therefore the imagination of the will did immass [or imaginate] itself through the offering, and God enkindled the offering of Abel with the holy fire in the aim of the Covenant, which in the fullness of time should again enkindle itself in the soul's fire.
9. In this the will of Abel's soul did enform [idea] itself into a holy substance, and pressed, with the desire of the enformed free soul's will, before and into God's free will, and this the will of the devil and the Serpent could not brook; and even this the will of the Serpent and devil in Cain did well understand; that the aim of the Covenant did open itself in the holy fire in Abel's desire and prayer.
10. And therefore he [the devil] would kill the body of Abel according to his [Abel's] earthly limus; lest such children should be begotten of him, and so he [the devil] might lose his kingdom in man. But God would not enkindle the offering of Cain. Now Moses makes a veil here before it, and says, God would not look graciously upon Cain's offering.
11. The enkindling of the external offering was a figure of the internal spirit. For the soul's spirit in the free will (as to the centre of the light) was enkindled with God's love-fire; and the imagination of the body (also understand, of the heavenly part) was enkindled in the offering with the fire of the holy part of the earth (which lies hidden in the curse). And therein the free will of the soul, and the free will in the ens of the heavenly part of the body, did immass itself into a substance; and therewith did press in before the holiness of
God.
12. And here the Serpent's head was first bruised, for it was a figure of the new birth out of Christ. Not that Abel had at this time put on Christ in the flesh, but indeed in the spirit of Jehova, in the aim of the Covenant. In which the name of Jesus stood hidden in God (as a regenerator), which would move and manifest itself in the fullness of time in this aim [of the Covenant], and introduce a heavenly holy ens into the disappeared ens of the heavenly part, and quicken it to life again in the opened power of Jesus.
13. If a man would rightly and fundamentally understand the offerings, he must consider that whereof the offering consisted, and what severed itself with the enkindling in the fire, out of the fire, viz. out of the enkindled offering, for in the enkindling nothing is seen or perceived, but 1. The wood to the fire. 2. The matter of offering.
3. The fire and light. 4. The smoke of the fire, which arises from the burning wood and matter of the offering. All this, without the faith and divine desire, is as an abomination, and indeed nothing in God's sight, and attains not the gate of God.
14. But if man brings his faith's-desire thereinto, then he resigns the free will thereinto, and will thereby, as by a means (in which fire the free will of the introduced sinful abomination does burn and consume away), press into God's eternal free will. And now how this is effected and comes to pass, understand as follows :
15. God's imagination or lubet meets the free inspired will of the humanity, and the human free will meets the Deity: here is now the conjunction.
16. But now man's free will is become sinful, and God's free will (from whence the human free will did first take its rise in its inspiration) is holy and pure. As yet the human free will cannot press into God's will, unless it also become pure before God.
17. But seeing God will, out of free grace, receive it into himselffor the delight and harmony of his praise, there is no other way or remedy but that God move himselfin the centre of the eternal nature, according to the fire of the second Principle, viz. according to the holy fire, and devour that enkindled anger and vanity of man's free will;
therefore the imagination of the will did immass [or imaginate] itself through the offering, and God enkindled the offering of Abel with the holy fire in the aim of the Covenant, which in the fullness of time should again enkindle itself in the soul's fire.
9. In this the will of Abel's soul did enform [idea] itself into a holy substance, and pressed, with the desire of the enformed free soul's will, before and into God's free will, and this the will of the devil and the Serpent could not brook; and even this the will of the Serpent and devil in Cain did well understand; that the aim of the Covenant did open itself in the holy fire in Abel's desire and prayer.
10. And therefore he [the devil] would kill the body of Abel according to his [Abel's] earthly limus; lest such children should be begotten of him, and so he [the devil] might lose his kingdom in man. But God would not enkindle the offering of Cain. Now Moses makes a veil here before it, and says, God would not look graciously upon Cain's offering.
11. The enkindling of the external offering was a figure of the internal spirit. For the soul's spirit in the free will (as to the centre of the light) was enkindled with God's love-fire; and the imagination of the body (also understand, of the heavenly part) was enkindled in the offering with the fire of the holy part of the earth (which lies hidden in the curse). And therein the free will of the soul, and the free will in the ens of the heavenly part of the body, did immass itself into a substance; and therewith did press in before the holiness of
God.
12. And here the Serpent's head was first bruised, for it was a figure of the new birth out of Christ. Not that Abel had at this time put on Christ in the flesh, but indeed in the spirit of Jehova, in the aim of the Covenant. In which the name of Jesus stood hidden in God (as a regenerator), which would move and manifest itself in the fullness of time in this aim [of the Covenant], and introduce a heavenly holy ens into the disappeared ens of the heavenly part, and quicken it to life again in the opened power of Jesus.
13. If a man would rightly and fundamentally understand the offerings, he must consider that whereof the offering consisted, and what severed itself with the enkindling in the fire, out of the fire, viz. out of the enkindled offering, for in the enkindling nothing is seen or perceived, but 1. The wood to the fire. 2. The matter of offering.
3. The fire and light. 4. The smoke of the fire, which arises from the burning wood and matter of the offering. All this, without the faith and divine desire, is as an abomination, and indeed nothing in God's sight, and attains not the gate of God.
14. But if man brings his faith's-desire thereinto, then he resigns the free will thereinto, and will thereby, as by a means (in which fire the free will of the introduced sinful abomination does burn and consume away), press into God's eternal free will. And now how this is effected and comes to pass, understand as follows :
15. God's imagination or lubet meets the free inspired will of the humanity, and the human free will meets the Deity: here is now the conjunction.
16. But now man's free will is become sinful, and God's free will (from whence the human free will did first take its rise in its inspiration) is holy and pure. As yet the human free will cannot press into God's will, unless it also become pure before God.
17. But seeing God will, out of free grace, receive it into himselffor the delight and harmony of his praise, there is no other way or remedy but that God move himselfin the centre of the eternal nature, according to the fire of the second Principle, viz. according to the holy fire, and devour that enkindled anger and vanity of man's free will;
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