Concerning the Three Principles of the Divine Essence
72. 0 how have all the Prophets written of thee, and yet thou knowest not thyself ; thou ridest so upon thy fat pampered beast, and that riding pleaseth thee so well, that thou wilt rather go to the devil into the abyss of hell, than that thou wilt light off thy beast. What shall become of thee then, thou blind Babel ? Do but light off from thy great ugly beast, [which indeed is] thy might, pomp, state, and pride. Behold ! thy bridegroom cometh, and reacheth forth his hand to thee, and would lead thee out of Babel.
73. Did not he walk on foot upon earth ? He did not ride in that manner. He had not whereon to lay his head. What kingdom do you build for him ? Where is the place of his rest ? Doth hep. 458 not rest in thy arms? Wherefore dost thou not embrace him ? Is he [according to thy reason] too poor in this world? Yet he is rich in heaven. Who wilt thou send to him to be reconciled to thee ? The mother of Jesus ? 0 no, that will not avail ; he doth not stand behind thee and absolve thy wickedness, for thy inclination of falsehood. He
1 thy em- knoweth not thy l letters which thou sendest to messages. him by the saints, who are in the still rest before him in the heavenly element.
74. The spirit of their souls is in the stillness, in the still habitation before God. It doth not let thy rough sins come into it to sleep upon them, but its imagination and whole will standeth directly
2 the original bent into the Heart of God, and the 2 spirit of the the spirit of first Principle of its original source saith, Lord, when faith. avengest thou our blood ? And the meekness of
Jesus Christ saith : Rest in the stillness, till thy brethren also come to thee, who shall be slain in Babel for the witness of Jesus. 8 the holy 75. 3They make no intercession for thee, neither souls do not , , . ., , . „ , , , pray for thee. doth it avail anything ; lor thou must be regenerated anew, through earnest sorrow and repentance ; thou must light down from off thy beast, and must go on foot with Christ over the brook Kedron, into his sufferings and death ; and through him thou must rise again out of his grave ; thou thyself must come to this. Another cannot save thee ; thou must enter into the birth of Jesus Christ, and with him be conceived by the Holy Ghost ; thy soulCh. 18] PROMISED SEED OF THE WOMAN 459 must in the Word, and in the new man Christ, in the [one eternal] element, be born [or brought forth] out of the four elements into the water of the element of eternal life ; thy antichristian feigned fables help thee not ; for it is said, Such
1 belief as people have, such a God also they have J Or faith.
to bless them.
76. But that thy 2 predecessors after their death 2 forefathers. have 3 appeared in deeds of wonder (upon which 3 Or done thou buildest), that was caused by the faith of the living, and their 4 imaging in [or impression upon] 4 their tincture, which is so strong that it can remove mountains. An evil faith also (if it be strong) can
(in the first Principle) stir up wonders, as may be seen by 5 incantation, and by the wicked showers 6 Of witches of signs before Pharaoh : 6as they believed, SG was done. .
their faith.
77. And while the faith of the living [at the time of thy forefathers] was yet somewhat good and pure, [as] to the kingdom of God still, and they did not seek their bellies and pomp [as they do now], therefore their faith [or belief] pierced into the heaven, into the [pure] element, to the saints [or holy souls] ; who thus did also naturally appear with works of wonders [or miracles], to the living saints (in their element) in the strong faith, which [works of wonders] were only comprehended
[or taken hold of] in the faith, and that 7 not 7 Or the onj , , godly did not imparted to tne ungodly. partake of
78. For one tincture caught hold of the other,
p. 460
72. 0 how have all the Prophets written of you, and yet you know not yourself ; you ridest so upon your fat pampered beast, and that riding pleases you so well, that you will rather go to the devil into the abyss of hell, than that you will light off your beast. What shall become of you then, you blind Babel ? Do but light off from your great ugly beast, [which indeed is] your might, pomp, state, and pride. Behold ! your bridegroom comes, and reaches forth his hand to you, and would lead you out of Babel.
73. Did not he walk on foot upon earth ? He did not ride in that manner. He had not whereon to lay his head. What kingdom do you build for him ? Where is the place of his rest ? Does he
458 THE THREE PRINCIPLES [Ch. 18 not rest in your arms? Wherefore do you not embrace him ? Is he [according to your reason] too poor in this world? Yet he is rich in heaven. Who will you send to him to be reconciled to you ? The mother of Jesus ? 0 no, that will not avail ; he does not stand behind you and absolve your wickedness, for your inclination of falsehood. He
1 your em- knows not your l letters which you sendest to messages. him by the saints, who are in the still rest before him in the heavenly element.
74. The spirit of their souls is in the stillness, in the still habitation before God. It does not let your rough sins come into it to sleep upon them, but its imagination and whole will stands directly
2 the original bent into the Heart of God, and the 2 spirit of the the spirit of first Principle of its original source says, Lord, when faith. avengest you our blood ? And the meekness of
Jesus Christ says : Rest in the stillness, till your brethren also come to you, who shall be slain in Babel for the witness of Jesus. 8 the holy 75. 3They make no intercession for you, neither souls do not , , . ., , . „ , , , pray for you. does it avail anything ; lor you must be regenerated anew, through earnest sorrow and repentance ; you must light down from off your beast, and must go on foot with Christ over the brook Kedron, into his sufferings and death ; and through him you must rise again out of his grave ; you yourself must come to this. Another cannot save you ; you must enter into the birth of Jesus Christ, and with him be conceived by the Holy Ghost ; your soul
Ch. 18] PROMISED SEED OF THE WOMAN 459 must in the Word, and in the new man Christ, in the [one eternal] element, be born [or brought forth] out of the four elements into the water of the element of eternal life ; your antichristian feigned fables help you not ; for it is said, Such
1 belief as people have, such a God also they have J Or faith.
to bless them.
76. But that your 2 predecessors after their death 2 forefathers. have 3 appeared in deeds of wonder (upon which 3 Or done you buildest), that was caused by the faith of the living, and their 4 imaging in [or impression upon] 4 their tincture, which is so strong that it can remove mountains. An evil faith also (if it be strong) can
(in the first Principle) stir up wonders, as may be seen by 5 incantation, and by the wicked showers 6 Of witches of signs before Pharaoh : 6as they believed, SG was done. .
their faith.
77. And while the faith of the living [at the time of your forefathers] was yet somewhat good and pure, [as] to the kingdom of God still, and they did not seek their bellies and pomp [as they do now], therefore their faith [or belief] pierced into the heaven, into the [pure] element, to the saints [or holy souls] ; who thus did also naturally appear with works of wonders [or miracles], to the living saints (in their element) in the strong faith, which [works of wonders] were only comprehended
[or taken hold of] in the faith, and that 7 not 7 Or the onj , , godly did not imparted to tne ungodly. partake of
78. For one tincture caught hold of the other,
460 THE THREE PRINCIPLES [Ch. 18