Page:The Doctrines of the New Church Briefly Explained.djvu/257

Rh 21)—so likewise is the kingdom of hell. It is a state in all respects the opposite of heaven—as opposite as night is to day, darkness to light, hatred to love, sin to holiness. Even the literal sense of the words heaven and hell, in the original languages of the Bible, is proof of this,—the former meaning a high and light, and the latter a low and dark, place. And as place corresponds to state, these terms, interpreted by the revealed law of correspondence, denote opposite states of life,—the one elevated, luminous and pure, the other low, dark and degraded. As love of the Lord and the neighbor is the essential constituent of heaven, so the love of self and the world is the essential constituent of hell. This latter love is what is meant by the fire of hell spoken of in Scripture, for such love is what this fire corresponds to. As the Lord (or his unselfish love) reigns and rules in heaven, so the love of self, which is the fountain and father of all other evil loves, is the ruling principle in hell. As the angels love and worship the Lord alone, so the devils love and worship none but themselves. As heaven is the abode of light, love, joy, and the serenest peace, so hell is the abode of falsity, hatred, gloom, and perpetual strife.

Thus the character of the devils is altogether opposite to that of the angels. The former are inverted, while the latter are true, images of the