Dawn rising

XII

38. ...to sell the same fruit for money, so that he might take usuryprofiteering or excessive interest; here, exploiting spiritual gifts for financial gain from the precious tree. For this is what the Prince of Fierce WrathGerman: "Grimmigkeit." A central term in Böhme’s thought, referring to the harsh, bitter, and destructive quality of nature apart from God's light. demanded of his merchant, because the tree had grown in his territory and was ruining his field.

39. Now when the Gentilesoriginal: "Heyden." Those living in a natural, unredeemed state or non-believers. saw that the fruits of the precious tree were for sale for money, they ran in crowds to the merchant and bought the fruit of the tree; they even came from distant islands to buy there, even from the ends of the earth.

40. When the merchant saw that his wares were so valuable and so well-pleasing, he devised a scheme to gather a great treasure for his lord. He sent out merchants into every land and had his wares offered for sale and highly praised. But he falsified the wares and sold other fruit as the good fruit—fruit that had not grown on the good tree—simply so that his lord's treasure might become great.

41. But the Gentiles and all the islands and peoples who dwelt on earth were all grown out of the wild tree, which was both good and evil. Therefore, they were half-blind and did not see the good tree—even though it stretched out its branches from the original: "Aufgang" (Rising/East) to the original: "Niedergang" (Setting/West)—otherwise, they would not have bought the false wares.

42. Because they did not know the precious tree, which nevertheless stretched its branches over them all, they all ran after the merchants and bought mixed, false wares for good ones, believing they served for their health. Yet, because they all hungered so fiercely for the good tree that hovered over them all, many of them were made healthy by the great longing and desire they bore toward the tree. For the scent of the tree, which hovered over them, made them healthy from their fierce wrath and wild birth, and not the merchant’s false wares; this lasted for a long time.

43. Now when the Prince in the Darkness—who is the source of fierce wrath, malice, and destruction—saw that people were becoming healthy from his poison and wild nature through the scent of the precious tree, he became angry and planted a