td "*--- i * 4. i , -TUB (_- DOCTRINE OF LIFE THE NEW JERUSALEM, THE COMMANDMENTS OF THE DECALOGUE TRANSLATED FROM THE LATIN OF EMANUEL SWEDENBORG, tjje .Sfptfr HonHon BOSTON : PUBLISHED BY ALLEN AND GODDARD, No, 11 School Street. 1831. CONTENTS. No. Page. I. That all Religion has Relation to Life, and that the Life of Religion is to do good 1 5 II. That no one can do good, which is really Good, from himself 9 11 III. That so far as Man shuns Evils as Sins, so far he does what is Good, not from himself, but from the Lord .18 15 I. That the Good Things which a Man wills and does are not good, before he shuns Evils as Sins 24 16 //. That the Pious Things which a Man thinks and speaks before he shuns Evils, are not pious 25 16 ///. That Man has no Wisdom, unless he shuns Evils as Sins, notwithstanding his being skilful and wise in many Things 27 17 IV. That so far as any one shuns Evils as Sins, so far he loves Truths 32 20 V. That so far as any one shuns Evils as Sins, so far he has Faith, and is spiritual 42 24 VI. That the Decalogue teaches what Evils are Sins 53 28 VII. That Murders, Adulteries, Thefts, and False Witness, of every Kind, with the Concupiscences prompting thereto, are Evils which ought to be shunned as Sins 62 33 VIII. That so far as any one shuns Murders of every Kind as Sins, so far he has Love towards his Neighbor. 67 36 IX. That so far as any one shuns Adulteries of every Kind as Sins, so far he loves Chastity 74 39 X. That so far as any one shuns Thefts of every Kind as Sins, so far he loves Sincerity 80 42 XI. That so far as any one shuns False Witness of every Kind as Sins, so far he loves Truth 87 45 XII. That it is not possible for any one to shun Evils as Sins, so that he may hold them inwardly in Aversion, ex- cept by Combats against them. . . 92 47 XIII. That Man ought to shun Evils as Sins, and to fight against them, as from himself. 101 50 XIV. That if any one shuns Evils for any other Reason than because they are Sins, he does not shun them, but only prevents their appearing before the Eyes of the World 108 52 THE DOCTRINE OF LIFE FOR THE NEW JERUSALEM. I. THAT ALL RELIGION HAS RELATION TO LIFE, AND THAT THE LIFE OF RELIGION is TO DO GOOD. 1. EVERY one, who has any religion, knows and acknowl- edges, that whosoever lives well will be saved, and that who- soever lives wickedly will be condemned ; for he knows and acknowledges, that whosoever lives well, thinks well, not on^ ly concerning God, but also concerning his neighbor ; whereas it is otherwise with him who lives wickedly. The life of man is his love, and what a man loves, he not only does willingly, but also thinks willingly. The reason, therefore, why it is said, that the life of religion is to do good, is, be- cause doing good and thinking good form a one,* and unless they do form a one with man, they do not belong to his life. But these things are to be proved in what follows. 2. That religion has relation to life, and that the life there- of is to do good, is manifest to every one who reads the Word, and is acknowledged by every one whilst he is reading it. It is written in the Word : "Whosoever shall break the least of these commandments, and shall teach men so, shall be call- ed least in the kingdom of heaven; but he who doe by them," Levit. xviii. 5. " Ye shall observe all my statutes and my judgments, to do them," Levit. xix. 37. chap. xx. 8, chap. xxii. 31. " Blessings are pronounced, if they do the commandments, and curses if they do them not," Levit. xxvi. 4 to 46. The children of Israel were command- ed to make to themselves a fringe on the borders of their gar- ments, that they might remember all the precepts of Jehovah to do them, Deut. xxii. 12, not to mention a thousand other passages to the same purport. That works are what consti- tute man a member of the church, and that he is saved ac- cording thereto, the Lord also teaches in his parables, several of which imply, that they who do good are accepted, and that they who do evil are rejected ; as in the parable concerning the husbandmen in the vineyard, Matt. xxi. 33 to 44 ; and con- cerning the fig-tree which did not yield fruit, Luke xiii. 6 ; and concerning the talents and pounds given to trade with, Matt. xxv. 14 to 31. Luke xix. 13 to 25; and concerning the Samaritan who bound up the wounds of him that fell among thieves, Luke x. 30 to 37 ; and concerning the rich man and Lazarus, Luke xvi. 19 to 31 ; and concerning the ten virgins, Matt. xxv. 1 to 12. 3. The true reason why every one, who has any religion, knows and acknowledges that he who lives well will be saved, FOR THE NEW JERUSALEM. 9 and that he who lives ill will be condemned, is grounded in the conjunction of heaven with the man who is acquainted by the Word that there is a God, that there is a heaven and a hell, and that there is a life after death ; hence is derived that general perception. Wherefore in the doctrine of the Atha- nasian Creed, which is universally received throughout all Christendom, what is said in the conclusion is universally re- ceived also, viz. " Jesus Christ, who suffered for our salva- tion, ascended into heaven, and sitteth at the right hand of the Father Almighty, whence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead ; and then they who have done good shall enter into life eternal, and they who have done evil into everlasting fire." 4. There are many, nevertheless, in Christian churches, who teach that faith alone is saving, and not any good of life, or good work ; they add also, that evil of life, or evil work, does not condemn those who are justified by faith alone, because they are in God and in grace. But it is extraordinary, that although they teach such doctrines, still they acknowledge (which is in consequence of a general perception derived from heaven) that they are saved who live well, and they are con- demned who live ill. That they acknowledge this, is evident from the EXHORTATION, which is publicly read in all churches, both in England, in Germany, in Sweden, and in Denmark, previous to the celebration of the Holy Supper. That in those kingdoms there are some who teach the doctrine of faith alone, is well known. The EXHORTATION, which is publicly read in England previous to the celebration of the sacrament of the Lord's supper, is as follows : 5. " The way and means to be received as worthy parta- kers of that holy table, is, first, to examine your lives and con- versations by the rule of God's commandments, and wherein- soever ye shall perceive yourselves to have offended either by will, word, or deed, there to bewail your own sinfulness, and to confess yourselves to Almighty God, with full purpose of amendment of life ; and if ye shall perceive your offences to be such as are not only against God, but also against your neighbors, then ye shall reconcile yourselves unto them, be- ing ready to make restitution and satisfaction, according to the utmost of your power, for all injuries and wrongs done by you to any other, and being likewise ready to forgive others that have offended you, as ye would have forgiveness of your offences at God's hand ; for otherwise the receiving of the ho- ly communion doth nothing else but increase your damnation. 10 THE DOCTRINE OP LIFE Therefore if any of you be a blasphemer of God, ahinderer or slanderer of his Word, an adulterer, or be in malice or envy, or in any other grievous crime, repent you of your sins, or else come not to the holy table : lest, after the taking of that holy sacrament, the devil enter into you. as he entered into Judas, and fill you with all iniquity, and bring you to destruc- tion both of body and soul. * 7. It was given me to ask some of the English clergy who professed and preached the doctrine of faith alone, (which was done in the spiritual world,) whether, whilst they were reading in their churches the above exhortation, in which faith is not even mentioned, they believed what is there as- serted, viz. that if any do evil and do not repent, the devil will enter into them, as he entered into Judas, and destroy both body and soul ? They replied, that in the state in which they were, whilst reading the exhortation, they knew and thought no other than that what they read was the truth and essence of religion ; but that when they began to conceive and compose their discourses or sermons, they thought dif- ferently, because they then thought about faith as being the only means of salvation, and about the good of life as being only accessary thereto in promoting the public good. But still it was proved to conviction, that they also had a general perception, that whosoever lives well is saved, and whosoever lives ill is condemned, and that they had this perception when they were not under the influence of their own proprium, or selfhood. 8. The reason why all religion has relation to life is, be- cause every one after death is his own life, for it remains the same as it was in the world, and is in no respect changed ; inasmuch as an evil life cannot be converted into a good life, nor a good life into an evil life, these being opposites, and conversion into an opposite is extinction : it*is on account of this opposition that a good life is called life, and an evil life is called death. Hence it is that religion has relation to life, and that the life thereof is to do good. That man, after death, is such as his life had been in the world, may be seen in the Treatise concerning HEAVEN and HELL, n. 470 to 484. * This paragraph is n. 7, and the preceding one is n. 5 ; the reason of which is, because, in n. 5 of the original, the exhortation to the sacrament is quoted in English, as above, and n. 6 is merely occupied by a translation of the same iutp Latin. FOR THE NEW JERUSALEM. 11 II. THAT NO ONE CAN DO GOOD, WHICH is REALLY GOOD, FROM HIMSELF. 9. AT this day scarcely any one knows, whether the good which he does be from himself or from God ; the reason is, because the church has separated faith from charity, and good is of charity. A man gives to the poor, relieves the needy, endows churches and hospitals, promotes the good of the church, of his country, and of his fellow-citizens, frequents places of public worship, listens attentively to what is said there, and is devout in his prayers, reads the Word and books of piety, and thinks about salvation ; and yet knows not whether he does such things from himself or from God. It is possible he may do them from God, and it is possible he may do them from himself: if he does them from God, they are good ; if from himself, they are not good. Yea, good things of a like nature may be done by man from himself, which yet are actually evil, as is the case with what is hypocritical, which is grounded in deceit and artifice. 10. Good things done from God and from man's self, may be compared with gold. Gold, which is real gold from its in- most ground, and is called sterling gold, is good gold : gold mixed with silver, is also gold, but its goodness is according to the mixture : it is still less good when mixed with copper : but gold artificially made, and only resembling gold in color, is not good, inasmuch as the substance of gold is not in it. There is also what is gilded ; as gilded silver, copper, iron, tin, lead, and also gilded wood, and gilded stone, which super- ficially may appear as gold, but inasmuch as they are not gold, they are esteemed, either according to the excellence of the workmanship, or according to the value of the gilded materi- al, or according to the value of the gold which may be scrap- ed off: these differ in goodness from real gold, as a man's clothes differ from the man himself. It is possible, also, that rotten wood, and dross, yea, and even dung, may be overlaid with gold ; this is gold which may be compared with pharisai- cal good. 11. Man has the skill to discern whether gold be substan- tially good, whether it be mixed and counterfeit, and whether it be only a covering of gold ; but he has not the skill to dis- cern whether the good which he does be in itself good : this only he knows, that good from God is good, and that good from man is not good : Wherefore, it being of importance to 12 THE POCTRINE OF LIFE salvation, to know, whether the good which he does be from God, or whether it be not from God, it is expedient that it should be revealed. But before it is revealed, it may be necessary to speak concerning the various kinds of good. 12. There is civil* good, moral good and spiritual good. Civil good is that which a man does whilst acting under the influence of civil law ; and by this good, and according to it, he is a citizen in the natural world. Moral good is that which a man does whilst acting under the influence of the law of reason ; and by this good, and according to it, he is a man. Spiritual good is what a man does whilst acting under the in- fluence of a spiritual law : and by this good, and according to it, he is a citizen in the spiritual world. These three kinds of good follow in this order ; spiritual good is the supreme, mor- al good is the middle, and civil good is the ultimate, or lowest. 13. The man who is principled in spiritual good, is a mor- al man, and also a civil man ; whereas the man who is not principled in spiritual good, appears as if he was a moral and civil man, but still he is not so in reality. The reason why the man who is principled in spiritual good is a moral and civil man, is, because spiritual good has the essence of good in it, and consequently moral and civil good also. The es- sence of good cannot possibly originate in any other but in Him, who is good itself. Give to thought its utmost range, call forth all its powers, and inquire whence it is that good is good, and you will perceive that it is from its esset, and that that is good which has in it the esse of good ; consequently, that that is good, which is from good itself, that is, from God ; consequently, that good not from God, but from man, is not good. * The term CIVIL is here used to denote what appertains to the state, or the community, to which man belongs here on earth ; according to which sense, CIVIL good is that, which is connected with, and conducive to, the common good of the state, or community, and is regulated by the laws thereof. Ac- cording to the same sense, a CIVIL man, (see n. 13, \ is one who consults the good of the state or community to which he belongs, By submitting his conduct to the regulation of its laws. t It is not possible to express, by any single word in our language, the precise idea which the author here means to convey by the word ESSE. The reader, who is acquainted with the Latin tongue, will readily apprehend the full mean- ing of the term : It may be expedient, however, in order to assist the concep- iigmfies good in its inmost ground or principle, ing therefore is really good, but what has its ground or principle of goodness in God. The same term ESSE is applied below, n. 43 and 48, to the human will, to distinguish it from the understanding, the understanding being only an exist- ence, whose ESSE, or ground of being, is in the will. FOR THE NEW JERUSALEM. 13 14. From what was said in the DOCTRINE concerning the SACRED SCRIPTURE, n. 27, 28, 38, it may be seen that the supreme, the middle, and the ultimate, make a one, like end, cause, and effect, and that, in consequence of making a one, the end itself is called the first end, the cause the middle end, and the effect the ultimate end. Hence it will be evident, that in the case of the man who is principled in spiritual good, moral good with him is middle spiritual good, and that civil good is ultimate spiritual good. Hence then it is, as already observed, that the man who is principled in spiritual good, is a moral man, and a civil man ; and that the man who is not principled in spiritual good, is neither a moral nor a civil man, but only appears to be so ; though he appears to be so both to himself and also to others. 15. The reason why a man, who is not spiritual, can still think, and thence discourse rationally, like a spiritual man, is, because the understanding of man is capable of being elevated into the light of heaven, which is truth, and of seeing by that light ; but it is possible for the will of man not to be elevated in like manner into the heat of heaven, which is love, and act under its influence. Hence it is, that truth and love do not make a one with man, unless he be spiritual : hence also it is that man can exercise his faculty of speech : this likewise forms a ground of distinction between man and beast. It is owing to the understanding's being capable of elevation to heaven without an elevation of the will at the same time, that man has the capacity of being reformed, and of becoming spiritual : but he never is reformed and rendered spiritual, until the will is elevated also. By virtue of this faculty, en- joyed by the understanding above that of the will, man is ca- pable of thinking rationally, and thence of discoursing ration- ally, like one that is spiritual, whatsoever be his nature and quality, even though he be principled in evil : nevertheless it does not hence follow that he is rational ; and the reason is, because the understanding does not lead the will, but the will the understanding, the latter only teaching and pointing out the way ; as was observed in the DOCTRINE concerning the SACRED SCRIPTURE, n. 115: and so long as the will is not, with the understanding, in heaven, the man is not spiritual, and consequently not rational : for when he is left to his own will, or to his own love, then he rejects the rational conclu- sions of his understanding concerning God, concerning heav- en, and concerning eternal life ; and assumes in their place, such conclusions as are in agreement with the love of his will, 2 14 THE DOCTRINE OF LIFE and calls them rational. But this subject is entered into more at length, in the work entitled ANGELIC WISDOM concerning THE DIVINE LOVE AND WISDOM. 16. In the following pages, they who do good from them- selves shall be called natural men, inasmuch as what is moral and civil with them, is, as to its essence, natural : but they who do good from the Lord, shall be called spiritual men, in- asmuch as what is moral and civil with them, is, as to its es- sence, spiritual. 17. That no one can do any good, which is really good, from himself, the Lord teaches in John : " A man cannot take any thing, unless it be given him from heaven ," iii. 27. And again : " He wlw abideth in me, and I in him, the same bring cth forth much fruit ; for without me ye can do nothing," xv. 5. He who abideth in me, and I in him, the same bring- eth forth much fruit, signifies, that all good is from the Lord ; fruit signifying good : without me ye can do nothing, signifies that no one can do good from himself. They who believe in the Lord, and do good from him, are called sons of light, John xii. 36 ; Luke xvi. 8 ; and sows of the marriage, Mark ii. 19 ; and sons of the resurrection, Luke xx. 36 ; and sons of God, Luke xx. 36, John i. 12 ; and born of God, John i. 13 ; and it is said of such, that they shall see God, Matt. v. 8 ; and that the Lord shall make his abode with them, John xiv. 23 ; and that they have the faith of God, Mark xi. 22 ; and that their works are done from God, John iii. 21. This is summed up in these words, " As many as received Him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe in his name, who are born, not of bloods, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God," John i. 12, 13. To believe in the name of the Son of God, is to believe the Word, and to live according thereto ; the will of the flesh is the proprium or self-hood of man's will, which in itself is evil ; and the will of man (vir) is the proprium of his understanding, which in itself is the false derived from evil : they who are born thereof, are those who will and act, and think and speak, from their proprium : they who are born of God, are those who will and act, and think and speak, from the Lord. In short, that is not good which is from man, but that which is from the Lord. FOR THE NEW JERUSALEM. 15 III. THAT so FAR AS MAN SHUNS EVILS AS SINS, so FAR HE DOES WHAT IS GOOD, NOT FROM HIMSELF, BUT FROM THE LORD. 18. WHO does not know, or has it not in his power to know, that evils prevent the Lord's entrance into man ? For evil is hell, and the Lord is heaven ; and hell and heaven are oppo- sites ; so far, therefore, as man is in the one, so far it is not possible for him to be in the other ; for one acts against and destroys the other. 19. Man, during his abode in the world, is in the midst between hell and heaven : beneath is hell, and above is heaven : and he is kept in the liberty of turning himself either to hell or to heaven ; if he turns himself to hell, he turns himself away from heaven, but if he turns himself to heaven, he turns himself away from hell. Or, what amounts to the same, man, during his abode in the world, is in the midst between the Lord and the devil, and is kept in the liberty of turning him- self either to the one or to the other ; if he turns himself to the devil, he turns himself away from the Lord, but if he turns himself to the Lord, he turns himself away from the devil. Or, what is the same thing, man during his abode in the world is in the midst between evil and good, and is kept in the liberty of turning himself either to the one or to the other ; if he turns himself to evil, he turns himself away from good, but if he turns himself to good, he turns himself away from evil. 20. It has just been asserted, that man is kept in the lib- erty of turning himself this way or that : but it is to be ob- served, that every man has this liberty, not from himself, but from the Lord ; wherefore it is said that he is kept in it. Concerning the equilibrium between heaven and hell, and man's being therein, and thence in freedom, see the Treatise on HEAVEN and HELL, n. 589 to 596, and n. 597 to 603. That every man is kept in freedom, and that freedom is never taken away from any one, will be shown in its proper place. 21. From these considerations it is manifest, that so far as man shuns evils, so far he is with the Lord, and in the Lord ; and so far as he is in the Lord, so far he does good, not from himself, but from the Lord. Hence results this general law; THAT so FAR AS ANY ONE SHUNS WHAT is BV|L. SO FAR HE DOES WHAT IS GOOD 16 THE DOCTRINE OF LIFE 22. But herein two things are required : the first is, that a man ought to shun evils because they are sins, that is, be- cause they are infernal and diabolical, consequently against the Lord and against divine laws. The second is, that a man ought to shun evils as sins, as from himself, but to know and believe that he does so from the Lord. But these two requi- sites will be treated of in the following articles. 23. From what has been said, these three consequences follow : I. That if a man wills and does what is good, before he shuns evils as sins, the good things which he wills and does are not good. II. That if a man thinks and speaks such things as are pious, and does not shun evils as sins, the pious things which he thinks and speaks are not pious. III. That if a man has much knowledge, and much wisdom, and does not shun evils as sins, he has no wisdom. 24. I. The reason why The good things which a man wills and does are not good, before he shuns evils as sins, is, because, before this, he is not in the Lord, as was said above. As for example : if he gives alms to the poor,, relieves the needy, en- dows churches and hospitals, does good to the church, to his country, and to his fellow-citizens ; teaches the gospel and converts souls ; discharges his duty as a judge with justice, as a trader with sincerity, and as a citizen with uprightness ; and yet makes light of evils as sins, as the evils of fraud, of adul- tery, of hatred, of blasphemy, and such like ; in this case, it is not possible he cajj do any goad but such as ia inward)/ evil, inasmuch as he does it from himself, and not from the Lord ; consequently, he himself is in it, and not the Lord ; and the good actions in which man himself is, are all defiled with his evils, and regard himself and the world. Neverthe- less, those same actions above enumerated are inwardly good, if a man shuns evils as sins ; as the evils of fraud, of adultery, of hatred, of blasphemy, and such like; for, in this case, he does them from the Lord, and they are said to be wrought in God, John iii. 19, 20, 21. 25. II. The reason why The pious things which a man thinks and speaks, before he shuns evils as sins, are not pious, is, because he is not in the Lord. As for example : if he fre- quents places of public worship, attends devoutly to what is there preached, reads the Word and books of piety, partakes of the sacrament of the Lord's supper, is instant in daily pray- er ; yea, if he even thinks much concerning God and salva- tion, and yet makes light of evils which are sins, as the evils FOR THE NEW JERUSALEM. 17 of fraud, of adultery, of hatred, of blasphemy, and such like ; in this case, the pious things which he thinks and speaks are inwardly not pious, inasmuch as the man himself, with his evils, is in them : he, indeed, at such time is ignorant of this, but nevertheless those evils are within, and escape his obser- vation ; for he is as a fountain whose water is impure, by rea- son of the impurity of its source. His religious exercises, therefore, are either the effect of habit only, or they are mer- itorious, or they are hypocritical : they ascend, indeed, towards heaven, but, like smoke in the air, soon change their course, and fall down again. 26. It has been given me to see and hear many after death who were enumerating their good works and exercises of pie- ty, such as are mentioned above, n. 24, 25, and still more than those : amongst them I also saw some who had lamps and no oil : and inquiry was made whether they had shunned evils as sins, and it was found that they had not ; wherefore it was de- clared to them that they were evil. They were also seen af- terwards to enter into caverns, inhabited by evil spirits of a like nature with themselves. 27. III. The reason why Man has no wisdom, unless he shuns evils as sins, notwithstanding his being skilful and wise in many things, is, because his wisdom is from himself, and not from the Lord. As for example : if he be skilful in church doctrines, and has a perfect knowledge of whatever relates thereto ; if he knows how to confirm such doctrines by the Word, and by his own reasonings ; if he be versed in the doc- trines of former churches, and at the same time in the decrees of all councils; nay, if he even knows truths, and also sees and understands them, so as to be perfectly acquainted with the na- ture of faith, of charity, of piety, of repentance and the remission of sins, of regeneration, of baptism and the holy supper, of the Lord, and of redemption and salvation; still he is not wise, unless he shuns evils as sins : for, until evils are so shunned, knowledges are without life, appertaining to the understand- ing only, and not to the will ; in which case they presently perish, for a reason spoken of above, n. 15 : after death also the man himself casts them off, because they do not agree with the love of his will. Still, however, knowledges are high- ly necessary, because they teach how a man ought to act ; and when he brings them into act, then they become alive in him, and not before. 28. All that has been said above is taught in many pas- sages of the Word, of which it may suffice to adduce the fol- 2* 18 THE DOCTRINE OF LIFE lowing. The Word teaches that no one can be in good, and, at the same time, in evil ; or, what is the same thing, that no one can, as to his soul, be in heaven, and, at the same time, in hell. This is taught in the following passages : " No one can serve two masters : for he will either hate the one and love the other ; or he will cleave to the one and despise the other : ye cannot serve God and Mammon," Matt. vi. 24. " How can ye, being evil, speak good things 1 for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh. A good man out of the good treasure of his heart bringeth forth good things, and an evil man out of the evil treasure bringeth forth evil things," Matt, xii. 34, 35. "A good tree bringeth not forth evil fruit, neither doth an evil tree bring forth good fruit : every tree is known by its own fruit : for men do not gather Jigs of thorns, nor of a bramble-bush gather they grapes," Luke vi. 43, 44. 29. Tiie Word teaches also that no one can do good from himself, but from the Lord : "Jesus said, I am the vine, and my Father is the vine-dresser ; every branch in me which bear- eth not fruit, he taketh away ; but every branch that beareth fruit he will prune, that it may bear more fruit. Abide in me, and I in you: as the branch cannot bear fruit of itself , unless it abide in the vine, so neither can yc, unless ye abide in me. I am the vine, ye are the branches ; he that abideth in me, and I in him, the same beareth much fruit ; for without me ye can do nothing. If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and withercth, and they gather him, and he is cast into the. f re, and is burned," John xv. 1 to 6. 30. The Word teaches, also, that so far as man is hot puri- fied from evils, his good deeds are not good, nor are his pious acts pious, neither is he wise; and vice versa. This is taught in the following passages : " Wo unto you, scribes and Phari- sees, hypocrites I for ye are like to whitened sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful without, but within are full of the bones of the dead, and of all unclcanness ; so also ye indeed ap- pear outwardly righteous, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity. Wo unto you ! for ye cleanse the outside of the cup and platter, but within they are full of extortion and ex- cess. Thou blind Pharisee ! cleanse first the inside of the cup and platter, that the outside may be clean also" Matt, xxiii. 25 to 28. And also from these words in Isaiah : " Hear the words of Jehovah, ye princes of Sodom, hear the law of our God, ye people of Gomorrah : To what purpose is the multi- tude of your sacrifices unto me 1 Bring no more the oblation of vanity ; incense is an abomination to me, the new moon, and FOR THE NEW JERUSALEM. 19 the sahbath ; I cannot bear iniquity : Your new moons and appointed feasts my soul hateth ; wherefore, when ye spread forth your hands, I hide mine eyes from you ; yea, when ye multiply prayer, I do not hear; your hands are full of bloods. Wash ye, make you clean ; remove the evil of your doings from before mine eyes ; cease to do evil : though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow ; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool," i. 10 to 18 ; the summary sense of which words is, that, unless a man shuns evils, all things relating to divine worship, as performed by him, are void of goodness, and in like manner all his works ; for it is said, I cannot bear iniquity, make you clean, remove the evil of your doings, cease to do evil. So in Jeremiah : " Return ye every one from his evil way, and make your works good," xxxv. 15. That the same are not wise appears also from Isaiah : " Wo to them that are wise in their own eyes, and intelligent before their own face," v. 21. And again : " The wisdom of the wise, and the understanding of the intelligent, shall perish. W^o unto them that are profoundly wise, and their works are done in darkness" xxix. 14, 15. And again : " Wo unto them that go down into Egypt for help, and stay on horses, and trust in chariots because they are many, and in horsemen because they are strong, but look not to the Holy One of Is- rael, and do not seek Jehovah. But he will arise against the house of the evil doers, and against the help of them that work iniquity : for Egypt is man and not God, and the, horses there- of are flesh and nut spirit," xxxi. 1, 2, 3. Man's own intelli- gence is thus described : Egypt denotes science ; a horse de- notes understanding thence derived ; a chariot denotes doc- trine thence derived; a horseman denotes intelligence from the same origin ; of all which it is said, Wo unto them who do not look to the Holy One of Israel, and do not seek Jehovah: their destruction by evils is meant by his arising against the house of the evil doers, and against the help of them that work iniquity : that the above things originate in man's proprium, and consequently have no life in them, is meant by Egypt being man and not God, and by the horses thereof bein^ flesh and not spirit ; man and flesh denote man's proprium; God and spirit are life from the Lord; the horses of Egypt are man's own intelligence. There are several oth- er passages in the Word, which thus describe intelligence de- rived from man's self, and derived from the Lord, which pas- sages are to be understood only by means of the spiritual sense. 20 THE DOCTRINE OF LIFE That no one will be saved by the good deeds which pro- ceed from self, because they are not good, appears from the following passages : "Not every man that sait/i unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven, lut he that do- cth the will of my Father. Many will say unto me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied by thy name, and by thy name cast out devils, and by thy name done, many mighty works 1 But then will I profess unto them, I never knew you ; depart from me, YE THAT WORK INIQUITY," Matt. vii. 21, 22, 23. And in another place : " Then shall ye begin to stand without, and to knock at the door, saying, Lord, open to us ; and ye shall begin to say, We have eaten in thy presence, and have drunkat, and tliou hast taught in our streets: but he will say, I say unto you, I know you not whence you are ; depart from me, all ye WORKERS OF INIQUITY," Luke xiii. 25, 26, 27. For all such are like unto the Pharisee, " who stood and pray- ed in the temple, saying, that he was not as other men, an ex- tortioner, unjust, an adulterer, that he fasted twice in the week, and gave tithes of all that he possessed," Luke xviii. 11 to 14. They are also those who are called " unprofitable servants" Luke xvii. 10. 31. It is a truth that no man can do good, which is really good, from himself; but so to apply this truth as to destroy all the good of charity performed by the man who shuns evils as sins, is an enormous perversion : for it is diametrically contrary to the Word, which enjoins man to do good : it is also contrary to the precepts of love towards God and our neighbor, on which hang all the law and the prophets ; and it undermines and overturns the whole of religion ; for every one knows that religion consists in doing good, and that eve- ry one will be judged according to his deeds. Man's nature is such that he can shun evils as of himself by virtue of a power communicated to him by the Lord, if so be he implores it ; and when this is the case, the good which he does is from the Lord, IV. THAT so FAR AS ANY ONE SHUNS EVILS AS SINS, so FAR HE LOVES TRUTHS. 32. THERE are two universals which proceed from the Lord, divine good and divine truth : divine good is of his divine love, and divine truth is of his divine wisdom. Those two in the Lord are a one, and thence proceed as a one from him; but they are not received as a one by the angels iu FOR THE NEW JERUSALEM. 21 heaven, and by men on earth. There are angels and men who receive more of divine truth than of divine good, and there are others who receive more of divine good than of di- vine truth ; hence it is that the heavens are distinguished in- to two kingdoms, one of which is called the celestial kingdom, the other the spiritual kingdom : the heavens which receive more of the divine good constitute the celestial kingdom, but those which receive more of the divine truth constitute the spiritual kingdom. Concerning these two kingdoms, into which the heavens are distinguished, see the TREATISE ON HEAVEN AND HELL, n. 20 to 28. But still the angels of all the heavens are so far in wisdom and intelligence, as good with them makes a one with truth ; the good which does not make a one with truth is to them not good ; and the truth which does not make a one with good is to them not truth.* Hence it appears, that good conjoined with truth constitutes love and wisdom with angel and with man ; and whereas an angel is an angel by virtue of love and wisdom appertaining to him, and in like manner man is man, it is evident, that good conjoined with truth causes an angel to be an angel of heaven, and causes a man to be a man of the church. 33. Inasmuch as good and truth are a one in the Lord, and proceed as a one from him, it follows, that good loves truth, and truth loves good, and that they desire to be a one. The like is true of their opposites : evil loves the false, and the false loves evil, and they are desirous of being a one. In the following pages, we will call the conjunction of good &iiu truth the celestial marriage, and the conjunction of evil and the false the infernal marriage. *This may be exemplified by considering the operations and relations of love, motive, or inclination, in the human mind. Strength of affection or incli- nation, without the concomitancy of true wisdom to bound or direct it, is actu- ally the cause of much evil in the world, and consequently so far not good ; and, on the other hand, clear views of what is right and fit to be done, if there is a want of inclination or strength of motive to put a man onward to do it, are so far short of real wisdom, which consists not merely in knowing, but in doing what is right. Thus our author in other places of his works observes, that love without wisdom is nothing for it wants quality or form ; and wisdom without love is nothing for it wants essence or energy ; but love and wisdom joined are every thing. As to what is said about the angels of the different kingdoms, his sense is very clear to any one who has read his other works ; which is, that love or af- fection is the distinguishing character of the celestial angels, and judgment or intelligence the distinguishing character of the angels of the spiritual kingdom ; not that the angels of the celestial kingdom want wisdom, for they are the wis- est angels, or that the angels of the spiritual kingdom are without love. The difference of the male and female character may elucidate this : the male character is that of judgment the female that of love and affection ; not that men are void of affection, or women without judgment. 22 THE DOCTRINE OF LIFE 34. It is a consequence of what has been said, that so far as any one shuns evils as sins, so far he loves truths, for so far he is principled in good, according to what was shown in the foregoing article. And, on the other hand, so far as any one does not shun evils as sins, so far he does not love truths, because so far he is not principled in good. 35. A man who does not shun evils as sins may indeed love truths, but then he does not love them because they are truths, but because they serve to extend his reputation, whence he derives honor or gain ; wherefore, when they are no long- er subservient to this end, he ceases to love them. 36. Good relates to the will, truth to the understanding. From the love of good in the will proceeds the love of truth in the understanding ; from the love of truth proceeds the perception of truth ; from the perception of truth the thought of truth ; and from these comes the acknowledgment of truth, which is faith in its genuine sense. That this is the order of progression from the love of good to faith, will be proved in the TREATISE CONCERNING THE DIVINE LOVE AND THE DI- VINE WISDOM. 37. Inasmuch as good is not good, as was above observed, unless it be conjoined with truth, consequently good cannot be said to exist till it be so conjoined : nevertheless, it continual- ly wills to exist : wherefore, in order to its existence, it de- sires and procures to itself truths, from whence it derives its nourishment and formation. This is the reason why, so far as any one is principled in good, so far he loves truths : con- sequently, he so far loves truths as he shuns evils as sins; for so far he is principled in good. 38. So far as any one is principled in good, and by virtue of good loves truths, so far he loves the Lord, inasmuch as the Lord is good itself and truth itself; wherefore the Lord is with man in good and in truth. If the latter be loved by vir- tue of the former, then the Lord is loved, and not otherwise. This the Lord teaches in John : "He that hath my precepts and doeth them, he it is who lovcth me ; but he who doth not love me, doth not keep my words" xiv. 21, 24. And in an- other place : "If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love" John xv. 10. The precepts, words, and command- ments of the Lord, are truths. 39. That good loves truth, may be illustrated by applica- tion to the several cases of a priest, of a soldier, of a mer- chant, and of an artificer. And first of a PRIEST : If he be principled in the good of the priesthood, which consists in FOR THE NEW JERUSALEM. 23 providing for the salvation of souls, in teaching the way to heaven, and in leading those whom he teaches; so far as he is principled in that good, so far, from the love and desire thereof, he procures for himself truths which he may teach, and by which he may lead. But the priest, who is not prin- cipled in the good of the priesthood, but is in the delight of his function from self-love and the love of the world, which is his only good ; he also, from the love and desire thereof, procures to himself those truths in abundance, in proportion to the influence of the delight which constitutes his good. So in the case of a SOLDIER : If he be principled in the love of a military life, and is sensible of good arising either from the protection of the state, or from the advancement of his own reputation, he, also, by virtue of that good, and according to it, procures to himself military science ; and, in case he be ad- vanced to a post of command, military intelligence : these things are as truths, whereby the delight of his love, which is his good, is nourished and formed. So again in the case of a MERCHANT : If he is engaged in trading from the love there- of, he imbibes with pleasure all those things, which, as means, enter into and compose that love : these also are as truths, whilst trading is the good thereof. Lastly, in the case of an ARTIFICER : If he applies in good earnest to his business, and loves it as the good of his life, he purchases instruments, and perfects himself in such things as relate to the science of his particular employment, and thereby he causes his work to be good. From these cases, it is evident, that truths are the means whereby the good of the love-principle exists, and ac- quires reality; consequently, that good loves truths in order to its existence. Hence, in the Word, by doing the truth is meant the causing good to exist : as by doing the truth, John iii. 21 : by doing the Lord's sayings, Luke vi. 47 : by doing his precepts, John xiv. 24: by doing his words, Matt. vii. 24: by doing the word of God, Luke viii. 21 : and by doing stat- utes and judgments , Levit. xviii. 5. This also is meant by do- ing good and bearing fruit, for good and fruit is that which exists. 40. That good loves truth, and wills to be conjoined with it, may be illustrated, also, by the case of meat and drink, or of bread and wine ; which ought to be taken together, in order to promote bodily sustenance, inasmuch as meat or bread alone does not suffice for nourishment without water or wine ; where- fore the one seeks and desires the other. By meat and bread 24 THE DOCTRINE OF LIFE also in the Word, in its spiritual sense, is meant good, and by water and wine is meant truth. 41. From what has been said, it may now appear, that he who shuns evils as sins, loves truths and desires them ; and that the more he shuns evils as sins, so much the more he loves and desires truths, because he is so much the more prin- cipled in good. Hence he comes into the heavenly marriage, which is the marriage of good and truth, in which heaven is, and in which the church should be. V. THAT so FAR AS ANY ONE SHUNS EVILS AS SINS, so FAR HE HAS FAITH, AND IS SPIRITUAL. 42. FAITH and life are distinct from each other, like think- ing and doing ; and whereas thinking has relation to the un- derstanding, and doing has relation to the will, it follows, that faith and life are distinct from each other, like under- standing and will. He that knows the distinction between these latter, may know also the distinction between the former ; and he that knows the conjunction of the latter, may also know the conjunction of the former ; wherefore it may be expe- dient to premise something concerning the understanding and will. 43. Man has two faculties, one of which is called the WILL, and the other the UNDERSTANDING. These faculties are dis- tinct from each other, but they are so created, as that they may be a one ; and when they are a one, they are called the mind : wherefore the human mind consists of those two facul- ties, and all the life of man centres therein. As all things in the universe, which are according to divine order, have rela- tion to good and truth, so all things appertaining to man, have relation to the will and the understanding : for the good appertaining to man belongs to his will, and the truth apper- taining to him, belongs to his understanding ; for these two faculties are the recipients and subjects thereof; the will be- ing the recipient and subject of all things 'appertaining to good, and the understanding the recipient and subject of all things appertaining to truth : good and truth have no other abiding place with man ; nor, consequently, have love and faith ; inasmuch as love has relation to good, and good to love, and faith has relation to truth, and truth to faith. Nothing is of more concern to know, than how the will and understand- ing form one mind : they form one mind as good and truth make one ; for a similar marriage exists between the will and FOR THE NEW JERUSALEM. 25 the understanding, as between good and truth. The nature of this latter marriage was, in a measure, shown in the preced- ing article ; to which it may be expedient to add, that as good is the very esse of a thing, and truth is the existere thence derived, so the will, with man, is the very esse of his life, and the understanding is the existere of his life, thence derived ; for good, which is of the will, forms itself in the understand- ing, and, in a certain manner, renders itself visible. 44. That a man may know, think, and understand many things, and yet not be wise, was shown above, n. 27, 28 ; and whereas it appertains unto faith to know and to think, and still more to understand, it is possible for a man to believe that he has faith, and yet have it not. The reason of his not having it is, because he is in evil of life, and evil of life and the truth of faith can never be united in action. Evil of life destroys the truth of faith ; because evil of life appertains to the will, and the truth of faith appertains to the understand- ing ; and the will leads the understanding, and causes it to act in unity with itself; wherefore should there be any truth in the understanding which does not agree with the will, when man is left to himself, or thinks under the influence of his evil and the love thereof, he either casts out such truth, or by fal- sification forces it into such unity. It is otherwise with those who are in the good of life ; for they, when left to themselves, think under the influence of good, and love the truth which is in the understanding, because it agrees therewith. Thus there is effected a conjunction of faith and of life, like the con- junction of truth and of good, each resembling the conjunction of the understanding and the will. 45. Hence, then, it follows, that in proportion as man shuns evils as sins, in the same proportion he has faith, because in the same proportion he is principled in good, as was shown above. This is confirmed also by its contrary, that whosoever does not shun evils as sins, has not faith, because he is iu evil, and evil has an inward hatred against truth : outwardly, indeed, it can put on a friendly appearance, and endure, yea, love, that truth should be in the understanding ; but when the outward is put off, as is the case after death, then truth, which was thus for worldly reasons received in a friendly man- ner, is first cast off, afterwards is denied to be truth, and final- ly is held in aversion. 46. The faith of a wicked man is intellectual faith, in which there is no good from the will ; consequently it is a dead faith, which is like the respiration of the lungs without its anima- 3 26 THE DOCTRINE OF LIFE tion from the heart: the understanding also corresponds to the lungs, and the will to the heart. It may be compared likewise with a heautiful harlot, adorned with purple and gold, who is inwardly infected with a malignant disease : a harlot also corresponds to the falsification of truth, and hence, in the Word, is mentioned to signify such falsification. It is also like a tree abounding with leaves, and yielding no fruit, which the gardener cuts down : a tree likewise signifies man, its leaves and blossoms the truths of faith, and its fruit the good of love. But it is otherwise with faith in the understanding, in which there is good from the will. This faith is alive, and is like the respiration of the lungs in which there is ani- mation from the heart ; and it is like a beautiful wife, whom chastity endears to her husband ; it is also like a tree that bears fruit. 47. There are several things which appear to appertain to faith only : as that God is; that the Lord, who is God, is the Redeemer and Saviour ; that there is a heaven and a hell ; that there is a life after death ; and several other things of like nature, of which it is not said that they are to be done, but that they are to be believed. These tilings which appertain to faith are also dead with the man who is principled in evil, but alive with him who is principled in good : the reason is, be- cause the man who is principled in good, does well by virtue of a good will, and thinks well by virtue of a right understand- ing, not only before the world, but also when he is left to himself in private : but it is otherwise with the man who is principled in evil. 48. It was observed, that those things appear to appertain to faith only : but the thought of the understanding derives its existere from the love of the will, which is the esse of the thought in the understanding, as was said above, n. 43 : for whatsoever any one wills from the love-principle, that he wills to do, he wills to think, he wills to understand, and he wills to speak ; or, what is the same thing, whatsoever any one loves from the will, that he loves to do, he loves to think, he loves to understand, and he loves to speak. It is further to be ob- served, that when a man shuns evil as sin, then he is in the Lord, as was shown above, and the Lord operates all things : wherefore to those that asked him," What they should do that they might work the works of God?" he replied, " This is the . work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent," John vi. 23 ; to believe on the Lord, is not only to think that he is, but also to do his words, as he teaches in other places. FOR THE NEW JERUSALEM. 27 49. That they who are in evils, have no faith, howsoever they may fancy that they have, was shown by several cases of such in the spiritual world. They were conducted to a heav- enly society, whence the spiritual principle of the faith of the angels entered into the interiors of the faith of those who were thus conducted, whereby they perceived they had only a nat- ural or external principle of faith, and not its spiritual or in- ternal principle ; wherefore they themselves confessed that they had no faith, and that they had persuaded themselves in the world, that to believe, or to have faith, consisted in thinking a thing to be this or that, regardless of any ground or reason for its being so. But it was perceived to be other- wise with the faith of those who were not principled in evil. 50. Hence it may be seen what spiritual faith is ; and what the faith is which is not spiritual. Spiritual faith appertains to those who do not commit sin : for they, who do not commit sin, do good, not from themselves, but from the Lord, as was shown above, n. 18 to 31 ; and by faith become spiritual. Faith with such is truth. This is what the Lord teaches in John : " This is the judgment, that, light is come into the world, but men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For every one who doeth evil hatcth the light, nei- ther cometh he to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved : but he who doeth truth, cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God" iii. 19, 20, 21. 51. What has been said above, is confirmed by the follow- ing passages from the Word : " A good man, out of the good treasure of his heart, br ing eth forth good; but an evil man, out of the evil treasure of his heart, br ing cth forth evil : for out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth spcaketh," Luke vi. 45, Matt. xii. 35. By heart, in the Word, is meant the will of man ; and inasmuch as man's thoughts and speech origin- ate in the will, it is said, out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh. Again : " Not that which entereth into the mouth, dejileth a man, but that which cometh forth from the heart, this dejileth a man" Matt. xv. 11 : by the heart is here also meant the will. Again : " Jesus said concerning the woman who tcashcd his feet with ointment, Her sins are remit- ted her, because she loved much ; and aftenoards he said, Thy faith maketh thee whole," Luke vii. 46 to 50 ; whence it is ev- ident, that when sins are remitted, that is, when they cease, faith saves. That they are called sons of God, and born of 28 THE DOCTRINE OP LIFE God, who are not in the proprium of their own self-will, and thereby not in the proprium of their own self-understanding, that is, who are not in evil and thence in the false, and that these are they who believe on the Lord, he himself teaches in John, chap. i. 12, 13 ; which passage may be seen explained above, n. 17. 52. From these considerations it results, that there does not appertain to man the smallest portion of truth, only so far as he is principled in good ; consequently, not the smallest portion of faith, only so far as it is conjoined with life. There may be such a thing as thought, respecting the truth of some particular proposition, in the understanding ; but there cannot be acknowledgment amounting to faith, unless there be con- sent in the will. Thus do faith and life go hand in hand. Hence, then, it is evident, that so far as any one shuns evils as sins, so far he has faith, and is spiritual. VI. THAT THE DECALOGUE TEACHES WHAT EVILS ARE SINS. 53. What nation on earth does not know that it is evil to steal, to commit adultery, to commit murder, and to bear false witness ? Unless this was known, and unless the prevention of such evils was effected by laws, mankind must inevitably perish ; for no society, commonwealth, or kingdom, could subsist without them. Who can conceive that the Israelitish nation was so much more ignorant than others, as not to know this ? It must needs therefore be matter of surprise to some, that those laws, so universally known throughout the earth, should be promulgated from mount Sinai, by Jehovah himself, in so miraculous a manner. But understand the rea- son of this ! The miraculous promulgation of those laws was designed to show, that they are not only civil and moral laws, but also spiritual laws, and that to act contrary to them is not only to do evil to a fellow-citizen and to society, but is also to sin against God : wherefore those laws, in consequence of their promulgation from mount Sinai by Jehovah, were made laws of religious obligation : for it is evident, that whatever Jehovah God commands must be with a view to stamp such religious obligation upon the thing commanded ; and to show, that it ought to be done for his sake, and for the sake of man's salvation. 54. Inasmuch as those laws were the first-fruits of the Word, and consequently the first-fruits of the church which was about to be established by the Lord amongst the people FOR THE NEW JERUSALEM. 29 of Israel ; and inasmuch as they contained a brief summary of all things relating to religion, whereby the conjunction of the Lord with man, and of man with the Lord, is effected ; therefore they were so holy that nothing could be more so. 55. That they were most holy may appear from the follow- ing considerations : that Jehovah himself, that is, the Lord descended upon mount Sinai, in fire, and attended by angels, and thence promulgated them with a loud voice ; and that the people prepared themselves for three days to see and hear : that the mountain was fenced about, lest any one should ap- proach and die : that neither the priests nor the elders were to approach it, but Moses only : that those laws were written on two tables of stone by the finger of God : that the face of Moses shone, when he brought them down a second time from the mountain : that they were afterwards deposited in the ark, and the ark in the inmost part of the tabernacle ; and that over the ark was set the mercy-seat, and over the mercy-seat cherubs of gold : that this inmost part of the tab- ernacle was accounted most holy, and was called the holy of holies : that without the vail, within which was this most ho- ly place, were laid the things which represented the holies of heaven and of the church ; as the candlestick with the seven sconces of gold, the golden altar of incense, and the table overlaid with gold, on which was the show-bread, with curtains of fine linen, purple, and scarlet. The sanctity of the whole tabernacle originated solely in the law which was in the ark. By reason of the sanctity of the tabernacle thus originating tVom the law in the ark, it was enjoined that all the people of Israel should encamp around it in order according to their tribes, and should journey in order after it, at which times there was over it a cloud by day, and a fire by night. By reason of the sanc- tity of that law, and the presence of the Lord therein, the Lord discoursed with Moses over the mercy-seat between the cher- ubs ; and the ark was called Jehovah There. For the same rea- son also, it was not lawful for Aaron to enter within the vail, except with sacrifices and incense. Inasmuch as that law xvas the essential sanctity of the church, therefore the ark was introduced into Zion by David ; and was afterwards deposit- ed in the middle of the temple of Jerusalem, and constituted its most sacred place. By reason of the Lord's presence in that law, and around it, miracles were always wrought by the ark in which that law was contained ; as when the waters of Jordan were divided, and, whilst the ark rested in the middle, the people passed over on dry ground ; and as when the walls 3* 30 THE DOCTRINE OF LIFE of Jericho fell down in consequence of carrying the ark about them ; and as when Dagon, the God of the Philistines, fell down before it, and afterwards was found lying at the threshold of the temple with his head separated from the trunk ; and as when the Bethshemites were smitten because of the ark, to the number of several thousands; not to mention other miracles of a like nature ; all which were in consequence of the Lord's presence in his ten words, which are the commandments of the decalogue. 56. A further ground of the great power and sanctity of that law, was, because it was a complex of all things apper- taining to religion : for it consisted of two tables, one of which contains all things which are on God's part, and the other all things which are on the part of man : therefore, the precepts of that law are called the ten words, because ten signify all things. But how that law is a complex of all things appertaining to religion, will be seen in the follow- ing article. 57. Inasmuch as the conjunction of the Lord with man, and of man with the Lord, is' effected by that law, therefore it is called a COVENANT and a TESTIMONY ; a -covenant because it effects conjunction ; and a testimony, because it testifies conjunction ; for a covenant signifies conjunction, and testi- mony the testification or witnessing thereof. It was for this rea- son that there were two tables, one for the Lord, the other for man. Conjunction is effected by and from the Lord ; but only when man does those things which are written in his table ; for the Lord is continually present, and operative, and desirous to enter, but it is man's part and duty, by virtue of the freedom which he enjoys from the Lord, to open the door for him ; for the Lord says, " Behold I stand at the door and knock, if any one hear my voice, and open the door, tv*U come in to him, and sup with him, and he with me," Rev. iii. 20. 58. In the other table, which is for man, it is not said what good he should do, but what evil he should not do ; as that he should not kill ; that he should not commit adultery ; that he should not steal ; that he should not bear false wit- ness ; that he should not covet : the reason is, because man cannot do any thing good from himself; but when he ceases to do evils, then he does good, not from himself, but from the Lord. That man is able to shun evils as from himself, by virtue of the Lord's power, if he implores it, will be seen in what follows. FOR THE NEW JERUSALEM. 31 59. What was said above, n. 55, concerning the promul- gation, sanctity and power of the law of the decalogue, ap- pears from the following passages in the Word. That Jehovah descended upon mount Sinai in fire, and that the mount then smoked and shook ; and that there were thun- derings, lightnings, and a thick cloud, and the voice of a trumpet, may be seen, Exod. xix. 16, 18, Deut. iv. 11, chap. v. 19 to 23. That the people prepared and sanctified themselves for three days previous to the descent of Jehovah, may be seen, Exod. xix. 10, 11, 15. That the mountain was fenced about, to prevent any one from approaching to the foot of it, lest he should die ; and that not even the priests, but Moses alone, was to ap- proach, may be seen, Exod. xix. 12, 13, -20 to 23, chap, xxiv. 1, 2. The law itself, as promulgated from mount Sinai, may be seen, Exod. xx. 2 to 14, Deut. v. 6 to 18. That the law was written on two tables of stone with the fin- ger of God, may be seen, Exod. xxxi. 18, chap, xxxii. 15, 16, Deut. ix. 10. That the face of Moses shone, when he brought the tables down from the mount the second time, may be seen, Exod. xxxiv. 29 to 35. That the tables were laid up in an ark, may be seen, Exod. xxv. 16, chap. xl. 20, Deut. x. 5, 1 Kings viii. 9. That over the ark was set the mercy-seat, and over the mer- cy-seat cherubs of gold, may be seen, Exod. xxv. 17 to 21. That the ark, with the mercy-seat and cherubs, constituted the inmost of the tabernacle ; and that the golden candlestick, the golden altar of incense, and the table overlaid with gold, on which was the show-bread, constituted the exterior part of the tabernacle; and that the ten curtains of fine linen, pur- ple, and scarlet, constituted its outermost part; may be seen, Exod. xxv. 1 to the end, chap. xxvi. 1 to the end, chap. xl. 17 to 28. That the place where the ark was, was called the holy of holies, Exod. xxvi. 33. That all the people of Israel encamped around the taberna- cle in order according to their tribes, and journeyed in order after it, Numbers ii. 1 to the end. That at such times there was over the tabernacle a cloud by day, and fire by night, Exod. xl. 38, Numb. ix. 15, 16 to the end, chap. xiv. 14, Deut. i. 33. 32 THE DOCTRINE OP LIFE That the Lord discoursed with Moses over the ark between the cherubs, Exod. xv. 22, Numb. vii. 89. That the ark, by reason of the law contained in it, was called Jehovah There ; for Moses said, when the ark went forward, Arise Jehovah ; and when it rested, Return Jehovah ; Numb. x. 35, 36, 2 Sam. vi. 2, Psalm cxxxii. 8. That by reason of the sanctity of that law, it was not law- ful for Aaron to enter within the vail, except with sacrifices and incense, Levit. xvi. 2 to 14. That the ark was introduced into Zion by David with sac- rifices and rejoicing 2 Sam. vi. 1 to 19; and that Uzza died because he touched it, verses 6, 7, of the same chapter. That the ark was placed in the middle of the temple at Je- rusalem, where it constituted the most sacred place, 1 Kings vi. 19, chap. viii. 3 to 9. That by reason of the Lord's presence and power in the law which was in the ark, the waters of Jordan were divided, and so long as the ark rested in the midst, the people passed over on dry ground, Josh. ii. 1 to 17, chap. iv. 5 to 20. That the walls of Jericho fell down in consequence of car- rying the ark about them, Josh. vi. 1 to 20. That Dagon, the God of the Philistines, fell to the earth be- fore the ark, and afterwards was found lying on the thresh- old of the temple with his head separated from the trunk, 1 Sam. v. 3, 4. That the Bethshemites, by reason of the ark, were smitten to the number of several thousands, 1 Sam. vi. 19. 69. That the tables of stone on which the law was written were called the tables of the covenant; and that the ark, by reason thereof, was called the ark of the covenant, and that the law itself was called the covenant ; may be seen, Numb. x. 33, Deut. iv. 13, 23, chap. v. 2, 3, chap. ix. 9, Josh. iii. 11, 1 Kings viii. 19, 21, Rev. xi. 19; and in many other places. The reason why the law was called the covenant, is, because a covenant signifies conjunction ; wherefore it is said of the Lord, that " he should be for a covenant to the people" Isaiah xlii. 6, chap. xlix. 8 : and he is called " the angel of the cov- enant," Mai. iii. 1 ; and his blood " the blood of the covenant," Matt. xxvi. 28, Zech. ix. 11, Exod. xxiv. 4 to 10 ; and for the same reason the Word is called the Old Covenant and the New Covenant. Covenants also are made with a view to love, friendship, and consociation, consequently to conjunction. 61. That the precepts of that law were called the ten words, FOR THE NEW JERUSALEM. 33 may be seen, Exod. xxxiv. 28, Deut. iv. 13, chap, x. 4*; they are so called, because ten signify all, and words signify truths ; for there were more than ten. Inasmuch as ten signify all, therefore the curtains of the tabernacle were ten, Exod. xxiv. 1 ; and therefore the Lord said, that a man about to receive a kingdom called ten servants, and gave them ten pounds to trade with, Luke xix. 13 : for the same reason he likened the kingdom of the heavens to ten virgins, Matt. xxv. 1 : for the same reason the dragon is described as having ten horns, and upon his horns ten diadems, Rev. xii. 3 ; in like manner the beast coming up out of the sea, Rev. xiii. 1 ; and also anoth- er beast, Rev. xvii. 3, 7 ; likewise the beast in Daniel, chap, vii. 7, 20, 24. The like is signified by ten, Levit. xxvi. 26, Zech. viii. 23 ; and in other places. Hence come tenths, by which is signified somewhat out of all. VII. THAT MURDERS, ADULTERIES, THEFTS, AND FALSE WIT- NESS, OF EVERY KlND, WITH THE CONCUPISCENCES PROMPTING THERETO, ARE EviLS, WHICH OUGHT TO BE SHUNNED AS SlNS. 62. IT is well known, that the law of Sinai was written on two tables, and that the first table contains those things which relate to God, and the other, those which relate to man. That the first table contains all things relating to God, and the oth- er, all things relating to man, does not appear in the letter ; nevertheless all things are therein, and therefore they are call- ed the ten words, by which are signified all truths in the com- plex, as may be seen above, n. 61. But in what manner all things are therein, cannot be explained in a few words; it may, however, be comprehended from what was adduced in the DOCTRINE concerning the SACRED SCRIPTURE, n. 67. Hence it is, that it is said, murders, adulteries, thefts, and false witness, of every kind. 63. A religious persuasion has prevailed, that no one can fulfil the law ; and the law is, not to kill, not to commit adul- tery, not to steal, and not to bear false witness. It is admit- ted that every civil and moral man may, in his civil and mor- al life, fulfil these precepts of the law ; but to fulfil them from a principle of spiritual life, is supposed, according to the above persuasion, to be impossible. From this it follows, that the motive to the obedience of those precepts, is, only to avoid * See the margin of the English Bible. 34 THE DOCTRINE OP LIPB punishment and loss in this world, and not to avoid punish* ment and loss in the next ; hence it is, that the man with whom the above persuasion prevails, thinks those evils law- ful in the sight of God, but unlawful in the sight of the world. It is owing to this religious persuasion, that man remains in the concupiscence to all the above evils, and is only restrained from the outward commission of them by worldly considerations ; wherefore such a person after death, although he had not committed murder, adultery, theft, and false witness, is still in the concupiscence to commit them, and also does commit them, when the external part or princi- ple, which he had in the world, is taken away from him ; for all concupiscence remains with man after death. On this ground it is, that such persons act in unity with hell, and cannot but have their lot with those who are in hell. But the case is dif- ferent with those who do not incline to the commission of murder, of adultery, of theft, and of false witness, by reason of its being contrary to the law of God. These, after endur- ing some combat against the forbidden evil, lose at length all inclination, consequently all concupiscence leading to the com- mission of it ; saying in their hearts, that it is sin, and in its essence infernal and diabolical. These, after death, when the external part or principle, which they had in the world, is ta- ken away, act in unity with heaven ; and by reason of their being in the Lord, are also admitted into heaven. 64. It is a common maxim in every religion, that man ought to examine himself, to do the work of repentance, and to de- sist from sins ; and that in case he does not, he remains in a state of damnation : that this is a maxim common to every re- ligion, may be seen above, n. 4, 5, 6, 7, 8. It is also a uni- versal maxim, prevailing throughout the Christian world, that the decalogue ought to be taught, and that children should be initiated thereby into the Christian religion : for the dec- alogue is put into the hands of all young children ; they are also taught by their parents and masters, that to do the evils forbidden in the decalogue is to sin against God ; yea, the par- ents and masters are convinced thereof whilst they are instruct- ing their children. How surprising then it is, that these same parents, and masters, and also their children when they grow up, should conceive that they are not under that law of t he decalogue, And that they cannot do the things prescribed in that law ! and can there be any other ground or reason for such a con- ceit, than that they love the forbidden evils, and, in conse- quence, the falses which favor them ? These therefore are FOR THE NEW JERUSALEM. 35 they, who do not make the precepts of the decalogue precepts of religion. That the same persons live without religion, may be seen in the DOCTRINE ON THE SUBJECT OF FAITH. 65. All nations on the face of the earth, who have any re- ligion, are in possession of precepts similar to those contained in the decalogue ; and all they who live according thereto, from a religious principle, are saved ; but ail who do not live ac- cording thereto, from a religious principle, are damned. They who live according thereto from a religious principle, being in- structed after death by angels, receive truths, and acknowl- edge the Lord ; the reason is, because they shun evils as sins, and hence are principled in good, and good loves truth, and re- ceives it from the desire of its love, as was shown above, n. 32 to 41. This is meant by the Lord's words to the Jews : " The kingdom of God shall be taken from you, and be given to a na- tion bringing forth the fruits thereof '" Matt. xxi. 43; and also by these words : " When the Lord of the vineyard cometh,he shall destroy those wickedmen, and shall let out his vineyard unto other husbandmen, who will render him the fruits in their season," Matt. xxi. 40, 41 ; and by these : " I say unto you, that many shall come from the east and the west, and from the north and the south, and shall sit down in the kingdom of God; but the sons of the kingdom shall be cast into outer darkness," Matt, viii. 11, 12, Luke xiii. 29. 66. We read in Mark, that " a certain rich person came to Jesus, and asked him what he should do to inherit eternal life 1" To whom Jesus replied, " Thou knowest the commandments : Thou shalt not commit adultery ; thou shall not kill ; thou shall not bear false witness ; thou shalt not steal ; honor thy father and mother :" he answering said, " All these things I have kept from my youth :" Jesus looked at him and loved him : he said nevertheless, " One thing thou lackest : go thy way, sell whatsoever thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in the heavens ; and come, take up the cross, and follow me," x. 17 to 22. It is said thai Jesus loved him, and this, because he said he had kept those com- mandments from his youth ; but whereas he lacked three things, viz. that he had not removed his heart from riches, that he had not fought against concupiscences, and that he had not as yet acknowledged the Lord to be God ; therefore the Lord said unto him, that he should sell all that he had, whereby is meant, that he should remove his heart from rich- es ; that he should take up the cross, whereby is meant, that he should fight against concupiscences, and that he should 36 THE DOCTRINE OF LIFE follow Him, by which is meant, that he should acknowl- edge the Lord to be God. The Lord here spake, as in all other cases, by correspondences : see the DOCTRINE CON- CERNING THE SACRED SCRIPTURE, n. 17. For no one can shun evils as sins unless he acknowledges the Lord, and ap- proaches him, and unless he fights against evils, and thus re- moves concupiscences. But more will be said on this subject in the article concerning combats against evils. VIII. THAT so FAR AS ANY ONE SHUNS MURDERS OF EVERY KIND AS SINS, so FAR HE HAS LOVE TOWARDS HIS NEIGHBOR. 67. By murders of every kind are understood also enmities, hatreds and revenge of every kind, which breathe a murder- ous purpose ; for therein murder lies hid, as fire under em- bers : the infernal fire is nothing else but such a murderous spirit ; and it is from this ground that men are said to burn with hatred and revenge : these are murders in a natural sense : but by murders in a spiritual sense, are meant ( all the methods of killing and destroying the souls of men, which are various and manifold ;' but by murder in a supreme sense is meant to hate the Lord. These three kinds of murder make a one, and cohere together ; for whosoever is disposed to kill the body of man in this world, is also disposed after death to kill the soul of man, and even to destroy the Lord ; for he burns with anger against the Lord, and is desirous to put out his name. 68. These kinds of murder lie concealed inwardly with man from his birth ; but still he learns from his infancy to cover them over with civil and moral conduct, which he must needs practise in his intercourse with mankind ; and so far as he loves honor or gain, so far he is watchful over himself, lest his murderous inclinations should appear. This is practised by man with respect to his external part, whilst, nevertheless, his internal consists of the above kinds of murder : such is the real nature and quality of man in himself. Now whereas he lays aside his external part with the body when he dies, and retains his internal, it is evident what a devil he must become, unless he be reformed. 69. Inasmuch as the above-mentioned kinds of murder lie inwardly concealed in man from his birth, as has been said, and at the same time thefts of every kind, and false witness of every kind, with the concupiscences prompting thereto, FOR THE NEW JERUSALEM. 37 concerning which more will be said presently ; it is evident, that unless the Lord had provided the means of reformation, man must needs have perished eternally. The means of ref- ormation which the Lord has provided are these : that man is born in mere ignorance ; that wmlst an infant he is kept in a state of external innocence ; soon after in a state of ex- ternal charity, and then in a state of external friendship: but as he comes into the exercise of thought, by virtue of his un- derstanding, he is kept in a certain freedom of acting accord- ing to reason. This is the state which was described above, 11. 19, and which we shall here transcribe with a view to what follows : it runs thus : " Man, during his abode in the world, is in the midst be- tween heaven and hell ; beneath is hell, and above is heaven : and at the same time he is kept in the liberty of turning him- self either to hell or heaven : if he turns himself to hell, he turns himself away from heaven, but if he turns himself to heaven, he turns himself away from hell. Or, what is the same thing, man, during his abode in the world, stands in the midst between the Lord and the devil, and is kept in the liberty of turning himself to one or the other : if he turns him- self to the devil, he turns himself away from the Lord, but if he turns himself to the Lord, he turns himself away from the devil. Or, what is the same thing, man, during his abode in the world, is in the midst between- evil and good, and is kept in the liberty of turning himself either to the one or to the other : if he turns himself to evil, he turns himself away from good, but if he turns himself to good, he turns himself away from evil." See the same above, n. 19; see also n. 20, 21, 22. 70. Inasmuch then as evil and good are two opposites, in all respects like hell and heaven, or like the devil and the Lord, it follows, that if man shuns evil as sin, he comes into the good that is opposite to the evil : the good opposite to the evil which is meant by murder, is the good of neighborly love. 71. Inasmuch as this good and that evil are opposites, it fol- lows, that the latter is removed by the former. Two opposites cannot abide together, as heaven and hell cannot abide togeth- er : supposing them to be together, there would result that lukewarm state, of which it is written in the Revelation, " / know that thou art neither cold nor hot ; I wish thou wert cold or hot ; but because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth,' 1 ill. 15, 16. 72. When man is no longer in the evil of murder, but iu 4 38 THE DOCTRINE OF LIFE the good of love towards his neighbor, then whatsoever he does is the good of that love, consequently, is a good work. A priest, for example, who is principled in that good, as often as he teaches and leads his flock, does a good work, because he acts from a love of saving souls. A magistrate also, who is principled in that good, as often as he executes the laws of order and justice, does a good work, because he acts from a love of his country, of the society to which he belongs, and of his fellow-citizens. A merchant, in like manner, if he be principled in that good, does a good work in every thing per- taining to his commercial pursuits, being influenced therein by the love of his neighbor, that is, of his country, of the so- ciety to which he belongs, of his fellow-citizens, and also of his domestics, who are his real neighbors, and for whose good he provides whilst he is providing for his own. A laborer, also, who is principled in that good, labors faithfully, under its influence, for others as for himself, fearing his neighbor's loss as his own. The reason why all the deeds done by such are good works, is, because so far as any one shuns evil, so far he does good, according to the general law above stated, n. 21 ; and he who shuns evil as sin, does good, not from him- self, but from the Lord, n. 18 to 31. It is otherwise with him who does not regard murders of every kind as sins, whether they be enmities, hatreds, revenge, or other evils of a like na- ture : whatever is done by such a person, be he a priest, or a magistrate, or a merchant, or a laborer, is not a good work, because every work done by such a one partakes of the evil which is within him; for his internal part or principle is what produces or gives birth to the work, the external whereof may possibly be good, but for others, not for himself. 73. The Lord inculcates the good of love in many passages in the Word ; and teaches it particularly in Matthew, by recon- ciliation with our neighbor, in these words: " If thou offcr- est thy gift upon the altar, and there rcmcmbcrcst that thy broth- er hath any thing against thee, leave there thy gift before the altar, andjirst go and be reconciled to thy brother ; then come and offer thy gift. Agree with thine adversary whilst thou art in the way with him, lest the adversary deliver thee to the judge, and the judge deliver thee to tlie officer, and thou be cast into prison : verily I say unto thee, thou shalt not come forth thence, until thou hast paid the uttermost farthing," chap. v. 23 to 26 : to be reconciled to a brother is to shun enmity, hatred, and revenge ; that is, to shun such evils as sins, is ev- ident. The Lord also teaches, in Matthew, " Whatsoever ye FOR THE NEW JERUSALEM. 39 would that men should do unto you, even so do unto them, for this is the law and the prophets," vii. 12 ; consequently evil should not be done to him : not to mention many other pas- sages to the same purport. The Lord also teaches, that mur- der consists in being angry with a brother or a neighbor with- out a cause, and in accounting him as an enemy, Matt. v. 21,22. IX. THAT s6 FAR AS ANY ONE SHUNS ADULTERIES OF EVE- RY KIND AS SINS, so FAR HE LOVES CHASTITY. 74. By adultery, in the sixth commandment of the deca- logue, in a natural sense, is not only meant whoredom, but also all obscene acts, all wanton discourse, and all filthy, un- clean thoughts : but by committing adultery, in a spiritual sense, is meant, to adulterate the good things'of the Word, and to falsify its truths : and in a supreme sense, by committing adultery is meant to deny the Lord's divinity and to profane the Word : these are the several kinds of adultery. The nat- ural man, by means of his rational light, may know that by adultery is meant every obscene act, all wanton discourse, and every filthy thought ; but he does not know, that by com- mitting adultery is also meant, to adulterate the good things of the Word and to falsify its truths ; and still less that it means the denying the Lord's divinity and profaning the Word : hence he does not know, that adultery is so great an evil, as that it may be called essentially diabolical ; for whosoever is princi- pled in natural adultery is also in spiritual adultery, and vice versa : that this is the case will be demonstrated in a particular treatise concerning CONJUGIAL LOVE. But they are at once in adulteries of every kind, who do not regard adulteries as sins, both in faith and life. 75. The reason why so far as any one shuns adultery, so far he loves marriage ; or, what is the same thing, so far as any one shuns the lasciviousness of adultery, so far he loves the chastity of marriage ; is, because the lasciviousness of adultery and the chastity of marriage are two opposites ; wherefore so far as man is not in the one, so far he is in the other. The case in this respect is as was described above, n. 70. 76. It is impossible for any one to know what the chastity of marriage is, unless he shuns the lasciviousness of adultery as sin. A man may know that in which he is, but he can- not know that in which he is not ; if he knows any thing, in 40 THE DOCTRINE OP LIFE which he is not, by description, or by thinking about it, still he knows it only as somewhat obscure, and involved in doubt ; wherefore he does not see it in a clear light, and free from doubt, until he is in it : in the latter case therefore he knows, but in the former case he may be said to know and not to know. The truth is, that the lasciviousness of adultery and the chastity of marriage, compared with each other, are like hell and heaven compared with each other ; and that the las- civiousness of adultery makes hell with man, and the chasti- ty of marriage make heaven with him. The chastity of mar- riage, however, abides only with those who shun the lascivi- ousness of adultery as sin : see below, n. 111. 77. From what has been said it may without difficulty be concluded and seen, whether a man be a Christian or not, yea, whether he has any religion or not: for whosoever does not regard adulteries as sins, in faith and life, is not a Chris- tian, neither has he any religion. But on the other hand, whosoever shuns adulteries as sins, especially if he holds them in aversion by reason of their being sins, and still more, if he abominates them on that account, has religion, and if he be in the Christian Church, is a Christian. But more svill be seen on this subject in the Treatise concerning CONJUGIAL LOVE : in the mean time, see what is said upon it in the Trea- tise on HEAVEN AND HELL, n. 366 to 380. 78. That by adulteries are also meant obscene acts, loose, wanton discourse, and filthy thoughts, appears plain from the Lord's words in Matthew : " Ye have heard that it hath been said by them of old time, thou shalt not commit adultery; but I say unto you, that whosoever shall look upon a woman to lust after her, hath already committed adultery with her in his lieart," v. 27, 28. 79. That by committing adultery, in a spiritual sense, is meant to adulterate the good of the Word, and to falsify its truth, appears from the following passages : " Babylon hath made all nations drink of the wine, of her fornication" Rev. xiv. 8. " The angel said, I will show thee the judgment of the great whore that sitteth upon many waters, with whom the kings of the earth have committed whoredom,' 1 Rev. xvii. 1, 2. " All nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornica- tion, and the kings of the earth have committed whoredom with her," Rev. xviii. 3. " God hath judged the great whore, who corrupted the earth with her whoredom," Rev. xix. 2. Whore- dom is spoken of in regard to Babylon, because by Babylon are meant those who arrogate to themselves the divine power FOR THE NEW JERUSALEM. 41 of the Lord, and profane the Word by adulterating and falsi- fying it ; wherefore also Babylon is called " the mother of whoredoms and abominations of the earth," Rev. xvii. 5. The same is signified by whoredom in the prophets ; as in Jeremi- ah : " / have seen a horrible thing in the prophets of Jerusa- lem ; they commit adultery and walk in lies" xxiii. 14. So in Ezekiel : " Two women, the daughters of one mother, com- mitted whoredom in Egypt ; they committed whoredom in their youth ; one committed whoredom under me ; she doated on her lovers, the Assyrians her neighbors ; she committed her whoredoms upon them ; yet she forsook not her whoredoms in Egypt. The other corrupted her love more than the former, and her whoredoms more than the whoredoms of her sister ; she added to her whoredoms, she loved the Chaldeans ; the sons of Babel [Babylon] came to her to the bed of love, and polluted her by their whoredom, 1 ' xxiii. 2 to 17 : these words relate to the Is- raelitish and Jewish church, which are called the daughters of one mother: by their whoredoms are meant the adultera- tions and falsifications of the Word ; and whereas, in the Word, by Egypt is signified science, by Assyria reasoning, by Chaldea the profanation of truth, and by Babel the profa- nation of good, therefore it is said that they committed whore- dom with those nations. The like is said in Ezekiel concern- ing Jerusalem, whereby is signified the church as to doctrine : " Thou didst trust to thy beauty, and committc.dst whoredom because of thy renown, so that thou pourcdst out thy whoredoms on every one that passed by : thou hast committed whoredom with the sons of Egypt thy neighbors, great inflfsh, and hast multiplied thy whoredom : thou hast committed whoredom with the sons of the Assyrian; and when thou wast not satisfied with those with whom thou committedst whoredom, thou multi~ pliedst thy whoredom even to Chaldea, the land of merchandise : an adulterous woman hath received strangers instead of her husband ; all give a reward to their whores, but thou hast giv- en rewards to all thy lovers, that they may come to thce in thy circuit in thy whoredoms ; wherefore, O harlot, hear the word of Jehovah;' xvi. 15, 26, 23, 29, 32, 33, 35 : that by Jerusa- lem is meant the church, may be seen in the DOCTRINE CON- CERNING THE LORD, n. 62, 63 ; the like is signified by whore- doms in Isaiah, chap, xxiii. 17, chap. Ivii. 3 ; and in Jeremi- ah, chap. ii. 2, 6, 8, 9, chap. v. 1, 7, chap. xiii. 27, chap. xxix. 23 ; and in Micah, chap. i. 7 ; and in Nahum, chap. iii. 4 ; and in Hosea, chap. iv. 10, 11 ; and in Levit. xxv. 5 ; and in Numbers xiv. 33, chap. xv. 39 : and in other places. For the 4* 42 TH DOCTRINE OF LIFE aame reason also the Jewish nation was called by the Lord " an adulterous generation," Matt. xii. 39, chap. xvi. 4, Mark viii. 38. X. THAT so FAR AS ANY ONE SHUNS THEFTS OF EVERY KIND AS SlNS, SO FAR HE LOVES SINCERITY. 80. By stealing, in a natural sense, is not only meant to steal and to rob, but also to defraud, and under any pretence to take away the goods of another : but by stealing, in a spir- itual sense, is meant, to deprive another of the truths of his faith, and of the goods of his charity : whereas by stealing, in a supreme sense, is meant, to take away from the Lord what is his, and to attribute it to one's self, and thus to claim right- eousness and merit. These are thefts of every kind ; and they also make a one, as do adulteries of every kind, and murders of every kind, spoken of above : the reason why they make a one is, because one kind is involved in the other. 81. The evil of theft enters deeper into man than any other evil, because it is conjoined with deceit and cunning, and de- ceit and cunning insinuate themselves even into the spiritual mind of man, which is the seat of his thought as grounded in understanding. That man has a spiritual mind and a natural mind, will be seen below. 82. The reason why man loves sincerity so far as he shuns theft as sin, is, because theft is also fraud, and fraud and sin- cerity are two opposites ; wherefore so far as any one is not in fraud, so far he is in sincerity. 83. By sincerity is also meant integrity, justice, fidelity, and uprightness : man cannot be principled in these virtues from himself, so as to love them by and for the sake of them; but whosoever shuns fraud, deceit, and cunning, as sins, there- by becomes principled in those virtues, not from himself, but from the Lord, as was shown above, n. 18 to 32. This is true in regard to every one in his station and office ; as in re- gard to a priest, to a magistrate, to a judge, to a trader, and to a laborer. 84. The same appears from many passages of the Word ; as from the following : " Whosoever walketh in righteousness, and speaketh uprightnesses ; whosoever hateth oppressions for gain, and shaketh his hands from holding bribes ; whostoppeth his ears from hearing of bloods, and shutteth his eyes from seeing evil ; he shall dwell in heights," Isaiah xxxiii. 15, 16. " Jehovah, who shall dwell in thy tent, who sJtall inhabit in the mountain of thy holiness ? He that walketh upright and docth FOR THE NEW JERUSALEM. 43 righteousness, he doth not backbite with his tongue, nor do evil to his companion," Psalm xv. 1, 2, 3. " Mine eyes are upon the faithful of the earth, that they may sit with me : he that walketh in the way itf the upright, he shall minister unto me. There shall not sit in the midst of my house he that docth de- ceit ; he that speaketh lies shall not stand in my sight. I will early destroy all the wicked of the land, to cut off" from the city all that work iniquity " Psalm ci. 6, 7, 8. That he who is not inwardly sincere, just, faithful, and up- right, remains in reality insincere, unjust, unfaithful, and de- void of uprightness, the Lord teaches in these words : " Except your righteousness shall exceed that of the scribes and Phari- sees, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of the heavens," Matt. v. 20 : by the righteousness which exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, is meant interior righteousness, in which the man is principled who is in the Lord. That man ought to be in the Lord, he himself teaches in John: " The glory which thou hast given me I have given them, that they may be one as we are one, I in them, and thou in me, that they may be perfect in one ; and that the love with which thou hast loved me may be in them, and I in them" xvii. 22, 23, 26 ; from whence it is evident, that they are perfect when the Lord is in them. These are they who are called " the pure in heart, who shall see God; and the perfect as their Father in the heavens ," Matt, v. 8, 48. 85. It was said above, n. 81, that the evil of theft enters deeper with man than any other evil, because it is conjoined with deceit and cunning, and deceit and cunning insinuate themselves even into the mind of the spiritual man, where his thought is grounded in understanding ; wherefore it may be expedient here to say something concerning the MIND of man. That the mind of man is his understanding and will together, may be seen above, n. 43. 86. Man has a natural mind and a spiritual mind ; the nat- ural mind is beneath, and the spiritual mind is above : the natural mind is the mind of his world, and the spiritual mind is the mind of his heaven.* The natural mind may be called * It was a doctrine amongst the ancient philosophers, that man is a MICRO- COSM, or little world, in which the great world is portrayed in miniature- Thus, as in the great work! there is an inward or spiritual world, and an out- ward or natural world, so it is with the little world of man 5 his inward or spir- itual part is what is here called his heaven, and his outward or natural part is what our author calls his world : each of these parts has its respective mind, or ruling spirit ; and it is according' to this idea, that man's natural mind is here called by the author the mind of his world, or outward part, and his spiritual mind, the mind of his heaven, or of his inward part. 44 THE DOCTRINE OF LIFE the animal mind, but the spiritual mind the human mind. Man is also distinguished from a mere animal by this, that he has a spiritual mind, whereby he has a capacity of being in heaven during his abode in the world : it is likewise by vir- tue of this mind that man lives after death. Man, as to his understanding, can be in his spiritual mind, and thence in heaven ; but he cannot be as to his will in his spiritual mind, and thence in heaven, unless he shuns evils as sins : and unless he be also as to his will in heaven, still he is not in heaven ; for the will draws the understanding downwards, and causes it to be alike animal and natural as itself. Man may be compared to a garden, the understanding to light, and the will to heat : a garden is in light and not at the same time in heat, during winter, but it is in light and heat together during summer : the man, therefore, who is in the light of the understanding alone, is as a garden in the time of winter ; but he who is in the light of the understanding, and at the same time in the warmth of the will, is as a garden in the time of summer. The understanding also is wise by virtue of spiritual light, and the will loves by virtue of spirit- ual heat; for spiritual light is the divine wisdom, and spiritu- al heat is the divine love. So long as man does not shun evils as sins, the concupis- cences of evils close up the interiors of the natural mind on the part of the will, being like a dense veil there, and as a dark cloud beneath the spiritual mind, and preventing it from being opened : but as soon as man shuns evils as sins, then the Lord flows in out of heaven, and removes the veil, and disperses the cloud, and opens the spiritual mind, and thereby introduces him into heaven. So long as the concupiscences of evils close up the interi- ors of the natural mind, as just observed, so long man is in hell ; but as soon as those concupiscences are dispersed by the Lord, man is in heaven. Further ; so long as the concu- piscences of evils close up the interiors of the natural mind, so long he is merely a natural man ; but as soon as those con- cupiscences are dispersed by the Lord, he becomes a spiritual man. Again; so long as the concupiscences of evils close up the interiors of the natural mind, so long man is a mere animal, differing only in this, that he has power to think and speak, even concerning such things as he does not see with his eyes, which is a consequence of the faculty he enjoys of elevating his understanding into the light of heaven ; but ae FOR THE NEW JERUSALEM. 45 soon as those concupiscences are dispersed by the Lord, man becomes truly a man, because he then thinks what is true, in the understanding, by virtue of what is good in the will. Last- ly ; so long as the concupiscences of evils close up the interi- ors of the natural mind, so long man is as a garden in the time of winter ; but as soon as those concupiscences are dis- persed by the Lord, he is like a garden in the time of sum- mer. The conjunction of the will and the understanding with man is meant in the Word by the heart and soul, and by the heart and spirit ; as where it is said, that " God should be lov- ed with the whole heart, and with the whole soul," Matt. xxii. 35 ; and that " God would give a new heart, and a new spir- it," Ezek. xi, 19, chap, xxxvi. 26, 27; by the heart is meant the will and its love, and by soul, and by the spirit, the under- standing and its wisdom. XI. THAT so FAR AS ANY ONE SHUNS FALSE WITNESS OF EV- ERY KIND AS SINS, so FAR HE LOVES TRUTH. 87. By bearing false witness, in a natural sense, is not on- ly meant to act in the character of a false witness, but also to lie and to defame. By bearing false witness in a spiritual sense is meant, to assert, and to persuade others, that what is false is true, and that what is evil is good, and vice versa : but in a supreme sense, by bearing false witness, is meant to blas- pheme the Lord and the Word : these are what constitute the bearing false witness in a threefold sense. That these sever- al kinds of false witness, make a one with every man who acts as a false witness, who tells a lie, and defames his neighbor, may appear from what was shown in the DOCTRINE CONCERN- ING THE SACRED SCRIPTURE, in relation to the threefold sense of all that is contained in the Word, n. 5, 6, 7, and 57. 88. Inasmuch as a lie and truth are two opposites, it fol- lows, that so far as any one shuns a lie as sin, so far he loves truth. 89. So far as any one loves truth, so far he is desirous of knowing it, and so far he is affected in heart when he finds it ; nor can any other attain unto wisdom ; and so far as he loves to do the truth, so far he is made sensible of the pleas- antness of the light in which the truth is. The case is simi- lar in respect to the subjects spoken of above ; as in respect to sincerity and justice with him who shuns thefts of every kind ; in respect to chastity and purity with him who shuns 46 THE DOCTRINE OP LIFE adulteries of every kind ; and in respect to love and charity with him who shuns murders of every kind, &.c. But he who is in the opposites, knows not any thing concerning these vir- tues ; when yet they contain in them every thing that is any thing. 90. It is truth which is meant by the seed in the field, con- cerning which the Lord speaks in these words : " A sower went out to sow. And as he sowed, some fell by the way- fide, which was trodden under foot, and the fowls of heaven devour- ed it ; and some fell upon stony ground, but as soon as it was sprung up, it withered away, because it lacked moisture ; and some fell into the midst of thorns, and the thorns sprang up with it and choked it ; and other fell upon good ground, and sprang up, and bare fruit, a hundredfold," Luke viii. 5 to 8, Matt. xiii. 3 to 8, Mark iv. 3 to 8. The sower here is the Lord, and the seed is his Word, consequently truth; the seed by the way-side is with those who take no concern about truths ; the seed on stony ground is with those who take con- cern about truth, but not for its own sake, and thus not in- wardly ; the seed in the midst of thorns is with those who are in the concupiscences of evil ; but the seed in the good ground is with those who love the truths which are in the Word from the Lord, and practise thsm in dependence on him, and thus bring forth fruit. That this is the meaning of the parable ap- pears from the Lord's explication of it, Matt. xiii. 19 to 23, Mark iv. 14 to 20, Luke viii. 1 1 to 15. Hence it is evident, that the truth of the Word cannot take root with those who take no concern about truth ; nor with those who love truth outwardly and not inwardly ; nor with those who are in the concupiscences of evil ; but with those in whom the concupis- cences of evil are dispersed by the Lord. In these last, the seed, that is, truth, is rooted in their spiritual mind; concern- ing which, see above, n. 86. 91. It is a prevailing notion at this day, that salvation con- sists in believing this or that doctrine of the church, and has no connexion with doing the commandments of the decalogue, (which are, not to kill, not to commit adultery, not to steal, not to bear false witness, both in a confined and extended sense,) for it is urged, that works are not regarded, but faith from God ; when nevertheless the truth is, that so far as any one is in those evils, so far he is without faith, as was shown above, n. 42 to 52. For consult your reason, and consider well, wheth- er any murderer, adulterer, thief, and false witness, so long as he is in the concupiscence of such evils, can have faith ; FOR THE NEW JERUSALEM. 47 and further, whether the concupiscence of such evils can pos- sibly be otherwise dispersed than by not willing to do them because they are sins, that is, because they are infernal and diabolical : wherefore, whosoever supposes that salvation con- sists in believing this or that doctrine which the church teach- es, and is still in the concupiscence of murder, of adultery, of theft, and of false witness, must needs come under the de- scription of that foolish one mentioned by the Lord in Matthew, chap. vii. 26. Such a church is thus described in Jeremiah : " Stand in the gate of the house of Jehovah, and proclaim there this word ; Thus saith Jehovah of hosts the God of Isra- el, Amend your ways and your works ; trust ye not in the words of a lie, saying, The temple of Jehovah, the temple of Jehovah, the temple of Jehovah, are these; Will ye steal, mur- der, and commit adultery, and swear by a lie, and come and stand before me in this house, on which my name is named, and say, We are delivered, whilst ye do thote abominations ? Is this house become a den of robbers 1 Behold, even I have seen, saith Jehovah," vii. 2, 3, 4, 9, 10, 11. XII. THAT IT is NOT POSSIBLE FOR ANY ONE TO SHUN EVILS AS SlNS, SO THAT HE MAY HOLD THEM INWARDLY IN AvER- SION, EXCEPT BY COMBATS AGAINST THEM. 92. It must appear plain to every one, both from the Word and from doctrine thence derived, that the proprium, or self- hood, of man, is evil from his birth, and that it is in conse- quence of this that he loves evils, from an innate concupis- cence, and is hurried on to the very commission of them, from a desire to revenge, to defraud, to defame, and to com- mit adultery ; and in case he does not think that they are sins, and resist them on that account, he commits them as often as opportunity offers, and when his interest and reputation are not endangered. Man, moreover, yields to the influence of these evils with a feeling of delight, when there is nothing of the nature of religion within him. 93. Inasmuch as this proprium, or self-hood, of man, con- stitutes the first root of his life, it is evident what sort of a tree man would become, if that root were not to be extirpated, and a new one implanted ; he would be a rotten tree, of which it is said, that it is to be cut down and cast into the fire, Matt, iii. 10, chap. vii. 19. This root is not removed, and a new one implanted in its stead, unless man regards the evils, which constitute the root, as destructive to his soul, and is on that 48 THE DOCTRINE OF LIFE account desirous of removing them : but inasmuch as they appertain to his proprium, and are consequently delightful to him, he cannot effect their removal but with a degree of un- willingness, and of struggle against them, and thus of combat. 94. Every one who believes that there is a hell and a heav- en, and that heaven is eternal felicity, and that hell is eternal infelicity ; and who believes, further, that they who commit evil go to hell, and they who do good, to heaven ; is brought into a state of combat ; and he who is in combat, acts from an interior principle, and in opposition to that concupiscence which constitutes the root of evil ; for whosoever is engaged in combat against any thing, does not will or desire that thing, and to have concupiscence is to will and desire. Hence it is evident, that the root of evil can only be removed by combat against it. 95. So .far, therefore, as any one fights against evil, and thereby removes it, so far good succeeds in its place, and, by virtue of good, so far he views evil in the face, and then sees it to be infernal and horrible : and having made this discov- ery, he not only shuns it, but also holds it in aversion, and at length abominates it. 96. The man who fights against evils, must needs fight as from himself; otherwise he does not fight, but stands like an automaton, seeing nothing and doing nothing ; in which state, from the evil in which he is, he continually thinks in favor of evil, and not against it. But still it is well to be attended to, that the Lord alone fights in man against evils, and that it only appears to man as if he fought of himself, and that the Lord is willing it should so appear, inasmuch as without such appearance there could be no combat, and consequently no reformation. 97. Such combat is not grievous, except to those who have quite surrendered themselves to the guidance of their concu- piscences, and have indulged them with deliberate purpose ; and also to those who have confirmed themselves in the rejec- tion of the holy things of the Word and of the church ; to others it is not grievous ; let them but resist evils in intention only once in a week, or a fortnight, and they will perceive a change. 98. The Christian church is called the church militant, and it can be called militant for no other reason than as fight- ing against the devil, consequently against the evils which are from hell ; for hell is the devil. This combat consists in the temptation which every member of the church endures. FOR THE NEW JERUSALEM 49 99. The combats against evils, which are temptations, are treated of in many places in the Word, and are understood by these words of the Lord : " Verily, I say unto you, except a grain of wheat falling into the earth die, it abideth alone ; but if it die, it bcarcth much fruit," John xii. 24 : and also by these : " Whosoever will come after me, let him renounce him- self, and take up his cross, and follow me. Whosoever will save his life shall lose it ; but whosoever shall lose his life for my sake and the gospel's, the same shall save it,''' Mark viii. 34, 35 ; by the cross is understood temptation, as also in Matt, x. 38, chap, xvi. 24. Mark x. 21. Luke xiv. 27 ; by his life is meant the life of man's proprium or self-hood, as also in Matt. x. 39, chap. xvi. 25. Luke ix. 24 ; and particularly John xii. 25 ; which is also the life of the flesh that profiteth nothing, John vi. 63. Concerning combats against evils, and victories over them, the Lord speaks to the churches in the Revelation ; as to the CHURCH IN EPHESUS : " To him that overcometh will! give to cat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the para- dise of God" Rev. ii. 7 : to the CHURCH IN SMYRNA : " He that overcometh shall not be hurt by the second death," Rev. ii. 11 : to the CHURCH IN PERGAMOS : " To him that over- cometh will I give to eat of the hidden manna, and will give him a white stone, and on the stone a new name written, which no one knoweth except he that receiveth it," Rev. ii. 17 : to the CHURCH IN THYATIRA : " He that overcometh, and keep- eth my works unto the end, to him will I give power over the nations, and I will give him the morning star," Rev. ii. 26, 28 : to the CHURCH IN SARDIS : " He that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment'" Rev. iv. 5 : to the CHURCH IN PHILADELPHIA : " Him that overconuth will I make a pil- lar in the temple of my God, and I will write upon him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, the New Jerusalem, which cometh down out of heaven from God, and my new name," Rev. iii. 12 : and to the CHURCH IN LAO- DICE A : " To him that over cometh, will I give to sit with me on my throne," Rev. iii. 27. 100. The subject of those combats, which are temptations, may be seen particularly treated of in the DOCTRINE OF THE NEW JERUSALEM, from n. 187 to n. 201. Whence they are, and their nature, may be seen, n. 196, 197. How and when they happen, n. 198. What good they effect, n. 199. That the Lord fights for man, n. 200. Concerning the Lord's combats or temptations, n. 201 5 50 THE DOCTRINE OF LIFE XIII. THAT MAN OUGHT TO SHUN EVILS AS SINS, AND TO FIGHT AGAINST THEM, AS FROM HIMSELF.* 101. It is of divine order that man should act from free- dom, since to act from freedom according to reason is to act of himself. Nevertheless, these two faculties, FREEDOM and REASON, are not man's own, but are the Lord's within him : and so far as he is man, they are not taken away from him, inasmuch as without them he could not be reformed ; for he could not do the work of repentance ; he could not fight against evils, and afterwards bring forth fruits worthy of repentance. Now since freedom and reason are with man from the Lord, and man acts from them, it follows, that he does not act of himself, but as of himself. t 102. The Lord loves man, and is desirous of dwelling ivith him ; nor can he love him and dwell with him, unless he is received and loved reciprocally ; this is the only possible ground of conjunction. For this cause the Lord has given freedom and reason to man, freedom, to think and will as of himself, and reason, to direct him in such thinking and will- ing. To love any one, and to be conjoined with any one, with whom there is no reciprocation, is not possible ; neither is it possible to enter into and remain with any one with whom there is no reception. Inasmuch as reception and re- ciprocal ity are in man from the Lord, therefore the Lord says, " Abide in me, and I in you" John xv. 4 ; " He that nbideth in me, and I in him, the same beareth much fruit," John XY. 5 ; "In that day ye shall know that ye are in me, and I in * The author's distinction, that in avoiding evils as sins, man ought to exert himself AS OF HIMSKLF,IS more extensively instructive than might at first sight be apprehended, as it clearly reconciles any seeming repugnance between those two great truths, the continual influence of Divine Goodness upon the human mind, and the free agency of man, not from a liberty independent of Him in whom ne lives, moves, and has his being, but from a continual gift from the fountain of all life and liberty ; so that he cannot truly be said to act OF HIMSELF, but AS OF HIMSELF ; which distinction ascribes all the power and wisdom of his actions to God, and at the same time supports the practical truths, that man ought to exert himself in opposition to evil ; that he ought to keep his heart with diligence, to make his calling and election sure ; and that fortitude, self- denial, repentance, diligence, and circumspection, are quite consistent with that continual dependence on God, that trusting in his help and preservation, and that devotedness to his will, which is the reasonable service and solid happi- ness of the truly humble and pious Christian. t That man has freedom from the Lord, may be seen above, n. 19, 20 ; and 'n the Treatise on HEAVEN and HELL, n. 589 to 596, and n. 597 to 603. What freedom is, may be seen in the DOCTRINE OF THE NEW JERUSALEM, n. 141 u> 149. FOR THE NEW JERUSALEM. 61 you," John xiv. 20. That the Lord is in the truths and in the goods which man receives, and which abide with him, he also teaches in these words : " If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you. If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love," John xv. 7, 10 ; " He that hath my com- mandments, and doeth them, he it is that loveth me, and I will love him, and will make my abode with him," John xiv. 21, 23. Thus the Lord dwells in his own with man, and man in those things which are from the Lord, and thus in the Lord. 103. Inasmuch as there is with man from the Lord this reciprocality, and power of application on his part, and con- sequent mutual faculty for conjunction, therefore the Lord directs, that man should repent ; and this no one can do, but as of himself: "Jesus said, Except ye repent, ye shall all perish," Luke xiii. 3; 5 ; " Jesus said, The kingdom of God is at hand ; repent, and believe the Gospel" Mark i. 14, 15 " Jesus said, I am come to call sinners to repentance," Luke v. 32. " Jesus said to the churches, Repent," Rev. ii. 5, 16, 21, 22, chap. iii. 3; also, "They repented not of their deeds" Rev. xvi. 11. 104. Inasmuch as there is with man from the Lord this reciprocality, and power of application on his part, and con- sequent mutual tendency to conjunction, therefore the Lord enjoins, that man should do the commandments, and should bring forth fruits ; as in these words : " Why call ye me Lord, Lord, and do not what I say ?" Luke vi. 46 to 49. " If ye Know these things, blessed are ye if ye do them," John xiii. 17. " Ye are my friends if ye do what I command you," John xv. 14. " Whosoever teacheth and doeth, shall be called great in the kingdom of the heavens," Matt. v. 19. " Every one that heareth my toords and doeth them, I will liken to a prudent man," Matt. vii. 24. " Bring forth fruits worthy of repentance," Matt. iii. 8. " Make the tree good, and its fruit good." Matt. xii. 33. " The kingdom shall be given to a nation bringing forth the fruits thereof" Matt. xxi. 43. " Every tree which beareth not good fruit, is cut down and cast into the fire" Matt. vii. 19 ; not to mention many other pas- sages of a like nature ; from which it is evident, that ma ought to do good from himself, but by the Lord's power, which he should implore ; and this is to do good as of him- self, 105. Inasmuch as there is with man from the Lord this reciprocality, and power of application on his part, and con- sequent mutual faculty for conjunction, therefore man is to 52 THE DOCTRINE OF LIFE renoer an account of his works, and to be recompensed ac- cording to them ; for the Lord saith, " The Son of Man shall come, and render to every one according to his deeds," Matt. xvi. 27. " They wlio have done good shall come forth to the resurrection of life, and they who have done evil to the resur- rection of judgment," John v. 22. " Their works follow with them," Rev. xiv. 13. " All were judged according to their works," Rev. xx. 13. " Behold I come, and my reward is with me, that I may give to every one according to his works," Rev. xxii. 12. If there was no reciprocality with man, there would be no imputation. 106. Inasmuch as reception and reciprocality are with man, therefore the church teaches, that man should examine him- self, should confess his sins before God, should desist from them, and should lead a new life : that this is taught by eve- ry church in Christendom, may be seen above, n. 3 to 8. 107. In case man had no faculty of reception, and at the same time of thinking as from himself, nothing could have been said to him about having faith, for neither is faith from man. Without such faculty man would be like chaff in the wind, and would stand like somewhat inanimate, with his mouth open and his hands hanging down, waiting for influx, thinking nothing, and doing nothing in the things which con- cern his salvation : he has indeed no active power in those things from himself, but still he has a power of re-acting as from himself. But these things will be placed in a clearer light in the Treatise concerning ANGELIC WISDOM. XIV. THAT IF ANY ONE SHUNS EVILS FOR ANY OTHER REA- SON THAN BECAUSE THEY ARE SlNS, HE DOES NOT SHUN THEM, BUT ONLY PREVENTS THEIR APPEARING BEFORE THE EYES OF THE WORLD. 108. There are moral men who keep the commandments of the second table of the Decalogue, being guilty neither of theft, nor of blasphemy, nor of revenge, nor of adultery ; and such of them as persuade themselves that such things are evil, because they are hurtful to the common good of the state, and thereby contrary to the laws of humanity, also live in the exercise of charity, sincerity, justice, and chastity. But if they practise these goods, and shun those evils, only because they are evils, and not at the same time because they are sins, they are still merely natural men ; and with merely FOR THE NEW JERUSALEM. 53 natural men the root of evil remains ingrafted, and is not re- moved ; wherefore the good actions which they perform are not good, because they proceed from themselves. 109. It is possible for the natural moral man to appear be- fore men in the world altogether like the spiritual moral man, but not before the angels in heaven ; for before the angels in heaven, if he be principled in what is good, he appears as an image of wood, and if he be principled in what is true, as an image of marble, in which is no life : but it is otherwise with the spiritual moral man : for the natural moral man is exter- nally moral, and the spiritual moral man is internally moral, and what is external without what is internal is not alive : it lives indeed, but not the life which is called life. 110. The concupiscences of evil, which form the interiors of man from his birth, are not removed but by the Lord alone : for the Lord enters by influx from what is spiritual into what is natural, whereas man of himself flows-in from what is nat- ural into what is spiritual ; and this influx is contrary to order, and does not operate upon concupiscences to the re- moval of them, but incloses or shuts them in closer and closer in proportion as it confirms itself: and whereas hereditary evil thus lies concealed and shut up, after death, when man becomes a spirit, it bursts the covering within which it was concealed in the Woild, and breaks out, like the corruption of an ulcer which had only been superficially healed. 111. There are various and manifold causes operating to render man moral in an external form ; but if he be not also moral in an internal form, he is still not moral : as for exam- ple ; if a person abstains from adultery and whoredom through fear of the civil law and its penalties ; or through fear of losing his reputation, and consequently his prospects of world- ly advancement ; or through fear of diseases which may be thereby contracted ; or through fear of family broils, and the disturbance of his private tranquillity; or through fear of re- venge from the husband or relatives ; or from poverty or avarice ; or from weakness occasioned either by disease, or by excess, or by age, or by impotence ; yea, if he abstains from those evils from any natural or moral law, and not at the same time from a spiritual law, he is still inwardly an adul- terer and whoremonger ; for he nevertheless believes that those evils are not sins, and consequently he does not make them unlawful in his spirit before God ; and thus in spirit he commits them, although not before the world in the body ; wherefore after death, when he becomes a spirit, he speaks 54 THE DOCTRINE OF LIFE FOR THE NEW JERUSALEM. openly in favor of them. Hence it is evident, that a wicked person may shun evils as being hurtful, but that none but a Christian can shun them as being sinful. 112. The case is similar in respect to thefts and frauds of every kind ; and also in respect to every kind of murder and revenge, of false witness and lies. No one can be cleansed and purified from them of himself: for there are infinite con- cupiscences inherent in every one of those evils, which man sees not but as one simple thing, whereas the Lord sees every smallest particular in every series. In a word, man cannot regenerate himself, that is, form in himself a new heart and a new spirit ; the Lord alone can do this, who is himself the Reformer and Regenerator. Wherefore if man were to be desirous of making himself anew from his own prudence and intelligence, it would be only like covering a deformed face with paint, and besmearing a part affected with inward rot- tenness with soap. 113. Therefore the Lord says in Matthew, " Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse first the inside of the cup and platter, that the outside may be clean also" xxiii. 26 ; and in Isaiah ; " Wash ye, make you clean, put away the evil of your doings from BEFORE MY EYES, cease to do evil :" and then, " though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be white as snow ; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool" i. 16, 18. 114. To what has been said above, let these remarks be added : I. That Christian charity, with every individual, consists in his performing faithfully the duties of his calling : for thus, if he shuns evils as sins, he daily does what is good, and is himself his own particular use in the common body ; thus also the common good is provided for, and that of each individual in par- ticular. II. That other works are not properly works of charity, but are either its signs, or benefits, or debts. THE LIBRARY UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA Santa Barbara THIS BOOK IS DUE ON THE LAST DATE STAMPED BELOW. 3 1205 00 92 9486 UC SOUTHERN REGIONAL LIBRARY FACILITY A 001 029 364 5