Jakob Böhme

“ A true Christian is in the Spirit a Christian, and in continual Exercise to bring forth its own Form, not only with Words in Sound and shew, but in the Power of the Work, as a visible palpable Form, not weening, conjecturing, and giving good Words out of the self-ful Self-hood, and yet remaining in Self-hood; but a Dying to Self-hood, and a Growing forth in the Will of God in the Love-Self-hood as a Servant of God in God's Deeds of Wonder ”

“ Man upon the Earth, as Isaiah says, Who is so simple as my servant? All Heathens Desire Self-hood, and tear and devour one another for the Authority and Honours: But a true Christian desires to die to them; he seeks not his own, but Christ's Honour. All whatever contends about Self-hood, viz. about the self-ful Honour and Pleasure of this Life, the same is Heathenish, and far worse than Heathenish; yea like the Devil, who departed from God into Self-fulness: Let it cover itself with Christ's Mantle as much as ever it will, yet the Man of false Self-hood is lodged under it ”

“ Whatever runs on in Nature torments itself, but that which attains Nature's End, the same is in Rest without Source, and yet works, but only in one Desire: All whatever makes Anguish and Strife in Nature, that makes mere Joy in God ”

“ True real Resignation is the Mortification of the Abominate against God; he that wholly forsakes his Self-hood, and gives himself up with Mind and Desire, Senses and Will, into God's Mercy, into the Dying of Jesus Christ, he is dead to the earthly World with the Will, and is a twofold Man ”

“ The self-ful Will makes a Form according to its innate Nature; but a Form is made in the resigned Will according to the Platform or model of Eternity, as it was known in the Glass of God's eternal Wisdom before the Times of this World; so the eternal Will figures and Forms it into a Model of its Likeness to the Honour and wonderful Acts of God; for all whatever goes on in its Self-hood, the same Forms itself; but what resigns itself freely, that is Formed of the free Will: Now no self-ful Form with its own Self-Will can inherit the only Eternal Being ”

“ For Conjecture, Opinion, or the self-ful own Imagination, which arises in the expressed Voice [or literal outward Word] , is not God's Word; but that which arises in God's Spirit in the wholly resigned Will in divine Power in the eternal speaking Word, that takes its Original out of God's Voice, and makes the Form in the Heart, viz. a divine Desire, whereby the Soul's Will is drawn into God. ”

“ In the Hunger the Spirit with the Body is generated, and in the same Hunger it goes into its eternal Being, unless it breaks its first Hunger, and brings itself into another by Mortification, else all is at its End as soon as it is born; but Death is the only means whereby the Spirit may enter into another Source and Form: If it dies to its Self-hood, and breaks its Will in Death, then a new Twig springs forth out of the same, but not according to the first Will, but according to the eternal Will ”

“ But the Servant of the Lord shall be sought and found; the Lord feeds his Lambs in his own Form, and brings them into his Pasture; all the haughty and wealthy of the World shall find by Experience what Judgement the Lord will bring upon the Face of all the Earth, and all wicked Hope shall be destroyed; for the Day of the Harvest draws near: A Terror from the Lord shaketh the Earth, and his Voice soundeth in all the Ends of the Earth ”

“ If the human Will (which is departed out of the unity of Eternity, and entered into a self-fulness, viz. into a Selfish Lust and Desire) does again break itself off from Self-hood, and enter into the Mortification of Self-Will, and introduce its Desire again only into the first Mother, then the first Mother does again choose it to be its Child, and makes it again one with the only Will of Eternity: But that [Will or Person] which continues in Self-hood, he continues in the eternal Dying, viz. in an eternal selfish Enmity ”

“ And though he does some Thing that is good, yet he does it not from his own Self-Will, but the Will resigned in God compels him that he must do what his Self would not willingly do: And now if he does it, he does it as an Instrument of the resigned Will, not from his own Desire, but from God's Will, which guides the resigned Will in the Desire as an Instrument. ”

“ All whatever does Lord itself without God's Call and Appointment, the same is from the Devil, and serves the Devil in his own Power and Form: Defend and flatter thyself as much as thou wilt, it does not avail before God ”

“ This Desire does only grow out of Christ's Death, and out of his Resurrection in God, and brings forth Fruit in Patience which is hidden in God, of which the earthly Man knows Nothing, for it finds itself in its Selfhood. ”

“ But when the great Mystery did once move itself, and introduced the free Lubet into the Desire of the Essence, then in the Desire the Strife began; for there arose in the Desire out of the Element, which bears only one Will, four Elements, viz. manifold desires and Wills, which rule in one only Body, where now there is Contrariety and Strife; as Heat against Cold, Fire against Water, Air against Earth, each is the Death and destruction of the other; so that the Creature which stands in this Dominion is Nothing else but a continual Dying and a Strife ”

“ It seeks no Glory or Applause to shew itself, but lives in Humility: It acknowledges itself always as unworthy and simple; its true Christianity is always hidden in its Self-hood. He says, I am in my Self-hood an unprofitable Servant, and have not as yet begun to do or work repentance right. He is always in the Beginning to Work Repentance, and would always fain reach the Gates of the sweet Grace; he labours for that Purpose as a Woman in Travail labours to bring forth, and knows not how it fares with him ”

“ Seeing then God is one only God, then all whatever will live in him must be like his Will and Word: As a Concert of Music must be tuned into one Harmony, though there be many Strings, and manifold Voices and Sounds therein; so must the true human Harmony be tuned with all Voices into a Love Melody, and that Will-Spirit which is not tuned unto the only Concert in the divine Voice, the same is cast forth out of this Tune, and brought into its self-ful Tune, viz. ”

“ Then he shall be introduced into the Root of his Likeness; for every Hunger receives its like into itself; now the whole Manifestation of Eternity with this Time is Nothing else but an Hunger and Generation; as the Hunger is, so is also the Essence of its Satiating ”

“ Now if the Form of the same proceeds forth, and manifests itself out of itself, then this Form stands with the Root in the Mystery of Eternity; but if the Form brings itself forth into another Lust, so that two Properties must dwell in one, then from thence arises the Enmity and Abominate; for there has been from Eternity only the one Element in Motion, and the free Lubet of Eternity, which proceeded forth with its Motion from the great Mystery of Eternity as a Spirit, which Spirit is God's. ”

“ Form of the new-Birth; a Christian must be one Spirit with Christ, and have Christ's Will and Life in him; the Form does not renew him, neither comforting, or giving good Words does at all help or avail, but a mortifying of the evil inbred Will, which is God's Child, and born out of Christ's Death, no other Will attains Christ's inheritance ”

“ In like Manner also we are to consider of the regenerate Will, which goes out of its Selfishness or Self-hood again into the Resignation; the same becomes also an Enemy and an Abominate to Self-hood; as Sickness is an Enemy to health, and on the contrary, health an Enemy to Sickness: Thus the resigned Will, and also the Self-Will are a continual Enmity, and an incessant lasting war and combat. ”

“ Therefore let every one seek and find himself; for the Time of Visitation is at Hand, that he may be found in his Love; for the Turba has found all false Lust in it, and the Most High Worker of all Essences manifests the Turba; and then all false Lust or Imagination becomes manifest, and each Thing enters into its eternal Keeper, for all Things are generated out of Imagination: So also it shall receive its Property in the Imagination, and every Imagination reaps its own Work which it has wrought ”

“ And though the Self-Desire Sins, which indeed can do Nothing else but Sin, yet the resigned Will lives not in Sin, for it is mortified to the Desire of Sin, and lives through Christ in God in the Land of the Living; but Self-hood lives in the Land of Death, viz. in the continual Dying, in the continual Enmity against God.
13. The earthly Man is the Curse of God, and is an Abominate before God's Holiness ”

“ Comforting and setting the Suffering of Christ in the Forefront is not the true Faith; no, no, it is only without, and not within: But a converted Will, which enters into Sorrow for its earthly Iniquity, and will have none of it any more ”

“ The elemental and siderial Man must only be the Instrument wherewith Man's Soul labours in the resigned Will; for thereto God has also created it; but the Soul has made and set up itself in Adam for Lord and Master, and is entered into his Prison, and given its Will thereinto ”

“ And as thou hast brought thyself into a false self-ful Form under the true Form, so thou shalt also destroy thyself, whereto the Heaven helps thee, which thou hast a long Time served in Obedience, and from this there is no withholding ”

“ He sows in Anguish and Tears, and knows not his Fruit, for it is hidden in God; as a painful Traveller goes a long Way, aiming at his wished-for Journey's End, so also he runs after the far Mark of his Rest, and finds it not ”