Concerning The Word (series) Pt. 15

Selection from Apocalypse Explained ~ Emanuel Swedenborg

As there is a trine, one within another, in every least particular of the Word, and this trine is like that of effect, cause, and end, it follows that there are three senses in the Word, one within another, namely, the natural, the spiritual, and the celestial; the natural for the world, the spiritual for the heavens of the Lord's spiritual kingdom, and the celestial for the heavens of His celestial kingdom. (That all the heavens are divided into two kingdoms, the spiritual and the celestial, may be seen in the work on Heaven and Hell n. 20-28.) Now as there is one sense within another, the first which is the sense of the letter for the natural world, the second which is the internal sense for the spiritual kingdom, and the third which is the inmost for the celestial kingdom, it follows that the natural man draws from it his sense, the spiritual angel his sense, and the celestial angel his sense, thus everyone what is analogous to and in agreement with his own essence and nature. This takes place whenever a man who is led by the Lord is reading the Word.

But let this be illustrated by examples. When this commandment of the Decalogue is read: "Thou shalt honor thy father and thy mother," a man in the world understands by "father and mother" a father and mother on the earth, and also all who are or may be in the place of father or mother; and by "honoring" he understands to hold such in honor. But an angel of the spiritual kingdom understands by "father" the Divine good, and by "mother" the Divine truth, and by "honoring" loving; while an angel of the celestial kingdom understands by "father" the Lord, and by "mother" heaven and the church, and by "honoring" doing.

When the fifth commandment of the Decalogue, "Thou shalt not steal," is read, by "stealing" a man understands stealing, defrauding, and taking away under any pretense his neighbor's goods. But an angel of the spiritual kingdom by "stealing" understands depriving another of his truths and goods by means of falsities and evils, while an angel of the celestial kingdom by "not to steal" understands not to attribute to himself the things that are the Lord's, as the good of love and the truth of faith; for thereby good becomes not good, and truth not truth, because they are from men.

When the sixth commandment, "Thou shalt not commit adultery," is read, a man by "committing adultery" understands committing adultery and whoredom, also thinking filthy thoughts, speaking lasciviously, and doing obscene things. But an angel of the spiritual kingdom by "committing adultery" understands falsifying the truths of the Word and adulterating its goods, while an angel of the celestial kingdom by "committing adultery" understands blaspheming against the Lord, heaven, and the church.

When the seventh commandment "Thou shalt not kill," is read, by "killing" a man understands hating and desiring revenge, even to murder. But an angel of the spiritual kingdom by "killing" understands the killing of a man's soul by stumbling blocks to the life and by reasonings, whereby a man is led into spiritual death, while an angel of the celestial kingdom by "killing" understands seducing a man into believing that there is no God and no heaven and no hell, for thus man perishes as to eternal life.

When the eighth commandment, "Thou shalt not bear false witness," is read, a man by "false witness" understands lying and defamation. But an angel of the spiritual kingdom by "false witness" understands asserting, confirming, and persuading that falsity is truth and evil is good, or on the other hand that truth is falsity and good is evil, while an angel of the celestial kingdom by "false witness" understands every falsity against the Lord, and against heaven in favor of hell.

All this makes clear how a man draws and calls forth from the Word in the letter the natural sense, a spiritual angel the spiritual sense, and a celestial angel the celestial sense, much as the wood of a tree draws its sap, the leaf its sap, and the fruit its sap, from the same soil. And what is wonderful, this is done instantly, without the angel's knowing what the man thinks, or the man what the angel thinks, and yet their thoughts are one by correspondences, as end, cause, and effect are one. Moreover, ends are actually in the celestial kingdom, causes in the spiritual kingdom, and effects in the natural world.

(to be continued)
(Apocalypse Explained 1083:2-8)

Concerning The Word (series) Pt. 14

Selection from Apocalypse Explained ~ Emanuel Swedenborg

The spiritual by influx presents what is correspondent to itself in the natural, in order that the end may become a cause, and the cause become an effect, and thus the end through the cause may present itself in the effect as visible and sensible. This trine, namely, end, cause, and effect, is given from creation in every heaven. The end is the good of love, the cause is truth from that good, and the effect is use. That which produces is love, and the product therefrom is of love from good by means of truth. The final products, which are in our world, are various, as numerous as the objects are in its three kingdoms of nature - animal, vegetable, and mineral. All products are correspondences.

As this trine, namely, end, cause, and effect, exists in each heaven, there must be in each heaven products that are correspondences, and which in form and aspect are like the objects in the three kingdoms of our earth; from which it is clear that each heaven is like our earth in external appearance, differing only in excellence and beauty according to degrees. Now in order that the Word may be full, that is, may consist of effects in which are a cause and an end, or may consist of uses, in which truth is the cause and good is the end and love is that which produces, it must needs consist of correspondences; and from this it follows that the Word in each heaven is like the Word in our world, differing only in excellence and beauty according to degrees.

(to be continued)
(Apocalypse Explained 1082:8, 9)

Concerning The Word (series) Pt. 13

Selection from Apocalypse Explained ~ Emanuel Swedenborg

What the Word is as to influx and correspondences can now be illustrated. It is said in John:

He hath blinded their eyes and hardened their heart, lest they should see with their eyes and understand with their heart, and should turn themselves and I should heal them (John 12:40).

The "eyes" that are blinded signify the understanding of truth and the belief in it; the "heart" that is hardened signifies the will and the love of good; and "to be healed" signifies to be reformed. They were not permitted "to turn themselves and be healed" lest they should commit profanation; for an evil man who is healed and who returns to his evil and falsity commits profanation; and so it would have been with the Jewish nation.

In Matthew:

Blessed are your eyes, for they see; and your ears, for they hear (Matt. 13:16).

Here, too, the "eyes" signify the understanding of truth and the belief in it; so "to see" signifies to understand and believe, and the "ears" signify obedience, thus a life according to the truths of faith, and "to hear" signifies to obey and live. For no one is blessed because he sees and hears, but because he understands, believes, obeys, and lives.

In the same:

The lamp of the body is the eye; if the eye be sound the whole body is lucid; if the eye be evil the whole body is darkened. If, therefore, the light [lumen] is darkness, how great is the darkness (Matt. 6:22-23).

Here, again, the "eye" signifies the understanding of truth and the belief in it, which is called a lamp from the light of truth that man has from understanding and belief. And because a man becomes wise from understanding and believing in truth, it is said "if the eye be sound the whole body is lucid." The "body" means the man, and "to be lucid" means to be wise. But it is the reverse with the "evil eye," that is, understanding and believing in falsity. "Darkness" means falsities, "if the light [lumen] be darkness" signifies if the truth be false or falsified, and because truth falsified is worse than any other falsity, it is said, "If the light [lumen] be darkness, how great is the darkness."

These few examples make clear what correspondence is and what influx is, namely, that the eye is a correspondence of the understanding and faith, the heart a correspondence of the will and love, the ears a correspondence of obedience, the lamp and light [lumen] correspondences of truth, and darkness a correspondence of falsity, and so on; and as the one is spiritual and the other natural, and the spiritual acts into the natural and forms it to an image of itself that it may appear before the eyes or before the world, therefore that action is influx. Such is the Word in each and every particular.

(to be continued)
(Apocalypse Explained 1081:2-5)