Heaven and its Wonders and HellSwedenborg, Emanuel
Religion
Heaven and its Wonders and Hell
Swedenborg, Emanuel
Future life -- Christianity -- Early work to 1800; Heaven -- Christianity; Hell -- Christianity
111. There is a like correspondence with things in the vegetable
kingdom. In general, a garden corresponds to the intelligence and
wisdom of heaven; and for this reason heaven is called the Garden of
God, and Paradise;{1} and men call it the heavenly paradise. Trees,
according to their species, correspond to the perceptions and
knowledges of good and truth which are the source of intelligence and
wisdom. For this reason the ancient people, who were acquainted with
correspondences, held their sacred worship in groves;{2} and for the
same reason trees are so often mentioned in the Word, and heaven, the
church, and man are compared to them; as the vine, the olive, the
cedar, and others, and the good works done by men are compared to
fruits. Also the food derived from trees, and more especially from
the grain harvests of the field, corresponds to affections for good
and truth, because these affections feed the spiritual life, as the
food of the earth does the natural life;{3} and bread from grain, in
a general sense, because it is the food that specially sustains life,
and because it stands for all food, corresponds to an affection for
all good. It is on account of this correspondence that the Lord calls
Himself the bread of life; and that loaves of bread had a holy use in
the Israelitish Church, being placed on the table in the tabernacle
and called "the bread of faces;" also the Divine worship that was
performed by sacrifices and burnt offerings was called "bread."
Moreover, because of this correspondence the most holy act of worship
in the Christian Church is the Holy Supper, in which bread is given,
and wine.{4} From these few examples the nature of correspondence can
be seen.
{Footnote 1} From correspondence a garden and a paradise
signify intelligence and wisdom (n. 100, 108); from experience
(n. 3220). All things that have a correspondence have in the
Word the same significance (n. 2896, 2987, 2989, 2990, 2991,
3002, 3225).
{Footnote 2} Trees signify perceptions and knowledges (n. 103,
2163, 2682, 2722, 2972, 7692). For this reason the ancient
people held Divine worship in groves under trees according to
their correspondence (n. 2722, 4552). Influx of heaven into
subjects of the vegetable kingdom, as into trees and plants (n.
3648).
{Footnote 3} From correspondence foods signify such things as
nourish the spiritual life (n. 3114, 4459, 4792, 4976, 5147,
5293, 5340, 5342, 5410, 5426, 5576, 5582, 5588, 5655, 5915,
6277, 8562, 9003).
{Footnote 4} Bread signifies every good that nourishes the
spiritual life of man (n. 2165, 2177, 3478, 3735, 3813, 4211,
4217, 4735, 4976, 9323, 9545, 10686). Such was the
signification of the loaves that were on the table in the
tabernacle (n. 3478, 9545). Sacrifices in general were called
bread (n. 2165). Bread includes all food (n. 2165). Thus it
signifies all heavenly and spiritual food (n. 276, 680, 2165,
2177, 3478, 6118, 8410).
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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