18. No man hath seen God at any time; the Only-begotten
Son, Who is in the bosom of the Father, He hath declared him. Because
the Evangelist had stated that grace and truth came by Jesus Christ, to confirm
his words he now adds, “I have said nothing unbelievable. Neither Moses, nor
any other man, ever saw God. As a servant, his task was merely to deliver the
written law. But Christ, the Only-begotten Son, Who is in the bosom of the
Father, not only sees God, but declares and explains God to all men. Therefore,
because He is the Son, sees the Father, and is, as it were, in the bosom of the
Father, He fittingly gave us grace and truth.” Perhaps someone will ask, “How
is it that we read here that no man has seen, God, when the prophet says, I
saw the Lord [Is. 6:1]?” What the prophet saw was not the essence of God,
but a likeness [ομοιωμα]
and vision [φαντασια] of
it, as much as he had the capacity to perceive. And other prophets saw God in
other figures [τυπος].
From this verse it is clear that they did not see truth itself in these various
images, for God is single essence without form. Not even the angels see the
essence of God, though they are said to “behold His face,” which indicates
merely that God is always visible to them in some form. Only the Son sees the
Father; only the Son declares and explains Him to all men. When you hear, in
the bosom of the Father, do not imagine that God has a body or anything of
the sort. The Evangelist uses this word to show that the Word is the true Son
of the Father, inseparable and co-eternal. (Theophylact, The Explanation of
the Holy Gospel According to John [Blessed Theophylact’s Explanation of the
New Testament 4; trans. Christopher Stade; House Springs, Miss.: Chrysostom
Press, 2007], 25-26)
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