Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures by Mary Baker Eddy (universal ebook reader .TXT) 📖

of men.” In the first chapter 561:30 of the Fourth Gospel it is written, “There was a man sent

from God … to bear witness of that Light.”

 

Spiritual idea revealed

 

John the Baptist prophesied the coming of the im-562:1 maculate Jesus, and John saw in those days the spiritual

idea as the Messiah, who would baptize with the Holy 562:3 Ghost,- divine Science. As Elias presented

the idea of the fatherhood of God, which Jesus

afterwards manifested, so the Revelator completed this 562:6 figure with woman, typifying the spiritual idea of God’s

motherhood. The moon is under her feet. This idea

reveals the universe as secondary and tributary to Spirit, 562:9 from which the universe borrows its reflected light, substance, life, and intelligence.

 

Spiritual idea crowned

 

The spiritual idea is crowned with twelve stars. The 562:12 twelve tribes of Israel with all mortals, - separated by

belief from man’s divine origin and the true

idea, - will through much tribulation yield to 562:15 the activities of the divine Principle of man in the harmony of Science. These are the stars in the crown of

rejoicing. They are the lamps in the spiritual heavens 562:18 of the age, which show the workings of the spiritual idea

by healing the sick and the sinning, and by manifesting

the light which shines “unto the perfect day” as the night 562:21 of materialism wanes.

 

Revelation xii. 2. And she being with child cried, travail—

ing in birth, and pained to be delivered.

 

Travail and joy

562:24 Also the spiritual idea is typified by a woman in travail, waiting to be delivered of her sweet promise, but remembering no more her sorrow for joy that 562:27 the birth goes on; for great is the idea, and the

travail portentous.

 

Revelation xii. 3. And there appeared another wonder in 562:30 heaven; and behold a great red dragon, having seven heads

and ten horns, and seven crowns upon his heads.

 

The dragon as a type

563:1 Human sense may well marvel at discord, while, to a

diviner sense., harmony is the real and discord the unreal. 563:3 We may well be astonished at sin, sickness, and

death. We may well be perplexed at human

fear; and still more astounded at hatred, which lifts 563:6 its hydra head, showing its horns in the many inventions

of evil. But why should we stand aghast at nothingness?

The great red dragon symbolizes a lie, - the belief 563:9 that substance, life, and intelligence can be material.

This dragon stands for the sum total of human error.

The ten horns of the dragon typify the belief that mat-563:12 ter has power of its own, and that by means of an

evil mind in matter the Ten Commandments can be

broken.

 

The sting of the serpent

563:15 The Revelator lifts the veil from this embodiment of

all evil, and beholds its awful character; but he also

sees the nothingness of evil and the allness of 563:18 God. The Revelator sees that old serpent,

whose name is devil or evil, holding untiring watch, that

he may bite the heel of truth and seemingly impede the 563:21 offspring of the spiritual idea, which is prolific in health,

holiness, and immortality.

 

Revelation xii. 4. And his tail drew the third part of the 563:24 stars of heaven, and did cast them to the earth: and the

dragon stood before the woman which was ready to be

delivered, for to devour her child as soon as it was born.

 

Animal tendency

563:27 The serpentine form stands for subtlety, winding its

way amidst all evil, but doing this in the name of good.

Its sting is spoken of by Paul, when he refers 563:30 to “spiritual wickedness in high places.” It

is the animal instinct in mortals, which would impel 564:1 them to devour each other and cast out devils through

Beelzebub.

564:3 As of old, evil still charges the spiritual idea with error’s

own nature and methods. This malicious animal instinct, of which the dragon is the type, incites mortals to 564:6 kill morally and physically even their fellow-mortals, and

worse still, to charge the innocent with the crime. This

last infirmity of sin will sink its perpetrator into a night 564:9 without a star.

 

Malicious barbarity

 

The author is convinced that the accusations against

Jesus of Nazareth and even his crucifixion were instigated 564:12 by the criminal instinct here described. The

Revelator speaks of Jesus as the Lamb of God

and of the dragon as warring against innocence. Since Jesus 564:15 must have been tempted in all points, he, the immaculate,

met and conquered sin in every form. The brutal barbarity of his foes could emanate from no source except the 564:18 highest degree of human depravity. Jesus “/opened not

his mouth/.” Until the majesty of Truth should be demonstrated in divine Science, the spiritual idea was arraigned 564:21 before the tribunal of so-called mortal mind, which was

unloosed in order that the false claim of mind in matter

might uncover its own crime of defying immortal Mind.

 

Doom of the dragon

564:24 From Genesis to the Apocalypse, sin, sickness, and

death, envy, hatred, and revenge, - all evil, - are typified by a serpent, or animal subtlety. Jesus 564:27 said, quoting a line from the Psalms, “They

hated me without a cause.” The serpent is perpetually

close upon the heel of harmony. From the beginning 564:30 to the end, the serpent pursues with hatred the spiritual

idea. In Genesis, this allegorical, talking serpent typifies mortal mind, “more subtle than any beast of the 565:1 field.” In the Apocalypse, when nearing its doom, this

evil increases and becomes the great red dragon, swollen 565:3 with sin, inflamed with war against spirituality, and ripe

for destruction. It is full of lust and hate, loathing the

brightness of divine glory.

565:6 Revelation xii. 5. And she brought forth a man child,

who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron: and her

child was caught up unto God, and to His throne.

 

The conflict with purity

565:9 Led on by the grossest element of mortal mind, Herod

decreed the death of every male child in order that the

man Jesus, the masculine representative of the 565:12 spiritual idea might never hold sway and deprive Herod of his crown. The impersonation of the

spiritual idea had a brief history in the earthly life of our 565:15 Master; but “of his kingdom there shall be no end,”

for Christ, God’s idea, will eventually rule all nations

and peoples - imperatively, absolutely, finally - with di-565:18 vine Science. This immaculate idea, represented first

by man and, according to the Revelator, last by woman,

will baptize with fire; and the fiery baptism will burn up 565:21 the chaff of error with the fervent heat of Truth and Love,

melting and purifying even the gold of human character.

After the stars sang together and all was primeval har-565:24 mony, the material lie made war upon the spiritual idea;

but this only impelled the idea to rise to the zenith of

demonstration, destroying sin, sickness, and death, and 565:27 to be caught up unto God, - to be found in its divine

Principle.

 

Revelation xii. 6. And the woman fled into the wilder-565:30 ness, where she hath a place prepared of God.

 

Spiritual guidance

566:1 As the children of Israel were guided triumphantly

through the Red Sea, the dark ebbing and flowing tides 566:3 of human fear, - as they were led through the

wilderness, walking wearily through the great

desert of human hopes, and anticipating the promised 566:6 joy, - so shall the spiritual idea guide all right desires

in their passage from sense to Soul, from a material sense

of existence to the spiritual, up to the glory prepared for 566:9 them who love God. Stately Science pauses not, but

moves before them, a pillar of cloud by day and of fire

by night, leading to divine heights.

566:12 If we remember the beautiful description which Sir

Walter Scott puts into the mouth of Rebecca the Jewess

in the story of Ivanhoe, - 566:15 When Israel, of the Lord beloved,

Out of the land of bondage came,

Her fathers’ God before her moved, 566:18 An awful guide, in smoke and flame, -

 

we may also offer the prayer which concludes the same

hymn, - 566:21 And oh, when stoops on Judah’s path

In shade and storm the frequent night,

Be Thou, longsuffering, slow to wrath, 566:24 A burning and a shining light!

 

Revelation xii. 7, 8. And there was war in heaven:

Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the 566:27 dragon fought, and his angels, and prevailed not; neither

was their place found any more in heaven.

 

Angelic offices

 

The Old Testament assigns to the angels, God’s divine 566:30 messages, different offices. Michael’s characteristic is spiritual strength. He leads the

hosts of heaven against the power of sin, Satan, and 567:1 fights the holy wars. Gabriel has the more quiet task

of imparting a sense of the ever-presence of ministering 567:3 Love. These angels deliver us from the depths. Truth

and Love come nearer in the hour of woe, when strong

faith or spiritual strength wrestles and prevails through 567:6 the understanding of God. The Gabriel of His presence

has no contests. To infinite, ever-present Love, all is

Love, and there is no error, no sin, sickness, nor death. 567:9 Against Love, the dragon warreth not long, for he is

killed by the divine Principle. Truth and Love prevail

against the dragon because the dragon cannot war with 567:12 them. Thus endeth the conflict between the flesh and

Spirit.

 

Revelation xii. 9. And the great dragon was cast out, 567:15 that old serpent, called the devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his

angels were cast out with him.

 

Dragon cast down to earth

567:18 That false claim - that ancient belief, that old serpent

whose name is devil (evil), claiming that there is intelligence in matter either to benefit or to injure 567:21 men - is pure delusion, the red dragon; and

it is cast out by Christ, Truth, the spiritual

idea, and so proved to be powerless. The words “cast 567:24 unto the earth” show the dragon to be nothingness, dust

to dust; and therefore, in his pretence of being a talker,

he must be a lie from the beginning. His angels, or mes-567:27 sages, are cast out with their author. The beast and the

false prophets are lust and hypocrisy. These wolves in

sheep’s clothing are detected and killed by innocence, the 567:30 Lamb of Love.

 

Warfare with error

 

Divine Science shows how the Lamb slays the wolf. 568:1 Innocence and Truth overcome guilt and error. Ever

since the foundation of the world, ever since error would 568:3 establish material belief, evil has tried to slay

the Lamb; but Science is able to destroy this

lie, called evil. The twelfth chapter of the Apocalypse 568:6 typifies the divine method of warfare in Science, and the

glorious results of this warfare. The following chapters

depict the fatal effects of trying to meet error with error. 568:9 The narrative follows the order used in Genesis. In

Genesis, first the true method of creation is set forth and

then the false. Here, also, the Revelator first exhibits 568:12 the true warfare and then the false.

 

Revelation xii. 10 - 12. And I heard a loud voice saying

in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the 568:15 kingdom of our God, and the power of His Christ: for the

accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them

before our God day and night. And they overcame him by 568:18