1. The Sacred Scripture, or Word, Is Divine Truth Itself

Everyone says that the Word comes from God, is Divinely inspired, and so is holy. But even so, no one has known before this wherein the Divinity in it lies. For in its letter the Word appears as though written in the ordinary way, in a foreign style, neither as sublime or nor as lucid as writings of the present age seem to be.

As a result, a person who worships nature as God, or in preference to God, and so thinks prompted by self and his own self-interest, and not prompted by heaven in response to the Lord, may easily fall into error regarding the Word, and into scorning it, and when reading it, saying to himself, “What is this? What is that? Is this Divine? Can God, whose wisdom is infinite, speak so? Where is the holiness in it, and what makes it holy, other than some teaching of religion and so conviction?”

76. The Church Is Formed by the Word, and Its Character Is Such as Its Understanding of the Word

That the church is formed by the Word is not something to be doubted, for the Word is Divine truth itself (see nos. 1-4). The Word is the source of the church’s doctrine (nos. 50-61). And the Word makes possible a conjunction with the Lord (nos. 62-69).

But that it is an understanding of the Word that forms the church — this may be doubted, since there are people who believe they are part of the church because they possess the Word, read it or hear it from a preacher, and know something of its literal sense. But they do not know how this or that in the Word is to be understood, and some people place little value in it.

We must show here, therefore, that it is not the Word that forms the church, but people’s understanding of it, and that the character of the church is such as the understanding of the Word among the people in the church.

Confirmation of this is as follows:

6. From the Lord spring three levels of reality — the celestial, the spiritual, and the natural — one after another.

The level termed celestial is one that springs from the Lord’s Divine love, and is Divine goodness.

The level termed spiritual is one that springs from His Divine wisdom, and is Divine truth.

The level termed natural is one that springs from these two. It is a composite of them on the lowest level.

Angels of the Lord’s celestial kingdom, who make up the third or highest heaven, are surrounded by the Divinity emanating from the Lord that we call celestial. For they are prompted by the goodness of love received from the Lord.

Angels of the Lord’s spiritual kingdom, who make up the second or middle heaven, are surrounded by the Divinity emanating from the Lord that we call spiritual. For they are prompted by the truths of wisdom received from the Lord. ¹

And in the church in the world people are surrounded by the natural Divinity that also emanates from the Lord.

[2] It follows from this that the Divinity emanating from the Lord to its lowest level descends through three degrees, and is termed celestial, spiritual, and natural.

The Divinity that descends from the Lord to humankind does so through these three degrees, and when it has descended, it contains these three degrees within it.

Everything Divine is of such a character. When it is in its lowest degree, therefore, it exists in its fullness.

Such is the Word. In its lowest or outmost sense it is natural. In its interior sense it is spiritual, in its inmost sense celestial, and in every sense Divine.

That the Word is of such a character is not apparent in its literal, natural sense, and that is because people in the world have previously known nothing of the heavens, and so nothing of the spiritual and celestial levels, thus nothing of the difference between these levels and the natural one.

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