satan who hears the truth can in fact understand it as well as an angel
can; but the satan does not retain it, because evil erases truth and intro-
duces falsity. We are aware, though, that you are in a remote state now
and are able to understand the truth we are telling you. Pay attention,
then, to what we are about to say.
“You used to be in the physical world,” the angels continued. “You
left that place and now you are in the spiritual world. Before now, did
you know anything about life after death? You previously denied that
there was a life after death. You put yourselves on a par with animals. Did
you know anything before about heaven and hell? Did you know any-
thing about the light and heat in this world? Do you realize that you are
now above the realm of nature and no longer in it? This world is spiri-
tual, and so is everything in it. Spiritual things are so far beyond physical
things that not even the least bit of the nature where you used to be can
flow into this world.
“Because you viewed nature as some god or goddess, you still view
the light and heat of this world as nature’s light and heat, although they
do not belong to nature at all; in fact, what is light and warm in nature is
dark and cold here.
“Did you know anything before about the sun in this world that pro-
vides our light and heat? Were you aware that this sun is pure love, while
the sun in the physical world is pure fire? You realized that the sun of pure
fire in the physical world was the origin and sustainer of nature. Did you
realize that the sun of pure love in heaven is the origin and sustainer of
life itself (which is love together with wisdom)? Nature, then, which you
made into a god or a goddess, is clearly dead.
[ 4 ] “If you were granted protection, you could ascend with us into
heaven. If we were granted protection, we could descend with you into hell.
In heaven you would see magnificent and dazzling things. In hell we
would see hideous and filthy things. This difference between heaven and
hell exists because all who are in heaven worship God, while all who are
in hell worship nature. The magnificent and dazzling things in the heav-
ens correspond to feelings of love for good and truth. The hideous and
filthy things in the hells correspond to feelings of love for evil and falsity.
From all that we have said, then, make up your minds now about
whether God or nature is the all in all.”
The satans replied to this, “In our current state, from what we have
heard we are able to conclude that there is a God; but when our enjoy-
ment of evil preoccupies our minds we see nothing but nature.”
§77 god the creator & creation 105