28. Men zag de Heer in een schitterende witte wolk met de engelen en hoorde daaruit een geluid als van bazuinen; dit was een teken dat de voorspelling gaf van de bescherming van de engelen van de hemel door de Heer en van de verzameling van de goeden uit alle streken; want de Heer brengt aan niemand verderf, maar beschermt alleen de Zijnen en trekt hen terug uit de gemeenschap met de bozen; na hun terugtrekking, komen de bozen in hun lusten en storten zich daaruit in boosheden van allerlei aard.

Men zag daarop allen die zouden vergaan, in hun geheel als een grote draak, met een staart in bochten uitgestrekt en naar de hemel gericht en in de hoogte zich op verschillende wijzen buigend, alsof hij de hemel wilde verwoesten en naar omlaag trekken, maar die poging was ijdel; want de staart werd neergeworpen en de draak, die toen ook scheen opgeheven, viel omlaag.

Mij werd het gegeven deze voorstelling te aanschouwen, opdat ik zou weten en bekendmaken wie er door de draak in de Openbaring worden verstaan; namelijk dat door de draak worden verstaan allen die het Woord lezen, predikingen aanhoren, aan de heilige dingen van de Kerk deelnemen, maar geen acht slaan op de boze begeerten, waarmee zij vervuld zijn en innerlijk denken aan: diefstal en bedrog, overspel en ontucht, haat en wraak aan leugen en laster en dus in hun geest als duivels leven en naar het lichaam als engelen.

Dezen waren het, die de wezenlijke draak vormden, maar zij, die de staart vormden, waren degenen, die in de wereld in een geloof afgescheiden van de naastenliefde hadden geleefd en aan de eerstgenoemden gelijk waren wat hun overdenkingen en voornemens betreft.

5742. The last Judgment and the destruction of the old heaven and earth

The purging described earlier went on for several days, and at the end something like a hand stretched out by the Lord appeared above the heavens; and then began the battles between Michael and the Dragon that are described in the book of Revelation [Rev. 12:7 {ign17}]. On the western side toward the north something like a back appeared. From that elevated point upwards to the heavens above the center there were many heavens, and there an enormous number of angels unknown to me previously, up to myriads could be counted. There were followers of the dragon in the entrance and they spoke with them; and then all turned to them to listen to what they said. The heavenly doctrine was then refuted by the Dragonists, especially the [doctrine] about the Lord. And then each one who was listening was brought back to the state of their thought about the Lord that they had when they were in the world, and it was then evident that the majority rejected the Lord's Divinity, saying that they had no desire to know about a visible God, only about the invisible [God]. It was said to them that the Lord is also the invisible God, for He is one with the Father and in the Sun, and was invisible in the world after the ascension from the sepulcher, and many other things from the Word, but none of them wanted [to hear] this. Besides this, whether they place any part of salvation in a life of faith was examined. But they said, "No," but to faith, thus in thought alone, and nothing in willing and doing, that is, in living. In a word, they were turned in every direction and examined as to what their natures were. And it also was said to them that they were dragonist spirits, who urge these things and agree with them, and that the Lord teaches otherwise. But it was all in vain. This continued on through all the heavens assembled after the Lord's advent. And all there who were like this, after a great battle, as has been said, were judged [in order] to be thrown down. But they insisted that they stay there because they had been there so long.

28. The Lord appeared in a shining cloud together with angels, and a sound was heard from there like that of trumpets. This signal represented the Lord's protection of the angels of heaven and the gathering of the good from all sides. The Lord never brings ruin on anyone, but only protects His own, withdrawing them from contact with the wicked. When they have been withdrawn, the wicked follow their own appetites, which lead them into every kind of crime. Then all those who were about to be destroyed were seen together looking like a great dragon with a long curving tail lifted up towards heaven and lashing on high in different directions, as if it wanted to destroy heaven and drag it down. But its efforts were in vain, for the tail was cast down, and the dragon which still stood high began to sink.

I was allowed to see this representation, so that I should know and publish who it is who are meant by the dragon in Revelation. They are in fact all who read the Word, listen to sermons and attend the holy rites of the church, while inwardly they think nothing of indulging their appetites for evil in which they are ensnared. Inwardly they ponder theft and deceit, adultery and lewdness, hatred and revenge, lies and blasphemies, so that in spirit they live like devils, but in the flesh like angels. These were the people who made up the body of the dragon; those composing the tail were those who in the world had a faith divorced from charity, resembling the former group in their thoughts and intentions.