In the spiritual sense, to bear false witness means to persuade that falsity is truth in a matter of faith, and that evil is good in a matter of life, and the reverse; but it is to do these of purpose, and not from ignorance, that is, to do them after one knows what is true and good, and not before.

In the celestial sense, to bear false witness means to blaspheme the Lord and the Word, and so to banish the very truth from the church; for the Lord is the Truth itself, and also the Word. On the other hand, in this sense to witness means to utter truth; and testimony means the truth itself. Hence the Decalogue is also called the Testimony. (T. C. R. n. 321-323.)

In the inmost sense this commandment forbids to falsify the truth and good of the Word; and on the other hand to establish falsity of doctrine as true by confirming it by fallacies, appearances, fictions, knowledges falsely applied, and sophistries, and the like. The very confirmations and the persuasions from them are false witness, for they are false testimonies. (A. E. n. 1019.)

THE NINTH AND TENTH COMMANDMENTS.

"Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's house; thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's wife, nor his man-sercant, nor his maid-servant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor anything that is thy neighbour's." These two commandments look to the commandments which precede, and teach and enjoin that as evils must not be done, they also must not be lusted after; consequently that they are not of the external man only, but of the internal also; for he who does not commit evils, and yet lusts to commit them, even does commit them. For the Lord says, "Whosoever lusteth after the wife of another hath already committed adultery with her in his heart" (Matt. v. 28); and the external man does not become internal, or act as one with the internal, until lusts are put away. This also the Lord teaches, saying, "Woe unto you, Scribes and Pharisees, . . . for ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess. Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse first the inside of the cup and platter, that the outside of them may be clean also" (Matt. xxiii. 25, 26). And moreover, in that whole chapter the internals which are Pharisaical are lusts after those things which are commanded not to be done in the first, second, fifth, sixth, seventh, and eighth commandments. . . . That these two commandments might look to all those which precede, that [the evils prohibited] should not be lusted after, therefore the house is first named, afterwards the wife, and then the man-servant, the maid-servant, the ox and the

ass, and lastly, all that is the neighbour's. For the house involves all things that follow; for it contains the husband, the wife, the man-servant, the maid-servant, the ox, and the ass. The wife, who is afterwards named, involves again the things which follow; for she is the mistress, as the husband is the master, in the house; the man-servant and maid-servant are under them, and the oxen and asses under them; and lastly come all things that are below or without, in that it is said, "anything that is thy neighbour's." From which it is plain that these two commandments have reference to all the preceding in general and in particular, in a wide and in a restricted sense.

In the spiritual sense these commandments prohibit all lusts which are contrary to the spirit, thus which are contrary to the spiritual things of the church, which relate chiefly to faith and charity; for unless lusts are subdued, the flesh with its liberty would rush into all wickedness. For it is known from Paul, that "The flesh lusteth against the spirit, and the spirit against the flesh" (Gal. v. 17). In short, these two commandments, understood in the spiritual sense, regard all things that have before been presented in the spiritual sense, and forbid to lust after them; and likewise all that have before been presented in the celestial sense. But to repeat them is unnecessary. (T. C. R. n. 326, 327.)

The ten commandments of the decalogue contain all things which are of love to God, and all that are of love to the neighbour.

In eight precepts, the first, second, fifth, sixth, seventh, eighth, ninth and tenth, there is nothing said of love to God and of love towards the neighbour; for it is not said that God should be loved, nor that the name of God should be hallowed, nor that the neighbour should be loved, nor therefore that he should be dealt with sincerely and uprightly; but only that Thou shalt have no other God before My face; Thou shalt not take the name of God in vain; Thou shalt not kill; Thou shalt not commit adultery; Thou shalt not steal; Thou shalt not bare false witness; Thou shalt not covet the things that are thy neighbour's. That is, in general, that evil ought not to be purposed, meditated, or done, either against God or against the neighbour. But the reason why such things as relate directly to love and charity are not commanded, but that it is only commanded that such things as are opposed to them should not be done, is that in so far as a man shuns evils as sins in so far he purposes the goods which are of love and charity. The first thing of love to the Lord and love towards the neighbour is to do no evil; and the second is to do good.

It was said that in so far as a man shuns evils he desires to do good; the reason is that evils and goods are opposites, for evils are from hell and goods from heaven. So far therefore as hell, that is evil, is removed heaven draws near and the man looks to good. That it is so is very manifest from the above eight commandments of the decalogue thus viewed. Thus, 1. In so far as any one does not worship other gods, in so far he worships the true God. II. In so far as any one does not take the name of God in vain, in so far he loves the things which are from God. III. In so far as any one is not willing to kill, and to act from hatred and revenge, in so far he wishes well to the neighbour. IV. In so far as any one is not willing to commit adultery, in so far he desires to live chastely with a wife. V. In so far as any one is not willing to steal, in so far he practises sincerity. VI. In so far as any one is not willing to bear false witness, in so far he is willing to think and speak the truth. VII. and VIII. In so far as any one does not covet the things that are the neighbour's, in so far he is willing that the neighbour should enjoy his own. Hence it is evident that the commandments of the decalogue contain all things which are of love to God, and of love towards the neighbour. Therefore Paul says, "He that loveth another hath fulfilled the law. For this, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not kill, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, Thou shalt not covet; and if there be any other commandment, it is comprehended in this saying, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. Charity worketh no evil to the neighbour; therefore charity is the fulfilment of the law" (Rom. xiii. 8-10). (T. C. R. n. 329, 330.)

OFFENDING IN ONE COMMANDMENT OFFENDING IN ALL.

It is affirmed that no one can fulfil the law, and the less because he who offends against one commandment of the decalogue offends against all. But this form of speech is not just as it sounds. For it is to be understood in this manner; that he who of purpose or determination acts contrary to one commandment, acts contrary to the rest; since to act from purpose and determination is entirely to deny that it is a sin, and if he is told that it is sin, to reject the admonition as of no moment. He who thus denies, and makes a sin a matter of no concern, makes light of everything that is called sin. (T. C. R. n. 523.)

FAITH.

WHAT FAITH IS.

FAITH is an internal acknowledgment of truth. They who are in the spiritual affection of truth have an internal acknowledg ment of it. As the angels are in that affection they totally reject the tenet that the understanding ought to be kept in subjection to faith; for they say, "How can you believe a thing when you do not see whether it is true?" And if any one affirms that what he advances must be believed for all that, they reply, "Dost thou think thyself a God, that I am to believe thee? or that I am mad, that I should believe an assertion in which I do not see any truth? If I must believe it, cause me to see it." The dogmatizer is thus constrained to retire. Indeed, the wisdom of the angels consists solely in this, that they see and comprehend what they think.

There is a spiritual conception, of which few have any cognizance, which enters by influx into the minds of those who are in the affection of truth, and interiorly dictates that the thing which they are hearing or reading is true or not true. In this conception they are who read the Word in enlightenment from the Lord. To be in enlightenment is nothing else than to be in the perception, and thence in an internal acknowledgment, that this or that is true. It is they who are in this enlightenment that are said to be taught of Jehovah, in Isaiah liv. 13; John vi. 45; and of whom it is said in Jeremiah, "Behold, the days come, . . . that I will make a new covenant; . . . this shall be the covenant; I will put My law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts: and they shall no more teach every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know ye Jehovah; for they shall all know Me” (xxxi. 31, 33, 34).

From these considerations it is plain that faith and truth are a one. This also is the reason why the ancients, who were accustomed to think of truth from affection much more than we, used the word truth instead of faith; and for the same reason in the Hebrew language truth and faith are expressed by one word, which is Amuna, or Amen. (F. n. 1, 4-6.)

The angels who are in celestial love will not hear anything of faith, saying, "What is faith? Is it not wisdom? And what is charity? Is it not to do?" And when they are told that faith consists in believing what is not understood they turn away, saying, "He is out of his senses." It is these who are in the third heaven, and are the wisest of all. Such have they become who in the world applied the Divine truths which they heard immediately to the life, turning away from evils as infernal, and worshipping the Lord alone.

The angels also who are in spiritual love do not know what, faith is. If it be mentioned they understand truth, and if charity be mentioned they understand doing the truth; and when they are told they must believe they call it a vain saying, and add, "Who does not believe truth?" They say this because in the light of their heaven they see truth; and to believe what they do not see they call either simplicity or foolishness. (D. L. W. n. 427, 428.)

The veriest faith, which saves, is trust; but there can never be this trust save in the good of life. Without the good of life there is no reception; and where there is no reception there is no trust, unless sometimes a certain apparent trust, in disordered states of mind or body, when the lusts of the love of self and of the world are quiescent. But with those who are in evil of life, when this crisis passes or is changed, this deceptive trust entirely vanishes. For there is a trust even with the wicked. But he who would know the quality of his trust, let him examine within himself his affections, and ends, as well as the actions of his life. (A. C. n. 2932.)

THE ESSENCE OF FAITH IS CHARITY.

It should be known that charity and faith form one, as the will and understanding; because charity belongs to the will, and faith to the understanding. In like manner charity and faith form one like affection and thought; because affection belongs to the will, and thought to the understanding. So again charity and faith form one like good and truth; because good has relation to affection which belongs to the will, and truth has relation to thought which belongs to the understanding. In a word, charity and faith constitute one like essence and form; for the essence of faith is charity, and the form of charity is faith. Hence it is evident that faith without charity is like a form without an essence, which is nothing; and that charity without faith is like an essence without a form, which likewise is nothing.

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