116、没有人的帮助，外在人中的邪恶无法被移走，因为按照主的圣治，凡人所听、所看、所思、所愿、所说、所行的，在他看来，似乎完全是他自己的。如前所示（71-95ff节），没有这种表象，人将不能接受神性真理，决定行善，将爱和智慧内化，也没有仁和信，从而没有与主的结合，以及随之而来的改造和重生，因而没有救赎。显而易见，没有这种表象，从罪中悔改，甚至信是不可能的。同样显而易见的是，没有这种表象，人将不是一个人，而是缺乏任何理性生命，就像动物。若有人愿意，就让他请教自己的理性，看看当一个人思想良善和真理，无论属灵的，道德的还是文明的时，除了他凭自己思想外，是否存在其它任何表象；然后让他接受这个教义：一切良善和真理皆来自主，无一来自人；难道他不会承认这个结论，即：人必须貌似凭自己实行良善，思想真理，然而又必须承认他如此行是靠着主吗？难道他不会承认一个人必须貌似凭自己移走邪恶，然而又必须承认他如此行是靠着主吗？
116. As for the statement that evils in the external self can be put away only through the agency of the person, the reason is that, of the Lord's Divine providence, whatever a person hears, sees, thinks, wills, speaks, or does, appears to him altogether as attributable to him. Without that appearance the person would be incapable of any reception of Divine truth, of any determination to do good, of any incorporation of love and wisdom or charity and faith, and of any conjunction, therefore, with the Lord, consequently of any reformation and regeneration, and thus salvation, as we showed above in nos. 71-95 and thereafter. It is evident that without that appearance repentance from sins would not be possible, nor indeed faith, and that without that appearance a person would not be human, but would be devoid of any rational life, like an animal.
Let anyone who will, consult his own reason as to whether the case appears any otherwise than that a person thinks about good and truth - spiritual good and truth as well as moral and civil good and truth - of himself; and accept then this doctrine, that every good and truth originates from the Lord, and none from man. Will you not acknowledge as a consequence that a person must do good and think truth as though of himself, and yet recognize that he does so from the Lord? And will you not then acknowledge that a person must put away evils as though of himself, but yet recognize that he does this from the Lord?
116. The reason the evils in our outer self cannot be expelled without our cooperation is this. One of the principles of the Lord's divine providence is that whatever we hear, see, think, intend, say, and do seems to belong to us completely. I have already explained (71-95 and following above) that if it did not seem like this, we would not be able to accept divine truth, decide to do good, or internalize love and wisdom. We would have no charity and faith and therefore no union with the Lord, no reformation and regeneration, and no salvation.
It is obvious that if it did not seem like this there would be no possibility of repentance from our sins and in fact no faith whatever, and that if it did not seem like this we would not be human but would be devoid of any rational life, like animals. Submit the matter to reason, if you will. Does it not seem exactly as though we ourselves think about what is good and true in spiritual, civic, and moral matters? Then accept the theological principle that everything good and true comes from the Lord and nothing from us. Can we not recognize the conclusion that we should do what is good and think what is true as though we were autonomous, but that we should still admit that these actions are being done by the Lord? Particularly, can you not see that we are to expel evils in apparent autonomy but still admit that the source of our doing this is the Lord?
116. Evils in the external man cannot be removed except through man's instrumentality, because it is of the Divine Providence of the Lord that whatever a man hears, sees, thinks, wills, says and does should appear to be entirely as his own. It was shown above (n. 71-95, and following numbers), that without this appearance there would be with man no reception of Divine Truth, no determination towards doing good, no appropriation of love and wisdom and of charity and faith, and no conjunction thereby with the Lord, and consequently no reformation and regeneration and thus no salvation. It is clear that without this appearance there can be neither repentance from sins nor even faith. It is also clear that without this appearance a man is not a man, but a being devoid of rational life like a beast. Let anyone who will, consult his reason as to whether it does not appear that a man thinks from himself about good and truth, spiritual as well as moral and civil. Let him then accept this tenet of doctrine that everything that is good and true is from the Lord and nothing from man. He will then acknowledge this as a consequence, that a man ought to do good and think truth as of himself, but yet should acknowledge that he does these things from the Lord, and that a man should remove evils as of himself but yet should acknowledge that he does so from the Lord.
116. Evils in the external man can be put away only by man's instrumentality, because it is of the Lord's Divine providence that whatever man hears, sees, thinks, wills, speaks, and does, seems to him to be wholly his own. Without this appearance (as has been shown above,71-95, and in subsequent numbers) there could be in man no reception of Divine truth, no determination towards doing good, no appropriation of love and wisdom or of charity and faith, and therefore no conjunction with the Lord, consequently no reformation and regeneration and thus salvation. Without this appearance repentance from sins, and faith even, are evidently impossible. It is also evident that without this appearance a man would not be a man, but would be devoid of natural life like a beast. Let any one who will consult his reason and see, when a man thinks about good and truth, spiritual, moral, or civil, whether there is any other appearance than that he thinks from himself; let him then accept this doctrinal, that everything good and true is from the Lord and nothing from man; and will he not acknowledge this consequence, that man must do good and think truth as if of himself, and yet must acknowledge that he does it from the Lord; and furthermore, that man must put away evils as if of himself and yet must acknowledge that he does it from the Lord?
116. Quod mala in Externo homine non removeri possint nisi quam medio homine, est quia ex Divina Domini Providentia est, quod quicquid homo audit, videt, cogitat, vult, loquitur et facit, appareat prorsus sicut ejus; quod absque illa apparentia non foret homini aliqua receptio Divini Veri, nulla determinatio ad faciendum bonum, nulla appropriatio amoris et sapientiae, tum charitatis et fidei, et inde nulla conjunctio cum Domino, proinde nulla reformatio et regeneratio, et sic salvatio, supra 71-95 et seq. ostensum est: quod absque illa apparentia non dabilis sit poenitentia a peccatis, imo nec fides, evidens est, tum quod homo absque illa apparentia non sit homo, sed expers vitae rationalis, similis bestiae. Consulat qui vult suam rationem, num apparet aliter, quam quod homo de bono et vero, tam spirituali quam morali et civili, cogitet ex se, et tunc recipe id doctrinale, quod omne bonum et verum sit a Domino, et nihil ab homine; annon agnosces hoc consequens, 1quod homo bonum faciet et verum cogitabit sicut ex se, sed usque agnoscet quod illa a Domino; proinde etiam, quod homo removebit mala sicut a se, sed usque agnoscet quod id faciat ex Domino.
Footnotes:
1 Prima editio: consequens"