Coronis, by Emanuel Swedenborg, [1771], tr. by John Whitehead [1914] at sacred-texts.com

Coronis

II. That the second state of this church was instruction, and at length introduction into the land of Canaan, and then its progression into light and day. It has been pointed out above, that this Israelitish Church, as well as the Ancient, or Noachian Church, was, as to the whole of its worship, a representative church. This was of the Divine providence, because Jehovah had not yet put on the Natural Human (which He took up by incarnation in the womb of Mary, thus according to the order established from creation); and prior to this, He could not be conjoined to man as to the interiors of his spirit, and thus manifest there to man's perception His Divine things, which are celestial and spiritual, and thus far above the discernment of the senses of the body. This also was as impossible as it is to make a bird fly in ether, or a fish to step in air. For if Jehovah were to enter with man except by means of His Human, it would be like putting the branch of a tree into the very focus of a burning glass, or quicksilver to a blazing log in a furnace, which would be suddenly dissipated. For from the zeal of His Divine love Jehovah is like a consuming fire; and were He to enter into man in this without His Human, He would dissipate him, as has just been said: for which reason He said to Moses, when he desired to behold His glory with his own eyes, that no man could see Him and live. It was otherwise, however, after He assumed the Natural Human, and united this, when glorified, to His Divine, and thus conjoined into one in Himself the Divine celestial, the Divine spiritual, and the Divine natural. He was then able, by means of this, to conjoin Himself to man in his natural, yea, in his sensual, and at the same time to his spirit or mind in his rational, and thus to enlighten man's natural light, with heavenly light. That such conjunction was effected after the Coming of Jehovah into the world, is plainly manifest from the words of the Lord Himself: In that day ye shall know that I am in My Father, and ye in Me, and I in you (John 14:20). [2] Now, before the incarnation of Jehovah was accomplished, conjunction with Him could not take place except through an angel, thus by means of a representative human; on which account, also, all things of the church of the men of that period, were made representative, and consequently men worshiped Jehovah by types affecting the senses of the body, and at the same time corresponding to spiritual things. Hence it was that the men of the Ancient Church, and still more the men of the Israelitish Church, were external and natural men, nor could they become internal and spiritual, as men can since the Lord's coming. But, still, those who acknowledged Jehovah, and, at the same time the Lord with him, that is, the Lord who was to come, who in the Word is named the "Lord Jehovih," the "God of Israel," and "His Holy One," "Messiah" or the "Anointed of Jehovah," "King," "Rock," and in some places "Son," and who worshiped them together, received holiness in their spirits, and hence in the types of their religion. The rest, however, did not receive it; whence the religion of these was not a religion but a superstition, and their worship was not representative but idolatrous and although this was similar in the external form, yet it was dissimilar in the internal. [3] But in order that this matter may acquire some light, it shall be illustrated by comparisons. Idolatrous worship is like a man who reveres a king, a prince, a nobleman, or any man of exalted dignity, solely on account of the pomp of his retinue, the magnificence of his carriages and horsemen, or of his forerunners, and the splendor and gorgeousness of his clothing; but genuine representative worship is like one who regards a king, prince, nobleman, of any man of exalted dignity, from his religion and his wisdom, and from his justice and judgment, and from these regards the above-mentioned marks of his honor. Idolatrous worship, moreover, is like a man who regards the primate of the church solely on account of his tiara and the jewels in it, or any other prelate, or bishop, on account of his fillet or mitre; but genuine representative worship is like one who regards them from the zeal of their love for the souls of the men of the church, and for their eternal salvation, and the marks of distinction on their heads from these grounds. Again, idolatrous worship is like a field filled with stalks without ears, or with ears without grain in them, or even with these without any kernel in them, and so on; but genuine representative worship is like a field filled with the harvest, whose grains are bursting with kernels, which afford flour and bread in abundance. Idolatrous worship is also like an egg in which there is no spermatic germ; but genuine representative worship is like an egg in which there is the prolific element from which is the chicken. To still further follow those two kinds of worship by comparison, idolatrous worship is like one who has lost the sense of smell and the sense of taste by a catarrh; when such a one applies any grape to his nostrils, or pours wine on his tongue, he is sensible of nothing but their touch; but genuine representative worship is like one who is keenly sensible at the same time of the fragrance of the grape and the flavor of the wine, and thus enjoys the use of both with pleasure.

That the second state of this church was instruction, follows from order; for when anyone is called to the church, he must be instructed in the precepts of the religion according to which he is going to live. That this took place with the sons of Israel after their calling, is evident from the promulgation of the law on Mount Sinai, in which are contained all the commandments of love and faith towards God, and all those of love and fidelity towards the neighbor. After instruction in the general precepts of life and faith, there followed the publication of various laws, which were called "judgments" and "statutes," respecting the sanctification of the Sabbath, stated feasts, sacrifices, the priesthood, the tabernacle, the holy worship in it and upon the altar outside it; also respecting the eating of the holy things, the ministry of Aaron and his sons, likewise their garments and the consecration thereof, and the sanctification of all things belonging to the tabernacle by the oil of anointing; and further, concerning the Levitical order, marriages and divorces, cleansings, foods, places of refuge, besides many other things, which were all natural representations corresponding to spiritual things. In a word, the last four books of Moses are nothing else but books of instruction for that church. After these instructions, the sons of Israel were introduced into the land of Canaan, thus into the church itself, for the "land of Canaan" represented and therefore signified the church. That land also was situated in the middle portion of our entire globe: for on the front it looked towards Europe, on the left towards Africa, and on the hinder and right-hand side towards Asia. But after they came into that land, the precepts given by Moses were enriched by prophets, 52-1 then by their King David, and at length by Solomon after the building of the temple; as appears from the books of Judges, Samuel, and Kings. This, therefore, was the second state of this church, which was its progression into light, or day.

The following passages in the Word can be applied to these two states of this church: Jehovah, after two days, will vivify us: on the third day He will raise us up, that we may live before Him. Jehovah, His going forth is prepared as the dawn; and He shall come unto us as the rain, as the latter rain He shall water the earth (Hos. 6:2, 3). The God of Israel said, the Rock of Israel spake to me. He is as the light of the morning, a morning without clouds (2 Sam. 23:3, 4). And in Moses: My doctrine shall flow down as the rain; My word shall distil as the dew, as the drops upon the grass, and as the small drops upon the herb: I will proclaim the name of Jehovah; ascribe ye greatness to our God. The Rock, whose work is perfect, all His ways are judgment, a God of faithfulness without perversity, just and right is He. (Deut. 32:2-4). From these passages also it may be confirmed that these two states of this church were from our Lord, who is the "God of Israel" and the "Rock." That He is the "Rock," is clear from these words in Paul: The Rock was Christ (1 Cor. 10:4).

III. That the third state of this church was a decline from true representative into idolatrous worship, and then was its vastation, or evening. Some observations were adduced above respecting the difference between representative worship and idolatrous worship, from which it may be plainly seen that so long as the types, figures, and signs, which were laid hold of by the senses of the body as objects of religion by the men of the Noachian and Israelitish Churches, were not at the same time regarded from a higher of interior idea, nearly approaching to a spiritual one, worship truly representative easily declined with them into idolatry. As for example: If they so thought of the tabernacle, as not to think at the same time of heaven and the church, and of God's dwelling-place in them; of the bread of faces therein, so as not to think at the same time of the heavenly bread for the nourishment of the soul; of the incense and the burning of it upon the golden altar there, in such a way as not to think at the same time about worship from faith and charity, as ascending to Jehovah as a grateful odor; about the lights in the lamps of the golden lampstand, when lighted, in such wise as not to think at the same time of the illumination of the understanding in the objects of their religion; and about the eating of the holy things, so that they did not at the same time think about the appropriation of heavenly foods, and also about the holy refreshment of their spirits by the performance of the sacrifices: and with the other things in like manner. It is hence evident, that, if the man of the representative church did not at the same time look upon the things belonging to that worship with a rational spirit enlightened by heavenly light from the Lord, but only with a rational spirit informed by the natural light (lumen) of the world from self, he could very easily be carried away from genuine representative worship into idolatrous worship, and so be vastated. For vastation is nothing else but a deviation, decline, and falling away from representative worship into idolatrous; which two kinds of worship are alike as to the external face, but not as to the internal face. [2] On account of this proneness to fall away from one worship which in itself was heavenly, into another which in itself was infernal, the interior things of the church and of religion could not be revealed before the Lord's Coming, and then it was by means of light from Him, namely, concerning heaven and hell, the resurrection, and the life of their spirits after death, and also the immortality of their souls, regeneration, and in brief the interior things respecting faith and charity; inasmuch as they would have looked upon them scarcely otherwise than as anyone looks at birds over the head, or meteors in the air. And moreover they would have involved them so deeply in the mere fallacies of the senses, that still not a single vestige of revealed spiritual things would have been visible, except as much as the tip of the nose in respect to the face, or a finger-nail in respect to the hands. They would also have so deformed them, that in the sight of the angels they would have appeared no otherwise than like a sea-monster clothed in a cloak, having a mitre on the head, and with a face, after being shaved and painted, like that of an ape which has a bald face. And they would also have appeared in the sight of the angels like a sculpture, furnished with movable joints and hollowed out; inside of which some man, a Levite, being admitted, it would walk about, act, and speak, and at length cry out to the superstitious multitude, "Prostrate yourselves; invoke me; behold me, your household tutelar God, to whom belongs holiness and divine power." [3] Could the ideas of the thought of these concerning the spiritual things of the church be superior to the ideas of thought of Nicodemus, who was a learned man, on regeneration, which was that the whole man would be re-born in the mother's womb; for he said: How can a man be born anew? can he enter the second time into his mother's womb? To whom the Lord answered: Art thou a master in Israel, and knowest not this? If I have told you earthly things and ye believe not, how will ye believe if I shall tell you super-celestial things? (John 3:3, 4, 9, 10, 12). They would have been equally delirious if interior things, which in their essence are spiritual, had been disclosed to them concerning faith and charity, and also the life after death, and respecting the state of heaven and hell. Wherefore, to open the internal sight of their mind or spirit, as to its higher region, which alone heavenly light illuminates, before the coming of the Lord, who came into the world as "the Light," as He Himself says (John 1:1-4; 8:12; 12:35, 36, 46), was as impossible as it is to make a horse fly and turn it into Pegasus, or a stag run in the air, or a calf upon the waters; yea, as it would be to turn an agate into a ruby, or a crystal into a diamond, or to impart a vein of silver to a common stone, or to make a laurel produce grapes, a cedar olives, a poplar and an oak pears and apples; therefore, also, as impossible as to infuse the intelligence of the learned Oedipus into the listening Davus.

But what vastation is, and whence it was with the people of the Israelitish Church, may be gathered from the passages in the Prophets where it is mentioned, which shall therefore he adduced in abundance. It must be premised, that, in the following and the subsequent passages from the Word, by "land" is there signified the church, because the land of Canaan is meant, in which the church was; by "Zion," the church as to the Word; by "Jerusalem," the church as to doctrine from the Word; by the "cities" therein, doctrinals; by the "mountains," "hills," "valleys," and "rivers," the formalities of the church; and by the tracts of land there, the general things of the church, and these according to the representation of the tribe by which they were possessed.

The passages from the Prophetic Word, treating of the Israelitish Church, "vastation," "desolation," and "breaking up," and in which these and also "desert" are mentioned, are the following: O inhabitant of Jerusalem, and man of Judah, what should I do to My vineyard that I had not done? I looked that it should bring forth grapes, but it brought forth wild grapes. I will make it into a desolation, it shall not be pruned nor hoed, that the briar may come up, and the houses shall be to a devastation; for they regard not the work of Jehovah, neither see the operation of His hands (Isa. 5:3-12). Many shepherds have destroyed My vineyard, they have trampled My field, they have reduced the field of My desire to a desert of solitude; he hath made it into a solitude. O desolate, desolate is the whole land, because no one putteth it upon his heart. The wasters came upon all hills in the desert. They have sown wheat, but have reaped thorns (Jer. 12:10-13). A nation hath come up upon My land, and hath reduced My vine to a waste (Joel 1:6, 7). The field is devastated, the land mourneth, the corn is devastated; the must is dried up, the oil languisheth (Joel 1:10). By "vineyard" and "field" in these, as in other passages of the Word, is signified the church. In all your habitations the cities shall be devastated, and the high places desolated, that your altars may be devastated and desolated, and your idols may cease, and your statues may be cut down, and your works blotted out (Ezek. 6:6; see also 6:14). My people have forgotten Me, they have burned incense to vanity; to make the land into a waste (Jer. 18:15, 16). "Land," here is for the church. The high places of Isaac shall be vastated, and the sanctuaries of Israel shall be desolated (Amos 7:9). Go and tell this people, Hearing hear ye, but understand not; and seeing see ye, but know not; make the heart of this people fat, and besmear his eyes. (Isa. 6:9-10) Then said the prophet: Lord, how long? and He said, Until the cities be devastated, and the land is reduced to a solitude: Jehovah will multiply deserts in the midst of the land (Isa. 6:11-12). Behold, Jehovah maketh the land empty, and maketh it void; the land emptying shall be emptied; because they have transgressed the laws, passed by the statute, and made void the covenant of eternity. Therefore in the city there shall be a waste, and the gate shall be crushed even to devastation (Isa. 24:1, 3, 5, 12). The highways are devastated, the wayfaring man hath ceased, he hath made void the covenant. Conceive ye chaff, bring forth stubble (Isa. 33:8, 11). I have been silent from eternity, I will desolate and swallow up together. I will lay waste mountains and hills (Isa. 42:14, 15). Thy destroyers and devastators shall go forth out of thee. For as for thy vastations and desolations, and the land of thy devastation, the devourers shall be far away (Isa. 49:17, 19). Your iniquities have been dividers between you and your God, and your sins have hid His face from you. They set an asp's eggs, and wove the spider's webs. Vastation and breaking up are in their paths. We look for light, but behold darkness; we feel the wall like the blind, we stumble at noonday as in the twilight (Isa. 59:2, 5, 7, 9, 10). The cities of holiness are become a desert, Zion is become a desert, and Jerusalem a waste. Our house of holiness is become a kindling of fire, and all our desirable things are become a waste (Isa. 64:10, 11). The young lions roar against Israel, they reduce his land to a waste (Jer. 2:15). Woe unto us, for we are devastated. O Jerusalem, wash thine heart from wickedness. How long shall thoughts of iniquity tarry in the midst of thee? (Jer. 4:13, 14). As a fountain causeth her waters to gush forth, so Jerusalem causeth her wickedness to gush forth. Violence and vastation is heard in her. Admit chastisement lest I reduce thee to a waste. O daughter of My people, gird thee with sackcloth, and roll thee in ashes; for the vastator shall suddenly come upon us (Jer. 6:7, 8, 26). A voice of lamentation is heard in Zion, How are we devastated! Because I have deserted the land (Jer. 9:19). "Land" is for the church. My tent is devastated, all its ropes are plucked out; for the pastors have become foolish, and have not inquired of Jehovah (Jer. 10:20, 21). "Tent" means worship. The voice roars; behold it cometh, and a great commotion from the land of the north, to reduce the cities of Judah to a waste, a habitation of dragons (Jer. 10:22). The whole land shall be a desolation, a devastation (Jer. 25:11). "Land" means the church. The voice of a cry from Horonaim, devastation and great breaking up; the vastator shall come upon every city (Jer. 48:3, 5, 8, 9, 15, 18). These things are concerning Moab, by which is meant confidence in his own works and in one's own intelligence (as is manifest from verse 29 of that chapter). That they may want bread and water, and be desolated, a man and his brother, and pine away for their iniquity (Ezek. 4:17). "Bread" and "water" mean good and truth. Thou shalt be filled with drunkenness and sorrow, with the cup of devastation and desolation (Ezek. 23:33). Woe unto them! for they have wandered away; devastation be unto them (Hos. 7:13). The land shall be a desolation, because of them that dwell therein, for the fruit of their doings (Micah 7:13). (Besides many other passages, as Isa. 7:18, 19; 17:4-6, 9-14; 22:4-9; 29:10-12; 51:19; Jer. 19:8; 25:9-11, 18; 44:2, 6, 22; Ezek. 9:1 to end; 12:19, 20; 33:24, 28, 29; Hos. 10:14; 12:2; Joel 2:20; Amos 5:9; Micah 6:13, 16; Hab. 1:3; Hag. 1:4, 9; Zech. 7:14; 11:2-3.) From all these passages it may be seen what "vastation" and "desolation" are; and that it is not a vastation and desolation of the peoples of a land, and of cities, but of the goods and truths of the church, whence there is nothing but evils and falsities.

IV. The fourth state of this church was the profanation of holy things, and then its consummation or night. Vastation and consummation differ from each other, as the shade of evening and the thick darkness of night differ from each other; for vastation is a receding from the church, but consummation a full separation from it. Vastation, therefore, is as when anyone descends from heaven but not as far as to hell, and tarries in the middle, standing beside both of them; but consummation exists when anyone, standing thus, turns his face and breast to hell, and his back and the hinder part of his head to heaven; in like manner as happened with the dragon and his angels when they were cast down out of heaven (concerning whom see Rev. 12); while they were fighting with Michael, they were in the middle; but when they were vanquished, they were in hell. Vastation takes place when a man looks upon the holy things of the church from falsities and falsified truths; but consummation, when he lives in evils, or in adulterated goods. [2] But, that the difference and distinction between the state of vastation and the state of consummation may be still more clearly comprehended, it shall be illustrated by comparisons. The state of vastation may be compared with a garden or grove around a temple, which by reason of the Divine worship in the temple, is regarded as holy; in which are places for drinking, feasting, dancing, and play acting and buffoonery, with the spectators in the courts and windows of the temple; but the state of consummation may be compared to the same garden or grove, in which are satyrs and priapi, along with harlots and fortune tellers, who all together enter the temple dancing, and there celebrate their profane revels, as the pythons did on their holidays. [3] The state of vastation may also be compared with a hostile army, when it enters the suburbs of a besieged city and rules in them; but the state of consummation may be compared with the same army, when it has demolished the wall, and breaks through into the city and gives the inhabitants over to destruction. The state of vastation may further be compared with a ship upon sand banks, or a sandy shore, when it is violently tossed there, and raised and depressed, so that the pilot, captain, and sailors lament on account of their danger; but the state of consummation is when the ship's keel is fretted away by the gravel beneath, and the ship, being broken up and full of holes, sinks, and the navigators and merchandise perish in the waves. [4] The state of vastation may be compared with every disease which invades the members, viscera and organs of the body, by reason of which the patient forebodes death, consults a physician, takes medicines, and all the while lies in bed in the hope of being healed; but the state of consummation may be compared to the same disease when it invades the breast, where the heart and lungs reside as in their tabernacle, into which, when the disease penetrates, it makes an end of the life of the body.

The state of the consummation of the Israelitish Church is described in both the historical and the prophetical parts of the Word: in the prophecies, by the atrocious deeds of the kings, first of those of the Israelites, and afterwards of those of the Jews, by whom and under whom the land is said to have been profaned. But it is needless to recount them, because they are well known; only those passages shall be adduced from the prophecies, in which the consummation and devastation of that church are treated of. In these passages by "land," " Zion," "Jerusalem," "cities," "mountains," "hills," "valleys," and "rivers," similar things are signified as above (n. 55). [2] The following are from the prophecies of the Word: I saw the land, and behold it was void and empty; and towards the heavens, and their light was not. Behold I saw when Carmel was a desert, and all the cities were desolated at the presence of Jehovah. For thus Jehovah hath said, the whole land shall be a waste, yet will I not make a consummation. For this the land shall mourn, and the heavens above shall be blackened. Thou, therefore, that art laid waste, what wilt thou do? (Jer. 4:23-31; 5:10, 18). The lion hath come up from his briar thicket, and the destroyer of nations hath gone forth from his place to reduce the land to a waste. In that day the heart of the king and the heart of the princes shall perish; and the priests shall be astonished (Jer. 4:7, 9). In that day every place where there were a thousand vines shall be for briars and thorns, because all the land shall be briars and thorns (Isa. 7:23, 24). A voice of the cry of the shepherds and, of the powerful ones of the flock, for Jehovah is laying waste their pastures: whence the sheepfolds of peace were devastated. Jehovah hath forsaken His tabernacle, for their land was reduced to a desolation (Jer. 25:36-38). This house shall be like Shiloh, and Jerusalem shall be a devastation (Jer. 26: 9; 27:17). Jerusalem and all the cities of Judah shall be a desolation and a devastation in this day, because of the wickedness of your works; your land is become a desolation, an astonishment, and a curse (Jer. 44:2, 6, 22). I will give the land to devastation, because they have committed a trespass (Ezek. 15:8). They shall be devastated in the midst of the devastated lands, and her cities in the midst of the desolated cities. Then I will make the rivers dry. I will give the land into the hand of the evil, and I will lay waste the land and the fullness thereof (Ezek. 30:7, 12). When I shall extinguish thee, I will cover the heavens, and will make the stars thereof black. I will cover the sun with a cloud, and the moon shall not cause her light to shine; and I will give darkness upon the land, when I shall bring on thy breaking up (Ezek. 32:7-9). [3] In like manner as the Lord foretold concerning the consummation of the present Christian Church (Matt. 24:29). I will make Mount Seir a waste and a devastation. I will make thee the wastes of eternity (Ezek. 35:3, 4, 7, 9, 12, 14, 15). In that day they shall bring up a proverb upon you, and shall say, In wasting we are laid waste (Mic. 2:4). Fear and the pit have come upon us, devastation and breaking up (Lam. 3:47). The mountain of Zion is laid waste (Lam. 5:18). Thine iniquity is consummated, O daughter of Zion (Lam. 4:22). Woe to the sinful nation, heavy with iniquity; they have provoked the Holy of Israel. From the sole of the foot even to the head, there is no soundness. Your land is a solitude. The daughter of Zion is left as a tent in a vineyard, as a besieged city (Isa. 1:4-9 seq.). What will ye do in the day of visitation and devastation? Consummation is finished, justice is inundated; for the Lord Jehovih is making a consummation and decision in the whole land (Isa. 10:3 seq., 22-23). The Lord Jehovih is making a consummation and decision in the whole land (Isa. 28:22). The prophet fell upon his face, and said, Lord Jehovih, Thou art making a consummation with the remnants of Israel (Ezek. 11:13). My sanctuary was profaned, and the land of Israel was devastated (Ezek. 25:3). Were even Noah, Daniel, and Job in the midst thereof, they only shall be delivered, but the land shall become a desolation (Ezek. 14:14, 16). [4] The final consummation of the Israelitish and Jewish church was accomplished, when the Lord our Saviour, after receiving the sponge of vinegar, cried out upon the cross: It is consummated (John 19:29, 30); for it is said in David: They gave gall for My food, and in My thirst they gave Me vinegar to drink; let their habitation be devastated (Ps. 69:21, 25). And in another place: Without cause have they hid for Me the pit of the net; without cause have they digged for My soul. Let devastation come upon him before he is aware; let him fall into devastation. Lead back My soul from their devastators, and My only one from the lions' whelps (Ps. 35:7, 8, 17); that is, the church. I will make Jerusalem into heaps, a habitation of dragons; I will reduce the cities of Judah to a waste. Behold, I am feeding them, even this people, with wormwood, and I will give them waters of gall to drink (Jer. 9:10-16). [5] Full consummation, after this, is described thus in Hosea: The sons of Israel shall sit many days: no king, no prince, no sacrifice, no statue, no ephod, and no teraphim (Hos. 3:4). Such is their state at this day. We have not time to adduce more passages. The passages in which the vastation, desolation, and consummation of this church, are further mentioned, shall be only named: as, for example (Isa. 9:13-21; 22:4-14; Jer. 7:31-34; 25:33; 47:4; Ezek. 13:14, 15; 14:8, 15; 19:7; 25:12, 13; 26: 2; 29:9, 10, 12; 32:12, 15; Joel 1:15-20; 2:3; 3:19; Nah. 1:8, 9; Zeph. 1:15; 2:9; Lam. 1:16; Ps. 73:17-19; 74:3). The devastated are also called the "thrust through" (Ezek. 11:6, 7; 21:30, 34; 26:6; 28:8, 23; 31:17, 18; 32:20-24, 28-32; 35:8; Zeph. 2:12; Lam. 4:9; Ps. 69:26; and in other places). They are said to be "thrust through," because a "sword," by which this is done, signifies falsity destroying truth.

V. Before this state, and after it, promise was made of the Coming of the Lord Jehovih into the world, and of a New Church at that time, wherein justice and judgment should reign. It is known, from the reading of the prophetic Word of the Old Testament, that in many places there the Coming of our Lord was foretold, and also that the Lord is there designated by various names; as that He is called "Jehovah Zebaoth," "Jehovah our Justice," "Jehovah our Saviour and Redeemer," "Lord Jebovih," "Lord" (Adonai), "Immanuel" or "God with us," "God of Israel," "Holy One of Israel," "Rock of Israel," "Messiah," or "Anointed of Jehovah," "King," "David," "Strong One of Jacob," "Shepherd of Israel," "High Priest," "Priest after the manner of Melchizedech," "Son of God," "Son of Man," "Angel of Jehovah," "Angel of the Covenant," the "Greatest Prophet," "Shiloh;" also, in Isaiah, "Counsellor," "Prince of Peace," "Father of Eternity;" and in the New Covenant, "Jesus Christ," and "Son of God." That our Lord's Coming was foretold in very many places in the Prophets, will be seen from the citation of the predictions in the following pages. But it may be asked, Why was such frequent prediction of His Coming made? There were several reasons: some regarding the Israelitish and Jewish people, and some regarding the Christian people after them. [2] But we will recount the reasons which especially regarded the Israelitish and Jewish people. The first was, that by His being named and recalled to mind, they might be kept in the interior worship of Jehovah, since without that there was no entrance of Jehovah to any one of them, nor access of any one of them to Jehovah. The case was then as it is at this day: That no one hath seen God the Father; the Only Begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father; He hath set Him forth (John 1:18; 5:37). And again: No one cometh to the Father, but by Me (John 14:6). The second reason regarding that people was that the representative types of their church, which all looked to our Lord and to the church to be established by Him after His Coming, might serve them as so many indicators and symbols of their worship, consequently, that they might acknowledge Him when He came, and suffer themselves to be introduced into the internals of the worship of Him, and, together with the nations that surrounded them, become Christian. The third reason was, that by the recollection of His Coming, some notion of idea of the resurrection and eternal life might enter into their thoughts. For who of them could not have thought interiorly in himself or in his heart, "What is the Messiah to us after we are dead, unless we return then, see His glory, and reign with him?" From this source was derived that religious notion of theirs, that at that time they were to be raised again, everyone out of his grave, and return into the land of Canaan. The fourth reason was, that they might be lifted up and healed in their state of vastation and oppression, when they were in temptations and afflictions, as their fathers and brethren had been in the desert (Num. 21:1-9; John 3:14, 15); for without such uplifting and healing, they would have cast aspersions against Jehovah, and departed in crowds from the representative worship of Him to idolatry. [3] For temptations and afflictions in the state of vastation and oppression, are nothing else but combats of the Lord with the Devil respecting man, that is, respecting his soul, which shall possess it. And of that state it may be said that the God of Israel, or the Lord the Messiah, stands on one side, and Beelzebub and the serpent the Devil on the other, and that the latter casts forth blasphemies against the Lord out of his mouth like a river, but that the Lord turns them aside and removes them, and thus delivers man from spiritual captivity and servitude. This combat is felt in the man as if from himself. That temptation is such a combat, and there is such a perception by man, and hence cooperation, I can testify upon oath, for, having often experienced it, I know it. That it is carried on outside the man, and is felt in him as from himself, and that man is standing in the middle and cooperates, is for the end that reward may be imputed to him when he conquers; but that man alone conquers who looks to the Lord, and trusts in Him alone for help. [4] That everyone conquers who calls upon the Lord in temptations, but that otherwise he succumbs, shall be illustrated by comparisons. He is like a ship hurled by storms near rocks: unless the captain knows how to turn it aside from its danger, and to direct it to an exit and thus to port, it must perish. He is like a city besieged by enemies: unless there be escape or aid somewhere, the commander and his troops become hopeless and disheartened, and deliver themselves up prisoners, and surrender their lives to the pleasure of the enemy. He is like a person on a journey entering unawares into a cottage where there are robbers: unless when he is shut in, a friend comes and knocks at the door, or shows himself at the window, and thereby terrifies those villains, and saves him from the outrage. He is like a person falling into a cave where there is a bear with its cubs, or into a pit containing a wolf and a leopard, where he must perish unless his father or his brother, on seeing this, immediately lets down to him a ladder or a rope, and draws him up thence. He is like a person who stands or walks in the day-time in a thick fog, who consequently does not know which way to turn, unless he lights a lamp, and thereby shows himself the place where he may stand, or the way in which he may walk. He is like one who is in the depth of winter, and in want of provisions, if he is not supported by the hope of a harvest to come on the return of the sun. In like manner he is as one who wanders about at midnight in a forest, unless he comfort himself with the hope of light, and in that hope lies down and sleeps quietly until the morning. He is also like one who for the sake of salvation desires to be instructed in those things which are of the Christian Religion, and who meets with mitred doctors and laurelled teachers, who expound them by terms borrowed from the metaphysical art, and involves them in mystical things, unless there be some other person to dissect those terms, and thereby unravel the perplexities, and to bring forth from the Word, thus from the Lord, the holy things of the church into clear light. Would he not in such case be bewildered by the falsities respecting faith and other dogmas, which depend on the faith laid down, just as the links of a chain hang connectedly from a hook fixed to the wall? [5] The case would be similar in temptations and the infestations at that time from satans, unless man looked with confidence to the Lord, and fully assured himself that the whole work and ability of deliverance came from Him alone. It is for these reasons that the Coming of the Lord is so frequently foretold in the Old Prophetic Word, and for the same reasons also the Lord is proclaimed in the New Evangelic and Apostolic Word, and His Second Coming foretold; concerning which in the following passages.

Now follow some passages concerning the Coming of the Lord, collected from the prophecies of the Old Word; which are these: Jehovah God said, Lo, I come; in the roll of the Book it is written of Me (Ps. 40:7). Jehovah God said to the serpent, Be thou cursed. I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her Seed; and He shall trample thy head, but thou shalt injure the heel (Gen. 3:14, 15). The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a law-giver from between his feet, until Shiloh come: to Him shall the cleaving of the peoples be (Gen. 49:10). These words are part of the prophecy of the father Israel concerning his sons: A Star shall rise out of Jacob, and a Sceptre shall rise up out of Israel (Num. 24:17). Jehovah thy God will raise up unto thee a Prophet out of the midst of thy brethren, like unto Me; Him ye shall obey. And I will put My words in His mouth. Whence it shall come to pass, that the man who will not obey His words, I will require it of him (Deut. 18:15-19). The Lord Himself giveth you a sign, Behold a virgin shall conceive and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name, God with us (Isa. 7:14). Unto us a Boy is born, unto us a Son is given, on whose shoulder shall be the government; His name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, God, Hero, Father of Eternity, Prince of Peace: of the increase of His government there shall be no end (Isa. 9:6, 7). There shall come forth a Shoot out of the stem of Jesse, and a branch out of his root shall bear fruit. Upon Him shall rest the spirit of wisdom and intelligence, the spirit of counsel and might (Isa. 11:1, 2). In that day the nations shall seek the Root of Jesse, which standeth for an ensign of the peoples, and His rest shall be glory (Isa. 11:10). Send ye the lamb of the Ruler of the land, from the rock towards the wilderness. His throne has been made firm by mercy, and one shall sit upon it in truth in the tabernacle of David, judging and seeking judgment, and hastening justice (Isa. 16:1, 5). It shall be said in that day, Lo, this is our God, for whom we have waited that He may deliver us; this is Jehovah, for whom we have waited: we will exult and be glad in His salvation (Isa. 25:9; 26:8, 9). The voice of one crying in the desert, Prepare ye the way of Jehovah, make plain in the solitude a highway for our God. The glory of Jehovah shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together (Isa. 40:3, 5). O Zion, thou evangelizer, get thee up upon the high mountain; O Jerusalem, thou evangelizer, lift up thy voice with might; say to the cities of Judah, Behold your God. Behold, the Lord Jehovih cometh in strength, and His arm shall rule for Him; behold His reward is with Him. He shall feed His flock like a shepherd; He shall gather the lambs into His arm, and carry them in His bosom; He shall gently lead the sucklings (Isa. 40:9-11). My people shall know My name in that day; for I am He that doth speak; Behold Me. How delightful upon the mountains are the feet of Him that evangelizeth, that causeth to hear peace, that evangelizeth good, that causes them to hear salvation, that saith unto Zion, Thy King 60-1 reigneth. They shall lift up the voice and sing, when they shall see eye to eye that Jehovah is returned to Zion. He hath consoled His people, He hath redeemed Jerusalem. All the ends of the earth shall see the salvation of our God (Isa. 52:6-10). Say ye to the daughter of Zion, Behold, thy salvation cometh; His reward is with Him, and the price of His work before Him (Isa. 62:11). Shout for joy and be glad, O daughter of Zion; behold I come that I may dwell in the midst of thee. Then many nations shall cleave to Jehovah (Zech. 2:10, 11). Exult greatly, O daughter of Zion; resound, O daughter of Jerusalem; behold, thy King cometh to thee, just (Zech. 9:9). Behold, the days come when I will raise up to David a just Branch, who shall reign King and prosper, and He shall do judgment and justice in the land; and this is His name, Jehovah our Justice (Jer. 23:5, 6; 33:15, 16). Behold, I send My angel, who shall prepare the way before Me; and the Lord whom ye seek shall suddenly come to His temple, and the Angel of the covenant whom ye desire, behold He shall come (Mal. 3:1). Thou Bethlehem Ephratah, it is little that thou art among the thousands of Judah; out of thee shall One go forth unto Me, who will be the Ruler in Israel, and whose goings forth are from of old, from the days of eternity. He shall stand and feed in the strength of Jehovah, and shall increase even to the ends of the earth (Micah. 5:2, 4). I anoint My king upon Zion. I will proclaim concerning the statute, Jehovah saith unto Me, Thou art My Son, this day have I begotten Thee; ask of Me, and I will give the nations for Thine inheritance, and the ends of the earth for Thy possession. Kiss the Son, lest He be angry, and ye perish in the way; Blessed are all they that put their trust in Him (Ps. 2:6-12). Behold the God of my salvation; I will trust and not be afraid. Cry out and shout for joy, O inhabitress of Zion; for great is the Holy One of Israel in the midst of thee (Isa. 12:2, 6). In that day a man shall look to his Maker, and his eyes shall regard the Holy One of Israel (Isa. 17:7). My Beloved had a vineyard in the horn of [a son of] oil (Isa. 5:1). Jehovah Zebaoth, Him shall ye sanctify. He shall be for a sanctuary, although for a stone of stumbling, and for a rock of offence, and for a gin and for a snare to the inhabitant of Jerusalem (Isa. 8:13, 14; Matt. 21:42-44; Luke 20:17, 18). The people walking in darkness shall see a great light; the dwellers in the land of the shadow of death, upon them shall the light shine (Isa. 9:2). Out of Zion God shall shine forth; our God shall come, and shall not keep silence (Ps. 50:2, 3). The vision is yet for the appointed time, and speaketh out to the end; yet it shall not lie: though He tarry, wait for Him; because coming He will come, He will not be delayed (Hab. 2:3). O Jehovah, I have heard Thy fame; I have revered, O Jehovah, Thy works; make it present in the midst of the years; God shall come from Teman, and the Holy One from Mount Paran. His honor covered the heavens, and the earth was full of His praise. His brightness shall be as the light; rays from His Hand; and there is the hiding of His strength (Hab. 3:2-4). Thus said the Lord Jehovih, Behold, I will lay in Zion for a foundation a stone, a tried stone, a precious corner of well established foundation; then I will set judgment for the rule, and justice for the plummet (Isa. 28:16, 17). The Lord, as to the Word, is described by the appearance, over the expanse of the cherubim, and is called "Lord Jehovih" (Ezek. 1:26-28; 2:4; 3:11, 27; 4:14; 5:7, 11; 6:3, 11; 7:2, 5; 8:1). In Isaiah 53, throughout, the Lord is treated of, and the state of His life in the world is described by these expressions: He had no form nor honor [vers. 1, 2]. He was despised and not esteemed [ver. 3]. He was thrust through on account of our trespasses, He was bruised for our iniquities [vers. 4, 5]. Jehovah caused the iniquities of us all to meet in Him [ver. 6]. He was led as a lamb to the slaughter [ver. 7]. He was cut off out of the land of the living [vers. 8. 9]. Because he placed their guilt on His soul, His days shall be prolonged [ver. 10]. And for them He poured out His soul even to death [vers. 11, 12]. He was numbered with the trespassers, and interceded for the trespassers [ver. 12]. I have roused Him up in justice. He shall build My city; and He shall release My captivity, not for price, nor reward, Verily Thou art a God that hidest Thyself, O God of Israel the Saviour (Isa. 45:13, 15). I have caused My justice to draw near, and My salvation shall not tarry (Isa. 46:13). As for our Redeemer, Jehovah Zebaoth is His Name, and the Holy One of Israel (Isa. 47:4). O Jehovah our Lord, how magnificent is Thy Name in all the earth, giving to it honor above the heavens. Thou hast caused Him to be a little less than the angels, but Thou hast crowned Him with glory and honor; Thou hast made Him to have dominion over the works of Thy hands, Thou hast put all things under His feet (Ps. 8:1, 5, 6, 9). God shall come down like rain upon the herb. He shall have dominion also from sea even to sea, and from the river even to the ends of the earth. The barbarians shall bow themselves down before Him, and His enemies shall lick the dust; the kings of Tarshish and of the isles shall bring their present; the kings of Sheba and Seba shall offer their gift. All kings shall bow themselves down to Him, all nations shall serve Him; for He shall deliver the miserable, who hath no helper. He shall redeem their soul from deceit and violence. His Name shall be to eternity He shall have the name of a Son before the sun, and they shall be blessed in Him. Blessed be God, the God of Israel; blessed be the Name of His glory; the whole earth shall be filled with His glory. Amen and Amen (Ps. 72:1-19). I have made a covenant with My Chosen. Thy seed will I establish even to eternity, and I will build up Thy throne to generation and generation; and the heavens shall confess Thy wonders (Ps. 89:3-5).

Footnotes

52-1 "Prophets" here means the early prophets. -Trans.

60-1 "King," the Hebrew word means "God." Dr. Worcester has "God." [The rest is missing.]