5573.有一个灵人曾出现在我的头上，却是看不见的。我被引导从烧焦的角或骨头的臭味和牙齿的恶臭察觉到他的存在。此后，一大群像乌云一样的人从下面朝我背后的一个较高位置上来。这些人也是看不见的，在我头顶上停了下来。我以为他们不可见是由于他们自己的聪明。然而，我被告知，他们在所获得的属灵气场那里是看不见的，但在所获得的属世气场那里是可见的。因此，他们被称为“看不见的属世灵人”。关于这些灵人，我所披露的第一件事是，他们以最勤奋、最狡猾和最熟练的方式努力避免暴露有关他们的任何事。他们这样做的目的是为了知道如何夺走别人所拥有的观念，并以不同的观念来取代它们，他们利用这些不同观念来防止暴露自己。他们的这种努力持续了很长一段时间。我由此得以明白，这些灵人活在肉身时就是那种不想叫自己的行为或思维得以暴露的人；他们通过换上一副表情，用不同的说话方式达到这个目的。然而，他们没有利用这种伪装来来撒谎和骗人。
我发觉与我同在的这些灵人在肉身生活中曾是商人；然而，他们是那种其生命的快乐在于买卖本身，不怎么在于财富的商人，因此买卖本身可以说就是他们内在的驱动力，或说他们的灵魂。于是，我就把这一点告诉他们，并被引导说，做买卖决不会妨碍他们上天堂，天堂里的富人并不比穷人少。谁知他们却反对这种说法，声称他们一直以来的观点是，他们若要得救，就必须放弃买卖，把他们所有的都捐给穷人，使自己陷入悲惨境地。我被引导回答说，他们所说的不是真的，他们中间那些在天堂里的人既是善良的基督徒，也很富有；其中有些人极其富有，他们就不这么想。这些人以公众利益和对邻之爱为他们的目的；从事商业活动完全是为了服务于世界；更重要的是，他们没有把心思放在财富上。他们自己之所以在下面，是因为他们纯粹是属世的，因而不信死后的生命，也不信地狱和天堂，甚至不信任何灵；他们利用各种手段毫不犹豫地掠夺别人的财物，无情地看整个家庭为他们自己的利益而灭亡；并因此嘲笑凡向他们谈论属灵生命的人。
我也被指示他们对于死后生命、天堂和地狱拥有哪种信。有一个从左向右被提入天堂的人出现了。我被告知，这是一个新近死去，立刻被天使带往天堂的人。接着就有一场关于这个人的讨论。不过，尽管这些灵人也看见了这一幕，但他们拥有极强烈的不信的气场，并向周围散发，以致他们想使自己和其他人不去相信他们所看见的。由于他们的不信如此之大，所以我被引导告诉他们说，假如他们在世时偶然目睹一个躺在棺材里死去的人复活了，他们首先会说，他们不会相信，除非他们看见许多死人复活；他们若看见许多死人复活，仍会将这事归因于自然原因。此后，当这些灵人离开思考了一会儿后，他们说，一开始他们会认为他们所看到的是一个诡计。不过，他们补充说，当证明这不是诡计时，他们会相信这个死人的灵魂与使他复活的人有一种秘密的交流；最后相信有某种他们不理解的秘密，因为自然界有太多无法理解的事了。因此，他们无法被引导相信这种事的发生是由于自然界之上的某种力量。这揭示了他们信仰的性质，也就是说，这是一种绝无可能引导他们相信死后生命，或地狱、天堂的信仰。因此，这表明他们是完全属世的。当这样的灵人在天堂之光中显现时，他们似乎也没有脸，取而代之的是浓密的毛发。
Potts(1905-1910) 5573
5573. A certain one was present above the head who was unseen, but whose presence was perceived from an odor of burnt horn or bone, and from a stench of teeth. Afterward a great multitude, like a black cloud, came unseen from beneath upward behind the back, and stopped above the head. I supposed they were unseen because they were subtle; but I was told that where there is a spiritual sphere they are invisible, but where there is a natural sphere they are visible. They are called invisible natural spirits. The first thing disclosed about them was that they strove with the utmost diligence, skill, and artfulness to prevent anything from being divulged about them, to which end they were skilled in stealing from others their ideas, and inducing other ideas, by which they hindered detection. This continued quite a long time. Hence it was given to know that in the life of the body they had been such as not to desire to have anything divulged of what they did or thought, assuming a different face and a different speech. Nevertheless they had not used these things in order to deceive in a lying manner. [2] It was perceived that they who were present had been traders in the life of the body, but traders whose delight of life consisted rather in trading itself than in riches, so that trading had been as it were their soul, I therefore spoke to them about this, and was given to say that trading does not at all prevent anyone from coming into heaven, and that the rich as well as the poor are in heaven. But they objected, saying that it had been their opinion that if they were to be saved they would have to renounce trade, give all they had to the poor, and make themselves miserable. But it was given to reply to them that such is not the case, and that those among them who are in heaven because they had been good Christians, had thought otherwise, and yet they had been wealthy, and some of them very wealthy. These had the common good and love toward the neighbor as their end, and had engaged in mercantile pursuits merely for the sake of employment in the world, and moreover had not set their heart on these things. And the reason why they themselves are below is that they had been merely natural, and therefore had not believed in a life after death, nor in hell and heaven, nor even in any spirit; and that they had not hesitated to deprive others of their goods by any artifice whatever, and could without mercy see whole families ruined for the sake of their own gain; and that they therefore had ridiculed everyone who spoke to them about a spiritual life. [3] The kind of faith they had had about the life after death, and about heaven and hell, was also shown. There appeared one who was taken up into heaven from the left toward the right; and it was said that it was one who had recently died, and was being immediately conducted by the angels into heaven. There was a conversation about this. But although they also saw it they nevertheless had a very strong sphere of unbelief, and spread it around, so much so that they wanted to make themselves and others believe contrary to what they saw. And as their unbelief was so great I was given to say to them, Suppose that in the world you had seen someone resuscitated who was lying dead in a coffin. They said that at first they should not have believed unless they had seen many dead persons resuscitated; and if they had seen this, still they would have attributed it to natural causes. And after they had been left awhile to their own thoughts, they said that at first they would have believed it to be a fraud; and when it was proved to be no fraud they would have believed that the soul of the dead person had a secret communication with him who resuscitated it; and finally that there was some secret thing they did not comprehend, because there are very many incomprehensible things in nature; so that they could never have believed that such a thing took place from any force above nature. Hereby was disclosed the nature of their faith that they could never have been brought to believe that there is any life after death, nor that there is a hell, nor that there is a heaven; thus that they were wholly natural. When such persons appear in the light of heaven, they appear without a face, and with a thick mass of hair in place thereof.
Genesis 43
1. And the famine became grievous in the land. 2. And it came to pass when they had finished the eating of the produce which they had brought from Egypt, and their father said unto them, Go back, buy us a little food. 3. And Judah spoke unto him, saying, Protesting the man did protest unto us, saying, Ye shall not see my faces except your brother be with you. 4. If thou wilt send our brother with us, we will go down and buy thee food. 5. And if thou wilt not send, we will not go down; for the man said unto us, Ye shall not see my faces except your brother be with you. 6. And Israel said, Wherefore dealt ye ill with me, to tell the man whether ye had yet a brother? 7. And they said, Asking the man asked unto us, and unto our birth, saying, Is your father yet alive? Have ye a brother? And we told him according to the mouth of these words. Knowing could we know that he would say, Bring your brother down? 8. And Judah said unto Israel his father, Send the boy with me, and we will arise and go; and we will live, and not die, both we and thou, and also our little ones. 9. I will be surety for him; of my hand shalt thou require him; if I bring him not unto thee, and set him before thee, then I shall sin to thee all the days. 10. For except we had lingered, surely we had now returned these two times. 11. And their father Israel said unto them, If therefore this be so, do this: take of the song of the land in your vessels, and carry down the man a present, a little resin and a little honey, wax and stacte, terebinth* nuts and almonds. 12. And take double silver in your hands, and the silver that was returned in the mouth of your bags carry back in your hand; peradventure it was an error. 13. And take your brother, and arise, and return unto the man. 14. And God Shaddai give you mercies before the man, and send you your other brother and Benjamin. And I, as I have been bereaved, I shall be bereaved. 15. And the men took this present, and they took double silver in their hand, and Benjamin; and rose up, and went down to Egypt, and stood before Joseph. 16. And Joseph saw Benjamin with them, and he said to him that was over his house, Bring the men to the house, and slaying slay, and make ready; for the men shall eat with me at noon. 17. And the man did as Joseph said; and the man brought the men to Joseph's house. 18. And the men were afraid because they were brought to Joseph's house; and they said, Over the word of the silver that was returned in our bags in the beginning are we brought; to roll down upon us, and to cast himself upon us, and to take us for servants, and our asses. 19. And they came near to the man that was over Joseph's house, and they spoke unto him at the door of the house, 20. And said, In me, my lord, in coming down we came down in the beginning to buy food;
21. And it came to pass, when we came to the inn and we opened our bags, and behold everyone's silver in the mouth of his bag, our silver in its weight; and we have brought it back in our hand. 22. And the other silver have we brought down in our hand to buy food; we know not who put our silver in our bags. 23. And he said, Peace be to you, fear not; your God and the God of your father gave you a hidden gift in your bags; your silver came to me. And he brought Simeon out unto them. 24. And the man brought the men to Joseph's house, and gave water, and they washed their feet; and he gave their asses provender. 25. And they made ready the present against Joseph came at noon; for they heard that they should eat bread there. 26. And Joseph came to the house, and they brought him the present which was in their hand to the house, and bowed down themselves to him to the earth. 27. And he asked them to peace, and said, Is there peace to your father, the old man of whom ye spoke? Is he yet alive? 28. And they said, There is peace to thy servant our father; he is yet alive. And they bent themselves, and bowed themselves down. 29. And he lifted up his eyes, and saw Benjamin his brother, his mother's son, and said, Is this your youngest brother, of whom ye spoke unto me? And he said, God be gracious unto thee, my son. 30. And Joseph made haste, for his compassions were moved toward his brother; and he sought to weep, and he came to the bed-chamber, and wept there. 31. And he washed his faces, and went out, and he restrained himself, and said, Set on bread. 32. And they set on for him alone, and for them alone, and for the Egyptians who did eat with him, alone; because the Egyptians cannot eat bread with the Hebrews; because this is an abomination to the Egyptians. 33. And they sat before him, the firstborn according to his birthright, and the youngest according to his youth; and the men were amazed, everyone at his companion. 34. And he brought out portions from his faces unto them; and he multiplied Benjamin's portion above the portions of them all, five measures. And they drank and drank largely with him. * pistachio
Elliott(1983-1999) 5573
5573. A certain spirit was once present, but was invisible over my head. I was led to perceive his presence from a stench of burnt horn or bone and from stinking teeth. After that a large crowd looking like a cloud appeared on the scene, coming up from below towards a higher position behind my back. These too were invisible; and they came to a halt above my head. I assumed that their invisibility was due to their own cleverness. I was told however that where the spiritual sphere obtained they were not visible, but where the natural sphere did so they were visible. They were therefore called 'the invisible natural ones'. Regarding those spirits let me record first the disclosure that they endeavoured in a most zealous, cunning, and skillful manner to prevent any exposure at all of themselves. Having this end in view they also knew how to take away from other people the ideas they possessed and to replace these with different ones with which they prevented their own disclosure. Their endeavour to do this lasted for quite a long time. From all this I was led to see that during their lifetime those spirits had been the kind of people who did not want any of their actions or thought to be exposed, which they achieved by assuming a different countenance and a different manner of speaking. Nevertheless they had not employed any kind of pretence so as to lie and deceive.
[2] I perceived that the spirits present with me had been traders during their lifetime; yet they were the kind whose delight in life lay in trading itself and not so much in riches, so that trading itself was so to speak the driving force (anima) within them. I therefore spoke to them about this, and was led to say that trading in no way prevented them from entering heaven and that in heaven there were rich people no less than poor ones. But they objected to this, saying it had been their opinion that if they were going to be saved, they would need to give up trading, donate all their possessions to the poor, and reduce themselves to a pitiable condition. I was led to answer that what they said was not true and that those among them who were in heaven because they had been good Christians and yet had been wealthy, some extremely wealthy, thought otherwise. These people had had as their end in view the common good and love towards their neighbour; and they had engaged in commerce solely for the sake of service in the world and had not, what is more, set their heart on wealth. But the reason why those to whom I was speaking were on a lower level was that they were wholly naturally-minded and therefore had no belief in a life after death, or in hell, or in heaven; indeed they had no belief in the spirit. I also told them that by the use of all kinds of ingenuity they had heartlessly robbed others of their goods and without feeling any pity could for their own gain watch entire households perish, and that they consequently derided everyone who talked to them about the spiritual life.
[3] I have also been shown the kind of belief those spirits had had regarding life after death, and regarding heaven and hell. A certain person appeared who was carried up to heaven, going up from the left over to the right. I was told that this was someone who had recently died and was being taken off immediately by angels into heaven. There followed a discussion concerning that person, but although those spirits too saw this take place, they possessed a sphere of disbelief which was an extremely powerful one and which they diffused around themselves. It was so powerful that they were willing to convince themselves and others not to believe what they had seen. Because their disbelief was so strong I was led to tell them that if in the world they had by chance witnessed the restoration to life of someone lying dead on a catafalque they would first of all have said that they refused to believe it unless they had seen many dead persons restored to life, and that if they had seen this they would have attributed such to natural causes. After this, when those spirits had been left to think for a while, they said that at first they would have believed that what they had seen was some trick. But once, they added, it proved to be no trick they would have believed that the soul of the dead person had some secret communication with the one restoring him to life, and at length that this was some secret which they could not comprehend; for the natural world contains very many incomprehensible secrets. So they could not have been led to believe that such a happening was attributable to some force outside the natural order. This revealed the kind of faith that had been theirs, that is to say, a faith which could not possibly lead them to believe in a life after death, or in hell, or in heaven. Thus it revealed that they were naturally-minded. When spirits like these are seen in the light of heaven they too seem to have no face, only a thick growth of hair in place of it.
Latin(1748-1756) 5573
5573. Quidam supra caput inconspicuus aderat, sed quod adesset ex nidore adusti cornu seu ossis, et ex fetore dentium, percipere datum; postea veniebat magna turba sicut nimbus, ab inferiore versus superiora a tergo, etiam inconspicui, et supra caput subsistebant; putabam quod inconspicui essent quia subtiles, sed dictum quod ubi sphaera spiritualis ibi inconspicui sint, ast ubi sphaera naturalis, ibi conspicui; et vocati sunt naturales inconspicui. Primum quod de illis detectum erat quod summo studio, calliditate et arte conniterentur ut nihil propalaretur de illis, ob quem finem etiam callebant surripere aliis eorum ideas et inducere alias quibus impediebant ne detegerentur; hoc satis diu perstabat; inde cognoscere datum quod tales in vita corporis fuerint ut non voluerint propalari quicquam ex illis quae agebant et cogitabant, aliam faciem et aliam loquelam praeferendo; sed usque non praetexebant alia ut per mendacia deciperent. [2]Perceptum quod qui aderant, in vita corporis negotiatores fuerint, sed tales quod jucundum vitae in ipsa negotiatione, non ita in divitiis, {1}habuerint, et sic quod negotiatio fuerit quasi anima eorum; quapropter de hac cum illis locutus sum, et dicere datum quod negotiatio nihil impediat quin in caelum venire possint, et quod in caelo sint aeque divites ac pauperes; sed objiciebant quod eorum opinio fuerit, si salvarentur, quod abdicarent se {2}negotiatione, darent omnia sua pauperibus et se miseros facerent; sed illis respondere datum est quod non ita se res habeat et quod aliter cogitaverint illi apud illos qui in caelo sunt quia boni Christiani fuerunt et usque {3}opulenti, et aliqui eorum inter opulentissimos; hi habuerunt commune bonum et amorem erga proximum pro fine, et mercaturam exercuerunt modo functionis causa in mundo, et praeterea non posuerunt cor in illis; {4}at quod illi infra sint, est causa quia mere naturales fuerunt, et ideo non crediderunt vitam post mortem, nec infernum, nec caelum, immo nec aliquem spiritum, et quod illis non cordi fuerit quacumque arte deprivare alios suis bonis, et quod absque misericordia {5}videre potuerint perire integras domos sui lucri causa; et quod ideo subsannaverint omnes qui de spirituali vita cum illis locuti sunt. [3]Qualem fidem habuerunt de vita post mortem, de caelo et de inferno, etiam ostensum est; apparuit quidam qui in caelum sublatus est a sinistro versus dextrum, et {6} dictum quod nuper aliquis mortuus sit, et ab angelis deductus immediate in caelum; de illo sermo fuit, ast illi tametsi viderunt quoque, usque incredulitatis sphaeram {7}habebant perquam fortem, et illam circumspargebant, adeo ut contra quod (8)viderunt, sibi et aliis persuadere voluerint, et quia tanta illis incredulitas, dicere illis datum est, si forte vidissent in mundo resuscitari aliquem mortuum jacentem in lectica, dicebant quod primum non credidissent nisi plures mortuos resuscitatos vidissent, et si hoc vidissent quod usque attribuissent tale causis naturalibus; dicebant postea, cum aliquamdiu relicti fuissent suis cogitationibus quod primum credidissent quod fraus, et cum evictum quod non fraus quod credidissent animam mortui secretam communicationem habuisse cum illo qui resuscitaret, et tandem quod aliquod secretum esset quod non comprehenderent, quia in natura dantur perplura incomprehensibilia; ac ita quod nusquam potuissent credere quod tale ex aliqua vi supra naturam exstiterit; inde detectum qualis eorum fides fuerat, quod nempe nusquam adduci potuerint ad credendum quod aliqua vita post mortem esset, nec quod infernum, nec quod caelum; ita quod prorsus naturales essent. Tales cum apparent in luce caeli, etiam absque facie apparent, et loco ejus densum crinitum. @1 habuerint after vitae$ @2 negatione I$ @3 divites$ @4 sed$ @5 fuerint, si vidissent$ @6 i mihi$ @7 inducebant$ @8 viderint$GENESEOS CAPUT QUADRAGESIMUM TERTIUM
1. Et fames ingravescebat in terra. 2. Et factum, sicut absolvissent comedere annonam, quam adduxerunt ex Aegypto, et dixit ad illos pater illorum, Revertimini, emite nobis parum cibi. 3. Et dixit ad eum Jehudah, dicendo, Contestando contestatus in nos vir, dicendo, Non videbitis facies meas absque quod frater vester vobiscum. 4. Si sis tu mittens fratrem nostrum nobiscum, descendemus et ememus tibi cibum. 5. Et si non tu mittens, non descendemus, quia vir dixit ad nos, Non videbitis facies meas absque quod frater vester vobiscum. 6. Et dixit Israel, Quare male fecistis mihi, ad indicandum viro an adhuc vobis frater? 7. Et dixerunt, Interrogando interrogavit vir ad nos, et ad nativitatem nostram, dicendo, An adhuc pater vester vivit? an sit {1}vobis frater? et indicavimus ei juxta os verborum illorum; an sciendo scivimus quod diceret, Descendere facite fratrem vestrum? @1 nobis I$ 8. Et dixit Jehudah ad Israelem patrem suum, Mitte puerum mecum, et surgemus, et ibimus, et vivemus, et non moriemur, etiam nos, etiam tu, etiam infantes nostri. 9. {1}Ego spondebo pro illo, e manu mea quaeres illum, nisi adduxero illum ad te, et statuero illum coram te, et peccabo tibi omnibus diebus. @1 Et I, but Ego A, Heb = Ego$ 10. Quia ni forte tardaverimus, quod nunc reversi fuerimus his duabus vicibus. 11. Et dixit ad illos Israel pater illorum, Si ita ergo hoc, facite, accipite e decantatione terrae in vasis vestris, et descendere facite viro munus, parum resinae, et parum mellis, ceram et stacten, nuces terebinthinas et amygdalas. 12. Et argenti duplum accipite in manibus vestris, et argentum reductum in ore manticarum vestrarum reducetis in manu vestra, forte error hoc. 13. Et fratrem vestrum accipite, et surgite, revertimini ad virum. 14. Et Deus Shaddai det vobis misericordias coram viro, et mittat vobis fratrem vestrum alterum, et Benjaminem; et ego quemadmodum orbatus sum, orbatus ero. 15. Et acceperunt viri munus hoc, et duplum argenti acceperunt in manu sua, et Benjaminem, et surrexerunt, et descenderunt Aegyptum, et steterunt coram Josepho. 16. Et vidit Joseph cum illis Benjaminem, et dixit ei qui super domo sua, Adduc viros domum, et mactando macta, et praepara, quia mecum comedent viri in meridie. 17. Et fecir vir quemadmodum dixit Joseph, et adduxit vir viros domum Josephi. 18. Et timuerunt viri quod adducti domum Josephi, et dixerunt, Super verbum argenti reducti in manticis nostris in initio nos adducimur, ad devolvendum super nos, et ad conjiciendum se super nos, et ad sumendum nos ad servos, et asinos nostros. 19. Et accesserunt ad virum qui super domo Josephi, et locuti ad illum ostio domus. 20. Et dixerunt, {1}In me, domine mi, descendendo descendimus in initio ad emendum cibum. @1 see note to n. 5654, p. 250, ft 1$ 21. Et factum, cum veniremus ad diversorium, et aperuimus manticas nostras, et ecce argentum cujusvis in ore manticae suae, argentum nostrum in pondere suo, et reducimus illud in manu nostra. 22. Et argentum alterum descendere facimus in manu nostra ad emendum cibum, non scimus quis posuit argentum nostrum in manticis nostris. 23. Et dixit, Pax vobis, ne timeatis, Deus vester, et Deus patris vestri dedit vobis absconditum donum in manticis vestris, argentum vestrum venit ad me; et eduxit ad illos Shimeonem. 24. Et adduxit vir viros domum Josephi, et dedit {1}aquam, et lavarunt pedes suos, et dedit pabulum asinis illorum. @1 A alters aquas to aquam, but 5666 and 5668 have aquas$ 25. Et praepararunt munus, usque ad venire Joseph in meridie, quia audiverunt quod ibi comederent panem. 26. Et venit Joseph domum, et adduxerunt ei munus quod in manu illorum, domum, et incurvabant se ei ad terram. 27. Et interrogavit illos ad pacem; et dixit, An pax patri vestro seni, quem dixistis? an adhuc is vivit? 28. Et dixerunt, Pax servo tuo patri nostro, adhuc ille vivit, et deflexerunt se, et incurvarunt se. 29. Et sustulit oculos suos, et vidit Benjaminem fratrem suum, filium matris suae, et dixit, An hic frater vester minimus, quem dixistis ad me? et dixit, Deus gratiosus sit tibi, fili mi. 30. Et festinavit Joseph, quia commovebantur commiserationes ejus ad fratrem suum, et quaerebat flere, et venit cubiculum, et flevit ibi. 31. Et lavit facies suas, et exivit, et continuit se, et dixit, Ponite panem. 32. Et posuerunt illi soli, et illis solis, et Aegyptiis comedentibus cum eo solis, quia non possunt Aegyptii comedere cum Hebraeis panem, quia abominatio id Aegyptiis. 33. Et sederunt coram eo, primogenitus secundum primogenituram suam, et minorennis secundum minorennitatem suam, et obstupuerunt viri quisque ad socium suum. 34. Et extulit portiones ex faciebus suis ad illos, et multiplicavit portionem Benjaminis prae portionibus omnium illorum quinque mensuris; et bibebant, et large bibebant cum eo.