2519. Those who want from that kind of urge to get into heaven cannot even come to the first threshold, but go backwards. How far away from them heaven is, consequently heavenly joy, is clear enough from the experiences [recounted, 2395], namely, that if an angel merely looks penetratingly at an evil spirit, without any intention of hurting him, that look alone causes him the greatest anguish and he virtually perishes from distress. And the deceitful [when so looked upon] are seen as a ball of snakes, besides which others, from only a look at the happiness of the angels are tormented by envy. Such becomes the state of someone in the other life who wants to command others, or to be the uppermost in any society.
2519. Those who wish [to come] into heaven from such a cupidity cannot come even to the first limit, but recede. How far distant heaven, [and] consequently heavenly joy, is from these may be sufficiently evident from these experiences, to wit: that if an angel only looks into him, without any intention of hurting, only with his glance [view] [intuitione] that he is greatly distressed, and would as it were perish with anguish; and they who are crafty seem like conglomerated serpents, besides which, others are tortured with envy from merely beholding the felicity of the angels. Such becomes their state who in the other life wish to command others, or be chief in any society.
2519. Qui in coelum volunt ex tali cupiditate, ii ne ad primum quidem limen venire possunt sed retrocedunt; quantum distat ab iis coelum, consequenter gaudium coeleste, constare satis potest ab iis experientiis [vide 2395], nempe si modo angelus intuetur in eum, absque intentione laedendi, solum cum sua intuitione, quod angustetur maxime, et quasi ex angustia periret 1
, et qui dolosi videntur sicut conglomerati serpentes, praeter quod alii ex sola intuitione felicitatis angelorum torqueantur invidia; talis status fit ejus 2
, qui in altera vita imperare aliis vult, seu in aliqua societate esse summus.
Footnotes:
1. imperfectum in the Manuscript
2. The Manuscript has eorum