2077. Abraham said unto God. That this signifies the Lord’s perception from love, is evident from the signification of “saying unto God,” as being to perceive, which has often been explained before. That “Abraham” here signifies the Lord in such a state and at such an age, has been stated above (n. 1989). That the Lord said this from love, is evident, for the affection of love shines forth from the very words when it is said, “Would that Ishmael might live before Thee!” The Lord’s affection or love was Divine, being toward the universal human race, which He willed to completely adjoin to Himself, and to save to eternity, by means of the union of His Human Essence with His Divine Essence (concerning which love, see Part First, n. 1735 that from this love the Lord continually fought against the hells, n. 1690, 1789, 1812; also that in the union of His Human with His Divine, He regarded nothing but the conjunction of the Divine with the human race, n. 2034).

[2] Love such as the Lord had transcends all human understanding, and is in the highest degree incredible to those who do not know what the heavenly love is in which the angels are. To save a soul from hell, the angels would regard death as nothing, nay, if it were possible they would undergo hell for that soul. Hence it is the inmost of their joy to translate into heaven one who is rising from the dead. But they confess that this love is not one whit from themselves, but that all things of it both in general and in particular are from the Lord alone; nay, they manifest irritation if anyone thinks otherwise.

1735. Blessed be God Most High. That this signifies the Lord’s internal man, is evident from the things which were said just above concerning the internal man. In the Ancient Church, Jehovah was called “God Most High” for the reason that “height” represented and therefore signified what is internal, and thus “the Most High” signified what is inmost. Hence the worship of the Ancient Church was upon high places, mountains, and hills. The inmost also has the same relation to the exterior and the outermost, as the highest bears to the lower and the lowest. The Most High or the Inmost is the Celestial of Love, or Love, itself. Jehovah, or the Lord’s internal man, was the very Celestial of Love, that is, Love itself, to which no other attributes are fitting than those of pure Love, thus of pure Mercy toward the whole human race which is such that it wills to save all and make them happy to eternity, and to bestow on them all that it has; thus out of pure mercy to draw all who are willing to follow, to heaven, that is, to itself, by the strong force of love. This Love itself is Jehovah.

[2] Of nothing can Am or Is be predicated except of Love. From this Love-because in Love, or of Love itself-is the very Being [Esse] of all life, that is, Life itself; and because Jehovah alone is Being of life, or Life itself, as He alone is Love, each and all things have thence their being and their life; nor can anyone be and live of himself except Jehovah alone, that is, the Lord alone; and as no one can be and live of himself except the Lord alone, it is a fallacy of sense that men seem to themselves to live of themselves. The angels plainly perceive that they do not live of themselves, but from the Lord, since they live in the very being of the Lord’s life, because in His love. But yet to them above all others there is given the appearance as of living from themselves, together with ineffable happiness. This therefore is to live in the Lord, which is never possible unless we live in His love, that is, in charity toward the neighbor.