Page:A Compendium of the Theological Writings of Emanuel Swedenborg.djvu/478

382 (i. 1, 14). The Word here means Divine Truth; for Divine truth among Christians is from no other source than the Word. It is the fountain whence all churches bearing the name of Christ draw living waters in their fulness; although it is as in a cloud, in which its natural sense is, yet it is in glory and power, in which its spiritual and celestial sense is. It has been shown in the chapter on the Sacred Scripture, and in the chapter on the Decalogue or Catechism, that there are three senses in the Word, the natural, the spiritual, and the celestial, one within another. It is therefore clear that in John the Word means Divine Truth. . . . From all this it is plain that now also the Lord will appear in the Word. The reason why He will not appear in person is, that since His ascension into heaven He is in the glorified Human; and in this He cannot appear to any man unless He first open the eyes of his spirit; and these cannot be opened with any one who is in evils and thence in falsities; thus not with any of the goats which He sets at His left hand. Therefore when He manifested Himself to the disciples He first opened their eyes; for it is said, "And their eyes were opened, and they knew Him; and He vanished out of their sight" (Luke xxiv. 31). The same occurred with the women at the sepulchre after the resurrection; and therefore they then also saw angels sitting in the sepulchre and talking with them, whom no man can see with the material eye. Neither did the apostles see the Lord in the glorified Human before the Lord's resurrection with the eyes of the body, but in the spirit,—which appears after waking as if it were in sleep. This is evident from His transfiguration before Peter, James, and John, in that "their eyes were heavy with sleep" (Luke ix. 32). It is therefore vain to think the Lord will appear in person in the clouds of heaven; but He will appear in the Word which is from Him, thus which is Himself. (T. C. R. n. 776, 777.)

Since the Lord cannot manifest Himself in Person, as shown just above, and yet has foretold that He would come and establish a New Church, which is the New Jerusalem, it follows that this will be effected by means of a man, who is able not only to receive the doctrines of that church into his understanding, but also to publish them by the press. I testify in truth,