The True Christian Religion [ Amsterdam, 1771, London & New York, 1933 ]... everyman's pocket edition... Emanuel Swedenborg.

1. THE TRUE CHRISTIAN RELIGION
EMANUEL SWEDENBORG
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PHILOSOPHY &.. THEOLOGY
THE TRUE CHRISTIAN RELIGION
BY EMANUEL SWEDENBORG· INTRO ­
DUCTION BY DR. HELEN KELLER
Iq~":,/ 1-1:

9. EMANUEL SWEDENBORG, born at Stock­
holm on 29th January 1688. Travelled in
Europe, but settled in Stockholm in 1716
with a post in the Department of Mines.
Died in London on 29th March 1722; remains
removed to Sweden in 1908.
.illl

10. THE TRUE CHRISTIAN RELIGION
EMANUEL SWEDENBORG
LONDON: J. M. DENT & SONS LTD.
NEW YORK: E. P. DUTTON & CO. INC.
IB;.11H

11. AU dahu reserved
Made in Great Britain
at The Temple Press Letchworth
and decorated 0/ Eric Ravilious
for
J. M. Dent 8l. Sons Ltd.
Aldine House Bedford St. London
First Published in this Edition 1933
Reprinted 1936

12. INTRODUCTION
~ SINCE Lwas sixte~n years old,' l have been a strong believer
in the doctrines given to the world by Emanuel Swedenborg.
It was his mission to teach men to listen to the inward voice
rather than to opinions and disputations. After many yêârs
of reverent study of the Bible, l gratefully wonder if l am not
more indebted to Swedenborg for the faith that turns my
darkness to light than l have yet realized. l acknowledge
my profound indebtedness to Emanuel Swedenborg for a
richer interpretation of the Bible, a deeper understanding Qt
.the meaning of Christianity, and a precious sense of tDe
Di'!ine_PreseJ1~_Jn_.Jp.e wond. l have many times tried to
recall the feelings that led me to take Sw~g~!>org's interR!e­
tation of Christianity rather than my father's; but l can find
no satIsfactoryanswer. It was with me as it was with Joseph
Conrad, w:lu~n .an irresist~ble impuls~ urged him togo to sea.
Like him, l took 'a, so to speak, standing jump out of my
associations' and traditions-and the l'est is what l have
grown to be.
The tbeological teachings of Swedenborg are in many long
volumes. The summation, the universal theology, is found
in this magnum opus, The True Christian Religion, which is
now being brought to new thousands of reverent readers.
~ Yet his central doctrine is simple. It consists of three main
2. ideas: Goel as Divine L~e, God as Divine Wisdgm, and God
3 as P0lY.~.0Q):-Y_!?~· Thè-se ideas come as wavesttom an ocean
l
which floods every bay and harbour of life with new potency
of will, of faith, and of effort. To our conception of God, the'
Word, and the Hereafter, which we have received on trust 1
from aees of unproved faith, SF~nborK..givesa new actuality,
w:.iîf.<i-~.!.iL§os.j..!-cartling!.E~!llin~ as the _.i!.nga7suÏ.!&.Jiaings of 1
_
th"e Lord's buin:--He onngs-fieslîtestimony to support Oiïr
hope that the veil shall be drawn from unseeing eyes, that
the dull ear shall be quickened, and dumb lips gladdened with
speech. There is among us a distressing indifference to all
things of faith, and an impatience at any effort to explain the
laws of life in spiritual terms. The only really blind are those )
w,h.Q wi!LJ.lot see the truth-those who shut their eyes to the
spiritual vision. For them alone darkness is irrevocable.
Those who explore the dark wi~.h love as a torch and trust as
vu

13. viii TRUE CHRISTIAN RELIGION
a guide find it good. Blind people who have eyes know that
they live in a spiritual world inconceivably more wonderful
than the material world that is veiled from them. The
landscapes they behold never fade. The tlowers they look
upon are the immortal tlowers which grow in God's garden.
Swedenborg's message is like the ~ock smitten by Moses,
yiêlâing sweet streams 'ofnea1ing -water, e-y~~c ~.Il~:)uIldànce
o( truths .for those who..hungeLandtl!.Lrst in tneir pilgrimage
through an age of materialism and selfishness.
The doctrines set forth by Swedenborg bring men by a
wondrous way to God's city of light. l have walked through
its sunlit ways of truth, l have drunk of its sweet waters of
knowledge, and the eyes of my spirit have been opened, 50
that l know the joy of vision which conquers darkness and
circles heaven. Of one thing l am sure; any effort is worth
while that brings comfort to limited, struggling human beings
i:!1 a da.!:Jf}_~~lf.:çentreçLage; and Swedenborg's message has
meanC50 much to me! It has given colour and reality and
unity to my thought of the life to come; it has exalted my
i~!l-s ojJov~, tr!!.,t}:!,ap.d-y'~eill~E.e~;it has been my strongest
incltement to 0vercome limitatIOns. The atmosphere Sweden ­
borg creates absorbs me completely. His slightest phrase is
1 significant to me. There is an exquisitely quietening and
( soothing power in the thoughts of Swedenborg for people of
. my temperament. l wish l might be able to radiate the
spiritual illumination that carne to me when l read with my
own fingers Heaven and Hell. AH the days of my life since
have •proved the doctrine' and found it true. If people
would only begin to read Swedenborg's books with at first a
little patience, they would soon be reading them for pure joy.
They would find much to be glad of in heaven and enough to
show them that the soul is everywhere, and enough to prove
l that love and God are 50 closely aHied that we cannot know
much about one and miss the other. His Divine Love and
Wisdom is a fountain of life l am always happy to be near.
l find in it a 95J.PPY ~~~1..!r2!!!. th~ noisY.....insan~lY-of the oucter
world with its many w9r~s....9rlit!l~ meamng and acyons of
litt1e~QD:h. l bury my fingers in this great river of light
that is higher than aH stars, deeper than the silence which
enfolds me. It alone is great, while aH else is small, fragmen ­
tary. Were l but capable of interpreting to others one-half
of the stimulating thoughts and noble sentiments that are
buried in Swedenborg's writings, l should help them more
than l am ever likely to in any other way. It would be such
i a joy to me if l might be the instrument of bringing Swedenborg
! to.!I:.F_Qrl<!. th~t !S spiritually deaf and _blind.
The conclusion forces itseIf upon the mind of One who
...

14. INTRODUCTION ix
patiently reads his works through, that Swedenborg described
a world which was as distinctly objective to him as the world
we live in is to us. It is also a fact that that world presents
a system of perfect order, and every part of it fits into every
other part. The same laws are shown to apply to the con­
stitution of the spiritual realm, the interpretation of the
Bible, and the mind of man. If the reader believes in revela­
tion, he will find convincing proofs of Swedenborg's teaching
in the Bible itself. Three characteristics of his philosophy
are completeness, homogeneity, and the universal adaptability
of its principles. hs a leaf grows out of a twig, or as the body
depends on the mind, so is any part of this system bound
to any related part. All through his writings, Swedenborg
teaches that all true religion is of the life and that the life of
religion is to do good. He also tells us that the "Word-the
Law of Life-has its fullness, its holiness, and its power in
the sense of the letter and in our acts. Every parable, every
correspondence in the 'Nord demands our faithful performance
of every service essential to the h~il..lth., eIllightenIE~nt,_a!ld
lib.eIat!<m-of mankind. This means that we must strive to
fill the pracHcarities of the world with the Spirit. If we
think this is impossible, how can we call ourselves disciples
of Hilll....}Y~---.!!pQp the csoss that we might all have life
anqgave It more .abundantly? Theologians have always
endeavoured to grip in permanent form man's momentary
impressions of God from the fieeting, changing aspects of His
world. From this process of dogmatism have arisen many
of the contradictions in the literaI sense of the Bible, and
misunderstandings of God's nature and His purpose. Sweden-
borg had a genius for interpreting the sacred symbolism of
the Bible similar to the genius of Joseph when he revealed,
the meaning of Pharaoh's dreams in the land of his captivity. '
The theologians of his time darkened counsel with many words
without knowledge. While they were helpless before the
curtains of the Shrine, Swedenb'org drew these aside with
subtle insight, and revealed the Holy of holies in all its glory.
The beautiful truths of the Divine Humanity had become dis­
, torted, dissociated, dissected beyond recognition, and our Lord
Himself :was lostip. deadlv dialectics. Swedenborg brought
togëther the scattered andbièikêu"l?arts, gave them normal
shape and meaning, and thus _~stablished a 'new communiQD
'YjtlL~od")n Chgl't '. Swedenborg was not a destroyer, but
a divindy inspired interprt<ter. He was a prophet sent of ~
.ç.2d, The first and last thought th'roûgnout his writings ls
to show that in the Bible, rightly read and interpreted, l.ê the
iLu~t..jlnd noblest conception_of God E.0ssible. Most human
minds are so constituted that there is in them a secret chamber
*A 893

15. x TRUE CHRISTIAN RELIGION
where theological subjects are stored, and their centre is the
idea of God. If the idea is false and cruel, all things which
follow it by logical sequence partake of these qualities. Fo!
the .highest is also the in,most, and it is the very essence of
evëiy belief and thought and institution derived from it.
This essence, like a soul, forms into an image of itself every.
thing it enters; and as it descends to the planes of daily life,
it lays hold of the truths in the mind and infects them with
its cruelty and error. Beliefs which set 'up ficntious excel­
lences, encourage devotional feelings and q,eremonies which do
not have for an object the good of mankind, and which are
made substitutes for a righteous, useful life, such beliefs
darken all morality and make it an instrument of a supreme
being worshipped indeed with adulation, but in truth most
repulsive to the good and the wise. A wandering idea of an
invisible God, Swedenborg declares, 'is not determined to
anything; for this reason it ceases and perishes. The idea
of God as a spirit, when a spirit is believed to be as
ether or wind, is an empty idea; but the idea of God as Man
is a just idea; for God is Divine Love and Divine Wisdom,
with every quality belonging to them,' aÏialliEi subject of
these is man, and not ether or wind'. Guided by the light
of the divine Word, Swedenborg saw the Oneness of God in
/ Person and Essence, and Jesus Christ as God in the humanity
1 which He assumed on earth, and the Holy Spirit as the Infinite
Power for creating good and happiness. Jehovah wrought
the most stupendous act in eadli'i; history as gently and
unobtrusively as He pours His light upon mind and nature.
One of the infallible tokens of Divinity is its perfect quietness
and self-effacement. When the Lord 'finited' Himself, as it
were, and became a little child, there was no glory, except a
light on the hills where the shepherds heard the angels sing,
and a star in the far East. There was no sign of worldly
magnificence or pomp. There was not even a man of perfect
form and stature. Only a little babe lying in a manger. He
was apparently just like any other child. His growth, mental
and physical, was normal, and as we follow the story of His
life, we find Him a man with men, earning His daily bread
as they did, walking with them along the seashore and by the
hill-side paths. Yet He was Immanuel, God with us. This
truth is tbe centre of all Cllristian doctrine, and unless one
perceives it clearly, the Scriptures cannot be rationally
understood. So one can joyously worship One God. The joy
inspired by such a concept of the Lord is like the sun with its
threefold glory of wannth, light, and activity. It is like the
satisfaction with which one beholds the happy balance of
soul, mind, and body in a beautiful human being, or the

16. INTRODUCTION Xl
perfect work of seed sprouting into blossom and the blossom
yieldin~ lusciol1S fruit. How sane and easy and capable of
fitting mto the nature of aIl things such a concept IS! Yet
what prodigious effort it cost Swedenborg to plant it so that
it could grow and flourish! The new thoughts about the
Unity of God which Swedenborg offered to replace the old are
priceless because they give one insight to distinguish between
the real Deity and the repelling appearances with which a
wrong reading of the Word and the anthropomorphic ideas
of passion-driven men have invested Him. The T'Yue Christian
Religion shows how Swedenborg sought to elevate those un­
christian concepts to something nobler. Hear him say: 'God
is omnipotent, because He has all power from Himself, and aIl
others have power from Him. His power and His Will are
one, and because He wills nothing but what is good, therefore
He can do nothing but what is good. In the spiritual world,
no one can do anything contrary to His will; this they derive
there from God whose power and will are one. God also is
good itself; therefore, while He does good, He is in Himself and
cannot go out of Himself. From this it is manifest that His
omnipotence proceeds and operates within the sphere of the
extension of good, which is infinite'. And again: 'It is a
prevailing opinion at this day, that the omnipotence of God
IS like the absolute power of a king in the world who can at
His pleasure do whatever He wills, absolve and condemn
whom He pleases. make the guilty innocent, declare the
faithless faithful, exalt the unworthy and undeserving above
the worthy and deserving; nay, that He can under whatever
pretext deprive His subjects of their goods, and sentence them
to death; with other such things. From this absurd opinion,
faith, and doctrine concerning the Divine Omnipotence as
many falsities, fallacies, divisions, and chimeras have flowed
into the church as there are subjec~, divisions, and derivations
of faith therein; and as many more may yet flow in as pitchers
might be filled with water from a large lake, or as serpents
that creep out of their holes and bask in the sunshine in the
desert of Arabia. What need is there of more than two
words, omnipotence and faith; and then to spread before the
people conjectures, fables, and trifles, as many as occur to
the senses of the body? For reason is banished from them
both; and when reason is banished, in what does the thought
of man excel the thought of a bird that flies over his head?'
Such teachings lift one up te a mountain summit where the
atmosphere is clear of hatred, and one can perceive that the
nature of the Divine Being is Love and Wisdom and Use, and
He never changes in His attitude towards any one at any time.
But aIl through Swedenborg's books shines an image of the

17. xii TRUE CHRISTIAN RELIGION
Eternal Love which embraces every human being, and saves
him from sinking into deeper sin.
Religion has been defined as the science of our relations to
God and to our fellow-men and what we owe to ourselves; and
surely Christianity, rightly understood, is the science of love.
When the Lord dwelt upon earth visible to mortals, He
declared that on the two commandments, love to God and love
to the neighbour, 'hang aU the law and the prophets'. Yet
for two thousand years so-caUed believers have repeated
'God is Love', without sensing the universe of truths contained
in these three momentous words or their stimulating power.
Only when Swedenborg arose out of the cold age of logic­
choppin~ called the eighteenth century, did Love as a doctrine
agam shme forth as the centre and life, the beauty and the pre­
server of all things. He interpreted the whole world of human
experience as love and in terms of love-states of love-activi­
ties, powers, and functions of love-the constructive, preventive,
and courage-stirring dictates of love. Moreover, the seer
discovered that love is identical with the Divine ltself, 'that
the Lord fiows into the spirits of angels and men', that the
material universe is God's Love wrought into forms suitable
to the uses of life, and that the Word of God, rightly under­
stood, reveals the fullness and the wonders of His Love towards
all the children of men. Thus at last a faint ray, travelling
through infinity from the Divine Soul, reached the mind of
deaf, blind humanity, and la! the Second Coming of the Lord
was an accomplished facto
Swedenborg's own mind expanded slowly to the higher
light, and with deep suffering. The theological systems of
his day were little more than controversies, and so full of
long-drawn-out hair-splitting that they seemed like caverns
( in which one would easily get lost and never find one's way
'. out again. Swedenborg had ta define important key-words
such as truth, soul, will, state, faith, and give new meanings
ta many other words sa that he might translate more of spiri­
tual thought into common language. For love he had to find
a special vocabulary, indeed, it almost seemed as if he were
himself learning a different language. Out of his heart and
out of heaven's heart he wrote, in The True Christian Religion:
'The lovewhose joy is essentia.lly_gQQdls like the heat of the
sun, fructifying and operating on a fertile soil, on fruit trees
and fields of corn, and where it operates there is produced,
as it were, a paradise, a garden of ]ehovah, and a land of
Canaan; and the charm of its truth is as the ligbt of tbe sun
in the time of spring, and as light fiowing into a crystal vessel
in which are beautiful fiowers, from which as they open
breathes forth a fragrant perfume ' Perhaps no one had ever

18. ...
INTRODUCTION Xlll
endured such a pressure of soul against prison-bars of flesh
. as he did, and there was no reassuring nearness of equal
intelligences to lighten his burden. He gave his life to learn,
and what could he do with his colossal treasure of knowled~e!
He was naturally glad when more of light, more of opportumty
was let into his difficult days; but l question whether he ever
felt at home upon earth after his 'illumination'. Only such ­
face-to-face knowledge gives reality to things, since it springs
from life, and Swedenborg's living testimony will shed a slow
but ever-increasing light upon the dark • hinterland' of our
soul experience, and reinforce ourgroping efforts with the
daring of immortal purpose.
Swedenborg's books are an .inexhaustible weU-_spring ,of
s~t~sfaction ta those who live the life of the mind. l plunge
my hands into my large braille volumes contairiing his teach­
ings, and withdraw them full of the secrets of the spiritual
world.
HELEN KELLER.
FOREST HILLS,
LONG ISLAND, N.Y.
January 1933.
The following are the principal works of Emanuel Sweden ­
borg:
PHILOSOPHICAL AND SCIENTIFlc.-Dredalus Hyperboreus. 1716; Pro ­
dromus Principiorum Rerum naturalium, 1721; Miscellanea Observata circa
Res naturales, 1722; Opera Philosophica et Mineralia, 1734, Vol. L, being
his Principia; De infilÙto et Causa finali Creationis, 1734; CEconomia Reglli
Animalis, 1740; Regnum Animale, 1744-5; De Cultu et Amore Dei, 1745.
The more important posthumous seientific worl,s which have been pub­
lished are: The Brain, considered anatomically, physiologically, and
philosophically, 1882-7; The Soul, or Rational Psychology, 1887. Under
the auspices of the Swedish Royal Academy of Sciences, ils Swedenborg
Commit tee has published: Geologica et Epistolœ, with introduction in
English by Prof. A. G. Nathorst, 1907; Cosmologica, with introduction by
Prof. Sv. Arrhenius, 1908.
THEOLOGICAL.-Arcana Cœlestia, 1749-56; De Cœlo et Inferno, 1758;
De Ultimo Judicio, 1758; De Equo Albo, 1758; De Telluribus in mundo
nostro solari, 1758; De Nova Hierosolyma et ejus doctrina cœlesti, 1758;
Sapientia Angelica de Divino Amore et de Divina Sapientia, 1763; Doctrina
Novœ Hierosolymœ de Domino-de Scriptura Sacra-de Fide, 1763;
Doctrina Vitœ pro Nova Hierosolyma, 1763; Sapientia Angelica de Divina
Providentia, 1764; Apocalypsis Revelata, 1766; Delitiœ Sapientiœ de
Amore Conjugiali, etc., 1768; Summaria Expositio Doctnnœ Novœ
Ecclesiœ, 1769; De Commercio AlÙmœ et Corporis, 1769; Vera Christiana
Religio, 1771. Among his posthumous theological treatises which have
b'eèn published the following are the chief: Apocalypse Explained, 1811-15;
The Memorabilia, or Spiritual Diary, 1883-1902; Summaries of the
Internai Sense of the Prophets and Psalms, 1799; Adversaria in Libros
Veteris Testamenti, 1842-54; Index Biblicus, sive Thesaurus Bibliorum
Emblematicus et Allegoricus, 1859-68.

19. xiv TRUE CHRISTIAN RELIGION
Published by photolithography: 10 folio vols. of unpublished MSS.
edited by R. L. Tafel, 1869-70. By phototypy; Sensus Internus Psalmorum,
etc., 1896; Diarium Spirituale, 3 folio vols., 1901-7.
The Swedenborg Concordance, by ]. F. Potts. 6 quarto vols.,
1888-1902.
A Swedenborg Bibliography, by ]. Hyde, 1906.
BI0GRAPHIES.-By E. Paxton Hood, 1854; by E. Swift, 1883; by
]. ]. Garth Wilkinson, 1886; by B. Worcester, seventh edition, 1907; by
G. Trobridge, 1908; Documents concerning Life and Character, edited
by R. L. Tafel, 1875-77.
Most of Swedenborg's works have been translated into English, and a
number of them into seventeen other languages, European and Oriental.
Uniform with this edition the following works of Emanuel
Swedenborg have been published:
Heaven and HeU (No. 379) gives a reasoned description of the spirituàl
plane of existence and of the life which is lived in the next world.
Divine Love and Wisdom (No. 635) deals with the Infinite Source of
Creation, with creation itself, and with the fundamental nature of the
human soul.
Divine Providence (No. 658) describes the various ways by which Provi­
dence works, and how man is led ill freedom towards the creative purpose.

20. GENERAL INDEX OF CONTENTS
NO.
The Faith of the new heaven and the New Church 1-3
CHAPTER l
GOD THE CREATOR
THE UNITY OF GOD
I. The whole sacred scripture, and ail the doctrines
therefrom of ail the churches in the Christian
world, teach that there is a Gad, and that He
is one 5-7
II. There is a universal influx from God into the souls of
men, that there is a God, and that He is one S
III. For this reason, there is no nation in the whole
world, possessing religion and sound reason,
that does not acknowledge that there is a God,
and that He is one. 9, 10
IV. As to the nature of this one God, nations and peoples
have differed, and do still differ, from several
causes II
V. Human reason may, if it will, perceive and con­
clude, from many things in the world, that there
is a God, and that He is one 12
VI. Unless God were one, the universe could not have
been created and preserved 13
VII. The man who does not acknowledge God is excom·
municated from the church, and condemned 14
VIII. The church is divided in those who acknowledge
not one God but many 15
THE DIVINE BEING, WHICH IS JEHOVAH
I. The one Gad is called J ehovah from His Being,
because He alone is; was, and will be; and because
He is the First and the La._t, the Beginning and
the End, the Alpha and the Omega . 19
II. The one God is substance itself and form itself; and
angels and men are substances and forms from
Him; and as far as they are in Him, and He in
them, 50 far they are images and likenesses of
Him zo
XV

21. xvi TRUE CHRISTIAN RELIGION
III. The divine being is being in itself, and at the same NO.
time manifestation in itself 21,22
IV. The divine being and manifestation in itself can ­
not produce another selfsame divine; conse­
quently another God of the same essence is
impossible 23
V. The belief in a plurality of Gods arose in ancient and
in modern times, because the divine being was
not understood 24
THE INFINITY, OR THE IMMENSITY AND ETERNITY OF GOD
1. God is infinite, because He is and exists in Himself,
and ail things in the universe are and exist from
Him 28
II. God is infinite, for He was before the world, thus
before space and t i m e ' 29
III. God, since the creation of the world, is in space
apart from space, and in time apart from time 30
IV. The infinity of God, in relation to space, is called
immensity, and in relation to time, eternity;
yet there is nothing of space in His immensity,
and nothing of time in His eternity . 31
V. Enlight~ned reason, from very many things in the
world, may see the infinity of God the Creator. 32
VI. Every created thing is fini te, and the infinite is in
finite things as in its receptacles, and in men as in
its images 33, 34
THE ESSENCE OF GOD, WHICH IS DIVINE LOVE AND DIVINE WISDOM
1. God is love itself and wisdom itself; and these
two constitute His essence 37
II. God is good itself and truth itself, because good
relates to love, and truth to wisdom . 38
III. God, because He is love itself and wisdom itself,
is also life itself, or life in itself 39, 40
IV. Love and wisdom in God make one 41, 42
V. The essence of love is to love others outside itself,
to desire to be one with them, and to make them
happy from itself 43-5
VI. These attributes of the divine love were the cause
of the creation of the universe, and they are the
cause of its preservation . 46, 47
THE OMNIPOTENCE, OMNISCIENCE, AND ·OMNIPRESENCE OF GOD
1. Omnipotence, omniscience, and omnipresence are
attributes of the divine wisdom from the divine
love ., • 50, 51

22. CONTENTS xvii
II. The omnipotence, OmniSCienCe, and omnipresence NO.
of God cannot be understood unless it is known
what order is; God is order, and at the creation
He imposed order upon the universe and ail its
parts • • • • 52-5
III. The omnipotence of God in the universe and ail its
parts, proceeds and operates according to the
laws of His order • 56-8
IV. God is omniscient, that is, He perceives, sees, and
knows everything, even to the minutest details,
that is done according to order,. and thereby
whatever is done contrary to order . .59-62
V. Gad is omnipresent in ail things, from first to last, of
His own order. 63, 64
VI. Man was created a form of divine order • 65-67
VII. So far as he lives according ta divine order, man has
power against evil and falsity from the divine
omnipotence, wisdom conceming good and truth
from the divine omniscience, and is in God from
the divine omnipresence.. • 68-70
THE CREATION OF THE UNIVERSE
. No one can form a correct idea of the creation of
the universe, unless sorne general principles that
will enlighten the understanding are first stated. 75
The creation of the universe described in five
Memorabilia . ••• 76--80
CHAPTER II
THE LORD THE REDEEMER
1. Jehovah God descended and assumed human
nature, in order to redeem and save mankind 82-4
II. J ehovah God descended as the divine truth. which is
the Word; and yet He did not separate from it
the divine good 85-8
III. God assumed the human nature according to His
own divine order 89--91
IV. The human nature by which Gad came into the
world is the Son of God
9 2 -4
V. The Lord, by acts of redemption, made Himself
righteousness 95. 96
VI. By the same acts the Lord united Himself to the
Father, and the Father united Himself to Him 97-100
VII. Thus God became Man, and Man God, in one Person 101-3

23. xviii TRUE CHRISTIAN RELIGION
VIII. The progress towards union was His state of exinani- NO.
tion, and the union itseif is His state of glorification 104-6
IX. Hereafter no Christian can enter heaven. unless he
believes in the Lord God the Saviour . 107, 108
A Corollary conceming the state of the church before
the coming of the Lord, and its state afterwards 109
REDEMPTION
I. Redemption consisted in the subjection of the hells,
the bringing of the heavens into order, and thus
the preparation for a new spiritual church . II5-I7
II. Without such redemption no man cou Id have been
saved. nor could the angels have continued in a
state of integrity 118-20
III. The Lord thus redeemed not only men. but also
angels 121. 122
IV. Redemption was a work purely divine . 123
V. Redemption cou Id only be accomplished by God
incarnate 124. 125
VI. The passion on the cross was the last temptation
which the Lord endured as the Greatest Prophet;
and it was the means of the glorification of His
Humanity; but it was not redemption 126-31
YII. It is a fundamental error of the church to believe
that the passion on the cross was actual redemp ­
tion; and this error, together with that respecting
three divine persons from eternity, has perverted
the whole church so that nothing spiritual is left
in it 132. 133
CHAPTER III
THE HOLY SPIRIT AND THE DIVINE ACTIVITY
I. The Roly Spir.it is the divine truth, and also the
divine energy and activity; thcse proceed from
the one God in whom there is a divine trinity.
thus from the Lord God the Saviour . 139-41
II. The divine energy. and activity, signified by the
Roly Spirit, consists in general in reformation and
regeneration; and, according to these, 'in renewal,
q uickening. sanctification. and justification; and,
according to these, in purification from evils,
remission of sins, and finally salvation • 142-5
III. The divine energy and activity. meant by the send ­
ing of the Roly Spirit, consists in enlightenment
and instruction, especially of the c1ergy. 146-8

24. CONTENTS xix
IV. The Lord so acts as to confer these graces upon NO.
those who believe in Him • 149-51
V. The Lord acts of Himself from the Father, and not
contrariwise •. • 153-5
VI. Man's spirit is bis mind, and whatever proceeds
from it . • 156, 157
A Corollary; it is nowhere said in the Old Testament
that the prophets spoke from the Holy Spirit,
but from J ehovah God: but it is otherwise in the
New Testament • 158
THE DIVINE TRINITY
1. There is a divine trinity which consists of Father,
Son, and Holy Spirit .• 164, 165
II. These three, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, are three
essentials of one God, which make one, as soul,
body, and activity make one in man. . . 166-9
III. Before the creation of the world this trinity did not
exist; but after the creation of the world, when
God became incarnate, it was provided and came
into existence, and was then in the Lord God,
the Redeemer and Saviour, Jesus Christ 170, 171
IV. A trinity of divine persons from eternity, or before
the world was created, is in idea a trinity of gods;
and this idea can never be removed by the lip­
confession of one God . •• 172, 173
V. A trinity of persons was unknown in the Apostolic
church, but was conceived by the Nicene councl1,
and thence introduced into the Roman Catholic
church; and from this again into the Protestant
churches •••• 174-6
VI. From the Nicene and Athanasian trinities there has
arisen a faith in three gods, that has perverted
the whole Christian church •• In, 178
VII. Hence has sprung that abomination of desolation,
and that affliction such as was not nor shall be,
which the Lord foretold in Daniel, in the Evan ­
gelists, and in the Revelation . • 179-81
VIII. Therefore, unless a new heaven and a new church
were formed by the Lord, no fiesh could be saved 181
IX. From a trinity of persons, each of whom is God
separately, according to the Athanasian creed,
have arisen many discordant and incongruous ideas
about God, which are delusive and monstrous 183, 184

25. xx TRUE CHRISTIAN RELIGION
CHAPTER IV
THE SACRED SCRIPTURE, OR THE WORD OF THE LORD
1. The sacred scripture. or the Word, is divine truth NO.
itself • •• .• 189-92
II. In the Word there is a spiritual sense hitherto
unknown • • . • .• 193
(i) What the spiritual sense is • 194
From the Lord proceed the divine-celestial,
the divine-spiritual, and the divine­
natural.. . 195
(ii) This sense is in the whole Word, and in every
part of it • • •. 19~8
The Lord, when He was in the world, spoke
by correspondences. thus both spiritually
and naturally • 199
(iii) It is owing to the spiritual sense that the
Word is divinely inspired, and holy in
every word. • •. 200
(iv) The spiritual sense has hitherto been unknown,
but it was known among the ancients 201-7
(v) Hereafter. the spiritual sense of the Vlord
will be made known only to those who are
in pure truths from the Lord 208
(vi) Some wonderful things respecting the Word
3.l: containing a spiritual sense . 209
III. The literai sense of the Word is the basis, con ­
tainant, and support of its spiritual and celestial
senses . • 210-13
lV. The divine truth. in the literai sense of the Word,
is in its fulness, holiness. and power. 214-16
(i) The truths of the literai sense of the Word are
meant by the precious stones which formed
the foundations of the New Jerusalem (Rev.
xxi 17-21) • • 217
(H) The goods and truths of the literai sense of
the Word correspond to the Urim and
Thummim in Aaron's e p h o d . . 218
(iii) The same is meant by the precious stones in
the garden of Eden. where the King of
Tyre is said to have b e e n . 219
(iv) Truths and goods in their ultimates, such as
occur in the literai sense of the Word, were
represented by the curtains, veils, and
pillars of the tabernacle . 220

26. CONTENTS
(v) The representation by the extemals of the NO.
xxi .""
temple at Jerusalem was similar 221
(vi) The Word in its glory was represented in the
Lord at His transtiguration
222
(vii) The power of the Word in its ultimates was
represented by the Nazarites 223
(viii) Concerning the inexpressible power of the Word 224
V. The doctrine of the church must be taken from the
literai sense of the Word, and be thereby contirmed 225
(i) Without doctrine, the Word is unintelligible 226-8
(ii) Doctrine must be taken from the literai sense
of the W ord, and be confirmed by means
of it 229. 230
(iii) Divine truth, in matters of doctrine, is seen
only by those who are enlightened by the
Lord. . 231-3
VI. Dy means of the literai sense of the Word, there is
communion with the Lord, and association with
the angels . • • 234-9
VII. The Word exists in ail the heavens, and is the source
of angelic wisdom 240-2
VIII. The church exists from the Word, and takes its
character from man's understanding of the Word 243-7
IX. In every detail of the Word there is a marriage of the
Lord and the church, and therefore a marri age
of good and truth 248-53
X. Heresies can be formulated from the literai sense of
the Word, but it is hurtful to confirm them 254-60
XI. The Lord, when in the world, fulfilled all things in
the Word, and thus became the Word, that is,
the divine truth even in ultimates 261-3
XII. Previous to the Word that the world now possesses,
there was a Word which was lost 264-6
XIII. Light from the Word reaches those who. being out ­
side the church, do not possess the "Vord. 267-72
XIV. Without the Word men would know nothing of
God, heaven, hell, a life after death, or the Lord 273-6
CHAPTER V
THE DECALOGUE EXPLAINED AS TO ITS EXTERNAL
AND INTERNAL SENSES
1. In the Israelitish church the Decalogue was holiness
itse1f 283-6

27. xxii TRUE CHRISTIAN RELIGION
II. The Decalogue, in the sense of the letter, contains NO.
the general precepts of doctrine and life; but in
the spiritual and celestial senses it contains all
precepts universally 287
III. THE FIRST CoMMANDMENT: Thou shalt have no
other God before me 291-6
IV. THE SECOND COMMANDMENT: Thou shalt not take
the name of J ehovah thy God in vain; for J ehovah
will not hold him guiltless that taketh His name
in vain . • 297-300
V. THE THIRD COMMANDMENT: Remember the sabbath
day. to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labour
and do all thy work; but the seventh day is the
sabbath of the Lord thy God . 301-4
VI. THE FOURTH COMMANDMENT: Honour thy father
and thy mother, that thy days may be prolonged
and that it may be well with thee in the land 305-8
VII. THE FIFTH COMMANDMENT: Thou shalt not commit
murder . 309-12
VIII. THE SIXTH COMMANDMENT: Thou shalt not commit
adultery 313-16
IX. THE SEVENTH COMMANDMENT: Thou shalt not steal 317-20
X. THE EIGHTH COMMANDMENT: Thou shalt not bear
false witness against thy neighbour . 321-4
XI. THE NINTH AND TENTH COMMANDMENTS: Thou shalt'
not covet thy neighbour's house; thou shalt not
covet thy neighbour's wife, nor his servant, nor
his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any ­
thing that is thy neighbour's 325-8
XIl. The ten Commandments of the Decalogue contain
everything relating to the love of God and of the
neighbour.. 329-31
CHAPTER VI
FAITH
Preface: Faith is the first in time, but charity is
the first in end or importance • 336
1. A saving faith is faith in the Lord Gad the Saviour,
Jesus Christ 337-9
II. The sum and substance of faith is, that he who
lives well and believes aright is saved by the
Lord • 340-2
The tirst act of faith towards the Lord is the acknow ­
ledgment that He is the Son of G o d . . 342

28. CONTENTS xxiii
III. A man acquires faith by approaching the Lord, NO.
leaming truths from the Word, and living accord­
ing to them. . . . . . 343-8
IV. Faith is exalted and perfected by truths systemati ­
caliy arranged 349-54
(i) The truths of faith can be multiplied to
infmity . 350
(ii) The truths of faith are arranged in serie~, and
thus systematized 35t
(iii) Faith is perfected according to the number
and systematic arrangement of truths 352, 353
(iv) The truths of faith, however numerous and
different they may appear, are united in
one by the Lord 354
(v) The Lord is the Word, the God of heaven and
earth, the God of ail flesh, the God of the
vineyard or church, the God of faith, light
itself, truth, and life etemal 354
V. Faith without charity is not faith, and charity
without faith is not charity, and neither has
any life except from the Lord. 355-61
(i) A maI). can acquire faith for himself 356
(ii) A man can acquire charity for himself 357
(iii) A man can also acquire for himself the life of
faith and charity 358
(iv) Nevertheless faith, charity, and the life of
both are not from man, but wholly from
the Lord 359
(v) The difference between natural faith and
spiritual faith; the latter is in the former
from the Lord 360, 361
VI. The Lord, charity, and faith make one, like life,
will, and understanding in man; and if they are
divided, each perishes like a pearl reduced to
powder . 362-7
(i) The Lord enters by influx into every man
with aIl His divine love, wisdom, and life 364
(ii) Consequentiy the Lord enters by influx into
every man with the whole essence of faith
and charity 365
(Hi) Every man receives faith and charity accord­
ing to his form 366
(iv) The man who separates the Lord, charity, and
faith, is a form not recipient of them but
destructive 367

29. XXIV TRUE CHRISTIAN RELIGION
VII. The Lord is charity and faith in man, and man is NO.
charity and faith in the Lord 368-72
(i) It is by union with God that a man has
salvation and eternal life 369
(ii) The only possible union is with the Lord, and
through Hirn with God the Father 370
(iii) Union with the Lord is reciprocal, that is, the
Lord is in man, and man in the Lord 371
(iv) This reciprocal union of the Lord and man is
effected by charity and faith 372
VIII. Charity and faith exist together in good works 373-7
(i) Charity is goodwill, and good works are the
consequent actions . 374
(ii) Charity and faith are fieeting abstractions
unless, whenever it is possible, they are
manifested in works 375, 376
(iii) Charity alone does not produce good works,
still less faith alone; but charity and faith
together produce them 377
IX. True faith, spurious faith, and hypocritical faith 378-81
The Christian church from its beginning has been
infested and divided by heresies 378
(i) The only true faith is one in the Lord God
the Saviour Jesus Christ; and it is possessed
by those who believe Him to be the Son of
God, the God of heaven and earth, and one
with the Father 379
(ii) Spurious faith departs from the one true
faith, and is entertained by those who' climb
up sorne other way', and regard the Lord,
not as God, but as a mere man 380
(iii) Hypocritical faith is not faith •• 381
X. The evil have no faith 382-4
(i) The evil have no faith, bccause evil is infernal
and faith is heavenly 383
(ii) Those in Christendorn have no faith who reject
the Lord and the Word, although they live
morally, and speak, teach, and write ration ­
aily, even about faith .• 384
CHAPTER VII
CHARITY, OR LOVE OF THE NEIGHBOUR, AND GOOD WORKS
1. There are three universalloves, the love of heaven,
the love of the world, and the love of self 394-6
(i) The will and the understanding • . 397

30. CONTENTS xxv
NO.
(ii) Goo<! and tru th •••• 398
(iii) Love in general 399
(iv) The love of self and the love of the world in
particular 400
(v) The internaI and external man . 401
(vi) The merely natural and sensual man . 402
II. Those three loves, when they 'are rightly sub·
ordinated, make a man perfect; but, when
not rightly subordinated, they pervert and
invert him . 403-5
III. Every man individually is the neighbour who
ought to be loved according to the good in him 406-n
IV. Man collectively, that is, one's country with the
smaller and larger communities of which it is
composed, is the neighbour that ought to be
loved . 412-14
V. The church is the neighbour to be loved in a
higher degree, and the Lord's kingdom in the
highest degree 415, 416
VI. Strictly speaking, to love the neighbour is not. to
love his person, but the good in him 417-19
VII. Charity and good works are distinct, like good­
will and good actions 420, 421
VIII. Charity is to act justly and faithfully in one's
office, business, and employment towards ail
those with whom one cornes in contact 422-4
IX. Charity includes giving to the poor and relieving
the needy, but this should be done with
prudence 425-8
X. Charity includes public, domestic, and private
duties . 429-32
XI. The recreations of charity are feasts and social
intercourse . 433, 434
XII. The first dutY of charity is to shun evils, and the
second is to do good deeds which are useful to
the neighbour 435-8
XIII. In the exercise of charity, a man does not claim
merit for his actions, so long as he believes that
ail good is from the Lord 439-~
XIV. Moral life, when it is at the same time spiritual,
is charity ••••• 443-5

31. xxvi TRUE CHRISTIAN RELIGION
XV. Intimate friendship, contracted with a man with- NO.
out regard to Dis real character, is detrimental
after death . 446-9
XVI. There are spurious charity, hypocritical charity,
and dead charity . 450--3
XVII. Intimate friendship among the wicked is intestine
hatred of one another 454-5
XVIII. The conjunction of the love of God and the love of
the neighbour • • . • • 456-8
CHAPTER VIII
FREE-WILL
1. The precepts and dogmas of the church at this day
concerning free-will . 463-'5
II. Two trees, placed in the garden of Eden, one of life
and the other of the knowledge of good and evil,
signify that free-will in spiritual things was given
to man . 466-9
III. A man is not life, but a recipient of life from God 470-4
IV. 50 long as a man lives in this world, he is kept mid ­
. way between heaven and hel!; this is spiritual
equilibrium or free-will 475-8
V. The power granted to every man of doing ev il,
clearly shows that he has free-will in spiritual
things 479-82
VI. Without free - will in spiritual things, the Word
would be of no use; consequently the church
would cease to exist 483, 484
VII. Without free-will in spiritual things a man would
have no means of entering into communion with
the Lord ; and consequently there could be no
imputation, but only predestination, which is
detestable . 485
The detestable tenets of predestination 486-8
VIII. Without free-will in spiritual things, God would be
the cause of evil, and so there would be no
imputation of charity and faith 489-92
IX. The spiritual things of the church only become pero
manent in the mind. if they enter it in freedom
and are thus accepted •. 493-6
X. The will and the understanding are in freedom;
but the commission of evil, in the spiritual and
natural world, is restrained by laws; otherwise
society in both would perish • 497-9

32. CONTENTS xxvii
XI. If there were no free-wiIl in spiritual things, ail men NO.
might in a single day be led to believe in the Lord;
but this is impossible, because nothing persists
with a man but what he receives in freedom 500-2
Miracles are not done at the present day, because
they would deprive man of free-will in spiritual
things 501
CHAPTER IX
REPENTANCE
1. Repentance is the first necessity of the church in
man 510, 511
II. Contrition, which at the present day is said to pre­
. cede faith and to be followed by the consolation
of the Gospel, is not repentance 512-15
III. A mere lip-confession that one is a sinner is not
repentance 516-19
IV. Man inherits evils of every kind, and unless re­
pentance contributes to their removal, he remains
in them; and then he cannot be saved 520-4
What fulfilling the law means 523, 524
V. Repentance begins with the recognition of sin, and
the examination of sorne particular sin in one-
self .525-7
VI. Actual repentance consists in a man's examining
himself, recognising and acknowledging his sins,
supplicating the Lord, and beginning a new life 528-31
VII. True repentance is to examine not only the acts of
one's life, but also the intentions of one's will 532-4
VIII. Those also repent who do not examine themselves,
but yet abstain from evils because they are sins;
and likewise those who do the works of charity
from a religious motive 535-7
IX. Confession ought to be made to the Lord God the
Saviour; and then supplication for help and power
to resist llvil 538-60
X. Actual repentance is very diflicult at first; but it
becomes easy with practice 561-3
XI. He who has never practised repentance, nor ex­
amined himself, at last becomes incapable of
recognising either damnatory evil or saving
good 564-6

33. xxviii TRUE CHRISTIAN RELIGION
CHAPTER X
REFORMATION AND REGENERATION NO.
I. Unless a man is born again and, as it were, created
anew, he cannot enter the kingdom of God . 572-5
II. The new birth or creation is effected by the Lord
<lJone by means of charity and faith, but with
man co-operating 576-8
III. Since ail men have been redeemed, ail can be re­
generated every one according to his state 579-82
IV. Regeneration takes place in a manner analogons to
that in which a man is conceived, carried in the
womb, born, and educated 583-6
V. The first act of the new hirth pertains to the under ­
standing and is called refonnation; and the second
pertains to the will, aided by the understand­
ing, and is called regeneration . 587-<)0
VI. The internaI man must be refonned first, and thereby
the external; thus is the man regenerated. 591-5
VII. Next there arises a combat between the internaI
and external man, and then whichever conqners
rules over the other 596-600
VIII. The regenerated man has a new will and a new
understanding 601-6
IX. A regenerated man is·in communion with the angels
of heaven, and an unregenerate man is in com ­
munion with spirits of hell 607-10
X. So far as a man is regenerated, his sins are removed;
and this removal is the remission of sins 6u-I4
XI. Regeneration cannot take place without free-will in
spiritual things 615-17
XII. Regeneration is not possible unless the truths of
faith are united with charity 618-20
CHAPTER XI
IMPUTATION
I. Imputation is one with the present church's faith,
which is said alone to justify • 626, 627
II. The imputation which fonns part of the faith of
the present day is twofold, the imputation of
Christ's merit, and the consequent imputation
of salvation . 628-3t

34. CONTENTS XXIX
III. The faith which imputes the merit and righteous- NO.
ness of Christ the Redeemer, took its rise from the
decrees of the Council of Nice concerning three
divine persons from eternity, and has been
received by the whole Christian world • 632-5
IV. The faith which imputes Christ's merit was not
known in the Apostolic church and is non-
scriptural 636-9
V. The imputation of the merit and righteousness of
Christ is impossible . 640--2
VI. There is imputation, but it is imputation of good
and evil, and at the same time of faith 643-6
VII. The faith and imputation of the new church cannat
be reconciled with the faith and imputation of
the former church; an attempt to do so would
produce such a collision and conflict as ta destroy
the church in man . 647-9
VIII. The Lord imputes good to every man, and hel!
imputes evil to every man •• 650--3
IX. Faith, united with good or evil, decides the issue.
True faith, united with good, leads ta eternal
life; but a false faith, united with evil, leads ta
eternal death. . 654-7
X. The will is imputed, but never the thought 658-60
CHAPTER XII
BAPTISM
r. The meaning and use of baptism and the holy supper
can only be understood from the spiritual sense of
the W a r d . . 667--9
II. The washing, cal!ed baptism, signifies spiritual
washing or purification from evils, and thus
regeneration.. . 670-3
III. Circumcision of the heart was represented by the
circumcision of the foreskin; and baptism was
instituted in place of circumcision in arder that
an internaI church might succeed the external,
which in al! things and every detail was a type of
the internai church . • • • . 674-6
IV. The first use of baptism is introduction into the
Christian church. and consequent association, with
Christians in the spiritual world. 667-80

35. xxx TRUE CHRISTIAN RELIGION
V. The second use of baptism is, that the Christian NO.
may know, acknowledge and follow the Lord
Jesus Christ, the Redeemer and Saviour 681-3
VI. The third and final use of baptism is, that the man
may be regenerated 684-;'
VII. The baptism of John prepared the way for the
descent of J ehovah God into the world, and for
the work of redemption . 688-91
1.-,;., 1 " - 1;_. il)_ ...
L " CHAPTER XIII
THE HOL Y SUPPER
I. Without a knowledge of the correspondence of
natura! with spiritual things, no one can under ­
stand the uses and benefits of the holy supper 698-701
II. An acquaintance with correspondences shows that
the Lord's flesh and the bread signify the divine
( gQQ!L()LHj~lgye, and also the_gQOj .0L<:l!ar~tY;
and that His blood and the wine signify the
(divine truth of His ~Jsdom, and also the_t!uth
l otJaitJ1; and that to eat means to appropriate 70'1-10
The meaning, shown from the Word, of flesh
( (704, 705). of blood (7°6), of bread (7°7), and
of wine (708). . . • . .
III. It may now be understood that the holy supper
contains, in general and in particular, ail things
of the chur~h a~d of heaven 7II-I5
IV. In the holy supper the Lord is wholly present, with
the whole of His redemption . ' . . 7116-18
V. The Lord is present, anq op,ens heav!ln to those who
approach the holy supperwortliily; and He is
also present with those who approach it un­
worthily, but does not open heaven to them;
I(consequentl y, as baptism is an introduction into
) ~he church, ~o the holy supper is_an introduction
l!!.~_~eaven. . • • . . 719-21
VI. Those approach the holy supper worthily who are
being regenerated by faith in the Lord and
charitr to the neighbour' . . . 722-4
VII. Those who approach the holy supper worthily ?-~e
i!L~e Lord_~l}dJ:l:elI} them; consequently com­
11~~n~on_w!~_h_t~~ Lord is effe<;,ted br the' holy
s~r. . . . 725, 726

36. CONTENTS xxxi
VIII. The holy supper. to those who approach it worthily. NO.
J" is_ like a signature and seal testifying that they
( are-the-sÔÎls-ôf God' 728-30
CHAPTER XIV
THE CONSUMMATION OF THE AGE, THE COMmG OF THE LORD,
AND THE NEW HEA VEN AND THE NEW CHURCH
I. The consummation of the age is the last time or
end of the church 753-6
II. The present day is the last time of the Christian
church. which the Lord foretold and described in
the Gospels and in the Revelation 757-9
III. This last time of the Christian church is the very
night in which the former churches came to
an end • 760-3
IV. After the night follows morning and this is the
coming of the Lord 764-7
V. The coming of the Lord does not involve the de­
struction and re-creation of the visible hea'en
and the habitable earth, as many, not under­
standing the spiritual sense of the Word, have
hitherto supposed . 768-71
VI. The second coming of the Lord is taking place in
order that the evil may be separated from the
good; and that those who believe in Him may
be saved and may form a new angelic heaven and
a new church on earth; otherwise no fiesh could
be saved 772-5
VII. The second coming of the Lord is not in person,
but in the Word, which is from Him and is
Himself . 776-8
VIII. This second coming of the Lord is taking place
through the instrumentality of a man, to whom
He has manifestcd Himself in person. and whom
He has filled with His Spirit, to teach the
doctrines of the new church by means of His
Word 779. 780
IX. The second advent is meant in the Revelation by the
new heaven and the new earth, and the New
]erusalem descending therefrom. 781-5
X. This new church is the crown of ail the churches
that have hitherto existed on the earth 786-g1

37. .. - .. ....,
xxxii TRUE CHRISTIAN RELIGION
SUPPLEMENT
NO.
1. The spiritual world ••• 792-5
II. Luther in the spiritual world • • • 796
III. Melancthon in the spiritual world • • • 79-7
IV. Calvin in the spiritual world •• 798, 799
V. The Dutch in the spiritual world . • • 800-5
VI. The English in the spiritual world • • 806--12
VII. The Germans in the spiritual world • • 813-16
VIII. The Papists in the spiritual world • • 817-21
IX. The Romish saints in the spiritual world 822-7
X. The Mohammedans in the spiritual world 828-834
XI. The Africans in the spiritual world. with something
respecting the Gentiles 835-40
XII. The Jews in the spiritual world 841-5
General Index page 863
Index of passages from the Sacred Scriptures .. 914

38. THE FAITH OF THE NEW HEAVEN
AND THE NEW CHURCH
1. THIS faith in its general and particular forms is set forth
at the outset, as an introduction to the work that follows,
in order that it may serve as a gate of entrance into the
temple, and as a summary of the subsequent details. It is
caUed 'The faith of the new heaven and the new church',
because heaven, where angels are, and the church, composed
of men, act as one, like the internai and external in man.
As a result of this, every member of the church who has in
himself the good of love from the truths of faith, and the
truths of faith from the good of love, is an angel of heaven,
as to rus inner mind; therefore, after death he goes to heaven,
and his happiness there is according to the union in him of
good and truth. It should be known that this faith is the
forefront, portal, and epitome of the new heaven now being
formed by the Lord.
2. THE FAITH OF THE NEW HEAVEN AND THE NEW CHURCH,
IN ITS GENERAL FORM, is this: The Lord from eternity, who
is Jehovah, came into the world in order to subdue the heUs,
and glorify His human nature. Without Him no one could
have been saved; and ail are saved who believe in Him.
We say 'in its general form', because this is a main article
of faith; and the main article embraces aU its details. It is
a main article of faith, that God is one in essence and in
person, in whom is the divine trinity, and that He is the
Lord God, the Saviour, Jesus Christ. It is a main article
of faith, that no mortal could be saved unless the Lord had
come into the world. It is a main article of faith, that He
came into the world in order to save man from heU, and
accomplished this by combats against, and victories over it.
By such means did He subdue heU and reduce it to astate
of order and obedience to Himself. It is a main article of
faith, that He came into the world to glorify His human
B8" 1

39. 2 TRUE CHRISTIAN RELIGION
nature, which He assumed in the world; that is, to unite it
with the divine nature, from which it was. Thus He keeps
hel! in order, and in subjection to Himself for ever. As
this could not be accomplished except by temptations directed
against His human nature, even to the last of them-the
passion on the cross-this He therefore endured. These are
the main articles of faith concerning the Lord.
The main article of faith on man's part is this: To believe
in th,e Lord; for belief in Him brings about comIl!union with
Him and consequent salvation. To believe in Him is to have
confidence that He wil! save; and since no one can have this
confidence unless he leads a good life, this also is implied in
believing in Him. This the Lord also declares in John:
This is the will of the Father, that every one that believeth on
the Son may have eternallife (vi 40). And in another place:
He that believeth on the Son hath eternal life,. but he that
believeth not the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God
abideth on him (iii 36).
3. THE FAITH OF THE NEW HEAVEN AND THE NEW CHURCH,
IN ITS PARTICULAR FORM, is as fol!ows: J ehovah God is love
itself and wisdom itself, or good itself and truth itself. He
as to the divin~ truth, whi_<:.h~.the Won!, ,!:.nd which ;as
GëiQwith GOd, descend@ and took to Himself a human
nature, tathe èïi.ëf1llat Hemight reduce to order al! things
t ii1neaven, in hel!, and in the church. For at that time the
power of hel! prevailed over the power of heaven, and upon
earth the power of evil over the power of good; total destruc-
tion, therefore, threatened and was near at hand. T.hjs
irrJpending destruction J ehovah God prevented by means of
HisÏ.!uman -natul"~_~hich was the divin~ ..!ruth; and thus
He redeemed both angels and men. Afte~a,.rds He united
in His human nature divine truth with divine good, or
divine wisdom with divine love, and thus with and in
the glorified human nature -He returned into His divine
nature, in which He was from eternity. This is meant by
these words in John: The Word was with God, and God was
the W ord,. and the W ord was made flesh (i 1-14). And in
another place: 1 came forth from the Father, and am come
into the world,. agaz'n 1 leave the world and go to the Father
(xvi 28); and again: We know that the Son of God is come, and

40. THE FAITH OF THE NEW HE AVEN 3
kath given us an understanding, that we may know him that
is true, and we are in hint that is tnte, even in his Son, Jesus
Christ. This is the true Gad and eternal hje (1 John v 20).
From these passages it is clear that, unless the Lord had
come into the world, no one could h!we been saved. The
same is true to-day; and, therefore, unless the Lord comes
again into the world in the divine truth, which is the Word,
no one can be saved.
The particulars of faith on man's part are as follows:
(1) God is one, in whom is a divine trinity, and He is the
Lord God and Saviour, Jesus Christ. (2) A saving faith is
to believe in Him. (3) Evil actions ought not to be done,
because they are of the devil and from the devil. (4) Good
actions ought to be done, because they are of God and from
God. (5) And these good actions should be done by a man
as if of himself; but he should believe that they are from
the Lord, operating through and by him. The first two
particulars have reference to faith; the next two to charity;
and the fifth particular ta the union of charity and faith,
and thus to the communion of man with the Lord.

42. CHAPTER 1
GOD THE CREATOR
4. THE Christian church, since the Lord's time, has passed
through distinct periods, from infancy to extreme old age.
!ts infancy was in the time of the Apostles, when they
preached throughout the world repentance and faith in the
Lord God the Saviour. That they preached these two
things is evident from the passage in the Acts of the Apostles,
in which Paul testified-both to the Jews and also to the Greeks,
repentance toward God, and jaith toward our Lord Jesus Christ
(xx 21). !t is a remarkable fact that,. some months ago,l
the Lord called together His twelve disciples, now angels,
and sent them forth into ail the spiritual world, commanding
them to preach the gospel there anew, since the church
established through them by the Lord has to-day so fully
terminated that scarcely any remains of it survive. This
has come to pass because the divine trinity has been con­
sidered a tripersonal trinity, each person being God and
Lord. In consequence of this a kind of insanity has invaded
the whole of theology, and therefore also the church which
is called after the Lord's name. We say' insanity' because
men's minds have been brought by this into such a state of
bewilderment that they do not know whether there is one
God, or whether there are three; one is on their lips, but
three in their thoughts; 50 that their lips and their minds,
or their words and their thoughts, are at variance; and as
a result of this, they deny that there is a God. This is the
source of the materialism prevalent in the world to-day.
For w~en the lips speak of one God, and the mind thinks of
three, are not these two things mutually destructive? In
consequence of this, a man, if he thinks at ail, thinks of God
as a name without any definite meaning. Since, then, the
idea of God, with every notion of Him, has been destroyed,
l This was written A.D. 1771.
5

43. 6 TRUE CHRISTIAN RELIGION
l propose to treat in an orderly series of God the Creator, the
Lord the Redeemer, the Roly Spirit the Operator, and lastly
of the Divine Trinity, in order that what has been rent
asunder may be reunited; and this will happen, whenever
human reason is convinced, from the Word and its enlighten­
ment, that there is a divine trinity, and that it is in the
Lord God, the Saviour, Jesus Christ, as soul, body, and
action are in a man: and that, therefore, this article in the
Athanasian creed is true: 'That in Christ, God and Man,
or the divine and human, are not two, but in one Person;
and that as the reasonable soul and flesh is one man, so God
and Man is one Christ'.
THE UNITY OF GOD
5. Since the acknowledgment of God from a true knowledge
of Rim is the very essence and soul of everything in aU
theology, it is necessary to begin with the question of the
unity of God. This will be demonstrated in the following
articles: 1. The whole sacred scripture, and the doctrines
therefrom of all the churches in the Christian world, teach that
God is one. II. There is a universal influx into the souls of
men to the effect that there is a God, and that He is one.
III. For this reason there is no nation in the whole world,
posscssing religion and sound reason; that does not acknowledge
that there is a God, and that He is one. IV. As to the nature
of this one God, nations and peoples have dijJered, and do still
dijJer,from several causes. V. Human reason may, if it will,
perceive and conclude,from many things in the world, that there
is a God, and that He is one. VI. Unless God were one, the
universe could not have been creatcd and preserved. VII. The
man who does not acknowledge God is excommunicated from
the church and condemned. VIII. The church is divided
in those who acknowledge not one God, but many. But these
propositions shaH be dealt with seriatim.
6. 1. THE WHO LE SACRED SCRIPTURE AND THE DOCTRINES
THEREFROM OF ALL THE CHURCHES IN THE CHRISTIAN WORLD
TEACH THAT THERE IS A GOD, AND THAT HE IS ONE.
The whole sacred scripture teaches that there is a God,
because in its inmost content there is nothing but God, that

44. GOD THE CREATOR Î
is, the divine which proceeds from Him; for it was dictated
by God, and nothing can go forth from God, but what is
Himself, and is divine. The sacred scripture is this in its
inmost content. But in its derivatives, which proceed from
the inmost content but are on a lower plane, the sacred
scripture is accommodated to the perceptions of angels and
men. In these also it is divine, but in another form, in which
it is called the divine-celestial, spiritual, and natural, which
are simply coverings of God; for God Himself, as He is in
the inmost content of the Word, cannot be seen by any
creature. For He said to Moses, when he prayed that he
might see the glory of Jehovah, that no one can see God and
live. It is similar with the inmost content of the Word,
where God is in His being and in His essence. Still the
divine, which is the inmost and is clothed with such things
as are accommodated to the perception of angels and men,
shines foith like light through crystals, but with variety
according to the state of mind which a man has acquired,
either from God or from himself. Where the state of the
mind has been acquired from God, the sacred scripture is
like a mirror, in which each sees God but in his own way.
This mirror is formed of those truths which the man has
learnt from the Word and has assimilated by a life according
to them. From these things it is evident, in the first place,
that the sacred scripture is the fulness of God. That it
teaches not only that there is a God, but also that He is one,
is evident from the truths which compose that mirror; for
they form a coherent whole, and render it impossible for a
man to think of God otherwise than as one. Hence every
one, whose reason has acquired sorne spirituality from the
Word, knows intuitively that God is one, and sees that it is
folly to say that there are more. Angels cannot open their
lips to pronounce the word gods, for the heavenly aura in
which they live prevents it. That God is one the sacred
scripture teaches, not only in general but also in particular,
in many places, as in the following: Hear, 0 Israel, Jehovah
O%lr God is one Jehovah (Deut. vi 4, also Mark xii 29); Surely
God is in thee, and there is none else (Is. xlv 14); Am not 1
Jehovah7 and there is no God else beside me (xlv 21); 1 am
J ehovah thy God; and thou shalt know no God but me (Hos.

45. 8 TRUÈ CHRISTIAN RELIGION
xiii 4); Thus saithjehovah the King of Israel, l am thefirst,
and l am the last, and beside me there is no Cod (Is. xliv 6);
In that day jehovah shall be King over ail the earth: in that day
there shall be one jehovah, and his name one (Zech. xiv 9).
7. It is weil known that the doctrines of the churches in
the Christian world teach that God is one. They teach
this because they are derived from the Word; and they are
ail consistent, so far as one God is acknowledged not only
with the lips but with the heart. But to those who confess
one God with the lips, and in the heart acknowledge three,
as is the case with many Christians at this day, God is merely
a name. To them the whole of theology is like an idol of
gold enclosed in a shrine, the key to which is in the possession
of the priests alone; so that when they read the Word, they
perceive no light either in it or from it, nor do they see therein
that Gad is one. For the Word with such persons is covered,
as it were, with blots, and thus the unity of God is entirely
concealed. These are they whom the Lord thus describes
in Matthew: Hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand;
and seeing ye shall see and shall not perceive : and their eyes
they have closed, lest at any time they should see with their eyes,
and hear with their ears, and should understand with t~eir
heart, and should be converted, and l should heal them (Matt.
xiii 14, 15). AIl these are like men who shun the light, and
enter chambers where there are no windows, and grope about
the. walls in search of food or money; till at length they
acquire a vision like that of owls, and see in darkness. They
are like a woman with several husbands, who is not a wife,
but a lascivious harlot; or like a virgin, who accepts rings
from several suitors, and after her marriage with one, bestows
her favours upon the rest.
8. II. THERE IS A UNIVERSAL INFLUX FROM GOD INTO THE
-- .
SOULS OF MEN TO THE EFFECT THAT THERE IS A GOD, AND
THAT HE IS ONE.
That there is ap influ~ fr0rr.t.Jl.çd into man is implied in
the general acknowledgment, that ail good which in itself is
good, and is in man and done by him, is from God; and also,
that ail charity and ail faith are from God. For it is written:
A man can receive nothing except it has been given him from
heaven (John iii 27); and Jesus saith: Without me ye can do

46. GOD THE CREATOR 9
rwthing (John xv 5); that is, nothing of charity or faith.
There is this-inffJ!x i.IJ,t~ti..4..~§.Q..1JJ..uli_men, because the soul
is the inmost and highest part of a man, and the jnflJc1x from
Gad enters into it, passes thence into the things below,
and vivifies them according ta its reception. Those truths
which are the future subject-matter of faith, enter indeed
by hearing, and are implanted in the mind and thus below
the soul; but a man, by these truths, is only prepared ta
receive i~flux from Gad through the soul; and, t.he ~~ep.!iQn
being according ta the preparation, the faith that is merely
naturai is thus changed into spiritual faith. There is an
jnflu~into-.!he sOUJË.....Q!_Ill~n ta the effect that Gad is one,
because the whole divine, in general and in particular, is
Gad; and since the divine is one, it cannat but instil into a
man the idea of one Gad. This idea is confirmed daiIy as
a man is raised up by Gad into the light of heaven. For the
~ angels, in their light, find it impossible ta utter the ward gods;
) therefore a!L!!.l~ir. s.peech, at the close of ev.ery septens;e,
.
1te~~~nates in a .!l0.~~ .9~.~ty: this is the result of the infh,tx
i!1!o' tlielrio_IJ!.s th~t Ç..Qd is~e. The reason why sa many
people conceive His divlrüty ta be divided inta several
persans of the same essence, notwithstanding t!li.Lillfu!x
inta the souls of ail men that Gad is one, is this: that the
d~.!è~lUgg lnJ!.1J2' enters into forms that are not in corre­
spondence with it, and tlle r,<:cipientform m~difie~ ~he influx,
as happens throughout nature. The same Gad gives life
ta man and beast, but the recipient form causes a beast ta
be a beast, and a man ta be a man; it is similar with a man,
when he induces on his mind the form of a beast. The influx
from the sun is the same into every tree, but it ISvanéèi
according ta the form of each. The infl~x into the vine is
the same as into a thorn; but if the thorn were engrafted
upon the vine, t~ influx would be diverted and would
proceed according ta the form of the thorn. Sa again in the
mineraI kingdom; the light falling upon limestone and the
diamond is the same, but the latter is translucent, and the
former opaque. As ta human minds, they vary according
to their forms, which inwardly are spiritual, according ta
their belief in Gad and their life from Gad. These forms
) become translucent and angelic by belief in one Gad; but,
*B 893

47. .l0 TRUE CHRISTIAN RELIGION
on the contrary, d1,lll and brutish by belief in several gods,
which differs but little from no belief at aIl.
9. III. FOR THIS REASON, THERE IS NO NATION IN THE
WHOLE WORLD, POSSESSING RELIGION AND SOUND REASON,
THAT DOES NOT ACKNOWLEDGE THAT THERE IS A GOD, AND
THAT HE IS ONE'.
From the divine influx into the souls of men treated of
above, it [à1tows-;"that there is with every man an internaI
dictate that there is a God, and that He is one. There are
those who deny God and acknowledge nature as God; others
who acknowledge several gods, and also worship images
as gods; but this is because, their inner reason or under­
standing being clogged with worldly and material matters,
they have forgotten the primitive idea of God which they
had in infancy, and have banished al! religion from their
hearts and cast it behind them. That Christians acknowledge
one God is evident from the general confession of their creed,
in which also the nature of the acknowledgment is shown:
'The catholic faith is this, that we worship one God in
trinity, and the trinity in unity ; there are three divine
persons, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit; and yet
there are not three gods, but one God; and there is one person
of the Father, another of the Son, and another of the Holy
Spirit, and their divinity is one, their glory equal, and their
majesty co-eternal. Thus the Father is God, the Son is
God, and the Holy Spirit is God. For although we are
compel!ed by the Christian verity to confess each person to
be God and Lord, yet are we forbidden by the catholic
religion to say there are three gods or three lords'. Such
is the Christian faith concerning the unity of God; but that
the trinity and unity of God in that confession are inconsistent
with each other, will be seen in the chapter on the divine
trinity.
The other nations of the world, who possess a religion and
sound reason, agree in acknowledging that God is one; tmtS
~!L th~2IQI~aE1..-!!!edan~-.i~ th~~~al _'_~~Illinions; the
Africans, throughout many regions of their continent; the
Asiatics, in many of theirs; and, moreover, the modern Jews.
Among the most ancient people in the golden age, those who
had a religion worshipped one God, whom they cal!ed

48. GOD THE CREATOR II
Jehovah. Likewise the people of the succeeding age, until
monarchical governments were formed, when worldly and
at length gross desires began to close up the higher parts
of their understandings, which, previously opened, had been
like so many temples and shrines for the worship of one God.
It was to open again those inner regions of the human mind,
and so restore the worship of one God, that the Lord instituted
a church among the posterity of Jacob, and prefixed to ail
their religious precepts this: Thou shalt have no other gods
beJore me (Exod. xx 3). The name Jehovah, also, which He
assumed anew among them, signifies the supreme and only
being, from whom is everything that is and is manifested in
the universe. The ancient Gentiles acknowledged Jove as
the supreme God (possibly so called from J ehovah); and they
attributed divinity to many others who composed his court;
but wise men in the following ages, like Plato and Aristotle,
confessed that these were not separate gods, but so many
proIJerties, qualities, and attributes of one God, which were
called gods because they were divine.
10. Ali sound reason, even when not religious, sees that
unless ~ complex iliing d~pe!lded. uP...2!!.JL!!.l!it it would fall
to pieces ; for instance II!ê-!, composed of so many members,
viscera, and organs of motion and sensation, wouId do so,
unless he ~pend~.<LQ~ on~_~ul; and so would the body
itself, unless it depended on a single heart; similarly a killg­
dom, unless mled by one. kil}g, a household unless mled by
one ffiaster, and'" the var10us departments of state unless
each obeyed its head. What could an army accomplish
against an enemy unless it had ._1!. commander-in-chief, to
whom the other officers are subordinate, each of these having
his p.articula.r au.thority over the priv.ate sold.iers.? The
!
sa_I!1:~ ~ouli}i~p'p'en ~_o_~he ~~.E.~çh unJess it a&.knoVledg~d
0!1.LGod, and also to the whole angelic hel!.ven, which is as
the head onhëcliùrcn"Oi1-eartn:-' Of these the Lord is the
very soul, and therefore heaven and the church are called
His body; if they did not acknowledge one God, they would
be like a lifeless corpse, fit only to be cast forth and buried.
II. IV. AS Ta THE NATURE OF THIS ONE GaD, NATIONS
AND PEOPLES HAVE DIFFERED, AND DO STILL DIFFER, FROM
SEVERAL CAUSES.

49. 12 TRUE CHRISTIAN RELIGION
The first cause is, that a conception of God, and a conse­
quent acknowledgment of Him, are not attainable without
a revelation; and a conception of the Lord, and a consequent
ac!<nowledgment that in Him dwelleth all the fulness of the
Godhead bodily, is not attainable, except from the Wqfd,
which is the crown of ail revelations. Forhy-tJle-help of
t~~ation whlchhas oeen given, a man can approach
God, and receive influx, and so from natural become spiritual.
Pl..iJn.~Ya.LT.t:~elll.Jion extended throughout the whole world;
but it was perverted by the natural man; whence arose
religious disputes, dissensions, heresies, and schisms. The
second cause is, that the natural man can know nothing of
God; he can only know the world and make use of mundane
knowledge; it is therefore a doctrine of the Christian church,
that the natural man is opposed to the spiritual, and that
they fight one against the other. Hence those who know
from the Word, or other revelation, that there is a God,
have differed, and still differ, concerning His nature and unity.
Wherefore those whose mental sight depended on the bodily
senses, and yet desired to see God, made images of gold,
silver, stone, and wood, that in the guise of such visible
objects they might worship God. Others again, who did
not make image-worship a part of their religion, worshipped
God in the guise of the sun, the moon, the stars, and other
natural objects. But those who thought themselves wiser
than the common people, and who yet remained merely
natural, seeing the immensity and omnipresence of God in
the creation of the world, acknowledged nature as God,
sorne in her inmost activity, others in her ultimate mani­
festation; others again, to make a distinction between God
and nature, formed a conception of something most universal,
which they called the Entity of the universe; and, because
they knew nothing more of God, this became for them a
mere entity of the reason, and meant nothing. Who cannot
see that conceptions of God are only mirrors wherein to see
Him? They who have no knowledge of God, see Him, as
it were, in a mirror not with its front towards them, but with
its back, which, being covered with mercury or sorne dark
glutinous substance, does not reflect but extinguishes the
image. Faith in God enters into a man by a prior way, that

50. GOD THE CREATOR 13
is, from the soul into the higher parts of the understanding;
but knowledge concerning God enters by a posterior way,
being drawn from the revealed Word by the understanding,
using the bodily senses. Both these forms of influx meet
midway in the understanding; and natural faith, which is
merely persuasion, becomes there spiritual faith, which is a
real acknowledgment. The human understanding therefore
is, as it were, an alembic, wherein this change is effected.
12. v. HUMAN REASON MAY, IF IT WILL, PERCEIVE AND
CONCLUDE, FROM MANY THINGS IN THE WORLD, THAT THERE
IS A GOD, AND THAT HE IS ONE.
This truth may be established by innumerable things ih
the visible world; for the universe is like a stage, on which
there are continuaIly exhibited the evidences that there is
a God, and that He is one. But to iIlustrate this truth l wiII
adduce this remarkable experience from the spiritual world.
Once, while l was conversing with angels, there were present
sorne spirits who had lately arrived from the natural world.
On seeing these l bade them weicome, and told them many
things, previously unknown to them, respecting the spiritual
world. After sorne conversation, l inquired of them what
knowledge they had brought with them from their world
concerning God and nature. The knowledge, they replied,
that nature does everything in the created universe; that God,
after creation, induced or ioopressed upon nature this faculty
and power, and that He now merely sustains and preserves
aIl things lest they should perish; therefore, aIl existing things
that are produced and reproduced upon the earth are at
this day ascribed to nature. To this l replied, that nature
of herself is not the operator in anything, but only God
through nature; and, as they asked for proof, l said that
they who believe the divine operation to be in everything
in nature, can, from very many things which they see in
the world, confirm their belief in God much more than in
nature. For those who strengthen their belief in the divine
operation in nature, study the wonderful facts observed in
the production of both plants and animais. In the produc-
tion of plants they see that from a· smaIl seed sown in the
ground there issues a root, and by means of the root a stem,
and afterwards branches, buds, leaves, flowers, and fruits,

51. 14 TRUE CHRISTIAN RELIGION
till at length new seeds are produced, just as if the first seed
knew ail the orderly steps and successive stages by which
reproduction should take place. What reasonable man can
suppose that the sun, which is pure fire, knows this wonderful
process; or that it can endue its heat and light with power to
produce such effects; or can intentionally perform uses?
The man whose rational faculty has been e1evated, when he
sees and duly considers such things, cannot help thinking
that they are from Him who has infinite wisdom, that is,
from God. Ail who acknowledge the divine operation in
nature confirm their belief when they see these things; but
those who do not acknowledge the divine operation behold
them obliquely and not with the direct eye of reason. They
form ail their ideas from the bodily senses, and confirm the
illusions of the senses, saying: 'Do you not see that the sun
does ail these things by its heat and light? Can anything
exist which cannot be seen?'
Those who confirm their belief in the divine, study the
wonderful things which they see in the reproduction of
animais. To speak, first, with regard to eggs: in these the
chick lies hid in its seed, with ail things requisite for its
formation, and also for its future growth, until it becomes a
bird like its parent. Moreover, a study of winged creatures
in general will astonish a thoughtful mind. For in the
smallest and the greatest, in the invisible and visible, that is,
in the most minute insects as weil as in birds and large
creatures, there are organs of sense-those of sight, smell,
taste, and touch; also organs of motion, namely muscles,
for they By and walk; and also viscera connected with the
heart and lungs, which are actuated by the brain. Those
who ascribe ail things to nature see such things indeed, but
they merely recognize their existence, and say that nature
produces them. They say this because they have turned
away their minds from thinking of the divine; and those
who have done this, when they see the wonderful things in
nature, cannot think rationally, stilliess spiritually, but think
sensually and materially. They then think in nature from
nature, and not above nature, and differ from beasts in this
alone, that they still have rationality, in that they are
capable of understanding if they will. Men who are thus