From Swedenborg's Works

 

Divine Love and Wisdom #18

Study this Passage

  
/ 432  
  

18. Anyone can come to an inner assurance about the presence of infinite things in God--anyone, that is, who believes that God is a person; because if God is a person, he has a body and everything that having a body entails. So he has a face, torso, abdomen, upper legs, and lower legs, since without these he would not be a person. Since he has these components, he also has eyes, ears, nose, mouth, and tongue. He also has what we find within a person, such as a heart and lungs and the things that depend on them, all of which, taken together, make us human. We are created with these many components, and if we consider them in their interconnections, they are beyond counting. In the Divine-Human One, though, they are infinite. Nothing is lacking, so he has an infinite completeness.

We can make this comparison of the uncreated Person, who is God, with us who are created, because that God is a person. It is because of him that we earthly beings are said to have been created in his image and in his likeness (Genesis 1:26-27).

  
/ 432  
  

Thanks to the Swedenborg Foundation for the permission to use this translation.

From Swedenborg's Works

 

Arcana Coelestia #2519

Study this Passage

  
/ 10837  
  

2519. 'Abimelech had not come near her' means that where the doctrine of faith was concerned rational truth was not consulted in any way. This is clear from the meaning of 'Abimelech' as the doctrine of faith, dealt with in 2504, 2509, 2510, and from the meaning of 'coming near her', that is to say, near Sarah as a sister, as reaching out to or in any way consulting rational truth, meant by 'a sister', 1495, 2508. The reason why the rational was not consulted in any way is that stated already, that matters of doctrine concerning faith - every one of them - are derived from the Divine, which is infinitely above the human rational. It is from the Divine that the rational receives its good and its truth. The Divine is able to enter into the rational, but not vice versa, even as the soul can enter into the body and give it form, but not the body into the soul, or as light can enter into shade and transform it variously into colours, but not shade into light. But because at first glance it appears as though the rational ought to be present since the rational is the very thing which receives doctrine, the present chapter shows that the first thought that came to mind was whether it too should not at the same time be consulted. But the Lord revealed it to Himself and replied to Himself that doctrine would in that case be made valueless. Consequently it was not consulted, and this is the meaning of the statement here that 'Abimelech had not come near her'.

  
/ 10837  
  

Thanks to the Swedenborg Society for the permission to use this translation.