33. This lecherous Eve sticks yet to the children of God in flesh and blood, and it is the animal soul, viz. the mortal spirit, full of evil lust and impurity, whereinto the devil has yet stuck his Serpent's sting; for which cause the body must die, and rot; also this bestial spirit must be destroyed,2 and go quite into its mother again, out of which it proceeded in the beginning.
1 Or, image. 2 Or, corrupt.
34. In this whore the devil assaults the noble virgin child daily, viz. the chaste Joseph in Christ's spirit, encompassed with heavenly spiritual corporeity, viz. with Christ's flesh and blood. This virgin child is the woman in the Apocalypse, that stands upon the moon (Rev. xii. I), viz. upon this earthly whore, and has twelve stars in the crown upon her head, which woman the dragon in the earthly whore would continually devour, when she brings forth the holy child, viz. the noble Joseph, viz. the chaste and divine purity, which causes woe to the dragon in flesh and blood, that it must resign its kingdom, and in that respect pours forth the great deluge 1 of earthliness upon her, to slay the child together with its mother.
35. But the earth comes to help this woman (Rev. xii. 16), that is, the earthly desire in flesh and blood opens its throat wide and swallows this dragon's flood into itself, seeing it is its like, that it may not hurt the virgin child; as Potiphar's wife's unchaste dragon's whorish floods and streams did not hurt Joseph, in that he fled from her and did not yield his will to her.
36. And this is first the most powerful proba or trial of the children of God; that as soon as they attain the new birth, then the devil comes and stirs up the fleshly whore in flesh and blood, and all false and wicked desires and imaginations, and then injects and frames in this whore the honour and glory of the world; also riches and the pleasure of this life; also he models and represents the great misery and desolation, wherein the poor soul, in this world, must stand in shame and scorn; also the great unworthiness of the soul; also he represents covetousness, to think all temporal good things and necessaries will fail, and so it should come into great misery.
37. To the potent and rich the devil models and represents, in this their fleshly serpentine whore, their nobility and highness, their great honour, might and power; also voluptuous eating and drinking [of dainty fare], and how they may acquire it with power and subtle policy; also he represents unchastity and wantonness; and to think, that if they should walk in humility and lowliness they should lose the respect and reputation of the world: for who would fear and honour them, if they did not put themselves forward with ostentation?
38. All these are the words of Potiphar's whore in flesh and blood, which the devil stirs up in the Serpent's insinuated poison, with his imagination, wherewith he plagues the poor imprisoned soul in flesh and blood, and provokes it to such and the like unchastity and sins. And this whore in the flesh says continually to the soul, Lie with me, copulate with me, you will be blessed, happy, and saved well enough, use your lust with me. And this she does daily, that she might bring Joseph into lust, viz. the new child, that the soul might bite at that bait, and defile the new child, and its fair crown.
1 Flood or water- stream.
33. This lecherous Eve sticks yet to the children of God in flesh and blood, and it is the animal soul, viz. the mortal spirit, full of evil lust and impurity, whereinto the devil has yet stuck his Serpent's sting; for which cause the body must die, and rot; also this bestial spirit must be destroyed,2 and go quite into its mother again, out of which it proceeded in the beginning.
1 Or, image. 2 Or, corrupt.
34. In this whore the devil assaults the noble virgin child daily, viz. the chaste Joseph in Christ's spirit, encompassed with heavenly spiritual corporeity, viz. with Christ's flesh and blood. This virgin child is the woman in the Apocalypse, that stands upon the moon (Rev. xii. I), viz. upon this earthly whore, and has twelve stars in the crown upon her head, which woman the dragon in the earthly whore would continually devour, when she brings forth the holy child, viz. the noble Joseph, viz. the chaste and divine purity, which causes woe to the dragon in flesh and blood, that it must resign its kingdom, and in that respect pours forth the great deluge 1 of earthliness upon her, to slay the child together with its mother.
35. But the earth comes to help this woman (Rev. xii. 16), that is, the earthly desire in flesh and blood opens its throat wide and swallows this dragon's flood into itself, seeing it is its like, that it may not hurt the virgin child; as Potiphar's wife's unchaste dragon's whorish floods and streams did not hurt Joseph, in that he fled from her and did not yield his will to her.
36. And this is first the most powerful proba or trial of the children of God; that as soon as they attain the new birth, then the devil comes and stirs up the fleshly whore in flesh and blood, and all false and wicked desires and imaginations, and then injects and frames in this whore the honour and glory of the world; also riches and the pleasure of this life; also he models and represents the great misery and desolation, wherein the poor soul, in this world, must stand in shame and scorn; also the great unworthiness of the soul; also he represents covetousness, to think all temporal good things and necessaries will fail, and so it should come into great misery.
37. To the potent and rich the devil models and represents, in this their fleshly serpentine whore, their nobility and highness, their great honour, might and power; also voluptuous eating and drinking [of dainty fare], and how they may acquire it with power and subtle policy; also he represents unchastity and wantonness; and to think, that if they should walk in humility and lowliness they should lose the respect and reputation of the world: for who would fear and honour them, if they did not put themselves forward with ostentation?
38. All these are the words of Potiphar's whore in flesh and blood, which the devil stirs up in the Serpent's insinuated poison, with his imagination, wherewith he plagues the poor imprisoned soul in flesh and blood, and provokes it to such and the like unchastity and sins. And this whore in the flesh says continually to the soul, Lie with me, copulate with me, you will be blessed, happy, and saved well enough, use your lust with me. And this she does daily, that she might bring Joseph into lust, viz. the new child, that the soul might bite at that bait, and defile the new child, and its fair crown.
1 Flood or water- stream.
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