171. There is no way to describe briefly how things look to angels in the heavens. To a considerable extent, they look like the things we see on earth, but they are more perfect in form and also more abundant.

We may conclude that there are things like this in the heavens because of what the prophets saw - for example what Ezekiel saw of the new temple and the new earth as described in chapters 40-48 [of his book], what Daniel describes in his chapters 7-12, what John saw as described from the first through the last chapter of Revelation, along with other visions presented in both the historical and the prophetic books of the Word. They saw things like this when heaven was opened to them, and heaven is said to be opened when our inner sight, the sight of our spirit, is opened. For the things that exist in heaven cannot be seen with our physical eyes, but only with the eyes of our spirit; and when it pleases the Lord, these are opened. At such times we are led out of the natural light that our physical senses are in and raised into the spiritual light in which we dwell because of our spirit. This is the light in which I have seen the things that exist in the heavens.

2005. 'Father' means that which comes from Him. This is clear from the meaning of 'father', dealt with in what has just gone before, namely this: Whatever came from the Father came from the Lord as well since They were one. The human being in every case receives that which is internal from the father and that which is external from the mother; or what amounts to the same, the soul itself is from the father, the body which clothes the soul from the mother. Body and soul nevertheless make one, for the soul goes with the body, and body with soul, and are therefore inseparable. The Lord's Internal came from the Father and so was the Father Himself. Hence the Lord's declaration that 'the Father is within Him', that 'I am in the Father and the Father is in Me', He who sees Me sees the Father', 'I and the Father are one', as is clear from the places quoted above. In the Old Testament Word as well He is called Father, as in Isaiah,

To us a Boy is born, to us a Son is given; and the government will be upon His shoulder, and His name will be called, Wonderful, Counsellor, God, Hero, Father of Eternity, Prince of Peace. Isaiah 9:6.

It is clear to anyone that 'the Boy' born to us, and 'the Son' given to us, is the Lord, who is named 'Father of Eternity'. In the same prophet,

You are our Father, for Abraham does not know us and Israel does not acknowledge us. You, O Jehovah, are our Father, our Redeemer; from eternity is Your name. Isaiah 63:16.

Here also it is the Lord who is called 'Jehovah our Father', for there is no other Redeemer. In Malachi,

Have we not all one Father? Has not one God created us? Malachi 2:10.

'Creating' stands for regenerating, as shown in Volume One, in 16, 88, 472. Furthermore throughout the Old Testament Word Jehovah is used to mean the Lord, for He it was that all the Church's religious ceremonies represented; and He it is to whom everything that the Word contains in the internal sense has reference.