48. I. THE INFINITE IN ITSELF AND THE ETERNAL IN ITSELF IS THE SAME AS THE DIVINE. This may be evident from what has been shown in many places in the treatise THE DIVINE LOVE AND WISDOM. That the Infinite in itself and the Eternal in itself is the Divine is according to the angelic idea, the angels understanding by the Infinite nothing else than the Divine Being (Esse), and by the Eternal the Divine Existing (Existere). That the Infinite in itself and the Eternal in itself is the Divine can be seen by men, and yet cannot be seen. It can be seen by those who think of the Infinite not from space and of the Eternal not from time; but it cannot be seen by those who think of the Infinite and the Eternal from space and time. Thus it can be seen by those who think on a higher, that is, more interior plane in the rational (mind); but it cannot be seen by those who think on a lower, that is, more exterior plane.
[2] Those by whom it can be seen reflect that there cannot be an infinity of space, nor similarly can there be an infinity of time, that is, an eternity from which are all things (a quo), because infinity is without end, either first or last, that is, without limits. They also reflect that neither can there be an Infinity from itself; because from itself supposes an end and a beginning, or a prior source (a quo); and therefore it is meaningless to speak of the Infinite and Eternal from itself, for that would be like speaking of Being (Esse) from itself, which is a contradiction; for the Infinite from itself would be an Infinite from an Infinite, and Being from itself would be a Being from a Being; and this Infinite and Being either would be the same as the Infinite, or would be finite. From these and similar considerations which can be seen interiorly in the rational (mind), it is clear that there is an Infinite in itself and an Eternal in itself; and that this Infinite and Eternal is the Divine from which all things are.