1. 1장. 보편적 성경은 주님을 다루고 있으며 주님은 말씀이시다.

요한복음에는 다음과 같은 말씀이 있다.

태초에 말씀이 계시니라 말씀이 하나님과 함께 계셨으니 하나님은 말씀이시라 말씀이 태초에 하나님과 함께 계셨고 만물이 그로 말미암아 지은바 되었으니 지은 것이 하나도 그가 없이는 된 것이 없느니라 그 안에 생명이 있었으니 이 생명은 사람들의 빛이라 빛이 어두움에 비취되 어두움이 깨닫지 못하더라. (요한복음 1:1-5)

말씀이 육신이 되어 우리 가운데 거하시매 우리가 그 영광을 보니 아버지의 독생자의 영광이요 은혜와 진리가 충만하더라(요한복음 1:14)

빛이 세상에 왔으니 사람들이 자기 행위가 악하므로 빛보다 어두움을 더 사랑한 것이니라(요한복음 3:19)

너희에게 아직 빛이 있을 동안에 빛을 믿으라 그리하면 빛의 아들이 되리라 나는 빛으로 세상에 왔나니 무릇 나를 믿는 자로 어두움에 거하지 않게 하려 함이로다(요한복음 12:36, 46)

이 구절들로부터 주님은 영원 전부터 하나님이신 것과 이 하나님 세상에 오신 주님과 같은 분이라는 것이 분명하다. 말씀이 하나님과 함께 계셨고 하나님은 말씀이셨으며 지은 것이 하나도 그가 없이는 된 것이 없다고 했기 때문이다. 그뿐 아니라 말씀이 육신이 되어 우리가 그를 보았다고 했기 때문이다. 주님을 왜 말씀이라고 하는지 교회 안에서는 거의 모르고 있다. 그것은 말씀이 신적 진리 또는 신적 지혜를 뜻하며 주님은 신적 진리 자체 또는 신적 지혜 자체이시기 때문이다. 이런 이유 때문에 주님을 빛이라 하고 빛이 세상 에 왔다고 한 것이다.

신적 지혜와 신적 사랑은 하나를 이루며 영원부터 주님 안에서 하나였기 때문에 말씀에 이르기를, “그 안에 생명이 있었으니 이 생명은 사람들의 빛이라” 하였다. 생명은 하나님의 사랑이요 빛은 하나님의 지혜이다. “태초에 말씀이 하나님과 함께 계셨으니 하나님은 말씀이시라”고 한 것은 바로 이 하나를 뜻한다.

하나님과 함께라는 것은 하나님 안에 라는 뜻이다. 지혜는 사랑 안에 있으며 사랑은 지혜안에 있기 때문이다. 그래서 요한복음의 다른 곳에서는 이렇게 말했다.

아버지여 창세전에 내가 아버지와 함께 가졌던 영화로써 지금도 아버지와 함께 나를 영화롭게 하옵소서(요한복음 17:5)

나는 아버지 안에 있고 아버지는 내 안에 계신 것을 네가 믿지 아니하느냐 ? 내가 너희에게 이르는 말이 스스로 하는 것이 아니라 아버지께서 내 안에 계셔 그의 일을 하시는 것이라(요한복음 14:10)

나와 아버지는 하나이니라(요한복음 10:30)

“아버지와 함께”는 아버지 안에 있는 것을 뜻한다. 그래서 “하나님 말씀”이라고 한 것이며 다른 곳에서는 주님은 아버지 안에 있고 아버지는 주님 안에 있어 주님과 아버지는 하나라고 한 것이다. 말씀은 신적 사랑에서 비롯한 신적 지혜이기 때문에 말씀은 여호와 하나님 자신이시며 지어진 모든 것을 만드신 주님이시다. 만물은 하나님의 지혜를 수단으로 하나님의 사랑으로부터 창조되었기 때문이다.

2004. And thou shalt be for a father of a multitude of nations. That this signifies the union of the Human Essence with the Divine Essence, cannot be seen so well from an unfolding of the several words in the internal sense, unless they are viewed in a kind of general idea, by which this sense is presented, for such is sometimes the nature of the internal sense, and when it is so, it may be called more universal, because more remote. From the explication of the several words there results this proximate sense: that all truth and all good come from the Lord, for, as we shall see presently, the expression “father” here signifies from Him, that is, from the Lord; “multitude” signifies truth; and “of nations” signifies the good thence derived. But because these-that is, truths and goods-are the means through which the Lord united the Human Essence to the Divine Essence, there arises from this that more universal and more remote sense. The angels perceive these words in this way, and have at the same time a perception of reciprocal union, namely, that of the Lord’s Divine Essence with the Human Essence and of the Human Essence with the Divine Essence; for, as before said, “I, My covenant is with thee” signifies the union of the Divine Essence with the Human Essence; and consequently the words now under consideration signify the union of the Human Essence with the Divine Essence.

[2] That the union was effected reciprocally, is an arcanum which has not yet been disclosed, and it is such an arcanum as can scarcely be explained to the apprehension; for as yet no one knows what influx is, and without a knowledge of influx no idea can possibly be formed in regard to what is reciprocal union. Yet this may in some measure be illustrated from the influx in the case of man, for with man too there is a reciprocal conjunction. From the Lord, through man’s internal (treated of just above, n. 1999), life continually flows into man’s rational, and through this into his external, and in fact into his knowledges [scientifica et cognitiones], and this life not only adapts them to receive the life, but also disposes them into order, and so enables the man to think, and finally to be rational. Such is the conjunction of the Lord with man, without which man could not think at all, still less be rational, as everyone can see from the fact that there are in man’s thoughts numberless arcana of science and analytical art-too numerous to render their exploration possible to all eternity-and which do by no means flow in through the senses or through the external man, but through the internal. Man however, on his part, by means of knowledges [scientifica et cognitiones], advances to meet this life which is from the Lord, and thereby reciprocally conjoins himself.

[3] But as regards the union of the Lord’s Divine Essence with His Human Essence, and of His Human Essence with His Divine Essence, this infinitely transcends the reciprocal conjunction between man and the Lord, for the Lord’s internal was Jehovah Himself and therefore was life itself; whereas man’s internal is not the Lord, and therefore is not life but a recipient of life. Between the Lord and Jehovah there was union, but between man and the Lord there is not union, but conjunction. The Lord united Himself to Jehovah by His own power, and He therefore also became Righteousness; whereas man by no means conjoins himself by his own power, but by the power of the Lord; so that the Lord conjoins man with Himself. It is this reciprocal union that is meant by the Lord, where He attributes what is His own to the Father, and what is the Father’s to Himself, as in John:

Jesus said, He that believeth on Me, believeth not on Me, but on Him that sent Me: I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believeth in Me may not abide in the darkness (John 12:44-46), in which words lie hidden the deepest arcana-arcana concerning the union of good with truth, and of truth with good; or what is the same, concerning the union of the Divine Essence with the Human Essence, and of the Human Essence with the Divine Essence; and therefore the Lord says, “He that believeth on Me, believeth not on Me, but on Him that sent Me;” and then almost immediately adds, “He that believeth on Me;” with words between that refer to this union, namely, “he that seeth Me seeth Him that sent Me.”

[4] Again in the same gospel:

The words that I speak unto you I speak not from Myself; the Father that abideth in Me, He doeth the works. Believe Me that I am in the Father, and the Father in Me. Verily I say unto you, He that believeth in Me, the works that I do shall he do also (John 14:10-12).

In these words are contained the same arcana, namely, those concerning the union of good with truth, and of truth with good; or what is the same, of the Lord’s Divine Essence with His Human Essence, and of His Human Essence with His Divine Essence; and He therefore says, “The words that I speak unto you I speak not from Myself; the Father who is in Me doeth the works;” and then He almost immediately adds, “the works that I do;” and here, as before, there are intervening words concerning the union, which declare, “I am in the Father, and the Father in Me.” This is the mystical union of which many speak.

[5] From all this it is evident that the Lord was not another than the Father, although He spoke of the Father as of another, and this on account of the reciprocal unition that was to be effected and that was effected; for He so many times openly says that He is one with the Father, as in the passages just cited: “He that seeth Me seeth Him that sent Me” (John 12:45) also, “The Father that abideth in Me; believe Me that I am in the Father, and the Father in Me” (John 14:10-11); and in the same, “If ye had known Me, ye would have known My Father also” (John 8:19); and again, “If ye have known Me, ye have known My Father also; and from henceforth ye have known Him, and have seen Him; Philip saith unto Him, Lord, show us the Father; Jesus saith unto him, Am I so long time with you, and hast thou not known Me, Philip? He that hath seen Me hath seen the Father; how sayest thou then, Show us the Father? Believest thou not that I am in the Father and the Father in Me?” (John 14:7-10 and again, “I and the Father are one” (John 10:30 Hence it is that in heaven they know no other Father than the Lord, because the Father is in Him, and He is one with the Father; and when they see Him, they see the Father, as He Himself says (see n. 15).