30. Secondly, it is the fair type or image, showing how it goes with the repentant man, when he gives himself up through earnest repentance into this combat of Christ, in Christ's suffering and death, in his victory, and in the spirit of Christ wrestles with God's severe righteousness, which continually assails him in his conscience.
31. For God's righteousness in the conscience says, Let me go; you are dead in sins, and have no part in the divine grace; you have purposely and wilfully sinned, and set the grace behind your back. Now you are mine, praying will not avail you, I will not let you in your conscience attain the grace; you will obtain no comfort more from God, the morning will no more rise to you in your conscience, for you are a child of death. Now leave off and let me alone, that I may shut you up below in the dungeon or chamber of death.
32. When this comes to pass then the poor soul wholly immerses itself into the death of Christ, and gives itself up to the severe righteousness of God, into the judgement, for the judgement lays hold on it. But the soul catches hold of the incorporated grace in the death of Christ, and dives therewith into the most inward ground of the judgement of God; in which ground God's Love is broken forth through the righteousness, and through the judgement, viz. through the eternal night, and has made that same night in man to be day.
33. Into this day, viz. into the abyss without all human possibility or ability, it dives as a child, that neither can nor will do any more, [as a child] that is too unworthy of all grace, and must indeed give itself up to the judgement. But with this diving the soul yields all its utmost will and ability, and is in itself as it were void of nature and creature, and falls again into the Word wherein it stood in the eternal speaking before its creaturely nature.
34. For God's righteousness and judgement has no deeper ground than merely the creaturely life; but when the will of the soul yields itself up in going forth from the creature, and sinks into the abyss, then is it again as a new child; for the abyss in the eternal speaking Word, out of which the highest love and grace of God has manifested itself; lays hold on it, and penetrates into it, as the sun does into the ens of a herb, whence the herb becomes half solar [or of the nature of the sun]. Thus in this diving the soul in its will is half divine; and then it wrestles with God's severe righteousness in flesh and blood, and will overpower the anger of God.
35. Then says God's righteousness in the conscience, Let me alone. That is, Leave off; and slay me not, for you see very well that the divine morning arises in me: cease from striving against the judgement of God. But in the right combat the soul says to God's righteousness, I will not leave you except you bless me. That is, except you givest me the promised grace out of the death of Christ in his conquest, that I may put on my Saviour Christ, that he may be mine and I his. And then thus says God's righteousness (as [was said] to Jacob), What is your name? And then the poor soul names itself according to its own creaturely name; as Jacob did here, when he called himself Jacob. But as, the Lord said to Jacob, you shall no more be called Jacob, but Israel, that is, a tree of life, thus also says God to the soul: you shall no more have self-names in me, but you shall be called a Christian in Christ, viz. a branch in the Tree of Israel, a sprout on the vine Christ (John xv. 5). For you have fought with God and man, and have prevailed. You have overcome God's righteousness in the wrath of the anger, in your combat in the spirit of Christ, and are now an essential Christian, and no more a titulary and verbal or mouth Christian, from whom grace is yet far off.
30. Secondly, it is the fair type or image, showing how it goes with the repentant man, when he gives himself up through earnest repentance into this combat of Christ, in Christ's suffering and death, in his victory, and in the spirit of Christ wrestles with God's severe righteousness, which continually assails him in his conscience.
31. For God's righteousness in the conscience says, Let me go; you are dead in sins, and have no part in the divine grace; you have purposely and wilfully sinned, and set the grace behind your back. Now you are mine, praying will not avail you, I will not let you in your conscience attain the grace; you will obtain no comfort more from God, the morning will no more rise to you in your conscience, for you are a child of death. Now leave off and let me alone, that I may shut you up below in the dungeon or chamber of death.
32. When this comes to pass then the poor soul wholly immerses itself into the death of Christ, and gives itself up to the severe righteousness of God, into the judgement, for the judgement lays hold on it. But the soul catches hold of the incorporated grace in the death of Christ, and dives therewith into the most inward ground of the judgement of God; in which ground God's Love is broken forth through the righteousness, and through the judgement, viz. through the eternal night, and has made that same night in man to be day.
33. Into this day, viz. into the abyss without all human possibility or ability, it dives as a child, that neither can nor will do any more, [as a child] that is too unworthy of all grace, and must indeed give itself up to the judgement. But with this diving the soul yields all its utmost will and ability, and is in itself as it were void of nature and creature, and falls again into the Word wherein it stood in the eternal speaking before its creaturely nature.
34. For God's righteousness and judgement has no deeper ground than merely the creaturely life; but when the will of the soul yields itself up in going forth from the creature, and sinks into the abyss, then is it again as a new child; for the abyss in the eternal speaking Word, out of which the highest love and grace of God has manifested itself; lays hold on it, and penetrates into it, as the sun does into the ens of a herb, whence the herb becomes half solar [or of the nature of the sun]. Thus in this diving the soul in its will is half divine; and then it wrestles with God's severe righteousness in flesh and blood, and will overpower the anger of God.
35. Then says God's righteousness in the conscience, Let me alone. That is, Leave off; and slay me not, for you see very well that the divine morning arises in me: cease from striving against the judgement of God. But in the right combat the soul says to God's righteousness, I will not leave you except you bless me. That is, except you givest me the promised grace out of the death of Christ in his conquest, that I may put on my Saviour Christ, that he may be mine and I his. And then thus says God's righteousness (as [was said] to Jacob), What is your name? And then the poor soul names itself according to its own creaturely name; as Jacob did here, when he called himself Jacob. But as, the Lord said to Jacob, you shall no more be called Jacob, but Israel, that is, a tree of life, thus also says God to the soul: you shall no more have self-names in me, but you shall be called a Christian in Christ, viz. a branch in the Tree of Israel, a sprout on the vine Christ (John xv. 5). For you have fought with God and man, and have prevailed. You have overcome God's righteousness in the wrath of the anger, in your combat in the spirit of Christ, and are now an essential Christian, and no more a titulary and verbal or mouth Christian, from whom grace is yet far off.
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