29. Thus we must understand in this figure, that the whole man in Christ's person should not be given to the anger of God, as if the Adamical man should be wholly consumed and devoured by it. No; but the wild ram only; the enmity, the opposite will, the property of apostacy and rebellion; but the life's essence should remain for ever. The same Adam, which God created unto Paradise, the same shall remain eternally; but the division or dissonant disunion of the life's forms, in that they are rent asunder and brought into the property of selfhood, whence strife and enmity is arisen in man; [I say] this evil ram; viz. this introduced infection, vain desire, and adverse will, must be offered up in Christ in the fire of God's anger; this was the beast
1 Jehovah-jireh. 2 Text, souls-man.
for the burnt offering. The Lamb of God in Adam shall not be consumed in the fire; but it must only shed its blood; it must immerse and sink itself wholly, with the human nature, into the One, viz. into the Eternal Nothing, without all nature; and then this place is called, Here the Lord sees; that is, when the ram is offered, then this place is afterwards the temple of God, where the Lord sees.
30. And the spirit of Moses speaks very hiddenly hereof, and says, Hence it is said still to this day: Upon the mount where the Lord sees.
The mount is the life's nature, where the Lord has seen, not only in Abraham and Isaac, but he sees in Christ's spirit, yet, at this day upon this mount in the children of God. When the ram is offered up, then the Spirit of God sees through nature, as the sun throughshines a glass, or as a fire through-heats an iron.
31. Therefore a man ought not to be so foolish as to torment his whole life in his repentance and conversion, and to offer it up in the fire of death, without God's command; but he must sacrifice only the sin, and self-love of vanity; he must offer up only the ram, and not do any violence or mischief to nature; not, strike, whip and beat it; or creep into a corner, and suffer the body to starve for hunger. No, he must not, out of his own purpose, give the image of God to death; but the ram he must. He merits not anything by plaguing, martyring and torturing himself; for God has bestowed his heart to that end, to redeem us from pain and torment.
32. When the soul with the right nature has tamed itself from the ram of the flesh, then it must sacrifice the ram to the death of Christ; but it must remain steadfast in great humility and resignation in God; and not any further afflict and rack itself, either with doubts, or with any other external inflicted tortures; and also give nature its necessary nourishment, and not enfeeble and distemper itself; for it is the temple and the image of God. But it must daily and continually mortify the ram in the flesh, viz. the selfish lust of the evil flesh, and the will to the selfhood [or ownhood] of this world; and although the flesh be disquieted, seeing it must forsake what it fain would have, yet the true nature and the soul must not give heed to it. Also it must not take care for the sake of the flesh, where that should have its maintenance, but commit it to God, and go on in his calling as a daylabourer in the service of his Lord and Master, and let God take care for the ram, and give it what he please.
29. Thus we must understand in this figure, that the whole man in Christ's person should not be given to the anger of God, as if the Adamical man should be wholly consumed and devoured by it. No; but the wild ram only; the enmity, the opposite will, the property of apostacy and rebellion; but the life's essence should remain for ever. The same Adam, which God created unto Paradise, the same shall remain eternally; but the division or dissonant disunion of the life's forms, in that they are rent asunder and brought into the property of selfhood, whence strife and enmity is arisen in man; [I say] this evil ram; viz. this introduced infection, vain desire, and adverse will, must be offered up in Christ in the fire of God's anger; this was the beast
1 Jehovah-jireh. 2 Text, souls-man.
for the burnt offering. The Lamb of God in Adam shall not be consumed in the fire; but it must only shed its blood; it must immerse and sink itself wholly, with the human nature, into the One, viz. into the Eternal Nothing, without all nature; and then this place is called, Here the Lord sees; that is, when the ram is offered, then this place is afterwards the temple of God, where the Lord sees.
30. And the spirit of Moses speaks very hiddenly hereof, and says, Hence it is said still to this day: Upon the mount where the Lord sees.
The mount is the life's nature, where the Lord has seen, not only in Abraham and Isaac, but he sees in Christ's spirit, yet, at this day upon this mount in the children of God. When the ram is offered up, then the Spirit of God sees through nature, as the sun throughshines a glass, or as a fire through-heats an iron.
31. Therefore a man ought not to be so foolish as to torment his whole life in his repentance and conversion, and to offer it up in the fire of death, without God's command; but he must sacrifice only the sin, and self-love of vanity; he must offer up only the ram, and not do any violence or mischief to nature; not, strike, whip and beat it; or creep into a corner, and suffer the body to starve for hunger. No, he must not, out of his own purpose, give the image of God to death; but the ram he must. He merits not anything by plaguing, martyring and torturing himself; for God has bestowed his heart to that end, to redeem us from pain and torment.
32. When the soul with the right nature has tamed itself from the ram of the flesh, then it must sacrifice the ram to the death of Christ; but it must remain steadfast in great humility and resignation in God; and not any further afflict and rack itself, either with doubts, or with any other external inflicted tortures; and also give nature its necessary nourishment, and not enfeeble and distemper itself; for it is the temple and the image of God. But it must daily and continually mortify the ram in the flesh, viz. the selfish lust of the evil flesh, and the will to the selfhood [or ownhood] of this world; and although the flesh be disquieted, seeing it must forsake what it fain would have, yet the true nature and the soul must not give heed to it. Also it must not take care for the sake of the flesh, where that should have its maintenance, but commit it to God, and go on in his calling as a daylabourer in the service of his Lord and Master, and let God take care for the ram, and give it what he please.
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