Spiritual Life and the Word of God by Emanuel Swedenborg
page 132 of 136 (97%)
page 132 of 136 (97%)
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outmost sense of the Word, which is called the sense of the letter (for
in its inmosts there are the things that are in the Word that the angels of the third heaven have, and in its middle parts the things that are in the Words belonging to the angels of the lower heavens, and these are encompassed by such things as exist in the nature of our world and are included in these), so the sense of the letter of our Word is from all these. From this it can be seen that Divine truth is in its fullness in the sense of the letter of our Word. That is said to be full which contains in itself all things prior, even from the first, or all things higher even from the highest; the last is what includes these. The fullness of the Word is like a general vessel of marble, in which are countless lesser vessels of crystal, and in these still more numerous vessels of precious stones, in and about which are the most delightful things of heaven which are for those who perform noble uses according to the Word. That the Word is such is not evident to man while he is in the world; but it is evident to him when he becomes an angel. Because the Word is such in outmosts it follows that it is not the Word until it is in that outmost, that is, until it is in the sense of the letter. The Word not in that outmost would be like a temple in the air and not on the earth, or like a man having flesh but without bones. As Divine truth is in its fullness and also in its power in its outmost, for when it is in that it is in all things at once, so the Lord never works except from first things through outmosts, and thus in fullness. For He reforms and regenerates man only through truths in outmosts, which are natural. And this is why a man remains after his departure out of the world to eternity such as he has been in the world. For the same reason heaven and hell are from the human race, and angels are not |
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