Friday 27 December 2013

Revelation 1:6 Kings and priests unto God

 

And hath made us kings and priests unto God and his Father; to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen. -Revelation 1:6 Bible, King James Version

Apocalypse Explained, by Emanuel Swedenborg, [1757-9], tr. by John Whitehead [1911], at sacred-texts.com 

n.31 Verse 6. And hath made us kings and priests, signifies that from Him we are in His spiritual and celestial kingdom. This is evident from the signification of "kings," as meaning those who are in truths from good; and since they constitute the Lord's spiritual kingdom, as meaning those who are in His spiritual kingdom... The above is evident also from the signification of "priests," as meaning those who are in the good of love; and since these constitute the Lord's celestial kingdom, they also are those who are in His celestial kingdom. (That there are two kingdoms, into which the heavens are in general divided, see in the work on Heaven and Hell, n. 20-28...) In any places in the prophetic Word, kings are mentioned, and he that is ignorant of the internal sense believes that by "kings" are there meant kings; kings, however, are not meant, but all those who are in truths from good, or in faith from charity, from the Lord...

Arcana Coelestia, by Emanuel Swedenborg, [1749-56], tr. by John F. Potts [1905-10], at sacred-texts.com

As to... the souls newly arriving from the world, those coming from the Christian world think and plan for scarcely anything else than to become the greatest, and to possess all things; so that all are devoured with the love of self and of the world, which loves are utterly contrary to heavenly order (n. 2057); besides that very many think of nothing but filthy, obscene, and profane things, and among themselves speak of nothing else. They also make nothing of and utterly despise all things that are of charity and faith; and do not acknowledge the Lord Himself; nay, they hate all who confess Him; for in the other life thoughts and hearts speak. Besides all this, on account of the infamous [wicked; abominable] life of parents, hereditary evils are becoming more malignant [disposed to cause harm, suffering, or distress deliberately,] and like inward fires fostered in secret, stimulate man to greater profanation [The act of violating sacred things, or of treating them with contempt or irreverence] of what is honorable and pious than heretofore. At the present day such persons flock in crowds into the other life, and fill to repletion [the condition of being abundantly supplied or filled] the exterior and interior spheres of the world of spirits, as already said. When evil thus begins to prevail, and the equilibrium begins to incline to the side of evil, it is thereby clearly perceived that the last time is at hand, and that the equilibrium is going to be restored by the rejection of those who are within the church, and the reception of others who are outside.

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