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| Commandment Sixth. How to Recognise the Two Spirits Attendant on Each Man, and How to Distinguish the Suggestions of the One from Those of the Other.
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How to Recognise the Two Spirits Attendant on Each Man, and How to
Distinguish the Suggestions of the One from Those of the Other.
Chap. I.
“I gave you,” he said, “directions
in the first commandment to attend to faith, and fear, and
self-restraint.” “Even so, sir,” said I. And he said,
“Now I wish to show you the powers of these, that you may know what
power each possesses. For their powers are double, and have relation alike
to the righteous and the unrighteous. Trust you, therefore, the righteous,
but put no trust in the unrighteous. For the path of righteousness
is straight, but that of unrighteousness is crooked. But walk in the
straight and even way, and mind not the crooked. For the crooked path
has no roads, but has many pathless places and stumbling-blocks in it,
and it is rough and thorny. It is injurious to those who walk therein.
But they who walk in the straight road walk evenly without stumbling,
because it is neither rough nor thorny. You see, then, that it is better
to walk in this road.” “I wish to go by this road,”
said I. “You will go by it,” said he; “and whoever
turns to the Lord with all his heart will walk in it.”
Chap. II.
“Hear now,” said he, “in regard to
faith. There are two angels191
| 191
[See Tob. iii. 8; 17. The impure spirit, and the healing angel. This
apocryphal book greatly influenced the Church’s ideas of angels,
and may have suggested this early reference to one’s good and
evil angel. The mediæval ideas on this subject are powerfully
illustrated in the German legends preserved by Sir. W. Scott in
The Wild Huntsman and The Fire-King.] | with
a man—one of righteousness, and the other of iniquity.”
And I said to him, “How, sir, am I to know the powers of these,
for both angels dwell with me?” “Hear,” said he,
and “understand them. The angel of righteousness is gentle and
modest, meek and peaceful. When, therefore, he ascends into your heart,
forthwith192
he talks to you of righteousness,
purity, chastity, contentment, and of every righteous deed and glorious
virtue. When all these ascend into your heart, know that the angel
of righteousness is with you. These are the deeds of the angel of
righteousness. Trust him, then, and his works. Look now at the works of
the angel of iniquity. First, he is wrathful, and bitter, and foolish,
and his works are evil, and ruin the servants of God. When, then, he
ascends into your heart, know him by his works.” And I said to him,
“How, sir, I shall perceive him, I do not know.” “Hear
and understand” said he. “When anger comes upon you, or
harshness, know that he is in you; and you will know this to be the case
also, when you are attacked by a longing after many transactions,193
| 193 Transactions. I think the
writer means, when a longing is felt to engage with too great devotedness
to business and the pursuit of wealth. [“That ye may attend upon
the Lord without distraction.” 1 Cor. vii. 35.] | and
the richest delicacies, and drunken revels, and divers luxuries, and
things improper, and by a hankering after women, and by overreaching,
and pride, and blustering, and by whatever is like to these. When
these ascend into your heart, know that the angel of iniquity is
in you. Now that you know his works, depart from him, and in no
respect trust him, because his deeds are evil, and unprofitable
to the servants of God. These, then, are the actions of both
angels. Understand them, and trust the angel of righteousness; but
depart from the angel of iniquity, because his instruction is bad
in every deed.194
For though a man be most
faithful,195
and the thought of this angel ascend
into his heart, that man or woman must sin. On the other hand, be a man
or woman ever so bad, yet, if the works of the angel of righteousness
ascend into his or her heart, he or she must do something good. You see,
therefore, that it is good to follow the angel of righteousness, but to
bid farewell196
| 196 But to bid
farewell. The Vat. ends quite differently from this point: If, then,
you follow him, and trust to his works, you will live to God; and they
who trust to his works will live to God.—Vat. |
to the angel of iniquity.”
“This commandment exhibits the deeds of faith,
that you may trust the works of the angel of righteousness, and doing
them you may live to God. But believe the works of the angel of iniquity
are hard. If you refuse to do them, you will live to God.” E.C.F. INDEX & SEARCH
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