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TRANSCRIPT
E' TRA CTS
FRO' THE
THEOLOGICAL WORKS
E' ANUEL SWEDENBORG .
BO STON
T . H. CARTER— 1888 .
NOT I CE.
THIS little vo lume of Extracts from the
Theo logical Works of Emanuel Sweden
borg was firs t published in Philadelphia ,
in 1816 .
To us they seem to b e m ade with so
good judgment , and so fully to embody
the vitali ty of Chri stian Life , as to lead
us to reprin t them for dis tribution .
All who wish for a copy may re ceive
one by calling at 169 Tremon t Stre e t ,
Bo ston, or 20 Co oper Union , New ' o rk .
If any who should re ce ive a Copy should
c ease to value it , he is reque ste d to give
it to ano ther .T . H. C .
JANUAR' , 1888 .
E'TRACTS FRO' SWEDENBORG.
' AN in another life becometh the perfectimage of his inward thoughts and intentions .— Arc. 1680 .
Man may know whether he is amongst theinfernal or angelic spirits : if he intendethev il to his neighbor
,thinking nothing but
ev il concerning him,and actually doing ev il
when it is in his power,and finding delight
therein,he is then amongst the inf ernals ,
and becometh also himself an infernal inanother life but if he intendeth good to hisneighbor
,and thinketh nothing but good
concerning him,and actually doeth good
when it i s in his power,he is then amongst
the angelic, and becometh himself also anangel in another life . This i s the characteristic mark or test by which every one maydiscover his true state and quality
,and
according to which he ought to examinehimself. There are sev eral who by habithav e learned in the world a fair and upright method of speaking and acting ; but inanother life it i s perce ived instantly whether
3
4 EXTRACTS FRO'
the mind or intention hath been agreeablethereto ; and if not
,they are rej ected
amongst the infernals 'of their own kind andSpecies — Arc. 1680 .
Kings are predicted of peoples,but not so
of nations . The children of Israel,before
they desired a king,were a nation
,and rep
resented good,or the celestial principle ; but
after that they desired and received a king,
they became a people,and no longer repre
sented good,or the celestial princ iple
,but
truth,or the Spiritual princ iple ; which was
the reason why it was imputed to them asa fault . 1 Sam . viii . 7, to the end —Arc.
1672 .
Everything in another life that is sweetand harmonious
,hath its ground in goodness
and charity . Arc. 1759 .
Persuasions of the false grounded in selflove
,are Opposite to the celestial things o f
love ; persuasions of the false grounded inthe lov e of the world
,are Opposite to the
Spiritual things of lov e . Persuasionsgrounded in self-love hav e this tendency
,
that they would hav e dominion over allthings ; and
,in proportion as they are left
unrestrained,they would have dominion over
the universe,and ev en over Jehovah ; where
fore persuasions of that kind are never tolerated in another life ; but persuasions groundedin a love of the world have not so unruly a
SWEDENBORG. 5
tendency,giving birth only to the wild rav
ings of a discontented mind, attended with afond and vain affectation of heav enly j oy, anda desire to appropriate the wealth and possessions Of other people not so much with av iew to self-pre-eminence ' but the differen ces of those persuasions are innumerable .Arc. 1675 .
The things Spoken by Spirits are heard asclearly
,in respect to depth and tone of ex
pres s ion,by those whose interior organs of
hearing are open,and also by Spirits them
selves,as the things spoken by men on earth ;
but by those whos e interior organs are notOpen
,they are not heard in the least . Arc.
1763 .
Spirits sometimes discours e by mere v isualrepresentatives ; such as flame of various colors , luminous appearances, clouds ascendingand descending
,etc Arc. 1764.
It is an e stablished truth that unless theLord had come into the world , and subduedand overcome the hells , by suffering himselfto be tempted, the whole race of mankindmust have perished ; and there was no otherpossible means o f salvation
,ev en for those
who have lived on this earth s ince the time ofthe most ancient church . But to unfold thearcana of this sav ing process
,even in a most
general v i ew,would fill a whole v olume
,and
would also give occasion to reasonings con
cerning div ine mysteries,which
,being above
6 EXTRACTS FRO'
the reach of common capacitie s, would be unintelligible
,howsoever clearly they might be
unfolded,whilst many would have no de sire
to comprehend them ; wherefore it is betterfor mankind to be contented to know thatsuch a process was necessary, and to believeit,because it is so .
— A7'o. 1676 .
In lusts and fals itie s is the life of ev il Spirits
,but in goodnesses and truths is the life of
angels ; and hence arise infestation and combat . With those who have conscience, thereariseth hence a still or mute pain ; but withthose who hav e perception
,an acute or sharp
pain ; and so much the more acute as the perception is more interior . —Arc. 1668 .
He who is in temptations is in the hells .Place is of no consequence
,but all depends
on state . Arc. 1691 .
' ery few are capable Of knowing what iseffected by temptations
,and the combats of
temptations : they are the means wherebyev ils and falses are loosened and shook off inman
,and whereby horror i s excited in respect
thereto,and conscience i s not only formed but
confirmed,and thus man is regenerated ; and
this is the reason why such as are regeneratedare let into combats
,and undergo temptations ;
which is effected in another life,if not in the
life of the body,with all who are capable Of
being regenerated wherefore the,Lord's
church is called militant . —Arc. 1692 .
SWEDENBORG . 7
The interior or middle man is the real rationalman ; which is spiritual or celestial whenhe looketh upwards
,but merely animal when
he looketh downwards . — Arc. 1702 .
Everything that is according to true orderi s truth .
— Influx, 2 .
Ends proposed, as they are first in intent ion,so are they first in order ; in the second degreeo f order are the causes or means used to ac
complish those ends ; and in the third degreeo f order are the effects
,or the accompli shm ent
its elf. Influx, 2 .
All perception arises from conjunction . Inproportion as the things appertaining to the external man are j oined with the celestial thingsof the internal man
,in the same proportion
perception increaseth,and becometh more in
terior.—Arc. 1615 .
Man is continually in worship when he isin lov e and charity . Arc. 1618 .
The sweet affections of lov e and wisdom en
large the faculties of the soul,and dispose them
for the reception of more copious influxes,
ev en as a merry heart opens and exhilaratesthe coun tenance .
— Influx, 13 .
Odors correspond with spheres . Arc. 1514.
8 EXTRACTS FROM
In another life, the temper and quality of
every one i s known the instant he comes inview
,whether he opens his lips to Speak or
not . — Arc. 194.
There are as many spheres as there are affections and compositions of affections
,which
are innumerable . The Sphere of a spirit is,
as it were, his image extended without him,
and indeed the image of all things apper
taining to him . What is exhibited v isiblyand perceptibly in the world of spirits
,i s only
a sort of general image or resemblance,which
nev ertheless i s discerned in heav en as to itsparticulars ; but as to its s ingulars partienlars o f particulars', no on e knoweth t em butthe Lord alone .
' Arc. 1505 .
Many of those who hav e been most distin
guished for their skill and knowledge inpoints of doctrine, are amongst the infernals ;but such as hav e lived a life of charity areall in heaven — Arc. 1515.
Spheres and odors are not of a regular continual existence ; they are diversely temperedby the Lord
,to prevent Spirits always appear
ing before others according to their true nature and quality .
— Arc. 1520 .
In proportion as truths are more genuineand more multiplied
,in the same proportion
good is rendered more capable of receiv ingthem as vessels
,and of reducing them to
SWEDENBORG. 9
order,and finally of manifesting itself ; till
at length truths no longer appear,only as good
shines through them . Thus truth becomescelestial-spiritual ; inasmuch as the Lord ispresent only in good
,which is of charity alone .
—Arc. 2063 .
The things of the body must in a measuredie before man can be born anew
,or be regen
erated : the body itself must die before mancan be admitted into heav en
,and see the
things Of heav en . Thus it i s with the WordOf the Lord : its bodily parts are the contentsOf the literal sense ; in which, whilst the attention Of the mind is fixed
,the internal con
tents do not appear ; but when the formerbecome as it were dead then first the latterare presented to v iew . There is a differencebetween the v essels
,and the es sential things
contained in the v es sels — Arc . 1408 .
The celestial principle of lov e is such,that
it does not des ire to liv e in propriety,or self
seeking, but to impart itself to all , so that itwisheth to give all its own to others . Hereinconsisteth the essence o f celestial lov e : theLord, as being essential love , or the es senceand life of the love of all in heaven
,i s desir
ous to giv e to mankind all things that are his .Nothing is more contrary to celestial love thanself-love . Arc. 1419 .
To wish to be greater than others is notheaven
,but hell .— Arc. 450 .
10 EXTRACTS FROM
In proportion as things natural,worldly
,
and corporeal,partake of things celestial and
Spiritual, so as to be influenced thereby,in
the same proportion they are good,and so far
are bles sed .— Arc. 1420 .
Things scientifical are compared to plantations of oaks
,by reason of the interwoven
branches which distinguish the oak. Arc .
1443 .
During the proces s of regeneration,man
is introduced by the knowledges of thingsSpiritual and celestial ; but when he is regenerated
,he is then introduced to
,and is in the
celestial and spiritual things of knowledges .—Arc. 1453 .
In the time of the most ancient church,they performed holy worship in their tents .
-Arc. 414.
Scientifics are the v essels of things Spiritual . — Arc . 1435 .
Supposing there were several on earth whohad their internal sight Open
,they might be
together,and converse together, even though
the one was in India,and another in Europe .
—Arc. 1277.
The ambulations and progres sions of spirits
,which are often beheld
,are nothing else
but changes of state .— Arc . 1379 .
SWEDENBORG . 11
The men of the most ancient church hadthe most delightful dreams
,and likewise vis
ions ; and it was at the same time insinuatedto them what such dreams and vis ions signified .
— Arc. 1122 .
They who subdue the evil Of their nature,and regulate their lives by the laws of wisdomappear in the Spiritual world in beautiful human forms
,and are as the angels in heav en .
Influx, 15 .
Water signifies natural truth ; so likewi s edoes the word riv er . Influx, 2 0 .
The essential property of heav enly lov e isto be communicativ e .
— Heaven and Hell,400 .
Heav en,considered in itself, i s an aggre
gate of beatitudes and delectation . The pleasures of heav en are unutterable
,as they are
innumerable . No man that is absorbed incarnal and sensual gratification s can hav e theleast notion of any one of them, because allhis receptive faculties are turned back fromheav en to this world ; consequently, beingimmersed in the lov e of self and of the world,he is incapable of taking pleasure in anythingbut the honors and riches of this world
,or in
sensual gratification s : whereas thes e thingsdo
, as it were , extinguish or suffocate allsense of the refined pleasures of heav en, evenso far as to render the reality of them incredible . Heaven and Hell
, 397, 398 .
12 EXTRACTS FROM
The man who is in the love of self and ofthe world is
,during his bodily life
,sensibly
affected therewith,and the pleasures resulting
from them ; whereas he who is in the lov e ofGod and of his neighbor, has s eldom,
duringhis life here
,the same manifest sensations
thereof,nor of the sweets of the good affec
tions resulting therefrom ; but in their roomfeels only a kind of secret satisfaction in thecentre of his soul
,darkened and covered
,as
it were,with this natural corporeal integu
ment,and deadened
,in a manner
,by the cares
Of this life . But these states are quite alteredafter death ; for then the pleasures resultingfrom the lov e of self and of the world are'changed into horrors
,s ignified by the name
Of hell-fire . But that which was no morethan an inward
,secret
,and obscure satisfac
t ion,in those who were in the love of God
and o f their neighbor, i s then changed intoclear perceptions and j oyous sensations ; andwhat was before a hidden though spiritualroot of blessedness, does in their manifestedstate of spiritual life bring forth the pleasantfruit Of spiritual delights — Arc. 401 .
I found by experience, whenever I was
prompted by a motive of benevolence to communicate the j oy I felt to any other, that, inthe room of what was so communicated, afresh and more OOpious stream of j oy flowedin upon my soul
,and that according to the
degree of such benevolence —Heaven and
Hell,413 .
SWEDENBORG. 13
The ultimate end of creation was doubtlessto prov ide and prepare for heaven an infinitenumber of human beings , to be blessed withthe div ine presence and communications ;whilst so many stars serv e as so many suns,to enlighten, warm,
and fructify so manyearths for the support of men
,that should in
due time become angels in the kingdom of
heaven .—Hecw en and Hell, 417.
To be un der the Lord's leadings,from the
beginning to the end of our lives, in thisworld
,and so on in eternity
,is what we are
to understand by his mercy therefore let allsuch kn ow that ev ery on e is designedly borninto this world for heav en
,and that he is
receiv ed into it who receives into himself thequalifying heav enly principles in this world,and that no other i s excluded than he whorej ects them .
-Heaven and Hell,420 .
Good and truths,of the same kind
,love
one another by sympathy,and tend to union.
—Heaven and Hell, 319 .
Faith and charity are communicated by theLord to those who shun ev ils as sin Continuation of the Last Judgment, 49 .
Polygamy was permitted to the Mahometansbecause they were Orientals who
,without
such permission,would hav e burned with the
lust of filthy adulteries more than Europeans ,and so hav e perished . Last Judgment, 72 .
14 EXTRACTS FROM
To will or desire truth for the sake of truth,
is likewis e to lo ve and acknowledge what isdiv ine . Last Judgment
, 36 .
All things in the universe hav e relation totruth and good
,and to their conjunction .
L ast Judg. 39 .
The church would be but on e,and not di
v ided into many,if charity was regarded as
the essential of the church ; in such case,the
differences which might exist as to doctrinalOpinions
,and matters relating to external
worship,would be of no account . L ast
Judg. 39 .
Cock-crowing,as well as twilight
,s ignifies
in the word the last time of the churchLast Judgment, 39 .
To love our neighbor does not consist in thelove of his person
,but in lov ing that in him
which makes him our neighbor,consequently
good and truth . They who love the person,
and not the quality within him which constitutes a neighbor
,lov e what is ev il as well as
what is good . The judge who punishes thewicked
,in order to their amendment
,and that
the good may not be corrupted by them,love s
his neighbor . Last Judg . 39 .
To lov e our neighbor,i s to do what is good,
just,and upright in all our dealings and con
cerns Last Judgmen t,39 .
16 EXTRACTS FROM
distinguished them into clas ses,giv ing to
each its proper name ; and herein consistedtheir wisdom . Last Judgment
,39 .
All good is the offspring of love and charity,
and all truth is the offspring of good . Last
Judg. 39 .
Rationality and liberty are the mansions ofthe Lord in the human race
,with the good
and with the evil . —Angelie Wisdom,140 .
The spiritual man loves Spiritual truths ;he lov es not on ly to know and understandthem
,but he also wills them . Angelic Wis
dom,251 .
When the things which are o f heav en serv eas means to the natural man for his own ends ,then those means
,although they appear celes
tial,nevertheles s become natural
,inasmuch
as the end qualifies them ; for they becomeas scientifics of the natural man .
—Angelio
Wisdom ,261 .
The natural mind is in its form or image aworld ; the Spiritual mind is in its form or
image a. heaven . Angelic Wisdom, 270 .
The natural mind,with all things apper
taining to it,i s turned in Spiral circumvolu
tions from right to left,but the Spiritual mind
from left to right . An ev il Spirit cannot turnhis body in circumgyration from left to right,
SWEDENBORG. 17
but from right to left ; whereas a good spirithas difficulty in turning his body in circumgyration from right to left
,but easily does it
from left to right . The circumgyration follows the flux of the interiors , which are of themind. Angelic Wisdom,
270 .
Man cannot do good from himself,but from
he Lord, and it is good which is called use .
The Lord is with those who do his commandments
,consequently who perform uses .
Angelic Wisdom ,335.
All good things which exist in act are calleduses . Angelic Wisdom,
336 .
By uses from the Lord are meant all thingswhich perfect the rational principle of man
,
and cause man to receive a Spiritual principlefrom the Lord ; but by evil uses are meant allthings which destroy the rational principle
,
and prev ent man from becomin g Spiritual .Angelic Wisdom, 336 .
An ev il spirit,when viewed intently by the
angels, presently falls as it were into a swoon,and loses the appearance of a human form
,
till the angel turns away his eyes ; the causeof which is
,that the sight of the angels is
from the light of heaven,which is the same
with div ine truth All power belongs totruths from good —Heaven and Hell, 232,
18 EXTRACTS FROM
In the same proportion as man appliesknowledge to the purposes of good life
,in
that degree,and no farther
,his interior sight
,
which is the property of his intellect,and his
interior affection,which is that of his will
,
are in their progres s to perfection .- Heaven
and Hell, 351 .
Ev ery aff ection of good and truth is an extension into heav en
,and there is a communi
cation and conjunction with those thereinwho are in like affections . Ev ery affectionof ev il and fals e is also an extension intohell
,and there is a communication and con
j unction with those therein who are in similarafiection s .
- Last Judg. 9 .
Angels and spirits do not know what menthey are with
,any more than men know what
angels and spirits they cohabit with . Last
Judg. 9 .
They only are capable of thinking spiritually, who, through the acknowledgment ofthe Lord's div inity
,are conj oined with heaven .
Last Judgmen t,10 .
The angelic heaven is the end for which allthings in the universe were created, being theend for which mankind was created ; andmankind is the end for which the v is ibleheaven
,and all the earths therein
,were cre
ated .— Last Judg . 13 .
SWEDENBORG 19
The interiors of man are formed for the reception of heavenly things, and his exteriorsfor the reception of worldly things ; and theywho receive the world
,and not at the same
time heaven,receive hell . L ast Judg . 16 .
Man's Spiritual thought,which he is endued
with as well as an angel,during his life in the
body flows into natural ideas correspondingwith Spiritual,
‘
and so are perceived therein ;but it is otherwise when the mind of man isloosed from the fetters of the body ; then itno longer thinks naturally
,but spiritually .
Last Judgment, 18 .
When men rej ect the Div ine Being fromtheir thoughts
,they also rej ect the idea of
eternity . Lust Judgment,25 .
In the natural world the good and bad areintermixed ; there no one knows the realquality of another, nor are they separatedfrom each other according to the affection of
their life L ast Judgment, 33 .
The quality of charity is always determinedby the truths which giv e it form and existence . L ast Judgment
,38 .
Charity is an internal affection of actingaccording to truth : charity constitutes thespiritual life of man .
— L ast Judgment, 40 .
20 EXTRACTS FROM
To do what i s good and true,for the sake of
goodness and truth,i s to love our neighbor :
they who do this love the Lord,who i s our
neighbor in a supreme sense .— Last Judg
ment,40 .
Man recedes from wisdom in proportion ashe recedes from charity they who are not incharity are in ignorance respecting div inetruths . L ast Judgmen t
,40 .
The life of the understanding proceedsfrom the life of the will
,comparatively as
light proceeds from fire or flame . Last Judgment, 40 .
How perverted a state they are in whoseunderstanding and will do not act in unity .
Such is the state of hypocrites,of the deceit
ful,of flatterers
,and of dissemblers .—Last
Judgment, 39 .
The understanding is enlightened in proportion as man receives truth with his will .The understanding consisteth in seeing
,from
matters of experience and sc ience,truths
,the
causes of things,their connections and conso
quences, in regular order. The understandingconsisteth in seeing and perceiving whether athing be true or not
,before it is confirmed ;
but not in being able to confirm everything.
Last Judgment, 39 .
SWEDENBORG. 21
From the love of good in the will proceedsthe lov e of truth in the understanding ; fromthe lov e of truth proceeds the perception of
truth ; from the perception of truth thethought of truth : hence comes the acknowledgm ent of truth, which is faith in its genuine s ense .
—Doctrine of L ife, 36 .
Good procures to itself truths , and fromthence hath its nourishment and formation .
Doctrine of L ife, 36 .
So far as any one is principled in good,and
by v irtue of good loves truths , so far he lov e sthe Lord ; inasmuch as the Lord is essentialgood
,and essential truth . Doctrine of Lif e,
38 .
The more a man shuns ev il s as s ins , so
much the more he lov es and desire s t ruths,
because he is so much the more principled ingood ; hereby he comes into the heav enly marriage . Doctrin e of L ife, 41 .
When a man shuns ev il as sin . then he isin the Lord
,and the Lord operates all things .
Doctrin e of L ife, 48 .
When man ceaseth to do ev ils,then he
doeth good,not from himself
,but from the
Lord ; therefore in the commandments i s saidnot what good he should do
,but what evil he
should not do .— Doctrin e of L ife, 58 .
22 EXTRACTS FROM
The angels,when they hear the sound of
man's voice and speech,perceive in it all the
aflection s of his love,and likewise discover
o f what kind and quality they are — The
ology, 365 .
Charity j oined with faith,and faith j oined
with charity,may be likened to the face of a
fair v irgin,made beautiful by a proper mix
ture of red and white ; which similitude alsohath an exact coincidence
,inasmuch as love
,
and consequently charity,are red in the Spir
itual world,by v irtue of the fire of the beav
enly sun ; and truth, and consequently faith,are white
,by virtue of the light of the same
sun . Faith separated from charity may belikened to a dance called St . ' itus' dance,occasioned by the bite of a tarantula : for thereason o f man
,where faith is in such a state
of separation, doth, as it were , dance like amadman
,and at such times fan cieth itself
alive,when yet it hath no more power to make
any reasonable deductions, and form just conception s of spiritual truths, than a man lyingin bed
,oppressed with the nightmare . The
ology, 367.
None can be in Spiritual conjugal love butthose who are so from the Lord, becauseheaven is in that lov e ; and the natural man,with whom that love derives its pleasuresolely from the flesh
,cannot approach heav en,
nor any angel,nor even to any man in whom
24 EXTRACTS FROM
The variety of lov e and charity is heavenlyharmony . Arc. 3986 .
Juice i s introduced in fruits by means offibres
,which wither away ; and the fruit s
ripen afterwards , by means of the fibres o f
genuine juice . Man, in infancy and childhood
,learns things useful
,afterwards things
more useful,at length such things as regard
eternal life ; in which case the former thingsare almost obliterated . Arc. 3982 .
The Word, as being div ine, contains in itonly such things as regard salvation . andeternal life . Arc. 3993 .
When any on e doeth good,not from the
good of truth,in such case he is always desir
ous to be recompensed,for he doeth it for the
sake of himself. Arc. 3993 .
Colors are modifications of light andshade
,in black and white
,as in planes .
Arc. 3993 .
Innocence makes good to be good — Arc.
3994.
Whereas faith is not faith unless it begrounded in charity towards our neighbor,and thereby in love to the Lord, neither isthere any charity and love unless groundedin innocence . Arc. 3994.
SWEDENBORG. 25
The paschal lamb is the Lord in a supremesense the passov er signified the Lord's glorification , that is, the putting on of the div ineprinc iple
,as to the human ; and, in a repre
sentative sense, it s ignifies the regenerationof man . No one can be regenerated exceptby charity
,in which is inn ocence — Arc.
Dur ing the proces s of man's regenerationthe truth
,which is of faith, apparently pre
cedes,and the good
,which is of charity,
apparently follows ; but when man is regenerated, then the good, which is Of charity,manifestly precedes, and the truth, which isof faith, manifestly follows : howev er, in theformer case it is only an appearance
,whereas
in the latter it is e ssentially so .— Arc.
3995.
The propriety of innocence 'p rop rium'consists in knowing
,acknowledging
,and be
liev ing,not with the mouth
,but w ith the
heart,that nothing but ev il i s from self
,and
that all good is from the Lord . When manis in this confess ion and faith from the heart
,
then the Lord flows in with good and truth,
and insinuates into him a celestial propriety ,which is bright and shining . It i s impossiblefor any one to be in true humiliation unles she be in this acknowledgment and faith fromthe heart
,for in this cas e he is in self-annihi
lation . Arc. 3993 .
26 EXTRACTS FROM
Good floweth in from the Lord by an internal way, or by the way of the soul ; andtruth floweth in by an external way
,or by
the way of the senses,which is that of the
body The truth which entereth by thislatter way is adopted by the good which iswithin
,and is conj oined thereto ; and this
with a continuance,till man is regenerated .
When this is the case, then is a change ; andtruth is brought into act from a principle Ofgood .
—Arc. 3995.
There are goods procured by truths,there
are truths born thence,and by these again
goods procured : there are truths born fromgoods
,and this also in a series : there are
goods mixed with ev ils,and truths mixed
with falses ; and the mixtures and temperatures of these are so various and manifoldas to exceed myriads of myriads . They arealso varied according to all states of the life ;and states of the life, in general, are according to ages, and in particular according tothe affections, of whatsoever kind they be .Arc. 4005 .
There are two things which are put off
by all who enter into heaven,propriety
and the confidence thence derived, and selfmerit or proper j ustice ; and they put onheavenly propriety, which is from the Lord,and the Lord's merit or j ustice . — Arc.
4007.
SWEDENBORG. 27
In anci ent times ev ery tree signified somespec ies of good and truth : hence worship wasperformed in grov es
,according to the species
of trees . Arc. 4013 .
Nothing can do ev il to the divine principle,but to hinder its influx may be done
,and all
ev il hath this effect . Arc. 4078 .
Pouring oil upon the head of a statue,which was done by Jacob, denoted to maketruth good ; statue denoting a holy boundary,thus the ultimate of o rder, consequentlytruth . Arc. 4090 .
The first state is that the mind is kept indoubt ; the second state is that doubt is dis
pelled by reasons ; the third state is affirma
tion ; the last is act . Thus good with truthsinsinuates itself from the intellectual partinto the voluntary part
,and is appropriated .
Arc. 4097.
The societie s of spirits, which serve for amiddle good
,are in worldly principles ;
whereas the societie s of angels, which serv efor introducing the affections of truth
,are
not in worldly,but in heav enly principles
these two s ocieties act with man who isregenerating . So far as man is initiated intoheav enly principles by the angels, so far theSpirits are removed who are in worldly principles ; and unles s they are removed, truths
28 EXTRA CTS FROM
are dissipated : for worldly and heav enlyprinciple s are in concord with man whenheavenly principles hav e dominion overworldly ; but they are in discord whenworldly principles have dominion over beavenly : when they are in con cord
,then truths
are multiplied in man's natural principle ;but when they are in discord
,then truths
are diminished,yea are consumed
,because
worldly things ov ershadow heavenly,couse
quently place them in doubt ; whereas , whenheavenly things hav e dominion
,they illus
trate worldly things,and place them in clear
ness,and take away doubts . Those things
hav e dominion which are most loved — Arc.
4099 .
Every affection of lov e hath its delight andpleasantness along with it
,and the affection
of the lov e of goodness and truth hath sucha delight and pleasantness as the angels ofheav en enj oy . Affection is of the lov e
,and
the lov e of man is his life . Ap oc. R ev. 526 .
By fearing the name of the Lord is signi
fied to lov e the things which are of theLord . Ev ery one who loveth another is alsoafraid to do harm to him whom he loveththere is no such thing as genuine lov e without such fear . Ap oc. Rev. 527.
He who loves ev il s loves to do ev il to theLord
,yea to crucify him : this lies deeply hid
in all evil . That this is the case is not
SWEDENBORG. 29
known to men ; but it is v ery well known tothe angels . Ap oc. R ev. 527
The Apocalypse,from beginning to end
,
treats solely of the state of the formerheav en and church
,and of their abolition ;
and afterwards of the new heaven,and new
church,in which one God will be acknowl
edged,in whom there is a trinity
,and that
that God is the Lord . Ap oc. R ev. 523 .
He who has kn own the influx of succes s iveinto simultaneous order can comprehend thecause that angels can see all the thoughtsand intentions of a man's mind in his hand ;and likewis e that wiv es
,from the hands of
their husbands upon their breasts,perceive
their affections . The reason is because thehands are the ultimates of man
,in which are
determined the fluctuations and conclusionsof his mind . Conjugal L ove
,314.
The soul of man i s man himself ; a full andperfect human form ; not life , but a recipientof life from God ; and thus the habitation ofGod. Conjugal L ove
,315 .
Those who liv e according to the doctrinesof the new church hav e communion with theangels in heaven . Ap oc. R ev. 1 .
In heav en all are called serv ants of theLord who are in his spiritual kingdom,
butthey who are in his celestial kingdom are
30 EXTRACTS FROM
called ministers . The reason is because theywho are in his spiritual kingdom are principled in wisdom from div ine truth
,and they
who are in his celestial kingdom are principled in love from div ine good ; and goodministereth
,and truth serveth .
— Ap oc.
R ev. 1 .
Heav en,in the sight of the Lord
,is as on e
man,whose soul is the Lord himself ; where
fore the Lord speaketh with man throughheav en
,as man doth from his soul through
his body with another . But this arcanumcannot be unfolded in a few words . —Ap oc.
R ev. 5 .
All are,as it were, connected in consan
guinity by charity, but in affinity by faith .
When faith is from charity,then charity
conj oins,and faith consociates . Ap oc. R ev.
32 .
The Word was not rev ealed in a state of
the spirit,or in vision, but was dictated by
the Lord viva voce to the prophets . Ap oc.
R ev. 37.
By a voice,as of a trumpet , is s ignified
manifest perception .— Ap oc. Rev. 37.
A v oice from heaven denotes the div inetruth of the Lord from his Word. Ap oc.
R ev . 37.
32 EXTRACTS FROM
but at certain distances,forming a kind of
c ircle, as is ev ident from these words' These things saith he who walketh in themidst of the seven golden candlesticks . '
Ap oc. R ev . 43 .
The Lord called himself the Son of God,
and also the Son of Man . By the Son of
God he meant himself as to his div ine humanity ; and by the Son of Man himself asto the Word . The Lord represented himselfto John as the Word ; therefore as seen ofhim he is called the Son of Man
,because the
new church is the subj ect treated of,which
is a church from the Word . Ap oc. R ev. 44.
Forasmuch as the church is a church fromthe Lord through the Word, therefore theSon of Man was seen in the midst of thecandlesticks . In the midst signifies in the inmost principle
,from which the things which
are round about,or which are without
,derive
their essence,in this instance their light and
intelligence . Ap oc. R ev . 44.
Garments signify truths in the Word, because in heav en they are clothed accordingto the truths proceeding from their good .
Ap oc. R ev. 43 .
A 'one or girdle in the Word signifies acommon band, whereby all things are kept intheir order and connection . Ap oc . R ev. 46 .
SWEDENBORG. 33
Bald signifies the Word without its literals ense
,and bears sign ify that sense of the
Word separated from its internal sen se .They who separate them appear in the Spiritual world like bears, when seen from far.Ap oc. R ev. 47.
Na'arite,in the Hebrew
,s ignifies hair ;
hence,the strength of Samson
,who was a
Na'arite,was in his hair . Ap oc. Rev . 47
Wool s ignifies good in ultimates, and snowtruth in ultimates : for wool i s from sheep
,
by which is s ignified the good of charity ;and snow is from water
,by which are signi
fied truths of faith Ap oc. R ev. 47
The natural,which is also the external
man,is purified when he shuns ev il s which
the spiritual or internal man sees to be ev ils,
and that they ought to be shunned — Ap oc.
R ev. 49 .
Man's natural property is understood byfeet and this perverts all things if it be notwashed or purified.
—Ap oc. R ev. 49 .
By waters,in the Word, are meant truths
in the natural man : hence appears what iss ignified by baptism
,and likewise by these
words of the Lord in John,' Except a man
be born of water and of the Spirit,he cannot
enter into the kingdom of God .
' To be bornof water signifies to be born. by truths ; and
34 EXTRACTS FROM
of the spirit signifies by a life according tothem . Waters
,in an opposite s ense
,s ignify
falses . — Ap oc. Rev. 50 .
Stars signify knowledges of things goodand true from the Word . The Son of Man'shav ing them in his right hand signifies thatthey are from the Lord alone through theWord . About the angels
,when they are
beneath the heav ens,there appear
,as it were
,
little stars in great abundance,and in like
manner about Spirits ; fixed with those whoare in genuine truths from the Word, butwandering with those who are in falsifiedtruths . —Ap oc. Rev. 51 .
In proportion as a man is in goods of life,
in the same proportion he is really in truthsof doctrine . The reason is because goods oflife open the interiors of the mind ; and thes ebeing opened
,truths appear in their light
,
whereby they are not only understood,but
also lov ed . Not so when doctrines are primarily
, or in the first place, respected ; inthis case truths may indeed be known, butnot seen interiorly
,and loved out of spiritual
affection .—Ap ocalyp se Revealed, 82 .
There i s no church in man till truth of
doctrine conceiv ed in the internal man is
born in the external . Ap oc. R ev . 17.
By eating of the tree of life is signified theappropriation o f the good of love from theLord .
— Ap oc. R ev. 89 .
SWE DENBORG. 35
By Jews, in the Word, are meant they of
the Lord's celestial church, who are such as
are in lov e towards him ; because in the
Word, by Judah, in a supreme sense , ismeant the Lord as to the div ine good of
div ine lov e .— Ap oc. R ev. 94.
The celestial see truths from good alone .By hidden manna is meant hidden wisdom,
written in the life more than in the memory .
Ap oc. R ev. 120 .
Those who are in the third heaven do not
talk of truths of doctrine,but do them .
Ap oc. R ev . 120 .
Those who see truths from good have thelaw written in their hearts . Ap oc . R ev. 121 .
Good without truths is like bread and meatwithout wine and water
,which do not nour
ish ; and also like fruit in which there i s no
j uice ; like trees stripped of their leaves, onwhich there hang some dry apples
,left s ince
autumn . Ap oc. Rev . 122 .
He is called a priest who i s in good : ' 0
shall be called the p riests of Jehovah, the ministers of your God .
' Isa . lxi . 6 . Apoc . Rev .
128 . Minister is predicated of good,serv ant
of truth . The priests represented the Lordwith respect to div ine good .
— Ap oc. Rev. 128 .
36 EXTRACTS FROM
Good desires to be nourished,and is nour
ished by truths .—Ap oc. Rev. 130.
In the Word there i s a marriage of goodness and truth . Whoredom signifies to adulterate the good
,and fals ify the truths .
Ap oc. Rev. 134.
Truth serv eth good,and good ministereth
to truth .— Ap oc . R ev. 128 .
They who from their own reason hav e falsified the Word, after death, when they comeinto the Spiritual world
,become addicted to
Whoredom . They who hav e confirmed themselve s in faith alone
,to the exclusion of works
of charity,are in the lust of committing adul
tery ; sons with their mother . Ap oc. R ev .
134.
Worship receives its life from truths, andfrom a life conformable to them . Ap oc.
Rev . 155 .
Every one's exteriors,after death, are re
duced to a state analogous to his interiors .— Ap oc. R ev. 157
He who learn eth truths , and liveth according to them
,i s like one who is w aked out of
sleep,and becometh watchful ; but he who
i s not in truths,but only in worship , i s like
on e who sleepeth and dreameth . Naturallife considered in itself
,without Spiritual
SWEDENBORG. 37
life,is nothing else but sleep ; but natural
life in which there is spiritual life is watchfulness ; and this i s no other wis e acquiredthan by truths
,which are in their day
,and
in their light,whenman i s in a lif e conform
able to them . Ap oc. Rev. 158 .
He who is tempted in the world is not
tempted after death .—Ap oc. Rev. 185.
Wisdom perishes in man when he ceases toliv e according to truths ; for then he ceasesto lov e wisdom
,and consequently ceases to
lov e the Lord .—Ap oc. R ev. 189 .
An gels never understand anything else byFather, when it is read in the Word, but thediv in e good . Ap oc. R ev. 170 .
When c itie s are named in the Word, theangels understand nothing else but doctrinals . Ap oc. R ev . 194.
Man, with his quality,is in what he
thinks , Speaks, and writes ; in the Word theLord alone is . Ap oc. R ev . 200 .
N0 one feels and perceiv es the div ine lifefrom the Word but he who i s in the Spiritual affection of truth when he reads it
,for he
is in conjunction with the Lord through theWord . There is s omething intimately aflect
ing the heart and Spirit,which flows into the
38 EXTRACTS FROM
understanding with light,and testifies .
Ap oc. R ev. 200 .
The Word communicate s with the universal heaven, and sev erally with each societythere . — Ap oc. R ev. 200 .
They who are lukewarm are neither inheav en nor in hell
,but in a place separate
,
deprived of human life , where there arenothing but mere fantasies . The whole of
the rational life i s extirpated,the ultimates
of l ife alone remaining ; which, when separated from the interiors
,are mere fantasies .
-Ap oc. R ev . 204.
Temptations are Spiritual combats againstone's self ; without them negations and con
firmation s against div ine truths cannot beextirpated . Ap oc. R ev. 215 .
He who acts from the affection of the lov eof truth acts also from avers ion to what isfalse Ap oc. R ev . 215 .
It appears as if the : Lord was angry whenman's own ev il punishes him ; which is perm itted out of love
,that his ev il may be r
moved ; like the case o f a parent and child .
—Ap oc . R ev. 216 .
There are two ways to the understanding ;on e from the world
,and the other from
heav en . The Lord withdraws the under
40 EXTRACTS FROM
what is signified by sacrifices of calves .Ap oc. R ev . 242 .
By the cherubims cov ering their bodieswith their wings is signified to preserv e ordefend the interior truths
,which belong to
the spiritual sense of the ' lord,from v iola
tion .— Ap oc. R ev . 245.
By wings are signified powers,because by
them birds lift themselv es up ; and wings , inbirds
,are in the place of arms in men . The
an imals not resting day and night signifiesthat the Word continually and without intermission teaches . Ap oc . R ev. 247.
When div ine truth is treated of in theWord, it is called glory ; and when div inegood is treated of
,it is called honor. Ap oc.
R ev. 249 .
Casting their crowns before the thronesignifies an acknowledgment that their wisdom is from the Lord alone . — Ap oc. R ev. 252 .
Altar signifies worship of the Lord fromthe good of lov e . Ap oc. R ev. 325 .
Blood s ignifies div ine truth ; in an Opp osite sense
,div ine truth fals ified .
— Ap oc. R ev.
332 .
In the spiritual world,stars appear to fall
from heaven to the earth there,when knowl
SWEDENBORG. 41
edges of good and truth perish —Ap oc.
Rev. 333 .
All comparisons in the Word are correSponden ces . Ap oc. R ev . 334.
Every tree signifies something of the churchin man . Ap oc. R ev. 334.
Armies,or hosts
,are goods and truths of
the church out of theWord.—Ap oc. Rev. 335.
In an abstract sense, ev ery island signifiesev ery truth of faith . Ap oc. R ev . 336 .
They who are in the lov e of doing uses tothe community
,and to society,
in heavenenj oy beatitude abov e all others . — Ap oc.
R ev. 353 .
They who hav e ov ercome in temptation shav e an interior perception of uses . Bytemptations the interiors of the mind areOpened . They feel in themselv es what isgood
,and see in themselv e s what is true .
The perception which they have is describedin Jerem . chap . xxxi . 33, 34. After temptationthere is freedom of elocution from perception .
- Ap oc. R ev. 354.
Celestial conjugal love is the lov e of goodness and truth — Ap oc. R ev. 358 .
42 EXTRACTS FROM
Palms signify div ine truths in ultimates .-Ap oc. R ev . 367.
By the riv er Jordan is s ignified div inetrut h .
-Ap oc. R ev. 367
R eligious principle s are cleansed by temptation s
,which are signified by great atflic
tion .— Ap oc. Rev. 378 .
When the will lov es ev il,the understand
ing lov es what is fals e Ap oc. R ev. 382 .
The Lord is present with man in his div ine natural principle, but with the angels ofhis spiritual kingdom in his div ine spiritual
,
and with the angels of his celestial kingdomin his div ine celestial principle ; and yet heis not div ided, but appears to ev ery one
according to his quality — Ap oc. R ev. 466 .
Man,when he is regenerated
,from natural
becomes Spiritual . Ap oc. R ev. 466 .
Jehovah sweareth, that is, testifieth byhimself. Ap oc . R ev. 474.
Af ter the representative rites of the churchwere abolished
,oaths
,as used in cov enants ,
were also abolished by the Lord . Ap oc. R ev .
474.
That there should no longer be time siguifies that there cannot be any state of the
SWEDENBORG . 43
church,or any church, except one God be
acknowledged, and that that God is the Lord .
— Ap oc. Rev . 476 .
Time is not measured, in the spiritualworld
,by days
,weeks, months, and years,
but by states ; which are progress ions of
their life,from which they remember things
past . Ap oc. R ev. 476 .
By kings,abstractedly, are signified truths
originating in good, or falses originating inev il . — Ap oc. R ev. 483 .
By mill,and grinding in a mill
,in the
Word, i s meant to collect from the Wordwhat is serv iceable or subserv ient to doctrine .
—Ap oc. Rev. 484.
By measuring is s ignified the quality or
state of a thing .— A
'p oc. R ev. 486 .
An inundating rain denotes devastation of
truth,and temptation .
— Ap oc . R ev. 496 .
Enter into whatever intricacy of thoughtyou will
,yet you will nev er be able to extri
cate yourself, and make out that God is oneunles s he is also one person — Ap oc. R ev.
490 .
44 EXTRACTS FROM
The plagues of Egypt s ignified so manycupidities of the natural man separated fromthe Spiritual
,which acteth solely from his
own intelligence,and the pride or conceit
thereof. Ap oc. R ev . 503 .
Sev en,as well as three, s ignifies what is
full and complete ; but sev en is said of holythings
,and three of things not holy .
—Ap oc.
Rev. 505.
In the Word, by heart and soul are m eantthe will and understanding of mam—Ap oc.
R ev. 507.
They do good from the Lord who shunevils as S ins . Ap oc . R ev. 517 .
The laws were promulgated from MountS inai
,and written with the finger of Jeho
vah,to the end it might be known that those
laws were not only c iv il and moral laws , butthat they were also spiritual laws . Ap oc.
R ev. 529 .
To taste of the pleasures of goodness i s totaste of the pleasures of the angels of heaven.
— Ap oc . R ev. 531 .
The church,from its affection to good and
truth,is represented by
,and denominated
woman,and also v irgin ; as likewise all who
are in the affection Of good are styled v irgins .—Heaven and Hell
,368 .
SWEDENBORG. 45
Conjugal lov e derive s its origin from theconjunction of two in unity of mind
,and this
is called in heaven cohabitation .—Heaven
and Hell, 236 .
Camel s ignifie s scientifical knowledge ingeneral
,and the eye of a needle spiritual
truth .—Heaven and Hell
,365.
The conjunction of truth and good constitutes an angel, and also his understanding,wisdom
,and happiness ; for according to such
conjunction is the degree of angelical perfection Heaven and Hell
,370 .
The whole of heav en is represented in conjugal lov e
,together w ith beatitudes and de
lights innum erable .—Heaven and Hell
, 374.
There is no stronger sympathy than between truth and good . Heaven and Hell,375.
All are in conjugal lov e who through div ine truths attain to div ine good . Hea ven
and Hell, 376 .
Marriages in the heav ens are formed onlyof those who belong to the same society .
This was represented among the Israelite sby their marrying within their own tribes .Heaven and Hell
,378 .
46 EXTRAcrs FROM
Marriage with more than one wife i s likean understanding div ided into many wills .Heaven and Hell
,379 .
Sensual gratification in a little time changesinto disgust . Heaven and Hell
,379 .
The beatitudes of truly spiritual conjugallov e might be reckoned up to many thousands
,
of which not one is fully known by mortalman . Heaven and Hell
,379 .
All corporeal or sensual pleasures i ssuefrom the lov e of self and the lov e of theworld
,from which proceed all kinds of con
cupiscence and voluptuousness but all truedelights of the soul or spirit originate fromlov e to God and lov e to our neighbor ; andfrom these sources are derived our affectionsfor good and truth
,and our most satisfying
interior pleasures . — Heaven and IIell, 306 .
These two lov es,with their concomitant
pleasures,proceed by influx from the Lord,
and from heav en by internal emanation fromabov e
,and affect the inmost recesses of the
soul ; but the former spurious loves , withtheir pleasures
,i ssue from the carnal part,
and from the world outwardly,or from be
neath,and affect the exterior senses . As far
,
therefore,as the two heavenly loves before
mentioned are received, and affect us, so farthe inward gate of the soul or spirit standsOpen to the divine influences ; and as far as
48 EXTRACTS FROM
will, so that they become operativ e , are inthe inmost or third heaven
,and there in
rank according to the degree Of their affec
tion for truth .— Heaven and Hell
, 33 .
But they who giv e them not so immediatean admission into the w ill
,but only into
their memory and understanding,and after
wards frame their will according thereto,and
then proceed to act,these are in the m iddle
or second heav en ; but they who add to theirfaith good life
,though without any extraor
dinary earn estness and sedulity after div ineknowledge
,they are in the lowest or first
heav en . Hen ce it i s manife st that it i s theinterior or inward disposition that constitutes heaven —Heaven and Hell
,33 .
Ev ery human perfection 'v irtue and grace'increases towards the interior of man
,as
being nearer to the Deity,and purer in
itself ; but decreases towards the exterior,as this i s more remote from the Deity, and
more gross in itself. —Heaven and H ell,34.
Perfection,even in heaven, consists in va
riety. Heaven and Hell,56 .
Works and deeds are man's outward life,manifesting the principle of life within him .
—Heaven and Hell,471 .
As are the thought and will,such is the
quality of the act . A thousand men may do
SWEDENBORG . 49
the same act,yet the act of ev ery on e of
them may be diflerent in quality, through thedifference in the will or motive of the doer .—Heaven and Hell
,472 .
If a man loves what he believes, then hewills and does it according to his power .Heaven and Hell, 473 .
Love and faith, without termination orfixedn ess in the works of the outward man,are but vague uncertain things
,without resi
dence or body . Heaven and Hell,474.
To think and will without acting , whenpower is not wanting
,may be compared to
seed sown in the sand ; where it loses itsprolific v irtue
,and perishes . Heaven and
Hell,474.
To lov e and not to do good,when opportu
nity serves, is not to lov e , but only to
fancy that one lov es ; and but as the phantom of a thought
,which v anishes into noth
ing . Heaven and Hell,475 .
Ev ery one whose prevailing lov e i s spiritual and heavenly goes to heaven ; and everyon e whose prevailing lov e is sensual andmundane
,and as such contrary to all that is
heav enly,goes to hell . All faith which has
not heavenly lov e for its root vanishes afterdeath . Heaven and Hell, 478 .
50 EXTRACTS FROM
Every one's lov e constitute s his proper selfafter death Heaven and Hell
,479 .
Ev erything is then remov ed or taken froma man that does not accord with his rulinglov e . Thus all adventitious evil and falseare removed from the good
, as not agreeingw ith his governing principle ; and every apparent good and truth from the man of ev ilprinciple that so ev ery one may be whollyand consistently in that lov e which is theruling power of his life .—Heaven and Hell,479 .
When men become Spirits in the otherworld
,they are not subj ect to the counterac
tion of any other passion,which may lay a
restraint on their inclinations . Heaven and
Hell,479 .
Every lov e is supported by that which iscongruous to its nature ; an ev il lov e by thatwhich is false
,and a good lov e by truths .
Heaven and Hell,479 .
The angels immediately detect ev ery stirring Of imperfection in them selves 'as sometimes happens to them', and likew ise allmalignity in the unhappy Spirits that are inthe intermediate state or world of Spirits ;though such spirits see not their own ev ils .Man
,from the things he most delights in
,
may come to the knowledge of his predominant love
,and thereby be able to form a
SWEDENBORG . 51
j udgment 'according to his skill in the doctrine of correspondences'concerning his future state —Heaven and Hell, 478 .
In proport ion to the degree of self-lov e inany one is his distance from heav en, and consequently from wisdom . Heaven and Hell
,
508 .
Magical arts are profane abuses of the divine order . Heaven and Hell, 508 .
S in carries its suff erin g with it by n eces
sary conjunction ; consequently, he that is inev il is also in the pain of evil —Heaven and
Hell,509 .
A genuine aflection for truth is for thesake of spiritual use and improvement .Heav. and Hell
,578 .
Divine order i s heav en in man , which hehad perverted by disobedience to it s laws , orto div ine truths ; and therefore he must bereduced by the pure mercy of the Lord, bydivine truths
,to the same order from which
he had fallen ; and as far as he recovers th isstate
,so much of heav en he receiv es here,
and becomes meet to be a partaker of its j oyshereafter . Heaven and Hell, 523 .
The moral and civ il life constitute s theactiv ity of the spiritual life . As the w ill todo good is the property of the latter
, so the
52 EXTRACTS FROM
doing good is the property of the former ;and if this were separated from the other
,
then the s piritual life would consist only inthinking and speaking
,and the will would
remain solitary and inact ive . —Heaven and
Hell,528 .
The justice and truth of the Spiritual man,
as to external manifestation and form,appear
indeed like the sam e in natural men,ev en of
the most infernal dispositions,but inwardly
they are totally different . The spiritual manmay act in all the relations of m oral and c iv illife as the natural man does
,prov ided that
he adheres closely to that div ine , principlewithin
,which is to be the regulator of his
will and thoughts . The spiritual man actsnot only in obedience to the laws of soc iety
,
and of moral Obligation, but in Obedience tothe authority of the div ine laws : for as hesets God always before him, he has fellowship with the angels in heaven ; he is underthe Lord's leadings even when he knows itnot -Heaven and Hell
,530 .
In the first three of the ten commandmentsare the laws of the spiritual life , in the fourfollowing the laws of the c iv il life
,in the
three last the laws of the moral life .H eaven and Hell
,531.
All are received into heaven who hav eloved good and truth as such ; and they whohave loved much are called wise, and they
SWEDENBORG. 53
who have loved little are called s imple : theformer enj oy much light in heaven, the latterles s
,each according to the degree of his lov e .
To love good and truth as such, or for theirown sake
,is to will and to do them from
choice,for such only can be said to love
them ; and they are the people who lovethe Lord
,and are lov ed by him .
—Heaven
and Hell,350 .
A diligence to procure what may be for thegood of them that lack preserves us fromidleness
,that pernicious kind of life which
giv es our innate ev il the power to take possess ion of us .—Heaven and Hell
,361 .
All things in the univers e hav e some relation to good and truth
,and also to their con
j unction . H'
eaven and Hell, 375 .
There is no stronger sympathy than between truth and good.
— Heaven and Hell,
375 .
All the angels derive their beauty fromconjugal lov e . Heaven and Hell
,382 .
Angels , whilst they are present with men,re side
,as it were
,in their affect ions and are
nearer to,or further from them
,according to
their degree of good life from true doctrines .—Heaven and Hell, 391 .
54 EXTRACTS FROM
Those whose v iew is directed not to
heaven,but to this world
,not to the Lord
,
but to themselves,are not in the light of
heaven,but in that of this world ; only these
indeed to outward appearance,and before
men,seem as knowing and wise as the chil
dren of light ; nay, and sometimes wiser, asbeing more warmed with the fire of self-lov e
,
and hav ing learned to speak in like mannerw ith them
,and also to make a show of
heav enly affections ; but inwardly, and inthe s ight of angels
,they appear very differ
ent.—Heaven and Hell
, 347.
They only are called truly wise in heav enwho are in the good of life
,or who apply
div ine truths immediately to practical use .Divine truth, when so applied
,becomes good
,
as being animated with free-will and love,
which constitute the v ery essence of wisdom ; whereas they who are called intellectual or understanding men live not fromtruth as a principle , but commit it first totheir memory
,and from thence, as a store
house,draw occasionally the documents of
truth,whereby to regulate their life .
Heaven and Hell,348 .
R ighteousness,in heaven
,signifies good
proceeding from the Lord . Heaven and
Hell, 348 .
Lov e to God, and neighborly love, containin them all intelligence and wisdom .
Earths in the Universe, 96 .
56 EXTRACTS FROM
the truths of the new church . In heaven isthe former heaven
,which passed away .
Ap oc . R ev. 548 .
By Michael, Gabriel, Raphael, are understood ministries in heav en Ap oc. R ev. 548 .
The ministry signified by Michael is performed by those who prove from the Wordthat the Lord is the God of heaven
'
andearth, and that God the Father and he areone
, as the soul and body are on e ; also thatmen ought to liv e according to the commandments of the decalogue
,and that then they
are gifted with charity and faith . By Gabriel is understood the ministry of those whoteach from the Word that Jehovah came intothe world
,and that the human nature which
he there assumed is the Son of God,and is
div ine ; for which reason, the angel who an
n oun ced the same to Mary is called Gabriel .Moreover
,they who are engaged in those
ministries are named M ichaels and Gabrielsin heav en . Ap oc. R ev. 548 .
NO on e c an hav e confidence in the Lordwho doth not lead a good life . Ap oc. R ev.
553 .
In neighborly lov e the Lord concealeth himself with man
,and man connecteth himself
with the Lord . Love to our neighbor con
s ists in shunning to do ev il to him,according
SWEDENBORG. 57
to the commandm ents of the decalogueAp oc. R ev. 571 .
By all the beasts that were sacrificed goodaflection s were signified, and the same bythe beasts used for food
,and the contrary
for the beasts that were not to be used forfood. Ap oc. Rev. 567.
The reason why good is only so far goodas innocence is in it is because all good i sfrom the Lord
,and innocence consists in a
disposition to be led and gov erned by him .
Heaven and Hell,281 .
As it is the property of innocence to choosethe Lord only for our guide , therefore all inheav en are in innocence . To set up for ourown directors is to abandon ourselv es to selflov e : as far
,therefore
,as any angel is in
innocence,so far is he under the div ine lead
ings and influence . Heav . and Hell, 280 .
Innocence takes no merit to itself, but giv esthe praise of all good to the Lord only
,and
delights to depend upon him for all thatgoodness and truth which constitute genuine wisdom .
—Heaven and Hell, 279 .
They who are in innocence are contentwith what they have
,be it little or much, as
knowing that to all is giv en what is needfulfor them
,little to those that need little
,and
much to them that need much ; and that
58 EXTRACTS FROM
they know not what that fit measure is,but
the Lord only,who posses se s all things
,and
prov ideth all things for all ; and thereforethey are not solicitous about what shallbefall them
, calling this the taking thoughtfor the morrow.
— Heaven and Hell,278 .
They are far removed from selfishness,and
so far enriched with div ine communicationsfrom the Lord . Heaven and Hell
,278 .
They nev er deal deceitfully,but uprightly
,
and in sincerity ; calling ev ery other way bythe name of subtlety, which they avoid aspoison —Heaven and Hell
,278 .
Rest or tranquillity'commonly called peace'o f mind is the common priv ilege of godlypersons . Heaven and Hell
,284.
The perceptions of man , during his closeconnection with this mortal body, are in na
ture,and hinder the experience of that peace
which the angels enj oy . Innocence is thatfrom which springs every good in heaven
,
and peace i s that which constitutes the delightful sense or relish of such good . Theorigin of peace has its source in the Lord
,
from the union of his div inity with his div ine humanity ; and so giv ing birth to thediv ine peace in heaven
,by his commun ica
tion with the angels,and more particularly
by the conjunction of good with truth inevery angel : it i s nothing less than the j oy
SWEDENBORG. 59
of divine lov e, flowing from the Lord intoevery one of them . Heaven and Hell
,286 .
An gelical peac e, during the abode of menhere
,who are res igned to the will of God,
lies concealed in their inner man, but is manifested when they quit the body, and enterinto their heav enly rest . H eav . and Hell,288 .
When the conjunction of good and truth isformed in man during regeneration
,which
more especially is eflected after temptations,he enters into the delightful state of heav enlypeace . Thi s peace may be compared to alovely morning in the spring season
,when
nature appears rev iv ed,as well as beautified,
by the warmth and Splendor of the newlyrisen sun ; whilst grateful odors , exhalingfrom the v egetable world
,mix their rich
sweets with the descending dew of heav en,and, at the same time that they add fert ilityto the earth
,regale the senses
,and exhila
rate the minds of men . Heaven and Hell,199 .
Purple signifies celestial good,and scarlet
celestial truth : silk mediate celestial goodand truth : good from its softnes s
,and truth
from its shining.—Ap oc. Rev. 773 .
The things of the body must in a measuredie before man can be born anew
,or be re
generated . The body itself must die before
60 EXTRACTS FROM
man can be admitted into heaven,and see
the things of heaven . Arc. 1408 .
The internal man regardeth nothing butuse . Arc. 1472 .
The angels , who are principled in the science of all knowledges
,and that in such a
manner that scarce a thousandth part can beunf olded to man's apprehension
,yet esteem
knowledges as nothing in comparison of use .—Arc. 1472 .
Tent denotes the holy principle of lov e .Arc. 1452 .
The ancient church was in Egypt,as in
several other places ; and when the churchwas there
,sc iences particularly flourished
therein : but after that by sciences theywere desirous to enter into the mysteries of
faith,and thus by self-power to explore the
nature of div ine arcana,then it became magi
cal,and by Egypt were signified scientifics
which pervert . — Arc. 1462 .
The removal of Jacob and his sons intoEgypt
,in its inmost sense
,represented noth
ing els e but the Lord's first instruction in
knowledges from the Word . Arc. 1462 .
Soj ourning and migration,or process ion
from place to place,in heav en
,i s nothing
else but change of state . —Arc . 1463 .
SWEDENBORG. 61
The men of the most ancient church, as
hav ing communication with the angelicheaven
,by soj ourning had a perception
only of instruction —Arc. 1463 .
Wife,in the internal s ense of the word,
s ignifies nothing els e but truth conj oinedwith good . When mention is made in theWord of a husband, then husband signifie sgood
,and wife truth ; but when instead of
husband the term man 'vir'i s applied, thenman signifies truth
,and wife good —Arc.
1468 .
The Lord j oined the divine essence to thehuman
,that his hum an 'propertie s or belong
ings'might also become divin e .—Arc. 1469 .
The deeper the subj ects are which are presented to v iew
,so much the more ardently
men desire to un derstand them ; and whenthey are told of things celestial and div ine,their desire increas eth : but this i s a merenatural delight
,and ariseth from a lust origi
nating in the external man . The science ofknowledges is designed in itself for no otherend than that man may become rational
,and
thereby Spiritual,and at length celestial
,and
that by knowledges the external man may bej oined to the internal ; and when this is thecase, then man is princ ipled in use . In proportion as man placeth his delight in mere science ,in the same proportion he remov eth himselffrom what is celestial ; and the things of sci
62 FxrRAc'
rs FROM
ence become closed towards the Lord,and
are rendered material : but in proportion as
the things of science are learned with a v iewto use , whether for the sake of human society,or for the Lord's church on earth
,or for the
sake of his kingdom in heaven, or more es
pecially for the Lord's sake
,in the same pro
portion they are more Opened towards theLord
,and become Spiritual .—Arc. 1472 .
When celestial truth is a wife, a s isterdenotes intellectual truth . Arc. 1475.
When all the thoughts of man originate inuse as their end, and he doeth all things witha view to use 'if not by manifest reflection',yet by tacit reflection arising from acquiredtempers and habits
,then the scientifics which
had serv ed to promote the first use, in effecting rationality
,are destroyed
,because they
no longer are subservient to that purpose .Arc. 1487.
When things celestial are j oined with intellectual truths , and these truths becomecelestial
,then all things which are vain and
unprofitable are dissipated of them selves .This is a constant effect of the celestialprinciple —Arc. 1449 .
' ain and unprofitable things leave thingscelestial
,as things light and trifling are wont
to leave wisdom . They are like crustaceous
64 EXTRACTS FROM
union : therefore the heathens,though they
be not in genuine truths in this world,yet in
the love principle receive them in the next .—Earths in the Un iverse, 319 .
Ev ery one appears,upon his entrance into
the other world,in the same state in which
he departed this,whether infant
,child
,youth
,
adult, or aged ; but in some time after everyone's state is changed — Heaven and Hell
,
330 .
The discourse o f angel s flows spontan eously from their affections, m odified by theirideas ; therefore they speak as they think.
—IIeaven and Hell,331 .
The innocence of the angels in heaven consists in a resigned submission to the government of the Lord
,and a renunciation of man's
own will ; who i s only so far in innocenceas he is remote from self. Genuine innocence is wisdom ; and so far only is any on e
to be reputed wise as he is resigned to thewill of the Lord, or is content to be underhis guidance Heaven and Hell, 341 .
Infants,when grown up to adults in
heaven,are consigned for a time to their
proper natural state of hereditary ev il ; notmerely for the sake of punishment
,but in
order to their conv iction that of themselvesthey are only ev il
,and therefore delivered
SWEDENBORG. 65
from hell,which belongs to an ev il nature,
by the mere mercy of the Lord . Heaven
and Hell, 343 .
They who are denominated wise are suchwho hav e not only their interior aflection s
Open to div ine good,but also their intellect
ual faculties so cultivated and enlarged thatthey see div ine truths by an internal ev idence .— Heaven and Hell
,351 .
If man had preserved his original perfection
,consisting in lov ing God abov e all
things,and his neighbor as himself
,in that
cas e he would hav e been born with innateunderstanding and wisdom, and to the beliefof all truth
,according to the enlargement of
his faculties . —Heaven and Hell, 352 .
Though man carries his natural memoryalong with him
,yet what he has laid up
there falls not under his intuition,as before
,
as not being concordant with the light of adifferent world ; therefore he cannot callthem forth for use .
— Heaven and Hell, 355 .
Man has no longer any perception of whathe thought naturally in this world
,but only
of what he thought spiritually ; and this bychange of state . —Heaven and Hell, 356 .
There is not the smallest portion o f anexpres sion in the Word but what involvethheavenly arcana .
—Arc. 1542 .
66 EXTRACTS FROM
There are two things appertaining to manwhich hinder him from becoming celestial ;on e belongeth to his intellectual part
,the
other to his will part . What belongeth tohis intellectual part consists of vain andempty scientifics
,which he imbibes in child
hood and youth ; what belongs to the willpart consists of pleasures deriv ed from ev illusts
,which he favors and indulges . The
latter ought first to be shaken and dispersed ;and when this is done
,then first he is in a
capacity of being admitted into the light ofthings celestial , and at length into celestiallight . Arc. 1542 .
In proportion as man indulges in pleasuresaris ing from ev il lusts
,in the same propor
tion he is withdrawn from things celestial,
which are the things of lov e and charity ;inasmuch as in such ev il pleasures there is alov e derived from self and from the world
,
with which celestial love cannot agree .Arc. 1547.
Gold,bras s
,and wood signify celestial,
natural,and corporeal good ; s ilver, iron, and
stone,Spiritual
,natural
,and sensual truth .
— Arc. 1551 .
The Lord,from his earlie st infancy, ad
van ced according to all div ine order towardsthings celestial ; all likewise are conveyed aocording to such order who are created anewby the Lord. This order is nevertheless va
SWEDENBORG. 67
rious with men , according to the part icularnature and temper of each ; but the orderin which man is led during regeneration isnot kn own to any mortal, nor even to theangels
,except v ery faintly, but to the Lord
alone .—Arc. 1554.
Intelligence is not wi sdom, but leadeth towisdom : for to understand what i s true andgood is not to be true and good ; but to bewise is to be true and good . Wisdom i s predicated only of life
,and hath relation to the
qual ity thereof in man —Arc. 1555.
When the intellectual part is instructed insciences and knowledges , espec ially in the
knowledges of truth and goodness,then first
man is in a capacity to be regenerated.
Arc. 1555.
When man beginn eth to act from charity,as a principle of consc ience
,he first receiv
eth n ew life Are. 1555.
To dwell in tents s ignifies the holy principle of love The true ground and reason whytent is used in the Word, to signify the celestial and holy things of love
,i s because in old
time they performed holy worship in theirtents ; but when they began to profane tentsby profane worship
,then the tabernacle was
built,and afterwards the temple . Tent
,tab
ernacle,and temple have the same significa
tion .—Arc. 414.
68 EXTRACTS FROM
A life of charity is a life of uses —Arc.
957.
All pleasures are allowed to man but forthe sake of use . Are. 957.
By flesh is s ignified the will principle ofman ; blood signifies charity ; wherefore notto eat flesh in its soul
,the blood
,signifies
not to mix together things profane withthings holy .
—Arc. 998 .
The new life which the regenerate manreceiv eth from the Lord i s altogether separate from the will principle or propriety ofman
,or from man's own proper life
,which is
not life,but is death
,inasmuch as it is infer
nal life .— Arc. 1000 .
Fat signifies celestial life ; blood constitutes the life of the body ; and whereas inrepresen tativ e churches internal things wererepresented by external
,therefore soul
,or
celestial life,was represented by blood .
Arc. 1001 .
Eating the flesh of animals,considered in
itself,i s somewhat profane ; for the people
o f the most ancient time never on any ao
coun t ate the flesh o f any beast or fowl, butfed solely on grain
,e spec ially on bread made
o f wheat,also on the fruits of trees
,on pulse,
on milk,and what is produced from milk, as
butter,etc . To kill animals
,and to eat their
SWEDENBORG. 69
flesh, was to them unlawful, and seemed assomething bestial, and they were content withthe uses and serv ices which they yielded ; butin succeeding times
,when men began to grow
fierce as a beast, yea much fiercer, then firstthey began to kill animals
,and to eat their
flesh : and whereas man's nature and qualitybecame of such a sort, therefore the killingan d eating of animals was permitted, and atthis day also is permitted.
—Arc . 1002 .
The eating of flesh with the blood was forbidden in the Jewish church
,because , as was
observed,at that time it represented profa
nation in heav en . All things that were donein that church were turned in heav en intorepresentativ e correspondencie s ; but afte rthe coming of the Lord
,when external rite s
were abolished,and thus representative s
ceased,then such things were no longer
changed in heaven into representative correspondencie s . S ince the Lord's coming
,
man is not considered in heav en with re
spect to things external,but to things inter
nal . —Arc. 1003 .
A spirit is known by his ideas . What iswonderful
,there i s in each of his ideas his
image or effigy .- Arc. 1008 .
There is not a single obj ect existing inheaven or earth , which is beautiful andag reeable
,but what in some degree i s rep
70 EXTRACTS FROM
resentative of the Lord's kingdom —Arc.
1807.
The human body exists and subsists by itssoul ; wherefore in the human body all andsing ular things are representative of its soul .All effects whatsoever are representative ofuses, which are causes ; and uses are repre
sentative of ends,which are principles .
Arc . 1807.
Those who are in div ine ideas nev er con
fine their sight to mere external obj ects,but
continually by them,and in them
,behold
things internal . - Arc. 1807.
The deeds of a man are imputed to himaccording to the state of the mind in them ;for deeds follow the body to the grave
,but
the mind resuscitates . Conjugal L ove, 530 .
Religion,because it is the marriage Of the
Lord with his church, i s the initiation of conjugal lov e : wherefore conjugal lov e is imputed to ev ery one after death, according tohis Spiritual rational life ; and he to whomthat lov e i s imputed
,after death
,is prov ided
with the conjugal state by the Lord. Con
jugal L ove,531 .
Imputations are made after death according to the quality of the will and of the in
72 EXTRACTS FROM
and thence from himself, but only in God,and thence from God. Conjugal L ove, 132 .
So long as man is spiritual,his dominion
or rule proce edeth from the external man tothe internal : ' They shall have dominionov er the fish of the sea
,and over the fowls
of the air,and over the cattle
,and ov er
all the earth,and ov er every creeping thing
that creepeth on the face of the earth .
' Butwhen he becometh celestial
,and doeth good
from a principle of lov e,then his dominion
proceedeth from the internal man to the ext ernal ; as the Lord describeth himself, andat the same time the celestial man
,who is
his likeness,in Dav id : ' Thou madest him
to hav e dominion over the works of thyhands ; thou hast put all things under hisfeet
,all Sheep and oxen
,yea
,and the beasts
of the field ; the fowl of the air, and the fisho f the sea
,and whatsoever passeth through
the paths of the sea .
' H ere,therefore
,
beasts are first mentioned,and then fowl
,
and afterwards fish o f the sea,because the
c elestial man proceedeth from love,which
belongeth to the will ; differing herein fromthe Spiritual man
,in describing whom fishes
and fowl are first named,which belong to the
understanding,as hav ing relation to faith,
an d afterwards mention is made of beasts .Conjugal L ove
,52 .
The wisdom of love is signified by the garden of Eden . A tree signifies man, and its
SWEDENBORG. 73
fruit the good of life ; thence by the tree o f
life is s ignified man liv ing from God, or Godliving in man : and because lov e and wisdom,
charity and faith,or good and truth, make
the life of God in man,thes e things are sig
nified by the tree of life .By the tree of the knowledge of good andevil is signified man believ ing that he live sfrom himself
,and not from God ; so that
love and wi sdom,charity and faith
,that is,
goodn es s and truth, are in man of himself,and not of God.
By the serpent is meant the dev il as to
self -lov e and self-intelligence .Love
,135.
Instead of perception,which the most
anc ient church enj oyed,conscience succeeded,
which,being procured by faith adj oined to
charity,dictated not what is true
,but that
such and such things are true,because the
Lord has declared them to be so in hisWord.
Such were the churches after the flood, forthe most part ; such also was the primitivechurch
,or the first church after the Lord's
coming. Herein the spiritual angels are distinguished from the celestial angels —Arc.
393 .
Whilst man is made Spiritual,he is contin
nally engaged in combat or warfare ; on
which account the church of the Lord iscalled militant .—Arc. 59 .
74 EXTRACTS FROM
When man is regenerate, the angels havethe dominion
,and inspire him with whatever
i s good and true,infusing at the same time a
dread and fear of what is evil and false .
Are. 50 .
The order of life with the celestial man issuch that the Lord floweth in by love
,and
by faith originating in love,into his intel
lectuals,rationals
,and scientifics ; and inas
much as there is no strife between the internal and external man
,he perceiveth that
this is the case . Thus order,which is as yet
inverted with the Spiritual man,i s restored
with the celestial . This order,or man
,i s
called a garden in Eden eastward . Are . 99 .
The celestial man is such that he doethnothing of his own pleasure
,but of the good
pleasure of the Lord,which is his pleasure .
Thus he enjoyeth peace and internal felicityand he enjoyeth, at the same time , tranquillity and external delight . — Arc . 85 .
During the time of being spiritual , the external man is not yet reduced to such Obedience as to be willing to serv e the internal ,and this i s the cause of combat ; but whenhe becometh celestial
,then the external man
beginneth to comply, and serve the internaland hence ariseth tranquillity . Are. 91 .
The men of the most ancient church perceived states of love and of faith by states of
SWEDENBORG . 75
respiration . At this day, it is a subj ect altogether hidden and unknown . Are . 97.
Man is placed in the kingdom of the Lord,
or heav en, when he is made celestial . His
state in this case is that he is with angels inheav en
,and as it were one amongst them :
for man was so created that he may be inheav en at the same time that he liveth onearth . In this state all his thoughts
,and
ideas of thoughts,yea his words and actions
are Open,containing in them a celestial and
Spiritual princ iple,whereby they hav e com
mun ication with the Lord ; for there is ineach the lif e of the Lord, which causeth it tohav e perception . Arc. 99 .
What perception is, few at this day knowit is a certain internal sensation whi ch cometh only from the Lord
,and was most fam il
iar in the most ancient church,whereby
truth and goodn es s are di scerned . This perception i s so clear with the angels that theyknow and thereby acknowledge what is trueand good ; what is from the Lord, and whatfrom themselv e s ; and also what is the quality and di sposition of a stranger
,merely by
his gait and address,and by a single glance
of his person and behav ior . The Spiritualman hath no perception, but only conscience ;a dead man hath not so much as conscience ;and the generality of persons are ignorantwhat conscience is
,and much more what per
ception is .- Arc. 104.
76 EXTRACTS FROM
The most ancient people,when they com
pared man to a garden, compared also wisdom
, and the things relating to wisdom, to
rivers . — Arc. 108 .
The celestial man acknowledgeth that allthings
,both in general and in particular
,are
the Lord's,because he perceiveth that it is
so ; whereas the Spiritual man acknowledgethindeed that it is so
,but only with his lips
,
hav ing learned it from the Word . Theworldly and corporeal man neither acknowledgeth nor alloweth that it i s so
,but what
ever appertaineth to him he calleth his own,
and imagineth that if it was taken away fromhim he should be utterly ruined. Are. 123 .
By cattle are signified the celestial affections
,by fowls of the air the Spiritual .—Arc.
142 .
Among the anc ients, the origin and quality of things were implied in their names .Are. 144.
The understanding of truth never existethexcept where the will is inclined to what isgood : such as the will is
,such also is the
understanding. Are . 263.
Every dev il can understand truth when hehears it
,but cannot retain it ; because the
affection o f ev il,when it returneth
,casteth
out the thought of truth.—Ap oc. Rev. 655.
SWEDENBORG. 77
Charity is the affection of the lov e of doinggood to a man's neighbor, for the sake of
God,of salvation
,and of life eternal ; and
faith is thought grounded in confidence re
specting God, salvation, and life eternaL
Ap oc. R ev. 655.
If it be a received principle that nothin gis to be believed before it is seen and understood
,a person under the governm ent of such
a principle cannot possibly believ e, inasmuchas Spiritual and celestial things are incapable of being seen with the eyes, or conceivedin the imagination . But the true order isthat man be wise with a wisdom derivedfrom the Lord
,that is
,from his Word, in
which case all things are in a right cours e,and then also he is enlightened in thingsrational and scientific : for man is nev er forbid to learn the sci ences
,inasmuch as they
contribute to the use and delight of life ; noris he forbid, in cas e he be under the influence of faith
,to think and speak as the
learned do in the world ; but then he mustbe guided by this principle to believ e theWord of the Lord
,and to confirm spiritual
and celestial tru ths by natural truths , interms familiar to the learned world
,as far as
l ies in his power .—Arc. 129 .
The delight wherein there is good fromthe Lord is alone a living delight ; for insuch case it hath life from the essential lifeof good . Are. 995.
78 EXTRACTS FROM
If a man hath much knowledge,and much
wisdom,and doth not shun ev ils as sins
,he
hath no wisdom .— Doctrin e of Lif e, 23 .
So far as any on e shuns ev il s as s ins, so
far he loves truths . Doctrin e of Lif e, 32 .
Good lov es truth,and truth loves good
,
and they desire to be one : ev il loves thefalse
,and the fals e lov es ev il
,and they are
desirous to be on e . Doctrin e of Lif e, 33 .
A man who doth not shun ev ils as s insmay indeed lov e truths
,but then he doth not
lov e them because they are truths,but be
cause they serv e to extend his reputation,whence he derives honor or gain ; wherefore ,when they no long er are subserv ient to thisend
,he ceaseth to love them Doctrine of
Lif e, 35 .
Good i s not good unless it be j oined withtruth ; consequently good doth not exist before it be so j oined, and yet it is continuallydesirous to exist ; wherefore, in order to itsexistence
,it desires and procures to itself
truths,and from them hat-h its nourishmen t
and formation . D octrin e of L ife, 37
Truths are the means whereby the good ofthe lov e principle exists, and acquires reality ; consequently good loves truths , in orderto its existence .
— Doctrine of L if e, 39 .
80 EXTRACTS FROM
That the material body,with its sensual
and pleasurable principle,doth not constitute
the external man,appears from this consid
cration,that spirits
,who hav e no material
bodies,have an external man in like manner
as men on earth . The external man is formedof things sensual ; not such as belong to thebody
,but such as are derived from bodily
things ; and this is the cas e not only withmen
,but also with Spirits .—Arc. 976 .
Faith and life are distinct from each other,
like thinking and doing : thinking has relation to the understanding
,and doing to the
will .—Doct. of Life, 42 .
Good,which is of the will
,forms itself in
the understanding,and in a certain manner
renders itself v is ible . Doctrine of L ife, 43.
The faculties of the will and of the unders tanding are so created that they may beon e ; and when they are one, they are calledmind . Doctrin e of L ife, 43 .
Nothing is of more concern to know thanhow the will and understanding form onemind : they form on e mind as good andtruth make on e ; for a similar marriageexists between the will and the understanding as between good and truth —Doctrine
SWEDENBORG. 81
Evil hath an inward hatred against truth ;outwardly indeed it can put on a friendly ap
pearan ce, and endure, yea lov e that truthshould be in the understandin g ; but whenthe outward is put ofl,
as i s the case afterdeath
,then truth
,which was thus for worldly
reasons rece ived in a friendly mann er, i s firstcast off
,afterwards is denied to be truth, and
finally is held in av ers ion .— Doctrin e of L if e,
46 .
Whatsoever any one lov es in the ground ofthe will
,that he loves to do
,he lov e s to
think,he loves to un derstand, and he loves
to speak .—Doctrine of L if e, 48 .
There doth not appertain to man the smallest portion of truth
,only so far as he is prin
cipled in good ; consequently not the smalle stportion of faith, only so far as it i s j o inedwith life . There may be such a thing as
thought respecting the truth of some particular propositions in the understanding ; butthere cannot be acknowledgment amountingto faith, unles s there be consent in the will .Doctrin e of L ife, 51 .
God was from the beginning a man in thefirst principles of things
,but not in the ulti
mates ; but after that heassumed a hum anityin the world
,he also became a man in the
ult imates . Concern ing the Lord, 36 .
82 EXTRACTS FROM
The ancients accounted the knowledge of
correspondences as the most exalted of allsciences
,as the fountain from whence they
drew their understanding and wisdom : andas to those who were of the church of God
,
it was by means hereof that they held commun ication with heav en ; for the knowledgeof correspondences is the knowledge of an
gels . The most ancient formed their mindsby the doctrine and laws of correspondence
,
and thought according thereto,like the
angels,and conversed with them ; and hence
it was that the Lord often vouchsafed to appear to them
,and giv e them div ine in struc
tions : but this kind of knowledge i s so farlost among us at this day that it is scarcelyany longer known what is meant by the termcorrespondence . Heaven and Hell, 87.
What exists and subsists in the naturalfrom the spiritual is called corresp ondence .The whole natural world exists and subsistsfrom the spiritual as an effect from its effi
cient cause .— Heaven and Hell, 88 .
By the natural world is meant the wholeexpan se under the sun ; by the sp iritualworld is meant heav en
,and all that is
therein . Heaven and Hell,89 .
As man is an image both of heav en and ofthe world in the least form
,therefore he
stands here both in the natural and Spiritualworld . The things within, which respect his
SWEDENBORG. 83
intellect and will,constitute his Spiritual
world ; but those of the body, which respecthis external senses and actions, constitutehis natural world . The things of the intellect are represented in the speech
,and those
Of the will in the gestures and mov ements ofthe body . All that is thus expressed iscalled correspondence . Heaven and Hell,90 , 91 .
Div ine good,proceeding from the Lord, is
that which constitutes div ide order . Theform or distinction of a thing has relation totruth
,forasmuch as truth is the form of good .
—Heaven and Hell,107.
The higher excellence of the angels of thecelestial kingdom is owing to their recept ionof the div ine truth immediately into theprinciple of life, and not, as the Spiritualangels
,through the prev ious instrumentality
of memory and reflection ; insomuch that div ine v erities are written in their hearts
,and
they see them by intuition within themselv es,
as in a kind of source,without hav ing any
occasion to reason concerning them,whether
the matter be so or otherwise . Heaven and
Hell,25.
They only are called truly wise in heav enwho are in the good o f life
,or who apply di
v ine truths immediately to practical use fordiv ine truth
,when so applied
,becomes good
,
as being animated with free-will and love,
84 EXTRACTS FROM
which constitutes the v ery essence of wisdom : whereas they who are called intellectual or understanding men live not fromtruth as a principle
,but commit it first to
their memory,and from thence
,as a store
house,draw occasionally the documents of
truth,whereby to regulate their life .
Heaven and Hell,348 .
Wealth,in the heavenly kingdoms , i s goodness and truth ; and the favor of the sover
eign is the mercy of the Lord . Arc. 450 .
An age,in the Word, is ten years —Arc.
433 .
Heav en consisteth in this that every one
should from his heart wish better things forothers than for himself
,and that he should
serv e others with a v iew to their happiness,
that is,from a principle of love
,without any
regard to selfish ends Are. 452 .
The angelic l ife consists in uses,and in
doing good works of charity . Nothing ismore delightful to the angels than to instruct and teach spirits
,at their first coming
into the spiritual world ; also to serve mankind
,by inspiring them with what is good
,
and by restraining the ev il spirits attendanton them from pass ing their proper bounds .—Arc. 454.
SWEDENBORG . 85
It is likewise the happiness of angels toraise up the dead to the life of eternity andafterwards
,if it be possible
,and there be a
capacity in the soul, to introduce it intoheav en . From these offices they receiv e adelight which cannot be described thus theyare images of the Lord
,thus they love their
neighbor more than themselv es,and thus
heaven is heaven to them .—Arc. 454.
Man signifies understanding ; Eve i s aname sign ifying life
,which hath relation
solely to lov e Are. 476 .
Every particular person,by his own actual
s ins, causeth hereditary evil, and maketh an
addition to what he received from his parents
,and thus accumulateth what remaineth
in all his posterity ; nor doth this ev il suflerany check or temperament
,except in those
who are regenerated by the Lord . This i sthe primary cause why ev ery church degenerateth ; and this was the case with the mostancient church .
- Arc . 494.
To know what is true,by virtue of
‘what isgood
,i s celestial . Are . 511 .
Heaven consisteth in mutual and chastelove, and heavenly j oy is the happiness deriv ed from such love . Are. 547.
It is of the v ery nature and essence of truelove to do kind offices to the obj ect of it ;
86 EXTRACTS FROM
not from selfish v iews,but from disinter
ested affection . They who are deeply in thelov e of self, and are greedy of filthy lucre inthis world
,cannot receive such doctrine
,and
the cov etous least of all . Are. 548 .
The angelic state is such that each com
municateth his own blessedness and happines s to another ; for in another life there isgiven a communication and most exquisiteperception of affections and thoughts
,in con
sequence whereof ev ery indiv idual communicates his j oy to all others
,and all others to
every indiv idual ; so that each indiv idual isas it were the centre Of all
,which is the celes
tial form . Are. 549 .
After temptation,things aliv e and things
dead,or the things of the Lord and those of
man's propriety,appear so confused that a
man scarce knoweth at that time what istrue and good ; but the Lord then reduceth
and disposeth all things to order . Are. 841 .
After the societie s of spirits who had conn ected themselves for ev il purpose s are dissolv ed ; after the commotion, or turbulentstate
,there ariseth as it were a serenity or
silence,which is the beginning of the dispo
sal of all things into order . Before anythingis reduced to order
,it is most commonly pro
v ided that there should be a general reduc
tion thereof into a kind of confused mass, oras it were a chaos ; whereby the things that
88 EXTRACTS F-ROM
does not easily permit to be destroyed . Thecase is altogether otherwise with the celestial man
,who hath perception from the
Lord ; in him particulars, and the singularsof particulars , may be insinuated : as for example, in the case of this general truth, thata true marriage is that of one husband withon e wife, and that such a marriage is representative of the celestial marriage ; con se
quently that such a marriage is admissive of
celestial happiness, which a marriage of oneman with several wives i s not . The spiritualman
,in this case
,who knoweth this to be
true by the Word of the Lord,i s perfectly
satisfied with such knowledge,and hence re
ceiveth conscience, informing him that marriage with more wives than one is s in, andhe knoweth no more ; but the celestial manperceiveth a thousand particulars which con
firm this general truth,so that marriage w ith
more than on e wife exciteth his abhorrence .S ince the Spiritual man only knoweth generals
,and by generals hath his consc ience
form ed,and the generals of the Word are
accommodated to the fallacie s of the senses,it is ev ident that innumerable falsities j ointhemselves to
,and insinuate themselves into
those generals,which cannot easily be dis
persed. These falsitie s are signified by therav en
,which went forth from the ark in
going and returning. Are. 865.
Fowls denote things intellectual, rational,and scientific, and in like manner their oppo
SWEDENBORG . 89
s ites,which are reasonings and falses . Both
the latter and the former are described in theWord by various species of fowls : intellectual truths by the gentle , beautiful , and cleanfowls ; but falses by rav enous , ugly, and um
clean fowls : gross and dense fals itie s byowls and ravens ; by owls because they liv ein the darkness of night ; by ravens , becausethey are of a black colo r . Are. 866 .
There is not any life in those things whichare not conn ected with eternal life
,or which
do not regard eternal life . The life which isnot eternal is not life
,but in a little while per
isheth ; nor can to be be predicated of thosethings which cease to be
,but of those things
which nev er cease to be consequently tolive and to be are only in those things whichare of the Lord . By eternal lif e is m eanteternal happiness . Are . 726 .
Man's propriety is,as it were
,destroyed
when he is regenerated . Arc . 727.
Propriety is wholly ev il and false and so
long as it remaineth,so long man is dead :
but when he undergoeth temptations , then itis shook and dispersed
,that is
,i s loosened
and tempered by goodnesses and truths fromthe Lord ; and thus it is vivified, and appearsas if it was not present : its not appearing,and not being any longer hurtfu l
,is s ign ified
by destroying,although it is never destroyed,
but remaineth . In this respect it is with
90 EXTRACTS FROM
propriety as with black and white ; which,being variously tempered by the rays of
light,are changed into beautiful colors
,as
into blue,yellow
,purple
,and the like ; by
which,according to their arrangement
,as in
flowers,divers forms of beauty and agreeable
ness are exhibited,whilst the black and
white in their root and ground still remain .
—Arc. 731 .
There is not a single expression in theWord which is superfluous and needless
,
because it is the ' lord of the Lord ; cousequently there i s not any repetition
,but where
the signification is different . Arc. 734.
By fowl,in general
,are signified thoughts .
Are. 745.
Corporeal things re sist what i s good,and
sensual things what is true ; the former extinguishing the love of goodness, the latterthe lov e o f truth . Arc. 913 .
Man,when he is regenerated
,receiveth life
from the Lord ; for before regeneration hecould not be said to liv e, inasmuch as thelife of the world and of the body is not life
,
but celestial and spiritual life alone is life .Man by regeneration receiveth real e ssentiall ife from the Lord ; and whereas before re
gen eration he had no life,he is now subj ect
alternately to a state of no life and a stateof real essential life
,that is
,of no faith and
SWEDENBORG. 910
charity and of some faith and charity . So
often as man is under the influence of thingscorporeal and worldly
,then there is no faith
and charity, that is, there is cold, for thenthings corporeal and worldly Operate
,con se
quently the things which are of propriety ;and so long as he is thus influenced, he isabsent or removed from faith and charity, sothat he doth not ev en think of things celestial and spiritual : the reason is becausethings celestial and corporeal can by no
means be together w ith man . Are. 933 .
By not curs ing the ground any more forman's sake is signified that man would notany more av ert himself like the man of theposterity of the most anc ient church . Are.
927.
That the regenerate man un dergoeth
changes,via
,from alternate states o f no
charity and of some charity,may appear
manifest from this reason,that with every
one,even the regenerate person
,there is
nothing but ev il,and that all good is of the
Lord alone ; in consequence hereof,he must
needs undergo changes,and at one time be as
it were in summ er,that is
,in charity
,but at
another time in winter,that i s
,in no charity .
These changes are for the end that man maybe more and more perfected
,and thereby
may be rendered more and more happy .
Such changes take place in the regenerateman
,not only during his life in the body
,but
92 EXTRACTS FROM0
also when he cometh into the other life for
without changes of summer and winter,as it
were,as to things of the will, and as it were
of day and night as to things of the understanding
,he is nev er perfected and rendered
more happy These change s,however
,in
another life, are like the changes of summ erand winter in temperate 'ones
,and like the
changes of day and night in the spring sea'
son .— Arc. 935 .
Were they who are in the helli sh kingdomto extend but a finger beyond the Sphere ofit,they would suffer pain thereby . Heaven
and Hell,400 .
The natural man,in whom the spiritual
degree is Open,does not know that he thinks
and acts from his spiritual man ; for it appears as if it was from himself
,when never
theless it is not from himself, but from theLord . Ne ither does the natural man
,in
whom the spiritual degree is open,know that
by his Spiritual man he is in heav en,when
nev ertheless his spiritual man is in the midstof the angels of heaven . Sometimes also heappears to the angels but because he retiresinto his natural man
,after a short stay there
,
he disappears . Neither does the natural man,in whom the Spiritual degree i s Open
,know
that his Spiritual mind is filled with a thousand arcana of wisdom and a thousand del ights of love by the Lord, and that he comesinto them after death
,when he becomes an
SWEDENBORG. 93
angel . The reas on why the natu ral mandoes not know these things is because thecommunication between the natural and theSpiritual man is effected by correspondences ,and commun ication by correspondencesnot perceived any other wis e in the understanding than that truths are seen in light
,
and in the will than that uses are performedfrom aff ection .
- Angelic Wisdom,252 .
Charity is every work of duty that mandoeth from the Lord ; which he then doethfrom the Lord when he shuns evils as sins .—Angelic Wisdom,
253 .
To explore the mysteries of faith by scien
tifics is as impossible as for a camel to gothrough the eye of a needle . Myriads ofmysteries exist in the hidden things of spiritual and celestial life for one that is to befound in inv is ible nature . Are. 233 .
Goodness of disposition manifests itself bygentlenes s and sweetnes s ; by gentleness inthat it is afraid to do hurt
,and by sweet
ness in that it lov e s to do good — P lanet
Jup iter, 50 .
It is a principle of divine justice that no
man should suffer pim ishm ents on account ofthe evils of his parents
,but on accoun t of his
own : wherefore it is prov ided by the Lordthat his hereditary ev il s should not recurafter death, but the evils which are properly
94 Ex'rRAc '
rs FROM
his own and on account of those ev ils,when
they recur,the man is punished . Ap oc.
Exp licata .
The delights of the love of adultery derivetheir quality from the delights of doing ev iluses
,thus of doin g ev il ; and the delights of
the lov e o f marriage from the delights ofdoing good uses
,thus of doing good. Ap oc.
So many and such are the delights andpleasantnesses in the lov e of marriage
,which
are m anifested by turns,that they cannot be
numbered or described ; they are also multiplied with continued augmentations to eternity.
—Ap oc . Exp .
The origin of those delights is from thisc ircumstance, that conjugal partners desireto be united into one, as to their minds ; andthat into such union heav en con spireth, fromthe marriage of the good and the true thereinfrom the Lord .
— Ap oc. Exp .
The angels,when separated from their con
jugal partners , are in intelligence, but not in
wisdom . Ap oc. Exp .
To shun ev ils as sins is to shun the infernal societies that are in them ; and a man cannot shun such societies unles s he be av ersefrom them
,and thence turn himself from
them ; and man cannot from av ersion turn
96 EXTRACTS FROM
To merchants who - shun as s ins thefts ofevery kind
,especially the more interior and
more hidden,which are done by acts of cun
ning and deceit,riches do no harm
,because
riches are to them the means to uses,which
are their negotiations,whereby they serve
their country and fellow-citi'ens ; they arealso by riches in a state of doing the uses towhich the affection of good leadeth them .
Whilst a man shunn eth ev ils as sins,he
then learneth daily what a good work is,and
there increaseth with him the affection of
doing good,and the affection of knowing
truths for the sake of good . Cease,there
fore,to inquire in thyself what are the good
works which I shall do,or what good shall I
do that I may receiv e life eternal ; abstainon ly from ev ils as sins, and look to the Lord,and the Lord will teach and ' lead thee .
Those who know that there are divine commandments
,but think nothing of a life ao
cording to them,remain natural
,nor care for
anything but what i s of the world,and of the
body . These after death become drudgesand servants
,according to the uses which
they can perform to those who are Spiritual ;for the natural man is a drudge and a ser
vant,and the spiritual man is his master and
lord.—Angelic Wi sdom,
249 .
SWEDENBORG. 97
The angels from the sound of a man's voiceknow his lov e, from the articulation of thesound his wisdoni, and from the sens e of thewords his science : and moreov er they saythat these three are in ev ery express ion
,be
cause an express ion is as a conclusion ; forthere is in it sound, articulation, and sense .
From every word of a person speaking in aseries , the angels of the third heaven perceivethe general state of his mind, and also someparticular states . Ang. Wisdom,
280 .
The three degrees of altitude are namednatural
,Spiritual
,and celestial . Man, at his
birth,first comes into the natural degree ;
and this increases in him by continuity ao
cording to the sciences , and according to theunderstanding acquired by them
,to the sum
mit of understanding, which is called rationalnevertheless the other degree
,which is called
Spiritual,i s not hereby opened ; this degree
is Opened by the l ov e of uses derived fromthings intellectual . Supposing this lov e of
uses to be spiritual, which lov e is lov e towards our neighbor, this degree in like mannermay increase by degrees of continuity to itssummit ; and it increases by knowledges oftruth and good , or by spiritual truths . Butstill by these the third degree
,which is call ed
the celestial degree , is not Opened, this degreebeing opened by the celestial love of use ,which lov e is lov e towards the Lord
,and
lov e towards the Lord is nothing else but theapplication of the commandments of theWord
98 EXTRACTS FROM
to l ife ; the sum o f which is to fly from ev ilsbecause they are infernal and diabolical,and to do good because it is celestial anddiv ine . These three degree s are thus successively opened in man .
— Angelic Wisdom
,237.
The communication of the three degree swith each other i s effected only by correspondences ; therefore the differences of lov e,wisdom, and use are such that they hav enothing in common by anything of continuity. Man
,so long as he live s in the
world,does not know anything of the Open
ing of these degrees in himself : the reasonis becaus e then he is in the natural degree,which is the ultimate ; and from this degreehe then thinks
,wills
,Speaks
,and acts ; and
the S piritual degree,which is interior
,does
not communicate with the natural degree bycontinuity
,but by correspondences ; and com
mun ication by correspondences is not felt .Angelic Wisdom,
238 .
Man hath a natural mind, a spiritual mind,and a celestial mind ; and thereby may beelevated to angelic wisdom ,
and possess it,while he live s in the world : but nev erthelesshe does not come into it till after death, i fhe becomes an angel ; and then he speaksthings ineffable and in comprehensible to thenatural man .
— Angelic Wisdom,239 .
100 ExTRAcTs FROM SWEDENBORG .
Spiritual,halt ; so that the last term or limit
of the latter is the first of the former. —Arc.
2718 .
The w isdom of love is to have God continually before our e yes .—Arc. 9936 .
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' oung men and young women,not yet
married,enter ausp iciously or otherwise upon
true spiritual life,according as they carefully
avoid as s inful whatev er is Opposed to purityof mind and act in relation to marriage .
Whether or not they become Spiritual atall ; whether or not they will come into thechurch ; whether or not they will hav e anyreal interest in spiritual things
,will ap
proach and worship the Lord,reverence the
Scriptures,and understand and receive the
goodness and truth brought down in them bythe Lord to men, depends , abov e all els e, uponthi s simple thing, whether or not, in intentionand act
,they avoid as sin what is contrary to
chastity : for the lov e to which this relate senters deeper than any other
,and has its seat
ev en at the entrance gate of the Lord withspiritual and heavenly thin gs into the mind .
—P attee.