Apocalypse Revealed (Whitehead) n. 89

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89. I will give to eat of the tree of life, signifies appropriation of the good of love and charity from the Lord. "To eat" in the Word signifies to appropriate; and "the tree of life" signifies the Lord as to the good of love; therefore by "eating of the tree of life" is signified the appropriation of the good of love from the Lord. "To eat" signifies to appropriate, because as natural food when it is eaten is appropriated to the life of man's body, so spiritual food when it is received is appropriated to the life of his soul. "The tree of life" signifies the Lord as to the good of love, because nothing else is signified by the tree of life in the garden of Eden; also because man has celestial and spiritual life from the good of love and charity which is received from the Lord. "Tree" is mentioned in many places, and by it is meant the man of the church, and in the universal sense the church itself, and by its "fruit" the good of life; the reason is, that the Lord is "the tree of life," from whom comes all good with the man of the church, and in the church; but of this in its own place. It is said the good of love and charity, because the good of love is celestial good, which is that of love to the Lord, and the good of charity is spiritual good, which is that of love towards the neighbor. What and of what quality the one and the other good is will be told in what follows. Something may be seen concerning them in the work concerning Heaven and Hell (n. 13-19).


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