EVERYDAY BLESSINGS

  { PT.  56 } - All this is at this day unknown because the church is at its ends, and is devastated in respect to truth and in respect to good; and when the church is such, the man of the church, by influx from hell, comes into the persuasion that adulteries are not detestable things, and thus comes into the belief that marriages and adulteries do not differ in their essence, but only as a matter of order, and yet the difference between them is like the difference between heaven and hell. That such is the difference between them will be seen in what follows. This, then, is why in the Word in  its spiritual sense heaven and the church are meant by nuptials and marriages, and hell and rejection of all things of the church are meant in the Word in its spiritual sense by adulteries and whoredoms. ( A.E., n. 981 ). Since adultery is hell in man and marriage is heaven in him, it follows that so far as a man loves adultery he removes himself from heaven; consequently adulteries...

  { PT.  55 } - When a man shuns evils as sins he daily learns what a good work is, and an affection for doing good grows in him, and an affection for knowing truths for the sake of good; for so far as he knows truths he can perform works more fully and more wisely, and thus his works become more truly good. Refrain, therefore, from asking in thyself, What are the good works that I must do, or what good must I do to receive eternal life? Only refrain from evils as sins and look to the Lord, and the Lord will teach and lead you. ( A.E., n. 979). VI. The Sixth Commandments of the Decalogue have been explained. Now follow the explanation of the sixth commandment, mit adultery. Who at this day can believe that the delight of adultery is hell in man, and that the delight of marriage is heaven in him, consequently so far as he is in the one delight he is not in the other, since so far as man is in hell he is not in heaven? Who at this day can believe that the love of adultery is the...

  { PT.  54 } - In a word, all such become robbers. But it is otherwise with merchants who shun as sins thefts of every kind, especially the more interior and hidden, which are effected by craft and deceit. All the works of such are good, because they are from the Lord; for the influx from heaven, that is, through heaven from the Lord, for accomplishing such works is not intercepted by the evils just mentioned. To such riches do no harm, because to them riches are means for uses by which they serve their country and their fellow citizens; and through their riches they are in a condition to perform those uses to which affection for good leads them. ( A.E., n. 978 ). From what has been said above, what is meant in the Word by good works can now be seen, namely, that they are all works done by man when evils have been set side as sins. For the works done after this are done by man only as if by him; for they are done by the Lord; and all works done by the Lord are good, and are c...