613. Having His Father's name written on their foreheads. This symbolizes the acknowledgment out of love and faith among them of the Lord's Divinity and of His Divine humanity.

The name of the Father means the Lord in respect to the Divine called the Father from which springs all else, and at the same time in respect to His Divine humanity called the Son, since the two are one and the same person, united like a soul and body. In heaven, therefore, no other father than the Lord is meant by God the Father, and in the new heaven the Lord is also called Father.

We are told here that they had the Father's name on their foreheads because the Father also means the Divine goodness of the Lord's Divine love, which in the Gospels is everywhere meant by the Father when referred to by the Lord, while the Divine truth of His Divine wisdom is meant by the Son. When the Lord glorified His humanity, these two were united like a soul with its body and a body with its soul (see nos. 21, 170).

Because the two are one, therefore we find reference elsewhere to the name of God and of the Lamb being "on their foreheads" (Revelation 22:4). Therefore, with respect to the people who are the subject here, we are told that they had the Father's name written on their foreheads, inasmuch as the 144,000 that were sealed of the twelve tribes of Israel mean angels of the higher heavens, all of whom are prompted by the goodness of celestial love, and that is, as we said, the love meant by the Father.

That the angels who are the subject here are angels of the higher heavens may be seen in the exposition of chapter 7, especially in no. 369 there.

Having the name written on their foreheads symbolizes an acknowledgment in them out of love and faith - having it written or inscribed symbolizing an acknowledgment in them, and the forehead symbolizing love and the resulting intelligence or faith (nos. 347, 605).

[2] We say that the Divine called the Father and the Divine humanity called the Son are one like a soul and body, consequently that people must approach the Lord in His Divine humanity, and that in this way and in no other is the Divine called the Father approached; and this can be seen from so many passages in the Word that they would fill pages if we were to cite them all. We cited a number of them in The Doctrine of the New Jerusalem Regarding the Lord, nos. 29-36 38-45, and later, and by way of confirmation we will present only some of them here, as follows:

The angel said to (Mary), ."..behold, you will conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name Jesus. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest...."

But Mary said..., "How shall this be, since I do not know a man?"

The angel answered..., "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow you; therefore... the Holy One who is to be born of you will be called the Son of God. (Luke 1:30-35)

...an angel of the Lord appeared to (Joseph) in a dream, saying, ."..do not be afraid to take to you Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit...." ...and (Joseph) did not know her till she had brought forth her firstborn Son. (Matthew 1:20, 25)

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God... And the Word became flesh..., and we beheld His glory, as though the glory of the only begotten of the Father... (John 1:1-2, 14)

...the Jews sought... to kill (Jesus), because He... said that God was His Father, making Himself equal to God. Jesus answered..., ."..whatever (the Father) does, the Son also does in like manner. ...as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, even so the Son gives life to whom He will. ...assuredly, I say to you, the hour is coming... when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live. (John 5:18-25)

...as the Father has life in Himself, so He has granted the Son to have life in Himself... (John 5:26)

"I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me. If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also; and from now on you know Him and have seen Him."

Philip said to Him, ."..show us the Father...."

Jesus said to him, "Have I been with you so long a time, and have you not known Me, Philip? He who has seen Me has seen the Father; how then do you say, 'Show us the Father'? Do you not believe that I dwell in the Father, and the Father in Me? ...Believe Me that I am in the Father and the Father in Me...." (John 14:6-11)

"I give (My sheep) eternal life... I and My Father are one."

(Then the Jews were angered that He made Himself God. And He said, "I do the works of My Father.") ."..believe the works, that you may know and believe that the Father is in Me, and I in Him." (John 10:28-38)

"He who sees Me sees Him who sent Me." (John 12:45)

"All things that the Father has are Mine." (John 16:15)

...that the Father had given all things into His hands... (John 13:3)

"Father..., ...You have given (Me) authority over all flesh... This is eternal life, that they may know You, the only... God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent... All that is Mine are Yours, and what are Yours are Mine...." (John 17:1-3, 10)

"All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth." (Matthew 28:18)

"Whatever you ask in My name, that I will do...." (And) "I will do it." (John 14:13-14)

."..the Spirit of truth... will not speak on its own, but... will take of what is Mine and declare it to you." (John 16:13-14)

He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. (John 15:5)

[3] And so on. There are still more passages in the Old Testament, some of which we will present also:

...unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given; and the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, God, Hero, Father of Eternity, Prince of Peace. (Isaiah 9:6)

A virgin shall conceive... a Son, and His name shall be called God-With-Us. (Isaiah 7:14)

"Behold, the days are coming... when I will raise to David a righteous offshoot, who shall reign as a King... And this is His name by which He will be called: JEHOVAH OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS." (Jeremiah 23:5-6; 33:15-16)

Then it will be said in that day: "Behold, ...our God, for whom we have waited, for Him to free us, ...Jehovah, for whom we have waited; we will rejoice and be glad in His salvation." (Isaiah 25:9)

God is in you only, and... there is no other God. Surely You are God, who hide Yourself, O God of Israel, the Savior! (Isaiah 45:14-15)

Is it not I, Jehovah? And there is no other God besides Me; a just God and a Savior, there is none besides Me. (Isaiah 45:21-22)

I... am Jehovah, and besides Me there is no savior. (Isaiah 43:11)

I am Jehovah your God... and you shall acknowledge no God but Me; and there is no Savior besides Me. (Hosea 13:4)

...You (Jehovah) are our Father..., our Redeemer from of old Your name. (Isaiah 63:16)

Thus said Jehovah, the King of Israel, and His Redeemer, Jehovah Zebaoth: "I am the First and the Last, and besides Me there is no God." (Isaiah 44:6)

Thus said Jehovah, your Redeemer...: "I am Jehovah, who makes all things, ...all alone, ...by Myself." (Isaiah 44:24)

Thus said Jehovah, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: "I am Jehovah your God...." (Isaiah 48:17)

...O Jehovah, my rock, and my Redeemer! (Psalms 19:14)

Their Redeemer is strong, Jehovah Zebaoth His name. (Jeremiah 50:34)

...Jehovah Zebaoth is His name; and your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel; He shall be called the God of the whole earth. (Isaiah 54:5)

That all flesh may know that I, Jehovah, am your Savior and your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob. (Isaiah 49:26, cf. 60:16)

As for our Redeemer, Jehovah Zebaoth is His name... (Isaiah 47:4)

Thus said Jehovah, your Redeemer... (Isaiah 43:14, cf. 49:7)

And so elsewhere, as in Luke 1:68; Isaiah 62:11-12; 63:1, 4, 9.

And in Zechariah:

In that day... Jehovah shall become King over all the earth. In that day there shall be one Jehovah, and His name one. (Zechariah 14:8-9)

These are but a few of the passages.

29. The Lord Made His Humanity Divine from the Divine in Him, and So Was United with the Father

The doctrine of the church, accepted throughout the Christian world, is this:

...our Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is God and man.... But although He is God and man, still there are not two Christs but one, being one because the Divine took to Himself a humanity; yet still completely one, for...He is one person. For as soul and body form one person, so God and man are one Christ....

These words are taken from the doctrine of the Athanasian Creed, which has been accepted throughout the Christian world. They constitute the essential teaching there regarding the union of the Divine and human in the Lord. Everything else said in this same doctrine regarding the Lord — this we will explain in its own section.

It is apparent, clearly, from the above citation, that it accords with the Creed of the Christian Church to say that the Divine and the human in the Lord are not two entities but one, as soul and body are one person; and that it was the Divine in Him that took on the human.

[2] It follows from this that the Divine cannot be separated from the human, nor the human from the Divine, as separating them would be like separating soul and body.

The reality of this is something everyone acknowledges who reads what we have cited above in nos. 19 and 21 from the two Gospels that tell of the Lord’s birth, namely from Luke 1:26-35 and from Matthew 1:18-25. These descriptions make clear that Jesus was conceived of Jehovah God and born from the virgin Mary, thus that the Divine was present in Him and was His soul.

Now because His soul was the Divinity itself of the Father, it follows that His body or humanity became also Divine; for when one element is Divine, the other must be also.

In this way and no other are the Father and Son one — the Father being in the Son, and the Son in the Father —and all things of the Son are the Father’s, and all things of the Father are the Son’s, as the Lord Himself teaches in His Word.

[3] But how the union was formed — this we will tell point by point as follows:

1. The Lord from eternity is Jehovah.

2. The Lord from eternity, or Jehovah, assumed a humanity in order to save mankind.

3. He made His humanity Divine from the Divinity in Him.

4. He made His humanity Divine through temptations or trials that He underwent.

5. The complete union of the Divine and the human in Him was achieved by His suffering of the cross, which was the last of those temptations or trials.

6. He gradually put off the humanity received from the mother and put on a humanity from the Divinity in Him, which is the Divine humanity and the Son of God.

7. Thus God became human in final elements as well as in first ones.