280. As innocence consists in being led by the Lord and not by self, so all who are in heaven are in innocence; for all who are there love to be led by the Lord, knowing that to lead themselves is to be led by the proprium, and the proprium consists in loving oneself, also that he who loves himself does not suffer himself to be led by another. Therefore, so far as an angel is in innocence, he is in heaven, or to the same extent, in Divine Good and Divine Truth, for to be in these is to be in heaven. Consequently, the heavens are distinguished in accordance with this innocence. Those who are in the outermost or first heaven are in innocence of the first or outermost degree; those who are in the middle or second heaven are in innocence of the second or middle degree; while those who are in the inmost or third heaven are in innocence of the third or inmost degree, and are therefore the veriest innocences of heaven, for more than all others they love to be led by the Lord as little children by their father. For the same reason the Divine Truth that they hear immediately from the Lord or mediately through the Word and preaching, they take directly into their will and do it, thus committing it to life. This is why their wisdom is so superior to that of the angels of the lower heavens (see 270-271). These angels of the inmost heaven, being such, are nearest to the Lord from whom they have innocence, and are so separated from the proprium that they live, as it were, in the Lord. In external form, they appear simple, and before the eyes of the angels of the lower heavens they seem as little children, that is, as very small and not very wise, although they are the wisest of the angels of heaven; for they know that they have nothing of wisdom from themselves, and that to acknowledge this is to be wise. What they know is as nothing compared to what they do not know; and they say that knowing, acknowledging, and perceiving this is the first step towards wisdom. These angels are naked, because nakedness corresponds to innocence. ¹

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