87# 无真理相伴的良善是何等光景，发自良善的真理又具备何等力量，从人的身上便能清晰察见。人一切的良善存于意志之内，一切的真理存于理智之内；意志单凭自身所含的良善，若不凭借理智，便无法产生任何作为，不能劳作、不能言语，亦不能生出感知。意志所有的力量与能力，皆依托理智方得施展，也就是依托真理，因理智乃是承载、容纳真理之所在。
此事好比人体内心脏与肺腑的配合运转：心脏若无肺部吐纳气息，便无法带动肢体活动，亦无从生出各样知觉；一切动静与感知，皆由肺承接心脏所出的气息而后生发。窒息之人、溺水昏厥之人便是明证，其呼吸已然断绝，心脏虽仍搏动，其人却全然失去行动与知觉，母腹之中的胎儿亦是同理。究其根源，心脏对应意志及其良善，肺腑对应理智及其真理。
在灵性世界之内，真理所具备的力量彰显得尤为分明。一名依托主、居于神性真理之中的天使，肉身虽如婴孩般柔弱，却能令成群地狱灵四散奔逃；那些恶灵身形酷似亚衲族人、拿非利人，如同巨人一般高大。天使可将其追赶至地狱深处，驱入地底洞穴，恶灵即便从洞中出来，也不敢靠近天使、不敢向其张口。
在那界域之中，凡倚靠主、持守神性真理之人，便如雄狮一般刚强，肉身气力纵然不比绵羊，却能抵御一切邪恶与伪谬，抗衡成群魔鬼；魔鬼的本质，本就是邪恶与伪谬。
神性真理之所以拥有这般大能，缘由在于上帝本是良善本体与真理本体，宇宙万物皆由祂借着神性真理创造；维系宇宙存续的一切秩序律则，亦尽是真理。是以约翰记道：“万物是借着他造的；凡被造的，没有一样不是借着他造的。”（约1:3）又言：“他在世界，世界也是借着他造的，世界却不认识他。”（约1:10）大卫亦作见证：“诸天借雅威的命而造；万象借他口中的气而成。”（诗33:6）
87# 与真理分离的良善是什么样，与良善分离的真理是什么样，可从人身上清楚看出来。在人里面，一切良善都存在于意愿中，一切真理都存在于理解力中；若不通过理解力，意愿出于自己的良善做不了任何事；也就是说，它不能行动、说话或感觉；它的一切美德和能力都通过理解力，因而通过真理而变得有效；因为理解力是真理的容器和住所。这些原理及其功能与身体内心肺的作用是一样的。没有肺呼吸，心脏不会产生运动或感觉；运动和感觉都是由心脏通过肺呼吸产生的，这一点从窒息或落水人员的昏厥明显看出来；他们呼吸停止，但心脏的收缩运动仍在继续。众所周知，这些人既没有运动，也没有感觉。母亲子宫里的胚胎也是如此。原因在于，心对应于意愿及其各种良善，肺对应于理解力及其真理。在灵界，真理的力量尤为突出。一位处于来自主的神性真理的天使虽然身体像婴儿一样虚弱，却能赶跑一群看似亚衲人和拿非利人，即看似巨人的地狱灵，把他们追到地狱，迫使他们进入那里的洞穴；他们即便从那里出来，也不敢接近这位天使。那些处于来自主的神性真理的人在灵界就像狮子，尽管他们在身体上不比绵羊更强壮，或更有力量。那些处于来自主的神性真理的世人也有对抗邪恶和虚假，因而对抗一群魔鬼的类似力量，这群魔鬼本质上无非是邪恶和虚假。神性真理之所以有这种力量，是因为神就是良善本身和真理本身；祂通过神性真理创造了宇宙；一切秩序律法都是真理，祂通过这些律法来维护宇宙。因此，在约翰福音，经上说：
万物都是藉着祂造的，凡被造的，没有一样不是藉着祂造的。（约翰福音1:3，10）
诗篇：
诸天藉耶和华的话而造；其万象藉祂口中的气而成。（诗篇33:6）
87. Human beings provide an obvious example of the nature of goodness without truth as opposed to the nature of truth that is connected with goodness. All our goodness resides in our will; all our truth resides in our intellect. For all its goodness, our will cannot accomplish anything whatever without our intellect. It cannot function; it cannot talk; it cannot sense. All its force and power comes through our intellect, that is, through our truth, since the intellect is truths vessel and its dwelling place.
The situation with our will and our intellect is similar to the functioning of the heart and the lungs in our bodies. When the lungs are not breathing, the heart is incapable of producing any bodily movement or sensation. What produces movement and sensation is the breathing of the lungs in connection with the heart. A proof of this is the loss of consciousness experienced by people who suffocate or fall in the water, when their breathing stops but the systolic activity of their heart continues. As we know, they lose sensation and the ability to move. Their condition is similar to embryos in mothers' wombs. The reason for it is that the heart corresponds to the will and its goodness, while the lungs correspond to the intellect and its truths.
The power of truth is perfectly obvious in the spiritual world. Individual angels who have divine truths from the Lord, even if their physique is as feeble as that of a baby, can take on a whole squadron of infernal spirits that look like giants, like the Anakim and the Nephilim. One angel can force such spirits to flee, chase them to hell, and push them down into underground caves there. Whenever those spirits come out of the caves they do not dare come near the angel.
In that world those who have divine truths from the Lord are like lions, even if in physique they are no stronger than sheep. Even in this world the same is true for people in relation to evils and falsities. People who have divine truths from the Lord have the power to fight devils who are in full battle formation. Essentially those devils are nothing but evils and falsities.
Divine truth has this kind of strength because God is absolute goodness and absolute truth. He created the universe by means of divine truth, and all the laws of the divine design through which he preserves the universe are truths. This is why it says in John, "All things were made by the Word, and nothing that was made was made without it" (John 1:3, 10); and in David, "By the Word of Jehovah the heavens were made, and all the host of them by the breath of his mouth" (Psalms 33:6).
87. The difference between good without truth and truth coming from good can be clearly seen in the case of man. All his good is located in the will, and all his truth in the understanding; and the will cannot act to the slightest extent as a result of its good, except through the understanding. It cannot act, speak or feel. All its ability and power come through the understanding, consequently through truth, for the understanding is the container and dwelling-place of truth. It is like the way the heart and lungs work in the body. The heart unless accompanied by the breathing of the lungs cannot produce any movement or any sensation, but both of these are the product of the breathing of the lungs proceeding from the heart. This is evident in the loss of consciousness in cases of suffocation or drowning, when the breathing stops, though the systolic action of the heart continues. It is well known that in these cases there is neither movement nor sensation. It is the same with an embryo in the mother's womb. The reason is that the heart corresponds to the will and the various kinds of good it contains, the lungs to the understanding and the various kinds of truth it contains.
[2] The power of truth is very clearly to be seen in the spiritual world. An angel who possesses Divine truths from the Lord, even if physically as weak as a child, can still put to rout a crowd of spirits from hell, though they look like the Anakim and Nephilim, that is, like giants, and pursue them down to hell and force them into its caverns; and when they emerge from these they do not dare to approach the angel. Those who possess Divine truths from the Lord behave in that world like lions, though they have no more strength in their bodies than sheep. Likewise, human beings who possess Divine truths from the Lord have power against evils and falsities, and so they have against serried ranks of devils, who regarded as they are in essence are simply evils and falsities. The reason there is such strength in the Divine Truth is that God is Good itself and Truth itself, and He created the universe by means of the Divine Truth; and all the laws of order by which He preserves the universe are instances of truth. This is why it is said in John that 'all things were made through the Word, and without Him was nothing made that was made' (John 1:3, 10); and in the Psalms of David:
Through the Word of Jehovah the heavens were made, and through the breath of His mouth the whole company of the heavens, Psalms 33:6.
87. What good is, apart from truth, and what truth is, apart from good, can be seen clearly in man. All good in man has its seat in his will, and all truth in his understanding; and the will from its good can do nothing whatever except by means of the understanding; it cannot work, it cannot speak, it cannot feel; all of its virtue and power is by means of the understanding, consequently by means of truth; for the understanding is the receptacle and abode of truth. It is with these precisely as with the action of the heart and lungs in the body. Without the respiration of the lungs not a motion or a sensation is produced by the heart; but both motion and sensation are produced from the heart by the respiration of the lungs, as is evident in the swooning of persons who have been suffocated or have fallen into the water, whose respiration ceases, although the systolic activity of the heart still continues. That such persons have neither motion nor sensation is known. It is the same with the embryo in the mother's womb. This is because the heart corresponds to the will and its various kinds of good, and the lungs to the understanding and its truths.
In the spiritual world the power of truth is especially conspicuous. An angel who is in Divine truths from the Lord, although in body as weak as an infant, can nevertheless put to flight a troop of infernal spirits that look like Anakim and Nephilim, that is, like giants, and can pursue them to hell, and thrust them into their caverns there; and when they emerge therefrom they dare not come near the angel. Those who are in Divine truths from the Lord are in that world like lions, although in body they have no more strength than sheep. Men who are in Divine truths from the Lord have a like power against evils and falsities, and consequently against cohorts of devils, who, regarded in their essence, are nothing but evils and falsities. There is such strength in Divine truth because God is good itself and truth itself; and it was by means of Divine truth that He created the universe; and all the laws of order by means of which He preserves the universe are truths. Therefore it is said in John:
That all things were made by the Word, and without Him was nothing thing made that was made (1:3, 10).
And in David:
By the Word of Jehovah were the heavens made; and all the hosts of them by the breath of His mouth (Psalms 33:6).
87. The quality that pertains to good when separate from truth, and to truth when separate from good, may be clearly seen from the nature of man. For all his good resides in the will, and all his truth in the understanding; and the will from its own good can do nothing unless through the understanding; that is, it cannot act, speak or feel; all its virtue and power become effective through the understanding and therefore through the truth, of which the understanding is the receptacle and abode. It is the same with these principles and their faculties as with the action of the heart and lungs in the body; for the heart, without the respiration of the lungs, effects neither motion nor sensation; but the respiration of the lungs from the heart produces both. This is evident in cases of swooning with those who have fallen into water and are being suffocated. Their respiration ceases, but the systolic action of the heart continues; and it is well known that they are not capable of motion or sensation. It is the same also with the embryo in the mother's womb; and the reason is that the heart corresponds to the will and its good, and the lungs to the understanding and its truth. In the spiritual world the power of truth is particularly conspicuous. An angel who is in Divine truths from the Lord, although in body as weak as a little child, can yet put to flight a troop of infernal spirits even of gigantic stature, in appearance like the Anakim and Nephilim. He can pursue them to hell and force them into caverns there; and should they come forth, they dare not approach him. In that world those who are principled in Divine truths from the Lord are like lions, although they are in body no stronger than sheep. Men who are in Divine truths from the Lord have a similar power against evils and falsities, and consequently against hosts of devils, for these, regarded in their true character, are nothing but evils and falsities. Such power resides in the Divine Truth because God is Good itself and Truth itself and by means of the Divine Truth He created the universe; and all the laws of order, by which He preserves the universe, are truths. Therefore it is said in John that "by the Word all things were made, and without it not anything was made that was made." John 1:3, 10, and in David:
"By the Word of JEHOVAH were the heavens made; and all the host of them by the breath of His mouth" Psalms 33:6.
87. Quale Bonum est absque Vero, et quale Verum ex bono, manifeste apparet ex homine; omne bonum ejus residet in Voluntate, et omne verum ejus in Intellectu, ac Voluntas ex bono suo ne hilum potest agere nisi per Intellectum, non potest operari, non potest loqui, nec potest sentire; omnis virtus et potentia ejus est per intellectum, proinde per verum, nam intellectus est receptaculum et habitaculum veri. Cum his simile est quemadmodum cum operatione Cordis et Pulmonis in Corpore; Cor absque respiratione Pulmonis non aliquem motum, nec aliquem sensum producit, sed haec duo facit respiratio pulmonis ex corde, quod evidens est in deliquiis apud suffocatos ac illapsos aquis, in quibus cessat respiratio, perstante adhuc systolica activitate cordis; quod illis non sit motus nec sensus, notum est; simile est cum embryonibus in uteris matrum; causa est, quia Cor correspondet Voluntati et ejus bonis, et Pulmo Intellectui et ejus veris.
[2] In Mundo spirituali maxime conspicua est potentia veri; Angelus qui in Divinis Veris a Domino est, tametsi quoad corpus invalidus est sicut infans, potest usque turmam spirituum infernalium, apparentium sicut Enakim et Nephilim, hoc est, sicut Gigantes, dejicere in fugam, persequi ad Infernum, ac detrudere in cavernas ibi; e quibus dum exeunt, non hiscunt accedere ad angelum. Sunt illi qui in Divinis veris a Domino sunt, in illo Mundo sicut leones, tametsi quoad corpora non plus valent quam oves. Simile est cum hominibus, qui in Divinis veris a Domino sunt, contra mala et falsa, proinde contra phalanges diabolorum, qui in sua essentia spectati non aliud sunt quam mala et falsa. Quod Divino Vero tale robur insit, est causa, quia Deus est ipsum Bonum et ipsum Verum, et per Divinum Verum Creavit Universum; et omnes leges ordinis, per quas conservat universum, sunt veritates; quare dicitur apud Johannem, Quod per Verbum omnia facta sint, et sine Illo factum sit nihil quod factum est, Johannes 1:3, 10, et apud Davidem, "Per Verbum Jehovae Coeli facti sunt, et per Spiritum oris Ipsius omnis exercitus 1 eorum," Psalm 33:6.
Footnotes:
1. Prima editio: excercitus.