was with the first world as with a young tree, which groweth, is green, and blossometh fairly, but bringeth little good fruit, by reason of its wild kind. So nature in the first world brought forth but little good fruit, though it blossomed fair in worldly knowledge, and luxury or wantonness, which could not apprehend the Holy Spirit, who wrought in nature then, as well as now. 24. Therefore said God, It repents me, that I have made man, and he stirred up nature so, that all flesh which lived on dry land died, excepting the root and stock, that remained in virtue: and so he hath hereby dunged the wild tree, and manured it, that it should bear better fruit. But when the same sprang up again, it brought forth good and bad fruit again: Among the sons of Noah there were found again mockers and despisers of God, and there grew hardly any good branch on the tree, which brought forth any holy and good fruit: The other branches were bearing also, and brought forth wild Heathen. 25. But when God saw that man was thus dead in his knowledge, he moved nature again, and shewed unto man how there was good and bad therein, that man should avoid evil, and live unto the good; and he caused fire to fall down out of nature, and fired Sodom and Gomorrah, for a terrible example to the world. But when the blindness of men grew predominant, and they refused to be taught by the spirit of God, he gave laws and precepts unto them, shewing how they should behave themselves, and confirmed the laws and precepts with wonders, and with signs, lest the knowledge of the true God should be quite extinct. But for all this, the light did not manifest itself, for the darkness and wrathful fierceness in nature struggled against it, and the prince of darkness ruled powerfully.
26. But when the tree of nature came to its middle age, then it began to bear some mild and sweet fruit, to shew that it would henceforth bear pleasant fruit. Then were born the holy prophets, out of the sweet branch of the tree, who taught and preached of the light, which hereafter should overcome the wrathful fierceness in nature. And then there arose a light in nature among the Heathen, so that they knew nature, and her operation, although this was a light in the wild nature only, and was not yet the holy light. 27. For the wild nature was not yet overcome, and light and darkness wrestled so long the one with the other, till the sun arose, and with its heat forced this tree, so that it did bear pleasant sweet fruit; that is, till there came the Prince of Light, out of the heart of God, and became man in nature, and wrestled in his human body, in the power of the divine light, in the wild nature. That same Prince and Royal Twig grew up in nature, and became a tree in nature, and spread its branches abroad from the east to the west; and encompassed the whole nature, and wrestled and fought with the fierce wrath which was in nature, and with the prince thereof, till he overcame and triumphed, as a king in nature, and took the prince of wrath or fierceness captive in his own house. 28. This being done, there grew out of the Royal Tree, which was grown in nature, many thousand legions of precious sweet twigs, all which had the scent and taste of that precious tree. Though there fell upon them rain, snow, hail and tempestuous storms, so that many a twig was torn and beaten off from the tree, yet still others grew in their places. For the wrath or fierceness in nature, and the prince thereof, raised great tempests, with hail, thunder, lightning and rain, so that many glorious twigs were torn from the sweet and good tree. 29. But these twigs were of such a pleasant, sweet and delightful taste, that no human nor angelical tongue is able to express it: For there was great power and virtue in them, so that they were good to heal the wild Heathen. Whatever Heathen did eat of the twig of this tree was delivered from the wild nature in which he was born, and became a sweet branch in this precious tree, and sprang in that tree, and bore precious fruit, like the Royal Tree. Therefore many Heathen hastened to the precious tree, where the precious twigs lay, which the prince of darkness, by his storms and tempestuous winds, had torn off; and whatever Heathen did smell at the twig so torn off was healed of his wild wrath or fierceness, which he had brought from his mother into the world. 30. But when the prince of darkness saw that the Heathen strove and contended about these twigs, and not about the tree, therein he found great loss and damage, and then he ceased with his storms toward the east and south, and placed a merchant under the tree, who gathered up the twigs which were fallen from the precious tree: And when the Heathen came, and enquired after the good and virtuous twigs, then the merchant presented and offered them for money, to make gain of the precious tree. For this the prince of wrath or fierceness required at the hands of his merchant, because the tree was grown upon his ground and land, and spoiled his soil. 31. So when the Heathen saw that the fruit of the precious tree was put to sale, they flocked to the merchant, and bought of the fruit of the tree;
was with the first world as with a young tree, which grows, is green, and blossoms fairly, but brings little good fruit, by reason of its wild kind. So nature in the first world brought forth but little good fruit, though it blossomed fair in worldly knowledge, and luxury or wantonness, which could not apprehend the Holy Spirit, who wrought in nature then, as well as now. 24. Therefore said God, It repents me, that I have made man, and he stirred up nature so, that all flesh which lived on dry land died, excepting the root and stock, that remained in virtue: and so he has hereby dunged the wild tree, and manured it, that it should bear better fruit. But when the same sprang up again, it brought forth good and bad fruit again: Among the sons of Noah there were found again mockers and despisers of God, and there grew hardly any good branch on the tree, which brought forth any holy and good fruit: The other branches were bearing also, and brought forth wild Heathen. 25. But when God saw that man was thus dead in his knowledge, he moved nature again, and showed unto man how there was good and bad therein, that man should avoid evil, and live unto the good; and he caused fire to fall down out of nature, and fired Sodom and Gomorrah, for a terrible example to the world. But when the blindness of men grew predominant, and they refused to be taught by the spirit of God, he gave laws and precepts unto them, showing how they should behave themselves, and confirmed the laws and precepts with wonders, and with signs, lest the knowledge of the true God should be quite extinct. But for all this, the light did not manifest itself, for the darkness and wrathful fierceness in nature struggled against it, and the prince of darkness ruled powerfully.
26. But when the tree of nature came to its middle age, then it began to bear some mild and sweet fruit, to show that it would henceforth bear pleasant fruit. Then were born the holy prophets, out of the sweet branch of the tree, who taught and preached of the light, which hereafter should overcome the wrathful fierceness in nature. And then there arose a light in nature among the Heathen, so that they knew nature, and her operation, although this was a light in the wild nature only, and was not yet the holy light. 27. For the wild nature was not yet overcome, and light and darkness wrestled so long the one with the other, till the sun arose, and with its heat forced this tree, so that it did bear pleasant sweet fruit; that is, till there came the Prince of Light, out of the heart of God, and became man in nature, and wrestled in his human body, in the power of the divine light, in the wild nature. That same Prince and Royal Twig grew up in nature, and became a tree in nature, and spread its branches abroad from the east to the west; and encompassed the whole nature, and wrestled and fought with the fierce wrath which was in nature, and with the prince thereof, till he overcame and triumphed, as a king in nature, and took the prince of wrath or fierceness captive in his own house. 28. This being done, there grew out of the Royal Tree, which was grown in nature, many thousand legions of precious sweet twigs, all which had the scent and taste of that precious tree. Though there fell upon them rain, snow, hail and tempestuous storms, so that many a twig was torn and beaten off from the tree, yet still others grew in their places. For the wrath or fierceness in nature, and the prince thereof, raised great tempests, with hail, thunder, lightning and rain, so that many glorious twigs were torn from the sweet and good tree. 29. But these twigs were of such a pleasant, sweet and delightful taste, that no human nor angelical tongue is able to express it: For there was great power and virtue in them, so that they were good to heal the wild Heathen. Whatever Heathen did eat of the twig of this tree was delivered from the wild nature in which he was born, and became a sweet branch in this precious tree, and sprang in that tree, and bore precious fruit, like the Royal Tree. Therefore many Heathen hastened to the precious tree, where the precious twigs lay, which the prince of darkness, by his storms and tempestuous winds, had torn off; and whatever Heathen did smell at the twig so torn off was healed of his wild wrath or fierceness, which he had brought from his mother into the world. 30. But when the prince of darkness saw that the Heathen strove and contended about these twigs, and not about the tree, therein he found great loss and damage, and then he ceased with his storms toward the east and south, and placed a merchant under the tree, who gathered up the twigs which were fallen from the precious tree: And when the Heathen came, and enquired after the good and virtuous twigs, then the merchant presented and offered them for money, to make gain of the precious tree. For this the prince of wrath or fierceness required at the hands of his merchant, because the tree was grown upon his ground and land, and spoiled his soil. 31. So when the Heathen saw that the fruit of the precious tree was put to sale, they flocked to the merchant, and bought of the fruit of the tree;
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