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.

876. And worship him who made heaven and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of water. That this signifies acknowledgment and confession of Him from whom is the all of heaven and the church, and from whom is Divine truth, or the Word, is evident from the signification of worshipping, as denoting to acknowledge in heart, thus to confess and worship; concerning which see above (n. 790, 805, 821); and from the signification of heaven and earth, as denoting the internal and external of the church; concerning which also see above (n. 304, 752). The reason why heaven and the church are signified is, that the internal of the church within man is heaven; for it is in conjunction with the angels, because it makes one with them; for, as said above, man's internal is formed to the idea and image of heaven; but his external, to the idea and image of the world. However, the church within man, while he lives in the world, is in his Natural, which is his external; but then it is the church within man in his Natural or external, only when the internal is opened; for the church cannot exist within any one unless he has heaven within, whence enlightenment and influx from the Lord may pass into the Natural or external which is beneath. The same is also evident from the signification of the sea, as denoting Divine truth in ultimates, thus the Word in the letter, this being Divine truth in ultimates. The reason why the sea has such a signification is, that seas, as it were, appear in the ultimates of heaven. For it is the Divine truth proceeding from the Lord that forms the heavens and all things therein. The higher heavens appear to be in an ethereal atmosphere; the lower in an aerial atmosphere, and the lowest in a watery atmosphere; and this atmosphere appears like a sea to the eyes of those who stand afar off, but not to those who dwell there. Those who dwell there, are in the ultimates of Divine truth, which is such as the Word is in the sense of the letter. Hence it is that this is signified by the sea; but more may be seen above upon this subject (n. 275, 342, 511, 600).

The reason why the sea here signifies the Word in the letter is, that it is said the sea and the fountains of waters; and fountains of waters signify more interior Divine truth, such as is the Word in the spiritual sense. That a fountain of water has this signification is evident from the passages adduced from the Word and explained above (n. 483). That fountains of waters signify Divine truths from the Word is evident from this, that heaven and earth signify the internal and external of the church; and both are formed by Divine truth or the Word, as is said in John (1:1, 2, 14). The internal of the church [is formed] by means of Divine truth spiritual, and the external by Divine truth natural. Therefore fountains of waters are also here mentioned among the things made by the Lord.

[2] From these and many other things, it is evident how the spiritual ideas of angels differ from the natural ideas of men. The angels, whose ideas are spiritual, by worshipping Him who made heaven and earth, the sea, and the fountains of waters, understand nothing but the acknowledgment and confession of the Lord, from whom is the all of heaven and the church; and from whom proceeds Divine truth, or the Word in the natural and spiritual senses. The reason why the angels thus understand these words is, that the heavens in which they are, and which appear to the eye entirely like our earth, but full of gardens, flower-beds, and shrubberies, are not permanent like the lands on our globe, but come into existence momentarily altogether, according to the reception of Divine truth by the angels. Therefore also the aspect of all things there is changed, as the state of reception is changed, and consequently the state of their intelligence and wisdom; thus, according to the states of the church within them, in such a way that so far as they have the church in them, so also all things exist correspondently before their eyes. When therefore the heavens and earth are mentioned, they cannot but have an idea of the church, because they derive all things therefrom. But men cannot have that spiritual idea when heaven and earth are mentioned, because they are ignorant of such things; but they have a natural idea, which is according to the sight of their eyes. For they see the permanent heaven and earth, which are not changed according to the reception of Divine truth, and thence of the church, as in the angelic heavens. By heaven, therefore, they understand nothing else but the visible heaven, and by earth, nothing else but the inhabited earth.

[3] The state of heaven and earth according to the state of the church was represented among the sons of Israel, by the face of the land of Canaan, where they dwelt, being changed according to the states of the church among them, only, however, as to the produce, that is, of the harvest, of the oil, the vine, the fruits, and as to the rains. But this was the case because all things with them were representative of heavenly things. This is why it is so often said in the Word, that the land should give its produce, if they would keep the statutes and do them. But the case is different at this day, now that the interior things of the church have been opened by the Lord, and externals, which were representative of the interiors, have ceased.

From these things it is also evident what a difference there is between the ideas of angels and the ideas of men, concerning the new heaven and the new earth. For the angels, from their ideas, perceive the destruction of the heavens and the earths in the spiritual world; but men, the destruction of the heavens and the earth in the natural world. The heavens and the earths in the spiritual world, upon which were those who had lived a moral life in externals, and not also a spiritual life from internals, have also perished, according to the predictions. But of these things more may be seen in the small work concerning the Last Judgment.