96. We said that it is harmful to affirm the apparent truth of the Word to the point of destroying the genuine truth that lies concealed within, and that is because each and every particular in the Word’s literal sense communicates with heaven and opens it, in conformity with what we said in nos. 62-69 above.

So then, when a person uses that sense to justify worldly loves in opposition to heavenly loves, the inner meaning of the Word is falsified. And as a result, when that outer meaning or literal sense, whose inner meaning is false, communicates with heaven, it then closes heaven. For the angels who are present in the Word’s inner meaning reject the falsified meaning.

It is apparent from this that inner falsity or truth falsified takes away communication with heaven and closes it.

This is why it is harmful to affirm some heretical falsity.

96. [repeated]. The Word is like a garden, one rightly called a heavenly paradise, which contains delights to the tongue and to the eye and nose — delights to the tongue in its fruits and delights to the eye and nose in its flowers — with trees of life at its center by gushing springs of water. But surrounding the garden is a forest of trees.

A person guided by Divine truths in accordance with doctrine resides in the center where the trees of life are and experiences in fact the delicacies and delights of the garden.

In contrast, a person not guided by truths in accordance with doctrine, but who focuses on the literal sense alone, resides on the periphery and sees only the forest and its trees.

But someone caught up in the doctrine of a false religion, who has affirmed in himself the falsity of it, resides not even in the forest, but in a sandy plain round about, devoid even of grass.

That such are the states after death of the people described is something we will establish in its proper place.

70. The Word Exists in All of the Heavens, and Is the Source of the Angels’ Wisdom

No one has known before that the Word exists in the heavens, nor could it have been known as long as the church remained unaware that angels and spirits are people, like people in the world, and that they have the same kinds of things that people do, in every respect, the sole difference being that angels and spirits are spiritual, and everything they have comes from a spiritual origin, while people in the world are natural, and everything they have comes from a natural origin. As long as this fact remained hidden, they could not know that the Word exists also in the heavens, and that angels read it there, and so do spirits below the heavens.

However, lest this remain hidden forever, I have been given to be in the company of angels and spirits, to speak with them, and to see their surroundings, and afterward to report much of what I have heard and seen. This I have done in the book Heaven and Hell (London, 1758); and it can be seen from it that angels and spirits are people, and that they have in abundance everything that people in the world have.

That angels and spirits are people may be seen in the aforementioned book, Heaven and Hell 73-77 and 453-456; that they have the same things as people have in the world, nos. 170-190; that they also hold Divine worship and hear sermons in the temples they have, nos. 221-227; and that they have written materials and also books, nos. 258-264, including the Word, no. 259.