9. I. What is meant by "the former heaven" and "the former earth" which passed away, mentioned in the Apocalypse (21:1) "The former heaven" and "the former earth" there mentioned, does not mean the heaven visible to the eyes of men in the world, nor the earth which is inhabited by men; nor the former heaven, in which all those are who have lived well since the first creation. But congregations of spirits are meant who had made seeming heavens between heaven and hell for themselves, and because all spirits and angels dwell upon lands, as well as men, therefore by "the former heaven" and "the former earth," these are meant. The passing away of that heaven and that earth was seen, and it has been described from sight in the work on The Last Judgment (45-72).
