Concerning the Three Principles of the Divine Essence
whole similitude of God, and had all three Principles in him like God himself, therefore also his mind and imagination should merely have looked into the Heart of God, and should have set his lust and [desire, or] will thereon ; and as he was a lord over all, and that his mind was a threefold spirit, in three Principles in one^only essence, so his spirit also, and the will in the spirit, should have stood open [or free] in one only essence, viz. in the paradisical heavenly [essence]. And his mind and soul should have eaten of the Heart of God, and his body [should have eaten] of the heavenly linibus.
1 Or virtue 12. But seeing the heavenly llimbus was manifested through the earthly, and was in the fruit in one only essence, and Adam so too, therefore it behoved Adam (having received a living soul out of the first Principle, and breathed in from the Holy Ghost, and enlightened from the light of God standing in the second Principle) not to reach after the earthly matrix.
13. Therefore God here also gave him the command, not to lust after the earthly matrix, nor after her fruit, which stood in the corruptibility,
2 not in the and transitoriness, but the spirit of man 2 not. He corruptibility. , . - ,. 1-1 should eat of the fruit, but no otherwise than of the paradisical kind and property, [and] not of the earthly essences. For the paradisical essences had imprinted themselves in all fruits, therein they were very good to eat of, after an angelical manner,Ch. 11] CIRCUMSTANCES OF THE TEMPTATION 183 and also pleasant to behold, or corporeal, as Moses also saith. Now it may be asked, What then was properly the tempting in Adam ?
The Gate of Good and Evil.
14. We have a very powerful testimony hereof, and it is known in nature, and in all her children, in the stars and elements, in the earth, stones, and metals; especially in the living creatures, as you see, how they are evil and good, viz. lovely creatures, and also venomous evil beasts ; as toads, adders, and serpents [or worms] ; so also there is poison and malice in every sort of l life of the l Or living third Principle : And the [fierceness or] strongness must be in nature, or else all were a death, and a nothing.
The Depth in the Centre.
15. As is mentioned before, the eternal mind standeth thus 2in the darkness, and vexeth itself, a Or unknown, and longeth after the light, to generate that ; and the anguish is the source, and the source hath in it many forms, till that it reacheth the fire in its substance, viz. [it hath] bitter, sour, hard, cold, strong, darting forth, or flashing ; in the root of itself sticketh the joy and pain alike ; viz. when it cometh to the root of the fire, and can reach the light, then out of the wrath [or sternness] cometh the great joy. For the light putteth the stern form into great meekness ; on the contrary, thatp. 184 form which cometh only to the root of the fire,
1 Or grimness, that continueth in the l wrath.
fierceness.
16. As we are to know, that when God would manifest the eternal mind in the darkness, in the
2 Or by. third Principle 2 with this world, then first all forms in the first Principle till fire were manifested, and that form now which comprehended the light, that became angelical and paradisical; but that which comprehended not the light, that remained to be wrathful, murderous, sour and evil, every one in its own form and essence. For every form desired also to be manifested, for it was the will of the eternal essence to manifest itself. But now one form was not able to manifest itself alone in the eternal birth, for the one is the member of the other, and the one without the other would not be.
whole similitude of God, and had all three Principles in him like God himself, therefore also his mind and imagination should merely have looked into the Heart of God, and should have set his lust and [desire, or] will thereon ; and as he was a lord over all, and that his mind was a threefold spirit, in three Principles in one^only essence, so his spirit also, and the will in the spirit, should have stood open [or free] in one only essence, viz. in the paradisical heavenly [essence]. And his mind and soul should have eaten of the Heart of God, and his body [should have eaten] of the heavenly linibus.
1 Or virtue 12. But seeing the heavenly llimbus was manifested through the earthly, and was in the fruit in one only essence, and Adam so too, therefore it behoved Adam (having received a living soul out of the first Principle, and breathed in from the Holy Ghost, and enlightened from the light of God standing in the second Principle) not to reach after the earthly matrix.
13. Therefore God here also gave him the command, not to lust after the earthly matrix, nor after her fruit, which stood in the corruptibility,
2 not in the and transitoriness, but the spirit of man 2 not. He corruptibility. , . - ,. 1-1 should eat of the fruit, but no otherwise than of the paradisical kind and property, [and] not of the earthly essences. For the paradisical essences had imprinted themselves in all fruits, therein they were very good to eat of, after an angelical manner,
Ch. 11] CIRCUMSTANCES OF THE TEMPTATION 183 and also pleasant to behold, or corporeal, as Moses also says. Now it may be asked, What then was properly the tempting in Adam ?
The Gate of Good and Evil.
14. We have a very powerful testimony hereof, and it is known in nature, and in all her children, in the stars and elements, in the earth, stones, and metals; especially in the living creatures, as you see, how they are evil and good, viz. lovely creatures, and also venomous evil beasts ; as toads, adders, and serpents [or worms] ; so also there is poison and malice in every sort of l life of the l Or living third Principle : And the [fierceness or] strongness must be in nature, or else all were a death, and a nothing.
The Depth in the Centre.
15. As is mentioned before, the eternal mind stands thus 2in the darkness, and vexes itself, a Or unknown, and longs after the light, to generate that ; and the anguish is the source, and the source has in it many forms, till that it reaches the fire in its substance, viz. [it has] bitter, sour, hard, cold, strong, darting forth, or flashing ; in the root of itself sticks the joy and pain alike ; viz. when it comes to the root of the fire, and can reach the light, then out of the wrath [or sternness] comes the great joy. For the light putts the stern form into great meekness ; on the contrary, that
184 THE THREE PRINCIPLES [Ch. 11 form which comes only to the root of the fire,
1 Or grimness, that continues in the l wrath.
fierceness.
16. As we are to know, that when God would manifest the eternal mind in the darkness, in the
2 Or by. third Principle 2 with this world, then first all forms in the first Principle till fire were manifested, and that form now which comprehended the light, that became angelical and paradisical; but that which comprehended not the light, that remained to be wrathful, murderous, sour and evil, every one in its own form and essence. For every form desired also to be manifested, for it was the will of the eternal essence to manifest itself. But now one form was not able to manifest itself alone in the eternal birth, for the one is the member of the other, and the one without the other would not be.