THE FOURTEENTH CHAPTER How Lucifer, who was the most beautiful Angel in Heaven, is become the most horrible Devil. The House of the murderous Den. 1. HERE, king Lucifer, pull thy hat down over thy eyes, lest thou shouldst see how man will take off thy crown away from thee, thou canst no more rule in heaven; stand still a little while, we must first view thee, and observe what a beauteous fair bride thou art, and whether the filth of thy whoredom may not be cleansed and washed away from thee, that thou mayest be fair again; we will a little describe thy chastity and virtue. 2. Come on ye philosophers, and ye lawyers and advocates, that justify and defend king Lucifer! Come near and bring him to the bar, whilst he hath yet the crown upon him, for here we will hold a court of judgment against malefactors for him; if you can maintain his cause to be right, then he shall be your king; if not, then he shall be turned out and cast down into hell; and another shall get his royal crown, who will govern better than he. Now observe: 3. When Lucifer had thus horribly spoiled and destroyed himself, all his qualifying or fountain spirits were at enmity against God, for they all qualified or acted much otherwise than God, and so there came to be an eternal enmity between God and Lucifer. But now it might be asked: Question. How long did Lucifer stand in the Light of God?
The Depth. Answer. 4. When the royal body of Lucifer was incorporated or compacted together, in that very hour the light kindled itself also in Lucifer. 5. For as soon as his qualifying or fountain spirits in the building of the body began to qualify or operate, and to generate themselves according to the right of nature, then rose up the flash of life in the heart in the sweet spring or fountainwater, and so the royal body was ready furnished or complete, and the spirit went forth in the heart from the light through the mouth into the heart of God. 6. And so he was a most exceeding beautiful prince and king, and very dear and acceptable to the divine being, and was received and embraced with great joy. 7. In like manner also the spirit went forth from the heart into all the qualifying or fountain veins of the body, and kindled all the seven spirits, and so the royal body was glorified instantaneously, and there he stood as a king of God, in an unsearchable clarity or brightness, transcendently excelling the whole heavenly host or army. 8. Now in this clear and light flash the seven qualifying or fountain spirits were instantly kindled, as a man kindleth a fire, for they were affrighted at the terrible clarity or brightness of their spirit, and so instantly at the first flash suddenly became highly triumphing, proudly lifted up and joyful to excess, and so moved themselves towards a higher birth. 9. But if they had continued in their seats, and had qualified or operated, as they [the seven spirits of nature of which they were constituted] had done from eternity, then that high light had not hurt them. 10. For they were not new spirits made of any new thing, but they were the old spirits, which had no beginning, which had been in God from eternity, and they knew very well the right of the Deity and the right of nature, and how they [the spirits] should move and stir. 11. Also when God figured or framed the body together, he did not beforehand destroy the quali fying or fountain spirits, but figured or framed the body of king Lucifer together out of the kernel of that which was the best, wherein was the best knowledge of all. 12. Else if the qualities had been dead beforehand, there had been a necessity for a new life, and it would have been in doubt whether the angels could have subsisted eternally. Conceive it aright. 13. God created angels out of himself, for this reason, that they might be harder and drier incorporated or compacted together than the ideas, figures, shapes or forms, which, through the qualifying or operating of the spirits of God in nature rise up, and which also through the moving of the spirits vanish or pass away again; that the light of the angels, in their hardness, should shine the clearer and brighter, and that the tone of the body should sound the clearer and shriller,* whereby the joyfulness should increase the more in God. This was the cause that God created angels. * " shriller," lit., " more sonorous." Sparrow has in most cases printed " shrill," where the German is " hell," " clear, distinct, sonorous." He probably intended thereby to emphasize the idea of pitch, over and above the idea of sonority.
THE FOURTEENTH CHAPTER How Lucifer, who was the most beautiful Angel in Heaven, is become the most horrible Devil. The House of the murderous Den. 1. HERE, king Lucifer, pull your hat down over your eyes, lest you should see how man will take off your crown away from you, you can no more rule in heaven; stand still a little while, we must first view you, and observe what a beauteous fair bride you are, and whether the filth of your whoredom may not be cleansed and washed away from you, that you may be fair again; we will a little describe your chastity and virtue. 2. Come on you philosophers, and you lawyers and advocates, that justify and defend king Lucifer! Come near and bring him to the bar, whilst he has yet the crown upon him, for here we will hold a court of judgment against malefactors for him; if you can maintain his cause to be right, then he shall be your king; if not, then he shall be turned out and cast down into hell; and another shall get his royal crown, who will govern better than he. Now observe: 3. When Lucifer had thus horribly spoiled and destroyed himself, all his qualifying or fountain spirits were at enmity against God, for they all qualified or acted much otherwise than God, and so there came to be an eternal enmity between God and Lucifer. But now it might be asked: Question. How long did Lucifer stand in the Light of God?
The Depth. Answer. 4. When the royal body of Lucifer was incorporated or compacted together, in that very hour the light kindled itself also in Lucifer. 5. For as soon as his qualifying or fountain spirits in the building of the body began to qualify or operate, and to generate themselves according to the right of nature, then rose up the flash of life in the heart in the sweet spring or fountainwater, and so the royal body was ready furnished or complete, and the spirit went forth in the heart from the light through the mouth into the heart of God. 6. And so he was a most exceeding beautiful prince and king, and very dear and acceptable to the divine being, and was received and embraced with great joy. 7. In like manner also the spirit went forth from the heart into all the qualifying or fountain veins of the body, and kindled all the seven spirits, and so the royal body was glorified instantaneously, and there he stood as a king of God, in an unsearchable clarity or brightness, transcendently excelling the whole heavenly host or army. 8. Now in this clear and light flash the seven qualifying or fountain spirits were instantly kindled, as a man kindls a fire, for they were affrighted at the terrible clarity or brightness of their spirit, and so instantly at the first flash suddenly became highly triumphing, proudly lifted up and joyful to excess, and so moved themselves towards a higher birth. 9. But if they had continued in their seats, and had qualified or operated, as they [the seven spirits of nature of which they were constituted] had done from eternity, then that high light had not hurt them. 10. For they were not new spirits made of any new thing, but they were the old spirits, which had no beginning, which had been in God from eternity, and they knew very well the right of the Deity and the right of nature, and how they [the spirits] should move and stir. 11. Also when God figured or framed the body together, he did not beforehand destroy the quali fying or fountain spirits, but figured or framed the body of king Lucifer together out of the kernel of that which was the best, wherein was the best knowledge of all. 12. Else if the qualities had been dead beforehand, there had been a necessity for a new life, and it would have been in doubt whether the angels could have subsisted eternally. Conceive it aright. 13. God created angels out of himself, for this reason, that they might be harder and drier incorporated or compacted together than the ideas, figures, shapes or forms, which, through the qualifying or operating of the spirits of God in nature rise up, and which also through the moving of the spirits vanish or pass away again; that the light of the angels, in their hardness, should shine the clearer and brighter, and that the tone of the body should sound the clearer and shriller,* whereby the joyfulness should increase the more in God. This was the cause that God created angels. * " shriller," lit., " more sonorous." Sparrow has in most cases printed " shrill," where the German is " hell," " clear, distinct, sonorous." He probably intended thereby to emphasize the idea of pitch, over and above the idea of sonority.
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