981、“神赐福”表示主的同在和恩典，这从“赐福”的含义清楚可知。在圣言中，就外在意义而言，“赐福”表示富有一切世俗和肉体的好处。这也是所有局限于外在意义的人对圣言的解释，如古今的犹太人，以及基督徒，尤其现在的基督徒。因此，他们认为神性赐福在于财富、富有一切和个人荣耀。但就内在意义而言，“赐福”表示富有一切属灵和属天的良善，这种赐福唯有主赐下，也只能由主赐下；这就是为何“赐福”表示主的同在和恩典；主的同在和恩典就带有这类赐福，就是属天和属灵的良善在里面。之所以说同在，是因为主只在仁爱中同在，此处论述的主题是重生的属灵人，他出于仁爱行事。主的确与每个人同在，但人越远离仁爱，主的同在程度就越低，可以说越不在场，也就是说，主就越遥远。
至于为何提到的是“恩典”，而不是“怜悯”，原因（我猜测，这原因至今不为人知）在于，属天人不谈论恩典，只谈论怜悯；而属灵人不谈论怜悯，只谈论恩典。这种差别来源于以下事实：属天人承认人类全然不洁，本身由粪便构成，是属地狱的。因此，他们乞求主的怜悯，因为怜悯适合有这种感觉的人，或说适合这种情况。
然而，属灵人尽管也知道人类具有这种性质，却不承认，因为他们仍坚持并热爱他们的自我，故很难提及怜悯，却很容易提及恩典。这种言语上的差别是由谦卑的差别造成的。人越爱自己，认为他能凭自己行善，因而配得救赎，就越不能乞求主的怜悯。有些人之所以能乞求恩典，是因为这成了一种习惯的说话方式；其中几乎没有主的东西，却有大量自我的东西。当呼求“主的恩典”时，谁都能在自己身上发现这一点。
New Century Edition
Cooper(2008,2013)
[NCE]981. God blessed symbolizes the Lord's presence and favor, as can be seen from the symbolism of blessing.
In the Word,{*1} on its surface, blessing people means enriching them with every earthly, personal benefit. This is how the Word is interpreted by all who restrict themselves to its surface meaning — Jews of the past and present, for instance, and Christians as well, today especially.{*2} So they have identified and continue to identify divine blessings with wealth, an abundance of every resource, and glory for themselves.
In a deeper sense, though, blessing people means enriching them with every kind of spiritual and heavenly goodness. As the Lord is the only one who grants this kind of blessing, or is even capable of granting it, the act of blessing symbolizes the Lord's presence and favor. The Lord's presence and favor carry such a blessing with them.
[2] The word presence is used because only in charity is the Lord present, and the subject here is a regenerate spiritual person, who acts out of charity. The Lord is present in each of us, but the further we distance ourselves from neighborly love, the more the Lord's presence is absent, so to speak — which is to say, the more remote the Lord is.
The word favor is used rather than mercy because of something I believe is unknown today: people of heavenly character speak not of favor, [or grace,] but of mercy, while those of spiritual character speak not of mercy but of grace.{*3} The reason for the difference is this: Heavenly people acknowledge that the human race is sheer filth, that in itself it is made of excrement and is hellish. On this account they beg the Lord for mercy, since mercy is the fitting word for people who feel this way.
[3] Spiritual people, on the other hand, might know intellectually that the human race is such, but they do not accept it internally, because they hold fast to their sense of self-sufficiency and love it. As a consequence, they have a hard time saying the word mercy but an easy time saying grace. This results from the type of humility in each of the two.
The more we love ourselves and consider ourselves capable of doing good on our own in order to earn salvation, the less able we are to plead for the Lord's mercy. The reason some are able to ask the Lord's grace, [or favor,] is that it has become a customary way of speaking. When the request is merely formal, grace contains little of the Lord, but is full of oneself. You can examine this in yourself, when you call on the Lord's grace.
Footnotes:
{*1} By "the Word" Swedenborg generally means the Bible — a terminology that was prominent in the world of his Lutheran upbringing. However, the particular Bible books he includes in this designation vary over time. In his earlier theological works, in three roughly parallel passages (Secrets of Heaven 10325; New Jerusalem 266; White Horse 16), he defines "the Word" as only those books of the Bible that have an inner meaning, by which he apparently means a generally hidden layer of meaning that concerns the Lord and his kingdom, running continuously behind the literal text; see Secrets of Heaven 3540:4, 9942:5. In fact, in the three parallel passages just mentioned he provides a list of the books that have an inner meaning: "The books of the Word in the Old Testament are the five books of Moses, Joshua, Judges, the two books of Samuel, the two books of Kings, David's Psalms, and the prophets — Isaiah, Jeremiah, Lamentations, Ezekiel, Daniel, Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi. Those in the New Testament are the four Gospels — Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John — and Revelation." The clear implication is that the Bible books not on this list are not part of the Word — namely, Ruth, 1, 2 Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, Job, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Song of Songs (Song of Solomon) in the Old Testament; all the books now included in the Apocrypha; and Acts and the Epistles in the New Testament. Nevertheless, although he never retracts these strong statements or explains that he has changed his mind, in his last theological works and manuscripts he extends the term "the Word" to apply to Acts and the Epistles as well; see True Christianity 158, 176, 585:4, 601, 675:2, 730:1; Draft for "Coda to True Christianity" (Swedenborg 1996b) 2:3, 23:2; Draft Invitation to the New Church (Swedenborg 1996c) 47. In one of these passages, for example, he cites a phrase that is "frequently mentioned in the Word of the New Testament, both in the Gospels and in the Acts of the Apostles and their Epistles" (True Christianity 158). In two other passages, he apparently refers to Acts and the Epistles as "the Apostolic Word" (Draft for "Coda to True Christianity" [Swedenborg 1996b] 1, 59:5; compare True Christianity 730:1). By contrast, he never overtly quotes or cites Acts or the Epistles in Secrets of Heaven. [JSR]
{*2} The idea that Scripture possesses an inner meaning was widely held in early times, but was growing less popular by Swedenborg's day. On older interpretations of the Bible's inner meaning, see note 3 in 1 and note 1 in 606. See also notes 85, 309 below. In this specific instance, however, Swedenborg may be criticizing a materialistic understanding of the term blessing rather than referring to particular schools of hermeneutics. [RS, SS]
{*3} For an earlier discussion of the distinction between mercy (misericordia) and grace or favor (gratia), see 598. [LHC]
Potts(1905-1910) 981
981. That "God blessed" signifies the presence and grace of the Lord, is evident from the signification of "to bless." "To bless" in the Word, in the external sense signifies to enrich with every earthly and corporeal good, according to the explanation of the Word given by those who abide in the external sense-as the ancient and modern Jews, and also Christians, especially at the present day-wherefore they have made the Divine blessing to consist in riches, in an abundance of all things, and in self-glory. But in the internal sense, "to bless" is to enrich with all spiritual and celestial good, which blessing is and never can be given except by the Lord, and on this account it signifies His presence and grace, which necessarily bring with them such spiritual and celestial good. It is said presence, because the Lord is present solely in charity, and the subject treated of here is the regenerate spiritual man, who acts from charity. The Lord is indeed present with every man, but in proportion as a man is distant from charity, in the same proportion the presence of the Lord is-so to speak-more absent, that is, the Lord is more remote. The reason why grace is mentioned, and not mercy, is for the reason-which as I conjecture, has been hitherto unknown-that celestial men do not speak of grace, but of mercy, while spiritual men do not speak of mercy, but of grace. This mode of speaking is grounded in the circumstance that those who are celestial acknowledge the human race to be nothing but filthiness, and as being in itself excrementitious and infernal; wherefore they implore the mercy of the Lord, for mercy is predicated of such a condition. Those, however, who are spiritual, although they know the human race to be of such a nature, yet they do not acknowledge it, because they remain in their Own, which they love, and therefore they speak with difficulty of mercy, but easily of grace. This difference in language results from the difference in the humiliation. In proportion as anyone loves himself, and thinks that he can do good of himself, and thus merit salvation, the less capable is he of imploring the Lord's mercy. The reason why some can implore grace is that it has become a customary form of speaking, in which there is but little of the Lord and much of self, as anyone may discover in himself while he names the grace of the Lord.
Elliott(1983-1999) 981
981. That 'God blessed' means the Lord's presence and grace is clear from the meaning of 'blessing'. In the Word, in the external sense, 'blessing' means being enriched with all earthly and bodily good. This is also how all people who keep to the external sense explain the Word, as Jews did in the past, and still do so today, and also as Christians do, especially at the present time. Consequently they have focused the Divine blessing, and still do, on wealth, on having plenty of everything, and on personal glory. But in the internal sense 'blessing' means being enriched with all spiritual and celestial good, a blessing which neither does nor can possibly exist unless it comes from the Lord. This is why 'blessing' means the Lord's presence and grace. The Lord's presence and grace carry such blessing within them. The expression 'presence' is used because the Lord is present only in charity, and the subject at this point is the regenerate spiritual man who acts from charity. The Lord is present with everyone, but as is a person's distance from charity, so is the degree of the Lord's presence, or so is He, let me say, more absent, that is, the Lord is more remote.
[2] The reason the expression grace and not mercy is used - a reason, I presume, that has remained unknown up to now - is that celestial people do not talk of grace but of mercy, while spiritual people talk not of mercy but of grace. This difference has its origins in the fact that celestial people acknowledge that the human race is wholly unclean, and in itself excrementitious and hellish, on account of which they plead for the Lord's mercy - mercy being the appropriate word for people in this condition.
[3] Spiritual people however, though they are aware that the human condition is such, do not acknowledge it, for they still remain in, and love, their proprium; and therefore they find it difficult to make mention of mercy but easy to do so of grace. It is the different kind of humility existing with each that produces this verbal difference. The more anyone loves himself and imagines that he is able to do good of himself and so merit salvation, the less he is able to plead for the Lord's mercy. The reason some [are able to plead] for grace at all is that it has become a commonplace expression. When used however it contains little that is the Lord's and much that is a person's own. This anyone can discover in himself when he uses the expression 'the grace of the Lord'.
Latin(1748-1756) 981
981. Quod 'benedixit Deus' significet praesentiam et gratiam Domini, constat a significatione 'benedicere': benedicere in Verbo, in sensu externo, significat locupletari omni bono terrestri et corporeo, sicut etiam explicant Verbum omnes qui in sensu externo manent, ut Judaei olim et hodie, et quoque Christiani imprimis hoc tempore; quare benedictionem Divinam posuerunt et ponunt in divitiis, abundantia omnium et in gloria sui: sed benedicere in sensu interno significat locupletari omni bono spirituali et caelesti, quae benedictio nusquam{1} datur aut dabilis est nisi a Domino, quare benedicere significat praesentiam et gratiam Domini; praesentia et gratia Domini hoc secum habet; praesentia dicitur, quia Dominus in charitate solum praesens est, et hic nunc agitur de homine regenerato spirituali qui ex charitate agit; apud unumquemvis hominem est Dominus praesens, sed quantum distat homo a charitate, tantum praesentia Domini est, ut ita dicam, absentior, seu Dominus remotior: [2] quod gratia dicatur, non misericordia, causa est, quae ut autumem hactenus ignota, quod homines caelestes non dicant gratiam, sed misericordiam, at homines spirituales non misericordiam sed gratiam; quod inde venit quia caelestes agnoscunt quod genus humanum non sit nisi spurcum et in se excrementitium ac infernale, quare implorant misericordiam Domini, nam misericordia praedicatur cum tales sunt; [3] at spirituales tale licet sciunt, non tamen agnoscunt, quia in proprio manent et id amant, quare aegre possunt nominare misericordiam sed facile gratiam; ex humiliatione utriusque id prodit: quanto plus aliquis se amat et putat se bonum facere posse ex se et sic mereri salutem, eo minus potest implorare misericordiam Domini; quidam quod gratiam [implorant], est quia sollemnis formula facta, et tunc non nisi quam pauca Domini in gratia, et plura sui, insunt; hoc quisque potest apud se explorare dum gratiam Domini nominat. @1 I i quia.$