tween cause and effect; it is that sublime way which leads through nature up to nature's God. Would you see the wonderful vesture of our Lord, woven without seam from the top throughout? you must see the spiritual sense of the Word in its perfect harmony and oneness; while the letter, or outward garments, are parted among so many sects. Would you see the burning bush unconsumed? you must see the literal sense of the Word shining with inward fire, or brilliant with spiritual truths from the love of God. Would you, like Moses, turn aside to see this great sight, how the bush burns and is not consumed ? Come not to gratify idle curiosity, come with an humble and teachable disposition, desirous to know what God says to you, that you may obey Him; for like that venerable lawgiver, you may spiritually hear God call unto you "Out of the midst of the bush," saying, "Draw not nigh hither: put off thy shoes from off thy feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground." (Ex. iii. 4, 5.) The shoes, which are the clothing for the feet, denote the lowest and most outward things of the mind-our carnal proprium. This must be put off before we can truly appreciate the internal sublimity and beauty of the Word.

The spiritual sense is the sanctum sanctorum of the Word, where we may hold communion with Him who is "Of purer eyes than to behold iniquity." We may see something of the natural philosophy of this sense by the science of correspondences while we are in a ratural and selfish state of mind; but, to feel it in our hearts, and see its inner glories, we should approach it with a suitable sense of the great distance between our

own state and the purity of its teachings. We should come then, with humility and meekness, praying to the Lord that He will open our understandings, that we may behold the wonderful things written in the Law. And, if we have truly sincere desires, a lively faith and ardent hope, and look into the Law of analogy with elevated understandings, rationally opened to receive instruction in a reasonable way, we shall behold, and understand the wonder which St. John saw-"A woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars" or, in other words, we shall see "The holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband :" or, in still other words, The church of God, with its doctrines shining in spiritual light; for the Lord God and the Lamb are the light thereof.

Doubting not that this New Church is the very thing now needed and designed to prevent the universal reign of skepticism, to restore reverence for the Holy Word, to open, elevate and enlighten the human mind, that it may overcome and put away the love of self and the world which now so universally reign, and become filled with the love of God and the neighbor, and be happy; I appeal to you, as you value order, light, love, peace, purity, and heaven, to examine these things. O, turn not away from this call; for it is a call to a true "Feast of reason and flow of soul." We call you to no instantaneous reception, in a way you will not know how, of something you will not know what. We invite you to look at nothing unreasonable, and to believe

nothing you cannot understand. Come, then, to the Fountain of Wisdom, and drink the truth into your souls understandingly. Come willingly, come cheerfully. come inquiringly. "The Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely," (Rev. xxii. 17.)

CHAPTER III.

THE ANALOGY BETWEEN

THE UNIVERSE AND THE

MIND.

"For then will I turn to the people a pure language, that they may all call upon the name of the LORD, to serve Him with one consent."

(Zeph. iii. 9.)

WE are to glance this evening at the Scripture analogy between the material universe and the human mind. This analogy is strikingly manifest, everywhere in the Holy Word, by the science of correspondences-the sure language of God-in which that Word is written, and which, according to the prophecy of our text, the Lord promises to make known to the people. This promise is now being fulfilled. The Lord is now turning to the people a pure language, that they may all call upon the name of the Lord, and serve Him with one consent. There was a time when there was but one language upon the earth. The Lord declares in the 11th chapter of Genesis that, "The whole earth was of one language, and of one speech." And again He says, in the same chapter, "Behold, the people is one, and they have all one language."

Now, it is certain that that language has been lost.

But

The people are not all of one speech now. Nor are the people of any one language all of one speech, in that language. Indeed there are no two persons of any one language, that understand that language alike. The reason is, the language itself has no stability nor sure definiteness. This is because it has lost its, roots. True, the language we use purports to take root in many others. But these languages themselves, and even those of them which are called dead, or fixed languages, have, to men, lost their roots. Nature is the ground in which all true language takes root. And the law of analogy is the only light in which that root can be truly seen. We know the dead languages are not fluctuating and changing like those in common use. the reason is, they are not used. It is to the conservative nature of the Hebrew and Greek languages, that we are indebted for so correct a knowledge of the Holy Word as we now have. And it is therefore of the divine Providence that they became dead, that they could better preserve the Word. Those languages still take root in nature. But men, by the loss of the science of correspondences, see not where, nor how that root exists. Hence the uncertainty which hangs over the precise meaning of many things in even those languages; and particularly in the Holy Word, where many things are written solely for the sake of the spiritual sense, and therefore where no shadow of a rational meaning can be seen without the law of analogy.

But the Lord says, prophetically, in our text, pointing to this age of the world, "Then will I turn to the people a pure language, that they may all call upon the name of the Lord, to serve Him