270. I need now to say something about the wisdom of the angels of the third or inmost heaven, and about how much it surpasses the wisdom of the first or outmost heaven.

The wisdom of angels of the third or inmost heaven is beyond comprehension, even for angels of the first or outmost heaven. This is because the inner natures of angels of the third heaven are opened at the third level, while those of angels of the first heaven are open only at the first level; and all wisdom increases as you move toward the deeper levels and is perfected as they are opened (208, 267).

[2] Since the inner levels of angels of the third heaven are opened at the third level, they have divine truths virtually engraved on them, for inner matters at the third level are more in heaven's form than those at the second and first level. Heaven's form arises from divine truth and therefore is in agreement with divine wisdom. This is why divine truths seem to these angels to be engraved, or to be instinctive and innate. Because of this, as soon as they hear genuine divine truths, they immediately acknowledge and grasp them and from then on virtually see them within themselves. Because this is characteristic of angels of this heaven, they never try to figure out divine truths, much less argue whether some particular truth is true or not. They do not know what it is to believe or have faith, but say, "What is faith? I perceive and see that this is so." They offer a comparison by way of illustration. It would be like someone seeing a house and various things in and around it and telling someone with him that he ought to believe that they existed and that they were what they seemed to be. Or it would be like someone seeing a garden with trees and fruit in it and telling someone that she should have faith that it was a garden and that those were trees and fruit when she could see them plainly with her own eyes. So these angels never call "faith" by name and in fact have no concept of it. This is why they do not try to figure out divine truths, much less argue whether any particular truth is true or not. ¹

[3] In contrast, angels of the first or outmost heaven do not have divine truths engraved on their inner natures in this way because for them only the first level of life has been opened. So they do try to figure things out, and people who are calculating in this way see little more than the subject they are puzzling over. They do not go beyond that subject except to find support for their conclusions, and once they have decided, they say that these should be matters of faith and are to be believed.

[4] I have talked about this with angels, who have told me that the difference between the wisdom of angels of the third heaven and the wisdom of angels of the first heaven is like the difference between something bright and something dark. Or again, they have compared the wisdom of angels of the third heaven to a palace full of everything useful, surrounded far and wide by parklands, with all sorts of splendid things beyond. Since these angels enjoy truths of wisdom, they can enter the palace and see everything there. They can stroll anywhere in the parks and enjoy whatever they see. It is different for people who are trying to figure things out, though, and even more so for people who argue about them. These individuals do not see truths in the light of truth, but adopt them either from other people or from the literal meaning of the Word, which they do not understand in depth. So they say that truths must be believed or that people must have faith in things - things that they then do not want anyone looking into very deeply. The angels kept saying that these people could not get to the first threshold of the palace, much less enter it and stroll around in its parks, because they are stuck at the first step. It is different for people who are engaged in actual truths. Nothing keeps them from moving ahead without limit; for once truths have been seen they lead on wherever they are headed, even into spacious meadows, because every truth has an infinite outreach and is united to many, many others.

[5] They also said that the wisdom of angels of the inmost heaven consists primarily of their seeing divine and heavenly things in individual objects and wonders in series of objects, for everything that appears to their eyes has a correspondence. When they see palaces and gardens, for instance, their insight does not dwell on the things in front of their eyes but sees the deeper things they stem from, the things, that is, to which they correspond. This goes on with constant variety in keeping with the appearance of the objects; so at any given time there are countless things in a pattern and a connectedness so delightful to their minds that they seem to be transported. (Everything that is visible in the heavens corresponds to something divine that is from the Lord in angels, .)

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10786. They added that they also become confused when any such person tells them that they ought to have faith in and to believe the things he tells them, and that in answer to him they say that they do not know what faith is or what believing is, since they perceive intuitively that something is true. For they belonged to the Lord's celestial kingdom, where intuitive perception gives everyone a knowledge of those truths which with us are called matters of faith; for they are enlightened by the Lord, in a different way from those who belong to the Lord's spiritual kingdom. I was also allowed to see that their nature was such from the fiery source from which they received their ideas. Whenever there is talk about truths those who belong to the Lord's celestial kingdom say no more than 'Yes, yes' or 'No, no'. They never reason about truths, whether they are such or not. These are the ones about whom the Lord says,

Your words shall be Yes, yes; No, no; anything beyond this is from evil ¹ . [Matthew 5:37.]

This explains why those spirits said that they did not know what having faith or believing was. They consider this to be like someone saying to a companion who sees houses or trees with his own eyes that he ought to have faith or believe that they are houses or trees, when he can see clearly that that is what they are. Such is the character of those who belong to the Lord's celestial kingdom, and such was the character of those angelic spirits. We told them that there are few on our planet who possess intuitive perception, because people there learn truths when they are young but do not practise them. For a person has two powers of mind, called the understanding and the will. Some do not let truths penetrate any further than their memory and slightly beyond into their understanding, but not into their life, that is, into their will; and they are ones who, because they cannot receive any enlightenment or insight from the Lord, talk of the need for things to be believed or for people to have faith. They also reason about whether such things are true or not, having no wish indeed to perceive them with any insight or power of understanding. They talk in those ways because the truths that reside with them lack any light from heaven, and to those who see things without light from heaven falsities can appear as truths, and truths as falsities. Consequently very many on our planet have become afflicted with a blindness so great that even though a person does not practise truths, that is, lead a life in keeping with them, they nevertheless say that he can be saved by faith alone.

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