1092. I saw [another] angel coming down out of heaven.- That this signifies the Divine proceeding from the Lord in heaven and in the world, is evident from the signification of an angel coming down out of heaven, as denoting the Lord in regard to the proceeding Divine; for by an angel, in the internal sense, is not meant an angel, but either the Lord, or something pertaining to the Lord (as may be seen above, n. 130, 302, 593, 910), in the present case the Lord, because it is said, that He had great power, and that the earth was lightened with His glory, which means the power and presence of Divine Truth now in heaven and in the world, it being now made manifest that Babylon is destroyed, and when this is destroyed, then the power and light of the Divine which proceeds from the Lord increase; the reasons for this will be explained hereafter.

Continuation concerning the Athanasian Creed.- This is the doctrine concerning God which is accepted by the whole Christian world, because it has come down from a general council. But before the examination of it is entered upon, a fact not known concerning the state of man's faith and love in this world and afterwards in that other into which he comes after death, shall be revealed; for unless this were disclosed it might be supposed that every one, whatever his faith, can of the Divine mercy be admitted into heaven and saved. This is the source of the erroneous belief of the Roman Catholics (Gentis Babylonica) that man possesses heaven according to the good pleasure of the pope, and by the favour of his priests (vicariorum). The unknown fact is this, that all the thoughts of man extend into the spiritual world, in every direction, almost like rays of light from flame. Since the spiritual world consists of heaven and hell, and both heaven and hell are formed of countless societies, therefore man's thoughts must necessarily have extension into societies, spiritual thoughts - which are those relating to the Lord, to love and faith in Him, and to the truths and goods of heaven and the church - into heavenly societies; but thoughts merely natural, concerned with self, the world, and the love of these, and not at the same time with God, into infernal societies.

That all the thoughts of man have such an extension and direction (determinatio) has up to this time been unknown, because nothing is known of the nature of heaven and of hell, that is, that they are formed of societies, and that consequently there is an extension of man's thoughts into a world other than the natural world; into the latter also there is an extension of the sight of his eyes. But it is the spiritual world into which thought extends itself, and the natural world into which vision extends itself, since the thought of the mind is spiritual, and the vision of the eye natural.

It has been made so evident to me from an experience of many years that there is an extension of all the thoughts of man into the societies of the spiritual world, and that there can be no thought apart from such extension, that I can declare the fact with perfect confidence. In a word, man is in the spiritual world with his head, as he is in the natural world with his body.

By head we here mean his mind, consisting of understanding, thought, will, and love, while by body we mean his senses, sight, hearing, smell, taste, and touch. And because man as to his head, that is, as to his mind, is in the spiritual world, therefore he is either in heaven or hell; and where the mind is, there is the entire man with head and body, when he becomes a spirit. And a man's quality is exactly in agreement with the nature of his conjunction with the societies of the spiritual world, he being an angel whose quality is like that of his conjunction with the societies of heaven, or a devil whose quality is like that of his conjunction with the societies of hell.

2803. As regards Divine Truth being meant by 'son' and Divine Good by 'father', this becomes clear from the meaning of 'son' as truth, dealt with in 489, 491, 533, 1147, 2623, and of 'father' as good, and also from the conception and birth of truth as taking place from good. As has been shown many times, truth cannot have being or manifest itself except from good. The reason 'son' here means Divine Truth, and 'father' Divine Good, is that the union of the Divine Essence with the Human Essence, and of the Human Essence with the Divine Essence, is the Divine Marriage of Divine Good to Truth, and of Truth to Good; and from that marriage comes the heavenly marriage. For within Jehovah or the Lord there is nothing but that which is infinite, and this being so, no other idea can be conceived of Him than that He is the Being and Manifestation (Esse et Existere) of all good and truth, that is, He is Good itself and Truth itself. Good itself is the Father, and Truth itself the Son. Now because the Divine Marriage, as has been stated, is a marriage of Good and Truth, and of Truth and Good, the Father is in the Son, and the Son is in the Father, as the Lord Himself teaches in John,

Jesus said to Philip, Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father in Me? Believe Me that I am in the Father, and the Father in Me. John 14:10-11.

And elsewhere in the same evangelist,

Jesus said to the Jews, Even though you do not believe Me, believe the works, that you may know and believe that the Father is in Me, and I in the Father. John 10:36, 38.

And elsewhere,

I pray for them - for all things that are Mine are Yours, and Yours are Mine - that they may all be one, as You, Father, are in Me and I in You John 17:9-10, 21.

And elsewhere,

Now is the Son of Man glorified, and God glorified in Him. If God is glorified in Him, God will also glorify Him in Himself. Father, glorify Your Son, that Your Son also may glorify You. John 13:31-32; 17:1.

[2] From these places one may see the nature of the union of the Divine and of the Human within the Lord - that each is linked mutually to the other and responds to the other - that is, it is a reciprocal union. This is the Union which is called the Divine Marriage, from which the heavenly marriage comes down, which is the Lord's kingdom itself in heaven and is referred to in John as follows,

On that day you will know that I am in My Father, and you in Me, and I in you. John 14:20.

And elsewhere,

I pray for these, that they may all be one, as You, Father, are in Me and I in You, that they also may be one in Us, I in them and You in Me, that the love with which You have loved Me may be in them, and I in them. John 17:21-23, 26.

[3] As regards this heavenly marriage being a marriage of good and truth, and of truth and good, see 2508, 2618, 2728, 2729 and following paragraphs. And since Divine Good cannot possibly have being or manifest itself without Divine Truth, and Divine Truth cannot possibly do so without Divine Good, but one is always reaching out to and responding to the other, it is therefore plain that the Divine Marriage has existed from eternity, that is, the Father in the Son, and the Son in the Father, as the Lord Himself teaches in John,

Now, Father, glorify Me in Your Own Self with the glory I had with You before the world was. John 17:5, 24.

But the Divine Human that had been born from eternity was also born in time, and what was born in time is the same as that which was glorified. This is what accounts for the Lord's saying many times that He was going to the Father who sent Him, that is, He was returning to the Father. And in John,

In the beginning was the Word (the Word being Divine Truth itself), and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made by Him, and without Him was not anything made that was made. Furthermore the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld his glory, glory as of the Only Begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth. John 1:1-3, 14.

See also John 3:13; 6:62.