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Fragments on John John 3, 13

A certain preeminence befitting God being indicated by the name of heaven according to "the heaven of heaven is the Lord's," he who later became the devil, looking towards the earth, being in heaven when he was holy, said, "I will ascend into heaven," as if he were somewhere below in relation to that heaven. Into the heaven so-called no one has ascended except the Son of God alone, since he alone has descended from there, being called Son of Man because of the economy. And even if the angels were seen by Jacob ascending into heaven and descending by a ladder, yet the vision is not said by Scripture to be about the aforementioned heaven.

2 ̣ 3, 35-36 These things are said concerning rational beings. And since among all these there are also those who have become worse, one must consider how these will have a state when they come into the hand of the Son, clearly having cast off the evil they had and taken up virtue; for one must not pay attention to the proposed sophisms, that "all things" means only those things possessing holiness. But not to have life is not the same as not to see it; this is shown from "you will see your life before your eyes" and "you will not believe." If someone were to ask about these things, what is worse? Whether not seeing life nor believing in it, or not having life, but seeing it? And someone might say that he who lacks both is worse than he who has one. But another might say that it is a lesser evil for one who does not see life to disbelieve in it; for there will be forgiveness for one who has this condition. But rather to be blamed is he who does not believe in life, although he is able to see it, with its beauty drawing him to assent.

3 John 4, 24 Since God is invisible, and the incorporeal follows immediately upon the invisible, therefore God, being incorporeal, is invisible. If this is so, being called spirit He would not be air in motion; for because "spirit" signifies a body among humans, it is not necessary that this is also signified in the case of God. Therefore, just as being called light, since He illuminates not sight but understanding, He is not a body, but an intellectual light, but also being called love, He is not a disposition, but a substance that loves what it creates and what it provides for, so being named spirit, He represents not wind, but an incorporeal and life-giving substance. And everyone who has learned that God is spirit, serving him spiritually in spirit and truth, no longer worships the God of all things in a typical manner. And he says "in spirit" in contrast to the letter, and "and in truth" in contrast to the type; for these were necessary for a time, but when the truth came, that is, the presence of Christ, all these things have ceased.

4 John 5, 19-21 If what is said by Jesus: "for whatever he does (it is clear that he means the Father), these things the Son also does likewise," has reference to the miraculous things done by him in the gospels, one must consider how the Father did these things. To which it must be said: since the Son, being consubstantial with the Father, has an operation inseparable from the Father's operation, being a spotless mirror, everything that the Father does, the Son also works at the same time and inseparably, and what the Son works, the Father immediately brings into existence, so that in this way neither does the Son do anything without the Father, nor the Father without the Son. This theory must also be applied to created things; for the Son does not give substance to some things while the Father creates others; for it would follow from this that there are two suns and that each of the beings is double, but created things do not appear to be so. the

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Fragmenta in Joannem Jo 3, 13

∆ηλουμένης τινὸς ὑπεροχῆς ἁρμοζούσης θεῷ τῷ ὀνόματι τοῦ οὐρανοῦ κατὰ τὸ "ὁ οὐρανὸς τοῦ οὐρανοῦ τῷ κυρίῳ" εἰς γῆν ἀφορῶν ὕστερον γενόμενος διάβολος ἐν οὐρανῷ ὤν, ὅτε ἅγιος ὑπῆρχεν, εἶπεν· "εἰς τὸν οὐρανὸν ἀναβήσομαι" ὡς κάτω που τυγχάνων ὡς πρὸς τὸν οὐρανὸν ἐκεῖνον. εἰς τὸν οὕτω καλούμενον οὐρανὸν οὐδεὶς ἀναβέβηκεν εἰ μὴ μόνος ὁ τοῦ θεοῦ υἱός, ἐπεὶ καὶ μόνος ἐκεῖθεν καταβέβηκεν, υἱὸς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου διὰ τὴν οἰκονομίαν καλούμενος. κἂν τοίνυν οἱ ἄγγελοι ἀναβαίνοντες εἰς τὸν οὐρανὸν καὶ καταβαίνοντες διὰ κλίμακος ὤφθησαν τῷ Ἰακώβ, ἀλλ' οὐ περὶ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ τοῦ προειρημένου ἡ ὀπτασία λέγεται τῇ γραφῇ.

2 ̣̣ 3, 35-36 Ταῦτα λέγεται περὶ τῶν λογικῶν. καὶ ἐπειδὴ ἐν πᾶσι τούτοις εἰσὶ καὶ χείρονα γενόμενα, ἐπίστηJoν πῶς ἕξουσι ταῦτα κατάστασιν ἐν τῇ χειρὶ τοῦ υἱοῦ γενόμενα δηλονότι ἀποβαλόντα ἣν εἶχον κακίαν καὶ ἀναλαβόντα ἀρετήν· οὐ γὰρ προσεκτέον τῷ τεθειμένῳ σοφίσματα, πάντα καλεῖσθαι μόνα τὰ ἁγιότητα ἔχοντα. οὐ ταὐτὸν δὲ τὸ μὴ ἔχειν ζωὴν τῷ μὴ ἰδεῖν· δηλοῦται τοῦτο ἐκ τοῦ ὄψεσθε τὴν ζωὴν ἀπέναντι τῶν ὀφθαλμῶν ὑμῶν καὶ "οὐ μὴ πιστεύσητε". εἰ ταῦτα ζητήσειέ τις, τί χεῖρον; πότερον τὸ μὴ ὁρᾶν τὴν ζωὴν μηδὲ πιστεύειν αὐτῇ ἢ τὸ μὴ ἔχειν ζωήν, ὁρᾶν δὲ αὐτήν; καὶ ὁ μέν τις ἐρεῖ ὁ ἑκατέρων λειπόμενος φαυλότερος τοῦ τὸ ἓν ἔχοντος. ἄλλος δέ τις λέξει ἔλαττον εἶναι κακὸν τὸ μὴ ὁρῶντα τὴν ζωὴν ἀπιστεῖν αὐτῇ· συγγνώμη γὰρ ἔσται τῷ τοιοῦτο ἔχοντι. ἐγκλητέον δὲ μᾶλλον ὄντος τοῦ μὴ πιστεύοντος τῇ ζωῇ, καίπερ ἰδεῖν ἱκανοῦ ὄντος, τοῦ κάλλους αὐτῆς εἰς συγκατάθεσιν ἕλκοντος.

3 Jo 4, 24 Ἐπεὶ ἀόρατος ὁ θεός, ἀκολουθεῖ δὲ εὐθέως τῷ ἀοράτῳ τὸ

ἀσώματον, ἀσώματος ἄρα ὁ θεὸς ὢν ἀόρατός ἐστιν. εἰ δὲ τοῦτο, λεγόμενος πνεῦμα οὐ κεκινημένος ἀὴρ εἴη· οὐ γὰρ ὅτι παρ' ἀνθρώποις σῶμα δηλοῖ τὸ πνεῦμα, ἀνάγκη καὶ ἐπὶ τοῦ θεοῦ τοῦτο σημαίνεσθαι. ὥσπερ τοίνυν φῶς λεγόμενος ἐπεὶ μὴ ὄψιν, ἀλλὰ νόησιν φωτίζει, οὐ σῶμα, ἀλλὰ νοερόν ἐστι φῶς, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἀγάπη καλούμενος οὐ διάθεσις ὑπάρχει, ἀλλ' οὐσία ἀγαπῶσα ἃ δημιουργεῖ καὶ ὧν προνοεῖται, οὕτω πνεῦμα προσαγορευόμενος οὐκ ἄνεμον, ἀλλ' ἀσώματον καὶ ζωοποιὸν παρίστησιν οὐσίαν. πᾶς δὲ ὁ μαθών, ὅτι πνεῦμα ὁ θεὸς πνευματικῶς λατρεύων αὐτῷ πνεύματι καὶ ἀληθείᾳ οὐκέτι τυπικῶς προσκυνεῖ τὸν τῶν ὅλων θεόν. πρὸς ἀντιδιαστολὴν δὲ τοῦ γράμματος τὸ ἐν πνεύματί φησιν, τοῦ δὲ τύπου τὸ καὶ ἀληθείᾳ· ταῦτα γὰρ ἕως καιροῦ χρειώδη ἦν, τῆς ἀληθείας δὲ ἐλθούσης ἤτοι τῆς Χριστοῦ παρουσίας πάντα πέπαυται.

4 Jo 5, 19-21 Εἰ τὸ λεγόμενον ὑπὸ τοῦ Ἰησoῦ· ἃ γὰρ ἂν ἐκεῖνος ποιῇ (δῆλον

δὲ ὅτι ὁ πατήρ), ταῦτα καὶ ὁ υἱὸς ὁμοίως ποιεῖ, ἀναφορὰν ἔχει πρὸς τὰ παραδόξως ὑπ' αὐτοῦ ἐν τοῖς εὐαγγελίοις γεγενημένα, ἐπιστατέον πῶς ταῦτα ὁ πατὴρ ἐποίησεν. πρὸς ὃ λεκτέον· ἐπεὶ ὁμοούσιος ὢν τῷ πατρὶ ὁ υἱὸς ἀχώριστον ἐνέργειαν ἔχει τῆς τοῦ πατρὸς ἐνεργείας ἀκηλίδωτον ἔJoπτρον ὤν, πᾶν ὅ τι ποιεῖ ὁ πατήρ, ἅμα καὶ ἀχωρίστως ἐνεργεῖ ὁ υἱὸς καὶ ὃ ἐργάζεται ὁ υἱός, εὐθὺς καὶ ὁ πατὴρ εἰς ὕπαρξιν ἄγει ὡς κατὰ τοῦτο μήτε τὸν υἱὸν ἄνευ πατρὸς μήτε τὸν πατέρα ἄνευ υἱοῦ ποιεῖν τι. ταύτην τὴν θεωρίαν καὶ ἐπὶ τῶν δημιουργημάτων ἐφαρμοστέον· οὐ γὰρ ἕτερα κτίζοντος τοῦ πατρὸς ἕτερα δὴ οὐσιοῖ ὁ υἱός· ἠκολούθει γὰρ τούτῳ δύο ἡλίους καὶ ἕκαστον τῶν ὄντων διττὸν εἶναι, ἀλλ' οὐ φαίνεται οὕτως ἔχοντα τὰ κτίσματα. τὸ