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III. THE DIVINE PROVIDENCE OF THE LORD, IN EVERYTHING THAT IT DOES, REGARDS THE INFINITE AND THE ETERNAL
DP 46 . It is known in the Christian world that God is Infinite and Eternal; for in the doctrine of the Trinity which takes its name from Athanasius it is said that God the Father is Infinite, Eternal and Omnipotent; likewise God the Son and God the Holy Spirit; and yet there are not three that are Infinite, Eternal and Omnipotent, but One. From this it follows that, as God is Infinite and Eternal, nothing but what is Infinite and Eternal can be predicated of God. But what the Infinite and Eternal is cannot be comprehended by the finite, and yet it can be. It cannot be comprehended because the finite cannot contain the infinite; and it can be comprehended because there are abstract ideas by means of which it can be seen that things exist, though not what their nature is. There are such ideas respecting the Infinite as that God, because He is Infinite, or that the Divine, because it is Infinite, is Being (Esse) itself, is Essence itself and Substance itself, is Love itself and Wisdom itself, or is Good itself and Truth itself, and thus is the Self, yea is Man Himself. Such ideas also are present when it is said that the Infinite is the All, and that Infinite Wisdom is Omniscience, and that Infinite Power is Omnipotence.
[2] Yet these ideas are merged in obscurity of thought, and from being incomprehensible perchance meet with denial. This happens unless those things which thought derives from nature are withdrawn from the idea, especially what it derives from the two things proper to nature, space and time, for these cannot but mit ideas and cause abstract ideas to be as nothing. However, if those things can be withdrawn in man as they are in an angel, then the Infinite may be comprehended by means of the ideas just mentioned above. Hence also it may be comprehended that man has reality because he was created by the Infinite God who is the All; and that he is a finite substance because he was created by the Infinite God who is Substance itself; and further that he is wisdom because he was created by the Infinite God who is Wisdom itself; and so on. For unless the Infinite God were the All, Substance itself and Wisdom itself, man would not have reality; and thus would be nothing or merely an idea of being, according to those visionaries called idealists.
[3] From what has been shown in the treatise THE DIVINE LOVE AND WISDOM, it is clear that the Divine Essence is Love and Wisdom (DLW 28-39); that the Divine Love and the Divine Wisdom are Substance itself and Form itself, and consequently the Self-subsisting and the one only subsisting Essence (DLW 40-46); and that God created the universe and all things therein from Himself and not from nothing (DLW 282-284). From this it follows that every created thing, and especially man, and the love and wisdom in him, have reality and are not merely ideas of being. For unless God were Infinite there would be no finite; and unless the Infinite were the All there would be no reality; and unless God had created all things from Himself there would be nothing. In a word, We are because God is.
DP 47 . The Divine Providence is the subject now being treated of, and it is to be shown here that in everything it does it regards the infinite and the eternal. As this cannot be clearly set forth except in an orderly way, the order will be as follows:
I. -The Infinite in itself and the Eternal in itself is the same as the Divine.
II. -The Infinite and Eternal in itself cannot but regard what is infinite (and eternal) from itself in finite things.
III. -The Divine Providence in everything it does regards what is infinite and eternal from itself, especially in saving the human race.
IV. -An image of the Infinite and Eternal is presented in an angelic heaven from a saved human race.
V. -The inmost of the Divine Providence is to regard what is infinite and eternal in forming the angelic heaven, in order that it may be before the Lord as one man, the image of Himself.
DP 48 . I. THE INFINITE IN ITSELF AND THE ETERNAL IN ITSELF IS THE SAME AS THE DIVINE. This may be evident from what has been shown in many places in the treatise THE DIVINE LOVE AND WISDOM. That the Infinite in itself and the Eternal in itself is the Divine is according to the angelic idea, the angels understanding by the Infinite nothing else than the Divine Being (Esse), and by the Eternal the Divine Existing (Existere). That the Infinite in itself and the Eternal in itself is the Divine can be seen by men, and yet cannot be seen. It can be seen by those who think of the Infinite not from space and of the Eternal not from time; but it cannot be seen by those who think of the Infinite and the Eternal from space and time. Thus it can be seen by those who think on a higher, that is, more interior plane in the rational (mind); but it cannot be seen by those who think on a lower, that is, more exterior plane.
[2] Those by whom it can be seen reflect that there cannot be an infinity of space, nor similarly can there be an infinity of time, that is, an eternity from which are all things (a quo), because infinity is without end, either first or last, that is, without limits. They also reflect that neither can there be an Infinity from itself; because from itself supposes an end and a beginning, or a prior source (a quo); and therefore it is meaningless to speak of the Infinite and Eternal from itself, for that would be like speaking of Being (Esse) from itself, which is a contradiction; for the Infinite from itself would be an Infinite from an Infinite, and Being from itself would be a Being from a Being; and this Infinite and Being either would be the same as the Infinite, or would be finite. From these and similar considerations which can be seen interiorly in the rational (mind), it is clear that there is an Infinite in itself and an Eternal in itself; and that this Infinite and Eternal is the Divine from which all things are.
DP 49 . I know that many will say to themselves: How can anyone, interiorly in his rational (mind), comprehend anything apart from space and apart from time; and further comprehend not only that it is, but also that it is the All and the Self from which all things are? Think, however, interiorly whether love or any affection of love, or wisdom or any perception of wisdom, or indeed whether thought, is in space and in time, and you will find that they are not; and since the Divine is Love itself and Wisdom itself, it follows that the Divine cannot be conceived of in space and time; so neither can the Infinite. For a clearer perception of this, consider whether thought is in time and space. Suppose thought to go on for ten or twelve hours; may not this interval of time appear as one or two hours, or even as one or two days? The apparent duration is according to the state of the affection from which the thought has sprung. If the affection is one of joy in which one does not think of time, ten or twelve hours of thought seem no more than one or two; but the reverse is true if the affection is one of grief, when one thinks of time. From this it is clear that time is only an appearance according to the state of the affection from which thought springs. It is the same when one thinks of distance in space, either when taking a walk or when making a journey.
DP 50 . Since angels and spirits are affections of love and thoughts thence derived, they are consequently not in space and time, but only in the appearance of them. To them there is an appearance of space and time according to the states of their affections and of the thoughts arising from these. When anyone therefore thinks of another from affection, intently desiring to see him or to speak with him, he instantly appears in his presence.
[2] Hence it is, that there are present with every man spirits who are in like affection with himself, evil spirits with one who is in the affection of similar evil, and good spirits with one who is in the affection of similar good; and they are as really present as if the man were included in their society. Space and time contribute nothing to presence, because affection and thought thence derived are not in space and time, and spirits and angels are affections and thoughts derived from these.
[3] That this is so has been granted me to know from actual experience of many years, and also from having conversed with many after their death, with some who have been in various kingdoms in Europe, as well as with some who have been in various kingdoms in Asia and in Africa; and they were all near me; whereas if there were space and time with them, a journey and time to make it must have intervened.
[4] Indeed, everyone knows this to be the case from an innate perception within him, or by thinking it out in his own mind. I have been convinced of this by the circumstance that no one thought of any distance in space when I said I had spoken with someone who died in Asia, Africa or Europe; as, for example, with Calvin, Luther, Melanchthon, or with some king, ruler or priest in a distant country; nor did the thought even occur to any, How could he converse with those who had lived in that place, and how could they come and be present with him when lands and seas lie between? From this it has also been made clear to me that no one thinks from space and time when thinking of those who are in the spiritual world. Nevertheless, that there is with them the appearance of space and time may be seen in the work HEAVEN AND HELL (HH 162-169, 191-199).
DP 51 . From these considerations it may now be evident that the Infinite and Eternal, thus the Lord, is to be thought of apart from space and time, and that such thought is possible; moreover, that those have such thought who think interiorly in the rational (mind); and that the Infinite and Eternal is the same as the Divine. Thus do angels and spirits think; and from thought abstracted from time and space there is some comprehension of the Divine Omnipresence and the Divine Omnipotence, and also of the Divine from eternity, but no comprehension at all from thought in which an idea from space and time is present. From these things it is clear that there can be thought concerning God from eternity, but not concerning nature from eternity; and consequently that there can be thought concerning the creation of the universe by God, but none at all concerning creation from nature; for space and time are things proper to nature, but the Divine is apart from space and time. That the Divine is apart from space and time may be seen in the treatise THE DIVINE LOVE AND WISDOM (DLW 7-10, 69-72, 73-76).
DP 52 . II. THE INFINITE AND ETERNAL IN ITSELF CANNOT BUT REGARD WHAT IS INFINITE (AND ETERNAL) FROM ITSELF IN FINITE THINGS. By the Infinite and Eternal in itself is meant the Divine itself as has just been shown in the preceding article; by finite things are meant all things created by the Divine, especially men, spirits and angels; and to regard what is infinite and eternal from Himself is to regard the Divine, that is, Himself in these, as a man regards an image of himself in a mirror. That this is so has been shown in many places in the treatise THE DIVINE LOVE AND WISDOM, especially where it is demonstrated that in the created universe there is an image of man, and that this is an image of what is infinite and eternal (DLW 317, 318), thus an image of God the Creator, that is, of the Lord from eternity. It should be known, however, that the Divine in itself is in the Lord, but that the Divine from itself is the Divine from the Lord in created things.
DP 53 . In order that this may be more fully understood, however, it is necessary to illustrate it. The Divine cannot regard anything but what is Divine, and it cannot regard this anywhere but in things created by itself. That this is so is evident from this fact, that no one can regard another except from what is his own in himself. He who loves another regards him from his own love in himself; while he who is wise regards another from his own wisdom in himself. He may indeed see that the other either loves him or does not love him, and that he is wise or that he is not wise; but this he sees from the love and from the wisdom in himself. Therefore he conjoins himself to the other so far as the other loves him as he loves the other, or so far as the other is as wise as himself for thus they make one.
[2] It is similar with the Divine in itself for the Divine in itself cannot regard itself from another, as from a man, a spirit or an angel; because there is nothing in them of the originating Divine in itself (a quo), and to regard the Divine from another in whom there is nothing of the Divine would be to regard the Divine from what is not Divine, which is not possible. Hence it is that the Lord is so conjoined to man, spirit and angel that everything that has relation to the Divine is not from them, but from the Lord. For it is known that all the good and all the truth which anyone has is not from himself but from the Lord; indeed, that no one can even name the Lord, or utter His names Jesus and Christ, except from Him.
[3] From this it now follows that the Infinite and Eternal, which is the same as the Divine, regards all things in the finite from the infinite point of view, and that He conjoins Himself to them according to the degree of the reception of wisdom and love in them. In a word, the Lord cannot have an abode in a man and in an angel and dwell with them except in what is His own, and not in what is their proprium, for this is evil; and if it were good, still it is finite, and this in itself and from itself cannot contain the Infinite. From these things it is clear that it can nowhere be possible for a finite being to regard the Infinite, but that it is possible for the Infinite to regard the Infinite from itself in finite beings.
DP 54 . There is an appearance that there can be no conjunction between the Infinite and the finite, because there can be no ratio between them, and because the finite cannot contain the Infinite. Nevertheless, conjunction is possible, both because the Infinite created all things from Himself as is shown in the treatise THE DIVINE LOVE AND WISDOM (DLW 282-284), and because the Infinite in finite things cannot but regard what is infinite from Himself and this infinite can appear to finite beings as in themselves. Thus a ratio is possible between the finite and the Infinite, not from the finite but from the Infinite in the finite. Moreover, in this way the finite being is able to contain what is infinite, not indeed the finite being in himself, but as if in himself from the Infinite from itself in him. But more will be said concerning these things in what now follows.
DP 55 . III. THE DIVINE PROVIDENCE IN EVERYTHING IT DOES REGARDS WHAT IS INFINITE AND ETERNAL FROM ITSELF, ESPECIALLY IN SAVING THE HUMAN RACE. The Infinite and Eternal in itself is the Divine itself or the Lord in Himself; but the Infinite and Eternal from itself is the Divine Proceeding, that is, the Lord in others created from Himself thus in men and in angels; and this Divine is the same as the Divine Providence. For by means of the Divine from Himself the Lord provides that all things may be held together in the order in which and into which they were created; and because this is the work of the Divine Proceeding it follows that all this is the Divine Providence.
DP 56 . That the Divine Providence in everything it does regards what is infinite and eternal from itself, may be evident from this, that every created thing proceeds from the First, who is the Infinite and Eternal, to ultimates, and from ultimates to the First Source (a quo), as was shown in the treatise THE Divine LOVE AND WISDOM, where the creation of the universe is treated of. As the First Source is present most interiorly in all progression, it follows that the Divine Proceeding, that is, the Divine Providence, in everything it does regards an image of the Infinite and Eternal. This it regards in all things, in some things obviously to perception, but in others not. It presents this image obviously to perception in the variety of all things, in their fructification, and in their multiplication.
[2] An image of the Infinite and Eternal in the variety of all things is apparent in this, that there is not one thing the same as another, nor can there be to eternity. This is manifest to the eye in the faces of men from the beginning of creation; and equally so from their minds (animus) of which their faces are images; and also from their affections, perceptions and thoughts, for the mind consists of these. Hence it is that in the universal heaven there are not two angels or two spirits who are the same, nor indeed can there be to eternity; and so it is with every object of sight in the two worlds, the natural and the spiritual. From this it may be evident that variety is infinite and eternal.
[3] An image of the Infinite and Eternal in the fructification and multiplication of all things is evident in the vegetable kingdom from the power implanted in seeds, and in the animal kingdom from prolification, especially in the family of fishes; for if they were to fructify and multiply to the extent of their power, they would within a century fill the spaces of the whole world, and even of the universe. From this it is clear that in this power is latent the endeavour of self-propagation to infinity. As fructification and multiplication have not failed from the beginning of creation, nor will ever fail to eternity, it follows that in this power there is also the endeavour of self-propagation to eternity.
DP 57 . It is the same with men with regard to their affections which belong to their love, and to their perceptions which belong to their wisdom. The variety of both of these is infinite and eternal; so also is their fructification and multiplication, which are spiritual. No man enjoys affection and perception so like another’s as to be the same; nor is it possible to eternity. Moreover, affections may be fructified and perceptions multiplied without end; and it is well known that knowledge is inexhaustible. This power of fructification and multiplication without end, or to infinity and to eternity, exists in natural things with men, in spiritual things with spiritual angels, and in celestial things with celestial angels. Not only are affections, perceptions and knowledges of this nature in general, but also every single thing in these, even the least, is such in particular. They are of this nature because they have their existence from the Infinite and Eternal in itself by means of what is infinite and eternal from itself. But since the finite has nothing of the Divine in itself, there is in man or angel nothing of this nature, not even the most minute, as his own; for a man or an angel is finite, and only a receptacle, in itself dead; and what is living in him is from the Divine Proceeding, conjoined to him by contiguity, and this appears to him to be his own. That this is so will be seen in what follows.
DP 58 . The Divine Providence regards what is infinite and eternal from itself especially in saving the human race, because the Divine Providence has for its end a heaven from the human race, as was shown above (n. 27-45); and because this is the end it follows that the reformation and the regeneration of man, thus his salvation, is what the Divine Providence especially regards; for heaven exists from those who have been saved or regenerated. Since to regenerate man is to unite good and truth in him, or love and wisdom, as they are united in the Divine which proceeds from the Lord, therefore the Divine Providence especially regards this in saving the human race; and the image of the Infinite and Eternal exists in man Only in the marriage of good and truth. That the Divine Proceeding effects this marriage in the human race is well known from those who, being filled with the Divine Proceeding, which is called the Holy Spirit, have prophesied, of whom mention is made in the Word; and from those who, being enlightened, see Divine truths in the light of heaven. This is especially the case in angels, who sensibly perceive presence, influx and conjunction; but these angels also recognize that the conjunction is only what may be called adjunction.
DP 59 . It has not been known hitherto that the Divine Providence in all its proceedings with man regards his eternal state. It can regard nothing else, because the Divine is Infinite and Eternal, and the Infinite and Eternal, that is, the Divine, is not in time, and hence all future things are present to Him; and because this is the nature of the Divine, it follows that the eternal is in all things that it does, in general and in particular. Those, however, who think from time and space have difficulty in perceiving this, not only because they love temporal things, but also because they think from what is present in the world and not from what is present in heaven, for this to them is as far away as the end of the earth. When, however, those who are in the Divine think from what is present, they think also from what is eternal, because they think from the Lord. They say to themselves, "What is that which is not eternal? Is not the temporal comparatively as nothing, and does it not also become nothing when it comes to an end? It is not so with what is eternal: that alone is, because its being (esse) has no end." To think thus while thinking from what is present is to think at the same time from what is eternal; and when a man so thinks, and at the same time so lives, then the Divine Proceeding with him, that is, the Divine Providence, regards in all its progress the state of his eternal life in heaven, and leads him to that state. It will be seen in what follows that the Divine regards what is eternal in all men, the wicked as well as the good.
DP 60 . IV. AN IMAGE OF THE INFINITE AND ETERNAL IS PRESENTED IN AN ANGELIC HEAVEN. Among the things of which it is necessary to have some knowledge is also the angelic heaven; for everyone who has any religion thinks about heaven and wishes to go there. Heaven, however, is granted to none but those who know the way to it and who walk therein. This way can in some measure be known from a knowledge of the character of those who constitute heaven, and also by knowing that no one becomes an angel, that is, comes into heaven, unless he carries with him from the world something of the angelic character; and in this there is present a knowledge of the way from walking in it, and a walking in the way through a knowledge of it. Moreover, in the spiritual world there are actually ways which lead to every society of heaven and to every society of hell, and each one, as if from himself, sees his own way. He sees it because there are ways there, one for every love; and love opens the way, and leads him to his fellows; nor does anyone see other ways than the way of his own love. From this it is clear that angels are nothing but heavenly loves, for otherwise they would not have seen the ways leading to heaven. This, however, may be more evident from a description of heaven.
DP 61 . Every man’s spirit is affection and thought thence derived; and as all affection is of love and thought is of the understanding, every spirit is his own love and his own understanding thence derived. For this reason when a man thinks solely from his own spirit, as happens when he meditates at home by himself he thinks from the affection which belongs to his love. Thus it may be evident that when a man becomes a spirit, which is the case after death, he is the affection of his own love and is only that thought which belongs to his affection. He is an evil affection or lust if his love has been a love of evil; and he is a good affection if his love has been a love of good; and everyone has a good affection so far as he has shunned evils as sins; and everyone has an evil affection so far as he has not so shunned them. Now, since all spirits and angels are affections, it is clear that the universal angelic heaven is nothing but the love of all the affections of good, and the wisdom thence derived of all the perceptions of truth; and since every good and truth is from the Lord, and the Lord is Love itself and Wisdom itself it follows that the angelic heaven is an image of Him. Moreover, since the Divine Love and the Divine Wisdom in their form are Man, it also follows that the angelic heaven cannot be otherwise than in such a form. But more will be said concerning this in the following article.
DP 62 . The angelic heaven is an image of the Infinite and Eternal because it is an image of the Lord, and the Lord is the Infinite and Eternal. An image of the Infinite and Eternal itself appears in this, that heaven is composed of myriads of myriads of angels, consisting of as many societies as there are general affections of heavenly love; that every angel in each society is distinctly his own affection; that the form of heaven, which is before the Lord as one, just as a man is one, is from so many affections in general and in particular; and that this form is perfected to eternity according to the increase in numbers, for the more numerous they are who enter into the form of the Divine Love, which is the Form of forms, the more perfect the union becomes. From these considerations it is clearly evident that an image of the Infinite and Eternal is presented in the angelic heaven.
DP 63 . From the knowledge of heaven given by this brief description it is clear that it is affection from the love of good that makes heaven in man. But who at the present day knows this? Indeed, who knows what an affection of the love of good is, and that affections of the love of good are innumerable, in fact, infinite? For, as has been said, every angel is distinctly his own affection, and the form of heaven is the form of all the affections of the Divine Love there. No one can unite all affections in this form but He who is Love itself and also Wisdom itself, and who is at once Infinite and Eternal; for what is infinite and eternal is in everything of the form, what is infinite being in the conjunction, and what is eternal in the perpetuity; and if what is infinite and eternal were withdrawn, the form would dissolve in an instant. Who else can unite affections into a form? Who else, indeed, can incorporate into it a single part? For one (constituent part) can only be brought into a union from the universal idea of the whole, and the universal of all can only be formed into a union from a particular idea of each constituent. This form is composed of myriads of myriads, and myriads enter it each year, and will do so to eternity. All infants enter it, and as many adults as there are affections of the love of good. From all this again may be seen an image of the Infinite and Eternal in the angelic heaven.
DP 64 . V. THE INMOST OF THE DIVINE PROVIDENCE IS TO REGARD WHAT IS INFINITE AND ETERNAL IN FORMING THE ANGELIC HEAVEN, IN ORDER THAT IT MAY BE BEFORE THE LORD AS ONE MAN, THE IMAGE OF HIMSELF. It may be seen in the work HEAVEN AND HELL (HH 59-86) that the universal heaven is as one man before the Lord, and likewise every society in heaven; and that consequently every angel is a man in perfect form, and this because God the Creator, who is the Lord from eternity, is Man; also that there is thus a correspondence of all things of heaven with all things of man (HH 87-102). That the universal heaven is as one man has not been seen by me, because the universal heaven cannot be seen by anyone but the Lord alone; but that an entire society of heaven, greater or smaller, appeared as one man, has several times been seen by me; and it was then said that the greatest society, which is heaven in its entire aggregate, so appears, but only before the Lord, and that this is the reason why every angel is in complete form a man.
DP 65 . Since the universal heaven is in the sight of the Lord as one man, therefore heaven is divided into as many general societies as there are organs, viscera and members in a man; and each general society is divided into as many less general or particular societies as there are larger divisions in each of the viscera and organs; and from this it is clear what the nature of heaven is. Now, because the Lord is Man Himself, and heaven is His image, therefore to be in heaven is called being in the Lord. That the Lord is Man Himself may be seen in the treatise THE DIVINE LOVE AND WISDOM (DLW 11-13, 285-289).
DP 66 . From these considerations this interior truth, which may be termed angelic, can in some measure be seen, namely, that every affection of good and at the same time of truth is in its form a man; for whatever proceeds from the Lord is, by its derivation from His Divine Love, an affection of good and, by its derivation from His Divine Wisdom, an affection of truth. The affection of truth which proceeds from the Lord appears in an angel and in man as a perception and consequent thought of truth, because attention is given to the perception and thought, and but little attention to the affection from which these spring, although they proceed from the Lord as one with the affection of truth.
DP 67 . Now since man by creation is a heaven in the least form, and consequently an image of the Lord, and since heaven consists of as many affections as there are angels, and each affection in its form is a man, it follows that it is the continual design of the Divine Providence that man may become a heaven in form and consequently an image of the Lord, and, since this is effected by means of the affection of good and truth, that he may become such an affection. Although this is the continual design of the Divine Providence, its inmost design is that a man may be in this or that place in heaven, or in this or that place in the Divine Heavenly Man; for thus is he in the Lord. This happens, however, only with those whom the Lord can lead to heaven; and as the Lord foresees this, He also provides continually that man may become like this; for in this way everyone who suffers himself to be led to heaven is prepared for his own place in heaven.
DP 68 . As was said above, heaven is divided into as many societies as there are organs, viscera and members in a man; and in these no part can be in any place but its own. Since, then, angels are such parts of the Divine Heavenly Man, and none can become angels but those who have been men in the world, it follows that the man who suffers himself to be led to heaven is continually prepared by the Lord for his own place; and this is done by means of such an affection of good and truth as corresponds with it. Moreover, to this place every angel man is assigned after his departure from the world. This is the inmost design of the Divine Providence in regard to heaven.
DP 69 . The man, however, who does not suffer himself to be led to heaven and assigned there is prepared for his own place in hell. For man of himself continually tends to the lowest of the hells, but he is continually withheld by the Lord; and he who cannot be withheld is prepared for a certain place there, to which he also is assigned immediately after his departure from the world. This place is exactly opposite to one in heaven, for hell is the opposite of heaven. Therefore as the man who is now an angel has his place allotted to him in heaven according to his affection of good and truth, so the man who is a devil has his place allotted to him in hell according to his affection of evil and falsity. For two opposites, similarly arranged, are maintained in connected series over against one another. This is the inmost design of the Divine Providence in regard to hell.
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