INTRODUCTION: the Bible has an Inner Meaning
“At the literal level the Word seems like poor writing in a strange style,
lacking the sublime and lucid quality that modern works seem to have.”
TCR 189
Generally, anyone who claims they fully understands the bible is fooling themselves.
Today’s Christians focus almost exclusively on the New Testament because compared to
the Old Testament it’s and easy read. The Old Testament’s genealogies are tedious, the
rules and rituals of the ancient Hebrew theocracy seem irrelevant, the miracles strain
credulity, the stories brutal, the style and pacing of the language is archaic, its symbols
are obscure and its prophecies are cryptic. All but the most strident fundamentalist can
see that it is rife with apparent contradictions and scientific inaccuracies. The bible
reflects the perspectives of a foreign culture of an ancient civilization governed by
institutions that have long since passed away.
Starting in 1749, a London publisher printed a curious series of books, eight volumes in all.
Its anonymous author titled the book, “Secrets of Heaven, Contained in Sacred Scripture,
or, The Word of the Lord, Here First those in Genesis, Together with Amazing Things Seen in
the World of Spirits & in the Heaven of Angles.” Written in scholarly Latin the books
purported to reveal previously unknown hidden meanings in Scripture. Interspersed with
its phrase-by-phrase and word-by-word explanation of the symbols found in the first book
of the Bible, the book included “memorable experiences”, detail accounts of the
author’s personal experiences in the spiritual world, including his conversations with
angels, the spirits of the recently departed and even demons from hell.
Despite his initial efforts to remain anonymous, Emanuel Swedenborg was identified by
his contemporaries as the author. No ordinary mystic, Swedenborg was a true man of the
Enlightenment, a first-rate engineer and scientist credited with many discoveries in fields
ranging from metallurgy to neurobiology. His insightful approach into phenomena of the
natural world found equal application in theology.
When it comes to the Word of God, the central source of knowledge about the Christian
faith we are like the Ethiopian eunuch:
“And he was returning and sitting in his chariot, and was reading the
prophet Isaiah. And the Spirit said to Philip, ‘Go up and join this chariot.’ So
Philip had to run up, and he heard him reading Isaiah the prophet, and
said, ‘do you understand what you are reading?’ And he said, ‘Well, how
could I unless someone guides me?’” Acts 8:26-31
So the question becomes this. Who will open our eyes so that we can mine the depth of
these riches? Personally, I have found the writing of Emmanuel Swedenborg more useful
than any other teacher, not so much because he reveals the hidden meanings, but
because he does so in an exhaustive and consistent way.
The title of tonight’s presentation is “Hidden Light: Swedenborg and the Secrets of
Heaven.” I gave it this title because ‘hidden light’ best expresses how the Word of God
opens up when approached with the understanding that an inner spiritual meaning rests
just below the surface, or scriptures.
The Word itself calls attention to the fact that it contains deep and profound mysteries
not readily apparent from its literal meaning:
"I will open my mouth in a parable: I will utter dark sayings of old, which we
have heard and known, and our fathers have told us." Psalm 78:2,3
“I have also spoken to the prophets, and gave numerous visions; And
through the prophets I gave parables." Hosea 12:10
“To whom would He teach knowledge? And to whom would He interpret
the message? Those just weaned from milk? Those just taken from the
breast? For He says, ‘Order on order, order on order, line on line, line on
line, a little here, a little there.’” Indeed He will speak to this people
through stammering lips and a foreign tongue.” Isaiah 28:9-11
When talking about the inner meaning of the Bible, it would be easy to think only in terms
of symbols, metaphors, and figures of speech. To Swedenborg however, the inner sense
of Scripture is something much more profound. In fact, Swedenborg identified three
specific levels within the Scriptures:
The Literal: From this type of plain reading stories like Noah’s flood, Balaam’s ass, and the
city of New Jerusalem descending from heaven concern a real flood, a talking donkey,
and an actual city. From this we get object lessons about moral behavior, inspiring
poetry, and instructions about daily life from various parables. Like ancient Greek and
Teutonic mythology, the literal meaning can be psychologically insightful. Such insights
alone do not make Scripture holy.
The Spiritual: The spiritual core of the Word makes it holy. It wears the legends of old the
way the soul wears the body. This inner meaning brings the Word to life and is why we
can say that the Holy Scriptures have life in them. The Word’s spiritual meaning deals with
the relationship between the Lord and humanity. Sometimes it addresses the relationship
between the Lord and the spiritual community, like the antediluvians, the people
represented by figures such as Abraham, or the nation of Israel.
Most of us have some knowledge about ancient myths that have remarkable similarity to
the stories of the bible. Many of these predate their Scriptural form and vary in many
important details. The Gilgamesh flood epic sounds much like Noah’s flood. Babylonian
artifacts match description of Cherubim and Seraphim found in the biblical texts. This
should not surprise us. The Word originated from YHVH, divinity itself, as an inexpressible.
To reach the human intellect, it needed to take a form adapted to our understanding.
Under the Lord’s guidance, spiritually perceptive story tellers folded hidden spiritual
messages into longstanding legends. They did so without any awareness and that hidden
meaning has only recently been revealed to mankind.
The Heavenly: Beyond the spiritual meaning lies an even deeper level of significance: the
heavenly meaning. The heavenly meaning tells us about the Lord Himself, the inner
workings of Providence, stages of His manifestation, the nature of His Humanity, His
justice, and His mercy. Most times it is difficult to discern between the spiritual and
heavenly. Heavenly meanings seem more accessible from prophetic forms of address
and allegorical passages.
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