Page:The New Church - What, How, Why .djvu/46

42 the air, the fishes of the sea and every creeping thing, which are words for corresponding mental things, or natural affections and thoughts, it is the seventh day or holy sabbath of the spirit. The seventh day man had been created in the image and likeness of God, for by passing successively through these stages, he is regenerated and becomes thereby an image and likeness of God.

This is but the barest outline of what the first chapter of Genesis teaches with all detail and fullness. By the language there used, because nature is a parable of man, and "the invisible things from the foundation of the world are clearly seen by the things that are made," the story opens up with unfathomable depth and divine beauty. This is true not only of Genesis, but throughout the Word, and appears when we see how the Lord clothes spiritual ideas in the words and language of mankind.

Take these same words and apply them