Arcana Coelestia volume 1 - Swedenborg Foundation

ARCANA COELESTIA 376occurs again. For it is said in this verse that “Noah was a son of sixhundred years” when the flood came upon the earth; and in theeleventh verse that it was “in the six-hundredth year of his life, inthe second month, in the seventeenth day of the month.” And so inthe seventh verse it is said that Noah went into the ark with hissons and their wives, and likewise in the thirteenth verse. Again it issaid in the eighth and ninth verses that the beasts went in untoNoah into the ark; and also in verses 14 to 16. From which it isevident that here too there is a repetition of what was said before.Those who abide in the sense of the letter alone cannot know butthat it is a matter of history thus repeated. But here as elsewherethere is not the least word that is superfluous and vain; for it is theWord of the Lord. There is therefore no repetition, except withanother signification. And here, in fact, as before, the significationis that it is the first temptation, which is temptation as to things ofhis understanding; but afterwards it is his temptation as to things ofthe will. These temptations follow one after the other with himwho is to be regenerated. For to be tempted as to things of theunderstanding is quite another thing from being tempted as towhat is of the will. Temptation as to things of the understanding islight; but temptation as to things of the will is severe.735. The reason why temptation as to things of theunderstanding, or as to the falsities in a man, is light, is that man isin the fallacies of the senses, and the fallacies of the senses are suchthat they cannot but enter, and are therefore also easily dispelled.Thus it is with all who abide in the sense of the letter of the Wordwhere it speaks according to the apprehension of man, andtherefore according to the fallacies of his senses. If they simply havefaith in these things because it is the Word of the Lord, thennotwithstanding their being in fallacies they easily suffer themselvesto be instructed. As for example: a man who believes that the Lordis angry and punishes and does evil to the wicked, as he has derivedthis belief from the sense of the letter, he can easily be informedwhat the real truth is. And so if one simply believes that he can dogood of himself, and that if of himself he is good he will receivereward in the other life, he also can easily be instructed that thegood which he does is from the Lord, and the Lord in his mercygives the reward gratuitously. And therefore when such come into