THE CREATION OF THE UNIVERSE BY THE ONE, INFINITE GOD*

1. No one can form to himself an idea of God creating the universe, or perceive that He created it, without first knowing something about the spiritual world and its Sun, as well as about the correspondence and the conjunction thereby of spiritual things with natural things. 2. There are two worlds, the spiritual world where spirits and angels are, and the natural world where men are. 3. There is a sun in the spiritual world and another in the natural world; also the spiritual world came into existence and continues in existence from its sun, and the natural world by means of its sun. 4. The Sun of the spiritual world is pure love from Jehovah God who is in the midst of it; and the sun of the natural world is pure fire. 5. Everything that goes forth out of the Sun of the spiritual world is alive; and everything out of the sun of the natural world is dead. 6. Consequently everything that goes forth out of the Sun of the spiritual world is spiritual and everything out of the sun of the natural world is natural. 7. Jehovah God created the spiritual world by means of the Sun in the midst of which He is, and the natural world indirectly by means of the spiritual world. 8. Spiritual things are substantial and natural things are material; and these latter came into existence and continue in existence from the former, as that which follows does from that which precedes, or as what is exterior from what is interior. 9. Consequently all the things in the spiritual world are, with a difference in perfection, also in the natural world; and conversely. 10. Because what is natural originates from what is spiritual, as the material does from the substantial, they are everywhere together, and thus by means of the natural the spiritual carries on its activities and performs its functions. 11. In the spiritual world a conception of creation is constantly coming into existence, inasmuch as all things that exist and take place there are created in a moment by Jehovah God. 12. Around every angel in heaven there is the concept of creation.** 13. There is a correspondence between the things of the spiritual world and the things of the natural world; and by means of the correspondence there is conjunction between them. 14. From these things it is clear that, without knowledge beforehand of the spiritual world and its Sun, and about correspondence, the creation of the universe by the one infinite God cannot be comprehended at all; and it is due to this that there have appeared hypotheses, based upon naturalism, about the creation of the universe, that are foolish.

* Marginal Note:

See above concerning Jehovah or the Being (Esse) of God: also no. 1; also the thing lacking here may be selected therefrom. ** Marginal Note: In the spiritual world creation can be visible before the sight; there all things are created by the Lord as in a moment; houses, things of use in the house, foods, garments; fields, gardens, plains; flocks and herds; all are created. These and innumerable other things are created in accordance with the angels' affections and their perceptions therefrom, and they come into sight round the angels and last so long as the angels are in those affections, and they are taken away as soon as the affections cease. Also in the hells, serpents, and harmful animals and birds are created; not that these are created by the Lord, but the good are turned into evil. Hence it is clear that all things in the world are created by the Lord, and fixed by means of the natural things encompassing them.