17. Which subtlety was that which God showed him, viz. the Destroyer of the Serpent, which Adam put on in the Covenant, which put on the kingdom of nature [assumed] from us men, and with divine subtlety took away the strength and power of our lord and master, viz. of the kingdom of God's wrath, which held us captive under its yoke, and put on all human power, and took away our lord and master's own power, viz. the kingdom of nature's own power, as
Jacob took his lord and master's goods.
18. And as the spirit of God showed Jacob in the vision that the hegoats and rams that leaped upon the goats and sheep were ringstraked, speckled, and grisled (Gen. xxxi. 10): so was Adam also shown, in the spirit of the Covenant of promise, how the spirit of grace in the Covenant came upon the streaked, particoloured human nature, and blessed it, so that it became pregnant of the spirit of the Covenant.
19. Which human, streaked or particoloured nature is no other than the half-earthly, corrupt, and again in the Covenant, new-born heavenly nature. Upon this came the spirit of God as to the heavenly part, and made it fruitful, so that under the earthly yoke it drew the power of nature in the divine power into the heavenly; and so was his master's or lord's, viz. the kingdom of nature's, goods taken away, and the heavenly man in the Covenant gat them to himself with the divine wit and subtlety, and returned therewith from his lord and master, viz. the kingdom of the outward nature, again into his Father's house, viz. into Paradise, as Jacob into his father's house.
The figure is fundamentally thus:
20. In Adam the kingdom of nature lay in the temperature, that is, all properties were of equal weight. But when the will of the soul went with subtlety into the separation, then the properties were stirred up, and the temperature was broken. And then the separation was his lord and master, and held the will captive as a servant, who now must serve this master.
21. But when God spoke or inspired again his grace with the Covenant of love thereinto, then the inward, inspoken or inspired ground of grace drew the kingdom of nature with its wonders to it; and came away with the riches and self-might, and brought them again, with the inward new man, into Paradise.
22. For the riches of the natural outward mortal man, in that it brings forth the wonders of God with its exercise, does not belong to the kingdom of nature as its proper own, but to the inward spiritual new man, born of Christ ; he shall draw these wonders to him, and take them with him to be an eternal vision and contemplation of the wonders of God.
23. When the body of the outward nature falls away, then shall the works follow the new man as a treasure, which he has gotten to himself by divine wit and subtlety, and put off the evil Adamical nature's house of self-rule and dominion. As Jacob, who stood in the figure of the new spiritual man, with whom the spirit of God alludes in the prefiguration to the future kingdom of Christ. Showing how Christ would obtain all the goods of this world, and all the riches of the power and might of nature, in the formed, expressed 1 word of
God, under his servitude, wherein he yielded himself up to be a servant of God in the kingdom of nature; and so make himself lord and master over it, and bring it with him into his eternal kingdom in our assumed humanity; and lastly manifest it at the end of the day of this world, and give it us again in our Father's first house.
17. Which subtlety was that which God showed him, viz. the Destroyer of the Serpent, which Adam put on in the Covenant, which put on the kingdom of nature [assumed] from us men, and with divine subtlety took away the strength and power of our lord and master, viz. of the kingdom of God's wrath, which held us captive under its yoke, and put on all human power, and took away our lord and master's own power, viz. the kingdom of nature's own power, as
Jacob took his lord and master's goods.
18. And as the spirit of God showed Jacob in the vision that the hegoats and rams that leaped upon the goats and sheep were ringstraked, speckled, and grisled (Gen. xxxi. 10): so was Adam also shown, in the spirit of the Covenant of promise, how the spirit of grace in the Covenant came upon the streaked, particoloured human nature, and blessed it, so that it became pregnant of the spirit of the Covenant.
19. Which human, streaked or particoloured nature is no other than the half-earthly, corrupt, and again in the Covenant, new-born heavenly nature. Upon this came the spirit of God as to the heavenly part, and made it fruitful, so that under the earthly yoke it drew the power of nature in the divine power into the heavenly; and so was his master's or lord's, viz. the kingdom of nature's, goods taken away, and the heavenly man in the Covenant gat them to himself with the divine wit and subtlety, and returned therewith from his lord and master, viz. the kingdom of the outward nature, again into his Father's house, viz. into Paradise, as Jacob into his father's house.
The figure is fundamentally thus:
20. In Adam the kingdom of nature lay in the temperature, that is, all properties were of equal weight. But when the will of the soul went with subtlety into the separation, then the properties were stirred up, and the temperature was broken. And then the separation was his lord and master, and held the will captive as a servant, who now must serve this master.
21. But when God spoke or inspired again his grace with the Covenant of love thereinto, then the inward, inspoken or inspired ground of grace drew the kingdom of nature with its wonders to it; and came away with the riches and self-might, and brought them again, with the inward new man, into Paradise.
22. For the riches of the natural outward mortal man, in that it brings forth the wonders of God with its exercise, does not belong to the kingdom of nature as its proper own, but to the inward spiritual new man, born of Christ ; he shall draw these wonders to him, and take them with him to be an eternal vision and contemplation of the wonders of God.
23. When the body of the outward nature falls away, then shall the works follow the new man as a treasure, which he has gotten to himself by divine wit and subtlety, and put off the evil Adamical nature's house of self-rule and dominion. As Jacob, who stood in the figure of the new spiritual man, with whom the spirit of God alludes in the prefiguration to the future kingdom of Christ. Showing how Christ would obtain all the goods of this world, and all the riches of the power and might of nature, in the formed, expressed 1 word of
God, under his servitude, wherein he yielded himself up to be a servant of God in the kingdom of nature; and so make himself lord and master over it, and bring it with him into his eternal kingdom in our assumed humanity; and lastly manifest it at the end of the day of this world, and give it us again in our Father's first house.
No commentary for this page.
There is commentary on page 1.