John Chrysostom, On John

of God. Christ says nothing, but he says it all. So also it happens in the case of the bridegroom. He himself says nothing to the bride for a time, but is present in silence, while others make him and the bride known, and others hand her over; she only appears, and he does not take her and depart on his own, but when another has given her over. But when he receives her having been given over, he so disposes her, as to no longer remember those who betrothed her. This also happened in the case of Christ. He came to betroth the Church; he himself said nothing, but only was present; but his friend John placed the right hand of the bride, by his words entrusting to him the souls of men. He, having received them then, so disposed them, as to no longer go away to the one who had entrusted them. 2. But not only this, but it is also possible to observe another thing here. For just as in marriages the maiden does not go away to the bridegroom, but he hastens to her, even if he is the son of a king, even if he is about to betroth some lowly and cast-off woman, or even a handmaid; so also it happened here. The nature of men did not ascend into heaven, but he himself came to this despised and lowly one; and when the wedding took place, he did not allow her to remain here any longer, but taking her, he led her up to the paternal house. Why then does John not take his own disciples aside privately, and speak with them about these things, and so give them to Christ, but says to them publicly with all, Behold, the Lamb of God? So that the work might not seem to be a contrivance. For if they had gone away, being called aside by him privately, and as doing him a favor, they might perhaps have quickly leaped away; but now, having accepted the following from the public teaching that took place, they remained firm disciples for the future, as having followed not for the sake of a favor to the teacher, but sincerely and looking to their own gain. Therefore, the prophets and all the apostles proclaimed him when he was absent; the ones before the presence in the flesh, the others after the ascension; but this man alone proclaimed him when he was present. Therefore he also calls him the friend of the bridegroom, since he alone was present at the wedding. 59.116 For he himself did and completed all things; he himself gave the beginning to the matter. And looking at Jesus walking, he says: Behold, the Lamb of God. He said this, showing that he bore witness not only with his voice, but also with his eyes; for he marveled at Christ, rejoicing and exulting. And he does not make his speech exhortatory for the time being, but only marvels and is astonished at him who is present; and he makes plain to them all the gift for which he came, and the manner of purification. For the lamb signifies both these things. And he did not say, He who will take, or He who has taken; but, He who takes away the sins of the world, as him who is always doing this. For not only then did he take them when he suffered, but from that time until the present he takes away sins, not being always crucified (for he offered one sacrifice for sins), but always purifying through that one. Just as, therefore, the Word shows us what is excellent, and the Son signifies what is different from the others; so also the lamb, and the Christ, and the prophet, and the true light, and the good shepherd, and whatever things may be said of him with the addition of the article, show the great distinction. For there were many lambs, and prophets, and christs, and sons; but he separates him from all of those by a great interval. And he made it secure not only with this article, but also with the addition of 'Only-begotten'. For he has nothing in common with creation. But if it seems untimely to anyone for these things to be said at the tenth hour (for this was the time of day then; For it was about the tenth hour, he says), such a person seems to me to be very much mistaken. For in the case of the many who serve the flesh, the time after a meal is reasonably not very suitable for any of the necessary things, because the heart is weighed down by food; but where there was a man who did not even partake of common food, but also the

τοῦ Θεοῦ. Οὐδὲν ὁ Χριστὸς διαλέγεται, ἀλλὰ πάντα ἐκεῖνος. Οὕτω καὶ ἐπὶ τοῦ νυμφίου γίνεται. Οὐκ αὐτός τι λέγει πρὸς τὴν νύμφην τέως, ἀλλὰ πάρεστι μὲν σιγῇ, ἕτεροι δὲ αὐτὸν δηλοῦσι καὶ τὴν νύμφην, ἐγχειρίζουσι δὲ ἕτεροι· αὕτη δὲ φαίνεται μόνον, καὶ οὐκ ἀφ' ἑαυτοῦ ταύτην ἄπεισι λαβὼν, ἀλλ' ἑτέρου παραδόντος αὐτήν. Ὅταν δὲ λάβῃ παραδοθεῖσαν, οὕτως αὐτὴν διατίθησιν, ὡς μηκέτι μεμνῆσθαι τῶν κατεγγυησάντων. Τοῦτο καὶ ἐπὶ τοῦ Χριστοῦ γέγονεν. Ἦλθεν ἁρμοσόμενος τὴν Ἐκκλησίαν· οὐδὲν αὐτὸς εἶπεν, ἀλλὰ παρεγένετο μόνον· ὁ δὲ φίλος αὐτοῦ ὁ Ἰωάννης τὴν δεξιὰν ἐνέθηκε τῆς νύμφης, διὰ τῶν λόγων ἐγχειρίσας αὐτῷ τὰς ψυχὰς τῶν ἀνθρώπων. Λαβὼν αὐτὸς λοιπὸν, οὕτως αὐτοὺς διέθηκεν, ὡς μηκέτι πρὸς τὸν ἐγχειρίσαντα ἀπελθεῖν. βʹ. Οὐ τοῦτο δὲ μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἕτερον ἔστιν ἐνταῦθα παρατηρῆσαι. Καθάπερ γὰρ ἐπὶ τῶν γάμων οὐχ ἡ κόρη πρὸς τὸν νυμφίον ἄπεισιν, ἀλλ' οὗτος πρὸς αὐτὴν ἐπείγεται, κἂν βασιλέως υἱὸς ᾖ, κἂν εὐτελῆ τινα καὶ ἀπεῤῥιμμένην, κἂν θεραπαινίδα κατεγγυήσασθαι μέλλῃ· οὕτω καὶ ἐνταῦθα συνέβη. Οὐκ εἰς τὸν οὐρανὸν ἀνῆλθε τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἡ φύσις, ἀλλ' αὐτὸς πρὸς τὴν εὐκαταφρόνητον ταύτην καὶ εὐτελῆ παραγέγονε· καὶ γενομένων τῶν γάμων, οὐκ εἴασεν ἐνταῦθα μένειν αὐτὴν λοιπὸν, ἀλλὰ παραλαβὼν, πρὸς τὸν οἶκον ἀνήγαγε τὸν πατρικόν. Τί δήποτε δὲ οὐ κατ' ἰδίαν λαμβάνει τοὺς μαθητὰς τοὺς ἑαυτοῦ, καὶ περὶ τούτων αὐτοῖς διαλέγεται ὁ Ἰωάννης, καὶ οὕτως αὐτοὺς δίδωσι τῷ Χριστῷ, ἀλλὰ δημοσίᾳ μετὰ πάντων αὐτοῖς φησιν· Ἴδε ὁ ἀμνὸς τοῦ Θεοῦ; Ἵνα μὴ δόξῃ συσκευῆς εἶναι τὸ ἔργον. Εἰ μὲν γὰρ παρ' αὐτοῦ κατ' ἰδίαν παρακληθέντες ἀπῄεσαν, καὶ ὡς χάριν αὐτῷ παρέχοντες, ταχέως ἂν ἴσως καὶ ἀπεπήδησαν· νῦν δὲ ἐκ τῆς κοινῆς γενομένης διδασκαλίας καταδεξάμενοι τὴν ἀκολούθησιν, βέβαιοι λοιπὸν ἔμενον μαθηταὶ, ὡς οὐ διὰ τὴν εἰς τὸν διδάσκαλον χάριν ἀκολουθήσαντες, ἀλλ' εἰλικρινῶς καὶ πρὸς τὸ κέρδος ὁρῶντες τὸ ἑαυτῶν. Οἱ μὲν οὖν προφῆται καὶ οἱ ἀπόστολοι πάντες ἀπόντα αὐτὸν ἐκήρυττον· οἱ μὲν πρὸ τῆς κατὰ σάρκα παρουσίας, οἱ δὲ μετὰ τὴν ἀνάληψιν· οὗτος δὲ μόνος παρόντα. ∆ιὸ καὶ φίλον αὐτὸν τοῦ νυμφίου φησὶν, ἐπειδὴ καὶ ἐν τοῖς γάμοις μόνος αὐτὸς παρεγένετο. 59.116 Καὶ γὰρ αὐτὸς πάντα ἐποίησε καὶ ἀπετέλεσεν· αὐτὸς τῷ πράγματι τὴν ἀρχὴν παρέσχε. Καὶ ἐμβλέψας τῷ Ἰησοῦ περιπατοῦντι, λέγει· Ἴδε ὁ ἀμνὸς τοῦ Θεοῦ. Τοῦτο εἶπε, δεικνὺς ὅτι οὐ τῇ φωνῇ μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ τοῖς ὀφθαλμοῖς ἐμαρτύρει· καὶ γὰρ ἐθαύμαζε τὸν Χριστὸν χαίρων καὶ ἀγαλλόμενος. Καὶ οὐ ποιεῖ τὸν λόγον παρακλητικὸν τέως, ἀλλὰ θαυμάζει μόνον καὶ ἐκπλήττεται τὸν παρόντα· καὶ τὴν δωρεὰν δὲ αὐτοῖς πᾶσιν ἐφ' ἣν παρεγένετο δηλοῖ, καὶ τὸν τρόπον τοῦ καθαρμοῦ. Ὁ γὰρ ἀμνὸς ἀμφότερα ταῦτα ἐμφαίνει. Καὶ οὐκ εἶπεν, Ὁ ληψόμενος, ἢ Ὁ ἄρας· ἀλλ', Ὁ αἴρων τὰς ἁμαρτίας τοῦ κόσμου, ὡς ἀεὶ τοῦτο ποιοῦντος αὐτοῦ. Οὐ γὰρ τότε μόνον ἔλαβεν ὅτε ἔπαθεν, ἀλλ' ἐξ ἐκείνου μέχρι τοῦ παρόντος αἴρει τὰς ἁμαρτίας, οὐκ ἀεὶ σταυρούμενος (μίαν γὰρ ὑπὲρ ἁμαρτιῶν προσήνεγκε θυσίαν), ἀλλ' ἀεὶ καθαίρων διὰ τῆς μιᾶς ἐκείνης. Ὥσπερ οὖν ἡμῖν ὁ Λόγος τὸ ἐξαίρετον δείκνυσι, καὶ ὁ Υἱὸς τὸ ἐξηλλαγμένον πρὸς τοὺς ἄλλους ἐμφαίνει· οὕτω καὶ ὁ ἀμνὸς, καὶ ὁ Χριστὸς, καὶ ὁ προφήτης, καὶ τὸ φῶς τὸ ἀληθινὸν, καὶ ὁ ποιμὴν ὁ καλὸς, καὶ ὅσα ἂν ἐπ' αὐτοῦ λέγηται μετὰ τῆς τοῦ ἄρθρου προσθήκης, πολὺ δείκνυσι τὸ διωρισμένον. Καὶ γὰρ ἀμνοὶ ἦσαν πολλοὶ, καὶ προφῆται, καὶ χριστοὶ, καὶ υἱοί· ἀλλὰ πάντων ἐκείνων αὐτὸν ἀφίστησι πολλῷ τῷ μέσῳ. Καὶ οὐδὲ τῷ ἄρθρῳ τούτῳ ἠσφαλίσατο μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ τῇ τοῦ Μονογενοῦς προσθήκῃ. Οὐδὲν γὰρ αὐτῷ κοινὸν πρὸς τὴν κτίσιν. Εἰ δέ τινι παρὰ καιρὸν εἶναι δοκεῖ, τὸ ὥρᾳ δεκάτῃ ταῦτα λέγεσθαι (καὶ γὰρ οὗτος ὁ καιρὸς τότε τῆς ἡμέρας ἦν· Ὥρα γὰρ ἦν ὡς δεκάτη, φησὶν), ἐσφάλθαι σφόδρα ὁ τοιοῦτός μοι δοκεῖ. Ἐπὶ μὲν γὰρ τῶν πολλῶν καὶ τῇ σαρκὶ δουλευόντων, εἰκότως ὁ μετὰ τὴν ἑστίασιν καιρὸς οὐκ ἔστι σφόδρα ἐπιτήδειος πρός τι τῶν ἀναγκαίων, διὰ τὸ τὴν καρδίαν τοῖς σιτίοις βαρύνεσθαι· ἔνθα δὲ ἀνὴρ ἦν οὐδὲ τῆς κοινῆς μετέχων τροφῆς, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὴν