e it is good. As man afterwards advances in age good and truth
are given him by the Lord. At first he is led into a knowledge of
them, then from knowledge into intelligence, and finally from
intelligence into wisdom, innocence always accompanying, which
consists, as has been said, in his knowing nothing of truth, and
being unable to do anything good from himself but only from the Lord.
Without such a belief and such a perception of it no one can receive
any thing of heaven. Therein does the innocence of wisdom chiefly
consist.

280. As innocence consists in being led by the Lord and not by self,
so all who are in heaven are in innocence; for all who are there love
to be led by the Lord, knowing that to lead themselves is to be led
by what is their own, and what is one's own is loving oneself, he
that loves himself not permitting himself to be led by any one else.
Therefore, so far as an angel is in innocence he is in heaven, in
other words, is in Divine good and Divine truth, for to be in these
is to be in heaven. Consequently the heavens are distinguished by
degrees of innocence-those who are in the outmost or first heaven are
in innocence of the first or outmost degree; those who are in the
middle or second heaven are in innocence of the second or middle
degree; while those who are in the inmost or third heaven are in
innocence of the third or inmost degree, and are therefore the
veriest innocences of heaven, for more than all others they love to
be led by the Lord as little children by their father; and for the
same reason the Divine truth that they hear immediately from the Lord
or mediately through the Word and preaching they take directly into
their will and do it, thus committing it to life. And this is why
their wisdom is so superior to that of the angels of the lower
heavens (see n. 270, 271). These angels of the inmost heaven, being
such are nearest to the Lord from whom they receive innocence, and
are so separated from what is their own that they live as it were in
the Lord. Externally they appear simple, and before the eyes of the
angels of the lower heavens they appear like children, that is, as
very small, and not very wise, although they are the wisest of the
angels of heaven; since they know that they have nothing of wisdom
from themselves, and that acknowledging this is being wise. They know
also that what they know is as nothing compared to what they do not
know; and they say that knowing, acknowled