20. (ii) THE ONE GOD IS SUBSTANCE ITSELF AND FORM ITSELF, AND ANGELS AND MEN ARE SUBSTANCES AND FORMS DERIVED FROM HIM; TO THE EXTENT THAT THEY ARE IN HIM AND HE IN THEM, SO FAR ARE THEY IMAGES AND LIKENESSES OF HIM.

Since God is Being, He is also substance, for unless being is substance, it is an imaginary entity, for substance is a subsisting entity. One who is substance must also be form, for substance without form is an imaginary entity. Both can therefore be predicated of God, but on condition that He is the sole, very and prime substance and form. It was proved in THE WISDOM OF THE ANGELS ON THE DIVINE LOVE AND THE DIVINE WISDOM (published at Amsterdam in 1763) that this form is the very form of man, that is, God is very man, and all of his attributes are infinite; and likewise that angels and men are substances and forms created and ordered so as to receive the Divine influences reaching them through heaven. In the Book of Creation they are therefore called images and likenesses of God (Genesis 1:26-27); elsewhere they are called His sons and begotten of Him. It will be proved at length in the course of this book that in so far as a man lives under Divine guidance, that is, allows himself to be led by God, so far does he become, more and more inwardly, an image of God.

[2] If the minds of men did not form the idea that God is prime substance and form, and that His form is the very form of man, they would easily fall into fantastic, ghost-like, ideas about God Himself, the origin of man and the creation of the world. They could not avoid thinking of God as the primeval nature of the universe, and consequently as its expanse, or as it were a void or nothingness. They would think of the origin of man as if it were a fortuitous concourse of atoms to make such a form; of the creation of the world as owing its substances and forms to geometric points and lines, which since they lack attributes are in themselves non-existent. In the case of such people everything relating to the church is like the river Styx or the thick darkness of Tartarus.

609. Since the state of the member of this Church which is called Noah was completely altered from that of the member of the Most Ancient Church, he was no longer able, as has been stated, to be informed and enlightened in the way that the most ancient people had been. For internal things had been closed so that he no longer had any communication with heaven apart from that of which he was not immediately conscious. As a consequence he could not be taught except by an external or sensory way, which is that of the senses, as has been stated. For this reason, through the Providence of the Lord, doctrinal matters concerning faith, together with some of the revelations made to the Most Ancient Church, were preserved for the use of these descendants. These matters of doctrine were gathered together initially by 'Cain and stored away to prevent their being destroyed. Hence the statement in reference to Cain that 'a sign was set upon him lest anyone should kill him', as may be seen where these matters are discussed in Chapter 4:15. Subsequently they were arranged into a doctrinal system by 'Enoch', and since such doctrine was to be used not at that period of time but by descendants, it is therefore said that 'God took him'. These matters also may be seen where they are discussed in 5:24. These doctrinal matters concerning faith were what the Lord preserved for the use of these descendants or Church. For the Lord foresaw that perception would perish, and therefore also made provision for such matters of doctrine to stay in existence.