553. Verse 10. And I heard a great voice in heaven, saying, Now is come the salvation, and the power, and the kingdom of our God and the authority of His Christ, signifies the joy of the angels of heaven, because the Lord alone now reigns in heaven and in the church, and because they are saved who believe in him. By "a great voice in heaven" is signified the joy of the angels of heaven; for which reason it follows, "Therefore rejoice, ye heavens, and ye that dwell in them," verse 12; the voice also is great because it is exalted from joy of heart. "Now is come the salvation and the power" signifies that now they are saved from the Lord's Divine power; "and the kingdom of our God and the authority of His Christ" signifies because the Lord alone reigns in heaven and in the church. That by "God" is meant the Divine Itself from whom are all things, and which is called Jehovah the Father; and by "Christ" is meant His Divine Human which is called the Son of God, may be seen above (n. 520); and because the Divine from whom are all things, and the Lord's Divine Human are one, like the soul and the body, it follows that the Lord alone reigns. This is meant by "the gospel of the kingdom," and by "the kingdom of God." (Matt. 3:2; 4:17, 23; 7:21; 9:35; 11:11; 12:28; Mark 1:14-15; 9:1; 15:43; Luke 4:43; 8:1; 9:60; 10:8-11; 11:17-18, 20; 16:16; 21:31; 22:18; 23:50-51.) [2] That the Lord has all power in heaven and on earth, appears manifestly in Matt. 28:18; John 3:35; 17:2, 10. That they are saved who are in the Lord and the Lord in them, and that it is the Divine Human in which they are, John 14; 15; 17; and that no others are saved, but they that believe in Him, appears from these passages:
As many as received Him, to them He gave power to become the sons of God, to them that believe in His name (John. 1:12). That everyone that believeth in the Son should not perish, but have eternal life (John 3:15). God so loved the world, that He gave His Only-begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him may have eternal life (John 3:15). He that believeth in the Son is not judged; but he that believeth not is judged already, because he hath not believed in the name of the Only-begotten Son of God (John 3:36). He that believeth in the Son hath eternal life, but he that believeth not the Son, shall not see life, but the anger of God abideth on him (John 3:36). He that cometh to me shall never hunger, and he that believeth in Me shall never thirst. Verily I say unto you, he that believeth in Me hath eternal life (John 6:33, 35, 47). Unless ye believe that I am, ye shall die in your sins (John 8:24). Jesus said, I am the resurrection and the life, he that believeth in Me, though he were dead, shall live; whosoever liveth and believeth in Me, shall not die to eternity (John 11:25-26; besides other places as in John 6:38-40; 7:37-38; 8:12; 12:36-46.) To believe in the Lord is to approach Him immediately, and to have confidence that He saves; and since no one can have this confidence except he who lives well, therefore this also is meant by "believing in Him" (see above, n. 67).
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