831. Verse 15. And it was given unto him to give breath to the image of the beast, signifies that by being conjoined with the Word there was something of spiritual life therein. This is evident from the signification of "breath," as being spiritual life (of which presently); also from the signification of "the image of the beast," as being the doctrine of faith separated from good works, which would be taught and believed in the church (See above, n. 827); from which it follows that "to give breath to the image of the beast" signifies that by a conjunction of the reasonings from the natural man with the Word there was something of spiritual life therein; but what the quality of that life is will be told presently; "breath" [spiritum] signifies spiritual life, because "breath" ["spiritum"] signifies in the highest sense Divine truth proceeding from the Lord, and thence, as applied to men, who receive it, it signifies spiritual life (See above, n. 183). Spiritual life is the same as a life from Divine truths; and as the Word is Divine truth, and thus from it man has spiritual life, therefore when reasonings from the natural man in favor of faith separated from life are conjoined with the Word, and thus it is made the doctrine for the church, there is in it something of spiritual life. For all things in the Word are in themselves spiritual, and give spiritual life to those who study it in the measure of its reception in the heart. Therefore the Lord says:
The words that I speak unto you are spirit and are life (John 6:63).
[2] As celestial love in which are the angels of the third heaven has been treated of in what precedes, I will now say something about spiritual love, in which are the angels of the second heaven. Spiritual love is the love of truth, and in the highest sense the love of the Divine truth proceeding from the Lord; thus it is also love to the Lord, but in a lower degree than that in which the celestial angels are. The celestial angels are in love to the Lord from the reception of Divine good from Him, while the spiritual angels are in love to the Lord from the reception of Divine truth from Him. The difference is like that between love in the will and love in the understanding, or like that between a flame and its light. Moreover light with the angels of the third heaven is derived from what is flaming, while the light of the angels of the second heaven is derived from what is bright white (but for more respecting this see in the work on Heaven and Hell, n. 126-140). Their life differs in like manner. The life of the angels of the third heaven consists in the affections of good, and the life of the angels of the second heaven in the affections of truth. The difference is such that they are easily distinguished by their faces and by their speech. As spiritual love is love of truth, and spiritual angels in respect to their life are affections of truth, they speak about the holy things of heaven and the church, unlike the angels of the third heaven, who cannot speak about these things, as has been said above. And as the celestial angels are perfected in wisdom by hearing, there are intermediate angels, who are called celestial-spiritual angels, who preach and teach truths in their temples, which are called houses of God, and are of wood.
[3] Spiritual angels, from the spiritual love that constitutes their life, are affections of truth, and not affections of good, because they are reformed and regenerated and become angels in a way different from that of celestial angels. For spiritual angels admit truths first into the memory, and from that into the understanding, which is thus formed by these truths; and then they are perfected so far as they are spiritually affected by Divine truths, that is, on account of them and for the sake of a life according to them. But celestial angels do not first admit truths into the memory, but immediately into the will, and through acts into the life; consequently they are not able to speak about Divine truths, but they simply will and do them; while spiritual angels speak about Divine truths, because with them they are inscribed on the memory; and thought speaks from the memory.
[4] And yet spiritual angels admit no truth into the memory and from it into the understanding with themselves unless they see it; for the angels in that heaven see truths from the light of truth, thus by enlightenment from the Lord; for in the heavens truths are spiritual objects, and appear more clearly before the angels there than natural objects do before men in the world; consequently they know 1
that faith is nothing else than the acknowledgment of truth because it is seen to be true; and they cannot at all comprehend how a faith in anything that is not seen or understood can exist in anyone, for in that case a man does not know whether it be true or false, and faith in what is false is harmful. From this it is clear that with spiritual angels intellectual sight is spiritual sight. These angels are perfected in understanding so far as they are in the love of truth for the sake of life and its genuine uses; and in the same measure truths are implanted in their life and they become affections of truth. For as truths derive all their essence and all their life from good, so the understanding derives all its essence and life from the will and its activity; for the understanding is the receptacle of truth, and the will the receptacle of good, and their activity fills and establishes them. Thence also the truths of which their understanding is formed, when they come to be of the will and thence of the action are called goods, but spiritual goods; and because they then come to be of their love they enter the life and form it. From this also it is clear that the life of every man is from his works, since in them the affection which is of the will, and the thought which is of the understanding, terminate and thus have existence; and unless they are terminated they perish. For the will has no existence unless it becomes active; and when there is no will the understanding perishes, and there remains merely the faculty to understand.
[5] Because their love is the love of truth they acknowledge as the neighbor truth in act, which is called spiritual good, thus the good of the church, the good of the society in which they are, the good of the fellow-citizens in the society, and thus also the moral good which is called integrity, and the civil good which is called justice. Therefore their love towards the neighbor consists in exercises, which are works. Moreover, all in the spiritual heaven love uses, and are intent on works, by which their thoughts are kept as it were at home, and withheld from idleness, which is, as it is also called the devil's pillow. They know that only those who perceive delight in works can be kept in spiritual love; such are in their fixed affection; but others are in every affection and thus in none, for they wander wherever pleasures and cupidities carry them. Again, the angels of the second heaven, like the angels of the third heaven, dwell in distinct societies, but the societies of the third heaven are above those of the second, because celestial love flows into spiritual love; for spiritual love derives its essence from celestial love by influx mediate and immediate from the Lord.
[6] In the spiritual heaven there are magnificent palaces, in which all things within shine with precious stones and decorations in such forms as cannot be equaled by any painting in the world, nor expressed in words. For art there, especially that of architecture, is in its own art. From that heaven many arts in the world derive their laws and harmonies, from which come their forms of beauty. The silver that is found among those who dwell beneath these heavens is given by the Lord from that heaven, but the gold from the third heaven; for silver corresponds to spiritual good, which is in its essence truth; and gold corresponds to celestial good. The spiritual angels are clothed in garments of fine linen and silk, generally in shining garments. And as the spiritual heavens correspond to the eyes, there are paradisiacal scenes, as also in many places rainbow colored appearances and these also are of ineffable beauty. They know nothing there about the sense of the letter of the Word, but only about its spiritual sense, for they have the Word in that sense, which is read by everyone. In that heaven, justice, integrity, verity, chastity, and the other praiseworthy virtues of moral life reign. These heavens constitute the royalty of the Lord, while the higher heavens, where the celestial angels are, constitute the priesthood of the Lord; for His royalty is Divine truth, and His priesthood is Divine good.
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