There were companies of prophets, both among the Jews and Israelites and with the gentiles, who made a display of ridiculous gestures, as we read here and there in the Word [1 Sam. 10:10-11, 19:20-24, 1 Kings 18:25-8, and elsewhere]. Of these, the ones in Judea and the region of the Israelites preached both true and false things. Assuming the cause of this from the most obvious explanation, there seems to have been that spirit of prophecy with the people because they were engrossed in externals and were nothing less than insane in regard to worship. Their souls after death sometimes seem to be attached to prophets of this kind, so that they could continue the life of the body and the same insanity, and be brought back from their fantasies. For the life of the body continues alike at first after death. This seems to be the most obvious reason, and should be recorded among the things spirits spoke of with me. 1748, 4 July.