989# “兽的国就黑暗了”表示教会由此处于纯粹或绝对而密集的虚假。这从“国”和“黑暗”的含义清楚可知：“国”是指真理方面的教会(参看AE48,683,684,685节)；“黑暗”是指虚假(参看AE526a,b节)，在此是指纯粹或绝对而密集的虚假，因为经上补充说：“他们因痛苦和疮就咬自己的舌头，亵渎天上的神。”前面各个地方已经说明，通过唯信，也就是通过与善行分离之信，他们驱逐了教会的一切真理，并带来了纯粹或绝对的虚假以取代之。当生活与信仰分离，从而被关在宗教信仰的大门之外时，情况不可能不是这样。
(关于第六诫续)前面说明，天堂来自婚姻，地狱来自通奸。现在要阐明当如何理解这句话。一个人与生俱来的遗传之恶不是来自吃了知识树的亚当，而是来自玷污良善、歪曲真理的父母，因而来自邪恶与虚假的婚姻，通奸之爱从该婚姻中存在。父母的主导爱衍生并转录到后代身上，并成为其性质的一部分。如果父母的爱是通奸之爱，那么它也是邪恶对虚假的爱，并虚假对邪恶的爱。人从这个源头中获得所有邪恶，并通过邪恶受制于地狱。这一切清楚表明，一个人通过通奸受制于地狱，除非他被主通过真理和照之的生活改造。任何人都不能被改造，除非他避开通奸如同地狱的，热爱婚姻如同天堂的。只有通过这种方式，遗传之恶才能被打破，并在后代身上变得更温和。
然而，值得注意的是，尽管人从通奸的父母那里出生为一个地狱，但他仍不是为地狱，而是为天堂而生的。因为主规定，没有人因遗传之恶，只因这个人通过自己的生活而实际变成自己的邪恶而被判下地狱，这从死后的婴儿明显看出来：他们都被主收养，在祂的看顾之下在天堂接受教育，并得救了。这清楚表明，每个人都是为天堂，而不是为地狱而生的，尽管他因与生俱来的邪恶而是一个地狱。从通奸中出生的每个人都是这种情况，只要他自己没有成为一个通奸者。成为通奸者是指通过出于其中的快乐思想邪恶和虚假，并出于对它们的爱实行它们而生活在邪恶和虚假的婚姻之中。凡如此行的人都成为通奸者。根据神性公义，没有人因父母的邪恶受惩罚，人只因自己的邪恶受惩罚；因此，主规定，死后，一个人的遗传之恶不会返回或重现，但他自己的邪恶会返回或重现；正因这些邪恶返回或重现，那时人才会受到惩罚。
989. And his kingdom became dark. That this signifies the church therefrom in absolutely dense falsities is evident from the signification of a kingdom, as denoting the church as to truths (concerning which see (n. 48, 684, 685); and from the signification of darkness, as denoting falsities (concerning which see n. 526); in the present case, absolutely dense falsities, because it follows, that they gnawed their tongues, and blasphemed the God of heaven by reason of their anguish and sores.
[2] That by faith alone, or by faith separated from good works, they have banished all the truths of the church, and that they have brought in absolute falsities in their place, has been everywhere shown above. Nor can it possibly be otherwise, when life is separated from faith, and thus shut out from religion.
Continuation concerning the Sixth Precept:-
That heaven is from marriages, and that hell is from adulteries, has been said above. It shall now be stated how this is to be understood. The hereditary evils into which a man is born are not from Adam because he ate of the tree of knowledge, but from parents through the adulteration of good and the falsification of truth; thus, through the marriage of evil and falsity, from which the love of adultery exists. The ruling love of the parents is carried over and transmitted into the offspring and becomes part of their nature. If the love of the parents is that of adultery, it is also the love of evil for falsity, and of falsity for evil. From this origin man derives all evil, and through evil he is subject to hell. From these things it is evident that, through adulteries, a man is subject to hell, unless he is reformed of the Lord by means of truths, and by a life according to them. Nor can any one be reformed unless he shuns adultery as infernal and loves marriage as heavenly. Thus, and in no other way, is hereditary evil broken, and rendered milder in the offspring.
[3] It is, however, to be observed that, although a man may be born a hell from adulterous parents, yet still he is born not for hell, but for heaven. For it is provided by the Lord that no one should be condemned to hell on account of hereditary evils, but on account of the evils that the man has actually made his own by his life, as is evident from infants after death, all of whom are adopted by the Lord, educated under His auspices in heaven, and saved. From this it is clear that every man, although from innate evils he is a hell, yet is born not for hell, but for heaven.
The case is similar with every man born from adultery, if he does not become an adulterer himself. By becoming an adulterer is meant to live in the marriage of evil and falsity by thinking evils and falsities from delight in them, and by doing them from the love of them; every man who acts in this way becomes an adulterer. It is also a matter of Divine justice that no one suffers punishments because of the evils of his parents, but on account of his own; therefore it is provided by the Lord that after death a man's hereditary evils shall not recur, but his own evils; and it is because of those evils that recur that a man is then punished.
989. And His kingdom became dark, signifies the church in consequence in mere and dense falsities. This is evident from the signification of "kingdom," as being the church as to truths (See n. 48, 683, 684, 685); also from the signification of "darkness," as being falsities (See n. 526), here mere dense falsities, because it is added, "even so that they gnawed their tongues blasphemed the God of heaven because of their distresses sores." That through faith alone, that is, through faith separated from good works, all the truths of the church have been banished mere falsities have been introduced in their place, has been frequently shown . Nor can it be otherwise when life is separated from faith is thus shut out from religio{ign21} (Continuation respecting the Sixth Commandment)
[2] That heaven is from marriages and hell from adulteries has been shown above. What this means shall now be told. The hereditary evils into which man is born are not from Adam's having eaten of the tree of knowledge, but from the adulteration of good and the falsification of truth by parents, thus from the marriage of evil and falsity, from which the love of adultery exists. The ruling love of parents by means of an offshoot is derived from them and transcribed into the offspring and becomes its nature. If the love of the parents is the love of adultery it is also the love of evil for falsity and of falsity for evil. From this source man has all evil, and from evil he has hell. All this makes clear that it is from adulteries that man has hell, unless he is reformed by the Lord by means of truths and a life according to them. And no one can be reformed unless he shuns adulteries as infernal and loves marriages as heavenly. In this and in no other way is hereditary evil broken and rendered milder in the offspring.
[3] It is to be noted, however, that while from adulterous parents man is born a hell, he is not born for hell but for heaven. For the Lord provides that no one shall be condemned to hell on account of hereditary evils, but only on account of the evils that the man has actually made his own by his life, as can be seen from the lot of infants after death, all of whom are adopted by the Lord, educated under His auspices in heaven, and saved. This makes clear that every man is born not for hell but for heaven, although from connate evils he is a hell. It is the same with every man born from adultery if he does not himself become an adulterer. Becoming an adulterer means living in the marriage of evil and falsity by thinking evils and falsities from a delight in them and by doing them from a love for them. Every man who does this becomes an adulterer. It is from Divine justice that no one is punished for the evils of his parents, but for his own; therefore the Lord provides that hereditary evils shall not return after death, but one's own evils, and it is for those that return that a man is then punished.
989. "Et factum est regnum ejus tenebrosum." - Quod significet ecclesiam inde in meris et densis falsis, constat ex significatione "regni", quod sit ecclesia quoad vera (de qua [supra] , n. 48, [683,] 684 [a] , 685); et ex significatione "tenebrarum", quod sint falsa (de qua, n. 526 [a, b]), hic mera et densa falsa, quia sequitur quod "eo usque ut manderent linguas, et blasphemarent Deum caeli prae molestiis et ulceribus." Quod per solam fidem, seu per fidem separatam a bonis operibus, omnia vera ecclesiae exsulaverint, et loco illorum mera falsa immigraverint, supra passim ostensum est: nec potest aliter fieri, dum a fide separatur et sic a religione excluditur vita.
[2] (Continuatio de Sexto Praecepto.)
Quod caelum sit ex conjugiis, et quod infernum ex adulteriis, supra dictum est; nunc dicetur quomodo hoc intelligendum est. Mala hereditaria, in quae homo nascitur, non sunt ex Adamo propter esum ex arbore scientiae, sed a parentibus propter adulterationem boni et falsificationem veri, ita propter conjugium mali et falsi, ex quo amor adulterii existit Amor parentum regnans per traducem derivatur et transcribitur in prolem, et fit ejus natura: si amor parentum est amor adulterii, est quoque amor mali ad falsum, ac falsi ad malum; ex hac origine est homini omne malum, et ex malo est ei infernum. Ex his patet quod homini infernum sit ex adulteriis, nisi reformetur a Domino per vera, et per vitam secundum illa; nec quisquam reformari potest nisi fugiat adulteria sicut infernalia, et amet conjugia sicut caelestia; ita et non aliter malum hereditarium frangitur, et fit mitius in prole.
[3] At sciendum est quod homo quidem nascatur infernum ex parentibus adulteris; usque tamen non nascitur ad infernum, sed ad caelum; provisum enim est a Domino quod nemo ad infernum propter mala hereditaria damnetur, sed propter mala quae homo suamet actualiter per vitam fecerat; ut constare potest ex infantibus post mortem, qui omnes adoptantur a Domino, educantur sub auspicio Ipsius in caelo, et salvantur: ex quo patet quod omnis homo, tametsi ex connatis malis est infernum, usque non ad infernum sed ad caelum nascatur. Simile fit cum omni homine etiam nato ex adulterio, si non ipse adulter fiat: per fieri adulter intelligitur vivere in conjugio mali et falsi, cogitando mala et falsa ex jucundo illorum, et faciendo illa ex amore illorum; omnis homo qui haec facit etiam adulter fit. Ex justitia Divina etiam est ut nemo luat poenas propter mala parentum, sed propter sua; quare providetur a Domino ne post mortem mala hereditaria recurrant, sed mala propria; et propter illa quae recurrunt, homo tunc punitur.