The Household of God
Volume 1
The early history of mankind
- Chapter 107 -
ABOUT SLYNESS
After the discussion between Kenan and Mahalaleel, and earlier also between Jared and Enoch, Seth and Enos were secretly already anxious to exchange a few words with each other. This desire awoke first in Seth and only then released that of Enos. And it was for the following reason.
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Seth wanted very much to find out what Enos was thinking about Asmahael, but there was also another reason for Seth to begin to question Enos about Asmahael, and that was a kind of fear to be questioned by Enos before the time.
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For he thought by himself: "If I change it that my son begins to ask me, whatever will I tell him then?
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"If I ask him first, he has to answer me and I can then without worry listen for a long time to the doubtlessly not meaningless conjectures by my son. Then he will surely not think of bothering me with a question and in this most harmless and simple manner shall I be saved from giving away what I am not meant to. And so amen!"
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And so Seth asked Enos: "Listen, my dear son Enos, if those ahead of us who are so to speak our guides discuss Asmahael, why should we not do so, too, since as far as I know there is no command against it? Now I would like very much to hear from you something about Asmahael.
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'What do you think of Him, and that from the very beginning when He came to us? Though His initial appearance in our midst seemed most insignificant, now the effect of every one of His words is quite extraordinary, which has surely not been missed by your tranquil spirit
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"Look, therefore I would like to hear your judgment concerning Him. And now you may speak! Amen."
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Behold, Seth's slyness was justified because only his great love for Me had brought it about, yet slyness as such is not a good thing because it has a dual nature and is contrary to the order of love, even if not exactly against love as such. In a physical respect it can be compared to the dual nature in a human whom nature has mutilated so that he is part man, part woman. Who can be married to such a hermaphrodite and what virgin could conceive by such a hermaphrodite whose organs cannot be used for either begetting or conceiving?
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But such a person still loves his perfect fellowmen and they love him, and thus he is not against love. However, he is not in the order of that love which alone brings fruit and this is also the case with his spiritual sister slyness. For through it no one is impregnated with life nor can it achieve any impregnation towards life for itself as it is always, though in a way harmless and faultless, nothing but a fraud, always more or less annoying to the disappointed who will ask the harmless sly one: "Why did I have to be caught through slyness, be it though for a good end, and why was my brother sly towards me to achieve something good? Is not the good already good and does not need slyness in order to become good? Or am I or was I myself bad so that I had to be won for the good through slyness?
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If slyness is accessible to the bad, it must necessarily be bad itself; for if it were good the bad one would have fled it."
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Behold, in this way Seth acted towards Enos thinking that he was handling the matter very well But he became so entangled that if Asmahael had not interceded Seth would have appeared before his son in a very bad light. This will become evident through the guileless answer of Enos:
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"Dear father, why do you ask me something I wanted to and should have asked you? Truly, for quite a while already I had this question on my mind and was quite prepared to bother you with a question concerning Asmahael; however, you forestalled me.
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"But since in this respect the night is on my side and I cannot like a star shine before you who, as far as I know and feel, have daylight, or at least an early twilight, concerning Asmahael do give me some light out of your day.
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"You say yourself that all light comes from above. How am I now expected to shine upward to you from below?
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"Or should I carry on a futile and worthless conversation with you about something which for the greater part is still unknown and incomprehensible to me?
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"Look father, since it is worthwhile to speak about Asmahael I take the liberty of reversing the question. Therefore, be so good as to tell me, your son who before you is so poor and ignorant, the same you had expected to hear from me.
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"Actually it has always been the custom that in extraordinary things the children were instructed by their elders and therefore I have no intention of breaking this hallowed, old order, notwithstanding a little fatherly temptation, and happily expect now to hear from you, dear father, sufficient clarification in this respect with childlike gratitude.
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"O dear father, do not withhold it from me and give me a safe light! Amen."