7217. For distress of spirit. ¹ That this signifies by reason of a state near to despair, is evident from the signification of “distress of spirit,” as being a state near to despair, for they who are in this state, are in distress of spirit. That this state is signified by the burden laid on the sons of Israel by Pharaoh, that they should search for themselves straw to make brick, was shown at the end of the preceding chapter. That distress of spirit denotes a state near to despair, can be seen from the fact that they who are in a state near to despair are in internal anxiety, and are then actually in shortness of breath. In the external sense this condition is a compression of the breast, and from this as it were a difficulty of breathing; but in the internal sense it is anxiety on account of the deprivation of the truth which is of faith, and of the good which is of charity, and from this is a state near to despair. (That a state of compression in respect to the breathing, and anxiety on account of the deprivation of the truth of faith and the good of charity, correspond to each other, as a natural effect in the body from a spiritual cause in the mind, can be seen from what has been shown above, n. 97, 1119, 3886, 3887, 3889, 3892, 3893.) That the deprivation of spiritual truth and good gives birth to such anxiety, and consequently to such distress, cannot be believed by those who are not in faith and charity; for these suppose that to be in distress on this account is weakness and sickliness of mind. The reason is that they do not place anything real in faith and charity, nor therefore in those things which belong to their souls and to heaven, but only in wealth and eminence, thus in the things of the body and the world. They also think, “What are faith and charity but mere words? What is conscience even? To feel distressed by these things is the same as being distressed by such things as a man sees within him from the silly creations of his fancy, and which he imagines to have some existence, although they have not any. Wealth and high position we can see with our eyes, and we know that they exist by the pleasure they afford, for they excite in our whole bodies an expansion and a fullness of joy.” So think merely natural men, and so do they speak among themselves. But spiritual men think differently, for these have their chief life in their spirit, thus in the things that belong to their spirit, that is, in faith and charity; and therefore when they believe themselves deprived of the truths and goods of faith and charity, they are affected with anguish, as are they who are in the anguish of death, for they see before them spiritual death, that is, damnation. As before said, to the merely natural these persons appear weak and sickly in spirit, but they are strong and healthy; whereas they who are merely natural appear to themselves strong and healthy, and also are so as to the body, but as to the spirit they are quite weakly, because spiritually dead. If they could see what kind of a spirit they have, they would acknowledge it to be so; but they do not see the spirit until the body has died.

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3893. Angelic choirs were once celebrating the Lord together, and this from gladness of heart. Their celebration was sometimes heard as sweet singing; for among themselves spirits and angels are possessed of a sonorous voice, and are heard by each other as well as a man is heard by a man; but human singing is not to be compared with that for a sweetness and harmony which are celestial. From the variety of the sound I perceived that there were many choirs. I was instructed by the angels with me that they belonged to the province of the lungs and to their functions; for it is theirs to sing because this is the office of the lungs. This also was given me to know by experience. They were permitted to direct my respiration, which they did so gently and sweetly, and also so interiorly, that I was scarcely sensible of any respiration of my own. I was further instructed that they who are appointed to the involuntary respiration are distinct from those who are appointed to the voluntary respiration; and I was told that they who are appointed to the involuntary respiration are present with man during sleep; for as soon as he sleeps, the voluntariness of his respiration ceases, and he receives involuntary respiration.