Arcana Coelestia #50
50. What the Most Ancient Church understood by 'the image of the Lord' exceeds everything one can say about it. Man is totally unaware of the fact that the Lord is governing him by means of angels and spirits, and that at least two spirits and two angels are present with everyone. By means of the spirits he is in communication with the world of spirits, and by means of the angels with heaven. Without this communication with the world of spirits by means of the spirits, and with heaven by means of the angels, and so by means of heaven with the Lord, a person cannot exist at all. His entire life depends upon that link, and if the spirits and angels were to withdraw he would perish instantly.
[2] As long as a person remains unregenerate he is governed in an entirely different way from when he is regenerate. As long as he is unregenerate, evil spirits reside with him, who have such dominion over him that angels, though present, can accomplish little more than simply distract him from plunging into utter evil and so divert him towards something good. Indeed they use his own unregenerate desires to divert him towards good, and his illusions of the senses to do so towards truth. At that point he is in communication with the world of spirits by means of the spirits who reside with him, but not in the same way with heaven, for the reason that evil spirits have dominion and angels simply forestall them.
[3] When however he is regenerate it is the angels who then have dominion, and they breathe into him every kind of good and truth, as well as a horror and dread of evils and falsifies. Angels do indeed lead, yet they are but servants, for it is the Lord alone who, by means of angels and spirits, governs a person. Now because this is done through the ministry of angels, it is said here, in the plural first of all, 'Let Us make man in Our image'. Yet because it is still He alone who rules and disposes, it is said in the following verse, in the singular, 'God created him in His image'. This the Lord also states plainly in Isaiah,
Thus said Jehovah, your Redeemer, He who formed you from the womb, I Jehovah make all things, stretching out the heavens Alone, spreading out the earth by Myself. Isaiah 44:24.
Angels themselves also profess that no power at all resides with themselves but that they act from the Lord alone.
Genesis 5
1
This is the book of the generations of Adam. In the day that God created man, in the likeness of God made he him;
2
Male and female created he them; and blessed them, and called their name Adam, in the day when they were created.
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And Adam lived an hundred and thirty years, and begat a son in his own likeness, after his image; and called his name Seth:
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And the days of Adam after he had begotten Seth were eight hundred years: and he begat sons and daughters:
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And all the days that Adam lived were nine hundred and thirty years: and he died.
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And Seth lived an hundred and five years, and begat Enos:
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And Seth lived after he begat Enos eight hundred and seven years, and begat sons and daughters:
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And all the days of Seth were nine hundred and twelve years: and he died.
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And Enos lived ninety years, and begat Cainan:
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And Enos lived after he begat Cainan eight hundred and fifteen years, and begat sons and daughters:
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And all the days of Enos were nine hundred and five years: and he died.
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And Cainan lived seventy years, and begat Mahalaleel:
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And Cainan lived after he begat Mahalaleel eight hundred and forty years, and begat sons and daughters:
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And all the days of Cainan were nine hundred and ten years: and he died.
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And Mahalaleel lived sixty and five years, and begat Jared:
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And Mahalaleel lived after he begat Jared eight hundred and thirty years, and begat sons and daughters:
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And all the days of Mahalaleel were eight hundred ninety and five years: and he died.
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And Jared lived an hundred sixty and two years, and he begat Enoch:
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And Jared lived after he begat Enoch eight hundred years, and begat sons and daughters:
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And all the days of Jared were nine hundred sixty and two years: and he died.
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And Enoch lived sixty and five years, and begat Methuselah:
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And Enoch walked with God after he begat Methuselah three hundred years, and begat sons and daughters:
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And all the days of Enoch were three hundred sixty and five years:
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And Enoch walked with God: and he was not; for God took him.
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And Methuselah lived an hundred eighty and seven years, and begat Lamech:
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And Methuselah lived after he begat Lamech seven hundred eighty and two years, and begat sons and daughters:
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And all the days of Methuselah were nine hundred sixty and nine years: and he died.
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And Lamech lived an hundred eighty and two years, and begat a son:
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And he called his name Noah, saying, This same shall comfort us concerning our work and toil of our hands, because of the ground which the LORD hath cursed.
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And Lamech lived after he begat Noah five hundred ninety and five years, and begat sons and daughters:
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And all the days of Lamech were seven hundred seventy and seven years: and he died.
32
And Noah was five hundred years old: and Noah begat Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
