847. 之后，我和天人谈论主对世人的另一个启示。他们问是什么。我说：“关于真正的婚姻之爱及其无上妙乐。”天人说：“谁不知道婚姻之爱的快乐胜过所有其它爱的快乐？谁都不难看出，有一种爱汇集了主所能赐下的一切至福、幸福和快乐。它们的容器就是真正的婚姻之爱，这爱能以丰满的感觉接受和感知它们。”我回答说，人们没有意识到这一点，因为他们没有靠近主，并照祂的诫命通过避恶如罪和行善去生活。真正的婚姻之爱及其快乐唯独来自主，被赐予那些照祂诫命生活之人。因此，它被赋予那些被主接收进入新教会，也就是启示录所说的新耶路撒冷之人。对此，我补充道：“我怀疑当今世人是否愿意相信这爱本质上是属灵的爱，因此源于宗教，因为他们对于这爱的想法纯粹是肉体的。”这时，天人对我说：“把它写下来吧，继续启示。然后，我们会将所写的书从天上传下去，看看书里的内容是否被接受，同时，也看看人们愿不愿意承认这爱与人同在取决于此人的宗教信仰，因此，它在属灵者身上是属灵的，在属世者身上是属世的，在通奸者身上则纯粹是属血气的。”
847. 此后, 我再次和天人交谈, 告诉他们主向世人揭示的另一件事。 他们问是什么。 我说: “关于真正的婚姻之爱及其属灵快乐。 ”天人说: “谁不知道婚姻之爱的快乐胜过所有其它爱的快乐? 谁不明白进入这一体之爱, 就已集合了主能赐下的所有恩典, 幸福和喜悦, 接受上述事物的爱就是真正的婚姻之爱, 因为这爱对应的是对主和教会的爱, 能充分接收和感知这些喜乐? ”我回答说, 人们对此一无所知, 因为他们没有靠近主, 所以没有避开肉体私欲, 以至于未能重生; 真正的婚姻之爱唯独来自主, 被赋予那些从祂重生者; 这些人就是那些被接收到主的新教会之人, 启示录里的“新耶路撒冷”指的就是新教会。 对此, 我补充道, 我怀疑当今世人是否愿意相信这爱本质上是属灵的, 因此源自宗教, 因为他们关于这爱的观念纯粹是肉体感官的; 所以他们情愿相信, 既然它的依据是宗教, 那么对于属灵之人, 这爱就是属灵的, 对于属世之人, 它就是属世的, 对于奸夫, 它则是纯肉体的。
847. After that I also told the angels that the Lord has revealed something still further to the world.
"What?" they asked.
"True marriage love," I replied, "and its spiritual delights. "
"Surely everyone knows," the angels said, "that the delights involved in marriage love are greater than the delights of any other type of love. Everyone is capable of realizing that all the blessings, joys, and delights that the Lord could ever give us are brought together in one love, a love that corresponds to the love between the Lord and the church. The home for these blessings, joys, and delights is true marriage love; this love is sensitive to these pleasures and is able to receive and perceive them fully. "
"People do not in fact know this," I said, "and the reason is that they have not turned to the Lord. They have not abstained from the lusts of the flesh and therefore are not in a position to be regenerated. True marriage love comes solely from the Lord. He gives it to people who allow him to regenerate them; these are also the people who are accepted into the Lord's new church that is meant by the New Jerusalem in the Book of Revelation.
"I have my doubts," I added, "that people in the world today are willing to believe that this love is intrinsically spiritual and is a result of their religious practice. They are likely to be resistant to this idea because they think of marriage love as something that relates to the body alone. Because the quality of this love depends on our religious practice, it is spiritual among spiritual people, earthly among earthly people, and merely carnal among adulterous people. "
847. After this I talked with the angels about another revelation made in the world by the Lord. 'What is that?' they asked. 'About truly conjugial love and its spiritual delights,' I said. 'Is there anyone,' said the angels, 'who does not know that the delights of conjugial love surpass the delights of all other loves? Can anyone fail to reflect that into one love have been collected all the blessedness, bliss and pleasure that the Lord can ever bestow, because this corresponds to the love of the Lord and the church; and truly conjugial love is a receiver for those delights, being able to receive and feel them to the full?'
I replied that people are unaware of this, because they have not approached the Lord, and therefore have not shunned the longings of the flesh, so as to be able to be regenerated. Truly conjugial love comes solely from the Lord, and is granted to those who are regenerated by Him. These too are those who are received into the Lord's new church meant in Revelation by 'the New Jerusalem'. To this I added that I was doubtful whether people in the world today want to believe that that love is in essence spiritual, and thus derived from religion, because of the notion they have of it as merely physical. Accordingly it is religion that makes it spiritual in the case of spiritual people, natural in the case of natural people, and simply carnal in the case of adulterers.
847. After this I again talked with the angels, and told them that another matter still had been revealed in the world by the Lord.
They asked what. I said, "Respecting love truly conjugial and its spiritual delights."
The angels said, "Who does not know that the delights of conjugial love surpass those of all other loves? And who cannot see that into some one love all kinds of blessedness, happiness, and delight that it is possible for the Lord to bestow may be gathered together, and that the recipient love of these is true conjugial love, since that love corresponds to the love of the Lord and the church, and is capable of receiving and perceiving a full sense of these joys?"
I replied, that men are ignorant of this, because they have not approached the Lord, and so have not shunned the lusts of the flesh, and therefore could not be regenerated; and love truly conjugial is from the Lord alone, and is given to those who are regenerated by Him; and these are they who are received into the Lord's New Church, which is meant in the Apocalypse by "the New Jerusalem." And to this I added that I doubted whether those in the world at this day are willing to believe that this love is in itself spiritual, and therefore from religion, since they cherish a merely corporeal idea of it; and therefore are willing to believe that since it is in accord with religion, it is spiritual with the spiritual, natural with the natural, and merely carnal with adulterers.
847. After this, while speaking with the angels, I said that something more had been revealed in the world by the Lord. They asked what this was, and I replied, "It concerns love truly conjugial 1 and its spiritual delights. The angels said: "Surely everyone knows that the delights of conjugial 2 love surpass those of all other loves; and everyone must realize that all the blessing, happiness and joy which it is in the power of the Lord to bestow, are summed up in one love corresponding to the love of the Lord and the Church; and that love truly conjugial is this all-containing love, for it can receive and perceive these pleasures to the full." I replied: "Men do not know this, because they have not approached the Lord, and, therefore, have not shunned the lusts of the flesh, and so could not be regenerated. Love truly conjugial 3 is from the Lord alone, and is given to those who are regenerated by Him; and these also are they who are received into the Lord's New Church, which is meant in the Revelation by the New Jerusalem." To this I added that I doubted whether men on earth at this day, because they entertain a merely corporeal idea about it, were disposed to believe that that love is in itself spiritual and religious in its origin; and accordingly, being from religion, that it is spiritual with the spiritual, natural with the natural, and merely carnal with adulterers.
Footnotes:
1. Original edition has "de Amore ver Conjugali." (DE AMORE CONJ. has Amore vere Conjugiali in the corresponding 534.) Clowes has "love truly conjugal."
2. Original edition has "deliciae Amoris conjugalis." (DE AMORE CONJ. has conjugialis in the corresponding 534.) Clowes has "the delights of conjugal love."
3. Original edition has "Amor vere conjugalis." (DE AMORE CONJ. has conjugialis in the corresponding 534.) Clowes has "love truly conjugal."
847. Post haec loquutus sum cum Angelis, quod adhuc aliquid revelatum sit in Mundo a Domino; quaesiverunt quid hoc; dixi, de AMORE VERE CONJUGIALI, 1 et de spiritualibus ejus Delitiis; et dixerunt Angeli, quis non scit, quod deliciae Amoris conjugialis 2 excedant delicias omnium amorum, et quis non potest cogitare, quod in aliquem Amorem collatae sint omnes beatitudines, faustitates, et jucunditates, quae usquam conferri possunt a Domino, quoniam correspondet Amori Domini et Ecclesiae, et quod Receptaculum illarum sit Amor vere Conjugialis, qui ad plenum Sensum potest illas recipere et percipere; respondi, quod hoc non sciant, quia non adiverunt Dominum, et ideo non fugerunt Concupiscentias carnis, et sic non regenerari potuerunt, et Amor vere conjugialis 3 est unice a Domino, et datur illis qui ab Ipso regenerantur; et hi quoque sunt, qui recipiuntur in Novam Domini Ecclesiam, quae in Apocalypsi per Novam Hierosolymam intelligitur. His addidi, quod in dubio sim, Numeri velint in Mundo hodie credere, quod ille Amor in se sit spiritualis, et inde ex Religione, ex causa, quia de illo fovent modo ideam corpoream: proinde quod quia secundum Religionem, sit spiritualis apud spirituales, naturalis apud naturales, et mere carnalis apud adulteros.
Footnotes:
1. Prima editio: CONJUGALI (Vide DAC 534 ubi Conjugiali).