The Confessions of Jacob Boehme
We are not to think that the holy angels dwell only above the stars beyond the place of this world, as the outward reason, which knows nothing of God, fancies. Indeed they dwell beyond the dominion of this world, but the place of this world (although there is no place in eternity), and also the place beyond this world, is all one to them. We men see not the angels or the devils with our eyes ; yet they are about us and among us. The evil and the good angels dwell near one another, and yet there is the greatest immense distance between them. For heaven is in hell and hell is in heaven, and yet the one is not manifest to the other. Although the Devil should go many millions of miles, desiring to enterp. 126 heaven and to see it, yet he would still be in hell and not see it.
If evil was not known, joy would not be manifest. But if joy be manifest, then is the eternal Word spoken in joy, to which end the Word, with nature, has brought itself into a creation. Whosoever rightly sees and understands this has no further question about any thing, for he sees that he lives and subsists in God, and that he may further know and will through him and speak what and how he will. Such a man seeks only the estate of lowliness, that God may alone be accounted high.
My will-spirit, which now is in Christ's humanity, lives in Christ's spirit, that shall in his power give sap to the dry tree, that it may arise in the sound of the trumpet of the divine breath in Christ's voice, which is also my voice in his breath, and spring afresh in paradise. Paradise shallp. 127 be in me ; all whatever God has and is shall appear in me as an image of the divine world's being ; all colours, powers and virtues of his eternal Wisdom shall be manifest in me, as in his likeness. I shall be the manifestation of the divine and spiritual world and an instrument of God's Spirit, wherein he makes melody with himself, with this voice which I myself am. I shall be his instrument, an organ of his expressed Word and Voice ; and not only I, but all my fellow-members in the glorious choir and instrument of God. We are all strings in the concert of his joy ; the spirit from his mouth strikes the note and tune of our strings.
Therefore God became man, that he might repair his glorious instrument of praise, which would not sound according to the desire of his joy and of his love. He would bring again the true love-sound into the strings ; he has brought the voice which sounds in his presence again intop. 128 us ; he is become that which I am and has made me that which he is, so I may say that in my humility I am in him his trumpet and the sound of his instrument and his divine voice.
CHAPTER XV
1WILL now speak to those who feel indeed in themselves a desire to repent, and yet cannot come to acknowledge and bewail their committed sins ; the flesh saying continually to the soul, Stay awhile, it is well enough, or, It is time enough to-morrow ; and when tomorrow is come then the flesh says again, To-morrow ; the soul in the meanwhile, sighing and fainting, conceiveth neither any true sorrow for the sins it hath committed nor any comfort. Unto such an one, I say, I will write a process or way, wThich I myself have gone, that he may know what he must do and how it went with me, if peradventure he be inclined to enter into and pursue the same way. 9
p. 130
We are not to think that the holy angels dwell only above the stars beyond the place of this world, as the outward reason, which knows nothing of God, fancies. Indeed they dwell beyond the dominion of this world, but the place of this world (although there is no place in eternity), and also the place beyond this world, is all one to them. We men see not the angels or the devils with our eyes ; yet they are about us and among us. The evil and the good angels dwell near one another, and yet there is the greatest immense distance between them. For heaven is in hell and hell is in heaven, and yet the one is not manifest to the other. Although the Devil should go many millions of miles, desiring to enterp. 126 heaven and to see it, yet he would still be in hell and not see it.
If evil was not known, joy would not be manifest. But if joy be manifest, then is the eternal Word spoken in joy, to which end the Word, with nature, has brought itself into a creation. Whosoever rightly sees and understands this has no further question about any thing, for he sees that he lives and subsists in God, and that he may further know and will through him and speak what and how he will. Such a man seeks only the estate of lowliness, that God may alone be accounted high.
My will-spirit, which now is in Christ's humanity, lives in Christ's spirit, that shall in his power give sap to the dry tree, that it may arise in the sound of the trumpet of the divine breath in Christ's voice, which is also my voice in his breath, and spring afresh in paradise. Paradise shallp. 127 be in me ; all whatever God has and is shall appear in me as an image of the divine world's being ; all colours, powers and virtues of his eternal Wisdom shall be manifest in me, as in his likeness. I shall be the manifestation of the divine and spiritual world and an instrument of God's Spirit, wherein he makes melody with himself, with this voice which I myself am. I shall be his instrument, an organ of his expressed Word and Voice ; and not only I, but all my fellow-members in the glorious choir and instrument of God. We are all strings in the concert of his joy ; the spirit from his mouth strikes the note and tune of our strings.
Therefore God became man, that he might repair his glorious instrument of praise, which would not sound according to the desire of his joy and of his love. He would bring again the true love-sound into the strings ; he has brought the voice which sounds in his presence again intop. 128 us ; he is become that which I am and has made me that which he is, so I may say that in my humility I am in him his trumpet and the sound of his instrument and his divine voice.
CHAPTER XV
1WILL now speak to those who feel indeed in themselves a desire to repent, and yet cannot come to acknowledge and bewail their committed sins ; the flesh saying continually to the soul, Stay awhile, it is well enough, or, It is time enough to-morrow ; and when tomorrow is come then the flesh says again, To-morrow ; the soul in the meanwhile, sighing and fainting, conceives neither any true sorrow for the sins it has committed nor any comfort. Unto such an one, I say, I will write a process or way, wThich I myself have gone, that he may know what he must do and how it went with me, if peradventure he be inclined to enter into and pursue the same way. 9
p. 130
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