Heaven and Hell - Swedenborg Foundation

HEAVEN AND HELL 270
Divine truths, thereby turning the sight pertaining to his
understanding and faith away from heaven to the world, and
away from the Lord to himself. Such, therefore, are in the light
of the world and not in the light of heaven.
[3] In outward form or in the sight of men they appear just
as intelligent and learned as those who are in the light of
heaven, because they speak in a like manner; and sometimes to
outward appearance they even appear wiser, because they are
moved by love of self, and are skilled in counterfeiting heavenly
affections; but in their inward form in which they appear
before the angels they are wholly different. All this shows in
some degree who those are that are meant by “the intelligent
that will shine in heaven as with the brightness of the
firmament.” Who are meant by those that “turn many to
righteousness,” who will shine as the stars, shall now be told.
348. By those who “turn many to righteousness” are meant
those who are wise, and in heaven those are called wise who are
in good, and those are in good that apply Divine truths at once
to the life; for as soon as Divine truth comes to be of the life it
becomes good, since it comes to be of will and love, and
whatever is of will and love is called good; therefore such are
called wise because wisdom is of the life. But those that do not
commit Divine truths at once to the life, but first to the
memory, from which they afterwards draw them and apply
them to the life, are called the “intelligent.” What and how
great the difference is between the wise and the intelligent in
the heavens can be seen in the chapter that treats of the two
kingdoms of heaven, the celestial and the spiritual (n. 20–28),
and in the chapter that treats of the three heavens (n. 29–40).
Those who are in the Lord’s celestial kingdom, and
consequently in the third or inmost heaven, are called “the
righteous” because they attribute all righteousness to the Lord
and none to themselves. The Lord’s righteousness in heaven is