e will and the
consequent deeds; and that the life is from the thought only to the
extent that the thought is derived from the will; neither is life
from the faith except so far as the faith is derived from love.
Angels are grieved that these persons do not know that faith alone is
impossible in any one, since faith apart from its origin, which is
love, is nothing but knowledge, and in some is merely a sort of
persuasion that has the semblance of faith (see above, n. 482). Such
a persuasion is not in the life of man, but outside of it, since it
is separated from man unless it coheres with his love. [3] The angels
said further that those who hold to this principle concerning the
essential means of salvation in man must needs believe in mercy apart
from means, for they perceive both from natural light and from the
experience of sight that faith separate does not constitute the life
of man, since those who lead an evil life are able to think and to be
persuaded the same as others; and from this comes the belief that the
evil as well as the good can be saved, provided that at the hour of
death they talk with confidence about intercession, and about the
mercy that is granted through that intercession. The angels declared
that they had never yet seen any one who had lived an evil life
received into heaven from mercy apart from means, whatever trust or
confidence (which is preeminently meant by faith) he had exhibited in
his talk in the world. [4] When asked about Abraham, Isaac, Jacob,
David, and the apostles, whether they were not received into heaven
from mercy apart from means, the angels replied that not one of them
was so received, but everyone in accordance with his life in the
world; that they knew where these were, and that they were no more
esteemed there than others. They said that these persons are
mentioned with honor in the Word for the reason that in the internal
sense the Lord is meant by them--by Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the
Lord in respect to the Divine and the Divine Human; by David the Lord
in respect to the Divine royalty; and by the apostles the Lord in
respect to Divine truths; also that when the Word is read by man the
angels have no perception whatever of these men, for their names do
not enter heaven; but they have instead a perception of the Lord as
He has just been described; consequently in the Word that is in
heaven (see above, n. 259) there are no such names mentioned, since
that Word is the in