operations of this nature are treated of. This usage is abundantly confirmed by a very extensive citation of passages. The occurrence of these different Divine names therefore in the narrative does not always necessarily imply diversity of authorship, as is commonly supposed, but transition to a new subject. One or two more extracts will be instructive in this connection.

On GEN. vii. 1, it is remarked: "The Lord is called Jehovah, because charity is the subject now treated of, although in the foregoing chapter (verse 9 to the end), he is not denominated Fehovah, but God, because it there treats of the preparation of Noah, or the man of the Church called Noah, as to his intellectual faculties, which have reference to faith, whilst the present passage relates to his preparation as to the things of the will, which have reference to love. When intellectual things or the truths of faith are spoken of, the term God (Elohim) is used, but when the things of the will or the goods of love, the word Jehovah is employed; for intellectual things, or such as appertain to faith, do not constitute the Church, but those of the will, or such as belong to love. Jehovah is in love and charity, but not in faith, except it be in faith grounded in love and charity; wherefore, also, in the Word faith is compared to night, but love to the day, as in the first chapter of Genesis, where, speak

ing of the great luminaries, it is said, that the greater luminary, or the sun, which signifies love, rules by day, and the lesser luminary, or the moon, which denotes faith, rules by night (GEN. I. 14, 16). See also the Prophets, JEREM. xxxi. 35; xxxiii. 20; Ps. cxxxvi. 8, 9; also REV. viii. 12."A. C., n. 709.

The following also will be found to contain helpful and valuable truth. On GEN. xlvi. 3, we read this comment: "And he

said, I am God, the God of thy father' . . In the original tongue, God in the first place is named in the singular, but in the second place in the plural; namely, in the first EL, in the second ELOHIM; the reason is, because by God in the first place is signified, that God is one and single; and by God in the second, that he has several attributes, hence comes Elohim or God in the plural, as in the Word almost throughout. Inasmuch as there are several attributes, and the ancient Church assigned a name to each, therefore posterity, with whom the science of such things was lost, believed there were several gods, and each family chose to itself one of them for its God, as Abraham chose Shaddai, the almighty; Isaac the God who was called Pachad or dread; and since the God of each is one of the Divine attributes, therefore the Lord said to Abram, 'I am the God Shaddai,' GEN. xvii. I; and here to

I am the God of thy father.'

Jacob,
- A. C., n. 6003.

These Divine Allegories contained in the first seven chapters of Genesis are the oldest compositions in the world, conveying their lessons in a symbolism like that subsequently adopted in the prophets, whereby spiritual truths and histories are set forth by a corresponding series of natural images, according to the highly figurative style universally prevailing in the primitive ages. The date of their origin it is as yet impossible to assign, nor do we possess the means at present of determining the antediluvian chronology. All we know is that that most ancient of all the Churches, having its principal seat in Palestine, probably extended over the surrounding countries, as Tyre and Sidon, much of Asia Minor, Mesopotamia or Assyria and Chaldea, the great valley of the Tigris and Euphrates, with Northern and perhaps Southern Arabia. Its exact limits we do not know, nor what proportion of the world's population of that period was gathered into it. Science has not yet proceeded so far as to disclose to us the character or extent of the unconverted contemporary outlying peoples. It is clear, however, that the six metaphorical days under which is described the successive, moral or spiritual development of the race, from the primeval pre-adamites, which Swedenborg speaks of as the "men who

lived like wild beasts," to the fully grown spiritual man, or Adam, of the Garden of Eden epoch, must have been long periods of time. Some no doubt will be disposed to claim the lapse of from one to two hundred thousand years to afford space for the evolution of so exalted a state of moral excellence as that indicated by the account of paradise.

VIII,- Postdiluvian Revelation: an Ancient Word existing before that given

through Moses.

It has become common of late years for theologians to recognize the existence of Revelations before the time of Moses, and the employment by him of a number of different documents in the compilation of the early portions of Genesis. Swedenborg being the first writer to make this matter clear, we cite his testimony first:

"Before the Word that is now in the world, there existed another Word which is lost. That worship by sacrifices was known, and that men prophesied from the mouth of Jehovah before the existence of the Word given to the Israelitish nation through Moses and the prophets, may be seen from what is recorded in the books of Moses. That worship by sacrifices was known, appears from Ex. xxxiv. 13; DEUT. vii. 5;

xii. 3; NUMB. XXV. I, 2; xxii. 40; xxiii. I, 2, 14, 29, 30; xxiv. 17; xxii. 13, 18; xxiii. 3, 5, 8, 16, 26; xxiv. 7, 13.

"From these passages it is clear that there existed among the nations a Divine worship almost like that instituted by Moses in the Israelitish nation. That it also existed before the time of Abraham, is clear from the words of Moses. DEUT. xxxii. 7, 8; GEN. xiv. 18-20; Ps. cx. 4.

"These and many other things are obvious proofs that before the Israelitish Word there existed another in which such revelations were given.

"That a Word existed among the ancient people, is evident from Moses, by whom it is mentioned and quoted, NUMB. xxi. 14, 15, 27-30. Its historical parts were called 'the Wars of Jehovah,' and its prophetical parts, proverbs' [or enunciations]. From the historical parts of that Word, see the following: NUMB. xxi. 14, 15, 27-30.

"Besides these, there is mentioned by David and Joshua a prophetic book of the ancient Word, called the Book of Jasher (or the Upright); by David as follows: And David lamented over Saul and over Jonathan his son; also he bade them teach the children of Judah the use of the bow behold, it is written in the Book of Fasher,' II. SAM. i. 17, 18. And by Joshua, who said, 'Sun stand thou still upon Gibeon; and thou, Moon, in the valley of Ajalon.