28、⑴天堂就是与主的结合。天堂之所以为天堂，不是由于天使，而是由于主。因为天使所享有并构成天堂的爱与智慧不是来自天使，而是来自主，实际上就是在他们里面的主。由于爱与智慧是主的，是在天堂的主，并构成天使的生命，所以清楚可知，天使的生命是主的，实际上就是主。天使自己公开声称他们靠主存活。由此明显可知，天堂就是与主的结合。但与主的结合各种各样，这个人的天堂不同于那个人的；因此，天堂的性质也取决于与主结合的性质。接下来的章节（32-33节）将说明，这种结合可能越来越紧密，也可能越来越遥远。
在此需要说一说这种结合是如何发生的，又是何性质。这是一种主与天使并天使与主的结合，故是一种相互结合。主流入天使的生命之爱，天使在其智慧中接受祂，因而反过来与主结合。然而，需要清楚明白的是，在天使看来，他们似乎通过自己的智慧与主结合；而事实上，是主通过他们的智慧与他们结合，因为他们的智慧也来自主。我们不妨说，主通过良善与天使结合，天使通过真理反过来与主结合，因为一切良善都属于爱，一切真理都属于智慧。
然而，这种相互结合是一个奥秘，若不加以解释，没有多少人能明白。因此，我想尽可能以一种可以理解的方式展开它。我在《圣爱与圣智》一书（404，405节）已说明爱如何与智慧结合，尤其通过产生对真理的情感的求知欲（即对知道的情感），通过产生对真理的感知的对理解的情感，以及产生思维的对看见所知道和理解的东西的情感来结合。主流入所有这些情感，因为它们都是一个人生命之爱的分支或衍生物；天使在其对真理的感知和他们的思维中接受这种流注，因为该流注是在他们的感知，而不是在他们的情感中向他们显明的。
由于在天使看来，感知和思维似乎是他们自己的，尽管它们是由来自主的情感产生的，所以表面上看，是天使作为回应与主相互结合；而事实上，是主与他们结合。情感本身产生感知和思维，因为属于爱的情感就是感知和思维的灵魂。没有情感，没有人能感知和思考任何东西，每个人都是照着他的情感来感知和思考的。由此可见，天使与主的这种相互结合不是来自天使，而是似乎来自他们。主与教会并教会与主的结合也是如此，这种结合被称为属灵和属天的婚姻。
28. (1) Heaven is conjunction with the Lord. Heaven is not heaven owing to the angels, but owing to the Lord, for the love and wisdom which angels possess and which make heaven heaven come not from them but from the Lord. Indeed love and wisdom are the Lord in them.
Moreover, because love and wisdom are the Lord's and are the Lord in heaven, and love and wisdom form the angels' life, it is apparent also that their life is the Lord's, indeed is the Lord. The angels themselves confess that they have their life from the Lord. It can be seen from this that heaven is conjunction with the Lord.
But because conjunction with the Lord varies, and heaven is therefore not the same for one as for another, it follows also that heaven is heaven according to one's conjunction with the Lord. We will see in the following discussion that the conjunction may be more and more close, or more and more remote.
[2] Here we will say something about that conjunction - how it is formed, and the nature of it. It is a conjunction of the Lord with the angels, and of the angels with the Lord, thus a reciprocal one. The Lord flows into the life's love of angels, and the angels receive the Lord in their wisdom and thereby conjoin themselves in turn with the Lord.
It should be rightly known, however, that although it appears to angels as though they conjoin themselves with the Lord through their wisdom, still it is the Lord who conjoins them to Him through their wisdom. For their wisdom comes also from the Lord.
It is the same if we say that the Lord conjoins Himself with angels through their goodness, and that angels conjoin themselves in turn with the Lord through their truth. For all goodness is connected with love, and all truth with wisdom.
[3] But because this reciprocal conjunction is a mystery which few can understand without its being explained, I wish to unravel it as far as is possible in terms on a level with people's comprehension.
We showed in our treatise Divine Love and Wisdom 404-405, how love conjoins itself with wisdom, namely that it does so through an affection for knowing, from which springs an affection for truth; through an affection for understanding, from which springs a perception of truth; and through an affection for seeing what it knows and understands, from which springs thought.
The Lord flows into all these affections, as they are derivations of everyone's life's love, and angels receive that influx in a perception of truth and in thought, since in these the influx becomes apparent to them, but not in the affections.
[4] Now because their perceptions and thoughts appear to angels as being their own, even though they spring from affections that they have from the Lord, therefore the appearance is that angels reciprocally conjoin themselves with the Lord, when in fact it is the Lord who conjoins them with Him. For it is the affection which produces the perceptions and thoughts, it being the affection springing from love that is their soul. No one, indeed, is capable of any perception or thought apart from affection, and everyone perceives and thinks in accordance with his affection.
It is apparent from this that the reciprocal conjunction of angels with the Lord is occasioned not by them, but as though by them.
Such also is the conjunction of the Lord with the church, and of the church with the Lord, which we call the celestial and spiritual marriage.
28. 1. Heaven is union with the Lord. Heaven is not heaven because of angels but because of the Lord. The reason for this is that the love and wisdom that angels enjoy and that make heaven do not come from them but from the Lord--love and wisdom actually are the Lord within the angels. Since love and wisdom belong to the Lord and are the Lord in heaven, and since love and wisdom make up the life of angels, we can see as well that their life belongs to the Lord and that in fact their life is the Lord. The angels themselves insist that they are living from the Lord. We can therefore conclude that heaven is union with the Lord.
Since union with the Lord varies, though, and heaven is therefore not the same in one angel as it is in another, it also follows that the nature of heaven depends on the nature of the union with the Lord. The next section [32-33] will explain that the union may be closer and closer, or more and more distant.
[2] Now I need to say something about how that union happens and what it is like. There is a union of the Lord with angels and a union of angels with the Lord; so it is a mutual relationship. The Lord flows into the love of angels' lives, and angels accept the Lord in their wisdom, in this way uniting themselves to the Lord in return. It needs to be clearly understood, though, that although it seems to angels that they are uniting themselves to the Lord through their wisdom, in fact the Lord is uniting them to himself through that wisdom, since their wisdom also comes from the Lord.
We could just as well say that the Lord unites himself to angels through what is good and that they in turn unite themselves to the Lord through what is true, since everything good is a matter of love and everything true is a matter of wisdom.
[3] However, since this mutual union is a mystery that not many people can grasp unless it is explained, I want to lay it out in a comprehensible fashion to the extent that it is possible.
I explained in Divine Love and Wisdom 404-405 how love unites itself to wisdom, specifically through a desire for knowing that gives rise to a desire for what is true, a desire for discerning that gives rise to a desire to grasp what is true, and a desire to see what we know and discern that gives rise to thought. The Lord flows into these desires, which are branches of the love of every individual's life; and angels accept that inflow in their perception of what is true and in their thinking. They notice the inflow in their perception, not in their desires.
[4] Since it seems to angels that their perceptions and thoughts are their own even though they arise from desires that come from the Lord, the appearance is also that angels are uniting themselves to the Lord in return when in fact the Lord is uniting them to himself. That is, the desire itself is bringing forth the perceptions and thoughts. Desire, a matter of love, is actually the soul of their perceptions and thoughts. No one can perceive or think anything apart from desires, and all of us perceive and think in keeping with our desires. We can see from this that the mutual union of angels with the Lord does not come from them even though it seems to.
There is the same kind of union of the Lord with the church and of the church with the Lord, a union called a spiritual and heavenly marriage.
28. I. HEAVEN IS CONJUNCTION WITH THE LORD. Heaven is not heaven from the angels but from the Lord; for the love and wisdom in which the angels are and which constitute heaven, are not from the angels but from the Lord, and are, in fact, the Lord in them. And since love and wisdom are the Lord's and are the Lord in heaven, and since love and wisdom constitute the life of the angels, it is clear that their life is the Lord's, and in fact is the Lord. The angels themselves confess that they live from the Lord; hence it may be evident that heaven is conjunction with the Lord. Since, however, conjunction with the Lord varies in degree, and heaven accordingly is not the same to one as to another, it also follows that heaven is according to the conjunction with the Lord. It will be seen in the following article that there is conjunction which is closer and closer, and also conjunction which is more and more remote.
[2] Something will here be said about this conjunction, how it is effected and what is its nature. It is a conjunction of the Lord with the angels, and of the angels with the Lord, and is therefore reciprocal. The Lord flows into the life's love of the angels, and the angels receive Him in wisdom, and thereby they in turn conjoin themselves to the Lord. It should be clearly understood, however, that while to the angels the appearance is that they conjoin themselves to the Lord by means of wisdom, it is in fact the Lord who conjoins them to Himself by wisdom; for their wisdom is also from the Lord. It is the same if it is said that the Lord conjoins Himself to the angels by means of good, and that the angels in their turn conjoin themselves to the Lord by means of truth; for all good pertains to love, and all truth to wisdom.
[3] As this reciprocal conjunction, however, is an arcanum that few can understand without explanation, I will unfold it, as far as possible, by means of such things as are adapted to the comprehension. In the treatise THE DIVINE LOVE AND WISDOM (n. 404-405), it is shown how love conjoins itself to wisdom, namely, through an affection for knowing, from which comes an affection for truth, and through an affection for understanding, from which comes a perception of truth, and through an affection for seeing what is known and understood, from which comes thought. The Lord flows into all these affections, for they spring from the life's love of everyone; and this influx is received by the angels in the perception of truth and in thought; for in these the influx becomes apparent to them, but not in the affections.
[4] Now since perceptions and thoughts appear to the angels as if they were their own, although they are from affections which are from the Lord, therefore there is this appearance that the angels conjoin themselves reciprocally to the Lord, although it is the Lord who conjoins them to Himself; for affection itself produces the perceptions and thoughts, as affection, which pertains to love, is their soul. For no one can perceive and think anything without affection, and everyone perceives and thinks according to affection. From this it is clear that the reciprocal conjunction of angels with the Lord is not from the angels, but only seems to be from them. Such also is the conjunction of the Lord with the Church and of the Church with the Lord, which is called the celestial and spiritual marriage.
28. (1) Heaven is conjunction with the Lord. It is not from the angels but from the Lord that heaven is heaven, for the love and wisdom in which angels are and which make heaven, are not from the angels but from the Lord, and in fact, are the Lord in them. And since love and wisdom are the Lord's and are the Lord in heaven, and love and wisdom constitute the life of angels, it is clear that their life is the Lord's life, and in fact, is the Lord. The angels themselves confess that they live from the Lord. All this makes clear that heaven is conjunction with the Lord. But since conjunction with the Lord is various, and consequently heaven is not the same to one as to another, it follows further that heaven is according to the conjunction with the Lord. In the following chapter it will be seen that the conjunction is more and more near, or more and more remote.
[2] Here something shall be said about that conjunction, how it is effected, and what it is. It is a conjunction of the Lord with angels, and of angels with the Lord, and is therefore reciprocal. The Lord flows into the life's love of the angels, and the angels receive the Lord in wisdom, and thereby in turn conjoin themselves with the Lord. But it must be clearly understood that while to the angels the appearance is that they conjoin themselves with the Lord by means of wisdom, in fact it is the Lord who conjoins them with Himself by means of wisdom; for their wisdom is from the Lord. It is the same if it is said that the Lord conjoins Himself with angels by means of good, and the angels in turn conjoin themselves with the Lord by means of truth, for all good pertains to love, and all truth to wisdom.
[3] But as this reciprocal conjunction is an arcanum that few can understand without explanation, I will try to unfold it, as far as possible, by means of such things as are adapted to the comprehension. In the treatise on The Divine Love and the Divine Wisdom 404, 405, it has been shown how love conjoins itself with wisdom, namely, through an affection for knowing, from which comes an affection for truth, and through an affection for understanding, from which comes a perception of truth, and through an affection for seeing what is known and understood, from which comes thought. Into all these affections the Lord flows, for they are derivations from the life's love of every one; and this influx is received by the angels in the perception of truth and in thought, for in these the influx becomes apparent to them, but not in the affections.
[4] Since, then, perceptions and thoughts appear to the angels as if they were theirs, although they are from affections that are from the Lord, there is this appearance that the angels conjoin themselves reciprocally with the Lord, although it is the Lord who conjoins them with Himself; for perceptions and thoughts are products of the affection, for the affection, which pertains to the love, is their soul. For no one can perceive or think anything apart from affection, and every one perceives and thinks according to affection. All this makes clear that the reciprocal conjunction of angels with the Lord is not from the angels, but is as if it were from them. Such also is the conjunction of the Lord with the church, and of the church with the Lord, which is called the celestial and spiritual marriage.
28. I. Quod Coelum sit conjunctio cum Domino: Coelum non est Coelum ex Angelis, 1sed ex Domino, 2nam amor et sapientia, in quibus Angeli sunt, et quae faciunt Coelum, non sunt ex illis, sed ex Domino, imo sunt Dominus in illis: et quia amor et sapientia sunt Domini, et Dominus ibi, ac amor et sapientia faciunt vitam illorum, patet etiam quod vita illorum sit Domini, imo Dominus; quod a Domino vivant, confitentur ipsi Angeli; inde constare potest, quod Coelum sit conjunctio cum Domino. At quia varia conjunctio cum Domino datur, et inde non simile coelum uni quam alteri, sequitur etiam, quod Coelum sit secundum conjunctionem cum Domino; quod propior et propior sit conjunctio, tum remotior et remotior, videbitur in Articulo sequente.
[2] Hic aliquid dicetur de Conjunctione illa, quomodo fit, et qualis est: est conjunctio Domini cum angelis, et angelorum cum Domino, ita reciproca: Dominus influit in amorem vitae angelorum, et angeli recipiunt Dominum in sapientia, et per hanc vicissim conjungunt se Domino. Sed probe sciendum est, quod appareat angelis sicut ipsi se Domino per sapientiam conjungant, sed usque Dominus conjungit illos Sibi per sapientiam; nam sapientia illorum est etiam a Domino: simile est, si dicatur, quod Dominus Se 3conjungat angelis per bonum, et quod angeli vicissim se conjungant Domino per verum, nam omne bonum est amoris, et omne verum est sapientiae.
[3] Sed quia reciproca haec conjunctio est arcanum, quod pauci possunt intelligere nisi explicetur, volo id, quantum fieri potest, per talia quae aequant captum, evolvere: in Transactione de DIVINO AMORE ET DIVINA SAPIENTIA 404-405, ostensum est, quomodo amor se conjungit sapientiae, quod nempe per affectionem sciendi ex qua affectio veri, et per affectionem intelligendi ex qua perceptio veri, et per affectionem videndi id quod scitur et intelligitur ex qua cogitatio: Dominus influit in omnes illas affectiones, sunt enim illae derivationes ex amore vitae cujusvis, et angeli recipiunt influxum illum in perceptione veri, et in cogitatione, in his enim apparet illis influxus, non autem in affectionibus;
[4] nunc quia perceptiones et cogitationes apparent angelis sicut sint illorum, cum tamen sunt ex affectionibus, quae a Domino sunt, ideo apparentia illa est, quod angeli se reciproce conjungant Domino, cum tamen Dominus conjungit illos Sibi, 4nam ipsa affectio producit illas, est enim affectio quae amoris anima illarum; nemo enim potest aliquid percipere et cogitare absque affectione, et quisque percipit et cogitat secundum affectionem; ex his patet, quod reciproca conjunctio angelorum cum Domino non sit ex illis, sed sicut ex illis. Talis conjunctio etiam est Domini cum Ecclesia, et Ecclesiae cum Domino, quae Conjugium coeleste et spirituale vocatur.
Footnotes:
1 Prima editio: Augelis,
2 Prima editio: Donimo,
3 Prima editio: se
4 Prima editio: sibi,