THE CORONIS, OR APPENDIX TO THE TRUE CHRISTIAN RELIGION These three things, - the Consummation of the Age, the Coming of the Lord, and the New Church-have, it is true, been treated of in the last chapter of the work entitled The True Christian Religion. The reason why a Continuation follows concerning them, is because no one has hitherto known what the Consummation of the Age is, why the Second Coming of the Lord must take place, or that the New Church is about to come; and yet these three subjects are treated of in both the Prophetic and the Apostolic Word, and fully in the Apocalypse. That these three subjects are treated of in the Prophetic Word of the Old Testament, was made evident to me while it was granted me to lay it open by means of the spiritual sense; and in like manner that they are treated of in the Prophetic [part] of the New Testament, which is called the Apocalypse: that they are also in the Evangelic and Apostolic Word, will be plain from the following pages. Hence it follows, that, without a knowledge of the Consummation of the Age, the Second Coming of the Lord, and the New Church, the Word is as it were shut up; nor can anything but knowledges open it: these are like keys which open the door and introduce. When this takes place with the Word, then the treasures, which lay concealed therein as at the bottom of the sea, come into view; for, at the bottom, there are in the Word nothing else but precious things. In this Appendix or Continuation, I shall proceed, in like manner as in the work itself, by prefixed Summaries, which will be confirmed from Scripture and illustrated from reason.
PROPOSITION THE FIRST. I. There have been four churches on this earth from the day of its creation: the First, which is to be called the Adamic; the Second, the Noachian; the Third, the Israelitish; and the Fourth, the Christian. That four churches have existed on this earth since the creation of the world, manifestly appears in Daniel; first, from the statue seen by Nebuchadnezzar in a dream, and, afterwards, from the four beasts rising up out of the sea. Concerning the statue of Nebuchadnezzar we read as follows: Daniel said, Thou, O king, sawest, and behold a great statue. And the appearance thereof was excellent, standing before thee, and the aspect thereof was terrible. The head of this statue was of good gold; its breast and arms, of silver; its belly and its thighs, of brass; its legs, of iron; its feet, partly of iron and partly of clay. Thou sawest until a stone was cut out, which was not by hands, and smote the statue upon its feet that were of iron and clay, and brake them in pieces. Then were the iron, the clay, the brass, the silver, and the gold, broken in pieces together, and became like the chaff of the summer threshing-floors; so that the wind carried them away, and no place was found for them: but the stone, which smote the statue, became a great rock, and filled the whole earth. In these days shall the God of the heavens raise up a kingdom, which shall not be destroyed to the ages; and His kingdom shall not be entrusted to another people: it shall break in pieces and consume all those kingdoms, but it shall stand to the ages (Dan. 2:31-35, 44). This dream did not signify four political kingdoms on this earth, but four churches, which should follow one after another, may be evident from the following considerations: (1) That such kingdoms, one after another, have not existed on this earth. (2) That the Divine Word, in its bosom, does not treat of the kingdoms of the world, but of churches, which constitute the kingdom of God on the earth. (3) Also, because it is said that the God of the heavens shall raise up a kingdom which shall not be destroyed to the ages, and that a stone, cut out, not by hands, became a great rock, which filled the whole earth. (4) And, because the Lord our Saviour Jesus Christ, in the Word of both Testaments, is called the "Stone" and "Rock," it is manifest that His kingdom is meant by the last words in this passage. (5) Moreover, the state of the church is described, in innumerable passages of the Word, by "gold," "silver," "brass," and "iron;" its spiritual state as to the good of love by "gold," its spiritual state as to the truth of wisdom by "silver," its natural state as to the good of charity by "brass," and its natural state as to the truth of faith by "iron," as may be seen confirmed from the Word in the Apocalypse Revealed (n. 913), and elsewhere. [2] For this reason, the wise in the first ages, who knew the significations of metals, compared the ages, which were to follow one another from the first to the last, to those four metals, and called the first age "golden," the second age "silver," the third age "copper," and the fourth age "iron;" and they described them thus according to goods and truths; and because genuine goods and truths are from no other origin than from the God of heaven, they described them according to the states of the church with those who lived in those ages; for from these, and according to these, all the civil states of kingdoms as to justice and judgment exist, flourish and live. [3] That the Lord the Saviour Jesus Christ is called the "Stone" and "Rock" in the Word of both Testaments, is plain from the following passages. That He is called a "Stone" from these: Thus said the Lord Jehovih, Behold I will found in Zion a Stone of probation, a precious corner of well-established foundation; he who hath believed will not make haste; then I will set judgment for the rule, and justice for the plummet (Isa. 28:16, 17). Jehovah will visit His flock. From Him is the cornerstone (Zech. 10:3, 4). The stone which the architects rejected is become the head of the corner (Ps. 118:22). Have ye not read in the Scripture that the Stone which the builders rejected is become the head of the corner? (Matt. 21:42; Mark 12:10, 11; Luke 20:17, 18; Isa. 8:14, 15). Ye have come to the Lord, the living Stone, rejected indeed of men, but chosen of God; ye yourselves also, as living stones, are built up into a spiritual house;...therefore, it is said in the Scripture, I lay in Zion a corner-stone, elect, precious, and he who believeth on Him shall not be ashamed (1 Peter 2:4-6). Ye are built upon the foundations of the apostles and prophets, whose corner-stone is Jesus Christ, by whom the whole building, well cemented together, groweth into a holy temple in the Lord; by whom ye are built together into a habitation of God in the spirit (Eph. 2:20, 21, 22). Jesus Christ is the Stone, rejected by the builders, which is become the head of the corner; and there is no salvation in any other (Acts 4:11, 12). The Lord is called the "Rock," is evident from these passages in the Word: When Jeshurun became fat, he kicked...and he forsook God who made him, and despised the Rock of his salvation (Deut. 32:15, 18, 30). The God of Israel said, The Rock of Israel spake to me (2 Sam. 23:3). Let the words of my mouth be well-pleasing, O Jehovah, my Rock and my Redeemer (Ps. 19:14). And they remembered that God was their Rock, and the High God their Redeemer (Ps. 78:35). They all drank spiritual drink; for they drank from the spiritual Rock; the Rock was Christ (1 Cor. 10:4; Exod. 17:6). From these passages, it is now manifestly evident, that by the "Stone" which smote the statue, and became a great rock and filled the whole earth, and whose kingdom shall stand to ages of ages, is meant our Lord Jesus Christ.
The same four churches on this earth are described by four "beasts" rising up out of the sea, in Daniel, of which it is there written: The first was seen like a lion, but it had eagle's wings. I beheld until the wings thereof were plucked out, and it was lifted up from the earth, and it was erect like a man upon feet, and a man's heart was given to it. Afterwards, behold another beast, a second, like a bear, and it raised up itself on one side; three ribs were in its mouth between the teeth: moreover, they were saying thus unto it, Arise, devour much flesh. After these things, I beheld, and, lo, another, like a leopard, which had upon the back of it four wings, like birds' wings; the beast had also four heads; and dominion was given to it. After this, I saw in the night visions, and behold a fourth beast, terrible and dreadful, and strong exceedingly, which had great iron teeth; it devoured and brake in pieces, and trampled the residue with its feet; but it was diverse from all the beasts that were before it, and it had ten horns. I beheld till the thrones were cast down and the Ancient of days did sit; and the judgment was set, and the books were opened; and behold, one like the Son of man was coming with the clouds of the heavens. And there was given Him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations and tongues should worship Him: His dominion is a dominion of an age, which shall not pass away, and His kingdom that which shall not perish (chap. 7:3-7, 9, 10, 13, 14, seq.). By these beasts, in like manner, are meant and described those four churches, is manifest from all the particulars there, which shall be unfolded shall their order in the following pages: more especially from the last expressions there, that after those four beasts the Son of man will come, to whom shall be given dominion, and a kingdom which shall not pass away and perish; who, also, is meant by "the Stone made into a great Rock, which shall fill the whole earth," as may be seen above (n. 2, at the end). [2] That the states of the church are likewise described in the Word by beasts, as well as by metals, is evident from numberless passages, some only of which I will adduce here; which are as follows: Thou causest the rain of benevolences to drop; thou wilt confirm thy laboring inheritance; the beast of thy assembly shall dwell therein (Ps. 68:9, 10). Every wild beast of the forest is Mine, the beasts in the mountains of thousands; I know every bird of the mountains, the beasts of My fields are with Me (Ps. 50:10, 11). Assyria was a cedar in Lebanon, his height was exalted; all the birds of the heavens made their nests in his boughs, and under his branches did all the beasts of the field bring forth, and in his shadow dwelt all great nations (Ezek. 31:3, 5, 6, 13; Dan. 4:7-13). In that day will I make a covenant for them with the beast of the field, and with the bird of the heavens, and I will betroth Myself unto thee to eternity (Hos. 2:18, 19). Rejoice and be glad, fear not, ye beasts of My fields, for the habitations of the desert are become herbaceous (Joel 2:21, 22). Thou, son of man, say to the bird of every wing, and to every beast of the field, Gather yourselves together to My sacrifice upon the mountains of Israel: thus I will give My glory among the nations (Ezek. 39:17, 20, 21). The enemy hath reproached Jehovah; give not the soul of the turtledove unto the beast (Ps. 74:18, 19). Jehovah gathereth the outcasts of Israel; every beast of My fields, come ye (Isa. 56:8, 9). The spirit driving Jesus, caused Him to go forth into the wilderness; and He was with the beasts, and the angels ministered unto Him (Mark 1:12, 13). He was not with beasts, but with devils, with whom He fought and whom He subdued; besides a thousand other passages, which are in part adduced in the Apocalypse Revealed (n. 567). Moreover, it is known that the Lord Himself, in the Word, is called a "Lamb" and also a "Lion;" likewise, that the Holy Spirit was represented as a "dove;" that the "cherubim," also, by which the Word in the literal sense is signified, appeared like "four beasts," in Ezekiel and in the Apocalypse; and that the man of the church who acknowledges the Lord as his God and Shepherd, is called a "sheep;" and, on the other hand, he who does not acknowledge Him, , is called a "he-goat" and also a "dragon;" and that an assembly of the latter is described, in like manner as in Daniel, by: The beast out of the sea like a leopard, the feet of which were as it were a bear's, and his mouth as it were a lion's (Apoc. 13:1, 2). These comparisons originate from the spiritual world, where all the affections and the thoughts therefrom, of angels and spirits, are presented at a distance from them as beasts which also appear in a form in all respects similar to that of the beasts in the natural world; the affections of the love of good as gentle beasts and good uses, but the affections of the love of evil as savage beasts and evil uses. Hence it is that "beasts" are so often named in the Word; and by them in the spiritual sense are signified affections, inclinations, perceptions and thoughts. From these things it is manifest what is meant by "creatures" in the following passages: Jesus commanded the disciples to go into all the world, and preach the Gospel to every creature (Mark 16:15). If anyone be in Christ, he is a new creature; old things have passed away, and all things are become new (2 Cor. 5:17). These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creature of God (Apoc. 3:14). By "creatures," here, are meant those who can be created anew, that is, regenerated, and thus become of the Lord's church.
That there have been four churches on this earth, one before the flood, which is to be called the Adamic; the second, after the flood, which is to be called the Noachic; and the third, after this, which was the Israelitish; also the fourth, which exists at this day, and is called the Christian, will be demonstrated in the following pages, in the exposition of each of them separately.
II. There have been four successive states, or periods, of each church, which in the Word are meant by "morning," "day," "evening," and "night." That there have been four successive states, or periods, of every one of these churches above mentioned, will be illustrated in the following pages, wherein each will be dealt with in its order. They are described by those alternations of time, because every man who is born in the church, or in whom the church has commenced, first comes into its light, such as that is in the dawn and morning; afterwards, he advances into its day, and, he who loves its truths, even to its mid-day; if he then stops in the way, and does not advance into the heat of spring and summer, his day declines towards evening, and at length, like light at night-time, it grows dark; and then his intelligence in the spiritual things of the church becomes a cold light, like the light of the days in winter, when he indeed sees the trees standing near his house, or in his gardens, but stript of leaves and deprived of fruits, thus like bare logs. For, the man of the church advances from morning to day, to the end that he may be reformed and regenerated by means of the light of reason, which is effected only by a life according to the precepts of the Lord in the Word. If this does not take place, his light becomes darkness, and the darkness, thick darkness; that is, the truths of light with him are turned into falsities, and the falsities into unseen evils. It is otherwise with the man who suffers himself to be regenerated: night does not overtake him, for he walks in God, and hence is continually in the day; into which, also, he fully enters after death, when he is associated with angels in heaven. This is meant by these things in the Apocalypse, concerning the New Jerusalem, which is the New Church, truly Christian: That city shall have no need of the sun and moon to shine in it; for the glory of God shall lighten it, and the Lamb is the lamp thereof; and the nations which are saved shall walk in the light of it and there shall be no night there (21:23-25; Ezek. 32:8; Amos. 5:20; 8:9). That the successive states of the church are meant by "morning," "day," "evening," and "night," in the Word, is evident from the following passages therein: Watch; for ye know not when the Lord of the house will come, at even, or at midnight, or at cock-crowing, or in the morning (Mark 13:35; Matt. 25:13). The subject there treated of is the Consummation of the Age, and the Coming of the Lord at that time: The God of Israel said, The Rock of Israel spake to me; he is as the light of the morning, a morning without clouds (2 Sam. 23:3, 4). I am the Root and the Offspring of David, the bright and morning Star (Apoc. 22:16). God shall help her, when He shall look to the morning (Ps. 46:5). He is calling to me out of Seir, Watchman, what of the night? Watchman, what of the night? The watchman said, The morning cometh, and also the night (Isa. 21:11, 12). The end is come upon thee, O inhabitant of the land; the time is come, the day is near. Behold the day, behold, it is come; the morning hath gone forth (Ezek. 7:5-7, 10). There shall be a day which shall be known to Jehovah; not day nor night; for about the time of evening there shall be light (Zech. 14:7). About the time of evening, behold, terror; before the morning, he is not (Isa. 17:14). In the evening, weeping will tarry all night, but there will be singing in the morning (Ps. 30:5). Even to the evening and the morning, two thousand three hundred; then shall the holy place be justified: the vision of the evening and morning is truth (Dan. 8:14, 26). Jehovah in the morning will give His judgement in the light; He will not fail (Zeph. 3:5). Thus said Jehovah, If ye have made void My covenant of the day and My covenant of the night, so that there be not day and night in their season, My covenant also shall be made void with David My servant (Jer. 33:20, 21, 25). Jesus said, I must work the works of God while it is day; the night cometh when no one can work (John 9:4). In this night there shall be two on one bed; one shall be taken, but the other shall be left (Luke 17:34). In these passages, it treats of the consummation of the age and the Coming of the Lord. Hence it may be evident what is meant by "There shall be time no longer" (Apoc. 10:6); namely, that there would not be morning, day, or evening in the church, but night; likewise what is meant by "time, times, and half a time" (Apoc. 12:14; Dan. 12:7); as also what is meant by the "fulness of time" (Eph. 1:10; Gal. 4:4).
III. In each church there have been four successive changes of state; the first of which was the appearing of the Lord Jehovih and redemption, and then its morning, or rise: the second was its instruction, and then its day, or progression: the third was its decline; and then its evening or vastation: the fourth was its end; and then its night or consummation. That there have been four successive states of each church, which in the Word are meant by "morning," "day," "evening," and "night," has been shown in the preceding article. That every one of the four churches mentioned above underwent those states, will be fully established in the following pages, where each will be dealt with in its order; and then that the appearing of the Lord Jehovih and redemption was its "morning;" that instruction was its "day" or progression into light; also, that decline was its "evening" or vastation; and that its end was its "night" or consummation. In the Word, both in its historical and its prophetical parts, those four changes of state are everywhere treated of.
The order into which every man was created by God, is, that after infancy he may become a man. For when he is born, he is only an external image or form of a man, and at that time less a man than a new-born beast is a beast; but, so far as he is inwardly perfected in this form, as to his mind, or his spirit, in wisdom and love, he becomes a man. A man is like a tree, which first grows up from a seed into a shoot, and when it increases in height puts forth branches and from these stems, and clothes itself continually with leaves; and when it comes to maturity, which takes place in its middle age, puts forth flowers, and produces fruits; in each one it places seeds, which being cast into the earth, as into a womb, grow up into similar trees and thus into a garden. And if you are willing to believe it, that same garden remains with the man after death; he dwells in it, and is delighted daily with the sight of it, and with the use of its fruits. It is such a man who is described in David by these words: He shall be like a tree planted beside the rivers of waters, which shall bring forth its fruit in its season, and its leaf shall not fall off (Ps. 1:3 and likewise Rev. 22:1-2). [2] But the case is different with the man born in the church, who, when he has passed through his morning, and advanced into the first light of day, whereby he has become rational, then stops, and does not produce fruit: such a one is, or may be, like a tree luxuriant with leaves, but not bearing fruit, which is uprooted from the garden, its branches cut off, and the trunk cleft in pieces with axe, or saw, and the whole then cast little by little into the fire. The light of his rational becomes like the light of the days of winter, in which the leaves of the trees first grow yellow, then drop off, and lastly rot. His rational, also, may be compared with a tree whose leaves are consumed by worms in early spring; likewise with a crop that is choked by thorns; and also with vegetation which is laid waste by locusts. The reason is, that his rational is merely natural, because it takes its ideas solely from the world through the senses, and not from heaven through the affections and the perceptions therefrom. And since, on this account, there is nothing spiritual inwardly in his rational, if he then speaks of any spiritual thing of the church, his voice is heard by the angels no otherwise than as the voice of a parrot or a goose; for his voice is merely animal, because merely natural, and not human because not spiritual within; for it flows forth from the respiration of the body only, and not from any respiration of the spirit. Such is the man who does not, from natural, become spiritual; and no one becomes spiritual, unless, after he has become rational, he brings forth fruits, that is, imbues charity by life.
The four changes of state, which are called "morning," "day," "evening," and "night," are in the Word predicated of the church, because the church consists of men, and a man is a church in particular, and the assembly of these men is what is called the church. Those in this assembly or the church, who live according to the order described above (n. 7), are trees of life, which also are trees of good use; but those who do not live according to that order are trees of the knowledge of good and evil, which also are trees of evil use. The latter are those of whom "evening" and "night," or, what is the same, vastation and consummation, are predicated; but not the former. These things, however, will be made evident to the reason in the following pages; but it is proper, that, at the beginning of this volume, some preliminary observations should be made, because knowledges must precede before any one can know that by "morning" is meant the rise of the church, and that this is preceded by redemption; by "day," the progression of the new church into light, and its intelligence; by "evening," the decline of that church from good and truth, which is called vastation; and by "night," its end and destruction, which is called consummation; and so on.
The end of the church, or the consummation of the age, is when there is not any genuine truth and hence not any genuine good, or when there is not any good and hence not any truth remaining, but, in their place falsity and evil therefrom, or evil and falsity therefrom, rule; and then there is the "fullness [of time]" in the church, the members of which are like persons walking in the night, who, because they do not see anything that appears in the light of the sun, are in doubt about all things relating to the church, and in general about God, heaven and hell, and the life after death; and both those who confirm themselves in the denial of these things, and those who remain alternately in doubt and in affirmation, become shunners of the light, and, if they are priests, they procure to themselves a false light on those subjects, such as night-owls, cats, and mice have in the darkness of night. This light is excited with them, as with these wild beasts, through the activities of their lusts.
IV. After its consummation, or end, the Lord Jehovih appears, and executes a judgment on the men of the former church, and separates the good from the evil, and elevates the good to Himself into heaven, and removes the evil from Himself into hell. That about the end of every church the Lord Jehovih appears to execute a judgment on those who have lived from its first establishment to its consummation, will be confirmed in the following pages, where each church will be separately treated of. Every man indeed is judged after death; but at the end of a church all are collected together, and a general judgment is executed on them; and this for the reason that they may be conjoined in heavenly order, which is effected by the arrangement of the faithful into a new heaven, and of the unfaithful into a new hell beneath it; of which arrangement we shall speak more at large in the following article.
Judgment, which is the last of every church, is not effected in the natural world, but in the spiritual world, into which all are gathered after death; and they are collected into heavens distinctly according to religion, thus according to faith and love. Judgment is effected in the spiritual world, for the reason that every man after death is a man; not a material man, as before, but a substantial man. Every man's mind or spirit is such a man: the body which he carried about in the world is only a covering, and as it were the exuviae, which he has laid aside, and from which his spirit has disengaged itself. Now, since it was man's mind or spirit that thought in the material body, and then either from religion or not from religion, and in favor of God or against God, from truths of faith or from falsities of faith, loved his neighbor or held him in hatred; and since the material body was only obedience; it follows that the mind, which is the substantial man and is called the spirit, is what undergoes judgment, and, according to the thoughts and acts of its life, is rewarded or punished. From these things it may be plainly manifest, that judgment, which is the last of every church, is effected in the spiritual world, but not in the natural world.
The judgment which is executed upon all of a past church, takes place, both generally and individually, to the end that the good may be separated from the evil, and that the good may be raised up into heaven and the evil cast down into hell. Unless this were done when a church is consummated, that is, when it is no longer in truths and goods, not anyone therein could be saved. That he could not be saved is because he could not be regenerated; and everyone is regenerated by the truths of faith and the goods of love. To this reason the following is added, that from the time of the vastation of a church even to its consummation, hell increases to so great an extent as to stretch under the whole angelic heaven, through which the regenerating truths and goods descend from the Lord to the men of the earth. When this is covered over, no truth of thought from faith nor good of will from charity can penetrate, except as it were through chinks; yea, what does penetrate is perverted either in the way before it reaches man, or else by the man himself when it is in him; that is, the truth is either rejected or falsified, and the good is either clogged up or adulterated. In a word, a church at its end is as it were obsessed by satans. Those are called satans who take pleasure in falsities and are delighted with evils. In order, therefore, that the total damnation which is then over everyone's head, and menaces him, may be taken away, it is necessary that hell, which has raised itself on high, and, as was said, increased even to heaven, should be removed, not merely depressed, but also dispersed and subjugated, and then the good separated from the evil, that is, the living from the dead. This separation, and then the elevation of the good into heaven, or into the land of the living, and the casting down of the evil into hell, or into the land of the dead, is what is called the judgment. That such a judgment was actually executed in the year 1757 on the men of the present Christian Church, has been published and described, in a special little work published in London in the year 1758.
Who does not see the necessity that the evil should be separated from the good, lest the latter should be infected with the contagion of deadly evil, and perish? For evil, inasmuch as it is implanted in human nature by birth, and is more and more ingenerated in children from parents when the church is advancing towards consummation, is like the malignant disease which is called cancer, which spreads round about, and gradually mortifies the healthy and living parts. What husbandman, or gardener, when he sees briars, nettles, thorns, and thistles growing, does not extirpate them before he sows and harrows in his corn and food crops? What farmer, when he sees his herbage and grass consumed by worms, or locusts, does not dig a ditch, and separate the green field from the wasted one, and thus take treasures for the preservation of his crops and green fields? What shepherd, when he sees wild beasts multiplying about the pastures of his sheep, does not call together the neighboring shepherds and the servants, and with weapons, or traps, kill those wild beasts, or drive them away? [2] What king, when he sees both the towns of his kingdom round about his metropolis taken by enemies, and the property of his subjects taken possession of by them, does not assemble the troops and cast out the enemy, and restore the stolen goods to their owners, and, moreover, add thereto the spoils of the enemies wealth, and so comfort them?
V. After these things the Lord Jehovih founds a new heaven from the good elevated to Himself, and from the evil removed from Himself a new hell; and in both He establishes order, so that they may stand under His auspices, and under obedience to Him, to eternity. It is written in Isaiah: Jehovah said, Behold I create new heavens and a new earth (55:17); and elsewhere in the same prophet: As the new heavens and the new earth, which I am about to make, shall stand before Me (56:22); in the Apocalypse: I saw a new heaven and a new earth; the former heaven and the former earth have passed away (21:1); and in Peter: According to promise, we look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein justice shall dwell (2 Epist. 3:13). It has not hitherto entered into the mind of anyone to suppose otherwise, than that by "heaven," in these places, is meant the visible heaven, that is, the whole firmament, together with the sun, moon and stars; and that by "earth," there, is meant the habitable earth, or the globe, and that these will perish at the day of the Last Judgment; when nevertheless by "heaven" there the angelic heaven is meant, and by "earth" the church. That by "earth" everywhere in the prophetic Word is meant the church, has been fully shown in the Apocalypse Revealed (n. 285). The reason why by "new heavens" and a "new earth" have been hitherto understood the visible heaven and the habitable earth, is because men have not known anything of the spiritual world, consequently not anything of the angelic heaven, nor anything of the prophetic sense, which carries and stores up nothing but spiritual things; and the spiritual meaning of "earth" is the church. When, indeed, the angels, inasmuch as they are spiritual, look down into the earth, they see nothing at all of it, but only the church with men.
When the Lord Jehovih founds a new heaven and a new church, He introduces order, so that they may stand under His auspices and under obedience to Him to eternity. This is because the angelic heaven and the church on the earth together constitute one body, whose soul and life is the Lord Jehovih, who is the Lord our Saviour. The whole angelic heaven together with the church also appears before the Lord as one man; and a man stands under the auspices of, and under obedience to his soul: thus the entire heaven together with the church, is under the auspices of, and under obedience to, the Lord; for the Lord is in them and they are in the Lord (John 14:20; 15:4, 5; 17:23, 26); thus, He is the all in all there. But the order which the Lord induces on hell is such that all who are there may he diametrically opposite to all who are in heaven: whence it is evident that since the Lord rules heaven He also rules hell, and that He rules the latter by means of the former.
Moreover, the arrangement of all in the heavens and of all in the hells is most perfect. For every heaven that is founded by the Lord after the consummation of each church is made threefold: it is made highest, middle, and lowest. Into the highest are elevated those who are in love to the Lord and in wisdom thence; into the middle those who are in spiritual love towards the neighbor and in intelligence thence; into the lowest those who are in spiritual-natural love towards the neighbor, which is called charity, and thence in the faith of the truths concerning God, and in a life according to the precepts of the Decalogue. These three heavens constitute three expanses, one above another, and they communicate with each other by the Divine influx from the Lord out of the sun of the spiritual world. In the deep below there are also three expanses, into which the hells are distinguished, between which in like manner there is provided a communication by means of an influx through the heavens from the Lord. By means of these communications there is effected a close and indissoluble conjunction of all things in the heavens, and of all things in the hells; but in the latter it is a conjunction of all the lusts of the love of evil, while in the heavens it is a conjunction of all the affections of the love of good. By virtue of that conjunction, heaven is like one Lord sitting upon a throne girt about with wreaths formed of precious stones of every kind; but hell is like one devil sitting upon a seat entwined with vipers, serpents and poisonous worms. From this orderly arrangement, induced on both, it follows that both stand under the auspices and under obedience to the Lord to eternity.
It is known, that, in order that anything may be perfect, there must be a trine in just order, one under another, and a communication between, and that this trine must constitute a one; no otherwise than as a pillar is a one, at the top of which is the capital, under this the smooth shaft, and under this again the pedestal. Such a trine is man: his highest part is the head, his middle part is the body, and his lowest the feet and soles. In this, every kingdom is like a man; there must be a king in it as the head, also administrators and officers as the body, and yeomanry with servants as feet and soles: in like manner in the church, there must be a filleted primate, parish priests, and curates under them. Nor does the world itself subsist without three things following in order, namely, morning, noon, and evening; as also the yearly spring, summer, and autumn; spring for the sowing of seeds, summer for their germination, and autumn for bringing forth fruit: but night and winter do not contribute to the stability of the world. [2] Now since every perfect thing must be a trine and cohere well together, in order to be a one, therefore each world, both spiritual and natural, consists and subsists from three atmospheres or elements; the first of which immediately encompasses the sun and is called aura; the second is under this and is called ether; and the third is under them both and is called air. In the natural world these three atmospheres are natural, and in themselves passive, because they proceed from a sun which is pure fire; but the three corresponding to them in the spiritual world are spiritual, and in themselves active, because they proceed from a sun which is pure love. [3] The angels of the heavens dwell in the regions of these three atmospheres; the angels of the highest heaven in the celestial aura, which immediately encompasses the sun where the Lord is; the angels of the middle heaven in the spiritual ether under the former; and the angels of the lowest heaven in the spiritual-natural air under those two. Thus are all the heavens co-established, from the first to this last which is being organized by the Lord at the present day. From these things it may be apprehended whence it is that by "three" in the Word is signified what is complete (see Apocalypse Revealed, n. 505, 875).
VI. From this new heaven the Lord Jehovih derives and produces a new church on earth, which is effected by a revelation of truths from His mouth, or from His Word, and by inspiration. It is written: John saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, descending from God out of heaven, prepared as a Bride adorned for her Husband (Apoc. 21:2). By "the holy city, New Jerusalem," is meant the doctrine of the New Church, thus the church as to doctrine; and, by "Jerusalem descending from God, out of the new heaven," is meant that the true doctrine of the church is from no other source. That the doctrine descended, is because a church is a church from doctrine and according to it; without it, a church is no more a church than a man is a man without members, viscera and organs, or from the cutaneous covering alone, which only defines his external shape; nor any more than a house is a house without bed-chambers, dining rooms, and furniture within, thus from the walls and arched roof alone. It is similar with the church without doctrine. That "Jerusalem" signifies the church as to doctrine, may be seen proved from the Word in the work itself, The True Christian Religion (n. 782). From these things, it is manifest that the church on the earth is derived and produced by the Lord through the angelic heaven.
I will mention some strange things, which yet are not strange in heaven; they are as follow: (1) That the natural world could not exist except from the spiritual world; consequently, it could not subsist, inasmuch as subsistence is perpetual existence. (2) That the church cannot exist in man, unless its internal be spiritual and its external natural. A church purely spiritual does not exist, nor a church merely natural. (3) Consequently, that there cannot be raised up any church, nor anything of the church with man, without an angelic heaven, through which everything spiritual is derived and descends from the Lord. (4) Since therefore the spiritual and the natural thus make one, it follows that the one cannot exist and subsist without the other; the angelic heaven not without the church with man, nor the church with him without the angelic heaven; for, unless the spiritual flow into and terminate in the natural, and rest therein, it is like a prior without a posterior, thus like an efficient cause without an effect, and like an active without a passive, which would be like a bird perpetually flying in the air without any resting place on the earth. It is also like the mind of a man perpetually thinking and willing, without any organ of sense and motion in the body, to which it may descend and produce the ideas of its thought and bring into operation the efforts of its will. (5) These things are adduced, to the end that it may be perceived or known, that as the natural world cannot exist without the spiritual world, nor conversely the spiritual world without the natural world, so neither can there be a church on the earth unless there be an angelic heaven through which it may exist and subsist, nor conversely an angelic heaven unless there be a church on the earth. (6) The angels know this; on which account, they bitterly lament when the church on earth is desolated by falsities and consummated by evils; and then they compare the state of their life with drowsiness; for then heaven is to them as a seat withdrawn, and like a body deprived of feet; but when the church on the earth has been restored by the Lord, they compare the state of their life to wakefulness.
That the Lord derives and produces the New Church on earth through the New Heaven by means of a revelation of truths from His mouth, or from His Word, and by inspiration, will be shown in the section on the four churches in their order, especially on the Israelitish Church, and on the present Christian Church. It should be known that when hell has increased, and has passed over the great interstice or gulf fixed between itself and heaven (Luke 16:26), and has raised up its back even to the confines of the heavens where the angels are, which came to pass during the interval of the vastation and consummation of the church, not any doctrine of the church could be conveyed by the Lord through heaven to the men of the earth. The reason is that man is then in the midst of satans; and satans envelop his head with their falsities, and inspire the delights of evil and the consequent pleasures of falsity, whereby all the light out of heaven is darkened, and all the agreeableness and pleasantness of truth is intercepted. [2] As long as this state continues, not any doctrine of truth and good out of heaven can be infused into man, because it is falsified; but after this tangled veil of falsities, or covering of the head by satans, has been taken away by the Lord, which is effected by the Last Judgment (of which above, in Article IV), then man is led in a freer and more spontaneous spirit to discard falsities and to receive truths. With those who adapt themselves, and suffer themselves to be led by the Lord, the doctrine of the New Heaven, which is the doctrine of truth and good, is afterwards conveyed down and introduced, like the morning dew falling from heaven to the earth, which opens the pores of plants, and sweetens their vegetable juices: and it is like the manna which fell in the mornings, and was in appearance: Like coriander seed, white, and in taste like a cake kneaded with honey (Exod. 16:31). It is also like seasonable rain, which refreshes the newly-ploughed fields and causes germination; and it is like the fragrance exhaling from fields, gardens, and flowery plains, which the breast gladly and readily draws in with the air. But, still, the Lord does not compel, nor does He urge anyone against his will, as one does with whips a beast of burden; but He draws and afterwards continually leads him who is willing, in all appearance as though the willing man did goods and believed truths of himself, when yet it is from the Lord, who operates every genuine good of life and every genuine truth of faith in him.
VII. This Divine work taken together is called redemption, without which no man can be saved, because not regenerated. That the redemption accomplished by the Lord when He was in the world, was the subjugation of the hells, the arrangement of the heavens in order, and by these a preparation for a new spiritual church, may be seen in the work, The True Christian Religion (n. 115-117; and likewise from n. 118-133). But inasmuch as this is new, and has lain hidden for ages, like the wreck of a ship with its valuable wares at the bottom of the sea, and nevertheless the doctrine of redemption is as it were the treasury of all the spiritual riches, or the dogmas of the New Church, therefore, in the last section of this volume, the mystery of redemption shall be treated of, where the following propositions will be unfolded and presented in the light: I. Deliverance from enemies is what in the Word is called redemption. II. Consequently, it is a deliverance from evils and falsities; which, since they are from hell, are spiritual enemies; for they kill souls, as natural enemies do bodies III. Hence it becomes evident that the first of the redemption accomplished by the Lord was the separation of the evil from the good, and the elevation of the good to Himself into heaven, and the removal of the evil from Himself into hell, for thus the good are freed from the evil. This first of redemption is the Last Judgment (which has been treated of above, n. 10-13). IV. The second of redemption was the coordination of all things in the heavens, and the subordination of all things in hell, by which the good were still more distinctly separated and freed from the evil; and this is the new heaven and the new hell (which has been treated of above, n. 14-17). V. The third of redemption was a revelation of truths out of the new heaven, and thereby the raising up and establishment of a new church on earth; by which means the good were still further separated and freed from the evil, and are separated and freed for the future (this third has also been treated of above, n. 18-20). VI. The final cause of redemption was the possibility that the Lord, from His Divine omnipotence, might regenerate and thereby save man; for, unless a man be regenerated, he cannot be saved (John 3:3). VII. The regeneration of a man, inasmuch as it is a separation and deliverance from evils and falsities, is a particular redemption by the Lord, existing from His general redemption. VIII. With those who are being regenerated, evils are first of all separated from goods, and this is similar to the judgment: afterwards, goods are collected together into one, and arranged in a heavenly form, and this is similar to the new heaven; and, lastly, a new church is implanted and produced thereby, the internal of which is heaven; and the external from the internal, consequently both together, with man, are called the church. IX. All are redeemed, since all who reject the falsities of the former church, and receive the truths of the New Church, can be regenerated; but still the regenerated are properly the redeemed. X. The goal of redemption, and the prize of the redeemed, a spiritual peace. XI. A redemption has also been accomplished by the Lord at this day, because at this day is His Second Coming according to prophecy; by which, having been an eye-witness thereof I have been made certain of the truth of the foregoing arcana. But these are only summaries, which must be unfolded one by one, and set forth in both spiritual and natural light, at the end of this volume, where the mystery of redemption is to be treated of.
Moreover, it will be proved in its own section in the following pages, that the Lord's passion of the cross was not redemption, but the means of the inmost union with the Divine of the Father, from which He came forth, and into which He returned. In the work, The True Christian Religion (n. 132, 133), to which this volume is an Appendix, I undertook to demonstrate that the belief that the passion of the cross is redemption itself, is a fundamental error of the present Christian Church; and that this error, together with the error concerning three Divine Persons from eternity, has perverted the whole church to such an extent, that there is not a vestige of what is spiritual remaining in it. This will also be further shown in the following pages; also, that those two falsities and impostures have been comparatively like impregnated butterflies flying about in the garden, which lay worm-producing eggs that being hatched out, entirely consume the leaves of the trees there; and further, that they have been like the quails from the sea let down upon the camp of the Israelites, owing to which, while they were eating, a great plague was brought upon the people; and this for the reason that they loathed and spurned the manna from heaven, by which, in the highest sense, is meant the Lord (Num. 11:5, 6, 32-35; and John 6:31, 32, 49-51, 58). And further, those two errors were like two fragments of soot, or shoemaker's blacking, dropped into generous wine, and shaken about in the glass, in consequence of which all the brightness, delightful fragrance, and fine flavor of the wine are changed into a black appearance, a disagreeable smell, and a nauseous taste.
PROPOSITION THE SECOND. The Adamic, or Most Ancient Church of this Earth. The world has hitherto believed that by "the creation of heaven and earth," in the first chapter of Genesis, is meant the creation of the universe, according to the letter; and by "Adam," the first man of this earth. The world could not believe otherwise, since the spiritual or internal sense of the Word has not been disclosed, nor, consequently, that by "creating heaven and earth" is meant to collect and found an angelic heaven from those who have departed the life in the world, and by this means to derive and produce a church on earth (as above, n. 18-20); and that by the names of persons, nations, territories, and cities, are meant such things as relate to heaven, and at the same time to the church: in like manner, therefore, by "Adam." That by "Adam," and by all those things which are related of him and his posterity in the first chapters of Genesis, are described the successive states of the Most Ancient Church, which are its rise or morning, its progression into light or day, its decline or evening, its end or night, and after this the Last Judgment upon it, and thereafter a new angelic heaven from the faithful, and a new hell from the unfaithful, according to the series of the progressions laid down in the preceding proposition, has been minutely explained, unfolded and demonstrated in the Arcana Coelestia on Genesis and Exodus, the labor of eight years, published in London; which word being already in the world, nothing further is necessary than to re-capitulate therefrom the universals respecting this Most Ancient Church, which will be cited in the present volume. [2] At the outset, however, some passages shall be adduced from the Word, by which it is proved, that by "creating" is there signified to produce and form anew, and properly to regenerate; which is the reason that regeneration is called a new creation, by which the whole heaven of angels and the whole church of men, exist, consist and subsist. That "creating" signifies this, is plainly manifest from these passages in the Word: Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a firm spirit in the midst of me (Ps. 51:10). Thou openest the hand, they are filled with good; Thou sendeth forth the Spirit, they are created (Ps. 104:28, 30). The people that shall be created shall praise Jah (Ps. 102:18). Thus said Jehovah, thy Creator, O Jacob; thy Former, O Israel: Every one that is called by My Name, him have I created for My glory (Isa. 43:1, 7). That they may see, know, attend and understand, that the hard of Jehovah hath done this, and the Holy One of Israel hath created it (Isa. 41:20). In the day that thou wast created, they were prepared; thou wast perfect in thy ways from the day that thou wast created, until perversity was found in thee (Ezek. 28:13, 15). These things are concerning the king of Tyre. Jehovah that createth the heavens, that spreadeth abroad the earth, that giveth a soul unto the people upon it (Isa. 42:5; 45:12, 18). Behold I create a new heaven and a new earth; be ye glad to eternity in that which I create: behold I am about to create Jerusalem an exultation (Isa. 65:17, 18). As the new heavens and the new earth, which I am about to make, shall stand before Me (Isa. 66:22). I saw a new heaven and a new earth: the former heaven and the former earth are passed away (Apoc. 21:1). According to promise, we look for new heavens and a new earth, in which justice shall dwell (2 Peter 3:13). From these passages it is now manifested what is spiritually meant in the first chapter of Genesis, by the verses: In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth; and the earth was "waste and empty" [1, 2]. The earth called "waste and empty," signifies that there was no longer any good of life nor any truth of doctrine with its inhabitants. That "wasteness" and "emptiness" signify the deprivation of these two essentials of the church, will be established in proposition IV of this volume, respecting the Israelitish Church, by a thousand passages from the Word: at present let the following in Jeremiah serve for some illustration: I saw the land, when, behold, it was vacant and empty; and I looked towards the heavens, when their light was not. Thus said Jehovah, The whole land shall be wasteness; for this shall the land mourn, and the heavens above shall be made black (4:23, 27, 28).
This church, like the rest, shall be treated of in the following order:- I. Its rise, or morning, which is its first state. II.Its progression into light, or day, which is its second state. III. Its decline, or evening, which is its third state, and is called vastation. IV. Its end, or night, which is its fourth state, and is called consummation. V. The separation of the evil from the good, which is the Last Judgment upon all who were of that church. VI. The elevation of the good to God, of whom a new heaven is formed; and the removal of the evil from God, of whom is formed a new hell. That the four churches of this earth, of which we have treated above, have undergone these changes of state, will be shown in what follows; and lastly, that the church truly Christian, which succeeds those four at the present day, will never undergo consummation.
I. The first state of this Most Ancient Church, or its rise and morning, is described in the first chapter of Genesis by these words: God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness; and God created man in His own image; in the image of God created He him; male and female created He them (vers. 26, 27); and also by these in the second chapter: Jehovah God formed man dust of the earth, and breathed into his nostrils the soul of lives; and man became a living soul (ver. 7). That its rise, or morning, is described by his being made, or created, "in the image of God," is because every man, when he is first born and is an infant, interiorly is an "image of God;" for the faculty of receiving and of applying to himself those things which proceed from God, is implanted in him; and since exteriorly he is also formed "dust of the earth," and there is thence in him an inclination to lick that dust, like the serpent (Gen. 3:14), therefore if he remains an external or natural man, and does not become at the same time internal or spiritual, he shatters the image of God, and puts on the image of the serpent which seduced Adam. But, on the other hand, the man who strives and labors to become an "image of God," subdues the external man in himself, and interiorly in the natural becomes spiritual, thus spiritual-natural; and this is effected by a new creation, that is, regeneration by the Lord. Such a man is an "image of God," because he wills and believes that he lives from God, and not from himself: on the contrary, man is an image of the serpent, while he wills and believes that he lives from himself, and not from God. What is man but an "image of God," when he wills and believes that he is in the Lord and the Lord in him (John 6:56, 14:20, 15:4, 5, 7, 17:26), and that he can do nothing of himself (John 3:27, 15:5)? What is a man, but an "image of God," when, by new generation, he becomes a "son of God" (John 1:12, 13)? Who does not know that the image of the father is in the son? The rise, or morning, of this church is described by Jehovah God's "breathing into his nostrils the soul of lives," and by his thus "becoming a living soul," because by "lives," in the plural, are meant love and wisdom, and these two are essentially God; for, as far as a man receives and applies to himself those two essentials of life, which proceed continually from God, and flow continually into the souls of men, so far he becomes "a living soul;" for "lives" are the same as love and wisdom. Hence it is evident, that the rise and morning of the life of the men of the Most Ancient Church, who taken together are represented by "Adam," is described by those two shrines of life.
The "likeness of God," according to which man was made, is his being able to live, that is, to will, to love, and to intend, as also to think, to reflect, and to choose, in all appearance as from himself; consequently, in his being able to receive from God those things which are of love and those things which are of wisdom, and to reproduce them in a likeness from himself as God does; for God says: Behold the man was as one of us, in knowing good and evil (Gen. 3:22); for, without the faculty of receiving and reproducing those things which proceed into him from God, in all appearance as from himself, man would be no more a "living soul" than an oyster in its shell at the bottom of a stream, which is not in the least able to move itself out of its place. Nor would he be any more an "image of God" than a jointed statue of a man capable of motion by means of a handle, and of giving forth sound by being blown into; yea, the very mind of man, which is the same as his spirit, would actually be wind, air, or ether, according to the idea of the church at this day respecting spirit. For without the faculty of receiving and reproducing the things flowing in from God, altogether as from himself, he would not have anything of his own, or a proprium, except an imperceptible one, which is like the proprium of a lifeless piece of sculpture. But more about the image and likeness of God with man, may be seen, in a Relation in the preceding work, of which this is the Appendix (n. 48).
II. The second state of this Most Ancient Church, or its progression into light and day, is described in the second chapter of Genesis, by these words: God planted a garden in Eden at the east, and there He put the man whom He had formed, to till and keep it. And Jehovah made to spring forth every tree desirable to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. And a river went forth out of Eden to water the garden, which became into four heads, in the first of which was gold and the schoham stone. And Jehovah God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden, eat; but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, eat not (Gen. 2:8-17). The progression of this church into light, or day, is described by Adam's being placed in the garden of Eden, because by a "garden" is signified the church as to its truths and goods. That "there went forth out of Eden a river, which became into four heads, in the first of which was gold and the schoham stone," signifies that in that church there was the doctrine of good and truth; for a "river" signifies doctrine, "gold" its good, and "schoham stone" its truth. That two trees were placed in that garden, the one of life, and the other of the knowledge of good and evil," was because the "tree of life" signifies the Lord, in whom and from whom is the life of heavenly love and wisdom, which in itself is eternal life; and the "tree of the knowledge of good and evil" signifies man, in whom is the life of infernal love, and thence insanity in the things of the church, which life regarded in itself is eternal death. That it was allowed "to eat of every tree of the garden," except of the "tree of the knowledge of good and evil," signifies free will in spiritual things; for all things in the garden signified spiritual things, for without free will in those a man can in no wise progress into light, that is, into the truths and goods of the church, and procure for himself life; for if he does not aim at and strive after this, he procures to himself death. [2] That a "garden" signifies the church as to its truths and goods, is from the correspondence of a tree with a man for a tree in like manner as a man is conceived from seed, is put forth from the womb of the earth in like manner as a man from the womb of his mother; it grows in height in like manner, and propagates itself in branches as he in members clothes itself with leaves and adorns itself with blossoms in like manner as a man does with natural and spiritual truths; and also produces fruits in like manner as a man does goods of use. Hence it is that in the Word a man is so often compared to a "tree," and the church to a "garden;" as in the following passages: Jehovah will set her desert like Eden, and her solitude like the garden of Jehovah (Isa. 51:3); speaking of Zion, which signifies the church wherein God is worshiped according to the Word: Thou shalt be like a watered garden, and like a spring of waters, whose waters shall not lie (Isa. 58:11; Jer. 31:12). Here also it treats of the church: Thou art full of wisdom, and perfect in beauty; thou wast in Eden the garden of God; every precious stone was thy covering (Ezek. 28:12, 13). This is respecting Tyre, by which is signified the church, as to the knowledges of truth and good: How good are thy habitations, O Israel; as valleys they are planted, and as gardens beside the river (Num. 24:5, 6); by "Israel" is signified the spiritual church; but by "Jacob" the natural church in which is the spiritual. Nor was any tree in the garden of God equal to him in beauty; so that all the trees of Eden, in the garden of God, envied him (Ezek. 31:8, 9). It is here speaking of Egypt and Assyria, by which, where mentioned in a good sense, the church is signified as to knowledges and perceptions. To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is the midst of the paradise of God (Apoc. 2:7). [3] From the correspondence of a garden with the church, it comes to pass that everywhere in the heavens gardens appear producing leaves, flowers and fruits, according to the states of the church with the angels; and it has been told me that in some of the gardens there, trees of life are seen in the middle parts, and trees of the knowledge of good and evil in the boundaries, as a sign that they are in free-will in spiritual things. The church is oftentimes described in the Word by a "garden," a "field," and a "sheepfold;" by a "garden," from the trees, as mentioned above; by a "field," from its crops, wherewith man is nourished; by a "sheepfold," from the sheep, by which are meant the faithful and useful.
In the work itself named The True Christian Religion, it has been shown that the two trees, the one of "life," and the other of the "knowledge of good and evil," being placed in the garden of Eden, signified that free-will in spiritual things was given to man (n. 466-469); to which must be added that without such free-will man would not be man, but only a figure and effigy; for his thought would be without reflection, consequently without judgment, and thus in the Divine things which are of the church, he would have no more power of turning himself, than a door without a hinge, or, with a hinge, fastened with a steel bolt; and his will would be without decision, consequently no more active with respect to justice or injustice, than the stone upon a tomb under which lies a dead body. That man's life after death, together with the immortality of his soul, is owing to the gift of that free-will, and that this is the "likeness of God," has been proved in the work itself, as also above. [2] Yea, man, that is, his mind, without that would be like a sponge which imbibes water in great abundance but is not able to discharge it, in consequence of which both would decompose, the water into corruption, and the sponge into slime. In the same manner the church with him would not be a church, and thus a temple wherein the worship of God is performed: it would be like the den of some wild beast under the root of a lofty tree which rocks itself to and from over its head, except only that it would be able to take something therefrom, and apply itself to some other use besides lying in tranquillity under it. Moreover without free will in spiritual things, man would be more blind in all and each of the things of the church, than a bird of night in the light of day, but more sharp-sighted [in respect to falsities] than that bird in the darkness of night: for he would shut his eyelids, and contract their sight against the truths of faith; but he would raise his eyelids, open his eyes, and dilate their sight like the eagle, to the falsities of faith. Free-will in spiritual things, is from this, that man walks and lives his life in the midst between heaven and hell; and that heaven operates in him from above, but hell from beneath; and that the option is given to a man of turning himself either to higher things or to lower things, thus, either to the Lord or to the Devil.
III. The third state of the church, which is its decline and evening, and is called vastation, is described in the third chapter of Genesis by these words: The serpent became more subtle than any wild animal of the field, which Jehovah God had made. He said to the woman, Yea, wherefore hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden? And when the woman said unto the serpent, Of the fruit of the tree we may eat; only of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die the serpent said, Ye shall not die for God doth know that in the day wherein ye shall eat thereof, your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as God, knowing good and evil. The woman therefore saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and to be desired to give understanding; therefore she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat and she gave to her husband with her, and he did eat (vers. 1-6). The decline from light to the shade of evening, that is, the falling away from wisdom and integrity, consequently, the state of vastation of this church, is described by these words, because man was made a "likeness of God" (by which is signified, in the entire appearance that he thinks those things which are of wisdom, and wills those things that are of love, from himself, as God does, see above, n. 26), he believed the serpent's words, that if he should eat of that tree he would become as God, and thus also be God in knowing good and evil. By this "tree" is signified the natural man separated from the spiritual, which, when left to itself, does not believe otherwise. [2] Every man has a natural mind and a spiritual mind, distinct from each other like two stories of one house connected by stairs; in the upper story of which dwell the master and mistress with their children, but in the lower the men-servants and maid-servants, with other helpers. The spiritual mind in man from birth even to early childhood is closed, but after that first age it is opened step by step; for there is given to every man from birth the faculty, and afterwards the power, of procuring for himself steps by which he may ascend and speak with the master and mistress, and afterwards descend and execute their commands. This power is given him through the endowment of free will in spiritual things. Nevertheless no one can ascend to the upper story, by which is meant the spiritual mind, unless he eat of the trees of life in the garden of God. For by eating of these a man is enlightened and made whole, and conceives faith; and through the nourishment of their fruits he acquires the conviction that all good is from the Lord, who is the tree of life, and not the smallest portion from man; and yet by abiding together and operating together, hence by the Lord's being in him and he in the Lord, he must do good of himself, but still be in the belief and confidence that it is not from himself but from the Lord. [3] If a man believe otherwise, he does what appears like good, in which there is evil inwardly, because there is merit; and this is eating of the trees of the knowledge of good and evil, among which dwells the serpent, in the dreadful persuasion that he is as God, or else that there is no God, but that Nature is what is called God, and that he is composed of the elements thereof. Furthermore, those eat of the trees of the knowledge of good and evil who love themselves and the world above all things; but those eat of the trees of life who love God above all things and the neighbor as themselves. Those also eat of the trees of the knowledge of good and evil who hatch out canons for the church from their own intelligence, and afterwards confirm them by the Word; but on the other hand those who procure for themselves canons for the church by means of the Word, and afterwards confirm them by intelligence, eat of the trees of life. Those also who teach truths from the Word and live wickedly eat of the trees of the knowledge of good and evil; but those eat of the trees of life who live well and teach from the Word. Universally speaking, all eat of the trees of the knowledge of good and evil who deny the Divinity of the Lord and the holiness of the Word, inasmuch as the Lord is the Tree of Life and the Word, from whom the church is a "garden in Eden at the east."
The spiritual man is an erect man, who with his head looks to heaven above him and about him, and treads the earth with the soles of his feet. But the natural man separated from the spiritual is either like a man bent downwards, who nods with his head, and continually looks at the earth, and then at the steps of his own feet; or, he is like an inverted man, who walks on the palms of his hands, and lifts up his feet towards heaven, and by shakings and clappings of these performs worship. The spiritual man is like a rich man, who has a palace in which are dining rooms, bed chambers, and banquet halls, the walls of which are continuous windows of crystalline glass, through which he sees the gardens, fields, flocks, and herds which also belong to him, and with the sight and use of which he is daily delighted. But the natural man, separated from the spiritual is also like a rich man, who has a palace containing chambers, the walls of which are continuous planks of rotten wood, which sheds around a fatuous light, wherein appear images of pride from the love of self and the world, like molten images of gold, in the middle, and of silver at the sides, before which he bends the knee like an idolater. Again, the spiritual man, in himself, is actually like a dove as to gentleness, like an eagle as to the sight of his mind, like a flying bird of paradise as to progression in spiritual things, and like a peacock as to adornment from spiritual things. But on the contrary the natural man separated from the spiritual is like a hawk pursuing a dove, like a dragon devouring the eyes of an eagle, like a fiery flying serpent at the side of a bird of paradise, and like a horned owl beside a peacock. These comparisons are made that they may be as optical glasses whereby the reader may more closely contemplate what the spiritual man is in itself, and the natural man in itself. But the case is altogether different, when the spiritual man by its spiritual light and spiritual heat is inwardly in the natural; then both constitute one, just like effort in motion, and will (which is living effort) in action, and like appetite in taste, and like the sight of the mind in the sight of the eye, and still more evidently like the perception of a thing in cognition, and the thought of it in speech.
IV. The fourth state of this church, which was its end or night and is called consummation, is also described by these words, in the third chapter of Genesis: Jehovah God called unto the man, and said unto him, Where art thou? And he said, I heard Thy voice in the garden, therefore I was afraid. Then Jehovah said, Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat of it? And the man said, The woman whom thou hast given with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat. And Jehovah God said unto the woman, Wherefore hast thou done this? And the woman said, The serpent deceived me, and I did eat. Then Jehovah God cursed the serpent, and afterwards the woman, and after her the man. After which, Jehovah God sent the man forth from the garden of Eden to till the earth from whence he was taken (Gen. 3:9-23). From the literal or historical sense of the description of Adam's life, it is manifest that he was cursed because he believed the serpent that he should be as God; and he who believes this, at length does not acknowledge God. And as the natural man separated from the spiritual is in such a belief in heart, however differently he may talk with his mouth, therefore after he from spiritual became natural, this latter was cursed and it was cursed as to its sensual, its voluntary, and its intellectual; for its sensual is signified by the "serpent," its voluntary by the "woman," and its intellectual by the "man"; these three were cursed, because the one follows the other. (In Arcana Coelestia, every single expression, and every meaning of the expressions, are laid open by the spiritual sense, which has been revealed to me by the Lord; which explanation, being published, may be consulted.)
After this curse, the fourth state of this church, which was its state of night in spiritual things, and is called consummation, is described by the expulsion of the man from the garden "to till the ground from whence he was taken," by which is meant that the innocence, integrity, and wisdom in which he was while he was spiritual were lost; consequently that he was cast down from heaven, that is, dissociated from the angels, just as we read of the "dragon": The great dragon was cast down, the old serpent, which is called the Devil and Satan, was cast down out of heaven, where he fought with Michael and his angels, to the earth; and his angels were cast down with him (Rev. 12:9).
What person of sound mind is there who cannot see, that, by those things which are related of Adam are not meant any states of the first formed man, but states of the church? As, for example, that God placed two trees in the midst of the garden, from the eating of one of which man had eternal life, and from the other of which he had eternal death; and that He made the latter "good for food, pleasant to the eyes, and to be desired for giving understanding" (Gen. 3:6), thus as if it were to fascinate their souls; also, that He admitted the serpent, and permitted it to speak deceitful words to the woman in the presence of her husband who was the image and likeness of God, and suffered them to be ensnared by its flatteries and craft; as also why He did not provide, because He foresaw that they, and the whole human race from them, should not fall into the damnation of his curse; for we read in the orthodox books of Christians: That, in consequence of this original sin, "in place of the lost image of God, there is in man a most inward, most wicked, most profound, inscrutable, ineffable corruption of his whole nature, and of all his powers," and that it is the root of all actual evils (Formula Concordiae, p. 640); and that God the Father averted that universal damnation from His face, and sent His Son into the world, who might take it on Himself, and thus appease Him; besides many other things which are inconsistent with God in the sight of everyone. [2] Who, from the particulars above-mentioned, understood in their historical sense, would not with reason conclude, to use comparisons, that it would be like a person who gives his dependent a most fruitful field, and in it digs a pit, which he covers over with boards that fall inwards at the touch of a hand or foot; and, in the midst, places upon a stand a harlot clothed in purple and scarlet, holding in her hand a golden cup (like her in Revelation, 17:4), who, by her blandishments allures the man to herself, and so brings it to pass that he falls into the pit and is drowned? Would it not, indeed, be like one who gives a present to his friend of a luxuriant field of grain, and in the midst thereof conceals snares, and sends out a siren who, with the allurement of song and of a sweet voice, entices him to that place, and causes him to be entangled in the snare, from which he is unable to extricate his foot? Yea, to use a further comparison, it would be like a person who should introduce a noble guest into his house in which there are two dining rooms, and tables in each of them, at one of which are seated angels, and at the other evil spirits, on which latter table are cups of sweet but poisoned wine, and dishes on which are preparations of food containing aconite; and who should permit the evil spirits there to represent the revels of Bacchus, and the antics of buffoons, and entice them to those goblets and banquets. [3] But, my friend, the things related of Adam, of the garden of God, and of the two trees therein, appear under quite a different aspect when spiritually comprehended, that is, unfolded by the spiritual sense; then it is clearly seen that, by "Adam," as a type, is meant the most ancient church; and the successive states of that church are described by the vicissitudes of his life. For a church in the beginning is like a man created anew, who has a natural and a spiritual mind, and by degrees from spiritual becomes natural, and at length sensual, who believes nothing but what the senses of the body dictate. And such a man appears in heaven like a person sitting on a beast which turns its head back, and with its teeth bites, tears, and mangles the man sitting upon it. But the truly spiritual man appears in heaven also like a person sitting on a beast, but on a gentle one, which he governs with a gentle rein and also with a nod.
V. The fifth state of this church was the separation of the good from the evil, which was the Last Judgment on all who were of that church. This state is described by the "flood," in which all the wicked who remained perished; and by "Noah and his sons," "Noah and his sons," by whom are meant all the good that were saved. The end of the Most Ancient Church, represented by "Adam," is described in the sixth chapter of Genesis by these words: When Jehovah saw that the wickedness of man was multiplied in the world, and moreover every imagination of his heart only evil every day, it repented Jehovah that He had made man on the earth. Therefore Jehovah said, I will blot out man whom I have created from upon the faces of the earth; only Noah found grace in the eyes of Jehovah (Gen. 6:5-8). But the Last Judgment upon them is described by "the flood." It is described by a "flood" for the reason that "waters" in the Word signify truths, and in the opposite sense falsities. Truths are signified by the waters of a fountain, the waters of a river, the waters of rain, and by the waters of the washings in time past, and the waters of baptism at this day. That correspondence arises from the circumstance that truths purify man's soul from uncleanness as waters do his body; hence they are called "living waters." But in the opposite sense, by "waters" are signified falsities; but by impure waters, such as those of marshes, malodorous cisterns, urine, and sewage, in general by all hurtful and death-producing waters, therefore also by waters from an inundation of which man dies, consequently by the Noahian flood. [2] That falsities in a mass are described by "inundations," may he evident from the following passages: Jehovah 34-1 is causing to come up upon them the waters of the river (Euphrates) strong and many it shall pass through Judah, it shall inundate, it shall pass through, it shall reach even to the neck (Isa. 8:7, 8). By the "waters of the river Euphrates," are signified reasonings from falsities, because by Assyria, whose river it was, reasoning is signified. The spirit of Jehovah, like an inundating stream, shall divide in two even to the neck, to sift the nations with the sieve of vanity (Isa. 30:28, 30). By "an inundating river" here in like manner is signified reasoning from falsities. Behold waters are rising up out of the north, which are like an inundating stream, and shall inundate the land and the fullness thereof (Jer. 47:2). Here the Philistines are treated of, by whom are meant those who are not in charity, and hence not in truths; the falsities of these are signified by "the waters coming up from the north," and the devastation of the church in consequence thereof, by "an inundating stream that shall inundate the land and the fullness thereof;" "the land" is the church, and its " fullness" all things of it. Say unto those who daub what is unfit, There shall be an inundating rain, in which hail-stones shall fall upon you (Ezek. 13:11, 13). The "daubing of what is unfit" is the confirmation of falsity, and "hail-stones" are falsities. In an overrunning inundation He shall make a consummation of the place thereof, and thick darkness shall pursue His enemies (Nah. 1:8). By "the inundation" which shall consummate, is signified the falsification of truth, and by "thick darkness," truths themselves in the night. Ye have said, We have made a covenant with death, and with hell have we made a vision when the scourge of inundation shall pass through, it shall not come unto us we have made a lie our trust, and in falsity we will hide (Isa. 28:15). Here "inundation" manifestly stands for destruction by falsities; for it is said that they placed confidence in "a lie," and that they would hide in "falsity." After sixty-two weeks shall Messiah be cut off, but not for Himself; then the people of the Prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary, so that the end thereof shall be with an inundation even to desolations (Dan. 9:26). [3] These things are concerning the Christian Church that was to come, in which the worship of the Lord would perish; which is meant by "Messiah shall be cut off, but not for Himself": that it would perish by falsifications, is meant by "the end thereof shall be with an inundation even to desolations;" "desolation" is that falsification. Hence it is that after the Lord spoke of "the abomination of desolation foretold by Daniel the prophet," and of the "consummation of the age" thereby, He said, that: His coming would be as in the days when the flood came, and took them all away (Matt. 24:15, 39). The drowning of Pharaoh and the Egyptians in the sea Suph (Exod. 14), means in the spiritual sense destruction by falsities, has been demonstrated in the Arcana Coelestia, in the explanation of that chapter.
Since the churches in the Christian world, both the Roman Catholic Church and those separated from it, which are named after their leaders, Luther, Melancthon, and Calvin, derive all sin from Adam and his transgression, it is permissible to subjoin here something about the sources whence sins are inherited; for these sources are as many as there are fathers and mothers in the world. That inclinations, aptitudes, and propensities to evils are derived from these, is manifest in light from the testimonies of experience, and also from the assent of reason. Who does not know, from the collective suffrages of experience, that there is a general likeness of minds, and hence of manners and countenances, from parents in the children and children's children, even to a certain posterity? Who cannot thence infer that original sins are from them? The notion suggested to everyone, when he looks at the countenances and manners of brothers and relatives in families, causes him to know and acknowledge this. [2] What reason, then, is there for deducing the origin of all evils from Adam and his seed? Is there not equal reason for deducing it from parents? Does not the seed of these similarly propagate itself? To deduce from Adam's seed alone the allurements from which and according to which the spiritual forms of the minds of all men in the universe exist, would be like deriving birds of every wing from one egg, also beasts of every nature from one seed, and trees of every kind of fruit from one root. Is there not an infinite variety of men? one like a sheep, another like a wolf? one like a kid, another like a panther? one like a tamed carriage horse before a carriage, another like an untamable wild ass before it? one like a playful calf, another like a voracious tiger? and so on. Whence has each his peculiar disposition but from his father and his mother? Why then from Adam? by whom nevertheless is described in a representative type the first church of this earth, as has been already shown? Would not this be like deriving from one stock deeply hidden in the earth a plantation of trees of every kind and use, and from a single plant shrubs of every degree of value? Would that not also be like deriving light from the darkness of the ages and of histories, and like unravelling the thread of a knot that cannot he untied? Why not rather from Noah, "who walked with God" (Gen. 6:9), and "whom God blessed" (Gen. 9:1), and from whom alone, surviving with his three children, "the whole earth was overspread"? (Gen. 9:19.) Would not the hereditary qualities of the generations from Adam be extirpated, as if drowned by a flood? [3] But, my friend, I will open the true source of sins. Every evil is conceived of the Devil as a father, and is born of atheistical faith as a mother; and on the other hand, every good is conceived of the Lord as a father, and is born of saving faith in Him as a mother. The generations of all goods in their infinite varieties among men are from no other origin than from the marriage of the Lord and the church; and, on the contrary, the generations of all evils among them in their varieties, are from no other origin than from the interaction of the Devil with a profane congregation. Who does not know, or may not know, that a man must be regenerated by the Lord, that is, created anew, and that so far as this is effected so far he is in goods? Hence this follows: that so far as a man is unwilling to be generated anew or created anew, so far he takes up and retains the evils implanted in him from his parents. This is what lies concealed in the first precept of the Decalogue: I am a zealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the sons, upon the third and upon the fourth generation of them that hold Me in hatred, and doing mercy unto thousands who love Me and do My commandments (Exod. 20:5, 6; Deut. 5:9, 10).
VI. The sixth state of the men of this church, which was the elevation of the faithful to God after the Last Judgment, from whom a new heaven was formed, and the removal of the unfaithful from God from whom a new hell was formed. In the preceding propositions (from n. 10-13 and from n. 14-17), it was explained that after consummation, a Last Judgment was executed upon all who were of the four churches above named, and after this a new heaven and a new hell formed from them, and thus that there have been in this earth four judgments upon its inhabitants, and four heavens and hells formed from them; and it has been granted me to know, that both those heavens and those hells are so entirely separated from each other, that one can by no means pass out of his own into that of another. All these heavens have been described in the work on Conjugial Love; and, as the spiritual origin of love truly conjugial is from no other source than the marriage of the Lord and the church, thus from love of the Lord towards the church and of the church to the Lord (as was shown in that work from n. 116-131); and, as the most ancient people were in both these loves so long as they retained in themselves the image of God, therefore, I will transcribe from that work the following things respecting that heaven, to which I was at the time then granted admission; which are as follow:
"Once when I was meditating on conjugial love, the desire seized my mind of knowing what that love had been with those who lived in the Golden Age, and what it was afterwards in the succeeding ones called Silver, Copper and Iron. And, as I knew that all who lived well in those ages are in the heavens, I prayed to the Lord that it might be permitted me to converse with them and be instructed. "And, lo! an angel stood by me, and said, `I am sent by the Lord to be your guide and companion; and first I will lead and accompany you to those who lived in the first era or Age, which is called the Golden.' (The Golden Age is the same as the age of the Most Ancient Church, which is meant by `the head of good gold,' on the statue seen by Nebuchadnezzar in a dream (Dan. 2:32), of which we have spoken before.) The angel said, `The way to them is difficult; it lies through a dense forest, which no one can traverse unless a guide be given him by the Lord.' [2] "I was in the spirit, and girded myself for the way; and we turned our faces to the east; and in going along, I saw a mountain, whose summit towered beyond the region of the clouds. We crossed a great desert, and reached a forest crowded with various kinds of trees, and dark by reason of the density of them, of which the angel informed me beforehand. But that forest was intersected by many narrow paths. The angel said that these were so many windings of error, and that unless the eyes were opened by the Lord, and the olive trees girt about with vine tendrils seen, and the steps directed from olive tree to olive tree, the traveler would stray into Tartarus. This forest is of such a nature, to the end that the approach may be guarded; for no other nation but a primeval one dwells on that mountain. [3] "After we entered the forest, our eyes were opened, and we saw here and there olive trees entwined with vines, from which hung bunches of grapes of a dark blue color, and the olive trees were arranged in perpetual circles; wherefore, we circled around and around according as they came into view; and at length we saw a grove of lofty cedars, and some eagles on their branches. When he saw these, the angel said, `Now we are on the mountain, not far from its summit.' "And we went on, and lo! Behind the grove was a circular plain, where male and female lambs were feeding, which were forms representative of the state of innocence and peace of those on the mountain. "We passed through this grove, and lo! There were seen many thousands of tabernacles to the front and on each side, in every direction, as far as the eye could reach. And the angel said, `Now we are in the camp where dwell the armies of the Lord Jehovih, for so they call themselves and their habitations. These most ancient people, while they were in the world, dwelt in tabernacles; for which reason they also dwell in them now.' But I said, `Let us bend our way to the south, where the wiser of them dwell, that we may meet someone with whom we may enter into conversation.' [4] "On the way, I saw at a distance three boys and three girls sitting at the door of their tabernacle; but as we drew near, they were seen as men and women of a medium height. And the angel said, `All the inhabitants of this mountain appear at a distance like infants, because they are in the state of innocence, and infancy is the appearance of innocence.' "On seeing us, these men ran towards us, and said, `Whence are you, and how have you come hither? Your faces are not of the faces of those belonging to this mountain.' "But the angel replied, and told the means by which we obtained access through the wood, and the reason of our coming. "On hearing this, one of the three men invited and introduced us into his tabernacle. The man was clothed in a mantle of a hyacinthine color, and a tunic of white wool; and his wife was dressed in a crimson robe, and under it, had a tunic about the breast of fine embroidered linen. [5] "But, since there was in my thought the desire of knowing about the marriages of the most ancient people, I looked at the husband and the wife by turns, and observed as it were a unity of their souls in their faces; and I said, `You two are one.' "And the man answered, `We are one; her life is in me, and mine in her. We are two bodies, but one soul. There is between us a union like that of the two tents in the breast, which are called the heart and the lungs; she is the substance of my heart, and I am her lungs; but because by heart we here mean love, and by lungs wisdom (we understand the latter by the former on account of their correspondence) she is the love of my wisdom, and I am the wisdom of her love. Hence, as you said, there is the appearance of the unity of souls in our faces. Hence, it is as impossible to us here to look upon the wife of a companion in lust, as it is to look at the light of our heaven from the shade of Tartarus.' "And the angel said to me, `You hear now the speech of these angels, that it is the speech of wisdom, because they speak from causes.' this conversation, I saw a great light on a hill among the tabernacles, and I asked, 'Whence is that light?' "He said, 'From the sanctuary of our tabernacle of worship.' "And I enquired whether it was allowed to approach; and he said that it was allowed. Then I drew near, and saw the tabernacle without and within, exactly according to the description like the Tabernacle which was built for the sons of Israel in the desert, the form of which was shown to Moses on Mount Sinai (Exod. 25:40; 26:30). I also asked, `What is there within its sanctuary, whence there is so great a light?' "And he answered, `There is a tablet, on which is written, The covenant between the Lord Jehovih and Heaven.'" He said no more. "Then I also questioned them about the Lord Jehovih, whom they worship; and I said, `Is He not God the Father, the Creator of the universe?' "And they replied, `He is; but we by the Lord Jehovih, understand Jehovah in His Human; for we are not able to look upon Jehovah in His inmost Divinity, except through His Human.' And then they explained what they meant, and also what at this day they mean, by: The seed of the woman trampling the serpent's head (Gen. 3:15); namely, that the Lord Jehovih would come into the world, and redeem and save all who believed in Him, and who hereafter should believe. "When we had finished this conversation, the man ran to his tabernacle, and returned with a pomegranate, in which was an abundance of golden seeds, which he presented to me, and I brought it away: this was a sign that we had been with those who lived in the Golden Age." [See the work on Conjugial Love, n. 75.] For an account of the heavens of the remaining churches, which succeeded the Most Ancient in their order, see in the same work on Conjugial Love (n. 76-82).
The hell of those who were from the Most Ancient Church, is more atrocious than all other hells. It consists of those who in the world believed themselves to be as God, according to the deceitful utterance of the serpent (Gen. 3:5); and those are deeper in that hell who, from the fantasy that God had transfused His Divinity into men, persuaded themselves that they altogether were gods, and so that there was no longer a God in the universe. In consequence of that direful persuasion, a stinking smoke is exhaled from that hell, which infects the adjacent places with so baleful a contagion, that when anyone approaches, he is at first seized with such a mad delirium, that presently, after some convulsive struggles, he seems to himself to be in the agonies of death. I saw a certain one, in the vicinity of that place, lying as it were dead; but, on being removed thence, he revived. That hell lies in the middle region at the south, surrounded with ramparts, and on which stand some who shout out in a loud stentorian voice, "Approach no nearer." I have heard from the angels who are in the heaven above that hell, that the evil demons there appear like serpents twisted into inextricable folds, which is a consequence of their vain devices and incantations, by which they deluded the simple into admitting that they are gods, and that there is no God beside them. The ancients, who wove all things into fables, meant these by the "giants," who besieged the camp of the gods, and whom Jupiter cast down by his thunderbolts and thrust under the fiery mountain Etna, and who were called "Cyclopses." They also called the hells of these, "Tartarus," and the "pools of Acheron;" and the deeps there, "Styx," and those who dwelt there, "Lernaean Hydras," and so forth.
PROPOSITION THE THIRD. The Noachian, or Ancient Church of the earth. Since every church is three-fold, inmost or celestial, middle or spiritual, and external or natural, therefore Noah had three sons; and by "Shem" is signified the inmost or celestial church, by "Japheth" the middle or spiritual church, and by "Ham" the external or natural church. But there is not room to describe here in whom the first church is, and in whom the second and third, as also what their quality is in themselves, or in relation to one another: for there are highest, middle, and lowest heavens, to which those three degrees of the church correspond. Moreover, this Noachian, or Ancient Church, was diffused throughout Asia, especially into Syria, Mesopotamia, Assyria, Chaldea, the land of Canaan and the parts adjacent, Philistia, Egypt, Tyre, Sidon, Nineveh, and also into Arabia and Ethiopia, and in course of time into Great Tartary, and thence downward as far as to the Black Sea, and thence again into all the countries of Africa. That the nations in every part of the earth have been in worship from some religion is known; and religion cannot exist except by some revelation, and by the propagation thereof from nation to nation; as may be seen in the preceding work, The True Christian Religion (n. 273-276); where, also, it was shown, that, prior to the Israelitish Word, there was a Word, which in process of time was lost, but from the Divine Providence of the Lord is still preserved in Great Tartary, from which is their Divine worship, even to the present day (see also n. 264-266, and n. 279, of the said work).
Who can deny that the universe was created for the sake of the human race, in order that from it an angelic heaven might be formed, wherein God might dwell in the dominion of His glory? To promote and accomplish this end, what mediate cause is there but religion? And what else is religion than walking with God? Religion also is like a seed producing just and true desires, and judgments and acts therefrom, in spiritual things, and by means of these in moral things, and by means of both the latter and the former in civil things. In order, therefore, that it may be known what is the quality of the man who has religion, and what of him who has not religion, it shall be stated. The man who has religion, in spiritual things, is like a pelican nourishing its young with its own blood; but the man who has not religion, in those things is like a vulture in a state of starvation devouring its own offspring. The man who has religion, in moral things, is like a turtledove in the nest with its mate, sitting on its eggs or young; but the man who has not religion, in these things is like a rapacious hawk in the coop of a dove-cot. The man who has religion, in political things, is like a swan flying with a bunch of grapes in its mouth; but he who has not religion, in these matters is like a basilisk with a poisonous herb in its mouth. The man who has religion, in judiciary matters is like a tribune riding on a spirited horse; but the man who has not religion, in those things is like a serpent in the desert of Arabia biting its tail in its mouth, and hurling itself, in that hoop, upon a horse to coil itself about the rider. The man who has religion, in all other civil affairs, is like a prince, the son of a king, who exhibits the marks of charity and the graces of truth; but the man who has not religion, is like the three-headed dog Cerberus at the entrance of the court of Pluto, foaming forth aconite from its triple mouth.
The successive states of this church, which are its rise or morning, progression into light or day, vastation or evening, and consummation or night, it is not permitted to follow up with a description in the same manner as we before described the states of the Most Ancient Church, because the states of that church cannot be so collected from our Word; for the posterity of Noah, through his three sons, is recorded only in a summary, in one or two pages; and moreover that church was spread through many kingdoms, and in each kingdom it varied, and hence that church underwent and ran through the states named in a different manner. [2] The first and second state thereof in the regions round about the Jordan and about Egypt, was like the "garden of Jehovah," is evident from these passages: The plain of Jordan was like the garden of Jehovah, like the land of Egypt, where thou comest unto Zoar (Gen. 13:10). And likewise Tyre from these: Thou prince of Tyre, full of wisdom, and perfect in beauty. Thou hast been in the garden of God; every precious stone was thy covering. Thou wast perfect in thy ways, from the day that thou wast created, until perversity was found in thee (Ezek. 28:12-15). That Assyria was like a "cedar in Lebanon," from these: Behold, Assyria is a cedar in Lebanon, beautiful in branch, exalted in height; all the birds of the heavens built their nests in his branches, and under his branches did every beast of the field bring forth its young, and in his shadow dwelt all great nations; no tree in the garden of God was equal to him in beauty, and all the trees of Eden, that were in the garden of God, envied him (Ezek. 31:3-9). That wisdom flourished in Arabia, appears from the queen of Sheba's journey to Solomon (1 Kings 10:1-13); also from the three wise men who came to the newborn Jesus, a star going before them (Matt. 2:1-12). [3] The third and fourth states of that church, which were its vastation and consummation, are described here and there in the Word, both in its historic and prophetic parts. The consummation of the nations round about the Jordan, or round about the land of Canaan, is described by the destruction of Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah, and Zeboim (Gen. 14 and 19); the consummation of the church of the nations within the Jordan, or in the land of Canaan, is described in Joshua and in the book of Judges by the expulsion of some and the extermination of others. The consummation of that church in Egypt is described by the drowning of Pharaoh and the Egyptians in the sea Suph (Exod. 14). And so on.
It is certain that this Ancient Church was a representative church, which in visible and natural types and signs, figured forth the invisible and spiritual things of the church which was yet to come, when Jehovah Himself would manifest Himself in a natural human form, and by this means procure for Himself entrance to men, and for men access to Himself, and thus should divest Himself of types, and institute a church with precepts which should lead all who believe in Him as Man, and keep His commandments, by a short way to heaven, the dwelling place of his Divinity. But, because this Ancient Church, typical of that which was to come, turned the representative correspondences into magic and idolatry, and thus into things infernal, Jehovah raised up the Israelitish church, in which He restored the primitive types, which were heavenly; such types were all the tabernacles, feasts, sacrifices, priesthoods, the garments of Aaron and his sons, the anointings, and, moreover, the statutes in a long series which were promulgated through Moses.
I will in a few words touch upon the manner in which the representative church with them was turned into an idolatrous one. All the spiritual things which are of heaven and the church were presented before them in visible and tangible forms, as was mentioned just above. Those forms were taken from the subjects of the three kingdoms of nature, animal, vegetable, and mineral, by which were represented such things as are of the heavenly kingdom. They placed these typical forms in their sanctuaries, in the inner chambers of their houses, and in the marketplaces and streets, arranging them according to their significations. But a later age, after the science of correspondences was lost, and consequently the knowledge of the signification of those things had perished, began to look upon and acknowledge those objects as so many deities and holy things; and then they bowed the knee to some, some they kissed, and some they adorned and decorated with wax tapers, boxes of perfumes and ribbons, just as infants do their dolls, and as papists do their images; yea, of some they made household gods, of some guardian demigods, and of some pythons; some, moreover, they carried in miniature form in their hands, some they hugged in their bosoms, stroked, and whispered petitions in their ears; and so on. Thus were heavenly types turned into infernal types, and the Divine things of heaven and the church into idols. On account of this transformation and disfigurement of heavenly things, a new representative church was raised up with the sons of Israel, in which real representations, as was stated above, were instituted; and they were prohibited from celebrating Divine worship by any others, as is evident from these words in the first Commandment of the Decalogue: Thou shalt not make unto thee a graven image, nor any figure that is in the heavens above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the waters under the earth. Thou shalt not bow down thyself unto them, nor worship them (Exod. 20:4, 5; Deut. 5:8, 9).
It has been said, that from the people of every Church, at its end, is formed a new heaven and a new hell; and, since I have adduced a relation in the preceding article respecting the heaven and hell formed from those who were of the Most Ancient Church, it seems well also to do so respecting these; for access has been granted me to them, inasmuch as I have been allowed to go about and examine the spiritual world, to the end that the New Church truly Christian may not be in thick darkness concerning heaven and hell, and concerning their lot after death according to the actions of their life. These things are likewise in the work on Conjugial Love (n. 76). Concerning the heaven from these: [2] "An angel came to me and said, `Do you desire me to accompany you to the peoples who lived in the Silver Era, or Age, that we may hear from them respecting the manners and life of their times?' He also added that they may not be approached, except under the auspices of the Lord. "I was in the spirit and accompanied my leader, and came first to a hill on the confines of the east with the south; and when we were on its slope, he showed me a great stretch of country, and we saw at a distance an eminence like a mountain, between which and the hill on which we stood was a valley, and beyond this a plain, and from this plain a gently-rising acclivity. "We descended the hill to cross the valley, and saw here and there at the sides pieces of wood and stone carved into figures of men, and of various beasts, birds and fishes. And I asked the angel, `What are these? Are they not idols?' "And he replied, `Not at all: they are representative forms of various moral virtues and spiritual truths. The people of that age had the science of correspondences and as a beast, bird and fish correspond to some quality, therefore, each carved figure represents and signifies some particular of virtue, or truth, and many together represent the virtue or truth itself in a certain general extended form these are what in Egypt were called hieroglyphics.' [3] "We proceeded through the valley, and when we entered the plain, lo! we saw horses and chariots the horses were variously caparisoned and harnessed, and the chariots of different forms; some carved out like eagles, some like unicorns, and some like whales: we also saw some carts at the extremity, and stables round about at the sides. But, when we approached, both horses and chariots disappeared, and instead of them we saw men in pairs, walking, conversing and reasoning. And the angel said to me, `The semblances of horses, chariots, and stables, seen at a distance, are appearances of the rational intelligence of the men of that age; for a horse from correspondence signifies the understanding of truth; a chariot its doctrine; and stables places of instruction. You are aware that all things in this world appear according to correspondences.' [4] "But we passed these things, and ascended by the acclivity. At length we saw a city, which we entered; and in walking through it, we noticed its houses, from the streets and public places. In the midst of it were palaces built of marble, having steps of alabaster in front, and at the sides of the steps pillars of jasper. We saw also temples, made of precious stone of a sapphire and azure color. And the angel said to me, `Their houses are of stones because stones signify natural verities, and precious stones spiritual verities; and all those who lived in the silver age, had intelligence from spiritual verities, and thence from natural; for silver has a like signification.' [5] "While exploring the city we saw here and there consorts, both husbands and wives. We expected that we should be invited somewhere; and, while this was in our mind [animus], we were called back by two into their house, which we entered; and the angel, speaking with them for me, explained the reason of our coming into this heaven, that it was `for the sake of instruction concerning the manners of the ancients, of whom you are.' "They replied, `We were from the peoples in Asia, and the study of our age was the study of truths, through which we had intelligence. This study was the study of our soul and mind. But the study of the senses of our bodies was the representations of truths in natural forms; and the science of correspondences conjoined the sensuals of our bodies with the perceptions of our minds, thus natural and corporeal things with spiritual and celestial, and procured for us communication with the angels of heaven.' [6] "On hearing this, the angel asked them to give some account of marriages with them. And the husband said, `There is a correspondence between spiritual marriage, which is that of good and truth, and natural marriage, which is that of a man with his wife; and as we have studied correspondences, we have seen that the church, with its truths and goods, can by no means exist with any others than those who live in truly conjugial love; for the marriage of good and truth is the church with man. Therefore all we who are in this heaven, say that the husband is truth, and the wife the good of his truth; and that good cannot love any other truth than that which is its own, nor truth love in return any other good than that which is its own. If any other were loved, internal or spiritual marriage, which constitutes the Church would perish, and marriage would become only external or natural, to which idolatry and not the church corresponds.' [7] "When he had said these things we were introduced into an ante-chamber, where there were several designs on the walls, and little images as it were molten of silver; and I asked, what these were. They said, `They are pictures and forms representative of the many qualities, properties, and delights of spiritual things;' as were also the cherubim and palm-trees on the walls of the temple at Jerusalem. [8] "After this, there appeared at a distance a chariot drawn by white ponies; on seeing which the angel said,' That chariot is a sign for us to depart.' Then, as we were going down the steps, our host gave us a bunch of white grapes adhering to the vine leaves; and lo! the leaves in our hands became silver, and we brought them away for a sign that we had spoken with the people of the Silver Age."
CONCERNING THE HELL FROM THOSE PEOPLES. The hells of the men of the Noachian, or Ancient Church, consist for the most part of magicians, who have huts and places of entertainment scattered up and down in the desert. They wander about there with rods in their hands, which are of various forms, and some of them stained with magical juices. By these, as in former times, they practise their arts, which are effected by the abuse of correspondences, by fantasies, by persuasive assurances by which there was produced a miraculous faith, and miracles were formerly performed; also by exorcisms, fascinations, enchantments, and sorceries, and several other magical spells, by which they present illusory appearances as real. The greatest delight of their heart is to utter prophecies and prognostications, and to act as pythons. From these especially have arisen the various fanaticisms in the Christian world.
PROPOSITION THE FOURTH. The Israelitish and Jewish Church. In order that the states of this church may be thoroughly laid open and distinctly exhibited, it is of importance that we survey them in the following order: I. The first state of this church was the appearing of the Lord Jehovih, and the calling and covenanting, and then its rise and morning. II. The second state of this church was instruction, and at length introduction into the land of Canaan, and then its progression into light and day. III. The third state of this church was the turning aside from true representative into idolatrous worship and then its vastation or evening. IV. The fourth state of this church was the profanation of sanctities, and then its consummation or night. V. Before this state and after it, a promise was made of the coming of the Lord Jehovih into the world, and respecting a new church in which justice and judgment should reign. VI. The fifth state of this church was the separation of the good from the evil, and then the judgment upon those who were from it; but this was in the spiritual world. VII. Something respecting the heaven and the hell from that nation.
I. The first state of this church was the appearance of the Lord Jehovih, and the calling and covenanting, and then was its rise or morning. We are taught from the Word, that the Lord Jehovih has appeared at the beginning of each of the four churches of this earth. This is because God is the All in all of the church and its religion; and the acknowledgment of God in it, is like the soul in the body, which vivifies both its interiors and its exteriors; and it is like the prolific element in seed, which, abiding inmostly in all the sap drawn from the earth by the root, accompanies it from the first germination even to the fruit, in which it also is, and it disposes the vegetative process so that it proceeds in its own order. For this reason, the man of the church, without the acknowledgment of God, is in the eyes of the angels a brute like the wild beasts of the forest, or like a bird of night, or like a monster of the sea; yea, without the acknowledgment of God, he is like a tree the branches of which are cut off, and the trunk cut in pieces, and the whole piled up together in a heap reserved for the fire; for the Lord says: Without Me ye can do nothing; if anyone abide not in Me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and they gather him, and cast him into the fire, and he is burned (John 15:5-6). Without the acknowledgment of God, man, inwardly, as to his rational things, is like the ruins of a burned city; he is also like food when its nutritiveness is boiled out it becomes refuse. And so forth.
But it would be impossible for a man to acknowledge God and anything belonging to Him, unless God had manifested Himself in a personal human form; for nature, which belongs to the world, surrounds him, and he does not see, feel, or breathe anything but what is from it and is in contact with the organs of his body. From this his mind conceives and adopts a rational which lies in the midst of the bosom of nature, like an embryo in the womb; nor does it see anything, until it is brought forth, and receives sight. Therefore, how can a man in this state by any method look through nature, and acknowledge anything that is above her, as everything Divine, celestial, and spiritual is, and hence everything religious, which in themselves are above natural things? Wherefore, it is an absolute necessity that God should manifest Himself, and thereby cause Himself to be acknowledged, and after acknowledgment should inspire man with His Divine influence, and by this, received in the heart, lead him at length even to Himself in heaven; all which cannot possibly be effected except by instruction. Must not also an emperor, and a king, first cause himself to be acknowledged and crowned, before he enters on his government? And before he is crowned, is he not provided with the insignia of dominion, robed, and anointed? and must he not covenant the people to himself by sworn compacts, agreed to by both sides, whereby the people become the king's, and the king the people's? Must not a bridegroom first cause himself to be seen, before he proposes betrothal, and afterwards marriage? Must not a father present himself before his infant, and embrace and kiss him, before the infant can say, "Abba, father"? and so in other cases. Still more must the Lord Jehovih, who is "King of kings and Lord of lords" (Apoc. 17:14), the Bridegroom and Husband of the church (Apoc. 21:9), and consequently the Father of all her offspring. By the "Lord Jehovih" is meant the Lord our Saviour and Redeemer: He is called the "Lord Jehovih" in Daniel, and everywhere in the Prophets.
It was stated above, that the first state with the sons of Israel, was the appearing of the Lord Jehovih, calling and covenanting; and we learn from the Word, that these three things took place, first with Abraham, secondly with Moses, and thirdly with the entire people. The appearing of the Lord Jehovih before Abraham is thus described in Genesis: Jehovah appeared unto Abraham in the plains of Mamre; he was sitting at the door of his tent, and when he lifted up his eyes and saw, behold, three men stood by him, and as soon as he saw them, he ran to meet them from the door of the tent, and bowed himself to the earth, and said, O Lord, if I have found grace in Thine eyes, pass not away, I pray, from Thy servant (18:1-3, seq.). It was the Lord our Savior who appeared in His Divine Trinity, which the three angels represented; for the Lord said: Abraham exulted that he should see My day, and he saw and rejoiced. Verily, verily I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am (John 8:56, 58). There is in the Lord the Divine Trinity; and the Divine Unity was represented in the Divine Trinity by the "three men," who were also called "angels" (Gen. 18:2; 19:1). But in His Divine Unity He was called "Lord" (18:3; 19:18); and also "Jehovah," very frequently (18:13, 14, 17, 19, 20, 22, 26, 33). The appearing of the Lord Jehovih before Moses is thus described in Exodus: The Angel of Jehovah appeared to Moses at the mountain of Horeb, in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bramble. Therefore Moses said, I will turn aside and see this great vision, why the bramble is not burnt. And Jehovah saw that he went aside, therefore God called unto him out of the midst of the bramble, and said, Moses, Moses. And moreover Moses said to God, What is thy name? God said, I AM WHO I AM. Thus shalt thou say unto the sons of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you (Exod. 3:1, 2-4, 14 seq.). The appearing of the Lord Jehovih before the whole people is thus also described in Exodus: Jehovah said to Moses, Say unto the sons of Israel, that they be ready against the third day; for on the third day Jehovih will come down in the eyes of all the people upon Mount Sinai. And it came to pass on the third day, that there were voices, and lightning, and thick clouds upon the mount, and the voice of a trumpet exceeding loud, so that all the people who were in the camp trembled. All Mount Sinai smoked, because He descended upon it in fire, and promulgated the law before the people (Exod. 19:9-24 and 20:1-18). The Lord also appeared to Joshua as "Prince of the army of Jehovah," before whom Joshua fell on his face upon the earth, and called him his "Lord" (Josh. 5:13, 14). The calling of the sons of Israel to the land of Canaan, thus to the church, was also done three times; once to Abram, that he should go forth thence out of his fatherland, and afterwards the promise that his seed should inherit that land (Gen. 12:1-7). The call was also made through Moses (Exod. 3:16, 17); and again through Joshua (Josh. 1:3, seq., and 11).
A covenant also was entered into several times; first with Abram (respecting which, Gen. 17:1-14); then with the people (Exod. 24:7, 8); and once again (Josh. 24:24, 25). From these things it is now evident, that the first state of this church was the appearing of the Lord Jehovih and the calling and covenanting, and then its rise or morning. That by the "Lord Jehovih," everywhere in the Word, is meant Jehovah in His Human, who is the Lord our Redeemer and Saviour, will be seen in what follows.
34-1 Dr. Worcester has "dominus," which agrees with the Hebrew.
