155.  Creation itself cannot be brought within man’s comprehension unless space and time are removed from thought; but if these are removed, it can be comprehended.  Removing these if you can, or as much as you can, and keeping the mind in ideas abstracted from space and time, you will perceive that there is no difference between the maximum of space and the minimum of space; and then you cannot but have a similar idea of the creation of the universe as of the creation of the particulars therein; you will also perceive that diversity in created things springs from this, that there are infinite things in God-Man, consequently things without limit in the sun which is the first proceeding from Him; these countless things take form, as in an image, in the created universe.  From this it is that no one thing can anywhere be precisely the same as another.  From this comes that variety of all things which is presented to sight, in the natural world, together with space, but in the spiritual world with appearance of space; and it is a variety both of generals and of particulars.  These are the things that have been pointed out in PartI., where it is shown that in God-Man infinite things are one distinctly (n. 17-22); that all things in the universe were created by Divine Love and Divine Wisdom, (n. 52, 53); that all things in the created universe are recipients of the Divine Love and of the Divine Wisdom of God-Man (n. 54-60); that the Divine is not in space (n. 7-10); that the Divine apart from space fills all spaces (n. 66 — 72); that the Divine is the same in things greatest and least (n. 77-82).

156.  The creation of the universe, and of all things of it, cannot be said to have been wrought from space to space, or from time to time, thus progressively and successively, but from eternity and from infinity; not from eternity of time, because there is no such thing, but from eternity not of time, for this is the same with the Divine; nor from infinity of space, because again there is no such thing, but from infinity not of space, which also is the same with the Divine.  These things, I know, transcend the ideas of thoughts that are in natural light, but they do not transcend the ideas of thoughts that are in spiritual light, for in these there is nothing of space and time.  Neither do they wholly transcend ideas that are in natural light; for when it is said that infinity of space is not possible, this is affirmed by every one from reason.  It is the same with eternity, for this is infinity of time.  If you say “to eternity,” it is comprehensible from time; but “from eternity” is not comprehensible, unless time is removed.

157.  The sun of the natural world is pure fire, consequently dead; nature also is dead, because it derives its origin from that sun.