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SWEDENBORG’S THEOLOGY. 1097
for the universal human race; and in order to deliver man from
eternal damnation and to vindicate (vindicaret) him again for heaven,
he asked for permission to receive in Himself all their guilt and all
their transgressions. His very love towards the human race, which,
on account of its being Divine, was an infinite, pure love, impelled
the Messiah to do so. If He had resisted that love, He would have
resisted Himself; for He is Love Itself, from which, as from a foun
tain, all love, the source of all concord, unanimity, conjunction, feli
city, and rest, flows and is derived. From pure love flows pure
mercy, for this is inherent in the love for those who are miserable.
He therefore received permission from Jehovah the Father, by His
prayers, that He in the place of the human race should suffer the
punishments of justice, [decreed by] the Father."
We see from these two passages that Swedenborg as late as 1745
spoke of the "three persons of the Divinity," and that he regarded
the "Son" as in a certain sense distinct from the "Father." That he
had then a similar idea in respect to the "Holy Spirit," appears from
the "Spiritual Diary," no. 2938, where he says : "As long as I was
in such a persuasion that the Holy Spirit is the third person, and
that there were holy spirits [i. e. angels] from eternity, when I then
said the least word against certain spirits, they were incensed to
such a degree and infused such a fear into me that I scarcely dared
to think about the Holy Spirit ; for there were then many who
believed themselves to be the Holy Spirit."
As Swedenborg used such language in respect to the Divine
Trinity in 1745 , it is not surprising that we should meet in the
Diary for 1744 with the following expressions :
"This is my consolation, which may God for the sake of Jesus
Christ strengthen" (no. 90).
"Our Lord has given me this strong faith and confidence that
He helps me for the sake of Jesus Christ and according to His
own promise" (no. 104).
"God alone through Christ has helped me in this danger"
(no. 180).
"The only love is to God and Jesus Christ" (no. 183).
"When man puts his trust entirely in God and Christ, and not
in himself" (no. 187).
"The Holy Spirit desired to lead me to Jesus, and present me
to Him, as a work that had been prepared by Him" (no. 29).
Although Swedenborg in the above passages speaks of three
Divine persons, and regarded them to a certain extent as distinct
from one another, he, nevertheless, did not entertain concerning
them the idea of three Gods ; but he looked upon them as mani
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