225、由此清楚可知，只要人活在自然界，他就能被允许进入关于属灵事物的智慧，还能进入对它们的爱；这一切能够发生并且的确发生在那些纯属世的人和那些属灵的人身上；但区别在于：属灵人由此被改造，而同样按着这些方法，纯属世人却没有被改造。表面上看，纯属世人似乎喜欢智慧；但他们喜欢智慧只是像奸夫喜欢好女人那样，也就是说，他把这个女人当成一个高级妓女来爱，对她说甜言蜜语，送她漂亮衣服，然而私下里却论到她说：“她无非是卑贱的妓女，我要让她相信，我爱她是因为她满足了我的情欲；如果她满足不了，我就一脚踢开她。”这种人的内在人就是这奸夫，而他们的外在人则是这女人。
225. It is now apparent from this that as long as a person lives in the natural world he can be admitted into wisdom regarding spiritual matters and also into a love for them, and that this is the case or can be the case both with people who are merely natural and with people who are spiritual - but with the difference that the spiritual are reformed by those matters, while the merely natural are not.
In the case of merely natural people, it may even appear as though they love wisdom, but they love it only as an adulterer loves a lady of noble birth whom he uses as a harlot, with whom he speaks agreeably and to whom he gives beautiful garments, but of whom he thinks to himself at home that she is nothing but a common whore - "whom I will induce to believe that I love her, because she gratifies my lust. But if she did not gratify it, I would reject her."
A person's internal self is the adulterer, and his external self the noble lady.
225. We can see from this that as long as we are living in this physical world, we can be let into wisdom about spiritual matters and even into a love for them, and that this does and can happen both to people who are completely earthly-minded as well as to people who are spiritual. The difference is, though, that the latter are reformed when this happens, while the former are not. It may seem as though they love wisdom, but they love it only the way an adulterer loves a fine woman--like a prostitute. He talks soothingly to her and gives her beautiful clothes, but privately he is thinking, "She is nothing but a worthless whore. I will get her to believe that I love her, because she takes my fancy, but if she does not take to me, then I will discard her." The inner self is the adulterer, and the outer self is the woman.
225. From these considerations it is now clear that while man lives in the natural world he can be admitted into the wisdom of spiritual things and also into the love of them; and that this happens and can happen both with those who are wholly natural and with those who are spiritual; but with this difference, that the spiritual are thereby reformed but the natural by the same means are not reformed. It may even appear as if the natural loved wisdom; but they only love it as an adulterer loves an honourable woman, that is, as if she were a courtesan, speaking to her fair words, and giving her beautiful garments, yet saying of her privately to himself She is only a vile harlot whom I will make believe that I love her because she gratifies my lust; but if she did not, I would cast her off. The internal man of such a one is this adulterer, and his external man is this woman.
225. From all this it is now clear that so long as a man lives in the natural world he can be admitted into the wisdom of spiritual things, and also into a love for them; and that this can take place and does take place, both with those who are merely natural and with those who are spiritual; but with this difference, that the spiritual are thereby reformed, while the merely natural by the same means are not reformed. With these there may be an appearance that they love wisdom; but they merely love it as an adulterer loves an honorable woman, that is, the same as he would love a courtesan, talking sweetly to her, giving her beautiful garments, but saying to himself privately, She is nothing but a mere harlot, whom I will make believe that I love because she gratifies my lust; but if she should fail to gratify it I would cast her off. The internal man of such is that adulterer; while their external is that woman.
225. Ex his nunc patet, quod homo, quamdiu in mundo naturali vivit, immitti possit in sapientiam rerum spiritualium, et quoque in amorem illarum; et quod hoc fiat ac fieri possit tam apud illos qui mere naturales sunt, quam apud illos qui spirituales; sed cum differentia, quod hi per illa reformentur, et quod illi per eadem non reformentur: apud hos etiam potest apparere sicut ament sapientiam, sed non aliter amant illam, quam sicut adulter amat foeminam nobilem, sicut meretricem, cum qua blande loquitur, ac cui dat vestes decoris, de qua tamen domi secum cogitat, quod non sit nisi quam vile scortum, cui faciam credere quod amem, quia favet libidini meae; at si non faveret, rejecturus essem: Internus ejus homo est adulter ille, et Externus ejus homo est foemina illa.