These things were said by the Lord about departure, and after these words He departed, which John, repeating them, relates beforehand, having observed the hearts of those believing and guarding their confession. He was rebuking the withholding of confession as a terrible sin; for he said that those who do this reject faith in God; for one who has believed in him does not believe in someone else but in God, because, he says, the Father is seen in the Son. Therefore, it was not as when someone receives a servant and has received the one who sent him that he said that the one believing in him believes in God; for then the phrase, "he who sees me sees the one who sent me," would no longer follow logically; for faith in the servant, pushing past the servant, looks to the one who sent him, but he who sees the Father in the vision of the Son does not, by passing over Jesus, turn to the Father, but by remaining and standing in the Son he receives the Father. So the phrase, "he who believes in me does not believe in me," has its meaning up to the flesh and the human person. From this point, leading forward and raising up the hearts of men, he says, "he who sees me sees the one who sent me," that is, he who is able to recognize who it is that is visiting through the flesh and to grasp the intelligible and more beautiful vision, this one truly finds me, and in the faith toward me finds the faith toward the Father. It is therefore as if he said, he who believes in me does not believe in a mere man, but in the power of God, in which the Father is known and believed. 90 Jn 12:50 His words are also spoken with authority, because he is both creator and lawgiver to his own creations, inasmuch as he is the Word of God, "through" whom "all things were made," who has come "to his own" and speaks with authority, not as some minister of words given by God; for to none of such would "I say to you" be fitting, nor the juxtaposition with the laws of God; for placing alongside what was spoken from the divine person, "you shall not murder" and "you shall not commit adultery," he adds to each, "but I say to you"; nor is the legislation foreign to the Savior, nor does he speak from revelation, nor does he discourse on things commanded, if we understand his own and pre-eternal existence according to divinity.

91 Jn 13:1 The first and ready benefit is an example of surpassing humility and of the greatest love. He calls the passage from human lowliness to super-celestial glory a "passing over." 92 Jn 13:6-11 The washing of the feet here signifies the deeper meaning of the matter, which seems to be the preparation of the apostolic feet for the work of the apostolate; for he sends them out with their feet having been cleansed by the purity given by himself, so that they might be able to run through the world proclaiming the good news of salvation, according to the saying, "how beautiful are the feet of those who preach the gospel of peace." Therefore, he said that since they were clean in body, they now needed the cleansing of their feet, that is, so that they might not only be clean in themselves, but also be clean in their running as they convey purity to all people. But that they were not all clean because of the twelfth among them, who had all impurity in himself. 93

Jn 13:14-16 No one among men is a slave of any nature, nor does anyone naturally possess the power to send or to be sent, but God, who alone is Lord by nature as of his own creations, being above the servile nature, he himself alone is the sender of a nature that is above being sent. Here indeed it also appears impossible for slaves to surpass their lord and apostles their sender; for that which is greater by nature is not surpassed. 94 Jn 13:21 In these things both the cognitive and the

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ἀναχωρήσεως ταῦτα εἴρηται τῷ κυρίῳ καὶ μετὰ τούτους τοὺς λόγους ἀνακεχώρηκε οὓς ἐπαναλαμβάνων ὁ Ἰωάννης προϊστορεῖ τεθεωρηκότως τε τῶν πιστευόντων καὶ φυλαττομένων ὁμολογεῖν τὰς καρδίας. δεινὴν ἁμαρτίαν ἐξήλεγχε τὴν τῆς ὁμολογίας παρά στασιν· θεοῦ γὰρ ἔφησε πίστιν ἀθετεῖν τοὺς τοῦτο ποιοῦντας· οὐ γὰρ εἰς ἕτερόν τινα πιστεύειν ἢ εἰς θεὸν τὸν εἰς αὐτὸν πεπιστευκότα, διότι, φησίν, πατὴρ ἐν υἱῷ θεωρεῖται. οὐ τοίνυν ὡς ὑπηρέτην δεξάμενός τις ἐδέξατο τὸν ἀποστείλαντα, οὕτως ἔλεγεν τὸν εἰς αὐτὸν πιστεύοντα πιστεύειν εἰς τὸν θεόν· οὐκέτι γὰρ ἂν ἀκολούθως εἶχεν τὸ ὁ θεωρῶν ἐμὲ θεωρεῖ τὸν πέμψαντά με· ἡ μὲν γὰρ πρὸς τὸν ὑπηρετοῦντα πίστις παρωθουμένη τὸν ὑπηρέτην πρὸς τὸν ἀποστεί λαντα θεωρεῖ, ὁ δὲ ἐν θεωρίᾳ υἱοῦ πατέρα θεωρῶν οὐχ ὑπερβαίνων Ἰησοῦν ἐπὶ πατέρα τρέπεται, ἀλλ' ἐν υἱῷ μένων καὶ ἱστάμενος τὸν πατέρα λαμβάνει. ὥστε τὸ ὁ πιστεύων εἰς ἐμὲ οὐ πιστεύει εἰς ἐμὲ μέχρι τῆς σαρκὸς καὶ τοῦ ἀνθρωπίνου προσώπου τὴν δήλωσιν ἔχει. ἀφ' οὗ δὴ προάγων καὶ ἀναβιβά ζων τὰς καρδίας τῶν ἀνθρώπων ὁ θεωρῶν ἐμέ, φησίν, θεωρεῖ τὸν πέμ ψαντά με, τοῦτ' ἔστιν ὁ δυνάμενος ἐπιγνῶναι τίς ὁ διὰ τῆς σαρκὸς ἐπιδημῶν καὶ τῆς νοητῆς καὶ καλλίονος ἐπιλαμβανόμενος θεωρίας, οὗτος εὑρίσκει μὲν ἀληθῶς ἐμέ, εὑρίσκει δὲ ἐν τῇ πρὸς ἐμὲ πίστει τὴν εἰς τὸν πατέρα. ὅμοιον οὖν, ὡσεὶ ἔλεγεν, οὐκ εἰς ἄνθρωπον ψιλὸν πιστεύει ὁ πιστεύων εἰς ἐμέ, ἀλλ' εἰς θεοῦ δύναμιν, ἐν ᾗ πατὴρ γινώσκεται καὶ πιστεύεται. 90 Jο 12,50 Αὐτοῦ τὰ ῥήματα καὶ μετ' ἐξουσίας λαλούμενα, ὅτι καὶ δημιουργὸς καὶ τοῖς δημιουργήμασι τοῖς αὐτοῦ νομοθέτης, καθὸ λόγος ἐστὶν ὁ τοῦ θεοῦ, "δι'" οὗ "τὰ πάντα ἐγένετο" , ὃς "εἰς τὰ ἴδια" ἥκει καὶ διαλέγεται μετ' ἐξουσίας, οὐχ ὡς ἄν τις διάκονος τῶν παρὰ θεοῦ δεδομένων λόγων· οὐδενὶ γὰρ τῶν τοιούτων ἁρμόσειε τὸ "ἐγὼ λέγω ὑμῖν" καὶ τὸ ἐν παραθέσει τῇ πρὸς τοὺς θεοῦ νόμους· παρατιθεὶς γὰρ πρὸς τὸ εἰρημένον ἐκ θείου προσώπου τὸ "οὐ φονεύσεις" καὶ τὸ "οὐ μοιχεύσεις" ἐπιφέρει καθ' ἕκαστον τὸ "ἐγὼ δὲ λέγω ὑμῖν" · οὐδὲ ἀλλοτρία τοῦ σωτῆρος ἡ νομοθεσία οὐδὲ ἐξ ἀποκαλύψεως λαλεῖ οὐδὲ προστεταγμένα διαλέγεται, ἐὰν κατὰ θεότητα νοῶμεν τὴν ἰδίαν αὐτοῦ καὶ τὴν προαιώνιον ὕπαρξιν.

91 Jο 13,1 Πρώτη δὲ καὶ πρόχειρος ὠφέλεια ταπεινοφροσύνης

ὑπερβαλλούσης παρά δειγμα καὶ τῆς μεγίστης ἀγάπης. μετάβασιν δέ φησι τὴν ἐξ

ἀνθρωπίνης εὐτε λείας ἐπὶ τὴν ὑπερουράνιον δόξαν. 92 Jο 13,6-11 Ἡ τῶν ποδῶν νίψις ἐνταῦθα αἰνίττεται τὸ βαθύτερον τοῦ πράγματος, ὅπερ ἔοικεν εἶναι παρασκευὴ τῶν ἀποστολικῶν ποδῶν εἰς τὸ τῆς ἀποστολῆς ἔργον· κεκαθαρμένους γὰρ αὐτοὺς τοῖς ποσὶν ἀποστέλλει διὰ τῆς παρ' ἑαυτοῦ διδομένης καθαρότητος, ἵνα δὴ καὶ διαδραμεῖν δυνηθῶσι τὸν κόσμον ἐπαγγέλ λοντες τὰ τῆς σωτηρίας εὐαγγέλια κατὰ τὸ λεγόμενον "ὡς ὡραῖοι οἱ πόδες τῶν εὐαγγελιζομένων εἰρήνην" . καθαροὺς οὖν ὄντας αὐτοὺς τὸ σῶμα λοιπὸν δεῖσθαι τῆς τῶν ποδῶν καθάρσεως ἔφη, τοῦτ' ἔστιν, ἵνα μὴ μόνον εἶεν καθαροὶ καθ' ἑαυτούς, ἀλλὰ καὶ περὶ τὸν δρόμον εἶεν καθαροὶ διακομίζοντες πᾶσιν ἀνθρώποις τὴν καθαρότητα. εἶναι δὲ αὐτοὺς οὐ πάντας καθαροὺς διὰ τὸν δωδέκατον ἐν αὐτοῖς τὸν ἐν αὐτῷ ἅπασαν ἀκαθαρσίαν ἔχοντα. 93

Jο 13, 14-16 Οὐδεὶς οὐδεμιᾶς φύσεως δοῦλος ἐν ἀνθρώποις οὐδὲ φυσικῶς ἔχων τις τὸ ἀποστέλλειν ἢ τὸ ἀποστέλλεσθαι, ἀλλὰ θεὸς καὶ μόνος φύσει δεσπότης ὡς ποιημάτων ἑαυτοῦ ὑπὲρ τὴν δουλικὴν ὢν φύσιν, αὐτὸς καὶ μόνος ἀποστολεὺς φύσεως ὑπὲρ τὸ ἀποστέλλεσθαι ὢν αὐτός. ἐνταῦθα δὴ καὶ ἀδύνατον φαίνεσθαι τοὺς δούλους ὑπερβῆναι τὸν κύριον καὶ τοὺς ἀποστόλους τὸν ἀποστολέα· τὸ γὰρ φύσει μεῖζον οὐχ ὑπερβαίνεται. 94 Jο 13, 21 Ἐν τούτοις καὶ τὸ γνωστικὸν καὶ τὸ

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