AE 831 - Spiritual Angels

 AE 831 [1, 4, 5, 6]

For all things in the Word are in themselves spiritual,
and give spiritual life to those who study it
in the measure of its reception in the heart.
Therefore the Lord says:

The words that I speak unto you are spirit and are life.
(John 6:63)

. . . . with spiritual angels intellectual sight is spiritual sight.
These angels are perfected in understanding
so far as they are in the love of truth
for the sake of life and its genuine uses;
and in the same measure
truths are implanted in their life
and they become affections of truth.
For as truths derive
all their essence and all their life from good,
so the understanding derives all its essence and life
from the will and its activity;
for the understanding is the receptacle of truth,
and the will the receptacle of good,
and their activity fills and establishes them.

Moreover, all in the spiritual heaven love uses,
and are intent on works,
by which their thoughts are kept as it were at home,
and withheld from idleness,
which is, as it is also called the devil's pillow.
They know that only those who perceive delight in works
can be kept in spiritual love;
such are in their fixed affection . . ..

In the spiritual heaven there are magnificent palaces,
in which all things within shine with precious stones
and decorations in such forms
as cannot be equaled by any painting in the world,
nor expressed in words.
For art there, especially that of architecture,
is in its own art.
From that heaven many arts in the world
derive their laws and harmonies,
from which come their forms of beauty.
. . . The spiritual angels are clothed
in garments of fine linen and silk,
generally in shining garments.
And as the spiritual heavens correspond to the eyes,
there are paradisiacal scenes,
as also in many places rainbow colored appearances
and these also are of ineffable beauty.
They know nothing there
about the sense of the letter of the Word,
but only about its spiritual sense,
for they have the Word in that sense,
which is read by everyone.
In that heaven, justice, integrity, verity, chastity,
and the other praiseworthy virtues of moral life reign.
 These heavens constitute the royalty of the Lord,
while the higher heavens,
where the celestial angels are,
constitute the priesthood of the Lord;
for His royalty is Divine truth,
and His priesthood is Divine good.