however, obstruct the course of that influx, by various lusts of the flesh and spiritual defilements which they spread in the way, and thus choke the passage. God nevertheless, with all His Divine Essence, resides in their highest regions, and imparts to them the faculty of willing good and understanding truth. This faculty every man possesses, but it could by no means be his if life from God were not in his soul. It has been granted me to know from much experience, that even the wicked have this faculty.
[3] That every one receives life from God according to his form may be illustrated by comparison with plants of all kinds. Every tree, shrub, herb and blade of grass receives the influx of heat and light according to its form; and this is true both of those whose use is good and of those whose use is evil. The sun with its heat does not change their forms, but the forms change its effects in themselves. It is the same with the objects of the mineral kingdom; each of these, whether valuable or worthless, receives influx according to the form of the texture of its parts, thus one stone, mineral and metal differently from another. Some of them are variegated with the most beautiful colors, some transmit the light without variegation, and some blur and absorb it. From these few cases it may be evident that as the sun of this world with its heat and light is equally present in one object as in another, the recipient forms themselves varying its operation, so the Lord, from the midst of the Sun of heaven, is universally present with its heat, which in its essence is love, and with its light, which in its essence is wisdom; but that the form of man, which undergoes modification from the states of his life, varies their effects. Consequently, if a man is not born again and saved, the Lord is not the cause, but the man himself.
[3] To separate charity from faith is like separating essence from form; and it is well known to the learned that essence is nothing without form, and form nothing without essence. For essence has no quality except from form, nor has form any existence or subsistence apart from essence; and consequently nothing can be predicated of either separated from the other. Charity also is the essence of faith, and faith is the form of charity, just as good is the essence of truth, and truth is the form of good, as was stated above. [4] These two, namely, good and truth, are present in everything, in general and in particular, that has essential existence; therefore charity, having relation to good, and faith, having relation to truth, may be illustrated by comparison with many things in the human body and on the earth. They may be fitly compared to the breathing of the lungs and the beating of the heart, as charity can no more be separated from faith than the heart from the lungs. For when the pulse of the heart stops, the respiration of the lungs immediately ceases; and when the respiration of the lungs ceases, all sensation is suspended, the muscles are deprived of their power of motion, and soon the heart ceases to beat, and all life is dissipated. This is an apt comparison, since the heart corresponds to the will, and therefore also to charity, and the respiration of the lungs corresponds to the understanding, and therefore also to faith; for, as was said above, charity resides in the will, and faith in the understanding; and these are what are meant in the Word by it “heart” and “breath.”
[5] The separation of charity and faith corresponds also to the separation of blood and flesh; for blood separated from flesh is gore, and becomes corrupt; and flesh, separated from blood, gradually putrefies and breeds worms. More over, blood in the spiritual sense signifies the truth of wisdom and faith, and flesh the good of love and charity, as is shown in “The Apocalypse Revealed,” Nos. 379 and 832. [6] Charity and faith can no more be separated, and yet retain their respective values, than meat and drink, or bread and wine, as nourishment for man. For meat and bread, taken without either water or wine, distend the stomach, ruin it with an undigested mass, and become so much putrescent matter; while water and wine, without meat and bread, also distend the stomach, the vessels and the pores; and these, deprived of nourishment, cause emaciation and finally death of the body. This comparison also is apt, since meat and bread in the spiritual sense signify the good of love and charity, while water and wine signify the truth of wisdom and faith, as may be seen in “The Apocalypse Revealed,” Nos. 50, 316, 778, 932.
[7] Charity and faith mutually conjoined may be likened to the face of a comely maiden, whose beauty is enhanced by the mingling of the red and white of her complexion. This also is an apt comparison, since love with charity from it glows red in the spiritual world from the fire of its Sun, while truth with faith from it gleams white from the light of that Sun. Thus charity separated from faith may be likened to a face afire with pustules, and faith separated from charity to the pallid face of a corpse. Faith separated from charity may also be likened to paralysis of one side, called hemiplegia, which spreads until death ensues. It may also be likened to St. Vitus’s Dance,* or Guy’s Disease, which results from the bite of a tarantula. The rational faculty when in such a state of separation becomes like one bitten; like him it dances furiously, and fancies itself particularly alert, when yet it can no more collect arguments into one conclusion, and reason about spiritual truths, than a sleeper oppressed with nightmare. What has been said may suffice to prove the two preceding propositions of this chapter: first, Faith without charity is not faith, and
charity without faith is not charity, and neither has any life except from the Lord; and second, The Lord, charity and faith make one, like life, will and understanding in man; and if they are divided, each perishes like a pearl reduced to powder.
* Vitus, Roman saint, martyred under Diocletian (A.D. 284-305). He is the patron saint of dancers, and his influence is besought against such diseases as chorea (known as St. Vitus’s dance), hydrophobia, and sudden death. Called also St. Guy.
The man of the Church is in the Lord, and the Lord is in him, as is evident from these passages in the Word:
Jesus said, “Abide in me, and I in you … I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit.” John xv. 4, 5.
“He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, dwelleth in me, and I in him.” John vi. 56.
“At that day ye shall know that I am in my Father, and ye in me, and I in you.” John xiv. 20.
“Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God, God dwelleth in him, and he in God.” 1 John iv. 15.
A man himself, however, cannot be in the Lord, but the charity and faith can, which are in him from the Lord, and in virtue of which he is essentially a man. In order that this abstruse truth may be manifested to the understanding in a somewhat clear light, it shall be examined in detail as follows:
(1) It is by conjunction with God that a man has salvation and eternal life.
(2) There cannot be conjunction with God the Father, but with the Lord, and through Him with God the Father.
(3) Conjunction with the Lord is reciprocal, that is, the Lord is in man, and man in the Lord.
(4) This reciprocal conjunction is effected by means of charity and faith.
The truth of these propositions will become clear from the following explanation.
[2] A man has power not only to think of God but also to love Him, as is evident from the two commandments of God Himself, which are thus expressed:
“Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul … This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.” Matt. xxii. 37, 38, 39; Deut. vi. 5.
That a man can do God’s commandments, and that this is to love Him, is evident from these words:
Jesus said, “He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him.” John xiv. 21.
[3] Moreover, faith is simply conjunction with God by means of truths, which are matters of the understanding, and consequently of thought; and love is conjunction with God by means of good, which is a matter of the will, and consequently of the affection.
God’s conjunction with man is a spiritual union within the natural, and man’s conjunction with God is a natural union from the spiritual. For the sake of this conjunction as an end in view, man was created a native of heaven and also of the world; as a native of heaven he is spiritual, and as a native of the world he is natural. If, therefore, he becomes spiritually rational, and at the same time spiritually moral, he is conjoined with God, and by conjunction has salvation and eternal life. On the other hand, if a man is only naturally rational, and also naturally moral, there is indeed God’s conjunction with him, but no conjunction of him with God. As a result there comes over him spiritual death, which in itself is natural life devoid of the spiritual; for the spiritual, in which the life of God resides, has been suppressed within him.
that no man has seen God, save He who is with the Father, “He hath seen the Father.” John vi. 46.
“Neither knoweth any man the Father, save the Son, and he to whomsoever the Son will reveal Him.” Matt. xi. 27.
“Ye have neither heard the Father’s (A.V., His) voice at any time, nor seen His shape.” John v. 37.
This is because He is in the beginnings and first principles of all things, and thus He completely transcends the whole sphere of the human mind. For He is in the beginnings and first principles of all things relating to wisdom and love with which a man cannot possibly have conjunction. If, therefore, God should draw near to man, or man to Him, the man would be consumed and dissipated like a piece of wood in the focus of a huge burning-glass, or rather like an image cast into the sun itself. Thus when Moses desired to see God he was told
that no man could see God and live, Exod. xxxiii. 20.
[2] That there is conjunction with God the Father through the Lord is evident from the passages just quoted, affirming that the things which are of God and from God have been declared and revealed not by the Father, but by the only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, and who has seen the Father. It is also evident from the following passages:
“At that day ye shall know that I am in my Father, and ye in me, and I in you.” John xiv. 20.
“The glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one: I in thee, and thou in me.” John xvii. 22, 23, 26.
“Jesus saith … I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me;” And then Philip wished to see the Father, but the Lord answered him, saying that he who seeth Him seeth the Father also, and that he who knoweth Him knoweth the Father also, John xiv. 6, 7 and following verses;
and in another place,
“He that seeth me seeth Him that sent me.” John xii. 45.
Further He says,
that He is the door, and that he who enters in by Him shall be saved; but that he who climbs up by some other way is a thief and a robber, John x. 1, 9;
and also,
“If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth” and is cast into the fire as a withered branch, John xv. 6.
[3] The reason is that the Lord our Savior is Jehovah the Father Himself in human form. For Jehovah descended and became Man, that He might be able to draw near to man, and man to Him; thus that there might be conjunction, and that by conjunction man might have salvation and eternal life. For when God became Man, becoming also Man-God, He was then accommodated to man and able to draw near to him, and to be conjoined with him as God-Man and Man-God. Now there are three things which follow in order, namely, accommodation, application, and conjunction. There must be accommodation before there can be application, and there must be accommodation and application together before there can be conjunction. There was accommodation on the part of God when He became Man; application (or effort towards conjunction) on the part of God is perpetually adjusted to the effort put forth by man; and conjunction is effected in so far as this effort is mutual. These three things follow and make progress in their own order; and they do so in all things, in general and in particular, that become one, and exist together.
“Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? … Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father in me.” John xiv. 10, 11.
“That ye may know and believe that the Father is in me, and I in the Father (A.V., Him). John x. 38.
Jesus said, “Father, the hour is come; glorify thy Son, that thy Son also may glorify thee.” John xvii. 1.
Father, “All mine are Thine, and thine are mine.” John xvii. 10.
The Lord says the same concerning His conjunction with man, namely, that it is reciprocal; for He says,
“Abide in me, and I in you … He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit.” John xv. 4, 5.
“He that eateth my flesh and drinketh my blood, dwelleth in me, and I in him.” John vi. 56.
“At that day ye shall know that I am in my Father, and ye in me, and I in you.” John xiv. 20.
“He that keepeth the commandments of Christ (A.V., His) dwelleth in Him, and He in him.” 1 John iii. 24; iv. 13.
“Whosoever shall confess that Christ (A.V., Jesus) is the Son of God, God dwelleth in him, and he in God.” 1 John iv. 15.
“If any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.” Rev. iii. 20.
[2] These plain statements prove that the conjunction of the Lord and man is reciprocal; and therefore it surely follows that a man ought to conjoin himself with the Lord, so that the Lord may conjoin Himself with him. Otherwise, there cannot be conjunction, but withdrawal and separation, not on the part of God, but on the part of man. In order that this reciprocal conjunction may be possible, man is endowed with freedom of choice, by which he may take the road to heaven or the road to hell. From this freedom, with which he is endowed, he derives the power of reciprocation, so that he can conjoin himself with the Lord, or with the devil. However, the nature of man’s liberty of action and the reason why it is granted to him, will be explained in the following chapters which treat of Free Will, Repentance, Reformation and Regeneration, and Imputation.
[3] It is a deplorable circumstance that the reciprocal conjunction of the Lord and man, although standing out so clearly in the Word, is unknown in the Christian Church. It remains unknown because of the prevalent hypotheses concerning Faith and Free Will. These are, that faith is bestowed on man without his contributing anything to acquire it, or preparing and applying himself to receive it any more than a stock or stone; and that he does not possess even a grain of Free Will in spiritual matters. However, that the reciprocal conjunction of the Lord and man, on which the salvation of the human race depends, may no longer remain unknown, it is imperative that it should be explained; and this can best be done by illustrative examples.
[4] There are two kinds of reciprocation by which conjunction is effected; one is alternate, and the other is mutual. Alternate reciprocation by which conjunction is effected may be illustrated by the action of the lungs. The air is inhaled, and the chest is thus expanded; presently the inhaled air is sent out, and the chest is thus contracted. This inhalation and consequent expansion is the result of atmospheric pressure, depending upon the barometric height; but the emission of the air, with consequent contraction, is caused by the pressure of the muscles upon the ribs. Such is the reciprocal conjunction of the air and the lungs, on which depends the life of all bodily sense and motion; for when respiration ceases, these also cease.
[5] Reciprocal conjunction, which is effected by alternation, may also be illustrated by the conjunction of the heart with the lungs, and of the lungs with the heart. The heart, from its right ventricle, pours the blood into the lungs, and the lungs send it back into the left ventricle of the heart; and thus is effected that reciprocal conjunction on which the life of the whole body depends. Similar to this is the reciprocal conjunction of the blood with the heart. The blood of the whole body flows through the veins into the heart, and from the heart through the arteries into every part of the body. Action and reaction effect this conjunction. There is similar action and reaction between the embryo and the womb of the mother, by which constant conjunction is maintained.
[6] The reciprocal conjunction of the Lord and man, however, is not alternate, but mutual, and is effected not by action and reaction, but by co-operation; for the Lord acts, and man receives action from the Lord, operating as if from himself, but in reality of himself from the Lord. This action of man from the Lord is imputed to him as his own, for he is continually kept in Free Will by the Lord. The freedom resulting whence is that he has power to will and think from the Lord, that is, from the Word, and also has power to will and think from the devil, that is, contrary to the Lord and the Word. The Lord gives a man this freedom in order that he may be able to effect reciprocal conjunction with Him, and thereby attain eternal life and blessedness; for otherwise this is not possible.
[7] This reciprocal conjunction, which is mutual, may also be illustrated by comparison with various things in man and in the world around. It is like the conjunction existing between the soul and body in every man, between the will and action, and between thought and speech; between the two eyes, the two ears and the two nostrils. That the conjunction of the two eyes with one another is in its own way reciprocal, may be evident from the fact that fibres from both hemispheres of the brain are interwoven in the optic nerve, and thus extend to both eyes. It is the same with the ears and nostrils. There is a similar reciprocal conjunction that is mutual between light and the eye, sound and the ear, smell and the nose, taste and the tongue, touch and the body. For the eye is in the light, and the light is in the eye; sound is in the ear, and the ear is in sound; smell is in the nose, and the nose is in smell; taste is in the tongue, and the tongue is in taste; and touch is in the body, and the body is in touch. This reciprocal conjunction may also be compared to that between a horse and a carriage, an ox and a plough, a wheel and a machine, a sail and the wind, a musical pipe and the breath; in short, reciprocal conjunction is that which exists between end and cause, and between cause and effect. There is not time, however, to explain all such cases in detail, for this would require a volume of many pages.
Eph. i. 23; 1 Cor. xii. 27; Rom. xii. 4, 5.
Now what is the body of Christ but Divine Good and Divine Truth? This is meant by the Lord’s words in John,
“He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, dwelleth in me, and I in him.” John vi. 56.
The Lord’s flesh, and also bread, mean Divine Good; and His blood, and also wine, mean Divine Truth. That this is their meaning will be seen in the chapter on the Holy Supper. It therefore follows that so far as a man is in the good of charity and in the truth of faith, he is in the Lord, and the Lord is in him; for conjunction with the Lord is spiritual, and spiritual conjunction is effected only by means of charity and faith. That there is a conjunction of the Lord and the Church, and consequently of good and truth, throughout the whole of the Word in all its details, was shown in the chapter on the Sacred Scripture, Nos. 248-253; and because charity is good, and faith is truth, there is in every part of the Word a conjunction of charity and faith. From what has been said it now follows that the Lord is charity and faith in man, and that man is charity and faith in the Lord. For the Lord is spiritual charity and faith in man’s natural charity and faith, and man is natural charity and faith from the spiritual of the Lord; and these, when united, produce charity and faith, which are spiritual natural.
The whole of man as to his mind (animus),* that is, his essential nature, is in every work which proceeds from him. By mind, is meant the affection of his love and his consequent thought, which form his nature, or in general, his life. Works viewed in this light are like mirrors, reflecting the man. This may be illustrated by what is the same in animals, harmless and wild; for they are revealed in all their respective actions; the wolf is a wolf in all it does, a tiger a tiger, a fox a fox and a lion a lion; and the same is true of a sheep and a kid. It is similar with a man, but his nature is according to the quality of his internal man. If in this he is like a wolf or a fox, all his works are interiorly wolfish and fox-like; and on the other hand the contrary is true if he is like a sheep or a lamb. That the internal quality of a man is revealed in all his works is not obvious is the external man, for this, with its power to assume appearances, surrounds and conceals the internal within it. The Lord says:
“A good man out of the treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is evil.” Luke vi. 45.
And again:
“Every tree is known by his own fruit. For of thorns men do not gather figs, nor of a bramble gather they grapes.” Luke vi. 44.
That the nature of the internal man is in all the works which proceed from him, is vividly made clear to him after death, for then he lives an internal, and no longer an external man. When the Lord, charity and faith reside in the internal man, then good is in him, and every work that proceeds from him is good. This will be shown under the following heads:
(1) Charity consists in willing what is good, and good works consist in doing what is good from willing what is good.
(2) Charity and faith are merely fleeting mental abstractions unless, whenever it is possible, they are expressed in works, and exist together in them.
(3) Charity alone does not produce good works, still less does faith alone; but good works are produced by charity and faith together.
These points will now be considered separately.
* quoad animum. For distinction between animus and mens see footnote, No. 739:4.
[3] This may be illustrated by comparison with a tree. A man himself in all his parts is like a tree. In its seed there lie hidden, as it were, the end, intention and purpose of producing fruit, and thus the seed corresponds to man’s will, which, as was just said, contains these three things. Then the seed from its interiors shoots up from the earth, clothes itself with branches, twigs and leaves, and so provides itself with the means adapted to its end, which is fruit. Thus a tree corresponds to man’s understanding. Finally, when the time comes for full expression, it blossoms and produces fruits; and in this it corresponds to man performing good works. It is, therefore, evident that good
works in their essence are related to the seed, in their form to the branches and leaves, and in their actual use to the timber of the tree.
[4] This may also be illustrated by comparison with a temple; and a man is a temple of God, according to Paul,
1 Cor. iii. 16, 17; 2 Cor. vi. 16; Eph. ii. 21, 22.
As a temple of God, man has for his end, intention and purpose, salvation and eternal life; and in these there is a correspondence with the will, which contains those three things. In due course he learns the doctrines of faith and charity from parents, masters and preachers; and when his judgment matures, he acquires them from the Word and other books of instruction. All these are means conducive to the end; and in these there is a correspondence with the understanding. Finally, there comes expression in uses by means of these doctrines. This is effected by his acts in the body, which are called good works. Thus the end by mediate causes produces effects; and these in their essence are related to the end, in their form they are related to the doctrines of the Church, and in their performance they are related to uses. Thus does man become a temple of God.
Men with minds so unreal, and yet able to think, must needs be disturbed by fanciful ideas and reasonings from various sophistries, as reeds are shaken by the wind in marshes, in the depths of which lie sounding shells, while frogs croak an the surface. Any one may see that such things come to pass with those who merely know something from the Word about charity and faith, but who do not practice them. Moreover, the Lord says:
“Whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock … And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand,” or upon the ground, without a foundation, Matt. vii. 24, 26; Luke vi. 47, 48, 49.
Charity and faith, with all the factitious ideas about them, when they are not practised by a man, may also be compared to butterflies in the air, which a sparrow darts upon and devours, as soon as it catches sight of them. The Lord also says:
“A sower went forth to sow … and some seeds fell by the way-side, and the fowls came and devoured them up.” Matt. xiii. 3, 4.
“Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.” Matt. vii. 19-21.
“He that receiveth seed into the good ground is he that heareth the Word, and understandeth it; which also beareth fruit, and bringeth forth ” … When Jesus had said these things, He cried saying, “Who hath ears to hear, let him hear.” Matt. xiii. to v. 9, and 23.
Jesus said, “My mother and my brethren are these which hear the Word of God, and do it.” Luke viii. 21.
“Now we know that God heareth not sinners: but if any man be a worshiper of God, and doeth His will, him He heareth.” John ix. 31.
“If ye know these things, happy are ye if ye do them.” John xiii. 17.
“He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me … and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him … and I (A.V., we) will come unto him, and make my (A.V., our) abode with him.” John xiv. 15-21, [23].
“Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit.” John xv. 8, 16.
“For not the hearers of the law are just before God, but the doers of the law.” Rom. ii. 13; James i. 22.
“God in the day of wrath and of just judgment will render to every man according to his works.” (A.V., against the day of wrath and … of the righteous judgment of God, who will render). Rom. ii. 5, 6.
“For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad.” 2 Cor. v. 10.
“For the Son of Man shall come in the glory of His Father … and then He shall reward every man according to his works.” Matt. xvi. 27.
“I heard a voice from heaven saying … Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth … saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labors; and their works do follow them.” Rev. xiv. 13.
“A book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the book (A.V., books) … every man according to their works. Rev. xx. 12, 13.
“And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be.” Rev. xxii. 12.
Jehovah, whose eyes “are open upon all the ways … of men: to give every one according to his ways, and according to the fruit of his doings.” Jer. xxxii. 19.
“I will punish them for their ways, and reward them their doings.” Hos. iv. 9.
“According to our ways, and according to our doings, so hath Jehovah (A.V., He) dealt with us.” Zech. i. 6.
So also is it written in a thousand other passages.
From all this it may be evident that charity and faith are not charity and faith before they exist in works. If they only exist on the plane of the mind above works they are like forms of tabernacle or temple in the air, merely unsubstantial appearances which vanish of themselves. They are like pictures on a piece of paper eaten away by moths, or like lodgings on a roof-top, where there is no bed-chamber, instead of within the house. Hence it may now be seen that charity and faith are but fleeting things as long as they remain mental abstractions, and unless, whenever it is possible, they are expressed in works, and exist together in them.
“He that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God.” John iii. 21.
So long, therefore, as a man does good works according to truths, he does them in the light, that is, intelligently and wisely.
The conjunction of charity and faith is like the marriage of a husband and wife. From the husband as a father, and from the wife as a mother, all natural offspring are born. Similarly, from charity as a father, and from faith as a mother, are born all spiritual offspring, which are the knowledges of good and truth. From this may be understood what is meant by the generation of spiritual families. In the Word also, in its spiritual sense, husband and father signify the good of charity, and wife and mother, the truth of faith. From this again it is evident that neither charity alone, nor faith alone, can produce good works, just as neither a husband alone, nor a wife alone, can produce children. The truths of faith not only illuminate charity, but they also determine its character, and moreover nourish it. A man therefore who has charity and not the truths of faith is like one walking in a garden at night, who plucks fruit from the trees without knowing whether it is good or bad. Since the truths of faith not only illuminate charity, but also determine its character, as was just stated, it follows that charity without the truths of faith is like fruit without juice, or like a parched fig, or like grapes from which the wine has been pressed. Further, since truths nourish faith, as has also been stated, it follows that if charity is without the truths of faith, it has no more nourishment in it than one would receive from eating burnt bread, and drinking with it polluted water from a stagnant pool.
The Christian Church from its earliest infancy began to be infested and rent asunder by schisms and heresies; and in process of time it was torn and mangled in much the same way as is recorded of the man who went down from Jerusalem to Jericho.
He fell among thieves, who stripped and wounded him, and left him half dead, Luke x. 30.
Hence what is written of that Church in Daniel has come to pass:
“At length upon the bird of abominations shall be desolation, and even until the consummation and the decision, it shall drop upon the devastation” (A.V., and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate). Dan. ix. 27;
and according to the Lord’s words:
“Then shall the end come. When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet.” Matt. xxiv. 14, 15.
The fate of the Church may be compared to that of a ship laden with precious merchandise, which has no sooner left harbor than it is tossed about by storms, and presently becoming a wreck, sinks to the bottom of the sea. Then its rich cargo is partly ruined by the water and partly torn to pieces by fishes.
[2] That the Christian Church from its infancy has been thus harassed and torn is evident from ecclesiastical history; for, even in the Apostles’ time, it was disturbed by Simon,* who was by birth a Samaritan, and by profession a sorcerer, about whom we read in Acts viii. 9 and following verses; and also by Hymenaeus** and Philetus,*** mentioned by Paul in his Epistle to Timothy [2 Tim. n. 17]; and again by Nicholas,**** who gave his name to the Nicolaitans, mentioned in Revelation ii. 8, and Acts vi. 5; and also by Cerinthus.***** After the time of the Apostles many others rose up, as the Marcionites,****** Noetians,******* Valentinians,******** Encratites,********* Cataphrygians,********** Quarto-Decimans,*********** Alogians,************ Catharians,************* Origenists************** or Adamites,*************** Sabellians,**************** Samosatians,***************** Manichaeans,****************** Meletians******************* and lastly Arians.******************** After these, whole troops of arch-heretics invaded the Church, as the Donatists,********************* Photinians, Acatians********************** or Semiarians,*********************** Eunomians,*********************** Macedonians,************************ Nestorians,************************* Predestinarians, Papists, Zwinglians,************************** Anabaptists,*************************** Schwenkfeldians,**************************** Synergists,***************************** Socinians,****************************** Anti-Trinitarians, Quakers,******************************* Herrenhuterites******************************** (Moravians********************************), besides many others. Over all these Luther,********************************* Melanchthon********************************** and Calvin*********************************** finally prevailed, and their dogmas are prevalent to-day.
[3] The causes of so many schisms and dissensions in the Church are chiefly three. First, the Divine Trinity has not been understood. Second, there has been no just knowledge of the Lord. Third, the passion of the cross has been regarded as Redemption itself. These three matters are the essentials of that faith from which the Church exists and takes its name; and as long as they are misunderstood, all things of the Church must be diverted from their right course, and at last turned backwards. While the Church is in this state it may still believe that it possesses a true faith in God and a faith wholly composed of His Truth. Its members are like men who blindfold themselves and imagine they walk in a straight line, whereas they are deviating from it step by step; and finally, proceeding on a course opposite to that on which they set out, they come upon a pit into which they fall. As the man of the Church cannot be led from his errors to the truth unless he understands the nature of true faith, spurious faith and hypocritical faith, the following propositions shall be proved:
(1) The only true faith is faith in the Lord God, the Savior Jesus Christ; and this faith is held by those who believe Him to be the Son of God, the God of heaven and earth, and one with the Father.
(2) Spurious faith is every faith that departs from the one true faith, and is held by those who “climb up some other way,” and regard the Lord not as God, but as a mere man.
(3) Hypocritical faith is not faith.
* Simon Magus has been commonly Synergists (Greek, co-workers), regarded as the father of heresy and the founder of Gnosticism. He pretended to be the greatest of the Aeons, that succession of intelligent beings who proceeded from the great First Cause. Professing belief in Christ he was baptized by Philip when that apostle was gaining many converts in Samaria. However, when Peter and John arrived to further the cause of Christianity, he betrayed his real character by offering them money to purchase from them the power of the Holy Spirit.
** Hymenaeus, see 1 Tim. i. 20 and 2 Tim. ii. 17.
*** Philetus, see Tim. ii. 17.
**** Cerinthus, a Jew who studied philosophy at Alexandria and later at Ephesus. Here he is said to have met the Apostle John, whose teaching is supposed to counteract the falsity of Cerinthian Gnosticism. 378(2).
***** Nicolas (Greek, nikan laon, destroyer of the people), founder of the Nicolaitans, a licentious sect named after him. Rev. ii.
****** Marcionites, followers of Marcion, c. A.D. 120-170, a heretic of the second century. He drew up a Canon of Sacred Scripture, Pauline in character, which should exclude all Jewish influence. His Canon included only ten Epistles of Paul and a Gospel, supposed to have been Luke’s but altered to suit his own views, called by his followers the Gospel of Christ.
******* Encratites (Greek, egkartes, strong, self-controlled), a name given to various sects noted for their rigid abstinence. It was chiefly applied to the Gnostic sect of which Tatian and Severus were the leaders.
******** Cataphrygos, a sect which arose in Asia Minor in the second century. They claimed to possess spiritual qualities, inspiration, and power of prophecy, describing Christians who denied their pretensions as carnal and unregenerate.
********* Catharians (Greek, the Pure), the name assumed by the followers of Novatian, who favored exclusion for ever from the Church of all who had defiled themselves after baptism. This measure was originally directed against those Christians who, during the persecution of Decius, A.D. 249, were induced to sacrifice to idols or to procure from the magistrates, by a money payment, a certificate of having obeyed the emperor’s command. 378(2).
********** Quarto-Decimans, those who followed the custom of the Asiatic Church in keeping the paschal feast on the fourteenth day of the first Jewish month, whatever day of the week it might happen to be. The Western Church commemorated the resurrection on the Sunday that followed the Jewish Passover, regarding the preceding Friday as the paschal day.
*********** Alogians (Greek, a priv. and logos word), an obscure sect of the second century, who are said to have denied that Jesus Christ was the Logos or eternal Word, and to have rejected the Gospel of John and the Revelation as spurious.
************ Noetians, followers of Noetius, a native of Asia Minor in the third century, a heretic whose opinions resembled those of Sabellius.
************* Valentinians, followers of Valentinus, a heretic of the second century. He was the founder of the most complicated system of Gnosticism, accepting the Gospel of John as his chief authority and employing scriptural language more freely than other Gnostics. His system became a cloak for much licentiousness.
************** Origenists, followers of Origen, A.D. 185-254, who maintained a spiritual interpretation of Scripture. They are numbered among the disturbers of the Church because they held such tenets as the following, which have been ascribed to Origen: That the soul of Christ was united to the Word before the Incarnation; that there is a pre-existent state of human souls; that souls were condemned to animate mortal bodies in order to expiate faults they had committed in a pre-existent state; that after long periods of time the damned shall be released from their torments and restored to a new state of probation.
*************** Adamantines, Grk. untameable, adamant, identified by some with the Adamites, heretics of the second century. Classified with Origenists.
**************** Sabellians, followers of Sabellius, who taught at Rome early in the third century doctrines denying the distinct personality of the Son and Holy Ghost, maintaining that the names of the Three Persons denote so many energies proceeding from the One God, or so many characters assumed by Him.
***************** Samosatians, followers of Paul of Samosata, bishop of Antioch, A. D. 260, but deposed for denying that the Son of God came down from heaven, and teaching that Jesus Christ was a mere man.
****************** Acetians, (1) probably for Aetiani, followers of Aetius, who founded the anomoean form of Arianism, denying any resemblance between the essence of the Father and the Son, or (2) for Acaciani, from Acacius, bishop of Caesarea, c. fourth century, who was at one time an associate of Aetius, but afterwards deserted him and subscribed to the Nicean doctrine.
******************* Semiarians (Semi-Arians), adherents of a modified form of Arianism.
******************** Eunomians, followers of Eunomius, pupil and amanuensis of Aetius, founder of the anomoean form of Arianism.
********************* Macedonians, followers of Macedonius, who was bishop of Constantinople and a celebrated Semi-Arian teacher, but was exiled through the influence of the Eunomians.
********************** Nestorians, followers of Nestorius, Patriarch of Constantinople. He was condemned by the Council of Ephesus, A.D. 431, as heretical on the subject of our Savior’s incarnation. He maintained that Mary was to be called the mother of Christ, and not the name with the Alexandrians.
*********************** Zwinglians. Zwingli, the famous Swiss Reformer, began his ministry in A.D. 1506, making the Scriptures his supreme authority, and opposing with ever increasing vehemence the corruptions and the pretensions of the Catholic Church. He and Calvin, however, held different views on important points of Christian doctrine. For instance, Zwingli maintained that the bread and wine of the Euchrtrist were only symbols of the Lord’s body and blood, and that the ordinance was only commemorative in nature; while Calvin maintained a real spiritual presence. He died on the battlefield of Cappel, A.D. 1531, fighting for the Reformation against his countrymen who took up arms for the cause of Rome. He has left a lasting memorial in the Zurich Bible, A.D. 1529, the production of which was largely due to his efforts.
************************* Anabaptists (Re-baptizers), the name sometimes given to all Christians who consider baptism by any other mode than that of immersion null and void.
************************** Schwenkfeldians, followers or Schwenkfeld, A.D. 1490-1561, a German theologian who founded a religious sect in the sixteenth century. He opposed Luther’s doctrine on the Eucharist, and dispensed altogether with Baptism. A number of the sect settled in Saxony from which some emigrated to Pennsylvania in A. D. 1733.
*************************** Synergists (Greek co-workers), those who followed Melanchthon in asserting the necessity of the co-operation of man’s will with the Word and grace of God in the works of conversion and sanctification.
**************************** Socinians, members of a religious sect taking their name from Faustus Socinus, A.D. 1539-1604, and his uncle Laelius Socinus. They are antitrinitarians, denying the personality of the Holy Ghost and the Divinity of Christ. Early Socians believed in the miraculous conception and that Christ was entitled to Divine worship; but modern Socinians, chiefly Unitarians, deny both.
***************************** Manichaeans, a heretical Christian sect founded in Persia, c. A.D. 270 by Mani, who professed to be the Paraclete, the greater apostle who should complete the work of the earlier apostles, and effectually separate truth from falsity.
****************************** Meletians, followers (1) of Meletius, appointed bishop of Antioch, A.D. 360, by Arian influence; (2) of Meletius, bishop of Lycopolis, Egypt, who latterly joined the Arian party.
******************************* Arius, theologian of Alexandria, A.D 256-336; founder of Arianism, affirming that Christ was an originated Being. Excommunicated by bishops of Egypt for denying that Christ was made of the same substance (homo-ousion) of any previously existing substance. To settle the consequent dispute Constantine called the Council of Nicaea, A.D. 325. Athanasius successfully led the opposition to Arius; and Arius, with Eusebius, who also refused to accept the Athanasian position, was banished.
******************************** Donatists, an important body of schismatics who separated from the Church in the fourth century, taking their title from two African bishops named Donatus. They stood out against the authority of the Church not on any point of doctrine, but on the manner of the appointment of bishops.
********************************** Quakers, or Friends, first called Seekers after truth, a Christian sect the members of which are noted for their integrity of character. Their origin may be traced to the religious agitation which prevailed in this country in the seventeenth century. They do not sustain a stated ministry. As their religious life is based on purely spiritual principles it is devoid of external rites and ceremonial. Their worship is the spontaneous act of those who are moved by the Divine spirit rather than any performance originating in the will of man. They reject the sacraments of Baptism and the Lord’s Supper. They refuse to take oaths; and repudiating war as repugnant to the Gospel, they refuse to take part in military service.
*********************************** Herrenhuterites, see Moravians.
************************************ Moravians, a group of whom, called Herrenhuteri, found refuge in Lusatia, Prussia, where they settled in the village of Hermhut.
************************************* Luther, Martin, A.D. 1483-1646, the leader of the Protestant Reformation in Germany, was born at Eisleben, Saxony. He was a student at Erfurt in law and divinity, and was ordained priest in A.D. 1507. He left Erfurt for a chair in the university of Wittenberg, where his preaching attracted great attention. Here he made his first public protest against the Romish Church by condemning the sale of indulgences. The Lutheran Church dates its origin from the year A.D. 1520 when Luther was expelled from the Romish Church. It assumed a more definite shape on the publication in A.D. 1530 of the Augsburg Confession. This was drawn up by Melanchthon and Luther as the principal standard of the Church. The final establishment of the Lutheran Church was made possible by the friendly offices of Maurice, Elector of Saxony.
************************************** Melanchthon, the foremost scholar among the early Protestants, A.D. 1497-1560. He met Luther at Wittenberg where he was professor of Greek. He exercised a powerful influence over Luther, and was mainly responsible for drawing up the Augsburg Confession. On Luther’s death he became the leader of the Lutherans.
*************************************** Calvin, John, A.D. 1509-1564, was called by Melanchthon “The theologian of the sixteenth century.” He studied law as well as theology, became a Protestant and induced the authorities of Geneva to renounce Popery. The friend of John Knox, he exercised a powerful influence on Scottish Protestantism. His views may be summarized thus: particular election; particular redemption; moral inability in a fallen state; free grace; and ultimate salvation for the elect, notwithstanding many failings and aberrations on the part of the believer. In its leading features his theology is that of Augustine.
“There is one body and one Spirit … One Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God … And He gave some … for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the age of the fulness of Christ.” Ephes. iv. 4, 5, 6, 12, 13.
[2] That the one true faith is a faith in the Lord God, the Savior Jesus Christ, has been shown above in Nos. 337, 338, 339. Moreover, a true faith abides with those who believe the Lord to be the Son of God, because they also believe Him to be God; and faith is not faith unless it is directed towards God. That this fact pertaining to faith is the chief of all the truths that enter into faith and form it, is evident from the Lord’s words to Peter, when he said,
“Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.”…. “Blessed art thou, Simon…I say unto thee … upon this rock I will build my Church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.” Matt. xvi. 16, 17, [18].
By a rock here, as in other parts of the Word, is meant the Lord as to Divine Truth, and also Divine Truth from the Lord. That this truth is primary, and like a diadem on the head and a sceptre in the hand of the body of Christ, is evident from the declaration of the Lord, that upon that rock He would build His Church, and that the gates of hell would not prevail against it. The importance of this truth to faith is evident also from these words in John,
“Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God, God dwelleth in him, and he in God.” [1] John iv. 15.
[3] Besides this mark that such believers are in the one true faith, there is a second, namely, they believe that the Lord is God of heaven and earth. This follows from the former, that He is the Son of God; and from the declarations that in Him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead, Col. ii. 9;
that He is the God of heaven and earth, Matt. xxviii. 18; and that all things that the Father hath are His, John iii. 35, and xvi. 15.
There is a third indication that those who believe on the Lord are interiorly in faith towards Him, and are thus in the one true faith, namely, they believe that the Lord is one with God the Father. That He is one with God the Father, and is the Father Himself in His Human, was fully shown in the chapter concerning the Lord and Redemption, and is plainly evident from the statements of the Lord Himself,
that the Father and He are one, John x. 30;
that the Father is in Him, and He in the Father x. 38; xiv. 10, 11; and He said to His disciples that henceforth they had seen and known the Father. Moreover, turning towards Philip, He said that he then saw and knew the Father, John xiv. 7, and following verses.
[4] These three are characteristic signs that men have faith in the Lord, and thus are in the one true faith, because not all who approach the Lord have faith in Him. True faith is internal, and at the same time external; and only those possessing these three precious characteristics are in the internals as well as the externals of that faith, which is thus not only a treasure in their heart but also a precious thing in their mouth. It is otherwise with those who do not acknowledge the Lord to be the God of heaven and earth, and one with the Father. For they interiorly regard other gods with similar power; which, however, must be exercised by the Son either as a deputy, or as one who, by the redemption wrought by Him, has merited the right to reign over those whom He has redeemed. Such persons rend asunder the true faith by dividing the Unity of God; and when it is thus broken it is no longer faith but merely a phantom, which, viewed naturally, appears as it were an image of faith, but viewed spiritually is a mere delusion. Who can deny that a true faith is faith in one God who is the God of heaven and earth, and consequently faith in God the Father in human form, that is, in the Lord?
[5] These three characteristics, proofs and signs that faith in the Lord is faith itself are like touchstones by which gold and silver are tested. They are like directing stones and finger-posts on the road which point the way to the temple where the one true God is worshiped; and they are like lighthouses on rocks at sea, which by night inform the sailor where he is, and by what course to steer his ship. This first characteristic of faith, that the Lord is the Son of the living God, is like the morning star to all who enter His Church.
The Lord in many places calls those who profess such faith adulterers, and they are also meant by thieves and robbers in John:
“Verily I say unto you, He that entereth not by the door into the sheep-fold, but climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber … I am the door: by me if any man shall enter in, he shall be saved.” x. 1, 9.
To enter into the sheepfold is to enter into the Church, and also into heaven. This is because heaven and the Church make one, and nothing constitutes heaven but the Church there. As the Lord, therefore, is the Bridegroom and Husband of the Church, so also is He the Bridegroom and Husband of heaven. The legitimacy or illegitimacy of faith may be examined and determined by the three signs mentioned above, namely, the acknowledgment of the Lord as the Son of God, the acknowledgment of Him as the God of heaven and earth, and the acknowledgment that He is one with the Father; so far as any faith departs from these essentials, it is spurious.
[2] A spurious faith and, at the same time, an adulterous faith, is held by those who regard the Lord, not as God, but merely as a man. That this belief is entertained is clearly evident from the two impious heresies, Arianism* and Socinianism,** anathematized and banned from the Christian Church, because they deny the Lord’s Divinity, and their followers “climb up some other way.” I am afraid, however, that those abominations lie concealed widely diffused in the thought of men of the Church to-day. It is a remarkable circumstance that the more one considers himself superior to others in learning and judgment the more prone is he to seize upon and adopt these ideas concerning the Lord, namely, that He is a man and not God, and that, because He is a Man, He cannot be God; yet every one who adopts these ideas enters into fellowship with Arians and Socinians, who in the spiritual world are in hell.
[3] These ideas are widespread among men of the Church to-day because there is with every man an associate spirit; otherwise a man would be incapable of thinking analytically, rationally, and spiritually; and consequently he would not be a man but a brute; and every man attracts to himself a spirit in harmony with the affection of his own will and consequent perception of understanding. He who enters into good affections, by means of truths from the Word and by a life according to them, has associated with him an angel from heaven. He, however, who enters into evil affections, by confirming falsities and by an evil life, has associated with him a spirit from hell; and as a result of this association he enters more and more into companionship with satans. He then confirms himself more and more in falsities against the truths of the Word, and in the Arian and Socinian abominations against the Lord. This is because satans cannot bear to hear any truth from the Word, or even the name Jesus to be mentioned. Should they do so, they become like furies, running to and fro and uttering blasphemies. Then if light from heaven shines down upon them, they rush headlong into caverns and into their own darkness, where their light resembles that by which owls see in the dark and cats hunt mice in cellars. Such is the lot after death of all who, in heart and faith, deny the Divinity of the Lord and the holiness of the Word. This is the nature of their internal man, however the external may play the hypocrite and pretend to be Christian. I know that this is true from what I have seen and heard.
[4] All who honor the Lord as the Redeemer and Savior with the lips only, but who in heart and spirit regard Him as a mere man, when they speak and teach thus, are like those whose mouth is full of honey but whose heart is full of gall. Their words are like sugar but their thoughts like poison; they are like baked meats with adders lurking in the layers. If they are priests, they are like pirates at sea, flying the flag of a state at peace; but when a ship approaches them as friends, they hoist the pirates’ flag in place of the other, seize the ship and make captive its crew. They are also like serpents of the tree of knowledge of good and evil. They draw near as angels of light, holding in their hand apples from that tree, but painted to resemble the golden apples of the tree of life. They offer these, saying,
“God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as God (A.V. gods), knowing good and evil.” Gen. iii. 5.
When those who accept the fruit have eaten, they follow the serpent to the lower world, and make their abode with him. All around that lower region dwell satans who have eaten of the apples of Arius* and Socinius.**
They are likewise meant by the man
who came to the wedding; but who, not being clothed with a wedding garment, was cast into outer darkness. Matt. xxii. 11, 12, 13.
The wedding garment is faith in the Lord as the Son of God, as the God of heaven and earth and one with the Father. If those who honor the Lord with the lips only, but who in heart and spirit regard Him as a mere man, reveal their thoughts and convert others to their belief, they are spiritual murderers, and the worst of them are spiritual cannibals. For the life of man is from love of the Lord and faith in Him; but if this essential of faith and love, namely, that the Lord is God Man and Man God, is taken away, his life is turned to death. Thus the man is slain, and devoured as a lamb by a wolf.
* Arius, theologian of Alexandria, A.D. 256-336; founder of Arianism, affirming that Christ was an originated Being. Excommunicated by bishops of Egypt for denying that Christ was made of the same substance (homo-ousion) of any previously existing substance. To settle the consequent dispute Constantine called the Council of Nicaea, A.D. 325. Athanasius successfully led the opposition to Arius; and Arius, with Eusebius, who also refused to accept the Athanasian position, was banished.
** Socinians, members of a religious sect taking their name from Faustus Socinus, A.D. 1539-1604, and his uncle Laelius Socinus. They are antitrinitarians, denying the personality of the Holy Ghost and the Divinity of Christ. Early Socians believed in the miraculous conception and that Christ was entitled to Divine worship; but modern Socinians, chiefly Unitarians, deny both.
[2] A hypocrite is the lowest among natural men, because he is sensual. For his mind is closely bound to the bodily senses, and consequently he does not desire to see anything but what his senses suggest; and these, being in the sphere of nature, compel his mind to think from nature on every subject, and thus on all matters of faith. If such a hypocrite becomes a preacher, he retains in his memory the things he learnt about faith in his childhood and youth; but because within these there is nothing spiritual, but only what is natural, his public utterances are nothing but empty verbiage. They may sound as if they were infused with life; but this arises from the delights of self-love and the love of the world which inspire them with eloquence, and charm, as with sweet music, the ears of his hearers. [3] When a preacher of this sort returns home after the sermon, he has a laugh at what he preached to his congregation about faith, and what he adduced from the Word, possibly saying to himself, “I have cast a net into the lake, and have caught flat-fish and shell-fish”; for such to his deluded mind appear all who hold a true faith.
A hypocrite is like a carved figure with two heads, one within the other. The inner of these is joined to the trunk or body, but the outer is movable about the inner, with a face painted in front, not unlike the wooden heads displayed in a barber’s shop. He also resembles a boat which a sailor, by skillful management of the sail, can direct at pleasure either with the wind or against it, his craving to indulge the flesh and its senses answering to the trimming of the sail. [4] Hypocritical ministers are perfect comedians, mimics and actors, who can play the part of kings, dukes, primates and bishops; but as soon as they put off their theatrical costumes, they visit houses of ill-fame and associate with courtesans. They are also like doors on hinges that allow them to open inwards and outwards; as the state of their minds is such that they can be opened towards hell and towards heaven, and when they are opened towards the one, they are closed towards the other. It is a remarkable circumstance that when they are engaged in their holy office and teaching truths from the Word, they imagine that they believe them, because the door towards hell is then closed; but as soon as they return home they believe not a whit, because then the door towards heaven is closed.
[5] Consummate hypocrites harbor a deep-rooted hatred toward spiritual men, such as satans have toward the angels of heaven. They are not sensible of this while living in this world; but it manifests itself after death on the removal of their external, by which they assumed the appearance of the spiritual man, for their internal man is satanic. I will now tell how, to the angels of heaven, appear those spiritual hypocrites
who “come in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly are ravening wolves.” Matt. vii. 15.
They appear like religious fanatics, walking on their hands, while they utter prayers and call aloud from the heart to devils and adore them; but they clap their shoes in the air and with this sound worship God. When, however, they resume the upright posture they have eyes like a leopard, a prowling gait like a wolf, jaws like a fox and teeth like a crocodile; and in faith they are as vultures.
All those are evil who deny that the world was created by God, and consequently deny God, for they are athetistic materialists. They are evil, because all good, which is not only naturally but also spiritually good, is from God; and therefore those who deny God are not willing, and thus are not able, to receive good from any source but their own proprium. Now a man’s proprium is the lust of the flesh, and whatever proceeds from this is spiritually evil, however it may appear good naturally. Such persons are evil in principle, but those are evil in practice who set at nought the Divine commandments which are summarized in the Decalogue, and who live like men subject to no law. They also deny God in their heart, although many of them confess Him with their lips; for God and His commandments make one, and for this reason the ten commandments of the Decalogue were called
“The presence of Jehovah.” Num. x. 35, 36; Ps. cxxxii. 7, 8.
However in order that it may be quite clear that the evil have no faith, proof will be established under these two propositions:
(1) The evil have no faith, because evil is of hell, and faith is of heaven.
(2) Those in Christendom have no faith who reject the Lord and the Word, although they live morally, and speak, teach and write rationally, even about faith.
These propositions will now be treated separately.
That no man can serve two masters, but will hate the one and love the other, the Lord teaches in Matt. vi. 24.
That faith does not exist where there is evil may be illustrated by various comparisons. For instance, evil is like fire (infernal fire is nothing but the love of evil), and consumes faith like stubble, reducing it, and all that belongs to it, to ashes. Evil dwells in darkness, such faith in light; and evil, by means of falsities, extinguishes faith, as darkness does the light. Evil is black like ink, and faith white like snow, and clear like water; and evil blackens faith, as ink does snow and water. Moreover, evil and the truth of faith can no more be combined than the fetid and the sweet-smelling, or urine and well-flavored wine. They can no more exist together than can a noisome corpse and a living person, or a wolf in a sheepfold, a hawk in a dove-cote, or a fox in a hen-house.
that He is the Word, John i. 1, 2.
Hence it follows that those who reject the Word, reject the Lord also, because the Word and the Lord form an indissoluble unity. Again, those who reject either the Word or the Lord, reject also the Church, because the Church exists from the Lord by means of the Word. Further, those who reject the Church, shut themselves out of heaven, for the Church introduces into heaven; and those who are shut out of heaven are among the condemned, who have no faith.
Those who reject the Lord and the Word have no faith, although their lives are moral, and they speak, teach and write rationally, even about faith, because their moral life and their rational mind are not spiritual but natural;
and merely natural morality and rationality are in themselves dead, and consequently they, being as dead, have no faith. The man, who is merely natural and dead as to faith, can indeed speak and teach concerning faith, charity and God, but not from faith, charity and God. That they alone have faith who believe on the Lord, and that others have no faith, is evident from the following passages:
“He that believeth on the Son (A.V., on Him) is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.” John iii. 18
“He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him.” John iii. 38.
Jesus said, when the Spirit of truth is come “He will reprove the world of sin … because they believe not on me.” John xvi. 8, 9;
and to the Jews He said,
“If ye believe not that I AM … ye shall die in your sins.” John viii. 24.
David therefore says:
“I will declare the decree: JEHOVAH hath said … Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten thee … Kiss the Son, lest He be angry, and ye perish from the way … Blessed are all they that put their trust in Him.” Ps. ii. 7, 12.
The Lord foretells in the Evangelists that at the conclusion of the age, that is, when the last days of the Church have come, there will he no faith, because there will be none in the Lord as the Son of God, as the God of heaven and earth and one with the Father. He says
that there shall be abomination of desolation, and “tribulation, such as was not … nor ever shall be … the sun shall be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven.” Matt. xxiv. 15, 21, 29;
and in the Revelation:
“Satan shall be loosed out of his prison, And shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth … the number of whom is as the sand of the sea.” Rev. xx. 7, 8.
As the Lord foresaw that this would happen, He also said,
“Nevertheless when the Son of Man cometh, shall He find faith on the earth?” Luke xviii. 8.
To the above will now be added the following Memorabilia.
The first experience. A certain angel once said to me, “As you are desirous of perceiving clearly the nature of faith and charity, and thus what faith is when separated from charity, and what it is when united to charity, I will make it clear by visual illustration.” I replied, “Do so.” Then he said: “Instead of faith and charity, think of light and heat, and you will see clearly. Faith in its essence is the truth of wisdom, and charity in its essence is the affection of love. In heaven the truth of wisdom is light, and the affection of love is heat; and the light and heat in which angels dwell are essentially nothing else. From this you may perceive clearly the nature of faith when separated from charity, and of faith when united to charity. Faith separated from charity is like the light of winter, and faith united to charity is like the light of spring. The light of winter, which is light without heat, because it is combined with cold, entirely strips the trees, even of their leaves, kills the grass, hardens the ground, and freezes the water. But the light of spring, which is light combined with heat, causes the trees to put forth, first leaves, then flowers, and finally fruit. It opens up and softens the ground, so that it produces grasses, herbs, flowers and shrubs; and it also melts the ice, so that the waters flow from their sources.
[2] “The case is exactly similar with faith and charity. Faith separated from charity brings death to all things, and faith united to charity imparts life to all things. This quickening and this deadening effect may be vividly seen in our spiritual world, because here faith is light, and charity heat. For where faith is united to charity, there are beautiful gardens, flower-beds and shrubberies, pleasant in proportion to such union; but where faith is separated from charity, there not even grass grows, nor is there any green thing but thorns and briars.”
At that moment there were standing not far away certain of the clergy, whom the angels called justifiers and sanctifiers of men by faith alone and dealers in mysteries. We repeated to them this account of faith and charity, with the illustrations to make it clear to them; but when we asked them if it was clear, they turned away and said, “We did not hear you.” We then called out to them, “Hear us once more,” but they forthwith stopped their ears with both hands and exclaimed, “We do not wish to hear.”
[3] After hearing these things I spoke with the angel about faith alone, and said that it had been granted to me to know by actual experience that such faith is like the light of winter. I related that for several years spirits of various beliefs had passed before me. Whenever those drew near me who separated faith from charity, such a coldness seized my feet, gradually extending to my loins and breast, that I almost imagined all vitality had departed from my body. This indeed would have happened had not the Lord driven them away, and thus delivered me. I was surprised that those spirits themselves, as they confessed, did not have any sensation of cold. I therefore compared them to fish which live under ice but do not feel any cold, as their life and thus their nature are in themselves cold. I then perceived that this cold proceeded from the delusive light of their faith, which is like the delusive and cold light travelers often see here and there rising from marshy and sulphurous ground in the depth of winter after sunset. Such spirits may also be compared to icebergs, which, broken off from glaciers in the north, are carried about on the ocean. Of these I have heard it said that, when they approach a ship, all on board shiver with the cold. Companies of such spirits who are in faith separated from charity may be likened to icebergs, and may even be so called. We know from the Word that faith without charity is dead; and the cause of its death may be stated thus: It perishes from cold like a bird in a severe frost. The bird loses first its sight, then its power to fly, and lastly its power to breathe. Then falling headlong from its perch it is buried in the snow.
[2] The angel from the heaven of wisdom then asked the other, “What is love?” to which he replied: “Love arising from the Lord as the Sun, is the heat of the life of angels and men, and consequently the being (esse) of their life. The derivatives of love are called affections, and from these are produced perceptions and thus thoughts. Hence it follows that wisdom in its origin is love, and consequently that thought in its origin is the affection of that love; and it may be seen, from examining these derivatives in their order, that thought is nothing but the form of affection. This is not generally known because thoughts are in light, but affections in heat; therefore men reflect upon their thoughts but not upon their affections. That thought is nothing but the form of the affection of some love, may also be illustrated by speech, which is but the form of sound. This is an exact illustration, because sound, or tone, corresponds to affection, and speech to thought; therefore affection gives rise to the sounds, and thought to the words, of the speaker. This becomes clear when it is asked, what remains of speech if sound is taken away, and of thought if affection is absent? It is evident then, that love is the all of wisdom, and consequently that the essence of the heavens is love and their existence is wisdom; or, what is the same thing, the heavens have their being from the Divine Love, and exist from the Divine Love by means of the Divine Wisdom; and therefore, as was said before, the one pertains to the other.”
[3] There was standing near me at that time a spirit newly-arrived who, hearing this, inquired whether the same was true of charity and faith, since charity has relation to affection, and faith to thought. The angel replied, “Yes. Faith is but the form of charity, just as speech is the form of sound. Moreover, faith is formed from charity, as speech is formed from sound. We in heaven know how this is brought about, but there is no leisure to explain it now. By faith, however,” he added, “I mean spiritual faith, which alone has life and spirit from the Lord by means of charity; for charity is spiritual and by its means faith also is spiritual. Thus faith without charity is merely natural faith, and this faith is dead; for it is united with merely natural affection, which is nothing but superficial desire.” [4] The angels conversed on these matters spiritually, and spiritual speech embraces thousands of things which natural speech cannot express, and, what is wonderful, cannot be comprehended by natural thought. After conversing together for some time, the angels departed; and as they went away, each to his own heaven, stars appeared around their heads; and when they were some distance from me, I saw them again in their chariots as before.
[2] As I had often thought that such must be the case, and first from knowledge, then from perception, and finally from interior light, had acknowledged that man’s wisdom amounted to so little, it was now granted me to see this temple. Its form was wonderful; it rose to a great height above the ground level, four-square, with walls of crystal, its roof of transparent jasper, gracefully arched, and its foundations of various precious stones. The steps leading up to it were of polished alabaster, and at the sides of the steps were figures of lions with their cubs. I then asked whether I might be allowed to enter; and when I was informed that I might, I ascended the steps. As I entered I saw cherub-like forms flying beneath the roof, but presently vanishing from sight. The floor on which we walked was of cedar, and the whole temple, owing to the transparence of the roof and walls, was built as a representation of light.
[3] The angelic spirit entered with me, and I related to him what I had heard from the two angels concerning love and wisdom, and charity and faith. He then said to me, “Did they not speak also of a third?” “What third?” I asked. He replied, “The good of use. Love and wisdom without the good of use are nothing; they are only ideal entities, and do not become realities until they exist in use. Love, wisdom and use are three things which cannot be separated; if separated, they are nothing. Love is nothing without wisdom; but by means of wisdom it assumes a form, which is use; therefore, when love by means of wisdom is expressed in use, then it really is, because then it actually exists. Love, wisdom and use are like end, cause and effect; the end is nothing unless it is in the effect by means of the cause; and if one of these three is destroyed, the whole is destroyed, and nothing remains. [4] It is the same with charity, faith and works. Charity without faith is nothing, faith without charity is nothing, and charity and faith without works are nothing; but when expressed in works they become something according to the use of those works. It is the same with affection, thought and operation; and with will, understanding and action; for will without understanding is like the eye without sight, and both without action are like the mind without the body. That this is so is clearly evident in this temple, because the light here illumines the interiors of the mind.
[5] Geometry also teaches that nothing can be complete or perfect, unless it is a trine; for a line is nothing unless it becomes an area, and an area is nothing unless it becomes a solid; therefore the first must be multiplied into the second in order to give them existence, and in the third they exist together. The same is true of all created things, both in general and in particular; their existence is completed in a third form. This is why in the Word the number three signifies what is complete and perfect. Since this is so, I could not but wonder that some profess a belief in faith alone, some in charity alone, and some in works alone; for one of them alone, or any two of them without the third have no real existence.”
[6] Then I asked: “Is it not possible for a man to have charity and faith, and yet to be without works? Can a man not have the desire, and may he not think out how to do something, and yet not proceed to accomplish it?” The angel replied: “He can, but only ideally, and not in reality. Even then he must endeavour or will to act; and will or endeavour is in itself an act, because it is a continual striving towards action, and this results in outward act as the opportunity to act presents itself. Therefore, endeavor or will, being as it were an inward act, is accepted by every wise man, because it is accepted by God, just as if it were an outward act, provided it does not fail when opportunity arises.”
[3] Everything that was seen was an appearance induced by the dragon’s power of illusion. Thus the bullocks, rams, sheep, kids and lambs were not real; but the dragons caused the genuine goods and truths of the Church, which are objects of hatred to them, to assume these appearances; while the lions, panthers, tigers and wolves were appearances of the lusts ruling in those who resembled satyrs and Priapi.* Those whose secret parts were unclothed were such as believed that evils do not appear in the sight of God; while those who were clothed believed that evils are indeed seen by Him, but do not condemn those who have faith. The fornicators and courtesans were falsifiers of the truths of the Word; for fornication signifies the falsification of truth. In the spiritual world all things, at a distance, appear according to correspondences; and such appearances are called representations of spiritual things in natural forms.
[4] After this I saw them going out of the wood. The draconian spirit was surrounded by the satyrs and lewd spirits, followed by the fornicators and courtesans as their servants and attendants. Their company increased as they went along, and I overheard their conversation. Some were saying they could see in a meadow a flock of sheep with lambs, and that this indicated that they were near one of the cities of the Jerusalemites, where charity is held in the
first place. Hereupon they said: “Let us go and take that city, cast out its inhabitants and spoil them of their goods.” They accordingly drew near, but the city was surrounded by a wall, guarded by angels. Then they said: “Let us take it by stratagem; let us send some one skilled in sophistry, who can make black appear white, and white black, and who can give to any object whatever color he pleases.” So they found one versed in metaphysics who could turn ideas of realities into ideas of terms, concealing realities under the cloak of formulas, and thus fly away with them, like a hawk with its prey under its wings.
He was instructed how to treat with the citizens, to say that they were of the same religion, and wished to be admitted within the walls. Approaching the gate, he knocked; and when it was opened, he said he wished to speak with the wisest man in the city. He then entered, and was conducted to one of the citizens whom he thus addressed: “My brethren are outside the city, and wish to be admitted. They are of the same religion as yourselves; both you and we regard faith and charity as the two essentials of religion. The only difference is that you call charity the primary, and faith the derivative, whereas we say that faith is the primary and charity the derivative; but what does it matter which is called the primary or which the derivative, provided there is belief in both?”
[5] The wise man of the city replied: “Let us not talk alone on this matter, but in the presence of others, who shall act as arbiters and judges; otherwise we shall come to no decision.” Forthwith others were summoned, and to these the draconian spirit addressed the same words as before. Then the wise man of the city replied: “You have stated that it is the same thing, whether charity or faith is regarded as the first essential of the Church, provided it is agreed that both constitute the Church and its religion; and yet the difference is the same as between prior and posterior, between cause and effect, between principal and instrumental, and between the essential and the formal. I use this language because I have perceived that you are versed in metaphysics, an art which we call sophistry, and which some call sorcery. Let us drop these terms. The difference is like that between what is above and what is below; in fact, if you are disposed to believe it, the difference is like that between the minds of those who dwell in the higher and lower regions of this world; for what is primary constitutes the head and the breast; and what is derived from it, the feet and the soles of the feet. However, let us first come to an agreement on what charity and faith are, namely, that charity is the affection of the love of doing good to the neighbor, for the sake of God, salvation and eternal life; and faith is thought, grounded in confidence, respecting God, salvation and eternal life.”
[6] Thereupon, the emissary said: “I grant that this is faith, and I grant also that charity is the love of doing good for the sake of God, because He has commanded this, but not for the sake of salvation and eternal life.” In reply to his agreement, qualified by this difference, the wise man of the city said: “Is not love or desire primary, and thought derived from it?” But the dragon’s emissary said, “I deny that.” The other replied: “You cannot deny it. Does not a man think from some desire? Take away desire, could he think at all? It would be like taking away sound from speech; could you then speak at all? Sound has relation to love, and speech to thought; for love expresses itself in sound, but thought in words. It is the same with flame and light; if the flame is taken away, the light also is extinguished. So it is with charity and faith, because charity has relation to love, and faith to thought. Can you not then understand that the primary is wholly in the secondary, just as the flame is in light? From these considerations it is clear that if you do not regard as primary that which is primary, you are not principled in the other. Therefore, if you put faith in the first place, when in reality it is in the second, you will appear in heaven like a man inverted, with feet up and head down, exactly like a mountebank, upside down, walking on his hands. That being so, then your good works, or charity in act, will resemble what the mountebank performs with his feet, because he cannot use his hands. Your charity, therefore, is natural and not spiritual, because it is inverted.”
[7] The emissary understood this, for every devil can understand the truth when he hears it, but he cannot retain it; for the recurring affection of evil, which is the lust of the flesh, casts out the thought of truth. After this, the wise man of the city explained at some length the nature of faith when it is regarded as the first essential of religion, showing that it is merely natural, a persuasion devoid of spiritual life, and consequently not faith at all; and he added “I might almost say that in your faith there is no more spirituality than in thought concerning the Mogul’s empire, with its diamond mines and the treasure of the emperor and his palace.” On hearing this the draconic spirit went away in a rage, and reported everything to his companions outside the city. When they heard it stated that charity is the love of doing good to the neighbor for the sake of salvation and eternal life, they all exclaimed, “It is a lie;” and the dragon himself cried out, “What wickedness! Are not all the works of charity done for the sake of salvation, merit-seeking works?”
[8] Then they said to one another: “Let us summon more of our men, and lay siege to this city, and cast out these impersonations of charity.” When, however, they proceeded to do so, there appeared as it were fire from heaven, which consumed them. This fire was a representation of their anger and hatred against the inhabitants of the city, who had relegated faith from the first to the second place, in fact to the lowest place beneath charity, declaring their faith to be no faith at all. They appeared to be consumed by fire, because hell opened under their feet, and they were swallowed up. Incidents similar to these happened in many places at the time of the Last Judgment, and this is what is meant by the following passage in the Revelation: The dragon “shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth … to gather them together to battle … and they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them.” Rev. xx. 8, 9.
* Priapus, god of procreation, lewd spirit or god.
[2] Some days afterwards, I saw about a hundred persons coming up from the lower earth down to which that small society had descended. They came towards me, and one of them said: “Listen to our extraordinary story. On our descent, the place appeared like a swamp, which soon became dry land, and then a small town appeared, in which many of us had a house for himself. The next day we held a consultation on what should be done. Many said that the prelates of the Church ought to be approached and mildly censured, because they returned the paper to heaven from which it had been sent down, and so brought this disaster upon us. Accordingly they selected several who went to the prelates.” He who spoke to me said he was one of their number. “Then one of us who excelled in wisdom addressed them as follows: ‘We believed that the Church and religion flourished especially among us, because we have heard it said that we enjoyed the greatest Gospel light. Some of us, however, have been granted enlightenment from heaven and a perception that at this day there is no longer any Church in the Christian world, because there is no religion.’
[3] “The prelates replied: ‘What is this you say? Does not the Church exist where the Word is read, where Christ the Savior is acknowledged, and the sacraments are administered?’ To this our friend answered: ‘These indeed belong to the Church, for they constitute it; but they do not constitute the Church outside of man, but within him.’ He continued: ‘Can the Church be where three Gods are worshiped, and where its whole doctrine is founded upon a single statement of the apostle Paul falsely interpreted, and consequently not upon the Word? Can the Church exist, when the Savior of the world, who is Himself the God of the Church, is not approached? No one can deny that religion consists in shunning evil and doing good. Is there any religion where it is taught that faith alone saves, apart from charity? Is there any religion where it is taught that charity which proceeds from man is merely moral and civil? Who does not see that in such charity there is no religion? In faith alone there is nothing of deed or work, when yet religion consists in doing. There is not a nation in the whole world which does not regard as all-saving the good of charity, which good works are; since the all of religion consists in good, and the all of the Church in doctrine which teaches truths, and which teaches good by means of truths. What glory would have been ours, if we had accepted what was contained in that document sent down to us from heaven!’
[4] “The prelates then replied: ‘You speak in too lofty a strain. Faith in act, which is fully justifying and saving, constitutes the Church; and faith in state, which is faith proceeding and perfecting, constitutes religion. This is what you, my children, must understand.’ But our wise friend said: ‘Hear us, fathers! According to your teaching a man conceives faith in act to be no more than a log of wood. Can a log be so vivified as to become a Church? Again, in your opinion, faith in state is the continuation and progression of faith in act. Since, therefore, according to your teaching all saving virtue is in faith, and none in the good of charity, which proceeds from man, where then is religion?’ Then the prelates said: ‘You talk in this manner, friend, because you do not know the mysteries of justification by faith alone; and he who does not know these is ignorant of the interior nature of the way of salvation. Your way is external and plebeian; walk in it if you will; only know this, that all good is from God and none from man; and, therefore, in spiritual matters a man has no power of himself. How then, can he of himself do any good which is spiritual?’
[5] “To this, our friend who was carrying on the conversation replied with some warmth: ‘I know your mysteries of justification better than you do yourselves, and I tell you plainly that I see nothing within these but mere illusions. Religion consists in acknowledging God, and in fleeing from the devil and hating him. God is goodness itself, and the devil evil itself. What man in the whole world, who is at all religious, does not know this? To acknowledge God and to love Him is to do good, because good is of God and from God; and to flee from the devil and hate him is to shun evil, because this is of the devil and from the devil. Now does your faith in act, which you call a faith which fully justifies and saves, or, what is the same thing, does your act of justification by faith alone, teach a man to do any good which is of God and from God, or to shun evil which is of the devil and from the devil? Not in the least; because you have laid it down that salvation does not depend either on doing good or on shunning evil. Further, what is your faith in state, which you call faith proceeding and perfecting, but the same as faith in act? How can this be perfected, when you exclude all good that comes from man as of himself, by saying in your mysteries, How can a man be saved by any good from himself, since salvation is a free gift? What good can come from man except such as is merit-seeking, and yet all merit belongs to Christ alone? Therefore, to do good for the sake of salvation would be to attribute to oneself what belongs to Christ alone, and thus would be to desire to justify and save oneself. You add, further, how can any one do good works, when the Holy Spirit performs all things, without any help from man? What need, then, is there of any good on man’s part, designed to help him, since all the good that comes from man in itself is not good? and much more to the same effect. Are not these your mysteries? But in my eyes they are merely subtleties and artifices, contrived to eliminate good works, or the good of charity, in order to establish your faith alone.
[6] “‘In consequence of this you regard man, with respect to faith, and in general, with respect to all the spiritual things of the Church and religion, as a log, or lifeless image; and not as a man created in the image of God, to whom has been given, and is continually being given, the power to understand and will, to believe and love, and to speak and act entirely as of himself, especially in spiritual things; for by virtue of these a man is a man. If a man in spiritual things were not to think and act as of himself, what then would be the use of the Word, the Church, religion and worship? You know that to do good to the neighbor from love is charity; but you do not know that charity is the soul and essence of faith; and because charity is both of these, what then is faith separated from charity, but dead? and a dead faith is nothing but a phantom. I call it so because the apostle James calls faith without good works not only dead, but diabolical.’
[7] “Then one of the prelates, on hearing his faith called dead, diabolical and a phantom, became so angry that he tore the mitre from his head, and threw it upon the table, saying: ‘I will not take it up again until I have avenged myself on the enemies of the faith of our Church;’ and he shook his head, muttering and exclaiming, ‘That James! That James!’ On the front of his mitre was a thin plate of gold inscribed with the words, ‘Faith alone justifies.’ Then suddenly there appeared rising out of the earth a monster with seven heads, with feet like a bear’s, a body like a leopard’s, and a mouth like a lion’s, exactly like the beast described in Revelation xiii. 1, 2, whose image was made and worshiped, verses 14, 15. This apparition took the mitre off the table, and stretching it at the bottom, placed it upon his seven heads. Thereupon the earth opened under his feet, and he sank down to the lower regions. At the sight of this the prelate exclaimed, ‘Violence! Violence!’ Then we left them, and lo! steps appeared before us by which we ascended, and returned above ground, and to the sight of heaven, where we had been before.” This was related to me by that spirit who, with a hundred others, had ascended from the lower earth.
[2] The discussion was conducted with much vehemence; but those prevailed who maintained that the good which a man does in the state or progression of faith is only moral good, which conduces indeed to his prosperity in the world, but contributes nothing to salvation; as only faith does this. This opinion they confirmed by the following reasoning. ‘No good voluntarily done by man of himself can be conjoined with good freely bestowed on him: is not salvation a free gift? No good coming from man can be conjoined with the merit of Christ, by which alone salvation is assured. No effort of man can be conjoined with the operation of the Holy Spirit; for the Holy Spirit does all things without man’s aid. Are not these three things, free grace, the merit of Christ, and the operation of the Holy Spirit, alone conducive to salvation in the act of justification by faith? And do they not remain alone conducive to salvation in the state or progress of faith? Therefore, the good performed by man on his own part can in no wise be called the good of religion, which, as was just stated, contributes to salvation; but if any one does good for the sake of salvation, this good ought rather to be called the evil of religion, since it involves man’s will, and this can only regard such good as meritorious.’
[3] Two strangers standing by the door-keeper in the vestibule heard this reasoning, and one said to the other, “These people have no religion at all. Every one sees that what is called religion consists in doing good to the neighbor for the sake of God, and so with God and from God;” and the other said, “Their faith has made fools of them.” Thereupon they asked the door-keeper, “Who are these people?” When he replied, “They are wise Christians,” “Nonsense!” they said. “You are imposing on us. By their talk they are play-actors.” I then departed. My visit to this house, and the deliberations there on the subjects under discussion, and the other things that happened as they are here described, were under the Divine guidance of the Lord.
[2] An angel once told me that he had spoken with two of the clergy, one of whom was in faith separated from charity, and the other in faith not separated. “Friend,” said he to the first, “who are you?” He replied, “I am a Christian of the Reformed Church.” “And what is your doctrine, and your religion based on that doctrine?” He replied, “Faith.” “And what,” said the angel, “is your faith?” He answered, “My faith is, that God the Father sent the Son to take upon Him the condemnation entailed on all mankind; and that in consequence of this we are saved.” The angel further asked, “What more do you know respecting salvation?” He replied, “Salvation is effected by that faith alone.” He then asked, “What do you know of redemption?” He answered, “It was wrought by the passion of the cross, and the merit thereof is imputed by means of that faith.” “And what,” said he, “do you know of regeneration?” He answered, “This also is effected by that faith.” “What,” said he, “do you know of love and charity?” He answered, “These also are involved in that faith.” “Tell me,” he said, “what is your opinion on the commandments of the Decalogue, and on the other contents of the Word?” He replied, “They are all included in that faith.” “Then,” said the angel, “You will have nothing whatever to do?” He answered, “What am I to do? I cannot of myself do good which is really good.” “But,” said he, “can you have faith of yourself?” He replied, “That is a matter I do not inquire into: I shall have faith.” Finally, he asked, “Do you know anything further concerning salvation?” and the answer was, “What further is there to know, since salvation is by that faith alone?” Then said the angel, “You answer like one who plays on one note of the flute. I hear nothing but ‘Faith’: but if this is all you know, you know nothing at all. Go and behold your companions.” He departed, and found them in a desert place, where there grew not even a blade of grass. On inquiring the reason of this, he was informed it was because they had nothing of the Church among them.
The conversation of the angel with the other who had faith united with charity, was as follows: “Friend,” said he, “Who are you?” He replied, “I am a Christian of the Reformed Church.” “What is your doctrine and your religion based on that doctrine?” He answered, “Faith and charity.” “These,” said the angel, “are two?” He replied, “They cannot be separated.” “What,” said the angel, “is faith?” He answered, “To believe what the Word teaches.” “And what is charity?” “To do what the Word teaches.” The angel then said, “Have you only believed what the Word teaches, or have you also practiced it?” He replied, “I have also practiced it.” The angel of heaven then looked at him and said, “My friend, come with me, and dwell with us.”
CHARITY, OR LOVE TOWARDS THE NEIGHBOR, AND GOOD WORKS
Having treated of faith, we now proceed to treat of charity, for faith and charity are united like good and truth, and these two are like the light and heat in springtime. This comparison is used because spiritual light, which is the light proceeding from the Sun of the spiritual world, is in its essence truth; and truth in that world, wherever it appears, shines with a splendor according to its purity; and spiritual heat, which also proceeds from that Sun, is in its essence good. These things are stated because it is the same with charity and faith as with good and truth; for charity is the aggregate of all things pertaining to good which a man does to the neighbor, and faith is the aggregate of all things pertaining to truth which are the subject of his thought concerning God and Divine things. Since, then, the truth of faith is spiritual light, and the good of charity spiritual heat, the same may be said of them as of their counterparts in the natural world; and as from the union of their natural counterparts all things on the earth blossom and bear fruit, so from their conjunction all things in the human mind flourish. Just as natural heat and light cause the earth to blossom forth, so spiritual heat and light cause the human mind to blossom forth, and produce the spiritual fruits of wisdom and intelligence.
Moreover, there is a correspondence between those spiritual and natural things. Therefore, the human mind, in which charity is conjoined with faith and faith with charity, is compared in the Word to a garden; and this is what is meant by the Garden of Eden, as is fully shown in the Arcana Caelestia, published in London. It must be observed, however, that unless an exposition of the doctrine of charity follows that of faith, what faith is cannot be understood; for in the preceding chapter it has been stated and shown that faith without charity is not faith, and that charity without faith is not charity, and that neither of them lives but from the Lord, Nos. 355-361; also that the Lord, charity and faith make one, like life, will and understanding, and if they are divided each is destroyed like a pearl crushed to powder, Nos. 382-387; and further, that charity and faith are together in good works, No. 373 and following numbers.
We begin with the consideration of these three kinds of love, because they are universal and fundamental to all, and because charity has something in common with each of them. For the love of heaven means love to the Lord and love towards the neighbor; and because each of these regards use as its end, the love of heaven may be called the love of uses. The love of the world is the love not only of riches and property but also of everything that the world affords for the delight of the bodily senses; as beauty that pleases the eye, harmony the ear, fragrance the sense of smell, delicacies the palate, and softness the sense of touch; also becoming dress, comfortable dwellings, and the pleasures of society; and thus all the delights that are derived from these and many other things. The love of self is the love not only of honor, glory, fame and distinction, but also of gaining and seeking office, and so of ruling over others. Charity has something in common with each of these three kinds of love, because, in itself, it is the love of uses; for charity wishes to do good to the neighbor, and good is the same thing as use. Now each of these loves regards uses as its ends; for the love of heaven regards spiritual uses; the love of the world regards natural uses, which may be called civil uses; and the love of self regards corporeal uses, which may be called domestic, performed for oneself and one’s own family.
* Section Numbers, I, II, etc., do not appear in Orig. Ed.
[2] The human mind is like a house of three storeys which communicate with one another by stairways; angels of heaven dwell in the highest of these storeys, in the middle, men of the world, and in the lowest, evil spirits (genii). When these three loves are rightly subordinated, a man can ascend and descend at pleasure. When he ascends to the highest storey, he is in company with angels as an angel; when from this he goes down to the middle storey he is there in company with men as a man-angel; and when he descends from this still lower he is in company with evil spirits as a man of the world, and these he instructs, reproves and subdues.
[3] When these three loves are duly subordinated they are also so co-ordinated that the highest love, the love of heaven, is inwardly within the second, the love of the world, and through this, within the third or lowest, the love of self; and the love which is within directs at its pleasure that which is without. Therefore, if the love of heaven is inwardly within the love of the world, and through this within the love of self, the man performs uses in the exercise of each of these loves, from the God of heaven. These three loves are in their operation like will, understanding and action; for the will enters by influx into the understanding, and there provides itself with means by which it proceeds to action. However, more will be seen concerning this in the following article, where it will be shown that these three loves, when they are rightly subordinated, perfect a man, but pervert and destroy him when they are not.
1 The Will and the Understanding,
2 Good and Truth,
3 Love in general,
4 The Love of the World and the Love of Self in particular,
5 The External and the Internal Man, and
6 The Merely Natural and Sensual Man.
These subjects will be fully treated, otherwise one’s mental vision in attempting to understand what follows would be like a man wandering in a thick fog through the streets of a city, and unable to find the way home. For what is theology without understanding? If the understanding is not enlightened when the Word is being read, it is but as an unlit lamp in the hand, such as was carried by the five foolish virgins who had no oil. We now proceed to the consideration of each subject in its order.
“2. As all things in the universe which are according to order have relation to good and truth, so all things in a man have relation to the will and the understanding. Good in him belongs to his will and truth to his understanding; for these two faculties, or vital principles of man, are respectively their receptacles and subjects, the will being the receptacle and subject of all things pertaining to good, and the understanding of all things pertaining to truth. They are the sole seat of good and truth in a man, and consequently of love and faith; for love pertains to good, and good to love, and faith pertains to truth, and truth to faith.
“3. The will and the understanding also constitute man’s spirit, for his wisdom and intelligence, his love and charity, and also his life in general reside in them; the body is only their passive organ.
“4. There is nothing more important to know than how the will and the understanding constitute one mind. They do so just as good and truth form one; for there is a marriage between them like that between good and truth. The nature of this marriage will be evident from what will presently be stated concerning good and truth; namely, that as good is the being (esse) itself of a thing and truth is its existing (existere), so man’s will is the being itself of his life, and his understanding is the consequent existing of his life; for good which belongs to the will assumes a form in the understanding, and so renders itself visible.”
* These Numbers are in quotation marks in Orig. Ed. They are repeated with variations from H.D. See Table of Repeated Passages. The paragraphing corresponds with the numbering in H.D.
[2] “2. It is evident from this that it is necessary for a man to know what good and truth are, how the one has respect to the other, and how they are united. This knowledge is especially necessary for a man of the Church; for as all things of heaven have relation to good and truth, so also have all things of the Church, because the good and truth of heaven are also the good and truth of the church.
[3] “3. It is according to Divine order that good and truth should be united, and not separated; thus that they should be one, and not two. For they proceed from God united, and they are united in heaven, and ought, therefore, to remain united in the Church. The union of good and truth is called in heaven the heavenly marriage, for all there are in this marriage. For this reason heaven in the Word is compared to a marriage, and the Lord is called the Bridegroom and Husband, whilst heaven and the Church are called the Bride and Wife. Heaven and the Church are so called because those who are therein receive the Divine good in truths.
[4] “4. All the intelligence and wisdom which the angels possess is derived from that marriage, but not any of it from good separate from truth, nor from truth separate from good. It is the same with men of the Church.
[5] “5. Since the union of good and truth is like a marriage, it is evident that there exist between them a mutual love, and a mutual desire to be united. A man of the Church, therefore, who has no such love and desire, is not in the heavenly marriage; consequently the Church is not as yet in him; for it is the union of good and truth which constitutes the Church.
[6] “6. There are many kinds of good, all of which come under the general distinction of spiritual and natural good; and these are both united in genuine moral good. As there are many kinds of good so also are there many kinds of truth; because truths belong to good, and are indeed the forms of good.
[7] “7. As it is with good and truth, so it is in the opposite sense with evil and falsity. For as all things in the universe that are according to Divine order, have relation to good and truth, so all things that are contrary to Divine order have relation to evil and falsity. Again, as there exists between good and truth a mutual love to be united, so also there exists a similar love between evil and falsity. Consequently, as all intelligence and wisdom arise from the union of good and truth, so do all insanity and folly from the union of evil and falsity. The union of evil and falsity, when interiorly regarded, is not a marriage, but adultery.
[8] “8. Now since evil and falsity are the opposites of good and truth, it is evident that truth cannot be united with evil, nor good with the falsity of evil. For if truth is associated with evil, it is no longer truth, but falsity, because it is falsified; and if good is associated with the falsity of evil, it is no longer good, but evil, because it is adulterated. Nevertheless, the falsity which is not grounded in evil can be united with good.
[9] “9. No one who is principled in evil, and consequently in falsity, from confirmation and life, can know what good and truth are, because he believes his evil to be good, and his falsity to be truth. Every one on the other hand who is principled in good and consequently in truth, from confirmation and life, can know what evil and falsity are; because all good and its truth are in their essence heavenly, but all evil and its falsity are in their essence infernal. And all that is heavenly is in light, while all that is infernal is in darkness.”
* These Numbers are in quotation marks in Orig. Ed. They are repeated with variations from H.D. See Table of Repeated Passages. The paragraphing corresponds with the numbering in H.D.
[2] “2. The object of the ruling love is what a man loves above all things. Whatever a man loves supremely is continually present in his thoughts, because it is in his will, and constitutes his very life itself. For example, he who loves riches, whether money or possessions, above all things, is continually turning over in his mind how he may procure them; he rejoices greatly when he acquires them, and grieves deeply at their loss; for his heart is in them. He who loves himself above all things considers himself in all things; he thinks of himself, talks of himself, and acts for the sake of himself; for his life is the life of self.
[3] “3. Whatever a man loves supremely forms the end which he always has in view, and this he regards in all things, in general and in particular. It lurks in his will like the imperceptible current of a river, bearing him this way and that, in whatever activities he may be engaged: it is his animating principle. This is the love which one man seeks to discover in another; and when he perceives it, he either gets him under his control by means of it, or he acts in company with him.
[4] “4. A man’s character is entirely such as is the ruling principle of his life. By this he is distinguished from others, and according to it his heaven is formed if he is good, and his hell if he is wicked. It is this which constitutes his will itself, his proprium, and his nature, for it is the being (esse) itself of his life. It cannot be changed after death, because it is the man himself.
[5] “5. Everything that affords a man delight, satisfaction and happiness is derived from his ruling love and is in accordance with it. For what a man loves he calls delightful, because he feels it to be so. That which forms a subject of thought, but which he does not love, he may also call delightful, but it is not the delight of his life. Whatever is delightful to a man’s love constitutes his good; and whatever is disagreeable is to him evil.
[6] “6. There are two loves from which, as from their fountain-head, all goods and truths derive their existence; and there are two loves from which all evils and falsities derive their existence. The two loves from which all goods and truths exist, are love to the Lord and love towards the neighbor; while the two loves from which all evils and falsities exist, are the love of self and the love of the world. The latter, when they predominate, are utterly opposed to the former.
[7] “7. The two loves which, as has just been said, are love to the Lord and love towards the neighbor, constitute heaven in man, for they reign in heaven; and as they constitute heaven in man, they also constitute the Church in him. The two loves from which all the varieties of evil and falsity exist, and which as has been said are the love of self and the love of the world, constitute hell in man, for they reign in hell; and consequently they destroy the Church in him.
[8] “8. The two loves from which are derived all goods and truths, and which, as has just been stated, are the loves of heaven, open and form the internal spiritual man, because they reside there. On the other hand, the two loves from which are derived all evils and falsities, and which, as has just been stated, are the loves of hell, when they are predominant, close up and destroy the internal spiritual man, and render a man natural and sensual, according to the extent and nature of their domination.”
* These Numbers are in quotation marks in Orig. Ed. They are repeated with variations from H.D. See Table of Repeated Passages. The paragraphing corresponds with the numbering in H.D.
[2] “2. A man is dominated by the love of self when in his thoughts and actions he has no regard for the neighbor, thus none for the public, and still less for the Lord, but only for himself and his own. Consequently, whilst everything he does is primarily for the sake of himself and his own, should he do anything for the public and for the neighbor, it is only for the sake of appearance; and to secure some favor for himself.
[3] “3. We say ‘Himself and his own’ for the man who loves himself also loves his own, in particular his children and his grand-children, and in general all who act in unity with him, and these he calls his own. Nevertheless, his love for these is nothing but the love of himself, for he regards them as it were in himself, and himself in them. Amongst those whom he calls his own are all those who praise, honor and pay court to him; all others he outwardly regards as men, but inwardly as little better than nobodies.
[4] “4. That man is in the love of self who despises his neighbor in comparison with himself, and who holds him as an enemy if he does not show him marks of favor, and pay him respect and attention. Still more is he dominated by the love of self who for such reasons hates and persecutes the neighbor; and more so still is he who burns with revenge against him, and seeks his destruction. Such men at length come to delight in cruelty.
[5] “5. The true nature of the love of self may be plainly seen by a comparison with heavenly love. Heavenly love consists in loving, for their own sake, the uses or goods which a man performs for the Church, for his country, for human society, and for a fellow-citizen; but he who loves these things for his own sake, loves them just as he loves his servants, because they minister to him. It follows, therefore, that he who is in the love of self, desires the Church, his country, human society and his fellow-citizens to minister to him, rather than that he should serve them; he places himself above them, and them beneath himself
[6] “6. Moreover, so far as a man is in heavenly love, which consists in loving useful service and good deeds, and in experiencing heart-felt delight in their performance, he is led by the Lord; because this is the love in which the Lord Himself is, and which flows from Him. On the other hand, so far as anyone is in the love of self, he is led by himself, that is by his proprium, which is nothing but evil; for it is his hereditary evil, which consists in loving self in preference to God, and the world in preference to heaven.
[7] “7. The love of self is also of such a nature that in proportion as the reins are given to it, that is, so far as external restraints are removed, such as the fear of the law and its penalties, the loss of reputation, honor, gain, office and life, it cherishes an overwhelming lust to exercise dominion not only over the whole world, but also over heaven, and indeed over God Himself: it knows neither bound nor end. This desire lurks in every man who is dominated by the love of self, although it may not be evident to the world, where he is held in check by the ties and restraints just mentioned. When such a one meets with an insuperable obstacle, he simply pauses till it is removed. Thus even he himself does not know that such a mad, unbounded lust is lurking within his love. Anyone may see that this is so from the case of men armed with power and kings who, when not subject to such checks, restraints and insuperable obstacles, overrun and subdue provinces and kingdoms, so long as success attends them, aspiring after unlimited power and glory. This is still more apparent in the case of those who would extend their dominion into heaven, and transfer to themselves all the Divine power of the Lord: their lust for power is insatiable.
[8] “8. There are two kinds of dominion, one of love towards the neighbor, and the other of the love of self. These two kinds of dominion are directly opposed to each other. He who rules from love towards the neighbor, desires to promote the welfare of all, and loves nothing more than to perform uses, and so to serve others; (for to serve others is to do good to them from good will in the performance of uses). This is his love and the delight of his heart. Moreover, he rejoices when he is raised to positions of dignity, not on account of the dignity, but because the sphere of his usefulness is extended, and now includes uses of greater importance. Such is the dominion that is exercised in desires to promote the welfare of no one but himself and his own. The uses which he performs are done for the sake of his own honor and glory, which he regards as the only uses. He serves others in order that he may himself be served, honored and permitted to exercise dominion. He seeks positions of dignity, not for the sake of the goods he may do, but in order that he may obtain pre-eminence and glory, and thus enjoy hip heart’s delight.
[9] “9. The love of dominion remains also for every one after his life in the world; but those who have exercised it from love towards the neighbor are entrusted also with dominion in the heavens. Then, however, it is not they who rule, but the uses and the goods which they love; and when these rule, the Lord rules. Those, however, who have ruled in the world from the love of self, are deposed after their life in the world, and reduced to a state of servitude.
From what has been said it may now be evident who are in the love of self. It matters not whether they outwardly appear haughty or humble, for such qualities belong to the internal man, which the majority of men conceal, while they train the external to assume the appearance of what belongs to the love of the public and the neighbor, an appearance that is contrary to their real nature. This they do for the sake of self, knowing that the love of the public and the neighbor affects all men interiorly and that they will be esteemed according as they appear to be influenced by this love. The love of the public and the neighbor affects men so because heaven enters into it by influx.
[10] “10. The evils which prevail in those who are in the love of self are, in general, contempt of others, envy, feelings of enmity against those who do not bestow favors on them, with actual hostility on this account; also hatred in various guises, revenge, cunning, deceit, unmercifulness and cruelty. Where there are such evils, there is also contempt of God and Divine things, which are the goods and truths of the Church. If any respect is shown to these, it is with the lips only, and not with the heart. As such evils result from the love of self, there are also similar falsities, for falsities have their origin in evils.
[11] “11. The love of the world consists in the desire to appropriate by any means the wealth of others, also in setting the heart on riches, and in suffering the world to drag down and lead one away from spiritual love, which love towards the neighbor is, and thus away from heaven. Those are in the love of the world who desire to appropriate to their own use the property of others by various devices, especially by cunning and deceit, esteeming the neighbor’s good of no account. They also covet the property of others, and so far as they do not fear the law and the loss of reputation as long as they acquire wealth, they deprive them of their property and utterly despoil them.
[12] “12. The love of the world, however, is not so opposed to heavenly love as the love of self is, because the evils concealed in it are not so great.
[13] “13. The love of the world is manifold. It consists in the love of wealth for the sake of position, in the love of position and dignities as the means of obtaining wealth, in the love of wealth as the means of procuring worldly pleasure, in the love of wealth merely for its own sake, which is the love of misers, and so on in other instances. The end for which wealth is desired is called its use; and from the end or use the love derives its character, for the nature of the love is determined by the end to which it is directed: other things serve it as means.
[14] “14. In short, the love of self and the love of the world are in direct opposition to love to the Lord and love towards the neighbor. Therefore, the love of self and the love of the world, as described above, are infernal loves. They are, indeed, the reigning loves in hell, and constitute hell with man; but love to the Lord and love towards the neighbor are heavenly loves, and also reign in heaven, and constitute heaven with man.”
* These Numbers are in quotation marks in Orig. Ed. They are repeated with variations from H.D. See Table of Repeated Passages. The paragraphing corresponds with the numbering in H.D.
[2] “2. Every man has both an internal and an external; but with a difference in the case of the good and the evil. With the good, the internal is in heaven and its light, and the external is in the world and in the light of its intelligence. This intellectual light of the world is with them illuminated by the light of heaven;** and thus the internal and the external act in unity, like cause and effect, or like what is prior and what is posterior. On the other hand, with the evil the internal is in hell and in its light,*** which, compared with the light of heaven, is thick darkness, while their external may be in the intellectual light similar to that which the good enjoy; that is, the interior state of the evil is an inverted one. This is the reason why the evil can speak and teach concerning faith, charity and God, but not, like the good, from faith, charity and God.
[3] “3. The internal man is what is called the spiritual man, because it is in the light of heaven, and this light is spiritual; and the external man is what is called the natural man, because it is in the intellectual light of the world, and this light is natural. The man whose internal is in the light of heaven, and whose external is in the intellectual light of the world, is a spiritual man as to both; for spiritual light from within illuminates the natural light, and makes it as its own. The case is the reverse with the wicked.
[4] “4. The internal spiritual man, viewed in himself, is an angel of heaven; and, while living in the body, although not conscious of the fact, is also associated with angels, amongst whom he is introduced after his release from the body. But with the evil, the internal man is a satan, and while living in the body, is also associated with satans, and amongst these he is introduced after his release from the body.
[5] “5. The interiors of the mind of those who are spiritual men are actually raised up towards heaven; for heaven is the primary object of their regard; but with those who are merely natural, the interiors of the mind are turned away from heaven and directed towards the world, because this is their primary object of regard.
[6] “6. Those who entertain only a general idea concerning the internal and the external man, believe that it is the internal man that thinks and wills, and the external that speaks and acts; because thinking and willing are internal, while speaking and acting are external. It should be known, however, that when a man thinks and wills rightly concerning the Lord and the neighbor, and concerning the things which respectively belong to them, he then thinks and wills from a spiritual internal, because he does so from the faith of truth and the love of good; but when a man thinks evil concerning them and wills evil to them, he then thinks and wills from an infernal internal, because from the faith of falsity and the love of evil. In short, so far as a man is principled in love to the Lord and in love towards the neighbor, he is in a spiritual internal, from which he thinks and wills, and also speaks and acts; but so far as a man is in the love of self and in the love of the world, he thinks and wills from hell, let his words and actions be what they may.
[7] “7. It is so provided and ordered by the Lord that, in proportion as a man thinks and wills from heaven, the spiritual man is opened and developed; this opening is into heaven, even to the Lord, and the development is in the direction of those things that pertain to heaven. On the other hand, however, so far as a man thinks and wills, not from heaven but from the world, the internal spiritual man is closed, and the external is opened, and developed; and this opening is into the world, and the development is towards those things that pertain to hell.
[8] “8. Those with whom the internal spiritual man is opened into heaven to the Lord, are in the light of heaven, and in enlightenment from the Lord, and consequently in intelligence and wisdom. These see truth from the light of truth, and have a perception of good from the love of it. But those with whom the internal spiritual man is closed, do not know what the internal man is; neither do they believe in the Word, nor in a life after death, nor in the things that pertain to heaven and the Church. Moreover, as they are only in natural light (lumen), they believe nature to be derived from itself, and not from God; they see falsity as truth, and perceive evil as good.
[9] “9. The internal and the external here treated of are the internal and the external of man’s spirit. His body is only a superadded external, within which the others exist; for the body does nothing from itself, but acts from the spirit which is within it. It should be known that a man’s spirit, after its separation from the body, retains this capacity to think and will, to speak and act; for thought and will constitute its internal, and speech and action now constitute its external.”
* These Numbers are in quotation marks in Orig. Ed. They are repeated with variations from H.D. See Table of Repeated Passages. The paragraphing corresponds with the numbering in H.D.
** In this Number the distinction between lux and lumen is not observed. Lux is used throughout, except in 401:8 where lumen is used of natural light.
*** Internum est in Inferno … quae Inferni sunt. H.D. has mundo and mundi respectively.
[3] “3. As he is in gross natural light, he is interiorly opposed to those things that pertain to heaven and the Church; yet outwardly he can argue in favor of them, with an ardor in proportion to the degree of authority he may obtain by means of them. [4] 4. Sensual men reason keenly and ingeniously, because their thought is so near their speech as to be almost in it, and as it were on their very lips, and because they make all intelligence consist in speaking from memory only. [5] 5. Some of them can confirm anything they please, and establish falsities with much ingenuity, which ultimately they believe to be truths. Their reasoning and proofs, however, they base upon the fallacies of the senses, by which the common people are deceived and persuaded.
[6] “6. Sensual men are crafty and malicious above all others. [7] 7. The interiors of their mind, because these communicate with the hells, are corrupt and filthy. [8] 8. Those who are in the hells are sensual, and the more sensual they are, the deeper the hell they inhabit; and the sphere of infernal spirits unites, from behind, with the sensual principles in man. [9] 9. Sensual men do not see any genuine truth in light, but make everything a matter for question, argument and dispute. These disputes sound at a distance like the gnashing of teeth; but it is simply the clashing of falsity with falsity, and of falsity with truth. It is evident, therefore, what is meant in the Word by ‘gnashing of teeth,’ because reasoning from the illusions of the senses corresponds to the teeth.
[10] “10. Learned and scholarly men, who have deeply confirmed themselves in falsities, especially if they have confirmed themselves against the truths of the Word, are more sensual than others, although they do not appear so to the world. Heresies have largely originated with such men.
[11] 11. The hypocritical, the deceitful, the voluptuous, the adulterous and the avaricious are for the most part sensual.
[12] 12. Those who reasoned from sensual things alone, and argued against the genuine truths of the Word, and consequently of the Church, were called by the ancients serpents of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
“By sensual things are meant those which present themselves to the bodily senses, and which are acquired by means of them. These further conclusions may, therefore, be stated in the following terms. [13] 13. A man by sensual things has communication with the world, and by rational things, which are above those, with heaven. [14] 14. Sensual things furnish, from the natural world, what is of service to the interior things of the mind in the spiritual world. [15] 15. There are sensual things that minister to the understanding, namely, the various natural things that are called physical; and there are sensual things that minister to the will, namely, the delights of the senses and of the body. [16] 16. A man has but little wisdom, unless his thought is elevated above sensual things. A wise man thinks above sensual things; and when this is the case he comes into clearer light (lumen), and at length into the light (lux) of heaven, from which he acquires that perception of truth which constitutes true intelligence. [17] 17. This elevation of the mind above sensual things, and its withdrawal from them, was known to the ancients.
[18] “18. If sensual things are in the last place, a way is opened by their means for the understanding, and whatever is true in them may be picked out and purified by a process of extraction. If, however, sensual things are in the first place, they close up that way, and the man sees truths as in a mist, or as at night. [19] 19. Sensual things, with a wise man, are in the last place, and are subject to interior things; but with an unwise man they are in the first place, and have a controlling influence. These are properly called sensual men. [20] 20. Man has some sensual things in common with the beasts, and also some not in common. So far as anyone thinks above sensual things, he is a man. No one, however, can think in this way and see the truths of the Church, unless he acknowledges God and lives according to His commandments; for it is God who elevates and enlightens.”
* These Numbers are in quotation marks in Orig. Ed. They are repeated with variations from H.D. See Table of Repeated Passages. The paragraphing corresponds with the numbering in H.D.
Something shall first be said concerning the subordination of these three universal loves, the love of heaven, the love of the world, and the love of self; then concerning the influx and insertion of one into another; and lastly, concerning man’s state according to their subordination. These three loves are related to each other like the divisions of the body, of which the highest is the head, the breast with the belly the middle, and the knees, feet and soles of the feet form the third. When the love of heaven is the head, and the love of the world the breast with the belly, and the love of self the feet with the soles of the feet, then man is in a perfect state according to creation; for then the two lower loves subserve the highest, just as the body and all its parts subserve the head. Accordingly, when the love of heaven is the head, it descends by influx into the love of the world, which consists chiefly in the love of riches, and by their instrumentality it performs uses. Then by means of this love it descends into the love of self, which is chiefly the love of high position, and by means of this also it performs uses. These three loves, therefore, conspire to promote uses, by the influx of the one into the other.
[2] Who does not see that when a man from spiritual love, which is from the Lord and is meant by the love of heaven, desires to perform uses, then the natural man performs them by means of his riches and other possessions, and the sensual man collaborates in his own way, and finds honor in their performance? Moreover, who does not understand that a man’s actions in the body are done according to the state of his mind in his head, and that if the mind is in the love of uses, the body, by means of its members performs them? The reason of this is that the will and the understanding are in their first principles in the head, and are in what derived from these in the body, just as a man’s will is in his deeds, and his thought in his speech; or, to extend the comparison, as the prolific principle of the seed is in all the parts of a tree by means of which it produces fruit, which are its uses; or as fire and its light within a crystal vase make it warm and translucent. Further, when these loves are justly and rightly subordinated in a man, the spiritual sight of his mind and the natural sight of his body, because of the light which flows into them through heaven from the Lord, may be likened to the African apple, which is transparent to the centre where its seeds are stored. Something similar is meant by these words of the Lord:
“The light of the body is the eye: if the eye be single (that is, good), the whole body is full of light.” Matt. vi. 22; Luke xi. 34.
[3] No man of sound reason can condemn riches, for in the body of the state they are like the blood in man; nor can he condemn the honors attached to public offices, because they are the hands of a king and the pillars of the state, provided the natural and sensual loves of those holding office subordinated to spiritual love. There are also administrative offices in heaven, and dignities attached to them; but those who fill them love nothing more than to perform uses, because they are spiritual.
There is much variety in the love of the world. It becomes more pernicious as it inclines to avarice, and to pride and pre-eminence over others from the love of self; for then the love of heaven grows black. It is different, however, if it is inclined to prodigality; for it is less hurtful when the end it regards is worldly splendor, as fine houses, luxurious surroundings, rich clothing, servants, horses and carriages in great style, and so on. The nature of every love is determined by the end which it regards and which it strives to attain.
The love of the world may be compared to a dark crystal which absorbs the light, only faintly reflecting dusky colors. It is also like a mist or a cloud which intercepts the rays of the sun; or like new unfermented wine, which is pleasant to the taste but disturbing to the stomach. When viewed from heaven, a man obsessed by this love appears like a hunchback, walking with bowed head and eyes fixed on the ground. If he lifts his head towards heaven, he strains his muscles, and quickly relapses into a stooping posture. Such men were by the ancients in the Church called Mammons, and by the Greeks Plutos.*
* Pluto, king of the lower world.
[3] The evils which infest those who are in the love of ruling from the love of self are in general these: contempt of others, envy, enmity against those who show them no favor, and actual hostility for that reason, hatred, revenge, unmercifulness, harshness and cruelty. Where these evils exist there also is contempt of God and of Divine things, namely, the truth and good of the Church. If they should profess respect for these, it is with the lips only, lest they should be denounced by the clergy and censured by all others. [4] This love of rule is one thing with the clergy and another with the laity. With the clergy it mounts upward when restraints are removed until they desire to be gods; whilst with the laity it increases until they seek to be kings; to such a degree does the madness of this love affect the mind.
[5] The love of heaven with the perfect man holds the highest place, and is as it were the head of the loves that follow; and the love of the world is beneath it, like the breast under the head; and the love of self is beneath this again, like the feet. It follows, therefore, that if the love of self were to form the head the man would be completely inverted. He would then appear to angels like a person lying with his head bowed towards the ground and his back towards heaven; and in the act of worship he would appear to be dancing on his hands and feet like a panther’s cub. Moreover, such persons would appear in the form of various beasts with two heads, one with the face of a beast, and the other under it with a human face which would be continually thrust forward by the other, and forced to kiss the ground. All these, together with such as have been described above in No. 402, are sensual men.
Man is not born for himself, but for the sake of others; that is, he is not born to live for himself alone, but for others; otherwise there would be no such thing as social community, in which any good could exist. It is a common saying that every man is neighbor to himself; but the doctrine of charity teaches how this is to be understood. It is obvious, of course, that every one must provide himself with the necessaries of life, as food, clothing, a dwelling, and the many other things which his civil life demands. He must do this not only for himself, but also for his family, and not only for the present, but also for the future; for if anyone does not procure for himself the necessaries of life, being in want of all things, he is not in a position to exercise charity.
In what way, however, a man ought to be neighbor to himself may appear from the following considerations. Every man ought to provide food and clothing for his body. This must be the first object of his care, but with the end in view that there may be a sound mind in a sound body. He must also provide proper food for his mind, that is, such things as pertain to intelligence and judgment; again with the end in view that he may thereby be in a position to serve his fellow citizen, the society of which he is a part, his country, the Church, and thus the Lord. He who does this provides for his welfare to eternity.
From this, we may perceive what is first in time, and what is first in end. What is first in end is the object to which all things have reference. For example, when a man builds a house he first lays the foundation, but the end in view is a house for habitation. He who believes that he is neighbor to himself in the first place or primarily, is like a man who regards the foundation as the end, and not habitation in the house; whereas habitation in the house is the first and ultimate end in view, while the house with its foundation is only a means to that end.
Further, if anyone repels the attacks of an enemy and strikes out against him in self-defense, or delivers him to the judge to prevent injury to himself, yet with a disposition to become his friend, such a one acts from a principle of charity. Wars in defense of one’s country and the Church are not inconsistent with charity. The end for which they are undertaken shows whether or not they are in accordance with charity.
“Ye have heard that it hath been said (to them of old time), Thou shalt love thy neighbor, and hate thine enemy: But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven.” Matt. v. 43-45.
And when Peter asked Him how often he should forgive one sinning against him, whether he should forgive him until seven times, Jesus answered:
“I say not unto thee, Until seven times; but, until seventy times seven.” Matt. xviii. 21, 22.
I have also heard from heaven that the Lord forgives every man his sins, and never punishes for them, and does not even impute them, because He is Love itself and Good itself; nevertheless, that sins are not wiped out on this account, for that can only be done by repentance. Since then He told Peter that he should forgive until seventy times, what will not the Lord do?
[2] Since, therefore, every man is the neighbor, and there is an infinite variety of men, and every one ought to be loved as the neighbor according to the good in him, it is evident that there are many kinds, classes and degrees of love towards the neighbor. Now, since the Lord ought to be loved above all things, it follows that the degrees of love towards the neighbor ought to be estimated by love towards the Lord, and thus by how much of the Lord or from the Lord the neighbor really possesses; for in the same proportion he is in possession of good, because all good is from the Lord.
[3] As, however, these degrees are in the internal man, and this seldom manifests itself in the world, it is enough that the neighbor be loved according to the degrees of which one has knowledge. These degrees are clearly observed after death; for then the affections of the will and the thoughts of the understanding that arise from these form a spiritual sphere about all persons, which is perceived in various ways. In this world, however, that spiritual sphere is absorbed by the material body, and is then enclosed within the natural sphere which emanates from the man. The fact that there are degrees of love towards the neighbor is evident from the Lord’s parable concerning the Samaritan who showed mercy to the man that was wounded by thieves. The Priest and the Levite saw him and passed by; and when the Lord inquired which of the three had shown himself to be his neighbor, the answer was:
“He that showed mercy.” Luke x. 30-37.
‘Thou shalt love the Lord thy God above all things, and the neighbor as thyself.’ Luke x. 25.
To love the neighbor as oneself is, not to despise him in comparison with oneself, to deal justly with him, and not to judge evil concerning him. The law of charity laid down and given by the Lord Himself is this:
“All things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them; for this is the Law and the Prophets.” Matt. vii. 12; Luke vi. 31, 32.
In this way do those love the neighbor who are in the love of heaven; but those who are in the love of the world love him from worldly motives and for the sake of the world, while those who are in the love of self love the neighbor from self and for the sake of self.
Those who do not know what the neighbor is in the true sense of the term consider that only man as an individual is the neighbor, and that to confer benefits upon individuals is to love the neighbor. The neighbor, however, with love towards him, has a much wider application; it grows as the number of men embraced by the term increases. Who cannot see that to love many men forming a community is to show a greater love towards the neighbor than to love a single individual of that community? Therefore a society, small or great, is the neighbor because it is man collectively. Consequently, he who loves a society loves those of whom the society consists; and therefore he who wishes well to, and does good to, a society consults the good of its individual members. A society is like one man; and the individuals that compose it form, as it were, one body and are distinct from one another like the members in that body. When the Lord, and the angels from Him, look down upon the earth, they see a whole society as one man, whose form is in accordance with the character of its members. It has also been granted me to see a particular society in heaven exactly like a man, even in stature like a man in the world.
[2] Love towards the neighbor is a fuller love when it is directed towards a society than when directed towards a single individual. This is evident from the circumstance that positions of dignity are assigned to governors according to the number of provinces throughout their societies, and honors are bestowed upon them according to the uses which they perform. For there are in the world higher and lower offices, ranking according to the extent of the rule exercised throughout particular societies, the most extensive rule being exercised by a king; and every one receives remuneration, glory, and the love of the community in proportion to the greatness of his office as well as the good uses which he performs.
[3] Rulers of to-day, however, can perform uses and consult the good of society, and yet not love the neighbor. This is the case with those who discharge their public functions from worldly and selfish motives, for the sake of appearances, or that they may merit promotion to higher dignities. The real character of such persons does not appear in the world, but in heaven it is made manifest. Those who have performed uses from love towards the neighbor are appointed rulers over societies in heaven, and there they live in splendor and honor, though they care less for these than for the uses of their office. On the other hand, those who have performed uses from the love of the world and the love of self are cast out.
As man is born for eternal life, and is introduced into it by the Church, he ought, therefore, to love the Church as the neighbor in a higher degree; for it teaches the means that lead to eternal life, and introduces him into it, leading him to it by the truths of doctrine, and introducing him into it by the goods of life. We do not mean that the priesthood is to be loved in a higher degree, and from it the Church, but that the good and truth of the Church are to be loved, and the priesthood on account of these. For the only function of the priesthood is to serve the Church, and it should be honoured in proportion to its service.
The Church is the neighbor that is to be loved in a higher degree, thus even above one’s country, because a man is initiated by his country into civil life, and by the Church into spiritual life, which distinguishes man from merely animal life. Moreover, civil life is temporal; it comes to an end, and is then as if it had never been; whereas spiritual life, having no end, is eternal. Being (esse) may, therefore, be predicated of spiritual life, but not-being (non esse) of temporal life. The difference is like that between finite and infinite, between which there is no comparison; for what is eternal is infinite in respect to time.
Love to the Lord is a universal love, and consequently permeates everything in every detail both of the spiritual and of the natural life. This love has its seat in the highest things with man, and these descend by influx into the lower, and vivify them, just as the will enters into the whole of the intention, and thence into action, and as the understanding enters into the whole of the thought, and thence into speech. Therefore, the Lord says:
“Seek ye first the kingdom of the heavens (A.V., of God) and its righteousness; and all these shall be added unto you.” Matt. vi. 33.
The kingdom of the heavens is the kingdom of the Lord, as is evident from these words in Daniel:
“Behold, one like the Son of Man coming with the clouds of the heavens. And there was given Him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages, should serve Him: His dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and His kingdom that which shall not be destroyed.” Dan. vii. 13, 14.
Every one knows that a man is not a man because of his human face and body, but from the wisdom of his understanding, and the goodness of his will; and as these rise towards perfection, he becomes more and more a man. A man at his birth is more a brute than any animal, but he becomes a man by instruction of various kinds; for his mind is formed by the reception of instruction, and a man is a man from his mind, and according to its nature. There are some beasts with faces resembling man’s, but they have not the faculty of understanding, or of acting from understanding; but they act from instinct, which their natural love excites. There is also this difference that a beast expresses the affections of its love only by sounds, whereas man makes them the subject of his thought, and expresses them by speech. Moreover, a beast looks at the ground with its face turned downwards, but a man with face upturned views the heavens and all that lies around him. From this we may conclude that a man is a man only so far as he speaks from sound reason, and has regard to his abode in heaven; and that he is not a man so far as he speaks from perverted reason, and has regard only to his abode in the world. Yet even in this case he is a man, not, however, in his action but potentially, for every one has the power to understand what is true and to will what is good; whereas, so far as he does not will to do goods and understand truths, he may present the outward appearance of a man, and live the life of an ape.
It is remarkable that not only does the upright man love what is good and just in another, but so also does the unprincipled man; for in his dealings with a good and just person he is in no fear of losing his reputation, his honor or his wealth. With an unprincipled man, however, the love of good is not the love of the neighbor, for he does not love another interiorly, but only so far as he can make use of him. Genuine love towards the neighbor is to love the good in another from the good in oneself, for then these are united in mutual affection.
With every man there is an internal and an external. His internal is what is called the internal man, and his external the external man. He who does not know what the internal man is, and what the external, may suppose that the internal man is that which thinks and wills, and the external that which speaks and acts. It is true, indeed, that speech and action are of the external man, and thought and will of the internal; but nevertheless, these are not what essentially constitute the external and the internal man. According to the common idea, man’s mind is the internal man. The mind itself, however, is divided into two regions, namely, the spiritual region, which is higher and interior, and the natural region, which is lower and exterior. The spiritual mind looks principally to the spiritual world, and has for its objects the things of that world, whether they are in heaven or in hell; for both these are in the spiritual world. The natural mind, however, looks principally to the natural world, and has for its objects the things of that world, whether good or evil. All man’s action and speech proceed directly from the lower region of the mind, and indirectly from the higher region, since the lower region of the mind is nearer to the bodily senses, and the higher region more remote from them. Man’s mind is thus divided, because he was created to be both spiritual and natural, and thus a man and not a beast.
From this it is evident that a man who primarily regards the world and himself is an external man, because he is natural not only in body but also in mind; while the man who primarily looks to the things of heaven and the Church is an internal man, because he is spiritual both in mind and in body. He is spiritual even in body, because his actions and speech proceed from the higher mind which is spiritual, through the lower which is natural; for it is well known that effects proceed from the body, and the causes which produce them, from the mind, and that the cause is wholly in the effect. It is evident that the human mind is thus divided, because a man has the power to play the part of a dissembler, a flatterer, a hypocrite, or an actor; and while assenting to what another says, he may hold it in ridicule. In this case he ridicules it from his higher mind, and assents to it from the lower.
This may be illustrated by comparison with seeds sown in the ground. From each seed there sprouts forth a young plant useful or useless, according to the nature of the seed. It is similar with spiritual seed, which is the truth of the Church from the Word. From this is formed doctrine, which is profitable if formed from genuine truth, but unprofitable if formed from perverted truth. So, also, is it with charity from good will, whether it is exercised for the sake of self and the world, or for the sake of the neighbor in either a restricted or in a wide sense. If it is exercised for the sake of self and the world, it is spurious charity; but if for the sake of the neighbor, it is genuine charity. More, however, may be seen on this subject in the chapter on Faith, particularly where it is shown that “Charity consists in willing what is good, and good works consist in doing what is good from willing what is good” No. 374; and that “Charity and faith are merely fleeting mental abstractions unless, wherever it is possible, they are expressed in works, and exist together in them,” Nos. 375, 376.
Charity itself is to act justly and faithfully in the office, business and employment in which one is engaged, for then everything that a man does is of use to society, and use is good; and good in the abstract, considered apart from persons, is the neighbor. It was shown above that man not only individually, but also as a society of men, and one’s country itself, are the neighbor. A king, for instance, who sets his subjects an example in well-doing, who desires that they should live according to the laws of justice, rewards those who so live, regards each according to his merit, defends them against injury and invasion, acts as the father of his kingdom, and consults the general prosperity of his people, is at heart an embodiment of charity, and his deeds are good works. A priest who teaches truths from the Word and thereby leads to the good of life, and so to heaven, because he consults the welfare of the souls of those who belong to his Church, is pre-eminently in the exercise of charity. A judge who judges according to justice and the law, and not for reward, friendship, or kinship, consults the good of society and of men individually; of society, because it is thus kept in obedience to law and in the fear of transgressing it, and of men individually, because justice triumphs over injustice. A merchant, if he acts from sincerity and not from deceit, consults the good of the neighbor with whom he has business. The same is true of a workman or craftsman, if he does his work uprightly and sincerely, and not fraudulently and deceitfully. The case is the same with all others, as captains and sailors, farmers and servants.
It is necessary to distinguish between the duties of charity and its benefactions. By the duties of charity are meant those exercises of charity which proceed immediately from charity itself, and which, as has just been shown, belong primarily to the employment in which each is engaged. By benefactions, on the other hand, are meant those helpful services which are rendered outside the ordinary duties of one’s occupation. They are called benefactions, because in doing them a man is left to his own freedom and good pleasure; and when they are done, they are regarded by the recipient as benefits conferred upon him in accordance with reasons and intentions which the benefactor himself has deemed sufficient and proper. It is a prevailing idea that charity consists solely in giving to the poor, relieving the needy, providing for widows and orphans, contributing towards the building of hospitals, infirmaries, homes for strangers and orphans, and especially towards churches, and also towards their adornment and endowment. Many of these things, however, are not the proper works of charity, and bear no relation to it.
Those who make charity itself consist in such benefactions cannot but regard them as meritorious; and although they do not say in so many words that they desire credit for them, yet belief in their merit lurks within. This becomes very evident after death; for then they reckon up their works and demand salvation as a reward. Inquiry, however, is made into the origin and consequent nature of their works; and if it is found that they proceeded from vainglory, or a desire for fame, from mere munificence, or friendship, or simply from natural disposition or hypocrisy, they are judged according to their origin, the quality of which characterizes their works. But genuine charity proceeds from those who habitually practice it with justice and judgment, and with no regard to recompense as an end, according to the Lord’s words in Luke xiv. 12. They also call such things as have been mentioned above benefactions, and even obligations, although with them they are works of charity.
Nevertheless, it is true that such benefactions, particularly the giving of alms to poor persons and beggars, are advantageous in many ways; for by them children and servants, and in general all persons of a simple nature, are initiated into charity. These acts are its externals, by which they are introduced into the duties of charity; they are its rudiments, which are at first like unripe fruit. But with those who are later made perfect by right conceptions of charity and faith, they become like ripe fruit. They now regard the works which formerly were done in simplicity of heart, as an obligation.
To bestow a favor on an evil-doer is like giving bread to a devil, which he turns into poison; for bread in a devil’s hand is poison, or if it is not, he turns it into poison by using good deeds as allurements to evil. It is also like offering a sword to an enemy, with which to kill someone; or like giving a shepherd’s crook to a werewolf, to lead the sheep to pasture; but no sooner does he receive it than he drives the sheep away from the pasture into desert places, and there slaughters them; or like giving a post of authority to a robber whose only object and care is plunder, according to the abundance and value of which he dispenses justice and executes judgments.
The benefactions of charity and the duties of charity are distinct from each other, like things done from free will and those done from necessity. By the duties of charity, however, we do not here mean the duties belonging to any offices in a kingdom or republic, as the administrative duties of a minister of state, the judicial duties of a judge, and so on; but by such duties we mean those which every one performs whatever his position. They are not dictated by his office, nor by an official will; and therefore they are performed from a principle of charity by those who are in charity; but on the other hand, from no such principle by those who are not in charity.
[2] Conjugial love, however, and love towards children, together with their duties and the discharge of them, are not productive of love towards the neighbor, like the performance of the duties which belong to one’s employment, for parental love exists alike with the wicked and the good. Indeed, it is sometimes stronger in the wicked; and it is also found among beasts and birds, in which no principle of charity can be developed. It is a matter of common knowledge that it exists with bears, tigers and serpents as well as with sheep and goats, and with owls as well as with doves.
[3] There is this to be particularly noted regarding duties of parents to their children. Inwardly there is a difference with those who are in charity and those who are not, although outwardly the duties appear similar. Those who are in charity unite their love with love towards the neighbor and with love to God, loving their children for their morality, their virtues, their zeal, and talents for public service. With those, however, who are not in charity there is no such union of charity with the parental love; so that many of them love wicked, immoral, and crafty children more than those who are good, moral, and prudent, and thus those who are useless to the public more than those who are useful.
It is widely known that dinners and suppers are given everywhere for various purposes. They are given by many for their friends and relations, for the promotion of joviality, with a view to bestowing bribes or receiving remuneration, or as inducements to join certain parties. Among the great they are given as marks of honor, and in the palaces of kings for the display of regal splendor. But dinners and suppers of charity are given only by those who are in mutual love grounded in a similar faith. This is why dinners and suppers were institutions among the Christians of the primitive Church. They were called by them feasts, and were held that they might meet together in cordial joy and friendly union. Their suppers were symbolic of association and union in the first state of the Church’s establishment, for evening, when these were held, had this signification. Dinners on the other hand symbolized the same in the second state of the Church, for this state was signified by morning and day. At table they conversed on various subjects, domestic and civil, but especially on such as concerned the Church; and as these were feasts of charity their conversation, no matter on what subject, was infused with the joy and gladness of charity.
The spiritual sphere which prevailed on these occasions was one of love to the Lord and love towards the neighbor. This cheered their mind, softened the tone of their speech, and spread among them a general feeling of cordiality. For from everyone there emanates a spiritual sphere arising from the affection of his love and its related thought, which inwardly affects those in his company, especially at feasts; this sphere emanates both from the face and the respiration. It is because dinners and suppers, or feasts, signified such association of minds that they are so often mentioned in the Word, as that is their meaning in the spiritual sense. This also in the supreme sense was meant by the paschal supper among the Children of Israel, and also by the feasts at their other festivals, and their eating together of the sacrifices at the tabernacle. Conjunction itself at that time was represented by breaking bread and distributing it, and by drinking from the same cup and handing it one to another.
At the present day the social intercourse of friends has no end in view but the pleasures of conversation, intellectual exhilaration by interchange of ideas, and the consequent expansion of the mind, the expression of pent-up thoughts, and thus the refreshment of the bodily senses and their restoration to their wonted vigor. The social intercourse of charity, however, has not yet been revived; for the Lord says
that at the end of the age, that is, at the end of the Church, “iniquity shall abound, and charity (A.V., the love of many) shall wax cold.” Matt. xxiv. 12.
This is because the Church has not yet acknowledged the Lord God the Savior to be the God of heaven and earth, and has not directly approached Him from whom alone genuine charity proceeds and enters its members by influx. But social intercourse which fails to unite minds by a friendship akin to charity, is but a pretense of friendship, as it consists of deceptive attestations of mutual love, and seductive insinuations into the good graces of another, accompanied by indulgence in corporeal delights, particularly those of a sensual nature. By such blandishments as these others are swept along like ships under full sail with favoring currents, while sycophants and hypocrites stand at the stern in control of the helm.
In the doctrine of charity the principal place is held by this proposition, that the first thing is not to do evil to the neighbor, and the second, to do good to him. This tenet is as a door to the doctrine of charity. It is a matter of common knowledge that evil is firmly seated in the will of every man from his birth; and since all evil is directed against men both near and far, as well as against society and the country as a whole, it follows that hereditary evil is directed against the neighbor in every degree. A man may see from reason itself that as far as the evil implanted in his will is not removed, it taints the good he does with evil; for evil lies within the good like a nut in its shell, or marrow in a bone. Although what a man then does has the appearance of good, yet inwardly it is not so, for it is like a beautiful shell containing a worm-eaten nut, or like a white almond that is rotten inside, with its corrupt veins extending even to the surface.
[2] To will evil and to do good are opposite in their nature, evil being grounded in hatred towards the neighbor and good in love towards him; or in other words, evil is the enemy of the neighbor and good is his friend. These two cannot exist in one and the same mind, that is, evil in the internal man and good in the external; for then good in the external man would be like a wound superficially healed, but inwardly septic. A man in such a case is like a tree with a decayed root, producing fruit which outwardly appears of fine flavor and fit for use, but inwardly is rotten and useless; or like polished and beautifully colored pieces of refiner’s slag, which are sold as precious stones; in other words, they are like the eggs of an owl which one is induced to believe are the eggs of a dove.
[3] Everyone should know that the good which a man does in the body proceeds from his spirit, or internal man, for this is his spirit which lives after death. When, therefore, a man puts off the body which constituted his external man, then, as far as he is in evils, he takes delight in them, and hates the good as inimical to his life. [4] That a man cannot do good which is truly so before evil is put away, the Lord teaches in many places:
‘They do not gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles. A corrupt tree cannot bring forth good fruit.’ Matt. vii. 16, 17, 18.
“Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees! … for ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess. Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse first that which is within the cup and platter, that the outside of them may be clean also.” Matt. xxiii. 25, 26.
And in Isaiah:
“Wash you … put away the evil of your doings … cease to do evil: Learn to do well; seek judgment … Though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.” Isa. i. 16, 17, 18.
A man ought to purify himself from evils. Otherwise he would be like a servant with face and clothes covered with soot and filth, who should go to his master and say, “My lord, wash me.” Would not his master say to him, “You foolish servant, what do you mean? See, there are water, soap and a towel; have you not hands of your own and power to use them? Wash yourself.” And the Lord God will surely say, “You have from me the means of purification, and also the will, and the power. Therefore, use these my gifts and endowments as your own, and you will be purified.”
“I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot. So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth.” Rev. iii. 15, 16.
An officer cannot gallop about with his troop between two armies and take sides with both; nor can anyone intend evil and at the same time good towards the neighbor. For then evil lurks in the good; and although the hidden evil does not appear in the actions themselves, yet it does make itself manifest in many particulars, if one examines them carefully. The Lord says:
“No servant can serve two masters … Ye cannot serve God and mammon.” Luke xvi. 13.
It is harmful for men to ascribe merit to works which are done for the sake of salvation; for in this lie concealed many evils of which the agent is unaware. These hidden evils are: a denial of God’s influx and operation with man; trust in one’s own power in matters concerning salvation; faith in oneself and not in God; self-justification; trust in salvation by one’s own strength; making of no account the Divine grace and mercy; rejection of reformation and regeneration by Divine means; especially disparagement of the merit and righteousness of the Lord God the Savior, which such men claim for themselves; besides a continual expectation of reward, which with them is the first and last end to be regarded. There is also the suffocation and extinction of love to the Lord and love towards the neighbor; complete ignorance concerning the delight of heavenly love which is free from any idea of merit, and inability to perceive it, the only love they experience being the love of self.
Those who put reward in the first place and salvation in the second, and who thus regard salvation for the sake of reward, invert the order of things and immerse the interior things of the mind in their own proprium, and in the body defile them with the lusts of the flesh. This is the reason why the good which regards merit appears in the sight of angels the color of rust, and that which does not regard merit like purple. That good ought not to be done with a view to reward, the Lord teaches in Luke:
“If ye do good to them which do good to you, what thank have ye? … But love ye your enemies, and do good, and lend, hoping for nothing again; and your reward shall be great, and ye shall be the children of the Highest: for He is kind unto the unthankful and to the evil.” Luke vi. 33-36;
and that a man cannot do good which in itself is good, except from the Lord, He teaches in John:
“Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me … for without me ye can do nothing.” John xv. 4, 5.
And in another place:
“A man can receive nothing, except it be given him from heaven.” John iii. 27.
that their reward shall be great in heaven, Matt. v. 11, 12; vi. 1; x. 41, 42; Luke vi. 23, 35; xiv. 12, 13, 14; John iv. 38; that those who have done good shall inherit the kingdom prepared for them from the foundation of the world, Matt. xxv. 34;
that every man shall be rewarded according to his works, Matt. xvi. 27; John v. 29; Rev. xiv. 13; xx. 12, 13; Jer. xxv. 14; xxxii. 19; Hos. iv. 9; Zech. i. 6; and in other places.
Such persons do not put their trust in any reward on account of their merit; but they have a belief in the promise from grace. With them the delight of doing good to the neighbor is a reward, and this is the delight of the angels in heaven; for it is a spiritual delight, and eternal, and infinitely surpasses every natural delight. Those who are in the enjoyment of this delight have no desire to hear of merit, for their joy is in doing, and they find true blessedness therein; and they are grieved if it should be believed that they are acting for the sake of reward. They are like those who do good to their friends for friendship’s sake; to a brother, because he is a brother; to a wife and children, because they are wife and children; to their country, for their country’s sake; and thus they act from friendship and love.* When those persons who perform such acts of kindness declare that their actions are prompted not by self-interest but by the interest of others, their words carry conviction.
* ex amicitia et amore. This might be regarded as an example of hendiadys and be translated, “from the friendship of love,” anticipating the distinction between the two kinds of love noted in 446-449.
… When those persons who perform such acts of kindness declare that their actions are prompted not by self-interest but by the interest of others, their words carry conviction, illi qui benefaciunt, etiam dicunt et persuadent, quod non propter se sed propter illos.
[2] They are, moreover, like those who regard their country from the love of self and the world, and who declare they are ready to give their fortunes and life itself for it. Yet if they do not receive honors and riches as rewards, they defame their country, and take part with its enemies. They are also like shepherds who feed their sheep only for hire; and if they do not receive their wages when they consider they are due, they use their staff to drive the flock into the wilderness. Resembling these are priests who perform their ministerial duties merely for the emoluments attached to them: clearly they care nothing for the salvation of the souls committed to their charge. [3] The case is the same with those magistrates who look only to the honors and rewards attached to their office. When they do good it is not for the sake of the public welfare, but for the sake of selfish and worldly gratifications, which they consider the only good.
The same might be said of all others who are grounded in selfish and worldly love; for the end they have in view is to them of supreme importance, and subsidy considerations, which are necessary for the due performance of their office, if they do not promote that end, are completely ignored. [4] The same holds good with those who demand reward for merit in the matter of salvation: after death with great assurance they demand admittance to heaven. When, however, it has been ascertained that they have no love to God and none towards the neighbor, they are sent to those who give instruction in charity and faith. If they reject this teaching, they are removed to the company of persons like themselves, among whom some are angry with God because they do not receive their rewards, and who call faith a product of the reason. In the Word these are meant by the hirelings to whom were assigned the most menial services in the courts of the Temple. At a distance they appear like hewers of wood.
Every one learns from parents and teachers to live morally, that is, to act the part of a good citizen, and to perform those honorable duties, pertaining to the various virtues, which are the essentials of honorable conduct. He learns to give outward expression to these essentials in what are called the proprieties of life; and as he grows in years, to add a rational appreciation to these, and so perfect his moral character. For moral life in children is merely natural till they approach the period of youth, and then it becomes more rational. He who considers the matter carefully may see that the moral life is the same as the life of charity; for this consists in acting well towards the neighbor, and in so regulating the life that it may not be contaminated by evils. That this is so follows from what was shown above in Nos. 435-438. However, in the first period of a man’s life, the moral life is the life of charity in things most external; it is only its exterior and more superficial part, and not its interior.
[2] There are four periods of life through which a man passes from infancy to old age. In the first, he acts at the direction of others, according to their instructions; in the second, he acts of himself, under the guidance of the understanding; in the third, the will acts upon the understanding, and the understanding modifies the will; and in the fourth, he acts from settled conviction and purpose. These are the phases in the life of a man’s spirit, but they are not the same for the body; for this can act morally and speak rationally while the spirit may will and think the contrary. That this is the case with the natural man is plain from dissemblers, flatterers, liars, and hypocrites, who evidently take delight in their double mind, or a mind divided into two discordant minds. It is otherwise with those who will what is good and think rationally; and who consequently do what is good and speak rationally. These are meant in the Word by “the simple in spirit,” so described because they are not double-minded.
[3] Hence it may be seen what is properly meant by the external and the internal man. No one from the morality of the external man can form a conclusion as to the morality of the internal man, because this may be quite different. It may conceal itself as a tortoise hides its head in its shell, or as a serpent its head in its coil. Such a so-called moral man is like a robber in a city and in a forest, who acts the moral man in the city, but the robber in a forest. It is otherwise with those who are moral inwardly, or in respect of the spirit, having become so through regeneration by the Lord. These are meant by the spiritually moral.
“All things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the Law and the Prophets.” Matt. vii. 12.
This is also the universal law of moral life. But to recount all the works of charity, and compare them with those of moral life would require many pages. Let six commandments of the second table of the Decalogue serve for illustration. It is evident to every one that these are precepts of the moral life; and that they also comprise all things relating to love towards the neighbor may be seen above in Nos. 328, 330, 331. That charity fulfils all those commandments is evident from these words of Paul:
“Love one another: for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law. For this, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not kill, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, Thou shalt not covet; and if there be any other commandment, it is briefly comprehended in this saying, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. Charity (A.V., Love), worketh no ill to his neighbor: therefore charity (A.V., love) is the fulfilling of the law.” Rom. xiii. 8, 9, 10.
He who thinks from the external man only cannot but wonder that the seven commandments of the second table of the Decalogue were promulgated in so miraculous a manner by Jehovah on Mount Sinai, when yet they were precepts of the law of civil justice in all kingdoms throughout the world, and consequently in Egypt also, whence the Children of Israel had lately come; for without these precepts no kingdom can subsist. They were promulgated by Jehovah, and written on tables of stone with His finger, in order that they might be precepts not only of civil society, and thus of naturally moral life, but also those of heavenly society, and thus of spiritually moral life. So that to act contrary to them is not only to act against men, but also against God.
The friendship of love means interior friendship, which is such that not only is the external man, if a person, loved, but also his internal, without regard to the real nature of the internal man, or spirit; that is, without regard to the affections of his mind. These may be inspired by love towards the neighbor, and by love to God, and thus are capable of association with the angels of heaven; or they may arise from opposite loves, and thus are capable of association with devils. Such friendship is contracted by many from various causes, and for various ends. It is distinct from that external friendship which regards the person alone, and which exists for the pleasures of personal attraction as well as for various business reasons. This friendship may be formed with any one, even with a clown who cracks jokes at a great man’s table. This is called simply friendship, but the other, the friendship of love; for mere friendship is a natural union, whereas love is a spiritual union.
* Note the distinction between the two forms of friendship which differ in kind, amicitia amoris and amicitia externa.
I have been permitted to see such associations, particularly between brothers or relatives, and also between patrons and dependants, and between many great men and their flatterers, who were persons of opposite affections and different natures. I have seen them together, like kids with leopards, kissing each other and vowing fidelity to their former friendship; and I have noticed at the same time that the good were drinking in the delights of the wicked. They were walking hand in hand and entering into caves together, where crowds of the wicked were seen in their own hideous forms, although to themselves, by a kind of delusion, they seemed to be very beautiful. After some time, however, I heard the good uttering cries of fear as if caught in a trap, and the wicked exulting with joy, like enemies over the spoil; and I saw other distressing scenes. I was informed that the good, after their release, are prepared for heaven by the process of reformation, but with greater difficulty than others.
There can be no genuine, that is, living charity unless it forms one with faith, and unless both together look to the Lord. For the Lord, charity and faith are the three essentials of salvation; and when they form one, charity is charity and faith is faith, and the Lord is in them and they in the Lord, as may be seen above in Nos. 363-367, and 368-372. When, however, these three are not conjoined, charity is either spurious, or hypocritical, or dead. There have been various heresies in the Christian Church since it was first established, and they still exist in it; and in each of them these three essentials, God, charity, and faith were and are acknowledged, for without these there can be no religion. It is especially true of charity that it may be adjoined to any heretical faith, as to that of the Socinians,* the Enthusiasts,** the Jews, and even to that of idolaters. All these may believe it to be charity, because it appears like it in its external form; but the nature of charity varies in accordance with the faith to which it is adjoined or conjoined, as may be seen in the chapter on Faith.
* Socinians, members of a religious sect taking their name from Faustus Socinus, A.D. 1539-1604, and his uncle Laelius Socinus. They are antitrinitarians, denying the personality of the Holy Ghost and the Divinity of Christ. Early Socians believed in the miraculous conception and that Christ was entitled to Divine worship; but modern Socinians, chiefly Unitarians, deny both.
** Enthusiasts (= fanatics), a sect of heretics in Cod. Theodosianus, c. A.D. 438, a record of the constitutions of the Roman Emperors from the time of Constantine, compiled by the Emperor Theodosius.
It is the same with the charity of many other heresies, as of those whose supporters deny the Divine Trinity, and therefore approach God the Father alone, or the Holy Spirit alone, or both apart from God the Savior. Charity cannot be conjoined with their faith, and if it is conjoined or adjoined, it is spurious. It is called spurious, because it is like an illegitimate child, as the son of Hagar and Abraham, who was cast out of the house, Gen. xxi. 9. Such charity is like fruit which does not grow naturally on a tree but which has been fixed to it artificially; or it is like a carriage to which the horses are attached only by the reins in the hands of the driver, so that when they set off they pull him from the seat and leave the carriage behind.
“When thou doest thine alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory of men…. And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men.” Matt. vi. 2-5.
“Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye shut up the kingdom of heaven against men: for ye neither go in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering to go in … Woe unto you, … hypocrites! for ye compass sea and land to make one proselyte; and when he is made, ye make him two-fold more the child of hell than yourselves…. Woe unto you … hypocrites! for ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess.” Matt. xxiii. [13], 15, 25.
“Well hath Esaias prophesied of you, saying, This people honoreth me with their lips, but their heart is far from me.” Mark vii. 6.
“Woe unto you … hypocrites! for ye are as graves which appear not, and the men that walk over them are not aware of them.” Luke xi. 44;
and elsewhere. Such persons are like flesh without blood, or like ravens and parrots taught to repeat the words of a psalm, or like birds taught to sing the air of a sacred hymn; the sound of their speech is like the sound of a bird-catcher’s pipe.
* Cerberus, the three-headed dog at the gate of Tartarus.
** Charon, the ferry-man of the lower regions.
It was shown above that every man has an internal and an external, the former being called the internal man, and the latter the external. To this may be added that the internal man is in the spiritual world, and the external in the natural world. Man was thus created that he might be associated with spirits and angels in their world, and consequently that he might think from particulars to principles, and after death be transferred from the one world to the other, that is, to the spiritual world, by which is meant both heaven and hell. Since, then, the internal man is associated with spirits and angels in their world, and the external with men, it is evident that man may be associated both with spirits of hell and with angels of heaven; by this faculty and power man is distinguished from the beasts. The essential nature of man is according to the nature of his internal and not of his external man, because the internal man is his spirit, which acts by means of the external man. The material body, with which his spirit is clothed in the natural world, is an accessory for the sake of procreation, and of the formation of the internal man; for the internal man is formed in the natural body, as a tree in the ground, and as seed in fruit. Further particulars concerning the internal and the external man may be seen above in No. 401.
[2] Since the delights of hell are the opposite of those of heaven, there is a great intervening region between them into which there enter by influx the delights of heaven from above, and those of hell from below. In the midst of this intervening region is man, during his life in the world, in order that he may be in equilibrium and thus in a state of freedom to turn either to heaven or to hell. This space is what is meant by the great gulf fixed between those who are in heaven and those who are in hell, Luke xvi. 28.
[3] From this may be evident the nature of the friendship of love which exists among the wicked. In their external man it assumes the gestures of friendship, mimics its behavior, and puts on the outward show of morality, to further their own devices and seek the opportunity to gratify the delights of their own lusts, with which the internal man is on fire. Nothing but the fear of the law and of the loss of reputation and life restrains them and keeps their actions in check. Their friendship is, therefore, like a spider concealed in sugar, a viper in a piece of bread, a young crocodile in a honey cake, or a snake in the grass.
[4] Such is the friendship which the wicked form with anyone whatever; but friendship between those who are confirmed in evil, as thieves, robbers and pirates, is of a friendly character so long as they with one mind are intent on plunder. Then they embrace one another as brothers and entertain themselves with feasting, singing and dancing, while they conspire for the destruction of others. Yet each one in his heart regards his boon companion as an enemy. This also is how the cunning thief views his associate, and fears him accordingly. It is evident that among such persons there is no friendship, but intestine hatred.
[5] Any man who has not openly associated with malefactors, and taken part in robberies, but who has led a moral civil life with useful ends in view, and yet has not curbed the lusts in the internal man, may believe that his friendship is not like this. Still it is more or less of this nature with all those who have rejected faith and despised the holy things of the Church, looking upon them as designed not for themselves but only for the common people. This I have been granted to know for certain from many examples in the spiritual world. With some the delights of infernal love have remained concealed like fire in smouldering logs still covered with bark; with some like live coal under ashes; with some like wax torches that blaze forth when a light is applied; and with some in yet other ways. Such are all those who have banished from their heart the things of religion. Their internal man is in hell; and while they live in the world, and are in ignorance of their state because of the semblance of morality in their externals, they acknowledge none as the neighbor but themselves and their children. They regard all others either with contempt, resembling cats on the watch for birds in their nests, or with hatred, resembling wolves looking for dogs to devour. These things have been mentioned to show what charity is, by contrast with its opposite.
As is well known, the Law promulgated from Mount Sinai was written on two tables, one of which treats of God and the other of men. In the hand of Moses they were one table, on the right side of which was written what relates to God, and on the left what relates to men; so that when presented for men to read, the writing on both tables was seen at the same time. Thus one part was in view of the other, like Jehovah speaking with Moses and Moses with Jehovah, face to face, as it is written. The tables were so united that they might represent the conjunction of God with men, and the reciprocal conjunction of men with God. Hence the Law written on them was called the Covenant and the Testimony; for a covenant signifies conjunction, and testimony a life according to the terms of the covenant.
This union of the two tables exemplifies the conjunction of love to God and love towards the neighbor. The first table includes all things relating to love to God. These are, primarily, that man ought to acknowledge one God, the Divinity of His Human, and the holiness of the Word; and that He is to be worshipped by means of the holy things which proceed from Him. That these are the contents of the first table appears from what has been said in Chapter V regarding the precepts of the Decalogue. The second table includes all things relating to love towards the neighbor. Its first five commandments include those things which relate to action, and which are called works; and the last two include those things which relate to the will, and thus to charity at its source; for in these two commandments it is said: “Thou shalt not covet,” and when a man does not covet what belongs to the neighbor, he then bears good will towards him. That the ten commandments of the Decalogue contain all things respecting love to God and love towards the neighbor, may be seen above in Nos. 329, 330, 331, where it is also shown that there is a conjunction of both tables with those who are in charity.
that ‘enter not by the door, but climb up some other way.’ John x. 1-9.
It is otherwise also with those who have confirmed themselves in a denial of the Lord’s Divinity. In all these cases there is no conjunction with God, and consequently no salvation. Their charity is only spurious, which does not conjoin face to face, but on the side, or at the back.
[2] How conjunction is effected shall be briefly explained. With every man God enters by influx with an acknowledgment of Himself into such knowledge of Him as the man possesses; and at the same time He flows in with an influx of His own love towards all men. The man who receives the influx only as it enters in the former manner and not in the latter, receives it in his understanding and not in his will; and he remains in his knowledge without an interior acknowledgment of God. His state is like that of a garden in winter. On the other hand, the man who receives both kinds of influx, receives it in his will and thence in his understanding, and consequently in his whole mind; and he has an interior acknowledgment, which imparts life to his knowledge of God. His state is like that of a garden in spring.
[3] Conjunction is effected by means of charity, because God loves every man; and as He cannot do good to anyone immediately, but only mediately through the instrumentality of men, He therefore inspires men with His love, as He inspires parents with love for their children. The man who receives that love is conjoined with God, and he loves the neighbor from the love of God. With him the love of God is inwardly within his love towards the neighbor, directing both his will and his power. Since a man does nothing good unless it appears to him as if the power, the will and the deed are of himself, therefore this appearance is granted him; and when he does good from freedom as of himself, it is imputed to him, and accepted as that reciprocal factor by which conjunction is effected. It is an example of the co-operation that takes place between the active and the passive, when the active rouses into activity what was formerly passive. Thus it is like the will in actions, and the thought in speech, and the soul acting from the inmost on both. It is like effort in motion, and also like the prolific principle in the seed acting from within upon the sap by which the tree grows to fruitage and the production of new seeds from the fruit. It is also like light in its action upon precious stones, which is reflected according to the texture of their parts, giving rise to various colors as if they belonged to the stones, when in reality they belong to the light.
“At that day ye shall know that I am in my Father, and ye in me, and I in you.” John xiv. 20;
and also in these words:
“He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that love me … and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him, and will make my abode with him.” John xiv. 21, 23.
All the Lord’s commandments have relation to love towards the neighbor, and consist in these two general precepts, not to do evil to him, but to do good to him. Those who observe these precepts love God, and God loves them, according to these words of the Lord; and since the love of God and the love of the neighbor are thus conjoined it is as John says:
“He that keepeth the commandments of Jesus Christ (A.V., His commandments) dwelleth in Him, and He in him.” 1 John iii. 24.
“If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen? And this commandment have we from Him, That he who loveth God love his brother also.” 1 John iv. 20, 21.
To the above will now be added the following memorabilia. The first experience. I once saw at a distance five lecture halls, each in a different colored light; the first in a flame-colored light, the second in a yellow light, the third in a clear white light, the fourth in a light mid-way between that of noon and evening, and the fifth was just visible, standing as it were in the shade of evening. On the roads I saw some persons on horse-back, some in carriages, and some walking; while others were running in their haste towards the first lecture hall, about which glowed a flame-colored light. When I saw them I was seized with a strong desire to go myself, and hear what was being discussed. So I quickly made ready, joined those who were hastening to the first hall and entered with them. Within there was a great assembly, part of which proceeded to the right and part to the left and took seats on benches stretching to the walls. In front I saw a low pulpit in which stood one who acted as president. He had a staff in his hand, a cap on his head, and a robe tinged with the same flame-colored light as the hall.
[2] When all were assembled he said: “Brethren, let the subject of to-day’s discussion be, What is charity? You all may know that charity is spiritual in its essence and natural in its acts.” Immediately there rose one from the first row on the left where those sat who were reputed to be wise, and he spoke as follows: “My opinion is that morality inspired by faith is charity;” and he confirmed it in this way: “Every one knows that charity follows faith, as a maid-in-waiting attends her mistress; and that a man who has faith fulfils the law and thus exercises charity so spontaneously that he does not know he is actually expressing the law and charity in his life. If he knew he was doing so, and at the same time entertained thoughts of salvation on that account, he would defile holy faith with his proprium and thus impair its efficacy. Is not this in accordance with our teaching?” Here he looked towards those on each side of him, among whom were some clergymen, and they expressed their assent.
[3] “But what,” he continued, “is spontaneous charity but morality, into which every one from his infancy is initiated? It is, therefore, natural in itself, but it becomes spiritual when inspired by faith. As all men live moral lives, no one can discern whether their morality is inspired by faith or not; but God alone, who imparts and seals faith, knows and distinguishes between them. I therefore maintain that charity is morality inspired by faith, and that such morality is saving because of the faith within it, but no other morality is helpful to salvation, because it is merit-seeking. Accordingly, all those who mingle charity and faith, that is, who conjoin them from within, instead of bringing them together from without, lose their labor; for mingling and conjoining them would be like putting into the carriage with a bishop the footman whose place is to stand behind, or like conducting the door-keeper into the dining-room to sit at table with the noble-man.”
[4] After this there rose one from the first row to the right, and he spoke as follows: “My opinion is that piety inspired by compassion is charity; and I confirm it with this consideration, that nothing propitiates God more than the piety of a humble heart. Besides, piety is continually beseeching God to grant faith and charity; and the Lord says:
“Ask, and it shall be given you.” Matt. vii. 7;
and because the request is granted both faith and charity are present in piety. I affirm that piety inspired by compassion is charity, for all devout piety feels compassion, since it moves the heart even to groaning; and what is this but compassion? This feeling indeed disappears after prayer, but still it returns when we pray again, bringing with it piety and thus also charity. Our clergymen ascribe everything that promotes salvation to faith, and nothing to charity; and what then remains but piety, praying with compassion for an increase of both? When reading the Word I could not but see that faith and charity were the two means of salvation; but when I consulted the clergy, I was told that faith was the only means, and that charity contributed nothing. Then I seemed to be at sea in a ship drifting between two rocks; and when I feared that the vessel would be wrecked, I took to a small boat and sailed away. My small boat is piety; and, moreover, piety is profitable for all things.”
[5] Following this speaker there rose one from the second row on the right, and he said: “My opinion is that charity consists in doing good to all both good and evil; and I confirm it by these considerations. What is charity but goodness of heart? and a good heart wishes well to all both good and evil. Further, the Lord said that we ought to do good even to our enemies. If, therefore, you take away charity from anyone, it leaves a blank, and he becomes like a man hopping along on one foot because the other has been cut off. The wicked person is a man as well as the virtuous person, and charity regards a man as a man; if he is wicked, what is that to me? Charity is like the sun’s heat, which gives life to animals fierce and gentle alike, as wolves and sheep; and causes plants to grow, noxious and useful alike, as thorns and vines.” With these words he took in his hand a fresh grape and said, “Charity is like this grape; if you cut it, what is within it runs out. He then divided it, and its contents did run out.
[6] After this address another rose from the second row on the left and said: “My opinion is that charity consists in serving in every possible way one’s relatives and friends; and I confirm it in this way. Everybody knows that charity begins with oneself, for every man is neighbor to himself. Charity, therefore, proceeds through the relationships that are nearest, first to brothers and sisters, and from these to kinsfolk and connections, where its progress comes to an end of itself. Those who are outside this limit are strangers, who are not inwardly acknowledged, and thus they are estranged from the internal man. Nature, however, unites those who are related by blood and birth; and habit, which is a second nature, unites friends, and so they become the neighbor. Moreover, charity unites others with itself from within, and in this way from without; and those who are not united from within can only be called companions.
All birds know their kindred, not by their feathers but by their notes; and when they are near each other, by the sphere of life which exhales from their bodies. This innate attraction resulting in conjunction is in birds called instinct; and in man, when the same feeling exists for one’s own relatives and those belonging to him, it is indeed the instinct of human nature. It is blood that causes a likeness of nature. Man’s mind, which is also his spirit, perceives this and as it were gives it a fragrance; and in this similarity of nature and sympathy to which it gives rise, the essence of charity consists. On the other hand, however, dissimilarity of nature, which gives rise to antipathy, is as it were an absence of the ties of blood, and consequently is not charity. Further, as habit is second nature, and is also productive of similarity of nature, it follows that charity consists in doing good to friends also. If anyone, after voyaging over the sea, puts in at some port and learns that he is in a foreign land where the language and customs of the natives are strange to him, he is as it were out of his element, and feels no affection for the people. If, however, he learns that he is in his native country, where the language and customs are familiar to him, then he is in his element, and he experiences that joyful affection for the people which is also the delight of charity.”
[7] Next there rose one from the third row on the right, and he, speaking in a loud voice, said: “My opinion is that charity consists in giving alms to the poor, and helping the needy. This assuredly is charity, for so the Divine Word teaches, and its authority is indisputable. To give to the rich and those abounding in wealth is but vain-glory, in which there is no charity but only the hope of recompense. In this there can be no genuine affection for the neighbor but only a spurious affection, which has influence on earth, but not in heaven. Therefore, necessity and want should be relieved, as then the idea of recompense does not enter. In the city where I used to live, and where I knew who were virtuous and who were not, I observed that all the virtuous, on seeing a poor man in the street would stop and give him alms; but that all the wicked, on seeing a poor person near them, would pass by as though blind to his presence and deaf to his cry. Every one knows that the virtuous have charity, but not the wicked. He who gives to the poor and relieves the needy is like a shepherd who leads out hungry and thirsty sheep to pasture and water; but he who gives only to the rich and prosperous is like one who worships little gods* and presses meat and wine on those who are already sated.”
[8] After him rose another from the third row on the left who said: “My opinion is that charity consists in building and endowing hospitals, infirmaries, and homes for strangers and orphans. I am confirmed in this opinion by the fact that such benefactions are of a public nature, and are on a much larger scale than private ones. Thus charity becomes richer in quality and more replete with manifold blessings; and the reward hoped for in accordance with the promises of the Word becomes more abundant, for as a man prepares the ground and sows, so he reaps. Is not this giving to the poor and relieving the needy in an eminent degree? This is the way to obtain glory in the eyes of the world, and also to receive praise with the humble gratitude of the beneficiaries. This elevates the heart and with it the affection called charity to its highest pitch. The wealthy, who do not walk along the streets but ride, cannot take notice of those sitting by the wayside close to the house walls, and give them small pieces of money. They contribute to such objects as benefit many at a time. Wayside giving must be left to those of smaller means who travel on foot.”
[9] On hearing these words another from the same row forthwith silenced him as, speaking in a loud voice, he said: “Let not the wealthy, however, exalt the munificence and excellence of their charity over the mite which one poor man gives to another. We know that every one gives in proportion to his position, be he king, praetor, tribune or attendant. For charity, properly considered, is not estimated according to the rank of the person and the corresponding value of his gift, but according to the fulness of the affection from which charity flows; and so the menial, in giving his single mite, may give from a larger charity than the magnate who gives or bequeaths a fortune. This is also in agreement with the following words:
Jesus “saw the rich men casting their gifts into the treasury. And He saw also a certain poor widow casting in thither two mites. And He said, Of a truth I say unto you, that this poor widow hath cast in more than they all.” Luke xxi. 1, 2, 3.”
[10] Following these one rose from the fourth row on the left, and said: “My opinion is that charity consists in giving to churches and conferring benefits on their ministers; and this opinion I confirm as follows. The man who does these things has his mind bent on something holy, under the influence of which he acts and which also sanctifies his gifts. Charity, because it is holy in itself, demands this. Is not all worship in our churches holy? For the Lord says,
“Where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.” [Matt. xviii. 20.]
and the priests who are His servants, conduct that worship. Consequently I conclude that gifts bestowed on the clergy and on churches are superior to those given to other persons and for other objects. Moreover, to the clergy is committed the power to bless, by which those gifts are sanctified; and thereafter nothing does more to open up the mind and give it joy than to see one’s gifts devoted to sacred uses.
[11] Next there rose one from the fourth row on the right who spoke as follows: “My opinion is that the old Christian brotherhood is charity; and I am confirmed in my opinion by these considerations. Every Church that worships the true God has its beginning from charity, like the Christian Church of old; and since charity unites minds and makes one of many, the early Christians called themselves brethren, brethren in Jesus Christ their God. Because they were surrounded by barbarous nations of whom they stood in fear, they made a common stock of their goods which they enjoyed together in harmony. In their social gatherings they conversed daily about the Lord God their Savior Jesus Christ, and about charity at their dinners and suppers; and this was their bond of brotherhood. In later times when schisms began to arise, culminating in that unspeakable heresy of Arius** which destroyed in the minds of many the idea of the Divinity of the Lord’s Human, charity decayed, and the brotherhood was dispersed. It is true that all who worship the Lord in truth and keep His commandments are brethren, Matt. xxiii. 8; but they are brethren in spirit; and as at this day the nature of man’s spirit is not known, it is not always appropriate for men to call one another brethren. The brotherhood of faith alone, and particularly that of faith in any other God than the Lord God the Savior, is not brotherhood; for charity, upon which brotherhood is founded, is not in such a faith. I conclude then that the old Christian brotherhood was charity: I say was, for it is now no more; yet I prophesy that it will be restored.” As he said this, a flame-colored light shone through a window from the east and played upon his countenance, a sight which struck the assembly with amazement.
[12] Lastly, there arose one from the fifth row on the left, who asked leave to add something to what the last speaker had said; and having obtained permission, he said: “My opinion is that charity consists in forgiving every one his trespasses. I have derived this opinion from a form of speech used by those who come to the Holy Supper. On such occasions some say to their friends, ‘Forgive me what I have done amiss,’ supposing that in this way they have fulfilled all the duties of charity. But I have come to the conclusion that this is but a painted representation of charity, and not the real form of its essence. For these words are used both by those who do not forgive trespasses and by those who make no effort to acquire charity. Such persons are not included in the prayer which the Lord Himself taught ‘Father, forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those that trespass against us.’ Trespasses are like ulcers; and unless these are opened up and healed, diseased matter collects in them; and this infects the neighboring parts, creeping around like a serpent and corrupting the blood in all parts of the body.
“The same is true of trespasses against the neighbor. Unless these are removed by repentance and by a life according to the Lord’s commandments, they remain and increase their destructive influence. Those who, without repentance, merely pray to God to forgive their sins are like people in a plague-stricken city who approach the governor and say, ‘O lord, heal us.’ He would say to them, ‘What have I to do with healing? Go to a physician and learn from him what medicines you need. Then procure those medicines from an apothecary, take them, and you will be healed.’ So the Lord will say to those who pray for forgiveness of sins without actual repentance, ‘Open the Word, and read what I have spoken in Isaiah:
“Ah sinful nation, a people laden with iniquity … when ye spread forth your hands, I will hide mine eyes from you; yea, when ye make many prayers, I will not hear…. Wash you … put away the evil of your doings from before mine eyes; cease to do evil; Learn to do well.” Isa. i. 4, 15, 16, 17, 18. Then your sins shall be removed and remitted.'”
[13] When the speakers had finished I stretched forth my hand and asked whether I, although a stranger, might be allowed to offer my opinion. The president put my request to the meeting, and after consent was given, I said: “My opinion is that charity consists in acting from the love of justice with judgment in every work and duty, a love that is derived solely from the Lord God the Savior. All the opinions that I have heard from those sitting upon the seats both on the right hand and on the left are notable examples of charity; but as the president of this assembly remarked at the beginning, charity is spiritual in its origin, and natural in its derivation. Now, natural charity, if it is spiritual within, appears to the angels transparent like a diamond; but if it is not spiritual within, and consequently merely natural, it appears to them like a pearl, resembling the eye of a boiled fish.
[14] “It is not for me to say whether the notable examples of charity which you have set forth in order are inspired with spiritual charity or not; but I may state here the spiritual principle which ought to inspire them in order that they may be natural forms of spiritual charity. This principle is that they should be done from the love of justice with judgment; that is, a man in the exercise of charity should see clearly whether he is acting from justice; and he does this when guided by sound judgment. For a man may do harm by good deeds, and he may also do good by actions which appear to be evil. For example, he who supplies a needy robber with money to buy a sword does harm by his good deed, although the robber does not declare his intention when making the request. He likewise does harm if he procures a robber’s release from prison, and sets him on the road to a wood, saying to himself, ‘It is no fault of mine that he commits robbery; I only gave him aid as a man.’ Take another instance. That man encourages idleness who supports an idle vagrant, and keeps him from being driven to work, saying to him, ‘Come into a room in my house and lie down on the bed; why should you fatigue yourself?’ Again a man does harm who promotes evilly-disposed relatives and friends to positions of honor, in which they have power to work much mischief. Anyone may see that such works of charity do not proceed from any love of justice with judgment.
[15] “On the other hand a man may do good by actions which appear to be evil. For example, a judge violates charity who acquits a criminal because he sheds tears and utters pious words, praying for pardon on the plea that he is his neighbor. Nevertheless, a judge performs an act of charity when he imposes punishment on the wrong doer according to the law; for in this way the judge guards against his doing further mischief and harming society, which is the neighbor in a higher degree; and thus he prevents a scandalous miscarriage of justice. Again, every one knows that it is for the good of servants and children to be corrected for their misdeeds by their masters and parents. The case is similar with those in hell, who are all principled in the love of doing evil. They are kept in confinement and punished when they do evil, by permission of the Lord for the sake of their amendment. This is because He is Justice itself, and all His acts are done from judgment.
[16] “From this it may be understood why, as was said above, charity becomes spiritual from the love of justice with judgment, a love originating solely from the Lord God the Savior. The reason is that all the good of charity is from the Lord who says:
“He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without Me ye can do nothing.” John xv. 5;
and that He has all power in heaven and in earth, Matt. xxviii. 18.
Again, all love of justice with judgment is only from the Lord God of heaven, who is Justice itself, and from whom man derives all judgment, Jer. xxiii. 5; xxxiii. 15.
[17] “What is the conclusion then, to be drawn concerning all those examples of charity mentioned by the speakers on both sides, namely, that charity is morality inspired by faith, that it is piety inspired by compassion, that it consists in doing good to both good and evil, in serving in every possible way one’s relatives and friends, in giving alms to the poor and helping the needy, in building and endowing hospitals, and in giving to churches and conferring benefits on their ministers; that charity is the old Christian brotherhood, and that it consists in forgiving everyone his trespasses? The conclusion is that all these are excellent examples of charity, provided they are done from the love of justice tempered with judgment. Otherwise they are not charity, but are only like streams separated from their fountainhead, or like branches severed from their tree. For genuine charity is to believe on the Lord and to do justly and act rightly in every work and duty. Therefore, he who from the Lord loves justice and practices it with judgment is an image and likeness of charity.”
[18] When I had thus expressed my opinion there was a silence such as is maintained by those who see and acknowledge that something is true in the internal but not yet in the external man. This I perceived from their countenances; but at that moment I was suddenly withdrawn from their sight, because from the spirit I re-entered my material body. For the natural man, being clothed by a material body, is not seen by a spiritual man, that is, by a spirit or an angel; nor are they seen by the natural man.
* qui colit deastros. (Deus and -aster, diminutive suffix.)
** Arius, theologian of Alexandria, A.D 256-336; founder of Arianism, affirming that Christ was an originated Being. Excommunicated by bishops of Egypt for denying that Christ was made of the same substance (homo-ousion) of any previously existing substance. To settle the consequent dispute Constantine called the Council of Nicaea, A.D. 325. Athanasius successfully led the opposition to Arius; and Arius, with Eusebius, who also refused to accept the Athanasian position, was banished.
There was a table in the centre and benches round about it; yet I saw that all present were standing on the benches and carrying on an acrimonious discussion on faith and charity, the one side maintaining that faith was the essential of the Church, and the other charity. Those who made faith the essential said: “By faith we conduct our dealings with God, and by charity with men; thus faith is of heaven and charity of the earth, and we are saved by what is heavenly and not by what is earthly. Moreover, God can give faith from heaven because it is heavenly; but man may bestow upon himself charity because it is of the earth. Now, what a man bestows upon himself has no relation to the Church, and therefore has no saving power. Consequently, no one can be justified in the sight of God by works, that are called works of charity. Believe us when we say that by faith alone we are not only justified but also sanctified, provided our faith is not defiled by merit which pertains to the works of charity” with much more to the same purpose.
[2] On the other hand, those who were making charity the essential of the Church strongly opposed all this, declaring that charity saves, and not faith. They said. “God holds all men dear, and desires the good of all; but He can only fulfil His desires through the instrumentality of men. God gives us the power not only to converse with men on matters relating to faith, but also to perform for men the works of charity. Do you not see how foolish it is to say that charity is of the earth? Charity is heavenly, and because you do not perform the good of charity, your faith is of the earth. You receive your faith only as a stock or a stone. You say you receive it by hearing the Word; but how can merely hearing the Word produce any effect, especially upon a stock or a stone? Perchance, you may say, you are quickened without being aware of it; but this quickening only enables you to assert that faith alone justifies and saves. As a matter of fact, you do not know what faith is, and especially saving faith.”
[3] Then there rose one who was called a Syncretist* by the angel who talked with me. He took off his cap and laid it on the table; but he quickly replaced it on his head, for he was bald. He said: “Listen to me; you are all wrong. Faith, it is true, is spiritual, and charity moral, but still they are united. They are united by the Word, and then by the Holy Spirit, and finally by the effect that these produce, which may indeed be called obedience. In this man has no part, because when faith is introduced, he knows no more about it than a statue. I have long meditated upon these matters, and have at last discovered that a man may receive from God faith which is spiritual, but that he cannot be moved by God to charity which is spiritual any more than a stock or a stone.”
[4] At these words those who were in faith alone applauded; but those who were in charity dissented, and they angrily exclaimed: “Listen, friend. You do not realize that there is a moral life that is spiritual and a moral life that is merely natural, a spiritual moral life with those who do good from God and yet as of themselves, and a merely natural moral life with those who do good from hell and yet as of themselves.”
[5] It was remarked above that the discussion sounded like the gnashing of teeth and the stamping of feet, mingled with a harsh grating noise. The sound like the gnashing of teeth came from those who made faith the one essential of the Church, the stamping from those who made charity the one essential, and the mingled grating noise from the Syncretist. The sounds they made in their discussion were heard in this manner at a distance, because in the world they were given to disputing, and had never shunned any evil, and had therefore never done any good of a spiritual kind. They were also entirely ignorant that whatever pertains to faith is truth, and that whatever pertains to charity is good; and that truth without good is not truth in spirit, and that good without truth is not good in spirit; and thus that the one enters into the constitution of the other.
* Syncretist, one who seeks to reconcile and unite various systems of philosophy or religious opinions on the basis of tenets common to all. The Syncretistic controversy was a dispute in the Lutheran Church in the seventeenth century.
[2] At that moment I felt a strong desire to know how a man can do good from God, and yet altogether as of himself; so I asked those who were eating figs how they understood this. They replied that they could understand it only in this way: “God brings it about within man and through his instrumentality, while man is unaware of His activity. For if man were conscious of it, and acted under this consciousness, what he did would only be apparent good, being interiorly evil; because what proceeds from a man proceeds from his proprium, which by birth is evil. How then, can good from God and evil from man be united, and having been thus united, proceed into act? Moreover, a man’s proprium, in matters relating to salvation, is ever full of the idea of merit, and as far as this is so, it takes away His merit from the Lord; and this is the height of injustice and impiety. In a word, if the good which God works in a man were to enter by influx into his will and thence into his actions it would be utterly defiled and profaned; but this God never permits. A man may indeed think that the good he does is from God, and call it God’s good performed through him; but still we do not understand that it is so.”
[3] I then explained what was in my mind, and said: “You do not understand because you think from appearances, and such thought, when confirmed, is fallacy. To you it is an appearance, and consequently a fallacy, because you believe that all things that a man wills and thinks, and hence does and says, are in himself, and consequently from himself; whereas there is none of them in himself; there is only the disposition which renders possible the reception of what flows into him. Man is not life in himself, but is an organ receptive of life. The Lord is life in Himself, as He also says in John:
“As the Father hath life in Himself, so hath He given to the Son to have life in Himself.” John v. 26; and in other places, as John xi. 25 and xiv. 6, 19.
[4] “There are two things which constitute life, love and wisdom, or what is the same, the good of love and the truth of wisdom. These two flow in from God, and they are received by man as if they were his own; and because they are felt as his own, they proceed from him as if they were his own. The Lord has granted that man should have this feeling in order that what flows in should impress itself upon him, and so should be received and remain with him. On the other hand, all evil also flows in, not from God but from hell; and man receives it with delight; such is his nature by birth. He, therefore, receives good from God only in the measure that he removes evil as of himself; and this is effected by repentance and at the same time by faith in the Lord.
[5] “Love and wisdom, charity and faith, or, to speak in more general terms, the good of love and charity, and the truth of wisdom and faith, enter a man by influx; and whatever enters in this way appears in him entirely as if it were his own, and proceeds from him as his own. This is very evident from sight, hearing, smell, taste and touch; for everything that is perceived in the organs of these senses flows in from without, and is perceived in them. It is the same with the organs of the internal senses, with this difference only, that the spiritual things which flow into them are not apparent, like the natural things which flow into the organs of the external senses. In a word, a man is an organ receptive of life from God, and consequently he is receptive of good in proportion as he desists from evil. The Lord gives to every man the power to desist from evil, because He gives him will and understanding; and whatever a man does from his will according to his understanding, or, what is the same, from the freedom of his will according to the reason of his understanding, becomes permanent; and by it the Lord introduces the man into a state of conjunction with Himself, in which He reforms, regenerates and saves him.
[6] “The life which flows into man is life proceeding from the Lord, and is called the Spirit of God, and in the Word, the Holy Spirit; and it is also said that it enlightens, quickens and operates in him; but this life is varied and modified according to changes in the mental constitution induced by love. You may also know that all the good of love and charity, and all the truth of wisdom and faith, flow into, and are not in, a man from a consideration of the following. He who thinks that these things are implanted in man by creation must ultimately think that God infused Himself into men so that they were partly gods. But all who think and believe this become devils, and with us they emanate an odor of corpses.
[7] “Besides, what is human action but the mind acting? For what the mind wills and thinks, this it does and speaks by means of its organ the body. Therefore, when the mind is under the Lord’s guidance, so also are action and speech; and action and speech are under the Lord’s guidance when the man believes on Him. Unless this were so can you say why the Lord in a thousand places in His Word has commanded that a man should love the neighbor, perform the good works of charity, bring forth fruit like a tree, keep the commandments, and all that he may be saved? Why also did He say that a man would be judged according to his deeds, that is, his works, he who does good to heaven and life, but he who does evil to hell and death? How could the Lord have spoken thus if all that proceeds from man were merit-seeking and consequently evil? Know, therefore, that if the mind is charity so also is the action; but if the mind is faith alone, that is, faith separated from spiritual charity, so also is the action.”
[8] On hearing these things, those who were sitting under the laurel said: “We comprehend that you have spoken justly, and yet we do not comprehend.” I replied: “You comprehend that I have spoken justly by virtue of that universal perception which every man has from the influx of light from heaven when he hears any truth; but you do not comprehend because of the perception, proper to his nature, which man has from the influx of light from the world. These two perceptions, the internal and the external, or the spiritual and the natural, make one with the wise. You also may make them one, if you look to the Lord, and put away evils.”
Seeing that they understood this, I plucked off some twigs from a vine, which I handed to them, saying, “Do you suppose that this is from me or from the Lord?” They answered that it was through me from the Lord; and lo! these twigs in their hands put forth grapes. As I withdrew, I saw a table of cedar wood on which lay a book, under a green olive-tree, whose trunk was entwined by a vine. I looked and saw it was a book written by me,* entitled Arcana Caelestia. I told them that in that book it was fully proved that a man is an organ recipient of life, and not life itself; and that life cannot be created and be in man any more than light can be in the eye.
* In the APOCALYPSE REVEALED, NO. 875, where this passage first appears, the title of the book is given as ANGELIC WISDOM CONCERNING THE DIVINE LOVE AND DIVINE WISDOM: and also CONCERNING THE DIVINE PROVIDENCE.
[2] On seeing these things I was desirous to learn what they represented, as I knew that all the things that appear in the spiritual world are correspondences, and represent spiritual things relating to affection and thought derived from it. Thereupon some spoke to me from heaven and said: “You know already what is represented by the harbor, the ships and the boys and girls on board, but you do not know what is represented by the turtles;” so they continued: “Turtles represent those of the clergy who entirely separate faith from charity and its good works. They affirm in their own mind that plainly there is no conjunction between them; but that the Holy Spirit, through faith in God the Father for the sake of the Son’s merit, enters into and dwells with a man, and purifies his interiors even to his own will. Of this they form a sort of oval plane, and when the operation of the Holy Spirit approaches it, it is turned away round it on the left side and makes no contact with it. In this way the interior or higher part of man’s nature is for God, and the exterior or lower for man; so that nothing which a man does, whether good or evil, appears in God’s sight, nothing good because it is merit-seeking, and nothing evil because it is evil; for if these were to appear before God man would perish on account of either. This being so, man is at liberty to will, think, speak and act as he pleases, provided he is careful before the world.”
[3] I then asked whether they also assert that it is allowable to think of God as not being omnipresent and omniscient. The reply came from heaven: “Even this is allowed them, for God takes no cognizance of anything thought or willed by him who has obtained faith, and is thereby purified and justified; and he still retains in the interior recesses or higher region of his mind or nature the faith which he had received in act, which act may recur at any time, even without his knowledge. These things are represented by the little head which they draw into the from part of their body, and also insert into the large head when they talk with the laity. For they do not speak with these from the small head but from the large one, which appears in front with a face resembling that of a man. Quoting from the Word they converse with them about love, charity, good works, the commandments of the Decalogue and repentance, selecting from the Word almost everything that is there said on these subjects. As at these times they insert the small head into the large one, they inwardly think that all those things are not to be done for the sake of God and salvation, but only with a view to the public and private good.
[4] “Since, however, they speak concerning these things from the Word, especially concerning the Gospel, the operation of the Holy Spirit and the nature of salvation in pleasing and graceful language, they appear to their hearers as handsome men, superior in wisdom to the rest of mankind. For this reason also you saw that sumptuous food and costly articles were given to them by the boys and girls sitting on the benches in the ships. These are they whom you saw represented as turtles. In your world they are scarcely distinguished from others, except in this respect that they fancy themselves superior to all in wisdom; and they laugh at others, even at those who hold a similar doctrine respecting faith, but who are not versed in those mysteries. They carry with them on their clothing a mark by which others recognize them.”
[5] He who spoke with me continued: “I will not relate to you what they think concerning the other matters that pertain to faith, such as election, free will, baptism and the Holy Supper. These they do not divulge, but they are known to us in heaven. As this is their nature in the world, and after death no one is allowed to think one thing and say another, therefore, because they cannot do otherwise than utter their insane conceptions, they are regarded as insane and cast out of the societies. They are at length sent down to the pit of the abyss mentioned in the Revelation ix. 2, where they become corporeal spirits and appear like Egyptian mummies. For the interiors of their mind contract a certain hardness, because while in the world they had shut these in behind a barrier. The infernal society formed by them borders on that of the Machiavellians,** and they frequently pass from one to the other, calling themselves companions; but they ultimately withdraw because of this difference, that they have some religious conviction concerning the act of justification through faith, whereas the Machiavellians have none.”
[6] After I had seen those spirits cast out from the societies and gathered together to be sent down to the pit, I observed a ship with seven sails flying in the air. The officers and sailors in it were clothed in purple with splendid wreaths of laurel upon their caps, and they called out, “Lo, we are in heaven; we are doctors robed in purple and above all others crowned with laurel, because we are the chief of the wise from all the clergy of Europe.” As I wondered what this meant I was told that they were representations of the pride and ideal thoughts, called delusions, of those whom I had before seen as turtles. They were now cast out from the societies as insane, and, gathered into one band, they were standing together in one place. Then, desiring to speak with them, I approached the place where they stood; and having greeted them, I said: “Are you those who have separated the internals of men from their externals, and the operation of the Holy Spirit, as it works in faith, from its co-operation with man, as having nothing to do with faith, and who have thus separated God from man? Have you not in this way removed not only charity itself and its works from faith, like many other teachers among the clergy, but also faith itself from man as to its manifestation in the sight of God?
[7] “I ask you, however, whether you wish me to speak on these matters from reason or from the Sacred Scripture?” They said, “Speak first from reason;” so I spoke as follows: “How is it possible for the internal and the external with man to be separated? Who does not see from common perception, or is unable to see, that all a man’s interiors proceed and are continued to his exteriors and even to what is outermost, in order to produce their effects and accomplish their works? Do not internal things exist for the sake of the external, in order that they may terminate in them and subsist in them, and thus exist, like a column on its base? You can see that unless there was continuation and conjunction in this way, what is outermost would be dissolved and dissipated like bubbles in the air. Who can deny that the interior operations of God with man are countless in number, of which man knows nothing? Indeed, what advantage is it for him to know them? He need only know the most external of them, in which with his thought and will he is together with God. [8] This may be illustrated by an example. A man is not aware of the interior operations involved in speech. The lungs draw in the air and with it fill the vesicles, the bronchia and the lobes; they emit it into the trachea, and there turn it into sound; that sound is modified in the glottis by the aid of the larynx; the tongue then articulates it, and the lips complete the articulation, in order that it may become speech. All these interior operations, of which a man is not conscious, exist for the sake of the most external, that a man may be able to speak. Remove or separate one of these internal operations from its connection with what is outermost and a man would be no more able to speak than a stock.
[9] “Take another example. The two hands are the ultimate parts of man. The interior things which are continued to them descend from the head through the neck, and then through the breast, the shoulders, the arms and the elbows. There are innumerable muscular tissues, innumerable groups of moving fibres, innumerable bundles of nerves and blood vessels, many articulations (ginglymi) of bones*** with their ligaments and membranes. Of these, the man is utterly unconscious, and yet the hands depend upon them all collectively and singly, for their power to act. If these interior things were deflected to the left or right at the elbow and were not continued into the hand, the hand would fall off from the joint and putrefy, dismembered and lifeless. Indeed, as you may well suppose, it would be with the hand as with the body when a man is beheaded. It would be so also with the human mind and with its two principles of life (lives), the will and the understanding, if the Divine operations relating to faith and charity should cease midway in their course and not continue till they reached man. Man would then of a surety be not only a brute but a rotten tree-trunk. These things are according to reason.
[10] “Now, if you will hear, the same are also according to the Sacred Scripture. The Lord says:
“Abide in me, and I in you … I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit.” John xv. 4, 5.
Fruits are the good works which the Lord performs through man, and which man does of himself from the Lord. Again the Lord says,
that He stands at the door and knocks, and that He enters to him that opens, and sups with him, and he with Him, Rev. iii. 20.
The Lord gives pounds and talents, that men may trade with them and make profit; and, in proportion to such profit, that He may give him eternal life, Matt. xxv. 14-30; Luke xix. 13-26.
And again,
He gives wages to every one according to the work which he does in His vineyard, Matt. xx. 1-17.
These are only a few passages; for pages might be filled with quotations from the Word insisting that a man ought to bear fruit like a tree, that he ought to act according to the commandments, love God and the neighbor, and more to the same effect. [11] I know, however, that your own intelligence cannot conceive of anything which in its real meaning is in harmony with those passages from the Word; and although you quote them, still your ideas pervert them. You cannot do otherwise, because you remove from man all things of God that regard communion and consequent conjunction with Him. What then remains, but to remove also all things of worship?”
I now saw the assembled spirits with the light of heaven shining upon them. This clearly reveals the true nature of every one; and they appeared no longer as if in heaven in a ship sailing in the air, robed in purple and crowned with laurel. They were now seen to be in a sandy desert, clad in rags, and girt about their loins with nets like those used by fishermen, through which their nakedness appeared. They were then sent down to the society that borders upon the Machiavellians.
* exspectamus videre pulchras nostras Testudines (Skillepadde). Swedenborg uses Skillepadde, probably a colloquial form of Swedish skoldpadda, tortoise, turtle, from skold, shield, armor, and padda, toad. Cf. Scot, puddock.
** Machiavellian, one who adopts the principles of Machiavelli, an Italian statesman and writer, A.D. 1469-1527. His best-known works are THE PRINCE and THE ART OF WAR. His views on statecraft were such that his name has become a byword for those who are astute and perfidious, with no sense of honor in political matters.
*** plures ginglymi ossium. Ginglymus (from Greek), hinge-like joint with motion only in two directions.
FREE WILL
Before I proceed to state the doctrine of the New Church on Free Will, it is necessary to premise what the present Church teaches in its dogmatic works on that subject. If this were not done a person of sound sense and principled in religion might suppose that it is not worth while to write anything new on the matter. For he might say: “Everybody knows that man has free will in spiritual things. Otherwise why should ministers teach in their sermons that men should believe on God, be converted, live according to the precepts of the Word, fight against the lusts of the flesh, and create themselves anew, and so on?” He must, therefore, suppose that those injunctions are only empty sound if there were no free will in matters of salvation, and that it would be madness to deny it, because it would be contrary to common sense. Yet the present Church falls into that contradiction, and banishes the doctrine of free will from its temples, as may be evident from the work entitled Formula Concordiae,* which the Evangelicals** swear by, and from which the following extracts are taken. The same doctrine and faith thence derived in regard to free will prevail amongst the Reformed throughout the whole Christian world, thus in Germany, Sweden, Denmark, England and Holland, as is evident from their dogmatic books. The quotations that follow are from the Formula Concordiae, Leipzig*** edition, 1758.
* Form of Concord, Formula Concordiae, designed to effect an amicable adjustment of the differences among the Lutherans, by drawing them more closely to their principal standard, the Augsburg or Augustan Confession. Most of the Lutheran Churches add this Formula to their standard creeds.
** Evangelicals, Low Church Protestants who profess evangelical principles, especially the doctrine that salvation is by faith in the Atonement.
** Leipzig, capital of province of same name, seat of highest court of justice in Germany.
(2). “We believe that the understanding, heart and will of an unregenerate man, in spiritual and Divine things, are of their own natural powers utterly incapable of understanding, believing, embracing, thinking, willing, beginning, finishing, acting, operating and co-operating in any respect; but that man is altogether corrupt and dead to what is good; so that in the nature of man since the Fall, before regeneration there is not a single spark of spiritual strength remaining whereby he can prepare himself for the grace of God, or apprehend it when offered, or accommodate himself and of himself be capable of receiving it; or can, by his own power, contribute anything to his conversion, either wholly, by sharing equally, or in the smallest degree; or act, operate or co-operate of himself, or can do so as of himself; but that man is the servant of sin and the slave of Satan, by whom he is actuated; and hence his natural free will, by reason of his corrupted powers and depraved nature, is active and efficacious only in such things as are displeasing and opposed to God.” p. 656.
(3). “Man is industrious and ingenious in civil and natural things, but in things spiritual and Divine, which relate to the salvation of the soul, he is like a stock, a stone, or the pillar of salt into which Lot’s wife was turned, things which have not the use of eyes, mouth, or any of the senses.” p. 661.
(4). “Nevertheless man still enjoys the power of locomotion, and can direct his external members, can hear the Gospel and in some measure meditate on what he hears; but that still in his private thoughts he despises it as a foolish thing, nor can he believe it; and in this respect he is worse than a stock, unless the Holy Spirit is efficacious in him, kindling and working in him faith, obedience and other virtues which God approves.” p. 662.
(5). “With some reason a man may be said not to be a stock or a stone; for a stock or a stone offers no resistance, nor does it understand or feel what is done with it; whereas a man struggles in his will with God, until he is converted to God; and yet it is true that a man, before conversion, is a rational creature, having understanding, although not in Divine things, and having a will, although not disposed to any saving good; but still he can contribute nothing towards his conversion, and in this respect he is worse than a stock or a stone.” pp. 672, 673.
(6). “The whole of conversion is the operation, gift and work of the Holy Spirit alone, who effects and produces it by His own virtue and power through the Word in the man’s understanding, heart and will, as in a passive subject, the man doing nothing at all, but remaining altogether passive; and yet this operation is not like the forming of a statue out of stone, or the stamping of an impression on wax; for wax has neither knowledge nor will.” p. 881.
(7). “It is maintained by certain Fathers and modern doctors that ‘God draweth only the willing,’ and consequently that man’s will is in some respect active in the work of conversion. This opinion, however, is not consonant with sound doctrine,** for it confirms a false idea concerning the powers of the human will in conversion.” p. 582.
(8). “In the external concerns of the world, which fall under the cognizance of reason, there still remains in man some degree of understanding, strength and ability, although these miserable remains are very weak; and even these, small as they are, are infected and contaminated with poison by hereditary disease, so that they are of no account in the sight of God.” p. 641.
(9). “Man in the work of conversion, whereby from a child of wrath he becomes a child of grace, does not co-operate with the Holy Spirit, for the conversion of man is the work of the Holy Spirit solely and exclusively.” pp. 219, 519 and following pages, 663 and following pages, and Append., p. 143. “Nevertheless, a regenerate man, by the power of the Holy Spirit, can co-operate, although his co-operation is attended with much infirmity. He co-operates well, in such proportion and so long as he is led, guided and governed by the Holy Spirit; but still his co-operation with the Holy Spirit is not like that of two horses drawing together in one chariot.” p. 674.
(10.) “Original sin is not a certain fault, perpetrated in act, but is intimately rooted in man’s nature, substance and essence, and it is the source of all actual sins, as depraved thoughts, words and evil works.” p. 577. “This hereditary disease, whereby man’s whole nature is rendered corrupt, is horrible sin, and is in fact the beginning and head of all sins, from which as from their root and source all transgressions proceed.” p. 640. “Man’s whole nature by this sin, as by a spiritual leprosy, is, even in the inmost bowels and deepest recesses of the heart, totally infected and corrupt before God; and by reason of this corruption, the person of man is accused and condemned by the law of God, so that by nature we are children of wrath, slaves of death and damnation, unless we are delivered and saved from these evils by the benefit of Christ’s merit.” p. 639. “There is, therefore, a total want or privation of original righteousness, or of the image of God created in Paradise; and hence there is the impotence, ineptitude and stupidity which render man totally unfit for all Divine or spiritual things. Instead of the image of God thus lost in man there is now an inmost, most vile, most profound, inscrutable and inexpressible corruption of his whole nature, and of all his powers, particularly of the higher and principal faculties of his soul, in the mind, understanding, heart and will.” p. 640.
* This number is in quotation marks in Orig. Ed, being a quotation from the Augsburg Confession.
** haec non sunt analoga Sacrorum verborum, reading sanorum for Sacrorum, as in FORMULA CONCORDIAE.
It has been believed by many that Adam and Eve mentioned in the Book of Genesis do not mean the first of the human race that were created. In support of this opinion they have adduced arguments concerning the pre-Adamites from chronological computations found among certain nations, and also from the saying of Cain, Adam’s first-born, to Jehovah:
“I shall be a fugitive and a vagabond in the earth; and it shall come to pass, that every one that findeth me shall slay me…. And Jehovah set a mark upon Cain, lest any finding him should kill him.” Gen. iv. 14, 15.
And Cain “went out from the presence of JEHOVAH, and dwelt in the land of Nod … and he builded a city,” verses 16, 17.
From this they have concluded that the earth was inhabited before the time of Adam. That by Adam and his wife, however, is meant the Most Ancient Church on this earth has been fully demonstrated in the Arcana Caelestia published by me in London. In that book it is also shown that the Garden of Eden means the wisdom of the men of that Church, that the tree of life means the Lord in man and man in the Lord, that the tree of the knowledge of good and evil means man not in the Lord but in his own proprium, as when he believes that he does all things, even what is good, from himself, and that the eating of this tree means the appropriation of evil.
“With thy wisdom and with thine understanding thou hast gotten thee riches…. Thou hast been in Eden the garden of God”
and also from these words:
“Full of wisdom. . . Thou hast been in Eden the garden of God; every precious stone was thy covering.” Ezek. xxviii. 4, 12, 13.
This is spoken of the prince and king of Tyre of whom wisdom is predicated, because Tyre in the Word signifies the Church as to the knowledge of good and truth by which wisdom is attained. The precious stones which were his covering also signify the knowledge of truth and good, for the prince and king of Tyre were not in the Garden of Eden.
[2] Elsewhere in Ezekiel it is said:
“Asshur (A.V., the Assyrian) was a cedar in Lebanon…. The cedars in the garden of God could not hide him … nor any tree in the garden of God was like unto him in his beauty … all the trees of Eden, that were in the garden of God, envied him.” Ezek. xxxi. 3, 8, 9;
and further:
“To whom art thou thus like in glory and in greatness among the trees of Eden?” verse 18.
This is said of Asshur, because Asshur in the Word signifies rationality and consequent intelligence. [3] In Isaiah it is written:
“JEHOVAH shall comfort Zion…. He will make her wilderness like Eden, and her desert like the garden of JEHOVAH.” Isa. ii. 3.
Zion in this passage is the Church, and Eden and the garden of Jehovah are wisdom and intelligence. In the Revelation it is written:
“To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God.” Rev. ii. 7.
“In the midst of the street of it, and on either side of the river, was there the tree of life.” xxii. 2.
[4] From these passages it is quite clear that the Garden of Eden, in which Adam is said to have been placed, means intelligence and wisdom, because similar things are said of Tyre, Asshur and Zion. A garden also signifies intelligence in other parts of the Word,
as in Isa. lviii. 11; lxi. 11; Jer. xxxi. 12; Amos ix. 14; Numb. xxiv. 6.
This spiritual meaning of garden derives its cause from representations in the spiritual world, for there gardens appear where angels are in intelligence and wisdom. The intelligence and wisdom which they receive from the Lord cause such things to appear round about them; and this takes place from correspondence, for all things which exist in the spiritual world are correspondences.
“All the trees of the field shall know that I, JEHOVAH, bring down the high tree, exalt the low tree, dry up the green tree, and make the dry tree to flourish.” Ezek. xvii. 24.
Blessed is he whose delight is in the law. “He shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season.” Ps. i. 2, 3; Jer. xvii. 8.
“Praise JEHOVAH, ye fruitful trees.” Ps. cxlviii. 9;
“The trees of JEHOVAH are full of sap.” Ps. civ. 16;
“The axe is laid unto the root of the tree: every tree which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down. Matt. iii. 10;
“Either make the tree good, and his fruit good; or else make the tree corrupt … for the tree is known by his fruit.” Matt. xii. 33; Luke vi. 43, 44.
“I will kindle a fire in thee, and it shall devour every green tree in thee, and every dry tree.” Ezek. xx. 47).
Since a tree signifies man, it was made a statute,
that the fruit of a tree serviceable for food in the land of Canaan should be accounted uncircumcised, Levit. xix. 23, 24.
As the olive-tree signifies a man of the celestial Church, it is, therefore, said
of the two witnesses who prophesied, that they were two olive-trees standing before the Lord of the whole earth, Rev. xi. 4; also Zech. iv. 3, 11, 12.
In David also it is written:
“I am like a green olive-tree in the house of God.” Ps. iii. 8;
and in Jeremiah:
“JEHOVAH called thy name, A green olive-tree, fair, and of goodly fruit.” Jer. xi. 16.
There are many other passages which are not quoted because of their great number.
My friend, God did not do this, because by so doing He would have taken away man’s free will; and it is by virtue of free will that man is man, and not a beast. When this is realized it is clearly evident that by those two trees, the one of life and the other of death, is represented man’s free will in spiritual things. Moreover, hereditary evil does not arise from this act, but is derived from parents, by whom the inclination to the evil which they practiced is transmitted to children. That this is the case may be clearly seen by any one who attentively observes the manners, dispositions and countenances of children, indeed of whole families descended from a common ancestor. Nevertheless, it depends on each one in a family whether he will yield to or resist the hereditary inclination, for every one is left to his own free will. However, what in particular the tree of life signifies, and what the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, have been fully explained in Narrative No. 48, to which the reader is referred.
It is generally believed that life is in a man and is his own, and consequently that he is not only a form receptive of life, but actually is life. This general belief arises from the appearance, for he lives, that is, he feels, thinks, speaks and acts altogether as of himself. This proposition, then, that man is a form receptive of life, and not life itself, cannot but seem to be like something hitherto unheard of, or like a paradox, opposed to sensual thought, because contrary to the appearance. The cause of this fallacious belief that man actually is life, and consequently that life is inherent in him from creation and is afterwards propagated by descent, I have indicated as due to appearance. The cause, however, of this fallacy derived from appearance is that most men at this day are natural, and few are spiritual. The natural man judges from appearances, and the fallacies thence derived are diametrically opposed to this truth, that man is merely a form receptive of life and not life itself.
[2] That man is not life, but a form receptive of life from God, is evident from these plain proofs, that all created things are in themselves finite, and that man, because he is finite, could not have been created except from finite things. It is, therefore, said in the Book of Genesis, that Adam was made from the earth and its dust, from which also he was named, for Adam signifies the soil of the earth; and every man physically consists only of such things as are in the earth and from the earth in the atmospheres. What is in the atmospheres from the earth he absorbs through his lungs and the pores of his whole body, and the grosser things through his food, which is composed of earthly materials.
[3] The spirit of man is also created from finite things; for what is his spirit but a receptacle of the life of the mind? The finite things of which it is composed are spiritual substances which are in the spiritual world. These are also brought into our world where they remain stored up as latent factors. If these were not present together with the material elements it would be impossible for any seed to be interiorly impregnated and then to grow up in a wonderful manner without deviation from the initial shoot to the fruit and new seed; nor would any creeping thing breed from the effluvia of the earth and vegetable exhalations with which the atmospheres are impregnated. [4] Who can rationally suppose that the Infinite can create anything but what is finite? and that man, because he is finite, is anything but a form which the Infinite is able to vivify from the life which is in itself? This is what is meant by these words:
“JEHOVAH God formed man, dust of the earth, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of lives (A.V., life).” Gen. ii. 7.
God, because He is infinite, is Life in Himself. This life He cannot create and so transfer to man, for that would be to make him God.
[5] That this actually happened was an insane idea of the serpent or devil, and by him was instilled into Eve and Adam; for the serpent said:
“In the day ye eat” of the fruit of this tree, “Your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as God (A.V., gods).” Gen. iii. 5.
This dreadful persuasion that God transfused and transferred Himself into men was entertained, as I have heard from their own lips, by the men of the Most Ancient Church at its end, when it reached its consummation. So they, on account of this horrible belief that thus they were gods, lie hidden deep down in a cavern which no one can approach without being struck down in a faint. It was made known in the preceding article that by Adam and his wife is understood and described the Most Ancient Church.
* Receptaculum vitae. Recipient does not appear to be a satisfactory translation. It may imply an active agent, whereas receptaculum denotes a passive agent.
These things are stated by way of illustrating what would happen to man if spiritual light which in its essence is wisdom, and spiritual heat which in its essence is love, did not flow into him and were not received by him. The whole man is nothing but an organized form adapted to receive heat and light both from the natural world and the spiritual, for the heat and light of both worlds correspond to each other. If it were denied that man is a form receptive of love and wisdom from God, the fact of influx would also be denied; and thus it would be denied that all good is from God. Conjunction with God would also be denied; and consequently to say that man can be an abode and temple of God would be but an empty phrase.
“The Word was with God, and the Word was God. . . In Him was life; and the life was the life of men,” John i. 1, 4;
again,
“As the Father hath life in Himself, so hath He given to the Son to have life in Himself,” v. 26;
again,
“I am the Way, and the truth, and the life,” xiv. 8;
and again,
“He that followeth me … shall have the light of life,” viii. 12.
In order to know what free will is, and what is its nature, we must know whence it comes; for a knowledge of its origin especially leads one to know not only what it is but also what is its nature. Its origin is from the spiritual world, where man’s mind is kept by the Lord. A man’s mind is his spirit, which lives after death, and is in continual association with similar spirits in the spiritual world; while by means of the material body with which it is clothed, his spirit is in association with men in the natural world.
A man does not know that he is in the midst of spirits as to his mind, because those spirits with whom he is associated in the spiritual world think and speak spiritually; but man’s spirit, as long as he is in the material body, does so naturally. Moreover, spiritual thought and speech cannot be understood or perceived by the natural man, nor can spirits understand his; and for the same reason they cannot see one another. When, however, man’s spirit is in association with spirits in their world, he there also enjoys spiritual thought and speech with them, for his mind is interiorly spiritual, though exteriorly natural. He, therefore, communicates with spirits by his interiors, but with men by his exteriors. It is by virtue of this communication that a man perceives things and thinks about them analytically. If this were not open to man his thoughts would be limited to those of the beasts, and if all intercourse with spirits were cut off from him he would instantly perish.
[2] Something will now be said to enable one to comprehend how a man can be kept midway between heaven and hell and maintained in spiritual equilibrium, from which he has free will. The spiritual world consists of heaven and hell; heaven is overhead and hell there is underfoot, not in the centre of the globe which men inhabit, but under the countries in the spiritual world. These are spiritual in origin, and consequently are not extended in space, but only have the appearance of being so extended. [3] Between heaven and hell is a great intervening region, which to those who are there seems like a complete world. Into this is emitted from hell evil in all abundance; and on the other hand in like manner there flows in good from heaven. It was this region of which Abraham spoke to the rich man in hell:
“Between us and you there is a great gulf fixed: so that they which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us.” Luke xvi. 26.
Every man as to his spirit is in the midst of this region, solely in order that he may possess free will. [4] Because this region is so vast, and appears to those who are there like a great globe, it is called the world of spirits. It is full of spirits, for every man after death first enters it, and there undergoes preparation for heaven or hell, living among spirits as formerly he had lived in this world. There is no Purgatory in the world of spirits: Purgatory is a fiction invented by the Roman Catholics; but that world has been particularly treated of in Heaven and Hell, published at London in the year 1758, Nos. 421-535.
A man is kept in this intervening or middle region between heaven and hell not as to his body, but as to his spirit; and as his spirit changes its state, by drawing near to good or evil, it is transferred to a place or situation in one or other of the quarters, and enters the company of those who dwell there. It should be known, however, that the Lord does not transfer the man to this place or that, but the man himself effects the change. If he chooses good, then he, together with the Lord, or rather the Lord together with him, transfers his spirit towards the east; but if he chooses evil, then he, together with the devil, or rather the devil together with him, transfers his spirit towards the west. It is to be observed that when heaven is here mentioned, the Lord also is meant, because the Lord is the All in all of heaven; and when the devil is mentioned, hell is meant because all those who are there are devils.
* Michael, the archangel.
[2] Spiritual equilibrium, or free will, may also be compared to a balance containing in each of its scales an equal weight. If a small addition is then made to the scale on one side, the pointer of the balance moves to that side above it; and it is the same with a lever, or with a great beam balanced on a fulcrum. A similar equilibrium prevails in every part of the human body, as in the heart, the lungs, the stomach, the liver, the pancreas, the spleen, the intestines, and the rest of the organs; and consequently each is enabled to perform its functions in undisturbed peace. So with all the muscles of the body, without whose equilibrium all action and reaction would cease, and a man would no longer act as a man. As all the parts of the body are thus in such equilibrium, so also are all the parts of the brain, and consequently all parts of the mind within it, which relate to the will and the understanding.
[3] Beasts, birds, fishes and insects are also in a state of freedom; but these are carried along by the senses of the body, at the prompting of appetite and pleasure. Nor would man be at all unlike them if his freedom of action were as uncontrolled as his freedom of thought; for he also would be carried along by the bodily senses only, at the prompting of appetite and pleasure. It is otherwise, however, if he receives the spiritual things of the Church and orders his free will by them. He is led away by the Lord from lusts and evil pleasures, and the innate desire for them; and he acquires an affection for good and a hatred of evil. He is then transferred by the Lord nearer to the east and at the same time towards the south in the spiritual world, and is introduced into a state of heavenly freedom, which is freedom indeed.
That man has free will in spiritual things shall first be confirmed from considerations affecting men in general, and then from considerations affecting men individually, which every one will acknowledge as soon as he hears them. The general considerations are: 1, Adam the wisest of men, and his wife suffered themselves to be seduced by the serpent. 2, Their first-horn son, Cain, slew his brother Abel, and in both cases Jehovah God did not divert them from their evil course by speaking with them, but only by cursing them after the deeds. 3, The Israelitish nation in the desert worshiped a golden calf, while Jehovah, looking on from Mount Sinai, took no measures to prevent them. 4, David numbered the people, and a plague was, therefore, sent amongst them of which so many thousands perished; and God, not before but after the deed, sent the prophet Gad to him, and declared the penalty. 5, Solomon was permitted to establish idolatrous worship. 6, Many kings after him were permitted to profane the Temple and the holy things of the Church. 7, That nation was at length permitted to crucify the Lord; and Mohammed* was permitted to establish a religious system in many respects not in conformity with the Sacred Scripture. 8, The Christian religion is divided into many sects, and each of these is riven by heresies. 9, There are so many impious people in the Christian world and so much glorying in impiety; and also plots and stratagems contrived against the pious, the just and the upright. 10, Injustice prevails over justice in the law courts and in business. 11, The impious also are exalted to honors and become great men and leaders. 12, Wars are permitted, in which there is so much slaughter of men and ravaging of cities, nations and families; and so on. Is it possible to account for such things except from the fact that every man has free will? The permission of evil, which is recognized throughout the whole world, has no other origin. The laws of permission are laws of the Divine Providence, as may be seen in the work on Divine Providence printed at Amsterdam in the year 1764, Nos. 234-274, where an explanation will be found of the instances mentioned above.
* Mohammad, the founder of Mohammedanism or Islam, A.D. 571-632, was born at Mecca, where his father was spiritual and temporal head. He married a wealthy and devout widow, and owed much to her influence. In the visions to which he was subject he received confirmations of his Divine mission. He also received messages from Gabriel which were incorporated in the KORAN, the sacred book of Mohammedanism. Early persecution drove him from Mecca and in the year A.D. 622 he fled to Medina, where he was cordially welcomed. This flight, or Hejira, marks the beginning of the Mohammedan year, and from Medina he set out on his conquest of Arabia. Mohammedanism proclaims the unity of the God-head, and condemns idolatry; but the peaceful methods of propaganda soon gave place to ruthless persecution of infidels and merciless extermination of idolators.
That the power to understand and to will truth is given to every man, as well as to the devils, and that this power is never taken away, has been proved to me by actual experience. One of those in hell was once brought up into the world of spirits; and there he was asked by some angels from heaven whether he could understand the things, being spiritual Divine things, about which they were conversing. He replied that he did understand them; and on being asked why he did not accept such things, he said that he did not love them, and consequently did not will them. When he was told that he could will them, he was surprised and declared that this was impossible. Thereupon the angels inspired his understanding with the glory of fame and its accompanying delights; and when he felt this he even willed those things as well as loved them. Presently, however, he was sent back into his former state, in which he was a robber, an adulterer and a slanderer of the neighbor; and then because he no longer willed spiritual Divine things neither did he understand them. From this, it is evident that a man is a man by virtue of his free will in spiritual things, and that without it he would be a stock or a stone, or like the pillar of salt into which Lot’s wife was turned.
[2] Man’s free will in spiritual things is like air in the lungs, which is inhaled, retained and sent out according to all the changes of his thought; and without it one would be in a far worse condition than a person suffering from nightmare, angina or asthma. It is like the blood in the heart; if it were deficient, the heart would first palpitate, and after convulsive action would cease to beat. It may also be compared to a body in motion, which continues to move as long as the effort lasts; both motion and effort cease at the same time. This is exactly the case with the freedom of man’s will. Both taken together, that is freedom and will, may be called in man a living effort; for on the cessation of will, action ceases, and on the cessation of freedom, will ceases.
[3] If spiritual freedom were taken away from man it would be as if the wheels were removed from machines, or the arms that catch the wind from windmills, or the sails from ships; in fact, it would be with man as when he yields up the spirit at the moment of death; for the life of man’s spirit consists in his free will in spiritual things. The angels lament when it is but mentioned that this free will is denied at this day by many ministers of the Church, and they call its denial the height of madness.
It is well known throughout the Christian world that the Word, in a wide sense, is the law, or book of laws according to which man must live that he may obtain eternal life. In the Word it is very frequently stated that a man should do good and not evil; and that he should believe in God and not in idols. It is also full of injunctions and exhortations to do these things, with blessings and promises of rewards for those who comply, and with curses and threats for those who do not. What would be the use of all this if man had no free will in spiritual things, that is, in such things as concern salvation and eternal life? It would be vain, and would serve no useful purpose. Moreover, if he were to persist in the idea that he had no power and no liberty in spiritual things, thus having no will power at all in these matters, the Sacred Scripture would appear to him only as so much blank paper without a syllable of writing, or as paper upon which a whole ink-pot has been spilled, or as so many tittles or jots without the letters, and thus as a meaningless volume.
[2] It would not, indeed, be necessary to confirm this from the Word; but the Churches at this day have reached a state of mental vacuity in spiritual matters; and to justify their baseless speculations they quote certain passages from the Word to which they give a false interpretation. It is well, therefore, to adduce some passages which insist on man’s doing and believing, such as the following:
“The kingdom of God shall be taken from you, and given to a nation bringing forth the fruits thereof.” Matt. xxi. 43.
Bring forth, therefore, fruits worthy of repentance…. And now also the axe is laid unto the root of the tree: every tree therefore which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.” Luke iii. 8, 9.
Jesus said,
“Why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say? Whosoever cometh to me, and heareth my sayings, and doeth them … is like unto a man which built an house … on a rock…. But he that heareth, and doeth not, is like a man that without a foundation built an house upon the earth.” Luke vi. 48-49.
Jesus said,
“My mother and my brethren are these, which hear the Word of God, and do it.” Luke viii. 21.
“We know that God heareth not sinners: but if any man be a worshiper of God, and doeth His will, him He heareth.” John ix. 31.
“If ye know these things, happy are ye if ye do them.” John xiii. 17.
“He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me … and I will love him.” John xiv. [21].
“Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit.” John xv. 8.
“Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you …. I have chosen you…that ye should bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain.” John xv. 14, 18.
“Make the tree good … for the tree is known by his fruit.” Matt. xii. 33.
“Bring forth, therefore, fruits meet for repentance.” Matt. iii. 8.
“He that receiveth seed into the good ground is he that heareth the Word … which also beareth fruit.” Matt. xiii. 23.
“He that reapeth receiveth wages, and gathereth fruit unto life eternal.” John iv. 36.
“Wash you, make you clean; put away the evil of your doings…. Learn to do well.” Isa. i. 16, 17.
“The Son of Man shall come in the glory of His Father … and then He shall reward every man according to his works.” Matt. xvi. 27.
“And shall come forth, they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life.” John v. 29.
“Their works do follow them.” Rev. [xiv. 13].
“Behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be.” Rev. xxii. 12.
“JEHOVAH … whose eyes were opened “to give every one according to his ways”; “according to our doings, so hath He dealt with us.” Jer. xxxii. 19; Zech. i. 6.
[3] The Lord teaches the same thing in His parables, many of which imply that those who do good are accepted, and that those who do evil are rejected:
As in the parable concerning the laborers in the vineyard, Matt. xxi. 33-34; and concerning the talents and the pounds to trade with. Matt. xxv. 14-30; Luke xix. 13-25.
Similarly respecting faith, Jesus said:
“Whosoever believeth in me shall never die.” “Yet shall he live.” John xi. 25, 26.
“This is the will,” of the Father, “that every one which …. believeth on” the Son “may have everlasting life.” John vi. 40.
“He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him.” John iii. 36.
“God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” John iii. 15, 16.
And further:
“Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind … and thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. On these two commandments hang … the Law and the Prophets. Matt. xxii. 37-40.
But these are only a very few of such passages from the Word, and are like some cups of water taken from the ocean.
But, my friend, shun evil and do good, and believe on the Lord with your whole heart and your whole soul. The Lord will then love you, and bestow upon you the love to do and the faith to believe. If you persevere in this course, reciprocal and perpetual conjunction will then be effected between you and the Lord; and this is salvation itself and eternal life. If a man, from the strength given him, were not to do good, and from his own intellect were to believe on the Lord, he would be but a desert waste, and like parched ground which does not absorb rain but throws it off; or like a sandy plain where there are sheep, but no pasture for them; or like a fountain whose spring has dried up; or like water rendered stagnant by the blocking of its channel; or like a homestead where there is neither crop nor water, from which a man must instantly depart and seek a habitable abode elsewhere, or perish of hunger and thirst.
* Form of Concord, Formula Concordiae, designed to effect an amicable adjustment of the differences among the Lutherans, by drawing them more closely to their principal standard, the Augsburg or Augustan Confession. Most of the Lutheran Churches add this Formula to their standard creeds.
Without free will in spiritual things a man would have neither charity nor faith, much less these two in conjunction, as was fully shown in the Chapter on Faith. From this it follows that without free will in spiritual things man would have nothing by which the Lord might effect conjunction with him; and yet without reciprocal conjunction there could be no reformation and regeneration, and consequently no salvation. It is undeniable that, without the reciprocal
conjunction of man with God and God with man, there would be no imputation. The consequences that result from the conviction that there is no imputation of good and evil* without free will in spiritual things are many. Their dreadful nature will be explained in the last part of this work,** where there are discussed the heresies, paradoxes and contradictions which flow from the faith prevailing at this day, imputing the merits and righteousness of the Lord God the Savior to man.
* “there would be no imputation [of good and evil],” non foret aliqua Imputatio. Unless it is definitely stated it is not always clear, even from the context, which is meant, Imputation of good and evil, or, Imputation of the merit and righteousness of the Lord. In cases of ambiguity the necessary qualifying words are added.
** This would have formed a section of the CORONIS or Appendix to this work, part of which has been lost.
[2] It is, therefore, plain that the doctrine of the present Church on predestination has sprung from that faith, like a shoot from its seed; and I may add, as a logical consequence. It first arose among the Predestinarians; then it was taken up by Gottschalk,* and afterwards by Calvin** and his followers. Finally it was firmly established by the Synod of Dort,*** and thence, as the palladium**** of religion, or rather as the head of the Gorgon Medusa, engraven on the shield of Pallas, it was carried into their Church by the Supralapsarians***** and the Infralapasrians.
[3] But what more pernicious doctrine could have been devised, or what more cruel notion concerning God could have been conceived than that some of the human race were predestined to damnation? For it would be a cruel faith, that the Lord, who is Love itself and Mercy itself, wills that a multitude of men should be born for hell, or that countless thousands should be born accursed, that is, should be born devils and satans; and that from His own infinite Divine Wisdom He did not provide, and does not still provide, that those who live well and acknowledge God should not be cast into the fire of everlasting torment. Yet the Lord is the Creator and Savior of all, and He alone leads all, and wills the death of no one. What then, can be believed or conceived more dreadful than that multitudes of nations and peoples should under His direction and oversight be delivered up by predestination to the devil as prey to glut his voracious appetite? This, however, is the offspring of the faith of the present Church; but the faith of the New Church abhors it as monstrous.
* Gottschalk, A.D. 805-868, a German monk who adopted the views of Augustine, which later took shape as Calvinism. The chief feature of this teaching is the doctrine of Predestination, based upon the belief that man is incapable of himself to will anything good, but is entirely under grace. Gottschalk was found guilty of heresy by the Council of Mainz, A.D. 848, and later condemned to imprisonment for life.
** Calvin, John, A.D. 1509-1564, was called by Melanchthon “The theologian of the sixteenth century.” He studied law as well as theology, became a Protestant and induced the authorities of Geneva to renounce Popery. The friend of John Knox, he exercised a powerful influence on Scottish Protestantism. His views may be summarized thus: particular election; particular redemption; moral inability in a fallen state; free grace; and ultimate salvation for the elect, notwithstanding many failings and aberrations on the part of the believer. In its leading features his theology is that of Augustine.
*** Dortdrecht or Dort, Synod of. This was held in 1618-19 to settle the disputes between the Arminians or “Remonstrants” who called in question the theory of Predestination, and the Calvinists. The Synod condemned the tenets of the Arminians.
**** Palladium, statue of Pellas, on the preservation of which the safety of Troy depended; temple of Pallas; meton. central or essential feature.
***** Supralapsarian, one who maintains that the decree of election as regards eternal salvation of some and the eternal reprobation of others was a part of the original plan; and that the fall of Adam was predestinated from all eternity. (Supra, beyond, and lapsus, the fall.)
When I saw them standing near me I said: “Is it possible for any one of sound reason to reach a conclusion in favor of predestination? Must not that doctrine give rise to cruel ideas concerning God and to the most shocking opinions concerning religion? Must not a man, who has engraved the belief in predestination on his heart by confirmations in its favor, regard all things of the Church and the Word itself as vain? Must he not think of God as a tyrant because He has predestined so many myriads of men to hell?” [2] At these words they gave me a satanic look and said: “We were delegates at the Synod of Dort, during which, and still more so afterwards, we confirmed our belief in many matters concerning God, the Word and religion which we have not ventured to make public; but in our conversation and teaching on the decisions of the Synod we wove and twisted a web of threads of various colors, which we covered over with feathers borrowed from the wings of peacocks.” As they were now preparing to do the same again, the angels, by a power given them by the Lord, closed up the externals of their mind and opened their internals, from which they now had to speak.
Then they continued: “Our faith, which we have formed from conclusions supporting one another in logical sequence, was and still is the following: [3] 1. There is no such thing as the Word of Jehovah God, but only some windy declaration from the mouth of the prophets. This is our opinion, because the Word predestines all to heaven, and teaches that man alone is at fault if he does not walk in the ways that lead thither. 2. There is such a thing as religion, because it is expedient that there should be; but it is only like a gale bringing a fragrant odor for the common people. It ought, therefore, to be taught by ministers of humble as well as of exalted rank and enforced from the Word, because the Word is commonly accepted. This is our opinion, because where predestination prevails, religion is of no account. 3. The laws of civil justice constitute religion; but predestination does not depend on a life in accordance with those laws, but merely upon the good pleasure of God, as a sovereign of absolute power acting merely from caprice. 4. All the doctrines taught by the Church ought to be exploded as empty vaporings and rejected as worthless, except this, that there is a God. 5. Spiritual things, which are made so much of, are ethereal matters just bordering upon the sun; and if they deeply penetrate into a man, they affect him with a dizzy stupor, and make him a detestable monster in God’s sight.” 6. I then asked them whether they believed that the faith from which they deduced the doctrine of predestination was spiritual. They replied: “Predestination takes place according to that faith; but when faith is given, the man is like a stock, and though he is afterwards quickened, the life he thus receives is not spiritual.”
[4] After having uttered these horrid opinions they desired to depart, but I said to them: “Stay a little longer, and I will read to you from Isaiah.” I accordingly read as follows:
“Rejoice not thou, whole Philistia (A.V., Palestina), because the rod of him that smote thee is broken: for out of the serpent’s root has come (A.V., shall come) forth a cockatrice, and his fruit shall be a fiery flying serpent. Isa. xiv. 29.
I explained this passage according to its spiritual sense, showing that Philistia means the Church separate from charity; the cockatrice which came forth out of the serpent’s root means the Church’s doctrine concerning three Gods and a faith that imputes, applied to every one individually; and his fruit, which is a fiery flying serpent, means that there is no imputation of good and evil, but only immediate mercy, whether a man has lived well or ill.
[5] On hearing this explanation they said: “This may be so; but from that Book which you call the Holy Word, read us something about predestination.” I opened it and found in the same prophet this appropriate passage:
“They hatch cockatrice’ eggs, and weave the spider’s web: he that eateth of their eggs dieth, and that which is crushed breaketh out into a viper.” Isa. lix. 5.
When they heard these words they could not endure to have them explained; but some of those who had been summoned-there were five of them-rushed into a cave, which appeared lit up all round with a dusky glow, a sign that they had neither faith nor charity.
It is, therefore, evident that this synodical decree concerning predestination is not only an insane but also a cruel heresy. It should be rooted out from the mind so that not even a trace of it remains.
* Dortdrecht or Dort, Synod of. This was held in 1618-19 to settle the disputes between the Arminians or “Remonstrants” who called in question the theory of Predestination, and the Calvinists. The Synod condemned the tenets of the Arminians.
From the faith which now prevails, and which was first put forth by the Council of Nice,* it follows that God is the cause of evil. That Council devised and drew up the heresy still extant that three Divine Persons have existed from eternity, each of whom by Himself is God. After this doctrine was presented to the world like a viper hatched from the egg, its adherents could not but approach each Person separately as God. They formulated a faith that imputes the merit or righteousness of the Lord God the Savior; and to prevent any one from sharing merit with the Lord they deprived man of all free will in spiritual things, setting up the theory of man’s utter impotence in the matter of that faith. Moreover, as they deduced from that faith alone all that was spiritual in the Church, they maintained that there was a similar impotence in everything that the Church teaches concerning salvation. Hence have sprung up dreadful heresies, one after another, based on that faith and on man’s impotence in spiritual matters; especially that most pernicious one concerning predestination, discussed in the previous article. All these heresies imply that God is the cause of evil, or that He created both good and evil.
But, my friend, do not put your faith in any council, but in the Word of God, which is above all councils. What have not the Roman Catholic councils put forth, and that Council of Dort,** from which was brought forth that horrid viper, predestination? It may possibly be supposed that the free will granted to man in spiritual things was the mediate cause of evil; and consequently, if it had not been given, he could not have transgressed. But, my friend, pause here and consider whether any man could have been created without free will in spiritual things, and yet be a man. If he were deprived of that, he would no longer be a man, but only a statue. For what is free will but man’s power to will and to act, to think and to speak to all appearance as from himself? As this was given him that he might live as a man, two trees were placed in the Garden of Eden, the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil; and this signifies that man, from the freedom given him, could eat of the fruit of the tree of life, and of the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
* Nice (Nicaea), city of Asia Minor, in Bithynia. In A.D. 325 it was the seat of a Council summoned to settle the Arian controversy. The creed there adopted is known as the Nicene Creed.
** Dortdrecht or Dort, Synod of. This was held in 1618-19 to settle the disputes between the Arminians or “Remonstrants” who called in question the theory of Predestination, and the Calvinists. The Synod condemned the tenets of the Arminians.
Evil, then, was not created by God, but was introduced by man; for man turns into evil the good which continually flows in from God, by turning away from God towards himself. When this happens, the delight of good remains, but is now changed into the delight of evil; for unless a delight apparently similar to the former remained with him, the man would cease to live, since delight constitutes the life of his love. These two delights are, nevertheless, diametrically opposed to each other, although man is not aware of this as long as he lives in the world. After death, however, he will enter into the knowledge and clear perception of it; for then the delight of the love of good is changed into heavenly blessedness, and the delight of the love of evil into infernal horror. From what has been said it is evident that every man is predestined to heaven, and none to hell but man consigns himself to hell by the abuse of his free will in spiritual things, whereby he delights in what emanates from hell. For, as was stated above, every man is held midway between heaven and hell, in order that he may be in equilibrium between good and evil, and hence enjoy free will in spiritual things.
This is what is meant by something analogous to free will, since the plants freely absorb these things through little mouths, pores, and channels, which stand open when the weather is warm. The earth merely offers to them its moisture and elemental substances, and the plants appropriate these in accordance with something answering to hunger and thirst. In like manner the Lord enters by influx into every man with spiritual heat and light, which are in essence the good of love and the truth of wisdom; but man receives them according to the direction in which he turns either towards God or towards himself. Therefore the Lord says in His teaching concerning love towards the neighbor:
“That ye may be the children of your Father … for He maketh His sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust.” Matt. v. 45;
and in another place:
That He willeth the salvation of all.
To the above I will here add the following experience. I have several times heard expressions from heaven concerning the good of charity. These passed through the world of spirits and penetrated to the depths of hell. In their progress they were changed into such as were entirely opposed to the good of charity, and at length into such as breathed hatred against the neighbor. This is proof that whatever proceeds from the Lord is good, and that it is turned into evil by spirits in hell. The same was done with some truths of faith, which in their progress were changed into the opposite falsities; for the recipient form turns whatever enters into it into something in agreement with itself.
Those things remain with a man which he receives in the excise of freedom, because freedom is of the will and therefore also of his love; for it has been shown elsewhere that the will is the receptacle of love. Every one knows that whatever is of the love, and thus also of the will, is free, as is evident from the common saying: “I will this, because I love it,” and the converse, “Because I will this, I also love it.”
Man’s will, however, is twofold, interior and exterior, or the will of the internal and the will of the external man. It is, therefore, possible for a knave to act and speak in one way before the world, and in another in the company of his intimate friends. Before the world he acts and speaks from the will of his external man, and in the company of his friends from the will of his internal man; and by the will of the internal man is meant the seat of his ruling love. From these few observations it is evident that the interior will is the man himself, for there is the being (esse) and the essence of his life, while the understanding is its form, by means of which the will renders its love manifest. Everything that a man loves, and wills from love, is free; for whatever proceeds from the love of the internal will is the delight of his life; and because the internal will is the being of his life, it is also his proprium. It is for this reason that whatever is received in the exercise of the freedom of this will remains with the man, for it becomes part of his proprium. On the other hand, if anything is introduced when a man is not in a state of freedom, it is not so retained; but this will be treated in what follows.
“I am the living bread which came down from heaven. If any man eat of this bread, he shall live for ever.” John vi. 51.
In that region also resides a man’s love, which constitutes his blessedness after death. There also especially resides his free will in spiritual things, from which descends all the freedom that he enjoys in natural things. Free will in spiritual things, being the source of all this freedom, is thus imparted to all forms of free will in natural things; and by means of these the love ruling in the highest regions assumes whatever is conducive to its purposes. The communication between spiritual and natural freedom is like the channel between the fountain and the waters that are fed from it, and like that between the prolific principle in the seed and every single part of the tree, particularly the fruit, in which it is reproduced. If, however, anyone denies and rejects free will in spiritual things, he forms for himself another fountain and opens up a channel to it, and changes spiritual freedom into freedom that is merely natural, and at length into that which is infernal. This latter freedom also is like the prolific principle of a seed, which passes freely through the trunk and branches of the tree into the fruit, which from its source is inwardly rotten.
“I will freely sacrifice” unto God. Ps. liv. 6.
“The willing among the people are gathered together, even the people of the God of Abraham.” Ps. xlvii. 9.
Hence among the Children of Israel there were free-will sacrifices; and their sacred worship consisted principally in sacrifices. Because God is well pleased with what is voluntary it was enjoined:
That every man whose heart stirred him and every one whose willing spirit moved him, should bring the Lord’s offering for the work of the tabernacle. Exod. xxxv. 5, 21, 29;
and the Lord says:
“If ye continue in my Word, then are ye my disciples indeed; And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free…. If the Son, therefore, shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed. Whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin.” John viii. 31-36.
[3] The freedom arising from love may be illustrated by the freedom induced by heat, because love produces heat, as is evident from its effects. Thus a man burns, grows warm and is inflamed as his love is exalted to zeal or turned into the flaming fire of anger. This is the source of the heat of the blood or vital heat of men, and in general, of animals. It is from this correspondence that the bodily organs are, by means of heat, adapted to receive freely those things for which their love yearns. All the internal parts of the human body are in the same kind of equilibrium and consequent freedom. In this state of freedom the heart drives the blood equally upwards and downwards, the mesentery gives forth its chyle, and the liver, the kidneys and the glands perform their several functions of separating, secreting and purifying the blood, and so on. If the equilibrium were impaired the organ would become disordered, and suffer paralysis or ataxy. Equilibrium and freedom are in this case one; and there is no substance in the created universe which does not tend to equilibrium that it may be in a state of freedom.
Every man may know that he enjoys free will in spiritual things merely by observing his own thoughts. He can, in the exercise of freedom, think of God, of the Trinity, of charity and the neighbor, of faith and its operation, and of the Word and all that is drawn from it. If he has studied theology he can reflect on the particular subjects involved in its teaching. Moreover, he can agree or disagree with that teaching, being able in fact to form his own conclusions and to teach and publish them. If man were to be deprived of this freedom for one moment, his thought would cease, his tongue would become dumb, and his hands powerless. Therefore, my friend, you may if you choose, merely from observation of your own thoughts, reject and renounce that absurd and pernicious heresy, which to-day throughout the Christian world has rendered impotent the heavenly doctrine of charity, faith, salvation and eternal life.
The following are the reasons why this free will resides in man’s will and understanding:
1 Those two faculties must first be instructed and reformed, and by means of them the two faculties of the external man by which he speaks and acts.
[2] 2 Those two faculties of the internal man constitute his spirit, which lives after death, and is subject only to the Divine law, the first principle of which requires that a man should reflect upon the law, practice it and be obedient to it as of himself, and yet from the Lord.
[3] 3 Because a man as to his spirit is midway between heaven and hell, thus between good and evil, and consequently in equilibrium, he therefore enjoys free will in spiritual things. For a description of this equilibrium see above, 445 and following numbers. So long, however, as he lives in the world, he is as to his spirit in equilibrium between heaven and the world; and he then hardly knows that as he withdraws from heaven and draws near to the world, he draws near to hell. His knowledge regarding this is of an uncertain nature, in order that even in this matter he may be in freedom and be reformed.
[4] 4 Those two faculties, the will and the understanding, are the receptacles of the Lord, the will being the receptacle of love and charity, and the understanding of wisdom and faith. The Lord operates each of these while man is in perfect freedom, in order that a mutual and reciprocal conjunction may be effected, on which salvation depends.
[5] Every judgment passed on man after death is in accordance with the use he has made of free will in spiritual things.
[2] The commission of evil in both worlds, the spiritual and the natural, is restrained by laws, otherwise society would nowhere continue to subsist. This is so evident that it requires no explanation. However this further proposition will be illustrated, namely, that without external restraints not only would society cease to subsist, but also the whole human race would perish. Man is obsessed by two loves, the love of ruling over all, and the love of possessing the wealth of all. These two loves, if restraints upon them were relaxed, surge on without limit; and they are the chief source of the hereditary evils into which man is born. This was the sin of Adam, that he wished to become as God; which evil, we read, was infused into him by the serpent. Hence in the curse pronounced against him it is said,
That the earth should bring forth for him the thorn and the thistle. Gen. iii. 5, 18;
and by these are meant all evil and its derived falsity. All who give themselves up to these loves have regard for themselves alone, in and for whose existence all others have their being. Such have no pity, no fear of God, no love of the neighbor and consequently are unmerciful, inhuman and cruel. They have an infernal covetous lust of plunder and robbery, and exercise craft and treachery in achieving their ends. The beasts of the earth have no such vices in their nature; their only desire in killing and devouring others is to satisfy their hunger and protect themselves from danger; so that an evil man dominated by these loves is more inhuman, savage and vile than any beast.
[3] That such is the inner nature of man becomes evident in seditious tumults, when the restraints of law are thrown off; and also in the slaughter and pillage which ensue when the signal is given to the victors to vent their fury on besieged townspeople who have been vanquished; scarcely one stays his hand till the order to cease is heard. It is clear, therefore that if men were not restrained by fear of punishment inflicted by law, not only society but also the whole human race would be destroyed. The only way of removing these evils is by the true use of free will in spiritual things; and this involves applying the mind to the consideration of the life after death.
[2] Unless there was something analogous to free will in the soil of the earth, in the seed sown therein, and in all parts of the tree grown from it, and in its fruit and also in its now seeds, there would be no plant of any kind. The same is true of every metal and stone, whether precious or worthless; for there would be no such thing as metal, stone or indeed grain of sand, unless each possessed something analogous to free will; for even the grain of sand freely absorbs the ether, exhales its native properties, rejects that for which it has no further use, and renews itself with fresh substances. Thus there is a magnetic sphere around the magnet, and iron, copper, silver, gold, stone, nitre and sulphur, each has its own sphere, and even every speck of dust of the earth in all its variety. From this sphere the inmost of every seed is impregnated, and its prolific principle caused to vegetate. For without this emanation from every particle of the earth’s dust there would be neither the beginning of germination nor the consequent continuance of growth. In no other way could the earth penetrate with its solid matter and moisture into the centre of the seed that is sown than by emanations from it; as into a grain of mustard seed,
“Which indeed is the least of seeds; but when it is grown, it is the greatest among herbs, and becometh a tree.” Matt. xiii. 31-32; Mark iv. 30-32.
[3] Since then all created things are endowed with freedom, each according to its nature, why should not man be endowed with free will according to his nature which is, to become spiritual? It may, therefore, be concluded that the enjoyment of free will in spiritual things has been granted to man from birth to the end of his life in this world, and afterwards to eternity.
If God had not endowed men with free will in spiritual things He could lead all men throughout the whole world, in a single day, to believe on Him; but this is a supposition which follows from the failure to understand the nature of the Divine omnipotence. Those who do not understand the Divine omnipotence may suppose either that there is no such thing as order, or that God can act contrary to order as well as according to it; whereas creation was impossible without it. The primary end of order is that man should be an image of God; consequently that he should be perfected in love and wisdom, and thus more and more become that image. This is the purpose of God’s continual operation with him; but without free will in spiritual things, by which man has the power to turn to God, and to enter into mutual conjunction with Him, it would be in vain, because impossible. For it is from and according to order that the whole world with everything belonging to it was created. For this reason God is called Order itself; so that it is the same thing whether it is said to act contrary to Divine order or contrary to God. Indeed God cannot act contrary to His own Divine order, since that would be to act contrary to Himself. He, therefore, leads all men according to order, that is, according to Himself, the wandering and the back-sliding into it, and the disobedient towards it.
If man could have been created without free will in spiritual things, what would then be more easy for omnipotent God than to lead all men throughout the whole universe to believe on the Lord? He could have conferred this faith on everyone, immediately as well as mediately; immediately by His absolute power, and by its irresistible and continual operation for man’s salvation; and mediately by exciting the pangs of conscience, by deadly bodily torments and by grievous threats of death if he refused to accept it; and also by opening hell and presenting the devils with terrifying torches in their hands, or by summoning thence the dead whom he had known, in the form of frightful spectres. To this the words of Abraham to the rich man in hell are the reply:
“If they hear not Moses and the Prophets, neither will they be persuaded though one rose from the dead.” Luke xvi. 31.
[2] The reason why miracles were wrought before the Advent of the Lord was, that the men of the Church in those days were natural, to whom the spiritual things of the internal Church could not be revealed; for if these had been revealed, they would have profaned them. All their worship, therefore, consisted in rituals, which represented and signified the internal things of the Church; and to the due observance of these they could not be brought except by miracles. Miracles, however, could not bring about an understanding of the fact that those representative rituals contained within them a spiritual internal; nor were they even sufficient to ensure the due observance of those rituals. This is evident from the conduct of the Children of Israel in the wilderness; for, although they had witnessed so many miracles wrought in Egypt, and later that greatest of all on Mount Sinai, yet when Moses was absent from them for a month, they danced round a golden calf, and cried aloud that it had brought them forth out of Egypt. Their conduct was similar in the land of Canaan, notwithstanding the wonderful miracles wrought by Elijah and Elisha, and at length the truly Divine miracles wrought by the Lord.
[3] The principal reason why miracles are not wrought at this day is, that the Church has taken away from man all free will, by teaching that he can contribute nothing at all towards receiving faith, towards conversion, and in general towards salvation, as may be seen above in No. 484. The man who believes this becomes more and more natural; and the natural man, as was said above, sees everything spiritual from an inverted point of view, and consequently turns his thought against it. The higher region of his mind, where free will in spiritual things primarily resides, would then be closed up, and spiritual things, which miracles have almost but not quite, confirmed, would occupy the lower region of the mind. This is merely natural, and falsities respecting faith, conversion and salvation would thus remain their habitation above, and angels beneath, like vultures above it. The consequence would be that satans would have their habitation above, and angels beneath, like vultures between them and rush furiously upon the spiritual things below; which they would not only deny but also blaspheme and profane. Hence the latter state of the man would be above fowls. Soon the satans would break down the barrier between them and rush furiously upon the spiritual things below; which they would not only deny but also blaspheme and profane. Hence the latter state of the man would be much worse than the first.
But, my friend, this is all idle talk. The Divine omnipotence is not without order. God Himself is Order; and since all things were created from God, they were also created from order, in order and for order. There is an order into which man was created, namely, that his happiness or his misery should depend on his free will in spiritual things. For, as was said above, without free will man could not have been created, nor could beast, bird or fish. Beasts, however, have only natural free will, whereas man has natural and at the same time spiritual free will.
* Michael, the archangel.
To the above will now be added the following Memorabilia.
The first experience. In the spiritual world I heard that a meeting was convened to deliberate on man’s free will in spiritual things. There were present learned men from every quarter who had thought much on this subject in the world where they formerly lived, and who had been present at councils and assemblies before and since that of Nice.* They met in a kind of circular temple not unlike the Pantheon** at Rome, which had formerly been consecrated to the worship of all the gods, but was afterwards, by a Papal decree, dedicated to the worship of all the holy martyrs. Near the walls of this temple were what appeared to be altars; but at each were seats on which the members of the assembly sat, leaning with their elbows on the altars as on so many tables. No president was appointed to regulate their proceedings, but each as the desire prompted him rushed into the centre of the council, and, speaking without reserve, made known his opinion. I was surprised that all the members of the assembly were full of proofs of man’s utter impotence in spiritual things; and thus they ridiculed the idea of free will in such matters.
[2] When all were assembled, a certain one suddenly stepped forth into the middle of the meeting, and in a loud voice delivered his opinion as follows: “A man has no more free will in spiritual things than Lot’s wife had, after she was turned into a pillar of salt. For if he had any more free will than that, surely he would of himself adopt the faith of our Church, which teaches that God the Father gives faith, gratuitously of His own freedom and good pleasure, to whom He will and when He will. This good pleasure and free grace God would by no means have if man from any freedom or good pleasure could claim that gift for himself. Thus our faith, which is a star shining before us day and night, would be dissipated like a falling star in the air.”
[3] After him another rushed from his seat and said: “A man has no more free will in spiritual things than a beast, yea, than a dog. For if he had, he would do good of himself, whereas all good is from God; and no one can take anything except it be given him from heaven.” After him another started from his seat, and raising his voice in the midst of the assembly, said: “Man has no more free will in spiritual things, or even in discerning them, than an owl has sight in the daytime, or than a chicken has while it is yet concealed in the egg. In such matters he is as blind as a mole; and even if he clearly discerned the things that belong to faith, salvation and eternal life, he would believe that he could regenerate and save himself. This he would even attempt to do, and thus profane his own thoughts and deeds by continually ascribing merit to himself.”
Then another rushed into the midst and delivered this opinion: “Whoever, since the fall of Adam, imagines he has the power to will and to understand anything in spiritual matters, is a raving madman; for he would then believe himself to be a little god or deity, sharing Divine power in his own right.”
[4] He was followed by another who hurried panting into the centre, carrying under his arm a book called Formula Concordiae,*** to whose orthodoxy, as he termed it, the present day Evangelicals**** swear. He opened the book and read from it the following extracts:
“Man is altogether corrupt and dead to what is good; consequently, in the nature of man since the Fall, before regeneration, there does not remain a single spark of spiritual strength, whereby he may be prepared for the grace of God, either to apprehend it when offered, or of and by himself to be capable of receiving it; or in spiritual things to understand, believe, embrace, think, will, begin, finish, act, operate, co-operate, or apply or accommodate himself to grace, or of himself contribute anything in the least respect towards conversion. And further, a man, in respect to spiritual things, such as regard the salvation of the soul, is like the pillar of salt into which Lot’s wife was changed, and like a stock or a stone without life, which has not the use of eyes, mouth, or any other senses. Yet still he enjoys the power of moving from place to place, that is, he can govern his external members, attend public worship and hear the Word and the Gospel.” (These passages occur in my Edition, pp. 656, 658, 661, 662, 663, 671, 672, 673.) Thereupon they all expressed their agreement, and with one voice called out, “This is truly orthodox.”
[5] As I stood by and heard all this with intense interest, my spirit burned within me, and in a loud voice I demanded, “If in spiritual things you make a man a pillar of salt, a beast, blind and insane, what then do you make your theology? Are not all its teachings, both in general and in particular, spiritual?” To this, after a short silence, they replied: “In our whole system of theology there is nothing spiritual which reason comprehends. The only thing that is spiritual in it is our faith; but this we have carefully closed up to prevent its being looked into; and we have taken special care that not a single spiritual ray shall proceed thence and appear to the understanding. Moreover, of his own will man contributes nothing to this faith. We have also separated charity from all things spiritual, and have made it merely moral; and we have done the same with the Decalogue. Further, we hold there is nothing spiritual in respect to justification, remission of sins, regeneration and consequent salvation, asserting that faith effects these works; but how this is done we do not know. In place of repentance we have adopted contrition, and lest it should be believed that this is of a spiritual nature, we have separated it from all connection with faith. Concerning redemption we have adopted no ideas save those that are purely natural, the chief of which are, that God the Father has included the whole race of mankind under the curse; that His Son took upon Himself that curse, and suffered Himself to be crucified, and so moved His Father to compassion; not to mention other similar doctrines, in which you will discover nothing spiritual, but only what is natural.”
[6] Then speaking with the same ardor as before, I continued: “If a man had not free will in spiritual things, what would he be but a mere animal? For it is this which raises him above the brute beasts. Without it the Church would be like the dusky face of a fuller relieved only by the white of his eyes, and the Word would be but an empty book. In all that is recorded in the Word there is nothing more frequently enjoined than that a man should love God and the neighbor, and that he should believe; and also that he shall have salvation and life according to his love and belief. Now everyone has the capacity to understand and to do these precepts contained in the Word and in the Decalogue. How could God have prescribed and enjoined upon man these commandments unless He had given him this capacity?
[7] “Tell any rustic whose mind is untainted with theological fallacies that he has no more power than a stock or a stone to understand and to will anything in matters of faith and charity, and consequently salvation, and that he cannot even apply himself to them and fit himself to receive them. Will he not laugh heartily and say, ‘What could be more absurd? In that case what have I to do with priest and preaching? What is a church to me more than a stable, or the worship of God than the handling of a plough?’ What madness to speak so! It is folly upon folly. Everyone knows that all good comes from God; but God has granted to man the power to do good of himself, and also to believe.”
On hearing this they all exclaimed: “We, whose instructors were orthodox, have delivered orthodox opinions; but you from your rustic instruction have spoken like a rustic.” Thereupon a thunderbolt suddenly crashed from the sky, and to escape destruction they rushed out in a body and fled from the place, each to his own home.
* Nice (Nicaea), city of Asia Minor, in Bithynia. In A.D. 325 it was the seat of a Council summoned to settle the Arian controversy. The creed there adopted is known as the Nicene Creed.
** Pantheon, great temple of Jupiter at Rome.
*** Form of Concord, Formula Concordiae, designed to effect an amicable adjustment of the differences among the Lutherans, by drawing them more closely to their principal standard, the Augsburg or Augustan Confession. Most of the Lutheran Churches add this Formula to their standard creeds.
**** Evangelicals, Low Church Protestants who profess evangelical principles, especially the doctrine that salvation is by faith in the Atonement.
[2] When the spirit who loved evil and falsity was engaged in thought by himself I noticed that smoke, as it were, ascended from hell and extinguished the brilliant light which was in the region above his memory, causing thick darkness there, like that of midnight. Then the smoke seemed to catch fire, and bursting into a flame, it lit up the region of his mind below the memory, and in consequence he conceived dreadful falsities from the evils of self-love. But when the other spirit who loved good and truth was left to himself, I saw as it were a gentle flame descending from heaven which lit up the region of his mind above the memory, and also the region below it, as far as the eye; and the light from that flame shone brighter and brighter as from the love of good he advanced in the perception of truth, and continued to meditate upon it. From what I observed it was evident to me that every man, the evil as well as the good, enjoys spiritual free will; but that hell sometimes extinguishes it in the wicked, while heaven exalts and kindles it in the good.
[3] I then entered into conversation with both of them, and first with him who loved evil and falsity. After some words regarding his manner of life, I mentioned free will, and speaking with some warmth he said: “What madness it is to believe that a man has free will in spiritual things! For who can acquire faith for himself and do good of himself? The clergy at this day teach from the Word that no man can receive anything except it be given him from heaven; and the Lord Christ said to His disciples, ‘Without me ye can do nothing;’ and to this I add, that no one can move his foot or hand to do any good, or his tongue to speak any truth from good. The Church, therefore, by her own wise men has concluded that a man can no more will, understand, and think anything spiritual, or even fit himself to will, understand and think it, than a statue, a stock and a stone; and that, therefore, of His own good pleasure, faith is inspired by God, who alone has free and unbounded power; and this faith, without any labor and power on our part, but simply by the operation of the Holy Spirit, accomplishes all that the unlearned ascribe to man.”
[4] I next spoke with the other, who loved good and truth. After some words upon his lot in life, I mentioned free will, and he said: “What madness it is to deny free will in spiritual things! Who cannot will and do good, and think and speak truth of himself from the Word, thus from the Lord who is the Word? For the Lord said, ‘Bring forth good fruit,’ and ‘Believe in the light,’ and also, ‘Love one another,’ and ‘Love God.’ Again, ‘Whosoever heareth my commandments and doeth them, loveth me, and I will love him;’ not to mention thousands of similar passages throughout the whole of the Word. Of what use then, would the Word be if a man had no power to will and think and consequently to do and say what is there commanded? If man had not this power, religion and the Church would be like a wrecked ship lying on the bottom of the sea, with the master at the mast-top calling out, ‘I can do nothing,’ while he sees the rest of the sailors hoisting the sails in the lifeboats and making their escape. Freedom was granted to Adam to eat of the tree of life and also of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil; and, because of his own freedom he ate of the latter tree, smoke from the serpent, that is, from hell, entered his mind, which resulted in his expulsion from paradise and the curse upon him. Nevertheless he did not lose his free will, for we read that the way to the tree of life was guarded by a cherub, otherwise he would still have been able to exercise his will and eat of it.”
[5] When he had thus spoken, the other, who loved evil and falsity said, “I do not accept what I have just heard, and I maintain what I have asserted. Every one knows that God alone lives, and thus is active, while man of himself is dead, and thus merely passive. How, then, can one who in himself is dead and merely passive acquire for himself anything living and active?” To this I replied: “Man is an organ of life, but God alone is Life; and He infuses His life into the organ and all its parts, as the sun infuses its heat into the tree and all its parts. Moreover, God grants that man should feel that life in himself as his own; and He wishes that he should have that feeling in order that he may live as of himself, according to all the laws of order, which are as many as are the precepts in the Word, and dispose himself to receive the love of God. Nevertheless God continually holds His finger on the pointer of the balance, regulating but never violating man’s free will by compulsion.
[6] A tree cannot receive anything which the heat of the sun introduces through the root unless all its fibres are gradually warmed and heated; nor can the elements rise through the root unless these fibres receive the heat and breathe it out again, and so contribute to their passage. So it is with man who receives the heat of life from God; but he, unlike the tree, feels that heat as his own, although it is not his. In the degree, however, that he believes it to be his, and not God’s, he receives from God the light of life, but not the heat of love. The heat of love he receives from hell; and this, being gross in nature, obstructs and closes up the finer fibres of his organism, just as impure blood does the capillary vessels of the body. Thus a man from being spiritual makes himself merely natural. [7] His free will depends upon the fact that he feels the life within him to be his own; and that God permits him to have this feeling for the sake of conjunction, which cannot be effected unless it is reciprocal; and it becomes reciprocal when man acts from freedom entirely as of himself. If God had not left to him this feeling, he would not be a man, nor would he have eternal life; for reciprocal conjunction with God causes him to be a man and not a beast, and also is the reason why he lives after death to eternity. This is the effect of free will in spiritual things.”
[8] When he heard this that evil spirit withdrew some distance, and I saw the flying serpent, called the fiery serpent, on a certain tree, offering someone fruit from it. Then in spirit I drew near to the place, and there, instead of the serpent, was a monster of a man, whose face, all but his nose, was covered with a beard; and instead of the tree there was a burning stump, beside which stood the spirit into whose mind the smoke from hell had entered, and who thereupon rejected all belief in free will in spiritual things. Then on a sudden a similar smoke arose from the stump, and enveloped them both; and as they were thus removed from my sight I departed. But the other spirit who loved good and truth, and asserted man’s free will in spiritual things, accompanied me home.
[2] Then I said: “Granted that the act takes place in this way, and that it is instantaneous. Yet how am I to understand what is asserted of this act, that a man contributes no more to it than if he were a stock or a stone, and that he has no power to begin, will, understand, think, operate, co-operate, apply and accommodate himself thereto? Tell me how does this agree with what you have said, that the act takes place at the moment when a man thinks about the justice of the law, the removal of its condemnation by Christ, and the confidence with which he lays hold of His merit, and when, with these thoughts in his mind, he goes to God the Father and prays? Are not all these things done by the man?” He answered, “They are not done actively by the man, but passively.”
[3] I replied: “How can any one think, have confidence and pray passively? If you at such times take away man’s activity and co-operation, do you not also take away his capacity to receive, thus everything that belongs to him as a man, and with it the act itself? What then does your act become but something purely ideal, or a mere product of the reason? I trust you do not share the belief with some that such an act takes place only with the predestined; for they are quite unaware of any infusion of faith into themselves; they might as well throw the dice and by this means seek to learn whether this has happened to them or not. For this reason do you, my friend, believe that man in matters of faith and charity operates as of himself from the Lord; and that without this operation, your act of faith, which you have termed the chief doctrine of the Church in the Christian world, is but a statue like Lot’s wife, which, being composed only of salt, tinkles when scratched by the finger nail or the pen of a scribe, Luke xvii. 32. I use this comparison because with regard to this act of faith you make yourselves like statues.” When I said this he seized in his hand a candlestick, intending to throw it in my face; but at that moment the candle suddenly went out, and he threw it at the fore-head of his companion; and I went away laughing.
[2] I then spoke with those who had appeared as goats, and said: “Why are you thus assembled?” Most of them were clergymen who prided themselves in their reputation for learning, because they knew the mysteries of justification by faith alone. They replied that they had met to hold a council, because they had heard that a false interpretation was being put upon the statement by Paul in Romans iii. 28:
“… a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law.”
It was being asserted that by faith in that passage he did not mean the faith of the present day Church, which is a faith in three Divine Persons from eternity, but a faith in the Lord God the Savior Jesus Christ; and that by the deeds of the law he did not mean those of the law of the Decalogue, but those of the Mosaic law which were intended for the Jews. Thus from these few words, by a false interpretation, two monstrous falsities have arisen, namely, that the passage refers to the faith of the present day Church, and to the deeds of the law of the Decalogue. That Paul did not mean the deeds of the law of the Decalogue but the deeds of the Mosaic law intended for the Jews, is abundantly clear from his words to Peter, whom he rebuked for Judaizing, although he knew
“That a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ.” Gal. ii. 16.
By the faith of Jesus Christ is meant faith in Him and from Him, as may be seen above in No. 338. Further, because Paul meant by the deeds of the law the deeds of the Mosaic law he therefore distinguished between the law of faith and the law of works, and between Jews and Gentiles, or circumcision and uncircumcision; and circumcision means Judaism, as in all other passages. Moreover, he sums the matter up with these words:
“Do we then make void the law through faith? God forbid: yea, we establish the law.”
All these things he says in the series of statements, Rom. iii. 27-31. In the preceding chapter he says:
“Not the hearers of the law are just before God, but the doers of the law shall be justified.” Rom. ii. 13;
also,
“God (A.V., who) will render to every man according to his deeds.” Rom. ii. 6;
and also,
“For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad.” 2 Cor. v. 10;
besides many other passages in his writings. From all this it is evident that Paul rejected faith without good works, as James does in his Epistle, ii. 17-28.
[3] That Paul meant the deeds of the Mosaic law which were intended for the Jews is still further evident from this fact that all the statutes intended for the Jews are in the Book of Moses called the law, thus the deeds of the law. This is clear from the following passages:
“This is the law of the meat offering.” Levit. vi. 14-23.
“This is the law of the burnt offering, of the meat offering, of the sin offering and of the trespass offering, and of the consecrations.” Levit. vii. 37.
“This is the law of the beasts, and of the fowl.” Levit. xi. 46.
“This is the law for her that hath born a male or a female.” Levit. xii. 7.
“This is the law of the plague of leprosy.” Levit. xiii. 59; xiv. 2, 32, 54, 57.
“This is the law of him that hath an issue.” Levit. xv. 32.
“This is the law of jealousy.” Num. v. 29, 30.
“This is the law of the Nazirite.” Num. vi. 13, 21.
“This is the law of cleansing.” Num. xix. 14.
“This is the law of the red heifer.” Num. xix. 2.
“This is the law for a king.” Deut. xvii. 15-19.
Indeed, the whole Book of Moses is called “the Book of the law” in Deut. xxxi. 9, 11, 12, 26; and also in Luke ii. 22; xxiv. 44; and in John i. 45; vii. 22, 23; viii. 5.
[4] To these passages it is added that it might be seen in Paul that a man must live according to the law of the Decalogue, and that it is fulfilled by charity, Rom. xiii. 8, 9, 10, 11; and also that he says:
“Now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity.” 1 Cor. xiii. 13,
thus not faith. Such was the teaching they said they had assembled to discuss.
That I might not disturb them I withdrew; and then again afar off they appeared like goats, sometimes lying down and sometimes standing up, but they turned away from the flock of sheep. They appeared lying down when deliberating, and standing up when forming a conclusion. But their horns particularly held my attention; and I was surprised to observe that at one time they appeared to stretch forwards, with tips pointing upwards, and at another time to be curving backwards with tips pointing down towards their back, till they were finally completely thrown back. Then they suddenly turned in the direction of the flock of sheep, but still maintaining their appearance as goats; so I approached them again, and asked what opinion they had now reached. They replied that they had come to the conclusion that faith alone produces the goods of charity as a tree produces fruits. At that moment the sound of thunder was heard and a flash of lightning was seen overhead; and presently an angel appeared standing between the two flocks. He called out to the flock of sheep: “Do not listen to them; they have not departed from their former belief that faith alone justifies and saves, and practical charity availeth nothing. Moreover, faith is not a tree, while man is. But do the work of repentance and look to the Lord, and you shall have faith; for faith before repentance has nothing living in it.” Then the goats whose horns were bent backwards made to approach the sheep; but the angel standing between them divided the sheep into two flocks, and said to those on the left: “You may join the goats; but I tell you that a wolf is coming that will carry them off and you along with them.”
[5] After the two flocks of sheep had separated, and those on the left had heard the threatening words of the angel, they looked at one another, and said, “Let us converse with our former companions.” Then those on the left spoke to those on the right, saying, “Why have you departed from our pastors? Are not faith and charity one, like a tree and its fruit? For a tree by its branches is continued into its fruit. If you break off part of a branch by which the tree makes its continuous flow into the fruit, the fruit will die, and with it all the seed that should serve for a future growth. Ask our priests whether it is not so.” They then asked the priests, and these looked around to the rest who with a wink encouraged them to say that they had spoken well. Thereupon they replied: “You have spoken aright; but as to the continuation of faith into good works, as a tree is continued into its fruit, we are acquainted with many abstruse truths. This, however, is not the place to make them public; for in the bond or thread connecting faith and charity there are many knots, which we priests are alone able to untie.”
[6] Then one of the priests who was among the sheep on the right, arose and said: “To you they have answered that the matter is so; but they have told their companions that it is not so, for this is what they really think.” The first questioners then asked, “How then do they think? Do they not think as they teach?” He said, “No: for they think that every good of charity, which is called a good work, done by a man with a view to salvation and eternal life, is not in the least degree good. For through work done by himself he wishes to save himself, by claiming to himself the righteousness and merit of the only Savior; and they think that this is the case with every good work in which a man is sensible of his own will. Therefore they assert that there is no conjunction whatever of faith and charity, and that faith is not even retained and preserved by good works.
[7] But some of those on the left said: “What you have asserted of them is not true; for they openly preach charity and its works, which they call the works of faith.” He replied: “You do not understand their preaching; only the clergy who are present give it their attention and understand. They only think of moral charity, and its civil and political good works. These they say, are the works of faith, but they are not so at all; for an atheist can do works that are precisely the same and similar in appearance. Therefore, they maintain unanimously that man is not saved by any works, but by faith alone. An apple tree produces apples; but if a man does good works for the sake of salvation as that tree produces apples by continuous flow, then his ‘apples’ are inwardly rotten and full of worms. They say also that a vine produces grapes; but if a man should do spiritual good, as a vine produces grapes, he would produce ‘wild grapes.'”
[8] But then they asked, “What is the nature of their goods of charity, that is, good works, which are the fruits of faith?” He answered: “Perhaps they are not conspicuous, being somewhat near to faith, with which however, they have connection, as they are like a man’s shadow, which follows when he faces the sun, but is unnoticed unless he turns round. I may indeed say they are like horses’ tails, which to-day are docked in many districts; for it is said that they serve no useful purpose but if left uncut easily become dirty.” When he heard this, one of the flock of sheep on the left hand said indignantly, “There certainly is some sort of conjunction, for how else can they be called the works of faith? Perhaps the good of charity is infused by God into man’s voluntary works by some kind of influx, as by some affection, aspiration, inspiration, incitement, and excitation of the will, by some tacit perception in the thought, and thence by exhortation, contrition and thus by conscience, with a consequent impulse to action and obedience to the Decalogue and the Word, as into an infant or one endowed with wisdom, or by some other means like these; for otherwise, how could good works be called fruits of faith?”
To this, the priest answered: “No, it is not the case; and if they do say that good works are produced by such means, they so word their discourses as to convey the impression that they do not proceed from faith. Some of them indeed do teach such things, but maintaining that the works are only signs of faith, and not bonds connecting faith with charity. Others, however, have imagined a conjunction by means of the Word. The priest was then asked, “Is there such a conjunction?” But he replied: “They do not think this, but only imagine something resulting from the hearing of the Word. For they assert that every rational as well as voluntary principle of man in matters of faith is impure and merit-seeking, because in spiritual things he can no more understand, will, work and co-operate than a stock.”
[9] When one of them heard that man is believed to be like this in all matters relating to faith and salvation, he said: “I once heard a man say, ‘I have planted a vineyard; now I will drink wine even to intoxication.’ But another asked him, ‘Will you drink wine out of your own cup, held in your own right hand?’ He replied, ‘No, but out of an invisible cup in an invisible hand.” ‘Then,’ declared the other, ‘you certainly will not be intoxicated.'” And presently the speaker continued: “Hear me, I pray; I say to you, First understand the Word and then drink the wine from it. Do you not know that the Lord is the Word? Is it not from the Lord, and is He not in it? If, therefore, you do good from the Word, you do it from the Lord, from His own mouth and will. And if you then look to the Lord, He will also lead and teach you, and you will do it of yourselves from Him. When anyone executes a commission on the authority of a king, from his word and command, can he say, ‘I do this from my own word or command, and from my own will?'” [10] Thereupon he turned to the clergy and said, “Ye ministers of God, do not lead the flock astray.”
On hearing this, the greater part of the flock on the left withdrew, and joined the flock on the right. Then some of the clergy said, “We have heard what we did not know before; we are shepherds; we will not forsake the sheep;” and they retired along with them. Then they said: “This man has spoken the truth. Who that does anything from the Word, and thus from the Lord, from His command and will, can say, ‘I do this of myself?’ And no one who acts from the command and will of a king says, ‘I do this of myself.’ Now we perceive the Divine Providence, in that a conjunction of faith and good works acknowledged by the ecclesiastical body has not been found. It could not be found, because it could not exist, for there was no faith in the Lord, who is the Word, and consequently there was no faith from the Word.” The rest of the priests, however, who were of the flock of goats, went away, waving their hats, and crying, “Faith alone, faith alone shall live still.”
[2] There are three universal loves, enkindled in every man from creation: the love of the neighbor, a spiritual love, which is the love of performing uses; the love of the world, a material love, which is the love of possessing wealth; and the love of self, a corporeal love, which is the love of ruling over others. A man is truly a man when the love of the neighbor, or the love of performing uses, constitutes the head; and the love of the world, or the love of possessing wealth, constitutes the breast and the abdomen; and the love of self, or the love of ruling, constitutes the feet and the soles of the feet. If, however, the love of the world constitutes the head, the man is as it were hunch-backed; but if the love of self constitutes the head, he is like a man standing not on his feet but on the palms of his hands, with his head downwards and his haunches upwards.
[3] When the love of performing uses constitutes the head, and the other two loves constitute in their order the body and the feet, the man appears in heaven with an angelic face and a beautiful rainbow about his head. If, however, the love of the world or of wealth constitutes the head, he then appears, when seen from heaven, with a pale, cadaverous face and a yellow halo about his head; but if the love of self or of ruling over others constitutes the head, he appears, when seen from heaven, with a face lit up with a dusky glow, and a white halo about his head.”
I thereupon asked what was represented by the circles about the head. The answer was: “They represent intelligence; and the white circle about the head, when the face has a dusky glow, represents that the man’s intelligence is in external things, or round about him, while insanity prevails in his internals, or within him. Such a man is wise when in the body, but insane when in the spirit; for no man is wise in spirit but from the Lord, which is the case when he is born again and created anew by Him.”
[4] As they said this the earth opened to the left, and through the opening I saw a devil rising up. His face was lit up with a dusky glow, and he had a white halo about his head. I asked him, “Who are you?” and he replied: “I am Lucifer,* son of the morning; and because I made myself like unto the Most High, I was cast down, according to the description in Isaiah XIV.” He was not Lucifer, although he believed that he was. Then I said, “Since you have been cast down, how are you able to rise again out of hell?” He replied: “In hell, I am a devil, but here I am an angel of light. Do you not observe my head encircled with a white halo? You shall also see, if you wish, that among the moral I am moral, among the rational I am rational, and among the spiritual I am spiritual. I have also been able to preach.” I asked, “How did you preach?” He said: “Against cheats, adulterers, and all infernal loves. Indeed, I then called myself Lucifer, a devil, and denounced myself as such, and so I was praised to the sky. That is why I am called the son of the morning; and, what I myself was surprised at, when I was in the pulpit, I had no idea that I was not duly speaking what was right. I discovered, however, that the reason for this was that I was in my external mind, which was at the time separated from my internal mind. Although this was made known to me, still I was unable to change, for I exalted myself above the Most High, and set myself against Him.”
[5] Then I asked him: “How could you speak thus when you yourself are a cheat and an adulterer?” He replied: “When I am in externals, that is, in the body, I am one person, but when I am in internals, that is, in the spirit, I am another. In the body I am an angel, but in the spirit, a devil; for in the body I live in my understanding, but in the spirit, in my will; and the understanding bears me upwards, but the will bears me downwards. While I live in my understanding a white circle encompasses my head; but when the understanding yields itself entirely to the will, and becomes its servant, which is our final state, then the circle turns black and disappears. When this happens, I can no longer ascend into this light. Suddenly, as he saw the angels with me, his face and voice betrayed his excitement; he turned black, as did the halo round his head, and he fell down into hell through the opening by which he had risen. When those who were present saw and heard these things, they came to the conclusion that a man’s will and not his understanding determines his character; for the will easily draws the understanding over to its side and enslaves it.
[6] I then enquired of the angels whence the devils derive rationality. They said: “From the glory of the love of self; for self-love is encompassed with glory, which is the splendor of its fire, and this glory raises the understanding almost into the light of heaven. For the understanding with every man is capable of being elevated according to the knowledge he possesses; but the will can only be elevated by a life in conformity with the truths of the Church and of reason. Consequently atheists, who are inspired by the glory of fame from their own self-love, and therefore also by pride in their own intelligence, enjoy a degree of rationality higher than many others. This happens only when they exercise the thought of their understanding, and not when they are influenced by the love of their will; and the love of the will possesses the internal man, but the thought of the understanding the external.”
The angel further explained why these three loves are enkindled in every man: the love of use, the love of the world and the love of self; it is that he may think from God, and yet altogether as of himself. He said that the things that are highest in man’s mind are turned upward towards God, what are in the middle region are turned outward towards the world, and what are in the lowest region are turned downward towards the body; and because these are turned downward, a man thinks wholly as of himself, when nevertheless he thinks from God.
* Lucifer, fabled son of Aurora, or of Jupiter, morning star, day.
[3] When I approached nearer I saw this inscription over the gate, “Now it is permitted” (Nunc licet); which signified that one may now enter with understanding into the mysteries of faith. On seeing this inscription I was impressed with the thought that it is extremely dangerous to enter with the understanding into dogmas of faith which are the product of man’s own intelligence, and therefore consist of falsities; and still more dangerous to confirm them from the Word. For this closes the higher reaches of the understanding, and gradually the lower also, to such a degree that matters of a theological nature not only become distasteful, but drop out of the mind completely, like writing from a worm-eaten book and the nap from moth-eaten cloth. The understanding is then engaged only with political matters that concern a man’s life in the state to which he belongs, with civil affairs that relate to his own employment, and with the domestic affairs of his own household. In all these a man devotes himself to nature, and loves her for the allurements of her pleasures, as an idolater loves the golden image he hugs to his bosom.
[4] The dogmas of the Christian Churches at the present day are not derived from the Word, but are the product of man’s own intelligence, thus consisting of falsities, and they have, moreover, been confirmed by some passages from the Word. Therefore, among Roman Catholics, of the Divine Providence of the Lord, the Word has now been taken out of the hands of the laity; but among Protestants, it is an open Book, although it is closed where it is maintained, as is commonly asserted, that the understanding is to be kept under obedience to their faith.
[5] It is otherwise, however, in the New Church. Here one is permitted to enter with the understanding into all its interior truths, and also to confirm them by the Word. The reason is that its doctrines are truths in series from the Lord, revealed by means of the Word; and confirmation of these by rational considerations opens the higher reaches of the understanding and so elevates it into the light which the angels of heaven enjoy. This light in its essence is truth, and in this light the acknowledgment of the Lord as the God of heaven and earth shines in all its glory. This is meant by the inscription over the gate of the temple, “Now it is permitted” (Nunc licet), and also by the veil of the shrine being drawn aside before the cherub. For it is a canon of the New Church that falsities close the understanding and truths open it.
[6] After these things I saw, as it were, an infant overhead, holding in his hand a paper. As he approached me, he gradually attained the stature of a man of middle height. He was an angel from the third heaven, where all at a distance appear as infants. When he reached me, he handed me the paper; but as it was written in the curved letters peculiar to that heaven, I gave it back to him requesting that some of the angels there might express the meaning of the words in terms adapted to the ideas of my thought. He returned it; and this is what was written: “Henceforward enter into the mysteries of the Word, which has hitherto been a closed Book; for all its truths are so many mirrors of the Lord.”
* This number is in quotation marks in Original Edition. … It was square in form, formae quadratae. In Index Memorabilum LV we read: Visum est Templum rotundum.
REPENTANCE
After treating of faith, charity and free will, repentance comes next in order, since true faith and genuine charity are not attainable without repentance, and none can do the work of repentance without free will. Further, repentance is treated at this point because the chapter on Regeneration immediately follows; and no one can be regenerated before the more grievous evils, which render a man detestable in the sight of God, are removed; and their removal can only be effected by repentance. What is an unregenerate man but an impenitent one? And an impenitent man is like one in a state of lethargy, knowing nothing of sin, and therefore cherishing and constantly fondling it as an adulterer fondles a courtesan. In order that there may be a proper understanding of what repentance is, and what it effects, it shall be treated under separate heads.
The communion called the Church consists of all those who have the Church in them; and the Church with man enters when he is being regenerated. Every one becomes regenerate as he abstains from the evils of sin and shuns them as he would hosts of infernal spirits whom he sees with fire brands in their hands threatening to attack him and cast him on a burning pile. There are many things which in early life prepare a man for the Church, and introduce him into it; but acts of repentance cause the Church to be in him. Such acts are all those which lead a man not to will, and consequently not to do, those evils which are sins against God. Before this happens the man is not concerned about regeneration; and should any thought enter his mind about eternal salvation, he may indeed favor it; but presently he turns away from it, for it affects him no more deeply than mere thoughts do, finding expression in words and even in deeds conformable to his words. When, however, such a thought enters his will it then gains a place in him, for the will is the man himself, because his love dwells there. But the thought is no part of the man, unless it proceeds from the will; if it does, then will and thought act as one, and together constitute the
man. Hence it follows that repentance, to be truly repentance and efficacious in a man, must be of the will and thence of the thought, and not a matter of thought alone; it must consequently be practical, and not merely oral.
That repentance is the first essential of the Church is plainly evident from the Word. John the Baptist was sent on before to prepare man for the Church which the Lord was about to establish; and when he baptized, he preached at the same time, repentance. His baptism was called the baptism of repentance, because baptism signified spiritual washing, or cleansing from sin. He baptized in Jordan, because Jordan signified introduction into the Church; for it was the boundary of the land of Canaan, where the Church was established. The Lord Himself also preached repentance for the remission of sins, thus teaching that repentance is the first essential of the Church, and that so far as a man repents, his sins are removed, and so far as they are removed, they are remitted. Moreover, the Lord commanded twelve Apostles, and also the seventy whom He sent forth, to preach repentance. It is, therefore, evident that repentance is the first essential of the Church.
In the Reformed Christian Church it is taught that there is a certain kind of anxiety, grief and terror called contrition; and in those who are to be regenerated it precedes faith, and is followed by the consolation of the Gospel. It is said of this contrition that it arises from the fear of the just wrath of God and eternal damnation, man’s heritage from Adam’s sin and the consequent inherent propensity to evils. For it is said, without this contrition, the faith which imputes to man the merit and righteousness of the Lord the Savior, is not granted; but those who obtain this faith receive the consolation of the Gospel, which means that they are justified, that is, renewed, regenerated and sanctified, without any co-operation on their part, and are thus transferred from a state of damnation to that of everlasting blessedness, which is eternal life. But respecting this contrition, we must consider: (1) Is it repentance? (2) Is it of any importance? (3) Has it any real existence?
They further said that the consolation of the Gospel, impressed upon them in their early years, had so far removed contrition that they inwardly smiled at the very mention of it. Hell had no more power to strike terror into them than the fires of Vesuvius* and Etna** had to terrify the inhabitants of Warsaw*** and Vienna;**** or the basilisks and serpents in the deserts of Arabia, or the tigers and lions in the forests of Tartary***** to terrify those who lived in the safety, tranquillity and peace of some city in Europe. The wrath of God affected them no more with fear and contrition than the wrath of the king of Persia did the inhabitants of Pennsylvania.******
From these things, and from the thoughts that followed their relation, I was convinced that contrition, unless it means repentance, such as is described in the following pages, is nothing but a figment of the imagination. The Reformed substituted contrition for repentance in order that they might be dissociated from the Roman Catholics, who insist upon the necessity of repentance, together with charity. After they had established the doctrine of justification by faith alone, they adduced this as a reason, that by repentance, as by charity, something pertaining to man which savors of merit would enter into his faith and defile it.
* Vesuvius, volcano in Campania, Italy.
** Aethna, Aetna, volcano of Sicily.
*** Warsovia, Warsaw, capital of Poland.
**** Vienna, capital of Austria.
***** Tartaria, Tartary, country of Central Asia.
****** Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania, one of the early British colonies in America, and one of the original U.S.A.
Concerning this oral confession the Reformed, who subscribe to the Augsburg Confession, thus express themselves:
“No man can ever know his own sins, therefore they cannot be enumerated. They are besides interior and hidden, and therefore confession would be false, uncertain, imperfect and partial; but whoever confesses himself to be altogether mere sin, comprehends all sins, excludes none and forgets none. Still, however, the enumeration of sins, although it is not necessary, ought not to be forbidden, for the sake of tender and timid consciences; but this is only a puerile and common form of confession for the more simple and ignorant.” Formula Concordiae,** pp. 327, 331, 380.
This confession was adopted by the Reformed in the place of practical repentance after they had separated from the Roman Catholics, for it is based upon their imputative faith, which alone, without charity and thus also without repentance, brings about remission of sins and regenerates man. It is based also on this, which is an inseparable adjunct of that faith, that there is no co-operation of man with the Holy Spirit in the act of justification; and on this, that no one has free will in spiritual things; and further on this, that all things follow from immediate mercy and nothing at all from mercy that is mediate, that is, merited by man or through any effort on his part.
* This passage is in quotation marks in Original Edition.
** Form of Concord, Formula Concordiae, designed to effect an amicable adjustment of the differences among the Lutherans, by drawing them more closely to their principal standard, the Augsburg or Augustan Confession. Most of the Lutheran Churches add this Formula to their standard creeds.
“Well hath Esaias prophesied of you hypocrites…. This people honoreth me with their lips, but their heart is far from me.” Mark vii. 6;
and in Matthew:
“Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees … for ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess. Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse first that which is within the cup and the platter, that the outside of them may be clean also.” Matt. xxiii. 25, 26;
and in many other passages in the same chapter.
“Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? … and in thy name have done many wonderful works? And then I will confess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.” Matt. vii. 22, 23.
Once in the spiritual world I heard a certain person praying thus: “I am full of sores, leprous, unclean from my birth. There is nothing sound in me from my head to the sole of my foot. I am not worthy to lift up my eyes to God; I am deserving of death and eternal damnation. Have mercy on me for the sake of thy Son; purify me by His blood. The salvation of all is in thy good pleasure; I implore thy mercy.” Those who stood by and heard him asked: “How do you know that you are such?” He replied, “I know it because I have been told.” He was then sent to the examining angels, to whom he repeated the same statements. After examination they reported that what he had said of himself was true; but that he was not conscious of a single evil in himself, because he had never examined himself, and believed that evils, after an oral confession, were no longer evils in the sight of God, both because He turns away His eyes from them, and because He has been propitiated. On this account he had never repented of any evil, although he was a deliberate adulterer, a robber, and a deceitful slanderer, burning with revenge; and because he was such in will and heart, he would, therefore, have been the same in word and deed had he not been restrained by fear of the law and loss of reputation. After this disclosure of his real character, judgment was passed upon him and he was sent to join the hypocrites in hell.
* Charitatem non aliam quam forensem. Forensis, forensic, of the law courts; or as here, public, of the market-place.
It has been made known in the Church that every man is born to evils, and consequently that from his birth he is nothing but evil. This has been handed down by the councils and prelates of the various Churches teaching that the sin of Adam has been transmitted to all his posterity; and that, on account of this alone, every man after him as well as himself has been condemned; and that this is what is inherent in every man from birth. There are many other teachings of the Church based on this assertion; as that the washing of regeneration called baptism was instituted by the Lord to remove that sin; that this was the cause of His coming; and that faith in His merit is the means for its removal; besides the many other doctrines which the Church has based on the same assertion.
Hereditary evil, however, does not spring from that origin; for as may be evident from 466 and following Numbers Adam was not the first of men. Adam and his wife representatively describe the first Church on this earth; the Garden of Eden, its wisdom; the tree of life, its looking to the Lord who was to come; and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, its looking to itself and not to the Lord. That this Church is representatively described in the first chapters of Genesis has been proved by many parallel passages from the Word in the Arcana Caelestia, published in London. When these things are understood and accepted, the opinion hitherto entertained, that Adam’s sin is the source of the evil innate in man from his parents, falls to the ground; for that evil has a different origin. In the chapter on Free Will it has been fully shown that the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, which are in every man and which are said to have been placed in a garden, signified man’s free will in turning to the Lord and away from Him.
[2] From this it follows that a man is not born into evils themselves but only into an inclination to them, yet with a greater or less bias to particular evils. Therefore after death no one is judged from any hereditary evil, but only from the actual evils which he himself has committed. This is evident from the following statute of the Lord:
“The father shall not be put to death for the son, neither shall the son be put to death for the father: every man shall be put to death for his own sin.” Deut. xxiv. 16.
I was convinced of this in the spiritual world; for those who die in infancy, although they have an inclination and thus the will to do evils, and who yet refrain from committing them, are brought up under the care of the Lord, and are saved.
[3] This inclination and propensity to evils transmitted by parents to their children and posterity, can only be broken by a new birth from the Lord, which is called regeneration. Without this, that inclination not only remains uninterrupted, but acquires new strength as parents succeed parents, becoming more prone to evils, till at length it is a general inclination to evils of every kind. Hence it is that the Jews still resemble their father Judah. He took to wife a Canaanitish woman and from adultery with his daughter-in-law Tamar, begat three branches of them; and in the course of time their hereditary disposition has increased to such a degree that they are unable to embrace the Christian religion with sincere faith. The words ‘they are unable’ are used advisedly; for the interior will of their mind is opposed to Christianity, and the state of this will renders them unable to embrace it.
“The Lord, charity and faith make one, like life, will and understanding in man; and if they are divided, each perishes like a pearl reduced to powder.” (367:7).
and from these words in the same chapter:
“The Lord is charity and faith in man, and man is charity and faith in the Lord.” (368).
But it may be asked how a man can enter into that union. The answer is, that he cannot, unless he on his part removes his evils by repentance. It is said that man removes them, because the Lord does not directly bring about their removal without man’s co-operation. This was fully shown in the same chapter, and in the following chapter on Free Will.
* Neapolitana, Neapolitan, native of Neapolis, Napoli, Naples, Italian.
MEMORABILIA.
This may be confirmed by the following experience. In the spiritual world I have met several persons who have lived in the natural world like others, dressing elegantly, feasting delicately, making money like others by trading, frequenting theatrical performances, jesting about lovers in what might be termed an unseemly manner, and doing other things of a similar kind. Yet the angels accounted these things as sins in the case of some, but not in the case of others, declaring some guilty of sin but others quite innocent. When asked why they made this distinction when all had acted alike, they replied that they regard all with respect to purpose, intention and end, and distinguish them accordingly. Therefore, they excuse or condemn those whom the end excuses or condemns, since good is the purpose, intention and end with all in heaven, but evil with all in hell.
[2] Such unremoved sins may also be compared to tigers, leopards, lions, wolves and foxes which, unless they are confined in dens or bound with chains or ropes, would attack flocks and herds, as a fox does poultry, and kill them. They may also be compared to venomous serpents which, unless pressed down and held by forked stakes, or deprived of their teeth, would inflict deadly wounds on men. The whole flock would perish if it were left in fields where there are poisonous plants, unless the shepherd led it away to wholesome pastures. The silk-worm too would die, and with it all silk would disappear, unless destructive insects were shaken from the tree on which it feeds.
[3] Corn kept in barns or store houses would become musty and rancid, and thus unfit for use, unless air were allowed to pass freely through it and remove all impurities. A fire that is not extinguished when it first breaks out will destroy a whole city or forest. A garden that is not kept clear of weeds will soon be entirely overgrown with brambles, thistles and thorns. Gardeners know that an inferior tree sends its own sap from its seed and root into the branch or bud of a good tree engrafted or inoculated upon it, and that the inferior sap which enters from beneath is transformed, and produces useful fruits. Something similar happens with a man when his evils are removed by means of repentance, for by this he is engrafted in the Lord as a branch in a vine, and bears good fruit, John xv. 4, 5, 8.
No one in the Christian world can be without the knowledge of sin, for there every one is taught from infancy what evil is, and from childhood what is the evil of sin. All young persons learn this from parents and teachers, and also from the Decalogue, the first Book placed in the hands of all throughout Christendom; and in the subsequent stages of life, from public preaching and private instruction at home, and in all fullness from the Word. They learn it also from the laws of civil justice, which embody the teaching of the Decalogue and other parts of the Word. For the evil of sin is evil against the neighbor; and evil against the neighbor is also evil against God, and this is sin.
The knowledge of sin, however, is of no avail unless a man examines his own actions, and sees whether he has committed any particular deed, either secretly or openly. Before this is done it is all mere knowledge, and what proceeds from the preacher is only sound, passing in at one ear and out at the other; and it finally becomes nothing more than the expression of pious thought, for the most part unreal and fanciful. But it is altogether different when a man examines himself according to his rational conception of sin, and, coming upon some evil, says to himself, “This is a sin,” and abstains from it through fear of eternal punishment. Then for the first time the instruction heard in the church, from sermon and prayer, claims his attention and enters his heart; and the man from being a pagan, becomes a Christian.
“The way and means to become a worthy partaker of the Holy Supper is first to examine your lives and conversations by the rule of God’s commandments, and wherein soever ye shall perceive yourselves to have offended, either by will, word, or deed, there to bewail your own sinfulness and to confess yourselves to Almighty God, with full purpose of amendment of life. And if ye shall perceive your offences to be such as are not only against God, but also against your neighbors, then ye shall reconcile yourselves unto them; being ready to make restitution and satisfaction according to the uttermost of your powers, for all injuries and wrongs done by you to any other; and being likewise ready to forgive others that have offended you, as ye would have forgiveness of your offences at God’s hand; for otherwise the receiving of the holy communion doth nothing else but increase your damnation. Therefore, if any of you be a blasphemer of God, a hinderer or slanderer of His Word, an adulterer, or be in malice or envy, or in any other grievous crime, repent ye of your sins, or else come not to that holy table; lest, after the taking of that holy sacrament, the devil enter into you, as he entered into Judas, and fill you full of all iniquity, and bring you to destruction both of body and soul.”
* This passage is in quotation marks in Original Edition. Repeated in 722:4 with variations.
[2] On the other hand, those who know what sin is, and particularly those who have much knowledge of the Word and teach it to others, and yet do not examine themselves and consequently see no sin in themselves, may be likened to those who scrape together great wealth and store it up in boxes and chests, applying it to no useful purpose, but who gloat over it and count it. They are like those who gather into their treasuries, merely for wealth’s sake, jewels of gold and silver, hiding them away in cellars.
They are also like the traders, one of whom hid his talent in the earth, and another his pound in a napkin. Matt. xxv. 25; Luke xix. 20.
They are like hard and stony paths on which seed falls, Matt. xiii. 4, 5; like fig trees full of leaves, but barren of fruit, Mark xi. 13; like hearts of adamant, which cannot be made flesh, Zech. vii. 12.
They are like partridges ‘which gather and bring not forth; they get riches, but not by right; in the midst of their days they leave them, and in their end they become fools.’ They are like the five virgins who had lamps and no oil, Matt. xxv. 1-12.
[3] Those who learn much from the Word about charity and repentance, and who know its precepts in abundance, but do not live according to them, may be compared to gluttons, who stuff into their mouth great pieces of food; and these being swallowed without mastication remain in the stomach undigested, till passing out they vitiate the chyle, and bring on lingering disorders which at last put a miserable end to their lives. Such persons, being without spiritual heat, however much light they may enjoy, may be likened to winter, frozen ground, arctic regions, even snow and ice.
That repentance is absolutely necessary, and that man’s salvation depends on it, may be clearly seen from many passages and plain declarations of the Lord in the Word, of which the following will be here adduced:
John preached the baptism of repentance and said, “Bring forth …. fruits worthy of repentance,” Luke iii. 3, 8; Mark i. 4.
“Jesus began to preach, and to say, Repent.” Matt. iv. 17. And he said, because the kingdom of God is at hand: “Repent ye.” Mark i. 14, 15;
again,
“Except ye repent, ye shall all … perish.” Luke xiii. 5.
Jesus instructed His disciples “that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name among all nations.” Luke xxiv. 47; Mark vi. 12.
Then Peter preached repentance and baptism in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, Acts ii. 38; and he also said, “Repent ye … and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out.” Acts iii. 19.
Paul preached to all men everywhere that they should repent, Acts xvii. 30.
Paul also “Showed first unto them of Damascus, and at Jerusalem, and throughout all the coasts of Judea, and then to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God, and do works meet for repentance.” Acts xxvi. 20; and testified “both to the Jews, and also to the Gentiles, repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ.” Acts xx. 21.
The Lord also said to the Church at Ephesus,
“I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love … repent … or else I … will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent.” Rev. ii. 4, 5;
and to the Church in Pergamos,
“I know thy works…. Repent.” Rev. ii. 13, 16;
and to the Church in Thyatira,
I will cast her into great tribulation, except she repent of her deeds, Rev. ii. 22;
and to the Church of the Laodiceans,
“I know thy works … be zealous therefore, and repent,” Rev. iii. 15, 19;
and in another place,
“There is joy in heaven over one sinner that repenteth,” Luke xv. 7.
There are other passages to the same purpose; and from all these it is evident that repentance is absolutely necessary; but the nature and the manner of repentance will be explained in what follows.
Every one who has passed through the early stages of life and has at length attained a state of responsibility and the exercise of his own reason, may know that this is the course he should follow. It is plain from the rite of baptism, in which the washing signifies regeneration; for at its celebration the sponsors promise for the child that he will renounce the devil and all his works. It is evident from the Holy Supper, for all who approach it worthily are previously admonished to repent of their sins, to turn to God, and to begin a new life. It is plain also from the Decalogue or Catechism, which is in the hands of all Christians; for in six of its precepts nothing else is commanded but that a man should not commit evils. Unless these evils are removed by repentance, he cannot obey the command to love the neighbor, and to love God; and yet on these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets, that is, the Word, and consequently salvation. If actual repentance is practiced at stated times, especially when a man prepares himself for the communion of the Holy Supper, provided that he afterwards abstains from one or more sins which he then discovers in himself, this is sufficient to initiate him into the real practice of it. When in this state, he is on the way to heaven; for then he begins from being natural to become spiritual, and to be born anew of the Lord.
True repentance consists in a man’s examining not only the acts of his life, but also the intentions of his will because the understanding and the will are the cause of those acts. For a man speaks from thought and acts from will, so that speech is thought speaking and action is the will acting. It follows, therefore, that those two, thought and will, commit the sin when the body sins. It is possible, also, for a man to repent of evils committed by the body, and still to think and will evil; but this is like cutting down the trunk of a noxious tree, and leaving its root in the ground, from which the tree grows again and spreads in all directions. It is different, however, when the root is pulled up; and this is what happens in a man when he, having examined not only his acts but also the intentions of his will, removes his evils by repentance.
A man examines the intentions of his will whilst he examines his thoughts, for intentions manifest themselves in the thoughts; as for example, when he meditates, wills and intends revenge, adultery, theft, false witness, and their lusts; and also blasphemy against God, the Holy Word, and the Church, and so on. Should he still give those evils further attention, and then consider whether he would commit them if no obstacle stood in the way, such as fear of the law and loss of reputation; and should he, after this consideration, determine not to will them because they are sins, he performs the work of true and interior repentance. This is especially the case if he resists those evils and abstains from them when they appear delightful to him and he is at liberty to commit them. He who practices this repeatedly finds the delights of evils when they return no longer a pleasure, and finally relegates them to hell. This is what the Lord meant when He said:
“He that will find (A.V., findeth) his life shall lose it: and he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it.” Matt. x. 39.
He who removes the evils of his will by such repentance, is like a man who in good time pulls up from the field the tares sown by the devil, so that the seeds implanted by the Lord God the Savior remain undisturbed in the ground, and grow to a harvest, Matt. xiii. 24-30.
[2] It is well to know, however, that these two kinds of love may reign more powerfully in the humble than in the great, in the poor than in the rich, in subjects than in kings. For kings are born to dominion and wealth, which they come to regard as any other regards his household and his possessions, whether he be a general, a governor, a ship’s captain, or even a poor farmer. It is different, however, with those kings who aspire to dominion over the realms of other sovereigns.
[3] The reason why the intentions of the will must be examined, is that the will is the seat and receptacle of love, as has been shown above. From the will every kind of love breathes forth its delights into the perceptions and thoughts of the understanding. These do nothing of themselves, but they act from the will, giving it their support, and they consent to and confirm whatever is agreeable to its love. The will, therefore, is the house itself in which the man dwells, and the understanding is the court by which he goes in and out. This, then, is the reason why it was said that the intentions of the will must be examined; for when they are examined and removed, the man is raised up out of the natural will where lurk hereditary and actual evils, into a spiritual will, by means of which the Lord reforms and regenerates the natural, and thereby the sensual and voluntary things of the body, and thus the whole man.
Actual repentance, which consists in self-examination, in the recognition and acknowledgment of one’s sins, in prayer to the Lord, and in beginning a new life, is exceedingly difficult in the Reformed Christian world for many reasons which will be given in the last article of this chapter; therefore an easier kind of repentance will be mentioned here. When this is present in a man who is meditating and intending any evil, it causes him to say, “I am thinking of this, and intending it; but as it is a sin, I will not do it.” By this means the temptation from hell is broken, and its further entrance prevented. It is a remarkable fact that it is easy for any one to rebuke another who is intending evil, and say to him, “Do not do this, because it is a sin,” and yet it is difficult for him to say the same to himself. For in the latter case it is a matter of will, but in the former a matter of thought, easily communicated because very superficial.
Inquiry was made in the spiritual world as to who could exercise this repentance, and they were found to be as rare as doves in a vast wilderness. Some said that they could do it, but that they were not able to examine themselves and confess their sins before God. However, all who do good from a religious motive certainly avoid actual evils; yet seldom do they reflect upon the interior things of the will, imagining that they are not in evil because they are in good; in fact, that the good conceals the evil. But, my friend, the first essential of charity is to shun evils, as the Word, the Decalogue, Baptism, the Holy Supper and reason itself, all teach; for how can any one shun evils and put them away unless he examines himself? and how can good become good unless it is inwardly purified? I know that all men of piety, and all men of sound reason, will assent to this when they read it, and see that it is genuine truth; yet there are few that will act accordingly.
“I was an hungered, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye [took me in: Naked, and ye] clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me.” And He said: “Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me … Come, ye blessed … inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.” Matt xxv. 31 and following verses.
To the above I will add this new fact. All who do good from a religious motive reject after death the doctrine of the present day Church concerning three Divine Persons existing from eternity, and also its faith as it applies to these three in their separate capacities. They turn to the Lord God the Savior, and with joy receive the doctrines of the New Church.
[2] The rest, however, who have not practiced charity from a religious motive, have thus hardened their hearts till they are now of adamant. These first approach three Gods, afterwards the Father alone, and lastly no God at all. They look upon the Lord God the Savior merely as the son of Mary by her marriage with Joseph, and not as the Son of God. Then they renounce all things of the New Church that are good and true, and presently join the spirits of the dragon, and are driven along with them into desert places or caverns, which lie at the farthest limits of what is called the Christian world. After a time, as they are separated from the New Heaven, they rush into crime, and are therefore, cast into hell.
[3] Such is the lot of those who do not practice the works of charity from a religious motive, under the belief that no one can do good of himself but what is merit-seeking. As they leave undone those good works, they associate themselves with the goats, who are condemned and cast into everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels, because they did not practice what the sheep did, Matt. xxv. 41 and following verses. It is not said in this passage that they did evil, but that they did not do good; and those who do not do good from a religious motive do evil, since
“No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other.” Matt. vi. 24.
JEHOVAH says by Isaiah,
“Wash you, make you clean; put away the evil of your doings from before mine eyes; cease to do evil; learn to do well…. Though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.” Isa. i. 16, 17, 18;
and in the word to Jeremiah,
“Stand in the gate of the house of JEHOVAH, and proclaim there this word…. Thus saith JEHOVAH ZEBAOTH, the God of Israel, Amend your ways and your doings. . . Trust ye not in lying words, saying, The temple of JEHOVAH, The temple of JEHOVAH is here [A.V., are these] (that is, the Church)…. Will ye steal, murder … and swear falsely … and come and stand before me in this house, which is called by my name, and say, We are delivered while ye do (A.V., to do) all these abominations? Is this house … become a den of robbers? … Behold, even I have seen it, saith JEHOVAH.” Jer. vii. 2, 3, 4, 9, 10, 11.
The Lord God the Savior ought to be approached because He is God of heaven and earth, the Redeemer and Savior, to whom belong omnipotence, omniscience, omnipresence, mercy itself, and at the same time righteousness; and because man is His creature, and the Church His fold, and He has many times in the New Testament commanded that men should approach, worship and adore Him. That He ought to be approached, He enjoined in these words in John:
“Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that entereth not by the door into the sheep-fold, but climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber. But he that entereth in by the door is the shepherd of the sheep…. I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved … and find pasture. The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy; I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly. I am the good shepherd.” John x. 1, 2, 9, 10, 11.
Man is forbidden to climb up some other way lest he should seek immediate approach to the Father, who is invisible, and consequently inaccessible, with whom there cannot be conjunction. It was on this account that He Himself came into the world and made Himself visible, accessible and capable of entering into conjunction with man, solely for this end, that man might be saved. For unless God is approached in thought as Man, all idea of God is lost, being like sight directed into the universe, that is into empty space, or it is directed upon nature or upon something visible in nature.
That God Himself, who from eternity is one, came into the world is clearly evident from the birth of the Lord the Savior; for He was conceived of the power of the Most High by the Holy Spirit, and thus His Human was born of the Virgin Mary. From this it follows, since God is indivisible, that His soul was the Divine Itself, which is called the Father; and that the Human born therefrom is the Human of God the Father, which is called the Son of God, Luke i. 32, 34, 35. It also follows that, when the Lord God the Savior is approached, God the Father is also approached. Therefore the Lord gave this answer to Philip, who desired that He would show him the Father:
“He that seeth (A.V., hath seen) me, seeth the Father: and how sayest thou then, Shew us the Father? Believest thou not that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? Believe me that I am in the Father, and the Father in me. John xiv. 6-11.
But more may be seen on this subject in the chapters concerning God, the Lord, the Holy Spirit, and the Trinity.
Since without the Lord a man can do nothing, John xv. 5.
There will be confession, that the penitent sees, recognizes and acknowledges his evils, and perceives that he is a miserable sinner. There is no need to enumerate one’s sins before the Lord, or to supplicate for their remission. Their enumeration is unnecessary, because the penitent has already searched them out, and seen them in himself; and consequently they are present before the Lord, as they are present to himself. Moreover, the Lord led him in the work of examination, and, revealing his sins to him, inspired him with sorrow for them and at the same time with the endeavor to desist from them and begin a new life.
There are two reasons why supplication for the remission of sins need not be made before the Lord. The first is that sins are not abolished, but removed; and they are removed as a man afterwards desists from them and enters into the new life; for there are innumerable lusts involved in every evil as in a cluster, which cannot be removed in a moment but only by degrees, as a man suffers himself to be reformed and regenerated. The second reason is that the Lord, because He is mercy itself, remits the sins of all, and does not impute a single one to any man, for He says: “They know not what they do;” yet they are not on that account abolished. When Peter asked how often he should forgive his brother his trespasses, whether he should forgive him till seven times, the Lord replied:
“I say not unto thee, Until seven times: but, Until seventy times seven.” Matt. xviii. 21, 22.
What, then, will the Lord not do? Still it does no harm for one whose conscience is burdened, to enumerate his sins before a minister of the Church for the sake of absolution, in order that his burden may be lightened; for by this means he is led into the habit of examining himself, and of reflecting on the evils of each day. This confession, however, is natural, whereas that described above is spiritual.
“We are in the truth in Jesus Christ (A.V., we are in Him that is true, even in His Son Jesus Christ). This is the true God, and eternal life. Little children, keep yourselves from idols.” 1 Epist. v. 20, 21.
* The numbering here follows the original.
Actual repentance consists in a man’s examining himself, recognizing his sins, making confession before the Lord, and thus beginning a new life, according to the description given of it in the preceding pages. This repentance is extremely difficult for those in the Reformed Christian Church, by whom are meant all who are separated from the Roman Catholic Church, as well as those attached to this Church who have never practiced it. This is because some are unwilling and some are afraid to look into themselves. Moreover, disuse hardens the heart, encourages unwillingness and induces acquiescence in their attitude by specious reasoning; while with some it occasions sadness, dread and terror at the thought of it.
Actual repentance is extremely difficult for those in the Reformed Christian Church because of their belief that repentance and charity contribute nothing to salvation, but that faith alone is sufficient, from the imputation of which follow remission of sins, justification, renovation, regeneration, sanctification and eternal salvation, without man’s co-operation of himself or even as of himself. This co-operation their authorities term a vain thing, a hindrance to the merit of Christ, opposing it and doing violence to it. This teaching is implanted among the common people, who know nothing of the mysteries of that faith, by the mere repetition of the words, “Faith alone brings salvation,” and “No one can do good of himself.” The consequence is that with the Reformed, repentance is like a nest of young birds forsaken by their parents which have been taken by the fowler and killed. Moreover, every one of the Reformed, as they are called, is associated as to his spirit only with those in the spiritual world who are like himself; and these by influencing the ideas in his own mind towards such teaching, turn him away from introspection and self-examination
[2] I also asked, in their presence, some belonging to the Roman Catholic religion whether their actual confession before their ministers was a difficult matter. They replied that after they were initiated into it, they were not afraid to enumerate their sins before a confessor if he was not severe; and that they had a certain degree of pleasure in recollecting them, cheerfully recounting those of a lighter nature, but the more serious, timidly. They willingly repeated this customary duty every year, but after absolution they returned to their festivity; and they also regarded as impure all who would not disclose the defilement of their heart. On hearing this the Reformed who were present hastened away, some laughing and deriding, and some surprised, yet commending.
[3] Afterwards there came up some who were members of the Catholic Church, but who resided in Reformed countries. According to the usual practice there, they did not make individual confession, like their brethren elsewhere, but only took part in a general confession before their priest. They declared that they were wholly unable to examine themselves, to search out and bring to light their actual evils and the secrets of their thought; and that they felt it as repugnant and terrible to do so as they would to cross a trench to the rampart on which stood armed soldiers warning them not to approach. From this it may now be clear that actual repentance is easy with those who have occasionally practiced it, but extremely difficult for those who have never done so.
As few persons in the Reformed Christian world practice repentance, attention is drawn to this fact, that he who has not looked into and examined himself at length does not know what is condemnatory evil and what is saving good; for he has no religion to lead him to that knowledge. The evil which a man does not see, recognize and acknowledge, remains with him, and becomes more and more deeply rooted, until at length it closes up the interiors of his mind so that he becomes first natural, then sensual and at last corporeal. In all these states he is not aware of any condemnatory evil or saving good, and he becomes like a tree planted on a hard rock, which spreads its roots among the crevices, and at length withers away from lack of moisture.
[2] Every properly educated man is rational and moral; but there are two ways to rationality, one leading from the world and the other from heaven. He who becomes rational and moral from the world, and not also from heaven, is only rational and moral in outward speech and behavior, but inwardly he is a beast, in fact a wild beast, because he acts in unison with those who are in hell, where all are of this character. On the other hand, he who is rational and moral from both the world and heaven, is truly rational and moral, because he is so in spirit, speech and behavior. For the spiritual, which actuates the natural, the sensual and the corporeal, is within his speech and actions as their soul. Such a man also acts in unison with those who are in heaven. There is, then, a spiritually rational and moral man, and also a merely naturally rational and moral man. In the world these are indistinguishable, especially if the latter has acquired by practice the habit of hypocrisy; but by the angels in heaven they are distinguished as clearly as doves from owls, and as sheep from tigers.
[3] The merely natural man can see what is evil and what is good in others, and can also reprove others; but as he has not looked into and examined himself, he does not see any evil in himself; and if any is pointed out to him by some one else, he covers it over by plausible reasoning, as a serpent hides its head in the dust; or he plunges deeply into it as a hornet buries itself in mire. He acts thus from the delight of evil, which envelops him as a thick mist hangs over a marsh, absorbing and suffocating the rays of light. This is the delight of hell, which emanating thence, flows into every man, into the soles of his feet, the back, and the back part of the head. If it is allowed to enter the fore part of the head and the breast, the man then becomes a slave to hell; for the cerebrum of man is the seat of the understanding and of wisdom, but the cerebellum is the seat of the will and its love. It is for this reason that there are two brains. This infernal delight is amended, reformed and inverted only by means of what is spiritually rational and moral.
[2] Sensual men reason keenly and ingeniously, because their thought is so near their speech as to be almost in it, and, as it were, on their very lips, and because they make all intelligence consist in speaking from memory only. They are also expert in confirming falsities, and after establishing them, they believe them to be truths. Their reasoning and proofs, however, they base upon the fallacies of the senses, by which the majority of the people are deceived and persuaded. Sensual men are crafty and malicious above all others. The covetous, the adulterous and the deceitful are especially sensual, though to the world they appear intellectual. The interiors of their mind, because they communicate with the hells, are corrupt and filthy; and in the Word they are said to be dead. Those who are in the hells are sensual, and the more sensual they are, the deeper the hell they inhabit. The sphere of infernal spirits unites, from behind, with the sensual principle of man; and in the light of heaven the back part of their head appears to be hollow. Those who reasoned from sensual things alone were called by the ancients serpents of the tree of knowledge.
[3] Sensual things ought to be in the last place and not in the first; and with the wise and intelligent man they are in the last place, and kept in subjection to interior things; whereas with the foolish man they are in the first place, and have a controlling influence over him. When sensual things are in the lowest place, a passage is opened by them to the understanding, and whatever is true in them may be picked out and purified by a process of extraction. These sensual things stand nearest to the world and admit such things as flow in from the world, and as it were sift them. Man by sensual things has communication with the world, and by rational things with heaven. Sensual things furnish what is of service to the interior things of the mind. There are sensual things that minister to the intellectual part of the mind, and those that minister to the voluntary part. A man has but little wisdom unless his thought is elevated above sensual things; but when it is so elevated he comes into clearer light (lumen), and at length into the light (lux) of heaven; and he has a perception of the things that flow from heaven. Natural knowledge is the ultimate of the understanding, and sensual pleasure the ultimate of the will.
Every one knows that a hypocrite can talk about God, a thief about honesty, an adulterer about purity, and so on. But unless man were endowed with the power of closing and opening the door between thought and speech, and between intention and act, the door being kept by prudence or cunning, he would rush more furiously than any wild beast into abominations and cruelties. That door, however, is opened in every person after death, and then his true nature appears; but he is kept under restraint by punishment and custody in hell. Therefore, kind reader, look into yourself, search out one or more of the evils within you, and from a principle of religion, remove them; if you do so for any other reason or end, you only succeed in concealing them from the world.
* Vitus, Roman saint, martyred under Diocletian (A.D. 284-305). He is the patron saint of dancers, and his influence is besought against such diseases as chorea (known as St. Vitus’s dance), hydrophobia, and sudden death. Called also St. Guy.
To the above will be added the following Memorabilia. The first experience is as follows. I was once suddenly attacked by a disease that almost proved fatal. My whole head was racked with pain; a pestilential smoke blew in upon me from the Jerusalem called Sodom and Egypt, Rev. xi. 8; I was half dead with cruel pain, and I expected the end. Thus I lay in bed for three days and a half. It was my spirit that was so affected, and from it my body. I then heard around me voices of those who cried, “Lo! There lies dead in the street of our city he that preached repentance for the remission of sins, and the man Christ alone.” Then they asked some of the clergy whether he was worthy of burial; but they answered, “No; let him lie, as a spectacle to be looked at;” and they kept passing to and fro, and mocked. Of a truth this happened to me when I was writing the explanation of the eleventh chapter of the Revelation. Then I heard the scoffers saying sententiously such things as these: “How can repentance be performed without faith? How can the man Christ be adored as God? Since we are saved of free grace without any merit of our own, what need we but this faith only, that God the Father sent the Son to take away the condemnation of the law, to impute His merit to us and so justify us in His sight, to absolve us from our sins by the declaration of a priest, and then to give the Holy Spirit to work all good in us? These things are agreeable to Scripture, and also to reason.” All this the crowd standing by applauded.
[2] I heard these things, but had not the power to reply, as I lay almost dead. But after three days and a half my spirit recovered; and being in the spirit, I went from the street into the city, and said again, “Repent, and believe in Christ, and your sins will be remitted, and you will be saved; otherwise you will perish. The Lord Himself preached repentance for the remission of sins, and that men should believe in Him; and He commanded His disciples to preach the same. Does not the teaching of your faith result in complete unconcern regarding your life?” But they said: “What nonsense you are talking! The Son has made satisfaction; the Father imputes it to us, and justifies us who have believed this. We are led in this way by the spirit of grace, and therefore sin can have no place in us, and death can have no power over us. Do you understand this Gospel, you that preach sin and repentance”?”
Then a voice came down from heaven, saying: “The faith of an impenitent man is a dead faith. The end is come, the end is come upon you, satans, that are unconcerned, blameless in your own eyes, and justified in your own faith.” Then suddenly in the middle of the city an abyss opened up, which spread widely; and houses falling upon one another were engulfed; and presently water welled up from the wide chasm and overflowed the waste.
[3] When they were thus submerged and seemed to be overwhelmed, I desired to know the lot of those in the abyss; and a voice from heaven said to me: “You shall see and hear.” Thereupon the waters in which they seemed overwhelmed were dispersed before my eyes; for waters in the spiritual world are correspondences, and consequently appear to surround those who are in falsities. Then I saw them on a sandy stretch of land where heaps of stones were collected, among which they were running about, and lamenting that they had been cast out of their great city. They kept shouting and calling out, “Why has this befallen us? Are we not through our faith clean, pure, just and holy? Have we not through our faith been cleansed, purified, justified and sanctified?” Others cried out, “Are we not through our faith rendered fit to appear before God the Father, to be seen in His presence, to receive imputation, and to be declared clean, pure, just and holy before the angels? Are we not reconciled, propitiated, expiated, and thus absolved, washed and cleansed from our sins? Is not the condemnation of the law taken away by Christ? Why, then, are we cast into this place as condemned? We heard a bold preacher against sin say in our great city, ‘Believe in Christ and repent.’ Did we not believe in Christ when we believed in His merit? And did we not repent when we confessed that we were sinners? Why, then, has this befallen us?”
[4] Thereupon a voice close at hand was heard saying, “Do you know of any sin to which you are addicted? Have you examined yourselves, and in consequence shunned any evil as a sin against God? for he who does not shun sin remains in it, and sin is the devil. You are, therefore, those of whom the Lord says:
“Then shall ye begin to say, We have eaten and drunk in thy presence, and thou hast taught in our streets. But He shall say, I tell you, I know you not whence ye are: depart from me, all ye workers of iniquity. Luke xiii. 26, 27; Matt. vii. 22, 23.
Depart, therefore, every one to his own place. You see those openings into caverns? Enter, and work shall be given each of you to do, and afterwards food in proportion to your work. If you refuse to enter, hunger will nevertheless compel you.”
[5] Then there came a voice from heaven to some on the earth who were outside that great city, and who are mentioned in Rev. xi. 13, crying aloud, “Take heed; beware of associating with such as these. Can you not understand that evils, which are called sins and iniquities, render a man unclean and impure? How can a man be cleansed and purified from them but by actual repentance and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ? Now actual repentance consists in a man’s examining himself, recognizing and acknowledging his sins, owning that he is guilty of them, confessing them before the Lord, imploring help and power to resist them, and thus desisting from them and leading a new life, and doing all this as of himself. Do this once or twice a year, when you come to the Holy Communion; and afterwards, when the sins of which you have been guilty present themselves, then say to yourselves, ‘We will not commit them because they are sins against God.’ This is actual repentance.
[6] “Every one can understand that the man who does not search out and see his sins remains in them; for from his birth all evil is delightful to him. You know it is delightful to take revenge, to commit fornication, to defraud, to blaspheme, and especially to domineer over others from the love of self. The delight these evils afford prevents them from being recognized as sins; and should it be pointed out that they are sins, that delight causes you to make excuses for them, and indeed to prove by falsities that they are not sins. Thus you continue in them, and afterwards practice them more than before, till you do not know what sin is, or whether there is any such thing. It is otherwise with the man who actually repents. The evils in himself which he recognizes and acknowledges, he calls sins, and on that account begins to shun them and to turn away from them; and at length he no longer finds delight in them. In proportion as this is the case, he sees and loves what is good, and at length finds delight in it; and this is the delight of the angels of heaven. In a word, so far as any one renounces the devil, he is adopted by the Lord, and by Him is taught, led, withheld from evil and kept in good. This is the way, and there is no other, that leads away from hell to heaven.”
[7] It is a remarkable fact that the Reformed have a certain deep-rooted repugnance to actual repentance. This is so intense that they cannot bring themselves to practice self-examination, to see their sins, and confess them before God; they are seized as it were, with horror at the thought of it. I have questioned many of them in the spiritual world concerning this, and they all declared it was beyond their power. When they were informed that the Roman Catholics constantly do so, that is, that they examine themselves and openly confess their sins before a monk, they were greatly astonished; more especially as the Reformed cannot do the same in private before God, although it is equally enjoined upon them before they come to the Holy Supper. Some of them inquired into the cause of this, and they found that it was the doctrine of faith alone which induced this impenitent state of heart; and it was then granted them to see that those Roman Catholics who worship Christ, and do not invoke saints, are saved.
[8] After this there was heard a sound as of thunder, and a voice speaking from heaven, saying: “We are astonished! Say to the assembly of the Reformed, ‘Believe in Christ, and repent, and you will be saved.'” I did so, and added: “Baptism is a sacrament of repentance, and thus an introduction into the Church; for the sponsors promise for the one about to be baptized that he will renounce the devil and his works. The Holy Supper is also a sacrament of repentance, and thus an introduction into heaven; for it is announced to communicants that they ought to repent, as far as in them lies, before coming to it. The Decalogue, that is, the Catechism of the universal doctrine of the Christian Church, teaches repentance; for there, in the six precepts of the second table, it is said: ‘Thou shalt not do this and that evil,’ and not, ‘Thou shalt do this and that good.’ Hence you may know, that as far as any one renounces and turns away from evil, he desires and loves good; and that before this takes place he does not know what good is, nor even what evil is.”
[2] After they have said these things, angels come to them and say: “All those things which you have mentioned you have done externally; but as yet you do not know what your internal character is. You are now spirits in substantial bodies, and the spirit is your internal man, which thinks according to its will, and wills according to its love, and to act thus is the delight of its life. Every man from his infancy enters upon life from externals, learning to act morally and to speak intelligently. When he acquires some idea of heaven and of the blessedness there, he begins to pray, to attend church and to perform the rites of worship. Nevertheless, when evils spring up from their native fountain he harbors them in the recesses of his mind, and also ingeniously veils them over by reasoning from fallacies, until at length he does not know that evil is evil. After this, as his evils are veiled over and covered as it were by dust, he no longer thinks about them, only taking care to prevent them from appearing before the world. Thus he studies only to lead a moral life in externals; and so he leads a double life, being a sheep in externals and in internals a wolf. He is like a golden casket with poison within; or like a person with a foul breath, keeping in his mouth a fragrant smelling substance to prevent those near from perceiving it, or like a perfumed mouse-skin.
[3] “You said that you have lived moral lives and followed pious pursuits; but,” continued the speaker, “have you ever examined your internal man and there perceived any desires prompting you to take vengeance even to the death, to indulge in lust even to adultery, to defraud even to theft, to lie even to bearing false witness? In four commandments of the Decalogue it is said, Thou shalt not do such things; and in the last two, Thou shalt not covet, etc. Do you believe that your internal man, with respect to these evils, is like your external? If you do, perhaps you are mistaken.”
[4] To this they replied: “What is the internal man? Is not this and the external man one and the same? We have heard from our ministers that the internal man is nothing but faith, and that pious discourse and a moral life are the signs of faith, being its operation.” The angels answered: “Saving faith is in the internal man, and so also is charity; and these are the source of Christian faithfulness and morality in the external man. If, however, the lusts which have just been mentioned remain in the internal man, thus in the will and thence in the thought, and so if you love them interiorly, and yet in externals act and speak otherwise, then evil in you is above good, and good is below evil. Therefore, whatever appearance of understanding there may be in your speech, and of love in your actions, evil is within, and in this way is concealed. Then you resemble cunning apes, which act like human beings; but their heart is far from human.
[5] “But the nature of your internal man, of which you are entirely ignorant, because you have not examined yourselves, and have not repented after examination, you will see presently, when you are divested of the external man and enter into the life of the internal. When this happens, you will no longer be recognized by your companions, nor even by yourselves. We have seen moral persons, but wicked, in such circumstances become like wild beasts, glaring at their neighbor with ferocious glances, burning with deadly hatred and blaspheming God, whom in the external man they had worshiped.” As they departed on hearing this the angels declared: “You will see your lot in life hereafter; for presently your external man will be taken from you, and you will enter into the internal, which is now your spirit.”
[2] The odors, into which the delights of loves are turned in heaven, are all perceived as the fragrant scents, sweet perfumes, pleasant emanations and delightful perceptions which arise from gardens, flower-beds, fields and woods on spring mornings; but the odors, into which are turned the delights of the loves of those who are in hell, are perceived as the nauseous stenches which arise from cess-pools, dead bodies and stagnant ponds filled with rubbish and filth; and what is also remarkable, the devils and satans there perceive those odors as the perfume of balm, spices and incense, refreshing to their nostrils and hearts. Moreover, in the natural world beasts, birds and insects have the faculty of associating according to their odors; but it is not so with men until they have laid aside their bodies as serpents cast their out-worn skins. [3] Hence it is that heaven is arranged with most minute distinctions according to all the varieties of the love of good; and hell, as its opposite, according to all the varieties of the love of evil. Owing to this contrariety, there is between heaven and hell a gulf which cannot be crossed; for those in heaven cannot endure any of the odors of hell, as these cause loathing and sickness and tend to cause swooning, if inhaled. The same happens to those in hell if they pass the middle of that gulf.
[4] I once saw a certain devil who appeared at a distance like a leopard, and who, a few days before, made his appearance among some angels of the lowest heaven, for he possessed the art of changing into an angel of light. He passed the middle of the gulf and was standing between two olive trees, without being sensible of any odor offensive to him. This was because no angels were present; but as soon as some approached he was seized with convulsions and he fell down with all his limbs contracted. Then he appeared like a great serpent writhing in its coils, and he finally rolled down across the gulf. He was met by his associates and taken to a cavern where he was revived by the offensive odor of his own delight.
[5] I once also saw a certain satan being punished by his associates. I asked the reason, and was informed that he had stopped his nostrils and approached some who were in the odor of heaven; and on his return had brought back that odor with him on his clothing. Sometimes a foul smell like that of a corpse, coming from some open cavern of hell, has just touched my nostrils and brought on sickness. Hence it may be evident why smelling, in the Word, signifies perception; for it is frequently said that Jehovah smelt a grateful odor from the burnt-offerings; and also that the oil of anointing and incense were prepared from fragrant spices; and on the other hand, why the children of Israel were commanded to carry all unclean things out of the camp; and also to dig a hole for their excrement and cover it in the ground, Deut. xxiii. 12, 13. This was because the camp of Israel represented heaven, and the wilderness outside the camp represented hell.
[2] Then the novitiate spirit said to himself: “What does this mean, Inquire and learn what delight is, and you will know what heaven and hell are, and what each is like?” Presently he wandered from the spot and addressed all those he met, saying, “Pray tell me, if you please, what delight is.” Some replied, “What a strange question! Who does not know what delight is? Is it not joy and gladness? Delight then, is just delight, one delight resembling another, and we see no difference between them. Others said: “Delight is the laughter of the mind, for when the mind laughs, the countenance is merry, the discourse jocular, the gestures sportive and the whole man delighted.” Some, however, said: “Delight consists in feasting, eating dainties, drinking generous wine to intoxication, and at the same time conversing on various subjects, especially the sports of Venus* and Cupid.”
[3] On hearing these things the novitiate spirit somewhat angrily said to himself: “These are the answers of clowns, and not of cultured men. These delights do not constitute either heaven or hell. Would that I could meet some wise persons. So he left these, and inquired where the wise were to be found. He was then observed by a certain angelic spirit who said: “I perceive you have an ardent desire to know the universal characteristic of heaven and of hell; and since delight is this characteristic, I will take you to the top of a hill where there is a daily assembly of those who inquire into effects, of those who investigate causes and of those who examine ends. There, those who inquire into effects are called spirits of knowledge, and in the abstract, knowledges; those who investigate causes are called spirits of intelligence, and in the abstract, intelligences; and those who examine ends are called spirits of wisdom, and in the abstract, wisdoms. Directly above them, in heaven, are angels who from ends see causes, and from causes, effects; and from these angels the three assemblies receive enlightenment.”
[4] Then, taking the novitiate spirit by the hand, he led him to the top of the hill and introduced him to the assembly of those who examine ends, and who are called wisdoms; and the novitiate spirit said to them: “Pardon my coming up to you. I have come because from my youth I have meditated about heaven and hell. I have lately entered this world, and some who were then associated with me said that while here heaven is above my head and hell beneath my feet; but as they did not say what heaven and hell are, and what each is like, from continual thought about them I became anxious, and prayed to God for information. Then an angel stood by me and said, ‘Inquire and learn what delight is and you will know.’ I have made inquiry, but so far in vain. I beg you, therefore, please teach me what delight is.”
[5] To this the spirits of wisdom replied: “Delight is the all of life to every one in heaven, and to every one in hell. To those in heaven it is delight in what is good and true, but to those in hell it is delight in what is evil and false. For all delight pertains to love, and love is the being (esse) of man’s life; and as a man is a man according to the nature of his love, so is he also according to the nature of his delight. The activity of love produces the sense of delight; and in heaven this activity is attended with wisdom, but in hell with madness; and in both cases it occasions delight. The heavens and the hells, however, are in opposite kinds of delight, the heavens being in the love of good and thence in the delight of doing good; but the hells are in the love of evil and thence in the delight of doing evil. If, therefore, you know that the delight is, you will know what heaven and hell are, and what each is like. Inquire, however, and learn further what delight is from those who investigate causes, and are called intelligences; they meet some distance from this place on your right.”
[6] So he departed, and approached their assembly. He explained the reason of his coming, and entreated them to inform him what delight is. They were pleased at his enquiry and said: “It is true that he who knows what delight is, knows also what heaven and hell are, and what each is like. The will, by virtue of which a man is a man, is never affected in the slightest degree except by delight. For the will, regarded in itself, is nothing but the affection of some love, and consequently of some delight; and the will is actuated by that which is agreeable, and which, therefore, gives satisfaction. Because the will moves the understanding to think there is not the least thought which is not the result of the inflowing delight of the will. The reason of this is that the Lord, by an influx of love and wisdom from Himself, actuates all things in the soul and in the mind of angels, spirits and men. This influx is that activity itself from which springs all delight; and in its source it is called blessed, fortunate and happy; in its derived forms, delightful, pleasant and agreeable; and in its universal sense, good. As infernal spirits invert all things in themselves, they turn good into evil, and truth into falsity; but the delight still remains, for without it they would have neither will nor sensation; and consequently would not have life. From this it is clear what the delight of hell is, its nature and its source; and also what the delight of heaven is, its nature and its source.”
[7] After hearing these things he was taken to the third assembly consisting of those who inquire into effects and who are called knowledges. They said: “Descend to the lower earth, and ascend to the higher; in these you will perceive and feel the delights both of heaven and of hell.” Thereupon, at some distance from them the earth opened up, and through the chasm there came up three devils, evidently aglow with the delight of their love. As the angels who were with the novitiate spirit perceived that these were sent purposely from hell, they called to them, “Come no nearer; but from where you are tell us something of your delights.
The devils replied: “Know then, that every one, whether he be called good or evil, enjoys his own delight; he that is called good is in the enjoyment of his delight, and he that is called evil, in the enjoyment of his.” Then the angels asked, “What is your delight?” They said it was delight in fornication, revenge, fraud and blasphemy. They were further asked, “What do these delights appear like to you?” They said they were perceived by others as noisome odors from dung-hills, putrid carcases and stagnant urine. “And are these,” asked the angels, “delightful to you?” They replied, “Yes; most delightful.” “Then,” said the angels, “you are like the unclean beasts that wallow in such things.” They answered, “Be it so; but such things are a delight to our nostrils.” On being asked to say more on this matter they replied: “Every one is allowed the enjoyment of his delight, even though it be called most unclean, provided he does not infest good spirits and angels. But because our delight is such that we cannot refrain from molesting them, we are put into workhouses, where our sufferings are great. The restraint upon our delights in these places, and the denial of their satisfaction are what are called the torments of hell. There is present also an interior pain.” The angels further asked, “Why do you infest the good?” “We cannot do otherwise,” they replied. “It is as if a frenzy takes hold of us when we see any angel, and perceive the Divine sphere of the Lord about him.” Thereupon we replied, “In this also you are like wild beasts;” and presently, when they noticed the novitiate spirit with the angels, there came upon them an infernal frenzy which seemed like the fire of hatred. Therefore, lest they should do any harm, they were sent back to hell.
After this there appeared the angels who from ends see causes, and by causes effects, and who were in heaven above those three assemblies. They were seen in a gleaming white light which, as it came down in spiral curves, brought with it a garland of flowers, and placed it on the head of the novitiate spirit. Then a voice came from the light, saying, “This crown of honor is given to you, because from your childhood you have meditated upon heaven and hell.”
* Venus, goddess of love.
REFORMATION AND REGENERATION
Repentance having been treated of, consideration of reformation and regeneration comes next in their order, for these follow repentance and are promoted by it. There are two states which a man must enter and pass through as he progresses from the natural to the spiritual. The first state is called reformation, and the other regeneration. In the first, a man looks from his natural state towards the spiritual and desires to attain it; in the second, he becomes a spiritual natural man. The first state is formed by means of truths which will belong to faith, and by which he looks towards charity; the second is formed by means of the goods of charity, by which he enters into the truths of faith; or, what is the same thing, the first is a state of thought from the understanding, the other is a state of love from the will. When this state begins, and as it progresses, a change, a complete turn round as it were, takes place in the mind; for the love of the will flows into the understanding, guiding and leading it to think in agreement with its love. Therefore, as far as the good of love plays a leading part in a man’s life, and the truths of faith a secondary part, the man is spiritual, and a new creature. He then acts from charity, and speaks from faith; he feels the good of charity, and perceives the truth of faith. He is then in the Lord and in peace, and thus regenerated. A man who in the world has entered upon the first state, can after death be introduced into the second; but he who has not entered upon the first state while in the world, cannot be introduced into the second after death, and thus cannot be regenerated. These two states may be compared to the daily progression of light and heat in the spring; the first to the break of dawn or the end of the last night watch, the second to early morning and sunrise; and the progression of this latter state may be compared to the advance of day to noon, and thus to light and heat. It may also be compared to the corn harvest, which is at first the blade, then the beard and ear, and lastly the corn in the ear; and also to a tree, which first sprouts forth from a seed in the earth. Then it becomes a stalk with branches shooting forth, adorned with leaves and afterwards with blossoms. In the heart of the flowers it begins the formation of the fruits, which as they ripen produce new seeds like a new generation. The first state, which is that of reformation, may also be compared to the state of the silkworm, as it draws forth from itself and spins its threads of silk. After its industrious toil is over, however, it flies forth into the air, and feeds not as before on leaves, but on the juices in flowers.
That a man cannot enter the kingdom of God unless he is born again, is the teaching of the Lord in John, where He said to Nicodemus:
“Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God;”
and again:
“Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.” John iii. 3, 5, 6.
The kingdom of God signifies both heaven and the Church; for the kingdom of God on earth is the Church. The same is meant in other passages where the kingdom of God is mentioned,
as in Matt. xi. 11; xii. 28; xxi. 43; Luke iv. 43; vi. 20; viii. 1, 10; ix. 11, 60, 62; xvii. 21; and elsewhere.
To be born of water and the Spirit, signifies by means of the truths of faith and a life in conformity with them. Water signifies truths, as may be seen in The Apocalypse Revealed, Nos. 50, 614, 615, 885, 932. Spirit signifies a life in agreement with Divine truths, as is evident from the Lord’s words in John vi. 63. “Verily, verily,” signifies that it is the truth; and because the Lord was the truth itself, therefore He so often used that expression. He is also called the Amen, Rev. iii. 14. In the Word the regenerate are called sons of God, and born of God; and regeneration is described by a new heart and a new spirit.
“Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me.” Ps. ii. 10.
“Thou openest thine hand, they are filled with good … Thou sendest forth thy spirit, they are created.” Ps. civ. 28, 30.
“The people which shall be created shall praise JAH.” Ps. cii. 18.
“Behold, I create Jerusalem a rejoicing.” Isa. lxv. 18.
“Thus saith JEHOVAH, thy Creator (A.V., that created thee) O Jacob, and thy Former (A.V., he that formed thee), O Israel … I have redeemed thee … every one that is called by my name: for I have created him for my glory.” Isa. xliii. 1, 7.
“That they may see, and know, and consider, and understand … that the Holy One of Israel hath created it.” Isa. xli. 20.
There are also other passages and some where the Lord is called Creator, Former and Maker. Hence it is plain what is meant by these words of the Lord to His disciples:
“Go ye into all the world, and preach the Gospel to every creature.” Mark xvi. l5.
By creatures are meant all who can be regenerated, as may also be seen in Rev. iii. 14; and in 2 Cor. v. 16, 17.
The natural man, regarded in himself, differs in nature not at all from the beasts. He is, indeed, like a wild beast as regards his will, but he differs from the beasts as regards his understanding; for this can be raised above the lusts of the will, and can not only perceive them but also control them. For this reason a man can think from his understanding and speak from his thought, which beasts cannot do. What a man’s nature is by birth, and what it would be if he were not regenerated, may be seen from savage animals of every kind. He would be a tiger, a panther, a leopard, a wild boar, a scorpion, a tarantula, a viper, a crocodile, and so on. Unless, therefore, he were transformed into a sheep by regeneration, what would he be but a devil among devils in hell? If, then, such men were not restrained by the laws of their country, would they not, from their innate ferocity, assault and kill one another, or despoil one another of their last garment? Many men by birth are satyrs, lewd creatures,** or four-footed reptiles; and not one of them but would become an ape, unless he were regenerated. External morality, which a man assumes for the purpose of concealing his inner nature, contributes to this state.
* This is 474 in Orig: Ed.
** Priapus, god of procreation, lewd spirit or god.
“The cormorant and the bittern shall possess it; the owl also and the raven shall dwell in it: and he shall stretch out upon it the line of emptiness (A.V., confusion), and the plummets of desolation (A.V., stones of emptiness)… And thorns shall come up upon her altars (A.V., in her palaces), nettles and brambles in the fortresses thereof; and it shall be an habitation of dragons, and a court for daughters of the owl. The ziim (A.V., wild beasts of the desert) shall also meet with the ijim (A.V., wild beasts of the island), and the satyr shall cry to his fellow; the lilith (A.V., the screech owl) also shall rest there…. There shall the black bird (A.V., great owl) make her nest and lay, and gather and hatch under her shadow: there shall the vultures also be gathered, every one with her mate.” Isa. xxxiv. 11, 13, 14, 15.
That regeneration is effected by the Lord by means of charity and faith, follows from what was proved in the chapters on Charity and Faith, and especially from this article, “The Lord, charity and faith make one, like life, will and understanding; and if they are divided, each perishes like a pearl reduced to powder.” [No. 382.] These two, charity and faith, are called means, because they conjoin man with the Lord, and so cause charity to be charity and faith to be faith. This co-operation could not take place unless man took some part in regeneration; and, therefore, it is said that this work is effected with man’s co-operation. In the preceding chapters man’s co-operation with the Lord has occasionally been mentioned; but man’s mind is so conditioned that he fancies that he performs this work by his own power alone, and therefore this subject will be further illustrated.
In all motion, and consequently in every action, there is an active and a passive, that is, something which acts as an agent, and something which reacts in response to the activity of the agent, the two combining to constitute one single action. Thus the mill is set in motion by the mill-wheel, the carriage by the horse, motion is set up by effort, an effect is produced by its cause, inertia is overcome by energy, and, in general, the instrumental is actuated by the principal. In all these examples it is clear that the two together produce a single action. As regards charity and faith, the Lord acts and man acts from the Lord, for the active of the Lord is present in the passive of man. The power of acting aright, therefore, is from the Lord, but the desire to act appears to be man’s own, because he enjoys free will. From this he has the power to act together with the Lord, and thus to be conjoined to Him; but he can also act from the power of hell, which is outside the Divine sphere, and thus to be separated from Him. Man’s action, when it is in harmony with that of the Lord, is what is here meant by co-operation; but in order that the reader may have a clearer idea of the subject, it will be illustrated by additional comparisons.
* Cooperatio. Reaction is properly the reflex action, automatic or involuntary, of a passive object. Co-operation is the activity of what is at first a passive object. When, however, the first reflex response has been made, the object has the capacity to continue working in harmony with the motivating agent. In the case of man he has the capacity to continue voluntarily such work. Reaction may imply continued action not in voluntary harmony. It would appear to be better to translate cooperatio by co-operation and not by reaction.
That he who is not born again cannot see the kingdom of God, John iii. 3, 5, 6.
Regeneration, therefore, is the means of salvation, and charity and faith are the means of regeneration. It is utterly vain to suppose that regeneration results from the faith of the present Church, which excludes man’s co-operation.
[2] Action and co-operation, as have been described above, may be seen in every thing that is in a state of activity and mobility. The action and co-operation of the heart and its whole arterial system are of this kind; the heart acts, and the arteries, by their sheaths or coats, co-operate, and the circulation of the blood results. It is similar with the lungs; the air acts by pressure according to the height of the atmosphere, and the ribs first co-operate with the lungs, and immediately afterwards the lungs with the ribs, and the respiration of every membrane of the body results. It is in this way that the meninges of the brain, the pleura, the peritoneum, the diaphragm and the other membranes which cover the viscera, and which enter into their composition, act and are acted upon, and so co-operate, for they are in their natures elastic; and thus their existence and subsistence result. The case is similar in every fibre and nerve, in every muscle, and even in every cartilage, in every one of which, as is well known, there are action and co-operation.
[3] Such co-operation exists too, in all the senses; for the organs of sense, like those of motion in the body, consist of fibres, membranes and muscles. To describe the co-operation in each case is needless; for it is well known that light acts on the eye, sound on the ear, odor on the nostril, and taste on the tongue, and that the organs adapt themselves to such action; and thus sensation results. Any one may perceive then, that unless there were in the spiritual organism of the brain such action and co-operation with the inflowing life, thought and will could not exist. For life from the Lord flows into that organism, and as this co-operates, all that is thought, weighed, concluded and determined to be done, is rationally comprehended. If life alone were to act, and man did not co-operate as of himself, he could no more think than the stock of a tree, or than a church building whilst the minister is preaching. He may indeed, perceive something, caused by the reverberation of sound, coming from its doors, as an echo, but not a word of a sermon.* This is what man would be like unless he co-operated with the Lord in the matter of charity and faith.
* hic quidem ex repercussione soni e valvis ejus potest sentire sicut echo, sed nihil sermonis. Hic, the subject of the sentence, is masculine referring to homo or minister, and not the templum, a church building. Other translations make church the subject. The meaning supported by the context seems to be: He may hear a church building produce an echo but not a word of a sermon. A church has not the faculty of thought: it can react but not co-operate.
That this may be understood, something must first be said concerning redemption. The Lord came into the world chiefly for these two purposes, to remove hell from angels and men, and to glorify His Human. For, before the Lord’s coming, hell had so increased as to infest the angels of heaven, and also, by interposing between heaven and the world, to intercept the Lord’s communication with men on earth; and thus no Divine Truth or Good could pass from the Lord to mankind. Consequently, the whole human race was threatened with total condemnation, and the angels, moreover, could not long have continued in their integrity.
[2] In order, therefore, that hell might be driven back, and this impending condemnation averted, the Lord came into the world, and, removing hell, subjugated it and thus opened up heaven. He did this that He might thereafter be present with men on earth, and save those that lived according to His commandments, and consequently regenerate as well as save them; for it is those who are saved that are regenerated. This is what is meant when it is said that all, having been redeemed, can be regenerated; and as regeneration and salvation constitute one, that all can be saved. The doctrine, therefore, which the Church teaches, that unless the Lord had come into the world no one could have been saved, is to be understood in this way, that unless He had come into the world no one could have been regenerated.
[3] The other purpose for which the Lord came into the world was to glorify His Human; because in this way He became the Redeemer, Regenerator and Savior for ever. For it must not be supposed that by the redemption once wrought in the world, all were, thereafter, redeemed; but that He is continually redeeming those who believe on Him and keep His commandments. More, however, may be seen on these subjects in the chapter on Redemption.
[3] All can be regenerated and thus saved because the Lord with His Divine Good and Truth is present with every man. From this presence every one has life, and hence the faculty of understanding and the faculty of willing, and to these is added free will in spiritual things. These gifts are wanting in no man; and means for their use are also provided; for Christians these are to be found in the Word, and for Gentiles in the religion of any one which teaches that there is a God, and sets forth precepts respecting good and evil. From all this it follows that every one can be saved; consequently if a man is not saved, the fault is not the Lord’s but man’s, because he fails to co-operate with the Lord.
That He would not take away one tittle of the law, Matt. v. 18, 19; Luke xvi. 17;
and His command to His disciples,
That they should preach repentance for the remission of sins, Luke xxiv. 47; Mark vi. 12;
and His express words,
“The kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the Gospel.” Mark i. 15.
By the Gospel is meant, that they can be regenerated and thus saved. This would not be possible unless the Lord had wrought redemption, that is, unless by His combats against hell and His victories over it He had deprived it of its power, and unless He had glorified His Human, or made it Divine.
If faith alone regenerated a man, and not repentance and charity, the internal man, which is his spirit that lives after death, would resemble a burnt-out city, its ruins forming the external man; or a field or plain laid waste by caterpillars and locusts. A man who believes in faith alone appears to angels like one who cherishes a serpent in his bosom, covering it with his cloak to prevent its being seen. He is also like one who sleeps as a sheep in company with a wolf; or like one who lies down under a beautiful bed-quilt in a night-dress woven of spiders’ webs. To those who hold this belief, after death, when all in heaven are distinguished by their advancement in regeneration and all in hell by their refusal to be regenerated, life would be merely a carnal existence, and thus like the life of a fish or a crab.
In man there is a continuous correspondence between those things that take place naturally and those that take place spiritually, or between what is done in the body and what is done in the spirit. This is because man is born spiritual as to his soul, and is clothed with what is natural, which forms his material body; and when this is laid aside, his soul, clothed with a spiritual body, enters into a world where all things are spiritual, and is there associated with its like. Now the spiritual body must be formed in the material body, and is formed by means of truths and goods which, flowing in from the Lord through the spiritual world, are received by man interiorly in such things in him as are from the natural world, which are called civil and moral. It is evident, therefore, what must be the nature of its formation. And since, as was just stated, there is in man a continuous correspondence between what takes place naturally and what takes place spiritually, it follows that the stages of spiritual regeneration answer to those of natural conception, gestation, birth and education. It is for this reason that in the Word natural births mean spiritual births, which have relation to good and truth; for whatever occurs in the sense of the Letter of the Word, which is the natural sense, involves and signifies something spiritual. In the chapter on The Sacred Scripture it was fully proved that in every part of the sense of the Letter of the Word there is a spiritual sense.
That the natural births mentioned in the Word involve spiritual births is plain from the following passages:
“We have been with child, we have been in pain, we have as it were brought forth…. We have not wrought any deliverance.” Isa. xxvi. 18.
“At the presence of the Lord the earth travaileth” (A.V., Tremble, thou earth, at the presence of the Lord). Ps. cxiv. 7.
“Hath the earth brought forth in one day?…. Shall I break and not beget?…. Shall I cause to bring forth, and not have shut up?” (A.V., Shall the earth be made to bring forth in one day?… Shall I bring to the birth, and not beget? … Shall I cause to bring forth, and shut the womb?). Isa. lxvi. 8-10.
“Sin travaileth, and No shall be for the breaking forth” (A.V., Sin shall have great pain, and No shall be rent asunder). Ezek. xxx. 16.
“The sorrows of a travailing woman shall come upon Ephraim (A.V., him); he is an unwise son; for he doth not stay his time in the womb of sons.” Hos. xiii. 12, 13.
There are many other similar passages. Since natural births, when mentioned in the Word, signify spiritual births, and these are from the Lord, He is called the Former, and He that bringeth forth from the womb, as is evident from the following passages:
“JEHOVAH, thy Maker, and Former from the womb” (A.V., the Lord that made thee, and formed thee from the womb). Isa. xliv. 2.
“He that took me out from the womb.” Ps. xxii. 9.
“By thee have I been holden up from the womb: thou art He that took me out of my mother’s bowels.” Ps. lxxi. 6.
“Hearken unto me … which are borne … from the belly, which are carried from the womb.” Isa. xlvi. 3; and from other passages.
The Lord is, therefore, called Father,
as in Isa. ix. 6; lxiii. 16; John x. 30; xiv. 8, 9;
and those who are in goods and truths from Him are called
sons and born of God, and brethren one among another, Matt. xxiii. 8;
and the Church is called
mother, Hos. ii. 2, 5; Ezek. xvi. 45.
There is, moreover, a correspondence between the regeneration of man and all things in the vegetable kingdom; and in the Word, therefore, man is described by a tree, his truth by seed and his goodness by fruit. A worthless tree may be as it were born anew, and afterwards bear good fruit and good seed, as is evident from grafting and budding; for although the same sap ascends from the root through the trunk to the graft or bud, yet it is there changed into good sap, and makes the tree good. The case is similar in the Church with those who are engrafted in the Lord, as He Himself teaches in these words:
“I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit:… If a man abideth not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered” … and is cast into the fire, John xv. 5, 6.
[2] As soon as the earth opens a seed, it begins from its root, which is like a heart, and from it transmits sap, like blood, and thus forms a kind of body furnished with members. The stem itself is the body of the plant, and the branches with their twigs are its members. The leaves which it puts forth immediately after its birth are in the place of lungs; for as the heart without the lungs produces neither motion nor sense, and thus does not impart life to a man, so neither does the root alone, without the leaves, cause a tree or shrub to grow. The flowers which precede the fruit are the means of purifying the sap, which is the blood, and of separating the grosser from the purer parts. They also form within themselves, for the influx of these purer substances, a new and tender stalk through which the purified sap may flow, and thus initiate and by successive steps form the fruit, which may be compared to the testis, in which new seeds are formed. The vegetative soul, or its prolific essence, which interiorly is the governing principle in every particle of sap, proceeds solely from the heat of the spiritual world. This heat, being derived from the spiritual sun in that world, has a perpetual tendency to generation, and thus to a continuance of creation; and because it has essentially a tendency towards the generation of man, it therefore induces upon whatever it generates a certain resemblance to man.
[3] That no one should be surprised at the statement that the subjects of the vegetable kingdom are males only, and that the earth alone, or the soil, is as a common mother, or as the female, this will be illustrated by what holds among bees. These, according to Swammerdam* in his Biblia Naturae, have but one common mother, from which the progeny of the whole hive is produced. If these little creatures have only one common mother, why not all plants?
[4] That the earth is a common mother can also be spiritually illustrated. It is illustrated by this fact, that in the Word the earth signifies the Church, and the Church is the common mother, as she is also called in the Word. That the earth signifies the Church is shown in The Apocalypse Revealed, Nos. 285, 902. Moreover, the earth or soil can penetrate to the inmost of the seed, even to its prolific essence, and can draw this forth and diffuse it, because each particle of soil or dust exhales from its essence something fine like an emanation, which has the power of penetration. This takes place owing to the active force of the heat which proceeds from the spiritual world.
* Swammerdam. He devoted himself to Natural History, especially to the dissection of insects. He wrote, GENERAL HISTORY OF INSECTS and A HISTORY OF THE DAY-FLY, A.D. 1681.
Since reformation and regeneration are treated of here and in the following articles, reformation being ascribed to the understanding and regeneration to the will, it is necessary that the distinctions between the understanding and the will should be known. As these have been described above in No. 397, it is advisable that it should be read over before the contents of this article. It was shown in that number that the evils into which man is born are implanted in the will of the natural man, and that the will induces the understanding to favor it by thinking in agreement with it. Therefore, that man may be regenerated, it is necessary that it be done by means of the understanding, as by a mediate cause; and this is effected by the instruction which the understanding receives, first from teachers and parents, and afterwards from reading the Word, from sermons, books and conversation. What the understanding thus receives are called truths, so that it is the same whether it is said that reformation is effected by means of the understanding or by means of the truths which it receives. For truths instruct a man in whom and in what he ought to believe, and also what he ought to do, as whatever a man does, he does from the will according to the understanding. Since, then, the will of man itself is by birth evil, and the understanding teaches what is evil and what is good, and he has the power to will, or not to will, either the one or the other, it follows that he must be reformed by means of the understanding. So long as he sees and acknowledges in his own mind that evil is evil, and that good is good, and thinks that good ought to be chosen, that state is called reformation; but when he determines to shun evil and do good, then commences the state of regeneration.
Moreover, unless the understanding could be perfected separately, and the will by means of it, a man would not be a man but a beast; for without that separation, and the elevation of the understanding above the will, he would not be able to think and to speak from thought, but only to utter sounds expressive of his affection. He would not be able to act from reason, but from instinct; and much less would he be able to know the things that pertain to God, and God Himself by means of them, and so to be conjoined to God, and live for ever. For a man thinks and wills as of himself; and this “as of himself” is the reciprocal element in conjunction; for conjunction is not possible without reciprocation, as there can be no conjunction of an active with a passive without adaptation or responsive action. God alone acts, and man suffers himself to be acted upon and co-operates to all appearance as of himself, although interiorly from God. From a right perception of these truths may be seen the nature of the love of a man’s will, if elevated by means of the understanding, and its nature if not so elevated; and thus the nature of the man.
Some of them can counterfeit angels of light, both among men on earth and, after death, among angels of heaven; but after a short examination they are stripped of their garments and cast down naked. Action like this cannot be taken against them while in the world because their spirit is not open but covered with a mask, like actors on the stage. They can counterfeit angels of light in face and speech because, and this may serve also as proof, they can elevate their understanding almost to angelic wisdom, as was said above. As a man’s internal and external can thus run counter to each other, and as the body is cast off after death, and the spirit remains, it is now evident that a dark spirit may put on a bright countenance and a fiery one may be charming in speech. Therefore, my friend, form your judgment of men not from their lips but from their hearts, not from their words but from their actions; for the Lord says:
“Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves. Ye shall know them by their fruits.” Matt. vii. 15, 16.
That the internal man must be regenerated first, and by means of it the external, is a doctrine commonly insisted upon in the Church at the present day; but by the internal man nothing else is thought of than the faith that God the Father imputes the merit and righteousness of His Son, and sends forth the Holy Spirit. It is believed that this faith constitutes the internal man, from which proceeds the external or moral natural man, forming an appendage to it, much like the tail of a horse or a cow, or like that of a peacock or bird of paradise, which reaches down to the feet but does not unite with them; for it is asserted that charity follows that faith, but should charity enter from a man’s will, the faith is destroyed. Since, however, the Church at this day knows no other internal man than this, there exists for the Church no internal man; for no one knows whether that faith has been given to him. Moreover, it was shown above that it cannot be given, and is consequently a mere figment of the imagination. It follows, therefore, that for those who have confirmed themselves in that faith at this day there is no internal man, but only the natural man which by birth is full of evils in all abundance. It is also asserted that regeneration and sanctification follow that faith of themselves, and that man’s co-operation, by which alone regeneration is really effected, must be excluded. Hence it is that a knowledge of regeneration is not attainable in the Church of the present day, although the Lord says that he who is not born again cannot see the kingdom of God.
The nature by birth of the internal natural man will now be described. Its will is prone to evils of every kind, and its thought, originating in the will, is equally prone to falsities of every kind. This, then, is the internal man which must be regenerated; for unless this is done, there is nothing but hatred against all things that pertain to charity, and anger against all things of faith. Hence it follows that the internal natural man must be regenerated first, and by means of it the external, for this is according to order. To regenerate the internal man by means of the external is contrary to order; for the internal is a soul within the external, not only in general but also in every particular. It is consequently in every single word that the external utters, although the man is not aware of it. This is the reason that the angels perceive the nature of a man’s will from a single action, and the nature of his thought from a single word, whether these are infernal or heavenly. Thus they know at once the whole man, perceiving by the tone of his voice the affection of his thought, and by his gesture or from the form his action takes, the love of his will. These things the angels perceive, however a man may counterfeit the Christian and the moral citizen.
“These bones are the whole house of Israel,” verse 11.
A comparison is also made in the same chapter with sepulchres, for it is written,
That He would open their graves, and cause them to come up out of their graves, and bring them into the land of Israel, verses 12-14.
The land of Israel, here and elsewhere, means the Church. Regeneration was represented by means of bones and graves because the unregenerate man is called dead, and the regenerate alive; for spiritual life is in the latter, but in the former, spiritual death.
The nature of the unregenerate man, and that of the regenerate, may be illustrated by comparisons. The unregenerate man, who assumes the appearance of a moral citizen and a Christian, may be compared to a corpse which, although it may be wrapped in spices, still gives forth a foul odor, which taints the spices, penetrates the nostrils and offends the brain. He may also be compared to a mummy, covered with gold, or placed in a silver coffin; but when this is looked into, a hideous black corpse comes into view. [2] He may also be compared to bones or skeletons in a sepulchre built of colored marble, and adorned with other costly materials. He may also be compared to the rich man who was clothed with purple and fine linen, whose internal nevertheless was infernal, Luke xvi. He may further be compared to poison sweetened with sugar; to hemlock when in bloom; to fruits with shining rinds but with worm-eaten hearts; and to a sore covered over with a plaster and afterwards with a thin skin, beneath which there is nothing but corrupt matter.
In the world the internal of such a person may be judged from the external, but only by those whose own internal is not good, and who, therefore, judge according to the appearance. It is otherwise, however, in heaven; for when the changeable body that envelops the spirit, and that readily turns from evil to good, is separated by death, then the internal remains, as this forms the man’s spirit. It now appears at a distance like a serpent which has shed its skin, or like a rotten log stripped of its bark or outer covering in which it once shone.
[3] With the regenerate man it is different. His internal is good, while his external is like that of others, but it differs from that of the unregenerate man as heaven differs from hell, for there is a soul of good within it. It matters not whether he is a nobleman and lives in a palace attended by a retinue of servants, or whether he lives in a cottage with only a boy to serve him; nor indeed does it matter whether he is a primate, arrayed in purple robe and priestly mitre, or the shepherd of a few sheep in a wood, wearing his loose rustic cloak and goat’s skin hood. Gold is still gold whether it glitters when brought near the fire-light, or is blackened by the smoke, whether it is cast into a beautiful form like that of an infant, or into a repulsive form like that of a mouse. Mice, however, when made of gold and placed near the ark were also accepted and served as a propitiation, 1 Sam. vi. 3, 4, 5 and following verses; for gold signifies internal good. The diamond and the ruby when taken from the mine, in whatever matrix they may be found, have their own internal or intrinsic value like those in the necklace of a queen; and so on. Hence it is evident that the external derives its value from the internal, and not the internal from the external.
A combat then arises because the internal man is reformed by means of truths, and from these which still remain in the external or natural man, he sees what is evil and false. Hence discord first arises between the new will above and the old will beneath, and also between their respective delights. For it is well known that the flesh is opposed to the spirit, and the spirit to the flesh; and that the flesh with its lusts must be subdued before the spirit can act and the man become new. Following this discord between the two wills there arises a combat which is called spiritual temptation; but this temptation or combat is not between good and evil, but between the truths of good and the falsities of evil. For good itself cannot fight, but it fights by means of truths; nor can evil fight of itself, but by means of its own falsities. Similarly the will of itself cannot fight, but it does so by means of the understanding, where its truths reside.
[2] A man supposes that this is only a combat within himself, and is felt as pangs of conscience; yet it is the Lord and the devil, that is, hell, that are fighting in him, and they contend for dominion over him, or as to which shall possess him. The devil, or hell, attacks him and calls forth the evil in him, while the Lord defends him and calls forth the good. Although this conflict takes place in the spiritual world, still it is waged within the man between the truths of good and the falsities of evil that are in him. He ought, therefore, to fight wholly as of himself, for he enjoys free will to act with the Lord or with the devil; he acts with the Lord if he continues in the truths that spring from good, and with the devil if he continues in the falsities that spring from evil. Hence it follows that whichever conquers, whether the internal man or the external, rules over the other. They are like two hostile kings who contend which shall be the ruler of the other’s kingdom; he who conquers takes the kingdom and subjects all its inhabitants to his authority. In this case also, if the internal man conquers, it obtains the rule, and subdues all the evils of the external man, and regeneration proceeds; but if the external man conquers, it gains the mastery, and disperses all the good of the external man, and thus all possibility of regeneration is destroyed.
Temptations have not been understood, and scarcely any one has known their origin and nature, and what good they do, because hitherto the Church has not been in truths; and indeed no one can be unless he approaches the Lord directly, renounces the old faith and embraces the new. For this reason no one has been permitted to undergo any spiritual temptation for ages, in fact from the time the Council of Nice* introduced the faith of three Gods; because if any one had been permitted, he would instantly have succumbed, and so would have plunged himself more deeply into hell. The contrition which is said to precede the present day faith is not temptation. I have questioned many upon this point and they have said it is only a word, conveying nothing except perhaps a timorous suggestion of hell-fire to simple minds.
* Nice (Nicaea), city of Asia Minor, in Bithynia. In A.D. 325 it was the seat of a Council summoned to settle the Arian controversy. The creed there adopted is known as the Nicene Creed.
At the consummation of the age, that is, at the end of the present Church, “Then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world … nor ever shall be. And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved.” Matt. xxiv. 21, 22.
My “Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you.” John xiv. 27.
Similarly He gives a man, after temptation, a perception of peace, that is, gladness of mind and consolation. Thus it is evident that the Lord is the Redeemer to eternity.
That the man who has been regenerated is a renewed or a new man the present Church knows, both from the Word and from reason. It is assured from the Word in these passages:
“Make you a new heart and a new spirit: for why will ye die, O house of Israel?” Ezek. xviii. 31.
“A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you; and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit within you.” Ezek. xxxvi. 26, 27.
“Henceforth know we no man after the flesh…. Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a now creature.” 2 Cor. v. 16, 17.
A new heart here means a new will, and a new spirit a new understanding; for heart, in the Word, signifies the will, and spirit, when it is joined with heart, signifies the understanding. It is plain also from reason that the regenerate man has a new will and a new understanding; for these two faculties constitute man, and it is these that are regenerated; therefore, every man’s true character is determined by them. He is a bad man if his will is bad, and still worse if his understanding favors it. On the other hand, he is a good man if his will is good, and still better if his understanding favors it. Religion alone renews and regenerates man, for religion occupies the highest place in the human mind, and sees beneath itself the civil matters that pertain to the world. It also passes through these, as pure sap passes through a tree to its very top, and from its elevated position it surveys what is natural, as a person from a tower or mountain top surveys the plains beneath.
That there are a higher and a lower region in the human mind every one may see and acknowledge from a slight attention to his own thoughts. For he sees what he is thinking about, and accordingly says that he has been, or is, thinking about this or that; now this would not be possible unless there were an interior thought, called perception, which looks into the lower, called simply, thought. A judge, when he hears or reads a long list of cases quoted by an advocate, brings them under the view of the higher region of his mind, and thus sees them under one general principle. He then looks down into the lower region of natural thought, there arranges his arguments in due order, and, according to his higher view of the subject, delivers his opinion and pronounces judgment. Every one knows that a man can, in a moment or two, think out and form a judgment upon matters which he could not express by his lower thought in half an hour. These things have been brought forward to show that the human mind is divided into lower and higher regions.
The unregenerate man is like one in the Garden of Eden, who eats of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, and is, therefore, driven out of the garden; indeed, he is that tree itself; but the regenerate man is like one in that garden who eats of the tree of life. That he is permitted to eat of it is evident from these words in the Revelation:
“To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God.” Rev. ii. 7.
The Garden of Eden means intelligence in spiritual things from the love of truth, as may be seen in The Apocalypse Revealed, No. 90. In a word, an unregenerate man is a child of the wicked one, and a regenerate man is a child of the kingdom, Matt. xiii. 35; a child of the wicked one there mentioned is a child of the devil, and a child of the kingdom is a son of the Lord.
Every man is in communion, that is, in association with angels of heaven or with spirits of hell, because he is born to become spiritual; and this is not possible, unless he is in some kind of conjunction with those who are spiritual. It is shown in Heaven and Hell that man, as to his mind, is in both worlds, the natural and the spiritual; but men, angels and spirits do not know of this conjunction, because men, during their life in the world, are in a natural state, and angels and spirits in a spiritual state. On account of the distinction between natural and spiritual, they are invisible to each other. The nature of this distinction has been described in a narrative relating experiences in the spiritual world, in the book Conjugial Love, Nos. 325-328. It is there made evident that they are not conjoined as to thoughts, but as to affections; and scarcely any one reflects upon affections, because these are not in the light in which are the understanding and the thought arising from it, but in the heat in which are the will and the affection of its love. This conjunction of men with angels and spirits by means of their love’s affections is so close that, were it severed, and they were thus separated from each other, men would instantly become faint; and if the union were not restored and they were not brought together again, men would perish.
[2] When it is said that a man by regeneration becomes spiritual it is not to be understood that he becomes spiritual as an angel in himself is spiritual. He becomes spiritual natural, that is, there is a spiritual within his natural, just as thoughts within speech, and as will is within action; for when the one ceases the other ceases also. Similarly a man’s spirit is in every thing that is done in the body, and it is this which impels the natural to do what it does. The natural in itself is passive, or a dead force, but the spiritual is active, or a living power; and a passive, or a dead force, cannot act of itself, but it must be actuated by an active, or by a living power.
[3] As a man lives continually in communion with the inhabitants of the spiritual world, therefore, when he leaves the natural world, he is immediately introduced among his like, with whom he has been associated while in the world; for he then enters the company of those who resemble him in the affections of his will. These he acknowledges, as relatives and kinsfolk acknowledge their own in the world. This is the meaning of what is said in the Word concerning those who die, that they are gathered to their own. It may now be evident from what has been said that a regenerate man is in communion with angels of heaven, and an unregenerate man with spirits of hell.
It is, therefore, evident how this truth, acknowledged throughout the Christian world, is to be understood, that the Church constitutes the body of Christ, and that Christ is the life of that body. It may also serve to illustrate that the Lord is the All-in-all of heaven, for He is the life in that body. Similarly, the Lord is the Church with those who acknowledge Him alone to be God of heaven and earth, and believe on Him. That He is the God of heaven and earth, He Himself teaches in Matthew, xxviii. 18; and that all men ought to believe on Him, in John iii. 15, 18, 38; vi. 40; xi. 25, 28.
“To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life.” Rev. ii. 7;
to the Church of Smyma,
“He that overcometh shall not be hurt of the second death.” ii. 11;
to the Church in Pergamos,
“To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the hidden manna.” ii. 17;
to the Church in Thyatira,
“To him that overcometh will I give power over the nations.” ii. 26;
to the Church in Sardis,
“He that overcometh … shall be clothed in white raiment.” iii. 12;
to the Church in Philadelphia,
“Him that overcometh will I make a pillar in the temple of my God.” iii. 12;
to the Church of the Laodiceans,
“To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne.” iii. 21.
Lastly, this may be added, that as far as a man is regenerated, or as far as regeneration is perfected in him, he attributes nothing of good and truth, that is, of charity and faith to himself, but to the Lord; for the truths which he successively acquires plainly teach this.
Sins are removed so far as a man is regenerated. For regeneration consists in restraining the flesh so that it may not rule, and in subduing the old man with its lusts that it may not rise and destroy the intellectual principle; because if this were destroyed a man would no longer be capable of reformation. For reformation cannot take place unless a man’s spirit, which is above the flesh, is instructed and perfected. Any one whose understanding is still sound, may, therefore, conclude that these things cannot take place in a moment, but must proceed gradually, just as a man is conceived, carried in the womb, born and educated, according to what was shown above. For the things of the flesh, or of the old man, are inherent from birth, and form the first habitation of his mind, in which dwell lusts, like wild beasts in their dens. These first take up their abode in the outer courts, from which they gradually enter, as it were, underground rooms of the house, and afterwards ascend the stairs and form rooms for themselves. This takes place gradually as the infant grows up, becomes a boy and at length a young man, when he begins to think from his own understanding and to act from his own will.
It must be evident that this house of the mind, thus far advanced in the building, where lusts like lewd spirits of the wood (ochim), harpies of the desert (tziim), and satyrs join hands in sportive dance, cannot be destroyed in a moment, and a new house built in its place. The lusts, like revelers sporting hand in hand, must first be expelled and new desires of good and truth be introduced in place of those which belong to evil and falsity. These things cannot be done in a moment as every wise man may see from merely considering that every evil consists of innumerable lusts, and is like fruit which, underneath the surface, is full of worms with white bodies and black heads; and that evils are manifold, and linked together like the newly hatched progeny of a spider. Unless, therefore, evils are expelled one after another, and every tie that would hold them together is broken, it is impossible for a man to be made new. These things have keen recorded that it may be evident that so far as a man is regenerated his sins are removed.
It was thus made evident to me that regeneration takes place in much the same way as hell is removed and so separated from heaven. For as was stated above, a man as to the first nature which is his by birth, is a hell in miniature; and as to the other nature which is his by second birth, he is a heaven in miniature. From this, it follows that evils in a man are removed and separated just as hell is from heaven in their aggregate; and that evils, as they are removed, turn themselves away from the Lord, and gradually become inverted in proportion as heaven is implanted in him, that is, as he becomes a new man. To this may be added by way of illustration that every evil in a man is conjoined with such spirits in hell as are in a similar evil; and on the contrary, that every good in a man is conjoined with such angels in heaven as are in a similar good.
The removal of sins, which is called their remission, may be compared to the casting out of what was unclean from the camp of the Children of Israel in the wilderness, that lay round about; for their camp represented heaven and the wilderness, hell. It may also be compared to the removal of the nations from the Children of Israel in the land of Canaan, and of the Jebusites from Jerusalem: they were not cast out, but separated. It may be compared to what took place with Dagon, the god of the Philistines, who, on the introduction of the ark, first fell on his face to the ground, and afterwards lay on the threshold with his head and the palms of his hands cut off. Thus he was not cast out, but removed. [3] It may be compared to the sending of the demons by the Lord into the herd of swine, which thereupon drowned themselves in the sea: the sea, in this and other passages of the Word, signifies hell. It may also be compared to what happened to the throng following the dragon, which, on being separated from heaven, first invaded the earth, and was afterwards cast down into hell. It may also be compared to the cutting down of a forest where lurk wild beasts of every kind. These flee into the surrounding thickets, and the intervening land is cleared and cultivated, and becomes a fruitful field.
He must be dull indeed who does not see that a man cannot be regenerated without free will in spiritual things. Without free will a man cannot approach the Lord and acknowledge Him to be the Redeemer and Savior, and the God of heaven and earth, as He Himself teaches, Matt. xxviii. 18. Without free will no one can believe, that is, from faith look to and worship Him, and apply himself to receive the means and benefits of salvation from Him, and from Him co-operate in their reception. Without free will no one can do anything that is good to the neighbor, exercise charity, and further, bring into his thought and will much that has relation to faith and charity, and give expression to this and carry it into effect. Otherwise regeneration is but a word falling from the mouth of the Lord, John ii.; and it either remains in the ear that hears it, or else, coming from the region of thought that borders on speech, it becomes in the mouth that repeats it a sound of so many letters, which cannot by any sense be elevated into any higher region of the mind, but falls into the air and fades away.
A man confirmed in such opinions, who yet had a pious longing for heaven, would be like a lay-figure standing with uplifted eyes to see whether that faith with its benefits has been infused into him, or if not, whether it may be infused; consequently, whether God the Father has had compassion upon him, or whether His Son has interceded for him, or whether the Holy Spirit, being engaged elsewhere, is not operating in him. At length, from his entire ignorance of the matter, such a one might go away and comfort himself with this reflection: “Possibly that grace is present in the morality of my life, in which I remain as heretofore; and thus, in my case, that morality is holy, but in the case of those who have not acquired that faith, it is profane. Therefore, in order that holiness may remain in my morality, I will take care after this not to exercise either faith or charity of myself;” and much more to the same effect. Such a lay-figure, or if you prefer it, such a pillar of salt, does every one become who thinks about regeneration without free will in spiritual things.
The regeneration of man is effected by three means, the Lord, faith and charity. These three would remain concealed like most precious jewels buried in the earth unless they were revealed by Divine truths from the Word; indeed they would remain hidden from the sight of those who deny man’s co-operation, even if those were to read the Word a hundred or a thousand times, although they stand forth there in clear light. As to the Lord, no one who is confirmed in the faith of the present day can see, even with wide open eyes, these truths in it, that He and the Father are one, that He is the God of heaven and earth, and that it is the will of the Father than men should believe on the Son, with innumerable statements of the same kind respecting the Lord in both Testaments. They do not see because they are not in truths, and consequently not in the light from which such things can be seen; and if light were given them, still their falsities would extinguish it; and these truths would be passed over like words that are blotted out by erasure, or like underground passages which men trample underfoot as they walk across them. This may serve to show that without truths this first essential of regeneration is not perceived.
[2] As to faith, it also is not possible without truths, for faith and truth make one, the good of faith being like a soul whose body is formed by truths. Therefore, if a man were to say that he believes, that is, has faith, and also were to know none of the truths of faith, he would be like one who removes the soul from the body, and converses with it, although it is thus invisible. Moreover, all truths which form the body of faith emit light by which they enlighten it, and render its face visible. The case is similar with charity; for this emits heat with which the light of truth enters into conjunction, as heat unites with light in springtime in the world, and from this union earth’s animals and plants resume their prolific powers.
[3] In like manner spiritual heat and light are conjoined in man, when he is in the truths of faith and at the same time in the goods of charity; for as was stated above in the chapter on Faith, from each particular truth of faith there flows a light which enlightens, and from each particular good of charity there is diffused a heat which enkindles. Now spiritual light in its essence is intelligence, and spiritual heat in its essence is love, and the Lord alone conjoins these two in man when He regenerates him; for the Lord said,
“The words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.” John vi. 63.
“Believe in the light, that ye may be the children of light … I am come a light into the world.” John xii. 36, 46.
The Lord is the Sun in the spiritual world, and from this come all spiritual light and heat. That light enlightens, and that heat enkindles, and by the conjunction of both He quickens and regenerates man.
That this is so was made plainly evident to me from the spheres in the spiritual world which emanate from the Christendom of to-day, and diffuse themselves around. [2] One sphere concerning the Lord emanates and spreads from the southern quarter, where dwell the learned clergy and the erudite laymen. Wherever this sphere spreads it secretly permeates the ideas, and with many destroys belief in the Divinity of the Lord’s Human, weakens it with many, and with many causes it to appear as foolish. This is because it introduces at the same time a belief in three Gods, and confusion is the result. [3] Another sphere which takes away faith is like a black cloud in winter, which brings on darkness, turns the rain into snow, strips the trees of their leaves, freezes the water and deprives the sheep of all pasture. This lethargy concerning the one God, regeneration and the means of salvation.
[4] A third sphere is concerned with the conjunction of faith and charity. It is so strong as to be irresistible; but at this day it is a heinous influence, infecting like a plague whomsoever it touches, and destroying every link between those two means of salvation established from the creation of the world and renewed by the Lord. It also permeates men in the natural world, and destroys the marriage between truth and good. I have felt this sphere, and at a time when I was thinking of the conjunction of faith and charity, it came between them, and forcibly strove to separate them. [5] The angels bewail these spheres, and pray the Lord that they may be dispersed; but they have been told that this cannot be done so long as the dragon is on the earth. For that influence proceeds from the followers of the dragon; and it is written of the dragon that he was cast upon the earth, and then it is said:
“Therefore, rejoice, ye heavens…. Woe to the inhabiters of the earth.” Rev. xii. [12.]
These three spheres are like atmospheres in motion, blown from the nostrils of the dragon; and because they are spiritual, they enter the mind and exercise their influence upon it. Spheres of spiritual truths in the spiritual world are as yet, few, existing in the new heaven and among those beneath heaven who are separated from the followers of the dragon. This is why these truths are at this day as invisible to men in the world as ships in the eastern ocean are to captains and pilots in the western.
Without truths that teach and lead, regeneration, which is effected by means of faith and charity, would be like sailing on a great ocean without a rudder, or without a compass and charts; it would also be like riding in a dark forest at night. The internal sight of the mind with those who are not in truths, but in falsities which they believe to be truths, may be compared with the sight of those whose optic nerves are obstructed. In that disease, called by doctors amaurosis and gutta serena, the eye still appears to be sound and functioning, although it sees nothing. For with those who are devoid of truths the rational or intellectual faculty is obstructed above, and opened only below, so that rational light becomes as light in the diseased eye, and all their judgments are fanciful, and formed from mere delusions. They would then be like astrologers standing in the market-place with their telescopes, uttering idle prophecies. Such would all students of theology become, unless genuine truths from the Word were revealed by the Lord.
To the above will be added the following Memorabilia. The first. I once saw a company of spirits, all on their knees, praying to God to send angels to them, with whom they might speak face to face and disclose the thoughts of their hearts. When they arose, three angels in fine linen appeared standing before them, who said: “The Lord Jesus Christ has heard your prayers, and has therefore sent us to you; tell us the thoughts of your hearts. [2] They replied: “Our priests have told us that in theological matters the understanding is of no avail, but faith only; and that in such things intellectual faith serves no useful purpose, because it is derived from man, and savors of his wisdom and not of God. We are English, and we have heard many things from our sacred ministry which we believed; and we have conversed with some who called themselves Reformed, with others who called themselves Roman Catholics, and also with sectarians. They all seemed learned, and although on many points they did not agree, yet they all said: ‘Believe us;’ and some added, ‘We are ministers of God and we know.’ Now we know that Divine truths, which are called the truths of faith and which pertain to the Church, are no man’s birthright or inheritance, but come to him out of heaven from God; and these point the way to heaven and enter into a man’s life together with the good of charity, and thus lead to eternal life. We, therefore, became anxious, and fell on our knees in prayer to God.”
[3] Then the angels said: “Read the Word and believe on the Lord, and you will see the truths that will enter into your faith and life. All in the Christian world derive their doctrine from the Word as the one and only source.” But two of the company said: “We have read the Word, and did not understand it.” “Then you did not approach the Lord who is the Word,” the angels answered, “and you have also previously confirmed yourselves in falsities.”
The angels continued: “What is faith without light, and what is thought without understanding? It is not human. Ravens and magpies may be taught to speak without understanding. We can assure you that every man whose soul desires it, can see the truths of the Word in clear light. Every animal knows the food suitable for its life as soon as it sees it. Now man is a rational and spiritual animal, and he sees the food suitable for his life, not only the food for his body but also for his soul which is the truth of faith, if he hungers for it and seeks it from the Lord. [4] Moreover, what is not received by the understanding does not remain in the memory as to its substance, but only as to the words; and this is the reason why, when we have at times looked down from heaven into the world, we have seen nothing, but have only heard sounds, and those for the most part discordant. But we will mention some things which the learned among the clergy have removed from the scope of the understanding. They do not know that there are two ways to the understanding, one from the world and the other from heaven; and that the Lord withdraws the understanding from the world when He enlightens it. If, however, the understanding is closed by religious dogma, the way to it from heaven is closed, and the man sees no more in the Word than a blind man. We have seen many such persons fall into pits from which they have never risen.
[5] Some examples may serve for illustration. Can you not understand what charity and faith are? You surely understand that charity is to act well with the neighbor, and that faith is to think rightly about God and the essentials of the Church; and consequently that whoever acts well and thinks aright, that is, who lives well and believes aright, will be saved.” They replied that they did understand that.
[6] The angels said further: “There must be repentance from sins in order that a man may be saved, and unless he repents he remains in the sins in which he was born. Repentance consists in not willing evils because they are contrary to God, in examining oneself once or twice a year, in seeing one’s evils, confessing them before the Lord, imploring help, desisting from them, and beginning a new life; and so far as a man does this and believes on the Lord, his sins are remitted.” Then some of the company said: “We understand all this, and consequently what is meant by the remission of sins.”
[7] They entreated the angels to give them some further instruction, especially concerning God, the immortality of the soul, regeneration and baptism. To this request the angels replied: “We will not say anything but what you understand; otherwise our words would fall like rain upon sand, or upon seeds sown there which, although watered from heaven, still wither and perish.” Concerning God they said: “All who come into heaven obtain a place there and a measure of eternal joy according to their idea of God; for this idea reigns universally in all that pertains to worship. An idea of God as a spirit, when spirit is supposed to be like ether or wind, is an empty idea, but an idea of God as Man is a just idea; for God is Divine Love and Divine Wisdom with all their qualities, and the subject of these is man,* and not ether or wind. In heaven the idea of God is that of the Lord the Savior; He is the God of heaven and earth, as He Himself taught. Let your idea of God, then, be like ours, and you shall enter into conjunction with us.” When they said this, the faces of the others shone with a bright lustre.
[8] Concerning the immortality of the soul they said: “Man lives for ever, because he is capable of being conjoined with God by means of love and faith; and every one has this capacity. This is the reason of the soul’s immortality, as you may understand if you consider the matter a little more deeply.
[9] Concerning regeneration they said: “Every one sees that a man has freedom to think about God or not, provided he has been instructed that there is a God. Thus every man has the same freedom in spiritual as in civil and natural things. The Lord grants this continually to all; and, therefore, a man is to blame if he does not think about God. A man is a man by virtue of this power, whereas a beast is a beast from want of it. Therefore, a man can, as of himself, reform and regenerate himself, provided he acknowledges in heart that he does so from the Lord. Every one who repents and believes on the Lord, is being reformed and regenerated; and a man must do both as of himself, but as of himself means ‘from the Lord.’ It is true that of himself a man cannot contribute anything whatever to this work; but you were not created statues but men, in order that you may do this from the Lord as of yourselves. This is the only return of love and faith which the Lord expressly desires should be made to Him by man. In short, act of yourselves, and believe that it is from the Lord, for in this way you act as of yourselves.”
[10] But then they asked: “Is this power to act as of himself inherent in man from creation?” “It is not inherent,” the angel replied, “because to act of oneself belongs to God alone, but it is continually imparted, that is, continually adjoined; and then, so far as a man does good and believes truth as of himself, he is an angel of heaven; but so far as he does evil and consequently believes what is false, also as of himself, he is a spirit of hell. You wonder that he does this, also as of himself; but still you acknowledge that this is the case when you pray that you may be protected from the devil, lest he lead you astray, and enter into you as he entered into Judas, fill you full of all iniquity and destroy both soul and body. Every one is chargeable with wrong who believes that of himself he does either good or evil, but he is not chargeable who believes that he does so as of himself. For if he believes that good is from himself he claims for himself what belongs to God; and if he believes that evil is from himself, he attributes to himself what belongs to the devil.”
[11] Concerning baptism they said: “It is a spiritual washing, which is reformation and regeneration. An infant is reformed and regenerated when, on arriving at adult age, he observes what his god-parents promised for him, namely, two things, repentance and faith in God; for they promise firstly, that he shall renounce the devil and all his works; and secondly, that he shall believe on God. All children in heaven are initiated into these two things; but to them the devil is hell, and God is the Lord. Moreover, baptism is a sign before the angels that the person baptized belongs to the Church.” [12] On hearing this, some of the company said: “We understand this.” But then a voice was heard near at hand calling out: “We do not understand;” and another, “We have no desire to understand.” A search was made and it was found that these words came from those who had confirmed in themselves the falsities of faith, and who wished to be reputed as oracles, and thus to be adored.
Thereupon the angels said: “Do not be surprised; at the present day there are many like these. To us from heaven they appear like graven images so skillfully fashioned that they can move their lips and make sounds like organs. Yet they do not know whether the breath that causes the sounds is from hell or from heaven, because they do not know whether they speak falsity or truth. They argue and confirm their views over and over again, but are never satisfied with their conclusions; for you must know that human ingenuity can confirm whatever it pleases, even making it appear to be true. Heretics and the irreligious can do this, and in fact atheists can prove that there is no God but nature.”
[13] After this the company of Englishmen, as the desire to become wise burned within them, said to the angels: “We have heard various opinions concerning the Holy Supper; please tell us what is the truth.” The angels replied: “The truth is that a man, who looks to the Lord and repents, is conjoined with the Lord by that most holy rite, and introduced into heaven.” But some of the company said, “This is a mystery;” and the angels answered, “It is a mystery, but still one that can be understood. The bread and wine do not bring about this result, nor does anything holy proceed from them; but there is a mutual correspondence between material bread and spiritual bread, and between material wine and spiritual wine. Spiritual bread is the holiness of love, and spiritual wine is the holiness of faith, each being from the Lord, and each being the Lord. Hence there is conjunction of the Lord with man, and of man with the Lord; not indeed with the bread and wine, but with the love and faith of the man who has repented; and conjunction with the Lord is also introduction into heaven.” After the angels had taught them something about correspondence, some of the company said: “Now for the first time we can understand this also.” As they said this, behold! a flaming light coming down from heaven united them with the angels, and they showed their love one to another.
* See 41:2.
However, if they do not, they return and say they have not seen any. Then an examination is made by some wise person there to see whether the light, and especially the heat, in them harmonize with the light and heat in that society; for the light of heaven in its essence is Divine Truth, and the heat of heaven in its essence is Divine Good, both proceeding from the Lord as the Sun there. If the light and heat in them differ from those in that society, that is, if their truth and good are different, they are not received. They depart, therefore, and pass along the roads that are open from one society to another in heaven, journeying till they find one that is wholly in agreement with their own affections, and this becomes their home for ever. For there they are among their own, as among relatives and friends, whom they love from the heart because their affections are similar. There they enjoy their own life’s happiness in whole-hearted pleasure from peace of soul; for in the heat and light of heaven there is ineffable delight, which is shared by all. Thus it is with those who become angels.
[2] On the other hand, those who are in evils and falsities may be permitted to ascend into heaven; but as soon as they enter they begin to pant, and breathe with difficulty. Presently their sight grows dim, their understanding is obscured, they cease to think, death seems to stare them in the face, and they stand stock still. Then the heart begins to beat wildly, their breast is constricted, their mind is seized with anguish and their torture increases more and more. In this state they writhe like serpents brought close to a fire; and rolling downwards they cast themselves over a precipice which then appears; nor do they come to rest until they are in hell among their like, where they can breathe again and where their heart beats freely. They afterwards hate heaven, reject the truth, and in their heart blaspheme the Lord, believing that the pains and torments they suffered in heaven were from Him.
[3] From this brief account it may be seen what is the lot of those who make light of the truths of faith, which nevertheless constitute the light of the angels of heaven; and who make light also of the goods of love and charity, which yet constitute the life’s heat of the angels of heaven. It may also be seen how greatly they err who believe that every one can enjoy heavenly blessedness, provided he is admitted into heaven. For it is the belief at this day that to be received into heaven is an act of pure mercy, and that it is like going to a wedding in the world and participating at once in its joy and gladness. But it should be known that in the spiritual world there is a common participation in affections of love and consequent thoughts. For man is then a spirit, and the life of a spirit is affection of love and consequent thought; and similar affection unites, but dissimilar affection separates; and dissimilarity is the cause of the torment which a devil would suffer in heaven, and an angel in hell. On this account angels and devils are properly separated according to the diversities, varieties and differences of affections which are of love.
[2] There were some boys below who saw them falling, and appearing as they fell like dead horses. Turning away their faces they said to the teacher who accompanied them, “What strange thing is this? We saw some men, and now in place of them we see dead horses; and as we could not look at them, we turned away our faces. Teacher, let us not stay in this place, but let us go away,” and they went away. Then the teacher as they went along instructed them on the signification of a dead horse. “A horse,” said he, “signifies the understanding of truth from the Word. All the horses that you have seen have this signification; for when a man, proceeding on his way, meditates on the Word, his meditation produces at a distance the appearance of a horse. The horse is noble and active if he meditates spiritually, but miserable and lifeless if he meditates materially.” [3] The boys then asked: “What is meant by meditating on the Word spiritually and materially?” and the teacher replied: “I will explain it by examples. Every one who reads the Word devoutly thinks interiorly about God, the neighbor and heaven. Every one who thinks about God from the point of view of His Person only, and not from His Essence, thinks materially; he who thinks about the neighbor from his outward form only, and not from his character, thinks materially; and he who thinks about heaven only from the point of view of place, and not from the point of view of love and wisdom, from which heaven is heaven, also thinks materially.”
[4] The boys said: “We have thought about God from the point of view of Person, about the neighbor from his form as being a man, and about heaven from place, as being above us; have we, therefore, when reading the Word, appeared to anyone like dead horses?” The teacher answered: “No; as yet you are but boys and cannot think differently; but I have perceived in you a love of knowing and understanding; and as this is spiritual, you have also thought spiritually, for there is some spiritual thought within your material thought, although you are not yet aware of it. I will return, however, to what I have just said: that he who thinks materially when reading the Word or meditating upon it, appears at a distance like a dead horse; while he who thinks spiritually like a living horse; and that he thinks materially about God who thinks only from the point of view of His Person and not from His Essence. There are many attributes of the Divine Essence, as omnipotence, omniscience, omnipresence, eternity, love, wisdom, mercy and grace, as well as others; and there are attributes that proceed from the Divine Essence, namely, creation and preservation, redemption and salvation, enlightenment and instruction. Every one who thinks about God from the point of view of Person has the idea of three Gods, for he says that one God is the Creator and Preserver, another is the Redeemer and Savior, and the third is the Enlightener and Instructor. On the other hand, every one who thinks about God from the point of view of His Essence; has the idea of one God, for he declares that God created us, the same God redeemed and saves us, and He also enlightens and instructs us. This is the reason why those who think about the Trinity of God from the point of view of Person, and thus materially, cannot do otherwise, from the ideas of their thought which is material, than make three Gods of one. Still, in contradiction to their thought, they are compelled to say that there is a union of those three by essence, because, although in an uncertain way, they also have thought about God from the point of view of His Essence.
[5] Therefore, my boys, think from essence, and from this about person. For to think from person about essence is to think materially not only about person but about essence also; whereas, to think from essence about person is to think spiritually about person also. Because the ancient Gentiles thought materially about God, and thus also about His attributes, they made not only three gods but as many as a hundred, for of each attribute they made a separate god. You must know, however, that the material does not enter into the spiritual, but the spiritual into the material. This applies to thought about the neighbor from the point of view of his external form, and not from his character; also to thought about heaven from place and not from love and wisdom from which heaven exists. It also applies to every detail in the Word; so that he who entertains a material idea of God, of the neighbor and of heaven, cannot possibly understand anything in the Word. It is a dead letter to him, and while he is reading it, or meditating upon it, he appears at a distance like a dead horse.
[6] Those whom you saw descending from heaven, and who appeared to your eyes like dead horses, were such as had closed their rational sight to theological matters, or the spiritual things of the Church, both in themselves and in others, by the peculiar dogma, that the understanding must be kept in obedience to their faith. They do not reflect that the understanding, when closed by religious dogma, is as blind as a mole, with nothing in it but thick darkness which rejects all spiritual light, opposing its influx from the Lord and from heaven, and setting up a barrier against it in the corporeal sensual plane, which is far below the rational in matters of faith. That is to say, it places an obstruction close to the nose, fixing it in its very cartilage, so that it cannot afterwards even perceive the odor of spiritual things. The consequence is that some of these persons are reduced to such a state that should they perceive this odor, they fall into a swoon: by odor I mean perception. It is these who make God three. They say indeed, from the point of view of His Essence, that God is one; nevertheless, when they pray according to their faith, which teaches that God the Father has mercy for the sake of the Son, and sends the Holy Spirit, they manifestly make three Gods. They cannot do otherwise; for they pray to one to be merciful for the sake of a second, and to send a third.” Their teacher then taught them concerning the Lord, instructing them that He is the one God, in whom there is the Divine Trinity.
[2] Then the angel addressed me, and said, “Ask those who are coming this way whether they see me or anything in my hand.” A great number approached, some from the east, some from the south, some from the west and some from the north. I asked those who came from the east and the south, those who had in the world devoted themselves to learning, whether they saw any one with me, or anything in his hand; and they all said that they saw nothing at all. Then I asked those who came from the west and the north, those who in the world had believed what men of learning said. They also declared that they saw nothing. Yet the last of them, who in the world had lived in simple faith from charity, or in some truth from good, after those before them had departed, said that they saw a man with paper, a man in a handsome dress with a paper upon which letters were inscribed. They then looked more closely and said that they read, “The marriage of good and truth.”
[3] These addressed the angel and desired him to explain what this meant. He said: “All things in the whole of heaven and in the whole of the world are from creation nothing but a marriage of good and truth; for all things, both living and not living, both animate and inanimate, exist from the marriage of good and truth, and were created for it. Not a single thing has been created for truth alone or for good alone. By itself each of these has no reality, but by that marriage all things exist and acquire a character in conformity with that marriage. In the Lord God the Creator Divine Good and Divine Truth are in their substance itself, the Being (Esse) of His substance is Divine Good, and the Existing (Existere) of His substance is Divine Truth. Divine Good and Divine Truth are also in their union itself, for in Him they infinitely make one. As these two are one in God the Creator Himself, they are also one in all things created by Him. By this means also the Creator is joined in an eternal covenant, like that of marriage, with all things created by Him.”
[4] The angel said further that the Sacred Scripture, which was dictated by the Lord, is, in general and in particular, a marriage of good and truth, as may be seen above, Nos. 248-253. The Church, which is formed by means of the truth of doctrine, and religion, which is formed by means of the good of life conformable to the truth of doctrine, have their origin solely from the Sacred Scripture; it may, therefore, be evident that the Church also, in general and in particular, is a marriage of good and truth. What was said above concerning the marriage of good and truth is applicable to the marriage of charity and faith, as good has relation to charity, and truth to faith.
After saying these things, the angel rose up from the earth and, passing through the cloud, ascended into heaven, and the paper, according to the degrees of his ascent, shone as before; and the halo, which before had appeared like the morning light, descended and dispelled the cloud which had brought darkness upon the earth, and bright sunshine followed.
‘Thou sawest iron mixed with clay …but they shall not cleave one to another … and in those days (A.V., in the days of these kings) shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed…. It shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever. Dan. ii. 43, 44.”
[2] After this I heard, as it were, the sound of voices singing, and farther in the east I saw a glow of light far brighter than the former. I asked the angel, “By what words do they glorify God in that quarter?” He replied: “By these words in Daniel:
‘I saw in the night visions, and, behold, the Son of Man (A.V., one like the Son of Man) came with the clouds of heaven…. And there was given Him dominion … and a kingdom, that all people and nations … should serve Him: His dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and His kingdom that which shall not be destroyed.’ Dan. vii. 13, 14.
They are further celebrating the Lord from these words in the Revelation:
To Jesus Christ ‘be glory and dominion…. Behold, He cometh with clouds.’… He is Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and the Ending, the First and the Last, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty. I, John, heard this from the Son of Man, out of the midst of the seven candlesticks. Rev. i. 5, 6, 7, [8, 9], 10-13; xxii. [8], 13;
and also from Matt. xxiv. 30, 31.”
[3] I looked again towards the eastern heaven, and a light shone on the right hand, and its brilliance extended to the southern expanse. Then I heard a sweet sound, and I asked the angel, “By what words do they glorify the Lord there?” He answered: “By these words in the Revelation:
‘I saw a new heaven and a new earth…. And I … saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride … for her husband. And I heard a great voice out of heaven, saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He shall dwell with them … and (the angel) talked with me, saying, Come hither, I will show thee the Bride, the Lamb’s Wife. And he carried me away in the spirit to a great and high mountain, and showed me that great city, the holy Jerusalem.’ Rev. xxi. 1, 2, [3], 9, 10;
and also by these words:
‘I Jesus … am the bright and morning star. And the Spirit and the Bride say, Come…. He saith…. I come quickly: Amen. Even so, come Lord Jesus.’ Rev. xxii. 16, 17, 20.
After he had said this and much more, there was heard a general glorification from the east to the west of heaven, and also from the south to the north; and I asked the angel, “By what words do they now glorify the Lord?” He answered: “Their words are taken from the prophets:
‘All flesh shall know that I, JEHOVAH, am thy Savior and thy Redeemer’ Isa. xlix. 26.
‘Thus saith JEHOVAH the King of Israel, and his Redeemer, JEHOVAH ZEBAOTH; I am the First, and … the Last; and besides me there is no God.’ Isa. xliv. 8.
‘It shall be said in that day, Lo, this is our God; we have waited for Him, and He will save us: this is JEHOVAH; we have waited for Him.’ Isa. xxv. 9.
‘The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of JEHOVAH…. Behold, the Lord Jehovih will come with strong hand…. He shall feed His flock like a shepherd.’ Isa. xl. 3, 5, 10, 11.
‘Unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given…. His name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, the mighty God, the everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace.’ Isa. ix. 6.
‘Behold, the days come … that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign … and this is His name … JEHOVAH our righteousness.’ Jer. xxiii. 5, 6; xxxiii. 15, 16.
‘JEHOVAH ZEBAOTH is His name; and thy Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel; the God of the whole earth shall He be called.’ Isa. liv. 5.
In that day ‘JEHOVAH shall be King over all the earth; in that day shall there be one JEHOVAH, and His name one.’ Zech. xiv. 9.”
As I heard and understood these things my heart rejoiced, and I went home well pleased. There I returned from being in the spirit to the body, when I wrote down what I had seen and heard.
IMPUTATION
I. IMPUTATION IS ONE WITH THE PRESENT CHURCH’S FAITH WHICH, IT IS HELD, ALONE JUSTIFIES.
The faith of the present Church which, it is held, alone justifies, is imputation, or that faith and imputation in the present Church are one, because the one pertains to the other, or enters mutually and reciprocally into the other, and is the cause of its existence. For if faith is spoken of without the addition of imputation, it is merely a sound; and if imputation is spoken of without the addition of faith, it also is merely a sound; and even when taken together, although something distinct is the result, still they convey nothing to the understanding. In order, then, that the understanding may perceive some meaning, a third factor must be added, namely, the merit of Christ. Now this meaning may be expressed with some appearance of reason, as in the faith of the present Church, that God the Father imputes the righteousness of His Son, and sends the Holy Spirit to work out its effects.
It is maintained throughout the whole Christian Church that justification and consequent salvation are effected by God the Father, through the imputation of the merit of Christ His Son; and that such imputation is effected from grace, when and where He wills, and thus arbitrarily; and that those who had Christ’s merit imputed to them are adopted into the number of the sons of God. The leaders of the Church here not moved a step beyond such imputation, or raised their mind above it. Therefore, by decreeing God’s election to be arbitrary, they have fallen into grievous and fanatical errors, and at length have adopted the detestable doctrine* concerning predestination, and also this abominable doctrine that God pays no attention to the deeds of a man’s life but only to the faith inscribed on the interiors of his mind. If, therefore, the error respecting imputation were not destroyed, atheism would overrun the whole of Christendom; and then there would reign over it the king of the bottomless pit,
“Whose name in Hebrew is Abaddon, but in the Greek tongue hath his name Apollyon.” Rev. ix. 11.
By Abaddon and Apollyon is signified a destroyer of the Church by falsities; and by the bottomless pit, the place where these falsities abide, as may be seen in The Apocalypse Revealed, Nos. 421, 440, 442. From this, it is evident that this falsity and those that follow from it, over which the destroyer holds sway, are in an extended series. For as was said above, the whole system of present day theology depends on this doctrine of imputation, as a long chain hangs from a hook to which it is fixed, or as a man with all his members depends on the head. Since this imputation is everywhere prevalent, it is as Isaiah says:
“The Lord will cut off from Israel head and tail … the honorable, he is the head; and he that teaches lies, he is the tail.” Isa. ix. 14, 15.
* in destabilem … et quoque in abominabilem hanc. Supply doctrinam rather than errorem, which is masculine.
Following upon the establishment of this doctrine there has emerged the satanical tenet, that man is absolutely impotent in spiritual things. This is equivalent to saying: “Walk on, although you have no feet; wash yourself, though both your hands are cut off; do good, but go to sleep; feed yourself, though you are without a tongue.” It is also like being granted a will which is not a will. In such a case one may say: “I can no more act than the pillar of salt into which Lot’s wife was turned, or Dagon, the god of the Philistines, when the ark of God was brought into his temple. I fear that, as that god had his head broken off and the palms of his hands thrown upon the threshold, the same will happen to me, 1 Sam. v. 4; nor can I do more than Beelzebub, the god of Ekron, who, as his name implies, could only drive away flies.” That such importance in spiritual things is believed at this day may be seen from the extracts given above in the chapter on Free Will, No. 464.
Hence it is that no one knows, any more than a stock or a stone, whether that faith is given him of grace, or what its nature was when it was infused; for there is no sign testifying its presence when charity, piety, the desire of a new life, and the free power of doing good as well as evil, are denied to man. The signs that are adduced as testifying the existence of that faith in man are all ludicrous, and not unlike the auguries of the ancients from the flight of birds, or the prognostications of astrologers from the stars, or of players from dice. Absurdities like these and others still more ludicrous follow from the doctrine of the Lord’s imputed righteousness which, together with the faith that is called righteousness, is imparted to the man who is elected.
The Council of Nicaea was convoked by the Emperor Constantine the Great,** by the advice of Alexander, bishop of Alexandria. At this Council all the bishops in Asia, Africa and Europe were assembled in the Emperor’s palace at Nicaea, a city of Bithynia. Its object was to refute and condemn from the sacred writings the heresy of Arius,*** a presbyter of Alexandria, who denied the Divinity of Jesus Christ. This took place in the year of Christ, 325.**** The members of this Council came to the conclusion that from eternity there were three Divine Persons, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, as is very evident from the two creeds, called the Nicene and the Athanasian.***** In the Nicene Creed it is written:
“I believe in one God, the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth; … and in one Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the only begotten of the Father, born before all worlds, God of God … being of one substance with the Father … who came down from heaven, and was incarnate by the Holy Ghost of the virgin Mary;… and in the Holy Ghost, the Lord and Giver of life, who proceedeth from the Father and the Son, who with the Father and the Son together is worshiped and glorified.”
In the Athanasian Creed it is said:
“This is the Catholic Faith, that we worship one God in Trinity, and Trinity in Unity, neither confounding the Persons, nor dividing the substance…. But whereas we are compelled by Christian verity to acknowledge every Person by Himself to be God and Lord, so we are forbidden by the Catholic religion to say there are three Gods, or three Lords.”
That is, it is allowable to acknowledge three Gods and Lords, but not to say so, because religion forbids the latter, while truth dictates the former. This Athanasian Creed was composed immediately after the Council of Nice by one or more of those who had been present at the Council; and it was received as Ecumenical or Catholic. It is manifest that it was then decreed that three Divine Persons from eternity ought to be acknowledged; and that although each Person singly by Himself is God, yet nevertheless, they ought not to be called three Gods and Lords, but one.
* Nice (Nicaea), city of Asia Minor, in Bithynia. In A.D. 325 it was the seat of a Council summoned to settle the Arian controversy. The creed there adopted is known as the Nicene Creed.
** Constantine, Emperor of Rome, A. D. 272-337. A convert to Christianity, he summoned the Council of Nice, A.D. 325 to settle the Arian controversy. This Council gave its name to the Nicene Creed which resulted, and which subsequently became the standard creed of the Christian Church.
*** Arius, theologian of Alexandria, A.D 256-336; founder of Arianism, affirming that Christ was an originated Being. Excommunicated by bishops of Egypt for denying that Christ was made of the same substance (homo-ousion) of any previously existing substance. To settle the consequent dispute Constantine called the Council of Nicaea, A.D. 325. Athanasius successfully led the opposition to Arius; and Arius, with Eusebius, who also refused to accept the Athanasian position, was banished.
**** The Original Edition has … Anno Christi 1318. Other translations have 325 and in Critical Note state that this is for 1318, which is probably a misprint for 318. The Nicene Council was convened in 324 and met in 325. Arius began his heresy in 318, though the publication of DE INCARNATIONE by Athanasius in 318 proves the existence of schismatic teaching in that year.
***** Athanasian Symbol or Creed. Although bearing the name of Athanasius, it was probably composed by Hilary, in the century after the formulation of the Nicene Creed, A.D. 325. The name was given to it about the year A.D. 670 as an excellent system of the doctrines of Athansius concerning the Trinity and the Incarnation, principally in opposition to the Arians. It is received by the Romish Church and also by the Reformed.
[2] This faith is a birth from the Nicene* and Athanasian Creeds;** but when stripped of its swaddling clothes, not one but three Persons come to view, at first joined together, as it were, in close embrace, but presently separated. For it is stated that they are joined in essence, but separated in their particular functions of creation, redemption, and operation; or of imputation, imputed righteousness, and effectual application. Therefore, although they have made one God of three, yet they have not made one Person of three, lest the idea of three should be obliterated. It is not obliterated as long as each Person singly is believed to be God, as stated in the Creed; but if the three Persons should be made one, the whole edifice, built upon the three as supporting pillars, would collapse in a heap of ruins.
[3] The Nicene Council introduced the dogma of three Divine Persons from eternity because they did not rightly examine the Word, and consequently found no other refuge against the Arians. They afterwards formed into one God those three Persons, each of whom is God by Himself, because they were afraid of being censured and reproached by every sensible religious man throughout the world for affirming a belief in three Gods. They taught a faith in conformity with the idea of three Persons in due order, because no other faith proceeded from that principle. Moreover, if one of the three were omitted, the third could not be sent forth, and thus the whole operation of Divine grace would come to naught.
* Nice (Nicaea), city of Asia Minor, in Bithynia. In A.D. 325 it was the seat of a Council summoned to settle the Arian controversy. The creed there adopted is known as the Nicene Creed.
** Athanasian Symbol or Creed. Although bearing the name of Athanasius, it was probably composed by Hilary, in the century after the formulation of the Nicene Creed, A.D. 325. The name was given to it about the year A.D. 670 as an excellent system of the doctrines of Athansius concerning the Trinity and the Incarnation, principally in opposition to the Arians. It is received by the Romish Church and also by the Reformed.
It may be urged that the Nicene Council, which was composed of so many bishops and distinguished scholars, passed its decree by unanimous vote; but what confidence can be placed in councils when Roman Catholic councils, also by unanimous vote, established the Pope’s vicarship, the invocation of saints, the worship of images and bones, the division of the Holy Eucharist,** purgatory, indulgences, and so on? What confidence can be placed in councils when the Council of Dort,*** also by unanimous vote, decreed the abominable doctrine of predestination, and extolled it as the palladium of religion? But, my reader, do not put your trust in councils, but in the Holy Word, and go to the Lord, and you will be enlightened, for He is the Word, that is, the Divine Truth itself therein.
* Nice (Nicaea), city of Asia Minor, in Bithynia. In A.D. 325 it was the seat of a Council summoned to settle the Arian controversy. The creed there adopted is known as the Nicene Creed.
** Eucharist, Holy Supper, thanksgiving.
*** Dortdrecht or Dort, Synod of. This was held in 1618-19 to settle the disputes between the Arminians or “Remonstrants” who called in question the theory of Predestination, and the Calvinists. The Synod condemned the tenets of the Arminians.
The waters were turned into blood, so that all the fish died, and the river stank, Exod. vii;
A similar statement is found in the Revelation viii. 8; xvi. 3.
Blood signifies Divine truth falsified, as may be seen in The Apocalypse Revealed, Nos. 379, 404, 681, 687, 688; and the fish which then died, signify truths in the natural man, similarly destroyed, Nos. 290, 405.
Frogs came up over the land of Egypt, Exod. viii.; and frogs are also mentioned in the Revelation, xvi. 13.
Frogs signify reasonings from the desire of falsifying truths, as may be seen in The Apocalypse Revealed, No. 702.
In Egypt noisome sores broke out upon man and beast, Exod. ix.; and the same is said in the Revelation, xvi. 2.
Sores signify interior evils and falsities destructive of good and truth in the Church, as may be seen in The Apocalypse Revealed, No. 678.
In Egypt there was hail mingled with fire, Exod. ix.; and the same is said in the Revelation viii. 7; xvi. 21.
Hail signifies internal falsity, as may be seen in The Apocalypse Revealed, Nos. 399, 714.
Upon Egypt were sent locusts, Exod. x.: and the same is said in the Revelation, ix. 1-11.
Locusts signify falsities in what is most external, as may be seen in The Apocalypse Revealed, Nos. 424, 430.
The land of Egypt was covered with grievous darkness, Exod. x.; and the same is said in the Revelation, viii. 12.
Darkness signifies falsities arising either from ignorance, or from falsities in religion, or from evils of life, as may be seen in The Apocalypse Revealed, Nos. 110, 413, 695.
Finally, the Egyptians perished in the Red Sea, Exod. xiv.; and in the Revelation the dragon and the false prophet were cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, Rev. xix. 20; xx. 10.
Both the Red Sea and that lake signify hell. Similar things are said of Egypt and of the Church whose consummation or end is described in the Revelation, because Egypt means the Church, which at its beginning was of surpassing excellence. Therefore, Egypt, before the Church it represented was devastated, is compared to the Garden of Eden, and to the Garden of JEHOVAH, Gen. xiii. 10; Ezek. xxxi. 8. It is also called the corner-stone of the tribes, “the son of the wise, and of ancient kings,” Isa. xix. 11, 13. Much more that is related concerning Egypt in its primeval state, and in its state of devastation, may be seen in The Apocalypse Revealed, No. 503.
The Church which existed before the Council of Nice* has been called the Apostolic Church. This was widespread, extending over three parts of the globe, Asia, Africa and Europe; for the Emperor Constantine the Great** was a Christian, zealous for religion, and his empire not only embraced many kingdoms of Europe which afterwards broke away, but also many neighboring kingdoms outside Europe. As was stated above, he summoned the bishops of Asia, Africa and Europe to his palace at Nice, a city of Bithynia, in order to purge his empire of the scandalous doctrines of Arius.*** This was done from the Divine Providence of the Lord since, if the Lord’s Divinity is denied, the Christian Church dies, and becomes like a tomb adorned with this epitaph, “Here lies.”
The Church which existed before this period has been called Apostolic, and its distinguished writers were called Fathers, and true Christians from their close relationship were called brethren. This Church did not acknowledge three Divine Persons, and consequently not a Son of God born from eternity, but only a Son of God born in time, as is evident from the Creed named from this Church the Apostles’ Creed, in which it is said:
“I believe in God the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven; and in Jesus Christ, His only Son our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the virgin Mary. I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy Catholic church, the communion of saints.”
It is evident from this that they acknowledge no other Son of God than the one conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary; and by no means any Son of God born from eternity. This Creed, like the two others, has been acknowledged as genuinely Catholic by the whole Christian Church to the present day.
* Nice (Nicaea), city of Asia Minor, in Bithynia. In A.D. 325 it was the seat of a Council summoned to settle the Arian controversy. The creed there adopted is known as the Nicene Creed.
** Constantine, Emperor of Rome, A. D. 272-337. A convert to Christianity, he summoned the Council of Nice, A.D. 325 to settle the Arian controversy. This Council gave its name to the Nicene Creed which resulted, and which subsequently became the standard creed of the Christian Church.
*** Arius, theologian of Alexandria, A.D 256-336; founder of Arianism, affirming that Christ was an originated Being. Excommunicated by bishops of Egypt for denying that Christ was made of the same substance (homo-ousion) of any previously existing substance. To settle the consequent dispute Constantine called the Council of Nicaea, A.D. 325. Athanasius successfully led the opposition to Arius; and Arius, with Eusebius, who also refused to accept the Athanasian position, was banished.
Isa. xxv. 9; xl. 3, 5, 10, 11; xliii. 14; xliv. 6, 24; xlvii. 4; xlviii. 17; xlix. 7, 26; lx. 16; lxiii. 16 Jer. l. 34; Hos. xiii. 4; Ps. xix. 14; and to these add John i. 14.
* Constantine, Emperor of Rome, A. D. 272-337. A convert to Christianity, he summoned the Council of Nice, A.D. 325 to settle the Arian controversy. This Council gave its name to the Nicene Creed which resulted, and which subsequently became the standard creed of the Christian Church.
** Arius, theologian of Alexandria, A.D 256-336; founder of Arianism, affirming that Christ was an originated Being. Excommunicated by bishops of Egypt for denying that Christ was made of the same substance (homo-ousion) of any previously existing substance. To settle the consequent dispute Constantine called the Council of Nicaea, A.D. 325. Athanasius successfully led the opposition to Arius; and Arius, with Eusebius, who also refused to accept the Athanasian position, was banished.
*** Charybdis, whirlpool between Sicily and Italy, opposite the rock Scylla.
**** Scylla, rock between Italy and Sicily, opposite to Charybdis, a whirlpool.
“In Jesus Christ (A.V., Him) dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily” Col. ii. 9;
and John says
That the Son of God sent into the world is the true God and eternal life, 1 John v. 20, 21.
This primitive or Apostolic Church never could have conceived that there would succeed it a Church which would worship several Gods with the heart and one with the lips; which would separate charity from faith, and the remission of sins from repentance and the pursuit of a new life; and which would introduce the idea of complete impotence in spiritual things. Least of all could they have conceived that an Arius would lift up his head, and that he, after his death, would rise again and continue secretly to exercise his dominant influence.
* Arius, theologian of Alexandria, A.D 256-336; founder of Arianism, affirming that Christ was an originated Being. Excommunicated by bishops of Egypt for denying that Christ was made of the same substance (homo-ousion) of any previously existing substance. To settle the consequent dispute Constantine called the Council of Nicaea, A.D. 325. Athanasius successfully led the opposition to Arius; and Arius, with Eusebius, who also refused to accept the Athanasian position, was banished.
** Nice (Nicaea), city of Asia Minor, in Bithynia. In A.D. 325 it was the seat of a Council summoned to settle the Arian controversy. The creed there adopted is known as the Nicene Creed.
* Nice (Nicaea), city of Asia Minor, in Bithynia. In A.D. 325 it was the seat of a Council summoned to settle the Arian controversy. The creed there adopted is known as the Nicene Creed.
In order to know that the imputation of the merit and righteousness of Jesus Christ is impossible, it is necessary to understand what His merit and righteousness are. The merit of our Lord the Savior is redemption, the nature of which may be seen above in the chapter devoted to it, Nos. 114-133. There it is described as having consisted in the subjugation of the hells and the orderly arrangement of the heavens, and the subsequent establishment of the Church; and thus it is shown that redemption was a work purely Divine. It is also shown there that by redemption the Lord assumed the power of regenerating and saving those who believe on Him and do His commandments; and that without this redemption no flesh could have been saved. Now, since redemption was a work purely Divine, a work of the Lord alone, and since this is His merit, it follows that it can no more be applied, ascribed or imputed to any man than the creation and preservation of the universe. Redemption, moreover, was in a sense a creation of the angelic heaven anew, and also of the Church.
[2] The present Church attributes this merit of the Lord the Redeemer to those who, by grace, obtain faith. This is evident from their doctrines, of which this is the chief. For the dignitaries of this Church and their dependents, both in the Roman Catholic Church and in the Reformed Churches, assert that by imputation of the merit of Christ those who have obtained faith are not only reputed just and holy, but are so; that their sins are not sins in God’s sight because they are remitted; and that the faithful are justified, that is, reconciled, renewed, regenerated, sanctified and enrolled in heaven. The whole Christian Church teaches the same to-day, as is plainly evident from the Council of Trent,* the Augustan or Augsburg Confessions,** and the treatises on them which are also received by the Church.
[3] It follows from the transfer to this faith of what has just been mentioned that the possession of this faith is itself that merit and righteousness of the Lord, and consequently that he who possesses it is Christ in another person. For it is declared that Christ Himself is righteousness and that this faith is righteousness, and that imputation, by which is also meant ascription and application, causes men not only to be reputed just and holy, but actually to be so. Add only transference to imputation, application and ascription, and you will be a vicarious pope.
* Trent, the Council of Trent (ancient Tridentum) met A.D. 1545-1563 at Trent in the Tyrol in order to crush the Reformation. It reaffirmed the old doctrines of the Papacy.
** Augustan or Augsburg Confession, presented by the Lutherans to Charles V at Augusta or Augsburg, in A.D. 1530. This is one of the standard books of faith to which members of the Lutheran Church subscribe. Melanchthon was mainly responsible for its composition.
[2] In the spiritual world there is a Sun, in the midst of which is the Lord. From that Sun He flows in by means of light and heat into the whole spiritual world, and into all who dwell there; for all light and heat in that world are from this source. The Lord from that Sun flows in with the same light and heat into the souls and minds of men. This heat in its essence is His Divine Love, and this light in its essence is His Diving Wisdom; and the Lord adapts this light and heat to the capacity and nature of the recipient angel and man. This is effected by means of spiritual airs or atmospheres, which convey and transmit them. The Divine itself which immediately encompasses the Lord constitutes that Sun. It is distant from the angels as the sun of the natural world is from men; for otherwise they also would be consumed as was stated above, like a log cast into the sun’s pure fire.
[3] From this it may be evident that the merit and righteousness of the Lord, being purely Divine, cannot possibly be transferred by imputation to any angel or man; indeed, if a single particle of it, without being moderated as was said above, were to touch them, they would instantly suffer torture like those in the agonies of death; and with feet convulsed and eyes starting from their sockets they would breathe out their life. This was made known in the Israelitish Church by the declaration that no man can see God and live.
[4] The Sun of the spiritual world, such as it is since Jehovah God assumed the Human and added to it redemption and a new righteousness, is described by these words in Isaiah:
“The light of the sun shall be seven-fold, as the light of seven days, in the day that the Lord bindeth up the breach of His people,” Isa. xxx. 26.
In this chapter, from the beginning to the end, the Coming of the Lord is treated of. What would happen if the Lord were to come down and approach a wicked person, is thus described in the Revelation:
“They hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains; And said to the mountains and rocks … hide us from the face of Him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb.” Rev. vi. 15, 16.
[5] It is called the wrath of the Lamb because the terror and torment so appear to them when the Lord approaches. This may also be evident from the fact that if a wicked person is admitted into heaven where charity and faith in the Lord prevail, thick darkness comes over his eyes, giddiness and madness assail his mind, his body is seized with pain and torment and he becomes like one dead. What then, would happen if the Lord Himself, with His Divine merit, which is redemption, and with His Divine righteousness were to enter a man? The Apostle John himself could not endure the presence of the Lord; for it is written
That when he saw the Son of Man in the midst of the seven candlesticks, he fell at His feet as dead, Rev. i. 17.
The man who has not been born again as to his spirit is like a panther or an owl, and may be likened to a thorn and a nettle; but the man who has been born again is like a sheep or a dove, and may be compared to an olive-tree or a vine. Please consider, I pray, how a human panther can be converted into a sheep, an owl into a dove, a thorn into an olive-tree, or a nettle into a vine, by any imputation, ascription, or application of Divine righteousness; this would condemn rather than justify. For this conversion to take place, the savage nature of the panther and of the owl, or the noxious nature of the thorn and of the nettle must first be removed, and a nature truly human and harmless be implanted in their stead. How this is effected, the Lord teaches in John xv. 1-7.
* Reformed, Protestants.
The imputation of good and evil is what is meant when imputation is mentioned in the Word. This is evident from innumerable passages there, some of which have already been quoted. In order that every one may be convinced that there is no other imputation, some additional passages shall now be quoted. These are:
“The Son of Man shall come … and then He shall reward every man according to his works.” Matt. xvi. 27.
“They shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of judgment (A.V., damnation).” John v. 29.
“A book was opened, which is the book of life … and they were judged every man according to their works.” Rev. xx. 12, 13.
“Behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be.” Rev. xxii. 12.
“I will punish them for their ways, and reward them their doings.” Hos. iv. 9; Zech. i. 6; Jer. xxv. 14; xxxii. 19.
God in the day of wrath, and of His righteous judgment “will render to every man according to his deeds.” Rom. ii. 5, 6.
“For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad.” 2 Cor. v. 10.
[2] There was no other law of imputation at the beginning of the Church, and there will be no other at the end. That there was no other at the beginning of the Church is evident from the case of Adam and his wife; for they were condemned because they committed evil in eating of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, Gen. ii. and iii. That there will be no other at the end of the Church is evident from these words of the Lord:
“When the Son of Man shall come in His glory … then shall He sit upon the throne of His glory … and He shall say unto the sheep (A.V., them) on His right hand, Come ye blessed … inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world: For I was an hungered, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and ye took me in: Naked, and ye clothed me: I was sick, and ye visited me: I was in prison, and ye came unto me.” But to the goats on the left hand, because they did not do good, He said, “Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels.” Matt. xxv. 31 and following verses.
From these passages every one may see clearly that there is an imputation of good and evil.
[3] There is also an imputation of faith, because charity, which pertains to good, and faith, which pertains to truth, are united in good works; and unless they are united, the works are not good. This may be seen above in Nos. 373-377. Therefore, James says,
“Was not Abraham our father justified by works, when he had offered Isaac his son upon the altar? Seest thou how faith wrought with his works, and by works was faith made perfect? And the scripture was fulfilled which saith, Abraham believed God, and it was imputed unto him for righteousness.” Epist. ii. 21, 22, 23.
As a stump of the roots in the earth, when the tree has been hewn down and destroyed … till seven times pass over him, Dan. iv. 23.
There is not a confirmed leader of the Church to-day, if this faith is attacked, but stops his ears as with cotton wool lest he should hear a word against it. But do you, my reader, open your ears, and read the Word; and you will clearly perceive a different kind of faith and imputation from what you had persuaded yourself to believe.
* Nice (Nicaea), city of Asia Minor, in Bithynia. In A.D. 325 it was the seat of a Council summoned to settle the Arian controversy. The creed there adopted is known as the Nicene Creed.
The faith and imputation of the New Church cannot be held along with those of the former Church which still persists, because they do not agree in a third or even in a tenth of their doctrine. For the faith of the former Church teaches that three Divine Persons have existed from eternity, each of whom singly, or by Himself, was God, and also as so many Creators. But the faith of the New Church is that there was from eternity only one Divine Person, and thus one God, and that beside Him there is no other God. The faith of the former Church has, therefore, taught a Divine Trinity divided into three Persons; but the faith of the New Church teaches the Divine Trinity united in one Person.
[2] The faith of the former Church was in a God invisible and inaccessible, with whom there could be no conjunction; and they thought of Him as a spirit, of the same nature as ether or wind. But the faith of the New Church is in a God who is visible and accessible, and with whom there can be conjunction, in whom, as the soul in the body, is God the invisible and inaccessible, and with whom there can be no conjunction; and they think of Him as a Man, because the one God who was from eternity, became Man in time.
[3] The faith of the former Church attributes all power to the invisible God, and denies it to the visible. For it teaches that God the Father imputes faith, and thereby bestows eternal life; and that the visible God only intercedes; and that they both give, or according to the Greek Church, God the Father gives, to the Holy Spirit, who is the third in order God by Himself, all power to work out the effects of that faith. But the New Church attributes to the visible God, in whom is the invisible, all power to impute, and also to work out the effects of salvation.
[4] The faith of the former Church is Primarily in God the Creator, and not at the same time in Him as Redeemer and Savior; but the faith of the New Church is in one God, who is at the same time the Creator, Redeemer and Savior.
[5] The faith of the former Church is that repentance, remission of sins, renewal, regeneration, sanctification and salvation follow of themselves the faith that is given and imputed, without anything of man being mingled or conjoined with them. But the faith of the New Church teaches repentance, reformation, regeneration, and thus the remission of sins, with man’s co-operation.
[6] The former Church teaches the imputation of Christ’s merit, and that it is included in the faith bestowed on man. But the New Church teaches the imputation of good and of evil, and at the same time of faith; and that this imputation is in accordance with the Sacred Scripture, while the other is contrary to it.
[7] The former Church teaches the gift of faith in which is included the merit of Christ, the man being as a stock or a stone; and it also asserts man’s utter impotence in spiritual things. But the New Church teaches a faith wholly different, not a faith in the merit of Christ but in Jesus Christ Himself as God, the Redeemer and Savior, and in free will both to apply oneself to reception and to co-operate with Him.
[8] The former Church adjoins charity to its faith as an appendage, but not as saving, and on this relationship it forms its religion; but the New Church unites faith in the Lord and charity towards the neighbor as two inseparable things, and on this relationship forms its religion. The two Churches have many other points of difference.
[2] The faith of the former Church, because it excludes all light from reason, may be compared to an owl, but the faith of the New Church to a dove, which flies in the daytime and sees by the light of heaven. If they were brought together in one mind they would be like an owl and a dove in one nest, where each would lay its eggs. When the young ones were hatched, the owl would tear in pieces the young doves and give them to her own young for food; for the owl is a voracious bird.
[3] The faith of the former Church is described in the Revelation, chapter xii., by the dragon, and the faith of the New Church by the woman encompassed with the sun, upon whose head was a crown of twelve stars. It may, therefore, be inferred from the comparison what would be the state of a man’s mind if they were brought together in one place. The dragon would stand near the woman when she was about to bring forth, with the intention of devouring her child; and when she fled into the wilderness he would pursue her, and cast upon her water like a flood that she might be swallowed up.
The Lord imputes good to man, and not any evil, and the devil, by whom is meant hell, imputes evil to man, and not any good. This truth is new in the Church, because it is frequently said in the Word, that God is angry, that He avenges, hates, condemns, punishes, casts into hell and tempts, which all pertain to evil, and consequently are evils. But the sense of the Letter of the Word is composed of what are called appearances and correspondences, in order that there may be a conjunction of the external Church with its internal, and thus of the world with heaven, as was shown in the chapter on the Sacred Scripture. It was also shown that when such things are read in the Word, the appearances of truth themselves, as they pass from man to heaven, are turned into genuine truths, which are, that the Lord is never angry, that He never avenges, hates, condemns, punishes, casts into hell or tempts; consequently that He does evil to no man. This change and turning I have often observed in the spiritual world.
Between them “there is a great gulf fixed: so that they which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us, that would come from thence.” Luke xvi. 26.
Not even an angel of heaven can do evil to any one, because the essence of good from the Lord is in him; and on the other hand, a spirit of hell cannot but do evil to another, because the nature of evil from the devil is in him. The essence or nature which any one has appropriated to himself in the world cannot be changed after death.
Consider, I pray, what the nature of the Lord would be, if He were to regard the evil with anger, and the good with mercy, the evil and the good both in their myriads of myriads; and if He were to save the good by grace and condemn the evil from vengeance, looking on both with an eye so different, at once gentle and stern, mild and severe. What, then, would the Lord be? Every one knows from the instruction he has received in church preaching that all good, which is in itself good, is from God; and on the other hand, that all evil, which is in itself evil, is from the devil. If, therefore, any man should receive both good and evil, good from the Lord and evil from the devil, receiving both in the will, he would become neither cold nor hot, but lukewarm; and he would, therefore, be spewed out, according to the words of the Lord in the Revelation, chapter iii. 15, 18.
Jesus said, “And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me.” John xii. 32.
“God sent not His Son into the world to judge (A.V., condemn) the world; but that the world through Him might be saved. He that believeth on Him is not judged (A.V., condemned): but he that believeth not is judged (A.V., condemned) already.” John iii. 17, 18.
“If any man hear my words, and believe not, I judge him not: for I came not to judge the world, but to save the world. He that rejecteth me, and receiveth not my words, hath one that judgeth him: the word that I have spoken, the same shall judge him at the last day.” John xii. 47, 48.
Jesus said, “I judge no man.” John viii. 15.
Judgment, in these and other passages in the Word, means judgment to hell, which is condemnation; of salvation, however, judgment is not predicated, but resurrection to life, John v. 24, 29; iii. 18. [2] The word which will judge means truth; and it is a truth that all evil is from hell, and thus that evil and hell are one. When, therefore, a wicked man is being raised by the Lord towards heaven, his evil draws him down, and, because he loves it, he follows it of his own accord. It is also a truth in the Word that good is heaven; therefore, when a good man is raised by the Lord towards heaven, he ascends as of his own accord and is introduced. These are said to be
“Written in the book of life.” Dan. xii. 1; Rev. xiii. 8; xx. 12, 15; xvii. 8; xxi. 27.
[3] There is actually a sphere elevating all men towards heaven, which proceeds continually from the Lord, and fills the whole spiritual world, as well as the whole natural world. It is like a strong current in the ocean, which with hidden force bears a ship along. All those who believe on the Lord and live according to His commandments, enter that sphere or current and are raised upwards; but those who do not believe on Him, have no desire to enter that sphere, but turn aside and are caught up by the stream which flows into hell.
“O generation of vipers, how can ye, being evil, speak good things?… A good man, out of the treasure of his heart, bringeth forth good things: and an evil man, out of the evil treasure, bringeth forth evil things. Matt. xii. 34, 35.
Works of charity, done by a Christian and by a heathen, are the same in outward appearance, for they both perform the good deeds of the civil and moral life towards their fellow citizens. These in some respects are similar to the good works of love towards the neighbor; both indeed may give to the poor, assist the needy, and listen to sermons in churches; but who can judge whether such external deeds are also good in their internal form, or, in other words, whether the natural deeds are also spiritual? This can only be decided from the faith, for it is this which gives them their quality; for faith causes God to be in them, and conjoins them with itself in the internal man; and it is from this that natural good works become inwardly spiritual. That this is the case may be more clearly seen from what was said in the chapter on Faith, where the following facts are established:
“Faith is not living before it is conjoined with charity. Charity becomes spiritual from faith, and faith from charity. Faith without charity, not being spiritual, is not faith; and charity without faith, not being living, is not charity. Faith and charity apply and conjoin themselves to each other reciprocally. The Lord, charity and faith make one, like life, will and understanding in man; and if they are divided, each perishes like a pearl reduced to powder.”
* Jupiter or Jove, son of Saturn.
** Apollo, god of divination, healing, poetry and music.
Every scholar knows that there are two faculties or functions of the mind, the will and the understanding; but few know how to distinguish them aright, to examine their properties separately and then set these in their proper relationship. Those who cannot do this can form for themselves only the most obscure idea concerning the mind; therefore, unless the properties of the will and the understanding are first separately described, the truth of the proposition will not be comprehended, that will is imputed but not thought. The properties of each are briefly these:
1. Love itself, and what pertains to love, reside in the will, while knowledge, intelligence, and wisdom reside in the understanding; and the will inspires these with its love, and procures their favor and assent; hence every man is such as are his love and resulting intelligence.
2. It follows from this that all good and also all evil are of the will; for whatever proceeds from love is called good, although it should be evil, since delight, which constitutes the life of love, causes it to be so called. The will, by means of this delight, enters the understanding, and gains its consent.
3. The will, therefore, is the being (esse) or essence of man’s life, but the understanding is the existing (existere) or the existence threrefrom. And since essence is nothing unless it is in some form, so the will is nothing unless it is in the understanding. Therefore, the will takes its form in the understanding, and thus comes to light.
4. Love in the will is the end, and in the understanding it seeks and finds causes by means of which it may proceed to the effect. Because the end is the purpose, and it is this which intends, purpose also pertains to the will, and by means of intention enters the understanding, and prompts it to consider and evolve means and to determine on what may tend to produce effects.
5. The whole of man’s proprium is in the will, and is evil from his first birth, but becomes good from the second birth. The first birth is from parents, the second from the Lord.
From these few considerations it may be seen that the will and the understanding have different and distinct properties. By creation these are united, like being (esse) and existing (existere); consequently a man is a man primarily by virtue of his will, and secondarily by virtue of his understanding. Hence it is that will is imputed to man, but not thought; and therefore evil and good are imputed, because these, as was just stated, reside in the will, and thence in the thought of the understanding.
[2] Worship and the temple in which it is performed may be similarly regarded. Worship itself is performed in the will, and it is conducted in the understanding as in its proper temple; and the temple is called holy, not on its own account, but from the Divine which is there taught. A government also is loved where good reigns together with truth, but not where truth rules without good. No one judges of a king from his retinue, his horses and carriages, but from the royalty which he is known to possess; and royalty consists in loving and prudent governing. In a triumphal procession every one looks to the conqueror, and from him to the pomp, and not from the pomp to the conqueror; thus from the essential to the formal, and not the reverse. Now, the will is the essential, and thought is the formal, and no one can impute to the formal anything but what it derives from the essential; hence the essential and not the formal is the subject of imputation.
To the above I shall add the following Memorabilia. The first is as follows. In the higher northern quarter near the east in the spiritual world, there are places of instruction for boys, some for youths, some for men and some for old men. All who have died in infancy are sent to these places, and are educated in heaven; so, too, are all new-comers from the world who desire knowledge respecting heaven and hell. This region is near the east in order that all may be instructed by influx from the Lord. For the Lord is the East, because He is in the Sun there, and this Sun is pure love from Him; therefore, the heat from this Sun in its essence is love, and the light from it in its essence is wisdom. This heat and light are infused into them by the Lord from this Sun, according to their reception of them, and their reception is according to their love of growing wise. After their periods of instruction, those who have become intelligent are sent out, and are called disciples of the Lord. They are sent out first to the west; and those who do not remain there, to the south, and some through the south into the east, and are introduced to the societies where their homes are to be.
[2] Once when meditating about heaven and hell I felt a desire for a universal form of knowledge concerning the state of each, being aware that he who is acquainted with universals may afterwards comprehend particulars, because particulars are contained in universals as parts in a whole. With this desire I looked towards that region in the northern quarter near the east where were the places of instruction; and by a way then opened for me, I went thither and entered one of the colleges, where there were young men. There I went to the head teachers who were giving instruction, and asked them whether they were acquainted with the universals concerning heaven and hell. They replied that they knew something of them, though not much; “But if we look,” said they, “towards the east, we shall receive both enlightenment and knowledge.”
[3] They did so and then said: “There are three universals of hell, but they are diametrically opposite to those of heaven. The universals of hell are these three loves: the love of ruling from the love of self, the love of possessing the property of others from the love of the world, and scortatory love. The universals of heaven opposite to these are these three loves: the love of ruling from the love of use, the love of possessing worldly goods from the love of performing uses by means of them, and love truly conjugial.” When they had said this I departed after paying my respects to them, and returned home. When there, a voice from heaven said to me: “Closely examine these three universals, and we shall then see them on your hand.” The phrase “on the hand”” was used because whatever a man examines in his understanding appears to the angels as if inscribed on his hands. This is why it is said in the Revelation that they received a mark on the forehead and on the hand, xiii. 16; xiv. 9; xx. 4.
[4] Thereupon I examined the first universal love of hell, namely, the love of ruling from the love of self, and afterwards the universal love of heaven corresponding to it, namely, the love of ruling from the love of uses. I was not allowed to examine the one without the other, because the understanding has no perception of one love without the other, for they are opposites. In order, therefore, that both may be perceived they must be placed in contrast, one against the other; just as a beautiful and handsome face is seen to advantage when an ugly and deformed one is placed in contrast with it. When I was considering the love of ruling from the love of self, it was granted me to see that this love was in the highest degree infernal, and consequently prevails with those who are in the deepest hell; and that the love of ruling from the love of uses is in the highest degree celestial, and consequently prevails with those who are in the highest heaven.
[5] The love of ruling from the love of self is in the highest degree infernal because to rule from the love of self is to rule from the proprium, and man’s proprium is by birth evil itself, and evil itself is diametrically opposed to the Lord. Therefore, the deeper men advance in that evil, the more do they deny God and the holy things of the Church, and worship themselves and nature. I entreat those who are in this evil to examine it in themselves, and they will see. This love is such that, if it is unrestrained and no obstacle stands in its way, it rushes on from stage to stage even to the very highest. Even there it does not rest, and grieves and laments if further progress is denied it.
[6] With politicians this love mounts to such a degree that they desire to be kings and emperors; and, if possible, to have dominion over all things in the world, and to be styled king of kings, and emperor of emperors. With the clergy this same love increases till they desire to be gods; and if that were possible, to have dominion over all things in heaven, and to be styled gods. It will be seen in what follows that such men in their heart do not acknowledge any God. Those on the other hand who desire to rule from the love of uses do not desire to rule from themselves but from the Lord, since the love of uses is from the Lord, and is the Lord Himself. Such men regard dignities only as means for performing uses, which they place far above dignities; whereas the others place dignities far above uses.
[7] As I was meditating on these things, an angel from the Lord said to me, “You shall now see with your own eyes and be convinced what the nature of that infernal love is.” Then suddenly the earth opened up on the left, and I saw a devil coming up out of hell, having on his head a four cornered cap pulled over his forehead down to his eyes. His face was covered with pimples, like those of a burning fever, his eyes were fierce and his breast puffed out and rotund. From his mouth he belched forth smoke like a furnace, and his loins were all afire; in place of feet his ankle bones devoid of flesh sufficed, and from his body there exhaled a foul and noisome heat. When I saw him I called out in terror, “Come no nearer; tell me where you come from.” He replied in a raucous voice, “I am from the lower regions where I live in a society of two hundred, which is pre-eminent over all others. There we are all emperors of emperors, kings of kings, dukes of dukes, and princes of princes. No one there is merely an emperor, or king, duke or prince. We sit there on thrones above thrones, and send forth our mandates to all the world, and beyond.” I then said to him, “Do you not perceive that you are insane, deluded by the obsession of pre-eminence?” He replied: “How can you say so, when we, without the shadow of a doubt, see and our associates acknowledge our supremacy?”
[8] On hearing this I refrained from insisting that he was insane, as he was obviously obsessed by his delusion; and I learned that this devil, when in the world had been only the steward in some family. Even then he had been so puffed up in spirit as to despise all men in comparison with himself, and had indulged the delusion that he was more worthy of honor than any king or emperor. In his pride he had denied God, and had considered all the holy things of the Church as of no concern to himself, but only as fit for the stupid multitude. At length I asked him, “How long do you two hundred there continue to glory thus among yourselves?” “For ever,” he replied; “but those of us who torture others for denying this supremacy sink underground; for we are allowed to glory, but not to inflict injury upon any one.” I asked again, “Do you know what befalls those who sink underground?” He said: “They sink down to a certain prison, where they are called viler than the vile, or the most vile, and there they are set to work.” Then I said to him, “Take heed lest you too sink down.”
[9] After this the earth opened up again, but towards the right, and I saw another devil rising up, who had on his head a kind of mitre, composed of folds like the coils of a snake whose head rose from the top. His face was leprous from the forehead to the chin, and so were both his hands. His loins were naked and black as smoke, through which fire as from a hearth darkly glowed, and his ankles were like two vipers. When the first devil saw him, he fell on his knees and worshiped him. I asked why he did so, and he replied: “He is the god of heaven and earth, and is omnipotent.” I then asked the latter, “What do you say to this?” He answered, “What should I say? I have all power over heaven and hell, and the fate of all souls is in my hand.” Again I asked, “How can he who is the emperor of emperors humble himself so, and how can you accept his worship?” He replied, “He is still my slave. What is an emperor in the sight of God? In my right hand is the thunderbolt of excommunication.”
[10] Then I said to him: “How can you rave so? In the world you were only a canon; and because you labored under the delusion that you possessed the keys of heaven, and thus the power of binding and loosing, you have worked your spirit up to such a degree of madness that you now believe that you are God Himself.” Thereupon, he indignantly swore that he was, and declared that the Lord had no power in heaven, “because,” said he, “He has transferred it all to us. We have only to command, and heaven and hell reverently obey. If we send any one to hell, the devils immediately receive him; and so do the angels any one whom we send to heaven.” I asked further, “How many are there in your society” He answered, “Three hundred; and all we there are gods, but I am the god of gods.” [11] Thereupon the earth opened under the feet of both, and they sank deep down into their own hells; and it was granted me to see that under their hells were work-houses into which those might be thrown who do mischief to others. For every one in hell is left to the enjoyment of his own delusion and his own vain-glory in it, but he is not allowed to injure another. The reason of this is that man is there in his spirit, and the spirit, when separated from the body, attains full liberty of acting according to his affections and his consequent thoughts.
[12] I was afterwards allowed to look into their hells; and the hell where the emperors of emperors and kings of kings were, was full of all uncleanness, and they themselves seemed like wild beasts of various kinds, with fierce looking eyes. It was the same in the other hell where were the gods and the god of gods. In it appeared the direful birds of night, called ochim and ijim, flying round about them; so appeared to me the images produced by their delusion. In this way was manifested the nature of political and ecclesiastical self-love; the former makes men wish to become emperors, and the latter to become gods; and they continue to aspire after what they wish as far as the reins are given to those loves.
[13] After I had seen these sad and dreadful things, I looked around and saw two angels in conversation, standing not far from me. One wore a woolen cloak resplendent in flaming purple, beneath which was a tunic of fine linen, gleaming white; and the other wore similar garments in scarlet, with a mitre on the right side of which were set some flame-colored jewels. I walked towards them and, greeting them with a salutation of peace, I reverently asked, “Why are you here below?” They replied, “We have come down from heaven to this place at the command of the Lord, to speak with you concerning the happy lot of those who wish to rule from the love of uses. We are worshipers of the Lord; I am a prince in my society, and my companion is high priest there.”
The prince also said that he was the servant of his society, because he served it by performing uses. His companion said that he was a minister of the Church there, because in serving them he administered holy things for the uses of their souls; and that they both were in perpetual joys from the eternal happiness which was theirs from the Lord. They said that all things in that society were splendid and magnificent, resplendent with gold and precious stones, and magnificent with palaces and gardens. “This,” he said, “is because our love of ruling is not from the love of self, but from the love of uses. As this love is from the Lord, all good uses in the heavens are resplendent and shine brightly; and as all in our society are in this love, the atmosphere there has a golden glow from the Sun’s gleaming splendor, which corresponds to that love.”
[14] At these words a golden sphere appeared to me to surround them, and from it a perceptible fragrance arose. I mentioned this to them, and begged them to say something more about the love of use. So they continued, and said: “The dignities we enjoy we indeed sought, but only that we might be the better able to perform uses, and thus extend our usefulness. We are also surrounded with honor, and we accept it, not for our own sake but for the good of the society. For our brethren and companions, who are drawn from the common people of the society, suppose that the honor of our dignities is in us, and consequently that the uses we perform are from ourselves. But we know otherwise; we are sensible that the honors attending our stations are outside ourselves, like garments with which we are clothed; but that the uses which we perform are from the love of them, which is within us from the Lord, and this love finds its blessedness from communication with others by means of uses. We know from experience that as far as we perform uses from the love of them, the love increases, and with the love, wisdom from which communication is made possible. On the other hand, as far as we keep uses within ourselves, and do not share them, the blessedness perishes. Then use becomes like food retained in the stomach, and as it is not diffused to act as nourishment for the body and its parts, it remains undigested, and causes sickness. In a word, heaven is comprised of nothing but uses, from first things to last. What is use but practical love of the neighbor? and what holds the heavens together but this love?”
Thereupon I asked, “How can any one know whether he performs uses from the love of self, or from the love of uses? Every man, whether good or bad, performs uses, and he does so from some love. Suppose a society in the world is composed of devils only, and another of angels only. I imagine that the devils in their society, fired by self-love and the splendor of vain-glory, would perform as many uses as the angels in theirs. Can any one know from what love and from what origin the several uses proceed?” To this the two angels replied: “Devils perform uses for the sake of themselves and for the sake of fame, that they may be promoted to honors, or acquire wealth. Angels, however, do not perform uses for those reasons, but for the sake of uses from the love of uses. Man cannot discern the true quality of those uses, but the Lord does. Every one who believes on the Lord, and shuns evils as sins, performs uses from the Lord; but every one who does not believe on the Lord, and who does not shun evils as sins, performs uses from self and for the sake of self. This is the difference between uses performed by devils, and those performed by angels.” Having said this the two angels departed, and from afar they appeared to be carried in a chariot of fire, like Elijah, and were thus taken up into their own heaven.
[2] Then I requested them to tell me their ideas on those three subjects, lust, delusion and intelligence; so they began their discourse, saying: “Every one interiorly is in lust by birth, but outwardly in intelligence from education; and no one is in intelligence, much less in wisdom, interiorly, and thus as to his spirit, except from the Lord. For every one is withheld from the lust of evil, and is kept in intelligence as he looks to the Lord, and at the same time maintains conjunction with Him. Without this, man is nothing but lust. Still, in externals, that is, as to his body, he is in intelligence from education. For man lusts after honors and riches, or eminence and wealth; but these he does not obtain unless he appears to be moral and spiritual, and thus intelligent and wise; and this appearance he learns to assume from his infancy. This is the reason, whenever he comes into the company of others, that he inverts his spirit, and, dissociating it from his lust, he speaks and acts from those principles of decency and honor which he has learned from his infancy and still retains in his outer memory; and he is particularly careful not to reveal the mad lust which reigns in his spirit.
[3] Hence every man who is not interiorly under the Lord’s guidance, is a dissembler, a cunning knave and a hypocrite. Thus he appears to be a man, yet is not; and of him it may be said that his outer shell or body is wise, but his inner kernel or spirit is insane; that his external is that of a man, but his internal that of a beast. Such persons look out on the world with the back of the head facing upwards, and their forehead facing downwards; and they walk as if oppressed with heaviness, their head hanging down, and their face directed to the ground. When they put off the body and become spirits, and are thus set free, they become the embodiment of their lust’s madness. For those who are in the love of self, desire to rule over the universe, and even to extend its boundaries with a view to enlarging their dominion, nowhere seeing an end. Those who are in the love of the world, desire to possess all that it contains, and show grief and envy if any of its treasures are stored away and hidden by others. To prevent such men from becoming mere embodiments of lust, and thus ceasing to be men, they are permitted in the spiritual world to think from fear of the loss of reputation, and thus of honor and gain; and also from fear of the law and its penalties. They are also permitted to apply their mind to some pursuit or work, by which they are kept in externals and thus in a state of intelligence, however wild and insane they may be inwardly.”
[4] After this, I inquired whether all those who are in lust are also in its delusion. They replied that they are in the delusion of their lust when they give themselves up to introspection, and over-indulge their imagination by holding converse with themselves. For they almost completely separate their spirit from its connection with the body, and overwhelm their understanding with visionary fancies, and take a foolish delight in supposing they possess the whole universe. Into this madness after death plunges the man who has abstracted his spirit from the body, and who has refused to forego his delight in the madness, by giving some thought to evils and falsities from a principle of religion, and none at all to the unbridled love of self, as destructive of love towards the neighbor.
[5] Then there came upon the two angels as well as myself the desire to see those who are obsessed by the visionary lust or delusion of possessing all wealth from the love of the world; and we perceived that this desire was inspired to the end that such persons might be recognized. Their dwellings were under the ground on which we were standing, but above hell; so we looked at each other and said, “Let us go.” An opening appeared and there was a ladder by which we descended; and we were warned to approach them from the east, lest we should enter the mist of their delusion, and have our understanding and at the same time our sight beclouded. And lo! a house was seen, built of reeds and consequently full of chinks, standing in the mist which was pouring like smoke through the chinks in three of the walls. We entered, and saw fifty persons on one side and fifty on the other. They were sitting on benches with their backs turned to the east and south, and facing the west and north. In front of each was a table, upon which were purses full of money, and surrounding these was a quantity of gold coins.
[6] We asked them, “Is this the wealth of all the people in the world?” They replied, “Not of all in the world, but of all in the kingdom.” Their voices had a sibilant sound, and they themselves were round of face which had a reddish tinge like a snail’s shell; while the pupil of their eyes sparkled as it were in a field of green, from the light of their delusion. Standing in their midst we said, “Do you believe that you possess all the wealth in the kingdom?” and they replied, “We do possess it.” Then we asked, “Which of you?” “Every one of us,” they replied. We then asked, “How can every one of you possess it, for there are many of you?” They said: “Each one of us knows that all his is mine. No one is allowed to think, much less to say, ‘Mine is not thine;’ but we are allowed to think and say, ‘Thine is mine.'” The coins on the tables appeared, even to us, to be of pure gold; but when we let in light from the east; we saw they were but tiny grains of gold which by the united effort of their delusion they had so magnified. They said that every one who came in must bring with him some gold, which they cut into little pieces, and these again into tiny grains; and by the united power of their delusion they magnify them into coins of considerable size.
[7] We then said: “Were you not born men of reason? How came this visionary folly upon you?” “We are aware,” they replied, “that it is vain imagination; but since it gratifies the interiors of our mind, we come here and indulge our delight, as with the possession of all things. However, we remain here only a few hours, and at the end of that time we depart; and as often as we do so our soundness of mind returns. Still our visionary pleasure recurs, inducing us to re-enter and depart by turns and so we are wise and insane alternately. We know, too, that a hard lot awaits those who craftily deprive others of their property.” “What is their lot?” we asked. They replied: “They are swallowed up, and, stripped of their clothing, they are thrust into some infernal prison, where they are kept working for clothing and food, and afterwards for a few small pieces of money. These they hoard up, placing in them the joy of their heart. But if they do any injury to their companions, they must give up part of their hoard as a fine.”
[2] While the angels were engaged in this conversation there came up two priests, and with them a man who in the world had been an ambassador of a kingdom. I related to them what I had heard from the angels respecting intelligence and wisdom. Then the three began to dispute about these virtues, and also about prudence, whether they are from God or from man. The dispute was warm; although all three entertained the same belief that they are from man, because sensation itself and perception arising from it confirm this. The priests, however, who were at the moment influenced by theological zeal, insisted that nothing of intelligence and wisdom, and consequently of prudence, is from man, and this they proved by the following passages from the Word:
“A man can receive nothing, except it be given him from heaven.” John iii. 27;
Jesus said to the disciples, “Without me ye can do nothing.” John xv. 5.
[3] As the angels perceived that, although the priests spoke in this way, they still believed at heart the same as the ambassador, they said to the priests: “Take off your own garments and put on those of ministers of state, and suppose yourselves to be statesmen.” They did so; and then they thought from their interior self, and argued in favor of the opinions which they inwardly maintained, saying, “Who has ever yet felt that they flowed in from God?” and exchanging looks, they supported each other in their views. It is a peculiarity of the spiritual world that spirits suppose they are what their dress represents them to be; this is because the understanding clothes every one there.
[4] At that instant a tree appeared near them, and they were told, “This is the tree of the knowledge of good and evil; take heed that you do not eat of it.” But infatuated with their own intelligence, they ardently desired to eat of it, and said to each other, “Why not? Is not the fruit good?” So they drew near and ate. When the ambassador observed this, he joined them, and they became cordial friends, walking hand in hand along the way of their own intelligence, which led towards hell. However, I saw them coming back, because they were not yet prepared.
[2] Then we began our inquiry; and first turning to the company of politicians, we asked them if they would please tell us from the heart what they had thought, and thus what they still thought about conscience. To this they replied one after the other, and their answers amounted to this, that conscience consisted in knowing within oneself, thus in being conscious of, what one intended, thought, did and said. But we said to them, “We did not inquire about the etymological meaning of the word conscience, but about conscience itself.” They replied: “Conscience is but anxiety arising from an apprehensive fear of the loss of honor and wealth, and also of reputation as a result of their loss. However, that anxiety is dispelled by feasts, and cups of generous wine, and by conversation on the sports of Venus and her boy Cupid.” [3] To this we said, “You are jesting; tell us, if you please, whether any of you ever felt anxiety from any other cause?” They replied: “From what other cause? All the world is like a stage upon which every one plays his part, as actors do upon theirs. We trick and overreach others by taking advantage of their particular lust, deceiving some by jests, some by flattery, some by cunning, some by pretended friendship, some by feigned sincerity and some by various political arts and allurements. The consequence is that we have no anxiety of mind, but on the contrary, cheerfulness and gladness, which we silently yet generously shed around with open heart. We have heard indeed from some of our companions that they have experienced at times a certain anxiety and straitness as it were of heart and chest, and thus something like a constriction of the mind. When, however, they consulted apothecaries about these things, they were informed that they were caused by a melancholy humor arising from undigested food in the stomach, or from a disordered state of the spleen. With regard to some of these, we have heard that they have been restored to their former cheerfulness by drugs.”
[4] Having heard this we turned to the company of scholars, among whom were several skilled in natural philosophy. Addressing them we said: “You who have studied the sciences, and are consequently supposed to be oracles of wisdom, tell us, if you please, what conscience is.” They replied: “You ask us what our opinion on this matter is. Well, we have heard indeed that some persons are subject to sadness, sorrow and anxiety which affect not only the gastric regions of the body but also the abodes of the mind. We believe that the two brains are its abodes; and as these consist of connected fibres, there is some acrid humor which irritates, gnaws and eats away those fibres, and in this way so compresses the sphere of the thoughts of the mind that it cannot enjoy the pleasures that arise from various sources. Hence the man gives his attention to one thing only; and this destroys the resilience and elasticity of those fibres, causing a certain resistance and rigidity in them. This results in an irregular motion of the animal spirits called ataxy, and also in that functional defect called leipothymia. In a word, the mind then settles down as if hemmed in by hostile troops and has no more power to turn this way or that than a wheel locked with nails, or than a ship wrecked on quicksands. Such constriction of the mind, and consequently of the chest, arises where the ruling love is thwarted. For then, the fibres of the brain contract, so that the mind cannot roam at will and indulge in the various forms of pleasure. In such a crisis some men are exposed, each according to his own temperament, to different forms of delusion, insanity and madness, while others are subject to brain sickness in religious matters, which they call remorse of conscience.”
[5] After this we turned to the third company which consisted of physicians, among whom were some surgeons and apothecaries; and we said, “You perhaps know what conscience is. Is it a troublesome pain which affects the head and the tissue of the heart, extending to the subjacent epigastric and hypogastric regions, or is it something else?” “Conscience,” they replied, “is nothing but such a pain. We know its origin better than others. There are polluting diseases which affect the organic parts of the body and also those of the head, and consequently the mind also; for the mind has its seat in the organism of the brain, like a spider in the centre of the threads of its web, along which it hurries out and back as the mind roams to and fro. These diseases we call organic, and those that return at intervals chronic; but the pain which sick people describe to us as a pain of conscience is only a combination of melancholia and dyspepsia. This primarily affects the spleen, and secondarily the pancreas and the mesentery, depriving them of their proper functions; hence come diseases of the stomach, and from these a diseased state of the blood. For a compression takes place about the orifice of the stomach, called heartburn (cardialgia). From these diseases arise humors impregnated with black, yellow or green bile, causing an obstruction of the tiny capillary blood vessels, giving rise to cachexy, atrophy, symphysis, with a pseudo peri-pneumonia occasioned by the presence of a sluggish phlegm and a serous corroding lymph throughout the whole mass of the blood. Similar results follow when pus finds its way into the blood and its serum, owing to the bursting of empyemas, abscesses and pustules in the body. This blood, ascending by the carotids into the head, wears away, corrodes and consumes the medullary, cortical and meningeal substances of the brain, and thus excites the pains which are called pains of conscience.”
[6] On hearing this we said to them, “You speak the language of Hippocrates* and Galen;** these things are Greek to us, and unintelligible. We did not ask about these diseases, but about conscience, which pertains to the mind alone.” But they replied: “The diseases of the mind and those of the head are the same, and those of the head ascend from the body; for the head and the body are joined together like two stories of one house, between which there is a stairway for ascending and descending. We are well assured, therefore, that the state of the mind depends inseparably on the state of the body; and those very complaints, or pains in the head, which we understood you to mean by conscience, we have cured, some by plasters and blisters, some by infusions and emulsions, and some by herbs and anodynes.”
[7] Finding that they continued still in the same strain, we turned from them to the clergy, and said: “You know what conscience is; tell us, therefore, and instruct those who are present.” “What conscience is” they answered, “we know and yet we do not know. We used to believe that it was the contrition which precedes election, that is, the moment when a man is gifted with faith, by which a new heart and a new spirit are formed for him, and he is regenerated. We found, however, that such contrition is felt by few; some, indeed, are affected only with dread and consequent anxiety about hell-fire; but scarcely any one on account of his sins, and consequently the just anger of God. We confessors, however, have healed them by the Good Tidings that Christ, by the passion of the cross, took away condemnation, and so extinguished hell-fire, and opened heaven to those who are blessed with the faith on which is inscribed the imputation of the merit of the Son of God. There are, besides, certain conscientious persons of different religions, both true and fanatical, who create for themselves scruples in matters of salvation, not only in essentials but also in what is formal, and even in matters of indifference. Therefore, as we said before, we know that there is such a thing as conscience; but what it is, and what is the nature of true conscience which must be altogether spiritual, we do not know.”
* Hippocrates, Greek medical authority, born at Cos, c. 460 B.C. Writer as well as physician, he classified the fluids or humors of the body as blood, phlegm, black and yellow bile, the right combination of which resulted in health.
** Galen, famous physician, A.D. 130-200: born at Pergamos and practiced at Rome. For many years his writings formed the chief text book of the medical profession. He was especially distinguished in anatomy, diagnosis, and prognosis.
[2] But what conscience is may be illustrated by examples. A priest has conscience who has a spiritual willingness to teach truths, that he may promote the salvation of his flock; but he who teaches with any other end in view, has no conscience. A judge whose only regard is justice, and who administers it with judgment, has conscience; but one who primarily regards reward, friendship and favor, has no conscience. Again, if any man has in his possession another’s property without his knowledge, and can, therefore, enrich himself by it without fear of the law, and the loss of his honor and reputation; and if he restores it to its owner because it is not his own, he has conscience, for he does what is just for the sake of what is just. Moreover, if a man has it in his power to attain an office, but knows that another who is also a candidate would be more useful to society; and if he gives place to the other for the good of society, he has a good conscience; and so in other cases.
[3] All those who have conscience speak and act from the heart in everything that they say and do; for having an undivided mind they speak and act according to what they understand and believe to be true and good. Hence it follows that with those, who are more than others in the truths of faith and in their clear perception, a more perfect conscience is possible than with those who are less enlightened and whose perception is obscure. In a true conscience consists the spiritual life itself of man, for in this his faith is conjoined with charity; so that to act from conscience, with those who possess it, is to act from their spiritual life; and to act contrary to conscience is to act contrary to that life. Besides, every one knows from common conversation what conscience is. When it is said of any one that he has a conscience, it is understood that he is a just man. On the contrary, when it is said of another that he has no conscience, it is understood that he is unjust.”
[4] When the angel had said this, he was suddenly taken up into heaven, and the four companies came together into one; but after discussing for some time among themselves what the angel had said, they were again divided into four companies, but not the same as before. In the first were those who understood what the angel had said and assented to it; in the second those who did not understand it but still regarded it with favor; in the third those who did not wish to understand it, saying, “What have we to do with conscience?” and in the fourth those who ridiculed the words of the angel, saying, “What is conscience but flatulence?” Then I saw them withdrawing in order, the two former companies ascending as they went off to the right, and the two latter descending to the left.
BAPTISM
I. WITHOUT A KNOWLEDGE OF THE SPIRITUAL SENSE OF THE WORD, NO ONE CAN KNOW WHAT THE TWO SACRAMENTS, BAPTISM AND THE HOLY SUPPER, INVOLVE AND EFFECT.
It has been shown in the chapter on the Sacred Scripture that there is a spiritual sense in the whole of the Word and in every part of it; that hitherto this sense has been unknown; and that at this day it has been revealed for the sake of the New Church which is to be established by the Lord. The nature of that sense may be seen, not only in that chapter but also in the chapter on the Decalogue, which was also explained according to that sense. Unless that sense had been revealed, who would think of those two sacraments, Baptism and the Holy Supper, except according to the natural sense, which is the sense of the Letter; and so would declare, or say to himself, “What is Baptism but the sprinkling of water on the head of an infant; and what has this to do with salvation? Also, what is the Holy Supper but the partaking of bread and wine; and what again has this to do with salvation? Moreover, where is the holiness in these rites, except from the circumstance that they are received and enjoined as holy and Divine by ecclesiastical authority? In themselves they are mere ceremonies, which the Churches say, during the approach of the Word of God to these elements, become sacraments. I appeal to the laity and also to the clergy to acknowledge whether they have perceived in spirit and heart anything else concerning those two sacraments, and whether they have not rendered them their devotion as Divine for various causes and reasons; whereas those two sacraments, considered in the spiritual sense, are the most holy things of worship, as will be evident from the following passages in which their uses will be set forth. However, as the uses of those sacraments cannot possibly be comprehended by any one unless the spiritual sense discloses and unfolds them, it follows that, without that sense, no one can know but that they are mere ceremonies, which are holy because they were instituted by Divine command.
Those sacraments may also be compared to a temple in duplicate, one temple above the other, in the lower of which is preached the gospel of the Lord’s new coming, and also of regeneration and consequent salvation by Him. From this temple, circling upwards from the altar, is an ascent to the upper temple, where the Holy Supper is celebrated; and thence is a passage into heaven, where the worshipers are received by the Lord. They may also be compared to a tabernacle, in which, behind the entrance, appears the table on which the shew-bread is placed in order; where there is also the golden altar for incense, and in the midst the candlestick with lighted lamps, by which all these things come into view; and finally, for those who allow themselves to be enlightened, the veil is opened to the Holy of Holies, where, instead of the ark in which the Decalogue had reposed, the Word is placed over which is the mercy-seat with the golden cherubim. These things are representations of those two sacraments with their uses.
It is known from the statutes given through Moses that washings were commanded the Children of Israel.
Aaron was ordered to wash himself before putting on the garments of the ministry, Levit. xvi. 4, 24;
And before approaching the altar to minister, Exod. xxx. 18-21; xl. 30-32;
Similarly the Levites, Numb. viii. 8, 7;
And also others who became unclean through sins; and they are said to be sanctified by washings, Exod. xxix. 4; xl. 12; Levit. viii. 6.
For the purpose of washing, a brazen sea and several lavers were placed near the temple, 1 Kings vii. 23-39.
Indeed, they were commanded to wash vessels and utensils, as tables, benches, beds, dishes and cups, Levit. xi. 32; xiv. 8, 9; xv. 5, 12; xvii. 15, 16; Matt. xxiii. 25-27. [Mark vii. 4.]
Washings and many similar things were commanded and enjoined upon the Children of Israel because the Church established among them was a representative Church, and was such that it prefigured the Christian Church which was about to come. Therefore, when the Lord came into the world, He abrogated the representatives, which were all external, and instituted a Church, all things of which should be internal. Thus the Lord set aside figures and revealed the very forms, as one removes a veil or opens a door and causes the things within not only to be seen, but also to be approached. Of all those representatives the Lord retained but two, which should include in comprehensive form all things pertaining to the interior Church. These two are Baptism in place of washings, and the Holy Supper in place of the lamb which was sacrificed every day, and with full ritual at the feast of the Passover.
“When the Lord shall have washed away the filth of the daughters of Zion, and shall have purged the blood … by the spirit of judgment, and by the spirit of purging (A.V., burning).” Isa. iv. 4.
“Though thou wash thee with nitre, and take thee much soap, yet thine iniquity will retain the spots (A.V., is marked).” Jer. ii. 22; Job ix. 30-31.
“Wash me from mine iniquity … and I shall be whiter than snow.” Ps. li. 2, 7.
“O Jerusalem, wash thine heart from wickedness, that thou mayest be saved.” Jer. iv. 14.
“Wash you, make you clean; put away the evil of your doings from before mine eyes; cease to do evil.” Isa. i. 16.
The cleansing of a man’s spirit was meant by the washing of his body, and the internal things of the Church were represented by the external things, such as were in the Israelitish Church, as is clearly manifest from these words of the Lord:
The Pharisees and scribes “when they saw some of His disciples eat bread with … unwashen hands, found fault. For the Pharisees, and all the Jews, except they wash their hands oft, eat not … And many other things there be which they have received to hold, as the washing of cups, and pots, brazen vessels, and of beds (A.V., tables).” To them and to the people the Lord said, “Hearken unto me every one of you, and understand: There is nothing from without a man, that entering into him, can defile him: but the things which come out of him those are they that defile the man.” Mark vii. 1-4, 14, 15; Matt. xv. 2, 11, 17-20,
and in other places, as
“Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees …. for ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess. Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse first that which is within the cup and platter, that the outside … maybe clean also.” Matt. xxiii. 25, 26.
From these things it is evident that by the washing called Baptism is meant spiritual washing, which is purification from evils and falsities.
* non plus purificet hominem, quam lavatio apud ovem et agnum ante tonsionem. This might be expressed positively: Baptism effects only that degree of purification in man which in the case of sheep is effected by washing before shearing.
In the Christian world it is well known that there is an internal man and an external man; and that the external is the same as the natural man; and that the internal is the same as the spiritual man, because man’s spirit is in it; and also, as the Church consists of men, that there is an internal as well as an external Church. If the Churches are considered in the order of their succession from ancient times to the present, it will be seen that former Churches were external, that is, that their worship consisted in external things, which represented the internal things of the Christian Church, which the Lord founded when in the world, and which He is now beginning to build up. The primary rite which distinguished the Israelitish Church from the other Churches in the Asiatic world, and later from the Christian Church, was circumcision; and since, as was just stated, all things in the Israelitish Church, which were external, represented all things in the Christian Church, which are internal, therefore, the primary sign of the Israelitish Church was interiorly similar to the sign of the Christian Church. For circumcision signified the rejection of the lusts of the flesh, and thus purification from evils; and Baptism has a similar signification. From this it is evident that Baptism was commenced in place of circumcision, with this in view, namely, that the Christian Church might be distinguished from the Jewish Church, and also that it might thus be more readily understood that it is an internal Church. This is known from the uses of Baptism, which will be described in what follows.
“God said unto Abraham…. This is my covenant, which ye shall keep, between me and you and thy seed after thee; Every man-child among you shall be circumcised. And ye shall circumcise the flesh of your foreskin; and it shall be a token of the covenant betwixt me and you.” Gen. xvii. 9-11.
This covenant, or the sign of it, was afterwards confirmed by Moses, Levit. xii. 1-3. As that Church was distinguished from all others by that sign, it was, therefore, commanded, before the Children of Israel passed over Jordan, that they should again be circumcised, Joshua v. This was because the land of Canaan represented the Church, and the river Jordan, introduction into it. Moreover, that they might remember that sign in the land of Canaan itself, this command was given:
“When ye shall come into the land, and shall have planted all manner of trees for food, then ye shall count the fruit thereof as uncircumcised: three years shall it be as uncircumcised unto you: it shall not be eaten of.” Levit. xix. 23.
[2] Circumcision, like Baptism, represented and thus signified, the rejection of the lusts of the flesh, and consequently purification from evils, as is evident from those passages in the Word where it is said that they should circumcise the heart, as in the following:
Moses said, “Circumcise therefore the foreskins of your heart, and be no more stiff-necked.” Deut. x. 16.
“JEHOVAH thy God will circumcise thine heart, and the heart of thy seed, to love JEHOVAH thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, that thou mayest live.” Deut. xxx. 6;
and in Jeremiah,
“Circumcise yourselves to JEHOVAH, that He may remove (A.V., and take away) the foreskins of your heart, ye men of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem; lest my fury come forth like fire … because of the evil of your doings,” Jer. iv. 4;
and in Paul,
“In Jesus Christ neither circumcision availeth any thing nor uncircumcision; but faith which worketh by love.” Gal. v. 6; vi. 15.
[3] From these passages it is now evident that Baptism was instituted in place of circumcision, because the circumcision of the flesh represented the circumcision of the heart, which also signifies purification from evils; for evils of every kind arise from the flesh, and the foreskin signifies its polluted loves. Since circumcision and the washing of Baptism signify the same thing, it is said in Jeremiah,
“Circumcise yourselves to JEHOVAH, that He may remove (A.V., and take away) the foreskins of your heart.” Jer. iv. 4;
and a little later,
“O Jerusalem, wash thine heart from wickedness, that thou mayest be saved.” verse 14.
What circumcision and washing the heart signify the Lord teaches in Matthew xv. 18, 19.
That Baptism is an introduction into the Christian Church is evident from many considerations, such as the following: 1. Baptism was instituted in place of circumcision; and as circumcision was a sign that those circumcised belonged to the Israelitish Church, so Baptism is the sign that those baptized belong to the Christian Church, as was shown in the preceding article. A sign, however, only serves as a mark of recognition, as bands of different colors are placed on the infants of two mothers that they may be distinguished from each other, and not be changed. [2] 2. That Baptism is only a sign of introduction into the Church is clearly evident from the baptizing of infants, who do not exercise any reason at all, and who are no more capable of receiving anything of faith than young branches of a tree. [3] 3. Not only are infants baptized, but also all foreign proselytes converted to the Christian religion, whether young or old; and this is done before they have been instructed, provided they express their desire to embrace Christianity, into which they are inaugurated by Baptism. This also was the practice of the Apostles, according to the Lord’s words,
That they should make disciples of all nations, and baptize them, Matt. xxviii. 19.
[4] 4. John baptized all that came to him from Judea and Jerusalem, in the river Jordan, Matt. iii. 6; Mark i. 5.
He baptized in Jordan because the entrance into the land of Canaan was across that river. Canaan signified the Church, because the Church was there; and consequently Jordan signified introduction into it. That Canaan signified the Church, and Jordan introduction into it, may be seen in the Apocalypse Revealed, No. 285.
[5] This is what is done on earth; but in the heavens infants are introduced by Baptism into the Christian heaven, and angels are there assigned to them to take care of them. Therefore, as soon as infants are baptized, they are placed in charge of angels by whom they are kept in a state to receive faith in the Lord. When they grow up, however, and come under their own control and exercise their own reason, the guardian angels leave them; and they attract to themselves as associates those spirits whose life and faith harmonize with their own. From this it is evident that Baptism is insertion among Christians in the spiritual world also.
In the spiritual world, by which we mean both heaven and hell, all things are most distinctly arranged as a whole and in every detail, or in general and in particular; for the preservation of the whole universe depends upon distinctive arrangement in that world. This distinctiveness would not be possible unless every one after his birth were known by some sign, showing to what religious community he belongs. For without the Christian sign of Baptism some Mohammedan spirit, or some idolatrous spirit, might approach newly-born Christian infants and young children and infuse into them an inclination in favor of his own religion. This would distract their minds and alienate them from Christianity, and would result in the distortion and destruction of spiritual order.
* Mohammad, the founder of Mohammedanism or Islam, A.D. 571-632, was born at Mecca, where his father was spiritual and temporal head. He married a wealthy and devout widow, and owed much to her influence. In the visions to which he was subject he received confirmations of his Divine mission. He also received messages from Gabriel which were incorporated in the KORAN, the sacred book of Mohammedanism. Early persecution drove him from Mecca and in the year A.D. 622 he fled to Medina, where he was cordially welcomed. This flight, or Hejira, marks the beginning of the Mohammedan year, and from Medina he set out on his conquest of Arabia. Mohammedanism proclaims the unity of the God-head, and condemns idolatry; but the peaceful methods of propaganda soon gave place to ruthless persecution of infidels and merciless extermination of idolators.
Again, if there were no distinct order in the mind or spirit of man, and if it as a whole were not dependent on the will and the understanding, it would be nothing but confusion and disorder. Without such order a man could no more think and will than a portrait of him or a statue in his house. What would a man be without the most orderly influx from heaven and his reception of it? And what would this influx be without that supreme universal on which depends the government of the whole and all its parts; thus unless it were dependent on God, and unless all things had their being, lived and moved in Him and from Him?
This may be illustrated to the natural man by many instances, such as the following. An empire or kingdom without order would be nothing but a gang of robbers, many of whom would gather together and slay thousands; and finally a few of these would slay the rest. What would a city, or even a house, be without order? and what would a kingdom, a city, or a house become unless someone in each exercised supreme authority?
The case is similar in many other things, as for instance in armies. What strength would they have unless they were divided with due regard to order into regiments, these into battalions, and these again into companies, and unless subordinate officers were appointed over each, with one in supreme command over all? And what would those dispositions amount to without the signs, called standards, to show where each should be stationed? By these means all act in battle as one; whereas without them they would rush against the enemy like packs of dogs with open mouths, shouts and empty fury; and then all, their courage gone, would be cut to pieces by an enemy drawn up in ordered ranks; for what can those who are divided do against those who are united? These illustrations may serve to show this first use of Baptism, which is a sign in the spiritual world that a person comes from the company of Christians. For in that world every one is placed in a society, and in a congregation of it, according to the quality of the Christianity which is within him or which outwardly surrounds him.
This second use of Baptism, which is, that one may know the Lord, the Redeemer and Savior Jesus Christ, inseparably follows the first, which is that there may be introduction into the Christian Church and insertion among Christians in the spiritual world. This first use is nothing but a name, unless the second accompanies it. For it is like a subject who swears allegiance to a king, and yet repudiates his laws, that is, the laws of his own country, and goes over to a foreign king and serves him; or like a servant who engages himself to a certain master and accepts his livery as a token of his service, and then runs away and in that livery serves another; or like a standard-bearer who decamps with the standard, cuts it up, and either throws the pieces to the winds or to be trodden underfoot by the soldiers. In a word, if one bears the name of Christian, or follower of Christ, and yet does not acknowledge and follow Him, that is, live according to His commandments, the name is as void of meaning as a shadow, or a puff of smoke, or a blacked out picture; for the Lord says,
“Why call ye me Lord … and do not the things which I say?” Luke vi. 46, and following verses.
“Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord … And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you.” Matt. vii. 22, 23.
“Thou shalt not take the name … of God in vain.” Exod. xx. 7.
Nothing else is meant by the name of the Lord in these passages:
Jesus said, “Ye shall be hated of all nations for my name’s sake.” Matt. x. 22; xxiv. 9, 10.
“Where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.” Matt. xviii. 20.
“As many as received Him, to them gave He power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on His name. John i. 12.
“Many believed in His name.” John ii. 23.
“He that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.” John iii. 18.
“Believing ye might have life through His name.” John xx. 31.
“For my name’s sake hast laboured, and hast not fainted.” Rev. ii. 3; and in other places.
[2] Every one may see that in these passages the name of the Lord means not only His name, but the acknowledgment of Him as the Redeemer and Savior, and at the same time obedience to Him, and at length faith in Him. For at Baptism an infant receives the sign of the cross on his forehead and breast, which is a token of his inauguration into the acknowledgment and worship of the Lord. By name, too, is meant the character of anyone; because in the spiritual world every one is named according to his character; so that the name of Christian given to anyone means his character as having faith in Christ and charity towards the neighbor from Christ. This is meant by name in the Revelation:
The Son of Man said, “I have (A.V., Thou hast) a few names even in Sardis which have not defiled their garments; and they shall walk with me in white: for they are worthy.” Rev. iii. 4.
To walk with the Son of Man in white, signifies to follow the Lord, and to live according to the truths of His Word.
[3] The same is signified by name in John:
Jesus said, The sheep hear my voice, and I call my own sheep by name, and lead them out. I go before them, and the sheep follow me, for they know my voice. “A stranger will they not follow … for they know not the voice of strangers.” John x. 3, 4, 6.
“By name,” signifies, by their character as Christians; and to follow Him is to hear His voice, that is, to obey His commandments. This name all receive at Baptism, for it is involved in the sign.
“all tables full of vomit and filthiness.” Isa. xxviii. 8; Jer. xlviii. 26,
when yet the Lord Jesus Christ is
The Son of the Most High God, Luke i. 32, 35;
“The only begotten,” John i. 18; iii. 18;
“The true God and eternal life.” 1 John v. 20;
“In whom dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead bodily.” Col. ii. 9; and not the son of Joseph, Matt. i. 25; besides thousands of other passages.
This is the use itself for the sake of which Baptism was instituted, and thus the final use. For a true Christian knows and acknowledges the Lord, the Redeemer Jesus Christ who, because He is the Redeemer, is also the Regenerator. That redemption and regeneration make one, may be seen in the chapter on Reformation and Regeneration, Art. III. Moreover, a Christian possesses the Word in which the means of regeneration are fully described, and are there declared to be faith in the Lord and charity towards the neighbor. This is what is meant by what is said of the Lord,
That He baptizeth with the Holy Spirit and with fire, Matt. iii. 11; Mark i. 8-11; Luke iii. 16; John i. 33.
The Holy Spirit means the Divine Truth of faith, and fire, the Divine Good of love or of charity, each proceeding from the Lord. That the Holy Spirit means the Divine Truth of faith, may be seen in the Apocalypse Revealed, Nos. 468, 395. By means of these two the Lord effects all regeneration.
The Lord Himself was baptized by John, Matt. iii. 13-17; Mark i. 9; Luke iii. 21, 22.
The reason was not only that He might institute Baptism for the future, and go before as an example, but also because He glorified His Human and made it Divine, as He regenerates man, and makes him spiritual.
“He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.” Mark xvi. 16,
the angels in heaven understand that he who acknowledges the Lord and is regenerated is saved. It is for this reason also that Baptism is called by Christian Churches on earth the laver of regeneration.
The Christian accordingly should know that whoever does not believe in the Lord cannot be regenerated, although he has been baptized; and that baptizing, without faith in the Lord, is of no avail whatever, may be seen above in this chapter, Art. II, No. 673. It may be very well known to every Christian that Baptism implies purification from evils, and thus regeneration. For when an infant is baptized, the priest with his finger makes the sign of the cross on the forehead and breast as a memorial of the Lord. Then he turns to the sponsors and asks whether he renounces the devil and all his works, and whether he receives the faith. To these questions the sponsors in the child’s name answer, “Yes.” Renunciation of the devil, that is, of the evils which are from hell, and faith in the Lord, are what effect regeneration.
They follow the Lamb, “clothed in fine linen, white and clean.” Rev. xix. 14.
“They shall walk with me in white.” Rev. iii. 4; also vii. 14.
The angels in the Lord’s sepulchre were seen in white and shining garments, Matt. xxviii. 3; Luke xxiv. 4.
They were spiritual angels, for fine linen signifies the righteousness of the saints, as in Rev. xix. 8, where this is plainly stated. That garments in the Word signify truths, and that white garments of fine linen signify Divine truths, may be seen in the Apocalypse Revealed, No. 379, where that is shown. The reason why those who have been regenerated by the Divine Good of love are clothed in purple garments is, that purple is the colour of love, which it derives from the fire of the sun and its redness. This fire signifies love, as may be seen in the Apocalypse Revealed, Nos. 468, 725. Because garments signify truths, the man who was found among the guests not clothed in wedding garments, was cast out and consigned to outer darkness, Matt. xxii. 11-13.
“Behold, I make all things new.” Rev. xxi. 1-5;
and by “the river of the water of life … proceeding out of the throne of God and of the lamb.” Rev. xxii. 1, 2;
And also by the five wise virgins, who had lamps and oil, and who entered in with the bridegroom to the marriage, Matt. xxv. 1, 2, 10.
One who is baptized, that is, regenerated, is meant by
“Creature,” Mark xvi. 15; Rom. viii. 19-21:
and by
“A new creature.” 2 Cor. v. 17; Gal. vi. 15;
for the name creature is used, being derived from “being created,” which signifies also “being regenerated,” as may be seen in the Apocalypse Revealed, No. 254.
[2] In the world, regeneration is variously represented, as by the blossoming of all things on earth in the spring, and by the gradual development of the blossoms into fruit; and by the growth of every tree, shrub and flower, from the first month of the warm season to the last. It is also represented by the gradual progress of all fruits towards maturity, from the first living shoot to their perfection; also by morning and evening showers and by dews, on the fall of which the flowers open, to close again on the approach of the shades of evening; by the fragrance from gardens and fields; by the rainbow in the cloud, Gen. ix. 14-17; by the glorious colors of the dawn; and in general by the continual renewal of everything in the body by means of the chyle and the animal spirit and the blood thence produced, whose purification from matter that is no longer of use, and renewal, and as it were, regeneration, are perpetual.
[3] If we consider the humblest things on earth, an image of regeneration is presented in the wonderful transformation of silk-worms and many other caterpillars into nymphs and butterflies, and in the transformation of other insects which in time are furnished with wings. In addition to these examples others of a more trivial nature might be mentioned, as the fondness of certain birds of plunging into water for the sake of washing and cleansing themselves, after which they return, like nightingales, to their songs. In a word, the whole world, from first things to last, is full of representations and types of regeneration.
It is written in Malachi,
“Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to His temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in…. But who may abide the day of His coming? and who shall stand when He appeareth?” Mal. iii. 1, 2;
and again,
“Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord … lest I come and smite the earth with a curse.” Mal. iv. 5, 6;
and the father Zacharias, prophesying of his son John, says,
“Thou, child, shalt be called the Prophet of the Highest: for thou shalt go before the face of the Lord, to prepare His ways,” Luke i. 76;
and the Lord Himself says of that John,
“This is he of whom it is written, Behold, I send my messenger before my (A.V., thy) face, which shall prepare thy way before thee.” Luke vii. 27.
From these passages it is evident that John was the prophet sent to prepare the way for Jehovah God, so that He might descend into the world and accomplish the work of redemption; and that he prepared the way by Baptism, and at the same time by proclaiming the Lord’s coming; and that without such preparation all in the world would have been smitten with a curse, and would have perished.
“Who may abide the day of His coming?” lest Jehovah come and smite the earth with a curse, Mal. iii. 2; and iv. 6.
Similarly in Isaiah,
“Behold, the day of JEHOVAH cometh, cruel both with wrath and fierce anger…. Therefore, I will shake the heavens, and the earth shall remove out of her place… in the day of His fierce anger.” Isa. xiii. 6, 9, 13, 22; xxii. 5, 12.
Again in Jeremiah,
That day is called a day of wasting, of vengeance, and of destruction, Jer. iv. 9; vii. 32; xlvi. 10, 21; xlvii. 4; xlix. 8, 26.
In Ezekiel,
A day of anger, cloud, and thick darkness, Ezek. xiii. 5; xxx. 2, 3, 9; xxxiv. 11, 12; xxxviii. 14, 16, 18, 19;
and also in Amos,
v. 13, 18, 20; viii. 3, 9, 13;
in Joel,
“The day of JEHOVAH is great and very terrible: and who can abide it?” Joel ii. 1, 2, 11;
and in Zephaniah,
In that day there shall be the noise of a cry. The great day of JEHOVAH is at hand; that day is a day of wrath, a day of trouble and distress, a day of wasteness and desolation. In the day of the wrath of JEHOVAH the whole earth shall be consumed, and He shall bring about its consummation with all the inhabitants of the earth, Zeph. i. 7-18;
besides in other passages. From this it is evident that
[all in the world would have perished]
unless a way had been prepared, by means of Baptism, for the descent of Jehovah into the world. For this had the effect in heaven of closing the hells, and guarding the Jews from total destruction. Jehovah also says to Moses,
If I should come up into the midst of thee in a moment, I should consume the people, Exod. xxxiii. 5.
That this is so is plainly evident from the words of John to the multitudes going out to be baptized by him,
“O generation of vipers, who hath warned you to flee from the wrath to come?” Matt. iii. 7; Luke iii. 7.
That John also, when he baptized, preached Christ and His coming, may be seen
in Luke iii. 16; John i. 25, 26, 31-33; John iii. 26.
Thus it is plain how John prepared the way.
Matt. iii. 11; Mark i. 4 and following verses; Luke iii. 3, 16; John i. 25, 26, 33; Acts i. 22; x. 37; xviii. 25.
The Jews who were baptized were merely external man, and the external man cannot become internal without faith in Christ. That those who were baptized with the Baptism of John became internal men when they received faith in Christ, and were then baptized in the name of Jesus, may be seen in the Acts of the Apostles, chapter xix. 3-6.
“Shew me thy glory … and JEHOVAH said, Thou canst not see my face: for there shall no man see me (A.V., my face) and live. And He said, Behold, there is a place where thou shalt stand upon a rock … and I will put thee in a clift of the rock, and will cover thee with my hand while I pass by: And I will take away mine hand, and thou shalt see my back parts; but my face shall not be seen.” Exod. xxxiii. 18-23.
The reason why men cannot see God and live is that God is Love itself, and Love itself or the Divine Love in the spiritual world appears before the angels as a Sun distant from them as the sun of our world is distant from men. Therefore, if God, who is in the midst of that Sun, were to come near the angels, they would perish, just as men would if the sun of this world were to come near them, for it burns with equal ardency.
[2] For this reason there are perpetual tempering agencies which modify and moderate the heat of that Love, lest it should flow into heaven as it is in itself, for then the angels would be consumed. Therefore also, when the Lord manifests His more immediate presence in heaven, the wicked who are under heaven, begin to bewail, to suffer torture and mortal agony; so that they flee away into caves and clefts of the mountains, crying out,
“Fall on us, and hide us from the face of Him that sitteth on the throne.” Rev. vi. 16; Isa. ii. 19-21.
The Lord Himself does not descend, but an angel with a sphere of love from the Lord around him. Several times have I seen the wicked terrified by this descent, as if they saw death itself before their eyes some I have seen who plunged deeper and deeper into hell, and some who were driven to madness.
[3] It was for this reason that the Children of Israel prepared themselves for three days before the descent of Jehovah the Lord on Mount Sinai, and that the mount was fenced about lest any one should approach and die, Exod. xix. It was similar with the holiness of Jehovah the Lord which was present with the Decalogue when it was promulgated at that time, and written with the finger of God on two tables of stone; and afterwards deposited in the ark. Above this was placed the mercy-seat, and over this the cherubs, lest any one should come too near and touch or look upon that holiness. Aaron himself could only approach it once a year, and not then, until he had purified himself by sacrifices and incense.
[4] This was the reason that the inhabitants of Ekron and Bethshemesh, to the number of several thousands, perished merely because they looked upon the ark, 1 Sam. v. 11, 12; vi. 19; Uzzah also died, because he touched it, 2 Sam. vi. 6, 7.
These few examples show with what a curse and destruction the Jews would have been smitten had they not been prepared by the Baptism of John to receive the Messiah, who was Jehovah God in human form; and had He not assumed the Human, and so revealed Himself. Their preparation consisted in their being enrolled in heaven, and numbered among those who in their heart awaited and longed for the Messiah; and angels were, therefore, sent and made their guardians.
To the above I will now add the following Memorabilia. The first is as follows. As I was returning home from a school of wisdom I saw on the way an angel dressed in a blue robe. He joined me and, walking by my side, he said, “I see that you have come from a school of wisdom and are delighted with what you heard there. I also perceive that you are not fully in this world, as you are at the same time in the natural world. You, therefore, do not know of our Olympic schools where the wise men of old meet, and learn from those who have lately come from your world, what changes wisdom has undergone and what progress it is still making. If you wish, I will conduct you to a place where many of those ancient sages dwell with their sons, that is, disciples.”
So he led me to a region lying to the north east; and as I looked in that direction from an elevated spot I saw a city, and on one side of it two hills, the lower of which was nearer the city. “That city,” he said to me, “is called Athenaeum,* the lower hill Parnassium,** and the higher Heliconeum.*** They are so called because in and around the city dwell the ancient sages who lived in Greece, as Pythagoras,**** Socrates,***** Aristippus,****** Xenophon,******* with their disciples and pupils.” I then asked him concerning Plato******** and Aristotle;********* and he replied, “They and their followers dwell in another region, because they taught principles of rationality which relate to the understanding, but the former taught moral principles which relate to the life.”
[2] He further said that students from the city of Athenaeum were frequently sent to consult the erudite of the Christians and learn from them what the present day opinions were concerning God, the creation of the universe, the immortality of the soul, the state of man as compared with that of beasts, and other matters of interior wisdom. He said also that a herald had announced a meeting, which was an indication that deputies had met with new comers from the earth, and had learned from them matters of deep interest. We now saw many persons going out of the city and its suburbs, some with laurel wreaths on their heads, some with branches of palm in their hands, some with books under their arms and some with pens stuck in their hair under their left temples.
[3] We joined them and together we went up; and on the top of the hill there was an octagonal palace which they called the Palladium.********** We entered, and within were eight hexagonal recesses, each furnished with a book case and a table, at which the men crowned with laurel took their seats. In the palladium itself were seats of hewn stone, and upon these the rest sat down. Presently a door opened on the left, and through it were introduced two new comers from the earth; and after salutations, one of the laureate asked them: “What news from the earth?” They replied: “The latest that in the forest there have been discovered human beings like beasts, or beasts like human beings; but from their face and body they were presumed to have been born human beings who had been either lost or abandoned in the forest when two or three years old. It was said that they could not express by sound anything of thought, nor could they be taught to articulate sounds so as to form words. They did not, like the beasts, know their proper food, but put into their mouth whatever they found growing wild, whether clean or unclean. Many such things were reported of them, and from these stories some of the learned among us have made many conjectures and some have reached many conclusions respecting the state of men in relation to that of beasts.”
[4] On hearing this, some of the ancient sages asked what these conjectures and conclusions were. The two new comers replied: “There are many, but they may be comprised under the following: 1. Man by his nature and also by his birth is more stupid, and consequently more vile, than any beast; and he actually becomes such, unless he receives instruction. 2. He can be instructed, because he has learned to make articulate sounds, and therefore to speak; and by this means he has uttered his thoughts. Thus, advancing by successive stages, he has at length been able to frame the laws of society, many of which, however, are impressed upon beasts from their birth. 3. Beasts enjoy rationality as well as men. 4. Therefore, if beasts could speak, they would reason on any subject as skillfully as men; and a proof of this is that they think from reason and prudence as well as men. 5. Understanding is but a modification of light from the sun, with the co-operation of heat, by means of the ether; so that it is only an activity of interior nature, capable of being exalted to appear like wisdom. 6. It is, therefore, vain to believe that a man lives after death, any more than a beast; unless perhaps, for a few days after death; because of the exhalation of the life of the body, he may appear as a mist in the form of a spectre, before being dissipated into nature; almost as a twig, taken out of burnt ashes, appears in the likeness of its own form. 7. Consequently religion, which teaches that there is a life after death, is an invention to hold the simple-minded inwardly in bondage by its own laws, just as they are held outwardly by the laws of the state.” They added that the merely ingenious reasoned in this way, but not the intelligent. When asked what the opinions of the intelligent were, they replied that they had not heard, but they supposed they did not reason so.
[5] On hearing this account, all who were seated at the tables exclaimed, “O what times are now upon the earth! Alas! what changes wisdom has undergone! It has surely changed into foolish ingenuity. The sun has set, and is now under the earth, diametrically opposite to its noonday zenith. Every one can see from the evidence furnished by those abandoned and later found in the forest that man is like this when uninstructed; for he is what instruction makes him. He is born in ignorance deeper than the beasts. He must learn to walk and speak; if he does not learn to walk he would never stand upright on his feet; if he did not learn to speak he would never utter a single thought. Every man is what instruction makes him, (spiritually) insane from falsities, wise from truths; and he who is insane from falsities is under the complete delusion that he is wiser than one who is wise from truths. There are men, fools and madmen, who are no more men than those creatures found in the forest. Like these, too, are those who have lost their memory.
[6] From all this, then, we have concluded that man without instruction is not a man, nor yet a beast, but a form capable of receiving what makes a man; and, therefore, he is not born a man, but becomes one. Further, that man is born such a form that he may become an organism receptive of life from God, to the end that he may be a subject upon whom God might confer every good, and by union with Himself make him happy for ever. We perceive from your remarks that wisdom at this day is so far extinguished or turned to folly, that nothing whatever is known of the state of man’s life relative to that of beasts. Hence it is that they do not know the state of man’s life after death. Those, however, who could know this, but are not willing to know it, and consequently deny such a life, as many of your Christians do, may fitly be compared to those found in the forest. Not that they have become so stupid from want of instruction, but that they have made themselves so through the fallacies of the senses, which are the dark shadows of truths.”
[7] Thereupon, a certain one standing in the centre of the Palladium, and holding a palm in his hand, said, “Explain, I pray, this mystery. How could a man, created a form of God, be changed into a form of the devil? I know that the angels of heaven are forms of God, and that the angels of hell are forms of the devil, and that those two forms are the opposite of each other, the latter being forms of insanity, and the former, of wisdom. Tell me, therefore, how a man, created a form of God, could pass from day into such night as to deny God and eternal life?” To this the teachers replied in order, first the Pythagoreans, then the Socratics, and afterwards the rest.
Amongst them was a Platonist who spoke last, and his opinion prevailed; it was to this effect: “The men of the Saturnian*********** or golden age knew and acknowledged that they were forms receptive of life from God; and, wisdom being inscribed on their souls and hearts, they saw truth by the light of truth, and by means of truths they perceived good from the delight of its love. As, however, the human race in succeeding ages departed from the acknowledgment that all the truth of wisdom and consequently all the good of love with them continually flowed in from God, they ceased to be habitations of God. Then ceased also discourse with God and association with angels; for the interiors of their mind were diverted from their own proper course, which had been raised upwards towards God by God, to a course bent more and more outwards into the world, and thus towards God by God by way of the world; and finally they were turned in the opposite direction, which is downwards towards self. But as God cannot be seen by man when he is interiorly inverted, and thus turned away, men separated themselves from God and became forms of hell, and thus of the devil.
“From this it follows that in the first ages of the world men acknowledged in heart and soul that all the good of love, and consequently the truth of wisdom in them were from God, these being God’s in them; and thus that they were mere receptacles of life from God, and were, therefore, called images of God, sons of God, and born of God. But in succeeding ages they did not acknowledge this truth in heart and soul, but with a kind of persuasive faith, then with a historic faith, and finally with the lips alone; and this is not acknowledgment at all; in fact, it is a denial at heart.
[8] “From what has been said it may be seen what kind of wisdom prevails at this day on earth among Christians. For although they can be inspired by God from a written revelation, yet they do not know the distinction between man and beast. Thus many suppose that if man lives after death so also will the beast; or, as the beast does not live after death, neither will man. Our spiritual light, which enlightens the sight of the mind, has surely become with them thick darkness; and their natural light, which illumines the sight of the body only, has become their ideal splendor.”
[9] After this they all turned towards the two strangers, and thanked them for their visit and for their story; and they begged them to report to their brethren what they had heard. The strangers replied that they would endeavour to convince their brethren of this truth, that so far as they attribute all the good of charity and truth of faith to the Lord and not to themselves, so far they are men, and so far they become angels of heaven.
* Athenaeum, temple of Minerva in Athens, where scholars and poets met to read and discuss their works. City in the spiritual world where wise men of ancient Greece dwell.
** Parnassius, belonging to Parnassus; subst. Parnassium, hill near Athenaeum, the city in the spiritual world of the Greek sages.
*** Heliconeus, belonging to Helicon. Subst. Heliconeum, hill near Athenaeum, the city in the spiritual world of the Greek sages.
**** Pythagoreans, followers of Pythagoras, sixth century Greek philosopher, who taught harmony through number.
***** Socrates, famous Greek philosopher, 469-399 B.C. He devoted himself to problems of life and conduct. Socratic.
****** Aristippus, pupil of Socrates, 430-360 B.C.; founded the Cyrenaic school of philosophy.
******* Xenophon, Greek prose writer, historian, and philosopher, 430-355 B.C.
******** Plato, greatest of Greek philosophers, 427-347 B.C. His theory of ideas places the attainment of an exalted and spiritual yearning for a supersensible beauty only in an ideal world.
********* Aristotle, Greek philosopher, 384-322 B.C.; born at Stagiros, so called The Stagirite. He took all knowledge for his province, but had little appreciation of mathematics. He created the science of logic.
********** Palladium, statue of Pellas, on the preservation of which the safety of Troy depended; temple of Pallas; meton. central or essential feature.
*********** Saturninus used for Saturnius, of Saturn. (Saturninum aevum = the golden age.)
[2] When they had ascended the hill Parnassium, some attendants on it brought water in crystal cups from a spring there, and said: “This is water from the spring which, according to ancient fable, was opened up by the hoof of the horse Pegasus,******** and afterwards consecrated to the nine Maidens. By the winged horse Pegasus, however, the ancients meant the understanding of truth, which is the means of attaining wisdom; by his hoofs they meant that experimental knowledge by which natural intelligence is acquired; and by the nine Muses they meant knowledge in all its branches. These things are now called fables, but they were correspondences according to which men of the earliest ages spoke. Those who were accompanying the three new comers said to them: “Do not be surprised. The attendants were instructed to say this. Moreover, by drinking water from a spring we understand being instructed concerning good by means of truth, and in this way becoming wise.”
[3] After this they entered the Palladium,********* taking with them the three new comers from the world, the priest, the politician, and the philosopher. Then those crowned with laurel who sat at the tables, asked, “What news from the earth?” They replied, “This is the latest. A certain man********** professes to talk with angels, and to have his sight opened into the spiritual world as fully as into the natural world; and from that world he reports much that is new. For example, he says: ‘A man lives as a man after death, just as he lived before in the world; he sees, hears and speaks as before in the world. He feels hunger and thirst, eats and drinks as before in the world; and he enjoys the delights of marriage, and sleeps and wakes as before in the world. In the spiritual world there are lands and lakes, mountains and hills, plains and valleys, fountains and rivers, gardens and groves. There are also palaces and houses, cities and villages, just as in the natural world. There are also writings and books, employments and trades; also precious stones, gold and silver. In a word, in the spiritual world are all things, in general and in particular, that are in the earth; but those things in the heavens are infinitely more perfect. They differ only in this respect that all things in the spiritual world are from a spiritual origin, and are, therefore, spiritual, being derived from the Sun of the spiritual world, which is pure Love; whereas all things in the natural world are from a natural origin, and are, therefore, natural and material, being derived from the sun of the natural world, which is pure fire. In a word, a man after death is perfectly a man, indeed more perfectly so than he was before in the world; for before in the world he was in a material body, but in this world he is in a spiritual body.'”
[4] Thereupon the ancient sages asked, “What do the people on earth think of all this?” “We know that these things are true,” the strangers replied, “because we are now here in the spiritual world; and we have seen and examined every thing; but we will tell you what men on earth say, and what conclusions they form, concerning these things.”
Then the priest said: “Those of our order, when they first heard these things, declared that they were visions, then fictions; and afterwards they said that the man was seeing spectres. Finally, however, they hesitated, and said, ‘Believe if you will. Our teaching hitherto has been that a man will not be in a body after death until the day of the last judgment.'” The question was then asked, “Are there not some intelligent persons among them who can demonstrate to them and convince them of the truth that a man lives as a man after death?”
[5] The priest answered: “There are some who demonstrate it, but they do not convince. Those who demonstrate it say that it is contrary to sound reason to suppose that a man does not live as a man until the day of the last judgment, and that in the meantime he is a soul without a body. ‘For what,’ they say, ‘is the soul, and where is it in the meantime? Is it a vapor, or a breath of wind floating in the atmosphere, or an entity hidden away in the bowels of the earth? Can you tell us its whereabouts?********** Have the souls of Adam and Eve and of all their posterity, for these six thousand years, or sixty centuries, been flitting about the universe, or been kept shut up in the centre of the earth in expectation of the last judgment? What could be more anxious and miserable than such an expectation? Their lot may be compared to that of men in prison, bound with chains and fetters. If this were to be the lot of a man after death, it would be better for him to be born an ass than a man. It is, moreover, contrary to reason to suppose that a soul can be reclothed in the body which has been devoured by worms, mice or fish. Can a bony skeleton, parched by the sun and turned to dust, be clothed with a new body? How are those dead and putrid substances to be gathered together and reunited with their souls?’ But when they hear such arguments they make no reasoned reply. They cling to their creed, saying, ‘We keep our reason under obedience to faith.’ As to gathering all the dead from their graves at the last judgment, they say, ‘This is the work of omnipotence’; and when they mention omnipotence and faith, they banish reason. I can assert that sound reason is then held of no account, and by some is regarded as a spectre; and indeed they can say to sound reason, ‘Thou art unsound.'”
[6] On hearing this the wise men of Greece said, “Surely such strange beliefs, contradictory as they are, are mutually destructive; and yet in the world to-day they cannot be dispelled even by sound reason. What can be more paradoxical than the views concerning the last judgment? For it is maintained that the universe will be destroyed, that the stars of heaven will fall to the earth, which is smaller than the stars, and that the bodies of men, whether corpses, or bodies destroyed by men in process of mummification, or mere dust, will be reunited with their souls. When we were in the world, we believed in the immortality of the souls of men on grounds our reason afforded; we also assigned places for the blessed, which we called the Elysian fields; and we believed that souls were human forms or shapes, but tenuous because spiritual.
[7] When these had spoken, the assembly turned to the second stranger, who in the world had been a politician. He confessed that he had not believed in a life after death, and had regarded as fiction and invention the novel stories he had heard about it. “While meditating on the subject, I said, ‘How can souls be bodies? The entire man lies dead in the grave. The eye is there; how then, can he see? The ear is there; how can he hear? Whence is he furnished with a mouth to speak? If anything of the man lived after death it would only be spectral; and how can a spectre eat and drink, or enjoy the delights of marriage? Whence can it have clothes, house, food, and so on? Moreover, spectres, which are mere airy forms, have only apparent but no real existence.’ Such were my thoughts in the world on the subject of life after death; but now, as I have seen everything, and touched everything with my hands, I am convinced by the senses themselves that I am a man as when in the world, being fully aware that I live now just as I lived then; but with this difference, that my reason is now sounder. I have frequently been ashamed of my former thoughts.”
[8] The philosopher gave much the same account of his views as the politician, differing in this respect only that he placed those new accounts he had heard concerning the life after death in the same category as the opinions and hypotheses which he had collected from both the ancients and the moderns. When they heard these things the wise men were amazed. Those of the Socratic school said they perceived from these latest accounts from the earth that the interiors of men’s minds had become successively closed, and that faith in the false shone like truth, and a foolish ingenuity shone like wisdom. Since their day the light of wisdom had descended from the interiors of the brain into the mouth beneath the nose, where it appeared to view as lip brilliance, while the speech which issued forth seemed like wisdom. On hearing this, one of the young scholars said, “How stupid are the minds of men on earth at this day! Would that we had here the disciples of Heraclitus,************ who weep at everything, and those of Democritus,************* who laugh at everything! For then we should hear much laughter and much lamentation.
When the assembly broke up, they presented the three new comers from the earth with the badges which indicated their own influential position. They were medallions of copper on which were engraved some hieroglyphics; and with these they departed.
* Original Edition has 493.
** Parnassius, belonging to Parnassus; subst. Parnassium, hill near Athenaeum, the city in the spiritual world of the Greek sages.
*** Heliconeus, belonging to Helicon. Subst. Heliconeum, hill near Athenaeum, the city in the spiritual world of the Greek sages.
*** Demosthenes, the greatest of Athenian orators and statesmen, c. 382-332 B.C. He spoke against enemies abroad and traitors at home.
***** Diogenes, cynic and ascetic, c. fourth century B.C.
****** Epicurus, Greek philosopher, 342-270 B.C., founder of the Epicurean school of ethics. According to this, the pleasure which was the highest good was tranquillity of mind and freedom from want and pain, qualities which come from self-control and simplicity of life.
******* Plato, greatest of Greek philosophers, 427-347 B.C. His theory of ideas places the attainment of an exalted and spiritual yearning for a supersensible beauty only in an ideal world.
******** Pegasus, winged horse of Greek legend.
********* Palladium, statue of Pellas, on the preservation of which the safety of Troy depended; temple of Pallas; meton. central or essential feature.
********** Swedenborg
*********** Pu, Greek pou, where?, somewhere, whereabouts, abode.
************ Heraclitus, Greek philosopher, 576-480 B.C. Taught that fire is the essential principle of all creation; called the “weeping philosopher” because of his laments over the folly of mankind. (Ind. Mem. for DEMOCRITIUS.)
************* Democritus, Greek philosopher, 460-370 B.C.; developed the atomic theory-that the arrangement and position of atoms accounted for all the varieties and substance of form. He held that cheerfulness was the end of life: hence called “the laughing philosopher.” (Ind. Mem. LXXI for HERACLITUS.)
I was in the spirit, and distances with spirits are according to the state of their affections. As I then desired to see and hear them, I was immediately present at the place; and I saw them introduced, and heard them speak. [2] The elders, or wiser ones, sat at the sides of the hall, and the rest in the centre. Facing the latter was a raised platform; and to this the three new comers with the messenger were conducted with due ceremony by the younger members of the assembly through the middle of the hall. As soon as there was silence, they were greeted by a certain one of the elders, who then asked, “What news from the earth?” They replied, “There is much that is new; but pray tell us on what subject you would like us to speak. The elder answered, “What is the news from the earth concerning our world and heaven?” They replied: “When we first came into this world we were informed that here and in heaven there are administrative duties, occupations, offices, employments, the pursuit of all kinds of learning, and wonderful pieces of workmanship. Yet we used to believe that after our departure or translation from the natural world into this spiritual world we should come into eternal rest from labors; and what the employments but labors?”
[3] To this the elder said: “Did you understand by eternal rest from labors, eternal idleness, when you would be continually sitting or lying down, summoning for your enjoyment the delights of the mind and the pleasures of the senses?” The three strangers, with a pleasant smile, said they had supposed some such thing. “But,” was the reply, “what have pleasures and delights, and the happiness they bring, in common with idleness? By idleness the mind is destroyed, not expanded, or, in other words, the man is deadened and not enlivened. Suppose that a person were sitting in perfect idleness, with his hands hanging down, and his eyes downcast or uplifted; and suppose that he were at the same time surrounded by an atmosphere of gladness, then a lethargy would seize both his head and body, the lively expression of his face would fall away, and with nerves and sinews relaxed, he would nod and nod until he collapsed to the ground. What is it that keeps the whole bodily system expanded and tense, but the tension of the mind? and this tension comes only from administrative duties and employment, when these are performed with pleasure. I will, therefore, tell you this news from heaven, that there are in heaven administrative duties, occupations, courts of justice, higher and lower, as well as mechanical arts and services.”
[4] When the three strangers heard that there were courts of justice, higher and lower, in heaven, they said, “Why so? Are not all in heaven inspired and guided by God, and do they not, therefore, know what is just and right? What need then of judges?” “In this world,” replied the elder, “we are instructed, and learn what is good and true, and also what is just and equitable, as in the natural world; and these things we learn not immediately from God, but mediately through others. Besides every angel, like every man, thinks what is true and does what is good as from himself; and the results are more or less true and good according to the state of the angel. Further, among the angels there are some who are simple and some who are wise; and the wise will judge what is right, while the simple in their simplicity and ignorance hesitate, or even depart from it. [5] But as you are new to this world, if agreeable to you, come with me into our city, and we will show you everything.” Thereupon they left the audience hall, accompanied by some of the seniors.
They first entered a large library, which was divided into sub-sections according to the different branches of knowledge. When the three strangers saw so many books they were astonished, and said, “There are books too, in this world! Where do the parchment, paper, pens and ink come from?” “We perceive,” the seniors replied, “that in the former world you believed this world, being spiritual, to be empty; and this you believed because you conceived the spiritual to be an abstraction from the material. As an abstraction from the material appeared to you as nothing at all, you supposed this world to be a void, when in truth there is here the plenitude of all things. In this world all things are substantial*** and not material, and material things originate from the substantial. We in this world are spiritual men because we are substantial, and not material. It follows, therefore, that all things which exist in the natural world, including books and manuscripts, are found here in their perfection.” When the three strangers heard these things called substantial, they understood what it meant, for they saw the written books and were told that matter has its origin from substance. That they might be still further convinced on these points, they were taken to the houses of scribes who were making copies of what had been written by the wise men of the city. They examined the writing carefully, and wondered at seeing it so neat and elegant.
[6] After this they were conducted to their places of learning, the museums, gymnasiums, and colleges, and to the places where were held their literary sports. Some of these were called after Heliconeum,**** Parmassium and Athenaeum, and some after the Virgins of the fountain. It was said that these last were so named because virgins signify the love of knowledge, and every one is intelligent in proportion to his love of knowledge. The sports, as they were termed, were spiritual exercises and trials of skill. The strangers were afterwards conducted about the city, visiting the rulers, administrators, and their subordinate officials, by whom they were taken to view the wonderful works constructed by workmen in spiritual style.
[7] When they had seen these things, the elder spoke with them again about the eternal rest from labors into which the blessed and happy come after death. “Eternal rest,” he said, “is not idleness, for idleness produces languor, sluggishness, numbness and drowsiness of the mind, and consequently of the whole body; and these are death, not life, much less the eternal life which the angels of heaven enjoy. Eternal rest, therefore, is a rest that dispels these states and enables a man to live; and it is only this that elevates the mind. It consists therefore in some pursuit or occupation by which the mind is aroused, quickened and delighted; and this follows according to the use from which, in which and for which the work is performed. Thus the whole heaven is viewed by the Lord as a sphere of uses, and every angel is an angel according to his use. The delight of use bears him along as a favorable current does a ship, causing him to be in eternal peace, and in the rest of peace. This is the meaning of eternal rest from labors. That an angel is quickened as his mind is applied to use is plainly evident from the fact that every one enjoys conjugial love in its vigor, potency and delight according to his love of its use.”
When the three strangers had been thus convinced that eternal rest is not idleness but joy in the performance of useful work, some maidens came and presented them with embroidered and woven articles, examples of their own handiwork. As the new comers were departing, the maidens sang an ode expressing in heavenly strains the love of useful work and its pleasures.
* Palladium, statue of Pellas, on the preservation of which the safety of Troy depended; temple of Pallas; meton. central or essential feature.
** Parnassius, belonging to Parnassus; subst. Parnassium, hill near Athenaeum, the city in the spiritual world of the Greek sages.
*** Substantial, formed of substance, that which stands under something prior to it, and upon which the prior thing rests and manifests itself in a posterior degree. Thus the spiritual world is a substantial world, its various degrees of life being successively derived from the spiritual Sun, which is itself the manifestation of the Originating Divine. Cf. material, formed of matter, the ultimate or lowest manifestation of substance in the physical or natural world.
**** Heliconeus, belonging to Helicon. Subst. Heliconeum, hill near Athenaeum, the city in the spiritual world of the Greek sages.
[2] I was one day taken up into heaven and conducted to a society where those wise men lived who, in ancient time, had excelled in learning by study and meditation upon matters relating to reason and use. They entered heaven because they believed in God; and they now believed in the Lord, and loved the neighbor as themselves. I was later introduced to one of their meetings, and was asked where I came from. I explained to them, “In the body I am in the natural world, but in the spirit I am in your spiritual world.” On hearing this the angels were delighted; and they inquired, “What do the people in the world, where you are in the body, know and understand about influx?” Recalling to mind what I had learned on the matter from the conversation and also from the writings of famous men, I replied: “They do not as yet know of any influx from the spiritual world into the natural; but they do know something of the influx of nature into created things. They know, for instance, of the influx of the heat and light of the sun into animate bodies, and into trees and shrubs, causing them to live; and on the other hand, of the influx of cold into the same things, causing their death. They also know of the influx of light into the eye causing sight, of sound into the ear causing hearing, of odor into the nostrils causing smell, and so on.
[3] “Moreover, the learned of this age have different opinions concerning the influx of the soul into the body, or of the body into the soul; and on this subject there are three schools of thought. Some believe in the influx of the soul into the body which they call occasional, the occasion being afforded by the incidence of objects upon the bodily senses. Others believe in the influx of the body into the soul, which they call physical, because objects strike upon the senses and from them into the soul. Others again, believe in a simultaneous and instantaneous influx into the body and into the soul, which they call pre-established harmony. They all, however, think of influx as being within nature; some supposing the soul to be a particle or drop of ether; some that it is a tiny globe or speck of heat and light; and some that it is a certain entity concealed in the brain. Whatever their idea of the soul, they indeed call it spiritual; but by spiritual they mean a purer form of the natural. For they know nothing of a spiritual world and its influx into the natural world; and so they remain within the sphere of nature, ascending and descending, and soaring aloft therein like eagles into the air. Those who thus rest in nature are like the inhabitants of some island in the sea, who know nothing of any land beyond them; or like fish in a river which do not know that there is air above their waters. Therefore, at the very mention of the fact that there is a world distinct from their own where angels and spirits dwell, and that all influx into men, and also the interior influx into vegetation, are from that world, they stand amazed, as if they were listening to some visionary tales about spectres, or absurd pronouncements from astrologers.
[4] “Apart from the philosophers, people in the world where I am in the body, think and speak of influx only as that of wine into glasses, of meat and drink into the stomach, and of taste into the tongue, and also perhaps of air into the lungs, and so on. When, however, they are told of an influx of the spiritual world into the natural, they say: ‘If it flows in, let it flow. What good does it do, and who is benefited by knowing this?’ So they turn away; and afterwards when they speak about what they have heard of this influx, they make play with it, as some play chucks with pebbles between their fingers.”
[5] Afterwards I talked with those angels about some of the wonderful effects of the influx of the spiritual world into the natural. I spoke of the grubs which become butterflies, and of bees and drones, and mentioned the wonders of the silk-worms and spiders. I said that the inhabitants of the earth ascribe such things to the sun’s light and heat, and consequently to nature; and thus, what has often surprised me, they confirm their belief in nature; and by their confirmations in favor of nature, they bring the sleep of death* upon their minds, and become atheists.
I then related some of the wonders of vegetable life, describing how all vegetation grows in due order from seed to new seed, just as though the earth knew how to suit and accommodate its elements to the prolific principle of the seed, and from this to draw forth the first shoot, expand this into a stem from which to send forth branches, and clothe them with leaves, and later adorn them with flowers; and also from the interiors of these how to begin the formation and effect the production of fruits, and by them to produce new seeds like offspring, and thus begin again the cycle of production. But because these things, being continually in view and also being of perennial recurrence, have become usual, customary and common-place, they are not regarded as wonderful, but as mere effects of nature. They are also thus regarded because it is not known that there is a spiritual world, and that this operates from within and actuates all things, in general and in particular, that exist and are in process of formation in the universe of nature and on this natural world, just as the human mind acts upon the senses and motions of the body. Nor is it known that the particular things of nature are like coats, sheaths and garments enclosing spiritual things, and on the lowest plane bringing into view effects which correspond to the design of God the Creator.
* �somnum et lethum. For lethum see 622:2, 734:3. For hendiadys see also 440.
[2] When those nine men caught sight of one another, at first they greeted one another courteously and affably. Presently, however, there arose from beneath a spirit with a torch in his right hand, which he waved before their faces. Thereupon they became opponents, three against three, and they looked fiercely upon each other; for they were seized with the passion of altercation and dispute. The Aristotelians, who were also schoolmen, began the debate, saying: “Every one perceives that objects enter by influx through the senses into the soul, just as a man enters a room through the door, and that the soul thinks according to the influx. When a lover sees a lovely maiden, his betrothed, his eyes sparkle and convey the love of her to his soul. When a miser sees purses containing money, he burns for them in every sense, through which he sends the burning into his soul, eliciting there the longing to possess them. When a vain man hears his praises sung by someone, he pricks up his ears, and these transmit the praises to his soul. The bodily senses are like entrance halls, through which alone there is ingress to the soul. From these examples, and innumerable others like them, who can draw any other conclusion than that influx is from nature, and therefore physical?”
[3] The followers of Descartes, pressing their fingers to their forehead in deep thought now withdrew them and replied to these words as follows: “Alas! you speak from appearances. You must know that it is not the eye but the soul that loves the maiden, the betrothed; likewise that the bodily sense does not from itself desire the money in the purse, but from the soul; and the ears in no other way accept the praises of the flatterer. It is perception that causes sensation, and perception is a faculty not of the organ, but of the soul. Tell us, if you can, what causes the tongue and lips to speak but thought, or the hands to work but the will; and thought and will belong to the soul; also, what but the soul causes the eye to see, the ears to hear, and the other organs to feel, to give attention to and to observe objects. From these and many similar examples every one whose wisdom is raised above the sensual things of the body concludes that there is not an influx of the body into the soul, but of the soul into the body; and this we call occasional, and also spiritual influx.”
[4] On hearing these words the three supporters of Leibnitz, who stood behind the others, gave voice to their opinions, saying: “We have heard and compared the arguments on both sides, and we find that both have much in their favor; and, therefore, if you agree, we will settle the dispute.” When asked on what grounds they would do so, they replied: “There is not influx of the soul into the body, nor of the body into the soul; but there is simultaneous and instantaneous operation of both together, and this a celebrated author has designated by the admirable name of pre-established harmony.”
[5] Thereupon the spirit again appeared with the torch which was now in his left hand, and waved it at the back of their heads. This caused the ideas of all to become confused, and they exclaimed, “Neither our soul nor our body knows which side to take; let us then, decide this dispute by lot; we will abide by that which comes out first.” So they took three pieces of paper, on one of which they wrote Physical Influx, on the second Spiritual Influx, and on the third Pre-established Harmony. These they put into a cap, and appointed one of their number to draw; and he, putting in his hand, drew out the paper on which was written Spiritual Influx. On seeing and reading this, they all said, some in a clear and fluent voice and others in a voice indistinct and hesitating, “Let us abide by this because it came out first.” But the angel suddenly stood near and said: “Do not suppose that the piece of paper in favor of Spiritual Influx came out by chance; it came out by design. For you do not see its truth, because your ideas are confused; but the truth offered itself to the hand for your acceptance.”
* Aristotle, Greek philosopher, 384-322 B.C.; born at Stagiros, so called The Stagirite. He took all knowledge for his province, but had little appreciation of mathematics. He created the science of logic.
** Descartes, French philosopher, A.D. 1596-1850. According to his theory the essence of the mind, as appears from his proposition, Cogito, ergo sum, is consciousness or thinking; and the essence of matter is extension. Thus the universe falls into two discrete worlds, that of thinking substances and that of extended substances.
*** Leibnitz, German philosopher, A.D. 1646-1716. He maintained the metaphysical against mechanical causes in the interpretation of the world. He taught the pre-established harmony of the universe, founded upon spiritual agencies, dependent only upon God, which reflected in themselves the whole universe.
**** Wolff, Johann Christian, A.D. 1679-1754, a German philosopher of little originality or depth. His leading ideas are taken from Leibnitz.
[2] When I heard this, I entered with them, for I was in the spirit; that is, in a state similar to that in which are men of the spiritual world, called spirits and angels. Inside the school I saw in front a great chair, in the centre benches, seats round about the sides and a gallery over the entrance. The chair was for the young men who were to give their answer in turn to the problem about to be proposed, the benches for the hearers, the seats for those who, on former occasions, had given wise answers, and the gallery for the seniors who were to be the judges and arbitrators. In the middle of the gallery was a pulpit where sat a wise man who was called the Headmaster, and who proposed the questions for the young men to answer from the chair. When they were assembled, he rose up from the pulpit and said: “I pray you, give an answer to this problem, and solve it if you can: What is the soul, and what is its nature?”
[3] On hearing this problem all were amazed, and began to murmur; and some of those seated on the benches exclaimed, “No man from the Saturnian age to our own has been able by any rational thought to perceive and comprehend what the soul is, and much less its nature. Is not this above the understanding of every one?” But this reply was returned from the gallery: “It is not above the understanding; it is within it, and within its view, so now let the problem be answered.” Then the young men rose, who were chosen that day to occupy the chair and reply to the question. They were five in number, who had been examined by the seniors and found to excel in sagacity, and who were then sitting on couches beside the chair; and they went up in the order in which they sat. As each one went up he put on a silk tunic of an opaline color, and over it a gown of soft wool embroidered with flowers, and also a cap on the top of which was an ornament of roses encircled with small sapphires.
[4] I saw the first youth, thus attired, take the chair, and he said: “What the soul is, and its nature, has been revealed to no one since the day of creation; it is a mystery among the treasures that belong only to God. This, however, has been discovered, that the soul resides in a man as a queen; but where her court is has been a matter of conjecture among the learned. Some have supposed it to be in a small gland between the cerebrum and the cerebellum, called the pineal gland. In this they have fixed the soul’s habitation, because the whole man is controlled by the two brains, and these are regulated by the pineal gland. Therefore, whatever regulates the brain at pleasure, regulates the whole man from head to foot.” He also added: “Hence this conjecture, to many in the world, appeared as true, or at least probable, but after a time it was rejected as a fiction.”
[5] After he had said this he took off the gown, tunic and cap; and the second of the appointed speakers put them on, and took his place at the chair. His opinion concerning the soul was as follows: “No one in the whole of heaven and earth knows what the soul is, and what is its nature. It is known that there is a soul, and that it is in man; but where it resides is a matter of conjecture. This, however, is certain that it is in the head, for there the understanding thinks and the will intends, and in the face, the fore part of the head, are man’s organs of sense. To all of these life comes from the soul only, which resides interiorly in the head. But where exactly its seat is I do not venture to say. Sometimes I have agreed with those who assign it a seat in the three ventricles of the brain; sometimes with those who place it in the striated bodies there; or in the medullary substance of each brain, or in the cortical substance, or in the dura mater; for there have not been wanting arguments* in favor of each of these conjectures, based on strong grounds of support.
The arguments in favor of the three ventricles of the brain have been that they are the receptacles of the animal spirits and of the lymphs of the brain. Those in favor of the striated bodies are, that they form the marrow through which the nerves go forth, and by which both brains are continued into the spine; and from the spine and marrow there emanate the fibres from which the contexture of the whole body is formed. Those in favor of the medullary substance of each brain are, that each is a collection and an accumulation of all the fibres that constitute the rudiments of the whole man. Those in favor of the cortical substance are, that in that substance are the primary and the ultimate ends, and consequently the beginnings of all the fibres, thus of all the senses and motions. The argument in favor of the dura mater is, that this is the common covering of each brain, from which it is extended by a certain continuity over the heart and viscera of the body. For myself, I do not decide in favor of one more than another. Do you decide, I beg, and choose which you prefer.”
[6] With these words he left the chair and handed the tunic, gown and cap to the third; and he, taking his place, spoke as follows: “What have I, a young man, to do with so sublime a question? I appeal to the learned men sitting on each side of me; I appeal to you wise men in the gallery; yea, I appeal to the angels of the highest heaven, whether any one, by the light of his own reason, can form any idea of the soul. Nevertheless, I, like others, can form a conjecture as to where its seat is in man; and my conjecture is, that it resides in the heart, and thence in the blood. Now I conjecture that this is so because the heart by its blood rules both the body and the head; for it sends forth the large artery called the aorta into the whole body, and the vessels called the carotid arteries into the whole head. It is, therefore, universally agreed that the soul from the heart, by means of the blood, supports, nourishes and gives life to the whole organic system of both body and head. As proof of this position it may be urged, that in the Sacred Scripture soul and heart are so frequently mentioned together, as
That thou shalt love God from the whole soul, and from the whole heart; and that God creates in man a new soul and a new heart; Deut. vi. 5; x. 12; xi. 13; xxvi. 18; Jer. xxxii. 41; Matt. xxii. 37; Mark xii. 30, 33; Luke x. 27; and elsewhere.
It is also openly stated that the blood is the soul of the flesh, Levit. xvii. 11, 14.”
At these words the voice of some canons was heard calling out, “Learned! learned!”
[7] Then the fourth young man, putting on the garments of the former speaker, ascended to the chair and said: “I also am inclined to suspect that there is no one so subtle and refined in intellect as to perceive what the soul is, and what is its nature. I am, therefore, of opinion that he who attempts to pry into the matter is fruitlessly wasting his skill. Still from my early years I have continued to believe with the ancients, that the soul is in the whole and in every part of man; and thus that it is both in the head and in every part of it, and in the body and in every part of it; and that it is a vain invention of the moderns to appoint a seat for it in any particular spot, and not everywhere. Moreover, the soul is a spiritual substance, of which can be predicated neither extension nor place, but habitation and impletion. Besides, when we mention soul, we mean life; and life is in the whole and in every part of man.” This view met with the approval of many in the audience.
[8] After him the fifth young man rose, and magnificently attired in the same dress, spoke from the chair as follows: “I have no objection to talking of where the soul is, whether it is in any one part or in the whole; but from my own store of knowledge I will address myself to this question, What is the soul, and what is its nature? No one thinks of the soul but as something pure, which may be likened to ether, or air, or wind, in which there is a vital principle from the rationality which man enjoys above the beasts. I have based this opinion on the fact that when a man expires, he is said to breathe forth or give up the soul or spirit. Hence the soul which lives after death is supposed to be such a breath, animated by cogitative life, which is called the soul. What else can the soul be? But as I have heard it said from the gallery that the problem of the soul, what it is, and what is its nature, is not above the understanding, but is within it and within its view, I beg and pray that you yourselves will unfold this age-long mystery.”
[9] Thereupon the seniors in the gallery looked towards the Principal who had proposed the problem, and he understood by their signs that they wished him to descend and expound the matter. He, therefore, left the pulpit, passed through the audience hall, went up to the chair, and there, stretching forth his hand, he said: “Listen, I pray. Every one believes that the soul is man’s inmost and purest essence; but an essence without a form is a mere figment of the reason. The soul is, therefore, a form; and I will now proceed to describe the nature of that form. It is a form of all the things of love, and of all the things of wisdom; and all the things of love are called affections, and all the things of wisdom are called perceptions. Now the perceptions of wisdom, which are derived from the affections, and which therefore, combine with them, constitute one form; and this form contains innumerable things in such order, series, and coherence that they may be termed one. Moreover, they may be so termed because nothing can be taken from it or added to it without changing its nature. The human soul, then, is such a form, all the things of love and wisdom being the essentials of that form; and these with man are in the soul, and from the soul in the head and body.
[10] “You are called spirits and angels; and in the world you believed that spirits and angels were as wind or ether, and thus mere intellectual and rational principles. But now you see clearly that you are in truth really and actually men, who in the world lived and thought in a material body. You now know that it is not the material body that lives and thinks, but a spiritual substance in that body; and this you called the soul, whose form you did not know, but which you have now seen, and continue to see. You all are souls, of whose immortality you have heard, thought, spoken and written so much; and because you are forms of love and wisdom from God, you can never die. The soul, therefore, is a human form, from which nothing can be taken away, and to which nothing can be added, and it is the inmost form of all the forms in the whole body; and since outward forms receive from that which is inmost both essence and form, therefore you are, as you appear both to yourselves and to us, souls. In a word, the soul is the man himself; for it is the inmost man, and therefore its form is fully and perfectly the human form. Nevertheless, it is not life, but the receptacle of life from God nearest to Him, and thus God’s dwelling-place. [11] Many applauded these words, but some said, “We will consider the matter.”
I then went home; and above the school, in place of the former phenomenon there now appeared a bright cloud, without the contending streaks or rays. This cloud, penetrating the roof, entered the hall and lit up the walls; and I heard that writings were seen, among which was this one:
“JEHOVAH God … breathed into man’s nostrils the soul of lives (A.V., the breath of life); and man became a living soul.” Gen. ii. 7.
* non enim defuerunt calculi sicut albi. Calculus, the little stone used in voting, white, in favor, black, against; here used for the vote or argument itself.
THE HOLY SUPPER
I. WITHOUT A KNOWLEDGE OF THE CORRESPONDENCES OF NATURAL WITH SPIRITUAL THINGS, NO ONE CAN KNOW THE USES AND BENEFITS OF THE HOLY SUPPER.
This was in part explained in the chapter on Baptism, where it was shown that “without a knowledge of the spiritual sense of the Word, it is impossible to know what the two sacraments, Baptism and the Holy Supper, involve and effect.” This may be seen in Nos. 867-869. Here it is said “without a knowledge of the correspondences of natural with spiritual things;” this is the same thing, because by correspondences the natural sense of the Word is changed into the spiritual sense in heaven. Hence it is that those two senses correspond to each other; and, therefore, whoever is acquainted with correspondences, may know the spiritual sense. What correspondences are, and their nature, may be seen in the chapter on the Sacred Scripture, from the beginning to the end; and also in the explanation of the Decalogue, from the first commandment to the last; and particularly in the Apocalypse Revealed.
Those who think lightly of it, attend it merely in compliance with custom, because they have always done so from childhood; others again, because they see no reason in it, neglect it. The irreligious, however, turn away from it, saying to themselves, “What is it but a ceremony, which has been invested with sanctity by the clergy? For what is there in it but bread and wine? It is a mere fiction that the body of Christ which hung upon the cross, and His blood which was then shed, are dispensed along with the bread and wine to the communicants.” And so on.
But for the first time Christianity itself is beginning to dawn, and a New Church, which is meant by the New Jerusalem in the Revelation, is now being established by the Lord, in which God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit are acknowledged as one? because they are in one Person. It has, therefore, pleased the Lord to reveal the spiritual sense of the Word, in order that this Church may enter into the use and benefit itself of the two sacraments, Baptism and the Holy Supper. This follows when men see with the eyes of their spirit, that is, with the understanding, the holiness concealed therein, and apply it to themselves by the means which the Lord has taught in His Word.
[2] Apart from the spiritual sense, this sacrament is like a house that is shut up, full of jewels and treasures, which is passed by like any other house in the street. As the clergy, however, have built its walls of marble and covered its roof with plates of gold, it attracts the gaze of the passers-by, demanding their attention, praise and esteem. It is different when that house is opened, and every one is freely permitted to enter, and the guardian supplies some with a loan from it, and makes a gift to others, to every one according to his worth. The treasures are said to be imparted as a gift, because they are inexhaustible and are continually renewed. So it is with the Word as to its spiritual contents and with the sacraments as to their celestial treasures.
[3] The sacrament, which is here treated of, without a revelation of its holiness, which lies concealed within it, is like the sand of a river in which are grains of gold in great abundance though hardly visible; but when its holiness is revealed, it is like the gold which has been collected from it, melted into an ingot and then fashioned into beautiful forms. This sacrament, while its holiness is undiscovered and unseen, is like a box or casket made of beech or poplar, in which lie diamonds, rubies and many other precious stones disposed in order in little compartments. Who that knows what treasures lie within it, does not value that box or casket, especially when he sees them, and also when they are imparted freely? This sacrament, without a revelation of its correspondences with heaven, and thus without the heavenly things being seen to which it corresponds, is like an angel seen in the world in common raiment, who is respected only according to his dress. The case is altogether different when it is known that he is an angel, and when words of angelic wisdom are heard from his lips, and wonderful things are seen to follow from his actions.
[4] The difference between holiness that is merely affirmed, and that which is actually visible may be illustrated by this incident recorded from what was seen and heard in the spiritual world. There was read an epistle, written by Paul when still in the world but not published, without any one knowing that it was by Paul. At first it was lightly esteemed by the hearers; but when it was discovered to be one of Paul’s epistles, it was received with joy, and every thing in it was adored. It was thus evident that the mere affirmation of holiness in the case of the Word and the sacraments, when it is done by the primates of the clergy, gives an impression indeed of holiness. But it is otherwise when the holiness itself is disclosed and is made manifest to the sight, as in the revelation of the spiritual sense; for thus external holiness becomes internal, and the affirmation of holiness becomes its acknowledgment. So it is with the holiness of the sacrament of the Holy Supper.
Since the spiritual sense of the Word has been disclosed at this day, and together with it, correspondences, as these are mediatory between the two senses, therefore it is only necessary to quote passages from the Word from which it may be clearly seen what is meant by flesh and blood, and also by bread and wine in the Holy Supper. But these shall be preceded by an account of the institution of that sacrament by the Lord, and also by His doctrine concerning His flesh and blood, and concerning the bread and wine.
“And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed it, and brake it, and gave it to the disciples, and said, Take, eat; this is my body: And He took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, Drink ye all of it; For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many. Matt. xxvi. 26, 27, 28; Mark xiv. 22, 23, 24; Luke xxii. 19, 20.
The Doctrine of the Lord concerning His Flesh and His Blood, and concerning the Bread and Wine.
“Labor not for the meat which perisheth, but for that meat which endureth unto everlasting life, which the Son of Man shall give unto you…. Verily, verily, I say unto you, Moses gave you not that bread from heaven but my Father giveth you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is He which cometh down from heaven and giveth life unto the world…. I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst…. I am that bread which came down from heaven…. Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me hath everlasting life. I am that bread of life. Your fathers did eat manna in the wilderness, and are dead. This is the bread which cometh down from heaven, that a man may eat thereof, and not die. I am the living bread which came down from heaven. If any man eat of this bread, he shall live for ever: and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world… Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of Man, and drink His blood, ye have no life in you. Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day. For my flesh is meat indeed, and my blood is drink indeed. He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, dwelleth in me, and I in him.” John vi. 27, 32, 33, 35, 41, 47-51, 53-56.
“This do in remembrance of me.” Luke xxii. 19; 1 Cor. xi. 24, 25.
Similarly, the bread and wine do not mean bread and wine, but in the natural sense the same as flesh and blood, that is, the passion of the cross; for we read that
Jesus brake the bread, and gave it to the disciples, and said, “This is my body. And He took the cup … and gave it to them, saying … This is my blood.” Matt. xxvi.; Mark xiv.; Luke xxii.
Therefore He also called the passion of the cross a cup, Mark xiv. 36; John xviii. 11.
“Come and gather yourselves together unto the supper of the great God; That ye may eat the flesh of kings, and the flesh of captains, and the flesh of mighty men, and the flesh of horses, and of them that sit on them, and the flesh of all men, both free and bond, both small and great.” Rev. xix. 17, 18;
And in Ezekiel:
“Gather yourselves on every side to my sacrifice that I do sacrifice for you, even a great sacrifice upon the mountains of Israel, that ye may eat flesh, and drink blood. Ye shall eat the flesh of the mighty, and drink the blood of the princes of the earth…. And ye shall eat fat till ye be full, and drink blood till ye be drunken, of my sacrifice…. Thus ye shall be filled at my table with horses and chariots, and with all men of war… And I will set my glory among the nations (A.V., heathen).” Ezek. xxxix. 17-21.
Every one perceives that flesh in these passages does not mean flesh, and that blood does not mean blood, but the spiritual and celestial things which correspond to them. Otherwise, what but meaningless and strange expressions would these be, that they should eat the flesh of kings, of captains, of mighty men, of horses, and of them that sit on them; and that they should be filled at His table with horses and chariots, with mighty men, and with all men of war; and that they should drink the blood of the princes of the earth, and drink blood till they were drunken?
It is clear that these things are said of the Holy Supper of the Lord, for the feast is called the supper of the great God, and also a great sacrifice. Now, as all spiritual and celestial things have relation solely to good and truth, it follows that flesh means the good of charity, and blood the truth of faith; and in the highest sense, the Lord as to the Divine Good of Love and the Divine Truth of Wisdom. Spiritual good is also meant by flesh in these words in Ezekiel:
“I will give them one heart, and I will put a new spirit within you; and I will take away the stony heart … and will give them an heart of flesh.” Ezek. xi. 19; xxxvi. 26.
In the Word heart means love; therefore, the love of good is meant by a heart of flesh. Moreover, that flesh and blood mean good and truth, both spiritual, is still more evident from the signification of bread and wine in the Lord’s declaration that His flesh is bread, and that His blood is the wine which was drunk from the cup.
“By the blood of thy covenant I will send forth (A.V., have sent) thy prisoners out of the pit.” Zech. ix. 11;
and in Moses;
After Moses had read the book of the law in the ears of the people, he sprinkled half of the blood on the people, and said, “Behold the blood of the covenant which JEHOVAH hath made with you concerning all these words.” Exod. xxiv. 3-8.
And Jesus “took the cup … and gave it to them, saying…. This is my blood of the new covenant (A.V., testament).” Matt. xxvi. 27, 28; Mark xiv. 24; Luke xxii. 20.
[2] The blood of the new covenant or testament signifies the Word, which is called a covenant and a testament, both old and new, thus the Divine Truth contained in it. Since this is signified by blood, therefore the Lord gave His disciples the wine, saying, “This is my blood.” Wine signifies Divine Truth, and therefore it is also called
“The blood of grapes.” Gen. xlix. 11; Deut. xxxii. 14.
This is still more evident from the Lord’s words,
“Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of Man, and drink His blood, ye have no life in you … For my flesh is meat indeed, and my blood is drink indeed. He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, dwelleth in me, and I in him.” John vi. 50-58.
It is plainly evident that the Divine Truth of the Word is here meant by blood; for it is said that he that drinks has life in himself, and dwells in the Lord, and the Lord in him. It may be known in the Church that the Divine Truth and a life according to it bring this about, and that the Holy Supper confirms it.
[3] As blood signified the Divine Truth of the Lord, which is also the Divine Truth of the Word, and as this is the covenant itself and testament, both old and new, therefore, blood was the most holy representative in the Israelitish Church, in which all things, in general and in particular, were correspondences of natural with spiritual things. Thus the Israelites were told
That they were to take of the paschal blood, and strike it upon the side posts and on the upper door post of the houses, lest the plague should come upon them, Exod. xii. 7, 13, 22;
That the blood of the burnt-offering was to be sprinkled upon the altar at its base; and upon Aaron, and upon his sons, and upon their garments, Exod. xxix. 12, 16, 20, 21; Levit. i. 5, 11, 15; iii. 2, 8, 13; iv. 25, 30, 34; viii. 15, 24; xvii. 6; Num. xviii. 17; Deut. xii. 27; and also upon the veil, which was over the ark, upon the mercy-seat there, and upon the horns of the altar of incense, Levit. iv. 6, 7, 17, 18; xvi. 12-15.
The blood of the Lamb in the Revelation has a similar signification:
“These have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.” Rev. vii. 14:
and also in this passage:
“There was war in heaven: Michael* and his angels fought against the dragon … and they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony.” Rev. xii.
[4] It cannot be supposed that Michael and his angels overcame the dragon by any other means than the Divine Truth of the Lord in the Word; for the angels in heaven cannot think of any blood, nor do they think of the Lord’s passion, but of Divine Truth, and of His resurrection. Therefore, when a man thinks of the Lord’s blood, the angels perceive the Divine Truth of His Word; and when he thinks of the Lord’s passion, they have a perception of His glorification, and then only of His resurrection. It has been granted me to know by long experience that this is so.
[5] That blood signifies Divine Truth, is evident also from these words in David:
God “shall save the souls of the needy … and precious shall their blood be in His sight. And they (A.V., he) shall live, and He shall give them (A.V., and to him shall be given) of the gold of Sheba.” Ps. lxxii. 13, 14, 15, 16.
The blood that is precious in the sight of God signifies the Divine Truth that they possess; and the gold of Sheba is the wisdom derived from it. So in Ezekiel:
“Assemble yourselves … to a great sacrifice upon the mountains of Israel, that ye may eat flesh, and drink blood … Ye shall drink the blood of the princes of the earth … and shall drink blood till ye be drunken…. And I will set my glory among the nations (A.V., heathen).” Ezek. xxxix. 17-21.
The prophet here speaks of the Church which the Lord was about to establish among the nations. It has just been shown above that blood cannot here mean blood, but truth from the Lord which the nations possess.
* Michael, the archangel.
“Jesus took bread … and brake it, and gave it (A.V., to them), saying,… This is my body.” Matt. xxvi.*; Mark xiv.; Luke xxii;
also,
“The bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.” John vi. 51;
and He also says
That He is the bread of life; and that he that eateth of this bread shall live for ever, John vi. 48, 51, 58.
It is this bread also that is meant by the sacrifices, which were called bread, in the following passages:
“The priest shall burn it upon the altar: it is the bread (A.V., food) of the offering made by fire unto JEHOVAH” Levit. iii. 11, 16.
The sons of Aaron “shall be holy unto their God, and not profane the name of their God: for the offerings of JEHOVAH made by fire, the bread of their God, they do offer…. Thou shalt sanctify him therefore; for he offereth the bread of thy God….” A man of the seed of Aaron, “that hath any blemish, shall not approach to offer the bread of his God.” Levit. xxi. 6, 8, 17, 21.
“Command the Children of Israel, and say unto them, My offering, my bread for my sacrifices made by fire, for an odor of rest, shall ye observe to offer unto me in their due season.” Num. xxviii. 2.
Whosoever has touched any unclean thing shall not eat of the holy things, but shall wash his flesh with water…. He shall afterward eat of the holy things, because it is his bread (A.V., food). Levit. xxiii. 6, 7.
To eat of the holy things was to eat the flesh of the sacrifices, which is here also called bread; so also in Malachi i. 7. The same was signified by the meat offerings, which were of the flour of wheat, and were consequently bread, Levit. n. 1-11; vi. 14-21; vii. 9-13; and other places. The same also was signified by the bread laid on the table, which was called the shew-bread, the bread of faces and of shewing forth, mentioned in Exod. xxv. 30; xl. 23; Levit. xxiv. 5-9. That bread does not mean natural bread, but heavenly bread, is evident from these words:
“Man doth not live by bread only, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of JEHOVAH doth man live.” Deut. viii. 3.
“I will send a famine in the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of JEHOVAH.” Amos viii. 11.
Moreover, bread means all food,
Levit. xxiv. 5-9; Exod. xxv. 30; xl. 23; Num. iv. 7; 1 Kings vii. 48.
That is means also spiritual food, is evident from these words of the Lord,
“Labor not for the meat which perisheth, but for that meat which endureth unto everlasting life, which the Son of Man shall give unto you.” John vi. 27.
* NewSearch footnote: the printed text has “26.” However, the Latin has xxvii., which is the convention used throughout both it and this translation.
Jesus taking the cup, said: “This is my blood.” Matt. xxvi.; Mark xiv.; Luke xxii.
Also from these words:
“He washeth His garments in wine, and His clothes in the blood of grapes.” Gen. xlix. 11. This was said of the Lord.
“JEHOVAH ZEBAOTH will make unto all people a feast of fat things, a feast of wines on the lees, of wine well refined.” Isa. xxv. 6.
This was said of the sacrament of the Holy Supper which was to be instituted by the Lord. So again:
“Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money; come ye, buy and eat; buy wine … without money.” Isa. lv. 1.
The fruit of the vine which they were to drink new in the kingdom of heaven,
Matt. xxvi. 29; Mark xiv. 25; Luke xxii. 18,
means the truth of the New Church and the new heaven. Therefore also the Church, in many places in the Word, is called a vineyard, as in Isaiah v. 1, 2, 4; and the Lord calls Himself the true vine, and those who are ingrafted in Him the branches, John xv. 1-6; besides many other passages.
“Man doth not live by bread only, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of JEHOVAH doth man live.” Deut. viii. 3.
Because the body dies, and the soul lives after death, it follows that spiritual nourishment is for eternal salvation. Every one, then, must see that these two kinds of nourishment ought not to be confused. If any one does confuse them, he must form natural and sensual ideas concerning the flesh and blood of the Lord, and concerning the bread and wine, ideas which are material, corporeal and carnal; and these suffocate spiritual ideas concerning this most holy sacrament. If, however, any one is so simple minded as to be unable to think from his understanding about nothing but what he sees with his eyes, I would advise him, when he partakes of the bread and wine, and hears them called the flesh and blood of the Lord, to think in the depths of his soul that this is the holiest act of worship, and to bear in mind the passion of Christ and His love for man’s salvation. For He says:
“This do in remembrance of me.” Luke xxii. 19:
and
“The Son of Man came … to give His life a ransom for many.” Matt. xx. 28; Mark x. 45.
“I lay down my life for the sheep.” John x. 15, 17; xv. 13.
It was shown in the preceding article, that the Lord Himself is in the Holy Supper, that the flesh and bread are the Lord as to the Divine Good of Love, and that the blood and wine are the Lord as to the Divine Truth of Wisdom. Thus the Holy Supper involves the three universals, namely, the Lord, His Divine Good and His Divine Truth. Since then the Holy Supper includes and contains these three, it follows that it also includes and contains the universals of heaven and of the Church. Because all particulars depend on universals, just as contents depend on containants, it follows also that the Holy Supper includes and contains all the particulars of heaven and of the Church. As the Divine Good and the Divine Truth, both from the Lord and both being the Lord, are meant by His flesh and blood and also by the bread and wine, it is evident as a primary consequence that the Holy Supper contains, both as to universals and as to particulars, all things of heaven and of the Church.
“Melchizedek king of Salem brought forth bread and wine (to Abraham): and he was the priest of the most high God. And he blessed him.” Gen. xiv 18, 19.
Melchizedek represented the Lord, as is evident from these words in David:
“Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchizedek.” Ps. cx. 4.
That these words relate to the Lord may be seen in Hebrews:
v. 6, 10; vi. 20; vii. 1, 10, 11, 15, 17, 21.
Melchizedek brought forth bread and wine because these two include all things of heaven and the Church, and consequently all things that relate to blessing, just as the bread and wine do in the Holy Supper.
It is evident from the Lord’s own words that He is wholly present in the Holy Supper, both as to the glorified Human and as to the Divine from which the Human proceeded. That His Human is present in the Holy Supper, is evident from these words:
“Jesus took bread … and brake it, and gave it to the disciples, and said…. This is my body. And He took the cup and gave it to them, saying … This is my blood.” Matt. xxvi.; Mark xiv.; Luke xxii.
Again in John:
“I am the living bread … If any man eat of this bread, he shall live for ever: and the broad that I will give is my flesh…. Verily, verily, I say unto you … He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, dwellth in me, and I in him … and he shall live for ever.” John vi.
From these words it is clearly evident that the Lord as to His glorified Human is present in the Holy Supper. That the Lord is also wholly present in the Holy Supper as to His Divine from which the Human proceeded, is evident from this, that He is the bread which came down from heaven, John vi. He came down from heaven with the Divine, for it is said,
“The Word was with God, and the Word was God… All things were made by Him…. And the Word was made flesh,” John i. 1, 3, 14;
and further, from these statements,
That He and the Father are one, John x. 30;
That all things of the Father are His, John iii. 35; xvi. 15;
That He is in the Father and the Father in Him, John xiv. 10, 11 and elsewhere.
It further appears from this consideration that His Divine can no more be separated from His Human than the soul from the body. Therefore, when it is said that the Lord as to His Human is wholly present in the Holy Supper, it follows that His Divine, from which His Human proceeded, is also present at the same time. Now, since the Lord’s flesh signifies the Divine Good of His Love, and His blood the Divine Truth of His Wisdom, it is evident that the Lord, both as to the Divine and as to the glorified Human, is wholly omnipresent in the Holy Supper; and consequently it is a spiritual repast.
Who they are that worthily approach the Holy Supper is shown in the two following articles, and at the same time, by contrast, those that approach it unworthily. The Lord is present with both the worthy and the unworthy, because He is omnipresent both in heaven and in hell, and also in the world, thus with the evil as well as with the good. But with the good, that is, the regenerate, He is present both as to universals and as to particulars; for the Lord is in them, and they in the Lord; and where He is, there is heaven. Heaven also constitutes the Lord’s body; therefore to be in His body, is to be at the same time in heaven.
[2] The Lord’s presence, however, with those who approach unworthily is His universal but not His particular presence; or, what is the same, it is an external but not an internal presence. The Lord’s universal or external presence causes man to live as man, and to enjoy the faculty of knowing, understanding, and speaking rationally from the understanding. For man is born for heaven, and is, therefore, also spiritual; and not like a beast, merely natural. He also enjoys the faculty of willing and doing whatever his understanding can know, understand, and consequently can rationally express. But if the will refuses to countenance the truly rational things of the understanding, and these are also intrinsically spiritual, the man then becomes external.
[3] With those, therefore, who only understand what is true and good, the Lord’s presence is universal and external; but with those who also will and do what is true and good, it is both universal and particular, that is, both internal and external. Those who only understand and talk about the true and the good, are like the foolish virgins, who had lamps but not oil; whereas those who not only understand and talk about the true and the good, but also will and do them, are the wise virgins who were admitted into the wedding, while the others stood without and knocked, but were not admitted, Matt. xxv. 1-12. From this it is evident that the Lord is present and opens heaven to those who worthily approach the Holy Supper; and that He is also present with those who approach it unworthily, but does not open heaven to them.
“I stand at the door and knock; if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.” Rev. iii. 20.
The blame, therefore, lies with the man himself, if he does not open the door. It is otherwise after death. Then heaven is closed, and cannot be opened to those who, even to the end of life, have unworthily approached the Holy Table; for the interiors of their minds are now fixed and confirmed.
* Original Edition has 620.
These two sacraments may be compared to the education and coronation of a prince born heir to a throne. He is first instructed in the knowledge of the art of governing, and is then crowned and assumes the government. They may be compared, also, to what takes place in the case of a son born heir to a great estate. He first learns and undergoes a training in what relates to the proper disposition of property and wealth, and afterwards he enters into their possession and management. They may be compared also to the building of a house, and its occupation; and to a man’s instruction from infancy to the age when he can exercise his own right and judgment, and to his subsequent rational and spiritual life. One period must precede before the other may be attained, for the latter is not possible without the former. These instances may serve to illustrate how Baptism and the Holy Supper are like two gates, through which a man is introduced to eternal life. The first gate leads to a plain which he must traverse, and the second is the goal where is the reward to which he has directed his course. For the palm is not given till after the combat, nor the prize till the contest has been decided.
Every Christian who studies the Word knows, acknowledges and perceives that God, charity and faith are the three universals of the Church, because they are the universal means of salvation. Reason itself, if there is anything spiritual in it, teaches that God must be acknowledged in order that a man may have religion and anything of the Church in him. Therefore, whoever comes to the Holy Supper and does not acknowledge God profanes it; for he sees with his eyes the bread and wine, and tastes them with his tongue, but in his mind he thinks, “This is but a profitless ceremony. How do the bread and wine differ from their like on my own table? Yet I do this, lest I should be accused by the priesthood, and then by the common people, of the infamous crime of being an atheist.”
[2] After the acknowledgment of God, charity is the second means whereby one worthily approaches the Holy Supper. This is evident from the Word and also from the exhortations that are read throughout the whole Christian world before coming to it. It is clear from this passage in the Word:
The first commandment and precept is, that men should love God above all things, and the neighbor as themselves, Matt. xxii. 34-39; Luke x. 25-28;
And in Paul it is said,
That there are three things profitable to salvation, and the greatest of these is charity, 1 Cor. xiii. 13.
Also from these passages:
“We know that God heareth not sinners: but if any man be a worshipper of God, and doeth his will, him He heareth.” John ix. 31.
“Every [tree] that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.” Matt. vii. 19, 20; Luke xiii. 8, 9.
[3] It is evident, too, from the exhortations that are read throughout the whole Christian world before coming to the Holy Supper; for in these people everywhere are earnestly admonished to be in charity by reconciliation and repentance. I will quote only the following words from the exhortation to communicants in the Church of England:
“That the way and means for any one to become a worthy partaker of the Holy Supper is, first to examine the deeds and conversations of his life by the rule of God’s commandments; and whereinsoever he perceives that he has offended either by will, word, or deeds, there to bewail his own sinfulness and make confession to Almighty God, with full purpose of amendment of life. And if he perceives his offences to be such as are not only against God, but also against the neighbor, then he shall reconcile himself to him; being ready to make restitution and satisfaction to the uttermost of his power, for wrongs and injuries done to any other; and being likewise ready to forgive others their offences, as he would have forgiveness of his offences at God’s hand; for otherwise the receiving of the Holy Communion doth nothing else but increase his damnation. Therefore, if any of you be a blasphemer of God, a hinderer or slanderer of His Word, [an adulterer], or be in malice or envy, or in any other grievous crime, repent of your sins, or else come not to the Holy Supper; lest, after the taking of the Holy Supper, the devil enter into you, as he entered into Judas, and fill you full of all iniquity, and bring you to destruction both of body and soul.”
[4] Faith in the Lord is the third means whereby one may worthily obtain the benefits of the Holy Supper, because charity and faith make one, like the heat and light of springtime, from the union of which every tree has new life. In like manner every man lives from spiritual heat, which is charity, and from spiritual light, which is the truth of faith. That faith in the Lord effects this is evident from these passages:
“He that believeth in me … shall never die,” yet shall he live. John xi. 25, 26.
This is the will of the Father, that every one which believeth on the Son, may have everlasting life, John vi. 40.
“God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him, should have everlasting life.” John iii. 16.
“He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: but he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him.” John iii. 36.
“We are in the truth, in the Son of God, Jesus Christ. (A.V., in Him that is truth, even in His Son, Jesus Christ). This is the true God, and eternal life.” 1 John v. 20.
“Then shall ye begin to say, (Lord), We have eaten and drunk in thy presence”; but I shall say to you, “I know you not whence ye are: depart from me, all ye workers of iniquity.” Luke xiii. 28, 27.
It has already been shown in several chapters that those worthily approach the Holy Supper who are in faith in the Lord and in charity towards the neighbor; that the truths of faith cause the Lord’s presence; and that the goods of charity, together with faith, bring about conjunction. It follows, therefore, that those who worthily approach the Holy Supper are conjoined with the Lord; and those who are conjoined with the Lord are in Him, and He in them. That this takes place with those who approach worthily, the Lord Himself declares in John, in these words:
“He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, dwelleth in me, and I in him.” John vi. 56.
That this is conjunction with the Lord, He also teaches elsewhere in the same Gospel:
“Abide in me, and I in you. He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit.” John xv. 4, 5; and Rev. iii. 20.
Being in conjunction with the Lord is the same as being among those who are in His body; and those constitute His body who believe in Him, and do His will. His will is the exercise of charity according to the truths of faith.
Jesus Christ “is the true God and eternal life.” 1 John v. 20.
That He is salvation is equally evident, because salvation and eternal life are one. His name Jesus also signifies salvation; and, therefore, throughout the whole Christian world He is called the Savior. Nevertheless, only those worthily approach the Holy Supper who are interiorly conjoined with the Lord. Those are interiorly conjoined who are regenerate; and who are regenerate was shown in the chapter on Reformation and Regeneration.
There are many, indeed, who confess the Lord, and who do good to the neighbor; but unless they act from love towards the neighbor and from faith in the Lord, they are not regenerate. For they do good to the neighbor only for reasons that regard the world and themselves, and not the neighbor as the neighbor. Their works are merely natural and inwardly destitute of anything spiritual, because they confess the Lord with the mouth and lips only, while their heart is far away. Love itself towards the neighbor and faith itself are from the Lord alone; and both are given to man when from his own free will he does good to the neighbor on the natural plane, believes truths rationally, and looks to the Lord, doing these three things because they are commanded in the Word. Then the Lord implants charity and faith interiorly in him, and makes both spiritual. Thus the Lord conjoins man to Himself, and man conjoins himself to the Lord; for there can be no conjunction unless it is reciprocal. All this, however, has been fully shown in the chapters on Charity and Faith, Free Will and Regeneration.
[2] Moreover, conjunction with the Lord by means of the Holy Supper may be illustrated by the bond of families descended from a common father. From him come those who are related by blood, and, in their order, by kinship and connection, and they all derive something from the primitive stock. They do not indeed thus inherit flesh and blood; but they derive from flesh and blood a soul, and consequently an inclination to similar things by which conjunction is effected. This conjunction itself generally appears in their faces as well as in their habits; and, there fore, they are called one flesh, as in Gen. xxix. 14; xxxvii. 27; 2 Sam. v. 1; xix. 12, 13; and elsewhere.
[3] It is similar with respect to conjunction with the Lord, who is the Father of all the faithful and the blessed. Conjunction with Him is effected by means of love and faith, and by these the two so united are called one flesh. Therefore, the Lord said:
“He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood dwelleth in me, and I in him.” [John vi. 56.]
Every one sees that bread and, wine do not effect this, but the good of love, meant by bread, and the truth of faith, meant by wine, which are the Lord’s own, from whom alone they proceed and are communicated. All conjunction, moreover, is effected by love, and love is not love without trust. Those who believe that the bread is flesh, and the wine blood, and who cannot elevate their thought beyond this may remain in their belief. They should, however, also believe that there is present something most holy which effects conjunction with the Lord; and that this is imparted to man and is appropriated by him as his own, although it continually remains the Lord’s.
The Holy Supper, to those who worthily approach it, is a signature and seal that they are sons of God, because, as was said above, the Lord is then present, and introduces into heaven those who are born of Him, that is, who are regenerate. The Holy Supper effects this, because the Lord is then present even as to His Human; for it was shown above that the Lord, and the whole of His redemption, is wholly present in the Holy Supper. Therefore, He says of the bread, “This is my body,” and of the wine, “This is my blood.” He consequently at such times admits them into His body, which is formed of heaven and the Church.
When a man is being regenerated, the Lord is indeed present, and prepares him by His Divine operation for heaven. However, in order that he may actually enter, he must actually present himself to the Lord; and as the Lord actually presents Himself to man, man must also receive Him, not indeed as He hung on the cross, but as He now is in His glorified Human, in which He is present. The body of this is Divine Good, and its blood Divine Truth, which are given to man; and by these he is regenerated, and is in the Lord and the Lord in him; for as was shown above, the eating at the Holy Supper is a spiritual eating. From a proper perception of these things it is evident that the Holy Supper is a signature and seal that those who approach worthily are sons of God.
Infants and children, however, who are born outside the Christian Church, are, after they have received faith in the Lord, introduced by other means than Baptism into the heaven appointed for those of their religion; but they do not mingle with those who are in the Christian heaven. Indeed all nations throughout the whole world can be saved, if they acknowledge God and live aright; for the Lord has redeemed them all; and as every man is born spiritual, he thus has the faculty of receiving the gift of redemption. Those who receive the Lord, that is, who have faith in Him and are not in evils of life, are called
“Sons of God” and “born of God,” John i. 12, 13; xi. 52; and “children of the kingdom,” Matt. xiii. 38; and also “heirs,” Matt. xix. 29; xxv. 34;
The Lord’s disciples are also called “children,” John xiii. 33; and so are all the angels, Job. i. 8; ii. 1.
“Drink ye all of it; For this is my blood of the new testament.” Matt. xxvi. [27], 28; Mark xiv. 24; Luke xxii. 20.
The new testament is the new covenant; therefore, the Word written by the prophets before the Lord’s coming is called the Old Testament and Covenant, and the Word written by the evangelists and apostles after His coming is called the New Testament, that is, the New Covenant. That the Divine Truth of the Word is meant by blood, and likewise by the wine in the Holy Supper, may be seen above in Article II, Nos. 706, 708. Now the Word is the covenant itself which the Lord made with man, and man with the Lord. For the Lord descended as the Word, that is, as the Divine Truth; and as this is His blood, therefore, in the Israelitish Church, which was representative of the Christian Church, blood was called
“the blood of the covenant,” Exod. xxiv. 8; Zech. ix. 11; and the Lord “the covenant of the people.” Isa. xlii. 6; xlix. 8; Jer. xxxi. 31-34; Ps. cxi. 9.
It is, moreover, quite in accordance with the order observed in the world that a covenant, to be secure and binding, should be signed and sealed, after the terms have been duly considered. What is a commission, or a will, without a seal? What is the decision of a judge unless his opinion is written down and signed that it may be ratified? What is a high office in a kingdom, without a warrant? What is promotion to any post, without a note of confirmation? What is the possession of a house, without a deed of sale, or a deed of agreement with the owner? What avails progression to any end, or a race to any goal for a prize, if there is no end or goal where the prize may be obtained, and if the proper official has not assured the promised reward? These last things are mentioned only by way of illustration, in order that men of even simple intelligence may realize that the Holy Supper is like the signing, the sealing, the certifying and the witnessing of an undertaking in the presence of the angels, that they are sons of God; and, moreover, that the Holy Supper is, as it were, the key to the mansion in heaven where they will dwell forever.
I once saw an angel flying beneath the eastern heaven. In his hand was a trumpet which he held to his mouth and blew towards the north, west and south. He was clothed in a mantle which streamed behind him in his flight, and he was girt with a belt set with carbuncles and sapphires, from which flashed gleaming rays of light. He flew downwards, and alighted gently on the ground not far from me. As he touched the earth with his feet, he stood erect and walked to and fro; and then, seeing me, he came towards me. I was in the spirit, and was standing in that state on a hill in the southern quarter. When he came near, I addressed him and asked him the purpose of his mission, adding that I had heard the sound of his trumpet and had observed his descent through the air. “I am sent,” he replied, “to call together from among those in this region who come from the kingdoms of the Christian world, such as are most celebrated for their learning, shrewd of intellect and eminent in wisdom. They are to assemble on this hill where you now stand, and declare their real sentiments as to what they had thought, understood and clearly discerned when in the world concerning heavenly joy and eternal happiness.
[2] “The reason I am sent is this: Several who have lately come from the natural world, and who have been admitted into our heavenly society, which is in the east, have informed us that there is not a single person in the whole Christian world who knows what is the nature of heavenly joy and eternal happiness; and consequently, what heaven is. At this my brethren and companions were much astonished; and they said to me: ‘Go down and summon by proclamation those who are most eminent in wisdom in the world of spirits, where are first gathered together all men after their departure out of the natural world, in order that we may know with certainty from the testimony of many whether it is true that such thick darkness or dense ignorance concerning the future life prevails among Christians.'” He added, “Wait a little, and you will see companies of the wise men flocking hither. The Lord will prepare a house of meeting for them.”
I waited, and in about half an hour I saw two groups coming from the north, two from the west and two from the south. As they arrived they were introduced by the angel with the trumpet into the house prepared for them; and there they occupied the places assigned to them according to the quarter whence they had come. There were present six groups or companies and a seventh from the east, but it was not visible to the others on account of the light. When all were assembled, the angel explained to them the reason why they were summoned; and he asked that the companies in turn should express what in their wisdom they thought concerning heavenly joy and eternal happiness. Each company then formed itself into a circle, the members facing one another, that they might recall the subject from the ideas they had formed while they were in the former world, and might now give it full consideration; and after consulting together, might give it considered expression.
[2] When they had said this, the second company from the north, according to their degree of wisdom, expressed their opinion as follows: “Heavenly joy and eternal happiness are nothing else than the most delightful association with angels and pleasant conversation with them, so that the countenance continually beams with happiness, and all the company smile pleasantly at the exchange of fair words and witty speech. Heavenly joy is the varied succession of such pleasures to eternity.”
[3] The third company, which consisted of the first group of the wise men from the western quarter, expressing the ideas their affections prompted, spoke in these terms: “Heavenly joy and eternal happiness consist wholly in feasting with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, at whose tables there will be rare and costly food, and generous and noble wines. The feasts will be followed by sports and dances of maidens and young men, dancing to the tune of pipes and other musical instruments, with interludes of sweetest song. Then in the evening there will be stage plays presented by actors, followed again by feasts; and so on, every day to eternity.”
[4] When they had finished speaking, the fourth company, which was the second from the western quarter, declared their opinion, saying: “We have entertained many ideas concerning heavenly joy and eternal happiness; and we have also examined various joys and compared them one with another. We have come to the conclusion that heavenly joys are those of paradise; for heaven is a paradise reaching from the east to the west, and from the south to the north. In it there are fruit trees and beautiful flowers; and in the midst is the magnificent tree of life, round which the blessed will sit, eating fruits of delicate flavor and adorned with garlands of the sweetest smelling flowers. These fruits and flowers, in the breath of a perpetual spring, are renewed from day to day with infinite variety; and thus from their shooting forth and constant blossoming, under the genial influence of perpetual spring, the minds of the blessed must be continually renewed, receiving and giving forth daily new joys till they reach the flower of their life, and then that primitive state in which Adam and his wife were created. So they will regain their paradise, which is now translated from earth to heaven.”
[5] The fifth company, the first group of the intellectuals from the southern quarter, then spoke as follows: “Heavenly joys and eternal happiness consist solely in all-embracing dominion and boundless wealth, and consequently more than royal magnificence and dazzling splendor. That the joys of heaven and their continual fruition in eternal happiness consist in these things we see clearly from those in the former world who possessed them. It is clear also from the promise that the happy are to reign in heaven with the Lord, and to be kings and princes, because they are the sons of Him who is King of kings and Lord of lords; and that they are to sit on thrones and be ministered to by angels. Moreover, we plainly see the magnificence of heaven from the revelation that the New Jerusalem, by which is described the glory of heaven, is to have gates each of which will be one pearl, and streets of pure gold, and a wall with foundations of precious stones. Every one, therefore, who is received into heaven has a palace of his own, resplendent with gold and costly articles, and dominion succeeding from one position to another. As we know that there are in such things innate joys and inherent happiness, and that God’s promises cannot fail, we can only conclude that these are the source of the supremely happy state of the heavenly life.”
[6] Following them, the sixth company, which was the second from the southern quarter, raised their voice and said: “The joy of heaven and its eternal happiness are nothing else than the perpetual glorification of God, a never-ceasing festival, and most blessed worship with songs of rejoicing. There is thus a constant elevation of the heart to God, with full confidence in His acceptance of prayers and praises for His Divine bounty in providing the happiness they bring.” Some of the company added that this glorification would be attended with magnificent illuminations, with most fragrant incense and with processions of great pomp. The chief priest would go before with a great trumpet, followed by primates and acolytes of various orders, and these by men hearing palm branches and women bearing golden images in their hands.
Then they said to the angel with the trumpet: “You know that all who had longed for heaven, and had formed any definite opinion concerning its joys, are introduced after death into such joys as they had imagined; and after they have found by experience the real nature of those joys, that they are figments of their own imagination and offspring of their delusion, they are withdrawn from them and instructed in the truth. In the world of spirits this happens to many who, in their former life when thinking of heaven, have come to the conclusion that its joys are such as they have longed for.” On hearing this, the angel with the trumpet said to the six companies of wise men called together from the Christian world: “Follow me, and I will introduce you into your joys, and thus into heaven.”
[2] The house had four doors, one on each side; and I observed that many were leaving their groups and hastening to go out. I followed some to the east door where I saw several sitting with dejected countenances. I went up to them and asked why they were so sad; and they replied: “The doors of this house are kept shut against those who wish to go out. It is now the third day since we entered, and we have come to the end of our desire for meetings and conversations. We are now so tired of continual talking that we can scarcely bear the sound of it. From weariness we made our way to this door and knocked; but we were told that the doors of this house are not opened for those who would go out, but only for those who would come in; and that we must remain, and enjoy the delights of heaven; so we conclude that we are to remain here for ever. This is the cause of the sadness that has possessed our minds; and now a feeling of oppression and anxious fear has come over us.
[3] Then the angel addressed them and said: “The state in which you now are brings to an end those joys of yours which you believed to be the only heavenly joys, whereas they are merely subsidiary.” “What then,” they asked, “is heavenly joy?” The angel replied in these few words: “It is the delight of doing something useful to oneself and to others; and the delight of use derives its essence from love and its existence from wisdom. The delight of use, arising from love through wisdom, is the life and soul of all heavenly joys. There is in heaven most delightful association, which exhilarates the minds of angels, cheers their spirits, gladdens their hearts and refreshes their bodies. These pleasures, however, the angels feel only after they have performed the uses pertaining to their office and employment. From these uses are derived the life and soul of all their pleasures and delights; but if you take away that life or soul the subsidiary joys gradually lose their charm; first they become unattractive, then as it were of little account, and finally they bring that feeling of oppression and anxious care.”
As the angel ended, the door was thrown open, and those who were sitting near rushed out and fled home, each going back to his own office and employment with renewed vigor.
[2] Presently all the tables appeared laden with dishes of food, interspersed with table ornaments bearing fruits and condiments. The guests stood round the tables, waiting to see those who were to preside. After a brief interval, they were seen to enter in processional order, from Abraham to the last of the apostles. They now approached their own table, and reclined at the head of the couch; and then they invited those who were standing around to take their places. The men reclined with the patriarchs and apostles, and the women with their wives; and they ate and drank with reverent joy. When the repast was ended, the patriarchs retired; and then were introduced sports and dances of maidens and young men, and these were succeeded by plays. Thereupon they were again invited to feast according to the following arrangement: on the first day they were to eat with Abraham, on the next with Isaac, on the third with Jacob, on the fourth with Peter, on the fifth with James, on the sixth with John, on the seventh with Paul, and with the rest in order till the fifteenth day, when they were to begin the feasting over again in the same order, changing their seats each time, and so on to eternity.
[3] Some time after, the angel called together the men of his company, and said to them: “All those whom you saw at the tables had entertained in their imagination the same ideas as you concerning the joys of heaven, and the eternal happiness that follows from these; and in order that they might realize the vanity of their ideas, and be led away from them, such festive scenes, which are merely dramatic representations, have been instituted by Divine permission. Those leading personages whom you saw at the head of the tables, were old men playing their part. They were mostly from the peasant class, who, wearing long beards and puffed up with pride at possessing a little more wealth than others, were obsessed with the delusion that they were those old patriarchs. But follow me to the paths that lead away from this place of festivity.”
[4] So they followed him and saw groups of fifty here and fifty there who had surfeited themselves with food till they were nauseated. They longed to return to the affairs of their own households, some to their official duties, some to their businesses, and some to their manual labor. Many, however, were detained by the wardens of the grove who questioned them as to the number of days they had feasted, and whether they had yet eaten at the tables with Peter and Paul; and they were told that if they went away before doing so, it would be to their lasting shame, because it was a disgraceful thing to do. Most of them replied: “We have tasted our joys to the full; the food has become insipid to us; and our relish for it has been destroyed. Our stomachs revolt at it, and we cannot bear even to taste it. We have already spent several days and nights in that luxury, and we earnestly beg to be let out.” They were then let out; and with panting breath and hurried steps they fled home.
[5] The angel afterwards called together his companions, and as they went along, he gave them the following instruction concerning heaven. “There are in heaven, as well as in the world, food and drink, feasts and repasts. For leading personages the tables furnished with richest food, delicate and splendid, by which their minds are exhilarated and refreshed. There are sports and stage shows, instrumental music and song, and all in the highest perfection. Such things are pleasures to those for whom they are provided, but not happiness; which indeed will be found in pleasures, and which springs from them. When it is present in them it causes them to be real pleasures, enriching and elevating them, and preventing them from degenerating and becoming distasteful but happiness comes to every one from the use he performs in his own vocation.
[6] “There is in the affection of the will of every angel a latent tendency which induces the mind to do something; and this tranquilizes and satisfies it. Satisfaction and tranquillity create a state of mind receptive of the love of use from the Lord; and it is from the reception of this love that heavenly happiness results, which is the very life of those pleasures already referred to. Heavenly food in its essence is the harmonious union of love, wisdom and use; that is, use from love through the exercise of wisdom. For this reason food for the body is given to every one in heaven according to the use which he performs, sumptuous to those who perform uses of an outstanding character, moderately fine but of choice flavor to those whose uses are of moderate importance, and plain to those who perform humble uses of lesser importance; but none to the indolent.”
[2] When he had said this, there appeared near each pillar a throne on which was a silken robe and on the robe a sceptre and crown; while near each pyramid there appeared a chair of state, raised three cubits from the ground, on which were a chain of little golden links and a belt of the order of knighthood, fastened at the ends with diamond buckles. Then a voice was heard, saying, “Go now, put on your robes, be seated and wait.” Instantly the older men ran to the thrones, and the younger to the chairs; and putting on their robes, they seated themselves. Then there appeared as it were a mist rising from below; and when those who were seated on the thrones and chairs inhaled it, they began to be puffed up and confidently assured that they were now kings and princes. This mist was an exhalation of the delusion by which they were obsessed. Thereupon pages flew down to them, as it were from heaven; and two stood behind each throne, and one behind each chair, ready to serve. Then at intervals proclamation was made by a herald: “Ye kings and princes, wait a little while; your palaces in heaven are now being made ready. Very soon your courtiers with escorts will come and introduce you.” They waited and waited till their spirits dropped, and they grew weary with their longing.
[3] After three hours the heaven was opened above their heads, and angels, looking down on them in pity, said, “Why do you sit there, deluding yourselves in this way, and acting parts that do not belong to you? They have made a mockery of you, turning you from men into images, because you have set your hearts on the fond hope that you are to reign with Christ as kings and princes, and that angels are to minister to you. Have you forgotten the Lord’s words, that in heaven he who would be great must become a servant? Learn, therefore, what is meant by being kings and princes, and by reigning with Christ; it is to be wise and to perform uses. The kingdom of Christ, which is heaven, is a kingdom of uses. The Lord loves all, and so wills good to all, and good is the same thing as use. As the Lord does good, or performs uses, through the instrumentality of angels, and, in the world, of men, therefore, to those who faithfully perform uses He communicates the love of use, together with its reward, internal blessedness; and this is eternal happiness.
[4] “There are in the heavens, as on earth, all-embracing dominions and boundless wealth; for there are governments under various forms, and, therefore, powers and dignities greater and less. Those in the highest stations have palaces and courts which, for magnificence and splendor, surpass those of emperors and kings on earth; and they derive honor and glory from the number of their courtiers, ministers and attendants and the splendor of their uniforms. The heads of the state are chosen from those whose hearts are in the public welfare, and who are only externally gratified by lavish magnificence because of the spirit of obedience which it instils. Since the public welfare requires that every one should be of some use in society, as in a common body; and since all use is from the Lord, and is performed by angels and men as of themselves, it is evident that this is what is meant by reigning with the Lord.”
On hearing these words from heaven, those who were personating kings and princes descended from their thrones and chairs, casting away their sceptres, crowns and robes. The mist in which was an exhalation of delusion, was dispersed, and there encompassed them a bright cloud in which was an atmosphere of wisdom; and thus sanity was restored to their minds.
[2] Led by the angel, they saw a great number of old men, young men, and boys, as well as women and girls. They were sitting in groups of threes and tens upon beds of roses, wreathing garlands to deck the heads of the old men and the arms of the young men, and to twine as garlands round the breasts of the boys. Others were pressing the juice of grapes, cherries and mulberries into cups and drinking it with jovial glee. Others were breathing in the fragrance given out in all directions by flowers, fruits and sweet-smelling leaves. Others were singing sweet songs, with which they charmed the ears of those around. Others were sitting beside fountains, producing various effects as they diverted the leaping waters. Others were walking about enlivening their conversation with sallies of wit. Others were retiring to summer houses, to rest on the couches there; and there were many enjoying other delights in this paradise.
[3] After they had seen these things, the angel led his companions along various winding paths till they came upon some persons seated in a most beautiful rose garden, which was surrounded by orange, olive and citron trees. They were swaying to and fro, holding their heads in their hands, lamenting and weeping. The companions of the angel addressed them, and said, “Why do you sit thus?” They replied: “It is now seven days since we came into this paradise. When we entered, our minds seemed raised to heaven and admitted into the fullest enjoyment of its delights; but after three days those joys began to grow dull, to fade from our minds and to lose their charm; and now they have gone completely. As our imaginary joys have passed away, there has come over us the fear of losing all that makes life enjoyable; and we have begun to doubt whether there is any such thing as eternal happiness. After a time we wandered through streets and open places in search of the gate by which we entered; but we only wandered round in circles. When we made inquiries of some persons we met, they said, ‘The gate cannot be found; for this garden paradise is a vast labyrinth of such a nature that whoever wishes to go out, goes farther in; so you will require to remain here to eternity. You are now in the midst of the garden, where all delights are centered.'” They continued: “We have now been sitting here for a day and a half; and as we are without hope of finding our way out, we have seated ourselves in this rose garden, where we see around us olives, grapes, oranges, and citrons; but the more we look at them the more are our eyes wearied with seeing, our nostrils with smelling, and our palates with tasting. This is the cause of the sadness, grief and tears in which you see us.”
[4] On hearing this the attendant angel said to them: “This paradisaic labyrinth is really an entrance to heaven. I know the way out, and I will lead you forth.” At these words those who were seated sprang to their feet and, embracing the angel, went with him together with his companions. On their way, the angel taught them what heavenly joy and eternal happiness arising from it really are. He explained that they do not consist in external paradisaic delights, unless these are accompanied by their corresponding internal delights. “For,” said he, “external paradisaic delights are only those of the bodily senses, but those that are internal in character belong to the affections of the soul; and unless these are present in the external there is no spiritual life in them, because they are devoid of soul. For every delight, without its corresponding soul, continually grows more and more languid and dull, and wearies the mind more than labor. There are everywhere in the heavens paradisaic gardens; and these indeed are a source of joy to the angels, but this joy is real only in so far as the delight of the soul is present.”
[5] When they heard this they all inquired: “What is the soul’s delight, and what is its source?” The angel replied: “The soul’s delight is derived from love and wisdom proceeding from the Lord; and as love produces effects, and does so through wisdom, they both reside in the effect; and the effect is use. This delight flows into the soul from the Lord, descending through the higher and lower regions of the mind into all the bodily senses, and in them attains its fullness. From the presence of this delight joy becomes real joy, becoming also eternal from its Eternal Source. You have seen the things of paradise, and I declare to you that every thing there, down to the smallest leaf, exists from the union of love and wisdom in use. If, then, a man is in this union, he is in a heavenly paradise, and therefore is in heaven.”
He led them into a small city in the midst of which was a temple, and where all the houses were called sacred chapels. In this city they saw a great concourse of people flocking in from every quarter of the neighboring country. Among them they saw a number of priests, who received them as they came in with words of greeting, and taking them by the hand, led them to the gates of the temple; then to some of the adjacent sacred houses, and initiated them into the perpetual worship of God. They said that this city was one of the courts leading to heaven, and that its temple was introductory to a magnificent and most spacious temple in heaven, where the angels glorified God with prayers and praises to eternity. It was ordained both there and in heaven, that they should first enter the temple, and remain there for three days and nights. After this initiation they should go into the houses of this city, which were so many sacred chapels consecrated by them; and going from house to house, in communion with those already assembled there, they should pray, cry aloud, and take part in the public celebrations. “But be very careful,” they added, “to think nothing but what is holy, pious and religious.”
[2] After this the angel led his company into the temple, which was full, being crowded with many who had held high rank in the world, as well as with many of the common people; and guards were stationed at the gates to prevent anyone leaving before completing a period of three days. The angel said: “To-day is the second day since this party entered; observe them, and you will see their manner of glorifying God.” So they looked at them and saw that most of them were asleep, and that those who were awake were continually yawning. Some from the constant elevation of their thoughts to God, with no thought for the body, seemed like faces shut off from their body; for so they seemed to themselves, and, therefore, to others; while the eyes of others appeared wandering, from their constant pre-occupation with abstractions. In a word all were oppressed in heart and weary beyond measure in spirit; so they turned away from the pulpit, calling out, “Our ears are stupefied; cease your sermonizing; we no longer hear your voice, and we cannot bear the sound of it.” They then rose up, and in a body rushed to the gates, broke them open, overcame the guards and drove them away.
[3] On seeing this the priests followed them, and walking close beside them, kept on teaching, praying, sighing and saying, “Celebrate the festival, glorify God, and sanctify yourselves. In this court of heaven we will initiate you into the eternal glorification of God as it is celebrated in that magnificent and most spacious temple in heaven, and so we will initiate you into the enjoyment of eternal happiness.” These words, however, were not understood by them, and indeed they were scarcely heard because of the torpor induced by two days’ mental inactivity and abstention from domestic and public duties. When they attempted to disengage themselves from the priests, these caught hold of their arms and their garments, urging them to go into the sacred chapels and take part in the general celebrations, but all in vain. “Leave us,” they cried, “we feel as if we should faint.”
[4] At these words four men appeared in white garments, and wearing mitres; in the world one of them had been an archbishop and the other three bishops, and all were now angels. They called the priests together and, addressing them, said: “We have observed you from heaven with these sheep; and we have seen how you fed them: you feed them till you drive them to distraction. You do not understand what is meant by the glorification of God. It means to bring forth the fruits of love, that is, to discharge the duties of ones calling with fidelity, sincerity and diligence. For this is a mark of the love of God and of the love of the neighbor, which constitutes the bond of society and its good. Herein is God glorified, as well as by worship at stated times. Have you not read these words of the Lord:
“Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples.” John xv. 8?
[5] You priests may continue to practice glorification as part of your worship, because it is your office, and from it you derive honor, glory and recompense. Nevertheless, you would not continue in so doing any more than they unless your office brought you honor, glory and recompense.” Having said this the bishops commanded the door-keepers to let all pass freely in as well as out, “For,” they said, “there are many who can only think of heavenly joy as the perpetual worship of God, because they know nothing of the heavenly state.”
Some hours later nine men presented themselves, each wearing a laurel wreath as a mark of his fame. The angel led them into the house of meeting where all those had assembled who had been summoned before; and in their presence, addressing the nine men wearing the decoration, said: “I know that at your own desire, and in accordance with your own idea, you have been permitted to ascend into heaven; and that you have returned to this lower or sub-heavenly land with a full knowledge of the state of heaven. Tell us, therefore, how heaven appeared to you.”
[2] Then they replied in order. The first said: “From my earliest childhood even to the end of my life on earth my idea of heaven was, that it was a place abounding with every kind of blessing, happiness, joy, pleasure and delight; and that, if I were admitted, I should be surrounded with an atmosphere of such felicities as these, breathing it in with fullest enjoyment like a bridegroom at his wedding, and when he enters the bridal chamber with his bride. With this idea I ascended to heaven, and passed the first guards and also the second; but when I came to the third, the captain of the guard addressed me, saying, ‘Who are you, friend?’ I answered, ‘Is not heaven here? I have ascended hither at my earnest desire; admit me, I entreat you.’ He admitted me, and I saw angels in white robes. They walked round about me, looking at me and murmuring, ‘Here is a new guest not clothed in heavenly raiment.’ I heard what they said, and I thought, ‘This seems to me like the case of the man of whom the Lord says, that he came to the wedding without a wedding garment.’ So I said to the angels, ‘Give me such garments; but they only smiled. Then came one in haste from the court with the command, ‘Strip him naked, cast him out, and throw his garments after him;’ so I was cast out.”
[3] The second in his turn said: “I, too, supposed that if I were admitted into heaven, which was over my head, I should be surrounded with joys and breathe them in to eternity. I also obtained my desire. The angels, however, fled when they saw me, saying one to another, ‘What monster is this? How came this bird of night here?’ And I actually felt a change from my human shape, although no change took place, which came over me from breathing the heavenly atmosphere. But presently there came one running from the court with an order that two servants should lead me out, and conduct me back by the way I had ascended, till I reached my own home. When I was there, I again appeared as a man both to others and to myself.”
[4] The third said: “I always thought of heaven from the idea of place, and not of love. Therefore, when I came into this world I longed for heaven with an ardent desire; and, seeing some persons ascending, I followed them and was admitted, but only for a few steps. When, however, I wished to regale my mind (animus)* according to my idea of the joys and blessedness there, my mind (mens)** was seized with stupor occasioned by the light of heaven, which is white like snow, and whose essence is said to be wisdom. In consequence a thick darkness overspread my eyes, and I began to go mad. Thereupon from the heat of heaven, which corresponds to the brightness of its light, and whose essence is said to be love, my heart began to palpitate. I was seized with anxiety and tortured with interior pain, and I threw myself backwards on the ground. As I lay there an attendant came from the court with an order to carry me gently back into my own light and heat; and when I came to them, my spirit and my heart returned to me.”
[5] The fourth said that he also had thought of heaven from the idea of place, and not of love. “As soon, therefore, as I came into the spiritual world,” said he, “I asked certain wise persons whether it was permitted to ascend into heaven. I was informed that this was granted to all, but they were to be careful lest they should be cast down again. At this I laughed and ascended, believing like others that all in the whole world were capable of receiving the joys of heaven in their fullness. However, I was no sooner within heaven than I became almost lifeless; and suffering torturing pain in head and in body, I threw myself on the ground. Then writhing like a snake held close to fire, I crept to the brink of a precipice and cast myself over. I was picked up by some who were standing below and taken to an inn, where I became well again.”
[6] The other five also related wonderful accounts of their ascent to heaven, comparing the change in their state of life with the state of fish when lifted from the water into the air, and of birds when raised from the air into the ether. They said that, after their painful experience, they had no longer any desire for heaven, but only for a life among others like themselves, wherever they were. “We know,” they added, “that in the world of spirits, where we now are, all undergo preparation, the good for heaven, and the wicked for hell; that after preparation they see ways opened up for them to societies of kindred spirits, with whom they are to live for ever; and that they enter upon these ways with joy, because they are the ways of their love.” When all who formed the first assembly heard this they also acknowledged that they had entertained no other idea of heaven than as a place where they should enjoy to the full ever present pleasures to eternity. [7] Then the angel with the trumpet said to them: “You now see that the joys of heaven and eternal happiness do not depend upon place, but upon the state of man’s life; and that the state of heavenly life is from love and wisdom. As use contains love and wisdom, the state of heavenly life arises from the union of love and wisdom in use. It is the same if we speak of charity, faith and good works; for charity is love, faith is truth from which is wisdom, and good works are uses. Moreover, in our spiritual world there are places, as in the natural world; otherwise there would be no habitations and separate abodes. Nevertheless place with us is only an appearance of place according to the state of love and wisdom, that is, of charity and faith.
[8] “Every one who becomes an angel bears within himself his own heaven, because he bears the love of his own heaven; for man by creation is an effigy, image and type in little of a great heaven; such is the human form. Therefore, every one comes into that society of heaven of whose general form he is a particular image; so that on entering that society he enters into a form corresponding to himself. Thus he enters, as it were, from himself into that form within himself, and again, from that form into that form within himself; and he enjoys a life which is common both to the society and to himself. Every society is like a community, and the angels in it are, as it were, parts resembling the whole which is constituted of them. From this it follows that those who are in evils and their resultant falsities have formed in themselves an image of hell; and this suffers torture in heaven from the influx and violent antagonism of one opposite to another. For infernal love is opposite to heavenly love; and there is the same antagonism between the delights of these two loves as between enemies, and they destroy one another whenever they meet.”
* Animus, the lower plane of the mind in which desires and ideas in connection with the body and the world are active.
** Mens, the higher plane of the mind in which the will and understanding are rationally active.
Then ten were selected, and they followed the angel. They ascended a steep path up a certain hill; and from this they went up a mountain on whose summit was the heaven of those angels, which had before appeared to them at a distance like an expanse in the clouds. The gates were opened for them; and after they had passed through the third gate, the angel who was introducing them hastened to the prince of the society, that is, of that heaven, and announced their arrival. The prince said: “Take some of my retinue with you and tell your companions that they are welcome. Bring them to my outer court, and provide each with a private apartment and a bedroom. Appoint some of my attendants and servants to wait on them and be at their service.” This was done. On being introduced by the angel they asked if they might go and see the prince; but the angel replied: “It is now morning, and he may not be seen before noon. Till that time every one is engaged at his own office and employment; but you are invited to dinner, and then you will sit at table with our prince. In the meantime I will conduct you to his palace, where you will see magnificent and splendid things.”
[2] When they were brought to the palace they first viewed it from without. It was spacious, built of porphyry, with a foundation of jasper; and before the gate were six lofty pillars of colored marble; the roof was of plates of gold, the high windows were of the clearest crystal, and their flames were of gold. Next they were taken inside the palace, and conducted from room to room where they saw ornaments of inexpressible beauty, and matchless carvings decorating the ceilings. Along the walls were placed tables of silver inlaid with gold, on which were set a variety of vessels fashioned from precious stones, some from single stones, in heavenly shapes. There were many things which no eye had ever seen on earth, and so which no one could induce himself to believe existed in heaven.
While they stood amazed at the magnificent things they saw, the angel said: “Do not be surprised. The things which you now behold were not made and fashioned by the hand of any angel, but by the Maker of the universe and presented as a gift to our prince. Here, therefore, is architecture in its perfection, from which are derived all the rules of that art in the world.” The angel continued: “You may suppose that such things as these charm our eyes and delude us into believing that they constitute the joys of our heaven. But our heart is not in them, for they are only of secondary esteem; and as far as we regard them as secondary, and as the work of God, so far we behold in them the Divine omnipotence and beneficence.”
[3] At the sight of these things the companions of the angel exclaimed, “This is indeed a form of heaven! Wherever we turn our eyes we take in something ineffably heavenly and paradisaic.” When he heard this, the angel was pleased and said: “All the gardens of our heaven are in their origin representative forms or types of heavenly blessedness; and because the influx of this blessedness has elevated your minds, you exclaimed, ‘This is indeed a form of heaven.’ Those, however, who do not receive that influx see these paradisaic gardens merely as forests. All those receive the influx who are in the love of use; but not those who act from the love of glory and not from the motive of use.” He then explained to them what each thing in the garden represented and signified.
[2] The angel, leading the ten strangers who now appeared from their dress as resident guests of the palace approached the prince and reverently presented them; and the prince, without stopping the procession, said to them: “Come and eat bread with me.” They followed him into the dining-hall, where they saw a table magnificently prepared. In the centre was a lofty golden pyramid, and neatly arranged down its three sides were a hundred salvers, bearing sweet cakes and crystallized wines, with other delicacies made of bread and wine. Up through the centre of the pyramid there flowed as it were a leaping fountain of delicious wine, whose stream divided at the summit and was drawn off into cups. Alongside this high pyramid were various heavenly ornaments of gold bearing large and small plates and dishes laden with food of every kind. The heavenly ornaments bearing these plates were works of art inspired by wisdom, which could not be reproduced by any art in the world nor described by any words. The plates and dishes were of silver, with carvings around them exactly similar to those on their supports; and the cups were of transparent gems. Thus was the table furnished.
[2] In the course of the feast the prince, addressing the ten guests, said: “I heard that you were called together in the region beneath this heaven to express your ideas concerning the joys of heaven and the eternal happiness arising from them; and that you advanced various opinions, but each according to the delights of the bodily senses. Now what are the delights of the bodily senses, if separated from those of the soul? It is the soul which fills them with delight. The delights of the soul are in themselves imperceptible blessings; but as they descend into the thoughts of the mind, and thence into the sensations of the body, they become more and more perceptible. In the thoughts of the mind they are perceived as happy states, in the sensations of the body as delights, and in the body itself as pleasures. Eternal happiness is the result of all these taken together; but happiness resulting from the gratification of the bodily senses alone is not eternal, but merely temporary: it comes to an end, it passes away, and sometimes it is turned into misery. You now see that all your joys are also joys of heaven, and are even more excellent than you have ever been able to imagine; but such joys do not affect our minds interiorly.
[3] “There are three things that flow as one from the Lord into our souls; and these three, which are as one, or this trine, are love, wisdom and use. Love and wisdom exist ideally, existing only in the affection and thought of the mind; but in use they exist really, because they are then simultaneously in the act and operation of the body; and where they exist really, there they also subsist. Love and wisdom exist and subsist in use, but it is the use which affects us; and use consists in discharging the duties of one’s office with fidelity, sincerity and diligence. The love of use, and the devotion to it which thence arises, keep the mind from losing control, from wandering about and absorbing all the lusts which flow in with their allurements through the senses from the body and the world. These lusts dissipate to all the winds of heaven the truths of religion and morality with all that is good in them; but devotion of the mind to use retains and binds those truths together, and disposes the mind to become a form receptive of wisdom from those truths; and then it drives out from their position of vantage the illusions and mockeries of vain falsity. But you will hear more on this subject from wise men of our society whom I will send to you in the afternoon.”
Having said this the prince arose, and the guests rose with him; and bidding them farewell he instructed their angel to conduct them to their private apartments, and show them all honor and courtesy; and also to invite courteous and affable men to entertain them with conversation respecting the various joys of their society.
1. In this society there are days of festivity appointed by the prince, for the mental relaxation of some from fatigue induced by their eagerness to excel in service. On these days there are musical performances and singing in public places, and outside the city, sports and stage shows. In the public places are raised platforms surrounded with balustrades of interwoven vines, from which hang bunches of grapes. Within the lattice-work in three tiers sit the musicians with stringed and wind instruments, high toned and low toned, loud and soft; and at the sides are singers of both sexes, who delight the citizens with most beautiful hymns and songs, choruses and solos, in varied succession. This music continues on these festive days from morn till noon, and then till evening.
[2] 2. Moreover, every morning from the houses round the public places there are heard the sweetest songs of maidens and young girls, which resound throughout the whole city. Each morning the song, by musical modifications or modulations, expresses a particular affection of spiritual love; and this is perceived in the singing as though this affection were actually present. It flows into the minds of the hearers, and awakens in them a corresponding emotion; for this is the nature of heavenly song. These singers say that the sound of their singing is inspired and animated from within, and is raised to joyous exaltation according to its reception by the hearers. When the singing is ended, the windows and doors of the houses round the markets and public places are closed, and silence reigns throughout the whole city. No noise is heard anywhere, and no one is seen wandering about the streets, but all are intent upon the duties of their employment.
[3] 3. At noon the doors are opened, and in the afternoon the windows of some of the houses also; and boys and girls are seen playing in the streets, while their nurses and teachers sit in the porches of the houses, watching over them.
[4] 4. In the outskirts of the city boys and youths engage in various sports, such as foot races, games of ball and rackets. There are also trials of skill among the boys to test their quickness in speech, action and perception; and those who excel receive as a reward a wreath of laurel; and there are many other ways of calling forth their latent talents.
[5] 5. There are also outside the city dramatic performances on stages when the various graces and virtues of the moral life are portrayed by actors, some of whom are chosen for their ability to play graded parts.* One of the ten asked, “What is meant by graded parts?” The spokesman replied: “It is not possible to represent fully any virtue with its graces and proprieties unless by portraying these in sequence from their greatest to their least forms; and actors portray these forms as long as any virtue remains in them. It is provided by law, however, that they should not portray anything that is opposed to these, namely, what is disgraceful and improper, unless indirectly, and, as it were, remotely. It is so provided because nothing that is honorable and good in any virtue passes by successive stages into what is dishonorable and evil: it diminishes till nothing of it remains, and then its opposite begins to make its appearance. Therefore, heaven, where all things are honorable and good, has nothing in common with hell, where all things are dishonorable and evil.”
* Sunt histriones propter relationes. The idea would appear to be that actors are chosen to represent forms of graces and proprieties as these vary from the highest to the lowest, and as these are the lowest, and as these are related in sequence from highest to lowest. Relatio in Swedenborg generally indicates relativity, with reference to the sequence in which things spiritual and material stand to one another, and not the idea of relation as a narrative. See 763.
So they said: “When man was first created, he was initiated into wisdom and its love, not for his own sake but that he might impart it to others from himself. Hence it is inscribed on the wisdom of the wise, that no one should be wise and live for himself alone, but for others at the same time. This is the foundation of society, which could not otherwise exist. To live for others is to perform uses: uses are the bonds of society, and these are as many as there are good uses, and their number is infinite. There are spiritual uses, which are those of love to God and love towards the neighbor; there are moral and civil uses, pertaining to the love of the society and country in which a man lives, and of his fellow-citizens among whom he dwells; there are natural uses pertaining to the love of the world and its necessities; and there are corporeal uses, pertaining to the love of self-preservation for the sake of higher uses.
[2] “All these uses are inscribed upon man, and they follow in order one after another, and when they exist together, then one is within another. Those who are in the first or spiritual uses are also in the uses that follow, and they are wise. Those who are not in spiritual uses, but yet are in moral and civil uses, and consequently in those that follow, are not on that account wise, but only appear to be so because of their external morality and observance of civil duty. Those who are not in spiritual and moral uses, but in natural and corporeal uses, are not at all wise; for they are satans, loving only the world and themselves because of the world. Those, however, who are only in corporeal uses are the least wise of all; for they are devils, living for themselves alone, and regarding themselves alone in whatever they do for others.
[3] “Moreover, every love has its delight, for by delight love is kept alive; and the delight of the love of uses is a heavenly one, which enters successively into the delights which follow, and in their order exalts them and makes them eternal.” After this, they spoke of heavenly delights proceeding from the love of use, and said that there are myriads and myriads of them, and that all who go to heaven enter into those delights. And in further wise discourse, concerning the love of use, they spent the day with them until evening.
[4] Towards evening a messenger clothed in linen came to the ten strangers who were attended by the angel, with an invitation to a wedding which was to take place next day; and they were greatly delighted at the thought of seeing a wedding in heaven. They were then conducted to the house of one of the familiar councilors, and supped with him. After supper they returned; and taking leave of one another, they retired, each to his own bed-chamber, and slept till morning.
When they awoke, they heard the singing of maidens and young girls from the houses round the market place, which was mentioned above. That morning the affection of conjugial love was the subject of their song, the sweetness of which deeply impressed them; and they perceived a blessed serenity instilled into their joys, which exalted them and filled them with new life. When the time arrived the angel said: “Make yourselves ready, and put on the heavenly garments which our prince sent you.” When they did so, the garments shone as with a flaming light, and they asked the angel the reason of this. He replied: “Because you are going to a wedding; and with us our garments then assume a shining appearance, and become wedding garments.”
[2] While they were looking at these things the door of an apartment next the bridal chamber opened, and they saw six maidens come out, followed by the bridegroom and the bride hand in hand. Proceeding towards a seat facing the lampstand they sat down, the bridegroom on the left and the bride on the right; and the six maidens stood by the seat near the bride. The bridegroom wore a robe of gleaming purple and a tunic of shining linen, with an ephod on which was a golden plate set around with diamonds; and on the plate was engraved an eaglet, the marriage emblem of that heavenly society and he had a mitre on his head. The bride wore a scarlet mantle, and beneath it an embroidered gown, reaching from her neck to her feet; and round her waist she had a golden girdle, and on her head a golden crown set with rubies.
[3] When they were thus seated, the bridegroom turned to the bride and put a golden ring upon her finger. Then he took bracelets and a collar of pearls; and placing the bracelets upon her arms and the collar round her neck, he said, “Accept these pledges.” And, as she accepted them, he kissed her and said, “Now you are mine;” and he called her his wife. On this the guests called out, “A blessing be upon you!” these words being said first by each separately, and afterwards by all together. A deputy sent by the prince joined in wishing them well; and at that moment the ante-chamber was filled with a fragrant incense, which was a token of blessing from heaven. Then the servants took bread from the tables near the lampstand, and cups filled with wine from the tables at the corners of the room, and gave to each of the guests bread and a cup; and they ate and drank. After this the husband and his wife rose, and the six maidens attended them to the threshold with the silver lamps, now lighted, in their hands. So the married pair entered the bridal-chamber and the door was closed.
[3] They asked again: “Why did you men not stand by the side of the bridegroom, now the husband, as the six maidens stood by the side of the bride, now the wife?” He answered: “Because we to-day are numbered among the maidens, and the number six signifies all, and what is complete.” But they said, “How is that?” “Maidens,” he replied, “signify the Church, and the Church consists of both sexes.” Therefore, we also, with reference to the Church, are maidens. That this is so, is evident from these words in the Revelation:
“These are they which were not defiled with women; for they are virgins. These are they which follow the Lamb whithersoever He goeth,” Rev. xiv. 4;
and because virgins signify the Church, therefore the Lord compared it to
“Ten virgins invited to the marriage,” Matt. xxv. 1, and following verses;
and because the Church is signified by Israel, Zion and Jerusalem, mention is so often made in the Word of the “virgin and daughter of Israel, of Zion and of Jerusalem.” The Lord also describes His marriage with the Church by these words in David:*
“Upon thy right hand did stand the queen in (rich) gold of Ophir … her clothing is of wrought gold. She shall be brought unto the king in raiment of needlework: the virgins her companions that follow her … shall enter into the king’s palace.” Ps. xlv. 4-15.
[4] “Is it not fitting,” they afterwards asked, “that a priest should be present and minister at the wedding?” “This is fitting on earth,” he answered, “but not in the heavens, because of the representation of the Lord Himself and the Church; on earth men are not aware of this; and yet with us a priest ministers at the betrothal, and hears, receives, confirms and consecrates the consent. Consent is the essential of marriage, and all succeeding ceremonies are its formalities.”
* David, the Book of Psalms, traditionally ascribed to David.
As the congregation was going out, the angel requested the priest to speak a few words of peace to his ten companions; so he came to them and conversed with them for half an hour. He spoke on the Divine Trinity, saying that it is in Jesus Christ, in whom all the fullness of Divinity dwells bodily, according to the declaration of the apostle Paul. He then spoke on the union of charity and faith; but he used the words, “the union of charity and truth,” because faith is truth.
THE CONSUMMATION OF THE AGE, THE COMING OF THE LORD, AND THE NEW HEAVEN AND THE NEW CHURCH
I. THE CONSUMMATION OF THE AGE* IS THE LAST PHASE OR END OF THE CHURCH.
There have been several Churches on this earth, all of which in process of time have been consummated, and after their consummation new ones have arisen; and this has been the case right up to the present time. The consummation of the Church takes place when there remains no Divine Truth but what is either falsified or rejected. And where there is no genuine truth there can be no genuine good, because the whole quality of good is formed by truths; for good is the essence of truth, and truth is the form of good, and quality cannot exist without form. Good and truth can no more be separated than will and understanding; or, what is the same thing, than the affection of love and thought arising from it. Therefore, when truth is consummated in the Church, good in it is consummated also; and when that takes place, the Church is at an end, that is, then is its consummation.
* “The consummation of the age” is used as in the R. V. margin. In the A. V. the phrase “the end of the world” is used instead, as in Matt. xxiv. 31. The Latin phrase is consummatio saeculi.
That such love has invaded Churches is clearly evident from the description given of Babylon,
Gen. xi. 1-9; Isa. xiii., xiv., xlvii.; Jer. l.; and in Dan. ii. 31-47; iii. 1-7 and following verses; v.; vi. 8 to the end; vii. 1-14; and in Rev. xvii. and xviii., from the beginning to the end of each,
for Babylon has at length exalted itself to such a degree that it has not only transferred the Lord’s Divine power to itself, but it also strives with the utmost zeal to grasp all the riches of the world. And it may be inferred from signs and appearances that are not without meaning, that similar loves would break out among many leaders of Churches outside Babylon, were it not for the limitations and restrictions placed upon their power. It follows, then, that a man under the influence of such dominating love would regard himself as God, and the world as heaven, and would pervert every truth of the Church. For truth, which in itself is truth, cannot be known and acknowledged by the merely natural man, nor can it be imparted to him by God, because it falls into a perverted mind and becomes falsity. Besides these two loves, there are still other causes of the consummation of truth and good, and consequently of the Church; but they are secondary and subordinate to these two.
“I have heard from JEHOVAH a consummation and a decision (A.V., a consumption, even determined) upon the whole earth.” Isa. xxviii. 22.
“The consummation decreed shall overflow with righteousness. For the Lord JEHOVIH ZEBAOTH shall make a consummation and a decision (A.V., a consumption, even determined), in the midst of all the land.” Isa. x. 22, 23.
“The whole land shall be devoured by the fire of the zeal of JEHOVAH (A.V., of His zeal): for He shall make a speedy consummation (A.V., riddance) of all them that dwell in the land.” Zeph. i. 18.
By land in these passages is signified the Church, because it means the land of Canaan, where the Church was. That the Church is signified by land may be seen confirmed from many passages of the Word in the Apocalypse Revealed, Nos. 286, 902.
“At length upon the bird of abominations shall be desolation; and even to consummation and decision it shall drop upon the devastation (A.V., for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate).” Dan. ix. 27.
That these words were spoken by Daniel in relation to the end of the present Christian Church, may be seen in Matthew xxiv. 15.
“The whole land shall be desolate; yet will I not make a consummation (A.V., a full end).” Jer. iv. 27.
“The iniquity of the Amorites* is not yet consummated (A.V., full).” Gen. xv. 16.
JEHOVAH said, “I will go down now, and see whether they have made a consummation (A. V., have done altogether), according to the cry [of it] which is come unto me.” Gen. xviii. 21.
This He said concerning Sodom.
The last phase of the present Christian Church is also meant by the consummation of the age spoken of by the Lord in the following passages:
The disciples asked Jesus, saying, “What shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the consummation of the age (A.V., of the end of the world)?” Matt. xxiv. 3.
“In the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye first the tares … to burn them; but gather ye the wheat into my barns … so shall it be in the consummation of the age (A.V., in the end of this world). Matt. xiii. 30, 40.
“In the consummation of the age (A.V., at the end of the world), the angels shall come forth, and sever the wicked from among the just.” Matt. xiii. 49.
Jesus said to the disciples, “Lo, I am with you, even to the consummation of the age (A.V., the end of the world).” Matt. xxviii. 20.
It should be known that vastation, desolation and decision signify the same as consummation; but desolation signifies the consummation of truth, vastation the consummation of good, and decision the full consummation of both; and the fullness of time, in which the Lord came into the world, and in which He is to come, is also a consummation.
* Amorites, the name generally applied to the primitive inhabitants of Canaan.
All these are alternating consummations, taking place according to nature and in the course of time, but still they are periodical; for when one thing has passed from its beginning to its end, another similar to it springs up. Thus every thing is born, and dies, and then is born again, to the end that creation may be continued. The case is the same with the Church, because a man is a Church, and a community of men constitutes the Church; and one generation follows another while the minds of all show great diversity. So iniquity, once it is rooted in their inclination to it, is transmitted to posterity; and it can be extirpated only by regeneration, which is effected by the Lord alone.
It was shown in the preceding article that the consummation of the age signifies the last phase of the Church; from which it is evident what is meant by the consummation of the age spoken of by the Lord in the Gospels,
Matt. xxiv.; Mark xiii.; Luke xxi:
for it is written,
“As Jesus sat upon the mount of Olives, the disciples came unto Him privately, saying…. What shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the consummation of the age (A.V., the end of the world)?” Matt. xxiv. 3.
Then the Lord proceeded to foretell and describe what the nature of the consummation would be in its successive stages even to His coming. He said that He would come in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory, and would gather together His elect, with many other particulars, verses 30, 31, which did not at all come to pass at the destruction of Jerusalem. In this passage the Lord described these things in prophetic language, every word of which has a wealth of meaning. What is involved in each of them is explained in the Arcana Caelestia, Nos. 3353-3356, 3486-3489, 3650-3655, 3751-3757, 3897-3901, 4056-4060, 4229-4231, 4332-4335, 4422-4424.
“When ye … shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand).” Matt. xxiv. 16; Dan. ix. 27;
and there are similar passages in the other Prophets. It will also be made clear in the Appendix that there is at this day such an abomination of desolation in the Christian Church; for there it will be seen that not a single genuine truth remains in the present Church; and also that unless a new Church were to be raised up in its place, “No flesh could be saved,” according to the Lord’s words in Matt. xxiv. 22.
That the Christian Church, as it exists to-day, is so consummated and vastated, cannot be seen by those on earth who have confirmed themselves in its falsities, because a confirmation of falsity is a denial of the truth. This confirmation spreads as it were a veil over the understanding, and thereby prevents the entrance of any thing else which might pull up the ropes and stakes by means of which it has built up and fashioned its theological system like a strong tabernacle. Moreover, the natural rational can confirm whatever it pleases, the false as well as the true; both, when confirmed, appear in a similar light; and it is not known whether this is a delusive light, such as appears in a dream, or true light, such as appears in the day. But the spiritual rational is wholly different; and those are in it who look to the Lord, and from Him are in the light of truth.
[2] Every Church, even the most heretical, when once it has been acknowledged, fills countries and cities with the cry that it alone is orthodox and universal, and that with it is the Gospel preached by the angel flying in the midst of heaven, Rev. xiv. 6; and the voice of the common people is heard echoing the cry. The whole Synod of Dort* looked upon Predestination as a star falling from heaven upon their heads; and they embraced that dogma as the Philistines adored the image of Dagon in the temple of Ebenezer at Ashdod; and as the Greeks adored the Palladium in the temple of Minerva. For they called it the palladium of religion; not knowing that their falling star is a phantom rising from a delusive light. When this falls upon the brain, it can confirm every falsity by fallacious arguments, until it itself is believed to be the true light, and decreed to be a fixed star, and at length sworn to be the star of stars. No one speaks more persuasively of the certain truth of his own delusion than the atheistic materialist. Does he not laugh heartily at the Divine things of God, the celestial things of heaven, and the spiritual things of the Church? Every lunatic believes his own folly to be wisdom, and wisdom to be folly. Who is there that distinguishes by the sight of the eye the illusive glow of rotten wood from the light of the moon? Those who hold sweet odors in aversion, like those who suffer from uterine disease, are disgusted by them, and prefer odors that are foul; and so on.
These things have been mentioned by way of illustration, that it may be known that natural light alone does not reveal that a Church is consummated, or is in nothing but falsity, until truth from heaven shines forth in its own light. For falsity does not see truth, but truth sees falsity; and the nature of man is such that he can see and comprehend truth when he hears it; but if he is confirmed in falsities, he cannot introduce truth into his understanding so that it may remain, for it finds there no abiding place. If by chance it does gain admission, the crowded gathering of falsities rejects it as something out of harmony with its surroundings.
* Dortdrecht or Dort, Synod of. This was held in 1618-19 to settle the disputes between the Arminians or “Remonstrants” who called in question the theory of Predestination, and the Calvinists. The Synod condemned the tenets of the Arminians.
Since the creation, there have been on this earth four Churches in general, following one another in regular succession. This may be evident from both the historical and the prophetical parts of the Word, especially from the Book of Daniel, where the four Churches are described by the statue that Nebuchadnezzar saw in a dream, chapter ii, and afterwards by the four beasts coming up out of the sea, chapter vii. The first church, which may be called the Most Ancient, existed before the Flood, and its consummation or end is described by the Flood. The second Church, which may be called the Ancient, existed in Asia and part of Africa; and this reached its consummation and perished by idolatries. The third Church, which was the Israelitish, began with the promulgation of the Decalogue on Mount Sinai, was continued by the Word written by Moses and the Prophets, and reached its consummation or end by the profanation of the Word. This profanation was complete when the Lord came into the world; and, therefore, because He was the Word, they crucified Him. The fourth Church is the Christian, which the Lord established by the Evangelists and the Apostles. Of this Church there have been two epochs, one extending from the time of the Lord to the Council of Nice,* and the other from that Council to the present time. This Church, however, in its progress was divided into three branches, the Greek, the Roman Catholic and the Reformed; nevertheless, all these three are called Christian. Moreover, within each general Church there have been several particular Churches which, although they have seceded, have still retained the name from the general Church, like heresies in the Christian Church.
* Nice (Nicaea), city of Asia Minor, in Bithynia. In A.D. 325 it was the seat of a Council summoned to settle the Arian controversy. The creed there adopted is known as the Nicene Creed.
They should see the abomination of desolation; and there should be great affliction, such as has not been since the beginning of the world to that time, nor should be; and except those days should be shortened no flesh could be saved; and lastly, “The sun shall be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven.” Matt. xxiv. 15, 21, 22, 29.
In other passages in the Evangelists, that time is also called night, as in Luke:
“In that night there shall be two men in one bed; the one shall be taken, and other shall be left,” Luke xvii. 34;
and in John:
“I must work the works of Him that sent me … the night cometh, when no men can work.” John ix. 4.
[2] Since all light departs at midnight, and the Lord is the true light, John i. 4, and following verses; viii. 12; xii. 35, 36, 46,
therefore, He said to His disciples, when He ascended into heaven,
“I am with you … even unto the consummation of the age (A.V., the end of the world),” Matt. xxviii. 20;
and then He departs from them to a new Church. This last phase of the Church is night itself, in which the former Churches came to an end, as is evident also from these words in Daniel:
“At length upon the bird of abominations shall be desolation; and even to consummation and decision it shall drop upon the devastation (A.V., for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate).” Dan. ix. 27.
This prophecy relates to the end of the Christian Church, as is clearly evident from the Lord’s words, Matt. xxiv. 15; and from these words in Daniel concerning the fourth kingdom or the fourth Church, represented by the image which Nebuchadnezzar saw:
“And whereas thou sawest iron mixed with miry clay, they shall mingle themselves with the seed of men: but they shall not cleave one to another, even as iron is not mixed with clay.” Dan. ii. 43.
The seed of man is the truth of the Word.
[3] It is also evident from these words concerning the fourth Church, represented by the fourth beast ascending out of the sea:
“I saw in the night visions, and behold a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible … it shall devour the whole earth, and shall tread it down, and break it in pieces.” Dan. vii. 7, 23.
This means that it will consummate every truth of the Church; and then there will be night, because the truth of the Church is light. Many similar things are predicted of this Church in the Revelation, especially in the sixteenth chapter, where it speaks of the vials of the wrath of God poured out upon the earth, signifying the falsities which should then overflow and destroy the Church. There are also similar passages in the Prophets to the same effect; as for example:
“Shall not the day of the Lord be darkness, and not light? even very dark, and no brightness in it?” Amos v. 18, 20; Zeph. i. 15;
and again,
“In that day … Jehovah will look down upon the earth, and, behold, it is darkness, and the light shall become dark in its ruins (A.V., if one look unto the land, behold darkness … and the light is darkened in the heavens thereof).” Isa. v. 30; viii. 22.
The day of Jehovah is the day of the Lord’s Coming.
“Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit.” John xii. 24.
It is similar with the spiritual things of the Church, the opposites of which are related to evil and falsity. These opposites, however, are not from the Lord but from man, who is endowed with free will, and this he can turn to a good or to an evil use. So also is it the case with darkness and cold; these do not come from the sun, but from the earth, which by its revolutions successively withdraws and turns away. Yet without this turning and withdrawal there would be neither day nor year, and consequently neither inanimate nor animate created things upon it. I have heard that Churches which are in a variety of goods and truths, are like so many jewels in a king’s crown, provided their goods have relation to love to the Lord, and their truths to faith in Him.
The successive states of the Church, both in its general and in its particular form, are described in the Word by the four seasons of the year, spring, summer, autumn, and winter, and by the four divisions of the day, morning, midday, evening, and night. As it is now night in the present Christian Church, it follows that morning, that is, the beginning of a new Church, is at hand. It is evident from the following passages that the successive states of the Church are described in the Word by the four states of the light of day:
“Unto evening and morning, two thousand and three hundred days; then shall the sanctuary be justified…. The vision of the evening and the morning is truth (A.V., true).” Dan. viii. 14, 26.
“He calleth to me out of Seir…. Watchman, what of the night? The watchman said, The morning cometh, and also the night.” Isa. xxi. 11, 12.
“The end is come…. The morning is come unto thee, O thou that dwellest in the land. Behold the day, behold, it is come; the morning is gone forth.” Ezek. vii. 6, 7, 10.
“JEHOVAH … in the morning: in the morning will He bring His judgment to light, He faileth not.” Zeph. iii. 5.
“God is in the midst of her…. God shall help her, when she looks for the morning (A.V., marg. when the morning appeareth).” Ps. xlvi. 5.
“I waited for JEHOVAH…. My soul waiteth for the Lord more than they that watch for the morning; I say more than they that watch for the morning … for with Him is plenteous redemption. And He shall redeem Israel.” Ps. cxxx. 5-8.
[2] In these passages the last phase of the Church is meant by evening and night, and its first phase by morning. The Lord Himself also is called Morning in the following passages:
“The God of Israel said, the Rock of Israel spake to me … He shall be as the light of the morning … even a morning without clouds.” 2 Sam. xxiii. 3, 4.
“I am the root and offspring of David, the bright and morning star.” Rev. xxii. 16.
“From the womb of the morning thou hast the dew of the youth.” Ps. cx. 3.
These passages have reference to the Lord; for He is the Morning. For this reason also He arose from the sepulchre early in the morning, for He was about to begin a new Church, Mark xvi. 2, 9.
[3] That the Lord’s Coming is to be looked for, is plainly evident from His own prediction concerning it in Matthew:
“As He sat upon the Mount of Olives, the disciples came unto Him … saying, Tell us … what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the consummation of the age (A.V., the end of the world).” Matt. xxiv. 3.
“After the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken: And then shall appear the sign of the Son of Man … and they shall see the Son of Man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.” Matt. xxiv. 29, 30; Mark xiii. 26; Luke xxi. 27.
“As the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of Man be…. Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of Man cometh.” Matt. xxiv. 37, 39, 44, 46.
In Luke it is written:
“When the Son of Man cometh, shall He find faith on the earth?” Luke xviii. 8.
In John:
Jesus said concerning John, “If I will that he tarry till I come?” John xxi. 22.
[4] In the Acts of the Apostles:
When they saw Jesus taken up into heaven, “Two men stood by them in white apparel; which also said … Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen Him go into heaven.” Acts i. 9, 10, 11.
In the Revelation:
“The Lord God of the holy prophets sent His angel to show unto His servants the things which must shortly be done. Behold, I come quickly: blessed is he that keepeth the commandments (A.V., the sayings of the prophecy) of this Book. And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be.” Rev. xxii. 6, 7, 12;
and again:
“I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you these things in the churches. I am the root and offspring of David, the bright and morning star. The spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely.” Rev. xxii. 16, 17;
and again:
“He which testifieth these things saith, Surely I come quickly. Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen.” Verses 20, 21.
* Numbered as in Original Edition, 765 being omitted.
[2] On the other hand, an evil spirit perpetually turns away from the Lord, and constantly looks towards his own love, and this no matter what way he may turn his body and face. The reason for this is the same, the looking, however, being towards what is evil. For every evil is in some form or other an image of his ruling love, and the falsity to which this love gives rise, presents that image, as it were, in a mirror.
[3] That something like this is implanted in nature may be inferred from certain plants growing among vegetation which threatens to choke them; but they shoot up above this, in order that they may behold the sun. Some plants again follow the sun from its rising to its setting, continually turning towards it, that in this way they may ripen under its influence. Moreover, I have no doubt that every bough and twig of every tree have implanted in them a similar endeavour and effort; but as they do not possess the necessary flexibility to enable them to bend and turn, this action is checked. It may also be observed that eddies in water and the swirling sands of the ocean spontaneously follow the general course of the sun.
[4] Why, then, should not man turn to God in whose image he was created? and this he does, unless by virtue of his endowment of free will he turns in another direction that endeavour and effort implanted in him by the Creator. This may also be likened to the action of a bride, who constantly bears in her mind’s eye an image of her husband. She sees him in his gifts, as in so many mirrors, and longs for his coming; and when he comes, she receives him with joy, which expresses the love of her heart.
According to the prevailing opinion at this day in the Churches, when the Lord comes for the Last Judgment, He will appear in the clouds of heaven with angels and the sound of trumpets. He will gather together all those who are still on the earth, and also those who have died; and separating the evil from the good as a shepherd separates the goats from the sheep, He will then cast the evil, or the goats, into hell, and raise the good, or the sheep, into heaven. Further, He will also create a new visible heaven and a new habitable earth, and upon this He will send down a city which will be called the New Jerusalem, whose structure will be as described in the Revelation, chapter xxi. Thus it will be of jasper and gold, and the foundations of its walls of every kind of precious stone, while its height, breadth and length will be equal, each twelve thousand furlongs. All the elect will be gathered into this city, both those then living and those who have died since the beginning of the world. The latter will return into their bodies and enjoy everlasting bliss in that magnificent city, as in their heaven. This opinion concerning the Coming of the Lord and the Last Judgment is at this day prevailing in Christian Churches.
* in Limbo patrum. Limbo, a border, edge, belt; border substance; here, place of waiting in the next world for the souls of such as, though not disqualified, are not yet properly qualified for heaven. Ariosto makes it the place of all lost things, Milton the paradise of fools, and Shakespeare hell, a place of restraint. See 103, 112.
Accordingly, lest man from ignorance should immerse himself more deeply in this opinion concerning the destruction of the visible heaven and the habitable earth, and thus concerning the spiritual world; and lest from the same cause materialism, and with it atheism which at this day among the learned has become deeply rooted in the interior rational mind, should spread further, like mortification in the flesh, even into the external mind from which man speaks, it has been enjoined upon me by the Lord to publish accounts of what I have seen and heard concerning heaven and hell as well as concerning the Last Judgment. I have also been enjoined to explain the Book of Revelation, which treats of the Lord’s Coming, the former heaven, the new heaven, and the New Jerusalem. Every one who reads and understands these things will thus be enabled to see what is there meant by the Coming of the Lord, the new heaven and the New Jerusalem.
* Pu, Greek pou, where?, somewhere, whereabouts, abode.
It has been shown in the preceding article that this Second Coming of the Lord is not to destroy the visible heaven and the habitable earth. That its purpose is not to destroy anything but to build up, consequently not to condemn but to save those who, since His first Coming, have believed on Him, and those who will hereafter believe, is evident from these words of the Lord:
“God sent not His Son into the world to judge (A.V., condemn) the world; but that the world through Him might be saved. He that believeth on Him is not judged (A.V., condemned): but he that believeth not is judged (A.V., condemned) already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.” John iii. 17, 18;
and elsewhere,
“If any man hear my words, and believe not, I judge him not: for I came not to judge the world, but to save the world. He that rejecteth me, and receiveth not my words, hath one that judgeth him: the Word that I have spoken, the same shall judge him.” John xii. 47, 48.
That the Last Judgment took place in the spiritual world in the year 1757, was shown in a little work on The Last Judgment, published in London in the year 1758; and also in The Continuation of the Last Judgment, published in Amsterdam in the year 1763. This I solemnly attest, because I saw it with my own eyes, in a state of full wakefulness.
“Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a firm (A.V., right) spirit within me.” Ps. ii. 10.
“Thou openest thine hand, they are filled with good…. Thou sendest forth thy spirit, they are created.” Ps. civ. 28, 30.
“The people which shall be created shall praise Jah.” Ps. cii. 18.
“Thus saith JEHOVAH that created thee, I have called thee by my (A.V., thy) name; thou … (A.V., art mine). Every one that is called by my name I have created him for my glory.”
They were “prepared…in the day that thou wast created…. Thou wast perfect in thy ways in (A.V., from) the day that thou wast created, till iniquity was found in thee.” Ezek. xxviii. 13, 15.
This last passage refers to the king of Tyre.
“That they may see, and know, and consider, and understand … that the hand of JEHOVAH hath done this, and the Holy One of Israel hath created it.” Isa. xli. 20.
Hence it may be evident what “create” means in the following passages:
“JEHOVAH, He that created the heavens…. He that spread forth the earth…. He that giveth breath unto the people upon it, and spirit to them that walk therein.” Isa. xlii. 6; xlv. 12, 18.
“Behold, I create a new heaven and a new earth: Be ye glad … for ever in that which I create: for, behold, I create Jerusalem a rejoicing.” Isa. lxv. 17, 18.
These things have been mentioned by way of illustration, for it should be known that in the Church also there are generals and particulars, as well as all-embracing generals. Consequently four Churches have proceeded in regular order; and from this progression there have appeared an all-embracing general essential of the Church, and successively a general and a particular of each Church. In man there are two all-embracing generals, from which all the generals and several particulars derive their existence. These two all-embracing generals in the body are the heart and the lungs, and in his spirit, the will and the understanding. On these all things that constitute his life depend both in the general and in the particular form; and without these all things would fall asunder and perish. The same would happen to the whole angelic heaven and the whole human race, indeed to the whole created universe, unless all things in their general form, and each thing in its particular form, were dependent on God and His Love and Wisdom.
It is written in many places that the Lord will come in the clouds of heaven,
as in Matt. xvii. 5; xxiv. 30; xxvi. 64; Mark xiv. 62; Luke ix. 34, 35; xxi. 27; Rev. i. 7; xiv. 14; Dan. vii. 13;
but hitherto no one has known what is meant by the clouds of heaven; and, therefore, men have believed that the Lord will appear in them in person. It has hitherto remained unknown that the Word in the sense of the Letter is meant by the clouds of heaven, and by the glory and power in which also the Lord will come is meant the spiritual sense of the Word, Matt. xxiv. 30; and no one has ever yet conjectured that there is in the Word a spiritual sense, such as it is in itself. Now the Lord has opened up to me the spiritual sense of the Word and has granted me to be with angels and spirits in their world as one of themselves. It has, therefore, been disclosed to me that by the clouds of heaven is meant the Word in the natural sense, by glory the Word in the spiritual sense, and by power the influence of the Lord by means of the Word. That the clouds of heaven have this signification may be seen from the following passages in the Word:
“There is none like unto the God of Jeshuron, who rideth upon the heaven … and in His excellency on the clouds (A.V., sky).” Deut. xxxiii. 26.
“Sing unto God, sing praises to His name: extol Him that rideth upon the clouds (A.V., heavens).” Ps lxviii. 4.
“JEHOVAH rideth upon a swift cloud.” Isa. xix. 1.
[2] To ride signifies to instruct in Divine truths from the Word; for a horse signifies the understanding of the Word, as may be seen in The Apocalypse Revealed, No. 298. Who does not see that God does not ride upon the clouds? Again,
“God redo upon cherubs … He made … His pavilion the clouds of the skies.” Ps. xviii. 10, 11.
Cherubs also signify the Word, as may be seen in The Apocalypse Revealed, Nos. 239, 672.
Jehovah “bindeth up the waters in His … clouds … and He spreadeth His cloud upon His throne.” Job. xxvi. 8, 9.
“Ascribe ye strength unto Jehovah (A.V.. God)…. His strength is upon the clouds. Ps. lxviii. 35.
“JEHOVAH has created (A.V., will create) upon every dwelling place of … Zion … a cloud by day … for upon all the glory shall be a covering (A.V., defence).” Isa. iv. 5.
The Word in the sense of the Letter was also represented by the cloud in which Jehovah descended on Mount Sinai, when He delivered the Law, the precepts of the Law which were at that time delivered being the beginnings of the Word.
[3] In confirmation of this, the following may be added. There are clouds in the spiritual world just as in the natural world, but their origin is different. In the spiritual world bright clouds sometimes appear above the angelic heavens, and dusky clouds over the hells. The bright clouds over the angelic heavens signify that some obscurity exists there arising from the literal sense of the Word; but the dispersal of these clouds signifies that the angels are in its charity from the spiritual sense. The dark clouds, however, over the hells signify the falsification and profanation of the Word. The origin of this signification of clouds in the spiritual world is that the light which proceeds from the Lord as the Sun there signifies Divine Truth; therefore, He Himself is called the Light, John i. 9; xii. 35; and, therefore, also the Word itself, which is kept in the holy places in the temples there, appears surrounded by a bright light; while any obscurity in the Word is indicated by the appearance of clouds over it.
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God … and the Word was made flesh.” John i. 1, 14.
The Word in this passage is Divine Truth, because Christians have Divine Truth from no other source than the Word. This is the fountain whence all Churches taking their name from Christ draw living waters in their fullness, although as in a cloud which overshadows its natural sense, but in glory and power which belong to its spiritual and to its celestial sense. It has been shown in the chapter on the Sacred Scripture, and in the chapter on the Decalogue or Catechism, that there are three senses in the Word, the natural, the spiritual and the celestial, one within the other. It is clear, therefore, that the Word in John means Divine Truth. John also bears witness to the same in his First Epistle:
“We know that the Son of God is come, and hath given us an understanding, that we may know the truth (A.V., Him that is true); and we are in the truth (A.V., Him that is true), even in His Son Jesus Christ.” v. 20.
It is for this reason that the Lord so often said, “Amen I say unto you”; for Amen in Hebrew means truth; and that He is the Amen may be seen in Rev. iii. 14; and the Truth in John xiv. 8. When the learned of to-day are asked what they understand by the Word in John i. 1, they reply that they understand the Word in its pre-eminence; and what is the Word in its pre-eminence but Divine Truth? From these considerations it is evident that the Lord will now appear in the Word.
The reason why He will not appear in person is that, since His ascension into heaven, He is in His glorified Human; and in this He cannot appear to any man unless the eyes of his spirit are first opened. This cannot be done in the case of any one who is in evils and in the falsities that arise from them; thus not in the case of the goats whom He sets on His left hand. Therefore, when He showed Himself to His disciples, He first opened their eyes, for it is written,
“And their eyes were opened, and they knew Him: and He vanished out of their sight.” Luke xxiv. 31.
It was the same with the women at the sepulchre after the resurrection; for then they saw angels sitting in the sepulchre, talking with them; and yet no one can see angels with the material eyes. It is evident from the account of His Transfiguration before Peter, James and John that the apostles before the Lord’s resurrection did not see Him in His glorified Human with their bodily eyes, but while they were in the spirit; for it is written,
“They were heavy with sleep.” Luke ix. 32.
After waking from this state of the spirit what has been seen appears like the vision of a dream. It is vain, therefore, to suppose that the Lord will appear in the clouds of heaven in person: He will appear in the Word, which is from Him, and is thus Himself.
Since the Lord cannot manifest Himself in person, as has just been shown above, and yet He has foretold that He will come and establish a New Church, which is the New Jerusalem, it follows that He will do this by means of a man, who cannot only receive the doctrines of this Church with his understanding, but can also publish them by the press. I testify in truth that the Lord has manifested Himself to me His servant, and sent me on this duty; that He then opened the sight of my spirit, and thus introduced me into the spiritual world, permitting me to see the heavens and the hells and also to converse with angels and spirits, and this now continually for many years. I also testify that from the first day of my call, I have not received anything pertaining to the doctrines of that Church from any angel, but from the Lord alone while reading the Word.
“The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of JEHOVAH … the glory of JEHOVAH shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it.” Isa. xl. 3, 5.
“Shine, for thy light is come, and the glory of JEHOVAH is risen upon thee.” Isa. lx. 1 to the end.
“I will give thee for a covenant to the people, for a light of the Gentiles … and my glory will I not give to another.” Isa. xlii. 6, 8; xlviii. 11.
“Then shall thy light break forth as the morning … the glory of JEHOVAH shall gather thee up.” Isa. lviii. 8.
“All the earth shall be filled with the glory of JEHOVAH.” Num. xiv. 21; Isa. vi. 3; lxvi. 18.
“In the beginning was the Word … In Him was life; and the life was the light of men…. That was the true Light…. And the Word was made flesh … and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father.” John i. 1, 4, 9, 14.
“The heavens shall declare (A.V., declare) the glory of God.” Ps. xix. 1.
“The glory of God shall lighten (A.V., did lighten) the Holy Jerusalem (A.V., it) and the Lamb is the light thereof; and the nations … which are saved shall walk in the light of it.” Rev. xxi. 23, 24.
Also in many other passages. Glory signifies Divine Truth in its fullness, because everything magnificent in heaven is from the light which proceeds from the Lord; and the light proceeding from Him as the Sun there is in its essence Divine Truth.
It is written in the Revelation,
“I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away …. And I John saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.” Rev. xxi. 1, 2.
It is also written in Isaiah,
“Behold, I create a new heaven (A.V., new heavens), and a new earth…. Be ye glad and rejoice for ever . . . for, behold, I create Jerusalem a rejoicing, and her people a joy.” Isa. lxv. 17, 18.
It has already been shown in this chapter that a new heaven is at this day being formed by the Lord from those Christians who acknowledged Him in the world, and who could, after their departure from it, acknowledge Him to be the God of heaven and earth, according to His words in Matthew xxviii. 18.
[2] Only those passages will now be quoted from which every one endowed with interior reason may see that Jerusalem there means the Church. The following passages will suffice:
“Behold, I create a new heaven (A.V., new heavens), and a new earth: and the former shall not be remembered … behold, I create Jerusalem a rejoicing, and her people a joy, that I may (A.V., I will) rejoice in Jerusalem, and joy in my people…. The wolf and the lamb shall feed together…. They shall not hurt . . . in all my holy mountain.” Isa. lxv. 17, 18, 19, 25.
“For Zion’s sake will I not hold my peace, and for Jerusalem’s sake I will not rest, until the righteousness thereof go forth its brightness, and the salvation thereof as a lamp that burneth. And the Gentiles shall see thy righteousness, and all kings thy glory: and thou shalt be called by a new name, which the mouth of JEHOVAH shall name. Thou shalt also be a crown of glory … and a royal diadem in the hand of thy God…. For Jehovah shall delight (A.V., delighteth) in thee, and thy land shall be married…. Behold, thy salvation cometh; behold, His reward is with Him … and they shall call them, The holy people, The redeemed of JEHOVAH: and thou shalt be called, Sought out, A city not forsaken.” Isa. lxii. 1-4, 11, 12.
[3] “Awake! awake! put on thy strength, O Zion; put on thy beautiful garments, O Jerusalem, the holy city: for henceforth there shall no more come into thee the uncircumcised and the unclean. Shake thyself from the dust; arise, and sit down, O Jerusalem…. Therefore my people shall know my name … in that day. For I am He that doth speak; behold, it is I … JEHOVAH hath comforted His people, He hath redeemed Jerusalem.” Isa. iii. 1, 2, 6, 9.
“Sing, O daughter of Zion … rejoice with all the heart, O daughter of Jerusalem…. The King of Israel … is in the midst of thee: thou shalt not fear (A.V., see) evil any more… He will rejoice over thee with joy; He will rest in thy (A. V., His) love; He will joy over thee with singing … I will make you a name and a praise among all people of the earth.” Zeph. iii. 14-17, 20.
“Thus saith JEHOVAH, thy Redeemer … that saith to Jerusalem, Thou shalt be inhabited.” Isa. xliv. 24, 26.
“Thus saith JEHOVAH; I am returned unto Zion, and will dwell in the midst of Jerusalem: and Jerusalem shall be called, A city of truth; and the mountain of JEHOVAH ZEBAOTH, The holy mountain.” Zech. viii. 3, 20-23.
“So shall ye know that I am JEHOVAH thy God dwelling in Zion, my holy mountain: then shall Jerusalem be holy…. And it shall come to pass in that day, that the mountains shall drop down new wine, and the hills shall flow with milk … and Jerusalem shall dwell from generation to generation.” Joel iii. 17, 18, 20.
[4] “In that day shall the branch of JEHOVAH be beautiful and glorious…. And, it shall come to pass, that he that is left in Zion, and he that remaineth in Jerusalem, shall be called holy, even every one that is written for life (A.V., among the living) in Jerusalem.” Isa. iv. 2, 3.
“But in the last days it shall come to pass, that the mountain of the house of the Lord shall be established in the top of the mountains … for the law shall go forth of Zion, and the Word of JEHOVAH from Jerusalem.” Micah iv. 1, 2.
“At that time they shall call Jerusalem the throne of JEHOVAH; and all the nations shall be gathered … on account of (A.V., to) the name of JEHOVAH, to Jerusalem: neither shall they walk any more after the imagination of their evil heart.” Jer. iii. 17.
“Look upon Zion, the city of our stated feast (A. V., solemnities). Thine eyes shall see Jerusalem a quiet habitation, a tabernacle that shall not be taken down; not one of the stakes thereof shall ever be removed, neither shall any of the cords thereof be broken.” Isa. xxxiii. 20.
So also it is written elsewhere, as:
Isa. xxiv. 23; xxxvii. 32; lxvi. 10-14; Zech. xii. 3, 6-10; xiv. 8, 11, 12, 21; Mal. iii. 4; Ps. cxxii. 1-7; Ps. cxxxvii. 5-7.
[5] The Church to be established by the Lord is meant by these passages, and not the city of Jerusalem inhabited by the Jews. This is evident from every detail of its description in the passages quoted; as that Jehovah God would create a new heaven and a new earth, and also Jerusalem at the same time; and that this Jerusalem should be a crown of glory and a royal diadem; that it was to be called holiness, the city of truth, the throne of Jehovah, a quiet habitation, a tabernacle that should not be taken down; that there the wolf and the lamb should feed together. It is said also, that there the mountains should drop new wine, and the hills flow with milk and that it should remain from generation to generation; besides many other things. It is said also of the people that they should be holy, every one written for life, and that they should be called the redeemed of Israel. Moreover, all these passages treat of the Coming of the Lord, especially His second Coming, when Jerusalem will be such as it is there described; for before this she was not married, that is, made the Bride and Wife of the Lamb, as the New Jerusalem is declared to be in the Revelation.
[6] The former Church, or the Church of the present day, is meant by Jerusalem in Daniel, and its beginning is described as follows:
“Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the word (A.V., commandment) to restore and to build Jerusalem, unto Messiah the Prince, shall be seven weeks; after three score and two weeks the street shall be restored and built again, and the meet (A.V., wall), but in troublous times.” Dan. ix. 25.
But its end is described in the same chapter in these words:
“At length upon the bird of abominations shall be desolation; and even to consummation and decision it shall drop upon the devastation (A.V., for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even unto the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate).” Dan. ix. 27.
This end the Lord thus describes in Matthew:
“When ye … shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand),” Matt. xxiv. 15.
That Jerusalem in the passages quoted above does not mean the city of Jerusalem which was inhabited by the Jews, may be evident from many places in the Word where it is said that it was utterly lost, and was to be destroyed, as in
Jer. v. 1; vi. 6, 7; vii. 17, 18 and following verses; viii. 6-8 and following verses; ix. 10, 11 and following verses; xiii. 9, 10, 14; xiv. 16; Lam. i. 8, 9, 17; Ezek. iv.; v. 9 to the end; xii. 18, 19; xv. 6-8; xvi.; xxiii.; Matt. xxiii. 37, 38;* Luke xix. 41-44; xxi. 20-22; xxiii. 28-30; besides many other passages;
and also where it is called Sodom.
Isa. iii. 9; Jer. xxiii. 14; Ezek. xvi. 46, 48, and in other places.
* NewSearch footnote: there is a repeated line of references in the printed version.
John said of the Lord, “He that hath the bride is the bridegroom: but the friend of the bridegroom which standeth and heareth him, rejoiceth … because of the bridegroom’s voice.” John iii. 29
Jesus said, “Can the children of the bride-chamber fast, as long as the bridegroom is with them?” Matt. ix. 15; Mark ii. 19, 20; Luke v. 34.
“I saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.” Rev. xxi. 2.
The angel said to John, “Come hither, I will shew thee the bride, the Lamb’s wife”; and from a mountain he shewed him the holy city Jerusalem, Rev. xxi. 9, 10.
“(The time of) the marriage of the Lamb is come, and His wife hath made herself ready … Blessed are they which are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb.” Rev. xix. 7, 9.
“I am the root and offspring of David, the bright and morning star. The spirit and the bride say, Come … And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely.” Rev. xxii. 18, 17.
“No man putteth new wine into old bottles; else the new wine doth burst the bottles and the wine is spilled” … “but they put new wine into new bottles, and both are preserved.” Matt. ix. 17; Mark ii. 22; Luke v. 37, 38.
These things do not come to pass, except at the consummation of the age, by which is meant the end of the Church, as is evident from the Lord’s words:
Jesus said, “The kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man which sowed good seed in his field: But while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares … and went his way. But when the blade was sprung up … then appeared the tares also. So the servants came and said unto him…. Wilt thou then that we go and gather up the tares? But he said, Nay; lest while ye gather up the tares, ye root up also the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest: and in the time of the harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them; but gather the wheat into my barn…. The harvest is the consummation of the age (A.V., the end of the world). As, therefore, the tares are gathered and burned in the fire, so shall it be in the consummation of the age (A.V., the end of this world).” Matt. xiii. 24-30, 39, 40.
Wheat here means the truths and goods of the New Church, and tares, the falsities and evils of the former Church. That the consummation of the age means the end of the Church may be seen in the first article of this chapter.
It has been shown above that there have existed on this earth from the beginning four Churches in general, one before the Flood, another after the Flood, a third called the Israelitish Church, and a fourth the Christian. Now all Churches depend on the knowledge and acknowledgment of one God with whom the man of the Church can be conjoined. As, however, all the four Churches were not in that truth, it follows that a Church is to succeed them which will know and acknowledge one God. For the Divine Love of God had no other end in creating the world than to conjoin man to Himself, and Himself to man, and thus to dwell with man. The former Churches were not in that truth, since the Most Ancient Church, which existed before the Flood, worshiped an invisible God, with whom there can be no conjunction; so also did the Ancient Church, which existed after the Flood; while the Israelitish Church worshiped Jehovah, who in Himself is an invisible God, Exod. xxxiii. 18-23, but under a human form. This form Jehovah God assumed by means of an angel, and in it He appeared to Moses, Abraham, Sarah, Hagar, Gideon, Joshua, and sometimes to the Prophets. This human form was representative of the Lord who was to come; and this being representative, their sacrifices, and all else pertaining to their worship, represented the Lord who was to come, and that they were abrogated when He came.
The fourth Church, however, which was called Christian, acknowledged one God indeed with the lips, but in three Persons, each of whom singly or by Himself was God. Thus they worshiped a divided Trinity, and not a Trinity united in one Person. The result was that an idea of three Gods was fixed in the mind, although the expression, one God, was on the lips. Moreover, the doctors of that Church, from their doctrine which they composed after the Council of Nice,* teach that men ought to believe in God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit, all three invisible because existing in a like Divine Essence before the world was. Yet, as was said above, there can be no conjunction with an invisible God; and they do not yet know that the one God who is invisible, came into the world and assumed the Human, not only that He might redeem men, but also that He might become visible, and that He might thus be conjoined with men. For it is written,
“The Word was with God, and the Word was God … and the Word became flesh.” John i. 1, 14;
and in Isaiah,
“Unto us a child is born, unto us a Son is given … and His name … The Mighty God, The everlasting Father.” Isa. ix. 6.
It is also frequently declared in the Prophets that Jehovah Himself would come into the world, and would be the Redeemer; and this He became in the Human which He assumed.
* Nice (Nicaea), city of Asia Minor, in Bithynia. In A.D. 325 it was the seat of a Council summoned to settle the Arian controversy. The creed there adopted is known as the Nicene Creed.
“Ye have neither heard His voice at any time, nor seen His shape.” John v. 37;
and in Moses,
That no man can see God and live, Exod. xxxiii. 20.
But that He is seen through His Human is taught in John:
“No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, He hath declared Him.” John i. 18:
and again,
“Jesus saith … I am the way, and the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” He that knoweth me, knoweth my Father…. “He that seeth (A.V., hath seen) me, seeth (A.V., hath seen) the Father.” John xiv. 6, 7, 9.
That there is conjunction with the invisible God by Him who is visible, that is, by the Lord, He Himself teaches in these passages:
Jesus said, “Abide in me, and I in you…. He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit.” John xv. 4, 5.
“At that day ye shall know that I am in my Father, and ye in me, and I in you.” John xiv. 20.
“The glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one; I in them and thou in me … that the love wherewith thou hast loved me may be in them, and I in them.” John xvii. 21, 22, 23, 26; and also in vi. 56.
He also teaches that the Father and He are one and that men must believe on Him to attain eternal life. That salvation depends on conjunction with God, has been abundantly shown above.
“In the days of these kings shall the God of the heavens (A.V., heaven) set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed … it shall consume all these kingdoms, but it shall stand forever.” Dan. ii. 44;
and that this should be effected by
A stone that became a great rock (A.V., mountain), and filled the whole earth, Dan. ii. 35.
By a rock in the Word is signified the Lord as to Divine Truth. The same prophet says in another place:
“I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of Man came with the clouds of the heavens (A.V., heaven). And there was given to Him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve Him: His dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and His kingdom that which shall not be destroyed.” Dan. vii. 13, 14.
This he says after he had seen the four great beasts coming up from the sea, verse 3, which also represented the four former Churches. That this prophecy of Daniel has relation to the present time, is evident from his words in chapter xii. 4; and also from the Lord’s words in Matthew xxiv, 15, 30. Similar things are said in the Revelation,
“The seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ; and He shall reign for ever and ever.” Rev. xi. 15.
“The day shall be one which shall be known to JEHOVAH, not day, nor night: because at evening time it shall be light….. In that day living waters shall go out from Jerusalem … and JEHOVAH shall be King over all the earth: in that day there shall be one JEHOVAH, and His name one.” Zech. xiv. 7, 8, 9.
In Joel:
“It shall come to pass in that day, that the mountains shall drop down new wine, and the hills shall flow with milk … and Jerusalem shall dwell to generation and generation.” Joel iii. 17-21.
In Jeremiah:
“At that time they shall call Jerusalem the throne of JEHOVAH, and all nations shall be gathered … on account of (A.V., to) the name of JEHOVAH, to Jerusalem: neither shall they walk any more after the imagination of their heart.” Jer. iii. 17; Rev. xxi. 24, 26.
In Isaiah:
“Thine eyes shall see Jerusalem a quiet habitation, a tabernacle that shall not be taken down; not one of the stakes thereof shall ever be removed, neither shall any of the cords thereof be broken.” Isa. xxxiii. 20.
[2] In these passages by Jerusalem is meant the holy New Jerusalem described in Rev. xxi, by which is meant the New Church. Again in Isaiah:
“There shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse … and righteousness shall be the girdle of His loins, and truth (A.V., faithfulness) the girdle of His reins. The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together; and a little child shall lead them. And the cow and the bear shall feed; their young ones shall lie down together…. And the sucking child shall play on the hole of the asp, and the weaned child shall put his hand on the cockatrice’ den. They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain: for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of JEHOVAH…. And in that day there shall be a root of Jesse, which shall stand for an ensign of the people; to it shall the Gentiles seek: and His rest shall be glorious.” Isa. xi. 1, 5-10.
It is well known that such things have not yet been seen in the Churches, and least of all in the last Church.
In Jeremiah:
“Behold, the days come … that I will make a new covenant … and this shall be the covenant…. I will put my law in the midst of them (A.V., in their inward parts), and write it on their heart; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people … they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them.” Jer. xxxi. 31-34; Rev. xxi. 3.
[3] It is also known that these things have not hitherto taken place in the Churches, because they did not approach a visible God, whom all men shall know, and who is Himself the Word, or the Law which He will put in the midst of them, and write on their heart.
In Isaiah:
“For Jerusalem’s sake I will not rest, until the righteousness thereof go forth as brightness, and the salvation thereof as a lamp that burneth … and thou shalt be called by a new name, which the mouth of JEHOVAH shall name. Thou shalt also be a crown of glory … and a royal diadem in the hand of thy God…. JEHOVAH shall delight (A.V., delighteth) in thee, and thy land shall be married…. Behold, thy salvation cometh; behold, His reward is with Him … and they shall call them, The holy people, The redeemed of JEHOVAH: and thou shalt be called, Sought out, A city not forsaken.” Isa. lxii.
“Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself shall be with them, and be their God…. And the nations of them which are saved shall walk in the light of it … and there shall be no night there.” “I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you these things in the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, and the bright and morning star. The Spirit and the bride say, Come; and let him that heareth say, Come; and let him that is athirst come; and whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely…. Even so, come Lord Jesus…. Amen.” Rev. xxi. 3, 24, 25; xxii. 16, 17, 20.
After this work was finished, the Lord called together His twelve disciples, who followed Him in the world; and the next day He sent them forth into the whole spiritual world to preach the Gospel that the Lord God Jesus Christ reigns, whose kingdom shall be for ever and ever, according to the prediction of Daniel, chapter vii. 3, 14; and in the Revelation xi. 15; and also that
They are blessed who come unto the marriage supper of the Lamb, Rev. xix. 9.
This took place on the 19th day of June, in the year 1770. This is meant by these words of the Lord,
“He shall send His angels … and they shall gather together His elect … from one end of the heavens (A.V., heaven) to the other.” Matt. xxiv. 31.
I. THE SPIRITUAL WORLD.
The spiritual world is the subject of a special work entitled Heaven and Hell, in which many things relating to that world are described; and because every one after death enters that world, the state of men there has also been described. Every one knows, or may know, that a man lives after death, because he is born a man, and is created an image of God, and because the Lord teaches it in His Word. But the nature of his future life has hitherto been unknown. It is believed that he will then be a soul, and the common idea of a soul is that it consists of something like ether or air; thus that it is a breath, such as a man breathes out when he dies. It is believed, however, that this retains the essential element of his life, but is devoid of sight like that of the eye, hearing like that of the ear, and speech like that of the mouth. Yet the fact is that after death a man is none the less a man; and so fully is he a man that he does not know but that he is still living in the former world. He sees, hears and speaks; he walks, runs and sits; he lies down, sleeps and wakes; he eats and drinks; he enjoys the delights of married life, as he did in the former world; in a word, he is in all respects a man. Thus it is evident that death is not an extinction but a continuation of life, and merely a transition (from one state to another).
“I am the way, and the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father but by me”;
and to Philip who wished to see the Father He said that
He that seeth and knoweth me, seeth and knoweth the Father, John xiv. 6 and following verses.
* Socinians, members of a religious sect taking their name from Faustus Socinus, A.D. 1539-1604, and his uncle Laelius Socinus. They are antitrinitarians, denying the personality of the Holy Ghost and the Divinity of Christ. Early Socians believed in the miraculous conception and that Christ was entitled to Divine worship; but modern Socinians, chiefly Unitarians, deny both.
** Arius, theologian of Alexandria, A.D 256-336; founder of Arianism, affirming that Christ was an originated Being. Excommunicated by bishops of Egypt for denying that Christ was made of the same substance (homo-ousion) of any previously existing substance. To settle the consequent dispute Constantine called the Council of Nicaea, A.D. 325. Athanasius successfully led the opposition to Arius; and Arius, with Eusebius, who also refused to accept the Athanasian position, was banished.
I have frequently conversed with these three leaders, who were reformers of the Christian Church, and have thus learned what was the nature of their lives from the beginning down to the present time.
LUTHER. From the time he first entered the spiritual world he was a very keen disseminator and defender of his own dogmas; and his zeal for them increased with the increasing number of those coming from the earth who approved and favored them. A house was given him such as he had at Eisleben during his life in the body; and there in its central hall he set up a kind of throne, somewhat elevated, where he took his seat. Those who came to listen to him were admitted by a door which was always open, and these he arranged in groups. He assigned to places nearest himself those who were most favorable to his opinions, and to places behind them those who were less favorable. He then spoke continuously, but occasionally allowed questions, so that when he had finished some point, he might resume his discourse, from a different point of view.
[2] By securing general favor in this way, he acquired the art of persuasion, which in the spiritual world is so effective that no one can resist it or controvert what is asserted. As this art, however, was of the nature of enchantment which the ancients used, he was strictly forbidden to speak thus from persuasion; so he thereafter taught, as he had done before, from his memory and his understanding. This art of persuasion, which is a kind of enchantment, springs from the love of self; and consequently it at length attacks not only the matter which an opponent may raise, but even makes the attack personal.
[3] This was the state of Luther’s life up to the time of the Last Judgment, which took place in the spiritual world in the year 1757. The year after he was removed from his first house to another, and was at the same time brought into a different state. Hearing that I, while living in the natural world, held intercourse with those who were in the spiritual world, he with several others paid visits to me. After asking some questions and receiving my answers, he perceived that now is the end of the former Church and the beginning of the New Church foretold by Daniel, and by the Lord Himself in the Evangelists. He also perceived that this New Church is meant by the New Jerusalem in the Revelation, and by the everlasting Gospel which the angel flying in the midst of heaven preached to those dwelling on the earth, Rev. xiv. 8. He was very indignant, and gave way to railing; but he saw that the new heaven [was being established] which was formed and is being formed by those who acknowledge the Lord alone as the God of heaven and earth, according to His words in Matt. xxviii. 18; and he also observed that the numbers that resorted to him daily were decreasing. His storming, therefore, ceased, and he sought my closer acquaintance, and began to talk more familiarly with me. After being convinced that he had derived his chief dogma of justification by faith alone not from the Word but from his own intelligence, he suffered himself to be instructed concerning the Lord, charity, true faith, free will, and further, concerning redemption, and this from the Word alone.
[4] After being convinced, he at length began to favor, and then to confirm himself more and more in the truths on which the New Church is established. At this time he was with me daily; and as he acquired, one after another, those truths, he would laugh at his former views as being in direct opposition to the Word. And I heard him say: “Do not wonder that I seized upon faith alone as justifying, deprived charity of its spiritual essence and took away from men all free will in spiritual things, besides teaching many other dogmas which depend like so many links in a chain upon faith alone when once it is received. For my object was to break away from the Roman Catholics, and this end I could not otherwise follow up and attain. I do not wonder, therefore, that I erred; but I do wonder that the folly of one man should make so many others foolish, and that they did not see the contradictions of the Sacred Scripture, although these are so manifest.” Here he glanced at some dogmatical writers, famous in his own day and faithful followers of his own doctrine, who were standing at his side.
[5] I was informed by the examining angels that this leading Churchman was in a state of conversion before many others who had confirmed themselves in justification by faith alone; because in his youth, before he began the Reformation, he was imbued with the doctrine of the pre-eminence of charity. This was why, both in his writings and in his sermons, he taught charity so excellently. Thus it came about that the doctrine of faith that justifies was with him implanted in his external natural man, but not rooted in his internal spiritual man. It is different with those who, in their youth, confirm themselves against the spiritual character of charity; and this happens when they establish justification by faith alone by using arguments in its favor.
I have conversed with the Elector of Saxony with whom Luther had been associated in the world. He told me that he had often reproved Luther, particularly for separating charity from faith, and for declaring the latter and not the former to be saving; although the Sacred Scripture joins together those two universal means of salvation, while Paul even sets charity above faith. For he says that there are three (things), faith, hope and charity, and that the greatest of these is charity, 1 Cor. viii. 13. But he added that Luther generally replied that he could not do otherwise, because of the Roman Catholics. This Prince is among the blessed.
* Luther, Martin, A.D. 1483-1646, the leader of the Protestant Reformation in Germany, was born at Eisleben, Saxony. He was a student at Erfurt in law and divinity, and was ordained priest in A.D. 1507. He left Erfurt for a chair in the university of Wittenberg, where his preaching attracted great attention. Here he made his first public protest against the Romish Church by condemning the sale of indulgences. The Lutheran Church dates its origin from the year A.D. 1520 when Luther was expelled from the Romish Church. It assumed a more definite shape on the publication in A.D. 1530 of the Augsburg Confession. This was drawn up by Melanchthon and Luther as the principal standard of the Church. The final establishment of the Lutheran Church was made possible by the friendly offices of Maurice, Elector of Saxony.
** Melanchthon, the foremost scholar among the early Protestants, A.D. 1497-1560. He met Luther at Wittenberg where he was professor of Greek. He exercised a powerful influence over Luther, and was mainly responsible for drawing up the Augsburg Confession. On Luther’s death he became the leader of the Lutherans.
*** Calvin, John, A.D. 1509-1564, was called by Melanchthon “The theologian of the sixteenth century.” He studied law as well as theology, became a Protestant and induced the authorities of Geneva to renounce Popery. The friend of John Knox, he exercised a powerful influence on Scottish Protestantism. His views may be summarized thus: particular election; particular redemption; moral inability in a fallen state; free grace; and ultimate salvation for the elect, notwithstanding many failings and aberrations on the part of the believer. In its leading features his theology is that of Augustine.
[2] I heard that as soon as he entered the spiritual world a house was provided for him similar to that in which he had lived in the world. This happens in the case of most persons on their first arrival, so that they do not know but that they are still in the natural world, and that the time which has elapsed since their death has only been as a sleep. Thus all the things in his room were similar to those he had before; a table, a writing-desk with drawers and a library. As soon, then, as he entered the spiritual world, like one just awaking from sleep there, he seated himself at the table and continued writing, his subject then being justification by faith alone. This went on far several days, but he did not mention charity. When this was perceived by the angels, he was asked by messengers from them why he did not write also about charity. He replied that there was nothing of the Church in charity; for if charity should be received as an essential of the Church, man would ascribe to himself the merit of justification, and consequently of salvation, and so would deprive faith of its spiritual essence. [3] Now angels are associated with every new comer at the beginning; and when those angels who were over Melanchthon’s head perceived what he said, and when those who were associated with him when he went out of doors heard it, they withdrew from him.
Some weeks after this, the things which he used in his room began to be obscured, and disappear, until at last there was nothing left but the table, paper and inkstand; and moreover, the walls of his room appeared to be roughly coated with plaster and the floor covered with yellow clay, and he himself seemed to be more coarsely clad. When he wondered at these things and asked those around him the reason, he was told it was because he had removed charity from the Church, although charity is its very heart. But as he so often denied this, and continued to write about faith as the only essential of the Church and means of salvation, and to remove charity still farther away, he suddenly found himself in an underground workhouse, where there were others like him. When he endeavoured to leave, he was detained, and informed that no other lot awaits those who turn charity and good works out of the doors of the Church. However, as he had been one of the reformers of the Church, he was released by the Lord’s command and sent back to his former room, where there remained only his table, paper and inkstand. But as he still continued, owing to his confirmed opinions, to smear his pages with the same error, it was impossible to prevent him from being alternately sent down among his imprisoned friends and sent back again. When he was sent back, he appeared clad in a fur coat, because faith without charity is cold.
[4] Melanchthon told me himself that at the back of the house there was a room next to his own containing three tables, at which were seated persons like himself, who also had cast out charity; and that at times a fourth table appeared there, upon which were seen strange creatures of various shapes; but these did not disturb their work. He added that he entered into conversation with them, and was by them daily confirmed in his opinions. After some time, however, being seized with fear, he began to write out something concerning charity; but that he wrote one day he did not see the next. This happens to every one there when he commits to paper something from the external man only and not at the same time from the internal, thus under compulsion and not in freedom: it simply vanishes of itself.
[5] But after the new heaven was established by the Lord, Melanchthon, from light proceeding out of that heaven, began to think that possibly he was in error; and, therefore, being anxious about his future lot, he became aware of some interior ideas concerning charity being impressed upon him. In this state he consulted the Word, and then his eyes were opened, and he saw that it is full of love to God and love towards the neighbor; and thus, as the Lord says, that on these two commandments hang the Law and the Prophets, that is, the whole Word. Then he was transferred to another house more to the south-west where he conversed with me, saying that his writing concerning charity did not vanish as before, although on the following day it appeared somewhat obscure.
[6] I was also surprised to notice that when he walks his steps make a sound like the tread of men wearing iron shoes on a stone pavement. I would mention in addition that when any new comers from the world entered his room to see and talk with him, he would summon one of the magic-working spirits who by their art of illusion were able to produce various kinds of decorations. They adorned his room with ornaments and flowered tapestries, and also with a library which appeared in the centre. But as soon as his visitors were gone, the decorations vanished, and the former plaster and emptiness returned. This, however, happened during his earlier state.
* Melanchthon, the foremost scholar among the early Protestants, A.D. 1497-1560. He met Luther at Wittenberg where he was professor of Greek. He exercised a powerful influence over Luther, and was mainly responsible for drawing up the Augsburg Confession. On Luther’s death he became the leader of the Lutherans.
** Luther, Martin, A.D. 1483-1646, the leader of the Protestant Reformation in Germany, was born at Eisleben, Saxony. He was a student at Erfurt in law and divinity, and was ordained priest in A.D. 1507. He left Erfurt for a chair in the university of Wittenberg, where his preaching attracted great attention. Here he made his first public protest against the Romish Church by condemning the sale of indulgences. The Lutheran Church dates its origin from the year A.D. 1520 when Luther was expelled from the Romish Church. It assumed a more definite shape on the publication in A.D. 1530 of the Augsburg Confession. This was drawn up by Melanchthon and Luther as the principal standard of the Church. The final establishment of the Lutheran Church was made possible by the friendly offices of Maurice, Elector of Saxony.
1. When he first entered the spiritual world he believed that he was still in the world in which he was born; and although he heard from the angels at first associated with him, that he was then in their world, and not in the former, he said, “But I have the same body, the same hands, and similar senses.” The angels, however, instructed him that he was now in a substantial body, and that previously he was not only in that body, but also in a material body which invested the substantial; and that the material body had been cast off, while there remained the substantial body, by virtue of which a man is a man. This he at first understood; but the next day he relapsed into his former belief, that he was still in the world in which he was born. This was because he was a sensual man, believing nothing but what he derived from the objects of the bodily senses. Thus it was that he framed all the dogmas of his faith from his own intelligence, and not from the Word. Whenever he quoted from the Word he did so in order to gain the assent of the people.
[2] 2. After this first period, having left the angels, he wandered about and enquired where those were who in early times believed in predestination. He was told that they lived in a region remote, enclosed and covered over; and that there was no approach open to them except by an underground back passage; but that the disciples of Gottschalk** still walked about freely, and sometimes met in a place called in the spiritual tongue, Pyris.*** As he desired to associate with them he was conducted to their place of assembly, where some of them happened to be standing; and when he came among them he was in his heart’s delight and formed an intimate friendship with them.
[3] 3. After the followers of Gottschalk had been sent to join their brethren in the cavern, he found life tedious. He, therefore, sought everywhere for more congenial quarters, and at length was received into a certain society composed of simple-minded people, among whom were many who were also religious. When he discovered, however, that they knew nothing about predestination, and were unable to understand it, he retired to a distant part of the society and avoided notice for a long time, without ever opening his mouth on any subject relating to the Church. This was so provided that he might abandon his error concerning predestination, and that those might be formed into one company who, after the Synod of Dort,**** adhered to that detestable heresy. These were all in due time sent to join their co-religionists in the cavern.
[4] 4. At length an inquiry was raised among modern predestinarians as to the whereabouts of Calvin. After a search he was found in the outskirts of that society which consisted only of simple-minded persons. He was called out and taken to a certain governor who was obsessed by this worthless doctrine. This man, therefore, received him into his house and kept him under his protection until the new heaven was established by the Lord. This governor, his protector, was then cast out with all his company; and Calvin thereupon betook himself to a house of ill-repute and there remained for some time.
[5] 5. As he then enjoyed the liberty of wandering about and also of approaching the place where I was, I was permitted to converse with him. I first spoke of the new heaven, which is now being formed of those who acknowledge the Lord alone as the God of heaven and earth, according to His words in Matthew xxviii. 18. I said that these believe
That He and the Father are one, John x. 30;
and that He is in the Father, and the Father in Him; and that whoso seeth and knoweth Him, seeth and knoweth the Father, John xiv. 6-11;
and that thus there is one God in the Church and in heaven.
[6] On hearing what I said he at first remained silent, as usual; but in about half an hour he broke silence and said: “Was not Christ a man, the son of Mary, who was married to Joseph? How, then, can a man he worshiped as God?” I replied: “Is not Jesus Christ our Redeemer and Savior, God and Man?” “To this he answered: “He is God and Man; yet Divinity does not belong to Him, but to the Father.” I asked, “Where, then, is Christ?” He replied: “He is in the lowest parts of heaven. This He proved by His humiliation before the Father, and by suffering Himself to be crucified.” He added some scoffing remarks about the worship of Christ, which then rushed into his memory from the world, to the effect that the worship of Christ is mere idolatry; and he would have used blasphemous words to describe it had not the angels who were with me closed his lips.
[7] In my zeal to convert him, I said that the Lord our Savior is not only God and Man, but also that in Him God is Man, and Man is God. This I proved by Paul’s words.
That in Him dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead bodily, Col. ii. 9;
and by what John says,
That He is the true God, and eternal life, 1 Epist. v. 20:
and also by the Lord’s own words,
That it is the will of the Father, that every one who believeth on the Son, should have eternal life; and that whosoever believeth not, shall not see life, but the wrath of God abideth on him, John iii. 36; vi. 40;
and further by what is declared in the Athanasian Creed,***** where it is maintained that in Christ God and Man are not two, but one, and that they are in one person, like the soul and body in man.
[8] On hearing this he replied: “All that you have quoted from the Word is but empty sound. The Word is the book of all heresies; it is like the weathercock on houses and ships that turns about according to the wind. Predestination alone determines all things of religion. In this doctrine they have their habitation, and this is the tabernacle of the congregation; and faith which effects justification and salvation is the shrine and sanctuary within it. No man has free will in spiritual things, and salvation is entirely a free gift. Therefore, arguments against these tenets, and thus against predestination, reach my ears and are perceived by me as mere eructations of the stomach or the rumbling of the bowels. It has, therefore, often occurred to me that a temple where any other doctrine is taught, and the congregation assembled there, resemble a menagerie where sheep and wolves are herded together, with the wolves muzzled by the civil laws of justice, lest they should attack the sheep. By sheep I mean the predestined, and I regard the oratory expended in the preaching as so much hiccoughing. I will here state my own faith as follows: ‘There is a God, and He is Omnipotent. There is no salvation for any but those who are elected and predestined by God the Father; and every one else is consigned to his own lot, that is, to his own fate.'”
[9] When I heard this I rejoined in great indignation: “You speak blasphemy. Begone, wicked spirit! Do you not know, since you are now in the spiritual world, that there is a heaven, and that there is a hell? Predestination, therefore, implies that some are appointed for heaven and some for hell. The only idea of God then that you can form is that of a tyrant, who admits his favorites into his city, and consigns the rest to torture. Shame on you!”
[10]****** I then read to him, from the dogmatical book of the Evangelicals******* called the Formula Concordiae******** what is written on the erroneous doctrine of the Calvinists respecting the worship of the Lord, and respecting predestination. Concerning the worship of the Lord the following is written:
“It is damning idolatry if the trust and faith of the heart are placed in Christ, not only as to His Divine but also as to His Human nature, and if the honor of adoration is directed to both;”
and concerning predestination:
“Christ did not die for all men, but only for the elect. God created the greater part of men for eternal damnation, and is not willing that they should be converted and live. The elect and the regenerate cannot lose faith and the Holy Spirit, although they should commit enormous crimes and sins of every kind. Those who are not elect are necessarily condemned, and cannot attain salvation, although they should be baptized a thousand times, and go every day to the Eucharist,********* and besides, lead as holy and unblamable lives as it is ever possible to live.” From the Leipzig********** Edition, published in the year 1758, pp. 837, 838.
After the reading, I asked him whether or not the views as recorded in that book were in accordance with his doctrine. He replied that they were, but he did not remember whether those very words came from his pen, although they had come from his lips. [11] When they heard this all the servants of the Lord withdrew from him; and he hurriedly retired along a road leading to the cavern where those live who have confirmed themselves in the execrable doctrine of predestination. I afterwards conversed with some of those confined there, and inquired about their conditions of life. They said they were compelled to work for their food, that they were all at enmity with one another, that each sought an opportunity to harm the other, and did so when the slightest occasion presented itself, and that this was the joy of their life. More may be seen above concerning predestination and predestinarians in Nos. 485-488.
* Calvin, John, A.D. 1509-1564, was called by Melanchthon “The theologian of the sixteenth century.” He studied law as well as theology, became a Protestant and induced the authorities of Geneva to renounce Popery. The friend of John Knox, he exercised a powerful influence on Scottish Protestantism. His views may be summarized thus: particular election; particular redemption; moral inability in a fallen state; free grace; and ultimate salvation for the elect, notwithstanding many failings and aberrations on the part of the believer. In its leading features his theology is that of Augustine.
** Gottschalk, A.D. 805-868, a German monk who adopted the views of Augustine, which later took shape as Calvinism. The chief feature of this teaching is the doctrine of Predestination, based upon the belief that man is incapable of himself to will anything good, but is entirely under grace. Gottschalk was found guilty of heresy by the Council of Mainz, A.D. 848, and later condemned to imprisonment for life.
*** Pyris, the place of fire.
**** Dortdrecht or Dort, Synod of. This was held in 1618-19 to settle the disputes between the Arminians or “Remonstrants” who called in question the theory of Predestination, and the Calvinists. The Synod condemned the tenets of the Arminians.
***** Athanasian Symbol or Creed. Although bearing the name of Athanasius, it was probably composed by Hilary, in the century after the formulation of the Nicene Creed, A.D. 325. The name was given to it about the year A.D. 670 as an excellent system of the doctrines of Athansius concerning the Trinity and the Incarnation, principally in opposition to the Arians. It is received by the Romish Church and also by the Reformed.
****** This passage is in quotation marks in Original Edition.
******* Evangelicals, Low Church Protestants who profess evangelical principles, especially the doctrine that salvation is by faith in the Atonement.
******** Form of Concord, Formula Concordiae, designed to effect an amicable adjustment of the differences among the Lutherans, by drawing them more closely to their principal standard, the Augsburg or Augustan Confession. Most of the Lutheran Churches add this Formula to their standard creeds.
********* Eucharist, Holy Supper, thanksgiving.
********** Leipzig, capital of province of same name, seat of highest court of justice in Germany.
In the work entitled Heaven and Hell it is stated that Christians who read the Word, and who know and acknowledge the Lord, the Redeemer and Savior, are in the centre of all the nations and peoples of the whole spiritual world. For they possess the greatest spiritual light, and the light proceeding from this is diffused as from a centre in all directions to the outermost circumference, as was shown above in the chapter on the Sacred Scripture, Nos. 267-272. In this Christian centre the Reformed have places allotted to them according to their reception of spiritual light (lux) from the Lord. Because the Dutch have this light more deeply and fully implanted within the light (lumen) of their natural intelligence, and are thus better able than others to receive whatever relates to reason, therefore, in this Christian centre they have obtained homes in the east and south, in the east according to their ability to receive spiritual heat, and in the south according to their ability to receive spiritual light. It may be seen in Heaven and Hell, Nos. 141-153, that quarters in the spiritual world are not like those in the natural world. There homes are arranged in quarters according to the reception of faith and love; those having their homes in the east excel in love, and those having their homes in the south excel in intelligence.
[2] They are then taught these truths, that God is one in Person and in Essence, and that the Lord, the Redeemer and Savior, is that God; that in Him is the Divine Trinity; and also that faith and charity, in thought and speech only, avail nothing without a life in accordance with them, and that these are given by the Lord to those who actually repent after self-examination. If they turn away from these truths, and still think of God as being in three Persons, and of religion as something apart from life, they are reduced to a state of misery, and their trade is taken away until they find themselves reduced to extremities.
Then they are taken to those who, because they are in Divine truths, have an abundance of all things, and with whom trade flourishes; and here the thought comes to them from heaven, Why is it that these are prosperous? At the same time reflection upon the faith and life of these persons shows that they shun evils as sins. After a little investigation they perceive some agreement between their own thoughts and this reflection; and this happens at frequent intervals. At length of themselves they come to this conclusion that, in order to be released from their misery, they must in like manner believe and live. Thereafter as they receive that faith and live that life of charity, they are granted wealth and a happy life. [3] This is how those who have in any degree led a life of charity in the world are amended of themselves and prepared for heaven. They afterwards become more constant than others, so that they may indeed be termed the personification of constancy; nor do they suffer themselves to be led away by any reasoning, fallacy or obscurity induced by sophistry, or by any absurd vision based on argument alone; for they have become more clear-sighted than before.
* Cocceians, followers of Cocceius, a Dutch Hebraist and theologian, A.D. 1603-1669. He developed the federal or covenant system of theology, an attempt to do justice to the historical development of revelation.
** Dortdrecht or Dort, Synod of. This was held in 1618-19 to settle the disputes between the Arminians or “Remonstrants” who called in question the theory of Predestination, and the Calvinists. The Synod condemned the tenets of the Arminians.
* Original edition has ” … ex mutuo et conlugali amore.” Clowes has “mutual and conjugal love.”
** Original edition has “amor vere conjugalis.” Clowes has “true conjugal love.”
Man has two states of thought, external and internal. He is in the external in the natural world, and in the internal in the spiritual world. These two states of thought make one in the good, but not in the wicked. The nature of man as to his internal seldom becomes manifest in the world, because he has learned from infancy to be moral and rational, and he loves to appear so; but in the spiritual world its nature is clearly seen, for a man is then a spirit, and the spirit is the internal man. Now, as I have been permitted to be in the spiritual world, and to see there the nature of the internal man in people of different countries, it behooves me to make it known, for it is important.
* Exchange, the London Exchange, where merchants meet for business.
It is well known that the inhabitants of every kingdom that is divided into several states are not alike in genius; and that these differ from one another in particular points just as those who live in the various countries of the globe have their general points of difference; but still that there is a common genius prevailing among those who are subject to one king, and who consequently are under one constitutional law. Germany is divided into more governments than the neighboring kingdoms. There is an imperial government there, which exercises general authority over all, but the prince of each state enjoys despotic right in his particular state; for there are greater and smaller duchies, and each duke is as a monarch in his own state. Moreover, religion is divided in Germany; in some states the people are Evangelical,* so called; in some they are Reformed; and in some they are Roman Catholic. Such being the diversity of both government and religion, it is more difficult to describe the Germans as to their dispositions, inclinations and life, from those seen in the spiritual world, than other nations and peoples. However, as a common genius prevails everywhere among people speaking the same language, it may in some measure be seen and described from impressions gathered in that world.
* Evangelicals, Low Church Protestants who profess evangelical principles, especially the doctrine that salvation is by faith in the Atonement.
There is the same difference in their opinions concerning the mysteries of theology. The German clergy, while students, write down the teachings dictated by their masters in the high schools, and these they preserve as authoritative tokens of their erudition. When they enter on the priestly office, or are appointed lecturers in the schools, they base for the most part their official discourses, whether speaking from the pulpit or the teacher’s chair, on these written notes. Those priests who do not teach the orthodox doctrine, usually preach about the Holy Spirit and its wonderful operations, and the awakening of holiness in the heart; but some do teach the present day orthodox doctrine of faith, and these appear to the angels as if adorned with wreaths of oak leaves; whereas those who teach from the Word concerning charity and good works, appear to the angels as if adorned with wreaths of fragrant laurel leaves. In Germany the Evangelicals,** when disputing with the Reformed about truths, appear to the angels to be tearing garments, because garments signify truths.
* Pegasus, winged horse of Greek legend.
** Evangelicals, Low Church Protestants who profess evangelical principles, especially the doctrine that salvation is by faith in the Atonement.
In the spiritual world the Roman Catholics appear to be situated around and beneath the Protestants, and are separated from them by intervening spaces which they are forbidden to cross. Monks, however, by clandestine methods devise means of communication, and even send emissaries to make converts; but they are found out, and after being punished, are either sent back to their own people or are cast down.
There is also in the southern quarter towards the west another place of meeting where the business of letting the credulous common people into heaven, is gone through. Here they have arranged in their vicinity several societies which are devoted to the enjoyment of various pleasures of an external kind. In some there are dances, concerts, processions, theatrical performances and stage shows; in some there are spirits who by arts of illusion produce magnificent spectacles; in some they merely engage in foolish talk and jest; in some they hold friendly converse with one another, in one place on religious matters, in another on civil affairs, in another on wanton sports, and so on. Into one or other of these societies they introduce the credulous, according to the favorite pleasure of each, and call it heaven. But after a day or two they all become weary, and depart; for such pleasures are external and not internal. In this way many are induced to give up the absurd tenets of their faith concerning the power to admit to heaven. As for the nature of their worship, it closely resembles what they practised in the world. It consists in saying masses, not in the common language, but in one composed of high-sounding words, which inspire an external sanctity and awe, but which convey no meaning.
On the borders of the great society where the person so appointed acts as Pope, schools have been set up which those attend who have doubts about religion. In these schools are converted monks, who teach them concerning Christ, the Savior God, and also concerning the holiness of the Word, leaving it to their own free choice to turn their minds from the sanctimonious ceremonies introduced into the Roman Catholic Church. Those who accept the instruction of the monks are introduced into a large society consisting of all who have renounced the worship of the Pope and the saints. When they enter this they are like persons just aroused from sleep to wakefulness; or like those who pass from the discomforts of winter to the pleasantness of spring or like a sailor when he reaches port; and they are invited by those already there to feasts, where they may drink generous wine from crystal cups. I have heard also that angels send down from heaven to their host a plate with manna, in form and taste similar to that sent down upon the camp of the Children of Israel in the wilderness. This is carried round to the guests and every one may taste the manna.
It is well known that man has inherent or hereditary evil from his parents; but few know where it resides in its fullness. It has its seat in the love of possessing the property of all others, and in the love of dominion. This latter love is of such a nature that so far as rein is given to it, it rushes on till it burns with the love of domineering over all, and finally desires to be invoked and worshipped as God. This love is the serpent which deceived Eve and Adam; for it said to the woman:
“God doth know that in the day ye eat of the fruit of that tree, your eyes shall be opened, and then ye shall be as God (A.V., gods).” Gen. iii. 4, 5.
So far, therefore, as a man rushes into this love without restraint, he turns away from God and turns to himself, and becomes a worshipper of himself; and then he is able to invoke God with fervent lips from his love of self, but with a cold heart from his contempt of God. Then also he can make the Divine things of the Church serve him as means; but because his end in view is dominion, he has the means at heart only so far as they promote this end. If such a person is exalted to the highest honors, he is, in his own imagination, like Atlas supporting the terraqueous globe on his shoulders, or like Phoebus with his horses bearing the sun round the world.
* Xavier, Francis, A.D. 1506-1552, the apostle of the Indies, was associated with Loyola in the foundation of the Society of Jesus. He went to India as a missionary to the East; and after converting many at his first station at Goa he carried on much missionary work between India, and Japan. He was canonized in A. D. 1622.
That he was not worthy to unloose the latchet of His shoe, Mark i. 7; John i. 27.
What, then, are saints?
* Genevieve. the Patron Saint of Paris, c. A.D. 419-502. Born near Paris, she spent the greater part of her life there in works of benevolence.
Mohammedans in the spiritual world appear behind the Roman Catholics in the west, occupying a region bordering upon them in that direction. They are next beyond the Christians, because they acknowledge our Lord as the greatest of all Prophets, the wisest of all, who was sent into the world to teach men, and also as the Son of God. All in the spiritual world dwell at a distance from the centre, where the Christians are, according to their confession of the Lord and of one God; for that confession unites their minds with heaven, and determines their distance from the east, above which is the Lord.
* Mohammad, the founder of Mohammedanism or Islam, A.D. 571-632, was born at Mecca, where his father was spiritual and temporal head. He married a wealthy and devout widow, and owed much to her influence. In the visions to which he was subject he received confirmations of his Divine mission. He also received messages from Gabriel which were incorporated in the KORAN, the sacred book of Mohammedanism. Early persecution drove him from Mecca and in the year A.D. 622 he fled to Medina, where he was cordially welcomed. This flight, or Hejira, marks the beginning of the Mohammedan year, and from Medina he set out on his conquest of Arabia. Mohammedanism proclaims the unity of the God-head, and condemns idolatry; but the peaceful methods of propaganda soon gave place to ruthless persecution of infidels and merciless extermination of idolators.
* Mohammad, the founder of Mohammedanism or Islam, A.D. 571-632, was born at Mecca, where his father was spiritual and temporal head. He married a wealthy and devout widow, and owed much to her influence. In the visions to which he was subject he received confirmations of his Divine mission. He also received messages from Gabriel which were incorporated in the KORAN, the sacred book of Mohammedanism. Early persecution drove him from Mecca and in the year A.D. 622 he fled to Medina, where he was cordially welcomed. This flight, or Hejira, marks the beginning of the Mohammedan year, and from Medina he set out on his conquest of Arabia. Mohammedanism proclaims the unity of the God-head, and condemns idolatry; but the peaceful methods of propaganda soon gave place to ruthless persecution of infidels and merciless extermination of idolators.
** Koran, the sacred book of Mohammedanism, was probably written by Mohammad’s secretary. It contains the teaching and visions of the Prophet, on which the claims of his Divine mission are founded.
*** Algerians, natives of Algeria, North Africa.
* Mohammad, the founder of Mohammedanism or Islam, A.D. 571-632, was born at Mecca, where his father was spiritual and temporal head. He married a wealthy and devout widow, and owed much to her influence. In the visions to which he was subject he received confirmations of his Divine mission. He also received messages from Gabriel which were incorporated in the KORAN, the sacred book of Mohammedanism. Early persecution drove him from Mecca and in the year A.D. 622 he fled to Medina, where he was cordially welcomed. This flight, or Hejira, marks the beginning of the Mohammedan year, and from Medina he set out on his conquest of Arabia. Mohammedanism proclaims the unity of the God-head, and condemns idolatry; but the peaceful methods of propaganda soon gave place to ruthless persecution of infidels and merciless extermination of idolators.
** Koran, the sacred book of Mohammedanism, was probably written by Mohammad’s secretary. It contains the teaching and visions of the Prophet, on which the claims of his Divine mission are founded.
* Mohammad, the founder of Mohammedanism or Islam, A.D. 571-632, was born at Mecca, where his father was spiritual and temporal head. He married a wealthy and devout widow, and owed much to her influence. In the visions to which he was subject he received confirmations of his Divine mission. He also received messages from Gabriel which were incorporated in the KORAN, the sacred book of Mohammedanism. Early persecution drove him from Mecca and in the year A.D. 622 he fled to Medina, where he was cordially welcomed. This flight, or Hejira, marks the beginning of the Mohammedan year, and from Medina he set out on his conquest of Arabia. Mohammedanism proclaims the unity of the God-head, and condemns idolatry; but the peaceful methods of propaganda soon gave place to ruthless persecution of infidels and merciless extermination of idolators.
* Mohammad, the founder of Mohammedanism or Islam, A.D. 571-632, was born at Mecca, where his father was spiritual and temporal head. He married a wealthy and devout widow, and owed much to her influence. In the visions to which he was subject he received confirmations of his Divine mission. He also received messages from Gabriel which were incorporated in the KORAN, the sacred book of Mohammedanism. Early persecution drove him from Mecca and in the year A.D. 622 he fled to Medina, where he was cordially welcomed. This flight, or Hejira, marks the beginning of the Mohammedan year, and from Medina he set out on his conquest of Arabia. Mohammedanism proclaims the unity of the God-head, and condemns idolatry; but the peaceful methods of propaganda soon gave place to ruthless persecution of infidels and merciless extermination of idolators.
[2] Before Mohammedanism came into being, idolatrous worship had spread throughout many countries of the world. This was because the Churches before the Lord’s coming had all been of a representative character. This was the case with the Israelitish Church, in which the tabernacle, the garments of Aaron, the sacrifices, everything belonging to the temple at Jerusalem, and even their statutes, were representative. Among the ancients the science of correspondences, that is, the science of representations, was regarded as the very science of sciences. It was particularly cultivated by the. Egyptians, and is the origin of their hieroglyphics. Hence the ancients knew the signification of animals and trees of every kind, of mountains, hills, rivers and fountains, as well as of the sun, moon and stars. By means of this science they also had a knowledge of spiritual things; for the things represented, and these pertain to spiritual wisdom among the angels in heaven, were the origins of the representatives.
[3] Now as all their worship was representative, consisting of pure correspondences, the ancients worshipped on mountains and hills, and also in groves and gardens; and for the same reason they consecrated fountains, and also made graven images of horses, oxen, calves, and lambs, and even of birds, fish and serpents. These they placed near their temples and in their courts, and also in their homes, arranged according to the spiritual things of the Church to which they corresponded or which they represented and, therefore, signified. After a time, when the science of correspondences was lost, posterity began to worship the graven images as if holy in themselves; not knowing that their forefathers say nothing holy in them; they only saw that according to correspondences they represented what was holy. [4] Hence arose the idolatries which prevailed throughout so many kingdoms of the world.
In order that these idolatries might be extirpated, it was brought about, of the Lord’s Divine Providence, that there should be inaugurated a new religion, accommodated to the genius of the people of the east. It was provided that it should contain something from both Testaments of the Word and should teach that the Lord came into the world, and that He was the greatest Prophet, the wisest of all, and the Son of God. This was accomplished through Mohammed, from whom that religion took its name. From these considerations it is evident that this religion was raised up of the Lord’s Divine Providence, and was accommodated, as was just stated, to the genius of the Orientals, in order that it might destroy the idolatries of so many nations, and impart to them some knowledge of the Lord before they came after death into the spiritual world. This religion would not have been received by so many kingdoms, and their idolatries could not have been extirpated, unless it had been adapted to their mode of thought; but especially unless polygamy had been allowed. For the Orientals would have burned with adulterous lust more than Europeans, and would thus have brought about their own destruction.
* Mohammad, the founder of Mohammedanism or Islam, A.D. 571-632, was born at Mecca, where his father was spiritual and temporal head. He married a wealthy and devout widow, and owed much to her influence. In the visions to which he was subject he received confirmations of his Divine mission. He also received messages from Gabriel which were incorporated in the KORAN, the sacred book of Mohammedanism. Early persecution drove him from Mecca and in the year A.D. 622 he fled to Medina, where he was cordially welcomed. This flight, or Hejira, marks the beginning of the Mohammedan year, and from Medina he set out on his conquest of Arabia. Mohammedanism proclaims the unity of the God-head, and condemns idolatry; but the peaceful methods of propaganda soon gave place to ruthless persecution of infidels and merciless extermination of idolators.
** Koran, the sacred book of Mohammedanism, was probably written by Mohammad’s secretary. It contains the teaching and visions of the Prophet, on which the claims of his Divine mission are founded.
* Mohammad, the founder of Mohammedanism or Islam, A.D. 571-632, was born at Mecca, where his father was spiritual and temporal head. He married a wealthy and devout widow, and owed much to her influence. In the visions to which he was subject he received confirmations of his Divine mission. He also received messages from Gabriel which were incorporated in the KORAN, the sacred book of Mohammedanism. Early persecution drove him from Mecca and in the year A.D. 622 he fled to Medina, where he was cordially welcomed. This flight, or Hejira, marks the beginning of the Mohammedan year, and from Medina he set out on his conquest of Arabia. Mohammedanism proclaims the unity of the God-head, and condemns idolatry; but the peaceful methods of propaganda soon gave place to ruthless persecution of infidels and merciless extermination of idolators.
In the spiritual world Gentiles who know nothing of the Lord appear beyond those who have some knowledge of Him. Thus the outermost societies are composed of those who are completely given up to idolatry, and who in the former world had worshiped the sun and moon. But those who acknowledge one God, and who make such precepts as the commandments of the Decalogue the precepts of their religion and life, communicate more directly with the Christians in the centre; for in this way their communication is not intercepted by the Mohammedans* and Roman Catholics. Gentiles are also distinguished according to their genius and their capacity to receive light through the heavens from the Lord; for there are among them some of an interior and some of an exterior character, which they acquire partly from climate, partly from the race to which they belong, partly from education, and partly from religion. The Africans are more interior than the rest.
* Mohammad, the founder of Mohammedanism or Islam, A.D. 571-632, was born at Mecca, where his father was spiritual and temporal head. He married a wealthy and devout widow, and owed much to her influence. In the visions to which he was subject he received confirmations of his Divine mission. He also received messages from Gabriel which were incorporated in the KORAN, the sacred book of Mohammedanism. Early persecution drove him from Mecca and in the year A.D. 622 he fled to Medina, where he was cordially welcomed. This flight, or Hejira, marks the beginning of the Mohammedan year, and from Medina he set out on his conquest of Arabia. Mohammedanism proclaims the unity of the God-head, and condemns idolatry; but the peaceful methods of propaganda soon gave place to ruthless persecution of infidels and merciless extermination of idolators.
Reason, too, perceives that God, whose love is, as it were, purest fire, could not unite Himself to man and man to Himself in any other way. The solar fire, such as it is in itself, cannot come into contact with man, far less enter into him; its rays must be veiled with atmospheres, and it must make itself felt in an accommodated state by its tempered heat. The pure ether cannot envelop a man, still less enter his bronchial tubes, unless it is encompassed with air and thus adapted to human needs. A fish cannot live in the air, but in an element suited to its life. Further, a king on earth cannot, personally and directly, in general and in particular, administer all the affairs of his kingdom; he must employ officers of higher and lower rank who together constitute the body of his royalty. A man’s soul also cannot make itself visible to another, hold intercourse with him, and give him proofs of his love, except by means of the body. How, then, could God do so, except by means of the Human which is His? On hearing these things the Africans, because they are superior in interior rationality, perceived them more fully to his perception.
Moreover, internal men are like those who live in the second or third storey of a house or palace, the walls of which have spacious windows of clear glass, who have an extensive view of the city in all directions and know every little building in it; but external men are like those who live in the lowest storey, the windows of which are made of paper pasted together, who do not see even a single street outside the house, but only what is within it, and that only by the light of a candle or fire. Further, internal men are like eagles soaring aloft, with a wide view of all that is beneath them; but on the other hand, external men are like cocks fully than others, and each assented to them according that stand on a mounting post* and crow aloud before the hens that walk about on the ground. Lastly, internal men perceive that what they know, compared with what they do not know, is like the water in a pitcher compared with the waters of a lake; while external men fancy they know everything. The Africans were delighted with what was said, because from the interior vision in which they excel, they acknowledged its truth.
* super stapide. Probably stapede as from stapes, ladder or stop for mounting a horse.
* Augustine, the greatest of the Latin Fathers of the Christian Church, A.D. 354-430, was born in Numidia. After an early life, which he describes in his CONFESSIONS, spent in sins, struggles, and defeats ending in ultimate triumph, he became a Christian and was baptized in Milan in A.D. 386. Here turned to Numidia and became bishop of Hippo, where he died. His teaching, based on the dogma that man has no power either of choosing or of realizing good, but that grace must do all, became the basis of the system of theology known in later times as Calvinism.
** Hippo, city of Numidia, North Africa; a bishop’s see.
Before the Last Judgment, which took place in the year 1757, the Jews appeared in a valley on the left of the centre occupied by the Christians After that event they were transferred to the north, and were forbidden to have intercourse with Christians, except with stragglers who wandered outside their cities. I, that quarter there are two large cities to which Jews are conducted after death. Both of these, before the Last Judgment, were called Jerusalem; but after that by another name, because since the Judgment, Jerusalem signifies the Church as to doctrine, in which the Lord alone is worshiped. In their cities converted Jews are set over them, who warn them not to speak disrespectfully of Christ; and they punish those who persist in doing so. The streets of their cities are filled up with mire, ankle-deep, and their houses with uncleanness to such a degree that they cannot be approached because of their offensive smell. I noticed afterwards that many Jews had obtained a settlement in the southern quarter. On inquiring who they were I was informed that some of these disregarded the worship of the rest, and had doubts as to whether the Messiah should ever come; and that some, when in the world, had thought from reason on various subjects, and had lived accordingly. These consist chiefly of Portuguese Jews.
I was once raised up as to my spirit into the angelic heaven and into a society there. Thereupon some of the wise men belonging to it came to me and said, “What news from the earth?” I said to them: “This is new, that the Lord has revealed things which have been hidden (arcana) surpassing in excellence those hitherto revealed since the beginning of the Church.” “What are they?” they asked. I said, “They are the following:
1. In the Word, in the whole and in every part of it, there is a spiritual sense corresponding to the natural sense; by means of that sense the Word is a means of conjunction for men of the Church with the Lord, and of association with angels; and the holiness of the Word resides in that sense.
2. The correspondences of which the spiritual sense consists are now revealed. The angels asked, “Did the inhabitants of the earth know nothing of correspondences before?” “Nothing at all,” I replied; “They have been hidden now for some thousands of years, even from the time of Job. With those who lived at that time, and before it, the science of correspondences was the science of sciences. From it they derived their wisdom, because their knowledge of spiritual things relating to heaven and the Church was obtained from it. But as that knowledge was made to serve idolatrous purposes it was, by the Divine Providence of the Lord, so obliterated and destroyed that no one saw any trace of it. However, it is now revealed by the Lord in order that there may be effected conjunction of the men of the Church with Him, and their association with angels. This is done by means of the Word, in which all things, both in general and in particular, are correspondences.” The angels greatly rejoiced that it had pleased the Lord to reveal this great truth (arcanum), so deeply hidden for thousands of years. It was done, they said, in order that the Christian Church, founded on the Word and now at its end, may again revive and derive its spirit from the Lord through heaven. They asked whether by that science the signification of Baptism and of the Holy Supper has now been made known, concerning which so many difference opinions have hitherto been held; and I replied that it was now made known.
3. I said further that a revelation has been made at this day by the Lord concerning the life of men after death. “Why concerning the life after death?” the angels asked; “Surely all know that man lives after death.” “They know it,” I answered, “and they do not know it. They say that it is not the man who then lives, but his soul, and that this lives as a spirit; and the idea they entertain of spirit is that of something that is wind or ether. They maintain that the man does not live till after the day of the Last Judgment, when the corporeal elements, which men had left behind in the world, although eaten up by worms, mice or fish, will be collected together and again formed into a body; and that in this way men will rise again.” “What a strange idea!” the angels said. “Surely every one knows that a man lives as a man after death with this difference only, that he then lives a substantial man, and not a material man as before; and that the substantial man sees the substantial, just as the material man sees the material; and they do not notice a single point of difference, except that they are now in a more perfect state.”
4. Then the angels asked, “What do they know of our world, and of heaven and hell?” “Nothing at all,” I answered; “but the Lord has at this day revealed the nature of the world in which angels and spirits live, and thus the nature of heaven and hell; and also that angels and spirits are associated with men; besides many wonderful things concerning them.” The angels were glad that the Lord had been pleased to disclose such things, so that men might no longer, through ignorance, be in doubt about their own immortality.
5. I added further: “The Lord has at this day revealed that there is in your world a Sun different from that in our world I that this Sun is pure love; and that the sun in our world Is pure fire; that, therefore, whatever proceeds from your Sun, because it is pure love, partakes of life, but whatever proceeds from our sun, because it is pure fire, has nothing of life in it; that in this consists the distinction between the spiritual and the natural; and that this distinction, hitherto unknown, has also been disclosed. It has now, therefore, been made known whence comes the light that enlightens with wisdom the human understanding, and whence the heat that kindles with love the human will.
6. Moreover, it is now disclosed that there are three degrees of life, and consequently three heavens; that the mind of man is distinguished into those degrees; and hence that man has a correspondence with the three heavens.” “Did they not know this before?” the angels asked. I replied, “They knew of the degrees between more and less, but not of degrees between prior and posterior.”
7. The angels then asked whether anything else had been revealed. “Much more has been revealed,” I answered, “concerning the Last Judgment; concerning the Lord, that He is God of heaven and earth; that God is one both in Person and in Essence, that in Him is the Divine Trinity, and that the Lord is that God; also concerning the New Church, which is to be established by Him, and concerning the doctrine of that Church; concerning the holiness of the Sacred Scripture; and that the Apocalypse has been revealed; moreover, concerning the inhabitants of the planets and the earths in the universe; besides many memorable and wonderful things from the spiritual world, which have been the means of revealing from heaven much wisdom.”
* These Numbers are in quotation marks in Original Edition. The reason is suggested in footnote to No. 137:8.
** A heading, numbered XI, has been added to this section by the translator, indicating the nature of the matter treated.
* Original edition has “de Amore ver Conjugali.” (DE AMORE COM. has Amore vere Conjugiali in the corresponding No. 534.) Clowes has “love truly conjugal.”
** Original edition has “deliciae Amoris conjugalis.” (DE AMORE CONJ. has conjugialis in the corresponding No. 534.) Clowes has “the delights of conjugal love.”
*** Original edition has “Amor vere conjugalis.” (DE AMORE CONJ. has conjugialis in the corresponding No. 534.) Clowes has “love truly conjugal.”
“For a time, and times, and half a time.” Rev. xii. 14.
Who in the Christian world would have known anything of heaven and hell, unless it had pleased the Lord to open the spiritual sight of someone, and to show and teach him? That such things as are described in these Memorabilia do appear in the heavens is evident from similar things seen and described by John in the Revelation, and by the Prophets in the Word of the Old Testament.
[2] In the Revelation are the following: John saw the Son of Man in the midst of seven candlesticks; he saw a tabernacle, a temple, an ark and an altar in heaven; a book sealed with seven seals, the book opened, and horses going forth from it; four animals around the throne; twelve thousand chosen out of each tribe; locusts ascending from the abyss; a woman bringing forth a man-child, and fleeing into the wilderness on account of the dragon; two beasts, one going up out of the sea, the other out of the earth; an angel flying in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting Gospel; a sea of glass mingled with fire; seven angels having the seven last plagues; vials poured out by them on the earth, on the sea, on the rivers, on the sun, on the throne of the beast, on the Euphrates and on the air; a woman sitting on a scarlet beast; the dragon cast into a lake of fire and brimstone; a white horse; a great supper; a new heaven and a new earth; the Holy Jerusalem coming down from heaven, with a description of its gates, its wall and its foundations; also the river of the water of life, and trees of life bearing fruit every month; besides much more, which were all seen by John, and seen when, as to his spirit, he was in the spiritual world and in heaven.
In addition to these are the things seen by the Apostles after the Lord’s resurrection; and the things seen afterwards by Peter, Acts of the Apostles xi.; and also those seen and heard by Paul. There are also the things seen by the Prophets in the Old Testament; as by Ezekiel, who saw
four animals, which were cherubs, chapter i. and x.;
a new temple and a new earth, and an angel measuring them, that he was carried away to Jerusalem, and there saw abominations, and also to Chaldea, viii., xi.
[3] Something similar happened in the case of Zechariah, who saw
a man riding among myrtle trees, i. 8-11;
four horns, and afterwards a man with a measuring line in his hand, ii.; a flying roll and an ephah, v. 1, 6;
also four chariots and horses between two mountains, vi. 1-7.
So also with Daniel, who saw
four beasts coming out of the sea, vii. 1-8;
the Son of Man coming in the clouds of heaven, whose dominion shall not pass away and whose kingdom shall not be destroyed, vii. 13, 14;
the combat of the ram and the he-goat, viii. 1-10;
the angel Gabriel, and talked with him. ix.
The servant of Elisha
saw chariots and horses of fire round about Elisha, when his eyes were opened, 2 Kings vi. 17.
From these instances, and many others in the Word, it is evident that those things which exist in the spiritual world have appeared to many, both before and since the coming of the Lord. It is not to be wondered at that they should also be seen now, when a Church is being established, and when the New Jerusalem is coming down out of heaven.
AUTHOR’S
SUMMARY OF THE SPIRITUAL NARRATIVES
I. I heard certain new comers conversing about three Divine Persons from eternity, when one of them, who in the world had been a primate, expressed the ideas that were in his mind concerning that mystery. He said that his opinion had been, and still was, that the three sit upon lofty thrones in heaven-God the Father upon a throne of pure gold, with a sceptre in His hand, God the Son at His right hand upon a throne of purest silver, with a crown upon His head, and God the Holy Spirit upon a, throne of brilliant crystal, holding in His hand a dove, in which He appeared when Christ was baptized; that round about them in triple row pendent lamps glitter with precious stones; and that some distance away countless angels stand in a circle, worshiping and singing praises. He spoke further concerning the Holy Spirit, telling how He brings faith, purifies and justifies. The primate added that many of his order favored these ideas of his, for he supposed that I, being a, layman, would also approve of them. Thereupon, having been granted the opportunity to speak, I said that from my boyhood I had cherished the idea, that there is one God. I then explained to him what the Trinity involves, and what a throne, sceptre and crown signify when these in the Word are predicated of God. I also added that all who believe that there are three Divine Persons from eternity cannot but believe that there are three Gods; and moreover I said that the Divine Essence is not divisible. No. 16.
II. A discourse of the angels concerning God, affirming that His Divine is the Divine Being in itself, and not from itself; and that it is One, the Same, the Self, and Indivisible; also that God is not in place, but is with those who are in place; and that His Divine Love appears to the angels as a Sun, the heat from which in its essence is love, and the light wisdom. No. 25.
The proceeding Divine attributes, namely creation, redemption and regeneration, are the attributes of one God and not of three. No. 26.
III. I perceived that a vast number of men are persuaded that all things belong to nature, and consequently that nature is the creator of the universe. Therefore, being present in a college where such persons were gathered, I spoke with a certain clever individual concerning these three points: (1) Whether nature is from life, or life from nature. (2) Whether the centre is from the expanse, or the expanse from the centre. (3) Concerning the centre and expense of nature and of life-that the centre of nature is the sun of the natural world, and the expanse of nature is the world of that sun; and that the centre of life is the Sun of the spiritual world, and the expense of life is the world of that Sun. These propositions were considered from both points of view, and finally it was shown what the truth was. No. 36.
IV. I was conducted to a certain theatre of wisdom where there were assembled from the four quarters angelic spirits, who had been instructed from heaven to consider these three mysteries (arcana): (1) What is the image of God and what is the likeness of God. (2) Why man is not born into the knowledge relating to any love, while beasts and birds are born into the knowledge relating to all their loves. (3) What is meant by the tree of life, and what by the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. They were also instructed to combine their consideration of these three subjects in one decision, and refer it to the angels of heaven. This was done, and the decision was referred to the angels and accepted by them. No. 48.
V. From evil spirits just over hell there was heard a noise like that of the sea. This was a tumult which arose among them, because they heard it said above them that the omnipotent God had bound Himself to order. Certain of these ascended and spoke in sharp tones to me on the matter, saying that God, being omnipotent, is not bound to any order. On being questioned concerning order I replied: (1) God is Order itself. (2) He created man from order, in order and for order. (3) He created his rational mind according to the order of the spiritual world, and his body according to the order of the natural world. (4) Consequently it is a, law of order that man from his own little spiritual world or little heaven should govern his own little natural world or microcosm, just as God from His great heaven or spiritual world governs His macrocosm or great natural world. (5) More laws follow from this, several of which are adduced; and lastly a description is given of what happened to those spirits. No.71.
VI. Concerning a discussion between certain persons from Holland and Britain in the spiritual world on imputation and predestination. On one side, why God, being omnipotent, does not impute the righteousness of His Son to all, and thus make them all redeemed; while He, being omnipotent., can make all the satans of hell angels of heaven. Indeed, if He pleases, He can make Lucifer,* the dragon, and all the goats archangels: for this, one little word only is needed. On the other side, God is Order itself, and can do nothing contrary to the laws of His order, for this would be to act contrary to Himself; besides many other matters with which they rallied one another on this subject. No. 72.
* Lucifer, fabled son of Aurora, or of Jupiter, morning star, day.
VII. Afterwards I spoke with others who believed in predestination, a faith which they deduced from the absolute power or omnipotence of God, holding that otherwise the power of God would be less than that of a royal monarch in the world, who can turn the laws of justice as he can the palms of his hands, and act absolutely, as did Octavius Augustus and Nero. To this the reply was made that God created the world and all things in it, in general and in particular, from Himself as Order, and thus endowed them with order and that the laws of His order are as numerous as the truths in the Word. Some of the laws of order are then stated, what they are and their nature on God’s part, and likewise on man’s part. These cannot be changed because God is Order itself; and it is added that man was created an image of His order. No. 73.
VIII. I spoke with an assembly of clergymen and laymen concerning the Divine omnipotence. They said that omnipotence is unlimited, and limited omnipotence is a contradiction. To this the reply was made that it is not a contradiction to act omnipotently according to the laws of justice with judgment; it is said moreover in David that justice and judgment are the support of God’s throne, Pa. lxxxix. 14. Nor is it a contradiction to act omnipotently according to the laws of love and wisdom. On the other hand it is a contradiction that God can act contrary to the laws of justice and love, for this would be acting from want of judgment and wisdom. Such a contradiction is involved in the faith of the Church of to-day, that God can make the unjust man just, and honor the impious with all the gifts of salvation and the rewards of life. Much more was said concerning this faith and also concerning omnipotence. No. 74.
IX. Once when I was meditating upon the creation of the universe by God, I was led in the spirit to certain wise persons who at first complained of the ideas which they had entertained in the world concerning the creation of the universe out of chaos, and concerning creation out of nothing, because these ideas obscure, overturn and pervert one’s thought concerning the creation of the universe by God. Therefore, on being asked what my opinion was I replied as follows: It is impossible to form anything but a fanciful idea of the creation of the universe unless it is known that there are two worlds, the spiritual and the natural, and that in each there is a sun; that the Sun of the spiritual world is pure love, in the midst of which is God, and that from it are derived all spiritual things, which in themselves are substantial; and that the sun of the natural world is pure fire, and that from it are derived all natural things, which in themselves are material. From a knowledge of these things it may be concluded that the creation of the universe is from God. An opinion may also be formed as to how creation was effected; and this is also briefly described. No. 76.
X. Some satans of hell desired to speak with angels of heaven, for the purpose of convincing them that all things are derived from nature, and that “God” is only a word unless nature is meant. They were permitted to ascend; and then certain angels descended from heaven to hear them. When the satans saw them, they ran furiously towards them, saying, “You are called angels because you believe that there is a God, and that nature is relatively nothing. Yet you believe this although it is contrary to all the senses; for which of your five senses perceives anything else then nature? When they had said this and much more with some acerbity, the angels reminded them that they were now living after death, and that formerly they had not indeed believed this. Then they caused them to see the beautiful and splendid objects of heaven, and told them that these things are in heaven because all persons there believe in God. The angels next caused them to see the vile and unsightly things of hell, saying that these things are there because the inhabitants believe in nature. The satans were at first convinced by what they had seen that there is a God, and that He created nature; but as they descended, the love of evil returned and closed their understanding from above. This being closed, they believed as before, that all things are derived from nature, and nothing from God. No. 77.
XI. Angels showed me by actual examples the manner of the creation of the universe. I was conducted into heaven and there I saw all the objects of the animal, vegetable, and mineral kingdoms similar in all respects to the objects of those three kingdoms in the material world. The angels then said that all these things are created in heaven by God in a moment, and that they subsist just so long as the angels are interiorly as to thought in a state of love and faith. They also said that that instantaneous creation clearly testifies to the creation of similar things, indeed to a similar creation in the natural world, with this difference only, that natural things clothe the spiritual, and this clothing is provided by God for the sake of the generation of one from another, by means of which creation is perpetuated. Consequently the creation of the universe was effected just as it now takes place every moment in heaven Nevertheless, all things that are noxious and hideous in the three kingdoms of nature, and these are enumerated, were not created by God, but originated together with hell. No. 78.
XII. A conversation concerning the creation of the universe with certain persons who when in the world had been renowned for their learning. They spoke from the same ideas as they had formerly entertained. One said that nature created herself; another, that nature collected her elements into whirling eddies, and that the earth was formed from their rushing together; and a third, that it was formed from chaos, which equaled in magnitude a large part of the universe. He said that there issued forth from chaos substances of the purest kind, from which the sun and sears were formed; afterwards those that were less pure, from which the atmospheres were formed; and finally gross substances, from which the terraqueous globe was formed. To the question, Whence came human souls? they replied that the ether gathered itself into tiny separate balls; and these, infusing themselves into those about to be born, form souls. After death these fly away to their former company in the ether, from which they return to others, according to the ancient doctrine of Metempsychosis. Thereupon a certain priest, by advancing solid reasons in support of the creation of the universe by God, showed that what they had been saying was a farrago of nonsense, and put them to shame; but they still held to their former delusions. No. 79.
XIII. A conversation with a certain satan concerning God, the angelic heaven, and religion. As he was unaware that he was not still in the former world, he maintained that God is the universe, that the angelic heaven is the atmospheric firmament, and that religion is but a bewitchment of the common people, besides many more foolish things. But when he was reminded that he wets then living after death, and that formerly he had not believed in that life, he for the moment confessed that he had talked foolishly. As soon, however, as he turned and went away, he was as crazy as before. No. 80.
XIV. In the night I saw a wandering fire, called by many a dragon, falling to the earth. I noted the place where it fell, and there the ground was sulphurous, mixed with iron dust. As I looked towards the spot in the morning, I saw there two tents; and just then a spirit fell down from heaven. Approaching him, I asked why he fell down from heaven. He replied that he was cast down by the angels of Michael,* because he said that God the Father and His Son are two, and not one. He added that the whole angelic heaven believe that God the Father and His Son are one, as the soul and body are one; and that they confirm this by many things from the Word, as well as from reason, urging that the soul of the son is only from the father, and that this is a likeness of the father, and from it there is a likeness in the body. He continued that he had indeed confessed in heaven, as he had formerly done on earth, that God is one; but because the confession of the lips and the thought of the mind were not in agreement in regard to this, they said that he did not believe in any God, for the one idea dissipates the other; and he said this was the reason why he was cast down.
The next day, returning to the same piece, I saw two statues formed of the same dust, which was a mixture of sulphur and iron, in the piece of the two tents. One of the statues represented the faith of the present-day Church, and the other its charity, both being beautifully attired; but their garments were the creations of fantasy; and because they were formed of that dust, when rain fell from heaven, they began to effervesce and burst into consuming flames. No. 110.
* Michael, the archangel.
XV. In the spiritual world a man may not speak contrary to his thought; if he does, the hypocrisy is manifest to the ear. In hell, therefore, no one can utter the name Jesus, because Jesus signifies salvation. In the following way it was there proved how many in the Christian world believe that Christ even as to His Human is God. When many of the clergy and laity had assembled, it was proposed to them that they should say the words, “Divine Human”; but scarcely any could draw these two words from their thought and utter them together. It was proved to them by many passages from the Word that the Lord even as to His Human was God, as in Matt. xxviii. 18; John i. 1, 2, 14 and xvii. 2; Col. ii. 9; 1 John v. 20; and in other places. Still they could not pronounce the words “Divine Human”; and to their surprise not even the Evangelical* Protestants could do so, although their orthodox doctrine teaches that in Christ God is Man and Men God; and, still more, neither could the monks, who nevertheless most devoutly adore the body of Christ in the Eucharist.** From this it was ascertained that Christians at this day for the most part are interiorly either Arians or Socinians;*** and these, if they adore Christ as God, are hypocrites. No. 111.
* Evangelicals, Low Church Protestants who profess evangelical principles, especially the doctrine that salvation is by faith in the Atonement.
** Eucharist, Holy Supper, thanksgiving.
*** Socinians, members of a religious sect taking their name from Faustus Socinus, A.D. 1539-1604, and his uncle Laelius Socinus. They are antitrinitarians, denying the personality of the Holy Ghost and the Divinity of Christ. Early Socians believed in the miraculous conception and that Christ was entitled to Divine worship; but modern Socinians, chiefly Unitarians, deny both.
XVI. A discussion arose concerning a little book, entitled A BRIEF EXPOSITION OF THE DOCTRINE OF THE NEW CHURCH, published by me at Amsterdam; and especially concerning this point in it that not God the Father, but the Lord God the Redeemer, is to be approached and adored. It was urged that it is said in the Lord’s Prayer, “Our Father, who art in the heavens, hallowed be thy name, thy kingdom come”; consequently that God the Father is to be approached. I was sent for to settle this dispute; and then I showed that God the Father cannot be approached in His Divine, but in His Human; and because the Divine and the Human are in Him one Person, that the Lord is the Father. Moreover, this was proved from the Word, both from the Old Testament where the Son of God is called the Father of Eternity, and in many places Jehovah the Redeemer, Jehovah our Justice, and the God of Israel, as well as from many passages in the New Testament. Thus when the Lord God the Redeemer is approached, the Father is approached; and then His name is hallowed, and His kingdom comes; besides much more to the same effect. No. 112.
XVII. I saw an army on red and black horses, with the faces of all the riders turned to the horses’ tails, and the back of their heads to the heads of the horses. They were calling for battle against those who rode on white horses. This ludicrous host issued forth from the place called Armageddon, Rev. xvi. 16, and consisted of those who had been imbued in their youth with the dogmas concerning justification by faith alone, and who afterwards, on being promoted to high office, had removed all matters of faith and religion from the internals of their minds to the externals of their bodies, where they finally perished. Their nature as they appeared in Armageddon is also described.
Word came from Armageddon that they wished to contend with the angels of Michael.* This was granted, but at some distance away. Here a contest was held concerning the meaning of the words in the Lord’s Prayer, “Our Father who art in the heavens, hallowed be thy name, thy kingdom come.” The angels of Michael maintained that the Lord the Redeemer and Savior, is Father to all in the heavens, since He Himself taught that the Father and He are one; that the Father is in Him and He in the Father; that he who sees Him sees the Father; that all things of the Father are in Him; also that it is the will of the Father that men should believe on the Son, and those who believe not the Son should not see life, but that the wrath of God should abide on them; also that He has all power in heaven and on earth, and power over all flesh and further that no one has seen, or can see, God the Father, but the Son alone, who is in the bosom of the Father; besides much more. At the conclusion of this contest the Armageddons were convinced, and some were cast into the abyss mentioned in Rev. ix., and some were driven forth into a desert. No. 113.
* Michael, the archangel. Michael, the archangel. 43(3), 113(4), 113(6).
XVIII. I was in a temple, in which were no windows, but a large opening in the roof. Those assembled there were conversing about redemption, and they agreed unanimously that redemption was effected by the passion of the cross. While that conversation was in progress, a black cloud covered the opening in the roof, and consequently it became dark in the temple. Shortly afterwards, however, the cloud was dispersed by angels descending from heaven, who then sent down one of their number into the temple to instruct them about redemption. He said that the passion of the cross was not redemption, but that redemption consisted in the subjugation of the halls, the establishment of order in the heavens, and thus in the restoration of all things which had fallen in ruins both in the spiritual world and in the natural world, without which no flesh could have been saved. Concerning the passion of the cross, he said that by it was completed the inmost union with the Father; and when this is taken for redemption, many things unworthy of God, yea impious, follow as consequences; as for example, that He passed sentence of condemnation upon the whole human race, that the Son took this upon Himself and thus propitiated the Father, and by intercession brought Him back to His Divine Essence, which is love and mercy; besides much more that is scandalous to attribute to God. No. 134.
XIX. The Sun of the spiritual world was seen, in which is Jehovah God in His Human; and then this was heard from heaven, “God is one.” But when this idea, descended into the world of spirits, it was changed according to the form of the minds there, finally becoming three Gods. A certain one there confirmed this by the following reasoning: There is one who created all things, another who redeemed all men, and a third who operates all things; also there is one who imputes, another who mediates, and a third who inscribes those upon men, and in this way endows him with faith, by which He justifies him.
However, since faith in three Gods had perverted the whole Christian Church, I disclosed to them, from the perception granted me, what is meant in respect to the One God by mediation, intercession, propitiation, and expiation; namely, that those four are attributes of the Human of Jehovah God. I further showed that because Jehovah God without the Human cannot approach man, nor be approached by him, mediation means that the Human is what mediates; intercession means that it mediates perpetually; propitiation means that an approach is mercifully opened for every one to God; and expiation means that this is also for sinners; and that all these things are effected through the Human. No. 138.
XX. I entered a college where a discussion was in progress concerning how that passage is to be understood where it is said of the Son of God, that He sits at the right hand of the Father. There were various opinions expressed on this subject; and while all agreed that the Son actually sits in this way they were considering why He does so. Some thought that it was on account of redemption; some that it was from love; some, that He might act as counselor; some, that so honor might be paid Him by the angels; some, because it was given Him to reign in place of the Father; and some, that He might thus be heard the better on behalf of those for whom He interceded. Moreover they also discussed whether the Son of God from eternity was thus seated, or the Son of God born in the world.
Having heard these things, I raised my hand, requesting that I might be permitted to say something, and to explain what is meant by sitting at the right hand of God. I said that the omnipotence of God is meant by the Human which He assumed; for by means of this He effected redemption, that is, He subjugated the hells, created a new angelic heaven, and established a new Church. That this is meant by sitting at the right hand, I confirmed from the Word, where by the right hand is signified power. This was afterwards confirmed from heaven by the appearance of a right hand above them, from the power of which and the terror it inspired they all became almost lifeless. No. 138.
XXI. In the spiritual world I was conducted to a certain council, in which were assembled celebrated persons who lived before the Nicene Council,* and who were called Apostolic Fathers, as well as famous men who lived after that Council. I noticed that some of the latter appeared with beardless chin and in curled wigs of women’s hair; but all the former were bearded, and wore their own hair. Before them stood a man who was judge and critic of the writings of this period; and he, speaking through signs of grief, said, “A man from the laity has risen up who has dragged our faith from its sanctuary, a faith which yet is a star shining day and night before us. This he has done because he is a man blind to the mysteries of that faith, and does not see in it the righteousness of Christ, nor, in consequence of this, the wonders of justification which it involves; although it is a faith in three Divine Persons, and thus in the whole Deity; and because he has transferred his faith to the second Person. and not indeed to Him but to His Human, materialism necessarily results.” Those who lived after the Nicene Council agreed with this declaration, saying it was impossible that there should be any other faith, and from any other source.
The Apostolic Fathers, however, who lived before that period, were not at all pleased; and they related many of the things which, as may be seen, are said in heaven concerning the Nicene and Athanasian Creeds.** As the president of the council was associated as to the spirit with that writer in Leipzig,*** I addressed him and showed from the Word that Christ, even as to His Human, is God. I also showed him from the book of doctrine of the Evangelicals,*** called the FORMULA CONCORDIAE,***** that in Christ God is Man and Man God; and also that the Augustan Confession****** most strongly approves of His worship; and much more to the same effect. On hearing this he was silent, and turned away. I later had a conversation with a certain spirit who had been associated with an eminent person in Gottenburg who had defiled the worship of God with a still greater scandal. But at length both those scandalous views were declared to be lies cunningly devised to turn away men’s wills, and deter them from the holy worship of the Lord. No. 137.
* Nice (Nicaea), city of Asia Minor, in Bithynia. In A.D. 325 it was the seat of a Council summoned to settle the Arian controversy. The creed there adopted is known as the Nicene Creed.
** Athanasian Symbol or Creed. Although bearing the name of Athanasius, it was probably composed by Hilary, in the century after the formulation of the Nicene Creed, A.D. 325. The name was given to it about the year A.D. 670 as an excellent system of the doctrines of Athansius concerning the Trinity and the Incarnation, principally in opposition to the Arians. It is received by the Romish Church and also by the Reformed.
*** Leipzig, capital of province of same name, seat of highest court of justice in Germany.
**** Evangelicals, Low Church Protestants who profess evangelical principles, especially the doctrine that salvation is by faith in the Atonement.
***** Form of Concord, Formula Concordiae, designed to effect an amicable adjustment of the differences among the Lutherans, by drawing them more closely to their principal standard, the Augsburg or Augustan Confession. Most of the Lutheran Churches add this Formula to their standard creeds.
****** Augustan or Augsburg Confession, presented by the Lutherans to Charles V at Augusta or Augsburg, in A.D. 1530. This is one of the standard books of faith to which members of the Lutheran Church subscribe. Melanchthon was mainly responsible for its composition.
XXII. Smoke appeared rising from the lower earth, and it was said that smoke fumes are nothing else than conglomerations of falsities. Thereupon certain angels were seized with the desire to find out what those falsities were which occasioned the smoke. They, therefore, descended and came upon four companies of spirits, two composed of learned and unlearned clergy, and two of learned and unlearned laymen, who all supported the view that an invisible God is to be worshiped, and that worshippers are then assured of holiness and of being heard; but that it is otherwise if a visible God should be worshiped. By various arguments they confirmed that worshippers of an invisible God are assured of holiness and of being heard, and therefore they acknowledge three Gods from eternity, who are invisible.
It was shown, however, that the worship of an invisible God, and still more of three invisible Gods, is no worship. In proof of this, Socinus* and Arius** with some of their followers, who had all worshiped an invisible Deity, were brought up from the lower regions. When these spoke from their natural, that is, their external mind, they said that there is a God, although He is invisible; but when their external mind was closed and the internal opened, from which they were induced to make their confession concerning God, they said, “What is God? We have not seen His shape nor heard His voice. What then is God but a, product of the reason, or nature?” They were instructed, however, that it had pleased God to descend and assume the Human, that men might see His shape and hear His voice; but this fell on their ears in vain. No. 159.
* Socinians, members of a religious sect taking their name from Faustus Socinus, A.D. 1539-1604, and his uncle Laelius Socinus. They are antitrinitarians, denying the personality of the Holy Ghost and the Divinity of Christ. Early Socians believed in the miraculous conception and that Christ was entitled to Divine worship; but modern Socinians, chiefly Unitarians, deny both.
** Arius, theologian of Alexandria, A.D 256-336; founder of Arianism, affirming that Christ was an originated Being. Excommunicated by bishops of Egypt for denying that Christ was made of the same substance (homo-ousion) of any previously existing substance. To settle the consequent dispute Constantine called the Council of Nicaea, A.D. 325. Athanasius successfully led the opposition to Arius; and Arius, with Eusebius, who also refused to accept the Athanasian position, was banished.
XXIII. First concerning the stars in the natural world, and the probability that they are the same in number as the angelic societies in heaven, since every society there sometimes shines as a star. I afterwards had a conversation with angels concerning a certain road which appears crowded with innumerable spirits, when it was said that this is the way by which all who depart from the natural world pass into the spiritual world. Accompanied by angels I proceeded to this way; and calling twelve men from it we asked them what. they believed concerning heaven and hell, and the life after death. As they had just come from the world and did not know but that they were still in the natural world, they replied according to the opinion they brought with them. The first said that those who live a morel life go to heaven; and since all do live a moral life, no one goes to hell.
The second said that God rules heaven, and the devil hell; and because these are opposed to each other, the one calls good what the other calls evil; and men, who is a dissembler because he takes sides with both, can live equally well under the rule of the one or the other.
The third said that there is no heaven and no hell. Who has ever come from them and described them?
The fourth said that no one could return and describe them; because when a man dies, he is a spectre, or a breath of wind.
The fifth said that we must wait till the day of the last judgment and then they will tell, and you will know all about it. But when he said this, he laughed in his heart.
The sixth asked, How can the soul of man, which is only wind, re-enter its body that has been eaten up by worms, and be re-clothed with a skeleton that has been consumed with fire or reduced to dust?
The seventh asserted that men can no more live after death than beasts and birds; are they not equally rational?
The eighth said, “I believe there is a heaven but not a hell, because God is omnipotent, and is able to save all.
The ninth said that God, because He is merciful, cannot send any one to eternal fire.
The tenth said that no one can go to hell, because God sent His Son who atoned for all, and took away the sins of all. What power has the devil against that?
The eleventh, who was a priest, said that only those are saved who have obtained faith, and that election is according to the will of the Almighty.
The twelfth, who was a politician, said, “I say nothing whatever concerning heaven and hell; but you should allow the priests to preach about them, that the minds of the common people may be kept bound by an invisible bond to the laws and their rulers.”
The angels were amazed to hear such opinions, but they roused up those spirits by showing them that they were now living after death. They then introduced them into heaven; but they did not stay there long, because they were found to be merely natural, and consequently the back parts of their heads were hollow. About this hollowness and the reason for it something is said at the end of this number. No.160.
XXIV. A sound was heard like that of a mill; and on following up the sound I saw a dilapidated house, the entrance to which stood open below the surface of the ground. Inside I saw a man consulting passages from the Word, and many more from other books, concerning justification by faith alone. Beside him were scribes writing on paper what he had gathered together. In answer to the question what he was at the moment collecting, he said, On this subject, that God the Father ceased to show mercy for mankind, and therefore sent His Son to make atonement and propitiation. To this I answered that it is contrary to Scripture and also to reason, that God could cease to show mercy, for thus He should depart from His own Essence, and so would not be God. When I demonstrated this even to conviction, he blazed with anger and bade the scribes turn me out. As I went out, however, of my own accord, he threw after me a book his hand chanced to pick up; and that book was the Word. No. 161.
XXV. A discussion arose amongst some spirits as to whether any one can see any genuine truth in the Word, unless he approaches immediately the Lord, who is the Word itself. But because those were those who contradicted this, an experiment was made; and it was found that those who approached God the Father did not see any truth, but those who approached the Lord, did. In the course of this dispute some spirits ascended from the abyss mentioned in Rev. ix., where the mysteries of justification by faith alone are the subjects of discussion. There it is said that they approach God the Father, and see their mysteries in clear light. The reply was made, however, that they see them in a delusive light, and that they do not possess even a single truth. They were angry at this, and quoted many passages from the Word which indeed were true; but they were told that these were true in themselves, but that they became falsified in their minds.
That this was so was proved by their being led into it house where there was a table upon which light from heaven directly flowed down. They were told to write upon paper the truths they quoted from the Word, and to place the paper upon the table. When this was done, the paper on which the truths were written shone like a star; but when they drew nearer and fixed their eyes upon it, the paper appeared blackened, as if by soot. They were afterwards conducted to another similar table upon which lay a copy of the Word encircled by a rainbow; and when a, certain leading supporter of the doctrine of faith alone touched it with his hand, an explosion like that of a musket followed, and he was hurled into a corner of the room where he lay as if dead for half an hour. These spirits were thus convinced that all the truths which they derived from the Word were true in themselves, but became falsified in their minds. No. 182.
XXVI. In the spiritual world there are climates as in the natural world; and consequently there are northern zones where are snow and ice. Being once conducted thither in the spirit I entered a temple at that time covered with snow, and illuminated within by lamps. There behind the altar I saw a panel upon which was written this inscription: “The Divine Trinity, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, who in essence are one but in person three. I heard a minister preaching about the four mysteries of faith (what these are may be seen in this No.), respecting which the understanding is to be kept in obedience to faith.
After the discourse the hearers expressed their thanks to the minister for his sermon, so rich in wisdom. When, however, I asked them whether they understood any of it they replied, “We took it all in with our ears; but why do you ask whether we understood it? Is not the understanding numb in relation to such subjects?” To this the minister who was present replied, “Blessed are ye because hearing ye have not understood; for in this way ye have salvation and much more to the same effect. No. 185.
XXVII. The human mind is divided into three regions like heaven, where are the angels. Theological matters, with those who love truths because they are truths, reside in the highest region of the mind; and matters relating to morals are beneath them in the middle region; while under these again, that is, in the lowest region, are matters relating to politics, the various sciences forming the doorway. With those who do not love truths, however, theological matters abide in the lowest region, and there mingle with what are peculiarly man’s own, and thus with the fallacies of the senses. Hence it is that some men cannot perceive anything of a theological nature. No. 188.
XXVIII. I was conducted to a place where were those who are meant by the false prophet in the Revelation, and I was invited by them to see their temple. I followed them and saw it. Within it I saw the image of a woman clothed in a scarlet robe, holding in her right hand a gold coin and in her left a string of pearls; but all these were illusions induced by phantasy. When, however, the interiors of my mind were opened by the Lord, a dilapidated house was seen in place of the temple, and instead of a woman, a beast like that described in Rev. xiii. 2, and beneath the floor was a marsh in which the Word lay, entirely concealed.
Presently an east wind arose, the temple was carried away, the marsh was dried up, and the Word was brought to view. Then in a light from heaven a tabernacle appeared in the same place, like Abraham’s when the three angels came and announced the birth of Isaac. Next a light shone from the second heaven, and in piece of the tabernacle there appeared a temple, like that which was at Jerusalem; and after this a light shone out from the third heaven. Then the temple disappeared, and the Lord alone was seen, standing upon the foundation stone, where the Word was. However, because of the overpowering holiness which then filled their minds, that light was withdrawn, and in its place the light from the second heaven was let in, by which the previous appearance of the temple returned, and within it the appearance of the tabernacle. No 187.
XXIX. A magnificent palace was seen in which there was a temple and in it were placed seats in three rows. Here a council had been summoned by the Lord to deliberate concerning the Lord the Savior, and concerning the Holy Spirit; and when as many of the clergy were present as there were seats, they entered the council. As the subject of deliberation was the Lord, the first proposition was, Who assumed the Human in the Virgin Mary? An angel standing at the table read before them what the angel Gabriel said to Mary:
“The Holy Spirit (A.V., Ghost) shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: … and that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God.” Luke i. 35; and also from Matt. i. 20, 25;
also adding many passages from the Prophets to the effect that Jehovah would come into the world, and that Jehovah Himself is called the Savior, Redeemer, and Righteousness; from which it was concluded that Jehovah Himself assumed the Human.
The second subject of deliberation concerning the Lord was, Whether in this case the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ are one, as the soul and the body are one. This was proved from many passages in the Word, and also from the Creed acknowledged by the present-day Church; from which it was concluded that the soul of the Lord was from God the Father, and consequently that His Human is Divine; and that this Human is to be approached in order that the Father may be approached, since Jehovah God, by means of it, sent Himself into the world, and made Himself visible to the eyes of men, and thus also accessible.
The third subject followed, concerning the Holy Spirit. First the idea of three Divine Persons from eternity was discussed, and it was established from the Word that the Holy Divine, which is called the Holy Spirit, proceeds out of the Lord from the Father. Finally, from the deliberations of the council this conclusion was reached: That in the Lord the Savior is a Divine Trinity, which consists of the originating Divine called the Father, the Divine Human called the Son, and the proceeding Divine called the Holy Spirit; thus that there is one God in the Church. After the council was ended splendid garments were given to those who sat in it, and they were conducted to the new heaven. No. 188.
XXX. I saw in a certain enclosure large money bags, in which was a great quantity of silver, and young men near them, as guards. In an adjoining room I saw modest maidens in the company of a chaste married woman; and in another room two little children, and also a courtesan and dead horses. I was afterwards instructed what each of these signified; and that by them the Word was represented and described, as it is in itself, and as it is at the present day. No. 277.
XXXI. I saw the kind of writing used in the highest or third heaven. This consisted of letters curved with little flourishes (or tittles) turning upwards. I was informed that the Hebrew letters in most ancient times were somewhat similar to these, when they were more curved than they are to-day; and that the letter H, added to the names Abram and Sarai, signifies the infinite and the eternal. The meaning of certain words in Ps. xxxii. 2 was also explained to me, from the letters or syllables alone, namely, that the Lord is merciful even to those who do evil. No. 278.
XXXII. Before the Israelitish Word there was a Word the Prophetical Books of which were called THE ENUNCIATIONS, and the Historical Books, THE WARS OF JEHOVAH; and besides these there was a Book called JASHER, all three of which are mentioned in our Word. That Ancient Word existed in the land of Canaan, Syria, Mesopotamia, Arabia, Assyria, Chaldea, Egypt, Tyre, Sidon, and Nineveh. But as this Word was full of such correspondences its in a remote way signify celestial and spiritual things, thereby giving occasion to idolatry, it disappeared of the Divine Providence. I have heard that Moses copied from that Word what he has related concerning the Creation, Adam and Eve, the Flood, and concerning Noah and his three sons, but nothing more. That same Word is still preserved among the people in Great Tartary,* who derive from it the precepts of their faith and life. This was told me in the spiritual world by angels from that country. No. 279.
* Tartaria, Tartary, country of Central Asia.
XXXIII. Those who are in the spiritual world cannot appear to those who are in the natural world, nor conversely; thus spirits and angels cannot appear to men, nor men to spirits and angels, on account of the difference between the spiritual and the natural, or, what is the same thing, between what is substantial and what is material. This is the reason why angels and spirits have an altogether different language, different writing, and also different thought from men. That this is so was made clear from actual experience by the spirits going alternately to their companions and returning to me, and thus making a comparison. In this way it was ascertained that there is not even one word of spiritual language similar to any word of natural language; that spiritual writing consists of syllables, each one of which involves some meaning; and that the ideas of their thought do not fall into the ideas of natural thought. The reason of these differences is that spirits and angels are in origins (principia), but men in derivatives (principia), or what is the same, that spirits are in prior things from which as from causes posterior things are derived, and men are in posterior things so derived. It was related to me that there is a, similar difference between the languages, writings, and thoughts of the angels of the third heaven and those of the angels of the second heaven. No. 280.
XXXIV. Concerning the state of men after death, in general, and concerning the state of those who have confirmed themselves in falsities of doctrine, in particular. Concerning such the following observations were made. (1) Men are, generally, resuscitated the third day after death, and have then no other idea than that they are still living in the former world. (2) All men pass into the world which is between heaven and hell, called the world of spirits. (3) There they are transferred to various societies, and in this way they are examined as to their character. (4) There the good and faithful are prepared for heaven, but the evil and unfaithful for hell. (5) After preparation, which lasts for some years, a way is opened for the good to some society in heaven, where they are to live for ever, but a way is opened for the evil to hell; with much besides. Afterwards the nature of hell is described, where those are called satans who have confirmed themselves in falsities, and devils, those who are in evils of life. No. 281.
XXXV. From the lower earth which is just above hell, I heard exclamations, “O how just! O how learned! O how wise!” and wondering that there should also be there just, learned, and wise men, I descended and first went to the piece where they were crying, “O how just!” There I saw as it were a tribunal at which unjust judges were seated, who could dexterously pervert the laws and turn judgments to favor any one whatever. Thus their judgments were only arbitrary; and when their sentences were communicated to their clients, these continued shouting for a long distance, “O how just!” The angels afterwards remarked that judges such as these cannot see even a speck of what is just. After a time those judges were cast into hell, and their books were turned into playing cards; and instead of judging, their duty was to prepare colors for painting the faces of courtesans, thus turning these into things of beauty. No. 332.
XXXVI. I then continued to the place where the cry was raised, “O how learned!” and I saw a company of those who were reasoning whether a thing is, or is not, and were not basing their consideration on the ground that a thing is. Consequently they remained at the first step in investigating any subject, and thus only touched the fringe of it, without actually entering into it. In this way they reasoned about God, discussing whether there is a God. That I might know for certain that they were of this character, I put to them the question, “What must be the nature of the religion by which a man is saved?” They replied, (1) That they must inquire whether religion really is anything. (2) Whether one religion is more efficacious than another. (3) Whether there is eternal life, and thus whether there is such a thing as salvation. (4) Whether there is a heaven, and a hell. They thereupon proceeded to discuss the first point, whether religion is anything; and they said it would require so much investigation that it could not be completed within a year, one of them adding, not within a hundred years. To this I replied that meantime they would be without any religion. However, they continued to discuss this first point with such skill that the company standing by called out, “O how learned!” Angels told me that such men appear like graven images, and that they are afterwards sent out into desert places where they give themselves up to idle chatter and merely vain discourse. No. 333.
XXXVII. I proceeded next to the third company from which I heard the cry, “O how wise!” and I learned that those were assembled there who cannot see whether truth is truth, but still can make whatever they please appear as truth, and are consequently called Confirmers. That they were such I observed also from the various answers they gave to propositions submitted to them; for instance they made it out to be true that faith is the all of the Church, and also that charity is the all of the Church, and afterwards that faith and charity together are the all of the Church. Because they confirmed whichever of these they pleased, and so embellished them with appearances that they shone like truths, therefore the bystanders exclaimed, “O how wise!”
Then some ludicrous propositions were submitted to them that they might make them out to be true; for they say there is nothing true but what a man makes true. The ludicrous things were, that light is darkness, and darkness light; and also that a crow is white and not black; both of which they made to appear as quite true, and their proofs may be seen in this number. Angels told me that such persons do not possess even a grain of understanding, since all that is above the rational with them is closed, and all below the rational, open; and thus the mind can confirm whatever it pleases, but cannot see any truth to be truth. This, therefore, is not the part of an intelligent man, which is, to be able to see that truth is truth and that falsity is falsity, and to confirm it. No. 334.
XXXVIII. I spoke with spirits who in the natural world were celebrated for their learning; and who were now disputing among themselves about innate ideas, whether men have any, as beasts have. Then a certain angelic spirit, intervening, said: “You are wrangling about the wool on a goat. Men have no innate ideas, nor have beasts.” Upon this they were all infuriated; but the angel, having received permission to speak, first spoke of the beasts, saying that they have no innate ideas, because they do not think, but only act from instinct, which they have from their natural love. This constitutes in them what is analogous to the will, flows immediately into the senses of their body, and excites whatever agrees with and favors their love, while ideas are predicated of thought only.
That beasts have only sensations and no thought he proved in various ways, especially by citing the wonderful things that are known about spiders, bees, and silkworms. “Does a spider,” he asked, “think in its little head as it forms its web, that the threads must be so connected for the sake of such and such a use? Does the bee think in its little head, ‘From these flowers I will suck honey, and from those I will extract wax with which I will build little cells in a continuous series, and store abundance of honey in them that it may also suffice for the winter?’ and much more in addition. Does the silkworm think in its little head, ‘Now I shall proceed to the spinning of silk; and when the spinning is finished I will fly abroad and sport with my companions, and provide for myself a progeny?’ besides similar things I might mention in the case of beasts and birds.”
Concerning men, he said that every mother and nurse, and also every father knows that newly born infants have no innate ideas whatever, and do not have any ideas before they have learned to think. Then ideas rise up and are framed according to every kind of thought which they have derived by instruction. This is the case because nothing whatever is innate with man but the faculty of acquiring knowledge, intelligence, and wisdom, and the inclination to love not only himself and the world but also the neighbor and God. These things were heard at a distance by Leibnitz* and Wolff;** Leibnitz agreed with them, but not so Wolff. No. 335.
* Leibnitz, German philosopher, A.D. 1646-1716. He maintained the metaphysical against mechanical causes in the interpretation of the world. He taught the pre-established harmony of the universe, founded upon spiritual agencies, dependent only upon God, which reflected in themselves the whole universe.
** Wolff, Johann Christian, A.D. 1679-1754, a German philosopher of little originality or depth. His leading ideas are taken from Leibnitz.
XXXIX. A certain angelic spirit once illustrated what faith and charity are, and what their conjunction effects. This he did by a comparison with light and heat, which meet together in a third; for light in heaven is in its essence the truth of faith, and heat there is in its essence the good of charity. Accordingly, as light without heat, such as there is in winter time in the world, strips the trees of their leaves and fruits, so does faith without charity; and as light conjoined with heat, such as there is in spring time, vivifies all things, so does faith conjoined with charity. No. 385.
XL. Two angels descended, one from the eastern heaven where the angels are in love, and the other from the southern heaven where they are in wisdom. They spoke concerning the essence of the heavens, discussing whether it is love or wisdom. They agreed that it is love and wisdom thence derived; and accordingly that the heavens were created by God from love by means of wisdom. No. 388.
XLI. After that I entered a certain garden, where I was conducted around by a certain spirit, and led at length to a palace, called The Temple of Wisdom. It was quadrangular; the walls were of crystal, the roof of jasper, and the lower structure of various precious stones. Be said that no one could enter into it unless he believes that the knowledge, intelligence, and wisdom which he has are so little, when compared with what he has not, as to amount to scarcely anything. Because I believed this it was granted me to enter; and I saw that the whole building was constructed to be a representation of light. In that temple I related what I had just heard from the two angels concerning love and wisdom; and I was asked whether they also spoke of the third, which is use. It was also said that love and wisdom without use are only entities existing ideally, but that they become real in use; and that it is similar with charity, faith, and good works. No. 387.
XLII. One of the spirits of the dragon invited me to see the delights of his love; and he led me to a building somewhat like an amphitheatre, upon the benches of which sat satyrs and courtesans. Then he said to me, “Now you will see our sport”; and opening a door he let in, so it seemed, bullocks, rams, kids, and lambs. Presently by another door he let in lions, panthers, tigers, and wolves, which fell upon the herd, tearing and killing them. Everything that was seen was induced by the power of illusion. After seeing this I said to the dragon, “You will presently see this theatre turned into a lake of fire and brimstone.”
When the sport was over the dragon went out attended by his satyrs and courtesans, and saw a flock of sheep. From this he realized that a city of the Jerusalemites was near at hand; and when he saw it he was seized with the desire to take it and cast out its inhabitants. But as it was surrounded by a wall he planned to take it by stratagem. He then sent one skilled in incantation, who, being admitted, spoke craftily with the townsmen about faith and charity, especially as to which of these is the primary, and whether charity contributes anything to salvation. But the dragon, enraged at the answer he received, went out and gathered together many of his company, and began to besiege the city. When, however, he was endeavouring to capture it by assault, fire from heaven consumed him and his men, according to what was foretold in Rev. xx. 8, 9. No. 388.
XLIII. A paper was once sent down from heaven containing an exhortation to acknowledge the Lord the Savior as the God of heaven and earth, according to His words, Matt. xxviii. 18. But two bishops, who were present, were consulted as to what should be done. They said that the paper should be sent back to heaven whence it had come. When this was done that society sank down, but not to a great depth. The next day some of them ascended and related what had fallen them there. They said they had approached the bishops and, besides reproving them for their advice, had a long conversation with them on the state of the Church at this day. They found fault with their doctrine of the Trinity, of justifying faith, and of charity, and with other orthodox doctrines of the bishops, and asked them to abandon them because they were contrary to the Word, but in vain. As they called their faith dead and diabolical, according to James in his Epistle, one of the bishops took his mitre off his head and laid it upon the table, saying that he would not take it up again until he had avenged the insulting remarks concerning his faith. But then there appeared, rising from below, a monster like the beast described in Rev. xiii. 1, 2, which caught up the mitre and carried it away. No. 389.
XLIV. I went to a certain house where those who were assembled were discussing with one another whether the good which a man does in the state of justification by faith is the good of religion or not. They were agreed that by the good of religion is meant the good which contributes to salvation. However, the opinion of those prevailed who maintained that all the good which a man does contributes nothing to salvation, since the good done of man’s own will cannot be conjoined with what is freely given, for salvation is bestowed freely; also that no good of man’s can be conjoined with the merit of Christ, through which alone salvation is granted; nor can the operation of man be conjoined with the operation of the Holy Spirit, for this works all things without the help of man. From this it was concluded that good works, even in the state of justification by faith, contribute nothing: to salvation, but faith alone. On hearing these things two Gentiles who stood in the vestibule said to one another, “These people have no religion. Every one knows that religion consists in doing Good to the neighbor for the sake of God, and so from God and with God.” No. 390.
XLV. I heard angels lamenting that there is such spiritual ignorance in the Church to-day that men know nothing more than that there are three Divine Persons, and that faith alone saves, and only historical facts about the Lord; and that they are profoundly ignorant as to what is related in the Word concerning the Lord, His unity with the Father, His Divinity and power. The angels said that one of their number was sent down by them to ascertain whether there was such ignorance at this day among Christians, and that he asked a certain one what religion was. The answer was that it was faith. He then asked about redemption, regeneration, and salvation; and the reply was that all these were of faith, and also that charity consisted in faith, and that no one could do any good from himself. Thereupon the angel said to him: “You have answered like one who plays a single note on a pipe; I hear nothing but faith, and if you know nothing else than that, you know nothing.” He then led him away to his companions in a desert place, where there was not even a blade of grass. There is much more narrated. No. 391.
XLVI. I saw five lecture halls each bathed in a different colored light; and accompanied by others I entered the first, which appeared in a flame-colored light. Many persons were assembled there, and the president proposed that they should declare their opinions concerning charity. When they began the first speaker said his opinion was that charity was morality inspired by faith. The second, that it was piety inspired by compassion. The third, that it was to do good to all, both the good and the wicked. The fourth, that it was to serve in every way one’s relatives and friends. The fifth, that it was to give alms to the poor and help the needy. The sixth, that it was to build hospitals, infirmaries, and homes for orphans. The seventh, that it was to endow churches and confer benefits on their ministers. The eighth, that it was the old Christian brotherhood. The ninth, that it was to forgive every one his trespasses. Each of them amply confirmed his opinion with proofs too numerous to quote here, so they must be seen in the narrative itself.
I was then given the opportunity to express my opinion, and I said that charity consists in acting from the love of justice combined with judgment in every work and duty, a love derived solely from the Lord the Savior. After proving this I added that all those opinions just expressed concerning charity by nine celebrated speakers are excellent examples of charity, provided they are practiced from justice with judgment; and because justice and judgment are from no other source than the Lord the Savior, they are to be done by man from Him. This was approved by most of them in their internal man but not yet to the same degree in their external man. No. 459.
XLVII. A noise was heard from a distance like the gnashing of teeth mingled with the stamping of feet. I approached the sounds and saw a little house built of rushes cemented together; and instead of the gnashing of teeth and the stamping of feet I heard discussions concerning faith and charity, as to which of them was the essential of the Church. Those who were in favor of faith brought forward their arguments, saying that faith is spiritual, because it is from God, but charity is natural, because it is from man. On the other hand those who were in favor of charity said that charity is spiritual, and faith natural, unless it is conjoined with charity. To these arguments a certain Syncretist,* wishing to settle the dispute, added a few words, confirming that faith is spiritual and charity only natural. It was rejoined, however, that the moral life is twofold, spiritual and natural; and that in the man who lives from the Lord it is spiritual moral, but in the man who does not live from the Lord it is natural moral, such as it is with the evil, and sometimes with spirits in hell. No. 460.
* Syncretist, one who seeks to reconcile and unite various systems of philosophy or religious opinions on the basis of tenets common to all. The Syncretistic controversy was a dispute in the Lutheran Church in the seventeenth century.
XLVIII. I was once conducted in the spirit to a certain garden in the southern region, where I saw some persons sitting under a laurel eating figs. I asked them how they understood that man can do good from God, and yet as of himself. They answered that God works good inwardly in man, but if man performs it from his own will and understanding, he defiles it, so that it is no longer good. To this I replied, that man is only an organ of life, and if he believes in the Lord he does good of himself from Him; but if he does not believe in the Lord, and still more if he does not believe in any God, he does good of himself from hell; and further the Lord has given man free will in acting from the one or from the other.
That the Lord has given this freedom was confirmed from the Word, as He commanded man to love God and the neighbor, to produce the good works of charity as a tree bears fruit, and to do His commandments in order that he may be saved, declaring that every one would be judged according to his works. Such things would not have been commanded if man could not do good of himself from God. Having said these things I presented them with twigs from a vine, and in their hands the twigs put forth grapes; besides other particulars. No. 461.
XLIX. I saw a magnificent harbor and in it vessels great and small, with boys and girls upon the rowers’ benches, waiting to see turtles rise up from the sea. When they arose I saw that they had two heads, one which at pleasure they drew back into the shell of their body, and another which appeared in form like the head of a man. From this head they spoke with the boys and girls, who for their fair speech stroked them and gave them presents. When I saw these things their signification was explained by an angel. He said that there are indeed men in the world, and consequently as many spirits after death, who maintain that in those who have acquired faith God does not regard anything they think and do, but that He only regards the faith which He has hidden away in the interiors of their mind. These same persons before their congregations in their churches bring forth holy things from the Word in the same manner as others; but they do this from the larger head which appears like a man’s, into which they then insert the little head, or they withdraw this into their body.
These persons were afterwards seen in the air on a ship sailing with seven sails. They wore laurel wreaths and were clothed in purple robes, and were calling out that they were the chief of the wise from all the clergy; but those things which were seen were the representations of their pride, issuing from the ideas of their own mind. When they alighted upon the earth I conversed with them first from reason, and afterwards from the Sacred Scripture, and proved by many instances that their doctrine was unsound, and being contrary to the Sacred Scripture, was from hell. The arguments, however, by which I demonstrated these things cannot be quoted here because of their length; they must therefore be seen in the narrative itself. These persons were afterwards seen in a sandy place clad in rags, and girt about the loins with what appeared to be fishermen’s nets, through which their nakedness appeared. They were ultimately sent down to the society that borders upon the Machiavellians.* No. 462.
* Machiavellian, one who adopts the principles of Machiavelli, an Italian statesman and writer, A.D. 1469-1527. His best-known works are THE PRINCE and THE ART OF WAR. His views on statecraft were such that his name has become a byword for those who are astute and perfidious, with no sense of honor in political matters.
L. A meeting was convened the members of which sat in a circular temple. There were altars at the sides and near these the members of the assembly sat, but there was no presiding primate there; therefore each one of his own accord rushed forward and spoke out his opinions. They began with a discourse on Free Will in spiritual matters; and the first speaker, rushing forward, called out that man had no more free will in those things than Lot’s wife when she was turned into a statue of salt. The second, that he had no more than a beast of the field or a dog. The third, that he had no more than a mole, or than an owl in the daylight. The fourth, that if a men had free will in spiritual matters he would become a madman, supposing himself to be as God, able to regenerate and save himself. The sixth* read from the book of the Evangelical Protestants called the FORMULA CONCORDIAE,** that man has no more free will in spiritual matters than the stock of a tree or a stone, and that in such matters he is unable to exercise his understanding, thought, and will, nor can he apply or accommodate himself in the slightest to receive what is spiritual; besides much more, for which see No. 484.
After these things were said an opportunity was given me of speaking, and I asked them what else would man be than a brute, without free will in spiritual things; and without it to what purpose was all theology? To this they replied: “Read our theology, and you will not find therein anything spiritual. This is so concealed within it that not even a shadow of it appears. So read what our theology teaches concerning justification, that is, concerning the remission of sins, regeneration, sanctification, and salvation. You will not see there anything spiritual, because these graces flow in through faith, without any consciousness on man’s part. It has also removed charity far from the spiritual, and also repentance from contact with it. Moreover, as to redemption, it attributes to God purely human natural properties: as that He included the human race under universal condemnation; that the Son took this upon Himself, and that thus He propitiated the Father. What else is implied in intercession and mediation with the Father? From all this it is evident that in all our theology there is nothing spiritual, and not even rational, but only what is natural on a plane below these.” Then suddenly a peal of thunder was heard from heaven, and the members of the council rushing forth in terror fled, each to his own home. No. 503.
* This is the numbering in Orig. Ed.
** Form of Concord, Formula Concordiae, designed to effect an amicable adjustment of the differences among the Lutherans, by drawing them more closely to their principal standard, the Augsburg or Augustan Confession. Most of the Lutheran Churches add this Formula to their standard creeds.
LI. I spoke with two spirits one of whom loved good and truth, and the other, evil and falsity; and I discovered that both enjoyed a like faculty of thinking rationally. When, however, he who loved evil and falsity was left to himself, I saw, as it were, smoke ascend from hell and extinguish the clear light that was above his memory; but when he who loved good and truth was left to himself, I saw, as it were, a gentle flame descend from heaven and illuminate the region of his mind above the memory, and thence all that was below it. I afterwards conversed with the spirit who loved evil and falsity, concerning free will in spiritual matters; and he, showing some warmth at the very mention of it, exclaimed that no one can move hand or foot to do any spiritual good, or his tongue to utter any spiritual truth, and thus cannot even apply and accommodate himself to receive anything spiritual; adding, “Is not man in such matters dead and merely passive? How can what is dead and merely passive do good and speak truth of itself? Does not our Church also say so?”
The other spirit, however, who loved good and truth, spoke in favor of free will in spiritual matters. “What would the whole Word be without it?” he said; “what the Church, what religion, what the worship of God? and thus what the ministry without it? I know from the light of my understanding that a man without that spiritual freedom would not be a man, but a beast. That he is a man and not a beast is due to that freedom. Moreover, without free will in spiritual things man would not have life after death, and thus not eternal life, because he would have no conjunction with God. Therefore to deny this freedom is the mark of those who are insane in spiritual things.” Thereupon there appeared, as it were, a fiery serpent upon a tree, which offered the fruit of it to him who denied free will in spiritual things. When he ate it smoke appeared rising up from hell, which extinguished the light (lumen) of the higher part of his rational mind. No. 504.
LII. There was heard a grating sound like that of two mill stones grinding against each other; and approaching the piece whence it came I saw a house in which there were many little rooms, where the learned of this age were sitting and confirming the doctrine of justification by faith alone. Going up to one room I asked the person what he was at the moment studying; and he replied, “The act of justification, which is the chief of all the doctrines in our orthodoxy.” I asked him whether he knew any sign when justifying faith was entering, and when it had entered; and he replied that its action (on man’s part) was passive, not active. To this I answered, “If you take away what is active in it, you also take away what is receptive. In that case the act would be purely ideal, a product of the reason, and thus nothing more than a, statue like Lot’s wife, which being composed only of salt, would tinkle when scratched by the pen or the finger nail of a. scribe. The man was enraged at this, and snatched up a lampstand intending to throw it at me; but at that moment the light went out, and he hurled it at his companion. No. 505.
LIII. Two flocks were seen, one of goats and the other of sheep; but when they mere viewed closely, instead of goats and sheep, men were seen; and it was perceived that the herd of goats consisted of those who make faith alone saving, and the flock of sheep, of those who make charity together with faith saving. To the inquiry, why they wore there, those who were seen as goats said that they were sitting as a council, for it had been disclosed to them that the declaration of Paul,
“That a man is justified by faith without the works of the law,” Rom. iii. 28,
was not rightly understood, since by faith there is not meant the faith of the present day, but faith in the Lord the Savior; and by the works of the law are not meant the works of the law of the Decalogue, but the works of the Mosaic law, which were rituals; and this was also proved. They said that their conclusion was that faith produces good works, as a tree produces fruit. This conclusion was favored by those who constituted the flock of sheep; but at that moment an angel, standing between the two flocks, called out to the flock of sheep, “Do not listen to them, for they have not receded from their former faith.” He then divided the flock of sheep into two, and said to those on the left, “Join yourselves to the goats; but I warn you that a wolf will come, which will seize them, and you along with them.” The question was then asked how they understand the statement, that faith produces good works as a tree produces fruit, and it was discovered that their perception of the conjunction of faith and charity was altogether different from that comparison, and thus that it was a fallacious mode of speaking. When this was understood the flocks of sheep reunited themselves into one as before, and they were joined by some of the goats who confessed that charity is the essence of faith; and, therefore, that faith separated from charity is only natural, but when conjoined to it, it becomes spiritual. No. 506.
LIV. A discourse with angels about the three loves which are universal, and consequently in every man. These are, the love of the neighbor or the love of uses, which in itself is spiritual; the love of the world or the love of possessing wealth, which in itself is material; and the love of self or the love of ruling over others, which in itself is corporeal. When these loves are rightly subordinated in man, he is truly a man; and they are rightly subordinated when the love of the neighbor constitutes the head; the love of the world, the body; and the love of self, the feet. The case is altogether different when these loves reside in man contrary to order; and it was shown what the nature of man is when the love of the world or the love of self constitutes the head. He is then an inverted man: a wild beast as to the interiors of his mind, and as to the exteriors of his mind and consequently of his body, a play actor.
A certain devil then appeared ascending from the lower regions, having a dusky countenance with a, white halo around his head. He declared that he was Lucifer,* although he was not, and that in his internals he was a devil, but in his externals an angel of light. While in externals, he continued, he was moral among the morel, rational among the rational, and even spiritual among the spiritual. When in the world he had been a preacher, and had then forsworn himself, declaiming against evil doers of all kinds, and so was called, “Son of the morning”; and, what he himself wondered at, while he was in the pulpit, he perceived no other than that it was as he spoke; but the case was different when he was out of the church. He said the reason was, because in the church he was in his externals, and then in his understanding only; but when he was out of the church, he was in his internals, and then in the will. Thus the understanding raised him into heaven, while the will drew him down to hell; but the will prevails over the understanding, because it disposes the understanding to favor and respect it. Thereupon the devil who pretended to be Lucifer, sank down into hell. No. 507.
* Lucifer, fabled son of Aurora, or of Jupiter, morning star, day.
LV. A temple, circular in form,* was seen, the roof of which was in the shape of a crown, the walls continuous windows of crystal, and the gate of pearly substance. In it was a pulpit, upon which was the Word, surrounded with a blaze of light. In the centre of the temple was the shrine, before which a veil was hung. This was now drawn back, and there stood a cherub with a waving sword in his hand. When I saw these things, the signification of each as may be seen in the narrative was explained to me. Over the gate there was this inscription, “Now it is permitted,” which signified that now it is permitted to enter with understanding into the mysteries of faith; and it was granted me to perceive that it was very dangerous to enter with the understanding into dogmas of faith which are the product of man’s own intelligence, and consequently to be grounded in falsities, and still more dangerous to confirm them from the Word; that therefore by the Divine Providence the Word was taken away from the Roman Catholics, and that with Protestants, it was closed up by their dogma that the understanding is to be kept under obedience to their faith. Because, however, the dogmas of the New Church are all from the Word it is permitted to enter into them with the understanding, because they are truths in series from the Word, and these shine clearly before the understanding. This was signified by the inscription over the gate, “Now it is permitted,” and by the circumstance that the veil of the shrine was drawn back, within which stood the cherub. After this a paper was brought to me by an infant, who was an angel in the third heaven, on which was written: “Henceforward enter into the mysteries of the Word which has hitherto been a closed Book; for all its truths are so many mirrors of the Lord.” No. 508.
* here rotundum; but formae quadratae in No. 508.
LVI. I was attacked by a grievous disease from the smoke that poured down from that Jerusalem called Sodom and Egypt in Rev. xi. 8, and I was seen by those in that city as one dead. They said one to another that I was not worthy of burial, as is said of the two witnesses in the same chapter of the Revelation. Meanwhile I heard many blasphemies from the citizens because I had preached repentance and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. As judgment, however, was now upon them I saw the whole city fall down and become overwhelmed with water; and afterwards I sew the inhabitants rushing about among the ruins and lamenting their lot, although they had believed that by the faith of their Church they were born again and thus were righteous. But they were told that nevertheless such was their lot since they had never done any of the work of repentance, and consequently were not conscious of a single condemnatory evil within themselves. They were afterwards told from heaven that faith in the Lord and repentance are the two means of regeneration and salvation; and that this is very well known from the Word, and especially from the Decalogue, Baptism and the Holy Supper, details of which may be seen in the narrative itself. No. 567.
LVII. All who come into the spiritual world after death, are at first kept in the externals in which they were in the natural world; and as most people while they are in externals live moral lives, attend church, and pray to God, they believe that they shall certainly go to heaven. They are instructed, however, that every man after death successively puts off the external man, that the internal man is opened, and that the real character of the man then becomes known; since a man is a man from the will and the understanding, and not only from act and speech. For by act and speech a man can appear in externals like a sheep, although in internals he is like a wolf; and he is such in his internal man unless he searches out the evils of his will, and consequently of the intention, and repents of them; besides much more. No. 568.
LVIII. Every love exhales a delight; but delights from loves are little felt in the natural world, although they are plainly evident in the spiritual world, where they are sometimes converted into odors. Then else the nature of these delights is perceived, and from what love they proceed. The delights of the love of good, such as are found in the heavens, are perceived as perfumes in gardens and flower beds; but on the other hand, the delights of the love of evil, such as exist in the halls, are perceived as stenches and offensive odors from stagnant ponds and cess-pools. As these odors are thus the opposites of each other, devils are in torture when they are sensible of any sweet-smelling odor from heaven, and angels in turn are tortured when they perceive any rank-smelling odor from hell. This was confirmed by two examples. Thus the oil of anointing was prepared from fragrant spices, and it is said concerning Jehovah that He perceived a grateful odor from burnt-offerings; and on the other hand, the Children of Israel were commanded to carry unclean things out of the camp and bury their excrement. For their camp represented heaven, and the desert outside represented hell. No. 569.
LIX. A certain novitiate spirit, who in the world meditated much concerning heaven and hell, desired to know the nature of each; and he was told from heaven to inquire what delight is, and he would know. Accordingly he went away and inquired; but among spirits who were merely natural he inquired in vein. He was then conducted to three companies in order: to one where they explored ends, and were therefore called spirits of wisdom; to a second where they investigated causes, and were therefore called spirits of intelligence; and to a third where they examined effects, and were therefore called spirits of knowledge. He was instructed by these different companies that every angel, spirit, and man has life from the delight of his love; and that the will and thought cannot move at all except from the delight of some love; and that this is, to every one, what is called good. Moreover, that the delight of heaven is the delight of doing good, and the delight of hell, the delight of doing evil. That he might be further instructed, a devil, sent purposely, ascended and described to him how the delights of hell consisted in revenge, fornication, robbery, and blasphemy; and he added that when these are perceived there as odors, they are perceived as fragrant balm; and he therefore called them the delights of their nostrils. No. 570.
LX. There was seen a company of spirits praying to God that He would send angels to instruct them concerning various matters of faith; because in most subjects they were at a loss, for the Churches differ so one from another, and all their ministers say, “Believe us; we are the ministers of God, and we know.” Angels then appeared whom they questioned respecting charity and faith, repentance, regeneration, God, the immortality of the soul, Baptism, and the Holy Supper. To each of these inquiries the angels answered in such a way that the subjects came within their understanding. Moreover they added that what does not come within the understanding is like what is sown in the sand, which, however watered by the rain, still withers away; and that the understanding, closed to religion, no longer sees any thing in the Word from the light which is therein from the Lord; indeed, that if any one reads it he becomes more and more blind in matters of faith and salvation. No. 621.
LXI. How man, when he is prepared for heaven, enters it. It is shown that after preparation he sees away which leads to the society in heaven where he is to live to eternity; and that near the society is a gate which is opened. After he enters inquiry is made as to whether there are in him light and heat, that is, truth and good, similar to what the angels of that society enjoy. When this is found out, he goes about inquiring where his house is; for there is a new house for every novitiate angel, and when he finds it, he is received by the residents there and reckoned as one among them.
Those, however, in whom there is no light and heat, that is, no truth and good of heaven, suffer this hard lot: should they enter such a society, they are miserably tortured, and because of this they cast themselves down headlong. This happens to them because they are opposed to the sphere of light and heat of heaven. Thereafter they no longer desire heaven, but associate with their like in hell. Hence it is evident that it is vain to think that all that is required for heaven is merely admission from favor, and that those who are admitted enjoy the delights there as those who in the world enter into a house where there is a wedding. No. 622.
LXII. Many who believed that all that is required for heaven is merely admission from favor, and that after admission there is eternal joy, ascended by permission into heaven; but because they could not bear the light and heat, that is, the faith and love there, they cast themselves down headlong; and then they were seen by those who were below as dead horses. Among those who were below, and who thus saw them, were some boys with their master, who instructed his pupils what was signified by the appearance as of dead horses, and also who they are that at a distance present this appearance. He said that they are those who while reading the Word think materially and not spiritually of God, of the neighbor, and of heaven; that those think materially of God who from Person think of Essence; of the neighbor, from his face and speech when thinking of character; and of heaven, from place when thinking of the state of love there. Those, however, think spiritually who think of God from Essence and thence of Person; of the neighbor, from quality and thence of face and speech; and of heaven, from the state of love there and thence of place.
He then taught them that a horse signifies the understanding of the Word; and because the Word, with those who think spiritually while reading it, is a living Letter, such persons at a distance appear as living horses. On the other hand, because the Word, with those who think materially when reading it, is a dead Letter, such appear at a distance as dead horses. No. 623.
LXIII. An angel was seen descending from heaven into the world with a paper in his hand, upon which was written, “The marriage of good and truth”; and it was seen that in heaven the paper shone brightly, but in its descent it shone gradually less and less brightly, until neither paper nor angel was visible except only to some of the unlearned who were simple in heart. To these the angel explained what the marriage of good and truth involves, namely, that all things, in general and in particular, in the whole heaven and in the whole world, contain both of these at the same time, because good and truth in the Lord God the Creator make one; and therefore there is not anywhere anything that consists only of good, nor anything that consists only of truth. Consequently in all things, in general and in particular, there is a marriage of good and truth; and in the Church there is a marriage of charity and faith, since charity is of good, and faith is of truth. No. 624.
LXIV. When I was in deep thought concerning the Second Coming of the Lord, I saw heaven from east to wait flooded with light. I heard also a glorification and celebration of the Lord by the angels, but it was from the Prophetic Word of the Old Testament as well as from the Apostolic Word of the New. The passages themselves by which the glorifications were made may be seen in the narrative. No. 625.
LXV. In the north eastern quarter there are places of instruction and those who receive instruction interiorly are there called disciples of the Lord. Once when I was in the spirit I asked the teachers there whether they were acquainted with the universals of heaven and the universals of hell. They replied that the universals of heaven are three loves: the love of uses, the love of possessing the goods of the world from the love of performing uses; and love truly conjugial; and that the universals of hell are three loves opposite to those three, namely, the love of ruling from the love of self, the love of possessing the goods of others from the love of the world, and scortatory love. Then follows a, description of the nature of the first infernal love, which is the love of ruling from the love of self. This with the laity, is of such a nature that when its restraints are relaxed, they desire to rule over all things of the world; and with the clergy, that they desire to rule over all things of heaven. That such a delusion prevails with those who are in this love was confirmed by their like in hell, where these are together in a certain valley. These delight their souls (animus) with the delusion that they are emperors of emperors, or kings of kings; and in other circumstances, that they are gods, at the sight of whom it was observed that the former, although they were so lofty in mind (animus), fell down upon their knees and worshiped.
I afterwards spoke with two angels, one of whom was a prince of a certain society in heaven, and the other its chief priest. They said that with those in their society there are magnificent and splendid objects, because their love is not from the love of self, but from the love of uses; and that they are surrounded with honors which they accept not for the sake of themselves personally, but for the sake of the good of obedience. I then asked them, “How can any one know whether he performs uses from the love of self, or of the world, or from the love of uses, since all three loves perform uses? Let it be supposed that there is a society composed of out and out satans, and a society composed of out and out angels; I can imagine that the satans from the love of self and of the world would perform as many uses in their society as the angels in theirs; who then can know from what love the uses proceed?” To this the prince and the priest replied, “Satans perform uses for the sake of fame, that they may be raised to honors and gain wealth, but angels perform uses for the sake of uses. Angels, however, are distinguished from satans especially by this, that every one who believes in the Lord and shuns evils as sins, performs uses from the Lord, and thus from the love of uses; but every one who does not believe and who does not shun evils as sins, performs uses from himself and for the sake of himself, and thus from the love of self or of the world.” No. 681.
LXVI. I entered a certain grove and saw two angels conversing together. As I went up to them they were speaking of the lust of possessing all things of the world. They said that many who appear morel in their actions and rational in their conversation, are in the madness of that lust, and that such lust is turned into delusions with those who gratify their ideas concerning it. As every one is permitted in the spiritual world to take delight in his own delusion, provided he does no evil to another, there are groups of such persons in the lower earth. As it was known where they were, we descended and went among them, and saw them sitting at tables upon which was a great quantity of gold coins. They said that this was the wealth of all the people in the kingdom; but this was only an imaginary vision, called a delusion, by which they produced that appearance. When, however, they were told that they were insane, they turned away from the tables and acknowledged that it was so; but because that vision delighted them exceedingly, they could not help going in at intervals and gratifying the allurements of their senses. They said further that if any one steals the property of another, or commits any other evil, he sinks down into a sort of prison beneath them, where he is detained to labor for food, clothing, and small sums of money; and if such persons still commit any evil there, they are deprived of those things and punished. No. 662.
LXVII. A dispute was heard between an ambassador of a kingdom and two priests, as to whether intelligence and wisdom, and thus also prudence, were from God, or whether they were from man. The ambassador insisted that they were from man, but the priests that they were from God. It was observed, however, by some angels that the priests interiorly believed the same as the ambassador, namely, that intelligence and wisdom, and consequently prudence, were from man. In order, therefore, that this might be made manifest, the ambassador was requested to take off his official robes and put on the garments of the priestly office. When he had done this, he began to confirm with many proofs that all intelligence and also prudence are from God. The priests were then also requested to take off their vestments and put on the robes of political ministers; and when this was done, the priests spoke from the inner self, saying that all intelligence and prudence are from man. The reason why they spoke in this way was that a, spirit thinks himself to be such as the garment which he wears. After this the three became bosom friends; and, discoursing together, they proceeded along a road which led downwards; but afterwards I saw them returning. No. 663.
LXVIII. The first subject treated concerns those who in the Word are called the Elect; and it is stated that they are those who, after death, are found to have lived a life of charity and faith, and they are separated from those who have not lived that life. Consequently they are then elected, and prepared for heaven. Therefore to believe that only some, before or after birth, are elected and predestined for heaven and not all, because all are called, would be to accuse God of impotence to save, and also of injustice. No. 684.
LXIX. It was declared in heaven by a certain new comer that no one in the Christian world knows what conscience is. As the angels did not believe this, they directed a certain spirit to summon by trumpet the intelligent, and inquire of them whether they know what conscience is. This was done; and among those who assembled were politicians, scholars, physicians, and priests. Then, first the politicians were asked what conscience is. They replied, that it is pain arising from an apprehensive fear, or a fear that is actually present, of the loss of honor and wealth; or caused by a melancholy humor arising from undigested food in the stomach; and so on. The scholars were then asked what they knew about conscience; and they replied that it is a sadness and anxiety affecting the body and thence the head, or the head and thence the body, arising from various causes, especially from this, that men applied the mind to one thing only. This happens especially when the ruling love suffers, sometimes giving rise to delusions and madness, and, with some men, to brain sickness in religious matters, which is called remorse of conscience. After these the physicians were asked what conscience is, and they replied that it is only a pain arising from various diseases, many of which they enumerated; and they said they had cured many by means of drugs. The diseases which give rise to the pains called conscience may be seen enumerated in the narrative. Finally the clergy were asked what conscience is; and they said that it is the same thing as contrition which precedes faith, and that they had cured it by the Gospel. Moreover, they added, there are conscientious persons of every religion, whether it is a fanatical or a true religion, who create for themselves scruples in matters of salvation, even in matters which are of no consequence. [No. 665.*]
The angels, on hearing these things, realized the truth of the statement that no one knows what conscience is; and therefore they sent down one of their number to give instruction. Standing in the midst of the assembly he said that conscience is not a sort of pain, as they all had supposed; but it is a life according to religion. That life is especially in those who are in the faith of charity; and those who have conscience speak from the heart what they speak, and do from the heart what they do; and this he illustrated by examples. When it is said, therefore, of any one that he has conscience, it is meant that he is just; and conversely. After he had said this, the persons assembled there divided themselves into four companies: into one company passed those who understood and assented to the words of the angel; into another, those who did not understand but who still gave their assent; into a third, those who did not wish to understand, saying to one another, “What have we to do with conscience?” and into the fourth company, those who ridiculed the words of the angel, saying, “What is conscience but flatulence?” The two latter companies were afterwards seen to depart to the left, and the two former to the right. Orig. Ed. has No. 665 for 666.
* In Orig. Ed. No. 665 is used covering Nos. 665 and 668.
LXX. I was conducted to a place which was called Parnassium,* where the ancient sages who used to live in Greece had their dwelling. I was told that occasionally they send out certain of their number to summon new comers from the world and to inquire about the present state of wisdom on the earth. At that time two Christians were found and brought to them, and they were immediately asked, “What news from the earth?” They replied that this was news there; that human beings were found in the woods, who had probably been left there in early childhood. In face indeed they appeared like men, but still they were not men; and from these it had been concluded in the world that man was no more than a beast, except that he could articulate sound and thus speak; and that a beast could attain to wisdom if it were trained to express articulate sounds. Much more is added on this subject. The sages from what they heard came to many conclusions concerning wisdom, and what changes it had undergone since their time; and especially from this circumstance they concluded that men do not know the difference between the state of man and the state of a beast, nor even that man is only born the form of a man and that he becomes man by instruction, and that his nature as a man is according to the nature of the instruction he receives: that he becomes wise from truths, insane from falsities, and interiorly a wild beast from evils. Moreover men do not know that man is only born with the faculty of knowing, understanding, and becoming wise, in order that he may be a subject upon whom God might be able to confer wisdom from its lowest to its highest degree. They added further that from the new comers they gathered that wisdom, which in their time was on the ascendant, was now in its decline. Afterwards they instructed the new comers how it was that man, created a form of God, could be changed into the form of a devil. However, for an account of all these things the narrative itself may be consulted. No. 692.
* Parnassius, belonging to Parnassus; subst. Parnassium, hill near Athenaeum, the city in the spiritual world of the Greek sages.
LXXI. Again an assembly was proclaimed to meet at the place where were the ancient sages, because they had heard from those they sent out that they had met with three new comers from the earth, one of whom was a priest, another a politician, and a, third a philosopher. These were conducted to the assembly and presently they were asked, “What news from the earth?” They replied that this was the latest. They had heard that a certain man declares that he talks with angels and spirits, and relates many things concerning their state; and among other things he says that a man is as much a man after death as before, with this difference only, that he is then clothed with a spiritual body, whereas before, he war, clothed with a material body.
When they heard this, the wise men asked the priest what he had thought of this when on the earth. He replied that because he believed that a man would not live again as a man before the day of the Last Judgment he, with the rest of his order, had at first supposed that what the man had related were visions, and then fictions; but finally he confessed that he was in doubt. He was then asked whether the inhabitants of the earth were not able to see from reason that a man lives as a man after death, and so dissipate the paradoxical notions concerning the state of souls in the meantime, such as, that souls in the meantime were floating about like breaths of wind in the universe, and continually awaiting the Last Judgment, in order that they may unite with their bodies, a lot which would be worse than that of any beast. To this the priest replied, that such things are said, but they do not convince; for men ascribe the coming together or reunion of souls with their bodies and skeletons in the sepulchre, to the omnipotence of God; and when they mention omnipotence and faith, all reason is banished.
Thereupon the politician, being asked regarding what had just been heard, replied that while in the world he could not believe that a man would live as a man after death, since the entire man lies dead in the grave; and therefore the man in question saw spectres and supposed them to be angels and spirits; but now for the first time he was convinced by his senses themselves that man lives a man as before; and so he was ashamed of his former views. The philosopher gave much the same testimony concerning himself and some of his school; adding further that he had placed those things just heard concerning what that man had seen and heard, in the same category as the opinions and hypotheses which he had collected from both the ancients and the moderns.
On hearing these things the wise men were amazed, especially that Christians, who are in light beyond others from revelation, should be in such darkness respecting their life after death, when yet they and the wise men of their time knew of that life and believed in it. They said, moreover, that they observed that the light of wisdom since their age had, descended from the interiors of the brain even to the mouth under the nose, where it appeared as lip brilliance, and the words of the mouth which issued forth appeared as wisdom. Thereupon one of the young scholars added: “O how stupid are the minds of men on earth to-day! Would that we had here the disciples of Democritus1 who laughed at everything, and those of Heraclitus* who wept at everything; for we should hear much laughter and much lamentation!” Afterwards medallions of copper, on which were engraved some hieroglyphics, were presented to the new comers, and they departed. No. 893.
* These names are transposed in Orig. Ed.
LXXII. New comers from the world were met with, and being conducted to the city at the foot of Parnassium,* were asked, “What news from the earth?” They replied that while in the world they had believed that after death there would be an entire rest from labors; and yet they heard when they arrived here, that there are administrative duties, offices and employments, as in the former world, and thus that there is not rest. To this the wise men there replied: “So you believed that now you are to live in perfect idleness, although from idleness arise languour, torpor, stupor, and sleep of the mind, and consequently of the whole body. These states are death, not life.” Then they were conducted round the city, visiting administrators and workers; and when they saw them they mar- veiled that such things should be, as they had believed that the future would be a sort of void, in which souls would exist until the new heaven and the new earth should come into being.
They were instructed that all things which here appear to the eye are substantial, and are called spiritual; that all things in the former world are material, and are called natural; and that this difference exists because of their different origin. For all things in the spiritual world exist and subsist from a Sun which is pure Love, and all things in the natural world exist from a sun which is pure fire. They were further instructed that in the spiritual world there are not only administrative duties but also studies of every kind, as well as writings and books. The new comers were delighted by this instruction; and when they were departing, some maidens came and presented them with embroidered and woven articles, examples of their own handiwork. They also sang tot hem a song, expressing in heavenly strains the love of useful work and the pleasures of use. No. 694.
* Parnassius, belonging to Parnassus; subst. Parnassium, hill near Athenaeum, the city in the spiritual world of the Greek sages.
LXXIII. I was introduced into an assembly where some of the old philosophers were present; and I was asked what was known in my world concerning influx. I replied that nothing was known of any influx other than that of the sun’s light and heat into the objects of nature, both animate and inanimate; and absolutely nothing of the influx of the spiritual world into the natural, although from that influx are derived all the wonderful phenomena exhibited both in the animal and in the vegetable kingdom; and these are in part recounted. As men know nothing of this influx they confirm themselves in favor of nature, and become materialists, and finally, atheists. No 695.
LXXIV. I had a conversation with followers of Aristotle,* Descartes,** and Leibnitz,*** concerning physical influx, occasional influx, and pre-established harmony, and I heard how each confirmed his hypothesis. As they were not able to examine the subject from any elevation of the understanding above confirmations, but only below them, they decided the dispute by lot. This came out in favor of spiritual influx, which in some measure coincides with occasional influx. No. 698.
* Aristotle, Greek philosopher, 384-322 B.C.; born at Stagiros, so called The Stagirite. He took all knowledge for his province, but had little appreciation of mathematics. He created the science of logic.
** Descartes, French philosopher, A.D. 1596-1850. According to his theory the essence of the mind, as appears from his proposition, Cogito, ergo sum, is consciousness or thinking; and the essence of matter is extension. Thus the universe falls into two discrete worlds, that of thinking substances and that of extended substances.
*** Leibnitz, German philosopher, A.D. 1646-1716. He maintained the metaphysical against mechanical causes in the interpretation of the world. He taught the pre-established harmony of the universe, founded upon spiritual agencies, dependent only upon God, which reflected in themselves the whole universe.
LXXV. I was conducted to a certain school where young men were taught the various branches of wisdom. This was done by the discussion of any subject proposed by the president. At that time the subject for discussion was, What is the soul, and what is its nature? There was a chair to which those went up whose turn it was to give their answer. Presently one went up who said that no one since the creation of the world has been able to discover what the soul is, and what is its nature. As it was known, however, that the soul was in man, search was made for where it might be. One gave it as his opinion that it resides with man in a, certain little gland, called the pineal gland, which is situated between the two brains in the head. He himself had believed this at first; but as it was rejected by many, he also departed from it.
After him the second went up and said that he believed that the seat of the soul was in the head, since the understanding was there. However, as he could not conjecture in what part of the head its seat was, he sometimes approached the view of those who said that its seat was in the three ventricles of the brain; sometimes the view of those who said that it was in the striated bodies there; sometimes of those who said that it was in the medullary or cortical substance; and sometimes of those who said that it was in the dura mater. He added, however, that he left it to every one to think as he pleased on the matter. The third speaker went up to the chair and said that the seat of the soul was in the heart, Land thence in the blood; and he confirmed this from the Word, where the expression “heart and soul” is used. Then the fourth ascended and said that from his boyhood he had believed with the ancients that the soul is not in one part but in the whole body, because it is a spiritual substance, of which place cannot be predicated, but impletion; and further, because by soul is also meant life, and life is in the whole. The fifth then ascended and said that he believed the soul to be something pure, like ether or air. He believed this because of the opinion that the soul was of this nature after its separation from the body.
As the wise men in the gallery perceived that none of those speakers knew what the soul was, they requested the president, who had proposed the problem, to descend and teach them. Accordingly he descended and said that the soul is the very essence of man; and as an essence without a form is not any thing, the soul is the form of the forms of man. This form is the truly human form, in which wisdom with its perceptions, and love with its affections, universally reside. “And you are now souls,” he continued, “as you believed when in the world that you would be after death”; with much besides. This was confirmed by the declaration in the Book of Creation:
“JEHOVAH God … breathed into Adam’s (A.V., man’s) nostrils the soul of lives (A.V., the breath of life); and man became a living soul.” Gen. ii. 7. [No. 697.]
LXXVI. An angel was seen with a trumpet, with which he called together those who were celebrated among Christians for their learning, that they might relate what they had formerly believed in the world concerning the joys of heaven and eternal happiness. This was done because it was said in heaven that no one in the Christian world knows anything about these things. In less than an hour’s time six companies composed of learned Christians appeared there; and they were asked what they had known about the joys of heaven and eternal happiness. The first company said they believed that it would be simply admission into heaven and then into its festive joys, just as a person is admitted to a house where there is a wedding and into its festivities. The second company said they believed that heavenly joy consisted in delightful association and pleasant conversation with angels. The third company said they believed it consists in feasting with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. The fourth company said they believed that it consists in the delights of paradise. The fifth company, that it consists in all-embracing dominion, boundless wealth, and more than royal magnificence. The sixth company, that it consists in the glorification of God and a never-ceasing festival. In order that these learned persons might know whether what they believed really constitute the joys of heaven, they were permitted to enter into their joys, each company by itself, in order that they might learn from living experience whether their joys were imaginary or real. This happens with most persons who pass from the natural world into the spiritual. Nos. 731, 732, 733.
Then presently, that company who had supposed heavenly joys to consist in delightful association and pleasant conversation with angels, were admitted into the joys of their own imagining. But as their joys were external and not internal, after some days they became tired, and departed. No. 734.
Afterwards those who had believed that the joys of heaven consist in feasting with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, were admitted into such feasts. As they perceived, however, that these joys were only external and not internal, they became weary and withdrew. No. 736.
The same thing was done with those who had believed that the joys of heaven and eternal happiness consist in all-embracing dominion, boundless wealth, and more than royal magnificence. No. 736.
The same thing also happened with those who had believed that heavenly joys and consequently eternal happiness consist in the delights of paradise. No. 737.
The same thing afterwards took place with those who had believed that heavenly joys and eternal happiness consist in the perpetual glorification of God and a religious festival continuing to eternity. These were at length instructed what is meant in the Word by the glorification of God. No. 738.
Finally the same course was gone through with those who had believed that they enter into heavenly joys and happiness provided only they are admitted into heaven; and that they would then enjoy its pleasures just as those do who enter a house where there is a wedding and forthwith enter into its festivities. However, as it was shown them by actual experience that there are no joys in heaven except for those who have lived the life of heaven, that is, the life of charity and faith; and on the other hand that heaven is torture to those who have lived a contrary life, they withdrew and associated with those who were similar to themselves. No. 739.
As it was perceived by the angels that hitherto no one in the natural world has known the nature of the joys of heaven, and consequently the nature of eternal happiness, the angel with the trumpet was told to choose out from the assembly ten men and introduce them into a society of heaven, that they might see with their eyes and perceive with their minds what heaven is, and what is the nature of the joys there. This was done, and after their admission they were first granted to see the magnificent palace of the prince there, No. 740; and then the garden adjoining, No. 742; and afterwards they saw the prince himself, and his retinue in splendid robes, No. 742.
They were then invited to the table of the prince and saw such a display as no eye on earth had ever seen. At table they heard the prince giving them instruction on heavenly joys and eternal happiness, explaining that these consist essentially in internal blessedness, and in external delights arising from it; and that internal blessedness derives its essence from the love of use. No. 744.*
After dinner, by command of the prince, certain wise men of the society were summoned, who fully instructed the guests on the nature and source of internal blessedness, which is eternal happiness, showing that this causes external delights to be joys; with much more on all these matters. Nos. 745, 748.
After this it was granted them to see a wedding in that heaven. In this connection see Nos. 747-749. Finally it was granted them to hear preaching there. Nos. 750, 751.
After seeing and hearing all these things, they descended, full of knowledge concerning heaven and joyful in heart. No. 752.
* Orig. Ed. Has No. 743.
LXXVII. Revelation is here treated of. It has pleased the Lord to manifest Himself to me, and to open the interiors of my mind, and in this way to grant to me to see the things which are in heaven and hell. He has thus disclosed to me spiritual truths (arcana) which for excellence and intrinsic worth exceed those hitherto disclosed. These are:
1. In all things of the Word and in every particular, there is a spiritual sense, which does not appear in the sense of the Letter. The Word on this account is written according to the correspondence of spiritual with natural things.
2. The nature of the correspondences themselves has been made known.
3. There has also been disclosed truth concerning the life of men after death;
4. Concerning the respective nature of heaven and hell, and also concerning Baptism and the Holy Supper;
5. Concerning the Sun in the spiritual world, that it is pure love from the Lord who is in the midst of it, from which the proceeding light is wisdom and the proceeding heat is love, whence are derived faith and charity, and that all things which proceed from this Sun are spiritual, and thus alive; that the sun of the natural world is pure fire, and consequently that all things which proceed from this sun are natural, and thus dead;
6. The truth that there are three degrees hitherto unknown;
7. Further, concerning the Last Judgment; that the Lord the Savior is the God of heaven and earth; concerning the New Church and its doctrine; concerning the inhabitants of the planets, and concerning the earths in the universe. No. 846.
8. Moreover the truth concerning conjugial love, that it is spiritual with the spiritual, natural with the natural, and carnal with adulterers. No.847.
9. Angels perceived by actual observation that although these truths surpass in excellence those hitherto disclosed yet they are lightly esteemed by many at the present day. No. 848.
[10.] A murmur was heard from some in the lower earth that they would not place any faith in these things unless miracles were performed. But they received answer that they would no more believe through miracles than Pharaoh and the Egyptians, or the posterity of Jacob when they danced around the golden calf in the desert, or even the Jews themselves, when they sew the miracles which the Lord Himself performed. No. 849.
11. Finally, why the Lord revealed those truths to me, and not rather to some one of the ecclesiastical order. No. 850.
The things which are contained in the Narratives (Memorabilia) at the end of the chapters of this book are true. Similar things were seen and heard by the Prophets before the Coming of the Lord, and by the Apostles after His Coming, as by Peter, Paul, and especially by John in the Revelation. These things are recounted, No. 851.
I once saw in the spiritual world a certain Electoral Duke of Germany, who also held high rank in the Church. Beside him I saw two bishops and also two ministers; and I was near enough to hear their conversation. The Elector asked the four who were standing beside him whether they knew what constituted the cardinal element of religion in Christendom. The bishops answered: “The cardinal element of religion in Christendom is faith alone, which justifies and saves.” He asked again: “Do you know what lies inwardly concealed in that faith? Examine it carefully, and tell me.” They replied: “Nothing lies inwardly concealed in it but the merit and righteousness of the Lord the Savior.” Thereupon the Elector said: “Does it involve then the Lord the Savior in His Human, in which He is called Jesus Christ, since He alone in His Human was righteousness?’ They said: “This follows assuredly and inevitably.” The Elector, following up the subject, said: Examine it still more carefully and see whether it contains anything else.”
Then the ministers observed: “There is also involved in it the grace of God the Father.” To this the Elector said: “If you form a just conception and a clear perception of the matter, you will see that it is the grace of the Son with the Father; for it is the Son who entreats and intercedes. I, therefore, make bold to say to you that since you confess, venerate and embrace this as your view of faith alone, you will unreservedly confess, venerate and embrace the Lord the Savior alone in His Human; for, as was just pointed out, He in His Human was and is Righteousness. He in His Human is also Jehovah and God, as I have perceived in the Sacred Scriptures from these passages:
“Behold, the days come … that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, who (A.V., and a King) shall reign and prosper … and this is His name whereby He shall be called JEHOVAH our Righteousness.” [Jer. xxiii. 5, 6]; Jer. xxxiii. 15, 16;
in Paul,
In Jesus Christ “dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily,” Col. ii. 9;
and in John,
“Jesus Christ is the true God and eternal life.” 1 Epist. v. 20, 21;
and therefore He is also called
“The God of faith.” Phil. iii. 9.
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