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names, so that from the names we might learn the identity. "For no one," he says, "knows the Son except the Father, nor does anyone know the Father except the Son." By saying "no one," he indicated creation; and creation being cast out, shows him who remains as superior to created things, and naturally united to the one who begot him. "No one knows the Son except the Father, nor does anyone know the Father, except the Son, and he to whom the Son chooses to reveal him." Let the enemies of the truth say how one must read the divine Scripture, whether to cherish the letter, or to investigate the meaning. If then they say the second, let them learn from what they say to do this also in their own problems, and to seek the true interpretation of things; but if they should say that the letter is sufficient for precise teaching, from the things set before us I will refute their understanding. For the Son is found to be unattainable, but the Father attainable; and the one incomprehensible, but the Father visible. For concerning himself the Lord Christ, having said, "No one knows the Son, except the Father," did not add, "and to whom the Father chooses to reveal him"; but having said, "Nor does anyone know the Father, except the Son," He immediately added, "And to whom the Son chooses to reveal him"; and not only has he made him able to be seen, 75.1164 but has also made the seeing dependent on his own authority. But even if they, to whom this is dear, should wish to be impious towards the Son ten thousand times, we will not tolerate accepting a blasphemous understanding concerning God and the Father. For we believe that the God of all is invisible and incomprehensible. For how could the incomprehensible Son be of one who can be comprehended? Likewise, therefore, we say that Father and Son are uncontainable, unattainable, and incomprehensible. But we believe that knowledge is revealed through the Father and the Son to the eye of the mind and by the contemplation of faith. "No one knows the Son, except the Father; nor does anyone know the Father, except the Son;" and elsewhere: "As," he says, "the Father knows me, I also know the Father." Not the one more, and the other less, but as I know, I am known.

XII. That the power of the Father and of the Son is equal. Of whom, therefore, the knowledge is equal,

of these the power is also equal; and of whom the power is equal, of these evidently the substance is also one. And that the power of the Father and of the Son is equal, the Savior himself taught us again, saying thus: "Those of my sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me, and I give them eternal life, and they shall not perish forever, nor shall anyone snatch them out of my hand. The Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of my Father's hand. I and the Father are one." You see how he did not simply set down "I and the Father are one," foreseeing the heretical malice, so that they might not take this utterance to mean in counsel and will; but having first established the equality of power, he then added this. For to the sheep, he says, that follow me I give eternal life, so that none of them shall perish forever. For who is so great as to be able to snatch out of my hand those shepherded by me? For just as it is impossible for anyone to overcome the right hand of the Father, who is greater than all, so it is impossible for any of those guarded by me to be snatched away. "For I and the Father are one." Where, then, is the greater and the lesser? For if likewise no one is able to snatch either from the hand of the Son or from the hand of the Father, the "greater" has no place. And since the Father is greater than all, no one is able to snatch from his hand. Therefore the Son is greater than all, since likewise no one is able to snatch from his hand. Therefore he added, "I and the Father are one." For if again we follow the letter, we shall see the Son placed first. "For I," he said, "and the Father," not "the Father and I". And having shown the duality of persons, he proclaimed the identity of nature. For by saying "I and the Father," the number

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ὀνόματα, ἵνα ἐκ τῶν ὀνομάτων μάθωμεν τὴν ταυτότητα. «Οὐ δεὶς γὰρ, φησὶ, γινώσκει τὸν Υἱὸν εἰ μὴ ὁ Πατὴρ, οὐδὲ τὸν Πατέρα τις ἐπιγινώσκει εἰ μὴ ὁ Υἱός.» Τῷ εἰπεῖν «οὐδεὶς,» τὴν κτίσιν ἐδήλωσεν· ἐκβαλομένη δὲ ἡ κτίσις, δείκνυσι τὸν μένοντα τῶν κτισμάτων ὑπέρτερον, τῷ δὲ γεννήσαντι φυσικῶς συνημμένον· «Οὐδεὶς γινώσκει τὸν Υἱὸν εἰ μὴ ὁ Πατὴρ, οὐδὲ τὸν Πατέρα τις ἐπιγινώσκει, εἰ μὴ ὁ Υἱὸς, καὶ ᾧ ἂν βούληται ὁ Υἱὸς ἀποκαλύψαι.» Εἰπάτωσαν οἱ τῆς ἀληθείας ἐχθροὶ, πῶς χρὴ τὴν θείαν ἀναγινώσκειν Γραφὴν, τῷ γράμματι στέργειν, ἢ τὴν ἔννοιαν ἐρευνᾷν. Κἂν μὲν οὖν τὸ δεύτερον εἴ πωσι, μαθέτωσαν ἀφ' ὧν λέγουσι, κἀν τοῖς οἰκείοις προβλήμασι τοῦτο ποιεῖν, καὶ τὴν ἀληθῆ τῶν πρα γμάτων ζητεῖν ἑρμηνείαν· εἰ δὲ φαῖεν ἀρκεῖν τὸ γράμμα πρὸς ἀκριβῆ διδασκαλίαν, ἐκ τῶν προκειμέ νων τὴν ἔννοιαν αὐτῶν διελέγξωμαι· εὑρίσκεται γὰρ ἀνέφικτος μὲν ὁ Υἱὸς, ὁ δὲ Πατὴρ ἐφικτός· καὶ ὁ μὲν ἀπερινόητος, ὁ δὲ Πατὴρ θεατός· περὶ μὲν γὰρ ἑαυτοῦ ὁ ∆εσπότης Χριστὸς εἰπὼν, ὅτι «Οὐδεὶς γι νώσκει τὸν Υἱὸν, εἰ μὴ ὁ Πατὴρ,» οὐκ ἐπήγαγε, καὶ ᾧ ἂν βούληται ὁ Πατὴρ ἀποκαλύψαι· εἰρηκὼς δὲ, «Οὐδὲ τὸν Πατέρα τις ἐπιγινώσκει, εἰ μὴ ὁ Υἱὸς,» Εὐθὺς προσέθηκε, «Καὶ ᾧ ἂν βούληται ὁ Υἱὸς ἀπο καλύψαι·» καὶ οὐ μόνον αὐτὸν θεωρητὸν πεποίη 75.1164 κεν, ἀλλὰ καὶ τῆς οἰκείας ἐξουσίας τὴν θεωρίαν ἐξήρτησεν. Ἀλλὰ κἂν μυριάκις εἰς τὸν Υἱὸν ἀσεβεῖν ἐθέλωσιν, οἷς τοῦτο φίλον, ἡμεῖς οὐκ ἀνεξόμεθα βλάσφημον ἔννοιαν καταδέξασθαι περὶ Θεοῦ καὶ Πα τρός· πιστεύομεν γὰρ ἀθέατον καὶ ἀπερινόητον εἶναι τὸν τῶν ὅλων Θεόν· πῶς γὰρ ὁ ἀκατάληπτος Υἱὸς ἂν εἴη τοῦ καταληφθῆναι δυναμένου; Ὁμοίως τοίνυν Πατέρα καὶ Υἱὸν ἀχώρητον εἶναί φαμεν ἀνέφικτόν τε καὶ ἀκατάληπτον· ἀποκαλύπτεσθαι δὲ διὰ Πατρὸς καὶ Υἱοῦ τὴν γνῶσιν πιστεύομεν τῷ τῆς διανοίας ὀπτικῷ καὶ τῇ τῆς πίστεως θεωρίᾳ· «Οὐδεὶς γινώσκει τὸν Υἱὸν, εἰ μὴ ὁ Πατήρ· οὐδὲ τὸν Πατέρα τις γινώ σκει, εἰ μὴ ὁ Υἱός·» καὶ ἀλλαχοῦ· «Καθὼς, φησὶ, γινώσκει με ὁ Πατὴρ, κἀγὼ γινώσκω τὸν Πατέρα.» Οὐχ ὁ μὲν πλέον, ὁ δὲ ἔλαττον, ἀλλὰ καθὼς γινώσκω, γινώσκομαι.

ΙΒʹ. Ὅτι ἴση τοῦ Πατρὸς καὶ τοῦ Υἱοῦ ἡ δύ ναμις. Ὧν τοίνυν ἡ γνῶσις ἴση,

τούτων καὶ ἡ δύναμις ἴση· ὧν δὲ ἡ δύναμις ἴση, τούτων δηλονότι καὶ ἡ οὐσία μία· ὅτι δὲ ἴση Πατρὸς καὶ Υἱοῦ ἡ δύναμις, αὐτὸς ἡμᾶς πάλιν ὁ Σωτὴρ ἐδίδαξεν οὑτωσὶ λέγων· «Οἱ ἐκ τῶν προβάτων τῶν ἐμῶν τῆς φωνῆς μου ἀκούουσι, κἀγὼ γινώσκω αὐτὰ, καὶ ἀκολουθοῦσί μοι, κἀγὼ ζωὴν αἰώνιον δίδωμι αὐτοῖς, καὶ οὐ μὴ ἀπο λοῦνται εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα, οὐδ' οὐ μή τις ἁρπάσῃ αὐτὰ ἐκ τῆς χειρός μου· ὁ Πατὴρ, ὃς δέδωκέ μοι, μείζων πάντων ἐστὶ, καὶ οὐδεὶς δύναται ἁρπάσαι ἐκ τῆς χειρὸς τοῦ Πατρός μου. Ἐγὼ καὶ ὁ Πατὴρ ἕν ἐσμεν.» Ὁρᾶτε πῶς οὐχ ἁπλῶς τέθεικε τὸ «Ἐγὼ καὶ ὁ Πατὴρ ἕν ἐσμεν,» προορῶν τὴν αἱρετικὴν κακοήθειαν, ἵνα μὴ ἐπὶ βουλήματος καὶ θελήματος ταύτην λά βωσι τὴν φωνήν· ἀλλὰ πρότερον τὸ τῆς δυνάμεως ἴσον κατασκευάσας, οὕτω ταύτην ἐπήγαγε· τοῖς γὰρ προβάτοις, φησὶ, τοῖς ἀκολουθοῦσί μοι ζωὴν αἰώνιον δίδωμι ἐγὼ, ὡς μηδὲν ἐξ αὐτῶν ἀπολέσθαι εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα· τίς γάρ ἐστι τοσοῦτος ὡς ἁρπάσαι ἐκ τῆς χειρός μου δυνηθῆναι τὰ ὑπ' ἐμοῦ ποιμαινό μενα; ὥσπερ γὰρ τῆς δεξιᾶς τοῦ Πατρὸς, ὃς μείζων πάντων ὑπάρχει, ἀμήχανόν τινα περιγενέσθαι, οὕτως ἀδύνατον ἁρπαγῆναί τινα τῶν ὑπ' ἐμοῦ φρουρουμέ νων· «Ἐγὼ γὰρ καὶ ὁ Πατὴρ ἕν ἐσμεν.» Ποῦ τοί νυν τὸ μεῖζον καὶ τὸ ἔλαττον· Εἰ γὰρ ὁμοίως, οὔτε ἐκ τῆς χειρὸς τοῦ Υἱοῦ, οὔτε ἐκ τῆς χειρὸς τοῦ Πα τρὸς, ἁρπάσαι τις δύναται, τὸ μεῖζον χώραν οὐκ ἔχει· καὶ ἐπειδὴ πάντων μείζων ὁ Πατὴρ, οὐδεὶς δύναται ἁρπάσαι ἐκ τῆς χειρὸς αὐτοῦ· μείζων ἄρα πάντων ὁ Υἱὸς, ἐπειδὴ ὁμοίως οὐδεὶς ἐκ τῆς χειρὸς αὐτοῦ ἁρ πάσαι δύναται· διὸ ἐπήγαγεν, «Ἐγὼ καὶ ὁ Πατὴρ ἕν ἐσμεν.» Ἂν γὰρ τῷ γράμματι πάλιν ἀκολουθή σωμεν, ὀψόμεθα τὸν Υἱὸν προτεταγμένον· «Ἐγὼ γὰρ, εἶπε, καὶ ὁ Πατὴρ,» οὐχ ὁ Πατὴρ καὶ ἐγώ· καὶ δείξας τὴν τῶν προσώπων δυάδα, ἐκήρυξε τὴν τῆς φύσεως ταυτότητα. Τῷ γὰρ εἰπεῖν Ἐγὼ καὶ ὁ Πατὴρ, τὸν ἀριθμὸν