45. CHAPTER VIII ¹ . THE CONFIRMING OF A TRINITY OF PERSONS, EACH OF WHOM IS A GOD FROM ETERNITY, IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE NICENE AND ATHANASIAN CREEDS, HAS FALSIFIED THE WHOLE WORD

1. Every heretic is able to confirm his heresy, and does confirm it, by the Word, this having been written by means of appearances and correspondences. On this account the Word is said by some to be "the book of all the heresies".

2. A man, after confirming his dogmas, sees no otherwise than that they are true, even when they are false.

3. It is possible to confirm a plurality of Gods by many things from the Word; also to confirm a faith that is imputative of Christ's merit, in which faith three Gods have each their separate part; and, further, that works of charity contribute nothing towards faith, and so nothing towards salvation.

4. A plurality of Gods can be confirmed from the following:

Trinity is mentioned by the Lord.

Trinity made its appearance when the Lord was baptized.

There are "three who bear witness in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Spirit". [1 John 5:7.]

Jehovah God said, "Let us make man in our image and likeness". [Gen. 1:26.]

Before Abraham three angels, who are called Jehovah, made their appearance. [Gen. 17:2-3.]

In the New Word, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are mentioned many times by the Lord in the Gospels, and by the Apostles in the Epistles, and this without its being said that they are One.

Then, too, it can be confirmed that there is a faith by which there is imputation of Christ's merit, and that this faith is the only saving faith; also that the works of charity do not conduce to salvation. Let it be added that any reasoning mind can augment the above with contributions of its own, and strengthen them.

5. Not a single one of these can be seen to be false and so be dispelled, unless reason, enlightened by the Lord through the Word, confirm that God is One and that there is a conjunction of charity and faith.

6. When this is done, it is obvious that the theology based upon a Trinity of Persons, each one of whom is God, and upon a faith made applicable to each of them separately, and upon the worthlessness of charity for salvation, has falsified the whole Word; for the reason, chiefly, that these three, God, charity, and faith, are the universals of religion to which every single thing in the Word, and every single thing of heaven and the Church therefrom, has reference.

7. The result, with him who has confirmed this enormity, is that, wherever he reads of the Father, or of the Son, or of the Holy Spirit, indeed wherever he reads of Jehovah and God, he thinks of three Gods because he is thinking of one out of the three; further, wherever he reads of faith, he thinks of no other faith than of one by which there is imputation of Christ's merit; and wherever he reads of charity, he thinks of it as not contributing anything towards salvation, or else he thinks of that faith in its stead. Confirmation once impressed carries this with it.

അടിക്കുറിപ്പുകൾ:

8805. 'And Moses went down from the mountain to the people' means application and preparation by the truth from God, in order that truths may be received within good. This is clear from the meaning of 'going down' - when said of 'Moses', who represents the truth from God - as application and also preparation by that truth; from the representation of 'Moses' as the truth from God, dealt with in 8760, 8787, which also acts as an intermediary, 8787, thus which also prepares and applies; from the meaning of 'the mountain' as the Divine within heaven, thus heaven itself; and from the representation of 'the children of Israel' as those belonging to the spiritual Church, thus those guided by truth through which good comes, and governed by good from which truth springs, at this point good in which truths are to be received. It is important to know what is meant specifically by 'Mount Sinai' in this and subsequent chapters of the Book of Exodus, also what is represented by 'the people Israel', and what by 'Moses' as well.

[2] Specifically Mount Sinai means heaven, out of which truths flow in from the Lord. Consequently 'Jehovah came down onto that mountain' means His presence in heaven. And since heaven - in which Jehovah, that is, the Lord, is present - is meant by 'Mount Sinai', Divine Good united to Divine Truth there is also meant by it; for these are what make it heaven.

[3] But The People Israel beside this mountain represent the spiritual Church in respect of good in which the truths of faith are to be implanted. It has been shown already that those belonging to the spiritual Church pass through two states. The first is when they are led by means of truths to good, and the second state is when they are governed by good and consequently by truths. At this point the state is one when they are governed by good in which truths are to be implanted, which state is an intermediate state that comes between those first and second ones. The truths that are implanted within good are contained in those which were declared by the Lord from Mount Sinai and conveyed by Moses to the people.

[4] Moses in this and subsequent chapters represents the truth from God below heaven joined to God's truth in heaven. He therefore represents the intermediary between the Divine in heaven and the good in which truths are to be implanted, the spiritual Church's good, and so represents the intermediary between the Lord and the people.

It is important to know these things for the understanding of what follows below in the Book of Exodus. All this also shows that 'Moses went down from the mountain to the people' means application and preparation through the truth from God for truths to be received within good.