All churches which existed before the Lord's coming were representative, unable to see Divine truths except in shadow. But since the Lord's coming into the world, a church has been founded by Him which has seen, or rather has been able to see, Divine truths in broad daylight. It is the same difference as between evening and morning. In fact the state of the church before the Lord's coming is called in the Word evening; and its state after His coming is called morning. Before He came into the world, the Lord was certainly present with the people of the church, but through the mediation of angels as His representatives; however, since His coming He is present with the people of the church without any intermediary. For in the world He put on the Divine Natural too, in which He is present with human beings. The Lord's glorification is the glorification of His Human, which He took upon Himself in the world; and the glorified Human of the Lord is the Divine Natural. The truth of this is clear from the fact that the Lord rose from the tomb with His whole body which He had in the world, and left nothing of it behind there. It follows that He took with Him from there the Human Natural itself from first to last. That is why He said to His disciples after the resurrection, when they thought they saw a spirit:

Look at my hands and my feet to confirm that it is I; touch me and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones, as you see me have. Luke 24:37, 39.

It is plain from this that His natural body was made Divine by glorification. Paul therefore says that in Christ all the fulness of the Godhead dwells bodily (Col. 2:9); and John says that the Son of God Jesus Christ is the true God (1 John 5:20). By this the angels know that the Lord alone in all the spiritual world is fully man.

[2] It is well known in the church that all worship among the Israelite and Jewish nation was only external, and it was only a sketch of the internal worship which the Lord revealed. Thus worship before the Lord's coming consisted of symbols and figures, which stood as a fair model of true worship. Among the ancients the Lord Himself was actually seen, for He said to the Jews:

Your father Abraham rejoiced to see my day, and see it he did and was glad. I say to you, before Abraham was, I was. John 8:56, 58.

But because at that time the Lord was only represented, which was done by means of angels, everything in the Jewish church was made representative. But after His coming into the world, those representations vanished. The inward cause of this was that the Lord in the world put on the Divine Natural too, and by means of this He enlightens not only the internal, spiritual man, but also the external, natural man. Unless these two are simultaneously enlightened, a person is, so to speak, in shadow; but when both are simultaneously enlightened, he is, so to speak, in daylight. For when only the internal man is enlightened, and not the external at the same time, or when only the external man is enlightened, and not the internal at the same time, it is like someone asleep and dreaming, and then when he wakes remembering his dream, which leads him to various quite imaginary conclusions. It is also like someone walking in his sleep, when he thinks he sees what he sees in broad daylight.

[3] The difference between the state of the church before and after the Lord's coming can also be compared to a person who reads a book at night by the light of the moon and stars, and one who does so in sunlight. It is crystal clear that in the former light, which is only white, the eye strays; but it does not in the latter light, which is flamelike. Therefore we read of the Lord:

The God of Israel spoke, the Rock of Israel talked to me. He is like the light of morning, when the sun rises, a morning without clouds. 2 Sam. 23:3, 4.

The God of Israel and the Rock of Israel mean the Lord. Elsewhere:

The light of the moon shall be as the light of the sun, and the light of the sun will be sevenfold, like the light of seven days, on the day when Jehovah binds up His people's broken limb. Isa. 30:26.

This is a description of the state of the church after the Lord's coming. In short, the state of the church before the Lord's coming can be compared to an old woman, whose face is made up and who thinks the rouge makes her look lovely. But the state of the church after the Lord's coming can be compared to a young woman whose natural high colour makes her beautiful. Again, the state of the church before the Lord's coming can be compared to the rind of a fruit, such as an orange, apple, pear, or grape, and its taste; but its state after His coming to the interior of those fruits and their taste; and many other similes. This is all because the Lord, after putting on the Divine Natural too, enlightens the internal, spiritual man and the external, natural man at the same time. For when only the internal man is enlightened, and not the external at the same time, there is shadow; and likewise when only the external is enlightened, and not the internal at the same time.