1. Teachings for the New Jerusalem on the Lord

The Entire Sacred Scripture Is about the Lord, and the Lord Is the Word

WE read in John,

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and nothing that was made came about without him. In him there was life, and that life was the light for humankind. And the light shines in the darkness, but the darkness did not grasp it. And the Word became flesh and lived among us; and we saw his glory, glory like that of the only-begotten child of the Father. He was full of grace and truth. (John 1:1-3, 5, 14)

In the same Gospel,

Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. (John 3:19)

And elsewhere in the same Gospel,

While you have the light, believe in the light, so that you may become children of the light. I have come into the world as a light so that anyone who believes in me will not remain in darkness. (John 12:36, 46)

We can see from this that the Lord is God from eternity and that he himself is that Lord who was born into the world. It actually says that the Word was with God and that the Word was God, as well as that nothing that was made came about without him, and then that the Word became flesh and that they saw him.

There is little understanding in the church of what it means to call the Lord “the Word.” He is called the Word because the Word means divine truth or divine wisdom and the Lord is divine truth itself or divine wisdom itself. That is why he is also called the light that is said to have come into the world.

Since divine wisdom and divine love are one with each other and have been one in the Lord from eternity, it also says “in him there was life, and that life was the light for humankind.” The life is divine love, and the light is divine wisdom.

This oneness is what is meant by saying both that “in the beginning the Word was with God” and that “the Word was God.” “With God” is in God, since wisdom is in love and love is in wisdom. This is like the statement elsewhere in John, “Glorify me, Father, together with yourself, with the glory I had with you before the world existed” (John 17:5). “With yourself” is “in yourself.” This is why it adds “and the Word was God.” It says elsewhere that the Lord is in the Father and the Father is in him [John 14:10], and that the Father and he are one [John 10:30].

Since the Word is the divine wisdom of the divine love, it follows that it is Jehovah himself and therefore the Lord, the one by whom all things were made that were made, since everything was created out of divine love by means of divine wisdom.

6159. And for your food, and for them in your houses. That this signifies that thereby the good of truth may be in each and all things, is evident from the signification of “food,” as being the good of truth (see n. 5410, 5426, 5487, 5582, 5588, 5655); and from the signification of “those who are in the houses,” as being each and all things of good derived from truth. Thus “for food for those in the houses” denotes the good of truth in each and all things. As regards the good of truth being in each and all things, the case is this. In proportion as a man is being regenerated, good insinuates itself into each and all things that appertain to him; for the affection of good becomes that which reigns universally in him; and that which reigns universally reigns also singularly, that is, in each and all things. This may be seen from the ruling affection with everyone. This affection, whatever it may be, is present in each particular of his will, and also in each particular of his thought, and although it does not always appear to be present in the thought, nevertheless it is in it. The reason why it does not appear is that at these moments it is clothed with affections that are insinuated by means of objects; but as these affections are put off, the ruling affection comes into plain view.

[2] This cannot be better seen than from the case of spirits and angels. Spirits who are evil, or with whom evil is dominant, are evil in each and all things, even when they are speaking what is true and are doing what is good, for in all this they have no other intention than to deceive others so as to be believed to be good, and thus to beguile under a semblance of good. When this is the case, it is plainly heard from the very tone of their speech, and is also perceived from their sphere. The angels in heaven, with whom good rules, that is, universally reigns, are good in each and all things; or in other words, with them good from the Lord shines forth in each and all things; for even if they do anything of evil in the outward form, it is nevertheless their end or intention that good may come therefrom. From all this it is evident that where good universally reigns, it reigns in each and all things; and it is the same with evil. For that which reigns universally comes into existence for the first time when each and all things are of the same nature; and the universal is according to the quality and quantity of these; for that which is called universal is universal from the fact that it is in all things individually.