53. Of created and finite things may be predicated esse and existere, also substance and form, and life, yea, wisdom and love; but all these are created and finite: not that created and finite things possess any thing divine, but because they are in the Divine and the Divine in them: for all created things, in themselves, are inanimate and dead; but they are animated and vivified by this, that the Divine is in them and they in the Divine.

54. The Divine is not in one subject different from what it is in another; but one created subject is different from another. No two things are the same, and therefore each thing is a different continent, whereby the Divine in its image appears various. His presence in opposites will be spoken of in what follows.

55. THAT ALL THINGS IN THE CREATED UNIVERSE ARE RECIPIENTS OF THE DIVINE LOVE AND THE DIVINE WISDOM OF GOD-MAN. It is known that all and every thing in the universe was created from God; hence the universe with all and every thing in it, in the Word, is called the work of the hands of Jehovah. It is commonly said, that the world in its complex was created out of nothing, of which nothing an idea is entertained as of absolute nothing; but out of absolute nothing, nothing is made, or can be made. This is a manifest truth. Wherefore the universe, which is an image of God, and therefore full of God, could not be created but in God from God: for God is Esse itself, and that which is must exist from an Esse: to create what does exist from nothing, which does not exist, is an absolute contradiction. Nevertheless, what is created in God from God, is not continuous from Himself; for God is Esse in itself, and in created things there is nothing of esse in itself; if in created things there were any thing of esse in itself, that would be continuous from God, and what is continuous from God is God. The idea of the angels is, that what is created in God from God, is like that in a man, which he had derived from his life, but from which the life is extracted, which is such, that it is conformable to his life, but nevertheless is not his life. This the angels confirm by many things which exist in their heaven, where they say that they are in God and God in them, and that nevertheless they have nothing of God which is God in their esse. More will be adduced in what follows, whereby they prove this; here it is only necessary that it should be known.

56. Every created thing, by virtue of this its origin, is of such a nature, that it may be a recipient of God, not by way of continuity but of contiguity; by the latter way and not by the former the conjunctive principle exists, there being a principle suited for conjunction in consequence of its being created in God from God; and forasmuch as it was so created, there is an analogous principle, and by means of that conjunction it is as an image of God in a mirror. 57. Hence it is that the angels are not angels from themselves, but from the above conjunction with God-Man; and this conjunc

tion is according to their reception of divine good and divine truth, which are God, and appear to proceed from Him, although they are in Him; and their reception is according to their application of the laws of order, which are divine truths, to themselves, from their free power of thinking and willing according to the reason which they possess from the Lord as their own: hereby there is a reception of divine good and divine truth as from themselves, and hereby there is a reciprocation of love; for, as was said above, love does not exist unless it be reciprocal. Similar is the case with men on earth. From what has been said it may now first be seen, that all things in the created universe are recipients of the divine love and divine wisdom of God-Man.

58. That the other things in the universe, which are not like angels and men, are also recipients of the divine love and divine wisdom of God-Man, as those things which are inferior to man in the animal kingdom, and the things inferior to these in the vegetable kingdom, and the things inferior to these in the mineral kingdom, cannot as yet be explained to the understanding; for, first of all, more must be said concerning the degrees of life, and the degrees of the recipients of life. Conjunction with these is according to their uses; for all good uses derive their origin from no other source, than by similar conjunction with God, but dissimilar according to degrees; which conjunction successively in descent becomes such, that there is nothing of free-will because nothing of reason, and hence there is no appearance of life in them, but still they are recipients. Since they are recipients, they are also re-agents, for they are continents in consequence of being re-agents. Conjunction with good uses will be spoken of after the origin of evil is shown.

59. Hence it may appear, that the Divine is in all and every thing of the created universe, and consequently that the created universe is the work of the hands of Jehovah, as it is called in the Word, that is, the work of divine love and divine wisdom, for these are understood by the hands of Jehovah : and although the Divine is in all and every thing of the created universe, still there is nothing of what is Divine in itself in their esse; for the created universe is not God, but from God; and being from God, His image is in it, as the image of a man in a mirror, in which indeed the man appears, but still there is nothing of the man in it.

60. I heard several in conversation about me in the spiritual world say, that they were willing to acknowledge indeed, that the Divine is in all and every thing of the universe, because therein they see the wonderful works of God, and the more interiorly those works are examined, so much the more wonderful they appear; nevertheless, when they heard that the Divine actually is in all and every thing of the created universe, they were indignant; a proof that they assert this indeed, but do not believe it. Wherefore it was urged that they might see this merely from the won

derful faculty which every seed has of producing its particular vegetable in such order, even to the production of new seeds, and that every seed suggests an idea of what is infinite and eternal; for there is in them an effort to multiply themselves, and fructify infinitely and eternally. The same might be seen also from every animal, even the most diminutive, as having organs of the senses, a brain, heart, lungs, and so forth, with arteries, veins, fibres, muscles, and consequent acts, besides the surprising instincts peculiar to each, concerning which whole volumes have been written. All these wonderful things are from God, but the forms with which they are clothed are from the material substances of the earth: hence come vegetables, and in their order, men; wherefore it is said of man, that "he was created from the ground, and that he is dust of the earth, and that the soul of lives was breathed into him," Genesis ii. 7. Whence it is evident, that the Divine is not man's, but is adjoined to him.

61. THAT ALL CREATED THINGS IN A CERTAIN IMAGE REPRESENT MAN. This may appear from all and every thing of the animal kingdom, and from all and every thing of the vegetable kingdom, and from all and every thing of the mineral kingdom. The relation to man in all and every thing of the animal kingdom, is evident from the following considerations: that animals of all kinds have members by which they move, organs by which they feel, and viscera by which they actuate them, which are common to them with men; they have also appetites and affections similar to the natural appetites and affections in man; and they have connate knowledges corresponding to their affections, in some of which there appears as it were somewhat spiritual, which is more or less evident in the beasts of the earth, the birds of heaven, bees, silk-worms, ants, &c. Hence it is that merely natural men liken the living things of that kingdom to themselves, except as to speech. The relation to man from all and every thing of the vegetable kingdom, is evident from the following considerations: that they exist from seed, and from thence proceed successively in their several stages; that they have something similar to marriage, followed by prolification; that their vegetative soul is use, whereof they are forms, besides many other things which are relations to man, which have also been described by some. The relation to man from all and every thing of the mineral kingdom, appears only in the endeavour to produce forms which represent themselves, which are, as has been said, all and every thing of the vegetable kingdom, and hereby of performing uses; for as soon as a seed falls into the bosom of the earth, the earth cherishes it, and gives it supplies from all sides, that it may germinate, and show itself in a form representative of man; that such an endeavour exists also in its dry parts, is evident from corals in the bottom of the sea, and from flowers in mines, produced there from minerals and from metals. The

endeavour to vegetate, and thereby to become useful, is the ultimate principle derived from the Divine in created things.

62. As there is an endeavour of the minerals of the earth to vegetate, so there is an endeavour of vegetables to vivify themselves; hence exist various kinds of insects corresponding to their odoriferous exhalations. That this is not an effect of the heat of the sun of this world alone, but of life, by that heat, according to the recipients, will be seen in what follows.

63. That there is a relation to man in all things of the created universe, may indeed be known from what has been adduced, but can only be seen obscurely; whereas in the spiritual world it is seen clearly. In that world also there are all things of the three kingdoms, in the midst of which is the angel, who sees them about him, and knows that they are representations of himself; yea, when the inmost principle of his understanding is opened, he knows himself, and sees his image in them as in a glass.

64. From these and many other similar things, which there is not room to adduce here, it may be known for certain, that God is a Man, and that the created universe is an image of Him; for all things have a common relation to Him, as they have a particular relation to man.

65. THAT THE USES OF ALL CREATED THINGS ASCEND BY DEGREES FROM ULTIMATES TO MAN, AND THROUGH MAN TO GOD THE CREATOR, FROM WHOM THEY HAD THEIR ORIGIN. Ultimates, as has been said above, are all and every thing of the mineral kingdom, which are material substances of various kinds, as stony, saline, oily, mineral, and metallic substances, covered over with earth, consisting of vegetable and animal matters reduced to the finest powder: in these resides the end, and also the beginning, of all the uses which are from life; the end of all uses is the endeavour to produce them, and the beginning is the power acting from that endeavour. These are of the mineral kingdom. Mediates (media) are all and every thing of the vegetable kingdom, which are grasses and herbs of all kinds, plants and shrubs of all kinds, and trees of all kinds. The uses of these are for all and every thing of the animal kingdom, as well imperfect as perfect; they nourish them, delight them, and vivify them; they nourish their bodies with their materials, delight their senses with their taste, smell, and beauty, and vivify their affections. An endeavour to do these things is in them from the principle of life. Primaries (prima) are all and every thing of the animal kingdom; the lowest in this kingdom are called worms and insects, the middle, birds and beasts, and the supreme, men; in every kingdom there are things lowest, middle, and supreme; the lowest for the use of the middle, and the middle for the use of the supreme. Thus the uses of all created things ascend in order from ultimates to man, who is the first in order.

66. There are three degrees of ascent in the natural world, and there are three degrees of ascent in the spiritual world. All animals are recipients of life; the more perfect animals, of the life of the three degrees of the natural world; the less perfect, of the life of two degrees of that world; and the imperfect, of one degree of the same. But man alone is a recipient of the life of the three degrees, not only of the natural world, but also of the three degrees of the spiritual world. Hence it is, that man may be elevated above nature, which is not the case with any other animal: he has the power of thinking analytically and rationally of civil and moral things which are within the sphere of nature, and of spiritual and celestial things which are above it; yea, he may be elevated into wisdom, insomuch that he may see God. But the six degrees, by which the uses of all created things in order ascend to God the Creator, will be treated of in the proper place. From this summary it may be seen, that there is an ascent of all created things to the First Being, Who alone is life, and that the uses of all things are the very recipients of life, and consequently the forms of uses.

67. It shall also be shown in a few words, how man ascends, or is elevated, from the ultimate degree to the first. He is born into the ultimate degree of the natural world; he is then elevated by sciences to the second degree; and as by means of sciences he perfects his understanding, he is elevated to the third degree, and becomes rational. The three degrees of ascent in the spiritual world are in him above the three natural degrees, nor do they appear before he puts off his earthly body: when he puts it off, the first spiritual degree is opened to him, afterwards the second, and lastly the third, but only in those who become angels of the third heaven; these are they who see God. Those in whom the second and ultimate degree is capable of being opened, become angels of the second and of the ultimate heaven. Every spiritual degree in man is opened according to the reception of divine love and divine wisdom from the Lord. Those who receive some portion thereof, come into the first or ultimate spiritual degree: those who receive more, into the second or middle spiritual degree: and those who receive much, into the third or supreme: but those who receive none of these, remain in the natural degrees, and derive nothing more from the spiritual degrees, than the power of thinking and thence of speaking, and the power of willing and thence of acting, but not intelligently.

68. Concerning the elevation of the interiors of a man's mind, this also is to be observed: there is from God in every created thing a re-action life alone has action, and re-action is excited by the action of life: this re-action appears as if it belonged to the created being, because it exists when the being is acted upon; thus in man it appears as if it were his own, because he does not perceive any otherwise than that life is his own, when nevertheless man is only a recipient of life. From this cause it is, that man,