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Genesis 1

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1 In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.

2 And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.

3 And God said, Let there be light: and there was light.

4 And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness.

5 And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And the evening and the morning were the first Day.

6 And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters.

7 And God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament: and it was so.

8 And God called the firmament Heaven. And the evening and the morning were the second day.

9 And God said, Let the waters under the heaven be gathered together unto one place, and let the dry land appear: and it was so.

10 And God called the dry land Earth; and the gathering together of the waters called he Seas: and God saw that it was good.

11 And God said, Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed, and the fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed is in itself, upon the earth: and it was so.

12 And the earth brought forth grass, and herb yielding seed after his kind, and the tree yielding fruit, whose seed was in itself, after his kind: and God saw that it was good.

13 And the evening and the morning were the third day.

14 And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years:

15 And let them be for lights in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth: and it was so.

16 And God made two great lights; the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night: he made the stars also.

17 And God set them in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth,

18 And to rule over the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness: and God saw that it was good.

19 And the evening and the morning were the fourth day.

20 And God said, Let the waters bring forth abundantly the moving creature that hath life, and fowl that may fly above the earth in the open firmament of heaven.

21 And God created great whales, and every living creature that moveth, which the waters brought forth abundantly, after their kind, and every winged fowl after his kind: and God saw that it was good.

22 And God blessed them, saying, Be fruitful, and multiply, and fill the waters in the seas, and let fowl multiply in the earth.

23 And the evening and the morning were the fifth day.

24 And God said, Let the earth bring forth the living creature after his kind, cattle, and creeping thing, and beast of the earth after his kind: and it was so.

25 And God made the beast of the earth after his kind, and cattle after their kind, and every thing that creepeth upon the earth after his kind: and God saw that it was good.

26 And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.

27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.

28 And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.

29 And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat.

30 And to every beast of the earth, and to every fowl of the air, and to every thing that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is life, I have given every green herb for meat: and it was so.

31 And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. And the evening and the morning were the sixth day.

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Arcana Coelestia #17

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17. Verse 2 And the earth was a void and an emptiness, and there was thick darkness over the face 1 of the deep; and the Spirit of God was hovering over the face 1 of the waters. The person who has yet to be regenerated is called 'a void and an empty earth', and also 'ground', in which no good or truth at all has been sown - 'void' where there is no good, and 'empty' where there is no truth. Consequently there is 'thick darkness', or stupidity and lack of knowledge about anything that has to do with faith in the Lord and so anything that has to do with spiritual and celestial life. This kind of person is described by the Lord through Jeremiah,

My people are foolish, they know Me not; they are stupid children, having no understanding; they are wise to do evil, and know not how to do good. I looked to the earth, and, behold, a void and an emptiness; and towards the heavens, and they had no light. Jeremiah 4:22-23, 25.

Notes de bas de page:

1. literally, the faces

  
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Thanks to the Swedenborg Society for the permission to use this translation.

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Apocalypse Explained #490

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490. And another angel came and stood at the altar.- This signifies the conjunction of heaven with the Lord by means of celestial good, as is evident from the signification of an angel, as denoting heaven, concerning which we shall speak presently; and from the signification of altar, as denoting good of love to the Lord, concerning which we shall also speak presently. An angel signifies the angelic heaven, because the things seen by John were representative. And because heaven could not be presented to his view, therefore angels were seen instead of the heavens, thus also, as stated above, seven angels who stood before God (n. 489); and there were also four-and-twenty elders and four animals, and that these represented the heavens was shown above (n. 313:1, 322, 362, 462); and similarly here, the angel who stood at the altar. The angels seen by John represented heaven, because the whole heaven in the presence of the Lord is as one angelic man, and similarly every society of heaven; also because an angel derives his angelic form, which is the human form, from the whole heaven. Concerning this fact see Heaven and Hell 51-58, 59-67, 68-72, 73-77, 78-86), where this interior truth is fully unfolded. For this reason when an angel is representatively seen, he signifies either that society of heaven to which he belongs, or several societies together, or even the whole heaven in regard to that special aspect of heaven and the church which is treated of. That by angels in the Word are signified complete societies in heaven, and also the whole heaven, may be seen above (n. 90, 302, 307). By this angel who stood at the altar, is signified the inmost or third heaven, because the altar signifies the good of love to the Lord, and all those who are in the inmost or third heaven are in that good.

[2] It is not to be supposed that, because an altar was seen in heaven, any altar, such as the Israelites had, exists there; but as that altar is often mentioned in the Word, and because it signifies the good of love to the Lord, and worship from that good, therefore an altar was seen by John, by whom also the Word was to be written in order that the Word might be everywhere consistent with itself. For the same reason he saw a golden altar, which was for incenses, also the censer and incenses, which are mentioned presently, and also the ark of the covenant (chap. 11:19). For many representatives appear in heaven to those who stand below, which still do not actually exist there, for they are only forms representative of such things as are thought of by the angels there from the influx of the Lord, and therefore all those things signify Divine things. Thus, for instance, animals appeared, which were cherubim, also a book sealed with seven seals, and at the opening of the first four seals horses went forth besides similar things mentioned elsewhere. Here also, for example, an altar, a censer and incenses appeared, and these were seen by John, because they are mentioned in the Word, and therein signify Divine things, and because the Word by means of similar things was also to be written in the Apocalypse. There were two altars in use with the Israelitish nation, one of which was called the altar of burnt-offering, the other, the altar of incense, and this, being overlaid with gold, was called the golden altar. The altar of burnt-offering was representative of the Lord, and the worship of Him from celestial good, while the altar of incense was representative of the Lord, and the worship of Him from spiritual good. Celestial good is the good of love to the Lord, and spiritual good is the good of charity towards the neighbour. But the general and specific representation and signification of altars may be seen above (n. 391).

  
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Translation by Isaiah Tansley. Many thanks to the Swedenborg Society for the permission to use this translation.