2423. 'Behold now, your servant has found grace in your eyes' means a state of humility resulting from the affection for truth, and 'you have magnified your mercy' means a likeness of a state of humility resulting from the affection for good. This becomes clear from what has been stated already about grace and mercy in 598, 981. For people governed by an affection for truth are not able to humble themselves sufficiently so as to acknowledge from the heart that all things are attributable to mercy; and this being so, instead of mercy they speak of grace. Indeed the less the affection for truth is in them, the less humility there is within their mention of grace. On the other hand the more affection for good exists with someone the more humility there is within his mention of mercy. This shows how broad the difference is in the adoration and consequently the worship between those governed by the affection for truth and those governed by the affection for good. For in order that worship may exist, adoration must exist, and in order that adoration may exist humility must do so too. This applies to every single aspect of worship. From this it is evident why both grace and mercy are mentioned here.

599. Genesis 6:9-22

9. These are the generations (nativitates) of Noah. Noah was a righteous and blameless man (vir) among members of his own generation (generationes). And Noah walked with God.

10. And Noah beget three sons, Shem, Ham, and Japheth.

11. And the earth ¹ was corrupt before God, and the earth ¹ was filled with violence.

12. And God saw the earth, ¹ and behold, it was corrupt, for all flesh had corrupted its way upon the earth. ¹

13. And God said to Noah, The end of all flesh has come before Me, for the earth' is filled with violence before their faces. And behold, I am destroying them together with the earth. ¹

14. Make yourself an ark of planks of gopher; you shall make the ark with rooms and cover it ² inside and out with bitumen.

15. And thus shall you make it: three hundred cubits the length of the ark, fifty cubits its breadth, and thirty cubits its height.

16. You shall make a window for the ark, and you shall finish it to a cubit above; and you shall set the door of the ark in the side of it; lowest, second, and third storeys you shall make it.

17. And I, behold, am bringing a flood of waters over the earth, to destroy all flesh in which there is the spirit of life ³ from under the heavens; everything that is on earth will breathe its last.

18. And I will establish My covenant with you; and you shall enter into the ark, you, and your sons, and your wife, and your sons' wives with you.

19. And of every living creature of all flesh, pairs of all, you shall cause to enter the ark, to keep them alive with you; male and female they shall be.

20. Of birds according to their kinds, and of beasts according to their kinds, and of every creeping thing of the ground according to its kind. Pairs of all shall come in to you to keep them alive.

21. And take for yourself of all food that is eaten, and gather it to yourself, and it will be food for you and them.

22. And Noah did according to all that God commanded him; he did so.

CONTENTS

The subject is the state of the Church called Noah, before its regeneration.

각주: