El Cielo y sus maravillas y el Infierno de cosas oídas y vistas

ÍNDICE GENERAL DEL CONTENIDO

Parte I — El Cielo

§1 [Prólogo del Autor]

Capítulo 1, (2-6), El Dios del Cielo es el Señor

Capítulo 2, (7-12), La Divinidad del Señor hace el Cielo

Capítulo 3, (13-19), En el Cielo la Divinidad del Señor es el amor a Él y la caridad hacia el prójimo

Capítulo 4, (20-28), El Cielo está dividido en dos reinos

Capítulo 5, (29-40), Hay tres cielos

Capítulo 6, (41-50), Los cielos se componen de innumerables sociedades

Capítulo 7, (51-58), Cada sociedad es un Cielo en la más pequeña forma, y cada ángel en la más pequeña forma, constituye un Cielo

Capítulo 8, (59-67), Todo Cielo en su conjunto, refleja a un sólo hombre

Capítulo 9, (68-72), Cada sociedad en el Cielo refleja a un sólo hombre

Capítulo 10, (73-77), Todo Ángel está en el Cielo en forma completamente humana

Capítulo 11, (78-86), De la Divina Humanidad del Señor es de donde el Cielo, como un todo y una parte, se refleja en el hombre

Capítulo 12, (87-102), Hay una correspondencia de todas las cosas del Cielo con todas las cosas del hombre

Capítulo 13, (103-115), Hay una correspondencia del Cielo con todas las cosas de la Tierra

Capítulo 14, (116-125), El sol en el Cielo

Capítulo 15, (126-140), La luz y el calor en el Cielo

Capítulo 16, (141-153), Las cuatro partes del Cielo o los cuatro puntos cardinales

Capítulo 17, (154-161), Cambios de estado de los ángeles en el Cielo

Capítulo 18, (162-169), El tiempo en el Cielo

Capítulo 19, (170-176), Las representaciones y las apariencias en el Cielo

Capítulo 20, (177-182), Los vestidos con que los ángeles aparecen ataviados

Capítulo 21, (183-190), Las moradas de los ángeles

Capítulo 22, (191-199), El espacio en el Cielo

Capítulo 23, (200-212), La Forma del Cielo y de cómo ésta determina las afiliaciones y las comunicaciones allá

Capítulo 24, (213-220), Los gobiernos en el Cielo

Capítulo 25, (221-227), El culto Divino en el Cielo

Capítulo 26, (228-233), El poder de los ángeles en el Cielo

Capítulo 27, (234-245), El habla de los ángeles

Capítulo 28, (246-257), El habla de los ángeles con el hombre

Capítulo 29, (258-264), La escritura en el Cielo

Capítulo 30, (265-275), La sabiduría de los ángeles del Cielo

Capítulo 31, (276-283), El estado de inocencia de los ángeles en el Cielo

Capítulo 32, (284-290), El estado de paz en el Cielo

Capítulo 33, (291-302), La unión del Cielo con la especie humana

Capítulo 34, (303-310), La unión del Cielo con el hombre a través de la palabra

Capítulo 35, (311-317), El Cielo y el Infierno son propios de la especie humana

Capítulo 36, (318-328), Situación de los no cristianos o de los que están fuera de la Iglesia, en el Cielo

Capítulo 37, (329-345), Los niños en el Cielo

Capítulo 38, (346-356), Los sabios y los sencillos en el Cielo

Capítulo 39, (357-365), Los ricos y los pobres en el Cielo

Capítulo 40, (366-386), Los matrimonios en el Cielo

Capítulo 41, (387-394), Los empleos de los ángeles en el Cielo

Capítulo 42, (395-414), La alegría y la felicidad en el Cielo

Capítulo 43, (415-420), La inmensidad del Cielo

Parte II - El mundo de los espíritus y el estado del hombre después de la muerte.

Capítulo 44, (421-431), De lo que es el mundo de los espíritus

Capítulo 45, (432-444), Con respecto a su interioridad, todo hombre es un espíritu

Capítulo 46, (445-452), La resurrección y la entrada a la vida eterna

Capítulo 47, (453-460), El hombre después de la muerte está en completa forma humana

Capítulo 48, (461-469), Después de la muerte el hombre posee todos los sentidos, toda la memoria, pensamiento y afección que tuvo en el mundo, no dejando nada tras de si, sino su cuerpo terrenal

Capítulo 49, (470-484), El hombre después de la muerte es tal como lo fue en su vida en el mundo

Capítulo 50, (485-490), Las delicias de la vida de cada cual, se transforman, después de la muerte, en las delicias correspondientes

Capítulo 51, (491-498), El primer estado del hombre después de la muerte

Capítulo 52, (499-511), El segundo estado del hombre después de la muerte

Capítulo 53, (512-520), El tercer estado del hombre después de la muerte: estado de instrucción para aquellos que entran al Cielo

Capítulo 54, (521-527), Nadie entra al Cielo por mera misericordia sin los medios necesarios para ello

Capítulo 55, (528-535), No es tan difícil vivir la vida que conduce al Cielo como muchos creen

Parte III - El Infierno

Capítulo 56, (536-544), El Señor gobierna los infiernos

Capítulo 57, (545-550), Ninguno es arrojado al Infierno por el Señor, esto lo hace el espíritu de cada cual

Capítulo 58, (551-565), Todos los que están en los infiernos están en los males y en los errores que hay en ellos, derivados del amor al yo (egoísmo) y al mundo

Capítulo 59, (566-575), Lo que es el fuego del Infierno y el crujir de dientes

Capítulo 60, (576-581), La malicia y los artificios de los espíritus infernales

Capítulo 61, (582-588), La aparente situación y número de los infiernos

Capítulo 62, (589-596), El equilibrio entre el Cielo y el Infierno

Capítulo 63, (597-603), Por medio del equilibrio entre el Cielo y el Infierno, el hombre tiene libertad

61. The destruction followed a visitation, for this always comes first. A visitation is an examination of people's character and a separation of the good from the wicked; the good are carried away from there and the wicked are left behind. When this was over, there were huge earthquakes, which served notice of the imminence of the Last Judgment; panic broke out universally. Those who lived in the southern quarter, especially in the large city there (mentioned above, 58), were then to be seen running hither and thither, some taking to their heels to escape, some hiding in crypts, some in the cells and pits where their treasures were, while others carried out of them anything they could lay their hands on. After the earthquakes a volcanic eruption burst up from below, overturning everything in the city and the surrounding district; and after the eruption came a gale from the east, which stripped bare, shattered and completely overturned everything. Then all the people there were brought out of every place where they had hidden and were thrown into a sea, the waters of which were black. The number of those thrown in amounted to many tens of thousands.

[2] Following this smoke, as after a fire, began to rise from the whole district, and finally thick dust; this was carried out to sea by the east wind and settled as a layer on it. All their treasuries were turned to dust, together with all the possessions they held sacred. The reason the dust was scattered on the sea was that such dust means that which is damned.

[3] Finally a black shape was seen flying over that whole district, which on closer view looked like a dragon - a sign that the whole of that great city and the district had become a desert. The reason it so appeared was that dragons mean the falsities of such a religion, and their home means a desert following overthrow (as in Jeremiah 9:12, 10:22, 49:33; Malachi 1:3).

[4] Some were also seen having what looked like a millstone round their left arm; this representation showed that they had proved their unspeakable dogmas from the Word. Such is the meaning of a millstone; so it was plain what these words in Revelation mean:

An angel picked up a stone like that of a large mill and threw it into the sea, saying, So shall Babylon, that great city, be sent hurtling down, and it shall be found no more. Revelation 18:21.

[5] However, as for those who were in the Council chamber, in the same quarter but further to the east, where debates were held about methods of extending their rule and of keeping the people in ignorance and so in blind obedience (on this Council chamber see 58 above), they were not thrown into the black sea, but into a chasm which opened up lengthwise and to a great depth beneath and around them. This is how the Last Judgment took place on the Babylonians in the southern quarter.

[6] The Last Judgment on those who lived forward in the western quarter and on those in the northern quarter, where the large city was, happened like this. After huge earthquakes which convulsed everything there to its foundations (these are the earthquakes meant in the Word, Matthew 24:7; Luke 21:11; and similar ones in Revelation 6:12; Revelation 8:5; Revelation 11:13; Revelation 16:18, and in the prophetic books of the Old Testament - not earthquakes on this earth), an east wind swept from the south through the west to the north, and stripped that whole region bare. It hit first the forward region in the western quarter, where those who had lived in the Dark Ages had their underground dwellings, and then the large city which extended from that quarter right through the north as far as the east. As they were laid bare all their contents were to be seen. But because there were not such large treasures stored there, there was no volcanic eruption with its sulphurous fire to burn up the treasures; there was only an overthrow and destruction, with everything finally going up in smoke. It was the east wind which swept to and fro, overthrowing, destroying and carrying everything away.

[7] The monks together with the common people were brought out in tens of thousands, and some were thrown into the black sea on the side facing west, some into the great southern rift (mentioned above), some into the western chasm, some into the hells of the heathen.

For some of the people from the Dark Ages were idolaters like the heathen. Smoke was seen rising from there, reaching as far as the sea and drifting over it, and forming a black coating on it. For the part of the sea into which they were thrown had a hard covering of dust and smoke, into which their dwellings and riches dissolved.

So the sea was no longer to be seen, and its place was taken by a piece of black ground, underneath which was their hell.

[8] The Last Judgment on those who lived on the mountains in the eastern quarter (on whom see above 58) took place like this. The mountains were seen to sink into the depths and all on them were swallowed up. The one who had been placed on one of the mountains and proclaimed to be God, turned black and then fiery, and he was hurled headlong into hell along with them. For the monks of various orders who were on those mountains claimed that he was God and they were themselves Christ; and wherever they went, they took with them the shocking persuasion that they were Christ.

[9] Finally a judgment took place on those who lived further out in the western quarter on the mountains there, the people meant by the woman mounted on the scarlet beast, having seven heads which are seven mountains (she was mentioned above, 58). Their mountains too were seen, some split open in the middle forming a huge chasm spiralling downwards, and those on the mountains were thrown into it. Some of the mountains were torn up by the roots and so turned upside down that their summits were at the bottom. The people from the plains there were deluged with a kind of flood and covered over. But those among them who were from other quarters were thrown into chasms. The present remarks are but a small part of all that I saw; more will be given in the explanation of Revelation. These events happened and were completed at the beginning of the year 1757.

[10] As for the chasms into which all were thrown except those who ended up in the black sea, there are many of them. Four were shown to me: a large one towards the east of the southern quarter; a second towards the south in the western quarter; a third towards the north in the western quarter; a fourth further out in the corner between west and north. The chasms and the sea are their hells. This much I saw, but there was much more which I did not see. The hells of the Babylonian people are kept apart to match the different ways in which they profane spiritual things, which relate to the church's good and truth.