DOCTRINE
ov
THE NEW JERUSALEM
RâSPfiCTINa THS
SACRED SCRIPTURE.
Bt emanbel swedekborg.
17EW YORK:
RLI8H)Ç.fT Tjru ÖEM'iiAI, CnxVRNTIOX 0? THE NEW JERÜSALE..
•'■'/í" CHUliCH IX THE ÜXIÍKI) ST.ATKS,
AT THE OFFICE OK ITS BOAIjn OF PUBEIOATIONS,
31« HKOAÍOAVAY.
■JOHN L. JEWÉTT, AGENT.
1859.
NORTHWESTERN
UNIVERSITY
LIBRARY
The Gift of
MRS. HUBERT BURHHAI.i
DOCTRINE
OF
THE NEW JEEÜSALEM
RBSPECTINO TBK
SACKED SCKIPTUKE.
BY EMANUEL SWEDENBORG.
NEW YORK:
PUBLISHED BT THE GENERAL CONVENTION OF THE NEW JERUSALEM
CHURCH IN THE UNITED STATES,
AT THE OFFICE OF ITS BOARD OF PUBLICATIONS,
346 BROADWAY.
JOHN L. JEWETT, AGENT.
1850.
Çj'blCONTENTS.
no.
I. That the Sacred Scripture, or the Word, is Divine Truth itself. 1
n. That in the Word there is a Spiritual Sense, heretofore unknown.
1. What the Spiritual Sense IS h
2. That the Spiritual Sense is in all and every part of the Word 9
3. That it is owing to the Spiritual Sense that the Word Is divinely inspired,
and holy in every syllable 19
4. That the Spiritual Sense of the Word has heretofore remained unknown . . 20
5. That hereaftei the Spiritual Sense of the Word will be made known unto
none, but those who are principled in genuine truths from the Lord. ... 26
III. That the Literal ^nse of the Word is the Basis, the Continent, and the Finna*
ment, of its Spiritual and Celestial Senses 27
IV. That in the Literal Sense of the Word, Divine Truth is in its Fulness, in its
Sanctity, and in its Power . 37
1. That the Truths of the Literal Sense of the Word are meant by the Precious
Stones of which the Foundations of the New Jerusalem were built as men¬
tioned in the Apocalypse, chap. xxi. 17—^21 43
2. That the Truths and Goods of the Literal Sense of the Word are meant by
the Urim and Thummim 44
3. That the Truths of the Literal Sense of the Word are meant by the Precious
Stones in the Garden of Eden, wherein the King of Tyre is said to have been 45
4. That the Literal Sense of the Word is signiñed by the Curtains and Vails of
the Tabernacle 46
5. That the Externals of the Word, or the things appertaining to the Literal
Sense, were represented by the Externals of the Temple at Jerusalem... 47
6. That the Word in its glory was represented in the Person of the Lord at His
Transñguration 48
V. That the Doctrine of the Church ought to be drawn from the Literal Sense of the
Word, and to be confirmed thereby 50
1. That the Word, without Doctrine, cannot be understood 51
2. That Doctrine ought to be drawn from the Literal Sense of.the Word, and to
be cunßrmed thereby 53
3. That genuine Truth, which Doctrine Is to leach, is apparent, in the Literal
Sense of the Word, to those only who are in illustration from the Lord . . 57
VI. That, by the Literal ^nse of the Word, Man has Conjunction with the Lord,
and Consociation with the Angels 62
VII. That the Word is in all the Heavens, and that the Wisdom of the Angels is
thence derived 70
VIII. That the Church exists from the Word, and that, with Man, the Quality of
the Church is acconling to his Understanding of the Word 76
IX. That there is a Marriage of the Lord and Hi« Church, and thence a Marriage of
Good and Truth, in every part of the Word 80
X. That Heretical Opinions may be collected and imbibed from thel^etter of the
Word, but that to confirm such Opinions is hurtful 91
XI. That the Lord came into the World that he might fulfil all things contained in
the Word, and thereby become Divine Truth or the Word in its Ultimates ... 98
XII. That previous to the Word which the World now possesses, there existed a
Word which is lost 101
Xin. That by means of the Word, light is communicated to those who are out of
the ppie of the Church, and are not in possession of the Word 104
XIV. That wr'thout the Word, no one would have any knowledge of God, or of
Heaven.aod Hell, or of a Life after Death, and much less of the Lord 114
THE DOCTRINE
or
THE NEW JERUSALEM
respecting the
SACRED SCRIPTURE.
I. — ThxU the Sacred Scripture, or the Word, is DivÍ7ié
Truth itself.
1. It is universally confessed, that the Word is from God,
is divinely inspired, and of consequence holy ; but still it
has remained a secret to this day in what part of the Word
its divinity resides, inasmuch as in the letter it appears like
a common writing, composed in a strange style, neither so
sublime nor so elegant as that which distinguishes the best
secular compositions. Hence it is, that whosoever worships
nature instead of God, or in preference to God, and in con-
vquence of such worship makes himself and his own pro¬
prium the centre and fountain of his thoughts, instead of
deriving them out of heaven from the Lord, may easily fall
into error concerning the Word, and into contempt for it,
and say within himself whilst he reads it, " What is the
mieaning of this passage ? What is the meaning of that ?
Is it possible this should be divine I Is it possible that God,
whose wisdom is infinite, should speak in this manner ?
Where is its sanctity, or whence can it be derived, but from
superstition and credulity ? "
2. But he who reasons thus does not reflect that Jehovah
the Lord, who is God of heaven and earth, spake the Word
by Moses and the prophets, and that, consequently, it must
be Divine Truth, inasmuch as what Jehovah the Lord Him¬
self speaks can be nothing else ; nor does such a one con¬
sider that the Lord, who is the same with Jehovah, spake
the Word written by the Evangelists, many parts from His
4
own mouth, and the rest from the spirit of His mouth, which
is the Holy Spirit. Hence it is, as He Himself declares, that
in His words there is life, and that He is the light which en¬
lightens, and that He is the truth. That Jehovah himself
spake the Word by the prophets, has been shown in The
Doctbine of the New Jerusalem respecting the Lord, n.
52, 53. That the words which the Lord Himself spake in
the writings of the Evangelists are life,-is declared in John :
" 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 wouldest have asked
of Him, and He would have given thee living water. Who¬
soever 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
10, 14.) By Jacob's well, is here signified the Word, as
also in Deut. xxxiii. 28 ; for which reason the Lord, who is
the Word, sat there, and conversed with the woman ; and
by 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 reason why the words of the Lord are truth and life is,
because He is the truth and the life, as He teaches in John :
" I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life," (xiv. 6;) and in
another place : " 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," (.lohn i. 1, 4.) By
the Word is meant the Lord with respect to Divine Truth,
in which alone there is life and light. Hence it is, that the
Word, which is from the Lord, and which is the Lord, is
called "A fountain of living waters," (Jerem. ii. 13; xvii.
13 ; xxxi. 9 ;) "A well of Salvation," (Isaiah xii. 3 ;)
" A fountain," (Zech. xiii. 1 ;) and " A river of water of
life," (Apoc. xxii. 1 ;) and it is said, that " the Lamb which
is in the midst of the throne shall feed them, and shall lead
them unto living fountains of waters," (Apoc. vii. 17.) Not
to mention other passages, where the Word is also called
the sanctuary, and the tabernacle, wherein the Lord
dwells with man.
s
3. The natural man, however, cannot still be persuaded
to believe, that the Word is Divine Truth itself, in which is
Divine Wisdom and Divine Life, inasmuch as he judges of
it by its style, in which no such things appear. Neverthe¬
less, the style in which the Word is written is a truly Divine
style, with which no other style, however sublime ánd ex¬
cellent it may seem, is at all comparable, for it is as darkness
compared to light. The style of the Word is of such a
nature as to contain what is holy in every verse, in every
word, and in some cases in every letter ; and hence the
Word conjoins man with the Lord, and opens heaven.
There are two things which proceed from the Lord — Divine
Love and Divine Wisdom, or what is the same. Divine Good
and Divine Truth ; for Divine Good is of Divine Love itsejf,
and Diving Truth is of Divine Wisdom itself : and the
Word, in its essence, is both of these ; and inasmuch as it
conjoins man with the Lord, and opens heaven, as just ob¬
served, therefore the Word fills the man who reads it under
the Lord's influence, and not under the influence of his
proprium or self, with the good of love and the truth of wis¬
dom— his will with the good of love, and his understanding
with the truths of wisdom. Hence man has life by and
through the Word.
4. Lest therefore mankind should remain any longer in
doubt concerning the divinity of the Word, it has pleased
the Lord to reveal to me its internal sense, which in its es¬
sence is spiritual, and which is, to the external sense, which
is natural, what,the soul is to the body. This internal sense
is the spirit which gives life to the letter ; wherefore this
sense will evince the divinity and sanctity of the Word, and
may convince even the natural man, if he is in a disposition
to be convinced.
IL — That in the Word there is a Spirittud Seme, heretofore
unktvovon.
This subject we will consider in the following order. 1.
What the spiritual seme is. 2. That this seme is in all and
every part of the Word. 3. That it is owing to this seme
that the Word is divinely inspired, and holy in every syllable.
4. That this seme has been heretofore unknown. 5. That
hereafter it will be made kno^on to none but those who are
principled in genuine truths from the hard.
]*
6
6. 1. WTiat the spiritvxd seme is.
The spiritual sense of the Word is not that which breaks
forth as light out of the literal sense, whilst a person is
studying and explaining the Word, with intent to establish
some particular tenet of the church : this sense may be called
the literal sense of the Word : but the spiritual sense does
not appear in the literal sense, being 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, which
act together as cause and effect. It is this sense, principally,
which renders the Word spiritual, and by which it is adapted
not only to the use of men, but also of angels ; whence,
also, by means of that sense, the Word communicates with
the heavens.
6. From the Lord proceed these principles ; the celestial,
the spiritual, and the natural, one after another. Whatsoever
proceeds from His Divine Love is called celestial, and is
Divine Good ; whatsoever proceeds from His Divine Wisdom
is called spiritual, and is Divine Truth : the natural partakes
of both, and is thejr complex in ultimates. The angels of
the celestial kingdom, who compose the third or highest
heaven, are in that Divine Principle which proceeds from the
Lord that is called celestial, for they are in the good of love
from the Lord ; the angels of the Lord's spiritual kingdom,
who compose the second or middle heaven, are in that Divine
Principle which proceeds from the Lord that is called spirit¬
ual, for they are in the truths of wisdom from the Lord : *
but men, who compose the Lord's church on earth, are in
the Divine-natural, which also proceeds from the Lord.
Hence it follows, that the Divine Principle proceeding from
the Lord, in its progress to its ultimates, descends through
three degrees, and is termed celestial, spiritual, and natural.
The Divine Principle which proceeds from the Lord and
descends to men, descends through those three degrees, and
when^it has descended, it contains those three degrees in
itself. Such is the nature of every Divine Principle pro¬
ceeding from the Lord ; wherefore, when it is in its last
degree, it is in its fulness. Such is the nature and quality
of the Word ; in its last sense it is natural, in its interior
sense it is spiritual, and in its inmost sense it is celestial ;
♦ That there are two kingdoms of which the heavens consist, one
of which is called the celestial kingdom, and the other the spiritual
kingdom, may be seen in the Treatise concerning Heavem amd Heu.,
n. 20—28
7
and in each sense it is divine. That the Word is of such a
nature and quality, does not appear in the sense of the letter,
which is natural, by reason that man has heretofore been
altogether unacquainted with the state of the heavens, and
consequently with the nature of the spiritual principle, and
the celestial, and of course with the distinction between them
and the natural principle.
7. The distinction between these degrees cannot be known,
except by the knowledge of correspondence ; for these three
degrees are altogether distinct from each other, like end,
cause, and effect, or like what is prior, posterior, and pós¬
treme, but yet make one by correspondences ; for the natural
degree or principle corresponds with the spiritual, and also
with the celestial. The nature and meaning of correspon¬
dence may Jpe seen more fully explained in the treatise con¬
cerning Heaven and Hell, being there digested under these
two articles, 1st. Concerning the correspondence of all things
in heaven with all things in man, n. S7—102 ; 2ndly. Con¬
cerning the correspondence of all things in heaven with all
things on earth, n. 103—115; and it will be further seen
below by examples adduced from the Word.
8. Inasmuch as the Word in its interior is spiritual and
celestial, therefore it is written by mere correspondences, and
what is written by mere correspondences, in its ultimate sense
is written in such a style as that of the prophets and evan¬
gelists, which, notwithstanding its apparent commonness,
contains in it all divine and angelic wisdom.
9. II. That the Spiritual Sense is in all and every part
of the Word.
This cannot be better seen than by examples ; as for in¬
stance : John says in the Apocalypse, " 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
V/oRD of God. And the armies which were in heaven fol¬
lowed 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 to all the fowls that fly in the midst of heaven.
Come and gather yourselves together unto the supper of the
8
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," (xix. II¬
IS.) What these words signify cannot jossibly be known,
but from the spiritual sense of the Word ; and the spiritual
sense of the Word cannot possibly be known, but from the
science of correspondences ; for all the above words are cor¬
respondences, and there is not one without a meaning. The
science of correspondences teaches what is signified by a
white horse, what by Him that sat upon him, what by His
eyes which were as a flame of fire, what by the crowns
which He wore on His head, what by His vesture dipped in
blood, what by white linen with which the armies that fol¬
lowed Him in heaven were clothed, what by the angel
standing in the sun, what by the great supper to which they
should come and gather themselves, what by the flesh of
kings, and captains, and others, which they should eat. The
particular signification of all these expressions in their spir¬
itual sense may be seen explained in the small treatise on
the White Horse ; wherefore it is needless to repeat the
explanation. In that work it is shown that, in the passage
here quoted, the Lord is described as to the Word ; and that
by His eyes, which were like a flame of fire, and by the
crowns which He wore on His head, and by the name which
no one knew but Himself, are meant the spiritual sense of
the Word, and that no one knows what the Word is, in its
spiritual sense, except the Lord, and those to whom He
reveals it ; also, that by His vesture dipped in blood is meant
the natural sense of the Word, which is its literal sense, to
which violence has been offered. That it is the Word which
is thus described, is very evident from its being said. His
name is called the Word of God ; and that it is the Lord
who is meant, is likewise evident, for it is said that the name
of Him who sat on the white horse was King of kings and
Lord of lords. That the spiritual sense of the Word is to
be opened 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 by the
angel standing in the sun, to come and to eat the flesh of
kings and captains, of mighty men, of horses, and them
that sat on them, and of men both free and bond. All these
expressions would be idle unmeaning words, and without
9
life and spirit, unless there was a spiritual sense within them,
as the soul is in the body.
10. In the Apocalypse, chap, xxi., the New Jerusalem is
thus described : " Her light was like unto a stone most
precious, even like a jasper-stone, clear as crystal ; and she
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.
And 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 was of jasper ; and the foundations of
all manner of precious stones, of jasper, sapphire, chalcedony,
emerald, sardonyx, sardius, chrysolite, beryl, topaz, chrysop-
rasus, jacinth, and amethyst. And the gates were twelve
pearls. And the city was pure gold, as it were transparent
glass ; and it was four square ; the length, and the breadth,
and the height of it equal twelve thousand furlongs with
many other circumstances. That all these things are to be
understood spiritually, appears from hence ; that by the New
Jerusalem is meant a new church, which is to be established
by the Lord, as is shown in The Doctrine of the Lord, n.
62—65 ; and since by Jerusalem is there signified the church,
it follows of consequence that all things spoken of it as of a
city, respecting its wall, the foundations of the wall, and
their measures, contain a spiritual sense, inasmuch as all
things relating to the church are spiritual. What the ex¬
pressions in the above description particularly signify, is
shown in the work On the New Jerusalem, n. 1 ; where¬
fore it is needless here to repeat the explanation. It is
enough to understand from thence, that there is a spiritual
sense in every part of the description, like a soul in its body,
and that without such a sense the expressions could have no
reference to the church ; as where it is said that the city
was of pure gold, its gates of pearls, the wall of jasper, the
foundations of the wall of precious stones, that the wall was
a hundred and forty-four ciibits, which is the measure of a
man, that is, an angel, and that the city was in length,
breadth, and height, twelve thousand furlongs, with many
other particulars : but whosoever, by the science of corre¬
spondences, is acquainted with the spiritual sense of the
Word, will understand those expressions, and will see, for
instance, that the wall and its foundations signify the doc¬
trinal tenets of the New Church, derived from the literal
sense of the Word ; and that the numbers twelve, one bun-
10
dred and forty-four, twelve thousand, signify similar things
namely, all the truths and goods of the church m one com-
plex.
11. Again, in the Apocalypse, chap, vii., it is written, that
there were sealed, of all the tribes of the children of Israel,
one hundred and forty-four thousand, twelve thousand of
each particular tribe ; of the tribe of Judah, of the tribe of
Reuben, of Gad, of Ashur, of Naphtali, of Manasses, of
Simeon, of Levi, of Issachar, of Zebulon, of Joseph, and
of Benjamin. The spiritual sense of these words teaches,
that all are saved in whom the Lord has established His
church ; for, in a spiritual sense, by being marked in the «
forehead, or sealed, is signified to be acknowledged by the
Lord, and to be saved. By the twelve tribes of Israel are
signified all of that church ; by twelve, twelve thousand
and one hundred and forty-four thousand, are signified all ;
by Israel is signified the church, and by each particular
tribe some particular specific principle or character of the
church. If this spiritual meaning of these words be not
known, it may be imagined that salvation is confined to a
certain number, and to those of the Israelitish and Jewish
nation.
12. Again, in the Apocalypse, chap, vi., it is written, that
when the Lamb opened one of the seals of the book, there
went forth a white horse, and that he who sat thereon had a
bow, and that a crown was given unto him : and that when
he opened the second seal there went forth a red horse, and
that to him who sat thereon was given a great sword : and
that when he opened the third seal, there went forth a black
horse, and that he that sat thereon held in his hand a pair
of balances : and that when he opened the fourth seal, there
went forth a pale horse, and that the name of him who sat
thereon was Death. What these words signify can only be
unfolded by the spiritual sense ; and it is fully unfolded
whén it is known what is signified by opening the seals, by
horses, and by the other things therein mentioned. Thereby
are described the successive states of the church from its
beginning to its end, as to the understanding of the Word :
by the Lamb's opening the seals of the book, is signified the
manifestation of those states of the church by the Lord : by
a horse, is signified the understanding of the Word : by a
white horse, the understanding of truth from the Word in the
first state of the church : by the bow of him that sat upon
that horse, the doctrine of charity and faith combating
11
against false principles : by a crown, eternal life the reward
of victory ; by a red horse, is signified the understanding of
the Word destroyed, as to the principle of good, in the second
state of the church : by a great sword, falsity combating
against truth : by a black horse, is signified the understand¬
ing of the Word destroyed, as to the principle of truth, in
the third state of the church : by a pair of balances, the
estimation of truth so small as scarce to be of any amount :
by a pale horse, is signified the understanding of the Word
annihilated, by the evils of life and the falsities thence
derived, in the fourth and last state of the church : and by
death, eternal damnation. That such is the signification of
the contents of the above passage in the spiritual sense, does
not appear in the sense of the letter, or the natural sense ;
wherefore unless the spiritual sense had been now for once
opened, the Word, as to this and other passages in the Apoc¬
alypse, must have been closed up, so that at length no one
would know how, and in what, anything holy lay therein
concealed. The case is the same, in respect to the significa¬
tion of the four horses and the four chariots that came
forth from between two mountains of brass : see Zechariah
vi. 1—8.
13. Again, in the Apocalypse, chap, ix., it is written,
" The fifth angel sounded, and I saw a star fall from heaven
unto the earth, and to him was given the key of the bottom¬
less pit : and he opened the bottomless pit, and there arose a
smoke out of the pit as the smoke of a great furnace ; and
the sun and the air were darkened by reason of the smoke
of the pit : and there came out of the smoke locusts upon
the earth, and unto them was given power as the scorpions
of the earth have power : the shapes of the locusts were like
unto horses prepared for battle ; and on their heads were as
it were crowns like gold ; and their faces were as the faces
of men, and they had hair as the hair of women, and their
teeth were as the teeth of lions ; and they had breast-plates
as it were breast-plates of iron ; and the sound of their wings
was as the sound of chariots of many horses running to
battle : and they had tails like unto scorpions, and there
were stings in their tails ; and their power was to hurt men
five months : and they had a king over them, which is the
angel of the bottomless pit, whose name in the Hebrew
tongue is Abaddon, but in the Greek tongue hath his name
Apollyon." These words, in like manner, must needs be
unintelligible to every one who is not acquainted by revela-
12
tion with the spiritual sense ; for there is nothing said in
this passage without a meaning, but the whole thereof, and
every particular expression therein, is significative. The
subject here treated of is concerning the state of the church,
when aU the knowledges of truth from the Word are de¬
stroyed, in consequence whereof man, becoming sensual,
persuades himself that falsities are truths. By a star fallen
from heaven, are signified the knowledges of truth destroyed.
by the sun and air being darkened, is signified the light of
truth made darkness : by locusts which came forth from the
smoke of the pit, are signified falsities in the extremes, such
as appertain to those who are become sensual, and who see
and judge all things according to fallacies : by a scorpion, is
signified their persuasive principle or faculty : by the locusts
appearing as horses prepared for battle, is signified their
ratiocinations as from the understanding of truth : by the
locusts having crowns like unto gold upon their heads, and
having faces as the faces of men, is signified that they ap¬
peared to themselves as conquerors and as wise : by their
having hair as the hair of women, is signified that they
appeared to themselves as if they were in the affection of
truth : by their having teeth as lions' teeth, is signified that
sensual things, which are the ultimates of the natural man,
appeared to them as if they had power over all things : by
their having breast-plates as breast-plates of iron, are signi¬
fied argumentations grounded in fallacies, by which they
fight and prevail : by the sound of their wings being as the
sound of chariots of horses running to battle, are signified
ratiocinations as if grounded in the truths of doctrine from
the Word, for which they were to combat : by their having
tails as scorpions, are signified persuasions : by their having
stings in their tails, are signified the cunning arts of deceiv¬
ing thereby : by their having power to hurt men five months,
is ^gnified that they induce a kind of stupor on those who
are principled in the understanding of truth and in the
perception of good : by their having a king over them, the
angel of the bottomless pit, whose name is Abaddon or
Apollyon, is signified that their falsities were from hell, the
abode of those who are merely natural, and principled in
self-intelligence. This is the spiritual sense of these words,
whereof nothing appears in the sense of the letter ; and the
like spiritual sense is contained in every part of the book
of the Apocalypse. It is to be observed, that, in the spiritual
sense, the whole has a regular connection and coherence, to
13
effect and perfect which, each particular expression in the
literal or natural sense is conducive, insomuch that if a
single word were taken away, the connection would be
. broken and the coherence perish ; therefore, to prevent this,
it is added at the end of this prophetical book, that not a
word shall be taken away, (Apoc. xxii. 19.) The case is
similar in regard to the books of the prophets of the Old
Testament ; from which, lest anything should be taken away,
it was effected by the Divine Providence of the Lord, that
each particular therein, even to the letters, should be counted
or numbered ; which was done by the Masorites.
14. Where the Lord speaks to His disciples about the
consummation of the age, which is the last time of the
church, at the end of His predictions concerning its succes¬
sive changes of state, He says, " Immediately after the trib¬
ulation 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 heaven 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.) By these
words, in their spiritual sense, is not meant that the sun and
the moon should be darkened, that the stars should fall from
heaven, and that the sign of the Lord should appear in the
heavens, and that He should be seen in the clouds, attended
by His angels with trumpets ; but by all these expressions
are meant spiritual things relating to the church, of the final
state or period of which, they are spoken. For, in the spir¬
itual sense, by the sun which shall be darkened, is meant
the Lord as to love ; by the moon which shall not give her
light, is meant the Lord as to faith ; by the stars which shall
fall from heaven, are meant the knowledges of truth and
good which would perish ; by the sign of the Son of Man
in heaven, is meant the appearance bf Divine Truth ; by the
tribes of the earth which shall mourn, is meant the failure
of all truth which should be the object of faith, and of all
good which should be the object of love ; by the coming of
the Son of Man in the clouds of heaven with power and
glory, is meant the presence of the Lord in the Word, and
revelation ; by the clouds of heaven is signified the literal
2
14
sense of the Word, and by glory, the spiritual sense ; by the
angels with a great sound of a trumpet, is meant heaven,
whence Divine Truth comes ; by gathering together the elect
from the four winds from one end of heaven to the other, is
meant a new church as to love and faith. That in this pas¬
sage we are not to understand the darkening of the sun and
moon, and the falling of the stars upon the earth, is evident
from the writings of the prophets, where mention is made of
the same circumstances in reference to the state of the church
at the time when the Lord should come into the world ; as
in Isaiah : " Behold, the day of Jehovah cometh, cruel both
with wrath and fierce anger ; for 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 in Joel : " The
day of Jehovah cometh,—a day of darkness—and of thick
darkness. The sun and the 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
Lord's advent, which was at a time when there was no
longer any goodness and truth remaining in the church, nor
any knowledge of the Lord.
15. In order to show more clearly that the prophetical
parts of the Word of the Old Testament are, in many places,
unintelligible without a spiritual sense, I shall here ad¬
duce a few passages ; as this in Isaiah : " Jehovah of hosts
shall stir up a scourge for him, according to the slaughter of
Midian at the rock of Oreb ; and as his rod was upon the
sea, so shall he lift it up after the manner of Egypt. And it
shall come to pass in that day, that his burden shall be taken
away from off thy shoulder, and his yoke from off thy neck.
He is come to Aiath, he shall pass to Migron, at Michmash
he hath laid up his carriages. They are gone over the pas¬
sage ; they have taken up their lodging at Gebah Eamah is
afraid, Gibeah of Saul is fled. Lift up thy voice, O daugh¬
ter of Gallim, cause it to be heard unto, O Laish, O poor
Anathoth ; Madmenah is removed ; the inhabitants of Ge-
bim gather themselves together ; as yet shall he remain
at Nob that day; he shall shake his hand against the
15
mount of the daughter of Zion ; the hill of Jerusalem,
he shihl cut down the thickets of the forests with iron, and
Lebanon shall fall by a mighty one," (x. 26—34.) In this
passage there , occur only mere names, from which no mean¬
ing can be drawn but by the help of the "spiritual sense ; in
which sense, all names throughout the Word signify things
appertaining to heaven and the church. By virtue of this
sense is discovered the signification of the contents of the
above passage, as denoting that the whole church was
brought into devastation by means of scientifics perverting
all truth, and confirming all falsity. Again, in the same
prophet : " In that day, the envy also of Ephraim shall de¬
part, and the adversaries of Judah shall be cut oflTj Ephraim
shall not envy Judah, and Judah shall not vex Ephraim;
but they shell fiy upon the shoulders of the Philistines
toward the west, they shall spoil them of the east together ;
they shall lay their hand upon Edom and Moab. Jehovah
shall utterly destroy the tongue of the Egyptian sea, and
with His mighty wind shall He shake His hand over the
river, and shall smite it in the seven streams, and make men
go over dry-shod ; and there shall be a highway for the rem¬
nant of His people which shall be left from Assyria," (xi. 13
—16.) In this passage, also, it is impossible to see anything
divine, unless it be known what is signified by each particu¬
lar name, notwithstanding the subject here treated of is con¬
cerning the coming of the Lord, and what shall come to pass
at that time, as plainly appears from verses It—10 : without
the help, therefore, of the spiritual sense, how is it possible
for any one to discern the genuine signification of these
words in their order, as denoting that they who through ig¬
norance are principled in falses, and do not suffer themselves
to be seduced by evils, will come to the Lord, and that the
Word will then be understood by the church, and that fal¬
sities will then be no longer hurtful to them. The case is
the same in those passages where no names occur, as in
Ezekiel : " Thus saith the Lord Jehovah ; Thou son of man,
speak unto every feathered fowl, and to every beast of the
field. Assemble yourselves, and come; gather yourselyes
from every side to my sacrifice which 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 ;—ye shall eat fat till ye be full, and drink blood
till ye be drunken, of my sacrifice which I have sacrificed
16
for you. Ye shall be filled at my table with horses and
chariots, with mighty men, and with all men of war. And
I will set my glory amongst the heathen," (xxxix. 17—21.)
If it be not known by the spiritual sense what is signified by
sacrifice, what by flesh and blood, what by horses and chari¬
ots, mighty men, and men of war. it must needs appear as
if those things were to be eaten and drunken ; but the spir¬
itual sense teaches, that by eating flesh and drinking blood
of the sacrifice which the Lord Jehovah shall sacrifice on
the mountains of Israel, is signified to appropriate Divine
Good and Divine Truth from the Word ; for this passage
treats of the calling together of all to the Lord's kingdom, and
in particular of the establishment of the church amongst the
Gentiles by the Lord. Who cannot see that by flesh is not
here meant flesh, nor by blood, blood?—as where it is said
that they should drink blood till they were drunken, and
that they should be filled with horses, chariots, mighty men,
and all men of war ? The case is similar in a thousand
other passages in the prophets.
16. Without the spiritual sense it is impossible for any
one to know why the prophet Jeremiah was commanded to
buy himself a girdle, and put it on his loins, and not to
draw it through the waters, but to go to Euphrates, and hide
it there in a hole in the rock, (Jer. xiii. 1—7;) or why Isaiah
the prophet was commanded to loose the sackcloth from off
his loins, and to put off his shoe from off" his foot, and to go
naked and barefoot three years, (Isaiah xx. 2, 3 ;) or why
Ezekiel the prophet was commanded to make a razor pass
upon his head, and upon his beard, and afterwards to divide
them, and to burn a third part in the midst of the city, and
to smite a third part with the sword, and to scatter a third
part in the wind, and to bind a little of theip in his skirts,
and at last to cast them into the midst of the fire, (Ezek. v.
1-^4;) or why the same prophet was commanded to lie
upon his left side three hundred and ninety days, and upon
his right side forty days, and to make himself a cake of
wheat, and barley, and millet, and fitches, with cow's dung,
and eat it ; and in the mean time to raise a rampart and a
mound against Jerusalem, and besiege it, (Ezek. iv. 1—15 ;)
or why Hosèa was twice commanded to take to himself a
harlot to wife, (Hosea i. 2—9 ; iii. 2, 3 ;) with several other
things of a like nature. Moreover, who can know, without
the spiritual sense, what is signified by all things appertain¬
ing to the tabernacle ; as by the ark, the mercy-seat, the
17
cherubim, the candlestick, the altar of incense, the shew
bread on the table, and the vails and curtains ? Or who
would knovy, without the spiritual sense, what is signified
by Aaron's holy garments; as by his coat, his cloak, the
ephod, the urim arid thummim, the-mitre, and several things
besides ? Or, without the spiritual sense, who would know
what is signified by all those particulars which were en¬
joined concerning burnt-offerings, sacrifices, meat-offerings,
and drink-offerings ; and also concerning sabbaths and
feasts ? The truth is, that nothing was enjoined, be it ever
so minute, but what was significative of something apper¬
taining to the Lord, to heaven, and to the church. From
these few instances, then, it may be plainly seen, that there
is a spiritual sense in all and every part of the Word.
17. That tjie Lord, during his abode in the world, spoke
by correspondences, and thus both spiritually and naturally
at the same time, may appear from His parables, in which
every single expression contains in it a spiritual sense. As,
for example, in the parable of the ten virgins. He says,
" Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten
virgins, who 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. Whilst the bridegroom tarried, they all slum¬
bered 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. 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, th% bridegroom came ; and they that were ready
went in with him to the marriage, and the door was shut.
Afterward 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—13.) That there is a
spiritual sense in every part of this parable, and consequently
a divine holiness, can only be seen by those who are apprized
of the existence of a spiritual sense, and are acquainted with
its nature. In the spiritual sense, by the kingdom of God
is meant heaven and the church; by the bride^oom, the
Lord ; by a wedding, the marriage of the Lord with heaven
and the church by the good of love and faith; by vir-
2#
18
gins, those who belong to the church ; by ten, ail ; by five,
some part ; by lamps, the truths of faith ; by oil, the good
of love ; by sleeping and awaking, the life of man in the
world, which is natural life, and his life after death, which
is spiritual ; by buying, tc procure for themselves ; by going
to them that sell and buying oil, to procure for themselves
the good of love from others after death ; and because this is
then impracticable, therefore, although they came with their
lamps and the oil they had bought to the marriage door, yet
the bridegroom said unto them, " I know you not the rea¬
son is, because man, after the conclusion of his life in this
world, retains the nature and quality which he had acquired
by that life. From heqpe it is evident, that the Lord spoke
by mere correspondences, and this in consequence of speak¬
ing from the Divinity which was in Him, and belonged to
Him. That the bridegroom signifies the Lord, that the
kingdom of God.signifies heaven and the church, and that a
marriage signifies the Lord's marriage with the church,
by the good of love and of faith ; that virgins signify those
who are of the church; ten, all; five, some; to sleep, a nat¬
ural state ; to buy, to procure for themselves ; a door, entrance
into heaven ; and not to know v/ben spoken by the Lord,
not to be principled in the love of Him;—all this may
appear from many passages in the prophetical parts of the
Word, where the same expressions have a similar significa¬
tion. Because virgins signify those who belong to the church,
therefore in the prophetical parts of the Word we find so fre¬
quent mention made of the 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 Israelit-
ish church were anointed with oil. It is also similar in
respect to the other parables, and all the words spoken by the
Lord; and it was from this ground that the L<frd declares that
his " words are spirit and are life," (John vi. 63.) The case is
fhe same with all the Lord's miracles, which were divine, as
signifying various states amongst those with whom ithe church
was to be established by the Lord. Thus when the blind
received sight, it signified, that they who were in ignorance
of the truth should receive understanding : when the deaf
received hearing, it signified, that they who had heard noth¬
ing before concerning the Lord, and concerning the Word,
should hearken and obey : when the dead were raised, it signi¬
fied, that they who otherwise would have spiritually perished
should become alive : and so in other cases. This is meant
19
by the Lord's reply to the disciples of John, who sent to ask
whether He was He who should come : "Go and show John
again those things which ye do hear and see : the blind
receive their sight, and the lame walk, the lepers are
cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, and the
poor have the Gospel preached to them," (Matt. xi. 3, 4, 5.)
Moreover, all the miracles related in the Word contain in
them such things as relate to the Lord, to heaven, and the
church ; on which account they are divine miracles, and are
distinguished frotn miracles not divine. These few observa¬
tions may serve to illustrate the nature and meaning of the
spiritual sense of the Word, and to show that it exists in the
whole of it, and in every part. •
18. III. That it is owing to the spiritual sense that the
Word is divinely inspired, and holy in every syllable. It is
asserted in the church, that the Word is holy, inasmuch as
Jehovah God spoke it ; but because its holiness does not
appear in its literal sense, they who once begin to doubt
about its "holiness on that account, in the future course of
their reading confirm their doubts by many passages they
meet with, suggesting these questions : " Can this be holy ?
Can this be divine?" In order, therefore, to prevent the
influence of such doubts on men's minds, lest they should
destroy the Lord's conjunction with the church that is in
possession of the Word, it has pleased the Lord, at this time,
to reveal its spiritual sense, for the purpose of discovering to
mankind in what part of it its divine sanctity lies concealed.
But to illustrate this, let us apply to examples. In the Word
we find frequent mention made, sometimes of Egypt, some¬
times of Assyria, sometimes of Edom, of Moab, of the chil¬
dren of Ammon, of Tyre and Sidon, and of Gog : they, now,
who do not knqw that by those names things relating to
heaven a'nd the church are signified, may easily be led into
the erroneous notion, that the Word treats much of people
and nations, and but little of heaven and the church—thus
much about earthly things, and but little about heavenly
things ; whereas, were such persons acquainted with what
is signified by those people and nations, or by their names,
this might be a means to lead them out of error into truth.
In like manner, when it is observed, that in the "Word fre¬
quent mention is made of gardens, groves, and woods ; and
also of the trees that grow therein, as the olive, the vine, the
cedar, the poplar, and the oak ; and also of lambs, shfiep,
goats, calves, oxen; and likewise of mountains, hills, val-
20
leys, fountains, rivers, waters, and the like : he who knows
nothing of the spiritual sense of the Word must of necessity be
led to suppose, that nothing further is meant by these things
than what is expressed in the letter; for he little thinks that
by a garden, a grove, and a wood, are meant wisdom, intel¬
ligence, and science ; that by the olive, the vine, and the
cedar, the poplar, and the oak, are meant the good and truth
of the church, under the different qualities of celestial, spir¬
itual, rational, natural, and sensual; that by a lamb, a sheep,
a goat, a calf, and an ox, are meant innocence, charity, and
natural affection ; that by mountains, hills, and valleys, are
meant the higher, the lower, and the lowest things relating
to the church. The case is in like manner altered, when
the reader is aware, that by Egypt is signified what is scien¬
tific, by Assyria what is rational, by Edom what is natural,
by Moab the adulteration of good, by the children of Ammon
the adulteration of truth, by Tyre and Sidon the knowl¬
edges of goodness and truth, and by Gog external wor¬
ship without internal. When the mind is open to this
knowledge, it may then be able to conceive that the Word
treats solely of heavenly things, and that the earthly things
mentioned in it are only the subjects wherein those heavenly
ones are contained. But it may be expedient to illustrate
this also by an example taken from the Word. It is written
in David : " The voice of Jehovah is upon the waters : the
God of glory thundereth ; Jehovah is upon many waters ;
the voice of Jehovah breaketh the cedars : yea, Jehovah
breaketh the cedars of Lebanon ; He maketh them also to
skip like a calf, Lebanon and Sirion, like a young unicorn :
the voice of Jehovah divideth the flames of fire ; the voice
of Jehovah shaketh the wilderness, Jehovah shaketh the wil¬
derness of Kadesh ; the voice of Jehovah maketh the hinds
to calve, and discovereth the forests ; but in His ternple doth
#very one speak of His glory," (Psalm xxix. 3—9.) In this
passage, if the reader is not aware that all the particulars
thereof are holy and divine as to each single expression, he
may say within himself, if he be a merely natural man,
" What can this mean, that Jehovah sits upon the waters,
that by His voice He breaks the cedars, that He causes them
to skip like a calf, and Lebanon like a young unicorn, and
that He causes the hinds to calve ;" not to mention other
Particulars ; for he knows not that the power of Divine
'ruth, or the Word, is described by these things in the spir¬
itual sense ; for in that sense, by the voice of Jehovah, which
21
is there called thunder, is meant the Divine Truth or Word
in its power ; by the many waters on which Jehovah sits,
are meant the truths thereof; by cedars and by Lebanon,
which He breaks and bruises, are meant the falsities of the
rational man ; by a calf and a young unicorn, are meant the
falsities of the natural and sensual man ; by a flame of fire,
the affection of falsity ; by the wilderness, and the wilder¬
ness of Kadesh, the church where there is no truth and
goodness ; by hinds, which the voice of Jehovah causes to
calve, are meant the Gentiles who are principled in natural
good ; and by the forests which He discovers, are meant the
sciences and knowledges which the Word opens to them :
wherefore it follows, that in His temple every one declares
glory ; by which is meant, that in all the particulars of the
Word there are contained divine truths ; for a temple signi¬
fies the Lord, and consequently the Word, and also heaven
and the church, and glory signifies Divine Truth. Hence it
appears, that there is not a single expression in this passage,
but what describes the divine power of the Word put forth
against falsities of every kind amongst natural men, apd the
divine power exerted in reforming the Gentiles.
19. There is in the Word a sense still more internal,
which is called Celestial, concerning which somewhat was
said above, n. 6 ; but this sense cannot easily be unfolded,
not being so much the object of intellectual thought, as of
will-affection. The true ground and reason why there is in
the Word a sense still more interior, which is callad celes
tial, is, because from the Lord proceed Divine Good and
Divine Truth—Divine Good from His Divine Love, and
Divine Truth from His Divine Wisdom; each is in the
Word, for the Word is the divine proceeding. It is on this
account that the Word imparts life to those that read it under
holy influence ; but more will be said on this subject in
another place, where it will be shown that a marriage of
the Lord with the church, and consequently a marriage of
goodness and truth, is contained in every particular of the
Word.
20. IV. That the spiritual seme of the Word has hereto¬
fore remained uriknown. That all things in nature, both in
general and in particular, correspond to things spiritual, and,
in like manner, all and singular the things in the human body,
is shown in the treatise concerning Heaven and Hell, n.
87—105. But what is meant by correspondence, has to this
day remained unknown, notwithstanding it was a subject
22
most familiar to the men of the most ancient times, who
esteemed it the chief of sciences, and cultivated it so univer¬
sally, that all their books and tracts were written by cor¬
respondences. The book of Job, which was a book of the
ancient church, is full of correspondences. The hieroglyph¬
ics of the Egyptians, and the fabulous stories of antiquity,
were founded on the same science. All the ancient churches
were churches representative of spiritual things ; and their
ceremonies, and also their statutes, which were rules for the
institution of their worship, consisted of mere correspon¬
dences; in like manner, everything in the Israelitish church,
their burnt-offerings and sacrifices, with all the particulars
belonging to each, were correspondences: so also was the
tabernacle, with all things bontained in it; and likewise
their festivals, as the feast of unleavened bread, the feast of
tabernacles, the feast of the first fruits ; also, the priesthood
of Aaron and the Levites, and their garments of holiness ;
and beside the things above-mentioned, all their statutes and
judgments, relating to worship and life, were correspon¬
dences. Now, forasmuch as divine things fix their existence
in ouîward nature in correspondences, therefore the Word
was written by mere correspondences ; and for the same rea¬
son the Lord, in consequence of speaking from Divinity,
spoke by correspondences ; for whatever proceeds from Di¬
vinity, when it comes into outward nature, manifests itself in
such outward things as correspond with what is divine;
which outward things become then the depositories of divine
things, otherwise called celestial and spiritual, which lie con¬
cealed within them.
21. I have been informed, that the men of the Most
Ancient Church, which was before the flood, were of so
heavenly a genius, that they conversed with angels, and
that they had the power of holding such converse by means
of correspondences ; hence the state of their wisdom became
such, that, on viewing any of the objects of this world, they
not only- thought of them naturally, but also spiritually, thus
in conjunction with the angels of heaven. I have been fur¬
ther informed, that Enoch, who is spoken of in Genesis,
chap. v. 21—24, together with his associates, collected cor¬
respondences from the lips of the celestial inen, and trans¬
mitted the science of them to posterity ; in consequence of
which, the science of correspondences was not only known in
many kingdoms of Asia, but also much cultivated, particu¬
larly in the land of Canaan, Egypt, Assyria Chaldea, Syria,
23
and Arabia, and in Tyre, Sidon, and Ninevah ; and that
from thence it was conveyed into Greece, where it was
changed into fable, as may appear from the works of the
oldest writers of that country.
22. But as the representative rites of the church, which
were correspondences, began in process of time to be cor¬
rupted by idolatrous and likewise magical applications of
them, therefore the science of correspondences was, by the
divine providence of the Lord, gradually lost, and amongst
the Israelitish and Jewish people entirely obliterated. The
divine worship of that people consisted indeed of mere corre¬
spondences, and consequently was representative of heavenly
things ; but still they had no knowledge of a single thing
represented ; for they were altogether natural men, and
therefore had neither inclination nor ability to gain any
knowledge of %piritual and celestial subjects : for the same
reason they were necessarily ignorant of correspondences,
these being representations of things spiritual and celestial
in things natural.
23. The reason why the idolatries of the Gentiles of old
took their rise from the science of correspondences, was, be¬
cause all things that appear on the face of the earth have
correspondence ; consequently, not only trees and vegetables,
but also beasts and birds of every kind ; with físhes and all
other things. The ancients, who were versed in the science
of correspondences, madé themselves images which corre¬
sponded with heavenly things ; and were greatly delighted
with them by reason of their signification, and because they
could discern in them what related to heaven and the church :
they therefore placed those images not only in their temples,
but also in their houses ; not with any intention to worship
them, but to serve as means of recollecting the heavenly
things signified by them. Hence in Egypt, and in other
places, they made images of calves, oxen, and serpents, and
also of children, old men, and virgins ; because calves and
oxen signified the affections and powers of the natural man ;
serpents, the prudence of the sensual man ; children, inno¬
cence and charity; old men, wisdom; and virgins, the affec¬
tions of truth ; and so in other instances. Succeeding ages,
when the science of correspondences was obliterated, began
to adore as holy, and at length to worship as deities, the
images and resemblances set up by their forefathers, because
they found them in and about their temples. The case was
the same with other nations ; as with the Philistines in Ash-
M
dod, whose god Dagon (concéming whom, see 1 Sam. v. 1
to the end) was, in its upper part, like a man, and in its
lower part like a fish ; the reason of which was, because a
man signifies intelligence, and a fish science, which make a
one. For the same reason, the ancients performed their
worship in gardens and in groves, according to the diflferent
kinds of trees growing in them, and also on mountains and
hills ; for gardens and groves signified wisdom and intelli¬
gence, and every particular tree something that had relation ^
thereto; as the olive, the good of love ; the vina, truth de¬
rived from that good ; the cedar, good and truth rational ; a
mountain signified the highest heaven ; a hill, the heaven
beneath. That the science of correspondences remained
amongst many eastern nations, even till the coming of the
Lord, may appear also from the wise men of the east who
visited the Lord at His nativity ; wherefore a star went be¬
fore them, and they brought with them gifts, gold, frankin¬
cense, and myrrh, (Matt, ii., 1, 2, 9, 10, 11;) for the star
which went before them signified knowledge from heaven ;
gold signified celestial good ; frankincense, spiritual good ;
and myrrh, natural good ; which are the three constituents
of all worship. But still there was no knowledge whatever
of the science of correspondences amongst the Israelitish and
Jewish people, although all parts of their worship, and all
the statutes and judgments given them by Moses, and all
things contained in the Word, were mere correspondences :
the reason was, because they were idolaters at heart, and
consequently of such a nature and genius, that they were
not even willing to know that any part of their worship had
a celestial and spiritual signification, for they believed that
all the parts of it were holy of themselves ; wherefore had
the celestial and spiritual significations been revealed to
them, they would not only have rejected, but also have pro¬
faned them ; for this reason heaven was so shut to them,
Äat they scarcely knew whether there was such a thing as
eternal life. That such was the case with them, appears
evident from the circumstance, that they did not acknowl¬
edge the Lord, although the whole Scripture throughout
prophesied concerning Him, and foretold His coming; and
they rejected Him solely on this account, because He in¬
structed them about a heavenly kingdom, and not about an
earthly one ; for they wanted a Messiah who should exalt
them above all nations in the world, and not a Messiah who
should provide only for their eternal salvation They affirm
25
however, that in the Word are contained many arcana,
which are called mystical ; but they have no inclination to
learn that those arcana relate to the Lord. Tell them that
they relate to gold, and they immediately desire to know
them.
24. The reason why the science of correspondences, which
is the key to the spiritual sense of the Word, was not dis¬
covered to later ages, was because the Christians of the
primitive church were men of such great simplicity, that it
was impossible to discover it to them ; for had it been dis¬
covered, they would have found no use in it, nor would they
have understood it. After those first ages of Christianity,
there arose thick clouds of darkness, and overspread the
whole Christian world, in consequence of the establishment
of the papal* dominion ; and they who are subject thereto,
and have confirmed themselves in its false doctrines, have
neither capacity nor inclination to apprehend anything of a
spiritual nature, consequently, what is the nature of the
correspondence of things natural with things spiritual in the
Word : for by this they would be convinced, that by Peter
is not meant Peter, but the Lord as a rock, signified by
Peter : and they would also be convinced, that the Word,
even to its inmost contents, is divine, and that the papal
decrees respectively are of no account. But after the refor¬
mation, as men began to divide faith from charity, and to
worship God under three persons, consequently, three gods,
whom they conceive to be one, therefore at that time heav¬
enly truths were concealed from them : for if they had been
discovered they would* have been falsified, and would have
been abused to the confirmation of faith alone without being
at all applied to charity and love : thus also men would have
closed heaven against themselves.
25. The reason why the spiritual sense of the Word is at
this day made known by the Lord, is, because the doctrine
of genuine truth is now revealed ; and this doctrine, and no
other, agrees with the spiritual sense of the Word. This
sense is likewise signified by the Lord's appearing in the
clouds with glory and power, (see Matthew xxiv. 30, 31 :
wdiich treats of the consummation of the age, by which is
meant the last time of the church.) The opening of the
Word as to its spiritual sense was also promised in the
Apocalypse, and that sense is there meant by the white
horse, and by the great supper to which all are invited,
(chap. xix. 11—18.) That the spiritual sense for a long
26
time will not be acknowledged, and that this will he solely
owing to the influence of those who are principled in falsities
of doctrine, particularly concerning the Lord, and therefore
do not admit truths, is meant in the Apocalypse hy the
beast, and hy the kings of the earth, who would make war
with him that sat on the white horse, (chap. xix. 19 :) hy
the beast are meant the Roman Catholics, (as chap. xvii. 3:)
and hy the kings of the earth are meant the Reformed, who
are principled in falsities of doctrine.
26. V. That hereafter the spiritual sense of the Word
will be made known unto none, hut those who are principled
in genuine truths from the Lord. The reason is, because
no one can see the spiritual sense, except it he given him hy
the Lord alone, and except he he principled in divine truths
from the Lord. For the spiritual sense of the Word treats
solely of the Lord and of His kingdom, and that is the sense
which His angels in heaven are in the perception of, for it is
His divine truth there. This it is possible for man to violate,
supposing him versed in the science of correspondences, and
desirous thereby to explore the spiritual sense of the Word,
under the influence of his own self-derived intelligence
alone ; for hy some correspondences with which he is ac¬
quainted, he may pervert the spiritual sense, and force it
even to confirm what is false ; and this would he to ofler
violence to divine truth, and consequently to heaven also ;
wherefore, if any one wishes to open that sense hy virtue
of his own power, and not of the Lord's, heaven is closed
against him ; in, which case he either loses sight of all truth,
or falls into spiritual insanity. To this may he added an¬
other reason, namely, that the Lord teaches every one hy
means of the Word, and grounds His teaching on the knowl¬
edges which man is in possession of, never infusing new
ones immediately : wherefore, unless a man he principled in
divine truths, or if he he only in possession of a few truths,
Änd in falsities at the same time, he may falsify truths hy
falsities, as is done hy every heretic, as is well known, with
regard to the literal sensé of the Word. To prevent, there¬
fore, any person from entering into the spiritual sense, and
perverting the genuine truth which belongs to that sense,
there are guards set hy the Lord, which are signified in the
Word hy the cherubs. This was made known to me hy the
following representation : " It was given to me to see great
purses which had the appearance of hags, in which money
was stored up in great abundance : and as they were open,
27
it seemed as if any one might take out, yea, steal away, the
money therein deposited ; but near those two purses sat two
angels as guards. The place where they were laid appeared
like a manger, in a stable. In a neighboring apartment
were seen modest virgins with a chaste wife : and near that
apartment stood two infants, and information was given that
they were to be treated in their sports, not in a childish way,
but according to wisdom. Afterwards there appeared a
harlot ; and, lastly, a horse lying dead. .On seeing these
things I was instructed; that thereby was represented the
literal sense of the Word, in which is contained the spiritual
sense. Those large purses full of money signified the
knowledges of truth in great abundance. Their being open,
and yet guarded by angels, signified that any one might take
thence the knowledges of truth, but that there was need of
caution lest "he should falsify the spiritual sense, in which
are naked truths. The manger in the stable, in which the
purses lay, signified spiritual instruction for the understand¬
ing ; this is the signification of a manger, because a horse
that feeds there signifies understanding. The modest virgins
who were seen in a neighboring apartment, signified the
affections of truth ; and the chaste wife signified the con¬
junction of goodness and truth. The infants signified the
innocence of wisdom therein; they were angels from the
third heaven, who all appear as infants. The harlot with
the dead horse, signified the falsification of the Word by
many at this day, whereby all understanding of the Word is
destroyed : a harlot signifies falsification, and a dead horse
signifies the non-understanding of truth."
III.— That the Literal Sense of the Word is the Basis, the
Conthient, and the Firmament, of its Spiritual and Celes¬
tial Senses.
27. In every divine work there is a first, a middle, and a
last, and the first passes though the middle to the last, and
thereby exists and subsists ; hence the last is the basis. The
first also is in the middle, and by means of the middle in
the last ; and thus the last is the continent. And because
the last is the continent and the basis, it is also the firma
ment
28 The learned reader will be able to comprehend the
28
propriety of calling those three, end, cause, and effect, and
a\so esse, fieri, zxià. existere ; * and that the end answers to
esse, the cause to fieri, and the effect to existere ; conse¬
quently, that in every complete thing there is a trinity,
which is called first, middle, and last ; likewise end, cause,
and effect; and also, esse,fieri, and existere. He who com¬
prehends this reasoning will be able to comprehend also, that
every divine work is complete and perfect in the last ; and
likewise that in the last is contained the whole, because the
prior things are contained together in it.
29. From this ground it is, that by the nuniber three, in
the Word, according to its spiritual sense, is signified what
is complete and perfect ; and also, the all or whole together.
Because this is the signification of that number, therefore it
is so frequently applied in the Word, when that signification
is intended to be expressed ; as in the following places : —
Isaiah was to go naked and barefoot three years, (Isaiah xx.
3 ;) Jehovah called Samuel three times, and Samuel ran
three times to Eli, and Eli understood him the third time,
(1 Sam. iii. 1—8;) David said to Jonathan, that he would
hide himself in the field three days ; and Jonathan afterwards
shot three arrows beside the stone ; and David, lastly, bowed
himself three times before Jonathan, (1 Sam. xx. 5. 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
should deny Him thrice, (Matt. xxvi. 34 ;) Jesus said three
times unto 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. Destroy this temple, and in
three days I will raise it up," (John ii. 19 ;) Jesus prayed
three times in the garden of Gethsemane, (Matt. xxvi. 39—
44 ;) Jesus rose again on the third day, (Matt, xxviii. 1 ;)
beside many other passages, where the number three is
mentioned ; and it is mentioned where a work finished and
perfect is the subject treated of, because such a work is sig-
nifiéd by that number.
30. "rhese observations are premised with a view to the
conclusions which follow, in order that they may be intellec-
♦ These terms literally signify, to he, to become, and to exist.
29
tually comprehended ; particularly at present, that it may be
fully understood, that the natural sense of the Word, which
is its literal sense, is the basis, continent, and firmament, of
its spiritual and celestial senses.
31. That in the Word there are three senses, was shown
above, n. 6, 19 ; also, that the celestial sense is its first
sense, the spiritual sense its middle sense, and the natural
sense its last sense ; hence the rational man may conclude,
that the first, which is celestial, passes by its middle, which
is spiritual, to its last, which is natural ; and that thus its
last is the basis : also, that its first, which is celestial, is in
its middle, which is spiritual, and by this in its last, which
is natural ; and hence its last which is natural, and is the
literal sense of the Word, is the continent ; and whereas it
is the contiiient and basis, that it is also the firmament.
32. But how these things are, would require many pages
to explain fully, as they are arcana of heaven, and subjects
of angelic contemplation ; nevertheless, they will be eluci¬
dated as far as possible, in the treatises on Angelic Wisdom
CONCERNING THE DiVlNE LoVE AND WiSDOM, and CONCERNING
THE Divine Providence. It is sufficient for the present, if,
from what has been said above, we are enabled to draw this
conclusion : that in the Word, which is a divine work ex¬
pressly given for the salvation of mankind, the ultimate
sense, which is natural, and is called the literal sense,
is the basis, continent, and firmament of the two interior
senses.
33. Hence it follows, that the Word, without its literal
sense, would be like a palace without a foundation ; that is,
like a palace in the air and not on the ground, which could
only be the shadow of a palace, and must vanish away;
also, that the Word, without its literal sense, would be like
a temple in which there are many holy things, and in the
midst thereof the holy of holies, without a roof and walls
to form the continents thereof ; in which case its holy things
would be plundered by thieves, or be violated by the beasts
of the earth and the birds of heaven, and thus be dissipated.
In the same manner, it would be like the tabernacle, in the
inmost place whereof was the ark of the covenant, and in
the middle part the golden candlestick, the golden altar for
incense, and also the table for show-Wad, which were its
holy things, without its ultimates, which were the curtains
and vails. Yea, the Word without its literal sense would
be like the human body without its coverings, which are
30
called skins, and without its supporters, which are called
bones, of which, supposing it to be deprived, its inner parts
must of necessity be dispersed and perish. It would also be
like the heart and the lungs in the thorax, deprived of their
covering, which is called the pleura, and their supporters,
which are called the ribs ; or like the brain without its cover¬
ings, which are called the dura mater and pia mater, and
without its common covering, continent, and firmament,
which is called the skull. Such would be the state of the
Word without its literal sense ; wherefore it is said in
Isaiah, that " the Lord will create upon all the glory a cov»
ering," (iv. 5.)
34. Similar to this would be the state of the heavens,
where the angels dwell, without the world, where men
dwell ,* mankind being the basis, continent, and firmament
thereof, and the Word being with men and in them. For
all the heavens are distinguished into two kingdoms, which
are called the celestial kingdom and the spiritual kingdom ;
and these two kingdoms are founded on the natural kingdom,
the subjects of which are men.*
35. That the prophets of the Old Testament represented
the Lord as to the Word, and thereby signified the doctrine
of the church derived from the Word, and that hence they
were called sons of man, was shown in the Doctrine re¬
specting the Lord, n. 28 ; whence it follows, that by the
various things which they suffered and endured, they repre¬
sented the violence offered by the Jews to the literal sense
of the Word ; as where Isaiah was commanded to put off
the sackclôth from his loins, and his shoes from his feet, and
to go naked and barefoot three years, (Isaiah xx. 2, 3 ;) in
like manner where Ezekiel was commanded to take a bar¬
ber's razor, and cause it to pass upon his head and upon his
beard, and to burn a third part in the midst of the city, and
tq smite a third part with the sword, and to disperse a third
part to the wind, and to bind a little thereof in his skirts,
and at length to cast it in the midst of the fire and burn it,
(Ezek. v. 1—4.) The ground and reason of this signification
and representation, is, because by the head is signified wis¬
dom derived from the Word, hence by the hair and by the
beard is signified the ultimate of truth. In consequence of
this signification it was a mark of great mourning, and also
• That the angelic heavens are distinguished into two kingdoms,
the celestial and the spiritual, may be seen in the treatise on Heátbs
»nd Hell, n 20—28.
31
\ great disgrace, for any one to make himself bald, and
likewise to appear bald. For this cause, and no other, the
prophet was directed to shave the hair of his head and his
beard, that thereby he might represent the state of the Jewish
church as to the Word : this, too, and no other, was the
reason, why the forty and two children, who called Elisha
bald head, were torn in pieces by two bears, (2 Kings ii. 23,
24, 25 ;) for the prophet, as was before observed, represented
the Word, and baldness signifies the Word without its ulti¬
mate sense. That the Nazarites represented the Lord as to
jhe Word in its ultimates, will be seen below, n. 49 ; and
therefore it was an ordinance with them that they should
cause their hair to grow, and should shave no part of it : the
term Nazarite, also, in the Hebrew tongue, signifies the head
of hair. It jvas also an ordinance for the high priest, that
he should- not shave his head, (Levit. xxi. 10 ;) and in like
manner for the father of a family, (Levit. xxi. 5.) Hence it
was that baldness was esteemed a great disgrace ; as may
appear from the following passages : " On all their heads
shall be baldness, and every beard shall be cut off," (Isaiah
XV. 2 ; Jerem. xlviii. 37.) " Shame shall be upon all faces,
and baldness upon all their heads," (Ezek. vii. 18.) " Every
head was made bald, and every shoulder was peeled," (Ezek.
xxix. 18.) " I will bring up sackcloth upon all loins, and
baldness upon every head," (Amos viii. 10.) " Make thee
bald, and poll thee for thy delicate children, enlarge thy
baldness as the eagle ; for they are gone into captivity from
thee," (Micah. i. 16 ;) where, by putting on and enlarging
baldness, is signified to falsify the truths of the Word in its
ultimates ; for when these are falsified, as was done by the
Jews, the whole Word is destroyed : for the ultimates of the
Word are its props and supports, yea, every single expression
is a prop and support of its celestial and spiritual truths. As
hair of the head signifies truth in its ultimates, therefore, in
the spiritual world, all who despise the Word, and falsify its
literal sense, appear bald ; but they who honor and love it,
appear adorned with decent and becoming hair. On this
subject see also below, n. 49.
36. The Word in its ultimate or natural sense, which is
the sense of the - letter, is signified also by the wall of the
holy Jerusalem, the building whereof was jasper ; and by
the foundations of the wall, which were precious stones : and
also by the gates, which were pearls, (Rev. xxi. 18—^21 ;)
for by Jerusalem is signified the church as to doctrine : but
3a
more may be seen on this subject in the following article.
From what has been here observed it may appear, that the
literal sense of the Word, which is its natural sense, is the
basis, continent, and firmament, of its interior senses, which
are spiritual and celestial.
IV.— That in the Literal Sense of the Word, Divine Truth
is in its Fulness, in its Sanctity, and in its Power.
37. The reason why the Word, in its literal sense, is in
its fulness, in its sanctity, and in its power, is, because the
two prior or interior senses, which are called the spiritual
and celestial senses, are simultaneously contained in the
natural sense, which is the sense of the letter, as was said
above, n. 29 ; but in what manner they are so simultane»
ously contained shall be now shown.
38. Both in heaven and in the world, there are two kinds
of order, successive order and simultaneous order. In suc¬
cessive order one thing succeeds and follows another, from
what is highest to what is lowest ; but in simultaneous order
one thing adjoins to another, from what is innermost to
what is outermost. Successive order is like a column with
degrees from highest to lowest ; but simultaneous order is
like a work whose centre and circumferences have a regular
coherence, all the'way to the surface. We shall now show
in what manner successive order becomes, in its ultimates,
simultaneous order, which is thus : the highest parts of suc¬
cessive order become the inrftost of simultaneous order, and
the lowest parts of successive order become the outermost of
simultaneous order, just as would be the case with a column
of degrees, were it to sink down and become a coherent
body in a plane. Thus what is simultaneous is formed
from what is successive ; and this is the case in all and
everything in the natural world, and in all and everything
in the spiritual world ; for there is everywhere a first, a
middle, and a last ; and the first, by means of the middle,
tends and proceeds to the last. To apply now this reasoning
to the Word : the celestial, spiritual, and natural principles
proceed from the Lord in successive order, and in their last,
or ultimate, they are in simultaneous order : thus, then, the
celestial and spiritual senses of the Word are simultane¬
ously contained in its natural sense When this truth ia
33
comprehended, it will be easy to see how the natural sense
of the Word, which is its literal sense, is the continent,
basis, and firmament of its spiritual and celestial senses;
and also in what manner divine good and divine truth, in
the literal sense of the Word, are in their fulness, in their
sanctity, and in their power.
39. From hence it must appear evident, that the Word is
preeminently the Word in its literal sense ; for in this sense,
spirit, and life are inwardly contained ; and this is what the
Lord meant when he said, " The words which I speak unto
ÏOU, they are spirit and they are life," (John vi. 63;) for the
lOrd spoke his words before the world, and in the natural
sense. The celestial and spiritual senses are not the Word
without the natural sense, which is the sense of the let¬
ter; for in guch case they would be like spirit and life
without a body.; or, as was said above, n. 33, like a palace
which has no foundation.
40. The truths of the literal sense of the Word are, in some
eases not naked truths, but only appearances of truth, and
are like similitudes and comparisons taken from the objects
of nature, and thus accommodated and brought down to the
apprehension of simple minds and of children. But whereas
they are at the same time correspondences, they are the
receptacles and abodes of genuine truth ; and, they are like
containing vessels,—like a crystalline cup containing excel¬
lent wine, or a silver dish containing rich meats ; or they
are like garments clothing the body,—like swaddling clothes
on an infant, or an elegant dress on a beautiful virgin : they
are also like the scientifics of tl^e natural man, which com¬
prehend in them the perceptions and affections of truth of
the spiritual man. The naked truths themselves, which
are included, contained, attired, and comprehended, are
in the spiritual sense of the Word, and the naked prin¬
ciples of good are in its celestial sense. But let us illustrate
this by instances from the Word. Jesus said, "Woe unto
you. Scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites ! 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 out¬
side of them may be clean also," (Matt. xiii. 25,26.) In this
passage the Lord spoke by ultimates, or things of the lowest
order, which at the same time are continents : he uses the
words " cup and platter," because by the cup is meant wine,
and by wine is signified the truth of the Word; and by the
34
platter is meant meat, and by meat is signified the good of
tlie Word ; wherefore by making clean the inside of the cup
and platter, is signified to purify the interiors "of the mind
which relate to the will and the thoughts, thus to the love
and faith, by means of the Word ; and by the consequent
cleansing of the outside is signified, that thus the exteriors
are purified, which are the words and works, inasmuch as
these derive their essence from the former. Again : Jesus
said, " There was a certain rich man, who was clothed in
purple and fine linen, and fared sumptuously every day;
and there was a certairi beggar, named Lazarus, who was
laid at his gate, full of sores," (Luke xvi. 19, 20.) In this
passage also, the Lord spoke by natural things, which were
correspondences, and contained in them spiritual things : by
the rich man is meant the Jewish nation, who are called
rich, because they were in possession of- the Word, in
which there are 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 purple its good, and by
fine linen its truth ; by faring sumptuously every day, is
signified the delight which the Jewish people took in pos¬
sessing and reading the Word ; by the beggar Lazarus are
meant the Gentiles, because they were not in possession of
the Word ; by Lazarus lying at the rich man's gate, is meant
that the Gentiles were despised and rejected by the Jews ;
by being full of sores, is signified that the Gentiles, by rea¬
son of their ignorance of truth, were in many falsities. The
reason why the Gentiles are meant by Lazarus, is, because
the Gentiles were beloved by the Lord, as was Lazarus
whom he raised from the dead, (John xi. 3, 5, 26 ;) who is
called his friend, (John xi. 11 j) and who sat with him at
table, (John xii. 2.) From these two passages it is evident,
that the truths and goods of the literal sense of the Word
0 are like vessels and garments, to contain and cover the
naked good and truth, which are concealed in the spiritual
and celestial senses.
41. Since the Word, in its literal sense, is of such a
nature, it follows of consequence, that they who are prin¬
cipled in divine truths, and in a belief that the Word, in its
internal parts, is divine and holy, see divine truths in natural
light, whilst they read the Word in a state of illustration
from the Lord, and more especially if they believe that the
Word is of such a nature, by virtue of its spiritual and
celestial senses ; for the light of heaven, in which the spir-
35
itual sense of the Word is, descends by influx into the natu •
ral light, in which the literal sense of the Word is, and illu¬
minates die intellectual principle of man, which is called
his rational principié, and makes him see and acknowledge
divine truths, both where they are manifest, and where
they are concealed. This effect of the influx of light from
heaven, takes place with some, even when they are not
aware of it.
42. As the Word, in its inmost contents, by virtue of its
celestial sense, is. like a gentle burning flame, and in its mid¬
dle contents, by virtue of its spiritual sense, is like an illus¬
trating light ; it follows hence, that in its ultimate or last
contents, by virtue of its natural sense, in which are the two
other senses, it is like a ruby, and like a diamond ; by virtue
of the celestial flame like a ruby, and by virtue of the spirit¬
ual light like a diamond. And since this is the nature and
quality of the Word in its literal sense, therefore the Word
is meant, in that sense, by the precious stones of which the
foundations of the New Jerusalem were built ; also by the
urim and thummim on the ephod of Aaron ; and likewise by
the precious stones in the garden of Eden, wherein the king
of Tyre is said to have been ; and further, by the curtains
and vails of the tabernacle ; in like manner, by the external
parts of the temple at Jerusalem. And the Word, in all its
glory, was represented in the person of the Lord, when He
was transfigured.
43. I. That the truths of the literal sense of the Word are
meant by the ■precious stones of ■which the foundations of the
New Jerusalem were built, as mentioned in the Apocalypse,
chap. xxi. 17—21, follows from this circumstance; that by
the New Jerusalem is signified the New Church in respect
to doctrine derived from the Word, as is shown in the Doc¬
trine of the Lord, n. 62, 63 ; wherefore, by its wall, and
the foundations of the wall, nothing can be meant but the
external of the Word, which is its literal sense ; for it is this
sense from which doctrine is derived, and, by doctrine, the
church ; and this sense is like a wall with its foundations,
that encompasses and secures the city. The New Jerusa¬
lem and its foundations are thus described in the Apoca¬
lypse : " The angel measured the wall thereof, a hundred
forty and four cubits, according to the measure of a man,
that is, of an angel. And the wall had twelve foundations,
garnished with all manner of precious stones. The first
foundation was a jasper ; the second, a sapphire ; the third.
36
a chalcedony ; the fourth, an emerald ; the fifth, a sardonyx,
the sixth, a sardius ; the seventh, a chrysolite ; the eighth, a
beryl ; the ninth, a topaz ; the tenth, a chrysoprasus ; the
eleventh, a jacinth; the twelfth, an amethyst," (xxi. l7—^20.)
By the number one hundred and forty-four, are signified all
the truths and goods of the church derived from doctrine
grounded in the literal sense of the Word; the same is sig¬
nified by twelve ; by a man is signified intelligence ; by an
angel is signified Divine Truth, whence intelligence is de¬
rived ; by measure is signified their quality ; by a wall and
its foundations is signified the sense of the letter of the
Word; and by precious stones, the truths and goods of the
Word in their order, from whence doctrine is derived, and,
by doctrine, the church.
44. II. That the truths and goods of the literal sense of
the Word are meant by the urim and thummim. The urim
and thummim were on Aaron's ephod, whose priesthood was
representative of the Lord with respect to Divine Good, and
the work of salvation. By the garments of the priesthood,
or of holiness,, was represented Divine Truth from Divine
Good ; by the ephod was represented Divine Truth in its
last or ultimate state, consequently, the Word in its literal
sense, for this is Divine Truth in its ultimate, as was shown
above ; hence by the twelve precious stones, with the names
of the twelve tribes of Israel, which were the urim and thum¬
mim, were represented Divine Truths, as derived from Di¬
vine Good, in their whole complex. Concerning the ephod,
with the urim and thummim, Moses has these words : " They
shall make the ephod of gold, of blue, and of purple, of scar¬
let and fine twined linen, with cunning work ; and they shall
make the breast-plate of judgment with cunning work, after
the work of the ephod, and shall set it in settings of stones,
even four rows of stones. The first row shall be a sardius,
a topaz, and a carbuncle ; and the second row shall be an
emerald, a sapphire, and a diamond ; and the third row, a
ligure, an agate, and an amethyst ; and the fourth row, a
beryl, an onyx, and a jasper ; and the stones shall be accord¬
ing to the names of the children of Israel ; the engravings
of a signet, every one with his name, they shall be according
to the twelve tribes ; and Aaron shall bear the judgment of
the children of Israel upon his heart, before Jehovah, contin
ually," (Exod. xxviii. 6, 15—21, 30.) What is represented
by Aaron's garments, his ephod, his robe, his coat, his mitre
and his belt, is explained in the work entitled Arcana Cce
37
LESTiA ; where, in treating on that chapter, it is shown, that
by the ephod is represented Divine Truth in its last or ulti¬
mate; by the precious stones therein are signified truths
transparent by virtue of good ; by twelve precious stones, all
ultimate truths rendered transparent by the good of love in
its order ; by the twelve tribes of Israel, all things relating
to the church; by the breast-plate. Divine Truth derived
from Divine Good : by the urim and thummim, the brilliancy
of Divine Truth derived from Divine Good in its ultimates :
for urim signifies a shining fire, and thummim, brilliancy, in
the angelic tongue, and, in the Hebrew tongue, integrity.
In the same work it is also shown, that responses were given
by variegations of light, accompanied by a tacit perception,
or by an audible voice; with many other circumstances.
Hence it m^ appear evident, that by those stones were like¬
wise signified truths derived from good in the ultimate sense
of the Word ; nor are responses from heaven given by any
other means, inasmuch as in that sense the Divine Proceed¬
ing is in its fulness. That precious stones and d.adcnis sig¬
nify Divine Truths in their ultimates, such as aic tlie truths
of the literal sense of the Word, was made manifest to me
from the precious stones and diadems which I saw in the
spiritual world amongst the angels and spirits there : they
served in some cases for ornaments of dress, and in others
they were deposited in cabinets, and it was given me to
know, that they corresponded to truths in the ultimates, nay,
that they even had thence their origin and brilliant appear¬
ance. It was by reason of their bearing such a signification,
that crowns were seen by John on the head of the dragon,
(Apoc. xii. 3,) and on the horns of the beast, (Apoc. xiii. 1 ;)
and that precious stones were seen on the harlot who sat on
the scarlet beast, (Apoc. xvii. 4.) Such ornaments were
seen by John, because by the dragon, the beast, and the
harlot, are signified those in the Christian world who are in
possession of the Word.
45. III. That the truths of the literal sense of the Word
are meant by the ■precious stones in the garden of Eden,
■wherein thejcing of Tyre is said to have been. It is written
in Ezekiel : " King of Tyrus, 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 sardius, the topaz, and the diamond ; the beryl, the onyx,
and the jasper ; the sapphire, the emerald, and the carbun¬
cle; and gold," (xxviii. 12, 13.) By Tyrus, in the Word,
38
are signiñed the knowledges of good and truth ; by a king is
signified the truth of the church ; by the garden of Eden aro
signified wisdom and intelligence derived from the Word;
by precious stones are signified truths, such as are in tho
literal sense of the Word, bright and transparent by virtue
of good; and because these are signified by those stones,
therefore they are called his covering ; for that the literal
sense of the Word serves as a covering for the interior
senses, may be seen above.
46. IV. That the literal sense of the Ward is signified by
the curtains and vails of the tabernacle. By the tabernacle,
heaven and the church were represented, wherefore the pat¬
tern of it was shown to Moses by Jehovah on Mount Sinai.
Hence by all things contained in that tabernacle, as the can¬
dlestick, the golden altar for incense, and the table whereon
was the show-bread, were represented and signified-the holy
things of heaven and the church ; by the holy of holies,
where was the ark of the covenant, was represented and
thence signified the inmost of heaven and the church ; and
by the law written on two tables, and inclosed in the ark,
the Lord as respects the Word was signified. Now as ex¬
ternals derive their essence from internals, and both the one
and the other 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 tab¬
ernacle : hence it follows, that by the ultimätes of the taber¬
nacle, as the curtains and the vails, which were its coverings
and continents, are signified the ultimates of the Word,
which are the truths and goods of its literal sense : and be¬
cause those things were signified, therefore all the curtains
and vails were made of fine twined linen, and blue, and scar¬
let double-dyed, with cherubs, (Exod. xxvi. 1, 31, 36.) The
general and particular representations and significations of
the tabernacle, and all that was in it, are explained in the
Arcana Cœlestia. It is there shown, in treating on that
chapter of Exodus, that by the curtains and vails were repre¬
sented the externals of heaven and the church, consequently
also the externals of the Word ; and, further, that by fine
linen is signified truth from a spiritual origin ; by blue, truth
from a celestial origin ; by purple, celestial good ; by double-
dyed scarlet, spiritual good ; and by cherubs, the guards of
the interiors of the Word.
47. V. That the externals of the Word, or the things
appertaining to the literal sense, were represented by the rx'
39
ternah of the temple at Jerusalem. The reason of this
because the temple, as well as the tabernacle, was represen
tative of heaven and the church, and thence, also, of the
Word. That by the temple at Jerusalem was signified the
Divine Humanity of the Lord, He Himself teaches in these
words : " 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 wherever.the Lord is meant, there also the
Word is meant, inasmuch as He is the Word. Now, since
the interiors of the temple were- representative of the inte¬
riors of heaven and.the church, and so also of the Word,
therefore its exteriors were representative and significative
of the exteriors of heaven and the church, and consequently
of the exteriors of the Word, which are its literal sense.
ConcemingUhe exteriors of the temple it is written, that they
were buHt of whole stones not hewn, and of cedar within,
and that all its walls within were carved with figures of
cherubs, palm-trees, and openings of flowers ; and that the
floor was overlaid with gold, (1 Kings vi. 7, 29, 30 ;) by all
which are likewise signified the externals of the Word, which
are the holy things of its literal sense.
48. VL That the Word in its glory was represented in the
person of the Lord at His transfiguration. Concerning the
Lord's transfiguration in the presence of Peter, James, and
John, it is written, " That His face did shine as the sun, and
that His raiment was as the light ; and there appeared Moses
and Elias talking with Him ; and that a bright cloud over¬
shadowed Him : and that a voice came out of the cloud, say¬
ing, This is my beloved Son, hear ye Him," (Matt. xvii.
1—5.) I have been informed, that the Lord, on this occa¬
sion, represented the Word : by His face, which shone as
the sun, was represented His Divine Good ; by His raiment
which was as the light, His Divine Truth ; by Moses and
Elias, the historical and prophetical Word; by Moses, the
Word which was written by him, and in general the histori¬
cal Word, and by Elias, the whole prophetical Word ; by
the bright cloud which overshadowed the disciples, the Word
in its literal sense ; wherefore out of this a voice was heard,
saying, " This is my beloved Son, hear ye him for all
declarations and responses from heaven are constantly deliv¬
ered by means of ultimates, such as are in the literal sense
of the Word ; for they are delivered in fulness from the
Lord.
49. Thus far we have shown, that the Word in its natu-
40
ral sense, which is the sense of the letter, is in its sanctity
and in its fulness; something now shall le said to show
that the Word in that sense is in its poioer. What and how
great is the power of the Divine Truth in the heavens, and
also on earth, may appear from what is said, in the treatise
On Héaven and Hell, concerning the power of the angels
of heaven, (n. 228—233.) The power of the Divine Truth
operates especially against falsities and evils, consequently
against the hells : whoever engages in combat against these,
must support it by truths from the literal sense of the Word.
The Lord's power of saving, also, is exerted by means of the
truths which are with man ; for by truths derived from the
literal sense of the Word, man is reformed and regenerated,
and is then taken out of hell, and introduced into heaven.
This power the Lord took upon Him even as to His Divine
Humanity, after He had fulfilled all the contents of the Word
even to its ultimates ; wherefore He said to the high-priest,
speaking of the time when, by the passion of the cross, He
should have completed what remained to be fulfilled, " Here¬
after ye shall see the Son of Man sitting on the right hand
of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven," (Matt. xxvi.
64 ; Mark xiv. 62.) The Son of Man is the Lord as to the
Word; the clouds of heaven signify the Word in the sense
of the letter ; to sit on the right hand of God is omnipotence
by the Word; as also Mark xvi. 19. The power of the
Word, in its ultimates, was represented by the Nazarites in
the Jewish church, and by Samson, of whom it is said, that
he was a Nazarite from his mother's womb, and that his
stren^h lay in his hair ; by the word Nazarite, and Naza-
riteship, also, is signified hair. That Samson's strength lay
in his hair, is plain from his own words : " There hath not
come a razor upon my head, for I have been a Nazarite unto
God 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.) It is impossible for
any one to know why the Nazariteship, by which is signi¬
fied hair, was instituted, and on what ground it was that
Samson derived strength from his hair, unless he is first ac¬
quainted with the signification of the head in the Word : by
the head is signified intelligence, which angels and men
have from the Lord by means of Divine Truth ; hence by
the hair is signified celestial wisdom in its ultimates and
also Divine Truth in its ultimates. As this.is the si<ínifica»
tion of hair from its correspondence with the heavens, there-
41
fore it was ordained as a law for the Nazariles, That they
should not shave the hair of their heads, because that is the
Nazariteship of God upon their heads, (Numb. vi. 1—^21.)
For the same reason it was likewise ordained, that the high
priest and his sons should not shave their heads, lest they
should die, and wrath should come upon the whole house oi
Israel, (Levit. x. 6.) Since the hair, by reason of this sig¬
nification, grounded in correspondence, was so holy, there¬
fore the Son of Man, who is the Lord in respect to the
Word, is described even as to His hairs, that they ."were
white like wool, as white as snow," (Apoc. i. 14 ;) in like
manner the Ancient of days is described, (Dan. vii. 9.) On
this subject also something may be seen above, n. 35. In
fine, the reason why the power of Divine Truth, or the
Word, resides in its literal sense, is, because the Word in
that sense is in its fulness, and the angels of both the Lord's
kingdoms, and men on earth, are in that sense simultane¬
ously.
V.— That the Doctrine of the Church ought to he drawn Jronn
the Literal Sense of the Word, and to be confirmed thereby.
50. It was shown in the foregoing article, that the Word,
in its literal seiise, is in its fulness, in its holiness, and in its
power : and since the Lord is the Word, being the all of the
Word, it follows that the Lord, in that sense, is most emi¬
nently present, and that from that sense he teaches and en¬
lightens mankind. But the truth of this will fall under the
following propositions : I. That the Word, without doctrine,
cannot be understood. II. That doctrine ought to be drawn
from the literal sense of the Word. III. But that divine
truth, which doctrine is to teach, appears to none but those
who are in illustration from the Lord.'
51. I. That the Word, without doctrine, cannot be under'
stood. The reason is, because the Word, in its literal sense,
consists of mere correspondences, to the end that spiritual
and celestial things may be simultaneously in it, and that
every single expression may afford them a continent and
support ; therefore divine truths in the literal sensé are
rarely found naked, but clothed; in which state they are
called the appearances of truth, and are more accommodated
to the apprehension of the simple, who are not used to any
42
elevation of their thoughts above visible objects. There are
also some things which appear like contradictions, when
nevertheless there is not a single contradiction in the Word,
if it be viewed in its own spiritual light. In some parts,
likewise, of the prophetic writings, there is a collection of
names of places and persons, from which in the letter no
sense can be gathered, as in the passages above adduced, n.
15. Such, then, being the nature of the Word in its literal
sense, it must be very evident, that without doctrine it can¬
not possibly be understood. But this will be best illustrated
by examples. It is said, for instance, " that Jehovah repent-
eth," (Exod. xxxii. 12, 14 ; Jonah iii. 9 ; iv. 2 ;) and it is
also said, " that Jehovah doth not repent," (Numb. xxiiL 19 ;
1 Sam. XV. 29;) which apparently contradictory passages,
without doctrine, are not reconcilable. It is said, that Je¬
hovah visiteth " the iniquity of the fathers upon the children,
to the third and fourth generation," (Numb. xiv. 18;) and it
is likewise said, " that the fathers shall not be put to death
for the children, neither the children for the fathers, but
every man shall be put to death for his own sin," (Deut.
xxiv. 16.) These passages, without doctrine, seem contra¬
dictory, but when, illustrated by doctrine, they are in perfect
agreement. Jesus saith, " Ask, and it shall be given you ;
seek, and ye shall find ; knock, and it shall be opened unto
you." Without doctrine, it might be supposed, from these
words, that every one would certainly receive what he re¬
quests ; but doctrine teaches, that whatsoever a man "asks,
not from himself, but from the Lord, that is granted him ;
for thus the Lord explains himself : " 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.) The Lord says,
" Blessed are the poor, for theirs is the kingdom of God,"
(Luke vi. 20.) Without doctrine it may be imagined, that
heaven is designed for the poor, and not for the rich ; but
doctrine teaches that the poor in spirit are here meant ; for
the Lord says in another place", " Blessed are the poor in
spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven," (Matt. v. 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 a person might
here be led to this conclusion, that he ought not to judge in
respect to an evil man, that he is evil; whereas from doc¬
trine it appears, that it is lawful to judge, if it be done right¬
eously; for the Lord says, "Judge righteous judgment,"
43
(John vii. 24.) Again, the Lord saith, " Be not ye called
Rabbi, for one is your Master, even Christ ;—and call no man
our father upon earth, for one is your Father who is in
eaven ; neither be ye called masters, for one is your Mas¬
ter, even Christ," (Matt, xxiii. 8, 9, 10.) These words, un¬
explained by doctrine, would seem to imply, that it is not
lawful to call any person teacher, father, or master : whereas
by doctrine we learn that this is lawful in a natural sense
though it be unlawful in a spiritual sense. Again : Jesus
said to His 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 of the
Lord are to sit hereafter in judgment ; when the truth is,
that they cannot judge any person : doctrine therefore must
explain how this mystery is to be understood : and this un¬
folds it, by teaching that the Lord alone, who is omniscient,
and knows all hearts, will sit in judgment, and is able to
judge; and that His twelve disciples mean the church in
respect to all the truths and goods which it has from the
Lord by means of the Word; from whence doctrine con¬
cludes, that those truths and goods are to judge every one ;
according to the words of the Lord in John, (iii. 17, IS ; xii.
47, 48.) Whoever reads the Word without doctrine, does
not know how those things cohere together, which are
spoken by the prophets concerning the Jewish nation and
Jerusalem, where it is said that the church shall continue
with that nation, and its seat abide in that city forever; as
in the following places : " Jehovah hath visited his flock, the
house of Judah, and hath made them as his goodly horse in
the battle ; out of him shall come forth the corner, out of
him the nail, and out of him the battle-bow," (Zech. x. 3, 4,
6, 7.) " And I will dwell in the midst of thee,—and Jeho¬
vah shall inherit Judah, and shall choose Jerusalem again,"
(Zech. ii. 11, 12.) " It shall come to pass in that day, the
mountains shall drop down'new wine, and the hills shall
flow with milk—and Judah shall dwell forever, and Jerusa¬
lem from generation to generation," (Joel iii. 18, 19, 20.)
" Behold the days come—in which I will sow the house of
Israel and the house of Judah with the seed of man ;—^that
I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and
with the house of Judah ; and this shall be the covenant :—
I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their
heart, and will be their God, and they shall be my people,"
44
(Jerem. jcxxi. 27, 31, 33 ) "Inthese days—ten men shaL
take hold, out of all languages of the nations, of the skirt of
him that is a Jew, saying. We will go with you, for we have
heard that God is with you," (Zech. viii. 22,23:) so in
other places, (as Isaiah xliv. 21, 26; xlix. 22, 23; Ixv. 9;
Ixvi. 20, 22 ; Jerem. iii. 18 ; xxii. 5 ; 1. 19, 20 ; Nahum ii.
1 ; Malachi iii, 4,) where the coming of the Lord is treated
of, and it is said that these things will come to pass. But
the contrary is declared in many other passages, of which
the following only shall be here noticed : " I will hide my
face from them, I will sec what their end shall be, for they
are a very froward generation, children in whom is no faith;
—I said, I would scatter them into corners, I would make the
remembrance of them to cease from among men,—^for they
are a nation void of counsel, neither is there any understand¬
ing in them.—Their vine is of the vine of Sodom, and of the
fields of Gomorrah ; their grapes are grapes of gall» their
clusters are bitter ; their wine is the poison of dragons, and
the cruel venom of asps. Is not this laid up in store with
me, and sealed up among my treasures ? To me belongeth
vengeance and recompense," (Deut. xxxii. 20—35.) These
things are spoken concerning that nation, as are also things
of a similar nature elsewhere : see Isaiah iii. 1, 2, 8 ; v.
3—6 ; Deut. ix. 5, 6 ; Matt. xii. 39 ; xxiii. 27, 28 ; John
viii. 44 ; and in Jeremiah and Ezekiel throughout. Now
the above passages, although they appear contradictory and
irreconcilable, are nevertheless perfectly consistent with
each other when viewed in their true light according to doc¬
trine ; which teaches that by Israel and Judah, in the Word,
are not meant Israel and Judah, but the church in both
senses ; in the one sense, that it is vastated, and in the other
sense, that it is to be reestablished by the Lord. Several
cases of a similar nature occur in the Word; whence it man¬
ifestly appears, that the Word without doctrine cannot be
understood.
52. From what has been said it is very clear, that they
who read the Word without doctrine, or who do not form to
themselves doctrine from the Word, are in the dark concern¬
ing every truth, and that their minds must be wavering and
unsettled, prone to errors, and easily betrayed into heresies ;
which they will even embrace with eagerness, in case they
are supported by the authority and favorable opinion of man¬
kind, and that they may do it with a safe reputation : for the
Word is to them as a candlestick without a light in it, and
45
they fancy they see many things in the dark, though thej
scarcely discern a single object: for doctrine is the only
light which can guide them in their inquiries. I have
seen such persons examined by the angels, and it was found
that they could confirm any opinion they pleased, from
the Word, and that they actually do so confirm all such
opinions and tenets as favor their own love, and the love of
those whom they study to oblige : but I afterwards saw them
stripped of their garments, which is a sign that they were
destitute of truth; for garments in the spiritual world are
truths.
53. II. That doctrine ought to he drawn from the literal
sense of the Word, and to be confirmed thereby. The reason
of this is, because the Lord is present in that sense, enlight¬
ening and teaching man the truths of the church : for all the
Lord's operations are performed in fulness, and the Word in
its literal sense is in its fulness, as was shown above : this is
the true ground why doctrine ought to be drawn from the
literal sense.
54. That the Word is not only intelligible by doctrine,
but is also, as it were, luminous, appears from the Word's
not being intelligible without doctrine, and like a candlestick
without a light, as was shown above. The Word, therefore,
is intelligible by doctrine, and is like a candlestick with a
lighted candle. Man then sees more than he had seen be¬
fore, and also understands such things as he had not before
understood. Things dark and discordant he either sees not
and passes by, or, if he sees them, he explains them so as to
be consistent with doctrine. The experience of all the
Christian world proves, that the Word is seen from, and ex¬
plained according to, doctrine. All of the reformed church
see and explain the Word from and according to their own
doctrine : in like manner the Papists, from and according to
theirs ; nay, the Jews, from and according to theirs. Con¬
sequently falsities arise from false doctrine, and truths from
that which is true. Hence it appears, that true doctrine is
like a candle in the dark, and like a directing post on the
road. But doctrine is not only to be drawn from the literal
sense of the Word, but it is also to be confirmed by that
sense ; for if it be not confirmed by it, the truth of doctrine
appears as if the intellect of man only, and not the divine
wisdom of the Lord, were contained in it : and thus doctrine
would be like a house in the air, and not upon the earth, and
therefore without foundation.
46
65. 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 man clothed, whose face and hands
are naked. All things necessary to the life of man, and
consequently to his salvation, are naked ; but the rest are
clothed: and in many places where they are clothed, they
shine through the clothing as the face shines through a veil
of thin silk. As also the truths of the Word are multiplied by
the love of them, and by that are arranged in order, they
shine more and more clearly through the clothing ; but this,
likewise, is eflected by doctrine.
56. It may be imagined that the doctrine of genuine truth
might be collected by means of the spiritual sense of the
Word, which is learnt by the science of correspondences ;
but doctrine is not attainable by means of that sense, but
only capable of receiving illustration and confirmation from
it. For, as was observed above, n. 26, no one can come into
the spiritual sense of the Word by means of correspondences,
unless he be first in genuine truths derived from doctrine ;
but it is possible for a person to falsify the Word by some
correspondences with which he is acquainted, when he con¬
nects them together, and applies them to th confirmation of
particular opinions rooted in his mind, in consequence of the
principles he has imbihed, unless he be principled in genuine
truth. Besides, the spiritual sense of the Word is opened
to man by the Lord alone, and is guarded by Him as the
angelic heaven is guarded, for heaven is included in it. It
is better, therefore, for man to study the Word in its literal
sense : it is thence, only, that doctrine is afforded.
57. III. That genuine truth, which doctrine is to teach, is
apparent, in the literal sense of the Word, to those only who-
are in illustration from the I/rrd. Illustration comes from
the Lord alone, and is affbrded to those who love truths for
truth's sake, and apply them to the uses of life : none else
can receive illustration from the Word. The reason why
illustration comes from the Lord alone, is, because he is in
all things of the Word ; and the reason of its being aflforded
only to those who love truths for truth's sake, and apply
them to the uses of life, is, because they are in the Lord,
and the Lord in them. For the Lord is His own Divine
Truth ; and when this is loved for its own sake, which is
the case when it is applied to use, then the Lord is in it, and
is thus present with the man. This the Lord teaches in
John : " At that day ye shall know that ye are in me, and 1
47
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 my Father will love him,
and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him,"
(xiv. 20, 21, 23.) And in Matthew: "Blessed are the
pure in heart, for they shall see God," (v. 8.) These are
they who are in illustration when they read the Word,
and to whom the Word appears in its brightness and trans¬
parence.
58. The reason why the Word appears to such in its
brightness and transparence, is, because there is both a spir¬
itual and celestial sense in every part of the Word, and
these senses are in the light of heaven ; wherefore the Lord,
by these senses and their light, enters by influx into the
natural sens» of the Word, and into the light thereof abiding
in man. Hence man acknowledges the truth from an inte¬
rior perception, and afterwards sees it in his own thought,
and this as often as he is in the affection of truth for truth's
sake ; for perception comes from affection, and thought from
perception, and thence arises acknowledgment, which is
called faith. But more of this shall be said in the following
article, concerning the conjunction of the Lord with man
through the Word.
59. With these, the first thing to be done is, to collect for
themselves doctrine from the literal sense of the Word,-and
thus to kindle a light for their further advancement ; but
after doctrine is collected, and thus the light is kindled, they
see the Word by it.. Those who do not collect doctrine for
themselves, first inquire whether the doctrine collected by
others, and received by common consent, agrees with the
Word ; and to those things which do agree, they give their
assent, but dissent from those things which do not agree :
thus they form their own doctrine, and, through doctrine,
their faith. But this is only the case with those, who, not
being too much drawn away by the cares of the world, are
able to exercise their intellectual sight ; these, if they love
truths for truth's sake, and apply them to the uses of life,
are in illustration from the Lord ; others, if they are, in
any degree; in a life according to truth, may learn from
them. •*
60. The very reverse happens, where men interpret the
Word by the doctrine of a mise religion ; and particularly
where they confirm such doctrine by the Word with a view
to their own glory, or to the acquirement of worldly wealth
48
With such persons the truths of the Word appear as in the
shades of night, and falsities as in the light of day : they
read truths, but they do not see them, and if they see the
shadow of them, they falsify them. These are they whom
the Lord describés as having eyes, and yet they see not,
and ears, and yet they do not understand, (Matt. xiii. 14,
15 ;) for nothing blinds man but his own proprium, and the
confirmation of what is false. The proprium of man is self-
love, and the conceit of self-intelligence thence arising ; and
the confirmation of what is false is darkness counterfeiting
light. Hence the light of these men becomes merely natural,
and their sight is like that of a person who imagines he sees
phantoms in the dark.
61. I have been permitted to converse with several after
death, who believed they should shine as the stars in the
firmament, because, as they said, they had accounted the
Word holy, had often perused it, and had collected many
things from it, whereby they had confirmed the tenets of
their particular faith, and had acquired the reputation of
being great scholars and learned men ; in consequence of
which they supposed they should be advanced to the dignity
of a Michael or a Raphael. But on the examination of sev¬
eral of them, respecting the love which infiuenced them in
their study of the Word, it was discovered that some of them
had studied it from a principle of self-love, with a view to
acquire rank and distinction in the church, and some from a
principle of worldly love with a view to gain. On their
examination, also, respecting what they had learnt from the
Word, it was discovered that they did not know a single
genuine truth, but only what may be called truth falsified
which, in its own proper nature, is falsity ; and they were
informed that this was a consequence of reading the Word
only with a view to themselves and the world, without re¬
garding the truth of faith and the good of life as the ends
of their reading. For in this case, where self and the
world are the ends, the mind, in reading the Word, abides
in self and in the world, and hence their thoughts are con¬
stantly derived from their own proprium, or selfhood, and
the proprium of man is in utter darkness respecting all
things that relate to heaven and the church ; so that, in such
a state, it is impossible for man to be under the Lord's guid¬
ance, and to be elevated by Him into the light of heaven,
of consequence, it is impossible he should receive any influx
from the Lord through heaven. I have also seen such per-
49
sons admitted into heaven, but when they were discovered
to be without truths, they were cast down again ; yet still
they remained full of the conceit that they deserved to be in
heaven. The case is diflèrent with those who have studied
the Word from the affection of knowing truth for truth's
sake, and because it is serviceable to the uses of life, not
only in respect to themselves, but also to their neighbor. I
have seen such raised up into heaven, and thus into the light
wherein Divine Truth there appears,, and at the same time
exalted into angelic wisdom and its happiness, which is life
eternal.
VI.—That, hff the Literal Sense of the Word, -Man has
Conjunction with the Lord, and Consocdtition with the
Angels.
62. The reason that man has conjunction with the Lord
by means of the Word, is, because it treats of Him alone,
and though it the Lord is all in all, and is called the Word,
as has been shown in the Doctrine respecting the Lord.
The reason that such conjunction is effected by the literal
sense, is because the Word, in that sense, is in its fulness,
in its holiness, and in its power, as was shown above. This
conjunction is not apparent to man, but is wrought in the
affection and perception of truth, and thus in the love and
faith of Divine Truth in him.
63. The reason that man has consociation with angels by
means of tbe literal sense, is, because the spiritual and
celestial senses are included in that sense, and the angels
are in those senses ; the angels of the Lord's spiritual king¬
dom in the spiritual sense of the Word, and the angels of
the Lord's celestial kingdom in its celestial sense. Those
two senses are evolved or unfolded from the natural or literal
sense, whilst it is read by a person who accounts the Word
holy. Such evolution is instantaneous ; consequently, the
consociation is so likewise.
64. That the spiritual angels are in the spiritual sense of
the Word, and the celestial angels in its celestial sense, has
been proved to me by manifold experience. It was given
me to perceive, that whilst I was reading the Word in its
literal sense, communication was opened with the heavens,
sometimes with one society, sometimes with another : what
I understood according to the natural sense, the spiritual
5
50
angels understood according to the spiritual sense> and the
celestial angels according to the celestial sense, and this in
an instant ; and as this coipmunication has been perceived
by me many thousand times, I have not a single doubt re¬
maining as to its reality. There are spirits, also, who are
below the heavens, who abuse this communication ; for they
read over particular passages in the literal sense of the
Word, and immediately observe and note the society with
which communication is effected. From these circumstances
it is given me to know, by sensible experience, that the
Word, as to its literal sense, is a divine medium of conjunc¬
tion with the Lord, and with heaven. Concerning this con¬
junction by the Word, see also what is said in the work On
Heaven and Hell, n. 303—310.
65. But in what manner this unfolding of those senses
takes place, shall be also explained in a few words ; but that
it may be understood, it will be necessary to bear in mind
what was said above, n. 6, 38, concerning successive order
and simultaneous order; namely, that what is celestial,
spiritual, and natural, follow one after another in successive
order, from the highest things which are in heaven, to the
lowest which are in the world : that the same things in
simultaneous order are in the lowest degree, which is the
natural, one being placed in juxta-position with the other,
from the most internal to the most external ; and that, in
like manner, the successive senses of the Word, the celes¬
tial and spiritual, are simultaneously in the natural. These
things being comprehended, it may, in some measure, be
explained to the understanding, in what manner the two
senses, the celestial and the spiritual, are evolved from the
natural, whilst man is reading the Word ; for then the spir¬
itual angels extract and call forth its spiritual contents, and
the celestial angels its celestial contents : nor can they do
otherwise, because those things are to them homogeneous,
and are in agreement with their nature and essence.
66. But this may first be illustrated by comparisons drawn
from the three kingdoms of nature, which áre called the
animal, the vegetable, and the mineral. In the Animal
Kingdom, for instance, when the food is turned to chyle, the
blood-vessels extract from thence, and call forth, their blood,
the nervous fibres their juices, and the substances from
whence those fibres originate, their animal spirit. In the
Vegetable Kingdom : a tree, with its trunk, branches,
leaves, and fruits, is supported on its root ; and out of the
51
ground, by means of its root, extracts and calls forth a
grosser juice for the trunk, branches, and leaves, a purer for
the fleshy parts of the fruit, and the purest of all for the
seeds within the fruit. In the Mineral Kingdom : in some
places, in the bowels of the earth, are minerals impregnated
with gold, silver, and iron ; the gold, silver, and iron, draw
their respective elements from the subterraneous exhalations.
67. We will now illustrate, by instances, in what manner
the spiritual angels draw forth their sense, and the celestial
angels theirs, from the natural sense, in which the Word is
with men. Let us take for examples five commandments of
the Decalogue. The Commandment, Honor thy father and
mother. By father and mother, man understands a father
and mother on earth, and also all those who are in the place
of father and mother ; and by honoring them, he understands
to hold them in honor, and to obey them. But the spiritual
angel understands by father the Lord, and by mother the
church, and by honoring them, he understands to love them.
And the celestial angel by father understands the Divine
Love of the Lord, by mother His Divine Wisdom, and by
honoring them, to do good from Him. The Commandment,
Thou shalt not steal. By stealing, man understands to rob,
to defraud, and under any pretence to take from another
what belongs to him : whereas, a spiritual angel, by stealing,
understands to deprive others of their truths of faith, and
goods of charity, by means of falsities and evils : but a
v-elestial angel, by .stealing, understands to attribute to self
what belongs to the Lord, and to appropriate to self His
righteousness and merit. Again ; Thou shalt not commit
acJvltery. By committing adultery, man understands to
commit whoredom, to be guilty of obscene practices, to in¬
dulge wanton discourse, and to entertain lewd thoughts :
whereas, a spiritual angel, by committing adultery, under¬
stands to adulterate the goods of the Word, and to falsify its
truths : but a celestial angel, by committing adultery, under¬
stands to deny the Divinity of the Lord, and to profane the
Word. Again : Thou shalt not commit murder. By mur¬
dering, man understands, not only the taking away anothei's
life, but likewise bearing malice and hatred in the heart, and
breathing a revengeful spirit against any person, even to
death : whereas, by murdering, a spiritual £ ngel understands
to play the devil's part, and destroy men's souls ; and a
celestial angel, by murdering, understands to hate the Lord,
and those things which are the Lord's. Lastly, Thou shalt
52
not hear false witness. By bearing false witness, man under«
stands also to tell lies, and to defeme any person : whereas,
a spiritual angel, by bearing false witness, understands to
declare, and endeavor to persuade others, that what is false
is true, and what is evil is good, and vice versa : but a celes¬
tial angel, by bearing false witness, understands to blaspheme
the Lord and the Word. These instances may serve to
show, after what manner the spiritual and celestial senses
of the Word are unfolded and extracted from the natural
sense in which they are included : and, what is wonderful,
the angels extract their senses without having any knowl¬
edge of a man's thoughts ; but still the thoughts of angels
and men make a one by correspondences, like end, cause,
and effect ; for ends do actually exist in the celestial king¬
dom, causes in the spiritual, and effects in the natural king¬
dom. Such conjunction by correspondences results from the
laws of creation. Hence, then, it is, that man has consocia¬
tion v/ith angels by means of the Word.
68. The reason that man has consociation with angels by
the natural or literal sense of the Word, is likewise, because
in every man from creation, there are three degrees of life,
the celestial, the spiritual, and the natural : man, however
is in the natural degree, so long as he continues in this
world ; and, at the same time, so far in the spiritual degree,
as he is principled in genuine truths, and so far in a celes¬
tial degree as he is principled in a life according to those
truths ; nevertheless, he is not admitted into the spiritual
and celestial degrees themselves till after death. But more
concerning this elsewhere.
69. From what has been said, it must appear evident, that
only in the Word, by which man has conjunction with the
Lord and consociation with the angels, there is spirit and
life ; as the Lord says, " The words that I speak unto you,
'they are spirit and they are life," (John vi. 63.) " The
water that I shall give him, shall be in him a well of water
springing up urito everlasting life," (John iv. 14.) " Man
shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that pro-
ceedeth out of the mouth of God," (Matt. iv. 4.) " 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.)
53
VIL—That the Word ts in all the Heavens, and that the
Wisdom of the Angels is thence derived.
70. That the Word is in the heavens, has remained a
secret to mankind unto this day, nor could it be made known
so long as the church was ignorant that angels and spirits
are men like mén in this our world, and that they resemble
them in every particular, with this only difference, that they
themselves are spiritual beings, and that all things which
they have amongst them are from a spiritual origin ;
whereas men on earth are natural beings, and all things
amongst them are from a natural origin. So long as this
remained concealed, it could never be known that the Word
is also in the heavens, and that it is there read by the angelic
inhabitants; and also by the spirits who are beneath the
heavens. But that this truth might not remain forever a
secret, it has been granted me to be in fellowship with angels
and spirits, and to converse with them, and to see what is in
their world, and afterwards to relate to mankind many of
the things which I have seen and heard : this I have done
in a work concerning Heaven and Hell ; from which work
it will appear, that angels and spirits are men, and that they
have amongst them an abundance of all such things as exist
amongst men on earth. That angels and spirits are men,
may be seen in that work, n. 73—77, and n. 453—456 ;
that similar things exist amongst them that exist here
amongst men, n. 170—190 ; also, that they have .divine
worship amongst them, and have preaching in their temples,
n. 221—^227 ; likewise writings and books, n. 258—264 ;
and also the Holy Scriptures, or Word, n. 259.
71. The Word in heaven, is written in a spiritual style,
which differs entirely from a natural style : a spiritual style
consists of mere letters, each involving some particular sense ;
and there are marks above the letters, which exalt the sense.
The letters in use amongst the angels of the spiritual king¬
dom, are like the letters used in printing amongst men ; and
the letters in use amongst the angels of the celestial king¬
dom, each of which in itself involves some entire sense, are
like the Hebrew old letters, but inflected above and beneath,
with marks above, between, and within them. As their
writing is of such a nature, there are not any narnes of per¬
sons and places in their Word, as in ours, but instead of
names are the things which they signify ; thus instead of
5*
54
Moses is mentioned the historical Word ; instead of Elias,
the prophetic Word ; instead of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob,
the Lord with respect to His Divine-celestial, His Divine-
spiritual, and His Divine-natural ; instead of Aaron, the
priestly office ; instead of David, the kingly office, each in
relation, to the Lord ; instead of the names of the twelve
sons of Jacob, or the tribes of Israel, and instead of the
names of the Lord's twelve disciples, various things respect¬
ing heaven and the church ; instead of Zion and Jerusalem,
the church as to doctrine derived from the Word ; instead
of the land of Canaan, the church itself; instead of the
places and cities therein, on this side the river Jordan, and
beyond it, various things relating to the church and its doc¬
trine. The case is the same in respect to numbers ; they
do not occur in the copies of the Word written in heaven,
but instead of them are expressed the things with which the
numbers correspond. It may hence be seen, that the Word
in heaven corresponds to our Word, and that consequently
they are one, for correspondences make things one.
72. It is a wonderful circumstance, that the Word in
heaven is so written, that the simple may understand it in
simplicity, and the wise in wisdom ; for there are various
points and marks over the letters, which, as was observed,
exalt the sense, but to which the simple do not attend, nor
understand their meaning ; whereas, the wise are attentive
to them, every one in proportion to his wisdom, even to its
highest degree. A copy of the Word, written by angels
under the Lord's inspiration, is kejrt by every considerable
society, in a sacred repository appointed for that purpose, to
preserve it from any alteration in any of its points or marks.
The Word in our world is so far similar to that in heaven,
that the simple understand it in simplicity, and the wise in
wisdom ; but yet this difference of understanding in our
world arises from a different ground, and is effected in a
different manner.
73. The angels themselves confess that they derive all
their wisdom from the Word, for in proportion to their un¬
derstanding of the Word, is the degree of light in which
they dwell : the light of heaven is Divine Wisdom, which
appears before the eyes of the angels as light. In the sacred
repository, where the copy of the Word is kept, the light
is bright and flaming, exceeding every degree of light that
shines in the other parts of heaven without : the cause has
already been mentioned — that the Lord is in the Word.
55
74. The wisdom of the celestial angels exceeds the wis«
dom of the spiritual angels almost as much as the wisdom
of the spiritual angels exceeds the wisdom of men ; and
this because the celestial angels are in the good of love from
.he Lord, and the spiritual angels in the truths of wisdom
from the Lord ; and wherever the good of love is, there
wisdom resides at the same time ; but where truths are,
there no more wisdom resides, than in proportion to the good
of love by which it is attended. This is the reason why the
Word, in the Lord's celestial kingdom, is differently written
from the Word in His spiritual kingdom ; for in the Word
of the celestial kingdom the* goods of leve are the things
expressed, and the marks denote affections ; but in the Word
of the spiritual kingdom the truths of wisdom are the things
expressed, and the marks denote perceptions.
75. From what has been observed we may conclude, how
great the wisdom must be which lies concealed in the Word
we have here on earth ; for in this all angelic wisdom,
which is inexpressible, is hidden ; and every man who is
made an angel by the Lord by means of the Word, comes
into this wisdom after death.
VIII.—That the Church exists from the Word, and that,
with Man, the Quality of the Church is according to his
Understanding of the Word.
76. That the church exists from the Word, cannot possi¬
bly be a matter of doubt ; for the Word is Divine Truth
itself, (n. 1—4 ;) the doctrine of the church is derived from
the Word, (n. 50—61 ;) and conjunction with the Lord is
efiected by means of the Word, (n. 62—69.) But that the
understanding of the Word constitutes the church, may be
made a matter of doubt ; as there are some who believe that
they belong to the church, merely because they are in pos¬
session of the Word, and read it, or hear it from the minis¬
ter, and have some knowledge of its literal sense ; although,
at the same time, they are totally ignorant of its meaning
and how it is to be understood in different passages ; which
some make a matter of small account. It will be necessary
to prove, then, that it is not merely the Word which consti¬
tutes the church, but the right understanding of it, and that
the quality of the church is determinable by the understand-
6ß
ing of the Word amongst its members. This is confirmed
from these circumstances.
77. The Word is properly the Word, according to the
understanding of it with men, that is, as it is understood :
if it is not understood, it indeed is called the Word, but in
reality it is not such with man. The Word is truth, accord¬
ing to the understanding of it ; for the Word may be not
the truth, inasmuch as it may be falsified. The Word is
spirit and life according as it is understood ; for the mere
letter, without the understanding of it, is dead. Since,
therefore, man has truth and life according to his under¬
standing of the Word, so also h'e has faith and love according
to it ; for truth has relation to faith, and love to life. Now
because it is by faith and love, and according to them, that
the church exists, it follows, that by the understanding of the
Word, and according to it, the church is a church ;—a
noble church if grounded in genuine truths, an ignoble one
if not in genuine truths, and a ruined one if in falsified
truths.
78. Moreover, the Lord is present and in conjunction with
man through the Word, seeing that the Lord is thé Word,
and, as it were, converses in it with man, because the Lord
is Divine Truth itself, and the Word is Divine Truth also.
From hence it plainly appears, that the Lord is present with
man, and in conjunction with him, according to his under¬
standing of the Word : for, according to it man has truth,
and from thence faith, and also love, and thence life. .The
Lord is also present with man through the reading of the
Word ; but He is in conjunction with him through the un¬
derstanding of truth derived from the Word, and according
to it ; and in proportion as the Lord is in conjunction with
man, so much of the church is in man. The church is
properly in man ; the church without him is the church with
«any others in whom the church is. This is meant by the
Lord's answer to the Pharisees, on their inquiring when the
kingdom of God should come : " The kingdom of God is
within you," (Luke xvii. 21 :) by the kingdom of God is
here meant the Lord, and the church from Him.
79. Many parts of the prophetical writings, where the
church is treated of, treat also of the understanding of the
Word, and it is taught that the church cannot exist but
where there is a just understanding of the Word, and that
the state and nature of the church is always to be determined
by the manner in which the Word is understood by those
57
who belong to the church. The prophets, in many parts of
their writings, describe the Israelitish and Jewish church as
totally destroyed and annihilated, in consequence of falsifying
the meaning or understanding of the Word ,• for the destruc¬
tion of the church proceeds from no other source than this.
The understanding of the Word, both true and false, is de¬
scribed in the prophetic writings, particularly in the prophet
Hosea, by Ephraim : for the understanding of the Word in
the church is signified in the Word by Ephraim. As the
understanding of the Word constitutes the church, therefore
Ephraim is called " a dear son and a pleasant child," (Jerem.
xxxi. 20 ;) " the first-born," (Jerem. xxxt. 9 ;) " the strength
of the head of Jehovah," (Psalm Ix. 7 ; cviii. 8 ;) "a mighty
man," (Zech. x. 7 :) " he that filleth the how," (Zech. ix.
13 ;) and the children of Ephraim are called " armed and
shooters with the bow," (Psalm Ixxviii. 9 ;) for by a bow is
signified doctrine derived from the Word combating with
falsities. For the same reason, also, Israel stretched out his
right hand upon Ephraim, and blessed him, (Gen. xlviii. 14;)
and he was also accepted in lieu of Reuben, (verse 5 ;) and
for the same reason, Ephraim, with his brother Manasseh,
under, the - name of their father Joseph, was exalted by
Moses, in his blessing of the children of Israel, above all the
rest, (Deut. xxxiii. 13—17.) But the state and nature of
the church when the understanding of the Word is destroyed,
is also described in the writings of the prophets by Ephraim,
particularly in Hosea : as in these passages ; " Israel and
Ephraim shall fall in their iniquity ; Ephraim shall be deso¬
late ; Ephraim is oppressed and broken in judgment ; I will
be unto Ephraim as a lion ; I, even I, will tear and go away,
I will take away, and none shall rescue him," (v. 5, 9, 11,
14.) " 0 Ephraim, what shall I do unto thee ? For thy
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 unclean things in Assyria," (Hosea ix. 3.) The
land of Jehovah is the church ; Egypt is the scientific prin¬
ciple of the natural man ; Assyria is reasoning founded on
it ; therefore it is said, that Ephraim shall return into Egypt,
and shall eat unclean things in Assyria. " Ephraim feedeth
on wind, and followeth after the east wind ; he daily in-
creaseth lies and desolations ; and they do make a covenant
with the Assyrians, and oil is carried into Egypt," (Hosea
xii. 1.) To feed on wind, to follow after the east wind, to
58
increase lies and desolations, is to falsify truths, and so to
destroy the church. The same is also signified by the
whoredom of Ephraim, for whoredom signifies the falsifica¬
tion of the understanding of the Word, that is, of its genuine
truth; as in these passages: " For now, 0 Ephraim, thou
committest whoredom, and Israel is defiled," (Hosea v. 3.)
" I have seen a horrible thing in the house of Israel ; there
is the whoredom of Ephraim, Israel is defiled," (Hosea vi.
10.) Israel means the church itself, and Ephraim the un¬
derstanding of the Word, which determines the state and
quality of the church ; wherefore it is said, " Ephraim com-
mitteth whoredom, and Israel is defiled." But as the church
amongst the children of Israel and Judah was totally de¬
stroyed by falsifications of the Word, therefore it is thus said
of Ephraim : " Shall I give thee up, Ephraim ? shall I
deliver thee, Israel ? How shall I make thee as Admah ?
How shall I set thee at Zeboim," (Hosea xi. 8.) Now since
the prophet Hosea, from the first chapter to the last, treats
of the falsification of the Word, and of the consequent de¬
struction of the church ; and because the falsification of the
Word is there signified by whoredom ; therefore he was
commanded, for the purpose of representing that state of the
church, " to take unto himself a wife of whoredoms, and
children of whoredoms," (i. 1.) And again : " to take to
himself an adultress," (iii. 1.) We have quoted these pas¬
sages, for the sake of showing and proving from the Word,
that the quality of the church is always determined by its
understanding of the Word ; and that it is excellent and
precious, if its understanding be grounded on the genuine
truths of the Word ; but that it is ruined, yea, filthy, if it be
grounded on truths falsified. For a further confirmation,
that by Ephraim is signified the understanding of the Word,
and, in a contrary sense, the falsification of it, and that
thence proceeds the destruction of the church, the other pas¬
sages which treat of Ephraim may be referred to ; as in
Hosea iv. 17, 18; vii. 1, 11 ; viii. 9, 11 ; ix. 11, 12,13,16;
X. 11 ; xi. 3 ; xii. 1, 9, 15 ; xiii. 1, 12 ; Isaiah xvii. 3 :
xxviii. 1 ; Jerem. iv. 15 ; xxxi. 6, 18 ; 1. 19 ; Ezekiel xxxvii
16 ; xlviii. 5 ; Obad. 9 ; Zech. ix. 10.
59
ÍX.— That there is a Marriage of the lard and the Church,
and therux a Marriage of Good and Truth, in every pari
of the Word.
80. That there is a marriage of the Lord and the church,
and thence a marriage of good and truth, in every part of the
Word, has never yet been discovered ; neither could it be
discovered, so long as the spiritual sense of the Word re¬
mained unknown : for this sense alone can make manifest
such a marriage. There are two senses contained in the
Word, which lie concealed in its literal sense, and which are
called spiritual and celestial : what belongs to the spiritual
sense of the Word has more particular relation to the church;
and wha^ belongs to the celestial sense, to the Lord : the
contents also of the spiritual sense have relation to Divine
Truth, and the contents of the celestial sense to Divine
Good ; and this is the ground of the above-mentioned mar¬
riage in the Word. But this is only apparent to those who,
by virtue of the spiritual and celestial sense of the Word,
are acquainted with .the signification of its names and ex¬
pressions ; for some particular names and expressions are
predicated of good, and some of truth, and some include
both ; wherefore, without the knowledge of such signification,
it is impossible to see how such a marriage exists in every
part of the Word ; and this is the reason why this arcanum
was never discovered before.
81. Inasmuch as there is such a marriage in every part
of the Word, therefore we frequently find in the Word two
expressions which appear like repetitions of one and the
same thing: they are, however, not repetitions; but ohe
has relation to good, and the other to truth, and both, taken
together, effect the conjunction of good and truth, and con¬
sequently make them one. This, also, is the true ground
of the divinity of the Word and its sanctity ; for in every
divine work there is a conjunction of good with truth, and
of truth with good.
82. The reason why we assert the marriage of good and
truth in the Word to be a consequence of the marriage of the
Lord and the church therein, is, because wherever there is
a marriage of the Lord and the church, there also is a mar¬
riage of good and truth, the latter marriage being derived
from the former ; for when the church, or any member of it,
is principled in truths, then the Lord ñows-in by good into
60
those truths, and communicates life to them ; or, what
amounts to the same, when the church, or any member of
the church, is in the understanding of truth, then the Lord
flows-in, by the good of love and charity, into that under¬
standing, and thus infuses life into it.
83. There are two faculties of life in every man, which
are called understanding and will : the understanding is the
receptacle of truth, and thence of wisdom ; and the will is
the receptacle of good, and thence of charity. These two
faculties ought to be united, and make a one, in order that
man maybe a member of the church; and they are so united,
when a man forms his understanding by genuine truths,
which is done to all appearance as of himself, and when his
will is replenished with the good of love, which is effected by
the Lord. Hence man derives the life of truth and the life
of good; the life of truth in his understanding, from his
will, and the life of good in his will, by his understanding.
In this consists the marriage of good and truth in man,
as well as the marriage of the Lord and the church with
man. Concerning this reciprocal conjunction, which is here
called a marriage, more may be seen in the works entitled.
Angelic Wisdom concerning the Divine Love and Divine
Wisdom, and Concerning the Divine Providence.
84. That there frequently are two expressions used in the
Word, which appear like repetitions of the same thing, must
be evident to every attentive reader ; as, for instance, brother
and companion, poor and needy, wilderness and desert, vacu¬
ity and emptiness, foe and enemy, sin and iniquity, anger
and wrath, nation and people, joy and gladness, mourning
and weeping, justice and judgment, &c. These appear to be
synonymous expressions, when in fact they are not ; for the
terms brother, poor, wilderness, vacuity, foe, sin, anger, na¬
tion, joy, mourning, and justice, are predicated of good, and,
in the opposite sense of evil ; whereas the terms companion,
n«redy, desert, emptiness, enemy, iniquity, wrath, people,
gladness, weeping, and judgment, are predicated of truth,
and, in the opposite sense, of what is false : and yet it must
appear to the reader who is unacquainted with this arcanum
as if the terms poor and needy, desert and wilderness, vacu¬
ity and emptiness, &c., meant the same thing, whereas, they
do not, but yet form one thing by conjunction. In the Word,
also, we frequently find two things joined together, as fire
and ñame, gold and silver, brass and iron, wood and stone,
bread and wine, purple and fine linen, &c., because fire, gold,
61
brass, wood, bread, and purple, are predicated of good ; but
flame, silver, iron, stone, water, wine, and fine linen, are
predicated of truth. In like manner it is said, that God is to
be loved 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 the heart is predicated of the good of love, and the soul
and spirit of the truths of faith from that good. There are
some expressions, also, which, in consequence of partaking
alike both of good and truth, are used by themselves, with¬
out the adjunction of others. But these, and many things
besides, are apparent only to the angels, and to those who
see into the spiritual sense of the Word, whilst they are
reading the natural sense.
85. It would be tedious to show from the Word, that two
expressions of this nature are used, for it would fill a volume
to quote all the particular cases where such double expres¬
sions occur J I shall, however, in order to remove all doubt
on this subject, produce some passages where the terms judg¬
ment and justice, nation and people, joy and gladness, are
used together. Judgment and justice are mentioned together
in these places : " The city was full of judgment., justice
lodged in it," (Isaiah i. 21.) " Zion shall be redeemed with
judgment, and her converts with justice," (Isaiah i. 27.)
" Jehovah of hosts shall be exalted in judgment, and God
that is holy shall be sanctified in justice," (Isaiah v. 16.)
" He shall sit upon the throne of David, and his kingdom, to
establish it with judgment and with justice," (Isaiah ix. 7.)
" Jehovah shall be exalted, for He dwelleth on high. He hath
filled Zion with judgment and justice," (Isaiah xxxiii. 5.)
"Thus saith Jehovah, Keep ye judgment, and do justice;
for my salvation is near to come, and my justice to be re¬
vealed," (Isaiah Ivi. 1.) " As a nation that did justice, and
forsook not the judgments of their God : they ask of me the
judgments of justice," (Isaiah Iviii. 2.) " And thou shalt
swear Jehovah liveth, in truth, m judgment, and injustice,"
(Jerem. iv. 2.) " Let him that glorieth glory in this, that
Jehovah doth judgment and justice in the earth," (Jerem. ix.
24.) " Execute ye judgment and justice. Woe unto him
that buildeth his house without justice and his chambers
'ViiihovX judgment. Did not thy father do judgment nxA jus¬
tice, and then it was well with him?" (Jerem. xxii. 3, 13,
15.) " I will raise unto David a righteous branch, and a
king shall reign, and shall execute judgment and justice in
the earth," (Jerem. xxiii. 5; xxxiii. 15.) " If a man be just,
62
and do judgment and justice," (Ezek. xviii. 5.) " If the
wicked man turn from his sin, and do judgment and justice,
—none of his sins—shall be mentioned unto him ; he hath
done judgment and justice, he shall surely live," (Ezek.
xxxiii. 14, 16, 19.) '• I will betroth thee unto me forever,—
in judgment and in justice, and in loving-kindness and in
mercies," (Hosea ii. 19.) " Let judgment run down as
waters, wid justice as a mighty stream," (Amos v. 24.) " Ye
have turned judgment into gall, and the fruit of justice into
hemlock," (Amos vi. 12.) " Jehovah shall plead my cause,
and execute judgment for me : He will bring me forth to the
light, and I shall behold His justice," (Micah vii. 9.) " Thy
justice is likte the great mountains, and thy judgments are a
great deep," (Psalm xxxvi. 6.) " Jehovah shall bring forth
ihy justice as the light, and ihy judgment as the noon-day,"
(Psalm xxxvii. 6.) " He shall judge thy people with ^íísíícc,
and thy poor with judgrnent," (Psalm Ixxii. 2.) "Justice
and judgment are the habitation of His throne," (Psalm
xcvii. 2.) " When I shall have leamt the judgments of thy
justice. Seven times a day do I praise thee, because of the
judgments of Úvy justice," (Psalm cxix. 7, 164.) " He exe¬
cuted the justice of Jehovah, and His judgments with Israel,"
(Deut. xxxiii. 21.) " He shall reprove the world of sin, of
justice, and oÍjudgment," (John xvi. 8,10; and elsewhere.)
The reason why judgment and justice are so often mentioned
together, is, because judgment is predicated of truth, and
justice of good ; wherefore by executing judgment and jus¬
tice, is also meant to act from a principle of truth and good.
The reason why judgment is predicated of truth, and justice
of good, is, because the government of the Lord in the spir¬
itual kingdom is called judgment, and the government of the
Lord in the celestial kingdom is called justice ; concerning
which more may be seen in the treatise On Heaven and
Hell, n. 214, 215. Because judgment is predicated of
truth, therefore, in many places, mention is made of truth
and justice, as in Isaiah xi. 5 ; and Psalm Ixxxv. 12 ; and in
other places.
86. The reason why repetitions as it were of the same
thing are used in the Word, on account of the marriage of
good and truth, may be more clearly seen in those places
where the terms nation and people are used ; as in the fol¬
lowing : " Ah ! sinful nation, a people laden with iniquity,"
(Isaiah i. 4.) " The people that walked in darkness, have
seen a great light ;—thou hast multiplied the nation," (Isaiah
63
ix. 2, 3.) " O Assyrian, the rod of mine anger,—I will send
him against a hypocritical nation, and agfainst the people of
my wrath will I give him a charge," (Isaiah x. 5, 6.) " In
that day there shall be a root of Jesse, which shall stand for
an ensign of the people ; to it shall the nations seek," (Isaiah
xi. 10.) " He who smote the people in wrath with a contin¬
ual stroke : He that ruled the nations in anger," (xiv. 6.)
" In that time shall the present be brought unto Jehovah of
hosts, of a people scattered and peeled—a nation meted out
and trodden under foot," (Isaiah xviii. 7.) " Therefore shall
the strong people glorify thee, the city of terrible nations shall
fear thee," (Isaiah xxv. 3.) "Jehovah will destroy in this
mountain the face of the covering cast over all people, and
the veil that is spread over all nations," (Isaiah xxv. 7.)
" Come neai? ye nations, to hear : and hearken ye people,"
(Isaiah xxxiv. 1.) "I have called thee for a covenant of the
people, for a light of the nations," (Isaiah xlii. 6.) " Let all
the nations be gathered together, and let the people be assem¬
bled," (Isaiah riiii. 9.) " Behold, I will lift up my hand to
the nations, and set up my standard to the people," (Isaiah
xlix. 22.) " Behold,-1 have given him for a witness to the
people, a leader and a commander to the nations," (Isaiah Iv.
4.) " Behold, a people cometh from the north country, and
a great nation—from the sides of the earth," (Jerem. vi. 22.)
" Neither will I cause men to hear in thee the shame of the
nations any more, neither shalt thou bear the reproach of the
people any more," (Ezek. xxxvi. 15.) " All people and na¬
tions shall serve him," (Dan. vil. 14.) " Spare thy people,
0 Jehovah, and give not thine heritage to reproach ; that the
nations should rule over them," (Joel ii. 17.) " The residue
of my people shall spoil them, and the remnant of my nation
shall possess them," (Zeph. ii. 9.) " Many people, and
strong nations, shall come to seek Jehovah in Jerusalem,"
(Zech. viii. 22.) " Mine eyes have seen thy salvation, which
Àou hast prepared before the face of all people, a light to
lighten the nations," (Luke ii. 30, 31, 32.) " Thou hast
redeemed us by thy blood out of every people and nation,"
( Apoc. V. 9.) " Thou must prophesy again before many peo¬
ple and nations," (Apoc. x. 11.) " Thou hast made me the
head of the nations, a people whom I have not known shall
serve me," (Psalm xviii. 43.) " Jehovah bringeth the coun¬
sel of the nations to nought ; He maketh the devices of the
people of none effect," (Psalm xxxiii. 10.) " Thou makest
us a by-word among the nations, a shaking of the head
64
among the people," (Psalm xliv. 14.) " Jehovah shall sub«
due the people under us, and the nations under our feet.
God reigneth over the nations, the princes of the people
are gathered together, even the people of the God of Abra¬
ham," (Psalm xlvii. 3, 8, 9.) " Let the people praise thee,
—let the nations—sing for joy ; for thou shalt judge the
people righteously, and govern the nations upon earth,"
(Psalm Ixvii, 3, 4.) " Remember me, 0 Jehovah, with the
favor that thou bearest unto_thy people, that I may rejoice in
the gladness of thy nations," (Psalm cvi. 4, 5;) not to men¬
tion several other places. The reason why people and na¬
tions are expressed at the same time, is, because by nations
are meant those who are in good, and, in the opposite sense,
those who are in evil, and by people, those who are in truths,
and, in the opposite sense, those who are in falsities. For
this reason they who are of the Lord's spiritual kingdom are
called people, and they who are of His celestial kingdom are
called nations : for all in the spiritual kingdom are in truths,
and thereby in wisdom, but all in the celestial kingdom are
in good, and thereby in love.
87. The case is the same with many other expressions ;
as with joy and gladness, which frequently occur together, as
may be seen in the following passages : " And behold joy
and gladness, slaying oxen, and killing sheep," (Isaiah xxii.
13.) " They shall obtain joy and gladness, and sorrow and
mourning shall flee away," (Isaiah xxxv. 10; li. 11.) "Joy
and gladness are cut off from the house of our God," (Joel i.
16.) " The fast of the tenth month shall be to the house of
Judah joy and gladness," (Zech. viii. 19.) " That we may
rejoice and be glad all our days," (Psalm xc. 14.) " Rejoice
ye with Jerusalem, and be glad with her—rejoice in her jery,"
(Isaiah Ixvi. 10.) " Rejoice and be glad, O daughter of
Edom," (Lament, iv. 21.) " Let the righteous be glad, let
riiem rejoice before God," (Psalm Ixviii. 3.) " Make me to
hear joy and gladness," (Psalm li. 8.) "Joy and gladness
shall be found in Zion, thanksgiving and the voice of melo¬
dy," (Isaiah li. 3.) " And thou shalt haveyoy and gladness,
and many shall rejoice at His birth," (Luke i. 14.) " Then
will I cause to cease—^the voice ofyoyand the voice of glad¬
ness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride,"
(Jerem. vii. 34 ; xvi. 9 ; xxv. 10.) " Again there shall be
heard in this place—the voice of joy and the voice of glad¬
ness, the voice of the bridegroom and the voice of the bride,'
(Jerem. xxxiii. 10, 11;) and in many other places. The
65
reason why mention is made, in these passages, both of joy
and gladness, is, because joy is predicated of good, and glad¬
ness of truth ;■ or joy of love, and gladness of wisdom : for
joy belongs to the heart, and gladness to the spirit ; or joy
belongs to the wiU, and gladness to the understanding. That
there is also a marriage of the Lord and the church in these
two, is evident from this circumstance, that mention is made
of " the voice of joy and the voice of gladness, the voice of
the bridegroom and the voice of the bride," (Jerem. vii. 34;
xvi. 9 ; XXV. 10 ; xxxiii. 10, 11 ;) and the Lord is the bride¬
groom, and the church the bride. That the Lord is the
bridegroom, may be seen. Matt. ix. 15 ; Mark ii. 19, 20 ;
Luke v. 35 ; and that the church is the bride, may be seen,
Apoc. xxi. 2, 9 ; xxii. 17 ; wherefore John the Baptist said
of Jesus, "JHe that hath the bride is the bridegroom," (John
iii. 29.)
88. By reason of the marriage of the Lord with the
church, or, what is the same thing, the marriage of Divine
Good and Divine Truth, in every part of the Word, the ex¬
pressions Jehovah and God so frequently occur : also, Jeho¬
vah and the Holy One of Israel ; as if they were two, when
nevertheless they are one ; for by Jehovah is meant the Lord
as to Divine Good, and by God, and the Holy One of Israel,
is meant the Lord as to Divine Truth. That the expressions
Jehovah and God, and Jehovah and the Holy One of Israel,
also occur in many parts of the Word, and yet signify one,
may be seen in the Doctrine respecting the Lord, n. 34,
38, 46.
89. Since then there is a marriage of the Lord and the
church in all and every part of the Word, it is evident, that
all and every particular of the Word treats of the Lord, as is
demonstrated in the Doctrine respecting the Lord, n. 1—7.
The church too, of which it treats, is the Lord also ; for the
Lord Himself teaches that a man of the church is in Him,
and He in him, (John vi. 56 ; xiv. 20, 21 ; xv. 5, 7.)
90. Because the divinity and sanctity of the Word are
here treated of, it may be proper to add a memorable rela¬
tion to what has been already said. There was once sent
me down from heaven a small piece of paper, covered with
Hebrew characters,, but written as they used to be amongst
the ancients, with whom those letters, which are at this day
partly linear, were inflected, with little bendings upwards ;
and the angels who were then with me declared, that they
could discover entire and complete senses by the very letters
6*
66
arid that they discovered them particularly by the flexures
of the lines, and of the apices of each letter : and they ex¬
plained what was their signification both separately and con¬
jointly, telling me that the h which was added to the names
of Abram and Sarai, signified infinite and eternal. They
also explained to me the meaning of the Word in Psalm
xxxii. 2, by the letters or syllables only, and informed me,
that their purport, when summed up, was this : That the
Lord is ever merciful to those who do evil. They informed
me, that the writing in the third heaven consisted of letters
inflected, and variously curved, each of which contained
some particular meaning; and that the vowels there used
were to express a sound which should correspond with affec¬
tion : they added, that, in that heaven, they were not able to
express the vowels i and e, but instead of them y and eu, and
that the vowels a, o, and u, were in use amongst them, be¬
cause they give a full sound ; also, that they did not express
any consonants roughly, but softly, and that it was from this
ground, that some Hebrew letters are pointed within, as a
mark that their pronunciation should be soft. They said,
likewise, that harshness in letters was in use in the spiritual
heaven, by reason that the spiritual angels are principled in
truths, and truth admits of harshness ; whereas good, wherein
the angels of the Lord's celestial kingdom, or of the third
heaven, are principled, admits of no harshness. They de¬
clared further, that they had the written Word amongst them
composed of letters inflected with significative little headings
and apices ; from whence it appeared what those words of the
Lord signify, " One jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass
from the law, till all be fulfilled," (Matt. v. 18.) And again :
" It is easier for heaven and earth to pass away, than one
tittle of the law to fail," (Luke xvi. 17.)
X.—That Heretical Opinions may he collected and imbibed
from the Letter of the Word, but that to confirm such Opin¬
ions is hurtful.
91. It was shown above, that the Word cannot be under¬
stood without doctrine, and that doctrine is as a lamp for the
discovery of genuine truths ; and that this is a consequence
of the Word's being written by mere correspondences. Hence
it is that many passages are appearances of truth, and not
67
naked truths : thus many things are written accc rd mg to the
apprehensions of the merely natural man, yet in such a man¬
ner, that the simple may understand them in simplicity, the
intelligent in intelligence, and the wise in wisdom. Now
since the Word is of such a nature, the appearances of truth,
which are truths clothed, may be taken for naked truths ;
and such appearances, when they are confirmed, become
falsities. But this is done by those who believe themselves
to be superior to others in wisdom, when yet they are not
wise : for wisdom consists in seeing whether a thing be true
before it is confirmed, but not in confirming whatever one
pleases. The latter is the case with those who possess a
talent for confirmation and are in the pride of self-intelli¬
gence ; but the former with those who love truths, and are
affected by them because they are truths, and who apply
them to the purposes of life. These are in illumination from
the Lord, and see truths by the light of truth ; but the others
are in illumination from themselves, and see falsities in the
light of falsities.
92. All the heresies which ever did, or do still, exist in
Christendom, have sprung from this circumstance, that men
have taken appearances of truth for genuine truths, and as
such have confirmed them. Heresies themselves do not
occasion man's condemnation ; but an evil life, together with
confirmations of the falsities contained in any heresy by mis¬
application of the Word, and by reasonings that originate in
the natural man, are what condeihn him. For every one by
birth is introduced into the religion of his country, or of his
'parents, is initiated into it from his earliest years, and after¬
wards continues in the same persuasion, nor fs it in his
power to extricate himself from its falsities, being prevented
by his engagements in the world ; but to live in evil, and to
confirm falsities so as to destroy genuine truths, this it is
which causes condemnation. For he who simply abides in
the religion of his country, who believes in God, and (in case
he be of the Christian Church) believes in the Lord, esteems
the Word to be holy, and lives according to the command¬
ments of the Decalogue from a religious motive ; such a one
does not bind himself to the falsities of the religion he pro¬
fesses : when therefore truths are proposed to him, and he
perceives them according to the measure of light which he
has attained, he has a capacity to embrace them, and thus to
be extricated from falsities. But it is not so with him who
has confirmed the falsities of his religion : these, wJiîn con-
68
firmed, are made permanent, and cannot be extirpated ; for
when a man has confirmed himself in what is false, he is as
ifTie had sworn to maintain it ; especially if self-love, or the
pride of his own understanding, be engaged in its favor.
93. I have conversed in the spiritual world with some
who lived many ages ago, and had confirmed themselves in
the falsities of their particular religious persuasions ; and I
found that they still continued rooted in the same : I have
likewise conversed, in that world, with others, who had been
of the same religious persuasion, and had entertained the
same notions with the former, but yet had not confirmed
their falsities in themselves: and I found that, when they
were instructed by the angels, they rejected falsities, and
received truths : the consequence was, that the latter were
saved, but the former were not. Every man, after death, is
instructed by angels, and they are received into heaven who
discern truths, and thence falsities : for opportunity is given
to every man after death to discern truths spiritually, but
they only have the capacity of doing this, who have not con¬
firmed themselves in falsities : for they who have so con¬
firmed themselves are not willing to see truths, and in case
they do see them, they turn their backs upon them, and then
either ridicule or falsify them.
94. But we will illustrate what we mean by an example.
In many passages of the Word we find anger, wrath, and
vengeance, attributed to God, and it is said that He pun¬
ishes, casts into hell, tempts, with many other expressions of
a like nature : now, where all this is believed in a child-like
simplicity, and made the ground of the fear of God, and or
care not to offend Him, no man incurs condemnation by such
a simple belief. But where a man confirms himself in such
notions, so as to be persuaded that anger, wrath, vengeance,
belong to God, and that He punishes mankind, and casts
ihem into hell, under the infiuence of such anger, wrath, and
vengeance ; in this case his belief is condemnatory, because
he has destroyed genuine truth, which teaches that God is
love itself, mercy itself, and goodness itself, and being these,
that He cannot be angry, wrathful, or revengeful. Where
such evil passions then are attributed in the Word to God, it
is owing to appearance only. It is the same in many other
instances.
95. That several expressions in the literal sense of the
Word are but appearances of truth, in which genuine truths
lie concealed, and that no hurt is incurred by thinking, of
69
even speaking, in simplicity, according to sucn appearances,
but that it is hurtful to confirm them so as to destroy the
Di vine Truth concealed within, may also be illustrated by
an example from nature ; which shall here be introduced,
because natural considerations instruct and convince the
mind more clearly than spiritual. It appears to the bodily
eye as if the sun performed a daily and an annual revolution
about the earth ; hence it is common to say, that the sun rises
and sets, that it causes morning, noon, evening, and night,
and also the seasons of the year, as spring, summer, autumn,
and winter, and consequently days and years ; when never¬
theless the sun continues immovable, being an ocean, of fire,
whilst it is the earth which moves, revolving daily round
her own axis, and annually round the sun. A person now,
who in sim^icity and ignorance supposes that the sun re¬
volves about the earth, does not destroy this natural truth
respecting the earth's daily rotation round her own axis, and
her annual revolution in the ecliptic; but whoso confirms
the sun's apparent motions by the reasonings of the natural
man, particularly if he supports such an opinion by the au¬
thority of the Word, which speaks of the sun's rising and set¬
ting, invalidates the truth, and destroys it. That the sun
moves, is then an apparent truth, but that it does not move,
is a genuine truth ; nevertheless, every one may speak ac¬
cording to the apparent truth, and, indeed, does so speak ;
but to think, in conformity to such a mode of expression,
that the fact is really so, and to confirm such a thought, dulls
and darkens the rational understanding. It is similar with
the stars of the firmament ; it is an apparent truth that they
also are borne round daily with the sun, wherefore it is also
said of the stars that they rise and set ; but it is a genuine
truth that the stars are fixed, and that their firmament is im¬
movable: nevertheless, every one may speak according to
the appearance.
96. That it is hurtful to confirm the appèarances of truth
that occur in the Word, so as to destroy the genuine truth
which lies within, may be evident from this consideration.
All and every part of the literal sense of the Word has com¬
munication with, and opens heaven, according to what was
said above, n. 62—69. When therefore man applies that
sense to the confirmation of worldly loves, which are contrary
to heavenly loves, then the internal of the Word is rendered
false, [that is, a false meaning is introduced into the words ;]
whcefore when the external, which is the literal sense;
70
whose internal is false, has communication with heaven, then
heaven is closed, for the angels who are in the internal sense
of the Word reject it. Hence it appears, that a false inter¬
nal, or falsified truth, prevents communication with heaven,
and closes it up. This is the reason why it is hurtful to
confirm any false heretical opinions. The Word is like a
garden which may be called a heavenly paradise, containing
delicacies and delights of every kind, delicacies of fruits and
delights of flowers, in the midst of which are trees of life, and
beside them fountains of living water ; and forest trees round
about the garden. Whosoever, being instructed by doctrine,
is principled in divine truths, is in the midst of the garden,
amongst the trees of life, and in the actual enjoyment of. its
delicacies and delights: where a man is not principled, in
truths by virtue of doctrine, but only from the literal sense,
he abides in the boundaries of the garden and sees nothing
but the forest scenery : but where a man is in the doctrine
of a false religion, and has confirmed its falsities' in his mind,
he is not even in the forest, but in a sandy plain without,
where there is not even grass. That these are also the re¬
spective states of such persons after death, will be coiifirmed
in its proper place.
97. It is moreover to be observed, that the literal sense of
the Word is a guard to the genuine truths concealed in it :
and it operates as a guard thus, that the literal sense can be
turned in every direction, and be explained according to the
reader's apprehension, without its internal being hurt and
violated : for no hurt ensues from the literal sense being un¬
derstood differently by different persons : but the danger is,
if the divine truths, which lie concealed within, should be
perverted : from this the Word suffers violence ; to prevent
which the literal sense is its guard ; and it operates as such
a guard with those who are in falsities from a principle of
religion, and yet do not confirm them : from these persons
the Word suffers no violence. The literal sense of the
Word acting as a guard, is signified in the Word by the
cherubs, and is also described by them. This guard is sig¬
nified by the cherubs, which, after the expulsion of Adam
and his wife from the garden of Eden, were placed at the
entrance ; of which it was written, that. When Jehovah God
had driven out the man, he placed at the east end of the
Garden of Eden, cherubs, and a flaming sword, which turned
this way and that, to keep the way of the tree of life, (Gen.
iii. 23, 24.) By cherubs is signified defence ; by the way
71
of the tree of life is signified admission to the Lord, which
men have by means of the truths contained in the Word ;
Divine Truth in its ultimates is represented by the fiaming
sword, which turned every way, which is like the Word in
its literal sense, thus capaMe of being so turned. The like
is meant by the cherubs made of gold, over the two extremi¬
ties of the mercy-seat which was above the ark in the taber¬
nacle, (Exod. XXV. 18—21.) This being the signification of
the cherubs, therefore the Lord talked with Moses from be¬
tween them, (Exod. xxv. 22 ; Numb. vii. 89.) As the Lord
never speaks with man but in fulness, and the Word, in the
literal sense, is Divine Truth in its fulness, (as was shown
above, n. 37—49,) therefore he spake with Moses from be¬
tween the cherubs. The like is understood by the cherubs
upon the civtains of the tabernacle, and upon the vail, (Exod.
xxvi. 31 ;) for the curtains and vails of the tabernacle signi¬
fied the ultimates of heaven and the church, and consequently
of the Word, (see above, n. 46 j) and also by the cherubs
carved over the walls and doors of the temple at Jerusalem,
(1 Kings vi. 29,32,35 ;) and also by the cherubs in the new
temple, (Ezek. xli. 18, 19, 20 ;—see above, n. 47.) Since
by cherubs a guard was signified, to provide that the Lord,
heaven, and Divine Truth, which constitute the internal of
the Word, should not be approached immediately, but by the
meditation of ultimates, it is therefore 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 art the anoint¬
ed chervl) that covereth ;—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 in respect to the
knowledges of truth and good, and hence the king of Tyre is
the Word, where those knowledges are, and from whence
they are derived. That the Word, in its ultimate, which is
the literal sense, is in this place signified by the king of
Tyre, and by the term cherub, a guard, is plain from this cir¬
cumstance, that it is said, " Thqu that sealest up the sum,
every precious stone was thy covering " Thou art the
anointed cherub that coverest;" and " O covering cherub."
That whatsoever belongs to the literal sense of the Vford, is
signified by the precious stones, which are also mentioned in
the same chapter, may be seen above, (n. 45.) Inasmuch as
Divine Truth in its ultimates is signified by cherubs, and also
a guard, it is therefore written in the Psalms of David, " Je-
72
hovah bowed the heavens also, and came down ;—and he
rude upon a chertti," (xviii. 9, 10.) " O Shepherd of Israel,
tliou that dwellest upon the cheruMm, shine forth," (Ixxx. I.)
" Jehovah silteth between the cherubim" (xcix. 1.) To ride
on the cherubs, and to sit upon them, means, on the ultimate
sense of the Word. Divine Truth in the Word, with its
nature and quality, is described by the cherubs in Ezekiel,
chap. i. ix. and x. ; but as no one can know what is signified
by the particulars in the description of fhem, unless the spir¬
itual sense be opened, it has, therefore, been discovered to
me what is generally signified by all those things which are
said concerning the cherubim in the first chapter of Ezekiel;
which are these : The divine external sphere of the Word is
described, verse 4. Is represented as a man, verse Ö. Its
conjunction with spiritual and celestial things, verse 6. The
natural sense of the Word, its quality, verse 7. The spirit¬
ual and celestial sense of the Word, conjoined with the natu¬
ral, its quality, verses 8, 9. Divine Love of goodness and
truth, celestial, spiritual, and natural, therein, distinct and
united, verses 10, 11. That they regard one end, verse 12.
The sphere of the Word is from the Divine Good and the
Divine Truth of the Lord, from which the Word lives, verses
13,14. The doctrine of goodness and truth in the Word and
from it, verses 15—^21. The Divine Essence of the Lord
above it and in it, verses 22, 23. And from it, verses 24,25.
That the Lord is above the heavens, verse 26. And that He
is Divine Love and Divine W^isdom itself, verses 27, 28.
These summaries also have been compared with the Word
in heaven, and are in conformity with it.
XI.— That the Lord came irUo the World that he might fulfil
^dl things contained in the Word, and thereby become Di¬
vine Truth or the Word in its vltimates.
98. That the Lord came into the world that He might
fulfil all things contained in the Word, may be seen in the
Doctrine of the Lord, n. 8—h ; and that He thus became
Divine Truth, or the Word, even in ultimates, is understood
by these words in John: "And the Word was made flesh,
and dwelt amongst us, and we beheld His glory, the glory
as of the. only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth,"
(i. 14.) To be made flesh, is to be made the Word in ulti-
73
mates. What the Lord's appearance is, as the Word m
ultimates, He exhibited to His disciples at His transfigura¬
tion, Matt. ivii. 2, &c. ; Mark ix. 2, &c. ; Luke ix. 28. It
is there said, that Moses and Elias appeared in glory ; that
by Moses and Elias is meant the Word, may be seen above,
n. 43. The Lord, as the Word in ultimates, is also de¬
scribed by John in the Apocalypse, (i." 13—16 ;) where all
parts of the description given of Him. signify the ultimates
of Divine Truth, or of the Word. The Lord, indeed, before
His incarnation, was- the Word, or Divine Truth, but only
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, 2 ;) but when the Word was made flesh, then the
Lord became the Word in ultimates also ; and it is from this
circumstance that He is called the First and the Last, (Apoc.
i. 8, 11, 17 ; ii. 8 ; xxi. 6 ; xxii. 12, 13.)
99. By reason, also, of the Lord's becoming the Word in
its ultimates, the state of the church was entirely changed.
All the churches which were before his advent, were repre¬
sentative churches, which could not see Divine Truth but as
it were in the shade ; but after the advent of the Lord into
the World, a church was instituted by Him, which saw Di¬
vine Truth in the light. The diflTerence between the churches
is similar to evening and morning. The state of the church,
previous to the Lord's coming, is also called evening ; and
the state of the church after his coming is called morning.
The Lord, previous to His coming into the world, was indeed
present with the men of the church, but it was mediately
through heaven ; but since His advent in the world, he is
immediately present with the men of the church. For in
the world He put on also the Divine Natural, in which He
is present with men. The glorification of the Lord is the
glorification of His Humanity, which He took in the world ;
and the Humanity of the Lord glorified, is the Divine Natural.
100. Few people understand in what sense the Lord is
the Word; for it is generally thought, that the Lord, by
means of the Word, may enlighten and teacli mankind, and
yet that this is no reason why He should be called the Word.
But let it be known, that every individual man is his own
particular love, and thence his own particular good and his
own particular truth : man is man only by virtue of these his
constituent parts, and nothing else in his constitution can be
called man. On the same ground that inan is his own par¬
ticular good and his own particular truth, angels and spirits
74
are men; for all goodness and truth proceeding from the
Lord, is, in its own particular form, man. But the Lord is
essential Divine Good, and essential Divine Truth ; so also
is He the essential man, from whom every man receives
what constitutes him a man. That all Divine Good and
Divine Truth is, in its form, man, may be seen in the trea¬
tise on Heaven and Hell, n. 460 ; and it is more clearly
explained in the works which treat of Angelic Wisdom.
XII.—That previous to the Word which the World now pos-
sesses, there existed a Word which is lost.
101. That previous to the" Word which was given by
Moses and the prophets to the people of Israel, men were
acquainted with sacrificial worship, and prophesied from the
mouth of Jehovah, may appear from what is recorded in the
books of Moses. That they were acquainted soith sacrificial
worship, is evident from these circumstances : that the chil¬
dren of Israel were commanded to destroy the altars of the
Gentiles, to break their images, and cut down their groves,
(Exodus xxxiv. 13 ; Deut. vii. 5 ; xii. 3 ;) that Israel in
Shittim began to commit whoredom with the daughters of
Moab, and called the people unto the sacrijkes of their gods,
and that the people did eat, and bowed themselves to their
gods, and chiefly joined themselves to Baal-peor, and that
upon that account the anger of Jehovah was kindled against
Israel, (Numb. xxv. 1, 2, 3 ;) that Balaam, who was from
the land of Syria, caused altars to be built, and sacrijiced
oxen and sheep, (Numb. xxii. 40 ; xxiii. 1, 2, 14, 29, 30 ;)
that he also prophesied concerning the Lord, saying, that
there should come a star out of Jacob, and a sceptre should
rise out of Israel, (Numb. xxiv. 17 ;) and that he prophesied
from the mouth of Jehovah, (Numb. xxii. 13, 18 ; xxiii. 3,
5, 8, 16, 26 ; xxiv. 1, 13 ;) from all which circumstances it
is very evident, that the Gentiles performed divine worship,
in many respects similar to that which was instituted by
Moses amongst the people of Israel. That such worship
was in use also before the days of Abraham, is plain from
what is written by Moses, (Deut. xxxii. 7, 8;) but still
plainer from what is recorded of Melchizedek, king of Salem;
as that he brought forth bread and wine, and. blessed Abra¬
ham, and that Abraham gave him tithes of all, (Gen. xiv,
75
18, 19, 20 :) and that Melchizedek represented the Lord, for
he is called the priest of the Most High God, (Gen. xiv. 18;j
and it is said of the Lord hy David, " Thou art a priest
forever, after the order of Melchizedek," (Psalm ex. 4 ;)
hence it was that Melchizedek brought forth bread and wine,
as being the most holy things of the church, agreeably to
their holiness in the Xord's Supper, and that Melchizedek
could bless Abraham, and that Abraham gave him tithes of
all.
102. That the Word amongst the ancients was written by
mere correspondences, but that it was lost, has been related
to me hy the angels of heaven ; and they said that that
Word was still preserved amongst them, and used in heaven,
hy those ancients among whom that Word existed when
they wer» in the world. Those ancients amongst whom
that Word is still in use in heaven, were in part natives of
the land of Canaan and its contines, as of Syria, Mesopota¬
mia, Arabia, Chaldea, Assyria, Egypt, Zidon, Tyre, and
Nineveh ; the inhabitants of all which kingdoms were initi¬
ated into representative worship, and consequently were
skilled in the science of correspondences. The wisdom of
those times was derived from that science, and thereby they
enjoyed interior perception and communication with the
heavens : they also who were internally acquainted with the
correspondences of that Word, were called wise men and
intelligent, and, in succeeding ages, diviners and magi. But,
inasmuch as that Word was full of such correspondences as
were remotely significative of celestial and spiritual things,
in consequence whereof it began to be generally falsified ;
then, by the divine providence of the Lord, in process of
time It was removed, and at last was lost, and another Word,
written by correspondences less remote, was given, which
was. the Word published by the prophets amongst the chil¬
dren of Israel. Yet in this Word are retained several
names of places which were in the land of Canaan, and in
the neighboring kingdoms of Asia, by which are signified
things similar to what were in the ancient Word. It was on
this account that Abraham was commanded to go into that
land, and that his posterity, out of the loins of Jacob, were
introduced into it.
103. That the ancients had a Word, is evident from the
writings of Moses, who mentions it, and also gives quotations
from it, (Numb. xxi. 14, 15, 27—30;) and that the historical
parts ofthat Word were called the Wars of Jehovah, and the
76
prophetical parts, Enuneîatùms. From the historical parts
of that Word Moses has given this quotation : " Wherefore
it is said in the hook of the Wars of Jehovah, what He did
in the Red Sea, and in the brooks of Ârnon, and at the
stream of the brooks that goeth down to the dwelling of Ar,
and lieth upon the border of Moab," (Numb. xxi. 14, 15.)
By the wars of Jehovah, mentioned, in that Word, as in
ours, the Lord's combats with the hells are meant and de¬
scribed, and His victories over them, when He should come
into the world : the same combats are also meant and de¬
scribed in many passages in the historical part of our Word,
as in the wars of Joshua with the inhabitants of the land
of Canaan, and in the wars of the judges and of the kings
of Israel. From the prophetical parts of that Word Moses
has given this quotation : " Wherefore say the enundators.
Come unto Heshbon; let the city of Sihon be built and
prepared ; for there is a fire gone out of Heshbon, a fiame
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 Amerites ; we have shot at them. Hesh¬
bon is perished even unto Dibon, and we have laid them
waste even unto Nophah, which reacheth unto Medebah,"
(Numb. xxi. 27—30.) The translators render it, that
speaJt in proverbs, but they are more properly called enunda-
tors, and their compositions prophetical enunciations, as may
appear firom the signification of the word moshcdim in the
Hebrew tongue, which not only means proverbs, but also
prophetical enunciations ; as in Numb, xxiii. 7, IS ; xxiv. 3,
15 : it is there said, th it Balaam - uttered his enunciation,
which was also a prophecy concerning the Lord ; his enun¬
ciation is called mosJial in the singular number : it may be
futíher observed, that the passages thence quoted" by Moses,
are not proverbs, but prophecies. That that Word, like
ours, was divinely inspired, is plain from a passage in Jere¬
miah, where nearly the same expressions occur : " A fire
shall come forth out of Heshbon, and a flame from the midst
of Sihon, and shall devour the corner of Moab, and the
crown of the head of the sons of Shaon. Woe be unto
thee, O Moab ! the people of Chemosh perisheth ; for thy
sons are taken captive and thy daughters captive," (xlviii.
45, 46.) Besides these, mention is also made of a prophet¬
ical book of the ancient Word, called the book of Jasher, or
77
the book of the Upright, by David and by Joshua ; W David
in the following passage : " David lamented—over Saul and
over Jonathan ; also he bade them teach the children of
Judah the bow; behold it is written in the book of Jasher"
(2 Sam. i. 17, 18;) and by Joshua in this passage : " Joshua
said. Sun, stand thou still upon Gibeon, and thou, moon, in
the valley of Âjalon ; is not this written in the book of
Jasfier ? " (Josh. x. 12, 13.) Moreover, it has been told me
that the seven first chapters of Genesis are extant in that
ancient Word, and that not the least word is wanting.
XIII.— That by means of the Word, light is communicated to
those who are out of the pale of the Church, and are not tn
possession of the Word,
104. There is no possibility of conjunction with heaven,
unless there be, in some part or other of the earth, a church
which .is in possession of the Word, and is thus acquainted
with the Lord ; for the Lord is the God of heaven and earth,
and without Him there is no salvation. It is enough that
there be a church which is in possession of the Word, al¬
though it may consist of very few persons in respect to the
whole race of mankind ; for still, by means of the Word so
possessed, the Lord is present in every country on the face
of the earth, inasmuch as by that means heaven is in con¬
junction with mankind. That conjunction is eflTected by the
Word, may be seen above, n. 62—69.
105. But in what manner the presence and conjunction
of the Lord and of heaven is effected in all countries by
means of the Word, shall now be shown. The universal
heaven is, in the Lord's sight, as a single man ; and so also
is the church on earth : that they have, moreover, the actual
appearance of a man, may be seen in the treatise concerning
Heaven and Hell, n. 59—87. In this man, the church,
where the Word is read, and where the Lord is thereby
known, is as the heart and as the lungs ^ the celestial king¬
dom as the heart, and the spiritual kingdom as the lungs.
Now as from these two fountains of life in the human body,
all the other members, viscera, and organs, subsist and live ;
so also do all those people, in every part of the earth, who
have any religion, who worship one God, lead^ good lives,
and thus make a part of this rqan, subsist and live from the
7*
78
conjanction of the Lord and heaven with the church by
means of the Word ; resembling in this respect the members
and viscera without the thorax, wherein the heart and lun^
are contained. For the Word in the church, although it
may consist of but few persons, is life to all the rest from
the Lord through the heavens ; just as the members and
viscera of the whole body receive life from the heart and the
lungs. < The communication also is similar ; which is the
reason why those Christians among whom the Word is read,
constitute the breast of the fore-mentioned man,—they are
also in the middle or centre of all the rest ; next to them
are the Roman Catholics ; beyond these are the Mahomet¬
ans, who acknowledge the Lord as a very great prophet, and
as a son of God ; after these come the Africans ; and the
last circiunference is occupied by the people and nations in
Asia and the Indies. Concerning which arrangement of
these people something may be seen in the Continuation of
the Last Judgment, n. 58. For all who are in that
man, look towards the centre, where the Christians are
situated.
106. In the centre, where the Christians are situated, who
are in possession of the Word, is the greatest light ; for
light in the heavens is Divine Truth, proceeding from the
Lord as the sun there ; and inasmuch as the Word is Divine
Truth, the greatest light is with those who are in possession
of the Word. Light thence, as from its centre, spreads
itself around through all the circumferences, quite to the
extremities : hence the illumination of the nations and peo¬
ple without the church is also through the Word. That
the light in the heavens is Divine Truth proceeding from
the Lord, and that that light gives intelligence, not only to
the angels, but to men also, may be seen in the treatise con¬
cerning Heaven and Hell, n. 126—140.
107. That this is the case in the universal heaven, may
be concluded from a similarity of circumstances in every
particular society there ; for every particular society is a
heaven in a lesser form, and is likewise as a man : this may
be seen in the treatise concerning Heaven and Hell, n.
41-—87. In every society of heaven, they who are in the
middle, in like manner, represent the heart and the lungs,
and enjoy the greatest degree of light : this light, and the
perception of truth thence arising, diffuse themselves from
the centre in every direction towards the circumferences,
cçnsequently to all who are jn the sqciety, and cause their
79
spiritual life. It was shown me, that when they who were
in the centre, and who constituted the province of the heart
and of the lungs, and enjoyed the greatest degree of light,
were removed, immediately they who were in the neighbor¬
hood around them had their understandings obscured, and
were reduced to so faint a perception of truth, as scarcely to
have any ; but as soon as ever the others were replaced, the
light reappeared, and their former perception of truth was
restored.
108. The same may also be illustrated by this experience.
There were certain African spirits from Abyssinia with me,
whose ears, on a certain occasion, were opened, that they
might hear singing in a church of the world, from the
Psalms of David ; by which they were affected with such
delight, that they joined in the singing : after that, however,
their ears were closed, so that they could not hear anything
thence ; but they were then affected with a greater degree
of delight, because it was spiritual, and were at the same
time filled with intelligence ; for -that psalm treated of the
Lord, and concerning redemption. The reason of such an
increase of delight was, that there was then granted them a
communication with that society in heaven, which was in
conjunction with those who were singing that psalm in the
world. From this and much other experience, it was made
clear to me, that communication with the 'universal heaven
is granted through the Word. For which reason, by the
divine providence of the Lord, the kingdoms of Europe,
and especially those in which the Word is read, have a
universal intercourse with the nations without the pale of
the church.
109. This may be illustrated by comparison with the heat
and light flowing from the sun of this world, which cause
vegetation in trees and shrubs, even in such as are not ex¬
posed to their direct influence, but are planted in shady
places ; which yet never fail to grow, if the sun be only
risen above the horizon. So it is with the light and heat of
heaven, proceeding from ,the Lord as the sun of heaven,
which light is Divine Truth, whence angels and men derive
all intelligence and wisdom ; it is therefore said of the Word,
that it " was with God, and was God;" " that it enlighteneth
every man that cometh into the world and that this light
also " shineth in darkness," (John i. 1, 5, 9:) by the Word
is there meant the Lord as to Divine Truth.
110. From these circumstances it may evidently appear
80
that the Word, which is read in the Protestan Church, en
lightens all nations and people by spiritual communication
and further, that it is provided by the Lord, that there should
always be a church on earth, where the Word is read, and
where the Lord in consequence is known : when therefore
the Word was almost totally rejected by the Romish Church,
through the divine providence of the Lord the Reformation
took place, and the Word was again received. It was also
provided that the Wor(j should be accounted holy by an
eminent nation among the papists.
111. Seeing that without the Word there can be no
knowledge of the Lord, and thus no salvation, therefore
when the Word was entirely falsified and adulterated by the
Jewish nation, and thus rendered in a manner null, it
pleased the Lord to descend from heaven, and to come into
the world to fulfil the Word, and thus renew and restore it,
and give light again to the inhabitants of the earth ; ac¬
cording to these words of the Lord : " The people that
walked in darkness have seen a great light ; they that dwell
in the land of the shadow of death, upon them hath the light
shined," (Isaiah ix. 2 ; Matt, i v. 16.)
112. It having been foretold, that at the end of the
present church, also, darkness would arise, in consequence
of its members not knowing and acknowledging the Lord
as the God of heaven and earth, and separating faith from
charity ; therefore, lest the genuine understanding of the
Word, and consequently the church, should perish, it has
pleased the Lord now to reveal the spiritiud seme of the
Word, and to show that the Word in that sense, and from
this in the natural sense, treats of the Lord and the church,
and of them only ; with many other discoveries, by which
the light of truth derived from the Word, that was well nigh
extinguished, may be restored. That the light of truth
would be almost wholly extinguished at the end of the pres¬
ent church, is foretold in many passages of the Apocalypse,
and is also meant by these words of the Lord : " 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.) By the sun, is there meant the Lord in respect
to love ; by the moon, the Lord as to faith ; by the stars,
the Lord as to the knowledges of good and truth ; by the
81
Son of Man, the Lord as to the Word ; by clouds, the literal
sense of the Word; by glory, its spiritual sense, and its
transparence through the literal sense.
113. It has been given me to know, by much experience,
that man has communication with heaven by means of the
Word. Whilst reading the Word, from the first chapter of
Isaiah to the last of Malachi, with the Psalms of David, and
keeping my thought fixed on the spiritual sense of each pas¬
sage, it was given me to perceive elearly, that every verse
communicates with some particular society in heaven, and
thus that the whole Word communicates with the universal
heaven.
XIV.—That wvthmit the Word, no one vmUd have any
knowledge of God, or of Heaven and Hell, or of a Life
after Death, and much less of the Lord.
114. This follows as a common conclusion from all that
has been said and shown; as,that the Word is Divine Truth
itself, n. 1—4 : that the Word is the medium of conjunction
with the angels of heaven, n. 62—69 : that everywhere in
the Word there is a marriage of the Lord and the church,
and consequently a marriage of goodness and truth, n. 80—
89 : that the state of the church is according to its under¬
standing "of the Word, n. 76—79 : that the Word is also in
the heavens, and that from thence the angels derive their
wisdom, n. 70—75 : that through the Word also the nations
and people without the pale of the church derive their spir¬
itual light, n. 104—113 : beside many other things : from
which it may be concluded, that without the Word no one
can have spiritual intelligence, which consists in the knowl¬
edge of the Lord, of heaven and hell, and a life after death ;
nor, moreover, could know anything of the Lord, of faith
and love to Him, nor, consequently, anything of redemption,
by which nevertheless we have our salvation. The Lord
also says to His disciples, " Without me ye can do nothing,"
(John xv. 5.) " Man can receive nothing except it be given
him from heaven," (John iii. 27.)
115. But there are persons who insist, and confirm them¬
selves in the opinion, that man, without the Word, might
know the existence of a God, and likewise of heaven and
hell, with other points which the Word teaches, and who by
that means derogate from the authority and holiness of the
82
Word, if not with their mouth, yet in their heart ; and it
would not be proper to reason with such persons from the
Word, but from the natural light of reason ; for they do not
believe the Word, but themselves. Inquire then of the light
of reason, and you will find that there are two faculties of
life in man, called .understanding and will, and that the un¬
derstanding is subject to the will, and not the will to the
understanding; for the understanding only teaches and
points out the way. Idquire further, and you will find that
the will of man is his proprium, or selfhood : that this, con¬
sidered in itself, is evil : and that in consequence of this his
understanding is full of false apprehensions. When you
have made these discoveries, you will see, that man of him¬
self is not willing to understand anything but what comes
from the proprium or selfhood of his will, nor would be able,
unless there were some other source of knowledge. Man,
from the proprium of his will, is not desirous of understand¬
ing anything but what regards himself and the world.
Everything of a higher nature is in darkness to him. When
he saw the sun, tiie moon, and the stars, if by chance he
should reflect on their origin, he would not be able to refer
them to any other creative power than their own ; for could
he proceed further than many very learned men in the world
have done, who, although they were informed by the Word
that God created all things, have yet ascribed creation to
nature ? What then would have been their sentiments in
case they had received no information from the Word ? Is
it credible, that the ancient philosophers, as Aristotle, Cicero,
Seneca, and others, who have written about God, ánd the
immortality of the soul, received their first information on
those subjects from their own understanding ? No, surely,
but from others, to whom the information was successively
handed down from those who had it originally from the
Word. In like manner, the writers on natural religion do
not derive their knowledge on the subject from themselves,
but only confirm, by rational deductions, the truths they have
learnt from the church, which is in possession of the Word ;
and it is possible there may be some amongst them who con¬
firm such truths, and yet do not believe them.
116. It has been permitted me to see people, bora in
remote islands, who were possessed of rationality so far as
relates to civil concerns, and yet had no knowledge at all
concerning God. Such persons, in the spiritual world, have
the appearance of apes ; but whereas they are men by birth.
83
and consequently enjoy the capacity of receiving spiritual
life, they are instructed by angels, and by means of knowl
edges concerning the Lord as to His human character, are
made alive. What man of himself is, clearly appears from
those who are in hell, some of whom have been ranked
among the learned and distinguished : these are unwilling to
hear anything of God, and on that account cannot pronounce
the word " God." I have seen them, and conversed with
thqm ; and I have also conversed with some who have burst
into the most violent wrath and anger at the bare mention
of God. Consider, therefore, what sort of a creature man
would have been, supposing him to have received no infor¬
mation about God, when some, who have spoken about God,
have written about God, and have preached about God, are
in such ^ state. There are many such from among the
Jesuits. The reason why they are in such a state, is, be¬
cause their wills are evil, and the will, as before observed,
leads the understanding, and robs it of the truths which it
bad received from the Word. If man could have known,
of himself, that there is a God, and a life after death, bow
comes it to pass that he never discovered that man is a real
man after death ? Why does he imagine that his soul, or
spirit, is like a puff of wind, or ether, which has neither
eyes to see, nor ears to hear, nor mouth to speak, until it is
reiinited with its dead body and its skeleton ? Supposing
therefore a doctrine on the subject of worship to be framed
from the light of reason alone, would it not establish the
worship of self ; as was the case in former ages, and is also
still the case with many who yet are instructed, by the
Word, that God alone is to be worshipped ? It is not possible
that any other worship but that of self should proceed from
the proprium or selfhood of man, not even the worship of
the sun and the moon.
117. The prevalence of religious worship from the most
early ages of the world, and the universal knowledge of a
■ God amongst the inhabitants of the globe, with some notion
of a life after death, are not to be ascribed to men, nor to
their self-derived intelligence, but to the ancient Word men¬
tioned above, n. 101, 102, 103 ; and, in succeeding times, to
the Israelitish Word. From these two sources, religious
knowledge was propagated through all parts of India, with
its islands ; through Egypt and Ethiopia into the kingdoms
of Africa ; from the maritime parts of Asia into Greece ;
and from thence into Italy. But as the Word could not be
84
written otherwise than by representatives, which are stich
earthly existences as correspond with heavenly ones, and are
consequently significative of them, therefore the religious
notions of the Gentiles were changed into idolatry, and in
Greece were turned into fables ; and the divine properties
and attributes were considered as so many separate gods,
governed by one supreme Deity, whom they called Jove,
from Jehovah. That they had a knowledge of paradise, of
the flood, of the sacred fire, of the four ages, beginning with
that of gold and ending with that of iron, by which in the
Word are signified the four states of the church, as in Daniel,
chap. ii. 31—35, is well known. That the Mahometan
religion, which succeeded and destroyed the former religious
persuasions of many nations, was taken from the Word of
both Testaments is also well known.
118. Lastly, I will mention what is the state of those after
death who ascribe all things to their own understanding, and
very little, if anything, to the Word. They first become like
persons intoxicated, afterwards like idiots, and lastly they
sink into stupidity and sit in darkness. Let everyone there*
fore take heed to himself 'how he falls into such insanity.
m
*
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