70、凡死后成为天使者，都会脱去自然界的上述两种属性，即空间和时间。因为那时他们会进入属灵之光；在这光中，思维的对象是真理，眼见的对象虽与自然界的很相似，但与其思维相对应。如刚才所述，其思维的对象是真理，根本不从空间和时间中提取任何事物；尽管他们眼见的对象看似在空间和时间之中，但天使却不根据空间和时间来思考。原因在于，灵界的空间和时间不像自然界那样是固定的，而是照他们的生命状态发生变化。因此，在他们的思维观念里，生命状态取代了空间和时间，诸如与爱的状态有关的那类概念取代了空间，与智慧的状态有关的那类概念取代了时间。正因如此，属灵思维和由此而来的属灵言语迥异于属世思维和由此而来的属世言语，以至于除非涉及事物的内层(内层都是属灵的)，否则它们毫无共同之处。我们将在别处详述这种不同。由于天使的思维不从空间和时间中提取任何事物，而是从生命状态中提取一切事物，所以当听说神性充满空间时，他们无法理解，因为他们不知空间为何物；但当抛开空间的概念，说神性充满一切事物时，他们能清楚明白。
70. These two properties of nature--the space and time just mentioned--are left behind by everyone who dies and becomes an angel. At that time, people come into a spiritual light in which the objects of their thought are truths, and the objects of their vision--even though those objects look like things in this physical world--are actually responsive to their thoughts.
The objects of their thought, which as just noted are truths, are not at all dependent on space and time. While the objects of their sight do seem to be in space and in time, angels do not use them as the basis for their thinking. The reason is that in the spiritual world intervals of space and time are not fixed the way they are in our physical world, but are changeable in response to their states of life. This means that states of life take the place of space and time in the concepts of their thinking. Issues related to states of love are in place of spatial intervals and issues related to states of wisdom are in place of temporal intervals. This is why spiritual thought and the consequent spiritual speech are so different from earthly thought and its speech that they have nothing in common. They are alike only as to the deeper aspects of their subject matter, which are entirely spiritual. I need to say more about this difference later [163, 295, and 306].
Since angels' thoughts do not depend at all on space and time, then, but on states of life, we can see that angels do not understand when someone says that Divinity fills space. They do not know what spatial intervals are. They understand perfectly, though, when someone says that Divinity fills everything, with no reference to any image of space.
70. These two properties of nature - which as we said are space and time - are discarded as notions by all who die and become angels. For they enter then into spiritual light, where the objects of their thought are truths, and where the objects of their sight are like those in the natural world, but ones corresponding to their thoughts.
The objects of their thought, which as we said are truths, draw nothing of their character from space and time. The objects of their sight, on the other hand, indeed appear as though they existed in space and in time, but still they do not think in accordance with them. The reason is that intervals of space and time there are not fixed as they are in the natural world, but are variable in conformity with the inhabitants' states of life. As a result, instead of space and time, they have in the ideas of their thought states of life - instead of intervals of space, such notions as relate to states of love, and instead of intervals of time, such notions as relate to states of wisdom. It is in consequence of this that spiritual thought and therefore also spiritual speech differ so much from natural thought and its resulting speech that they have nothing in common except as regards the interior contents of their subjects, all of which are spiritual. Regarding this difference more will be said elsewhere.
Now, because the thoughts of angels draw nothing of their character from space and time, but from states of life, it is apparent that they do not comprehend it when they are told that the Divine fills space and intervals of space, for they do not know what intervals of space are, but that they comprehend it clearly when they are told, without any reference to space, that the Divine fills all things.
70. All who die and become angels put off those two things proper to Nature which, as was said, are space and time. For they then enter into spiritual light (lux) in which the objects of thought are truths, and the objects of sight are like those in the natural world, but correspondent to their thoughts. The objects of their thought which, as said above, are truths, derive absolutely nothing from space and time. Although the objects of their sight appear just as in space and time, still they do not think from these. The reason is that spaces and times there are not constant as in the natural world, but are subject to change in accordance with their states of life. Hence instead of these, there are in the ideas of their thought states of life, instead of spaces such things as refer to states of love, and instead of times such things as refer to states of wisdom. So it comes about that spiritual thought and therefore also spiritual speech differ from natural thought and the speech therefrom to such an extent that they have nothing in common, except as regards the interiors of things which are all spiritual. Concerning this difference more will be said elsewhere.
Now, because the angels' thoughts derive nothing from space and time, but everything from states of life, it appears that angels do not comprehend when it is said that the Divine fills spaces, for they do not know what spaces are. But when, apart from any idea of space, it is said that the Divine fills all things, they clearly comprehend.
70. All who die and become angels put off the two above- mentioned properties of nature, namely, space and time; for they then enter into spiritual light, in which objects of thought are truths, and objects of sight are like those in the natural world, but are correspondent to their thoughts. The objects of their thought which, as just said, are truths, derive nothing at all from space and time; and though the objects of their sight appear as if in space and in time, still the angels do not think from space and time. The reason is, that spaces and times there are not fixed, as in the natural world, but are changeable according to the states of their life. In the ideas of their thought, therefore, instead of space and time there are states of life, instead of spaces such things as have reference to states of love, and instead of times such things as have reference to states of wisdom. From this it is that spiritual thought, and spiritual speech therefrom, differ so much from natural thought and natural speech therefrom, as to have nothing in common except as regards the interiors of things, which are all spiritual. Of this difference more will be said elsewhere. Now, because the thoughts of angels derive nothing from space and time, but everything from states of life, when it is said that the Divine fills spaces angels evidently cannot comprehend it, for they do not know what spaces are; but when, apart from any idea of space, it is said that the Divine fills all things, they clearly comprehend it.
70. Illa duo Naturae propria, quae, ut dictum est, sunt spatium et Tempus, exuunt omnes qui obeunt et fiunt Angeli; intrant enim tunc in lucem spiritualem, in qua objecta cogitationis sunt vera, et objecta visus sunt similia quae in Mundo naturali, sed cogitationibus illorum correspondentia. Objecta cogitationis illorum, quae, ut dictum est, sunt vera, prorsus nihil trahunt ex spatio et tempore; objecta autem visus eorum quidem apparent sicut in spatio et in tempore, sed usque non cogitant ex illis: causa est, quia spatia et tempora ibi non sunt stata sicut in Mundo naturali, sed mutabilia secundum status vitae eorum; 1 inde pro illis in ideis cogitationis eorum sunt status vitae, pro spatiis talia quae se referunt ad status amoris, et pro temporibus talia quae se referunt ad status sapientiae: inde est quod cogitatio spiritualis et inde quoque loquela spiritualis, in tantum a cogitatione et inde loquela naturali differat, ut nihil commune nisi quoad interiora rerum, quae omnia sunt spiritualia, habeant; de qua differentia plura alibi dicentur. Nunc quia Angelorum cogitationes nihil trahunt ex spatio et tempore, sed ex statibus vitae, patet, quod illi non comprehendant cum dicitur, quod Divinum impleat spatia, non sciunt enim quid spatia, sed quod clare comprehendant cum absque idea ullius spatii dicitur, quod Divinum impleat omnia.
Footnotes:
1. Prima editio: norum,