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does he not ask from a father? What father does not give to a son? 3.179 And what son happens to be different from the nature of his father? And for this reason the Son, "the only-begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth," did not need the fullness, not being deficient in truth, but full of grace and truth. And he who is full both gives and is able to give; but he wishes to refer all things to the Father. For the Son glorifies the Father, the Father glorifies the only-begotten; "For I have glorified you on the earth," said the Son to the Father, and the Father said to the Son, "I have glorified you, and will glorify you again." For there is no division, there is no envy of Godhead. "Grant them, therefore, to have life in themselves." He who is life wishes to receive life from the Father and to give it to the disciples, being himself life, so that he might not divide the monad, so that he might not become a stumbling block to the Jews, so that the Jews might hear him asking from the Father and giving to his disciples. 30. How then does the Son ask the Father? As one who does not have and asks? No, but signifying the monad of the Trinity, which perfectly provides the gifts worthily to the one receiving. And so that he might signify that the Godhead is one, again in another place he no longer gives by asking, but by his own authority, as one who is a spring from a spring and God from God; "For he breathed on their face and said: Receive the Holy Spirit," and at another time "he lifted up his hands and said, Receive the Holy Spirit"; and he has life in himself, so that he may give to whom he wishes. "For as the Father has life in himself, so also the Son has life in himself." And you see that for the sake of honor toward the Father and for the sake of one unity and one doxology and that the disciples might not think that the only-begotten came to turn aside the minds of the believers from the God of the Law and the Prophets, for this reason, being God and foreknowing the malice of men, he sends his word as to the Father and gives the inalienable glory to the Father, so that Manichaeus might be put to shame for denying the Father, so that the disciples might learn that this is the Godhead in the Old and New Testament, so that the Jews might be ashamed that the only-begotten did not come to teach another God, but to reveal his own Godhead and that of his heavenly Father. "Grant them, therefore, to have life in themselves," and yet he himself was proclaiming this life. How then did he ask the Father to give them what he himself was teaching and giving? For later he defined life, saying, "This, he says, is life, that they may know you, the only true God." 3.180 31. Then Arius and his followers leap upon this phrase, as if having found something against the truth, because he said, "the only," he says, "true God." You see, then, that the Father alone is the true one. But we also ask you, what then do you say? The Father alone is the true one, but what then will the Son be? Is the Son not true? If the Son is not true, "our faith is vain, our preaching among us is vain," you will be found making the Son of God like, blaspheming among yourselves, the nameless and unlawful idols, of which the prophets have spoken * from the person of the deceived, as each of the prophets has made mention of this word * saying also that "our fathers have made for themselves false gods and the hills have become false." Is the only-begotten therefore judged thus among you, and do you think so shamefully concerning him "who redeemed you," if indeed he did redeem? You are no longer of his fold, denying your Savior and the one who bought you. For if he is not true God, he is not to be worshipped, and if he is created, he is not God. And if he is not to be worshipped, how then is he called God? Cease, you who are again working * the Babylonian nature, you who have raised up the image and the type of Nebuchadnezzar, you who sound * this much-rumored trumpet for the union of those who are at war, you who with musical instruments and with cymbals and with psalteries, through your erring words, to the fall of those
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παρὰ πατρὸς οὐκ αἰτεῖται; τίς δὲ πατὴρ υἱῷ οὐ δίδωσι; 3.179 ποῖος δὲ υἱὸς ἀλλοῖος τυγχάνει παρὰ τὴν τοῦ πατρὸς φύσιν; καὶ διὰ τοῦτο ὁ υἱὸς «μονογενὴς παρὰ πατρὸς πλήρης χάριτος καὶ ἀληθείας» οὐκ ἐπεδέετο τοῦ πληρώματος, οὐκ ἐλλιπὴς ὢν τῆς ἀληθείας, ἀλλὰ πλήρης χάριτος καὶ ἀληθείας. ὁ δὲ πλήρης ὢν καὶ δίδωσι καὶ δύναται δοῦναι· βούλεται δὲ πάντα ἀνάγειν ἐπὶ τὸν πατέρα. δοξάζει γὰρ υἱὸς τὸν πατέρα, δοξάζει ὁ πατὴρ τὸν μονογενῆ· «ἐγὼ γάρ σε ἐδόξασα ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς», ἔλεγεν ὁ υἱὸς τῷ πατρί, καὶ ὁ πατὴρ ἔλεγε τῷ υἱῷ «ἐδόξασά σε, καὶ πάλιν δοξάσω». οὐκ ἔνι γὰρ διάστασις, οὐκ ἔνι φθόνος θεότητος. «δὸς οὖν αὐτοῖς ἔχειν ζωὴν ἐν ἑαυτοῖς». ὁ ζωὴ ὢν ζωὴν θέλει παρὰ πατρὸς λαμβάνειν καὶ διδόναι τοῖς μαθηταῖς, αὐτὸς ὢν ζωή, ἵνα μὴ διέλῃ τὴν μονάδα, ἵνα μὴ σκῶλος γένηται τοῖς Ἰουδαίοις, ἵνα ἀκούσωσιν οἱ Ἰουδαῖοι παρὰ τοῦ πατρὸς αἰτοῦντα καὶ διδόντα τοῖς αὐτοῦ μαθηταῖς. 30. Πῶς οὖν αἰτεῖ τὸν πατέρα ὁ υἱός; ὡς μὴ ἔχων καὶ αἰτῶν; οὐχί, ἀλλὰ τὴν μονάδα τῆς τριάδος σημαίνων, τελείως παρέχουσαν τῷ λαμβάνοντι τὰ δῶρα ἀξίως. ἵνα δὲ σημάνῃ ὅτι μία ἐστὶν ἡ θεότης, πάλιν ἐν ἄλλῳ τόπῳ οὐκέτι αἰτούμενος δίδωσιν, ἀλλ' αὐθεντίᾳ τὰ ἴδια, ὡς πηγὴ ὢν ἀπὸ πηγῆς καὶ θεὸς ὢν ἐκ θεοῦ· «ἐνεφύσησεν γὰρ εἰς τὸ πρόσωπον αὐτῶν καὶ εἶπε· λάβετε πνεῦμα ἅγιον», καὶ ἄλλοτε «ἐπῇρε τὰς χεῖρας καὶ εἶπε λάβετε πνεῦμα ἅγιον»· καὶ ἔχει ἐν ἑαυτῷ ζωήν, ἵνα ᾧ βούλεται δοῦναι δῷ. «ὡς γὰρ ὁ πατὴρ ἔχει ζωὴν ἐν ἑαυτῷ, οὕτω καὶ ὁ υἱὸς ἔχει ζωὴν ἐν ἑαυτῷ». καὶ ὁρᾷς ὅτι ἕνεκεν τιμῆς πρὸς τὸν πατέρα καὶ ἕνεκεν μιᾶς ἑνότητος καὶ μιᾶς δοξολογίας καὶ τοῦ μὴ τοὺς μαθητὰς νομίσαι, μὴ ἀπὸ τοῦ θεοῦ τοῦ νόμου καὶ τῶν προφητῶν παρεκκλίνειν ὁ μονογενὴς ἦλθε τὰς διανοίας τῶν πιστευόντων, τούτου ἕνεκα, θεὸς ὢν καὶ προγινώσκων τὴν τῶν ἀνθρώπων κακοήθειαν, τὸν λόγον ὡς πρὸς τὸν πατέρα πέμπει καὶ τὴν δόξαν ἀναφαίρετον τῷ πατρὶ δίδωσιν, ἵνα Μανιχαῖος καταισχυνθῇ ἀρνούμενος τὸν πατέρα, ἵνα οἱ μαθηταὶ μάθωσιν, ὅτι αὐτή ἐστιν ἡ θεότης ἐν παλαιᾷ καὶ καινῇ διαθήκῃ, ἵνα οἱ Ἰουδαῖοι ἐντραπῶσιν ὅτι οὐκ ἦλθεν ὁ μονογενὴς διδάξαι ἄλλον θεόν, ἀλλὰ ἀποκαλύψαι αὐτοῦ τὴν θεότητα καὶ πατρὸς αὐτοῦ τοῦ ἐπουρανίου. «δὸς οὖν αὐτοῖς ἔχειν ζωὴν ἐν ἑαυτοῖς,» καίτοι γε αὐτὸς ἐκήρυττε ταύτην τὴν ζωήν. πῶς οὖν τὸν πατέρα ᾔτει, ἵνα δῷ αὐτοῖς ὃ αὐτὸς ἐδίδασκε καὶ ἐδίδου; τὴν γὰρ ζωὴν ὕστερον ἀπεφήνατο λέγων «αὕτη, φησίν, ἐστὶν ἡ ζωή, ἵνα γινώσκωσί σε τὸν μόνον ἀληθινὸν θεόν». 3.180 31. Εἶτα ὁ Ἄρειος καὶ οἱ ἀπ' αὐτοῦ ἀναπηδῶσι διὰ τῆς λέξεως, ὥς τι κατὰ τῆς ἀληθείας εὑράμενοι, ὅτι εἶπε «τὸν μόνον», φησί, «ἀληθινὸν θεόν». ὁρᾷς τοίνυν ὅτι μόνος ἐστὶν ὁ πατὴρ ὁ ἀληθινός. ἐρωτῶμεν δὲ ὑμᾶς καὶ αὐτοί, τί οὖν φατέ; μόνος ἐστὶν ὁ πατὴρ ὁ ἀληθινός, ὁ δὲ υἱὸς τί ἄρα ἔσται; οὐκ ἔστιν ἀληθινὸς ὁ υἱός; εἰ οὐκ ἔστιν ἀληθινὸς ὁ υἱός, «ματαία ἡ πίστις ἡμῶν, μάταιον τὸ ἐν ἡμῖν κήρυγμα», εὑρεθήσεσθε ἀπεικάζοντες τὸν υἱὸν τοῦ θεοῦ, βλασφημοῦντες καθ' ἑαυτῶν, τοῖς ἀνωνύμοις καὶ ἀθεμίτοις εἰδώλοις, οἷς εἴρηκαν οἱ προφῆται * ἐκ προσώπου τῶν ἠπατημένων, ὡς ἕκαστος τῶν προφητῶν τῆς λέξεως ταύτης ἐπεμνήσθη * λέγων καὶ ὅτι «ψευδεῖς ἐποίησαν ἑαυτοῖς θεοὺς οἱ πατέρες ἡμῶν καὶ ψευδεῖς ἐγένοντο οἱ βουνοί». ἄρα οὖν καὶ ὁ μονογενὴς παρ' ὑμῖν οὕτως κρίνεται, καὶ οὕτως αἰσχρῶς περὶ τοῦ «ἐξαγοράσαντος ὑμᾶς», εἴ γε ἐξηγόρασε, διανοεῖσθε. οὐκέτι δὲ τῆς αὐτοῦ ἐπαύλεώς ἐστε, ἀρνούμενοι τὸν ὑμῶν σωτῆρα καὶ τὸν ἀγοράσαντα ὑμᾶς. εἰ γὰρ οὐκ ἔστιν ἀληθινὸς ὁ θεός, οὔτε προσκυνητός ἐστι, καὶ εἰ ἔστι κτιστός, οὐ θεός. καὶ εἰ οὐκ ἔστι προσκυνητός, πῶς ἄρα θεολογεῖται; παύσασθε οἱ πάλιν τὴν φύσιν * ἐργαζόμενοι τὴν Βαβυλωνίαν, οἱ τὴν εἰκόνα καὶ τὸν τύπον ἐγείραντες τοῦ Ναβουχοδονόσορ, οἱ τὴν πολυθρύλητον ταύτην σάλπιγγα εἰς ἕνωσιν τῶν πολεμούντων * σαλπίζοντες, οἱ ἐν μουσικοῖς καὶ ἐν κυμβάλοις καὶ ἐν ψαλτηρίῳ διὰ τῶν πεπλανημένων ὑμῶν ῥημάτων εἰς πτῶσιν τοὺς