305. Verses 4, 5. And I wept much, that no one was found worthy to open and to read the book, neither to look therein. And one of the elders saith unto me, Weep not: behold, the Lion which is of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, hath prevailed to open the book, and to loose the seven seals thereof.

"And I wept much, that no one was found worthy to open and to read the book, neither to look therein," signifies, grief of heart on account of the disorder and ruin of all, if no one could know, have cognisance of, and explore all men, and all things pertaining to them.

"And one of the elders" signifies, a society of heaven which [was] in wisdom above the rest; "saith unto me, Weep not," signifies lest there be grief hence; "behold, the Lion hath prevailed," signifies, that the Lord from His own power subjugated the hells, and reduced all things in the heavens to order; "of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David," signifies, by the Divine good united to the Divine truth in His Human; "to open the book, and to loose the seven seals thereof," signifies that He knows and has cognisance of all men and every man, and the most secret things of every one.

303. THE CONJUNCTION OF HEAVEN WITH MAN BY MEANS OF THE WORD

Those who think from interior reason can see that there is a connection of all things through intermediates with the First, and that whatever is not in connection is dissipated. For they know, when they think about it, that nothing can continue in existence from itself, but from what is prior to itself, thus all things from the First; also that the connection with what is prior is like the connection of an effect with its efficient cause; for when the efficient cause is taken away from its effect then the effect is dissolved and disappears. Because the learned thought thus they saw and said that continuing in existence is a perpetual coming into existence; thus that all things perpetually come into existence from the First, from which they came into existence, that is, they continue to exist. But what the connection of everything is with that which is prior to itself, thus with the First which is the source of all things, cannot be told in a few words, because it is various and diverse. It can only be said in general that there is a connection of the natural world with the spiritual world, and that in consequence there is a correspondence of all things in the natural with all things in the spiritual world (about this correspondence see 103-115); also that there is a connection and consequently a correspondence of all things of man with all things of heaven (see also above, 87-102).