This innocence is the end that directs all their instruction and
progress; and therefore when they have attained to the innocence of
wisdom, the innocence of childhood, which in the meanwhile has served
them as a plane, is joined to them. [3] The innocence of children has
been represented to me as a wooden sort of thing, almost devoid of
life, which becomes vivified as they are perfected by knowledges of
truth and affections for good. Afterwards genuine innocence was
represented by a most beautiful child, naked and full of life; for
the really innocent, who are in the inmost heaven and thus nearest to
the Lord, always appear before the eyes of other angels as little
children, and some of them naked; for innocence is represented by
nakedness unaccompanied by shame, as is said of the first man and his
wife in Paradise (Gen. 2:25); so when their state of innocence
perished they were ashamed of their nakedness, and hid themselves
(chap. 3:7, 10, 11). In a word, the wiser the angels are the more
innocent they are, and the more innocent they are the more they
appear to themselves as little children. This is why in the Word
"childhood" signifies innocence (see above, n.
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