17. Moreover, we have a very great and weighty point here to consider of, concerning the Serpent's craft: that if the devil has infected the word (when it is born in the heart and formed in its ens, and has taken possession of the will, and made it substantial) this Serpent's craft does then hold and entertain the same in the devil's murdering fort, as a fine adorned pleasant brat;
as the Serpent, lying on the Tree, spoke very pleasingly and takingly with Eve, until it could, by its friendly intercourse, catch her in the desire. Even so likewise the false, crafty, conceived Serpent's-word, which proceeds from the false heart, does hold forth itself as a very lovely eloquent persuasive syren, and calls itself holy, till it can discover man's desire set open for it; there it lays open its very heart, and enters into the desire [of him], and makes itself a place to work [in], and to re-procreate [its like].
18. Therefrom now do come the false close backbiters, talebearers, perverters and wrong interpreters of other men's sayings, secret liars, who are very fair before, and behind are a serpent; revilers, and foul-mouthed slanderers who take away a man's good name from him;
and in this false, smooth, and well-coloured and adorned Serpent's-property, the devil has his Council Chamber, his school, where he teaches the children of Eve his art, viz. juggling delusions, foppery, pride, covetousness, envy, anger, and all vices and abominations proceeding from the abyss of the dark- world's property.
19. Thus the devil rules man in body and soul by the crafty essence of the Serpent, and works abomination with abomination, iniquity with iniquity, sin with sin. And this is even the first original of actual sin: that Eve and Adam did introduce the Serpent's crafty essence (which the devil had infected) into their [will and] desire; and so made themselves forthwith monstrous in the Serpent; whereupon the dark-world's essence did awake in them, that so soon as this was brought to pass, the will did imagine into this monstrous property, and formed itself into a substantial word.
20. Even thus the word was now also manifest in man in the property of God's anger, viz. in the dark- world's ens; and thus man does now speak lies and truth; for there is a twofold ens in him, viz. one from the dark world, awakened and stirred up by the desire of the Serpent and the devil; and one from the heavenly limus which is now stirring in man, wherein the free will takes the word, that is, whence it does generate a fruit out of the divine expressed and formed word, which is again received of the likeness, either in heaven or hell, that is, in the darkness or light.
21. For the two worlds are in each other as one. The wicked forms and makes [for] God a good word in his wrath unto death, viz. unto the sting of death and hell; and the holy man forms and makes [to] God, out of his good ens, a good word unto the holy life and operation. As the Scripture speaks very clearly, the holy is to God a sweet sapour unto life, and the wicked a sweet sapour unto death, viz. to the ark world.
22. Now every man is a creator [or framer] of his word's powers and doings; that which he makes and frames out of his free will, the same is received, as a work of the manifested word, into each property, in the likeness.
23. For God's Word is also manifest in the dark world; but only according to its property, as the Scripture says, such as the people is, such a god they also have. God's word is manifest in all things, in each thing according to its ens, whence the free will proceeds; the free will is the creator or maker, whereby the creature makes [forms and works] in the manifested Word.
24. There is no herb or thing whatsoever that can be named, wherein there lies not an ens from the manifested Word of God, an ens both according to God's Love and Anger, according to the dark and light- world; for this visible world was breathed forth out of this same Word. Now each ens of the forth-breathed Word has a free will again to breathe forth out of its ens a likeness according to itself.
17. Moreover, we have a very great and weighty point here to consider of, concerning the Serpent's craft: that if the devil has infected the word (when it is born in the heart and formed in its ens, and has taken possession of the will, and made it substantial) this Serpent's craft does then hold and entertain the same in the devil's murdering fort, as a fine adorned pleasant brat;
as the Serpent, lying on the Tree, spoke very pleasingly and takingly with Eve, until it could, by its friendly intercourse, catch her in the desire. Even so likewise the false, crafty, conceived Serpent's-word, which proceeds from the false heart, does hold forth itself as a very lovely eloquent persuasive syren, and calls itself holy, till it can discover man's desire set open for it; there it lays open its very heart, and enters into the desire [of him], and makes itself a place to work [in], and to re-procreate [its like].
18. Therefrom now do come the false close backbiters, talebearers, perverters and wrong interpreters of other men's sayings, secret liars, who are very fair before, and behind are a serpent; revilers, and foul-mouthed slanderers who take away a man's good name from him;
and in this false, smooth, and well-coloured and adorned Serpent's-property, the devil has his Council Chamber, his school, where he teaches the children of Eve his art, viz. juggling delusions, foppery, pride, covetousness, envy, anger, and all vices and abominations proceeding from the abyss of the dark- world's property.
19. Thus the devil rules man in body and soul by the crafty essence of the Serpent, and works abomination with abomination, iniquity with iniquity, sin with sin. And this is even the first original of actual sin: that Eve and Adam did introduce the Serpent's crafty essence (which the devil had infected) into their [will and] desire; and so made themselves forthwith monstrous in the Serpent; whereupon the dark-world's essence did awake in them, that so soon as this was brought to pass, the will did imagine into this monstrous property, and formed itself into a substantial word.
20. Even thus the word was now also manifest in man in the property of God's anger, viz. in the dark- world's ens; and thus man does now speak lies and truth; for there is a twofold ens in him, viz. one from the dark world, awakened and stirred up by the desire of the Serpent and the devil; and one from the heavenly limus which is now stirring in man, wherein the free will takes the word, that is, whence it does generate a fruit out of the divine expressed and formed word, which is again received of the likeness, either in heaven or hell, that is, in the darkness or light.
21. For the two worlds are in each other as one. The wicked forms and makes [for] God a good word in his wrath unto death, viz. unto the sting of death and hell; and the holy man forms and makes [to] God, out of his good ens, a good word unto the holy life and operation. As the Scripture speaks very clearly, the holy is to God a sweet sapour unto life, and the wicked a sweet sapour unto death, viz. to the ark world.
22. Now every man is a creator [or framer] of his word's powers and doings; that which he makes and frames out of his free will, the same is received, as a work of the manifested word, into each property, in the likeness.
23. For God's Word is also manifest in the dark world; but only according to its property, as the Scripture says, such as the people is, such a god they also have. God's word is manifest in all things, in each thing according to its ens, whence the free will proceeds; the free will is the creator or maker, whereby the creature makes [forms and works] in the manifested Word.
24. There is no herb or thing whatsoever that can be named, wherein there lies not an ens from the manifested Word of God, an ens both according to God's Love and Anger, according to the dark and light- world; for this visible world was breathed forth out of this same Word. Now each ens of the forth-breathed Word has a free will again to breathe forth out of its ens a likeness according to itself.
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