40. The offering alone could not have been able to have done it, only the faith which did idea or lay hold on the promised Messiah in the offering, which apprehended the Covenant, and the true, very precious and dear offering, the same did effect it. The offering was only a figure of that which was therein accomplished and performed, as the outward world is only a figure of the inward spiritual world, whereby the spiritual world does introduce itself into a figure and essence,and beholds itself therein, as in a looking-glass.
OF CAIN'S OFFERING
41. By Cain's offering we rightly understand the verbal Christendom, the titular Christians, in the spiritual Babylonical harlotry, the type and image of whom is Cain. And as Cain in his offering sought only the outward world, might and pleasure, and would be an outwardly adopted and received child, God should permit his evil beast to be accepted and offered up;
he desired to be God's acceptable child with the selfhood in the Serpent's ens and falsehood; he was an impenitent proud man, who thought to be a lord of the world, and to domineer over Abel and his posterity. And just thus is the anti-christian Church upon the earth; it also builds churches and altars, preaches, sings and tinkles, and does likewise offer in the bequeathed Covenant and Testament of Christ, and so covers itself with the offering of Christ, and will be an outwardly accepted and adopted son, notwithstanding that its offering is not accepted in the Covenant and Testament of Christ, nor brought to substance.
42. The cause and ground of it is this: Men depend and rely only barely and nakedly upon the offering, and teach that the offerings take away sin, [and teach that] Christ's Testaments do absolve sin. But as little as the offering of Cain was acceptable before God and took away his sin, and as little as Cain's desire was introduced into the divine substance, so as to have the divine fire to enkindle in his offering and receive his faith's desire into it, even so little also does the verbal [lip-labouring] Christendom enjoy the offering of Christ in his humanity.
It must be an Abel alone that does enjoy it; the titular mouthChristian attains only the smoke of the true offering. It must be only a right, hungry, thirsty, converted soul, which desires wholly and fully to depart from the Serpent's ens and all vanity of this world, and strives to mortify the Serpent and all vain will, in the death of Christ, and desires to arise in a new will, totally resigned in all submission in God.
43. This true hungry will offers rightly with Abel, and its offering is received into the holy fire of Christ, and formed [or amassed] in Christ's humanity into a substance. There must be earnestness and power, which earnestness stirs the love-fire of Christ in his Testament, so that it does enkindle itself in the desire; and then the desire becomes a true right faith, for there is no right faith without divine taking [Comprehension, amassment or formation] .
44. When man's desire introduces its hunger with earnest sighing and prayer of introversion, resignation, and departing from vanity into the offering of Christ, even then the soul's desire does, in the heavenly essentiality, in the humanity of Christ, upon the high altar of God, form itself into a substance. The hungry desire becomes in the Word of God, in Christ's Testaments, flesh, a heavenly supernatural flesh; and this flesh is the true offering of God, which God takes to his habitation, and not the bestial mortal man.
45. In this holy substance alone is the true faith of Abel, without this there is only an historical painted and feigned faith, a Cain's offering, which does not take away sin: for sin must always be brought into the judgement of God wherein it was born, and the holy love-fire of God must drown and wash it away, else there is no forgiveness.
40. The offering alone could not have been able to have done it, only the faith which did idea or lay hold on the promised Messiah in the offering, which apprehended the Covenant, and the true, very precious and dear offering, the same did effect it. The offering was only a figure of that which was therein accomplished and performed, as the outward world is only a figure of the inward spiritual world, whereby the spiritual world does introduce itself into a figure and essence,and beholds itself therein, as in a looking-glass.
OF CAIN'S OFFERING
41. By Cain's offering we rightly understand the verbal Christendom, the titular Christians, in the spiritual Babylonical harlotry, the type and image of whom is Cain. And as Cain in his offering sought only the outward world, might and pleasure, and would be an outwardly adopted and received child, God should permit his evil beast to be accepted and offered up;
he desired to be God's acceptable child with the selfhood in the Serpent's ens and falsehood; he was an impenitent proud man, who thought to be a lord of the world, and to domineer over Abel and his posterity. And just thus is the anti-christian Church upon the earth; it also builds churches and altars, preaches, sings and tinkles, and does likewise offer in the bequeathed Covenant and Testament of Christ, and so covers itself with the offering of Christ, and will be an outwardly accepted and adopted son, notwithstanding that its offering is not accepted in the Covenant and Testament of Christ, nor brought to substance.
42. The cause and ground of it is this: Men depend and rely only barely and nakedly upon the offering, and teach that the offerings take away sin, [and teach that] Christ's Testaments do absolve sin. But as little as the offering of Cain was acceptable before God and took away his sin, and as little as Cain's desire was introduced into the divine substance, so as to have the divine fire to enkindle in his offering and receive his faith's desire into it, even so little also does the verbal [lip-labouring] Christendom enjoy the offering of Christ in his humanity.
It must be an Abel alone that does enjoy it; the titular mouthChristian attains only the smoke of the true offering. It must be only a right, hungry, thirsty, converted soul, which desires wholly and fully to depart from the Serpent's ens and all vanity of this world, and strives to mortify the Serpent and all vain will, in the death of Christ, and desires to arise in a new will, totally resigned in all submission in God.
43. This true hungry will offers rightly with Abel, and its offering is received into the holy fire of Christ, and formed [or amassed] in Christ's humanity into a substance. There must be earnestness and power, which earnestness stirs the love-fire of Christ in his Testament, so that it does enkindle itself in the desire; and then the desire becomes a true right faith, for there is no right faith without divine taking [Comprehension, amassment or formation] .
44. When man's desire introduces its hunger with earnest sighing and prayer of introversion, resignation, and departing from vanity into the offering of Christ, even then the soul's desire does, in the heavenly essentiality, in the humanity of Christ, upon the high altar of God, form itself into a substance. The hungry desire becomes in the Word of God, in Christ's Testaments, flesh, a heavenly supernatural flesh; and this flesh is the true offering of God, which God takes to his habitation, and not the bestial mortal man.
45. In this holy substance alone is the true faith of Abel, without this there is only an historical painted and feigned faith, a Cain's offering, which does not take away sin: for sin must always be brought into the judgement of God wherein it was born, and the holy love-fire of God must drown and wash it away, else there is no forgiveness.
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