4. As long as the mind confines itself to the sense of the letter alone one cannot possibly see that its contents are such. Take for instance these first sections of Genesis: From the sense of the letter the only subject matter people recognize is the creation of the world, and the Garden of Eden which is called Paradise, and Adam as the first man to be created. Who thinks anything different? The fact that these things contain arcana however which have never been revealed up to now will be sufficiently clear from what follows - especially clear from the fact that the subject of Genesis 1 is, in the internal sense, the NEW CREATION of man, that is, in general his REGENERATION, and in particular the Most Ancient Church. And the subject is presented in such a way that not the smallest part of any expression fails to have a representation, carry a spiritual meaning, or embody something within itself.

1885. These two types of visions however are out of the ordinary, and I was shown them for the sole purpose of my knowing the nature of them. But the things I have ordinarily seen are all those which, recounted in the Lord's Divine mercy, you may see in this first Volume - in the sections placed before and after each chapter. Those experiences are not visions however but things seen when my body has been fully awake, and this for several years now. ¹

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