305. Verses 4, 5. And I wept much, that no one was found worthy to open and to read the book, neither to look thereon. And one of the elders saith unto me, weep not; behold, the Lion that is from the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, hath overcome to open the book, and to loose the seven seals thereof.

4. "And I wept much, that no one was found worthy to open and to read the book, neither to look thereon," signifies grief of heart on account of the disorder and destruction of all things, if no one could know [scire], cognize [cognoscere], and explore all men, and all things pertaining to men (n. 306).

5. "And one of the elders," signifies a society of heaven superior in wisdom to the rest (n.307); "saith unto me, Weep not," signifies that there need be no grief on that account (n. 308); "behold, the Lion hath overcome," signifies that the Lord from His own power subjugated the hells, and reduced all things in the heavens to order (n. 309); "from the tribe of Judah, the Root of David," signifies by means of Divine good united to Divine truth in His Human (n. 310); "to open the book, and to loose the seven seals thereof," signifies that He knows and recognizes all and each, and the most secret things of everyone (n. 311).

18. A further proof that heaven comes from the human race is the likeness between the minds of angels and human beings. Both enjoy the ability to understand, perceive and will. Both are designed to receive heaven. For the human mind is just as wise as that of angels, but its wisdom is restricted in the world, because it is then in an earthly body, and in this a person's spiritual mind thinks naturally. For the spiritual thought which he possesses as much as an angel then descends into natural ideas corresponding to the spiritual ones, and is so there perceived. It is different when a person's mind is released from the shackles of that body. Then it ceases to think naturally, and thinks spiritually; and when it does that, its thoughts become to the natural man incomprehensible and ineffable, that is, like an angel's. From this it may be deduced that a person's internal, what is called his spirit, is in essence an angel. ¹ See HEAVEN AND HELL 73-77 for a demonstration that an angel has a perfect human form. But when a person's internal is not open upwards and only downwards, then although on release from the body it still has a human form, it is a dreadful and devilish one. For it is unable to look up to heaven, but only down to hell.

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