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When Philip said to Christ, Show us Your Father, He says: Have I been with you so long, and you have not known Me, Philip? And yet there are some, even after these words, who separate the Son from Him who begat Him. And yet what greater nearness do you seek than this? For some from this saying have even fallen into the sickness of Sabellius. But let us, leaving aside both these and those, as transgressing from opposite extremes, see the precision of what was said. Have I been with you so long, and you have not known Me, Philip, He says? What then? Are you the Father whom I seek? No, He says. For this reason He did not say, You have not known Him; but, You have not known Me; showing nothing else than that the Son is nothing other than what the Father is, while remaining Son. But how did Philip come to this? He had said: If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also; and He often said this to the Jews. Since, therefore, Peter and the Jews had often asked Him who the Father is, and Thomas 59.400 had also asked Him, and no one learned anything clear, but what was said was still not understood, lest Philip seem to be importunate, and to be troubling Him by asking himself after the Jews, Show us Your Father, he added, and it is sufficient for us; we seek nothing more. And yet Christ had said: If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also, and through Himself He was revealing the Father; but he inverted the order, and says: Show the Father, as if he knew Him accurately. But Christ does not bear with him, but sets him on the right way, persuading him to learn of the Father through Him; but he wished to see with these eyes of the body, perhaps hearing concerning the prophets, that they saw God. But that was a condescension, O Philip. For this reason Christ said: No one has ever seen God; and again, Everyone who has heard and learned from God comes to Me. You have neither heard His voice, nor seen His form. And in the Old Testament, No one shall see My face, and live. What then does Christ say? Very rebukingly: Have I been with you so long, and you have not known Me, Philip? And He did not say, You have not seen Me, but, You have not known Me. Do I not wish you to learn, He says? I now seek to see Your Father; but you say to me, You have not known me? What consequence does this have then? A great one indeed. For since He is this, what the Father is, remaining Son, He rightly shows in 59.401 Himself Him who begat. Then, distinguishing the persons, He says: He who has seen Me, has seen the Father, lest anyone should say that He Himself is Father, He Himself is Son. For if He Himself were the Father, He would not have said, He who has seen Me, has seen Him. But why did He not say to him, You ask impossible things, and not according to man? For to Me alone is this possible. Since he said, It is sufficient for us, as if knowing Him, He shows that he had not even seen Him. For he would have seen the Other too, if he had been able to see Him. Therefore He said: He who has seen Me, has seen the Father. If anyone has seen Me, he will see Him also. But what He says, is something like this, that it is possible to see neither Me, nor Him. For Philip sought knowledge through sight; and since he thought he had seen Him, but wished to see the Father in the same way, He shows that he had not even seen Him. But if someone should say that sight here means knowledge, I do not contradict this either. For he who has known Me, He says, has known the Father. But He did not say this, but wishing to establish the consubstantiality He said: He who knows My substance, knows also that of the Father. And what of this? he says. For he who knows creation, knows God also. And yet all know and have seen creation; but not all know God. Besides, let us see what Philip seeks to see. Is it the wisdom of the Father? Is it the goodness? No; but what God is Himself, the very substance. To this, then, Christ answers: He who has seen Me. But he who has seen creation has not seen the substance of God. If anyone has seen Me, he has seen My Father, He says. But if He were of another substance, He would not have said this. And that I may also touch upon a cruder argument, no one who is ignorant of gold can see the substance of gold in silver; for one nature is not revealed through another. For this reason

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Φιλίππου πρὸς τὸν Χριστὸν εἰπόντος, ∆εῖξον ἡμῖν τὸν Πατέρα σου, φησί· Τοσοῦτον χρόνον μεθ' ὑμῶν εἰμι, καὶ οὐκ ἔγνωκάς με, Φίλιππε; Καὶ ὅμως τινές εἰσι καὶ μετὰ τὰ ῥήματα ταῦτα ἀποσχίζοντες τοῦ γεγεννηκότος τὸν Υἱόν. Καίτοι ποίαν μείζω ταύτης ζητεῖς ἐγγύτητα; Τινὲς γὰρ ἐκ τῆς ῥήσεως ταύτης καὶ εἰς τὴν Σαβελλίου νόσον ἐνέπεσον. Ἀλλὰ καὶ τούτους καὶ ἐκείνους ἀφέντες ἡμεῖς, ὡς ἐκ διαμέτρου παρανομοῦντας, ἴδωμεν τῶν εἰρημένων τὴν ἀκρίβειαν. Τοσοῦτον χρόνον μεθ' ὑμῶν εἰμι, καὶ οὐκ ἔγνωκάς με, Φίλιππε, φησί; Τί γάρ; σὺ εἶ ὁ Πατὴρ ὃν ἐπιζητῶ; Οὐχὶ, φησί. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο οὐδὲ εἶπεν, Οὐκ ἔγνωκας αὐτόν· ἀλλ', Οὐκ ἔγνωκάς με· οὐδὲν ἄλλο ἐμφαίνων, ἢ ὅτι οὐδὲν ἕτερόν ἐστιν ὁ Υἱὸς, ἢ τοῦτο ὅπερ ἐστὶν ὁ Πατὴρ, μένων ἐν τῷ εἶναι Υἱός. Πόθεν δὲ ἐπὶ τοῦτο ἦλθεν ὁ Φίλιππος; Ἔλεγεν· Εἰ ἐμὲ ἐγνώκειτε, καὶ τὸν Πατέρα μου ἐγνώκειτε ἄν· καὶ τοῖς Ἰουδαίοις πολλάκις εἶπεν τοῦτο. Ἐπεὶ οὖν ἠρώτησεν αὐτὸν ὁ Πέτρος πολλάκις, καὶ Ἰουδαῖοι, τίς ἐστιν ὁ Πατὴρ, ἠρώτησεν 59.400 αὐτὸν καὶ ὁ Θωμᾶς, καὶ οὐδεὶς οὐδὲν ἔμαθε σαφὲς, ἀλλ' ἔτι ἠγνοεῖτο τὰ λεγόμενα, ἵνα μὴ δόξῃ προσκορὴς εἶναι ὁ Φίλιππος, καὶ διενοχλεῖν αὐτὸν μετὰ τοὺς Ἰουδαίους ἐρωτῶν καὶ αὐτὸς, ∆εῖξον ἡμῖν τὸν Πατέρα σου, ἐπήγαγε, καὶ ἀρκεῖ ἡμῖν· οὐδὲν πλέον ζητοῦμεν. Καίτοι ὁ Χριστὸς ἔλεγεν· Εἰ ἐμὲ ἐγνώκειτε, καὶ τὸν Πατέρα μου ἐγνώκειτε ἂν, καὶ δι' ἑαυτοῦ τὸν Πατέρα ἐδήλου· ὁ δὲ ἀντέστρεψε τὴν τάξιν, καί φησι· Τὸν Πατέρα δεῖξον, ὡς αὐτὸν εἰδὼς ἀκριβῶς. Ἀλλ' οὐκ ἀνέχεται αὐτοῦ ὁ Χριστὸς, ἀλλ' ἐπὶ τὴν ὁδὸν αὐτὸν ἵστησι, δι' αὐτοῦ τὸν Πατέρα μανθάνειν πείθων· αὐτὸς δὲ τοῖς τοῦ σώματος ὀφθαλμοῖς τούτοις ἐβούλετο ἰδεῖν, ἴσως περὶ τῶν προφητῶν ἀκούων, ὅτι εἶδον τὸν Θεόν. Ἀλλὰ συγκατάβασις ἦν ἐκεῖνα, ὦ Φίλιππε. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο ὁ Χριστὸς ἔλεγε· Θεὸν οὐδεὶς ἑώρακε πώποτε· καὶ πάλιν, Πᾶς ὁ ἀκούσας παρὰ τοῦ Θεοῦ, καὶ μαθὼν, ἔρχεται πρός με. Οὔτε φωνὴν αὐτοῦ ἀκηκόατε, οὔτε εἶδος αὐτοῦ ἑωράκατε. Καὶ ἐν τῇ Παλαιᾷ, Οὐδεὶς ὄψεται τὸ πρόσωπόν μου, καὶ ζήσεται. Τί οὖν ὁ Χριστός; Σφόδρα ἐπιτιμητικῶς· Τοσοῦτον χρόνον μεθ' ὑμῶν εἰμι, καὶ οὐκ ἔγνωκάς με, Φίλιππε; Καὶ οὐκ εἶπεν, Οὐκ εἶδές με, ἀλλ', Οὐκ ἔγνωκάς με. Μὴ γάρ σε βούλομαι, φησὶ, μαθεῖν; Τὸν Πατέρα σου ἰδεῖν ζητῶ νῦν· σὺ δέ μοι λέγεις, Οὐκ ἔγνωκάς με; ποίαν οὖν ἀκολουθίαν ἔχει τοῦτο; Πολλὴν μὲν οὖν. Ἐπειδὴ γὰρ τοῦτό ἐστιν, ὅπερ ἐστὶν ὁ Πατὴρ, μένων Υἱὸς, εἰκότως ἐν 59.401 αὐτῷ δείκνυσι τὸν γεγεννηκότα. Εἶτα διαιρῶν τὰς ὑποστάσεις, φησίν· Ὁ ἑωρακὼς ἐμὲ, ἑώρακε τὸν Πατέρα, ἵνα μή τις εἴπῃ, ὅτι αὐτὸς Πατὴρ, αὐτὸς Υἱός. Εἰ γὰρ αὐτὸς ἦν ὁ Πατὴρ, οὐκ ἂν εἶπεν, Ὁ ἑωρακὼς ἐμὲ, ἐκεῖνον ἑώρακε Πῶς δὲ οὐκ εἶπεν αὐτῷ, Ἀδύνατα αἰτεῖς, καὶ οὐ κατὰ ἄνθρωπον; ἐμοὶ γὰρ μόνῳ τοῦτο δυνατόν. Ἐπειδὴ εἶπεν, Ἀρκεῖ ἡμῖν, ὡς αὐτὸν εἰδὼς, δείκνυσιν ὅτι οὐδὲ αὐτὸν ἑώρακεν. Ἦ γὰρ ἂν κἀκεῖνον εἶδεν, εἰ καὶ αὐτὸν ἠδυνήθη. ∆ιόπερ ἔλεγεν· Ὁ ἑωρακὼς ἐμὲ, ἑώρακε τὸν Πατέρα. Εἴ τις ἐμὲ εἶδε, κἀκεῖνον ὄψεται. Ὃ δὲ λέγει, τοιοῦτόν ἐστιν, ὅτι Οὔτε ἐμὲ, οὔτε ἐκεῖνον δυνατόν ἐστιν ἰδεῖν. Ὁ γὰρ Φίλιππος τὴν δι' ὄψεως ἐζήτει γνῶσιν· καὶ ἐπειδὴ αὐτὸν μὲν ἑωρακέναι ἐνόμιζεν, ἐβούλετο δὲ καὶ τὸν Πατέρα οὕτως ἰδεῖν, δείκνυσιν ὅτι οὐδὲ αὐτὸν εἶδεν. Εἰ δὲ λέγοι τις ὄψιν ἐνταῦθα τὴν γνῶσιν, οὐδὲ τούτῳ ἀντιλέγω. Ὁ γὰρ ἐμὲ γνοὺς, φησὶν, ἔγνω τὸν Πατέρα. Ἀλλ' οὐκ εἶπε τοῦτο, ἀλλὰ τὸ ὁμοούσιον παραστῆσαι βουλόμενος εἶπεν· Ὁ τὴν ἐμὴν οὐσίαν εἰδὼς, οἶδε καὶ τὴν τοῦ Πατρός. Καὶ τί τοῦτο; φησί. Καὶ γὰρ ὁ τὴν κτίσιν εἰδὼς, οἶδε καὶ τὸν Θεόν. Καίτοι πάντες ἴσασι τὴν κτίσιν καὶ ἑωράκασι· τὸν δὲ Θεὸν οὐκ ἴσασι πάντες. Ἄλλως δὲ, ἴδωμεν τί ὁ Φίλιππος ζητεῖ ἰδεῖν. Ἆρα τὴν σοφίαν τοῦ Πατρός; ἆρα τὴν ἀγαθότητα; Οὐχί· ἀλλὰ αὐτὸ τὸ τί ποτέ ἐστιν ὁ Θεὸς, αὐτὴν τὴν οὐσίαν. Πρὸς τοῦτο οὖν ἀποκρίνεται ὁ Χριστός· Ὁ ἑωρακὼς ἐμέ. Ὁ δὲ τὴν κτίσιν ἰδὼν, οὐχὶ καὶ τοῦ Θεοῦ τὴν οὐσίαν εἶδεν. Εἴ τις εἶδεν ἐμὲ, τὸν Πατέρα μου εἶδε. φησίν. Εἰ δὲ ἑτέρας οὐσίας ἦν, οὐκ ἂν τοῦτο εἶπεν. Ἵνα δὲ καὶ παχυτέρου ἅψωμαι λόγου, οὐδεὶς χρυσὸν ἀγνοῶν, ἐν ἀργύρῳ τοῦ χρυσίου τὴν οὐσίαν ἰδεῖν δύναται· οὐ γὰρ ἄλλη δι' ἄλλης φαίνεται φύσις. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο